She's Back...

Katelyn is back in Kentucky. She was very happy to see her Grampa when we got to Bailey's ballerina recital. She settled right in when we got home to Sadieville that night.

Friday morning was cut-our-hill-in-Sadieville time. Claude was so happy to have Katelyn there to help. He got the edges done for her and Katelyn climbed back on that tractor and away she went.

Her cutting was not without incident though.

At the bottom of our hill is a huge flat area along the creek. Claude cuts the edges of the grass so that Katelyn won't drive the tractor into the creek. It gets very soft on the creek edge of the grass. So Claude had already made at least one pass around all that flat area. Then Katelyn made a pass around the inside of that rectangle a couple of time. On the next pass she got to the far end and bumped something with the tractor. She immediately put the tractor in reverse and back up only to find Bambi laying in the grass. She almost ran over Bambi!!! Oh My!!! Bambi jumped up when Katelyn backed that tractor up and bounded up the hill into the woods. The little fawn was okay. We were amazed it didn't move with Claude first mowing around it and then Katelyn, but it just nestled itself further into the grass and stayed where its Mama put it.

Friday evening was Sadieville's first MusicFest of the summer. Merle Tussey had karaoke going by 5pm and the hot dogs and burgers were being served by 5:30pm. Now the time for this event is supposed to be 6pm - 9pm. Music was finally done at 10pm. This is just a great time for the community to visit and enjoy an evening together. Last summer Katelyn enjoyed helping us provide these events for our community. The proceeds go to refurbishing our Rosenwald School.

Merle played one song that is a new popular line dance and as soon as Katelyn heard the first few notes she was across the street and up to the pavilion to participate. What a kick. She even sang a song by herself and later talked Claude and me into singing one with her.

Katelyn was truly happy to see all the Sadievillians she came to know and loved last summer. Vernon Morris even came down to visit with her. She loves to tease him and vice versa.

After we finished our cleaning up, Claude had her drive the Jeep to pick up the directional signs we put up each month.

Today we picked up Papa and headed to Bardstown. Papa turned 83 years old on May 3rd. Our gift to him was a train ride on "My Old Kentucky Railroad". It is a lunch ride. Papa and Katelyn allowed me to get this picture of them before we went inside to wait for the lunch train trip.

Claude noticed something interesting. He pointed it out to me and I strolled over to get a picture. Can you tell why you wouldn't want to stay at this motel???

We road through the beautiful countryside, dined on salads followed by hot browns and then desserts. Our server had everyone sing 'Happy Birthday' to Papa. Then we hustled back to Georgetown in time for Papa to go feed Mimi dinner.  It was a lovely trip and good to get Papa out of his apartment for a bit.

Tonight Claude and Katelyn are enjoying the '25th Anniversary of Les Miserable' and it sounds like now a 'Pirates of the Caribbean' movie.

It's fun to have Katelyn with us for a bit. She doesn't get to stay the entire summer but we are so grateful whenever we get to have any and/or all of our grandmonsters visit. Just LOVE being a Gramma!!

Our Little Diva, Prima Donna, Ballerina...

Bailey really wanted to take ballet lessons. She asked her mom for them. Andie found a class for four year olds just starting at ballet. Black leotard, pink tights and shoes were purchased and all was in order.

Bailey's last class was Thursday, May 19th. Claude and I planned to drive over to see Bailey the Ballerina. During the day we received a call from Bailey to assure us we were invited. She had some instructions about viewing and when we could come in.

Claude and I arrived at the school at 3:30pm. Andie met us in the parking lot. Good thing she did because the walk to get to that classroom through this building was down numerous hallways and around many corners. We would never have found it on our own.

Hayden was there to meet us. He was one happy boy. He gave the viewing instructions again. Basically, we all stayed behind a big picture window for the first 30 minutes. Then the last 15 minutes we were allowed into the room to watch the girls perform all the steps and positions they had learned during their weeks of training.

I positioned myself behind the glass window and turned off my flash during the first half hour. This is sure to produce lots of fuzzy pictures with strange overhead lights and mirrors for the light to bounce off of. I took lots and lots of pictures hoping a few would actually work. I deleted lots and lots of pictures and was able to save a few.

These first pictures are of Bailey warming up with the girls and their teacher and were taken behind the glass window. Bailey has her brown hair in the bun with a ribbon that has lots of streamers on it hanging down. She is sitting on the left portion of the circle and she is the last person on the left of the back row when they are in front of the mirror.

Okay, time to enter the room to see what these little ladies have learned. Bailey is 5th from the right with a big grin on her face. She was very happy to have all of us there to observe.

 

While these things were happening, Hayden was rockin' out to the great music playing while the girls performed. He was one happy boy. He stayed at the back of the gym and totally enjoyed himself.

Next the young ladies lined up and, as their teacher called out the names of poses and positions, the girls did their best to respond appropriately. Bailey is in the center of these pictures with a name tag on the center of her leotard.

Then they moved to lines in front of the mirror. Bailey is on the end of the back row.

Thus goeth the performance. It was so much fun to watch them try so hard to concentrate and do everything just right. They were happy and even gave themselves a round of applause before lining up for stickers from their teacher for doing such a great job.

We were invited back to the Marx home for homemade taquitos. They delicious!!

Andie purchased a Gigaball for the kids. She and Hayden got it from the garage and rolled it to the back yard. What a great time Hayden had and then Bailey rolling themselves around in the thing.

It was time to head back to Sadieville. We scooped up Ms. Katelyn, who had been spending time with the Marx family, and pointed the red Buick east. Great dancing, lots of good food, no rain so we could play outside with the kids, what more can one ask of a day??

The Door & Clyde...

This afternoon was 'Sing at the Nursing Home' time. I headed into Georgetown to join Papa in entertaining the residents for an hour.

Usually Mimi is right there or they bring her in right after we start the program. Today she was not in the multi-purpose room and never showed throughout the entire program.

After Papa and I sing he will do some instrumental music. He plays some on the harmonica and some on the mandolin. I left while Papa did that to check on Mimi.

Mimi's room is at the end of the hall. I started down the hall and realized part of the problem could be that they are putting down the wood floors in the hallway. There is lots of 'stuff' in the way.

When I got to Mimi's room the door was closed. They do this if they are changing one of the residents. But what caught my eye was the typing paper taped to the door. It said something about 'this room has been terminally cleaned'. It said that at the top of the paper and in the middle of the paper. Hmmm...there was something about not moving the bedding and a grid to check things off. What did this mean?

I asked the workman if he knew what they were up to with this sign. He had no clue.

I knocked on the door and got no answer. If they had been changing someone, the CNA's would have responded. So I opened the door a bit and saw that Mimi's roommate was in her bed and I could see Mimi's curled up body in her bed. Soooo...I entered.

Mimi was busy talking to herself. She did look up and give me one big grin. I could see nothing in that room that fit with the sign outside. I stayed with mom until time to help Papa put the muscial instruments and things back in his car.

As I passed the nurses station heading to help Papa, I asked the nurse dispensing meds before dinner time about the sign on Mimi's door. I asked her what 'terminally cleaned' meant.

She looked a bit surprised and then grinned and said, "I really don't know." Then she thought for a second and said, "That is really confusing language isn't it?"  Yep, I would call it a mite confusing. She figured the room had been thoroughly cleaned and that was it but she wasn't sure.

I was sure my mom was okay so I headed in to help Papa.

Clyde was sitting at his table and wanted to hold my hand and kiss it. Such a gallant figure that Clyde. Then he showed me his latest drawings.

Mr. Graves is an artist whose mother resided in the nursing home until she deceased. He comes in once a week with his art supplies and helps those residents who are interested to draw and color. At present, Clyde is his stand out student.

Clyde draws cars and then colors them in. He has lots of papers where he has drawn a simple car or truck and colored it in. There are all sorts of colors of cars and trucks. Mr. Graves even had him doing some with water color and some with colored pencils. Clyde revels in his artist abilities.

Today Clyde had three new drawings to share with me. I oohhed and aahhed over each of the three, finding compliments for each picture. Clydes face beamed. As I started to leave, Clyde asked which picture I wanted. I chose the green truck with the purple wheels. Purple is my favorite color so it seemed appropriate. Clyde beamed even more to be able to give something he made away.

I never ceased to be amazed at how little things that don't cost hardly anything can bring so much joy in life. We always seem to be looking for something that is the biggest and the best, but really and truly, simple gifts touch our hearts just as well.

Which Came First???

Sunday, May 15th was stake conference. It was also an awards program for Michael Marx. Michael referees soccer and was being honored for being such a great referee. This awards program was in Lexington.

After stake conference, we met the Marx family at the McDonald's near the stake center. We gave Michael and Andie Claude's Jeep in exchange for their van with 2 little grandmonsters inside. Who do you thing fared better in this deal?

We took Hayden and Bailey inside for their lunch while Andie and Michael headed off for an afternoon to themselves. Happy Meals were enjoyed by the kids.

Claude drove us to Sadieville for an afternoon of fun. It was a rainy day and I commented to the Mini's about the rain. Hayden broke into song, "Raindrops keep fallin' on my head..." I looked at Claude and he turned to look at me. We were surprised our little 6 year old knew the words to this song. He sang it all the way through with 'humms' in the appropriate places.

I asked Hayden if he would sing it again and I would record it on my phone. He obliged. I pressed the wrong button and lost his recording. Hayden sang again, I pressed the wrong button and thought I lost that recording as well. The third time he sang it he cautioned me about which button to push when he finished. I managed to press the appropriate button and we had a recording of Hayden singing. At some point I realized I had two recordings on my phone of Hayden singing this song. I said that out loud. Hayden said, "That's okay. You can keep one and send one to my mom and dad." I eMailed it to Michael and
Hayden was soooo happy with this process that he said, "Would you like me to sing the poem we had in school this week?" I assured him I would. I got my cell phone ready to record and Hayden sang the 'Mr. Sunshine' song. What fun.

Hayden also put on his Darth Vader mask. I got a shakey picture because of the car movement. Bailey, not to be outdone, wore it upside down for her picture. My comment on Facebook about this picture was..."The force is strong in our family this weekend!"

We started our afternoon with ice cream. Grampa had Dairy Queen Dilly Bars and Hayden and Bailey enjoyed these a lot.

Hayden wanted to be sure our VHS tapes were in alphabetic order so he and Claude went down to accomplish that chore while I stayed with Bailey.

Pretty soon we heard Hayden calling upstairs. He happened to find a cartoon version of "The Little Mermaid" on the VHS shelf. This is not the Disney one with Ariel. When Bailey finished her ice cream we all settled into the basement to watch this short movie.

We played with the cardboard blocks that look like bricks, Bailey had a tea party for us. Claude watched cupcake wars and Hayden and I picked the same favorite. We were very happy when she won the show. PlayDoh was pulled out and enjoyed. Crafts were colored. Hayden wanted Scooby Doo coloring pages which we found on the computer and printed for him. He ended up doing several and then had Claude help him make a book out of them. Later, at home Hayden would write the story on each page. It was a fun afternoon and evening.

Then we were off to take Hayden and Bailey back to Lexington to meet up with Michael and Andie. On the drive back Hayden asked, "Which came first, the nebula or the star?" I just burst out laughing. I explained to Hayden that the joke most people ask is, "Which came first, the chicken or the egg?" He understood but still needed an answer to his question. That was our discussion all the way to Lexington.

Michael received a nice watch for all his hard work and being such a great soccer referee. A good time was had by all. Cars and kids were exchanged and we each headed back to our homes.

The Drive...

Monday, I went to pick up Katelyn for a visit. This means I drove from Sadieville, Kentucky to Muskegon, Michigan on Monday and returned home on Tuesday, via LaGrange.

While I have no pictures of this lovely journey, I did have some fun along the way.

I left Monday morning about 9:45am stopping in Dry Ridge to get my usual biscuits for breakfast from McDonalds.

There was a huge slow down in the traffic as I headed through Ohio. At a curve in the road I could see a patrol car with lights flashing driving in the left lane. In the right lane I could see a pilot car with lights flashing to warn of the extremely large load on a truck in front of it. Eventually the patrol car pulled in behind the pilot car and we were able to slowly pass these mammoth objects being transported down the Interstate via truck.

I needed to get some gasoline and found a station that was the least expensive to that point. I pulled in and got my gasoline and a snack and headed down the road.

Amazingly, I happened upon another slow down in the Interstate traffic. At first I was stunned that all the oversized vehicles seemed to be on Ohio highways that day. Then, as I passed the slow down, I realized they were the same ones I managed to get past before and they just passed me while I was filling up my gasoline tank. Oh bother...

I made it to Muskegon by 5:30pm with only a few rain showers during the day. I stopped at Walmart on my way to Nissa's to get crayons and coloring books. Did you know they just don't make plain old coloring books anymore. Really. Katelyn posted on Facebook that she wanted to color. I forgot to bring colors from my home, so I was trying to purchase what I needed at Walmart. I did get a big box of crayons but I didn't get a coloring book. I headed for the Dollar Tree in that same shopping center. They only had coloring/activity books. No plain old coloring books with just pictures. I picked up a few books and headed to Nissa's clearly feeling life is passing me by. Also a bit of longing for simpler days.

Nissa was outside preparing a wonderful dinner of grilled BBQ chicken and pork chops. Aubrey Anne and Paul were there for lots of hugs and some coloring, picking the guitar, and talking while dinner was prepared.

After dinner, I scooped up Paul and Aubrey and we headed to the grocery store for ice cream. Then back to the house to have a little dessert and some visiting before bedtime.

Katelyn got home later and shared her workday with us. Then we were off to bed for a good night's sleep in preparation for our long drive on Tuesday.

Tuesday morning, Katelyn drove my car to take Aubrey and Paul to school. Then back to the house to pack upKatelyn to take her to Kentucky. Hmmm...one minor problem. Katelyn left her house key in the house thinking Todd and Nissa would be there and they were already gone to breakfast before work. KT called them and they graciously came and gave Katelyn their keys to unlock the door.

We packed and finished Katelyn's chores, drove by work to say a final good-bye to Nissa and Todd, then we were off on our journey to LaGrange. Ooops, we did make a stop at McDonald's for my biscuits and Katelyn some breakfast.

Now, our direction, carefully laid out for us by Claude, was to take Hwy 31 to Indianapolis, loop around the outside of Indianapolis on I-465, then go south on I-65 to Louisville and out I-71 to LaGrange. He even took an atlas, highlighted the route, and put sticky tabs on the 3 pages we needed to look at. Simple, Simple, Simple...let's see if we can complicate that just a bit.

Somewhere in the southern portion of Michigan, we got to mile marker zero. That should be the border of Michigan and Indianan on Hwy 31. Picture LOTS of construction and what may have been missing signage. Not sure. We had followed the Hwy 31 signs and did drive over I-94 to Chicago. I was sure we were going okay with the exception of the highway markers starting in the 30's.

If you read maps and highway signs, you know that going south on the roads the mile makers start at zero on the southern border and then increase mile by mile as you go north. So, crossing the border into what we thought was Indiana should have given a mile marker with a number in the 200's. To see one in only the 30's made us wonder. That and there was no "Welcome to Indiana" bill board anywhere.

We kept plugging along and then we got to zero and I determined to wait a bit more to get gasoline so we would be sure we were in Indiana and the prices might be a little less that Michigan. Now the mile maker only started at 45. Hmmm...that was just NOT right. There was also still no bill board welcoming us to Indiana.

I felt like I should press on till I found something familiar and it came up in pretty short order. It seems we were on I-94 headed to Chicago. How and where that happened I have absolutely no clue. The good news was that the signage also told me the exit for I-65 was coming up. I knew we were way west of where we should be but I also knew for sure that I-65 was the highway that goes through Indianapolis and to Louisville. We would aim for I-65.

It felt good to know where we were and know we were on a good highway going where we needed to be. We found a gas station and paused for a bit, read the map of Indiana I keep in the glove compartment, got some snacks and headed down the road. I assured Katelyn that, while we were off course, this might be as quick as it was Interstate with no stopping and Hwy 31 would have taken us through towns with lots of stop lights.

Next portion of our adventure was a search for a lunch spot. We were both hungry for Applebee's. We diligently watched those exit signs that tell you what gasoline, lodging and food businesses are by the Interstate. NO Applebee's signs at all. We made it all the way to Indianapolis and never found one. We thought there surely would be one as we went around the outside edge of Indianapolis. Nope, nary a one. We headed south on I-65 and found one at mile marker 55 on I-65. Yippee!!  The lunch of our choice at 3pm. Katelyn and I are very persistent it would seem.

The other cute thing was Miss Katelyn. She wanted to get a trucker to blow his horn. As we passed each (and there were many) truck, she would make that sign requesting them to blow their horn, you know, like you are pulling down a chain with your hand. By the end of our run through Indiana she had 20 honks to her credit. She was one happy young lady and I was a very amused and happy gramma.

We got to the Marx home and deposited Katelyn. Hayden and Bailey had been giddy with excitement all day knowing they had company coming for a visit.

Then I pointed the Buick toward Sadieville and headed for home, my hubby and my warm bed. Such an exciting life I lead!!

Bailey by the Bridge...

Silly Gramma...While syncing my Blackberry, I found pictures I took while on a walk with Bailey on April 30th.  I know I posted that I took that walk and put a picture of the shells we collected after the kids washed them off in the kitchen sink. However, I still want to put these few pictures on my Blog of Bailey on our walk.

We walked over to the dam and found rocks to throw in the water. I got this picture of the bridge from beside the dam.

Eagle Creek has more water running in it here below the dam that when it is at it's average level. We've had lots of water this spring and our little creek has overflowed its banks more than the total of all the years we have lived here.

We picked up some sticks and rocks and headed for the bridge. Bailey would toss them off on one side of the bridge and we would watch for the sticks to float under the other side of the bridge. While we were doing this Papa drove down to head back to Georgetown. He parked his car and joined us for a bit.

While Papa held her up, Bailey explained all that we were doing and pointed out her sticks floating down the creek.

Bailey and I made our way down to a place on the banks below the bridge. Lots of great rocks and sticks AND some clam shells. Such fun searching and tossing objects into the creek.

I just want to give some perspective regarding the level of water in our little Eagle Creek with the spring rains and run-off. Here is a picture of the water station tower on April 30th when Bailey and I took our walk. There there is a picture of the water up around that station during one of our heavy rains.

Also, I noted during our play session by the creek, the branches that drifted down the creek during the flooding and stuck in the branches of a tree standing along the edge of the creek.

It was a great joy to watch Bailey enjoy the creek. Sure is a wonderful spot to live

Back to the Future...

Claude was asked to serve on the Scott County/Georgetown Museum Board by Sue Toncray. He accepted and has attended a couple of meetings. One of the things the board members are doing is visiting other museums in the area to see what they have done, are doing, etc. This week they visited the museum in Maysville, Kentucky and I was invited to tag along.

What a beautiful drive you always have no matter where in Kentucky you may roam. You just about have to go some back roads to get to Maysville from Georgetown. It was just a beautiful day for a beautiful drive. Even if we did nothing else, that drive was worth the day.

We met another member of the board in Maysville at a restaurant named Caproni's. It is right on the Ohio River. It is actually built on the river side of the flood wall for Maysville. The railroad tracks are the only thing that separate you from the Ohio River. The river was flowing fast with NO traffic. Only when we got ready to leave was there one lone boat trying its best to go against the current and up the river.

This was a delightful restaurant and I would go back in a heartbeat. I'm not sure what it is about eating in a restaurant along the river when you can look out big windows watching that river while you dine. It just is very relaxing and that food always seems to taste a mite better.

After lunch we headed to the Kentucky Gateway Museum Center.

This was a fun museum to browse through.  There is a $10 fee to tour the museum. Claude and the other three guys headed to the history section. I turned my attention to the art section.

Along the wall going to the art display room, there is a large glass cabinet with a display of pencil carvings. This artist has actually taken the lead of pencils and carved it into miniature things. I looked for a post card of some of these and didn't find one. There was a hammer, a giraffe, a cemetary, a chain, and the list goes on. No picture taking was allowed so I just have to keep my mental pictures.

The art display has paintings, mosaics and some wood work. I enjoyed this room all to myself.

Then I headed for the miniature room. Oh My!! What a treat.

The lady at the desk explained to me this is the 3rd best collection of miniature in the country. The Browning family (a family with a manufacturing background and not the guns) is the big supporter and benefactor for Maysville's museum. Kathleen "Kaye" Browning is the collector of these rooms of miniature homes, buildings, rooms, clothing, etc.

The crown jewel of her collection, literally, is a 1/12 scale model of Spencer House which is Princess Diana's ancestral home. Kaye Browning commissioned miniature artists in 2001 to create this amazing miniature reproduction. The rugs are handmade. The silver is real silver crafted in detail as it would be in the real Spencer home. There was even a room complete with family portraits hanging on the walls. Diana was one of the portraits. The two photos above I scanned and saved from the brochures of the museum. The first one is of Kaye Browning beside the exterior view of the center of Spencer House. The second picture is one of the rooms inside the house. Note those chandeliers with individual crystals. The columns and moldings are perfect.

Another of the miniatures that caught my eye was of a hobbit home. I love the Lord of the Rings books and movies.

I made my way over to the history of the county and state portion of the museum. By this time the boys were visiting with Dawn Browning the director of the museum today. She obviously loves her work. Andrew was with us. He is the full-time employee of our museum. She offered to give him the 'behind the scenes' tour and invited all of us to join them.

We went to the basement and toured the room where they store their inventory. This is all very new and they have worked hard to use their money very effectively and efficiently to preserve the pieces they have for the museum. I particularly loved the sliding wall storage. On some of these walls were bars to hold flags that are carefully rolled around the bar and covered with special linen looking fabric. Then there were walls that had mesh stretched across them. On these were hung extra pictures in their frames.

In the basement were also the security computer room, a lab area with tables and a kitchen to hold classes with kids, the offices of the director and others, a holding room for new items collected. These have to be labeled and cataloged before they can be displayed or saved in the storage room we viewed first.

We took the elevator up to the 2nd floor. The geneology library is located here with shelves of books and readers, etc. Behind these was a room where volunteers were scanning and saving digitally all the paper files that were saved in file cabinets. In the back of this room were storage shelves that you could turn, with great ease, a handle on the end of the cabinet and it would move it forward or backward. Beyond this was a room with the file cabinet storage and some map storage cabinets.

Obviously, it takes a lot more to run a museum that just putting things out for display for the tourists. I marveled at the research they did to find the best way to store and to set up their museum 'behind the scenes' needs. It was amazing.

Then it was time to head back to Georgetown. Claude treated me to ice cream before we pointed the Jeep toward Sadieville.

I told Claude as we left in the morning to go to Georgetown for this little trip that the Museum Board was one of the things I have seen him express an interest in that I feel would be great fun to work with once he completes his time being the Mayor. I've very much enjoyed the dinners we have attended with the people that support our little museum. It just feels like it might be a fun place to contribute time and effort that is very worthwhile. Learning from our past, remembering all that was a part of that past, and appreciating the work it takes to build the future.

Down, Down, Down...

Yesterday was a full day. Claude had a meeting in Georgetown at 7:30am. I got up when he did and headed to Georgetown at 7:45am. We all met at Papa's apartment after Claude's meeting, leaving Claude's Jeep in Papa's driveway.

We were off to the Louisville Temple. It was a delightful morning. We got there plenty early to just quietly sit and wait for our session to begin. Claude and I sat for a bit in the celestial room after the temple session. I still marvel that after 41 years I still learn something new each visit. It is just a delight to pause in a very busy life and feel peace and quiet.

We stopped a Jucy's on the way home for lunch. This is a BBQ place in Crestwood. Then we headed back to Papa's apartment.

We had about an hour and a half before time for Papa and I to go sing. Claude headed back to Sadieville to catch up on Mayoral paperwork, of which there is always plenty. I cut Papa's hair and then headed off to do some errands before we sang. I promised Papa he could have a seat in his sofa and I would call to wake him up in time to get to the nursing home on time.

My main errand was to cast my absentee primary ballot. The election is next Tuesday and I'll be in Muskegon and then driving back to LaGrange with Katelyn. This was the most opportune time to cast that ballot.

I pulled up to the court house in Georgetown. They have angle parking that is 30 minutes right by the courthouse. I happily scored a spot. I gathered my purse and climbed out of my car.

They have now put concrete barrier blocks in front of each parking space. I knew they were there because I parked in front of one. However, when I got out of my car, the car next to me had pulled up over their concrete block. I did not notice their concrete block was sticking out a bit. I was looking up, adjusting my purse strap when I tripped on the concrete block for the car next to mine.

Down, down, down my 60 year old body went. It felt like s l o w m o t i o n. I remember thinking "maybe I can right myself...no I don't think I can...hope my cell phone stays in my purse...how can I lessen the impact of this fall" and then, there I was, spread out on the concrete surrounding the court house in Georgetown, Kentucky. Almost like a stage had been placed to showcase my gracefulness.

The first thing I felt was a sense of nausea. I really think that is just the shock value. Then I thought, okay, you can laugh at this, but it is what I thought, "This is not supposed to happen to a Mayor's wife!" 

As I lay there amused at that silly thought (isn't it funny to find humor even in things that aren't so funny) I tried to assess if I really hurt anything before I moved. My knee felt scruffed but I didn't feel like anything broke. I slowly sat up.

Purse still zipped so cell phone is okay, check. Capri jeans covered knees so no big scape there, check. Little finger hurts but no joint out of place, check. Nice lady offering to help but says she can't lift me, check.

I sat for a second or two just to be sure, then I stood up and re-examed myself. I was fine...except my pride. Oh was it wounded.

I went in and voted and climbed up and down 3 stories of stairs to do so. I must be okay.

As the evening wore on my left knew became more sore and a bit swollen and a little warm to the touch. My left pinky finger was very stiff. But I'm sure there is nothing broken, maybe just bruised a bit. I hope it clears up by Saturday because I'm playing the organ for stake conference this weekend and I need that pinky finger to move freely and my knee not to throb while I sit on that organ bench playing prelude and postlude for long periods of time.

I must add that my biggest fear as I age is falling down. So many people do, then break something and never really get back to normal or just fail from there. I'm not ready to fail yet. To many things I still want to do. Now, I have the falling out of the way, I can check that off the list and maybe it won't happen anymore, EVER!!!

The Church Ladies...

Sadieville Christian Church has a wonderful tradition. Each year, the Friday prior to Mother's Day, the ladies all gather in the church basement to be served dinner that is prepared by the men of the church. It is just a great idea.

Last year and this year Detta Wilson invited me to participate. I have accepted this invitation and totally enjoyed both experiences.

Detta had a little theme of lemons. The center pieces on each table were the old hand graters that are box shaped. They had yellow flowers in them and a piece of paper with this quote attached to each grater "When life gives you lemons, let God make you lemonade". We each were given a tiny bag with lemon drops in them. 

The meal was delicious and the company at my table was delightul. I sat beside a neighbor who lives down the street from me. Her name is Faye Privett. After the meal, one of the ladies asked me if I was Faye's sister. Faye and I got a chuckle out of this. I would be happy to be Faye's physical sister but she and I both agree that we are spiritually sisters.

The entertainment last night was a man whose name I didn't write down and can't remember now. He has a beautiful voice and sings wherever he goes. He is also a preacher and works for a Christian camp in the area.

He sang to us for quite a while in the sanctuary of this lovely little church. They were all songs I didn't know. I kept thinking it reminded me of good country music. It stirred the soul and was just delightful to listen to. I suppose some of his music would be sung in a worship service or revival situation. Many of the ladies hummed or sang quietly along with him. He prefers songs that are written around stories from the Bible.

His last song of the evening was the one that touched me the most. I came home and found the words on the Internet. They were written by Rodney Griffen. I had a rather tough afternoon yesterday. I found the words to this song to be another 'tender mercy' from Heavenly Father to sustain and lift me. Here they are:

Their chains were fastened tight

Down at the jail that night

Still Paul and Silas would not be dismayed

They said, “It’s time to lift our voice, sing praises to the Lord

Let’s prove that we will trust Him come what may”

God wants to hear you sing

When the waves are crashing ’round you

When the fiery darts surround you

When despair is all you see

God wants to hear your voice

When the wisest man has spoken

And says, “Your circumstance is as hopeless as can be”

That’s when God wants to hear you sing

He loves to hear our praise on our cheerful days

When the pleasant times outweigh the bad, by far

But when suffering comes along

And we still sing Him songs

That is when we bless the Father’s heart.

Thank you Sadieville Christian Church for providing me an uplifting experience just when I needed it!  Living in the country is a very good thing.

Bin Laden Has Left the Building...

I don't wax too political in this blog. I don't usually pour over items in the news. But this particular news story touches me on many levels and I feel a need to share a few of my feelings as this ugly story continues to unfold. To that end...here goes.

September 11, 2001 I was driving to work. I had my radio on listening to Chris in the Morning on WMAL, a Washington, DC radio station. As I neared work the reports came that a plane crashed into one of the World Trade Center Towers. I pulled into the parking garage and hurried up to the first floor where CAPREIT's offices were.

My employment at that time was as Executive Administrative Assistant to the three Vice-President's over Operations. My 'office' was a large cubicle outside the offices of the three VP's and this was all situated right next to the office of the President of the company with his Administrative Assistant having a cubicle in front of his office.

As I entered these offices, things were already astir. The only television in CAPREIT's offices was in Dick Kadish's office, the president of the company. Fortunately he had a big office. We all began to gather in there to watch his television. A second plane hit the other tower. Dick sent our IT guys out to buy a big television for the conference room.

It became apparent there were other planes out there, one eventually hitting the Pentagon. I tried to call Claude who worked at the Peace Corps headquarters in DC not terribly far from the Capitol. All cell phones were down, the lines were jammed with thousands of people trying to call and they just didn't work. I was finally able to get an eMail through to Claude and he responded very quickly that he was okay but he was really 'on duty' right then. He didn't know how, when or if he would get home that night.

No work was accomplished that day regarding CAPREIT. We all watched, observed and learned through stunned eyes and minds. This just couldnt' be happening in America. But it was and the proof was right before our eyes.

Not long after these events, the Washington, DC area was stuck by these two gun men killing at random. One of their first victims was right near where I worked. It was way too much to try and absorb, yet we had to. I remember getting out of my car quickly to start filling my car with gas and climbing back into the drivers seat and ducking down while my car filled with gas. It was a very nerve racking time.

Suddenly the new catch word was 'terrorist'. We had heard it before but now it was right at our doorstep, not something in a far away land. The name Osama bin Laden and the word al-Qaeda were now common in our vocubulary.

Sunday, May 1, 2011, Pres. Barack Obama made a televised speech stating Osama bin Laden had been killed. Claude and I were already in bed and I didn't hear this news until the next morning when I checked my computer for eMails. There it was. I went upstairs and woke up my hubby by turning on the television to see the news report. Our television would remain on all day.

My feelings are these:

1)  I'm grateful this one person is not here anymore to stir up his brand of evil. However, I wonderful if there is a mother somewhere that is proud of her son or aches for his behavior. I have felt that the only way this man would ever be taken down was by death. I never felt he would 'go into custody'. Such was the nature of his crimes against humanity.

2)  I'm grateful we gave him a proper burial according to his religious beliefs. While others have railed against the fact that he didn't allow thousands this courtesy, I'm a firm believer that we don't ever make the situation better by stooping to the level of those who caused the trouble. Respect should be shown, even if it is not given to you. So I feel good about us taking the high road with his burial.

3)  I do NOT feel we need to see pictures of bin Laden after his death to 'prove' he is dead. First, those images will stay in my head forever. I don't need any more ugly images floating around up there. Second, I believe it would be fodder for those who still hold to bin Laden's standards. They will use it as propaganda to stir up more hatred for American's. I truly to NOT feel these photos need to be given to the public, EVER!!

4)  I'm grateful for a brave military who have trained and prepared themselves to perform this type of operation with as little collateral damage as possible. I found this simply amazing. These military personnel are to be commended for all they did in this instance and in so many others we probably know nothing about. Thank you!!!

5)  While I did not vote, nor will I, for Pres. Obama, I will give him credit where credit is due. The decision to make this attack was made by him and it was a good one. I cannot fathom the difficulty of choosing to put young people in that kind of harm's way. Life is so very precious and it must be a most grueling decision for any President. He did carefully, from all reports, process the information received and thoughtfully made the decision he felt was best for all Americans. He did a good job with this call and for that he has my respect.

6)  I appreciated the care that was taken to ensure we all knew this process took place with tiny bits of information over many years. It was not just one person who should receive all credit. While history will record, and rightly so, that this occurred on Pres. Obama's watch and from his direction, he could not have gotten to that point without a lot of other people over many years preparing for this point in time. It was genuinely a good thing to hear that kind of credit shared.

7)  I do feel we must be diligent still. Just because one man is gone does not mean that kind of evil is now obliterated from our lives. It is not. Others will seek to take his place, some will be successful and others will not. But that kind of evil is now and will be a part of our lives. All my life we have had military stationed around the world for the protection of those of us living in the United States. I believe that will need to continue to some degree.

I wanted these thoughts for my own record. Some will agree with me and others will not. That is part of the American dream. That freedom to think things through and come to your own conclusions. However, these are my thoughts and feelings.

How grateful I am to be an American by birth.

Pa & Ma's House...

Now that Hayden is in kindergarten, it is a bit more difficult to have a long weekend in Sadieville. Claude and I have made several trips to LaGrange so we have seen the Mini-Marx's in their home for the last few months. Hayden was sure it was now time for him to come to Sadieville. Andie was able to bring the kids last weekend for this visit.

The Marx's, sans Michael, arrived Friday evening and were able to stay till Sunday morning.

Friday evening the kids found my candy canes. I've had these left since Christmas. They are in a mug on the island in our kitchen. Each month when I go to visit Linda, I carry two of them in the outside pocket of my purse. Linda's two little grand kids know I have them, at least they hope that I have them. They come over to the chair where I am sitting with my purse on the floor by my feet and they try to sneek a peek inside my purse pocket. There are always lots of grins when I pull them out and give each of them a candy cane.

Hayden was very happy to find them. He and Bailey didn't even try to open them to eat them. They just started trying to find things they could pretend with them. Here are a few of their ideas:

Saturday we tried to fill our day with all we could. We only had one full day and we wanted to enjoy it to the fullest. That would include individual boxes of cereal, yogurt and bacon for breakfast, science shows for Hayden, a walk to the bridge for Bailey and me, Papa and Tiny coming to play, playing in the big whirlpool tub, cakes to decorate, a visit to Mimi, a visit to Papa, a movie in the evening, and we even fit quiet time in the middle of all that. I'm tired just remembering it.

On the way to our home Friday evening. Andie bought the kids dinner at McDonald's. Hayden's food came in one of those hamburger boxes. He looked at that box and determined it would make a great computer. I asked him what other supplies he needed to make his computer. He gave me some ideas and I went searching those things and any others I could find that he might like to use. One of the things I brought up was some pipe cleaners I have on hand.

Andie got her idea when she saw the pipe cleaners. She asked me if I had any barrettes. I have a few that you can cover with ribbons and/or flowers to make homemade barrettes for little girls hair. I brought those up to her and we were off and making projects. Hayden making a computer out of his box and Andie making Antlers for Bailey's hair.

Bailey loves Bambi (she used to say 'Bambia'). She wore these antlers until she got in the tub for her turn to play. She took them back to LaGrange with her. Such a cutie.

I did not get a picture of Hayden's computer. Andie has that on her camera. He did a masterful job. He wrote out a keyboard and put it in the bottom of the box. On the top he had a foil screen for the monitor portion with a card of Mars on it to look like that was what he was searching.

Our ward (congregation) at Church had a day of service last Saturday. The week before we delivered bags to our neighbors requesting they donate food to the A.M.E.N. House in Georgetown through our collection efforts. Saturday was the day we were to pick up our neighborhood donations and drop them at the Church in Georgetown. There is a crew at the Church in Georgetown that sorts the donations and loads them in the trucks to take to the A.M.E.N. House. So Saturday morning I needed to walk my neighborhood and gather the donations from my neighbors.

Bailey wanted to go with me. She and I walked the two streets in Eagle Bend collecting food. Then we called Andie and she drove down and picked up our bags. This left Bailey and I free to go down to the creek and the bridge.

She had a great time finding sticks to toss into the water and watch float down the creek. She loved tossing rocks in the water. We picked the flowers on the weeds down there. Papa drove down on his way back to Georgetown to feed Mimi. He parked his car and joined us on the bridge. It was cute to watch him pick up Bailey and hold her so she could toss things over the top of the rails on the bridge. I can't pick her up anymore and she was happy to have Papa get her up a little higher. She gave him her first bouquet of flowers she picked. Then I asked her if she wanted to give him a 'running hug'. She was really into this last weekend. As we walked down the street she would say, "You stay here Ma." Then she would walk back a little way from me and run with her arms outstretched. As soon she got to me she would jump for me to grab her and squeeze her really hard. I would kneel down and be smothered in hugs. These are some of my very, very, very favorite kind of hugs. Bailey was delighted to share this treat of hers with Papa. She had him stand on one side of the bridge and she stood on the other. Papa could tell what was going to happen and he quickly said, "Hold these" and handed me the flowers. Bailey ran at him full force and he scooped her up for an extra long hug. Great stuff.

Bailey and I walked down to a flatter place along the creek edge to toss rocks in the creek and Papa headed on into Georgetown. Every now and then a stick Bailey tossed in would get stuck on a rock close to the shore. I found a longer stick and used it to drag the stuck stick away from the rock. Miss Bailey was sure she should be doing that as soon as she figured out what I was doing. She took my longer stick and tried to toss a smaller stick in so it would run up against a rock and not move. Then she would work with the longer stick to move the stick that was stuck. The more I write this, the more I think it sounds like a limerick.

Bailey and I also found clam shells along the creek edge. I learned after moving here that you can get clams in the rivers. I never knew that before. There are lots of them in our creek. Bailey and I collects some nice ones and put them in my sweatshirt pocket. We even found one that was big with a tiny little one on the inside.

After we got home we showed Hayden our find. He was really enthusiastic about this discovery. I split the shells up between the double sink in my kitchen. We moved a stool over for Hayden and one for Bailey in front of the sinks. They spent the next little while cleaning those shells. I told Andie that is what you call a 'cheap thrill'.

Cake decorating was fun. I have four little round cake pans. If you make a cake mix (we made a lemon pudding cake) it will fill these four little pans. Hayden decorated one little cake layer for Papa and Bailey decorated one little cake layer for Papa. Then they both decorated one little cake layer for Michael. We left the 4th layer with no icing for Claude. I really loved that when it came time to decorate Michael's cake, Andie asked the kids what they wanted to put on it. Hayden didn't hesitate. He wanted Andie to write on the top of it "Thank you Daddy!"  The cake on the left is Hayden's for Papa, the center back is Michael's cake, and the cake on the right is Bailey's for Papa.

 

One of the things I love about my grandsons is their love of cleaning floors. When you have family around the floors get dirty with crumbs and things more quickly. Paul and Hayden both love the Swiffer dust mops. This time I showed Hayden my little vacuum. He was so happy. He set to vacuuming the rug under the breakfast table and then the one under the dining room table. Thank heaven for grandsons!!

After quiet time we went to Georgetown. We would visit Mimi while Claude dropped our food donations at the Church for the A.M.E.N. House. We found Mimi in her room. They had just gotten her up and dressed for dinner and put her in her wheelchair. Hayden and I figured out how to put the braces on the wheelchair for her legs. Mimi was aware enough to hold hands. She could even catch some of the little ones movements and get a peek at them. Bailey rubbed Mimi's cheek. Hayden drew math problems on her back with his finger. Andie held her hands. It was a good visit for Mimi and the grandmonsters.

Next we were off to Papa's to deliver his surprise birthday cakes. We gave Hayden and Bailey each the cake they decorated. They entered Papa's apartment and sang "Happy Birthday" and gave him his cakes. He was so surprised and very happy. The kids had so much fun running through his apartment checking it out. They especially seemed to gravitate to the room in the back with all the guitars and amplifiers. Hayden said, "I could stay here forever!"

We would watch Polar Express for our bedtime movie on Pa's big TV.

Sunday morning we had cinnamon biscuits and eggs for breakfast.  We packed up the Marx family and said goodbye till the next visit. It was a great visit.