and may I add, with snakes and humongous spiders. :eek: ;)

on the plus side, land is cheap, labour is cheap, and my birds eat most of the unwanted guests.

:cool::):cool:

you are on a roll Kay and of course i missed ya, this roll you are on, its on a PC not a mac, whoa i say thats a double roll you are on.

Kay do you get rain storms like the other night often, you know last week we had some serious rain for thirty hours I did not noticed till after it had stopped how dang noisy the rain had been, and that was what i thought of when I read what you had written. I do know if I had a metal roof I would be rubber room material in a day lol

hope your weekend yeah its the weekend, is a good one:hug:

Frank,

How much sleep do you get a night? :):)

lol as much as i get lol i guess i got sleep issues, figure i can sleep all I want down the road way down the road

howdy Becky how are you feeling?

Kay I just read about how you are living off the land now officially, my best wishes on success in this endeavor, I admire you so much, for taking the step I didnt take, you know how I feel about what you are doing, you have a solid foundation for this undertaking, I have a lot of faith you two will do well.

Frank,

I was worn out after today. I took a nap and woke up about 7:30 this evening. My sleeping pattern is ridiculous but I never seem to get enough sleep.

I feel kinda like a slug. LOL

lol, Frank, I was soooooooooo tired after today, that I took a four hour nap.

and now, natch, I can't *&^$ sleep !!

oh, and we call it "freight-train rain"

it hammers, and pounds... but on this block house, we got SMART, and did the ceiling in sheetrock, and put in a cupola to vent the hot air.

so, there's somewhat of a buffer.

in the guesthouse, where we lived for 2 yrs, while this was being built, it was just... trusses, and ZINC...

we had to holler to hear each other, and turn off the movie, because you just CAN'T play it loud enough to hear when the rain does that, or you'll blow an eardrum!

well, whaddaya expect, this IS the rainforest, right?

:rolleyes: :p :rolleyes:

straight-jacket city, lol...

they're coming to take me away, ha ha, hee hee...

:p :D :p

sorry to hear that Becky, the last couple nights my sleep was non existent, having that small baby here I was paranoid its been a while having a baby in house, not even 3 months old yet. b4 i side track too much once my pattern gets messed up like this week it will be a while b4 its somewhat normal, surprise lightening doesnt hit me when I use the word normal when talking about myself:grin:

I have been reading so many others whats up thingys, did i see you had a sinus infection? could that be a factor in the slug feeling?

i think if I had that chance Kay i would deal with it, so how are all the critters doing, we need to get you a scuba divers camera i miss the pic post so much deb loves your post too

muchas gracias, Frank !!

:hug:

....de nada....

Ok, what did I miss? Why is everyone speaking Spanish? LOL

Frank,

We have got to get you on some sleeping pills. You are going to flop over if you don't start getting some decent sleep.

I can't imagine having the baby over and worrying about all the things going on with you.

Don't let the stress get to you. Be careful.

Hugs,
Becky:hug:

i try to get sleep no pills for me they drag me out the next day. the Spanish lingo is for the belize person, makes her feel more at home, she misses California... we need a ba da bing smilie really bad

er, that's FABULOUS Belizean person to you, sir!

:D

and yes, I miss California... and Chicago too.

I miss sushi, sunsets over the ocean, instead of sunrises, and I miss *rivers* that flow *west* instead of east.

sometimes makes me feel disoriented.

also, the constellations in the sky are different.

I miss good wine, Italian restaurants, fancy delis, concerts, plays, movies, and most of all, good bookstores.

:grouphug:

Ummmm, Kay.....*whispering* where might I find a few of these birds? :o

Wow, and I thought I was the early bird this morning. LOL, Guess not. Hope all the night owls got some rest last night. :hug:

Kay, I love your descriptions of the farm. Too cool. Best of luck with being self sufficent.

BTW, I think we're only a couple of pages away of needing to start a new thread. If I remember correctly, 100 pages was the limit to keep the server ok. LOL, insights rock!:cool:

mornin all! I don't get on much during the week because by the time I get home, and feed the kids and spend time with them or do homework, I don't have the time or the energy!!! Hope everyone is doing well!

Hey everyone, my goodness! You have been busy little bees on this thread! My living room and kitchen are close to normal again. We're going to tailgate with a bunch of college kids today so wish us luck. Frank, Deb, Wiz and DM, you should get your clothes on and come up and help us! lol

I plan to mow the grass in the morning and put up my new ceiling fan in the kitchen. Then next week I'll start on the basement painting. I know I said I had to Christmas to finish all this but I am one of those people that hates having chores hanging over my head!

Speaking of, I had a stress moment yesterday trying to figure out how to stay on budget and buy xmas gifts. I already bought my baskets and trinkets for giving but then I remembered the grab bag and the kids and the food and the drinks and the...!!!! :yikes: I could run but that would cost money too. lol

Have a great weekend everyone and for those sick and fatigued please take care of yourselves. :hug:

well, I'm *kinda* cheating, dearie...

mi esposo installed LINUX, so this Toshiba Satellite laptop ACTS sorta like a Mac, which is helpful, really, really helpful.

*I just LOVE having a geeky husband, lol!*

now, if the power supply capacitors would arrive in the mail, we MIGHT be able to get the eMac going again.. wish me luck!

:grouphug:

LOL. totally understand that. The only time I worry is when I hear a gleeful cackle from my hubby's office :D

What the HEY happened here last night?!?!?!?!

Or should I say in the wee hours of the morning. lol

Becky, Kay, and Frank - I sure hope you all got some sleep.

Renee - Thanks for checking in. We missed you.

Kay - Geeks rule!!! LOL I tell DDs that all the time. Geeks make far better boyfriends than jocks.

Fin - How was the pizza last night? I hope you feel more "energized" today.

Sandy - Glad things are coming together for you in the kitchen. Patiently waiting for pictures. *insert smilie with tapping foot* lol

Good morning everyone else. Hope you all have a great day/weekend.

Good morning everyone ... i know ... it's been awhile since i last was on but frank has been keeping me abreast on everything that has been going on here ... to say the least ... it's been one hectic month here ... not sure what all frank has told you about our "life" here the last month ... between the new job ... which i love and am doing really good at too ... and my son deciding to move in with his girlfriend .. that he met online but had never met in person and lives close to 4-5 hours from us... needless to say ... i haven't had too good of a time handling this ... doing better now though and he seems to be happy so ... we will just wait and see and hope that it does work out for him... anyway ... good morning and ... i'm back!!!!

Top O the morn to ya,:Tip-Hat:

lol Kelly that was my first thought hmmm bill collectors, big, really big birds, whole new concept to sesame streets big bird

Hey mrs Fix it, relax today have fun, who are the huskies playing, I will watch it if its on, and root for them, maybe get to spot yall on tv. Howdy Jim

Kay enjoyed our talk muy mucho, curious though, I didnt get the SHARPLY (lol frank) part of that message, what did I did, sorry i made you talk about things you miss I was trying to be sardonic about the new english language up this ways, as always:hug: peace

speaking of peace hiya Trish, how are YOU doing today? hope this finds you doing well, enjoy the company

Morning early birds, Yes I miss Renee and her rapier of wit:hug: but knowing you are doing well is good. I am so glad for you, how are you doing, well I hope.

Sandy dont be talking about this guy :santa: yet, please, we are up a creek too debs is gonna try to sock some away, our xmas contribution is slowly going up in smoke via petrol

everyone i missed, i am sorry its just pure selective memory, my brain selects what it will allow me to recall some days its not much yesterday was a good day in that dept. today well, so so, so far so long



peace

Frank - Just an idea . . .

Ever since we were really little we picked names about a month before Christmas. The rule was you had to make the gift. As time went on, we got married, had kids, jobs, etc. some got away from it. This past Christmas, more of us made the gifts than not.

One of my brothers spent days in the kitchen cooking a months worth of meals from my brother and his daughter. He packaged them up and frozen them so all my brother had to do was pull it out of the freezer and microwave it and dinner was done. (Trust me, I was over there when he was cooking and he made some dang good food!!!)

One of my sisters made fleece blankets for another sister, her husband, and her 3 sons.

Another brother made a poster size "picture" of himself as one of my sisters was complaining she had no recent pictures of him. He took a picture of a some good looking hunk, put his own face on it, brought it somewhere and had made in to a life size poster. lol He did something else for her, I just can't remember.

I painted a painting for my brother.

My older brother made me the most awesome domino set out of wood. He cut them all sanded them, drilled the little dots on them, stained and sanded, stained and sanded until they were perfectly smooth. Absolutely beautiful.

One year one of my sisters tie dyed and/or dyed pajamas for the girls and I. They were great and we loved them.

The girls and I have made clay (salt dough and/or Fimo) finger puppets and "paper dolls" for their little cousins.
These handmade gifts mean so much more to me than anything else. I actually still have one that my little brother made me 20 something years ago.

Your photography is so awesome you could certainly make some fantastic gifts with those.

thank you Trish, I love what your bro did, thats really coo,l I bet he has wished for those tv dinners a million times since, I know I would of, heck I probably would of cried when i pulled the last one out lol

Here's what we're doing this Christmas. It takes the pressure off everyone from having to decide what to get someone who really doesn't "need" anything.

We're sponsoring an elderly couple and buying them gifts instead of ourselves. There is an organization that's been in this county for years and years and I got the names from them. We get a profile of the couple (no names), a "needs and wants" list and what, if anything, they might be allergic to. We buy, wrap and deliver the gifts to this organization (The Quinn House / Signs & Wonders) and they are either picked up or delivered to the family.

We have a couple who is 74(DW) & 79(DH) years old. The things that they've asked for are slippers, warm pajamas, toiletries (like toothbrushes, comb, brush, hand lotion, etc.). These are basic necessities...yet they are requesting them for Christmas.

Nobody in my family is in need of anything. Both boys agree that we will just buy for these folks and not each other. No surprises....or the guilty party will be wet-noodle whipped!

I can't wait to start wrapping and getting everything ready. We'll still have our family Christmas dinner. I'm hoping this will start a new tradition for us. :)

Kelly - What a great idea!!!! Oh, and don't forget t.p., paper towels, napkins, etc. as these are not covered with food stamps and/or most assistance. People tend to forget about that and being the recipient of such food "baskets" and toiletries, the toiletries were such a luxury and money saver for us. (We had the food stamps).

I hadn't thought of that, Tricia. Thanks!! :)

Great ideas guys. LOL, I usually don't start thinking about this Christmas :santa:stuff until a little closer to halloween.

Before I forget, won't be online tomorrow. My hubby and I have an all day gig going on tomorrow. So don't worry if I'm not lurking about. :lookaround:

lol, Kell... to get rid of unwanted guests of the human persuasion, you'd need a pig, I hear they can be trained...

:eek::D:eek:

as far as OTHER unwanted intruders, my Muscovy ducks eat their weight in bugs, and do a great job, they like termites, spiders, tarantulas, and small snakes...

they STAND in a circle at the bases of the mango trees in the orchard after the rains, when the termite nests hatch...

picture it: a ring of ducks, nibbling at what seems to be thin air, and before the termites' wings can dry, gobble gobble gobble! they snap 'em up like kids with a bag of potato chips.

the turkeys, well, they don't do much that I've seen, so far... I will know more in a couple of weeks after Hadassah hatches her clutch.

the chickens, oh yeah, they munch on maggots, turn the compost piles, and scratch everything clean of bugs, it's wonderful!

now the geese, they're mostly vegetarian, so they mow the lawn, and keep everything tidy... I've read that they'll even weed a garden for ya.

they make excellent guard dogs, and alert us whenever anyone enters our property, 24 hours a day they're on duty... and they're LOUD about it!

:D:p:D

guinea fowl and peacocks also make great guards, but we're still learning to properly care for what we already have... maybe next year!

:grouphug:

oh, that was for you, just a silly joke on being/looking sharp, when handling knives, since you're always making puns and allusions... the lol was for YOU.

frankly speaking, since I was acting Frankishly.

:p :D :p

oh, it was a sweetly-savouring moment, not too regretful, happy with my choices, honest... but hey, I'd LOVE to see a ballet, or a concert... just a niggling leetle background ache...

:winky:;):winky:

oh no!

just like little kids, it's when they're QUIET that ya gotta really *worry*

:p

kay ... frank and i are talking about taking up a collection to get you a waterproof camera ... we want PICTURES
:D :hug:

Good Morning/ Afternoon to everyone!

Kelly, That is a great idea (XMAS). So many times people think about kids that are in need, but forget the elderly.

Trisha, The idea of frozen dinners is also a great one. When I was really sick during my first flare, my mom came to stay with me for several weeks and did all the cooking. She left several of those meals for me in the freezer. I think I did cry when the last one was gone.:D

Sandy, Have fun at the game today; Jenn, have fun tomorrow.

Frank forgot me.:mad: Just kidding; Hope you are having a good weekend

Speaking of Christmas, are we going to do a Christmas exchange on here? If so I would love to participate. I was too shy/new to do so last year.

I would also like addresses so I can send cards. I Know I have a few (Kay, Vonn, Kelly, Rachelle), but if you want to share yours that would be great.

There is so much wisdom in this statement. SO very true!!!!:D

Oh my goodness, we are almost done with this thread! Who's going to start the new one?

Barb - My Phx brother loved being the recipient of that gift. Heck, so would have I. Of course being a single daddy, working crazy hours, and such this was a wonderful and very thoughtful of my other brother. My brother that made the meals is an awesome cook. He does all this gourmet type cooking. I want my Tucson brother to get my name this year. LOL

i would love to participate in an exchange gift idea ... maybe we could make a thread and each person sign in on the thread that want to participate ... frank says yall have done it before ... i will keep watching to see if we are doing this ...