I am telling you... I could NOT make this up! Stand by for BREAKING NEWS!

Breaking News:

Fair not opening

Officials at the Wayne Regional Agricultural Fair have decided to not open the gates today, closing the midway and the exhibits because of the inclement weather.

However, the Open Junior Meat Goat Show will go on as scheduled at 6 p.m., but has been moved indoors.

Today was supposed to be...

Full story

Oh Thelma would LOVE this News Flash! Exactly what is an Open Junior Meat Goat Show?

Falling.....

Falling is the what one does as fall begins. We are falling when we watch the leaves begin to descend from the tall trees. We are falling when we dig out the sweaters. We are falling when we long for fires in the fireplace. We are falling when we can breathe in the smell of burning leaves in someones yard. We are falling when we go for long walks down leafy paths. As today is the first day of Autumn I encourage you to do some falling. Maybe fall in love again with the season that brings out the best in many of us. For here in the south we must wait awhile longer for the leaves to fall and for the temperatures to drop. But for today I have lighted a fire in the fireplace anyway... even if the air conditioner is on! :)

Saturday Mornings... and Haute Cuisine Southern Style...

Saturday mornings have become for my husband and I, a special part of our week. We love spending time together and we love to go to the gym together... only not exactly together. We pack our little gym bags together, and we get into our car and drive together.. and then as we get 'to town'... I drop him off at the YMCA and I drive about 2 blocks further and go to Curves. So we do go to separate gyms together, simultaneously and at the same time, while maintaining a slight distance, based solely on my desire to not workout in front of some very scary patrons.

This routine has taken on a life of its own. My workout does not involve a hot tub,pool or a weight room and scary shower room, and so it does not last as long as my husband's routine. My routine is about 30 to 45 minutes long and so after sweating to the oldies it has become my treat to myself to go to Starbucks and to indulge in an Iced Skinny Green Tea Latte Grande! Yum... I had been enjoying the Iced Skinny Vanilla Latte Grande... but decided that the Green Tea Latte seemed somehow more healthy! What do you think? Anyway I digress... I then have about an hour and a half until my dear husband finishes his routine. This is when the morning gets really interesting!

I usually run a few quick errands and then I make a trip to Sam's Club. For those who may not be familiar with Sam's it is a warehouse club owned by the Walton family of Wal-Mart fame. Now the trip to Sam's for whatever it is I may need is NOT the highlight of my trip. The highlight is once I check out... after checking out with my purchases in tow I roll my cart past the "Sam's Restaurant". There right in front of the check out lanes is an array of metal and plastic picnic tables and VERY large trash cans. There is an ordering window where people order pizza and hot dogs and all manner of interesting cuisine. Now most every Sam's that I have ever been in has one of these food courts... without the rest of the court, but what sets this one apart from all of the others is that it is ALWAYS packed! I mean there are usually almost NO seats available! There are usually people lined up at the order window and most of the tables are full!

Now I have always been told that if you want to find the good restaurants in a town just look for the places that are always packed! Hmmmmm so I guess what I am trying to say is that if you come to see me here in the south... we just may have to go for a meal at Sam's Club. Don't worry I can get you in... I have a membership! :)

Mothers of Five Unite!

Now that my five children are all grown, it is obviously easier to see things clearly in hind sight. But as questions of Sarah Palin's ability to be wife, mom, governor, VP candidate, etc seem to be swirling in the media... I feel compelled to answer! The answer is YES -- SHE CAN! Mothers of five are, if I may say so humbly, remarkable!
My own five children were born in 74,76,81, and twins - twenty-two months later in 83! By 1986 I was a single mother raising these 5 children on my own. I worked two jobs.. teaching in a small Christian school by day and cleaning factories,empty apartment complexes and office buildings by night.
We were generally in church on Sunday mornings, Sunday evenings, Wednesday nights and any other time the doors were open. We rationed food. We sometimes struggled to pay the bills. We had issues with teens. But never did it occur to me or to my children that this was something in which we could not succeed. The older children helped with the younger children, several family friends were there to help us when things needed repair or to lend moral support. But we did it! The five children put themselves through Christian college. Today four of them are married, one daughter has blessed us with three granddaughters, another daughter is expecting in February. My children all work, all have Bachelors degrees, two have Masters degrees and a third daughter is currently in grad school, one is a successful film editor, two teach at the college level, one works for a nationally known non profit, and one is an HR specialist. After they were grown I went back to college and now have my Masters degree.
I believe that Sarah Palin is MORE than capable of being a successful mom, wife , governor and Vice President of the United States. I think that the leading she has done with her five, gives her the ability to lead the world! She has the experience of being an expert in foreign policy while negotiating peace treaties between fighting children. She has been an expert on the economy while trying to figure how to feed five kids and a husband on a tight budget. She understands the energy needs of the world because of driving kids back and forth to more activities than you can shake a stick at. She understands the need for affordable health care, while trying to figure out how to get all those kids vaccinated. Hockey Mom ? Indeed... PTA Mom?... Indeed.... Leader of the Free World? ABSOLUTELY!

The Truth Is.......

With the disclosure today of the pregnancy of Sarah Palin's daughter, the blog world and all networks are a buzz with the news. The truth is that if this child had opted for an abortion, NO ONE would have known. But the decision of this young woman to carry and keep her child becomes a national news story. And why? Because her mother has been named Sen. McCain's running mate for VP. I applaud Bristol's parent's decision to publicly acknowledge the pregnancy and to support their daughter. This could become a battle cry by pro-lifers, to bring the plight of the unborn to the front! In another scenario this teenager might have had her pregnancy terminated without even her parent's knowledge. The murder would have gone unnoticed by media outlets and things would have continued without a blip. But with God there are NO accidents. Perhaps, just perhaps, this announcement might open the doors for open and honest discussion about teenage pregnancy and the rights of the unborn!