I had lunch with an Internet friend today

I've "known" Val for more than a decade from an email list we're both on.  She lives about 60 miles from here and we've met several times when she's been in town for one thing or another.  In fact, the first time we met in person was when she came to help me unpack boxes when I moved here.

We had lunch today at a sandwich shop we both like: delicious food and an even more delicious friendship.

Chicken pictures

I haven't posted chicken pictures in awhile.  This is a Plymouth Barred Rock and her name is Charlotte.  WHEN she feels like laying eggs, she lays brownish pink eggs with thin shells.  I'm hoping now that her molt is almost over she'll start laying again.

Keep Christ in Christmas

I realize not everyone who reads my blog is Christian, but Christmas started as a Christian holiday and I like it that way.

Do I also like Santa?  Yes I do.  I like both.  But I want to remember Christ first.

Meal Plan Sunday

Monday:  Saucy Beef Noodles

Tuesday:  Slow-Cooker Cheesy Chicken and Potatoes

Wednesday:  Sausage Tortellini soup

Thursday:  Root beer pulled pork sandwiches

Friday:  Pizza

Christmas Goodies

Take 5 fudge http://fieldsofcake.com/take-5-fudge-that-makes-you-wanna-take-6-or-7/
Break 'n' Bake cookies http://www.5dollardinners.com/homemade-break-n-bake-cookies/
Whole Wheat Pretzel Bites http://onceamonthmom.com/whole-wheat-soft-pretzel-bites/?utm_source=OAMM+Daily+Update&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=109bfc9026-RSS_EMAIL_CAMPAIGN
Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter granola bars http://beautyandbedlam.com/homemade-granola-bar-recipe/

Amazing Peanut Butter-Chocolate Molten Cake http://www.kraftrecipes.com/recipes/amazing-peanut-butter-chocolate-molten-107753.aspx?cm_mmc=eml-_-rbe-_-20121030-_-1020&cm_lm=16D00CF2183F958543FE0CEE732087F5
 

Everyone loves to celebrate a new baby!

And more gifts kept on coming!

Everyone is very happy for our friend and her husband.  They are really ready to become parents!

Busy weekend!

Friday morning:

*work

*2 dozen homemade cinnamon rolls, 1 for the PTA "teacher appreciation" luncheon, 1 for a visiting teaching brunch my friend and I put on for 5 of our friends

*brunch

*long afternoon nap--MAJOR rare luxury--as dh was home after another successful completion of a state inspection of his workplace

*homemade pizza dinner--I'd say we have some form of pizza 48/52 Fridays a year, almost always homemade

*Christmas shopping with dh--I still have a few things I need to pick up, especially for the girls, in order to have all gifts bought, wrapped, and ready on December 1.  This is not a chore; this is fun, as anything dh and I do together is fun. :-)

Saturday:

*2 of dd's friends will come over to play in the morning.  It's the first time for these friends.

*baby shower for a couple I don't know well, but who have waited far longer than they wanted to wait for a baby.  I'm really excited for them!  Gifts are in the house, but not wrapped yet.

*baking for tonight's activity.  I need 36 nice individual Christmas desserts.  They don't need to be large, but I want to think up something really good.  I'm thinking of one of these, which all came from the Betty Crocker recipe site.  Only problem is the cookies both start with a packaged mix and I don't think that will give the flavor I'm looking for.  I'm leaning toward the chocolate peppermint wedges.

*Progressive dinner with the High Priests at church.  That sounds kind of high-falutin' but it really isn't.  The High Priests are mostly the middle-to-older men at church and their dinners are usually fairly elegant affairs.  In addition to the HPs, there will be wives and older single men and women from our congregation.  We'll start at one house for appetizers, split up for dinner, then meet at a last house for dessert.  I haven't been to a progressive dinner in a long time and am looking forward to it.

There's more on Sunday (singing in church, work), but after the busy Friday and Saturday, Sunday really will be a day of rest.

A school field trip up the canyon

This canyon goes up the beautiful mountains that surround our city, but it's not just any old canyon, it is the ancient living place of Hohokam indians, natives of this area.  So this was a dual field trip.

The first part was a table learning activity.  Among other things, the children drilled holes in shells so they could be threaded into a necklace.  The children used a hand-powered drill called a pump drill because you pump it up and down with your hands.  The only thing different from what the Hohokam would have used is that this one had a nail imbedded in it as a drilling point.  I have two pictures that show how it was used.  Excuse Sophia's expression, she was focused and squinting from the sun.

The second part of the morning was spent learning about nature in the canyon.  We saw a road runner snap up a lizard for lunch, saw hawks' nests, a hummingbird nest, sand that was full of iron particles that could be pulled out with magnets, and a drying river (it's been very warm and dry here).  There was about a 15 food drop-off to the bit of remaining water, so the docents showed the children exactly how they could lie on the edge to look at the water below.  Do you think the children enjoyed doing this??

Good bye, Mother's Day gift

In May I received an ocotillo for Mother's Day, by request.  Ds planted it in the front yard where I could see it from the front window.

It never grew leaves or did any ocotillo-y things.

In August I pulled it out and took it back to Lowe's.  That was pretty awkward and not very fun.  I chose a really nice looking ocotillo to replace it, one with a better root system and a nice, full shape.

The receipt says August 10 is the day I made the exchange.  Do you know how hot it was here on August 10?  I don't have access to the records, but it was over 100F every day from May through September, so you get the idea.  That nice root system meant I had a pretty decent hole to dig in our concrete-like soil in the front yard.

I watered it, I watched it, I really had high hopes.  Nothing happened to it.  So today I gave it a return trip to Lowe's too.

Rats.

The latest and the greatest . . .

. . . really!  This is the latest phone in a string of phones since I have run the others through the washing machine, and it's the greatest because it cost me less than $10 to own it outright. 

Wouldn't you say that's the latest and the greatest?

~sigh~  I'm just happy to have a cell phone again.  And I'm almost ashamed to say this, but I'm very happy it's a Korean Samsung vs. the American Motorolas I've had to buy in the past with my phone company.  I expect an excellent phone this time around.

I'm also going to figure out T-9 texting.