Blabbin' Grammy

No Soap

2012-02-18T12:50:00.000-08:00

Hey, Y'all,
Rainy days and Saturdays don't get me down. Ha. It has been rainy today, but that is just fine with me...not going anywhere today, anyway. Spent some time Skyping with Teresa this morning and that was fun.

Went to see the eye surgeon yesterday, and, as the old saying goes, "NO Soap", meaning didn't get the results I wished for. He said for me to come back Monday and hopefully, he can remove the temporary contact lens from my old eyeball. A few more days (nights, I mean) sleeping in the recliner. It will probably seem really strange sleeping in my bed again.

I spent the day yesterday pressing new material to go into quilts. I had a lot of it. You know, probably, that when you purchase new yard goods it has to be laundered and pressed before putting it into clothing or quilts. That way, there is no shrinkage to disfigure the clothing or quilt when it is washed for the first time. If you didn't know that, then you do now. Ha.

Today, I began working on the wreath to be put on my front door, and it is coming along quite nicely, I think. I need to get some more artificial flowers for it at Hobby Lobby and will probably do that on Monday. (After my visit to the eye doc.)

Well, I need to leave this place (the blog) and get busy working some more on my Sunday School lesson in order to share it with my sweet little old ladies tomorrow. This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for now. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now. More later.

Meandering Thoughts

2012-02-16T13:25:00.000-08:00

Hey, Y'all,
Well, today is a "stay inside and work day". I have been doing laundry and believe it or not, have done and put away (where it belongs) four loads of laundry today, along with cleaning up the kitchen and have yet to clean the floors, but hope to have that done before the day is finished. There is a lot of washed new material that I washed the other day, that is waiting to be pressed. I need the floors clean before I perform that very large chore. So, first things first.

I am very hopeful of having the clear contact lens (the dr. calls it a bandage) removed from my right eye when I see him tomorrow. My vision continues to improve each day, PTL!

Everywhere I look in my house, I see things that need doing. I did get the enlargement finished for Carol's quilt completed yesterday. Yea! I have been gathering bits of quilt batting that are large enough to use in doll quilts and placing them in a plastic box in preparation for future use, as well.

Lunch today was yogurt and Pepper Jack Cheeseits. Ha! Supper will be something from the freezer. I have finished reading three of the five books I checked out about a week and a half ago. My sleep is sporadic while I continue to have to sleep in the recliner, so, quite often I just close my eyes and take a nap when I feel the need. I got my bed linens laundered and back on the bed, so it will be ready to crawl into tomorrow evening. (I did that little chore this morning). Yes, I have been quite the busy little beaverette. ha ha.

I have several projects that are "waiting in the wings" but they will eventually be done. Papers are waiting to be gathered up for me to get my income tax done. I know my person who does that for me would like to get her hands on them soon.

The weather outside was beautiful yesterday and also today. I didn't get out yesterday until it was time for church at 5p.m. It was around 70 degrees and sunny. It is sunny today but only in the 50's. Haven't been outside today either, but will take the throw rugs out back in a few minutes to shake them out in preparation for sweeping.

Time to put the drops in my eyes, so I will close this out. This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for today. Much love to each of you, my family and friends. Thank you for continuing to read my meanderings and random thoughts. More later. Bye for now.

800th Posting - Wow? A Big Thank You, Too

2012-02-14T05:38:00.000-08:00

Hey, Y'all,
I know my posts have been getting a little farther apart, but it seems like I have been busier than a tick on a hound dog or some such simile that could be cited. Anyway, I have a lot of projects in the works and it is difficult to really get busy on any of them. I've had to buy cloth for a new quilt to make, plus, I have been to the eye doctor a lot lately. I really would rather just hibernate in my gown and housecoat. I am still sleeping in the recliner, because the protective contact lens is still in my right eye.

I went yesterday, hoping to have the contact removed, but doc says it is not quite healed yet, so..... bummer. It is a little depressing, but then ... on the other hand, I am beginning to see clearly with my right eye again. I perform little test exercises to see if my vision is improving and Shazam! It is. I am going back on Friday and he said he would remove it then. He's the expert, so I reckon it will come out then. Hurrah!

This is my 800th post since I began my blog nearly four years ago (it will be four years the last of May). What a lot has happened in that time frame....Dubby ill in Ohio, my gall bladder surgery that nearly took me out of this world, grandchildren getting married, great grandchildren coming into the family, family members and close friends being diagnosed with cancer, my Dubby getting ill and passing on, my move from Tennessee to Texas, and the list goes on.

In it all, we can see the hand of God. He has been good to me and to my family members and friends, bringing us through the depths of misery with the knowledge that He is always here for us.

I am hoping to get some organization of my house accomplished today. Over the weekend, I cleaned out some boxes of cloth scraps that I had inherited from my sister when she passed on in 2007. Most of them were not big enough to make use of, so they are in a couple of bags, waiting at the curb for trash pickup. Her quilts were much different than those I make. She pieced quilts from small pieces of cloth, and I use larger pieces of material. Those she had left in boxes were full of dust and darker than I like to use.

Also this morning, I washed new cloth and it is in the dryer now. Later on, I will need to press it in preparation to use. I hope to get started on the addition to the sides of Carol's quilt to make it long enough on each side for her to use it as a bedspread. I already have washed and cut the cloth for the addition and part of the batting is ready to use, too.

One day this week, I plan to make a wreath to go on my front door. It won't be long until Spring and I want to have it ready to put up by then. I already have the "makings" for it.

My living room looks like "the wreck of the Hesperus" where I have been "living" in it. I am moving the third work table back into it in a little while to work on the quilt, but first, things need to be picked up and put away. First, however, before that, comes breakfast. I have been up since around 5 a.m. and my hunger is reminding me that my belly needs its sustenance. Ha! It is already 7:30. I will have Egg Beaters and Pancakes. Yum!

Our weather was rather chilly over the weekend, but it is going to warm up for a few days now. We had some rain yesterday, but that has cleared out as well. I owe a big Thank You to family members who braved the cold weather on Saturday and came over to clean up my yard and put up a new gate on my fence. I so very much appreciate the work you all put in! Thank you, Carol, Daryl, Matt and Emily! Love, love, love! Emily cleaned up the flower beds, so they are all ready to plant again when warmer weather comes. They mowed the yard and it all looks beautiful! Thanks again!

This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for now. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now. More later.

Not Until Monday, Maybe

2012-02-09T16:57:00.000-08:00

Hey, Y'all,
Well, I have been busy over the last week. Beginning on Monday, it has been my privilege to take Carol to work each morning and pick her up in the afternoons. It certainly gave me a purpose and good reason to get up each morning and get out of the house. I have been sleeping in my recliner, of course, and so it is not difficult to get up early.

On Monday, I ate out with the seniors from church at Dino's restaurant, and really enjoyed it. I had Veal Parmesan and although it was tasty, it can't hold a candle to good old Louis' in Knoxville. I'll be sure and have that when I visit Knoxville in May of this year.

On Tuesday, I had breakfast at Le Peep's and then bought groceries at Kroger's which is next door to Le Peep's. It had been nearly two weeks since I had bought them, so it was time.

Wednesday, I went to a meeting of Christian Women's Club and had a really wonderful time there. I had been invited by a couple of ladies at my church who are members of the Club. We met at a Country Club and I got to dress up in my glad rags. Then Wednesday evening, supper at church, followed by choir practice.

This morning, I cleaned my kitchen and then took Carol to where her County car is parked, so she could go to work, and then came back home. After my meal of oatmeal and toast with hot tea, I worked on cleaning up the living room floor and then sorting through cloth and arranging it in a semblance of order. Soon it was time to go to the eye doc's office. After sitting there for about an hour and a half, and expecting to get the "contact lens bandage" removed, I was once again met with disappointing news. Not quite healed yet, and I get to go see him again on next Monday. A few more nights in the recliner and believe me, I am looking forward to lying down in my bed again. Sometimes I wake up and don't realize where I am. Ha.
ying down
After leaving the doc's office, I headed for the sub-courthouse which is not far from his office and got a couple of handicapped parking placards to make it easier for me to access places I need to go. With my spinal stenosis, and aortic stenosis, I have quite a bit of difficulty with getting around. I'll take any help I can get. From there, I headed to the public library and checked out five new books. Then I headed back towards where I pick up Carol and stopped at a Subway for a meal. Soon after I finished eating, I went on to Carol's parking place and it was not long before she arrived.

We stopped at Kroger's and she got some much needed groceries and then on to her house where I dropped her off with her groceries and here I am.

Now you know how my week has been going. I have been doing some sewing of the doll quilt I am making for a lady who has Alzheimer's and carries a baby doll around with her. I will soon have it finished and will resume work on completing addition to Carol's quilt.

Friends, thanks for all the cheerful well-wishes on my behalf. It helps to know there are people out there who care about me and take the time to express it!

American Idol is back on and going full force. I really enjoy watching that show, although I really don't care a lot about StevenTyler. He is not my idea of an ideal judge. Too much of a "potty mouth" for my liking.

In a few minutes I am going back into the living room to try to finish up the baby doll quilt and get it done.

That is about it for today. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now. More later. This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for today.

Some Disappointment

2012-02-03T18:36:00.000-08:00

Hey, Y'all,\
Well, I was kind of disappointed when I went to the eye surgeon's office today. When they checked my temporary clear contact lens to see if I could have it out, the answer was to keep it in another week, because the cornea had not healed enough to remove the contact lens. They explained that the cornea heals from the outer area towards the center, and there is still a small area in the center that has yet to heal. When they told me that the contact lens is a standard lens and not curved to fit my particular eye, that explained why it is so bothersome. Oh, well.

I am adding some to the quilt I made for Carol (along the sides) because it is not quite as wide as it needs to be to reach to the bottom of her mattress. So, I ripped out the binding along each edge of it and today, I went to get some more cloth at my favorite place....Yeah, Hobby Lobby and got some more things there as well. Just couldn't help myself. Actually, it was for quilting.

Today was kind of rainy and a kind of lonesome day for me. Do you ever have those kind of days? I did get an organizer for my cutting machine paper. Now all I have to do is decide where I want to put it for the best accessibility. Also, I know I need to collect all my papers for income tax filing....

Tomorrow, Carol and I are going back to Hancock Fabrics to pick up the kind of cloth that I need for the adding on of her quilt. I am also going to be making a pillow sham to match the quilt. We need to confer on how she wants it made.

I am growing rather tired of sleeping in my recliner, but only one more week to do so. I am sleeping in it because I have to wear goggles to protect my eye until it heals, and they are too uncomfortable to wear to sleep in, in my bed. This too shall pass. One good thing....my vision in my left eye is wonderful and soon (in about three months) I expect the vision in my right eye will be good as well. :)

Well, that is about it for today. Not much here on the home front. This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for today. Here is a picture Carol took of me when we were in church on Christmas morning.

Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now. More later.

Happy Pictures!

2012-02-01T09:56:00.000-08:00

Hey, Y'all,
This is a real challenge, typing with only one really good eye..ha. The right eye was operated on less than a week ago, but is improving. I can still read...in fact, sat at the breakfast table and finished reading a book because it was so very good, I just couldn't put it down. I have to put an eye drop in each eye every hour to keep the eyeballs moist. When a book is really good and makes me cry, wonder if that would take the place of the artificial tears???? Anyway, it was all about love, life, jealousy, birth, death, marriage, breakups, teenage angst, all the stuff of which life is woven into a tapestry. So, even though I sat down to eat my oatmeal at 8:30 (with the radio playing country music, I did not arise until nearly eleven o'clock after reading "the end" and sighing, "Ah, that was enjoyable!"

On Saturday, after seeing my eye surgeon for him to check my eye that he had just lasiked on the day before, Carol and I went to a baby shower for her son and daughter in law. They are expecting a little boy to be born in March and of course, are very excited, along with their two little girls. Here are some pics of the shower.

Yours truly clowning around with Amy and Emily. ha. Any resemblance to real monkeys is purely not here.


Two Proud Grandmas!

Happy Mommy, Julia

Quilt I Made for young Master Bennett

Happy Grandma and her two daughters

Happy Grandma, Carol, and happy daughter-in-law, Julia

Well, that was what we did Saturday morning. On Sunday, I drove to pick up my friend, Mattie, who doesn't drive and we went to Sunday School, and church. After we left, I took Mattie back home and went to eat with some friends and we had a great time.

Monday evening, I went out to eat with some of the same friends and yesterday, I finished Carol's quilt. Here is a picture of it on her bed.


Looks pretty good, doesn't it? It is queen sized.

Here is another picture. Recently, my grandson, BJ, and his family moved from Minot, North Dakota, to Las Vegas. Here is picture of the three of them: BJ, Madora, and Roman. BJ just left the US Air Force, and is once again a civilian. I know they must really be happy to be leaving the cold climes of North Dakota.


What a beautiful Picture!

Well, folks, that is about it for today. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for today. Bye for now. More later.

Now I Know How They Feel

2012-01-28T04:46:00.000-08:00

Hey, Y'all,
Now I know what the elderly in the nursing home must feel like when they have nothing to do but "rest" and watch television. Yesterday morning I went to the Laser Eye Center in Hurst and had my right eye worked on. It went quite well, but I was sent home to "nap" for three hours and then to "rest" with my eyes closed as much as possible and do nothing. Arghhh! Do you realize how difficult that can be? Also for the next three months I am to use lubricant eye drops in that eye every hour that I am awake. I have already done so with the left eye after it was Lasiked. That keeps the eye from getting dry and hurting.

Fortunately, this time the Dr. only had to do a very minimal amount of laser work. Finally, this morning, I decided at around 4:30 that my night's "rest" was over. I go in this morning to have him check the eye and pronounce it doing well. Then I will return on next Friday (probably) to hopefully have the temporary clear contact lens removed from the eye.

I have been in here in my workroom making a gift card to go with a baby quilt that I made for my new great grandson, who is due to be born in March. Carol and I are going to a baby shower being held for new baby, his Mama Julia, and his two older sisters, Alyssa and Brooke after Carol and I get through at the doctor's office. I will have Carol take pictures for me, because I am sure my focus will be decidedly "off".

I won't be able to finish Carol's quilt until sometime this coming week. Hoping to be able to drive to Sunday School and Church tomorrow morning and to teach as well. I have been wearing my goggles provided by dr's office to protect my operated eye. Yesterday, Carol got us some chicken from KFC and we had that for lunch. All I had for supper was some hot chocolate and a few pepper jack Cheese-its. I will be eating some breakfast soon. I have to be ready to leave here at 8:15 this morning, so lots to do.

This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for today. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Thank you for prayers on my behalf. Bye for now. More later.

We Had Our Very Own Talent Show

2012-01-26T08:54:00.000-08:00

Hey, Y'all,
Every once in a while, I hear a song that takes me back to my days of teaching, when near the end of the school year, we would have a talent show with the kids performing and then some of the teachers (myself included, of course) would do a talent skit near the end of the show. Naturally, the kids loved it and we did, too. I believe that by performing in the show, we demonstrated that we were just people like they were.

The school was an old one that had been built in the 1940's and then added onto and renovated as the years went by. I began teaching there in the late 1960's. I became full-time librarian in the 1970's. I think maybe the talent shows began in the 1980's. Two of the third grade teachers came up with the idea and of course, I was happy to be a co-conspirator. We began with sign-ups of those who wanted to be in the talent show, and then there were auditions. Since I had a large room for them to have the try-outs, we used the library in the last part of the day for them.

The kids would bring their audio tapes to perform with, and we had some dilly of auditions (almost like American Idol, ha) Our teachers had fun with the talent show, too. It was something that brought all of us together, in a good way. You should have heard the hootin' and hollerin' when the principal and the secretary came onstage to do Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton singing "Islands in the Stream". And then, of course, when three or four other teachers and I came onstage to do "The Twist" (Chubby Checkers).

Some other songs we did through the years were , Madonna
"Manic Monday", Calloway "I Wanta Be Rich", or a Wynona Judd song (can't remember which one of hers we did, but I was "Whinona" and wore a wig and danced around. (You gotta know I was in my late 50's at the time...ha ha). Some of the teachers in the show worked out the choreography each time and then we had to learn it. It was never really complicated, other wise I wouldn't have been able to learn it. We did a different song each year. I know there must have been other songs we did during the years, but they escape my memory right now.

But the thing is, we had fun, and it was a time when the teachers and kids could connect in a way that couldn't be done in the classroom. I have fond memories of those talent shows, and I'm sure the other teachers and the kids haven't forgotten those times either. Then the county built a new school, and we moved into it. Our principal was retired, and we had the advent of the dragon lady, who knew not the old ways, and so we no longer had that kind of fun. I heard recently that the retired principal had passed on. He is sorely missed, I know.

I have named no names here, so that only those who know the subjects mentioned are "in the know".

Tomorrow, I have Lasik surgery on my right eye to remove scar tissue and I hope it turns out as well as the one on my left eye did. I have been working on Carol's queen sized quilt and it is nearing completion. I am connecting the two sides of it today. (After I complete today's blog, that is.) I worked on that yesterday and the day before, as well. Lots of basting to be sure it connects up well. I have already prepared my Sunday School lesson while my eyesight is right for it.

I am learning a little more about my new cell phone, too. This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for today. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now. More later.

Like a Chimp with an Encyclopedia

2012-01-22T11:06:00.000-08:00

Hey, Y'all,
Well, yeah I have entered (really) the world of higher technology and have a lot more to learn. Yesterday, Carol and I went out to get some cloth to finish up her quilt that I am making, and as we were turning in to the shopping center, I saw the Verizon Wireless store, and asked her if we could stop. I was eligible for an upgrade. So we went in and after looking around, I decided I wanted a Droid phone. I have been using a Blackberry Curve and it was pretty cool, so I thought I would just go "cooler". Speaking of curves, it presents a whole new learning curve. I feel like a chimp with an encyclopedia, a "what do I do with this?" feeling. Ha ha. But, unlike the chimp, I will learn, I know.

This apparently has been my winter of technology, because about a month before Christmas, I decided to get an embroidery machine (I had one for several years but it went ka-pooey on me). I can download patterns from the internet onto a thumb drive for it. Also, for Christmas, Teresa and Tom gave me a Silhouette Cameo cutting machine, which also is hooked up to the computer. I am learnin' lots o' stuff, don't'cha know? With a lot left to go. Ha ha.

Hoping to get Carol's quilt finished this week. It is a queen sized quilt (about 80x108") and I've had some fun doing it. Also, some problems which make the pattern more interesting. I will definitely take a pic or two when I have completed it.

Well, that is about it for today. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. This is Blabbin' Grammy, shuttin' my mouth for a while. Bye for now. More later.

My Cactus Didn't Know

2012-01-20T05:34:00.000-08:00

Hey, Y'all,
Well, I know it has been another week and a couple of days since I last posted, but in my defense, I have been knee deep (well almost) in quilting again. I only lack a few rows having the four sections of Carol's quilt finished before I put them all together and then put binding around it. Here is a picture of my work area (in the living room) before I began cutting the cloth. I have three folding work tables put together for working on my quilts. Fortunately, I have a large living room. Ha.

Looks like a big mess, doesn't it?

Did you know that my Christmas cactus doesn't know that Christmas is already over? In fact, it didn't begin to bloom until after Christmas. Ha. Here is a picture of it taken the other day. Isn't it beautiful? Actually, I don't care when it chooses to bloom, I just appreciate the fact that it does and that it brings such beauty to my eyes. :)

A lot of stuff goes on here in this highly populated area where Dallas and Fort Worth are. I marvel each day as I watch the traffic flowing (or not flowing) through both cities on the news programs each morning and afternoon. Highway construction adds to the problems for motorists.

Weather here in Northeast Texas is not always the same two days in a row, at least in winter time. It fluctuates greatly from 28 to 70's. In a very short space of time. It does keep things interesting.

Oh, yeah, another interesting thing is the addition of a new pitcher from Japan to the Rangers' Baseball team. It seems they had to pay him $51 Mil just to talk to him about the possibility of joining the team and then another 60 million to become a member of the team and pitch for them. It seems that he is such a personality in Japan that the women there faint, in admiration, when they see him.

I went yesterday to see a podiatrist and have my toenails trimmed. Never a pleasant experience, but a necessary one. The last time I had them trimmed by a podiatrist was when Dubby and I were at the Assisted Living place in Morristown when I was recovering from my gall bladder surgeries two and a half years ago. I had been doing my trimming by myself. Do you realize how difficult it is to reach the toes and trim them accurately as you reach my age? Of course, she had to treat my "Appalachian Foot disease" by prescribing two different medications. One, I have no idea what it will cost and it is painted onto the nails like nail polish to treat fungus. The other will be ready for me to pick up today, but will have to wait until tomorrow maybe. It had to be ordered and my insurance will pay $200 and I will fork over the other 95. The third medication which is an exfoliant for my rough heels, is supplied by the dr's office for only thirty bucks. Ha. It would have been a lot less expensive to just get down in the floor again and trim them myself, huh?

I will be going to see my family doctor on Tuesday, and see what wonderful things she will have (or not have) to say to me. She is a really neat lady and I enjoy talking to her, and she seems to know her business.

Friday, I get to go and have my right eye done. My eye surgeon will be removing scar tissue that has formed from the cataract surgery and other Lasik surgery that has been done over the past eleven years. Hopefully, it will do as well as the left one has done.

I have been watching a couple of reality programs about mothers and their little girls. One is called Dance Moms, and the other is called Toddlers and Tiaras. I can't believe the values that these misguided mothers are cramming into the heads of these poor unsuspecting babies. They are so skewed!!! It is fascinating, and also horrible to think of the perpetuation of such ideas as one little four year old girl expressed, "when I do good, she loves me". Arrrgghh!

Well, folks that is about it for today. This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for today. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now. More later. (I'll try not to wait so long next time).

Yoo Hoo! Here I Am, Again.

2012-01-11T18:37:00.000-08:00

Hey, Y'all,
I know it has been a long time since I last posted (last year), and now I am going to try to catch up. I have been so very busy over the past week making a quilt for Tom to match the one I made for Teresa and today I sent it by FedEx to them. You might say, I have been in hibernation in the house and have not been out except on Sundays and Wednesdays, because I really wanted to get the quilt finished. (I know it must be cold in Arkansas, ha). Once I begin a project, I work until I get it done.

Tomorrow I begin doing a quilt for Carol's queen size bed. I began the design for it this afternoon.

This morning, I went first to my family doctor's office to get prescriptions written for meds that had no refills remaining, and then on to the FedEx Office to send Tom's quilt; from there, I proceeded to Lowe's to make some purchases. Mickey D's was next and I had breakfast. Later on I shopped at Kroger's and picked up some of my medications, along with some groceries.

I was back home by noon, and decided it would be a good time to sweep my living room floor, which was littered with scraps of cloth, quilt batting, and thread where I had been sewing.

Teresa sent me a picture of her grandson, Roman, and his mom with the quilt that I made for him. It warmed my heart to see him so happy with it. Here is the picture. B.J. is behind the camera, taking the picture. Ha.

Great Grandson, Roman, and his mom, Madora

Roman does look really happy, doesn't he? I am so glad I made the quilt for him. It was a labor of love, as all my quilts are.

Here is a picture of my great granddaughter, Hannah, with the purse I made for her for Christmas. She looks mighty happy, too.

Well, now you know what I have been up to the past ten days. Oh, yeah, I did get a much-needed haircut last week. My hair looked like a dandelion's fluff ready to blow away before I got it cut. Ha ha.

On Monday of this week, I went back to my eye surgeon and he was delighted with the progress my vision has made since he removed the scar tissue from my left eye. He has scheduled me to do the same thing on my right eye in a couple of weeks. I hope and pray that it will go as well as the last one did. My vision has improved so much, you wouldn't believe it. I asked him if I could give him a hug and he smiled and said, "Of course, that makes it all worthwhile."

We had a lot of rain from Sunday evening through Tuesday morning, so it made staying inside and sewing quite cozy. We had a beautiful sunny day today, but we have a cold snap coming up tonight with cool days on order for the rest of the week and maybe more rain by Sunday.

Well, that is about it for today. This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for now. More later. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now.

What My Christmas Was Like This Year - an Essay

2011-12-31T13:30:00.000-08:00

Hey, Y'all,
Yeah, here I am again, just like the proverbial bad penny, I always turn up somewhere. Ha.

I've been thinking about how my Christmas was this year and I am going to pretend I am back in school writing an essay on "What My Christmas Was Like This Year".

This year, we spent Christmas mostly at Carol and Daryl's home and it was a lot of fun, like it always is, but had something special added. Teresa and Tom were able to come into town and visit with us. They came from far away in Alabama and had to drive two days to get to see us. Teresa is Carol's younger sister and Tom is Teresa's husband. Tom and Teresa came to my house some too, and did some things around the house for me. Teresa and I played with my new Cameo Silhouette cutting machine and Tom fixed an inset for a sewing machine cabinet that made it possible for me to use it as a desk. (The old sewing machine had been removed from the cabinet, leaving a hole in the top of the cabinet). He also hung a picture for me that used to be over my mantle in the house where I used to live in Tennessee.

At Carol's house, we exchanged gifts (that was a lot of fun), and we ate, and we played games. We enjoyed watching the little kids open gifts and play with them. There was a lot of talking and catching up on stuff that had been happening since we last saw one another. We ate some more, and played some more games. We looked at each others gifts. We enjoyed our time together. It was over too soon.

I loved all the gifts I received, but even more so, I enjoyed the wonderful times together that we had. Carol is a gracious hostess and Daryl is a great host, as well. The spirit of love lives on in their home. Of course, we missed having Daniel, Whitney and their four children being there with us, but we did visit with them via Skype and enjoyed that tremendously. We loved having all of the rest of us there together.

Of course, we all missed my Dubby but we know he is with our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, so there was no sorrow for Dubby, just happiness in knowing that truth.

That was what my Christmas was like this year.

Now for a few pictures.

Quilt I made for Roman, Teresa and Tom's grandson


Quilt I made for Teresa

Cool Kids Keeping Warm

Daryl, Ben, Emily, Teresa and Tom Playing Board Game

Matt and Carol

Carol, Grammy and Teresa (Mom with two daughters)

Emily, Ben, Matt and Amy (a lovely group of some of my grandchildren)

Teresa, Tom, Carol, Daryl and Old Grammy in front

Those are the pictures that I had on my camera. Unfortunately, I didn't get pics of Andrew and Julia with their two sweet children, but I have the pictures in my head. Sorry, I can't share them with you.

I have some wonderful memories of my church family during this season as well. We had a Christmas party a week before Christmas and had a lovely time. I also had my family come to church with me on Christmas day and that was wonderful as well. I feel so very blessed.

This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for today. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now. More later.

Tender Hearts at Christmastime

2011-12-23T07:41:00.000-08:00

Hey, Y'all,
Well, I was lying in bed this morning watching the early news (about 4:45 a.m.) and saw a story about a little girl who had called the open line to the station the other day. She asked Santa for some gifts and told how they were not going to have any Christmas this year. It turns out that she and her brother are being raised by grandma, and she has been out of work for several months. The little girl asked for food among other things. The response was overwhelming, of course.

It got me to thinking about how our hearts are so tender towards those in need, especially around this time of the year. It is very touching to see such stories, and I know much of it is due to the fact that many of us know what it is like to be without. We also find it sorrowful to think of those who don't have basic necessities of life, and also those who don't have any gifts for their children.

There are those people who object to having a nativity scene in a public place on public property and want to add non-Christian objects to the scene (like Santa, or Frosty, etc. ) This happened in a small town in Texas. What is wrong with people? Don't they know that without Christ there would be no Christmas? Duh!

I believe it is just naturally built into our hearts to want to help others. God created us and we are just naturally "programmed" to reach out to help our fellow man, if we have not succumbed to the evils of thinking only of ourselves to the exclusion of others. We are affected by the sorrows of those around us, and want to relieve their suffering.

How long has it been since you shed tears over the plight of someone else? Did it stop there, or did you do something about it? Just asking...

It is only two more days until we will awaken on Christmas morning and get ready to exchange gifts. I hope you will have a lovely day. I have talked with Teresa this morning and they are in Arkansas and should be here soon. It will be wonderful having us all together on Sunday. I trust we will be able to visit with Daniel in Illinois via Skype.

Well, that is about it for today. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Thank you for all your prayers this year on our behalf. More later. bye for now.

Party Time in the Neighborhood

2011-12-20T08:57:00.000-08:00

Hey, Y'all,
Well, I have finally almost finished all my Christmas gift making. I am still working on great grandson Roman's quilt. I am still waiting to receive the binding I ordered a week ago. It is supposed to be here today by FedEx. I did get through wrapping all of the Christmas gifts that were ready to wrap. I finished them this morning. I just about ran out of ribbon, though. I thought I had purchased enough the other day, but nope. I have been reduced to scrabbling through old ribbon to finish up. My wrapping techniques leave a lot to be desired, but I think it is what is inside the package that counts, don't you? Don't you hate getting a beautifully wrapped gift and finding the inside doesn't live up to the wrapping?

Yesterday afternoon, grandson Matt came over and did some cleaning up of viruses on my computer or at least installing a program that does take care of finding and letting me get rid of them. Thank you, Matt! Between him and Son-in-law, Tom, my two computer gurus, my computer stays pretty healthy.

Last evening I went to Carol and Daryl's annual neighborhood Christmas party that they have been doing for the time they have lived here. This year was 23rd one, I think. There were about 25 people there last evening. (I did not do a head count, but I think that must be about how many were there). Everyone brought snack food, and if anyone left hungry, it had to be their own doing. I took a tray of crackers with some dip in the center. The dip was made of a mixture of Underwood deviled ham, Philly Cream Cheese (Cream cheese with herbs and chives) and some well-chopped pecans. Very simple and quite yummy. Of course, I took pictures and here they are.

As you can see, we had people of all ages there at the party. We had a lot of fun, and did the game where you get to take someone's gift away from them if you like the one they got better than the one you got.

Just a few more days and the old fellow with the white beard and red suit makes his way around the globe in just one night, leaving gifts for those who have been good this year. Have you been good? I certainly hope so.

Well, this is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for today. Teresa and Tom will be here in a few days for a short visit. We look forward to it. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now. More later.

Busy Grammy!

2011-12-12T03:30:00.000-08:00

Hey, Y'all,
Just to let you know that I am still in the Land of the Living....I have been quite busy making Christmas gifts for great grandchildren and am still on it. I know I have been neglecting you all, but you know how it goes when you have goals to meet. :)

I have also been doing the regular stuff, like spending some time with Andrew and Julia's two little adorable girls, going to Sunday School and Church, choir practice, etc.

On Saturday, I decided it was time to get out and go to the Artisan Theater, so I called them and got my reserved ticket to see Scrooge, the Musical. It was really quite excellent (as always) and I sat beside a lady named Annie. I spoke with her quite a bit and also with her husband, whose name I did not get. He and I talked about our memories of World War II. Isn't it wonderful how one can meet such interesting people, if we take the time to interact?

I got to spend some Skype time with daughter, Teresa, on Friday and that is always a pleasure. I showed her what I had completed of her grandson, Roman's, quilt that I am making for him. I only had two rows completed at that time and now I have eight rows finished, with just seven to go. I should have that finished by Wednesday. I had to order binding to go around it, because I couldn't find the color I wanted at Hobby Lobby.

Last evening, I went to see the children at my church perform a musical, and it was delightful. Don't you love to see the little ones appearing onstage? I loved it. You never know what they are going to do instead of what they are supposed to do. So cute! They did not disappoint. We gave them a standing ovation.

Well, it is 5:30 a.m. and I have been up since 5, and it won't be long before the innards are awake, yelling for food. Ha ha ha. They will just have to wait awhile, because I want to get on with my work. I think I will just kind of hibernate today and get some more stuff out of the way. I hope to get the house cleaned up this weekend. (I can hear it shouting...."YES! YES! IT IS TIME YOU DID!") ha ha ha. I do have clean laundry to fold, floors to sweep up sewing scraps from. I do have a waste basket next to my sewing table, but somehow, all the scraps don't make it into it. Go figure!

This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for now. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now. More later.

I Didn't Know Nothin' 'Bout Birthin' No Babies!

2011-12-05T06:25:00.000-08:00

Hey, Y'all,
I didn't realize how long it had been since I last posted, until I was reminded by Carol and Daryl this morning. I have been so very busy acting like one of Santa's elves (making Christmas gifts) that I just hadn't taken the time.

HOWEVER....today is Carol's birthday and when I called her to wish a happy one, she reminded me and I said, "Oh yeah, I guess I better let my friends, and neighbors, and family that I am still kickin' up the dust."

I wanted to tell you a little bit about when Carol was born. Her dad, Charlie, and I lived in Fort Wayne, Indiana, where it really gets cold, and we did not have a car. He rode to work with one of his fellow employees, and when we went anywhere else we traveled by city bus. Usually, after the first snow fell, we didn't see the ground until springtime. So, since it was December when Carol was born, there was snow on the ground and some ice on the sidewalks. My sister, Margaret, was up in Indiana to help me out when Carol was born. She had come up the week before, so she rode with me on the city bus to the doctor's office.

When I went to the doctor's office that morning, she told me that they were going to do a Caesarian section delivery and that I should go from her office to the hospital, which was not far from her office. My blood pressure was elevated to a dangerous level, and I was in a preeclampsia state. Carol was born at 9 p.m. that same evening, and the doctor said she came into the world crying.

I had never been in a hospital until that time and had no idea what I was in for. The needles, the transfusions, the bedpans, all those wonderful experiences of hospital life that I have experienced in the years in between then and now. Life for me changed forever with the birth of Carol, and I learned what it was to become a mother. I still don't know much about birthin' no babies, because Teresa who came along three and a half years later was born by C-section as well. I don't know nothin' 'bout no labor pains, thank God.

I do know about pain from surgery, however, and when I was in the hospital with Carol - Charlie, Margaret, and Harold (Charlie's brother) came up to visit the next evening and they were telling me how Harold got lost coming up there and got on a one way street. Harold was saying that he saw someone coming toward him, and shouted out of the window to them, "Get out of the way, you idiot!"
Then they looked up and saw a sign that said one way and they were the ones going the wrong way. I laughed so hard, and had to hold my tummy to keep from hurting.

If you can believe it, I was in the hospital for a week, which was not unusual for those days. Nowadays they send you home without enough time to recover. We named her Carol for two reasons: Carol is the feminine form of the name Charles, and she was born near Christmas which made her our Christmas Carol.

Here are some pictures:

Newborn Carol with Charlie and Ruby

Looks Like She is Getting Ready to Say Something

From 1952 to 2011- Bennett Family

Big Sister, Carol - Little Sister, Teresa

Happy Birthday, Carol. I love my girls (and all their families). Mom.

A Bathroom Commode in My Front Yard???

2011-11-30T05:24:00.000-08:00

Hey, Y'all,
This week, I had a bathroom commode replaced in my guest bathroom, (so if you come to visit, you will have a place to use..ha). On Monday, I went to Home Depot and met with the young man who did the work for me, so that we could get the new commode and get it here. So, as we were walking through the store, we started discussing the old commode and what to do with it. He said he would carry it off for me, or I could just keep it if I wanted to. I replied, "Hey, I could just put it in the yard and plant daisies in it!" He said, "Yeah, you would soon have the Homeowner's association meeting to discuss it." Then I commented that would be nothing compared to the reaction I would get from family.

A few minutes later, I just got so tickled, I started laughing out loud. A few of the other customers kind of looked at me like I was a little looney, because I was kind of by myself, since Scott had walked on ahead of me a ways. The more I thought about it the funnier it became as I pictured the commode sitting on my front lawn with flowers growing up through the seat. Ha ha ha ha.

Anyway, Scott carried it off, so please don't worry. ha. Yesterday, Scott came back and installed grab bars in the shower in my bathroom and the guest bathroom as well.


Don't those grab bars look really nice?

Well, I was able to use the grab bars this morning, and they are wonderful and make me feel so much safer while in and getting out of the tub.

I have finished Teresa's quilt (one of them) and am on to other projects during these pre-Christmas days. I have quite a few of them to do, and I reckon keeping busy keeps me out of trouble. Ha (pretty much, that is). This morning, I am so hungry for Sausage gravy and biscuits, and I need to do some grocery shopping, so I am going to Le Peep's this morning for breakfast, then on to Kroger's for groceries.

Yesterday afternoon was spent pressing cloth that I had laundered in preparation for some of my projects. Today is Wednesday, so I will be going to eat supper at the church and then staying for choir practice. I hope to get started on at least two of the projects today during the afternoon.

Well, that is about it for today. It has turned cool here in northeast Texas, and I have turned the heat on in the house. I turn it off just before bedtime and turn on my electric blanket. Ahhhhhh! I love a cool room and a warm bed.

This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for today. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now. More later.

Thanksgiving - 2011

2011-11-25T08:27:00.000-08:00

Hey, Y'all,
Well, I don't know who wound up the most stuffed all over America...people or turkeys...but we were pretty full when the day was over. I am sure there are people out right now, shopping like there was no time left tomorrow to do any shopping, and for some of them, there probably won't be. An interesting note...police are going to be on the lookout not only for drunk drivers but people driving like they are intoxicated because they are texting. (My computer doesn't recognize texting as a valid word...ha).

Speaking of being stuffed, we certainly got our fill of food last evening. I tried to be very good and only had a thin slice of yummy chocolate bundt cake as dessert, and did not eat a lot of the supper, although it was very tasty.

We celebrated two birthdays last evening because, even though it was not the actual birthdays but very close to them, it was an opportunity to do so, because most of the family was together. If we had had Teresa and Tom, and Emily and Ben, then it would have been complete. After we celebrated the birthdays with cake and gifts, we sat in the living room and told of some of the things we are grateful for. I can understand why people get depressed around holidays, because it would be so easy for me to do so. When you get together with family, you remember the ones who have gone on ahead of you. I miss my Dubby, and my siblings who have gone on, but especially Dubby.

Here are some pictures from last evening.


Julia


Cousins


Whitney and Carol


Austin Playing Piano

Hannah Playing Piano

Proud Papa Andrew, Brooke, and Alyssa Enjoying Piano

Deep In Conversation - Carol, Daniel, Patrick, Matthew

Amy and Mama Jan (Look Like Sisters, don't They>)

Daryl, Carol and Matthew

Honorees, Carol and Matthew


Group Picture

Well, there were lots more pictures taken, but these are some of the best. Needless to say, we had a good time. Carol did a beautiful, tasty supper with the help of others bringing some of the food. Everything was good, though.

This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for now. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye now. More later.

Someone I Saw

2011-11-24T04:45:00.000-08:00

Hey, Y'all,
I never know who I am going to meet. She was sitting alone with her head resting on her arms, and she looked quite worn out. I was in McDonald's getting ready to have my usual Mickey D's breakfast and looking for someone to give my extra apple pie. I decided to give it to her. She had two rolling suitcases sitting on the floor next to her and her coat was flung across her shoulders. When I offered the pie, she gladly took it and slowly ate it. She thanked me for it and said it hit the spot.

I admit it....I was quite curious about her (so what else is new? ha) and so I struck up a conversation with her. She told me she had walked from the corner of Central and freeway 183 and had not slept much last night. I got the idea that she had spent the night there in Wal-mart and the more I talked to her, it became obvious that she is homeless.

She revealed to me that she had once been an administrative assistant, and that her parents are both well-educated and successful and that she had laundry that needed to be done in the suitcases. It also became clear to me that she could very well have been tossed out on her ear by her parents. She said that she is following God's directions in some job that He has for her to do, and that it is a secret that she can't reveal. According to what I gleaned from her, she has some money that she uses sparingly for small meals and for doing her laundry. She appeared to be in her forties age-wise, and looked healthy enough to be working. Anybody that can walk as many miles as she apparently does, is able-bodied enough to hold a job. I told her that I guess if I were in her place I would be making a list of the jobs I could do and getting a newspaper to check the ads. That was when she said she was waiting for God's directions in the secret project that he has for her to do.

I did learn also that she is waiting to be approved for government assistance. But I was wondering how she is going to get that help if she has no permanent address. Hmmm.

I wished her well with a "God Bless you" and left to do my Christmas shopping. This took place on Tuesday morning.

Yesterday, my friend Wanda called me and asked if I would like to go to the Outback for lunch, and I said, "Sure!" So we went and had a great time, laughing and talking. She and I are almost the same age, she being almost a year older than I. I had a yummy filet of steak, and a baked sweet potato.

Last evening, I went over to Carol and Daryl's and had some (a small amount) of Spaghetti and salad. Matt and Amy were there and then Daniel, Whitney and their four children arrived from Illinois to spend Thanksgiving with us and Whitney's folks as well. Tonight we are celebrating Matt's and Carol's birthdays. Getting together is what it is all about, folks, with loved ones and just enjoying the fellowship.

Well that is about it for today. I am hoping each of you has a blessed Thanksgiving, and don't eat too much today. Have lots of good sandwiches with the leftovers. ha. This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for today. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now. More later.

The Audi Commercial

2011-11-22T06:01:00.000-08:00

Hey, Y'all,
Say, do you watch commercials? A lot of people don't, but I do. I find humor, pathos, silliness, and all the foibles of mankind in them. They are a miniscule picture of our society as it exists today. There is one that has just begun to be shown (at least, I first noticed it the other day) and it really bothers me. It is the commercial for the Audi and other automobiles in that group. A young man arrives home for the holidays, and as soon as he enters the house, it is empty, and the parents are just taking off for the holiday in their new automobile. The father looks at the mother and smiles, saying, "He'll be just fine!"

Now, to me, that commercial is a sad commentary on our times. Families apart, each one going their own way, with no thought of others in their family. Thank God, it is not representative of all families, but the trend does seem to grow each year. I praise God that our family comes together instead of each going their own way. The people in the commercial are obviously wealthy. Hey, maybe that is the difference between them and my family.

Another commercial that really bugs me is the one for Target, where the woman in red is exercising getting ready to shop, (getting in shape so she can run over everyone else to get to the Black Friday bargains) and then she screams, "IT's here, it's here!" when she looks at the sale paper. PLEASE! Give me a break!

What it all boils down to is: we are a nation of shoppers...give me, get me, I want....I got to get this or that....Oh, my I don't have my shopping done...what can I get for?....We are a nation that is the wealthiest in the world and we are out to shop and get more....do we want to look at pictures of people in the world who have nothing...who live in tents or on the streets with nothing? No, it is too uncomfortable for us to see.

Where am I going later today? Christmas shopping... go figure. We have a Christmas Angel tree at church. I am buying gifts for a 12 year old little girl who would have nothing otherwise. It makes me feel a little better about others. The Lottie Moon Christmas offering will be getting something from me as well. I would urge each of you to do something for someone not in your family that is less fortunate than you. It will give you a measure of good feeling.

This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for today. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now. More later.

They Wuz Pickin' and I Wuz Grinnin'

2011-11-19T09:26:00.000-08:00

Hey, Y'all,
Last evening, friend Joe and his sweet wife picked me up and took me with them to hear a group of country/bluegrass singers and pickers. It was really heartwarming to see and hear them. After they played the Star Spangled Banner, they ripped into Rocky Top. Now, anyone who has ever seen a University of Tennessee Football game knows that is the number one song played during a game, especially when UT scores a touchdown. During the week preceding a football game, fans get revved up when they hear it played on Tennessee radio stations. Hearing it played and sung last night just warmed the cockles of me heart. Made me feel like crying, too. Just for a bit, you understand. The group playing was honoring Decca Records who were a big producer of country and bluegrass music back in the 30's, 40's, 50's, 60's and 70's. Music I grew up on and still love to this day. Along with others in the audience, I clapped enthusiastically, cheered, sang along, tapped my feet and just generally enjoyed the whole shebang.

Today, I am going shopping at the mall with Carol. She will be here in a few minutes so I had better close this one off. Teresa is doing well and is able to walk without pain. Ain't God Good? This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for now. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now. More later.

Dreams and Complaints

2011-11-17T06:02:00.000-08:00

Hey, Y'all,
Have you ever awakened crying or whimpering? I did early this morning. Of course, I was dreaming. I remember the dream so clearly, even now. Yesterday, my head was itching from fall and winter dryness. Naturally, having been a teacher for twenty-eight years, the first thing I always think of when my head begins to itch is lice. I have never had them, but as a teacher I lived in fear of catching them. I used to have my beautician check my head when I would go in for a haircut and my head would be itchy.

Anyway, that must have been on my mind when I went to sleep. I was dreaming that Dubby and I were in our home, and our heads began to be itchy. We discovered that a family had taken up residence in our home (we must have had a large house, ha ha) and there was a mother with three children. I thought at first that the kids had lice because they had these rough places on their heads. It turned out to be some kind of sores that were caused by allergies of some kind. But they were staying at our house, and it was meal time, and I was looking in my fridge and freezer for something to feed all of us.

There was no meat, and when I looked for potatoes to prepare there were only a few - not enough to feed all six of us, and not much of anything else. I was beginning to feel desperate...that was when I woke up whimpering. Wow! What a dream. There was much more to it but that was the main gist of it.

(Regarding the Occupiers of Dallas): When I was watching the news this morning, I saw that the police had moved in around midnight last night and emptied the camp outside City Hall. The city had given the occupiers notice to evacuate and some had already left. There were those who thought they had a long time to leave, so some left peacefully and about 18 others were arrested and carried off in squad cars. A huge amount of trash and a number of tents were left behind. Now there is a huge mess to clean up. Crime had begun to run rampant throughout the encampment. People were urinating in places that were not meant to be used as such. Good riddance, I say.

On to another subject: I have allergies to many things, and among them are colognes and perfumes. I can't even go down the aisle in the store that has air fresheners and detergents without sneezing and wheezing. I get the fabric softeners that are unscented. When I get close to people that are wearing perfumes, colognes, etc. the same thing happens: I sneeze and then my nose begins to drip and run. It is very embarrassing when I am trying to sing in the choir room with the other members and my nose begins to drip and I stand there trying to stop it with my finger and thumb. Last night, I finally just had to go into another room and get some tissues and blow. Then I was able to come back in and take my place again. Of course, by then I was choking up...hard to sing when that happens too. Ha.

Well, Teresa had her surgery yesterday and when I talked to her hubby, Tom, he said she was doing well (in pain, but not intolerable), so I hope I will get to talk to her some time today. Today, I go back to the eye surgeon and hopefully will get the clear protective lens removed from my eye. It is very annoying, but necessary, I know. Thank you all for prayers on our behalf.

I am also going to bake some "Lottie Moon Cookies" like those made by Lottie Moon, the missionary to China so many years ago. Any Baptist can tell you who Lottie Moon was. Every year we take up money to give to the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering to help our foreign missionaries. All the money collected goes into a fund to help them with their work and none of it goes to administration of the funds.

Well, that is about it for today. This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for today. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now. More later.

2011-11-16T05:14:00.000-08:00

Hey, Y'all,
Well, last night for the first time in almost two weeks, I slept in bed instead of the recliner. I was concerned that I not dislodge the clear protective contact lens in my operated eye, because I am a left side sleeper and I sleep quite often with my hand curved under my cheek.
I slept quite well last night, too. I had left my tevee on in my bedroom when I went to sleep and I woke up shortly after 1:00 a.m. when the power went off. I had gone to bed around 7:30 (quite an early time for me, you know.) So, I got up and walked through the house to see if all the lights in the neighborhood were off, and they were. (Yes, I have been living here long enough to walk through the house in the dark without running into anything). So I sat down in my recliner to wait for the power to come back on. It was not but about fifteen minutes till the lights were back on, and I went back to bed then.

Today is Wednesday, which is always a busy day for me. I go to a Psalms Bible Study at Countryside Bible Church this morning and then this afternoon (or evening rather) I go eat at the Woodland Heights Baptist where I am a member, and then have choir practice. In the middle of the day, I usually am busy quilting or some other activity. I will probably trek to the library today and exchange my books for more. My reading has been somewhat suffering lately because of my left eye vision being rather blurry. It kind of messes up my binocular capabilities.

Weather is supposed to turn cool again today. Teresa is having her knee surgery today, so please keep her in your thoughts and prayers. I appreciate it and I know she will, too.

The protestors are still in Occupation of Dallas. I defend the right of citizens to protest, but I think these people are carrying the protest too far. Many of them are hiding behind masks. I think if a person is going to protest against something, they should have the chutzpah to stand up and be counted as him (or her) self. I also think many of them are not really there to be protesting but because they think of it as a lark, and have nothing else to do. (In other words, not everyone there truly believes in the cause). A lot of criminal acts have taken place in these occupations, and a tent city like they have actually is a breeding place for criminal activities.

Well, the minutes are passing and I need to move my self from the computer chair, take a shower and have some breakfast, then get outa here. This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for today. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now. More later.

Raisin Pie Recipe and Rabblerousers

2011-11-14T11:13:00.000-08:00

Hey, Y'all,
Well, I reckon that the weather is going to be getting cooler. The leaves on the trees are beginning to turn brown. They were pretty for a couple of weeks. I am hoping that it will be getting so cold that all the rabble rousers who are camped near city hall in Dallas will be driven indoors somewhere else. I know that a lot of riffraff has joined the idiots who are "occupying" Dallas and other cities. A lot of them seem to have the same ideals as those who were affiliated with ACORN, which is supposedly extinct. There are a number of homeless persons who have joined those in the tent city. I feel for them, but I am convinced they are just there for the shelter. It is alarming to see how they all form a mob of ranters and lawlessness.

Here is the recipe for old fashioned raisin pie, which came from the back of a commodity box of raisins over forty years ago. By the way, the pan came back empty after the supper last night.

2 c. water
2 c. raisins (packed into cup)
1/2 c. sugar
3 TBSP flour
1/4 c. real lemon
1/2 c. chopped pecans
unbaked pastry for 2-crust pie

Preheat oven to 425 degrees
Bring water to boiling, add raisins; cover and cook for 5 minutes. Mix sugar and flour; stir into raisins. Lower to medium heat. Cook, stirring constantly, until mixture boils. Cook one minute. Remove from heat. Stir in lemon juice and add nuts, if used. Let cool a little bit (maybe five minutes). Pour into unbaked pie crust.

I like to make a lattice top crust. I do this by cutting top crust into strips and then weave it as I place it on top of pie.
You will need to do this quickly because the heat from the mixture will cause the crust to get very soft. Start in the middle of the crust and work outward.

When you have placed top crust on pie, bake for 30 minutes or until crust is browned. YUM!

Well, that is it for today. I have a lot of sewing projects going right now as Christmas gifts, so time is getting short.
This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for now. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now. More later.

Robbed at Church

2011-11-13T11:10:00.000-08:00

Hey, Y'all,
Well, they say a person can't be real trusting of others and I guess I discovered that for myself (again) today. After Sunday School this morning, I had a need to stop off in the ladies "necessary" room. We have a traditional service at 8:15, then everyone has Sunday School. So, I was about ready to leave the church. I hate to take my pocketbook and Bible and choir folder into the stall with me, so I just leave it on the wash basin and pick it up after I wash my hands.

Well, I decided to have a KFC snack (one piece of chicken/one side dish with a biscuit) and proceeded to KFC. I got there and opened my purse to take out my little change purse/credit card holder. LO and behold, it was missing. I thought back over the morning and realized I must have taken it out in the classroom to remove the little eye drop packet I had to take with me. (Eye drops every hour) so I went back to the church and searched in the classroom. It wasn't there. I proceeded to the back pew where I had been sitting during church - not there either. Then on out and into the rest room. There next to the wall, and on the basin sat my credit card holder/purse. With great relief, I picked it up and came back out into the atrium. A couple of ladies that are friends of mine were sitting there and I told them about my plight, and said, "thank goodness, I found it".

I opened it then and saw my credit cards were okay, and then opened the other part of it, and saw that the cash I had in it was gone. I am not sure how much of it I had, but it was at least $40.00 and could have been as much as 60. Apparently that was all they took. I am fortunate that they didn't have time (apparently) to take my credit cards. I guess they were just after fast cash. (I guess the temple that Jesus cleansed was not the only one with thieves and robbers, eh?)

Well, that was my little misadventure of today. I made the raisin pie last evening and am making the squash casserole after while. I have a couple of hours before I need to begin that.

This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for today. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now. More later.

Still Have the Contact Lens

2011-11-11T11:40:00.000-08:00

Hey, Y'all,
Well, it has been a few long days since I last posted. I have been doing a lot of eye drops. Three kinds had to be dropped in four times a day, and another kind had to be dropped in every hour that I was awake. There were also goggles which fit closely to my face and had to be worn at night to protect my operated eye. I have been sleeping in my recliner and not doing too badly at that. Some times when I awakened I didn't know where I was at first (disoriented, so to speak) and it took a few seconds to figure out that I wasn't in bed.

During the day, I was busy sewing, making a baby quilt for Andrew and Julia's new baby (not here yet) boy. On Monday, Mitzi picked me up and we went to eat with the seniors at Cotton Patch Cafe. That was the last day I was out of the house until yesterday, when I drove for the first time and went to spend some time with Julia and their two little girls, Alyssa and Brooke. I got to hold them and read to them. Andrew was just getting up from sleeping to go to work. I am so glad that Julia is able to be a stay at home Mom for their children. She is a really great mom.

I went to the eye surgeon today so he could check my eyes and have the clear protective contact lens removed from the operated eye. OOPS...not healed enough yet to remove the contact lens, so I have another appointment for next Thursday. It still is about ten percent lacking in being healed.

On my way back from Dr. Ranelle's office, I stopped at Kroger's for groceries, and some more of the drops that I have to use every hour. I also bought a pair of sunglasses to help me see driving in the sunshine.

Our church is having a Thanksgiving supper on Sunday evening, and that way members will be free to celebrate Thanksgiving together without worrying about getting together closer to the actual holiday. I am going to be making a squash casserole and an old=fashioned raisin pie. Yum!

On last Saturday morning, I ordered an embroidery sewing machine and it arrived on Tuesday by UPS. I unpacked it, but haven't set it up yet. Right now, I have two work tables in my living room, each with a machine on them. I still have to read the instruction books and clear off a place to set it up as I read.

Well, my appetite tells me that lunch time has come and gone, and I need to prepare something to eat. I think I may have a tomato, mayo, onion, cheese sandwich. Chicken for supper sounds good, too.

I will probably be sewing this afternoon. I hope to spend some time today or tomorrow visiting with Teresa on Skype. I also hope to go to a yard sale sometime this weekend with Carol. On Tuesday, I had a piece of furniture from the yard sale delivered to my home. It is a sewing machine cabinet that must be fifty years old. They removed the machine because I did not want it; I just wanted the cabinet which I will be using as a desk for my guest bedroom. It will be a good place to do my Bible Studying and teaching preparation.

Well, that is about it for today. This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for today. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. I would appreciate your prayers on behalf of Teresa, who is having knee surgery to repair some torn ligaments on Monday of next week. I know she would as well. Thank you so very much. Thank you for the prayers lifted up in my behalf as well. Bye for now. More later.

Recovering Very Nicely, Thank You

2011-11-07T04:22:00.000-08:00

Hey, Y'all,
Well, I am in "recovery mode" and seem to be doing pretty well. There is some pain in my operated eye, but Tylenol works really well. Didn't really need the hydrocodone that was prescribed for pain. After all, a tough old bird doesn't really need the high pain control. Ha. Thank the Lord that I have a high pain tolerance!

I have been sewing some, but discovered last evening that since I can't really see with both eyes, I need to wait a few days before resuming a lot of sewing. For one thing, I am staying busy just putting eyedrops into my eyes. I have three different drops that must be put in four times a day, and I have to wait at least five minutes between drops. There are other eye drops that must be put in each hour to keep my eye moistened. Speaking of pains...what a pain that is! Ha.

I have a clear contact lens in my operated eye, and that lens will be removed when I return on Friday morning to the doctor so he can remove it. If it comes out before then, I am to immediately notify them so I can get it replaced. I haven't tried driving yet, but will do so on Friday to return to the doctor.

My repairman, Scott, will be returning sometime today to repair the leaky commode in my guest bathroom. He did a super job on the garage ceiling, and I am so thankful for that.

My sleeping in the recliner has been going fairly well. I can sleep as much and as well in the recliner as I have been sleeping in my bed, thank goodness!

Mitzi is coming by this afternoon to take me to eat with the seniors. We are going to the Cotton Patch Cafe for supper.

Are you coping well with the time change back to Standard Time? It doesn't make a great deal of difference to me, except for the earlier darktime. I really do love the Daylight Savings Time, though.

Well, that is about it for today. More rest today, I guess. I need to fold clothes from laundry I did the other day, and will do that after breakfast. Right now, I need to do the eye drops. This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for today. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now. More later.

Come Fly With Me

2011-11-04T16:33:00.000-07:00

Hey, Y'all,
Well, I have been to the eye surgery today and it was not a bad or unpleasant experience. The people were wonderful at the surgery, and the doctor was really quite excellent at what he does. He is a very nice person, too.

When I went back to have the surgery (into the surgery suite), they gave me a Valium to calm my nerves and I expected to really feel the effects of it - you know that calm all over feeling of drowsiness when you are on a sedative - ha! no effect as far as I could tell. But that is okay.. didn't even feel sleepy when I got back home. They helped me to lie down on the narrow padded bed thingy, and he taped my eyelids down so they would be out of the way, and put a shield over the non-operative eye. Then he inserted a clamp under my eyelids to keep my eye open. Next he proceeded to use the laser to remove as much of the epithelial cells as he could. Then he stopped a couple of times and we went out into an examining room so that he could check the results. Then back into the surgery room to continue with the same procedure, until he got what he felt was the best results.

He washed my eye with saline solution, and added more drops of medication, and finally put the clear contact lens into my eye, which will remain for a week. Tomorrow morning, Carol will return with me for him to check my eye, and I have three eye drops that must be used four times a day, along with eye drops that must be used every hour while I am awake. Of course, that doesn't count the eye drops that I used each night before bed time for my Glaucoma. I am going to be "dropped out" before all this is over. Ha ha. So far my eye is not causing me any pain to speak of. I do have some Hydrocodone if I need it, but will probably be taking only regular stuff for pain.

They gave me some really cool protective eyewear for night time. I feel like I should have a scarf around my neck to protect me against the wind when I am piloting a little pre-world war II airplane. Don't I look really cool? Ha.

Yeah, I just had to have Carol take my picture. I couldn't pass up the opportunity. You know me... Ha ha.

Carol did the drive through thing at KFC for our lunch, and brought me home and got me settled for my lunch, then went home to fix lunch for Daryl. He is on the sick list with a fever and feeling much worse than I do, I am sure. She came back after lunch and we sat and watched an episode of "The Closer" rerun. She has really had to do a lot of running today, bless her heart.

I thank you all for your prayers on my behalf; I am sure they helped a whole lot as always. I may sleep in my recliner for a few nights, to protect my eye, (even with the flying glasses). I don't feel too comfortable sleeping in bed wearing them. Unfortunately, I am a left side sleeper and it was my left eye that got the surgery today.

I will be waiting a few days before working on Teresa's quilt again. I am just going to take it easy for a few days.

Well, this is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for today. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now. More later.

KA-BOOM!

2011-11-03T06:06:00.000-07:00

Hey, Y'all..
Well, it was another escape for me, I know. Thank you, Jesus! The LORD is good, all the time. I wasn't actually under it, but I could have been, because it could have happened anytime I was in the garage. It just happened yesterday morning while I was still in bed, around 6 a.m.

Yeah, if you read my posting yesterday, you know that I heard a big ka-whomp! and didn't know what it was when I was posting. I had gone out to the garage before posting and looked at the huge spring over my garage door, thinking it could have broken again like it did last year. But that wasn't it. So I went out to the garage again after I posted, just to look around again. I happened to look over at the ceiling of the garage and saw the big gaping hole in the drywall ceiling. GASP! Yep, like I said, it could have happened as easily while I was under it, either getting into or out of my car. The falling plasterboard grazed the side of my car but doesn't seem to have damaged it.

Of course, after moving some of the plasterboard that was lying beside my car, I went inside and got my camera. No need to waste a Canon Power Shot moment, was there? Ha.
Here it is.

Scary, huh?

I called Carol and she and Daryl came over and cleared a bit of it away and then Daryl called a friend of his who does this kind of work and is out of work right now. So, Scott (his friend) and Daryl came over around 11:30 and we made arrangements for Scott to do the work. He is supposed to come over around 1:00 this afternoon and work on it. He would probably have come this morning, but I have errands to run today.

Yesterday, my friend, Mitzi, and I went to lunch at the Cotton Patch Cafe and she is going to come by for me on Monday to take me out to eat supper with the seniors. Isn't that sweet of her? We had a really nice time getting acquainted and just generally having a gabfest. It was very good.

I am working on row 7 of the quilt. It is getting a little more difficult wielding it, but I got the muscles, I reckon.

Yesterday, I got a phone call and as usual, didn't know who he was on the other end when he asked for Ruby. (me) I said, "You got her!" He identified himself as Casey from Texas Toyota where I take my car to be serviced. I said "yes?" He very meekly asked, "Would you like to buy a new vehicle?" He took me by surprise asking me that, and I laughed and said, "I reckon not, but thanks for calling." He said, "okay" and we disconnected. I thought to myself that I bet he doesn't sell many cars with an approach like that. He didn't even give me any kind of sales pitch. He kind of acted like the fellow on radio who was a traveling salesman on a show. He would knock and say, "Nobody home, I hope, I hope, I hope!" I don't remember the character's name. Maybe some of you all do. (It was a radio show from the 1940's, folks).

Today, a visit to Walmart, to the Library and to Kroger's, in that order. I am going to have a sausage, egg biscuit for my breakfast and a late lunch, early supper. Which reminds me, I need to take some chicken from the freezer and put it in the fridge to thaw to cook for supper. I plan to be out of the house in about thirty minutes. Lasik surgery on my eye in the morning is taking place. Thank you for the prayers that I know will be going up in my behalf.

Cold weather has hit Texas, and it is supposed to be down to freezing tonight. I am going to leave the heat off as long as it is comfortable. I have pretty good insulation in my house. Well, that is about it for Blabbin' Grammy today. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now. More later.

Quilt Picture

2011-11-02T05:03:00.000-07:00

Hey, Y'all,
Well, I am posting some pictures of first four rows of quilt so that those of you who are interested can view it. I am hoping to get it finished by Thanksgiving. I think I have a handle on it now. I am posting three pics. One of left side, one of right side, and a longwise pic of the four rows from the end. The final eight rows will be a repeat of the first four two times.

I call it a zig-zag quilt.

This morning I have been up long enough to clean my kitchen and make my bed. I have plans for lunch today, and also expect to hear from my eye surgeon's office to see what time I am being scheduled to have the lasik surgery on my left eye on Friday. My house kind of looks not too neat today but maybe by lunch time, it will look better. I will be sewing again tomorrow, and am taking today off.

I still need to put the first pre-surgery eye drop in (four of those today and tomorrow). Also a shower is in order right after breakfast. Tonight is choir practice and supper at the church. Wednesdays are always busy.

A big lambanging this morning startled me, and I still don't know what it was. I thought at first it could be the garage door again. (Last year the big spring broke at the top of the door and was replaced). I don't know if it was an earthquake, a car hitting something or what it was. I may never know. Anyhow, that is what got me out of bed this morning.

Well, friends and neighbors, that is about it for today. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for today. Bye for now. More later.

A Sewing Grammy

2011-11-01T06:02:00.000-07:00

Hey, Y'all,
Well, I have been thinking over the past few days about what I would like to post when I can get around to it. My hands have been busy for the last little while, working on Teresa's quilt and not really considering anyone would miss my ramblings. However, I got a reminder from a dear friend of mine that people do become concerned when they don't hear from me. (Imagine that?)

I have begun assembling the quilt and yesterday I moved the sewing machine into the living room so that I can watch the big tevee as I work. Also, I am realizing that this quilt is going to have a lot of "character". Character in a quilt is when it has flaws in the workmanship. Ha. The first strip I put together, I was not happy with the first time I stitched it together. I ripped it out twice and stitched it a third time, and still am not happy with it, but it will have to be as it is. I wanted perfect and am not getting it. I know it is because of the applique stitching around the pieces. Too late now.

Three strips were assembled and I had pinned the fourth one when I quit at nine o'clock last evening. I did stop for breakfast, and lunch/supper. I did have some wonderful company yesterday - me and the tevee. The Lord was with me as well, as always. I did not go out anywhere yesterday and will not do so today. Tomorrow, however, is another matter. I have plans to go to lunch with a friend of mine named Mitzi. Aren't friends wonderful? I don't know her very well yet, since we just met a few weeks ago, but plan to get to know her better.

I watched House last night, and enjoyed it again. Last season was not too good, but this one is better. I'm looking forward to seeing The Closer when it returns for a new season the last of this month. The seasons are just too short for that one.

The weather is turning cooler and I have put my electric blanket back on my bed. Not turning it on yet, but it is ready any time the weather turns cool enough. It is supposed to be near 80 today, but turning cooler tomorrow, with a cold front moving in. I enjoy staying in and sewing, and just kind of hibernating. We are still in a drought in northern Texas, and in some counties, they have placed a restriction on watering lawns to one time every two weeks until in March. According to the weatherman, we are eleven inches behind on rainfall this year. All the lakes and rivers are down.

I reckon it is okay to announce that Andrew and Julia are expecting a little boy. (Another adorable great grandchild, and we are all looking forward to welcoming him!) He will have two older sisters, that I know will probably have a great time with him. Congrats to all of them! I love you all.
I will love making a quilt for him, of course.

Well, that is about all the news for today. I am going to go have some breakfast in a bit. This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for today. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now. More later. (Hi, Dot!...love you!)

Soup's On and Medicaid Insurance Letters

2011-10-27T08:26:00.000-07:00

Hey, Y'all,
Well, today dawned cooler and is turning even cooler, so I decided (after hearing the weather forecast last night) that I would have vegetable beef soup for my lunch/supper today. So about 7 a.m. I went into the kitchen and took the package of stew beef from the fridge and found the very leanest parts of it (with no white strips in it) and cut them into very tiny pieces. The other pieces I put back into the fridge to go into the garbage bag in the morning to toss out. A waste of good meat, you say? Nah, not when you are trying to watch the amount of fat going into your arteries.

Anyhoo, I saved about half of the good beef and put it into the freezer for future soup, and the other half I put into the tiny crockpot which was already set on 'High' and added a can of unsalted diced tomatoes with Italian seasonings, a small half bag of frozen soup vegetables, a little bit of water, some Louisiana Hot sauce for "kick" and slapped the lid on the crock pot. YUM! It is simmering, even as I write.

Yesterday was a quite busy day for me. I went to Wednesday Bible Study at Countryside, then dropped off my rider at her home, went on to Walmart to return unfitting clothing, and then to Kroger's to get groceries. I checked my cellphone, which had been on 'silent' while in Bible Study, and saw that daughter, Carol, had just called. I returned the call and she invited me to eat lunch with her, and of course, I welcomed the opportunity. We met at Mooyah's and had a small burger and fries. I ate about half of mine and left the rest. We had a good time talking while eating and then she went to run errands and I returned to Kroger's to get groceries.

I got home in time to watch a Closer rerun, and put away my groceries. I was a little worn out, so I watched tevee until around 5 p.m. and then went to my church for supper and choir practice. Finally, I arrived back home around 7:30 and decided to sew some more. I did another panel of the quilt I am making, and now just have another seven to do before beginning to put it all together. It is getting really exciting, don't you know?

Today is going to be a "stay in and sew day". It is supposed to rain a little later today and I always look forward to days like this. I don't have to worry about dressing and can just be in my gown and housecoat all day. Yeah...kind of a slob day.

Before I went into the kitchen to prepare my breakfast, I started a panel of the quilt and will finish it after I get through here with my blog post for today. Oh, yeah, I took a bill down to the mail box this morning to mail, and got yesterday's mail from the box. It is that time of year when older citizens get all the mail trying to convince us to change our Medicare Insurance companies. Here in Texas, we also get a lot of mail trying to persuade us to change our electricity
carriers. It is not like East Tennessee where we have just one carrier available. The electric companies here have been deregulated and can charge whatever they choose according to the increase in usage. I am still getting a lot of mail from the insurance companies addressed to my deceased husband.

Speaking of my post, I reckon maybe I have finished it for today. This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for now. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now. More later.

Happy Birthday, Whitney!

2011-10-25T09:44:00.000-07:00

Hey, Y'all,
Today is Whitney's birthday. Whitney is my granddaughter (by marriage to my grandson, Daniel - but no less my granddaughter) and is dearly loved. Now, I can't tell you how old she is - mostly because I am not sure, but also because you just don't tell a woman's age without her permission. Whitney is a lovely person, a wonderful wife to Daniel, and a great mom to their four children.

Today, I am going to be sewing some more and not going out anywhere outside.The day stretches before me. I hope I get a lot done today. We shall see. I went to Wally World yesterday, and bought a pair of pants. I tried them on last night. Oh, My Goodness!
I was greatly disappointed. I don't take time to try on clothing when I am shopping. It is much easier to do it at home.

You may be asking, "What was wrong with them?" Well, I'm telling you that they only came half way up my belly. Thanks to Brittney Spears, one has real difficulty finding pants that fit around the waist. Ever since she sprang onto the stage with her below the belly button style, clothes that look decent have all but disappeared. Just try finding pants that fit comfortably. I have a couple of pair of the pants that almost reach the natural waist. They feel like they are about to slip right off my body. I always have to be pulling them up. So, thank you so very much, Brittney! I will be returning the pants I bought yesterday on tomorrow when I get back from Bible Study.

It is almost noon time and I better stop this for right now and get busy sewing. This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for now. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now. More later.

Burnt Offering?

2011-10-24T16:17:00.000-07:00

Hey, Y'all,
Right about now you are asking, "Burnt Offering? What does she mean by that?" After a good breakfast this morning, I didn't need any food until around 5 p.m. So, about 3:30, I dipped some skinless, boneless, chicken thighs in Italian bread crumbs mixed with a touch of Parmesan cheese and put them into a foil lined dish and sprayed the foil with oil spray. I put them into the oven along with a sweet potato, and cooked them too long. When I removed the chicken, it looked really quite dead and black. Aha! I thought - a dish fit for a god (little g) because I certainly could not eat it.

However, the baked sweet potato was perfect and I cooked some frozen stir fry which contained noodles, and had a wonderfully delish supper!

I went out this morning and returned some library books and checked out three more. I also cleaned my kitchen before I left to go out, so it is relatively clean.

It looks like the Texas Rangers have a real chance to be World Series Champions in baseball this year. They have one more game to play. Both teams have won two games each. We shall see.

I am applique stitching on Teresa's quilt and going pretty good. I really have no place that I have to go tomorrow or this evening, so I work on it while watching tevee. Last evening, I had a really great conversation with my friend, Ina Ray, who lives in Knoxville. We have been friends for more than 20 years and have been through a lot together. We must have chatted for an hour and a half.

Not much else to report right now. Just ordinary stuff going on. Boring, isn't it? ha. ha.

This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for now. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. More later. Bye for now.

Floor Cleaning Time!

2011-10-22T13:12:00.000-07:00

Hey, Y'all,
Well, this morning I decided it was really time to do my floors and if they could talk, I am sure they would have agreed with me. Soon after I began doing my bedroom floor, Ben and Emily stopped by to do my yardwork. I was glad to see them, as I always am to see any of my family. We talked for awhile and I showed them what I have done on Teresa's quilt. I have two rows of appliqued pieces finished and will be putting it together when I have done the other ten rows.

They did the yard for me and then we all went over to Carol's and Daryl's (her mom and dad - my daughter and son-in-law) and had lunch. Daryl was planting some flowers to beautify their yard. He is the flower person there and does a dandy job at it.

I came back here and finished up the floors (or did they finish me? ha). Anyhow, all I lack now is getting the dishes done (not a lot of them and they can wait), and also cleaning my bathrooms. Hopefully, I can get that done before bedtime. I also did some dusting this morning with a Swifter and had to figure out how to put that little gizmo together. Do you dust first or sweep and mop first? An age - old question about which is better to do first is what that is.

I think my new morning medication is giving me a headache. Oh, well. No more complaining, I promise. I will just deal with it.

I have quite a bit of dusting I can do in my computer/work/sewing room. When that will happen is anyone's guess. Ha. As you can see, I have a wonderful work ethic: get it done when I get around to it. It will wait till I am ready. It has no choice. Ha ha ha. At least I brought the duster in here, and that is a beginning. Right?

Here are some pics I made of my outdoor flowers. I think they are quite lovely, don't you?


Roses on left side of my garage


Flower bed to left of my front door

Flower bed to right of my front door (it is much prettier this week than this picture shows)

Well, folks, that is it for right now. Tomorrow is church day and I do have a lesson to prepare this evening, so no sewing this evening. I hope to chat with daughter, Teresa, in a little bit. This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for now. More later. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now.

Woe is Me?

2011-10-21T15:57:00.000-07:00

Hey, Y'all,
Well, I went to my family doctor's office this morning to donate some more blood for followup testing. She was concerned about my anemia. I have been anemic all my life as long as I have been having my blood tested. (Sixty years, that is). I think the first time I ever had blood work done was when I discovered I was expecting my oldest daughter, Carol. My body seems to have adjusted to it over the years.

Following that, I went to have my hair cut in my boyish bob and so that won't have to be done for another eight weeks. I came back home for a few minutes and then headed out to my visit to my cardiologist. While I was there, I had a pacemaker check up, which gave good results. That was about the only good results I heard while I was there. My doctor gave me the bad news that my bad valves are worse than they were a year ago, my heart muscle is thickening, and is doing less than it was a year ago. He gave me two new medications for blood pressure and told me to begin taking a baby aspirin again. He asked me about taking an aspirin everyday and I told him I didn't think I needed to. He laughed and said, "your cardiologist is sitting here telling you that you need to take one and you are telling him, you don't think you do?" I said, "Well, when you put it like that, I guess I could be wrong." Ha.

Anyway, I left there not feel so upbeat. Oh, well. More was said, but I won't bore you with all the details. Having three brothers who died from heart attacks and their results is not a good family history to have, huh? It reminds me of the "Hee-Haw" song that went: Gloom, despair, misery on me, Deep dark depression, excessive misery, if it weren't for bad luck, I'd have no luck at all, Gloom, despair and misery on me!" Ha, just joking folks, I am not down yet. I know that my heart is bound to give out on me one day, so that is no surprise. It is called a-g-i-n-g.

I have been stitching around quilt piece squares (applique stitches) on Teresa's quilt in the evenings while I watch television, and some during the daytime. I hope to chat online with her tomorrow some time. I will be doing some work on it this evening. It won't be long before I will begin putting it together.

It looks like we may have some rain soon and that would be good. We have been having some cooler temperatures and that is wonderful.

Well, that is about it for today. This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for today. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now. More later.

Joseph and Doctors

2011-10-19T06:27:00.000-07:00

Hey, Y'all,
Well, back in summer of 1994, Dubby and I went on a three week trip across part of this great country of ours. We drove up through Kentucky, Indiana, Illinois, Nebraska, Minnesota, and a few other states. While we were in Minnesota, we went to a high school production of "Joseph and His Amazing Technicolor Dream Coat" and enjoyed it thoroughly.

Last evening, Carol, Daryl and I had supper at a Mexican restaurant and then went with some others from Countryside Bible Church to a production of the same name at the Artisan Theater. It was a wonderful production and we had a great time, applauding and cheering the actors. If you have never seen it, please go to it when you have the opportunity. It is, of course, an Andrew Lloyd Weber creation.

This morning, I am baking a sausage/egg casserole for our Wednesday morning snack at the Bible Study I am taking part in at Countryside. My rider, Vicki, who goes with me on Wednesday mornings, is having physical therapy on her shoulder. She had rotor cuff repair surgery a couple of weeks ago, so I will be traveling alone.

I got my blood work report back on Monday, and although it wasn't bad, it wasn't as great as I hoped it would be. Nothing serious, girls. Just aging...it happens to all of us. Eating is one of the problems, too. Ha.

I have a really great family doctor who keeps up on all my stuff and keeps me taking the right things.

Speaking of doctors, I have to go see my cardiologist on this Friday morning and hear the reports on the stress tests. I will also get my pace maker checked on Friday. My cardiologist is a really good one, too.

I spent Monday and Tuesday working on Teresa's quilt and have adhered 120 squares to the twelve strips that will compose the top of the quilt. My next step is to applique stitch around each square. Following that will be to begin putting the quilt together.

This evening will be choir practice at my church, following supper there with other members. I always enjoy sitting and eating with them. We laugh and talk about stuff that is happening or that has happened in the past. I did not go on Monday evening to eat out with some of them because I was not really in the mood for it. Sunday for lunch I ate alone at Schlotsky's and had a small chipotle chicken pizza. I don't do that very often and just felt like it. Then I went to Famous Footwear and bought a new pair of tennies. The ones I had, were a year old and have been worn almost daily for the year. Time for a change, hmmmm?

Well, folks, that is about it for today. The cool air has finally come to north east Texas and it feels good. High today is in the 60's. I get to wear my new jacket that Teresa sent me from Coldwater Creek. They are predicting maybe some frost in the morning. We did get some rain on Monday night and are hoping for some more rain soon. Of course, the weather will warm up towards the last of the week.

One more thing that is newsworthy... I saw on network news this morning about a private animal reserve in Zanesville, Ohio where the owner who had around 50 some odd exotic animals caged was found murdered and all the cages opened. The authorities have killed about 35 of the animals, and are hunting the others. My bet would be that some wacko who was opposed to having the animals caged (and they are wild animals) killed the owner and turned the animals loose. That would be a good premise for a murder mystery, wouldn't it?

Well, gotta get off of here and finish getting ready for leaving the house in a few minutes. This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for now. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now. More later.

EEK...The Water Police!

2011-10-14T08:33:00.000-07:00

Hey, Y'all,
I have some more pictures to post this morning. I did not have any additional food last evening, no hot chocolate, either. I haven't done anything of any consequence this morning except to make my apple pancakes for breakfast and enjoy them as I read from one of Patricia Cornwell's latest books, "Port Mortuary". It has been a while since I have read one of her books. I just finished reading "The Bean Trees" by Barbara Kingslover. I gave it to the sweet techie that helped me with my stress test so she could read it and either keep it or pass it on to someone else. It is one of those books I bought while in Illinois.


In Downtown Square


Playing at Kitchen table


Playing Dolls

Ellie likes playing with the green plastic bucket the toy soldiers are kept in.

End of day Family quiet time with Bible Story and prayer

Those are most of the pictures I took while there. This last was not a posed picture. It takes place every evening and I am sure helps everyone stay on an even keel during the days.

Whitney stays quite busy every day, because along with being a pastor's wife and having those duties, she home-schools their four children. She is a wonder, (and I wonder how she does it), and I love her dearly. They are all very dear to me and I miss them.

Well, when I took out my trash this morning (I ran out in my nightgown because I didn't want to miss having the trash out in time), I noticed a paper hanging on my front door knob. I looked at it and it apparently had been left early this morning. It was a warning from the water patrol that apparently I had watered my yard on the wrong day. (Who knew I was breaking a watering law?) Not I. Anyhow, we are in a first stage drought and can only water on certain days. I know my yard is watered at around 3 a.m. so that it does the most good. Apparently right now, there are just two particular days that a person can water their yards. I guess they have to get up pretty early in the morning to catch it being watered at 3 a.m. huh? So, it was just a warning. I came in and immediately turned the automatic sprinkling system to off. I don't know how to set the dad-gummed thing, so it will have to be reset by a grandson or my daughter. Oh, well. At least they won't come and fine me $500 a day. That would really hurt, huh?

Well, now to get some of the things done that I intended to do today. Maybe. ha. I just called my family doctor to get the results from my bloodwork I had done almost three weeks ago, and they are going to have to call me back after they check on it. I joked that maybe they were reluctant to call me because maybe I am dying and they don't want to give me the bad news. ha ha. The receptionist laughed like I expected her to.

You know, I was thinking yesterday while I was watching some of the people at the diagnostic center (I do that a lot - think- I mean) and observing how they have difficulty getting around. Some of them have to use canes and walkers and some have the portable oxygen tanks. Some of them have swollen ankles and have to wear shoes with no back to them. Years ago, they would not still be living. Natural causes would have put them into their graves. Medicine has allowed us to live beyond what would have been the end. Has it improved our quality of life so much? We still die, many times in more suffering than it would have been long ago. Would I want to have a feeding tube in to prolong my life? No, I don't think so. Anyway, this is not the avenue my thinking took yesterday. What I was thinking about is "them" versus "me" and not really putting myself in the category of "those poor people who have a hard time getting around". Yet, I do have some difficulty because of a bad back, but it has been a part of my life almost forever. I am just not to a "walker or cane" stage yet.

Well, that is enough philosophizing for today. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for today. Bye for now. More later.

Some Illinois Pictures

2011-10-13T16:23:00.000-07:00

Hey, Y'all,
Well, here are the pictures that I took in Illinois. I had such good fun with my family there. I will try to put comments under them.

Noah and his Smokey Bear

Austin peeking over the couch

Painting Magnets that Grammy brought

They are painting magnets, too

We went down to the town square and did some shopping

Hannah, preparing juice for breakfast. Hannah is a wonderful help to her mom.


Ellie is waiting for breakfast. She helps too. Well, those are some of the pictures that I took of the children while we were playing. Now some pictures of the countryside. Some of them have the grands in them. Yeah, This proves I was really there...ha ha. They are showing me how to use the I-Pad Beautiful Mommy Whitney Well, More pictures tomorrow. We really did have some fun while I was there. Today, I went to the church to do some more work on inventorying the music library, and then came home to wait awhile to go finish my stress test. I do want to make a correction on that. I did not have an isotope injection, rather it was a chemical stressor. Today, I had the isotope. It allowed pictures to be taken by the same machine as yesterday, but I reckon maybe it glowed inside me for the pictures. Anyway, it is over with for this year. Next week, I get to go have my pacemaker checked to make sure my battery is still doing its job. They can also tell if there have been any extra stress episodes since I had it checked six months ago, and they can tell the hour and minute they happened. Isn't that amazing? My technician was very good with the needle in my hand, and I hardly felt it! That is the kind of techie I like to have. After I left the Heart and Vascular Building, I stopped at the local library to return "The Help". If you have not yet read that fine piece of fiction, you should. (Or at least, in my humble -probably not really humble- opinion you should). I had supper a little later at the Colonel's place (KFC) that is, and it was delicious. When I went in, I took almost six dollars in to pay for it. When the lady behind the counter told me how much it was, I lacked about thirteen cents. I told her that I needed to go back out and get the remainder, she said, "That's okay, just forget it". I guess I must look kind of poor or something. Anyway, I said, "Thank You". I never like to deprive anyone of the feeling of doing good to others. It is a wonderful feeling to be able to help someone, isn't it? That was just my second meal of the day, because I had a good breakfast this morning, and I will probably have a cup of hot chocolate before bed tonight. I did enjoy the meal tremendously, though. I need to do catchup stuff tomorrow, like go through the house and make sure I have all the bills in one place so I can pay them, and make the bed up with clean linens, and sweep the house, and maybe even really straighten it all up. I did get my suitcase unpacked yesterday. Yay! Good for me! Well, this is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for today. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now. More later.

Chemical Stress Test, Anyone?

2011-10-12T14:19:00.000-07:00

Hey, Y'all,
Well, here I am back in my own little messy workroom. Today has been a busy one for me - jumped right back into daily life as I know it. I got back here to Bedford around 7:30 last evening from Illinois. It was great fun being there with my family and I wished it could have lasted longer, but one doesn't want to wear out one's welcome...

This morning, I was up with the birds (don't ask me which ones, they have not identified themselves) around 6:20 a.m. and soon was eating a scrambled egg with toast and jelly. Then I took my morning medications and drank lots of water. At about 8:45 I left here to pick up my rider, Vicki, and we proceeded to the Bible Study at Countryside Bible Church (Carol and Daryl's church). At around noon, I dropped Vicki back at her home and returned home myself.

At around 12:45, I left home and drove to the Heart and Vascular Center which is not far from here and checked in for my chemical stress test. If you have never had one of those, here is what takes place: You can not eat or drink anything after 8 a.m. (Hint: eat breakfast around 7 a.m. and drink lots of water before 8 a.m.)

First they let you sit for a while, so you can think about what is to come, and let your blood pressure elevate. Then you go back to a room where they find a vein to insert a needle (not an easy thing to do on me, but they did a good job - it has to be done in the back of my hand because of my deep veins - I would never succeed in becoming a junkie). Then they attach a bunch of electrodes to your upper body, and then inject an isotope into your vein, and tell you to swing your legs back and forth to make the stuff circulate good. Oh, yeah, they keep a check on your blood pressure the whole time. Now - as for the internal effects of the isotope - you get a quick headache - feel dizzy- and just generally have a weird feeling. After about four minutes, the effects diminish and you feel better. They give you some caffeine to drink, which helps you feel better. They remove the wires and all but three of the little pads they are attached to.

After you do the weird feeling thing, they send you out to wait awhile and then you can have a snack while you wait. I took some tylenol with me today so that I could take care of the headache after the injection. In about 20 minutes or so, you get to go into another room, and they remove the needle in your vein. You lie down on your back on a narrow table and put your hands above your head; they place a wedge under your knees for comfort. You are then moved into an open machine kind of like one of those that a lot of people hate to be in that are claustrophobic. You lie very still and the machine moves slowly around you and takes pictures of your heart. That takes twenty minutes.

Following that, I went back out for a few minutes and then went into another room for an echo cardiogram. This is done with a sonogram machine and the technician holds this sonogram dohickey under neath the breast and you can hear your heart going swish swish swish (blood going through your heart) and then moves it to the diaphragm and does the same thing. It is quite interesting, you know. All the technicians are wonderfully nice and do a great job! Thank you all!

Well,that is what took place from 1:15 to around 3 p.m. today. This afternoon in about forty five minutes I will be going to my church for supper and choir practice. I should be home by 7:45 this evening. That is my Wednesday for this week. Tomorrow, I get to go back to the Heart and Lung center and finish my stress test. Another injection and more pictures will take place at that time.

Tomorrow, pictures from my visit in Illinois. This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for today. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now. More later.

2011-10-11T12:56:00.000-07:00

Hey,Y'all,
Well here I am waiting for time to leave for the airport to return home to Texas. It has been wonderful visit and I am sorry to have the visit to be over. There has been time to spend with all my great grands individually and together. I hope that they will remember me fondly when they think of me. Also, Daniel and Whitney and I have had time to converse together.

Right now I am sitting in Daniel's office as he works and Whitney is with the children in a church related activity. Later, we will be heading to the airport for me to catch my flight. Hopefully, I will be able to (if it flies low enough)Ha ha.

Yesterday afternoon we went to a fast food place called Michael's for lunch. YUM! I had a pizza burger. It was pizza bread topped with meat, sauce, mushrooms, onions, minced green peppers, and melted cheese. I was able to eat only half of it and took the remainder home, and had it for supper. After we had lunch, we went back to the downtown square and went to a quilt store, where I found some notions that my grandson so sweetly purchased for me. :)

They have a very active life with four children and being in the ministry. On Sunday evening they had a small group of people who came for a get together where they had a discussion time.
More on this later. It is almost time for me to close this out.

This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for now. More later. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now.

In Illinois

2011-10-09T14:23:00.000-07:00

Hey, Y'all,
Well, here I am in Central Illinois visiting my grandson and his family and having a grand time and trying to do my blog on his laptop. Wow! i had a really good flight here, and my arms didn't get too tired (flying here) because it was only an hour and a half flight. ha.

I thought I had really planned well for my visit, but when I got ready to take my medications on Friday evening, I discovered one type of blood pressure pills that I had missed packing, and realized that the bottle of eye drops I thought I had packed was actually the empty one. Both medications were really important for me to have. So then the problem we faced on Saturday morning was how to get those two medications. The eye drops were important because they are for glaucoma treatment. They keep the inner pressure reduced in my eyeballs. So - what to do?

That thought occupied my mind in the wee hours of Saturday morning. Fortunately, since Daniel is pastor of a fairly large church, he knows several physicians, and called upon them to see if they could perhaps provide a solution to my problem. One of them called in a one month prescription for the eye drops (which was due to be refilled) and the other called in a prescription for one week's worth of the blood pressure medication. I had prescription numbers for both of them with me. Whew! Problem solved. That convinces me more than ever that it is wonderful to know somebody that knows somebody. More than that, I know that God provides answers for us and takes care of us, even when we are not aware. I do know that a lot of prayin' was going up and He does answer prayers!

We have been having a lot of fun since I have been here, too. The whole family came to the airport to pick me up, and I was so very happy to see them! When we got back to the house, Whitney had a great supper ready to put on the table for all of us.

We had supper and then sat around watching a little television and catching up on news. I got some really great snuggles from my great grandchildren. I will have pictures to post when I get back to Texas. So I won't tell too many of the stories while I am here.

I brought some craft things with me, so the four grands and i spent a good part of late Saturday morning (after Daniel and I picked up prescriptions) doing some painting and coloring. Pictures to be posted next week.

Yesterday afternoon, we took a drive to see the Illinois River and the trees whose leaves are changing colors. It was beautiful and reminded me so very much of driving in the Smokies. Then we stopped in the Washington Town square, and visited a few of the small shops located there. It reminds me very much of the small town of Jonesborough, Tennessee which (by the way) is hosting the International Storytelling Festival this weekend, which I had the priviledge of attending for so many years.

This morning, we were happy to attend church this morning and worship the Lord. Daniel was priviledged to baptize two young people and also preached the sermon. I enjoyed both.

Lunch today was delicious, and this afternoon we are watching a movie and relaxing together. it is really neat to see kids snuggled up to parents and having a good time together.

This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for now. I am going to enjoy the rest of the day with my Daniel, Whitney and the four children, Hannah, Austin, Noah and Ellie! Yea!

Bye for now. More later.

Preparations

2011-10-05T12:20:00.000-07:00

Hey, Y'all,
Well, it is mid week again, and I have been somewhat busy getting ready to visit my grandson and family in Illinois. On Friday, I will arm my alarm system and leave for my visit. My next door neighbor, Cooter Jones, (an old fellow from Alabama who knows how to shoot the eye out of a fly at sixty paces), will also be on alert watching my place, so I have no worries about my home while I am away.

I have my suitcase just about packed and I have been cleaning out my fridge, and getting my kitchen put in order. I have also got the quilt pieces arranged for placing on the quilt strips. Yesterday was laundry day, and it is all put away. I even pressed a few pieces with the iron (almost agin my housekeepin' practices). Didn't want to embarrass my family in Illinois with wrinkled clothes. Ha.

While I was in Walmart this morning doing a little last minute shopping, I was talking to a checkout lady and we were talking about being happy versus not being, regardless of our situations, and it is refreshing to talk to other Christians about the way we meet life.

I still don't have the results of my bloodwork back from the doctor's office. This morning, I drove to the doctor's office, presuming mistakenly that the report would be back since the blood was drawn ten days ago. Well, duh! It wasn't back and I was informed that they would call me when they had it back. Oh, well, so much for rash assumptions. Ha.

Tonight is supper at the church and then choir practice. Tomorrow I am planning on doing a little more music inventory. I will be reminding Karen to bring her laptop tomorrow to church so that I can actually enter the info into the spread sheet.

Last evening, I enjoyed going out to supper with Carol. We ate at Cheddar's and I had the braised roast beef with mashed potatoes and carrots. OH my goodness, it was so yummy, and I couldn't really do it justice but I did my best but left at least half of it. I knew if I brought it home, I would probably not eat it, but toss it out.

This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for now. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now. More later.

Doin's this Past Week, and Happy Birrthday wishes!

2011-10-02T12:23:00.000-07:00

Hey, Y'all,
This has been a rather quiet week, but then most of them are. On Monday, I went to see my family doctor for a check-up, and we had a good time chatting. You know, I always enjoy talking to people. She said something that I found to be quite amusing. She is of Chinese descent, but I do not know if she is American born or emigrated from China. She has somewhat of an accent, and we were talking about my being from Tennessee. She said, "You don't have much of an accent." I replied, very seriously, "I have been to college for four years,". Then she said, "Oh, I see, college refined the accent pretty much out, didn't it?"

She must have thought that people from Tennessee talk like hillbillies. I should have done the hillbilly speech for her, and she would have enjoyed hearing it. A teacher who taught with me back in Tennessee was so back country speaking it was embarrassing to see her as a teacher. I think she really spread it on, on purpose. Just to let those teachers who read my blog, it was not one of you all. Her first name was Brenda.

I did get my pantry cleaned out this week, too. I made a list of the items in it, and discarded the out of date canned goods. I put their contents down the garborator, and put the cans into the trash. I have a pile of stuff on the kitchen counters that needs to go into the trash as well. In the morning, I will tackle that little job. I just recently learned how to do an Excel spread sheet, so I think I will do a spread sheet on the items in the pantry. Ha.

I worked some more on the music inventory at church this past Thursday, and it is getting much closer to being completed. Wednesday night at the beginning of Choir practice, Karen, the music director started making an announcement to the choir about my work. She said, "I don't want to embarrass her, but I want to brag on Ruby...." I stood up and lifted my arms and twisted around as if to say, "It won't embarrass me!" Ha ha. Of course everyone laughed and clapped, then I sat down. Ha

I had lunch today with some of the regulars who eat lunch together on Sunday after church, and met a couple of people I had not met before. The lady, whose name is Patsy, and her friend, Carlos, who is her assistant, entertained the group with stories about how she learned to run at the age of fifty. Of course, I have known how to run for a long time, just not 5 K and 10 K running like she did. Ha. She, of course, was talking about distance running. I do well to walk where I need to. I could not believe it when someone told me she is 80 years of age. She doesn't look a day over 65. I really enjoyed getting to know Patsy and Carlos. I look forward to more times with them.

I am hoping to finally get going on Teresa's quilt in the morning. I also have to check on the air in my tires. The little light came on in my dashboard this morning that tells me there is a loss of air in one of them. It is probably the spare tire in the trunk. It is all connected up electronically. I think I will go to Wal-mart in the morning and let them check it. I will have a sausage egg biscuit in the Mickey D's and do a little shopping while I wait. Hmmm. Sounds like a plan to me.

Grandson Matthew came over yesterday and mowed the yard and replaced some sprinkler heads in the yard for me. I also spent some time having fun talking to Teresa via Skype. She is doing well and they are quite busy during the weeks.

The weather is cooling off now, and that is wonderful! I have three good friends who have birthdays this week. Today is my friend, Judy Rogers', birthday, and Tuesday is her husband, Gene's, birthday. Tomorrow is Tanya Johnson Low's, birthday. It would also have been my Sweetie Pie, Dub's birthday. He would have been 85 years old. Happy Birthday, Judy, Gene, and Tanya! I love you all!

Well, I reckon that is about all I have to chat about today. This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for today. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now. More later.

Updating photos

2011-09-28T12:03:00.000-07:00

Hey, Y'all,
Well, here it is mid-week, and I have a few photos to display. I put together two microwave carts to use in my kitchen.... no, not to hold microwaves, but to use as an extension for my cabinets. One rarely has enough counter space in the smaller kitchens, even though my kitchen is quite roomy, I can always use a little more counter space.

The carts were not really difficult to assemble, and the most difficult part was the 3/8 inch metal screws I had to put into the four corners of the cart to hold the butcher block type of wood on top. My fat little fingers would just not hold the screws while I worked on getting the screws into the cart. Here is a tip for you (which method I used in holding the screws in place): I held the screw in the tip of a needle-nose pliers with the left hand, while I worked on the screw with the screwdriver in my right hand.

My flower beds are in full bloom right now, and I went out while ago and took pictures of them. Up until a couple of weeks ago, the taller plants were not really blooming, but apparently the cooler temps and the rain we had about a week ago, really brought them out. They are tall and beautiful, don't you think?

Tomorrow, I plan on going down to the church and working on the music library inventory. I am hoping to finish the major portion of the work tomorrow. The Bible Study in Psalms is going well at Countryside, and we studied Psalm 100 today. Vicky, the lady that I take to the Bible Study and bring her back home, is having surgery on her right rotor cuff tomorrow. Please remember her in your prayers. My daughter, Carol, is returning to work tomorrow and is recovered from her surgery of a week and a half ago. Thank you for your prayers in her behalf.

Well, that is about it for today. This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for today. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now. More later.

A Wild Ride

2011-09-26T17:32:00.000-07:00

Hey, Y'all,
Well, it was more exciting than a carnival ride! I do not want to repeat it.... I went to eat at Spring Creek Barbeque for supper this afternoon and when I left, I got on the road to come back home. Now, the road I was on to return home is one that I don't drive very often. I don't do the freeway, so the route I take back home is a little longer. They are working on the road and the lines are not defined. What made it really exciting was the fact that the sun was in my eyes directly, and I couldn't see the traffic lights or where the lanes were. Whoopee!

When I got to the turnoff, I couldn't see the CVS store (which is my landmark) until I got past it, so I had to go on down and when I got to a traffic light that I could see, I saw that no traffic was coming my way and made a U-turn (following another car that did the same) and so, got on the road I needed to, and by that time was no longer facing the sun. But it was hairy for a while, and it was a shaky time for me. I won't be eating at that place again for quite a while. It is getting later in the year anyway, and won't be long until it will be darktime at this time.

This morning, I went to see my family doctor for a check up and it seems I am doing okay for now. They drew blood so they can see how my blood is doing, (ha) and I will get that report back sometime next week, I reckon, or maybe even on Friday.

I was up this morning at six and since I couldn't eat breakfast before going to see the doctor, I put together one of the microwave carts that I purchased at Target on Friday. By doing the first one this morning, I learned some things not to do in putting the second one together. I will assemble the second one in the morning. I need to use them to take the canned goods out of my pantry so I can see what I have, and if I need to discard any of them. Most of them I have have had more than a year (some of them even longer). I will check the use by date on each can, and I will know what to do with them.

The doctor asked me how often I have pain in my back. I replied that it occurs every day. She then asked me what I take for pain in my back and I said, "Nothing". She said, "What do you do when it hurts?". I replied, "I sit down and rest it." Oh, yeah, she gave me a flu shot, and I just took it because she said it would make her feel better. Ha, don't you think that is funny? I took it to make HER feel better. I didn't take one last year or the year before, and had no ill effects from not taking it.

Well, that is about it for today. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for today. Bye for now. More later.

A New Friend

2011-09-23T15:21:00.000-07:00

Hey, Y'all,
I met a really nice young lady this morning when I went to my local bank. She helped me with getting some banking business done and we had quite a long and interesting conversation. Ghazala was the young lady's name and she is from Pakistan. We found out we have a whole lot in common, one of those being that she is a Christian. It is always wonderful to meet other believers, isn't it? I told her I would give her a link to a fellow blogger's blog. So, Ghazala, here it is. Rayna

I hope you enjoy reading her blog, which is called "Coffee Rings Everywhere". Just click on the word, Rayna, and it will take you there.

Yesterday afternoon, the ladies in my Sunday School class met at the home of Pat, one of our members, who very graciously opened her home to us to meet. We had refreshments of cookies, chips, and tea and had a grand old time talking and playing "Chicken Foot Dominoes". You should have heard us. We sang, chattered and just generally whooped it up. There were eight of us, and we missed the three members who were not there.

Carol, my daughter, is still recuperating nicely from her surgery of a week ago. She is straining at the bit to get active again, and I am cautioning her, because of the many surgeries I have had, and I know how easy it is to overdo when you think you are feeling just fine. I am being a bossy mama.

I have been playing a computer game called '4 Elements' and am to the very last level and just can't get a handle on doing the clicking fast enough. It keeps telling me "sorry, grammy, you need to start the level over'. Grrrrrrrrrr. Worse than problems that I had with "Farmville". It is the height of frustration that I can't move fingers fast enough.

We have been having some rain, and my grass has greened up, and is growing again. It is wonderful to see the green again, isn't it? Today was the fall equinox, where the number of hours of dark and light are equal. We are looking for a really warm weekend of 95 degrees on Sunday.

That is about it for today. This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for now. More later. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now.

Driving Gloves??? Really?

2011-09-20T18:09:00.000-07:00

Hey, Y'all,
Well, really...Do you wear "driving gloves"? I must tell you what I observed today and how I just sat there and watched. I was at the library to pick up my new reading material for the next few days. I had just returned to my car and the car next to me was getting ready to leave as well (not actually the car, but the driver). The driver got into her car and I thought, "Well, I will just wait until she leaves so that I won't back out at the same time and maybe she would not see me."

As I sat there and waited, the lady buckled her seat belt, and I was expecting her to drive out immediately, but no... she proceeded to pull on leather gloves. I thought to myself, "She's got to be kidding! Driving gloves? In the Summer time when it is so hot? I thought those were only used in the wintertime, if at all!" So, do YOU wear driving gloves? Clue me in. Maybe I should get some, and look so very sophisticated.... Ha ha ha...I could never pull it off if I tried to put on a sophisticated air.

I decided this morning that I would clip my toenails. Do you have trouble doing that little chore or do you go to a podiatrist or a beauty shop and get a pedicure? When Dubby would go to a podiatrist for his toenails to be trimmed, I would also get mine done. Well, I got a plastic pan, put it into the bathtub and added a little clorox to the hot water in the pan, and let my feet soak for about 10 minutes and read a book. Then I got out of the tub and dried off my feet and sat in the bathroom floor so I could get to my toes. At my age and lack of bendability (is that even a word?), that is not easy to do. There, isn't that exciting, reading about my homemade pedicures? Ha.

Sunday evening ( I was telling you earlier this week about the fish fry), I had my picture made with one of the ladies who attends the Taiwanese church services there. She had on a National dress of Taiwan, and I had my picture made with her. Here it is. Isn't she beautiful? Don't ask me her name, I didn't get it. On Sunday mornings, we have three different services in separate parts of the church. We have a Taiwanese Sunday School and church service, also a Sudanese Sunday School and church service, plus our own.

There is an early service for us which is a traditional service, and then after our Sunday school, we have a contemporary service.

I spent several hours yesterday with Carol, and she is recuperating nicely. We played on the computer for a little bit, and also watched a movie. I made potato soup for our lunch, and then came home about 3 p.m.

I went over today and took her grocery shopping. I am so pleased to be able to help her while she is recovering from her surgery.

Tomorrow is Bible Study day at Countryside, and I need to do some preparation for that. So this is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for today. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now. More later.

Nailed - Like a Hen on a Junebug!

2011-09-18T22:37:00.000-07:00

Hey, Y'all,
Nope, wasn't me! I was taking my passenger, Mattie, home after church around noon today, and a car passed us, moving quickly, and ran a red light. Well, you know, the police are really on their toes around here when it comes to seeing what is going on, and yep, they nailed him. And if motorists aren't careful, our toes get stepped on. I am always aware that this area where I live is always well patrolled and it makes me feel safe when it comes to being in my house or even driving. I am and always have been, a very careful driver.

I realize I have been somewhat recalcitrant in not reporting that Carol's gall bladder surgery went well. She is doing just fine and I will be seeing her tomorrow morning. Daryl has been giving her excellent husbandly care as she has been recovering. I knew I didn't have to worry with him taking care of her. They work very well at caring for each other.

This evening at church we had an outdoor fish fry (catfish fillets- yum) and an indoor ministry fair. Church members were treated to fried catfish, french fries, cole slaw, and also hamburgers for those who didn't choose to eat fish. Members brought dessert and I'm sure those were good, too, as always, but I chose not to have any dessert, so I didn't bring any.

The ministry fair was composed of tables set up indoors with information about the various ministries of the church and signup sheets encouraging members to take part in them. I took information to the ladies who make quilts for the battered women's shelter on how to make six hour love quilts, like our church members at New Market, Tennessee made for the same kind of facility.

This week I will be starting the putting together of a quilt for Teresa. I also have an appointment with my family doctor on Monday of next week (the 26th) for a fasting blood test and a physical.

Oh, yeah, I just looked up at the clock and saw it is a little after midnight. We had some thunder storms this evening and my power went off a couple of times. It was not off for long at a time, probably two or three minutes. Teresa sent me a computer game and I got it in the mail yesterday, and loaded it onto my computer around five o'clock yesterday. I have been playing it most of the evening and have gone through the first half of it. It is not a relaxing game, and one of the levels I had to play five times before I accomplished it. Actually two of the times, my power went off so I got to begin the level again. It is an interesting game, however.

Well, I just put my teeth to bed for the night, and took my nighttime medications. Ha! My teeth make it to bed before I do, and they swim in water, and I don't. (swim, I mean) Ha ha ha.

I just have a little more of the music to inventory at church. I need to do some reworking on the Excel spread sheet, but it won't take very long. There is quite a bit more of music to look at and weed out, but that will not take very long, I believe.

I realize it has been nearly a week since I posted. I don't plan on taking that long before I post again.

I made a squash casserole to take to the seniors Saturday luncheon yesterday, and it tastes as good as a leftover, as it does freshly made. After the luncheon, I went to the Artisan Theater and saw a production called, "Over the River and Through the Woods." It was excellent and funny in some places and had pathos in other places. It brought laughter to my lips and tears to my eyes.

Well, I didn't intend to write an epistle tonight, but I guess I did. This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for tonight. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. More later. Bye for now.

Birthday Party Pictures and Other Stuff

2011-09-14T14:06:00.000-07:00

Hey, Y'all,
Well, here it is Wednesday, and the first day of a new Bible Study at Countryside Bible Church where my daughter and son-in-law are members. It is a ladies' Bible Study of the Book of Psalms and I think it is going to be a good one.

This afternoon, I came home from the study and had a good lunch of a sandwich of tomato, cheese and onion, with mayo. Yum! Then I had a fresh peach. Nothing like fresh fruit to eat, is there. Also, this morning, my breakfast was half a fresh apple cut into small pieces and added to pancake mix for pancakes, along with a half cup of coffee.

Tonight, I am having supper at the Baptist Church where I belong (which is just seven blocks away from here) and then choir practice.

What did I do this afternoon? Why, I cut strips for making the quilts for Teresa, and then on Friday, I plan on cutting strips of batting to fill the quilts. By Monday, I should be ready to begin assembling the quilts. My eye surgery will not be until November the fourth. That gives me at least a month to work on them while my eyes are still in fairly good shape.

Last night, we gathered at Andrew and Julia's to celebrate the birthdays of Daryl, and Alyssa. Daryl is my son-in-law and Alyssa is Andrew and Julia's oldest. Alyssa is three but I am not telling how old Daryl is. He can tell you that if he wishes. Ha. Alyssa is Carol and Daryl's granddaughter and my great granddaughter.

Here are some pictures from the get together.

Ben and Emily


Carol behind Daughter, Emily

Showing Grandpa Daryl new outfit for dress up play

Grandpa with his two girls


In her new apron and chef's hat. Isn't she adorable? Little sister is playing with Big Sister's Toy.

I took more pictures, but these were the best of the bunch. Needless to say, we had a great time together and really missed Matt and Amy, who couldn't be there.

Well, that is about it for today. This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for today. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now. More later.

Bummer!

2011-09-12T19:39:00.000-07:00

Hey, Y'all,
Yeah, I said, "Bummer!" I am really bummed about the way they ended "The Closer" tonight. End of series, end of story. The writers did a really poor job of closing it out! They led us down the garden path and then shut the garden gate on us, catching our fingers in the latch! Ouch!

Well, I have been busy the last few days. I worked at the church on Friday, cataloging the music in the music library, and then spent some time online with Teresa on Saturday. Yesterday was church day, and today, I went to the church to work some more on the music. I came home and rested a couple of hours and then went to have supper with some of the seniors.

Oh, yeah, I have a good one to tell on myself. You know, I just have to tell stories on myself, because they are too good not to share. Ha. I was thinking that this past Saturday was the one that seniors have Saturday covered dish dinner at the church. So I prepared a casserole and hot-footed it down to the church. I got there about 11:45 and there were only two cars there. Hmmmm, I wondered where everyone else was, and I knew I wasn't that early. So I went into the fellowship hall and a couple of the Taiwanese members who have their church services in the fellowship hall on Sunday were there setting up tables for a meeting that evening. He checked the church newsletter and pointed out to me that the seniors have lunch on the third Saturday. I had them take a generous serving of my casserole and left. Back home I went and had some of it for my lunch. Ha. Joke was on me.

Tomorrow, I reckon I will be working around here and continuing on with my work on Teresa's quilt, along with doing some laundry. Then tomorrow evening, we will be celebrating some birthdays in the family. My great grand-daughter, Alyssa's birthday (which was yesterday) and my son-in-law, Daryl's birthday (which was a week ago). We like to celebrate, you know, and do so every chance we get. Pictures to follow on Wednesday!

This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for today. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now. More later.

Saw the Eye Surgeon

2011-09-09T06:30:00.000-07:00

Hey, Y'all,
Well, Yeah, I know I haven't posted anything in the last few days but, here I am. :)

On Wednesday, I went to the church at around 9 a.m. to do some inventorying on the music that has accumulated over the past several years with no actual records of what is there. Karen, the Minister of Music, showed me how to use the Excel spreadsheet on her laptop, and I got busy. I worked all day till about four o'clock, taking time out for lunch with Karen and the ladies in the office. I think I got a pretty fair amount completed.

At four, I went over to the fellowship hall next door and sat there at one of the tables and read, along with chatting with the ladies who prepare the Wednesday night suppers. They are a lovely group of ladies, and one of them has two little boys who had a great time running around and playing. I enjoyed sitting there and watching them, intermittently reading.

After supper the choir members went over to the church and we practiced a song that is coming up soon for the Sunday Service. We almost have it ready but it still needs some serious work.

Yesterday morning, I went to see the eye surgeon, and I saw him, and it was easier to see him than it was to see the little letters on the wall chart. Ha Ha. Have you ever heard the joke about the invisible man going to the optometrist? The optometrist said to the nurse, "Tell him I can't see him today." Ha ha.

Most of the "seeing" of me was done by his technicians, then he comes in and sits down, looks into my eyes with the light and the machine, rattles off a bunch of technical stuff to the assistant, and then tells me about what he hopes to do for me. I have scar tissue where previous laser work was done and healed. So he is going to use a laser to smooth down the scar tissue so I will be able to see better. The surgery is called PTK (Phototherapeutic Keratectomy) I think that is the correct name of it. I will look it up again since I am writing it from memory and if I need to, I will change it in my next post.

I went over to visit Connie, a good friend of mine and a fellow class member after I left the doc's office. Connie and Hazel were the class members who came to visit me following my first visit to the Sunday School Class at Woodland Heights Baptist Church. Of course, I consider all the ladies of the class as good friends of mine. I love them all. They have just taken me to their hearts, and that is a good place to be, believe you me! Connie and I had a nice long visit (hope it wasn't too long for her, I just love to talk and laugh and have a good time). We had a delicious lunch which she had prepared.

Today, I am heading back to the church to do some more work on the music inventory. Karen won't be there, but now that I know what I am doing, I can do some weeding out of the music that she asked me to do, and also some handwritten stuff that can be transferred easily to the spread sheet.

For breakfast this morning, I am having some fresh bread toasted with some of the Apricot Marmalade that Lois brought back to the ladies of our class when she went to Oregon a few weeks ago. Yum! Fresh coffee to go with it, and that makes a good breakfast. One of the ladies who cooks in the kitchen at church gave me the loaf of bread which had just come out of the oven and it is soooooooooo good!

Well, that is about it for today. This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for today. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now. More later.

Formula for Forms

2011-09-06T11:59:00.000-07:00

Hey, Y'all,
Well, this morning I have been filling out medical forms in preparation for my eye appointment day after tomorrow. Do you dislike that little chore (I say little with tongue in cheek) as much as I do? I have been looking at the folder with the papers in it for the last week. They very kindly mail it about ten days in advance, so that patients can fill out the forms and bring them when they come for the first visit.

You know, they send two papers that are almost identical in what they ask. Medical history: medications, illnesses, surgeries are all in duplicate. Two different papers- same information asked a little differently. I decided today that I would put all that information into a microsoft form on my computer, and attach it to the forms they have sent me. Yes, I filled it in on the forms they sent me, except for the surgeries, and just wrote (see attached forms) and stapled them to their forms. You see, I have had a total of sixteen surgeries over the past fifty-nine years. Plus a few more minor ones.

Well, it is finished for now and saved on my computer. My advice to any of you who take several medications and have had several surgeries to do the same and then when you have to go to a new doctor, you can just update it and take it with you. It saves a lot of time and extra thought. If you have ever gone to the doctor and have to sit there and try to remember stuff, these lists that you have prepared in advance are quite helpful. It is much easier to think of it at home and take it with you.

Would you believe that it was 9 a.m. before I got up this morning? Yep, I went to bed around 10 pm and left the television off. Slept until 3:30, woke up, and went back to sleep until nearly 5:00. I turned on the tevee, and was back asleep by around 5:45 and slept until 9. So, I really got a goodly amount of sleep. It would be wonderful to sleep 8 hours in a row, but I know that is too much to ask. I am just grateful for the sleep I did get.

I have some more quilt work to do this afternoon. Tomorrow I am going to the church to begin work on the church music inventory for Karen, the Choir Director. My kitchen is basically clean, my floors are in good shape, and my paperwork is done and filed. Whoopee! I got to spend some time online with my daughter, Teresa, and all is well in my bailiwick. I got to watch the next to last episode of "The Closer" last night and am in suspense over how it will end next week.

This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for today. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now. More later.

Approach Pie and Insert Fingers

2011-09-05T11:39:00.000-07:00

Hey, Y'all,
Well, here's wishing you a Happy Labor Day.... last big holiday for several months. I imagine most of you are spending it with family, doing the cook-out thing, and hopefully having a great time. I had a really good time visiting with grand-daughter, Emily and her sweetie-pie husband, Ben this morning. They came over and did the yard mowing and weed-eating, and I showed them my quilt pieces that I am working on.

I am also now watching a "The Closer" marathon that is on TNT today. They are prepping for the final episode to be shown next Monday. Tonight will be the next to last episode.

I reckon lunch today will be left-over salmon loaf that I made a few days ago. I will probably fry a small white potato for a side-dish.

Speaking of food, I am sticking my fat little fingers into a couple of new pies at church. My choir director asked for help a couple of Wednesdays ago to inventory sheet music and I raised my hand and volunteered to do it. She said, "Do you know anything about inventorying?" I laughed and said, "I am a retired librarian, so yeah, I reckon I do."

Also, yesterday at church, a couple of ladies got up and announced a quilting project making quilts for battered housewives. After church, I talked to one of them and asked if they made the six-hour quilts, and she hadn't heard of them. I told her that I would be able to meet with her and show her how to make them. The quilting group happens to meet at the time the choir rehearses.

Ya see, I have this little motivator inside me that says, "Hey, you could help with that, go ahead and volunteer!" and there I go again... ha. And I always enjoy it and have fun and satisfaction in being able to assist.

Well, that is about it today. This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for today. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now. More later.

Happy Birthday to Daryl and How to Remove Adhesive from an Iron

2011-09-04T11:35:00.000-07:00

Hey, Y'all,
Well, my iron got all gummed up on the sole plate (the part that irons the cloth) using Wonder Under on my quilt pieces. Has that ever happened to you? It is rather bothersome and so I did some internet searching to find an answer to my dilemma of an adhesive caked ironing surface. The sole plate of my iron is Teflon coated. Here is the answer (for those of you that are crafters and quilters). I tried the solution I found and it worked!

A simple matter of vinegar and a soft used toothbrush. Apply vinegar to the sole plate by soaking a cloth in vinegar and applying to the sole plate for a few minutes. Then take a toothbrush and some more vinegar and scrub gently. It will remove the adhesive. Be sure the iron is cold.

I am now using a pressing cloth between the iron and the applique piece to keep the adhesive from getting onto the iron and setting the iron on steam setting without the water in the iron. That way the necessary amount of heat gets to the applique adhesive to make it adhere to the applique.

Lunched today at Cheddars with some of the seniors from church and had a good time as usual. It it nice to have friends to eat with and enjoy their company. The Sunday School lesson went well, and we are adding a new member, and losing one who is moving to Houston in a few weeks.

On Thursday I have an eye appointment and need to get the paperwork filled out to take with me. Wouldn't it be great if we could just fill all out the medical history one time and then refer them to the doctor who has it? It is such a pain in the (neck?) to have to do it every time we go to a new doctor. I am always afraid I'll forget an important surgery, because I have had so many. I guess I could just begin at the top of my head and move down my body, naming all the different places that have been sliced and diced. Ha.

We have another birthday in the family today! My son-in-law, Daryl, who lives in Bedford near me, with Carol, my daughter and his wife of 34 years. Happy Birthday, Dear Daryl!

Well, more stuff to do today, plus some relaxing this evening to watch some television.

This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for today. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now. More later.

Sexism is Not Dead!

2011-09-03T10:46:00.000-07:00

Hey, Y'all,
Well, I was out early this morning and headed to Wally World, (for those of you who don't know where that is, it is Wal-mart) and had my usual breakfast there of sausage/egg biscuit, with an apple pie. While I was sitting there, I saw two guys and an elderly lady come in and sit down right across the room from me. They looked interesting, (but then, most people do) and one of the men, who was several years younger than the lady, told her to go get them some coffee.

I looked over at them, smiled and said, "She gets to go get the coffee because she is the woman?" His face turned an interesting shade of red, and he replied, "I guess I could have gone to get it since I am younger."

I said, "Yeah, that is kind of what I was thinking. Is that why your face is reflecting that red color of your shirt?" He said, "Yeah". Anyway, when I got ready to go, I walked over to them and said, "I talk to every body as though I know them well." The lady had just brought in the coffee and set it down. I told her what I had said, and she said, "I am an author and have written three children's books, and am getting the fourth one published. I began writing them when I was 79 and am 83 now." I said, "That is wonderful!"

She proceeded to tell me that they are illustrated in water color and are about her life on a farm in Oklahoma when she was a girl. She did not tell me her name however. I did notice that she could have really used some dental work, because her teeth are in terrible shape. She is missing a lot of them, and the ones she has look like they are ready to be worked on. (This is only a commentary and not a criticism.) She continued to tell me about a book tour she is going to be going on to promote her books. If I had had more time, I would have sat down with her and talked longer.

I guess there may be hope for me to write and get published? It would seem so. The only thing is, I have so many other interests, so many things to do...so little time. What about the painting I want to do....and the other stuff???

Well, anyway, I went on into the Wal-mart proper and did my grocery shopping and talked to some other people that were shopping as well. I did find some bargains in the clothing section...some shirts for $3.00 and some for 7.00. How about that??

I am home and have studied the Sunday School lesson I will be sharing with my class tomorrow. We are beginning a study of Romans. Wonderful scriptures so full of Good News!
I have a lot of other things to do today as well.

Well, this is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for today. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now. More later.

Salmon Loaf Recipe

2011-09-02T06:19:00.000-07:00

Hey, Y'all,
Well, here it is Friday morning and another week is practically gone. Where does it go? Wherever it does go, it is gone forever, except in memories that we keep to remember it by. Yesterday, after breakfast, I got busy, showered and dressed for the day. I left the house and headed to Kroger's to gas up the car (I get it once a month.) My little car holds 11.6 gallons of fuel, and since I am a little old retired school teacher, I don't drive it a lot and so ten gallons of gas does me for at least a month, sometimes longer.

Anyway, I headed on to the library and exchanged my four books for four more, then went to Target and bought a new little Black and Decker Coffee maker. It makes one travel mug of coffee at a time, which is perfect for me. My other coffee maker which made 5 six ounce cups, just quit working. It was on, but the gizmo that makes the water come up through the grounds quit gizmoing, so out it went, courtesy of the trash man. I kept the stainless steel carafe. I can steep tea in it, because it will keep it hot. Aha!

I went on then to Hobby Lobby and got the rest of the items needed for the quilts I am working on (and used a 40% off coupon, which saved a bundle) and then headed back down to LePeep's but didn't have the gravy and biscuits. I had a something that was made of an egg white wrap with chunks of chicken breast, melted cheese and green chilies. I didn't realize it was egg white until I had several bites of it. GAG! I don't like egg whites like that. I opened the wrap and removed the innards, and ate most of those along with the grilled diced potatoes. I left about half of all of it, plus the egg whites.

I came back home and later in the day decided to make something I would enjoy eating. (What is the use of eating if you don't enjoy it?) Just to stay alive? I don't think so.... Anyway, here is the recipe for a really yummy salmon loaf if you like salmon. I created this recipe.

Open can of salmon and drain it. Place in a bowl and add some chopped onion, an egg, half a stack of Ritz crackers that have been crushed to smithereens (that means you crush them up good), about 3/4 cup of shredded Mexican style or Habanero cheese, and a small can of evaporated milk. Mix all the ingredients together. Line a loaf pan with heavy aluminum foil (then you won't have to wash the loaf pan) and spray it with oil spray. Place the salmon mixture into the pan, and cooked at 350 degrees for 40 minutes. Eat hot. To add a little pizazz to my salmon loaf, I sprinkled the top of it with Mrs. Dash's Extra Spicy spice before I baked it.

I baked a sweet potato to go with it, and of course have a lot of the salmon loaf left over for a few more days.

Today, I guess I need to get some more things done around the house. That is about it for right now. This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for today. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now. More later.

Happy Birthday to Daniel!

2011-09-01T05:51:00.000-07:00

Hey, Y'all,
Well, another grandson, another birthday is here! My eldest grandson, Daniel, is thirty-four today. He was born on September 1st, Labor Day, and his mom, Carol, says it really was labor day. :) I do happen to have a picture of Daniel, and it was taken this year on the day he received his Doctor of Philosophy degree in Louisville, Kentucky. His wife, Whitney, and their four children are in the picture as well. Daniel is pastor of a church in Illinois. I am planning on going to visit them in October.

Happy Birthday, grandson! I hope it will be wonderful and unforgettable to you.

Well, I got my house mopped yesterday afternoon, and plan to go to the library after breakfast to exchange books, and also to Hobby Lobby to do a little shopping for cloth and Wonder Under for the appliqueing I will be doing with the quilt pieces. Last night was choir practice, and when I got home, I didn't do a whole lot except for spending some relaxing time on the computer.

I have an appointment a week from today with an eye surgeon to see what he can do for my left eye, which I am seeing double with. I think he may be going to clean the cloudiness which has gathered beneath the lens of my left eye. I guess I'll find out when I go have all the testing done that the Optometrist says he will do. His office sent me a packet of papers to read and fill out information to bring with me next week. It looks like a very expensive procedure. I guess I'll find that out, too. Ha ha.

Oh, yeah, I almost forgot! I saw something very interesting when I went to see the Colonel yesterday to have some chicken. I was sitting at the table eating my extra crispy when in walked a couple of Bedford's finest (policemen) and they bring this young man who had on the headphones used in working the window of KFC over to another booth. Another man who was wearing plain clothes, sat down with the worker, and I heard one of the policemen say, "Don't you have an office here that we can meet in?". The boy (he must not have been more than 18 years old, if that old) said, "No, it is too small."

So the policemen stood and the two others sat, and the plain clothes guy said, " You have the right to remain silent, you have the right to have an attorney present, anything you say can be used against you in a court of law...etc."

I thought, "Whoa! I am actually hearing someone being Mirandized." My little old ears perked up, but they weren't perky enough because I couldn't hear everything they were saying. They began asking the boy questions and he was answering them. One thing for sure, I knew that boy was in deeper trouble than anyone would want to be. I also knew I was so thankful that the love and guidance given to all my grandchildren had kept them out of the kind of trouble that young man has landed in. "There, but for the Grace of God..." I say that humbly, not arrogantly, please God.

Well, the day awaits, and I got breakfast calling this old Grammy's tummy. It cries out to me, "Feed me, you old lady, it is empty in here!" So this is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for today. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now. More later.

Ironing Then and Now

2011-08-31T06:57:00.000-07:00

Hey, Y'all,
Well, I was pressing cloth for the quilt this morning about 6:30 a.m. and got to thinking about when we moved to the farm in 1947 when I was fourteen years old and my sister was twenty-two. We were the only two girls in the family, and since my mom worked in Knoxville and came out to the farm only on weekends, the ironing and other housework fell to us.

First, I got to thinking about the ironing board we had. Which led to thinking about the chairs we used. We had cane bottomed chairs, upon which the ironing board had to be placed because it was just a board, period. It was fashioned from some kind of heavy wood by Bernard Bell, the father of some of my cousins, many years earlier. Of course, it was covered by heavy cloth of some kind and padded.

We ironed either in the kitchen or in the living room, due to having to heat the irons on the Kitchen cook stove or the warm morning heater that was in the living room. Right about now, you may be saying "Heat the irons???" Yes, they were the kind that you had to have at least two and usually three of. The handle was detachable and all the flat irons were placed on heat and used till they were no longer hot enough. The handle was used to pick up the iron and use it.

They were not easy to use, by any means. We had no electricity when we moved to the farm. I studied by lamp light at night. We had no inside water or plumbing. We scrubbed clothes on the washboard, and wrung them out by hand, and hung them on the lines. I thought about all this as I sat at the ironing board, filled the iron with water to make it iron smoothly, and placed the iron on the rest at the right end of my folding ironing board. What a life!

Well, I gotta go fix my breakfast and get ready to do stuff. I did my laundry yesterday in an automatic washer, dried it in an automatic dryer and folded it while I watched television. What a life, indeed!

This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for today. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. A belated Happy Birthday to my Taiwanese granddaughter (by choice) Jennifer Chang. Bye for now. More later.

Happy Birthday to Grandson, BJ!

2011-08-30T06:55:00.000-07:00

Hey, Y'all,
Well, I've been kind of busy the last few days working on Teresa's quilt, and, of course, Sunday was church day. On Sunday afternoon, Carol came over and helped me by drawing around the template on a bunch of the quilt squares. I really appreciated the help and the visit. I now have all the pieces ready to go onto the quilt.

I did want to post today, because today is my grandson, BJ's (Guillermo's) birthday. He is 26 today. BJ is in the U.S. Air Force and stationed up in North Dakota. He is Teresa's son. Both his dad, and his stepdad, Tom, and Teresa were all Air Force members. It is a proud tradition. He is a wonderful young man, and I love him dearly. Happy Birthday to you, my dear BJ. I don't have a good recent picture of him, or I would post it.

Today, I need to tackle the cutting of the background cloth of the quilt, so I will do that after I have my breakfast. I cut up half an apple while ago and am going to put that into my pancakes and have...ta-da! Apple pancakes!

I do need to go to Hobby Lobby and buy some cloth for the front of the quilts because I have only enough for the backing. First, however, I am going to cut and wash the cloth I have. It is still on the bolt and I always wash new cloth so it won't shrink after it is a part of the quilt. It is easier to wash and press if it is in one or two yard pieces.

I had supper last night at Fuddrucker's with some of the seniors, and enjoyed that. I ordered the salmon burger, thinking it would be a salmon patty (you know, mixed with other ingredients) and was surprised to see it was a slab of salmon on a bun. It was okay, but not what I had my mental mouth prepared for. Next time, I'll know not to order that particular item. :)

Only two more episodes of "The Closer" and then that will be all she wrote, so to speak. This is the final season, and like most fans, I want more! Oh, well, that's the way the cookie crumbles, the old ball bounces, etc., etc. It was fun while it lasted. I am sure I must have seen all the reruns at least two or three times. I just went to a website to see what Kyra Sedgwick has in store for later. It seems there are six more episodes which will air next summer to lead into a new show called Major Crimes, which is a spin-off of The Closer. Kyra is planning to do some Broadway acting, and is married to Kevin Bacon for the past 22 years.

Well, my breakfast is waiting to be made and eaten, and I have laundry to finish sometime today. I may even get dressed and go outside sometime today, although yes, it is going to still be in the hundreds and hooooot! I may just wait till tomorrow or Thursday to go out.

This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for today. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now. More later.

That's My Story

2011-08-26T11:35:00.000-07:00

Hey, Y'all,
Well, here it is Friday already, and since I don't really have an update of any kind, I thought I would just tell you a story. A couple of weeks ago, Carol, Daryl, and I went to see Hello, Dolly and something happened while we were there. It COULD have been very exciting, but it didn't even rate a jump. This is what COULD have happened.

It was kind of dark in the theater and while we were sitting there, I looked down at my pants that I had on, and thought I saw a spider on my lap. I stood up and shrieked "SPIDER! SPIDER!". I had an open bottle of water in my hand and had just taken a sip of it. I threw the open bottle up into the air as I jumped up. The man sitting next to me wound up with water all over his lap. OOPS! The ladies in front of me stood up and started screaming, "Where is it? Where is it?" and feeling all over their bodies, knocking at their clothing, and looking like they were going to faint. Finally, management came over and asked, "Is there a problem?"

I said, "I believe there was a spider on my lap," and started to point to where I saw it. UH-OH.. It was only one of the stars on my pants that I saw and thought it was a spider there in the dark. I wilted down into my seat and wished I could disappear. Carol and Daryl wished it even more.

Now then, for what really happened...During the intermission, I looked down and saw one of the dark blue stars on my pants and for a split second thought it could be a spider. Inside, I jumped, and that was it. Period. I just imagined what COULD have happened that would be funny.

my pants with blue (spider) stars

Outside near my garage is a beautiful plant that I call a Trumpet plant because the blossom resembles a trumpet. I don't really know its proper name. The blossom is white and blooms around midnight. It has many blossoms waiting to bloom during the summer, and after blooming out, they wilt shortly after noontime.

this has many blossoms that are in varying stages of development

I am posting a picture of a couple of the pieces for the quilt I am making for Teresa. I begin the quilt by 2 inch wide strips of cloth and then cutting them into 8 inch lengths. I then stitch five of them together and then using a six-sided template, I draw around the template onto the square. I then cut out the six-sided piece. There will be 120 of these pieces in each quilt.

Square on left, six-sided piece on right, template in upper right

Well, that is about it for today. I did get my kitchen mopped this morning. I sat in the kitchen and read a book just after breakfast. It is by Lisa Scottoline and is called, "Think Twice". I started it last night and just couldn't put it down this morning, so I finished it. This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for today. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now. More later.

A Recipe for Egg/Sausage Casserole

2011-08-25T10:08:00.000-07:00

Hey, Y'all,
Well, I have been up since a little past 5:30 this morning, and have finished pressing all the squares for the quilts I am working on. I've had breakfast, put a Cornish Game Hen in the crockpot for my next couple of lunch/supper meals, and have finished reading a book I began last night, called "Wicked Appetite" by Janet Evanovich. Just couldn't put it down this morning after breakfast.

Fulfilling a request made in the comments to yesterday's post, here is the recipe for Egg/Sausage Casserole that I use. I got the recipe originally from the internet and adapted it to my own taste. This is my adaptation.

Brown one pound of hot sausage in a skillet, crumbling the sausage as it cooks. When it is done, put sausage into a bowl lined with paper towels. That drains the grease from it. Let it cool. While it is cooling, beat together 6 large eggs, and 3 cups whole (4%) milk.

Butter a 9x13 glass baking dish, and crumble 10 slices of potato bread into it. Top it with cooled sausage sprinkled over it. On top of that, sprinkle a cup or so of Mexican style shredded cheese, and another cup or so of Habanero cheese. Pour egg and milk mixture over all of the contents of the dish. Cover it with a piece of heavy aluminum foil and place in fridge overnight.

The next morning place covered dish in cold oven. Turn heat to 350 degrees and bake for approximately one hour, and if you wish, you can remove the foil about 10 or so minutes before the hour is up. After casserole is "set", remove and enjoy. Yum!

It is about two weeks before my eye appointment with the cornea specialist. I am not concerned about it, because I am pretty sure that I will refuse a transplant if that is what his recommendation will be.

Well, that is about it for today. I may try to clean my floors today, since I am not going out anywhere today. We'll see. I am not on any particular schedule for doing anything. I can smell the aroma from the bird cooking in the kitchen.

We did have some rain this morning. Not anything to write home about, but a lot of thunderboomers. The sky is blue now. We have been cautioned about overusing electricity and water, because of the intense heat over the past sixty days. They are saying we might drop to 99 as a high when September begins. We shall see. I know the trees could very well be dying because of the heat. They have been talking about that on the news as well.

Well, that is about it for today. This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for today. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now. More later.

A Visit to the Eye Doctor

2011-08-24T09:28:00.000-07:00

Hey, Y'all,
Do you ever stop and talk to people you have never met before when you are in the grocery store? Well, I do (no surprise there, is there?) and yesterday, I stopped beside a lady who had company coming in for the next ten days. She was looking at the canned biscuit section and I said, "Now, we don't need those, do we?"

She replied that she was thinking about making pigs in a blanket for her incoming company. I replied it would take a lot of the croissant rolls for that and suggested a sausage/egg casserole instead. She said that it sounded interesting but how does one make it. So as we stood there, I gave her (from memory) the recipe for it. She is the same kind of cook that I am (namely, adapting recipes instead of following exactly). I told her I wasn't sure of the exact amount of milk but gave her an approximate amount and she was okay with that. Hope it turns out okay for her. I don't know her name or telephone number, so I am just trusting that it all works out for her.

This morning I had an appointment with the eye doctor because I have been having some trouble with my vision clarity. I discovered that my cornea in the left eye is cloudy. (Looks like rain????) She is sending me to a cornea specialist in the area on September 8th. I ain't a-fixin' to have a cornea transplant and you can bank on that!

Tonight is church night (choir practice) and our church suppers begin again tonight, since school is back in session. Hamburgers and fries tonight, along with cake and ice cream for dessert. Sounds good to me.

I am going to go into the kitchen in a few minutes and heat up some of the chicken livers and gravy I had for supper last night, to have for my lunch. Then it will be some more sewing of quilt pieces. I did go to the library while ago to return my books and check out some new ones. The ones I got today are all new best sellers. Yeah!

On this past Sunday, one of our Sunday school class members returned after visiting family in Oregon and brought each of us a jar of apricot marmalade. YUM! I had some on toast for breakfast yesterday morning. Wasn't that so very thoughtful of her? Thank you, Lois!

Well, lunchtime and I hear my name being called out by the livers and gravy. It is getting louder by the minute. Ha ha. This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for now. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now. More later.

Just an Old Sew and Sew

2011-08-23T15:54:00.000-07:00

Hey, Y'all,
Yesterday, I was just an old sew and sew. I stitched together 90 squares for my new quilt. I didn't do a lot of other stuff, though. I decided I would just stay in yesterday and sew.

This morning, however, I only put together fifteen squares while I was waiting to go out for the morning. I left here this morning about 9 a.m. and headed to Wally World where I had a sausage biscuit and an individual apple pie, and yes, I did give away the extra pie. Goodness knows, I sure didn't need it, and really didn't need the one I ate, but ate it anyway. Ha.

After I had my breakfast, I headed out into the store to locate a few things I needed and a few I didn't need. You can't get out of Wal-mart for less than fifty dollars, you know. If you can, you are a better man than I am, Gungha Din.

By the time I left there, it was beginning to really heat up, and I headed on to the Kroger shopping center near my home and got my ears lowered. (For those of you who don't recognize that expression, it means I got a hair cut, revealing more of my ears than usual.) There is a little beauty shop in the shopping center that I go to when I need a hair cut.

Then I moved my car closer to Kroger's and went in there to spend a few shillings so I could most likely add some pounds. Ha ha ha.

Speaking of pounds, I bought some chicken livers to cook. I have been craving them, and of course, they are not good for me because of the cholesterol they contain, but they are good for supplying the body with iron, which I do need. I guess it all kind of balances out doesn't it? I reckon so. For supper tonight, I cooked the chicken livers, made some country gravy (from a packet mix), cooked the one ear of fresh corn that I purchased, and thoroughly enjoyed it all. Of course, I had a lot of leftovers. I may eat them and I may not. Usually, one feast of livers is enough to satisfy my craving for them.

Daughter Carol made some business cards for me with my picture and my blog address on them. How cool is that? Now I have them to pass out to people who seem to be interested in reading my random thoughts and ramblings.

It was a little past one p.m. when I got home from all that stuff, and hot as blue blazes. Ever wonder why people say hot as blue blazes and not red blazes? If you look closely at a hot burning flame, the center of it is blue (especially one of those blow torches). Pretty hot, I would say!

Well, I am going to do some more sewing this evening. Not much on television tonight that I can figure is worth watching. I can put it on something that doesn't require a lot of attention and have noise in the house. This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for today. Bye for now. More later.

A Failure to Stand

2011-08-20T05:44:00.000-07:00

Hey, Y'all,
Well, I went to hear a "Country Strings Concert" last night at a local church and it was really good. It was mostly Bluegrass and old time gospel music. I went with some of the other seniors from my church. The temperature was still hovering around 107 when we met at our church to drive over. It was probably still around 102 when we left to come back just an hour later.

When we got there, we saw a huge display of quilts that the ladies of the church had made to sell. They were the kind that are stitched together using threads pulled through and tied every so many inches apart. The quilts were quite beautiful.

At the door to the sanctuary there was a table set up for people to donate money to the cause for which the concert was being held. It was a benefit for the people in Joplin, Missouri following the terrible tornadoes that ripped through their city several months ago, and I think it was for one family in particular.

We went in and sat down. There were about ten members in the band. The concert began by the playing of our National Anthem. Everyone stood up - that is - everyone but a woman in front of me. I saw her friend motion for her to stand up, but she just crossed her legs and folded her arms in front of her in a position of rebellion, and took another drink of her soft drink in the paper cup she had carried in. I sang as loudly as I could fairly close to her ear.

Just before we sat down, I asked her if she was a United States citizen. She said yes, she was born and raised in the U.S. Then I said, "Don't you stand when the National Anthem is being played?" Her reply was, "Occasionally, if I feel like it." I know she wasn't ill. I know it is a free country, and we don't HAVE to stand when our country's anthem is being played, but she should try living in another country where they don't have the freedoms we do, and see how she likes that. I'll bet her attitude might change then. They walked out in front of us, and I know she wasn't walking like anything was hurting her. I would like to have kicked her behind for her.

Anyway, I really enjoyed the music...I knew and sang along with every song they played. I even "Yee-Hawed" once in a while after they finished some of the songs. Hope that won't keep my friends from taking me anyplace again. Ha. Of course, other people cheered and whistled as well.

Last night, just after I went to bed, I started sneezing, and spent the night in that manner. Some time during the night, I had a nosebleed, and it stopped. Then this morning just about getting up time, it started again. Those nasal tissues are very delicate, and the kind of sneezing I do is the WHAT-CHOO kind. I have it stopped for now. It never lasts very long. I am not planning on going out any today. I think two of the grandkids will be over to mow my yard today. They are so good to do that for me! It may be Matt and Amy.

Breakfast in a little while, and then working on Teresa's quilt pieces. I have 3/8's of the squares stitched into individual squares. That means I have 150 left to do, before I do the next step in the quilt. Each square has five strips of cloth stitched together. Then each square has to have the seams pressed flat. Then each square has to be cut into the shape it will take (a six sided shape). That is only in preparation for the quilt to begin taking shape. I am hoping to have the quilts finished by Christmas.

Well, that is about it for today. This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for today. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now. More later.

Cutting Up Again

2011-08-16T14:48:00.000-07:00

Hey, Y'all,
It is a good thing you can't see my workroom....it looks messier than usual (and that's pretty bad). I have become a regular cut-up over the past week... Yeah, I've been cutting cloth to make a couple of twin-sized quilts for daughter, Teresa, who lives in Alabama and who is a recent cancer survivor. I have been promising the quilt for about two years, since I finished one for her son (my grandson, BJ) a couple of Christmases ago. I finished his when I was recovering from gall bladder surgery gone bad.

Last night I completed the cutting out of pieces to assemble and this afternoon I began sewing the squares together. The squares are going to be beautiful. (I believe they are, anyway, but then, I could be slightly prejudiced. ha.)

This evening, Carol, Daryl and I are going to see "Hello, Dolly" at the local Artisan Theater. I just had my shower, for which I am sure they will be grateful, and when she calls me to come to supper, I will leave the house and drive over to eat and then go with them.

What have I been doing over the past few days besides being a messer-upper of my workroom??? Nothing really exciting, just eating, sleeping a little, watching tevee, thinking a lot. I do a lot of thinking all the time, about various things because when you spend a lot of time alone, you kind of live inside your head. One might say that inside my head is a scary place but I don't think so...ha ha (I don't THINK so).

Tomorrow, I need to go get my car inspected for a Texas state inspection sticker. Never had to do that in Tennessee, but then Texas is a whole new ballgame. Mostly in Tennessee, they don't care what your car's condition is.

We are back in the triple digits temperatures outside. We did have a little rain over the weekend, but alas, it is dry again. We have begun Choir practice at church again and will be practicing tomorrow evening.

I knew it was time to post again, because I figured some of you would be saying, "Wonder what (Ruby, Grammy, Grandma, Mom -fill in the blank) is up to today? This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for now. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now. More later.

Out and About, Then Back

2011-08-12T10:08:00.000-07:00

Hey, Y'all,
This has been a busy morning for me. After my shower, and attiring myself in clothing for the day, I took my blood pressure pills, grabbed my purse and keys, headed out the door and was on my way.

We had quite a bit of wind last evening, because I noticed a lot of dead leaves on the back deck when I went out to water the flowers. They say the extreme heat has been killing the trees because of the concentration of heat on the roots underneath the ground. I believe it. It is definitely too soon for the leaves to be falling.

Anyway, I headed for Glade Road, where a lot of the places I love to shop are located. First I went to IHOP and tried some of their biscuits and gravy. Yep, I had to send back the gravy and have it made hot. It was lukewarm when they brought it the first time, and served in a tiny dish. I requested another dish just like it, and it was much hotter than the second time the first dish was brought back to me. They were very nice about it (of course, because I asked very nicely).

Next I headed for Hobby Lobby and bought some cloth and a couple of other items there, and then was on my way back in the direction of my home. Instead of stopping at my house, I went on to Kroger's because I needed to do some grocery shopping. That didn't take too long, and by eleven thirty a.m. I was back here and ready to rest. Yeah! All that was accomplished in only three hours. I have only been out anywhere this week four times since Sunday. I actually love staying indoors while it is so hot. Our heat wave ended yesterday after 41 days of temps 100 degrees or more. But it is heating up again soon. I think someone said we had six people to die from heat during the last 6 weeks. That is six too many.

There is one real difference living here and in little old Jefferson County, Tennessee, as far as the traffic is concerned. With all the people living here, traveling the interstates each morning, noon, afternoon, and night, there are always wrecks tying up traffic. Even though they don't always happen during rush hour, they can back up traffic until the interstates become parking lots with no one moving. I see it every morning on the local news, and almost every morning, at least one or two of the wrecks have happened because one of the motorists was going in the wrong direction. That only happens occasionally back in TN. I think a lot of it here is because of the access roads, and a lot of it happens during late night or early morning.

I thank the Lord that I live in an area where I can get to anything I need to without having to cope with the interstates or freeways. (Here even the state highways are freeways, comparable to our interstate 40 in TN) Thank you, Carol and Daryl for helping me to locate in such a quiet, accessible place!

Well, that is about it for today. This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for now. More later. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now.

Any Talent Scouts Out There?

2011-08-11T09:08:00.000-07:00

Hey, Y'all,
Last night I saw courage in the forms of several young people who performed in a church talent show. I have seen that kind of courage before, in fact, have done the same thing myself, so I know how it feels.

I had a great time, and I know the other members and children attending did as well. It takes a lot of inner fortitude (otherwise known as guts) to stand in front of people you know (and some you don't know) and sing, or dance or do magic tricks, or play an instrument. You run the risk of being laughed at for a bauble - forgetting words, notes, routine, etc. To keep on with your performance is bravery.

One little girl became embarrassed and stopped, but came up later and did her ballet performance, and was encouraged by our clapping and urging her on, and finished with a flourish. A little boy who was playing a recorder, played a few sour notes, slapped the side of his head, and continued till he was finished. For everyone's performance, we clapped, hollered and whistled encouragement.

There was piano playing, singing, an accordian duet by a couple of senior ladies, comedy videos by the office staff, three guys wearing funny costumes doing the Macarina (sp?), and of course, a group of senior ladies (myself included) singing a senior version of "Jesus Loves Me".

All of this entertainment plus homemade ice cream. Yum! All of this fun took place in the fellowship hall of our church. It was kind of a winding up of summer vacations, since school begins in about a week. Fun was had by all. However, I did not spot any talent scouts in the audience... Hmmm.

It did make me harken back in memory to one time singing in church when I was about thirteen years old. Our church was having a singing time one Sunday evening around November, so I volunteered to sing a song that Mom had taught us kids. It was to the tune of "Yankee Doodle". I gave this information to the pianist and expected her to know the tune, right off the bat, since after all, she played the piano and to my thinking, she should have the tune in her head, right? So, I got up there and began to sing (very fast, since I was nervous) "Thanksgiving Day has come at last, our hearts are jumpin' thumpin', we're off to Grandma's house to eat the turkey and the pumpkin'.... etc."

Well, Tiny, the pianist, began playing but couldn't keep up with me and finally she just quit and I finished the song, a capella and sat down again in my pew, embarrassed and promised myself never to do that again. It became a family joke. Now, I am the only one who remembers it (except maybe my sister-in-law, Mae) ha ha. I just love to tell jokes even if they are on me. Still funny!

This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for today. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now. More later.

Admission - Ten Cents

2011-08-09T08:43:00.000-07:00

Hey, Y'all,
The other night I recorded a movie made in 1944, "The Canterville Ghost." It starred Charles Laughton, Robert Young, and Margaret O'Brien. The movie brought back a lot of memories. I remember going to see it with my sister and two of my brothers. We walked from our home on Cecil Street in Knoxville, down to Washington Avenue where the State Theater was located. It was not a long walk, but we left in plenty of time to get there well before the main feature began.

We stopped in front of the window and asked for two children's price and two adult price tickets. I am sure the half price was ten cents and the full price was a quarter. All four of us were able to see the movie for 70 cents total. Children's price was based on the fact that they were twelve years old or younger. Adult prices began at age thirteen.

We went on inside and probably bought a couple of boxes of Raisinets to share ( five cents each) and a couple of bags of popcorn (ten cents each) to share. Four kids saw a movie and had refreshments for total of one dollar. I am sure there were times when my niece went with us. Norma was just six years younger than I. I was eleven years old in 1944.

You sure can't go to the movies these days for that. I will watch the movie I recorded one of these afternoons or evenings when I am in the mood to do so. It is a comedy-drama and I know I will enjoy it.

All this reminiscing reminds me of rainy days on the farm. I was lying in bed this morning watching the news and weather, which doesn't seem to be changing much these days, thinking about how nice it would be to have some rain. They are predicting possible showers somewhere next week. In the summertime on the farm, I always looked forward to rain for several reasons. One, I welcomed a respite from working out in the cornfield or tobacco patch. A good steady rainy day afforded that break. Our roof was made of tin, and when it rained, it made a pleasant, cozy and comfortable sound. I could lie on the cot in the side room and read to my heart's content. Our house was an old farm house that had been built probably eighty years earlier and looked more like a shack than a house. It had only three and a half rooms and a path. No indoor plumbing...we had to get our water from a cistern on the back porch. Thinking about that rain on the tin roof makes me wish I had a square of tin to nail on my roof so I could hear the rain hitting it (IF we ever get any rain, that is. ha)

Well, that is about it for today. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for today. Bye for now. More later.

Happy Birthday, Emily and Ben!

2011-08-07T09:36:00.000-07:00

Hey, Y'all,
Well, last evening, we celebrated Ben and Emily's birthdays with hot dogs, with all the trimmings, followed by brownie squares with ice cream. Afterwards we played some chicken foot dominoes. Ben and Emily are husband and wife, Emily being Carol and Daryl's daughter. Ben joined our family last year, a welcome addition. Grandson, Matt and wife Amy were there to help celebrate. (Amy also joined the family last year and we are so glad she is with us, too).


Emily

Ben and Carol

Daryl and Amy

Matt said, "Yum!"

Birthday candles on brownies

Make a wish!

Whose turn is it?

We had a good service and Sunday School class today, and I just got back about half an hour ago. I will be going out for some lunch after while, and after lunch a trip to the library is in order, when it opens at 1:00 p.m. I may visit "The Colonel" for lunch today. It has been a while since I've had any of his good fried chicken. I only had cheerios for breakfast this morning about four hours ago, and I'm feeling a need for good food.

We have another week of over 100 temps scheduled for the coming week. It is supposed to be 109 on Tuesday. I don't go out any more than is necessary.

That is about it for today. I am planning on going to church this evening and then we will be having choir practice after church. Wednesday evening we are having a churchwide talent show with the young people and followed by home made ice cream. Sounds like we will have some fun, too.
This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for now. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now. More later.

Folded Hands

2011-08-05T10:06:00.000-07:00

Hey, Y'all,
Well, I've been thinking about seniors and responsibilities lately. Do you have a senior adult living with you who seemingly has little or nothing to do during the day...or know someone else in that situation? Have you ever thought what it would be like to be a senior with life stretching out in front of them empty and without meaning? Don't get me wrong...that doesn't describe my situation, by any means.

I know, however, that all across our great country, the situation I have just described exists. We often think that people who are retired can just rest and not have any responsibilities any longer.

"Now, Mom, you just take it easy and don't worry about the dishes...I've already fed little Fido, and walked him....Kitty has been fed and watered... I've fixed lunch for you and it is in the fridge... You just watch some tevee and relax... I'll be home after work and we'll all have supper. Take a nap this afternoon and rest."

Does any of this sound familiar to any of you? Seniors don't get too old to have some responsibilities. It keeps us young and keeps us going. Folded hands are no fun.. Television doesn't challenge the brain. The picture on this page could very well be of my husband's hands after he was in the nursing home with a mending broken hip. His eyesight was too poor to read his Bible anymore, and I'm not sure how well he could even see the small tevee in his room.

His eyesight was bad before he went to the nursing home, but he did help me around the house with gathering the trash and making his bed (and sometimes mine), stacking the dishes in the sink, and even vacuuming sometimes, and sweeping. He was really good at giving me a hug when I needed it, too. If we had had a dog, he would have taken care of it, as well. I hope he always felt like he was needed. It is important to us to be needed. It keeps us going.

You see, I was on my way out to take a letter to the mailbox and started thinking about if I had to live with one of my children (perish the thought) and what I would do if I were beyond being able to drive, and dependent on others to take me places. I would certainly need to feel needed...you know, bring in the mail, load the dishwasher, unload and put away dishes, do a little sweeping, clean the bathrooms, do a little cooking, etc. Everyone needs to feel necessary for the happiness and well-being of someone else. Everyone needs to feel useful.

Well, that is it from Blabbin' Grammy today. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Bye for now. More later.

Strength in the Lord

2011-08-03T06:55:00.000-07:00

Hey, Y'all,
I wanted to post a couple of pictures today to prove that there is life after chemo. Two wonderful ladies in my life are cancer survivors. My life-long friend daughter, Teresa, and my 22 year friend, Ina Ray. They are both very strong ladies, and true believers in the Lord and His mercies.


Teresa with sister-in-law, Sharyn, while she and Tom were on vacation last month. Look, Teresa has hair! Two beautiful ladies!

My beautiful friend, Ina Ray

Ina told me that the chemo she was taking just before this picture was made always made her sleepy, and as soon as they had finished administering the last installment of the chemo, they insisted on celebrating with her and taking her picture. She said that is why she looks so "out of sorts" in it. Ina still has Herceptin to take in her port every three weeks for the next year, but it is not supposed to have any side effects.

Ina has gone back to work every day now. She still has radiation to take for six weeks. I know that both Ina and Teresa covet your prayers. Teresa is dealing with melanomas now on her skin, and continues to have some health issues but her faith is strong. This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for today. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. More later. Bye for now.

Memories of Other Hot Days

2011-08-02T09:51:00.000-07:00

Hey, Y'all,
Well, it is supposed to hit 110 degrees here today; at 6 a.m. it was 90 and now at 11 a.m. it is up to 99. Hot enough? I reckon so... I was up for good at 7 a.m., made my bed, and thought about lying in it...ha ha.

After getting dressed for the day, I sat down and checked my facebook and e-mail, played a round of Gardens of Time and Puzzled Hearts, also Lexalous, which is like Scrabble. Then it was time to go to breakfast at Le Peep for my weekly biscuits and gravy. Gravy was not hot enough, but instead of sending it back, ate it and told the waiter that next time, they need to heat it in the bowl instead of pouring it into the bowl hot. You know that the bowl being cool does not keep the contents hot.

Anyway, up at the counter where you pay for your meal, I had a card that was full of punches (you get a punch in the card each time your bill is as much as six dollars and on Tuesdays you get two punches in the card). When the card has twelve punches in it, you can turn it in and get six dollars off your bill. So, my bill was 8.70 and when I gave her the 2.70, she said it was 2.71 because of the tax difference. So, I got out a penny and gave it to her. She had only punched the new card with one punch, and I reminded her that Tuesday was double punch day, what means to me is that if it was punched one time, it should be punched again. She said that the amount it was punched for was only 2.71. I said, "Okay, that's fine." Then she took it and did another punch on it. I thanked her and told her that I live on a fixed income. She looked at me like I had two heads. I said, "You don't know what that means, do you?"

She said, "No..." I said, "Well, it means that I live on Social Security Retirement and my income does not increase, and every cent counts." I am not sure she understood, even with that. I smiled and wished her a good day, and forgave her for being so young and uninformed. (Does that sound supercilious? I hope not.)

I went from there to Kroger's and did a bit of grocery shopping. I have now been out all I intend to be for most of the week (except maybe to go to the Library). I have cut pieces to begin on Teresa's quilts, and plan to begin sewing today. Yesterday afternoon I went out for supper with the seniors from my church and enjoyed it tremendously. I always enjoy those outings. It was only 105 last afternoon. Ha. We are breaking all kinds of temperature records here in Northeast Texas, and people are dying. Literally. I have my thermostat set on 78 degrees and have four ceiling fans to boot. It keeps the house quite comfortable; some people have no air conditioning and are suffering.

Do you remember growing up without air conditioning? I do. I remember lying in bed at night, with the windows open, wishing for more air currents to come into the house. The temperatures in the day time were up in the 90's and did not cool a lot in the evening. That was in Tennessee. My children grew up the same way and could tell you the same thing. The body adjusts if it has to. Do you remember sitting in church (where there was no air conditioning either) and using the funeral home fans (hand powered)? I say funeral home fans because they were made of cardboard with wooden handles and had the advertisement of the local funeral home on the back.

Left to right, my oldest brother, Bill, my dad, Bill's grandson (Greg), Bill's son ( Fred.) circa 1970s

We had a huge (I mean HUGE) oak tree in the front yard of our house out in the country and it furnished great shade in the summertime. My dad used to say that he bet it had ruined many a corn crop (farmer sitting under it instead of working in the corn field) and he would just laugh. Dad was good at laughing at his own jokes. The oak tree had to be cut down a few years ago, because it was dying inside and lightning had hit it exposing the inside of it. The man who lives in the house now told me that when they cut it down, it had around 260 rings in it, which means it began growing around 1746. There are lots of family stories about that old oak tree. I reckon when I am gone, a lot of those stories are gone as well.

Well, I have blathered on long enough and one's eyes will probably begin to glaze over with reading it. This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for now. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. Keep cool! Bye for now. More later.

Another Day in Whovillanova

2011-07-30T08:55:00.000-07:00

Hey, Y'all,
Just another day in Whovillanova... I was awake this morning around 5 a.m. and turned on the television to Turner Classic Movies and watched an Andy Hardy classic with Mickey Rooney and Donna Reed... Laughed and cried... enjoyed myself tremendously and then got up out of bed for the day. I stepped out onto my little stepstool to leave the bed. Yeah, in case I didn't tell you, I decided I needed both mattresses on my new bed (box spring and top mattress) and the other morning hefted the box springs and carried it in, put it on the bed, thus making the top of the mattress about waist high. Makes me feel like the princess in the story, "Princess and the Pea". Nothing wrong with feeling like a princess, is there? Ha ha.

I went into the kitchen and heated a cup of yesterday's coffee, made me three pancakes, and sat down to enjoy a leisurely breakfast with my book to read. Ahhhh...life is good.

Carol and Daryl just left here a few minutes ago after mowing and edging my yard. Such hard and willing workers, makes me feel a little sorry I can't get out there and do it myself. I appreciate them so very much for their loving help.

Last night we had a really great time. We went to the Mexican Cafe for supper and then on to the Artisan Theater to see a live production of "Anne of Green Gables". It was very enjoyable and we got back home around 10:30 p.m. During intermission at each performance at the theater, there is a drawing for free tickets to a future performance. Last night, Daryl was the winner of tickets to "Hello, Dolly", so we will be going to see that one day during the next seven days. How about that? (I have a season ticket, so mine is already paid for). Something to look forward to.

Last Wednesday, I took my friend, Mattie, to visit with another member of our Sunday School Class, Connie, who fell and injured herself about three weeks ago. Connie is at home after spending some time in the hospital and then in rehab. Mattie and I went to lunch first, and then went to Connie's. We had a wonderful visit with Connie and hope we didn't overstay. Such lovely ladies both she and Mattie are.

I spent a few hours on Thursday cutting strips of cloth to begin making a quilt for Teresa. Yes, I am slowly in preparation to make it. This hot weather is a good time for staying indoors and doing stuff. I put a load of clothes into the washer while ago and will be drying it after while. As you know, I am a computer game player, so I do little necessary things in between rounds of a game.

Yesterday morning, I decided it had been too long since going to Walmart, so off I went at about 9 a.m. heading to the local Wally World. Breakfast was served to me at the Mickey D's inside Wally World, and as usual, I ordered the sausage/egg biscuit, accompanied by senior coffee and 2 fried apple pies. As usual, also, I gave one of the fried pies away to another person who was also eating her breakfast. She thanked me graciously, and I took a seat at another table, pulled out my paperback book, and had my breakfast. I shopped around inside Wally World for about an hour and a half, taking my time. What a life!

Well, that is about it for today. I have done some Sunday School lesson preparation, and will be doing some more after while. We are studying about Jeremiah and how God kept warning the Kingdom of Judah through Jeremiah to turn from their sins and evil ways and to turn back to God, or else be carried off into captivity. They didn't and they were.

This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for today. Much love to each of you, my friends and family. I hope each of you has a wonderful weekend. Bye for now. More later.