Taking a break...

Sweetie and I are visiting our oldest daughter in Albuquerque, New Mexico.  Our oldest granddaughter, Elizabeth, will graduate tomorrow from The University of New Mexico with a degree in elementary education.  Sunday is not only Mother's Day but also daughter's birthday.  Perfect time for a visit.

Weather is beautiful here -- 60's (F) during the day, 40's in the evening/night.  Daughter and I shopped for groceries yesterday -- had a wonderful dinner -- grilled chicken breasts and lots of vegetables.  I enjoyed it all, especially the veggies.  Ate artichokes for the first time -- at least for eating the pull-off version.  I usually eat artichokes in something -- like artichoke dip, in a fish dish or in pasta.  I like them but thought the effort in baking and eating the whole thing was wasted effort -- not enough to each bite.  Like them better other ways.

Tonight we are having a pot roast (cooking in the crock pot as I am writing this) and I volunteered to fix cauliflower.  Don't know what else is planned.  Most everyone has gone to play golf -- Liz and I will have lunch together a little later.  She's still asleep and I need to shower and do some grooming. Tomorrow will be a busy day!

Albuquerque is a nice place -- just has lots of the dirt that I am so allergic to.  Where I live open spaces are covered in vegetation. Here, and in El Paso where we previously lived, an open space is covered in dirt.  There just isn't enough water (rain) to allow plants to grow freely.  When the wind blows, which is quite often, the dust/dirt blows, too.  My nose runs and runs!

Abq (as it is abbreviated) is built in the Rio Grande valley next to a range of mountains.  We have visited the mountains on multiple occasions -- I love them.  The view of the city from the top of the mountain is beautiful. 

One big attraction here happens in the fall.  The Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta.  Hot air balloons come from around the world to fly during the two weeks of Balloon Fiesta.  We came one year and it is a wonderful sight.  I wanted to post a picture from that occasion but can't  find one quickly so it will have to wait.
On our way here we took a shorter route that led us across miles and miles and miles of nothing but dirt - flat, barren land.  It must take multiple acres to support one cow.  The desert does have a beauty of its own but, frankly, it is not my favorite place. 

Guess I better wind this up and get ready for lunch.  Take care, everyone, and let me hear from you when you get a chance.
Anita

As Time Goes By...

Once again I have been buried in this and that and time is marching on.  Now it is May!  What a shock to look at the calendar and find it is less than one week before we leave on vacation.  WOW -- guess who is not ready!!

Meanwhile, I have had my 6 month check up at M.D.Anderson and I still show no cancer in my lymph nodes!  Praise the Lord!

  I learned that the more I talk the better it is because it gives my tongue the exercise it needs.  Funny.   Telling me that it was good for me to talk more.  I've never had a problem with talking too little -- just too much.  I do notice, however, that sometimes my tongue feels stiff and perhaps swollen.  My daughter said that sometimes it sounds like the tongue is swollen when I speak.  Feels that way to me, also.  Truth is, it may be swollen or it may just be stiff from disuse.

I was also given some exercises to use to practice those sounds that are difficult -- rather like singing practice. 

We have been having lovely weather -- tonight, however,  it is windy and quite cool -- we are expecting temps in the 40's tonight.  Love it!!  A/C off, windows open.  My favorite way to sleep.  A few days ago we had a day of rain!  Lovely, lovely.  We think we got 3+ inches at our house -- some places got as little as 1/4 inch and some places got 8 inches.  I thought ours was a nice middle of the road amount.  Our trees/plants really needed the rain and I always feel natural rain is much better than watering from the hose.

Because of the alternating warm/cool weather we are having a rather strange spring.  So far, my amaryllis plants have bloomed (red), our hibiscus has been blooming for days, the azaleas are finished, and the back yard is a sea of wild violets.  I'd rather it be grass but once the violets got a good strong-hold we were unable to keep ahead of them.  Oh, well, we'll just keep mowing them down.

I've been so remiss in writing that I fear my few followers have given up on  me.  Hope you still drop by from time to time -- Doug?  Do you still stop by?  How are things in Ireland?

If anyone had a minute, drop me a line.  I'll try to post a few times during our trip to see our granddaughter graduate from college.  It may be cold where we are going!

Time marches on...

Here it is March 25 -- more than a month has passed since my last entry and I didn't realize that.  I guess I should consider myself lucky that I did drop in to see what I had been doing and found out that I have not been doing anything since Feb 14. 

WOW

I've sure been slacking off!

At this time I am visiting with my Mom -- remember she lives with my brother?  Brother needed to go out of town so I came up to stay with Mom.  First time I've been able to see her while she is well in quite some time.  She is well ... except...she is 90 plus years old and is victim to the usual frailties of mind and body that come with that great age.  I believe she has had several small strokes over the past year or so and they have taken a toll. 

Easter is almost here -- HE IS RISEN!!  What a wonderful thing to celebrate.  I will be home for  Easter and am looking forward to it.

About one month from now will be my 6 months check-up following my cancer surgery.  My tongue has continued to heal and to change over the past 5 months -- every time I think, "OK, that's all,"  it changes again.  I am hoping for clear tests, of course.  Please keep me in your prayers.

Sweetie and I recently celebrated our 39th anniversary -- we plan a trip to Galveston to celebrate our special time and also my return from Mom's.  This picture shows me feeding the gulls on a previous trip.  I love doing that so I am sure I will be feeding them again.

                                                                                                        

Next month my Sweetie will travel to Georgia to be of assistance to his sister while she recovers from major oral surgery.  I will miss him! (He assures me that he has been missing me these past days.  But, we do what needs to be done.)

What's going on in your lives?  Would love to hear from you.  I'll try to drop in again soon.

February 14, 2013

Happy Valentine's Day!  I hope you are having a nice one.  My Sweetie and I had breakfast together, chatted with a friend, did some shopping, then went to Olive Garden for a lovely lunch.  I had Chicken Scampi and it was really delicious!  We may just skip dinner since we had lunch a little later than usual.

How did you spend your special day?

Later I had a brief nap  -- don't you love little cat naps in the afternoon?  I sure do -- they really seem to refresh me.

Have any of you been keeping up with the saga of the Carnival Cruise ship that had a fire and lost power?  Tug boats are attempting to tow it back to the USA but there just seems to be one failure after another.  More than 3,500 people are on board ship and have spent several days with limited food and water, no cooling, limited electricity, and very limited toilets.  Well, a friend of ours is on that ship -- her very first cruise.  Such a terrible experience for her!  We have been on one cruise (to Alaska) and we loved every minute of it.  I am so sorry that her cruise experience has been so bad.

Have you ever been on a cruise?  Where did you go?  Did you enjoy your trip?

My Mom is doing very well -- she is still doing her physical therapy and has regained some of her strength.  I think it is time to start planning her 91st birthday party!

Take care, everyone, would love to hear from you!

Hello

Sorry I haven't been very faithful to post.  It seems like life is rushing by so fast that I can't keep up.

I had to spend almost a full week in Austin (our state capitol) caring for my Mom.  She is 90 years old and was very ill for some time -- in the hospital for 4 days, then being cared for at home.  Right now there are many, many people with the flu and the hospital is not a safe place to be.  She was put on the Cardio floor because no one there had the flu.  Unfortunately she fell out of her bed early one morning.  She awoke in a state of confusion, forgot she was in the hospital, and fell trying to get out of bed.  She suffered several severe bruises and she also ripped out her IV.  Much bleeding.  She had several x-rays and they revealed she did not break any bones (Praise God!) 

She is recovering and is beginning to sound more normal each time I talk to her.  My brother has quit his part-time job and is caring for her full time at home.  He is doing a wonderful job.

I am back home and beginning to resume my regular routine.  We have been having some lovely weather.
I took our electric blanket off of our bed so, of course, we are expecting some colder weather.  I don't mind -- we put on a new comforter and I think it will keep us plenty warm!

What is everyone doing these days?  I haven't be able to read much on dashboard so I don't know what is happening in your world.  Catch me up, please.

Starting the year off right!

FYI -- I spent a couple of days this past week being tested and examined as a followup to my cancer surgery.  (This was the 3 month exam.)  I am thrilled to say that my lymph nodes are clear -- no additional cancer has shown up, and my tongue is fully healed.  God has been extremely good to me and I give Him all the praise!

A New Year

Yesterday (or so it seems) it was New Year's Day and now it is  January 12.  How does the time go by so fast? 

The first days of the new year were spent taking down the Christmas decorations and restoring order to my house.  I have often said that taking down and putting away was my favorite part of the holidays.  This year I didn't do as much decorating as I have done in past years.  I have a large amount of decorations and I think it is time to do away with some of them.  I read a book recently that spoke of a tree decorated with all the home-made ornaments that someone collected through the years. I felt like the author must have selected the ornaments from my big wooden box.  We made those same ornaments when my children were small -- some from hand painted basa wood -- some plastic, painted to look like stained glass.  We have the ornaments made with glitter covered styrofoam (complete with a picture of the child taken that year.)  One of my favorites is a "Palace Guard" made from a toilet tissue roll, styrofoam, red gingham fabric, etc.  We also have the small metal ornaments engraved with the names of the children.  Those came from Miles Kimbell.  I have lots of unbreakable balls -- those came from when we had small children and/or a cat.  I now use breakable ornaments -- we do lose one or two every year but we still have more than will fit on my tree at one time.  I know people who have started decorating more than one tree but I'd rather just get rid of some ornaments -- I don't have time to do more than one tree...and I really don't have room for more than one tree.  What happens at your house?  Do you decorate a tree?  One tree or more than one?

As we went about our errands today I noticed that quite a few houses had Christmas wreaths on the front doors.  We took ours down.  I need to make a new wreath for the door -- the one we hung this year is looking a little "old" as well it should -- it must be 20 years old.  Perhaps I will make a new one before next Christmas.

Well, back to my original purpose -- HAPPY NEW YEAR to all of you!  I hope 2012 will bring you great happiness.

A holiday greeting to you all!

Tomorrow it will be Christmas Eve!  Is everyone ready?  It will be Christmas Eve whether you are ready or not so just relax and enjoy the day.

What are your Christmas Eve traditions?

In parts of the southern United States it is customary to say "Christmas Eve Gift" to someone you see or speak to.  The first one to say it supposedly receives a gift from the person they greeted in this way.  In our family we don't give the gift but there is always a spirited competition to be the first to say the phrase.  When my phone rings on Christmas Eve I answer "Christmas Eve Gift!"  Often those words are spoken at the same time the caller is saying them causing much laughter. 

My family opens most of their gifts on Christmas Eve.  Some people open their gifts on Christmas Day but we opened ours Christmas Eve and then my Dad would plan this elaborate hoax in which he supposedly heard some noise outside and when he would go out to investigate he would come back and say "Look what I found in the back yard -- Ol' Santa left these gifts out there.  Wonder who they are for."  Of course, we always found our names on the gifts. 

After our children came they would question me about whether or not Santa Clause was "real."  We always said that as long as they believed Santa would bring them a gift.  My Sweetie told me that we would have the only 30 year old kids in America who still got a gift from "Santa."  I finally cut them off about age 18.

We go to church before the meal and gifts -- years ago I fixed a buffet supper and it was eaten by whoever showed up -- several people were working until 9 PM or after, so they ate when they arrived.  One brother worked with some people from Argentina and when he arrived from work he would bring some Argentinian delights -- including chimmichuri sauce, which I loved!  Our buffet would otherwise be a mixture of American and Mexican dishes.

Now that the children are grown and living separate from us our Christmas celebrations are quieter. Our Granddaughter, Victoria, is still a "believer" and still gets very excited about opening gifts.  It is more fun to watch her than it is to open our own gifts.  Sometimes we wait until Christmas morning -- put a fire in the fireplace, if it is cold enough, and we sit together -- my Sweetie and I.  We don't make a big deal about gifts these days -- we have most everything we need so often our "gifts" are trips.  This year we are planning a trip over New Years and are looking forward to that.

Please drop me a line and tell me about your Christmas traditions.

So, Merry Christmas to all and a very happy new year -- may 2013 bring you much peace and happiness.

Things are looking better!

I am gradually restoring accounts and replacing things -- the hacking I endured Tuesday morning will mean some permanent losses but I am back in business on this blog.  Thanks to people who contacted me. 
Meanwhile, we are doing our drive-thru Life of Christ at church -- this is our Christmas gift to the community.  It was enormously successful last night and was warm enough out that we didn't need coats.  A big change for how it usually is.  Tomorrow night may be colder but tonight should be great.  Wish you all could come and see it!