I'm "really Looking forward to Girls Camp

As I paint, sand, and glue "beads" for the lanyards, the thought of girls camp is delicious! I can't wait to go and see how everybody is again and connect out in a great setting. Rucker Lake here we come!

Pool Ladies

We have a rule that what's in the Pool stays in the Pool, so no pictures. It is loads of fun to go to Laura's house in the morning and do a pool workout. Sometimes there is lots of people and sometimes there is just a few but it's sure a nice way to start the day. You can do so much more in the pool than on dry land. The range of muscles are so much easier to do and I feel so much lighter. There is absolutely no way I could kick my foot up to shoulder level except in the pool. Then of course is talking with fascinating women and the new ideas that are generated. Good times!

You can make.....

Last Sunday- Father's Day- I made a special meal for the family - because I went shopping with Laura, and she always makes a great meal sound doable, and lets me know what's really on sale. It was great and not all that hard. For dessert I decided to use Regg's strawberries in a pre-made chocolate pie shell and top it with whip cream. When I pulled out the carton of cream to whip it up, my kid said, "You can make whip cream?" I just started laughing as I realized how far down the ready-made path I've gone until I started walking with Laura - who always uses real vanilla, garlic cloves, and makes her chicken nuggets from scratch. When I served the pie, the laughter started again when Jeffrey said there wasn't enough sugar in the whipped cream. I've got to renew a few cooking skills. I had to assure my family over and over that I wasn't laughing at them but at my limited culinary skills.

Jim was out today

Back in August, or was it September? Anyway when Laura and I first started walking we established a route- after a few weeks a bad storm came up one night. When we were walking our route we found an older Gentleman pacing outside his house that had a huge oak tree laying in giant pieces across his lawn. He told us how it had come down cracking his roof, narrowly missing the room they were in because of some wires that had been strung a few years back. The oak was huge, the hole in the center was large enough to fall through, a man could not put his arms around the whole trunk - maybe two men.
So every few days we'd meet Jim again and he'd tell us the story. After a few weeks he calmed and seemed to know who we were and we'd watch as they cut and cut and finally took away that whole tree and then he waited and watched for the men to fix his roof, gutters and the parts that were broken. We'd talk to him and got to know him over the months watching his house get fixed, his lamp put up and his lawn and a few flowers start to grow again. Fascinating man who grew up and lived his life around here. We didn't connect for a few months this winter and finally in May we saw him once and now he's out again.

This is an new oak seedling that came up and Jim planted it right where the old oak stood. He watches and waters it.

Jim and Laura chatting - June 12, 2009