Introducing ...

   our newest family member -
   
   Her name is Daisy.
   She is a three month old Chihuahua / Beagle / Lab mix.
   Kayla deemed her birthday to be January 1st.
   They got her through "Puppy Breath Rescue". Here is what their site said about her -
   "She has had 1st and 2 nd vaccintaions, Has been dewormed 3 times, Treated for Tape worms and has been vet checked! Her adoption fee is 50.00 with a spay agreement."
[They can hook you up with a place that 'fixes' dogs for $40.]

   Here is Brent's Boo, ever so eager to meet his new sister.

   [PLEASE ignore the adornments currently all over our yard. Thanks!]

                          They got along really well!!!

                                A picture of the 'family-to-be'. :-)

   If you too are interested in adopting a puppy, and aren't interested in the $120 price tag at the pound, then check out "Puppy Breath Rescue".
   HERE is their Face-book page.
   And  HERE is their regular official web site.
   They are located out between Allendale and Grand Haven, Michigan.

Friendly Reminder -

   For all of us who live in states that participate in "Daylight Savings Time", TONIGHT is the night where we "loose an hour".
   Therefore, according to, and because of - before going to bed tonight, make sure you turn all of your clocks FORWARD an hour.
   Will anything happen if you don't?
   YES!
   You'll be really early for church in the morning. And work on Monday. Etc.. For some of you, this might actually be a good thing. ;-p
   But that would also mean that your favorite TV shows will not be on when you think they are. And when you go to the restaurant thinkin your still in time for their breakfast menu, you won't be. Etc.
   So whether you change your clock or not, is at your own discretion. I'm just tryin to be a thoughtful friend and make sure your even aware of all of it. o:->


    Remember the old saying -
   "Spring Forward - Fall Back"
    In other words,
    in the season called 'Spring', you act like your bouncing on a spring and go forward one hour
    in the season called "Fall", you literally fall backwards one hour.

'Show N' Tell' :-)

    While Brian and I were out on our date last Saturday evening (which I promise I am going to tell you all about soon.  Well, at least the parts from the time we left our house till we got home again o:-p!), he bought something for me.
     No, I did NOT make him do it!
     Yes, it is something I have wanted. From the very moment that I learned it was being created.
     But I did not ask to buy it that night. We were in a book store, so I was hoping they carried it, because I REALLY wanted to have a look at it. But that is ALL I was planning on doing. HONEST!!!
     They did. (Carry it). And I did. (look at it). Grinning quite broadly the whole time!
     While I was doing that, Brian was off looking at Bible Study and Civil War themed books.
     But then he came and got me. And asked if they had had the different ones I was looking for. They had!
     "Which one do you want to get?"
    "None. Not right now at least. We'll just get the book that you came to get. That's fine."
    "WHICH book do you want?!?"
    "I absolutely love "PW's", but ...."

     He bought me "PW's" rather newly released cookbook!!!!! :-> !!! :-D !!!

                                    [click on the picture to see it better]

    "P.W." also stands for "Pioneer Women". On her blog, she posts about aspects and tales of their life. And she shows pictures she has taken. And she shares recipes. And the thing I like about her, is the fact that all of the while of doing all of this, she never puts on airs. She is extremely real. And funny! 
    [A-n-d, un-like another really popular author, cook, decorater, TV show personality out there, the majority of the time Ree (her real name) doesn't expect you to go out and buy expensive ingredients that your not even sure you've even heard of before.]
    I am ever so happy to tell you that her book is the exact same way!!! She took all but two of the pictures in it herself. And there are a lot of pictures! Some oh so simple and yet ever so beautiful pictures of their life. And her family. And her cooking. And their ranch.
   Speaking of ranch (chuckle, chuckle), there is a bit on page 11 that I just MUST share with you (you'll get the "why" ;-p).
    "As members of a working family ranch, we live and work on the land ourselves. We aren't "weekend ranchers" who moonlight as attorneys or doctors or accountants or Hollywood actors (no offense to Tom Selleck. I think that he might actually be a real rancher, too. Hi Tom! Love your 'stache.)"
    Told ya you'd "get" it. o:-p
    She tells quite a bit about their life working their ranch. She tells about how her and "Marlboro Man" met. And about what kinds of foods she use to eat, compared to what she now eats and feeds to ranch hands.
    And does she ever share some good looking recipes! I'll be honest, there are some that neither Brian nor I are interested in, due to their spicy ingredients. We'll let Kayla with her Mexican heritage try those. Or Benson, seeings how there is no way he any longer has heat sensors left on his tongue. But there are others we are looking forward to trying. And then there are a couple .... for products that I have tried and tried to master, but as of yet, for reasoning's unbeknownst to me, I've not been able to, which I am hoping ever so hard that I will be able to, by following her step by step instructions.

     Well, I've shared all of that with you and yet I've only actually read about one third of her book. But hey, 'Ms.Vertigo Girl' here has improved enough to be able to do that much! :-)

      Brian, THANK - YOU for the book!!!!!!!!!!! ;-) !!!!!!!!

      Ree, THANK -YOU for being so real. And for all of the efforts you (and the help of your family and friends) put into producing this book!!!

      The rest of you, ya really ought to get a copy of the book for yourselves!  
(We bought ours at a Barnes N' Nobles bookstore [for a lot less than I was fearing it was going to be] )

Jim-Brent? ;-p

     Another older TV show that I recently came across and set our DVR to start recording, is 'The Waltons'. The show is currently being shown on the INSP (which stands for Inspirational) channel. I found it one day while scrolling down using the 'Guide' button on our remote. I am quite sure that those of you who know me, are not at all surprised to read that I like that show.
    The other day I watched the episode where Jim-Bob got to drive Ike's motorcycle. It had all started innocently enough (as most things do with boys like Jim-Bob). Ike came off the road towards the Waltons house walking his motorcycle. "The darn thing wouldn't run anymore". He'd hoped John Sr. would be able to help him, but he wasn't ta home right then. Grandpa, Jason and Ben were positive that Ike needed Jim-Bob's help, not John Sr.'s, so they called for Jim-Bob. He came out from behind a car which he has been working on building - completely out of scrap parts he finds in his wanderings.
    Sure enough, Jim-Bob asked a couple of questions, looked the motorcycle over for less than three minutes and found the problem. The ignition wire had somehow become disconnected. Ike was so thrilled with him, that he asked Jim-Bob if he'd like to take it for a ride. You should have seen the shocked, thrilled to pieces expression that came over Jim-Bob's face!!
    Suddenly Grandpa says that he best be getting inside. "Don't ya want to see me ride it, grandpa?" "I'd like nothing more Jim-Bob, but I think it'd be best if I go inside and keep your grandma distracted so that you can enjoy your ride." To a one, they all nodded and smirked. And 'enjoy his ride' is exactly what Jim-Bob did!!! :-D
    A bit later on in the episode, while Jim-Bob and Elizabeth were in Ike's store, Ike told Jim-Bob that he was welcome to ride the motorcycle any time he wanted. "ANY time?!?" Yup, he had heard right. As you would imagine, right then and there was a good time! :-p
    Later, the family was moving the table and benches out to the front yard, to eat their dinner picnic style in the breezes. Mom started questioning where Jim-Bob was and if anybody had seen him. Ever so matter-of-factly, Elizabeth spills the news. News that neither mom nor grandma found approval with!  Mom starts reminiscing about how John-Boy had had that accident, which had broken his leg while riding a motorcycle, etc..
The males in the family are trying to stick up for Jim-Bob. They point out such things as how John-Boy is better at having his nose stuck in a book or a writing pad, where as Jim-Bob is always tinkering with some type of a mechanical thing. And reminding 'mom' how she use to complain about all of the times she had almost dropped Jim-Bob as a small boy, due to an airplane suddenly flying over and Jim-Bob craning so to see it. John-Boy had also pointed out, that the motorcycle Jim-Bob is driving is much safer than the one he was injured on, due to the fact that Ike's motorcycle had a side car attached to it.
    Soon they hear the sound of the approaching motorcycle, and then it comes around the bend and into view ... with Jim-Bob grinning ear to ear, while driving a tilted motorcycle, with the side car completely up in the air. He was ever so thrilled with his accomplishment. Mom and grandma were mortified!!!
    Later on in the episode, Jim-Bob drives the motorcycle minus it's side car, in a nearby town's motorcycle race. Before and during the race, you see all of the other family members (minus dad, who's out of town working) except 'mom'. After the family finishes congratulating Jim-Bob on being the third place winner, and Jim-Bob (who by the way, has recently been requesting to now be called 'James Robert', due to how much like a little boy 'Jim-Bob' sounds) is kissing his girlfriend, when suddenly he is being tapped on the shoulder. It's his mama. He looks quite embarrassed. She just gives him a big warm smile and congratulates 'James Robert' on his win, and yes, she had watched the whole thing. 'James Robert' beams and replies, " 'Jim' is okay mama". ;->

    I was telling Brian all about this the other night over our dinner out (more on that in an up-coming posting ;->). As I finished the tale, he smirked broadly at me and asked, "Jim-Brent?!?!?!!"
    I laughed, right out loud. "That's exactly what I thought too!"
    That then led to more conversation about Brent, and now Analyse,  and ... But that too will be a different posting. ;-)

whit and WISDOM ('s) from Brian

yet again copied to here from his Face-book page -

Things I've learned...
that it's taking me a long time to become the person I want to be.
that you can do something in an instant that will give you heartache for the rest of your life.
that we are responsible for what we do, no matter how we feel
that either you control your attitude or it controls you
that I can be bitter or better.

Hot Dog Bar -

    Lately, the 'All American Hot Dog' seems to be making quite a come back. But not necessarily in what some think of as being the A-Typical way to eat them; in a bun with ketchup, mustard, and perhaps some relish on top. Those are now considered oh so boring, and rightfully so.
     A different long liked way of eating them, is via the Chili Dog style. A bun enclosed hot dog, topped with a thick chili sauce, sometimes some ketchup, and chopped onions. But lately, even this variety has been getting dressed up a bit.
    Several times recently, I have seen a TV promotion ad by Sonic's (R) for their four different styles of specialty hot dogs.
    There is a Sonic's near us. There is also Yesterdog (R), which Brian and his dorm friends were frequent visitors too, late on weekend nights. Many around here claim, 'you havn't lived till you've had a 'Yesterdog(R)' '.
    Another well known local spot for (especially chili) dogs, is 'The Corner Bar' in Rockford, MI. They even have a carry out window so that anybody whom 'wouldn't be caught dead entering a bar', can still be patrons of their dogs.
   
    Like I mentioned, I'd recently been seeing the newest commercials that Sonic's is running.Then I got my blogging friend Michelle's (from Big Black Dog (TM) ) posting titled, 'Chili Dogs with Home made Potato Chips - Diner Style!'. And I had also gotten an invitation to a high schoolers Sr. open house. All of those things combined to get me thinking about the 'Hot Dog Bar' we had done for our son Benson's open house.
    Benson graduated back in 2003, and yet  to this day, we still get compliments on that hot dog bar. Therefore, between all of the above mentioned things and that fact, I thought I should share the details of "The Hot Dog Bar" with all of you.
    The inspiration for the bar, had come out of a several page featured article, in the Better Homes And Gardens(TM) magazine, May 1992 edition. I still have one page of it. The top corner reads, "FOOD by Lisa Holderness". The Article was titled "America's Top Dog's - Six regional favorites".
    We took that article, and added one more dog to it - "The Ao-Wa-Kiyan'. Camp Ao-Wa-Kiya is a youth camp that we were a part of for m-a-n-y years, and it has it's own version of a specialty dog. (;-p)
         
    We had typed the following out on our computer and then run off copies of it. Those we then inserted into page protectors, which we hung numerous copies of from twine over the buffet. We had also laid a protected page of it on each of the eating tables.
    You are more than welcome to do the same. For graduation open houses. Or summer parties. Or any other reason/occasion you come up with.

     First, I am going to give you a listing of what the page looked like. Then I will list out all of the various ingredients needed. Yup, the list is a rather long one. But when totaled up, it's not all that expensive after all. I will also list what else we offered to eat.

                    America's Top Dogs
                     Seven regional favorites

Make your own favorite style specialty hot dog:

NEW YORK - The Coney Island red-hot is New York City's traditional hot dog. Nathan's Famous of New York, the nation's first hot dog chain, started selling red hots in 1916 on Coney Island. Now New York has approximately 3000 licensed hot dog vendors.
   For this unpretentious frank, top a grilled all beef hot dog with sauerkraut and mustard and serve in a plain bun.

CHICAGO - The Chicago-style dog was a product of the Depression. For a mere 5 cents, street vendors sold all-beef hot dogs nestled in a steamed poppy seed bun.
    But it was the amount of savory toppings that made this dog famous -- yellow mustard, pickle relish, chopped onions, tomato wedges, dill pickles (a spear or sliced), zesty sport peppers (small hot green peppers), and a shake of celery salt.
    To order one of these delightful dogs as Chicago folks do, specify "make me one with everything", "drag it through the garden", or "I'll take one with a salad on the bun". (But at this open house, you'll have to make it for yourself.  ;-p)

NEW ENGLAND - Bostonians, known for their baked beans, even spoon (baked) beans on top of their hot dogs. These New-Englad style dogs make great picnic food.

MIDWESTERN - The Midwest takes credit for the franchisee, a boiled hot dog stuffed with cheese and wrapped with bacon. To make our own franchisee dog, cook a strip of bacon till just cooked through but not crisp. Cut a long slit in the hot dog and stuff it with cheddar or American cheese. Wrap bacon around the hot dog and attach with a wooden toothpick. Broil till cheese melts and bacon is slightly crisp.

KANSAS CITY - Kansas City hot dog lovers claim the Reuben dog as their creation. Modeled after the Reuben sandwich, their dog is topped with sauerkraut and melted Swiss Cheese, all on a - same seed bun. If desired, spread a little Thousand Island dressing on the bun too.

SOUTHWESTERN - South westerns, partial to zesty flavors, ladle chili (with or without beans) a top their hot dogs and finish them off with a sprinkle of onions. Also known as Chili Dogs or Coney Dogs.

Ao-Wa-Kiyan - Every Wed. campers and staff canoe over to the big lake, where dinner is then served on the beach. To make the ever so infamous "Ao-Wa-Kiyan dog", spoon some of the available baked beans on to your hot dog. Add ketchup, mustard and relish. Take some of the available potato chips, squish them in one hand, and then add them on top of the other hot dog toppings. The key ingredient - sand, will be blown in by the wind. (although here, you will have to add it yourself from our available bowl full. ;-p) 


   Now for the list of all of the various ingredients needed:

- Hot Dog Buns  -while different styled dogs called for different types of buns, we only bought and thus offered the basic type.
- Hot Dogs  (we like to use the 1/4 pound style, which we buy in big packages at GFS.) We had had Brent cooking them on our grill right outside the door by the beginning of the buffet. Thanks yet again Brent ;-) (we recommend planning 1 1/2 hot dogs per expected person in attendance.)

   (I couldn't quickly find a picture of our buffet, so I just took a picture of what dogs we currently have in the freezer. Had to have a picture for link-ups ;-p)
- Sauerkraut  (the 5 gallon jug of it in GFS's cooler gets us the best raves.) We sprinkled it with a little brown sugar and had it cooking in a (sprayed!) large crock-pot.
- Chopped Onions  - rather finely chopped - not chucked! (If your not a fan of chopping a lot of onions, GFS offers them already chopped, by the bag full)
- Tomatoes - wedged. (slice in half, slice those halves in half, slice those halves of a half in half...)
- Dill Pickles - either wedged or sliced (we went with the wedged, because lots of people like them on the side whether or not they actually put them on their dog. (These are a much better bargain bought in the huge jars at GFS, Sam's Club, or some such place!)
- "Zesty Sport Peppers" is what the above list calls for, but we offered Banana Peppers and Jalapenos. And both were hits! (These are also easier on the budget when bought in the larger size jars!)
- Celery Salt - I just took my bottle of it from home.
- Baked Beans - Make them up the way you prefer them and make plenty, because lots of people will eat them along with their hot dogs rather than on their hot dogs. (Use a sprayed crock-pot for these.)
- Cheddar Cheese - We had a big bowl of shredded cheddar available. And no, we did not offer the use of the broiler like the 'Midwestern' calls for. People survived ;-p.
- Bacon - We offered a bowl of 'Real Bacon Pieces' (TM) (they come in a bag) instead of actual bacon strips. (Much more budget friendly that way!)
- Shredded Swiss Cheese - We had a small bowl of it available. (The Kansas City style says to melt it on. Again, the people survived with out that option being available to them. ;-p)
- Thousand Island Dressing - A regular sized bottle of the dressing is sufficient.
- Chili - We like to use the Chef Mate (TM) brand available in the big cans at GFS. (Heat in a SPRAYED crock-pot).
- Potato Chips - Have lots of these (also a better bargain bought in bulk sized packages!) because far more will be eaten off of the dogs than on them!
- Sand - a small bowl of it will suffice o;-p. It's mainly for the chuckle effect.
- Ketchup, Mustard and Sweet Pickle Relish. Have more than one of each available!

    And now for the list of what else we offered to eat:
- Sweet Pickles - some people like dill pickles, some like sweet. (Also best bargain is via the BIG jars of them)
- Potato Salad
- Deviled Eggs (a couple of friends and I had lots of laughs while making up several Tupperware (R) Pie Takers (R) full [put a paper towel in the bottom of the container first!] )
- Tang, Ice Tea and Water to drink ( in the large orange colored Igloo(R) coolers)
- Benson's favorite kind of cake.

A  Couple of Bonus Tips Here -
- Use a power strip for all of the crock pots, and then put duct tape over the extension cord running to the out let.
- If your buffet is going to be open longer than an hour in length, place your bowls of cheeses, chopped onions, pickles, potato salad and deviled eggs, inside larger bowls containing ice. (Borrow every body you knows large metal bowls for this.)
- Ice lasts much longer if you include some large ice chunks you made (like out of Tupperware's(R) hamburger press).  In the coolers of beverages, we use 1/2 gallon plastic milk jugs, which we have run through the dish washer and allowed to completely dry before filling 3/4ths of the way full with water and allowing several days to freeze solid. Make sure the jugs have a lid on them of they will dilute your drinks - and nobody likes diluted water. o;-p)

    Like I said, "You are more than welcome to do the same. For graduation open houses. Or summer parties. Or any other reason/occasion you come up with."  However, if you do, we'd really like to hear what you and others thought about yours!!!
   And for the record, we found that the pages listing the different types of regional hot dogs, made for great conversations basis between people whom did not previously know one another, but were attending the same open house!! :-D

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ 
  I 'plan' on linking this particular posting up to:

~ "Whatever Goes Wednesday('s), hosted by Michelle, at 'Someday Crafts'
(http://somedaycrafts.blogspot.com/)
~ "Full Plate Thursday('s), hosted by Miz Helen, at 'Miz Helen's Country Cottage' (http://mizhelenscountrycottage.blogspot.com/)
~ "(Foodie Friday's)", are hosted by "Gollum" (aka: Michael), at 'Designs by Gollum' (http://designsbygollum.blogspot.com/)

and then next week, linking up to:
~ "Making Your Home Sing Monday('s)", are hosted by Nan, at 'Mom's the Word (I love to hear)' (http://momstheword--livingforhim.blogspot.com/).
~ "Homemaker Mondays ... Yours, Mine & Ours", are hosted by Jen, at '11th Heaven's Homemaking Haven' (http://rtheyallyours.blogspot.com/).
~ "Market Yourself Monday", are hosted by Sumo, at 'Sumo's Sweet Stuff' (http://sumossweetstuff.blogspot.com/)
~ "Tempt My Tummy Tuesday('s)", are hosted by Lisa, at 'Blessed with Grace' (http://blessedwithgrace.blogspot.com).
~ "Tuesdays at the Table", are hosted by Cole, at 'All The Small Stuff' (http://allthesmallstuff-cole.blogspot.com/).
~ "Kitchen Tip Tuesday('s)", are hosted by Tammy, at 'Tammy's Recipes' (http://www.tammysrecipes.com/).
~ "Tasty Tuesday('s)", are hosted by Jennifer, at "Balancing Beauty and Bedlam" (http://www.beautyandbedlam.com/)

time spent with a friend :-]

     A week ago Saturday I got to spend a few delightful hours with "my" Kate. :-]. She drove, I treated to lunch, and then we went shopping.

     We headed out to Grand Rapids Brewing Co. for lunch. If you've never gone there, you really should go!!! Yes, it is a Brewing Co.. But the 'pub' part and the restaurant part are completely separated. Yes, you can still order a brew while sitting in their dining room. But enough about all of that. I'm sure you get the general idea.
     Like I said, 'if you've never gone there, you really should go!!!' Their food is really good! They recently got a new chef who made changes to their menu. Some of the newer dishes are more along the lines of some of the now more popular veins in cuisine (things such as including goat and other 'fancy' cheeses, etc.). But they still have some of their old favorites (such as their huge wonderful hamburger). And I filled out a comment card requesting that they bring back their Pecan Honey Mustard Chicken Sandwich (a fav. of mine), their loaded waffle fries (something I probably shouldn't like, but they were just so-o-o good!) and their Lumberjack sandwich (which was one of Brian's fav.'s). ;-)
    I would hate to see this be another good place to eat in G.R. that closes.
    O-kay, so-o, enough of that free commercial. ;-)
    Our lunch time took quite awhile because we were so-o enjoying our conversations. While we do have a lot of differences, we are none the less truly 'kindred spirits'!
    And then there were the phone calls I kept getting. More drama in a family members life. But Kate totally understands that that is a big part of me. The being a part of my family members lives. And thus she even joined in on the listening and encouraging. Thanks Kate!!

   We then went shopping. As you know, that is something that I seldom do any more. Vertigo and shopping do not blend together smoothly. But we did so for two reasons.
    First, as my unofficial yet almost official 'doctor', Kate has learned well how to read my body language over the years. By looking at my eyes, the color of my skin, the way I move, she can tell whether I'm attempting to push myself further than I should. And, when of my own accord I admit that I've had enough, she never squabbles over it. Thus we went shopping to see how much I was now up to handling. People. Movements. Scanning things on racks. Etc..
    Secondly, earlier that week there had been a message on our answering machine that the local Salvation Army Stores were running big sales that Saturday. I had understood it to be 50% off all winter apparel, including winter outerwear. The announcement that came over the intercom shortly after we entered the store, stated that it was 50% off ALL clothing. Kate asked, "Children's wear?" With a huge smile I had answered "YES, please!!!"
   
   We were going to head that direction, but then a display caught my eye. In it was a pair of shoes that literally shouted "Kayla" at me!!!!!!! They were oh so bright pink, with white polka dots. They were platformed fronts with thick heels. They had little bows both on the toes and at the back of the heel. While you knew they had been worn, they didn't at all appear "worn". They were oh so super 'girlie' and shouting 'Kayla' at me. And I thought the size was right. So I called Kayla and inquired. They were!!! But I didn't tell Kayla a thing about them, just said, "ask me no questions and I'll tell you no lies" o;-p!

    (the pink and white polka dot parts are actually fabric!)

    When I showed them to her the next day, Kayla did the excited 'girlie girl' giggle. She was thrilled they fit. And then she gave me a wonderful hug. ;-]  In-fact, much later before they left, she purposely came back in the room to again thank me and give me another hug. ;-] For $4.99, I had hit the bulls eye. Thank-you Lord!  She plans to wear them for Easter.

    Kate and I then did make it to the children's clothing. What fun!!! We pulled out and showed each other ever so many adorable clothing pieces!!!  It would have been oh so easy to buy Analyse clothing through size 5T. LOTS of it! But I took a deep breath and kept to being practical. Practical, but also ever so frugal. Seeings how all clothing was 50% off, I didn't pay over $1.50 for anything for Analyse. Here are pictures of what all I was able to get for her for $19.00.

   two pairs of pajamas. Not super heavy winter style, but not thin cotton either.

Both the black pants and the full length overalls are cordory. Cute! Speaking of cute, check out those denim overall shorts. They were a 'must buy'!!!

two summer dresses. The pink and green one is seersucker like material and the other is a brushed cotton.

 The sleeved one has lace on the top of the bodice, and the skirt is sort of scooped edged which just flows when moved. It's going to be ever so cute on our always dancing Analyse!
   The sleeveless one is brushed cotton and is a mixture of a dress front with a onesie style middle. (hope ya get what I mean.)

   I got our dancer a 'tutu'. :-} [hey, I saw her stand on the very very tips of her toes to be able to reach something she was determined to get! ;-p]

   Yet again, God had provided. When we were there recently, the "kids" had just pulled out the stored away box of size 24 month / 2 T clothing, due to Analyse now being that size. There wasn't a whole lot in there. This week I will be shipping my recent purchases to them. And soon I might be brave and venture out to do some more shopping. While I do hope they are again running a good sale, I never the less hope that it's not heavily attended. Too many people, not standing still, making so-o much noise, and .... Yup, I've still got a ways to go on this road back to 'normal' (which I freely admit I have never been. o;-p) But in the mean time, I spent some delightful time with "my" Kate, got some adorable shoes for my daughter-in-love-to-be Kayla, and some great clothing for my grand daughter Analyse. It was a great afternoon!!!