If you clicked on The Daily Grind, you are probably trying to figure out how you got here… well, I made the move from Blogger to WordPress with my very own self hosted domain! It is a great accomplishment for me, I figured it out all on my own. Now I just have to figure out all about the other design options, widgets and plug ins. Design is still under construction!
Scroll down a bit to the most current post.
Did you know that everything you learned about double spacing after a period when you type is WRONG when it comes to desktop publishing. It is a carry over from typewriter days when typefaces were monospaced, and unnecessary with proportional fonts. It really is hard to only hit the space bar once at the end of a sentence after 40 years of typing.
I’ve been thinking about moving my blog for a while now, just haven’t had the undistracted time (really don’t right now either, but I need a creative outlet). I’m moving my blog to WordPress, and giving myself a new name.
This spur of the moment change was prompted by the Blog Design workshop I attended on Saturday. The workshop was hosted by Philly Social Media Moms, and sponsored by MyChinoki.com. It was a morning out that I really needed. Although, because of my “vocal challenge”, I was not able to socialize much in the “crowd”, I totally enjoyed being in the group.
The heat has been crazy, a little break today. I will take 84ish, over 100+ any day.
Mom on Caffeine (momoncaffeine.wordpress.com) is my new home. I will be double posting for a bit, so if you want to bookmark that one, I would love to start getting traffic there.
I have bought the momoncaffeine domain, but need to figure out (and I think pay)to use it and redirect from this blog. I’ve created a temporary header, I need a “professional” picture of myself, the one there was shot by me with my iPhone, but I like it! I’m hoping this will give me the opportunity to finally meet Becky from Life with Kaishon. She is such an awesome photographer, I knew she will be able to me even me look good!
So, I’m running out of time here. That is the story of my life!
Mom had surgery last Monday, and it has been a crazy week. She is home, doing okay, but her energy level is taking some time to come back. She needs help with things that she would rather do herself. Since I am gone all day at work, I need to make sure she is situated before I leave. A Physical Therapist and Visiting Nurse will be here today, but other than that I am leaving her in the “care” of Tara, who can barely work the microwave and toaster!
Thanks-a-latte for stopping by,
Martha
Not much to say these days, and little time to sit and blog. It is taking more out of me than I thought to adjust to working 5 days a week again (I think I’ve said that before). By the time I am home in the evenings I spend time doing things around the house and then I am ready to just turn off the brain. I’m much better at Twitter and Facebook right now… I can do that on my iPhone!
The school year is almost over – 3 1/2 more days! Not sure if summer will be a good thing or bad… since this year I will be working mostly days, last summer we were able to do things early in the day before I went to work. I’m hoping Tara is able to spend time with some of her new friends, they just don’t really live within walking distance! I will not miss getting her up in the morning, although that has gotten better over the past couple of months.
I really am loving my job right now. Never was sure I would say that about retail. I got a promotion to the Senior Beauty Advisor, wish some extra beauty came with the job! I am able to work on displays and be involved in a bit more than before and I do like working day time better than evenings.
With the crazy weather we’ve had I’ve barely touched my camera. It either rained for days, or was blazing hot! Tara and I are taking a road trip to the ocean tomorrow.
I have been keeping up with my favorite bloggers… not commenting much, but reading when I can on my iPhone!
I need to find a BALANCE!
Thanks A-Latte for stopping by! Martha
I’m still here. I have to send my laptop off on a little vacation to Texas again (it travels more than me!), and I haven’t gotten the knack of blogging on my phone yet…. I will be working on that in my free time. I thought I would have some time on the desktop last night, but Tara had other plans!
Here are a couple pics of our day at the beach on Saturday. I think that might be the last time we saw the sun? I’m trying to work on a post from that day!
Hoping Spring arrives soon.
Thanks A-Latte for stopping by!
No fragments today, I can barely put two thoughts together. My mind is a mess. Trying to figure out some family stuff and at this moment at a loss where to turn.
Be back soon, when I get this all figured out.
Thanks A-Latte for stopping by!
The SITS girls are having a Back to Blogging Challenge this week, and today’s prompt is to write a post about a woman who inspires you. I have loved being a part of this challenge, as I had strayed far away from blogging over the past months!Some lucky participant of this challenge will win “Thelma and Louse” the washer and dryer above…. thanks to the sponsors – Standards of Excellence, Westar Kitchen and Bath, and Florida Builder Appliances.
I started blogging to share our “adventures” with family and friends while Tara and I lived in Orlando. I continued to blog as it was fun for me, and I got to meet so many awesome people.
I found myself being a little obsessive when I started not one more, but two additional blogs… a photography blog, and one to record our “adventures’ as we planned for and executed a move home to Pennsylvania, and our day trips getting reaquainted with the area. I found myself a little overwhelmed by it all…
Life got busy when I went to work and Tara was homeschooled, and blogging seemed to take a backseat. I missed it though, and I am adjusted to my new “normal”, Tara is back in “real” school, and I now have some FREE time again, so I hope to be able to blog more often, and that I will have some interesting things to say!
I love having a journal of our lives over the past (almost) two years. Sometimes I’ll think “when did that happen” and I know I can look back in my blog and find the information!!!
A cup of coffee shared with a friend is happiness! 
The SITS girls are having a Back to Blogging Challenge this week, and today’s prompt is to write a post about a woman who inspires you. I have loved being a part of this challenge, as I had strayed far away from blogging over the past months!
The woman who inspires me is my mother, Betty. She is 86 and is still very active . She is a woman of strong faith and totally dedicated to her family. She has always been selfless, and put all of our needs before her own. She is independent and has a quiet spunkiness about her.
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| From New Adventures in Lansdale and beyond! |
During my life, my mother had endured more sadness than any mother should. My brother was killed in Vietnam in 1969 (he was 19) and my father passed away very suddenly, at the young age of 62, just as they were beginning the part of their lives together when they could be free!!!
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From The Daily Grind (Life and stuff) |
My mom was always there for me. Even during the few years that she did work outside of our home, she worked at my elementary school, she was home when I left for school, I’d see her during the day, and she was back home by the time I got home! We have a very unique relationship. While many women adore their mom’s they will be the first to say they could never live with them, well my mother and I are able to co-exist. She has helped me to raise Tara as a single mom, there to lend a helping hand. My mother flew INTO Orlando back in 2004, to be with me when the 4th hurricane was predicted to hit, because I had become so stressed by it all.
My mom helped (still does) with her grand children and great grand children. At the age of 71, she helped care full time for her newborn great grandson Tyler. He is 15 now, and they still have a very special bond.
My mother is still very involved in her church, which is what helped her through the loss of my brother, her mother to Azheimer’s, and my father. She is still very involved with the church, heading several service projects, and on several committees. In her 80s, has gone to Mississippi and Louisiana to work with Habitat for Humanity and other such organizations in rebuilding homes destroyed by Katrina.
My mother is quiet, will rarely pat herself on her back, and continues to say, “I wish I could do more”, her mind is still very active, as are her hands, however, she has pain on a daily basis in her leg, and some days that slows her down more than she likes.
Some lucky participant of this challenge will win “Thelma and Louse” the washer and dryer above…. thanks to the sponsors – Standards of Excellence, Westar Kitchen and Bath, and Florida Builder Appliances.
A cup of coffee shared with a friend is happiness!
I am glad to see that I am not the only one who has had trouble sticking to a blogging schedule this summer. Oh, who am I kidding, it started way before summer for me. The SITS girls are having a Back to Blogging Challenge this week. I thought I would participate, at least I will have prompts to help me focus on blogging this week! If you want to blog along too, check out the prompts for the week here.
The prompt for today is the first post we ever wrote. I’ve been blogging for almost 2 years. I started as a place to share my photos and our life with family and friends, as Tara and I lived in Florida and our family was up north in PA and TX. At the time I had an actual website, but blogging seemed easier somehow…..
Here is my post – not one picture (since I had lots of them on the other pages of my website!) Life sure has changed since then! This is from 11/6/2008.
Here we go again… I am going to try and add a blog to my website. I’ve tried this before, but to the outsider, my life is pretty boring, so I may not have enough to share to make it worth you, the reader’s time! At least I figured out how to get it to feed automatically to my website. I got a gold star today!
Being a single mom, working full time, with a pre-teen and a house full of animals, 6 guinea pigs, 4 felines & 2 canines (Azule the beta just died this week, after a long life of almost 2 years, I sure he will be replaced soon since we have the tank and the food!) doesn’t really give me much time for me! I am lucky if I find time during the day to read the newspaper that I recently started up delivery. Many times it winds up in the guinea pig pen before I get a chance to read it! But at $9.00 for 5 weeks, it is far cheaper than recycled bedding at $20+ a bag per week! Most news that I need to know in Orlando, I can get from the TV or internet. The election and Casey Anthony had pretty much taken over for a few weeks. I got real tired of both, and am glad the election is over. Now let’s just hope we realize some changes in the coming months.
Today was a day like most, up early, feeding the animals, walking the dogs, today Tara was up with me too. Then we made a quick trip to the 24 hour Wal-Mart Market to pick up a bag of cat food. The cats were circling me, as their dry food bowl was EMPTY! They were not happy! Any other time they can be found eating the dog food, but no not this morning!
It was a beautiful fall day today. We had a couple damp and gloomy days, but believe it or not, I enjoy them from time to time. You need a little change now and then.
Speaking of change, it looks like my employer after many years is reversing it’s thoughts about their management workforce, where the job allowed it to work from a home office rather than having office space in an AT&T location, so the girl will be joining the commuting folks in the next few months. Of course, any major change when unexpected and unwanted can be unsettling, in these times staying employed is the key objective. It will mean changes to just about every routine we have in our family, but we have time to plan and adjust. I am sure I will have more thoughts to share about this in coming weeks, as we find out more information!
Tonight is “good TV” night, and I have not watched any of it! Thank goodness for the DVR, so when I can’t sleep at night, I can watch what I have missed. DVR – one of the top 10 best inventions of all times in my book! Sad isn’t it! TV is my main entertainment. I get distracted too easy it seems to sit and read a book. I have so many I would love to read, but never seem to get to them. I’d love to do some crafty things too – be creative with my hands, but the closest I come there is with my camera and a computer! Both are great hobbies, but sometimes I want more!
How do mothers with multiple kids and a significant other carve time out for themselves? I guess they do share some responsibility with the SO, but I know from conversations, and my limited experience at sharing parenting with an infant with my ex, that they aren’t always that much help! Some days, I don’t even seem to find time to hop in the shower. That will have to change when I am out in public every day…Other mom’s are involved in this and that committee, their kids are involved in activities, and they all make it look so easy…. but I guess we don’t see what goes on behind closed doors. I am sure they are more organized than I, and they probably have a PLAN. I wing it most days, since whenever I make a PLAN, something comes along to change it. I need to work on PLANNING!
Today, I made some very tasty soup. Goya 16 bean soup. Tara even liked it – beans, carrots, celery, ham flavoring, a little diced ham, and water. Easy to make, tasty and nutritious. I need to find some more quick, inexpensive, nutritious meals…. I find it hard to plan meals for the two of us!
Yesterday, Tara and took a quick mid-week trip to Downtown Disney. Sadly (I really miss them this time of year) we no longer have annual passes for Disney, so Downtown Disney being the free shopping and dining area has to do in a pinch to get some Disney Magic. I really needed it, and Disney did not disappoint. The area was adorned in it’s holiday finest, which put a smile on my face, and had my (well Tara’s) camera clicking. I love to photograph the merchandise displays and windows. We had a quick bite at Rainforest Cafe, only to find out they had opened a new restaurant (owned by the same company as RFC – Landry), TREX, which is dinosaur themed. We went in and checked it out and it is “way cool”. They even have Build-A-Dino store – so Tara got a new dinosaur friend to add to our Build-A-Bear collection. We hope to get back over there on Saturday to take in the Festival of the Masters Art Exibition. It’s one of the things we have never made it to, and I look forward to it. You can check out my photos here…Downtown Disney 11-05
Well, I guess that’s all for this first installment…. today was a non eventful day, nothing even remotely funny or news worthy to report!
Gas price today – $2.29 at my neighborhood 7-11(yesterday on Disney property it was $2.11)
Stay tuned, it has to get better!
My thoughts on my first post…
There is a contest along with this B2B challenge…. I don’t personally need a new washer and dryer, but I have a niece with 3 boys and a hubby who gets really dirty on his job, so I think she could use them if I should win!
Following are the sponsors:, Standards of Excellence, Westar Kitchen and Bath, and Florida Builder Appliances.
A cup of coffee shared with a friend is happiness!
Mom is doing the happy dance (after a year of cyber school, I was VERY glad to see her get on the bus yesterday morning!!!!)
A cup of coffee shared with a friend is happiness!
The Ultimate Sacrifice:
A Memorial Day PoemWe set aside Memorial Day
Each and every year
To honor those who gave their lives
Defending what we hold dear.In all the dark and deadly wars,
Their graves prove and remind us,
Our brave Americans gave their all
To put danger far behind us.They made the ultimate sacrifice
Fighting for the American way;
We admire them and respect them
On every Memorial Day.By Joanna Fuchs
A cup of coffee shared with a friend is happiness!