Happy Halloween!

Newspaper coasters

These are my latest invention (but I am probably not the first to make them-lol).
I am trying to finish them to give to Trav's sisters for Christmas. I need to find the right ribbon to put around the sides...

How to make smiley face pancakes

Who doesn't love a smiley face pancake!

read more | digg story

How to negotiate with a car salesman

Tips for how to deal with negotiations when shopping for a vehicle.

read more | digg story

How to keep white clothes white

Excessive bleaching or washing white laundry with dark colors can create a dingy look to your clothes. Check out this article that has a few tips for keeping your white clothes sparkling white for years.

read more | digg story

Bummed out polar bear

We went to the Tulsa Zoo yesterday and the polar bear was acting so depressed. I sat and watched him for about 20 mintues and he swam back and forth in the same spot and stepped out of the water in the same place for about 2 seconds. Every time he stepped out of the water to turn around he would tilt his head twice EXACTLY the same right before he went back in the water. It was almost eerie.

I googled his actions and found out that this is common for captive polar bears. They will someone walk or pace in the same place for a large percentage of their day. In most cases the zookeepers will try to discourage the bear from doing this by trying to stimulate it or letting it go in and out of its den at its own leisure. Some have suspected it to be a sign of depression or discontent.

After reading this I was so sad because last time we went to the zoo the same polar bear was walking in a methodical circle the entire time we were there.

I sent an email to the zoo asking if they are trying to remedy the behavior and how long he has been doing it. I bet they hate it when people do that. I can't stop thinking about it though...

Our zoo.

Here is a packet of pics of our pups. (Say that three times fast) :)
Diesel, Babes and Penny Lane. Penny is getting along nicely with Diesel but Babes is taking longer to warm up to her. She still misses Maggie and lays around a lot still but I think she's doing better every day. Penny is a crazy little puppy. She is still a little too rough with Jack so they don't get to play together very often. At least until he stops trying to sit on her which gets her riled up and spastic. That is her fetching which she LOVES to do. She has already been swimming too. She's not as bad as Maggie was about wanting to "live in the water". If there was a puddle nearby Maggie would be rolling around in it for hours. Penny is still kind of shy with the water but she will lay in the water dish all day. She also likes to chew on the cement as she is doing in one of the photos. Not really but it looks like she is eating the cement in the pic. She was actually trying to pry the wood separator from the cement. Gotta love puppies!

My ehow business

http://www.ehow.com/members/Bfastattiffanys.html

This is a link to my profile on ehow. Check it out! :)

In Memory of Maggie (Magnus)

We lost Maggie yesterday when the dogs got out of the gate and went onto the interstate. There are no words to describe how perfect Maggie was.

Things Maggie enjoyed:
1. Swimming- it was her favorite thing to do, especially if we were swimming too. She would sit on the pool stairs and watch and just love life.
2. She loved chasing mud. Travis and she had a game called Kamakazee Magnus where he would dig a pvc pipe into the ground and fling the mud across the yard and she would chase it. For hours sometimes until she was panting so hard we thought she would fall over. She still would not stop until Travis put the pipe down and even then she would go stand by the pipe and beg him to throw more. It was so entertaining.
3. The Beach- She swam out in a cove in North Carolina and drug a bouy to shore that was attached to a cinder block. Anything that was floating she had to have. We threw a stick into the ocean over and over -hundreds of times and she had to bring it back every time.
4. Diesel and Babes- She loved her brother and sister. They would not go anywhere without each other. Diesel was her shadow and he would always lick her ears after she swam. Those two are beside themselves downstairs right now. There is a strange quietness in the house and from them.
5. Jack- She would sit in the baby pool with Jack and let him pour water on her. She would just sit and "smile" at him, like in the first picture. She loved when he was outside and had to be right there with him.
6. Life- I wished so often I viewed the world as she did. She was always happy. Always.

We will miss you Maggie. Thank you for the years of complete joy you brought to us. Rest in Peace.
Love,
Your Family

Snack attack

Two of my favorite foods: olives and Corona. This is going to hit the spot!

Mom and I made curtains for the living room today

I can't sew so we made these with Stitch Wichery. Not something I normally do so i'm pretty happy they turned out so well. Couldn't have done it without my mom. Yay curtains! Now just one more window to go and then I can start painting walls and trim. I made the curtain rods with a closet pole and some clearance pieces from Lowe's, then spray painted them with a hammered metal spray paint. Travis and Dad helped too.

Why there is so much cat hair in my house...

Obi rubbing hair on the curtains
Tubbies oddly not rubbing hair on anything for now
Goose rubbing hair into the carpet

More family pics

This is my Grandma and I at Nathan's rehersal. I hate so much that we live so far apart. She made me the most wonderful cook/scrapbook. I bet I've looked through it over 100 times already. Last night I made her vegetable dip recipe. It wasn't as good as hers is though.

Nathan and Grandma before the wedding. I think Nathan was getting a little nervous. It's all over his face. :)

Here are a few more pics of Grandma, Hess and Sue before the wedding. Dad took these. Sue pulled out the ol' bunny ears. LOL

Family!

These photos are of my Grandma Dona and my Great Aunt's Hess and Sue. We had so much fun visiting while they were down here for Nathan's wedding. I was so glad Jack was able to see his Great Grandma and Great-Great Aunts.

Jack's B-day invitation

These took forever to make, 1) because I drew the duck freehand and I am NOT artistic at all- had to try about 100 times to get it right and 2) because I was distracted by 'you know who' :) Finally learned to work on them after he went to bed. I ended up making about 25 of them. The back said "What a lucky duck Jack would be if you would join us to celebrate his very first birthday!! So waddle on over to the duck pond for a party at the park. Sat. April 19, 2008 at Cunningham Park in the large gazebo. 2 p.m., (Rubber Ducky likes baths not showers, so we'll reschedule in case of rain)

Avocado nightmare

I whipped up some nice ripe avocado for Jack to try for the first time Monday. It was all good, he gobbled it up. A few hours later, after I put him down for bed (Travis was out of town) I heard him fidgeting in his room. I opened the door and was smacked in the face with the worst odor imaginable. He had vomited all over his bed and was laying in a huge pile with chunks stuck to the side of his face. He had gotten the flu somehow and everything from that day came back up with a vengeance. I picked him up and tried to wipe the green, avocado bile from his hair but it was too far gone. So, with the help of Mom, who was staying over because Dad was out of town too, we rinsed Jack, changed the sheets, and got him back to bed. Ten minutes later another batch was spewed all over the sheets. And I thought I would only need two sets of sheets for his crib. Didn't count on the first bout of the flu. Poor kid yakked for two days then got the congestion side of the strain also. I will never be able to eat avocado again.

New house, new digs

Jack's room is the first and only room to be finished in the new house. He loves his room and takes long naps here. (the longest at the other house was 30 mintues).