Faster Than a Speeding Bullet

Playing HyperDash is great fun! And the only way to describe Brian is faster than a speeding bullet. At first he was only going to spectate, and then his competitive edge emerged and he had to get in on the fun. Erin and Jill have so much energy that not only did they run on their own turns, but accompanied us on our turns also, as you can see in the picture above. I'm not going to take up the space to describe the game, but we felt that Brian has such long legs and long strides that he had an advantage. And what a beautiful afternoon we had to be outside for awhile after Bobby's birthday lunch.

Bobby's Birthday Cake

Luckily, the cakes I bake taste better than they look. Usually they're called earthquake cakes; however, this one has already been called the Chili earthquake cake. Here's hoping it holds together until we officially slice into it tomorrow. Every time I check on it, the craters are a little larger. Apparently there've been some aftershocks in our kitchen. And there's a top on this cake plate, which I removed for the picture. I don't have to worry about the cake sliding onto the counter. I could do sheet cakes, but there's no challenge in that! And anyway, Bobby likes his cakes to look like this.

Pretending With Jill

Jill and I were playing with the playdough, making pretend cookies, and this is how the conversation went.
Jill: Pretend I'm your mother and you're my child, and you say, "Can I have another cookie, huh?"
Me: "Can I have another cookie?"
Jill: "NO! You didn't say Huh?"
Me: okay. "Huh?"
Jill: You have to say it altogether. "Can I have another cookie, huh?"
Me: oh, okay. "Can I have another cookie, huh?"
Jill: "No, you've had enough cookies."

All that work! I have a feeling she knew from the start I wasn't going to get that cookie.

So Far I've Found...

So far this year, I've found 10 cents, pictured above. Coming out of the grocery this morning, there is was, and I didn't need a metal detector. All that was needed was my super duper, always on the lookout, powerful x-ray vision. The date is 1980. I stooped right down and scooped it up, the envy of everyone in the parking lot.

House Centipedes

Isn't he cute? Occasionally, I find one of these in our bathroom, maybe once every six weeks to two months or so. So I find out there's such a thing as house centipedes, that can live an entire life-span, 3-7 years, in a dwelling. It can lay 63 eggs, and likes damp places, dark places, and here I used to think they were coming in from outside. But when I found one last week, I knew this creature hadn't come in from outside when it had been 10 degrees. Anyway, you can spray to get rid of them, though they really don't cause any harm. They're more frightening than they look.

I used to kill them with Raid, but I like to see them die on the spot. With just a little squirt, they go crawling off, and I don't know where they are when they die, or even if they die. For all I know they may nurse their wounds and live another 6 years. It takes a heck of a lot of Raid to see them die right then and there. Usually I step on them (yes, I'm that brave.) Although one of them put up such a fight he threw me off balance. Really! He knocked be against the bathroom wall and I hit my head and had to get stitches. So I'm thinking about putting one of Bobby's varmint traps in the bathroom and catching them that way. I need to decide what I'll use for bait.

Valentine

This is a valentine that daddy sent to Dot - I have no idea what year. On the back he wrote, "I'm sorry I didn't get you that funny valentine you wanted." And he's drawn an arrow to the cat and wrote that the cat is about to have a fit. I love old time cards, they hold such charm.

Anyway, not to be outdone by my poet sons, I thought I'd give it a try. I'm so talented!
This little girl's dress is red.
This little girl's plate is blue.
The cat on this card is yellow.
wait...I'm going to start again.

Valentine's Day is for lovers.
Not necessarily true.
Children especially celebrate
darn...the last line throws me. I'll try again.

Hearts, chocolate, roses,
Stores are bringing in the cash.
But the truest way to show your love
is simply...well...

here I go..one more time...

Some crayons are red.
Some crayons are blue.
Sugar is sweet.
And I love you. There! I knew I could do it.

Back In The Day

What Day You Say? Well, when we were young, of course. Bobby's Navy photo got me to thinking of communication back then and how it's changed. When he was in Vietnam, long distance calls were few and far between...I mean very, very rare, and of course no cell phones or e'mails. So we depended solely on the U.S. post office. There would be 7, 8, ten days with no mail at all, then a landslide of letters all at one time. I'd call home every single day right after lunch to see if I'd gotten any mail from him. And oh, what a disappointment if the answer was no. Even though the communication was behind, it still sort of gave me a sense of relief that he was okay when that mail showed up. In the pictures above, Bobby was in New Mexico, I was at the Grand Canyon.

And here's a little story for you that I don't even know if Bobby remembers. He was in the navy and we were dating. At this point he had never told me he loved me. None of his letters to this point had ever been signed "love." Well, I received a letter from his signed 'Love', but it was signed: Love, Pete. Okay, What was he trying to tell me? Was he afraid of being shot down if he signed it love, Bobby? and I didn't respond accordingly? But if he was just being silly...hmmm. Believe me, I was more than willing to let him know I loved him. So okay, I thought, this 20 year old knows how to play this game. So I signed my next letter to him "Love, Nancy." And my next letters in the futures from him were signed "Love, Bobby." end of story. And we've lived happily ever after. Well, sometimes I've wanted to kill him, but you get my gist.