THE LAST NICE SUNDAY OF THE YEAR ?

Well, the weekend of the big "Blogarita Festiva" is now a thing of the past. Hopefully it will become an annual event with some other family get togethers thrown in, like a picnic or something.

I understand that some of the lovely(?) ladies saran wrapped my garage door! Hubby is the one who found it at 3:30AM Sunday morning while trying to leave for work. He opened the garage door and his first thought was (remember it was very early in the morning and he was still a bit fuzzy from not getting enough sleep) 'what kind of a spider makes a web like that?' When he told me what his first thought was I couldn't help but laugh at him....sorry, hubby! So I didn't even get to see it. I am told that they took pics of it though and I can't wait to see the pics!!

I didn't get to hang out with the 'girls' very much due to the fact that another grandchild, Amber, was here for the weekend and she arrived from school with a temp of 101.3. So, I couldn't very well go over to Naive's
and leave a sick child here alone nor could I take her with me to infect everyone over there.

By Sunday, Amber was no longer feverish although she was still coughing, so we went for our ride to the lakeshore and walked on the beach. Then out to dinner and back to Amber's home to drop her off and then to stop at our son, Jeremy's home to have birthday cake and ice cream to help celebrate his 27th birthday.

Now I am anxiously awaiting new posts from Clew, Chesney Girl and Nelly to see what they thought of the weekend!

Miss you girls already!!!

This picture is for Drib.....

The girls had me take this picture for the Dribbler .......no offense intended. I can't post pics of their faces until I get permission from all of them to do so. Don't want any lawsuits on my hands!!! LOL So this will have to do for now....they all stopped by for a short visit with me while Naive was dropping Drew off so they could go out to lunch and, God only knows, what other mischief they were planning on getting into! I had a veggie tray and dip and some festive mini cupcakes waiting for them. You know, to tide them over until they reached their destination.

I didn't get to hang out with them last night because Amber came for the weekend and arrived with a temp of 101.3 and coughing. Maybe today she will be feeling better and Bumpa can stay with her while I spend some time with them scrapping. I sure hope so.....I want to get some more pictures for blackmail.....er, I mean for my scrapbook too!

One last walk on the beach!

This weekend is supposed to be lovely here in West Michigan. Sunshine and temps in the high 60's to mid 70's.

I would love to take a ride to the lakeshore with hubby and walk on the beach for one last time this year. I find walking on the beach very romantic and relaxing. All except for having to listen to the noises the gulls make trying to entice us to feed them something.

The ride to the lakeshore is always pleasant too. The way we take goes through many forests and small wooded areas and the colors should be beautiful with the sun shining on the different colors of leaves and foliage.

And another added bonus.....because it will take up most of the day, hubby will take me out to dinner! What more can a girl ask for on a beautiful autumn day!

Hope the rest of you have a great Sunday, too!

Been here and gone....where was I?

Hey, I just realized that I had an anniversary last month. On the 29th, I had been blogging for a whole year. It came and went un-noticed by me! How come I didn't remember...was I too busy, what was I doing that day?

Oh, that is the day of the cold air funnels over the Big Lake and the out of season tornado warning. No wonder I didn't remember.

I should have baked a cake or something to celebrate....oh well, too late now.

Happy Blogsversary to me.....a few days late!!

RIDE FOR COLOR!

October 1st and we went on our first color tour ride this season.

We took Amber with us and one of our nieces, Telyse. She is 9 1/2 but she and Amber have always played really well together and we thought if Amber had someone to help keep her occupied, she might not complain and get bored as easily. We were partially correct.....she didn't get as bored but instead of having one little girl to complain about things we ended up with two!

Fifteen minutes into the ride they complained that they were thirsty. I repeated to them that I had asked them if they wanted to bring something to drink along and both had told me "no". I guess I misunderstood. "No" meant they didn't want anything to drink that we had at home, they wanted us to stop and buy them something. I laughed and told them that they would have to wait. We would be stopping to have some lunch in a while and they could get something to drink then.

As we looked at the red, yellow, orange and mauve leaves, they played tic-tac-toe in the back seat and some other games. Hey, they were quiet and that was a good thing! Then they started talking about hearing stories of when their moms and dads were little and had to endure hours spent riding in the car and inevitably ended up arguing in the back seat. So they started THE GAME. You know, the one where one says "She's touching me, make her stop touching me!" and the other responds with "She's looking at me, tell her not to look at me!" When they are just playing it isn't so bad....but we know it always escalates into the real thing, don't we Moms and Dads?! Sure enough, that's exactly what happened...after one of them said "She's breathing my air!", I told them that is enough and to stop it and get along or we wouldn't be stopping for any food. Success! Now they weren't even speaking to one another.....ah, it was bliss.....nice and quiet for a few miles until they once again became friends and chatted amicably in the back seat for the duration of our outing.

We stopped and ate and then headed back to drop Telyse off at her house and then came home. Normally Amber would go home on Sunday evening so she wouldn't miss school Monday morning, but she doesn't have school Monday, so she will be staying with us and I will take her home sometime on Monday.....unless she talks me into one more night and I drive her to school on Tuesday! She's a good talker.......

Is it fall or summer?

Here in Michigan the weather is not very predictable.

It is the end of September and today in southwest Michigan where I live we were under a tornado warning. These are pictures of two different waterspouts within a 7 mile range of each other. The lower one on the left is the one that came on shore and headed inland triggering the tornado warning. The upper one on the right came on shore and quickly dissipated! Waterspouts that occur on the Big Lake this time of year are called cold air funnels. They are only upgraded to a tornado when they come on shore and intensify. Fortunately there was no reported damage from these storms.

Earlier this morning we had a frost and freeze advisory posted. And a couple of days ago the temp was 71. Heck, our high for today was only 57 degrees. So much for thinking that tornados only happen when the weather is hot and humid.

There is a saying about Michigan and the weather. "You don't like the weather, wait 5 minutes and it will change, but you still might not like it!"

At least it didn't snow!!

GOODBYE DEAR FRIENDS!

First, I want to thank all of you for worrying about me after my fall down the stairs. It has been almost a week, and I have recovered very nicely and can actually walk without any pain once again. I am fine, so you can all stop worrying now. LOL

One of my dearest friends is moving away. We used to get together every day for coffee and just to chat. We were each other's link to sanity. I moved away from the neighborhood that we both lived in just over a year ago, but still kept in weekly contact and still had our coffee and chats.

That will all end on Saturday morning.....early. That is the day she and her husband are moving out of state.

On Friday they will come over for a last get together. We will have something on the grill. Probably hamburgers since that is her husbands favorite food cooked on the grill. Our granddaughter Amber, will be here also. When she was younger, she use to go with me for the coffee klatches with my friend. She started calling them Grandma Maryann and Grandpa Del. Grandpa Del always played the tough, gruff guy, but Amber saw through all that and realized that he was just a big ole' softie at heart. Grandma Maryann just fell in love with Amber as she has no grandchildren of her own. They are giving Amber a 7 speed bike they picked up at an estate sale dirt cheap. It is a really nice bike. Amber will be thrilled with it. She will cry when they give it to her and she will cry when it is time to say good-bye to them. She is a very sensitive little girl. Grandma Maryann will cry too.....she always was a sucker for Amber's tears! And I wouldn't doubt it one bit if Grandpa Del claims to have gotten something in his eye at that moment too! ; )

I will hate to see them go too, but we will keep in touch and after all, it gives us someplace else to visit on vacation! See, there is a bright side to everything!!

Like toy soldiers, sometimes we all fall down!

Before y'all get to far into this and think your crazy.....you're not! Well, maybe you are but not about this. Yes, I changed the name of my blog from "MadHatter" to "In The Middle". Also the appearance is looking a little different, but it is still ME!

Now on with the story at hand.

As you noticed from the picture these toy soldiers have fallen down. I too have fallen. My fall was down the stairs Friday afternoon just before hubby got home from work.

I was talking on the phone, cradling the phone between my shoulder and ear while trying to fix some floral arrangement with both hands and walking down the steps. It is now obvious that I can't do more than one thing at a time, let alone attempting three things at once!

I first thought that I had broken my right ankle. It swelled and was quite tender but that subsided. Then I thought I had somehow injured my left knee. I landed on it after I twisted my ankle and fell. That also swelled and remains a little puffy yet today. And Saturday morning when I awoke I hurt almost everywhere. I didn't know I had so many places that could hurt! I was amazed that a simple fall could leave so many muscles aching so badly! A few years back, a fall like this would not have left me feeling so rotten for such a long period of time. I guess that's what happens when people get "old". Today is much better than Saturday but the major problem now seems to be my right hip. I don't even remember that hurting when I fell. I can't seem to find a comfortable spot for my hip when I try and lie down in bed to sleep. Consequently I remained awake most of last night. Hubby thinks he should take me to the ER but I refuse to go and tell everyone that I fell down the stairs. Besides, I'm sure nothing is broke so I really don't know what they could do except to tell me to be more careful and take it easy while the muscles repair themselves. I can tell myself that and save a bunch of money in the long run.

Y'all be careful, ya hear!!

Up a Creek......

So, here it is...almost autumn and then follows winter! Brrrrr.....the cold mornings and frosty air. This is all regarding the title of this post. The temperature dropped to a low of 42 degrees in the wee hours of the morning.
We have hot water heat in our home. We moved into our present home a little over a year ago. The boiler/furnace/heating source is not working properly. Hubby thinks we need a new one! We're only talking about $1500. and I'm not sure that even covers the installation or just the cost of a new system! I've been leaving reminders (ads from the newspaper) around as subtle (or not so subtle) hints that he needs to do something soon.

We have three different heating zones in our home, the lower level, the middle level and the upper level. Of course, the bedrooms are on the upper level and that is the zone that isn't working. Well, that isn't entirely true. I'm not quite sure how the zones are split, but it is our bedroom that doesn't seem to be getting any heat at all. With the temperature dropping into the 40's at night, our bedroom tends to get a little chilly come morning...... and that isn't very conducive for getting out of bed. It is much easier and more comfortable for me to linger under the covers a little longer than I should.

He called from work today and asked me to call a heating place in a nearby town. He said that hopefully they won't be that busy yet. HA HA HAHAHAHAHAH!

I called and they are....imagine that! The first opening they have is for 11:00 AM on October 11th. They took the information and we are now scheduled for that day. See what happens when one procrastinates!!

A Bad Situation Made Worse ~ Updated Fri. 9/23

I received an email from Amy today and she said they have started her on anticoagulant therapy. They believe that the "thing" is a tumor inside a blood clot. We will just have to wait and see what happens next. Thank you all for your prayers and support!! ;)



Meet my niece Amy. She is the one with the blue/gray top on. Her husband is next to her on her right and on her left is their daughter, Emily. On Emily's left is my sister that I went to visit in Denver. This picture was taken at my nephew's wedding reception.

Amy was diagnosed with Cystic Fibrosis last year at the age of 36. She is now 37 1/2 and has been on constant antibiotics to combat the ever present lung infections, a complication of the CF. She even had a 'port' implanted in her chest earlier this year to deliver the antibiotics intravenously for better results. The port had to be removed last week. She was having chest pains and the ultra-sound showed that it had somehow shifted and was now resting on her heart. They pulled the port in the out-patient surgery department of the local hospital where her Pulmonary Doctor practices. A blood clot had formed but was dissolving on its own. But there was still something there.......they thought perhaps a tumor.

She had an MRI done early in the day on Wednesday and it showed that the "thing" (for lack of a better name to call it at this point) had grown 1 cm in a weeks time! They have decided to treat it with drugs at this point and recheck in less than a week and see if there is a noticeable improvement. If it is no smaller or if it is larger they will see if they can go in to remove it. This alone is a very dangerous thing to do to a woman whose health is already compromised. They aren't sure that her lungs will hold up for any lengthy procedures or operations. It this "thing" turns out to be malignant, there is nothing they can do for her.

Please pray for her and her family!

Three Musketeers + One

Well.....it won't be long now! Just a couple more weeks before Clew, Nelly and Chesneygirl show up in Southwest Michigan at Naive's home for the first 'Cackling Locust' get together! It should be interesting!

And I should probably keep them in line somewhat....but how? I really don't think my 'spanking stick' that I use to keep hanging in my kitchen will do the trick. I'm sure threats won't work either. Ame suggested I get a video camera and hide it in Naive's house....sounds like a good idea to me. Maybe if they just think that there is one hidden there capturing every funny and out-of-line thing they do it will be enough of a deterrent to keep them on the straight and narrow......NAW....I don't think even that would do it!!

I can only attest, first hand, to Naive's shenanigans of the past. Although, I have read plenty of Chesneygirl's antics on her blog....something about not remembering some happenings in the pits of the MIS. And I have spoken with Clew many times and learned some of the things she did while growing up. Nelly is a different story. I've not heard about any stunts she has pulled.....maybe I should have a chat with her sister! Don't worry, I plan on taking plenty of pictures myself. Since Naive lives so very close (less than a mile from me) I can just pop over there, camera in hand, at any given hour and start snapping away and be gone before they even realize I was there....heeheehee! This could prove to be a very profitable adventure for me. I wonder just how much each will be willing to pay to have me not post them on my blog? What? What's that you say? You say that's blackmail!?! I like to call it 'security for my old age'!

WHAT A DAY!!

Well, it's been quite a day and I can honestly say I'm glad it is over and doubly glad that tomorrow is a new day.

My day started out early at 7:00AM, after being awake most of the night due to thunderstorms and some lightening. You may remember that my wonderful companion from the rescue center does NOT like storms!! I would much preferred to have slept through them or at least been able to stay in bed. I don't know about any of you, but if I have to get up in the night I am always hungry which undermines my trying to lose weight. Although, I didn't eat last night or drink even a drop of water. I was doing a 12 hour fasting for some blood work at my doctor appointment this morning. It was time for my blood pressure check, annual physical including blood work, urine specimen, and pelvic/pap smear. Sorry any of you guys reading this...I know that kind of talk makes you all a little uncomfortable!

I left my doctors office and headed for one of my sons to pick him up and take him to the surgeon that repaired his ankle/leg in May. While waiting in the waiting room for him to be finished, my cell phone rang and it was my daughter in Kentucky informing me that she and her 8 month old son, and one of her younger sisters and the sister's 3 week old baby had been in an accident and were at the hospital in Richmond being checked out and she would let me know how they all were later!

Finally a little after 7:00 PM, I was able to speak with her again and found out that they were all okay. Sore.....but okay! Thank God!!! I was already tired from lack of sleep but this news and worrying and waiting to find out causes stress and stress causes fatigue!

As Scarlett O'Hara said in "Gone With The Wind", 'tomorrow is another day!!

All's well that end's well! ;)

Happy Birthday, Elijah!!!

Yesterday was my grandson's 3rd birthday! Elijah is getting so big so fast. I wish they could stay small longer but it doesn't work that way.

I went to his party at a place where they serve pizza and the kids can play on slides, climbing ropes, a bounce tent, and in a cage containing plastic balls. I took Amber and her younger brother Hunter with me. Bumpa wasn't able to attend with us due to a previous engagement.

No sooner had we arrived and the kids started playing when Hunter came to me crying that he wet his pants. Hunter is 4! Of course we had no extra clothes along with us for him. He doesn't usually wet himself. I think with all the excitement of playing on all the equipment and being with his cousins, he just forgot to come and tell me he had to go to the bathroom. There was nothing I could do but leave and find a store and buy him a whole new set of clothes to wear. The place we were at was over 20 miles from our house and 30 miles from his house. Luckily, there was a Target store nearby. Hunter and I left and went shopping and found him a pair of shorts on sale, a shirt to go with it, and some new underwear and socks! Yupper! When he wet, he got everything wet!! So after dropping $21. on new clothes for Hunter and washing him up with baby wipes I had in the car and dressing him in his new clothes, we headed back to the play place.

The party was fun and the kids had a great time running and playing and screaming. Amber got a couple of rugburn marks on her elbows from going down a slide holding hands with another little girl, but other than that, no injuries. HOORAY!! Hunter and Amber were both going to spend the night here, but after the party and upon exiting the play place, Hunter started crying that he wanted to go home instead. So I had to call his parents and let them know that I would be bringing him home. They live 16 miles from my house so after driving the extra 16 miles there and back, I never got home until 10:30. By the time I got Amber settled in, it was well after midnight before I got to bed. But, as long as Elijah had a great birthday that's all that matters!

Last camp-out of 2006!

This picture is of my oldest son (facing the camera) and his youngest son and hubby (back to camera) setting up the tent for the last camp-out of the year. Never mind that it was their only camp-out this year due to out of town employment requirements for our son! The kids were excited! They were going to sleep in a tent! It would be our grandson's {Brian's youngest boy, Elijah (3)} first time sleeping in a tent. I'm not sure he actually was aware when they were setting the tent up that this would be his lodging for the night. Brian's older son, David and our granddaughter, Amber, were looking forward to staying in the tent all night. Both have camped before, so it wasn't a brand new experience for them, but still something to look forward to!

Amber and David disappeared into the house to play video games while hubby and Brian set up the tent. Elijah and Drew (who was here for the weekend) were getting acquainted playing outside and getting a feel for each other.

Elijah(dark hair) will be 3 on Sept. 8th and Drew will turn 2 on October 26th. This is probably the first time that they have really played together for any length of time. They weren't at the right ages for playing with one another during previous family gatherings.


The boys really seemed to enjoy the others company and really didn't fight at all. Of course there was a few times when they both were a little upset if I was holding the other one....do ya think they might have not wanted to share the Mema?

I, nor Brian, received a lot of sleep this night. The kids didn't want to settle down in the tent and it seems like everyone had a bladder that was way too small. David and Amber made several trips into the house to use the bathroom closest to the door, but being that I am a really light sleeper, and after deciding that I should sleep on the couch in the family room in case they needed me during the night the frequent trips kept me awake. When all three kids finally fell asleep and I was dozing off, I heard the door once again. It was Brian this time, needing to use the bathroom and he wasn't feeling well. It might have something to do with drinking a few beers and eating s'mores at the same time....I'm not sure, just wondering!! He was eventually able to go back to the tent and I thought I was surely in for some much needed sleep. Not quite! Elijah woke up and was freezing and wanted to come in the house. Bri brought him in and made a bed for him on the loveseat. He went back out to see if the other two wanted to come in the house with him and Elijah, but they opted to remain in the tent for the duration. That was about 4 AM, and I finally fell asleep ~ only to be awakened 2 hours later when David came in because he was freezing too. Brian sent him back to the tent to wake Amber and make her come in too. He didn't want to leave anyone alone in the tent. Retrieve her he did and then they were wide awake and making too much noise for me to be able to get any more sleep!

After a big breakfast of eggs, sausage, toast and pancakes, juice and coffee, we put a movie (Nemo) in the DVD player to entertain the little ones while I cleaned up the breakfast mess. I glanced in to see Brian sound asleep on the floor!

Brian and his boys left about 12:30 PM and Bumpa, Amber, Drew and I decided to just play outside until it was lunch time and then nap time for Drew. Boy, was I ever ready for bed Sunday night.

So, it is now Labor Day evening and I am trying to catch up on laundry after taking Amber back to her mom today and after Michelle and Glenn picked up Drew. Quiet at last.

Almost too quiet for my liking!

Labor Day Weekend.......the end of summer!

That's what Labor Day weekend is supposed to signify, right? Growing up, we were always led to believe that Memorial Day was the beginning of the summer season and Labor Day was the end of the season.

As a child, the first camping trip of the year was always Memorial Day weekend. Albeit, the last camping trip was......you guessed it, Labor Day weekend. This weekend, I won't be doing any camping, but one of my sons is bringing his tent and children and camping in my backyard. He has promised all summer that he would take them camping but his job requires that he be gone out of town frequently and for at least a week at a time, and with a wife and 3 young ones (9,3 and 8 months) at home, it has been almost impossible to get away on a camping trip. I hope we have good weather. I don't care if it's somewhat cool, but if we get rain and thunder and lightning, I know they'll all be sleeping in the house and they will be disappointed that they aren't camping out! Amber is coming for the weekend too, so it's a good thing that the tent is big enough for at least 4 people!

My daughter, naive, wants to go up north to help mr. naive finish building the house he has been working on. She is anxious for him to get it finished, so he can come home and stay home, instead of just coming home for the weekend. I will keep Drew for her so she can go. Drew will NOT be sleeping in the tent! He will stay in the house with his Mema where it is nice and toasty and comfortable!

That reminds me; I better stock up on hot dogs, and s'mores fixings cause we'll be having a "campfire" at night and it is impossible to have a camp fire without marshmallows!!

I'm lucky!!

I must be one of the luckiest women in the whole world. Why, you wonder? Because I am blest with some of the best children and grandchildren. Most of my children live fairly close by. The only one who lives far away is in Kentucky and we talk every week on the phone. Sometimes two or three times a week!

My oldest daughter, Naive-No-More lives less than a mile away. She is a very smart lady! She is a mortgage loan originator/loan officer. She helped us get the financing for us to buy the house we live in now. She just helped us re-finance from an adjustable rate mortgage to a fixed rate at a decent percentage rate. She is awesome!

She also just made a "Grandma's Brag Book" for me. She is very talented and creative. It is made out of paper lunch bags and scrap book supplies! It contains pictures of her children, my grandchildren, Steve, Emily and Drew. Steve is a senior in high school this year, Emily a freshman, and of course Drew, who will be two in October. It is very hard to believe that she is old enough to have a child who will graduate from high school next May. Even harder to believe is the fact that I have a grandchild that old.

I took a picture of the brag book, but the picture doesn't do it justice. I have posted a few of the pictures contained in the album for all of you to enjoy too. Of course I think they are some of the nicest looking kids around!

Another trip to the ER

I spent the weekend at one of my son's home helping him care for his 3 children. His wife had to go out of town and he wasn't sure he could take care of all of them alone for a whole weekend. The oldest boy is 9, the next boy is 2 1/2 and the baby girl is 7 1/2 months. He has cared for them for a few hours at a time, but never the total care of all three for 2 days and nights. Panic set in and he asked for help. Of course I said "yes". This is probably only the 4th or 5th time in the last 9 years that he has asked for any kind of help and I couldn't have said "no" even if I had wanted to, which I didn't!

Amber was going to spend the weekend with us, so she went along to play with her cousins. Every thing went well......up until about 1/2 hour before we were going to leave. Then Amber fell in the driveway. She lost her balance (something about getting her feet tangled in the hose) and fell backwards and caught herself with her left elbow. Oh my, the screaming was awful. I thought that the neighbors would call the police. It was loud and looooonnnnng! We finally got her calmed down enough to check it out and we decided we should wait until today to see if it was feeling better. It wasn't! But we tried everything to try to entice her to use it normally. Going for a bike ride with Bumpa, usually a favorite activity. Playing video games is another big hit, but not today. So finally this evening, after listening to her complain off an on all day, I decided to call her mom and take her into the hospital emergency room. That was about 8:30 PM. It is now Monday morning at 12:50 AM, and we just got back. The doctor said he didn't see any fracture on the x-ray, but perhaps the radiologist would see something, and sent us on our way with instructions to ice it and give ibuprofen every 4 hours as needed for pain. If the radiologists sees something, the doctor said they will call and have us come back for casting of her arm. It is the humorous bone in her left arm and when the doctor told her which bone of hers hurts, she told him that she didn't think there was any humor in the whole situation. Eleven going on 19, with an attitude to match any full blown PMS teen-age girl!! I gotta go put her in bed before she gets even more of an attitude from being tired!

I should have stayed in bed!

Mornings and I could be better friends.....if morning just started later in the day!

Yesterday, I didn't have the best start to the day. When I got up, I opened the overhead garage door to let my four-legged, fur-covered child out to go potty. I noticed something laying on the garage floor and upon closer inspection found 4 baby mice with fur, but eyes still closed scattered around one stall of the garage. The only thing that could be done was to find a pair of shoes and a receptacle to pick them up with. If I left them there, the dog would either eat them or try to play with them, which would end up killing them in the garage. YUCK!! I haven't even had my coffee yet, I thought! This is not how I wanted to start my day.

I must put the dog back in the house so she doesn't try to chase the mice after I release them. I find a dustpan and gently slide it under each baby mouse and walk down the bank through the backyard to the edge of our property and toss the mice into the adjacent empty lot full of deep weeds and brush.

Upon returning to the house I feel the need to wash my hands, even though I never touched any of the mice. I pour myself my first cup of coffee for the day and decide I need to go potty too. I rewash my hands and sit down at the computer to enjoy my coffee and visit blogs. But I hear a strange noise in the entry way. I investigate and discover that the dog has thrown up three times in the entry way. Freaking great! I WANT to drink my coffee! So now I have to clean up the dog puke and clean the carpet. Wash hands AGAIN!! Wonderful, my coffee is now cold. I pour it down the sink and pour a fresh cup from the coffee maker. Finally I get to drink my first cup of coffee.

Within a few minutes the phone rings. It is the Betty Ford Breast Center reminding me that I have an appointment Thursday morning at 8:45 for my annual mammogram.

Sweet! I love going there and having my "mammies mashed!" Two bad mornings in a row. Not much to look forward too, huh? Anyone want to go in my place?

Courage is what it takes to stand up and speak; courage is also what it takes to sit down and listen.

While in a deep discussion with a friend, the above quote came back to me. I can't remember where I heard it originally, but it sure does say a lot.

I had to say some things that she found most unpleasant even though she needed to hear them. I needed to sit and really listen to what she was saying too. To sit and listen not only takes courage, it takes a LOT of willpower!

I don't know if our conversation (which I cannot reveal here) will help her make any of her decisions, but at least it cleared the air.....and that is a good thing!

Remembering...

As another August rolls around and my first (deceased) husbands birthday has just passed, I wonder.....

who'd you be today? Sitting here listening to a Kenny Chesney song and wondering about my first husband, Dave. He died too young. At the age of 34 of Malignant Melanoma.....a lethal form of skin cancer. I wonder who he would be today. Who would my kids be today? Would they be any different if they had been raised by both of us instead of just me? I'll never know the answer to that question. But still, I wonder....

Also, wondering about my stillborn grandson, Owen. We never got a chance to know him; to watch him grow; to enjoy him and who he would be today!

Ty at 2 months and Trenten with cast!

He broke 3 bones in his foot but is expected to make a complete and full recovery. That's the good thing about being young......you heal very quickly!
We don't know how long the cast will have to remain on his foot until he goes to the specialist Thursday. Hopefully it will be off by the time school starts in September!!

Meet my newest grandson, Ty Christopher. He was born May 29, 2006. This is him just the other day...he now weighs over 11 pounds. Not a whopper by a long shot, but a "keeper" for sure. His big brother thinks he is pretty neat right now. Of course, that's because all he does is sit in one place unless someone else moves him. He isn't getting into any of Trenten's "stuff" yet, nor does Trenten have to share any of his toys at this stage in the game. I figure in about 6-7 more months when this little guy is crawling around and touching things that belong to Trenten they will be having some major battles in their household!

This picture is an example of how much Trent does love his baby brother......now.


This is the little guy I got to spend my night with last Friday while they took his big brother, Trenten, to the ER for xrays of his left foot.

My little sweetheart!

This picture of Drew was taken at my house this past week. He is 21 months old and thinks he is quite grown up wearing "Bumpa's" workboots! Isn't he adorable?

I had him from Tuesday afternoon until Friday night. I volunteered to keep him while naive-no-more and mr. naive-no-more were in the northern part of Michigan building a house. I thought it might be hard to watch a little guy while trying to work setting trusses. Besides, all of my company left for Kentucky and Amber went back home and our house seemed rather empty without any little ones around. Now that his momma is back home and he won't be here all day, I know I will have "with'drew'als"! LOL

His folks got home around 8:45 last night. Drew and I were waiting for them at their house and Drew had his bath and was ready for bed in his pj's just waiting to see them before going "nite-nite"! I came home around 9:00 PM.

At about 9:15 my phone rang and it was my daughter-in-law. Their oldest little boy, Trenten (age 5) thought he could do a cannonball unto the living room floor. OOPS!! This required a trip to the ER and my services were needed to watch Ty (2 months old). I was there until approximately 1:30 AM when they returned home with a very tired little boy who was sporting a pretty blue fiberglass cast on his left leg. He broke 3 bones in his foot. Lesson learned: a cannonball should only be performed while jumping into a deep enough body of water! When hubby gets out of work today, we will go over to his house to see him and take him a small gift.....something to help keep him occupied while he recovers somewhat, and sign his cast. I will take pictures then and post them next time.

To Kill an American

I don't usually get politcal here but read this ariticle written by an un-named Austrialian Dentist, and thought maybe others would like to read it also. You probably missed it in the rush of news last week, but there was actually a report that someone in Pakistan had published in a newspaper an offer of a reward to anyone who killed an American, any American.So an Australian dentist wrote an editorial the following day to let everyone know what an American is . So they would know when they found one. (Good one, mate!!!!)


"An American is English, or French, or Italian, Irish, German, Spanish, Polish, Russian or Greek. An American may also be Canadian, Mexican, African, Indian, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Australian, Iranian, Asian, or Arab, or Pakistani or Afghan.An American may also be a Comanche, Cherokee, Osage, Blackfoot, Navaho, Apache, Seminole or one of the many other tribes known as native Americans.An American is Christian, or he could be Jewish, or Buddhist, or Muslim.In fact, there are more Muslims in America than in Afghanistan. The only difference is that in America they are free to worship as each of them chooses.An American is also free to believe in no religion. For that he will answer only to God, not to the government, or to armed thugs claiming to speak for the government and for God.An American lives in the most prosperous land in the history of the world.The root of that prosperity can be found in the Declaration of Independence, which recognizes the God given right of each person to the pursuit of happiness.An American is generous. Americans have helped out just about every other nation in the world in their time of need, never asking a thing in return.When Afghanistan was over-run by the Soviet army 20 years ago, Americans came with arms and supplies to enable the people to win back their country!As of the morning of September 11, Americans had given more than any other nation to the poor in Afghanistan. Americans welcome the best of everything...the best products, the best books, the best music, the best food, the best services. But they also welcome the least.The national symbol of America, The Statue of Liberty , welcomes your tired and your poor, the wretched refuse of your teeming shores, the homeless, tempest tossed. These in fact are the people who built America.Some of them were working in the Twin Towers the morning of September 11, 2001 earning a better life for their families. It's been told that the World Trade Center victims were from at least 30 different countries, cultures, and first languages, including those that aided and abetted the terrorists.<>So you can try to kill an American if you must. Hitler did. So did General Tojo, and Stalin, and Mao Tse-Tung, and other blood-thirsty tyrants in the world. But, in doing so you would just be killing yourself. Because Americans are not a particular people from a particular place. They are the embodiment of the human spirit of freedom. Everyone who holds to that spirit, everywhere, is an American."

HEAT WAVE!!!!

We, along with half of the country, are under a heat wave! Today the temp is supposed to reach 95 degrees with a heat indices of 110. But, it's summer! What do we expect? I think the environmentalist who have been screaming about global warming and all the pollution we have put in the air, are forgetting about the heat waves in the past centuries.......could they blame those heat waves on global warming?

I leave these thoughts with a message I saw on a sign out front of a local church:

"You think it's hot HERE?"

You Are A Poplar Tree

People tend to look up to you, and it's a bit lonely at the top. Inside, you are not always self confident, but you show great courage. Mature and organized, you are reliable in any situation. You tend to have an artistic or philosophical outlook on life. You are very choosy in love and take partnership seriously.

What's Your Celtic Horoscope?

Jerks!!

I wonder how my husband ended up as loving as he is! We had his entire family, Mother, Sisters, Brothers and their families to our home for a cookout and to visit our daughter, Rachel who is visiting from Kentucky.

Everything was going smoothly.....until after we had eaten. Then they wanted to take pictures. I think most of my readers are aware of the fact that both my husband and I had been previously married and both brought children into this marriage. I brought Michelle, Brian and Doug and he brought Jeremy and Rachel. We both think of the five children as "ours". There is no mine and yours...they are "OURS"! Together we share 14 grandchildren. These fourteen special grandchildren should be considered his Mother's great-grandchildren. However, his sisters and mother think NOT!

Here is a prime example: When it was time for the picture taking, they announced that they wanted a picture of their mother with the great-grandchildren. Our granddaughter, Amber (11 years old) was also here. When she went up to where they were seated for the picture taking, one of the sisters said "NO, it's just the great-grandchildren". Hubby's brother said "What do you think Amber is? She's a great-grandchild too! The sister said, "Shut your mouth and leave it alone, no, it's just the great-grandchildren." Amber heard this and walked over to my hubby and climbed up on his lap and sat very quietly.

This is not the first time this has happened to this same little girl! Years ago at another grandchilds birthday party someone said the picture was just to include those who were born into the bloodline of the family. I pulled Amber out of the sitting and was livid. I wanted to tell them all that their mother wasn't born into the bloodline of that family either and she should get the H____out of the picture too then. I bit my tongue to keep peace in the family and thinking that this little girl was only about 5 at the time she wouldn't understand. I was wrong.

This time, later that same day, she asked her Bumpa (that's what the grandkids call Grandpa) why his sisters and mom don't like her. It broke my heart to hear her ask this question. Hubby answered her and told her that sometimes people don't think before they speak and it hurts others feelings. She said okay, but I can tell that she isn't really satisfied with this answer. We assured her that she is very special to us and we love her and God loves her. She smiled, but I could still see the hurt in her eyes.

I told Hubby that as far as I am concerned that is the very last get together I will ever attend for his side of the family. If my birth grandchildren are not considered family, than I am not either! So, there will never be another need for me to attend a family function!

How would they all feel if I treated Hubby's birth children and birth grandchildren in that manner? Rachel told me I should tell her and Jeremy when I will act the same way that they did and then do it at the next family gathering, and see how they like it. I told Rachel that I could never treat her and Jeremy that way! Not even to teach her Grandma and Aunts a lesson. I love them too much to ever do that to them, even if they knew I didn't mean it and was just trying to show others how it felt.

There are plenty of more incidences similar to this one in my history with the family, but this one is the final straw.

So, this is my official resignation from Hubby's family that I once thought of as my own. Every last one of them.....well, except for his Grandma and his brothers and their wives. His brothers' wives are the ones that stood by me through this mess!

And my final thought....glad to be free!!

My plate is full......

I am taking care of Drew this weekend. It has been planned for a long time now. His momma and daddy (naive and mr. naive) are on a canoe trip. I also have Amber this weekend. Today she had an orthodontist appointment at 9 AM. She didn't want to get up. And on top of this, if this isn't already enough, the funeral for my children's grandmother is tomorrow and our daughter and her husband and 3 kids are on the way up here right now.

So when it is time for Drew to go to bed tonight, I will take him to his house and put him to bed there, which means that I will have to stay there overnight also. We don't have enough pac-n-plays to bed two babies down and I think the confusion of it all would just be too much for both babies and neither one would settle down to sleep. And heaven knows that none of us wants to sit up all night entertaining babies!!

I don't have a clue as to when I will have time to post again. Our daughter and her children are staying with us through this coming Wed. before heading back to Kentucky. I suspect that by the time they leave, I will need at least a day to sit and recover.......I'm tired just thinking about all of it!!

I've been tagged....

by Chesney Girl, so here goes!!



In my purse/wallet
~Cell phone
~Bandaids
~keys, lots of keys
~pictures of grandkids
~tic-tacs

In my Refrigerator
~Ice Tea - sweetened
~Salad
~bag of baby carrots
~This week's left overs
~ketchup, mustard, mayo

In my Closet
~Mine and Hubby's clothes
~Shoes
~dirty laundry
~Luggage
~Wedding dress

In my Car
~Not much...I just cleaned it out
~Dog's travel water bottle
~Dog's leash
~Umbrella
~Garage door opener

My Bathroom Pic!

After visiting http://anonymousassclown.blogspot.com/, I have posted my own "bathroom pic of the day!

What do y'all think?

Where are the other ones?

While coming home from a shopping trip today, I noticed several single shoes in different places along the side of the road. They were all different shoes from what I could see; they weren't the mate of the previous shoe or the next shoe lying in the road.

It made me wonder. What happens to these shoes that they get left by the side of the highway? Do people hang their feet out the window and their shoes get blown off in the breeze? Does someone else in the vehicle get angry with them and throw a shoe out the window? Do they fall off the back of a pick-up truck that is packed with moving boxes?

Or are they simply waiting to have someone find them and take them home to meet up with that "lone" sock that we all have found on occasion in our washing machines?

Life is funny.

The passing of a great woman.......

my acquired children's grandmother passed away last night in her sleep. It was a blessing. She has been in a long term care facility in Kentucky for the last 5 years or so. She had Parkinsons. This woman was my husbands ex-mother-in-law and yet she accepted me and genuinely liked me. She was a very kind and gentle person......the kind when you meet for the first time, you instantly like and know that they have a good heart!

Our children are having a rough time with this. Our daughter that lives in Kentucky has seen her grandmother on a regular basis. Our son, who lives in Michigan, has not. He is regretting the fact that she didn't get to meet his newest son who was born May 29th and that he didn't get to see her recently. We didn't get to see her when we were in Kentucky last week either. It didn't work out for us to be able to get over to the facility she was in. I'm sorry about that too! Our daughter probably has some regrets, too, although I have not been able to speak with her at length as of yet.

The funeral will be back here in Michigan since that is where she was originally from and where her dear departed husband is laid to rest too. The funeral is all pre-paid and pre-arranged by her. Before her Parkinsons was too bad, she made all the arranagement herself so her family wouldn't have to deal with it. Now all we are waiting for is the family to arrive from Kentucky whenever they can make it here and how soon the funeral home in Kentucky can arrange to have her body delivered here.

This was truly a woman who brought laughter and happiness to those around her while she was living and will surely generate a lot of tears with her passing. God rest her soul!

Asking for prayers!

A friend of mine is going through some very rough times right now. She is a single mom, raising 2 beautiful little girls. She and her girls are in need of prayers for strength, wisdom, healing, knowledge and understanding. Please add her and the girls to your prayers. Thank you!!

The party's over!

I'm back home again. And I'm glad. Two vacations back to back are not a good idea for me. I didn't even get caught up from the Denver trip before heading off to Kentucky. I'm bone tired and I have so much to do now.

It was really great to finally meet our little grandson. Here is a picture of him with his Daddy. The kids have grown so much since we last saw them a year ago. The baby is a real cutie! And he wasn't the least bit frightened of us.

This next picture is of my Hubby and granddaughter from up here. She went with us to see her cousins and Aunt and Uncle. This picture was taken where they are blasting away the mountain to put in a new road. She and Hubby are each holding a piece of rock from the blasting area.




We printed this picture out for her and did a little write-up so she can take it to school and tell her classmates about her trip to Kentucky.

I'm off again!

Well, I'm leaving for Kentucky on Wednesday morning. I'll only be gone a few days. We are making the trip down to finally meet our 5 1/2 month old grandson. We are looking forward to holding him and seeing his reaction to us.

The usual granddaughter is going with us as well as our dog. They both travel well, but have not had to share a backseat for such a long road trip before.

I have posted some new pictures of my trip to Denver for you all to see while I'm in Kentucky. I'll try to take pictures of the mountains there too and not just my grandchildren. Our daughter's other two are 6 and 4 and we haven't seen them for a year. I'm sure they've grown!

Be back on Saturday!

Pictures of my trip!

Buffalo Bills Grave
A beautiful, peaceful valley.
Dinasaur footprints
Beauty beyond compare in these mountains!

Great Trip!

I'm home. I arrived back on Wednesday in the afternoon. I have been so busy since I've been back that I haven't really had time to post about my trip.

I had a wonderful time. It was so good to spend time alone with my "baby" sister again. I had forgotten just how much I miss her! She was a great hostess and took time off work while I was there. We went to Red Rocks on Thursday, Garden of the Gods on Friday. Saturday was the reception so we were very busy with that. On Sunday we just lazed around with my nieces and nephew and their family and enjoyed time chatting with each other. My cousin had to fly out on Monday and Tuesday we went to Estes Park in Rocky Mountain National Park. My flight left Denver Wednesday morning at 6:30 AM.

Of course, the altitude is much higher there. Hence the nickname of "Mile High City". Due to that fact, people often get what they term "altitude sickness". I got a little queasy but the cure is simple....drink more water! I also had a little trouble breathing while walking up in the mountains due to the thinner air.

The above picture is near Lookout Mountain not far from Boulder. Lookout Mountain is where Buffalo Bill's grave is alleged to be. I would add more pictures, but alas, I have the same problem as some of the other bloggers and it will only allow me to add one picture at the present time! See, it doesn't just hate you, Chesney Girl!

The wedding reception went well considering it was a "garden" reception and a storm rolled through just as everything was set to go. After a quick rush to remove the table cloths and centerpieces from each table, while keeping an eye on the ever darkening sky and natural fireworks show, the sky opened up and dumped huge drops for several minutes and then moved on.

My flight (both ways) was fairly uneventful. Although while waiting to board in Houston for the flight back home I had thought that I had become a "time traveler"!
They changed the gate at the last minute and when I arrived at the correct gate we all boarded a bus that took us to the plane very near the runway to board! I'm assuming it was because the airport was very, very busy that day! I'm hoping that isn't the normal method of operation for an airport of that size!

I had a really wonderful time but it's nice to be back home!!

I'm leaving on a jet plane....

Well, this is probably the last post until I return from Denver. I'm almost ready to go. My plane leaves at 6:30 AM tomorrow morning and I am finishing the last of the packing up now. Well, all except for the last minute stuff. I am anxious to get there and feeling a little apprehensive about leaving everyone here.

My older sister and her husband were supposed to drive out with one of their married daughters and her 3 children, but the daughter has been hospitalized so they have had to cancel their trip out for the Wedding Reception. They may be able to go out later in the summer but they will miss the family get-together! :( I hope and pray that everything turns out okay for their daughter!

My sandals broke just the other day and I tried to have them repaired at a shoe shop but was told that they are very old and unrepairable. I don't have time to shop for a new pair here, so I guess I will have to look in Denver for a pair and figure out something else to wear on the plane!

I printed out a map of the Denver Airport Terminal and boy, am I glad my cousin will be with me. The place is huge with several different levels. I'll be lucky if I can find the right level for baggage pick-up and passenger pick up as well! I'm sure they have signs and probably people there to answer questions should one become lost.....I hope!

Well, I guess I'll be off then....until I get back home I hope everyone has an enjoyable week.

A Meme from a couple of friends

Blazing Firebird and It's Just Me have posted this Meme and I'm joining in.


1. Are your parents married, divorced, deceased or other? Deceased
2. Are you a vegetarian? No
3. Believe in Heaven? Yes
4. Have you come close to dying? Yes
5. What jewelry do you wear 24/7? None 24/7
6. Are you eating? Nope
7. Do you eat the stems of broccoli? On occasion
8. Wear makeup? Sometimes
9. How many people have you kissed in the last month? lots, mostly grandkids
10.Would you ever have plastic surgery? Nope
11.What do you wear to bed? T-shirt and panties
12.Have you ever done anything illegal? underage drinking and snuck into a city pool as a kid
13.Can you roll your tongue? Yes
14.Pluck your eyebrows? No, don't need to
15.What kind of watch(es)? Nothing special~Accura
16.Abortion? No, I'm against them
17.Hair color? In my younger years blondish brown~now silver
18.Future child's name? I'm 60 years old..better not be any children
19.Do you snore?Yep, woke myself up even
20.If you could go anywhere in the world on vacation, where would you go? Australia
21.What is on your feet right now? I'm barefoot
22.If you won the lottery what would you do first? Scream
23.Gold or Silver? Gold
24.Hamburger or hotdog? Hamburger
25.If you could eat only one food for the rest of your life, what would it be? Salads
26.Beach, city or country? Country
27.What was the last thing you touched before the keyboard? Newspaper
28.Where do you eat? Table usually
29.When's the last time you cried? Yesterday
30.Have you read blogs? Hasn't everyone....of course I have
31.Would you ever go out dressed like the opposite sex? Only on Halloween
32.Ever been involved with the police? When I was in an accident.
33.How many times have you been married? 3 times, once widowed, once divorced and presently happily married for 16 years.
34.Do you talk in your sleep? My hubby says I do but I've never heard me.
35.Beach or pool? doesn't matter
36.What's your favorite song at the moment?Don't have one right now
37.How do you take your steak? Medium well
38.Window or aisle seat? Window
39.Ever met a famous person? Not that I recall
40.Do you feel that you've ever had a truly successful relationship? Yes
41.Do you twirl your spaghetti or cut it? Both
42.Ricki Lake or Oprah? Oprah if I must chose.
43.Basketball or Football? Football
44.How long do your showers last? About 8 minutes
45.Do you drive a stick? No, but I can.
46.Cake or Ice cream? Ice cream
47.Self-conscious? Not usually
48.What time do you get up? depends on when I went to sleep
49.Have you ever given money to a bum? Nope
50.When was your first crush? Grade school
51.Where do you wish you were? In a hot tub.
52.Have you ever broken someones heart? I don't think so
53.Have you ever ridden in an ambulance? Yes
54.Have you ever ridden in/on a firetruck? No
55.Last gift you received? Hubby brought home a hanging basket of flowers that he knew I had been wanting.....awwww, sweet huh?
56.Name the last three things you purchased? Summer pj's, shirt and jeans
57.Things you spend a lot of money on? Nothing really
58.What state do you live in? MI
59.How do you eat an OREO? dunk it in milk and bite into it.
60.Last wedding attended? My hubby's cousin
61.Favorit fast food place to eat? Arby's or Wendy's
62.Do you like to shop? NO
63.Most hated food/drink? Mexican food and beer
64.Last play you saw? I can't even remember
65.Can you sing? Yes, but I'm the only one who enjoys it!
66.One thing you hate? Intentional Meanness
67.One wish? That my grandchildren all grow up healthy and happy!
68.Favorite drink? Ice tea
69.Current crush? Still madly in love with Hubby
70.What is my height? 5'3"
71.Shoe size? 6 1/2 or 7

Getting anxious!

I am getting so anxious. I am already having trouble sleeping at night and I'm not leaving for another week. Once I decided to go, I didn't realize that waiting would be so very hard. Maybe as I age I'm losing more of my patience!

I went shopping today to buy something to wear to the "Evening Garden Reception". I went thinking that I wouldn't be able to find anything that I liked. Naive went with me. Much to my surprise I was able to find a skirt that I liked and was lucky enough to match a tank and cardigan sweater set to go with it. And it didn't even cost that much. It's casual and yet dressy enough for the occasion. I'm pretty happy with it.

My granddaughter, Naive's daughter, received a special honor. She has been invited to attend The Congressional Youth Leadership Council in our state capital this coming January. The only way to get the invitation is to be nominated by one of your teachers and then you have to be accepted by the Congressional Board. I am so very proud of her. She is only going to be a freshman in high school this coming year and she has so much savvy already. More than I ever thought of having when I was her age. But then, having a mom like Naive, it is no wonder she is awesome. Okay, the proud grandma will now change subjects! Sorry, just had to brag a minute!!
Thanks for putting up with me!

SUCCESS!!! Update to Denver trip!

Man, I am sooo excited. I was able to find a flight to Denver. It wasn't as reasonable as I hoped the cost would have been and I have to leave earlier than I really wanted to and stay longer than I wanted or should. But, I'm not complaining...at least I have the ticket and I'm able to attend.

I will fly out of the airport in a nearby city and fly to Houston first and then on to Denver. Same thing on the way back in reverse order.

I am so lucky. Naive helped me find the ticket and booked it online for me and also helped out financially. It seems like she always comes through for me! She is an awesome woman and one of the best daughters anyone could ask for. She's the kind of daughter that all parents want to have. And I was lucky enough to get her! Thank you, God, for my lovely, caring daughter!

One Hundred Things About Me

So, I guess I should be celebrating. This is my 100th post. Everyone seems to do the "100 list" and I guess I will too for lack of any thing creative roaming around in my little brain.

1. I turned 60 years old last month.

2. I don't remember getting older.

3. I have 14 living grandchildren; 15 when I count Owen (a precious grandson who was stillborn)

4. My parents both were dead by the time they were 49 and they died 3 years apart.

5. I have an older sister and a younger sister.

6. My hair is silver.

7. I was widowed, divorced, and am now married for the 3rd time. Not many know about my 2nd marriage and I try to keep it that way.

8. I live in Michigan and I love the "Big Lake".

9. I love the upper peninsula too.

10. I have 5 children, 2 girls and 3 boys....3 of them are birth children and 2 are acquired through my third marriage.

11. I hate Lima Beans and Liver and onions.

12. I love hot fudge sundaes.

13. I love CHOCOLATE!

14. Cashews are my favorite kind of nut.

15. I have two very good friends that I met 37 years ago. I'm lucky to have them.

16. Sometimes I get melancholy for no reason.

17. I am afraid of spiders and hate them with a passion and yet am fascinated by them.

18. I love the outdoors and fresh air.

19. I prefer spring and summer.

20. I don't like winter as much as I used to.

21. Fall is beautiful because I like to see the trees change color.

22. I need to lose some weight! A lot of weight!!

23. I wish I were taller.

24. I would like to be independently wealthy.

25. I love my husband but don't often tell him how much I appreciate him.

26. I have a LOT of trouble sleeping.

27. I AM going to Denver. I fly into Houston first and then on to Denver. I leave on the 21st.

28. Sometimes I'm grumpy and even I don't know why.

29. I wish my grandchildren could stay young for a longer period of time.

30. I love watching birds.

31. My favorite birds are hummingbirds

32. My favorite flower is lily of the valley.

33. I miss my parents since their deaths.

34. I love salads.

35. I love a medium-well steak and a baked potato. Mm-mm!

36. I am very proud of the person my oldest has become.

37. I'm sorry I was sick when Clew visited Naive and I didn't get to see her.

38. I had a quadruple bypass heart surgery 4 years ago.

39. I got drunk "once", and decided the morning after really wasn't worth the night before.

40. This year marks the 42nd anniversary of my graduation from high school. (Yes, they had high schools back then!)

41. I don't keep in touch with anyone from my high school years.

42. My sisters have become my friends instead of just siblings.

43. Telling my children that their Daddy passed away was one of the hardest things I've ever had to do.

44. I wished I had had more children. (I know, I'm a crazy woman!)

45. My shoe size is 6 1/2.

46. I was a cheerleader in high school until a car accident forced me to quit.

47. I hate shopping for clothes.

48. I need some new clothes to go to Denver with.

49. My computer died a while back and Hubby bought me a new one. Bless his heart!

50. My oldest son is bilingual.

51. My oldest daughter can build a house! I find that amazing! She and her husband built their house and she designed it.

52. I hate taking medicine.

53. Some days I spend way to much time on the computer.

54. I love bubble baths.

55. I dropped out of college. I wanted to be a teacher.

56. I like most kinds of music.

57. I play the piano (not as well as I used to though).

58. I sing in the car.

59. I moved into my house almost a year ago. I love it.

60. I wish I knew more about computers.

61. This list is harder than I thought it would be.

62. I love to watch lightening.

63. My dog hates the thunder and hides when it storms.

64. I love animals, but dogs are my favorite.

65. I love watching my little grandchildrens faces as they discover something new.

66. I love to go for quiet rides with my husband.

67. Sometimes I wonder why I am here.

68. I have a "favorite" sister-in-law!

69. I wish I had more energy.

70. I always have way too much month left at the end of my money!

71. I love being a mom, grandma, sister, friend and wife.

72. Sometimes though I feel overwhelmed with all of it.

73. I sometimes feel lonely even when I'm not alone.

74. I like to feel "connected".

75. I always wanted to have a brother.

76. Now I have 5 brother-in-laws. Not the same though.

77. I wish my parents had lived to see my children and my childrens children.

78. Did I mention that I'm flying to Denver!!!

79. I love a clean house but hate housecleaning!!

80. I love to eat out.

81. I don't mind cooking.

82. I love making our annual Christmas Cookies with the grandkids.

83. I hate clutter.

84. I've decided I don't like lists!

85. I love waterfalls and have seen many. Most of them in Michigans Upper Peninsula.

86. I've seen Niagara Falls from the Canadian side.

87. I've been to 23 of the states in the U.S.A.

88. The only country I've ever been to is Canada.

89. I love John Denver songs.

90. I love Gordon Lightfoot songs too.

91. I love to watch white tail deer in the woods when they haven't seen me.

92. I hate blogger. I finished this post and was doing a spell check on it and it disappeared and I lost the last 4. AARRRGH!!!!

93. I love to watch my oldest grandson play footbball and my oldest granddaughter cheerlead at games.

94. I guess I just love watching any and all of my grandkids do anything.

95. I love sitting around a bonfire in the fall, drinking hot cocoa and watching the fire and chatting.

96. I hope it takes me a long, long time to get to the 200th post because this list has been hard and blogger has been "hormonal"!

97. I wonder if blogger hates me?

98. I love to read.......almost anything.

99. I love to have a grandchild fall asleep in my arms.

100. And, I love accomplishing what I set out to do. Like this list!! ;)

A little of this, a little of that!!

I tried to post earlier today and something was wrong with blogger "again" and it's gone. And being pressed for time lately it is a big inconvenience to have to redo! Arrrgh!!


I'm having great difficulty trying to book a flight to Denver for the dates I need to be there. Well, that isn't entirely true. If I don't mind spending over $500.00 for one round trip ticket I wouldn't have any problem at all. But, being of "Dutch heritage" coupled with my bank account the answer isn't hard for me to figure out. Find cheaper tickets or stay home! I was able to find one airline that will sell me a ticket for under $300.00, but I have to change planes 3 times and stay overnight in an airport in a strange city, alone. I'm finding I'm not quite as adventurous as I used to be because that has absolutely no appeal.....not even for a chance to see my family!


On to the baby robins. They have all flown away. I was on my way out the other day to take a new picture to show you all how big they had gotten and the last one was sitting on the edge of the next and when I approached, that one flew off too! : ( At least I know they all made it and my wonderful pet and companion didn't eat any of them!


The newest grandbaby is doing well. Already I can see that he has gained some weight. Big brother hasn't asked to send him back yet either, which is a real plus!

Today is my oldest sisters wedding anniversary. Forty-two years for them. That's a great accomplishment in today's times. Also the 42nd anniversary of my graduation from high school. Man, I don't remember getting THAT old!!

Tomorrow, my little 4 year old granddaughter in Kentucky is having her tonsils out. I hope she does well. I will call her momma tonight and request that she call me tomorrow after the surgery to let me know how she did.

My next post will be my One Hundredth. I will have to finish that list soon!!

Welcome number 14!!

Our 14th grandchild was born May 29th, 2006, at 11:03 PM, weighing in at 7 lbs, 8 oz. and 19 inches long. They named him "Ty Christopher". He was eagerly awaited by his big brother, Trenten(but I'm sure the eagerness will wear off as soon as he starts getting big enough to get into Trenten's things or takes up too much of Mom and Dad's time)!

I didn't post right away because I forgot to take my camera to the hospital and those who remembered said they would e-mail the pictures to me. Guess what? I'm still waiting....I think I'm going to go directly to their house now that they are home and snap a couple to show with this post.

I did go over and took this photo of Ty and Momma. The second picture is of Amber, big brother Trenten and Ty! My, they are a good looking bunch!

To go or not to go?

I am facing a decision. My nephew who lives in Denver got married last month in Belize. They are having an evening garden party reception in Denver on the 24th of June. I have some birthday money that I could put toward a round-trip ticket to Denver for the reception. I would love to go! The only drawback.....I will have to go alone, without my hubby! He has to work. I hate traveling, especially by plane, alone!

My sister who lives there with her family (nephew's Mom ~ note pic of nephew and his new wife on left side) will be more than happy to pick me up at the airport and I can stay in her home with her. My older sister will be there too. We don't often get a chance to be all together at one time. We did have a wonderful get-together at my home last summer when my sister from Denver came for a visit. Even the nearby nieces and nephews and great-nieces and great-nephews were able to come. It was like a family reunion and we had a good time and good food and were able to enjoy each others company for a short period of time. If I go, we would be able to be together for a longer period of time than just one day. I would be able to spend some time with her for five whole days and it would seem like old times. She is my younger sister, by 3 years. After our parents died, I quit college and went to work full time because she was still in high school and I needed a job to support the two of us. We are very close! My older sister was married at the time with a brand new baby and lived in another city.

I hate being gone from my immediate family for that long. The only time I have been away for that long was when I was hospitalized and that doesn't really count. I know that they are all grown up with families of their own and don't really need me here, I still have misgivings about going away for that long of a stretch. I guess I'm just a homebody!! ;)

I will have to decide soon though. If I'm going to go, I need to book a flight. What do you all think?

Baby bird update!

Okay, here is a better picture of the baby robins. It looks as if all 4 eggs hatched and there are four little birds with wide open mouths.... constantly.

When the mom and dad fly away to find worms to feed these little ones, I quickly run out to where the nest is to get a new photo, the little birds open their mouths like I am there with some food to feed them. I am always in a hurry too. It's kind of scary to be dive bombed by a couple of robins; they are really much bigger up close flying at you than they appear from a distance!

As Naive pointed out to me, I will be terribly busy trying to keep my dog, Prancer, from chasing the babies once the Momma is trying to teach them to fly. My dog is not mean, but she likes to play and she is convinced that anything and everything outside on the ground was put there just to play with and amuse her. She's very quick, but all the adult birds are fast too and she hasn't caught one yet. Luckily for me, she is quite well trained and will stop almost immediately if told to do so, and she knows the sit and stay command too. Maybe, hopefully, it won't be as hard as I am anticipating!

Baby Robins

I know this is a little blurry but these are the babies as of Sunday, May 21st. I had to hurry and take them between both Momma and Poppa flying back and forth to feed them....and also to dive bomb me! I can only see two in this picture, but will try to get a better picture very soon.

I am so glad that at least some of the eggs hatched. It is nice to see new life beginning after a long winter.

Brought to you by the letter "D"

I asked Naive if I could play and she assigned me the letter "D". I'm supposed to think of 10 words that start with the letter "D" and why they are important to me.....Piece of cake!



DREW ~ my 2nd to the youngest grandson at the moment. He is so very special to all of us. His Momma and Daddy went through so very much just to conceive and deliver him.....He is truly our miracle grandchild!


DAUGHTERS ~ I am lucky enough to have one birth daughter (Drew's Momma) one acquired daughter who lives in Kentucky, two daughter-in-laws who have brought great things to our family, and an adopted daughter, Clew, who lives in Ohio! She isn't formally adopted but we are close in heart!


DOUG ~ My middle son who just had the surgery and is coming along nicely in his recovery!


DOGS ~ My many fine 4-legged children that I have had over the years. The current one, Prancer is a sweet girl and is always happy to see me when I return. Even if I only went out to the mailbox!!


DARKNESS ~ For without the darkness, we wouldn't appreciate the light, nor would we be able to get the sleep and rest we need for the daylight hours.


DRAWING ~ Because without all the drawings from my grandchildren my house wouldn't contain as much artwork that it does. They are more valuable to me than any Picasso.


DIRT ~ Good black dirt - for growing our beautiful flowers and vegetables. I love to watch the flowers grow in my yard!


DAD'S ~ I often stand in wonder at the Dad's in my grandchildren's lives and think how lucky they are to have each other. The things the dad's can teach the little ones and the things the little ones can teach the dad's.


DRIVE ~ A nice relaxing Saturday or Sunday drive along a peaceful road with no where in particular to go or have to be.


DESSERTS ~ I probably should say "low-fat"desserts, but I'm going to include all desserts. They are yummy and should be eaten by everyone on occasion!


There it is......My list. Now I think I might just go and find me some dessert!!

Son's surgery!

Just a quick post to let you all know that my son's surgery went well. He has at least two metal plates, several pins and screws in his ankle and leg, but at least he didn't lose it. The doctor said he will have arthritis in that ankle but that is a small price to pay for not losing it and besides, we all suffer from that as we get older.

Thank all of you for the continued support and prayers. Prayers are surely what helped to sustain us in a trying time.

You guys are the "BEST"!

Mother's Day Events

Hope all the MOMS out there had a wonderful Mother's Day.

Mine started out very early. And not so pleasant as the usual granddaughter, who spent the night, developed a case of the "throw-ups" at 5:00 AM and didn't quite make it to the bathroom in time. But it did improve, thank goodness.

The above photo is of Drew sitting on the riding lawn mower in our driveway. I think he wanted to drive it without any help from me! They didn't stay too long. It was way past the time for munchkin to have his nap and no one wanted to push their luck and have him react with an attitude!

Later in the day we went to one of our sons homes for a cook-out and had a lovely time visiting with them and our 5 year old grandson and my daughter-in-laws parents and siblings. The food was delicious......probably more so since I didn't have to make any of it.

While we were visiting with family, we found a bird nest near our swing set and the robin is waiting to become a mother too. When she flew away to get some food, I took a picture of the nest. There are 4 eggs in there, but you can only see 3 of them good. The 4th one is hiding near the front left side of the nest. I can hardly wait .

Happy Mother's Day

In honor of all the Mother's in the world:


My mother taught me to appreciate a job well done.
"If you're going to kill each other, do it outside; I just finished cleaning."

My mother taught me religion.
"You better pray that will come out of the carpet!"

My mother taught me about time travel.
"If you don't straighten up, I'm going to knock you into the middle of next
week."

My mother taught me logic.
"Because I said so, that's why".

My mother taught me more logic.
"If you fall out of that swing and break your neck, you're not going to the
store with me."

My mother taught me foresight.
"Make sure you wear clean underwear in case you're in an accident."

My mother taught me irony.
"Keep crying and I'll give you something to cry about."

My mother taught me about osmosis.
"Shut your mouth and eat your supper."

My mother taught me contortionism.
"Will you look at that dirt on the back of your neck!"

My mother taught me stamina.
"You'll sit there until all that spinach is gone."

My mother taught me about hypocrisy.
"If I've told you once, I've told you a million times....don't exaggerate!"

My mother taught me the circle of life.
"I brought you into this world and I can take you out."

My mother taught me about behavior modification.
"Stop acting like your father."

My mother taught me about envy.
"There are millions of less fortunate kids in this world who don't have
wonderful parents like you do."

My mother taught me about anticipation.
"Just wait until we get home."

My mother taught me humor.
"When that lawn mower cuts off your toes, don't come running to me."

My mother taught me wisdom.
"When you get to be my age, you'll understand."

And my very favorite:

My mother taught me about justice.
"One day you'll have kids and I hope they turn out just like you."

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!

We're good to go!

Took my son to the doctor today and yipeee! The swelling is down enough to do the surgery. It doesn't look like he will lose his foot after all. The doctor said he will need to make three incisions - one on each side of his ankle and one behind on his calf. It is scheduled for Friday at 10:45 AM. And BONUS ~ the doctor is going to try and do it as an outpatient type surgery! That will save the kid some money since he doesn't have any insurance.

The doctor is an ex-dirt bike rider himself and told my son that he will try and fix his ankle so he can still ride dirt bikes! I told the doctor that he's as stupid as the son is! He laughed!

Thanks again for all the support and prayers, you guys are the best!!

Things are looking up!

Decided I had better find the time to enter a new post to let you all know how things are with the son. First of all, thank you all for your support and prayers on our behalf. I am convinced that is the only thing that truly helps! God Bless you all.

He went to the doctor yesterday and it is still too swollen to operate and he has huge and ugly "fracture blisters" all over his ankle and foot so the doctor put him on an anti-biotic to keep the blisters from becoming infected.

Now for the good news! He still has a strong pulse in his foot which means that the artery hasn't compressed yet. He's still not out of the woods, but the doctor was happy so we are too! He goes back to see the doctor on Tuesday and we're hoping to have a somewhat better idea of when he can do the surgery.

My "60th" birthday is tomorrow and the sons "33rd" birthday is Monday. I consider this news one of the best birthday presents either of us could receive!

When it rains it pours....

the son who was in jail and released has now been in an accident. He crashed while riding on his dirt bike Saturday. I spent all Saturday night and all of the day on Sunday at the hospital with him.

His left ankle is shattered in 3 places and they need to do some surgery to put in plates and pins. However, they can't do the surgery until the swelling goes down. They sent us home. He has a splint on his left leg from his thigh to his toes. It is so swollen that the doctors are afraid it will compress the artery and cut off the blood supply and they will have to amputate his foot. They were very honest with us about that....he has a 50% chance of losing his foot! Not very nice odds to have to face at the age of 32. If the swelling goes down enough they hope to operate next Monday....that's his 33rd birthday! Nice present, huh? This news was quite a shock to him....it is the first time in a long, long time that he asked me to hug him and hold him. I did, and we both cried; he about the odds and me about seeing one of my children have to go through this and not being able to do anything to help him. I am praying that things turn out good for him!

For those of you out there who read this blog and believe in God, I would appreciate any and all prayers on his behalf.