Our Pets Have Their Own Neuroses!

Why the sudden flurry of posts? Especially since I haven't blogged in months? Couldn't get Facebook to load any photos, that's why! So just went ahead and uploaded all significant from camera since the spring.

Have a slew of new online buddies as a result of my enrollment in Career Step! Career Step is an excellent online medical transcription course. I'm enjoying it so very much. Started in June-- work/study a minimum of 6 hours a day and hope to complete the course by January!

Anyway, was chatting with Marie, one of my new CS friends, and she's a huge animal lover and wanted to see a photo of Gabby sucking Olivia's thumb! Here 'tis Marie! I don't let her suck mine anymore. She's over two, time she outgrew this! She'll still "root" for a thumb when she snuggles with me, but I just hook my thumbs into my fist, and she gives up, settles down, and goes to sleep. Olivia still lets her...think she enjoys mothering her that way!

Okay--MUST get to WORK now!!

Our Not-So-Furry Friends.....

This is also from the spring (2009). The dogs were going crazy barking at something in the large mulched area. Went to investigate and this is what they'd treed. A beautiful black snake. Looks like a pretty big one too.

What are these called?.....

Not sure what these thingymagiggies are called but got a few shots of Grant fooling around with them. They're not even his...a friend left them here!

Isn't he growing up? My!!

Saying Goodbye to The Vintage Home.....

What an effort! My bestest friend Michelle decided to close her store after a 2-year gallant effort in May (2009). I partnered with her the first five months or so and gracefully bowed out as it was just not my cup of tea! She carried on and tried so very hard to make a living at it. The economy sure wasn't cooperating! Michelle is so very, very talented and an extremely hard-worker, but it just was not meant to be at this time.

It's August now and Michelle continues to thrive! She has booths of her hand-made pillows, towels, and her "vintagey" items like she carried in the store at Joe's Antique Mall here in Wilkes, Boone's Hardware Store, and she has an online store. She moved all her tools of the trade to her home loft and now works from home.


God, I look so FAT! So matronly! When did that happen? Maybe I shouldn't wear red?!!

Rosie's Skunk Run-In!

Back in April, poor Rosie (12-year-old mixed breed mostly Chow) had a run-in with a skunk! We were leaving the windows open at night, and two nights in a row, I was awakened by an overpowering stinch of skunk--just completely filled the entire house! It was awful! Well, the second night just so happened I'd left Rosie outside, and she got sprayed! Not having any tomato juice, I read online that a mixture of peroxide and dish detergent would do the trick. Site said to leave it on for 30 minutes. I thought 30 is good, 60 would be better, right? Wrong! It bleached her fur! Took her to the groomer's for a trim and this is the result!

That's Grant's Chima with Rosie and Olivia. He's a Husky/Pit Bull mix. A very sweet, obedient, albeit mischievous puppy!

Maddyson Kerley. An adorable great-neice! This is my nephew Adam's baby girl. Maddyson and her first cousin, Jackson. Jackson is my nephew Alan's adorable little boy.

My sissy Suzy proudly holding her grandchildren!

Mindy's Recent Production

My neice, Mindy, is a serious performer! We love to go to her productions! This is from her most recent performance of Cats. That's Olivia on the far left and Mindy's sister, Aimee, in the middle. Yay Mindy! You were just fabulous darlink!!

Flash Flood in Wilkes!

This is from a while back--May?--when we had some flooding here in Wilkes and our area of Moravian Falls was hard hit! This is THE Moravian Falls which is just a stone's throw away from us--in fact, our property borders the falls. Normally, the falls are just barely more than a trickle! Look at this! It sounded like a train whizzing by!

Our Latest Project

Area of the basement garage that has been cleared out. Most recently, this space was completely cluttered and trashed with Olivia's furniture. We moved her to PA week before last (she commences her masters program at Seton Hill, Greensburg, PA next week!!) leaving this space was essentially free and clear. We decided to move Grant's TV/hangout/music space here. This area had the cream-colored carpet that we'd just laid there (not properly installed), and the kids had not taken very good care of it, and Olivia's Atticus (cat) had been using it for his litter box, so we trashed the carpet. Wanting the cement to be attractive, we decided to stain it. We'd had some experience with this since we stained the cement of the front porch a couple of years ago. I think it looks great!! It'll be much easier to keep clean! Ya know how kids are with trash/filth/mess!!