Happy Halloween

Tall Girls Rule

giddy girls painting

matching custom pink t-shirts

— twinsies day at school

by:  Paula D. Nevison

giddy teenage girls 

heard 5 Seconds of Summer

— autumn radio

by:  Paula D. Nevison

Sun Rise Driving

Early morning sun

shining low in the sky.

Difficult to drive

every direction but west,

the One Direction (on the radio)

that I don't have to go.

Finally risen high enough,

it's not shining in my eyes

while pulling in my drive.

by:  Paula D. Nevison

Fresh Pumpkin Instead of Canned

 

Two pumpkins,

both baked.

Was going to boil one,

but was hard to cut up.

Husband halved them.

Three bags two cups,

one bag one cup,

baked, mashed pumpkin

in the freezer

ready for pies,

and pumpkin bread.

How to cook pumpkin

http://allrecipes.com/howto/baking-with-fresh-pumpkin/

 

Roasted seeds, fun snack.

How to roast perfect pumpkin seeds

http://ohsheglows.com/2012/09/17/how-to-roast-perfect-pumpkin-seeds-easy-crunchy-addictive/

Pumpkin Pie

How do you make pumpkin pie for Thanksgiving when the stores stop selling pumpkins after Halloween? This year I bought one early. The goal is to cook it, mash it, and freeze. Make a pie at Thanksgiving. Make a pie at Christmas. Roast the seeds and eat them now. But how?

How do I cook a pumpkin? I looked it up on the internet. Some sites say to boil or steam. Some sites say to bake. I have to decide what I'm going to do. Last year I missed the pumpkins, so I made a sweet potato pie. I know how to cook sweet potatoes. That pie turned out fine. I will buy a second pumpkin. Boil one, and bake the other. This year will be my experiment.

Bicycling

I ride my bike every day.

I don't worry about being hit by cars.

I always have the right of way.

Sometimes I let go of the handle bars.

The weather is never a problem,

whether it's raining or sunny, hot or cold,

no matter what's blooming, not allergic to pollen.

I don't wear special shoes or clothes.

The scenery is always the same.

It's exactly as I designed it.

My living room doesn't ever change

when I ride my stationary recumbent.

by:  Paula D. Nevison

moon, stars, street lights shine,

children wait for the school bus

— dark winter morning 

by:  Paula D. Nevison

Lavender and Fuchsia

Lavender, a pale tint of violet.

Violet, the color of amethyst.

Amethyst, between purple and blue.

Blue makes lavender a cool color.

Fuchsia, sometimes the same as magenta.

Magenta, between red and violet.

Violet, opposite on the light spectrum from red.

Red makes fuchsia a warm color.

Both, the color of their flowers.

Both, have multiple known species.

Lavender, two variations, both from the lavendula.

Fuchsia, many variations; the color, and the flowers.

But lavender, more blue; fuchsia, more pink.

So lavender and fuchsia, not the same thing.

by:  Paula D. Nevison

Mom's tatted earrings,

pearl beaded lace wedding dress

– covered in white cake

by:  Paula D. Nevison

Halloween Chocolate Chip Cookies,

and this reminds me of long curly strawberry blond hair.

Backward Halloween

My teenage daughter want to dress up like Santa Claus

and go trick-or-treating with her little princess niece.

She wants to give out candy to every house,

ring the doorbell and hand each answering person a piece,

like Santa gives out toys, a backward Halloween.

Is this her take on antiestablishmentarianism?

No, she is a humanitarian.

I like the subliminal message,

makarion estin didonai mallon ê lambanein,

it's Greek to me.

by:  Paula D. Nevison

http://www.biblepages.net/mm02.htm

A great resource, and 

a terrible time waster

– the internet

by:  Paula D. Nevison

Purple Plastic Rain Boots

Purple plastic rain boots, I wore them to school.

Torrential thunderstorms were forecasted.

It sprinkled a little, but the rain never lasted.

The dirt never got muddy. No puddles to splash in.

by:  Paula D. Nevison

Hippocampus, The Horse – Sea Monster

I texted a friend of mine,

“What color is a seahorse?”

While I waited for her response, I googled seahorse images.

I was thinking I would find orange, of course.

There was a couple sort of orange ones, but

yellow, they were predominantly yellow.

I was surprised. Hmm, I like yellow.

I got a text back, “Colors that are mellow,

like pink, light blue, lavender.”

Was she thinking of cartoon seahorses?

I asked my daughter, who happened to walk by,

the same question. She said yellow.

“Did you take marine biology?”

“No, I took genetics instead. Why do you ask?”

“I thought maybe that's how you knew about seahorses.”

“Everybody knows that. Why do you care about seahorses?”

“I have a pattern that I want to tat.”

by:  Paula D. Nevison

 

Tatted seahorse pattern can be found here.

The dwarf seahorse (H. zosterae) is the slowest-moving fish in the world, 

with a top speed of about 5 ft per hour.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seahorse

An Annoying Squeak in Joey's Room

After turning off the fan, and checking all the electronic gadgets,

I said, “Maybe it's a cricket.”

We checked around the window, and under and around his bed.

Nothing in here. Must be outside instead.

Outside in the dark with our flashlights, we found a little bug on his window.

Knocked him off. Problem solved. Went inside.

Now the noise is intermittent.

We looked and looked, to no avail, and sat down on his bed.

“There it is.” Joe said.

It was hiding in a fold on his comforter.

How can something so small be so loud?

And was the comforter cricket singing to the window cricket?

by:  Paula D. Nevison

4th Annual Dauphin Island Art Trail

We saw a lot of paintings,

and hand made jewelry,

photographs, and ink drawings,

we viewed with much scrutiny.

We bought a couple small things,

but first ate at the Lighthouse Bakery.

I went with my daughter.

She has conservative taste.

I value her opinion.

And she's in good shape.

I'm glad we didn't get there at the beginning,

or she'd have convinced me to walk the whole thing.

Dauphin Island is so pretty

when the weather is nice.

Today it was sunny.

There was a breeze, just slight.

But it's nice to come home without sand in my clothes.

The beach on the island is the one place we didn't go.

by:  Paula D. Nevison

Math is Important

When I'm shopping, I compare prices,

but the boxes are different sizes.

Divide price by number of ounces,

and the answers sometimes surprises.

When I have limited cash,

I add up as I shop,

so I don't get caught at the checkout

with less money than what I've bought.

When something is on sale,

and the sale price is not stated,

math will avail

to figure out the sale.

Don't be like the dumb shop owner I know,

who divided instead of multiplying by the decimal,

and ended up with an answer higher than the original.

He charged the higher price. That's not a sale, duh!

Calculators are dandy,

but to avoid a terrible mistake,

common sense will come in handy.

Math is important, not penny-ante.

by:  Paula D. Nevison

Making Pancakes

My recipe never makes enough.

Always need to double it,

triple if I want some to freeze.

My nephew is over playing X-Box with my son.

“If my recipe calls for 1½ cups of flour,

and I double it, how much do I need?”

(I used to ask my kids, but they're almost grown.)

I know the answer. Does he?

“Huh?”

Math word problems,

moms deal with these every day.

We shouldn't be annoyed when teachers assign them.

He's a bright kid in 6^th grade.

He thought a minute, and answered, “3.”

Yes kids, moms can, and do, actually multiply and divide fractions.

Get your kids involved in your everyday things. They can learn much from you.
They might even teach you something.

by: Paula D. Nevison 

When My Family Plays Peanuts

Shuffle the cards.

Count out thirteen.

“One, two, three, Go!”

Frantically slap cards down in the center of the table.

“I'm out!”

Separate the decks.

Count and subtract.

(Make the youngest player the scorekeeper.)

Tell the scorekeeper your points.

Shuffle the cards.

Count out thirteen.

“Mayonnaise, Go!”

(Not sure where that came from.)

Hysterically slap cards down in the center of the table.

“I'm out!”

Separate the decks.

Count and subtract.

Tell the scorekeeper your points.

Math practice for the youngest.

Repeat until someone's score reaches 150.

Get silly while you play.

Put the cards away.

by:  Paula D. Nevison

My List of Lists

A list of groceries that I need to buy.

A list of errands that I need to run.

A list of chores that I want to get done.

A list of home improvements that I'm working on.

A list of recipes for each holiday.

A list of Christmas cookies that I bake.

A list of people to invite.

A list of presents I want to buy.

A list of crafts I need to finish.

A list of crafts I want to start.

A list of birthdays to remember.

A list of emergency phone numbers.

A list of clients.

A list of appointments.

A list of bills to pay, and their due dates.

A list of things I want to write about.

A list of most misspelled words for which I should watch out.

A list of sights I want to see.

A list of things my wardrobe needs.

A list of future goals.

A list of things to do to attain them.

by:  Paula D. Nevison

What I did last weekend

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Q0lWmvMCu0

Phone book roses are not something I am going to make any more of. It took four tries to get this one. I burned my fingers with hot glue too many times, plus that yucky newsprint all over my fingers. I had to wash the dishes to get rid of it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kFHun3tgZ0M

So then I made one of these rolled book paper roses. I used phone book paper (because I don't have any old books I want to cut up), so I had the same newsprint problem, but otherwise it was fine. I would make more of these, except by the time I made it, I was so annoyed with the other ones that I just wanted to quit and tat instead.

 I made a pair of tatted pearl earrings.

A Poem a Day

I want to write a poem a day for all of October.

It's not poetry month, but I don't care.

I'm sure some of them I will not share.

Some will be my reality, some simply fantasy, and some a bit of both.

I hope you find fun, or pause for thought, in the ones I decide to post.

My Favorite Little Boss

My granddaughter is the boss at my house,

even though I know she shouldn't be.

I give her everything she wants.

After all, she is only three.

Her requests are simple and straightforward.

They border on demanding.

But her squeals of joy when she gets her way,

her smiles, and her hugs; they are outstanding.

Her mommy has taught her manners.

She is difficult to resist when she says please.

She usually asks for things that are okay, so

I enjoy fulfilling all her wants and needs.

She likes to sing and dance and play.

She's so joyfully animated when she gets her way.

Her excitement is contagious.

She brightens up my day.

by:  Paula D. Nevison

Confidant

The man in the moon and I are friends.

All I have to do is look at him.

He reads my mind and knows my thoughts.

He listens patiently to everything I say.

Occasionally, the clouds get in the way.

I give him one day off each month.

In return, he gives a night of full attention.

The clouds are jealous, and oft' put up a front.

The wind keeps them in compliance.

He and I formed an alliance.

We have an audience of stars

who've been attending us for years.

They gather around us every night.

The stars keep all in strictest confidence,

everything discussed in our evening conference.

Unlike those chatty little crickets

proclaiming all my secrets,

yammering on all through the night.

The stars twinkle up above

with the secret knowledge of my fears and love.

The man in the moon is the quiet type.

He gives me the best advice.

He is always quite concise.

His glance leaves me feeling nice

even when he's just a slice.

by:  Paula D. Nevison

Wedding Thoughts

She wants a summer wedding,

but she doesn't want it to be hot.

Her favorite flowers bloom in Spring.

I don't know if they can be bought.

I suggest September,

On the Gulf it still seems like summer.

The leaves will still be green.

We just need to pick a number.

The dress is our next challenge.

Should I make it, or should we shop?

I knit, crochet, tat, and sew.

Here's a pattern for the top.

We've looked at lots of pictures.

I think she's found her style.

What about the bridesmaids?

Lavender will make her smile.

She made a list of who to invite

to get an idea of how big this might be.

She's always wanted small and simple.

That makes it easier for me.

We have a year to plan and pay.

I'm sure it will go by quickly.

We'll see if the groom's family cooperates.

That's where this could get real tricky.

by:  Paula D. Nevison