Personal Responsibility

Warning - here comes a pretty rabid rant about personal responsibility.

Two things have set me off today. First one was this morning, when I found a mess in the toilet in the rec center restroom. What is sooooo hard about flushing, people?!!! You don't have a right to do things that negatively impact other people, especially things about which you have some choice and control. Second, was Katy's post about healthy food choices and fast food companies. Hello America!!! YOU are resposible for what you put in your mouth for food, NOT anyone else!! Everyone should have a basic grasp on the concept of advertising in this country. Companies try to make food seem delicious and appealing, regardless of whether or not it has too much fat or has a lot of nutritionally empty calories. It's YOUR JOB to engage your brain and THINK about your food choices. The ingredients to food these days is well known. Hamburgers and fries have lots of unhealthy fat, and very little nutrients to offer. It's not rocket science, people. You should know better!! Get fat if you want to, but quit blaming it on other people!

Now, let's get scary and rant about government and politics. Government is for basic civilization - basic laws for the protection of its citizens from the willful harm of other people, be they foreign or domestic. Said government must have some kind of funds to run itself, thus we have taxes. There is also a basic necessity to regulate public interactions, from roads to food production. And it's nice if the goverment will chip in to educate the rising generation. But a government DOES NOT HAVE THE RIGHT OR RESPONSIBILITY TO ENSURE A UTOPIA!!! People will sometimes, or frequently, make choices that cause harm to other people. It seems like government these days is trying to encourage that behavior by saying, "It's okay to make poor choices, we'll clean up the mess!" A government cannot make everything "all better." People just have to suffer the consequences of their bad choices. Unfortunately, the innocent suffer, too, but we cannot make things better in the long run, if those who make the poor choices are buffered from the consequences of those choices. Buffering them, or eliminating the consequences altogether, will only make things worse.

A lack of personal responsibility is a huge part of what is wrong our country, and in the world, today. And government needs to let the individual person shoulder more of the responsibility for keeping this country strong. Be willing to govern yourself, or someone else is going to run your life for you, to your everlasting detriment.

Satisfaction

I've been doing this repairs-and-alterations thing for the dry cleaners over two weeks now. It was a little rough at the beginning, figuring out what to do with each piece, but like bike riding, the skills are coming back to me after a long hiatus. I've made a few mistakes, spending waaaaay too much time on some things, when I should have done something simple and quick, but overall, the satisfaction at having done a good job is immense.

Yesterday, I dropped off the latest batch of clothing, and sat in the back room of the dry cleaners with my sewing machine, working on a tricky piece of repair on a silk lingerie nightie. I usually do my sewing at home, but I needed to turn in the things that were due anyway, and wanted to consult with my manager, Johanna, on the nightie. The edges were fraying, and needed to be repaired with a serger, because a regular sewing machine will chew up the fragile edges, but I don't own one, and can't afford to invest in one right now. But I got this idea of using dissolvable interfacing to stabilize the edges while I zigzagged the edges. Wa-lah!! Worked like a charm. Then, when I was leaving, a woman came into the shop, needing a pair of business slacks hemmed up 9" (she was kind of short, and the pants had come with extra length so they could be hemmed for anyone), so I sat down with my machine, cut off the extra fabric, measured, folded the edges, and sewed a blind hem (you can barely see any stitches from the outside). 30 minutes, start to finish, and it looked professional. I handed them back to Johanna, and I was very satisfied with a job well done.

I can understand the appeal of getting yourself out of the house to go to work, where even a simple job can be satisfying if you do it well. Unlike raising children, which is complicated, messy, tedious, and very frustrating at times. Not to mention, terrifying when they wander off down the street while you're sitting in your craftroom. Close your eyes and put your hand over your heart. Sigh...

It's Dani All Over Again

I just about had a heart attack today. I'm almost crying as I write this, as the full impact of what could have happened sinks in. Connor has turned into a roamer, just walking right out of the house whenever he feels like it, and right into other people's houses. No boundaries, or fear, that kid. Aaaargghhhh!!! And today, he let Emma, another roamer in the making, out of the house, where she wandered off down our street (a little strip that ends in a culdesac) and onto the next, where there is a lot more traffic. There were two adults and two teenagers in the house, and nobody had a clue what was happening. The only reason we are not at the emergency room right now, have cops on our doorstep (don't count that out, yet), or both, is that Connor came back into the house and told me she was out in the street. I walked out of the house, irritated, thinking she was on the sidewalk or something, but no, when Connor started riding his bike out towards the main road, I started running, a sinking feeling in my stomach. I found her a few steps off the edge, just watching all the drama, and there was a silver pickup truck stopped on her side of the road, blocking traffic, and two more cars blocking traffic in the other direction. I just ran up to her, picked her up, and just held her, not even able to look at anyone, I was so grateful and freaked out at the same time. Now that I look back, I didn't even wave thanks to anyone, I just carried her back to the house. I was having flashbacks to nine years ago, when Dani roamed all over the neighborhood, and was run over in the neighbor's driveway. But Emma is smaller, and in that traffic, she would have been squished like a bug, that's it, she's gone. There'd be a funeral this weekend. Okay, I think I will cry now, and then go install locks at the TOP of the inside of the doors, so neither Connor nor Emma can get out.

Teach 'Em To Cook

Today, Gil asked me to make pancakes, as I have a lot this summer, but I was under such a deadline today, that I hurriedly told him to make some food for everyone, for once. After cooking an awesome breakfast (banana wheat pancakes, luscious omelet-style scrambled eggs, fresh fruit, and two types of juice), Gil says, "I am NOT going to be the cook in my house!" Uh, uh, uh! No, no, no! Gotta forget that I'm-a-man-and-I-don't-cook garbage. I told him he could help out his future wife, and improve upon his father's hot-dogs-or-take-out-pizza mentality. Besides, he loves experimenting with food, he even had a foods class in junior high about a year ago, which he really enjoyed. Gotta keep him going. Maybe I should make these kids take a night each week and cook dinner, just so they can learn some skills.

I couldn't pick one, soooo-


I guess this one's my favorite - "Yes, I am the Pancake Master!"

Dani Finally Cleaned Her Room

Okay, who besides Katy (thank you!), is reading my weight loss/health blog? Just curious. And I really want to get that recipe blog going, Becky's Kitchen Creations. One of the things that's helping my food issues right now is to experiment with food, kind of fun.

After three days of nagging (and making her favorite food, pesto linguine, and then telling her she couldn't have any until she cleaned her room), I finally got Dani to finish cleaning and sorting her room, so we moved the furniture. We are going to buy her a new bedding set, and paint the walls (heaven help me!)

A room overwhelmed by a mother's excessive craft supplies, and a tweenie's slobby mess.
Ditto.
Wahoo! She is so excited about her new, streamlined room. Let's hope it's easier to keep clean. I wish you could see how much junk she threw out, probably two black yard bags worth of plain junk. I've got some Polly Pocket stuff, Bratz, and play clothes we'll be bringing to the reunion. Dani is definitely out of the little girl stage, and into the teenager stage. She has a wonderful Build-a-Bear collection, but we are going to sell in on eBay to see if we can help pay for her bedding and paint.

I'm So Glad When Daddy Comes Home

Zen walked in the back door, just before lunch was ready today. It was so great to see him! I was missing him. But he goes out in the field again tomorrow in the wee hours, to go to Man Camp (that name still cracks me up!) It's always a mixed blessing - when he's gone, we miss him, but I know he's taking care of us by putting a roof over our head and food on the table, but when he's here too long, I worry because I know he's not making enough money to pay our bills. I hope someday we can be out of this frustrating, and heartwrenching, cycle.

Emma snuggled up to Zen, screeching for a sip of his soda pop.

But she was not amused with the delivery system.

See, bawling until the problem is fixed is the #1 weapon in a baby's arsenal. Love you daddy!!

When Dani came home from Girls' Camp, she noticed that Emma had molars. What?!! How come I didn't notice that? Although, I should have been suspicious from the runny nose she's had for nearly a week now. Seems like it always accompanies new teeth, and I forget it every time.

I Was in the Zone Today

Short and sweet post today. I got up, exercised, came home, bossed kids to help me clean the house. Love a clean house!!! I think it really helps overall mood and productivity. I worked on various things, I forget now, but I just stayed productive.

Zen called me while I was working out. He's in Pinedale right now, about 1-1/2 hours drive away, and he wanted us to come visit him so he could show us the town and take us out to eat. My first thought was, "Are you kidding, you're coming home tomorrow!" But I grumbled and told him I would ask the kids. But as the day progressed, I thought more and more about how hard Zen works for us, and it would be fun to spend some of the day with him. But, the teenagers protested a long car ride. Really, 1-1/2 hours?!! You guys have no idea. When I was a kid, we traveled for DAYS in a vehicle, and we liked it, darn it! Except when my dad randomly pulled over to take pictures, then we did lots of bellyaching. Besides, I figured I could save the gas money and out-to-eat money for when Zen is here this week, and we could take the kids to the county fair.

I finally got ready to sort through all this beading junk, and I really got into it, slashing the "keep" pile like crazy (Sue, you would be proud!) I didn't finish it all, but I'm pretty sure I'll be able to ship this stuff out Monday, and it will be this HUGE load off my mind, so I can concentrate on bringing in money selling off all this scrapbooking stuff. Go, go, go!!!

P.S. Jenn, I only went to Wal-Mart four times this week. Aren't you proud of me?

Drama Queen Is Back

I'm about to fall over at my computer, I'm so tired. Dani got back from camp today. I missed the deadline to make a big "reveal" out of her bedroom, but she was excited I was doing it anyway. I got all my stuff out of her room, but it hardly made a difference, because then I made the mistake of opening her closet. Apparently, any cleaning effort she's made in the past few months, has been stuffed into her closet. I should have taken a before pic, but I did take a pic of everything I pulled out of the closet:

It was so much worse than it looks. It was like she'd taken everything she owns and just threw it in the closet, even tiny little earring pieces. I found a set of Lia Sophia earrings that Lora had given some time in the past. For shame! I confiscated it on the spot. If I find the other earrings, I'm keeping the set. Please tell me the "messy" stage isn't permanent.

This is exactly how I feel. Could I crawl in bed, please?!!!

I've promised Dani a new bedding set, and that we will paint her room. She says she found one set online that she really likes, and that she's willing to help paint the walls. It should be interesting.

It didn't take us long to be at each other's throats, once she was back. "I wish I was back at camp!!!!" was the reponse she made to us, whenever we were on her nerves. Drama Queen is back!

Making Some Headway

Dude, 1:40 am, must sleep. I did good today, kept my flow going, although I had some spots where I wasted too much time with random things on the internet. Some days, it seems like I'd be better off not turning the dumb thing on in the first place.

There's more stuff on my health/exercise blog. Lost two more pounds today!

But, I'm making some progress getting rid of this craft stuff. See, Dani's room is a disaster, 'cause she's in that teen "I'm a slob" phase, at least I hope it's not permanent. The craft junk I have stored in her room isn't helping either, and she's been begging to rearrange her room. She comes home from camp tomorrow, and I want to surprise her with a cleaned-out-of-her-mom's-stuff rearranged room. Therefore, I need to move my craft stuff out of her room into my bedroom, but I've got to move the craft stuff from my bedroom out to the garage, which I accomplished tonight by rearranging and tidying the garage, and then moving the stuff from my room out to the garage. I'm going to try to do as much as I can before she gets home tomorrow, sometime around lunch. Here's hoping!

BeforeMan, when did we acquire so much junk? It's some kind of scary mark of adulthood, the amount of stuff you acquire, and then sits gathering dust in the garage. Remember when everything you owned fit in a suitcase and a couple beat up boxes?

AFTEROkay, maybe it's not that impressive, and you might have to live here to appreciate it, but now we can reach the tool bench without climbing over things, a huge bonus. What in the world can I do about that ugly oil stain on the floor, a bad scar left by Zen's broken car.

'Night y'all!

Zen Made a Funny

Sue - no comment, indeed. Your silence is deafening, and probably should continue, at least on that blog post. 'Scuse my shopping issues. But you better stay chatty on everything else!

Got up at 6:30 am with baby, and finally took myself in to my craftroom to finish some sewing repair that was due today. Took my stuff in, got lots more to do. Amen! Maybe I'll have a decent paycheck in a few weeks, well decent enough for an at-home piddly part-time job, anyway. Then I went to the Rec Center. I was too late to get the body bar class, but I punched up things on the elliptical, so it was worth it. Then, back home, taking care of kids, doing lots of little this and that all day, but I didn't goof off or anything. I made a great early dinner for Zen at 4pm - steak, potatoes, salad, & banana bread. I tried to catalog some things in my craft after 5pm, but Connor and Emma were driving me bananas! Some times, you can't get anything done with little children, especially when they are in the tear-everything-apart stage like Emma is. Briefly ran Gil over to the college, where he's working the sound board for a play. But, I gave up after 7pm and put the two little ones in the bike trailer, and rode over to the library. When they closed at 8pm, we went outside on the grass, but soon the mosquitos were feasting, so we went home. Then, it was various bits of this and that, like feeding and watering kids, getting kids ready for bed. Then I finished cataloging some things, and now I'm writing my blog posts before I go to bed.

Okay, you know that statement that no one is a good mother/parent after 8pm (Sue, you know who said it)? Getting kids in bed is the worst part of the day, because they are determined to stay up late, I'm tired, my brain hurts, and I just flip out and go into drill sergeant mode, and kick their butts in bed. I think sometimes, "I'm a nice person, really!" Ughhh.

Funny conversation last night when I came to bed:

Zen (groggy from already falling asleep) - "Honey, free snuggles!" (meaning cuddling without leading to you-know-what)

Becky - "There's no such thing as free snuggles."

Zen - "It's not my fault you always want more."

Bwah-ha-ha-ha-ha! Soooo funny, because the opposite is true, our roles are usually reversed. Zen made a funny!! I laughed over and over. Just one of those inside-joke conversations you can have with a great sweetie!

Hey, Jenn, I stayed out of Wal-Mart today! Like, no way!

done, 12:45 am, go to sleep!

Dani Off to Camp

Hot Stuff!
Well, I kissed a girl goodbye this morning, figuratively speaking. I tried to hug and kiss her last week, and she told me to stop. "I'm too old for that!!" Geez. But at least all the other kids are still snugglers, even that big teenage boy. Dani is waaaaaay too into her independence. Dani is off to her first Girls' Camp. The Young Women leaders encouraged her to go, even though she doesn't turn 12 for about three more weeks. I think she'll have a great time. I sent her with my small digital camera. I'm crossing my fingers it comes back still functional, or even comes back at all. But I was willing to risk it, because I think she'll have some pics to treasure.

My body woke me up around 6:30 am this morning (remember I went to bed last night about 1:30 am?) I'm glad my body is willing to get up that early again, all things considered. Seems like I couldn't get up before 8 or 9 these past few months. I think I just lay there, thinking, and wondering if I was going to get up or not. I finally threw some clothes on, and hauled all the beading stuff to my bedroom to spread it out, intending to get around to sorting all of it:

It's the beading collection of shame.

So much I have to return, so much. Hey, let's do some beading projects at the family reunion!!! Okay, I'm kind of kidding, because I appreciate the irony here, and kind of not, because it would be a super fun thing for us, and all the kids, to do, sitting around a camp table or two. That reminds me, are there any picnic tables at the campground? Do we want to braid leather keychains or anything? Just an idea. And I don't want to hear anyone mocking me for wanting more supplies when I'm returning so much. JUST SHUT UP. Here are a few projects I found:
Braided leather necklace - Okay, just a simple, braided necklace, we could easily change the pendant, or just remove it, make it short for a bracelet, or even shorter for keychains. Supplies wouldn't cost that much (geez, quit mocking me, you Dave Ramsey Nazi's!), and I bet we could do projects for as cheap as $2 or $3 a piece, and the nicer ones probably wouldn't cost more than $10 each, depending on what pendants and beads you want to add.
Dragonfly keychain - it's not leather braiding, but Sue, this reminds of of Sam C.

I think I'll skip all the detail about what I did today, just suffice it to say, I didn't waste time. I stayed busy, which is kind of the point, biking to the car dealership to get Zen's car, shopping at Wal-Mart, helping kids, then cleaning the kitchen & making bread. I sat down and looked at my email, which led to blog comments, which led to reading the weight loss blog Sue mentioned in her comments. Then around two, I focused on getting my sewing work done. I made dinner around 6:30, and somewhere around 7:30, the power went out. We ran to the library, which was closed, then came home and I just hung out in the driveway in a camp chair, watching the kids play. Then, picking up Zen from work, getting baby ready for bed, and now to bloggging. I still get distracted by so many things in the house, and with the kids, so I've got to work on staying focused, and structuring my days just like I worked at a job away from the house. But, Jenn I did go to Wal-Mart twice today. That makes three so far this week. Sheesh. When it's only five minutes from the house and is on the main drag, where I go to so many other places, it's no wonder I can wind up there practically everyday.

Emma got into the baby supplies box in the pantry, and drug out all the smaller binkies she's outgrown.

So many binkies, but only one mouth. What's a girl to do?

Emma LOVES hotdogs, almost as much as chocolate. Just give her one, and she takes off running around the house, all jazzed up with her travel snack.

Whew! Busy Day

Boy, it's 1 am, so I'll be quick, because tomorrow is going to be crazy, too.

Check out my new health/weightloss blog Battle For 200 & Beyond. I made my first post. Basically, it will list everyday what I eat, what exercise I do, and any other tidbits to share, such as tips I learn or feelings I'm having, etc.

Quick & dirty replay of today:

I got up at 6am this morning, and spent two hours meticulously planning an order with Notions Marketing. A few months ago, I placed an order, getting a batch of Wilton's long loaf pans, because they are such a great shape for making sandwich bread, square and just the right size. I finally got around to bringing the box of them to Relief Society yesterday, and they went like hotcakes, with requests for at least four more. I determined I wanted to order some more for my sisters, but I didn't want to order more stuff I didn't need or couldn't sell, so I tried to narrow it down to things I would actually use and/or sell easily.

Then, it was getting ready to exercise, talking to the kids, going to the Rec Center, coming home, more kids, showering and dressing (Oh! - as I was dressing, so was Zen, and I was trying to say something cheesy and cute about having a big naked man in my room, and Zen said something along the lines of "I don't think we fit into the attractive naked category anymore." As if we ever did. It just struck me as really funny at the time.) Then, we signed some more papers at the dealership for Zen's truck. Yes, the story is coming, maybe tomorrow. We did the shopping together at Wal-Mart (now that I'm trying to blog daily again, Jenn, you can count how many times I go to Wal-Mart in a week.) I kind of enjoy shopping with Zen. It's almost like a date.

We came home, and I prepared some cute treat bags for my VTs, because I felt crafty. My VTs came, then I ran to Smith's for a few groceries. Then, I started on my sewing repair work. I cooked the pizza around 3:30 pm, and at 4:20 pm I ran Zen to work. I came home and finished my sewing repair for the day, then drove it down to the dry cleaner's. I came home and tried to help the kids with various things. I tried to get ready to take Connor to the Rec Center, as I'd been promising all day, but we got there too late and they were closing. Sigh... I'll have to take him tomorrow. I was just glad he didn't throw an unholy temper tantrum. Then, it was washing some dishes, reading scriptures with the kids, and cooking kettle corn for Dani to take to Girls' Camp tomorrow for her shared snack. Now, blogging and going to bed. Whew!

Declaration of Intent

Sue posted a bunch of comments on my blog a few days ago. No, I haven't blogged very much recently, I've pretty much been a slacker this summer, but Sue's flurry of comments reminded me that I should get my act together, again.

Okay, let's see if I can get myself back into the the swing of things. Basically, there's been a hugely needed restructuring of my days that I have been avoiding for several months, but I've had a ginormously pathetic case of procrastination. I HAVE GOT TO CLEAR OUT THIS CRAFTROOM!!!! It's the huge elephant in the room of my brain, so huge and stinky, that I have NOT wanted to deal with it for a long time. Totally tried to ignore it was there. So I need to return an embarrassing amount of jewelry supplies that I ordered so I can get my money back, sell off this stuff I've been threatening to do for months and months and months, and just streamline this place, so I can get it out of my brain!

Ever since I had to close down my daycare in January, I knew I had to get this stuff done. But, various economic boons allowed me to postpone the inevitable: Zen's bonuses at work and our tax return to name a few. But our finances have reached critical mass, and I have to face up to reality, in a BIG hurry.

There are several things I can do to in order to bring in some dough on a consistent basis. First, when I was out last week, picking up Zen's suit from a local dry cleaner's, I asked them if they needed anyone to do repairs and alterations. The manager was excited to see me, and long-story-short, I am now doing that part time. At this point, I can't imagine it's going to bring in more than a few hundred a month, but it's better than nothing. Zen teased me that after eleven years of owning my sewing machine, I'm finally going to make some money using it. Another idea that I've had is that with the current upsurge in ebooks, there might be a demand for people who can take old books and convert them to digital format. It's basically a whole bunch of typing, and maybe some basic software knowledge. Maybe that could leapfrog into some kind of editing work. I could finally make use of my English degree, after all.

So, expect the daily logs to pick back up. Also, I need to blog about a few recent things - Zen's new truck, and our trip this weekend to Star Valley for Zen's grandmother's funeral.

I've also created a health/fitness/weight-loss blog for myself at http://battlefor200andbeyond.blogspot.com. There's nothing there yet, but I'll see if I can keep up a daily log for myself that's just about what I eat, what exercising I do, my weight (gasp!!), etc. Just a motivational thing, where if I make myself 'fess up to what I'm doing, or not doing, I might get myself in better shape.

Happy Fifteenth!

Okay, people, here are FIVE blog posts, some of them REALLY long, to keep you busy reading and commenting (hint, hint) for a few days.

Gil turned fifteen today. CRUD! HOORAY! Now he's going to start bugging me to get a learner's permit, because now he can legally apply for one. When in the unholy monkeys did that happen? I am NOT old, I am NOT old, I am NOT OLD!!!

Gil's only birthday requests were a copy of an old computer game, Warcraft II, and an awesome dinner, steak and shrimp, complete with cheesecake for his birthday cake.

Homemade cheesecake, a family classic. Thanks for the recipe, Mom (Grammie)!

Fourth of July Mini Campout

We did a little more this year than just lighting fireworks in the street. We did a mini-campout at Flaming Gorge. We packed up the van around 4pm and headed down to Flaming Gorge, on the west side of the lake, and turned into the Buckboard camping/marina area.

It's a great camping area, with these great covered picnic tables, fire pits, and public restrooms, amen.

Setting up "camp."

Zen brought scraps of wood from our garage, and parts of the ancient wood playground we demolished in our backyard last year. First, Gil was in charge getting things cut into smaller pieces, then Dani joined in trying to light the fire with matches, one at a time (this concept was not working). Zen helped out cutting wood while stacked kindling and tried to light various little things, like grass and paper plates, on fire.

Finally, Big Daddy Zen got the fire started, even without "boyscout water" (i.e. lighter fluid.)

Gil kept an eye on Emma, so she wouldn't fall in the fire. "Hot, baby, don't touch!"


Emma played musical chairs all night, falling out of them, as well as stumbling around in her awkward shoes on the uneven ground. By the end of the night, she was covered in scratches.

Little Miss Coolio!

Dani started the whole tree-climbing business, and soon, Connor joined her.



Zen's cracked-skin hot dog masterpiece.

Emma had been eating cold hot dogs all day, and by the end of dinner, she'd brought her daily tally of hot dogs up to four or five. I half-suspected they were going to make her sick, but she wouldn't eat anything else.

Dani's hot dog had some blackened skin on it, which she peeled off, and her poor hot dog was a mangled mess when she was through. Doesn't she know that campfire flavor is the best?!

Other people took an interest in the camera, for once, so I actually showed up in some pictures this time around.

Zen's s'more masterpiece.

Little messy face. Funny story, wish I had pics, but a few days ago, Emma discovered Zen's chocolate stash by our bed, and it was like giving her crack. She kept going back to his drawer for the next few days, looking for more chocolate. So, s'mores were right up her alley.

Okay, Connor's favorite game is "Tag, you're it!" which he does constantly, trying to get someone to play with him. Usually, I refuse to play, because my joints protest, but I took pity on him yesterday, and played tag. Doing it in slip-on sandals was stupid, as you can see.

OUCH!!!

Connor kept right on running.

I called him back for some snuggles. "See, Connor, Mommy needs some hugs." This is also an illustration of the downside of letting other people take pictures, you get to see your hugeness on film, not really a pleasant experience.

After packing up our "camp", we headed over to the lake, and everyone skipped rocks.





Again, Emma just wanted to eat dirt and jump in the lake, so we didn't let her walk around, but she sure loved splashing her hands in the water.

Sunset as we left, so beautiful. I love Wyoming sunsets. I should get this enlarged to hang on the wall.

After coming home, I gave baby a bath and put her in bed, then Zen took the kids to watch the city fireworks. Then, it was back at our house to light fireworks in the street.

Gil was so glad to be back in "civilization" where he could get cell phone service, and texted all his friends to see who could come over.

Gil brought out his old-fashioned root beer bottle he got at the Scottish Festival, and lit off bottle rockets.

I didn't have the patience to set up the tripod, so excuse the blurry picture, but the moon was really beautiful with the clouds rolling by.


Gil's finger-cramping texting finally paid off, and some of his drama friends stopped by for a little while.

I love this pic, it looks like a tribal dance around the fire.

And that was our Fourth of July, WHEW!!!

I may actually be developing some enthusiasm for our family reunion campout this year. Go tents! Maybe our t-shirts could say, "Back to camping! Reunion 2008" with a tent logo, or something.