More Random Stuffs

First, the hibiscus are bloomin' large this second year!  Too bad it's a bagillion degrees too hot to sit outside and enjoy them.  When the Haitian kids complain it's too hot to play outside, seriously.  The newspaper or Internet or somewhere today said something about the Midwest and East being in some sort of a heat dome.  The TV forecast shows 6 days of cooler temps starting tomorrow -- you know, like just 90-ish degrees.

Chef Chad Cluvair's Haitian Beef Pates were a huge success!  With the exception of Non-adventurous-eater Baylor, the kids liked them -- Jameson and Hunter scarfed!  And we, adults (including my parents who were visiting) ate heartily, as well.  Sauteed ground beef with fresh white and green onions and garlic with some freshly ground pepper spooned into puff pastry  .  .  .  I can't wait to try the chicken variety, as I tend not to be a big fan of ground beef.  BUT anything in pastry dough is always at least at the "good" level on the yummy-o-meter.  (Served alongside Haitian pickliz and rice w/ black beans and Midwest fried zucchini.)

My every-few-months-clean-and-purge of the girls (Bay's part of) toy room resulted in a rearrange of the desks that REALLY opened up some floor space -- particularly good for their karaoke habits, AND removes the previous behind-the-desk area where Miss Baylor Hoarder Cluver stashed her invaluable trash, er um, treasures.  The pile on her desk and at the feet of her chair are really just from today's playing, and WILL be picked up after dinner tonight.  (Can you imagine what it was like when that area was more or less a nook hidden from view?

As mentioned, Pap and Grandma Finch (my padres) were here for an overnight visit, and while Pap took the little guys to the movies, I chauffeured Grann and the little girls to Jo Ann Fabrics to shop for a doll clothes pattern.  Once back home, we pulled from the gp's Jeep a large box of scrap fabric from which the girls chose the materials for their sewing orders.  Because Mom sews quilts (among many things), this box of small remnants was given to her by someone who had no use for it themselves, and one larger textile of autumn colors caught my eye.  Bay brought it over to me so I could remove the sharp thing, which turned out to be a staple -- the staple that held the original tag in place:  "Permanent Care Label  Cut off label at dotted line and sew to inside of Garment  MW Machine Wash Warm Tumble Dry  JCPenney Fashions."  The code number 70-3002 indicates, according to Dad, that the material was manufactured in 1970.  It's three years older than ME!  That's not retro, that's just old for real.

More random later -- I think I kin hear ya snorin'.  ; )