The Thinker


You are analytical and logical - and on a quest to learn everything you can.
Smart and complex, you always love a new intellectual challenge.

Your biggest pet peeve is people who slow you down with trivial chit chat.
A quiet maverick, you tend to ignore rules and authority whenever you feel like it.

In love, you are an easy person to fall for. But you're not an easy person to stay in love with. Although you are quite flexible, you often come off as aloof or argumentative.

At work, you are both a logical and creative thinker. You are great at solving problems. You would make an excellent mathematician, programmer, or professor.

How you see yourself: Creative, fair, and tough-minded

When other people don't get you, they see you as: arrogant, cold, and robotic

You Are An INTP

What's Your Personality Type?

In other news...

Sarah and I want to go camping again when we visit my parents this summer. Here's the place.

Aeneous...

Aeneous: Brassy or golden green in color. The river glowed with a magical, aeneous hue.

Fence Plans...

We spent most of Mark's 42nd birthday Spring-cleaning up our pool area. The oak tree drops tons of limbs, leaves, and acorns throughout fall and winter which makes a huge mess. Mark and I raked, scooped and swept until it was clean. The kids helped by fetching things and loading leaves in the wheel barrow to dump on a compost heap. Ryan and Mark cleaned the umbrellas and table while the girls and I folded up the pool cover. Don't worry, we also celebrated with grilled steaks, fried calamari, green salad, scrumptious homemade carrot cake from Divine Domesticity and champagne(he won at a business function). It was a very lovely end to such a busy day!

Anyway... Over dinner we had serious discussion about what to do with the pool area. Since the pool won't be filled in, we want to rearrange the fencing to give the dogs and children more yard. We could take out the front deck and add about 1/3 of the current space to it. The back deck would provide a place for our poolside table but isn't exactly the best location for several reasons. So, we decided that the back deck will come out and a new lattice fence will go diagonally across the turf space(in between the decks) to the back fence. It won't provide quite as much yard but that's ok. The kids are begging for a diving board but it depends on how much they cost. Today we'll be measuring and figuring out exactly what we need to do the job. Of course that will be after Mark and Ryan return from their canoe-fishing trip.

(click pics for bigger views)

(rearranging of the fence after hurricane Rita to include the decks within the pool area)

This picture gives an idea of where the diagonal part will go. It will start at the back corner of the front deck(about 2 feet left of where the current lattice fence ends in the pic), and will come to the corner of the back deck and wooden sidewalk section(about where the end of the fence post is in the lower left of the picture), then continue to the privacy fence.



(the brighter lines show where the new posts will go)

The front deck is bigger with built-in seating. The back deck is about half the size of this one, has a rail but no seating, out of the way, and only used to store exercise equipment and an extra grill. It is also where Mark and I got married almost 18 years ago. Our wedding guests sat in chairs on the front deck and we had an arch on the back deck. Tables were set up closer to the sidewalk for our cakes and other refreshments. Of course, the fence wasn't there back then so the area was much more open. I'm not just a real sentimental person so I don't feel the need to leave it there for posterity.


(the back deck is more visible in this picture)

Currently the fence ends at the corner of the front deck and goes right behind the oak tree to the yard fence. The kids can also enjoy more room during the off season(from September through May). We have plans to trim lots off those bushes this afternoon, they almost touch the ground in places!


(this is how the angle will cut across the yard space)

I think we'll be quite happy having a bit more yard and a little less "pool area" with the new arrangement. Frankly, I am looking forward to planting a little garden where that Canna is. Maybe caladiums.

***piggie update**** Still no babies! Despite being huge and miserable, she cuddled on my chest for 45 minutes this morning, covered by my favorite afghan. She just chilled there, making her little chuttle noises and sighing, it was so sweet. I put her up because she got antsy all the sudden. I'm hoping that means things are moving along, but it was probably just her needing to pee.

We had fun today!

But I didn't take any pictures(this is a quick, and really bad, pic of a few from my collection). We went to the East Texas Gem and Mineral Society's annual show with another homeschooling family. It was AMAZING!!!! If you are interested in gems and minerals, check out local shows and shops. Here's a list of minerala, Rainbow of Gems to start and a GREAT resource for kids and grown-ups too(I love this site) called, Rocks For Kids. I took my "mammoth tooth" along for the ride to see if I could get it positively identified(I had a feeling it wasn't what I thought). Turns out, it is petrified wood and I'm going to have it cut and polished in the next few weeks! I am hoping for some nice surprises inside!! I love, love, love rocks!!! Rock-a-holic I am.


(Ammonite that belonged to my grandfather, don't know where he got it)
****edited to add this: I'm so glad you told me Rosaline! I figured it was found in Oklahoma but had no idea where. For some reason I was thinking northwest of Rush Springs, don't know why. It is the neatest rock we have, I love it! There were some at the rock show but they were much smaller(about like a smooshed tennis ball), and not nearly as detailed. They were all incomplete like ours, guess it is hard to find a whole one.****

I did manage to keep up with the Dinner challenge, just didn't feel the need to post our dinner on Friday of scrambled eggs in corn tortillas or last night's baked potatoes. Tonight, however, I did a variation on our favorite pizza pasta.



1 chicken breast, cooked in a cup or so of water til done, don't drain unless you have more than a cup of water at this point. Add 20 slices of turkey pepperoni, 20 black olives(halved), 1 can diced tomatoes, 1 can tomato sauce, 1 chicken broth cube, italian seasonings and garlic powder. Simmer for 15 minutes or so. Cook half a box of whole wheat elbow macaroni noodles(amounts are not real important in this). Combine drained noodles, sauce mix, 1 cup cottage cheese, 1 cup mozzarella cheese, and 1/2 cup parmesan cheese, in 9x13 baking dish. Bake for 20 minutes at 350.

And Life Goes On....

As saddened as we are by the departing of our much loved pet, life does go on for the Sonier family.

Here are some random pics of homelife. Starting with Sarah's new EARRINGS!!! She's been bugging us for a few months about this so we finally buckled.




Next, are Amy's new River Shoes, in, ahem, *my* size!



Some cute piggie butts, Basil and Moonshine.



And some kitty pics.
Muffin in deep snooze.


Rosie in deep snooze.


And last but not least, some stuff from our "Cabinet of Curiosities".
Rocks and China.


Cat Collection.