Busy day

Today was one of those days that make you shout, "I do more before 10am than most people do in a day!" OK, maybe you've never shouted that yourself, but in the military we used to dog out the other branches that way. This morning the DH and I got up and went for a walk. We stopped at Starbucks about 2/3's of the way into our walk for breakfast. After we got home we proceeded to wash two out of three cars, clean all of our horse brushes and clean the driveway with a power washer. Whew!

Still no word from our Army soldier. Hope to get something in the mail this week or at the least a phone call.

Had a very cool thing happen yesterday. The daughter brought her bf (P) to dinner. We had ribs and filet mignon, mashed taters and corn, rolls, brownies and ice cream. It was a great meal. Before dinner we were all just sitting in the living room. I had just put down my latest scrap blanket so it was sitting close by. P asked me about it and Keith pointed to the stack of blankets on the hearth and said, "P, you wanna blanket?" P said he absolutely did. Well, I didn't push the issue - in fact didn't bring it up again. As they were getting ready to leave - some 3 hours later - he went over to the stack and picked one out. He looked at me and asked, "This one OK?" I was thrilled! It was my favorite blanket! I said, "Oh yes!" and he gave me this big ol' hug. On the way home the daughter sent me a text telling me how P had said it was an awesome blanket and that homemade things were the best. Did my heart good! With that thought I'll leave you with pics of my most recent 'planned' granny blanket for K & J who won our favorite diner. I hope to give it to them tomorrow or Wednesday.

SONG OF THE BLOG: "Do You Believe Me Now" by Jimmy Wayne. Yeah, it's country and yeah, it's a ballad. I know, I know.... Just give it a listen. I suffer through some of your music!

http://www.cmt.com/videos/jimmy-wayne/232975/do-you-believe-me-now.jhtml

Things I'm tired of...

1. 100+ degree temps.

2. Men always having to be mad at something.

3. No rain in Southern California.

4. Not winning the lottery.

5. Diets that don't work.

6. The radio playing the same crap over and over.

7. Never enough fudge on a McD's sundae.

8. My gray hair.

9. Gas prices, Jesse Jackson and El Torito's taking their twice grilled burrito off the menu.

10. Only 24 hours in a day.

SONG OF THE BLOG: "Shiftwork" by Kenny Chesney. I think when you hear it, you'll know why this is my song for the day... I can totally see myself with a cold drink, kicking back in a comfy chair, my toes in the sand and a floppy hat to block the sun's rays from my face. Any takers on joining me?

http://www.cmt.com/videos/kenny-chesney/191900/shiftwork.jhtml

PHOTO OF THE BLOG:

Etsy bitsy scarves & blankets?

I have been checking out the Etsy.com site.. I am going to think long and hard about posting some of my scarves and afghans. I have looked at every scarf currently listed and none of them resemble mine in the least bit. I have enough of an inventory to post at least 5 scarves. Afghans are a different story. I really don't have any in inventory. I am considering doing a military blanket as I didn't see any listed. I might be able to corner the market on that, although they would be special order and take a while to complete.

I thought today was Friday. I can't be disappointed its not since I'm not working and every day is Saturday. I was checking out the want ads and came across an ad that sounds interesting to me. Driver for an automotive store. There are a lot of pros to this type of work. 1) I love to drive. 2) They provide the vehicle. 3) I have an excellent driving record. The pay varies between $12-$15/hr. Not quite what I was making before, but I am no longer interested in that rat race. I'm going to mill this idea around for a bit in my brain housing group.

I am almost finished with the blanket for Kevin & Janice. I will post pics when it's done for you to check out. It has worked up so nicely and fairly quickly. I was never a fan of the granny squares before, but adding my touch to them has made them a little more interesting to me and I enjoy the constant color change. I have so much stashed yarn that this makes the perfect answer to work my way through it. There is a method to my madness.

SONG OF THE BLOG: "I Still Miss You" by Keith Anderson. Back to country.. I love Keith Anderson. He has good song choices and this one brings a tear watching the video. I took the song to mean someone missing an ex, but the video shows more as if someone has died. Changed my whole perspective of the song. You can check it out here:

http://www.cmt.com/videos/keith-anderson/227381/i-still-miss-you.jhtml

PHOTO OF THE BLOG: Keith Anderson ...

Back to reality

Ugh. Feels like a Monday even though it's already Hump Day. Got back from Vegas yesterday around 2ish. Had a great time even though we came back BROKE. That sucks. P&N (the couple we went with) were cool and the rooms at the Rio are amazing. It was a different trip as we ate at buffets all over town (my system needs to recover), hung out in old Vegas (love those $3 blackjack tables) thereby expanding our knowledge of things to do in Vegas. Now its back to reality!

Haven't heard from the youngest son. Hope to get a postcard in the mail with an address for him soon.

Today is our oldest's b-day.. 26. Wow, I still remember when I was 26!

Glad to have the AvMan back with us. We have missed you!!! :-)

SONG OF THE BLOG: "Harder to Breathe" by Maroon 5. Love this song. Every time it comes on my Ipod I crank it up.

Viva Lost Wages

Ten hours and counting... Remember? Our hosts pickup time for our mini vaca to the Rio in Vegas starts at 3:30AM Sunday morning. :-) Never been to the Rio, so looking forward to that.

They have an adult pool called the Saphire Pool. Apparently the women (guests as well as the cocktail waitresses) go topless. Told the DH I wasn't interested in baring the twins for all to grope with their eyes, but he was welcome to check it out. Oh and did I mention that'll cost an extra $100 in my gambling money? :-)

We now have two PCs in our house. We took the older Dell in to a local computer guy who cleaned the drives and reinstalled the original software package. We put it in the downstairs bedroom and with the help of NetGear, it's wireless and rocks. We decided not to move downstairs after all, so just moved the spare bedroom from upstairs to downstairs. It's pretty cool.

Haven't heard anymore from our youngest except for the quick call he made from Atlanta on his way to Fort Jackson. We expect to get something in the mail from him next. Hope he's doing well...

Talk to ya Tuesday when we get back from Vegas! Wish me luck!

SONG OF THE BLOG: "Love Remains the Same" by Gavin Rossdale

Some things in life are just too awesome

One of those "things" happens to be Mr. Raul Malo. Last night the DH and I made our way to the Coach House in SJC for his show. We arrived early and stood in line for about 45 minutes. That was unnecessary as we had dinner reservations so our seats were the same if we had arrived at 5 or 8. But the thrill of seeing Raul Malo made me get there early and it was worth it as we got to see/hear him warming up for a sound check. Wow. Anyway, we had dinner, couple of drinks, suffered through the opening band (who shall remain nameless) and then at 9:30 Raul came on stage.

I do not know how to describe this man. To say he is attractive is an understatement. To say he has charisma doesn't do him justice. To say he can play guitar like no other seems to short-change him. To say he can sing seems to be an insult. The man is amazing. I tried very hard to capture some pics for you. We had great seats, but there was a lesbian lovefest/birthday party table in front of us and although the security asks that you don't stand up and block everyone else's view with your mansized body, they did anyway.

Obviously these pics taken with my phone are horrible, but it was the best I could do. He played so well. I kept thinking while listening/watching him play guitar that I wish Birdman could have been there because I know he would have appreciated the talent. Every song he sang I knew by heart. I think the DH was surprised that I knew the words to even the Spanish lyrics, but I'll let you guys in on a little secret if you promise not to tell him. When I was 19 and in college in Mexico City I had a prof named Raul _ . I lost my virginity to Raul that summer. The songs I heard last night are just a sampling of the music I came to know and love. I think my favorite of the night was "My Shoes Keep Walking Back to You." I found this clip of the song on YouTube. You can see how much he loves what he does. Enjoy!

http://youtube.com/watch?v=o4dDo2wXbSk

Final pics from VQHA Event

Howdy! Just wanted to share some pics from Sat & Mon... Hope you enjoy them!

This is the Versatility competitors waiting for the cattle to be settled:

Here is one of the competitors coming to a slide stop during her reining portion:

This cowboy is showing his horses' ability to drive his cow in the working cow portion:

This is a cowboy crossing the water obstacle during the trail portion:

Here is a pic of the judges:

This is the pic of the top two finishers. The horse/rider on the right in this pic won the competition.

The saddle was the top prize for the winner:

I thought you might find this interesting.. This is how most of the people/horses roll to the competitions:

They have a raffle to raise money for their association. $5 got you one ticket to win the raffle. The prize was a two year old registered gelding and 3 months free training. If you didn't want the gelding they would give you $1000 instead. I thought I'd buy a ticket and if I won I would take the money. Then I made the mistake of going to see the gelding. Bad idea. Look how friggin cute this guy is!!! He is adorable and extremely friendly and he's also put together really nice. The drawing is on July 20th. I'll be in Vegas. Wouldn't it be a hoot if I got the call I'd won???

Yesterday I said goodbye to my son who left for Army basic. He is actually in San Diego processing and swearing in today. He leaves for South Carolina first thing in the morning.

Tonight is the All Star game. Tomorrow night Raul Malo.

SONG OF THE BLOG: "Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own" by U2.

VQHA Event - Day 1

This morning I arrived at the Southern California Equestrian Center in plenty of time to find a great spot and set up for the reining classes. The weather was absolutely perfect. Overcast and cool. I was right behind the two judges, so I could hear what they said about each rider/horse. I don't know a lot about reining, so this was the perfect scenario. I hadn't realized how high up on the ladder this particular show is for the QH community until I got there. I recognized six riders and four horses from QH magazines! I felt like I was in the "Hollywood" of the horse world. Hands down my favorite reining horse was this one:Not surprising at all, this is a top level reining horse named Shock N Awe. I do not recognize the rider. I'm hoping tomorrow I will see them run again in the Working Ranch Horse. This team did place 1st in their class. They were remarkable to watch.

Tomorrow I have to be at the event at 6:30 to catch the first run of the Open division. I have all day to stay and watch. I am taking a sleeping bag to lay on the ground, a folding chair, a cooler and other 'stuff' to make for a comfortable day. I'm so friggin excited!

In all the excitement I have forgotten to remind you all that the DH and I are going to see Raul Malo and his band on July 16th at the Coach House in SJC!!

SONG OF THE BLOG: "What the Cowgirls Do" by Vince Gill. Oldie but a goodie!!!

Damnit

Today is warmup at the horse park - competition starts tomorrow. So my oh so perfect 'horse' day didn't happen. The DH and I worked out a deal though. I will go tomorrow morning from 8:00 - 1:30. We have to move a desk for a client in the afternoon. Then on Saturday or Sunday I can go watch the competition again. :-) All is right in the world.

Now, what to do today...

I actually heard on the radio there is a slight chance of thunder showers today. Makes sense because yesterday was humid and I could feel something brewing in the air. It would be nice to get some showers. I am considering taking over the gardener job once our son leaves for Army basic training. We have a small front yard with a flower bed. I think I can handle that. I have some ideas for the flower bed. Rain + vegetation = lots of green stuff.

I doubt if you guys know this since you don't listen to country radio, but Jessica Simpson released a CD. The first song off of it is pretty darn good. So it's my SONG OF THE BLOG: "Come on Over" by Jessica Simpson.
http://www.jessicasimpson.com/

Interesting day

It's gonna be an interesting day. I woke up this morning feeling it and although I often want to run and put my head in the sand, I know I cannot do that any longer.



I am starting to finally ENJOY my time off from work. Yesterday I actually was quite productive and shampooed our family room and living room carpet. Looks much nicer now and has a cleaner feel to it. I will eventually get around to the path from the kitchen to the garage. That takes a little more coordination since it's a main thorough fair!



The youngest son leaves for Army basic training on July 14th. He selected NBC (Nuclear, Biological & Chemical) warfare as his job choice and is very excited about going and getting the heck out of town. He reminds me of me when I was his age. Couldn't wait to see what life had to offer.



Tomorrow I will be getting up early and going to the Quarter Horse event in Temecula. I am pretty excited about it. I love watching horses and this is a great opportunity to see a lot of things I haven't seen before. Well, I've seen it but never has the chance been available for me to seriously learn the horses/riders movements. It is supposed to last from 8-8. Not sure I will make it til 8pm but we'll see what happens.



We have a feeling it won't be long till our oldest is getting married - again. He met a nice girl in Phoenix named Kelly and they seem to be getting serious fast. As he describes it - "sometimes you just know". We are giving him a ration of crap for being so gay, but it's just his style. Anyway, we are already having to think about the possibility of attending the wedding and having to deal with DH's parents and their NBF, the DH's ex. Ugh.



The DH and I are headed to Vegas on the 20th. Some friends of ours are driving and provided us with a comp'd room. They always go to the Rio. We have never been there, so we are looking forward to it. They called last night to let us know what time they will be picking us up on Sunday. Ready? They are leaving their house at 3am to pick us up at 4am. I am not joking. They are serious. Apparently Nancy turns into a completely different woman in Vegas and her husband Phil puts her on a budget and they only go once a year so she doesn't want to waste any time. LOL We think it's hilarious and honestly could care less. We have our Jarhead friend down the street taking care of the horses and cats. We are set for a fun 3 days in Vegas!!



SONG OF THE BLOG: "Harder to Breathe" by Marroon 5.



PHOTO OF THE BLOG: My new pair of HD sandals. Only mine are black.

Fun Day

Howdy Partners! I'm feeling very cowgirlish today and for good reason! Your Mama brought her awesomely cute kids and niece out to see our horses this morning! We had a lot of fun!! I'm hoping she posts a link to the pics she took while her two oldest were riding our wild broncos. :-)

I completed a scrap granny square afghan and wanted to share the pics with you. I liked this one so much I have started another one - not scrap though - planned. Totally weird for me, but what the heck? You only live once, right? I already have made ten squares for the new blanket. I'm on a roll!

Thursday morning at 8am I am going to Temecula for an all day Quarter Horse event. It's a working ranch horse type of competition. I'm so excited about going and plan on staying from start to finish!! This is the type of competition I had in mind for Dolly & I. Technically it's not too late to train for them, so perhaps this will 1) motivate me and 2) give me some ideas on where I need to take her next.

SONG OF THE BLOG: "All I Want To Do" by Sugarland. Very cool song. Very cool video. I think this is a repeat, but too friggin bad. Deal with it!

PHOTO OF THE BLOG: Working ranch horse.

New Outlook

Greetings my fellow bloggers! As you can see I have been updating my blog. You guys know I can't go too long without changing my look.

I wish I could say I have been enjoying my time off 100%, but that is not the case. Oh let me count the ways things could be better... I hate sounding like a whiner and complaining. I mean, all things considered, my life is pretty darn awesome. Sometimes its hard to see what you have when you spend so much time looking/longing for what you don't. I am guilty of this.

When I turned 40 it was no big deal. I didn't even notice it. I am approaching #45 in September and suddenly I'm feeling...old? No, that's not quite the word I'm looking for... Limited? Maybe. You see, it's just that I feel like I have reached the halfway mark in my life and I am running out of time. I know, I know - 45 is hardly OLD and I don't feel old. Admittedly I think I have hit my midlife crisis. Yikes! Did I just type that for all of mankind to see FOREVER???

OK, so I have admitted THAT... Now what am I going to do about it? Well, for starters I am going to try and enjoy this time off from being in the workforce for a bit. The DH reminded me this is the first time really since I was 19 that I haven't been employed or seeking employment. It's not easy knowing what to do with my time, even though I am textbook OCD.

Wrider's To Do List:

1. Take a Harley safety course.

2. Buy a Harley.

3. :-)

SONG OF THE BLOG: "Don't Think I Don't Think About It" by Darius Rucker. Darius is "Hootie" of Hootie & The Blowfish fame. He recently released a country CD and this song is AWESOME. Totally suits me at the moment. Is it just ME or is he HOT??? Check out his MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/dariusrucker

PHOTO OF THE BLOG: This is what I'm talkin' bout!