M (new picture)

I've been looking, literally for WEEKS, for a picture of M. I have put the ones of her on here when she has just given birth, but that is not what I wanted. Of course now I'm here in CA with her and I can take pictures of her (when she is unaware because she doesn't like having her picture taken). I took several that I liked. This is my favorite so far. Her playing with JT So here it is.....

CV's Award

On Wednesday, my son and I got to go to the school to see CV accept a Spirit Tree award. She didn't have any idea that she was getting this award. She had brought home a note from school on Monday informing us all of the upcoming ceremony and her parents didn't tell her what the note said. When she walked into the room on Wednesday and saw her dad and I, I'm sure she was surprised, but I was so busy looking for her, that I missed actually seeing her, despite her father telling me "there she is".

When they called her name to come up and get her award, she didn't move. All of her friends sitting around her starting telling her to go on up on the stage. CV had that deer caught in the headlights look and just sat for a few more seconds. When the adults also told her to go up, she finally did, but she looked like she was sure she'd be in trouble any second. I was lucky to get the picture of her getting the award. People started walking in front of me just as she got to the stage. I clicked the picture just as someone walked past and was sure I had a picture of them. Then I saw that I got it! I had to wait a few minutes for her look back at us again to get the close up of her sweet little face.

photo week 1 of 39 -- OPEN

CL and CV welcoming me with open arms!






An open doorway.


The open sign at the Airman's Attic. I love the lace curtain.

Next Time, I'm Renting a Car

I've taken three photos to show "open". I hope to post them this afternoon, which for most of you will be tonight, I guess. Of course to be able to post them, my son or daughter-in-law will have to drive me somewhere to buy a thingee that lets me download my photos from my camera to the computer. Fortunately, I've got the proper name written down so that I don't sound like a nut when I get to the electronics department of whatever store I end up in.

I had forgotten what a pain the rear it is to depend on someone else to take you somewhere. That is a definite disadvantage to visiting my son who lives on an extremely large Air Force Base and who has only one car. I told him yesterday, that I will rent myself a car for future visits. I truly hate feeling dependant on someone for my transportation, necessities or fun.

All things considered, the car thing has been one of the few downsides to the visit. We won't go into the others. Personalities are bound to clash at times. After all, you're basically blending two households. I know that my son and daughter-in-law have gone out of their way to make me welcome and at home and believe me, I do appreciate it. I'm trying to make myself useful and be helpful and I know that they appreciate that as well.

The girls start spring break when school lets out today! It's going to be fun for all of us. I plan for us to take walks to the park and take pictures. Each of the girls has tried her hand with my camera. They both love to take silly pictures. In fact, that brings me back to why I started this post. Cutting all the 365 possible themes and putting them in a bag was another pain the rear. So, I've just started having people pick a number for me. My hubby picked the number that lead to "open" for this week's photos. CV picked the number for today which will give us the photo/s for next week -- #65 cookery. CL has picked the theme for the next week.

Talent

My granddaughters are talented. Their talents are very varied too. CV  is an eight year old artist. She draws lovely birds, horses and many other things. CV is in the second grade and reads on a sixth grade level. CL is a 6 year old, very lady like little girly girl who happens to be able to pull up a burp on demand that a trucker would proud of! This is not something I can do -- burp on demand -- and I'm in awe that my granddaughter has been doing it from the age of five. She loves jewelry and dress up clothes, tiaras and other sparkly things. CV likes those things too, but she's more artistic and free spirited. I see her as the athlete and CL as the beauty contestant.

Now, I know that CL has other talents that I have not discovered yet. Just today CV told me that CL couldn't draw as well as her. I told CV that we all have different talents and CL's talents will be different than hers. I so look forward to knowing these girls more as they grow up.

Opening Day -- or Baseball is back!!!

You probably won't believe this. I know I didn't when I realized it. I bought tickets to the Texas Rangers opening day game against the Cleveland Indians after I already had tickets to go to CA. Of course I didn't look at dates for any of this when I was doing it. I was just so excited to get the opening day tickets! Then it hit me. Opening day was April 6th and I was leaving for CA on April 4th. Well crap! I had just spent about $90 for tickets and valet parking. Hubby had no desire to go with a buddy. He's not much of a baseball fan. Can you believe that? So, I started hunting for friends who might want to buy the tickets. Luckily I found someone quickly and they were thrilled to get them.

Then the mourning period for missing the game started. I was sure I wouldn't be able to see the game in CA. After all, I love the Rangers, but they really haven't done all that well over the last few years, so they aren't a big TV draw. In fact, toward the end of the some seasons, they aren't all that big of an in person draw.

So, today, opening day, I decided to see what game I could watch. I had decided to watch the Boston Red Sox vs. Tampa Bay Rays. Hoping, of course, that Boston would get the Sox beat off of them. Can you tell that Boston usually beats the Rangers? And they have (in my very humble opinion) extremely rude fans! I have even begun to like the Yankees and their fans over the Sox and their fans. But, I digress. I turned on the TV and to my sheer amazement -- the TEXAS RANGERS were playing!!!! The Sox vs. the Rays had been rain delayed! I got to see my Rangers win 9 - 1 against the Indians on opening day! Oh what a beautiful day! I think it's the red uniforms. I can't wait to get a new hat! Sorry about the horrible picture. I discovered later that if I had been several feet away, it would have turned out good, but this was the first pitch and I didn't have time to move!

Sunny California

Well, here I am in California, visiting my son, daughter-in-law, granddaughters - CV and CL and my grandson JT! The problem -- because there are always problems in life -- is that I forgot that little gizmo that I put my photo card in, that I then put into the computer to download photos into the computer so I can share them with y'all and email them to friends and family! I am so unhappy about that! I guess I need a master list of things to pack for trips. So, my next two weeks of blog postings are going to be quite photo free. I hate that. I love to add photos to my postings! To me, they are as important as the words. One of the things I'd like to work on is the quality of my photos for my postings.

The other problem is that I won't be able to post my photo challenge photos until I return home! By the way, y'all are more than welcome to join in on the challenge in any way that you would like to. If you do, please let me know that you are doing so. You don't have to do this, of course, but I'd love to see what you photograph, so I'd appreciate it if you would. It would make me happy.

My Photo Project

I was getting no feedback on needing ideas for my photo project. (Really people, where's the love?) So, I googled "photo challenge". Got all kinds of hits for that! Read through page after page and found one that I really liked. Julie Mcleod has a theme list for 365 days of photos on her blog! After contacting her, I've decided to cut them apart, put them in a paper sack (easier to travel with) and pick (at least) one out each week to photograph as my challenge. No telling what I'll get. I am hoping I don't get something pertaining to winter or lots of rain in the middle of August though! That could be really tough in Texas.

I'll pick my theme each Friday and post the photo as soon as I can get it taken. This week's theme will be....#212 OPEN. Hummmm. Lots of possibilities for that.

Another Journal is Born

I've been trying to remember the name of a book I read some time back. I wanted to recommend it to a blog friend. I can't remember the book's title or the author, but I can remember that it was about a young woman in a wheel chair who inherited a flower farm from either her aunt or her grandmother. She couldn't handle the farm by herself so she got several roommates to live with her and help with the farm. I know one of the ladies was a cowgirl and one was HIV positive (she may have been the African American character, but they may have been two separate characters also). I can't remember if she had three or four roommates, but I'm leaning toward four. She was also in love with the UPS guy. If this book happens to sound familiar and you know the name, PLEASE tell me the title. This is making me a little nuts! In fact, in an effort not to go through this again, I'm going to start a "books read" journal.

No Foolin' -- 49 Things

As I said in an earlier posting, I've abandoned my 101 Things in 1001 Days list because it felt more like a " to do" list than a list of things I wanted to actually do. I've made a new list of goals I'd like to accomplish. The goal to finish this list is my next birthday, January 7th, my 50th birthday, to be exact.



1. Dance -- daily and with joy!!

2. photo project (to be named soon) -- Photo of the week challenge

3. donate hair to Locks of Love -- Did it! 6/4/2009

4. Start a savings account for each of my grandchildren

5. open an etsy shop Done! As of July 2, 2009

6. donate blood (as soon as the anemia is under control)

7. leave a $100 tip for a waitress at a mom and pop type restaurant

8. take a water color painting class

9. ride a Harley

10. learn to knit a scarf

11. plant a red bud tree for CV

12. plant a pomegranate tree for CL

13. plant a fruit bearing mulberry tree for JT

14. make myself a summer quilt (no batting)

15. continue to help organize a Nathaniel Hawthorne reunion XXX I've backed out of this project

16. talk to son and M about a Christmas trip to Santa Fe

17. stay in another haunted hotel with mom

18. pay for a soldiers meal

19. have a 50th birthday weekend with my best friends -- postponed, but still planning
 20. donate a bicycle at Christmas

21. take my grandchildren roller skating when they visit this summer we did it!

22. organize and thin out my Christmas ornaments started

23. write a history on the ornaments that I give to my grandchildren got the books to write it in

24. label, repair, photograph and make a storage bag for each of my quilts

25. get a new ipod it's not an ipod but I got a new mp3 player

26. donate to Kiva done

27. donate to the SPCA of TX or the HSCCL done

28. donate to Habitat for Humanity

29. make a 25 block black and batik miniature pineapple

30. finish Angie's baby quilt working on it

31. somehow get a photo made of myself that I actually like

32. get my feather weight machine repaired

33. learn how to use a chain saw

34. make fiber postcards for Debbie (and Frieda) at the post office

35. decide how to celebrate weight loss goals and post them on my wall

36. put together a dance mix to play

37. take a stained glass class

38. make a "quote" quilt done

39. make a self portrait quilt

40. make a totally abstract art quilt done

41. get the painting done of my dogs

42. adopt a cat XXX Not going to happen, I'm allergic :(

43. go to the Dallas Farmer's Market

44. Go see Keith Urban in July XXX Not going to happen

45. paint my metal swing frame

46. go to the House of Blues for the Gospel Brunch

47. make myself a lariat necklace with my African Christmas beads

48. make myself a totally unique Anglican rosary that is long enough to wear

49. buy a sandal wood Mala or olive wood beads to make a rosary from