:o)

I've had a good three days, Mon-Wed. Got my chipped tooth patched up, (no crown...yet), watched Dancing With the Stars and Idol, went to an Idolmaniac party at Marty's last night and had some great food and conversation, and spent the afternoon with Nolan today. We did a run to Burger King. Then he and his little buddy came here to play for a couple of hours. I got in a 20-minute walk tonight before the Idol results show. Now I am ready to hit the hay. I have 2 new books to read...Bailey's choice for her book study called "Their Eyes Were Watching God"
and one our friends Jim and Pat Real passed along called "The Shack." I am anxious to get started on both.
Here's a good thought....
I have learned from experience that the greater part of our happiness or misery depends on our dispositions and not on our circumstances.
-Martha Washington

Cora and Hannah visit over the weekend

Cora's own fashion creation. She wore her apron when she cooked supper Friday evening.

Sewing basket, beads, colorful spangles, and cloth keep the girls occupied for hours on Friday.

Each has a little project they are sewing....

Then we're one girl down....where did Cora go, Hannah?

Hannah busy painting and has no idea where Cora is.

AHA! There she is! She tells me she is rocking in the swing on the deck and pretending she's at the beach. Says the clouds and wind look and sound just like the ocean, and she wishes to live by an ocean someday.

Hannah continues with the watercolors....

and eventually joins her sister at "the ocean."

Carrie, Tony, and the boys headed out of town for a soccer tournament on Friday, so the girls came here Friday evening. On Saturday they went to Grandma Mary's. They told me they would rather be ANYWHERE than a soccer tournament. So I tried to make it fun for them. Cora got our her little home-sewn apron, photographed above, and made mac and cheese (the real kind she calls it with chunks of Velveeta). She likes to cook and I let her have at it. I did have to give her one little instruction though. She thought it was the milk that makes it creamy. Sorry thin little girl. It's that fattening cheese that does that! So she made plenty to go 'round and enough to share with the daycare on Monday. Next, the girls asked for cloth and sewing materials. I found some cloth napkins they could use and got out the sewing basket. "I didn't know you can sew, Grandma." They have two other Grandmas, Tony's Mom and Grandma Mary, who both are very talented seamstresses. So I had to humbly admit that what I can do in that department is attach buttons and make minor repairs. Well, they were ok with that. So they spent almost the whole evening with their sewing as well as working with the beads and spangles that once were part of Paige and Bailey's world. Cora disappeared, and when that happens, I don't really worry. But I instinctively know she has gone to have some kind of little adventure. Sure enough, I found her out on the deck, totally covered up, and enjoying the breezy, balmy evening enough to want to sleep out there. Pretty soon Hannah joined her. They made room for me, and we listened and talked to the wind and moon, and made wishes on the stars. What a great Friday evening.

The soccer boys and Mom and Dad rolled back into town late Sunday evening with the championship trophy. Everyone was happy. Blake scored a couple of goals and played well. The other parents said, "He's not the little guy anymore." The weight room has paid off, and he has grown a little this summer. One of his shots missed the goal and went sailing into the parking lot behind, shattering the side mirror of one of the parent's vehicles. We learned through the years that you never park behind the goal. Guess that fellow won't park there again either. Well anyway, Blake had a good tournament and when I talked with him, I was reminded he really is not Baby Blake anymore.

Carrie said Nolan rather enjoyed being the little top dog kid of the weekend. Other parents were buying him candy and giving him quarters for the video ride that he loved there. Well, apparently he took in some conversation as well. When they all got home, Carrie was putting away things from the van and asked Nolan to take something back to his room. "Do I go Northwest to do that?" Nolan asked. "You can go any direction you want to get there, just get it to your room," Carrie answered. He probably picked up a few other new words and phrases over the weekend that he will be trying out on us. Chris did the same thing when he was a little boy, and we were all so entertained.

Tomorrow promises to be a not so fun day, as I broke off a tooth Saturday evening (while I was flossing--not even chomping on something yummy). Today another little piece broke away when I brushed my teeth, so I suspect the whole thing is going to go sooner or later. So another crown for me, and I hope my dentist can get me in to get the process started. I compared notes with Carolyn about this and found I am lagging way behind...well if you count the three front teeth she had knocked out in the car accident when she was a kid. She has 11 crowns to my 5. Well 6 after this one. I don't know where other siblings stand in this area, but we both are brushers and flossers, and it didn't seem to matter. The teeth genes must not have been as strong as let's say the bone genes. Still no broken bones among the 12 of us I think. That's amazing for all the activities we've all been engaging in throughout our lives. Well I will be asking the Good Lord, "Why did you slack on how you made the teeth?" Surely something more durable was available. Well I have told my family to retrieve all this gold before they store me away someday! :o)

:o)

Had a fantastic meeting yesterday afternoon at St. Peter's. This group, along with others who are currently meeting, are going to DO some things that will make a difference. I have taken on my favorite kind of work, redoing the booklet that tells about all the ministries and organizations in our parish. Our Stewardship committee's first goal is to increase the participation and engagement of those who come to church. This will take some time and effort, but that is what being a disciple of Jesus requires. So to provide an up-to-date booklet of parish groups, I will be taking pictures and writing some updates, then giving the photos and info to another parishoner who is talented in graphic arts. The good thing about this is the time frame. I have all summer to do the work. No time crunch. Just enjoy putting it together. So that is my next project. Always good for me to be working on something creative.

Today I meet my neighbor Mary Keck for lunch at the Tea Room before I do my little cashier volunteer job. Cora and Hannah will be with us tonight while Carrie and Tony and the boys head out of town to a soccer tournament. Maybe we will make some chocolate chip cookies for the Idol party at Marty's next Tuesday.

Who would have thought the quote below came from Robert Louis Stevenson, the Treasure Island author....I ran across it recently and thought it good to share.

There is no duty we so much underrate as the duty of being happy. By being happy we sow anonymous benefits upon the world.

Have a great day! :o)

Going to Girl Scouts

I have never been to a scout meeting, but today I will get that opportunity. While Carrie and Tony are taking a First Aid/CPR class at the Red Cross, Hannah and I are going to her scout meeting this evening. Nolan likes to go too, so I will take him along.
Not much to tell here. I got a little spring cold over the weekend, so I spent Sunday watching movies. There is the most interesting new HBO movie called "Grey Gardens." It is the story of the aunt and cousin of Jackie Kennedy who lived in squalor in East Hampton, NY. They didn't start out their lives that way. Drew Barrymore and Jessica Lange play the women, and I believe their performances are Emmy-worthy. I actually have watched it twice.
Looking forward to Idol tonight and to see if the cowboy or the football player get the boot from Dancing With the Stars. After that, I think any of them could win it, though I do agree that Shawn Johnson, the Olympian, probably has a strong following and is so darn cute besides being a good dancer. Very entertaining show last night. And the big question of the day....what will Adam do for disco week on Idol??? As I said, things are a little slow, just what I need right now!

A Nolan Story

Now this might not be funny to anyone else, but it was hilarious to me at the time, and I am still smiling about it....

Today I sat with the daycare while Carrie went back to the doctor. (She has a lump in her neck that is not going away, and the doc is watching it--she will have it biopsied if it hasn't gone away in 6 weeks.) So I am sitting on the couch with Nolan and one of the daycare kids, Aden, watching the movie Madagascar. If you are not familiar with it, the characters are all animals. So about a half-hour into the movie, I get up to look for the case to the movie, because I can't figure out whose voices are a couple of the main animal characters. Aden asks me what I am looking for, and I say, "I'm looking for the case, because I want to see who are the people in this movie." I sit back down next to Nolan and study the front and back of the case and can't find any names. I set the case down between Nolan and me, and Nolan picks it up and studies the front of the case which has all the animal characters on the front--must be a dozen or so of them. After looking hard at it for at least 30 seconds, he lays it back down and says very matter-of-factly, "Grandma, there are no people in this movie."

I am thinking he must have been thinking ,"How dumb is Grandma? We have been watching these lions, zebras, giraffes, hippos, and an assortment of other animals for half an hour, and she can't figure out that there are no people in this movie??? Poor Grandma. She's not very smart."

:o)

Life is Good on the Merry-Go-Round

I missed posting this photo of Nolan on the little kids merry-go-round. He has a bit of a weak stomach and doesn't like the fast-spinning stuff, so this was just his speed.
Today I had a great marathon lunch with Justine and Judy. We celebrated Justine's birthday, and we had a great gabfest. This afternoon, I went to the first meeting of our Stewardship committee at church, and I loved the group and the ideas we talked about. There are just 5 of us at this time, and I am certain the group will grow as we begin to plan how to invite more non-participating members of our parish to the table. I believe this is work I am supposed to be doing at this time in my life. It doesn't feel like a job. It feels like a privilege.
I scored yesterday at Bible Study Fellowship breakfast. There was a cart of books by the door with a sign--.25 each. Most were like new. I bought $7 worth, so I have some great reading to do. I feel like I hit a jackpot. :o)
Makenna called on the web-cam last night, and when she saw my face, she had a great big grin. I am so happy to have this web-cam, for it is the next best thing to being with her. We will see the Arizona Camachos again in June, as they have 2 weddings back to back on June 6 (Tyler) and June 13 (Maria's brother Michael). So they will be here in Quincy for a couple of days. YEH!

Weekend in St. Louis

We began on Friday at a family fun and food place in St. Louis. We were in the drive-in movie room, and "The Greatest Story Ever Told" was playing. Appropriate for Good Friday. Nolan was taking in the scenes of Jesus' walk to Calvary.

Nolan showing his muscles.

Waiting for their turn to race.

Cora's ready, and she finished in 2nd place.

Tony and Nolan may have caused a little trouble on the track.

Sweet Hannah rides with Uncle Chris. Maybe next time Mom will let her drive her own car.

Blake ready to roll.

Listening to the rules....

but not obeying them....

which threw Chris and Hannah into a stall off the track. Blake! Or was it Tony?

Mario shoots some hoops.

Figuring out the game

Carrie and Nolan shoot some basketballs.

Stomping the enemy before they get to the alien. (I think that's what they were doing!) Carrie could use one of these for the daycare. Just put them all in there and let 'em stomp all day.

Glow in the dark golf.

Riding the airplane.

Jumping higher and higher.

Happy campers for now.

The clown delighted all of us and made everyone a balloon animal. Except Cora. She got a balloon bracelet.

"Show Grandma your sword Nolan."

Fun time with grandkids.

Blake and Makenna like each other.

Sleepy head.

Goodbye girls.

Nolan loves Superman jammies.

"Take my picture eating this donut, Grandma."

Wrestling with Grandpa.

Pretty girls in front of the Marriot Hotel Saturday morning.

Makenna loves to swing with Cora.

Upside down is Makenna's idea.

"Grandma, I am a mean guy up here."

Sideways swinging.

"Grandma, I was FLYIN!"

Cousins and Carrie

Makenna taking Hannah and Nolan for a walk.

In the backyard at Ewersmanns on a beautiful day.

Saturday night at Denny's...the girls have breakfast for dinner.

It was a truly wonderful weekend with my family, and I am thankful for the time with all of them.

A Couple More Easter Pics....

Moms and Dads helping the kids pick up the candy from the pinata.

Boys in blue.

Who is this little egghead? I learned at Christmas that she likes the headgear. Next year, I will have to give her my bunny ears.