The Road Less Traveled

Before Scott Peck even wrote his book by that title my daughter had already launched herself down that road less traveled. And John McCain had no exclusive right to the title Maverick either. When J was 7 with her birthday looming in the near future, as always I would ask her what cake she would like for her birthday. This time she insisted, no, demanded that she have a bride and bridegroom on her cake. Trying to explain the idea behind brides and bridegrooms on wedding cakes and why she didn't exactly qualify did not convince my little princess one bit. She must have a bride and bridegroom topper on her cake. So I somewhat sheepishly entered a bakery and asked to purchase J's cake 'decoration'. I was surprised to find that several bakeries wouldn't part with said decoration without the accompanying wedding cake. I was desperate. There was no way I could face J without her cake decoration exactly as she wanted. Tired, disappointed, disgusted and more than a little irked, I entered one last bakery prepared to beg on my knees for that cake ornament. I blurted out my problem to the kindly shop keeper who laughed and handed me just the right bride and bridegroom cake decoration, no charge.

Proudly I placed the plastic couple, surrounded by 8 burning candles, on J's birthday cake. Everyone was gathered around the table with my princess at the head as I triumphantly carried her cake into the room. Thrilled, I watched her face as she saw her cake and was rewarded with a big grin. Later after presents were opened and the party guests had departed, I washed Mr. and Mrs. (her name for them) and gave them to J to play. Over the next several weeks I would see her playing with them, contented, and I knew my efforts to acquire Mr. and Mrs. was worth it.

Just A Name Change to Fit the 'Tude

Due to a year of experience and observation, I have been forced to rename SammiBobo, my Japanese Spitz. He is now officially J. Sam which has a very current ring to it although you can take it as fact that he cannot do any rapping at all. J. Sam has a rightful claim to this name because the "J" stands for 'jealous'. With two other little dogs residing here as well as a cat, J. Sam has just not integrated as I had hoped he would. Going through the doggy door J. Sam has to be first, even if tiny Della the chihuahua is only halfway through at the time. I've even had to remove her from the jamb to save her from injury. If I pat the sofa next to me for the cat to come visit, blink, J. Sam appears. Although he is quite small as well, J. Sam is young and very fast and also outmanuevers my little old man, Iyah Dogg, who is approaching 14 years in April. Surprisingly in spite of being knocked aside several times by J. Sam, Camy the Cat still remains a steadfast friend. And then there's the shedding. J. Sam sheds a prodigious amount of hair by the hour or maybe the minute. Most of my clothes resemble angora or maybe mohair material until they detach and float toward the nearest person. I'm sure the people at church, upon returning home. were perplexed to find J. Sam hairs attached to their clothes when most of them don't even own a pet. That's J. Sam, the gift that keeps on giving.

Christmas at J's House

Although I had fixed Thanksgiving dinner and had plans to do Christmas dinner also, my daughter stepped forward and announced that she would be fixing Christmas brunch at her house, okay!(Yippee!) The more I thought about it the more it appealed to me. The closer Christmas came I was almost euphoric at the thought that all I had to do was bring my Christmas packages and arrive at her front door. The two quiches (I'm thinking of writing a short story with that catchy title), were yummy, along with fried potatoes and crisp bacon and a tantalizing drink made from half ginger ale/half cranberry juice with a few frozen cranberries as floating garnish. A. had brought some sausage balls which were also enjoyed.

I brought sweaters for the girls, long ones that come to the calf, warm and cozy. D looked so pretty in her's and she put on a new top that just set the whole ensemble off. M's sweater was a bit heavier so it wasn't warn long but she also coordinated her own version of school attire and seemed to be pleased. E wanted to know when the big presents would arrive and I sadly had to explain that Santa forgot, got lost, was running late, and the presents were promised to arrive on Saturday. E tried to bargain with me that Friday would be much better but alas, Santa has his own schedule and E is just going to have to wait a little longer.

M and I had a fun game of Scrabble. I was sure that 'que' is a word but J looked it up on the official Scrabble dictionary site and announced (gleefully, I think) that it definitely was not. My score suffered and M and I ended the game with very close scores. I'm blushing now because this ll year old girl was playing for the first time and I play Scrabble all the time on the net. My brain must be frozen, literally.

Christmas was perfect for me. I was with my family. You can't add anything more to make it better. God is good. Happy Birthday, Jesus.

Welcome To The Good Times Kennel

Technically I'm in violation of our city animal code. There are currently 4 dogs and one cat living here.Iyah Dogg is my senior fellow, 13 years old on April 15th. Iyah is half chihuahua/half tzih tzu. Della Irene is a 5 year old 6 lb. chihuahua. And SammiBobo, my little Japanese Spitz, you have met in a previous post. These three all get along with my rehabilitated (not really) calico cat named Cammy. And now we come to our little catalyst, my grandpup Hammer. You've likely read about Hamm on the Puffy Pink Sleeves blogspot. Hammer runs rampant through the house with Sammi. I've seen him run right into the doorpost, get up, shake his head and continue playing. He goes at breakneck speed and then a few hours later he jumps in my lap, flops over on me and takes a nap. Just before his nap he finds his favorite stuffed toy and, I kid you not, he proceeds to suck on the back of that teddy bear's head, all the while rolling his eyes around to see what the other dogs are up to. This makes him very drowsy and ready for his nap. One of Hamm's ideas of playing with Sammi is to mount him, continually. (The title popped into my head to call this blog 'One Hump or Two' but this story is much bigger than that topic). Sammi is surprisingly calm and patiently waits for Hammer to complete his whatever and then playing continues. They have gone through several stuffed toys, playing tug with them until something gives way, a leg, an arm, or a head and then the stuffing comes rolling out. I've been making regular trips to the thrift shops to replenish our toy supply.




Jealousy is rampant now. Della is used to occupying my lap but she has been usurped by a rambunctious Hammer. This makes Della disgruntled until we find a suitable place for her, which then crowds Iyah. Not to be outdone, I suddenly find Sammi on the back of my chair trying to wrap himself around my neck. I'm beginning to feel smothered, my life is out of control. I've turned into the human mattress and I didn't even get a vote. And it gets worse. Bedtime is a fiasco. The cat insists on sleeping beside my head. Her bed is a heating pad covered by a fleece baby blanket. Iyah, having fallen asleep around 8 p.m. in his doggy bed, I carry each night to the bedroom, cover him with his blanky, and position him just below the cat bed separated by a plumped up pillow. Della dives under the covers and puts her 4 cold little paws next to my warm body. Sammi settles down on the foot of the bed, most usually laying his head on my feet. I'm feeling crowded. And where to put Hammer who will insist on being right in the middle somewhere. Ah! problem solved! Cammy hisses and leaps off the bed, thus leaving a prime sleeping space available. Hammer lucked out. All is well....until tomorrow.

I Tried To Do A Cartwheel.....

Feeling energetic and, for me, more than a little ambitious, I decided to fix homemade chicken tortilla soup for my daughter and her family. The whole chicken was cooked to perfect tenderness. I let it cool, then picked the meat off the bones. I added chicken broth, sauteed onion, a can of Roi Tel tomatoes and a cup of corn and simmered. This was packed safely in my car for delivery as well as the tortilla chips and grated cheese that were to be added upon serving. I had read in a random recipe that a can of black beans would be an authentic addition so I added that and left the juice in for extra flavor. Once delivered I left for home to avoid a nasty approaching storm.

The next day J called and I waited for comments from her about the soup. I had fixed it multiple times and had always gotten rave reviews. No comment was forthcoming so I finally felt compelled to ask if they had enjoyed the soup. There was an elephant sized pause and then she said ' well, M ate two whole bowls!'. Since M will eat anything, anything at all, I felt a little anxiety creep into my stomach. I have to ask "did no on else like my soup? Was there something wrong with it?" To which J said 'Mother you should have drained the black beans because it turned the soup an unappetizing gray color. But' she continues, 'it had a good flavor if you ate with your eyes closed.' Now there's a daughter that REALLY loves her Mommo.

The Winter Bougainvilla

My good friend Lori is a certified Master Gardner. We have discussed this bougainvilla living in my house. She has no answer for why it has existed for almost six years in the same hanging pot it arrived in, a Mother's Day gift from my son. It is in the same soil, has never been fertilized, lives outside all spring, summer and fall, and resides on the window seat in my kitchen with a southern exposure all winter long. Oh, and all the while it's inside, the green petals fall off and IT BLOOMS!!! Neither has it's branches ever grown beyond their initial lengths. I think I have been gifted with the one and only Bonsai Bougainvilla! It's a joy to walk in my kitchen each morning and see showy pink flowers beaming at me. Better than that first cup of coffee.

Kids Say The Darndest Things

My 9 year old grandson E. announced that he was glad I had his mother so she could have him. Now on a 9 year old's level that's quite a compliment.

Food for Sex

It has been confirmed that every few seconds a man will think of sex. In that same vein I'm sure I can compete (Almond Joy) in frequency except my thoughts are invaded (pizza) by constant thoughts of food. Driving South (french fries) on Division I'm thinking about things I need to buy at(cinnamon roll) Wal-Mart, glance to the right and see (hot fudge malt)Carl's Jr. ~guacamole bacon burger~. Not two blocks (western omelet) further the Boneyard (ribs) Restaurant ~chicken sauteed in honey salad. Half a block(popcorn shrimp) further,(pecan sticky roll) a footlong hotdog slathered with mustard sprinkled (chicken fried steak with gravy) liberally with onion at Sonic plus their tasty cherry/lime (peanut brittle) drink. Keep in mind I'm not (hot tamales) stopping for any of these items but they have (fudge) cleverly invaded my mind and interfered with my shopping list (truffles). Next, on the left is (pecan pie) my favorite mexican restuarant Vallarta, ~California Burrito (donuts) with sour cream sauce~. Then my fave mexican fast food place, Taco Mayo (Irish Cream liquor) ~burrito supreme, extra lettuce, extra( macaroons) tomato, with a pina colada chiller. And now (maple nut goodies) I'm to Wal-Mart's driveway. I park (lasagne) the car and try to recapture my mental shopping (chicken kiev) list. And then I shudder (in delight) because I know there will be an onslaught of candy, pastries, puddings, chips, cookies, cakes, dulce de leche ice cream, all screaming for my attention. No wonder (cheetos) I always come home with fewer(flan) items than I went for and more(buttered hot rolls) snack items than I(tacos) need. What I'm wondering is why (Hershey's bars) our bodies just can't adapt to the(angel food cake) foods that we want and those (fried potatoes) so-called healthy (lemonheads) foods be left on our plate (divinity). Or even better (heath bars), at the store. See what I mean! Who needs sex when their mind is full (strawberry cake) of wonderful foodity. That's all (cheesecake) I'm sayin'.