Fall colors but can't get real close

100_9762, originally uploaded by torri_g.

I noticed this morning while taking dogs out that across the way in the new housing construction zone that there are trees with fall colors. Because of the ravine and the construction zone fence there is not getting real close to it for pictures, but camera with zoom and a telephoto lens works too. Army mentioned that the trees heading up towards Huachuca Canyon are in fall color also, so maybe I need to head up there again this week and see what things look like. I'll be honest, I don't miss the sever cold and tons of snow, but I sure miss seeing tons of fall colors everywhere. Cactus and broom bushes just don't feel the need to turn such vibrant colors.

I hope that everyone is having a great Thursday, and see you back here tomorrow for Feline and Furball Friday.

Just where is the maid?

Mess, originally uploaded by torri_g.

I can not believe that I'm actually going to post a picture of this here, but hey I'm willing to admit that I have a problem in my house. It is called my desk! Now don't go thinking that this is a problem created by just one person...oh we are far from that. As Mom I get a lot of help from my three girls with the messing up of this desk here. Every note that comes home from school, progress reports, permission slips, ordering information for the senior, various daily medicines for the youngest two, monthly medications for the dogs, an assortment of several things first aid related because having a Little Bug a.k.a. Crash living in this house means you always need to have an assortment of things readily on hand. My things on here would be the post it notes for making my lists, the spray bottle so that whenever there is an animal that needs to be reminded that being good is really a good thing, my water bottle because if it is left anywhere else in this house I swear the kids steal it from me, and my coffee cup because trying to start my day without the help of coffee just isn't a good thing. Sitting here playing with my Kodak camera this morning though I'm thinking that the maid needs to spend a little time on this desk though. After all it has been a couple months since it was cleaned. The really sad thing though is as soon as it is clean again, the girls seem to view it as a challenge to see how quickly they can get back to looking like it does currently. Maybe that is why the maid tends to just leave this piled mess alone.

I hope that everyone is having a good week, and I'm going to see if I can do something with this mess that is called my desk here today.

Falling behind again!

PB026343, originally uploaded by torri_g.

I wish I could just get on track with this already. I think I have been in a bit of a photo taking depression since having to give back the loner Olympus camera, and when I finally picked up my Kodak again for the first time in months it just kicked my backside all over the place. It isn't that I don't know how to work the Kodak anymore...I seem to have forgotten some of it's touchy issues it has always had. The delays in shutter button, the lag in processing, the temperamental focusing. I headed out last week with it to see about finding something to take pictures and it ended up sitting on the passenger seat of the car like a stranger to me. I will get past this though because I'm sure the urge to take lots of pictures of everything will kick in again here soon. I mean how in the world am I going to share the funny story about Binky Sue and her classes motto if I don't pick the camera up and take a picture?

I hope that everyone is having a good week so far, and I will try yet again to get going on a daily basis here.

The Sister Cats

Eclipse and Angel, originally uploaded by torri_g.

Eclipse and Angel doing what they do best...curling up and just sitting around. It kind of surprised me that these two were sitting so close to each other last night after the week they have had with fighting with one another. Note to any visitors, when these two are going at it with each other...it is best to just find a safe spot and stand perfectly still. There isn't a lot of clawing and gnashing of teeth that goes on with their fights, but there is a lot of extreme high speed running, jumping, flying through the air that goes on. At first you won't even realize just what is going on, you will just see a blur of black and white also known as Eclipse go sailing over, under, or on to the top of something. Then you will see a very smug Angel saunter into the room searching for her sister. Eclipse will stay silent and hidden till just the right moment comes and then like a shot she is off and running again. Of course she takes time to make sure that as she takes off she manages to touch her sister in some way so as to ensure that the fight will truly be in full swing then. After that the phrase "Game On" is about the only one that really works. Then it is nothing but very fast moving blurs of black and white fur through the house. The game usually ends when either Mom steps in and says the words "Enough Already you two!" or Miss Angel gets so mad about not being able to catch her sister she starts hissing and meowing like she is being murdered. Eclipse is the one that usually ends up being able to saunter with the victorious walk, and climbs up to what I think they view to be the best seat in the house...the back of the couch near the windows. Ah the never ending joys of siblings under the roof of this house.

It is time again for Feline and Furball Friday over with Steve and Pickle. If you should want to play along all you have to do is post your own and leave a link in comments. I hope that everyone has a great start to their Friday and that there is a wonderful weekend waiting for all of us.

The Ballooning Costs of Senior Year

PB026251, originally uploaded by torri_g.

Oh wow this year has not only flown by, but money for our senior seems to be flying right out the windows and doors of the house. The latest cost is the cap, gown, and announcements. With the way the money keeps flying out of the house there may be nothing left for graduation gift or party. Army Guy and I may celebrate being done paying for this year and then sit down and cry about having to do it all over again come next year for Sweetpea. Oh the joys of senior year! At least we will have a really good idea about just how much we will need to have saved up, and let's not forget to add some extra for inflation from one year to the very next. For $312.35 these better be the best announcements, cap, and gown that there has ever been!

I'm just going to sit back and watch the money flying here, I wonder what is next on the list for the seniors.

Final Bloom

Blooming, originally uploaded by torri_g.

It is of course fall and every where else there is the turning of leaves that signals it. Here we get the few rare trees that will actually turn beautiful colors but our true sign of fall weather is the Arizona Broom Bushes blooming. They are in full swing now and sending their white fluffy blooms flying through the air with the higher winds that we have had the last couple of days here. Considering the amount of bugs these things draw in for the better part of the year, I personally am always happy to see the blooming going on because it means our much cooler temperatures are arriving very soon.

I hope that everyone has had a quiet Tuesday, and see you all tomorrow with hopefully some more new photo's.

Spicy Monday

Spicy, originally uploaded by torri_g.

I'm still not real sure just what made me think standing over a pan of heating up chilies was a good idea. If you have never done, I suggest having a good cold and trying it. You should be cleared up quickly! When Army Guy is making his homemade chili powder the house goes through different stages of smell. At first it is a very subtle spicy scent, which quickly gives way to a makes your eyes water, then straight into "My goodness, my lungs are burning". The burning stage lasts the longest, but slowly there is a wonderful smell that creeps in. As he grinds all of the chilies into very fine powder and they combine you have thoughts of a good bowl of chili on a cold day. The final aroma that the house is left with is one that just can not be beat and I guess makes the lung burning sensation worth it. Today several batches of Army Guys "Arizona Dragons Breath" left the house on their way to different family members. They are all very fresh batches that have been made in the last 24 hours and they smell wonderful.

I hope that everyone had a good start to the week today, and that the rest of this week is filled with good things for all.

Sibling Sunday Playing Catch Up

100_9661, originally uploaded by torri_g.

I know that I haven't been keeping up on my blog like I usually like to, but life has taken a very busy swing the last couple of weeks. I know I posted about the week that flew away, and this week hasn't been much better. So let's play some catching up on things going on here in Arizona.

Binky Sue-
Is thrilled to tell everyone and anyone that this week brought the final termination of IEP services. All but one section of test scores were in the class of "WOW! That is great!" and the one section that wasn't...well in the whole scheme of things it shows that she has over the years learned ways around needing to score that high in that area. Binky Sue was a little worried about just what they would have to say, and if they were going to make her continue with services, but she got what she has worked oh so many long years for. She is finally free of the need for an IEP!

Sweetpea-
She has just been going along like she usually does. Nothing much exciting and lots of "One time in Art class" stories. If it were not for meal times, and afternoon break downs of her school day with me, I think in the last couple of weeks Sweetpea might have gone totally unnoticed. She is happy with that though as long as she gets her time to tell me about her day.

Little Bug a.k.a CRASH-
I mentioned in my quick update earlier in the week that last Sunday she feel and bruised her knee and was going to be on crutches for a couple of days. Well fast forward to maybe 24 hours after I typed that and we were back in the ER with Little Bug because her leg was swollen and ice cold. The first thing to rule out was possibility of blood clot, which there isn't one thank goodness, but then they noticed that it isn't just the bruised knee she tore her calf muscle. All of this means on the crutches longer and we have been fighting with her swelling and temperature loss in her leg. First thing tomorrow morning will be time to make a phone call and see about getting her into to clinic to see Dr...AGAIN! My thoughts at this point in time though as long as we are not sitting in the local ER life is good. She was upset though because she had to miss the field trip to Tucson with the choir for festival activities, but crutches and a long day of moving from room to room singing just would not have been a good thing for a leg that wants to be up and resting.

I guess since I'm going I will just add updates about Army Guy and myself on here. Army Guy has the retirement orders that he has been waiting for. Yes that means that the final countdown of time is going. There is a lot to get done between now and then but the ball is rolling and slowly they are going to get checked off of the to do list.(Oh yay...we already know about my list making addiction!)

As for me...well other than feeling like the car and I have merged and become one, I have managed to hold my breath for more than just a couple of things in the last couple of weeks. This week though more than anything else was waiting for results of a suspicious find in my left breast. The worst part was getting good news in the morning on Tuesday, to getting a phone call Tuesday afternoon telling me I needed to come back in Wednesday for more tests. For ten minutes Wednesday while sitting waiting for everyone to go over the films I swear I don't remember taking a breath at all. The good news it wasn't cancer that triggered the scare, I got a great big bold font NEGATIVE for that screening. I do however have a high number of cysts in the nodules, which they have sent the films off to my PCM and Surgeon to see if they would like a FNA done so they can look at what the cells are doing. So here is my PSA for the year ladies...do your self exams! I found the first area myself, and then that was confirmed by the PCM. Which was actually in the long run a good thing because that is how they found the high number in the nodules. I will say this though, I don't think I want to have another round of holding my breath like that.

Alright, I think this is long enough for a catch up entry. I hope that everyone is enjoying a beautiful weekend with loved ones, and I have hopes of getting back into a more regular posting cycle this week.

What happens when you eat to many nummies

To many yummies, originally uploaded by torri_g.

Something as simple as a banana can be to much of a good thing. Just take a look at Trinity and Mia. There is lots of goodness packed into those simple yellow things, and eating one may leave you with the same hung over look the dogs have.

It is time for Feline and Furball Friday over at Steve's, so if you want to play along just post your own and leave a link in comments.

Feline and Furball Friday

Last week flew away

Fly Away, originally uploaded by torri_g.

I don't know about anyone else but I am very happy to be done with last week. From start to finish it was one filled with the feeling of running behind because of having so much to get done. Lots of appointments, lots of running kids here, there, and everywhere. Yesterday morning I thought the relaxing time was going to finally going to kick in and then Little Bug feel and injured her knee. So much for relaxing time, just under six hours spent in the ER and she is on crutches for a severely bruised knee. Which will mean more running to and from school this week. Which is fine really because there are also lots of appointments yet again this week. Maybe next week will be the week of nothing.

Little Bug, Sweetpea and I did get out Sunday morning for the taking off of the hot air balloons. Armed with hot coco, and cameras it was a beautiful start to our Sunday morning. Sweetpea and Little Bug don't care how many times we have seen the same balloons lay out, fill up, and take off, in the cool early morning sunrise time of the first November Sunday it is a wonderful sight. Mom shot over 200 pictures and they shot over 100, and we once again enjoyed our early Sunday morning outing. Now if I can just find enough time to sit and go through all of the pictures.

I hope that this week is off to a good start for everyone, and that we will all find time to sit and relax just a little bit.