The importance of refrigeration...

We have an old refrigerator in our garage that we use primarily for milk and bread storage.

Our dog died last August. Tim was out of town when it happened, and told us to go ahead and bury her. Despite buying the heavy-duty shovel, neither Jack, Molly, Timmy nor I were able to dig a hole in the yard deep enough to bury her. We have lots of big rocks and roots in our soil. Who knew? Anyhow, since Tim was going to be home in just a couple of days, we wrapped her up in a soft blanket, bagged her, and I put her in the only box I could find, which happened to be a Bud Lite case. (Minus the Bud Lite) Then I put the box in the garage fridge so that she would not decay and/or be attacked by vermin before Tim got home. Katie used to be a big milk drinker. When she was home for Christmas break she told me that she is now unable to drink milk. When I asked her why, she said it's because I kept the dead dog in the milk fridge. So, if she gets osteoporosis, it will be my fault. Funny, it hasn't affected Tim's taste for beer one bit!

They all think that I killed the dog. I DID NOT! But that's a blog for another time.....

Footnote....

OK, so I decided last night to actually read the complete electrified worm science experiment instructions. Turns out you are not actually supposed to touch the worm with the exposed wires - you are supposed to touch the wet newspaper (so that's what it was for - silly me thought it was so the worm wouldn't dry out during the duration of the experiment). There goes my "No worms were injured during the course of this experiment" disclaimer. Poor wormy. I think his demise scared his buddies that were still in the dirt filled box in the fridge, because when we tried to get another one out to do the experiment the right way, they were all dead. Here's hoping the little market that sells bait is open despite the weather today..........

And for any teacher or better parent than I am, yes I know it's Timmy's experiment, not mine.

Science on a Snow Day

We got 2 and1/2 inches of snow today. Yes, I measured. My kids were very disgruntled last week when Camp Lejeune got lots, and we got none, especially since it didn't snow at all in the five years that we lived there, and now that we are further North, by rights we should have had snow before they did. Yet another lesson in the unfairness of life. When I got up to make Tim's lunch this morning at 4, he looked at me and said, "Your shirt's on backwards". He was not home yet last night when we all did the snowdance (minus the flushing of icecubes down the toilet, since we didn't have any, since I am the only one who EVER fills the icetrays, and I did not know we were out, because I hardly EVER use icecubes!) I asked him if it had snowed, and he turned the lights on in the backyard, and said it had not. So, imagine my surprise at being awakened just before 6am by a recorded phone message from Jack's school saying that school was canceled for the weather! Jack was at my door, in uniform, ready to wake me up when the call came. We watched the news and saw that Stafford schools were also closed, so I went back to bed! The kids were so excited to wake up and see the white stuff. I was excited that a snow day meant Timmy had two extra days to study for his civics and science exams that were supposed to be today (they have tomorrow off for a teacher workday). He also has a science fair project due on Thursday, and I welcomed the opportunity to help him finish that up, as well. He had other ideas, of course. Snow days are meant for snow activities! Especially snow days that you've waited for for 6 years!

I let him play till lunch time, and then sent him to the computer to type up and print his data for his science fair project on "Electrified Earthworm". You would have thought I had sent him to the electric chair. He chose this project from a book we have, Science Fair Project Ideas. He said he thought it sounded "interesting". I wished I had read more about it way back then, because I would have encouraged him to consider a project more worthy of his interests and abilities. This project involves attaching insulated wires to a D cell battery, and prodding an earthworm with the wires to see how his body reacts. Supposedly, the current gives the worm information about the conditions of his (hers, their?) environment. The project description claims that the current passing through will not harm the worm. I wonder how many post-experimental worms they interviewed? Anyhow, as I've said before, getting Timmy to sit and focus on any kind of work he is not enthralled with is like pulling teeth. And, can I just say that the thought of him enjoying this kind of experiment will be brought up at my next meeting with his counselor!

Colleen, Shane and Megan came home with science fair project forms last week. Colleen and Shane's participation is optional, but all three wanted to do projects, too. Colleen is growing crystals from epsom salt and water, and Shane is growing candy crystals from sugar (organic, brown, and white). We were able to get their projects set up this afternoon, and here's hoping something will grow before too long. Growing candy crystals would be right up Timmy's alley! In fact, I may have to hide Shane's experiment from Timmy so he isn't tempted to eat the project......

The New Year

So here we are, over a week into 2009. My New Balance Personal Trainer daily email still tells me that every day so far is "rest day!" in preparation for the half marathon. So, guess what I am doing? Resting. I see no reason to argue with the professionals who have developed my training program and who will guide me through. Do I really plan to run a marathon this year? It sounded really good a month ago. My dear husband thinks I am being unrealistic and worries that I may in some way injure myself irreparably thus affecting the quality of the remainder of my years. Perhaps he is right. He is often my voice of reason. I could consider this a personal challenge, but honestly, I am pretty sure he would love me if I did or didn't do it, and while he might be shocked if I actually followed through, too much shock is not good for the heart....

I did walk two miles last Monday, pushing Kiley in the stroller, only stopping for 20 minutes so she could play at the park. It felt good. I've done nothing active since. In fact, I'm feeling pretty darned lazy. Not proud of that fact, but I need some inspiration. Or a kick in the pants.....

I briefly entertained the notion of getting a puppy. Tim's cousin told me that a Great Pyrenese would be a good family dog, and I've done some research. There is a breeder South of here who has a litter due in the Spring. I called her, and she will be selling the puppies for $1000 each. I saw an ad in the local paper this week for Pyrenese puppies, 2 females, 8 weeks old, for $200 each. Kiley and I went to see them this morning. The mom and dad dogs were there, and they were a beautiful family. Apparently, it was a litter of 12, and these two puppies were the last ones left. The lady told me if she didn't sell them by Saturday, she'd be taking them to an auction on Sunday. We played with the puppies, and the lady answered all my questions. Then I went home to do a little more research, and realized that this breed of dog would mean a lot of work for me. Lots of hair, everywhere. Besides, I told Tim I wouldn't get a puppy till Mick and Kiley are fully housebroken! Our last dog was small, and very low maintenance. She was a great family dog. I think low maintenance is the way to go next time, too. So I will be keeping my eyes open, but I am in no hurry!

I do need to get myself into gear. My list of house projects is not getting any shorter, and, while I have managed to get all the Christmas stuff down and mostly put away, there is still general upkeep that needs to be done. Constantly. My get up and go got up and left. If you happen to stumble upon it, would you send it back in my direction? Please?

Spinning my wheels..........

I was very excited about shelves I had planned to put up in the garage. I found these things at Lowes that you use with 2x4s cut to the length you want the shelves to be. I liked this idea because I could make the shelves to fit the areas on either sides of the door from the garage to the playroom, and they could be higher than normal because they would be behind the garage door runner, so they wouldn't be likely to fall over. That way, I could use space in the garage that was previously wasted, and I could also put seasonal stuff and/or items that I didn't want the kids getting into up high. I bought some 2/4s, brought them home, measured the first board, and as I was making the first cut, I saw a bright flash of light and cut straight through the cord to my new circular saw! I went to Lowes, bought some electrical tape, and attempted to repair the cord. And blew a fuse. That was in October. The boards are still in the garage, the shelf items are all over the garage, and today I bought a replacement cord for the saw. I must now tell you that what spurred me on to finally replace the cord was that last weekend I decided to rearrange and rehang the shelves on the playroom/family room walls. These shelves were there when we moved in, and used to hold the previous owner's beer steins. We have books on them, and I thought it would be less visually cluttered if the shelves were all at the same height on the same wall. One shelf needs about 8 inches cut off of one end to make it fit. There are books piled high on the love seat in the family room. It is very much visually cluttered! Since last weekend (8 days ago). Sigh.

While I was at Lowes, I also purchased a new programmable thermostat, after reading and hearing how easy they are to install, and how much we can save on our heating bill. I took the old thermostat off, labeling the 7 wires that came out of the wall, as suggested. I removed the new thermostat from its packaging, put batteries in the faceplate, set the time and date, and put the new base plate on the wall, after drilling new holes, since it was a different size than the previous one. When I started wiring it, I realized that there were receptacles for 5 wires, and that not all of the letters corresponded to the old thermostat. Argghhh! It was about then that I decided to take a break and attempt to fix the saw cord. I got four out of five of the screws out of the handle. I stripped the fifth screw. I went to the computer and googled "programmable thermostat replacement", and the most helpful thing I found was this:

Control wiring on hvac equipment while harmless looking and 24 volts ac wont shock you (it will bite) can cause very bad things to happen if connected incorrectly. You could destroy your equipment at best or burn down your home or business at worst. Among the control wiring can be high voltages from 120/240 volts in a residential furnace to 480 or 600 volts in commercial equipment that can kill you instantly or burn you in a flash.
So if you are unsure of what you are doing or your abilities please leave it to someone who understands control wiring and electricity. If you need to ask for a wiring diagram then it is a good bet that you should seek extra help because the knowlege required to do the job safely far exceeds the knowlege required to read and follow a diagram.

So, now I have a new, lovely thermostat on my desktop, reflecting the time and date, and the old one is back on the wall. I have a new circular saw that I can't use. I made cookies, since that is something I can do. And, can I just say that I don't think it is at all fair that you can gain 7 lbs in one week, when it takes so much longer to lose it?!!!!!

Merry Christmas! My perfect Santa will look like Bob Villa...........

Yay Me!

Last year I went Dollar Store crazy at Christmas time, and stocked up on Christmas mugs, tins, and gift bags. I also got some bargains after Christmas on items that would make good teacher's gifts. I am happy to say that I was able to locate all of said items this week and am well set with gifts for teachers, bus drivers, bus assistants, para-pros, etc. What a good feeling, and it didn't have to come out of this year's budget! I did just make some cookies, and some peppermint bark for Tim to take to work, and for the kids to take to their school parties, but that, and wrapping the other items was the extent of my efforts. How nice for me! The kids are out of school 2 hours early tomorrow, and Tim will be off for a week beginning tomorrow evening. Katie gets home late Saturday night, and I am so looking forward to having some quality family time. It would be great if we would get some snow..........

Ouch.

Do you know what happens when you apply your makeup, and then you spray hairspray into your eye? Besides hurting like heck and turning your eye red, the hairspray not only makes your mascara run, but it also glues it (in all it's runny-ness), onto your face. Just thought I'd share.....