Aquarium Over Bed

 

This is one of those things that LOOKS really cool, and at first glance you think it's something you'd really like to have.  But if you step back and think about it, perhaps you wonder how practical it really is.  I LOVE the look of this.  I love aquariums.  I love to watch fish swimming around.  Would I love it over my head?  Every night?  Would the light from it, no matter how dim, be annoying when I'm trying to sleep?  Would I feel claustrophobic with the archway over my head?  Some pros and cons.  I'm thinking I'd really like it in real life, but it would be awesome if I could try it for a night or two somewhere else, like in a hotel, to decide for sure.  Your thoughts?

 

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Single Mom

At this time every year, for about a week and a half, I get to play "single mom" while my husband is away on his annual camping trip. It always renews my admiration for those single parents who have to do it full time. I've only got one kid, and for the most part he's a pretty good one, but even so I'm pretty worn out by the time hubby gets back. So...kudos to all you single parents who are doing the best you can every day!

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Happy 4th of July!

When I get home from work today, there will be 150 people in my back yard, eating mountains of food and waiting for the big fireworks display. My husband loves the 4th of July and has a party every year. He has spent the last 3 days cooking and setting up. There is 50 pounds of barbequed pulled pork, 30 pounds of smoked chicken quarters, 20 slabs of beef ribs, 500 boiled shrimp, and about 10 pounds of fresh-made coleslaw. Then there's the huge fireworks display that he's spent weeks putting together "just so". He's a crazy man, I tell you.

It is SO not "my thing". All those people, most of whom I don't even know. They're friends of his from high school, customers of his lawn service, hunting buddies, fellow airboaters, pool league teammates...my husband is a very social animal. (I do get to catch up with relatives that we don't see other than at this party, and I really look forward to Aunt Peggy's orzo pasta salad!) Rick knows it's not "my thing", and provides special accommodations to ease my discomfort. No one is allowed to park in my spot in the driveway. He puts a "Reserved for Wife" sign on the table and chairs with the best view. And best of all, he rents a Port-O-Let. You might think "eww", but seriously, do the math: 150 people, with an average bathroom requirement of maybe 3 or 4 times each in the 6 or 7 hours they're there (depending on how much they're drinking), that's roughly 500 times people would be traipsing through my house, flushing the toilet and (theoretically) washing their hands. And maybe rummaging through the medicine cabinets and critiquing the way I make my bed! No, thank you!

I asked Rick last night if he knew what my favorite part about the 4th of July was. He said, "The 5th of July?" Made me laugh. I said, "No, although that's probably a close second." My favorite thing about the 4th of July is how much HE enjoys it. He loves to cook for a lot of people. He loves to socialize. He loves to blow things up. So he loves the 4th of July. And I love him. So there.
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Back to "Normal"

I feel like I was more productive yesterday. I had more time to do stuff. My son started back to school, which means I had to get up early (WAAAAY earlier than I've been getting up for the last couple weeks!) to get him to school. I drop him off at 8:15, and it doesn't make sense for me to bypass my store and go all the way back home for an hour, only to have to turn around and go to work. So I get to my store at 8:30 on school days. I don't officially open until 11:00. That gives me an extra couple of hours to get the majority of my computer work finished before I open the doors to customers. In essence, I "found" two extra hours for my day. A couple more hours wouldn't hurt, but at least I'm on the right track!

Unfortunately, the other side of back-to-normal is that I spent most of the evening yelling at my son to finish his homework. He is SO easily distracted. At one point he was supposed to be reading, and I came in the room and found him staring at his finger. "Look, Mom--it's twitching!" In a way I hate to put a damper on his youthful enthusiasm, but I'd REALLY like for him to figure out 1) that if he gets his homework done in a timely fashion, he can THEN do whatever he wants to before bedtime, and 2) that if he just DOES his homework, then Mom won't spend the entire evening yelling at him to DO his homework!

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Blogging on the Back Porch

Tuesday is my day off. For most of the year, anyway. Starting next month I'll probably go into my shop every day, including Tuesdays. I'm hoping to be busy enough with both customers and special orders to justify not having this one lovely day to myself.

It's cooling off a little in Florida. Mornings and evenings are already a blissful and balmy low-to-mid '70's. During the day it's still warm...like today it's about 84 degrees. But I'm sitting outside on our screened in back porch, with a lovely breeze sweeping through, and it's really, really nice! Our house is on an acre of property, and is set near the street, so we have a terrific back yard. One of my favorite things is to sit out here with my husband on weekend mornings, just talking and surveying "our domain".

This has to be short, because I still have to vacuum this lovely back porch, and the dishes aren't going to load themselves into the dishwasher. And I've only got half an hour before I have to go pick up my son from karate. I just wanted to share a bit of my bliss with you today!

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