Wednesday, April 28, 2010

April 28th 2010

Where to start? Where to start?

I had this whole big blog typed out a few days ago... loaded with pictures... and there was an error while saving and I lost the whole thing. I literally walked away from the computer, SOOOO frustrated, and haven't gotten back on until today... so... we'll try this again.

I believe I left off at April 20th.

April 20th was national pot smoker's day. We didn't celebrate

moving right along.

April 21st was Kindergarten Day... which we celebrate EVERY day around here since I have a kindergartener... and I homeschool.

April 22nd was Earth Day and Jelly Bean Day

I had an orthodontist appointment that day so we didn't celebrate Jelly Bean Day... but we did celebrate Earth Day. We talked with the kids about what Earth Day was and asked them to brainstorm ways we could help our Earth. Levi's idea was to pick up trash. So, I told the kids that when we got home, we would pick up trash... and don't ya know... it was raining when we got home. We DO plan on picking up the trash around here though. Also, we have dedicated to start recycling as a family... which is harder in the country than you'd think. Unlike living in the city, out here we don't get supplied with recycling bins or bags, we don't have the option of having our recycleables picked up, and there's no recycle dumps near by. Recycling for us means making a conscious effort to bag up our own stuff and drive it half an hour away to the nearest recycling dump.

Also on Earth Day... my orthodontist's office was giving out free trees to plant. How cool is that? I came home with two willow oak trees and two white pine trees. I'm pretty excited about it.

a mature Willow Oak:


a mature White Pine:


April 23rd was Talk Like Shakespeare Day.

The closest I got to celebrating that day was sending Jason a text that said "Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou, Romeo?" I couldn't find him. It was legit. :)

April 24th was a bunch of stuff. Arbor Day, Astronomy Day, national Go Birding Day, Sense of Smell Day, national Rebuildind Day, Bulldogs are Beautiful Day, and Interstate Mullet Toss Day. And we didn't celebrate a one of 'em. Because, we had something better to celebrate!!!

It was Levi's birthday.



(but believe me... if I have a mullet... I would have tossed it on the interstate! that sounds like too much fun)

April 25th was Red Hat Society Day. I hope someone celebrated. It wasn't me though.

April 26th was Hug an Australian Day. I don't know any Australians... but believe you me... I would have hugged them if I did.

April 27th was Morse Code Day, and national Teach Your Children to Save Day. We DID have a talk with the kids about saving their money. It fell on deaf ears though... Audrey spent some of hers.

which brings us to today...

national Dance Day! I think we will celebrate later by playing Just Dance on the Wii.... aaaaaand... I bought a new battery for my camera... so no more having to take pics with my phone! I'm back in business. Check back tomorrow for those pics.

It's also Poem In Your Pocket Day

My dad is the smartest man I know, and one of my favorite quirky things about him is that sometimes he will just randomly declare a poetry reading night. Yeah... it sounds corny, but it's a great way to get us all to sit down together as a family... and I can't tell you how many times I've answered a Jeopardy question correctly because of a poem that Dad had us read. I'm not making this up. So today... the poem in my pocket is "Gunga Din" by Rudyard Kipling.

"You may talk o' gin and beer
When you're quartered safe out 'ere,
An' you're sent to penny-fights an' Aldershot it;
But when it comes to slaughter
You will do your work on water,
An' you'll lick the bloomin' boots of 'im that's got it.
Now in Injia's sunny clime,
Where I used to spend my time
A-servin' of 'Er Majesty the Queen,
Of all them blackfaced crew
The finest man I knew
Was our regimental bhisti, Gunga Din.
He was "Din! Din! Din!
You limpin' lump o' brick-dust, Gunga Din!
Hi! slippery hitherao!
Water, get it! Panee lao!
You squidgy-nosed old idol, Gunga Din."

The uniform 'e wore
Was nothin' much before,
An' rather less than 'arf o' that be'ind,
For a piece o' twisty rag
An' a goatskin water-bag
Was all the field-equipment 'e could find.
When the sweatin' troop-train lay
In a sidin' through the day,
Where the 'eat would make your bloomin' eyebrows crawl,
We shouted "Harry By!"
Till our throats were bricky-dry,
Then we wopped 'im 'cause 'e couldn't serve us all.
It was "Din! Din! Din!
You 'eathen, where the mischief 'ave you been?
You put some juldee in it
Or I'll marrow you this minute
If you don't fill up my helmet, Gunga Din!"

'E would dot an' carry one
Till the longest day was done;
An' 'e didn't seem to know the use o' fear.
If we charged or broke or cut,
You could bet your bloomin' nut,
'E'd be waitin' fifty paces right flank rear.
With 'is mussick on 'is back,
'E would skip with our attack,
An' watch us till the bugles made "Retire",
An' for all 'is dirty 'ide
'E was white, clear white, inside
When 'e went to tend the wounded under fire!
It was "Din! Din! Din!"
With the bullets kickin' dust-spots on the green.
When the cartridges ran out,
You could hear the front-files shout,
"Hi! ammunition-mules an' Gunga Din!"

I shan't forgit the night
When I dropped be'ind the fight
With a bullet where my belt-plate should 'a' been.
I was chokin' mad with thirst,
An' the man that spied me first
Was our good old grinnin', gruntin' Gunga Din.
'E lifted up my 'ead,
An' he plugged me where I bled,
An' 'e guv me 'arf-a-pint o' water-green:
It was crawlin' and it stunk,
But of all the drinks I've drunk,
I'm gratefullest to one from Gunga Din.
It was "Din! Din! Din!
'Ere's a beggar with a bullet through 'is spleen;
'E's chawin' up the ground,
An' 'e's kickin' all around:
For Gawd's sake git the water, Gunga Din!"

'E carried me away
To where a dooli lay,
An' a bullet come an' drilled the beggar clean.
'E put me safe inside,
An' just before 'e died,
"I 'ope you liked your drink", sez Gunga Din.
So I'll meet 'im later on
At the place where 'e is gone --
Where it's always double drill and no canteen;
'E'll be squattin' on the coals
Givin' drink to poor damned souls,
An' I'll get a swig in hell from Gunga Din!
Yes, Din! Din! Din!
You Lazarushian-leather Gunga Din!
Though I've belted you and flayed you,
By the livin' Gawd that made you,
You're a better man than I am, Gunga Din!"


*** HEAD'S UP!!! ***

Tomorrow I haven't found anything to celebrate... but Friday is national Hairball Awareness Day, Hairstylist Appreciation Day, national Honesty Day... and... Spank Out Day. I wonder what THAT is?

What's the poem in YOUR pocket?? Leave us a comment and let us know your favorite poem, or your favorite hairstylist. We will honor it/them on our blog tomorrow/Friday.

Monday, April 19, 2010

April 19th 2010

So, I've got a lot to blog about! Hello!

April 14th...

was Audrey's 4th birthday!!

When she woke up, I made her her favorite breakfast... chocolate chip pancakes. She literally wore a birthday hat around ALL day! That afternoon, we sold some calves at a cattle auction, and the secretary there gave her a free cattle auction hat. When we got home, we had my in-laws over to have supper with us to celebrate. She requested her favorite meal of chicken and noodles. After supper, she opened her gifts and we all had ice cream.

chocolate chip pancakes:



Checking out the barn toy box that grandma and grandpa Schenewark made for her birthday:



April 15th was McDonald's Day, and Take a Wild Guess Day

we celebrated appropriately:





April 16th was High Five Day, and national Wear Your Pajamas to Work Day

we did give each other high fives (that I don't have pictures of). But I didn't stay in my pajamas all day. Does all morning count?

April 17th was Blah Blah Blah Day, Record Store Day, Ford Mustang Day, Teach Your Daughter to Volunteer Day... and Jason's favorite... Husband Appreciation Day.

we actually had Audrey's birthday party at Chuck E. Cheese in Columbia on that day and oh my word was Jason a big help!!!! I did let him know all day how much I appreciate him. Seriously... I don't know how I'd manage without all of the help that he gives me. For pete's sake... he makes me a cup of coffee EVERY morning... and most of the time brings it to me in bed (unless we have somewhere to go and then he makes it for me in a insulated to-go cup.) and... he's making me a chicken coop... I have wild hair brained ideas and he makes them come to life.



I love you, Jason!!

Jason would have killed me if I'd tried to celebrate Ford Mustang Day... he's a die hard chevy fan. The man has a chevrolet tattoo on his shoulder and a dog named Chevy for pete's sake. When we recently got our chocolate lab puppy... we named her Cami... short for camero. It's bad. Real bad

moving on...

April 18th I couldn't find any holidays to celebrate... but it was my mom's birthday! Happy Birthday Mom!! What did we do yesterday? I'm trying to remember. We went mushroom hunting and only found two morel mushrooms. They were good fried up today with lunch though. Yum!

Which brings us to today...

April 19th. Today was national Hanging Out Day, and today was the Boston Marathon. Guess what we did today....

we hung out! We didn't have a place in the world to be. It felt so nice to stay home. And... I decided what better day to get SERIOUS about the half marathon I want to run, then on the day of the Boston Marathon?? So, I laced up my sneakers before supper tonight and went for a run. I have no excuses anymore... I've GOT to lose this weight and train for this marathon!!

Whew. That was a lot of catching up.

I'm going to give you all the rest of the holidays through the end of this week... so you all can celebrate with us, even if I don't get online every day

Tomorrow, April 20th is national Pot Smokers Day (Hey... to each his own... but I won't be celebrating tomorrow by lighting up, I can tell you that. I cherish my lungs and brain cells too much)

April 21st is Kindergarten Day, Secretary's Day, and national Chocolate Covered Cashews Day

April 22nd is Earth Day, and national Jelly Bean Day

April 23rd is Talk Like Shakespeare Day

and

April 24th is Arbor Day, Astronomy Day, national Rebuilding Day, Bulldogs are Beautiful Day, Interstate Mullet Toss Day, national Go Birding Day, Sense of Smell Day...

... and my baby boy's 6th birthday!!!!!!!!!!!

6 seems so BIG!

How will YOU celebrate this week?

Email me pics! citymousecountryhouse@yahoo.com

Tuesday, April 13, 2010

April 13th 2010

Did you celebrate "Louie Louie" Day or Barbershop Quartet Day??

The only time I've ever seen a barbershop quartet was at the hospital on valentines day. Someone had hired them to sing to a patient in the hospital. Isn't that sweet?!?

and I think my older brother used to be in a barbershop quartet. Really.

I DID sing my best rendition of Louie Louie though. SO... that counts.

I didn't record it though. so you'll just have to trust me. heehee. (or ask my mother in law... she witnessed it.)

Yesterday was Licorice Day

we definitely celebrated that!!!



Today was Thomas Jefferson Day, and International Moment of Laughter Day

One of our favorite things to do around here is laugh. In fact... the other day we were all sitting around the table eating Sunday dinner and Audrey piped up and said "Mom, after supper tonight, let's laugh about things."

What can I say? We love to laugh.



I couldn't find any official holidays for the 14th... but that's ok at our house cause we've got our own day to celebrate!!

Our three year old is turning FOUR tomorrow!!

*looks around*

Where have the last four years gone??

to re-cap:

April 14th, 2006:



April 14th, 2007:



April 14th, 2008:



April 14th, 2009:



*sniff sniff*

They grow up too fast.

Since today is Thomas Jefferson Day... I'm going to close this blog with some of my favorite Thomas Jefferson quotes. Enjoy!



"A government big enough to give you everything you want, is big enough to take away everything you have."

"I predict future happiness for Americans if they can prevent the government from wasting the labors of the people under the pretense of taking care of them."

and my favorite...

"The strongest reason for the people to retain the right to keep and bear arms is, as a last resort, to protect themselves against tyranny in government."

Something to think about!!

Saturday, April 10, 2010

April 10th 2010

well lookie there... it's been another five days since I've blogged. Whaddya know about that. It must be this beautiful weather we are having. Yeah... that's what I'll blame it on. no excuses though. I said I'd try to blog every day... and I'm failing miserably.

FORGIVE ME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So where did I leave off?

April 6th was Drowsy Driver Awareness Day, and Teflon Day... which I didn't celebrate, unless you count supper... which I'm pretty sure was cooked in Teflon. Yeah... we'll count that.

April 7th was no Housework Day. Unfortunately... I didn't celebrate that day either. There's too much housework to be done on the farm to overlook it.

April 8th was national D.A.R.E Day. How do you celebrate that? I didn't do any drugs ... does that count? :)

April 9th was national Cherish an Antique Day.

here's the antique I cherish...



bahahaha. He's five years older than me... I'm allowed to say that.

We went to a Royals baseball game last night. Does that count as cherishing an antique? How long have the Royals been around? Since the late 60's? I'd say they're antiques.

But for real... I LOVE antiques. Something my parents instilled in me.

Yesterday on the way to the game, we passed my all time favorite antique store. The Brass Armadillo, on I-70 near Blue Ridge.

[click here for link to the brass armadillo]

I want to know what your favorite antique is. Is there a story behind it? Leave a comment telling me about your favorite antique, and upload a picture of it to the flickr group, and I'll put your picture with it's story on the blog tomorrow.

Which brings us to today...

Today was national love our children day.

After not getting home from the game last night until two o'clock this morning... I had to wake up at seven to get Levi to his first spring soccer game of the season in Columbia. If that's not love, I don't know what is! Ha!



After the game and having lunch in the city... we drove back home and enjoyed this beautiful weather. First, I played a couple of rounds of the basketball game H-O-R-S-E with Jake. Then Jason and I got into a water fight. Then I played Soccer in the yard with Levi and Jake, Then I fixed chocolate chip pancakes for everyone, and after supper we all got on the four wheelers to go hunt for mushrooms.



Jason had one older kid and one younger kid on his four wheeler with him... and I had one older kid and one younger kid on my four wheeler with me.



It's been a fun day.

And speaking of loving our children...



*** HEAD'S UP!!! ***

Tomorrow is Barbershop Quartet Day and International "Louie Louie" Day

Hmmmmm.

I'll have to think on this one.

Monday, April 5, 2010

April 5th 2010

BLOG!! I've missed you!!

April 1st I was with family all day and at my grandma's visitation that night. It was difficult to get online at the hotel aaaaand get four kids and hubby all ready for our early morning the next day for the funeral. Guess who got to iron ALL the clothes? *points to self*

I love being a mom and taking care of my family though.

Friday morning was the funeral and then we were on the road to Oklahoma City where we ate supper at Toby Keith's I Love This Bar and Grill



and then my sister, my 14 year old (step) daughter and myself went to the 10:55 p.m. showing of "The Last Song."



We didn't get back to the hotel until 1:30 in the morning... so... no blogging.

Saturday we were on the road all day with a stop to visit Levi's namesake...



... and didn't get home until midnight.

and Sunday was Easter

which brings me to today... the first day in April that I've been able to sit down and blog. Which stinks because April 2nd was International Children's Book Day and I would have really liked to have celebrated that one and blog about it. I want to know what your favorite children's book is!! Leave me a comment and let me know. Does it count that we went to Barnes and noble on the 2nd? I say it does. I DID buy two brain quest packs to do with my 11 year old (step) son.

So... to catch up:

April 1 was: April Fool's Day, national Fun Day, Sorry Charlie Day, St. Stupid Day, and Creative Mind Day

April 2 was: International Children's Book Day, and Reconciliation Day

April 3 was: Pony Express Day, and Tweed Day

April 4 was: Easter and World Rat Day

and today... April 5th, is: national Deep Dish Pizza Day

Did YOU celebrate?

We ate pizza hut buffet to celebrate



I got this picture from my sister...



... with a note that said: "hey city mouse. i celebrated today with schlotzsky's! :)"

CUTE!

it's not too late to celebrate! Run out and get a deep dish pizza for supper!!

*** HEAD'S UP!!! ***

Tomorrow is Drowsy Driver Awareness Day, and Teflon Day

Let us know if you celebrate and I'll get it on the blog!