8 things...

that i’m absolutely obsessed with this week…

1.  fresh eggs- collecting, eating, & sharing. & oh, they have the best taste, too. it’s hard to describe…just different; super yummy, well, fresh!

2.  gum- probably because i’m taking guests at school now. i just want to smell pleasant to other people as i’m getting all up in their face in the wash house! of course, i have to stay conscientious of my chewing & doing…i still bite the crap out of my lip (don’t ask).

3.  my oober smart child- school started back this week…2^nd grade. & the monkey is in a “smarty” program. i am very proud of his willingness as he is  already having homework every day, his huge smile when he recaps his school day, & how confidant he seems (which i could definitely take a page from!)

4.  inspiration- any shape or form i can absorb. it’s what keeps me going these days & it’s crazy how much exist out there if you’re looking for it.

5.  letters to the immortal beloved- the letters written by ludwig van beethoven to a mysterious soul mate. later speculation would show that the “beloved” was most likely antonie brentano. wow…amazing! “ever thine, ever mine, ever ours.”

6.  love songs- perhaps due to the above admittance. or the fact that i’ve been in a “mood” lately. or because i’m a hopeless romantic. or i just enjoy belting out heartfelt lyrics to the top of my lungs when no one else is around.

7.  ‘the week the women went’- that reality show i was telling you guys about. it’s wild to see people that i know on the tele…surreal! (it’s on lifetime, btw…tuesday nights at 10pm)

8.  tattoos- i have this intense need (okay, maybe not a “need”…a strong want) to finally get my sleeve started & have killer ideas in mind. so, all i need is a bazillion extra dollars to initiate the process…man, i love to day dream!

 

 

what came first?...

no, this isn’t going to be deep & philosophical where i attempt to answer the age old question. i will only share what i do know for sure (as i continue to do my happy dance)...

first, i had this.

& now i have this!

yesterday was just a normal sunday morning. i got up, filled my mug with the first round of coffee, slipped into my jeans & “chicken boots,” & headed out with my little bowl of fresh chopped veggies to feed “the girls.”

after distributing the morning diet (including meal worms…their fave), i went to grab the water thingy when something unusual caught my eye. is that an? oh…my…gawd! underneath the ramp to the hen house sat a teeny little brown egg.

not too soon after the first, i spotted 2 more; this time white eggs, & inside the hen house. i text the hubs from the yard (because he was inside & my phone was naturally handy…naturally.)

as the day progressed the hubs found one…& then another. it was like a freaking easter egg hunt! by late afternoon a total of 7 eggs was our daily score. two of the earliest discoveries had cracks, but surprisingly very strong shells as i opened them up to see what was inside. i wanted to investigate the shell & the actual yolk to see if everything looked okay & to also make sure that i had been a good “momma.” with what i had remembered from studying chicken rearing books & a quick googling of images of healthy yolks, everything seemed okay; which could only mean one thing. we got eggs, folks! hooray!

look...one had a double yolk! craziness!

this morning i couldn’t wait to feed the girls wondering if more surprises were in store. yep, 3 more waiting to be collected. as i removed them from the back of the hen house & closed the door behind me, i felt a little bit like a thief. i casually waved to tammie as she stared me down (with eggs hidden behind my back). isn’t that silly? but i didn’t want to hurt any chicken feelings…they may not realize that there aren’t any babies inside. this is my thought process anyways (you can laugh at me if you want. i am) 

i wonder what tomorrow will bring or the next day or the next weeks. i need to start a list of friends who like eggs, just to be on the safe side. or heck, i may just end up at a local farmer's market...hmm, it could happen. in the meantime, i can't stop grinning from excitement. my girls are so grown...*sigh!*



'women went'...

…has been an often used hashtag all week on twitter (by me & others) in anticipation of something very special coming up. but what could that be, you ask? instead of just blurting it out, i have to start at the beginning, or the ash way of storytelling. (don’t you just love that about me?)

you know how you have family, then there’s people that you’ve always known that treat you like family, & then friends that you’ve grown up with & called cousin because they felt like, well, family? sooo, i have been very honored to have all these characteristics rolled into a single small town in south carolina.

in the past, i had mentioned that when my mom was first married & had my brother, charles, she had ended up in a new place. after her divorce from hubby #1, she met hubby #2. this was my sister’s father, who unfortunately passed at a very young age; when my sis was around 2 years old. the good news (i have a point, i promise), is that with my sister’s birth father (my pops has raised her as his own her whole life), came a bounty of sisters & brothers & aunts & uncles & whew…basically, a town (not even joking) of people to visit & share experiences & christmas cards with for over 40 years (sorry, ames…ha!)

this little place…take a left at the single caution light; don’t go too far past the post office & old train station or you’ll miss it…is mine & my sister’s beloved yemassee.  now, don’t get me wrong, i’m not being snobby or uppity like i’m some big city girl when i say that it’s small, but that’s how i remember it. actually, as a child, i could only remember about 4 main streets; aunt linda’s house (next door to rose & stanley…& playing with tracy & travis; & chrissy who lived behind them), colin’s filling station (uncle jackie’s house across the street & visiting aunt patsy on the adjacent corner), uncle mack’s little apartment (gosh, i miss him), & what every child usually remembers…the candy…from one mr simon jinx!

oh, how we adored visiting yemassee. so loved & welcomed & i got to tag along as the little sister, treated like i was one of the grands/nieces/cousins. i didn’t realize it then , but now, looking back, i think about how awesome that was. i only knew of them as my family as well. my pop drove a truck when we were little & sometimes he would literally wake us early in the morning & drop us off to spend the day, the week, or whatever.

it was great. we had tons of cousins. we never wore shoes. we could be dirty & play hard like children do. i remember the smell of shrimp fresh in from the boats. i remember candy & boiled peanuts. i remember uncle goodwin’s bulldog, champ; people were scared of him, but i loved that big ole lug. i remember aunt nancy taking me & cousin melissa to the antique store & letting us pick out a little porcelain trinket. i remember being rushed to the hospital after i slipped under a watermelon trailer (full of watermelons) in uncle jackie’s yard. i remember jennifer ashley being born. i remember uncle mack & how he loved ames & me so much & always had pictures of his loved ones everywhere, framed & dusted on shelves & walls. & even more cousins. & weddings. & sad passings of those gone way too soon. but, isn’t this what memories of childhood are all about? i mean, how lucky were (are) we to have this whole extra family? like a trifecta! i still relish at the thought of visiting this place where people recognize me or remember me as that little girl with the blonde hair. they even made me a pageant judge last year for their annual shrimp festival (‘& your new miss shrimp is…’ september, 2011)

so, what does this walk down memory lane all mean? besides, nostalgia to the nth degree for me & my sister? this week will be the week that the rest of the world is introduced to my “family!” yes, the town of yemassee, sc & it’s folks will be the key ingredients to a show…a show! ya’ll…we got ourselves a new reality show. i’m not even kidding.

the title of the show is ‘the week the women went’  (hailed “the greatest social experiment”) & it airs on the lifetime channel this tuesday the 14^th at 10 pm following ‘dance moms’ (mark your calendars & set the dvr). 

i am so very excited as i have known that this was going to happen for…let’s say a while. when all the hoopla was taking place at the beginning, it was between “my folks” & some other small towns. needless to say, yemassee won out amongst the stiff competition.

so, what does a small town do when all of the women are removed & the men have to make the bread & then come home & bake it? your guess is as good as mine. i can’t wait…will you join me?

monkey-isms...

i’m baaack…i know, it’s been forever, but yea, here i am. miss me? anyhoo, amidst all the running around, schooling, & scatteredness that has been my life lately, i have not forgotten about this little ole blog & have continued to jot down ideas, silliness, & inspirations in hopes of putting them into type.

still my fave & constant source of hilarity is of course, the monkey. oh, how he continues to make me laugh & forget about the reality of bills, late nights of education, & household upkeep (which is still so so behind).

i know that i’ve introduced you all to some of the sayings that my side kick utters (http://miscellaneash.blogspot.com/2011/07/out-of-mouths-of-babes.html), but wait…there’s more. & in my dorky mom way, i’ve been keeping a running list of these one liners & commentary to share with all of you. not quite sure where some of these things come from, but they are always used in correct context (which makes it that much funnier…i think). enjoy!

he said the f word...the father of freaking

i'm becoming classic man. run for your lives, i may be contagious!

from now on, i'd like to be called dr. fun times.

well, i am probably scarred for life.

mom, i saw a girl as pretty as you, & you're hot! sorry, but i heard that on a show once.

i won't put my shoes on your dress to get my knots out...it's too nice.

why are there bullies? don't they know if you're nice you get more friends?

you give the chickies fruits & veggies every day. & worms. you must really love them.

i would be really sad if spiderus decided to run away, but glad if someone posted a sign...found tarantula!

i like nonfiction to fiction, cause its real stuff.

you're really going to school for me? you are the best, mom.

i can't wait for laser tag with you. i will kick your butt, but not bad cause you've never played before.

oh, yea...what, did you just finish medical school in the last 5 minutes?

fact: i do not like broccoli!

hey! i was made for freedom not slavery.

way to go, captain obvious.

i will build a fort & i will call it sega city & there will be volcanos...& i will need your pillow!