My house is peaceful except for the sound of the fan breezing the cool morning air through the house.  The girls are still sleeping soundly at 9 a.m.  I let them sleep out of pure selfishness.  The cats are lying in the hot sunshine hitting the bedroom floor.  By now I usually have all the curtains drawn to keep the hot sun out....but cats need spoiling as well.

The Major is gone again.  Training CAPpers on the use of night vision goggles.  He flew to WA in a Cessna.  I know being in the sky brings him some peace.  He has said he feels close to God as he wings his way over our earthly terrain. 

Summer is slipping by rapidly.  This one in particular as the end draws near so does the leaving of my eldest daughters best friend.  He begins a new chapter in life....college.  Off to Texas.  K is use to being the one leaving...the feeling of being the one left behind is new to her.  She hates change as she has had a lot of it.    Thank goodness for email!!

So, off to enjoy the waining summer.  And looking forward to cooler days, pumpkins and smores on the firepit.

Just returned from a wonderful trip to Hawaii with the Major.    Our last day( Sunday) was the best day.  We boarded a flight from Honolulu to Kona...rented a car and began a drive around the north end of the Big Island to Hilo.  That morning...which began at 2:30 a.m. (couldn't sleep)...I prayed for favor.  We got it!  We first hit the botanical gardens...I love flowers!  Then we went to the Volcanic National Park...amazing!!  We drove the lava flow road to the Pacific ocean where it has formed these amazing cliffs.  As we were watching the waves crash against the cliffs....we spotted whales...Humpback whales...a mom and her baby and school was in session because we watched a heck of a show.  Mom would breach far out of the water and splash down...baby would do the same.  She kept doing this...with baby doing the same.  Then suddenly...Mom's massive tail comes straight out of the water and crashes down again.  That was cool...but what was amzing was...she kept doing it over and over again!!  Like a child slapping the water with it's hand...her tail kept slapping the water at least 20 times!!  This whole scene brought tears to my eyes...I asked for favor...and God answered with perfect timing to see this display of amazing power and beauty.  To see a massive whale's back is beautiful as it comes for air...but to see it breach and splash...and roll on it's side ....now that is homeschooling!!

This year has flown by!!!  When I was young...time seemed to go slow...but now with kids..it seems things change in just the blink of an eye.    I watch my daughters change into beautiful young women.  They both have more confidence than I ever did at their ages.  They are wonderful and I look forward to what they will be someday.

Looking forward...plans for 2008.  We have to get more renovations finished on the house.  I have decided I never want another fixer-upper...unless we have oodles of money coming out our ears.  Not likely to happen.    Next....get healthier...improved...but not to the point I want to be...

2008 looks promising as long as you are an optimist  :o)

So...I use to worry about wrinkles...now...and I can't remember where I heard this...I relish each and every wrinkle as it is proof that I have gazed into so many beautiful sunny skies!   I plan to keep gazing...and praying for the days to come.

Saturday night I had the complete pleasure of hosting the Mom's Night Out Christmas party for the Homeschool Co-op we belong to.  I wanted to bless all these wonderful ladies...so the only thing anyone had to do was bring a dessert...if they wanted to.  On my part...and with help from my girls....we set the tables and served game hens, cornbread stuffing and roasted asparagus.  The girls dressed nicely and acted as servers.  All the ladies were able to sit, talk and enjoy their meal.  Nothing like a standing ovation for something you love doing!!!

My family and I spent the week decorating, cleaning and decorating some more....despite having plywood for flooring in the living and dining rooms....and improvements here and there outside...the house looked great...still does....and very festive for Christmas!  My fellow homeschooling moms really seemed to like everything.  As much as I wanted to bless them...it was a total blessing to me.

I woke this Thanksgiving morning to the smell of fresh coffee...I set the coffee pot up to start at 7 a.m.  Yes...the smell of coffee is a proper alarm clock....even if you wake up an hour AFTER it is done brewing.

I always wake up happy on Thanksgiving morning which is a great feat as I am NOT a morning person. Perhaps it comes from memories as a child and waking up on very chilly Thanksgiving mornings in Montana to the smell of a roasting turkey and the sound of my mom in the kitchen.

So I woke up happy and ready for action!!  I poured my coffee and got busy!  In 2 hours I made a pumpkin pie, a chocolate pie and cleaned up the mess on the floor I made when I pulled the turkey from the fridge.  Yuck!!  I prepped the turkey.  Baked the rolls.  Made the stuffing and stuffed the bird.  And now the bird is roasting comfortably in the oven.  I made pancakes and sausage for my late-rising family!  And now we are all still in pajamas watching football and the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.

It is just the 4 of us this year.  Unusual as we usually have a mob.  One Thanksgiving we had 20 people.  That was a fun day!!  My very first Thansgiving with the Major we were living in Mississippi.  We had 6 other guys over...they were all in pilot training with my husband and couldn't go home.  So we opened our home...and I phoned my mom oodles of times getting tips..and dinner was a success.  Just like most Thansgiving dinners...I spent all day in the kitchen...and it was gone in 15 minutes.  :o)

Happy Thanksgiving!!

Seattle is explaining to their public schoolchildren that Thanksgiving is a day of mourning for the Native Americans.  Why?  The natives that were here when the settlers landed are no longer living.  Were our ancestors mean when we took land to settle...probably.  Did we take land by force?  yup.  This is the history of man...no matter what race. And who is to say that the "Native Americans" didn't come over the land bridge and wipe out other indigenous peoples?  Seattle is political correctness gone wacky.  Liberals find joy in trying to make us feel horrible about our past.  I don't feel horrible.  My ancestors were indentured servants....I don't think anybody owes me anything because of this.

Thanksgiving is a time for us to reflect on our lives and count our blessings.  Time for friends and family to get together...family may not be as fun as friends...but we still do it despite the loud uncle across the table.  I remember one Thanksgiving ...my dad and uncle got into a fist fight...good times...good times.

Get rid of the political correctness...enjoy Thanksgiving.  If you feel like mourning...keep it to yourself.  I am going to enjoy cooking for my family all day just to watch them wolf it down in 5 minutes.  Good times...good times...

My eldest daughter tagged me...hmmmmm.  So here goes!

Nicknames: CD, Midget, Midget the Squidget, Petunia Rose, Red

What I want to be when I grow up: I don't ever want to grow up

Movie I most recently watched: Pride and Prejudice with Colin Firth

What I'm wearing right now: pink pajama bottoms, t-shirt, black sweater and slippers

College I am going to:  Went to Montana State University and received a BS in Elementary Education

Favorite Music:  depends on my mood...no rap...no country!

Who I am going to tag:  Nuttyhousemouse and Grog

I was at JCPenney looking for a new top for a date with the Major.  I was thinking that I should call him at work and tell him how much I was looking forward to going to Ironstone Winery and spending the day with him.  My phone rang instead.  It was the Major with bad news....really bad news.  I had to leave the store because I was crying.  Two men that the Major has worked with in Nevada were killed in a small plane crash last night.  These men were ones he considered friends even though they didn't always agree. He always came home with kind words considering both.  And now they are gone.  We aren't going on our date tomorrow because the Major has been sent to be on the accident investigation.  He has had to do this before and it just tears him up inside.

He left...flying away in a small aircraft.  Not feeling great about that!!

For anybody that reads this...please pray for the families of these two men!!

My girls needed uplifting ...so we went out and about yesterday..and today for our Homeschool Co-op they were both sporting new haircuts and new tops(shirts).  Nothing like a new doo to make ya feel like a woman...hehe.  With the posting of my last entry my eldest has decided to start wearing a few more items of clothing that look a bit more "girly".  Now if I can just get her to quit walking like a football player...hehe.  She has a determined walk...she is going to get in there and get the job done...whatever job that may be.

ok...kind of a new subject...

We have developed a new tradition in our family...and not sure how it started...but...each night as the Major and I are crawling into bed the girls come running in and plop in with us and we spend usually half an hour or more chatting about our days...

the Dad of course grumbles a bit...ahhh...go to bed would ya???  he is not a night person...I am...but I know he loves his girls yakking away about everything.  And this is the best part.....they are talking to us about everything!!  So as much as I would love to have my room off limits to these teenage girls...I can't give that up for anything!!!  When I was little my parents room was the inner sanctum...you only went in there when they weren't home to snoop...and my heart would beat so hard I could feel it in my ears....and I always knew that they would know if I had been in there!!!aaahhhhh!!!

We will continue these nightly mattress meetings...it's a great way to end the day!!

So here we are heading into the Christmas season.  I love Christmas!!! 

Here is the thing though.  Finding the word Christmas is getting more difficult to spot as the catalogs roll in and retail stores begin their Holiday season.  As a child, there was Christmas and Chanukkah.  There was no mention of Ramadan or Kwanzaa.  And now as Christians we are made to "tolerate" attacks on our Holiday to make room for the others.  Jesus is the reason for the season!!!  Atheists start coming at us during Christmas with extra intent...just like Saddam always did...acting up during  our Christmas just to mess with our military and send them to alert status.  We need to be on alert status now...Christmas is the Holiday....retail stores would dry up if it wasn't for Christmas.  I go Christmas shopping...not holiday shopping.  It's not "I'll be home for the holiday.."  it's..."I'll be home for Christmas".  And I make Christmas cookies...not Kwanzaa cookies!! I am ranting.  But take notice...look for the word Christmas as you are out and about...

Two years ago when Christmas was being attacked by the wackos...retail stores hanging non-specific decorations....right....a friend of mine and I went into our favorite department store.  We shopped like we would have normally...lots of clothes for our kids...some for us...and as we checked out we asked for the store manager...

Us:  We noticed that your store has a policy of no Christmas.  And do you allow your employees to wish people a Merry Christmas?

Manager:  well, our store policy is not to mention Christmas because we don't want to offend anyone.

employee is ringing up our sales...we combined our merchandise...hehe..."that will be $685.00"

Us:  well, we are offended as Christians.  We celebrate Christmas...so all this merchandise...our Christmas shopping spree...you can put back on the shelves.  Thank you!  Have a very Merry Christmas:o)...then we smiled and walked away from the pile of new clothing.

Manager:  um....ummmm

It was very gratifying...as within a week this store was using the word Christmas in their advertising...now I know it wasn't because of what we did alone...but because of pressure from other Christians...and Bill O'Reilly...alert status guys!

So....stand up for Christmas...it should be a happy time for all!!  No grinches allowed!!

It's not like I have a job or anything...but I do love Fridays.  This is the day I can decide whether or not the girls have school, declare a pajama day, movie night or whatever.  I always clean house Mondays and Fridays.  Monday to be totally ready for the week...Fridays...freshen things up to be ready for the weekend.  This weekend though the major is gone once again...hopefully back by next weekend though. 

I am feeling a time crunch coming on...the seasonal one...59 days until Christmas!!!!  So much to do...so little time...and it comes and goes so quickly!! Christmas is my favorite holiday.  People seem happier, nicer...maybe because it is a time in which we are thinking of others...giving to others...making time for each other...tis the season.  Now if only it would snow!  Is there such a thing as a white Christmas in California?? I hope so!!

so...some impudent young man(he knows who he is) didn't understand my last entry.  Hopefully he can understand this one.

Today was our Co-op day.  I hate getting there(because I hate being late therefore putting pressure on myself and my girls to GET THE LEAD OUT!!!!)  anyway...once I am there...I love it.  I love seeing all the moms and all the kids.  It refills my soul to see all these dear people working together for the same cause....to bring our kids up in a Godly manner.  And watching the kids...we are succeeding! 

A great example of one of these kids....the impudent young man who nags me to post.  He sets an example for his peers.  My daughter who attends youth with this young man told me how he stood up and didn't let a friend do something that could have gotten her into big trouble.  The girl...old enough to drive...but not old enough to drive others in her car...was going to despite the law.  He didn't let her.  I am sure she was annoyed...but she would have been much more annoyed if she had been caught breaking the law.  so....impudent young man...keep up the good work...I'm proud of you and appreciate you being a great friend to my K.  For other readers...no...K was not the one driving  :o)

"DON'T TAZE ME BRO!!"

by the guy at the John Kerry speech...he looked like  a squirrel had run up his pant leg!!

Quite recently my daughter Kate was teasingly characterized as being much like Katherina in William Shakespeare's "The Taming of the Shrew".  On some days I may agree...she can be a shrew...but who isn't a shrew now and again?

Indeed she has her days...but  I pity the man who tries to be her Petruchio for he will never understand my Kate nor appreciate her...and he will be the one missing out!  My little shrew is a willful, stubborn young woman of 15.  We battle everyday (perhaps she received her will from her mother...hmmmm).  But I wouldn't trade her for anything!!  Along with her willfulness and stubborness comes a compassionate, loving young woman who is quite amazing.  She has a temper that flares and a laugh that carries you away right along with her.  She is loyal to her friends...and protective. And she loves her family! She has fire in her eyes and in her heart.  And, most importantly,  she has an abundant love for Jesus.

At 15 I didn't know what I wanted out of this world.  Kate does.  She wants to be a writer...and I know she is good enough to be published.  Thus one of our battles..."finish your Algebra before working on your novel!!"      She is outspoken in her beliefs  both religious and political.  And when she is faced with a challenge...she tries her darndest to come out on top.  I am proud of my Katherina and love her beyond words.

So...dear Petruchio...whoever you may/will be...I pray you try not to tame my Katherina.  You will miss out!  Loving her is to tame her enough!

I love this time of year!!  When I woke up this morning the house was a mere 53 degrees.  So I put on my campshirt and my slippers, made coffee, walked the dogs and waited for the Major to wake knowing he would know how to start the pilot light in the fireplace.   Ahhhhh.....fire.  Not much else like sitting by the fireplace on a cool morning sipping a cup of coffee...perfect Saturday morning!

The Major has been away a lot.  He was in Hawaii for a week doing work....yes...work...he didn't even get to the beach.  He came home and the next morning was called and told to be in Nevada by 1300 hours.  Not even home 12 hours and gone again.  He's been gone another week and has come home for the day...back to Nevada tomorrow.  Right now he is hammering away on the roof of the shed he is building. 

So this is how life is for now.  No real complaints....and that is a good thing!

I love Autumn!!!  It is my all time favorite season.  Though the sun is beating down with the intensity of August, I can feel Autumn is on it's way.  I love how things begin to fall asleep...the trees changing colors and the sun too tired to reach it's highest point in the sky before coming down again.  The girls want to stay in and do schoolwork.  And there is the anticipation of the first chilly day...and I can have a fire in my fireplace.  Things seem more calm in the fall.

I don't hate seeing summer go.  We had a really good summer.  Camping, swimming, travelling.  We got to go to Montana and see family.  My folks and my brother and his family.  Spending a few days up on Flathead Lake with my brother, sister-in-law and nephews was the best part of our summer.  And now comes the fun season....Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas!   I love pumpkins and scary movies, turkey dinner, Christmas trees, nativities...everything about Christmas.

So school has started and life gets very busy...but this is still my favorite time of year!!

Summer is already half over and we haven't done half the things we wanted to do...or even half the things we don't want to do!!!  But, already this summer is much better than last summer...when we first moved to California and didn't know a soul!!  This year...we actually had friends over for dinner on 4th of July!!

I haven't posted since February which was pointed out to me by an insolent young man...he knows who he is...HA....so now I am posting.  Happenings since February....my oldest daughter turned 15.  She is an amazing young woman and each day I grow more proud of her and know she will do great things...and if she reads this I will have to clarify...she will do great, good things.  In April we went to Hawaii for 2 weeks.  *sigh*....it was difficult to return to reality...but I did kicking and screaming and with a great tan!  In May the Major(hubby) and I celebrated our 17th wedding anniversary  In June we made a trip up to Washington state to visit family.  They live on Puget Sound and I love it there!  Both my daughters did Locks of Love while we were staying with Grandma.  They both donated 10 inches of their lovely blonde hair to be made into wigs for use by cancer patients.  Someone will truly love their new locks!  July...well here we are. 

None of this sounds too terribly exciting especially compared to happenings last year....the Major was in Iraq, the house was on the market, and we were preparing to leave friends...who are really family... for a cross-country move to California.  But now we are "settled"...and have the beginnings of roots thanks to our new friends!!

You know you are into home improvement

when you find the spackling knife in the          

          silverware drawer.