A Weekend of Poorly Documented Activities

Forrest and I spent the night in Eustace Friday evening, and went on to Tyler with Seguin for the day on Saturday, in order to help Chisum and Erin move into their new apartment. My Syler-in-law lovingly agreed to watch Mosby for the day at the farm and he had a ton of fun roughing around with all his doggie-cousins, especially Hadrian. After seeing how cute they all were together I was rather remiss that I had left my camera at home, since the dog play and moving day could have made for a cool blog post. The amazing feats of strong-man athletics that Chisum and Forrest pulled to heave some of the furniture up to the second story were quite impressive, and at times seemingly painful. Cut to Sunday, Forrest starts to develop several scratches and bruises , and the mother of all hematoma's on his left arm. I mean, I am really surprised at how huge and awful looking this sucker is. This is what it looks like today, three days after the move...

Gross, right? Boy can seriously bruise.

Anyway, for Easter we are heading back to Eustace and I will be SURE to bring my camera and post funny puppy antics, and maybe even a video. Other future posts: my new job and how exhausting it is. So much so, that I am too tired for that post today....goodnight! (8:00pm, not joking)

Mr. Toad Visits the Garden

     Earlier this month when my parents came to visit for my birthday, my mother and I spent one morning doing some gardening and getting my yard ready for Springtime. These are a few of my new, non-sentient residents, which I am pretty sure are called Asiatic Lillies. They should flower pretty soon, so I will have to post more pictures then...

This is the side-yard ledge outside my dining room window.

     Since most of the things we planted were bulbs, I kind of got bulb fever and decided to soak a clove of garlic in a wet towel for a few days to see what happened. It has become my newest experiment to see if I end up with a complete bulb of garlic by the end of the season. Apparently a planted garlic clove will create a new bulb while it grows (once again, according to my mother) so if this works, and it actually tastes good when harvested, then next year I might invest a whole plot into garlic cultivation. MMMMmmmMMMmmm. As my husband can attest, I like almost anything I eat to be 1)spicy and 2)VERY garlicy. Lucky man to get to sleep next to me, huh? Here is my little project...

Cup of garlic, anyone?

       Finally, today while I was watering all my little plant-a-roo's I found a new friend seeking refuge from the hot weather. Mr. Toad did not disclose how long he would be staying, but I hope he decides to hide if he see's a certain uncoordinated black puppy stumbling his way. He may look inept, but I assure you, Mr. Toad, he will toss you in the air like the cat toys he steals from Gremlin. Good luck to you...

"Le Ribbet?"

I will be updating again this week to show my easy and free way to turn your regular leash into one of those "easy walk" leashes that will prevent your pup from wanting to pull you around.

Lenten quote for Sunday: "If we could read the secret history of our enemies, we should find in each man's life sorrow and suffering enough to disarm all hostility."
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

If Only Corpus Were Next To McKinney...

I had a wonderful 25th birthday! My mom and pop came for a visit and stayed for two nights.

I was gifted with quite a few good smelling things, which I love, including several nice candles, Wallflower Plug-Ins, and a lovely bouquet of yellow roses! Now the whole block smells good. Thanks mom. ; )

My mother also brought her "first ever grand-pup" an amazingly vexatious enjoyable squeaky toy, that was difficult to get him to pose with, so this is the best picture I could get.

Now-- due to the fact that my mother is the energizer bunny and has far more energy than any 63 year old young woman should* (she has always been immune to the objections of an exhausted daughter), we packed quite a blast into just a couple of days. We went to the garden shop and basically landscaped my front yard in one morning, and went to Whole Foods and stocked my fridge with "things that are good to eat in case you are pregnant" that afternoon. Yes, I do love this crazy woman. My father spent most of his time reading books from Forrest's extensive, and apparently impressive library.

While they were here I also gave my dad a haircut, as per my mothers request. I am an amateur, sure, but if there is one thing that my father likes more than annoying my mother with his mountain-man shaggy hair, it is free things, so he gladly acquiesced.

Not too shabby, right??

 My father also played a lot of fetch with Mosby, and now that his benefactors-of-fun-times are gone, this is what I am left with. He has been uncommonly mopey since they left Thursday morning!

Year 25 was a sensational birthday, and thank you to all my family and friendies who sent me merry wishes, because they worked. : ) 

* For those who might wonder, I think my mother's secrets to energy include, but are not limited to:
-Going to bed each night at 8 and getting at least 9 hours of sleep,
-Drinking and eating anything that Dr. Oz tells her to (i.e. Chia seeds, Tart Cherry juice, Spirulina, Flax Seeds, etc.),
- Wearing a silver jacket that calls upon the questionable "fancy footwork" powers of the late Micheal Jackson.

A New Additition...

So, as some of you may know I have wanted a puppy to call my own for quite some time. The fact that I stay home during the day and have an unreasonable fear of any noise I hear in the house has only made this desire stronger. We had been looking for a while and thinking about what kind of pup would be the right kind for us. I knew I wanted something big enough to scare potential intruders and with an instinct to protect. Forrest knew there was no way he was going to harbor a midget dog, or "rat" as he calls them, and that he wanted something that would learn to be obedient and revere him (like all creatures under the sun should : P ).

Everyone, meet Mosby!

According to the Petsmart we adopted him from, he is a Shepherd mix and will grow to be over 60 lbs at least. We will see. I think it seems promising, seeing as how he is only two months old and already closing in on 20 lbs. We have noticed that he also has some lab, since he has webbed toes, and some terrier because of his scruffy face.

Mosby is proving to be quite smart. He has already learned to "sit"...

to "lay down"...

to "go to bed"...

However, we are still working on "leave Gremlin alone!"

 **Note** The picture taking should vastly improve in quality soon, when Forrest's fancy camera gets done in the shop and I learn how to use it.

Bath Fizzies made simple and cheap...

Ask my husband and he will confirm my favorite thing to do every day (sometimes on cold days more than once) is take a nice warm bath. Every evening before bed I soak, read, and give Forrest time to play his football video game thing. It is no wonder why I love making my own bath bombs. It is cheaper than buying them at fancy stores and you can control what is in them. For instance, a little extra oil if you have dry skin, or what kind of scent and how much.

Here is how to make them:

You will need baking soda, citric acid, corn starch, Epsom salt, a light oil (I use EVOO but other people use different kinds),  your favorite essential oil (scent), and water. For this batch I used Rosemary Oil which smells just like Vick's Vapor Rub in the bathtub....mmmMMMmmm!

Just mix 1/2 C of the baking soda with 1/4 C of the citric acid, corn starch, and Epsom salt. Stir a bit and add about a tablespoon or so of the olive oil and as much of the essential oil as you enjoy (should be within about 1/2-1 tablespoons worth of drops). Mix this around and create a well in the center where you should put about 1/2 tablespoon of water and then mix it all very quickly before the water fizzes the powder too much.

Use a tablespoon sized mold (I just used an actual tablespoon) and scoop up a mound of the mixture and press it firmly in the mold with the heel of your hand.

Tap the mold onto the palm of your hand gently to release the bomb and carefully place on a dry surface. They will be very breakable at this point, but if they cant even be handled gently then go back and add another 1/2 tablespoon of water. You should end up with 14-16 bombs if they are a tablespoon each.

Leave them out for at least several hours or overnight to dry and firm up, and then place them in a cute watertight jar to set next to your tub!

To Catch Up...

Things that have happened since the last post:

Forrest and I got married in Corpus Christi. Lots of friends and family came, and it was just wonderful.

Then, we had a fun, low stress reception where everyone danced and drank and had a blast! The next day we drove to Houston and flew to Costa Rica! After we took the plane to San Jose, we took a taxi the next day to a smaller airport to fly to Santa Teresa. The small plane went ca-chunk-a-chunk when it took off.

Finally after a BUMPY, hour long car ride from the little airport, we got to the resort. Here we stayed in a lovely, open-air bungalow.

During our week in Costa Rica we rode an ATV around the beautiful Nicoya peninsula,

climbed rocks around a long river to get to a waterfall in a little town called Montezuma,

went snorkeling in the ocean and got to see some weird creatures,

and, of course, got a little dirty.

We had an amazing time, but then we came home. It was nice to be in the comfort of my own bed. Then, Wednesday of the next week I got a call from my mom that my Grandma Evelyn had passed away in the night and the funeral was that weekend in Oklahoma. Forrest went with me and we made a day trip (4 hours each way) to the funeral. I loved my Granny very much. She was so sweet and good and my family misses her sorely, but we have no doubt she went to God.

The NEXT weekend we were supposed to go on a cruise out of Houston to Cozumel that I had won in a raffle the year prior, but Forrest had so much to do at work and we were both so exhausted and traveled-out that we just plain skipped it. Besides, I was scared to sleep on a boat anyway. Have you read The Life of Pi? I KNOW what happens to people who are asleep when a boat sinks. It isn't good.

So, the next day was Halloween. We were SO excited. Neither Forrest of I had ever gotten to hand out candy to trick-or-treaters in our OWN house. Stoked. We both scrounged up costumes and decided on the little act we would put on when they got there to really creep them out. He was a creepy husband and I was his creepy wife (far stretch from reality?) and we talked funny. Well, it was better if you were there. Anyway, we got all pumped up and only about 4 stinkin' kids came! WHAT THE HECK!??? I love holidays and our neighborhood really let us down on this one. We decided that in the coming years we would really go TOO far in decorating our yard and force the neighbors to take us up on the challenge to be Halloweenier.


My next bit of excitement: Thoroughly befriending Belle (the cow) at the farm (Forrests folks house) this Thanksgiving.

Forrests next bit of excitement: Blueberry muffins.

Romance-tober?

Few people will argue that October is one of the best months of the year-- a new chill in the air, the smell of leaves and cinnamon brooms and good food, and time to take out all the cold weather clothes and comfy jackets you had packed up. EEP!! I am giddy just thinking about it! Now, in addition to all the a fore mentioned reasons it is going to be my anniversary month, shooting it right to the BEST MONTH EVER! Two short (and rather busy) weeks from today I will be changing my last name, changing my place of residence, changing who all my stuff Gremlin goes to in the event of my early demise, and changing my title from girlfriend/ coolest person ever to hang out with to WIFE/ broodmare/ still the coolest person ever to hang out with. That is a lot of change.

Anyhoo-- on to the point if this post. For those of you who are coming all them way down to Corpus Christi and Port Aransas for Forrest and mine's...ahem...."special day"....here is a little research I did on things to do and places to see in both CC and Port A if you have spare time during your visit!

In Corpus you could (the colored ones are links to sites)...

1. The Texas State Aquarium! 
A super neat place to take kiddos, but fun for adults too, where you can see tons of water wildlife from sharks to otters to crabs to DOLPHINS! Yes-- it is true. Dolphins. There are touch tanks where you can pet a sting ray or a lil' sharkey. You can spend an hour there or all day if you feel like reading every bit of fishy fact.

2. The USS Lexington
For the history/military buffs out there, this is a big old battleship that now sits in our marina for tours and education. They call her the Blue Ghost, I THINK because she was supposed to be sunk or something and didn't so when they saw her coming in through the mist is was like "HOLY CRAP! THE GHOST OF A SHIP!"....but don't quote me on that.

3. Eat at the ORIGINAL WhatABurger!
It is two stories, with a view of the bay front. Not many people know this, but Corpus Christi is the home and corporate headquarters of this fine establishement. I have never found another burger that compares to a WhatABurger with cheese and grilled jalepenos. Mmmm.



In Port Aransas you could....

1. Take a Dolphin Cruise!!!
Not even kidding-- AMAZING! Right?? It's like they are slippery humans that can swim and they just want to be your friend! Technically this one is in Ingleside, but that is really close...and how many miles is TOO many miles for a dolphin? Correct answer: No.

2. Go and chill at the beach. Shh...relax....just close your eyes and look at this picture...ahhh.

 
3. Have a Drink at Shorty's Place.
The final, absolute must-do, in Port A. This crummy little hole in the wall will leave you with fond memories of drunken fishermen and a smell you simply have to shower twice to get rid of. They have beer in bottles only and one big jug (yes, jug) of wine they keep around for sissies. Seriously, I plan to be there for a bit Friday evening. Lovely little place with a lovely little deck, and lovely little characters.

Have Fun and See You All Soon!!