Sunday, May 31, 2009

" Changes "

Well I did it. I was getting a little bored with my previous blogger background and decided to change it. Change is good and inevitable. I could not have done it without my daughter Ginny and her boyfriend Daniel. Two people who are very well versed in computer lingo!

I searched for weeks for a background previous to their arrival. When I came across this particular background not only did I really like it but it was so freaky coincidental that I knew I had to have it. I will explain. The name of the background is "Aunt Belles 1950's Tablecloth". Here's the freaky part. I have this exact tablecloth that was given to me by my husbands aunt. Can you guess the rest? Her name was Isabelle, and all of her nieces and nephews called her Aunt Belle! Life is stranger than fiction, which is why I love reading non-fiction over fiction. By the way there is a very good movie called " Stranger than Fiction " starring Will Ferrell, who I am not overly fond of but an excellent movie non the less.

It has been a wonderful yet exhausting weekend. I have many pictures and stories to share but am much to tired to share them now. Stay tuned for all the skinny!

Wednesday, May 27, 2009

" Day Late And A Dollar Short "

I was going to post this yesterday but got carried away with my work. This is very usual for me!
Can someone please identify this lovely flower for me? It was one that was given to me by one of my lady friends that I used to workout with. It had already bloomed last year when she gave it to me so I couldn't identify it in any books from the library. This is the first time it has bloomed for me. Very pretty, but would like to know what it is.


After dropping Katie off at school this morning (only two more days) I went right to work back in the yard. I still have quite a few weeds to pull. But I'm almost there! As I cleaned up the garage a bit, I pulled out the old metal chairs and gave them all a hosing down.

Now if I can only find the time to repaint them all! Something I was supposed to do last week when I was sick. Maybe they'll get done and maybe they won't !

Changes are coming soon. I am going to redo my blog this weekend. I found everything that I want to have on it and almost gave it a try myself but I still get a little nervous about it. I'm so afraid of clicking on the wrong thing and poof, it's gone. My Katie knows how to do it. I told her yesterday that I would give her five dollars if she would do it for me. At first she was all for it. Then when she discovered that it wouldn't work the super fast way that she wanted to do it, she told me to just forget it and I could wait for Ginny to do it. So I took my five bucks back!
Update
I did manage to get one of the chairs painted before it started to rain yesterday. Hurray for me! If it's rain free today perhaps another?

Katie is starting to get excited about graduation. Katie rarely shows her emotions, but I can see it. They aren't doing anymore work in school and are just watching movies and goofing around. I told her that this last week of school she is basically just a money maker for the school district from the state! But she is having fun. And I do remember those last days of eighth grade and how cool we all felt! Only to be quickly demoted from this feeling the first day of freshman year! Things are very different now. Katie's class can basically wear what they want to graduation as long as it falls within the dress code guide lines. Katie will be wearing a casual black dress with white polka dots over black leggings. I'm sorry, I think that they call them something else now but I can't think of what it is. With that she will be wearing her converse shoes. I wore, in 1972, a very, very floral mini dress with white patent leather baby doll shoes! When I look at the pictures I can't help but laugh as my feet looked huge in comparison to my twig like legs under my blue graduation gown! I only weighed 95 lbs. I don't know what happened!

Today is Katie's last full day. Her class gets out early tomorrow. I am praying that I have the energy to keep up with the weekend and especially Saturday. We are all going out to eat after the graduation on Saturday and then coming back to our house for cake. Kate has invited 5 friends over to spend the night and of coarse our family will be here along with a few old friends of Ginny's that are in town visiting. I am very fortunate to have a husband that is very helpful and I will be relieved and happy to see him. He should be home tonight. He doesn't know that the girls are spending the night yet! All six teens! Oh well, hope daddy's in a good mood.

Today I have just a few things to do in the house and I am pretty much done. I am going to meet a friend for lunch today that I worked with years ago. It will be a nice time out from the work.















" Another Big Day "


Today is another big day in our lives. Today is my daughter, Virginia Anne's, Birthday. She prefers to be called Ginny. When she was little, I would call her Ginger peach when she was good. Ginger snap when she wasn't so good. The latter was rare. Twenty - eight years ago today she was born. She has blessed my life in so many ways over the years. Ginny has been a constant,ever illuminating light in my life. She has lifted me up when I have been down. She has made me laugh when I wanted to cry. She has cheered me on in any endeavor I have tried. She has given me more pride then I could have ever dreamed I could feel. She has made me feel special when I thought I was ordinary. But I think most importantly, she has made me feel that I must have done something so right to be blessed with such an extraordinary human being in my life. She is special beyond any words that I could possibly come up with. So to my intelligent, loving, caring, compassionate, and truly heart and soul beautiful daughter, I love you Ginger Peach, Happy Birthday!

Monday, May 25, 2009

" Down To The Wire!"

Five more days. Five more days until Katie's graduation. Five more days
until we get to see our other daughter Ginny again. Five more days until party time! I worked nearly all day in my yard today, weeding, transplanting,weeding, raking, weeding, and cleaning. I worked until my knee hurt so bad that I had to take a pain pill. Then I wanted to work some more and it started to pour rain. Funny how God can have his way with us isn't it?! I did manage to get more done than I had planned and when I decided to get greedy about it I heard the thunder!




Yesterday the first Hollyhock opened up. They are supposed to be black but are actually, upon close examination, a deep, deep purple. And something is really eating at the leaves. I will have to spray it when the rain stops. I also got to play witch yesterday. At least that's what it felt like as I concocted a squirrel repellent recipe that I acquired off of the Internet. You know that a squirrel is just a rat in disguise. It's all about image. Make their tails all furry and puffy and we think how cute they are. They are cute all right, until they start ripping out all of my flowers and plants that I just planted! So as I stood over my stove yesterday concocting the very strong smelling all natural squirrel repellent, I couldn't help but do my loud witches laugh that my husband loves hearing me do. When it was all finished and cooled, I put it in a spray bottle to put it to the test. Now don't you worry, it's not poisonous, they just don't like the taste or smell of it. I sprayed it on and around the flowers and plants that I had to replant after the critters destruction, as per the directions. Lo and behold when I woke this morning and went to investigate my plants, not a one had been disturbed! You must reapply once a week and after rain. uh-oh , rain, it rained. I must hurry out to the yard tonight in the dark and respray my plants!



And here we have a photo of me, I mean the squirrel! Squirrel repellent as follows: To one quart of water add one finely chopped onion. Two finely chopped Jalapeno peppers . One tablespoon of red pepper and one tablespoon of paprika. Heat until it just comes to a boil. Don't forget to cackle loudly. Turn down heat and simmer for 25 minutes. Remove from heat and cool completely. Strain. Cackle. Pour into spray bottle and spray on and around plants as you cackle loudly.





And finally this evening I leave you with Katie and her new do. As you may or may not know she was not happy with the blue streaks. so she opted for a bright Auburn. She's happy, I'm happy that she's happy, Jake's happy that I'm happy that she's happy. We're all happy. Because when Katie's not happy, mama's not happy and when mama's not happy, ain't nobody happy!
Goodnight All!

Saturday, May 23, 2009

" Saturday Salutations "

I wanted to post yesterday but was just too busy. First thing yesterday morning I went to court with my daughter-in-law, Amy. It seems that when my granddaughter Sarahs school bus was waiting for her, and she went around the bus to get on, this crazy lady decided that it was perfectly acceptable to race around the bus almost striking Sarah. She started to run off the road and just continued on. Thank the Lord that Sarah wasn't hit. Her mom was right by her and let Sarah walk around the bus by herself this time as Sarah wanted to be a big girl. The bus driver was so shaken up that she didn't get the drivers license plate number but Amy did. So they filed a complaint and she and the bus driver went to court as witnesses yesterday. Amy and Jack were both sick, so I went with to help with Jack and for support for Amy. The woman plead guilty and was fined $200.00 plus court costs, with three months supervision. Personally I don't feel that it was enough, especially since she had prior incidents with her driving record and had been driving on an out of state license for some time. But I am not the judge, isn't she lucky?

Speaking of wanting to be a big girl, my Katie wanted to put a few blue streaks in her hair after getting a really cute cut yesterday afternoon. I agreed with the streaks as she is trying to find her identity at this stage of her life. This process involved a little bit of bleaching and then blue dye, which I will tell you now, gloves or no gloves,will turn your hands blue! I did the bleaching and then Kate wanted to do the coloring. Ultimately we ended up doing five streaks. Katie was too impatient to leave the bleach in as long as recommended so she went ahead and washed it out. Then she put the dye on. I quickly discovered that she missed several spots and had to finish the job. By the time it was done and she dried her hair it was 8:45p.m. While this may not seem late to you, I am almost in bed at this time. Katie at that time informed me that she didn't like it at all. Well, so much for individuality! I was too tired and it was too dark for me to even see the streaks. I told her I couldn't even tell that we did them and she told me that I can't see anything anyway! WELL! Then I told her that I was too tired to deal with anymore hair drama for the night and we would deal with it tomorrow. Stay tuned for updates! This photo is not my Katie. I just wanted you to see what she wanted!

One final thing before I am off on my busy Saturday. I know I missed Friday favorites, so I am going to post it today. The following photo is my shadow box hanging in the dining room. It was given to me from my husbands aunt, nineteen years ago. Everything on it I found at garage sales or was given to me. It is one of my favorite things.
Happy Memorial Day to all!






Thursday, May 21, 2009

" So Far So Good "

Well it may be a little to soon to tell as I woke far too early this morning (4:00 a.m.) but I am feeling much better today. Thank you everyone for your prayers and well wishes. It may have been what did the trick!

As I said yesterday, at least I think it was yeste
rday, you know what fever can do to your brain! Katie woke up on her own and got ready for school. She is going to do it for the rest of the school year (five more days) and I think it's good practice for her.

I didn't think she could do it but she got me to cry Monday. When I picked her up from school she was carrying her cap and gown. As she entered the car she said "Mom your gonna cry." Then I said " I doubt it, I'm reall
y too sick to cry right now." And I did feel awful at the time. I started to drive the few blocks home as usual as she proceeded to unwrap her cap, gown and tassel. Well she held up the tassel that had a little charm on it that said "09" and she said "Look it's made out of real metal, not cheap plastic!". Well that silly statement and looking at the tassel started to choke me up. You know when you are a woman it doesn't take much! I started to cry a little but quickly realized that I needed to see where I was driving so I wiped my few tears out of my eyes. And then little miss "I'm fourteen and know everything" said to me " I told you that you were going to cry.".

I received an interesting text message from my husband that I'd like to share with you this morning. It reads as follows, " Heard on the news they checked someone into the psych ward wearing just a thong riding a goat. I'll come get you but this is the last time!" Isn't he romantic!

If you've read Teresa's blog "Do the Write Thin
g" you will notice that it has changed and I think it looks beautiful. In her last post there were pictures of a cottage on the ocean. This brought back to me one of my favorite dreams. We all have them. And although mine will probably never actually happen I still like to daydream from time to time that it does. I would love to live in a house or cottage on a beach on the ocean. I have had frequent dreams about this over the years and am especially fond of books that take place in that setting. There is one particular house in a Diane Lane/Richard Gere movie called " Nights in Rodanthe". The house in that movie is amazing to me. And I very much enjoyed the movie. It's a great chick flick. I wouldn't dream of asking my husband to watch it with me. Way too much estrogen for him! If you haven't seen this movie, I would suggest watching it alone or with a bff and a box of tissue handy. Interesting tid bit, Rodanthe is in North Carolina where my daughter lives,MMMmmm.

This is a photo of the house from the movie. So if you have some time to spend in the house for whatever reason, check out this movie if you haven't already. And don't forget to keep on dreaming!







Wednesday, May 20, 2009

" Rambling "

Well oh boy I'm sick! I'm am trying to go with the flow here and Kate is being somewhat cooperative with my plight. I don't know what I have. I never know anymore. Is it a flu? If so what kind? Bird, pig, dog? I don't even know if there is a dog flu. My guess is that I'm just sick. I slept about for four and a half hours yesterday which I am sure my fever appreciated. It seems to be gone this morning. But don't cry for me, I don't let anything get me down for long. I was very proud of Kate this morning as she woke up on her own! I told her that I was going to sleep in and that I would take her to school. Wow she did it! Don't I sound like I'm talking about a four year old? It is a milestone.

Since I am sick with whatever it is, I feel that I have earned the right to ramble today. I think that I am good at rambling. Even my photos today have no particular theme as I am feeling somewhat hallucinogenic. The above photo is my pet cemetery. My husbands sweet little Kitty "Buttons" is buried there as well as my beloved kitty "Zippers". Zippers was my favorite kitty ever. She got her name because she would zip very quickly back and forth through the house. I still miss her. The flowers growing in there, I believe are Primrose. I'm not really sure though. You see there was this wonderful woman that I used to work out with everyday. Her name was Joanne. She was widowed and had a wonderful garden. It's what she spent all her time on. One day she told me to come over to her house and she would give me some plants. When I arrived she gave me a box to hold. Then she proceeded to dig out plant after plant telling me their names as she went. I wish I had grabbed a pen and paper as it was impossible to remember every plant that she threw in the box! The ultimate out come was that I have several beautiful plants in my yard and have no idea what they are! I have managed to identify some of them but the rest I guess will just have to be a surprise. I really miss working out with Joanne, but she messed up her knee and had to give it up.


This next photo is of my little cell phone case that I crocheted. There are little beads on the flap as well as dangling from the bottom. I made one for Katie that was covered in buttons from my button collection. I really miss crocheting all the time. I need to go and get some shots in my hands again but they just don't last very long anymore. Of coarse I do take advantage when I get them and crochet until the shots wear off! They say there is a surgery that can be done that may or may not help, but I guess I'm just chicken.

I just finished a book my mom gave me by James Patterson. It was a pretty good light read called " Sam's Letters to Jennifer ". And I just started another book by Madeleine L'engle called " Two-Part Invention The Story of a Marriage " which I am very much enjoying so far.

O.K. one last thing for today and then I am going to make myself some tea and maybe some soup. Oh wow I forgot that I bought peas, I wonder if I have enough energy......Never mind. I promised Jenny from "Rainy Day Optimism" that I would post a recipe for Zucchini Fritters as she is growing zucchini.
Zucchini Fritters
Vegetable oil
1/2 cup milk
1-egg,lightly beaten
1-cup of flour
1 and1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 of a 1-oz. pkg. hidden valley ranch dip
2-cups shredded zucchini
Fill deep fryer or skillet with oil to 2 inch depth. Heat to 375 degrees. Meanwhile combine milk and egg in mixing bowl. Stir together dry ingredients and add to egg mixture; blend well. Fold in zucchini. Drop batter by rounded teaspoonfuls into hot oil. Fry until deep golden brown, turning once. Drain on paper towels thoroughly.

Alright I am done for the day. I am too tired to ramble anymore. I plan on being over this by tomorrow.

































































































































































Monday, May 18, 2009

" An Old Friend "


As I was leaving church this morning, had a little secretary work to do, I ran into an old friend of mine. I have some fond memories of this fine feathered fellow. At least in my mind he's a fellow! I didn't always have pleasant memories of this fellow. oh no, quite the contrary. First I have to say that I'm really not sure if he is the same bird whose path I crossed a couple of years ago. But if he's not, he must be a family member as his habits are the same as those of the bird that was there when I was the church custodian.
Back then I had more energy. My hands, hips and knees didn't hurt as much from the arthritis like they do now. I loved cleaning the church. I used to be a perfectionist. I still am in my mind. It's my body that won't allow me that anymore.I received great satisfaction from keeping everything as clean as I could. I especially loved cleaning the sanctuary. I felt as though I had my own personal time with our lord and the added bonus that I was actually doing something for him. Maybe it sounds silly,but it was how I felt.
One of my responsibilities as custodian was to keep all of the windows clean. That was a daunting task. I had this fantastic squeegee that worked really, well but it still was very time consuming. One time the streaks on one of the sanctuary windows literally brought me to tears. Yeah, I was that bad. After experimenting with different window cleaners, I had found a commercial brand that worked pretty good.

One day when I came to clean, I had noticed lots of dead smashed and smeared bugs on the bottom of the glass sanctuary doors. I would clean the bugs off,which was not easy after they were baking in the sun for awhile, and then again a day or two later more dead bugs. Over and over. I really didn't know what to think. were these bugs trying to commit suicide? It was a mystery but what could I do, other then keep cleaning them off the windows. Over and over.
I remember one day in particular when I was mopping the hall floor. You must keep in mind, most of the time I was in the church by myself. I know for a fact that there are some people that don't like being alone in church for whatever reason. I however loved it. Cleaning for me has always been mindless work, so it was wonderful letting my thoughts wander to different places. Mostly I would have conversations with God. Very peaceful. On this day however I heard a knock,knocking in the sanctuary. Which from where I was cleaning was not visible. It's a shame in our world today that we have to leave the church doors locked. Except of coarse when there are meetings, activities and services. I remember as a young girl when all of the church's were left open and you could walk in anytime to sit and pray. Well the past is the past. Back to the knocking. Knock, knock, knock. I put my mop down into the bucket. Knock, knock, knock. I started heading for the sanctuary. Knock, knock, knock. O.K. I'm coming, I'm thinking as I round the corner to the sanctuary. Quietly of coarse, you never know who it could be. Apparently I was a pretty good sneak. He didn't hear or see me. The mystery was solved that day. I should have thought of it before. It was Mr. Bird. He was poking the bugs and using the window to smash and eat them!
It took me some time to get used to the mess that this bird would regularly make on the windows. It got to the point that when I would hear "Caw,Caw", I knew there would be another mess to clean yet again. And I don't really know when it happened, but I started to enjoy seeing him and hearing his " Caw ". It got to the point where he no longer flew off when he saw me, at least not every time. I suppose it depended on how hungry he was that day! After a time his mess of bug carcasses didn't even phase me. I started looking forward to seeing him.
Eventually I had to give up cleaning the church, which to this day I still miss. But at least from time to time I get to see my old friend.



Sunday, May 17, 2009

" Sunday Evening, Weekend In Review "

Right now as I am writing this, I smell like lavender and roses. Quite a stark contrast from an hour ago. My wonderful son, no I am not exaggerating here, he was a much more pleasant teen, came over this morning and mowed my yard for me. He also trimmed the yard and cleaned all of my gutters for me. Without any complaints! He is a very good son. After that I worked in my yard all day. I planted some begonias, coleus, cilantro and an azalea bush. I now have one whole section of my yard done. Only three more to go. It was a lot of fun playing in the dirt all day but I am now contentedly worn out!


As some of you are aware, I had some teen trouble yesterday. My Katie, for the most part is a good girl. But she had done something which I will not divulge out of respect for her. It was something that she knew she wasn't supposed to do. It was not a pleasant day in our household. To say the least. And really, all her father and I expected was a sincere apology.The apology finally arrived this morning in it's sincerest form. Life in our household is righted once again. For now!


I tried posting something that my other daughter, Ginny, had emailed me. Once again I couldn't get it right and since Katie wasn't allowed to use the computer at that time, it had to wait until today. Ginny too was a good teen. And I don't know what we did but she sent my husband and I the same text message today. It said " Hey mom and Jake. Just a note to say I love you guys. Thank you for being such awesome parents." We both received this text before Katie woke up and apologized
, the timing couldn't have been more perfect as I always have doubts about the job I am doing in parenting Katie.
So now here we go. This is what Ginny emailed me. I absolutely loved this. Hope you enjoy it too.






Thursday, May 14, 2009

" Little Orphan Roxy "



This will be the final installment of my pet profiles. I swear. If you have read my profile titled " Ruby's Story " parts one and two, you know that it was a difficult decision for me to acquire another dog. I had never wanted more than one dog. Roxy changed my mind.


One day last spring as I was working in my yard, I noticed this very happy yet motley looking dog prancing up my driveway. She was a small dog, looking undernourished with her spine clearly visible under her red, brown and black hair. It appeared that something was wrong with her long tail as it had no hair and there were strange marks on it. Unnatural marks.

I have a difficult time saying no to or turning away from anyone or anything that is need. However I also have learned that I can only handle so much responsibility, physically, emotionally and financially anymore. So when I saw this little dog my first thought was "Shoo, Shoo." And I believe those are the words that came out of my mouth. Truthfully, I could feel my heart aching as she ran off and out of my sight.

After the first day that I saw her, she returned to my yard a few times. I didn't know where she was staying or where she was from for th
at matter since she had no tags let alone a collar. No one in our neighborhood was looking or asking about a lost dog and I was finding it difficult not to pet her. It was quite clear that she wanted love, I could have been blind and still felt her need. Yet again I tried so hard to not think with my heart, and shooed her off once again.

The house across the street from ours is a rental. The people living there were moving out and the little dog went over by them. They seemed to like her which was no surprise to me. They even fed her. I was praying
that maybe they would love her enough to take her with them and she would have a home. She would follow them in and out of the house that day of their final move. As they left with their final truckload, I didn't see the little dog again. She had a new home! Or so I thought.

It seems that the older I get most of my days seem to meld into each other so I cannot honestly say how many days went by when again I was working in my yard and here she came, running up my driveway once again. This time I was happy to see her. She waited on my front porch as I went into the house and
brought with me some food and water. She ate ravenously as my daughter Katie and I sat and watched. And yes of coarse Katie wanted to keep her. My resistance to bringing her in was wearing thin yet I was still standing my ground on no more pets. I did however notice that she had fleas which didn't surprise me, so I sent Katie into the house for flea drops thinking that it is the least we could do.

It was time for me to drive Katie to school so we left the little dog on the porch knowing that at least she had a full belly and the f
leas would stop bothering her for awhile anyway. Katie and I got into the car and pulled out of the driveway to head towards school. As I started to drive down the street, I could see in my rear view mirror, the little dog was running as fast as she could to keep up with us behind the car down the middle of the street. As tears were streaming down my cheeks and she could no longer could keep up with the car, I needed to make a decision.

That same morning I had to go work at church. My pastor was there that morning and I explained my dilemma to him. It didn't take much of a push for me to decide that this was meant to be, which I had alrea
dy started to suspect.

When I left church I went straight home to see if she was still there. She wasn't on the porch anymore. As I pulled my car around the back of the house, there she was laying next to the garage. I didn't want to bring her in the house until I knew the fleas were gone. I have five cats and a dog that were flea free and I didn't want to take any chances! I found Ruby's old collar that she had out grown and put it around the little dogs neck so that I could tie her out in the yard for the time being. She would need a trip to the vet before I would feel comfortable enough to bring her in the house.

I went to pick Katie up from school and told her that we had to take the little dog to the vet. When we got home we got out the dog carrier and put her in it for our visit to the vet. As usual we had to wait a bit to see the doctor and the little dog just kept shaking nervously. Several people said that she looked like a little fox, which she did. They also noticed that something was wrong with her tail. As we were standing, waiting our turn to see the doctor, Katie asked me " Does this mean we're going to keep her?". To that I replied " Well I guess so.".

Our new little dog left the vets office with a clean bill of health. They guessed her to be about two years old. About the same age as our Pug, Ruby. And her tail? Well it seems that for some reason unknown to us, someone had shaved her tail with a razor. The hair has since grown out and it's long and beautiful. She has a wonderful disposition, sweet and loving. She is always trying to please and listens very well. That day that we brought her into our home, her home, Katie named her Roxy.





















Wednesday, May 13, 2009

" Seventeen Days "




We only have seventeen days left until Katie graduates eighth grade. Which is exciting in it's own right, but it's also only seventeen more days until I get to see my other daughter Ginny again. It seems like a long time since she's been back home. Six months. It will be a very busy weekend for us all. I just know it will speed by quickly so we will have to make the most out of every moment.

Katie will be traveling back with her sister Ginny and Ginny's loving counterpart Daniel, to Raleigh,NC. when the weekend is over. She will be staying with her sis for a week and I will have the house to myself for a week, yeah! I will miss Katie but I know she will have a great time with her sister and I am excited for her. The photo above was taken Saturday night when my granddaughter Sarah spent the night with us. Katie was spinning her around and around. The second photo was the after effect of the spinning. Do you remember spinning? Do you remember how much fun it was? I do. Unfortunately spinning is one of those things that I have grown out of. Not by choice.

I was fortunate enough to be able to spend some time with my son Frank and my grandson Jack today. Frank is on vacation this week and I went out to his house to play with Jack while Frank got a few things done around his house. It is one hundred and two years old and was the original bank of the small town they live in. It still has the original walk in bank vault inside with the giant vault door and wheel handle on the front. I wish I would have thought to take a picture of the vault while I was there. I'll have to try and remember the next time I'm there. Anyway we had a nice visit and Jack couldn't get any sweeter. I think he's going to be walking soon. Frank and I also plan to go camping together next month. Just he and I. Some mother son bonding! Wow, Katie graduating eighth grade, seeing my daughter Ginny again, having a week to myself and camping with my son. Seems like I have a lot to look forward to. God has blessed me and for that I am grateful. I am going to finish this blog tonight with a photo of Frank and I taken on Katie's confirmation last month and a photo of baby Jack. Goodnight and God Bless!









Tuesday, May 12, 2009

" F.Y.I. "


I know, you probably have been thinking that all I've been doing is laying around thinking about Burt Lancaster. Well for your information, I have been! Only kidding! I spent a few hours on Mother's Day putting a couple of coats of paint on my little deck. Then on Monday I spent seven hours finishing the deck and then painting the arbor, which is somewhat larger then it appears in this photo. It involved a ladder and lots of climbing up and down. My knees were so happy with me after that. Also the two horizontal rungs on the right side of the arbor where the baby robins were housed, I had to fix before I could paint. I was quite pleased with the results and myself. Speaking of the baby robins, I actually got to see one of them fly away Sunday when I was painting the deck! By Sunday afternoon the other two had left as well and we have seen them in the trees. That's why I decided to go ahead and fix and paint the arbor. In the second photo you can see how the rungs were barely hanging on anymore. And yes in case you were wondering, it was very hard painting around the roses. It's all good though. I'm just happy that I was able to do it and didn't fall off the ladder once! And you thought I was just sitting around daydreaming about Burt!

Sunday, May 10, 2009

" Try,Try Again "


O.K. lets try this again girls, and boys! It appears that I unsuccessfully posted a picture of my old boyfriend from high school yesterday, you know, Burt. It shows up fine on my end but apparently I did something wrong. In my defense it was my first try, and to think I was so excited when Burt appeared before my eyes! It was just like in high school, all of a sudden there he was! It was a very brief whirlwind affair, and then poof, he was gone! Just like on my blog! To make up for this silly faux pas, I had to reveal my secret love affair with Burt to my fourteen year old daughter Kate who in turn, realizing that her mother had a secret, yet devastatingly brief affair with someone so famous, helped me post a photo of Burt. Why don't I have my own photo of Burt and I from the days of our secret passion you ask? Tabloids silly! Tabloids! But you know,easy come easy go, they say. I am now very happily married to a wonderful man named Jake. Is he jealous of my precious time spent with my beloved Burt you ask? Of coarse he is and I wouldn't have it any other way. Why am I posting this story? Because it's just the kinda gal I am.

Saturday, May 9, 2009

" Happy Saturday "

I thought I'd blog a little this morning as it is the weekend and I probably won't get back to the computer much after this til Monday. I am waiting for the sun. They say it's supposed to be dry for a few days. I bought some paint for my little deck yesterday and am hoping to get it painted on Mothers day.

I have to take Katie to the Mall today. I am so dreading this. Lets just say that it's no fun clothes shopping with Katie. I am being nice here. Trust me. But on the bright side, my granddaughter Sarah is coming to spend the night with us. It will be fun having her here. I will be reading a lot of J
unie B. Jones tonight!

I hope that everyone has some sunshine this weekend, and moms or no moms, we all have one, Happy Mothers Day to all. I am going to leave you with a photo I just went outside to take. It is the Clematis in my yard. I had to take it quickly as it was starting to rain, again.









Friday, May 8, 2009

" Gloomy Friday "

Such a day, such a gloomy day. They say, those people with their doppler radars and other such toys, that we are to expect more rain. Thunderstorms woke me from my peaceful sleep last night. My room is upstairs, usually the sound of the rain on the roof, the thunder and snuggling under my great-grandmothers chenille bedspread makes for a peaceful nights sleep for me. Not so last night. I do believe the storm was right over my house.

There were a few minutes of sun this morning which made me slightly hop
eful. Thoughts of planting some more of my Canna bulbs today crossed my mind momentarily, then I listened to what those people said and once again my hopes were quickly snubbed out. These flowers are not Cannas. They are flowers growing in my yard that I haven't the slightest idea of what they are. It really doesn't matter because they are beautiful. Yesterday I was able to get 16 bulbs in and around my yard but still have many more to go. I suppose I could go out in the rain and the mud and give it a go. On second thought, NO.

I failed to mention in my last blog, that the desk that my doily is on, someone threw out. Yes they threw it out right next to their garbage. I think there was only one little scratch on it. You know what they say " One mans junk is another mans treasure ", Woman's in this case! I read this poem last night. It came out of a book called " When I Am An Old Woman I Shall Wear Purple ".


"Love At Fifty" By Marcia Woodruff


We come together shy as virgins
with neither beauty nor innocence
to cover our nakedness, only
these bodies which have served us well
to offer each other.


At twenty we would have dressed each other
in fantasy, draping over the damp flesh,
or turned one another into mirrors

so we could make love to ourselves.

But there is no mistaking us now.
Our eyes are sadder and wiser
as I finger the scar on your shoulder
where the pin went in,
and you touch the silver marks on my belly,
loose from childbearing.

"We are real," you say,and so we are,
standing here in our simple flesh

whereon our complicated histories are written,
our bodies turning into gifts
at the touch of our hands.


I thought that was lovely, didn't you? While Pixie makes herself comfortable in my bed it is getting darker and once again I hear thunder in the distance quickly approaching. This makes it hard to feel cheerful today. So I think I will just go and cuddle with my little dogs. Maybe we can cheer each other up.












Thursday, May 7, 2009

" This, That And The Other"

Alright, I'll admit it. I've had Blogger Brain Block. Go ahead, say that fast three times. Not so easy is it? My daughter Ginny, who writes for a living, says that you should write about what you know. This is funny to me because as I get older, I've come to realize that I really don't know much. And the older I get, what I do know, I forget, so this can be tricky! Ginny also suggested that I do a blog showcasing my crocheted items. I took a photo of one and then I didn't want to do it any more. So here is a photo of my favorite doily.

Crocheting was my favorite hobby. It still would be if my hands would allow it. It seems that arthritis doesn't care if you enjoy something or not, it's made it self at home in my hands,knees,feet and hips. So I can rarely indulge in my favorite hobby any more.

Since I have Blogger Brain Block, I decided that I would mention some things that I love and love to do. It's what I know, so here are a few of my favorite things. Now I will apologize if you have a certain song going through your head!

If you've read my blog at all, you know that I do not , I repeat, do not , like to bake or cook. What you don't know is that I love to make soups. All kinds of soups. I can make very good soups. My favorite is Split Pea. My husbands favorites are Potato and Beef Barley. This is something that I was born knowing how to do and do well. No recipe's involved. However I did watch people close to me in my life over the years and picked up some tips along the way.

Flowers are my favorite plants. I love flowers everywhere. I love flower patterned fabrics, which I would have more of if I didn't have a husband. But I do have to respect the testosterone! I really have no interest in growing vegetables, except for the fact that my husband always makes me grow tomatoes, all I would ever plant would be flowers. It seems I never tire of planting flowers.

I collect crosses. This is my latest collection that I still add to. I used to collect crochet books and magazines, of which I have hundreds. I stopped that collection because of above mentioned reason. I also have a collection of piggy's. I have little piggy's all over my kitchen. This collection made it very easy when my children were little and wanted to buy mom a gift! And this next collection I am consistently teased about. I collect wishbones. Chicken and turkey. I know it may sound weird but I have a pattern for a crocheted Victorian thimble holder, in which you crochet around a wishbone. I still have not made one but I have lots of wish bones "just in case". I know it's a little weird.

One of my favorite things to do is to get a movie that I want to see, buy a six pack of beer, make some popcorn, turn off all the lights and enjoy. This I like to do alone. And while I love watching movies with my family, it just feels like a mini vacation when I'm by myself.

Speaking of being by myself, I totally enjoy that as well. I didn't always. When my younger daughter, Katie, went with her dad over the road for a week once, I started to panic. I had never been alone, ever. After much thinking I realized that I should not focus on being lonely but enjoy having the house and time to myself. I discovered that week that I enjoy my own company! All I did all that week was sleep when I wanted, eat when I wanted and watch movies. I didn't do any dishes until I noticed the day before they came home that there were stacks of dishes all around my recliner. This was a major milestone for me as I cannot stand any dirty dishes lying around.

I have lots and lots of favorite movies. Too many to even mention if I were able to remember them all! But most of the ones that come to mind are "Inside Daisy Clover", "This Property Condemnded", "Splendor In The Grass", these three all star Natalie Wood who has always been my favorite actress. There are many newer movies that I enjoyed much but I must admit that I am a classic movie fan. In my mind there's nothing like that old time drama! And for the record my favorite actor has always been and always will be Burt Lancaster.

My favorite style is Victorian. My bedroom is completely, except for the air conditioner and tiny t.v., decorated in a Victorian motif. My daughter Ginny gave me the nicest complement about it saying that it looked like it came out of a page in a magazine. It is my private retreat.

O.K. now I am thinking about people. I love being around people that make me laugh and can laugh with me. I am forever an optimist and dislike being around pessimistic people. I think that most people take life much too seriously and that we should always look forward. My childhood was pretty bad. But I don't dwell on it, I use it to make me stronger. I love smiling and I just don't understand why more people don't. We are so blessed. All of us. Through all of the horrible things I have been through in my life, I realize, everyday that God has a plan for me. And while I don't know what it is yet, just the anticipation of it excites me.

So now you know a little bit more about me. No I'm not a very exciting person, just average. But I am happy, and my children are healthy. And I consider that to be one of the greatest gifts of all!








Tuesday, May 5, 2009

" Peanut Butter Picnic Cake "



O.K. you asked for it so here it is. " Peanut Butter And Jelly Cake "

1/2 cup margarine 1 tsp. salt
1 1/3 cups sugar 1 cup of milk
1/4 cup peanut butter 1 10oz. jar grape jelly or strawberry
preserves (I use grape jelly)

2 eggs peanut butter frosting(below)
1 tsp. vanilla

2 cups flour
1 Tbs. baking powder

Cream Margarine and sugar until light and fluff
y. Blend in peanut butter,eggs and vanilla.Add combined dry ingredients alternately with milk, mixing well after each addition. Pour into two greased and floured 8- or 9 inch layer pans.Bake at 350 degrees, 35-40 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Coll 10 minutes ( I wait a little longer) remove from pans. Spread 2/3 cup preserves or jelly between layers. Frost with peanut butter frosting, decorate with additional preserves or jelly.

Peanut Butter Frosting

1/4 cup margarine 2 1/2 cups sifted powdered sugar
1/4 cup peanut butter 3 Tbs. milk
1 tsp. vanilla
dash of salt


Cream margarine; blend in peanut butter, vanilla and sa
lt. Add sugar alternately with milk, beating until light and fluffy.

What a weekend it was. First off Jake never did make it home Friday and since Katie went out to her brothers house, I spent a quite e
vening alone. Wasn't to happy about that however I do enjoy my own company!

My husband did make it home on Saturday and mana
ged to mow our six inch long grass. Katie came home from her brothers house sick, and still is. I spent most of Friday evening and Saturday morning making ten pounds of potato salad and the above cake.

Sunday we went to church except for Katie. We were supposed to have an outdoor service but it was just too wet outside. Maybe next month! We had a delicious pot luck lunch and as usual went home not only full of the spirit but full of food as well.

Monday was somewhat more productive around our house. Jake and I put a new top on our deck and I actually got to use power tools! I don't believe that they are called power tools because they use electricity. They are fun and make me feel powerful!!!

Jake and I also spent most of the day sitting about 14 feet away from the Robin's nest. After we finished putting the new top on the deck ( I'm going to paint it next weekend) we spent the rest of the day and most of the evening watching the Robins.


We discovered that there are three babies. And we just watched as mom and dad took turns feeding them. And guarding them, however they seemed to pay us no mind even through the drill and circular saw noises!If you click on the photo above you can see all three of the babies and their different colors. Nature at it's finest!


I leave you this morning still sleepy from the busy weekend just like my friend above.





















Monday, May 4, 2009

" Such As It Is "


Well here is mama bird or actually it could be daddy bird as they have both been diligently taking very good care of the baby birds. I can't tell how many babies there are but I know there are at least two. Jake is so worried that the rung on the arbor will fall off. It's only being held on by one nail! The birds are used to us being there now but still are not wanting me to take photos of the babies. I feel like the paparazzi.




I had to sneak up to the nest while mama and papa were away, hold the camera up high where I couldn't see what I was doing and you can see if you click on this photo one of the babies lying down. You have to look closely, the beak is on the right of the nest. Don't worry I didn't use a flash!






Well I did it again. Yes as much as I dislike baking, I made a Peanut Butter and Jelly cake. My husband loves this but my Katie is allergic to peanuts so I haven't made it in 15 years! We had a potluck at our church yesterday so I BAKED, yuck!!!!!!!!







And here is a photo of my handsome husband, Jake, threatening to eat a bowl filled with 10lbs. of potato salad that I made, also for the potluck. Funny thing, he says I make the best potato salad he's ever had and I despise it! My friend at church asked me what it was about potato salad that I didn't like. After thinking for a minute I came to the conclusion that it's because I don't like cold potato's! I love German potato salad.



And finally here is a picture of Ruby. Just because she's cute! Asking me in her own way to play tug of war with her.

Friday, May 1, 2009

" And We're Off"

Well here we go again. Another crazy weekend. I am hoping and praying that my husband, Jake, makes it home today. I haven't seen him in two weeks although it seems longer. He needs to get home today, this afternoon, A.S.A.P.! Katie and her friend Becky are spending the night out at her brother Franks house. They get to camp out in his camper. How cool is that when you're 14!! So some alone time with Jake would be fabulous. There is however the possibility that he won't make it home today but tomorrow instead. Hold on a minute while I pray................Amen!

We have a lot of work planned for the weekend but those nasty weather people are saying it's supposed to rain all weekend. Do you believe them? I don't. My friend "Shelly" and I planned the outdoor service and pot luck this Sunday. But never fear food will always be there. Rain, snow, lightening, hail,or tornado's couldn't stop us from potluck. Well maybe tornado's. All I know is I have a lot of potato salad to make Saturday.

Oh and an update. I've been trying so hard to get a good photo for you but with all of these clouds, and hanging out of my upstairs window, I've not gotten a good one yet. The lighting, even with flash, just hasn't been good enough. The mama robin hatched two eggs (from what I can see). So far the teeny tiny little birdie's are doing fine. It's fun watching them feed!

Well I'm off! Got another crazy weekend to keep up with! I wish everyone a happy, dry, productive, lazy, fun, enlightening weekend!