We checked the 4 models they had and found the things each had and didn't have. I'm not really an impulse buyer. I had been in and looked at them before by myself. Claude carried one when he worked for the Peace Corps and has one again. So I was sure of the purchase just not which one to get. I told Ashley, the sales person, that I wanted to think a bit so we would grocery shop and be back when we were finished with a decision.
Well, we delivered Papa's laundry first. Then we went to Taco Bell for lunch where we talked about it a bit. Then we went back to the AT&T store and purchased me a Blackberry.
While we were going through the purchase process, I was looking out the window that is the outside wall of this little store. Claude's Jeep was sitting there. I watched a little bird hopping up on the bumper and then climbing into the grating. I told Claude he may have a nest being built in his Jeep. He assured me it is because a Jeep is a bug magnet. It is not streamlined and literally every bug in it's path is attracted to the front. He said the bird was having a 'bug buffet'. The sales people, Claude and I got a chuckle out of this little bird being so busy.
Now, every time I've gotten a new cell phone they have assured me you can take the phones numbers off the SIM card and transfer them to the new phone saving you LOTS of time. I'm here to say...Not So Much. It transfers just the name and one phone number, not all the miriads of information I feel necessary to tadk onto each phone number. I'm going to be spending lots of time transferring data manually. I did let them try the SIM card thing, but it still just gave me names and phone numbers. They don't sync with the other information I have. Plus my Palm is old enough the CD that you load the syncing software with is out-of-date and they don't have an upgrade. So there is no way to transfer my Palm Pilot info to the new Blackberry. I'm diligently typing things over. I'm happy doing this because it affords me an opportunity to set up things the way the Blackberry and Outlook have them instead of the way Palm has them. Plus I'm cleaning out some old data that I really don't need anymore.
Then we did the grocery shopping and headed back to Sadieville to finish preparations for the Mini-Marx's and Andie to visit.
I did spend part of my afternoon downloading Microsoft Outlook for my computer so I could use it with my Blackberry like Claude does.
Andie and kids arrived Friday around 5pm. This gave me time to play a bit before I went off to a function I was invited to. They brought their butterflies they have been raising. Andie wanted to set them free here but it remained too cold and too windy all weekend to set these little beauties free. We did feed them oranges and flowers, etc.
Friday evening I was invited to the Sadieville Christian Church Ladies Dinner by Detta Wilson. Every year the men prepared and serve and clean up a nice dinner for all the ladies of the church. I was looking forward to this opportunity to visit with the ladies in our community.
The dinner was in the basement of the church. We were seated at tables with a beautiful centerpiece of tree branches with little apples and hats and flowers glued to them. The theme was about hats. We had a nice salad at our place to begin our dinner. Then the men served us fried chicken, mashed potatoes, green beans and rolls. If you didn't have the piece of chicken you wanted, you just raised your hand and the men would bring you a different piece. They also brought beverage as you wanted it. They cleared the tables as we finished eating and then served us our choice of several desserts. I had a cheesecake with strawberries on it. After dinner we headed outside and upstairs to the sanctuary for the program.
A guest speaker was there and she was a delight. She talked to us about the hats she has worn throughout her life and how they represent her life. She started from babyhood and went through being a gramma. It was really entertaining and fun. Then Detta shared a few stories. Then we were free to head for home. I was really happy I was invited to this event and totally enjoyed myself.
The Mini's were in bed when I got home so we had adult swim. I purchased some Lindor's Truffles and we had a couple. I brought my new laptop upstairs and started the process of typing in the Palm Pilot contact list while we watched TV.
Saturday morning we got up and I fixed cinnamon toast, scrambled eggs and bacon for breakfast. After a filling start to our morning we called Papa and invited him to join us at Evan's Orchard to watch the kids play in the playland there. Then we all loaded in Andie's van and headed down the highway to Evan's Orchard.
We took Hayden and Bailey there last fall. All the schools were having field trips there for their Fall Festival, so the playland was really full of kids. This time the day was cooler and very windy and the only other kids were for a little child's birthday party. So we had lots of opportunity to play with the things Hayden and Bailey wanted, when they wanted, for as long as they wanted.
Hayden's favorite thing by far is the huge rubber tubes that sit in tracks that you stand in and walk. As you walk the wheel moves down the track. He got his timing back really quick on this toy and could get just before the hay bale buffer at the end of the track and then he would slide down on his back and roll around as the tube finished it's run down the track. He was aided by the strong wind that would really push him as he went toward one of the ends. The first picture is Hayden pushing against the wind to one end of the track, the second picture is of him standing inside and walking the tube to the end of the track. The third picture shows how he learned to let the wind push the tube while he walked back to the other end of the track. He knew where it was about to end and he would slide down and roll inside the tube and laugh as he finally hit the hay bale buffer.
The wind was so strong at times that it blew the big tube out of it's tracks and across the grass in the playland to the field where they will plant corn. In this picture Andie is rolling the tube back to the track with Hayden inside.
Bailey, on the other hand, was all over the playland. Here are a few of the things she did while Hayden enjoyed playing in the huge wheel. She started out in the hanging tube that is under the big slide. Then she was off to the tire maze. In the next picture she is yelling, "Help me! Help me! I want to swing!" As soon as Claude got there she was off and didn't swing at all. Across the playland, past where Hayden was absorbed in his tires and tracks, to the hay bale maze. Then back past Hayden to the hill of dirt with ropes to pull yourself up and let yourself down. Then she found the tubes that were standing on their end. Andie lowered her into one. Claude assured me we may have found the place to pin down our little angel. The animals were not out yet with the exception of two rabbits in a pen. Andie took Bailey over once. Later in the morning Bailey went again to check on the bunnies. One was in the corner of its pen. Bailey managed to get her fingers through the wires so she could touch it's little cotton ball shaped tail. As soon as she did, that little rabbit hopped to the middle of the pen under their cages which sit above ground. Bailey was saying, "Come back yiddle bunny, come back."
And what would Mother's Day weekend be if Mom didn't get into the action a bit. Andie had some fun with her kidlings as they played with this big tube in the track. Hayden and Bailey are pushing her while she stands in the tube. I'm keeping the one where she fell down for myself. Then Andie was pushing Hayden and Bailey felt she could help by pushing Andie. The last one is Hayden in one tube and Andie in the tube on the track next to his.
After a while it was time for us to rest for a bit and have some lunch and something to drink. Evan's Orchard has a little cafe and we had hotdogs and rib-eye sandwiches. The kids were especially careful this year not to let their food get near the two dogs that live on the property. They are quite happy to clean up anything you drop or let lean away from your chair.
Then it was back to the playland for one final round of play. This time Hayden and Bailey both headed for the tire maze. In the center are four tires filled with dirt. Some of it had settled and Hayden found a little place that needed to be refilled so they diligently set to bring little handfuls of dirt and filling up this hole.
Then Bailey found some pebbles in the dirt and proceeded to make a nest out of the dirt. Then she put the pebbles on top for eggs. Then she tried to sit on the nest. Hayden helped her form her nest again and then helped her try to get the dirt to stay in place while Bailey is sitting on the dirt nest. Then Hayden lost it and really started to laugh when Bailey stood up to see what happened to her nest and couldn't understand that sitting on dirt causes it to collapse. Andie is in the background of that picture laughing while she gets a picture too. When it was all said and done, Hayden had to make another nest and try sitting on it just to see what all that fun was about.
We ended our morning of play at Evan's Orchard with Claude swinging Hayden and Bailey while they were in the hanging tube under the slides. Bailey and Andie made one final screaming trip down the tall slide. We headed back to Sadieville cold, tired and very well exercised.
Bailey does have a tender, nurturing side. I found one of my turtles under the rug in front of the TV. The rug was the closest thing to a blanket Bailey could find. She is really into 'kissing things better' also.
We had a great visit with the little ones and Andie. It is just always nice when the grandmonsters are around. Love their little hearts they wear us out but in the best way ever.
Andie was going to go with me Sunday morning to visit Mimi. However, Hayden was running a slight fever when they got up so she headed home to LaGrange and chose not to share whatever germs he may have with the residents of the nursing home.
I dropped Claude off at Church and headed to the nursing home Sunday morning to visit with my mom a bit. This was a tender visit. One never knows how many Mother's Days with her there will be on this earth. I have several friends who are at this same point with their moms right now. I knew I was emotional but thought I was really under control. Fortunately Mimi was in her room in her bed for her morning nap.
She woke when I came in the room. She mumbled some things. I sat on the side of her bed. I brought my scriptures with me and I sat there and read out loud from Jeremiah. She would say something every now and then and I would pause and listen to her. As it neared time for me to leave, I closed my scriptures and just sat with my hand on her face. She grinned at me and I grinned back.
Then she looked at the wall by her bed. Hanging on that wall is a beautiful picture of my parents that was taken at Olan Mills. Mimi was looking and talking to that picture a lot. I'm glad it is hanging there for her to see. I know her vision is blurry and she can't wear glasses to fix that but I know she sees that picture and it seems to bring her comfort.
I told Mimi "Happy Mother's Day" again. Then I told her that the rest of her family would love to wish her a happy Mother's Day but circumstances don't make that possible now.
But I told her that her daughters and her grandchildren and great-grandchildren all love her very much. She smiled as I said this, almost like she understood what I was saying. Then I said, "Does that make you happy?" She smiled again and said, "Yes."
But I told her that her daughters and her grandchildren and great-grandchildren all love her very much. She smiled as I said this, almost like she understood what I was saying. Then I said, "Does that make you happy?" She smiled again and said, "Yes."
There is no earthly gift I can give to my mother now that she would understand or appreciate. No object she could hold or look at. But that moment was the best she could have from her kids and I just feel like she understood we all loved her and wanted her to know she was appreciated as the mom of our extended family as well as my mom.
I went to my car and wept. Just a bit to ease that lump in my throat. But not enough to ruin my make-up as I headed back to Church for Relief Society.
Mother's Day is an interesting thing to me. I often struggle with it as a holiday that is celebrated. Not that mothers don't need to be honored and remembered. But I've always felt strongly that, if I'm not treated well every other day of the year, one day of flowers, candy, dinner and gifts will not make all the rest okay. I have a family that loves me and I love them with all my heart. I'm truly blessed that way. I had one more Mother's Day with Mimi on this earth. I'm truly blessed. It was a good Mother's Day.
Nissa and her family called and left me a Happy Mother's Day singing message. Jake called and we talked again for a long time. I spent a good deal of time typing things into Outlook to sync to my new Blackberry. Life was really good for me. I am a blessed lady.
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