Finally we meet!

Back in 2007 I was talking about my friend Ali who lives in Nova Scotia. Well we finally
got the chance to hug in person when she came to Alabama to visit me. Dunno how she got away with it but in her backpack was an 8 pack of Canadian beer, and one extra large suitcase
filled with fresh lobster, haddock, and scallops. Man did we eat good that week. Stessy came with her and both families meshed so well. Of course there was lots of shopping, lots of eating
and lots of company. My son Chris was absolutely fascinated with Ali and Stessy and between him and his fascination there was sooo much laughter. When I had to take her back to the airport, I think I cried halfway home.
I made a promise that I would go there in the spring so in January reckon I will go apply for a passport. Hope I dont have Teresa's experience with flying, lol. Anyway Ali, you can count on it barring illness I will be there.

Been away long time!

There have been so many changes in life these past two years and moves that time flew by with no postings. Gonna try to get back in the groove again. Hope all of you had a Merry Christmas,
not stranded by snow or bad weather

Visiting the "Low Country"

I ventured out on my first trip since arriving back in Georgia, after loss of my hubby. Each day does seem to get a little better and of course, Mick and Mack were my biggest reasons for getting up each morning. The little critters are absolutely a joy to be around. But then we have our moments and feeling the need to get away, I took off for South Carolina's low country, mainly Hilton Head, to visit with my sis and my brother who also came from Kansas. First time I ever remember the 3 of us being together without the folks. They were missed but we enjoyed re bonding after so many years of raising families and being without kids was really great. My first night there I checked into my hotel and left the next morning due the seeing "the bugs" in my room. And I don't mean flies, roaches or whatever but THE BUG! (the one that begins with "S") So if you leave a comment, please dont type that word where I can see it, lol. My sis and her hubby and I relaxed on their deck, ate supper outside and talked, it seems, like forever. That area is so damn dark at nite, reckon they dont believe in night lighting, that my sis turned out to be my chauffeur every day. (specially since I dont have a sense of direction) The next morning as I was checking into the Days Inn, my sis came to get me and my brother and his wife also showed up. We headed to their place, and planned the days menu, and everyone freaked out of the ball games. My sis screaming for Bama and my brother screaming for Kansas State. Bama won but Kansas didnt. Tough day at the ball game for my brother. Bobi had made a huge pot of spaghetti sauce so we had "sketti", garlic bread and key lime pie. Oh yum. We all sat on the deck til long after dark and enjoyed not being pestered by bugs. Guess the ocean breeze keeps them away. Rehashing the ole growing up tales was lots of fun for all 3 of us. Jim and Ruth didnt feel left out cuz they pitched in with their old stories too. I was planning on coming home on Sunday, but we were having such a good time I decided to stay til Monday. Sunday am my brother Pat cooked us a sumptuous breakfast of fried taters, bacon, eggs, and biscuits. OMG he is such a good cook and we all pigged out. Pat and Jim went to play golf only getting back right before dark but I think its because the cart girl kept them "entertained" with the cart wares. In case you all dont know what that is, its called "booze" lol. Bobi, Ruth and I went shopping which isnt my favorite thing in the world to do, but wanted to get something for the boys. Ruth enjoyed seeing all the shops as I dont know if she had been to Hilton Head before. That blew the rest of the afternoon, so we headed back to the house. When the guys got back, we grilled steaks, had a few toddies and stayed much longer than we should have. I believe the trip was good for us 3 kids, for once getting together without sadness being the cause. They were both there for me in July when I needed them, and this time we came together just cuz we could. The trip home wasnt bad at all and my new Saturn Vue really gets good gas mileage. You can bet we won't wait for a long time til we do this again.

Grandparents and Grandchildren...

She was in the bathroom, putting on her makeup, under the watchful eyes of her young granddaughter as she'd done many times before. After she applied her lipstick and started to leave, the little one said, "But Gramma, you forgot to kiss the toilet paper good-bye!"

My young grandson called the other day to wish me Happy Birthday. He asked me how old I was, and I told him, "62." He was quiet for a moment, and then he asked, "Did you start at 1?"

After putting her grandchildren to bed, a grandmother changed into old slacks and a droopy blouse and proceeded to wash her hair. As she heard the children getting more and more rambunctious, her patience grew thin. Finally, she threw a towel around her head and stormed into their room, putting them back to bed with stern warnings. As sh e left the room, she heard the three-year-old say with a trembling voice, "Who was THAT?"

A grandmother was telling her little granddaughter what her own childhood was like: "We used to skate outside on a pond. I had a swing made from a tire; it hung from a tree in our front yard. We rode our pony. We picked wild raspberries in the woods." The little girl was wide-eyed, taking this all in. At last she said, "I sure wish I'd gotten to know you sooner!"

My grandson was visiting one day when he asked, "Grandma, do you know how you and God are alike?" I mentally polished my halo while I asked, "No, how are we alike?" "You're both old," he replied.

A little girl was diligently pounding away on her grandfather's word processor. She told him she was writing a story. "What's it about?" he asked. "I don't know," she replied. "I can't read."

I didn't know if my granddaughter had learned her colors yet, so I decided to test her. I would point out something and ask what color it was. She would tell me and was always correct. It was fun for me, so I continued. At last she headed for the door, saying sagely, "Grandma, I think you should try to figure out some of these yourself!"

When my grandson Billy and I entered our vacation cabin, we kept the lights off until we were inside to keep from attracting pesky insects. Still, a few fireflies followed us in. Noticing them be fore I did, Billy whispered, "It's no use, Grandpa. The mosquitoes are coming after us with flashlights."

When my grandson asked me how old I was, I teasingly replied, "I'm not sure." "Look in your underwear, Grandpa," he advised. "mine says I'm four to six."

A second grader came home from school and said to her grandmother, "Grandma, guess what? We learned how to make babies today." Th e grandmother, more than a little surprised, tried to keep her cool. "That's interesting," she said, "how do you make babies?" "It's simple," replied the girl. "You just change 'y' to 'i' and add 'es'."

Children's Logic: "Give me a sentence about a public servant," said a teacher. The small boy wrote: "The fireman came down the ladder pregnant." The teacher took the lad aside to correct him. "Don't you know what pregnant means?" she asked. "Sure," said the young boy confidently. "It means carrying a child."

A nursery school teacher was delivering a station wagon full of kids home one day when a fire truck zoomed past. Sitting in the front seat of the truck was a Dalmatian dog. The children started discussing the dog's duties. "They use him to keep crowds back," said one child."No," said another, "he's just for good luck."A third child brought the argument to a close. "They use the dogs,"she said firmly, "to find the fire hydrants...

I received all these in an email.....wonder if I will get lucky enough one day to say my grandchild said.........

Tykes in motion!

One set of squirmy arms and legs is easy but two sets is a wrestling match! Geez, this is exhausting......two to the high chair, two to change, two to bathe, two to rock, and best of all: TWO TO LOVE!!! The daily routine be damned with these little critters. They wake up with giggles, play for a while, then scream for food unless I beat them to it, which I try to do. After that it's more diaper changing, bottle making and nap time (if I am lucky, lol). Then more giggles, more playtime and resuming schedule again. But when they look up at you, arms outstretched, or squealing with new found fun and treasures they come across all over the living room floor then the whole schedule can be damned cuz they are so much fun to play with. They have the ability to push the past few weeks to the back of my mind so I now look forward to each morning once again. They both are on the verge of really crawling and then we will be on the run constantly. Here is Mick on the run, cuz Mack is chasing him and Pixie is chasing both of them with the camera. These two critters can move fast even when rolling around on the floor.

We have a huge living room, but let me tell you its wall to wall BABY........thank goodness the Pix is gonna participate in a yard sale and soon some of this will be gone. They have outgrown a bunch of stuff so we gotta make room for more. Ut oh, I am being paged from the nursery, seems the critters just woke up again......Til later!!!!!

ROLL TIDE!!!!!

Hubby would have loved this one!


Four football fans go rock climbing one afternoon. An Alabama fan, an Auburn fan, a Tennessee fan, and a Mississippi State fan. They had been arguing all the way up the mountain about who among them was the most die hard fan. Upon reaching the top of the mountain, the Tennessee fan proclaimed to the other three "This is for the Volunteers!" and promptly threw himself off the mountain as a form of sacrifice, screaming "Rocky top" as he fell to his death.

Not to be outdone by the Tennessee fan, the Mississippi State fan jumped up and shouted "This is for the DAWGS" and threw himself off the mountain barking Woof..woof, woof, woof! As he crashed on the rocks below.

Refusing to be out done by the Tennessee and Mississippi State fans, the Alabama fan rose to his feet and yelled at the top of his lungs "This is for THE CRIMSON TIDE!" and without hesitation, pushed the Auburn fan off the mountain shouting---Fly War Eagle! Fly

Beginning a new chapter.....

Today I am going to try to begin a new chapter to my life. I have been thru hard times but nothing will ever come close to this, I hope, regarding a terrible sense of loss. Fortunately both my parents are still alive even tho they are in their 80's. From this devastating loss have come some positives in my life. My son, whom I was separated from for several years (his choice, not mine) has come back home to Mama, not in the physical sense of living with me but in the realm of mother/son relationships. He is quite the man and really stood beside me and we found the wonderful friendship that we lost many years ago. Pixie came home to roost by herself and has turned into one special "mama" to her boys. My youngest son, has a new home and new found faith and friendship with his brother whom he has been missing terribly. I cannot bear to live in the home I had with my hubby, so my parents are moving south to be near our family, and moving into my house. Out of bad things, we learn there are good things to come. What the future holds, who knows, but I am taking it one day at a time and relishing every memory I can and hope to share those with my children. No one ever said life was easy but then again, no one ever told me it could be so bad. However, I am a survivor, and will continue to be the best mama I can and Gigi to my grandchildren so that they may have everlasting memories too.

One Window to My Life Has Closed Forever....

I have been trying for days to understand how something like this can happen. It only happens to others, not to me, BUT it did! I lost my husband of 37 years on July 9, 2007. The details don't matter, only the terrible sense of loss I have experienced which has totally shocked me. He was 9 years older than me, but even that doesn't matter. What matters is how one gets past this, to form and shape a new future which is totally unknown. Security in life is so vital to everything we do, and now this security is gone so unexpectedly. He was a good man, a good father, and good husband. We had our moments just like all of you do. If there is one lesson that was driven home to me, it's dont take one moment with your spouse for granted. You may get angry, you may have a love/hate relationship but remember that you married them for some reason and you need to hug that reason close to your heart. I still have not gotten past the shock and fear of the unknown, but with my children's help, God willing I will get there. So to all my friends, even tho I haven't been online, I thank you from the bottom of my heart for your prayers, kind thoughts and best wishes you have extended. Pixie has gone home without me and it's been hard on her not to have my help with the babies but she will persevere. Hang in there honey, it will get better. I will be back after the fog on my window clears.