But wait, there's no snowman!

I thought I wanted to build a snowman.

I thought I wanted to make a snow angel.

I thought I wanted to sled down the small hill that is our street...

Naw, what I really wanted was to stay in my pajamas till noon, leisurely eat a big bowl of steaming hot oatmeal with brown sugar, walnuts, and dried cherries, and watch my kiddo and my dog enjoy themselves in the beautiful all-too-infrequent snow.

It was wonderful.

The pajamas, the oatmeal, and the view- all of it was wonderful.

And then I did some housework, took a nap, did some lesson planning, took the dog for a long walk, had movie night with Ab, and went to bed early.

Couldn't ask for more than that!

God’s voice thunders in marvelous ways;
he does great things beyond our understanding.
He says to the snow, ‘Fall on the earth,’
and to the rain shower, ‘Be a mighty downpour.’
So that everyone he has made may know his work,
he stops all people from their labor.

Job 37:5-7 NIV

YES!

I got up early to check the school status- closed.

Then I took pictures before anyone drove on the street or walked on my lawn.

It's so quiet- like God put a blanket over us and said it is ok to rest a bit longer.

I needed this. It gives me a few hours of... nothing.

My only responsibility is to keep my kiddo and myself warm and dry and fed. It's more than a physical break, it is a mental and emotional "down time".

Ahhhhhh...

Shhhh! It's snowing!

It came down really hard for about half an hour, then it stopped. It might be enough to close school tomorrow... I guess I'll have to actually go to sleep and then find out in the morning!

Night night!

The BEST Puzzle EVER!!!!

If you like Sudoku and can do basic math, you will be challenged by KenKen.

I love these puzzles- they are more challenging than Sudoku and very addicting.

You can learn more about them at the KenKen site- there is a tutorial video that is the next best thing to having me beside you as a tutor.

Start with the 4x4 puzzle and work your way up to the 9x9.

I am so addicted, I do a 9x9 every day!

It's a great way to brush up on your math and keep your brain flexible!

Happy puzzling!

Contest results

All the captions were pretty good- not as edgy or personal as the ones in my brain, but still pretty good.

I'd have to say that Molly's Dad is the winner with this:

We have a special place
for those who are single and picky.

Check it out...you might find a peach.

Molly, I'll get the prize to you on Wednesday evening!

Here's what I would have said:

Better to be picky and single than stuck with some rotten fruit!

(And no, I am not a pessimist! I am a realist! ;->)

Happy trails!

This week's weather

A few blogs ago, I was saying how I really wanted some colder weather and snow. Since then, the temps have cooled and we got a nice rare February treat on Wednesday morning...

It snowed big fat flakes for about three hours- so very pretty, but not sticking much to the roads. In three more it was all gone. Not a sign of snow except on the mountains.

Looking out my classroom window Feb. 16. I had to use the camera on my little phone, so the resolution is not great, but you get the idea that I enjoy quite a nice view.

Today it was cool and clear- Ab and I went out around town and got these pics:

Mt St Helens

Baa baa black sheep.

Dodge trucks are ram tough.

Are you talking to me?

I'm friends with the llama- leave him alone.

Pacific Northwest sunny day photographer in a field.

Do you see what I see?

(Sorry. I was looking into the sun for this picture- concentrating on the cow.)

Illusive shadow people of the Pacific Northwest. Rarely seen or photographed,

they come and go without warning and tend to prefer August to any other month.

Some of our weather gurus are saying we might (MIGHT!!!) get an arctic blast this next week which might (MIGHT!!!) bring us some more lowland snow. We'll see. Since forecasting around here is notoriously difficult (as in WRONG), more than 24 hours in advance, we'll just have to wait. And pray. :->

Have a great Presidents' Day! (Don't forget to enter the contest- it ends Monday night!)

'Nother contest

I saw this sign at a roadside stand near Yakima, WA this summer.

Being the unmarried person that I am, I thought it was hilarious.

I have a few caption possibilities in my brain, but I want to know what you think.

A prize goes to the best caption for the picture.

Don't email me with your entry- it has to be here on the comments in order to qualify.

Deadline is Monday, February 21, 9pm PST.

I'm the judge and the decision of the judge is final.

Happy captioning!

Happy Valentine's Day!

As you can see, I fell for the Hallmark commercials that show the mom "bugging" her daughter with the cutest little bug stuffed with stuff. For Valentine's Day I chose to stuff it with milk chocolate Lindor Balls- Ab's faves. I told her I get the bug back so I can use it again and she wanted to know when I would use it. "Ah-ha!" I said, "I will surprise you because that is my right as a mom!" (Moms' rights are so awesome.)

For dinner, I made (uh, "assembled") lasagna, garlic bread, and salad. We ate by candlelight and she loved it. She also had two huge helpings of lasagna! Definitely a pasta girl.

For dessert, she made her "specialty": strawberries and bananas with chocolate syrup and whipped cream on top. She served me in the living room.

Then, we spent about half an hour in the bathroom trying to get a picture of both of us. We figured out that if we pose in front of a mirror, we can see what the shot will look like because the camera screen in back is reflected in the mirror. No more click and check for us, we would get it right the first time! Yeah. Right. 17 shots later...

Whatever. It was fun. Perhaps one of the most fun Valentine's Days I have had!

And now it is time for bed. We hope you had an awesome day!

His Royal Shortness, King Friday the 16th

Yet another scrapbook page about this dog. You think he is cute here- just wait until he bites you. Yeah, that's right. He has nipped at 4 people in our neighborhood, two in our house, and one at my folk's house. He's all of 12 pounds and he thinks he is the toughest thing on 4 paws.

Little dork.

We should have named him Napoleon. Napoleon Barfs-A-Lot.

I'd sell him to the highest bidder, but he has sort of grown on me. I've never had a dog that was so protective, so loyal, and so in love with belly rubs and snuggles. He sits so close to me that sometimes I think he is going to ooze right through me and come out the other side.

A week ago, I decided to try letting him sleep on my bed at night instead of in his crate. He is so noisy in his crate and I was tired of him waking me up at 3:00, 4:00, 5:00...

The experiment worked, and now he sleeps all through the night- curled up in a ball and snuggled into the small of my back. Not only is he quiet, but he puts out a lot of heat.

(I tell you, I am ready for cold and snow!)

So just beware when you come to visit. The Protector of the Manor is on guard, and he has had plenty of rest...

Go Packers!

I'm not really a Packers fan, it's just that no self-repecting Seahawks fan would ever cheer for the "Steal"ers after Super Bowl XL.

Necessity is the mother of invention.

Wrong. Laziness is the mother of invention. We invented bicycles so we wouldn't have to walk. We invented cars so we wouldn't have to pedal. We invented mass transit so we wouldn't have to steer...

So where am I going with this? Oh, yeah. Inventing stuff. I invented some words. They are words to be used in place of other words and/or phrases that are too long to say every time I want to say them.

Are you ready? Here they are, along with definitions:

Auntlings- children connected to an aunt. To be used in place of nieces and nephews.

Example: I took a picture of all my auntlings in front of the White House.

I just used HALF of the letters and spaces I would have used to spell out nieces and nephews.

I have an efficiency rating of 50%!!! (Not to mention I didn't have to pause and think one more time about how to spell "niece", or and count to see if I should say niece and nephew or nieces and nephew or niece and nephews or nieces and nephews depending on how many of each showed up for the photo shoot.)

Impressed? Wait. There's more.

Unclebuds- children connected to an uncle. (See- I didn't forget about uncles.)

Example: My youngest brother has 5 unclebuds. (That is the weirdest looking word...)

Again- my laziness, er, uh, efficiency rating is 50%!!!

You are sitting there right now thanking me and thinking about how glad you are to know me and my words.

TTFN!!!