tiffany's spot

Some days the weather is so beautiful and so perfect that I just want to be outside. So I layer sunscreen and minimal clothing on the kids and out we go. I've been asked what I do out there. I sit. I set up the water slide and/or pool for the kids and then I sit and laugh at them or visit with them or read a book. Sometimes I lay on a beach towel and the kids scramble to lay their beach towels next to me and lay too. Sometimes we water the plants and I weed. They don't weed, because then everything is suddenly a weed. There is lots to do outside. There is also a lot of nothing to do outside on a hot summer day. It's great. You know what I don't do on those days? Clean. I have a bit of a daily cleaning chart that I use for myself as a bit of a guide so that the house is more or less decent at any given time. It's been seriously slacked upon. Then there are days like today. It's not nice outside. Perfect day for cleaning right? Meh.

Well, we're all okay. I know, I know - there would have been way more intrigue if someone had plummeted into a valley and become impaled on the top of a tree, but seriously, do we really need those things to happen just to beef up our blog topics? I think not. It was lots of fun though. The best part was being one of the first to zip down a cable so you could see the impressions on the faces of people who came flying in for a not-so-gentle landing. Priceless. I don't actually have pictures. I didn't bring my camera because I was afraid I'd drop it into the abyss. There were lots of pictures taken by some of the others and I'm planning on plagiarizing a few as soon as they show up on facebook, so just hold your horses! Heading off to bed. I'm old.

I am going zip lining tomorrow with Steven, his dad and step-mom, and Steven's siblings. Some of the group members are being a little sucky about it - you know, making comments about plummeting to their deaths and needing to upgrade their liability insurance and things like that. I'm not a sucky at all. In fact, I'm playing it awfully cool. I even offered to "help" by pushing the wimps off the platforms. You know what this means right? No hesitating, no chickening out, no going back on my calm, cool, collected demeanor. You can't show fear after you've somewhat publicly mocked others for doing so. Not that I'm scared. Nope. Not me. Not at all. I'm not the least bit apprehensive about grabbing the years-old zip line equipment with my hopefully-capable hands and stepping off the platforms while hoping that the cables aren't old, scabby, portage online purchased, rickety, substandard messes. Not worried in the least. Nor do I secretly fear th...

Okay, so I'm reading my last post, and my comments, and I'm starting to realize that everyone is feeling bad for me. Now I feel bad that I illicited sympathy with my ramblings the other day. I apologize. Please send your prayers and thoughts to my cousin Vanessa - she needs them, not me. Unfortunately I don't really have big updates on her condition. She's still heavily sedated. I think they tried to lift her out of it the other day and she panicked so they put her back under. I've been thinking of her lots lately and I hope she's going to start recovering soon.

I'm not going to be all mopey. Okay, maybe a little bit mopey. My kids are in bed after a long day and I feel like I should go relax but I'm unsettled, and I feel like I should do the dishes and clean up the kitchen, but my head isn't in that either. My 15 year old cousin met with some violence this weekend. She's in the hospital where she's had one surgery already and will be faced with numerous surgeries to come. I won't go into detail. I found out about this yesterday morning and have been on an emotional roller coaster ever since. When my kids are busy and goofy or silly I'm amused by them as usual, but as soon as I have some down time I get thinking about my cousin again and I turn into an emotional mess again. I think the kids think I'm nuts, and I'm trying to be patient with them but you know how it is. Last night I talked with my dad on the phone. He's exceptionally angry with one of his sisters and he'd very likely been drinking so t...

Steven has almost completed an entire week of his new job. For those who don't remember (because I think I mentioned it earlier) Steven is apprenticing at a local plumbing outfit. Being the new guy he'll probably do a lot of the grunt work this summer - he's already had to haul some major equipment as well as tool boxes and other supplies, up and down many flights of stairs. He's been jack hammering and drilling through cement. He likes it. Not only is he hauling stuff and sweating like crazy, he's learning new things every day. It's neat that he comes home and is positive about what he did all day. I also think it's cool that if we ever renovate a bathroom or kitchen he can be my guy! Is it bad that I'm secretly excited (I guess it's not so secret anymore) about him hauling and shoveling and drilling and jack hammering his way to being extra buff? ******************************** On another note - I added to the last post to give the answer (and a ...