UPDATE: The winner is…Deb Brown!
*~*~*

It’s Saturday! The Saturday before school starts! The kids are ready! They’ve met their teachers, have all their clothes and supplies. Now, the nerves have set in. They’re planning their first day’s outfits, putting in their orders for their lunchboxes, etc. Our little town is having a “Back to School Blowout” tonight in the town center, complete with bouncy houses, facepaint artists, etc. Hopefully, there will be food trucks, too, for the parents as they herd their kids through the stations.

We’re ready (and NOT) for them to go back to school. Schedules will compress. Timing will be everything. (I’ll get back my quiet “alone time” to write and edit! Woot!) My daughter and I do hate the passage of time. We want to keep them little, but they’re eager to spread their wings. Same ole, same ole, I’m sure for most parents and grandparents.

Today, I had the 19-year-old clean my spaces. It’s such a big help. I can settle in my chair in my clean office and get some s**t done today. I hope. Until the next emergency—hopefully, not a power outage today. I noticed this morning, when I popped into town, that there were new power poles laid out all along the road to replace those splintered old things that keep falling every time the wind blows. I wonder if they’ll give us warning when they have to cut the power to install the expanse. Ha!

Anways, you have a challenge today. Solve the puzzle then tell me what this creature is doing. Or tell me what you would do if you were face-to-face with it! Comment for a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card. Enjoy the puzzle and have a great rest of the weekend!

UPDATE: The winner is…Jennifer Beyer!
*~*~*

My daughter and I were having a coffee outside in the early morning the other day. During the summer, early mornings are the only times we have privacy for a chat because, you know, kids surround us all day long.

Anyway, we were talking and decided that this year is the first time we’re not eager to have school start so we have some peace. We’ve thoroughly enjoyed their company this summer. No huge blowouts. They’ve been so helpful in caring for the new chickens/ducks/geese, our horse, goats, and dogs. We didn’t take any big trips, but we did fill up the summer with visits to the theme park in Hot Springs, some nighttime concerts, movies, trips to the local water park, and of course, swimming in our own pool and movie/finger-food nights where we just nosh at home. It’s been an idyllic summer, actually. We’ll miss it once we’re in the hustle and bustle of getting them ready for school each day.

One thing I do look forward to doing more of once we’re “free” during the day is hitting the local flea market more often. I don’t ever do the grocery shopping. I don’t clothes shop—that’s what the Internet is for. The one place I do like to “noodle” around is the flea market. I love-love-love that my daughter has the same obsession.

We go with a thought toward adding to our “collections.” She collects ’70s/Mid-Century decor, plus vintage Pyrex. I currently hunt down vintage tins and vintage enamel bowls—especially those on the small side, 4″ to 6″ because they look wonderful, but I use them for organizing projects and storing art supplies. If I happen across a vintage ladies’ powder jar, I’m all over that, too.

I chose today’s image for the puzzle because that kind of display outside a junk shop would catch my eye for sure. I have a ton of vintage tins (mostly in better shape than these), but I’d root through everything, hoping to find hidden treasure.

So, for today’s challenge, solve the puzzle then tell me what sorts of items would catch your eye! Leave a comment for a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card!

UPDATE: The winner is…Diane Sallens!
*~*~*

A day late, but here it is…

For a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card, solve the puzzle, then tell me what you would wish for once you discover this item. And where did you find it?

UPDATE: The winner is…Anna Marie Flamini!
*~*~*

I couldn’t escape work this morning. I had a small file of edits shipped to me last night, and because I wanted my day cleared for family fun, I rose early to get those out of the way first.

The adults in the family are heading to the movie theater today, a matinee featuring Oppenheimer, the start of our “Barbenheimer” experience. And yes, I broke down and bought the T-shirt, although it won’t arrive in the mail in time for me to wear to either movie.

I’ve been gobbling up interviews with the actors and director of O, reading reviews. The movie sounds amazing, and since I’m already in love with Cillian Murphy, I know I’m going to be blown away. I’m just glad my daughter booked the tickets before she realized it’s three hours long!!!! I’ll be buying a very small drink to go along with my very large popcorn. 🙂

This will be the third movie I’ve seen in a theater since COVID erupted. We like the matinees—fewer people. The theater is nearly an hour away, so it’s always a big deal to go. I’m a movie person. I love film. I love really good movies and really bad movies. Good movies have to “move” me or teach me. Bad movies are for pure entertainment. B-movies are my steady diet. Horror, action, sci-fi. If the movie has a shark in it or a lava-loving tarantula, I’m there. Cocaine Bear is the latest B-movie I’ve seen. What a treasure!

Anyway, that’s going to be the highlight of my day. Three hours with my seat tilted back and my feet propped up, with a large buttery popcorn in my lap while I feast on Cillian Murphy’s gorgeous blue eyes. Envy me. LOL

For a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card, solve the puzzle (you know you want to), then tell me what B-movies you’ve enjoyed recently. I might put them on my “Must See” list!

UPDATE: The winner is…Debra Guyette!
*~*~*

Today’s puzzle is a picture I took on a recent hike with my family. The trail is only a mile long, taking us from a street in town into the forest to a high bluff overlooking the Ouachita River. (Ouachita is pronounced WASH-it-tah around here. 🙂 ) That river is where our family loves to make our annual floating-the-river adventure.

The bluff is called the DeSoto Bluff, named after the Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto, who led an expedition through these parts in 1541-2. It’s our local claim to fame unless you count the 1997 F4 tornado that swept through Arkadelphia and flattened 60 city blocks.

Mostly, Arkadelphia is a quiet little town with a great high school football team and two universities. We have two rivers (the Ouachita and the Caddo), so this area is dubbed the Twin Rivers. And I don’t know why I’m giving you a mini-tour because all I wanted to do was share my photo.

So, here it is. Yes, you have to solve the puzzle to see it! Then, for a chance to win a $5 Amazon GC, tell me about some obscure claim-to-fame your area is known for!

UPDATE: The winner is…Eileen McCall!
*~*~*

I’m so not motivated this morning! I finished a BOOK yesterday, y’all (Jackson—you’ve pre-ordered it, right?). I got up late today, drank coffee from the biggest cup I could find, watered my plants (my babies—everyone gives me their dying houseplants to revive!), fed Loki (my betta fish—I fed the cats last night!), and now? The morning’s half over. I should just call it a day, right?

Except, I need to find the surface of my desk. It’s so cluttered with mail, a dusting cloth and beeswax spray, pens of all colors, washi tape rolls (WHY?!), gum, and cough drops. My inbox is 8 inches high. I have three empty coffee cups, waiting for my lazy butt to carry them upstairs.

So, what will I do next? I think I need breakfast. Maybe after that, I’ll swim. Then maybe I’ll shower (yeah, I should do that!), then maybe I’ll check my planner and see what I SHOULD be working on today… We’ll see. I kind of like the idea of heading back to bed to play Charm King on my phone.

The puzzle’s picture today is NOT a selfie, but I can so relate. You’ll see! HaHa!

Solve the puzzle, then tell me the lazy things you want to do this weekend! Join me! There’s a $5 Amazon gift card for the winner!

UPDATE: The winner is…Beckie!
*~*~*

Today, already, is hot as hell here in Arkansas (it’s 85 degrees Fahrenheit at 9 AM). The temperature will be over a hundred. We tend to stay indoors when it gets like this, then wander out to the pool when the sun dips below the horizon. The pool is so warm it offers little relief, except for the lovely feeling you get when you’re soaking wet and enter the AC-cooled house. My daughter doesn’t deal well with the heat. She loves winter—sweaters, leggings, and boots. Summer makes her ill. Just sitting outside this morning, talking to me over a cup of coffee, made her nauseous. AND IT’S ONLY THE FIRST DAY OF JULY. I’m down for it. Of course, most of my day is spent in my cool-ish window-less basement office. When I rouse to step outside, I enjoy the bright light and looking at the flowers blooming. My dd would love to mow the lawn, but she pretty much has to do that at dusk or dawn. Like a vampire. LOL. I think today, we’re going to take a break from the heat and head to the indoor flea market. Whee!

So, thinking about summer and lovely things I wish I could do, I searched for a photo of my dream vacation spot. It’s today’s puzzle challenge. Enjoy!

For a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card, let me know if this would be anywhere on your bucket list. If not, what would be?