i think i might

be back on regular time.  I'm not really having any problems getting up and wanting to stay in bed, well, once I'm out of it and moving.  The house is back in order and the laundry is all caught up.  It took a few days but I think I'm there.  I've even felt like cooking, except for last night when we tried Brewingz for the first time. Luckily we didn't eat there because they have Pepsi products and beer.  I wanted to like it because the people working were really nice but it just didn't do much for us.  I ended up making a plate of nachos later on since not finishing a kids plate tends to leave an empty spot.  We did top it all off with pecan pie though.

I had another crust in the refrigerator that needed to be used after making a peach cobbler the other day.  Pecan pie has been sounding good so I made one.  It didn't seem to taste the same as it usually does but maybe that's because it was still a little warm.  I plan to send some home with Mom today.

Speaking of my sweet tooth, I don't always want French toast but when I do, it's probably because I have tons of bread and eggs leftover from the beach and then I end up having it two days in a row.

I went to the beach with one loaf of bread and came home with three.  Then there was the loaf I already had waiting for me when we got back.  I went to the beach with two dozen eggs for a recipe Lauren was making.  I came home with one of my dozens plus a dozen Mom took out there.  Oh, there are also the four dozen I already had in the refrigerator that I bought before the beach because they were on sale.  Maybe I should've made a quiche with that pie crust.  I guess I know whats for breakfast this weekend.  Maybe some deviled eggs will be good for July 4th.  The dogs might need some scrambled eggs this morning now that I'm thinking about it.  Those all sound like egg-cellent ideas.

I watched a show last night that I think was called Long Lost Family.  There wasn't anything else on.  Cosme was watching videos on his iPad so I left it on the show.  It's a series and this episode had a woman looking for a son she'd put up for adoption and then another lady looking for the mother who'd put her up for adoption as well as the daughter she'd put up for adoption.  Basically, it was a bunch of crying in between commercials.  Yeah, I get it.  The people were really emotional but that's not why I was laughing so hard.  I was laughing because the show was almost nothing but people crying.  Cosme was watching his videos but he was also halfway listening to the tv.  I didn't start laughing and thinking about all the crying until he commented on it.  Then I couldn't stop and every time someone started crying, I couldn't help but laugh.  I'm a little off like that.  I will either cry along with you or you'll make me feel awkward and I'll laugh.  So, in the middle of all these people crying, the way they found the lady's birth mother was that they had each submitted the Ancestry.com DNA sample.  Then I was just getting irritated because I'm pretty sure Ancestry.com processed those samples with a little urgency and the women weren't sitting with an email for TEN days with a status of "ARRIVED".  Whatever.

I think I'll go check for an update.

the animals are happy

that we're back from the beach.  Here are a few pictures, some not being the best quality because of the lighting and zooming.
 
No biggie, just a shot of the living room

 And Archer watching me while using Maggie as a pillow.

Lucille taking cover as usual.

 Strat.

Archer using Maggie as a leg rest.  By the way, he was totally fine and stretched out (with his leg on her) and when I looked at him, he adjusted his head to the side of the cage.  Looking for sympathy to be let out?  Possibly.

Lucille taking cover once again.

Strat monitoring the kitchen.

The dogs showing me they are not ready to go outside and want to stay in the cage.  Guess where they are right now?

Speaking of mutts, Ancestry.com got my spit sample.  I know they told me it'll take 6-8 weeks and I'll get an email with any news but I can't help but check the website every day... several times a day.  I'm anxious.

I really don't know why I'm so anxious since most of my family's general history is known.  After researching and reading over what other people have come up with, I have come to a conclusion or two.  I think the majority of my stuff will be from England, next up is Scandinavian, there will be a small amount of German heritage from my paternal great-great-grandfather? (is that how that's worded?) 2 times great-grandfather? And then I think there might be less than 1% Native American.  Without having to show off too much with my lackluster math skills, if I were to break it down and bet on it, I'd say my stuff will come like so:

PATERNAL
70% Scandinavian
25% English
 5% German

MATERNAL
99% English
1% Native American

Whatever those come out to together is what I'm betting on for myself.  Also, when I say English, that means the UK.  I do know part of the maternal English is out of Wales.  Besides, I've never seen any English care when referring to all Americans as yankees... (GASP)

I think it's time for me to check the Ancestry site again.

last week was

beach week and I'm still on island time.  I'm worn out.  Everything is unpacked for the most part but there are still those little things here and there.  Oh, there's also sand that seems to keep popping up in places.  Really though, I just want to stay in bed and I have zero motivation to get up and do anything.  I'm dragging.

The beach was fun though and I can't wait for next year.  I got some sun, got lots of rest, got to visit but didn't get many pictures.  I didn't even take my camera.  I did have my phone so was able to get a few sunrises along with a picture of this guy on this thing.

 I felt like a dork at first, snapping all the pics with my phone thinking that it probably seems like I don't get out much.  Then I stopped to see everyone else staring and getting pics.

Looks like I'm not the only dork who doesn't get out much.

A few days later we had the threat of a tropical storm.  Luckily for us, it hit around the Texas/Louisiana border.  The tide was so high and the storm clouds in the distance were pretty so I got a picture of that.

Looking off towards the east.

The tide was really high for a couple of days.  The road and our regular sitting spots weren't available.

One of the neighbors decided to sit in the dunes.  I almost stopped to tell her she should probably rethink that or at least pay attention to her surroundings and not that book.  Or maybe she's a snake whisperer and doesn't care.

We only got a little rain but it wasn't enough to bother us any.

Is it time to go back yet?

can you tell I was

spending some time with Archer?

A few days ago I was out petting him because I think he's been needing a little extra attention lately, more one-on-one time without Maggie.  I don't know for sure but I took a hint when I let them out in the mornings and instead of running out with her, he hangs back so I can pet and talk to him... several times.  Face it, Maggie likes ALL the attention and Archer just takes what he can get.  Anyway, Maggie was preoccupied so Archer and I were under one of the trees and I was scratching him.  Maggie would come over for a few seconds every so often to remind us that she was still there and that she gets attention too.  I'm not sure how long this had been going on but I decided we'd been chilling long enough and I decided to get rowdy.  Now I have scratches and bruises on my arms and a few bruises on my legs.  Oh well, that just shows he was having a good time.

I don't like to get political on here or social media.  I tried to live by the whole "what goes around comes around" thing but so far it hasn't worked.  I can keep my mouth shut as much as I want on social media but other people's opinions are still flung my way.  Oh well, now it's less of treating others how I'd like to be treated but more of "I'll just keep my mouth shut because I don't want to be one of those people".  BUT... I'm going to take a moment right now to mention a couple of things.

A republican congressman was targeted yesterday for being a republican and shot.  (Because it's all about peace, love and harmony like that)  Now, there hasn't been one anti gun comment on fb, NOT THAT THERE SHOULD BE.  I'm just saying it's funny how certain people get shot and guns need to be banned while people on the opposing side get shot and nothing.

**just to be clear, I am PRO gun.  My NRA membership might be current, I support the Second Amendment, we have guns in this house and we will use guns in this house if necessary.


One other thing.  I went to Kohl's yesterday and had a coupon.

I didn't use it because the coupon was a Fathers Day coupon and was limited to men's items, according to the details on the back.  Do you see where I'm going with this?  In this day and age of 58 genders, who's to say my women's flip flops weren't for a father?  I wasn't going to try to use the coupon because I'm not about causing a scene and making waves.  I think your gender is male or female.  It doesn't matter how you feel deep down but how you look on the outside.  Now whether you are a male wanting to be a female or female wanting to be a male, do what you want.  I DON'T CARE, I honestly don't.  I'm just saying that I'm surprised there hasn't been a stink about this.  Maybe Kohl's isn't cool enough for people to notice?  I'm sure if it was some hip and trendy shop needing to keep up with the cool kids, it wouldn't even say "Father's Day" on the front.  There'd be some alternative... HAPPY HOLIDAYS?

Now I'm going to start my baking before I get myself worked up over unnecessary things.  Maybe a quick trip to the PO to drop off my DNA spit sample will be good.

Deep breath in, deep breath out.
Deep breath in, deep breath out.

over the weekend I had

Lucille wrapped up in a blanket while we were watching tv. 

Then a commercial came on and she looked like she could be an ultra hip DJ in da kitty club.

DJ LuLu

Scratching is her specialty.

We picked up Popeye's for dinner last night.  Cosme had a po-boy but I tried some new chicken they have, Sweet & Crunchy.  It was different.  It was sweet and crunchy.  While they serve it with a packet of smoky pepper jam sauce or something, I don't know.  It tasted like chicken and waffles so smoky pepper sauce wouldn't have been my first choice to go with chicken and waffles.  You know what would have though?

Syrup.

I thought about writing Popeye's and making a suggestion.

While this chicken definitely isn't something I'd want all the time, it was fine last night for dinner. 

I think I'll go for a walk before it gets too hot.  I'm sure a mile walk will make me ready for the beach, right?

i ended up taking my cleaner

out to the back porch yesterday and seeing how it worked.  I finished most of the porch but stopped because I didn't want a muddy mess and the end I skipped is the end where the dogs have holes and dirt.

This is what I bought. 

I kept it in the Lowe's bag because it's leaking or something.

I didn't take any before pictures but here's one of during, after I had the right third sprayed and scrubbed with Archer helping.

And after I rinsed it off.  Oh, and when I say "scrub", I wasn't on my hands and knees like Cinderella.  I have a long handled scrubber that I think Papaw used to wash his suburban.

Here's a little corner by the door before I sprayed it down but used a little foam from the brush to scrub.

And here's a little later after it had some time to dry.

Honestly, I think the scrub brush and water might have been enough to clean off the dirt.  All that's left now seems like stains, maybe, I don't know.  That bigger spot in front of the door is where they eat so yeah...  I could probably do it again and leave the cleaner on a little longer.  And maybe if someone else were doing it there'd be a little more strength in the scrubbing. I do know that it knocked the smell out and that was my main goal.

Speaking of outside stuff.  Look back at this post HERE and see how the bag worms were taking over my Indian Hawthorns out front.

This is them now.

I think they're looking better after the exterminator sprayed.  I haven't seen any on the topiary since then.

My yew on the other hand...

 I don't know what's going on here.  I don't see any worms.  Maybe it's from not enough water?  Maybe it's from too much water at once from all the rain?  I don't have a clue.  I guess I'll wait and see.  It didn't cost as much as the topiary that's doing better so at least there's that.

before I left the house to run

errands, I got a call from the church asking if I could come help out.  I got ready and ran errands when I finished there.  By the time I got home it was already close to 1:00 and I was starving.  Thank goodness for rice and gravy.  I didn't even dish it out.  I heated up in the storage dish and ate it straight out of there. 

I hope nobody else wanted any.

After that I started on my cookies.  I found the recipe HERE.  The dough was a little crumbly but the cookies are good.  I didn't feel like it but I got busy unwrapping Kisses.  I was standing at the counter and one slipped out of my hand.  I leaned forward to try to catch it but didn't see it.  Then I stepped back and saw it.

That would never have caught and landed there if I needed it to.

Anyway, about 30 minutes later I had all the cookies cooling.

Now unlike yesterday, this morning I plan to make breakfast before I start snacking.  I'd better hurry because those cookies are looking better each time I glance at that picture.

In patio news, I found a cleaner yesterday at Lowe's.  It wasn't the specific Simple Green formula I was looking for but it's a different brand that seems safer than the jug of Clorox.  I'm still having my doubts.  I think I might save it for the driveway and order the Simple Green online.  I don't know.  I think I have already talked myself out of cleaning the patio today anyway.  I'm tired.  I also need to figure out where the fence wire isn't making a connection because Maggie has finally figured out that she can chill at the gate with Archer.

That's not good.  Oh, this picture was taken from my car as I was backing out to leave.  Once I saw Maggie's face, I decided to lock them up while I was out.  The last thing I needed was to come home and hunt down the dogs.  And to be honest about that fence wire, I probably won't end up doing that until I have some help.

Now I'd better hurry and fix some breakfast because If I don't cave and start snacking on cookies, I'll start on the leftovers and that'll just make it harder on me for dinner options.

i have a lot I need to get done

or at least a lot I'd like to get done.  The back patio really needs cleaning.  I'm talking about a good scrub down.  It smells like stinky dog right now.  I don't really know if it's a good time to clean the patio because it's been raining lately.  That means the soapy water will sit around in puddles and since my dogs prefer muddy puddle water over a bowl of fresh water, I'm a little stumped on what to do.  Last I checked the things I clean the patio with aren't ideal products for drinking.  Unless, does anybody know if they've changed the ingredients in Mr Clean?  If I do clean the patio, it means the dogs will need to be locked up for most of the day or until the soapy water dries up or evaporates.  Maybe I should wait until it gets a little hotter.  Or, I could probably start by bathing the dogs and getting rid of the stinky dog smell.  Although, I prefer the smell of a dog stinking because they've been outside over the smell of a wet dog.  You know, I do really like the smell of dog shampoo so maybe I could just get a bottle of dog shampoo instead of Dawn dish liquid.  That would require going to the store, which is another thing I really NEED to do.  If I start getting dirty outside I won't go to the store because I do my errands early... especially now that school's out and kids are everywhere.  I think I just solved my problem.  Looks like grocery shopping is today and patio scrubbing is tomorrow.

In the meantime, I didn't eat a decent breakfast and I'm paying for it.  I had some bacon around 5:30 this morning and I just had a tortilla with cheese on it.  I'm ready for lunch, or even those peanut butter cookies I'm planning on baking today.  I'm going to make a few with Kisses and a few without.

Speaking of food and how hungry I am, a couple of days ago I made spaghetti for dinner with a side of skillet focaccia.  There's still a few pieces of the focaccia left so maybe I can have leftovers for an early lunch.

I also have leftovers from last night's chicken fried steak.  I made gravy for rice and opened a can of peas.  I could probably just have rice and gravy for lunch.  Sometimes all I really need is the rice and gravy.  This is one of those times.

This post is ruining me.  Now that I've decided the patio will wait and I will definitely go to the store today, I need to go to the store before I have rice and gravy as a late breakfast and then spaghetti for an early lunch.  I'll do the patio tomorrow after a good breakfast... not that there's anything wrong with spaghetti or chicken fried steak for breakfast, I've done both.  But, I did find a pet friendly patio cleaner on a search I just did so I think I'll go hunt some down.

i know it's been about a

week since my last post but today's post will make up for the days I missed.  I have pictures to share like you wouldn't believe.  I have pictures to share like you probably don't care to see.

A while back I saw something on "pour painting" or "fluid painting".  Pour, fluid, flow, whatever they want to call it, I heard about it.  I've been researching it.  Someone shared a video and that pushed me a little more in the "try it" direction.  Over the weekend I mentioned it to someone and she had all the supplies for me to try it right there.  That wasn't a push in the "try it" direction, that was a shove in that direction.  Or maybe a shove in that direction and slam the door behind me?  I'm sure it's much like getting somebody hooked on crack (or Blue Bell Bride's Cake ice cream).  "Here, let me give you a sample.  What?  Now you're hooked?"

So I've been reading up and watching videos on different formulas and techniques.  I finally gave in and did it.

My first try.  I like how the top right kind of looks like a planet and that's about it.  I scraped it all off and set that canvas aside.

My next canvas looked more like a countertop.

While it had little interesting areas like this one

or what might have eventually happened here

I wasn't happy and decided to take more paint and splatter it.  I'll call this the Pollock Pour, unless it already has a name... which I'm sure it does.

Then I decided to do one in the colors of Lauren's dishes.  First of all, it's a pretty color combo.  Second, if it turned out nice, she could hang it in her new house.  I was liking it.

Then the paint wouldn't flow much more and had issues covering the canvas.

It did make a pretty mess on my hand though.

The overflow in the pan wasn't bad either.

I grabbed another canvas that had a previous experiment on it and poured this.

I was kind of digging it so I left it.  I really like the little unexpected spots like this one.

I figured at that point I had a few practices out of the way so I'd go for something bigger.  I pulled a canvas off the wall and changed things up a bit.  Instead of using the one cup to pour, I prepped three.  I covered the area I wanted protected with masking tape and stared at the whole situation for a few minutes.  I decided it was time to go big or go home.  I went big.  16x20, I believe.

I was happy with the pour.  (Ignore the masking tape)

These little areas make me happy.

 In all the years I spent studying art, I think this was the first time I'd worn an apron for it.  It is messy but messy art is a good thing.  And in case someone doesn't understand why I tore the carpet out of that room and refuse to put something else down...

All this talk has made me want to try some more.  Maybe a new experiment?  Maybe keep working to get the other right?  Maybe this time write down what was used where?  Maybe buy some bigger canvases?  I'll fold some clothes and think about it.