Poem from 1991

Out of the old red folder it comes, as the Foo Fighters play right now on Austin City Limits...wow how I love them...

Again like I said back last summer, my old poems are not for a showing of (bad) talent, but a reminder of who I was and who we are now, and who we want to be, even now in our age. Never forget what you wanted, and who you wanted to be, dear friends!

"A Day in the Classroom" (started writing this during Mrs. Gautier's class sitting behind Gina, Billy, Raven, and other friends, although not about her wonderful history class talks, just a starting point).

So the professor sits back, proud of his educated speech

on the evolution of man and Darwin's theories.

"Let's all think for a moment - what will we, as humans,

evolve into a few thousand years from now? Assuming

we are still on Earth, of course. What I mean is, will we be taller

on average, more hairy, You know - those

kind of things. Any suggestions?"

A girl in the back corner pull her blonde hair out of her

face and thinks to herself

This is pure hell! This moron has been talking about

monkeys for fifty minutes! Who cares if we get hairy, I

won't be around. I'll be in heaven if there is one, if

I make it in - wow, I need to start prayin, Grandma would

turn over in her grave if she knew what I've been doin....

A boy on the far side of the room rolls his eyes and

laughs to himself, thinking

Oh man, this really sucks! I'm starving, and I need a

smoke, cause this is really bringing me down. Hey- I could

have told this guy we came from monkeys, we all look

kindof like them...but that girl over there, she is

a hottie! What's her name, oh damnit! Well, she's stuck-up

anyway.

Then there is the girl in front of the professor's desk.

At night, in her dreams, stars and moons and multi colored

planets swirl around her body as if she were the center

of the universe.

And theories of space, time, the Earth and Life

race in and out of her mind

And she dreams of green flightless birds, and huge walking

lizards, and fish gleaming scales as they creep onto land

And sometimes, when she has a good day,

She dreams there was truly a Garden of Eden,

and she ate that forbidden fruit,

and she bore Cain and Abel.

Amen, to my old self. How I wish I could have talked to you :)

The Dream is Within You, not Them.

No, Palin should not run for President. She won't win. And, we are too fickle of a country to hold onto such a breath of fresh air (three years ago) without smothering it, crushing it, turning it into something ugly and comical and pushing it out the pasta maker as something that it was not in the beginning.

You could apply this to most politicians and to anyone you may prefer...it's applicable to any side, any party, any one candidate or any one platform. However, no need to be so cynical, for it is our OWN dreams, moral compasses, and general heartfelt self truths that should guide us, individually. No one person can fulfill some grand scheme, some grand dream. It is up to YOU, the man or woman, to make your life fulfilled and thus you may also affect someone else in a positive way (or learn from others that you admire).

Palin may run, Obama may win, maybe yet another newcomer (Booker? Christie?) will rise up to fill my expectations...until then, I will fulfill my own.

Art history baby!

http://www.slate.com/id/2288619/pagenum/2

Curious George drives me bonkers

"Curious George" is playing right now, as it sometimes does during the weekday afternoons if my husband works an evening shift at the airport.No, he's not an air traffic controller, and yes, we have our opinions about them, ESPECIALLY ONES THAT FALL ASLEEP WHILE PLANES ARE FLYING AROUND AND LANDING THEMSELVES. (as was in the news this week).

Some afternoons are nice and peaceful, and I get a little lazy and put some show in the DVD thinga majig and let the kids watch some shows they like. I am much happier when we load up the family and drive out the causeway, a park or walk around downtown like we did yesterday, but this bliss cannot happen every single day. I have to pick and choose what we do based on my super sensitive mommy radar that lets me know when one of my sons will just not enjoy himself, pitch a fit, pick a fight, or in general come loose at the seams as soon as we are out in public.

There was a big blip on the radar today when I picked Nick up from school, that little warning light that stays on until he is safely tucked into bed at 7pm after i read a few books. I listened to the blip and here we are. This is one of THOSE afternoons, lazy, somewhat peaceful, me sighing alot because i STRONGLY DISLIKE children's movies, cartoons, songs, etc. I didn't even like many cartoons when i was young! I loved "Lost in Space" and some things geared towards kids, but the sing-songy voices and manufactured cheerfulness grates on my every last nerve.

But, here I am...writing away as my son Jude rides around on his big plastic car backwards with butt up on a horn that is repeating over and over, and Nick enthralled by his beloved weird monkey Curious George.

Children are mysterious. Why do they enjoy the things they do? Why do I read Gawker online daily and find it hilarious? Why does General Khaddafi get facial injections? Does he think it makes him look younger?

These things are ponderous. Let's ponder.... (and one, two three)

Well, that was a nice moment of zen, but my three bean chili is bubbling, and the kids are in need of attention from something not animated on a large screen.

A Day in the Life

How is it going for you my friends? I'm taking a moment to think about you all and actually I think about you all more than just one minute a day. Things are up and down lately, not really "down"...I know what that means ("down"), and it's not the case here. I hope your lives are peaceful and happy, and that you are always finding out what exactly that means, like I am. We have attended the Big Lebowski Fest In Tampa, went to a great St. Paddy's day event that was low key and mellow like we like :) and spent alot of time on the beach lately, watching the CRAZY spring tides (real high, real low) under the crazy moon and enjoying the weird dry cool night air....as usual the weather totally affects my moods and my husband thinks it totally entertaining, which is a good thing. trust. In the same way, I understand his moods after working all day around adults as I am around 4 and 1.5 year olds most of the day. This takes work, but after the work is over, we have come to some very good understandings this year. I just wrote a bunch of good things but deleted them due to thinking some of you might not understand...I need to trust you more, I think!!

Good night to all for now- I am going to look at the stars for a moment before falling to sleep. Remember, no matter what you read, noone is perfect, we all are working hard, and it's easy to judge others.

Ta ta for now, cats and dogs!

Hipsters...and all that Jazz.

Read link below - a fun and entertaining view into the current civil war of hipsters (whatever that means, and I think that's the point of Richard Lawson's wink wink article).....we drink PBR at times and always have, Phillip wears thick black chunky glasses ala Weezer..so are we hipsters? Or just un- ironic folk who are living their lives without being classified as any one group? Why do we as a society classify people, and why do we even without thinking about it, subgroup people in our minds? Hipsters want to know ;) wink wink.

http://gawker.com/#!5784608/comment-of-the-day-what-a-hipster-isnt

What is love?

"When genuine passion moves you, say what you've got to say, and say it hot. "

D.H. Lawrence

Umm..yes sir. Thanks for the reminder. Friends, let's not forget, we have one very short life to live.

The Avett Brothers - I And Love And You

Happy St. Paddy's Day!!!

Enjoy these great photos of Dubliners from Slate.com..and enjoy the beautiful day! It has been an oddly perfect week weather wise here, and we are looking forward to watching the sunset from a local pub with our kids this afternoon. They already have the tents set up and stage set for live music outside, so it's family friendly with some face painting, good Irish food, green beer and A TON of Guinness. I can't drink alot of beer (too bubbly) but might enjoy a pint or two tonight under a growing full moon.

Be safe, and have a great Thursday..

http://todayspictures.slate.com/20110317/

Japan - a few words of disgust at fellow human beings.

Like many of you, I have been completely floored by the devastation happening right now and the past few days in Japan. I want to help and it is overwhelming. What really bothers me, on the side, is the way that so many Americans seem to be relating to this event. I have read comments from many people on various news sites (and no, not Fox) that say things like:

Japan has enough money, so they'll be ok.

(horribly) remember Pearl Harbor. (this is disgusting and anyone using this as a generational excuse is just without a heart)

They are an atheist country and therefore God will recreate their country into a more perfect "Christian" arena. (yes people have said a ton of this bullshit and it's not at all ok and not at all "Christian".

Nuclear energy is so bad and so...we all deserve it because we humans deserve anything like this because we don't all use solar panels, etc etc etc. Note- this also happened during the BP Oil Spill- so many people I thought to be caring people on FB were more self righteous about how it was an example of how we shouldn't use oil than on the loss of human life, and the immediate response to environmental problems for our Gulf...easier to get on a platform and stay there, right??

I really DISLIKE how crappy humans can be to each other in times like these. I also LOVE how compassionate some of us are being towards the Japanese who are without fresh food, roads, telephones to call family, and in general are isolated from family and friends they don't know what happened to during the earthquake and tsunami. Half the country is sitting in mud, wasted land, no roads, fallen buildings, and dark very cold nights this week. Every day and night must be getting a bit more stressful and mentally hard to take.

Donate to the Red Cross if you can afford to. We all are strapped for extra cash. No matter that Japan is considered a well organized and wealthy country, this devastation is not normal and is beyond anyone's comprehension right now. I know alot of missionary families who are asking for donations for their mission groups over there, but I would ask that we take an extra step and help the locals out. They don't need more Bibles - they need fresh water, fresh food, health, and survival. Their children need their parents, and the elderly need their family. All the rebuilding will take months and maybe a few years, but like with most big catastrophes, the immediate survival needs are most important.

Not being an alarmist, but trying to share the compassion. COMPASSION. It's free. It doesn't take up any time, and it can only bring good. I can try to be more compassionate to the trolls who are so hateful in our country but I don't know if they would recognize it. I guess that's the trick, give it anyway, and maybe eventually it will do something for them....

Also, prayers are free, and worth alot. Alot of people talk about praying these days, it's like a badge of honor, but I wonder how many people actually sit down, close their eyes, and pray hard. It's not a bragging right, it's a moment of connection and private communication that shouldn't warrant a chain email.

Chain emails don't help someone who is sitting in the cold dark with crying babies or hungry family members. Back those prayers up with some real action.

(exit stage left...)

Real Housewives...the Gawker version

If you've never read the WONDERFULLY WITTY satire of Richard Lawson of Gawker fame, please read this latest excerpt listed below. Even if you don't watch the "Real Housewives" shows on Bravo (i had to give them up last year after we got rid of tv services and got free antennae) his roundups are hilarious. Even better are the hundreds of comments he will get from fans by the end of the day. I can only dream to write like this someday, the metaphors he uses for our sick pop culture "icons" and "celebrities" are astoundingly true. Dig in, and enjoy this luscious little bite of Orange County.

http://gawker.com/#!5781687/real-housewives-of-orange-county-life-is-good-wine-is-better

The English forest that inspired Tolkien

Read link below for some great photos of real places that inspired great fiction.

The English forest that inspired Tolkien

The best kind of Fridge...

according to Phillip is the one that gives birth to Heinekens in the ice maker like ours does. Yes, those kind are very very special. If only they had alarms to let you know that indeed, your beer is finally nice and cold.

Happy Sunday morning! Getting ready for church and taking the kids to the beach...my motto today is again "Out of the house! Out of the house!" It used to take major effort but now the effort runs like clockwork and I just keep my truck stocked with a box of wipes, snacks, toys, beach towels, sunscreen, stroller, extra sandals and and windbreakers.

Ready Set Go! See you all at sunset. It's gonna be beautiful today...

Progress!!

I am going to start posting periodical items about American success stories. It's needed in this cynical time of snarkiness, general malais, and boohooing going on in our country. I do not consider myself a follower, but there is no harm in learning from people who worked their butts off to find personal and public success. I like to learn about these people, and it inspires me to be positive and pass along any information that might inspire someone else!! Learn, live long, and prosper...

On July 19, 2010, this man passed away, leaving a successful chain franchise behind as his legacy. He was 81 and passed away in Memphis, TN still offering his assisted living facility director, Frank Gattuso unsolicited business advice. "Every day" Gattuso says smiling.

He was a New Yorker who served in the Navy, ran a deli, managed real estate and then moved to Memphis in 1970. He attended barber school, got a job at a barbershop and soon bought it, turning it into Fantastic Sam's. By 1976, he started franchising it across the country.

He was a hard person to work for at times, requiring store franchisees to sacrifice time and money in order to succeed. Noone believed in an "all family" barber shop, but then again, that's how he succeeded - he was the first to offer such a novel idea. He also believed in company wide training, so that every stylist knew how to do the same cuts...from Phoenix to Pensacola.

Janie Holland, a training supervisor who knew him personally, said of this progressive thinker - "I learned from him. You learn to be fearless."

Fantastic Sam's Hair Salons came from the imagination of one Sam Ross.

Thanks for the inspiration, Sam!!

thoughtful charity cause...

in honor of a young woman who died here in Florida much too soon, there is a great charity in her name called www.beccascloset.org. At this site, you may donate prom style dresses for young women who may not have the sometimes very ridiculous amounts of money required to purchase a dress for prom or Christmas type dances that most high schools have. If you have any friends with daughters who may have outgrown their dresses or who would like to start a money raising event in order to purchase a few to send to the organization, please send their link to them!

We may be bogged down in more important things as adults like finances, volunteering, parenting, or our careers, but when you are young, looking nice AND having a fun time with friends at a dance can make for some fun albeit bittersweet memories you'll never get to make again. Yes, we get to dress up now to go out dancing, but let's face it, it's not as liberating when you're hoping your kids are in bed and your house isn't burning down.

Make someone's day! Every time you clean out your closets, I bet someone out there could use your junk ;)

Mardi Gras pics

Forgot to mention that Mike Starr is not in the video posted which was chosen for sound quality since it's my fave... but there are not many vids of that song.

Whale&Wasp

Mike Starr passed away this week.....

will be greatly missed. Starr was the former bassist for Alice In Chains, and struggled with drug use way after the dark, alternative, rain soaked era of grunge had grown up and left home. From what his friends have said in the news, the iron fist of heroin and hard drugs just never let him rest. Alice In Chains is still played very often in our house. In tribute, I'm posting one of my favorite songs from the band, and hope that at least in our time, my husband and I can catch Jerry Cantrell live soon...still haven't seen him yet and he's high on our list.

RIP, Mr. Starr.

Jack White's mobile record store to debut at SXSW

I just wanna take Jack White home and "keep him in my pocket"...read link below. Music news is always good news.

Jack White's mobile record store to debut at SXSW

www.lcup.net

The organization that I volunteer with, LCUP has a new website at www.lcup.net. Although this a local charity group, if you go through their website, you will see various links to other foundations like the Gannett Foundation (I was employed by Gannett Publishing years ago, great company...still owns USA TODAY and many other papers), and other literacy groups. If you have a few extra hours per month to help someone in need, tutoring is a great way to make new friends, to feel a sense of accomplishment and pride, and especially, to help someone with specific needs that get real results for their personal goals. Someone may just need help writing resumes, filling out personal records, reading English, studying for college, state or local exams such as driver's license or employment papers. Some people's need in the LCUP are dire and unique- such as teaching them about our monetary system and how to open a bank account so they may be ready when they are employed. Some are as broad as helping someone who speaks English learn how to speak it more clearly, so that they do not feel they are overlooked professionally (this is a commonly expressed opinion and worry about ESL clients).

Also, there is so much that a tutor ends up learning...from their student. I have always had many Hispanic friends, however I never knew the details of so many private concerns and stresses that my Columbian student has as a grown professional woman, who is working for a secondary degree. She, like many others, has insecurities about being a minority in her workplace and in the schoolroom, and we talk openly about these issues and most importantly, try to solve problems.

Anyway, all of us are "super busy". This seems to be the new badge of honor among our generation...how "super busy" we all are. How many cups of coffee we need, how over scheduled our kids are (mine are not and never will be), how much we "do do do"...but really, are we filling our time with events for us, and then claiming to be "busy"?

I have learned the past years that alot of my "business" (full time work, at times two jobs, and adding in Chamber of Commerce events, networking, etc) I also filled with with more events about "me". Once I started to realize I could spend time with my children, and have some free time every few weeks in the evenings..then I found that time for someone else. Volunteering has changed my life. My kids never knew about the charitable things I did before they were born, but you can bet they know my student, and serving their community is high on our priority list for them to be responsible young men.

Wow- it's crazy windy right now....I need to bring down our patio umbrella before it blows up on our roof like it did last year. Tornado weather coming!

Anyway, try to volunteer when you can. It will make your heart happy and will truly change someone's life.

Mardi Gras Ya'll !!!

Yippy Skippy I love this holiday! If only we could be near all the really good times in PC, Pcola, Mobile and of course NOLA right now, my heart could die happy. BUT, all is well. For our own little village on the west coast of Dunedin FL is having a Mardi Gras parade tonight! Bring out the beads, and if you need some, I've got about 20 years worth from all my New Orleans trips.

Live it up high hat style now, before we start repenting for our sins and live on bread, water, and give up the vices for a while. I'm a Methodist, but figure giving up something I cling to is a good spiritual exercise (Team Catholics -1). Mix in a little voodoo mojo and Creole food and I am one very happy camper.

Second good thing - I have the Harry Potter font on my phone now. yes!! it's sortof sideways lightning yet still easy to read. And it was a free download, even better.

Ta ta for now, kitty kats and doggy dogs.

What I Don't See at the Revolution Politics: vanityfair.com

Read link below. I love Christopher Hitchens and for years subscribed to Vanity Fair just for his articles. When you get a chance, look up some of his recent interviews (most recent on 60 Minutes this weekend)...he is disliked by some of his peers, but I find him witty, smart (smart-assy also but so are most writers)...and bold. As usual, I am drawn to people who are flamboyant while maintaining some type of gravitas for their actual work. He is currently fighting a long battle with cancer, and I sent him an email last year wishing him the best and reassuring him that God does exist. He is an atheist, but regularly asks his fans for proof or persuasion that God does indeed exist. I hope he listened to this little Southern Gal ;)

What I Don't See at the Revolution Politics: vanityfair.com

Some Audioslave is in order for this Monday

What a beautiful and bittersweet song. This vid is from a live from Cuba dvd, we have it and it's incredible. The people are so intense and you can feel their love for such good music.

AudioSlave - I am the highway ( live at cuba )

good things

I am officially set up to be a paid freelance writer/editor and am proud to say I got my first gig as such the past few months. I've kept it on the dl because I wasn't sure how it would pan out, but am happy to say that I hope both parties will benefit from my trained and professional past as a copy editor/writer and as a creative person who needs an outlet from 24 hour baby talk. Good things come to those who wait - NOT TRUE!! It comes to those who takes chances, reach out to old friends, keep some bridges unscathed, and who stay confident in their own abilities.

We all have insecurities...but they don't get you any gigs :) Hope all of you have a great Monday...Jude is looking at me like "are you my mom?"

Good thing this writing gig can be done at night...I quit Facebook about a month ago in anticipation of making my free time more "free" and once my husband returned from business trip, I realized I needed to get off the sharing highway for a while.

Take care!

deep quotes from pop music. to be continued...

"And if I catchya commin back my way, I'm gonna serve it to you." - White Stripes

"Lend me some sugar, I AM your neighbor!" - Outkast

You guys have a great Saturday meow.

Belief and Back Beach Road...Amen.

I was thinking about some great song titles today while listening to the radio (remember the radio?) on my way to get Nick for his eye appointment. We picked him up and went to the Safety Harbor Seafood Fest (2 years in a row, woo hoo!) and had a great time.. However, I thought about good old Bay County and didn't want to write about anything else present in my life, tonight, so thought this would be mildly entertaining to some of you about 50 readers (some of you who will know that the other folks not from that area can only guess at how really smart we really are....truly). God Bless America, and here goes:

Great Country Song Lines or Titles from Bay Co and surrounding areas:

"When Back Beach Road was two lanes, my heart was two lanes wide"

"Lynn Haven Country Club kicked me out, so I kicked your door in."

"Stars are bright and you don't seem so tonight."

"The South will rise again, when you are in my bed."

"They think we're stupid, but they're smart only in their head."

"Mexico Beach, pool and you. Amen."

"Kings Point, a little acreage and us, baby. Amen."

"Rolling in the blue, Salty's me and you."

"Seaside was just a baby when I fell in love with you."

"Coram's honeybears aren't nothing compared to you."

"what the hell are they doing at my condo?" part one.

"He thinks my Mustang's sexy..."

"Counselors don't know..."

"Party at Alligator Point, anyone need a knife to the head?"

"Prom dates are often very sweet, and often we don't get to tell them so later in life after all the bs is over"

"Good wine, golf carts, and missing naked people in Bay Point means trouble, love."

"Great food, great night, hold tight."

"Sunsets, sangrias and oysters...It's a great night."

"Hunt me down at Hunt's tonight. If I don't answer the phone, it's alright."

"Sweet Jesus, is that a new tattoo?"

"My parents may not be cooler than yours, but I'll be alive longer."

Amen. Ya'll have a great night. It's been a peaceful week, and I got to the causeway to lie by myself with eyes closed for a while my husband watched Jude. It gave me that peace I needed. The Seafood Fest was great, we met good people and are having a big cookout tomorrow night. I wish you all could come. We are not living "LARGE" but are living big, and thrive on social stuff and events rather than things. I just donated 5 boxes of nice things to a charity in order to help someone else out and also to keep our home from getting full of things we don't use. It was refreshing. My husband doesn't believe in astrology but has said that I am a true Capricorn from what he used to read. Real, practical, earth loving, a person who gets better as they got older - hey I'm ok with that.

But how are you? Dear friends, I know this blog is all about me, it's a blog. But I often wonder how you are doing, and hope you are faring well. Things are tough for some, and quite simply ok for others. I think this is the time in our lives when we need not compare ourselves to the "Jones'es" so to speak, and rather not be so concerned at all about material things. Food prices are going up, we have noticed. But I still find the time to drop off money to the local street solicitors and also there is a homeless person that has taken shelter by a bankrupt bank on Hwy 19 that I may start bringing a lunch to a few times a week. They hide under blankets, but I have seen them every day now for about two weeks, long enough to vex my soul. I have no job to offer them, but God knows they can use any help they can get.

I'll keep you posted. You- be safe, be healthy, and be kind. Life is short, people aren't perfect, and none of us are experts on the human condition. Find that empathy and find that place of imperfection that you may hide from others in order to help someone else out. We all have enough to give something. Even when Phillip and I lived in a shack with squirrels running around in the rafters and borrowed electricity, we still gave to charity, and still even when early in our marriage we both worked two jobs each to make ends meet and pay off debts in order to prepare for a better life, we still never asked for any government help but still gave, because we knew there are those that need it.

We knew we would overcome over hard times. The difference is there are so many who do not believe they will overcome. Belief.

Good night!

Yes, this!

See link below. The Temper Trap singing "Sweet Disposition". I heard it a few months ago on our local Tampa music video channel TheCoolTV - a great almost 24 hour video channel ala the early MTV days (that's channel 38-2 for local free antenna tv watchers like ourselves). They don't have any cheesy programs, just music vids from the past three or more decades and it's great to see the new music vids so I don't have to rely so much on word of mouth or the internet to find this stuff. This song is now on a Diet Coke commercial (sigh) but like Mika, Phoenix, Beck and many other great performers, this happens. In fact, I downloaded a ton of Phoenix stuff last year and got so annoyed from hearing them on ads that I can't even hear them anymore. Not their fault, I guess I was never a big enough fan (t.i.c)...

Hope you guys are having a peaceful evening. We just sat outside for a few minutes to enjoy the weird very cool air blowing through after that rain this morning. The wind chimes are singing, the ground is drying, and the big fat possum that runs our fence to get the last of the oranges was lumbering along, not caring about us at all. I have tiny spinach, cilantro, peppers, tomato, marigolds, basil, parsley and rosemary sprigs I had to contain on a corner of the porch so the gusts wouldn't bowl everything over.

Speaking of bowling, I'll have to tell you about the Big Lebowski Festival at Ritz Ybor we went to on Friday night in Tampa. It was very very cool....much bigger and friendlier than I expected. We met alot of super nice people and were filmed for a doc on the festival as it runs amuck through different cities nationwide. We were so glad to be able to go, and my awesome sister watched our house so we could venture once again into my native town. It was a great date night.

I hope you all are doing well. Last year was just one nasty thing after another, and so far, this year is starting off one a more peaceful note, except for the middle east but they'll work it all out how they (and the US and Europe) see fit I am sure. Gas prices are going up even more, and BP seems to have disappeared from North FL (you locals let me know) so they can run, but they cannot hide. Despite these things, we all need to find comfort in what we can do for others, and for ourselves and our loved ones.

Ta ta for now kitty cats and pups. Curl up with a good one!

Whatever that may be.

The Temper Trap - Sweet Disposition

In addition....

In reference to earlier post about Michelle Obama, something in my mind kept bugging me all day and I realized that there, in fact, was a very recent bill passed that addresses various nutritional and public school food issues called S. 3307 (look it up!). I think it was a much needed overhaul of the older guidelines and may help in giving some children the nutritional needs during the school day that they may not be getting at home. Some may say..."I can take care of my own kids and feed them just fine" well then this not for you. However, there are more and more children who do not have a full house of parents home daily to make sure they don't scarf down pizzas, sodas, cookies and chips every day. These children, I believe, are being neglected nutrionally and if they are not looked after at home, then at least they can get a healthy meal during the school day. There are several interesting subtexts to the bill, so please take the time to read it. You may know someone whose child could benefit from some of the free lunch programs and they may not be aware of these changes. The one thing that really bugged me, was that certain WIC/pregnancy clinics (however you may frame that) are awarded financially for logging in more successful breastfeeding moms and clinics. This is weird and stepping into that murky territory I like to call "Breastfeeding versus Bottle feeding MOM WARS THAT DOES NOTHING BUT MAKE PEOPLE GET ALL SMUG AND ACT LIKE THEY ARE EXPERTS area." Yes I meant to caps that.

Anyhoo, take a look. Our kids need our help. My kids' nutritional health affects their behavior during the school day around YOUR kids, and vice versa. I am very lucky to not have to work and make my kids their food. But, I would love to think every child is eating well. It's a vicious circle. It's not being mean to admit these problems, I'd rather solve the problems, but we can't if we are all in DENIAL about how our children are affected by the sugar they eat daily and how little real food some of them get. Don't even get me started on the PILLS people give their kids. AHH.

pretend like it's summer...

and enjoy some of these nice cool fruit drinks!

Pink Sangria:

Stir 4.5 cups chilled rose wine, 1 oz can frozen pink lemonade concentrate and 1/3 cup lime juice. Slowly stir in 2 cups chilled club soda, add 1 thin sliced lemon and 1 thin sliced orange. Serve over ice...serves about 10 servings.

Champagne Mojito" cut 2 large limes into pieces, combine w/ 2 cups water and 1 cup sugar in a blender. Cover, blend with several on-off motions for 30 sec or until limes coarsely chopped. Do not puree. Strain through a seive into large pitcher, dilute mixture with 1-2 cups water to taste. Cover and chill. Wet the rims of 4-6 tall glasses dip rims into sugar. Fill glasses with ice and add 1/4 cup champagne to each glass. Pour chilled lime mix over Champagne, add quartered limes if desired.

Heavenly Homemade Wine Coolers: Into four glasses, pour 1/2 cup wine and 1/2 cup ginger ale. Top with frozen peaches, cantaloupe, honeydew balls or grapes.

Cheap and Easy....just like you like em.

(thanks to Publix "Grape" magazine for ideas!!)