We Interrupt Your Normally Scheduled Program...

...as we'll be "camped" to the rafters for the next several 

weeks!  That's right, peeps, they've let me back into the 

camping ring. My time in the camp penalty box has been 

served!  Woot woot!

~Pre-Camp Camp Out this week with the girls from church.

~Saturday I leave to assist my SIL, the head cook, as her 

  assistant for a week of Junior Grange camp for 200 

  screaming kids.  Mini-Me'll be one of 'em.

~A few days after returning home from there, Mini-me 

& I  will be headed up for a week of Girls Camp.

Lucky for us, July'll be more quiet.  

That is aside from Mini-Me turning 13 on the 4th of July (oy!), 

all sorts of open gym volleyball at the high school, and a rad 

volleyball tournament.  August will bring us 2 more camps 

(volleyball & Young Women's camp) + the big county fair. 

Farmer LKP'll be roughin' it on his own.  He assures me he's 

fully qualified to take care of himself, otherwise I would have
hired an LKP-sitter.  Though he DID threaten to hop on here
and try to figure this "hornswaggled bloggin' thing" out,
hehehehe...so if anything shows up that's OBVIOUSLY NOT
ME, then it's him.  Be warned.  Be afraid.  

Also, if you notice any smoke coming from the ranch, 

it's probably him burning his TV dinners.  

So enjoy some peace & quiet from the general direction of 

the ranch.  I'll be back with pictures of kids, fun, camping,
oodles of ensued hi-jinx, and more of the same ol' racket!

Graduation Day

Aren't these guys so impressive?  Country dogs they may
now be, but lovely they've always been.  That is unless
they've found a skunk...a mama skunk....and her four
babies...yeah, THEN I don't wanna be within 100 yards
of 'em!  Lucky for us, THIS WEEK, they haven't had any
skunk run-ins.  ::phew!::

Look at how slinky Sir Linus is getting!  Can you believe
he's still got a month until his first birthday?!  He's massive.
Not great dane massive, but large for so young.  He's like
having a 100% pure "little boy" around here, only he's running
around on 4 legs!  He's into everything.  Wants to be wherever
dad goes. Tractor, or truck, or anything on wheels starts up he
thinks he needs to be in that cab or vehicle.  He's not a
chaser, unless dad drives off and Sir Linus thinks he needs
to go....then he'll follow dad as far as the highway, just so
dad'll stop & pick him up.  (Such a softy!  If it were me,
I'd holler at him until he learned to go home all his own.
Sometimes that might require a swift kick of motivation or two.
See just like children!  j/k)  Needless to say, we pen him
now, whenever Farmer LKP needs to run some errands.

But I digress.

Today, they graduated!
From these hideously smelly collars, to...

HUGE, CLEAN, BRAND-NEW
DOG COLLARS WITH REFLECTIVE STRIPES!!!

WOOT WOOT!!!

Hula's had a collar like this before, but the poor stripe had
seen better days.  Er, well, we'd seen the stripe on better days.
At the time of retiring the expired collars, there was no stripe
to be seen, at least not on the outside of the collar.  So, now
they're a little more classy & grown-up & matching
& swanky. I love it!  And I'm proud of me for only
destroying ONE of my thumbnails switching the tags from
collar to collar. Woo hoo!

On another note: what animal post would be complete
without a gratuitous photo of King Tuffy?  Exactly.
Doesn't he look like he's in camo?!  Lol.

This Brightened My Day!

Lately, more than ANY other time in our marriage,
I've found myself repeating the following phrase:
"You just don't listen to your wife."
Consider that fact.
Now watch this video of Matt Townsend that has helped
me with my outlook, thanks to Rudy Family Ruckus for it.
I promise.
It'll be the best set of 5 minutes you've spent all day!

Guess what?!  He's, as a rule of thumb, NOT going to
listen to me 100% cause it's not in his repertoire.  And that's ok.
If it was in his repertoire, then I wouldn't be married to him,
I'd be married to a woman.  And frankly, there's only
room for ONE of those in this marriage!  Haha!
I'm grateful for the changed perspective I have now.  =)

Lazy Naughty Kitty Cat

THIS is what I found.
Contrary to what you may think,

THIS is who did it!

Doesn't he just LOOK menacing?! 
(please forgive the phone shots)
I'd say he's feeling 100% like himself now.

Man on a Tractor with a Dog in a Field

So THIS is what I found Farmer LKP out doing tonight. 

Not working, mind you, since it's the Sabbath.
I think he's mostly just getting a tractor's lay-of-the-land and dreaming about what'll someday be growing here...or pooping here.  (Doesn't that photo just remind you of Rodney Atkins' song, "A Man on a Tractor" ...I can just hear him singin' it...only about MY man on a tractor with TWO dogs in a field.)

Funny story about this.  Last time he was out tinkering around on the old tractor, he came in the house, scooped me up in his arms and said, "Thank you for letting me buy 7 acres!"  Then gave me a smooch and dashed right back out to his haven.

I'll admit, he straight swept me off my feet yet again in that moment.  He's definitely the man of my dreams!
(You can't read his shirt here, but it says "Handsome is a HUGE Understatement")
Amazing what a little dirt'll do to a country boy like Mr LKP.

Which brings me to another point.  Mr LKP declared last night, while we were framing up the new double-dog house, that he needs a new moniker.  "Mr LKP sounds a little soft," he said.  I explained that since I was LKP, it only made sense that he be referred to as "Mr LKP."  He doesn't think that's sound logic.  So I said I'd take it to the blog for a new name.  He remarked, "Something that packs a punch.  I mean Pioneer Woman has Marlboro Man.  I need something manlier...like Silver Bullet or something."  I did hold back a knee-slap & a holler, and only snickered a little in front of him.
But true to my word, here we are.  Mr LKP needs a new nickname, something he can be proud of.  Something that,
if he DID drink and WERE to saunter into a saloon, people
would flee before his presence/gaze all the while gasping  
"Oh no!  It's...."  Now, you fill in the blank.
(I mean, really, what does this face say to you?!)

 Thanks.  Love ya.  Mean it.

(...King Tuffy's doing much, much better by the way.  Thanks for asking.  
Told ya it'd only be a day or two of a breather, sheesh!)

Miniature Farmer LKP

...think Mister Rogers' Neighborhood and the beginning, as well as the ending, credits.  Remember them? 

Well I found a faux Tilt-Shift technique in PS thanks to this groovy little tutorial that once I get to my photos with it, they start to remind me of Mister Rogers & his little, tiny, mini-neighborhood!  Super fun.  Couldn't resist on some pictures from this evening.  

Doesn't he look so manly-cute (aka cute in a manly way)????

Can't wait to play with FauxTS some more!

P.S.  BTW, there's this fab looking site here as well, that I might have to give a try...wonder if it's cheating?  Hmmmm...
Oh well, either way, suddenly I'm feeling a might bit taller.
All I have to do is make everyone else miniature.  Hee hee.  

"You feelin' strong my friend?  Call me elf one. more. time!"

***UPDATE!***

Yeah, so I just tried TiltShiftMaker.com and
it TOTALLY rocks the Casbah!
Check it out:

Hehehe...
Makes me want to get into
model trains and/or work at a museum!

Who'da Thunk It?!

Kinda sad.
This is our old house.
Just dropped off our old mail key to the new tenants.
Weird seeing someone else moving into my old home of the past 2 years. Should it feel this way?

DORK STAMP!

All I heard was "dork stamp!" 

So I turned and this is what I found staring
back at me from the passenger seat.
Lol!
What a kid I've got.
She's special, I tell ya! =)

Today Was a Bust

King Tuffy has not been himself lately.
(Not that he's Bucky-vicious...yet.)

He's not into stuff like usual.  He won't get off the floor.  He's lethargic.  No interest in his favorite things & activities.  Lots of repetitive swallowing.  Has lost weight...and not like fat either (he's a big cat and he'd put on some weight when we'd lived in town), but this is different.  I can tell he's lost some muscle mass.  Very disconcerting.

Last night I laid by him until 3am, hoping his breathing would improve.  It didn't.  In addition, this morning he left a foamy present from his tummy on my floor.  Poor guy.  So I called the vet.  They couldn't get him in AT ALL today OR tomorrow!

So, I got a NEW vet.

They didn't have an appointment for him either, however they rock this cool drop-off system.  There's no solid appointment on the books, but he's seen as soon as the doc gets a spare moment or several.  I dig that.  Wish my MD or OB had a system in place like that for their patients.  Anyhow, Tuff hadn't been there but maybe 30-40 mins when the doctor called me himself.  (Gotta say, I was not only impressed but also relieved to speak to him directly and not just have some message relayed back & forth by an assistant---no offense to ANY assistants, since I've been one in the dental field for ages.  It was just nice to be valued enough to hear directly from the doc.) 

Turns out, King Tuffy has an upper respiratory infection.  Pooh!
(But that explains why he could hardly breathe and why there was so much discharge obstructing the nasal cavity.  Trust me, it. was. gross.  But I HAD to clear the airway for him last night.  So it was him, me, his nose, LOTS of q-tips, and this stringy mucus/discharge.  Trust me.  If I still had one of those snot-sucker bulbs they give you at the hospital with your newborn, I'd have used it A LOT!) 

I would've puked if that stuff had come out of me.  But when you're a mom, even to your 4-legged children, your fortitude kicks in like an Army drill sargeant, hopped up on RedBull & 'roids, during Basic Training at Fort Jackson, S.C. in the middle of a humid July.  I was THAT strong.  I had a white-knuckle grip on my normally weak constitution. (Be proud.  Be very proud.)

In addition to the infection, which required antibiotics AND pro-biotics, Tuffy was pretty dehydrated--made sense, since I haven't been able to get him to eat or drink anything, and he's been vomiting froth every so often over the past 48 hours.  That called for fluid to be injected just under his skin.  Looks like he's got a fat old tumor under his left front armpit.

His right eye runs on & off.  Has since we first got him in 2006.  They ordered an ointment for that.  Then to help get his immune system back in fighting form, they injected vitamins through his coat, along his back.  Apparently that stings, and he was EXTREMELY grumpy about it.  The site's still tender.  AND SOME OF IT LEAKED OUT OF HIS BACK WHEN I WAS DRIVING HIM HOME!!!  Ew, ew, ew!

So all that is what they DID do.
Set me back more than $350.  ::gulp::
That was NOT where I'd intended or wanted $350 to go right now.  (There are some issues with lack of cabinet space in this house at the moment that are REALLY demanding my attention.  Not to mention NO television to watch our DVD collection on...which is a problem considering all the uncharacteristic wet weather we've been having lately.  And, frankly, I'm getting tired of sleeping on an air mattress.  I mean it's been like 3 mos already.  C'mon!) 

What they WANTED to do was blood work to check his cell levels, which was another $210...AND x-rays to determine if there was anything worse than the infection that we were dealing with, which was another $200.  (It was all I could do to get my husband not to divorce me over the $350...there was NO WAY we could've done all that the vet wanted to today.  The other part, it's not like you can make payments to the vet.  Doesn't work that way.  Pay the total when you pick up the patient.  
Done & done.) 

You have to know that both my husband & I were raised rurally.  So on the farm if an animal is lame, it's put down.  Simple.  No vet.  One bullet.  A sad funeral service, and then life elsewhere on the property resumes.  Trouble is, THIS IS KING TUFFY WE ARE TALKING ABOUT!!!  Not even my big, strong, gruff, manly husband could put Tuffy down.  Nope.  Neither of us could muster that.  Makes my heart ache to even consider it.  And really, as far as we know right now, it's only an upper respiratory infection.  So...we'll hope that what they were able to do today + the meds they gave me, along with knighting me to the vet nurse round-table, will be enough.  If not, next week I may be having to cough up the extra $400 for blood work and films.

I think he thinks I'm punishing him.  First, I bring home another cat...in a huge carrier.  Second, I expect them to get along.  Third, I expect them to share a water dish.  Fourth, I pet the other cat AND give it some of the same kind of kitty treats Tuffy likes.  Fifth, I stuff Tuffy in that goodness-forsaken carrier, and put him in the car.  (Tuffy dislikes the car.  He's traveled a ton, but his paws get sweaty and he gets anxious on a normal basis.  Considering all the upheaval in his life lately, I think he was MAJORLY stressing.)  Next thing he knows, I'm dropping him off at a strange, sterile-ish place that smells like LOTS of other animals.  That's it!  He knew it.  I was putting him up for adoption!!!!  (I just KNOW this was all going on in his brain.)
I'm sure getting poked with needles & IV's didn't make him feel like everything was gonna be warm & fuzzy & all OK.  Then I picked my baby-in-a-box up, and he was so excited to see ME through the grate.  At least he was for a fraction of a second, then I saw his ears dart backwards, and the glint in his eye.

WHY HAD I FORGOTTEN HIM THERE, IN A PLACE WHERE THEY POKE & PROD & TREAT KITTIES LIKE LAB RATS, HUH?!

Yeah.  I wanted to cry along with him.  Poor fellow.  So, let's just sum the day up with: it's been a nonstop roller-coaster of a day.  I'm exhausted.  I'm ready to get off the ride.  And I still have to play nurse for the week until another adventure with the vet next Friday for Tuffy's recheck appointment.

Hope it's been a better day in your neck of the woods.  This is LKP from Gusty Ridge, signing off for a breather (day or two, tops!).  Love ya, mean it!

This is for My Posterity

...and my old Cheer gals...and Sonora!

Not shocking at all, right?  Lol.

Hail, the Conquering Hero!

Took this:

...and this...

...and this...

to THIS:

Woot woot!
Certain to be a superhero in my husband's eyes when he sees!

Is it Bad

...at 8:10am to look at my reflection in the computer screen and say "yep, hair's good, not touching it, let's face the day!"...????

Especially when I showered last night, I'm still in my jammies this morning, I haven't eaten, nor brushed my teeth, nor applied a stitch of make-up or even THOUGHT about what I'll wear?

Well, that's where its at today folks.

Stay tuned.

I'll probably have that "Holy crap, why did I leave the house?!" glance-in-my-rear-view-mirror panic attack before too long.

Happy Thursday!

Guess Who?!

I think SULLIVAN is feeling right at home here. 

He's adopted Mini-Me as his very most favorite.
She likes calling him Sully.

 I'd say she must be his Boo.
If she goes anywhere he's right behind her.
If she's reading, he's right in the middle of her lap or bed.

What a kitty!
 

Why, even King Tuffy seems to be finally coming around.

(MIKE WAZOWSKI!) 

And Today I Love

...more than yesterday, cause it: 

...Turned out to be a good-ish hair day...especially considering I forgot to use conditioner. 

...Turned out to be a good-ish face day...especially considering the new blemishes that joined the party, the minimal make-up I used, AND the massive allergy issues in my right eye that I've been fighting for the past 24 hours (which=hardly any sleep). 

...Turned out to be a good-ish money day...especially considering we had to pay our mortgage today. 

It all proves that what you expect and what you get are two different things! AND we should be happy with what we get, cause it could always be worse. =)

I'm Over the Moon!

(FYI: I'm not implying that I'm a cow, a heifer, or any bovine of the sort.)

As if there weren't a gajillion & one reasons already to love:

Imagine my surprise, adoration, & not to mention downright smitten-ness with this month's issue of Costco Connection (pgs 49-50 to be precise)! Actually, June features a great article on Celiac. Then on pg 50 there are TWO fantabulous recipes to try!!! Woot woot!

Last night, for our family BBQ, I made the Quinoa Tabbouleh Salad with a few alterations to accommodate my allergies better. It was better than good. It was undeniably SCRUMPTIOUS!!!

I guess another reason I'm elated over this (aside from more attention & awareness regarding Celiac...which besides its affect on me---coupled with my severe food allergies---has changed the lives of 5 other extended family members of mine in a little less than 16 years), the photos for the recipes look delectable!!! That is a rarity in GF recipes. It really is. It's almost felt like, because of Celiac, we've gotta just sit down, shut-up, and eat whatever CRAPPY tasting & looking GF food is sent down the table at us. Let me just say, THAT SUCKS!!!

And really, on the convenient, pre-packaged side of eating GF....well, most of the food DOES suck. But we shouldn't take it lying down. No. Instead we should all be in our own kitchens whipping up delicacies that leave the non-GF food world's mouths watering! But that's just me & my opinion. (These recipes did it for me anyways....only fair.) 

What did I change about the Tabbouleh recipe?  Well... I replaced the tomatoes with red & orange bell peppers.  I replaced the garlic with Beau Monde seasoning. Made sure to use kosher salt & freshly ground pepper.  I also added a little lime juice.  C'est magnifique!  (So much so, that I had a handful of compliments from the otherwise burgers & chips kinda BBQ crowd!  Squee!!!!)

To join in the cuisine fun, and if you can't read the recipes from the widget above, comment below with your email address & I'll send the recipes over to you.  Otherwise dig through that big pile of mail on your counter & let your fingers fly on over to pages 49 & 50!  =)

WE LOVE YOU, COSTCO!!!

	GLUTEN-FREE RECIPES AT THE BOTTOM!!!
ANOTHER REASON TO ADORE COSTCO!