Not always the elephant

Okay so it's no big secret, most of the time (okay, 99.9999999999999% of the time) I vote republican.

Let me make it clear, I am NOT conservative. I am republican. I think there is a distinct difference.

That said. If, by any chance, Sarah Palin runs for office in 2012. I will not vote for her.
Not because she's a woman.
Because she's an idiot.

You heard it here first, folks.
There better be other Republican potentials. Rudy? Rudy, darling... come to Mama!

E=manny2

You know what I have observed in the last couple of days? Manny needs routine and structure. It sounds absolutely ridiculous to mention it in a blog, but, I think it's cute as hell and I want to remember it.

I have been spending A LOT of time on-line lately. A LOT. Probably a few to several hours per day. If I'm not working, I'm on-line (even when I am working I still have my yahoo email open) No, no, I don't have an addiction to the Internet. I actually hate being on-line so much but with the things on my plate right now, the heaping servings of responsibility, I need the Internet to help me take care of some things.

Anyway, I digress. Usually when I get up in the morning I start going about my day; doing chores, laundry, dishes, paying bills and I'm running all over the house. But for the last two weeks the minute I get up I come downstairs and go on-line. Manny cannot stand being without me, so we go through the same routine every morning.

Friday morning, however, I realized it wasn't coincidence. I was up, online, and Manny comes downstairs and sits on the couch next to me. He does his usual scratching to my arm, so I get up and feed him. He just looks at me. What? Manny NOT EAT? I was immediately concerned. My boy has a very 'healthy' appetite.

So I sit back down and he scratched me again and again (in "Manny-speak" this means he needs something.) I get up and say, "You wanna go out?" and he runs around in circles. I take him outside, he does his business and then comes in and devours his entire breakfast.

Yesterday morning I get up, he follows. I sit down, he scratches. I take him out, he does his business. When he comes in he sits at his bowl waiting for breakfast.

This morning was the same. I've even noticed that it's the same when we walk. We go for long walks in the morning and he likes to go the same route, every time. If I deviate from the formula he will get anxious. He's a weird little one and I think it's precious.

"The Farm"

I've had an amazing couple of weeks lately. Last weekend we went up to the farm to boil sap for my wedding favors. As always, it was great to see my Mom & Dan. Xander was there for the weekend, which was a bonus, and we created my wedding favors. We created the favors. I can't explain the sense of pride I have in the fact that my guests will be bringing home something that came from my folks farm.

Aaron and Dan (and Xander) collected the sap (about 70 gallons) and boiled it down. My mother and I washed and prepared all the jars, and Aaron and I filled, sealed, and washed them.

It was really important to me that my guests leave the wedding with an attitude that it was a "great night" but also a small gift from my family. That is exactly what we created last weekend.

We also did many other fun things aside from boiling sap. We hung out a lot, we made a boiled dinner on the sap stove, made a delicious pea soup, and we made mine and my nephews favorite cake- pineapple upside down cake (yum!). I get a great sense of peace from the farm (even with three Chihuahuas raising hell!)

Pictures from the weekend.

Aaron and Xander collecting sap:

Aaron boiling the sap in "The Barn"

Me cleaning and drying 100 glass jars:

What's left of 70 gallons of sap? Well, it boils down to about 2 1/2 gallons of pure maple syrup.

Which then, painstakingly, has to be put in 100+ tiny 50 ml. jars.

Ta-Da!


Other random pictures from the weekend
Our boiled dinner:

The Chihuahuas:


The three amigos: Cidney, Manny and Bing


Xander made a cake for us!

Hanging out....

Say Cheese

I don't have any time to post any real posts this week. But, to tide you over, here is one of my all time favorite commercials from childhood. Come on now, you all remember it.

Say What?

I've really been slacking on the blogger front lately. Forgive me. There is a ton I need to post about, but I need to sit down and have the time to write six or seven postings and that just isn't possible right now.

Lots of fun and exciting things have been going on with Aaron and I, one of which we will share here. This past weekend we went up to "The Farm" to boil maple syrup for our wedding favors. I'll include more details about that in an upcoming post, but something my nephew said just cracked me up, and I have to share it here before I forget.

Let me set the scene. I had just given him a shower. He had a full belly, had just finished watching Beverly Hill's Chihuahua (and laughed hysterically through the entire thing) and was all snuggled into his Spiderman pajamas. He heads for the stairs (we were all in the kitchen filling jars- that's why we put him down with a movie) and I notice him trying to climb over the gate.

**Also something I should state here; he calls me I-ya. (he has called me I-ya his whole life b/c he couldn't pronounce Auntie when he was little.)

I-ya: Where are you going, Xan?

Xander: Um, I-ya, will you lift me over the gate?

I-ya: Sure, baby. But where are you going?

Xander: Um, upstairs, I think it's time for me to go to bed (sheepishly smiling). What could I possibly do to convince you to come tuck me in and gimme a kiss goodnight?

I-ya: (a puddle of mush as my heart melts) It's only 7:15, baby, you don't have to go to bed yet...you can if you want to... but you'll miss the maple syrup on snow.

Xander: (considering) Oh, well then. I think I can stay up for that. How long will you be?

OMG! That boy, my only nephew, melts me. Where he comes out with the things he does is beyond me.