LOVE THURSDAY

Yesterday, I attended a baby shower for a friend at work. People were all standing around reminiscing about the times they had their first baby, the chaos, the fear of holding such a tiny little thing. Obviously I can't relate, but I have my own tales of baby deliveries of friends and family. The one I will never forget is the day Cati was born.

Cati decided to be a whole month early and none of us were prepared. I was the back-up in case Steph couldn't get a hold of Shawn while he was traveling for work. I didn't know how to get to the hospital. Luckily Steph was already there since she had gone in for a routine exam only to find out that she was 8 cm dilated. She called me at work and as soon as she said 8 cm dilated, I went into Lucille Ball mode, rounding up Chris, speeding down the highway, getting lost and generally flipping out. Steph remained cool as a cucumber. She had drugs.

Any way, just a short few hours later we had Cati and last week she turned seven. SEVEN! It's been so funny to see her grow and see just how different she turned out from Steph. She's so girly and always has her nails painted and loves shoes. When ever we talk, I feel like we should be laying on her bed, speaking through tin can phones as we gossip about the latest Hannah Montana Movie. And even though I don't get to see her as often as I'd like too, she's always happy to see me. Just as happy as I am to see her.

Happy Love Thursday.

I DO BELIEVE IN SANTA

Chris and I had agreed to not get presents for each other this year. We even had the "I'm not getting you anything conversation". Chris is impossible to buy for. He sees something he wants, he gets it. I see something I want, I hem-haw over the purchase until the thing disappears. I need permission to buy things for myself. So whenever a gift-giving holiday rolls around, I never know what to get Chris, and he's got loads of things stock piled away to give to me. But because of the iPad, and some new phones that may be showing up this week, I thought we were not giving out gifts. Saturday morning, when I walked into the living room, I noticed that the beer I had left for Santa was empty and all the pretzels were gone. And then, when I peered over the table, I noticed two neatly wrapped packages under the tree. Then I unwrapped the 1965 Astronaut Barbie I had picked up off the shelf and put back on the shelf twenty-thousand times, each time telling myself that I didn't need a Barbie, even if she says she's rocket scientist. But that last gift? That gift I opened that made me start crying? Not kidding. Tears the size of Oklahoma hail storms welled up in my eyes and I couldn't speak because I knew if I opened my mouth nothing would come out but a blubbery squeak. That present turned out to be the camera I have been coveting for over a year now. I love it so much, I've read through the manual.

And then I punched Chris in the arm for making me cry.

THANKFUL FRIDAYS

Everyone has their holiday traditions. Some times the tradition changes with time or things get added, but it still something you look forward to every year. When I lived with my parents, every Christmas morning meant cinnamon rolls and presents and dumping out the stocking to see all the stuff inside. Then we'd all gather for a Christmas dinner of fried oysters. We don't do the present and stocking thing any more, but we still do the fried oysters with the family. Chris and I have started our own tradition of cinnamon rolls on Christmas morning, just the two of us, and we've added boiled shrimp to the dinner menu.

I am thankful that this tradition has gone unchanged. I am thankful that the weather is cooperating this year so that we can all be together. I am thankful for the many blessings in my life.

Happy Holidays to all!

LIFE LIST UPDATE: VISIT 100 NEW MUSEUMS

Today, Chris and I visited the American Banjo Museum. I think I only managed to drag Chris along because it was a free, but once we got inside I believe that he enjoyed it immensely. Who knew the banjo was such an interesting instrument?! You may not realize this, but I have a secret desire to sing in Rock-a-billy or folk band and the banjo is always an important instrument in those bands. I don't think I had ever really seen a banjo up close before. Which is surprising since I've been exposed to so many different musical instruments in my time. I think I was most surprised by how much the banjo resembles a snare drum. In fact, many looked like snare drums with strings. And so many were just pure works of art with intricate backs and inlaid necks. There was one that even looked like a carousel with little ponies inlaid into the neck. Chris and I were both really surprised. There were over 300 banjos and the museum was so nice and intimate. I think it's the perfect place to take Dad some time. He'd love it.

Also, I think it's high time that Kermit the Frog was inducted into the Banjo Hall of Fame. We should start a petition.

Get the flash player here: http://www.adobe.com/flashplayer

LOVE THURSDAY

Over the river and through the woods to my mom's house we go. Chris knows the way to carry our sleigh through the wide and drifting snow. Except there's no snow (possibly some ice) and thankfully we will be in a car. It's Thanksgiving! I'm typing this up at 8 AM and I'm expecting a call from Dad any minute now asking if we're almost there yet.

My contribution to the family dinner this year is dessert. Last night I made a pumpkin and an apple pie. I started to peel the apples with a regular old vegetable peeler, but I found it just didn't peel right. So (and Chris wasn't around to tell me NO), I picked up a pairing knife. By the second to the last apple, I could peel the whole thing without breaking the peel. Just like Mom. I can be instantly transported to back to Mom's kitchen whenever I start backing. I can remember standing on my little step stool, hip to hip with Mom as we cut out cookies or rolled out biscuits. Sometimes she would just make up a batch of biscuit dough for me to play with like clay. I would build people and animals and then we'd bake them. And I remember it always being nice and warm inside that kitchen, inside those memories.

That's what I'm focusing on today. The warmth of my parents home. The warmth of being surrounded by loved ones. Happy Love Thursday and Happy Thanksgiving. Be safe. Be warm.

FANTASY DATE WITH DAVID SEDARIS

When we found out that David Sedaris was doing a book signing at our local Borders, we made plans weeks in advance to attend. Those weeks leading up to the event left me with plenty of time to daydream and fantasize about what the whole book signing was going to be like. In my head, I imagined an intimate group of around 20 people showing up. Mr. Sedaris would then have to strike up a conversation with me and Chris and then become so charmed by the two of us that we'd all go out for drinks, talking and laughing well into the night.

The reality was over a hundred people crowed and herded into a line to wait for hours (our total wait time was 6 hrs) for an opportunity to say hello to David Sedaris and have him sign a copy of his book. And it was worth the wait. I don't know how that man did it, but he managed to spend a few minutes talking with each and every person that passed through that line. Unfortunately, by the time it was our turn, I was so stupid tired that I couldn't form coherent sentences. Remember that scene in Dirty Dancing where Baby carries in a watermelon and then all she can say is "I carried a watermelon"? Yeah, it was like that. He asked for a joke, so I let Chris take that one and he told a really bad version of a-horse-walks-into-a-bar. David Sedaris didn't even crack a smile. I'm sure we made it into his daily diary as "Most Awkward Cake Couple". But hey! We made it into his diary right?!?

Actually, I'm really glad about the turn out to the book signing. OK, so it totally messed up the plans of taking Mr. Sedaris out for drinks and a potential 365 day picture. But I would have felt really bad if there were only 20 people in this state who know and love his works like we do. We also had a nice time laughing and chatting with other people in line. There was a woman in front of us who looked to be in her 20s, but was really 39 and she has 9 kids. 9 KIDS! No multiples and the oldest is 18 with the youngest being 3. Holy Crap!

And? DAVID SEDARIS SIGNED MY BOOK!

THE RESULT OF TOO MANY BEANS

I have been having the most bizarre dreams over the last few nights and I really think it has something to do with the amount of beans I've eaten in the last few days. See Chris? I told you beans were the magical fruit. Last night I dreamed about Vegetarian Zombies. Yeah, you heard me. I said Vegetarian Zombies. They were really small too, like gnome sized. And they would crawl out at night, doing their whole zombie walk thing, dragging one leg and moaning and destroy your vegetable garden. I know! It's terrifying! They would rip the veggies straight out of the ground and just bite into them. Then they would do that whole zombie chewing thing with their mouths open and moaning. Zombies really have horrid table manners. Chewed up bits would tumble out of their mouths and onto their shirts. They would just wreck havoc on your garden. Worst then slugs. Occasionally a rogue zombie would show up, one who had tasted meat (human or animal), and he'd try to convince the others that they were really missing out. But the vegetarian zombies would just shuffle/run him out of the garden. Awe...vegetarian zombies. I think I love them.

We're having beans again tonight for dinner.

CELEBRATE THE RIDICULOUS

Today is Misti's birthday! I know she has a few mixed feelings about this one. So today, I encourage her to think of this as a celebration of another year of your life and not the actual numbers of years of your life. Misti, you are crazy, fabulous, wonderful and you are loved by so many. Happy Birthday!

NEXT

Tomorrow, I go back to work. I wish I could type that with more enthusiasm. This past week off has been so relaxing and productive. The bean plant was finally removed from the garden (we had a bowl of beans to celebrate). I cooked pumpkins and made puree and a pumpkin pie. I discovered Sham (fake ham) and made deviled sham for lunches next week. I washed everything. I completely re-did my CV. I scrubbed the bathroom and replaced the bathmat. I lazed about on the couch and today, I lived in my pajamas. I may not be excited about the job I'm going back to, but I am a teensy bit happy about going back to work. I don't think I could keep up with this pace all the time. At the end of this staycation, I'm feeling a bit fat and lazy. It's time to get back in to a routine, even if it's not the ideal routine. But I'm heading into it all with a new attitude. I will kill them all with kindness. I will work through each day and perform all of my tasks to the best of my ability. I will cleanse my desk at work and my surroundings with salt and send all the bad energy to the plants (they thrive on energy cleanses-learned that in yoga teacher training). And at the end of the day, work will stay at work. Though, I will still be searching for a way out. I will find a way to be content with where I am in this present moment.

Let's see how long that lasts. No, wait. Wrong attitude! I'll let you know how great my new plan turns out.

THANKFUL FRIDAYS

I just now crawled out of bed. The opportunity to sleep in is definitely something to be thankful for today, but it is not my Thankful Friday entry. No, today I'd like to take a moment to stop and be thankful for a very important person in my life. When we think of in-laws the first thought is to wrinkle the nose a bit, but that's not the case when it comes to my sister-in-law, Katrina. In fact there are times when it's easier to just say that she is my sister. She has been a part of my life for as long as I can remember. With out her, I would no nothing about sex, drugs, or rock and roll. She is the strongest woman I know and has faced adversaries that would make most people just give up. But she doesn't. She doesn't ever give up. And I know that if I call her sobbing, with out being able to talk sobbing, she will get in her car and be here in moments. She is the woman I want to be when I grow up.

Today is Katrina's birthday. I am thankful that she has survived to celebrate another year. I love you Katrina!

Have a good weekend!

THINGS THAT MAKE ME HAPPY

I am writing this from home. That makes me really happy because I'm not home sick, I'm just home. Today, I have little plans. I have one more class to teach this evening, a dog to pick up from the vet and computer stuff that I need to do. I could get used to a life of leisure. Next must do? Win the lottery.

Sunrises with pink clouds Texmex quinoa with black beans and corn and a perfectly poached egg Chris learning how to set up his own savasana Getting tickets for the Flaming Lips New Year's Eve concert Staycation! Being crazy busy at work so the week flies by super fast Pizza nights Misti's 80s birthday party (I promise to get pictures up soon) Trick-or-treating with Quin and Traci Staying the night at the Lincoln Motel on Route 66 Ken's pizza Staycation! Bathroom scrubbed, bedroom dusted and vacuumed, fridge cleaned Everything into the washer! Everything done at my leisure

I realize that I have staycation on the list twice and pizza. But these things really make me happy.

THINGS THAT MAKE ME HAPPY TUESDAYS

Oh the list. Just reading back over it make me light and happy.

A non-stressful yet productive week at work The events coming along in October Chris's return to the gym Wearing yoga clothes to work The Princess and the Frog The gourds and pumpkins at the Farmer's Market Apple pie Making Sunday dinner Baked Squash Casserole Being one chapter away from finishing Three Cups of Tea (great book) Leftovers for lunch Honey Crisp apple season My new shoes!

Still enjoying the apple pie.

THANKFUL FRIDAYS

Wow, I have a lot to be thankful for this week. First I have to say thank you to LG and The Mouthy Housewives for my new vacuum cleaner. I particularly need to apologize to the woman working the sign-in table at the Mouthy Housewives' party. When she told me that everyone at the party would be getting the LG vacuum, I told her to "shut up". And then I argued with her for ten minutes in a "nuh-uh/uh-hu" sort of way. I left that party really wanting to believe that we were getting those vacuums. As the glow of BlogHer began to wear off, I began to loose hope about the vacuum, but then it showed up! I'm going to open it up this weekend, take a picture, vacuum around the house, and then pack it away into storage for when we move. I am also thankful for all of those who have donated to the OKC AIDS walk. With online donations plus money from the yoga can, you have helped raise $135 for the walk. That's $35 more then I raised last year. People? You Rock! There's still time to donate for those who wish, so don't fret. You have until Sunday.

I am thankful that I'm finally starting to get over this sinus infection and that the weather is going to be nice this weekend. There may be a Life List mark off this weekend. We'll see. Enjoy!

LOVE THURDAY

There's no question that I love elephants. Over the years, most of my elephants have been gifts. The one above was given to me by Talaura while I was in New York. We'd spent the day walking all over New York. We had gone into this neat little shop and she found that elephant and bought while I wasn't looking. I don't just love him because he's an elephant.

I hooked him to a zipper on my backpack, where he rode around with me for two weeks. Then I noticed he was gone. I was so upset. I looked every where and finally had decided he had come off while I was riding the scooter. Yesterday, I was digging around in my backpack looking for some cold medicine I knew I had put in there (I had not put the cold medicine in my backpack) I rummaged around into a pocket I never put things in and there was my elephant. He had come loose from his cord and fallen into my backpack.

I know he's just a little elephant, but when I look at him I see that day in New York and hear us laughing on the subway. Happy Love Thursday!

THINGS THAT MAKE ME HAPPY TUESDAYS

I did not forget. The list got left in the car and I just couldn't muster any strength to go get it. Be aware I'm typing this under an alka-seltzer induced haze.

Making dinner plans with people we don't get to see very often Diverting my attention to better things Making the bed More stuff in the recycling bin then the regular trash Mom's homemade salsa for taco night Emails The new Patagonia shirt I wanted from the beginning of summer going on sale to $10! The new batch of pickles Cheering up a freaking out Jen Having a safe work week Making pie crust Random people who occasionally read this blog

I'm sure there's more. But I'm too loopy to remember. Enjoy!

LOVE THURSDAYS

Yesterday morning, I turned on the morning news show while I sat down to my cereal and peanut butter waffle. It was a mistake. All I heard coming from the TV was hate. Blue people hating purple people because they weren't blue. People who love square buildings hating those who love rectangular ones. People hating just for the sake of hating.

Maybe I've put myself in a kind of bubble lately. I've surrounded myself with people who just love, no question, just love. Perhaps I needed to be reminded. I needed to be reminded just how lucky I am to have these people in my life. I needed to be reminded just how lucky I am that I haven't lost the ability to see the good things and block out all the other crap that just doesn't matter.

The thing is, it's easy to fall into that hate crowd. Just like in the image above, hate can start with a pool that spills over and trickles down and down affecting everything it touches. But you know what? Love works in the exact same way.

Remember. Kill 'em with kindness. Happy Love Thursday.

AIDS WALK

This is one of those entries where Chris will say "Dammit Woman! Give me some warning will ya? Sos I can sets up a Pay Pal". 'Cause Chris talks in hillbilly when he's annoyed. Well, it's that time of year again and I let it sneak up on me. The Oklahoma City AIDS walk is September 19th. I always have these grand fund raising plans, but in true procrastination fashion end up scrounging around for loose change. I did make an announcement to my Monday yoga class that proceeds for the month of September all goes to the OKC AIDS Walk. And now, I'm making my plea here. The OKC AIDS Walk raises money for other nonprofit organizations that provide AIDS/HIV care, support, education and awareness. When you donate to the AIDS Walk, you're actually donating to a bunch of places. Some times I worry that we've forgotten about this illness. That we forget that our young people need to be educated to protect themselves (and those they love). I worry that those suffering from this illness are still treated as lepers. I worry that the cases of infected are getting higher, something I just don't understand because we know how this disease is contracted.

So...the AIDS Walk is where I do my part. I recently came across this quote: "Nobody made a greater mistake than he who did nothing because he could only do a little." by Edmund Burke. This is the something little I can do. If you would like to donate please go to here. Enter my name (cindy maddera) in the right hand box under "Want to Donate?". It should send you to my fund raising page. And thanks, even if you can't donate, I know you're all out there supporting me in some way.

THINGS THAT MAKE ME HAPPY TUESDAYS

I did not forget, I've just been really busy today. I have a list. And it's a good list!

• Getting my name out there
• The brief few minutes in the morning when I have the lab all to myself
• Taking my time
• Getting an encouraging phone call
• The gardens at Philbrook
• Getting to spend time with my family
• Reading from the Book of the Dead
• Our conversations
• Working in our garden and getting things planted for Fall
• Throwing out old plastic containers
• My new lip gloss
• Homemade marshmallows from Whole Foods
• Randy and Katrina's little dogs. They attack you! With love!
• Peasant meals of cabbage and potatoes
• Picking the cotton from the cotton plants so I can have seeds to plant my own cotton plant
• The bird sanctuary in my mom's backyard
• The buzzing sound of humming birds zipping about the yard

It's going to be a great week. I declare it so!

GARDEN DIARIES

Over the weekend, Chris and I met my family at Philbrook Museum for the To Live Forever exhibit. The exhibit itself was great. They even had a page from the actual Book of the Dead. Chris and I read it out loud and promptly had to leave since we'd woken all the mummies. I've been to Philbrook many times and didn't feel the need to roam the rest of the museum. So we all headed out to the garden to look for a piece we'd heard might be out there done by the husband of an old high school friend.

Philbrook was originally the home of Waite and Genevieve Phillips, the famous oil tycoons. Waite left his Tuscan inspired villa and the surrounding 23 acres to the city of Tulsa as an art center in 1938. My brother even attended classes here as a child.

The home itself is magnificent, but the gardens are magical. I had never even realized they were there. Every time I've gone to the museum, it's all been for the inside stuff and it's always been on dreary yucky days were all you want to do is inside stuff. But Saturday was beautiful and we wandered all around the gardens. There were cotton plants and butterflies and lilies and even a section of vegetables. In fact, Philbrook grew more then 1,000 pounds of produce for the Community Food Bank of Eastern Oklahoma in 2009.

This was all the inspiration Chris and I needed to go home, pull out the old things and plant some new seeds for the Fall. We are looking forward to Fall crop of spinach, radishes, broccoli and carrots.

Feel free to enjoy the rest of the pictures here. Enjoy!

THANKFUL FRIDAYS

Today, I am just thankful. I am thankful to have a little bit of hope. I feel like something good is heading my way, but I'm not ready to say exactly what that is. Just keep your fingers and toes crossed. My mantra for meditation today was "I am thankful for this day, this moment right now". It is my way of keeping myself grounded in the present without letting my head whirl off to the land of what-ifs and maybe-it-wills.  So far, I am thankful for this day and this moment right now. I am thankful for the beautiful crisp blue sky. I am thankful for that kiss from Chris just before scootering off to work. I am thankful I remembered to put my gloves in my pockets (it was cold!). And I am thankful I made it to work even though the scooter seems to be running on fumes. I'm always surprised that when I sit down to write this entry every week, just how much I have to be thankful for. Hope everyone has a great holiday weekend.