Saturday Stuff - Thank you!

Yeah, yeah, I know it's not Saturday.  I'm a little behind but I didn't want to wait till next week to give a big, public thank you to my friend Laura!

A couple of weeks ago I received a little package in the mail from Michigan.  You'll never guess what it was - an apron!  Now I have an official collection, I'm so thrilled.  And this isn't just any apron, it's a PARTY apron! 

Aprons are really hot right now, I've been seeing them in the stores all over town and my favorites are the little half aprons that you would wear if you were having a dinner party in your home.  You know the type, they only cover the bottom half of you and they look too pretty to ever want to spill anything on them.  They're usually frilly and girly and I love them and now I have one of my very own!

It's sheer pale pinky lilac with white rick-rack all around the edges, even around the cute little pocket. It makes me want to throw a dinner party right away.

Laura is a dear friend that I met through our mutual interest in Laura Ingalls Wilder.  She and her husband, Jim, live in Michigan and make the best maple syrup every year.  We were lucky enough to share a dorm suite at Laurapalooza last year and are looking forward to hanging out in Minnesota again next year.  I wish she lived closer, I think we'd have a lot of fun running around town together.

Be sure to read her blog, A Simple Happy Life.  Her dog, Duke, posts on Saturdays and he's had lots of adventures.

Thank you Laura, your sweet gift made my summer.

Saturday Stuff: Chuck It!





I throw like a girl.

 

Actually, that's insulting to girls.

 

I throw badly.  I used to take Jasper out in the backyard and try to throw the tennis ball.  Ever the optimist, he would stand on the far side of the yard and wait for the ball to come hurtling towards him, ready to catch it.  You can only imagine the mixed pity and disgust on his face when I would let go of the ball and it would fall mere inches from my own feet.  No wonder he would head back to the house after only a few attempts.

 

Then I found The Chuck It and it changed everything; it's like having a bionic arm!  Suddenly I could throw and the ball goes FAR.  The first few times it went further than Jasper could anticipate so he had to go running into the trees.  His look of surprise was everything I could have hoped for.

 

Not only did the Chuck It revolutionize our games of fetch, I never had to touch a slimy tennis ball again.  That alone was worth the purchase price.  It's a good value too, we used ours for many years including several fetch sessions just earlier this year.   If you love a dog, you need one of these!

correction

I stand corrected - I do not just have 1 reader, I think I have at least 3 and their names are  Laurie, Laura and Lauri.  And my favorite author is Laura Ingalls Wilder.  Coincidence or not?

I just need to find a Lori and I'll be all set.

New Beginnings

Well hello!  Here it is, September 1st already.  Bet you were wondering where I disappeared in the last half of August, didn't you?  Actually, you probably didn't since I think only 1 person is still reading this blog...hi Laurie!

I had to take a little break from writing because I was having trouble maintaining a sunny outlook.  They say there are 5 stages of grief:

1.  Denial & Isolation
2.  Anger
3.  Bargaining
4.  Depression
5.  Acceptance

I've not really experienced bargaining (what the heck would I bargain for, it's not like the situation is going to change.) but I think I'm going through numbers 1, 2 and 4 simultaneously.  Or at least I bounce from one to the other on any given day.

I've truly never experienced anything like this.  I've never been so sad for so long.  I've lost dogs before and I've lost people that I loved dearly before and yet this experience is knocking all the wind out of my sails like NEVER before.  Not that you'd know if you saw me in person, I'm good at hiding my feelings.  My own mother hasn't even noticed that anything is wrong with me...but maybe that's not the best example. ;-)

It's been almost 2 months now and last week I really believed I was sailing into the harbor of acceptance.  I finally stopped crying every single day and I was starting to look forward to future plans.  I suppose it helped a lot that another situation in our lives looked like it was finally going to change.  This week, however, the situation still hasn't been resolved and I'm slipping back out to sea.

I think I'll stop wallowing, however, and not post about it anymore.  I'm usually a stiff upper lip sort, not the kind to moan to others about my difficulties and I find I'm annoying even myself.  I wouldn't want to do that to my readers Laurie.  September has always been about new beginnings for me and I'm ready to make one.  September is going to be a happy posting month...after today, of course.  It's not like I've been sitting around staring at the walls for the last few weeks.  I've traveled, learned how to make preserves and spent time exploring new places and I've got pictures to share so watch this space!