I Can Be Taught...

I missed my Countryside Homemaker's meeting this month because I was very sick. This year we have made a little craft project after each meeting. March's craft project was to learn a Maple Leaf quilt square. I had purchased my material and was very disappointed I missed this opportunity to learn a little more about quilting.

The meeting was held a Faye's home and she was teaching this craft. She lives down the street from me. She made a little bag for me with the instructions to make the square, a template to cut the square and a sample of some squares she made. Love her heart. I was so happy to find this in my mailbox a couple of weeks ago.  Faye said I could keep the samples until I had a chance to make my own squares. 

Today I made a square and then realized I had enough material to make two square. They turned out pretty good for a beginner. It was fun to make them and I would happily use this pattern again in the future.

Marx Mania...

We have four March birthdays in our family. One of those is Andie's.

Earlier Michael and I came across a notice that James Taylor was coming to Louisville. Andie loved James Taylor when she was a teen. One of my fondest memories was staying up all night on Christmas making a jigsaw puzzle with Andie while listening to James Taylor CD's. Great fun. I told Michael I would watch the kids if he wanted to take Andie to see James Taylor. Tickets were bought, plans were made and Andie got James Taylor tickets for her birthday this year from Michael.

Friday Claude and I journeyed to LaGrange to play with the Mini-Marx's. We arrived while Andie was watching a friends little ones. There had been a playdate with these kids earlier in the day, the mom wanted to go to a consignment sale, Andie suggested she leave her kids and enjoy the sale, the mom agreed. So we entered with three extra kids in the house just before time to go to the bus stop to pick up Hayden. I took baby Hazel and rocked her while Andie took the oldest boy to the bus stop to pick up Hayden.

Bailey accompanied Hazel and I upstairs to the rocking chair. Hazel was sooooo tired and not with her mom. She was crying and her little nose was running. I asked Bailey if she would help me and get me a Kleenex. Bailey found a Kleenex and brought it to me. Then she pushed the computer chair over by the rocking chair, brought the box of tissues and placed them on the computer chair by me and announced, "This a yittle table for you to put the Kleenex on." I just wanted to squeeze her for being so sweet.

Hayden got home, the mommy returned from the consignment sale and took her kidlings home to rest, and we began our evening with Hayden and Bailey. Hayden had Rocket, Bailey had an airplane and I was given the helicopter to play with. The pretend game moved in flying formation from the living room to the family room through the kitchen several times. We played under the dining table and ended the game by flying the aircraft down the landing strip (a.k.a. Bailey's ballet mat).

We had a cute moment occur when we were trying to determine what to do for dinner. Mention was made of this and Hayden overheard. He quickly chimed in, "Well, after we order dinner we can watch our movie."  There was no question in Hayden's mind that we would order and pick up dinner. Guess we have created a habit there. It was funny to hear him state is so matter of factly.

We did order a pizza and Claude picked it up. My grandsons are both pizza lovin' guys.

After dinner, Claude headed to the Louisville Temple to help with the youth in our home ward doing baptisms. Andie headed to Louisville to have dinner and enjoy James Taylor with Michael. Hayden set up the DVD player for Bailey, Hayden and me to watch Cinderella III.

Hayden and Bailey enjoyed their movie so much. After it was over, Hayden wanted to watch some of the bonus features. He was stretched out on the big footstool getting the TV to that point. Bailey strolled over and layed across her big brother and gave him a big hug. How sweet can life get? I never had a big brother and I think that may have been a lot of fun.

I curled up in the family room after getting Hayden and Bailey to bed. At one point I decided I would really like a treat. I got up and checked out the pantry. As I closed that door and started to go back to my Sudoku book empty handed, my hubby came in the door with McFlurries for us. What a guy!!!

We got a call from Katelyn in the evening. She was hired by Office Depot and was anxious to share her excitement. This is a great job opportunity for her. It is not too far from her home and will be a good work environment. I was very proud of her.

One of the things she did in High School was community service. Part of that was helping a man run for political office. She worked very hard and did a good job with this service. When she walked into Office Depot to put in an application, the manager of the store was the person she had helped with his campaign. He rememberd what a great worker Katelyn was and had to remove himself from her job interview because he was very biased in her favor. His recommendation of her personality and work ethic were instrumental in her success in getting this job. This is just good on many levels that end with her having a great part-time job this summer and during the school year to come.

Saturday morning I heard Hayden wake up early. He has to get up early for school and his body was ready to be up. He was very kind and played in his room before knocking on the wall. That is my signal he is ready to have me be awake and come in to play. Our day was about to begin.

Andie had a cake to decorate for Hayden's school carnival that day. I wish I had taken a picture of it. It is a Weber grill with burgers and hot dogs, onion and tomato slices. We would play with the kids while she finished her decorating process.

Hayden suggested we could clean the tadpole habitat. Andie helped us set up and Hayden and I cleaned Galileohopper Jupiter Marx's habitat. (I hope I got that name right.) The habitat was a Christmas gift for Hayden and the tadpole arrived a couple of weeks ago. It was fun to clean and talk with Hayden. Hayden is an interesting young man with lots of facts and ideas to share to anyone who will listen. He told Andie after we went home that he thought I really enjoyed cleaning the tadpole habitat with him. He was right!

Andie finished her cake decorating and needed to take the cake to school by 11:30am. Hayden and I would accompany her on this trip. Hayden entered a Lego Star Wars diorama in the display in the school library. We wanted to be able to see it, if possible. We were able to get in the library, found the diorama, got pictures of it and Hayden as the Buckner Bear mascot and with Darth Vader.

We determined a stop at Subway would be a great idea for lunch. Lunch was enjoyed and chips were shared. That Bailey does love her chips. She is like a little chipmunk when she eats chips. Very amusing to Claude and me.

The afternoon project was to make pocket planters to start seeds. Andie found these in a magazine and determined the kids would do that to create the starts for their garden this year. All you do is take baseball card holder sheets. Fill each pocket with potting soil. Plant a seed in each pocket and put a label on the pocket so you know what seed you planted there. Then you hang the pocket planters on the glass door or window. Water them with an eye dropper or syringe. Hayden and Bailey had lots of fun filling the pockets, picking what seeds they wanted to plant, writing the labels and watering their plants. They are hanging on the door for them to watch grow. I thought this was one of the coolest ideas I've seen in a long time.

Michael had soccer games to referee during the day. When he returned home we celebrated Andie's birthday again. Her family had a birthday celebration for her on her birthday. Claude and I brought our gift on this trip and I made Andie a special cake.

Andie has my father's genes coursing through her veins. She likes to have double-stuff Oreo's and milk in the evening. My father loves cookies and milk. When I was a kid, my mother would keep cellophane bags of vanilla wafers on hand. There were no microwaves to reheat dinner. If my father was late getting home, his favorite meal was to take a bag of vanilla wafers and a jug of milk and a bowl. He would try to even out the vanilla wafers and milk in that bowl as he ate. To this day, if I go to his apartment when he is eating his main meal of the day, he will have a bowl of milk with cookies in it soaking up the milk for his dessert. When Andie comes to visit, we always try to have double-stuff Oreo's for her.

I found cake pans in a catalog that were in the shape of a cookie. It just had to be done. Andie is always making cakes and/or cupcakes that are extraordinary for our birthdays and special events. It was time to return the favor. I ordered the cookie shaped pans.

I made the cake for her Friday morning, put it in the cake holder and left it in the car until Saturday afternoon.

Saturday afternoon we put candles on the cake, sang "Happy Birthday", opened presents and had a little party.

Quiet time for the Mini's was next.

After quiet time the Marx family prepared and headed to Hayden's elementary school for the school carnival. Claude and I got ready and headed to the Marriott near the Cincinnati Airport for the 4th Congressional District Republican Lincoln Day Dinner. We had enjoyed a fun couple of days together. Hayden told Andie we should do that every week!!

Boldly Barefoot...

Sunday I planned to visit my mom after Church services. Sunday I also wore my brown slingback heels. Slingback heels have always been my favorite type of dress shoe for me.

These slingback heels have a strap that goes around the back of your ankle. There is a buckle on the side of your ankle to tighten the strap so the shoe stays on your foot. The strap has a piece of elastic that one piece of the buckle fits in. On my brown slingback heels the elastic had stretched out and come loose. I had not been able to find a shoe repair place to fix this simple repair for me.

After several attempts to find a repair place, I just paused a while and looked at my shoe. I thought I could fix it myself on my sewing machine. One evening I carefully used my ripper tool and cut the old elastic free and opened up the layers of the strap. I cut a piece of elastic and after several attempts had a fix on my heel. I was very happy.

So Sunday I wore these brown slingbacks to Church. Everything was great until I left Church after choir practice to go to my car. I planned to drive to the nursing home first to visit my mom. As I crossed the parking lot, I realized my shoe would not stay on my foot. I checked out the situation and found my elastic fix had come undone. This meant I was 'shoeless'. Hmmmm....

I revised my afternoon plans and headed to Papa's to visit with him and put together a music program for Wednesday. We had a chuckle out of my being barefoot.

When I got ready to leave Papa's, I told him I wasn't sure how the nursing home would feel about me coming in without my shoes. Seemed like there might be some kind of sanitary rules against that. But I really wanted to sit with my mom while I was in Georgetown.

I drove to the nursing home.

As I parked my car, I thought about how interesting I must look in my Sunday duds and hose with NO shoes. I decided that, once again, I would hold my head high and walk like I knew what I was doing...after all...I did, didn't I?

I passed people leaving the nursing home, gave them a big smile and a cheerful "hello" as I walked past. Then I went to the nurses station. It was change of shift time. The little nurses station was full. Slight groan within.

Then I said, "My shoes have broken. I'm bare-footed. Is it still okay for me to come in and visit my mom."  There was a few seconds of awkward silence as they all digested what I just said, then the need to look at my feet, then the chuckle. It was that kind of chuckle that let me know it was not a problem to go visit my mom.

I continued down the hallway to my mom's room. I fought off the urge to do like we did when I was a kid. Our home had all hardwood floors. It was great fun in our sock feet to get a little run going and then slide across the floor in our sock. My mom used to put paste wax on these floors and then give us girls old towels to pull each other over them to polish them. Great fun!! I fought off this urge and walked to the end of that long hall to visit mom.

I had a nice visit and as I left I had to explain to a few others why I had no shoes on my feet. I am a Southern girl that loves to be barefoot anyway. 

It's a Bird, It's a Plane, It's Claude...

Today we completed Christmas 2010...

For Christmas I gave Claude a one hour flying lesson in a Cessna airplane. He called and scheduled his lesson for this morning at 10am.

We were up and out the door by 8am. The lesson was at Bowman Field in Louisville, Kentucky. After a quick drive-thru breakfast purchase a McDonalds, we were headed down the Interstate.  As we got further along, I realized I left my camera at home. This would not be a Kodak moment...it would be a Blackberry cell phone camera moment.

We arrived at Bowman Field and couldn't find where to get in the hanger. The address was right but the doors were locked. Hmmm...  Claude gave me the phone number and I called. James told us to go through the gate marked "No Authorized Entrance" and walk around the hanger. Okay...

Claude and I thought there would be some time for class study or orientation or something. We also thought there would be waivers or insurance things to sign. Nada!!!  They had him give them his phone number and eMail.

I pulled out my crocheting thinking there would be a few minutes before Claude was outside. Wrong. I heard Claude call my name across the room as he and James left the building. I quickly put my crocheting back in my craft bag and headed for what I thought was the door. Wrong...again. It was the glass wall I was supposed to walk around to get to the door. In my rush to catch up with Claude and James, you guessed, I walked right into the glass wall. Geez already!!! I could only laugh at how silly I must have looked. But I gathered my composure and walked around the wall, out the door and hurriedly caught up with Claude and James.

The fun thing was watching my not-so-petite hubby get into the plane. Once in he was quite comfortable but there is an art form to getting a big guy in and out of these little things.

It kind of reminded me of when I wanted this tiny sporty red car in Maryland. It was time to replace mine car and I was to get any car I wanted this time. Kids were gone and I could get something just for me. I found the perfect Honda CV something or other. It had a removable roof you could store in the trunk. The roof was hardtop and we didn't have a garage so it would be perfect for meeting my need to have something with an open top and very sporty. Claude took me to the dealer, I sat in it and fell in love. Then I turned to Claude and in a very hopeful and cheerful voice said, "You try it." After a bit of a workout, Claude was inside that little car. I said, "Would you really be comfortable driving this thing?" Claude, putting his best face forward and in a voice something like the little guy in Fantasy Island said, "Sure, it is fine." I knew right then it wasn't fine but he would go along if that was what I really wanted. We didn't buy that car. I became and 'Old Buick Lady' instead. But I digress from today's real story...

If you could only have seen Claude's face, it was some kinda wonderful. That grin went from ear to ear, even under his beard and mustache.

James spent some time walking around the plane checking things out, even on the top of the plane mind you. He appeared to be quite thorough. Claude sat in the pilot seat and grinned.

I expected this to take some time. Wrong. Just a few words, put the head phones on, tweek some switches inside, propeller twirls and they were taxiing away from the hanger.

James had Claude stop in an outer parking area to test the engine some. Then they went to the runway and they were off.

Claude's plane in right over the tail of the parked plane.

There was a covered patio area with table and chairs. I plopped myself down there and pulled out my crocheting again. A man pulled into the parking area in his own plane. He stopped and we talked for a bit. He asked if I was going to fly. I told him Claude was taking his lesson. He assured me we had just created a monster. We had a lovely conversation about his flying and purchase of his plane.

While Claude was still in the air another family came out to the patio. There was a mom, a daughter, a teenage son, a son about 4 or 5 years old, the gramma and the grampa. The teenage son was the one taking the lesson. Mom called the grandparents and asked if they wanted to come and watch. When they got to Bowman Field, they were told someone could fly with the son on his lesson. Grampa drew the lucky straw. I'm telling you, that Grampa was more excited than the teenage son.

Somewhere during all of this interchange with people, I missed the fact that Claude did one touch-and-go landing. I had the number on the side of his plane in my head but there was another plane that same color.

With all this company for me to visit with, it didn't seem long before Claude landed.

This is James the Trainer and Claude is on the right after their flying lesson.

Claude was very happy with his Christmas gift. We'll have to get him up again some time.

We headed to Chuy's for some lunch and he shared all the things he experienced and learned. It was great fun the enjoy his joy. There was even talk of taking the land that Doug Smith has not developed in Eagle Bend and turning it into a landing strip for the Sadieville Airport.

It was a great day to learn about flying.

We did a little shopping on the way home. And stopped at Papa's and set up his Lifeline alert system. We left him with his alert button hanging around his neck. I feel a measure of peace in that, in and of itself.

Now for a quiet evening at home. Needlework or edit computer files...hmmmm...

Simply Wonderful...

The last few days have been just simply wonderful. I almost don't want to rock this boat by saying that, but 'that's a true statement' as my father-in-law used to say.

Last Thursday we had Papa come out to the house in the morning. He received his lease from the real estate company and we needed to sign with him and get it notarized. He brought his trusty side-kick, Tiny, with him.

He sipped a root beer while we called the Lifeline people and ordered his Lifeline alert system.

Then Papa wanted to take his morning walk up on the hill beyond our home. He loves walking up there. It sort of reminds me of Jake going to Gettysburg. Just clears the head and gives one time to think and ponder the verities of life. I noted the time he left to be sure of the time I should start worrying if he didn't return. Papa enjoyed that walk but he came back puffing. I opened the door and he hurried in and said, "That hill has gotten steeper!"  We both had a chuckle.

Then Papa and Tiny left to go back to Georgetown so Papa could get to the nursing home to feed Mimi.

The rest of the day I worked on projects here and there. It was just a good day to get some things finished up at a leisurely pace. Sure felt good not to have to rush to get something done by a certain time.

Friday morning my new visiting teaching companion came and joined me to visit Linda. Linda lives further out that we do from Georgetown. This would be Debra and Linda's first time to meet each other. I love visiting Linda and her two little grandkids. We had a wonderful visit and enjoyed the time chatting.

Friday afternoon was another slower paced afternoon. I went upstairs to Claude's office and proposed that he take me into Georgetown to visit my mother and then treat me to dinner out. He was up for that idea. So we set the time to leave the house and then finished working on the things we both had started. I visit mom and Claude visited the CVS Pharmacy and the Family Dollar Store (I needed more Sudoku books). Then we went to Appleby's for my favorite dinner of Won-Ton Tacos. Yummy!!!

Rain came a tiny bit on our drive home. But we both commented on what a great day we were having. We ended the evening by watching TV in the basement. While we watched I worked at my computer editing some files I have saved there.

Saturday would be a day at home for both Claude and me. We slept a bit later, not much, just a bit. Then we both started our projects for that day. Mine was to finish my Sunday School lesson preparation. Claude had a talk to finish preparing for Sunday. We kept at it all day and in the evening we curled up in the living room to watch TV. I'm trying to finish up a cross-stitch project and that kept my hands moving.

We also wanted to watch the Super Moon that evening. At 8pm I went out and couldn't find the moon anywhere. Laura called to remind me to look. I assured her I had looked once and couldn't find the moon. Laura said it was just coming up over the horizon in Frankfort. I went out on the deck and looked again, no moon. Then I went out front and walked down the driveway, no moon. By now it was about 8:30pm. I headed back to the deck again with Laura still on the phone laughing at me for not being able to find the moon. When what to my wondering eyes should appear...wait...that's for a holiday in the future!! Behind a building in Sadieville proper you could see a bright halo starting to appear. That lovely moon was just starting to rise over our hills.

It was fun to watch it and go out every few minutes and try to get another picture, always hoping that at least one of the many I took might work out a bit. I did get some pictures that I'm happy enough with that I kept them. The first two are of the moon through the trees, then the last three are of the moon as it rose in the sky. It is not easy to get a picture of the moon with my little camera. But I'll share these because I'm happy with them as my best efforts with my little camera. I've tried on other moons and never had this much luck.

Today was a really good Sabbath. Claude had to be up and out of the house early so he was gone before I ever woke up.

Church was really good. The speakers in sacrament meeting were excellent. I enjoyed teaching my sunday school class. There was a combine Priesthood/Relief Society session about LDS Family Services & Child Services. We tried to have choir practice. I visited my mom for an hour. Then I visited Papa and we picked out music for this coming Wednesday. Claude and I are now home and doing a few restful things. We're going to enjoy the Eagles Concert tonight while I work on my computer files again.

I think I've enjoyed these days because I set the pace for my life and accomplished some things but didn't feel like I had to set the world on fire completing my 'to do' lists. I hope there are some more of those days in this coming week.

Let's Communicate...

First item:  Last weekend I received a message while trying to use Facebook. It seemed strange at the time. I later got an eMail from Facebook stating something in reference to this message. Clearly it appeared someone was trying to hack into my Facebook account. Facebook suggested in their eMail to change my Facebook password and my eMail password. Thus began my adventure.

I changed my passwords. Everything seemed to be going fine. A few tweeks with my Outlook and I was working great. Then, after a bit, I realized I was not getting eMail's on my Blackberry.

I'm honestly not just sure now all the steps and I went through Monday evening. It seemed my Blackberry wanted the new password validated. Hmmmm...which password. The old eMail password first, the new eMail password first, or was it some password associated only with my Blackberry. I know from past experience I have 10 chances to get that password right or I'm locked out of my Blackberry.

I found two places on the Blackberry to change your eMail. I tried both to no avail. I'm not sure how many tries I did and I didn't want to get locked out. Eventually, I just decided to let it be and wait another day and see if my number of chances reset so I had 10 again.

Over the next few days I tried to log onto Blackberry's home page. Apparently none of the passwords I had would work for that either.

Yesterday morning (Wednesday), I called AT&T at 10am. I explained my situation and concern and asked for help getting my eMail back. I had everything else on the Blackberry working, just no eMail. These people were very, very nice. It took three of them to help me through my process. Eventually I had eMail working.

Ryan, the third person I spoke with, asked me if there was anything else I needed help with. Hmmmm...I told him I was not able to send myself a Word or Excel document and then be able to open it, read it, and save it for later reference on my Blackberry. This was a feature that should be available on the Blackberry. I told him in July 2010 (I've tried to correct this problem for a LONG time.) I downloaded from DataViz the DocumentsToGo software to my Blackberry. This should have fixed the issue but it didn't.

Now, I started this phone call at 10am. By 1:45pm Ryan finally isolated the three issues that weren't allowing me to get these files and save them to my Blackberry. This guy had me in the bowels of my Blackberry checking out all the files that make up DocumentsToGo to be sure they were loaded on my Blackberry correctly. But he got me working properly and it was definitely a fix I couldn't not have done on my own.

Through this whole process I ended up losing all my data on my Blackberry. This was not a problem since I did a Sync on the Blackberry last Sunday prior to all this stuff happening. I had all my data on my computer and could get it back with another Sync. We also uninstalled the old DocumentToGo software and reloaded using my authorization code from July 2010's download.

I am grateful for those wonderful AT&T people that spent all that time helping me get these things to work right. Claude and I are both amazed at how connected we are with these silly cell phones now. It is hard to believe we ever lived without them. I even remember 'party lines' being the only way to make a phone call. I remember 4 digit phone numbers, then 7 digit phones numbers, then living in the DC area where you had to use an area code for all local calls because there were sooooo many people and phone numbers.

I'm happy I can send and receive phone calls and check my eMails and Facebook on my little cell phone now.

Next item:  I found an advertizement in AARP for a 'Lifeline' item that I felt strongly Papa needed to have. It is a button gadget that you wear on your wrist or around your neck. If you fall, you press the button and they will respond with an ambulance or calling your relative for you. I did the Internet research on it and learned all about how it worked and the two different styles you can get, etc.

Last Saturday I took Papa to lunch. After I finished eating I shared my findings with him. He said he had seen the advertizements and thought about it but didn't feel like he wanted to use one right now. I tucked the paperwork back in my purse knowing that if he didn't buy into the idea this alert system wouldn't be worn by him. I saved all my paper research away for future reference.

This week on Monday Papa had a bad dizzy spell. He did not tell me about this. It scared him enough that he started a quest for a different place to live where he could be watched over a bit by medical personnel if needed.

Tuesday Papa and Claude were to work a shift at the Family History Center in the afternoon. My visiting teaching came that morning and I didn't call Papa to remind him. When my visiting teacher left, I called Papa's apartment to remind him that Claude would be there to pick him up and to be ready by noon. No answer. I waited 10 minutes and tried again. Still no answer. I left messages both times.

Claude left at noon and went to Papa's apartment. There was no Papa there. Claude headed to the Family History Center and I called the nursing home to see if he was there feeding mom lunch.

I got Kim on the phone. She told me about Papa's episode and his concern. He had inquired about their apartments attached to the nursing home. She was very concerned about him and asked him several times if he talked to me about all this. He told her he had not. I told Kim about trying to get him to order a Lifeline alert system on Saturday. We agreed she would share with me things he told her and might not have shared with me. I explained that he was supposed to have been picked up by Claude and taken to the Family History Center and he had obviously forgotten. She said she would tell him.

Papa left the nursing home after Kim talked with him, went to his apartment and called me. I explained that Claude had gone on to cover their shift. He tried to explain that he and I needed to talk about the Lifeline thing again. I asked if he felt safe enough to drive himself to the Family History Center. He said he did and he would go there now. I assured him I would let Claude know he was on his way.

Wednesday afternoon I went to Papa's apartment before we were to sing. We discussed the episode Papa had on Monday. He was working at his computer and needed more paper for his printer. He has a swivel chair at his computer. Evidently he twirled on that chair and then got up to get the paper on a shelf across that room. When he got up he was very dizzy and it only got worse. At one point after he got the new package of paper and was headed back to his chair, he even felt like he was laying down when he knew he was standing up.

I suggested it my be something to do with his inner ear or with needing to regulate his meds for his atrial fibrilation. He has an appointment with his doctor for his next checkup in a few weeks and will cover all this then. Unless he has another spell, then he'll make an appointment immediately.

We also decided to purchase the Lifeline alert system for him.

This morning Papa came out to our home and while he was here we came down to my sewing room and called and ordered the system. It will be here in about four days.

I'm very happy about this move. It will give me more peace of mind. It only works in his home and within a football field radius of his home. But he can wear it 24/7 and even in the shower. He will press that button and they will answer and ask if he wants family called or an ambulance. He can even press it if he smells smoke or thinks there is an intruder. This should help Papa and me both feel better about his living alone longer. One of Papa's big concerns has always been if something happened to him, how long would it be until someone recognized it and got Tiny to take care of her. This should give him some measure of peace of mind regarding that as well.

Next item:  March is a big birthday month in our family. Aubrey Anne's birthday was Monday, Andie's birthday is today, Nissa's is on the 26th and Paul's is on the 27th. We called Aubrey Monday evening just as their family was about to sing Happy Birthday to her. We joined in on the speaker phone. Today Claude and I called Andie to sing Happy Birthday to her. It was the most awful rendition of Happy Birthday you ever heard. We both started on a different key, Claude cleverly changed some words, it was just pathetic. But we sang and Andie had a chuckle. She said this gives us time to practice for Nissa and Paul.

Next item:  Wednesday afternoon Papa and I sang at the nursing home. They rolled Ray in during the program. After every song Ray would say, "That's a good song." It was just good to see him enjoy the music that much. Another lady called Papa over as we were leaving and told him how much she enjoyed singing along with us on these 'old' songs. Geraldine was having her 89th birthday and we all paused after she got in the room to sing a rousing Happy Birthday to Geraldine.

So much good comes of these little music sessions. It is so very good for Papa to still do that thing that he loves, music. It fills his soul and means a great deal to him. It is so very good for those residents of the nursing home. They are very forgiving of any mistakes we make. They just love the music and time spent with other people. It is so very good for me. I've always played the piano and done the accompanying. I love singing but my voice is very low. Singing with Papa, he can change that key on the guitar and I can sing lead. I know when my father passes away, I am going to treasure these memories of singing with my father for these dear people on Wednesday afternoons.

Next item:  One of the fun things about being a grandparent, is that your grandmonsters call to share things with you. 

Last Saturday Hayden called all excited because his tadpole arrived in the mail. He got a habitat to raise this tadpole in for Christmas. He shared with me all the rules of raising a tadpole so it grows into a frog. He assured me it needed a special kind of water called 'spring water'. That was the only kind the tadpole could have and Pa and I could bring him some if we wanted, as long as we were sure it was 'spring water'. Bailey came into his room and got her first peek at the tadpole as they let it into the water. She pronounced it as 'bootiful'.

This week we also got a happy phone call from Katelyn. She had good news and called to tell us she had a job and an interview for another possible job. This is very good news for a college student needing money for gas, insurance, books, etc., etc., etc.  Michigan is a hard place to find employment now and we were very happy for her. And we were even more happy she wanted to call and share this great news with us.

So there you have it. Communication from the cell phones, to the alert systems to give us a bit of peace of mind, to the joy of music, to grandmonster phone calls. Isn't it grand that we have words and ways to share those words with each other? I just went to bed last light reflecting on all the communication that goes on during any day. It is quite a neat thing.

A Monday Miracle...

This afternoon my father called. The timing was right after he would have been to the nursing home to feed mom. His first words were, "I need to tell you what happened today." Antenna up!!! When you are caring for and about your parents, and one of them has Alzheimer's, these words are sometimes the preface to bad news.  But Papa's voice sounded happy and not concerned.

Then he shared his little story...

Papa got to the nursing home and went into the multi-purpose room where they feed the meals to the residents. He went up to Mimi and, as is his custom, gave her a big hug and looked into those brown eyes and said something like, "Hello baby, how are you?"

Papa then related that Mimi looked him straight in the eyes and said, as clear as a bell, "I love you!"
.
These are the tender mercies I want to remember when all of this is said and done with my mom. Those wonderful moments that melt your heart and give you strength to carry on and joy in the hours you have spent caring for her without those kinds of warm words.

I asked Papa if it didn't just melt his heart with joy. He said, "I almost cried in front of everybody."

Thank you Heavenly Father for giving him a moment of joy with his honey. It is a blessing we are very, very grateful for today and always.

Music to My Ears...

It happened again today.

Last Sunday and this Sunday we had a family with little children sitting behind us in Sacrament Meeting. Each Sunday it was a different family. But each family had a little girl that must be about 7 years old. When it came time to sing the hymns, the daughter in each of these family opened their hymnbook and sang right out in a beautiful, clear kid's voice. They read those words perfectly from the hymnbook and followed the melody line to the "T". It was just wonderful to hear these little ones singing out like that and obviously enjoying the hymns.

Then, today during Relief Society, we could hear the little ones singing. The Primary room is right next door to the Relief Society room. When the little ones are enjoying their music it sounds like they might be right in the room with the ladies. It is just fun to hear them singing with so much enthusiasm.

I just love hearing the little ones sing. And I found today it just made my Sabbath worship complete to hear these precious little bundles enjoying hymns and kids music alike.

Saturday Silliness...

Just a couple of sillies I enjoyed today that I would like to remember:

Today I journeyed to the nursing home at lunch time to spend some time with my mom while Papa fed her lunch. It takes a while, often an hour and a half, to get her lunch down her. When I got there she was not eating well for Papa. He was pretty sure he would get this entire meal down her. We sat and he patiently continued to try. Eventually he got all her food and her milk down her. She truly turned her nose up at the water. I'm sure there was even a stern look at Papa when he tried to sneak the water in between bites. When she finished all the food and the milk Papa congratulated Mimi on successfully eating all her food. We said our goodbyes and headed to the parking lot. My plan was to take Papa to lunch.

As we crossed the parking lot, Papa was again recounting how Mimi ate all her lunch. This makes him so happy and he shares the fact several times with me. It is often the point of conversation when I call him to check on him. It is the one thing he can physically do for her and it is very important to him.

We ordered our food at Arby's and sat across from a couple with a 9 month old baby girl. Papa just love little children so it was the perfect seating arrangement. The father and mother loved having someone carry on about their beautiful little girl. After the family finished their meal, the father brought the little girl over to say goodbye to Papa. Really cute.

Papa continued to eat. I finished and share some information I gathered on a "Lifeline" monitor that we might want to get for him at some point. Papa eats slower than I do so it worked out well timing wise. He was able to finish eating while I shared the information I had gathered.

When Papa was finished and we got up to leave, I looked him straight in the eye and said, "You got your whole meal eaten. I'm so happy!"  We both had a chuckle.

Tonight Claude and I were watching a movie on TV. I left the room for a minute and when I came back I picked up my needlework. Then I couldn't find my glasses. I'm lifting patterns and floss and looking under them. No glasses. I looked at Claude and said, "I can't find my glasses." ...  Are your ready for this? ... Claude looked at me and said, "They're on your nose."  Then we both burst out laughing. I just get so used to them being on the end of my nose till, sometimes, I don't even feel them there.

And that is Saturday Silliness for this week.

Observations...

I've experienced or learned a few things lately that I would like to include in my Blog. Here goes:

Observation #1   (Health):
I happened to catch Dr. Oz on TV the other morning. I usually don't turn on the TV in the daytime. However, this day I was working in my sewing room on a project and happened to have the TV on.

A portion of his program was a game about how guys do things and 'Should' you' or 'Shouldn't' you do things that way. There were two ladies as contestants. Dr. Oz would step up a scenerio acted out by two men. They each had a different way of handling the situation. The ladies had to quickly say which guys way they would do whatever the situation was presented. (Wow, could that have been phrased better or what? Your choice!!)

The scenerio that caught my attention had to do with making beds. Should you or should you NOT make your bed in the morning? I'll preface this by stating for years I've been an avid bed maker (for the most part). Claude has laughed when he got out of bed in the morning and came back to get in it and the bed was made. No kidding. So it is not any wonder this particular scenerio caught my attention. The answer:  You should NOT make your bed right away in the morning.

As you gasp for air, I'll give you Dr. Oz's reasoning. All of us perspire during the night under the covers. When we get up in the morning and make that bed right off, we are covering up what is essentially a wet bed in the bug world. Those little mites that reside in even the most fastidious beds LOVE that warm, damp environment and thrive like crazy in it. So, Dr. Oz says we should not make that bed right off in the morning but let those sheets have a bit of time to dry before making it.

Observation #2    (Service):
While attending Church in Muskegon, Michigan last month, I observed a most tender moment as the sacrament was passed.

A bit of background here for my non-member friends...Each Sunday in Sacrament Meeting, our worship service, the sacrament is blessed and passed by the Aaronic Priesthood holders. We use the emblems of bread and water which symbolically represent the Savior's body and blood. They are taken to remind us of the Savior's Atonement and help us renew and remember the covenants we made at baptism. The boys who pass the sacrament are deacons and are typically the 12-13 year old young men. The boys who bless the sacrament are priests and are typically 16-17 year old young men. 

In the Muskegon Ward is a young man who spends his life in a wheelchair. He appears to have no use of his hands, arms or legs. But he is old enough and worthy to pass the sacrament. I am assuming his father is the one who assisted him in performing this priesthood duty.

His father wheeled him to the sacrament table. They brought from behind the table a special handle and attached it to the front of his wheelchair. Then the father stood behind his son's wheelchair while the blessing was said on the bread. Usually after the prayer the deacons step toward the sacrament table and the priests hand the trays with the bread (water) on them to the deacon. The deacons then walk through the chapel in an orderly manner to pass those trays to each individual member to partake of the bread and then the water.

This young boy's father wheeled his son to the table, took the tray of bread (and in turn water) and hung the tray on the hook they attached to the wheelchair. Then he wheeled his son to the end of the first side row.  The member sitting on the end of that row takes the tray from the hook and partakes of the bread (water) and passes it down as they do on the other aisles.

This process was just tender and very moving. With the help of his father, this young man is able to perform his priesthood duties even though he is severely handicapped. It was a beautiful experience to watch and to have it centered on this sacred ordinance at Church was even more powerful. The sacrament is all about remember all the Savior went through for each of us, the ultimate form of service if you will. What a powerful example was shared by the father and son of living service that way the Savior intended we live lives of service to others.

Observation #3:
Well, when I first woke up this morning I thought of three things I wanted include in my Blog. Now I can only remember two of them. I've gone upstairs and done my dishes and finished soup for dinner tonight and still can't remember that third item. It will have be entered another time. I guess I could say the third observation is I'm getting older and need to do things as I think of them or they could be lost forever!!

Taking Care of Business...

Well, Sunday, May 6th, was my first time out of my home in a week.

My plan for Saturday was to arise early, finish my Sunday School lesson preparation, then invite Papa out for the afternoon and dinner.

What actually happened was, I woke up with an ache in every joint in this old body. I stumbled into the bathroom and found some extra-strength Tylenol. Took the stated dosage. Curled back up in my bed to play a few Sudoku puzzles while the medicine took effect. (I am NOT a medicine taker. Just don't care for that process at all. The fact that I did this first thing is a direct indication of the pain my joints were in.)

Claude came in after the second Sudoku puzzle and I told him I thought I might try and rest a bit more. I snuggled back under the covers. When I woke up it was NOON. I couldn't believe it. Half my day was gone. So much for the 'best laid plans'.

Instead, Claude and I compared our Blackberry calendars through December 2011. Hayden and Bailey Skyped us. And I finished my Sunday School lesson. Thus ended Saturday.

Sunday was a delightful day, exhausting, but a delight nonetheless. I enjoyed going to Church for my first outing in a week. I was able to teach the gospel doctrine class in Sunday School. The horseness in my voice added a certain flavor to the class.

Then I went to visit my mom. Mom was curled up in a little ball sleeping. The nurse came in to take her vitals. I was going through her clothes, matching them into outfits and pairing her socks. After the nurse left I took my Ensign magazine and curled up in the chair by my mom and read with my hand on her little head. I was amused by the fact she would talk out while she slept. It was incoherent but something was happening in her head and she was talking about it. Alzheimer's is interesting. I sometimes wake up hearing myself mumbling out loud. I sat there and thought how alike my mother and I are on many levels. If you looked at my  hands, you would be looking at my mothers hands 20 years ago. The need to keep those hands doing something all the time is exactly like moms. She always had a project going. I'm in process of trying to finish all these little projects I've created for myself without adding any more new things until these are done.

Even though Mimi slept most of the time I was there, I marveled at the closeness you can feel between you and someone else, even when they aren't alert to share. It reminded me of when Jake was born. I distinctly remember holding this new born babe in my arms, close to my heart, and trying to share from my heart to his all the love I felt for him. I just had the strongest feeling I wanted us to create that bond before I took him home to a busy house with big sisters vying for my attention. I remember feeling him respond to those thoughts and feelings I was trying to silently share. I was sure he knew what was in my mother heart and that he was feeling the same about being a part of our family. Sunday, I know my mom knew I was there for her. I just know that.

I visited Papa next. We picked out music for our Wednesday performance. It seems to me that when he and I have throats that aren't right, we sing most of our songs in A. When we are in better voice we sing lots of stuff in C. Then we gave Papa a haircut before I headed back to Sadieville.

By the time I got home after 4pm I was worn out and ready to curl up and rest. I worked at my computer for one hour and then walked away from it for the rest of the evening. Claude and I curled up in the living room. I pulled out my crocheting to relax and Claude searched the TV for something to watch. BONUS!!! Claude found the 25th anniversary program of the music of Les Miserables. It was done in October 2010 in a London venue named O2.

Les Miserables is my all time favorite play. Of all the plays I seen and totally enjoyed and could highly recommend, Les Misrables is hands down my favorite. I've been privileged to see it live at least 5 times.

This performance was just the music. The performers wore costumes and the lighting and placement of them on the stage gave the effect of the scenery and effects.

Every performer was excellent. The weakest one was Nick Jonas and he was still very good. His only drawback was that everyone else had better projection and volume naturally to their voice. They could all just sing louder than him. But his voice was great and he did an excellent job.

My favorite was Javert. He was a person that God has touched with beauty. Did you ever look at someone and think, "What great bone structure and features!" That is what you thought when you looked at this man.  Norm Lewis is an African-American.  Les Mis always uses many ethnic backgrounds in their roles. But I've never seen an African-American Javert and this was a perfect fit.  With Mr. Lewis' beautiful bass voice, he flawlessly performed and sang his way through this role. Never once did I feel like he was working at either of those roles (acting/singing).

Valjean had an amazing voice and gave a grand performance. However, my favorite vocalist for Valjean has always been Gary Morris. His voice just fits that part.

The role of Eponine in this production was a lovely round-faced Filipino lady names Lea Salonga. She is best known for her role as Kim in Miss Saigon. I've never seen her in person but Jake has on the New York stage. He said she was wonderful there and she was excellent in this rendition of Les Mis music. When I worked at the Courtyard Marriott in Gaithersburg, Maryland, one of our front desk clerks was singing one evening as I went to check on my front desk crew. Her voice was lovely and I commented on it. She told me that Lea was her friend and they had studied together. Lea is the one that made it to the big time but they remain very dear friends. Just a nice little aside about Lea. 

The treat with this program was at the very end. They brought some of the stars from the original cast of Les Miserables on stage. They sang a song from the role they played with some of the stars from the current casts and the cast for this special program. It was great. The show ended with a kids version  of the finale song that has been created so kids can perform Les Mis in school theaters. It made for a wonderful end to our Sunday.

Monday I went visiting teaching early in the morning. Laundry was the project for the day. I managed to get Papa's laundry and our laundry finished and the linens on the bed washed. Don't you just love crawling into clean bed linens?  I do. 

Today my morning was mine to accomplish some to do list items. This afternoon Papa and Tiny came to spend the afternoon with me. We worked all afternoon on transcribing the cassette tape of the interview with my Gramma Duck (Papa's mom). It is fun for Papa to go back and remember his family history. There are places I just can't understand what is being said. Sometimes we have to listen several times to get what we think is said. Then we'll continue with the cassette tape a little further and go back and correct a name or city. It will eventually be done but it is a slow process.

Claude had meetings in Georgetown all afternoon. He called me when he finished and we invited Papa to stay for dinner. Claude brought us KFC and we shared a nice meal before Papa headed home.

I'm slowly getting strength back and working hard at getting back to normal without overdoing and relapsing. I'm not sure what illness this was this time but I know I'm sick and tired of being sick this winter.

Today I watered my indoor plants. I end with this picture of my Christmas poinsettia. I have NEVER had one last this long. It is beginning to lose a lot of the middle leaves and I know it won't last forever, but I'm so happy I'm still enjoying this splace of red in my kitchen/breakfast room.

The Sermon...

I'm sitting here studying for my Sunday School lesson I'll teach this Sunday. We will be studying the Sermon on the Mount, but only Matthew chapter 5 this week. Next week we'll cover Matthew 6 and 7. I'm finding some great tidbits that I really want to keep close so they are going in my journal (translated Blog) while I study. I just LOVE multi-tasking!!!

These are thoughts I had or found while reading Matthew 5:

• "Pure in Heart" was a Beatitude that really touched me while studying it this time. I first thought of the fact that today we do not offer animal sacrifice. Instead we are to offer a 'broken heart and a contrite spirit'. I remembered the scripture mastery verse from seminary 1 Samuel 16:7 which states "the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart". Wow!!! If the Lord is looking at my 'heart' it better be 'pure'. I love it when things I already know just come together like that.
• "Peacemakers" sent my brain to a Relief Society lesson I was asked to substitute teach in 2010. The lesson was a conference address given by Elder Quentin L. Cook. One portion of his talk was about 'love' and the quote I loved from that talk I've added to the Sunday School lesson notes in case I feel prompted to share it. Elder Cook said, "I invite each one of us individually to recognize that how we disagree is a real measure of who we are and whether we truly follow the Savior. It is appropriate to disagree, but it is not appropriate to be disagreeable…If we show love and respect even in adverse circumstances we become more like Christ.”
• "Hunger and Thirst After Righteousness" made me think of Esau selling his birthright for a mess of pottage (Genesis 25:29-34). Esau's hunger must have been great. Do I hunger and thirst for the things of righteousness as diligently as I might for that Dr. Pepper I love or a chocolate macadamia nut cookie I might crave? Hmm...'
• "Love your enemies" was a new doctrine at the time of Christ. (Think of their aversion to the Samaritans.) Jesus supplemented this requirement with an explanation--if men followed this course they may become children of God. Their Heavenly Father is kind, long-suffering and tolerant, causing His sun to shine on the evil and on the good, and sending rain for the sustenance of both just and unjust. (I remembered when studying this that at this point the Gospel would still be taken to the Jew first. Later the Gospel message would be taken to the Gentile as well. Acts 10 is the story of Cornelius, a Roman centurion, and his worthiness to receive the gospel. Peter has a vision while in Joppa at Simon's home [Claude and I have been there] that let's him understand the Gospel is for Gentiles also. Verse 34 of Acts 10 has Peter stating, "Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons." Powerful story of the intent of what is about to happen with that simple statement "Love Your Enemies". I also remembered just teaching about the Samaritan Woman at the Well. Even as he lived the Savior set the example of treating those considered enemies as he treated everyone.

These thoughts are from James Talmage book Jesus the Christ:

• Mere pleasure is at best but fleeting; happiness is abiding, for in the recollection thereof is joy renewed.
• The law (referring to the Law of Moses) provided penalty for the deed; the gospel (Christ fulfilling the law and instituting the higher law) rebuked the evil passion in its incipiency (I love this word. I would never have known it to use it. That is one reason I love reading really educated people. They have delightful verbage.)

These thoughts are from the New Testament Institute Manual:

• "As Man now is, God once was; As God now is, man may be."  Joseph Fielding Smith at Snow College, May 14, 1971
• The Sermon on the Mount is our Constitution for Perfection.
• "The 'meek' man is one who is not easily provoked or irritated and forbearing under injury or annoyance. Meekness is not synonymous with weakness. The meek man is the strong, the mighty, the man of complete self-mastery. He is the one who has the courage of his moral convictions, despite the pressure of the gang or the club." Harold B. Lee

When we visited Owingsville they had this lesson in their Sunday School class. It was fun to sit in on the lesson being taught by another teacher. Someone made the comment they had understood that first 12 verses of Matthew 5 incorrectly all these years. However, how they understood it was really perfectly correct. They understood it as 'BE-Attitudes'.

Time for bed. Those are a few of tonights notes that I really enjoyed. There are soooo many more. But these will suffice for this Blog entry.

Just Wishing and Hoping and Thinking and Praying...

I think that is the right order. It is the words to an old song from my teen years.

I've spent Sunday evening through today a might under the weather. I was mostly laying down all day yesterday. The night before I went to bed at 9pm and, while it was a VERY restless night, I didn't get up until 9am. That is a lot of laying around for this girl.

Sunday, Feb. 27th, Claude was to visit Owingsville Ward. Our home ward was having their ward conference. This meant I didn't need to find a substitute for my gospel doctrine class. So Claude and I scooped up Papa Sunday morning at O-Dark 30 and headed to Owingsville.

We were there early enough for Claude to go to a meeting prior to church beginning. Papa and I headed to the chapel to wait until time for the meetings began. It was nice to sit and chat with Papa. He is a real talker and does not get that need filled as often with Mimi not being at home anymore. So he enjoyed the talk and I enjoyed the listen.

Soon men started to come into the chapel. I kept waiting for others to come. I completely forgot that Owingsville is the only ward in our stake that has Priesthood and Relief Society first, then Sunday School and finally Sacrament Meeting. Finally one nice older man came up to me and said, "Would you like to go to Relief Society?" Then the bell went off in my slowed down brain and we all had a chuckle. I headed down the hall to Relief Society.

In Relief Society they had announcements about their upcoming Relief Society meetings. The one that caught my eye was the March Relief Society Birthday Celebration. They are calling it 'Sister Act' like the movie with Whoopi Goldberg. It will be an evening of talent by all the sisters in Owingsville Ward. They can perform something musical but they could also read a poem they wrote, display artwork they have made of any kind and even bake something if that is what they are talented at. By the time we left that meeting every sister was on board to participate. It just sounded like great fun and a very original idea.

We love to go to Owingsville. There is such a warm and friendly spirit among these good people. It was good to get Papa out of his apartment and into the country. Our bad winter had slowed that ability down for him and now the gas prices are going to practically eliminate it for him. He really enjoyed being there and so did Claude and me.

By Sunday evening my throat was getting sore and I knew I was not feeling well. Monday morning when I woke up I knew it was a stay at home day. I called Papa and told him I wasn't coming in to practice to sing on Wednesday. Wednesday I called and told my Countryside Homemakes Club I would not be attending and I called Papa and told him I couldn't sing. Now it is Thursday and I have not been out of my home since I got home Sunday afternoon. Yesterday was the worst so I'm assuming that was the peak of whatever this is I have. I just laid prone all day. Today I have determined I would stay up all day. I just done a project and then sit down to rest. But I've made it through so far. I bet I rest well tonight though.

I'm grateful that Katelyn loaned me her book titled "Breaking Dawn". It is the 4th book in the Twilight series. It is hands down the best of the books. Katelyn told me that this summer when we walked about it. She was on target with that assessment. It was nice to have this book on hand (I borrowed it from her when we went to Michigan in February). I felt like I wasn't wasting all my time being sick.

I did take my Sunday School lesson materials into the living room and left them on the coffee table to study. I tried. But my head was not as clear as I wanted to remember cross references and things.

Claude brought me chocolate cake and Ben & Jerry's New York Superfudge Chunk ice cream on one of his trips to Georgetown. Such a guy!!!

So I sit here this Thursday evening 'wishin' I will continue to get better, 'hopin' that I don't get sick again (this is my third bout with something this winter), 'thinkin' about how blessed I am to have this home I love to be in so that being home sick is not a chore and 'prayin' my mind will clear so I can focus on that Sunday School lesson. That about sums my week up!!