How Cute!

While visiting my sister, yes, the famous one from My Sister’s Jar, I noticed that she had cute red beads on the cords of her blinds in her kitchen.  How cute!  I decided that I needed to have cute beads like her!  See, my cords have never been cut and I just throw them behind that Mexican vase.  Untidy, I know.  The search for blue glass beads in the craft closet was quite successful!  Oh, I love blue…..

Much to my disappointment, the cutesy craft didn’t go down as planned.  First I removed the plastic pulls and cut the cords with plenty of room to spare.  Fine.  Then things went down hill rapidly.  The beads didn’t have large enough holes for the ropes.  I think my sister has thinner cords than I do.  I did figure out that the cords have an inner thinner rope that did fit through the beads, but stripping blind cords does not work as smoothly as stripping rubber off wire.  Right before my eyes the strings got shorter and shorter… I started wondering if the blinds might not go all the way down any more.  So I stopped, frustrated… and tied new knots on the lame, plain cords and replaced the lame, plastic pulls. 

Well, at least they don’t lie in a puddle on the counter behind the Mexican vase anymore.  It only took me five years and one month to cut the cords at my kitchen window.  I guess I could be considered a slow learner.

Vacation Saga #27

While soaking up the cool breezes at Lake Tahoe, I happened to go to mapquest to see how far away my sister’s house was from the Lake….. I was surprised to find that it was closer than my own home by more than 100 miles.  Yes, this is my sister of My Sister’s Jar fame.  My mind started scheming.  I mentioned to my vacationing, beard-growing husband that it would be cool to “run up to Washington” to see my sister’s family.  We figured out that if Rick took off two more days we could vacation for another WEEK!  (Gotta love the four-day work week!)

Long story short, Rick called in and they were able to get another pilot to cover his flights… so we drove to Vancouver, WA on Monday.  YEAH!  All of the people in the Northwest should be thanking us for coming and bringing the nice Phoenix weather with us!  Seriously, yesterday was their first day of summer!  They are all scorching at 82 degrees, but we are loving it.  It was 25 degrees hotter today at home. Makes me want to stay here until October.

(scrap-lifted photo)

To get the most of this non-Arizona weather, we attempted a hike to the Camas Lily Fields above Lakamas Lake yesterday.  I say attempted because among our two families, there was not one successful map reading soul.  A picture was even taken of the trail map so that I could eventually show the routes that we hiked and re-hiked to find the lily fields.  No one told us that they only bloom the week of Mother’s Day.  Sheesh.  I did capture a photo of every little blinkin’ bloom on the entire trail (partly to make my necessary heart-rate-in-the-danger-zone stops seem of the photo taking nature… and not the totally out-of-shape nature)… much to my speedy marching husband’s dismay.  He kept saying, “You know we’re not going to develop all these pictures, right?” Whatever.  I decided, while kneeling on the wet path getting the perfect picture of a purple and orange wildflower, that a Wildflowers of Washington (WOW) scrapbook was indeed in my future.  I might even give it to Rick for Christmas.  Plus, I have 75 free prints on snapfish right now.

I would be showing you some of the photos, but I did not bring the cord for my camera… and my techy brother-in-law doesn’t have the photo card capability on his treasured macs.   I didn’t even have the photo card in the camera when we started this adventure on June 9th. I bought a card at Walmart in Nevada… but it didn’t work.  I don’t really understand all the little letters printed on those tiny cards.  Eventually, I purchased the correct card and it is FULL of pictures that I wish I could share.  But no.

Updated Blog Links… FOR YOU!

Sorry, the arrow is pointing in the wrong direction.

Tonight I went through my terribly outdated and inaccurate blog links.  Good grief.  Positively archaic.  Ok, well, I went through my web Favorites too… and added all the blogs I read regularly (and non-regularly) to the list. There are some talented writers out there in cyberland that could spark your interest in anything from blogging (duh!), to writing, to homeschooling, to photography, to parenting, to sewing, etc., etc.  Bloggers need to stick together and spread the word when we find other bloggers worthy of mention… and I’ve not been holding up my end of the deal lately.  For that I apologize, but I have rectified the situation… dramatically. 

For your convenience, dear reader, I also commented on the links so you don’t go blindly to a site wondering why in the world I linked them.  There are short descriptions so if you never want to hear another word about any of the topics near and dear to my heart, you can skip them in other people’s blogs.  he he he.  BUT, take my word for it, there is a plethora of quality information at your fingertips right over there in the right margin.  Really. 

In October 2007 I went to a writer’s conference in New Mexico and was introduced to the wierd world of writers.  Seriously, there are some over-the-top people who should really calm down a bit about their book ideas.  Anyway, that is another topic for another time…. W A Y in the future…. when I’m completely out of ideas for blogging and there are no more question slips in My Sister’s Jar.  Anyway, there were several workshops on blogging… to which I rolled my eyes and guffawed with gusto.  Gracious me.  Who wants to write and write and write… and pour out your heart on the web…. for people you don’t even know… and won’t ever know?  Stupid.  That’s what I thought of bloggers.

What transformed my blogging worldview, you ask?  I met with a gentleman when I was searching for a website designer.  He suggested I look at blogging in addition to a website.  I’m glad I did.  It is therapeutic when you are waiting for an adoptive child for years and years and you find others who are waiting with you.   And still others who have their precious children… and it gives you hope.  There are also totally inspirational homeschooling moms who are not burned out and frustrated… and still coming up with great ideas and finding quality literature and sharing it on blogs.  Awesome!  It’s been two years and four months since I began My Sister’s Jar… and it still brings me pleasure to write and write and write and pour my heart out on the web for people I don’t even know and won’t ever know.  :o)  It’s that old-dog-new-trick thing again coming to bite me in the behind.  I pray to inspire even a few!  To what, you ask?  Whatever they need!  Encouragement to read every day, laugh every day, and be kind to your kids and your husband….. every day.

Here’s to blogging.  Hurrah… hurrah…. hurrah! (I’m holding my water bottle up high!)

IT’S MY BLOG-A-VERSARY!

That was my exciting news.  My Sister’s Jar has now been brought to you for 365 glorious days.  And look!  You’re still here reading it!  Wooooo hOoooooooooOooooo!  Yeah for you!  You’re the only reason I keep plunking these keys down.  Seriously, it’s addicting.  Just like diet Pepsi.  No, worse. OK, that’s a toss up.

A year and two weeks ago, I sat down with a techy guy (www.brentspore.com) and his wife at church to ask questions about websites.  He started talking about blogging.  I inwardly rolled my eyes and thought, “ph-shwaughaa!”  He’s a computer geek guy to the nth degree. But as he explained what it was, how it worked, the benefits … I became a bit more interested.  He sent me to worpress and I found my second home.  As he now says, I’ve “embraced blogging with ever orifice possible.” It’s true.  I was born to blog.  Kind of like being born in the USA.  You are or you’re not.  That’s it.

So here’s my big hat off to you….. faithful readers… for blessing me with comments and hits that truly bring a smile to this face.  35,000!!!!  Who would’ve thought!?!  Not me.  SOOOOOO, since it’s my blog-a-versary, would you do me a favor and PLEASE please PLEASE let me know AT least where  you are located????  No name needed.  No private info will be traced.  No tele-marketers will call you.  I will not email you with chain letters.  No hassle.  Money back guarantee.  Se habla espanol. I ask my husband every now and then when the hits at MSJ are high, “Who are these people?”  I’d really love to know…. at least where you are…  so if you’re in cold places right now, I can tell you about how warm it is in Phoenix.  In the summer I can wish that I was where you are.  Come on! 

(and for the record…. why in the world does spell check on WordPress not know the words: blog, blogging, or wordpress???)