Tonight is my ten-year high school class reunion. Sort of. See, my class isn’t terribly organized. We started planning our five-year reunion two weeks ahead of time. The reunion wound up involving a gathering of anyone who could come meeting at the country club for drinks. Okay, whatever, we’ll be more organized for the ten-year reunion, right?
This morning I awoke to the news that the lovely Kina Diaz DeLeon has nominated me for the Sunshine Blogger Award. Needless to say, I was beyond flattered (as I am every time someone nominates me for something like this). As with all things, there are some rules involved, and here they are: Continue reading
Photo by Kay Kauffman
We can be the heroes and heroines in our own lives. We can set out upon a quest. We can write our own stories, and within those tales, discover something extraordinary. We can have an extraordinary life. -Tricia Drammeh
I read that about an hour ago and was inspired. This post almost didn’t get published today, but I’ve still got ten more minutes to go before the weekend is officially here and I think I can make it! Anyway, Tricia is a wonderful lady and I highly recommend visiting her blog, where you can find the rest of the post that I quoted above.
Anyway, it’s late, I’m tired, I’ve got boatloads of work to do, and I’ve recently become addicted to Pottermore. If you’re there, let’s be friends! I’m SkyKey6037 and just got sorted into Hufflepuff tonight, so that was pretty cool, although I have to admit I was hoping for either Gryffindor or Ravenclaw. Oh, well.
And now, to the writing cave! Happy weekend, y’all!
(c) 2012. All rights reserved.
Today is Friday the 13th, day of terror and superstition and scary movie marathons. It’s also International Zombie Day (or so I’ve been told) and in celebration of the ooey and gooey, I’m here to tell you about a new book just released by Taylor Street Publishing.
I’ve Been Deader, a near-perfect blend of comedy and horror by Adam Sifre (also known lovingly as Splinker to his adoring fans), is a story about Fred, a zombie in love with a girl. The chapters read like flash fiction, and when it comes to the undead, you gotta read about Fred. Splinker is quite insistent about that. So without further ado, behold the first chapter, entitled…
Between preparing for Cricket’s birthday party and participating in the follow party hosted by Charlotte Castle on Facebook yesterday, I’m feeling a bit zombified today. The follow party was great fun – I’ve made some new friends, gained some new followers, and had some great conversations. But this zombie feeling isn’t likely to let up soon – Cricket’s party is tomorrow and I still have lots to do yet. I’m taking a break for now, though. I need a good nap.
I’m still struggling to believe that come Monday, Cricket will be two years old. It seems like just yesterday we brought him home from the hospital, all excited and filled with joy at the prospect of the new life that was ours to mold. I must admit, my favorite part of having kids with Seymour (namely, Cricket and Thumper) is that we don’t have to share them with anyone else (Tadpole and Tomcat each come from previous marriages and, while we normally get along pretty well with our exes, there are always times when things don’t go the way we would like them to go or when we don’t get to have the kids when we would like to have them because they’re with their other parents – it’s just part of being divorced). For instance, Tomcat and Tadpole are with their other parents this weekend and as far as I know will not be able to come to Cricket’s party tomorrow. It’s a disappointment, but it comes with the territory when you’re a divorced parent. That’s just the way life goes.
Anyway, my boys are getting so big that it’s hard to believe. In just over a month I’ll be doing all this again in preparation for Thumper’s first birthday! To be honest, I’m just glad he’s made it to his birthday because when he was born, we weren’t sure he would. His birth was vastly different from his brother’s – instead of a joyful event full of smiles and visitors, it was an anxiety-ridden event full of worry and panic. It all seems like such a long time ago, but at the same time, it feels like only yesterday. It’s funny how time pulls that off.
And now, to nap. Don’t forget to stop back Monday, when I’ll be kicking off four days of posts featuring Lisa McKay and her latest book, Love at the Speed of Email! You won’t want to miss it!
(c) 2012. All rights reserved.
The beautiful, if shallow, Upper Iowa River
Photo by Kay Kauffman
Once again, it’s Friday. Once again, it’s been a crazy week. Did I say crazy? I think maybe cray-zay might suit a little better. It all started Sunday. Sunday began the first-ever Kauffman Family Camping Extravaganza. Our adventure did not exactly get off to an auspicious start. For one thing, Seymour wanted to leave our house by 10:00 a.m. as the campground we were heading to was three hours away. His parents were going to go with us, but they live a good hour and a half south of us, so we couldn’t leave till they arrived at our house, and they were late. Seymour’s mama wasn’t feeling well, so his papa let her sleep in a little late and it was nearly noon by the time they made it to our house. I think we pulled out of our driveway somewhere around 12:30 p.m.
About an hour or so into the trip, possibly a little more, one of the tires on our camper blew out in spectacular fashion. There was no fixing this tire – it was in pieces all over the road. I should have taken a picture of it, but I didn’t think of it at the time. And apparently campers don’t come with spares standard the way cars do, but Seymour is a smart one and bought one when he picked up the camper, so he got the tire changed and we were soon back on the road.
…and I think I need a vacation from my vacation. Please excuse me while I go collapse into bed and sleep for a week.
(c) 2012. All rights reserved.
Are you confused yet? Worry not. What I mean is, I’ll be gone for a few days. After the week we’ve had, the fam and I need some time away from it all, so we’ve loaded up the trailer and we’re heading for the hills. It’s our first-ever family camping trip, something we’ve been planning for months and looking forward to since last fall. It will be four glorious days and three marvelous nights with no electronics, no diapers, no formula, no baby food, and somewhat less whining than normal as Cricket and Thumper will be staying with the world’s best ex-wife. Once they’re potty-trained, they can start coming with us but until then, I’m looking forward to a few days without diaper duty.
I plan to do a little fishing, a little writing, a little marshmallow-roasting, and have an all-around awesome time with my family. This week’s events served as a reminder of just how important family is. I love my family so very much and I am really looking forward to this time with them.
In the meantime, I’ve scheduled a few posts to tide you all over till I get back. Have a great week!
(c) 2012. All rights reserved.
Ah, summer. It is June, after all. How the heck that happened, I’ll never know. I could swear that only yesterday it was January. Anyway, Kristen Lamb shared summertime memories of her youth in a post this afternoon and it made me smile. I remembered some of the same years she described, but I remembered them through the eyes of a child instead of the eyes of a young woman. Sure, by the time I was five, the Russians were no longer our enemies, but I still remember slip ‘n’ slides, spending more time outside than in, and never locking our doors. Ever.
Fishing by Kay Kauffman
Welcome to the first in my Friday Phlog series! This week’s photo features an old picture of my oldest son, the Tominator (aka the Terrific Tomcat). This photo commemorates his very first fishing trip at his great-aunt Sandy’s house. She and her husband live in a beautiful gated community dotted with ponds that are kept fully stocked. When we were visiting them for their 25th anniversary luau (complete with un lechon – that’s roast suckling pig for those of you not in the know), my darling baby boy was treated to his first fishing trip in one of the ponds near Sandy’s gorgeous house.
Suddenly they all died. The end. 