Thanksgiving

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving!!!!!
Anyone have a "leftover Turkey" recipe? hahahha

Elections: Frustrated with Negativity

Thank God the elections are almost here and the endless negative commercials will be over! I wonder (aloud) if the negativity of the commercials parallel the situation of our county.

Every time I see one candidate bash the other, I often turn the TV/radio off or mute it, and say to Courtney or anyone who will listen, "if they spent as much time explaining what they stand for and how they are going to represent us and less time bashing their opponent, I would more likely vote for them'....

These days more & more Commercials, television show, reality TV and movies portray (the main) characters as being mean, double crossing and game playing. Okay, I am watching too much Dancing with the Stars and Hallmark movies, but isn't being nice a good way to heal our country?

Where are the nice, honest, straight shooting people/candidates?
Are they becoming lost in the muddle of negativity?

When my kids were little and I had foster kids, I had only one easy rule in my house, "Consideration".
Consideration for others covers just about everything under the sun. Think about it. If politicians were more considerate of their constituents with whom were voted in and that they represent, wouldn't our town, state and country run more smoothly.

If "consideration" were to be exercised, then the politicians would not be making sweet deals with their cronies and bad bills would not be passed in the middle of the night or hidden in a foot tall bill that has nothing to do with nothin'?

I personally think that we have outlived having 2 major parties...
Of course, I don't know everything by any stretch... But I do think if everyone wasn't split by party, maybe "groups" of like minded people could work together without the pressure of what is best politically for their party, maybe some of the dilemmas our country faces could be solved more easily.

Think about our local elections... There is NO PARTY LISTED on the local ballot! So people are elected on their merit, NOT on their party. Interesting concept?

Whether or not you agree with me or not, be an American and VOTE...
But with that said, know what you are voting for! Don't just vote "party lines" unless YOU believe in what you are voting for.

Enough ranting today.... saw another negative ad and had to blog it, 'cause Courtney and the dogs are sick of me saying it outloud.

Vote on November 4th!!!

I was just watching a YouTube video made by some of the top stars in the United States. Usually, I am not impressed by 'stars' endorsing a certain party or candidate, but this video is all about VOTING!

I think it is worth taking a look at!!!!



On the local level, tonight Dexter Candidates Night is at 6:30 pm at the Universalist Church. If you can't be there in person surf on over to the Town of Dexter website and click on the yellow "Live Streaming Video" box on the right/top of the page.

You will be able to see 'live' the participating candidates comments, thank to Dave Giles. Yes, he is a candidate, running for town council this year. But I will tell you he is not doing all this "live streaming video" work for you because of that, but to help the citizens of Dexter be more informed!
Hats off to you Dave for the efforts you are putting forth......

Big Lake Wassookeag

The colors on the lake today were magnificent!
Fall is such a wonderful time of the year! The brisk breeze, the colorful foliage, the smell of fall in the air.... And then there is the smell of wood smoke from the chimney, knowing that the home is warm and cozy from the stove...

Fall also is when people are decorating their yards with scarecrows, cornstalks and chrysanthemum arrangements.

If you fell like taking a foliage ride, don't leave out driving around the side streets in Dexter. It appears that more Dexter citizens have decorated their porches and driveways for the season then in the past! Pleasant Street, Maple Street are a couple that are nice! Check it out.....

Exciting News, New Technology

Some exciting news!!!
Bob Simpson, a previous Town Manager, and I used to dream about putting council meetings and such on Cable Access TV for more citizens to keep in touch with what is going on in Dexter. Well, that never came to fruition, but now in the 21st Century, new technology has created new opportunities.

"STREAMING VIDEO"

Dave Giles who is a teacher at the Tech Center in Dexter is making it possible for the citizens of Dexter to watch the meetings from the comfort of their homes.

We are trying a new "Streaming Video" broadcast online on Thursday, October 9th at the monthly Dexter Town Council Meeting.
Dave will be videoing and recording live starting at 7 pm.

We hope that it will be insightful and beneficial.... (and that it works...) In the future we hope to bring you more "Live Streaming Videos" from other meetings, events, book club discussions.... The list is endless.

Click here on Dexter's Website for the broadcast and click on the yellow box on the right.

Please email judy@DexterMaine.com with your comments and thoughts.

More Yoga talk...

I mention quite awhile ago, Courtney and I go to Yoga every week for an hour with Yoga Guru Donna Kraft-Smith.

We have been going well over a year now and still really enjoy it!

I received an email recently from someone who had read my blog about going to Yoga and they sent me a great link called "100 Free Online Instructional Yoga Videos".
It has 100 yoga videos on YouTube that are free.

Click here to check them out

Fall Flowers at Abbott Memorial Library

I took this picture while waiting for Courtney at the Library.
She is working as a fill in at Abbott Memorial Library but is still working for Judy Craig Consulting.... phew !!!!

So of course I had my camera and took some great shots behind the Library.

Speaking of which.... A few weeks ago, a historical engineering consultant came to the Library suggesting what kinds of improvements, fixing existing issues and providing lots of insight in maintaining a historical building.
John was soooo interesting!
Courtney and I joined library trustee Bob Crawford and Librarian Liz Breault and John as he took us from top to bottom of the Library.
Most interesting and thought provoking.
Example: if you are fixing something, use the same materials as was used when the building was built or upgrade. Not to save money and not necessarily for historic value, but because the "fix material" will bond better with the original materials and may actually cost less.
I never thought of it that way... I assume newer building products would be better, but that's where "thought" got me :)

Fall is here!

Ya... I took a vacation again from blogging...
There are many times I want to write down my thoughts and share some news, but I wonder if it worthy of publishing for the public to read.
Now that fall is here I will try to change my ways with the season.

Speaking of the season, Darlene (of the Snap of the Dragon) and I "dressed" Main Street in Dexter again with Chrysanthemums. The new owners at Spring Street Greenhouse (Tim) gave us a good deal on buying the chrysanthemums.
FYI: Darlene and I grow the summer flowers, but we do use some tax dollars to buy the fall flowers.
We were really pleased with the new Main Street barrels we purchased for the 2008 season. They are a lot bigger than the previous year, which was good because they looked full and held the moisture a little better, but took more flowers to fill them.

I hope everyone enjoyed them. Dexter's Main Street looks so festive. Thanks to the businesses who also decorated. Country Charm's window boxes look great! And thanks to the Prudential guys who watered their own flower barrel this summer!
I want to thank Jean Jacobs and the volunteers who helped water this summer, although we ran out of volunteers towards the end of the summer.

If YOU would like to help out watering, give me a call. We can use all the help we can get. NOPE, we don't get paid, but the satisfaction of driving downtown in the evening and seeing how pretty it looks is reward enough!

While I am talking about flowers, some jerk stole 2 of the chrysanthemums out of the barrel in front of Vicki's Hair Salon... What kind of ass would steal flowers from Main Street? I hope they enjoy them, but I also hope that every time they look at them, they remember that they are STOLEN FLOWERS. I did buy some more flowers to put in the barrel, but still......

Stealing....
As you many know, there have a bunch of burglaries in our area lately.
I have posed the question to some town officials about starting a "community watch", sorta like the cities do neighborhood watch.
May I suggest that we all talk with our neighbors and get acquainted with them (if you aren't already).

-- Let your neighbors know if you are going away and what vehicles may be in your yard, if any.
-- Call the police if you see anything suspicious. Better to safe than sorry!
-- Do checks on the elderly

Locked doors don't seem to matter anymore if you are away, but if you have some ideas on keeping our homes safer, let me know to pass along to others.

Dexter Police Chief Art Roy recommended the public keep its collective eyes open.

“If you see anything suspicious, call the police right away. Don’t wait until later.” The non-emergency telephone number for the Dexter Police Department is 924-7622.

DRHS graduate is Olympic bound!

Some of you may know that Adam Craig is family and the family is very proud of his accomplishments.
Adam has always been a quiet, self-motivated teen and now man, but with a dry sense of humor and amazing laid back energy.
I remember a few winters ago, it was about -18 outside. He and my sister-in-laws boyfriend brought me a couch and chair for my living room from my mother-in-law.

Well, anywhoooo......... After maneuvering the bulky sectional and chair thru the sliding glass door, around a corner, banging a few fingers and then assembling, Adam says; "Aunt Judy, I'm riding back to Corinth on my bike, where is the ITS trail from here?"

Remember the first of the story where is -18 degrees approximately? Yup, he stripped down to his Bike Suit thingy, unloaded his bike from the trailer that hauled the furniture and headed out..... BRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR..... How can a 'suit' so thin be warm??? But no complaints from Adam.

Lillian, his grandmother, called a little later and said he made it home safely and that he had a great ride.
Now, can you imagine that being fun??? But that is why he is at the Olympics and I am not!!!!!
Below is a story from the Bangor Daily News front page the other day about Adams journey to Beijing.


Exeter native ready to roll
Friday, August 08, 2008
By Ernie Clark of the Bangor Daily News: DEXTER -Adam Craig’s relationship with travel and terrain transcends his current occupation as an Olympic mountain biker.

Exeter, Maine native Adam Craig is on the U.S. Olympic mountain bike team. Photographed July 30, 2008 at the Bangor City Forest. (Bangor Daily News/John Clarke Russ)Life in rural Maine draws most kids to explore the great outdoors early in life, and the 26-year-old Exeter native was no exception.

"Even when he was little, he’d jump off the deck and slide down to the frog pond and onto the stream nearby," said Craig’s mother, Patricia Craig.

Such spontaneous flirtations with speed soon were followed by more sophisticated means of transit, such as driving his dad’s jitterbug in the woods — a skill acquired at age 10.

Later, Craig discovered downhill ski racing and through that sport gained an introduction to the mountains that eventually fueled a passion for maneuvering around roots, rocks and other obstacles as fast as possible on a bicycle.

Today, few on the globe are faster on a mountain bike than the 5-foot-10, 165-pound Craig, who is one of two Americans who will compete in the men’s cross-country mountain bike race at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing.

"Adam has great bike-handling ability," said Carl Decker, one of Craig’s colleagues on the Giant Mountain Bike Team and a fellow resident of Bend, Ore. "He’s a really gifted rider, especially on descents. He has a unique understanding of how fast he can go downhill without riding too fast and crashing very often.

"He’s also really strong. He’s not a huge guy, but he breaks drivetrain components that nobody else breaks.

"Plus his cardiovascular is strong. He’s the complete package."

Adam Craig. (Bangor Daily News/John Clarke Russ)It’s that package — along with some strong recent efforts that include winning his second straight national championship last month — that leaves the 1999 graduate of Dexter Regional High School in an optimistic frame of mind heading into the biggest two hours of his competitive life on Aug. 23.

"This is the first year I’ve ridden in the elite group from the start at a few of the World Cup races," he said. "Before this year my good races have always been come-from-behind efforts. To be riding at the front in races now shows me that if I’m strong and fit and fresh as I usually am, somehow at the end of August I should be right there."

A rapid uphill climb

Craig has nearly a decade of elite mountain biking already behind him as he approaches his Olympic debut.

He competed in his first world championship at age 17 in 1998 at Mont Saint-Anne, Quebec, which along with Mount Snow in West Dover, Vt., considered one of his home courses on the World Cup and national bike tours.

In reality his biking career began long before that.

"When he first rode down Cadillac Mountain by himself at age 10, that was scary to me," said Patricia Craig, head of the art department at Hampden Academy. "Adam rode down and [his father] Harvey rode down, but I stayed at the top. I waited to drive down because I didn’t want to pass them. Plus, if I had driven down and seen them racing I knew I’d freak out."

From Adam Craig’s scenic introduction to the sport came a rapid ascent up the mountain-biking ranks.

In 1999, just after graduating from Dexter — where he went for his final three years after spending his freshman year at John Bapst Memorial High School in Bangor, which had a ski team — Craig won his first junior national championship.

That led to an invitation to the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, where he spent the better part of two full seasons training between races. It was there the notion of being an Olympian one day first crossed Craig’s mind.

"It’s like, ‘We’re at the Olympic Training Center, that’s probably because they think maybe I’ll go to the Olympics someday,’" he said. "At that point I was realistic, but I also knew that I was racing pretty well, and even then I could see that I’d have my best races at some of the bigger events like the junior world championships. In ’98 or ’99 I raced up [beyond my age level], and I thought maybe it would work out someday."

Craig won the first of three consecutive under-23 national cross-country championships in 2001, but that fall he returned home and enrolled at the University of Maine while continuing his mountain-biking career on the weekends.

Adam Craig tunes up a training bike while visiting friends at Ski Rack Sports in Bangor July 30, 2008. Craig is on the U.S. Olympic mountain bike team. On the right is Sebastian Boyington of Milford, a bicycle mechanic and sales person at Ski Rack Sports.(Bangor Daily News/John Clarke Russ)It represented a crossroads of sorts for Craig, who had to decide between concentrating on his education toward starting a career in the working world or making mountain biking his working world.

His performances that year — including his second straight U23 national championship — made that decision rather easy.

"When I graduated high school and moved out to Colorado Springs to the Olympic Training Center, I think that was the turning point of thinking that I was going to do this full time and see if I can make a go of it," he said.

"There were a couple of years of still working with Harvey in the winter, pounding nails or whatever and going to school before it panned out, but going to school and not training at all that spring and kayaking a bunch somehow made me really fast."

Craig turned pro in 2002, and quickly attracted the interest of a corporate sponsor in Giant Bicycles, another step toward confirming his status as a rising star in his sport.

He won his third straight national title in 2003, then moved out of the U23 ranks just in time for his first Olympic quest a year later.

Craig was the youngest of several contenders for two berths on the U.S. team, but a mechanical failure during the first World Cup race of the year was the first step in what Craig describes as "death by a hundred cuts" that ultimately prevented him from earning a trip to Athens.

"That year I considered myself a good choice for the team, but I knew in the public eye I was a long shot," he said. "To not make it was a bummer, but it wasn’t that big a deal. I also stood on a World Cup podium that fall, so I wasn’t that bothered."

Indeed, 2004 was not a total loss for Craig — far from it.

He scored his first top-10 finish in a World Cup event at Mont Sainte-Anne and capped off the season by placing fifth at the World Cup finals in Livigno, Italy — the first American man to score a podium finish in a World Cup race since 1995.

"Getting that World Cup podium in Livigno right after the Olympics, I knew that would keep him motivated," said Patricia Craig.

The road to Beijing

The three seasons between Olympic years saw Craig continue to improve while being among the busiest of the world’s elite riders.

He had six top-10 World Cup finishes in 2005 and 2006 as well as top-25 efforts in the world championships both years.

The 2007 season marked Craig’s second straight as the top American in the final World Cup points. He also won the gold medal at the Pan American Games in Brazil, then returned to Mount Snow to score a breakthrough victory in the men’s elite cross-country race at the U.S. national championships.

"He seems to spread himself really thin, and that was something I was concerned with," said Decker. "But he just showed over and over that he could do it."

This year there was little mystery surrounding Craig’s motivation — to earn an Olympic berth.

Ultimately, there was little mystery in the competition. Craig consistently ran first or second among six U.S. candidates for two Olympic spots in the World Cup races that served as a primary measuring stick for selection.

"This has been my goal for the last four years," said Craig after the July 1 announcement that he and Todd Wells would represent the United States in Beijing. "I pretty much knew this was the situation for the last month or so, but I’m glad that it’s come to fruition."

Craig’s Olympic anticipation certainly has not slowed him since then.

Despite adjusting his training regimen to prepare for the specifics of the Olympic course, he successfully defended his U.S. championship at Mount Snow in mid-July.

Exeter, Maine native Adam Craig, a member of the U.S. Olympic mountain bike team, cuts through the brush at the Bangor City Forest July 30,2008 . (Bangor Daily News/John Clarke Russ)"I was lucky to just squeak in and win nationals on semitired legs from training that week, and that was part of the plan, too, because definitely everything’s been prioritized for the Games," Craig said. "I was kind of nervous all week knowing I was a little tired and still hoping I could pull it out."

Craig followed that up the next weekend by matching his career-best World Cup finish with a fourth at Mont Sainte-Anne. A week later, he established a new personal standard with a third-place finish at Bromont, Quebec.

Now his attention has turned fully to Beijing, a land of Olympic trepidation and opportunity.

Craig was among approximately 50 elite riders from around the world invited to test the Beijing mountain-bike course last summer — but fewer than 10 finished the race after succumbing to subpar air quality.

Air quality concerns remain among all Olympians, but mountain-biking organizers have made other changes in the aftermath of that test run.

"They’ve extended the course to 6 kilometers and attempted to make it more technical, with more jumps, more rock sections and more twisty-turny stuff, so, hopefully, it will be more of a test of our mountain-biking skills," said Craig. "But the course is really kind of irrelevant because everyone’s going to be fit and fast, and races are won on the uphills and there’s a whole bunch of them out there."

While Craig has competed for several years now against the best mountain bikers in the world, the stage for the Olympic race sets it apart from the rest.

"It’s a notch higher for sure, just like in every sport," he said. "For athletes personally, we face the same challenge in the world championships once a year, but we all acknowledge that the public eye is focused on summer sport once every four years and that’s at the Olympic Games. Everyone acknowledges that’s where you need to be and where you have to have your 200 percent game face on and not just your 110 percent."

Craig is hopeful his best 200 percent will be enough to help elevate in the American sports consciousness a sport whose hotbeds are such European Alpine centers as Switzerland and France.

"The Olympic race is a little more distilled, so there’s not as much weird stuff happening as there is when you have 270 starters at a European World Cup," said Decker. "At the Olympics there are only 30 or 40 in the race, so you’re not going to get stuck behind a crowd at the start.

"I wouldn’t bet everything on Adam winning a medal," he added. "But I wouldn’t bet everything against him, either."

As for Craig, he’s confident but not putting added pressure on himself by quantifying any Olympic expectations.

Still, there is a dream to be realized.

"I’m still trying to stay away from that actual goals thing," said Craig. "I feel like if I’m having the kind of day I’m pretty sure I can have, I should be in contention for a medal. It would be nice to get one of those.

"My mom’s already looked up what they look like on the Internet. She says they look real nice."
"This content originally appeared as a copyrighted article in the Monday, May 19, 2008 edition of the Bangor Daily NEWS and is used here with permission."

6th Annual Wild West Weekend

What a great weekend despite the weather....
So..... I just wanted to convey to you all how much I appreciate Chief Roy, Officer Warren Akkerman (Dexter 10) and other Dexter officers, Jasper & Dicky of the Highway Dept, Duke & Eric of facilities for all the hard work & support they gave me and DRDC and the town during 6th Annual Wild West Weekend.

Every time something was requested or needed, they responded quickly and went above and beyond the call of duty!

Kuddos! The Town of Dexter is very fortunate to have such dedicated employees......

Despite the rain and strange weather, everything went very smoothly.

Dexter Historical Society had another "record" day at the museum on Saturday, Key Club made over $600 in the various sales, Catholic Church Jail & Bail was a huge hit, Food vendors ran out of food, pie sales sold out, amazing amount of people in the Costume Contest & Pig Scramble and the list goes on....
So once again, many thanks......

Judy Wilbur Craig and DRDC

Budget Week #2 done

We finished week #2 of the "budget marathon". Monday night we met with the Department Heads of the Golf Course, Cemetery & Parks, Events & Special Programs (which included the new Alternative Energy Committee and Snowmobile) and the Fire Department.
Tuesday night we met with Mike Delaware who heads up a lot of Departments including care of the Town Hall, Morrison Building (where the Town Office is located on Main Street), Facilities and Lakes & Dams. Phew, poor guy!

First off, I would like to commend the Fire Department for putting together a comprehensive budget with the help of Finance Officer Marilyn Curtis. The FD just had the unexpectedly loss their Chief Jim Gudroe and new Chief Barry Deering had never put together a budget. He came with 3 other fire members and they worked as a team and their presentation was well researched and sincere. Kudos guys!

Another first timer was Cemetery Sexton Fred Banks (former Councilman). We teased him about being on the other side of the 'table'..... But he did a good job with his presentation. He is running into the usual "we need to replace this or that" but all in all presented his case well with forethought.

The biggest problem that all municipalities across the country are experiencing is the rising cost of heating fuel, gas, lubes, etc. Can you say 'guessestimate'? Right now there is no way to even know what the "locked in" price is going to be. So we take this years, about double it and hope for the best. With our old big historic buildings, it is going to mean cutting back in other areas. But where?

Everyone will have a different answer! Cut the parks..... cut the town hall... cut the golf course.... cut wages..... cut, cut, cut.... But what makes sense for the big picture?

Once again, we invite you to get involved and voice your thoughts!

On another note, flowers for downtown....

Tomorrow morning, Mike and/or his guys are coming here to get the benches (too heavy for me to lift) to put on Main Street and then head on down to Snap of the Dragon to pick up the 15 barrels that will go out on Main Street.

Then on Friday evening, Darlene and I are going to plant annuals in the Heart Garden, the Wayside Gazebo Garden, Town Office garden and up at the Cannon for the Memorial Parade celebration. Oh yeah and the police station window boxes!!!! Christine wouldn't forgive us, if we forgot her :)

Stop by with a trowel if you would like. We enjoy the company and the help!

Town Budgets

At the last Town Council meeting, many young adults were in attendance, most for the very first time. After the meeting some gathered at the same place I stopped at and they had LOTS of "civic" questions.

IE: Can we vote during a meeting?... How do you get elected?... Can we do this or do that during a meeting?... and many other very pertinent questions to do with our town.

It was refreshing, that although there was standing room only during the meeting, many of the young adults stayed throughout the meeting, even after their subject had come and gone.

One said to me after the meeting, "I found it very interesting and want to come again". I told Councilman chairman Brawn, a former civics teacher, he would have been proud to hear the interest from them. It was like Local Government 101. I reminded these young people that now is the time to become aware, because they are the future of Dexter!

So on to the subject at hand, it is "Budget Time" once again! When you run for the council, you know that the months of May and June each year, you have at least 2 meetings per week, in addition to ALL the other meetings we attend. There is a lot of reading, learning and going over figures to familiarize yourself with each department and how & where every tax dollar is going to be spent. Hours are spent agonizing what project is more important than another, to keep the budget in check.

Another thing to take in consideration are the fixed costs that are rising faster than tax dollars! re: heating costs, insurances, pay increases, schools, county, etc. We have no say, we just pay!!!!!

Last week was our first week, covering on May 13 "Police – Recreation – Community Center" and on the 15th "Assessing – Museum/Grist Mill – Economic Development".

Tonight Council Budget workshop, 6:30 p.m. at Council Chambers covering Golf Course – Cemetery & Parks – Events & Spec Programs* - Fire * Includes Alternative Energy and Snowmobile.

At each meeting the Department head of each department presents to the Council their proposed budget for the next Fiscal year. (Dexter's fiscal year runs from July 1st to June 31st).

How it works:
Department Head plead their case for new equipment, capital improvements, tazors, fire trucks, computers, etc. ...... and with that information, we have to provide you, the citizens, a balanced budget that includes the school budget, the county tax, state tax levies, cost of living, and guess the rise in fuel costs and insurance rates for both employees and buildings/vehicles.

I feel I bring to the table a good balance. I am a single low income woman and I want my tax dollars to get more "bang for the buck", especially for children and senior citizens. When I hear that the leased golf course needs a hole alignment, I wonder "aloud", is this more important than childrens programs at the Town Hall?

More people should come to town meetings including council meetings, planning board meetings, budget meetings, etc. My feeling is, don't keep on bitching if you have not come and spoken your piece! You have to realize that the council may not have heard your point of view, and it might change the way some of them vote.

Come to meetings... It is FREE to come & FREE entertainment to benefit both you and your community~

Become involved..... Ask questions!

This is the schedule for upcoming
budget meetings

New Babies

I wanted to update you on my little Emma...

I took Emma a week ago to Holly's (my friend and breeding co-owner who lives in Arundal) to deliver the pups. We thought she needed to be there for a few days before the deliver to adjust (without me).

Holly called on Thursday night just after 9 pm and said "if you are coming to see the delivery, you better come now"

I called Courtney to come and get Meg (my black lab), threw my overnight bag in the truck, and off I headed on my 2 3/4 hour trip to Arundal.

I was almost there when Holly's husband called me on the cell and said, meet Holly at the vet's! Thank goodness I knew the general vicinity of Dr. Hutchinson, as I had been with Holly a few times when Emma was born.

I walked in at 12 :05 am or so and baby #1 had just been born, but #2 wasn't budging. Emma was soooo excited to see me, that she almost "pooped" the baby #2 out right, then and there.
#3 baby was going to take awhile, so Dr. Doug gave Emma various shots, we wrapped her up in a big blanket, the 2 babies in another and they placed 'em in my arms and off we went to Holly's house (which fortunately is only less than 10 minutes away. I kept thinking, omg, is she going to deliver right in the car???? But I tried to stay calm.. ya right!

When we got back to Taylor Made Yorkies (Holly's) Emma was put in the whelping box with a heat pad for the babies and we waited.... at 1:30am or so, puppy girl #3 started and it was scary. She too didn't want to come out, like girl #1, but when she did, she didn't want to breath regular. Holly, who has delivered LOTS of yorkie pups, knew just what to do! We rubbed, rubbed and rubbed some more on #3, then tossed her around and fed her a special bottle and all of a sudden #3 came around. Now she is one piggiest of the 3 girls :)

Delivering healthy little dogs is more work than you expect!

Emma is doing well as a new mother despite the fact that she is a bit spoiled. After the birth and we tried to go to bed a 3:30 am, Miss Emma was heard to be screaming for me and waking all the other dogs and humans. Finally, I went down and stayed with her to settle her in until almost 5:30 am. Friday night she slept much better.

I took this picture of Emma and her 3 girls later on, but on delivery day....

They are still doing very well, although Emma needs a bath desperately, she wont be getting that until the end of the week. She needs and wants to be with her babies other than to go out for a minute to do her 'business".

It was eventful to watch my little girls birthing process. Kinda scary too!

They all will be coming home to Dexter in a week or so until the new parents pick up the babies. We talk about that at a later date.
Judy

Great Job guys during the rain storm

Let it rain, let it rain, let it rain...... and it did on Tuesday night!
I went to the Snap of the Dragon at 4:15 pm and the ditches and fields were rising, but within an hour on the way home, drain/ditch water was were starting to edge out into the roadways.
The Abbott Dam and the town dam were flowing with brown crashing cascades of water! All that in an hour.
When I got home, I had the scanner on listening to our highway, facilities and police all talking quickly to the dispatcher. The dispatcher was relaying messages of flooded roadways faster than Officer Emerson could get from one to another.
I heard Highway supervisor Mike Delaware instructing his crew from on flooded out road to another and the Chief radioed in and said he was there to help with his own truck, what could he do?
At one point, the funniest thing said, was Officer Emerson saying to dispatch, "Could you call the DOT boys and ask them if they will come out and play with us tonight?"
Road after road were being closed, barricaded and/or warned about.
With all that said, I just want to say, "great job guys"! I was proud of our Town crews and want to say thanks for a job well done!

Hi I'm back...................

Over the past few weeks I have been thinking of clever things to say in my blog to get back on track again, but as soon as I get out of bed, come down stairs, my cleverness slips away!
Things like "the long winter is over and with spring comes throwing open the windows and airing out the cobwebs in the home and in the brain".
While laying in bed it was much more eloquent and the words flowed, but there is something about going from horizontal to vertical in the early morning, dogs waiting with legs crossed to get outside, and trying not to fall down the stairs, that make any great thought vacate the brain by the time I hit the bottom step!

So... how about that winter??????? Holy catfish it was long and lots of snow.
Other highlights of my winter, I had the flu for about 3 weeks, (thought I was going to die), my back went out for weeks (wanted to die), and I got the end of the winter blues!!! All that was intermingled with more snow blowing and shoveling than the past 4 years all put together.

Now I think Judy Wilbur Craig is back again with the spring air, flowers and the green grass! Phew, I made it out on the other side, how about you?

Other notes: My little Emma Mae, (Yorkshire Terrier) is expecting and due around the 10th of May. This will be her first litter, so we are very excited.

I was sworn in to the Dexter Town Council in January and that has been busy. The next month or 2 is budget time for the Council so we will be very busy. I encourage citizens to attend the Budget process and see how it is done.

The Green Thumb Society which consists mostly of Darlene and I are readying barrels for Main Street for the end of May.
Last week Darlene and I cleaned the debris from the Dexter perennial gardens, ie: Wayside Park in front of the Gazebo, the Town Office Garden and the Heart Garden in front of the Post Office.
I will write more on that later, but will say, volunteers anyone?

Tourtiere Pie

Now that the holidays are over, it is time to update my blog.
Christmas was great here on Number 10. My daughters came home for the holidays which makes it perfect.
My girls and I never have much money, but we always buy lots of food and drink and share with family and friends, and this year was no exception.
Tiff and I went to P&L Market on Monday morning and picked up our various meats and other specials, followed by a trip to Buds Shop'n Save for the rest of the holiday ingredients.
They went to East Corinth on Christmas Eve which gave me a chance to start cooking for a family dinner that night and the next day.

While they were gone I made 4 Tourtiere Pies from scratch and what a hit they were with all our guests on Christmas night open house. No need to buy them when they are so easy to make! Get your fresh ground pork and beef at P&L!!! They make it to order while you wait!

Next I started on a "verbal" recipe for lasagna rolls that Holly Clukey Cleary makes, but mined turned into a huge pan of spinach/sausage lasagna with 6 cheeses... YUMMM
My brother and his girlfriend Dianne, his son Jonathan and girlfriend & baby, Jen, Tiff and I mound down on garlic bread, lasagna and cocktails. FUN...

Christmas morning started out whipping up my triple batch of homemade rolls (my brother says it is not a holiday without those), and on to making Balsamic glazed Brussel sprouts with fresh garlic and bacon, basmati rice with goat feta and fresh spinach and almonds, carrot/pineapple salad with raisins. I was just whipping out food with no recipes, only with the Christmas spirit as my guide. Love it when it all comes together. My daughter asked at one point if I felt if I was the Christmas slave? I gave her a resounding NO! I was having fun!!!

People brought all kinds of yummy sweets, so there was no need to make dessert.

OH yeah, and I roasted a 28 pound turkey stuffed with garlic sausage stuffing that I threw out because it was freezer burned and didn't want to serve it. Guess 2 years is too long to keep a turkey in the freezer. Lesson well learned!

Family, neighbors and friends gathered throughout the day on Christmas and Christmas night to eat and drink and be very merry! Wonderful Holiday!!!

Oh yeah, on the way out the door, my brother Steve, Alan and Dianne grab a Tourtiere Pie and a whole pan of rolls and headed across the road with the goodies. They were trying to sneak it by us, but......... That was a good laugh... but was one of things "you had to be there".

Who needs lot of presents when you can share good food, good drink with good friends?
Hope you had a similar Christmas.