Eighty Years Young

Eighty years young, My step-father or Dad will be 80 years old on the 28th of this month. We celebrated his birthday last night with a surprise birthday party of friends and family. And truly a big surprise it was. He was so mad at my Mother. We all feared for his health. Mom had told him early in the week that everyone was coming to my house to eat at 7:00. According to Lou if the appointed time is 7:00 you should be there at 6:45 or on the dot at 7:00. Mom's job was to stall him and have him here at about 7:15. So, she had to finish watching a show on HGTV, find the car keys, call me to see if I needed anything, you get the pictures. He was livid. When they finally got here, Lou was truly surprised. "Happy Birthday". Click on the above photo for a slide show of his birthday party.

The next lie of the week was his birthday present. All of my life Lou has been a dog person. He loves his dogs like his children. In the pass 6 months, he has had two dogs pass away to old age. It has been so hard on him. At first Mom and Lou said no more dogs. Lou would say "I'm to old". I do not need another dog. Mom would tell me that he was so sad. I do think that this birthday has really bother him. So started the search for a little chihuahua puppy. I adopted her from the Southern Hope Rescue group in Roswell, Ga. Lou has named her Bambi and boy is she a cutie. At 4 months old and weighing 2 and half pounds, Bambi has captured every one's heart. Her little tail wages all the time. When I gave her to Lou, Bambi snuggled into his neck, gave him a couple of licks and won the heart of a tired old man. Lou just said, with tears in his eyes "come here sweet heart". She has been his constant companion.
Eighty years, where will I be in 80 years? Will I still live in Fayetteville, Ga, will I be surrounded by seven grandchildren, friends and family? What will my health be? What kind of stories will I have to tell? What will the world be like? What kind of car will I drive? What will life be like in 2038? No one every thinks of being 80 but we will all be there some day. What will you life be like? Let me know as you think about these questions.

Handy Woman's Hint #4

Sorry that I missed everyone last week. I was attending a Handy Man Convention in Las Vegas. Me and the Buds had a great time. Here the Handy Woman's Helpful Hints #4:

15 Energy-Saving Tips

1. Install and use an automatic setback (programmable) thermostat. You can reduce you heating and cooling costs by 5 to 15 percent.

2. Insulate pipes, especially if they pass through an area you don't want heated or cooled.

3. Change furnace filters every month, or more often if needed.

4. Have a furnace tuneup to clean and adjust burners and improve fuel-burning efficiency.

5. Install light controls like motion sensors, photocell switches and timers to shut off lights automatically when they're not needed.

6. Clean the air conditioner condenser coils and fins when you see grass and airborne debris collected on them.

7. Shade your windows with trees, awnings, overhangs, shutters or other devices to keep direct sunlight from entering your home.

8. Replace light bulbs used more than two hours per day with compact fluorescent bulbs. Florescent bulbs last longer and use only one-third as much energy as standard bulbs.

9. Seal the joints of heating and colling ducts that run through attice and basements.

10. Wrap the tank of your gas-burning water heater in a special fiberglass blanket to decrease heat loss. Check your owner's manual to make sure a blanket is recommended for your model.

11. Replace worn-out thresholds and weather stripping around windows and doors.

12. Fix leaky faucets; dripping hot water can cost $35 per year.

13. Buy gas stoves with electronic ignition rather than pilot lights.

14. Reduce hot water usage by replacing high-volume shower heads with low-flow heads (2 to 3 gallons per minute). Save up to $40 per year.

15. Replace recessed light fixtures with airtight models when you remodel.

Hope these helpful hints help save a few dollars and improve our planet.
The Mascot

What can be more fun to watch than a little boy and a water hose. This is my little nephew, Bryce. He is 18 months old and the whole world is his class room. Bryce wants to touch, smell and taste everything. Every thing is new and exciting to him. My poor little dogs are scared to death. He moves to fast and makes loud noises. Bryce has kept us all entertained. He loves to run and jump in the pool. His little life jacket was the best 12.00 I have ever spent. Days like this is really what summer is all about. A warm August day, family and fun. Happy Summer to everyone. To enjoy this summer day with us click on the picture above.

What Summer Is All About

I have been out of the loop for the past week. My sister and her family are here visiting from California. My niece, Makayle, is eleven and half and loves to come to Georgia. We also have a another niece, Skylar who is also eleven and half. They are one month apart in age. Since birth they have been like sisters. Neither one has a sister and so it works for them. They are such a joy to have around. I have watched them grow with love in my heart. Both of them are starting middles school in the fall. This summer we have been to Lake Jackson and tubed behind a boat, made bead bracelets and flip flops with different colored fabric. They have spent the last five days at my house. They are now rock stars after mastering X-Box guitar hero. We went last night to eat all you can eat crab legs. The girls were in heaven. Mckayla ate 6 servings and wanted more. Uncle Freddy was ready to go and promised ice creams. If was hard for Mc to leave, she wanted more. Fred and I went to high school with the man who owns the restaurant. He kept bringing her more servings. I told him next time I would drop Mc off an hour or two before us to eat. Lindsey said bring her and he would feed her. Any way the girls have had a great time and my house is awful quite tonight. I needed a break but already miss them. Click here for some summer fun with two 11 year old. It will to bring a smile to your heart.

Handy Women's Hint #4

Sorry guys, I have been on the other side of town all day. I left the house at 8:30 and returned at 7:30. I will post the Handy Women's hint tomorrow. Thanks, Miss Priss

To Delicate to Fly

A dragonfly is a type of insect belonging to the order Odonata. It is characterized by large multifaceted eyes, two pairs of strong, transparent wings, and an elongated body. The adults can be differentiated by the fact that the wings of most dragonflies are held away from, and perpendicular to, the body when at rest.
Dragonflies typically eat mosquitoes, and other small insects like flies, bees, and butterflies. They are therefore valued as predators, since they help control populations of harmful insects. Dragonflies are usually found around lakes, ponds, streams and wetlands because their larvae, known as "nymphs", are aquatic. Adult dragonflies do not bite or sting humans, though nymphs are capable of delivering a painful (though otherwise harmless) bite.
Dragon Flies are such amazing little creatures to me. If you start at their head with their big bulging eyes, they are kinda ugly. Their eyes are not portioned to their body.
There body is next. It can be quit interesting. It is kinda furry and normally has an interesting pattern. The body is really interesting to look at.
Their tails can come in an assortment of colors. I seem to have the blue ones around my pond or the clear/blue ones.
Legs are long and skinny, not much to look at. I do wish mine were a little skinnier.
Their wings are the best part. They look like lace. It seems like the breeze would just go through them. When the sun shines on their wings they turn a gold color. I really think that they are the most beautiful part of the little bug called a Dragon Fly.

July Photo Contest Entry

SUNSET IN PARADISE

RED CATEGORY

JULY 17,2008

It was really hard to pick just one picture for the red category of this photo contest. Sunsets in Shell Point are so special to me. I share them with the moon rising in back of me, the sea and good friends. I love sunsets due to the wonderful surroundings.

Pet Peeves

Pet Peeves? Do you have any? I have a few and one of them is the expiration date on products, especially food items. This week I was so lucky to bring home from the grocery store tiny little moths that live on boxes. Summer is the prime time for them and I know better. Anyway they thought they would take up residence in my pantry. WRONG! These uninvitied guest did prompt me to empty my pantry, throw away out of date items and wipe everything off.

Some the problems of finding and reading expiration dates. None of them are in the same place, some are unreadable and some items do not have one at all. Are these items good forever? Spices are the worst to look at. Please take a trip through my pantry and one of my pet peeves. Click here for the trip.

Let me know, what is one of your pet peeves? I say one because I do have many.

Handy Woman Hints #3

21

MONEY AND ENERGY SAVING IDEAS THAT DON'T COST A DIME

1 Lower the indoor temperature a few degrees in winter. Set it even lower at night and a full 10 degrees when you're on vacation. You'll save 2% per degree.

2 Close the fireplace damper when the fireplace isn't in use. If it's never used, seal the flue with a plastic bag stuffed with insulation.

3 Open shades and blinds to let in sunlight during the day and close them to reduce heat loss at night. For cooling, reverse.

4 Close off unused rooms and lower the temperatures by adjusting the registers and dampers. You'll save 50.oo a year.

5 Clean your furnace's blower fan with a soft brush and vacuum cleaner.

6 Turn off lights not in use. Reduce bulb wattage and use dimmers when you can.

7 Ventilate and cool your home with window or whole house fans during the cooler hours of the day.

8 Fill clothes washers and dishwashers for more efficient energy use, rather than half full.

9 Skip the dishwasher's drying cycle and cut the energy use by half.

10 Wash clothes in cool rather than hot water.

11 Clean clothes washer and dryer lint screens after every use.

12 Clean refrigerator coils with a soft brush annually, or more often if you have pets that shed.

13 Run major appliances late in the evening or early in the morning when electric loads are less (off peak).

14 Flush your garbage disposer with cold water rather than hot. Grease solidifies in cold water and will wash away.

15 Cook more efficiently using microwaves, slow cookers and pressure cookers.

16 Turn off room air conditioners when you leave for an hour or more. You can quickly cool the room later.

17 Recycle. Reuse. Take your bike instead of your car.

18 In warm weather, set the thermostat higher (75-78 degrees) and rely more on ceiling and table fans for cooling, even when the air conditioner is running.

19 Reduce humidity in bathrooms and kitchens with exhaust fans.

20 Consider higher-efficiency appliances when purchasing new refrigerators, freezers and dishwashers. They will pay for the highest cost.

21 Lower hot water heaters setting to 120 degrees for both energy savings and safety.

Side note: I used a different picture last week with little success. I two comments on that guy. Today and in the future I will use the "Mascot". I is great for the eyes.