The lake of Salty Water

Have you heard of the Great Salt Lake? Yes, You are correct, it is in Salt Lake City.

Correct again- It is Salty like the sea.

Why? Because water comes in.. carrying traces of Salt and never leaves. Well, only by evaporation.

The high salt content is where Morton gets a large portion of their commodity. It is also where the most of the worlds brine shrimp supply, is found as they feed on the algae collected in the lake.

Brine shrimp eggs are often used to feed prawns. In larger shrimping areas.

The salt content also gives the lake the beautiful blue tones.

The lake has one island, Antelope Island, where many  protected Bison and Antelope still roam free. We did not visit that end of the lake on this day, however and I could not find my pictures.

My daughter and I spent a sweltering 24th of July on the shores. The 24th is our state founders day..Pioneer day.

It was a heat wave when we went.. but my daughter was not feeling well so we didn't take the plunge like these gulls.

We did stop by this land mark-

-Saltair-

Once a beach resort this skeleton of a building is abandoned all but the gift shop and the swallows who nest in its eaves.

The salt content in the water makes the lake uninhabitable for fish but perfect for sailing.

If you are ever in Utah, make sure to make the stop,  you wont be disappointed.

My baby and me

Because my son is still in Iraq- But coming home the end of this month for fifteen days R&R. And because my older daughter went camping with a guy friend and their family for the weekend.

Easter weekend was spent with just my youngest and I. I was not feeling really well Friday and part of Saturday so we stayed in and watched some movies from netflix.

After preparing the ham with mustard, cloves (which I will be leaving off next year) pineapple and some orange juice to set overnight, we were feeling stir crazy on Saturday afternoon and headed out for a really great dinner and then a movie.

How to train your dragon was great. I would see that one again.

The main character sounded just like my nephew and I could listen to Craig Ferguson all night. It was a late movie and we hit the sheets when we got home.

Sunday morning I placed out the baskets for the girls.. yes I still get them baskets.
My daughter came in as I was having my morning cup a joe and watching my Sunday morning start-my-day program CBS Sunday Morning.

She wanted to color some eggs and did it while I made the red potato salad and started heating the ham.

She decided she wanted to go for a drive. The state is so beautiful this time of year and we often take road trips when we get stir crazy and want some fresh air. This month started out with some beautiful warm weather. But today we had snow. We jumped in the car and headed out. Where we were not sure of.

I still don't have my truck back from the shop and we were in my older daughters car so when we hit this road I was a little nervous.

Then we saw this...

After a long afternoon drive, mom and daughter, talking, singing, we headed home.

This is our beacon, our lighthouse. When I see this mountain, from the road or the air I know I am home. This is home.

Even better was the fact that minus the 10 minutes it took to roast the asparagus stems, dinner was ready when we arrived. I think the ham could have been on a little lower temperature and I didnt like the flavor of the cloves but yum to the rest.

And now we, the three of us are settled in to watch the Amazing Race. Go Cowboys!

Happy Easter everyone!

We hit the sunny beaches where we occupy ourselves keeping the sun off our skin, the saltwater off our bodies, and the sand out of our belongings. ~Erma Bombeck

Single mothers are often faced with the dilemma making the paychecks or the support stretch enough to cover the monthly bills, put food on the table and keep the kids clothed and warm. To do anything extra, anything out of the norm, can really be too expensive to even think about doing. Birthday parties, Christmas and other holidays could be financially draining.

Then trying to explain to young kids why it is possible for other families to take week long vacations to Disneyland, Six Flags or even more elaborate places such as Europe or Mexico.

We have taken many road trips, droven to local and semi-local parks and sites. It was an inexpensive way to get out of town, see things we can't see at home, and spend some real quality time together. Many good times and a lot of great memories have been made.

Most every year I would receive a decent tax refund; enough that we could plan small trips. And most every one of those years, something unexpected. would come up. We were glad to have the money, when repairs were needed. But we vacations always seemed to get postponed or forgotten. Would have been fun to see some of the places the kids were learning about in school.

During the past thirteen years we were able to take a few great trips.

The year of my divorce, my parents had worked out a trip to Disneyland for my sister, and I and our families. It was a great reprieve from the stresses for us all. And I was so grateful to my parents.







A few years after that trip, my children took a really long road trip with my ex's parents. They drove through the Yukon and up to Alaska to see their dad for a week. I hope they were old enough that they will remember that time forever.





Five years ago, we were lucky enough to save up enough money for the four of us to take a longer road trip to Las Vegas. It was perfect timing when Vegas was running marketing towards children and families and creating a real family atmosphere.




We rode amusement park rides, toured museums (including Madame Tussauds ),  we toured the casinos and ate some great food. Thanks to Hotels.com and some pre-planning, we were able to see and do a lot on a small budget.
We even ran into a free art show of some 3D art in Caesar's Palace mall. The internet is a great source of information from other frugal parents and their tips. We got a suite  off the main strip cheaper than the big hotels and were able to cook some of our own meals in our room also saving money.

The last trip we have taken, also a road trip was nearly across the entire country. Three years ago, my son graduated from Basic training for the army the summer between his junior and senior years of high school. He called and said that we were invited to his graduation, or he could just fly home.

I decided right then, we would find a way to get there to pick him up and watch him march on this very important day. And we did.

The girls and I were able to drive through eleven states, see some of the most famous sights of this country, we stayed one night with a friend and many inexpensive hotels.

We watched his ceremony and he saw much of the country with us on the way home from Kentucky. It is a trip we will never forget.



 And now, in less than a week, we will be embarking on our first trip to the islands. My parents are celebrating their landmark 45th wedding anniversary and once again, my parents are making it possible for my sister, I and all of our children to take a cruise to some really beautiful places to help them celebrate. My son won't be able to come as he is still serving our country across the globe. And we will miss having him there. But we are so excited to spend some time together in some really gorgeous scenery.

It seems that things are appreciated more when they are well earned and infrequent. I will miss them so much when they are grown and on their own, and I cherish all of these moments with my children, my parents and my sister. Life is short.

I don't want a moment to pass by without all of my family knowing how I feel, the beach will make it even better!

Breathing Easy- A rant

Had a bit of a scare today.
My normal work commute is about 45 min through some rather high traffic areas. I try to arrive early and leave for home right on time in order to miss most of it.

I got a late start this morning as my older daughter who just started a new job, slept right through her alarm. Her day got better when she had difficulty starting her brothers car, which is her temporary form of transportation. It was an operator error as starting his car is a very Macgyver style encounter. By the time I got on the road, the trip I can most days make in a little over a half hour turned into nearly an hour and a half drive- well sit. I have never seen so many cars on the road all at once. Very unusual.

On my commute home although I was a bit late leaving work, finishing up a bit of paperwork there was an unusually small amount of traffic.

It was actually a great drive, we have had a bit of rain the past couple days, the skies were blue, the air clear. I was even a bit amused that the stereo was ironically playing great selections and I began to sing along. Getting louder and creating my own Karaoke car.

When I was just about 15 min from home in the middle of a great sing-a-long out of the peripheral vision of my right eye, I saw a small puff of what looked like smoke turn suddenly into a huge cloud of dust and dirt. I heard tires squealing and then in what felt like slow motion, I saw the outline of a very large blue truck no more than 10-15 feet in front of me. The huge truck moved quickly from the outside lane of the highway and as fast as a child running across the street he was into my lane. Before I had time to realize just how close he was, he was in the lane to my left. then the carpool center lane.

Without thinking a bit, my knuckles white, I turned the wheel slightly as to miss a large piece of torn up tire. In my rear view mirror a Piece of rubber large enough to knock my truck off the road.

Looking back up to the road I see the truck has reached the cement divider the barrier between the north and southbound traffic.
The 2000 lb dump truck bounced off the wall like a rubber ball thrown against a brick wall.

As I passed the scene I turned to see two cars stopping to help. I remember thinking I would be more in the way than help. I see the driver, alive, awake, but stunned. No more than 20 feet ahead of the crash scene, a man standing near his silver sports car. It looks to be a very expensive very fast car.
He is not running to the dump truck, he is not looking back to see if the man is OK. I remember thinking a few expletives as I watch him rubbing his car fender, caressing it like a lover.
At first thought, still a bit in shock I actually thought he may have been the cause...
But when my head cleared a little I believe that maybe, just maybe that big piece of rubber popped up to hit his car.
And for the record, I didn't see a scratch, except maybe in his character.

Murphy- what have you done?

As I wrote this post in my head last night, it played out so differently. A long diatribe about the sadness of another baby chick leaving the nest. Tugging at my heartstrings, making me want to hold on and not let her go.
Well, all that is true. So true. However the events of the past 12 hours put all that in a whole new perspective…anyone know Murphy? The guy with the law? The guy who can’t catch a break? Well, you’re lookin’ at him errr her.
People have told me a long time that I could write a book about my life. That it could be a tragedy, a comedy, maybe even a musical! So much seems to happen in my life that is against the grain. Off kilter. A little amiss. Chaos I tell you.

Somehow my world (and my kids, family and friends by association) seems to spin on its own axis. Nothing quite turns out the way it is intended to- ever!
Now, this isn’t always a bad thing. Over the many years I have learned to kind of live with it. Make it work. If you have ever seen the movie Just my Luck In the beginning of the movie, Chris Pine’s character has lived a life of ‘bad luck’. A LOT of bad luck. But he has learned to roll with it, expect it even. And things are great until … in a Freaky Friday kind of lightening flash his luck changes with Lindsay Lohan’ s Character who has only good luck. And she is having a harder time adjusting of course.
I loved that movie and laughed to tears, mostly because I could relate to them in their time of the worst luck. And I know people like their characters in their times of great luck.
Things seem to fall down around me and all I can do is laugh at it. While I see people who cannot possibly know what it is like to be me. I’m not complaining I’m not intending to whine. I love my life and would not possibly have learned the lessons nor had the opportunity to teach my children those same lessons regarding such things as acceptance, tolerance, and appreciation had my life run differently.
So- this leads me to the events which have just taken place in the past 12 hours or so.
My daughter had a 9 am flight this morning to head out of the state for a summer employment opportunity she just couldn’t pass up. It didn’t make it easier that she will be making an obscene amount of money as she is terrified. My children, until my son enlisted in the military, had been on one flight in their entire lives. They flew to see their father who lives in Alaska once when my oldest was about 13 yrs old. They flew ‘solo’ with the help of a very friendly large scale airline and many helpful stewardesses’. This would be her first flight as an adult and alone. She packed the night before and had only the daily essentials to throw in after use. We awoke in plenty of time to get her to the airport the expected hour before take-off. We were girls on a mission… I was doing my best to console her as her nerves were kicking in.
The previous night while on my way home from work, I felt a lot of vibration in the front end of my car. I am as far from ‘car savvy’ as one can be. However, years and years of bad luck with cars… has taught me a thing or two about what can go wrong. The girls and I had to pick up a few last minute things for my travelling daughter, things that we had up until yesterday been able to share, blow dryer, toiletries, etc. While we were out, I decided I had better check the tires as I am aware of some ‘front end work’ that needs to be done when pig’s fly I get my savings built back up after my job-less hiatus. The work I need done is expensive. However without it being done, my tires wear unevenly and quickly. And as I inspected them last night, they were quite worn. All of the local tire shops were closed for the night. As the airport is a good 45 minutes from our house, I was concerned.
A friend of my daughters came over and helped us to change the tire to my spare and much better shape tire. He left, we went in and completed her packing and retired for the evening thinking our problems were solved.
Bright and early this morning, with suitcase in the back, we climbed in to head for the airport. As my daughter ran in to retrieve one last forgotten item, I started the car and rolled a few inches. But the car was not moving. And when I really gave it some power, and it moved, it sounded as if I were dragging an axle or something.
Turns out, the spare tires inner wheel does not fit my car. So, in my heels, dress pants and white shirt, I changed the tire for the second time. And we were on our way. Easy you say… right? Wrong.
A quick stop for some ATM cash and we were lucky enough to get behind a lone woman in her car, slow as a turtle and with too much precision, making an attempt to withdraw from her account, not once, or twice, but three separate transactions. (Weird) and so we waited.
After we completed our own transaction, we pulled back onto the road and on the one road we thought had no construction for the season… road block. There was only one alternate and so we took it, a small neighborhood road which was where they parked all the construction vehicles and we timed it just right that they were firing each one up and maneuvering them past us onto the ‘closed road’.
We again managed to get on the road but decided we had better put a little air into the tire which was very low on tread on the inside of the tire due to bad tire alignment…. I was a little nervous to drive on it the distance that we needed to however there were no tire stores open as early as her flight. We had to chance it. After filling the tire and checking the pressure, we attempted to leave the service station. One side was blocked from the closed road we had already encountered leaving only one side open to the street. We drove around the building and a semi truck was unloading supplies to the store and parked in such a way as to block the entire side of the store… U-turn and we were finally headed to the airport.
Not much else delayed us and we made it to the airport with time to spare for security delays. We got her boarding pass for the first leg of her trip and he suggested that we go ahead to the second airline counter for her second boarding pass to expedite her lay-over ticketing. So we proceeded to the next counter just in time to get behind a group of approx. Fifteen couples headed home to Canada. The airline was doing a great job and they were getting them through as quickly as they could however there were a few ‘speed bumps’. They were all elderly (and a bit hard of hearing), most of them only spoke French, and they clearly had not done this airport thing anymore than we had. With just about fifteen minutes to spare, we got her second boarding pass and directions through the next much larger airport.
She made it through security losing only some sunscreen and lotion. And she was gone. And I felt lonely.
The day continued on... working late to make up the time. Rushing home to get to tires before closing time, gas gage light came on while racing to get home was forced to stop for gas…
I made it to the tire store. Got the tires. Man asked me if I was having a great day because I was smiling..hmm well…. Haha. Because I am preparing to sell my car, I attempted to buy some used tires. None. Got the least expensive they had. But- there was one shining moment. He looked at the price wrong.. Quoted me wrong. Took it upon himself to give me the nicer tires, for cost. About $40 cheaper per tire. Not too bad.
And now- I am tired and if you made it this far- so are you….Boy tomorrow better be roses and sunshine.

Mothers Day and Such

My mothers day started out a little on the harsh side but not unlike days I have become accustomed to.
Late sleeping girls, who at first glance seemed to have forgotten what day it was...But then my daughter began to spontaneously clean house.. dishes, and bathroom. Resulting in a clogged drain.. which ran onto the kitchen floor... and smelled of rotting food.
I had just stepped out of a shower, completed my hair drying and styling, I was smelling fine.
Then had to clear a clogged U-trap.
However, the rest of the day was very nice and relaxing.
Ever since the kids were tiny, we have spent many a Sunday on a day trip.
Before seat belts were the law, and before I got my senses, We used to put down the back seat in our ford explorer, spread out some blankets and pillows and create a mobile play-pen of sorts. We would choose a town on the map, and drive until we found it. There are enough really great places just a short drive from home. My kids learned how to behave on long rides, and it was nice quality family time.
If the kids ever got restless, we could usually find a park or nice off-road path to keep their attention. Often they would nap on the ride and wake up even happier.
I am sure there were days when we had a cranky kid or two, but honestly, I don't recall them.

My mothers day was similar to one of these 'Sunday drives'. We loaded up the car, (forgot the Cd's- wont do that again) and drove south. The weather was absolutely beautiful! The conversation was fun and light. We stopped for snacks and bathroom breaks as needed and just had one wonderful day, the three of us.

We saw some really beautiful places and even a little bit of history in some old charcoal ovens from the late 1800's. Bonus! I got to try out my brand new digital camera (no more borrowing my girls).

I missed seeing my mother, I did give her a call just before we left town, and that helped. I will see her in a couple weeks.


I was still nice to be with my own girls. I miss my boy. He was able to send me his own Mothers Day message from his training in California.





All- in-All Great Mothers Day. Best way to spend Mothers Day is with those who make you a Mother!

Look closely - there is wildlife in this one!