Kleenex Please!

My husband left a short time ago for the bank and was nice enough to ask if I needed anything. My only request was a box of Kleenex. It appears I have contacted a spring cold. At first I though it was just allergies but they usually have just a slight headache and runny nose. This is a nice spring cold. Headache, snotty nose and sore throat. I may be thanking my son for this gift. My cold tablets have been taken and packed along with NyQuil for my weekend camping trip. I will not let this put a damper on my weekend! Not sure how far I can go without a wad of Kleenex in my hand, but I'm bound to have some fun.

Last night I noticed that one of the pests that I most despise this part of the year are alive and out in droves. The June bug has made it's appearance. Yes, I saw several on my screen door last night. Stupid useless bugs just irk me. I'll be wearing a hat to prevent the pests from flying into and lodging in my hair. This is a bug that serves no purpose but to annoy me and just fly around and bang into things. Once down, if they land on their back they cannot flip back over. They must be a food source for something as I've seen them littering our front porch, all flipped over but by the morning they're gone. Maybe they have a rescue team that comes out and flips them all back over. I don't see that intelligence so my guess is they get eaten by something.
There can be some amusement tonight watching the stupid things fly into the fire. Between that and the suicidal frogs there should be a few good chuckles.

Here's to a good weekend for all!

The Rain Has Put A Damper

I had plans for today which have now been delayed a tad. Hopefully this rain isn't an all day long affair. There's a whole lot of yard work waiting to happen. Now if I could just get my husband motivated enough to move on to plan B I wouldn't feel the day will be wasted. This would involve a trip to Menard's for several things needed to spruce up the yard. He's currently involved in eating breakfast and watching reruns of That 70's Show. I'll be patient for a little while..but not much longer.

Not a good game for the Brewer's last night. Several missed plays added to the injury. I'm hopeful that they can pull it together real quick. Dodi and I were able to hold good conversations throughout the game so all was not lost. We watched a regular get drunker and drunker and develop hiccups (which someone was not there to cure).

I've come to the conclusion that hard work and determination does wear off. 8 weeks ago I made a commitment to loose some poundage. I've changed my eating habits and stuck to working out 30 minutes to 1 hour a day. After 8 weeks I have a weight loss of 21 lbs. I can tell you that it's mostly in my boobs, face and stomach. I've got a long way to go yet but to me the hardest part is now past. The first few weeks when the loss isn't enough and you get frustrated and return to your old habits. It gets better when you can actually feel and see results. I figure another 40 lbs and my boobs will be concave. Once I get this weight loss under control I will begin working on quitting the nasty smoking habit. One thing at a time.

Ouchie

My body is sore. I've spent a good part of the last two days doing yard work will much left to go. I even got my husband to cut dead branches off the tree in the front yard. I think he was just happy for an excuse to use his chain saw.

The trampoline is causing fights among the children next door. Yesterday their dad made them get out twice because they were fighting. Twice I fetched their ball from the backyard. They were going for three when dad started yelling that they had no reason to have the ball in the trampoline. He stated that "the lady next door has better things to do then pick up your ball". Score one point for dad. They had some friends over and one little girl thought it was cute to jump up and every time her head went over the fence would say hi. I stopped answering after the fourth or fifth time. It was a re-run today, except no balls came over.

It was a good weekend to see which neighbors are still around. Just seemed like everyone came out of hibernation these past few days. The air was filled with the sound of lawn mowers, kids and a lot of leaf blowers, and my dog barking every time the kids jump on the trampoline.

So now it's wind down time. I'm feeling the aches of bending all sorts of ways to clean out window wells and flower beds. I'm smelling the grill which is just about ready for our steaks. The trick is to actually go with Barney to pick out my steak. Got a rib eye right from the butcher, and he actually made his choice before I did.

Change Of Plans

I sometimes forget that living in Wisconsin means you don't make outdoor plans until the last minute. Unless of course in involves camping or a sporting event. Today was the day I planned to tackle the yard. I've been putting it off because a week or two ago it just didn't make sense.

Our neighbors have a tree that drops some type of pod. The first phase is these pod things that look like roaches. Second phase are the innards of this pod that are sticky. We try to keep up with sweeping the driveway so they don't get dragged into the house. I figured I'd wait until they were done to get going on the back yard. But then this morning it occurred to me that the whirly birds haven't fallen yet, not to mention the sky is soon to open with more rain. Tomorrow looks a little more promising.

Back to the neighbors annoying tree. This year, as in the past 19 we're out there sweeping the driveway and washing off our cars (These things will stick on the cars and if you don't get them off will leave marks) when here comes Pauly, the neighbor, with a 12 pack of beer and some brownies. I think it was his way of being sorry for his tree. Earlier that day I had heard Lindy, the wife, complaining about no one wiping their feet and this shit being tracked all over her kitchen. The tree is very pretty, but very annoying for two weeks out of the year. It's close to our lot line and over hangs our garage and with the right wind I think we get the brunt of the droppings. I've often thought about sneaking over there while they were gone for the weekend and chopping it down but our payback is coming. Any day now our tree will begin dropping its helicopters. Although we get most of it, they are also blessed. If they think I'm bringing over a twelve pack and brownies they're nuts. My trees droppings can be mulched. It causes no damage unlike my shoes that have to be scraped off each time I walk up the driveway.

So it's on to plan B for today. Take my mother-in-law shopping for her Mother's Day Gift. We'll either be heading out to Steins (doubtful with rain) or to Kohl's. I am pretty sure that once I make the phone call stating we're on our way she will begin the list of excuses on why she can't go. I get frustrated with her because I feel like she's giving up. I get frustrated with some family members as I feel like they're letting her. It should be an interesting afternoon.

Off We Go

In a few hours we will be on our way to the seasons first camping trip. At this point the weather is good. Rain is in store. We can handle it. I've camped in down pours, tornado warnings, and some frost. In all the years of camping we only packed it up once and came home. That was when our site, and the entire campground became a small pond. We made the best of it and held out as long as we could, packed it up and came home and made our french toast in the comfort of our home.

What are the rules for bailing out?
1) You need a boat to get in and out of your site
2) The tornado has taken your tent
3) You have been injured from the pelting hail
4) You have run out of beer (?)
5) You have been struck by a falling tent pole (buck it up and apply ice to your wound)
6) You lawn chair broke (Barney always has extras)
7) The mosquitos are making a meal of you (apply some off-everyone smells just as bad as you)
8) It's to hot (go sit in the local tavern until it cools off)
9) It's to cold (that's where the roaring fire comes into play)
10) None of your friends have showed up (make sure you're at the right campground & right site because that just doesn't happen)

So the way I see it, is the tornado or the continous rain may be the only reasons for bailing.
I need this weekend away. Camping to me is more of a mini vacation away from the daily grind and drama at home. There's not a better way to relax!