A Cozy Winter Hodgepodge

Joyce asks the questions, and we provide the answers. See how others answered at From This Side of the Pond.

1. What's a winter memory you treasure (can be from any winter in your lifetime)? 

Sledding in the park across the street from the house where I grew up. This happens to be the same park where I walk the dogs. Hearing the laughter coming from the hills in the park after our last snow on the 10th brought back a lot of memories.

View from the bottom of the street

2. Tell us about the last time or a recent time you were caught up in red tape. Does it send your frustration level off the charts or is it something you've come to expect when dealing with any sort of bureaucracy?

I can't remember the last time that happened. After CH's passing, everything was a breeze. Social Security was incredibly easy and everyone in every office I had to talk with was extremely helpful and nice. Well, except for the HR person in the company where he worked. It didn't have anything to do with red tape, just a person who didn't adequately do her job.

I recently went to the Driver Services Office to get my Real ID; I was in and out of there in no time. I also went through some travel government offices to get what I needed to travel to the UK, as well as Global Entry. Everything was extremely efficient. 

3. Do you eat/like fish? Do you cook fish at home? What's your favorite fish dish? Ever been ice fishing? 

I like fish but I don't cook it at home. I've never been ice fishing; I don't think I could stand to be outside in the cold that long. I like a good salmon, but CH made a blackened swordfish when we camped near Charleston that was amazing. And I do like a good mahi taco. 

4. Did you watch any of the US President's Inauguration coverage on Monday, Jan 20? On a scale of 1-10 (with 1 being not at all and 10 being very very) how interested are you in politics in general? Do you follow/keep up with/ get involved with local politics? 

I was out running errands and honestly, I didn't even know what time it was scheduled. I'm about a 1 with being interested. I don't have anything to do with local politics. 

5. What's the coziest thing you own and what makes it so? 

I recently purchased this pj set from Land's End and absolutely love them. Very warm and soft.

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

Just in case you're interested, I started writing about the 2nd week of my latest Ireland Adventure. I'm only getting it posted 9 years after it happened. I figured I'd better get it finished before my next one begins. 2 more posts and I can start writing about the adventure that was next. And then the 2 after that and I'll be caught up. You can find all of the posts here. I'm also writing similar posts on my travel blog, Flyin' the Coop.

Joy in the Hodgepodge

 

Joyce asks the questions; we provide the answers. Check out what others said at From This Side of the Pond.

1. It's National Popcorn Day-my favorite! Are you a fan? Sweet or salty? A good or great movie you've seen recently (at home or in a theater, either one)? 

I'm definitely a salty popcorn person. I don't watch very many movies; I'm more of a series kind of girl. The last movie we watched was "Don't Look Up". A little weird, a little funny. Definitely not my favorite.

2. What's something you didn't realize was going to take so much of your time as an adult? 

Working. Although CH would say I don't have to do much of it since I work for a school system. The actual working isn't what takes up the time, it's the prepping for work that takes time.

3. Your favorite yellow something? 

Joy.

4. Why do you write? 

Writing is therapeutic for me. It helps me get things off my chest. Whether or not anyone cares is another thing!

5. Share a favorite memory associated with snow.

I grew up across the street from the park where I walk every day. There's a hill directly across the street, and when it snowed we were allowed to go there (unsupervised) to sled. I don't know if this happened every time it snowed, but Mama would have hot chocolate (the real kind...heating milk on the stove) ready for us when we came in. We'd kick our snow boots off in the basement hallway & come up for a mug of hot chocolate.

I found a few pictures of this snow and some of my siblings sledding. I'm between both of these brothers in age, but I couldn't find a picture of me sledding so I wonder where I was. I did find these other 2 adorable pictures:

These are my 2 younger brothers.

This is my sister who is 18 months older than me. I wonder where I was! 

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

Since I live in the Tennessee Valley, we didn't get as much snow as some other places in the area did. It was still pretty. This is the 2nd snow we've had this year when the snow has stayed on the trees. Here are some pictures from my walk:

Magnolias in the snow. {sigh} Does it get more southern than that?

My breakfast view the day after the snow. It's rare when snow sticks around for more than 1 day. 

Memories & Miscellaneous Hodgepodge

1. April is Lawn and Garden Month. On a scale of 1-10 what's the current state of your lawn and/or garden. (10=a showpiece, 1=send in the professionals). Tell us about any lawn or garden plans you have for this month.

Definitely a 2. Our next door neighbor has a yard service and his yard looks impeccable...which makes ours look worse!
I hope to get a young man in to weed the little area between the back sidewalk & house. My plan is to have him transplant some flowers from my parents' house.

2. "Many things grow in the garden that were never sown there."~Thomas Fuller  What does this quote mean to you?

Weeds. That's about as deep as I can get right now.

3. What's the first thing that comes to mind when you think about God?
The mountains & sunrises. Seriously...how could you not believe in God when you see a sunrise over a mountain?

4. If we were chatting in person, how would I know if you were nervous?

By my hands. And probably my facial expressions.

5. Do you like the color yellow? Would I find any in your home or wardrobe? Daffodils, tulips, roses, sunflowers, day lily, black eyed susan...which yellow bloom on this list is your favorite?

Yellow is CH's favorite color. My kitchen walls are yellow; I like a bright kitchen!
Daffodils (Jonquils) are high on the list because they bloom first around here. It's a definite sign that spring is on the way. 

6. Flip flops or bare feet?

Bare feet. (Southern girl)

7. Tell us about any Easter plans, celebrations, or traditions you'll carry out this month.

I haven't really thought about Easter, other than Holy Week. I'm planning on attending Mass on Holy Thursday and the service (it's not a Mass) on Good Friday. Saturday morning I have to be at the church early for a retreat for adults who will be entering into the Catholic Faith that night. Then, Saturday night I will be attending Mass for Easter Vigil. I'm sponsoring someone who is entering the Church. That leaves Easter Day open. I'm not sure what we'll do since it will probably just be the 2 of us.
When I was growing up, instead of hiding a bunch of eggs for an egg hunt, my parents would only hide 1: the Alleluia Egg. Whoever found it won a prize. When my boys were little, we continued the tradition with them.

8.  Insert your own random thought here.

I went by the house yesterday afternoon and my oldest brother was there. We went inside and started looking through this 1 cabinet and he found some dishes that 1 of my sisters said she wanted but we couldn't find. My mom used to play bridge, and every now & then she would host. I don't remember much about it; I just remember card tables being set up with tablecloths on them, and that there were fancy dishes. Mostly, I remember being shooed out of the room. How cool is this?

My brother just got out 3 of the dishes; there are 8 and they look brand new. The middle is a "Lazy Susan". Apparently, they aren't just for serving, either:

Isn't that fantastic? 

It's Another New Kind of Normal

I'm desperately trying to get into a "new normal" since my daddy's passing. After my mom passed away, people said that there would be times I would pick up the phone to call her and then remember. That never happened. I did, however, have thoughts like, "Oh! Mama would really like this", and then I'd remember, but I never actually picked up the phone.

After 2 years of seeing my daddy almost every weekday and sometimes on the weekend, it's weird leaving work and not going to his house. There were times when I was at his house when we hardly talked; there were also times when we both napped as we were watching tv. We watched Bonanza and Gunsmoke, or the news. We talked about things that were going on in the news and with my boys. Daddy wasn't a big talker, but when he talked, you listened. 

Now, my siblings & I have the task of looking through the house; 54 years of memories. Some of the memories have been tucked away so deep that when someone brings it up, it all comes flooding back. Seeing Christmas ornaments that were made or little trinkets in the house bring back forgotten memories. Some are more meaningful to different family members; it's nice that each of us have individual memories with the house and with our parents.

One of my sisters came down on Sat. as I was packing up some things from the house. Before she got there, I looked at a peculator on the counter. I could hear my mom's laughter, hear the dishes being rattled during Sunday brunch, and smell the coffee. When I walked to my parents' bathroom, I saw Daddy's shaving brush, and I remembered how he used to puff his cheek out when he used that brush to lather up his cheek when he shaved. And I lost it. 

As my siblings come to the house and carry off what they want from the house, treasures that mean something to them so they can keep a little piece of our parents with them, reality is settling in. They're gone. It's up to us to carry on the things that they taught us. 

At some point, there will be another family living in our house. I didn't think it would bother me, or rather, affect me, but it does. There are so many memories in that house, so many years of memories. My parents moved into the house when I was 9 months old, so it's the only house I remember until I was 22. 

Being at the house brings comfort to me right now. As things are taken out, there's an emptiness, but, OH, what memories! The slamming of the screen doors in summer, sledding across the street to come in through the basement, leaving our snow boots in the hallway in the winter. Playing bouncy-ball in the hallway of the basement and roller skating down there. Taking the phone receiver to the steps to the basement and sitting on those steps for what seemed like hours...because that was the only place there was a little bit of privacy (we only had 1 phone). The Christmases & Easters that were so hectic. (I have no idea how Mama managed to make them so special...she not only had us to take care of, but she also played the organ at multiple masses during those holidays.) 

I don't think that people have that anymore; we live in a more transient society. As a culture, we want bigger and more new things, so people often don't live in the same house all their lives. My boys didn't. 

Like it or not, a new phase of my life has begun. Time to be a "true" adult. Most, if not all, of us are beginning to look through our own houses to clear the way for our treasures, our own little pieces of our parents. It is such a privilege to be their daughter; we are so fortunate to have had them as long as we did. As I reflect on both of their passings, I realize that they both went just as they wanted: Mama's was quick and before Daddy, and Daddy wasn't alone...and he's with Mama now. 

Foto Friday {9}

I discovered the selfie stick that we got when we were in the Outer Banks this summer really does work! (I really thought I had my phone on the right setting!) Obviously we have no idea where we're supposed to look when we take a selfie!!!

When I carried a limb across the street at my dad's house, I saw this in the driveway:

I was 7 when the driveway was paved. Oh, the memories!
We had a tragedy in our county last week. A police officer was killed in the line of duty. He was an officer for the Rival Town, but everyone in the county, regardless of whether you're from the Small Town, Rival Town, or the county, has pulled together. One of the elementary schools have this in front of the school:

This is why I try to make it a point to leave school right at 3:00, or definitely before 4:00:

Jennifer Fulwiler is a former atheist who converted to Catholicism. She always has the most interesting guests on her show!
Hope everyone (all 3 of you who read my posts!) has a safe, wonderful holiday weekend!

Hot Fun in the Summertime Wednesday Hodgepodge

1. It's officially summer (in the northern hemisphere anyway). Which summer month is best and why?

June. Most definitely June. Because July means going back to work.

2. Can you swim? How did you learn? June 27th is National Sunglasses Day. How many pair do you own?

My mom made sure that we all knew how to swim. We took swim lessons given by the Red Cross at our local pool.

3. What characteristic do you judge most harshly in yourself? How about in others?
Being inconsiderate. I consider myself as being a very considerate person, and I tend to beat myself up when I'm not...when I look back after an instance and realize that I wasn't considerate. It absolutely drives me CRAZY when other people aren't considerate. Case in point: I went to Aldi yesterday to get 1 thing...1.Thing. The lady in front of me had a whole basketful of groceries. The considerate thing would have been for her to have let me go in front of her, but she didn't. Luckily, the cashier was pretty quick so I didn't have to wait very long.

4. Robert Frost wrote the now well known poem entitled The Road Not Taken. What's a road (literal or figurative) you've always wanted to travel, and where do you hope it takes you? 

CH & I have talked about flying to Scotland or Ireland, jumping on a train, and just going all over Europe. We need to do that before we get to old and can't.

5. Popsicles-yay or nay? If you answered yay, what's your favorite flavor? 

Oh, yeah.  Banana popsicles are DA BOMB!

6. Brexit-on a scale of 1-10 how knowledgeable are you on what's involved here? (1=very knowledgeable and 10=what's Brexit) Is this news you'll follow or is it something you think won't impact your life in any way shape or form?
Probably a "5". CH had a discussion with our British friends the other night. It was interesting to hear their perspective on it. I did hear that it might actually be good for our economy and make the U.S. Dollar stronger. From what I'm hearing, I think they jumped the gun...they voted for it, but apparently don't know how or when, or what they're going to do after. 

7. Share a favorite song on your summer play list.

I discovered Lauren Daigle a few months ago. At first, I thought it was Adele. She is just amazing, and I absolutely love this song.

8. Insert your own random thought here.

I have a group of online SLP friends that I chat with through FB almost daily. We don't just chat about Speech Stuff; our most recent conversation was about our backyards. Everyone shared pictures of their beautiful flower gardens, and they are really gorgeous. If you've been reading my blog very long (or if you know me IRL), you know that I didn't inherit my daddy's green thumb...I got my mom's black thumb. So, while everyone shared flower pictures, I shared this, 1 of the only things in the backyard that has grown from this:

to this:

I've got to remember to cut it back in the fall. CH wants to transplant and move it away from the porch...it's kind of taken over!

The song from where I got the title of my post:

Friday's Fave Five

I'm joining Susanne at Living to Tell the Story with my fave 5 for the week:

1. Favorite Freebie:

CH & I spent Sunday afternoon at the movies. We hadn't been to the theater in forever, so we took our free tickets from Christmas 2014 (Yes, I said "2014"!) and saw Zoolander 2. We still have tickets from this past Christmas to use.

2. Favorite memory that was made this week:

Since we were on a 2 hour delay for 2 days this week, I was able to go to Daily Mass. Daddy didn't go on Tuesday, but he went on Wednesday. There was only 1 other person in the church at the beginning of the Rosary (which is said prior to the beginning of Mass). As we were reciting it, I realized what a beautiful memory Daddy was making for me. To be kneeling there next to him, reciting prayers that he & Mama taught me as a child. It was amazing to come to that realization.

3. Favorite Text(s):

4. Favorite quote: 

(I tried to find the origin of the quote to give credit-as well as give credit for the photo-but couldn't find either.)

5. My Favorite Picture is a toss up between these 2:

You may have to click on the picture to see this, but the bird on the left is giving the other bird an earful.

 My acrobatic squirrel is back.

An Airy Wednesday Hodgepodge

1. Is your home air conditioned? If it's not air conditioned, is that by choice? Did you grow up with air conditioning? If not how did you cope with the heat? Share about a time or place you remember as being too hot-the temperature kind of hot, lest anyone be confused.

Most definitely our house is air-conditioned! My parents didn't get air conditioning until I was in high school, so after we were married, I told CH that as long as there was a penny in the bank, I wouldn't be cold in the winter or hot in the summer!

We had fans all over the place in our house growing up. Since Daddy worked in air conditioning, when it was hot on the weekends he had to get someplace cool...like the mountains. We would pack up and head for the Smoky Mountains (which is just up the road) for an afternoon of playing the cold mountain stream.
A time/place it was too hot? That would be on our recent trip to the Outer Banks. Although it was almost cool in the evenings with the wind blowing, the days were scorchers...a lot of riding around with the air on, and visiting places with air conditioning.

2. What's something in your life right now that falls under the heading 'up in the air'?
I can't think of anything that is up in the air at the moment. 

3. Your favorite light and airy dessert?
"Cool 'n Easy Pie" And, it's really easy to make sugar-free!

4. When did you last feel like you were 'floating on air'?
Last year, right about this time. I found out that a co-worker & I had been accepted to present a poster at our National Organization's Convention, and that OS was moving back from Utah.

5. Airport, airmail, airtight, airhead...which have you most recently encountered? Explain.
This is for you, UPS employee who somehow couldn't find my house to deliver a couple of books from Amazon: Airhead. I got a notification that my address was wrong & the package couldn't be delivered. I double-checked the address...it was correct. I've never had a problem before, and it's not like we live out in the boonies. We're on a main street in the Small Town, and they deliver almost daily to our next-door-neighbor. I "chatted" with UPS Friday night & they said it would be delivered Tues. I should have told him that they would deliver it on Saturday. I would have, except I'm not quite ready to read them yet...I have another book that I've started & want to finish before I start on those. The books were delivered Tuesday night, right before 7:00. 

6.  Have you ever been to the Alps? If so where did you go? If not, is this a destination on your must-see list? If you were headed that direction this summer, which of the following would be your preferred activity...a gentle walk, a serious walk, a bike ride, a boat ride around one of the lakes, or summer snow skiing?
Oh, my. I was in the Alps 2 years ago when I "chaperoned" a group of high school kids on the Germany trip. GORGEOUS. And we didn't even get into the more beautiful areas in Switzerland. We took in an Alpine Ride...by the time we got to the top, it was raining ice and we were absolutely freezing! Oh, but the views! I'd love to go back and explore with gentle hikes. 

7. What is one saying or phrase that was considered 'cool' when you were growing up?
Far out, man! 

8. Insert your own random thought here.
It's back to work for me on Monday. Crazy, right?  Every year it seems like it gets harder & harder to go back, and this year is the worst so far. I'm sure it'll be fine once I get in there & get back in the swing of things. I'm not nearly as motivated this year as I've been in past years. Time to "suck it up"! 

Long Overdue Weekend Wrap-Up: Sisters' Weekend

Yes, I realize that I went on my Sisters' Weekend almost 2 months ago. Yikes! Where does the time go?
As always, it was a really good weekend. It was different without Mama being there, and there were times when we all had tears in our eyes, but it wasn't a big "cry-fest". One of my sisters made sure there was plenty of  tissue in the house, but we didn't need it. It was more of a happy time...a time for us to talk about memories with Mama. I think I had a couple of conversations that I wouldn't have had if Mama had been there, but they were good conversations.
First, the cabin. We went to a resort that is not far from a sister's house.

 The outside:

And some of the inside:

It was quite nice: 4 bedrooms (3 upstairs & 1 downstairs), 3.5 baths.
As usual, when we got there on Friday, we picked bedrooms, unpacked, and then sat on the porch with a beverage of choice. Two of my SIL & myself fixed dinner & dessert. We went with easy: taco bar with pie for dessert.
For breakfast on Saturday, everybody brought an ingredient (their choice...no restrictions!) and we set it out on the counter. We all threw out ideas on what to do with everything. One of my sisters brought Daddy's leftover birthday cake from that Thursday night and had that in the mix. So...we had ham with birthday cake glaze (it turned out to be blue), eggs with sausage & mushroom sauce, bagels, bread with tomatoes, and fruit.

A closeup of the ham:

After breakfast, it was time for the Spa!

We had our choice of what we wanted to do. I think most of us chose pedis & a massage. The nail room was gorgeous. It was like sitting in a tree! So calming. (I didn't take a picture of it...I didn't want to be too weird!) This massage was only my 2nd one, and my 1st one by a male. We ended up talking the whole time after we realized we had quite a bit in common.

After/during our Spa time, the UT football game was on, so we watched the game.

Before supper, we had a little visitor:

My niece was taking care of a co-worker's baby pig for the weekend. It was the sweetest little thing! Apparently the owner thought she was getting one of the little pigs, but this is a real pig! He's going to be a whopper when he's full grown!
For supper that night, we each brought something to grill (steak or chicken). One of my sisters made tomato pie that was to die for. We also had green beans from another sisters' garden, deviled eggs, and bread.

One of my sisters found some "Ski" Soda, and brought one for my SILs.

(My maiden name ends in "ski", so if you didn't already know that, the "Ski soda" will make sense now!)

The Texas A&M game (Gig 'Em!) took  forever to get started. I was trying to skype or google hangout with my sister who is working toward her Ph.D. at A&M, but she was in the stadium and couldn't get reception. We were able to text and send pictures back & forth, though. This is a picture she sent of her with 3 of our cousins:

Sunday morning came way too quickly. We packed up, cleaned up, and headed to The Apple Barn. We usually take a group picture at the cabin, but we forgot this time. One of my SILs wasn't feeling well that morning, so my brother drove up and picked her up, so we couldn't take one at the restaurant. We did get a picture of the rest of us:

Before we went in, one of my SILs spied this:

Pigeon Forge has a lot of car shows; in fact, it seems like there's one just about every weekend in the fall! My speech blog is called "Old School Speech", so I had to get a picture of the bus! 

All in all, a wonderful weekend. Mama's passing was still pretty fresh, but we needed that weekend for us. 

I mentioned Daddy's birthday...the night before we went on our weekend, the family gathered at my house for cake & ice cream to celebrate Daddy's 89th birthday. 

 The blue icing on the cake turned everybody's tongues blue:

 Lips, too!

That takes care of Sisters' Weekend...and it only took me 2 months to take care of it!