7 Random Things

 1.To the untrained eye, it appears that moths have invaded my husband's side of the closet.  In fact, nearly every work shirt and undershirt he owns has tiny little holes in it like the shirt below. 

The culprit...slag burns from welding.  This is discouraging to a wife doing the laundry because as a rule, anything with holes in it becomes a dusting cloth or grease rag.  But this would leave my husband's side of the closet virtually void of anything but church clothes. He comes home with new "air conditioned" shirts every other day, despite wearing his leathers. I'm at my wits end. Don't blame me for the holes. I give up.  

2.  My kids are participating in the Presidential Physical Fitness Challenge during Co-op, and it is kicking their butts.  My son has the body shape of a string bean, and he's currently all arms and legs.  He's extremely tall for his age,  and whenever he plays sports, we have to keep his birth certificate handy to prove he's only nine. Lately, he's hit an awkward phase where he needs to grow into his feet.  In order to meet the goals of the challenge, he's got to be able to sit and stretch 3" past his toes.  Unless we have a genuine miracle, it doesn't appear that he's going to make it.  He also needs to be able to do 5 pull ups, so every night he dangles off of his loft bed to practice.  I've seriously never heard more complaints about leg soreness, and sore tummy muscles than I have from my three kids this semester.  It's great.  I think it's the best physical challenge they've had in a while!  I think that I'm going to have to join them in their endeavour to shape up.  Here's my boy working out during P.E. at our homeschool co-op.

3.  I'm having trouble letting go of my favorite shoes.  I've worn them for nine years, and we're good friends, like Linus and his blanket.  I've sewn them back up, glued them, and reconditioned the leather many times.  Sadly, they are now beyond repair.  I was ecstatic when I discovered that Ariat still made the same shoe, after all of these years, and I bought a pair.  But they're just not the same.  They look way too new, and stiff, and boring.  They have no character.  They just can't replace my old faithfuls.

Nothing compares to my trusty old work shoes.

It's going to take a lot of miles before I make friends with this new pair.  We currently have nothing in common.  I hope we can form a good relationship in the future, but for now, I'm still in mourning over my old faithfuls.

4. I have 14 chickens, and I'm currently getting 2 eggs a day. The girls aren't meeting their quota.  I've resorted to threatening them with the soup pot, but they don't take me seriously.

5. Our kids take an art class as part of their homeschool co-op, and they are taught by a retired art teacher who attends our church.  I've never taken an art class, so I decided to sit in on it as a student, myself.  I'm telling you, that woman is a miracle worker! In one week I've transformed from a stick figure artist to a gal that can draw a picture that slightly resembles the real thing!  I mean, I'm certainly no Picasso, but for having only two sessions under my belt, I think she's transformed me! The secret is in the shading! It's what makes everything come to life! I can't believe it took over 30 years to realize this.  I'm a little slow on the up-take.

Here's my first weeks progress:  (Don't laugh too hard.  I'm putting it on here in the interest of "keepin' it real".  You've got to see the progress each week.)

6. I got "Photoshop Elements 9" for Christmas this year, and I currently know how to use .03% of it. 

"Hello, my name is Nell, and I'm computer illiterate."

This program has made me want to shout curse words at the computer screen, and I'm a reformed cusser.  It's bringing out deep feelings of frustration, and computer anxiety. I don't care though.  I will CONQUER photoshop....even if it takes years! I will buy "Photoshop for Dummies", take a class at the community college, or spend hours tinkering with it. 

Just imagine how cool it would be to have photoshopped pictures on here.  It would take my blogging to a whole new level! I will prevail, photoshop.  You will not get the best of me.

7. I love Dr. Pepper.

The End.

(Okay, that last one wasn't really important, but I didn't want to end the list with only 6 things because I don't like that number.  Come to think of it, none of the things on my list were important, but strangely, I feel much better now that I've shared them with you.)

The (real) End.

NELL