Okay, so I’m not having very much luck with this online “Luckypolls” thing.  You know, the poll where some of you voted for your meatloaf preference?  Anyway, at first I kind of had it set up wrong (…oops!) so that no one could actually vote.  And then, earlier this week, Luckypolls decided to change their polling format, which in turn completely shut down my poll.  And now I can’t get to the stats.  Lucky?  I don’t think so.  But the last time I looked, it was a close race between liking meatloaf but preferring hot-buttered bread and completely shunning meatloaf from your life.  So, there it is.  And now, you and Lulu are in the know.

That being said, I’ve started a new poll this week.  Yes, I can hear the collective groan.  And in honor of Spay Day USA, the question is about pets.  Kind of.  So, like before, go to the Lulu Wants to Know page, and humor me people! 

So, there’s a couple of things that I want to share today.  First off, it’s Friday! Cheer! Day!  Woo-hoo for that!  Also, remember the whole story about us getting hardwood?  Luckily, GR did not change his mind, and Mr. Hardwood delivered the wood for our floors on Wednesday.  And now, as you can see from the following picture, all of the wood is sitting in my dining room floor, camping out there until next week when Mr. Hardwood comes back to install it.  And it’s bothering me.  Because it stinks and the dogs keep barking at it.

And please note that my dining room floor normally does not look like that.  Even though it appears so in this picture, we do not cover our floor in sawdust and allow people to toss peanut shells on it, because GR would really, really like that.  We decided to put hardwood in the dining room and office as well, so GR had to pull up the carpet.  And thank God for that, because…Eww.  Germs.  And icky puppy stuff.  I think we’ll have to do something with the living room floor next.

And last but not least, I want to recognize my mother in honor of Women are Fantastic Friday.  My mother is fantastic for many reasons, but the one thing that stands out most about her is her love of family.  If she has taught me anything in life, she has taught me the importance of staying connected with family members.  Thirteen years ago, her husband was transferred to Florida, and she moved away from her family for the first time in her life.  Although people do that kind of thing every day, it was a very difficult transition for her.  And even though she is only an 8 hour drive from her home in Georgia, she sometimes feels like it’s halfway across the world.  However, she and I talk every day, and she stays in contact with my sister and our many other family members in Georgia on a constant basis.  She squeezes in visits to Georgia several times a year, and GR, Gus, and I have a lovely place to vacation at the home she shares with her husband and my step-brother…close to the beach!  Where the BD&HR Tour takes place…but that’s another story for another day.

Through my mother, I have also learned the value of patience, tolerance, and forgiveness.  Did I mention tolerance?  Because thank God I have a boatload of that!  Anyway, she’s a sweet, caring mother, and I want to share with you a card that I made for her when I was about 9 years old.  The sentiment still rings true!  Even though the image is a bit blurry…

How’d you like that definition for “O?”  Rather ingenious, huh?  Nothing like telling your mother she’s growing old.  And not only that she’s getting old, but getting old as in—no one else in the world is growing older, just you.  Isn’t that sweet?  And now she’s really going to think I’m sweet, because I’m going to share a picture of her, my sister (mother of Sweet Pea), and me in 1970-something.  I’m the short one on the right.

And here’s a more current picture of my mother and me…(no, we’re not hunchback…it’s just the angle).  Oh, and check out my rockin’ Go-Go’s shirt…courtesy of Big H!

What a lucky girl I am!  Happy Friday, y’all!