Archive for the ‘Everyday Stuff’ Category
Would you believe I got NO flowers after my surgery? I got plenty of get well wishes and even a few get well gifts but not even one bouquet of flowers – which actually would have been nice seeing that I was pretty much confined to one part of my house for a long while. Apparently I protested too well to folks: “No, no – don’t spend your money on me” and “Flowers just die in a couple of days anyway,” I said. Hmmph, won’t do that again.
The get well gifts were very thoughtful. Spa sets, a cheese basket (still puzzling over this one a bit but I LOVE the basket it came in – it was repurposed right away to hold Ava’s hairbows), and even a snack bouquet.
The snack bouquet was very cute but I think J enjoyed it even more than I did. I had to near fight him for the KitKat bar and he somehow managed to snag the oreos when I wasn’t looking. Although, in all seriousness, food wasn’t even the slightest bit interesting or appetizing at this point anyway (except for KitKat bars). I love the snack bouquet idea though and will definitely use this in the future. It looks pretty easy to make – sticks glued on to the backs of the packages and stuck into florist foam with a little bit of green cellophane arranged to look like grass.
But the best gift?
My visits with this little thing (especially once she decided she liked me again):
That’s the best medicine on Earth.
Clearly she has none.
When I asked her what on earth she was doing, she replied “Cleaning my toes, Mama.”
What could I do but laugh? She answered my question, didn’t she?
And then we had a chat about the appropriateness of putting our feet on the table…especially while eating. So far the message seems to have stuck, thank goodness.
We’re big BBQ fans around here but we pretty much mainly roll with the Carolina style – the more vinegar and hot sauce the better. None of this ketchup based stuff for us…with the exception of an occasional Pierce’s pulled pork sandwich and even then I’m usually grouching about how (too) sweet it is. My favorite local BBQ place is a family owned (near-literal) hole in the wall, complete with a plywood counter, where people line up outside to get food. They have to, considering it’s just about big enough for 3 customers inside at a time. It’s also in a not-so-good neighborhood yet you’ll see folks in business suits and driving $$$ German engineered vehicles standing alongside the blue collar and obviously unemployed people while waiting their turn. Yes, it’s that good.
Ava got her first taste of pulled pork and she quite liked it (despite it being store bought) once she got over that first unexpected tang.
She’s such a good eater. Not terribly picky and will try most anything even if it is spicy or heavily seasoned. Except lentils – she still won’t eat those (neither will I) and has literally thrown up every single time she’s ingested some (only twice).
After dinner and a bath, while getting ready for bed, she asked that she be allowed to sleep with Pooh and Mickey and Minnie. We knew this would be logistically impossible but we let her give it a shot.
While she had a blast with them, she ultimately decided on her own that they were space hogs and kicked them out.
But, sweet girl that she is, of course she kissed them goodnight first.
“A little Consideration, a little Thought for Others, makes all the difference.”
“If the person you are talking to doesn’t appear to be listening, be patient. It may simply be that he has a small piece of fluff in his ear.”
“Don’t underestimate the value of Doing Nothing, of just going along, listening to all the things you can’t hear, and not bothering.”
“If you live to be a hundred, I want to live to be a hundred minus one day, so I never have to live without you.”
All quotes courtesy of A.A. Milne.
We were sorting out her closet in a futile attempt to make room for all the clothes we knew were coming for Christmas when it somehow turned into a mini fashion show.
Although I’m still not quite sure what look she was going for.
Pimp? Heroin chic? Homeless?
Oh heck, what do I know? I’d live in jeans, sweaters, and long sleeve t-shirts (all black, of course) if I could. She could be the next hot thing in Haute Couture what with the leopard pattern (faux, as to not offend PETA), asian inspired silk pants and shoe, and the fleece robe complete with Mickey Mouse ears.
She designed it. My job was to photograph it.
“Take peek-tures, Mama.” So, I did. With my phone because the camera wasn’t handy.
I think this was the fashion model with attitude pose:
Then we got a close up of the hat and a slightly sweeter and more innocent face:
Wait – there were more models to photograph. She set up the shot just so and commanded me to hurry up.
Then a group shot designed solely, in my opinion, to show that she is clearly the most beautiful supermodel in the whole, wide world.
And then a tiny bit of goofing off with friends to end the long day of hard work.
