Female in Motion

This nasty January has been getting me down lately, so last week I headed up to Derby for a little therapy...retail-style. There's nothing wrong with pouring your heart out on a therapist's couch, but sometimes a girl just needs to shop! Since the dawn of time, men hunt to provide for their families, but women gather together the best bargains they can find for their family's needs and comfort. Not to mention the thrill of it all! Mom and I decided to start with power lunch to nourish ourselves. Pizza John's opened in 1969 in downtown Derby and has been going strong ever since. Their cracker-thin crust and sweet sauce is the stuff dreams are made of. The place is always packed out, too. Pizza Hut, eat your heart out! After a delectable repast, Mom and I hit the road to Haysville. She had heard about a gift shop there, and I needed some ideas for Valentine's Day presents. Craft Country Gifts was just the ticket: an old barn, stuffed to the gills with cool things. I l...

The Hubster and I made our way south of the border on Saturday, to sample a little Mexican cuisine. Sometimes, you just need to have some tamales, refried beans, chips and salsa to make the world seem right. January is a cold, gray month and a gastronomical adventure makes it brighter. So we drove south of the border...to Ponca City, Oklahoma! That's right, whenever we have a hankering for Mexican food, we go to Enrique's Restaurant: the hottest jalapeno on the runway! Enrique's is a family-owned establishment that has been around for decades. The Hubster and I love that it is located at the Ponca City Municipal Airport, so we can watch the planes depart and arrive. Because of my dad's job at Boeing, I grew up around planes, and love them. The food is really tasty and authentic at Enrique's. It's not at all fancy, just straightforward, yummy chow. Some of my favorites are the enchiladas, chicken huarache, fajitas and their delicious rice. If you are ever in Ponc...

This is a Christmas photo of my grandcat, Jack. He lives with my daughter, Sarah, in Wichita. In the photo, he is playing with a toy that I got him for Christmas. Isn't he handsome? Jack is my first grandkitty. Can you tell I'm a doting grandmother? I'm in training for grandkids! *** The Hubster spent a lot of quality time this weekend with my computer. It caught a very unfortunate virus on Friday. A Trojan Horse computer virus, to be precise. Yeah, major yucky! I feel really guilty, because I did open a forwarded email from a family member who shall remain nameless, but The Hubster said it could happen to anyone. Norton Antivirus to the rescue. I don't know how people without a live-in programmer deal with these crises! *** We had a "death" in the family last week. Our Sonicare toothbrush, which served us faithfully for well over ten years, finally bit the dust. That thing was a workhorse! Amazon.com supplied us with a new one...the latest model. We're re...

The Hubster and I welcomed 2009 in the usual way. We went to our regular Wednesday night Bible study, came home, had a snack and watched an old movie. Wild stuff! That's life on the edge in good old Ark City! *** I spent New Year's Day with my mom. We had a lot of fun, even if we were doing a whole lot of work. I'm a bit of a grinch, and don't put up a lot of Christmas decorations. My mom, however, is a completely different sort. She decorates every room in the house: bedrooms, bathrooms, and the front and back yards! Mom has many beautiful holiday items, collected over the years, and it would be a shame to keep them put away. My siblings helped Mom put up the Christmas finery this year, so it was my turn to help her get it all boxed back up for next year's celebration. Mom is a really organized person (yes, that's where I get it from!), so the whole day went smoothly. Plus, she cooked a yummy lunch and we talked incessantly. Mom and I always laugh at how we nev...