For me, tie dye is Always In!

Anyone who knows me can tell you that I couldn't care less about what is fashionably "in" or not, because I don't care. I like what I like, and I like what looks good. And I've always loved tie dye. We promised the kids to do a tie dye project last fall, so here we go...

brother Charles filling the dye bottles with water

sister Becky helping the kids get their t-shirts rubber banded and tied into the patterns they chose

Dylan and Chris making their colors on their shirts. all the kids picked their designs and color combinations, they did a great job

we also made one for little cousins Chase and Aiden, who couldn't be here. for all the other cousins who couldn't make it, there will be other days (see their shirts on the clothesline, further on down the page here)

we found that to wrap the t-shirts in plastic so they can sit overnight, it's easier to put them in a separate gallon-sized baggie and zip it closed, putting each person's name on the outside

here are some more, before we moved them to the next table

Tyler asking for assistance on how to put the colors in all the way

and here we go...for the final products!
Dylan and Scott with their artwork. Chris' wasn't dry yet

Tristian with his name across his

Tyler and Scott proudly displaying their shirts

Tyler and Scott washing out the excess dye

here they are, the ones for Chase and Aiden, hanging on Grandma's clothesline
I like all the patterns, but I think the spiral is my favorite

ahhh...now it's dry! and we even have a little one for the 18-month old toddler, Milton, next door

looked a little like we had a tie-dye booth ready for the street vendor sales

Dylan, Nate and Dylan all sporting their almost-dry shirts

the nice thing about projects like these is that there's always something to do, so everyone is not on top of everyone else. some played pass football/catch

Keith worked on replacing the bike tubes

Charles took turns helping grill burgers and hotdogs
Alyssa holding the baby...who actually does know how to walk but prefers to be held

Marc helped get the riding lawn mower running again

after all the shirt tie-dying was done on Sat (it's a 2-day process) and put in bags to sit overnight, we took all the kids rollerskating, and then went to their usual stop at I-HOP afterwards. since it's summertime, the roller rink was rather empty, which was really nice for all our kids. they had lots of room to run around, and even got to dance to some of the songs by DJ Becky and also play dodgeball after that.

Chris' first time ever on skates, before the wheels were tightened up...

are those the "splits" I see starting?

now we're cookin'! getting the hang of how to skate, and now even easier once he figured out h is leg movements and then with the wheels slightly loosened up
however many times you can go around the gym in 2 hours is how many times Chris made his rounds

everyone else was playing dodge ball as the night came to a close, except for our little guy (far back corner), he was not done skating! when we asked him his favorite part about the weekend, he said, "learning how to skate"

everyone was tired and ready for bed, including little Miss Maya, who, btw, never sleeps on a bed with anyone else

waiting by the cornfield

'tis the season for fresh produce! yum!!!
and, oh my, these are the BEST cherry tomatoes I've ever had!

I'm not sure how or when, but someone keeps hitting buttons on my camera, and then I find out the settings are off when the pics come back blurry...
but it's always nice to visit and stay here.
and we even got to mix up some snickerdoodle cookie dough before we left
unfortunately, Chris forgot to sing the song:
"Bake them cookies, Grandma!"
(I forget which recent cartoon/animated movie it's from...but it's funny! everyone thought Grandma was in the kitchen baking cookies, but if you peeked in, you'd see her hip-hop dancing all around)

and, alas, we brought our bathing suits and towels just in case, but we ran out of time to stop off at the beach on the way home.
next time!
it was a great weekend!

Sixty Nine Days!

and the countdown continues to shorten!

* * * 69 days until last day of homework and assignments * * *
(BONUS UPDATE: it is also today that Patrick Stewart turned 69 yrs old!)

69 days until... Freedom to clean house, work on fun projects, go on trips, to contemplate life, to live, to be free to focus on all that has been neglected -- withOUT the pressure of homework pending!

ahhhh.....the sound of sighs....only 69 more days
which will surely pass quickly

and now, back to my current paper that is due tonight by midnight, Phoenix time.
one of the more interesting assignments, but it doesn't help that I am Exhausted!
(what a week for no sleep...)

In Loving Memory

This page is short, but my memory and love for my Mother is not.

Today marks the 2nd year anniversary of the day she passed from this world, a day that is forever seared in my life, in the lives of many of us, certainly of her kids, grandkids, siblings, her own Mother, those close to her. A day that changed "life as we know it" but a reminder today that it is also a good day. In fact, it is a Great Day!

Mom, thinking of you, loving you, knowing you are "still here" and always will be...

Last year I discovered, the hard way, that there are those who wish honor this day "in their own private ways" and not as a part of a collective unit. This year, you got it! It does not mean that I don't care. It means that last year I was in a lot of pain and wanted to do certain things on July 9th, and found that I was almost all alone, lonely, and sad, on the first anniversary of her passing. Not really sure of what everything meant, dealing with the changing dynamics of certain relationships that hopefully will heal in time. This year, brings a whole new perspective on life. Maybe relationships will heal. Maybe they won't. Either way, I'm not looking back, and I'm okay. I do my best, and I will continue to be the best person I can be. A year ago I was dumbstruck that on the day that Mom passed, it also marked the significant shifting of so many other things that I was not prepared to face head on. It took me 2 years to realize all this, and on this very special day, I want to honor the woman who brought me into this life, and I will have a GOOD day today, and forever after.
I am going to have fun today, remembering the laughing and fun Mother that we all knew.

It's good to be aware!

Peace and love to you.
I miss you, Mom!

Fun with Numbers

okay, I think we have all heard about it, but here you again!

Happy 07-08-09!

Chris the Athlete!

what fun!

with "Dana Torres"

ok, ok...it was a photo op display at the Meadowlands Fair Day last weekend. BP Team Invigoratge (www.bpinvigorate.com) takes a set of pics and gives out free gas cards to those who participate. he liked it!

And now, the Dills!

This batch of pickles were Ros' choice, and neither of us had ever made them before.
Besides proper preparation of the recipes (for any canning), the next most important process is to make sure the jar lid and upper jar top is free of anything. Even the smallest debris could cause the jar not to seal.

Ros was way too fast for me. I had left to do homework while the cucumbers were still soaking in their brine. Came back to packed jars! Good work!
These jars have not been processed in the hot water bath yet.

hot water bath, I like the way the steam comes up over and around the jars

the finished product!
for dills, you have to wait about 2 more months for them to be ready for consumption

Next on the canning agenda: applesauce!
(but, not now, apples are not ready yet)

Mmmmm, bread & butter pickles!

My memory had erased any recollection of how this process occurred in days gone past. Good thing for old-tyme recipe books, especially the Grandmother kind! :)

* * *

wash and scrub

soak with green & red peppers, and onions in brine solution (coarse salt and water) and add in ice

after 3 hrs, cook with prepared spice and vinegar solution

properly load into jars, cook in hot water bath

not fancy, but they look and taste just right!

Thanks, Leonard, Linda & Grandma, for hooking us up with farm-fresh cucumbers!

* * *
The dills had to soak in a brine solution overnight, they will finished and canned tonight.
hints for doing dill pickles: either pick little cucumbers, or be prepared to quarter or slice the pickles, to be able to fit into canning jars. OR, plan ahead and order/purchase half gallon sized jars so you have them ready to load in large dills. we're going with the quartering and slicing options, since we can't find large jars locally.

(doesn't surprise me...they don't even have a Hancock's or JoAnn's Fabric store around here!
what kind of place is this, anyway?)