Monday, April 30, 2012

Oh No! Maybe I am Goldilocks!

Last Saturday morning it HAILED here at Yesteryear Acres.  You know...hail... the ice balls that fall from the sky.... in WINTER?! Yes we had hail.  And it was cold all weekend. Really cold. The "I need a sweatshirt and a jacket" cold.  The dogs all looked at me like, "I don't want to go out there...it is COLD outside!"  I turned up the heat in the house and was grateful to have my winter things still available to wear.
Even though.....
It is late April......
Which is considered Spring time.......
When flowers bloom......
Because it is almost May.......
In Ohio......
Where it is almost garden planting time.......
Anyway - I was just getting used to complaining about how darn cold it is, when all of the sudden - today it is sweltering outside!  What the heck?  It is SO HOT outside today.  I had on a long sleeve shirt with a t-shirt over it because I am so used to layering...and I about died of heatstroke. I had to eliminate the long sleeve idea and even with just a t-shirt...still hot! The dogs all looked at me like, "I don't want to go out there...it is HOT outside!"  Every time I let the dogs in today, they come in panting and barely crawling back up the steps.  The last outing had one of the dogs trying to dig a hole in the yard just to find some cool dirt. Of course, I stopped that idea right away, but the doggie just looked at me like, "Hello? I am HOT!"  Okay. Okay. Too Hot. Too Cold........Maybe I AM Goldilocks!!!!  Can tomorrow please be JUST RIGHT?!

Sunday, April 29, 2012

Goldilocks

For some reason for the past few days - Mr. Yesteryear Acres likes things one way and my son likes things the other.  For example - last night my son came to me on the verge of death due to severe starvation.  I believe it had been a whopping 90 minutes since the last time he ate. He crawled into the kitchen, barely alive, and asked, "How long until dinner?" I responded that dinner would be ready in 15 minutes.  He said, "THAT LONG? ARGH!!!!" My son didn't know if he would be able to last an entire 15 more minutes without eating. When dinner was a mere 5 minutes away from being ready, my son was barely breathing.  Death was imminent.  Mr. Yesteryear Acres walked into the kitchen and said, "Why is dinner ready so early?????? I don't want to eat now!" Are you serious?  I do not think 6:15pm is particularly early and where are all the thank yous?  Where are all the accolades of appreciation?  Here I made Roasted Chicken and stuffing and gravy and fresh green beans!  I even made a pumpkin bread with cream cheese frosting.  I mean it was a very fine meal!  Instead I got...."Dinner is too LATE" and "Dinner is too EARLY".  Hurumph.  This afternoon I made my son and Mr. Yesteryear Acres soup for lunch. The other night I made Cream of Potato and Broccoli Soup and thoughtfully heated the leftover soup for their lunch.  I ladled the soup into 2 huge matching mugs.  I warmed them in the microwave for exactly 3:00 minutes each. This is what I got....

Mr. Yesteryear Acres......"Ack! This soup too cold.  I like it hotter"

My son......."Ack! This soup is too hot. I almost incinerated my face!"

Evidently I am living the Goldilocks Fairy Tale.  Maybe....just maybe...Tonight will be just right.

Saturday, April 28, 2012

So Real

This afternoon I had the chance to video chat with my daughter.  There she sat in her full camouflage uniform having returned from a Marine Corps exercise.  Just a little 6 mile "hump" along with various obstacle courses.  You know - a typical Saturday morning. As she told me about her Marine Corp field exercises, I couldn't help but think.....where did the time go?  There she was, hair pulled back, in uniform, returning from a difficult training exercise, confident, smiling, ready for anything. I had to think - so this is how it will be.  This is a sneak peek into our future.  She will be off on dangerous missions and I will wait for our video chat all the while never thinking about what she is ACTUALLY doing.  You can't really think about what they ACTUALLY do - because it is way too mind-boggling when it is your sweet little baby out there.  Today my little baby didn't look so little.  Today my little  baby looked all grown up. She has less than one month until she graduates from the Naval Academy and then she is off to Quantico for Marine Corp Basic School training. All of the sudden.....this is just so real. I think.....my baby...is no longer....my baby. Semper Fi.

Friday, April 27, 2012

1000 Words

I am sure we all know by now that I am quite capable of writing 1000 words in my blog with no problem but since a picture is worth 1000 words - I figured you just might like that better.....
Our New Double Doodle Puppies are here!
Lady and Barkley had 6 babies. Here are the 4 boys.

And their 2 little girls.

Trixie evidently thought....anything my sister Lady can do....I can do better!  So she doubled Lady's babies and gave birth to a dozen new double doodle puppies!

We have the cutest assortment of reds, caramels and light apricots.

Cute Little Red Pup

Snuggle Pile!

They are so little and so precious

Now we get to watch them grow! 
Awwwwwww!

Thursday, April 26, 2012

Why How Thoughtful

We have a rather large house here at Yesteryear Acres.  We have room, room and more room. We have a nice size kitchen with plenty of floor space.  In fact, our kitchen has so much room, we can fit a kiddie wading pool on the floor, have room to lay down next to the pool, and have cute little puppies born right there in our kitchen. See?  Lots of room. We even have room upstairs.  There is a bathroom with a floor that is easily cleaned.  We have stairs that are also easily cleaned.  We even have a full size basement.  That is a lot of floor space! I am sure you are wondering why I am going on and on about the amount of room in our house. I am sure you are wondering.....just what IS the point.  Well let me get right to it. Today, after staying up all night, I thought, "doesn't a small, teeny, weeny, little nap sound delightful?" What if I were just to crawl into bed for a 20 minute nap?  What if I were to just lay down and pull the blankets up under my chin and close my little eyes? So I quietly crept up the steps, I started to crawl into my bed when......ACK! ACK! ACK!  Gross!!!! EWWWWWWWWWWWW! Given ALL the space in my house, given all the areas that are easily cleaned, given the ENTIRE basement and 2 full floors of living space....WHY, oh WHY, did my cat PUKE up a wet and yucky hairball ON MY BED? Seriously?! She couldn't have done that someplace OTHER than my bed? It wasn't the kind of mess that was easily cleaned either! Soooooooo guess who washed the comforter, sheets and all the bedding instead of taking a nap? Wasn't that thoughtful of me? And even though I am slightly sleep deprived, I would never forget to share the eagerly awaited puppy news....WE HAVE BABY PUPPIES!  I will have newborn pictures and all the details posted tomorrow.  They are all SO CUTE!

Wednesday, April 25, 2012

Pool...check! Ice Cream...CHECK!

Can you imagine anything more fun than staring at a doggie's behind all night long? I mean doesn't that sound AMAZING?  Why watch TV when you can stare at a doggie's butt?  Why sleep in a comfy bed when you can stare at a doggie's butt?  Why do anything other than stare at a doggie's butt?  Yes, this is the exciting life we lead at Yesteryear Acres.  We get to sit on the kitchen floor, by a little kiddie wading pool, with a pregnant doggie in the pool who is happily snoozing away, waiting for the big moment to arrive.  Our doggies never like to do the quick puppy deliveries.  I have heard from other breeders that their doggie delivers 8 puppies in 1 hour or something like that.  Not MY doggies.  My doggies are evidently so happy, so comfy, so enamored with the pampering, that they take their own sweet time.  A puppy every 2-3 hours seems a good pace.  That way there is time for a good nap in between. Time for lots of praise and accolades. Why rush the process?  Also why deliver a puppy in the waking hours when delivering a puppy at 2am is WAY more fun!!!! The only thing that works to keep me awake on nights like these is....ICE CREAM!  Lots and lots of ice cream.  Oh and yes while I prefer coffee ice cream....the mommy doggies like vanilla.  Ice Cream all around!

Tuesday, April 24, 2012

Oh BOY! MORE STUFF!

I am not blatantly referring to a dear beloved family member, child, daughter, first born....who is currently at the United States Naval Academy, who is graduating in May....who I just saw over the weekend. I would never want to specifically call attention to one specific person but just in case you ARE my first born child, dear daughter, dear midshipman, at the Naval Academy...THIS BLOG IS FOR YOU. Dear sweet daughter of mine, I cannot tell you the joy and happiness I feel as Mr. Yesteryear Acres, aka your dad, unloads our SUV which is currently FULL of your stuff. Imagine my delight to find your room ALREADY full of stuff, so full in fact, that we get the privilege, no wait, complete and utter joy, in stacking all your belongings...in our living room. OH MY!  What an interior decorator's dream come true!!!  All your uniforms - stacked to the ceiling! Your box upon box upon box of chemistry books, teetering in a mountainous pile! I love the look of smashed cardboard boxes to complete the ambiance of a room. It feels so warm and homey. I am almost in the complete hope that you do not find time to clean out your room when you come home, so that your dad and I can just sit and stare....not at the television...but at your gigantic pile of belongings.  I am really glad that you had to move out of your room so soon and that I was there long enough so you could load the SUV to capacity.  I feel really happy here buried beneath your many accumulated possessions.  How someone who arrived at the Naval Academy with only one toothbrush could amass such an abundance of STUFF is beyond me. I don't think I can adequately express the building anticipation and excitement I feel knowing that more stuff is coming. Oh Boy! MORE STUFF!
Signed,
Your loving and ever so sarcastic mother....who is looking forward to the day when you move your boxes...OUT of the living room.
ps....I love you.

Monday, April 23, 2012

Yes, Window Stickers can make you Cry

This past Saturday, I found myself alone for most of the day. I had planned on spending the day with my daughter, but she had military obligations that kept her from visiting with me.  So there I was alone in Annapolis, while my daughter was busy running the O-Course and the E-Course and going to a mandatory March-On /Lacrosse game.  What to do? What to do? Well believe it or not - in all 4 years that my daughter has been at the Naval Academy - I really haven't been too many places.  Our normal visit goes something like this.  I arrive.  I pick her up.  We hide out in my hotel room all weekend long.  We never go out.  I make all kinds of goodies from home, bring her all her favorite home-cooked meals and we just hang out together eating good food and enjoying each other's company.  We are like little hermits. Well here I was on a beautiful Saturday morning and I thought - I will go out walking in Annapolis!  I walked all along the sea wall at the Naval Academy and admired the sail boats out in the bay. It was a beautiful sight.  I took time to admire all the buildings at the Academy and all the young men and women who walked by, dressed in uniform, devoted to their school and country.  I took time to be thankful for the opportunities my daughter has been given at the Naval Academy. I walked up the streets in downtown Annapolis and went in and out of several little shops located on Main Street.  I felt all the pride and patriotism of the Naval Academy and of Annapolis and I am happy to have been a part of that.  I will miss my trips to the Naval Academy.  I will miss the beauty of the school and the surrounding area.  I bought one small souvenir while I was window shopping. It is a window cling/sticker for my car.  It says, "My daughter is a Marine".  I admit... my eyes were quite watery as I paid for my sticker.  I guess it is time to say goodbye to one chapter and hello to the next.  One month until graduation and then....My daughter is a Marine.

Sunday, April 22, 2012

Snow WHAT?

Mr. Yesteryear Acres called me early this morning to tell me that snow was coming my way.  As in real snow. As in 1-2 feet of snow. WHAT?  SNOWSTORM?  It is APRIL.  It is almost the end of April!  I got up and checked the weather maps and yes, there it was, in bright red and pink - a big snowstorm....right...exactly....precisely where I would be driving tomorrow. The mountains were really supposed to be hit hard.  Oh no. I really really really hate driving in snowstorms especially through the mountains! I had planned on staying in Annapolis until early Monday morning because I didn't get any time with my daughter.  We were going to spend as much of today together as we could. I had to let her know that I had to leave early and head on home.  sigh.  Thankfully the people at the hotel were so nice and cancelled my stay for tonight without charging me and I quickly began packing up for my trip back home.  I said my sad goodbyes to my daughter and in the pouring rain, started my long drive home. Despite the constant rain, I made pretty good time and am now home safe and sound. Alright snow....I am ready.

Saturday, April 21, 2012

What are these things in the little pink case?

I have my little travel computer with me so I can keep up with my emails while I am away from home.  All morning I kept thinking, "GRRRRRR  I hate this little computer.  It is SO hard to work on. I can't see anything."  I was so frustrated because normally the smallness doesn't bother me.  Normally I am so happy to have something so compact and lightweight.  My big gigantic 20" laptop died a slow and painful death last year and I replaced it with an All-In-One computer.  Well, I can not take my big All-In-One computer with me so I just have this little companion. I tried to work on it last night but it was so difficult and laborious, I decided that I must be exhausted from my long trip and decided to go to bed. I figured that when I woke up in the morning my difficulties would all be gone. WRONG. I was still frustrated this morning.  Why is this so hard? Why am I having so much trouble with my computer? Why can't I see anything?????? Oh.  I know.  What are these things in this little pink case lying right on the table? Are they.......reading glasses!?!?!?! Why, yes, yes they are. Let me put on my reading glasses. I CAN SEE! I CAN SEE!  OH!  My computer screen is SO much bigger now!  There are WORDS on my screen!!! Note to self.....Your eyes are old. You need to use your reading glasses. Get over it. Second Note to Self.....you are mere steps away from wearing your reading glasses around your neck 24/7.  Third Note to Self.....realistically speaking, you should already be wearing your reading glasses around your neck 24/7 because your arms have shrunk and you cannot hold anything far enough away to actually see what it says. Fourth Note to self.....Read Notes 1-3 because obviously memory impairment goes hand in hand with vision impairment.  Final Note - Gave a mice say!!! ..... or if you had on your glasses.......Have a nice day!!!!

Friday, April 20, 2012

But Who WIll Clean The Puppy Mobile?

The puppy mobile was loaded and ready for action early this morning and I got off to a nice early start.  The weather could not have been more beautiful for my long drive.  The trees are now all in bloom and the mountain drive was gorgeous.  I found myself smiling as I looked out into the distance at all the shades of vivid green.  At one point there was a huge line of darker clouds and then some really white cloud peaks.  It looked just like a snow mountain landscape. It was just lovely.  Unlike my past trips through the mountains, I saw no bobcats, no eagles, no ice fog, no blizzard conditions, no fatal accidents, no traffic snarls and surprisingly...no car sick puppies. It was a perfect trip.  I was hoping to make it in time to see my daughter in her formal parade at the Naval Academy but sadly, I didn't make it there.  The trip took longer than I had hoped it would.  I am still holding out for the chance that I can see her for just a few minutes tonight but it looks like I might not see her until late tomorrow afternoon.  Guess I better get busy and clean out the puppy mobile.  No matter how hard I wish.....it just doesn't clean itself.......and yes, my dear son, who so wanted to come with me.....I MISS YOU!

Thursday, April 19, 2012

BATHTIME! ....or bath time.....

Mr. Yesteryear Acres and I got up super early as we had a list a mile long of things that needed done today. We have done a pretty good job so far of scratching things off our respective lists, but it looks like it will be rather late tonight before we are done.  The biggest thing on my list was Puppy Bath Day!  Both Lola and Autumn's puppies are going home this weekend so that means....every one needs to be beautiful, and clean, and smelling good, and have their nails all trimmed, and have their hair -you know where (under the tail) - all trimmed, and be all ready for their big adventures this weekend. Some puppies were like this....
"Oh boy! Oh Boy! BATHTIME! What is that? Bubbles? I love bubbles!  What are you doing now? Oh you are trimming my nails!  Let me help you!  Let me lick the clippers!  Let me kiss your fingers!  OH what are you doing now????  COMBING ME? I LOVE THAT!  Let me help you!  Let me lick the comb!  Let me kiss your fingers!!!!!"
And then some were a little more like Eeyore.....
"oh boy.....bath time.  I am going to get wet.  I am not even going to look at the faucet because then I will get even wetter.  Here comes the nail clippers.  She just loves those clippers.  I bet the scissors come out next. Yep. I was right. I am going to lose my tail now."
Of course all the puppies were very grateful and thankful for the attention and now we have a kitchen full of clean and happy puppies. Puppy weekend is here!

Wednesday, April 18, 2012

Where are the keys?

As you can imagine, we have a TON of puppy toys here at Yesteryear Acres.  We have soft toys, hard toys, rubber toys, fleecy toys and bones, bones, bones galore.  We buy puppy toys all the time and have a gigantic box overflowing with them.  Every day we give the puppies a "new" toy to play with.  One day might be a Nylabone key ring, the next day an octopus, and the day after that a chew toy shaped like a fetching stick.  We rotate through the toys so that every morning the puppies all think, "WHAT TOY DID YOU BRING TODAY!"  They are always so excited to investigate the new toy. From time to time we have to throw away the poor eviscerated cow, or the mangled no longer recognizable rooster, but the toys usually make it through a couple of rounds before they are sent to the big recycling bin in the sky.  Even if the puppies have seen the Nylabone teething key ring before, the fact they haven't seen it for a week or more, makes it all new again. Actually it makes it better than new because it now has permanent puppy smells on it which is SO enticing.  Lately the scenario at our home has gone something like this....
"Where are the Nylabone Teething Keys?"
"Where is the Octopus?"
"Where is the Cow, Rooster, Pig, Lamb, Puppy, Blankie??????"
I keep finding our toy bin EMPTY.  No toys! No Rooster!  No Bears! NOTHING!  WHERE ARE THEY?  Then I walk over to the puppies and .... will you look at that.....TOYS TOYS TOYS!  As in ALL the toys.  Every single one.  The puppies look at me like..."What?  What's wrong?  Doesn't this look like fun???"
I have yelled at Mr. Yesteryear Acres.  He says he didn't do it.  I have yelled at my son.  He denies moving the toys as well.  I know without a doubt that the puppies are unable to climb the puppy gate and walk to the other room (all while leaving the floor spotless) and reach into the 3 foot high box to pull out toy after toy.  It is a physical impossibility.  How in the world am I missing all the toys every day?
Well.......I have found the culprit.  The culprit weighs about 40lbs.  She has four legs.  She is very furry and fluffy and cute. I caught her today in the act.
This is what I saw......
"Why hello little puppies!  How are you doing?  OH you don't have enough toys. Poor little puppies.  Poor poor poor sad little puppies. I am so sorry you don't have enough toys to play with. I will go help you!"
Then my doodle doggie runs to the other room, puts her paws up on the toy box, grabs a toy, then runs to the puppies, puts her paws up on their play area and drops the toy for them to play with.
Then she looks around, quite proud with her accomplishment, and the puppies all yip and squeak with joy. She is their HERO!  In fact she is SO much their hero she thinks....
"Oh little puppies. That is not NEARLY enough toys for you to play with. I am so sorry you don't have enough toys to play with! I will go help you!"
Then of course she repeats this over and over until the toy box is empty and the puppies are surrounded by mountains of toys.
Well, at least it keeps them all busy! Who knew I had a doodle Nanny??!!  Now.... if I could only train her to load the dishwasher.... Look Doodle Doggie, a sink full of dishes!  Poor poor empty dishwasher.  It has no dishes. I wonder if that could work!!!

Tuesday, April 17, 2012

Last "awwww" before they go home

The puppies are all going home this weekend. We have one last "awwwwwwww" look at our sweet puppies. See how much they have grown?
Mr. Yesteryear Acres WAIT FOR US!!!!

See? That's better!  You LOVE company!!!!

Where are we going now? Where are we going NOW? Mr. Yesteryear Acres, we will HELP you!!!!

Oh, I see. PICTURE TIME!

How about if I pose for you right here?

I am going to dazzle them with my, "Aren't I a cute snuggle bear" pose

I am using the, "Look at my adorable loving eyes" pose

To all our new families.....See you soon!!!!!

And don't worry about missing your cute puppy picture fix .....we have new puppies due soon so more adorable baby puppy pictures will be posted on the blog and there will be more "awwwwww" smiles on the way!

Monday, April 16, 2012

Which Alarm is Better?

So in choosing the perfect alarm, one guaranteed to get you up at the crack of dawn....which scenario is better?
Scenario Number One..... "Gag, WHAAAALLL, Gag, WHAAAALL, BLEEEEEEEHHHHH". Oh yes.  That is the sound of one of our doggies throwing up this morning at precisely 6:30am......in the morning....in our room.....UNDER the BED! Mr. Yesteryear Acres and I looked at each other and said, "well this morning is starting out on a bright note!"
Scenario Number Two....."Mommy PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE will you get up and "sit with me" while I schedule my fall classes online?" Translation - Mommy, will you set your alarm for 6:30am, and then log on to Skype so you can watch me sit in the dark, and not talk to you because I cannot wake my sleeping roommate, while I type in my class selections for Fall Semester 2012? Because what if I am closed out? What if I need an alternative schedule to the backup schedule to the Plan B schedule that we already picked out????
The answer to which alarm worked best this morning is.....BOTH.  Yes BOTH. Ahhh the peaceful sound of a dog puking mixed in with the loud ringing of my alarm to gently wake me from my slumber. Joy.  Happiness.  Peace.
So of COURSE I got up.  And of COURSE I sat there in front of my computer and "watched" my daughter type in her schedule. And of COURSE she got her Plan A schedule because we only went over it a thousand times to make sure it worked. And of COURSE I cleaned up the dog puke under my bed.  Here at Yesteryear Acres we have what surely should be a "Patent Pending" system of dog puke removal and/or dog poop removal. We are certified experts in this area!
Supplies:
Paper Towels
2 Vinyl Gloves
Scissors
Stiff Paper Plate
Grocery plastic sack
Carpet Cleaner
Procedure:  Cut paper plate in half with scissors.  Put on pair of gloves.  Hold each half of the paper plate in your hands and then SCOOP up the offending doggie mess with the plates.  VOILA! Paper plates make the BEST doggie yucky mess scrapers in the world! Throw paper plates in plastic sack.  Scrub small remaining smear mess with cleaner and paper towels.  DONE!
What a lovely morning.  And for all of you that are wondering and worried and fretting over why the doggie puked and if the doggie is okay - the answer is yes.  My doggie just thought that perhaps leaving behind a little bit of a .....how shall I put this.....Cat "Fudgesicle" that she decided to eat late last night would be a loving and adorable way to start my morning. Aren't I blessed to have such awesome alarm systems???!!!! Please let me know if you would like me to share!

Sunday, April 15, 2012

Errands for Two

Today I had a thousand errands to run.  Okay, okay - so it wasn't really ONE THOUSAND but my list was really long!  I needed to go to Mr. Yesteryear Acres parent's house, then go get dog food, return purchases, go warehouse club shopping, go to my parent's house, etc.  It was a really full schedule!  Much to my delight and surprise, my son offered to go along with me for the day.  What was going to be a really long drawn out day of running errands turned into a super fun day spent with my son.  He was really glad to visit with both sets of grandparents and he was just the best company.  He even went in with me for my return purchases errand which went above and beyond the call of duty. I had to go to a store where they sell WOMEN'S CLOTHING. Can you imagine the torture?  He held up well under the pressure and I was a really good mommy and didn't shop at all.  I didn't even look at the new spring purses!  It took all I had to resist the spring clothes calling me.  We ended up getting everything crossed off our list and now have to play catch up after being gone all day long.  My son thanked me for such a fun day. Errand shopping? Fun?  YOU BET!

Saturday, April 14, 2012

"T"A DA!

Yes let the celebration begin. I. am. finished.  All done!  Signed, Sealed, Delivered! Whew.  Another agonizing tax preparation season behind me! I hereby promise to do much better this year in organizing and filing all my receipts and paperwork.  Okay wait.  I hereby promise to TRY to do much better this year in organizing and filing all my receipts and paperwork.  Okay wait. I hereby promise to try to do much better this year in THINKING about organizing and filing all my receipts and paperwork. There!  That is a legitimate promise I will keep!  I am so glad to be done. I am so glad to be released from my exile. I was hoping to spend a lovely day outside this afternoon playing with the puppies but it is raining.  Yuck!  Where is my sunshine reward???? I think I deserve it.  Maybe tomorrow.  I guess I better get busy on allllllll the other work I have to do.  Seems as if I am behind on one or two things. In looking around, "Laundry Mountain" is waiting for me.  So is "How many dishes can Mr. Yesteryear Acres and my son fit in the sink".  So is, "Stack O' Mail".  Alright.  Guess I better get busy. Dear Laundry Mountain....oh how I missed you!

Friday, April 13, 2012

5:39am

"RING.....RING......RING"  Yes that was the unpleasant sound of my phone this morning ringing at 5:39am.  The Superintendent of our schools called to let us know that, yes - we did have school. Gee.  Thanks.  The elusive escapee that caused schools to be closed yesterday was caught in some bushes not too far from where we live around 11pm last night.  It made headline news on all the 11pm broadcasts.  Since they caught "the bad guy" naturally I assumed school would no longer be closed. I would think that the members of our community would also have the same assumption... YES Bad guy on the loose = NO school. NO bad guy = YES school.  I told my son that before he went to bed. I also told him that HOPEFULLY they will catch the guy because no one wanted him running around loose.  Evidently his friends were all hoping for one more day of "ALERT ALERT ALERT!" so they could have a 4-day weekend.  Thanks to the diligent efforts of our police force, the bad guy is no longer loose and no one was injured or harmed during his escape and subsequent capture. So this morning when our phone started ringing - of course my son RUNS to the phone assuming it was a call to say, SCHOOL IS CANCELLED, but instead he got SCHOOL IS OPEN. The anticlimactic nature of that phone call cannot be adequately described.
One - We do NOT wake up at 5:39am on school days.  That's just mean.

Two - We do NOT expect phone calls to tell us what we already know. "RING...Why Hello. Today is Friday. You have School." That's just mean.

Three - We do not like to witness (at that hour especially) our boy go from complete joy to complete misery in less than 30 seconds.  That's just mean.

Four - The dogs do NOT know it is 5:39am in the MORNING when the phone rings and people DASH out of bed.  The dogs' only thought is, "YAYAYAYAYAY the humans are UP!  IT IS MORNING TIME! YIPPPEEEEEEE!"  That's just mean.

Five - Getting up at 5:39am when I still have work to do on my taxes means I have to start working at 5:39am.  Again - MEAN!

Six - anyone want to guess my mood today??????

Yes. You are right. Mean. Tomorrow my son has to be at the school at 6:45am for a track meet. If my phone rings at 5:39am to tell me that my son has a track meet.........SO HELP ME!

Thursday, April 12, 2012

What? Is there Hail? A Blizzard? What?!!

Early this morning our phone rang just as our son was heading out to the bus.  School had been cancelled. What? I looked outside to see if by chance a blizzard had struck or ice storm or some other calamity.  Nope.  Blue skies.  Checked our electric. Working.  What is going on? Well as it turns out, some dangerous psychiatric inmate had escaped from a nearby holding facility and was on the loose. Great. Of all the reasons we have had school cancelled - THIS was a new one! Evidently the escapee is considered extremely dangerous and has still not been captured. Last year, we had the dangerous wild animals escaping, this year we have violent criminals escaping.  What's next?  Remember when we were young and the only time school was cancelled was for a big snow storm?  And it had to be REALLY big because back then - we all went to school when there was snow on the ground.  No way did a 2" snowfall cause schools to be delayed.  No school meant sledding and hot chocolate and pajama day.  I guess those days are gone.  Now we have lockdowns and all kinds of crazy sad situations.  As for my son, like any boy his age, he was delighted with the school cancellation. Mr. Yesteryear Acres was delighted as well. He has our son out working on the tractor before 10am this morning. What a lucky boy. Always something to do here...because you know, Yesteryear Acres work is never cancelled!

Wednesday, April 11, 2012

The "T" Word

I definitely do not want to mention the "T" word today....even though I have been locked upstairs ALL day doing some sort of paperwork/filing/calculations/accounting for some agency that has the initials "IRS"...because yesterday I got my daughter's approval for my blog post because it included an adorable picture of a doggie hiding from the "T" word. She said that blog post was OK because doggies make everything better. So today's blog is a parade of cute Yesteryear Acres Doodle Doggies! Thank you to all the families that sent in these awesome photos!!!!
Doodle Door Stop

Doodle Rug Stay

Doodle Birthday Boy

Doodle Bridge Keeper

Doodle Leash Holder

Doodle High Five

Doodle Ball Tosser

Doodle Rug

Doodle Lovebug Poser

Doodle Chair Lounger

Doodle Window Washer

Doodle Weather Bug
See?  Doodles DO make everything better!  Happy Doodle Day!

Tuesday, April 10, 2012

The Letter "T"

Evidently my blog posts about my diligent devotion to doing the taxes are boring.  My younger daughter let me know that she thinks last week's postings about my being sentenced to exile were NOT exciting.  She likes to read my blog posts so she can see what is going on here at Yesteryear Acres. She misses the doggies.  She misses the puppies.  She wants puppy news, not boring, torturous, yawn-producing posts about taxes. She called me yesterday to let me know that finally - I posted a good blog. She really liked my blog post with all the puppy picture updates.  I told her my favorite part of yesterday's blog post was seeing her smiling face with all the cute puppies.  She said her favorite part was the smiling faces on the puppies.  She loves the CROC loving puppy the most. Well - I am sad to disappoint my daughter - but today's post is devoted to the letter "T".  "T" as in "T"axes. "T" as in "T"orture. "T" as in "T"raumatic. "T" as in "T"OO MUCH WORK and I don't want to do it anymore! Sigh.  I feel I will be "T"rapped up there forever. In my misery "t"oday- there was a bright spot. I received a really awesome email from a puppy family. They included this picture that said,
 "This is how Baxter feels about ... 
taxes... "  
"T"hank you Baxter. I appreciate the love!!!!!

Monday, April 9, 2012

And Happiness Was All Around

We had a wonderful Easter weekend here at Yesteryear Acres. The weather was terrific.  Spending time with the family was terrific. Playing with the puppies was terrific.  It was a perfect holiday weekend. Happiness was all around!
This is so much better than working on taxes!

We love it when you scratch behind our ears!

Sun bath time!

Who says CROCS aren't stylish?!

We do our best to look adorable

See? Awwwwww. Profile Picture!

This grass is so soft and so fun to play in!

Let's stay outside ALL day long!!!!


Sunday, April 8, 2012

Happy Hoppy Easter

Our morning started with an .....Easter egg hunt! I don't care how old you are, you are never too old to go on an Easter egg hunt! No matter how carefully and how diligently the Easter Bunny is, no matter how many hours of preparation the Easter Bunny puts into Easter morning, the actual finding of the Easter eggs takes mere minutes.  It is always a wild blur of action and smiles and laughing and it is over before the lens cap even comes off the camera. Here at Yesteryear Acres, the doggies have just as much fun as the humans do because the Easter Bunny never forgets the doggies. Sweet Potato Stars! mmmmmm.  Easter happiness abounds! We are very lucky as our Easter happiness lasts all day long. This afternoon we will share in the Easter happiness with our family.  Mr. Yesteryear Acres Mommy and Daddy and Sister and Brother and Nieces and Nephews and Great Nieces and Great Nephews and the whole bunch will be there. My older daughter is sadly away at the Naval Academy, but I already sent her lots of pictures of her Easter Basket and I plan on visiting her later this month. We will have to settle for a virtual Easter celebration for today - but I will make up for all she missed when I visit. I know she misses us as much as we miss her. We will all say a little Easter wish for her when we gather this afternoon. I just took my loaves of honey oatmeal bread out of the oven and we are almost ready for the Easter celebration. I hope that this Easter finds you surrounded by those you love and your Easter basket is full of love, joy, appreciation, laughter, smiles, hope and gratitude. I know mine always is filled to the brim. Happy Easter!

Saturday, April 7, 2012

Puppy Sunshine Smiles

I gave myself an early parole for good behavior and left my dungeon of tax work and headed for the bright brilliant sunshine. I decided I deserved the weekend off but I will of course return to my self-imposed exile first thing Monday morning. Ahhhh. Fresh air. Ahhhhhhh. Sunshine. Ahhhhhh Blue skies!  I felt like a mole person heading outside squinting my eyes against the brilliant bright light.  I put a big nice comfy comforter out on the grass and carried all the puppies outside to join me.  We spend hours enjoying the spring day and it was heavenly.  All the puppies got new collars and their little nails are all trimmed and the day was just full of puppy sunshine smiles.  It was a much needed break and the weather could not have been any nicer.  I feel totally rejuvenated and am ready to face the hard work that awaiting me next week.  Puppy sunshine smiles....just what I needed!

Friday, April 6, 2012

Where Did I Put That?

Today was the ever so fun...."Where did I put that?" day. I am still exiled to the dungeon diligently working away on our taxes and spent the day looking for things I misplaced.  Where is that receipt from.... and ...Where did I put that letter .. and what is my PIN number.....and ....where is that form? Oh yes.  Joy.  And then some.  This only reminds me that I must must must become a more organized accountant/bill payer/business woman/webmaster/accounts receivable/accounts payable/manager/owner/responsible person. I say this every year.  I promise every year to be much more organized. I swear I will never just put something aside and get to it later, only to forget where I put it. Okay. This time I mean it.  This time, starting today, I will put EVERYTHING in its rightful place. I won't make piles of papers that are to "be filed" later.  I will file everything right away!  Oh look - here comes the mail!  Oh my.  There is a lot of mail. I think I will just put that aside for now because obviously I am way too busy today to file it but tomorrow...I will get right on it!

Thursday, April 5, 2012

The Paper Cuts Begin

I was a very dutiful and productive person yesterday. I worked on my taxes until after midnight and then started right in on it again today.  I actually gave myself a papercut pulling a piece of paper out of the printer last night- so my joke about the papercut wasn't as funny as I thought.  I showed Mr. Yesteryear Acres my war wound but he wasn't impressed.  I even said that I had JUST started the taxes and already was injured, but again, not impressed.  Of course when I fell down the torrential mudslide and broke my ankle, he did ask me why I couldn't walk so perhaps getting sympathy from a papercut is a bit much to ask. I have made some real progress today and am quite proud of myself. I actually was much more organized than I gave myself credit for.  I just came downstairs for a glass of water and started bragging about how well I was doing and how much progress I was making. I was looking for shouts of, "Bravo!" "Way to Go!" "You are the best!" Instead my son said, "Congratulations, you did what was expected of you." OH! OK! I think I will use that the next time he shows me an awesome term paper that he spent weeks writing! "Congratulations dear son....you did what was expected of you."  Yes. I am thinking he might not appreciate it when the tables are turned. Hahahaha. I can't wait until it is my turn.  Until then....back to the dungeon for me.

Wednesday, April 4, 2012

Don't...Make...Me...Go

Oh my GOSH - do you know it is already April 4th?????? As in March is over. As in April is here. As in.....11 more days until TAXES ARE DUE! ACK! ACK! ACK! I have not started my taxes. At all. Zero percent accomplished!  This is the latest I have ever ever ever started my taxes and you would think that panic would have set in and the panic would force me to lock myself upstairs and start working...yet here I sit obviously NOT upstairs working. Oh my.  I don't want to go upstairs. I don't even want to start. My resolution to be a very good girl and organize everything each and every month of 2011 lasted exactly ONE month.  That leaves 11 months of receipts in one huge towering pile of disorganization. sigh. Why didn't I do a little bit of work each month?  Why didn't I use pretty colors and folders and wallets to make my life easier? Don't make me go upstairs.  Don't make me face the music.  I know what awaits.  Paper cuts. Sleepless nights. Calculators. Erasers. And LOTS and LOTS of hair pulling. sigh.  I probably will be bald by April 15th. You know I have to go.  I know I have to go.  The IRS knows I have to go.  Alright. I will start.....I hope to emerge from my self-imposed exile unscathed.  Let the torture begin.

Tuesday, April 3, 2012

Where is the kitchen?

Did I mention that I was gone last week? My son and I had a great time together and we are still talking about all the fun we both had.  It was an AWESOME time.  When I returned home - I kind of wondered......where is the kitchen????  I mean I usually walk to my door, open the door, and voila - my kitchen. This time, I walked to my door, opened the door and ACK! WHAT HAPPENED!? I did hear there were just the WORST storms that rolled through the county while I was gone. Rotational clouds, thunderstorms, electric lightning storms with torrential rains.  I kind of thought maybe storms happened OUTSIDE but in looking at my kitchen.....some kind of tornado, hurricane, tsunami, earthquake or other natural disaster must have occurred INSIDE my kitchen. Mr. Yesteryear Acres was left home all ALONE. With no one to help him. With no one to remind him that paintbrushes and tool boxes don't really live in the kitchen.  Spackling compound, sanders, drills, painting cloths, tape, etc used to live elsewhere in our house.  Evidently all the home improvement equipment had a meeting and decided that the kitchen is an awesome place to live. ACK!  There was stuff EVERYWHERE.  I have spent hours in the kitchen today excavating.  I don't know if I will find my kitchen before nightfall.  I know it is in there somewhere. I know it misses me. I know it wants me to find it. I am trying! Hang in there dear kitchen! I WILL SAVE YOU!

Monday, April 2, 2012

Oh how you have grown!

It is Puppy Picture day!!!!  The puppies all grew SO much while I was gone!  Even though I didn't get home until 1:30am last night - I just had to see all the puppies right away and of course all the doggies greeted us with MUCH enthusiasm!  Doggies never care if you come home at 1:30am in the morning!  They love you every hour of every day!  Even Mr. Yesteryear Acres waited up for us. It was a good welcome home!
Here is this week's cute puppy picture fix!
The grass is tickling my paws!

Does she really think we will all sit still and pose for the camera at once?

Okay, I will say cheese!!!!

Time for a sunbath!

I am in a jungle!

Oh never mind...it is just green grass.

I am busy getting a suntan

Where are you going Mr. Yesteryear Acres?

See you next week!!!!!

Sunday, April 1, 2012

Country Roads Take Me Home

My son and I are on the long long long road trip back home. We left early early early this morning and won't be home until after midnight tonight. That is one long drive! I thought the trip back would be horrendous as my son isn't too fond  of car trips but we are having a lot of fun. We have spent the entire day talking about all our favorite things of the past week. I think we have relived every special moment. The trip is really flying by as good conversation just whittles away the hours. We just made a slightly lengthy stop at a rest area as all the dogwood trees were in bloom and there was a walking trail behind the rest area that was just beautiful. Every tree was in full bloom and the spring flowers covered the entire hillside. It was a good place to stretch our legs and get prepared for the last push back home. Back to the drive! Country Roads take me home!