November 14, 2009

• A Day of Hard Work

  I made it through yesterday and today without mishap or injury!  Perhaps my string of klutziness has terminated!  Annamarie rubbed my sore shoulders and neck this evening.  She sat on the sofa in our room and I sat on the floor in front of her.  She knocked me in the back of the head HARD with her knee . . . but that really doesn't count, does it?  Technically, *I* wasn't the klutz!!! 

  ==================

  I love this quote:

  "Even a stopped clock is right twice a day."
  Marie Ebner von Eschenbach
  

  
  ==================

  This morning, Rissy begged to fix something for breakfast and I handed her two Jiffy brand oatmeal muffin mixes.  I figured pouring the ingredients from a box, and not having to measure them, would be less of a mess.  I was right!

  

  Things were mixed with no mess and I only had to come when called for breakfast!

                                

  I can't say I'd buy the oatmeal mix again.  It really didn't have much flavor.  But, hey!  I didn't have to cook - so, no complaining here!

  ==================

  We ran a bunch of errands on Friday.  Grabbed McDonald's on the road, picked up Jesse's migraine prescription, and then dropped the girls off for their therapy appointment.  I saw the therapist first and discussed some things I'm concerned about, regarding Annamarie.  Like always, I came away feeling more competent!

  We left there and stopped to pick up the girls' winter shoes.  Annamarie has officially graduated to a ladies size, as the 5 1/2 Maryjane shoes they ordered were too tight.  It was like trying to fit the wicked stepsister's foot into Cinderella's glass slipper.  It wasn't happening!  We'll have to look elsewhere for black shoes for her.  Their price was more than double the children's shoe price for adult size shoes.  $135 for a child?  Nope!  Can't do it! 

                            
                                                  Our backyard finally looks like fall.

  
  My friend Emily saved my life one more time.  She called to say she had dinner for us last night.  Since Jesse and I both forgot to take something out of the freezer, and the best I could think of was hotdogs or fried egg sandwiches, Emily's timing was perfect.   Little did I know *HOW PERFECT* until a few hours later.
  
  After leaving the shoe store, we stopped at our post office box.

                          
                                                 This was the firewood pile this morning.
                                            Since then, Jesse has unloaded two more ricks.

  
  After leaving the post office, we fought hard to get through traffic before the 5 o'clock rush.  We got to Wal-Mart just before 5:00, but they had no motorized carts for me.      I knew our list was short and we were trying to beat the after work traffic, so I told Jesse I thought I could walk if I had the cart to hang onto.  We split up twice to cover more area in the same amount of time. 

  The Wal-Mart excursion really wasn't that long (we *did* hurry), and as we were heading to the check-out stands, I cratered.  I gripped Jesse's arm with my hand (more like my fingernails) and said with no uncertainty, "I need to go to the car, right N-O-W!"      He sent Rissy and Annamarie with me to make sure I made it.  One girl to stay with me and one girl to run for help!  We were parked in the handicapped parking, but I felt like I was walking to the ends of the earth.  I was so hot, so shaky, and *SO* needing to lie down and rest my back. 
  
  Jesse arrived within minutes (like I said, the list was short this time) and we headed to CVS to pick up some more prescriptions.  We called Emily, who asked if we could stop by her house to pick up the food, and we gladly said we would.

  She visited with us a bit in her driveway.  I got to hug her little boy, Brayden - but, Jesse was the one who got him to laugh.  Good ol' belly laughing!  Bethany said, "Hey!  Don't forget about me!" but, she was busy in the back seat visiting with the girls!  We came home to a wonderful meal of chicken pot pie and a vanilla pie!  The food was so greatly appreciated!

  ===================

  We arrived home to a few more boxes on our porch and have accumulated quite a nice stash in our foyer, by my desk!  That's okay.  It means shopping is under control and all that is before me is wrapping the gifts!

                                  

  ================

  Despite how much my back hurt, last night, I was ready to tackle that photo album for Stephanie, today.  I knew it was a lot of work and required many hours of sitting at my desk, but I felt pressured to get the pictures in their slots in date order.  I can go back and add comments and the picture dates later on.

  These two pictures aren't included in what I am giving to Stephanie.  But I thought the one of my dad was interesting.  If he had married the woman in the picture, history would have been altered.  I wouldn't have been born, and, well, you know how the rest of that goes!  The picture on the wall over my dad's girlfriend is the same oil painting I have hanging here over my desk!  I hope to pass it down (when I'm done with it!!!!) some day.

                           
                                                Girl on the right is my grandmother's sister.
                                           She died from the flu when her son was 3 years old.
                               My grandma helped raise the boy along with my dad, his first cousin.

  I ended up with enough pictures, for Stephanie, to fill two albums (something like 275 pictures).  I couldn't decide on what to exclude.  It was easier to keep almost all of the pictures I had originally picked out and to just do a second smaller album.  The small one includes all of Stephanie's birthday parties in chronological order, all of our vacations, all of our pets, etc.

                           
                                     I need to pick a photo for the black leather album cover.

                        
  The black leather album starts with my grandfather's picture from World War I and goes up to 1995.

                                

  The small album also has pictures of Stephanie's dance school days and recitals (that's when I taught at the dance studio and lessons were free!!!!).l

                            

     
  She's definitely had a full life of friends, parties, vacations, dance lessons, and family history.  I only included pictures up to her 16th birthday and then included a few animals we owned until she was about 18.  She left home and none of the other pictures are really about her life "at home," so I chose to not include those.  This is supposed to be a photo history of HER life with her mom and pictures of her mom's side of the family (back to WWI).  I had quite a few pictures of her dad and his mother that I included in the leather album.  I'm glad I hung on to everything.

  During all of this photo choosing, I have thrown away so many photos.  I started with 2 boxes and a third box of albums.  The next thing I have to do is put together an album of Jesse's and my life with our FIVE daughters.  But it won't be tonight!!!!  I ache so much - thus the reason Annamarie was rubbing my neck and shoulders, earlier!!!

  ==============

  I had planned to fix pork chops tonight - even made a peach pie - but, I simply couldn't stand up to cook.  So, Jesse brought two pepperoni pizza's from Domino's and I was, once more, saved by someone else!!!!

  He's my knight in shining armor, tonight!!!!

  ===============

  We are expecting an abrupt and significant change in the weather.  Lots of cold.  Lots of northerly winds.  Lots of rain.  They even said we might see some snow flurries and the Oklahoma Panhandle will get significant snow.

  ===============

  It looks like we will have company for Thanksgiving.  Jesse's brother (in SE Oklahoma) called last night  to say he and Sharon were coming the night before and would bring turkey and ham and get up early to fix the meal.  It sounds like fun.  We may have other guests (Jesse's nephew & his family) as well.  Nothing is certain.  So, as always, it will be a surprise, for sure!

  Better head to the bed and my heating pad.  A heating pad sounds like the best thing in life, right now!

  P.S.  Please pray for my mom.  Today was the memorial celebration for my Dad.  I'm sure it's an emotional day for her.  Thank you, in advance!

  Be Blessed  ~

  • 9:30 pm
  • 5 Comments