Not Helping

I recently read an article that piqued my interest.  I've been turning into quite the hot tea enthusiast this year.  For some reason it just sounds good.

You know how they say that you crave foods that are full of vitamins and minerals you need?  Yes, well, this definitely came to mind when the article I read spoke of the many health benefits of tea.  Apparently it helps lower your blood pressure and sharpen mental acuity.

Let me just say, trying to homeschool with four children is not a blood pressure lowering occupation.  In fact, there have been many days when I've been questioning my 'career choices'.  Also, the more children you have the less mental sharpness you have...or is it temporary?  I'm not exactly sure.  These days I'm just happy if I can make it successfully through two or three simple sentence when I'm speaking to someone.  Anyway, apparently I'm very deficient in these areas, hence the craving of tea!

My only question now is, why isn't it working?  Rats.  Maybe it's just coincidence.  Or maybe I just like to warm up when it's cold outside.  Who knows.  But by all means, readers, if you see a sudden improvement in my sentence complexity, let me know.  It must be the tea.  Yes, this has been another insightful health article, brought to you by the genius editor of your beloved Crazy Creative Magazine.

When It Clicks...

I have to say, there are many exciting 'aha!' moments in homeschooling.   One of the best parts of teaching your children is that you see and can appreciate every step of their learning.  Cara is now starting her last quarter of first grade, and Scott is in his last quarter of kindergarten.  We've come to a new stage in reading.

For the last month or so, Cara has begun reading chapter books independently.  She has devoured twelve American Girl books, two Ramona books, Heidi (abridged), Treasure Island (abridged), the first of the Boxcar Children books, and five or six other miscellaneous chapter books.  She'll read through an entire book per day.  I'm astonished!  She can actually tell me intricate details of the plots.  It seems like this stage has come out of nowhere.  Suddenly she can read anything.  I have to say, this has brought back so many memories of the books I read during elementary.  It has also had the added bonus of fewer toys laying around the house for me to trip on.  With all that reading, she has hardly played with toys lately.

And as for Scott, yesterday during quiet time, he came out of the room and blurted out to me, "Mom!  Can you believe that the New York Yankees bought Babe Ruth for the astounding amount of $125,000?".  Yeah, he's doing great, too.

Ellen Returns!

Okay, loyal few, I've edited and formatted my other complete story, "Ellen Bartelle, Woman of Mystery".  You can scroll down the sidebar and click on it to reread.  I definitely have to write another adventure for my famous over-indulgent Seattle detective!  Hope you enjoy the read!

The Real Story of Cincinnati Chili, Part 10

Fear not, dear readers, Hannistina is about to make yet another stunning entrance.  To catch up from last time, check out Part 9.



Chapter 5: The Other Woman 

Two weeks had gone by, and all was well.  Hannistina's chili was a hit in the bakery, Reedsler was pushing their Dad to help with Hannistina's shop, and then 
there was Dudley.  Wonderful Dudley, with his shy smile and outgoing waistline 
had captivated her thoughts.  

"How odd..." she pondered, "How odd that I haven't ever noticed how handsome he 
really is."  For alas, his beauty of character cast him in a rosy glow for 
Hannistina.  Instead of the balding, plump, perpetually sweaty man which most 
people saw, Hannistina saw only the beauty of his chocolate colored eyes, his 
finely chiseled nose, his even teeth...he was the true man of her dreams. 

She was beginning to map out a scheme to win her heart's desire.  Menus poured 
forth out of her imagination, she'd taken to wearing pastel lip gloss, she had 
even bought him an apron with a Hershey's kiss on it, hoping he'd take the hint, 
to no avail.  She had blushed when she gave it to him, but he hadn't noticed.  
Had he truly forgiven her?  Was he no longer interested?  Or was there something 
holding him back?  She had no idea, but her determination knew no bounds. 

It was in this frame of mind that Hannistina skipped out her door toward 
Dudley's shop, arms full of bread pans she had borrowed as an excuse to come 
over yesterday.  She smiled to herself as her carefully hairsprayed curls 
ornamented her shoulders.  

"I'll tell him my bread didn't turn out and ask him to show me how to knead properly," she plotted "then I'll have lots of time to tell him about my new plans for the shop."  One more happy sigh brought her to the bakery door.  With some difficulty she maneuvered the door open, using her hip to swing open some entrance space.  She entered with a small giggle, then stopped dead in her tracks, for there, drinking iced mocha with Dudley was an unfamiliar woman.  What's more, Dudley was grinning and laughing with her!  

Hannistina's heart stopped, tears welled at her eyes, and she was unable to move 
or speak.  The woman, whose pin-straight hair she had been staring at, slowly 
turned toward Hannistina, unflinchingly locking eyes with her.  She carefully 
examined the curls, bread pans, plain jeans, and sensible tennis shoes before 
the terrible smirk snuck onto her lipstick slathered lips.  Her shadowed eyes 
held a glint of triumph. 

Hannistina heard the crash before she even knew the pans had slipped from her hands.  The clatter resounded in the bakery and every head snapped to attention.  All the eyes joined the eyes of the unknown women in silent judgment.  Only Dudley seemed sympathetic.  He jumped to her rescue.  "Oh, Hannistina, let me help you with that.  This is all my fault, I should have opened the door for you.  Oh, here let me get that . . . "  His comforting words began to sooth her embarrassment.  

"No, you were busy Dudley.  I'm sorry that I've interrupted."  Hannastina baited for an explanation.

"Yes, I was meeting from my good friend from Pastry School.  You know, I had I crush on her back then.  Let me introduce you to the famous Miss Praline DeVine.  You know, she is considering an offer from Food Network to televise her local show, 'The Hand That Sets The Table'."  Dudley turned with his face aglow to introduce Miss Praline, and Hannastina realized that his crush had not ended in Pastry School.

Miss Praline DeVine sat with her perfect posture and her gleaming hair glistening in the glint of the morning light.  She gracefully stood and took some of the pans from Dudley's hands, "Here let me be of service to you, Dudley."  Her smile made Dudley's rosy glow flame to a flaming rose color.  She turned and said, "Why, you must be Hannistina Hershey.  Dudley has told me all about you.  Only you could turn every head with your entrance.  My your hair is beautiful.  Your curls are refreshingly innocent, the picture of youth."

Hannistina struggled to find a fitting reply, "It's so nice to meet you.  Dudley has told me nothing of you," was what came out of her mouth. 


Jeepers!  Now what will she do?  Striking at her curls was such a low blow.  Stay tuned for the next intriguing plot twist!

Attention Readers: FYI

I just thought my faithful few ought to know that I've decided to transfer my installment stories to one place to make it easier to go back and read them all at once.  Of course, I'm probably the only person alive interested in doing this, but just in case...

Here is the first story I wrote, Treacherous Waters.  It's my not-too-long modern Pygmalian story, and after rereading it, I find it completely hilarious.  Maybe when I'm old and gray and have nothing better to do, I'll expand it into a full novel for my own amusement.  Anyway, to read the story in full, scroll down the left sidebar to the "Pages" label and click on Treacherous Waters.  It won't take much time to read, and the random one liners and former words of the week will tickle your fancy.

PS--This story is about as romantic as I get in my writing, so don't get too emotionally involved!