I'm so confused and I think I might be my own cousin.

I've been singing that song "I'm my own grandpa" all day.  Do you remember it? Well its stuck in my head.  Why you ask?  Well, I'm doing my family tree.  My mother did some work on my grandfather and then started on her own family tree with her cousin.  I got left my grandmother's family tree.  Well as you know when you are doing detective work - and trust me this is detective work - you hit dead ends and you turn around and go another direction.

So between the three main families that I'm researching - they intermarried 8 times, that I've found so far.  I realize back in the day you didn't travel far, but I mean spread out the gene pool.  Get some new blood.  I recently found a cousin who's descended from my great-grandfather's sister.  And I found that these families intermarried even more.  Granted when you have 8 or 9 kids it's not as bad as I make it out to be, but I think the family tree is kind of loopy.  I mean how do I show that one person's brother married that person's niece and her brother married that person's sister--in-law who is at the same time the first person's sister - or something along those lines.

I'm so confused I think I'd get lost in the lines traveling from one branch to the other.  I think I need an assistant or my mommy or something.  "Calgon, take me away!"

Everyday can't be a winner

Today has not been my day.  I can't win, I'd been thinking of some kind of phrase to start this off but I could decide between:

"Damn it all to hell!"

"Crap!"

or

"Well, shit."

So instead I'll say today has not been my day and leave it at that.  It's really more lady-like.  If you have a better idea, I'm happy to take suggestions.

Cemeteries, Boxer Shorts & Not Cooking Dinner

I forced my two young children to brave the heat and go cemetery hunting today.  I love cemetery hunting, there is always a good picture in a cemetery - well, most of the time.  And as I have been working on my family tree cemeteries have become even more of an obsession as of late.  So, I chose a cemetery I hadn't been to in a long time and tried to hunt down some photos for find-a-grave.  Well, no go.  My boys and I trudged up and down the rows looking for two little graves in the oldest catholic cemetery in Dallas without luck.  I often comment that I'm hunting dead people in my family tree search.  When you do that for yourself and you know how frustrating locating something can be you want to be able to help people do the same in their search.  If trudging through a cemetery can help someone else....who am I to deny myself the pleasure of helping someone else in their search.  It's really kind of pleasing to do something nice for other people.  In fact I wish more people thought of other people on a daily basis.

Now I'm totally thinking of myself after showering (trust me after an hour in the Texas sun in a cemetery it was needed) and dealing with my oldest's heat rash.  Seriously - its a million degrees in Texas, even before lunch.  It feels like hiking on the planet Mercury.  I'm sitting here wondering how I can get away with remaining in my husband's boxer shorts and promotional Dallas Stars t-shirt until bedtime; without coming across as completely anti-social or a boring old hag who has nothing better to do.  Well, I might not have anything better to do, I'm sure I could come up with something, but the heat has reduced my will to do nothing but maybe hold up my Kindle until I'm forced to try and get out of slaving over a hot stove for dinner.

WHO REALLY WANTS A HOT MEAL IN 104 DEGREE WEATHER?

Seriously.  Can't we just have a salad or wine, cheese & fresh bread.  Maybe a frozen margarita & chips and salsa.  Any of that works for me.  Will someone call my husband....

I'm a dangerous mom.

So my favorite family member that is not related to me, gave me & my boys the most wonderful book the last time I was in SA.  50 Dangerous Things (you should let your children do).  We've had so much fun doing little things that the book says are dangerous.  The kids even spent a little time doing blogposts themselves about their latest adventure.

Being extra adventurous this week, I cleaned out the hall closet and found an old printer that refused to print any more.  So we chose to have a little fun doing #34 Deconstructing an appliance.  My mom and Margie have bought some small ones for when we get back to SA, but this was good practice.  At first they just wanted to get it in pieces until I sat down with them and talked about learning how they are put together and what goes where and why.  The next time we do this we should learn so much more.

So far we've licked a 9-volt battery, driven a car, spent an hour blindfolded, and learn the art of swordplay.  Hmm, maybe we should whittle next - but hopefully with pa-pa in charge.

Question of the day

Why is it so incredibly hard to get kids to help around the house?  I have pondered this question over and over and over, all while plotting the demise of the children who ignore my existence while it is clean up time.  They won't go outside to save their lives - but if they can get out of picking up a wet towel they will brave 105 degree Texas heat to avoid the task.

I'd like to blame it on that guy I married my wonderful husband.  Actually he is quite wonderful - unless he is disciplining the children - which is NEVER - or if he's playing video games - because no one must interrupt video games.  NO ONE.  Although, I have less respect for the guys he plays Battlefield with, as last night I discovered they were drinking wine.  I love wine, but any self respecting soldier in the middle of war should not be drinking white-wine spritzers.  Beer, Bourbon or Scotch - that's pretty much the only options for soldiers.

Sorry, I got distracted, back to the lazy children.  How do you make lazy children clean up?

Enjoy Today

I haven't posted on this thing for a million years it seems like.  Maybe because life is going well and my need to vent is less than normal or maybe because I've melted in the heat in Texas.  I swear if you go outside with a Popsicle it will have dripped down your arm before you can walk three steps off the deck into the grass.  I'm looking forward to rainy September days, cold fronts & iced beverages.

Enjoy today!