Raising a New Porch

After a couple of incidents involving G-mom and a wheelchair we decided it was time to build a new porch on the Barn. A week ago Monday most of the men in the family gathered together to don toolbelts and "get it done!" They got a great start and I am happy to say that though it is not finished the grandparents are not trapped in the house and G-mom's knee has recovered enough for her to go down the steps. To cut them a little slack, the weather was lousy a couple of days this week and Donald did have a doctor appt and Dave did go on the temple trip today. The only requesst G-dad had was for a screened in porch. When finished it will be not only that but will have a swing and chairs for late evening porch sitting.

Fathers and Daughters

Since no one else has told about it here goes.. One of the social events of the season in Tifton is the Daddy/Daughter Valentine Dance. This year I suggested that Dave take his girls and James drive over with his. I knew Jimmy and Catie had gone in the past. They all thought it was a great idea.

So last Thursday they all got gussied up and went off for an evening of fun. I wish you all could have seen the dance line as it passed by the camera Hayward's daughter Durran was holding. She was filming for the Fun Channel broadcast. We were not happy with her efforts as she managed to cut off all the father's heads and give the viewer whiplash with her movements. A fun time was had by all though no one came home with any door prizes, only candy and balloons. (The two Jed is holding were the Cinderella's of the night, they have to wait till they get a little older. Also DAVE spent all day driving around Tifton to buy dresses and shoes for his girls. Anyone need a personal shopper? He is looking for employment.)

Five Happy Things

1. Clean sheets, house, and body at the end of a long week.
2. Cutting roses in my garden.
3. Watching a movie by myself on Friday nights (it is usually something only a few people would like)
4. Filling my shopping cart with sale items
5. Making Jed laugh or at least smile as I drop him off to school in the mornings.

More Jed

What can I say, he is so photogenic. This is what he looks like after a long day that started out with seminary. We know he isn't using the blankie for warmth since it is not covering any exposed body parts, so we must conclude he needed a lovey after a long hard day.

I Love Seminary!

Jed as the Apostle Paul

Pound Cakes

Thanks to G-dad's chickens we have a lot of eggs on hand. I decided to make some pound cake using Great-grandmom Mcghee's recipe. I've made this cake many times. When we lived in Valdosta, GA way back in the 70's, the Bishop of the ward called me to the stand one Sunday. He gave me five dollars and told me to take my talents and multiply them. He also picked a young man for this challenge. I don't remember what the young man did, I just remember I did lots better than him. I bought ingredients with my money and cooked and sold pound cakes. I don't remember how much I made or what I charged, I just remember being glad when it was all over! Wish I had my double oven back then. I can whip them out quickly these days. Pound cake anyone? In case you are interested in the recipe, it is in the reunion cookbook which I am in the process of editing a second printing.

Smashed

I think if I didn't have the gospel in my life I would be prone to drink. TV makes it look so darn inviting. On days when I feel a little smashed in the middle, I could get a little smashed. Not that I have reached that point yet because we all know the Lord never gives us more than we can bear. I have a cold, Jen would probably welcome a visit to assist with care during her down time from puenomia, and grandmom starts radiation every day for five weeks or so. This doesn't even begin to take in to account the never ending reaarranging going on around here. I know you are all saying "admit it Mom you love life like this." Jed had to write an essay on what is normal. We all had a good time with that one!! i know all will be well as long as I get the afternoon power nap.

My word

ignore- pay no attention to, refuse to consider, disregard deliberately. I shall endeavor to ignore things, people, places, words, etc. that cause me to have high blood pressure. I will try to ignore foods that aren't good for me (good luck on this), I shall ignore Satan trying to fill me with discouragement or ungodly temptation. I shall ignore the phone ringing into a much needed nap. ( I might ask everyone to ignore this post if I come up with a better word.) It is hard to find and pick just one word!

One Word

Jen asked everyone to pick one word to identify their plans for the new year. I decided to explore the dictionary. I opened it randomly and put my finger on a word, Kick. Next word was dictatorship. Tried one more time and the word was kickoff. So what does this mean? Heck if I know! Let's try again. Ok, this isn't working. Word was entrain, meaning to drag along after oneself. Last time, I am stopping now and giving more thought. Word was lie.

He was bored

Jed refuses to update his blog so Helen and I thought we would share what we found while looking at on-line photos today.

The Girls

No not all my adorable granddaughters. I am refering to G-dad's latest blogs. Who thought we would have a chicken farm in our backyard? I always thought G-dad thought they were smelly disgusting animals but you should see the house he keeps remodeling for his "girls" I must say there is one rooster out there also who is trained to begin crowing whenever he sees the hand that feeds him, anywhere in the yard. I tried to get a picture of rooster and the cat but wasn't successful yet. The cat follows Dad to the pen now as well as down to the road to pick up the paper. I would not be a bit surprised to see G-dad walking around the yard soon followed by a whole trail of critters? It will be ok as long as no one falls in the cement pond!

Not only are Dave and Eileen responsible for the chicken invasion but they gave the G-parents a digital picture frame for Christmas. Now everyone who visits can see what we presently look like instead of older pics. So keep posting photos on your blogs and we or Susan, the family techno person will transfer them to the frame.

Christmas Presents

As you can see, Jed finally gave me a lesson on camera usage. I had to try and see if I could take a picture of my new tricycle. Dave took some great ones on his camera but didn't download them yet. For some reason his pictures will bear the label "Think Wizard of Oz". Just because there is an old lady riding a bike with a dog in the basket... Anyway, I love my bike!!! I started kidding around with G-dad several months ago about how fuel efficent one would be for trips to CVS. I also am always looking for inovative ways to exercise while combining other tasks. Can you just take my word for it that Gretchen and Sammie love riding in the basket? (see Dave's forthcoming photos) The real fun part though concerns Jed. He told me one day I could never do anything to embarass him. That was what he thought until....he heard me talking about the bike. He made some comment and I told him wouldn't it be fun to pick him up from school one day and let him ride in the basket. Helen used to love it when I would do that with her in kindergarten. Of course the basket was on the front of the bike and she was only five. Jed now lives in fear of the day I ride my blue bike to the back of Northeast campus. I have to figure out what kind of bell, horn, or other accessories to get. I need to figure out what to wear. Possibly outfit from Agrirama days complete with straw hat. Oh, the possibilities!! Never put out a dare to a fifty-three year old woman looking for ways to prove just how crazy she really is.

I shouldn't Make Jokes!

Why is it in these pictures there are two men working and one man standing looking on? At least I know they all had a hand in the project because it is a different guy. The project is still not finished but, hey, the holidays came along, and school graduations, and trips to Idaho. The new kitchen as is came in handy over the holidays. We had several people in there at the same time and both ovens going. Traffic flow was great while fixing plates as we feasted Christmas Eve.

Jedisms

If I had written them all down I would probably have a best seller. I suppose all of us think our kids say the greatest things. Jed has never stopped. Just last night he came out with a zinger, if I can remember the wording.
It started with me asking about a grade on a paper he had agonized over. He told me he got 106 on it. It was supposed to have taken all semester to do but he couldn't find everything he needed until last minute. It had to do with government and he got the six extra points for recreating the presidential seal as a part. He told me he is truly awesome because he could pull the project off last minute and do so well. I berated him about maybe he needs to cultivate a little humility. He put me in place by telling me he knows he has special gifts from God and that is why he drags himself out of bed in the mornings to attend seminary. It is one of the ways he shows gratitude, at least I think that is what he meant. Sometimes he is too awesome for me to understand.

A Thought for the Season

I read this and thought it was so beautiful I had to share it:

Elder Marvin J. Ashton beautifully observed: “Perhaps the greatest charity comes when we are kind to each other, when we don’t judge or categorize someone else, when we simply give each other the benefit of the doubt or remain quiet. Charity is accepting someone’s differences, weaknesses, and shortcomings; having patience with someone who has let us down; or resisting the impulse to become offended when someone doesn’t handle something the way we might have hoped. Charity is refusing to take advantage of another’s weakness and being willing to forgive someone who has hurt us. Charity is expecting the best of each other.” 14

It's beginning to look like Christmas

Inside the house anyway. We got out the decorations on Sunday and got the tree on Monday. Eileen and Donald have picked another fab pine or whatever. We may even leave it up till Valentines because it is out of the way in the solarium and there is very little heat out there so it should not dry out very quickly. Somehow a squirrel made a nest in a box of our decorations. The only thing destroyed was a M&M shirt I had been given last year. I put it in the box so I would remember I had it. The critter must have been hungry for chocolate to go with the nuts we found in the container. The container had no holes chewed in it so it is a mystery how entry was gained. Look for pics of the tree on Eileen's website.

How can we say goodbye?

That is the title of the song the Tift County Chorus sings at the end of every school year. I think it is very appropriate as we watch Carol and Joe drive off towards the mountains, littering the way with discarded possessions but taking all the memories with them.

In my childhood Carol was the one who got us in trouble.

I know it was she who convinced Jimmy to be a monkey and swing from branch to branch till he lay there dangling and gasping for air. I had to share in the spanking that followed. She was the queen of the bedroom we three shared. She arranged it and assigned spots. That is why I can sleep on the floor with only a thin blanket to throw over my shivering body. In our teen years she designed and sewed our wardrobe. We had swatches to indicate our choice for the day since we all wore the same size. Guess who got first choice? She introduced me to the wild side of life when I visited her in Jacksonville after graduating high school. I don't think I was quite ready for bar hopping.

When I became a mother, she sent clothes for Jennifer and flew me and Jen down so I could show off my baby to everyone. She was with me when Helen was born and still bears the mark in her palms to prove it. She has kept my children at various times when I was dealing with family crisis elsewhere. I would still be stuck in PA if she hadn't come up and driven the car back down for us. I think everyone knows from her blog the things she has done concerning Timothy.

Ours has not been a perfect relationship. We have had our moments. I certainly don't want to diminish Susan in any way either. To me the definition of family is to know the faults and overlook them and to love in spite of. I hope we will always be "of one heart."

A Cross Between Jen and Carol

Jen has been talking about books and Carol has been getting rid of a lot of them. G-dad is cleaning out to make room for some from CArol so I have those which I will pass along to Susan or Helen. Get all that? The ones from G-dad are cookbooks. That got me thinking about how that is one thing I share with G-mom. I love "reading " cookbooks. That is about the only thing I read these days besides stuff for seminary. I know it drives my familly crazy but I am always looking for something new and different to cook. I often hear "what is wrong with the way you used to do it?" At least I am sociable when I am cooking. I have become very selective about my cookbook collection. I love the little regional books put out by schools. In the ones Dad gave me were a collection published by Relief Society sisters way back in the sixties. I also have one from the boy scout troop in PA that Dave and Donald belonged to, a school in Alaska from Donald's aunt, and one from the American Legion post in Waycross. My cookbooks are a type of family history if one takes time to look and listen to the stories behind them. Maybe one of the great granddaughters will carry on this family tradition.

Timber!

There is a tree by the G-parents house that has been getting way to big for its space. We decided yesterday was sthe day for it to begin to come down. Dave climbed up a ladder onto the roof with a chainsaw and began the process of trimming branches. Yes, Eileen and Dave have insurance. Eileen needs to blog about that family joke. Donald climbed up on the overhang to assist Dave. The rest of us stood around cheering them on and praying, and praying, etc. G-dad told us how when he was sixteen he could cut a tree to go precisely where he wanted it to go. Luckily the only mess up has been the disconnecting of the bat-phone line in the gathering area.

Video Link

http://www.sgasports.net/new/images/stories/shine/movingwall.wmv

If you follow this link you can view a terrific video made by a local gentleman. I hope Susan doesn't mind me listing this, I just wanted to make sure everyone sees it. It is of the Moving Wall and has a great closeup of the Grandparents.