Dreaming the dream!!!

The end of a busy, busy week but it was a good one. Glad I can go back to work and rest for a while though!!! Man!!! I ate so much this last week that I am almost sick at my stomach today!!! Had the last of the hoop-rah today. I always have Sunday meals, as many of you know. Asked Brandon what he wanted for his birthday meal and he said Pizza. So I baked a chocolate, chocolate chip cake and order Pizza from Pizza Hut. We sang to him (Josh, Terry and I), he blew out his candles and said he's already gotten his wish. LOL. Not sure what that was!!!

Anyway, since I forgot to say what I was thankful for last night I am going to hit it twice tonight. I am thankful for delivery pizza to where you never have to get out of the house. No matter how cold it is and you get hot pizza within 30 minutes. Rock on!!! Then the second thing I am thankful for today is box cake mix, box instant pudding mix and a few chocolate chips thrown in the mix makes an awesome, fast, moist cake in 35 minutes. No measuring, sifting, mixing a cake from scratch. I'm tired of cooking today, I needed a rest from cooking, anyway I could get it. :o)

Well, the boys have been here today and they both left earlier. They crack me up the way they throw wisecracks back and forth. Raising an only child I see how much I missed not having two. Except I am sure I missed on the sibling rivalry, which is something I'm glad I missed out on!!! Of course I worry about them all including Brandon's brothers Josh and Jeremy and my prayers always go to them too. I've never met Jeremy but he calls Terry lots and he is really proud of him and I can tell he's a good person too. Josh is an excellent daddy and does everything he can to make sure Madison is taken care of. I wish they could be closer to us and we could see her more but thank goodness she isn't farther away than what she is!!!

I don't have anything I am on the soapbox for right now so I am sure you guys are like, "There IS a God!!!" but I know one thing, this weather makes me think about seed catalogs that start coming in about January!!! I love planting plants and growing vegetables. There is so much potential here in our yard but it is a little tough with me living in Springfield and we get a good week or two of 100*+ temperatures but I'm going to see if I can get Terry more involved in watering. :o) As Brandon always tells me, he'll do anything for you. I like that!!! LOL. I would really, really like to do raised gardens and tier planting. In 1999 I took classes through the University of Missouri Extension Center and am a Certified Master Gardener which I really enjoyed. I get emails from them all the time and I got one the other day about the Grow Native classes on Missouri Landscaping I think I will take. I enjoy all that kind of stuff. I really, really should have went hot and heavy into Horticulture classes and graduated with a degree but I didn't. :o( Would like to get into Horticulture Therapy when I retire. May look closer into that. It would be a fun job for me, doing something I love and could maybe do part time. Maybe get a community garden started or something like that. I would love to teach the children and others how to garden and reap on their produce.

Another thing I use to think would be so cool but not sure how it could materialize, but has always wanted to have some acreage and have a working farm for teenagers that are in the court system, or troubled youth and teach them how to live off the land. Have a huge garden, cows, pigs, chickens and have a restaurant on the primises. Everything sold in the restaurant we either grew, had butchered or canned. We'd have fresh eggs, cheese, cream. Would only have to buy like flour, sugar, tea and coffee. Drinks but make pies from the fruit on the farm. Also teach quilting, crocheting, embrodery, the boys could learn how to maintain the farm equipment, and everyone would get paid wages. They would have days off, just like everyone else but they could live there too. You'd go to school or get a GED and eVERYONE would go to church every Sunday. Also, anyone that wanted to go on and go to college, I would help them and show them how this can become a reality for them in a world where in the past has been a hopeless situation. I'm not talking about a cult, by no means. Just teach them the lost arts that are sadly going by the way side and teach them that no matter what life hands to you, you can make a honest living.

I also would like to have it to be a resource for the community too. It has been a dream of mine for a long, long time. Not sure it could ever materialize but hey....it doesn't hurt to dream.

Those are two of my dreams. Another one is to own one of those old general stores with the huge glass windows in the front. I'm talking old, old ones like use to be in Quick City before it blew up in the Meth Lab explosion or the one in Ohio on A Highway outside of Lowry City. Make it a Made In USA store. Nothing sold in there unless it was made in the USA, Like an old General Store. Also have a little mom and pop type of cafe there and sell donuts and breakfast in the morning and have a lunch time menu too. Dream, dream, dream. I do alot of that. I would garden there too. Gotta love me, I do have my dreams.

Well, we are watching a really good James Taylor special on HDNet TV. Getting ready to watch my movie tonight too. Remember, I talked about it the other day???

Anyway, tomorrow I have to head back down south. Terry and the "kids" will stay until I make it back on Friday. I feel he might come down more after the first of the year. Not sure why, just think he will. As long as he doesn't have to stay down there all week he's okay. Think he misses me just gets really bored, which I don't blame him one bit.

Any way. Talk to you guys later and have a warm evening.