The Surprising Night

Oh what a day it had been! Carissa opened her door , kicked off her shoes and flopped down on the couch. The newspaper was in her hand, she had picked it up at her door. She tossed it on the coffee table not wanting to look at it right now.

She went into the kitchen and poured herself a cup of Hot Apple Cider, brought it out and sat down on the couch staring at the paper.

This morning when she went out to her car she saw a black cat dart across her driveway. She is usually not suspicious, but with her mind already on edge, that sight surely didn’t help.

At work the children were all hyped up, knowing the loads of extra candy that they were going to get tonight. They were enjoying shouting “Boo!” and seeing who they could make jump. Carissa scared easily anyway, and today was no exception.

In the break room was a dish of Candy Corn, that brought a smile to her face. She loved Candy Corn, even if the rest of her family thought she was crazy for liking it. What did they know anyway?

After break she had went to the back room to collect the carved pumpkins that had been made earlier. It was time for them to go home with their owners now. Every pumpkin had a unique face to it, but the one similarity was that all the faces seemed to be laughing at her!

After work, she went out to her car to find 2 black cats this time! One sitting on the hood of her car and the other one right in front of her door. Both were  just staring at her. As she got up the courage to shoo them away she kept repeating to herself that she was not superstitious!

Now she held the newspaper in her hand and decided she couldn’t put it off any longer, she had to look. She quickly scanned each page and felt more relief the closer she got to the end. When she turned the last page she laughed, as she relaxed. She had known there was nothing to worry about. Smiling she went up the stairs to get ready for her party tonight.

The last guest left and Carissa was tired, but it had been a fun night. She thought she would step out on her back porch for a brief moment before bed, since the stars were shining bright tonight. She went out and sat on her porch swing. As she was swinging she saw something in her back yard.

At first she thought it was a rabbit, but no, that wasn’t it. As it got closer she saw that it had antlers on its head! What was going on?? It came closer and closer to her, not appearing to be afraid. It was staring right at her. Why it was a Jackalope!! But wait a minute…jackalopes weren’t supposed to be real. As she was debating this fact in her head, the jackalope looked at the stars in the sky and started humming!

Carissa now knew that she had to be losing it. She thought she better go inside and get a glass of wine, or maybe she had had too many glasses of wine? As she kept watching and listening, the Jackalope  turned back around and stepped closer to her and said “BOO!” Then it took off running at full speed, but Carissa could still hear it chuckling as it disappeared into the night.

A humming, laughing, talking  Jackalope??? Yes, it definitely had to be Halloween. They say anything can happen on Halloween!

Daily Prompt: Volunteer

via Daily Prompt: Volunteer

Volunteering can brighten your life in so many ways! There are so many opportunities out there to choose from.

In High school over the summers I worked as a Camp Counselor. Yes, we did get paid, but the pay was very  minimal compared to what could have been made at a regular summer job. The monetary gain might have been minimal, but the other rewards were priceless.

Having heartfelt conversations with children. Ones that were scared, ones that had bad home lives and felt like they could trust you enough to open up to. Seeing the sparkle in a child’s eye when they swam for the first time and cheering with them. Feeling the joy when a child who had broken the rules all the time, turned the corner and thanked you for not giving up on them. Yes, I still remember that hug and the smile that spread from ear to ear across that child’s face.

It was a stretching experience as we  would always have a week of having the mentally handicapped come to Camp. I can say that was one of the most exhausting and wonderful weeks of the summer.

There are still campers that I remember in my mind. A older man who was short like me, totally bald but had the biggest smile all the time! He only said a few words but his personality was so catching. He was known  as the camper who could hold his breath for a CRAZY amount of time under water. He gave us a scare in the beginning, but we learned. He just loved to float in the water.

Then there was the sweet lady who walked in baby steps, there was no hurrying her. She took in everything she saw as she was walking,not like us who get so busy we miss the roses as we rush by. This lady saw each rose, each butterfly and each penny that laid on the ground. Every time she did she would rub her hands together and smile as she let out squeals of excitement. How could you not stop and embrace the moment with her. Her excitement was contagious.

Last of all, I can’t forget the camper from that week that serenaded me with a song during the Talent Show that we always have at the end of the week. Yes all week he had called me his girlfriend, but I had no idea that he was going to dedicate a Elvis Presley song to me! “Love me Tender”, still makes me think of that memory when I hear it! My cheeks don’t get as red anymore, but I still remember it. 🙂

After  High School I chose to go to South Carolina for a year and volunteer as a Teacher’s Aide at a Elementary School. Our living expenses were taken care of . It was a group of 10 of us that lived in a house and volunteered at different places in the area. I could make a whole other post about that year, but suffice to say for now, that it was one of the best years of my life! I didn’t earn a penny, but my heart was filled with the richness of new friendships and other things. A year I will never forget.

One Christmas a few years back we went and delivered meals to the ones who couldn’t make it to the Soup Kitchen. To see how happy they were over a simple meal, I know left an impact on my children. It made a impact on me.

The impact that volunteering can leave on you is what you can’t put a price on.

Take the time to volunteer, it is something you really won’t regret!

Dewey and his Pumpkin head friend!

Pumpkins, pumpkins, wherever you looked. They seemed to multiply every time Dewey and Jaxon went out for a walk. There were  more each day. On their front porch the man-servant had 4 pumpkins sitting with candles in them. They did look pretty cool in the dark.

Dewey and Jaxon were on their way to the field on top of the hill. Dewey needed to get out of the house. The man-servant was obviously up to something but Dewey didn’t know what.  All he knew is that the man-servant  loved saying “WooHoo!” Dewey lost count as to how many times he had said it. He would say it with a gleam in his eye, which made Dewey suspicious.

A pumpkin was rolling down the street towards them. Dewey yelled at Jaxon to watch out, but he had been distracted by a noise coming from the neighbor’s yard. He wasn’t listening to Dewey and he wasn’t’ watching where he was going. He tripped right over the pumpkin and right into the opening at the top! The pumpkin swallowed up his head! Dewey took one look and immediately fell down laughing. Jaxon was stumbling around, not being able to see where he was going. He was calling for Dewey to help, but Dewey was too busy laughing.

All the hoopla drew the man-servant’s attention. Dewey and Jaxon hadn’t gone that far away from the house yet and the man-servant had been tending the flower bed out front. He turned to see what all the noise was about and he soon joined Dewey in his laughter.

Jaxon was failing to see the humor in this.  The man-servant helped lead Jaxon back to the house as Dewey was still having trouble walking.

They got to the front porch and the man-servant had Jaxon sit down as he snapped some pictures. Oh this was good! Jaxon’s voice was becoming louder and louder and Dewey and the man-servant figured they had enough fun at his expense for now. The man-servant pulled hard and the pumpkin popped off, much to Jaxon’s relief!!

The pumpkin was off, but Jaxon had new nicknames. Pumpkin head or Jaxon the Jack-O-Lantern. OH yes there was a lot of laughter shared that evening by the campfire when Odessa was there.  They of course had to share the story with her.

The man-servant had went out and had  the pictures printed out right away so that he could show them to Odessa. She enjoyed them, but she did feel for Jaxon as well. Remember she was a caring owl. She patted him on the head and told him that he was just as cute as he always was, even when there was a pumpkin on his head! Jaxon rolled his eyes at her.

Jaxon wandered away a little bit from the campfire for it was dying out and it would be soon time to go inside anyway. That is when the idea hit Jaxon. Should he? Hmm… He stood there debating for a little bit. He stood in the shadows where his friends couldn’t see him. What was that? He heard the man-servant talking about the pictures he had taken and saying what he was planning to do with them!! No way thought Jaxon! Well that made his decision! Jaxon stepped closer to his friends; their backs were towards him as they were all leaning in close to the man-servant. They were listening to what he was saying. Once again they were laughing.

Jaxon closed his eyes and nodded his head 3x’s  and water sprayed forth hitting his friends perfectly in the back!! They jumped as Jaxon laughed. Jaxon kept laughing as they yelled. Ha! Ha! You don’t laugh at Jaxon the Jack-O-Lantern without reaping the consequences. Rubbing his paws together he headed indoors. It was a GOOD NIGHT, a VERY GOOD NIGHT INDEED and he laughed again!

A Jaxon Story…Part 2

Good Morning! After a horrible night, I believe I am on the other side of this virus now! I identified with Jaxon,since he didn’t have too swell of a night. If you missed reading Part 1, here is the link. A Jaxon Story…Part 1   Thanks again to Colin for writing this story. He saved you from a post on dry heaves and shivering under tons of blankets. Thanks for the well wishes everyone, am getting there.Right now I am really hungry for something besides toast, crackers and soft boiled eggs!!

A Jaxon Story…Part 2

Poor Jaxon did not know where he was except that he was hanging by his pajamas quite high above the farm house. At first he thought it was just a really bad dream, but he soon realized the truth.

While he was looking around and trying to decide how to get himself down, he saw Odessa circling around. “Odessa?” he shouted “I need your help”. Odessa was wondering quite how to explain how Jaxon got there in the first place, and decided discretion was a very good word to apply at this time.

“How did you get up there?” she called down to Jaxon. “I’ve no idea” said Jaxon “But can you get me down?”  Odessa needed to make a big scene out of all this so that Jaxon would be eternally grateful. “Let me check out what would be involved” she said. A few moments later, she flew passed Jaxon and said “Well it looks rather dangerous Jaxon. I have a pretty big wing span, and if I fly in close enough to pick you up, my wings might catch that aerial and then we both fall to the ground.

“Are you sure that you have no idea how you got there?” Odessa asked “Because if you could remember, then perhaps you could do the same thing again but backwards?” Odessa kept flying around the aerial, and then she heard what she wanted to hear “Odessa! Please come and get me. I will be forever grateful!”

Odessa made a sharp turn and headed directly for Jaxon. “Get ready” she shouted to him. She glided in towards the aerial and a very nervous Jaxon and, with incredible speed, wrapped her claws around him and pulled him off the aerial.

She circled around the farmhouse, slowly dropping down towards the ground when she saw the lurking man right in front of her, she swiftly climbed upwards but, in the excitement, she forgot about Jaxon and let go of him! Jaxon fell down and landed right on top of the man. The man was caught totally by surprise, as was Jaxon, because it was the man-servant!

“Jaxon!” he said rather loudly “Where on earth did you come from?” “Well it’s bit of a complicated story” said Jaxon. “I woke up at the top of the old TV aerial and, lucky for me, Odessa was around and helped to get me down. At that moment Odessa, who had been listening intently, decided that it was safe to land. “So” said the man-servant “You apparently saved our little friend Jaxon!” “It was nothing” said Odessa “I just happened to be in the right place at the right time.”

Just then, Dewey came around the corner. “Hi Guys” he said “What’s up?” “Well” said the man-servant “Poor Jaxon woke up at the top of the old TV aerial but, fortunately Odessa was close by to rescue him.” “Well of course she was” said Dewey.

The man-servant and Jaxon both turned to face Dewey “What do you mean?” said the man-servant. “Well” said Dewey, “I couldn’t sleep very well, and you weren’t in your bed, so I thought that I could do some mousing. I heard a whoosh whoosh above me and looked up to see Odessa carrying Jaxon to the old TV aerial. I had to laugh though because Odessa nearly flew right into it and poor Jaxon was snagged by one of the metal bits. I mean an owl! With her night vision… but then, that’s Odessa isn’t it. Always good for a laugh!”

Jaxon and the man-servant turned to face Odessa, but she was not there. They did however hear a rapidly fading whoosh whoosh sound!

A Jaxon Story…Part 1

Hello my friends. I didn’t think there would be a post today being that I was hit by a virus yesterday. I was nicely surprised by Colin sending me a story that he had written, if I wanted a post for today. Dewey and his friends are definitely having more adventures than I am today. Enjoy the story!! Yes, it is just Part 1….sorry, I didn’t write it 🙂 The man-servant is a great guy, but yes he loves to tease,  if you couldn’t tell 🙂

It was very early in the morning, and everywhere was still dark. The man-servant and Dewey were asleep in the farm house, and Jaxon was curled up in his favorite corner of the barn. Suddenly there was a familiar whoosh whoosh sound as Odessa flew in and gently landed next to Jaxon, who remained  asleep.

She needed to wake him but, from past experience, she would have to be very gentle so as not to scare him. She whispered “Jaxon?”. Jaxon just rolled over and let out a rather large snore… considering his size. “Jaxon?” she repeated a little louder, but Jaxon just grunted and stayed asleep. What was she to do?

When Odessa was flying around during the night, she noticed a man lurking around the farm house and wanted Jaxon to either investigate, or wake up the other two in the farm house, which of course she could not do. Then she had a hoot of a plan!

Rather than risk waking up Jaxon at this moment, she would simply grab his clothes with her claws and fly him to where the man was last seen. She could then wake him up and he would immediately see the problem and not get upset with Odessa! It was foolproof!

She gently grabbed Jaxon’s pajamas and with a whoosh whoosh, she was rising upwards with Jaxon safely held in her claws. She was really impressed both with her plan, and how easy she could carry Jaxon. “Odessa…. you constantly impress me” she said to herself.

Once they had cleared the barn entrance, she rose up effortlessly into the night sky, and then slowly turned towards the farm house. There were a few other nocturnal hunters out who watched Odessa very carefully, just in case she dropped what looked like a really nice breakfast! Odessa however, held tightly onto Jaxon and started circling the farm house because the man had moved from where she last saw him.

She flew around the farm house 5 times without seeing the man, so she decided to drop down and fly really close to the building. Then she would surely see him! She dropped down to rooftop height and started to circle the building. All would have been fine if she had noticed the old TV aerial sticking up… but she didn’t. One minute she was in perfect control, and the next she went almost upside down as Jaxon was wrenched from her claws! She quickly regained control and circled around ready to dive and pickup Jaxon again, but he was not on the ground. Then she saw him. He was hanging from the top of the TV aerial by his pajamas… and was definitely wide awake now!

The Countdown!

I am down for the count! The virus that has been going around at work, hit me today. Unfortunately. I had one meeting with the porcelain throne already and really hoping that is the last one. I had enough of those type meetings when I was pregnant, to last me a lifetime and more!

I still remember when I was pregnant with my 2nd child. It was so much harder that time, for I had a 2 year old to take care of. One time that I won’t forget is when she followed me into the bathroom as my “meeting” began. She looked at me curiously for a little bit and then went over to her potty chair and proceeded to get down on her knees and make growling sounds as she bent over the toilet. Yes, I had to laugh, as I shook my head!

I am not feeling too bad right now, just achy all over with a little fever. Hopefully it will run its course tonight and tomorrow will be a new day!!

I did have the thought of writing “sick” in several different languages. That thought came to me due to a certain blogger, long story. Decided it was too much work though. He likes to say that English is not my main language, if you have read any comments. To set the record straight let me inform you all that he really doesn’t know what he is talking about. But it is understandable, he did just turn 100 not that long ago. So give him some slack. 🙂

I would say more, but I am being “NICE”, that is another long story. If I wasn’t being ‘NICE” I may add that he….. Nope better not say that. 🙂  I better get off here and go to the couch, probably will be safer for me. What can I say? I was laying in bed staring at the ceiling, trying to think of a creative way to let my readers know why there hasn’t been a post yet. I had the recent conversation in my head about ” English not being my main language”, and my mind started going. Thought of some things to say, but like I said, I am being “nice” 🙂 I will save them ,for I am sure I will need them as a response to a certain witty blogger sooner or later!

With that last line I will take up my position on the couch with my crackers and soda. Hope that you all are having a much better day than me  and that you  stay well!!

Tuesday’s Thoughts!

Good Morning my friends! It is a chilly morning here, but I guess that is to be expected as October is drawing near the end. Can’t believe how quickly it has flown! Time is going fast. Today take a little time to slow down and enjoy. Enjoy the quotes today, and remember Keep Smiling! A smile is the best thing that you can wear 🙂

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When Friends Meet… Hearts Warm!

Yesterday the sun was shining outside and shining bright inside my heart as well! My hubby and I went to Mars to finally meet a blogger friend of mine, that I met online 2 years ago, Jodi from  http://thecreativelifeinbetween.wordpress.com//

When we pulled into her driveway I recognized the house from the pictures on her blog. I couldn’t believe that we were finally here and within seconds I was going to meet Jodi in person. The door was opened  and I was enveloped in a big, long hug. It was a wonderful, crazy feeling of hugging someone for the very first time, but yet feeling like you had “hugged” so many times before. After Jodi, her husband Marty was there to welcome us, and I was pulled into another hug. I was met with the words, “I feel like I know you already, with all I have heard about you!” Heart was warmed again, though I did have to say that I hoped it was good things that he had heard!

We were ushered into their cozy living room with the fireplace blazing and a comfy couch in front of it. Had the pleasure of meeting Charlie, their wonderful dog who was so very friendly! We chatted over coffee and Jodi’s mouth watering delicious cinnamon chip cookies.

Marty and Jodi took us on a tour of Pittsburgh, after first stopping downtown to see their spaceship and Jodi giving Brad and I a Mars t-shirts.  Now we could prove to people that we really did go to Mars 🙂

The weather was beautiful  for a walk around Pittsburgh.  We went for a scenic ride up the incline in a cable car. Laughter and good natured teasing was part of the day of course. Jodi took note of my height, or lack of it, as we were standing on the steps waiting to go up the Incline. Marty pointed out how he and Jodi may live in Mars, but that he knew of a couple towns in my neck of woods that had unique names as well. 🙂

While in line for the cable car we met 2 guys that had come the whole way from Germany to take in a Pittsburgh Steelers game!! It was fun talking to them. One of the guys was 6foot 4! Yes, I may have felt extra small around him.

Jodi and Marty took us to a unique styled restaurant that had delicious food. We all enjoyed our meals and I had succulent shrimp. Marty and I realized that we both had a taste for Scrapple, when talking about different foods. Jodi and Brad did not agree with us about how good Scrapple was, but that is their loss! We did all agree on Apple Dumplings and Whoopie pies!

The beautiful day ended with a lovely walk in the woods behind their house. Charlie got to come with us and he was very excited about that. Is that a red or orange leaf Jodi, or could it be a flag? 🙂

Too soon, it was time to head back to the real world and leave Mars behind. We headed home with smiles on our faces and memories in our hearts, that we won’t forget. Cherishing the moments with friends is one of the best things in life indeed!

As we headed home I turned to my husband and told him how now we needed to go visit another blogging friend.  Hmmm.. who should it be?

I will post pictures later from the day. This morning my camera wasn’t working at downloading the pictures. Sorry!

 

“Flying” Away!

I only get up at the crack of dawn, with a smile on my face IF I have a really good reason! This morning is one of those times. I am flying to Mars today 🙂 Yes, I have finally lost it! I am sure that will come as no surprise to some people! HA!

NO, haven’t lost it all yet! I am going to Mars though! In my post yesterday I talked about getting to finally meet a blogger friend face to face today, and that is a very special reason to wake up at the crack of Dawn!

For those who haven’t guessed yet by the name of Mars, I am going to see sweet Jodi from the blog of The Creative Life In Between. A Awesome blog of her beautiful paintings, poems, and delicious recipes and more. Looking forward to a wonderful day of chatting, hiking through woods, chatting some more, eating, drinking, and of course laughing. A day of enjoying a friendship that grew out of 2 simple blogs!

Happy Sunday everyone! May you have lots of reasons to smile today!

Daily Prompt: Millions

via Daily Prompt: Millions

There are MILLIONS of words that we use. Some words a lot more than others and some rarely used. There also are words that you have probably never heard before, so today consider yourself enlightened and feel free to use them anytime 😉 The first word below is Dutch, from the Netherlands.

I am feeling this today 🙂 Tomorrow  I am going on an adventure! Starting this blog has definitely been  adventurous. Never knew how much I would enjoy it and the impact that fellow bloggers would have on my life! Tomorrow at last I get to meet one of those bloggers face to face! Someone that started blogging the same time as me,  and through our blogs and texts and emails we have built a great friendship.

So thankful that my sweet hubby is willing to drive the distance so that this exciting event can take place. He knows that if I was to attempt driving there, well…..it might be a whole different event that would be taking place. As I have mentioned before, I am directionally challenged and most likely would be calling my hubby telling him he has to pick me up but I have no clue as to where I am. All I can guess is that it would probably be several hours in the opposite direction of where I was supposed to be!

This is Japanese. My friend and I plan to go on a walk in the beautiful  woods tomorrow!

 Hmm..Yes, this can come in handy sometimes I think. Those times when all other words escape you, or the words you really want to say, you can’t so EGLAF! Yup, feel better now 🙂

My phone does an excellent job at this! The computer has its days as well!!

And for those rare times of confusion…I have always liked this word better.:)

One of the best words of all is FRIENDSHIP, which we all know the meaning to. Who will I celebrate the gift of friendship with tomorrow face to face?  Well guess you will have to wait and see. I will give you a clue. If you read the  comments below my posts, they are good at commenting regularly. Also one of their favorite quotes is something we plan to do tomorrow. CHERISH THE MOMENTS! ❤

Have a great day and Cherish the good moments that the day brings your way!