Curse that First Round

I should immediately edit that to say "man or woman" learned to swear. If you were at TriCity from 4:15 to 6 p.m., that was me. Sorry if you had children with you!

But when the weather was this nice after our round, you know it was a great day to get that first, awful round in. 

I did a little bit of yard work after church until the next door neighbor spotted what he called a "very small" snake between our yards. That was enough for me to call it quits for the day and head to the safety of Mr. Deck Chair for a bit.

I swung over to the nearby book sale at the Kiwanis Club and found some things to inspire my sister Rachel. I also bought a few 50/50 raffle tickets and am so glad I answered that call from an unknown caller when we were about to tee off. I won!

Just enough to pay for my purchases plus the tickets. So basically a free day.

As for the golf part. Uff da. Definitely the first time in 8 months. We golfed with our friends Craig and Sara. And like me, Sara hadn't golfed much either. The guys have already started their league!

I'm thankful they put up with my pathetic performance but my impeccable use of some curse words.

About Bloomin' Time

It took awhile, but I finally had a day with no concrete plans! And even though Mr. Deck Chair was beckoning me for bonding time, I knew I had other outdoor non-fun to attend to first.

By 10 a.m. I was out there clipping weeds and hauling rock and doing some raking. And much to my sweaty pleasure... NO SNAKES!! I know! Let's celebrate!

When I was done with the hard part, I commenced to the second hard part – finding hanging baskets of flowers this late in the game. I know it's only the beginning of June, but that's late for that kind of search. I just didn't want to do it a few weeks back before I was gone a lot or when the weather was still too iffy going from cold spring temps to warm pre-summer temperatures.

Luckily, I did manage to find some left at Home Depot. Got the porch pot (above) taken care of and 5 hanging baskets out front.

I think with some water and TLC and they'll be fine. And yes, of course, you're seeing purple.

But to represent the current sports season, I got our respective flags up today, too. And yes, Jim is well aware of what the Brewers have been doing to his Reds this weekend. We're both still loyal. Though I realize I should get a matching flag with my Twins' World Series championship years, too. Both will be faded by end of summer anyway. The flags – hopefully not our playoff hopes!

The day didn't leave room for much else. Watched a little golf on TV. Hubby went golfing tonight with friends. And while I called my mom, I finally spent some time with Mr. Deck Chair.

About bloomin' time!

Yard Workers

My intention today was to do as little as possible. Just sit on my swing with my morning coffee and watch pretty birds...

And lazily watch the rest of animal kingdom hustle around and work. Eventually I had to join in.

Didn't help that I was staring straight at that "landscape area" (I use that term loosely) straight ahead. After that snake went in there 2 weeks ago, I haven't dared. But, since I had absolutely no plans for the day, I guilted myself into it.

I did work hard pulling vines and weeds from that area, plus right in front of the house, and yes, the dreaded back yard. Who else was working along side of me?

This bee was busy doing something something with his flower date.

And I wasn't the only hard-working Robyn! Look how much of a potential nest he or she is carrying.

Not sure how they could see to fly, but they flew off without dropping a "branch."

And Mr. Squirrel was working super hard at hiding his prized walnut or acorn or whatever. 

Oh there's a good hiding spot – right in the middle of the yard. Duh.

He was a digging maniac. Covering it up and like a cat rakes up litter.

Off he goes. "Nothing to see here."

Checks back to make sure no one followed him. Look at that left arm. It's like he works out or something.

Sylvester wasn't impressed. Naps are a much better way to spend a free Saturday. I agreed after seeing these two "ghosts."

This one I saw on my own free will.

This one scared a scream out of me when the rake caught it and I thought a snake was flying at me. Whew. It's just a skin. Apparently my back yard is clothing optional now.

Pretty sure that's not going to entice a crowd. Until every part of Freddie and Frankie are gone!

But there's still two more days of the weekend if you wanna come over!

Oh S-s-s-snap!

Warning: The following blog may contain graphic images that will either make your heart beat faster or possibly make you scream a little.

So after a lovely morning of church and editing racing photos, I headed to the Out Back again to tackle the remaining stumps and shrub root crap. If you recall, I was hoping to get this all done before bee and snake season started. Guess I missed that deadline.

Wasn't too far into my work today and was throwing a branch on my little pile when I came very close to this slithering friend in the grass. I screamed. Did an about face and ran up the little hill in the yard with a string of expletives behind me!

Since no one was around to rescue me, I tried talking myself believing he is harmless. Then grabbed my phone and snapped a few photos. Because he absolutely was not moving. Final warning!

Large and in charge and totally scream-worthy, right? I decided to call him Freddy – along with other F words – and figured I'd get right back to work. When I saw him slide inside one of the railroad tie steps, you can bet your ass I was on the lookout for a "S-s-surprise!" at some point in the next 4 hours. But nope, he let me get my digging done. Several roots looked like snakes, so they yielded little squeaky screams, but not too bad.

I had sent the picture to Carter and you would not believe what he sent back to me with the text caption: Like mother, like son – almost stepped on this rattlesnake today! (Final warning again!)

If you want to zoom in – which I wouldn't recommend – you can see the rattle tail! OMG! 

Another reason we never quit worrying about our kids. And here I thought he's only have to worry about elk out in Colorado. Carter just called, gave us a video tour of their duplex, and said they live in a very safe neighborhood. That just doesn't apply when they leave it and go hike in a canyon somewhere! (Note to self: This was in Eldorado Canyon State Park so don't let him suggest going there if we ever get out to visit.)

Oh and I wouldn't blame you for turning down invites to our backyard either. Ha.

But I'll leave you with two pretty images from the park so you won't think it was all rattle and ho-hum...

Be careful out there!

Four, Three, Two, One...

The astrology version of numbers people sure like special dates that appear to mean something. Today's date 4-3-21 looks like a countdown.

In my mind, I hear "4... 3... 2.. 1... Earth below us. Drifting, falling. Floating weightless. Calling, calling home..."

If you know '80s music at all, you'll recognize Major Tom. Here's my 45 of it to refresh your memory. Kids, we used to play smaller records on the phonograph at 45 RPMs so we called them "45s." There's your history lesson for the day.

Meanwhile in Vegas, I saw news reports that it was a popular – and potentially lucky – day today to get married. And meanwhile back in Wisconsin, it was a popular day to do yard work! 

Yup. That's real. A super springy day where we had windows open to clean inside, then commence to working or relaxing outside.

I decided to work on this little area of the backyard. Not so little, really. Every time I tried to rake it or trim things off last summer, I was met with either ground bees and wasps or snakes. So, no. Nothing got today.

Today I crossed my fingers that neither species was hibernating and now waking in that landscaping area. I survived unscathed. Well, except for feeling it in my arm and back muscles. I figured I better just do this area and leave the rest to another day or weekend. 

So maybe it IS a lucky day. No bees. No snakes. And tonight, no loss in Milwaukee for my Twins. Good to even that series up. Now will see what Easter brings... 

Besides peanut butter eggs, that is. Happy Easter! If you get to enjoy some family time, then tomorrow's lucky, too, no matter what the date!

Son-Day

The best part about today was not the sunshine, or birds tweeting, or final snowbanks melting. It was Carter. Whether he knew it or not, it was his day today. And he was busy.

We got to sleep in a bit since we had to go to 10:30 church instead of 8. Today was Youth Sunday and Carter got to be pastor for a day, sort of. He was listed in the bulletin as the "liturgist" so he had some speaking to do. It wasn't a huge deal since the younger kids helped lead a lot of segments -- like the prayers, creed, etc.

Still, he got to don the clergy robe and wear the cool wireless microphone he normally associates with the music concerts.

He was nervous before but he looks natural, doesn't he? Later he said it wasn't so bad.

He sits in the background with Pastor Jen listening to the "children's" skit. He can call them children when he is the old high schooler!

Here he is after the service with Pastor Josh, who somehow talked him into helping. There's no way he'd have done it if I asked!

Speaking of helping... Carter has actually done yard work the past two days. Normally, I don't think he'd do this unless there was a monetary reward involved. But he has it in his head he wants friends over for a birthday campfire one of these weekends and, if he wants to do that, we said he has to get the backyard in shape.

Today, he didn't even have to be told, he just went out there after church and got started.

Of course, it was a good way to get some exercise and some sunshine...

 

Plus, show off his pipes to anyone who may be looking ... or stalking him with a camera through the basement window!!

Later, when it was still Carter's Day, we had hubby's family over and celebrated Carter's birthday a few days early.

The thing about teen-hood is that there aren't many presents. It's just cards and that green stuff he can't get enough of.

We got him new baseball cleats -- the right size -- and a golf pass for one of the local courses he used quite a bit last year with a friend.

Here he is being an uncooperative scrapbook subject!

A little better but I think he is actually rolling his eyes.

Here I threw his familiar-looking cousin Colin in the photo to get them to smile, plus show why some people think they are brothers!

So what is that cake, you ask? It is actually called Chocolate Lasagna! Oh the yummy things you can find on the Internet these days!

Yes, it tasted as good as it looks. And surprisingly was not too rich. Just the right combination of yummy-ness. I will post the recipe in the coming days. I have some other variations in mind already.

Needless to say, between pizza and "lasagna," I am still full. I went for a short walk but now my body just thinks bed is a good idea. I won't even complain how loud those birds and frog and crickets are down by the creek. Sounds like spring to me!

Glad it could be part of my son-day.

Tax Day

I shall never use profanity except in discussing house rent and taxes. -- Mark Twain

If you make any money, the government shoves you in the creek once a year with it in your pockets, and all that don't get wet you can keep. -- Will Rogers

In this world nothing can be said to be certain but death and taxes. -- Benjamin Franklin

Since today is the deadline for filing income taxes -- or Tax Day -- I thought I'd look up a few quotes about taxes. Pretty entertaining. From the looks of it, we've been complaining about them for hundreds of years. And they're still here!

We did get a refund from the state this year, which has already been received and spent, and had to pay into federal. In typical taxpayer fashion, we got the refund as quickly as possible and held off as long as possible paying in. I mailed that yesterday, the 14th, just to be safe.

So today really wasn't any different than any other day, except for a few things...

One, we have a lot more windows open -- plus the front door -- because temps reached 60! Tomorrow is supposed to be even nicer!

Hubby took advantage of the nice weather and raked some leaves and crap (for lack of a better word) up in the back yard. He's burning them now. I love that smell! I should say Carter helped, too, until the neighbor girl flashed her dimples and took him away from the drudgery of manual labor! I was busy pricing the last of my garage sale stuff and folding laundry, so I have an honest free pass.

Secondly, we have a better understanding of the alternative high school stepson #2 is attending. There was an open house and teacher conferences this afternoon (postponed from last week). It was interesting. I'm trying to stay focused on the positive. He's well-liked, his grades are pretty good and he's got potential.

There are some issues that need to be addressed and they will be. It's just frustrating that some things never change. But then, just like our tax refund, we cashed our reality check on this subject a long time ago.

I just hope the struggles we've had to do what's best for this kid won't always be as certain as death and taxes!

Indian Summer

They call autumn days like these Indian Summer. After a stretch of chilly or cloudy or rainy days, we suddenly get sunny skies and 70-some degrees. I love it!

Yesterday, since Carter didn't have school, I took the day off, too. Naturally, we had to go golfing one last time -- just in case the mild streak doesn't last too long. We had a good time. There is one major challenge, though, with golfing at this time of year. With all the leaves, pine needles, etc., that have fallen to the ground, it is nearly impossible to find your ball if it veers off the fairway. Carter lost 5 of his but we did find 2 in the course of our game so he's not out much.

He had some good shots but now it will likely be nearly 6 months before he picks up a club again so it will be like starting over (for me, too). We'll take that challenge!

Today was even more beautiful -- about 75 and sunny. Carter had his last football game against Medford. We won 32-8. Yay! I was so glad to end the season on a win. His team needed that. Carter needed that, too. Maybe now he'll be more inclined to do Raptors again next year. He should be one of the big kids then, right? (I'll have to post some pictures when I get to a different computer. There's a unique one of a big kid Carter was up against today.)

After football we came home and enjoyed the sunshine. Well I did anyway. I sat on the deck and read while Daddy raked and Carter mowed. There just wasn't enough yard work to go around (yeah right).

I wanted to take one more walk after supper but even though it seemed like summer, it was still dark at 6:30. That part I don't like because I feel like it should be almost bedtime now and it's only 7:30!

Tomorrow's forecast calls for another warm day. Temps are supposed to be mid-70s or higher again. Guess I'll keep those lawn chairs out for just a bit longer!

Signs of spring

Not sure if the mercury kissed 70 today but it was good enough for me to see 60s and sunshine.

It rained all night and into the morning. Still was drizzling this a.m. when we tried for "one day only!" to have that garage sale again! Wasn't as cold as last weekend, that's for sure. And the sun was trying to shine by the time I left at 11 for Carter's soccer game.

Today was his first game of the season. Last week's was postponed due to snow. (Why do we live here, again?) Since all of his games will be at noon we assume it should be warm enough weather going forward. But I wouldn't dream of assuming anything about the weather in Wisconsin.

The game was pretty good today. This was the first time Carter has played on a team where they really get the concept of passing. Carter's team won 2-0 and he had two assists (that means he passed to the guy who shot the goal). One thing about Carter and soccer -- he's always had quite a powerful kick. Now the trick will be to use that ability to actually kick it with some control. When he played goalie the second half he had to "punt" it quite a bit. Every time it sailed over heads and landed in front of the other goal. It would have been nice if there had been a teammate there to finish the job. Maybe next time. It sure made us wonder if punting will be his thing when he plays football this fall.

The rest of the day was spent doing spring things. Hubby cleaned out the garage and I took a walk. Wait, I know that doesn't sound balanced, but I did do some indoor cleaning and then grocery shopping first.

It felt great to be walking in shorts and not be cold! Maybe spring is here for real! The high Sunday and Monday is supposed to be in the 70s. If I'm not careful, I might find myself with a rake in my hand. Ugh. I never said I loved everything about spring!

Raking it in

Gorgeous day today in central Wisconsin. About 75 and sunny. I saw lots of people taking advantage of the perfect weather to rake.

Good for them. I detest yard work.

I take that back. I don't mind mowing so much. Only because I can multi-task: get a tan and good exercise while pushing that mower around our big yard.

Raking is another story. When I was a kid, it seemed to take forever to rake that big ol' acre we lived on. When us four younger kids were living at home, we'd line up and it was almost an assembly line-type process. We kept that line of dead grass and leaves moving.

We probably got it done in only two days, but those were long days! The second day is always the worst. You're dealing with blisters and sore muscles. It starts to look more and more like slave labor. We thought that a lot when we were kids, between raking, mowing, weeding and doing dishes. What torture! And we didn't get paid for it!

One time my twin and I did get paid. Dad said he'd pay us a nickel for every thistle we dug up in the yard -- and 10 cents for the big ones! Well we got the yard done and figured we should take advantage of the cash cow, so we went after the big, tall thistles on the edge of our property near the pasture and the ones behind the old outhouse and shed. We must have worn gloves. I don't remember this being a painful process. I also don't remember how much we got paid. But it seemed worth it at the time.

I don't think any amount of money would be an incentive today. I'm still the queen of instant callouses and backaches that linger for days. I guess if we're going to get this raking done anytime soon, I might have to start looking into the current "slave labor" laws ...