Song of the Day

Give me more lovin’ than I’ve ever had,Make it all better when I’m feelin’ sad,Tell me that I’m special even when I know I’m not,Make it feel good when I hurt so bad, Barely gettin’ mad,I’m so glad I found you; I love bein’ around you.
You make it easy, it’s easy as 1,2- 1,2,3,4There’s only 1 thing 2 do 3 words 4 you- (I love you) I love youThere’s only 1 way 2 say those 3 words and that’s what I’ll do-(I love you)I love you.
Give me more lovin’ from the very start,Piece me back together when I fall apart,Tell me things you never even tell your closest friends-Make it feel good when I hurt so bad, Best that I’ve had,I’m so glad I found you, I love bein’ around you.
You make it easy, it’s easy as 1,2- 1,2,3,4There’s only 1 thing 2 do 3 words 4 you- (I love you) I love youThere’s only 1 way 2 say those 3 words and that’s what I’ll do- (I love you)I love you.(I love you) I love you.
You make it easy, it’s easy as 1,2- 1,2,3,4There’s only 1 thing 2 do 3 words 4 you- (I love you) I love youThere’s only 1 way 2 say those 3 words and that’s what I’ll do-(I love you)I love you.“

for Nikki

This is the song I had stuck in my head yesterday. Do you recognize it now???

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rSyeto050ZU

PS I couldn't post the video because it's restricted.

Its 'Hunting Season' - Again!

I actually wanted to title this post as 'Killing Season', but that sounded so dark. So I thought I'de change it to something that wouldn't shock you all. On the other hand, Hunting Season does start the 3rd week of October. I am now better informed of these things by the 'hunting pro' ...my husband. (And yes, he has informed me that there will be an 'excersion' that weekend with his 'dudes' -as Kai says). Brent wants to bring back some 'deer' since I have my new dehydrator (gross)! He wants me to try to dehydrate some for him - like I've done that before!? I think the 'buck' stops here and will not pass the doorway of my house! Women - we have to put our feet down on some of these things!

But I didn't want to talk about real 'Hunting Season' ... I want to talk about 'Killing Season'. Yes, friends, its THAT time of the year that we start setting out the mouse traps. (Its a very sad thing ...being that they're so cute and all!) But anyways, Brent set out the first trap last week and nothing happened for days. I took it as a good sign... (And we check it every day!) But then we forgot to do that after a while until ... the smell! Yes, there started to be a very distinct odor under our kitchen sink, and yesterday I came home to see my husband cleaning 'IT' out. Its almost a romantic 'tail' to tell. The trap caught one mouse and yes, it 'gave up the ghost'. But in the meantime, one of its buddies stuck by his side and 'gave up the ghost' right alongside him. And he wasn't even caught in the trap! Its bittersweet my friends!

Hours later! After the first 'mess' was cleaned up and a new trap was set ...I am sitting at the dinner table going over Kai's homework with him and SNAP! I heard the next trap spring and then thump thump, thump thump. (He was a fighter!) Austin was in the next room and I was yelling at him "its got one!"..."he's thumping around" ..."its gross!" Austin is just laughing. And then we all go to survey the situation ...poor little guy...right over the top of his head! This is one reason I am not looking forward to this 'time of year'!

Leeches Anyone?

While we were visiting with Lynne last week she mentioned she had sent an email to someone with questions regarding our "leeches" experience. She later sent me this email with their response (thought it was interesting and good to share):

Amy Canning wrote:

Hello Lynne,

I apologize for the delay in responding to your questions about leeches.I checked with one of our biologists, George Oliver, and here are his thoughts: --There are perhaps about a dozen or so species of leeches (maybe as many as ~15) that are known to occur in Utah. --Some of our leeches are blood-sucking parasites, but others (most of them, I think) are not parasitic and do not feed on blood at any point in their life history. --I'm not entirely certain, from Ms. Gilroy's description, that the animals she described were in fact leeches. Her description fits some other aquatic invertebrates, and the fact that only one animal out of approximately 200 "was reported to have blood in it" does not suggest that a blood-sucking species of leech was involved. Even the "one [that]was reported to have blood in it" may not have been a leech. So-called bloodworms are common aquatic invertebrates, of several different,unrelated kinds, that get their English names from the appearance of red "blood" in their bodies; none that I know of is parasitic.

--Even if the one animal was a leech, I would not be at all concerned about it. I've been "attacked" by hundreds of leeches, and I've never experienced any discomfort, infection, swelling or any other negative effect (except for the painless, slow leak of some blood after the leech dropped off---that was just inconvenient and a bit messy). --Our agency doesn't actually manage or oversee leeches. The only invertebrates we monitor and manage are mollusks (e.g., snails,bivalves) and crustaceans (e.g., brine shrimp, crayfish). --APHIS (Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service), a federal agency, has a local office. Their telephone number is (801) 975-3315‎. It ispossible that they have someone who could address Ms. Gilroy's questions better that we can. (APHIS does have some excellent entomologists, but I don't know whether they have a leech expert.)

I hope this helps address some of your concerns, Lynne.

Thanks again foryour patience!

Amy Canning
Technical WriterUtah Division of Wildlife Resources
(801) 538-4824

Another view

I forgot to tell you the best part! When I got home last night I told Kathy all about the exciting event - I was very happy. I decided to celebrate with a dish of ice cream. When I reached for the ice cream container in the freezer the smile on my face disappeared. It was not frozen. I checked a few other items and then the frig. It was obvious that the compressor was not working (just like before). I got behind the frig and took things apart, found the switch, remove it and shook it. It's not supposed to rattle; but it did. I got on the internet and spent a few hours working out the puzzle of which part I really needed and then this morning called a parts place. By 9:30 I had driven across town, then back with the part. We were up and running by 10:30. I was sure we would loose everything. But we checked items in the freezer and they were still 36 degrees. The frig was warmer and a few things were tossed. But all in all not too bad. Kathy and I have been wondering "What Next?"

Pinecone Bowl

This is the Pinecone Bowl that gave me so much trouble. It is not a uniform material, and only by the use of lots of Epoxy glue, Cyanoacrylate glue, and lots of Lacquer was I able to make anything of it. Sixteen pinecones plus one in the middle make up the bowl. Last night at the club meeting we had the largest turnout of the finest quality pieces I've seen. The judges were very courteous and explained the features of each piece and suggested that several should be given first place. But they ended up judging this one best. That was pretty cool. I think when I do projects that no one has seen before that tips the scale in my favor. Everyone liked the woodpecker too.

Woodpecker

This is how Grandpa Ross entertains himself.

Addictions

I hate to admit it but I've found a new addiction in my life.... peaches. Our peach tree produced the most delicious peaches for over a week and I think I made 14 cobblers in a 3 week time period. Thats not a joke! Now my neighbors (and mother) are trying to coerce me to preserve them. So I bought a bushel this week and it sat in the warm weather for so long, they were too ripe to preserve. I even lost a quarter of them to molding. So they are frozen instead, and being eaten slowly every day. Oh the simple joys! Sooooo delicious!

Letting the Cat Out of the Bag

Hey, I just thought I'd let you all know that I'm pregnant again. Feeling pretty good, mostly thanks to Kimball's sister who's been living with us for a couple weeks. I'm about 10 weeks along.