A buncha new socks

I ordered about five or six pairs of over the knee socks for winter. They're going to go with my black Doc Marten boots. They haven't mailed them to me yet. If you like cute sockies look at these.

Here's one pair I bought at Sock Dreams.

Pre-election prayer day set

They're expecting up to 70,000 in the stadium at Qualcomm Stadium (was called Murphy's Stadium when I was young) in my hometown tomorrow for fasting and prayer. California has Proposition 8 on the ballot to ban h*m*s*x**l marriage in the state. My friend's pastor isn't performing any marriage ceremonies at all, and many other pastors he knows are not doing them in California because they're afraid they could face legal action for refusing to marry h*m*s*x**ls. Also, if g*y marriage is not repealed many people are afraid teachers will have to teach it in schools, but no one knows for sure.

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/metro/20081030-9999-1m30call.html

I'm going to fast with them tomorrow from 10am to 10pm. I'm going to drink liquids only. I won't go all the way to 10pm if I can't hack it though.

What is the world coming to?

Last night my child told me I need to work on my self-esteem. Whaaat? Where in the world did he hear that? I'm nearly 50 years old and I need this from the child of my own womb?

After prayer last night I stayed and listened to the choir do their practice and they sang two of my favorite songs, two of the few that I actually know 90% of the lyrics. I walked out of the sanctuary to the drinking fountain and as I was about to push the double doors I hear Pastor call out from stage in between songs, "Liliana, do you want to sing with the choir?" I nodded "no thank you." One, I didn't know he knew my name, and two, I can't sing. He's seen me sing. That doesn't mean I can sing. I can belt it out is all. I don't sound like Helen. Oh that Helen. Her voice is so pretty, transcendent, it takes me to another place. And that's what I said to my family at home. I can't sing and I sure don't sound like Helen. That's when youngest son popped up with his little pearl of wisdom.

I guess it could go on my headstone, "Here lies Lil, poor thing never did find self-esteem."

This really makes me mad.

A day

Magnify your wonderful name, Lord!

It's a good day today. Finally, this day, I have finished reading Deuteronomy. I was the least dedicated to reading this book than the first four and so it took me the longest. It seems to me that Moses wrote a book of review for everything Jehovah and the Hebrews did in the other books. I have now completed the first five books of the Old Testament, known as the Torah in Judaism. Next I'll be reading Joshua. I know zip, absolutely nothing, about Joshua. I'm happy to be starting a new book. I've been doing daily devotion pretty well but I must start a clean slate with my Bible reading.

We finished hsing an hour early. Tomorrow is his history test. Yesterday he aced his grammar test. He got a C on science today and we went over it and realized it could have been a nice B had he read the questions thoroughly. Boys.

Let the spirit of the Lord blow across America and I pray for revival and restoration for the USA as a Christian nation. Blessed be the name of the Lord, the one and only Living God. Give us victory over those who seek to destroy the foundation established by our founding fathers. Let the enemy be confounded in the name of Jesus. Deliver us from evil. God, bless America with revival. Forgive us as a nation for turning from Your Word. We are desperate for you. We love you and we worship you. You say we have not because we ask not. We're asking Lord! We're asking! And we ask it in the name of your precious son, Jesus. Amen. (Amen means "so be it.")

Magnify your holy name, dear Lord. How great is our God!

:)

Did you hear me catch me breath? I had to slow my heart down. I didn't know I could click on the Followers words link. I didn't know what it meant exactly and I thought it was anonymous. I clicked it and then I saw two Followers and I can even add them to my sidebar, so I did. I love Blogspot.

I am happy.

Two is a very good number. Two of the prettiest women I know, inside and out.

Sliding salmon

Our church is praying fervently for America and for the election every night between now and Tuesday. I'm starting to pray out loud some too. Purty good, yep. It's a slow process, but I'm making progress.

I tried to download free software to edit my .wav files tonight but Vista is giving me problems. It won't let me download anything, not even a font. Quite. Irritating.

And I wore my hair in an imitation crown braid. It looks fairly good but I started one single braid on the side of my head so the two sides don't look identical. I might work on it to see what I can do differently.

My husband barbecued salmon tonight. He turned to hand me the plate and one of the two pieces of fish slid off the plate and onto the ground, that is, in the sand. Irretrievable. And guess what. He didn't say any bad words! Woohoo! Shocking, I know. Perhaps I am having an effect upon him. We can hope.

I'm still working on my memorization project. I've been stuck three days on "No means of measure can define his limitless love." I can't seem to get it from my brain to my mouth. It's scrambled eggs.

RCA Digital Voice Recorder

I bought one today for about $35.00. I've been wanting to record my pastor's sermons so I can listen to them more than once and also to review the sections where I could not write fast enough.

It took me 30 minutes to edit tonight's prayer meeting audio (I took out a lot of hallelujahs and stuff) then it took me another half hour to figure out how to convert it to .wmv so I could import it into iTunes. I'm gonna synchronize my iPod right after I write this and go to bed and listen to it! I edited it in Windows Movie Maker which was a mistake. I'll have to check the software that came with it to see if I can edit it there so I don't have to do so much converting. It's such a fun little new toy! I was going to get a regular recorder like I had in college eons ago but this one was only five bucks more and I can download the sound files to my computer. Cool, huh? And it comes with its own USB connector. Isn't that nice? I really need another USB port connector in the trailer. Not. It operates on two AAA batteries, is lightweight and small, and at high quality will store 18 hours of yapping. Most excellent techie toy I say. At standard quality you can store 140 hours of yapping!

We prayed for our country and the election tonight at church. About 15 people attended and there was a lot of loud praying going on. Our son went with me and I was proud of him. He was the only child prayer there and he didn't just sit and keep his seat warm. I wonder if he'll go again. I didn't invite him, he asked to go. I hope he will take up my praying where I leave off when I die, er, expire. We've only spotted a couple Obama signs in town so I guess the Obama people are all in Northern New Mexico. We are praying for God to work in a supernatural way at the polls.

Our computer connection has been poor all day, waiting and waiting for a single page to load, and it's still slow tonight. I couldn't even get online till noon.

I called my sister and chatted for a few minutes today. She said we need to talk more often. She said it real matter-of-fact as if she was the older sister. She's not the older sister, I am. She's a little sister.

My husband bought me a new electric blanket. Sunbeam makes kind of junky products. This is the second blanket I've had that stopped getting hot enough. I put it on high and it's barely warm. I tried to get a refund at Wal-Mart but no luck. I had the receipt too! It's one year old almost to the day. It has a five year warranty but it's a limited warranty. See that little, old, word "limited" is the fly in the ointment. I asked for a manager and he too told me that I'd have to return it to the manufacturer. He said Wal-Mart's refund policy is only for the first 90 days. That's a pain in my patoot.

I wanna say hi to MaeDean.

Hi MaeDean whom I met in Wyoming. :)

Sounds like socialism

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iivL4c_3pck

Barack Obama on Chicago Public Radio WBEZ-FM, 2001: One of the tragedies of the civil rights movement was, um, because the civil rights movement became so court focused I think there was a tendency to lose track of the political and community organizing and activities on the ground that are able to put together the actual coalition of powers through which you bring about redistributive change

An eye-opener!

A good sighting

During dinner we saw a bobcat across the street! He was sitting just as pretty as can be. I ran and got my camera but he was gone. Wow. I wish I'd have gotten a shot of that. I would have been the most popular photographer in the park! I could have been in a magazine! Oh well.

I'm still doing my memorization job. This is day three. I'm down to "No means of measure can define His limitless love." Only, when I said it tonight I forgot that last line and my son remembered it. He's a good boy but he makes me mad when he remembers without even trying. Little squirt.

Every night tonight at 7:00pm I'm goin' to church to pray for America. There are at least two other churches in town that are doing the same.

My notes from evening:

Taxation is a form of economic slavery.

Marxism-->Communism-->Socialism

Communism is forced by the government. Socialism is when you can deceive people into voting for it.

1Samuel 8

Take the frog in the kettle fable. If you toss Mr. Frog into hot water he'll jump right out. But if you set him gently in a pot in tepid water and warm it up incrementally he won't sense the increase in heat. He'll boil to death and never know it.

Church=Eclesia=assembly of believers

The true Body of Christ is not a building. It's us, the peeps, who are the Body of Christ.

God still deals with nations in a covenant relationship. America, founded by Christians, is like a spiritual Israel, grafted in as the Church of Jesus Christ. When we begin to reject God don't be surprised when God begins to reject us. The nation that forgets God will be cast into hell.

Cast votes for city, county, state, House, Senate, Office of President, in alignment with the Bible.

I'm memorizing

I gave myself a job. A memorizing job. I've taken it upon myself to memorize the words to S.M. Lockridge's That's My King! This is how much I have memorized so far:

The Bible says
He's the King of the Jews.
He's the King of Israel.
He's the King of Righteousness.
He's the King of the Ages.
He's the King of Heaven.
He's the King of Glory.
He's the King of Kings.
And He is the Lord of Lords.
Now that's my King!

I have a little bit more to learn:

David says
The Heavens declare the glory of God
And the firmament showeth His handiwork
No means of measure can define His limitless love
No far seeing telescope can bring into visibility the coastline of His shoreless supply
No barriers can hinder Him from pouring out His blessing

He’s enduringly strong
He’s entirely sincere
He’s eternally steadfast
He’s immortally graceful
He’s imperially powerful
He’s impartially merciful

That’s my King!
He’s God’s Son
He’s the sinners’ Saviour
He’s the centrepiece of civilisation
He stands alone in Himself
He’s august
He’s unique
He’s unparalleled
He’s unprecedented
He’s supreme
He’s pre-eminent
He’s the loftiest idea in literature
He’s the highest personality in philosophy
He’s the supreme problem in higher criticism
He’s the fundamental doctrine in true theology
He’s the cardinal necessity of spiritual religion

That’s my King!
He’s the miracle of the age
He’s the superlative of everything good that you choose to call Him
He’s the only one able to supply all of our needs simultaneously
He supplies strength for the weak
He’s available for the tempted and the tried
He sympathises and He saves
He guards and He guides
He heals the sick
He cleansed the lepers
He forgives sinners
He discharges debtors
He delivers the captives
He defends the feeble
He blesses the young
He serves the unfortunate
He regards the aged
He rewards the diligent
And He beautifies the meek

Do you know Him?
My King is the key of knowledge
He’s the wellspring of wisdom
He’s the doorway of deliverance
He’s the pathway of peace
He’s the roadway of righteousness
He’s the highway of holiness
He’s the gateway of glory
He’s the master of the mighty
He’s the captain of the conquerors
He’s the head of the heroes
He’s the leader of the legislators
He’s the overseer of the overcomers
He’s the governor of governors
He’s the prince of princes
He’s the King of Kings
And He’s the Lord of Lords

That’s my King
That’s my King!
My King
His office is manifold
His promise is sure
His life is matchless
His goodness is limitless
His mercy is everlasting
His love never changes
His word is enough
His grace is sufficient
His reign is righteous
His yoke is easy
and His burden is light
I wish I could describe Him to you
He’s indescribable
He’s indescribable
He’s incomprehensible
He’s invincible
He’s irresistible
I’m trying to tell you
The heaven of heavens cannot contain Him
Let alone a man explain Him
You can’t get Him out of your mind
You can’t get Him off of your hands
You can’t outlive Him
And you can’t live without Him
The Pharisees couldn’t stand Him
but they found out they couldn’t stop Him
Pilate couldn’t find any fault in Him
The witnesses couldn’t get their testimonies to agree
And Herod couldn’t kill Him
Death couldn’t handle Him
And the grave couldn’t hold Him

That’s my King!
He always has been
And He always will be
I’m talking about
He had no predecessor
and He’ll have no successor
There was nobody before Him
and there’ll be nobody after Him
You can’t impeach Him
and He’s not going to resign

That’s my King!
Praise the Lord
That’s my King
Thine is the Kingdom
And the power
And the glory
The glory is all His
Thine is the Kingdom
And the power
And the glory
For ever
And ever
And ever
And when you get through with all of the forevers
Then
Amen

Think I can do it?

Friday!

I taught from 10am to 3pm then took a nappie (as in a sleep, not a diaper). My husband bought me a super good little light for reading at night. Now I don't have to reach up real high to turn it off before I go to sleep.

Uh oh. He's setting the dinner table on top of my keyboard. I will think of some stuff to write later.

Sarah at the market

I like this picture of Sarah at the market so much. I nabbed it from the web. I don't know who took it but it's sorta maybe public domain by now, think? Maybe not. Okay, well if they haul me off to jail I will remove it, but isn't she cute.

We're going to the ranch for some more calf branding this week-end. It's for the late born calves so it not a big to-do like the one in June.

Today I'm all achybreaky. Hopefully tomorrow my bod will feel better.

We had leftover enchildadas for dinner. As we were eating and looking out the window at the lake our son noticed one of the full-timers that left in the summer drive into our loop. We jumped from the table, ran down the steps, and out to the road to greet her as she drove by. I know it made her happy. She was in North or South Carolina visiting family for a few months, then she went to New York State where she's from. She looked good. She looked happy to be back. This place, the quiet of the desert, calls people back to it.

My husband

Last night after dinner my husband said he wanted to get a Sarah Palin bumper sticker special made for the truck that says "Why are the elitist media scared to death of a little woman who's the mother of five and lives a life set on solid morals"? I said, "Honey, that's too many words. You don't need a bumper sticker. You need a banner." Haha!

And he slept poorly last night. Our water pipes were frozen this morning so it definitely got down to 32 degrees outside. We have two space heaters and he wants a third and meant to buy it yesterday but didn't get around to it. He worries about keeping us warm. We're always warm enough though. I suppose it's because he frets about it so much.

I'm all sore from dance. Mainly I'm achy around my ribs and back. That's weird. My teacher was having us do spins in a circle with veils - over and over and over again till I got a tummy ache! Spins can make you dizzy. Circles can make you dizzy. Try spinning and dancing in a circle at the same time.

Our son is reading Tom Sawyer. I'm happy about it because he said it's a really good book. Of course it is, but he didn't like Old Yeller so I was worried a little. I suggested he may want to expand his reading experience beyond something other than Archie Comics. :)

Did you know Mark Twain's real name was Sam Clemens? And did you know the call mark, twain, was used on the riverboats of the Mississippi after the Civil War (late 1800s)? Yes. Mark, twain meant two fathoms (12 feet deep). That was safe water.

Hhhmph

I don't know about the news. There are so, so, many polls. It's hard for me to find any good news about McCain and Palin and the worst and most ridiculous insults get miles of coverage. I think the news is not doing a good job of giving me news. But today I will not talk of politics.

My husband said he won't read any more news until after November 4th. I should follow suit. I have a hard time believing polls that show Barack Hussein Obama in double digits ahead of McCain and such horrid reports about Sarah being stupid - which are quite untrue. Palin draws huge crowds everywhere she goes. She's the most popular governor of the entire USA with an approval rating of 80% in the great state of Alaska. I scratch my head in wonder. But I will not talk of politics today.

My girlfriend got her McCain sign stolen out of her front yard yesterday!

I washed my hair this morning because dance classes are starting up. Today the teacher is going to teach floorwork. It can be very, hmmm, emotionally charged, this floorwork. They call it sometimes 'taxsim' pronounced 'talk-seem.' My teacher in Riverside said this dance gives you the opportunity to channel all the emotions that you cannot show in your everyday life as a mother, wife, employee, etcetera. She's an engineer. Boy howdy, I might be able to channel in an awesome taxsim between now and November 4th. Haha!

It is very windy today. Sunny. It's in the high 60s.

Sigh. I feel pretty good. I feel better since I wrote this.

Sa-RAH! Sa-RAH!

My first political rally

Oh man. The political rally in Roswell, New Mexico, was great. I will say Sarah was an hour late! She was supposed to be there at 2:30 and got there at 3:30. I'm suspicious we were duped. Did they know from the git-go she would arrive at 3:30pm? Because we barely got there (early even) at 12:30pm and as soon as we got inside we heard scuttlebutt that she'd be there at 3:30pm.

My husband thought it was a four hour drive but it was a little less. So we parked easily, bought buttons, and got in line.

Ten thousand people went through this gate. That's 10,003 including us. It's like the airport. They inspected my camera bag, thoroughly, and went through our lunch bag and took away our water and gave us their water. We weren't allowed to take our water inside. Umbrellas not allowed. They would have been handy because everyone was in the sun except for TV cameras and professional photogs and some select people in a measly few bleachers opposite the TV cameras.

Once inside we stood in the shady part but then some bouncer types came and said we needed to make way for a corridor. One bouncer man was putting his elbow into my back which I thought was not very nice so my husband said c'mon and we moved out into the sun.

There was loud music, rock and roll, my favorite, so I was loving it. My husband and son, not so much. Youngest son prefers classical and husband likes disco, ewwww. When we first got out there I jumped all around! I was so excited. Then I thought, I better conserve energy. Good thinking. We ended up standing for three hours. Like, I mean, standing. In one place. I sat down for a little while because a lady beside me did, and I chitchatted with her but I was surround by butts and it wasn't even shady down there so I got up. A guy, Hank Williams Jr., apparently his dad is or was famous, sang country western for a bit and it wasn't very good. His godmother was June Carter Cash. Okay.

Then we waited more and listened to some political speeches by some local peeps, and then more rock and roll. Everyone was sweating. Then people started fainting. We were in the 80 degree sunshine on pavement for goodness sakes and in a crowd so hardly any air was circulating. A girl right next to me began to shake and I think that's a beginning sign of sunstroke. She left. Another lady, we made a wide space for her, and she sat on the pavement and people fanned her for a good 20 minutes then left. Another person was helped out of the crowd, and another one left on a stretcher. I was just praying I would continue sweating and not be one of those fainters. If we traveled all that way and I had to leave I would have been truly depressed. I diligently drank water every few minutes. My mouth was so dry. My husband said he was surprised how much I drank. And I was sweating so much. See, as long as my skin wasn't dry I knew I was okay. Rally organizers periodically squished into the crowds and asked who wanted water and everyone would pass free water bottles in a line along to whomever needed it.

Next, the security people did a lot of brisk walking and radio talking up and down the walkway. Let's say it. I'm a sucker for a man in uniform!


The greatest thing I missed on my little movie camera was the Pledge of Allegiance. I didn't know it was coming up. Have you ever said the Pledge along with 10,000 people? It was a complete rush. It was better than any drug I've ever taken. I felt the voices in my body and in my mind. I was stifling the tears. It was a top ten moment of my lifetime.

I taped a few seconds of the Star Spangled Banner which was cool too, but it was not as incredible as saying the Pledge. No one led the Pledge. It was just everyone saying it together. The flag inside the airplane hangar was waving directly over my head.


Then came Sarah's speech.



Whoops. That's Sarah when she got off the plane and was walking to the stage. Can you feel my pain of being so close and yet, so far! None of my pics of her on stage are blog worthy. Do you have any idear what I went through to get the piddly pictures I have? I'm short. I could hardly see. And I can't tell you how many men stood in my way. I won't even mention the woman with a gigantic, urban sombrero, wide brimmed hat with a bow on it. And there was a guy who kept shifting his weight so no matter which side I chose he'd get in my frame the next minute. Or I'd start shooting and someone would put their camera right, exactly, in front of my camera. They didn't know I was behind them so it wasn't their fault, it's just part and parcel of trying to get a photo while 10,000 other people are trying to get the very same photo.

Afterwards, the esteemed Republicans left their water bottles all over the ground. The trash cans were way overflowing. Poor planning. There really should have been a dumpster.


I made a short collage of the video I took. Nuthin' fancy, but you get a feel from it. It's hard to both tape and photograph and have fun. I did a lot of hollering and jumping and when I did that my camera was off. Really, to make a good video you'd need to tape the entire thing then cut out what you don't want. What happened was every time she said something that made the crowd go wild I'd jump and shout, and then turn on my camera for the next part. Haha! So the best memories are all in my head.

Sermonizing and rhapsodizing

Our son was gone on a pumpkin trip with the neighbors so we did dinner grace without him. He asked just last night why he was saying it and not me anymore but I didn't let on that I planned it that way. With him gone I had to help with the prayer though. I started it and my husband added then I was going to end with a beautiful "His grace is sufficient, His yoke is easy, and His burden is light."

Problem was, I got the first part out (His grace is sufficient) then flubbed up all of the yoke and burden part. I couldn't remember which came first, the yoke or the burden, and I had no recollection at all for the words 'easy' or 'light.'

knowing they were banging around somewhere in the vast recesses of my brain, yet unable to locate them I ended with a very fine, "His yoke something, something, something, something." My voice trailed off with an extra something to highlight all the previous somethings. I'm so articulate.And my husband laughed.

Well! I declared that praying out loud is kind of like learning a foreign language and when you practice you can make mistakes and people will laugh and it's a challenge because it can make you very self-conscious but don't let yourself be self-conscious because what the people listening think doesn't matter. God knows the person's heart and He knows what you're trying to say so you have to keep on doing it.

My husband got an earful didn't he! Yes, indeedy. And he said stop the sermonizing and save it for Sunday. Gasp! I will do no such thing. If the Sunday sermonizing comes out on a Saturday it just has to come out. You can't stop it.

Why the very idea!

His grace is sufficient.
His yoke is easy.
His burden is light.

I have it down pat for tomorrow night.

Baaaabeee pics

There was some unrest and discontent expressed by my reader base regarding my latest post. Evidently I promised to discuss my visit and failed to follow up. Allow me to correct this. :)

Flying has changed since the last time I was out and about in 2004. I didn't know my husband and son couldn't go all the way to the gate with me. I didn't know I'd have to take my shoes off. I had to remove my belt too as it has a Texas sized metal buckle from the Calgary Stampede of 2005.

The flight there was uneventful. I got an aisle seat and the guy next to me, forgive me for saying, was a bit of a dork. First he waited until after I sat down to ask to get up to take an ice cream to his wife. He must have smuggled the ice cream on board. I was really nice though cause I don't mind if I have to get up. I used to fly with an infant (our son) to take him to visit his grandparents so anything is easier than flying with a baby or toddler. Okay, he sat down again and opens the top on his ice cream and all these nuts fell out all over him, the seat, and the floor. He fussed a bit with it and I pretended not to notice until I could no longer ignore him. Then I said, "We can't take you anywhere, can we!" And he laughed and said he needed to get up. So I moved into the aisle so he could get up, trying to keep my rear end from touching anyone. Those seats and aisles are so narrow. He goes to the trash, comes back, sits down. Later he had to get up to go to the restroom too.

The flight back was more interesting. At security I did have to take off my sweatshirt which was a drag because I had to carefully hold down my top underneath so I wouldn't flash the airport people, and my hair was completely messed up. This time I was 10th to the last person on the plane. It was a full flight and nobody wants you to sit by them. There is literally no eye contact going on. The flight attendant was a hoot and said, "People boarding, if you see a seat, take it. It's probably yours." And she said we weren't marrying the person next to us, it's just a two hour flight so sit down. She was funny.

Lucky me. The lady I chatted with earlier had an open seat next to her and an old man was in the other seat. The bad thing was I had to put my camera backpack two storage units after my seat. I really stressed about getting my pack and off of the plane and the situation loomed quite large in my mind but then the reality was it was no problem at all. A tall man reached over and got it for me and handed to me so easily.

We never did ask each other for names, my next door seat mate and I. I'd guess she was my age, small, kind of scruffy if I say so. Scruffy in not a bad way but such that looks did not appear important to her. She had a pixie cut that was grown out. She drew my attention because she was going to Albuquerque from San Fran to deliver some things, wood, for making flutes. She seemed interesting to me. She was unmarried and no children. She, it turned out, was voting for Nader. He's a write-in candidate. Her housemate is an anarchist, she explained, and I listened intently. We talked about oranges and bananas and she said the guy who convinced Americans that they should eat bananas was a serious genius because now bananas are shipped all around the world. She only ate locally grown food.

Since I asked her who she was voting for, I just had to know since I knew she lived in San Francisco area, she asked me the same. I told her and she asked why. I was silent for a good minute then I said I don't know because suddenly I worried that I might be on a plane with a person who might get loud or upset. I might be all wet about that but thinking of altercations in planes in the news lately I figured I didn't want to be one. She knew I just didn't want to talk more about it and she was very kind. I did say Sarah was a godly woman earlier. She asked me about what our son was for Halloween and I said we're not big on it but sometimes he goes and dresses up as long as it's not an evil character, and she asked what he went as last year and for the life of me I couldn't remember. I told her about when he was a cockatiel once and how I made his outfit.

My son picked me up in a souped up red sports truck. I didn't know that's what he drove. He's ten minutes from the airport. He was handsome to my eyes. He's 6'1". He kept telling me I looked good and I was embarrassed, but I felt good. My weight is down a little and I think it's a good weight for me. It's from all the dancing. We got to his home and his wife was on the sofa with the BABY! She let me hold her right away and a couple tears tried to make their way out of my eyes without permission. The baby is so small. She's put on two big pounds and now weighs all of seven pounds at age one month.



I cooked albondigas one night and they liked it a lot. She asked for the recipe so I think she really did like it. We went shopping and I bought my daughter-in-law some scissors and notions and fabric to make the baby a Halloween costume and it was so fun to buy purple fabric for a princess dress. I slept terrible the first night, then real well the next two nights. The strangest thing of all was I was comfortable with them. They were, seemed, surprised that my visit was so short. But I cannot stay gone too long. We missed three homeschool days with me gone. My younger son got sick and woke up the next morning and cried because I was gone. Shucks. It's good to be loved. I didn't know he felt that strongly about me. One afternoon my eldest son looked deep into my eyes, all serious, and said, "Ma, you know you're always welcome here, anytime, and to stay as long as you want, right?"

I did not dispense with advise or opinions. I helped out some, though not a tremendous amount. When the baby still cried in my arms my son took her and fixed her up and gave her back to me. I have never been great with babies. My son, I think he's going to be a good father. His wife, I think will be a good mother. I was impressed by their relationship. In my mind, my son, I remember the things he did which annoyed me so much when he was growing up. Those nuances of teenager-hood and young adulthood have disappeared. Where have they gone? I guess being 30 years old, wanting a family, now having one and knowing the immense responsibility of being the head of a family has erased those annoying teenager attitudes. His driving is fast but sharp. He is accustom to city driving. He showed me how to check in with the screen at the airport. I didn't know how to do that. When did it change that he should direct me and not me, him. He has a sureness to his step that I have not seen before. I felt a great sense of security that he was with me. How did that happen?



It's a process. Individuals either grow up and mature, or they don't. He has. He did. I am so proud. I am so proud. Perhaps when I thought I was too strict with him those years when he was young is not such a bad a thing as I thought. I did it because I feared he would grow into a criminal like his biological dad who has a rap sheet as long as my arm and this I do not exaggerate. My husband of 24 years changed our lives for the better. God knows.

The old man sitting on the other side of me in the plane on my way home was going to visit his great niece who was a colonel in the Air Force. She paid for his flight. I thought he must be well loved for his family to ask him to come out. He seemed almost Asian but I don't think he was. His breath was not unpleasant. His hearing was sharp. He said that they hadn't exactly told him why he was going there but he was expecting bad news about one of his relatives. Alzheimer's I think it was. He said to me, time changes things. And I agreed. Time changes things.

My ballot and! UPCOMING rally

It was a little complex doing a mail-in ballot. Filling out the forms to obtain the ballot made me nervous because if you make any boo-boos you're toast. My husband and I each phoned the registrar's office to ensure we understood the instructions. Apparently we filled everything out correctly and here's our ballot package. Look! I even got a cute little #2 lead, teeny, weeny, red, pencil as a memento!

And here is my ballot; my vote, my voice, my choice! All I have to do is lick the stamp and send her off!


Hold on to yer hat. You holding it? Doggone it, we're going to see Sarah Palin at the New Mexico rally on Sunday! They say there will be some 40,000 people there besides us so I don't know how close we'll be but I don't care! We're going to see her even if she's one inch tall from a mile away. We're going to hear her voice for real and not on the radio or t.v. We are supporting our party. Whew. Heady and exciting, isn't it. I don't wanna live in a socialist country. No sireee, no thank-you. It's about a four hour drive (one way) from here. I'm going to make a nice lunch to keep everyone happy on the road. But wait. It's a picture of our TICKETS! They're very photogenic.


I didn't know till yesterday that Obama desires to remove the cap off of the earnings workers pay into Social Security. Even as one who would benefit by Obama's plan I don't think it's a good idea. Social security was never intended to be sole support for retirees. Government caring for its citizens from cradle to grave is a nightmare. Obama says he'll lower taxes? My eye! I don't think I'd mind a Democrat for president but Obama was the most far to the left senator of the whole, entire Senate last year. Yipes!

Uhhhh

I have a little zit breakout. There's a zit on my cheek. I haven't had any zits for quite awhile but today I got several. I'm so disappointed.

I packed my purse. Three shirts, a cotton maxi dress that I'll sleep in, and I figure I'll just wear the same jeans the whole four days. I can wash them at their house. It's not as if I don't wear them four days in a row now without washing. I do that all the time. I'm taking a small make-up bag but the only time I wear make-up is for dance class so I guess I'm planning on trying to look nice but I probably won't wear a spot of make-up. I used to love mascara but it sort of bugs me now for some reason.

And I will not give unasked for advice! Support only and much love. :)

Got my albondigas (Mexican meatball soup) recipe. My iPod. My camera equipment. I'm not taking the tripod but I wish I could. I'm taking a deviled egg half sandwich which I hope won't be confiscated. You can only take three ounce bottles in carry on. That's purty little. Husband gave me $150 bucks. He doesn't like it when I walk around with no money which, I walk around with no money all the time. Haha! I love him without reserve. He's my everything.

The debate was okay. I thought McCain's biggest hit was when he pointed out Obama benefited from lotsa $$$ from Freddie Mac. I can't understand why the polls are going so much in Obama's favor. I could write a whole paragraph on that topic. Here it is:

I can't understand why the polls are going so much in Obama's favor. I can't understand why the polls are going so much in Obama's favor. I can't understand why the polls are going so much in Obama's favor. I can't understand why the polls are going so much in Obama's favor. I can't understand why the polls are going so much in Obama's favor. I can't understand why the polls are going so much in Obama's favor. I can't understand why the polls are going so much in Obama's favor. I can't understand why the polls are going so much in Obama's favor. I can't understand why the polls are going so much in Obama's favor. I can't understand why the polls are going so much in Obama's favor. I can't understand why the polls are going so much in Obama's favor. I can't understand why the polls are going so much in Obama's favor. I can't understand why the polls are going so much in Obama's favor. I can't understand why the polls are going so much in Obama's favor.

Am I messing with you? Aw, I get a boot out of myself. I'm serious though.

I hope sleep will come to me without delay tonight. G'nite!

Tuesday

Tomorrow afternoon I'm flying out to see my new granddaughter. She will turn one month old while I'm there. I won't be back till Saturday late, so remember that. After tomorrow I won't post till Saturday, or possibly Sunday if I'm too tired to turn on my computer. If it goes really, really, well, you'll hear about it. If it goes really, really, badly, you'll hear about it. Haha! I'm kind of excited and anxious and happyish.

I have to hem my son's new jeans today before I go. I have to wash my jeans. I'm taking one change of clothes in my purse so I can just do carry on. I will take my camera backpack and my purse. My purse is quite large so it'll carry what I need and I'm only staying two full days and the other two days are partly travel. I'll use all their bathroom stuff so I don't need to pack toiletries. I have to print out my ticket. I need to boil a chicken and shred it because my husband is making a batch of enchiladas today. I have to homeschool today, course. And I have to finish this 58 question questionnaire about family and education for my friend who's working on her Master's degree.

My mantra is "It's all about the baby." And I'm thinking of the baaaaby as "The-Most-Beautiful-Granddaughter-in-the-World" in Jules' words because Jules is such a good grama.

I refuse to let the devil rule my relationships or my life. I am stepping out in faith. I declare God is the ruler of my relationships. God. Is the ruler. Of my relationships! And I will share the gospel in this generation. I will show the gospel.

A good hair day

I don't know what's up but I had a good hair day today. At church a young mom stopped me to tell me she thought my hair was pretty and she talked for a few minutes about her hair. She gave hers to LOL twice.

About wearing hair down. I made a decision. I've decided that I will not decide when to wear it down. Instead I will let it decide when to wear it down. What I mean is, I often decide I want to wear it down but then I find it's ugly; it flips up weirdly at the bottom, or it's not fluffy, or it has bloops in it. It makes me unhappy. Instead what I shall do is look it over and if it looks good then I'll grab the opportunity to wear it down. I will have no expectations. That way, I can't be disappointed. That's what I did today. I washed it yesterday and slept with it over the top of my pillow and purely by chance, I woke this morning and it looked great. I feel really accomplished in the hair department today.

And after church I wore it in a low bee butt bun like Kara has in her sig. First time. It was a little off center but still, I was happy I actually, finally, created it and it stayed in place perfectly well.

Let's see. Do I have anything of import and significance to add. Hmmm. Hmmmm. Hmmmmm.

No. I searched my mind and this is my best stuff. Like when I'm sitting with my husband and I guess I have a serious expression on my face and he says, "What are you thinking?" I shrug my shoulders and say, "Nuthin." And it's completely true. Hahaha! I make him laugh when I do that.

The girl of my dreams

(I was going to do this post on October 1 but when I thought I had no growth I was extremely disappointed so I didn't feel like hair talk. I have a good update today though.)

This! is Cinnamon Hair. I found her accidentally. Actually, technically, I remember her from a long time ago when she posted Hair Towel How-to for Longer Lengths but it wasn't until last week when I saw her most recent pictures and I thought she has the hair I want. I asked her if I could keep her picture and put it on my blog and she said okay. I want my hair to get as long and as pretty as hers. She's 25 years or so younger than I (we shan't hold that against her, haha!) so I haven't got a big chance for the pretty part (she's sweet as a petunia too), but it is good to have someone with hair similar to mine to look at while I wait two or more years to get there. Her photo shows her at 54.5" (she 56" now) and she's 5'6". I'm 43.5" at 5'2".

******
Something exciting just happened while I was blogging. I was looking for Cinnamon Hair and I found a long hair girl named Teazel left me a note on my page at the hair board! And I looked at Teazel's page and what did I see? My name! She called me a hair twin. Wow. I'm happy. She's a 1bMii like me. She has a ton of hairstyles on her page too. My son kept saying "I like that one, and that one, and that one." Her hair looks so silky. Now I know two ladies with hair that somewhat resembles mine. When it rains it pours.

I almost forgot to put my own pic up. I got some today that our son took for me. I also have a gigantic, upbeat, update to my October 1st update.

We thought I measured exactly the same this month as last (43 1/8") and I was not a happy camper. I can deal with one month of no growth but two in a row? I don't think so. So. I asked our son to measure me again today and guess what. He said 43.5 which means it did grow. It makes sense because it truly feels longer to me. Also he had measured me mid-month in September and it was showing growth and today I reminded him about it (I had just recalled it myself) and he said (we both said) it was strange. Okay, so we re-measured and there is 1/2 inch growth. I did trim off a few, very few hairs, and I didn't mention it and I wondered if those few hairs I trimmed were the growth part. Anyhoo, I cannot account for the odd, problematic measurement this month. It's very strange.

I think I can say I am thigh length! I felt the ends tickle my thighs this month. That's a first. I will get a trim of one to three inches in March. Cinnamon Hair trims once a year. Me too. :)

Fall in the air

I got out of bed promptly at 10:58am. There's a light, soft, cool, wind. It feels like the beginning of fall. It's lovely and sunny. There might be a storm tonight. I took a Tylenol PM last night at 10:30pm so that's why I slept so long. I had a niggling headache and thank goodness it's gone and I can have a normal day. I've never had so many headaches. My husband says it's a perimenopause symptom. He's cooking eggs right now. He's making deviled eggs to take to the housewarming.

O.J. is convicted on all counts exactly 13 years to the day after he was acquitted for killing Nicole and her friend. Is that weird or what. He could be sentenced to life! At age 61 if he gets 30, or even 20 years, he's toast. Finally some justice is served. It's kinda hard to appeal 12 guilty verdicts.

Michigan's Republicans don't want McCain to pull out. California's Republicans are clamoring for Sarah to come do a rally. I don't think Bush even bothered with California last time. I dream of a red California. Although we left our home state (we are now registered in the great state of Texas - a very red state) I still hope the best for California. Old Arnie finally had to tell his congress to quit sending any more bills until they got the budget done. He said any more bills sent before the budget would be vetoed. I voted for Arnold before we left.

I haven't done my Bible morning reading for almost a week. That's bad. Very bad. That's means my priorities are upside down. I've been looking at the online news before I read then I get distracted with daily duties and don't do my reading a'tall. Oh dear. I have to turn this off NOW and go read some Deuteronomy and my daily devotion. Well, I'll just publish my post then walk away from this machine instead of turning it off. Then I will sew some hearts for my quilt.

Touch of envy

Another mom I know has decided to return to school and she's working toward her Master's degree in education. She's excited and doing exceedingly well. I'm a little jealous. That and a wooden nickel, for what it's worth, will buy you a cup of coffee.

I met with a lady at church today and I'm going to be her assistant. She wants to teach the kidlets a song with hand motions. It's fun. I think it would be a great outlet for the kids, a good way to keep them busy, and could be a time of fellowship as well. We talked and practiced today for an hour and a half just she and I. We decided to always pray before we start and after we finish. She wants to gets the kids together to do something special for Christmas. We don't yet know if any kids will sign up!

Because we met at 10:30am I ended up canceling our homeschool day. I can't do that again though so I told her we need to schedule some other time to meet. I hope it won't be a problem.

Today I ran 3/4 of the way uphill from the marina. Man, I thought my lungs might 'splode and my legs were burning. It was great though. I'm doing it again tomorrow.

And we got McCain/Palin yard signs. Ten. I plan to hand them out tomorrow at a housewarming we're going to. I would plant one in front of our trailie but you can't do that in a state park. Our son put a giant on on the back of his bike trailer. Pretty cute.

"She's gonna be president someday."

That's what my husband said tonight while we were listening to her debate with Joseph Biden. He has sooo many years of experience. I know I should take the opportunity to be all articulate and whatnot, but what I have to say about Sarah is, I love her. She worked it. She played the game. She rocked. She look pretty while she did it. (Loved the suit, the hair, the pumps.) She got the job done. We need some Main Street, Wasilla, in Washington, D.C.

I did think she could have mentioned that we haven't been attacked since 9/11. I guess that'll come out after Bush leaves office. You know he's up nights thinking about it and making sure the United States of America is kept safe.

Sarah did a heck of a job and I can't see how even a Democrat could refuse to admit it!

I am glad

Our son studied quite independently today. And I went to a meeting and am going to work with another lady at church on a dance for the kids. After dinner I walked down to the marina and back. It's a giant downhill and uphill so it's good to build strength in my legs and to increase stamina. Lost a piece of my earring though and got three mosquito bites.

It was a real good day. The first day of October. I started out feeling sick and ended up feeling fine.