Enjoying Life's Journey

An old friend is back in town!

2012-01-29T07:40:00.001-06:00

Teddy Ruxpin! One of my favorite friends from the 80's has come to live with us. I used to love hearing him read his storybooks and sing all the songs when Kit and Maile were little. I hope the grandkids enjoy him as much as the 3 of us did, but if not...I'm enjoying him! Now I just need to get Grubby to work.

That was close!

2011-12-06T08:01:00.001-06:00

Maxey's drill got away from him this afternoon...

We almost had a new SOPRANO in the church choir!

Florida!

2011-11-07T15:10:00.001-06:00

I would like to share the memories of our 3-week camping trip to and through Florida. It was WONDERFUL!

On October 11 Maxey, my cousin Gail, and I jumped into our pickup pulling our little tent trailer and headed for Florida.

The first day we drove to Natchitoches, Louisiana where we visited the historic downtown area and ate delicious meat pies.

That night we camped in the Chicot State Park. It was beautiful. We set up camp in the rain, but even that was enjoyable.

The next day we continued on to Niceville, Florida where we had supper at Frank and Allison Sanders' with their two delightful grown children. We were very honored that they would have us over for a home cooked gourmet meal. That night we camped at a state park right in the center of Niceville. It was SO nice...with little picket fences around each campsite. Unfortunately the schedule didn't allow us to linger and enjoy it's beauty. We did, however, spend the entire next day with Frank and Allison. Frank took Maxey golfing; and Allison showed us the sights of Niceville and treated us to a wonderful lunch on the waterfront.

We stayed a little too long enjoying Frank and Allison's hospitality, so our journey to our next campsite took us into the night and left us setting up camp in the dark. Oh well...we had the headlights of the pickup to light our way.

The next morning we were thrilled to see that the Ochlockonee River State Park was absolutely lovely! Thank goodness we scheduled it for two days! We took numerous hikes and saw more palmettos that we could possibly count.

We saw beautiful white squirrels...it took me over half and hour to get this picture of this wonder of God. I think it liked me! It played hide and seek in that hole in the tree.

Maxey created amazing campfires every night that it was permissible.

Our longest stop was The Calypso Cay Resort in Kissimmee. I loved it! We played miniature golf on a beautiful little course...among the lovely foliage, squirrels and lizards. We were there 4 days...relaxing and enjoying! Ahhh!

Maxey got to play golf our second day there. We all went to Disney World the third day even though a tropical storm was forecast.

Our next destination was Daytona Beach where we stayed on the ocean side of the fourth floor of a very nice Holiday Inn. Maxey golfed; and Gail and I walked on the beach (about 6 miles!)...long enough for Gail to get a blister. We saw newly dug turtle nests, lots of birds, lovely sand and waves, and a wonderful sunrise. It was a lot of fun!

Next it was on to THE EVERGLADES!

We camped at Collier-Seminole State Park. Wow, wow, and wow!

As most everyone knows, I have a real "thing" for air plants. Well, THEY WERE EVERYWHERE!

I couldn't believe it!

We drove into Everglade City for an airboat ride. That was one of the most awesome things I've ever done! What fun, what fun! We rode out to a little private island, swished through the little wooded canals, and fed a raccoon and a pair of alligators. Who ever knew that raccoons like dog cookies and alligators like strawberry marshmallows?

After the marvelous boat ride, be stopped at a historical restaurant in town. Gail played it safe with grouper, but I had alligator and Maxey at frog legs. (I still prefer a good hamburger!)

We stopped at a tourist information station along the way and they had a boardwalk outside. There were alligators resting all along the boardwalk. I took these photos. Some of them are hard to determine because the water is so clear...The alligators look like they're in the sky!!!

Maxey played golf the next day. Gail and I stayed at the campsite hiking and collecting air plants (probably not something we were supposed to be doing...). Here are a few photos from around camp.

About noon, when we were returning from a walk in the woods (called the haddock), I noticed a buzzard sitting on top of a post...so I snapped it's picture. Well...it was a lookout! When we got back to our camp, just around the corner, its buzzard friend was standing in our cooler clutching our hot dog weiners. All our meat and cheese was strung all over camp. Bummer!! We had purchased some of the prettiest porkchops I had ever seen for Maxey to grill for supper! One of them was left in the package over in the bushes, but it was very dirty. Maxey had just filled the cooler with ice so we could have iced tea all day. I think the fact that all the ice was dirty made me more sad than the loss of the porkchops. Maxey got back from his golf game shortly after we made our discovery. He said he was sure it was raccoons. I disagreed. I had SEEN the buzzard!!!! (which he informed me was a hawk...he said he could tell from the photo)

Well, sure enough (Maxey is NEVER wrong...it true!) we were all sitting around our campsite when we heard a rustle in the bushes.

Like I said, Maxey is never wrong! The momma raccoon proceeded to show us how she committed the crime. With three babies to feed, one has to do what one has to do. I guess the hawk was just taking advantage of the opportunity...or just washing his feet in our ice.

Pickin's were pretty slim for supper, so Gail opened a box of Cracker Jacks. Hmm...Do you think it's humid in The Everglades?

Our last evening there, we decided to try the hiking trail just outside the state park. Here's the sign that was posted at the start of the trail:

Needless to say, I wasn't too thrilled to be hiking this trail! IT'S A KNOWN PANTHER CROSSING! I got pretty close to being obnoxious about not wanting to be there!!!!! (That's hard to believe, isn't it?)

I must admit the trail was postcard beautiful! But that sign seemed pretty serious to me.

The sign might have gotten Maxey and Gail's attention, too.

Now it's off to Shark Valley an Everglades National Preserve. Even our tour guide was surprised by the number of birds, alligators, and especially baby alligators we saw.

Next we headed for John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park. Goodness! It was a wonderful park! They had a free aquarium full of wonderful coral samples and their own glass bottom boat tours. We had a terrific time!!!

It was a beautiful campsite...except that we got ants in our tent! No harm...the hundreds of them were discovered under our mattress after we had a very peaceful night's sleep. YUK!

Florida State Parks sure beat Texas'. They have wonderful showers and even provide laundry facilities.

We were supposed to travel on to Fort Lauderdale, but we decided to head on home. We camped at Oleno State Park in central Florida. We drove an exceedly long way that day...making it to camp well after dark. Oh well, we're pros. We can set up by the truck's headlights...again.

It was morning before we could see how beautiful this latest state park was. We had a one night reservation, but extended it so we could arrive a day early since we skipped Ft. Lauderdale. (We really didn't have anything we wanted to do in Ft. Lauderdale...and we had heard it was the least attractive leg of the trip.)

At this park we hiked 10 miles...not really intentionally, but we did it!

After our hike, we needed nourishment!

...and relaxation!

Poor me! I'm just trying to crochet a little while Maxey and Gail play each other Scrabble on their phones when acorns keep hailing down on me...Ouch! Really!

An acorn even fell in my tea!

THE MYSTERY OF THE TRIP

I broke out in little blisters...all over my neck and arms and finally going up my face. They itched like CRAZY until I scratched them enough to pop them. Then they'd be okay...for an hour or so. Then they'd itch even worse! I think...I know...all the scratching really got on everyone's nerves!

Our next stop was The Florida Caverns State Park. It was beautiful. Who knew there were caves in Florida? I thought is was all swamps!

Leaving Florida, our last campsite was at Roosevelt State Park in Mississippi. It was beautiful!! Really, really beautiful. We might even go back there for a few days in the future...when we have time to enjoy it. We just had time to set up camp and make a campfire before sunset. It got down to 36 degrees that night!

We took a few pictures of the area, but didn't have time to really experience the park.

One of the neatest parts of this extended trip was the realization that fall had arrived while we were traveling. All the trees were green when we headed for Florida. They were very, very colorful on our return trip. God is so amazing!!

Kudzu is lovely...but it kills everything it grows on. Deceiving, huh? So pretty! We saw it all along the highway throughout the trip. So sad...

We drove all the way home from Mississippi. We had thought we might need to spend the night at Tyler State Park...because Maxey thought he might be too tired to make it all the way in one day. However, the day went really well and we pressed on.

HOME SWEET HOME!!

It's amazing to me how many stops we made and how different they all were! Every campsite had it's own personality, yet they were all wonderful. Every stop got better and better.Thanks to our tour guide and navigator... my cousin, Gail.

She made an A+ on this trip!!!!!!!

Another Trip?

2011-11-07T11:47:00.000-06:00

I was delighted that my new friend, Susan Mabry, invited me to attend The International Quilt Show in Houston with her this past week. We had a wonderful time talkiing a mile-a-minute, meeting new friends, learning about new products from all the vendors, and viewing all the fantastic quilts. WHOOPEE!

Yes, I realize that Maxey, Gail and I just returned from a 20 day camping trip to and through Florida. Busy, busy!! I will get details of the trip and a few photos of that trip posted in a few days.

The Tomatoes Are Coming!!

2011-05-25T15:07:00.005-05:00

This is the first tomato of many!

It wasn't very big, but it was extremely tasty. (So I hear...)

Happy Birthday, Maile!

2011-03-14T12:18:00.003-05:00

Yea! I just finished Maile's kitchen curtains. They are her 28th birthday present. They were so much fun to create!! And the room looks so nice!

My first quilling project!

2011-02-07T14:59:00.004-06:00

I just took a "quilling" class at the Senior Center.

This is my first creation! I love it! I've always admired quilling, but I've never tried to do it. It looks really difficult.

IT'S NOT HARD AT ALL! And it's so rewarding! I can hardly wait to make something else!

Oops!

2010-11-02T08:13:00.004-05:00

"Maile, do you ever use Olay Body lotion? I tried it

and don't like it. It stays sticky!" "Sure, Mom, I've

used it before. It was fine." "Okay, I'll give it to you."

As I'm handing it to her a few hours later, she says,

"Mom, this is body wash!" Oops!

2010-10-26T14:27:00.007-05:00

Although I love being retired, I decided to get a part-time job to earn enough money to buy a new embroidery machine.

I found a little Baptist church that needed someone to create their bulletin and PowerPt for their services each week. Yea! I love doing both of those jobs! I met with the office manager briefly and a few days later was called in to meet with the pastor. We had a great visit. He was very excited and told me he would have the office manager call me the next day to set up my start date, etc. Whooppee!! Unfortunately, my phone never rang!?!? I waited almost a week and called them, but there was no answer. I left a message on the pastor's voicemail stating that I was disappointed that the promised phone call never came and that I hoped the office manager wasn't still sick. I never heard a word from them! I guess I'm not supposed to have the job!?!?

Next option: Sell my car. Maxey's 2006 Matrix just like mine is parked in the garage. There's no reason to keep an extra car...especially since we need some money. So, we decided to sell my Matrix with 32,000 miles and keep the one with 8,000 miles. So, late last night we put a For Sale sign on the car. This morning I drove it to church for Bible Study and Livewire Choir. Of course, I parked strategically where the car and FOR SALE sign could be seen from the busy street next to the church. When I came out of choir practice, a man was waiting for me. We went for a test drive; and he bought my car! Wow!!

So...Good Bye Matrix

Hello Embroidery Machine!

Goodbye Dear Friend

2010-09-20T06:42:00.005-05:00

My dear embroidery machine died! I miss it terribly!! We had so many good times together in the past 12 years...and, as with true friendships, a "few" frustrating moments through the years.

Tears come to my eyes just typing this...

Just another part of the "journey".

Crafty Fun!

2010-08-26T12:49:00.002-05:00

My friend, Diane Venegoni, came to spend a couple of days with me. We had a wonderful, wonderful time. When we get together, we usually "create" something. This time we decided to make matching tote bags in the style of Vera Bradley. (Of course, ours are better than anything Vera Bradley ever created!!)

Thanks for visiting, Diane. I thoroughly enjoyed spending time with you!!!!!

Learning to Love

2010-07-30T17:00:00.004-05:00

Life is full of imperfect things...and imperfect people. That's just how it is!

My prayer this year has been that God would help me learn to love people. I'm not as mature and Christ-like as I want to be, but what I'm finally understanding (with God's guidance) is that learning to accept each other's faults -- and choosing to celebrate each other's differences -- is one of the most important keys to creating healthy, growing, and lasting relationships.

I thank God constantly for my wonderful husband, my fantastic children and their amazing families, and my many, many friends! Each and everyone of you is a blessing in my life!!

Golf Marathon

2010-06-01T14:53:00.004-05:00

Maxey's golfing friends, Jimmy McAnarney and James Reeves, were here the past eight days...GOLFING!

And boy, were they golfing! They played 54 holes some days. They would leave by 6am each morning, golf all day, then literally drag in about 7pm. It sure didn't matter what I served them for supper. They were too tired to protest!

Gotta love the game!!

The last 3 days of the week, they attended The Colonial in the afternoons. They left after just one round of golf on Sunday, so I got to go to The Colonial with Maxey. I had never been before. It was an enjoyable experience.

I think they've already made plans to repeat the adventure next year! What fun!! I know one thing for sure...We thoroughly enjoyed their visit!

Our Latest Trip to Amarillo

2010-05-11T08:53:00.007-05:00

We just returned from a visit in Amarillo. We needed to meet little Laney Kate Black, born April 21, 2010 to Kit and Ashley and big brother, Foster. She's the most active baby I've ever seen. She's always moving! Isn't she adorable?

Foster is busy, busy. We played and played and played. He is so cute! He and his mom, Ashley, decorated cupcakes one afternoon. (I was the designated photographer.) He carefully got his cupcake decorated JUST RIGHT, then immediately went to the table and ate all the decorations off the top. Of course, he had his napkin on the ready. Cute, cute, cute!

A couple of Christmases ago, I had given Kit and Ashley digital cameras. They didn't perform too well and ended up in a drawer. Foster got one out while I was there and played with it for hours. He took a lot of photos of his eye! The flash didn't seem to bother him. I would have been seeing spots for days!! We went through 3 sets of AA batteries, but we had a wonderful time. By the end of the day, he was "looking in the little window" and taking some pretty good photos.

Kit found my old keyboard in a closet and Foster has been playing with it. He performed quite a while, but I was lucky enough to get part of one song on video:

We had a wonderful visit!

Maxey played in a golf tournament with his friend, Mel, and came in 7th...in the money.

So that we wouldn't be in Kit and Ashley's way with all the busyness involved in having a new baby at home, we stayed with Jimmy and Judy McAnarney each evening. We thoroughly enjoyed the time we spent with them! We ate wonderful meals and played lots of Wii. Playing Wii was a new experience for Maxey and me. That is an amazing game. What technology!! And what fun!!

Sunday, we visited our old church for the first time since we moved away. Wow! It was overwhelming the welcome we received. It still brings tears to my eyes when I think about it.

God is SO GOOD! We had a wonderful trip!

2010-04-20T16:28:00.014-05:00

I haven't been able to "BLOG" for a while. I have been "under the weather" most of this year. Oh well...maybe this is how it's going to be. I seem to have developed allergies. Since I've never had an allergy in my life, I guess I'm having 55 years worth all at once!!

Maxey and I just got back from a week's vacation in Conroe, TX. We have a timeshare there. This was our first year to get to use it.

Last year, I was in a style show during our scheduled week, so we had to "bank" our week. That worked out really well, because James Jeremiah Srader (our grandson) came into the world on Friday of that same week. I was really glad we were in town!

Here are a few photos of the resort:

We had a wonderful time. Maxey played 4 or 5 rounds of golf. I rode with him one day and took these photos:

The wildflowers were in full bloom! Thank you, God, for creating the flowers for our enjoyment!!

2010-02-15T11:34:00.004-06:00

I was asked to create a crib set for a lady's new granddaughter. Her daughter and a friend picked out the fabics. I wasn't too excited about it because the materials were a little challenging, but it turned out to be adorable! It's reversible and one side is just as cute as the other. Here are the photos:

2010-02-01T13:00:00.003-06:00

Look at the cute little gift bags I've been making. What fun!

2010-01-08T14:25:00.001-06:00

Christmas at Mammy & Papa's

2009-12-22T09:56:00.006-06:00

We celebrated Christmas this past weekend because Kit, Ashley and Foster came in from Amarillo. Maile, Jeremy and James, Dawn and Gail came over on Sunday for lunch, then in the afternoon we exchanged gifts. It was a delightful time!! I made a "Baby Jesus in the manger" for under the Christmas tree. Both grandkids enjoyed him. It nearly made me cry when Foster (the 2 1/2 year old) said, "He's sleeping on hay." It was worth all the trouble I went to to build the manger and fix it just right!

I made personalized jammies for Foster and James. It was like herding cats, but we finally got a photo of the two of them together in their matching jammies...How cute!!

The toy nativity set was a big hit, too. Both boys played and played with it. (Precious helped!) James kept one eye on the scary stocking hanging just above the stable...

We all had a wonderful time!! Merry Christmas 2009!

Under the weather???

2009-11-29T18:43:00.002-06:00

I noticed that on my October blog I was "under the weather". Well, it's the end of November and I've been sick most of the past 3 weeks. It's getting very, very tiring!! Maxey said I'm bound and determined to stay sick until I share it with him...

I was able to fix Thanksgiving Dinner for 8 of us: Maxey and I, Dawn (my sister), Gage (my nephew), Janie (Gage's girlfriend), Jennifer (Janie's niece), Gail (my cousin), and Jeremy (my son-in-law). It was a wonderful day!!

The minute everyone left, I came down with fever and went to bed. It was so extreme that I halucinated all night. It was weird. Friday morning (Black Friday) I was supposed to go shopping with Joyce Lange. I called her at 6:3o and told her I had been sick all night but that the fever had gone away about 4am. I didn't want to share a germ with her. She was so excited about shopping that she wanted to go anyway...as long as I promised not to "kiss her". (No problem!) We had a great time shopping, but I really wasn't myself. The minute we got home, I went to bed. It felt great to lay down!

Whatever this is needs to move on out...SOON!! I'm tired of it!!!!!!!

2009 State Fair of Texas

2009-10-21T12:01:00.003-05:00

Last week, Jimmy & Judy McAnarney drove in from Amarillo to spend a few days with us. Judy had never been to the State Fair, so we joined the masses and rode the train last Saturday...on Texas vs OU weekend! It wasn't the best time to attend the fair, but we had a wonderful time. We even stayed to see the closing parade and fireworks. (That was even a first for me!)

Flowers galore!

2009-10-06T15:57:00.004-05:00

I've been a little under the weather (translating: confined to the house), so I started looking for something fun to do. I've created the cutest flower pins! They're made out of folded material. They really were fun, so I made a few...

It's a double-decker!!

2009-09-30T14:53:00.001-05:00

Our Latest Camping Trip

2009-09-23T08:22:00.006-05:00

Joe Poole Lake isn't very far away, but being there makes you feel like you're really on vacation "somewhere". We had a delightful time camping and fishing...even though the fish avoided us. Here are a few of the photos from our weekend:

Busy, busy, busy...

2009-08-18T09:04:00.019-05:00

How can I be so busy? I'M RETIRED!!

Dear me, it's been another 2 1/2 months since I posted anything. Time flies when you're having fun! And I'm definitely having fun!

The end of June Maxey and I celebrated our 50th Wedding Anniversary with a cruise to Alaska. Yes, it was "a little" early, but we wanted to go while we were both young enough to enjoy the trip. It was wonderful. Here are a few photos (which look just like everyone else's photos of their Alaska cruise) plus a few of the flowers we saw while on the trip:

In July things got crazy around here! Maile resigned from her job to stay home with James. That meant that Jeremy, Maile and James could no longer afford their house. They put it up for rent and started looking for an apartment. Meanwhile, we decided it was a good time to have a garage sale. Or two... We gathered all our valuable junk and had a garage sale the middle of July, then another one (with deeper weeding) last weekend. That was fun!!

The house rented in about a week. Maile and Jeremy had a little trouble finding a suitable apartment, but God ran a "one day special" at the Tallows that seemed to be just for them. Yippee! They moved on the 10th, and the renters moved into their house on the 14th. Look how big James is now:

In the meantime, we've decided to redo one of the rooms in our house. I had it full of exercise equipment, but I exercise at the community center and senior citizens' center now. We sold all the exercise equipment last garage sale. I wanted to set up a kid's playroom, but after a few visits from Foster; I realized that kids don't need their own room at Mammy and Papa's house. We might set up another bedroom...or get a longarm quilting machine...or both. Right now I have the room piled up with "stuff" that can't find a home since I sold 4 bookcases last weekend in the garage sale. Oh well...

I've been to a Travis Cottrell concert where my hearing was literally damaged. It was ridiculous how loud that was!! It was physically painful...with lasting ill-effects!

I've been to Canton 1st Monday Trade Days with the ladies of First Baptist Carrollton. We had a delightful day!

Maxey and I were in Amarillo the first week of August. We got to stay one day in Clarendon visiting Maxey's kinfolk; and we stayed a couple of days with my friend Suzanne; we got to visit Maxey's kids and grandkids; Maxey played golf with his buddies while I just goofed off; we stayed with Kit and Ashley 3 days and attended birthday parties for both Kit (30th) and Foster (2nd).

Meanwhile...Maxey and I decided that the pool (which takes up our entire backyard) has been in the way long enough. We are taking it out!!! We have spent the last week and a half tearing out all the beautiful flowerbeds. I gave most of the perennials to Gail, who lives across the alley. I still have 2 shrubs that I can't find homes for. That's so sad! We've stacked all the border bricks til our backs are sore. Maxey disconnected all the water, electricity and gas lines. We're ready! The pool removal people will be here tomorrow morning to demolish and haul all of it off. That's the rule in Carrollton. Nothing can be left in the ground. Then good fill dirt will be brought in, packed down, and topped with about a foot of topsoil. Then we'll have a REAL yard! Yea!! It'll take a year or so for it to look like a yard, but it will be a lot better than a backyard full of water.

I'll try to blog again soon with photos of the removal!! Here are a few photos of our progress so far...

Two and a half months?!?

2009-06-24T21:26:00.042-05:00

How can it have been over two months since I updated my blog?!?

Let me see…
What has been occupying my time?

In April, we weeded the entire front yard. We had some places that washed out every time it rained last year, so Maxey planted some Fescue grass to keep the ground from washing out. Well, this year the St. Augustine grass we planted is finally spreading over those washed out areas. The Fescue was dark green and the St. Augustine was bright green. So…we spent 2 ½ weeks pulling up all the Fescue. Whew!! What a job! But boy does the yard look great!!!!!

My flowerbeds are absolutely beautiful this year! In fact, we were going to replace our fence this spring, but the flowers were already too pretty to be disturbed. The fence will just have to wait until late fall.

James (my new next door neighbor) is now ten weeks old. He’s a real delight. His mommy brings him over to see me a little while each day. He’s already learned my “loud” voice and silly faces. He smiles at me a lot! (I think it’s because I help him find his elusive thumb…) I’ve gotten to babysit him twice already! He really enjoys himself at Mammy and Papa’s house!

One of my closest friends, Suzanne Couch, had brain surgery (a craniotomy) the end of May. Boy was that scary…for her, but for me, too. The week after she got to go home, I went to Amarillo and spent a few days with her. She’s a walking MIRACLE. I am so blessed that she has been a part of my life for over 30 years! And I praise God that she’s recovering from her surgery like nothing ever happened!! God is so good!!

Early in June, I started filet crocheting “Jones” for Lindsey (Underhill) Jones. I’m about half finished with it. She asked me to make it for her just after she got married, but I told her it would probably be mid-summer before I could get it done. Wow!! I’m right on schedule!! (no photo...yet!)
Precious is now getting her haircuts at home. We tried taking her to two different groomers, but they just couldn’t seem to do what we asked them to…plus it was nearly $40 each time; so Maxey and I decided we could cut her hair. We didn’t do too well the first time, but we clip her about every two weeks, so we’re getting better. This last time she looked absolutely adorable! She sure is prissy when she knows she looks cute!

Foster came to visit us June 12th. His mommy and daddy brought him, but they only stayed here two days. They flew to Cozumel for a week. They’ve been snorkeling with the sharks and sea turtles while we’ve been having a blast with Foster. HE IS SO MUCH FUN! We’ve taken a walk in our stroller every morning after Papa went to work. We’ve been to at least one park every day with Maile and James. We’ve played for hours with the water hose (his favorite activity) either at Maile’s or at Mammy’s. He adores Precious. They are the best of buddies!! The living room is now full of toys…we find different ones of interest everyday. PLUS, every evening after supper we all swim for an hour or two. We’ve been having a great time!

Tomorrow Maxey and I leave on our 50th Wedding Anniversary Cruise!!! We decided to take it now, because when we've been married 50 years there's a possibility that neither one of us will WANT to go on a cruise!

2009-04-13T08:55:00.007-05:00

James Jeremiah Srader is here!

Maile and Jeremy had their baby on Good Friday! He's adorable.

2009-03-26T08:32:00.020-05:00

We had a busy, busy Spring Break this year.

Kit, Ashley and Foster came to see us for 3 days. Foster is such a delight! He kept us all entertained...especially Precious.

We had an unexpected visit from a pair of ducks one evening. Precious was outside and started barking and barking and barking. I went out to see what the ruckus was and found ducks in our pool. Shoo! Shoo! Go away!

Maile's friends had a Baby Shower for her on the 14th of March. The hostesses created a beautiful cake and great table decorations! We had a terrific time and Maile and James got many wonderful gifts! Those attending,in addition to Maile's friends from church, were Debi Srader (Mimi), Dorene Srader (MomMom-James' great-grandmother), Ashley Black (James' aunt)Dawn Wolfington (James' great-aunt), Gail Black (cousin and neighbor), Jennifer Higgins (Maile's best friend), and me (Mammy).

Toward the end of the week Gail, Maxey and I went on a "FISHING TRIP" to Fairfield State Park. The lake there has a power plant on it. The water of the lake is used to cool the power plant. Consequently, the water in the lake is very warm. We were able to use our floating tubes without any discomfort at all. Not bad for March! The only problem was the fish seemed to have taken a trip for Spring Break...WE DIDN'T CATCH ANYTHING!! But we had a great time!

2009-02-23T12:08:00.012-06:00

We just got back from a quick but wonderful visit in Amarillo. Our original reason for the trip was to witness Maxey's grandkids, Brooklyn and Logan, being baptized on Sunday. When we spoke to Kit and Ashley, we learned that they were supposed to pick up their new puppy that Friday...in Arlington. Well, there was no reason for them to drive to Arlington when we live right next door. So--Maxey and I met the "dog lady" in Arlington and got to be the first to meet Aggie, the new family basset hound. I wasn't sure what a basset hound was. I had visions of Jed Clampett's dog, but it turned out that Aggie is much cuter that his dog and not nearly as large.

We had no trouble at all with Aggie in the car. She slept almost the entire trip. Here are a couple of pictures of her in the car:

Foster enjoyed Aggie. She's a terrific addition to the family.

Precious' Golf Excursion

2009-02-23T11:29:00.006-06:00

We had a "free day" at home last Monday, so Precious and I went to the golf course with Maxey. It was a little cool and very breezy, but we had a great time riding around in the golf cart while Maxey played 18 holes. As you can see by the photos, Precious even tried it.

First Haircut...I can see!

2009-01-22T10:23:00.010-06:00

Christmas in Carrollton 2008

2009-01-16T10:39:00.008-06:00

We had a wonderful Christmas holiday!

On Christmas day the weather was absolutely beautiful, so Maxey and I worked in the yard together. It was a great day! That evening Dawn and Gage came over for supper. Gage requested chicken and dumplings; we all ate until we were about to burst. Then we drove around Carrollton enjoying everyone's Christmas lights.

The day after Christmas Kit, Ashley and Foster came to town. What a wonderful family! We SO ENJOYED them! They got to stay until Sunday afternoon. Maile and Jeremy got back from their visit in Amarillo Saturday night, so we all got to be together all day Sunday! It was terrific! We all had breakfast together, played all morning with Foster, ate a huge lunch of chicken-fried steak, then exchanged gifts in the afternoon just before Kit, Ashley and Foster had to go home.

The weather was so nice that Foster got to spend a lot of time playing outside. I had acquired a little push car for him. He loved it! And I had gotten a teepee with tunnels which I set up in the living room. We had so much fun! Our neighbors had loaned us the Fisher Price Nativity Set which I set up on the hearth of the fireplace. Foster and Precious played and played with it. I don't think it ever dawned on him that it was strange that his playmate was a little short and very hairy. They really, really enjoyed each other--as you can see by the photos:

Inks Lake Camping Trip - November 2008

2008-12-27T14:16:00.010-06:00

I’m a little late in getting this posted, but “better late than never”. We went on a camping trip with my cousin, Gail, to Inks Lake Thanksgiving week. It was beautiful. It was a little cool the first night, but it warmed up for the rest of the trip. It was Precious’ second camping trip. Her favorite part was the campfires each evening. We all had a wonderful time. The photos will show the highlights of the trip:

My Latest Amarillo Adventure

2008-11-03T10:17:00.007-06:00

October 23rd I flew to Amarillo to spend a few days with Kit and Foster while Ashley was on a shopping trip with some of her friends. I had a wonderful time. The weather was terrific.

Thursday evening Kit took us out to eat on the way home from the airport. The next day, while Kit was as work, Foster and I played and played and played…and jabbered and jabbered and jabbered. He’s walking SO well and trying to say any and everything! He’s especially good at saying “Mammy”!

That evening, Foster and I “helped” Kit load his Kubota onto a trailer for the next day’s opening of quail season. Saturday, while Kit was away hunting, Foster and I played and played and played…and jabbered and jabbered and jabbered.

Then after Kit got home that afternoon, “we” cleaned the quail and grilled steaks in the backyard. Sunday we went over to Aunt Maxine’s house for a little visit before I had to go to the airport to fly back to Carrollton.

I had so much fun it seemed like I was there a week or more. I missed getting to visit with Ashley, but I know she had a great time shopping!

Precious Joins Our Family

2008-10-15T17:16:00.002-05:00

In 2004, I lost my two dearest friends—my dogs, Baby and Carmen.

I missed them terribly!

I held their memory in my heart, but the hurt was unbelievable.

In 2007, I couldn’t stand not having a pet, so I tried to ease the hurt with an adorable Polish Dwarf rabbit that I named Suzie. She was the cutest thing! She lived in the house during cold weather and outside when it was warm enough. She eventually grew big enough to run free in the backyard. It was so much fun watching her hop at lightning speed all around the yard. It was even okay when she ate a massive number of the flowers I planted throughout the flowerbeds. What wasn’t okay was she wouldn’t cuddle or sit in my lap like a dog…because she wasn’t a dog. She couldn’t fill my dog void because she was a rabbit. I kept her a year; then she was adopted by a family in Frisco who had another rabbit and a 5 year old boy. She is now a house rabbit and perfectly content.

Finally, last month, in September 2008, I could stand it no longer. I started checking the internet and the newspaper for puppies. It was NOT a casual, once-in-a-while glance. It was an all-consuming search! One Sunday morning just before we left for church, Maxey checked the classified section of the Amarillo Globe News and saw a photo of three of the cutest little puppies ever. Two were white and one was multicolored brown. I can’t remember if he told me about them before church or after, but I do remember that as soon as I saw their picture I loved them. The ad said that there was one female and two males.

As soon as we finished lunch, Maxey sneaked off and called the number in the paper. I could hear him talking to someone, but I didn’t know who. He had called to see which one was the little girl. It was the cute little brown one!! All of a sudden, he came to me and just held out the phone without a word. On the other end of the line was the lady who was selling the puppies. I visited with her a little while—getting details on the puppy. It was part Pomeranian and part Poodle. It met all our wishes…tiny, not white or cream, and won’t shed. I didn’t know what I was supposed to do, so I thanked her for her time and hung up.

Maxey was just watching me. I asked him what he was thinking. He said, “You could be there by 7pm.” Wow! Things started to happen at whirlwind speed. I called the lady back and asked her if maybe she could meet me in Claude. She asked, “You’re going to drive that far just to look at a puppy?” “No! I’m going to drive that far to GET the puppy! I want her!”

I called Gail and asked her if she wanted to go to Amarillo. She said, “When?” I said, “Now.” I told her about the puppy. She said, “Give me 10 minutes.” And we were on the road! It was CRAZY! But it was one of the best days of my life!!!

I called Kit to tell him the situation and that I was headed toward Amarillo. He said they’d all meet me in Claude for a short visit. It was wonderful that they would do that!! I couldn’t believe how much Foster had grown! It had just been a little over a month since I had seen him. They couldn’t stay very long, but it was great to get to see them. They were eager to see the new puppy, but it came time for them to go before the lady got there. As we said our goodbyes and they drove away, she pulled into the parking lot. Good grief!

When she stepped out of her car holding the puppy, I couldn’t believe how little it was! I don’t think I’ve ever seen such a tiny dog! And it was all hair!!! Maxey and I had already decided on the puppy’s name before we even found her. She was to be named “Precious”. And she fit her name perfectly! She weighed 1 pound and was six weeks old. She bounced around like a ping pong ball when she tried to go through the grass. She went backward more than she went forward for the first few days after we got her.

I’ve never seen anything cuter!

Precious is now 10 weeks old and weighs a whopping 2 pounds. She is SO smart! She learns something new every day!

It’s absolutely wonderful having her in our home!!

I'm a BLOGGER!!

2008-08-01T15:35:00.001-05:00

Here we go! I'm joining the ranks of all the bloggers I know.
(I just hate to be left out!)

It will be fun to share with others all the FUN we're having in life!