I Chose to PLAY!

Yesterday afternoon I was all set to DECORATE!! Then Tray,a neighbor, came by and offered to help me. We dragged several bags out  to the front porch and I hung some lights around the front door....put up a few things. CLEANED OFF the porch so there would be a place for the fall stuff!

After doing a little bit out there, Brittany, Tray's sister came over. THAT is when we decided to PLAY instead of WORK! I had some water balloons left over from MiMi Camp and Tray knew just what to do with them!

He filled and tied....filled and tied....

and filled and tied a TON of balloons!!!

He used his shirt as his basket....

while Brittany used a bucket!

This kept them pretty busy for awhile!

Even Lucy got to join in the fun as we proceeded to play toss, catch, and throw games....with Tray ALWAYS coming in first!
Towards the end we simply had water bomb fights....it was ALL fun!!

After all that robust activity the kids settled down in the gazebo for a game of Checkers. It was going on 8:30 when their dad drove up in search for his missing children! I think I made a good choice yesterday.......WORK can wait! CHILDREN can't!

A DAUNTING Task!!

Last year I took all the fall decorations done and piled them all in one room!

Since we were leaving the first part of December for Scotland I did not do much in the way of decorating for Christmas!

This was all packed away and stored in the inside attic.....until today!

The hall is jam packed with boxes, tubs and bags FULL of FALL!

My job now is to take all this and make it PRETTY! A DAUNTING task, indeed!

However, even if I lived all alone and I was the only person to see my Fall Decorations...and they DO deserve the capitalized first letter!......I would still go to all this trouble. I can't tell you how much I enjoy looking at pretty 'stuff'.....and I DO have tons of STUFF!! But hopefully I will do some entertaining and have some visitors and of course post pics when I am done. I will wait until September FIRST to say......

"Happy FALL, Y'all!!"

Oops!! Guess I just DID!

The Decorating BEGINS!!!

Actually it began YESTERDAY! I had meant to get a lot done today but I had forgotten about the front yard! It took all day to weed, edge, mow, water.....you know the routine. I had to take lots of breaks so it took the day. Plus Lucy got a bath and I was able to do a few projects out there that it has been just TOO hot to tackle up to now!

But YESTERDAY I did get some things out for fall......mostly the 'new' stuff I collected at garage sales and thrift stores over the summer.

This is one of two buffets in the dining room. I will add a garland of fall leaves to the mix when it comes down from the attic....TOMORROW afternoon! This wall features lots of vintage photos of family. My mother can be seen above the little girl figure on the right.

The background garland is from my niece, Leah's estate sale and was brand new! I love it because it transcends the seasons and can be used year round! The round tray is vintage and I found it at a Goodwill.

The cute little girl and boy with their dogs was a recent gift from a friend. She was out shopping a flea market with her mom and ran across these.....and thought of ME! Thank you, Anna-Lesa!

It is not cold enough for a fire yet.....it is not cold at ALL! However, I can bask in the cozy glow from the electric candles and a large wax candle all burning on the hearth! The added lights and garland....another one from Leah's estate sale...fills the bill for now! This is my view as I sit on the couch while Louis Dean is watching football. Actually I am watching it TOO!

My 'Fall Tree'.....decorated with ornaments I found at a garage sale over in Fort Worth earlier this year...like in MAY! I knew they would require a larger tree than the one I have up year round. This 4 1/2 foot one holds them nicely and came prelit! I drug it down from the attic....

I love the 'Flicker Flame' light bulb from Home Depot! The gold leaves were gifts from Summer YEARS ago...the tassel on the light came from the same garage sale as the ornaments. My 'new' wire pumpkin (from Goodwill) will hold three votive candles.

There is a golden glow spreading through my home! I am loving the changes taking place~

Now! Back to some football!

Golden Corn Bread!

I made up a batch of this golden corn bread this morning to take to my Mother's for lunch. That along with a roasted chicken, black eyed peas, steamed broccoli and a peach salad made for a tasty AND wholesome meal. (Never mind that the cornbread is NOWHERE NEAR on the South Beach Diet!)

I have been using this recipe from a vintage 1969 Farm Journal Cookbook for years and years! My husband is an excellent cook but he cannot make cornbread to compare to mine! Believe me...he has tried! Of course, I follow the recipe. Perhaps that is why mine turn out every time!

This taste so much better than any mix could and I know there are a lot of good mixes out there. We have 3 pieces left  in the skillet after leaving 2 for Mother. I think Mother and Louis Dean both plan to eat what is left the same way.....an old fashioned meal of cornbread and milk!

Mail!!

Remember when it you looked forward to the mail arriving each day? All kinds of good things used to come in the mail! LETTERS, cards, invitations, bills- of course- but OTHER good stuff as well. When my children were growing up I would send off for different offers and book clubs so there would often be something in the mail for THEM! We wrote hundreds of letters back then. In each war or military conflict we would write to the soldiers.....and surprisingly enough we received many replies! At Christmas and Valentine's Day we would make cards and send them out by the dozens...to friends, family and soldiers, missionaries and pen pals.

Now the majority of our communication is done electronically through email, Skype, blogging, and Facebook. I applaud all of these for enabling us to stay connected in an easier manner. It is, however, nice to receive a REAL piece of mail from time to time! When Amber was in Scotland for a whole year I made fast friends with the workers at my local post office. George had actually LIVED in London for 2 years and he would always ask me when I came in if I was mailing something to the QUEEN! And I would always answer back, "INDEED...she is a PRINCESS!" I would send care packages and hand written letters and received back cards and notes and envelopes stuffed with goodies from the United Kingdom. It's nice to see the actual handwriting of those we are close to!

Over the years I have collected a wide assortment of ephemera....vintage letters form the past. I have a series of letters to a Miss Kathryn Krueger in Palestine, Texas dating from 1931-1943 which make fascinating reading! They are from her aunt and contain information as to how they were coping with the rationing during WWII....and they share the testimony of their relationship to Jesus Christ- which was a thrill to read! I have a few really old letters from the late 1800's written by a farmer who was also a minister. I love to reread these wonderful writings.....and think I will do that very thing this afternoon!

That was my something OLD for this post and I will close with my something NEW!! I was surprised to receive recently a handwritten envelope addressed to me with three lovely stamps on it and plump with SOMETHING inside!! A hand crafted CARD with a handwritten NOTE and a lovely GIFT tucked in! (Remember the term 'Tuck-in's'?) It was from my new blogger friend, Dawn, from down in Florida! THANK YOU! I love it! Check out her blog at: http://dawnandaggie.blogspot.com/ I obviously don't know how to do that little 'click here' thing!!

Now I think I will go find me some pretty paper and perhaps write an old fashioned LETTER to someone!

A NIFTY Nutcracker!

I just got this nifty nutcracker from eBay to replace the even BETTER one I have but cannot FIND! I have looked everywhere! My neighbor, Doug, gave me the coolest nutcracker ever nearly 25 years ago! We have two large pecan trees in our yard and we usually get great crops of nuts from them. Doug and Reaoma were my next door neighbors for 17 years and they gave me two of the nicest gifts.....the pecan cracker and a pecan 'picker upper!' The last one I have handy for when this season's pecans begin to fall. The dry green ones are already falling and you can hear them hitting and then bouncing down the roof. My next door neighbor on the other side of me (her bedroom is next to the pecan trees) says that is her first sound of autumn....hearing the pecans fall.

I found a basket FULL of last year's crop so I tried out the new cracker on them this morning and it works just as good as my old one! I crack a tin full  then Louis Dean shells them while I read out loud to us.

Now if it would just get cooler! Doesn't seem right to still be in hundred degree heat when I want to decorate with pumpkins and orange and gold colors and all things warm and cozy for FALL!!

A Comfortable HOME......

A comfortable house is a great source of happiness. It ranks immediately after health and a good conscience.

Sydney Smith

I love a comfortable home.....my own or visiting the home of another! Sunday seemed to be a 'Home' day to me. First of all we attended our 'Home' church. Have you ever been asked if you have a church home? I do not think I could survive in life without one. The First Christian Church where we are members and worship is a group of loving, kind, accepting people of various backgrounds and political as well as world experiences. The connecting thread is LOVE. Love of God and love of our fellow man.....while still allowing each person the luxury of being their very own unique SELF! We are a varied mix and we each carry within our hearts our own sorrows and burdens. These are easier to bear when we have each other to support us in our struggles and rejoice with us in our joys.

We all gathered at our pastor's home for an Ice Cream Social Sunday afternoon. What a warm and inviting home Pastor has! It reflects her love for God and His people. Our homes are really and truly a reflection of US! WHO we are...HOW we live and WHAT is important to us. The house overflowed with people! Some were out on the lanai, others gathered around tables playing games while others sat in comfortable chairs and visited.

We left one party and returned home to another! My daughter, Summer, grew up with her friend, Claire. They were very close all the way through high school. Claire was the first one of their youth group crowd to get a car and driver's license! We had lost touch with her through the past 30 years and discovered each other at a Starbucks some months back!! I could not believe she recognized me!! As it turns out she lives in the same house she grew up in and, of course, I live in the same house SHE visited all those long years ago! Our reunion visit was yesterday afternoon and it was so special to have this time to catch up with each other. I credit Facebook with putting friends in touch with friends and making it easier to stay connected these days! We had much to 'Show and Tell!'

Claire met Sabrina and Baby Raynie!

Claire came bearing gifts for the baby.....that is SO like Claire!!

And WE finally got to meet Claire's son, Sam! Alissa is Sabrina's niece and she and Sam hit it off wonderfully! They played checkers and Chinese checkers....

while we played NUTS! and talked....and talked.....and talked!!!

There was plenty of time for all of us to have a turn at holding the baby. I didn't get a pic of Sam but he, too, did not want to leave until he had some Baby Raynie Time!

It was a truly lovely day! The very nicest glow came over me when Summer called later in the evening to tell me what Alissa had said. "I liked being in Linda's house. It felt warm." What a compliment! I hope my home will always be a safe haven where people can come together and just enjoy 'being'.....and I especially love it when KIDS like to be here!! I will look forward to cooler temps coming in the month ahead and perhaps hosting a party which will include Alissa and Sam! Friends....young and old! Treasure each one!

“This is my wish for you: Comfort on difficult days, smiles when sadness intrudes, rainbows to follow the clouds, laughter to kiss your lips, sunsets to warm your heart, hugs when spirits sag, beauty for your eyes to see, friendships to brighten your being, faith so that you can believe, confidence for when you doubt, courage to know yourself, patience to accept the truth, Love to complete your life.”

lynnie buttercup

My Simple Saturday....

was spent doing various small projects. Typical things like laundry and cooking, dusting, dishes...the usual!

I painted some of the ends of my kitchen cupboards.....

to this nice fresh GREEN!

You can't tell as much but this one is painted green now as well!

I did a little work in the flower bed cutting the crispy brown ends off the liriope.

I also managed to pull weeds and grass before it got TOO hot! Look how the honeysuckle has grown and covered the trellis! Too bad it so hot there are no blooms. 103* here today. It was 20 degrees cooler when I took Lucy for a walk this morning! I set the water hose up and grabbed a cushion from the front porch and propped up against the pecan tree while the water ran. I am so longing for fall!

I wore my sister's new Skechers Shape-ups for the 1.7 mile walk in my neighborhood. They felt pretty good. I usually wear my Skechers Sport which is a slide in shoe with no back. For this week I will wear hers on my daily walks and see if they make much of a difference. I think they pretty much FORCE you to walk correctly...heel/toe...without having to even think about it!

A little housework, a couple of home projects, a TV program or two, selecting my clothes for church in the morning, preparing some salads for a gathering here tomorrow afternoon.....just some simple Saturday pleasures!

He Is BACK!!

He is finally BACK!! Louis Dean has been in bed since 4:00 on Saturday afternoon except to eat and bathe and watch the news on TV!  TODAY he dressed and went to Sears to pay on our refrigerator....first time to be out of the house in a week! I can't say it lasted long......he is back in bed as I write this...but I think he IS improving!

We shared a glass of wine in the gazebo as we HAD been accustomed to in weeks past. He even managed to water the front flower beds this afternoon!

I am hoping he continues to feel better each day as I have MISSED him!!

Happy Friday to all.......

SHOWERS of Blessings.....

Showers of blessings fell on me today! I awoke to the fragrant aroma of fresh coffee and an omelet waiting for me in the kitchen! That meant Louis Dean was feeling better....so much so he had cooked breakfast!
After our morning routine of coffee and reading in the gazebo.....the Bible and a book on General George Patton (what a combination!) I headed for Arlington with my beach bag to visit the grand kids!

Faith proved to be a pretty good little photographer and snapped several of the pics I am using in this post! She and I played dominoes while the Lemon Bars were baking.....she loves to bake!

This is the finished product after we took some out to save for their dad!

We cooled off in their gorgeous new pool! NONE of the 3 grand kids have had swimming lessons (Amber....you STILL need to 'teach' them just to be on the safe side!) but ALL of them swim around like little fish! We had a ball in the water!

I enjoyed floating in the pool and watching the antics of the GK's!

Faith chasing Levi around the pool deck....

...or was it Levi chasing HER???

Levi is ALWAYS on the go!!!

And Faith is usually PERFORMING!!! She belted out several songs for me today!

Leigh Ann, my daughter in law, and I were having a good conversation over our lunch of pizza and salad catching up on family happenings.......when it HAPPENED! It actually started RAINING!!! A rain cloud seemed to dangle RIGHT OVER THEIR PROPERTY! The sun was still shining and the sky was still blue and it was still HOT....but it was raining! SO we went BACK to the pool to swim in the rain! That was so much fun! It did not last a LONG time but it DID rain on us as we were swimming and I loved it!

As we were drip drying from our swim, Sam shared some of his music with me on  his iPod..?? I am new to this and Faith informed me she had an MP3 player herself! They were busy explaining and demonstrating these clever devices to me while singing the Gummi Bear Song! SO cute!

Faith told me, "These don't work where YOU live, MiMi!!" That's true!

Levi asked me, "Do you still have some peach CUBBLERS?" So Faith and I promptly made one!

One day last spring I asked Levi if he wanted some peach cobbler. He asked, "Well, MiMi, is it GOOD?" I said it was and he said, "Then I will HAVE some!"

I always enjoy spending time with the grand kids but today seemed to be extra special nice!

Showers of blessings rained down on ME today! Hope it was a good day for YOU as well!