My Granddaughter's First Christmas

I believe that life begins at conception, so, for me, this was my granddaughter's first Christmas.  Even though she is "a spaghetti squash" this week, she seemed to enjoy it - she let me feel her kick at church for the Candlelight service, she let her Mommy know at the table when it was time to quit eating, she kicked when she heard me say that she was going to be my new favorite (a family joke).  She even got presents - Mimi and P-Diddy gave her blankets, and clothes and we gave her "The Grinch Who Stole Christmas" book.  Her Mommy had to open them for her.

Here is a picture of her on her first Christmas Day...

We wish that her Uncle Ryan and Aunt Chelsa could have been here with us, but we have to be fair and share with Chelsa's family.  We also wish that Meemaw and Pawpaw and Bubba's family could have been here.  Christmas was bittersweet for our family this year.

We don't know what next year will hold for our family, but we know Who holds the future and we trust in Him.

Planning for Christmas

Christmas will be vastly different for my family this year.  When our kids were growing up we would meet at my Mom and Daddy's house along with my brother's family and have Christmas.  The last few years we have had Christmas dinner together at my house which I have really loved.

This year my parents are not able to travel and my son and daughter-in-law will be with her family in another city.  My brother's family with be with my sister-in-law's family.  Roger and I will be at home spending as much time as possible with our daughter (and our unborn granddaughter) and our son-in-law.  Fortunately, our son-in-law's family and we are friends so we can combine the holiday activities as much as possible.

Through the years holiday celebrations have changed.  It's like that Wayne Watson song, Watercolor Ponies, the line that says "what will we do, when it comes back to me and you."  Truthfully, families are like liquids - they change form throughout the years.  This year Christmas will be quiet for us - a little sad.

What will next year be like?  Lord willing, we will have a new granddaughter who will be 8 months old.  Our son and daughter-in-law are scheduled to be here for Christmas.  My brother and sister-in-law will have two college girls who will come home for Christmas.  Hopefully we will be able to get together for dinner.  Will my parents be with us - no one but the Lord knows.

Every year we will draw close to us whoever we can and we will celebrate the birth of Jesus.  We will give thanks for each one of our family members and for the blessings the Lord has given to our family. 

Merry Christmas to everyone, and as we shop and cook and enjoy the holiday, let us all remember the reason for the season!

The Chiffarobe

Do you have any idea what a chiffarobe is?  In the days before bedrooms had closets, there were pieces of furniture called a chiffarobe - a freestanding wardrobe similar to an armoir, but usually smaller.  One side usually had a rod to hang clothes and the other side had drawers and a mirror.

This particular one in the picture was given to my paternal grandmother and grandfather on their wedding day.  They died in the 1970s and they were in their 70s or 80s, so this piece of furniture is 100 years old.

My Daddy never cared much about antiques - having lived through the Depression, he didn't like anything old - reminded him of bad times.  So, one day he painted it white so it would match his bedroom furniture.  I told him one day I would have to pay someone to refinish it - and the day has arrived.

I brought this chiffarobe home from my parents' house this last weekend and my plan is to give it to my daughter to use in her nursery.  I will definitely have to have it refinished, but I have no doubt it will be beautiful.

A treasured heirloom passed down through my family to the next generation.  I pray that we will do the same with our faith - that we will teach the next generation about the Lord and how to live for Him.

Daddy's Girl

All my life I have been Daddy's Girl.  My Daddy is very special to me.  Yesterday I went to see him at the rehab/nursing home where he is right now and he didn't know who I was.  I am crushed to see him this way - please, Lord, call him home quickly.

IT'S A GIRL!

The first picture of my little grandaughter - isn't she cute!

Thank You, Lord, for this precious life and for Your blessings to our family.

Christmas Decorations Are Up

Everything is up except for the tree--I want a real tree this year.  I hate the mess they make, but the smell--it's worth all the clean-up.  I will trade cars with my husband and get one this week.

Tomorrow we are supposed to find out whether we are going to have a grandson or a grandaughter.  I am so excited to find out because my daughter and I will be going shopping on Saturday.  Black Friday ain't got nothin' on us!  We have already done our research and initial spotting of the items.  Just need to know the gender now.  Lock 'n' load!

This Christmas is technically my grandbaby's first Christmas although we won't get to see his face until April.  He or she is the size of a cantaloupe this week and Allison has a definite baby bump--she is so cute!  I am enjoying every moment of this precious journey with her and Justin.

Thanksgiving Day is over, but I am still giving thanks for my precious family and all the blessings the Lord has given to us.

Goodbye, Fall!

November 30 is always a traumatic day at my house.  I love pumpkins and squashes and all things Fall.  So, on November 30 when I have to take all my Fall decorations down and throw out my pumpkins, I get very sad.  There is something soothing to me about Fall decorations--whereas Christmas decorations kinda make me feel stressed.  The red, yellow, orange of Fall appeals to me much more than the glittery red of Christmas.

However, I have a self-imposed deadline to get my Christmas decorations up on December 1, so tomorrow I will be packing all the beautiful, orangey-red leaves and scarecrows and turkeys back in the boxes for another year.

Sad.

If I Don't Get Up This Morning Will This Day Still Happen?

Today my son and daughter-in-law go back home.  They have been here for 3 days.  My daughter and son-in-law have been spending a lot of time here, too, so they all can be together.  All my "chicks" were "in the nest."  Every time I am with them I get used to having them around and then my heart is torn once again when they have to leave.

They can't help this -- this is the way it is supposed to work.  The minute those precious babies are put in our arms we are supposed to be teaching them how to leave us and go out on their own.  We don't realize it at the time--that takes about 16 years.  They're always with us and we begin to take that for granted.  Then they go off to kindergarten and we are sad for about a day and then we get over it.  Then one day you wake up and they are juniors in high school and you realize that in a very short time they will be off to college.

It's downhill from there--you see them maybe once a month while they are in college (at the most) and then they get married and you see them maybe once a month.  Sometimes they move to another city and you see them twice a year if you are blessed.  Sometimes you call them on the phone and you are ok if you get their voice mail because truthfully you just wanted to hear their voice.

They should tell you when they lay that baby in your arms to treasure and cherish every single moment because the moments will not last forever.  We should be aware of this time factor-thing when we are getting up at 2:00 a.m. and changing dirty diapers and when we are walking the floor praying they will get home from the date safely.

I enjoyed my Thanksgiving with all my chicks in the nest.

 
Those moments are precious to me.  I will miss all my children a little more this week because my heart will be sore again.  But everyone has to go back to their homes, their jobs, their lives.

I guess I did my job.

At Least We Were All Together

This year Thanksgiving did not go as I had planned or hoped it would.  I usually host Thanksgiving at my house and I enjoy it very much--all the planning and shopping and cooking and setting the table...  But this year my parents were not able to travel so we went to them.  We were supposed to have lunch together, but my Daddy fell and wasn't able to come to lunch.  We had a really nice lunch with my brother and his family, but it just wasn't the same.  My Daddy always says the blessing and I missed that.

After lunch we went to my Mom and Dad's new apartment at the Assisted Living place.  He was not doing well, but he still appreciated us being there.  He put his hand on Allison and pronounced his great-grandbaby a girl.  Boy or girl, may the mantle of this great man fall on this new life.

We came home and watched the Aggie game - they played very well, but lost.  My son-in-law handled it really well.

All in all, a good day.  I am thankful that my precious children (and I include my children's spouses in this group) were all with me and Roger.  I am thankful that we are all healthy and that we have a new life on the way.  I am thankful that we are all happily married and enjoy being together.  I am thankful that we all have homes and jobs.  I am thankful for all the blessings the Lord has given to my family and I am thankful that we were all able to be together again this year.

The Best Days of My Life

There are 5 days in my life so far that I count as the "best days of my life."

The day I married Roger

The day Ryan was born

The day Allison was born

The day Ryan married Chelsa

The day Allison married Justin

Today is the anniversary of one of those days - Happy Anniversary Allison and Justin!  I pray that the rest of your lives will be as happy for you as the last three.

I look forward to what I pray and believe will be the sixth "best day of my life" - April 29, 2010.  May the new life that God has blessed our family with be healthy and strong and grow up to love the Lord.

She Likes It!

My brother and I moved my Mom into a really nice Assisted Living place in Nacogdoches last Wednesday.

 

When I left her on Friday morning, she looked like a deer in the proverbial headlights so I was kinda worried about her.

Yesterday her good friend called me and said that Mom told her she loves it!  I also talked to my Daddy yesterday (he is still in the hospital rehab place) and he said Mom likes it and he thinks he will also.  Thank You, Lord!  I am so relieved!  Now I just can't wait for my Daddy to get over there with her.

My Daddy is 91 years old and yesterday my brother got him a cell phone so he could talk to people in the hospital (they don't have phones in the rooms).  I can't wait to see how this turns out!

My grandbaby is the size of an avocado this week - we find out on December 2 whether we are having a boy or a girl!  I am so thankful, Lord, that you are allowing me to experience this with my daughter.

Home Is Where The Heart Is

My Daddy always told me that it is the people who can't accept change that go crazy.  I really hate change most of the time, although some of the time, change can be good.

This week was hard for my parents--a lot of changes going on.  Routines that have been established for 30 years had to change.  They had to move from their home of 30 years.  They have to get used to a new place and new people and new routines.  It is hard to teach an old dog new tricks.

This is the childhood home of my brother and me.

My parents bought this home after my Daddy got out of the service after WWII.  They paid $5,000 for it and Daddy told me that sometimes they had to eat beans for dinner a few nights just to save up for the $50.00 per month payment.

Years later, Daddy gave me the house and I lived in it for several years, but neighborhoods change, too, and I had to sell it and move.  It was sad for me, but I moved on.

Later, my husband and I bought a house and lived in it for 20 years and raised our children.  We eventually sold this house and it was sad for me, but I moved on.

My parents know that the move was necessary and they are willing to do what needs to be done.  I know it is sad for them, but they will move on.

Pray for our family and especially for my parents.  May their llives be filled with love until the Lord calls them to their final home.  They can live there forever and won't be sad and won't have to move on.

Where Are My Treasures?

Today I have to go to my parents' house and help them decide what "stuff" they will take with them to assisted living.  Of course they will "need" some things just to live, but they will also "need" some things just to make them feel at home.  They won't be able to take very much, so this is difficult.  I want them to be comfortable and to feel at home, but truthfully wherever they are together should be "home" for them.

The bottom line is - wherever your family is, that is home.  Things don't make a home.  People and family make a home.  Memories and photos of loved ones make a home.  Friends and family that visit make a home.  I am thankful that they still have each other and they both love the Lord.  The three of them should be right at home no matter where they "live."

"But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break though nor steal."  Matthew 6:20

Good News/Bad News

The Good News first - To my great surprise, I had a lot of fun at the 60-something Frat Party!  I think it is because I had come to know them all by working with their pictures when I was making the slideshow for the party.  I especially enjoyed the football game when they got to go out on the field and be recognized.  I am sure they had a lot of fun seeing old friends and talking about old times.

I finally got to meet Fatsie - the guy who black-balled Don Henley and he was presented with a guitar signed by Don Henley at the gathering Saturday night.  Don sent a message to Fatsie that there were no hard feelings and he thanked the Delta Sigs for saving him from a career as a plumber in Lufkin.  That was fun!

The Bad News - my brother and I have to move our parents to Assisted Living this coming week.  We really like the place and their apartment is nice and roomy, but it's not home for them.  I know they will be sad, but this is the right thing to do and I hope they will learn to be happy there and make some new friends.  Things change - life goes on.  Pray for my family and especially for my parents as they adjust to their new home.

Frat Party!

When I was in college I never went to a frat party.  I was not "cool."  I was a geek and really didn't date much and certainly didn't date a frat boy.  But I did manage by the grace of God to marry a "cool" frat boy and we have been together now for almost 30 years.  This weekend his fraternity brothers are getting together to celebrate the 45 year Delta Sigma Phi chapter reunion.  They are all 60-somethings now, but I am sure that when they are together they will still feel like those 20-somethings in college.

Even though when I tell him something he can't remember it 30 minutes later, I am sure he will be telling stories that happened in the late 1960s and early 1970s and never miss a detail.  I will know very few people there, but I will know some of the stories by heart, having heard them many times over the years.  My favorite one is about how some of his frat brothers black-balled Don Henley (of the Eagles) from getting in the fraternity because he was a "long-haired hippie."  Don Henley wrote a song about this later called "Greeks Don't Want No Freaks."  You can download it on iTunes.  No kidding!

I will sit in a corner and take pictures and let him have his fun.  Now that I think about it, this is what I did in high school and college, too.  Sit in the corner and watch the "cool" kids.  Things haven't changed much.

The Cat is Out of the Bag!

Wow, it feels good to finally be able to talk about my first grandbaby. He is the size of a peach now, by the way. Next week he will be a lemon. I get hungry just hearing her describe him in these terms.

She is getting past the morning sickness stage and is doing really well. I hope she doesn't gain 50 pounds like her Mom did - my baby is in her late 20s and I am still trying to lose my "baby weight."

I told my Mom and Daddy about their new great-grandchild and they were very excited. This news has been the one bright spot in my days for the last couple of weeks. Babies are good news and gifts from God.

I am so thankful that God has blessed my daughter and her husband and our whole family with this priceless gift.

Lentils, Beans and Grapes

Today my daughter told me that my new grandbaby is the size of a grape. At first he was a lentil, then a blueberry, then a kidney bean and now a grape.  I guess at some point he will be the size of a watermelon….

I still can’t tell anyone until she goes to her doctor appointment in late October and that is two more weeks…..this is so hard!

Highs and Lows

In the midst of all the sad things that are going on with my Daddy, I have the great pleasure to announce that I am going to be a grandmother for the first time! I have been writing posts about this since the day I found out, but I couldn't make them public - here they are...

September 3, 2009 – a red-letter day in my life!  This is the day I was told I was going to be a grandmother for the first time!  Our daughter and son-in-law are expecting a baby in April.  She thinks it is a boy – mother’s intuition?  I have been praying for this baby for many, many, many years and I couldn’t be more excited….but then she tells me I CAN’T TELL ANYONE!

What? I have just been told I am going to be a grandmother and I can’t tell anyone?  That’s just cruel.  “You can’t tell anyone until 12 weeks is up, Momma.”  That’s a long time!

Sure, I could talk to the other grandmother in this situation – she wants to be called Mimi.  She was still shrieking when I called her.  We have known each other since the kids were in elementary school and we had a great time during the wedding planning so I have no doubt we will have an even better time planning for this new grandbaby.

I could talk to my daughter’s best friend - she is excited of course.

I couldn’t tell anyone else – I was so frustrated by this that I told two perfect strangers just to talk about it.  One was a bank teller and the other was just someone I was standing in line with.  They smiled and said congratulations (I know they thought I was weird, but I don’t care).

My daughter and I went shopping the next Saturday and I wanted to buy my new grandson (?) something so we bought a couple of tiny outfits (one for a boy and one for a girl – just in case).

We went to the bookstore and looked at name books.  My daughter sat in the floor, closed her eyes, opened the book randomly, and pointed to a name------------

Oh, no, this is not going to be the name of my new grandbaby.  Try again…..

She pointed to Braden twice which we thought was significant, but the Baby Daddy squelched that one when she got home.  The nerve!

We stopped by the maternity shop to buy some Preggie Drops because she thought she might hurl, but then she miraculously improved enough to eat a cupcake on the way home.

I already love being a grandmother.  I just can’t publish this post for 4 more weeks…..

Storm Clouds are Gathering

It is a bright, sunny day outside, but storm clouds are gathering - that's how I feel today.  My Daddy is getting weaker every day and my brother and I have to have him evaluated to see if he can go to assisted living or must go to a nursing home.  This is a day I have dreaded all my adult life.  It is hard for me to see my Daddy weak and in poor health.  My Daddy has always been a great, strong man.  He could leap over buildings and stop bullets -- at least to me.  He has been there for me all my life to help me and to pick up the pieces when I fell apart.  It hurts me to see him like this.  Please, dear God, don't let him suffer long.

Daddy's Girl

I don't care how old I am, I am still my Daddy's little girl.  His health has been failing lately and now he is in the hospital for tests, and it is hard for me to see him in pain.  He has always been healthy and active.  But in his 9th decade of life, each day is a trial.

How do I make sure he is taken care of?  My Mom, too.  It is hard to know how to care for aging parents.  They are used to being the adults - making decisions - living independently.  They resent someone else making their decisions and they are embarrassed to have to ask for help to do the most common tasks like putting gas in the car or balancing the checkbook.

My brother and I, and our families, are glad to help any way we can, but we want our parents to be able to retain their dignity.  At what point do we start making the decisions based on what we think is best for them?

When you are parenting a child it is challenging, but at least the child lives with you and is not used to controlling his own life.  "Parenting" a parent is even harder because they sometimes live in another town or even another state.

My family has begun to deal with this situation.  My prayer is that the Lord will give us wisdom and discernment and that we will make decisions that will be respectful of our parents and that will allow them to retain their dignity and their quality of life until the Lord calls them home.

I Love The Quilt Festival!

I went to the Quilt Festival today with a good friend and, as usual, felt inspired and overwhelmed at the same time.  Every year I get so excited seeing all the beautiful quilts and I want to run home and make a masterpiece.  However, the longer I walk down the rows of these incredible works of art - textile art - I realize that I am only a casual quilter.  I don't sew every day - I don't even sew every month.  Some of the quilters who made these intricately detailed quilts work on them every day, all day, for years.  I can't do that.  My interests are too varied.  My hat (if I wore one) would be off to these patient artists.

Here are a few of my favorites...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What talent!  I am both inspired and humbled by them!

Time Flies!

I can't believe it was ten years (!) ago when Ryan and Chelsa got married!!!!!  That day was one of the best days of my life.  My family and friends were gathered in one place, my precious son was marrying a young woman that we absolutely adore--what a great day!

Now they are off on a big trip to celebrate ten years of life together.  I pray they will have a wonderful time of adventure and making new memories together.

Don't blink - life goes by so quickly.

Does This Make You Feel Like Fall Has Arrived?

Someone sent me this picture on the internet and just looking at it makes the temperature drop 20 degrees (of course, then it would still be 70 degrees outside)...

(Click on the picture to see it larger.)

Happy Fall, y'all!

Happy Birthday to Me!

My birthday will be here soon, and although I don't mind telling my age, I don't like the idea of putting all that personal information out there into cyberspace.  I don't mind birthdays - it beats the alternative.  I look forward to going to Heaven one day, but as the Kenny Chesney song says, nobody wanna go now.


When I was a young woman I always thought of my parents as old.  I realize now that they really weren't that old - I guess that's what my kids think about me and my husband.

I lost my mother when I was 23 and I thought my Daddy was kind of old to remarry - but I realize now that he was the age I am now!  Wow - perspective!  The other day I said, "Daddy, can you believe you are 91?"  And he said, "I can't believe I have a 56 year-old child!"  That shut me up!

I want to age gracefully - no facelifts, no lyposuction (although I could certainly use it), no botox.  I draw the line at haircolor though.  My husband doesn't want to have a wife who looks older than he does.

I guess the truth about age is that just when you start to understand how to live your life the correct way and how to handle circumstances and problems and people that you love and those you don't like so much, you don't have the energy to do it!  And even though you have so much life experience, successes and failures, and so much advice to give to someone else, no one wants to listen to some old woman talk.  I'm not that old - I can blog and send a text message!

I still wonder - when will I be old enough not to care if I need to lose weight?  My mom is 90 and she still cares.

I am grateful to have my health, a great husband, four fabulous children, lots of good friends, and most of all that I know Jesus Christ and enjoy His blessings in my life.  I am happy to have a purpose and work to do and enough money to buy what I need and to give to the Lord's work.

And, hopefully, one day I will have grandchildren!  Maybe they will listen to me!

Keep In Touch

I have discovered blogging!  Maybe I'm just lonesome for other people to talk to every day, but I really enjoy it.  I thought this blog would be a place where I could share my thoughts and feelings and maybe something funny or helpful.

I have a new chicken...

My husband said "good grief", but I love it!  What do you think?