What I did on my Bloggy Vacation

I have a book. It's called Build Your Power Vocabulary. I picked it up because, given the fact that I am preparing to implement my plan for global domination, I figured a little extra power would come in handy. Secondarily, I wanted to improve my vocabulary so that, when writing sentences such as the one you just read, I don't have to sit around staring blankly at a wall, trying to think of the word I want, only to come up with the word "implement," all the while feeling that there is a word which is far more appropriate, yet certain that I don't know it.

And I also need to learn a new word for "certain."

Just imagine how lively things will be around here once I finish this book. Instead of saying "I went to this place where they had a lot of things," I can say "I went to this jejune place where they had a lot of quotidian things."

Doesn't that sound so much better?

I KNOW!

Aside from reading my vocabulary book, I have done a ton of fun stuff on my bloggy vacation.

I celebrated the resurrection of my Lord. It was a very special day.

If you look over in my sidebar you will see that I have crossed a book off of my reading list. And not just any book, but THE book. I finished it on Easter. Sweeeeeet.

I was prolonging my vacation so that I could report completing another book, but I have decided to just go ahead and post now. Wild Swans is a great book (more like TWO books, given how long it is... but who's really counting pages? Oh yeah, I AM!) I've learned a ton about Mao and the Cultural Revolution. I might post a review of the book later, but I'll post my review of Mao and the Cultural Revolution right now: INSANITY.

I went with the kids to the children's museum where Mr. Bug declared that what he'd unearthed in the fossil dig area was a "snake bone."

We celebrated Ms. Boo's sixth birthday. I made this butterfly cake:

I got to spend some time nurturing that skill I mentioned in my last post. On one day alone, I was away from the house for six and a half hours working on that (and getting a hair cut.) It was delightful to spend some energy on something that God has already made me good at, as opposed to what I usually do when I have time to myself, which is wander around aimlessly sort of window shopping or buying something the kids need.

I devoted a considerable amount of time to phlegm management.

I watched Man of the Year starring Robin Williams. It was okay.

I attempted to donate blood, but was rejected. For the fourth time. In a row.

I took my Boo out for a girl date. She chose to eat at a Chinese restaurant. How do I love thee, my sweet Boo?

I fielded two DAYS worth of questions from Boo and Bug about Satan. Seriously.

I tended to the ... the... (where's my BOOK?...) little plants that just sprouted and are waiting to be planted in the garden whenever it gets warm outside.

After much staring (blankly) at a wall, I recalled a word that means little plants that just sprouted.

Remember this quilt? The one I "finished"? Yes, well, I found more blocks hidden under a pile of stuff on my desk. Now I need to add two more rows.

I listened as Ms. Bao repeatedly asked to put on her "badey soup" and "go pool." Then I sat with her on a chair as she watched everyone playing in said pool, but refused to go in.

Took the kids searching for salamanders again and actually found some this time.


Heard the song Hard to Say I'm Sorry by Chicago, twice. Wondered afresh about the weird ending that doesn't seem to match the rest of the song. So, I did a little research and found out that it is actually a separate song. I'd feel better knowing that if it wasn't for the fact that the title of this other song has nothing to do with the lyrics...

I tried a vegetarian recipe that called for Swiss chard. When I made the recipe I wasn't certain that what I'd bought was actually Swiss chard. But then, I substituted a different kind of bean in the recipe as well. Perhaps this last variation explains why the final result tasted really bland. (As it turns out, I did use Swiss chard.)

There was a four day stretch in which I ate asparagus every day. I love asparagus.

I spent over twelve hours logged on to my dialup internet connection so that I could send about 40 photos to be processed. This included about six hours for which I decided to sleep while the computer did its thing. When I got up in the morning, I still needed to send out about three more batches of photos. Note to self: if you put all the photos in one folder they'll ALL be done when you wake up in the morning.

Second note to self: uploading 40 pictures on dialup is not helpful if your goal is to spend LESS time on the computer.

Our family started using a new word to mean "pass gas" which we all think is quite funny. (Don't even tell me you don't have special words for that, because I know you do...)

I had an extended conversation with Jeana via e-mail in which I was once again reminded that I can sometimes get carried away with myself. Jeana, as gracious as she is funny, managed to rein me in a bit.

I sat outside on a (FINALLY) warm day on a blanket under a tree in our front yard. I looked up at the tree and the colors really intrigued me. The orangish-brown, bright green, and vibrant blue all together was just lovely. I had to take a picture.
I tried a few new recipes from a whole grain recipe book that I bought in the checkout line at the supermarket. Paul was not too keen on the swiss chard recipe, but he liked the bulgur wheat with broccoli and tomatoes, as well as the quinoa with roasted vegetables. We agreed that the quinoa was bland, but would do well with some additional seasonings. I thought the same of the swiss chard, but really, my husband ate quinoa and broccoli, so I am not complaining.

I retrieved a bar of soap from the toilet.

Made popcorn on the stovetop. Twice.

Took a late night walk in the rain.

I decided it was time to plant the seedlings outside after Ms. Bao snapped the leaves off all but three of my zucchini plants. Not one of those three is faring well: each looks like it is about to die. I made a new bed to plant the cukes in. All but one seems to be doing fine. The tomatoes are still in the little peat pots, looking weaker by the day. (I heard tell of someone feeding the seedlings milk... maybe this has something to do with the tomatoes' poor performance.) I direct-seeded some sugar snap peas. The lettuce, which I direct-seeded a long time ago, seems to be doing fine, even though it sprouted before that freeze a few weeks ago.

And there you have it. What did YOU do on my bloggy vacation?