Long-time Friends

I wish for everyone great lifetime friends. I am so proud to have a special couple in my life who have been there for many, many years, as long as I can remember actually. We played together as children, never wanting to go to our own homes. We lived just 3 doors apart for 13 years, then on my birthday, my girlfriend moved about 6 miles away. That was not good; yet, I sometimes jumped on my bike with other friends and headed down that seldom-traveled road to see her and her brother. We made up games, played old games, and just enjoyed riding our bikes, making up plays, playing with paper dolls, or just watching the traffic and naming all the cars that passed our house. Every opportunity we got, we were together having fun. Sometimes, we even hooked our self-propelled lawnmower to our wagon and rode down the old dirt road that ran behind our house; other times, when Dad was around, we would have him hook up Billy the goat to the goat cart so we could enjoy riding around the neighborhood. Then, other times, Dad would saddle up one of our 3 ponies for playing cowboy and sometimes, we would ride in the pony cart behind old Trigger, Blackie, or Don. What fun we had!! I had a steer that I raised for 4-H as did my older brother. This is during the time that Rob, the spouse was often around our house. Being the same age as my brother, I thought he belonged in our family since he was at our house much of his growing-up years. I recall his helping me with my homework (which I hated!). He and my brother went off to college together then participated in each other's wedding just as my sister and I did.

Now, this fine couple has been married 50 years and it seems like just a few years ago that we enjoyed a carefree life. Sometimes, however, we will still get together and enjoy acting as though we have no troubles in the world. Hubby and I used to share many vacations together and I miss those times. perhaps some day we will be able to repeat some of those fun times.

It's so nice to sit back and remember those wonderful times with our long-time friends. I'm so happy that we are still good friends and that we still see each other quite regularly. Do you have a standing relationship like that? I hope that you do but, if not, try to recall those special friends and those special times...And, do your part to make them happen again!

Which Way Today??

It seems that each day carries me in a different direction. Today, Hubby had to go to a dermatologist to have some pre-cancer spots removed, one on his face and one on his back. The dr. said he would call next week and let us know the results. Yesterday was my day to go in the opposite direction to visit my audiologist (I will make a return visit there in 2 weeks). Monday, once again, we will head in another direction as Hubby has a follow-up appointment with his surgeon. So far, it seems that his shoulder is coming along much nicer than it did the previous two times.

Enough of our physical problems: we are now looking forward to getting away soon with our youngest daughter and her family. Right now, they are enjoying some time with friends. Hubby is wanting to take some RV trips but we really need to wait until we get some reports back.

Can you believe all the bad news in our country? I had so much respect for our South Carolina governor; I cannot believe he left his state in a lurch when he was nowhere to be found. I do respect his apologies to his wife and family and I pray they can work everything out at least, there he is being honest. Idon't think he should have left the state the way he did, however. Perhaps all politicians are not trustworthy. I say, let's start from scratch!!

Birthdays Keep Invading the Family

It seems that we are having birthdays every few days in our family. Let's see: January has 3, a granddaughter and her father, and a sister; February occasionally and barely 1 on the 29th; March brings the youngest of our grandsons; April we have a break...I think; May brings 4 including 2 new great-granddaughter a grandson and a sister; June reminds us of our oldest daughter and our youngest granddaughter; July screams independence for 2, one who has no more free time due to a new baby and one who is speaking Spanish with the true natives; August finally gives us a break but time to remember my dear mom; September embraces the hubby and the oldest son plus a brother; October brings the youngest son and a daughter-in-law who lives too far away; November bogs us down beginning with the youngest daughter, ending with college-bound grandson, with the oldest granddaughter who presented us with a beautiful great-granddaughter, the newest daughter-in-law, also the mom of a gorgeous daughter, my namesake, and...oh yes, me.

Now, I know this was boring for my readers but it was a great exercise for me. I now have to do a much better job of sending their birthday cards in a timely fashion. I just can't seem to get that organized. Any suggestions?? I really do need help. That's what happens when we get a few years older and the number continues to grow. I have the same trouble with phone numbers; I used to have hundreds floating around in my head and I knew to whom they belonged...now, they just float around!

Another Beautiful Child

This afternoon, Hubby and I drove to our son's home to see the newest addition to our family. What a beautiful little girl she is!! The parents are so proud of this tiny little child. I'm so proud to have another little granddaughter. I thought our youngest grandson would probably be the last but so happy to have number 9 join us and what a delight she is! I have already blogged about our 2 little great granddaughters who are also very pretty. All 3 of these girls are less than 3 months apart in age. I wonder what kinds of things they would get into if they get together in future years. They could very well become best friends.

We drove Hubby's old truck up for our son today also; he was happy to get that: no more gas-guzzling for him he says!

New GrandDaughter!

I recently was blessed with two great granddaughters; now, I have been blessed with a beautiful little granddaughter, finally a namesake!! I haven't been able to go see her yet because she has been in a step-down nursery with limited observations. We plan to head that way tomorrow if possible. I'm anxiously awaiting to see her (the one photo I have received shows a beautiful baby, cute as a button!). Two weekends ago, our granddaughter brought our great-granddaughter down to visit us and she is a real cutie (looks like her mom to me and that means she is very cute).
I guess that's all the babies for awhile in our family (Would love to see the one that lives out-of-state but probably can't make that trip for at least another year). I thank God for healthy children.

Hubby broke down and bought himself a new pickup which I may have told you about already. At least he can drive this one due to the automatic transmission. He is still nursing his shoulder and will wear it in a sling until July 6 at least.

We have been keeping the grands this week and half of last week. They are such good kids that we don't mind keeping them. They are well-behaved, good manners, obedient, and just a lot of fun to have around. Their mom has made sure that they are good children and that's very important. The only thing is they want to eat all the time and I have to curb that; at least they are content with foods other than sweets all the time. Fruit is fine, especially apples and plums. the girl will eat any fruit and most veggies, except rice (the boy loves the rice).

Ramblings

Tomorrow is my Sunday to teach our Sunday School class so I've been busy trying to prepare a lesson for all the members who have as much if not more knowledge than I about the Bible and these lessons from Galatians. This is one of my favorite books of the Bible because it is chock full of the true message of salvation. I highly recommend it to everyone. It's best to read the entire book, not just those verses printed in the quarterly. It's a worthwhile use of time, that's for sure.

We are in the process of getting our church trip finalized and hopefully be able to get enough people to make the trip justifiable. It takes time and lots of planning to get a trip that people of various interests can enjoy. I hope this one will be a trip that will meet the pleasures of every participant.

Hubby is still recuperating from his surgery but is improving a little each day. Frustration often rears its head but, overall, things are going along rather smoothly. He bought a new truck yesterday, one with automatic transmission, power windows, cruise control, etc, that will make driving more comfortable for him. I think it was time that he traded since his other truck was about 15 years old. He really hates to forfeit his excellent gas mileage though. I'm still enjoying my new car as well but don't drive it too often, especially if the weather is bad, as it has been almost daily for the past 2 weeks. That's okay, it's there when I decide to take it out for a spin.

A Strange Emergency List for Car

I was in the Audiologist's office this morning awaiting my appointment time when I decided to peruse this magazine lying there. One of the articles I came across was directed at Senior Citizens, it said. It was entitled, "Be Prepared for an Emergency". Since it caught my attention, I decided to read further. The list of items strongly suggested that we pack in our garage included many things I thought appropriate although it did exclude some which I felt should be a part of this "kit"; for example, a small blanket or sweater, water, flares, etc were excluded. It did suggest such things as a hat/cap, suntan oil (I never thought of that one), flashlight, spare tire, and a few other things. The one item it listed that really caught my attention was a shovel!! A shovel??? Now why would I want to load my trunk with a shovel? Is that to bury the snake or squirrel that I might run over, or worse? If anyone reading this blog knows why I should pack a shovel, please, please let me know. I haven't put one in yet. I'm waiting to hear from you. Also, I'm not going hiking if I break down so I would rather add an extra bottle of water than a bottle of suntan lotion!

A Season for Graduations

The first graduation ceremony this year for our family will occur in just a couple of hours. Hubby and I are excited about attending. This afternoon, two of our grandchildren will be graduating: from Kindergarten! That's right, our 2 little grands will be graduating and moving to first grade. I'm very proud of their progress this year! It's amazing how much they learn in Kindergarten versus what I learned in first grade (we had no kindergarten then). They are reading way above grade level and for that I'm quite pleased! Go Grands!!!!!

My grandson who lives in another city too far for us to travel right now, will be graduating from high school next week. I cannot believe that he has been with us long enough to even be out of grade school and now he's graduating!! Go, Grandson!! We're proud of you! He has talked about coming and spending some time with us this summer, that is if he doesn't get a job. We always enjoy having him around; he's so eager to help in any way.

I know many of my blog readers are experiencing children and grandchildren growing up and you are feeling the same happiness/sadness as I. We know that's life and we have to adjust to change; it's still not easy to think our loved ones are growing up.

I also have a friend who visits our church often and has joined us on a couple of our church trips. He will be graduating from high school in another city; I'm so proud of Kevin and know that he will be very successful. He's a very brilliant young man, has a pleasing personality, is creative, witty, and just a well-rounded person. Go, Kev!!

Getting Antsy

Hubby is definitely improving! He's getting antsy; just sitting around is not his forte. He asked to go for a ride and a quick trip to Lowe's Home Improvement, his favorite place to shop. OK, so I did take him for a very short trip; it didn't take him but a minute to get tired so now it's nap time.

We watched the girls' college softball NCAA game last night. Believe it or not, I think the girls' games are more interesting than the boys. The game moves along faster. Some of those girls are really good players, too; however, some of them made some pretty ridiculous errors, one of which may have cost Florida the game. I really wanted them to win for two reasons: first, they are my team of choice in the finals; and second, I would love to see another game tonight.

Now that the girls are over, I will be concentrating on the boys' NCAA games, especially this weekend in Chapel Hill, NC, where the Tarheels and the East Carolina Pirates will be playing the best 2 out of 3. These games will be played Saturday and Sunday at 12 and, if necessary, again on Monday at 1:00 I believe. I like both of these teams (my alma maters) but ECU is the underdog and I'll be pulling for them really hard!

One of our friends from our Florida trips just called to check on Hubby's progress. Wow, it's really nice to have friends who care. Hubby really likes this guy, a retired physician, who lost his wife about 3 years ago. The two of them enjoy riding their bikes together for many miles.

Humiliation of College Baseball

I was watching the baseball playoffs last night, the game between Florida State and...who was that other team? That was so humiliating that, after the score became 29 to 0, I decided enough was enough. Why embarrass the guys that much? Why not stop the game? There was no way to catch to that lead which I believe was going to continue to increase. I would prefer to see some face saved, not continuing to embarrass them.

I then switched over to the girls' playoff game in Oklahoma City but didn't last past the first several innings. I don't know the outcome of that one but the score was 4-0 in favor of Washington Huskies when I became busy with other chores. I guess I will need to check the local station to learn who won both games.