Tutorial - Long Curly Hair

I have a lot of hair and it grows quickly. It takes me about three to four years for me to grow out a pixie to the length it is now. I've been called a Chia Pet. I believe I come from a long line of quick hair growers!

Everyone always thinks they want thick hair, so I'm not complaining. However, it takes time if you want to fix it. Long ago, I developed a cheater's way to curl my hair. Recently it occurred to me that maybe some other Chia Pet would like to know my secret. So, this is my first, and likely last, hair tutorial. If you have long hair, this may be of interest to you. If you do not have long hair, my apologies for writing a boring post.

So, here is how I curl my hair when I have to be at work waaaaaaay too early. It is not unusual for me to leave for my work day around 5:00 a.m.  I do not want to get up any earlier than I must so I use a technique I first used when I was in high school.

I bathe and wash my hair the night before. I blow dry it until I feel no more wet strands. Maybe you can curl wet hair at night and it will be dry by morning, but mine would still be quite soggy. So, here is what you need for this version of long, curly hair.

Yep, those are sponge curlers and yes, they still make them.

Bend over at your wait and put a ponytail right on top of your head.

I used 6 medium sized sponge curlers for this look.

It is fun to try out smaller ones, more of them, for smaller spirals.

It looks rather dopey, so just go to bed.

The beauty of this method is, although you are sleeping in curlers,

you are not sleeping ON curlers as they are on the top of your head only.

In the morning, when I take the rollers out, I'm always glad that I 

planned ahead so I can quickly get ready for work.

Honestly, I often don't even bother to brush it as it

comes out looking pretty neat.

If you want it to stay that curly all day, though,

you may want to use some hairspray.

Mine usually loosens up as the day wears on.

Because I am a nurse,  I always must pull it 

back in a ponytail or pretty barrette.

It works and it is easy.

Now you know my secret.

These Are The Days - Making Kool-Aid

Cordelia recently said, "Grandma, I am very smart! You are very smart, too... not as smart as me but you are very smart."

These Are The Days - Racing Grandpa

When our children were young, we were leading very busy lives, much like most young families. Every now and then, though, I'd stop and savor the moment. I'd think to myself, "These are the days I'll be looking back on."

I do look back on those days with fondness. I loved raising our daughter and our two sons! From the time Maria (1st) was born until the time Sam (last) turned 18 consisted of 30 years of full-time parenting. 30 years is a lot of parenting years! Somehow, though, it seems as though it went by so quickly.

However, as we were playing with our two granddaughters this week-end, I thought to myself, "These are the days... bonus days! I want to remember them. I want to remember the things these girls say and do. For instance, Cordelia said to Mike this past week-end, "Everyone loves your silliness, Grandpa! Even I love your silliness!"

So, I decided I would start a new little series for my blog. In the future, when I do a These Are The Days post I may or may not use words. Sometimes photos tell the story just as well. I'm going to kick it off with a few posts in a row. I hope you enjoy them. I hope you feel the joy. Feel free to do a These Are The Days post of your own; link back to mine if you'd like!

Words 

by Hawk Nelson from the album Made

(available on Amazon, ITunes and Google Play)

            My favorite line in this song...

I don't want to say a word

Unless it points the world back to You

Click below and follow the link to hear this song...

Bad Squirrel!

Spammers Say the Darndest Things

I noticed earlier this week that my blog was about to pass 100,000 page views. That would be exciting except that I've noticed I've had a LOT of suspicious traffic again. I get a lot of spammers leaving comments on the older posts. I was hating that but then decided maybe I needed to change my attitude and learn to enjoy it.

What? Enjoy spammers?!

First, for those of you who don't have your own blogs, let me tell you about spammers. They are advertisements, really. They are likely automated responses. That is why many bloggers have you go through the word verification process and if you can't do it, you can't leave a comment. Without word verification they can leave "comments" on blog posts using some sort of computerized program. At the end of their comment, they show their website and invite you to click. If you do, you find they are advertising some great new weight loss product or something like that. You don't get to connect with a real person at all. I don't know how they find blog posts but I've noticed that once they find one of mine, I get a LOT of comments on that particular post. It's not all bad, though.

Many of them say nice things to me! They call my posts brilliant, insightful and even auspicious. They tell me they've been looking and looking for an article such as mine because it answers all their questions. They tell me I am a great writer and perhaps I can help them start a blog. They ALL invite me to check out their web page. Isn't that sweet of them?

None of them make sense and are most certainly written by someone who did not read the post. Many seem to be written by someone who has access to a list of English words but has no idea what they mean. Many just link nonsensical, sometimes funny, phrases and make them look like comments. That can be kind of entertaining. Well, it is entertaining the first few times. I'm now getting about 20 a day!

I know I can reinstate the word verification again, and likely I will, but I'm trying to hold off. Why? Because they are getting harder and harder to read and I hate them.! I may have to give in again, but for now, I'm just going to keep deleting my spammer comments. If any sneak through where you can see them, please don't encourage them by clicking on their links.

For now, I may as well continue to accept their ridiculous compliments!

P.S. For those of you wondering about the arsonists in our neighborhood, I don't know anything more about the culprit(s). I saw that the camper fire actually did burn the house a bit where it was parked, and melted a bit of a camper in the driveway beside it. We've had no damage to our property.  I slept several nights with the windows open so I could smell smoke but all I smelled was a nervous skunk! Hopefully we have returned to being a quiet little neighborhood.

The Math Whiz and the Girl Who Barks

I enjoyed granddaughters at my house yesterday for lunch. Have I mentioned how much I enjoy those girls?

Highlights from yesterday:

Maria and I took the girls for a walk. Elise listened for neighborhood dogs all the way, very serious about barking back to them. I tried to teach her to also tweet at the birds but she really just wanted to speak with the dogs.

Cordelia wanted to talk about how many children I had. She named my three kids (now adults). She then named herself and Elise and told me they were my grandkids. Then, little 3 1/2 year old math whiz that she is said, "You have 5 kids because 3 plus 2 is 5." Who can argue with that?

And now, I am sharing photos of those beautiful grandkids, just because I can.

HGTV and Me

I like to watch HGTV. I especially enjoy watching people shop for their new home. I don't care if it is rather staged! I just enjoy looking at the pretty houses. Is that weird?

I used to think I would have enjoyed being a realtor. I'm pretty sure it isn't like the realtors on HGTV, though. That is, I'm thinking most of the people house hunting don't wrap it up in an hour. It would be fun, though, to look through homes...at least the nice ones.

 photo by Ambro and freedigitalphotos.net
However, there is something that really bothers me when I watch those shows. I really hate listening to the complaints! The two I've heard the most are, "Oh no, we'd have to put in granite counter tops before we move in!" or "Those appliances will never do; they are white." Oh no! Anything but white appliances! Stainless steel is currently fashionable, I get it, but good grief! Are we all sheep? Do we all have to have the same kinds of counter tops and the same color of appliances? Oh wait, did that sound sarcastic?


Maria (my daughter) did a post recently on First World Problems. You should read it as it is pretty funny. Now, as I watch the House Hunter whiners I realize they are just overwhelmed with their First World Problems. I should speak more kindly because some of them don't even get a swimming pool in their backyards.

All right. I'm really done now with the sarcasm.

In case you don't have HGTV available to you, here's another fun thing I like to do. Go to Realtor.com and you can browse through homes all over the country! Sometimes I look at homes for sale in our town, sometimes I look at homes for sale somewhere like Manhattan. Many have multiple photos or perhaps even a video of the interior. It's fun! They really make me appreciate the prices we pay in Wyoming for a lot of square footage! I just found a tiny studio apartment (no bedroom) in Manhattan for the same price as our four bedroom house with a large yard and two car garage here in Wyoming. Sometimes it helps you appreciate what you've got.

Well, I've reached that point in my blog post where I'm just kind of rambling. Mike says I talk that way when I am tired. OK, then. Good-night!

Crime in Our Neighborhood

Last year I posted several times about arson in our neighborhood.

Do you remember this post about a fire next door to us last August?

Or how about this post?

Finally, we learned it was all over...

...until yesterday.

I felt nervous Sunday night at bedtime. Mike was out of town for the night but usually that doesn't bother me. Sam was going to be home soon and I was a bit disappointed in myself for feeling tense. I got up and checked the locks. I turned lights on in several rooms and decided to leave them on for the night. Then, I kept listening for sounds. It felt so silly! I decided to leave the television on so that I would relax a bit. That probably wasn't my best idea but I fell asleep and didn't awaken for several hours.

Early Monday morning I went to work out with my friend, Donna. I didn't notice anything different. When she dropped me back off at home, though, I noticed a patrol car parked across the street from our house.

Well, soon there were more police, as well as firefighters, fire trucks and the big incident command van.








I didn't even have to leave my living room to take these photos.

I went out to get the scoop from one of the firefighters. He told me that they were inspecting a burned area in the grass. He also told me a camper a block down our street had burned during the night. Apparently I had slept through all that!

I woke Sam up and he told me he'd run outside about midnight after hearing screams. He said he thought someone was being murdered. I was proud and horrified all at once, learning he'd gone running to the rescue. That had to do with the camper fire. Sam said there were lots of patrol cars there before him and he never did know who had screamed.

The camper was parked in someone's driveway and I'm sure they were worried about their home burning. I saw a damaged car being hauled away Monday morning but don't know the story there. I also heard two women speaking of something being stolen. Again, I wasn't informed beyond what I overheard out front.

So, when I spoke with the firefighter he told me that if I had children in our home, we should go over a plan of escape. Everyone should, really, but hearing it from him made me feel nervous.

Much of the day different inspectors kept showing up to take photos of that burned spot in the grass. It just didn't look like much, pieces of fat yellow candles and unidentified pieces of stuff. One officer referred to it as an incendiary device but they weren't sure what was in it. Apparently it hadn't gone where it was meant to go or it had fizzled too soon or something.

Hopefully, all those investigators will be able to piece it all together. I don't know if this is the work of the juvenile girl from last summer's drama or if it is something new and different. Either way, it is rather bizarre that our quiet little residential street keeps having so much criminal activity. I don't like it.

Savoring

I have a new favorite word... savor.

Recently I read an article about this word. It turns out, peace and happiness and lots of other good feelings just may be dependent on our ability to savor.  Okay, I'm kind of making fun of the simplicity of it but there really is a lot of truth to this theory, don't you think?

So, I have been trying to step up my moments of savoring. I've savored listening to the birds in our neighborhood. I really, really enjoyed listening to all the different songs. It is amazing. Truthfully, I go through a lot of days without even thinking about the mind-boggling variety of birds and bird songs. Most of their songs are really, really pretty. Mike and I particularly love listening to the meadowlarks. Have you heard a meadowlark recently? Blue Jays... well, they are pretty to look at anyway.

Last night I pulled into our garage and spent a few moments in my car, with the garage door closed. I heard NOTHING. It was silent, really silent. I don't know when I last savored silence. It was a rare treat. Actually, a few minutes of it was enough. Total silence seemed to hurt my ears. Anyway, it was interesting. I was happy enough to get back to listening to the birds. Maybe I should have left this paragraph out of this blog post, huh?

Now, think about pancakes. They are an ordinary food, right? But, really, don't they just taste so good? I really need to appreciate pancakes more.

Do any of you remember the song about stopping to smell the roses?

  It's a good song, but for me, it would be lilacs! Lilacs! I savor a lot of smells but right now lilacs are in full bloom and they smell delightful. I think maybe that is how it smells in heaven. I love that smell!

People are what I savor the most, actually time with my people. Time isn't something you can hold on to, but it is savorable. Here are a few photos of what I was savoring last evening. They are not all great photos (cell phone pics only) but they were all great moments.

What have you been savoring lately?

Come to the River

This song has been running through my head all week...don't know why. So, I decided I should let it run through your head for awhile. You're welcome.

 Come to the River

Rhett Walker Band

Walk for Life

Mike and I are once again planning to do the Walk for Life. That is to say, we are involved in a fundraiser for True Care (also known as The Caring Center). I am not good at fundraising and I don't often get involved in anything where I have to ask for a pledge. This is the exception. This is important enough for me to step out of my comfort zone.

Walk for Life is an annual fundraiser to help support the ministry of True Care. True Care is a place of hope. When a woman or girl is faced with an unplanned pregnancy, this is a place she can go to for help. It is a place she can go to for a pregnancy test, ultrasound and many other services. True Care will give information regarding her options. True Care's mission is to be a part of the movement to help find options that will erase the perceived need for abortions.

I am now on the Board of Directors for True Care. I'm not a Board of Directors kind of person but again, this is important enough for me to step out of my comfort zone. This is a life or death situation!

You see, I have decided I am a liberal. I don't understand why society thinks someone with my beliefs should be called a conservative. I think it is a very, very liberal idea to believe that all humans, inside or outside of the uterus, deserve to be protected. I believe a woman's instinct is to protect her young and I believe that going against her instinct will likely cause her a great deal of pain and regret later.

I don't feel called to political action as much as I feel called to a position of education. That is something that True Care does well. They have a well educated staff that has loads of information regarding resources of hope. That is really what they are about.... hope. They do their work without judgment. They do their work with kindness. They offer hope for a future for both the mother and the baby.

True Care will offer information and help for a woman who chooses to raise her own baby. They offer the same for a woman who chooses to make the sacrifice of adoption.

But that isn't all! If they help a young woman who then decides to abort her baby anyway, she is welcomed to return at any time in the future. There are women available, who had abortions themselves, who offer a place of refuge and a path to peace. All the work is done with a Christian attitude of comfort and forgiveness, love and kindness. That is really what I like most about True Care.

So, now you know why I am participating in this Walk for Life. If you are interested in making a pledge for our walk, please click here. We thank-you!

How Can I Help You Say Goodbye?

After yesterday's frivolous post, I decided to share something more serious with you that was on my mind this week. Whether you want it or not, I am offering you a little walk into my thoughts.

The other day I was thinking about how much joy I get from my family. I know that they love me as well. Those were such happy thoughts! Then, my mind took a U-turn for a bit.

I couldn't leave well enough alone. I was thinking about all that joy and then I thought of how the more we enjoy being together, the more it would hurt to lose one of us. I've known people who feel that is reason enough to no longer get close to another person, or even another pet. It would seem the pain would be more than we could bear.


photo by FrameAngel
from freedigitalphotos.net

The truth is, though, our lives are all full of goodbyes. We may not like it but everything in this life is temporary, even life itself. I don't think that should keep us from fully engaging, though. How sad that would be. 

Growing up I faced a lot of another kind of goodbyes because we moved a lot. That was also hard and also sad. Goodbyes are not my favorite thing. However, I survived them all. I was able to be happy and joyful again, even when I missed friends or relatives. 

I used to hear a song from time to time that really moved me. No kidding, sometimes you just need some good Country Music to spell it all out for you. The song I am talking about is How Can I Help You Say Goodbye? It was recorded by Patty Loveless, written by Burton Collins and Karen Taylor-Good. According to Wikipedia, the words were spoken to Burton Collins by his grandmother, preparing him for her death. Click on the name to hear it yourself. 

This song is about a mother preparing her daughter for some of the goodbyes she must face. Over the years, that song has come to my mind on many occasions. I appreciate the line, "It's okay to hurt." She is letting her child know she can face the hurt and she can survive the hurt. I think that is an important message to pass on to our children. I hope that I have passed that on to mine.

There. That's it. Those were my deep thoughts this week. Just in case you are wondering, I am feeling quite well and do not have any goodbyes planned in my near future. Sometimes stuff just passes through a brain for no particular reason.

How about you? What's been floating through your brain? 

My New Toy

I heard, on more than one occasion, that a Swiffer was handy for dusting. I am cheap. I was rather resistant to spending money on something with which to dust, when an old rag would do the job. However, I had a weak moment at Walmart the other day and I purchased one.

I have to say, I'm loving it! OK, well, maybe LOVE isn't really the right word. I love my husband, I love my children and grandchildren, but I really, really like this Swiffer dealy. It works well for ordinary dusting but it is extraordinary for those hard to reach angles. Nope, I'm not being paid to say this. I'm pretty sure the Swiffer People know nothing about me and my little blog. I just wanted to share my fun little find.

I sure hope you weren't coming to my blog today looking for deep thoughts.

Maybe I will have some deep thoughts tomorrow. 

We'll see.

Teacher Heroes

Watching stories out of the aftermath of the tornado that hit the elementary schools in Moore, Oklahoma really made me think about the teachers involved. As was the case in the Connecticut school shooting, teachers behaved with heroism as they tried to protect the children in their care, just as a parent would do. Whether they were protecting the children from violence perpetuated by a person or by nature, they acted as most parents would, even using their own bodies as shields.

Thankfully, most teachers will never have to face such horrible situations. Most will never have to risk their own lives to protect the children entrusted to their care. Just the same, knowing that so many would do this really makes me think again about how much we should value teachers. It also makes me wonder about the many little sacrifices teachers make for their students every day.

Teachers spend so much time with the children assigned to them for the school year, they most certainly bond with them. To learn of them acting instinctively to save the lives of the children shows their level of caring was well established before the tragedy even occurred. They didn't have time to reason, they just acted.

They acted like loving parents.

As I said, most teachers won't have to face such a dramatic situation, but I think inside many teachers there lives a hero.

photo By Paul Gooddy of freedigitalphotos.net

Thank-you, teachers, for all you give daily.

Embracing the Moment

Treasure every moment with those you love.