Aftermath of the Holidays!

Our Christmas marathon began on the 18th when we went to my Dad's side of the family party location.  We had a Mexican fiesta and a rousing gift exchange/theft.  We had a good time but as expected, there was a huge hole in our happiness.  My Mom always made our family gathers fun but this year, although it was fun, it was pretty quiet.  We didn't even really pick on my cousin Rob.  Fast forward to the 25th. . . . .my Dad made our traditional Christmas breakfast and we had a full house.  The guest list included my Dad, RAW, Mr. Giggles, G-mom P, G-mom W, Aunt D, cousin Camel, her three kiddos and me.  Breakfast was yummy as usual but again, there was someone missing.  Saturday afternoon Mr. Giggles and I headed over to his parents house to celebrate with them.  We ate and ate and ate, opened presents and played games.  And finally last night, we had Christmas with Dad and my sisters.  We opened some great presents and then snacked on more junk food!  Once again my bil said a beautiful prayer that talked about what a wonderful person my Mom was and how much she meant to all of us.  The grandkids are staying with my Dad and my sister and bil are staying with his parents (about 45 minutes away) so we get to spend some special time with them before they leave on Wednesday.  With that being said, I had better go get ready so we can head to wherever to do whatever is on the agenda today.
Oh, I forgot about a few other people that dropped in. . . .my Uncle D and his wife came to town last week but I didn't get to see them because we didn't realize they were in town and they only stayed a couple of hours, his son and his family came into town yesterday.  We didn't get to see them either because they were only here for a short time.  My Uncle T came Saturday morning but headed home that afternoon and my cousin Grody and his wife came Saturday and left Sunday.  It was good to see those that we got to see and wish that we could have seen those that we didn't get to see.  Ok, gotta scoot.  I may have some pictures to post later.  I am just too lazy to get up and get my camera. 

Have a great day!  Mrs. H's mom, it was so good to see you Sunday!!

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas from our home to yours.  We hope that you and yours enjoy the holiday season and the extra time with family.  Take the time to let the ones you love know.

www.subnews.com

Merry Christmas Mom.  We love you and miss you so much.

Christmas Eve

I am still finding it hard to believe that it is Christmas time once again.  This time last year we were at my sister's house and had our first ever snowy Christmas eve.  It was also one of the longest rides home we have ever had!  This season has been so very different this year.  I am still not really in the holiday spirit but I am looking forward to seeing family.  Today has been pretty laid back for us which has been nice.  We had to make one more trip to Walmart.  Thank goodness there weren't too many people there! 

T'was the night before Christmas. . . . .and it started to rain.  We are very thankful because we are 12 inches below average.  Gotta go get ready to hit the sack so Santa can come.  Hope your dreams are filled with sugarplums!

Year 3

"An angel in the book of life wrote down my baby's birth. Then she whispered as she closed the book, too beautiful for earth." Author unknown


As I sit here trying to decide what to write I notice something, the date is 12/21 and the time is 12:21.  I will never forget this day.  Three years ago today our precious baby boy was born asleep.  I still have a huge hole in my heart and I think about him daily.  I wonder what he would look like, who he would act like, what he would be doing.  I am sure that he is having the time of his life playing with him Memom.
I thought that I would have a wonderful post written about today but I just can't think of what to say.  I miss my baby and hope that one day God will give us babies to hold here on earth instead of having to wait until we get to heaven.

It's Friday!

And today is the last day of work until 2011 for my hubby, my Dad, my sisters and myself!!  Looking forward to spending time with mine and Mr. Giggles families.  We will start tomorrow with my Dad's family for our Annual Christmas get together.  Our menu this year is Mexican and I can't wait! 

This week I have spent so much time in the kitchen that I don't even want to walk through it!  I made goodies for Darrell's coworkers this year.  They received baskets of dill oyster crackers, parmesan herb hot & spicy oyster crackers, corn flake wreaths, pecan pie muffins, white chocolate yummies, candy canes, chocolate covered peanut butter crackers.  I hope they enjoy the goodies.

Well, that is about all I have for now.  I am going to try to get the lights on the tree in a few minutes.  We shall see!

OH, the picture from a few posts ago (the Christmas one with us girls) is from 1976.

Busy Week

This week has been really busy but I don't feel like I have gotten anything done.  I have been working on goodies for Mr. Giggles co-workers.  I have made two large messes and tomorrow I have to clean my oven.  I am waiting for things to cool so I can put to of the gifts together and then go to bed.  Tomorrow I have to get everything wrapped up and hopefully will finally get my tree and house decorated.

Today we got some sad news.  We found out that a friend of ours took his own life over the weekend.  I am devastated as is Mr. Giggles, my Dad and sister.  We thought that things were going well for our friend.  It hurts my heart to know that someone I cared about didn't feel that they any other choice in life but to take theirs.  Take a moment and tell your loved ones how much you love them because you never know what may happen.

Memories

Our hearts grow tender with childhood memories and love of kindred, and we are better throughout the year for having, in spirit, become a child again at Christmas-time. ~Laura Ingalls Wilder

I miss my Mom.  I am not looking forward to the holidays.  I hate the fact that nothing will ever be the same.  I am so thankful for the precious memories of my Mom.  I wish I could hug her and tell her how much I love her.

Oh Christmas Tree

Last night we (Mr. Giggles, Dad, Rae and I) went and picked out our Christmas tree last night.  I am hoping that it will help me get a little more in the Christmas spirit.  It was so very different without Mom, she always found the perfect trees.  Luckily Rae found hers quickly and we found ours right after.  We took Rae's to her house and Mr. G helped her get it in the tree stand.  We got ours home and stuck it in a bucket of water and will spend today getting everything put together.  Hopefully before the cold front hits.  I will share pictures when I am done.
Well, I hope you are all having a good December, that your shopping is mostly done and that you are anticipating time with loved one.  I'm gonna go because Mr. G is cooking breakfast tacos for us!

Fun Times and Then. . . . .

Last night we had our annual ladies Christmas party.  It was at my Grandmother's house.  It took me three days to get the house decorated. . . .it looked good.  Ok, it looked really good (not so much at my house).  Anyway, it was 21 ladies from our church and we started the evening with yummy snacks and then went on to the gifts.  It was all very polite for a while and then the stealing started.  It seemed like Mrs. J was the official gift opener because her gifts were stolen a lot and she always opened a new one!  I think in the end, everyone was pleased with what they took home.  I took home a really cute snow globe that Mrs. H had brought to the party.  My Mom's talent is shown in so many places in my Grandmother's home and people enjoyed looking at the things that she had created over the years.  Everyone started heading home sometime after nine.  After cleaning and straightening up the house, I got home about 11:15.  Too say I was tired would have been a very large understatement!  I hadn't seen Mr. Giggles since 6:55 that morning so of course we talked some before going to sleep (after midnight) so when my phone rang at 7:15 this morning to see if I could take a sub job, I was still very tired.  My very first thought (that I can remember) was that I needed to call Mom and tell her about the Christmas party was.  Goodness, I hate it when I do that.  It hurts so very much.   After I finished with my sub job I went out to the cemetery to see Mom's tombstone (it finally got there) and to have a little chat with her and Baby Giggles.  I cried.  I miss my baby.  I cried.  I miss my Mom.  I cried some more.  I still miss them. . . .a lot.  I went home (with a headache. . you know the kind you get when you cry).

Lost

Yes friends, I am still around but apparently I have lost my blogging mojo.  I haven't really had anything to say but do know that I am keeping up with you all.  Hope your December has gotten off to a good start.  Mine has been busy!  Hopefully I will get the blogging mojo back soon.  :)

A Funny on Friday

Mr. Giggles and I were talking about milk and how our current jug tastes AWFUL!  We usually buy Kroger Springdale milk and it always tastes so good but this one is well, AWFUL!  I said that it tasted like plastic but Mr. G said that it tasted like milk from a stale cow and that the cow needed to have an udder flush before giving up it's milk.  I nearly died laughing.  My hubby is funny but he is always so busy that I don't get to see that side of him much.

I hope everyone has a great weekend.

Let the Craziness Begin

It is only December 2nd and I already feel like I am so far behind.  What I need to do is get off this computer and get to work. . . . .so maybe I will have some time for a real post later tonight.  I hope you are all having a great week.  Mine has been pretty good and I hope it will continue on that way!  I am completely finished with two people on my Christmas list and hope to finish up several more tomorrow!

A Beautiful Song

We sang this at church last Sunday night.  It is a beautiful song

and I wish you could have heard it being sung.

Remind Me Dear Lord

Written by Dottie Rambo

Verse I

The things that I love, and hold dear to my heart

Are just borrowed they’re not mine at all

Jesus only lets me use them to brighten my life

So remind me, remind me dear Lord

Chorus

Roll back the curtain of memories now and then

Show me where you brought me from

Oh, and where I could have been

Remember I’m human, and humans forget

So remind me, remind me dear Lord

Verse II

Nothing good have I done to deserve God’s own Son

I’m not worthy of the scars in His hand

Yet He chose the road to Calv’ry to die in my stead

Why He loved me, I can’t understand

Repeat chorus, then:

So remind me, remind me dear Lord

Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving from our house to yours.

I went back and read about our Thanksgiving from last year and we had been so hopeful that this year Mom would be with us.  Well, she wasn't with us this year but we could feel her with us.  My brother-in-law said a beautiful prayer that included being thankful for our meal and about how much Memom was missed this year.  By the end of the prayer, we were all in tears.  Our menu today included several of her recipes.

Thanksgiving Menu:
turkey and dressing (dressing made by Dad)
spiral ham (BJ)
corn casserole (RAW)
greenbean casserole (raw)
sweet potato casserole (me)
*brocolli rice casserole (me)
greenbeans

rolls (BJ)

bread (me)
*jello mold salad (BJ)
cranberry relish (BJ)

lemon icebox pie with cherries (BJ)
pumpkin pie (BJ)
*buttermilk pie (RAW)
butter pecan bars (me)
spritzer cookies (me)
**Mom's recipes

After eating ourselves to full, we watched Bedtime Stories and we are now watching the A&M vs Texas game.  I hope that your day was filled with family and thanksgiving.

Happy Thanksgiving to our beautiful Mom.  We missed you so much today.  Today just hasn't been the same without you.

I Think I Can, I Think I Can

I am trying to get as much of my stuff done early for Thanksgiving so I don't have to stress and run around.  I am also trying to get Christmas stuff done early for the same reason.  We are having our annual Ladies Christmas party for the ladies at our church at my Gmom P's house this year so I have to get started decorating early for that and I just hate rushing and being stressed but it always happens.  My husband says I have no concept of time.  He may be right but I would never admit it to him!!

I hope that you aren't too stressed about Thanksgiving.  I have one of my casseroles put "together" for the most part and will be doing the other one and some baking tomorrow.  I will share the recipes on my recipe blog when I have a few minutes to get them posted!

Hope you're having a great week!

Keep Your Fork

This was my blogpost on the blog I have about our journey with my Mom's illness but I thought I would bring it over here to share with you.

KEEP YOUR FORK
A woman was diagnosed with a terminal illness and given three months to live. She asked her preacher to come by her house to discuss her funeral.

She told him which songs she wanted sung at the service, what scriptures to read, and what dress she wanted to be buried in. She also requested to be buried with her favorite Bible. As he prepared to leave, she suddenly remembered one more thing. "I have one more request," she said excitedly. "What's that?" the preacher replied. "This is very important,: she continued. "I want to be buried with a fork in my right hand."


The preacher looked at her, not knowing quite what to say.


"That surprises you?" she asked?


"To be honest, I am puzzled," he replied.


The woman explained, "In all my years of attending church fellowships and potluck dinners, I always remembered that when the dishes were being cleared, someone would inevitably lean over and say, 'Keep your fork.' It was my favorite park, because I knew that meant something better was coming. . .like velvety chocolate cake or deep-dish apple pie. Something wonderful! So I want people to see me in that casket with a fork in my hand. When they ask you, 'What's with the fork?' Then I want you to tell them, 'She believed the best was yet to come.'"

I received a copy of House to House, Heart to Heart from the Jacksonville church of Christ in Alabama and this was in there. It made me think of Mom for a couple of reasons, one being that Mom loved dessert. . . .a lot and second she believed that the best was yet to come and now she is being able to enjoy it. BUT that doesn't make us miss her any less or hurt any less. It does help to remind me that she is in a much better place without the worries, hurts, problems that we have. I love you Mom and I know that you are enjoying the best.

Catching Up

Wow, I can't believe that it has been over a week since I have really posted on here.  I have been busy but not that busy.  I did some subbing, lots of cleaning, making reservations, planning my part of our Thanksgiving meal, grocery shopping and well, I can't remember what else!  Oh and I read four really good books.  I have also spent some time trying to think of something cute to make for the ladies in my hubbies office (if you have any suggestions, please pass them on!) and what to get the rest of the people on my Christmas list.  Speaking of Christmas, I can not believe how many people in blogland have already begun or are finished with their Christmas decorating.  My goodness, I still have my lighted pumpkins on my front porch from Halloween!  Why can't we just get through one holiday at a time.  It is bad enough that the stores are already decorated but people's homes?  Anyway, Christmas will not be arriving at the Giggles home until after Thanksgiving.  Even the new Christmas sock monkey I bought last weekend is just having to hang out until after Thanksgiving.

I am excited about our Thanksgiving meal this year.  It will just be our immediate family which includes me, Mr. Giggles, Daddy, RAW, Bec, SRJ, Tatortot and Madcow.  Here is what I can remember of our menu:  turkey, ham, sweet potato casserole (made by me), broccoli rice casserole (also by me), corn casserole, green salad, cranberry mold, rolls, butter pecan bars (by me), chocolate pie.  We will also have taco soup but not on turkey day.

Because I am nosey (or so my hubby says, I think I am just curious about others) I would love to know what your plans are, what you are cooking and what is your favorite Thanksgiving food.  Just leave me a comment and let me know.

This year I didn't do my what I am thankful list but I am pretty much thankful for the same things.  One think that has changed is how thankful I am for my Dad.  I don't know what I would do without him.  I miss my Mom so very much and I know my Dad does too and we just have to lean on each other now.  We are closer than we ever have been.

Well, this post jumps all around but that is all I can come up with tonight.  Oh and Texas A&M beat Nebraska tonight WHOOP and my alma mater won too!!

Remembering

11 years ago today a tragedy occured that changed the lives of 12 families who lost their children and 52 others whose children were injured and 100's of others whose lives were somehow touched.  We remember.

photo courtesy of Wikimedia

At approximately 2:42 a.m. on November 18, 1999, the stack, consisting of about 5000 logs 40 feet (12 m) high, collapsed during construction. Of the 58 students and former students working on the stack, 12 were killed and 27 were injured.  Within minutes of the collapse, members of Texas Task Force 1, the state's elite emergency response team, arrived to begin the rescue efforts. Rescue operations took over 24 hours; the pace was hampered by the decision to remove many of the logs by hand for fear that using heavy equipment to remove them would cause further collapses, resulting in further injuries to those still trapped. Students, including the entire Texas A&M football team and many members of the university's Corps of Cadets, rushed to the site to assist rescue workers with the manual removal of the logs. 

Within minutes of the collapse, word of the accident spread among students and the community. Before sunrise, the accident was the subject of news reports around the world. Within hours, 50 satellite trucks were broadcasting from the Texas A&M campus. At noon, students held an impromptu prayer service in the center of campus, at Rudder Fountain. An official memorial service was held less than seventeen hours after the collapse. Over 16,000 mourners, including then Texas Lieutenant Governor Rick Perry, packed Reed Arena to pay tribute to those who died and those who had spent all day trying to rescue the injured. At the end of the service, as A&M University President Ray Bowen presented roses to the families of the dead and injured students, the crowd spontaneously stood in silence, linking arms with those standing next to them, before quietly singing "Amazing Grace." Only after all of the rescue workers and family members had left the facility did the audience depart.

On November 25, 1999, the date that Bonfire would have burned, Aggies instead held a vigil and remembrance ceremony. Over 40,000 people lit candles and observed up to two hours of silence at the site of the collapse, before walking to Kyle Field for yell practice. At the stadium, fans spontaneously relit their candles as the Parsons Mounted Cavalry fired the Aggie cannon twelve times, once for each victim. Former President George H. W. Bush and his wife Barbara and Texas Governor George W. Bush and his wife Laura attended the remembrance ceremony.

The following day, the Aggies upset the Texas Longhorns, winning 20–16 in the annual rivalry game. The game began with a flyover of F-16 jets, all piloted by former A&M students, in the missing man formation. At halftime, the Texas Longhorn Band dedicated their performance to the students lost and injured in the collapse, and ended by playing Amazing Grace and Taps, then removing their white hats in a show of respect as they walked off the field. The Fightin' Texas Aggie Band also played a tribute to the fallen and, contrary to the usual tradition, marched off the field in a silent cadence. Aggie students, who normally sit only when the opposing band plays, stood throughout both performances and gave both standing ovations.

The Bonfire Memorial Commission collected the hundreds of thousands of items that were left by grieving visitors at the site of the collapse. At the Systems Building, Texas A&M leaders erected pictures of the deceased students. There, over a dozen seniors left behind their Aggie rings, permanently donating them to the students who did not live long enough to earn their own.

information from Wikipedia

Bonfire Memorial

http://hospitality.tamu.edu/bonfirememorial

This And That

I hope everyone has had a good Veteran's Day.  I went to the Veteran's Day program at the middle school today because I helped them practice their songs last week while I was subbing.  They did a good job.  The program was very nice.

Today the temp has been hot.  It does not seem like fall at all.  I think that there is supposed to be another cool front coming this weekend.  I hope so because I am ready for it!

Tomorrow I am subbing at my old elementary school in Art.  I love this assignment and the teacher is great.  She always leaves us something fun to do.  Tomorrow we will be creating "Holiday" cards for a district contest.  The winner's card will be used as the district card.  The kids and I always have a good time.  I like subbing with these ladies and they are always happy when I am subbing for them because they know that I will do what they have ask.  It is a win=win situation.

Occasionally I will go to the blog I have about my Mom's journey to see what was going on this time last year.  I had forgotten how worried we were about her at the time.  She couldn't talk or do much of anything else and we were so scared.  Little did we know that what we were experiencing was only the beginning.  I wish I could tell her how much I love her, how much she means to me and how much I miss her.

Well, that is all for tonight.  I have a couple of things to do to get ready for tomorrow.  Thank goodness it is Friday.

Thank You

We often take for granted the very things that most deserve our gratitude. ~Cynthia Ozick

Mrs. H and I picked the same quote today and I think it is so appropriate for today.  Thank you to all of the men and woman today and in the past along with their families who have given so much so that we can live in the most wonderful country in the world.

Happy 235th Birthday to the United States Marine Corp!
(this was actually yesterday)


Home of the FREE
 because of the BRAVE!

Almost Wordless Wednesday

The hardest arithmetic to master is that which enables us to count our blessings. ~Eric Hoffer, Reflections On The Human Condition

What A Day!

Giggles has had a very long day. My day started at 5:00 (because we only have one bathroom and for Mr. G to be able to leave at 6:55 am and for me to have enough time that is what we have to do)  with me heading out at 7:10 to SWV elementary to sub in music well, the job was cancelled but no one let me know until after I arrived early and had to stand outside the front doors for almost 10 minutes.  Then they sent me to the high school where I spent time in the library dusting the glass shelves and cleaning the windows in the display case and reshelved books (using the Dewy Decimal System). Then I was sent to CSMS (Dads school) where I spent 4 periods in adaptive behavior, 30 minutes in the library and one period in a special math class. I had to help actual people with some math work. . . . .some was fractions (no wonder my head hurts!).  If you know me, you know that math is very painful for me.  And when I say painful. . . . . .I mean painful.  When I had to take my education math classes and the additional math class to get in all math credits it was a pain for Mr. Giggles because he is a math whiz and had to help me (who is no a math whiz).  It was nice to have some of my kids from last week smile and say hi to me as they passed me in the hall.  Anyway, I am absolutely useless this evening.  Thank goodness I am not working tomorrow!

Yesterday I subbed at the hubby's school for a bunch of third graders.  The first group I had asked me in the morning if my husband was the bald man they would see.  Well, I knew that he goes to the cafeteria a lot to get tea so I said yes, it was.  Well when I went to pick them up from lunch, the lunch aide that they were confused about who he was.  They were asking one of the aides (a tall bald man (due to shaving his head) but not my tall bald man (due to genetics).  He was with me when I went to pick up the kids I told them and showed them who he was.  As they passed him while leaving the cafeteria they said hi to him and some shook his hand.  After we got back to the classroom, they said "Your husband has a shiny bald head" (giggles!) and now we know who he is.  I told them that he will always have on a tie unless it is Friday in case they forget that he is the shiny bald guy!

I thought I would share these two pictures with you.  They are from my birthday with my family.  You will notice that my sister and I got sunburned when we went to an outside craft show.

 Well, that is all for now.  I hope you are all having a good week.  So far even though mine has been crazy, it has been ok.  Tomorrow will be busy as I try to catch up on the house cleaning, dish washing, towel folding and plant planting.  But at least I don't have to wake up at 5:00 am!

This Week

Busy week coming up.  Tomorrow teaching third grade, Tuesday teaching elementary music and Friday teaching elementary art.  Last week was three days of junior high choir (loved it).
Yesterday Mr. Giggles, Dad, RAW and I went to see the movie RED.  Really, really good movie.  We all enjoyed it and laughed a lot (out loud laughter) during the movie.  It was nice to get to do that together.
Today was church and as always, it was great.  The two cuties sat behind us again this morning and I told their Mom that I have child induced ADHD (I can't help but look at them) .  They are that cute and that good.  During the sermon tonight Cutie Boy saw that I was looking up the scriptures in my bible (he was too!) so he leaned forward a couple of times and whispered the chapter to me.  It was so stinking cute.  My Dad was standing at the front during the singing of the invitation song and he always winks at Cutie Boy and so Cutie Boy was trying to wink back at him!  Ladybug smiled the biggest smile at me this morning and she had on the cutest outfit that had been her Mom's when she was a baby.
Well, I am heading to bed.  Hope you have a good week.


Weekly Menu:
Monday:  homemade chili frito pie (thanks Daddy)
Tuesday: salad or baked potato
Wednesday:  fend for yourself
Thursday:  homemade potato soup from my mil
Friday: out to dinner
Saturday: fend for yourself

Why?

Why does it seem like when I am finally getting my footing back, something knocks me flat on my rear?  Not once but twice this week I thought of something that made me immediately think. . . .I need to call Mom and tell her such and such.  It hurts so much.  I miss her.  Today while at Mom and Dad's house, I just stood outside and watered her plants and thought about all the times I had stood out there with her while she watered or worked in the yard.  No matter how hard Dad and I work to keep up the yard, it just doesn't look like it did when she was doing it.  I don't like how nothing will ever be the way it was, especially since we never dreamed that we would lose her so quickly.

Just Checking In

I am giving myself ten minutes to type of this post because I am ready to go to bed.  Ok, past ready to go to bed.  Here is just a quick glimpse of what I have been doing this week well, since Tuesday.  Tuesday I met the plumber at my Dad's house to get a leaky toilet fixed.  I unpacked some more stuff, hung some pictures and wreaths and cleaned the bathrooms for the church 42 party on Friday.  Then I met him for lunch and went to the post office.  Mr. Giggles called and the back brakes were out on his truck and he was out of town.  I hung out in town until he got back and met him at the mechanics (second car in the shop this week).  Picked up Mr. G, picked him up some lunch and went home so he could head out to work (he had been our of town for work).  That evening I picked up some stuff at Walmart including medicine for my sister, took it to her house and dropped it off (she was out of town for a vball playoff game) and then went to visit with my Dad a little while.  Wednesday I subbed in junior high choir, came home to wait for Mr. G so we could go pick up his truck and then church.  Today I again subbed in choir, came home and cooked supper and then went to a soccer game to watch Mr. H and his brother play.  It was very cool outside! They tied their game and ended the season undefeated.  Congrats guys.  Came home to eat dinner and watch some tv and now to for bed.  Goodnight all.

Monday Excitement

I got to spend the day with Mr. Giggles today and boy did we do some exciting things.  First we went to the dentist to get our teeth cleaned.  His teeth are of course "perfect" and mine are in need of one filling and one crown.  I think my teeth took after my Moms.  The rest of our exciting day consisted of going to the tax office to get the registration for our trailer, eating lunch at Long John Silver's, another appointment for Mr. Giggles, two pawn shops, Walgreens and Goodwill.  Oh and we started out the day by taking our suburban to the car doc.  Thank goodness it only needed a new battery.  I stopped at the library on my way home.  Once we got home we just vegged out for the rest of the evening.  I like days like today even if they are kind of busy.

HaPpY HaLlOwEeN!

I would like to wish all of my blog friends a Happy Halloween.  My sister RAW had these pictures of our Mom on her fb page and I thought that I would "borrow" them from her.  I don't remember when this party was but it was at our lakehouse.  It was one of our church group parties and we played lots of games and had a great time.  Mom was dressed as a little girl that night with long blonde hair and those glasses are off of a puppet we have named Pearl (Pearl has a boyfriend named Bocephus and they are rather glamorous puppets!).  I have more pictures from the party but I have no idea where they are.  Well, I really do, they are in a box in a crate in our middle bedroom but I don't know where in the box they are and they would have to be scanned and me and the scanner don't get along.  If hubby isn't here, I can't scan!  Maybe one day I will share the rest of the pictures.

Mr. Giggles and I celebrated halloween by going to the grocery store, buying some mini butterfingers and then going home and parking ourselves in our recliners to watch a scary movie.  The movie we ended up watching is Jeepers Creepers 2 (if you are a Jeepers Creepers fan, they have a 3rd installment coming out next summer. . . . .can't wait!).

I hope you all had a good Sunday.  Hi Mrs. H.'s mom!!

Halloween Eve

What do you like to do for Halloween?  Do you dress up?  Mr. Giggles and I love Halloween and we used to have parties every year.  We had so much fun.  Most of the time we would have them at our lakehouse which has been the location of many many parties over the years starting when my Mom was younger.  I have heard so many stories about parties they had at the lake. . . .the haunted trail, outstanding costumes and just lots of fun had by all.  We also used to have parties at church every year and one year we turned the classrooms in the building into a haunted house.  It was so much fun and I think that everyone from church was there.  As we have gotten older, things have changed as they usually do.  We don't have parties anymore because it got to where our friends weren't able to attend because of their kids.  This just makes us aware once again all the things that we are missing out on because of not being able to have kids.  I am sorry if this sounds whiney but it just really makes me see what I am missing as I see and hear what all of my friends are doing tonight.  Anyway, I hope you are all having a good evening.  I am getting ready to head to bed to read and listen to a scary movie!

http://vintageholidaycrafts.com/

Today my Aunt and Uncle came up to visit and to help my Dad put in the beautiful front door my Mom had picked out for their house.  They got it put in and it looks awesome.  I had planned on taking a picture of it this afternoon but I forgot.  I really wish she could be here to see it.  This afternoon I did get curtains hung back up in the guest room at my parents house.  I think that I am going to have to get new curtain rods because they painters messed up one of the ones that Mom had used.  I hope to be able to find the quilt that goes on the bed in that room soon.  We put one on the bed but the one Mom had on it looks much better.  Anyway, I will try to get a picture of the door so you can see it and see what good taste Mom had.

Thank Goodness for Nyquil

Well, it wasn't really nyquil but a cheaper just as good brand.  I felt horrible yesterday so when I went shopping I had nyquil or substitute on my list of must haves.  I took the recommended dose at bedtime last night and fell asleep very quickly which was nice because for the last few nights I have not slept at all.  Some of it has been due to illness but some of it was because my mind turns on and starts thinking about my Mom and going back over what has happened over the last 15 months.  Mostly I guess second guessing decisions I made about different things.  I know that those things can't be changed but I worry that I didn't do or say something right.  Well, back to the story at hand. . . . .I slept straight through the night until about 5:30 this morning when I had to get up (thanks nature!) and I started coughing when I got back in bed.  I knew I needed more sleep so I got up took a little bit more of the nyquil substitute and slept until 9:45.  I feel so much better than I did yesterday.  Hopefully by the end of the week I will feel much better.

Yesterday I got to go to Lowe's with my Dad to buy some lumber.  My Aunt S and Uncle J are coming to town this weekend to help my Dad put in his new front door.  I can't wait to see the new door.  You see, Mom and I picked up this door before they had to have the foundation work done on their house.  They had planned on changing out all the interior doors and the front door.  Well, because of the foundation work and then Mom's illness kept all of this work from being done.  The front door is beautiful and I know that Mom would be excited to see it being put in.  I will try to get a picture of it to show you how beautiful it is. 

Our being at Lowe's led me to ask myself this question. . . .If you are in a job position where you should be friendly and helpful, shouldn't you be that way?  Shouldn't you be that way instead of sullen and put out because we ask you to cut the wood (which is something your store offers) or because we want to check out and you have to stop talking to your buddy.  Is friendly and helpful customer service too much to ask for when we are at a store.  I do not like going to a store and being ignored by the checkout person until they have to ask me a question or give me the total.  Anyway, just a short rant on rude and unhelpful people in the service industry.  Does that bother anyone other than me?

Lastly I made something from Mrs. H's collection of yummy recipes.  It was the Jalapeno Chicken Enchiladas and it was incredible.  I have posted the recipe on my other blog and you can find the recipe here or you can stop by Mrs. H's blog and check out all her recipes.  This recipe took me about an hour or so to create and cook and it was well worth the time.  Looking forward to leftovers tonight.

I hope you all have a great day. 

Weekly Menu

Monday:  Jalapeno Chicken Enchiladas (Mrs. H's recipe), guacamole
Tuesday:  Leftovers or fend for yourself
Wednesday:  Fend for yourself
Thursday:  Sloppy joes, potato salad
Friday:  Out to dinner with Dad and hubby
Saturday:  fend for yourself

Where Did Fall Go?

Good morning y'all! As I wonder through the wonderful world of blogland, I find that it is really fall in most parts of the US. Well, a few weeks ago we had some wonderfully cool weather but it was just a cruel joke my friends. Today we have a good chance of beating the record high of 91. It has been pretty warm for October. I am so ready for some cooler weather. I have not stopped wearing shorts and tshirts yet. Please send some cooler weather and rain our way. We have gone the whole month of October without any rain and I think we were pretty much the same way in September. Hot and dry. . . . . . .Oh fall, where art thou?

Restful Weekend

This weekend was pretty restful and I am so thankful. I have fighting allergies (I think) since I got back from my sister's house and it has made me feel pretty crummy at times. So Mr. Giggles and I pretty much stayed at home and watched all the scary movies we could!

Today was a beautiful Lord's day even if it was pretty warm. My Dad led singing today at church and I absolutely love it when he does. I know that it is very hard for him without my Mom being there to support him. We have always sat at the front of the building and when Dad would lead lead singing you could be certain that he was going to give my Mom a wink or a smile and he would usually do that for one of us girls. I miss seeing him looking at Mom and giving her that wink. I really miss seeing him smile and being genuinely happy. I love my Dad and I miss my Mom.

Hoping for some more sub jobs this week. I will be subbing in Juvenile Justice on Thursday. Should be interesting! Other than that we don't have much planned for the week. We will be doing our civic duty and early voting on Tuesday evening. I am so tired of hearing the political ads. It wouldn't be as bad if the promised made during a campaign were actually kept and the negative ads didn't have to be shown.

Have a great week. Halloween is almost here! Do you get yummys for trick or treaters and if so, what do you get? Since we live out in the country, we don't have trick or treaters so we don't buy any candy cause heaven knows we don't need it but I am curious to know what you do.

Hi Mrs. H's mom. Hope to see you soon! :)

Quick Fall Decor Tour

I have not gotten in a big hurry to get my fall/Halloween decorations out. I am finished for now. I didn't take any pictures of the outside and I ended up taking a couple back off of here because the pictures were not good. Here is the majority of the stuff.

My Mom got this little lamp at an auction at my nephews school when they lived in Georgia. I love it and wish I could leave it out year round.



This is a little lamp I got from my G-mom P. We had it in my Mom's hospital room last year.

Just a basket of leaves and sparkly pumpkins.

Kinda blurry but Halloween Cherished Teddies and two pumpkin candlestick holders I picked at a church rummage sale.

My dining room table. The pumpkin is fiber optic, the scarecrow and the witch are also from my G-mom P and the silver tray was a gift I received for being a hostess at a baby shower. It says Bless This House.

The cabinet where all of my dishtowels and such live. The welcome friends pumpkin was a gift I got last year and everything else is old but much loved.

And this sign welcomes you into the back door.

My favorite black cat and a cute wreath. Please excuse the pile-o-pillows.

Part of my mantle. I could not get a good picture of the whole thing.

Right side of the mantle.

Whole mantle. Yes, we have plywood in the fireplace because the fireplace is moving away from the house and it lets lots of cold air in.

And this is the left side of the mantle. And that is the end of the tour. Hope you enjoyed.

Show Us Your Life - Nurseries and Kid Rooms

This week over at Kelly's Korner there is a nursery/children's rooms tour. I decided to join even though I have neither a nursery or a child's room. I have known since before Mr. Giggles and I ever started trying for a family that I wanted our baby's room to have moons and stars. Since I made that decision I began the task of finding what I wanted. When I got pregnant the first time, my Mom, Aunts and Gmom Watson went to Las Vegas for their annual girls trip. While there, two of my Aunts went to Build a Bear and made us the cutest bear and put him in pjs with stars (and if I remember correctly the stars glow in the dark). After we lost the baby, I put the bear back in his box and he now sits on top of hubby's wardrobe waiting. A couple of years later I found the perfect bedding. It is Boyds Bears, First Bear I See Tonight and it had everything I wanted. . . .stars, the moon, primary colors and bears. My Mom helped me get all the pieces that we could find. Let me say that finding most things was not an easy task. I routinely went to four different Walmarts, two in my town and two out of town. We weren't able to find curtains so Mom and I got gingham in red, blue, yellow and green which goes very well with the bedding. This is the bedding but it is not my room (all of my stuff is at my parents house in storage).

The furniture we will use in our nursery was used by my nephew and niece. If I remember correctly it is Jenny Lind brand. It includes a cradle, changing table, chest of drawers and baby bed. It is in storage in my husbands storage building. Well, everything that is except for the chest of drawers which is in use right now in the house. The wood is a light blonde color. I couldn't find any good pictures of the furniture to share with you.

The room that we would use as a nursery has grey carpet and grey paneling on the wall. It has one window, the closet door and two doors into the room (when the house was first built, every room had two doors into it).

Even after ten years of trying three pregnancy losses I plan on using the same theme for the room. One reason is because it includes all the things I wanted in a nursery and the second reason is because my mom helped me get the bedding and pick out the material for curtains. Since she passed away it makes everything a little more special. I hope that one day we will have children who will get to use this cute stuff and as they grow, I can tell them how much their Memom enjoyed helping pick out the cute things for them even before she knew they were coming.

Thank you for stopping by and checking our dream nursery.

Have You Missed Me?

It seems like forever since I have been on here. I had planned on joining Jennifer's Friday with Friends but as you can tell it didn't happen. I only had time to do a short post. Let me catch you up on our weekend (if I can remember what we did!).
Friday night Mr. Giggles, my Dad and I went and had pizza for supper. I had bbq chicken pizza (I love this pizza). . . .yum. Then Mr. G and I headed over to Walmart to do our usual Friday night pick up a few items we needed. We ended up being there for an hour and a half. Then we went home, watched some tv and then crashed.
Saturday we lazed around the house until the afternoon and then met my Dad at the mall. He was at a robotics competition practice with his students. We then met some really good friends of ours who were in town for the football game. We went to dinner and ended up staying at the restaurant for over two hours. It was so good to see them. We wish they lived closer so we could see each other more often.
Sunday my Dad and my sister Rae headed north to my sister B's house. We went to watch Tatortot play football last night. It was so cool to see how big he truly is getting to be. Us girls got some pumpkins ready for Halloween while we waiting for game time to get there. We went shopping with my Dad while the kids were at school. We went to Belk and they got some really good deals. I'm not much of a shopper and have a hard time finding clothes that fit. I was the official cart pusher!
We came home today and I am exhausted so I am going to say goodnight and I will talk to y'all again soon!

Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day

October 15th is our day to honor our sweet babies who are in heaven. Please take a moment to say a prayer for those who instead of bringing their babies home, came home with empty arms and a broken heart. If you are able to, please give those you know a hug and tell them you care.

Remembering our angels

Baby Giggles - October 7, 2001

RDS Baby Giggles - December 21, 2007

Baby Giggles - March 22, 2009

"An angel in the book of life wrote down my baby's birth. Then she whispered as she closed the book, too beautiful for earth."

Author unknown

Birthday Continued

My G-mom P and I have been trying to get together for my birthday lunch for nearly three weeks. Well, today we were finally able to go. We have this wonderful restaurant that we like to go to for special occasions and because a friend of ours is the owner/chef and because the food is just so yummy. Today for lunch I had beef tenderloin enchiladas and G-mom had chicken marsala with mashed potatoes and for dessert we had key lime pie. I enjoyed lunch and spending some time with my G-mom.
When I got home I did some more fall/halloween decorating. I have had a hard time getting that done. One minute I am so excited about getting it done and the next I just don't really care. My totes of stuff have been sitting on the front porch for over a week now and I am still not really finished. Well, maybe I am. I guess I will decide tomorrow.
This evening I met Mr. Giggles at the local Walmart where we parked my car and headed out to Veterans Park to watch our friend Mr. H. play soccer. We enjoyed visiting with Mrs. H. and watching the guys play. They won their game by forfeit because the other team forgot to show up. . . . .no, really they did. The game was at 6 and the weather was absolutely perfect for it. I was wishing that I had a sweater because it was getting a little chilly.
Today started out rough for me but it ended up being ok. I have had my Mom on my mind all day. Missing her a lot. I just realized that I haven't talked to my Dad today and now it is too late to call. Love you Dad :)

Thankful Thursday

My family

I have to say that I had to dig deep to come up with something that I am thankful for today. I am being very honest so consider this your warning.

Today I am thankful that my Mom is no longer in pain and she doesn't have to ever worry about the dreaded "C" word again after having to deal with it twice. 365 days ago, my Mom had a stemcell transplant which was supposed to fix the leukemia so that she had a smaller chance of relapse. Although I am so thankful that Mom doesn't have to deal with the earthly things that we do, especially the pain. . . . .I am so angry that she is gone. I miss my Mom and that is about all I have to say. Thankful for Mom not being in pain but so terribly angry at the pain that we are all still having to deal with. If you want to know more about our journey you can go here.

Wordless Wednesday

To Cute

There is this little boy that goes to our church and he is so stinking cute. He got a sister this summer that looks a lot like him so I can only imagine what she will look like when she is his age and he turned the big 3 last month. I told his Mom last week that is he goes missing it is because I have snagged him and took him to the pumpkin patch!! Tonight I could hear him singing and it is cute! When my Dad is leading singing, this little cutie is doing it right along with him. As cute as he is, it really hurts my heart to know that if Baby Giggles would have made it, he would be very close to the same age. It makes me wonder what God has in store for me as I have reached another part of my life where it may possibly be too late for us to become parents. It hurts my heart that I have lost three precious babies. We want to be parents and don't understand why God seems to have decided that we aren't going to be. I know that God's will is best but being human, I want to know why.

Well, I hope you have a great week. I am ready for the cooler weather to come back.



Weekly Menu:
Monday: Taco Salad (the Mr.) and Salsa Verde Roast & Rice (me)
Tuesday: leftovers
Wednesday: fend for yourself
Thursday: Pecan crusted tilapia
Friday: out to eat
Saturday: who knows

Happy Birthday. . . . . . . . . . .to me.

Today was my 40th birthday. I have a very hard time believing that I am 40 but it really doesn't bother me. I was not really looking forward to my birthday this year. I thought that last year's birthday was bad because my Mom was in the hospital and couldn't spend the day with but little did I know that this year would be worse. But because I have a great family and because they love me (warts and all), they made it a good day. The day began with my sister RAW and my adopted sister and I headed out of town to attend Scarecrow Festival which is a yearly craftshow. I even had some money to spend but came home with most of it!! I did find some yummy pecan brittle for my honey and I to share and the cutest terra cotta heart and flower. I will have to take pictures to show you the cuteness of them. While shopping, my cell phone rang and I heard the sweetest sound ever. . . .my nephew and niece called to sing happy birthday (I also spent a few minutes chatting with my other sister). They will never know how much that meant to me. I love them so much and hate that I don't get to see them very often. Also while we were there we ran into one of my Mom's childhood best friends. We talked about my Mom and what a wonderful person she was and we cried. She kept apologizing for making us cry but we would much rather talk about her and cry than for people to be afraid to talk about her. My Mom was an incredible woman and we love to hear the kind things other people have to say.My husband stayed at home and baked my birthday cake (which was good. . .butter cake with chocolate icing, sprinkles and candy birthday hats) and waited for us to come home.
We headed back home to meet my Dad and hubby to eat and since I misread the clock and gave a bad time estimate (in my defense, my sister's clock in her car is about 15 minutes fast) we had a few minutes to spare and that gave us enough time to stop at Kohls. I had a mishap with my wallet last week so my hubby told me to get a new one for my birthday which I did and the best parts are that I got one almost identical to the one I had which I loved and better yet. . . . .it only cost me $5.82!!
We went to On The Border for a very yummy supper. I can't remember what everyone else had but I had chicken fajitas (that is what I had for supper last night too!!) and they were fantastic. I was very happy that my Aunt D (my Mom's super cool sister) was able to meet us (we didn't think she was going to make it because she had been moving hay). I am so thankful that she is in town to celebrate my G-mom P's birthday which is next weekend. We left the restaurant and headed our separate ways before heading to my Dad's house to eat cake and open presents. I stopped off at my house to pick up a few things along with my husband!! While at home I checked my fb and I had 59 birthday wishes from friends. I read through some but not all. I am going to enjoy reading them tomorrow when I have a little more time. As of right now I have over 70!
We headed down to Dad's with cake and punch makings in hand. A couple of things I got were a yummy smelling candle, some canisters with cherries on them (I would love to do my kitchen in cherries) and some cookbooks. We ate cake and visited a while and then everyone headed home because we were all exhausted. To end the wonderful day, I spilt most of a 32 oz cup of sticky punch in my hubbies truck. Yes, I know. . . .you are jealous of my talent. Needless to say, I will spend Monday destickifying his truck for him.
Overall, I had a good birthday but I missed my Mom something terrible. Never in my life would I have dreamed that I would spend this milestone without my best friend. Thankfully I got to spend the day with most of the important people in my life; my hubby, my Dad, both grandmothers, my Aunt, my sister RAW and my adopted sis LEH. Thank you guys for making my day special. To those who couldn't be here SRJ, RDJ, Tatortot and Madcow, I missed you very much. I love you all very much and I am so lucky to have you all in my crazy life!!

Friday with Friends: Fall Foods

When Jennifer told us what Friday with Friends was supposed to be, I wracked my brain to come up with something yummy to share with you and I did it. My Mom used to make this and it is so yummy and so stinking easy. No, I haven't ever made it but only because my hubster doesn't like soup. I know, he has some food issues!! Actually he is not nearly as picky as he was when we first got married. Anyway, I hope you decide to try this out and that you enjoy it. If you do try it, leave me a comment and let me know what you think. If you want to check more recipes, please go visit Jennifer here.

Taco Soup
1/2 - 1 pound ground beef
1/2 onion
1 package taco seasoning mix
1 package dry ranch dressing mix
3 cans Rotel tomatoes (hot or mild, your choice)
1 can black beans
1 can ranch beans
1 can pinto beans
1 can corn
Brown ground beef with onion and drain if necessary. In a large pot add ground beef, onion, taco mix, ranch mix, Rotel, black beans, ranch beans, pinto beans and corn. DO NOT DRAIN any of the canned items. Cook until warmed through. Serve with tortilla chips and sour cream. Oh, and it is good with corn bread.

If I remember correctly, it freezes well.

If you would like some more of my recipes, please visit my other blog here.