Little Things

 Before I leave the house in the morning I make a mental check-list of all the little things to make sure I didn't forget anything. Did I take out the garbage? Did I put my cards in the mailbox? Did I water the hanging flower baskets? Did I forget the dry cleaning? Although my husband has been gone for several years now and I no longer grieve his loss like the first year after he died, time still reminds me of all the little things he used to do, like:

take out the garbage...make the coffee...change the cat litter...feed the cat...buy stamps...pay the bills...change the oil...cut the grass....water the flowers...scrub the porch...call the cable guy...fill the bird feeders...take out the newspapers...order a pizza...wash the car...clean out the garage...balance the checkbook...make reservations...call the repairman...lift the heavy stuff...change light bulbs...reboot the computer...pick up my prescriptions...call the Vet...put up the Christmas tree...climb into the attic...find the right tool....shampoo the carpet...paint the bedroom...hang up pictures...put together anything with instructions...

 

 

And I especially miss the little things, like how he would:

buy me funny cards...say I love you...smell like English Leather...compliment my cooking...watch chick flicks with me...refill my morning coffee...tell jokes and stories with his brand of humor......meet me for lunch...sit on the front porch...grill out steaks...call our daughters everyday...help out the neighbors...go to Walmart with me on Saturday nights...watch his favorite basketball team or football team and beam with excitement....and a hundred other little things I probably took for granted.

On the Garden Path

The local Botanical Gardens is a peaceful place

amidst noisy traffic and busy lives.

I took my grandchildren there recently.

Most of these pictures were taken in the Butterfly

Garden.

It was hot, hot, hot, so pools of water were

refreshing.

Love the fish fountain!

The kids wore their bathing suits and played in the

rock fountains.

My favorite picture of the day!

Rainy Day

It's a rainy day. It's been a good day for staying home and catching up on housework.
My daughter decided it was a good day to sort through the girls' toys and winter clothes. My oldest granddaughter, "Teka", finally got her own room. She is going on nine. Can you guess what her favorite color is?

"Teka's" new room

The girls have tons of stuffed animals.
My son-in-law, who works for the sheriff's department, suggested that they donate them to the deputies. They keep stuffed animals in their patrol cars to give to children when they go on calls to help comfort them in tense circumstances.

My middle granddaughter promptly asked, "Are we going to jail, Daddy?"

You gotta love 'em.

The Rooms

Your thoughts are like the tenants in your home.

Only they are renting space in your mind. 

Are you letting Doubt and Self-Pity bunk upstairs?

Have you seen Shame and Guilt crouching in the corner?

Do you see Discontentment lurking in the foyer?

Have you noticed how Low Self-Esteem has been running the house?
Isn't it time to give her an eviction notice?

Why are Anger and Resentment in the kitchen, banging pots and pans?

Have you seen Distrust and Hurt Feelings living in the master suite?
What happened to Love and Forgiveness, the previous tenants?

Envy is nothing but a trouble-maker.
It's time to kick her to the curb and send her packing.

It's time to rearrange your thoughts.
Renovate your rooms.
Toss out Old Habits. Throw away Grudges.

There should be no rooms in your home for negative emotions.
Invite Laughter into your home. She is lots of fun and will make you smile.
Welcome Joy and Gratitude and give them the extra keys to your home.
When Peace and Contentment knock on your door, don't turn them away.
Invite Compassion and Understanding to live in your home.
 Evict Sadness and Disappointment and if they return, show them the "No Vacancy" sign.

Your thoughts are like the rooms in your mind.
Walk through them and eavesdrop on your tenants.
What are they whispering?

Blessings, Anita

My Mother's Garden

When Spring finally arrives it always brings thoughts of my mother. She loved Spring

and loved flowers, especially Pansies. She passed away 12 years ago, but I think about her often and the simple pleasures she taught us to appreciate. I recently spent a weekend

compiling some pictures of my mother onto a CD, to give to my sisters

and my uncle in Germany. 

I added the song, "Edelweiss", which was my mother's favorite song.

This was a little garden on the side of her house.

My mother had the chance to visit her sister in Germany two years before she died.

This is my mother (sitting) and her oldest sister, Anna,

who lived in Nurnberg, Germany.

 My mother had beautiful skin and hair and never looked her age.

I think that God knew that she wasn't going to reach old age.

This old castle in Germany is near the town that I was born in.

This was taken in Gatlinburg six months before my mother passed away.

A Tea Party

This past weekend I had a tea party for my grandchildren.

 Nine children and seven adults came

to my little tea party.

Don't you love the chocolate lady bugs? I even made

little heart-shaped sandwiches for the kiddos.

The pink tray was a great find at Goodwill for

a mere $2.00.

My child-sized Hummel tea service - isn't it adorable?

The coffee service belonged to my mother. I filled the

bottom of a glass flower vase with jelly beans.

I don't get creative that often, so when I come up

with a new idea I have to run with it (smile).

I found the tea tray a few years ago at a downtown

antique store. I think my tea party was a big success.

I am already thinking of my next "theme" party.

The End of a Love Affair

I have fallen out of love with Winter. I knew it was going to happen, sooner or later. Winter has been fickle this year, teasing me with a few warm, balmy days, causing me to forefeit the usual winter sweaters, just to have a stiff wind come to town and make a fool out of me. I've had enough. I won't believe the weather reports any longer. I won't wait patiently for the soft snow that never falls, when a cold rain comes instead.
At one time I was madly in love with Winter. I looked forward to cozy evenings by the fireplace, wearing my flannel pajamas and drinking hot cocoa. But the love has wained, I'm afraid to say.

Spring has been courting me. The longer days, the daffodils peeking through the brown grass, birds chirping in the morning..how can I resist the call of Spring?

The Advent Calendar and the Christmas Party

 Growing up in Germany it was a tradition each Christmas to buy an Advent calender with chocolate candy hidden in the scene. Each day we would take turns opening up the little flap and removing our piece of chocolate.
This year I bought four calenders, one for each of my grandchildren.
There are 11 days left.
Yesterday, while no one was looking, Mae-Mae, at 19 months, ate the rest of her chocolate.

My grandson is having his pre-school Christmas party today.

"Can Mommy come to my party?" he asked my other daughter, who baby-sits him.

"No, Honey, she has to work."

"Can Mamaw (me) come?"

"No, she has to work, too."

"Can the girls come?"

"No, Sweetheart. They are in school."

"Can Mae-Mae come? She doesn't go to school."

Poor little guy. He doesn't know it yet, but I'm going to surprise him.


Have a blessed day!

Christmas Letters

Vintage Christmas Card

It is that time of year and I am writing my Christmas letter. I send a lot of cards, but haven't enclosed a letter in the past few years. I enjoy reading the newsletters I get from friends and family and catching up on the latest news. One of my former neighbors, who now lives in Virginia, is very creative and includes photos of her family with cute little captions in her Christmas newsletter. I did this one year, with my daughter's help, as I am not that tech-savvy. So this year I'm writing a simple Christmas letter on pretty stationary.

I have lots of news to share and many blessings to be thankful for. It has been a year of travel, to the Florida beaches and the Smoky Mountains. It has been a year of reunions and celebrations. I reunited with an old childhood friend in October and we celebrated my mother-in-law's 90th birthday in November. For my grandchildren, it has been a year of beginnings. My youngest grandchild turned one and is quickly catching up with her older siblings; my grandson started pre-school and my second granddaughter started Kindergarten. Small things, but big events to the little ones.

Still, amidst my blessings, I want to remember those friends and family members struggling with grief and loss, health problems and other serious issues. I just hope that Christmas brings a sense of peace and hope and shines a light on them.

Thankful

I am thankful for so many things that I am sure I will leave something off of this list.

I am thankful for my family...
for a son-in-law who works hard to provide for his family and serves our community as a law enforcement officer.....
 I am thankful for my two daughters that I am very proud of and that I consider my best friends....
 I am thankful for the beautiful grandchildren they have blessed me with and the joy they bring to my life....
I am thankful for a job, with a retirement plan and good health insurance, when I know there are so many people unemployed and less fortunate than I am....
I am thankful to have a good relationship with my sisters and though we have our differences, always make up...
I am thankful for many friends who keep in touch with me to let me know they care...
.I am thankful for my cat, who keeps me company, curled up on my lap at night.....
I am thankful that the mail still runs every day (except Sunday)....
.I am thankful that I have a good boss and great co-workers that makes it so easy to go to work each day....
.I am thankful that I can worship God openly and for his daily blessings......
I am thankful for Thanksgiving and Christmas, my two favorite holidays of the year....
I am thankful for the mild temperatures that have kept my utility bills down....
I am thankful for libraries....for the written word.....newspapers and the Internet, and Amazon.com....
.I am thankful for afternoon naps, flannel robes and slipper socks, and hot cocoa, for cold nights....
I am thankful for Hallmark movies, all Charlie Brown re-runs and Christmas songs on the radio, even before Thanksgiving...
I am thankful that I have one pair of boots that I can wear....
I am thankful for the spirit of Christmas, wishing it would last a little bit longer...
I am thankful that the elections are over....
I am thankful that my mother-in-law celebrated her 90th birthday...
I am thankful that a friend finished her radiation treatments...
I am thankful for this blog, where I have met some incredibly nice people.

Once Upon a Time

Do you ever hurry...through your day, a meal, a chore? I have. Wouldn't it be better to absorb each moment for what it is without thinking of all the things you have to do. Savor the moment. Live in the moment. Forget the shortcuts.
I have been guilty of taking short cuts, of not living in the moment. It's easy to get distracted. Life is full of distractions that keep us from truly living in the moment.

My grandson wanted me to tell him a story. I started the fairy tale, "The first little pig built his house out of straw."
"No, Mamaw, that's not how it starts. Start at the beginning, 'Once upon a time.'"
They know when we take shortcuts.

90 Years Young

 

I was fortunate to travel to Mississippi this past weekend and help celebrate

my mother-in-law's 90th birthday. It was supposed to be a

surprise, but word leaked out. She was a good sport and enjoyed all the

cards and gifts and having family come from as far away as

Minnesota. My mother-in-law has lived every minute of her 90 years.

Her favorite gift? A hockey jersey signed by the entire

local hockey team. After the party, she put the jersey on and headed

down to the stadium to watch the game. She had heard that her

name and picture would appear during the game.

Happy Birthday Mom!

 

It was a quick trip to the gulf coast, but we drove along the beach

to take in the sun and scenery. It was a little chilly walking on the pier!

My daughter and grandson hurried back to the car.

 

 

Something to Smile About

"Dancing With the Ghouls"

We always have "huddle" time on Fridays at work, a few minutes of fun and games to start the day with a positive attitude. A few weeks before Halloween the supervisors asked for ideas on doing something creative for Halloween. I suggested that we have a "Dancing with the Ghouls'' contest. We divided into three teams and each team danced to either "Thriller", "Monster Mash" or "The Adams Family." It was a huge hit! I never laughed so hard, and the dance moves and skits made us smile all day. The management team even came up with their own routine and enlisted the help of our security guard.

"It Can't Happen to Me (But it Did)"

"Uh, can you make that a regular hamburger?" I said as I went to McDonalds the other evening. The young man very politely informed me that my debit card approval came back short and I still owed some change for my quarter-pounder and a specialty coffee. "Don't worry about it, Ma'am," he said, as I fished in my wallet and dumped a handful of change in his hand. It's a good thing that I work at the financial institution that rejected my card. As my daughters would tell me, "See, Mom, it's time to get a smart phone. Of course, I really didn't need that Frappe.

The offender

"The Offender"

My son-in-law is a cop. He came home for dinner while he was on duty recently and laid his radio down while talking on the phone with another deputy. My 18-month old granddaughter saw the radio and pushed the red button, a big no-no. His phone immediately started ringing off the hook and the dispatcher was frantically trying to get through. My son-in-law called in and stated that everything was under control and that he had the offender in custody.