Send in the clowns

Alaina keeps reminding me that no one likes a "whiny" blogger
(wine-y yes- whiny no ;-).
I am sure she is right, but sometimes it is hard to be cheerful when you have so much stuff to juggle- and none of it is really "your" stuff to begin with.
For example-
Alaina: on her school's decorating committee (means extra chauffeuring for me), English Pot Luck supper Thursday- must make a dish for 25 people (don't think a 15 year old will be doing that alone), needs a costume for said English class' party- it is a "theme" costume party,
(Plus Each set of parents must send in a letter to be presented to their students at said Pot Luck supper telling them just how special they are- (that is a story in itself)).
Genevieve- Ecology club- (more chauffeuring), drama club - supply costume, (more chauffeuring), middle school orientation Tuesday AND Wednesday (seriously), bake cupcakes for class for Friday, Birthday party- with 6 10-11 year old girls - Saturday.
Mark- running club- early drop off, Air and Space museum field trip Wednesday-(must wear "school" t-shirt- must find said school t-shirt-hopefully it is clean) , send in money for teachers' gifts?? (class mother said she is collecting the money until spring break- is this for the end of the year gift? Don't know- but I send it in), write up and send in recipe for "secret" mother's day cookbook (still not kidding).
And that is just this week.
Then I get to focus on preparations for Easter.
(oh, and the circus is in town next week, the kids are hoping to go-(still not kidding)
How do mothers with jobs outside of the home do it???
Not to mention the laundry, and the cooking, and the dishes?
I know, I know, I am blessed.
So
Lord give me the strength to survive my blessings!!

sorry - I'll try to be cheerier tomorrow.

One guess how I am feeling today......

Supporting the Arts

There was a County-wide student art show this weekend in Fauquier County Virginia. The art teachers of all the public schools (elementary through High school) chose the work of some of their students to represent what their classes are learning... Genna (5th grade) had one of her pictures chosen to exhibit.

Below are some of the other amazing pieces of art on display:

This photograph was remarkable- the glow on the beads made it seem mixed media/ 3D, I am sorry that a picture of a picture, does not end up doing the original justice!

So many promising artists- I wonder how many will continue into their adulthood?

my week in review

I sort of skipped on posting this past week.
Another birthday under my belt-
This is how my kids decorated my birthday cake- not exactly accurate-I'm actually older -( if you are counting days)

I guess not too bad looking for a woman who is 14517 :-) Bad lighting helps.

Saturday, we went to the Pet Expo; mostly to help out at the Dog Scouts/ Dogtopia table. But we did spend some time walking around too.

Some dogs actually participated in activities:

While a surprising number of dogs ( to me anyway) were carted around in strollers. (Often while the furless children walked).
And I suppose you already guessed where most of the greyhounds were.

Sunday brought Dog Scouts at Dogtopia. But I decided to make use of their "self -wash" doggy spa before class. No, I guess "owner-wash" is more accurate because "The owner" got washed too.

Not a happy HeroBetter Now
Still willing to work for treats

An excellent job at coming- a less than great photo

I don't know if I should be proud of this..

You Scored 100% Correct

You are an 80s expert, You never confuse New Order with the Pet Shop Boys. You know which classical musician Falco rocked. When it comes to 80s music, you Just Can't Get Enough!

How Much Do You Know About 80s Music?

Well, you did ask...

In her comment for my last post Jen of Never Say Never Greyhounds asked "What the heck is poop freeze? :-)" Well, here is your answer:Product Description : Poop Freeze Aerosol Freeze Spray- POOP FREEZE is the first freeze-spray aerosol made for animal waste pick-up. Poop happens- just freeze it! Just frost and toss! Completely non-flammable. Cools surfaces down to 62° F. No CFCs to destroy the ozone . Does not harm vegetation and can be used indoors or outdoors.Totally environmentally friendly! Spray and then wait 10 seconds and a white crusty film solidifies the waste.
(it is also supposed to reduce the smell)

First of all, right off the bat let me say that :

I find it odd -and pretty disturbing- that Amazon has this product listed under Kitchen and Dining!- (ewww! I don't want to eat at any of their houses.)

Amazon.com: Poop Freeze Aerosol Freeze Spray: Kitchen & Dining



It is also sold by a company called funideas- helpful perhaps, but fun??


This Can Freezes Your Poop For Easy Pick Up! - Order Online Now. At
http://www.funideas.com/Product.aspx?pid=620&catid=26


I had to share this review with y'all:

Poop-tastic, February 24, 2007
By
John Q. Consumer (Kentucky, USA, Earth) - See all my reviews I reminisce about old days when a uncle and his born-again Christian nephew had to make poop sculptures out of WARM poop. Not anymore, Scooter. Now I can finally make that life size poop sculpture of Debbie Gibson in my basement.
(I'm understanding the low happiness score for Kentucky- sorry- beating a dead horse)

Well- anyway, I can not share my own review with you yet.
This product was recommended by the Pet Expo (where Hero and I will be doing a Meet and Greet for the D.S.A. next Saturday.) Hero's bowel movements are sort of unpredictable, (they tend to go "Dairy Queen" on me when he gets a lot of treats; and that is likely to happen at the Pet Expo.) They offered a can of this stuff ( at 1/3 the regular price ) to pet owners buying a ticket to the Expo. I think that is probably a good idea all around.
I hope that it really works-
(What of my neighbor's can I freeze?) Just Kidding- really :-)

Dear Neighbor

If our neighborhood had a community bulletin board I would be posting the following:

Will the neighbor who misplaced the clear plastic sandwich bag with the brown cylindrical remains of a canines' digested meal on my front door step, please come and claim them immediately.

Yup you got it, last night someone left a bag of dog poo on my front step. What is with these people?
I do try to be responsible. I bring plastic bags on our dog walks. I have even ordered some "poop-freeze" for when Hero's in dairy queen mode. My dogs do NOT roam the neighborhood unattended (unlike some others), and my dogs are NOT nuisance barkers.
Now, I do admit that my children may be careless with their clean-up when they walk the dogs (their bedrooms prove that cleaning up is not their strong suit). But there are at least 5 other children ages 8-14, who regularly walk their dogs (with no bag in sight). And this is a neighborhood where the dog owners far exceed those without dogs. So why do I warrant this special delivery?
Sure, it may have been kids pulling a prank; but the way it was so cleanly and perfectly placed in the plastic bag and then on the stoop makes me wonder. - Again, kids are not known for being meticulous.
Not helping my Happiness Quotient people!

Have you seen this?

Last year (2008) there was a Gallup poll; to find out in which states people reported being happiest. All the details are in the link below, but here is the break down-



http://economix.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/03/10/the-happiest-states-of-america/

I think Hawaii being one of the "happiest" states was sort of a gimmie- gee, if you live in Paradise and have enough money to be able to AFFORD living in Hawaii- I'd make the guess that you are happy.

Let me know if agree with how your state is represented.
I have asked around and NONE of the people I know in Virginia were polled. (If you were polled, let me know). So I have weighted in the people I know locally, and the map looks more like this:


Of course maybe if I can spend more time with the VAGA folks (and their "spirited" get togethers) my outlook will be brighter.
(Unfortunately, such get togethers would need to wait until after Lent because I have given up all alcohol until Easter). (That and this weekend's nasty weather may have prejudiced my happiness quotient.)

Friday Favorites -shocking confessional edition

Yes, It is another shocking confessional.

(I am trusting you with one of my deepest darkest secrets- taking the chance that some of you may turn away in disgust, never to visit this blog again)

Yup- I like QVC (the television shopping network).

(go ahead and laugh)

No, I do not have a Diana Prince complex: I do not regularly find myself shot at; so I do NOT need big chunky bracelets that will deflect said bullets, and I do not regularly dress up as Wonder Woman-

Thus I do not need these bracelets...

Same goes for Green Lantern's power ring.

And No, I do not consider Joan Rivers to be a fashion maven to be emulated. (Any more than Phyllis Diller- Sorry ladies)

So Then why QVC? Well, I do love Peter Roth Thomas' "unwrinkle" especially the "peel pads" (sorry guys t.m.i?), BUT you REALLY should check out their line of "Temptations" oven to table ware- seriously go check the " Temptations line" out- I'll wait....

ok- so maybe later.

But in truth, it is their customer service department that puts them on my Friday favorites!

A couple of times I have made purchases from them (patch perfect grass seed/ fertilizer and Corky's ribs come to mind) when the purchase simply did not meet my expectations.

In both these cases I simply had to call to ask for a refund and one was cheerfully given. I did not even have to mail back the empty bags. I pray that nothing happens to change this company's wonderful customer service policies (though I do see the potential for people to abuse it).

There is also the possibility of abuse of their "speed buy" gimmick.

ehh Hero???
Thank goodness for that return policy :-)

(time to put Animal Planet back on)

Have a great weekend!

I love "grey" days

It has been a lovely weekend (with temperatures in the 70's). Slightly cloudy with a chance of "greys"

Saturday- Mark, Hero, and I went walking with the "Mutts of Manassas"- well, really it ended up being just Sky, Sirius, and Hero. But, it was a very nice walk.

One of those-"If you are not the lead dog; the scenery never changes" moments.Signal Hill Park is really nice.

Sunday- brought the "Meet and Greet"at the Warrenton PetCo. with the Virginia Greyhound Adoption group.
Nope that is not Hero with Buford- It's Dexter (a handsome fellow who is still looking for his forever home). Dexter looking to get a kiss from Alaina too.
If we can't adopt him- maybe we can just foster ??
Handsome Buford



Goofy Hero :-)

Genevieve and Prissy.

2 lovely girls both dressed in baby blue.

Dog tired :-)

It's my blog, and I'll rant if I want to

Alright, enough of the raves, now I'm going to give in to a good old fashioned rip-roaring rant. Not a funny rant, not a cute rant about the quirks of my adorable greyhound. Nope, a cranky, cantankerous, curmudgeonly rant about the rude, self-important, unprofessional, people out there.

This rant is dedicated to the ladies working in the office at our dentist.

I love our dentist. He has extracted several teeth from my children (all who have returned home with a smile (albeit a wonky, half paralyzed on one side, smile). None of my 5 kids have a dentist-phobia- not one, and he constantly reminds me what a blessing all children are- which only has merit because he actually DOES have children of his own :-)
This is a dentist worth keeping, right?
HMMM
Last year, I received a phone call from my daughter's school; she was running a fever (and not feeling well) and I needed to come pick her up right away. I did so, and then called the pediatrician (they fit us in at 4:30 pm). Turns out it was Strep. The next day was her dentist appointment. I called that morning to tell them of the situation. I was summarily informed that I would have to pay a "fee" because it was less then 24 hours notice. (Never mind that I did not know that she was sick with strep 24 hours earlier).
This "burned my toast" - but I paid.
This past week I informed these same "ladies" that we had an appointment at 5:00pm Thursday- but my daughter's FIRST drama club rehearsal was Thursday and did not end until 5:00 PM. I asked if it would it be alright if we were a little late or should I reschedule? (Obviously, I did not know about this rehearsal 6 MONTHS AGO when we scheduled her appointment). this is how the conversation went- pretty much verbatim

Receptionist: How late?
Me: About 5- 10 minutes, - she is at (I tell her the school, which is in town, and which they are quite familiar with)- so as long as it takes to get to you.
Receptionist: Oh, 5-10 minutes shouldn't be a problem, it will be fine
Me: **Please put a note in her file that I let you know we would be late**
Receptionist: I'm writing it down now

Trust me- I have no reason to make this up.
But I bet you all know where this is going.
Not wanting to get on the bad side of the drama teacher at the FIRST rehearsal, I still let everyone know that we needed to leave RIGHT at 5:00PM (she actually let them go at 4:55 God bless her)
I did my "all" (not breaking any laws of course ;-)) to get there quickly. I got there in 10 minutes. I arrived all smiles , proud of myself (I was well within my 5-10 minutes). I was met with a scowl and :
receptionist: "I don't think we can take her back tonight, because you are are LATE"
Me: ROAR!!!!
(OK, that's not exactly what I said- more like I relayed the phone conversation (of MORE than 24 hours earlier).
And asked
"WAS there truly NO note written" ???? ROAR
Well I never did hear if there was a note written, but they DID take her back (and tried to make nicey-nicey)- I was not buying!
Then the same lady, (after mentioning how cute Will is ***ACK***! )
asked if I "would like to schedule her next 6 month check-up"
Uh- "No thank you"

Friday Favorites

OK, so this Friday Favorite comes with a slight reservation., But here it is:

Blink Mess Lifters

I stumbled upon these "auto interior wipes" at our local Home Depot. With 5 kids (who participate in numerous sports) and 2 dogs, you can safely assume that the interior of my mini van sometimes more closely resembles a compost heap than a luxury vehicle. On one such occasion when the muddy footprints and snack/ drink spillage obviously trumped being "thrifty" I bought a package. I have since used them not only in my van, but also inside my home on carpets and upholstery. I have found them to be better (and certainly easier) than Resolve or Woolite for cleaning small areas. As I said, I have a reservation in recommending them, that is, a package of 20 wipes costs over $3.00! But if you are miserly in your use of them, I think they are worth having handy. For moments like these:And who's muddy mitt do you think this is?

Hero's Running Again?

As you all know, Hero is not known for exerting himself these days.
But winning Bissell's MVP contest, in order to help other retiring greyhounds, (who are still in need of forever homes); is such a worthy cause, he could not just lie around and do nothing.
The winner gets $10,000 for their charity of choice!
So it is official- he is actually in the "running".
Please vote for Hero for week 8.
(you can click on the widget on the right side of this blog).

'Snow Kidding

Unlike some other areas of Virginia and Maryland our snow totals are still in the single digits (4 inches maybe?). But it is still enough for us to get out and enjoy winter's last hurrah.

So here is my picture "dense" post. (Alaina says I am a "photoholic") ;-0I think Genna should be cast in the next X- man movie- (Iceman eat your heart out) check out her icy blast. Who is steering?

Can you see the JOY on Will's face?
What a Motley crew!

And yes- the required greyhound shots:

I'm glad that is not a metal pole!

" I know I left that toy around here somewhere!"

And the action shots-

I need more practice

(they are pretty blurry)

And then it is time to go in-