Ch-Ch-Ch-Chiggers

The boy likes to keep things interesting, so this summer he decided to get 38,625 chigger bites.
739 of which are in places that chiggers should not go.
Places that a momma should not have to see; let alone apply medicine to.

The Summer of 2009, we went to the ER with a catfish barb through the boy's hand.
The Summer of 2010, we went to the ER with hives brought on by the oil in the Gulf.
The Summer of 2011, we are hoping to avoid the ER.
But we are having one grand and glorious time dabbing Caladryl where the sun don't shine.
Good times.

Blogging While Homeless

Hello long lost blog world.
I have been a bit preoccupied with being homeless so I haven't had a chance to sit down and share my wise wisdom.
Also, I don't have my laptop yet.

In case anyone gives a hoot, we:
1. Moved out of our old house.
2. Semi-moved in with my parents.
3. Absolutely trashed my parents house with piles and piles of stuff we apparently cannot live without.
4. Dropped the boy off with his grandparents and traveled 6 hours to KY/TN to find a house.
5. Drove ALL OVER the Fort Campbell area looking for said house.
6. Met a wonderfully sweet family looking to rent THEIR house out.
7. Paid a rental deposit on Wonderful Family's house.
8. Drove back 6 hours to pick up the boy and the cat.
9. Drove 8 hours to spend a week with Dan/Daddy's family in FL.
and
10. Contemplated jumping off a bridge.

Well, that last one was just me.

Ahhh.... Summertime.

Good-Bye 5th Grade

The longest school year on record has finally ended.
We know folks who have just came home from vacation, whose kids had Bible School last week, and who are all already bored.
Not us.
We are just beginning.

We are beginning the shortest summer on record.
You see, school ends here on June 14 and starts in our new place on August 3.
Do the math, and feel sorry for the boy.


Oh well... we're gonna enjoy it while we can.

Cheers to summer!

Tuesday and 10 and A Pile of Boxes and The Last Day Of School

Oh how I love the sound of boxes and packing tape. (Especially when that sound was delayed by 5.5 hours yesterday because of a traffic back-up at our gate to get on base. Thanks, gate guards, for keeping us safe... but my movers have GOT to get here. Please.)

Oh how I love the last day of school. (Except that the boy is sad to say goodbye to his friends. And that makes me sad.)

So here's some random fun on this sad, busy, crazy Tuesday.
Go to Roots and Rings to join in...


1. How do you pronounce the word aunt? Does your pronunciation rhyme with ‘haunt’ or ‘can’t'?
It rhymes with "can't." Like the bug. It cracks up my little neighbor when I say it... his family is from the North... where they say "auuuhhhhnnntt."

2. Do most of the people in your life know you blog? Or are you partially or totally anonymous?
I think most of them know.

3. When you grocery shop, do you prefer to bag your own groceries or do you like it when the store bags them for you? Paper, plastic, or reusable bags?
At our military commissary, most of them bag it for you. I don't mind at all doing it myself, though. And I use the reusable bags when I remember to get them out of the car.

4. Do you have a green thumb?
Haa! Nope.

5. If you watch the Food Network, which chef/show host is your favorite?
Have I told ya'll I have a crush on Bobby Flay? Guy Fieri's show makes me hungry, and Paula Deen makes me laugh. I also love Chopped and The Next Food Network Star.

6. Do you like to take baths? Do you take them very often?
They are ok. Showers are faster, and I think better in the shower.

7. What color are the walls in your kitchen?
That universal "builder's khaki" color.

8. Do you prefer to dine outdoors or indoors?
Ooooo... Outdoors is the best. Except for the flies. The flies around here are demonic and fat and slow and persistant. I hate flies.

9. Describe your ideal weather.
Cool enough in the evenings for long sleeves or a light sweater; warm and sunny in the day... never above 80ish. Ahhhhh. Does this place exist?

10. If you could learn any foreign language, which would you choose to learn?
Spanish. (I know, I know... the rest of you all are fluent in Spanish. Not me. Yet.)

Have a blessed Tuesday, friends.

The Computer Is Safe For Now

I am sitting here waiting on the packers to arrive.
It is so nice to not have to pack up all your own stuff.
But it is a scary thing to not be packing up my own stuff.

It's as if the packing company gets their jollies out of the little mind games they can play on us.

"Hee hee... put their socks in this box with the remote control. Then let's label it books. Hee hee."

"I know! I know! Let's put her salt and pepper shaker in here with these towels... upside down!"

"Wait, guys... Let's pack the cat!"

I am only kidding about the cat part. She's locked in her carrier which is locked in an empty bedroom.
Well, it's not exactly empty. We've been dumping EVERYTHING in there we don't want the packers to pack.
It looks like a bomb went off in there. And it looks like we are gonna need a U-Haul.

So I wait for the packers to arrive and pack up my computer.
Into a box of potting soil and Lego pieces and a glove.

So you won't hear from me until Dan/Daddy decides his wife needs a new laptop.
Or until I can unpack this dinosaur of a desktop.
Wherever we land.

Have I mentioned we are currently homeless?
Good times.

I'm Almost Out Of Centrum Silver

Today's original blog post was all about cellular phones.
Jump on over to Roots and Rings; it's not too late.

It is too late for me, however.
I decided that instead of continuing to complain about moving, I'd participate in Ten on Tuesday.
Once I had answered a few of the questions, I felt the need to put on a shawl and rest a spell.

I felt older and older by the minute.
This could have been me, people.



So I didn't finish the post. I ran 498 errands. And didn't pack or sort a single thing.

Then because I am a Senior Citizen, I preheated the oven and set the timer and when I went to take our dinner out of the oven...
It was sitting on the counter. Cold. Uncooked.
I never even put it in the oven.

Thank ya'll for stopping by and showing Granny some blog love.

Things I Do When I Should Be Doing Other Things

It is T-Minus 2 weeks until the great move.
I flit from one pile of stuff to the next. Like a big bumblebee.
Except I am not making honey. I am making piles.
Piles to donate.
Piles to let the movers pack.
Piles to take with us.
Piles of things we may or may not need between now and house-getting time.

Mostly, I avoid the piles. Here's what I do instead of getting ready to move.

1. Go to breakfast with my favorite girls.

2. Look at Facebook.

3. Make lists of things to do.

4. Try to clean out the freezer and design meals from 4 chicken nuggets, a Hot Pocket, and some frozen spinach.

5. Eat the Thin Mint Girl Scout cookies I forgot I had stashed in the freezer.

6. Continue to drive the boy to and from school and school functions.

7. Volunteer at various school functions like I have nothing else to do.

8. Think about what needs to be cleaned out in the garage.

9. Break into a sweat from the thought of working in the garage.

It's hot, people. Too hot to work in the garage.
It's so hot I had to show ya'll this...



And, since I am not doing anything I should be doing, I am doing this...
10. Take pictures while driving. Don't tell my mom.