Here's a toast to the new week.

I'm spending the morning tidying up from the weekend and paying bills. Then off to spend the day with my girls. I know the tutor comes this morning, and after that we're going to take their bikes to the park since it's such a nice day. Lots of leftovers for supper tonight, so no cooking for me.

Who wants coffee?

Thanks for the coffee Cottage I can sure use it this morning.

Ever wake up dreaming of going back to work and start dreading it immediately? Oh well

Cottage - Have a fun day with the girls. When do they go back to school?

It's going to be a crazy busy week, partly because I'm hoping to take the next two weeks off (haven't got the formal okay yet but that's never been an issue in our office in the past). There's always tons of extra work to do before and after vacations.

Got a lot done yesterday playing with my vacuum sealer and making vegetable powders and jars of dried things. It was fun

Such an exciting life I lead

Have a good day Chicks!

Morning all!!

Cottage, have fun on the bike ride. I'm with you on leftovers today. I usually have leftovers every Monday after the big Sunday dinner. Yesterday I cut up some chicken in small bite sized pieces and sauteed it with bell pepper and onions and creole seasoning. Then I mixed up creole (brown spicy) mustard and no sugar apricot jelly and poured it over the chicken. Very good...like sweet and sour chicken. yum.

Cyndi, I'm there with you on the "work dread". Today is really the last full day I have to work in my classroom. All teachers report to work tomorrow, but it will be days of faculty meetings and workshops till we have a couple of hours on Thursday afternoon to finish up last minute things in the rooms. Kids come Friday morning. ack.

I did a bit of "drying" this weekend myself. I dried some basil and some terragon from the garden and got a couple of big jars done for the winter.

Not getting a lot of sleep. The puppies are getting very "vocal". I've attached a picture of the one we are going to keep. Her name is NOLA (New Orleans Louisiana) Looks like a little spotted piggie, huh?

Good morning! Can you smell my garlic breath? Donna comes this morning but I'll try not to breathe on her.

Cottage, my morning is going to be tidying and paying bills. My desk sort of got away from me last month!

Cat, I was sorry to hear one of the puppies died. I know how heartbreaking that is. That was a pretty large litter for such a wee dog. Bijoux did well!

Cyndi, I swear we lead parallel lives! I have a vac sealer too and used it just last night to package some leftover kebabs for my freezer stash. Today I will try zucchini chips in the dehydrator.

The garlic harvest party was great and we got most of the rest of the crop dug and hung to dry. The food was terrific and I avoided "bad" stuff aside from a bit too much wine. As of today "the party's over" and I'll be chipping away at my fluff which seems to have turned to marble!

Disney seems to have recovered from the trauma of the dog attack but was sort of antsy yesterday so we skipped her class. I sat and read a dog training book on the porch with her snuggled beside me for petting. Hershey seems recovered from her carb-fest.

After Donna arrives today, I'm off to pick up some bundles of fabrics so I can start another quilt top for Victoria's Quilts. I'm hoping the colours in the bundles aren't too ugly or I'll end up buying more fabric.

Time to quit babbling and get on with my day.

Happy Monday everybody!!

Not much time as I'm trying to get to work early..just wanted to pop in and say hi!!!

Cat.....that does look like a "pinkie"...too cute though!!! I'm such a sucker for dogs!!

Cottage...the bike ride sounds wonderful! Enjoy!!

Cyndi...congrats on getting stuff put away! That's always a goal for me, but haven't gotten there yet! ha

Ruth...hope the dogs get back to their normal selves soon!!


me---well, I did enough cooking yesterday for an army, so hopefully I'll have plenty for the week and will eliminate any major cooking for the week! Cat..that chicken sounds great...I'll have to try that sometime!!

Have a good one girls!!

Have a good one!!

Cyndi, your weekend sounded fun and satisfying. I had planned to use my dehydrator for blueberries and zucchini, but I keep eating them all up before I get the chance to dry them! I've gone through two of those vacuum thingys, they keep breaking on me and I'm not investing in another one. They were great when they worked, though! The girls go back to school on the 26th, that will be here before we know it! Amber starts back on the 18th, that's really early around here.

Cat, I love the name Nola for your new baby! She's precious! That's so sad that one of the puppies died. How many were there in all? How's Bijoux doing now, is she a good mama to her brood?

Ruth, I just finished doing my bills. Now I'm broke until Friday. I had to giggle when you said you hoped you wouldn't receive any "ugly" material! Every time someone gives me their leftovers, it's usually some hideous pattern! I hope you have better luck!

Mandyleigh, good morning! Have a good day at work and a nice week!

Good morning girls... I didn't want to get out of bed, I've been so exhausted lately, but Jade was asking to be let out!

Cat, sorry about the pup... Nola is a dear!

Linda, enjoy the day with the girls!

Ruth, I'm glad Disney is feeling better! Have fun with the quilt.

Me: Got to get ready for an interview this morning. It's with a staffing agency but for a specific position she has posted online. Bookkeeping for an advertising agency. Pay is decent, will see how it goes. Also have to get a hold of the other agency I've been working with. He had one he wanted me to start on the 8th, but that is strickly a temporary position, but it pays well. I need to know if the company wanted me or not!

It's true! Kids that fly the coop keep coming home! every week he's found an excuse to come home! And this week he called again! coming to help with the branches that were cut down a month ago. For some reason the management asked us not to put debree out to the road till the fourth. I think they took a vacation, though I've seen them around, so who knows! I just wish they'd tend to the aweful pot hole thats right in front of my house, it's 4 inches deep and two feet in diameter!

I stocked up for the week on groceries with meal plans. I even overstocked on canned goods. Last night I tried the salsa chicken, and yes, made four instead of one for left overs. Don't feel like starting the cabbage caserole this am, might throw it in tonight. Sometimes I throw my crockpot on at night, especially when I work, and bring it for lunch the next day! I get everyone jealous of some of the things I've brought in.

I also bought a 3 ring binder to start putting the recipe's I print from here, that I like, into it so I don't have to keep reprinting them. I've printed the latest food list (may of 08) to put into it as well. I'm hoping on those weeks I need to make a menu FAST it will make it that much easier!

Hope you all have a wonderful day!

Morning all,

I had some fragmented sleep last night as hubby arrived home from his business trip at 2 am, so I might not make too much sense this morning!

I think today I will hit Trader Joe's then Whole Foods for some fresh veggies to make Minestrone. After that I'll put aside my writing to hang out with hubby. It's always a little bit of a challenge to stay on SBD when hubby is home, but it is doable. He travels so much that I fall into eating patterns and when he returns, we both have to adjust our eating. He's a picky eater and I have to introduce new foods slowly!

I hope you have a wonderful Monday.

Hazy, hot humid here!

WOW - looks like I woke up to early!! I'm post #9 already!

I've got my coffee in hand, my spinach-mushroom-onion-fresh basil omelette next to me....so far, a good start to the day....

Cat - our schools don't start til Sept 2nd! Gotta love the north!!

Loriann - are you the one that posted the cabbage casserole? I bookmarked it - on next week's menu! Yum! (my neighbor just gave me a recipe for squash sausage casserole that's supposed to be yummy.....I might have to post that too!!)

Cyndi - your life is *almost* as exciting as mine!!

Everyone else - have a great day!

Me - Short day at work today, but a full one. (see, Cyndi!) Then off to the gym, prep supper, grab the kids at daycare...and on call tonight. Woo. woo.
I should be grateful my days are not too exciting!

Have a great day! Enjoy the coffee!
(
Holy cow - my husband just IM'd me - I jogged around 4.25 mi straight yesterday?!?! I don't believe it!!! (he's a surveyor, so he went online and did whatever he does...)

Cottage, there were 7 before the one little guy died. And Bijoux is a great Mom!! I'm really proud of her. She was such a "puppy" that I was kind of concerned, but she really stepped up. She is still trying to "find" the other one and does cry some...really sad. I feel so bad for her.

Mandy....ok, so you live close to me right? come on over and pick out your puppy.

Good Monday Morning, everyone!

Cottage: Thanks for starting us up with some . I certainly needed it this morning! I've been leary of food vaccuums for a while now. I'll probably get one eventually and try it out - don't see that it's all that worth it. Enjoy your day of bike riding (or watching bike riding ) with the girls!

Cyndi: I hope there's no troubles with you getting the next two weeks off of work. Any plans? Or is it a staycation? Sounds like your kitchen runs the gamut with gadgets. It'd be fun to spend a day trying new things out there.

Cat: NOLA is adorable. Sorry one of the pups didn't make it. I hope you have a productive day and get everything done that you need to to prep for the start of the school year!

Ruth: I think that I would be in a lot better shape if my only occasional indulgence was wine! I'm glad the garlic party was a good time and I'm glad Disney seems to be doing better. Hope the fabric is gorgeous!

mandyleigh: Good for you getting the week's cooking out of the way! Have a great day!

Loriann: Good luck at your interviews today! We're having problems getting our roads repaired after the city dug a huge trench right in front of our driveway to replace water lines. Hope yours gets fixed soon!

Belle: Glad your hubby made it home safely. 2 am is a bad time to be startled about someone's return! Hope you were able to get some sleep! Enjoy your day with him!

Twynn: Congrats on your long jog yesterday! What an accomplishment! Hope you have a great day today.

Me: Nothing going this morning. I woke up on time to work out, but was entirely too sore to even walk 3 miles due to my intense workout yesterday. I'd have powered through it if it weren't for the fact that I've got to start doing inspections this morning and I'll be walking all day long. With inspections starting up, if I'm not here by 8 CT, I probably won't be here at all. It's nice to get out of the office for a couple of weeks a year, but I can't believe the time has already come!

Tonight DH and I are going to see Hellboy II. DH is a fan of Hellboy and I love Guillermo del Toro's imagery, so it'll be a good movie for both of us. After that, it'll just be putting away the laundry I washed this weekend.

Well, I'd better hit the shower before DH takes over the bathroom. Hope everyone to come has a great day!

Good morning everyone! I am happy to be starting day two of phase one.
Well, I might be trying to convince myself a little of that lol, was up almost all night with my 5 year old she had ear and throat pain so I am guessing we will be off to the Dr. this morning. I wish I was still snuggled in bed with her instead of downstairs in the office watching my son play his Wii lol....thanks for the coffee I NEED it today!

Cat... Sorry you lost a pup, so very sad! NOLA is adorable though, an absolute sweetie!

I hope everyone has a great start to the week!

Good morning chicks!
DD had to be at work at 5:45 so I got up with her and got some things done. It sure does feel great to be showered and dressed, laundry on the line, and ready to face the day. I may be turning into an early bird after all!
Busy work day as usual, nothing too exciting going on. I may walk up the street later to see the pastor at the church that does the Saturday night outdoor movies. Saturday night he was showing me the church basement/storage area that had a makeover as an Eagle Scout project, and had a big old maple cabinet he was going to get rid of and asked if I wanted it. Not sure if he was serious, but I came home and measured and I think I can put it in my kitchen or in the dining room as a buffet. I have a feeling it would be gorgeous refinished (it's covered in old paint now). I hope nobody has snapped it up in the meantime!
Wanted to do personals, but now I have run on and have a telecon starting soon. Be back later chicks.

drive by for me...

hi all....


oldest son is having a hard time. he lives with dad and stepmom (he's 24 but emotionally disabled)

i'm at work
i'll work all day (oh joy)
then i'll swim
then go home

that is all.

Morning ladies. Running short on time today as I was reading posts from over the weekend. It was pretty busy for me. Picked a huge mess of green beans saturday that had to be put up. I found these new ziploc vaccum bags, come with a little pump to suck the air out. Got those and they seem to work pretty well! Also put up some zukes I had let get too big so I shredded them and froze them for later use.

I found a Wii FIT!!!!!!! So freaking excited, and can kick DH's butt is most of the "games", pretty neat since my regular gaming skills leave alot to be desired!

We also got a new computer so I have been working on getting that set up and the typical stuff loaded on it.

Add to that the usual cooking, cleaning, laundry (at the laundry mat, ick!) and shopping and I barely had any me time this weekend. Who says weekends are restful?

Have a great day ladies, gotta book, I have 3 closings in my office this afternoon!