September Acres

I checked this book out at the library yesterday. I am eager to start on it today. It is by Lauren Weisberger , the auther of "The Devil Wears Prada". I am hoping it will be just as page turning. I didn't read her 2nd book (how did that get by me?) but I will put it on my list. I just finished "Love the one you're with" by Emily Giffin , which I also got at the library. So I figure I have saved over $50 by getting these at the library. How frugal is that?? I figure I will need the extra $$ to pay my electric bill. It is so blazing hot here (112 today) and our lovely electric co just raised rates 20%. Ouch!! This is always done in the middle of the summer for some reason. I know this raise was approved by the Arizona Corporation Commission. I should be more informed so I know WHY they did it. I need to look into this because I always like to think these things are done for a good reason and no one is out to 'get us'. So before I rant to

Well, not really for us but according Phineas & Ferb there are. Some days I wish for more summer vacation and some days I am glad that school starts on Monday. Yesterday was a good day. Last night my daughter said "I had fun today even thought we didn't go too many places". We went to the post office to drop off mail (didn't get out of the car), vet and grocery store. She always wants to be on the go so I guessed this worked for her. Our trip to the vet was for different medicine for the pooch. First, since she has been back from the kennel she has had diarehhea so we got some meds for that - I was getting tired of cleaning that mess up. Second, she was put on a new anti-inflammatory since her old one was not working. Monday night was scary; she couldn't get up by herself and once we got her up she could barely walk. These new meds seem to be helping. She had a good night and things look good so far this morning. Today is my dad's birthday. We are havin

from General Hospital? Gosh, the hours I spent watching that show. I watched it during the first big 'Luke and Laura' era. Remember Bobbie Spencer? And Colton? And I think Jack Wagner was on GH too (before his Melrose Place gig). But I definitely remember Dr. Noah Drake (Rick Springfield). Rick Springfield was on Good Morning America today singing a song from his new album (out tomorrow) and he mentioned that he is on GH again!! It is tempting to start watching again. I am sure it would only take a few episodes to be right back in the swing of things. Apparently he has a recurring role. Maybe I'll tune in when I have some free time...

My daughter & I were up and out a little before 9 am and for all intents and purposes arrived home at 5:10 pm. We made 2 stops at home to drop off things and check on the dog but the rest of the time we were shopping ('errand' type shopping, not 'fun' shopping) or in the car. We did meet my husband and dad for lunch which was a nice break. I want nothing more than to go nowhere over the weekend (not going to happen as we need food). Didn't make it to the grocery in all that time. This is why we needed to check on the dog: the little bandages on her back paws are there because she had problems getting up in the kennel and rubbed her pads raw and they bled. Needless to say, she is having a rough time getting around. She will fall in an akward position and not be able to get up & she trips over anything that is in her path. I removed one of the bandages this afternoon but the paws were still bleeding so Dr Debra had to fashion a bandage for her using gauze and

We got a call at 6 am today that my Grandma had passed away. She was 91 and lived a full and happy life. Lots of friends and family. She was the nicest, kindest person. We will definitely miss her alot. She was a devout Mormon throughout her entire life so it seem fitting that she die on Pioneer Day . It was almost like she was waiting for this day. I don't think it has really hit me fully that she is gone. I know it will when I want to pick up the phone to call her the first time. My Grandpa is doing okay. He was exhausted from taking care of her these past few months but I know he wouldn't have done it any other way. He can now get some rest knowing that she is in a better place. This is a good reminder to us all not to take anyone or anything for granted...

Well, I cannot believe it is Wednesday evening. Where did the week go? Oh, I know. We got a call from my dad on Saturday at noon saying my Grandmother had taken a turn for the worse and he and my mom were going up on Sunday. After very little discussion, my husband & I decided to go also. We rode separately as my husband needed to get back to work and my parents weren't sure how long they would stay. We arrived at my grandparent's about 5'ish on Sunday (after an 8 hour trip). My grandmother was asleep and had not been awake since Saturday afternoon. She is on morphine (she is in alot of pain, probably from stomach cancer but it has never been diagnosed since she told the doctor that she would not be cut open to find out - my grandma is 91.) So they have been giving her the morphine every couple of hours to keep the pain from getting too bad so she is sleeping. When she wakes she is in alot of pain. We just arrived home this evening. As of today she is still s

I am so excited I can hardly contain myself!! I have been waiting for this movie. I have seen the musical 3 times so this is the next thing. It starts today at 2 pm! I think my husband and I will go this weekend. Maybe even tonight. Now, we aren't the types to go to a movie on the opening weekend - not big fans of the crowds. But he tells me last night that it should be okay to go since we are not seeing 'Dark Knight' or 'Hellboy'. I don't think he thinks it will be quite as popular as those. :) If you are not a fan of Abba you will probably still like the storyline. I have had more than one person say they enjoyed it despite the Abba connection. And if you LOVED Abba then you should really enjoy it. Well, I am off to look for a babysitter in a while...

The wet bar sink is still not in but the cabinet guys are coming tomorrow morning to put the counter in the hallway and put the slide outs in the pantry. Hopefully they are bringing the missing backsplash for the kitchen and I can post those pictures. The sink still might come in today. The only good thing about dragging this out is that we get to keep a hold on our money longer. :) The dining room is open to the kitchen. You can see a bit of the green wall. I am not painting that now but I thought new panels on the window might connect the 2 rooms nicely. I wanted chocolate silk panels (read: expensive and dry clean only) but I found 'faux silk' ones at Kmart in the Martha Stewart line (read: much less expensive and washable). So I got the faux silk ones and hung them yesterday for a trial run. I think I like them. My husband actually noticed them last night just hours after I hung them. A new record for him. We usually go days before he notices new things. So I will wash the

This has been the summer of old friends coming back to town. A few years ago, I went through about an 8 month period of friends moving (for various reasons). I was seriously starting to get a complex. This summer I feel better since two good friends have returned. One is here to stay for good, the other has purchased a vacation home. Whatever works, I say. These friends have kids my daughter's age and miraculously, they still seem to get along. They are really good moms who have the same philosophy on raising kids that I do. As my daughter gets older that seems harder to find. It's been fun catching up and getting together just like the 'old days'. Tonight I took my daughter to the library's reading program finale. It was our first time since it is in the evening and I am such a sleep nazi that I don't, as a general rule, take her out at night. It started at 6:30 and we got home a bit before 8. She was beat but had fun. They had prizes galore, sna

My husband and I watched "Vantage Point" last night after my daughter went to bed. Oh my, the showing of the same thing over and over was irritating to say the least. Luckily, we were able to fast forward it and keep the story going. The actual storyline was really good but I wish it had been told differently (but then the name of the movie would have to be changed!) Of course, anything with Dennis Quaid can't be too bad. He played a good guy, too. Forrest Whitaker was good, as always. And remember Matthew Fox from "Party of 5"? He played Quaid's colleague and turned out to be a bad guy. I figured this out fairly early on which is unusual for me. :) All in all it's a pretty good movie. I think if we were prepared for the 'Groundhog Day' -like aspect we might have not been as 'miffed'. But if you're prepared it's worth a watch.

The very first thing I heard when I turned on Fox News this morning was about the sad passing of Tony Snow. I knew he had cancer but it still came as a shock to me. I am still trying to digest it. Anyone who has spent any time watching Fox News will remember him as a wonderful host (the first) of "Fox News Sunday". That voice. It was so distinguishable; you always knew it was him even if you weren't watching. The world has lost one of the good guys (didn't this happen in June with the passing of Tim Russert, too?). Susan Estrich called Tony Snow a 'gem'. Even though I didn't know him I must agree. My thoughts and prayers go out to his family and friends.

My uncle used to tell a story about a vase he picked up for my aunt in Italy. It is beautiful, tall and was a perfect fit for the dining room so he thought she would love it. The vase itself cost about $100 or so. The vase arrives at home one day and my aunt loves it BUT... the new vase makes the table look shabby, so, voila they are the proud owners of a new dining room table that seats about 8. With the new table and the new vase the china cabinet looks a little worn. You see where this is going. So the new vase was the inspiration for the new dining room table, the new china cabinet and new carpet. The $100 vase has now cost my uncle $10,000! This is what we are experiencing here right now. We are getting new countertops, we have to get a new faucet, new R/O dispenser, new sink for the wet bar and possibly a new faucet for the wet bar, as well as paint and a few new pieces of tile for the floor. As if that weren't enough my husband thought we needed a new dining room table. This

After 10 years I have learned that this is a compliment from my husband when he is talking about dinner - particularly something new I made. So it went tonight. I made meatballs - not too challenging for sure but I have never made them before. I got the idea from a friend who was making them not too long ago when I dropped my daughter off for a playdate. I am really trying to expand our dinner selections. It was getting really bad there for a while (quesadillas, tacos, spaghetti, breakfast for dinner, etc) Tonight I made the meatballs, served them with rice and corn. Meatballs 3/4 lb lean ground beef 1 egg white 4 soda crackers, crushed 1 can cream of mushroom soup made according to soup directions on the can Mix first 3 ingredients together and form into balls. Cook in skillet until brown. Mix in soup. Cover & let simmer for as long as needed (I did about 2 hrs), stirring occasionally. Put soup in the same skillet you brown the meat in so any meat 'crumbs' will be