A Death

Life does not cease to be funny when people die any more than it ceases to be serious when people laugh.
George Bernard Shaw (1856 - 1950)


Just wanted all my blogger friends to know that my husband died suddenly Sunday night. I will be posting in the future, but need to get things in proper perspective first. My family are all ok. He did not suffer

Hope the New Year finds all well, see ya when?...

Out of the mouths of babes

So as not to seem harsh or misunderstood. I am just telling a story as it was said.

Christmas morn my grandchildren had to go to their dads for the weekend- it was his turn for him to have them for the holiday. They alternate holidays.
Grandson #2 (5yr old) asks dad- can we take some of our presents to play with. Dad- no, you have toys at my mom's and my house. Grandson then says-"your toys are lame" We all looked at one another and couldn't say a word!

This eve when children return, my daughter asks the kiddos-what did dad & grandma get for ya. Grandma got us clothes-yuck. She pressed on so what did Dad get you, Nothing was the reply. To which young grandson adds- he got us nothing except an empty floor!

I am not really mercenary, but this seems unreal to me. I know he was not raised by getting nothing for Christmas- so you folk who read my blog can you help me to understand? For the life of me I can't. Some might think it is a lack of money, believe me it's not.


Language is the source of misunderstandings.
Antoine de Saint-Exupery (1900 - 1944)

Let thy speech be short, comprehending much in a few words.
Aprocrypha

Grasp the subject, the words will follow.
Cato the Elder (234 BC - 149 BC)

Use soft words and hard arguments.
English Proverb

afterwards

There has been only one Christmas - the rest are anniversaries. ~W.J. Cameron


A pic Christmas eve just before bed with MY grandson! what a wonderful feeling it is to hold onto your grandson-feel the warmth & love!




A pic of my niece with her nephew- look at his face- it doesn't get much happier or Innocent than that does it!



She is my grandniece-haven't seen her since I left for Florida, she also is a bundle of joy! and orneriness. All three of these kiddos have their moments, but the mommanator understands them one an all as she WAS ornery too as a child- oops, still is

peace

What can you do to promote world peace? Go home and love your family.
--Mother Teresa

May these words be echoed in every home
in our nations!
May peace be devine thru the HOLY DAYS
in every congregation/nation!

All fears relieved, tears wiped away,
Children won't go hungry this holiday.
The homeless return to their homes again,
The depressed find something to relieve pain.

The sick miraculously healed,
the aimless find some cooked meals.
The rich find out that it's not all about money
and Americans realise they live in a country of milk & honey.

May the angry learn to forgive,
and in that way continue to live.
Peace, not for today or tomorrow but for all eternity.
These are my prayers for Christmas 2008!

Six random things

Ok, here are my six random things
1. I am shy- yeah right some of ya are saying shy is not a word to describe you of all people- but I am, especially with folk I don't know. I get scared in a crowded room of people I don't know.
2. I am a Christian, who loves the Lord.
3. I would love to be able to sleep in in the morning. But either I just awake or someone says get up we gotta do this or that.
4. I like to do the best I can do, like be a wonderful example to my grandchildren.
5. I like to go to the movies, get a big ole bag of popcorn, drink, nachos&cheese,or chocolate candy, then get absorbed into the movie. I especially like doing it with some friends that I can talk it over with on the way home or over dinner.
6. I like sweet wines, no dry wines for me! I esp like the fruity kind or prob what folk call dessert wines.

This only is denied to God: the power to undo the past.
Agathon (448 BC - 400 BC), from Aristotle, Nicomachean Ethics

At any rate, I am convinced that He [God] does not play dice.
Albert Einstein (1879 - 1955), In a letter to Max Born, 1926

Before God we are all equally wise - and equally foolish.
Albert Einstein (1879 - 1955)

O ye of little faith, who believe that somehow the birth of Christ is dependent upon acknowledgment in a circular from OfficeMax!
Anna Quindlen (1953 - ), Newsweek, 01-02-06

Saturday Musing

Well we arrived in Maryland just 2 days after we started, a little tired, but ok. I95was all I remembered it to be. I was glad the gas had come down in price! Most of the time it hovered around $1.59 per gallon. We only actually stopped for one sit down meal, neither of us wanted to. Were content to eat sandwiches. We also had a motel with a continental breakfast. Hubby was in a shopping mood so we stopped too often to shop! He's the shopper in the family, definitely not me!
We drove up here to find cold wet weather, but doesn't feel as cold as I expected it to feel! we left 80 degrees and here it is around 40!
You should have seen our van- it looked like Santa's sleigh overfilled. We even had to have stuff on the roof! Every time we stopped hubby bought more-I kept saying where are we gonna put it! He kept saying I'll get in and he did.
The fun part was unloading in the rain!
I took a wrong turn on I495, went 395 and ended up in Washington DC- O boy, hubby was asleep, but when he woke he said where in the world are we, I said, look to left, there is the Washington Monument! He ranted, how did we get there, and I said GUESS!
I have driven around DC quite a bit and wasn't upset, but he gets so flustered when not in the right place he thinks we should be. He immediately got on the phone to dau #2 to tell her what I had done. We got here safely, just a 1/2 hour later than expected!
When the kids woke in the morning they all bounded into our room! and were happy to see us. OOH, with glee you got here! I was able to go to the twins Christmas play/puppet show. One was a wise man and the other baby Jesus!

What kind of peace do we seek? ... Not the peace of the grave or the security of the slave. I am talking about genuine peace, the kind of peace that makes life on earth worth living, the kind that enables men and nations to grow and to hope and to build a better life for their children -- not merely peace for Americans but peace for all men and women, not merely peace in our time but peace for all time.

- John F. Kennedy,
American University speech, June 10, 1963.

Where have all the bloggers gone?

Guess everyone is preparing for the holidays! Shopping, baking, wrapping,decorating, making travel plans, packing etc......
Well I still like to sit and look at the blogs! so guess I had better write one!
Go to this blogsite if you would like some inspirational writing for the advent!
http://lovebloomsbright.wordpress.com/ I found it from a fellow blogger, and it's great writing plus beautiful pictures. It reminds me to keep my mind focused on the true meaning of Christmas and what we are truly celebrating-the birth of Jesus Christ-my savior! Have a Blessed Holiday!

One word frees us of all the weight and pain of life:
that word is love. Sophocles

WORK

Nice pic last eve of the almost full moon over the house and the flag blowing in the breeze! I just wish it was just as perfect as what I saw, but I am not the best photographer.

Well I have had a pretty good time being off for almost two weeks, but it's back to work tomorrow. Then 2 days of work, a day to pack and then we are off to see the grandkids! I can't wait! HOWEVER I have so much to do before then. Like pack! yuck- I have put all the gifts together today. I still am working on one present. Maybe won't get done, unless I do finish on Monday.

I have been eating garlic like vampires are coming to get me. I have this spread that I have been putting on crackers from Einstein Bagels called schmear . I made chili yesterday and today sorta turned it into Pastafagioli. Yumm! I love that!

Hard work never killed anybody, but why take a chance?
Edgar Bergen (1903 - 1978), (Charlie McCarthy)

Socks

Dau#2 told me the last post was too deep! So here goes with something a bit different.

We grow great by dreams ... Some of us let these great dreams die,
but others nourish and protect them; nurse them through bad days
till they [flourish]; bring them to the sunshine and light,
which comes always to those who sincerely hope that their dreams will come true.
--Woodrow Wilson

Now on to the sock dissertation! This morning I put on this pair of socks and noticed the date inscribed on them. It was New Year 2000-can you believe I have a pair of socks for that long, that have actually been in a pair! They actually look pretty new. No holes, even white as when they were purchased. The sparkly things still sparkle!
I know both daughters have worn them at one time or another!
They are actually millennium socks, I can even remember purchasing them, thought it would be funny to have socks during that millennium scare! Ya know K-2!
I can think of things these socks have seen and weathered through with me.
The sale, move from the house and the no sale and return to the house. The final move out of the house. Living with dau#2 for about a yr & 1/2.
Taking a 4 year course in Spirituality & graduating!
The retirement from a nursing career, and the return to that.
Trips to Spain, Iceland, Sweden, Colorado, and of course Florida.
Seeing my nieces & nephews have children of their own! I now have 9 great nieces & nephews in total-one cuter than the next!
Weathering Illnesses & surgeries of my own-Lyme disease, MRSA,2 surgeries-one of which I thought I might die from.
Two new vehicles & a motorcycle. And of course the next page - moving to Florida.
But most of all these socks have seen the wonderful family & friends I have and how they show me that in so many wonderful ways!

Oranges?

This is gonna be a bit different, but this is me today! I walked around the neighborhood and viewed these orange trees. You should taste em! I have!

But against this background shines the extraordinary love of God. For it is true that whosoever believes-even men like these-can have eternal life. God sent me to prison to bring them to this Good News. 'a letter from a Russian Christian Prisoner'


Steel is strenghtened through a tempering process-heated to extreme temperatures, pounded into form, and cooled. Then the process is repeated again and again, heating and pounding the impurities away and the cooling so that metal can bonded. A similar tempering process strenghtens our faith. When we are heated by hatred from others, pounded upon by persecution, and then cooled by the gentle reassurance of God's presence, our impurities are driven out and our faith strengthened. Have you recognised the tempering process in your life? Don't resist any part of it. Learn from your brothers and sisters in the Hmong tribe. Your enemies don't realise you will be stronger as a result of their hatred. 'Southeast Asia: Hmong Christians'


During the last war we were taught that, in order to obtain our objective,we had to be expendable...We know that there is only one answer when our country demands that we share in the price of freedom-yet when the Lord Jesus asks us to pay the price for the world evangelization, we often answer without a word. We cannot go. We say it costs too much... Missionaries constantly face expendability. "Nate Saint, a missionary martyred in the Ecuadorian Jungle in 1956"
You yourself in your own conscience must feel Christ himself. You must experience unshakably that it is God's Word, even though the whole world should dispute it. As long as you do not have this feeling, you have certainly not yet tasted of God's Word. "Martin Luther"

"excerpts above from Extreme Devotion- a devotional from Martyrs"
"excerpt from "He chose the Nails'-Max Lucado"


Kindness in words creates confidence.
Kindness in thinking creates profoundness
Kindness in giving creates love.
--Lao-Tzu

SATURDAY UPDATE

The pretty greenery in the front is?? You guess, I know what it is HAHA, thought you were getting away easy huh!

I am so tired! Went yard saling- yes again. Ya know it really isn't me that fancies it. It's the hubby and best friend's idea of a way to spend so much time. Today one was hosted by the community in which we live,, sooo we walked it! I sure got some exercise today!
We did get some good buys though. Pizzelles! O MY GOODNESS do I love them and I thought wouldn't get them down here! My neighbor made them! She & hubby are from PA. They also made perogies- I don't eat them.
We even got some things free- free is good! How about an apple pie drink ya add vodka to- will have to taste that later- has to finish brewing? Also got some homemade dog goodies! Bought a couple of puzzles for my brother. Hubby is outside right now trying out the telescope he got for free. Some clothes for a patient, where we work 50 cents per shirt! Dr.Pepper soda cans for 10 cents a piece- lady didn't like Dr. Pepper! Got some needle work stuff, one thing I priced just this past week at Joanne Fabrics for $9.95 - got it for 75 cents( I did want it but wouldn't pay that much for it!, I saved how much!) We also bought a loom thing brand new, never used-at Joannes was almost $20-I paid
$3 for.
Guess I could ramble on a bit more, but gotta go make the bed I stripped this morn before going to yard sales!

25 Things About Me- Holiday Edition

I know it isn't reindeer, but thought it goes with the blog, and I have been wanting to post!
Welcome to the Holiday edition of 25 Things About Me.

Okay, here's what you're supposed to do, and try not to be a SCROOGE!!! Just copy this entire post and paste into a new post. Then change all the answers so that they apply to you.

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? I HATE wrapping-whatever is handy, esp if I can get someone else to do it!
2. Real tree or Artificial? Artificial,don't like the mess, plus the past few years we haven't been home at Christmas-ya know Grandchildren live in MD. My trees actually keep getting smaller too!
3. When do you put up the tree? Anytime after Thanksgiving, when I have time. No less than 2 weeks before Christmas
4. When do you take the tree down? When I get tired of looking at it, Usually the first week in Jan. Really depends when we are home after Christmas or if my daughter wants to take it down
5. Do you like eggnog? YES< YES< YES even without liquor!
6. Favorite gift received as a child? a chocolate pie just for me by granny!
7. Hardest person to buy for? dau#1
8. Easiest person to buy for? Hubby-he wants everything
9. Do you have a nativity scene? Yes several, but don't think they are all in Fla!
10. Mail or email Christmas cards? Mail-if I get to them!
11. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? VRC cleaning tape from an exchange student
12. Favorite Christmas Movie? White Christmas, Miracle on 34th Street, or Christmas Shoes
13. When do you start shopping for Christmas? Whenever the mood strikes, could even be in the summer.
14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? Yes, I suppose so
15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? Fruit Cake, Chocolate pie
16. Lights on the tree? Many colors and many of them
17. Favorite Christmas Song? O Holy Night, Ave Maria, Mary Did You Know
18. Travel at Christmas or stay home? Travel most of the time now Grand kids, but would rather be home
19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer? Yea!
20. Angel on the tree top or a star? Angel
21. Open presents on Christmas Eve or morning? Christmas morning But sometimes one on Christmas Eve
22. Most annoying thing about this time of the year? CROWDS, & Crazies on the road! O did I forget rude folk!
23. Favorite Ornament theme or color? Birds-this seems to be a family tradition. Also I get new ornament per year. Usually a Santa of some sort
24. Favorite thing for Christmas dinner? Being with family, who cares what we eat, there is always enough variety and things to eat that you can go away stuffed!
25. What do you want for Christmas this year? NO MATERIAL thing- I really don't need anything. I want to be able to sit and hug my grand kids, have em sit on my lap and see their smiles and grins Christmas morn. O did I forget being with daughters & hubby too. I also would like to see others of my family; Brothers, sister & their families and to see some friends we have moved away from.

Peace

Another view from the deck at work!

Been thinking quite a bit about Christmas, haven't we all!
Even trying to decorate the walls!
Why do I bother at all, as we are leaving for Maryland after all.

To celebrate with the kiddos and grandchildren and try to have a ball
Much frolicking with friends & family to add to the mix
O did I forget good ole ST Nick!?
Don't forget the camera to take all the pix!

Let's not forget the most important thing
it's the birth of Jesus after all!
Tis the reason we celebrate this season.



Lead me from death to life,
from falsehood to truth.
Lead me from despair to hope, from fear to trust.
Lead me from hate to love,
from war to peace.
Let peace fill our hearts,
our world, our universe.
Peace, peace, peace.

- Satish Kumar

A Gift

This is what I get to look at at work! This is a porch which the residents can go out on and enjoy the weather, or even fish! You should see the fish in this water. Even makes me want to fish! But alas I must work! This IS a gift!

I have asked my grand kids what they want for Christmas. Twin #1 said-all I want is for you, Poppie, Auntie & Snickers to visit. The other twin has requested 4 packs of gum. The little grandson says-I want you, the other wants what he has wanted for almost 2 yrs now a nintendo ds. Needless to say they will be getting what they want!
It is a gift to me that they are not so 'thing' minded as I see other kiddos be.

What do you say when someone asks-What do you want? do we really NEED anything? Not me for sure. It isn't like when I was a kid, when you waited all year to get that "thing". I do want Christ to stay in Christmas! I want family & friends to be together. I don't want things to be bought on credit. You could even give me a hug and I'd be happy, how about something you've made? A good meal? A happy time together?

My Posting Place

On an other's blog a meme sorta. Where do you blog? Here it is for me. A corner of the dining room has been set up with the Laptop etc. I spend many hours here when other things don't have to be done. I can feel the pulse of the house here. I can hear the radio, tv etc. I can watch/smell the dinner not being burned. I can see outside, what the weather is doing or if someone is coming in. I can get up quickly if dau#1 needs help. It's a good place I suppose. I do like going into the proper computer room, but have to beat hubby to it, which doesn't happen very often! So what is your blogging place. This is the meme! anyone reading is tagged. Only if ya want to be!

Dau #2 complained she really couldn't see the candles or the angel so here it is just for her?!

There is a single light of science, and to brighten
it anywhere is to brighten it everywhere.
--Isaac Asimov