February 8, 2010
Posted by: Me on: February 8, 2010
Today is Marvelous Monday! We have a special name for almost every day of the week; Marvelous Monday, Tremendous Tuesday, Wonderful Wednesday, Terrific Thursday, Fabulous Friday, and Super Saturday. Suggestions for Sunday are welcome. We have also started naming our years and this is The Year of the Road Trip. We hope to visit Big Bend National Park while the wild flowers are blooming and we will make some other interesting stops along the way. One stop may be to see the McDonald Observatory in the Davis Mountains. Other than major road trips we plan to make some minor trips, also. Recently we read about the best Dance Halls in Texas and the best Live Music in Louisiana. We don’t know much about dance halls or Louisiana music in general, but we are always ready for new adventures.
Yesterday we had green soup. Grandpapa said that he felt very healthy eating it! It was made with green leaf lettuce. Grandpapa also did some major yard work. It was more taxing mentally than physically, though it always feels good to spend time in the backyard and get some fresh air. He spent most of the afternoon pruning and trimming bushes and trees and flowers. One of the plants he trimmed was our red salvia, which attracts birds and butterflies throughout the summer. The bench in the picture is normally placed just across from the salvia, especially to see the birds and butterflies. It was a warm but cloudy day so his gardening hat was not needed!
February 1, 2010
Posted by: Me on: February 2, 2010
Today we read that a Half Price Books is coming to our town. It will be located just down the street from our neighborhood. We love going to bookstores; my bookshelves at home are overflowing with books. Grandpapa spends much of his time in the music section when we go, looking for a good deal on a CD to add to our growing music collection. Our collection of children’s books is growing, also! Hopefully, the new store will open soon. Let us know of any books or authors you especially enjoy.
January 31, 2010
Posted by: Me on: February 1, 2010
Nana’s sister came to visit the month of January – what a wonderful time! Time passed so quickly. One Sunday we assembled a terrarium and planted iris bulbs in our backyard. The day started out cloudy and cold, a disappointing start to a gardening day, but quickly warmed enough to comfortably plant the iris bulbs in the backyard without coats! The nursery was low on terrarium plants – a total of three varieties in stock – so we purchased one of each, just right for one small terrarium. We planted the three plants in a short, fat apothecary jar which sits in our living room right in front of a window, just perfect for catching the morning sun. Hopefully, with some careful tending we will have a successful terrarium on our hands. Here is a picture of its start; in particular note the spiky little plant in the front – we don’t know what it is, so if you do, please let us know.
December 2, 2009
Posted by: Me on: December 3, 2009
It snowed in Dallas this morning, a very unusual occurrence for this time of the year in this area. It didn’t snow at our house though.
Today, among other things, I looked at the fabric I purchased yesterday. I measured it with my new straight edge – I am not sure what that particular sewing tool is called. Then, I decided that I needed my straight pins to mark out the lines where I wanted to cut the fabric. My straight pins were in another part of the house entirely and by the time I thought about my fabric again the day was over.
Oh, and I found the wrench needed to dissemble the crib in our upstairs family room to move it into a bedroom. Sadly, it did not fit through the bedroom door once assembled.
December 1, 2009
Posted by: Me on: December 2, 2009
As many of you have noted – December is here! It is raining here… It has rained most of the fall. I guess we should be accustomed to it. Sometimes it is nice. “That dog” stops barking when it is raining. I presume the poor dog’s owner lets him/her inside during inclement weather.
I shopped for fabric today and loved almost everything I saw. Between the rain and my pondering beautiful colors, interesting patterns and unusual textures, that was my day. Grandpapa is looking at the sale advertisements.
November 30, 2009
Posted by: Me on: December 1, 2009
A long day with a sweet ending. To quote from a thank you note we received today:
“Dear Nana and Grandpapa – Thank you so much for the cell phone you got for my birthday! I like to push the buttons and dance to the music. Too bad we can’t use it to talk to each other! It was fun to get to see you in Texas. Mom says we’ll come back again next month for Christmas! I’ll talk to you soon on the computer! Love, Stella”
PS The cell phone was a toy phone.
November 29, 2009
Posted by: Me on: November 29, 2009
It is a rainy Sunday afternoon; a good time to write. I went shopping for possibly the first time on the Friday after Thanksgiving. The trip out was a lunch at Chuy’s (http://www.chuys.com/), a Tex-Mex restaurant in the heart of a small, but wonderful shopping district in Dallas. The address is 4544 Mckinney Ave., Dallas, TX 75205, if you are in town. After an excellent lunch we decided to shop just a bit. Jeanne bought one Christmas gift for a family member and I purchased my annual christmas ornaments. Yes, ornaments plural. I usually find an ornament I especially like and buy 5 to 7 to make a small seasonal statement (I think that may be the “work” in me.) This year it was five Mercury Star ornaments from Pottery Barn (http://www.potterybarn.com/). As usual, I think I may go back for more! Initially I was going to decorate our tree with just a minimum of ornaments, but after some enthusiastic help from Jaidyn on Thanksgiving Day, I am decorating to the maximum! And here is our photo:
November 25, 2009
Posted by: Me on: November 26, 2009
Happy Birthday Stella! It is 11:50 p.m. here and we just connected to the internet for the first time today with some very old hardware. I was so afraid that we wouldn’t make it. We hope that you had a great day!
Tim and Jeanne are here for the second time in one month! We have a big dinner planned for tomorrow. We hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving Day; we are thankful for each of you!
November 24, 2009
Posted by: Me on: November 25, 2009
We have 1 day left to prepare for the holiday and much to do. Tim and Jeanne will arrive at the airport late tomorrow afternoon. My last activity tomorrow before they arrive will be to decorate the tree. I am saving the best for last! I look forward to the special feeling a decorated tree always gives the house!
Our Thanksgiving table a few years ago:
November 23, 2009
Posted by: Me on: November 24, 2009
I finalized our holiday menu today – Roasted Turkey Breast, Gravy, Wild Rice, Chestnut and Cranberry Dressing (wheat-free), Fresh Cranberry Sauce (for Jeanne), Onion-Raisin Conserve (for me – I always try something new and different), Seasoned Fresh Asparagus with Chopped Egg Garnish, Fresh Cauliflower Browned in Garlic Olive Oil, Sweet Potatoes with Cashews, Carrots and Thyme and finally – Cherry Crisp with Vanilla Ice Cream for dessert (wheat-free, also). Grandpapa stopped by Central Market on his way home and emerged after three hours, exhausted. I thought he would be missing the crowds. Oops!
I have saved the best for last. A sweet photo of Gavin:
