Right Now

What would I do right now if I could?

Hmm ...

A lot of things suddenly pop into my head, but number one on my list would most definitely be digging around the old box in the kitchen, wrapping my fingers around my Honda keys and climbing into my little white car. Ah! But that's not so very exciting if one could do anything ...

But it really, truly is. Because in my little white car, I would go places. And the one place I'd really love to go right this very minute, would be a little tiny town that my boyfriend calls home. It's not a big or exciting place, but with him there's always something fun to do. * happy sigh *

America Runs on Dunkin ... Morning. Noon & Night.

I'm sitting here on the chair and a half, listening to randomness from the Phantom of the Opera soundtrack. I have yet to determine my opinion of the movie itself, but I found the soundtrack at the library this afternoon and thought I'd give it a go.

Yesterday we took our time cleaning two houses. Two houses never took so long to clean, I'm sure of this. But they looked crazy good by the time we walked out. You'd think I'd had enough Japanese for awhile having had it Wednesday with my grandma, but don't forget I raved over the stuff! So ... the girls and I went to the Mall and had Japanese for lunch. Do you have any idea how much fun it is to sit in the middle of the Food Court and watch all sorts of people while you eat? Pretty entertaining. * smiles *

Then we went to have a little look-see around the mall, because really if you're already there you should probably look around. Especially if you rarely make it into town anymore these days and forget what large crowds of humans look like, the way your heart drops when you look at a price tag or the ridiculous urge one gets to comment over the uniqueness of people's get-up (chains hang low, pants fall down, etc).

So we passed Motherhood Maternity a time or two before I peeked in the window and saw all manner of clearance signs, etc and had a very brilliant idea. One of my friends at church is expecting -- and she also happens to be my Secret Sister -- so it suddenly occurred to me "How insanely awesome would it be to get her something adorable and mommy-ish?"

After browsing the store for a good 10 minutes until I felt I'd flipped through every article of cuteness there was, and politely declining a fitting room to which the girls were all grins and snickers, I found The. Perfect. Dress. EVER! She's really going to LOVE it! * squeal. *

And today? Well today we had two houses but finished in a ridiculous amount of town just because. And they were small, and not hard at all. Like I said, I'm pretty much a creature of habit but on a rare occasion I really do get tired of normal things I eat -- like Subway or Pizza or even Chinese. We were over by the lake today and passed Dunkin Donuts. Don't have a heart attack, don't even smirk ... I'm sure you see where this is goin and really, donuts for lunch is a crazy idea but they were incredibly good.

I've NEVER in my life had a donut for lunch, and I wouldn't even do it everyday but today ... it was just so good. * smiles *

What's a Girl To Do?

Today was a pretty awesome day from beginning to end. Like from 7am to midnight. And yeah, I haven't gotten to midnight yet but who doesn't love turning into a pumpkin? Just kidding ...

I drove to town with my Momma, and cleaned two houses with my grandma while she went to the gymn. Thankfully, it wasn't too crazy hot because all the people were out of town and had jacked the air way up so it was a bit on the toasty-ish side. Ugh.

Oh and in between our amazing lunch of Japanese food  * happy sighs here * I drank an Iced Coffee which was almost like going to hmm ... Heaven? and back. I don't really know, but it was pretty awesome! So back to the Japanese. We are real creatures of habit -- we go to the Dragon Lady every Tuesday or Wednesday. It's not fancy or anything, just a little hole in the wall Chinese restaurant by the University where the food rocks and the prices are pretty much pocket change. But today we wanted something a little different, and seeing as how we were on the other side of town anyways, we went to the mall for Japanese.

Side note: It was awesome, right down to the veggies which I could eat almost everyday without getting sick. And just for the record, it's a lot lighter than regular Chinese food. I'm guessing 'cause it gets cooked right on the spot in like 3 minutes and the veggies are fresh, etc? Idk. I'm no expert. * smiles *

On the way home, I discovered that Momma had bought a bag of cherries. Really, I had no idea I was so in love with cherries until just last Fall. And now, they are a healthy weakness for me. I crave them like a preggo lady craves pickles & ice cream: like when I want them, I really truly must find some!! It's really altogether horrible.

So I ate 15-11 cherries and thought I'd die of a stomach ache if I didn't soon stop, so finally I did. And still I craved them. Go figure ... God did a real fine thing when he made cherries.

Then tonight at church, I got a bag from my Secret Sister with a very adorable | crazy practical | so ME! sort of thing. I drink water all the time, so I've usually got a bottle with me. She gave me the cutest polka-dotted Retro-y cup with one of my favorite verses on it.

"Make a joyful noise unto the Lord." Psalm 100:1

That's pretty much my day, and if I were given the choice, I'd definitely enjoy another time around!

It's Not Like Indiana Jones

As typical conversations go in our house, Mckenna and Joshua were talking.

Mckenna is coaxing Josh to go upstairs and get ready for bed. He's protesting which is pretty much an unusual thing for my little munchkin.

Mckenna: "Nobody's gonna break in, it's the top level. There aren't even any doors."

Joshua, in a very perturbed manner replies: "Mckenna. There's windows, duhhhh."

Mckenna: "Haha! Joshua, the only way they could get up there is with a ladder. And we'd hear them if they tried to do that."

Joshua: "They could with a whip."

Mckenna: "A whip?? Josh! This isn't like Indiana Jones!!!"

Joshua: "You'd be surprised with all the idiots out there these days ..."

And after hearing this, I died. I really and truly died right there on the spot because really, he says the funniest things sometimes. They're never planned or even expected. But he's always cracking his big sister up. And most times, he's so very serious about it.

So ... if everyday life was like Indiana Jones, people would break into houses swinging down from the roof on bull-whips and all manner of exciting stuff like that. Can you imagine? * winks *

Time's A'Wastin

This morning, I haven't got a whole on my mind. I just feel pretty blessed to be living the life I do! Sure, it's got a lot of ups and downs, but really ... it's Amazing!

I'm sitting here at the Kitchen Table, listening to music -- ever present wherever I am, because it's wrapped itself around every corner of my heart -- and just letting my mind wander. It feels kind of weird not to be working at The Chicken House anymore | being home everyday | eating supper with my family for the first time in a long while & not living in black and burgundy anymore. * smiles *

Sometimes, I miss the busy hectic schedule that I had for months on end. But this? This is pretty much fantastic, to be honest. I dont have crazy hours anymore, I'm a little more involved in what's happening around my house and that's exciting! Okay, I'm not even a fan of laundry but I do and I wash dishes and have time to flip through cookbooks and know I'm going to have time to make something.

Call me looney, but I'm really lovin' it!

And this morning, I took my siblings out for a walk and they thought it was the bomb diggity. I've never seen kiddos so thrilled to go out in the garden and pick beans in all my life! The deal was, after the gardening was done we could go for a walk. But then I got to thinking about it and my softy-little heart said, "Golly Molly, how awesome would it be if you took them on a walk first thing?"

So ... I did.

And they rode their bikes, and us older girlies alternated between walking and running alongside them. Joshy made every attempt to break the speed limit of 25 mph. He grinned up at me from his bike and said, "Bep! I'm gonna go like ... thwirty."

Lucky for me -- as I was running beside him -- he didn't quite make it up to Thwirty. * winks *

Today feels like the perfect day to let the music play randomly, enjoy the Sunshine and find a lot of good things to do. Yay!

One Man's Junk ... My Treasure

“You look like a hippie.”


“I know, isn’t it great?” I say, watching my sister finger the long yellow strings of my hippie-like striped top. We’re laying sideways across my bed, listening to random mixes of slow Jazz and an occasional classic. We’re wasting away our ridiculously HOT Saturday afternoon, watching as the sky plays tricks with our mind as it suddenly gets cloudy and winds begin to turn the leaves of our trees upward.

“I think it might rain.” I hope it rains …

As I said, it’s been ridiculously hot this week. The thing I have yet to understand is this thing they call heat index vs. the actual temperatures, they never seem to agree. Weather man says “High nineties tomorrow, but it’ll feel like 112.” Really? I’d rather just compare heat index with folks, tell it like it is ya know? Rather than saying “Man! It’s hot out today, feels like 105 but lucky for us its only 93.”

Hah! The girl thinks not.

It’s been awhile since I’ve blogged, and as I’m laying here John-Boy has gotten inside my head so much so that I can’t sleep. I close my eyes and the words just roll around my head, spinning themselves into something altogether lovely. Words that make beautiful stories, words that make lovely songs. All inside my head, and I’m watching them with my eyes closed.

I credit some of these words to the inspiration I felt walking downtown Scotty, in and around pieces of Antique furniture. There’s something about digging through shelves of colorful glass things and people’s old junk. One man’s junk is another man’s treasure, and in this case, it was my treasure.

If I had an empty room and a fistful of dollars, I would’ve bought a beat up old farm table, a squeaky rocking chair, 3 aqua mason jars with shaded silver lids and a magnificent French style bookshelf thingy -- that I’ve yet to determine exactly it’s purpose but fell in love with despite this fact. * smiles *

But a pocket full of change and a crowded little bedroom are all I’ve got for now, so I snatched up two of the most amazing signs my heart ever fell in love with. All in all, it was an awesome little adventure and definitely worth the hour we spent sweating up a storm digging through all that good stuff!

Apparently, the sky wasn’t playing games with my mind either. I was standing in the yard a little bit ago in between paragraphs and the skies broke loose with a crackle of thunder, a burst of lighting and an abundance of rain. My heart smiles from the inside out.

My signs. Aren't they awesome?!