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Have you ever seen anything so pitiful?
But Katrina loves Ginger and so decided to see just what it was like.... Ginger seemed to appreciate it!
Ginger got fixed Tuesday, but since she doesn't want to leave her sutures alone, she is forced to do the Queen Elizabeth look!
Rosalia Lombardo, a two-year-old Sicilian girl who died of pneumonia in 1920. "Sleeping Beauty," as she's known, appears to be merely dozing beneath the glass front of her coffin in the Capuchin Catacombs of Palermo, Italy.
Can you believe this little beauty died and was buried in 1920? It's amazing!
Now an Italian biological anthropologist, Dario Piombino-Mascali of the Institute for Mummies and the Iceman in Bolzano, has discovered the secret formula that preserved Rosalia's body so well.
If you are interested in looking this good 88 years after you are buried, check out the rest of the article!
Justice Game by Randy Singer will be published in July of this year. He is doing something unusual. He is letting his readers take a vote and decide on which way a verdict should go regarding a case in his book. Take a few minutes, watch the video and cast your own vote! Then, be sure to get his book in July and see whether or not you were in the majority and how it affects the outcome of this book!
Here is a photo of Plato right after he came to live with us.
This is Plato today (he is inside, bathed and enjoying some one-on-one time with us!
We were at my Dad's cabin on Friday. On Monday, northern Bedford County had had some snow and with temperatures pretty cold, there was still snow and ice to be found along the creek's edges. So the kids, who are working on a photo project book in 4H decided to take some pictures. I wanted to get a couple at the water fall and was very surprised by what I found when I looked through the camera lens!
And in a little bit further back image, we found not only the wolf or dog looking off to the right, but we found the profile of a woman looking to the left with her hair flowing back to the right. And we found a hand and fingers part way down the wolf's neck and my daughter found an eagle. You just never know what you are going to find when you spend time looking at the wonders God has put there for us!
Well, tomorrow, Ginger is scheduled to be fixed. I was planning on taking her early in the morning, but they are calling for a chance of ice (and it will be worse early on, then changing over to rain). I decided to take her a day early and kennel her so I wouldn't have to go out in the mess and so that I would know she was there safe and sound. I have kind of arranged the next 7 days so someone would always be home :(and that is not an easy process), so I wanted to get this done.
So Katrina and I take her to the vets. As we are walking across the parking lot to the dog walking area, I note a boxer coming out with his family. Ginger was busy checking out all of the unusual smells in the walking area, then I heard a shout. I looked up and that Boxer was barreling right toward us. At first, I just tried to put myself between the two, but the Boxer was intent on mixing it up with my 5 month old Irish Setter. The red haze set in. All I remember was complete fear for my pet! I was yanking at that Boxer's collar, trying to keep Ginger from him and cursing up a blue streak for that __________ dog to get off of my dog! I hit it with my purse too. All the while, Ginger was yelping in fear.Finally between me pushing and them regaining control of his leash, we separated them. But in all the commotion, Ginger had pulled backwards and slipped her collar, and she started running. We were next to a highway with cars going 60 mph. Fortunately one of the girls managed to catch her and I was quickly there, holding her and putting Ginger's collar back on.
I chastised the man (probably a grandfather) and shouted something like 'you should do a better job of holding on to your dog). I heard him turn to one of the kids and say...'the leash just slipped out of your hand didn't it?' Now, I know that this was not intentional, and as my anger faded and I found out that other than having wet fur, Ginger was okay, I regretted the curse words I had thrown at the dog in the heat of the moment. But I also found out that this pooch is a known bully and not very friendly. So why, didn't the adult take over the leash when they realized another group of people with a dog were in the parking lot?
At any rate, they left and we went inside. Both receptionists were beside themselves and checking over Ginger for injuries (as was I). Then the vet came out and checked her too. We all talked about how unfortunate it was for this to have happened (after all going to the vet's office isn't the most fun anyway!) and then we had to leave her. It made that even more difficult as we have never left her anywhere except here at home.
I know she is okay and in good hands. But I hope we don't have a repeat of that activity any time soon. I just don't understand why people want dogs that can become so ferocious at the drop of a hat.
A recent maritime dive has found some new "Bizarre" animals during their excursion. Since these are several thousand feet down, I doubt we will be seeing them on our trip to Australia, but they are pretty cool looking!
The Sea Squirt is my favorite. It is like a pitcher plant in a way, but it is an animal, not a plant.
Be sure to read more about the Sea Squirt and take a look at the other interesting new animals!
Wow, I knew that ticks were bad...but they don't just take it out on us humans...they hurt bats too! This bat orphanage/hospital is in Queensland, Australia. Perhaps it will be a place we will see on our tour next year!
Check out this video at National Geographic
Who knew bats could be so cute?
Wow...sometimes, you just get lucky and manage to pull not one, not two, but three good movies in a row! This is what I did on Saturday! And I wanted to share some great movie titles with you in case you were looking for something wonderful to watch next weekend!
First off, I must say again how much I love Netflix! Without that awesome company and their easy to use website, there are so many movies I would never have watched and in all likelihood would never have even heard about! THANKS NETFLIX!!!! I wouldn't know what to do without you!
Okay....on to the good stuff!
Amazing Grace is a powerful, powerful movie! I know so much about the fight against slavery here in America, but knew very little about the fights fought elsewhere in the world. This story tells how the English turned the tide in their own country without falling into Civil War. From the cover: Based on a true story, this historical drama starring Ioan Gruffudd tells the story of William Wilberforce, an 18th-century English politician who fought for the abolition of slavery. Despite staunch opposition, Wilberforce waged an aggressive campaign using boycotts, petitions and slogans. This story will remind you of the power one determined person has (with help from the Almighty!) I give this movie five stars!
Second on Saturday's Docket was One Night With the King! This movie is about the story of Queen Esther (one of my favorite bible stories). And if that is not enough to interest you, the gorgeous (and I do mean gorgeous) costumes in this movie will definitely grab your attention. This movie is a feast for the eyes, the heart, and the soul! Sit on the edge of your seat as Queen Esther enters the hall of the King without an invitation. One cannot really understand what that moment must have been like until you see it played out before you. Watch as the smug Haman, who hates Mordecai, has to escort him through town on a fine horse and in fine clothes proclaiming that Mordecai is beloved of the King and Queen. Oh...the anger of Haman... This was another excellent movie that I give five stars!
Last on Saturday's movie extravaganza was The Andromeda Strain(2008) (for those of you like Michael Crichton, you should really enjoy this movie! And for those of you who love Jin on LOST, Daniel Dae Kim, is a hero in this movie as well!) Daniel had gotten this movie and watched it in Bloomington. I have always enjoyed the tales of Michael Crichton and I love stories about the 'end of things.' The Stand by Stephen King is my favorite of his tales. So I sat down to watch and this movie really hooked me! I started it later than I planned and thought I would watch half last night and half today. But when I got to the midway point and time to put in the second disk, I could not have waited to see the ending! I wouldn't have been able to sleep! I give this movie 5 stars. I really liked it, and the story and acting were superb! No, it isn't the same five stars as the previous two movies. It is five stars for the genre it is in!
Well, that's my report for this week! Happy Movie Watching!
Last night I was up until about 1:00 A.M. finishing reading Directed Verdict by Randy Singer. My Paralegal Teacher awarded me with this book last semester for having the highest score in our class. I was in the middle of reading another book and wanted to finish that before I began this. I have to say Directed Verdict is excellent!
I enjoyed this book for several reasons. As a graduate of William and Mary and a resident of the Williamsburg, VA area for 5 years, I delighted in reading about some of my old haunts in this book. I remembered the romantic atmosphere at The Trellis and the fun walking down DOG (Duke of Gloucester) street and the dread of driving through the Hampton Roads Tunnel. It brought back memories of Confusion Corner and the unusual mixture of tourists and college students. It was very cool to read a story with a legal student from a place that is so near and dear to my heart.
I enjoyed this book because it really gave some inside view of how paralegals work (and since I want to be one, this information was absolutely fascinating!) I don't know if I will be as daring and able to think on my feet as Nikki Moreno, but boy, she was on top of things! And Leslie Connors...well, let's just say that you can't underestimate the quiet types.
Then there was the spiritual aspect thrown in which I didn't expect, but for me, added to the story. Christians are persecuted in spots around the world (and including here at home in the U.S.) I was drawn in by the main case that this story revolved around.
And if all that wasn't enough, this book is written by a lawyer. It is fast paced, well-written, and exciting.
I am looking forward to reading more of Mr. Singer's books! If you are looking for a new author to try out, I highly recommend this one!
If you haven't seen the "I Pledge" Video, take a few moments and watch it now. Go ahead, I'll wait....
I found out about this video when my husband forwarded me an article that expressed concern over the references to 'serving' President Obama and over "Obama worship".
I watched this video and I didn't see it the same way as the author of the article. While I am bothered very much by the fact that these people seem to be pledging their allegiance to a person instead of to their country (remember how that worked out for Germany?), I tend to look at the positive side of things.
I wish that more people had pledged to stand behind President Bush instead of attacking him from Day One, but if people are ready to stand up now and take responsibility and reach out to their fellow human being, I say we should not beat a dead horse, but we should look at this as a great leap forward for a better tomorrow.
Many in this nation have become so wrapped up in their own self-importance, that they forget to look out for their neighbors, their friends, people on the street and even for family. Yet, we see when tragedy strikes (be it a tornado, a flood, or a terrorist attack), these same people pull out all the stops to help those affected. Wouldn't it be amazing if we didn't wait for the disaster to strike, but if instead, we each made it a priority each and every day to do something positive in the life of another human being? Can you even begin to imagine the possiblities!
My hubby forwarded this article to me this morning. For those of you who believe that President Bush was evil incarnate, don't bother reading it because it won't change your mind. But for those of you who wonder just how history will treat President Bush, perhaps you would be interested in reading the article as it shows the facts of accomplishments.
And for those of you who are wondering if I am turning this into a political blog, rest assured I am not. It's just with the changing of the guard, I have been thinking about it a lot this week and what better place to share my thoughts than here?
On Tuesday, the kids and I got our school work done in a timely fashion and gathered about the television to watch the Inauguration of our 44th President. I don't think I have seen an inauguration in years. If I did, it didn't make a lasting impression on me. But I have a friend who impressed upon me how significant it was that we live in a country where the change of power occurs without a shot fired. And of course, there was the special significance of this being the first African American President.
I am glad we watched. I was just about moved to tears when President Bush walked in for the last time to the tune "Hail to the Chief". He had a rough presidency with not anywhere near the support he should have had for the tough decisions he had to make. As he walked in, I couldn't help but imagine that his step was a little bit lighter...his time was done and he could head back to Texas and his ranch and to a life where he was in more in control of his life and din't have the weight of the world on his shoulders.
I felt sorry for President Obama that his swearing in got botched. At first I thought it was nerves (and heaven knows, I would have been nervous), but then to find out that Chief Justice Roberts goofed.... However, I did not find this misstep to deflect from the importance of the moment (though it did remind me of when I graduated from high school and the principal messed up the reading of my name!)
President Obama gave a good speech and exuded confidence and hope. The music that John Williams wrote was awesome! Aretha Franklin had on quite a hat! And the packed mall was an amazing thing to see.
I found it moving when President and First Lady Obama walked President and Mrs. Bush to the helicopter. The commentators made the remark that it seemed the two had grown close in the preceeding weeks as evidenced by the heartfelt hugs that were being passed around.
All in all, it was an hour and a half well spent. It was an excellent reminder of what living in a free country means.
Today at high noon, President Obama steps into history and becomes the 44th President of the United States of America. Not only is this moment historical because of the fact that 1/2 century ago, African Americans were not allowed in 'white' establishments, but it is a moment of hope for our country. A reminder of all that is good in America - the democratic process does work, the people's voice is still heard. It is a testament to the world, that power can change hands, not just from person to person, but from party to party without a shot fired.
I did not vote for Barack Obama. My choice wasn't influenced by his skin color, but by my concern over his lack of experience, the people he surrounded himself with, the message he was taught in church, and my concern over his naivete on how to handle other world leaders. But as the new President of our country, I will do all I can to support him (as long as it doesn't conflict with my moral values and that would be true of any President).
As a supporter of President Bush, I believe that history will judge him better than his contemporaries have. He started off with basically a no-win situation (the 2000 election) and everything was an uphill battle from there. He had to fight every step of the way because the Democrats were so disbelieving that their guy could lose, they refused to consider supporting their new leader. With a country so divided, it would be hard for any President to accomplish much of anything. And President Bush didn't even have an 'easy' presidency. Terrorist attacks, 9/11, two wars...there were no easy decisions for him to make during his 8 years in office. Every thing he did was scrutinized by the media to the nth degree, but despite predictions when he was elected, he hasn't paved the way to become emperor of the world, nor has he spent his years in the White House as a falling down drunk. I wish President Bush the best. I pray for happiness and peace for his family.
But my prayers are not for President Bush alone. During the years that Bush was in office, I was amazed at the constant harrassment that he put up with from the Democrats (those in office and regular civilians). It did not seem to me like anyone ever gave him much of a chance, except perhaps in the days and weeks immediately following 9/11 and even then the conspiracy theory hounds were out in full force and people were criticizing his reaction before a group of young children he was visiting when the 9/11 attacks began.
I prayed this morning for the safety of President Obama and his family. There is no doubt that they face more dangers in this office than the ordinary president, because even in this day and age, there are those who don't want to move on and don't want an African American running our country. I also prayed for wisdom for our new President. He has a lot of challenges to overcome. Fortunately, because of his heritage and because the Democrats finally feel vindicated, he has a lot of support fresh out of the gate. And, while I imagine many non-church going, non-conservative people would doubt this, he has the prayers of the churches around the country. We want him to be successful at his job. We want him to be President over all of our nation and we want the wounds created by the angry over the last 8 years to be healed. President Obama is riding a wave of historical significance. He is flying high on emotions of a country that is proud of itself for having made such a show of letting go of old prejudices. I pray that the good feelings that are sweeping our nation and the world today will bring in a period of cooperation and peace for us and for the world.
May God bless you, protect you and guide you, President Obama and your family. May God bless this great nation. May God bring peace to the world.
And President Bush, thank you. Thank you for doing the best job you could do when fighting against the odds. Thank you for being a stand up guy, who stood up for what he believed was best for this country, even when support was low and people were calling for your head. May God bless you and your family.
It seems like to me that as Daniel and I grow older, our tastes in movies have diverged. He is more into the shoot them up, blow them up, or deep philosophical movies. I, who didn't care much for romance (at least not the Harlequin variety) as a kid, find myself turning more to love stories, children's movies, light hearted family entertainment, and good mysteries and horror stories (without the gore).
But there are still movies that we can watch together and both say "Hey, that was really good". This weekend we watched Reign Over Me. Adam Sandler and Don Cheadle star in this movie. Other notables include Donald Sutherland and Liv Tyler and Jada Pinkett Smith.
When I saw Adam Sandler was in this movie, I was sure it was a comedy and I am not a huge Adam Sandler fan. But let me tell you, folks, Adam Sandler can act and his performance in this movie is simply outstanding!
This story will make you laugh, make you cry, and help to put life in its proper perspective. We all get so caught up in what we are supposed to do, how we are supposed to act and how we are supposed to react, that we forget how to live. We find ourselves so focused on the expectations of others, that we forget about the expectations we have for ourselves.
Have a box of tissues handy as you may need to dab at your eyes a time or two. Or better yet, just let the tears fall and realize that life is made up of many different feelings and that's what makes it so darn good (and bad).
We give this movie 2 thumbs up and five stars!
I have known Dotti Enderle for ten years and I have had the privilege of reading the majority of what she has written during that time. Dotti's talents are wide and varied. She has written wonderful picture books such as Grandpa for Sale, The Cotton Candy Catastrophe at the Texas State Fair, and Granny Gert and The Bunion Brothers. Also, to her credit, she wrote The Fortune Teller Club Series, Hidden, a variety of educational books, and dozens of magazine articles. She is a storyteller, a child at heart, and writes some of the best dialogue I have ever written anywhere. Her insight into her characters and the way they would speak is supreme! The dialogue is never stilted, but always true to the character.
The kids and I just finished another of Dotti's books called Man in the Moon. Dotti's stories often have a magical quality to them. And this one is no different. Janine, growing up in rural Texas, in 1961, discovers the magic and wonder of the world when an unusual visitor stops by for a visit. Janine is struggling with her parents economic situation, her younger brother's illness and her feelings about her life. As I read through this story, I remembered my own youth spent on a farm and the long summer days and the prospect of something exciting lying around every corner.
The children enjoyed listening to the book and I enjoyed reading it. We were all hoping that things would turn out well in the end, but if you want to know the answer to that question, you will have to read the book yourself! Be sure to check out Dotti's other books, either using the links above or by visiting her website!
We don't have this game yet, but it is on our list of games to get! Who thought Physics could be so much fun???? Check it out!
Daniel sent me this link yesterday and I had to share it. These look like some fun and very interesting experiments to try!
It's amazing how we can trick our brains!
three days of rain, mud, and a Goldendoodle together?
I am a task oriented person and I am also the type of person who can always think of things that I would like to do or need to do. I haven't been bored since I was in high school and shake my head in wonder when anyone says they are bored...
So this week, I took one more week off from homeschooling, because last week, I spent the week catching up on things I hadn't done all fall. My desk got cleared off and rearranged. I emptied out a file cabinet because we aren't using it anymore and we will be putting a desk there for Katrina. I took down the Christmas decorations and did a bunch of other stuff that I can't even remember now. So I decided this week, I would finish up the few things I had left, then I would spend the rest of the time playing with the kids and my new Christmas presents.
Well, the first snag in that theory was this week, we had somewhere to go every afternoon! Monday afternoon was piano. Tuesday afternoon we had to take Plato to the vet and I had to take care of some business at the bank. Wednesday afternoon, we went to a homeschool game time and we went shopping for groceries and so forth. Today, we had our 4H meeting and tomorrow we are going to visit other friends and have supper with Bruce and Ryan and visit with them some.
That still left mornings and evenings. So most of my mornings I spent on a few odds and ends I wanted to accomplish. I read the last two chapters of my paralegal book from last semester. They weren't assigned for class, but I wanted to see what was in them. I did laundry, did some more straightening, and exercised. In the evenings, the kids and I watched some movies and we played some new games. I read some from a book about attorneys and paralegals...so I did squeeze in some fun times.
But I got two great ideas....I thought I would rip a bunch of CDs. A couple of years ago, I got a hand me down Ipod from my hubby. I don't use it alot, thought I have used it in spurts. I have put a couple of books on tape onto it and listened to them while exercising. And I have a bunch of songs and from time to time I listen to those. The songs were ones that I got from a bunch my hubby had ripped from our CD collection. I figured this time, I would rip the disks that I carried with me in my car and put new songs on my Ipod. Also, each of the kids got MP3 players for Christmas, so I wanted to get them some songs too. Well, yesterday, I ripped a bunch of disks...I do mean a bunch. I spent several hours working on it. Then I went to put the songs on my iPod and low and behold, I hadn't ripped them in the right format!!! GEE, why doesn't anyone tell me these things! The format worked fine for the MP3 players, but my iPod refused to recognize it.
I couldn't figure out how to do a batch conversion, so I deleted them and started again..... Yep, I spent a good part of today ripping all of those CDs (and a bunch more). I am not even sure they are all going to fit on my 4 GB iPOD!!! Anyway, while I did that, I did some other ripping. I had three years of old tax returns and documents that I needed to shred. First I began by shredding them with our little home shredder ( a gift from my mother in law), but that was loud and we were watching television (this was this past weekend). Then I tried burning some in our fire bowl, but that didn't go so well...there were just too many papers! So today, it was back to shredding. Katrina helped me the last three hours, but altogether, I bet I spent about 10 hours shredding today. And the kicker...this afternoon about 5:00, the shredder died. It just wasn't up to the huge task I had set before it.... So then, we ripped by hand. We did take out a couple of hours to play Pirates of the Carribean Treasure Hunt DVD game. That was fun!
So it has been a ripping fun day and I am done and maybe tomorrow morning I can do something fun...like get a root canal (only kidding!)
Well, the plans for our big trip this coming year are underway. We just purchased tickets for a five week trip to Australia! We will be leaving September 17th and returning October 23rd! We are very excited. We have some other travel plans for between now and then.
The end of March or beginning of April will see us going to Florida for a long weekend to visit Daniel's parents and maybe a day visit to Sea World or Disney World.
We will be in Illinois in June and August. And in June, we plan a trip to Myrtle Beach.... amazing times ahead!
Well, we are making travel plans for this coming year and it looks like some of the items on my list of 100 things to do will be checked off. Come back for an update. I am not saying where we are going until the tickets are actually purchased....
I didn't blog much last month. I was so busy with normal holiday stuff and extra stuff going on (like travelling to Illinois), that there just wasn't time left to blog. So I figure pictures are worth a thousand words and I found a bunch of photos on my camera. I uploaded them to Flickr if you care to go and take a peek.
From a family gathering at Thanksgiving (where we enjoyed the hot tub, the fire pit, good food and Rock Band) to Katrina's first cookie exchange to a week long trip to Illinois to not one, not two but four different Christmas celebrations....you will see we were busy, but having a blast! Things not pictured include two recitals and a Christmas program and a 4-H Christmas party.... And I didn't take any photos of my final two paralegal classes...
But for those of you who want to see the photos, go check out my flickr account. I labeled the pictures to help you know what was what...
There were days where I met myself coming in as I was going out and I was thinking that I might lose my mind, but all in all, while this past fall has been one of the busiest I have lived through, it has also been one of the best with lots of time with family, meeting new friends and realizing that my 'old brain' still could learn.
I am looking forward to busy times ahead and will try to touch base from time to time so you will know that I am still alive and well! Already, I am looking at next week...Sunday night Awanas starts back up, Monday piano starts back up, Tuesday Plato has to go for his rabies shot, Wednesday we have homeschool game day, Thursday we have 4-H and Friday we have plans to get together with friends.....yikes!!!!!! so much for starting back slowly!
Blessings and Happy New YEar!
Well, we spent our New Year's Eve evening playing Electronic Monopoly (way fun!), Hangman, Halo, and coloring. We toasted in the New Year with sparkling grape juice (and then I stayed awake until 3:30 working on my Viva Pinata Garden!) Don't tell the kids, I made them go to bed at 1:00!
My New Year's Resolution is:
Not to have any New Year's Resolutions this year.
Phew! I have already accomplished it! Yeah me!!!!!