Rocks In My Dryer

Remembering September 11

It's hard to believe we're approaching the 5th anniversary of September 11.   A fellow blogger named D.C. Roe is undertaking an impressive effort to memorialize each of the 2,996 victims on September 11, 2006.  The effort is named, appropriately, 2,996.  D.C. writes

2,996 is an effort to bring together 2,996 bloggers in a massive memorial to the victims of 9/11.

On September 11, 2006, the 5th anniversary of the attacks, 2,996 bloggers will each post a memorial to one victim. We will remember the innocent victims of that day–we will not remember the murderers.

It's simple to participate--all you need is a blog.  You sign up by leaving a comment at DC's blog, or by e-mailing him at dcroe05ATyahoo.com (remember to replace the "at" with the @ sign).  He will assign you a victim to memorialize on September 11, 2006, and he'll give you a link with information about that person.  I've already received my assignment and am very moved by the process of reading more about this particular man. 

This is such a simple way to pay tribute in a powerful way.  Please consider participating, and be sure to publicize this effort on your blog.  If you plan to sign up, please leave a comment below.  I'd be interested to see which of you are participating. 

Perhaps Someone Should Take Away Our Computers

Hubs was out of town on business last night, as was Chilihead's husband.  Being the problem-solvers we are, we took this excellent opportunity for a girls' night, and she and her kiddos came for a sleepover.  The kids watched a movie and then all sacked out upstairs, while Chili and I got into full blogging mode downstairs (she had brought her laptop, of course). 

So, we're sitting in my kitchen, me at my desk and Chili at the kitchen table, fingers clicking away furiously, when Chili says, "Oh my gosh, you have to see this.  I'm going to e-mail it to you."

"Um, yes," I replied, "or I could just walk over there and see it."

Because, you know, those 8 feet from my desk to my kitchen table are an awful strain for a girl who has some bloggin' to do.

The Thing About Google

I often make reference to the Google searches that bring people to my site, and I frequently receive e-mails from people asking how I know what these searches are.  For any beginning bloggers who might be reading this, I thought I'd tell you how to do it.

I use Site Meter to track my blog traffic.   It's free, it's reliable, and (don't say I didn't warn you) it's addictive.  There are similar web counter sites out there (if you have one you like, feel free to share the URL in my comment section), but Site Meter is my favorite. 

If you haven't installed Site Meter on your site, I'd highly recommend it.  It's easy to do (as evidenced by the fact that I did it all by myself without calling Chilihead late at night whining "I'm stuuuuuck....").  Once it's installed, and you have logged in, you will be taken to a page called "Site Summary".  Most of the information there is self-explanatory.   Over on the left side of the page is a header called "Recent Visitors".  Underneath it are listed all your options for finding out how people came to your site, where they are from, how long they stayed, etc.  The second line in that section says "By Referrals"; click on it.  As you look through the list of referring websites, look for sites that begin with http://www.google.com... or http://www.msn.search.com... (these seem to be the two most common search engines, at least for my site).  If you click on that particular line, it will take you to the specific search criteria that the person was using when they clicked on your site.  Make sense?

In addition to being interesting (and ohmygosh funny), it's an important security feature, in my opinion.  It gives you at least the tiniest feeling of control to know who is visiting your site.  If creepy searchers are stringing together some otherwise harmless words into a questionable phrase (and yes, it's happened to me and to more than one of my friends), you can make the necessary adjustments to your site (i.e., removing the words in question).   You can't be too careful. 

Thursday Thirteen

(And if you're reading this wondering what in the heck a "meme" is, here is a definition for you.  It's quite the bloggy word; throw it around and impress your friends!)

1. Yesterday my mom participated in WFMW for the first time (yay, Mom!), so if you missed her tip, you can see it here.  (And will you please leave her a comment and help me try and get her addicted to this blogging thing?)
2. Katherine posted a thorough and realistic look at potty training.
3. Amy at the Motherload suggested a smart method for creating kid snacks.   Tina had a clever idea on the same subject.
4. Chilihead and Gabriela came up with some activity ideas that are truly inspired bits of parenting.
5. KimC offered some fun ideas for kids' summer lunches. 
6. Jane's paper idea is going to revolutionize my art cabinet.
7. Traci thought of way to help us save all of these good ideas we run across, whether they're from a magazine, or from WFMW!
8. Then there's this one, from Minnie, which made me laugh OUT LOUD.
9. Lolly's idea will help you keep track of your ever-growing list of birthdays and anniversaries.
10. Joy's idea for prayer time with children is precious.
11. Amy has a great idea for teaching your kids your phone numbers.
12. If anyone's kids are bickering as much as mine are this summer, try this idea idea from Barb.
13. Stephanie shares a wonderful method of managing her (and my!) addiction to little girls' hair supplies.

If you're doing Thursday Thirteen today, feel free to enter your link below.

Works For Me: I Dare You To Read This Without Scratching Your Head

First things first...what REALLY works for me is a long and happy marriage like the one my parents have--happy 36th wedding anniversary, Mom and Dad! 

Back to regularly scheduled programming....

Susie pointed me toward this creepy, but informative, article.  Evidently the head lice of the world are uniting in revolt against over-the-counter cures. 

Now let's just come clean for a moment, shall we?  Have your kids ever had head lice?  Mine have.  I confess that, before they did, I thought it only happened to families who lived in total squalor.  I am by no means a great housekeeper--but head lice?  Nope, couldn't happen here.

UNTIL a couple of years ago, when my oldest son shared a community batting helmet at a t-ball game.  Yep, he came home with head lice.  And he passed it to both his brothers.  I was mortified.  I completely freaked out and called the nurse (who was, I'm sure, chuckling to herself--"Isn't this lady supposed to be an experienced mother?") 

So I'm writing this to tell you that if it hasn't happened to you, get ready, because it likely will.  It doesn't mean you're a slob, or that your home is about to be condemned by the health department.  You're not a bad mom, or a dirty one.  To help you avoid a frantic call to the doctor, here's what worked for our family:

1. Try the over-the-counter stuff.  Couldn't hurt. 
2. If you have boys, go ahead and buzz their hair off.  It's not exactly necessary, but it is helpful. 
3. Wash every single linen in your house in HOT water.  This part takes forever, but when you're done, your house smells all nice and Downy fresh.
4. You can buy some over-the-counter lice spray that I used to coat all the non-washable surfaces (like sofa cushions).
5. This next step really works, but it's messy.  Coat your kid's head with vaseline.  Yes, vaseline.  It smothers the lice.  Then cover their head with a shower cap, and have them sleep that way.  Seriously, it works.  But it takes 2-3 washings to get all that vaseline out.  No problem, though--everyone can have a few days with the John-Travolta-in-Grease look.
6. If all else fails (and I didn't try this, but I read it on-line), get your kids lice-free and then just leave town.  Lice can only live 3-4 days without human contact.  If no one is in your house to serve as "host", then they will all die. 

See?  This isn't that bad.  Don't panic.  If it happens to you, let it be one of those humbling motherhood experiences that reminds you that NO ONE has her act perfectly together.

Leave your Works-For-Me Wednesday link below!  Remember to link directly to your WFMW post, NOT to the front page of your blog.  Guidelines can be found here.

The Dryer Family Version of Gender Equity

In the car this morning, I was listening to talk radio, when a story referencing a mayor came on.  Here was the ensuing conversation from the peanut gallery in the backseat:

Adam:  Does [Our Town] have a mayor?

Me:  Yes, her name is [Insert name].

Stephen: We have a GIRL mayor?

Me: Yes.

Adam:  Really?  Girls can be mayor?

Me:  Yes, of course they can.

Stephen:  I guess we have to have a girl mayor because we always have boy presidents.

Kansas City: Who Was There and What Happened

Well, I'm home.  Jules is not, in fact, a crazy serial killer.  Shalee is not, in fact, a middle-aged bald man in a wife-beater t-shirt.  The entire group was a bunch of amazing, funny, courageous women who have left me challenged, encouraged, and laughing so hard that my cheeks have only just now begun to stop hurting.

First, here's who all was there, in no particular order...

Chilihead at Don’t Try This at Home

Jules at Everyday Mommy

Shalee at Shalee’s Diner

Janna at Bread Crumbs

Antique Mommy

Susan, a self-proclaimed lurker

Jamie at Surviving the Chaos

Michelle at This One’s For the Girls

Tina at Antique Mommy

Sarah at Sarah’s Other Blog

Mary at Aunt Murry

Kristi at Basketballs and Babydolls

Addie at Life With Little Women

Beckah at Happy Mom

Lammyann at Lammyann Life

Michelle at Love to Chat

KPJara at Can You Hear Me Now?

(Did I leave anyone out?  If I did, PLEASE e-mail your URL and remind me.  I'm operating on very little sleep!)

Now for the details.

Chilihead and I left our fair city at the crack of dawn Saturday morning.  It was an easy drive to Kansas City, and we arrived a few minutes early for lunch.  As each blogger arrived at the restaurant, it was like greeting old friends, not meeting strangers.  Even those of us who hadn't yet read each other's blogs found ourselves drawn together by this strange and funny blog world.  Here are some pictures.

Here is Sarah, Shalee, Antique Mommy and Michelle:

Here is Kristi, Addie and Beckah:

Here's an awful picture of me looking strangely excited about my barbecue (mostly I just wanted you to see the nametags we improvised--napkins tucked into our shirts!):

Here is Jamie, Jules, and the always be-spectacled Chilihead:

Two lovely sisters, Michelle and KPJara:

Here is Shalee sniffing the Antique Mommy's oh-so-famous Cole Haans.  This makes more sense if you've read this post by Antique Mommy, and if you've witnessed first-hand the spunky Shalee's tendency to do or say just about anything:

Shalee and Lammyann:

After lunch, about half the crew headed to Jules' house for lots and lots and lots of talking.  And laughing.  And crying.  And praying.  And more laughing.   Then Shalee and her husband graciously hosted Chilihead and me in their home for dinner:

Because any gathering in which I'm involved will always include dessert, we adjourned to Cold Stone Creamery.  We laughed so hard that it took great effort not to squirt ice cream out of our noses.  Very strange looks were shot our way by people at surrounding tables!

I'm sure it's no surprise that after the dessert, we headed back to Jules for a lot more talking, a lot more laughing, and a little bit of wine.  Jules' home is just like Jules--full of life!  It's the type of home where every corner invites exploring, examining her husband's artistic creations and her impressive antique collection.

After a bit of sleep, we shuffled around Jules' house some more, talking with her delightful husband and her sweet son (who, by the way, calls me "The Shannon".  I have a "the"!).  We all headed to breakfast and said our goodbyes, and Chilihead and I hit the road.  We used the opportunity to stop at the interesting little flea markets/antique stores  along the way, like this one... 

...and this one:

Be sure and ask Chilihead about the gorgeous table she bought for thirty dollars.  THIRTY DOLLARS!

This weekend surpassed my best expectations, which were set very high.  I continue to marvel at the type of women I meet at every turn in the blog world--women of such substance and intelligence, who are making courageous choices every day for their family, who manage it all with such humor and grace.  Go check out their blogs in the list above--you're in for a treat.  A special thanks, again, to Shalee and Jules for planning and hostessing this bunch.  You two are great!

Counting down the days to the next big blogging get-together in Dallas, in October...

On the Road

I've pre-scheduled this post to publish while Chilihead and I are on the road to Kansas City.  We left at the crack of dawn this morning, headed to a lunch get-together at which we will meet (among others), Jules, Shalee, Addie, Michelle, Chrissy, Antique Mommy, Rach and many more.  Honestly?  I thought I'd be more nervous than this, headed to my first big blogger gathering.  But I really have the sense of going to meet old friends.  It feels good to be stepping out from behind the relative anonymity of my computer and enjoying frienship the "old-fashioned" way. 

Shalee is planning to post audio of our lunch over at her site; I'm not sure when she'll be able to get it posted, but go over there and check!  I'll be the one who sounds like a hillbilly.

I'll try to check in while I'm gone and let you know how it's going.  If you hear thundering gales of laughter coming from the mid-section of the country, that would be us. 

Works For Me: Fried Biscuits

**PLEASE NOTE**  I made a big goof this morning with my Mr. Linky.  If you entered your link before 7:45 am Central time, you'll need to re-enter it, below.  I'm SO sorry about this mix-up.!  Thanks, as always, for playing along.

I don't share many recipes at my blog, mainly because I don't particularly enjoy cooking.  So if you see one, be assured that it is quite easy, and yummy, and that it, in fact, works for me!

A Saturday morning favorite around the dryer house is fried biscuits.  We start with Pillsbury layered biscuits:

I separate them, and cut them in half:

Then I roll each half circle into a ball:

Next step is to drop them in a skillet with about a half-inch of pre-heated oil:

As they brown, continually (or is continuously?) flip them over in the oil, until each ball is nice and golden brown:

When they finish cooking, transfer each little ball to a waiting bowl of sugar (for variations, try powdered sugar or cinnamon and sugar).  Coat it well:

And, voila!  Fried biscuits, and happy kids:

I realize this little recipe is way too simple to require all these pictures (I don't mean to insult your intelligence!), but what can I say--I was feeling generous! 

Post your link to your WFMW post below!  Guidlines can be found here.  Remember to link not the front page of your blog, but to your actual WFMW post.  Thanks!

Let's Do Blogging Adam-Style

by Adam Dryer, age 9 (almost)

Hey everybody!  My name is Adam.  Well, not really, but my Mom won't let me tell you my real name.  Anyways, let's get to blogging.  First things first--tomorrow's my birthday, and I'll be nine.  That's why my mom is letting me blog.  I'm celebrating my birthday quite a few ways.  One of them is my mom, dad and I are going to see the Lion King musical tomorrow night.  It's going to be fun.  I'm also gonna have a sleepover with a few of my friends.  They're coming over so we can do fun stuff like watch movies and play video games and other stuff.  Another way I'm celebrating my birthday is that I got money from family members and used it to buy a Nintendo DS.  I'll tell you what a DS is later.  But for now, one more thing.  My grandmother, I call her Mimi, is coming over for my birthday.  My grandmother, who I call Gego, was here last weekend.  Oh, I just remembered.  I was going to tell you what a DS is.  Well, it's a really cool video game system, that's for sure.  Here's a list of what cool features a DS has:

1. It has two screens.  One screen is where you actually play the game, and the other holds valuable information. 
2. It has a digital pen that you can use to write messages to other DS-es, to make the game cooler and other stuff. 
3. It can play both DS games AND Gameboy Advance games. 
4. It has a lot of buttons, which makes the game more complicated, which makes it fun. 
5. When you first turn the system on, it has a digital clock, calendar, and something called picto-chat.  Picto-chat is when you use the digital pen to write messages to other DS-es. 

Now, I'm going to make a list of things so you'll know more about me. 

1. I like video games.
2. I'm going to third grade next year.
3. My favorite movies are The Lion King, Chicken Little and Cars.
4. I enjoy publishing my own books. 
5. I like to do art and crafts.
6. I am a Bear Scout in Cub Scouts.
7. I am going to start Tae Kwon Do this summer.
8. My favorite sport is swimming.
9. My favorite subject in school is writing.
10. My favorite books are Stink The Incredible Shrinking Kid, Ricky Ricotta's Might Robot and Charlotte's Web. 
11. I have two brothers, one sister, one mom, one dad, one dog and one hermit crab.
12. My pets' names are Ginger the dog and Gilbert the hermit crab.
13. My favorite television shows are Sponge Bob, The Fairly OddParents, Jimmy Neutron and Danny Phantom.
14. When I grow up I'm going to be a voice for an animated movie. 
15. My favorite vacation spot is Disney World.
16. In my free time I like to have a few snacks.
17. My favorite food is fried shrimp with tartar sauce. 
18. When I can't get to sleep I turn over my pillow, fluff it, and then lay my head down.  It helps me.
19. My favorite company is Nintendo.
20. A lot of times my brothers and sister drive me nuts. 

And so, that's a little bit about me.  That's my blog post!  I'll be blogging next year.  Bye!

Note from Shannon:  First of all, is he the cutest, or what?  And second, remember that tomorrow is Works-For-Me Wednesday.  See you then!

The Boy Of My Dreams

One of my very first blog posts was about my oldest son, Adam:

There are two grown men that live in my house. One is my husband. The other is the 40-year-old man that is trapped inside the body of my 8-year-old son. This is the boy who stays abreast of speed limits in our city and alerts me when I’m exceeding them. He’s the boy who can use words like “vortex” and “nocturnal” with the same ease that other little boys say “boogers”. He’s the boy that will cut short a dessert because he says he’s “had too much sugar”. And when he expressed some anxiety over a bad dream the other night, he gladly noted how safe our home is since we’re “secured by ADT.”

Oh, I love that boy.

Yes, my boy--that funny, eager, thoughtful, clever, creative boy who turned me into a mother nine years ago this week.  And I'm proud to announce that tomorrow you get a chance to hear how great he is.  For a birthday treat, he wants to write a post here on my blog.  He's been working on post ideas for weeks!  Tomorrow is the big day--can I count on you to come back tomorrow, read, and flood him with wonderful comments? 

Happy birthday, sweet boy. 

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

On a different note, I somehow got on the catalog mailing list for Tender Heart Treasures, and I'm so glad I did.  It's full of vintage-style merchandise that really is heartwarming.  You can order your own free catalog here.  (And no, this isn't a paid advertisement--I just think you'd enjoy it!)

Dad

I grew up in a big house atop a big hill.  My room had two large south-facing windows, perfect for watching a storm roll in.  My dad, an avid weather-watcher, never missed an opportunity to watch one of nature's fantastic stormy displays. 

So on every single stormy night of my growing-up years, the routine was the same: a deafening crack of thunder would jolt me out of a sound sleep, in a terror--but only for a moment.  Because I knew, before I even opened my eyes, that my dad would be standing at the foot of my four-poster bed, silhouetted in the lightning flashes, peering out my windows at the raging storm.  This conditioned me from a young age not to fear storms. I never had to doubt, even in the scariest moments, the presence of my father.

They say a child gains much of her perspective of her Heavenly Father from her earthly one.  I believe this.  For most of my life it has not been a stretch for me to trust a Father who stands guard over me, who is present even when the storms rage.

Thank you, Dad, for modeling such tender care for me.  Thank you for teaching me how to trust.  And thank you, thank you, for watching the storms.  Happy Father's Day.

(And while I'm at it, happy Father's Day to all the other great dads in my life--my uncle Jim and uncle Mike, my brother R, and of course, my sweet Hubs, the sweet daddy to my very blessed children.  You are all so special!)

Rest

There is nothing--no circumstance, no trouble, no testing--that can ever touch me until, first of all, it has gone past God and past Christ right through to me.  If it has come that far, it has come with a great purpose, which I may not understand at the moment.  But as I refuse to become panicky, as I lift up my eyes to Him and accept it as coming from the throne of God for some great purpose of blessing to my own heart, no sorrow will ever disturb me, no circumstance will cause me to fret, for I shall rest in the joy of what my Lord is--that is the rest of victory!

--Alan Redpath, former pastor of Moody Church

Gardening With Testosterone

Tonight five-year-old Joseph and I were weeding a flower bed.  I smacked away at the weeds with the hoe, then he'd scoop up the remains with his hands.  After a few rounds of this, he said in a deep voice thick with macho satisfaction, "Mom, we are the plant breakers."

Works For Me: Sheet Holders

Today's tip is a shameless product endorsement (though unfortunately, I'm not making a red cent from it).  It drives me nuts when a fitted sheet won't stay on the mattress--especially when it happens in the middle of the night.  I've tried the "suspender" style of fitted sheet holder with no success.  But this works:  The Sheet Holders.  They're hard to find in stores; the only place I found them was on Ubid.com, and then once in a mattress store.  But they're worth the search, and the $10 I paid for them.

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