HAND ART

Hand Art is about everything you can make with hand shadows: dragons, frogs, dogs, aliens, ducks, cats, monsters, skunks, peacocks, people and, yes, turkeys! I find them amazing and so creative! ENJOY

KEEP ME FROM EATING

A Beached Whale!

Food all the time and as much as you want...

Soft serve ice cream 24 hours a day!

Crab cakes and Red Stripe Beer in Montego Bay, Jamaica The food was unedible!

10 Reasons You're not Losing Weight

1. You're not exercising enough
2. You're not getting enough sleep
3. You're too stressed out
4. You're eating too much
5. You're not consistent with your exercise and healthy eating
6. You blow it on the weekends
7. You haven't given yourself enough time to see results
8. You have a medical condition
9. You've hit a plateau
10. You don't need to lose weight

Don't you hate it when you momentarily lose all control and pig out like a death row inmate on his last meal? I need to exhibit more self control during those “all you can eat” moments. That is why traveling on cruise ships is very difficult for heavy people. They give you too many opportunities to eat.

ME... I TAKE THE STAIRS AND WALK WALK WALK while on a cruise!!

CARNIVAL CONQUEST

Our week cruise was great! We took an inside cabin since we booked at the last minute. It wasn't bad at all. It was nice sleeping until 11:00 every morning since we didn't have any daylight coming in through a window. Here is our room That was on deck 7.

On every Carnival ship they have a self serve soft ice cream machine 24 hours a day. What a treat!!

This ship had a large chess set on the pool deck. Avery beat me every time!

We were waiting for the sunset this evening.

This ship was huge! It was over 100,000 tons.

I found the quietest deck to sit out on and work on my quilt each day. Doesn't it look relaxing?

This day was the roughest! Dolly was heading into the Gulf and we were going out of it. Unfortunately we couldn't get away from the weather and high seas. It was a rocky ride.

Calm at the end of another evening!

Avery playing on the huge slide on the top deck.

Our ship from the dock in Grand Cayman. The line to get on the last tender to the ship was a long one!

GLUG GLUG GLUG

Everyone is talking about ways to go green these days. Here is a way for you to help yourself and the environment! Glug, glug, glug. That’s the sound a ginormous number of us make as we drink bottled water in our cars, at the gym, and behind our desks. The sound you don’t hear is the thwack of 60 million bottles a day being tossed into U.S. landfills, where they can take up to 1,000 years to biodegrade. If that’s not enough to turn your conscience a brighter shade of green, add this: Producing those bottles burns through 1.5 million barrels of crude oil annually -- enough fuel to keep 100,000 cars running for a year. Recycling helps, but reusing and reducing are even better. So invest in a couple of portable, dishwasher-safe, stainless steel bottles that won’t leach nasty chemicals into your water. (Don’t get into the habit of refilling the plastic water bottle you just emptied; the polyethylene terephthalate it’s made of breaks down with multiple uses.)

4 Reasons to Turn on the Tap

1. Tap water is tested daily. Under the Safe Drinking Water Act, local water suppliers are required to test tap water daily and to provide an annual report on the quality of the water. By comparison, the FDA examines bottled water only weekly, and consumers don’t have access to the results.
2. Tap water is a bargain. Bottled water costs about 500 times more than tap. And if you’re into really fancy labels -- up to 1,000 times more.
3. Tap water is a tooth saver. It has more fluoride than bottled water, and that helps prevent tooth decay. (That’s right, you never outgrow your need for fluoride.)
4. Tap water can be tasty. Some places (New York City for one) have delicious water, but if you don’t love the flavor of your city’s H2O, the solution is simple: Run your tap water through a filter system to help remove unpleasant tastes and odors. The average home filter goes for $8.99 and produces the equivalent of 300 large (16.9 ounce) bottles of water before it needs to be replaced. That’s about $0.03 cents a bottle versus the $1.25 or so you’d pay in a market.
5. One last thing: Don't just think about making this switch; actually do it. Today. It’ll do the world -- and you -- good.

http://www.epa.gov/safewater/dwinfo/index.html Check out your local drinking water information at the link above.

GLAD TO BE HOME

Arrived back home today from our week long Caribbean cruise. We had a fabulous time except for Monday when Hurricane Dolly was heading into the Gulf of Mexico and we were heading out. It churned the seas up pretty good. Here are a few pictures to share with you for now.

LEAVING ON A JET PLANE

Actually I am NOT leaving on a jet plane...I just have the song stuck in my head. I am leaving on a cruise ship out of Galveston tomorrow with my daughter for a week. We are sailing the high and hopefully NOT rough seas. I just read about a tropical depression that will hit Jamaica and Grand Cayman in the next day or so. Hopefully it will be gone by the time we hit those ports! If you care to keep up with it you can get all the information from this link: http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/gtwo/gtwo_atl_sub.shtml?area1#contents STUPID CRUISE SHIP JOKES:

1. Which elevator do I take to get to the front of the ship?
2. Does the ship generate its own electricity?
3. Why do the inside staterooms not have windows?
4. What do they do with the ice carvings after they melt?
5. Is this island completely surrounded by water?
6. The photos in the photo gallery do not have stateroom numbers on them, so how do we know which ones are ours?
7. Has this ship ever sunk?
8. Is it fresh water or salt water in the toilet?
9. Does the crew sleep onboard?
10. What time is the Midnight Buffet?
11. Do the movies on the TV come via satellite or cable?
12. Do these stairs go up, or down?
13. What is the elevation of the ship?
14. On the last night of the cruise, should we put our suitcases out in the hall before or after we go to sleep?
15. What religion are all those people who are wearing a patch behind their ear?

Top 10 Signs You're on a Cruise

10. You’re surrounded by more wrinkled faces than a Shar-Pei convention in Boca Raton

9. Your idea of economy is having three desserts instead of four

8. Passenger abuse of hairspray has led to a new hole in the ozone layer, located directly above the cruise ship

7. Shuffleboard is considered an athletic event

6. Your camera contains multiple images of ice, fruit and bath towels, all of which have been Michelangeloed into critters worthy of a National Geographic special

5. The olives in your martini have been replaced with Geritol capsules. And your martini has been replaced with prune juice.

4. The nightly entertainment has the production value of a Gap ad

3. When the deckhands run out of paint thinner, they use the ship’s coffee

2. The daily value of consumed food exceeds the gross national product of Peru

1. Arrive looking like Oscar de la Hoya. Leave looking like Oscar Mayer.

DOGS WORK MAGIC

There are many uses for therapy dogs. They provide a general feeling of well being, unconditional affection, and can help people with specific therapy activities. There are two ways that therapy dogs can help -- through Animal Assisted Activities (AAA). Animal Assisted Activities are casual activities where people and pets connect. These meetings can happen anywhere, at any time, and help make tough situations a little easier for the people involved. These dogs might conduct visits to nursing homes, childcare facilities, schools, and even disaster sites. Though the dogs don't need any specialized training, it is important that they be calm and friendly and well behaved. These dogs work with lots of different people. I signed up for the workshop coming up in September for YOGI. I think he would make a great Caring Critter.

Yesterday my friend Sandy and I went to the dog show. Here are a few pictures from our day. You can click on the link below the photos to see more. http://gallery.me.com/kathyzieben#100107

CLASSIFIED ADS

These classifieds were really put in the paper - a smile for your day..................

• FREE YORKSHIRE TERRIER. 8 years old.
• Hateful little bastard. Bites!
• FREE PUPPIES: 1/2 Cocker Spaniel, 1/2
• sneaky neighbor's dog.
• FREE PUPPIES: Mother, AKC German Shepherd.
• Father, Super Dog...able to leap tall fences in a
• single bound.
• FOUND DIRTY WHITE DOG. Looks like a rat.
• Been out a while. Better be a big reward.
• COWS, CALVES: NEVER BRED. Also 1 gay
• bull for sale.
• NORDIC TRACK $300 Hardly used, call
• Chubby.
• GEORGIA PEACHES California grown - 89
• cents/lb.
• JOINING NUDIST COLONY! Must sell washer
• and dryer $300.
• WEDDING DRESS FOR SALE. Worn once by
• mistake. Call Stephanie.

And the best one:

• FOR SALE BY OWNER: Complete set of Encyclopedia
• Britannica, 45 volumes. Excellent condition. $1,000 or
• best offer. No longer needed. Got married last month.
• Wife knows everything.

WORLD SERIES OF DOG SHOWS

The dog show is starting tomorrow and my friend Sandy and I are going to the Meet and Greet for the the Bichon Breed.

About 3,700 dogs will get a sniff of the big time at the 31st annual Reliant Park World Series of Dog Shows, which begins Thursday.

"This show is recognized around the country as one of the best dog shows in the country. A sampling of the participants:

• 78 boxers
• 84 golden retrievers
• 60-plus Chihuahuas
• 36 standard poodles
• 33 Italian greyhounds
• 67 Dobermans
• 40 Cardigan Welsh corgis
• 50 bull terriers
• 38 Cavalier King Charles spaniels
• 62 bulldogs

Details: www.reliantdogshows.com

THE VERY BEST BLUEBERRY COBBLER

Q. What is blue and goes up and down? A. A blueberry in an elevator!

Q. What is the difference between an elephant and a blueberry? A. They're both blue, except for the elephant.

Q: What do you get when 354 blueberries try to go through the door at the same time? A: A Blueberry Jam!

Q. What do you get when you merge IBM and Apple A. Blueberry Macs

Mr. Spock: "What is the formula for PI?" Chekov: "Er...apple or blueberry, sir?"

SPENDING MONEY WISELY

Keys to Wise Spending

God expects us to have faith, but also to use common sense and wise planning in allocating the resources He has given us. The best way to manage your money and stay out of debt is to have a strategy in place before the expenses or temptations arise.

BEGIN WITH A BUDGET. A budget is a road map that guides you and tells you when you are on course. Budgeting won't ensure prosperity, but it will keep you from overspending your resources and will help you avoid the debt trap.

DECIDE TO FOLLOW THE BUDGET. Most people understand the need for a good budget, but few follow through. Only 25% of American families operate on a budget. Fifty percent say they want to budget but never get around to it. Make your plan and stick to it.

PRIORITIZE YOUR EXPENDITURES. Make a list of what is most important to you. Start with the necessities (housing, food, car, utilities, insurance and taxes). Then list what you "should have" (clothing, furniture, etc.). Finally, list the things you'd like to have.

PAY BILLS ON TIME. Establish a budget that allows you to pay all your bills in full and on time each month. If you can't pay them all, pay something on all of them and communicate your intentions of paying everything to those you owe. If you can't pay your regular bills, it's time to move to a smaller house, drive an older model car, or make drastic cuts until your outgo matches your income.

GET OUT OF DEBT AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. Debt carries with it heavy responsibilities. Don't allow yourself to become a slave to creditors. Don't take on debt unless you have a clear plan for repaying it. Certainly stay away from debt if it is a habit out of control.

PLAN FOR EMERGENCIES. Small emergencies can eat at your budget every month unless you begin to set aside funds as part of your budget. For example, the dog gets sick, your car radiator dies, time for back-to-school clothes, etc.

HAVE SOME FUN. Use your resources for personal enjoyment. After you have managed your money wisely and given generously, there comes a time for you to enjoy the fruits of your labors.

CRUISING THE HIGH SEAS

My daughter and I are booked on a last minute cruise to the Western Caribbean. We decided to take a mother-daughter vacation and lay on the pretty beaches of Cozumel, Grand Cayman, and Montego Bay for one whole week. We are very lucky to live only 45 minutes from Galveston so we can hop on a cruise at anytime. This is a pretty spontaneous decision we made, too. The ship is called The Carnival Conquest. Neither of us have been on that one although we have sailed on Carnival before. It is a huge ship that is over 110,000 tons and almost 3,000 people.