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| Walter and I Arriving for Game Day at Church |
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| Howard and Robert Taste the Goodies |
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| Seniors Play SkipBo |
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| Gamers Were Too Busy to Notice the Camera |
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| I Discuss Mexican Train Strategies with Betsy and Dodie |
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| Pinochle Players |
Sunday, January 27, 2013
Senior Adult Game Day Party
The year started off very nicely. We finally got a return card sent to everyone who had sent us Christmas well wishes. I made bookmarks with our picture on them for all the ones who sent us cards after December 25th. I thought that would be a thoughtful way to wish them a happy new year.
We had a reason to party this weekend. All the senior adults in our church gathered to play games and eat chili together. We had a time to visit together and hear about what was happening in each others' lives. One of the joys of my retirement has been that I have learned to take my time when talking to someone. No longer do I allow myself to hurry through my conversations because I am thinking of the next item on my to-do list. Relationships are vital to my happiness and probably my health. If you ask a senior a question, if you can allow yourself to listen, you may learn a great deal.
I made a double batch of my chili and I didn't have to bring any of it home. All was eaten.
We brought unused gifts for the game prizes. We had a couple of usable good items that I wrapped up as pretty as I could and took them to the party. I thought this was a great way to get rid of items that were just too good to toss, but that we would probably never use.
Wednesday, January 16, 2013
Red Hats Society
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| Me in Red Hat with Kathy and Two New Friends |
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| Some of the Ladies I Enjoyed at Lunch Today |
Now that I am not working, I decided to join up with them again. Today we went to Longhorn Restaurant for their soup and salad specials. There were 19 ladies, all from various areas and past occupations.
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| Queen Mother Tish Celebrates with Kate as She Received a Birthday Card for her 80th |
Two ladies there were celebrating birthdays.
Kate was turning 80 and Polly is 90!
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| Polly is a Fabulous 90 |
They both look great. What an inspiration! They are sharp and feisty. I want to be interested in people and willing to get out of the house to have fun with others when I reach that age.
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| Peggy Sue and Betty Add to the Fun |
Keep it up sweet ladies. God is good!
Tuesday, January 1, 2013
A December Recap & Happy New Year
The month of December was busy here. We had many Christmas parties and events at our church. We sang in both the Saturday and Sunday Living Nativity events. This was totally new for our church and many people from the community visited. An 18-month old camel was brought in for the nativity set along with goats and sheep. We sang several carols those two nights.
Additionally, we went caroling to several of our shut-in members. That is always a satisfying use of our time. It adds so much to our enjoyment of the season. When we returned to the church we were welcomed in from the cold with cookies and apple cider! That was a nice touch.
We spent Christmas afternoon seeing "Parental Guidance" at the local cinema. Then we came home and had three of our children and their families plus extended family for supper, followed by the Dirty Santa game we love to play. It was a good time and we gave the grandchildren gifts that we think they liked.
The day after Christmas we packed the car and drove 473 miles to Gulf Shores, AL. Although cold, we found many things to occupy our time. We picked up shells on the beach, watched locals fishing from the pier, ate at Lambert's, a place that threw the rolls to you from across the room, shopped at the Tanger Outlets, and caught "Guilt Trip" at the local cinema. The next day we took the ferry to Dolphin Island, traveled north to Mobile, ate at Blue Gill along the water's edge, and did some antique shopping in Foley. The next day we drove into Pensacola for more antique shopping, found the dog racing track and had dinner and dancing at Pace's Country Show for the evening entertainment. Sunday we drove home in about seven and a half hours. All in all a busy four days!
We spent New Year's Eve at a friends house. Twelve of us ate snacks and played Pictionary until the ball dropped in Times Square, a completely fun way to welcome in the year.
Happy New Year to all our friends and family. Tomorrow we have to go back to work and our regular schedules. God is good!
Additionally, we went caroling to several of our shut-in members. That is always a satisfying use of our time. It adds so much to our enjoyment of the season. When we returned to the church we were welcomed in from the cold with cookies and apple cider! That was a nice touch.
We spent Christmas afternoon seeing "Parental Guidance" at the local cinema. Then we came home and had three of our children and their families plus extended family for supper, followed by the Dirty Santa game we love to play. It was a good time and we gave the grandchildren gifts that we think they liked.
The day after Christmas we packed the car and drove 473 miles to Gulf Shores, AL. Although cold, we found many things to occupy our time. We picked up shells on the beach, watched locals fishing from the pier, ate at Lambert's, a place that threw the rolls to you from across the room, shopped at the Tanger Outlets, and caught "Guilt Trip" at the local cinema. The next day we took the ferry to Dolphin Island, traveled north to Mobile, ate at Blue Gill along the water's edge, and did some antique shopping in Foley. The next day we drove into Pensacola for more antique shopping, found the dog racing track and had dinner and dancing at Pace's Country Show for the evening entertainment. Sunday we drove home in about seven and a half hours. All in all a busy four days!
We spent New Year's Eve at a friends house. Twelve of us ate snacks and played Pictionary until the ball dropped in Times Square, a completely fun way to welcome in the year.
Happy New Year to all our friends and family. Tomorrow we have to go back to work and our regular schedules. God is good!
Thursday, December 6, 2012
Wrapping up Christmas
Today I started the part of Christmas that I dislike the most. I have started the wrapping of the gifts. Usually I try to use as little paper and bows as possible and still get the job done. This is probably due to the level of income we had when I was a child.
We never had much disposable income. So the gift was the focus, not the wrapping paper, which only added extra cost and was not kept by the recipient. Now if our family was the recipient, we did save all the paper possible and all the bows. They were ironed and reused during the next year and especially again at the next Christmas. We just had to be frugal with all we had. I do not feel bad about this, as it is still important to me to use our resources wisely.
So I spend a lot of time seeing if I can get multiple packages wrapped with the paper I have on hand. I don't waste any leftover paper from the piece that is used on the gifts. From time to time, I have even pieced together scraps of paper to be able to cover a large box.
With mild apprehension I set about to wrap our gifts. This is a long and teduous project for me so I usually only wrap one or two at a time. I found a YouTube video on how to create a bow and got inspired. Before I quit I had managed to get six wrapped.
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| Christmas Tree Downstairs |
So I spend a lot of time seeing if I can get multiple packages wrapped with the paper I have on hand. I don't waste any leftover paper from the piece that is used on the gifts. From time to time, I have even pieced together scraps of paper to be able to cover a large box.
With mild apprehension I set about to wrap our gifts. This is a long and teduous project for me so I usually only wrap one or two at a time. I found a YouTube video on how to create a bow and got inspired. Before I quit I had managed to get six wrapped.
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| These Two are for the Sunday School Class Dirty Santa Party |
There are many more gifts to wrap. But tomorrow is another day! God is good!
Wednesday, November 21, 2012
Kindergarten Lunchroom
Last Wednesday, Kash, our 5 yr. old grandson, invited us to his kindergarten for Thanksgiving lunch. Walter and I worked it out to be there before his class went into the lunchroom. He was both happy and surprised that we were there.
He sat next to Walter and I sat across from him. A girl named McKenzie sat next to me. While Kash and his Grandpoppie talked, I talked to the girl classmate. "I am Kash's Grandmother," I told her. "I thought you were his Me Ma," she said. "Well, I guess I am his Me Ma, but I am called Grandmother, " I told her.
"I thought you were a Me Ma because your hair is the same color as my Me Ma's." I thought I would laugh out loud but I composed myself enough to say, "Yes. When you become a Me Ma is about the time your hair turns this color." We went on to have a nice conversation.
Our conversation stayed with me all day and even until now. Although true what the girl had said, I still wandered how much evidence will I have to gather before I can admit to myself that I am aging. You see, it didn't feel much different to me to be sitting on the stools in that lunchroom as when I did it over 55 years ago!
He sat next to Walter and I sat across from him. A girl named McKenzie sat next to me. While Kash and his Grandpoppie talked, I talked to the girl classmate. "I am Kash's Grandmother," I told her. "I thought you were his Me Ma," she said. "Well, I guess I am his Me Ma, but I am called Grandmother, " I told her.
"I thought you were a Me Ma because your hair is the same color as my Me Ma's." I thought I would laugh out loud but I composed myself enough to say, "Yes. When you become a Me Ma is about the time your hair turns this color." We went on to have a nice conversation.
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| Kash is Wearing an Orange Tie at his Preschool Graduation Earlier This Year |
Monday, November 19, 2012
Strange and Beautiful Thanksgiving Cactus
Several years ago, my daughter, Patricia, gave me a Thanksgiving cactus. I have repotted it once and moved it from
location to location in the house, trying to find an ideal spot for it to grow
and flower. Well I finally found a good spot
in the middle of the living room. It
gets good indirect light and has started to flourish. About mid-November it started setting buds
and has produced several nice flowers. It is shown here next to another cactus I received from my friend Kathy for my birthday a few years back. My photography is fuzzy for some reason but the flowers are continuing to bloom and set buds even today.
I did some internet research and found the following information
on the care of the plant. “The
Thanksgiving cactus really is a cactus but it is far from the other typical
plants of the family. Its stems are not round and spiny, but flat and smooth.
Moreover, many people mistake them for leaves. The stems are divided into
segments called "articles". First they grow up, and then arch up
gracefully. The flowers, elongated and slightly asymmetrical, grow directly
from the end of articles. Each flower may last two weeks, longer if the room is
a bit cooler. There are three factors that stimulate flowering Thanksgiving cactus:
short days, some drought and a slightly cool weather. So do not place your
plant in a location that stays bright at night (your plant will suffer
short-day) and reduce watering from September. If you lower the thermostat at
night, you will make your Thanksgiving cactus very happy and it should bloom
abundantly. But even if you do nothing special at all, it is not uncommon for
it to flourish anyway.
I did some internet research and found the following information
on the care of the plant. “The
Thanksgiving cactus really is a cactus but it is far from the other typical
plants of the family. Its stems are not round and spiny, but flat and smooth.
Moreover, many people mistake them for leaves. The stems are divided into
segments called "articles". First they grow up, and then arch up
gracefully. The flowers, elongated and slightly asymmetrical, grow directly
from the end of articles. Each flower may last two weeks, longer if the room is
a bit cooler. There are three factors that stimulate flowering Thanksgiving cactus:
short days, some drought and a slightly cool weather. So do not place your
plant in a location that stays bright at night (your plant will suffer
short-day) and reduce watering from September. If you lower the thermostat at
night, you will make your Thanksgiving cactus very happy and it should bloom
abundantly. But even if you do nothing special at all, it is not uncommon for
it to flourish anyway.
It is propagated mainly by cuttings of the stems. Simply take a
healthy stem comprising two to four items and insert it into a small pot of
slightly moist compost. Rooting is fairly quickly." Source:http://voices.yahoo.com/how-care-thanksgiving-cactus-4514169.html
Saturday, November 10, 2012
Boxes for Samarian's Purse Project
How many things can you pack into a shoebox? How about if it is for a child who is in an under developed country? Then you really want to become a packaging genius.
Operation Christmas Child expects to reach a significant milestone this year—the 100 millionth shoe box gift packed and distributed since they started this project 19 years ago. Our church, plus many others, want to help them reach the 100 million boxes sent to these children all around the world this Christmas. http://www.samaritanspurse.org/index.php will explain the program headed up by Franklin Graham, President and CEO of Samarian's Purse.
For my box to look like this what did I do? I started out with many items.
These things were:
I used spray adhesive to attach a message and two pictures of us.
The bottom of the lid has a note saying "With Love, Martha and Walter". We had heard that many of the children like it best if they know who sent the box to them. I hope they like seeing that some grandparents from another part of the world are concerned about them.
I come from a legacy of people who helped when they could. I remember as a child our school was asked to pack a shoebox for far away and needy children, (not this program). My mother helped me fill the box each time. We always included toothbrushes and other practical things. We never seemed to have much money but we always packed these boxes. Most times a small toy or fancy item was found by my mother and lovingly slipped in at the last moment. I was always proud of those boxes we packed in our small kitchen. That joy returned as I placed each item into this Operation Christmas Child box.
God is good.
Operation Christmas Child expects to reach a significant milestone this year—the 100 millionth shoe box gift packed and distributed since they started this project 19 years ago. Our church, plus many others, want to help them reach the 100 million boxes sent to these children all around the world this Christmas. http://www.samaritanspurse.org/index.php will explain the program headed up by Franklin Graham, President and CEO of Samarian's Purse.
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| The Packed Box is Bulging but Properly Secured |
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| Items Gathered to Fill the Operation Christmas Child Box |
- Black T Shirt
- Coloring Book
- Toothbrush, Toothpaste, Floss Kit
- Sunglasses
- Paperback Books (2)
- Washable Markers
- Pins
- New Testament
- Wooden Cross
- Change Holder (UT) I couldn't resist
- Smart Links Toy
- Toy Cow
- Stickers (3)
- Notepads (2)
- Slippers
- Bowl. Spoon, Cup
I used spray adhesive to attach a message and two pictures of us.
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| Box Lid Decorated with Our Pictures |
The bottom of the lid has a note saying "With Love, Martha and Walter". We had heard that many of the children like it best if they know who sent the box to them. I hope they like seeing that some grandparents from another part of the world are concerned about them.
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| Box is Ready for Shipping Label |
There! I did it! This box is stuffed to almost overflowing. The rubber bands will keep the box intact during shipping and delivery. I will turn it in tomorrow at my church and a sticker added to the front will indicate whether it is intended for a girl or a boy. Since most of our grandchildren are boys, I decided I wanted to shop for a girl.
I come from a legacy of people who helped when they could. I remember as a child our school was asked to pack a shoebox for far away and needy children, (not this program). My mother helped me fill the box each time. We always included toothbrushes and other practical things. We never seemed to have much money but we always packed these boxes. Most times a small toy or fancy item was found by my mother and lovingly slipped in at the last moment. I was always proud of those boxes we packed in our small kitchen. That joy returned as I placed each item into this Operation Christmas Child box.
God is good.
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