Spiderman and the Princess: Bubble Fun for the Last Days of Summer

Yes. It's true.

Summer is nearing the end. Though our thermometer does not think so. Nor the heat index.

But still, I know it's coming.

So bring on the bubbles.

Spiderman and the Princess (sans princess outfit) had a ball whipping up lots of bubbles. Cool, light, frothy, cleaning...

(HAH! I tricked them into getting somewhat cleaner. But don't tell.)

Just add a few squirts of good dish soap to water in a plastic tub. Teach how to use hand cranked egg beaters, and away they go.

It's not only good for getting clean and getting cool, it's good for fine motor skills, coordination, and crossing the mid-point.

Everybody wins.

Garden Ideas on My Dream List

A bee on lavender in my front yard

I used to look at people who gardened and think, Wow, that is so not a fun activity.

Monet's Giverny, France - Pond and bridge anyone?

"My garden is my most beautiful masterpiece."
- Claude Monet

This gardening-used-to-be-boring thinker has totally completed a 180 degree turn around. My brain neurons starting firing away and turned my thoughts in a different direction after we purchased our first home. Since then, I am indeed a gardening nut.

Selah Ridge Lavender Farm, Washington - Periwinkle chair and perfect photo backdrop!

I am now committed to gardening. I love gardens. Adore them. Visit them. Dream and plan and copy them. Compare them. Take pictures of them.

High Leigh, Hoddesdon, UK - Fountain with aging statue, surrounded by close clipped lawn and neat pathways

As I am now older and wiser, I've realized that it is OK to not have the Taj Mahal of gardens. That's quite a bit of work. Instead I can appreciate perfectly coiffed ginormous gardens and rely on the work of others to create and maintain beauty.

Without breaking a sweat.

Naches Heights Winery, Washington - Waterfall and friends!

I carry images and a healthy dose of peace and contentment in my heart from the gardens I have visited. As such, I take a small piece of each garden sanctuary back to my own plot of dirt, where ideas and dreams seed and sprout, and eventually adapt to life with me.

Paris, France - Bouffant blowsy flowers, lush beds, green aisles, archways, gorgeous building

Gardening journal - Add these to my dream garden please: statue in a pond (spouting water), bridge, wide lawns, low brick fences, flower beds, patterned plans, waterfall, resting spots, plenty of lavender, bees (plus a hive or two), mystery and enticing features . . .

"It was such a pleasure to sink one's hands into the warm earth, to feel at one's fingertips the possibilities of the new season."
- Kate Morton, The Forgotten Garden

Recycle a Kitty. Or Two.

I've long had goals of recycling everything I can get my hands on. After all, we live in a world with LIMITED resources. We should do all we can to preserve those resources.

Remember? Reduce, reuse, recycle.

Three key words to remind us how to decrease the amount in landfills and the need for raw materials.

Eons ago, recycling was new. And then I went to Western Washington University. On the West side of the state. Ecology and the environment were (and are) hot topics at Western.

And now, thankfully, ecology and the environment are big everywhere. True, I may go overboard at times, if one asks my family, but so what?

If we all went overboard to reduce our waste, reuse all we could, and recycle everything possible, just think how much we could save! Natural resources, money, landfills, garbage, the environment...

And I LOVE the new refurbishing movement. Let's take the old ugly, and transform it into something tres chic and use it for another 40 or 50 years. Amen, Sistah!

I am so glad to live in a city that has recycling as a part of its waste management plant. Not glass, but let's not open that bottle of worms - for now.

Being good stewards, after all, is a part of God's Big Plan. He gave us this place. We need to take care of it.

Enough preaching.

On the personal level, I've had additional help with recycling. And destruction, but that's another subject.

Meet my new converts. Mabel and Monet, on the job, condensing my recycling box so more can be added.

Way to go, girls!

Let's not fight about it! Let's see if you can get your kitties to recycle.

The gauntlet has been tossed.

Writing Tips for Maximizing Your Creative Potential

What can you do to help your writing career?

Tips abound wherever one looks. But these are the ones that help me. Plus, they are fun and take the sting out of long bouts of concentration and writing spent hunched over a keyboard.

1. Have equipment that is in good working order.
As seen in this photo, (figuratively) duct-taping miscellaneous electronic devices may not be good for work efficiency. Splurge on current and working (!) pieces of equipment. Mine is on it's last leg. Seriously. There are portions from three different systems at work in this photo. All necessary to keep it afloat until pressing deadlines are met.

And them, BAM. Time for a new computer. That should clear off the desk!

2. Ask for lots of help.
Additional pairs of eyes can catch errors you don't see. Listening ears will hear those spots that cause readers to stumble. Listen to your critics. Let them help you mend your ways.

3. Make sure you have a comfy chair.
After all, your backside will be spending oodles of hours flattened on the seat while your brain wheels twirl and create fascinating stories. Be willing to share a tiny portion of the seat with your fans.

4. Adopt desktop editors.
Give them ample work space and easy access to your work. Every extra set of eyes, ears, and paws that peruses your documents provides invaluable insights.

5. Evaluate your work station.
Do you need a bulletin board? A document stand? Speakers? A foot rest (essential for short writers)? External memory drive? Wireless mouse or keyboard? What makes you super productive as you write? Adjust your work area accordingly.

Regardless of where you do your best work, take a few minutes to proof it for comfort, efficiency, and availability of essential work tools.

And then, no more excuses. Get writing.

Pepper, Anyone?

Pepper. The spice of life.

Apparently the lid was not screwed on beneath the plastic seal. After I peeled off the plastic, I dumped the pepper grinder (FYI - Trader Joe's) upside down to add some fresh ground to our dinner salads.

Except the entire lid came off and instead I added hundreds of whole peppercorns.

The sound was magical. Kitties came running, as they thought it was dinner time. Kevin arrived just behind them.

What could you do? Laugh.

And start sweeping up the floor mess (before the kitties had a spicy bite) and hand picking peppercorns from the salads.

I love pepper.

But not that much. If that had happened yesterday, a day I do not wish to ever relive, I would have cried. And possibly thrown the whole dinner in the trash.

But God is awesome. He had me open that new pepper bottle today, when my skies were much sunnier. He's good that way, isn't He?

Pepper, anyone?

P.S. Check those caps!