I’m back!

So, my laptop died. I haven’t been able to blog! I finally got a new laptop and Bob is having me try a new blog writer program called Windows Live Writer (free download). So far, both are awesome! (Eve, this has solved my problem with inserting pictures!)

So here is my test blog! Hopefully I’ll be back to blogging my FFF and I have TONS of updates with pictures of the kids to blog about.

According to me (from my friend Raimi’s blog):

When I was a child...my dad and sister sang in a traveling gospel group called The Happy Aires. We would spend our weekends on this tour bus with a dozen other people traveling all over the tri-state area, singing at different churches. This was our only experience with “camping”.

I can't imagine my life without... my family – they are everything to me!

If I could be anywhere, I'd be... sitting on my back patio/deck, sipping a glass of wine, watching the sun set, and have my current favorite book in my hand ready to read. And, oh! Bob would be with me rubbing my feet!

My least favorite chore is... emptying the cat litter box. gross.

If I could be on any TV game or reality show, it would be... The Family Feud! I rock at that game!

If a mystery package arrived on my doorstep, I'd hope it would be... my three BFF’s in CA coming for an unexpected visit. We’d tour Seattle, scrapbook a little, maybe see a concert at the winery, and laugh all night long!

My guilty pleasure is... The Tudors on Showtime! I just love that show about King Henry VII and all his wives! And that Jonathan Rhyes Meyers is a hottie!

I thought I would never... move away from Indiana. Can you believe that? I’ve lived in Ohio, California, Utah and now Washington. I’m a long way from Indiana! And…I like it!

If a genie granted me three wishes, I’d wish for... a patio/deck in my back yard, to lose 10 pounds and no more arm fat, and for my parents to be healed from all their ailments.

Hope you enjoy these! Let me know if you play along and do your own “according to me”.

Lisa

Poor Pathetic Dog

So, I'm not a good pet mommy. I admit it. I like animals, as long as they are other people's animals.

When Sarah was 2, Bob and the boys convinced me that we needed a puppy. We lived in Utah at the time and had this great big backyard. We researched online and found a local breeder for Beagle puppies. One night while I was scrapbooking, Bob took the kids to the breeder and they all fell in love with these adorable 6 week old Beagle puppies. If you never seen a beagle puppy, they are irristible! The all came home with stories of how this one little puppy (soon to be Daisy) was chasing after Sarah and tugging on her little dress. So, of course, I (stupidly) replied "Go get me that baby puppy!" I honestly think I was wanting another baby or something.

(Random baby beagle puppy, not Daisy)

So, now I had to potty train Sarah (which was a task in and of itself) and the puppy!

Skip ahead several years, we've moved to Washington, bought a travel trailer, taken Daisy camping -- she's quite acclimated to the family now. Sophie, the killer cat, tolerates her. The kids love her. Daisy loves everyone (including everyone's food). We now have this fat (overweight), sweet as can be, beagle dog. Yes, puppies (like children) grow up.

I grew out of my puppy love for Daisy, but she and I have this "understanding". I'll be nice to you....if you don't pee on the carpet, get in the trash, and chew up my underwear. sigh....

Anyway, somehow (since I'm the mommy, I guess) I have taken on the responsibility to taking Daisy to the vet for check ups, grooming and boarding appointments. Usually I don't mind. But I draw the line at actually medicating the dog. I'm just not that good of a pet owner! I'm a bad pet mommy!

Today, of course, I had to take Daisy in for an appointment for excessive scratching. I just KNEW it would be cream and pills for the next upteen weeks. Well.....yes.....that's what happened. Not only do I have to apply this nasty yellow cream to her tummy twice a day, but I also have to give her these antibiotic capsules twice a day! And, here's the kicker, she has to wear one of Sarah's old t-shirts so that it covers the affected area so that she won't lick the ointment off! Seriously? This is extreme!

But, because I'm the mommy, I wrestled her to the ground this afternoon (47 pounds of resistance, mind you) and slathered on the cream, forced her into this ridiculous t-shirt, and fed her the medicine (I found these treat capsules at the vet that may have been a Godsend! You put the pill inside the treat and she just eats it! Miracle!)

She looked at me with those sad puppy dog beagle eyes. And I looked back and her and said "Mommy knows honey." Maybe I am a good pet mommy.


pre-t-shirt Daisy

poor pathetic Daisy now....

Book Club Reads

I love books! And I love book clubs! I was introduced to book clubs when we lived in Utah. We read some FANTASTIC books. I wish I still had the list....I'm looking for them and will post that list too!

When we moved to Washington in 2005, I started a book club with some friends and neighbors. We are now on our 3rd year! Yay! And, we have an "official" book club name: "The Breakaway Book Club". Thanks go to our creative member, Pam, for coming up with such a great title! Everyone in our book club is a mommy, and Lord knows mommy's need a "break away" from things....laundry, dirty dishes, crying babies, etc.....

Here are the books we've read and are reading since 2005 (I've * my personal favorites):

2008/2009 list

• “Bright Lights, Big Ass….”by Jen Lancaster - *
• “Annie Freeman's Fabulous Traveling Funeral” by Kris Radish *
• “The Time Traveler’s Wife”by Audrey Niffenegger *
• “The Beach House”by Jane Green
• “The Shack”by William Paul Young
• “American Wife: A Novel”by Curtis Sittenfeld
• “Hooked: A Thriller About Love and Other Addictions” by Matt Richtel
• “Live a Little”by Kim Green
• “Wicked: The Life & Times of the Wicked Witch of the West” by Gregory Maguire
• “Sweet Love”by Sarah Strohmeyer

2007/2008 list

• “The Bean Trees” by Barbara Kingsolver
• “Snow Flower and the Secret Fan”by Lisa See *
• “Eat Pray Love”by Elizabeth Gilbert
• “Water for Elephants”by Sara Gruen *
• “A Thousand Splendid Suns”by Khaled Hosseini *
• “Shattered Dreams”by Irene Spencer *
• “The World Without Us”by Alan Weisman
• “Keeping Faith”by Jodi Picoult *
• “In the Woods”by Tana French
• “Songs Without Words”by Ann Packer

2006/2007 list

• “The Devil Wears Prada” by Lauren Weisberger
• “Lovely Bones” by Alice Sebold *
• “Angry Housewives Eating Bon Bons” by Lorna Landvik *
• “The Undomestic Goddess” by Sophie Kinsella
• “Class Matters” by Correspondents of The New York Times
• “The Kite Runner” by Khaled Hosseini *
• “Blessings” by Anna Quindlen
• “The Memory Keepers Daughter”by Kim Edwards *
• “My Sisters Keeper” by Jodi Picoult *
• “I Feel Bad About my Neck” by Nora Ephron

That's it for the Washington book club. I'd love to hear what some of your favorite books are or if you have any recommendtions for 2009/2010!

It's Flooding

Yes, it's flooding here in the PNW. No wonder with all of the snow we got during Christmas!! After the snow, was rain, rain, rain. I heard it said on the news that Seattle got 10% of their total yearly rain fall in 2 days. Crazy!!


Today the kids and I went "flooding" with the neighbors. Gotta have those scrapbook pics, right?

This is where the blueberry fields are where we go pick Blueberries every August.

A picture to remember the flood - and a good one for the scrapbook!

The main road is covered in water. No school buses getting through there!

Our new lake front property.

Just incredible how fast the water flooded the valley.

People say this doesn't happen too often around here. But we've lived here for 4 winters and for 2 of them, it's flooded the valley.

The Snowstorm of 2008

When we moved to our area in Washington, we expected rain but not snow. Much to our surprise, we have had snow every year that we have lived here! Our kids were thrilled because that means "Snow Days"!

However, THIS year's snow has been quite the phenomenon. Our little neighborhood had about 20 inches of snow this December. CRAZY no matter WHERE you live!

Here are a few pictures taken on Christmas Eve:

A view from our porch.
Our poor tree is going to crash from all of the snow.

Bob plows out The Beast.

It's finally starting to rain and melt the snow. However, our little street is still very treacherous. I found out that several of my friends have never had a white Christmas, so I'm glad that it snowed for them and didn't start melting until after Christmas.

My First Blog!

I told my good friend, Eve, that I would have a blog by the end of the year. So here it is, Eve! My first blog post!

Why the title "Views from a Java Hut"? Well, living in Washington these last 3-1/2 years, we've become addicted to our latte's. Practically on every street corner, there is some kind of "java hut". This is not much of an exaggeration! You have the branded java huts, the local java huts, the java huts that are a neighborhood favorite, the java huts that only men would ever go to, and the java huts that have your latte ready and waiting when you pull up in the drive thru (because they know you so well!). Gotta love those. So when trying to come up with a title, I tried to think of something quirky or catchy that would describe me or my family, and coffee and Java Huts were what I thought of -- because I do love my coffee!

My blog will be mostly about my family -- My husband, Bob, whom I've known since I was 16 years old and my three wonderful children -- Bobby age 17, Alex age 9-1/2 and Sarah age 7.

I hope you enjoy reading my blog and come back often! I'm new to this, so please be patient!

Here's to a happy end to 2008! and for me completing my first blog!

Lisa