I can't believe it is already Monday night and I haven't blogged in over a week. Last week was almost a blur! Work was rough and I was 5:30 and 6:00 getting in every night! By the time I got home and fixed / ate supper and read the paper... I was exhausted. Early bedtimes didn't seem to help... I have to remember I am still recovering from the surgery. I got ho,e Friday at about 3 pm and laid down across the bed fully clothed with even my shoes on and fell into a deep sleep. I slept for 2 hours! It was wonderful.

Friday night we met our friends at Steamroom Grill. That's one of our very favorite places to eat! The food was great and the conversation and company was delightful.

Saturday my buddy Becky and I went to Canton to the P Is for Primitive yarn shop and took a class in rug hooking! I am hooked! That was such a fun day and I really have enjoyed working on the piece. It is just 10 inches by 20 inches so much smaller that a rug, but it is a fun craft. I can't wait to enter it into the state fair! I met 3 other ladies who are "hookers" and we had a great day learning and visiting. When we got back to Brandon, Becky, and her husband and daughter met Mike and me at Newks for supper. We had a fun time visiting with them and telling them about our class.

Sunday afternoon Mike and I basted in my latest quilt. It is one I pieced about 3 years ago and its a real pretty scrappy block of the month quilt. I am ready to start quilting it but can't put down the rug hooking.. HaHa

Sunday about 5:30 I got a call from Scarlett. She was telling me all about her new bed and was asking me to come see it. Well, come to find out it's really Savanna's bed, but Scarlett is so proud of it. We went and picked up pizza and went to see the bed. The girls were just precious and we had such a fun visit with them. It's hard to believe they are getting so big! Oh yea... the bed is cute too! HaHa It's a tiny junior bed just right for Savanna with fairies on the canopy and the bedding. She was so sweet trying it out, but was a little confused about why she had to go to bed when Grammy and Grandad had just gotten there!

Tomorrow night is our New Stage play. It is "Gee's Bend" a play about the Quilters of Gee's Bend Alabama. It should be a great play and I am looking forward to it.

Another Week

So another week has passed and it's Sunday night again. My friend Tracy once told me that the best part of retirement was Sunday night... no dreading Monday Morning! This is going to be a busy week at work. I've got meetings almost every day and a MAJOR report due to corporate by EBD Wednesday. Sometime I wish I had a job with no meetings, deadlines, reports, papers, speeches, etc, etc... but then I wonder if I'd be bored!

Again this was a wonderful weekend. Friday night we went to the new hibachi restaurant Ischiban. The food was good and we enjoyed the antics of the chef at the next grill. He played a harmonica and banged a gong, tied balloon animals, and was generally entertaining. After we left the restaurant, we went to Border's and I found 2 good books I have been wanting to read. I also found a Quilting Magazine with some pretty quilts I'd like to make. The Mississippi Magazine with the Wedding Announcements was on the stands and I got one of those as well. Then I stayed up 'way too late reading about all the weddings! I really enjoy that issue each year.

Saturday was a quiet stay-at-home day. I finished my quilt and sewed the backing for the next one. I had planned to baste in that quilt today, but just didn't get it done. Late in the afternoon, Mike and I ran a few errands and then ate supper at a Mexican restaurant. When we got in, we made a BIG pot of chili for Sunday lunch. And again we stayed up 'way too late.

This morning we slept late and didn't make it to church. We watched a movie on TV and then got lunch ready. Caleb and Lisa and Noel and Martin and their girls came for lunch. We had a wonderful afternoon visiting and playing with the grandgirls! They are so sweet and we enjoyed them so much.

So now it's 10:30 and time to turn in and get a good night's rest for tomorrow.

The Week is Half Over

So its Wednesday and the week is half over... even more surprising is that the month is half over. I feel old talking about how fast time goes by. I was thinking last week that we have lived in this house almost 10 years. Where has the time gone... it has gone by while we were living, loving, and laughing. Growing flowers, cooking meals, dreaming dreams, and building a home. Spending time together and living our life. Crazy, noisy, busy times and quiet, sweet, relaxing times. Making memories! That is where the time has gone.

The Weekend Is Over

It is Sunday Night and the weekend is over. After having so much time off the past few weeks, it is hard to get up and get ready for work. I want to go to work, I just don't want to go in until about 10! HaHa!

We had a wonderful weekend spent with family and friends. Friday night we had our Dinner Club Christmas Party. We ate at Cerami's and there were 12 of us. We realized that without our dear buddy Tracy, we wouldn't be all together. We all knew and love him and through him we all got to know and love each other. We ate and talked and swapped presents. We got fun stuff, silly stuff, and beautiful stuff. But the best gift was just being together. I still miss Tracy so much. His death really affected me and it hurt me so bad. He was such a dear friend and I am still grieving for him.

Saturday was a sleep late day. Then breakfast was pancakes! I have had taste for pancakes for weeks now and decided to make up a batch. Not as good as IHOP, but satisfied my craving. Saturday was a rainy day, so I worked on my quilt, knitted, and watched a few movies. Caleb and Lisa came over and brought their two dogs for us to watch while they went to Birmingham to see their friend Zach who is in UAB. The dogs are fun and well behaved... They stay outside and in the garage when they stay with us. We decided to go to Cracker Barrel for supper. I got chicken and dumplins, green beans, and fried okra... it was yummy. When we got home, the phone rang and it was Martin saying that Scarlett wanted to talk to her Grammy. She is getting so big and she is so precious. I just loved her telling me everything she had been doing. She is excited about her birthday party being planned for Feb 7th.

Today we went to church. Our new preacher came last week, so today was his second Sunday. I enjoyed being at church... enjoyed seeing friends, enjoyed the music, and the quiet holiness of the sanctuary. I really feel close to God in our church.. I get the "Be still and know that I am God" feeling there. After church we came home and had pinto beans and ham. We watched a movie and I again worked on my quilt. At supper time, Caleb and Lisa came back from B'ham and had supper with us. It was fun visiting and catching up with them.

Up until last January, I always had Sunday Dinner and any of the kids who wanted to come were welcomed. Usually, I had a roast, soup, chili, or beans and ham or something like that. Well, it's been awhile since I had Sunday Dinner and I have decided to re-instate the Sunday Dinners. Last week I made a roast and today the beans and ham. It gives us a time to be together as a family and catch up on each others lives. I look forward to planning a good meal and sharing it.

So tomorrow is back to work. I get tired in the afternoon and would like to blame it on recovering from surgery, but I think it's just laziness! Haha It will be a busy week and before I turn around good Friday will be here again!

First Day Back At Work

So I went to work today. It was harder that I expected getting up, dressed, and out. I didn't make it in until almost 9, but I stayed alot longer than I had anticipated. I didn't get home until 4. Still not alot of pain, just tired out easily. I needed to get back though I had 190 e-mails to answer and several reports to finish. I plan to go in tomorrow for a few hours again. I have more reports to work on and two publications to get out to the staff. Tomorrow night is our dinner club Christmas Party. We started last year having the party in January... it frees up time during the holidays and gives us something to look forward to after the hustle and bustle of the Christmas Season.

More Excitement Than I Thought

So, I'm blogging again after several days off. Friday was our 33rd wedding anniversary. We went out to eat at Bravo's and talked about what we remembered about our wedding. Mike remembered that it was raining, the fiasco with the tuxes, and the fact that the preacher wore a red, white and blue plaid sports jacket! I remembered that it stopped raining long enough for me to walk around the side of the church to the foyer. I remember daddy holding my arm and looking at Mike as I walked down the aisle. He was smiling and I was so excited with not a fear or doubt about marrying him. I remember looking at Mama and then it seemed everything moved so quickly and the ceremony was over.

Saturday, we took down all the Christmas decorations and packed them away. It took all day, and we were exhausted, but it got done. Sunday, we didn't make it to church and Mike put all the containers up in the attic. Sunday night I got ready for surgery on Monday.

Monday morning at 7:15 I was at the Mississippi Surgical Center for gall bladder surgery. After I signed in, they called me back about 7:30 and drew blood then asked all the admission questions, and then started my IV. It took 4 sticks! My veins rolled and then blew and finally after the 4th stick and the second nurse, they got it in. Mike was then allowed to come back and wait with me. We had fun listening to what was going on with all the other patients. Finally at 9:40 they came to get me for surgery. The nurse gave me versed and wheeled me to OR Room # 1. I remember seeing two techs standing by a table of instruments and the OR bed, but that is the last thing I remember until I woke up crying in recovery. I was having a bad dream about Holly and I remember I wanted to see her and talk to her really bad. Then I asked for Mike and Mama. Mike came back and then I kept asking for Mama. At about 12:30 I got up and pee'd and got dressed and they wheeled me to the van. I don't remember much about going home, but I remember laying down on the couch and looking at the clock and it was 1:05. Mike said they called him about 10:10 to say surgery was underway and then at 10:30, Dr. Voyles came out and said it was all over. So in less than 3 hours from surgery start, I was at home on the couch. I have done really well with no pain or nausea. I plan to go back to work for part of the day tomorrow.

So I said that I'd see what excitement I had in my life and already in 7 days, I have celebrated a New Year, a 33rd Anniversary, and had surgery! Maybe my life is more exciting that I thought! HaHa

2009 is here! Mike and I had a quiet New Year's Eve and enjoyed being with friends and with each other! Today also has been a quiet day. I baked a ham, made black-eyed peas, and cooked a cabbage that Reverend Rice grew and gave us. I washed a few loads of clothes and when I talked to Mama we laughed that Mamaw Walker was probably spinning in her grave. She always fussed at us for doing "work" on New Year's Day. She said that what ever you did on New Year's Day was what you'd do every day the rest of the year! Not only did I wash 3 small loads of clothes, but I slept late, ate well, took a nap, watched good movies on TV, read a good book... hummmm that's not such a bad way to spend the day now is it! HaHa Love ya Mamaw!

In my past post, I lamented on the grievous 2008 I had experienced. On New Year's Eve, my devotional from Carol Mead was about just that. She said, " I hope to remember, on New Year's Eve, New Year's Day, and on every ordinary day, that "God will help us at the break of day." I try to remember-although "Nations are in uproar" and "kingdoms melt"-that God lives within us, strengthening us, comforting us, guiding us. Instead of despairing, then, we can set aside the chaos and remember the high point of the year: that we can "Be still" and know that God lives, and breathes, and loves within us. It has been a good year."

In 2008, I learned that with God in my life and my family and friends beside me, I am strong and I can face any adversity. I have learned to be thankful for what I have rather then grieving over what I don't have. I have learned to graciously accept help from others and to let others know how special they are in my life.

So I am ready for 2009! Starting January 2nd with my 33rd Wedding Anniversary! Another blessing to celebrate! 33 years with one of the most wonderful and most aggravating men in the world! Still riding that roller coaster of marriage with its ups and downs. It takes the high hills of the ups to give us momentum to make it through the low valleys of the lows and push us back to the top.

So enjoy the first day of a brand new year...