CottageGirl

One Moment in Time

2012-02-11T21:54:00.004-06:00

The girl could sing ...

Rest in peace, Whitney Houston.

Are You Happy?

2012-02-01T20:14:00.003-06:00

How It Feels to Have a Stroke and Other Life Lessons

2012-01-16T09:30:00.001-06:00

If you have the time, I'm sure you'll be touched by this amazing presentation.

Thanks, Jeffer, for turning me on to this ...

What Are You Doin' New Year's Eve?

2011-12-30T19:45:00.001-06:00

Love these two together!

Happy New Year's!!

My Best Christmas Presents

2011-12-26T18:49:00.001-06:00

Ahhhhh.

The day after Christmas.

No hustle and bustle for us today. We made a conscious effort to do nothing all day long.

To keep up my end of the deal, I ...

Stayed in my jammies,

Kept throwing a log on the fire,

Had not one ... not two ... but THREE cups of hot decaf chi tea.

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh. See how relaxed I am?

(I hardly ever have a cup of tea. Tea to me is a luxury of time and enjoyment that I usually don't allow myself, so it was a real treat to be able to leisurely drink it all day long.)

Whilst I enjoyed the fire and the tea, I gave myself plenty of opportunity today to also enjoy my two most favorite gifts.

The first was from Steph and Corey, Brayden and Bella and Rugger, Reesey, Gunner and Vinnie and Vito.

It was a 2012 calendar.

But not just any calendar, mind you.

This calendar is the best one in the world.

It is a calendar featuring the grandkids. What calendar could be better than that?

Every year Steph makes a calendar for me with special pics from the year before.

It hangs right on our fridge and I enjoy it every single day.

Steph even highlights special days like Jack's upcoming birthday!

I can't tell you just how much enjoyment that calendar brings to me!

The second of my favorite presents came as a big surprise. Our immediate family had already exchanged presents a few weeks back, so yesterday, while we were at Corey and Steph's I suddenly found myself surrounded by the kids.

It was like a flashmob. One second none was there, then boom ... surprise ... another present!

(Yes, Virginia, there really is a Santa Claus!)

Jeff and Ashley, Corey and Steph gave us a book of pictures taken from our family trip last year to Holiday World.

For some reason, Tony and I didn't take many pics last year from the vacation, so this book is a double blessing.

So many special memories ...

Wonderfully wet and sweet times at Holiday World ...

As well as memorable moments at the cabins we stayed in.

Even though I did absolutely nothing today, I got to remember about the most important things in life.

I guess that was really something after all.

Something Tells Me It's All Happening at the Zoo

2011-12-20T21:37:00.000-06:00

Dinner at the zoo this year was so fun.

Here are some of the highlights.

There were all sorts of zoo animals there.

Look at Bella's face. She had such a great time!

Rudolph was just as sweet as you'd think she'd be.

Frosty even showed up!

The food was great, especially dessert!

The company was terrific!

But the best part was seeing Santa!

Christmas Sweeties

2011-12-13T20:51:00.002-06:00

Santa came a bit early to the cottage this year.

And wouldn't you know it, some folks heard the news and dropped by.

While here, they did some catching up ...

And some sampling of Christmas goodies.

Of course they opened a few presents

And compared the latest in holiday fashions ...

It was generally a very merry time!

And for Gran's memory bottle ...

All four kids kids dancing upstairs to the episode called Dance on Yo Gabba Gabba!!

Jack's total love of the replacement Woody doll we gave him.

Brayden getting so excited about his new skateboard.

Bella loving her little laptop and carrying all around the cottage!

Ella getting a bit sick because of all the junk she ate,
and later trying to help Bella put her shoe shoe back on.

Thank you God for these, the sweetest of times.

The Christmas Story Told Through Facebook

2011-12-07T19:56:00.001-06:00

What a different perspective!
Thanks Tuey for the link ...

Pratzel's Bagels

2011-11-20T12:39:00.000-06:00

See this girl?

She went to the Jewish Hospital School of Nursing in St. Louis back in the Victorian Era.

You'd never know it, but besides learning about how to be a nurse, this girl also learned all about bagels.

She has bought bagels, made bagels, cut bagels, toasted bagels and ... well ... eaten a lot of bagels in her time.

She knows her bagels.

Back in the day when she and her group of student nurse friends took a break from their student nursing responsibilities, they'd all head down to the hospital coffee shop.

Every student worth her weight in personalized bandage scissors would stand in line and order a bagel and a coke.

But this was not your ordinary bagel, my friends ...

This was manna from the gods.

The short order cooks in that coffee shop would cut open a fresh poppy seed bagel from a Jewish bakery not too far from the hospital and slather it with melted butter.

They would then put the bagels on a conveyer type of toaster and within seconds there would be a hot, crunchy, tender, buttery bagel that the girl would slather with cream cheese.

Heaven.

That bagel was always paired up nicely with an ice cold Coke.

Like ham and eggs.

Like Simon and Garfunkle ...

Nothing could beat that bagel and a Coke.

Right after graduation, the girl began to work at Jewish Hospital in the Labor and Delivery Department. With the help of some excellent mentors, she became pretty good at that job. Those nights shifts, though, were killers.

No time for breaks any longer in the coffee shop, the girl would pick up some poppy seed bagels from that same Jewish bakery on her way home from work.

The name of the bakery was Pratzel's. She learned that Pratzel's had been a family owned business since 1913.

And Pratzels, she learned, was some special bakery.

She found out that the bagels they made at Pratzels were boiled first before they were baked.

She also found that if she made sure to wear her Jewish Hospital School of Nursing pin on her uniform, the bakery employees would not give her cold bagels from the front case, but they would go and get her bagels from the back, hot and fresh from the oven.

That girl also began to develop a toasting technique that rendered those bagels similar in taste and texture to the coffee shop bagels of old.

As the years progressed, that girl got other jobs that took her further away from Pratzel's. In addition, the neighborhood where the bakery was located began to deteriorate and was not the safest place to be. Only occasionally would she return to get her dear bagels.

At one point, the girl decided that she could make bagels herself. She used the boil technique and turned out some pretty good bagels, but they never quite made the grade like Pratzels, even though her father really loved them.

But as the girl's family grew, she found that she just did not have the time to continue to make those bagels. Besides, they never were as good as Pratzel's.

Over the course of the years, the girl discovered that Pratzels had moved ... to her suprise ... right down the street from her doctor's office! Her doctor's office was about a 45 minute drive away so she would usually try to pick some up whenever she had an appointment. To her chagrin, however, most of the time she went, Praztels was either closed or out of bagels.

This past January, the girl read that Pratzel's was closing for good.

The girl was heart-broken.

Nothing is forever, she told herself after her 40+ year love affair with that bagel. Nothing is forever.

Rest in peace, Pratzel's. Thanks for the memories.

Recently on a trip home from her same doctor, the girl and her hubby stopped at a local grocery store known for their variety of quality food.

And ... there ... were ....

Pratzel's bagels!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Come to find out, she wasn't the only one to be heart-broken at the closing of such an institution. The day after it closed, a campaign of sorts was launched to bring back Pratzel's and low and behold a new owner had taken over, but had hired, on staff as a consultant for at least a year, the former owner of Pratzel's!

Right now the bakery is not yet open, but they are selling wholesale to a few area food stores.

Here ... Here is how the girl fixed those yummy globs of dough ...

First the girl cut the bagels in half.

Melting the salted butter is preferred, but the girl could not contain her enthusiasm and just put cold butter pats on the top.

The girl was NOT stingy.

The girls turned on the broiler in her oven and put the bagel halves on the middle shelf and watched very closely through the slightly opened oven door.

Turning the pan around once,

after a couple of short minutes, she put the bagels directly under the broiler for a few seconds to finish up the toasting.

She watched VEWY carefully so as not to burn her treasured bagels.

Tah-Dah!! Fresh out of the oven!

Can't forget the cream cheese ... usually the girl has the lighter stuff on hand, but the devil made her buy this! Tweren't her fault.

Oh yeah! I hear that the girl is even drooling right now as she can telepathically see this picture through your eyes.

Amazing!

Here's her honey's bagel ... almost gone. That girl LOVES those poppy seeds almost as much as she does her hubby.

Here's the last bit of the girl's. The butter is still warm and drips off slightly making a yummy pool of goodness accented with bagel crumbs and poppy seeds. I bet the girl will be tempted to lick the plate when she finishes.

I will not tell on her however.

My lips are (slurp) closed.

(One sad postmark, the girl no longer drinks soda, so her bagel was paired with a nice cold glass of milk. Maybe one day in the not so distant future, she'll brave the caffeine and pair the bagel and Coke back together again.)

Veteran's Day 11/11/11

2011-11-11T12:42:00.003-06:00

God bless all our veterans.

St. Louis Cardinals World Series Champions!!

2011-10-29T14:20:00.002-05:00

What a Ride!

Our 11th championship title in 2011!

Congratulations St. Louis Cardinals ... World Series Champions!

Thanks Corey and Steph for having everyone over to share the experience!
I'll never forget it!!!!

Pumpkin Waffles ala Smitten Kitchen

2011-10-16T14:08:00.013-05:00

You all probably know about her, but if you don't, her blog is amazing ...

Smitten Kitchen has so many great recipes and yet she works in an itty bitty New York apartment kitchen. It's amazing what she does there!

We were hungry for waffles today, but wanted something with a fall-ish flavor.
I found these wonderful waffles with 3 magic clicks on the computer.

Served with maple syrup and a bit of butter, we think these are even better than regular waffles ... Honest!

Here's how they went ...

First I needed the ingredients.

Then I mixed the dry ingredients together starting with the flour,

then added the spices.

Next I mixed the wet ingredients together

and added them to the dry.

Then I gently folded in the beaten egg whites

and baked in the waffle iron until no more steam could be seen coming from the iron.

Here's the finished product ...

~~Two~~ Three things ...

If you think that is a lot of butter on the top, you are absolutely right! I could say that this was Tony's plate, but I cannot tell a lie!

Also a good food stylist would have cleaned up the extra puddle of maple syrup on the side of the plate, but I was a hungry girl and snapped a quick pic without looking at the details.

Speaking of details ... The knife and fork patterns do not match! Eek! I'm sure if Emily Post saw this she'd faint dead away!!

These waffles were crispy on the outside and moist and tender on the inside ... and full of autumnal flavors. With addition of the maple syrup and the little bit of butter, they were heaven!

*** A post note ... Toasted pecans on the top = Even YUMMIER!!

Here's the recipe, if you are so inclined ...

Pumpkin Waffles

Adapted from several sources

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
2 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
4 large eggs, separated
2 cups well-shaken buttermilk
1 cup canned solid-pack pumpkin
3/4 stick (6 tablespoons) unsalted butter, melted
Vegetable oil for brushing waffle iron or cooking spray

Preheat oven to 250°F and preheat waffle iron. Sift together flour, brown sugar, baking powder and soda, salt, and spices. Whisk egg yolks in a large bowl with buttermilk, pumpkin, and butter until smooth. Whisk in dry ingredients just until combined.

In a mixing bowl with a whisk attachment, whisk the egg whites until they hold soft peaks (as in, far softer than the over-beaten whites you’ll see in my picture above). Folk them gently into the waffle batter, until just combined.

Brush waffle iron lightly with oil and spoon batter (about 2 cups for four 4-inch Belgian waffles) into waffle iron, spreading quickly. Cook according to manufacturer’s instructions.

Transfer waffles to rack in oven to keep warm and crisp. Make more waffles in same manner.

A Lesson On Determination ...

2011-10-08T11:28:00.004-05:00

I made an "A" in my first computer course at SIUE on a Mac by developing my own animated program. It was THE hardest course I ever took (including grad school) ...

.... especially since I didn't even know how to turn the thing on when I began the course!

... But I've been hooked ever since.

Today, twenty-six years later, I write yet another entry for my little blog using my MacBook Pro laptop, and later in the garden, I will probably do a little research on my iPad for the new iPhone 4s.

Thank you, Steve Jobs.

You opened doors for me, that I never knew existed.

You've made my life easier in a most complicated way.

You've challenged me and made me think and made me take risks.

Your determination and vision have enriched my life immeasurably.

Thank you.

Bottle of Memories

2011-09-25T13:38:00.005-05:00

Last night we had our sweet boys and their wonderful wives and their beautiful children over to our house for pizza.

I always feel blessed when we're all together.

As the grandkids get older it's so much fun to watch them interact with each other.

I wish I could bottle up those wonderful moments so as the years pass, I would be able once again to pour out and taste just how sweet they were.

Since that can't happen, I'm going to write about some little memory pics that I took last night not so much with a camera, but with my little bitty brain.

I apologize to those lovely few of you who read my random conglomeration of thoughts ...

However, the only one for whom this is really being written is me. It's a bottle that I'll be able to pull off of that shelf and taste a bit in the coming years as the memory fades.

Here goes ...

1. The look on Ella's face as she opened the front door and I surprised her by being right behind the door.

2. Ella's excited jumping up and down as a rabbit scurried by her from the berm under the big oak. She kept yelling, "The Easter Bunny! The Easter Bunny!" When I told her that it really might have been the elf who lived in the old oak tree ...

... and that he might have magically changed into the rabbit, she stopped and thought about it a minute. The look of wonderment on her face was priceless. Ella's mom, Ashley, and I got quite the chuckle from that look.

A few seconds later, Brayden had arrived, enthusiastically running to the backyard down the garden path. Ella could not contain her excitement as she jumped up and down retelling her tale to her sweet cousin.

3. Our beautiful daughters-in-law talking through the night together just like sisters would.

4. Brayden telling me about making his first soccer goal that morning, even though he knew I was there to see it!

5. Jack, Brayden and Ella choosing to sit side-by-side-by-side at the dining room table to eat. They've been doing that the last few times we've gotten together. Bella is still sitting by her mommy or daddy in a booster chair, but her time to sit with the cousins is coming soon.

(Our new dining room table has made that now possible ... no extra table legs to maneuver because of the pedestals under the table! And so weird ... I just realized, this is very similar to my Grandma K's dining room table. I used to loved to hide underneath that table with my cousins just like our grandkids like to hide underneath ours.)

6. Brayden and Jack wanting to put on their matching glow-in-the-dark skeleton shirts we gave them for Halloween and parading around the house like twins.

7. Being able to give our sons a special accessory for their cameras.

8. Being outside at twilight and connecting glow-in-the-dark necklaces that seemed to take forever ...

However making it all worth while by watching the kids, as the light faded, toss those necklaces in the air over and over again and laugh with delight.

9. Once inside again, seeing the kids dancing to different YouTube videos ... and Bella shaking her head as well as her little bootie as the music played on.

10. The kids all wanting another slice of pizza before they went home.

11. Good-bye kisses and waving to everyone as they drove away down the street.

12. Watching Tony and knowing that he was as happy as I was.

So many memories ...

As the grandkids get older, I think that I just might need to get a few more bottles!!

The Moving Wall

2011-09-05T15:57:00.012-05:00

The Moving Wall came to our town this weekend.

This wall is a scaled-down model of the original Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington D.C.

Tony and I thought we'd better see the memorial while we had the opportunity.

You know ...

Pay our respects ...

Show our support.

By the way, it was only about four minutes from our house and ...

We had to run to Walgreens anyway.

We decided to get there before sunrise and as we walked out our door, reveled in the fact that the morning was so refreshingly cool after such a long hot summer.

Little did we know that our trip to this memorial in the middle of a deeply parched field, behind a small subdivision and adjacent to a nursing home, would have such an impact on us.

Time had blurred the horror of the Vietnam War for us ... until today when we were transported back forty-five years.

Every single evening for years back in the sixties, during dinner, nightly news programs showed us ghastly scenes from a war that was taking away so many of our young men.

Our local newspaper frequently ran the pictures of those who died or were missing in action. It got to the point that I hated to open up the newspaper.

After awhile, however, it seemed as if we all became immune to the devastation of that war.

It seemed as if it would never end and we could do nothing to make it end.

We got to the point where we hardly ever talked about it at all.

And while some people openly protested the war, others more discreetly, yet perhaps more devastatingly, were ashamed of guys they knew who fought.

People seemed to forget after awhile that there was a draft on. If a guy's number was pulled there was no choice but to go.

And when guys came back alive, there were no big ceremonies or applause at the airports or thanking them in any way. Just maybe a slap on the back and a "Welcome back home" from friends and hugs and prayers of thanksgiving from families.

When the question came around, and it always did ... "Was it bad over there, man?", the answer was only, "It was hell, man. It was hell."

The Vietnam War started in 1959 and ended in 1975.

16 years.

When the war finally did end, we knew ...

We KNEW that another war like that would NEVER EVER happen as long as we were alive ...

It's interesting, isn't it, how history repeats itself?

Anyway, here ares some pics I took of the memorial ...

This young soldier had been on duty for twenty-one hours when he asked if he could help us.

He showed us a board with names of local men who were killed in the war.

Newton dated a friend of mine for awhile and I was good friends with his brother, Mike.

Look, he was only in 'Nam twenty-six days before he was killed ...

I was friends with Bill's fiancee when he was killed. He was there for only a month and a half before he died.

The soldier helped us find the names and also offered to do rubbings so that we would have a copy.

When we finally stopped and just sat and took in all of the names of those who had died, we both were so overcome ...

We were transported in time and yet we weren't, and we found ourselves mourning, not only for those who passed so long ago, but for also for those who have passed since September 11, 2001.

There is a total of 58,272 names listed on the Memorial.

That means that 58,272 people died or were never found.

As the tenth anniversary of 9/11 approaches, I deeply thank all those who serve now or who have ever served our country as well as their families.

And I pray for the safety of those who are currently in harms way.

Imagine all the people
Living life in peace

You may say that I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us And the world will be as one.

John Lennon

1971

Emmanuel Kelly ... He Thought He Could

2011-09-02T18:12:00.005-05:00

I just read this book to my class this past week ...

It was one of my favorite books when I was in first grade back in the Pleistocene era.

The book's message has really carried me through some tough times as I tried to reach seemingly impossible goals.

Tonight, thanks to our handsome brother-in-law, Leroy, I see how the message that is found in this book is lived to the fullest by someone with great courage.

Get out your hankies ...

Happy Birthday, Honey!!

2011-08-30T17:36:00.002-05:00

Happy Birthday to the sweetest man I know ...

So very glad he's also my hubby!

Thinking of You, Chesapeake Bay

2011-08-25T22:04:00.005-05:00

My beautiful sis and handsome brother-in-law invited us to stay at a beach house on the Eastern Shore of Virginia on the Chesapeake Bay this summer.

As hurricane Irene poses an imminent threat right now to most of the eastern seaboard, I think back to the beauty of the lovely peninsula we spent a week on and I'm hoping that the beauty, as well as the people we met, are kept far from harm's way.

For Susan

2011-08-16T05:26:00.001-05:00

For my dear Susan ...

The Lord is my shepherd,
I shall not want;
He makes me lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside still waters;
He restores my soul.
He leads me in paths of righteousness
for His name's sake.

Even though I walk through the valley
of the shadow of death,
I fear no evil;
for You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
all the days of my life;
and I shall dwell in the house of the
Lord forever.

Psalm 23

Phone Jack

2011-08-01T21:23:00.003-05:00

Ella and Jack spent the day at our house last week.

Jack was obsessed with one thing all day ...

(Can you guess what it was?)

In the garden ...

Doing chores ...

(That look feels vaguely familiar!)

In the playhouse ...

And sitting next to Gramps ...

A few days later everyone came over for a get-together.

We celebrated a belated birthday for Corey! Don't you think he looks pretty good for his age? ;-)

Yep you guessed it!

There was Jack and his phone ...

Brayden noticed ...

Ella did too ...

And Bella?

She was just happy being with the big kids!

Wacation

2011-07-06T19:46:00.002-05:00

A few weeks ago our family took a fun vacation. Ella was so excited the week or so before we went.

She kept saying, "We're going on wacation!" "We're going on wacation!"

Well, waccation we did go ...

We went to .... Santa Claus, Indiana.

Yep.

Santa Claus as in Ho Ho Ho. As in Naughty or Nice. As in ... ah ... Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Rudolph ...

Tiny town, but BIG amusement park/water park called Holiday World.

It has the world's #1 wooden roller coaster ...

The Voyage.

The screamer in this video was definitely not me ...

I had my eyes closed and my teeth clenched as I held on for dear life swearing that I would never EVER

ride such a ride again.

EVER.

NEVER.

Holiday World had something for everyone including the grandkids. Great rides.

Super water park.

Free drinks all day.

Free sunscreen.

Free parking.

Friendliest people.

We all loved it!

Here's a pic that Jeff took at the playground where we stayed.

Someone said that our grandkids looked like the little rascals.

They do, don't they?

(Look at how big they are all getting, especially Bella!)

We all had such a great time, we've made plans to return.

Can't wait till next year's wacation!

One More Renovation

2011-06-30T23:10:00.016-05:00

It was 1985. I decided to return to college. We were down to one income and money was rather tight, especially with our two boys ages 9 and 7.

We really had to cut back to make ends meet and one way to do that was to turn off our central air conditioner ... except on extremely hot days.

Our energy bills at that time were through the roof. Seventeen original windows in our small cottage were not air tight in the least. An old, inefficient air conditioner didn't help either.

That summer, with keen foresight and common sense and without air conditioning, we (Or was it me?) decided to save even more money and take up the old carpet that hot summer and refinish the wood floors ourselves in the living room, dining room, hallway and bedroom.

Back then, I remember as I sanded and stained and polyurethaned in that hot, hot house wondering if sweat droplets on the floor would affect the overall finish. Maybe the the finish might even last longer ... Maybe ... Or maybe not.

Doing the job ourselves did have its advantages. We could work on one room at a time and still be able to facilitate the use of our only bathroom throughout the process. It also was easier to move and store one room of furniture at a time rather than three.

And ... it was cheaper.

Even though we didn't have much experience at refinishing floors, we were pleased with the outcome.

Fast forward 20 years and two growing boys and a number of different dogs.

2005.

The floors were beginning to look shabby. We knew that we didn't want to redo the floors ourselves again, even though we now could afford to use our air conditioner!

We also knew that with having someone from the outside refinish our floors we'd have to move every lick of furniture and copious amounts of decorations from those three rooms to spaces that we could not even imagine.

Besides that, with no accessible bathroom, we'd have to move out for a few days.

We procrastinated ....

Well fast forward another 5 years!

2011.

It was a tough decision knowing all that was in store. But this spring, we finally decided to bite the bullet and do the deed!

We hired someone to refinish our wooden floors.

But by now our floors were in horrible shape! I was embarrassed for even the workers to see them!

Ouch!

We moved every single stitch of our belongings in those rooms to the garage, my upstairs rooms, the man cave and even the kitchen. Walking through those rooms was almost impossible. Talk about cramped spaces!

Here's one example ... See the mattress against the window in the kitchen? See how it blocks out the natural light?

New trend? Nice touch! Classy! Someone call HGTV!

After most everything was moved, we decided at the last minute that the ceilings and walls needed to be painted and they needed to be painted BEFORE the floors were done. If we waited until after the floors were finished, there would be no doubt that we would have paint spatters all over our new floor!

B-u-u-u-u-t.....

Did I ever mention that I hate to paint? That weekend, however, we painted anything and everything that didn't move. Tony also made new baseboards that were taller and a bit more decorative to install after the floors were finished.

Here's Tony doing some vacuuming right after we painted. In some places on the floor we just let the paint drops stay. Why not? They were going to be sanded away ... why take the time to wipe up? We couldn't have done that AFTER the floors were done!

That's it Tony.
You keep plugging on ... I'll be right with you after I set my correct aperture, ISO and shutter speed and ... Take a little nap.

Oh honey by the way ... one tiny thing ... I think you missed a spot.

A couple of days later, the workers came in and made quick work of the sanding.

Here's the vacuum they used to get up all the dust ...

And here's it's cousin ... Although he did not work on this job. They said that he had a previous engagement. We were bummed.

We'd heard he was a real go-getter.

As the guys came to refinish the floors, we moved out. We found a place to stay while our floors were being worked on. We were told that it would take three to four days to finish the floors and another day for them to dry before we could move back

See this establishment? We stayed here for five long days.

On the bright side ... It was clean and a breakfast bar was included ...

But Auntie Em ... There's no place like home.

Anyhoo ... here's the finished product.

Please disregard the toes ...

It's been 6 weeks now since the floors were refinished. We love them.

We've taken our time putting things back as we think about decorating a bit differently ... a more simple direction. Less is more? We'll see how that works.

You know we've been doing big renovations around this house for the last nine years. And I believe that we have FINALLY finished with the inside of the house.

Maybe I'll go outside later and see where we need to start for our outdoor renovations!

Tony? Tony? Are you there?

My Dad

2011-06-16T21:46:00.011-05:00

When I was in grade school, my dad hardly ever drove me to school. I always had to walk. Mom didn't have a car of her own and besides all the kids back then walked to school anyway, except when the weather was really bad.

When I was in junior high, my dad drove me to school only after I broke my foot.

I remember one particular morning as he pulled up to the entrance, he asked the name of a certain young man. I told dad that the boy's name was Teddy Tidwell. (It actually was.) He was really a nice boy.

I had never seen my dad laugh so hard in all my life. After a few L-O-N-G embarrassing minutes, Dad gained his composure and drove away. Even through my embarrassment, at the time I remember thinking that Dad might start taking me to school more often since he realized all the fun he had been missing.

I thought wrong.

High school was no better, nor getting to my jobs in the summer.

Don't get me wrong, my dad was a terrific dad. Lots of support. Great conversation at the dinner table, quizzing me on math and history. Even after I helped with the dishes, he was ready for an hour or so of ping pong.

Some nights we'd just sit out on our front steps, just he and I, and watch the night sky. It was just the beginning of Sputnik and NASA and we'd look for moving stars across the galaxy.

I loved it.

After high school, when I began my training as an RN, my dorm was about thirty minutes away from home. None of my nursing friends ever stayed at the dorm on the weekends. Everyone lived close enough and they all went home. So did I.

That's when my dad began chauffeuring me around.

For almost three years dad picked me up on Friday afternoon and drove me back on Sunday nights.

I was young and stupid.

I don't ever really remember telling him how much I appreciated it.

Years passed, I got married and had a family of my own. I went back to college and got a teaching certificate. Fortunately we bought a house about a mile away from Mom and Dad, and we got to see a lot of them as the kids grew up.

In 1995 I went back to school for my master's degree in education. The college was the same I had attended for my bachelor's. It was about a twenty minute ride from my house.

I was working as a teacher. Both of our sons were still at home. Corey was attending a local college and Jeff was still in high school and was involved in many extracurricular activities that I could not miss.

Getting my master's was no easy chore. There was always some project due, some paper to be written, some chapters to read. It took me four years to get my master's. Because my schedule was so hectic, I only took one class a semester for the first three years and a class or two durning the summers.

My goal was to finish in my fourth year. To do so meant that I had to take two classes in the fall and two in the winter. Doesn't seem like much, but one of the classes in the winter involved the writing of my thesis. Lots of work was in store for me that last semester.

As luck would have it, fate dealt me a tricky hand.

In January, the very first week of the winter semester, I fell and broke the ball in my ball and socket shoulder joint, rendering me incapable of doing my hair, much less driving.

I had to miss my first week of my last sememster.

I was frustrated and scared. Tony was working long hours at work and was not able to take me to my classes at 4:00. Our boys were also busy with their college responsibilities while holding down paying jobs. How would I get to classes? How could I graduate in May?

That's when Dad stepped up.

I never asked him for help. He just came to me a few days after my accident and told me that he had a little proposition.

If I didn't mind, he said, Tony could pick me up at the end of the evening, but he would like to drive me to school so that I could complete my masters that semester. He said that he was afraid I'd get discouraged and not finish.

He was 73 years old at the time.

He was as good as his word. He not only took me to classes, but that first week when I went back, he went to the book store with me to carry the heavy textbooks that I was required to buy.

I remember that night in the campus bookstore. I was in a ball cap because my hair was atrocious and I remember feeling like a little girl whose daddy was helping her get ready for school. At one point, however, I also remember thinking just how lucky I was to have him.

After a very long six weeks, I finally got the OK from my doctor to drive. Even though I was happy for my independence, I think Dad kind of missed taking his 48 year old daughter to school.

But because of my dad, I not only graduated but graduated on time!

That graduation day was honestly one of the happiest days of my life.

That's me and my dad the day I graduated with my master's, 12 years ago.

That time I did remember to thank him for all he had done for me.

I'm so glad I did because Dad passed away four years later.

Now I sometimes find myself sitting out on my own front steps. As I look up at the night sky, it's not the star image of a Sputnik or an Apollo that I look for ...

But that of my dad.

I love you, Dad.

Happy Father's Day.

Heaven

2011-06-11T03:13:00.007-05:00

Some people may never see it,

But there it is right in our backyard ...

Heaven.

Adorable

2011-04-17T09:41:00.004-05:00

Don't know how this mom, Adele Enerson, does it, but these are precious photos ...

Pomplamoose

2011-02-27T18:17:00.003-06:00

I saw an article in the St. Louis RiverFront Times recently and it peaked my interest ...
Here is an excerpt ...

Pomplamoose doesn't release music on CD or any other physical media. The group has no deal with a record label. It also doesn't tour -- in three years, it has played only three live shows, all of them in San Francisco. The band has no publicist or traditional manager; the only outside professionals it uses are a lawyer and an accountant. Conte and Dawn handle every other aspect of Pomplamoose themselves: arranging songs, recording and mixing tracks, editing video, posting new songs online and even marketing to new fans. And they retain a sense of humor through most of it.

Pomplamoose?

They say it means "grapefruit" in French, but I think it must mean "Talented". (Note the capital "T"!)

You probably know about them already. I am sooooooo out of the loop in the music scene.

Pomplamoose? Unusual name for a duo who is itself so unusual ... Yet so simple. Yet so complicated. Yet so familiar. Yet so ... out there.

I like out there.

As a result, I've been kind of Pomplamoose-addicted the last few days. Many of their songs are very clever.

It's really fun to watch talented people. They make their job look so easy.

Pomplamoose (I love saying that word!) surely got the attention of the grandkids last night during a sleepover with this ...

And my attention with this ...

Pomplamoose?

Must mean "Fun".

Ventilating and Valentines

2011-02-13T18:34:00.001-06:00

After our historical winter this past year, it is so nice to be able to open up the windows and air out the house!

What a great difference. Fresh air. Birds singing. Dogs barking. Could spring really be just a month away?

It is a hot 64 degrees outside and much of the snow is melting ...

almost as fast as the witch did in the Wizard of Oz!

Whooo-eee!

We also celebrated Valentine's Day with the family this weekend as well as had a lovely night out on the town with my sister and brother and their better-halves.

No pics unfortunately of the lovely rustic breweries we visited. But being a girl who can't stand beer, I had a most lovely time! The still icy sidewalks and alleyways of St. Louis did give us a bit of adventure which made the evening even more fun! (Vail Place will be forever embedded in my memory banks as a slip and slli..ii..ddde tiny thoroughfare!)

We also got to see our favorite Valentines this weekend and ... SURPRISE ...

We do have pics of them!!

After about 15 takes, we did get this of the family!

Jack and Bella are in a mutual admiration society. They touch each other's faces and mimic the same sounds that the other makes. So precious!

Here's Gran and Gramps with the Grandkids. You may not be able to tell, but Gran and Gramps were the happiest ones in the pic!

Finally, here's my most favorite Valentine of all!

My honey.

Wishing you the love of family and friends on this Valentine's Day ... and oh yeah ...

a bit of warmer weather!

Things You Might Not Know About Me ... Number 1

2011-01-01T22:18:00.005-06:00

I just read Susan's blog, Bear Swamp Reflections. She wrote about ten things that most people didn't know about her.

Now while Susan's blog was very interesting, mine will be quite the opposite. But for posterity's sake ... I'll continue on.

I'm one of the many whose weight fluctuates like ... well like the weather in St. Louis. Up and down. Down and up.

About 22 years ago, when I first started teaching, I got a job at a parochial school. The money wasn't great, but it was the school our boys attended and the faculty was terrific.

One day out of the blue, someone called me and ask if I would like to be a plus size model for the then Famous-Barr stores in St. Louis. (Later, Famous became Macy's.)

My first thought was that there would be no way on God's green earth that I would EVER be a plus size model!

Then I was told how much I would make.

Ok ...

So I swallowed my pride.

I can be bought for a price.

For five years I was one of Famous's regular plus size models. I traveled all over Missouri and Illinois. Runway modeling (work it girl!) was what I did most and it was a BLAST! I learned more about myself than I ever had before.

One of the highlights every year was a Christmas benefit show featuring not only fashions, but celebrities and professional dance groups. There were usually about thousand people in the audience. The runway was humongous. What an amazing experience!

Just as all good things, however, my modeling days had to come to an end. I changed jobs and started back to grad school. There was just not enough time for modeling, too.

I'll always treasure those wonderful days of a bit of fame and fortune!

Next time ... Things You May Not Know About Me #2!

Glimpses of the Christmas Season 2010

2010-12-26T21:13:00.001-06:00

What a fun-filled month this December has been ...

There was Christmas bingo-ing at the preschool ...

Christmas ballerinas at the cottage...

Christmas party hats

Visiting Santa ...

Dressing to the nines and more visiting with Santa ...

A bit of quiet reflection ...

Gingerbread house decorating ...

Concentrating ...

And sneaking bit of a kiss ...

Gran is one very lucky girl.

Merry Christmas!

2010-12-24T19:07:00.002-06:00

Sitting here right next to a wide open window enjoying the beauty of our Christmas snow, maybe 5 inches or so on our porch banisters, and giving thanks for all of our blessings.

From our house to yours, have a wonderful Christmas!

Our Christmas Elves

2010-12-13T17:56:00.003-06:00

The elves had been working so hard, Santa decided to have a party.

I think they all had a good time ...

Photo by C-Dub

Silent Monks

2010-12-06T22:09:00.000-06:00

If Only I Had Known Julia

2010-11-18T19:21:00.000-06:00

When we were first married, thirty-eight years ago, I really wanted to impress Tony's good friend and his wife.

We had never entertained as a couple and I was so excited to show off my way around the kitchen. I had made some appetizers and wanted to wow our guests with a most delicious liquid refreshment ... Brandy Alexanders.

Ice cream was a main ingredient in the Alexanders and I wanted to use my brand-spanking-new, never-used beautiful fancy blender that we had received as a wedding gift.

I seated our guests in our townhouse apartment kitchen as I talked up this wonderfully yummy ice cream concoction.

They watched as I added the ingredients with great dramatic flare, building the anticipation of a most heavenly libation.

The grand finale came when all the ingredients were incorporated to perfection.

As I lifted the container with a hearty "Ta-Da!" ...

The bottom fell off of the container and the creamy gooey sticky Brandy Alexander splashed EVERYWHERE ... including all over me.

I am ashamed to say that I let my emotions come over me ... or maybe it was big time PMS. (Although at the time, PMS was only a theory in the heads of crazy acting women all over the world!)

I ran upstairs crying uncontrollably and ... could ... (Sob) ... not ... (Sob) .... stop! I was so embarrassed, even at the gentle urging of my new husband, I refused to come back down to be with our guests.

I still cringe at my most ungracious behavior. Not one of my best moments.

Fortunately Tony's friends were wonderful and most forgiving. We became great friends and continued to see each other for many years.

At the time, had I known about the lovely Julia Child and her wonderful attitude in the kitchen no matter what, I might have just laughed off the Brandy Alexander incident and chalked it up to experience.

Here is Julia at her best when things don't go so well ...

Watch the full episode. See more Julia Child.

Good Read

2010-11-13T00:01:00.004-06:00

Among the books I've been reading lately, I stumbled across a little book that has nestled its way into my soul.

I can't let go of it ...

I'm on my second read.

Don't let the title throw you ...

If you'd like an entertaining, charming read with a masterful look into our not-too-distant past, I highly recommend this book.

A Day For Remembering (Revisited)

2010-11-10T19:50:00.007-06:00

On March 17, 1945, ten days after its strategic capture by the Americans, the Bridge at Remagen collapsed after being repeatedly bombed by Germans soldiers, killing twenty-eight U.S. soldiers.

One of those soldiers was my uncle, Vincent.

He was one of three sons and two daughters who were born to Midwestern Polish immigrants.

Mom found this page from some veteran's publication in my dad's things after he passed away. It's amazing to me ... Uncle Vincent was still being remembered fifty-six years later.

This was a note that was found along with a copy of the publication above. With those simple words, "nasty scene" nothing more needed to be said.

There's my Uncle Vince on the right. My dad's the one on the left.

Two brothers out on the town. All of life spread out before them.

At one point in time, all three brothers were in the armed services during World War II. Since my dad was the youngest, he joined the service last. And because his two older brothers were already in combat overseas, Dad was assigned to a desk job in Texas. Like in the film, Saving Private Ryan, Dad was being kept from harm's way while his brothers fought on the front lines.

I think Dad always felt a little guilty for not being able to see combat himself.

I never knew my Uncle Vince. He died six years before I was born. I wish I had known him. If he was anything like my dad, he would have been an awesome uncle. I have an older cousin who is his namesake. He bears an uncanny resemblance to our uncle.

Today I remember him, my dad, my father-in-law and all of our brave men and women who have served our country throughout the years.

Thank you for your sacrifices.

Sweet Niece

2010-11-06T11:46:00.002-05:00

Homecoming for our niece!

She's as sweet and smart as she is beautiful!

Story Time

2010-10-10T01:33:00.002-05:00

Once not long ago on the outskirts of a small town there lived an inquisitive young girl who always enjoyed an adventure. Although not what people would call pretty, the girl had a way about her that made people like her as soon as they met her. She had a kind heart and it was said often by her mother that the girl never met a stranger.

All of her life, the young girl had always been told never to go walking down old Cemetery Road. That forbidden pathway ran right down the side of her father's property, so all of her life it was very hard for the girl to ignore such a temptation. But being the obedient daughter she was, she never betrayed her parent's trust.

That is until one crisp late October evening.

That particular evening, while her father and mother where out, the girl had a strange desire to see what the cemetery was all about.

As she walked along down the road she wondered about the cemetery. How long had it been there? Why wasn't it used any longer? Who was buried there? She had heard that there was an old church on the cemetery grounds. Would it still be there?

And why did it suddenly seem to be colder to her?

As the girl came to a crest on the road, there it was.

The forbidden cemetery.

At first the girl hesitated. She was filled with a sense of dread yet at the same time she felt strangely at home.

She began walking deeper into the cemetery as if being pulled by an invisible force.

She passed thick concrete markers so old the names were erased by time.

Even though the sun began to set, the cemetery began to take on an eery, inconsistent light. Shadows seems to loom in the most unexpected places.

On the girl went.

Those few of the more stately markers which still held onto their owners' names seemed to be illuminating those names as if the graves were calling out to the girl. It was these very markers, however, that as she would pass, seemed almost as friends.

Long lost friends.

Suddenly ...

(Please feel free to add YOUR ending to the story. These last two pictures may help. Look closely!
Happy Halloween!)

Happy Cyber Shower, Dawn!

2010-09-17T06:00:00.016-05:00

Here's my beautiful friend, Dawn ...

She has a lovely blog called Spontaneous Clapping.

Now something special is happening today for my friend ...

You see,

Dawn is just a little pregnant ...

And ...

Surprise!

Today her friends are throwing her a baby shower via the web ...

How cool is that?

Now to look at us ... Even though we have different cultural backgrounds and I'm old enough to be Dawn's mom ... um ... and then some and I am about a foot taller than she and I live smack-dab in the Midwest while she lives on the West Coast ... Plus we've never met face-to -face ...

We are definitely sisters from another mister!

So I couldn't let this special day go by without a shout out to her.

I want you, dear girl, to know just how happy I am for you and B now that Peanut is almost here.
May you have happiness, health and prosperity as you grow old watching your family grow.

Oh ... here's my gift ... as soon as I saw the owls, I knew I had to get it!

It's a photo album for Peanut ... Hope you like it!

Oh ... if anybody wants to sit in on the shower ... You are more than welcome ...

Just click on the link below ...

Thanks to Jana and Sasha for throwing such a fun party!!

Looking For A Little Fun?

2010-07-22T20:37:00.002-05:00

Something fun to do on the web, if you have the time ...
(To some of my perverse friends ... Mind out of the gutter! I know who you are!)

You type, she speaks ... even in several languages ... click here!

Thanks Gloria Marie ... Quite entertaining!

What I Did On My Summer Vacation, Instead of Blogging

2010-07-20T06:38:00.002-05:00

If you haven't noticed ... I've been gone a while ... about a month or so.

Well ... I guess the reason is that I've been catching up on all the things around the house that went undone for the last year and a half while I was writing and editing posts and taking and editing pics.

I've also ...
Watched more reality TV than I care to admit,
Acquired more friends on FaceBook,
Went to the James Taylor/Carole King concert and ...
Spent the weekend in St. Louis,
Played a rousing game of "Catch Phrase",
Played a "Washers" tournament with Tony in the backyard,
Went to a fishing fair,
Discovered several new restaurants,
Recovered/reupholstered our dining room chairs,
Gardened,
Dug out a bazillion acorns turned into mini oak trees. (THE bane of my existence this summer.)
Cleaned
   the basement,
   the garage,
   closets,
   drawers
   pantries
   cabinets,
   under beds

and ...

Traveled all over St. Louis looking for
   a new dishwasher,
   front door,
   fireplace door,
   new ceiling fan,

Been to lunch/dinner with several dear friends/family members,
Had/Attended several parties,
Babysat,
Celebrated numerous birthdays and other happy occasions,
Become a regular fan of a fantabulous radio program,

Had my yearly mammogram
As well as ... my oil changed.

Celebrated a group 59th birthday celebration with my high school class of '69.

Made enough meatballs and spaghetti sauce, sticky buns and cinnamon rolls to feed a small neighborhood,

Caught up with an old student who is now an up and coming jazz guitarist,

AND

I've ... even (Gasp!) ... read ... a ... book! (What's THAT about?)

While doing these many things, blogging took a backseat ... or maybe even went farther than that ... shall we say it went as far back as the trunk!

Then in the meantime whilst I was doing all these other things, my blog disappeared into the netherworld. It was gone. Vanished.

It was as if as if the cosmos was saying one of two things ...

You're better off not doing the blog ... it's a real time suck.

or

You need to change things up, cause you can't do the blog the way you were doing and live life, too.

Besides ... my more than generous backside was becoming ... um ... more generous.

So, in a nutshell, in a very definite way, I remain unsure what I will do ...

I started this blog just to document bits and pieces of my life. So I think to stop altogether would be a mistake.

Instead, I'll probably continue to blog, but not as much ... And perhaps not have a comments section ... or if I do ... perhaps not post comments myself?

Not sure on that yet.

School starts soon and while I had twenty-four hours in a day during the summer, I'll still only have twenty-four hours in the day the rest of the year, but eight will be at work.

I'll have to just take it one day at a time ...

While I'm here however ... I might as well post some pics from my summer vacation ...

It's been a great summer!

Dad

2010-06-20T13:00:00.000-05:00

Thinking of my dad and missing him on this combination of his 84th birthday and Father's Day.

Visitors

2010-06-12T00:01:00.003-05:00

Looky at what we found at the base of our old oak tree the other day... It magically appeared out of nowhere ...

Rumor has it that there is a family of elves there behind that door. See how the little insects are standing watch? They must be under some kind of spell, cause they haven't moved one muscle since the elves arrived.

Gran says that the elves who live there won't come out if Brayden, Ella or Jack stand too close ...

or ... touch the door.

The other day grandkids of neighbors were so nice. They left notes and pictures for the elves ... and doggone it, those notes just disappeared when those kids left. Guess those elves liked what those children left for them..

Gramps says that maybe the elves rode into the neighborhood on the backs of the pair of owls who've already found a home here. We don't really care how they got here. We're just happy they came to stay for a while.

Maybe with all that's goin' on in the world these days a little magic will start finding it's way into peoples' homes all over the earth.

You'all found any little magical critters at your place lately??

Get Ready For Cute ...

2010-06-08T22:20:00.000-05:00

Corey took this pic of Bella a couple of weeks ago in their backyard ...

Is she not adorable?

Branson Road Trip

2010-06-05T14:48:00.004-05:00

We recently returned from a road trip to Branson, Missouri.

Some people call Branson a tourist trap. I guess it depends on your point of view.

Thirty-eight years ago, Tony and I went there for our honeymoon. At that time, the only real tourist draw was the amusement park, Silver Dollar City.

When the boys were smaller we went again once or twice, but haven't been back since.

We were anxious to see how things had changed.

One main thing that had changed was the time it took to get to Branson. Thanks to the development of the major highways, our time on the road was cut by at least a third ...

We still saw some great sights.

On the way we stopped at this restaurant. It is home of the "throwed rolls". (Did I take the camera inside? Ha!)

The half hour wait was well worth our time.

The food was terrific as well as plentiful and yes, if you wanted a hot roll, they'd throw one to you. I made a daring catch and even though the roll was smooshed a bit by my enthusiastic catch, it was still hot and yummy!

When we got to Branson itself, we found it had made an amazing transformation. Silver Dollar City is now in a list of hundreds of things to do.

If you haven't heard of Branson, it is one big hub of entertainment ... Tons of shows, an amusement park or two, as well as eateries, hotels, malls and miniature golf courses.

We are not so much into shows, so we really only saw two attractions ...

The Titanic exhibition, which by the way was excellent even though no cameras were allowed inside. (This is a pic of the building itself ... a scaled down model of half of the ship. See the parking lot lights?) So many authentic artifacts. We even were given the name of one of the passengers and a little history about that person. At the end we found out if our passenger was a survivor. Both of ours were.

We also saw the Dolly Parton Dixie Stampede. (Again, no pictures were allowed. Even your cell phone had to be turned off.)

The Dixie Stampede was a dinner theatre of sorts with everyone sitting at long tables facing a sand covered arena. The crowd was divided into two sections, the North and the South. By the end of the night we would find out who really won the Civil War.

We were the North.

As we watched fancy horseback riding and dancing and rodeo clowns, we were served an excellent dinner all eaten with our fingers and served to us by a young man in a Union uniform.

At the end of the evening, with terrific riding from some of the performers as well as stunts performed by some of the guests, the North was victorious.

It sounds hokey, but it was so much fun. A young girl probably around twenty years old with her friends was on the one side of me, while an older gentleman and his wife from California were on the other side of Tony. We all had a great time cheering the North on.

Even though we had enjoyed ourselves in downtown Branson, I think the things we'll remember the most were also the things that we remember from our honeymoon ...

The scenery from our balcony ...

Fog on the lake in the morning ...

The Paddleboat that made its leisurely evening run every night ...

Sunsets ...

And the Ozark Mountains themselves.

From our point of view, some things never change.

Happy 3rd Birthday, Ella!

2010-05-16T15:25:00.004-05:00

We celebrated Ella's 3rd birthday yesterday.

The theme was Pink and Princesses.

I was thrilled.

After many years of Matchbox Cars, Star Wars miniatures and dump trucks, which BTW, I'd never trade for anything ... Pink and Princesses was a delightful change.

The day started off wet and chilly, so the plans for the outside party that was in a lovely park at a lakeside gazebo were canned. Even though our cottage is small, we can sit lots of people, so we were honored to have Ella's third birthday party here.

Among the many guests was Ella's Great-Grandma, or "GG" to Ella. You'd never ever meet a sweeter lady!

One of Ella's presents was a Melissa and Doug miniature dollhouse ... Pink, of course!

Some of Ella's cousins and Jack helped her opened her presents.

Sweet Brayden decided to help when it was time to blow out the candles ... And he did ...

We sang a rousing rendition of "Happy Birthday" as Ella waited patiently to blow out the candles.

But Brayden was so quick in wanting to help, that before Ella could make a wish, the candles were blown out ... twice!

But the third round of "Happy Birthday"proved to be the charm.

Ella blew out her candles and enjoyed every minute of her birthday party.

Gran did too!

Happy Mother's Day To Our "Daughters"!

2010-05-08T09:17:00.002-05:00

Happy Mother's Day to Steph and Ashley!

Thank you for being such wonderful mothers

to our precious grandchildren,

loving wives to our sons,

and terrific "daughters" to us!

We are blessed by you!

Goodbye Gabby

2010-04-28T19:40:00.005-05:00

I sit here at a loss for words ...

We had to put our dog, Gabby, to sleep on Saturday, the second anniversary of Mom's passing. It's interesting to me that Gabby passed away on this anniversary day.

Mom hung onto life, mostly unconscious, for several weeks. During those weeks, someone was always in the house with me ... Tony, my sister, brothers, night nurse, hospice nurse, aides. There were several times when we hurriedly called the family together, thinking the end was near.

One particular time Mom was having a very restless night ... one of many. The nurse and I were having trouble trying to contain my 90 pound mother to her bed. After we finally got her into a more restful sleep, I left Mom in the care of the nurse and went in to lay down on the couch. Just as I was laying down, a weird rumble started to shake the house. Windows began rattling and I realized we were having an earthquake.

I ran into our bedroom and the nurse and I just stared at each other and then at Mom. I honestly felt a bit spooked. Never had I experienced an earthquake of such magnitude (It was so strong, the gym were my daughter-in-law worked was rendered useless.) I really expected to walk in and find my mom had passed away.

After the shaking stopped, however, Mom woke up and asked just as normal as you please what had happened. I told her that the shaking was an earthquake and everything was OK ... then, just that quickly mom went back into unconsciousness.

Days passed. A week ...

Gabby wandered in and out of the room but never really stayed for long.

We all had gotten into a routine ... Doing our best to make a difficult situation more ... normal.

One morning, Tony had left for work. The night nurse left as well. Even though my sis had set up camp at our house, she decided to stay the night at her home the night before. My brothers usually came to the house around 8:30 or so to spend the day.

My routine was to get up before the nurse left, get myself together, clean the bathroom, and straighten up a bit. Then I would relieve the nurse. After she left I would hold Mom's hand and say the rosary.

One morning Gabby would not leave my side. When I went into the bedroom, Gabby went in with me and sat at my feet staring at me the whole time while I said the rosary ... Something she never did before.

And as I said the rosary, I thought there was a slight difference in Mom's breathing.

Shortly after I finished, Mom passed ... With just me and Gabby standing at her side.

After that, Gabby would not sleep in the bedroom, unless I was with her.

The last several months, Gabby has not been well. We knew on Easter that the end was coming.

This past Friday night I came home from work and found Gabby under our bed, in the exact same space ... just lower on the floor ... where Mom passed away. Gabby would not come out for a long time.

By Saturday morning we knew it was time for Gabby to be out of her misery.

I picture Gabby sitting quietly with Mom and Dad in a little garden, enjoying the flowers and watching the birds and squirrels.

Thank you, Gabby-Girl, for being such a great companion. We miss you.

Renovations

2010-04-28T00:01:00.085-05:00

I seem to be on a neighborhood wildlife theme this week ...
Here's a post about another feathered friend.

The birds in our yard have really been busy,

refreshing their nests and making way for new members of their families.

Right off of our deck, one morning, we saw the strangest sight.

Sticking out from a birdhouse in our redbud tree was a long piece of maiden fern grass.

Now, by long ...

I mean it was at least two feet long hanging out of the tiny opening of the small birdhouse.

It was fun to watch the long stem of grass move up and down by a bird who was hidden inside,

trying to spruce up the place.

After a while, I guess the bird decided to take a break ...

Home renovations can be tough ...

Trying to get out to take a break can be even tougher!

It's a good idea take time to step back and reassess ...

Or maybe just drop the whole thing and fly the coop!

But like any good homeowner, this little bird was determined to finish the job,

so back inside he went.

When he was finished, I bet the place looked fabulous!

It's A Hoot

2010-04-24T00:01:00.007-05:00

About a bazillion years ago, my great-uncle, Uncle Eddie, had a remote, primitive cabin in a densely wooded area down by the Meramac River in Missouri.

No running water, outhouse in the clearing, the cabin had two rooms, as I recall ... the living room/kitchen area and a bedroom. Attached to the cabin was a big screened in porch looking over a steep, wooded hill to the swift Meramac River.

Lots of fishing and talking and eating and sleeping and dreaming went on in that cabin. It was fairly big, sleeping 12 people comfortably on couches, cots and beds.

There was a very steep path that led down to the river. Even though the Meramac itself was very swift and much too dangerous in which to swim, there was a little alcove off to the side where we could swim safely and stay cool.

Needless to say, I loved the place.

Not wanting to disturb the wildlife, as a form of communication between those in the cabin and those at the river and everyone in between a special call was used. The call was that of an owl ... "Who who who who OWWWW", the call would go.

It was a great way to let others know you were there close by.

We used that special call for several things ... Instead of yelling, "Come and get it!" when lunch was ready, my great-aunt Alice would call, "Who who who who OWWWW". Those down at the river would echo back the same owl call, and then head up the hill to eat. If you weren't sure who or what was outside the cabin, you'd call you the owl call hopefully a friend would answer back in the same manner.

As years passed, and Uncle Eddie's cabin was but a memory, the owl call stayed alive and became a family classic. My siblings and I grew up hooting our way through grade school, high school and our own children.

The Hoot became a sort of trademark in our family. (Yeah .. Ok, we're a little weird like that!)

The month after Dad passed away in 2003, I couldn't sleep and I wound up in our extra bedroom upstairs. The house was a bit stuffy and I opened the window to let in some fresh air. I got into bed and then I heard ... THE HOOT.

We had lived in our house for almost 25 years at the time and had I had never heard THE HOOT before.

I called my brother the next day. He lives a few blocks away from us and has pulled a few practical jokes over the years. I just knew that it was Big D who was doing the HOOTING!

But Big D denied it ... and as crazy as my brother is, after pondering a while, I didn't think that Big D would REALLY get up in the middle of the night and hoot outside our house!

The more I thought about it, the more I had the feeling that it was Dad's way of letting me know he was OK and still there watching over us.

Tony and I both heard the owl hoot a few more times over the next five years, but not on a regular basis.

Then, in 2008, Mom passed away ... here in our house ... in our bedroom ... after a difficult struggle with cancer.

A few weeks later, Tony and I were out in the front yard doing some work and we heard owl hoots again, this time so very close to where we were standing. We could hear two owls calling back and forth in the evening sky. Even though we couldn't see them, we were both surprised and a bit freaked out by their presence.

Nine months after Mom passed, my sis who lives about forty-five minutes away, across two rivers, and one state line had a dream about our dad. As she awoke from the dream, her husband told her that he had just heard an owl hoot.

They had never before heard one.

For the past two years, the owls have become part of our neighborhood. Neighbors watch them from the yards or patios and are fascinated by them.

I know this sounds CRAZY, but I kind of think that in some weird way it's Mom and Dad saying, "Hey we're still watching over you. We're just letting you know we're still here."

Anyway ... that's my take on it.

The other night Tony got some pics of "our" owls. I thought you might like to see them ...

It's been two years ago today that Mom passed.

I miss you, Mom and Dad, but deep down inside I know that somehow you are still close by giving your quiet support and love ... and watching over all of us.

Who who who who OWWWW.

Happy Birthday, Jeffer!

2010-04-21T00:01:00.003-05:00

See this guy?

He is our younger son. We have always been so very proud of him. He was a kind, thoughtful boy who has grown up to be a wonderful husband and father of two.

Jeff has always had an interest in helping people, so it's not a surprise that he's a middle school school psychologist. He loves what he does. Did I say how proud we are of him?

Happy birthday, J. O.! No matter what your age, you'll always be that little boy to me ...

Only with a beard
... and glasses
... and a wife
... and children!

Have a great day, Jeffer!
We love you very much!

Rain Rap

2010-04-20T00:01:00.001-05:00

Rain is essential to our life here on Earth, even though it seems as if we get more than our share of it at times ...
Here is a rap about rain (Me posting a rap?) I thought you might enjoy.

Happy Earth Day a couple of days early!!

Eights

2010-04-16T00:01:00.016-05:00

Ohhhhh yeah ...

Look what my sis made for our Easter get-together ...
that didn't happen.

Luckily she did bring some to Brayden's birthday party a week later ...

Dad pronounced them "Kruz-CHEEK-ez", otherwise known as "Eights" in our family.

Eights are a Polish cookie made from a soft dough of flour and butter and eggs and fried in ... um ... lard.

What? You didn't get that?

Ah ... OK ... I'll say it ... I'm not afraid ... LARD ... Eights are fried in LARD .... There ... I said it!

Did anybody faint?

We justify the eating of the eights because we only have them once a year at Easter. Once a year isn't too bad if you can keep from eating more than 25 ...

That's how our minds work anyway.

My sister has become the Eight making expert!!

They are quite labor intensive, but she manages to make them so light and flavorful with a definite crunch. They go down sooooooo easy. On the evening of Brayden's birthday party, Diddley brought two heaping plates of Eights. But by the end of the party, there was nary a single one left.

Easter is one of my favorite holidays and Eights are certainly a big part of the reason!

Happy 3rd Birthday, Brayden!

2010-04-13T00:01:00.000-05:00

Happy 3rd Birthday, Brayden!

Gran and Gramps love you and wish you a wonderful day!

Sweet Sign

2010-04-10T08:18:00.001-05:00

Look at what I got from my sis and her hubby for my birthday last month ...

How sweet is that? She had it made especially for me!

See, I found the perfect spot for it, Diddley ... On the stairway going to my quiet room!

Thank you!

You are the SWEETEST sis!!!

Garden Day

2010-04-05T09:56:00.006-05:00

Today I was going to write about our lovely Easter with the family and cute little matching outfits of our grandkids and the yummy food and an Easter egg hunt out in the garden.

I said I was going to write about Easter.

However, we had to cancel Easter. Tony came down with the flu on Thursday and spent Easter on the couch feeling yucky. I spent the day taking care of him and hemming pants. New tradition? NOT!!!!!!!!

Things don't always go as planned, do they?

So instead, I'll post a bit about our trip to St. Louis to the Missouri Botanical Gardens that we took earlier last week with Brayden and Ella.

The weather was cool when we started out in jackets ... Later it got to almost 80 degrees!

Mr. Cool had on his shades!

This is the Climatron, a geodesic dome that encloses a small rain forest. We called it the "Jungle"!

The Jungle was filled with lush tropical plants and several waterfalls.

Back outside in the garden, there were pansies to look at ...

A children's garden with a maze to maneuver ...

A stream to gander at ...

Fish to feed ...

And a lot of walking ...

And walking ...

And walking.

Occasionally we took time out just to sit and contemplate.

Those kids were as good as gold all day long!

It was a very memorable day for Gramps and Gran with these two special grandkids!

Almost makes up for not being with them and the rest of the family for Easter .... uh ... ALMOST!