Snowball and Me

Merry Christmas

2011-12-08T06:23:00.000-08:00

I guess I haven't felt like I had much to say since May. I was surprised to see it had been that long since I had posted.

I spent a lovely Thanksgiving with Bryan's family in Birmingham. Other than Snowball briefly turning into psycho-dog over a bone, it was a great holiday. Thanks, Bryan, Lisa, Noah and Eli. I look forward to seeing you again later this month.

I came back from Alabama to spend much of the next week decorating for Christmas. It is a bit of work, but it makes my busy Christmas holiday much happier to have a merry looking home. It looks nice while I am home and it greets me joyfully whenever I come home from being out.

It has been a busy musical season. We are celebrating the 25th anniversary of our performances of Handel's Messiah. I have been involved in all 25. So, there have been many rehearsals. We had one successful performance last weekend and have one more to go this weekend. Added to that we also did a separate Christmas concert last weekend and will be singing for Stake Conference this Sunday. "Busy" may have been a bit of an understatement. At any rate it is winding down, and soon there will be time to Christmas shop and wrap gifts.

Merry Christmas from my house to yours.

Ten days in Pennsylvania

2011-05-20T15:49:00.001-07:00

I returned a few days ago from a ten day trip to Pennsylvania with my friends, Jim and Renee Richeson. Our base was their time-share condo in the Poconos. Each day we saw something different. Some days it was beautiful scenery (mountain views and waterfalls), and other days it was historical sites like Philadelphia, Valley Forge, Washington Crossing, and Gettysburg. In the picture above we were taking a carriage ride around Philadelphia. We also saw the beautiful Pennsylvania Dutch area in Lancaster County filled with Amish farms and the picturesque towns of Bird-in-Hand and Intercourse. Also, not to be serious all the time, we went to Hershey World in Hershey, Pennsylvania. That was an experience!

I had a great time and took lots of pictures. All of us were 65 or older, so we had to do things slowly and with a minimum of walking. Still, it was fun to see a different part of the country and celebrate some of our American history.

Spring???

2011-02-23T10:04:00.000-08:00

It's spring, no it's winter, no it's spring...

And so we enter what could be called "severe storm season" here in Tennessee. The yoyo weather has begun, and with it will be all the variety of winds and rain, hopefully not tornadoes and floods like last year. It is starting pretty early this year. I hope we will all be safe for the next three months. Last May's floods were devastating and too many people still have not recovered.

Snow

2011-01-10T11:31:00.000-08:00

I love to take pictures of snow, and it is even better when I don't have to get out and try to drive in it. These first two were taken on Christmas morning. The snow was thin, but there was enough to call it a White Christmas. Noah and Eli had a good time playing in it.

Then we had snow again on January 10. This time we got more than a dusting. I measured 3 1/2 to 4 inches. More is expected for the next two days.

Screened Porch

2010-10-27T10:33:00.000-07:00

This is a work in progress, but when finished it should be a comfortable screened porch. Eventually there will be cushions and an outdoor rug. I want to move an electric outlet inside the screened area, too. It will be so nice to be able to be outside in good weather without all the bugs.

Botanical Garden Visit

2010-09-09T19:48:00.000-07:00

Over Labor Day weekend I went to visit Bryan's family in Birmingham. On Saturday we went to a small botanical garden. It was a nice day with much cooler temperatures than we had been having. We had a lovely time just relaxing and watching the boys have a good time. Bryan pushed me around in a wheelchair, so I didn't have to try to walk it, and that made it much more pleasant for me.

The gardens were at the end of summer, so not too much was in full bloom, but there were still some flowers. I remember cannas and black eyed Susans among others. This place should be beautiful in spring and after the leaves turn in the fall. There were some elderly men who were sailing remote control sailboats on the lake. Someone had set up a little girl's tea party, complete with tablecloths and full tea service. There were preparations being made for a wedding, too.

It was a lovely, quiet, peaceful place right in the middle of a busy city. Loved it!

Here are a few of the pictures I took:

Could we please have an early Autumn???

2010-08-29T11:26:00.000-07:00

Here it is the end of August and I am looking back and reflecting over the last few months. It began badly with all the flooding in May - and then more flooding a few weeks ago. In addition we had one of the hottest summers ever! I am so ready for some cooler weather. We were teased with a couple of better days, but the heat is going up again. I will just say I am very grateful for air conditioning. I will date myself, but I can remember when the best we had was a fan at home and some air vents in the car. I'm also grateful to be in Tennessee. Louisiana is so much hotter and more humid!

I am looking forward to the slight chill in the air, the smell of burning leaves. and the beautiful colors of autumn.

BIG WEEK part two: new one-year-old

2010-07-19T07:50:00.001-07:00

Our summer is full of grandchildren's birthdays. This was Alli's first birthday party held at her Smith grandparent's lovely home out in the beautiful countryside of Winchester, TN.
Alli loved the curly bow on this present.
After all the gifts were open, we all went out to the pool. The weather even cooperated. No storms bothered us and the temperature was not too hot until about the time everyone was ready to get out of the water, anyway.
This little sweetie is Alaina. She will be the next birthday (of the grandchildren), but not until December.
We all enjoyed the day. Alli was surrounded by parents, grandparents, uncles, aunts and cousins. Even the babies loved the water.

Thanks, Marilyn and Chris for letting us enjoy your beautiful home and pool. I especially loved the flower garden and the butterflies.

BIG WEEK part one: new car

2010-07-19T07:36:00.001-07:00

Finally, after weeks of trying to decide, I traded my car on a used (slightly used) van. It is so nice and so much more comfortable than any car I have ever had. In a couple of months I am going to have a hydraulic lift installed and I will be able to take my power chair anywhere I want to go. I'm looking forward to that.

Beautiful Alli

2010-07-01T08:40:00.001-07:00

This is my beautiful granddaughter Alli. She was tired, but even though she didn't smile, I just love her eyes in this picture.

Another 6-year-old

2010-07-01T08:15:00.000-07:00

Caitlin turned six yesterday. She had a Bounce-U party. They have so many cute things that can be done now for a party. This place had all kinds of inflated things for them to climb, slide and bounce on. Need less to say, all the children were totally exhausted after an hour of doing that. They had a blast! I enjoyed watching.

Unfortunately I couldn't get a good picture of Caitlin. She was very animated and hard to get her still long enough to take a picture. But she was having such a good time.

Happy Birthday, Caitlin.

Cutest Birthday Party Lately

2010-06-27T20:52:00.001-07:00

My oldest grandchild, Noah Love, recently had his sixth birthday. His very clever parents planned a terrific party.

The theme for the party was Star Wars, hence Bryan is dressed as a Jedi Knight. Here he is talking to all the kids about the "power of the force" and administering the Jedi Oath to them. They all were dressed in Jedi robes.

Here the guests were doing some preparatory swings against an unarmed pinata that Bryan is holding up by a rope as Noah observes,

and then they progressed to light saber training as the Jedi Master instructs.

On cue (Vader music) Darth Vader slipped in to their training session. (He's hard to see but is in the center at the back). Sorry about the two little girls who were scared of him. They wanted to see him out of costume to be sure he wasn't really Darth Vader.

After everyone got to try out their new skills, the young padawans eventually defeated Vader (who was about to burn up in the black costume) and they had refreshments - pizza and Yoda soda outside before the storm came up, then ice cream and cupcakes in the house.

Fun was had by all, but a few light sabers didn't survive the battle. There were a few extra light sabers, so the entire class posed for a "graduation" picture and received a certificate of graduation from the Jedi Academy. Then Noah opened his gifts and the guests had to leave quickly before the huge thunderstorm hit.

This is Noah and "Darth"Caitlin, my second oldest grandchild (who also turns six in a few days).

We all had so much fun and the adults got as big a kick out of it as the children. The only way it could have been better would have been if the temperature was not hovering in the very high 90's.

Happy Birthday Noah. Loved your party.

Cast:
Jedi Master.............Bryan Love
Darth Vader............Ben Love
Padawans................Noah Love and friends

My Junk

2010-06-24T20:05:00.000-07:00

This week has been no fun! I have been cleaning out things for a yard sale I'm doing with my daughters. I have a car full of "junk" to try to sell tomorrow. I still have things to clean out, but this is a good start.

I would much prefer to be posting about the cutest birthday party I have attended in a long time. That will have to be the next posting, after I get time to download the pictures. Happy Birthday again, Noah.

Tour of my yard

2010-06-11T10:24:00.000-07:00

Here are some of the pretty things blooming right now in my yard. They make me happy. Ok, I realize the apples are not blooming, but they are in my yard. I have pears and plums, too. The plums didn't fare so well in the late frost, but there are a few on the tree. The birds seem to have enjoyed my blueberries. I think I got two ripe ones before the birds got them. I did get to pick strawberries several times. They were yummy.

These Easter Lilies were a gift several years ago. I set them out in the yard to see what they would do, and now they are all bloomed out.

My Garden is Growing

2010-05-13T08:39:00.000-07:00

You can see how much my garden has grown since April 19 when I last posted a picture. I have eaten some of the Swiss Chard. Its different from "southern" greens, but I like it. I have also been eating strawberries for about a week. They are yummy. There are baby tomatoes and bell peppers that I am looking forward to.

The big garden is also growing. We were lucky that it didn't wash away in the 14 inch record rains we had May 1-2. Last year we had a big rain in May (more like 6-8 inches if I remember right), and then we had almost no rain for two months. It did not make for a good garden last year. It was like the soil just choked the life out of the plants. My raised bed didn't even produce as much as it should have. At any rate, I am happy with the progress. I am really looking forward to some good home grown tomatoes.

I didn't post about the floods at the first of May because so many others did, but it was a devastating flood that will take years in recovery. The damage here was minimal. I had a little water in the basement and some of the homes in the trailer park had pushed in under pinning. Compared to the total losses some people had, we were very blessed.

I Was Robbed!

2010-04-28T16:05:00.000-07:00

Well, not really. I was at Walmart, riding in one of those electric carts. I went in the ladies room and left the cart, with 8-10 items in the basket, right outside the door. When I came back out, no cart! Most of my 8-10 items were stacked up on the floor where the cart had been parked. But the crazy thing is that they didn't leave my receipt book, a pair of pantyhose, and a package of wrapping paper. I have no idea why they rode off with part of my items and left the rest. I guess I looked pretty silly, standing there holding my meager few items that were left and laughing at the absurdity of it all. Classy people shop at Walmart.

It isn't nice to steal from an old person. We are slow but cagey.

You might be a red neck if...

2010-04-19T07:48:00.000-07:00

....you plant a garden without sunscreen. (I have a little sunburn on my neck because it was so cool when we started that I didn't take any sunscreen or my ugly hat out to the garden with me.)

Saturday I planted the big garden with Heather and Ben. They did most of the planting with me helping a little here and there. They are growing tomatoes, bell pepper and onions, and I put in some squash out there. On Friday I had planted part of my raised bed garden (in the picture above) and I finished it on Saturday. Now if the weather will be kind, maybe in a few weeks we will have some yummy vegetables to show for our effort.

I'm a Ham

2010-03-22T10:19:00.000-07:00

Well, maybe in more ways than one!

After several weeks of lessons and more studying than I thought it would take, I am a licensed amateur radio operator. Unfortunately I still don't fully know what I am doing, so the learning process will continue. I'm glad I did it, but I have a lot more to learn.

aggghhh!!!!

2010-03-10T11:38:00.000-08:00

Excuse the lack of posting on my part...I am immersed in HAM radio!!! I will be back to reality after Saturday. :)

Alaina

2009-12-21T07:11:00.000-08:00

I am so slow to post an update. This news has already been duly noted on Facebook, Twitter and Blogger, by other family members, but I want to add my welcome to the newest member of the family. Alaina Gail was born a week ago and is a perfectly beautiful little baby girl. I have seen and held her several times this week. Yesterday she finally woke up enough that I could see her pretty dark eyes for the first time. We are all anxious to have a little "baby time".

This Christmas will be such a treat! In one year I've gone from two wonderful grandchildren to five. I think what fun it will be in a few years when they will all be running around my house, shaking presents and sneaking cookies.

Merry Christmas to everyone. It is all about the Savior's birth and family. I love this time of year!

Happy Thanksgiving

2009-11-30T16:34:00.000-08:00

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving with a good portion of the family here. Now I have started decorating for Christmas. It makes my little house look so happy with Christmas trees and lighted garland everywhere. I still have to set out my nativities and my little village, but for now they are waiting for me to finish the shopping online. I love the Christmas season: the decorations, the shopping - everything. I even love making fun of all those balloon decorations lying in a puddle in someone's yard. (Sorry if I stepped on any toes there). So I am looking forward to the next few weeks.

Beautiful Alli

2009-07-31T06:22:00.000-07:00

My daughter Shannon is such a talented photographer. I just love these pictures of 5-day-old Alli. In just two and a half weeks she has already changed so much that I am glad we have these beautiful early pictures.

Alli Love Smith

2009-07-20T07:42:00.000-07:00

My 4th grandchild Alli was born on July 14 at 7:37 PM. She made us all wait all day but it was well worth the wait. She is beautiful. She weighed 6 lbs 14 oz and was 19" long. She has long toes like her Grandpa, brown hair and maybe hazel eyes. We will have to wait and see how they turn out.

Mom and Dad (Heather and Ben) are fine, but a little sleep deprived right now. We are all hoping Alli decides to sleep some at night pretty soon.

These pictures were taken when Alli was about one hour old. This one shows Heather, Ben Alli and Grandmama Smith - her first grandchild. The picture above shows Bryan holding Alli before he had to leave to go back to Birmingham. He planned a trip for work that would have him here on the day Alli was born. All of our family and Ben's parents were there at one time or another over that day and the next.

Family Weekend

2009-06-28T18:19:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we celebrated Caitlin's 5th birthday at her gymnastics party. All those 5-year-olds had a great time playing on all the gymnastics equipment. Bryan and Noah came up for the weekend. Lisa and Eli were not feeling well and had to stay home. We missed them.

Last night all the rest of the family except Andrew and Kara were here. We ate barbecue and played games. Caitlin and Noah had a great time together. It was so much fun.

Of course Andrew and Kara couldn't be here because they are busy traveling around Europe for two weeks. Its been fun following them on Twitter. They are in Germany this week and come home next Sunday.

Noah's Cool Scooby Doo Pool Party

2009-06-24T07:33:00.001-07:00

Recently I went to my grandson's Cool Scooby Doo Pool Party. (That is a lot of double O's) He had a great time and the adults did too. There was Scooby Doo Cake and ice cream... and pizza...

and lots of presents!

Then there was the beautiful pool. The party was held at the home of a family friend of Lisa's sister. She was so kind to let all of us Loves invade. There was shade near the pool (thanks for that) and the weather was not as hot and oppressive as it has been for the last week.

Bryan took Eli (5 months old) out in the pool too.

Noah loved the Slip and Slide and playing with the big guys (his cousins Tanner and Tyler and their friend). He got in the pool, too, but my photo card got full too soon.

We all had a great time celebrating his 5th birthday! Happy Birthday, Noah.

Butterflies

2009-05-27T20:05:00.000-07:00

Last week I visited a magical place called the Butterfly Palace. Here are a few pictures. In the next two Pat caught one that landed on my back.

There were beautiful orchids growing throughout the place. It was supposed to be a mini rain forest setting.

The blue butterflies look very plain until they open their wings. Then you see the vivid almost neon blue of the top side of their wings. When they land they close their wings so the only way to see the blue is to catch them in flight.

Too Close for Comfort

2009-04-11T07:59:00.001-07:00

Yesterday Shannon, Heather and I went out to eat lunch together. It was Good Friday and they were both off work. While we were eating a tornado touched down about a mile away. We couldn't see it because the restaurant we were in was facing the wrong way, but both Ben and Rusty saw it. It touched down and did a lot of damage in a subdivision across the road from where they were. I've heard reports that 100 homes were totally destroyed and 150 more damaged. The damage we saw as we were trying to get back home was amazing! It is hard to believe there were only 2 deaths. There are 7 more people in critical condition in the hospital.

It looked like a war zone. As we were leaving there were lines of highway patrol cars coming into the area. I have never seen so many emergency vehicles in one place. We were trying to get out of the area because it was obvious the ambulances and other emergency vehicles were having a hard time getting around, but we kept running into closed roads and having to go back over the same area. I think a lot of the traffic congestion happened for that reason. We finally found a way out and went home to watch news reports.

Nothing came near any of our homes, but there were 9 tornados in middle Tennessee. We were blessed to all be safe.

Family Weekend

2009-03-13T15:57:00.001-07:00

We had a wonderful family weekend February 27 - March 1. Almost everyone was here for the weekend and all were here for Eli's blessing on Sunday. We had such a good time together. It was great to just take a few days to be together. We laughed a lot. (See some of the crazy pictures below.)

Everyone got a chance to hold the baby. He was a popular little guy with everyone, but especially all his aunts. Noah and Caitlin enjoyed the time together, too.

Usually we only get everyone together at Christmas, so this was a treat. Thanks to Bryan and Lisa for coming here for the blessing.

More Cute Baby Pictures

2009-01-15T16:18:00.001-08:00

Bryan with Noah holding Eli

Noah was so cute with Eli. He wanted to hold him and was working hard to be a good big brother.

Brand new Baby Eli

Lisa and Eli

A Little More Love

2009-01-11T14:55:00.000-08:00

Last week I got to welcome a new grandson into the family. Elijah Richard Love (Eli) was born to Bryan and Lisa on Tuesday, January 6. He was 7 lbs. 6 oz and 20 inches long. He is a cutie and looks a lot like his brother Noah who is now age 4 1/2. Eli is on the left and Noah above at about the same age. (Isn't is funny both hospitals have the same receiving blankets?)

I enjoyed being there helping with Noah and getting to know Eli. He is a sweet baby, and big brother Noah was so good for me. He will be a good big brother.

NO MORE FOUNTAIN SALES!

2008-11-24T06:14:00.000-08:00

I know now for certain that I will not be going to any more craft shows or trade shows to sell fountains. It is just getting too hard physically for me to do it. But I am feeling satisfied that I am going out on a good note. This past weekend I went to an Itex trade show and sold about 11 or 12 fountains - I lost count we were so busy. Bryan and Ben went to help and I could not have done it without them. Thanks guys. I have finished paying for my power chair (which was the reason for going) and after the trip I may really be needing the power chair sooner than later. :)

I also networked into someone who may be able to help me sell the rest of the fountain inventory. She is a lady from Franklin who sells collectibles in an EBay store. I am working towards taking the remaining fountains to her to be sold in her store, as well as several nice pieces of amethyst and rose quartz. The percentage she takes is well worth it.

So, now I am looking forward to Thanksgiving and Christmas. All I have to do is clear out all the fountains stacked in my den, decorate for Christmas and do all the shopping. Easy.....

Happy Thanksgiving and Merry Christmas to all who may read this.

Family Vacation

2008-10-20T09:39:00.000-07:00

I'm just back from a wonderful week in Florida with my family. We were in Panama City Beach. The view was fabulous and the beach was so clean and beautiful.

Although the whole family couldn't be there, most of us were together for part of the time. The grandchildren loved the sand and the ocean. They had a great time.

We were all a little burned out, so we spent most of the time just relaxing together. With a few little problems, the condo was great. I think it was a good way to spend the last of Rick's trade account. It would have only been better if the hot water heater had not died toward the end of our stay and the sofa bed had been usable. (OK, I am trying to be positive. Hot water and a decent bed are big negatives when they are missing, but everyone tried to be a good sport about it.) The view from the 25th floor was unbelievable. What luck to be on the top floor.

Below is Andrew relaxing. He can't relax without his computer.

This shot was at sunset from the balcony of our condo.

The weather was perfect! The only rain we saw was as we were going back to the condo on the last night we were there. It was warm enough to be in the water all week. It turned cool the morning we left to come home.

Here are a few shots of the family playing in the water and on the beach.

I'll close with one of my favorite pictures from the week.

What can be better than a happy grandchild?

Healthy---- Who Me?

2008-08-20T09:37:00.000-07:00

Snowball and I both went for yearly physicals this week. The doctors say both of us a doing well. Snowball is up to 7 1/2 pounds which I am hoping is as big as he is going to get. He is a spoiled puppy and I have been trying to teach him he can't always have his way. Yeah, we will see how that goes. :) But he is a good little companion and lets me know if anything is going on outside. Unfortunately I have so many neighbors that there is a lot going on outside, and he can't tell the difference between a neighbor having a visitor and us having a visitor. He also tries to answer any bark in a two block radius. I guess that is just normal for a dog.

As for my physical, the doctor called this morning and said all my lab tests came back and the levels were good. No worries on cholesterol or diabetes or any of the other stuff they test for. He would like for me to do a few preventive things I have been putting off and also do a few things to lower my blood pressure. It isn't too bad but is creeping up a little over borderline. He said I may be able to bring it down with a few lifestyle changes and avoid being diagnosed with hypertension, so I will try to do that.

I hope I will lose some weight as a side benefit of trying to get healthier. Wouldn't that be great! It is only about 30 years past me needing to do it, but living alone now should make it easier.

I Love New York

2008-06-28T17:48:00.000-07:00

To quote a t-shirt, I love New York. Shannon and I went there last weekend to see a Broadway show, sightsee and shop. I don't know which we enjoyed the most, but it was all fun. We saw "Wicked" and loved it. We rode open top buses all over town, taking lots of pictures like tourists. We stopped several places to shop. The best bargain was the Dolce and Gabbana bags we bought for $20 in Chinatown. (Okay, they were knock-offs, i.e. fakes, but they really look good. Real Dolce's can go for $2000.) (See picture above)

We ate hot dogs and pretzels from a street vendor and had terrific pizza at John's Pizzeria in Greenwich Village.

We got to go to the top of the Empire State Building. They took one look at me walking with a cane and let us bypass all the lines. We still had to go through security, but they took us to the head of the line, and did the same with the lines for the elevators. I was really impressed with how handicap-friendly they all were. We got great pictures from the observation deck. (See the movie on Shannon's blog)

Poor little Snowball had his first experience with being boarded while I was gone. He seems to have survived it just fine, so maybe I can leave him again if I need to. It was a little tough on him this time because he had an ear infection and an eye infection while I was gone. It is a good thing I boarded him with his vet. They started him on medicine and he is all well now.

I am so glad we were able to make this trip. I love musicals and have always wanted to see one in New York. Wicked was just great! We wanted to see a second show, but couldn't get tickets. Instead we took more bus tours and got to see a lot of the city. We were very impressed with how clean and crime free the city appeared and how tourist-friendly. I think Nashville needs to take some lessons.

Graduation

2008-04-22T07:08:00.000-07:00

In spite of being suspected of being less than brilliant, Snowball graduated from beginner obedience class. That is Laura his instructor in the picture above. She is very patient.

He is so eager to please that he just does what he thinks you want him to do. He doesn't wait for a command. This gets a little frustrating when we want him to learn something new. He thinks any command is going to be "sit" or "down". I am still working with him and in the five minutes of his attention span we get to do a little training.

In fact, I enrolled him in a tricks class to try to keep him learning. He isn't a fast learner, but he is getting a little of it. The funniest thing is that now that he isn't with the 2 big German shepherds, he is jealous of the instructor's attention to the other dogs in the class. He's a funny little dog.

Puppy Obedience Classes

2008-04-07T05:50:00.000-07:00

We started 8 weeks of obedience classes about a month ago. Obedience is not a concept that comes easily to Snowball. He is a free spirit at heart, but we have made a little progress.

He is a little more comfortable now around the other dogs in the class. When we walked into the first class there were three little dogs and two full grown German Shepherds - with big voices. It was a little unnerving even to me. Imagine what it felt like to a little Maltese! Then the next week the other two little dogs had to drop out of class. So, we have continued - one little white ball of fur and two BIG loud shepherds. Sometimes it seems to all be too much for Snowball and he just lies down and becomes a rug, but most of the time he tries to do what is asked.

Last week we were supposed to be working on "stay - with distractions". He didn't want to stay at all, so today he has to go to a class by himself. I think of it as remedial stay class. :) We will see how he does. A couple of weeks ago he seemed to really have it. He would even stay when out of sight, but lately he isn't doing it well at all, even at home. I need to practice more with him. Getting ready for taxes has taken a toll on my time, but that is done now.

I don't care if he is a perfectly trained dog. But I need him to be trained well enough not to be a danger to anyone or a constant annoyance. He does bark too much, which is irritating even to me. His favorite is to bark at the dogs on TV. It drives me crazy.

All in all, he is a sweet little dog and a good companion.

Happy Birthday to Me

2008-02-25T08:14:00.000-08:00

Okay, when you get to my age, birthdays are usually best not mentioned or remembered. But, thanks to my children and friends, mine is usually duly celebrated. So, thanks to all for the love and the gifts.

Due to having so many family birthdays in one month (plus 2 days) we celebrate February in groups. (Feb. birthdays: Andrew, 12th, Heather, 21st, me, 28th, and Kara, March 2) Last Saturday we had a girl's day out for this year's b-day event. After a yummy lunch we spent several hours with daughters, granddaughter and daughter-in-law helping me look at new furniture options for my living room. We had a great time even though I may not even buy anything new. I would love to change to a different sofa, but everything is just so big in the stores right now. I have a tiny living room crisscrossed with two traffic patterns to get to the rest of the house. The usable area is about 8 x 10. It is really limited as to what will fit.

Andrew's birthday was celebrated separately a couple of weeks ago with cake and a game night. That was fun, too. We are a fiercely competitive bunch and love to play games.

I still have one "party" to look forward to. On my actual birthday I'm having lunch with my two best friends. It is something we do for each of our birthdays. They are spaced out nicely through the year, so by also including Christmas we have a quarterly lunch out together. We exchange silly cards and giggle through a nice lunch. At our ages, it is about the most excitement we can handle. :)

White Dogs Can't Jump

2008-01-27T09:02:00.000-08:00

Snowball tried to jump up on the sofa today, but sadly he didn't quite make it. We have wondered why he doesn't know he can either jump on or off furniture. I can even put him in a chair and he will stay there until I take him down. (We suspect he just isn't very smart.) But today another explanation came to mind...white dogs can't jump. :)

The thing that is even funnier is that he doesn't know he can climb stairs. He has never climbed down the two steps into the den even though there is no barrier there to prevent it. I have always carried him down the stairs because it is a lot easier for me if he doesn't go down there unattended. This leads to his other false assumption...that carpet is like grass. The den is carpeted, so if I want it to be saved from becoming a doggy bathroom, he needs to stay off. I am hoping to get him set up for obedience classes soon. Then maybe some of the house breaking issues with carpet can get handled. For now he is fine with the hardwood and his little pad. The good thing is that he never goes potty on furniture.

Isn't being a pet owner fun?????

Christmas 07

2007-12-26T08:35:00.000-08:00

We had a great Christmas Day with all the family here. We loved having the family here together, eating lots of food, playing games and Wii, taking the grandchildren to see Uncle Ben (Heather's husband for those not in the family) and all the firetrucks since he couldn't be with us to open gifts, and generally just having a good time hanging out together. We ended the day with most of us watching a movie together and eating some more.

December Rush

2007-12-22T07:09:00.001-08:00

My family know most of what I am posting, but this is for the benefit of friends this Christmas season. I am so late getting my Christmas cards out, but I will give this link to old friends I haven't seen in a while.

Another December has almost flown by in a blur. We sang the Messiah again and were very occupied with rehearsals since late October. I sang one of the alto solos. Andrew, Kara and Shannon sang Messiah with me this year. We had fun going to rehearsals and performances together.

The week after the Messiah was our ward Christmas program. Shannon was directing the choir this year and it was a pretty good program. I played flute on two of the songs and had a little vocal solo. It went pretty well but made me realize how rusty I am. I've been singing much more than playing flute in recent years.Now that all the "command performances" are over we are enjoying the rest of the Christmas season. It is so good to have most of the family here near me. I enjoy being with them so much.

Puppy Love

2007-11-20T07:32:00.001-08:00

I watched Caitlin for a few hours Friday while Rusty and Ben went to do a service project. I was trying to do something in the office so she came in. Before I knew it she was in Snowball's bed and he was in her lap. I put some of her shows on the TV and she stayed there over an hour. The surprising thing is that Snowball seemed to love it, too.

Last Craft Show

2007-11-12T05:01:00.001-08:00

Anybody need a fountain? :)

This weekend I did what will probably be the last craft show. With a three day investment of time (not to mention booth fee, gas to get there, set-up and tear-down cost, etc.) I sold two fountains. The good thing about it is that they were both ones we made really early, so I have been carrying them around for about 5 years. I may try some other method of selling them, or in fact the whole lot of supplies that I have. It would be an ideal start for someone wanting to start making fountains. Whatever I decide, it will have to wait a while for now. I guess I'll just store all that stuff a little bit longer.

Wish List

2007-11-01T09:09:00.000-07:00

For those of you who may need it, I have added a wish list to the blog. I know sometimes it is hard to decide what to give for Christmas or birthdays, so this is a list of things I would use. However, please feel free to do something different. I may add some other items later as I think of more.

"Fat Man in a Little Coat"

2007-11-01T06:19:00.000-07:00

Last week I had a garage sale to sell some of what I have been cleaning out of my house. There were still a few of Rick's jackets here, so they were part of the sale. Ben saw this vest that Rick loved to wear and had to model it for us. I was laughing so hard I couldn't breathe.

I made a little money on the garage sale and donated the leftovers to Goodwill. They best thing is to have all the stuff gone! I am excited with every bit of clutter that leaves. It was really nice to have the garage to do this in. It is so much easier to be able to set it up ahead of time and not worry about weather.

Another thing I have had Jerry working on is cleaning out the semi trailer. There are a lot of things in it that are obvious throw-aways, so those are going to the dump. I think it will clear out about half of what is in there. Also, last week he finished moving all the tools and fountains to empty out the band trailer. Now Heather can use it to move and not have to rent a trailer and after that Ben can use it to store his things that are in storage. It is a very liberating feeling to clean out. We have been such pack rats here!

Day at the Zoo

2007-10-22T14:04:00.000-07:00

Saturday I went to the Zoo with Shannon, Caitlin and Natalie. We had such a good time. It was an absolutely beautiful day to be outside. It was just beginning to get a little warm when we were ready to leave.

I loved the meercats. They are the most interesting little creatures. There was quite a large exhibit of them. The picture of Shannon and Caitlin in the plastic bubble is in that exhibit.

We had a good time. Thanks to Natalie pushing me around in a wheelchair, we got to see every everything and I didn't have to walk.

Remodeling is Finished!

2007-09-11T08:35:00.000-07:00

I am so happy with my office. It looks great - or it will once I get a home for all the stuff in boxes throughout the house. Yesterday after moving all Ben's stuff into a storage unit, Ben Rusty and Jerry moved my desk in. This morning Ben ran all my cords and cables for me and cut a hole so I could have access to the light switch. Now all I have to do is move in my boxes and put things away. This functions so well.

We are all so happy to have Ben and Natalie here. It is hard to believe it isn't just a visit.

Almost Finished

2007-09-02T14:08:00.000-07:00

I look forward to the end of this project!!!

All the painting is done except just a few spots of touch-up. The additional hardwood floor is all done. It looks so nice. The old file cabinets have a nice new coat of shiny black paint. It is amazing how much better they look. I am sitting in my office to write this and it is so clean and bright with the new wall paint. It isn't the dark dusty hole it used to be. I may actually be able to work here now.

There is still a lot to sort through and find places for, but I won't be able to do some of that until I get the new desk. Temporarily I am using the bottom half of one of the old ones. I bought the new bookcase for the office, but it was scratched. So I took it back and haven't been able to get another one yet - probably tomorrow. A lot of dust was stirred up when the old carpet was pulled out, so I have gone through all the bookcases, dusting and straightening books. I still need to dust some other places, but it just takes time to get to it all.

Within a few days things should be in a lot better order. I can't wait for all of you to see it.

Ben and Natalie's Latest News

2007-08-30T14:54:00.000-07:00

Some of you have heard directly from Ben, but for those who haven't - The sale of their house is complete. There were some surprises and somewhat less profit than originally expected, but it is sold. They will leave Idaho early on Friday Sept. 7 and hope to be here late on the 8th.

Progress

2007-08-26T14:51:00.000-07:00

The bathroom is all finished. The halls and living room are painted. The paint is so strange. I picked a color that goes with the sofas. It is a beige with some green in it. The trim color is the lightest shade on the same paint card. It looks cream but obviously has some green in it too. Now that it is on the walls and trim, it changes color depending on what time of day it is and what kind of light is on it. It goes from sage green to khaki to cream. It is so interesting to see what the light does to it. I think I like it, but after I live with it a while I will know better. This week we will finish cleaning out the office and paint it.

Yesterday Andrew came over and did what he has wanted to do for at least 4 years. He wiped the old computer clean - after transferring everything I need to my laptop. It was getting so that I was afraid it was going to lock up one day and not allow me back in, so for now I will use my laptop. I was mostly doing that already and just using the old computer as a storage place. I can hardly wait for my new NEAT, CLEAN office. Andrew has plans for parts of the old computer, and I have the keyboard and monitor if I ever want to use them with the laptop.

I am in the middle of cleaning out the office. A lot of it is in boxes all over the house, so there is still a lot of clutter to deal with. I am cleaning out file cabinets so I can get rid of at least one of them. I want a neat uncluttered office. I don't know how long I will be able to keep it neat, but I am looking forward to finding out.

Translation Appreciated

2007-08-22T07:59:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Heather for the translation of "Woot". You remember in the Book of Mormon they had to take the scriptures with them so their language wouldn't be corrupted. I wonder what the English language will be like in 100 years or so after the accumulated effects of text messaging and chat shortcuts. I wonder if we would recognize it.

To change the subject, the painting is moving along. Jerry has started painting the hall, living room and office. It will take a while because the wood is 30 years old and very dry. It really sucks up the paint. The hall is much brighter already with only one coat of paint.

One Project Done

2007-08-19T16:53:00.000-07:00

The bathroom remodel is all finished. I tried to make pictures to post, but the room defies being photographed. You can't get far enough away to get more than a small picture of anything. I did get one of the new cabinet. I finally found a nice one at K Mart and I am very happy with it. You will all just have to come see the rest.

The painting of the hallways and the living room has started. The walls are so dried out that it is soaking up a lot of paint. It took a gallon to do the 2 little halls and bedroom doors with only a first coat. This may take a few days...

XM Success

2007-08-15T17:01:00.000-07:00

I finally have the XM working again. I found an audio place in Murfreesboro to sort out the problem and solve it. It took the installation of an fm booster module. Evidently about 6 months ago the FCC told XM and Sirius that they were sending too strong a signal, so they were forced to reduce it on all the new radios built after that time. My new radio was one of those. So to get the signal strong enough now to get to the speakers it requires a booster. It sounds like a ridiculous story, but it did solve the problem. I am just happy to have it working again, and my new radio has a little remote. Isn't that cool? I think Bryan has a remote for his Sirius. I am so spoiled, but I really like being able to listen to what I want.

I'll be able to send pictures of the new and improved bathroom pretty soon. The shower is in, most of the painting is done, the flooring is down on the newly exposed part of the floor. Still have to paint the ceiling, put up the additional border, add some molding and paint it, and rehang a towel rack. I think I found the storage cabinet I want, but I have to go see if I can find one. It is at Target and I haven't had very good luck having furniture type stuff shipped from them. Too much damage. However, the website said this piece should be in the local stores, so we will see. I think Jerry should be done with the rest of the construction and painting tomorrow or Friday at the latest.

Hooray!!

2007-08-13T08:21:00.001-07:00

I am so excited to hear that Ben and Natalie are coming home. I really would like to get my house finished before they get here, but we'll see. Today the rest of the bathroom is going in. It will be so nice to have floors that aren't falling in or letting ants in...not to mention it will be pretty. I have worked some on cleaning out the office, but it will take days! I think if I can fill a trashcan and a box a day maybe I'll get it done. Ben and Nat have a bigger challenge. They have to sort and pack their whole house.

Dealing with Something Ugly

2007-08-09T07:25:00.001-07:00

I am happy to report that the ugly bathtub in the guest bathroom has left the building! It was not a second too soon. (Yes, Andrew, it's what I am doing next.) The whole floor under the tub was rotted out and serving as a nest for ants and who knows what else. We also got out some mold and mildew. Maybe that will help Lisa and Natalie breathe better when they are here.

The earlier bathroom remodel took care of
half of the room and this will do the other half. I don't even feel I'm being extravagant with this one. There was a big hole in the floor under the tub not to mention the mold issues. It was a project that needed to be done for health reasons. I don't know how soon it will all be finished because some plumbing will be rerouted, but Lowes has everything we need in stock. That will help. We have to replace part of the walls, too. I had suspected that tub was leaking around the edges but I couldn't convince Dad of it.

I have also started cleaning out the office. Ugh! What a job! Yesterday we finally got the big metal desk out. One desk down and two to go. I will need a really big trash can for this project. So now you can tell I will have a lot to keep me busy for a while. I am anxious to get the office cleaned out so we can finish painting. I still want to paint the hall, living room and office. Then I hope I can sit back and just enjoy for a while.

LHS show for 2007

2007-07-29T10:51:00.001-07:00

I was shopping at Kroger Saturday evening and saw a band parent wearing the t-shirt for this year's band show. It is the musical "Wicked". That is a show I want to see.

For those of you not familiar with that show, it is based on the Wizard of Oz, from the witch's perspective, I think. I haven't seen it, but I have heard some great music from it. Those of you in this area, let's plan on going to a game or a contest this year. Maybe October wouldn't be too hot or too cold.

I guess Lawson's preference for musicals is still around...

Speaking of musicals, I am not listening to the Broadway station on my XM radio right now. My radio died after a short life of only 1 year and 4 months. That is 4 months after the warranty expired. From what I have read it does no good to call customer service about it because you get those people in India or somewhere. So I am looking for a new radio. It's a bummer going back to regular radio.

More pictures . . .

2007-07-23T19:26:00.001-07:00

Snowball's Photo Shoot

2007-07-22T14:44:00.001-07:00

On Saturday Shannon did several new pictures of Snowball in her studio. He posed pretty well - for a little while. It seems he has grown a lot since I got him six weeks ago. One of the new pictures should be on the blog now, but I have not figured out how to add some more, yet.

After we made the pictures Shannon and I took Caitlin to "Old McDonald's" (her name for McDonald's) to play on the slides and eat supper. It was fun, and Snowball came along, too, in his little carry cage. He was pretty good as long as he could see me. When I went to get my food he was a little unsettled, but was fine when I came back. I even took him out for a few minutes so all the curious children could pet him.

New template

2007-07-16T18:42:00.000-07:00

Shannon came over and helped me make some improvements to the blog. Andrew had told me it looked boring, so I hope this is better. I had done something wrong in creating the first one, so we had to delete it and start over. That is why all your comments from the first posting are gone. (It wouldn't let me edit.) We will put in a different picture of Snowball eventually, but this was what I had for now. There is a lot too much sofa in the picture, but we couldn't edit the picture right now. Shannon will help me fix it later.

Let me know what you think of the new look.

What am I doing with a Blog?

2007-07-16T18:29:00.001-07:00

Well, here goes. I am going kicking and screaming into the 21st century with a blog. Who would have thought??? I don't know what I am doing, but I guess I will learn as I go.

Snowball and Me

Merry Christmas

Ten days in Pennsylvania

Spring???

Snow

Screened Porch

Botanical Garden Visit

Could we please have an early Autumn???

BIG WEEK part two: new one-year-old

BIG WEEK part one: new car

Beautiful Alli

Another 6-year-old

Cutest Birthday Party Lately

My Junk

Tour of my yard

My Garden is Growing

I Was Robbed!

You might be a red neck if...

I'm a Ham

aggghhh!!!!

Alaina

Happy Thanksgiving

Beautiful Alli

Alli Love Smith

Family Weekend

Noah's Cool Scooby Doo Pool Party

Butterflies

Too Close for Comfort

Family Weekend

More Cute Baby Pictures

A Little More Love

NO MORE FOUNTAIN SALES!

Family Vacation

Healthy---- Who Me?

I Love New York

Graduation

Puppy Obedience Classes

Happy Birthday to Me

White Dogs Can't Jump

Christmas 07

December Rush

Puppy Love

Last Craft Show

Wish List

"Fat Man in a Little Coat"

Day at the Zoo

Remodeling is Finished!

Almost Finished

Ben and Natalie's Latest News

Progress

Translation Appreciated

One Project Done

XM Success

Hooray!!

Dealing with Something Ugly

More XM problems

LHS show for 2007

More pictures . . .

Snowball's Photo Shoot

New template

What am I doing with a Blog?