pensieve.me

Good Fortune

 

A wonderfully delicious Chinese dinner is NEVAH complete without "The R e a d i n g--out loud--of the Fortune Cookies"; these near-tasteless cookie contortions are the perfect punctuation to all things fried rice, lo mein and kung pao.

So what if it's juvenille?  Sometimes it's just the shot of sunshine you need.

Last night I went out to dinner with a group of friends, and three appetizers, six entrees, noodles and fried rice later, we had "The Reading" (three guesses where).  Because Chinese food was oozing out our ears, we opted for a liquid dessert at Starbucks, sitting outside by their fireplace since it was a rather coolish but delightful night.  Mine?  Some of you could guess:  a 6,000 490-calorie Caramel Macciato Breve with an extra shot of caramel (but NOT an extra shot of espresso ;)  if you click that link, you'll note they don't even give the caloric value for breves--half and half vs whole milk--anymore ).  I chose the diet route--I only got a tall/small instead of the venti/large. 

Several of the girlie-Qs in our group had never read fortunes quite the way I'm accustomed:  adding the words "in bed" or "nekkid" to complete the fortune.  For whatever reason, this adolescent tradition continues to amuse me and always adds a touch of class to the merriment of the night.  I especially liked MY fortune...it's last in the list below.  Smile with me, won't cha? :)

Your dearest wish will come true.....(goin' for a hat trick?)

Your present plans are going to succeed....(does this mean you've had prior failures?)

To be mature is to accept imperfections....(nekkid works best with this one!)

Patience is a key to joy....(hmmmm, having a little trouble there?)

You(r) cheerful outlook is one of  your assets.... (this is one time I don't think it's the best time to lol....!)

You are never selfish with your advice or your help....(PERFECT for the one who got this one...she's VERY adept at (ahem) "directing traffic")

And mine.......

Your life is a dashing and bold adventure.....(enough said ;) )

I guess this is a follow-up to "When Tragedy Strikes Close to Home"...

We went to a memorial service for Timothy and several things occurred to me at the time:

1)  Although I had attended a grave-side service for a baby born pre-term to a friend of mine before, I had never gone to a service like this for a toddler (15 months).  In this age of technology, services are just...different...than they used to be.  Prior to, and appropriately during, there was a larger-than-life slideshow made of pictures of him, from birth to fairly recently.  There was a huge lump in my throat throughout the entire service, particularly when seeing photographs of him with his father....

2)  Their family clung to each other during the entire service...like they were holding on for dear life.  I suppose they are.

3)  There was a police presence there which seemed odd to me (I wondered if they had received any "threats" following the accident).  At the end of the service, though, the pastor acknowledged the "Christian officers" who attended; I guess it was a show of support for the family.  I'm sure they GRIEVE finding the scene they discovered...and this is one time they believe it was a horrible...tragic...mistake.

4)  But most of all, it struck me, that Timothy, in just 15 months' time and before he could even speak, will affect and touch more people--some, for eternity--than many of us will affect in a lifetime.  A beautiful and redemptive postscript on a life cut all-too-short by tragedy.

That makes me want to live w e l l. 

Now THIS is what I call a prize pack!

A rather large and mysterious package arrived just before Mother's Day...

Hmmmm, it's FULL of something...a whole lotta somethings! 

Remember this post ? And then THIS ONE?   

Well, Risa chose to make a "Cream Tea" gift basket as her part of the prize package, defined by Tea Embassy as:  "In tea culture of the United Kingdom, a cream tea consists of simply hot tea, scones, and clotted cream or other condiments for the scones. This is an informal time for guests of a household to share tea and conversation with a light snack."

Included in my box of surprises were her yummy Cream Scones mix, her favorite Sweet Cream black tea (one that she serves at her tea parties), Creamy Lemon Curd made by Trader Joes, Clotted Cream, a creamy white teacup & saucer, luncheon plate, tea-for-one teapot, pink linen serviette, pink feather boa (Risa must have a SPICY side!), ParTea note cards and stickers--all in a cute stripe bread basket (could be used for a small tray).

Thank you, too, to A Bit of Pink Heaven for the tea cozy, Calamity Kim for the Blue Willow tea cup and saucer, postcard and crocheted doilie, C. Craft & Collectibles for the tea-themed lace table runner, Norththreads for the Handmade Felt Egg-shaped Sugar Cookies Sweet Repeats  for the tin of tea, and to Cathy's Wraps for the wrapped floral  containers.

Risa's love language must be gift-giving, she's up to it AGAIN!  She's hosting a gift swap and you have until May 19th to sign up...click the last image, and if I'm not mistaken, it'll take you to the spot with all the details!

Thanks again to Risa and all the contributors!  Your box of goodies was a a delight to receive and certainly made me feel like the Queen Mother :).

Fun Monday - A Glass by Any Other Name...

...might be a cup or a mug or a high ball or tumbler or goblet. 

Willowtree is host for this week's Fun Monday and for the theme, let's hear from him: 

"I would like to see your favourite Coffee Mug. But wait there's more, I'd also like to see your favourite glasses for a) non alcoholic drinks and b) alcoholic drinks. If you want extra credit you could also post your favourite plate. Note I said favourite, not best."

Although there's just over an hour left in the day, it's still Monday (in these parts)...so I'm posting a few pictures. 

Let's begin with how my day starts...coffee :).  Here are my two favorite mugs, both gifts from Tad.  The "Shhhh, I'm reading" is from this past Christmas (you may have already seen it before) and the rooster mug was a cercie from Tad and Rachel's trip out west last summer (you might've seen it a while back, too).

The wine glass on the left is one of a pair Tad and I picked up on our weekend getaway to Atlanta a few months ago; it's a Riedel (pronounced to rhyme with beetle), and maybe it's all in my mind, but drinking out of a "good" glass did make a difference.  This is one of their generic red wine glasses; if you tool around their site, you'll realize they're very serious about their craft.  For the people at Riedel, glassware is an art to be perfected.   

The glass on the right I included because it's the crystal I chose when we were engaged.  I didn't want cut crystal and this matched our china perfectly.  It's so plain and simple, I've never gotten tired of it.

Speaking of wedding crystal, here's the cup and saucer from our china; this set was my mother's and I'm thankful for her taste a thousand years ago.  I LOVE drinking out of these, don't do it often enough, but every time I do, I think of her...and in a sense, she joins me in the moment (usually a time of celebrating "life" with those we love :) ).   

If I'm drinking something "adult", my favorite glass is the purple martini glass on the left.  Heck, it looks like a party when it's EMPTY...and when it's full...well, that's a good thing...a very good thing!   I photographed them at a funky angle to emulate "tipsy"...me, being artsy, lol (trying to jazz this post up a bit sense I've done NOTHING original with it....). This is one of a set of four, which is now a set of three because one got broken.  Each stem is a different color. 

The silver goblets on the right we've rarely used.  They're probably one of the most generous gifts we've ever received, from a near stranger!  When Tad worked as business manager for our children's former school for a few years, a parent asked him if I might like them.  She had picked them up from another country (can't remember where now) and her husband had never like their ornate  design.  He brought home one for me to see if I approved (although he knew the answer in advance), and later came home with a dozen of the goblets and a dozen matching cordials.  I still shake my head in disbelief at this coup!

Last but not least, here's what I drink out of more often than anything else (after coffee...).   Water.  I've tried to limit soft drinks...but sweet tea is still on the menu occasionally.  I'm from the South, it's part of my DNA.  We do have glass glasses, but honestly...I always reach for the plastic.  This one is dripping dishwasher water because ALL of them were dirty...I'm convinced dirty dishes multiply at the speed of laundry. 

Okay, I'm done!  It has been "Monday" all.day.long, and in keeping with my day, I forgot to photograph a favorite plate.  Then again, I don't really have one of those, anyway. :)

Not Your Typical Mother's Day Tale...!

Years ago, when my children were pre-schoolers, our friend Frankie commented, "When you're a parent, you'll touch about anything." 

This remark followed my telling him and his wife about the "clean-up" I had encountered earlier that day.  Rachel was potty training and she had "filled" the commode with all sorts of toddler-toxic human waste--amazing the amount a child who eats n.o.t.h.i.n.g. can generate.  When she flushed (a child's immediate reward for "going" in the potty; Barbie underwear, M&Ms or a trip to the Disney Store are delayed gratification), the water went up, not down.  I was with her (skilled wiping doesn't come for years :/), so, with horror, I could do nothing but watch as the toilet overflowed.  OF COURSE, Tad was at work.

I ran to the linen closet and threw towels on the floor to attempt to dam the impending flood that was nearing our carpeted hallway.  Because her "job" had been the serious business of #2, it wasn't just colored water covering the bathroom floor, it was the swimming pool scene from Caddyshack all over again, but without the humor and Baby Ruths.  I'm not sure where the plunger was, but feeble memory tells me I was shrieking like a banshee and flinging Rachel to carpeted safety, and had there been "any" left, scaring the crap out of her while I tried to do three things at once.

Ironically, I was reminded of this yesterday when I had to perform yet another heroic act of motherhood, this, the day before our most celebrated of days.  Yes, as every mother will agree, there have been countless similar scenes that have taken place through the years that attest to my mother-ability to touch anything--vomit, snot, poop, boogs, blood, bugs, frogs, lizards, snakes--all usually without the aid of rubber gloves.  Things "happen" way too fast to reach for those.

It's Springtime as you know, and in the South that means "tick and flea" season for our outdoor/indoor pets.   We check daily, and usually either Aussie or Callie has picked up some critter, and repulsed, we do whatever we have to do to remove them and squash those suckers into oblivion.  Tad does it without the drama.  Me?  Well, it's usually some kind of production.

But NEVER like it was yesterday.  Although I thought about taking a picture, it was just too disgusting to capture it digitally.  Sure, I've seen photographs of children with pudding- or snot-encrusted faces on the web; I've even seen steaming piles of manure (thanks to Ree and Vicki) that almost stopped my blog hopping.

Callie had a tick. 

   
It was millimeters away from #12 on the diagram.  And if there were ANY questions, I DID glove for the procedure!

A mother's work is never done...;)

 

Barats and Bereta on Mother's Day--Giggles for EVERYBODY!

I love to laugh.  Especially out loud.  Love these guys and I wonder if this is what I have to look forward to with Thomas and Stephen.  Thank goodness I have Rachel to temper them!!!

Enjoy....

and to all my mommy friends, Happy Day!

Hat tip to Laurel Wreath who posted this waaaay back in April...it's actually from LAST year but it was new to me :).

HAVE I LOST MY MIND???

Look what I got in the mail today:

Can you believe I actually entertained the thought after THIS, THIS  and THIS???  Read the fine print in the bottom right of the picture....

Yep, I'm not suffering from my insanity...I'm enjoying every bit ;).

How 'bout a contest...

while I fix that last post of mine :/....

Jules over at Everyday Mommy is giving away a Blogger or Typepad design just for leaving a comment at her place and writing a brief post on your blog about the contest.  The winner will be selected in a random drawing on May 13.

Jules was the ever-so-talented graphic artist who created the pensieve on my current sidebar, originally used in the header on my old Blogger blog.   

Which reminds me, I really do need to fool around with personalizing my template...this one still doesn't feel like "Robin"...........

Not exactly a picnic in the park, but...

Lunch with a friend.
Taco Bell, her choice.
It's never really about the place anyway,
Not when the friend is new.
Or not new.
Beautiful day,
Impromptu picnic
Green grass and shade-lending tree outweigh
Eavesdropping incomprehensible drive-through orders,
Inhaling exhaust.
Adorned with a two-year-old's charms--
A gift of a rock,
Necessary public restroom usage because it was there,
The curb a perfect balance beam,
My lap, the best seat in the house.
Discovering common ground.
It's always there
If you look for it.

Stay tuned...

What a time for me to go MIA...:/!  I'm trying to keep up with comments from yesterday's post, but I'm a bit behind.  I certainly had no idea when I posted it, it would generate that many responses, but go figure...you really never can calculate that in advance, and Lord knows I was a bit fearful when I hit "publish".  B U T, as is often the case, you've inspired me :).  Like just about every blogger I know (or more likely DON'T know), your thoughts are appreciated, and "thank you" only begins to express my gratitude for your generosity.  With temperatures in the 80s in the Tennessee Valley, that swooshy air blowin' up my skirt sure feels refreshingly nice!

I'm thinking through a response (hence, your inspiration), but also later this week I hope to post completed--yes, COMPLETED (!)--photos of our bathroom renovation.  It's only taken (counting on my fingers...) SEVEN MONTHS! 

Bathing never felt so good.  Okay, showering, I rarely bathe.  Even though I've got an awesome garden tub.  That you'll see.  Soon!! 

Somebody better be shouting "Amen!" :).