The Best Sunday

This was the best Sunday after Thanksgiving in my whole life. All of my children and two of my grandchildren were here plus my son's girfriend and her three boys. There was lots of laughter and pictures, so the best way for me to do it was with a collage.
We heated the porch so the poor kitchen wouldn't explode!
We deep fat fried a turkey had homemade apple and pumpkin pie. Yum! Those were made by Mike's girlfriend. My granddaughter lives in South Dakota and I haven't seen her for years Needlessto say she got lots of hugs.My daughter and her daughter came on Saturday and we played Wii the bowling game but I didn't know if I could do it now, but I held onto my walker and did pretty good. Fran's Mom is living with us now and my family treated her just like another grandma. Her meal schedule was not like it usually is, but she was good natured about it.
I hope and pray that our family gets together more often from now on. If for some reason, we can't, I will always be thankful for this wonderful day!

I Have Never......

Well, if you add a lot of water to cream of wheat, it turns a whitesh gray color and leaves a bit of little texture pieces on your tongue. That was our gravy  jelly.
If you have a husband that is in a hurry to eat, he takes broccoli off the burner early and by the time the rest of us eat it is ice cold.
He served us only white meat, (not my favorite, but it is his and his mother's, hmm).
Our cranberry sauce, cheese, and pickles were absolutely wonderful. The mashed potatoes weren't bad either. Covered with gruel or not, My mother-in-law said, "maybe you should put more thickining in it."  You think?
I told my daughter this and she said," there is always next year."
I certainly hope so because this one will go down in history for the absolute worst. Hope you all had a Happy Thanksgiving. I know I have a lot to be thankful for this year.

He Will Always Be There

I think it is interesting how a lot of us take our friends and family for granted as far as they will always be there. I also think that is why death takes us for a shock and a surprise for those that know, and love them.
Even though folks are sick, have grey hair, and start losing weight, we often think that that is part of the aging process. And then one day they are gone.
My husband's brother passed away very suddenly this week, and we knew he was sick, but his death was a shock nonetheless.
Rest, Roland and be at peace.

The Sound Of The Drums Again

Every so often, I go to the hospital to hear the sound of the drums and horns and simulated car crashes. Weird? Yes, it is. M.R. I. tests for multiple sclerosis are at times  done in this tomb that is almost essential for this test as well as spinal taps etc.
Plus those noises, they put head phones on you that are playing the music of your choice from a radio station. When the noise from the M.R.I is deafening it seems that the music is even louder at the point where you want to scream.
This year I had more difficulty than I ever have had before. I am much shakier and had trouble keeping my head and body still. My mind wandered (a mechanism I have, to leave my body behind while I think of something nicer.) Only this time it didn't work. When my daughter was a teenager she had either a M.R.I or CT Scan and was allergic to the contrast. I didn't recognize her when she came out. Her face was so distorted. I will never forget her father's reaction.To avoid the situation he told me he had to move the car. In my mind, I wanted to move the car. I don't ever want to live that over again, but I did yesterday. The reason was the contrast gave me a cool feeling going through my vein and it smelled like formaldahyde.  I thought for sure I was even being imbalmed.
Needless to say, I survived the test and shouldn't have to have another one for two or three years.
I am increasingly more forgetful. I could have done without those memories yesterday!!

What We Did Years Ago

Before sick-o's ruined my fun, my mother, my sister and I would make all kinds of popcorn balls. I mean tons of popcorn balls. Popcorn balls were my mother's thing for Christmas and Halloween. Orange syrup for Halloween, of course, and red and green for Christmas.
Mother made home made syrup, but I didn't. My syrup got to "hard ball" quickly so you ended up scraping on a cement block for your treat. About  a century ago a syrup made of marshmellows came to save me. The popcorn balls remained soft and delicious.
We gave out apples, candy, and my favorite Milky Way.
The kids's dad always wanted the little ones to give him their candy so that he could "check" it to make sure it was good for them. lol
So every year they would fall for it and willingly give him their little pumpkins. And then the squeals would begin with dad and children fun fighting over the candy.  I was telling Fran about that and he laughed. I could almost see him thinking, "smart man." Towards the later years, the treats ended up being nickels. Where did the fun go?  I handed out nickels a few years ago, and a little boy said, "but don't you have any candy?"  Hmm.

I Would If I Could But I Can't!

I have a "thing" about wearing shoes and jackets. I feel trapped and very uncomfortable.
Today was cruddy outside. It was fifty degrees, too breezy, and drizzly. So of course, we chose today to go to WalMart. About fifteen miles down the highway I started to struggle with my jacket. The jacket was lined with flannel and my shirt was denim trimmed with corduroy. Hmm. There was nothing slippery going on. My brilliant husband let me huff and puff all to no avail. Finally he said, "give me your arm!"  So there was a discussion that lasted until we almost went into the ditch and with me not really screaming but with a very high pitched voice. "If I could get my arm out I wouldn't need your help!"  Needless to say, I walked into WalMart with no jacket and just cuddled up to hubbie.