Who am I??

OK, taking care of old business first. The giveaway for my Blogoversary ends today at noon, CDT. If you haven't already entered, get on over there quick. I am hoping to post the winner tomorrow.

I am still donating my October revenue to the Alzheimer's Association, and will post the total for that sometime today or tomorrow.

Now, on to the new business

I found a new blog recently, Why are You Stalking Me?. As I was reading through past posts, there was a quiz, and I just had to take it.

I think it's pretty spot on as far as describing me.. There were only two questions, and I figured there was no way they could come up with something good off two questions, but - well, just see for yourself...

Your result for Are You a Jackie or a Marilyn? Or Someone Else? Mad Men-era Female Icon Quiz...

You Are an Audrey!

You are an Audrey -- "I am at peace"

Audreys are receptive, good-natured, and supportive. They seek union with others and the world around them.

How to Get Along with Me

• * If you want me to do something, how you ask is important. I especially don't like expectations or pressure


• * I like to listen and to be of service, but don't take advantage of this


• * Listen until I finish speaking, even though I meander a bit


• * Give me time to finish things and make decisions. It's OK to nudge me gently and nonjudgmentally


• * Ask me questions to help me get clear


• * Tell me when you like how I look. I'm not averse to flattery


• * Hug me, show physical affection. It opens me up to my feelings


• * I like a good discussion but not a confrontation


• * Let me know you like what I've done or said


• * Laugh with me and share in my enjoyment of life

What I Like About Being an Audrey

• * being nonjudgmental and accepting


• * caring for and being concerned about others


• * being able to relax and have a good time


• * knowing that most people enjoy my company; I'm easy to be around


• * my ability to see many different sides of an issue and to be a good mediator and facilitator


• * my heightened awareness of sensations, aesthetics, and the here and now


• * being able to go with the flow and feel one with the universe

What's Hard About Being an Audrey

• * being judged and misunderstood for being placid and/or indecisive


• * being critical of myself for lacking initiative and discipline


• * being too sensitive to criticism; taking every raised eyebrow and twitch of the mouth personally


• * being confused about what I really want


• * caring too much about what others will think of me


• * not being listened to or taken seriously

Audreys as Children Often

• * feel ignored and that their wants, opinions, and feelings are unimportant


• * tune out a lot, especially when others argue


• * are "good" children: deny anger or keep it to themselves

Audreys as Parents

• * are supportive, kind, and warm


• * are sometimes overly permissive or nondirective

Take Are You a Jackie or a Marilyn? Or Someone Else? Mad Men-era Female Icon Quiz at HelloQuizzy

First order of business

Well, first things first. I hope that you read Tuesday's post and headed over to Rachel's house to enter her giveaway and click her pages (It's OK, that sounds dirtier than it is) in order to help her in her quest to fight Breast Cancer.

You did? Good, now go again. it's OK, we'll wait here for you.

2nd order of business, is that my baby sister (HA! She's taller than me!!) has FINALLY decided to blog, and I want you all to go check her out, because 1.) she's my sister, and I love her and 2.) She's WAY funnier than I am. But, I'm only going to tell you her link if you promise not to go leave me for her... Well, now that's settled, I can give you directions over to her place. Coppers Fox. I'll be helping her get settled in at her new home, and like I said, she's super terrific, so you'll want to come back and visit her often.

Next, we have a little cuteness from Monkey. Sorry, to my Plurky friends, you've already heard this, but it's adorable, so you'll just have to deal - or you can skip to the next paragraph, if you feel the need.

Last night, while Monkey was rolling around on the floor like a wild, well, Monkey

Monkey: "Mom, when I grow up, I'm going to join the US Army"
Me: "You are?"
Monkey: "Yep, I'm going to fight for our freedom"
Me: "wow..."
Monkey: "Yep, I'm going to leave my family to protect our country"
Me: "Wow, Monkey, that awesome!"

I don't know where he got this, and the thought of my little baby leaving his Mommy to fight for the country, while admirable, is terrifying to said Mommy. Thankfully, I know the Army won't take him until he's at least 10... Kidding.

In other news, he lost his FIRST tooth yesterday at school. The nurse gave him a certificate and a little treasure chest to keep it in, and the Tooth Fairy came last night and left him $2. (First teeth are worth more, she won't be quite so generous next time.)

Mater went to bed early last night, and woke with a tummy ache this morning, no fever, but the little guy stayed home from school today - just in case... I'm hoping he's feeling better for Halloween. it would break his heart if he had to miss out on the fun!

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And, as usual, I must remind you that I am still donating my October revenue to the Alzheimer's Association. And don't forget to enter the giveaway for my Blogoversary! You have until October 31...

Save the Ta-Tas

This month, my dear friend Rachel @ From the Land of Monkeys and Princesses is raising awareness for Breast Cancer, and donating her October revenue to that cause. (I may have mentioned this before...)

Well, now, she's having a super giveaway and you need to go over there and check it out. There are LOTS of terrific prizes, (I've even thrown a small prize into the mix) and I'm sure there's at least one that you want to win. Even if you're not interested in the giveaway, please hop on over to Rachel's place and take a look around. All monies earned in the month of October will be donated to Breast Cancer Research

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And, as usual, I must remind you that I am still donating my October revenue to the Alzheimer's Association.

And don't forget to enter

the giveaway for my Blogoversary! You have until October 31...

Weekend Update - short version.

I could not even begin to tell you all about the weekend, it was too crazy - so I'll go with this:



And this:



That's what Budman and I did on Sunday. We are now finished with ALL the Halloween costumes for the family.

YAY!!

Now I can start thinking about Thanksgiving.

I am still donating my October revenue to the Alzheimer's Association.

And don't forget to enter the giveaway for my Blogoversary! You have until October 31...

Opposites, wondering and musings...

If the opposite of black is white...

What's the opposite of Red?
What's the opposite of Green?
What's the opposite of Purple?
What's the opposite of Brown?

The funny thing is, when I asked these questions to myself, an answer popped in to my head instantly for each of them. I'll let you ponder it yourself, though, without the interference of my opinion.

Last night was Cub Scouts night. I suck, I have so many pictures, and I really want to do a picture post, but I'm not comfortable putting pictures of other peoples' kids on the Internet, so I'll need to figure something out there, before I can post the tale...

Conversations with Mater:

Mater: Mom, it smells like Butt in here!!

Mater: Mom, Monkey's attackling me!"


Conversations with Monkey:

Monkey: "I'm goin' to town here, Mom!" (while drawing the coversheet for his Cub Scout scrapbook)

Monkey: "Mom, I'm keeping my eye on you!"

This weekend will be spent finishing our Halloween costumes, I really hope I can get them done. I'm still debating whether I want to wear my costume to work or not next Friday. We are allowed to, and will have a contest, but it's going to be a pain to work in all day... Hmmm... Will give it more thought.

Since Halloween is not over yet, I am still in denial about the approach of Christmas. Do NOT tell me how you finished your shopping in March, or how you're already starting on shopping for NEXT Christmas, I will hunt you down. I'll get there, the same way I always do... gradually!

First, I have to get into the Thanksgiving spirit, which involves me planning an elaborate menu, and all of us eating until we explode. Then I will be ready to think about Christmas. After I clean my family off the ceiling.

Have a terrific weekend. I'll leave you with this one - What is the opposite of puce?


I am still donating my October revenue to the Alzheimer's Association.

And don't forget to enter the giveaway for my Blogoversary! You have until October 31...

Once Again...

I am again participating in "It's Not Me, It's You" from Holly at June Cleaver Nirvana.

She's asking "What post would you want your readers to read if they could only read one? She's set up a Mr. Linky at her blog, so go check it out...


Here's Mine: Weekend Update - Mother's Day edition

Go take a peek, and don't forget to head over to Holly's to read more great posts.

I am still donating my October revenue to the Alzheimer's Association.

And don't forget to enter the giveaway for my Blogoversary! You have until October 31...

Scenes from a Walk

A few highlights from this weekend's Alzheimer's Association Memory Walk®. The kids did really well considering we dragged them on a 3 mile walk! We had our biggest team ever, My sister & nephew, my Aunt K, Cousins S & S, Aunt K's friend, K, my Dad and Stepmom and Monkey and Mater all walked and had a great time.

Mater - watching the opening ceremony...

Monkey and Mater

Monkey and Aunt K in the T-shirt contest. We didn't win, which explains the look on Monkey's face, but the group that did win was walking for a relative that had passed away the day before... There were a lot of great T-shirts there.

Remembering loved ones...

On our way. (Mater is on Papo's shoulders...) There were TONS of people there.

My Aunt K and her friend, K. (They have the same name, and I would give them names like I've done in the past, but my family has a LOT of 'K' names, and I'm running out of ideas!)

Miles of people...

Bad picture, but this woman was ACTUALLY carrying her dog. Huh??

Mater, Monkey and Nigel

Oh, and our team?? Raised $895.00 so far!! I will still be donating my October revenue to the Alzheimer's Association. Thanks to all of you who sent your well wishes, I appreciate it more than you know...

And don't forget to enter the giveaway for my Blogoversary! You have until October 31...

Today's the Day

The giveaway is now closed. Thank you to all who entered!

Today, I am walking in the Alzheimer's Association Memory Walk®. It is the largest event to raise awareness and funds for Alzheimer's in the nation.

I've told you all about my Grandpa Jack, and why I'm walking. So this morning, perhaps even as you read this, I will be walking a 5K (That's 3 miles), along with my sister, my step-mother, aunt, cousins, friends. This is the largest team we have had, and I'm hoping that Grandpa Jack is proud of us. But mostly, I just hope that he knows how much we love and miss him.

I'm not going to bore you with statistics and facts today - I've already written all of those here and here. Today, I just ask that you spend a moment thinking a good thought for us. I will be donating all revenue for the month of October to the Alzheimer's Association This may not be much, but they're getting it all. I really hope that you will consider taking some of your time (today, tomorrow, sometime this month) to click through. It won't cost you a thing, except time, and it really is for a good cause.

And, if you would like to donate to the Alzheimer's Society, I ask that you consider supporting me in my walk today...

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Now...

Today is also the one year anniversary of my blog. (Technically, it's tomorrow, but then I would have to write two weekend posts - when I normally don't even write one, and... Oh sorry, back to the good stuff) It doesn't really feel like it's been that long, but here we are - one year later!! To celebrate, I am giving away a $25.00 gift card to JCPenney. It's not much, but it's yours, if you're the lucky winner.

Here's how to enter:

1. Post a comment on this post before October 31, 2008. I normally wouldn't make it this long, but since I'm having the contest in conjunction with my Alzheimer's fundraising efforts, the 31st it is. (Don't forget to leave an email address, so that I can notify you that you have won.) **EDITED TO ADD: Contest will close at 12:00 noon on Friday, October 31st.**

2. For two extra entries, write a blog post linking to today's post and this one, and leave the link in a comment.

3. Stumble this post for another extra entry.

(In fact, if you leave all that stuff in ONE comment, that will really help.)

One entry per person, the winner will be chosen at random ('cause I'm ALL about the random), and will be notified by email. I will also post it here. If the chosen winner does not respond in 3 days, I will choose another winner.

Sound fair? If you have any questions, email me (the address can be found on my profile page)

Thank you all for a wonderful year...

Linky Love Extravaganza

Sounds exciting, doesn't it?

I sure hope so!

Today, since I still haven't done anything with all my pictures, and they're at home on my laptop (slacker), I will be linking to some of the terrific stuff I've seen in the Blogdom lately.

First, Happy Meals & Happy Hour had a terrific take on a familiar children's story.

Busy Dad had the funniest picture posted recently.

Nap Warden is wondering about her status...

Fussypants has big plans for the weekend.

Connie has been finding a little bit of peace.

Heather attended a writing workshop recently.

Janet has discovered that her baby is growing up quickly.

BurgBaby thinks maybe her Navigational system is out to get her.

Anglophile Football Fanatic (aka AFF) has posted a blast from the past.

Catwoman will be welcoming a new addition to the family soon!

My BBFWJDKI (Best Bloggy Friend Who Just Doesn't Know It), FADKOG, had an anniversary this week.

Rachel had a cute mess to deal with lately. AND, she's still donating October revenue to Breast Cancer Research.


Ok, so that's it for today. I hope you enjoy these posts as much as I have.

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Don't forget my Blogoversary is coming. I will have a giveaway. Check back soon!!!
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Please don't forget that I'm ON THE MOVE to find a cure for Alzheimer's. (Read this post for more details.) I'm donating all revenue from October to the Alzheimer's Association. Please stay and click a while!!! And if you wish to donate to a terrific cause, I would be honored if you would consider supporting me in my Walk on October 18th!!

Click Here to Donate

Wekend Update: Random, random, everywhere...

Hello, remember me?? I know I'm a huge slacker. I still can't seem to turn all those "Drafts" into "Posts". I'm working on it.

Coming up later this week, the Cub Scout post I have been promising. I've decided to wait until after his Bobcat ceremony (is that what it's called?) to finish that one up.

Also, I have a circus recap. I took LOTS of photos (& video), and I would have had that one finished already, but life keeps getting in the way of my blogging (RUDE!) Plus, there's that whole camera slacker thing I've got going on...

So, instead I will share a bit O' the random...

Yesterday's Left-handed compliment of the day: "You're VERY intelligent in your own way." I won't share with you the response that came to mind...

I never did make it into work on Saturday. I fully intended to, but Budman had to go to his parents' house to work on their cars, and with Mater having run a fever the day before, we did not want to bring him around Budman's Dad, Pop, for fear that he would get very sick. So, the kids and I stayed home, I did laundry and cleaned house, and felt very productive instead.

Saturday was the Circus, thanks to Possum, who said "I don't have to be there until 7:20, I thought we would leave around 7:00", (Gee, thanks for making our plans for us, we MIGHT have had something else in mind, though - So sorry we didn't consult you first!!) we were very nearly late. My parents DID meet us there, and as I'm getting out of the car, I get my SECOND phone call from my mother (She's not so good with the concept of 'go with the flow'), who says "The man here says the show starts at 7:00. That's in five minutes!" So, we hurried over to meet them at the door, rushed in and found our seats. Possum, turns out, was NOT supposed to be there at 7:20, since the silly thing STARTED at 7:00 and he couldn't find the other boys in the group, because they were already out in the CENTER RING!!! Grr, the boy makes us crazy sometimes! Oh well, he made it to where he was supposed to be, and we had a lovely time. I have lots of pictures, and will share soon.

Sunday, the little boys went to Church with Grandma, and the big one went to the shooting range with Grandpa, SO Budman and I snuck off together!! We went and had breakfast at Whataburger, then swung by the auto parts store to buy a radiator for his mother's car. (Boy, does he know how to show a girl a good time!!) Sigh... Where was I? Ah, we headed to the In-laws, and replaced the radiator - OK, so Budman replaced it, but I totally helped him, AND if I had a Chevy S-10 whatever, I could SO change out the radiator on it. I could SO!! Budman said next time he was letting me doing it all. SO there!

Surprisingly, the radiator only took about an hour and a half, and we headed back home, where I prepared a little Seven Layer dip to snack on while Budman and Possum watched the Football game, which was a tremendous disappointment, and I Plurked.

The kids had Monday off school, so they were tasked with getting the Halloween decorations up outside. They also got to carve Jack-o-Lanterns!! The decorations aren't quite finished yet, but don't worry BurghBaby, I will share the pictures, as promised.

I guess that's it for now. I really have lots more ideas, but somehow, I'm lacking the words to back it all up!

Oh, and remember, my blogaversary is coming up, and I will be having a giveaway!! Stay tuned for more details!!! (Dang, I'm not sure how to spell that!!!)

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Please don't forget that I'm On the MOVE for a cure to Alzheimer's. (Read yesterday's post for more details.) I'm donating all revenue from October to the Alzheimer's Association. Please stay and click a while!!! And if you wish to donate to a terrific cause, I would be honored if you would support me in my Walk on October 18th!!

Click Here to Donate

Something occurred to me...

Lately, I've been so busy trying to have "something to write about", that I've been neglecting my favorite part of my blog. Telling you about my family. Granted, it's not always funny, although we have our moments, but it's real...

We have made it through the first 6 weeks of the new school year. It's been largely uneventful (in our world, uneventful is a good thing).

Possum, has been struggling with organization again this year. He is certainly smart enough to complete his work, but he often forgets to turn it in, or leaves the book he needs at school, etc. This is frustrating, and THANK GOODNESS for the online grade check, because he would NOT tell us any of this on his own. I'm not sure whether this is because of his forgetfulness, or if he's just being sneaky, but I am so glad that I can check all of his assignments online, because that way I can stay on top of things... I'm pretty sure this is all part of the teenage boy's brain. I can only assume that he's so busy thinking about girls, that there's not room in there for "unimportant" stuff like schoolwork! So, I've become a nag, and I hate it.

Monkey is still having trouble staying on task, minding his own business, etc and he's still a terrific liar. (No, I'm not calling my son a liar, I just mean that he's rather good at it...) Currently, he's grounded until further notice. He's not grounded for the minor infractions at school, he's grounded for lying, which in our house, is a MUCH more heinous offense than not following directions or whatever.

He's also still doing his Cub Scouts, although after Wednesday, he almost lost that privilege, too. However, we have decided that instead of taking away Cub Scouts, perhaps we can use it to help remind him that he needs to live up to the Motto of the Cub Scouts - Do your best. Every chance we get, in all the things he is learning, about respect, duty, goodwill etc, we try to turn those things into a life lesson, to show him how he can use those ideals in his daily life at school, to follow his leaders, to do his best, to give goodwill. I really do hope, as I have from the beginning, that those things won't become just words to him, but goals and practices for his daily life. He will receive his Bobcat badge next week, and I'm almost as excited as he is! We've worked really hard.

Mater, bless his heart, hardly ever gets talked about, because he doesn't get into trouble. Monkey was my angel baby, but Mater is my Angel child. Don't get me wrong, he's not perfect, and he does occasionally get into trouble at home, but he does not get into trouble at school. Last year, in Pre-K there was ONE day out of all the (180??) school days, that he did not get a sticker. (Their chosen measurement of conduct). This year, so far, he is doing just as well. He's learning quickly, starting to read, and sounding out words. He gets easily frustrated, but he's doing great. He's in Speech therapy twice a week at school, and already I've noticed a big improvement with his "r" sounds.

Yesterday, after school, he began feel sick, and ran a fever all night. Poor thing - he felt SO hot. By this morning, his temp was down to 101.4, but of course, he still stayed home from school. He was VERY disappointed, he loves school. (Oh, and on a completely unrelated note, if you don't have one of THESE thermometers, get one - it's the ONE thing I don't know how I ever lived without!!!!)

Budman and I are tired. LOL!

Possum, who I've mentioned before is in DeMolay, will be working at the Shrine Circus on Saturday, so we will be taking the little ones to enjoy while Possum is there. We went last year, and really enjoyed it a lot. I'm looking forward to taking them to do something fun. Mandatory fun - we all need to try it (on a completely unrelated note, the link for the Shrine Circushad a Kid fun page, where you can print off coloring pages for the kiddos!!)

I've had several requests from my family for visitswith us and the kids, but they will have to wait a little longer. Budman will be taking the kids to his parents house (yes, I realize they are family as well, but they don't request, they guilt) on Saturday, to work on their cars, while I take my happy butt into work to catch up a little. So, I'm going to have to tell my folks that we are available Saturday night at the Circus, if they would like to join us, otherwise, it will be two more weeks. Ugh.

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Please don't forget that I'm On the MOVE for a cure to Alzheimer's. (Read yesterday's post for more details.) I'm donating all revenue from October to the Alzheimer's Association. Please stay and click a while!!! And if you wish to donate to a terrific cause, I would be honored if you would support me in my Walk on October 18th!!

Click Here to Donate

I'm on the Move...

I've already mentioned here that my Grandpa Jack had Alzheimer's. I've had other relatives that had this disease as well, but Grandpa Jack is who I'm talking about today.

Once upon a time, he was a big man, strong, larger than life. And when I needed him, he was there for me. He gave me a home, taking nothing in return, asking only that I take care of myself and my son. In exchange, I looked out for him, cooked for him, and kept him company (I think maybe that was the most important to him - just having us around). In truth, we needed each other.

Eventually, I went out on my own again, living close by, and still stopping by to visit with him when I could. He was a sentimental man, and decided to buy back the house that he had lived in when my Grandmother was alive, the house my father, aunt and uncle grew up in. The house I visited weekly until my 20s. Still close by, but I didn't visit as much.

A few years went by, and his Dr. told him that he had Alzheimer's disease. They called meetings for the family to attend, plans were made, arguments were waged. He resented the interference, but they had to do something. He lived alone as long as he could.

My father bought a new house, so that there would be room for Grandpa, and he agreed, but when it came time to move, he refused. So, my dad would drive everyday to drop Grandpa off at his own house, where he would stay while Daddy was at work. I drove by each day at noon to make sure that he had lunch, and to keep him company for a little while. Then Dad would come by every afternoon after work, and take him home to "spend the night". They drove him to church every Sunday, and each week, the routine would start all over. He didn't want to move in with them, so we created this arrangement to keep him happy.

Eventually, we even had to take his truck. A "Grandpa Day Care" was arranged so that he wouldn't be alone all day.

I cannot imagine how difficult it must have been for a man like him to give up power and control of his life. He wouldn't have to for long, turns out.

At some point, during one of his hospital visits, he was diagnosed with lung cancer. To this day, we don't know whether he was told about the cancer and forgot, or if he chose to keep it from us.

A year later, another hospital visit, and the cancer was mentioned again, this time to my father. We were all stunned. After all this time, the cancer did not take much longer to take him from us. Afterward, in a conversation with his primary Doctor, it was apparent that even she was unaware of the cancer.

Things deteriorated very quickly after that, the cancer had been at work in his body for at least a year, and by the time we found out, it was too late.

He died on March 09, 2005, Shortly after arriving at the hospice that was arranged for him.

I'm not going to bore you with statistics. I've already posted those here, and you can also find as much as you need here.

Every year since he passed, my sister and I have walked in the Alzheimer's Association Memory Walk. It's a good time for us to get together, which we don't get to do often, but more than that, I always take that time to think about Grandpa Jack, and what a good man he was. We talk, and tell stories about him and our family, try to laugh and remember.

This year, my walk is on October 18th. We've moved to the walk in Fort Worth, so that the rest of the family might be inclined to join in.

I hope these lovely ladies don't mind, but I am borrowing an idea from BurghBaby and Rachel @ From the Land of Monkeys and Princesses, and donating all the proceeds from October page views to the Alzheimer Association Memory Walk. Please, help me out and click, click, click!! I don't know if it will amount to much, but whatever it is, I will donate it.

While you're in a clicking mood, my dear friend Rachel @ From the Land of Monkeys and Princesses is raising awareness for Breast Cancer, and donating her October revenue to that cause. Go over and give her lots of page views, please!

Clicking doesn't cost you any money, only time, so I appreciate if you would spend a little time looking at a few pages here. However, if you do wish to donate to the Alzheimer's Association, I hope that you will consider supporting me while I walk on October 18th.

Ok, so I fibbed a little - I will leave you with these facts...
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This year, more than 200,000 people across the nation will be on the MOVE.
Our destination is a world without Alzheimer's. ===================================
Every 71 seconds, someone is diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease.
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Alzheimer's is the 6th leading cause of death in the U.S.
We need your help to MOVE our cause forward.
Facts taken from the alzheimer's association

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Oh, and stay tuned - this month also marks my one year blogoversary!!
There will be a contest, so check back soon!!

Famous Potato Salad

Ok, in the interest of keep things new and interesting around here, I'm going to share my Famous Potato Salad recipe with you. I'm pretty sure Budman didn't decide to propose to me until AFTER I fed him this potato salad. This recipe is one I've developed over years, adapted from several family recipes.

I'm a little disappointed with the way my pictures turned out, but we'll just make the best with what we have. Heck, it's my first attempt at a recipe post anyway.

Let's begin:

You will need mayonnaise, mustard, pickles, olives, salt, pepper and of course, potatoes (not shown)

Optionally, you may also add 3-4 strips of bacon, chopped. That's what I did today, because I had some left over from Breakfast.

Now, I normally add chopped red onion to my Potato Salad. It adds a good flavor, and it looks so pretty against the yellow... Unfortunately, Budman does not like raw onions, so I generally end up leaving them out, or else he won't eat any. Sometimes, if I'm feeling particularly ambitious, I will set aside some without onions for him, before adding onions to the rest.

But anyway, back to the preparation.

First, naturally, you will need to wash and peel the potatoes. Ignore the blurry photos. I had the camera settings all wrong. Grr...

Generally, I use one potato per person, not counting the children, this will give you plenty, and you will have leftovers (YAY!!) We had nine grown-type persons today, so nine potatoes... (I know you just counted - I did!!)

Now, I cut the potatoes in 1 inch slices, then quarter them. You don't have to be exact, but you want them to be close in size so that all the pieces cook at about the same rate.

Then place them in the (salted) water on the stovetop. You can heat the water before you put in the potatoes, or you can wait until they are added to heat the water. I do it differently every time, depending on my mood. If you place the potatoes in the heated water, just be careful of splashes!!

Cook the potatoes until they are fork-tender. You don't want them too done, but you want to be able to mash them fairly easily.

When they are done, you can use a potato masher to mash them up. Or, if you like, you can throw them in the KitchenAid Mixer (or use a hand mixer) if you like them completely smooth. I usually like to use the Stand mixer, but mine has gotten a little dusty, and I didn't feel like getting it out and cleaning it off so that I could use/take pictures of it. Either way, this recipe is super easy like that.

Add Salt & Pepper

Still looking like Mashed Potatoes at this point, but now... We add the Mayonnaise.

And a little more. Start off slow, you can always add more, but you can't take it out.

I put in three big spoonfuls to begin with for 9 potatoes, but I did end up adding more later.

Mix it in well, you want it smooth and creamy, then add the Mustard.

Again, add a little, mix it up, and taste until you've got enough. If you accidentally put in a little too much, just add a little more Mayo.

Now, it's time to get the pickles... It doesn't matter what kind you use, this is just what we had in the fridge.

Chop them up - I like to leave them a little large, but again, this recipe is all about what makes you happy.

And some olives...

Chop them up a little.

Dump it all in, and mix it up. (At this point,the color is not quite yellow enough, so I added more mustard.) Also, if you're using red onions in your potato salad, now's the time to add them in. And here's my secret ingredient, I always add a teaspoon or two of olive or pickle juice and mix it in.

Now, at this point you can be done...

Or, you can throw in the bacon pieces...

Once it's all mixed in, smooth it out, all pretty like (I'm OCD like that)

Now, once I've finished, I like to put some foil on top, and put it in the fridge. I LOVE my 'tater salad cold.

Of course, you can totally serve it hot, and it still tastes delish!!

So, give it a try, and let me know how it turns out!!

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Oh - and head on over to see http://halftimelessons.blogspot.com/.

He's having a triple giveaway. Check it out!!!

It's Not You, It's Me

Holly at June Cleaver Nirvana has a great new idea. She's asking "What post would you want your readers to read if they could only read one? She's set up a Mr. Linky at her blog, so go check it out...

Here's mine: Oh, The Google searches I'm going to get...

Take a peek, but don't forget to head over to Holly's to read more great posts.