I Prefer Cooler Springs

The weather has been crazy this week. We topped 91 degrees over the weekend. It has been HOT for several days. Lots of people were out in their yards planting flowers and working in their yards, or outside playing in the sun. I found that I really don't want to be outside in 91 degree weather and do much of anything. It's just too hot for me to get motivated to go out and sweat like crazy doing anything.

My poor flower beds need weeding. I'm not quite ready to plant the warm weather vegetables or flower because it's only April. Usually in Idaho we don't plant for another month, but this warm weather is throwing me off.

Should I plant or not? I have seed potatoes, my squash plants are getting huge. My tomatoes are ready to be planted. I could plant seeds too. But should I? My calendar says it's just too early to do it quite yet. Around Idaho the planting time is usually after Memorial Day - which is a month away.

I just don't know what to do.

Tuesday is mowing day. Brady came home from school and started mowing the lawn. (I left him a note and he quickly obeyed - he's such a great kid).

When I came home I started to trim the edges of the lawn. While Brady was mowing our lawn and our next door neighbor's lawn, another neighbor came and asked him if he would mow her lawn too. She wanted him to trim the lawn too. I had to train Brady to do it, because I always trim when he mows the lawn. He finished our yard's trimming and did a great job.

Off he went to mow the neighbors lawn and trim. Dark clouds were rolling in and I knew it was going to rain soon. I went and helped Brady trim and told him to start mowing before it started to rain. It started to rain while I was trimming and Brady was mowing. We just hurried while it was raining. When I ran home it started to downpour. It was raining extremely hard - poor Brady!

I came home and jumped in the shower. When Brady came home he was disappointed I was already in the shower. Thank goodness there is a 1/2 bath upstairs in his room with towels. He was soaked and undressed outside down to his boxer shorts (smiles).

At least it was done. 15 - 20 minutes later the sun was shining. We should have waited! It's kind of funny though and we laughed about it.

I haven't been sleeping well because it's been so warm. Last night I turned the AC down to 68 degrees and slept wonderfully. My body was well rested and didn't have the aches and pains I've been having when I wake up in these hotter temperatures.

I've also been sweating like crazy while I have been working each day. I finally knew I needed a "Powerade Zero" energy drink to give my body the electrolytes I've been sweating out. My body is feeling much better. I really get aches and pains in my body when I sweat a lot. I know that I am low on potassium and magnesium and have started taking supplements. I'm back to normal. It took me a while to realize why I was having a lot of pain in my joints, legs and feet - it's all that sweating! Thank goodness I know what to do and drink a Powerade.

I don't feel much like cooking when it's hot outside either. I don't like heating up the house. I have been out of homemade bread and cookies for several days.

It's been cooler today and I was motivated to bake a few batches of cookies and fill my freezer again. This weekend's forecast is cooler too and I will make bread and fill the freezer. I was motivated to pull a few weeds outside and filled a garbage bag before it started raining this evening. I definitely like cooler temperatures.

I've been getting worried that I'm getting too old to enjoy working outside in the yard. I just couldn't do it. But, today I know it's that the temperature for spring yard work has just been too hot. I still enjoy doing it in 70 degree weather. That 90 degree weather just kills me in the spring when there is lots of yard work to do.

We've had a bunch of rain today! It's incredible - wow! An inch has fallen in Boise today. My yard is loving it and looking very green. I pulled more weeds and they came right up without any effort. I love the rain  - just not the flooding that's happening around the area.

Shaving and Cell Phone Drama by Brady

           

       

Post written by
Brady on his Tumbler account.

I finally shaved my face. I look cute and boyish again. Oh, and I broke down and took pictures with my phone, which I had an annoying time with today.

Brady's drama with his cell phone company iWireless:

This is an HTC Hero, powered by iWireless. It is prepaid because my mom hates contracts with a burning passion.

So, I get texts saying when my phone company will deduct money from my account to pay for the next month of service. 5 days ago it said I had $51.84, and it was going to deduct $27.18. I didn’t worry about any texts from them after that. Well, turns out my phone wasn’t working today, and here were the other texts I got that I didn’t read. 3 days ago my balance went down to $29.35, and when I found my phone in the morning, it failed to make the payment, and my account was at about $11.00.

 I called tech support to find out what the heck was going on. Apparently, my plan switched out of the blue, but yet was still charging me for my old plan too. My phone was being billed for “pay as you use anything” plan and was showing me I had my old plan.  It turns out the money I had at the start,  $51, should have been higher as well.

 The tech guy (after talking it over with his supervisor) said, “The fancy term for what happened is what we call a "computer glitch", and assured me I didn’t do anything wrong. However, he didn’t reimburse me. He only reimbursed me about $17.00 (he said my balance was around $8 at this time) which was only enough to get my plan going again.

So, basically, this “computer glitch” ate $40 of my money. On top of that, apparently I subscribed to this crappy "gamer app" that I never used. I might have checked it out once when I first got my phone since iWireless kept pestering me to register and get a free game. I don’t know how to unsubscribe and it is costing me an extra $5 a month apparently. So… yeah, that’s why I put I have a crappy phone.

Glad I let that out, if you were still reading, I solute you. You’re just the people that I love most in the world. [Quality Time is my love language- just need someone to listen now and again].

Brady

Sondra says: I'm glad I have my cute boy back without all the manly hairy face. I'm not ready for him to look like a man yet (smiles). After all, he's still my baby.

 

Also being the cheap frugal person I am, I absolutely will not get trapped in a cell phone contract. I hate contracts for luxury items. The future is unknown. No one knows what will happen tomorrow. I won't allow a cell phone plan to become more important then:

 

House payment (shelter)

Food

Electricity

Heat

Car insurance

gas for my car (to work) as my cars are paid for.

 

I've had a really bad experience with contracts on non-basic needs in my life. I won't go there again, especially when I can have a phone on a month to month basis.

 

My tracfone is $100 per year. Works for me and my needs.

With Brady leaving for a mission in a year, I WILL NOT sign up for a 2 year contract!!

He will just have to live with his crappy cell phone!

Motivational Monday: "The Benefits of Growing Your Own Food

(Photo's from my container garden over the past few years.)

The Benefits of Growing Your Own Food

(my spring container garden a few years ago)

Growing fruits and vegetables seems overwhelming to most people, but it’s actually much simpler than it sounds. All you need is a few square feet of the great outdoors, a water source, and a little time. Your grandparents did it, and so can you.

If you still aren't convinced, consider these benefits of backyard gardening:

(another angle of my container garden)

Improve your family's health. Eating more fresh fruits and vegetables is one of the most important things you and your family can do to stay healthy. When they’re growing in your backyard, you won’t be able to resist them, and their vitamin content will be at their highest levels as you bite into them straight from the garden.

(I add flower pots here and there to make give my garden color and attract bees)

Save money on groceries. Your grocery bill will shrink as you begin to stock your pantry with fresh produce from your backyard. A packet of seeds can cost less than a dollar. If you learn to dry, can, or otherwise preserve your harvest, you’ll be able to feed yourself even when the growing season is over.

(beans in containers by my honeysuckle vine)

Get outdoor exercise. Planting, weeding, watering, and harvesting add purposeful physical activity to your day. If you have kids, they can join in, too. Gardening is also a way to relax, de-stress, center your mind, and get fresh air and sunshine.

(peas in containers)

Enjoy better-tasting food. Fresh food is the best food! How long has the food on your supermarket shelf been there? How long did it travel from the farm to your table? Comparing the flavor of a homegrown tomato with the taste of a store-bought one is like comparing apples to wallpaper paste. If it tastes better, you’ll be more likely to eat the healthy, fresh produce that you know your body needs.

(lettuce in containers)

Build a sense of pride. Watching a seed blossom under your care to become food on your and your family’s plates is gratifying. Growing your own food is one of the most purposeful and important things a human can do—it's work that directly helps you thrive, nourish your family, and maintain your health. Caring for your plants and waiting as they blossom and "fruit" before your eyes is an amazing sense of accomplishment!

(beautiful tomatoes growing - I can't wait until my garden has tomatoes this year!)

Stop worrying about food safety. With recalls on peanut butter, spinach, tomatoes and more, many people are concerned about food safety in our global food marketplace. When you responsibly grow your own food, you don't have to worry about contamination that may occur at the farm, manufacturing plant, or transportation process. This means that when the whole world is avoiding tomatoes, for example, you don't have to go without—you can trust that your food is safe and healthy to eat.

(peas growing in my container a few years ago)

Reduce food waste. Americans throw away about $600 worth of food each year! It's a lot easier to toss a moldy orange that you paid $0.50 for than a perfect red pepper that you patiently watched ripen over the course of several weeks. When it's "yours," you will be less likely to take it for granted and more likely to eat it (or preserve it) before it goes to waste.

(broccoli in a container)

Even if you don't have big backyard—or any yard for that matter—you can still grow food. Consider container gardening if you have a sunny balcony or patio or an indoor herb garden on a windowsill. You’ll be amazed at how many tomatoes or peppers can grow out of one pot. Or find out if your city has a community garden, where you can tend to your very own plot. Check out www.CommunityGarden.org to locate a community garden near you.

Whatever your motivation for breaking ground on your own backyard garden, chances are good that you’ll take pleasure in this new healthy hobby, and that your wallet, your body, and your taste buds will thank you!

80 Degrees Today! The Sun is UP!

It makes me happy when the sun starts shining after winter and rainy days.

It makes me want to:

 Hang clothes on the line outside. I hang towels only until they are a little damp and finish them in the dryer so they aren't so stiff. Mmmmm they smell wonderful hung on the line. Sheets are next!

 Load my $25 dollar sun oven and cook Brownies, Potatoes and frozen Chicken thighs for dinner tonight. Yum!

 I'm starting to "acclimatize" my tomatoes and zucchini that I started indoor from seeds. I'm ready to plant!

Acclimatising pumpkin, crookneck and cucumbers too! They are getting big. I hope they make it to planting time.

My peas and carrots are growing in the garden and onions are planted. I'm hoping to get more items planted today that will survive in April with a chance of frost.

I also want to get the remaining firewood put back in the shed and off of the patio.

Then I will be cleaning my patio and sitting on it reading a book.

I'm happy when the sun is shining!

MHS Spring Choir Concert

Brady dressed in his choir robe.

The Choir teacher asked Brady to come up with a song to play for the concert.

Brady fell in love with this song "Pretend" (reprise) and held auditions for a girl to sing it.

Anastasia won Brady's audition and is singing with Brady. This musical number doesn't show off Brady's piano skills. It's a simple song, but it works when the kids love it.

I thought Anastasia did an great job singing! I loved it - but I'm a mom (smiles).

Brady's Tumbler account comments:

This song is called “Pretend (Reprise)” by LIGHTS, and I am manning the piano while Anastasia is singing for me. This song doesn’t show off too much skill, but it’s the first song I came by with instrumental and vocal that were different from each other. I had a tough time with this piano too. It wasn’t behaving; I was supposed to change this setting so the keys would become more weight sensitive, and get louder the harder I played, but it wasn’t working, so I moved on with my life and started. If you see me getting really into banging those keys, I’m trying to push what ever sound boost it is giving me to forte.

Brady and Anastasia

Amber, Kara and Mark perform a song from The Hunger Games movie called "Safe and Sound".

I cannot find my program from the show and don't know the name of their song.

This is Blake performing.

The kids performed while the different choirs were changing on stage. It was a fun night.

Recipe: Chewy Ginger Snap Cookies

I try to make different kinds of cookies now and then because we get tired of eating the same kind all the time.

I've had this recipe for quite a while and finally decided to give it a try.

As I was cooking them I was thrown back into time to Christmas as a little girl.

These cookies reminded me of Christmas and Gingerbread.

Every year when I was a girl we would make a Gingerbread village right after Thanksgiving.

I asked Brady if this smell made him think of Christmas. It didn't because we don't cook gingerbread and cut it out to make houses anymore. Too bad! But after he ate one, it did remind him of Christmas too.

These are Brady new FAVORITE cookie. I've been making them weekly for at least a month (along with other kinds too). While Jason was here for Easter he fell in love with them too and I was able to pull a couple bags from the freezer and send them with him.

They are very yummy, soft and chewy. The ginger and cinnamon warms your heart / stomach /soul with goodness.

Here is the recipe for Chewy Ginger Snap Cookies

(A note: When my spices are low, I replenish them from the bulk spice section at Winco.)

Chewy Ginger Snaps

Cream together until fluffy:

1 1/2 cup shortening

2 cups brown sugar

1/2 cup molasses

2 eggs

Sift together:

4 1/2 cups flour

1 teaspoon cloves

4 teaspoons soda

1 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons ginger

2 teaspoons cinnamon

and add to creamed mixture.

After mixing well ....

 roll into 1 inch balls ....

roll balls into sugar

 Place on cookie sheet and cook for 10 minutes at 375 degrees.

 DO NOT OVERCOOK!

 ENJOY!!!

 With only 2 people in my household, I always freeze cookies in freezer Ziploc bags.

When the bag on the counter is getting low, I pull another bag out in the morning. They stay fresh and last much longer. Usually I have more then one kind of cookie in the freezer and I pull out different kinds to keep it interesting.

Motivational Monday: "Self-Reliance - Gardening"

Self-Reliance is something I am constantly trying to achieve. I love reading church articles that keep me motivated in my persuit of Self-Reliance.

A picture of me in front of our family garden when I was young.

The information below is from the church's website on "Growing a Garden" here.

Planting a garden, even a small one, allows for a greater degree of self-reliance. With the right information and a little practice, individuals and entire families can enjoy the many benefits of planting and tending a garden.

The following information is provided to help you prepare your garden.

Planning a Garden

As you begin to plan and prepare for a garden, here are a few general reminders:

Vegetables need at least six hours of sunlight a day.

The garden site should be relatively level. If there is a steep slope, run rows of plants across it to prevent erosion.

It is a good idea to spade (mix) the soil to a depth of 12 to 14 inches. Adding organic matter such as manure, peat moss, or leaves will benefit the soil.

Be careful with fertilizer. All fertilizers have a three-digit code. For vegetable gardens, look for 8-8-8 or 16-16-16.

The simplest way to eliminate plant pests is to remove insects, worms, or eggs by hand. Some shake-on powder or liquid bug sprays are relatively safe to use.

Proper depth for planting seeds is approximately four times as deep as the seed is thick.

Twin Day

Last week was "Dress Up Days" or "Records week 2012: Battle of the Sexes". I know Brady loved going to school in Pajama's on Tuesday.

Thursday was Twin Day at school! Brady was twinning with Amber, and went out and bought a HUNGER GAMES T-SHIRT just for this! He told me he was surprised how many compliments he received regarding the Hunger Games shirt they wore, along with nerd fake glasses.

 He also took a couple pictures after school in his shirt.

I'm still having a tough time looking at Brady in the red hair and facial hair goatee. He's not my little boy anymore - he's looking much more like a man. I'm not sure I like it at ALL (smiles).

I can't wait until the red dye in his hair has grown out and he can start looking like Brady again.

PS. We LOVED the Hunger Games movie!

Brady and Friends

The following pictures were taken at the Jazz Choir dinner show. Brady and I went to the dinner to celebrate my birthday in February.

There was a photography booth to raise money for the choir. Pictures were $5.00. Of course we wanted to support the choir and get some fun pictures with Brady's friends.

Brady's group of friends are mostly girls. I don't know if that is because he was raised by a single mother, but I do know that his friends are the "cream of the crop" group at school. They are all active in school, have high morals and are smart. They've had a lot of fun together during their high school years.

 Amber, Brady and Erika (Erika is ranked #1 GPA at the school - brilliant!)

 Kara, Erika, Amber and Danielle picking up Brady.

It always makes me laugh when girls pick up the guys (smiles).

Last Friday Amber and Danielle spent all evening at our house. They had a Vampire Diaries and Once Upon A Time marathon. They arrived after school and left right before midnight (our curfew). They do this quite often because we record all the shows and they catch up on all the shows they missed.

Last Saturday Brady had Andrew over all afternoon playing Minecraft - his new favorite video game. It looks like a "Lego Land" game to me. It was fun for me, because Brady doesn't "hang out" with guys. It was nice that Brady had some guy time too.

Fast Fact Friday

I've been meaning to start "Fast Fact Friday" Challenge. I decided to start now.

You can see the inspiration on "This is Me Challenge" blog here.

This weeks theme is firsts:

1. What was your first car?

Yellow Datson B210 hatchback

2. Who was your first crush?

Donald Randall.

He was a senior and I was in 8th grade - Yikes!

My parents broke us up - but I felt I was in love for sure. It totally broke my heart. I had my first kiss before I was sweet 16 - I made it.  I didn't want to be sweet 16 and never been kissed especially since all my friends were kissing guys.

3. Where was your first apartment away from your parents?

I moved away the summer before my senior year. I lived with my oldest sister Christine in a basement apartment. When we moved out of that basement apartment, my dad moved into it. My parents were divorced.

I was soooo ready to leave home and live on my own. My home life during my teen years were volatile. My parents were fighting, split and back together. My older siblings had moved out and it was just the babies of the family left (my brother and me). I hated living there.

Chris and I ended up moving back home part of my senior year.

After graduation Chris and I found another apartment and lived there for a while until Chris bought a trailer in Chubbuck, Idaho that we moved into. 

We got along OK - but fought a lot too. 

When I was 19 I moved away to Logan, Utah.

My home life wasn't the best and I hated living there. I always wanted to be on my own doing my own thing. I was out of there as soon as I could.

4. Where was your first airplane flight to?

Grants Pass Oregon. I flew there to see Jason's dad and show him his son.

5. What was the first school you attended?

Hawthorne Elementary in Pocatello, Idaho.  When I was young they had the elementary school and the junior high school in one building. When I was in 7th or 8th grade they finally built Wilcox elementray school and seperated the elementary kids from the Junior High school kids.

Emily's Response to the Prom Invitation

(Blogged by Brady)

HER RESPONSE…

Okay, so since I made Emily work so hard to decipher the clues on my invitation to the Prom, (as she so confirms) she made me work for my response. Today, as I walked into my class, there was an envelope sitting on my desk. On the inside was the following.

So, I immediately look under my desk and BAM, found another envelope. Inside was the following.

Oh, and I had to make a little cipher on the back.

It was slightly challenging because you don’t know if 1514 for example is 15 and 14, or 1, 5, 1, and 4 or any combination. So, the only problem I have with her clues as that she doesn’t really tell me that the next clue is going to be in my next class and that I can stop working on it in this class. So, when I found that the next clue was behind a poster, I’m looking all all 60 billion posters in my first period room trying to find out which one had a question on it. Apparently, none of them had questions and my teacher was like, “Yeah, I didn’t see them put any more envelopes in here besides the one under your desk.”

So next period, I immediately found which poster she was talking about. Opened it up, and started working on this puzzle I found inside during the morning announcements. 

Because the pieces were so big, I knew where it was without solving the puzzle at first glance. It was at the seminary building. There was also this frustrating piece of paper telling me where the next note was.

First of all, it says, “Unscramble” and the example uses one word examples. Apparently the words were conjoined, so the example was virtually no help but there to trick me and make me mad. So I’m looking at this and I’m like, “This is dumb, rth and nth don’t make a word! There is no vowel.” So I had to get one of Emily’s friends to help me out with solving it, since I think she was in on it. Emily, if you’re reading this, what I meant to say was that I solved it all by myself… 

Apparently, it was just a space between the last letter of each word, and the first letter was the end to the last word. … I wouldn’t define that as unscrambling though…The thing that I liked about this clue was that it actually had a location. So I knew that I wasn’t looking for plants in my choir class.

So then I went to seminary after lunch and immediately found the next envelope. I opened it up and went right away working on it. 

So I made a new cipher on the back because I thought that Y’s got their own set of 1-6 and X’s got their own set of 1-20. I was wrong though. Turns out it was just like the old one I did with just a strait 1-26, only Y^2= ee and X^2= ss.

Okay, so it said, “The location is three down and three across” And I was stumped. If this was a free response story problem on a math test, I would have wrote down, “Not enough information provided.” So, I look under some tables in my next class, and nothing.

So, I text Emily about my failure after school and drive home. When I got home I found this.

(Awe, isn’t my house cute?)

Box of candy. No "yes", just a box of candy… And here is my text message chat that I had with her. 

Me: [In school] I have no idea what three down and three across refers to.

Emily: Do you want me to help you. [I’m already driving home]

Me: [At house, getting stuff out of my car] If you could tell me what it refers to, that would be great.

Me: [At front door] Yeah, now that I’m home, I definitely feel like I missed a step.

Emily: It’s a place in the class that you have to go 3 down and 3 across to find. If you can’t get it I will tell you what you have to go 3 down and 3 across. [No duh, figured that much out on my own]

Me: It sounds like desks, but your pattern seemed to follow 1 per class, so I didn’t check my seminary. [Again, no location is specified here] My class was [had] tables and I checked… and what would you define across and down as. It would change from every point in the room.

Me: [I get impatient when I don’t get immediate replies] My class 4th period was in the AG building not the A building. Could be problems there.

Me: Just tell me something like chairs, desks, tables, and what room I have to look in. [Again, her not specifying where anything was except that I had to go by faith was really bothersome]

Emily: It was in your fourth period class and if I tell you it will definitely give it away, but it was in the cubby on the side of the room in the 3rd cubby down and the 3rd across.

Me: Yeah, if you would have mentioned shelves or cubbies, I would have gotten it. I just don’t have time to wander around class during the lesson… I mean, I kind of have to give my attention to the teachers :P

Emily: Yeah, I thought about that and realized you probably wouldn’t find it and your right, it did tie in the ending more.

Well, that about 99% concludes me getting a date for Prom. Hopefully she says yes- I’m so anxious. :D

Here is the last clue that Brady found the next day:

Brady found out later that night that the coins had
 "Y E S !" on them - probably with a little help from Emily.

Yea!