Oh DEAR~! 9 days till Christmas

Well, Holy Crack.. when did this happen?  I pulled my head out of the sand this morning and discovered there is only 9 days till Christmas.  I am not feeling the holiday spirit.  I am feeling the stress though.  Still waiting for the money to have Christmas with.  Seriously picked the wrong time of year to move.  That is okay though.  We will make do,  just like everyone else around us who are making do.  I don’t know anyone who isn’t struggling this year.

We are 90% moved.  Virtually nothing unpacked.  The chaos is wearing me down, but I have no ambition to try and unpack it, purge it and find a place for it.  The house is nice, but signifgantly smaller than our old house in USE of space, not square footage.  I know it will work, we just need diffferent furniture and storage ideas for the rooms to hold our stuff.  I have a good feeling that alot of the crap in the garage aint gonna stay.  If I haven’t looked for it in the last 2 months here, I probably can live without it.  Moving was/is extremely stressful.  I have no desire to move that way again.  However, after I adjusted to the change of house and neighborhood,  it has turned into a neat adventure.  That being said, I have very little desire to take the adventure again .. anytime soon.   I like the new house we live in.  I feel at home here.  The pool is a real nice luxery.  Yep, we are swimming still.  I think that will be done after this next cold front though.  January is typically cold.  I look forward to warmer days that make the pool temp warmer than 70*.   That is refreshing, but shocking at first.

So, there are 9 days till Christmas.  I must leave now and get to work on a list of projects to do, gifts to purchase and so forth.  See ya after the holidays.

Taffy

life is a changing

Life is changing fast around here!

First, I made a decision to go gluten free in my diet.  Much to my suprise, I feel better and I have lost 13 lbs in 6 weeks.  I am eating so much better now. So much healthier now.  I am not hungry anymore and I have regular constitution. Gluten Free is not that hard, just takes some discipline and thinking outside of the typical menu box.  I can’t eat regular bread or bread products, regular flour noodles, flour tortillas,  or cookies or cakes, or pies and few ice creams.  I must pay attention to ingredients.  Most packaged convenient foods are off limits.  Lots of cooking going on here, but I am eating so much better.  Boars Head lunchmeat and cheese are all GF.  I can eat regular rice and potatoes.  All veggies are fair game!  Meat, even most processed meat.. bacon and hot dogs are all safe.  Most cheese are safe.  Most yogurts are safe and so is cottage cheese.  Fruit is always good!  Even canned is okay.  Eggs are yummy, love mushrooms.  Margarine is safe as is olive oil.  Not all salad dressings are safe but a good portion are.  I can buy GF bread, noodles, and such.  They taste great.  Betty Crocker even makes a GF cake mix and I like it better than regular cake mix.  Anyway…  I feel better all over and I am losing weight too.  I will be eating this way the rest of my life, there is no going back.  My body just kicks me back when I eat stuff with gluten.  To my amazement, this is a real issue.

Second, we made the decision to leave our house.  We just rented a very nice house in the neighborhood.  God led us to this house and it is a perfect fit right now.  We even get a pool!  Never had a pool. First time EVER  that I wished it wasn’t winter.  We start moving this week.  That is an overwhelming process.  When we bought this house, we each lived at home with our parents.  As a result, we moved virtually nothing into this house.  Clothes, books, a lamp, a tv, his single bed, his dresser, some dishes and thats it.  NOW, 16 years later, we are moving a ton of stuff for 4 people.  How do you do that?  We are only moving 3 blocks away, so I don’t need to pack everything into a moving van and do it all at one time.  I get to move slowly.  This allows us to purge carefully before we trek it down the street to the new home.  BUT WOW, we got alot of  shit.  ROFL.  I hope we can rent the new house for at least 2 years.  I have no desire to do this again, and I told the homeowners that.

As always, I am trusting God to lead the way in my life.  Faith is keeping me from falling apart.  My sense of adventure is certainly helpful too.  My health is improving and our living arrangements are improving.  It seems I on the right path.

 

Taffy

 

August 26th 2009

Seriously,  IS IT EVER GOING TO COOL OFF?   This summer has been goofy.  It is Florida, and it is HOT, but not AS HOT as it usually is.  Which means absolutly nothing to anybody but a native.  So, I am wondering if that means that Fall and Winter will be cool and cold all the way through.  Last Fall and Winter was bizzare, it started off COLD, then went to HOT, and finished LUKEWARM.   I am just thinking that the planet’s weather climate groove is OFF a bit.   Sigh.   All I know is that I am sick of heat.  I am tired of A/C.  I want fresh air in the house.   How does it feel to want?  Empty.

We are 8 days into our new school year.  Every couple of days, I add another subject to the schedule.  I am up to math, science, U.S. history, art, Japanese language ( for Todd ), reading (for Nathan).  By next week, I will have added language arts, Contact Sign Language (for Nathan) and hopefully a writing course.   A full load.   A full time job.

My next door neighbor finally decided to home school her 8 year old son.  She is very happy and feeling liberated already!  I am glad for her.

My borrowed daughter turns 17 tomorrow.  I can’t believe it.   She is a senior at the local high school.   She grew up WAY to fast.  I blinked, I guess.  Heck, my oldest son is 14 and taller than her.  He is a freshman this year, here in home school.  Then there is the youngest son, who is 10 and starting puberty.  God help us all!   I really don’t know where all the time went.  I don’t think I have enough pictures to remember it all by.  That is the bad part of memory.  All the little details get lost over time.  Sad, really.  So, they all are growing up.  I am growing old.  That is how it should be.

Warning.. random thought here…..  It would be really cool if I could lean back in my desk chair and watch tv on the ceiling.

On that note, I shall move on.  To bed would probably be the best place!!  Apparently, I am tired and loopy.  

Time is flying by! It is August 6th 2009

AND  there is only 140 days untill Christmas!!  Sniggle.

Meantime, it is still Summer!  WOW, it is HOT in Florida.  The temperatures are pushing mid 90’s every day, and when you factor in the humidity.. the heat index brings up to 100 degreees or more.  Stuff melts in cars at those temps, and eggs CAN be cooked on the sidewalk   I REALLY wish it was September!  It is still hot, but not as hot.  Snort.  This summer, most people have seen their electric bills go way above the $300 mark. That is a first for most people.  The Mafia.. I mean the electric company made rate changings and kw useage billing structure changes late last year, and we are all feeling the pain now.  I wish it was September. I might be able to suck it up and turn the air off in the evenings.  Sigh.

The tropics have been deafeningly quiet this year..so far.. NOTHING is brewing out there.  Thankfully.   The reason for lack of activity is probably also related to our below average rainy season too.  Rainy season started with a big bang,  for a few weeks and then fizzled out.  July was mostly dry in our area.  It is now back to raining again, but who know how long it will last.  Without a tropical something, or a wet winter, we will be in a drought before to long.. AGAIN.

Okay, so September brings more comfortable evenings from the heat.  It also brings the new planting season!!  Oh YES!!  Time to start those seedlings and preparing the ground for the veggie garden.  A lovely lady named Melonie started our very first Community Garden!   It is so very exciting.  A local landowner donated the use of her empy lot for the garden and the city gave it a blessing.  I have my 20 x 20 plot, and I look forward to growing crops I just don’t have room for here at the house.   I am found some nicely well rotted free city mulch to build up my garden.  I have no intentions of breaking ground.  I will create a raised garden bed, in some seriously rich compost.  My goal this year is to grow tons and put it up for my pantry.  We must find a way to cut back on groceries.  The price of living isn’t getting any cheaper!

We are trying to gear up for school.  I started and stopped in July.  Life got in the way. ROFL  But we have been doing a little here and there… just trying to get back into the swing of things.  I can’t buy curriculum right now, so I am searching for free stuff and working on piecing together my own lesson plans.  I have been doing that for years now, but I was so looking forward to moving on to curriculum done for me.  I was looking forward to not having to work so hard at this!! LOL  Good thing I enjoy it.

So, for biology we are going to start with  some mini worm farming.  We got the worms and the container.  The kids tested the soil and recorded their findings.  After the worms have done their work, they kids will test the soil again and compare the changes.  Pretty neat.  Then I was turned on to a website with free science curriculum.  It is called the Jason Project.  Very neat and well done.  I will be using the weather unit.   Theat would be Earth Science.  We also just started the Planets and Universe unit.  The kids don’t know it, but they will be doing an art project to hang the universe from the ceiling.    Anyway, there is much planning for all the academic subjects.  I have much to do!

Next week in the Annual Home School Orientation meeting.  I look forward to hosting that.  My home school group is stepping up to support the cause and I am feeling very positive about the group’s new school year!

While time marches by, there is much to be done!  The garden calls, the classroom calls and my couch won’t let me go!  ROFL.   Enjoy the rest of summer everyone.

Snap! I am overdue for a post

SO much fun we have been having the last few months.   I started a raquetball class.  We are taking the summer off.. too hot.  Raquetball is fun and the kids really learned fast, and they are good!  Even the mom’s and I played.  Felt so good knowing I could still move at this size!!  I look forward to the fall.  We can play again.

I discovered the Lehigh Acres Skate Park and it ROCKS.   Not for me, though.  For the kids.  Nathan LOVES it.  Every week, I get more grey hair.  Todd is more reserved, thankfully.  Nathan.. not so much.  He wears some gear though.  I carry a first aid kit, and I know where the local hospital is.  SNORT.

The tomatoes gave out mid June.  How dare they!!!  What is wrong with 100 degree days?   What is wrong with tomatoes stewing on the plant.  ROFL   I have 3 more babies waiting to be transplanted, but I think it is to early.   Next month, August, is when they can be planted from seed.  Faith and I have been enjoying the marvels of the garden lately.  So much fun to impart my knowledge on a child.  Especially when that someone finds plants and gardening as magical as I do!

We have been school free for about a month and half.  So nice to take a break!  But, I am ready to start back soon.  July is looking good to ease into the new school year.   We have a busy school year ahead of us, so we will need a jump start to cover all the time we take off during the year.

Ta ta for now.

I am back!

It has been a tad over a month, since my last post!

We have finally received some rain in Florida.  Much appreciated and desperately needed rain!  We are starting to green up finally.   Oh, my tomato plants are gorgeous.  Lush, green and LOADED with tomatoes.  The taste so good picked right off the bush. 

The strawberries are resting right now, but my 11 bushes were giving me a handful of strawberries every week.  I am hoping next years harvest will be more.  I will make sure I buy more plants too!

 

Isn’t this a beautiful bird?  This is a Loggerhead Shrike.  It is a predatory bird, but only on small lizards, bugs and rodents.  Eh, an occasional small bird as well.  It has a nest in my oak tree and it holds 3 babies right now.  Let me tell you, Mom and Dad are VERY protective of those babies and that tree.  I had to move the bird feeder, because nobody could come and eat.  I see the Shrikes attacking the Crows alot.  They really don’t like them.  

Go here to see my video of Momma? telling me off because I was looking at her babies.  http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v622/kirataffy/?action=view&current=Shrikeandgarden4-09011.flv

If only Red could come outside and play.  Unfortunatly, Red is a Bloodhound, and staying home is NOT in their DNA. 

My son has been learning Ballroom dancing from one of the homeschool mom’s in our group.  Most of the teens are in her class.  They are having alot of fun!  There was a special event at the local Yacht and Raquet Club and the teens were invited to the Ballroom event.  The dressed to the nines and danced the night away.  Here is my son and one of the girls.

 

 

Well now, I have a cheescake calling my name.   I will come back another time with more news and photos!

March 15th 2009

Florida is warming up beautifully.  Spring is here and the birds have been busy building nests, fighting for territory, calling for mates and gracing my backyard.  I really enjoy spring.   We are in the height of our drought season.  We need rain badly, but probably won’t see anything untill June.  Then the heavy afternoon rains begin and we turn green in a week.  Really neat to watch, actually.  The pool has been scrubbed down, filled and up and running.  The water is chilly, but the kids will not care.   I will let them in there today. 

I am still playing around with growing vegetables.  The broccoli is almost done producing.  I planted 4 new tomatoes in containers and they are thriving!  I have strawberries to put in, and they are flowering and fruiting in their pots.   I have the supplies to build a compost bin.  I look forward to making my own dirt.  Dirt is not cheap at the store.   The sandy soil we have here is not suitable without amending it first.

The school year is careening to an end.  I can’t wait.  I am actually going to take a break this summer, instead of schooling through it.  For the most part anyway.  Todd will continue with his Japanese lessons and Nathan will continue with his drum lessons, if he chooses.  In the meantime, there is much going on in the school group.  Todd is loving the ballroom dancing class.  They have a show at the end of April.  He is also in the teen play “Cinder-Riley”.  It is an Irish twisted version of Cinderella.  He plays the leperchaun, and he plays it well!  The teens had their Spring Formal dance.  It was wonderful.  They all dressed up so beautifully and danced the night away!  The best part is all the Mom’s chaperoned the party and it wasn’t wierd.  Todd said it was the best night of his life.  Very sweet.  My boy is growing up.  He is 14 now.   

My Greyhound Rocky died Saturday, March 12.  It was a tough decision.  He had been getting weaker and losing control of his hind legs.  Friday night he fell and that was the end of that.  We put him down comfortably on Saturday.     That will be 4 dogs that have died on me in the last 2 years.   Hopefully, I can 5 more years before it happens again.  Rosie is 1 yr old, Red is 4 yr old,  and Rumsey is 5 yr old. 

We are going to see the Newsboys in concert, April 24th.  The Newsboys are a popular Christian rock group.  You can listen to some of their music on YouTube.  Great stuff!  We are excited.   This will be the boys’ first concert.  It should be a great experience!

We are plugging along, economically.  We have done so much better in past years, but that is not the case in the last year.  Hopefully, someone will turn on the light at the end of the tunnel!   Thankfully, Todd still has his job and because he is certified in other areas, he has work to fill 40-50 hours a week.   We hope that summer will be busier than last year.  Then he can earn more money than we need to break even.  We need a new roof, badly.  We need new windows too.   Todd jr. needs his cataract surgery and Nathan has thousands of dollars of orthodontal work to be done.    We are trying to get a new a/c with a heat pump and a heat recovery.  That will make a large dent in our electric bill.  I hope it comes through.  We also will be insulating the attic before the end of May.  That will make a difference too.   This year, I will definetly be hanging heavy curtains in the windows to cut the heat that comes through.  I have been using my line to dry my clothes and I need to make a habit of shutting of the hot water heater.  But, now I have the pool pump running 6 hours a day, so it will add to the load.   I have made great strides in the grocery budget and will continue to work on meal planning  (which turned out to be a great thing.  I don’t know why I was so resistant to trying it ).  I finally made the switch to store brand soda.  That is an enourmous savings right there!   We also have been grilling more.  I even baked breaded chicken breast on the grill!  I was so pleased.  Our goal is to use the grill, instead of the oven, thus avoiding heating the house up.  So, we are working it out little by little.   The cable is still off.  That has been rough for the kids, especially Nathan.  We all look forward to turning it back on, just as soon as possible!!  

Well, Rosie is climbing into my lap.  I think the 120 lb dog wants her breakfast.  I better go.

Trying to learn to dance.

This is my daughter, her boyfriend and I.   They are trying to teach me a few ballroom dance steps.

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I will dance to this song at our vow renewel in 3 years

Thats what I’m sayin’