Peaceful Easy Feelin

Don't you just love when it snows and you have no where to be and nothing to do? The fire is lit and the entire family is home with no plans. And that is something that doesn't happen too often around here anymore.

I love just listening to everyone as they watch an episode of The Office...love listening to my son belly laugh because he doesn't do that near enough anymore...you know...being a man and all now. It really is just the small things and I am thankful for the day we get to spend together...

But snow??? really??? It was like 75 degrees yesterday...and then...snow. It is no wonder my sinuses are whacked out to the extreme right now. But I did get both my raised beds built, the grass removed and the rest of the garden tilled. I can't tell you that Dave is thrilled about the raised beds...but he is his ever easy-going self and lets me do pretty much whatever I want :o) We really were made for each other...have I ever said that? I think I have :O)

Ashtyn's room is a different story! I really wanted to have it done by the time my vacation was over but with working outside, ball games and just everything else that gets in the way...her room just didn't fit. Because of that, I have decided that we are going to have one of Dave's friend do the texturing and painting. It's what he does for a living and he is giving us an unbelievable deal on the labor. So much so that it just isn't worth the pain and suffering of doing it myself :o) (thanks Steph for substantiating that fact for me and I am sending good thoughts your way for a speedy finish to your bathroom project!! I know it will be great!)

I have been taking pictures along the way of all these projects and will be posting as they progress...but for now I am just gonna sit here under my comfy blanket and finish watching Dwight and Michael throw trash at each other :oP

Chewy Granola Bars

Well I have a new love! Chewy granola bars. The recipe is here and I just have to tell you...it is delish! My son even loves it!


The only thing I really did different was add about 3 or 4 tbs of honey too. I used the Karo syrup version and used all it called for plus the honey. And...I only baked it for around 27-28 minutes....35 minutes was way too long in my oven and dries it out.

I even mixed extra for the next time round...so good!

Practice Makes Perfect

Okay...so I have read about 43 books on digital photography lately because I want to get better at using my camera and capturing really fun pics. And so far...I feel like I have learned so much! I definitely have a lot more to learn but the biggest problem I have right now is finding time to practice taking pictures and working on what I have learned. Sooo...we just went driving around taking pics this last weekend of just whatever we came upon.

The weird thing was where we turned up...

In OKC...there has been problems with gangs (I know....just like everywhere else nowadays) and one gang in particular was just "showcased" on the tv show "Gangland". This gang known as the "Southside Locos" has become a large problem for the southwest side of OKC and tagging is a very popular thing among their members. And don't you just know that this is what I chose to be my "practice"! :o)

So I wanted to share some of the pics I snapped as we quickly drove by these not so nice looking places. Please picture in your mind...my 14 year old daughter in the back floorboard with her head between her knees and arms wrapped over her head chanting..."we are gonna die...we are gonna die...we are gonna die!" :O) Good times!! Never say we don't have adventure in our lives...

On the "Gangland" program, they have Southside Loco members talking about how they "diss" their rival gang by calling them cornbreads or other terms they consider derogatory. It was pretty weird to actually see that displayed in their tags...

This is what Ashtyn now wants to use as her profile pic on her facebook/myspace page...she is such a gangsta!

Speedie showed up in a lot of places...his spray paint can gets around.

It is pretty depressing to see how it really has infiltrated this whole area of the city.

I really love the next one..."Keep it clean OKC"

GBC's and MRC's are some of the big rival gangs of the Locos...I don't know if they are one in the same gang and just use the different letters but I know the interviews with the Locos members all talked about the GBC's being their biggest opposition. There are also a lot of GBC tags around the southside but in this area...it seemed like the MRC tags were represented more.

187 is used all over in the Locos tags...don't really know the number significance but all of them use numbers in their tags.

Here is "Speed" again...it is sad that a lot of the houses have been tagged.

sad...

Black skull flags are another thing I started noticing a lot in the area...

For those of you who have eaten at Chelinos - this was just a tortilla factory...pretty fun...of course I am snapping pics as we are driving by so as not to be shot per listening to instructions from the daughter. :o)

What's really weird to me was that not too far removed from this area are the next pictures of a private (i.e., expensive) catholic school...it is just really weird to me that I would be paying high dollar for my kids to go to school around the corner from very notorious gang activity. The building really is old and beautiful though. Ash had provided info to us that she had heard that the fourth floor of the building is haunted...maybe that is why the Locos stay away.

The rest are just more random pics that we took on our tour of the southside...

This was some kind of factory but I loved the yellow and back and forth look of the stairs...

I just loved this old house for some reason...

This was my second favorite pic of day...just love the contrast of colors...this is to pay homage to all the photo books I have read and how they just make doorways seem so cool. This is my practice doorway :o)

This was my favorite of the day! Thank you for letting me share my practice with you as well as my gang education :o) Maybe I will get real good at taking photos and become the gang photo person for OKC :o) I try to have wild side dreams however displaced they may seem...ps...my husband would put a stop to gang photographer aspirations...but one can dream.

Lost

Well today I enrolled my baby into high school...I just finished helping my firstborn enroll for his Senior year and my husband is traipsing around in another country...I am a little lost. I think I might spend too much time worrying about the future (ya think?) Like what happens when there are no basketball games/meets or arctic baseball games to attend? Ok - so I know it isn't arctic but it is dang cold people!! Baseball really should not be allowed to start until mid-April...I am just sayin!



I have really just been hangdog lately about the fact of how fast life goes by and that I can't stop it. It is good though to think about it because it means that you don't take as much for granted and also hopefully try to make more lasting memories. That is what I want most...memories that my kids will always have and be able to hold dear...that is why I am really trying to promote a hike up Pikes Peak (maybe this summer.) Wouldn't that just be the funnest trip and an awesome memory for our family to share? Well unless we get mauled by a bear...then that's maybe not such a good memory :o)



So to all my friends who have young ones...I know I sound like a broken record... but ... don't miss "it" whatever "it" might be today. And for all my friends who have older kids that told me over and over not to stress the little things because you will miss them before you know it...I concede!!...you were so wise!!



And finally to my Canadian defected husband...I miss my best friend and am ready for him to come home now!