Fish Pedi

Thanks to a generous gift from my boss, Mom and I experienced something only "city folk" could think up...a fish pedicure.  Perhaps you've seen it on the Today Show or Good Morning America, or perhaps you've never heard of it before and your shaking your head already.  A fish pedicure involves your bare feet, a tub of water, and a large family of hungry, sharp-toothed fish.  Think piranha on a gold-fish sized level.  Okay, so perhaps it wasn't quite that severe, but it was definitely an experience.

Once we were over the first shock of the extreme tickling sensation, we were able to sit back and relax against the waterfalls.

The fish especially loved Mom's feet...yum yum.

After twenty minutes of being submerged with our hungry little friends, we were then ushered to two thrones.  Mom had never had a pedicure before, so her Ooohs and Aaaahs entertained the Vietnamese ladies working on our feet.  We had forty-five minutes of relaxation, and then they painted our now very soft feet.

We must have looked like we needed some extra pampering because they offered coffee, tea, and soda.  RELAXATION at its finest.

After the pedicure, we had manicures, and whuuaaalah.  We're now complete...or are we now beautiful?  One of the two...or maybe both.

Taking a Break

I'll be taking a break from from blogging .  You'll have to check out other blogs for entertainment or boredom (whichever you get out of this one) for a while.

Correction

My last Chicken tip was incorrect, brought to my attention from none other than Judy West Nelson.  Please excuse my lack of research and statement that in order to have eggs, you must have a Rooster.  I stand corrected--in order to have chicks, you must have a rooster, but hens will lay yummy eggs without their man.

Here, Chik chik chik

In honor of Mrs. Kara West, I'd like to share some simple ways to take care of chickens. After all, you yourself may also find six chickens in your backyard some day! Here's to farming!
1. While chickens are capable of finding their own food (bugs and seeds in the ground), they do require some additional nutrient supplement. No, Cliff bars won't work. Sprinkle Scratch in their pen along with your kitchen scraps (fruit, veggies, and bread). Don't forget to provide water.
2. Do you like long walks on the beach? So do they--but they prefer your yard. Don't keep your chickens cooped up all day. Consistently allow them to roam free. You'll find their eggs to be healthier and tastier. A happy, exercised chicken = yummy scramblers.
3. Winter weather can be difficult. You won't find chicken sweaters and booties at Petco, so you will need to take extra precaution to keep your feathered friends from freezing. Cover the pen and the coop windows with plastic to limit drafts. During the day, allow your chickens out of the coop. If you don't, they will quickly tire of each other and fight with their siblings.
4. Hungry? No eggs? Simple. Place a plastic egg or golf ball in the fresh nest. Your gal will get the idea. I wonder if this works with husbands..."Heather, what's this baby doll doing on my pillow?"
5. Most importantly, and especially for Kara, if you would like your hens to produce eggs, you do need a rooster. Can't live with 'em, but certainly can't live without 'em!

Vote YES for Bundling

Jesse and I woke up extra early this morning to carry ourselves to the voting booths (our first time voting at a booth and not on an absentee ballot or Oregon's paper ballots). We bundled in our wool coats to protect against the chilly 37 degrees, and of course we rewarded ourselves with a cup of coffee.
Gloves and scarves have made their way to the front of the closet once again as the temperature drops. In just a few days, the 60s have turned into 50s, and it's almost too cold to keep our windows open at night. People at work laugh at me when I bundle up to venture out for lunch, saying "You're from Oregon, you should be used to this cold." Don't they realize I haven't lived in a cold climate for over 7 years??? I will wear my layers proudly!

Scribbles

Some afternoons call for a coloring session, and yesterday was one of them. Football, snack size snickers, and a box of crayons. Doesn't get much better than that.

Weekend

Saturday consisted of a meandering country drive in Virginia's finer places, a box of freshly made apple donuts from a little bakeshop located in the middle of nowhere, and dinner with Jay and Brenda. The weekend was topped off with punkin' cookies...

Friday Refresh

Friday always seems to come at the just the right moment. The calendar shows one more day in the line up of days, but somehow, Friday seems to wrap it all up. Thanking God it's the end of the work week today.

Thursday Thought

I desire to do your will, O my God, your will is within my heart.
-Psalm 40:8

There is a season...to Fall

Despite this year not producing a vibrantly colored autumn, I still find myself looking up. I'm a tourist in New York who has never seen a skyscraper. I'm a traveler from the desert who feels the ocean breeze on her face for the first time. It's amazing to witness the change in the trees, and I'm not afraid to stop amidst the rush hour to experience this incredible transformation.
This coming weekend, we plan on making a small trip to Shenandoah Valley, driving along Skyline Drive. I thought spring time was beautiful with the cherry blossoms scattering the region, but this season by far earns the gold star. Not sure I'll ever tire from it...until it's time to snow.

Word of the Day

The clock screamed 10:23pm, yet Jesse sat on the edge of our bed literally reading the dictionary. He had grabbed the robust red book to look up a word (that I might add I insisted wasn't a word...and I was right), and he found himself in a realm of verbs, nouns, and adjectives. He was mesmerized and completely satisfied to fore go a few minutes of sleep to skim the small-print pages. I buried my head in my pillow, trying to fall asleep amidst his explanation for each new word he found. And I'll admit, I did listen in because after all, words are way more fascinating than sleep.
The word of the day: prink.
It means to deck oneself out; to deck out or dress for show.
Now, I definitely didn't spend time prinking this morning when choosing my wardrobe for work, but I did consider what it might be like to go to work looking as such. Needless to say, I will be adding this new word to my vocabulary.
(Oddly enough, when I used the spellcheck on the blog, it assured me prink isn't a word. Guess I need to let them know their dictionary is not expansive enough!) :)

Imaginary Friends

Our refrigerator door is currently home to a bright yellow piece of construction paper. Scribbles in every color scatter the page, and if you didn't know what it was, you might wonder why we are displaying such an odd piece of "art." Some friends of ours have a three year-old daughter who has an expansive imagination and a bright little mind. She has a great sense of humor, she understands how to speak the English language better than most fifth graders, and yet she's still this tiny little girl revelling in her three year-oldness. After she finished her scribbles on the yellow paper, her mom asked her to share about what she'd drawn. Bella began explaining that each color was a friend of hers, and she proceeded to name each scribble with a proud smile on her face. It wasn't until last week that I learned that her best friend, Tricka--the brightest and biggest scribble on the page--is in fact an imaginary friend that visits every Thursday. Tricka comes over and plays at Bella's house once a week, and they are best of friends.
Despite this being one of the cutest things I've heard, and amazing that she's so particular that the imaginary friend only visits on Thursdays, I started thinking about how I kind of have an imaginary friend myself. You can't see Him, you can't touch Him, and it can be very difficult to hear Him. But the best part, is He's not imaginary at all. He doesn't visit once a week, but instead He is there all the time, when I feel I need Him, and when He knows I need Him. He never leaves my side.
So the yellow paper is on my refrigerator door, not just as art, but as a reminder of my own "Imaginary" Friend.

The Cops and the Bees, the Monuments and the Trees

I'm a little late on the draw in sharing this story, as perhaps it was broad casted in the far regions of the country. Monday brought "Breaking News" to the DC Metro area televisions. Now, normally Breaking News means there has been a shooting, a terrible storm, or even the sighting of the First Lady taking Bo for a walk. This news story, however, was just a tad bit different. "DC Cop hits Transformers' Bumble Bee." Apparently the cop operating the vehicle wasn't aware the street was closed for filming Transformers, and just as Bumble Bee was pulling onto the street for a chasing scene, a DC cop smashed right into him. Bystanders were appalled by the carelessness of the policeman, and the little boys in this region were devastated and concerned for Bumble Bee's safety. I'll admit living in DC has its drawbacks, but it's not every day we get to see real, live action!!!
On a side note, I was driving in downtown DC on Monday night, when I saw flashing red and blue lights coming toward me. I pulled over to the side to then see there was a film car chasing the policeman down the street...watch for a red 2010 Toyota Corolla in a police car scene in the movie when it comes out. :) There will be a blond girl sitting in the front seat with a huge smile on her face and waving!!!

Little Reminders

Our home is scattered with little reminders of people and places we love. Haystack Rock rests in a frame over a bookshelf, candid family photos decorate our bedroom wall, and gifts from the past sit on shelves and tables. Some people like to decorate their homes eclectically, never really choosing a specific style to commit to. I like to think of our own home as not eclectic, but just one big reminder of where we come from and whom we love.
This morning, I redirected my fingers from picking up my diamond stud earrings to grabbing a pair of little heart earrings. My dear friend Susan who lives in Florida gave these earrings to me last year for Christmas. Her encouragement, her hugs, and her ever present smile kept me going on lonely days down in Florida. When I needed a Mom-hug, she was always there to give one. So today, I have little reminders hanging from my earlobes. A little touch of love to make my heart swell in memories.

Nothingness Leads to Everythingness

"Weekends don't count unless you spend them doing something completely useless."

~Bill Watterson

This past weekend allowed for some leisurely activities, but it was heavily orchestrated by piles of sticky notes reminding me of my To Do Lists. Some days it feels like I'm on turbo speed--able to accomplish ten times as many activities as normal--and this weekend was one of them. After two full and busy days, I sat back and revelled in all that I had accomplished. The floors were vacuumed and mopped, every surface was dusted, the bathrooms were sparkling clean, every nook and cranny was clear of clutter, and the spare bedroom closet was reorganized and labeled to smithereens. Sticky notes no longer were clearly written but demolished by crossed-out lines and thrown into the trash. A book was read, a scarf was crocheted, a craft party was a hit. My weekend was a success, but was still lacking something.

How often do we sit back and do absolutely nothing? For me, it happens rarely. When I sit down to relax, I usually have something in my hands--whether it be a crochet project or my work iPhone--I am multitasking with something. Monday was a day off for Jesse and me, but unfortunately Jesse ended up having to work the whole day. This left me alone to continue trudging along through the weekend, completing errands and getting more house projects done. With him absent, I decided to challenge myself. Everything that needed to be done was done--nothing needed cleaning or organizing, and unless I wanted to tackle painting the guest bedroom, there was nothing waiting for my busy little hands to attack. So I sat. With my toenails drying from a quick self-pedicure, I sat back and did NOTHING. Granted this only lasted about five minutes, but still...there were five minutes void of doing. My mind wanted to wander to a world of lists, but I diverted those thoughts to things I'm thankful for. And it was then that I realized that perhaps nothingness is what leads us to everythingness. It's not until we stop amidst this crazy paced world that we see what we really have. Blessings poured into my heart and mind as I sat there, and in those short five minutes, I was more fulfilled than any checked off list could ever provide. Realistically, I know I will always find accomplishment in checking off my lists, but I think I'm realizing more and more that until I STOP and look around, I won't really see what God has provided. Blessings aren't seen or felt until I decide to look for them.