Saturday 9: Memorial Day and God Bless America

Unfamiliar with Deanna Durbin's rendition of week's tune? Hear it here.

Memorial Day is the federal holiday designated to honor American service people who died in battle. 

1) Memorial Day was introduced after the Civil War. Originally called Decoration Day, this is when memorials, as well as the graves of veterans, are to be decorated with flags and flowers on this day to show our appreciation. Is there a war memorial in your neighborhood? Yes. 

2) Andrew Johnson, our 17th President, was in office the first time Memorial/Decoration Day  was celebrated. Have you ever met one of our 45 Presidents? No. But our son met and got to shake George  W. Bush’s hand right after 911. 

3) According to the AAA, more than 30 million Americans will hit the road this weekend and drive more than 50 miles. Will you be traveling far from home this weekend? Just about 50 miles to see grandson play soccer. 

4) Memorial Day kicks off the summer season. What's your favorite picnic food? Potato salad, fried chicken, baked beans and chocolate cake.

5) As you answer these questions, is there an air conditioner or fan on? Oh yes! This is Texas and ac has been running off and on since Christmas!!! 

6) Though she's belting out one of America's best loved patriotic songs, Deanna Durbin was born in Canada. Is there anyone in your family or circle of friends who wasn't born in the USA? My sister-in-Law was born in Germany and my great niece was born in South Korea. 

7) No longer a household name, Ms. Durbin was once one of the biggest stars in the country. One of her most popular films was 1937's One Hundred Men and a Girl, which was nominated for a Best Picture Oscar. Recommend a movie that you really like, but don't think many Saturday 9ers have seen. Hobson’s Choice I discovered on Turner Classic movie channel. It is a very touching old black and white with John Mills. 

8) Back in 1938, Deanna Durbin had her handprints cemented in front of the TCL Chinese Theater on Hollywood Blvd. Have you ever visited that Los Angeles tourist attraction? No, and I have no desire to ever visit that part of California. 

9) Random question: What food did you hate as a child, but enjoy now? Potato salad, now one of my very favorites to make and eat!  

Hope everyone enjoys a safe holiday weekend as we remember those who paid the ultimate price for our freedom.

Wednesday Medley and Road Trips

Wednesday has rolled around again and we are getting close to the end of May! Can you believe it? It will be June in a couple of weeks.

1. Have you ever done a spur-of-the-moment road trip?  Yes. Where did it take you?  

Up to Branson a couple of years ago.

2. If time and money wasn't an issue, what roads would you choose to travel and how long would you be gone? 

I would like to travel over to Tennessee and the Appalachian Mountains, then over to Kentucky, Virginia and the Carolinas, to Georgia and then back home. I think it would take maybe at least one month, maybe more.

3. When you go on a long road trip, what snacks and beverages do you take? 

Plenty of water, trail mix,  not too much because I find we usually bring most of it back home. We stop to eat at restaurants when we are hungry and we aren’t really big snackers.  
Do you pack a picnic? Used to when I was younger. Does the back seat turn into a nest?  
Not really … if the dog is with us, her bed will be there, my pink bag full of whatever snacks, a small ice chest. And we've come a long way from this:

4. Please tell us about something interesting or strange you have seen on the side of the road.

Coming back from Lawton in January we saw a man dressed up in shiny, silver armor, like a knight, riding a horse! He was alone, coming up the side of the highway, kind of in the middle of nowhere. Then another sight we saw was an upside down barbecue pit. Since I’m always the driver, it isn’t possible to take pictures of sights we see. 

5. Who does the driving when you head out in the car?  Me, I am the legal driver in our household and while I do enjoy the scenery and sometimes will stop for something, for the most part, I want to "get there", wherever there is. 

Do you stop in the rest areas along our Interstate highways when you have to use the facilities, or do you choose a fast-food restaurant or gas station instead? Not TMI... inquiring minds want to know!

We choose something like McDonald’s to run inside for pit stop, or a nice gas station so we can fill up the tank and empty the tank. 

6. Please share something with us about your week so far. 

Saturday night we attended a Gospel/Hymn Sing* at a church north of us! It was absolutely wonderful and just what the doctor ordered. Everyone sang along to the songs we grew up with and in between that, there were performances by a couple of quartets, a family of singers, and a couple I remember from the Gaither cruise. It was a fabulous concert and the music was so, so good. My DH was a joy to watch as he sang and laughed at some of the cornball jokes! 

Tuesday was the last Ladies of Grace and we had our spring brunch. It was also my last day for Ladies of Grace in a leadership capacity. I may still visit from time to time. When BSF begins again in September, I will be a group leader for which I am excited, but a little bit "shy" about! I think this is a God-given opportunity and I am looking forward to encouraging and leading a group as I learn and grow from the other leaders!

Great food and decorations!

Sweet ladies all!

Monday I baked a cake for Alice’s birthday as we met them for dinner and they came over Monday evening. It was a pecan pie bundt cake and it was DELISH!! We had fun  playing Mexican Train. I am hoping today to get some ideas from others for a road trip.

*The Gospel Music Hymn Sing has a wonderful project which ministers to people in nursing homes. If you have visited nursing homes as I have, most of the people come alive when they hear the songs and remember all the words to the old hymns they sang in the past. http://gospelmusichymnsing.com/ has made it their mission to supply to every nursing home in the US a copy of their DVD with old, familiar songs. If you are interested, you can see how you can contribute to this on their website … or buy a copy of the DVD for yourself!

Wednesday Medley and Nylons

Our Friend from Florida has another great medley of questions for us today! 

Head over to Terri's to get the scoop on panty hose! It's National Nylon Stocking Day! Who woulda thunk it? Will you be celebrating the stockings or celebrating that you are free at last from those hose! LOL!

1. Do you (men don't have to answer) ever wear stockings today? 

I sometimes wear panty hose. I haven’t worn stockings, as in garter belt and clip on stockings, since junior high. Ugh! Hated those things. I attended an event at ORU as a senior in high school and remember constantly having to tug down on my skirt and pull up on the stockings because my skirt was too short and so were the stockings! It was very embarrassing.  I could have used some of the hold ups Terri mentioned! 

2. Terri can remember her mom wearing hose with the seam in the back. Do you have any memories of those? No. Only from articles or books I’ve read.

During the war, when stockings were scarce, women would draw a line on their legs to simulate wearing stockings! How far would you go to superficially fake something today?

I remember when I was in junior high, the fad was to use an eyebrow pencil to make a fake beauty mark on the face. I would never have been able to draw a straight line on the back of my legs. Creepy.

3. Women actually rioted after WWII because Dupont couldn't keep up with the demand for nylon stockings! Is there anything today you would riot for if the supply dried up (other than basic food and water needs)? 

I don’t think I would riot, but I would try to make sure my closet was stocked up with stretchy pants and tee shirts and a good hair dryer. Lol!

4. Pantyhose were first called Panty Legs. I'm sure we all have worn pantyhose at one time or another (again, men don't have to answer). Do you still have a pair or three in a drawer? Yes.
Do you wear them? 

Only when I wear a dress or, if I am wearing dressier shoes, I want some kind of stocking such as panty hose or knee highs with slacks. I don’t like to wear shoes without socks, unless it is flip flops or sandals. 

5. This is also National Chocolate Chip Day. Perhaps chocolate is something to riot for if we ran out? Definitely! Joe's favorite cookie is chocolate chip. What is yours? 

Chocolate chip and I made a batch on Sunday. Yummy good right out of the oven!

 6. Please share something with us about your week.

Today was the last Tuesday Ladies of Grace Bible study meeting. Next week is our brunch. Today our leader was ill, our worship leader was out, and the other two singers. Guess who was left in charge? Me ... so I led us in song, in praise, in reading some of my favorite scripture and then asked the ladies to do just that: Share!

“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.”

Colossians‬ ‭3:16‬ ‭ESV‬‬

It was wonderful and I had good feedback from the ladies about our “share day”!

It’s been an interesting week. On Friday our book club met to discuss the book Seabiscuit. While the general consensus was that the book was well written and interesting ... we learned plenty about jockeys and horse racing, it was not a book we would ever read again. I love our book club. Very enjoyable with very insightful ladies. 

On Saturday as I got in the car to go to church, I noticed the tire indicator warning a tire was extremely low. It was pouring rain, but I headed over to Discount Tire for them to check it out. A huge nail was in the tire, so they fixed me up with a new tire and off I went.  So thankful that I hadn’t gotten caught out on the freeway with that bad tire. 

On Monday I went out to our Sequoia to see if I had any more cases of bottled water in the back and, of all things, the handle on the back door jammed! I seem to find myself in jams lately. So, off to Toyota and spend some more dollars! They had to run a diagnostic and take off the whole back door to fix the handle!

If you decide to join other Meddlers this week, come back Wednesday and link up right here so we can all visit each other!

Happy 70th Birthday to me!

Showers of blessing!!

Prince Harry said he was over the moon about the birth of his baby boy! Congratulations to them! But speaking for myself, I was "over the moon" and completely surprised at my 70th birthday celebration weekend before last. Although I tried to post about it last week, life caught up with me and it was a very busy week. While all the wonderfulness of the birthday is still with me, it is now a treasured memory.

My brother, Phil, and sis-in-love, Susan, had promised weeks ago they wanted to come for a visit this weekend for my birthday. I marked it on my calendar and was looking forward to a quiet weekend with them, having a nice dinner and a long visit. When I shopped on Thursday morning, I even bought a bottle of wine!

After they arrived on Friday afternoon, we sat outside enjoying one of those rare Texas spring days, we visited, and Susan was doing a lot of texting with friends. I asked what they thought they might want to do for dinner to which they replied they had eaten on the way. What?? Really?? After a bit, Phil said they needed to leave, which made me wonder what was going on? I thought they came to see me! 

They went inside the house, the back door opened again, and lo and behold, who should walk through the door but Barrett, Sara, Brady and Noah, who had just arrived from Austin! Wowzer! I certainly wasn't expecting that. They wished me happy birthday, and then my brother informed me they had to go to the airport to pick up Julie and Tenley who were flying in from Virginia. Billy and Crystal, Hunter, Lincoln, and Londyn would arrive later in the evening! Then Jason, Kate and Jack came on Saturday, along with RuthAnn's Dad, Wayne. Oh. My. Goodness!!! I was overwhelmed! It seems Susan had been texting with everybody to stay updated with their travels.

At that point, it is an understatement to say I was stunned and couldn't comprehend what was going on. What a wonderful weekend! Susan and Sara had planned the dinner for the evening, and breakfast for Saturday morning! With exception of Sara's family who stayed with us, my brother put everybody else up in a nearby hotel. Lunch on Saturday was catered by Abuelo's, a HUGE chocolate cake was there, gift from everybody, cards, singing, fun, games:

All of it made for a SPECTACULAR and very cherished birthday celebration. So much love from the people I love, so many kind words spoken. I will never forget it!

This is the detail minded, big-hearted, and thoughtful guy who planned it all!

My house was full over the week-end, and my heart was even fuller!!

I can't figure why Jack looks so much bigger than the others here.

Little Tenley

Sara and Julie

Me with Tenley

A game of 42

Just chilling

He was a little surprised, too! 

"It's your birthday?" he says!

"How old are you?"

"Guess!"

"86!!"

Haha!!!!!

What a special birthday 70 turned out to be. I loved and enjoyed every minute of the weekend. To have a birthday filled with surprises, loved ones, food, balloons, lovely birthday cards … to have their presence meant so much more to me than any present ever could. My sister hadn't been able to come, but she and my niece had come a few weeks before and she sent these gorgeous flowers!

The notes on birthday cards were especially precious to me. One in particular … Kate showed me her card and explained that she couldn't find any cards that had Nonnie on them, so she selected one for Grandma. "Nonnie, I looked at so many cards and read them and this one said how I feel about you, so I scratched out Grandma and put Nonnie. I love you so much!" Jack was excited to tell me that he had written in cursive in his card for me.

And the rest is just pictorial of everybody enjoying the weekend.

Of course we had to have a tea party

Fun inside

Fun outdoors!

It was a fabulous birthday which I will always remember! I know that my brother put a lot of thought into it and a bunch of "dollars" to make it happen, but he had cooperation from so many others!  God bless them every one!

Thank you, Phil and Susan!

And thank you, Mom and Dad!

Saturday 9: The Perfect Fan

THE PERFECT FAN (1999)

Unfamiliar with this week's song? Hear it here.

1) In this song, a son thanks his mother for helping him grow up strong and confident. Who is the last person you thanked? 

My brother and sister-in-law, our daughter and family, and several other family members. 

What did they do for you? My brother instigated a HUGE surprise for my 70th birthday! It was spectacular!!!

Oh yes, and the ladies who helped me out of a bit of a predicament yesterday in the ladies' room when I found myself locked in as a result of the lock jamming! So thankful for the clean floor, and ladies in the room providing a large plastic tablecloth for me to crawl out on. (The tablecloth and the photo were my idea, so I should also thank myself! Haha!) I thought it was funny. Had there been no one around to help, I may not have been laughing!

2) Who was the last person to thank you for something?

My friend Alice thanked me for taking her to our book club.

3) This is from the Backstreet Boys' album Millennium, recorded and released in 1999. Do you remember where you were and what you were doing when 1999 turned into 2000?

Not really! Maybe with friends wondering if Y2K was really going to be a big problem!! LOL! Or maybe asleep!

4) This song was written by Backstreet Boy Brian Littrell. Brian voiced himself on an episode of PBS' Arthur. Arthur has been described as an "animated anthropomorphic aardvark" -- which can be difficult to say. Do you easily get tongue tied? 

Sometimes I find myself tongue-tied when I'm trying to express something to someone I'm a bit intimidated by!

5) The French word for "mother" is "mère." What other French words do you know? 

Oui, C'est la vie, amore, bonjour, merci, Au revoir, la table. Glad we had a tour guide when in France!

6) Mother's Day is a big holiday for card shops. So are birthdays, weddings, and St. Patrick's Day. Hallmark sells greetings for everything from "Congratulations on Your New Job" to "Happy Retirement." Who received the most recent card you bought?

I sent out several thank you cards on Monday and Wednesday I mailed Mother's Day cards.

7) Have you put away your winter clothes yet? 

My closet is big enough to shift everything around. I cover the winter clothes in plastic.

8) Mother Winters used to scold Sam for leaving her dirty dishes in the sink. Sam admits it: as a grown up, she's still a bit of a slob. Do lean toward "neat" or "messy?" 

I am neat and keep the house picked up! When the kids come over, I let them clutter things, but as soon as they are gone, everything is put away. Our two oldest grandsons are extremely neat! And when our daughter and family come to visit, they leave the house neater than it was when they arrived.

We never left dirty dishes in the sink when I was growing up. One exception: one night my girlfriend and I came home late and decided to fix breakfast for ourselves. We left the dishes in the sink. The next morning my Dad woke me up at 5 am to come clean up my mess so Mother could fix his breakfast. I wasn't that happy about that, but I really appreciate that he respected my Mother so much that he would have me take care of my own mess.

9) To celebrate Mother's Day, Sam is giving away her mother's favorite: Hershey Bars. Would you prefer classic milk chocolate, dark chocolate or milk chocolate with almonds?

Dark chocolate with almonds would be my choice!

My sweet Mom!