The sounds of winter December 9, 2007

I opened the back door a little while ago and the sound of winter is that of breaking tree limbs, crashing to the ground in the park behind the house. How sad. There are a lot of large, old trees and several have been severely damaged or destroyed.

The power has been going off all day. I’m grabbing one of the few “on” moments to do this quick post. From a visual perspective, the ice can be breathtaking. Practically speaking, though, I’d rather get my eye-candy another way.

Enjoy the photos of damaged trees and downed limbs from my back yard!

Oh the weather outside is frightful… December 8, 2007

But in my house it’s so delightful!

I love nasty winter weekends under two conditions: I don’t have to go anywhere and all my children are in their homes and not traveling.

When those two conditions apply, these are great stay at home opportunities. I love to putter around doing things like baking, making nice warm soups or stews, watching old movies or playing games. This weekend, I think Allen and I may both play a little Zelda. I also have a few Christmas projects I need to finish up.

Let the freezing rain do its worst. Today, we’re inside all nice and warm with nowhere we have to go. I think it’s time for hot chocolate and Christmas music!

Happy anniversary! December 7, 2007

Sixteen years ago today, I married my sweetie. Six kids and a pile of bills later, we reminisce about how fast time flies when you’re happy and you love each other.

We’ve been through a lot. When we got married, I had three small children and he had two from our previous marriages. A little over a year after we tied the know, the stork surprised us again with a little bundle of joy named Allen. It’s a lot of work raising children in a blended family, but, at this stage I seem to remember only the good things. It’s nice that God made our brains work that way.

Now, all these years later, three of our children are married and another will get married next June. We have three granddaughters and one new grandson. Our daughter, Annie, will be graduating from Mizzou next week with her degree in elementary education. Our baby boy is now a freshman in high school and, like the rest of his siblings, is taller than me. My husband has more silver hair than brown these days and I am a whole lot heavier than I was when we married. We had our great adventure when we built our new house and we continue to have hobbies that work well together.

He’s right. The time does fly when you’re happy. I remember our wedding like it was yesterday and all the good times in between. Happy anniversary to us and many, many more.

The return of the whooping cough December 6, 2007

Last night the national news reported concerns about the return of that old childhood nemesis, the whooping cough. Although this particular illness usually targets infants and young children, in can sometimes attack adults, too. Any childhood illness that is contracted by an adult is usually some pretty bad juju.

Son #1 called last night to report that he’d finally gone to the doctor after suffering several weeks with a severe cough. Guess what? WHOOPING COUGH! Poor thing. He said he now has $80 worth of meds and two inhalers he has to use. Hope he gets some relief soon!

In fact, I should probably make him some of my extra special, kick-butt chicken soup. Oops, I hope Fat Chick and Henrietta didn’t read that part. They get a little testy about the mention of chicken soup!

Get well soon, Bobby! Your Mom loves you!

Decking the walls, halls, doors, whatever December 4, 2007

We’re getting ready in the office. Thursday is the day for merry making and decorating. Each of us has a tiny tree that we creatively decorate every year, each trying to outdo the other, hoping to convey some sense of our personality. I’m coming up short on ideas this year. Hmmm, what could I do?

In the past, I’ve had an elegant tree with traditional red ornaments,  a tree festooned with sugary fruits and ribbon, a tree that reflected my favorite Christmas movies (complete with a popcorn garland), and last year a retro tree that was silver with lime green decorations. How in the world can I top that?

Well, let me sift through a few ideas…

Maybe a tree that conveys a sense of what type of year I’ve had. I have some silver bells from Annie’s wedding I could use. I’d have to think of something from Bobby and Rhi’s wedding. I could add to that some items that would commemorate the birth of our two new grandchildren and, of course, our kids who will be graduating from college. This year wouldn’t be complete unless I hung an empty Motrin bottle on the tree and a thing or two to pay homage to the pain and suffering my poor foot has been through. Maybe an item or two to represent speaking engagements with CASE or maybe the number 25. That represents the number of pounds I’ve gained during all the hubbub. I know, maybe some feathers to commemorate the presence of Fat Chick and Henrietta. After all, they’ve become an important part of my office life!

Hmmm, it’s been a busy year. I think I’m gonna need a bigger tree.