the sun is shining, & life is good

Well, spring has sprung, and I guess I should update my happenin' life every once in a while, eh.

Cool news #1 ~ hubby is now self-employed! (has been for about 3 wks now, you were right FMC, he just had to clear his head of all the corporate poopy.)

Yeah, he loves it, makes furniture in the garage, and does chainsaw carvings on the side. Cannot believe the lack of stress ~ it's a good thing, to not be totally humped up over some dorky boss who doesn't have a clue what you do to benefit the company, even if you WERE one of the original 10 employees who happened to help keep the company up and running in its first 12 yrs. ( I still harbor a bit of resentment over this action. It's dumb, because I am glad he no longer works there, but I feel like they were buttheads, and should have recognized him more. Oh well, if they had, he would still be there, I guess.)

Cool news #2 ~ I lost 7 1/2 pounds! Now, 7.5 lbs may not seem like a lot, but when you are only 5 ft nuthin, it IS a lot. I think stress DEFINITELY adds pounds, cuz I am living proof that LACK of it takes weight away.

Cool news #3 ~ School has only about 2 weeks left, and then that crazy hectic young beautiful, and all too short time known as *SUMMER* starts. I love summer. I love everything about it, even the broiling hot days. When it gets too hot, my kids and I pick out a nice long book, and head down to the basement, where I read to them in the dank cooler air down there. Sometimes, we all just take naps ( I tell them that in Mexico, everyone takes a siesta, and it's cool, so they think they are being all chicano to take a siesta in the middle of a hot day ~ :-D .)

I love putting up the pool, and running through the sprinkler and water fights and yellow yellow yellow sunshine, walking the greenbelt, and the annual ant-scapades. (You know, that tireless battle between you and hoards of ants trying to invade every crack in the sidewalk, every hole in the driveway, every little shady spot you might want to sit down in.)

I love the 4th of July ~ we have the most AWESOME fireworks show here, put on by the owner of Melaleuca ~ the dude is a little self-agrandizing, but the entire city benefits from it on the 4th of July ~ people come from 4 states around just to see it. And of course, the 4th just wouldn't be the 4th, without the parade, a huge bbq with friends and family, and staying up past midnight lighting off a whole arsenal of goodies, along with the entire neighborhood. We make up pies and everyone brings tons of icecream, and the whole neighborhood goes out in the street and lets off fireworks after the big show. Since we live close to the greenbelt, where the show is held, we just walk down to it, with all of the neighbors, but people coming from out of state and across town park literally ANYWHERE they can, and neighborhood kids set up signs in their yards and charge folks $10 just to park. Other kids will stay down at the greenbelt, peddling cans of pop or water for $1, and $1-store stuff for $5. Then you have all the lemonade stands set up, and the food vendors and such, and people go down the day before, staking their claim, stringing off huge 4-blanket-sized lots each, so they will have a ~saved~ spot for when the crowds start coming in. Neat thing about this town, too, is people respect the markers. if you didn't mark it off, you certainly don't hone in on the space.

I love being able to backpack with my hubby into some remote area, pick some of the wild berries for oatmeal in the morning, take photographs of all the beautiful things, and camp where no-one else is. I especially love the evenings and mornings of those backpacking trips, with nothing to do but sit and watch the sun go up or down, and then crawl into the tent and make a little ( or a lot ;-D) ruckus.

Cool News #4 ~ I have finally decided what to do with this blog ~ since I love photography, and I love poetry, I am going to start taking pics of things ( like the 4th of July, backpacking trips, ants, a project or two of hubby's, and maybe even a skinny butt or two) and writing something up about it, with haiku or poetry. Lately I have noticed a sad lack on my part to update my blog regularly, and it stems from a) spending too much time reading everyone else's blogs, and the b) lacking any genuine creativity because I have their blogs on my mind. So I think if I just knuckle down & post my own BEFORE looking at anyone else's, I might actually get a few more posts in. It's just so tempting to immediately check everyone else's blogs, and then forget my own. :-D