How Much Can One Old Lady Do in a Day?

Hey, Y'all,
Well, I got a pretty good night's sleep without leg cramps last night, but woke up around 3:30 and couldn't go back to sleep even though I tried for an hour. Finally, at 4:30, I rolled out of bed and decided to accomplish a few things today. By 8:00 a.m., I had washed two loads of clothes and folded them, along with preparing my breakfast and eating it.

By 10:45 a.m. I had swept all the house, and did another load of laundry and put it away, and now, the bath rugs are in the washer and my bedsheets are in the dryer. I also had some dried apricots soaking from last night and cooked those while breakfast was being prepared. After breakfast, I drained them and mashed them, then added spices and sugar to them. They are in the fridge right now, and in the morning, I plan on making them into little baked pies, using crescent roll dough to place them in making them triangular in shape. Yum! They will be served as dessert for tomorrow evening when Carol and Daryl come over for supper.

I still have the kitchen and the bathrooms to mop and hopefully can get that done before bedtime tonight. I am one of those poor unfortunates that is a Farmville player, and I can take breaks from work and harvest my crops and all the other stuff there is to do around the farm like slopping the hogs and feeding the chickens. Ha. It gives my back a rest from laboring here in the house. I also have other people's blogs to read, and sometimes leave a comment on.

I still have Mae's great great granddaughter's quilt to launder and get ready to send to her. I reckon I can get that done tomorrow. Life does get busy, doesn't it? Praise the Lord, I am so glad to have things to do and the strength to do them.

Well, that is about 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.

Middle of the Week

Hey, Y'all,
Yeah, it is the midweek time and there are lots of household chores to do, and I may get around to them after while, but in the meantime, I wanted to let you all know that I haven't forgotten about each of you, my friends. This morning, I was up around 5:30 so I could get my shower and get ready for the day. I didn't get a lot of sleep last night, due to leg cramps waking me up a few times. I had just been asleep about an hour when the first one hit, and after wrestling with it for a few minutes, I got up and put some mineral ice on it. (That is some of the stuff that is mostly menthol and somehow relieves the pain). It was not too long before I was awakened again with cramps in the other foot and leg. This time, I simply got up and walked around for awhile, sat down and rubbed the ankle and leg, and then went back to bed.

This does not occur every night, just maybe one night a week, and is very annoying and sleep debilitating. I know this sounds like I am whining...maybe I am a little, but not much. I was, however, feeling much better when I got up at 5:30. After showering and getting dressed, I went over to Carol's house and gave her a ride to work, where she picked up her county car and went about her business of checking as a health inspector of businesses in the area. This afternoon I will be going back over to pick her up and take her home for the evening. Her car is being serviced, so she is without wheels right now. It is wonderful to be able to help her out with stuff.

After I got home from taking her to work, I had a small bowl of cereal so I could take my 15 morning pills, and a few minutes later I drove over to Julia and Andrew's home so that I could ride with Julia and the two little girls to Bible Study at our church. We had a really good study time this morning and I think there is something like 80 ladies that are taking part in it. We are divided into several groups that meet in various places in the annex building. It is a wonderful opportunity to study the Bible with other women and get to know them better. Our study is in the Book of James and the main themes are Trials and How we can Persevere and triumph over them with God's help.

After Bible Study, Julia and the girls and I went back to Julia's and had a delicious lunch of spaghetti, croissants (made by Andrew), and grapes. It is so enjoyable to get to know Julia and the children better. They are delightful! After lunch, I left and they were ready for naps. Who knows, I may take one after while. Ha.

Yesterday, I completed work on the baby quilt for Mae's great-great granddaughter to be born in November. I still have some threads to clip and I must launder it, then it will be ready to send to Mae.

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

Kleenex, Anyone?

Hey, Y'all,
Seems like I am always needing a tissue for one thing or another lately. You know, either sneezing and wiping a runny nose or crying and wiping a runny nose. Ha. However, instead of buying a bunch of Kleenex, I just carry a roll of nice soft toilet tissue around with me for my sneezing, and usually just use the corner of my gown or shirt to wipe my eyes with and sniff a little to take care of the runny nose then.

Last evening at just about bedtime, I began sneezing in earnest -( no, there is no one named Earnest here, so guys drop the punning - ha) and it continued on for at least an hour or so before I went to bed just before one a.m. I really tried to sleep and succeeded for about 2 hours, then had to get up so I played Farmville til I thought I could go to sleep (about 5 a.m.) I tossed a bit and then turned on the tevee to low and went to sleep. I managed a couple of hours and finally got up at 7:30.

Thank God I haven't done a lot of sneezing since I got up. I fixed my breakfast and came in to my computer room and watched some tevee while I caught up on my farming and read Teresa's posting of her blog this morning where she commented on my early morning playing. Ha.

I am going to try to get some sleep in this afternoon. It was in the 50's here this morning. That is a real abrupt change in temperature. Yesterday morning I was up and showered and ready to go to church in good time. Odds were against my going though. I went out and turned on the car, backed down the driveway and looked at the dashboard instruments. I saw the warning light on telling me I had a low pressure in one of my tires. OH GREAT!!

Well, I called Carol to tell her I wouldn't make it, and why. She advised me to call Andrew and Julia to see if they had already left. I did so, and they were already at the church. Now, the distance to the church is not really a short one, so I knew no one would come and get me, so I went back into the house and took off my church duds, and got into my comfortable shorts and shirt, and settled down to fix my breakfast and enjoy the solitude.

I almost got the baby quilt finished for Mae's great great granddaughter, and will finish it today. I have the binding pinned on around the edge and intend to get that done today sometime. Carol and Daryl came over about 3 p.m. and Daryl put checked all the tires and put air in some of them. It turns out that the spare tire needed air in it, and that was what was causing the warning light to be on. It seems that there is a computer chip that causes the light to come on when the air is low in the spare. That is because, I guess, if you have a flat and need the spare it will be inflated enough to use. I know one thing for sure - if I ever have a flat it will be someone else who will have to change the tire, and most probably would be the AAA because I don't do tires. Ha ha.

Carol and Daryl also brought Dub's wheelchair and walker that had been stored in their garage, and that was hard for me to see them again, and of course, I cried. (That was when I needed the kleenex, but just used the corner of my shirt. ha) Daryl very kindly put them into the little closet that is in my garage so I wouldn't have to look at them every time I come out into the garage. It seems I just cry at times and can't control it. Have you ever tried to swallow food when you are crying? It just can't be done.

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

Oreos and Milk

Hey, Y'all,
Today has been one of those days that has passed quietly, with a good breakfast to begin the day. There was rain last night which continued this morning, making it a good morning to read a pleasant romance. You know, the ones that you know are going to turn out with the guy getting the gal, living in a small town where everyone else knows everyone's business and are pulling for the couple to get together. The ones that make you wipe the eyes and then go, ahhhh.

About 11 a.m. I came into the sewing/computer/workroom and began sewing again on the baby quilt for Mae's great great granddaughter, Alli, scheduled for entering this old world in November. I know Mae is hoping for the birth to occur on her (Mae's) birthday. That would really be neat, eh? I hope it happens that way.

My days are not what one would call exciting but I am happy with them. I had a really crazy dream last night. In that dream, Dubby and I went to a program at University of Tennessee and I had left my purse there. I had to go back after it the next morning, and had trouble getting back into the building, being sure that the purse would be empty if I did succeed in finding it. Once I was back in the building, I couldn't find the room, but I finally did and there was my purse, just where I had left it, with nothing missing. Now the really strange thing, is that the first part of the dream was before I woke up around 5 a.m. It was after I went back to sleep that I found the purse. What do you think of that? Do you ever begin a dream, then wake up and go back to sleep and finish it? I have done that many times. I don't know what it means, but it sure is interesting, isn't it?

Well, today has been spent reading, watching tevee and sewing. I have spoken to both my sisters-in-law in Knoxville, and they seem to be doing well. Imazo's son, David, and wife, Andrea, are in Knoxville visiting from Arizona, and I know how happy she is to have them come to see her and the family that still lives there. It is always great to see family, isn't it? I finished up my day with a glass of milk and a few oreo cookies. Yum!

Speaking of family, we gathered at Carol and Daryl's last night, with Matt and Amy, Ben and Emily, Julia and her and Andrew's two little girls and me had supper there and spent a fun evening together. It was topped off with a call from the oldest son, Daniel, calling from Illinois. We played a card game that Daryl had gotten for his birthday, called "Killer Bunnies". It is a very complicated game and I guess I could learn it after playing it a dozen times or so, but dominoes or Apples to Apples is more my style. Ha.

Well, that is about it for today. Teresa had her second chemo infusion yesterday, and seems to be doing okay. She wore her doo-rag to the infusion and said she got some compliments on how well it looked. She is quite self conscious about it, naturally, but I know she will be able to do what she has to do. Please continue to pray for her strength. This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for today. You can find a link to her blog "Pickin' up the Pieces" under my "Other Interesting Blogs" to the right of this posting. Any encouragement that you can give her will be appreciated. More later. Much love to each of you. Bye for now.

Not Much Doing...

Hey, Y'all,
Yeah, not a lot going on these days, so I haven't posted in a few days. Saturday, I did a little cleaning, and laundry. Sunday, there was church and afterwards, I went over to Carol and Daryl's and had lunch with them, after which we played a few rounds of dominoes.

Monday, I was mostly flippin' around here in my gown and not doing very much. My grandson, Andrew, did come over and mow the yard for me, so I really appreciated that. He made short work of it, and was soon gone. I had a quiet supper and watched some tevee, and then went to bed.

Tuesday, I cut pieces for the baby quilt that I am making for Mae's great-great granddaughter who is to be born in November, and today I went to Bible Study and then had lunch with Carol at Mooyah's. Later, I went to shop for shoes and found a pair that suited me. While there, I met and talked to a lady who is a nurse. She was shopping for a pair of shoes to wear to a memorial service of a neighbor of hers. She was telling me how her neighbor's ex-wife had still been good friends with the neighbor, and always brought his supper to him. Well, she had gone in to check on him, and saw he was on the couch looking like he was asleep, but he was making strange noises. So she came over and got the nurse to check for a pulse.

Well, yeah, there was no pulse, so apparently the noises were from the gases coming from the body after death. Anyway, it was an interesting story.

I also chatted with one of the bank tellers when I stopped there before lunch. We were talking about the costs of burials. Her parents are from Costa Rica, and we were talking also about the tremendous amount of paperwork involved in settling estates. The way the subject came up was because I was cashing a refund check made out to Dubby (my husband) and how the utilities and such were in his name, but I was the one who wrote the checks. We talked about how different people deal with the death of loved ones, and how her grandma passed away eight years ago. Anyway, it was an interesting conversation.

Well, that is about it for today. My daughter, Teresa, has been losing her hair in big clumps and is almost bald already. She told me while ago that Tom was getting ready to shave her head and they were going to do that right after we stopped our online chat. God bless her! I am so sorry she is having to go through all this. Please continue to keep them both in your prayers. I know she will appreciate it.

I am planning on sewing on the baby quilt tomorrow, so this is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for today. It is time for me to do a little bit of work around here. Maybe find some small something to have for supper, maybe some cereal. There will be grocery shopping to do in the morning, since it has been over a week since I went. More later. Much love to each of you. Bye for now.

An Evening in The South Pacific

Hey, Y'all,1
I spent an evening of being entertained last night, and it was really fun! I went with a group of seniors to eat out at a local barbeque restaurant around 6 p.m. (and ohhhh, do they serve delicious hot rolls with the meal!) We had a really enjoyable time eating together. There were also several younger people sprinkled among us, and they were delightful to talk to, as well. Most are church members at the church I am attending here in Texas and we are slowly becoming acquainted. I am fortunate in having a ready made church family in that Carol and Daryl have been members there for quite a few years.

I took some pictures (of course), and although they didn't all turn out perfect, I am publishing a few here that did pretty well. The theater is called the Artisan, and is a theater in the round, which, of course, means that the actors are in the center and are surrounded by the audience. There are only four rows on two opposite sides, and and fewer than that on the other two sides, so that the theater only holds less than 150 (I believe). The performance was stellar, and I say that with no reservations (well, actually our seats were reserved, ha)! The actor's performances were well worth the three hours we spent there, the play actually taking only 2 hours of actual performance time.

I was picked up by the lady who organized the trip and there were 35 people in our group. About half of those had supper with us at the restaurant, and we all met at the theater. When I did a little research online about the Artisan, I realized that it is very well known in theater circles, and is quite well-funded. It is located in Hurst, Texas, so if you wish to know more about it, just enter Artisan Theater in your browser and you will readily find it.

I was returned to my domicile last evening at 11 p.m. and stayed up for a while, unwinding from my exciting evening. After hitting the old hay about midnight, I was awakened by a blam, blam, blam. I dragged out of bed to see what it was, but I really knew before I got in there. It was the shampoo and body wash holder that I had bought a couple of weeks ago, and suction-cupped to the shower wall. The holder had bounced off the bath chair I had in the bathtub, and the shampoo, body wash, and hair conditioner were all lying in the tub. Yes, I have bought a tension rod holder to put in the corner of my tub, but have not put it up yet. It goes up today. I picked it all up and went back to bed.

I was hoping it would rain last night, but it didn't, so I guess I will have to sprinkle some water with the water hose over the yard to keep the grass green. Back in Tennessee, I didn't worry if the grass died in the summer time, but out here, my home is part of a neighborhood something, and I have to keep the grass looking good. Out here, it really is grass, and back home it was just weeds that we kept cut every other week. Go figure! If it were up to me, it could just live or die on its own.

Pictures are (top two) we are at restaurant, and I took these from opposite ends of the table. The other three are at the theatre. I apologize for the poor picture quality of the last one. Sometimes my camera is a little contrary. We on the front row were just a few feet from the actors. If they had tripped, they would have been in our laps or on our feet. In fact, a couple of people who were coming to see the performance fell right in front of us, because the stage had packed, rounded up sand on it to give the appearance of the South Pacific beach in the play. They were not hurt, however, and it is a good thing it was sand they fell upon, and not concrete.

Well, folks that is about it for today from me. Breakfast is calling to me, like Bali Hai was calling to the sailors last night. Ha. This is Blabbin' Grammy signing off for now. Much love to each of you, and I will be talkin' at you again soon. Bye for now.

Back On Track

Hey, Y'all,
Yeah, I am recovered from yesterday's happenings. I was up this morning about 7:30 (missed the trash man) after having woke up about 4 a.m. and being on the computer for about 20 minutes. I had a leg cramp at that time and had to be out of bed to work out the cramp, then went back to bed and didn't wake up until 7:30. I turned on my cell phone and saw a message from Carol asking if I wanted to meet her for breakfast so I threw on yesterday's clothes and met her at Mickey D's. It has been a full week for her as well, so it was good to see her for a few minutes.

After she left, I stayed on and finished my breakfast (those who know me well, know that I am a slow eater and because I brought a paperback with me, I read that as I slowly ate the remainder of my breakfast.

When I left Mickey D's I came on home and noticed the array of papers that I had strewn looking for my social security card yesterday afternoon. You would not believe the mess that i made going through boxes and looking. Flipping through bunches of papers....arghhhhhhhhhh! Anyway, that will have to be picked up and put away some time today. I do have projects that I need to get busy with, you know.

This evening, I am going with the senior citizen's group at church to see a stage production of "South Pacific" and eating supper before we go to the show. It seems like it will be great fun! I know that I have been looking forward to it for a couple of weeks now. I also have a baby quilt to make for my sister-in-law, Mae's, great-great granddaughter to be born in November. I promised Mae I would make it for her to give to Tiffany for her baby. It has been in the back of my mind for some time now, and it is time to put the pedal to the metal, so to speak.

I just got word that one of the kitty cats that belonged to my good friend, Ina, passed on during the night last night, and I know she is mourning the loss of Lucy. Please remember Ina in your prayers, because the cat was like a member of her family. She had had Lucy for nine years or more and Lucy was probably about 17 years old. I know she is going to miss Lucy terribly.

Well, this ain't gettin' my putting stuff away done, so I had better stop and get on with straightening out the mess I made yesterday. It really bothers me that I couldn't just put my hands on that darned old card. I could have saved one of the trips we had to make. Poor Julia, I don't think she knew what a job she was taking on with running me around yesterday when we first lit out of here. She is definitely a trooper! Thank you, again, sweet Julia!

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