I am going to hell!

Okay...
I am going to Hell, because
I am proud
And PRIDE is one of the seven deadly sins!
So I thought that I would take the time to explain
In hopes that God will forgive me!

So here I go...(sorry this blog is photo-less, and you will understand as I go)

Niece #1 Gabe

She is 22 years old, gorgeous and bought her own house last year, works full time, goes to school full time, owns her own horse and picked the absolute right guy for her husband! (Just don't tell him, he might get a big head....just kidding Ant)

Nephew #1 Jarrett

While he has had some struggles finding his way, he has chosen his path, and leaves for boot camp on 10/5. When that is finished he will be attending E(Explosive) O(Ordinance) D (Device) training, and will be a part of the bomb squad. (This scares me to death, but I have faith in him and know he will do GREAT)

Niece #2 Dani

Just started in Middle School (or for us old farts, Junior High) in all A(accelerated) P(Uhhh...basically, the smart kids) classes. She is beautiful, sensitive and very caring. (well, except for her little brother, but that will change!)

Nephew #2 Lane

Started Kindergarten this year. Cute boy! Not afraid of anything! VERY outgoing! Went into Pre-K last year and introduced himself to the kids hanging on to their Mommies crying..."Hi, my name is Lane. Let's go have some fun!" He plays baseball and soccer and loves going to "big boy" school!

So you see my dilemma! I have a problem with one of the seven "deadlies"! So pray for me, and let's all hope that God finds a way to forgive me!

(I also have an envy problem, that involves Lu and Nancy, but that is another story!)

Then Now and OMG

I HATE Cleaning House

HATE it, I tell you!

There is a reason

It has to do with "allowance" and

we will get to that in a bit.

For some VERY strange reason

I have become a "clean-o-phile"

(is that even a word)

I am obsessed

Cleaning everything

Walls, ceilings, floors, carpets, toilets, sinks

Everything, I tell you!

For example, On Saturday

I whipped out my steamer

and steam cleaned the kitchen floor

then it wasn't clean enough, so

I went and bought vinyl floor stripper and stripped all the wax etc off the floor

THEN I steam cleaned it again

THEN I mopped it with disinfectant

Then I waxed it

It took me FOUR hours to clear a 12 X 12 room!

And it wasn't that dirty!

I also in this process ....had El Jeffe help me move all of the appliances

So the floor is cleaned under all of them!

So Help me GOD if someone so much as spills something on that floor

I think I will have to hurt them or hang myself!

Today, I scrubbed the oven...inside and out! And I am talking, scrubbed!

This sucker wasn't this clean when it was delivered and installed!

And I am steam cleaning all the bathrooms tomorrow

I clean them every week...unless I need to do it more often!

I do not recognize myself anymore!

What the heck has happened to me!

I have never been a person that felt the need to clean stuff, I knew if I worked hard enough I could hire someone to do that for me! (see I like this..but I forgot it!)

And here is where the then and allowance comes in...

I got fifty cents a week...here are my chores for that money!

1. clean and disinfect both bathrooms, toilets, baths, floors, sinks and mirrors (weekly)

2. Vacuum and dust the entire house.(weekly)

3. Wash and dry all the dinner dishes. (daily)

4. Muck out the horse stall and clean up the rabbit cages. (every other day)

5. Cook dinner (once a week)

Okay for fifty cents a week, plus having to maintain at least a B average (and trust me it had to be better or I heard about it) I think that was alot of chores for the money, since I was in HIGH SCHOOL at the time!

So, my back is killing me and my knees are raw from scrubbing...and I complain to El Jeffe about my plight...and in his infinite wisdom he says

"That's nice Sara, why didn't you hire a maid?"

OH MY GOD! (OMG moment!) (I think I also swallowed my tongue, but I can't be sure...it still seems to work pretty well)

So when my head stops spinning on its axis, I think I will write a new blog about the wonderful maid service I now have!

And just be thankful!

;)

Wheezer and "The Over-Achievers"

Remember these little Guys?
You know the Old Ladies Grow Tomatoes Post

Well They have been working overtime

Stretching their little roots in the dirt

And their leaves to the sun

If they were in school they would be getting an A+++++++

Ta Da.....

You'll notice that they are upto and curling around the roof! It is over 8' tall...WOW!

I think I'll say that again....WOW!

I have Roma's, baby yellow grapes, mini red cherries, BIG BOYS and baby red grapes .... LOTS of tomatos.

Since we just made MOUNDS of raviolis, I think I had better start using my oregano and basil and these little lovelies and start making and canning some Marinara Sauce!

Although, there has been some TLC on my part, and lots of dirtiness.....

I mean real dirt, not the implied kind!

You should see my knees...and the seat of my pants.....DIRT.... Lots of ......DIRT!

I am an old lady, growing tomatoes....and quite frankly, I am PROUD!

Big Red's Maiden Voyage

Okay so I have decided I am of the same mind set as my friend John C. from high school...


"Go Big or Go Home"!
(Thanks for this John!)



To begin to explain.... here is "Big Red"

Yes, the brand new Anniversary Edition RED Kitchenaid Stand Mixer I got for Christmas(with the pasta machine attachment). I love this mixer, it is the 2nd one I have owned, as I burned the motor out of the first one....making pasta!

El Jeffe LOVES ravioli's

HOMEMADE RAVIOLI!

He is the pasta dough MASTER! No one can compare!

El Jeffe's hand kneaded pasta dough! Beautiful, isn't it!

He has the patience (which I do not)

He has the dexterity (again which I do not)

He has a 6th sense when it comes to pasta dough (which I do not)

El Jeffe and the ravioli's!

I do however make very delicious fillings for these yummy little pillows!

Garlic roasted vegetable with basil, oregano and thyme (from my garden) and a 4 cheese blend! (our personal favorite)

Three kinds of mushrooms, sauteed, with shallots (not green onion, I mean SHALLOTS), garlic and fresh rosemary (from my garden), with a 4 cheese blend. (do you see the cheese pattern yet, I thought so!)

I forgot to take a photo of the ....wait for it....FOUR CHEESE blend with garlic and fresh herbs from the garden, cause frankly I was TIRED!

So, us making pasta is a TWO day event!

We make LOTS!

Miss Daisy even gets involved!

(Notice Miss Daisy has a glass of wine behind her....I was smart enough to hide mine!)

So There is lots of this going on

And lots of trays of these being made!

Here is the end result.....


13.5 DOZEN roasted Vegetable Raviolis
7.5 DOZEN mushroom
8 DOZEN 4 Cheese

WOW! 29 DOZEN raviolis!

Gee....I wonder what we are going to have for dinner?

Have a great week my friends! I will not be making pasta until after Christmas!

Memorial Day

This day is even more important to me now that it was 5 years ago. I will not do this very often, but I have decided to repost a blog from Real Widows webpage regarding their thoughts and feelings about this day. So to honor and remember my brother CW4 Richard Matthew Salter, all of the Fallen Soldiers and those that still serve to keep us free, please read below, with your hand over your heart, a prayer in your soul and a tissue in your hand! I still miss you everyday, Matt!














Every year at this time I fight with the idea that people tell me "Happy Memorial Day". People that know me, know what Ive gone through... still say it to me. Family still says it. For the rest who say it, do you think that there is anything "happy" at all about remembering all those who have died for this country? I blog about this every year and I dont think there will ever be a year that I dont. When I hear those three words my skin crawls.

"Happy Memorial Day"...it seems to just flow of the tongues of those around us. As though Memorial Day is just any other "holiday" to be celebrated with joy and happiness. When someone says "Hey Happy Memorial Day" what exactly are they so "happy" about? Maybe its the extra 20% or 30% they will get off beach towels at Macys, or maybe its the fact that they are off work, cooking out and not paying any attention to why they are really off work. Do these "happy" people take any time during their day off to share a moment thinking of those who paid the ultimate price for them to be off work and cooking out, or shopping "the big sale"??

Do people take the time to teach and show their children the importance of Memorial Day? Do they take them to a National Cemetery and show them all the lives that have been lost, tell them what that means for those who are still alive? Do they educate their children to show respect to those who have fallen for all the freedoms we take for granted every damn day? Do they just take a moment, a simple moment in their day to show that they care, or understand what the day is about?

My first Memorial Day I was not willing to admit that it had anything to do with Chris. We had always gone and placed flags at grave sites on this day. My first Memorial Day I did the same thing with Oliver and Owen in tow. But on that first one, there were more deaths. A CPT Alex Funkhouser was killed while in the line of duty not only to his country but to US reporters in Iraq. I knew that all that I had been feeling since January 5, his wife would now feel too. My heart broke for I knew every Memorial Day she would have a double heart wrenching reminder of her husband's death. I knew that she would face Memorial Day and the 29th of May, double days for her. Little did I know that this wife, now a new widow like me would become one of my best friends. Little did I know that she had two girls close to my two boy's age. Little did I know that our lives ran in such a parallel manner.

My second Memorial Day I took the boys and we went to Virginia to see Chris' mom. I wanted to spend this Memorial Day with Chris at Arlington. I wanted the boys to see that they were not only, not alone; but that they could still be near their father. As that day went on there were more cameras taking pictures of them by the Chris' grave.(One made it to the front page of the Washington Post the next day) There were families that just stood there, paying their respects and as the tears flowed down their cheeks they watched Oliver fix a flag by Chris' grave. They watched Owen pluck the heads of the flowers there and they watched a mother with tears in her eyes as she realized this was her reality, this was her life. Watching her two boys "play" with or by their father...the only way they ever would be able to.

As I looked around and saw their faces, their tears and their heads shaking back and forth; I realized that yes there are those out there that dont say "Happy Memorial Day", they come to Arlington to pay their respects to OUR fallen. They come to be with those who have paid the ultimate and spend time with their families. There was a father there, in uniform and beside him was his little son in BDUs. They stood at attention as TAPS played. I was so taken by this that I asked him why he does this with his son and he said "death is a part of life, death for your country is going beyond what life can offer" "I want my son to realize what this day is for. Not just a day off school or work, I want him to understand and respect the magnitude of what and who and why we have set this day aside to honor and remember those who have died in combat". I burst into tears, gave him a big hug and as I let go of him he and his son saluted the boys and I and then went to salute Chris. (Gosh I have tears running down my face typing this) I have never seen the true meaning in any one person's eyes of what Memeorial Day means to them then that of those eyes that day.

So I ask that if you dont know anyone who has been affected by a war death, to please at least teach your children what Memorial Day is for. Take them to a National Cemetary and place a few flags, go on and google Memorial Day, teach them about what this day means. This is just a small thing to do, teach your kids what this country is about, teach them why we need to stand up for it, love it, and protect it. That is the BEST way to honor our fallen, those who faught and died for what they beleived in. For those familieas that struggle everyday without their loved one, this is a small gesture for them too. It tells us that our loved one, did not die in vein. If you do know someone who has lost someone to a war, this one or any previous, please take the time to just tell them you are thinking about them, you are greatful and love them. But please dont say "Happy Memorial Day" to them...for us there is nothing "happy" about it.

To all my widsters that might read this, know that on Memorial Day, your Anniversaries and every day of the year, I think of OUR HEROES! I think about your families, your pain, your hearts your children and your happiness. For those who have lost a family member to previous wars, my heart and my thoughts are always with you too. Thank you for your loved ones service to our great nation, I am forever in their debt for their sacrafice.

May this Memorial Day bring you comfort in knowing that our Great Nation aknowledges and says "Thank You" for the sacrafice OURS and THEIR HEROES have made for us and them!

May we raise a glass to OUR HEROES! WE love you...We miss you...We are proud of you....We are forever YOURS!

Sick Husband Soup!

Okay folks, El Jeffe has a spring cold!

He is miserable

Nothing tastes good

And it is time for the complaints to come rushing forth from his flapping lips!

I have been a good spouse (good, mind you, not great, this from the flapping lips aforementioned) and I am trying to help him feel better with special "loving spouse delicacies".... so this is what I came up with

Sick Husband Soup



Start with

2 heaping tablespoons of "Lu's Yummy Goodness" or Better Than Boullion Chicken Base
Added to 6 cups of boiling water and whisk to blend well!

Then add 1 heaping teaspoon of minced garlic
And Rosemary, thyme and sage, chopped fine



Salt and Pepper to taste
Add your favorite premade Ravioli or Tortellini and cook to package directions


I used Buitoni Spicy beef and sausage raviolis

Next I washed, cleaned and chopped a bag of this

and added it to the simmering pasta

Add a can of Fat Free Evaporated milk
and 4 to 5 chopped sun-dried tomatoes packed in oil and a 1/2 teaspoon of the oil

Reduce heat to simmer, and check salt and pepper and reseason if necessary.

In the meantime toast in the broiler some Italian Bread (watch this closely or you will burn the first batch like I did!)



To assemble, ladle soup in the bowl, top with toasted bread, garnish with parmesean cheese, chopped green onion, red pepper flakes and more cracked black pepper and serve to the sick spouse!

Complaints have stopped and El Jeffe's tummy is full, however he did say it was too "herby" but he ate it!

Good luck and I hope it works for you too!

The ENEMY!!!!

I have been fighting this enemy for as long as I can remember!




The wonderful "sling shot" or "wrist rocket" ..... depending on where you are from...worked great in DC with the neon colored paint balls. (Then I used rocks and destroyed our backyard gas lamp.... twice) At least I could see which of these stinking bird seed snitchers I had actually hit with something!

But, they still stole the bird seed and destroyed my bird feeders...including the ones that claimed :"Squirrel Proof"!

Quite frankly... that Squirrel Proof is BS!

El Jeffe and I have greased the feeder poles and used vaseline and packed in all kinds of hot peppers! Those EVIL TREE RATS just licked their little paws and laughed!

so here are my newest weapons...


(The BB gun)

AND...




AND The furry weapon caught the tail of one the these nasty little suckers, and he has a "V" shaped tail.

Nothing seems to work...

They destroy all the pears in my tree... taking 1 bite and tossing the pear on the ground. THEN do it again thinking the taste will be different, until we have no more fruit!

I have stopped short of Just using the 22 rifle and making them go away..but times may be changing!

So...What do I do to STOP the tree rats...

Advice is requested...needed and most defintely REQUIRED!!!


HELP!!!!!