Test for new blog entries for 2021

 

Oh my! As you can see by the date, it has been a very long time since I have been on my blog....actually years! So, be patient while I learn this blogger program all over again!

In the middle of a heatwave here in Tennessee so spending a most of our time inside where it is cool. Unfortunately, there is yard work that needs to be done so Grandpa and I try to get weeding and bush trimming in before it gets really hot outside. O'h, that's not a photo of yard work. That's John. I was trying to figure out how to import a photo....guess I figured it out. But, we'll leave John there...he is such a cutey, isn't he?

I think I will post this just to see if I do it right. Wish me luck!

Hi Everyone.....

I can't believe how long it has been since I posted on my blog! Did you think I had vanished, left the country or inducted into the Witness Protection Program for being the nosey person I am. Nah, nothing that exciting; just busy with other things. But you know, I woke up this morning and realized that I really missed my old friend "Grandma's House". So, buckle you seat belts as I catch you up on over a years worth of news!

It would be impossible to pick up where I left off....my memory has taken a real hit since then so I'll just write about what pops into my head. And, I have to try and remember what buttons to push for what I want to happen.

So, ok.....let's see if I can get a photo copied over......

Yeah, it worked! This is Madison who is showing off her new glasses. Her teacher noticed that she was squinting a lot in class and suggested she be taken to the eye doctor. Well, sure enough...poor Madison was not seeing the world for what it really is. With 20-80 vision, she definitely was missing out on a lot. Her mom said that when the glasses set on her nose for the first time, her facial expression was priceless! And, she has not stopped smiling since. She says it's like seeing things for the first time....almost makes you want to break down in tears. Thank you to her wonderful teacher for being so observant!

And, you have to admit.....she looks darn cute in them!

Till next time.....

A Quilt With a History......

Howdy!!!

I know it's been a really long time since I've been on my blog and I've missed it. You see, I got a new Apple iPad for Christmas and that's what I use to take all my photos now, but I haven't figured out how to download them to my blog when I'm on it......so, I'm still using my trusty little digital camera to take photos that I can post on here.....my laptop. Sounds really confusing, doesn't it? Well, at least I'm back with some exciting news and photos!!

I finished Shelly's quilt!!  Yes, I did!! And what started out as just a normal Irish Chain quilt, turned into something even more special. You see, many people are part of this quilt; Grandma Schmidt, Grandma Scherrer and me, Mom.

One day Shelly came to me with what was left of the quilt Grandma Schmidt had made for her years ago; actually....it was just the top that was left. She asked me if I could maybe fix it some way and bring it back to life so she could use it again. All it took was the look on her face and the fact that she had hung onto it for so many years to make me want to restore it somehow. The squares were so worn and fragile that I knew that the whole top could not be saved. I had been in the middle of making an Irish Chain quilt for her and Shelly came up with this brilliant idea of incorporating some of Grandma Schmidt's squares into it so I stitched 11 of the squares on the top, as you can see. But, it gets better.....

While I was stitching them on, she drags out the quilt that Grandma Scherrer had made for her when she was born and wanted to know if part of that quilt could also be added. Now, that quilt was in even worse shape than the Grandma Schmidt one. But, never say never! I cut a small square from the front and one from the back and stitched them in under this black square of Grandma Schmidt's. Hence, the the "Grandma" tag stitched on top of that square. So now Grandma Scherrer was also part of the quilt. The quilt was also hand tied, just like the ones that the two Grandma's made which, I feel, just adds more charm to it.

Grandma Schmidt's original tag sewed onto one corner.......

And, my personal tag from me with my trademark hearts is tacked onto another corner.

So, you can see why this quilt carries a very special history with it. Three important women in Shelly's life have come together in one quilt to live on and hope to be passed down to one of her daughters.

It was an honor and my great pleasure to complete this quilt for my daughter. It was a lot of work, but I would do it all over again in a heart beat!!

Love You......Shelly

Happy Birthday!!

Happy Birthday to Lexi, (aka) Lexi-Lu, (aka) Lexi-Belle, (aka) Lu-Lu. Only this child could have so many nicknames since she has made herself at home in so many hearts.

Some may call Lexi a 'whoopsie' baby since she wasn't planned but I really think God definitely had a hand in this little creation for so many different reasons. She came into this world at such a perfect time. Her mother was sort of at 'crossroads' in her life and this little miracle brought calm and more meaning into Shelly's life. 'Mistake?'....I disagree completely. This little girl has had such an impact on so many lives from her big sisters, Trinity and Madison, to her Godmother, Anita, to all the others who rallied around Shelly when she found herself divorced and pregnant.

At the time of her birth, her daddy, Nick and Shelly were not really a 'couple' and it didn't seem like they ever would be. But, over the last three years......mostly because of Lexi......they have grown close again. Not only was Lexi welcomed by big sisters, Trinity and Madison but by Nick's family. Lexi also has a half-brother, Jaden and half-sister, Emma who love her to pieces. And, another set of grandparents, Granny and Pappy. She is surrounded by people who love her and definitely would agree that this little miracle was not a 'Boo-Boo'.

I, myself, believe that God brought her into this world for a very important reason, even though it was not known at the time she was born. Last June PopPop was diagnosed with CMML (a form of leukemia). Before we got the news, Lexi and PopPop had created such a strong bond, that I believe she is the reason why he has kept his spirits up so high. Of course, he loves all his grandkids equally, but there is just something different between with these two. Even though Lexi lives with two sisters, her grandfather is her very best playmate at times. He lets her put hair bows in his hair, they will play hide and seek, and when the weather is nice, you will find them walking hand-in-hand down the road taking a stroll.

There is a lot to say about the relationship these two have but I think these pictures say it all.

One thing for sure.....this house would not be the same without Lexi's chattering, running around and even screaming at times. We were truly blessed when she came into this world.

Happy Birthday Lexi Annabelle!

Love, Grandma and PopPop

Jack and His Toys

We have one small dog, Jack, and he has a rather large collections of dog toys.....

And you just don't know where you might find them.

I have learned not to ask....my mind is overtaxed as it is so I just go with the flow.

Lexi Likes Changing Her Clothes.....Many Times

With Shelly being a very busy mother of three, working full time, living a good part of her time in the car driving back and forth each day, it's no wonder that she would get behind in her laundry. I mean, she is washing clothes for not only herself, but three little girls. That means sorting, washing, drying, folding and putting away. What makes this extra time consuming for her is that her youngest, Lexi, just short of age 3, LOVES to change her clothes as many times a day that she has time for. The minute she gets home after her day at daycare, she heads to the bedroom to change clothes. A 'change' includes a new shirt, pants, panties (which she wears over her pull up) socks and sometimes even a new t-shirt (which she likes to call her bra). Then there are the times when she layers the items on. It is not unusual that the result of one change is several shirts, pants, etc. Bottom line......it makes for a LOT of laundry from one small child. Once a piece of clothing is pulled out of the drawers and scattered, it's hard to tell what's dirty and what's clean so ALL of it ends up in the dirty laundry. And, this child has a LOT of clothes thanks from donations from friends and her Aunt Anita who loves to spoil her with clothes.

One day I walked into Shelly's room and noticed all these piles of clean clothes all over. They had been washed and dried but the folding was really getting behind. Because I have such a soft heart when it comes to seeing how hard Shelly works in addition to taking care of three girls, I offered to help out. I told her to sort the clothes into three baskets (one for each of the girls) and I would fold the clothes and give the baskets back for her to take from there. Well, of course she loved that idea!

So, first I started with Lexi's basket which was honestly overflowing with clothes. I actually ran a tab because I just could not believe the amount of clothes one little girl could go through in one week:

• 5 Pairs of PJ's
• 10 Short Sleeve Shirts
• 19 Long Sleeve Shirts
• 1 Sweat Shirt
• 16 Pairs of Long Pants
• 2 Pair of Capris
• 7 T-Shirts
• 15 Pairs of Panties
• 11 Long Sleeve Dresses (some with hoods)
• 2 Foo-Foo Skirts
• 1 Sweater
• 1 Fancy Christmas Dress with Matching Head Band
• 1 Very Pretty Pink Corduroy Dress
• 2 PJ Bottoms Without Tops
• Assorted Summer Clothes - Sometimes she manages to get into the summer clothes too.

 

Oh, and a couple of cloth diapers which I don't know where they came from or why they are even here.

After Lexi's basket, I took on Trinity's.......4 Items

Then Madison's basket......10 Items

Really??  REALLY???  

Shelly says that a lot of their clothes at at their daddy's house, but I'm not buying it. It's quite obvious that we have one three year-old changing her clothes 40 times a week and two others who may be wearing the same thing days in a row.

This may be worth checking into, being the conscientious Grandma that I am.

Happy Birthday Trinity!!

Trinity.....Happy Birthday!!  

Love, Grandma and PopPop

New Fans on the Porch

When it came time to replace some light fixtures inside and outside of the house, we decided to add a fan on our front porch. We really like to sit out on our porch during the warmer weather especially, during the summer. But it can get hot out there so Grandpa suggested putting up a fan. Doesn't it just look so "Southern"?

We also replaced the lights on the garage and back deck with sensor lights. Inside we put up three new ceiling fans. Our house has an open concept and in the dining room area, there was a chandelier which we did like for several reasons. First of all, we do not use that space as a formal dining room....it is part of the extended living room (actually, Grandpa's fish tank area) . Second, we kept bumping our heads on it. We raised it once but it still wasn't high enough. Besides it was one of those fancy schmancy  candelabra types and we just are not that sort of people. There were already two ceiling fans in living room area so we decided to get three new matching fans and replaced the chandeier and the other two. It has a nice uniform look.

And, I did what I will be doing more of.....I hired a professional to come in and do it. We had purchased all of the fixtures ourselves, but the electrician installed everything....worth every penny. Also worth not having Grandpa on a ladder and hearing the words that would come out of his mouth if something goes wrong.

Like I said, we are at a point in our lives (and adding Grandpa's illness to it) that we just cannot do some of the things ourselves around the house as we could years ago. Grandpa is having trouble accepting it but he will; especially if I get to the phone before he catches me if something needs fixing.

Hey.....gotta do what ya gotta do!

Goodbye 2013
Welcome 2014
LIVE, LOVE and  LAUGH!!

Christmas Cookies

Now, I don't really like to cook, much less bake. Well, not exactly. I don't mind cooking 'one dish' meals like chili or one pan baking like brownies. But.....I had to suck it up this year because Grandpa asked for his favorite Christmas cookies and our quilt club had a cookie exchange. So, one morning last week I got up....said to myself  "Ok, you can do it.....even if you can't you WILL do this."

Here are Grandpa's favorites....Peanut Blossoms. I did buy the wrong kind of kisses but I think these look a little more festive with the stripes, don't you....of course you do.

For the quilt club, I chose chocolate peppermint. I mean, what goes better together than peppermint and chocolate except of course peanut butter and chocolate. Then again, there's caramel and chocolate or peanuts and chocolate. Let's face it.....chocolate is like it's own 'food group'.  Anyhow, here are the cookies for the quilters. 

My secret.....MIXES! For me they were a lifesaver. To be honest, I don't think I could even find a teaspoon or measuring cups for dry products in this house. Speaking of dry products, if I was to make Grandpa's cookies from scratch I would have had to buy flour, baking soda, and brown sugar. Then vanilla....I mean who keeps that in their kitchen cabinet as a 'staple' item except for maybe Rachel Ray. When I read the homemade recipe for the Peanut Blossoms, and saw the ingredients and the kitchen tools I would need, I figured after shopping for all that stuff, the cookies could come out costing an average of $4.99 per dozen. Sure, I love Grandpa to death and then would have the measuring spoons, cups and vanilla, etc. but hey, it would all just sit there until next year again....most likely. So, I threw caution to the wind and let Pillsbury and Betty Crocker do their thing. And, let me tell you.....they do it well!! There they are....the miracle mixes. All I had to add was an egg, oil and water. The chocolate peppermint cookies even came with the peppermint sprinkles. The peppermint frosting was extra - I bought it but I didn't use it; it just would have been another step and I didn't feel it was necessary and they would have stuck together when packing in gift bags.

"Piece of Cake".....or "Cookie" I guess. Thank you Pillsbury and Betty Crocker. Next year I will also try your sugar cookie mix and maybe make cut out cookies....or maybe not. I'd have to buy a rolling pin and cookie cutters. Oh, and then there would be the frosting and sprinkles.

I may have to think on that before I make any promises.

I'm Back........

Hey......did you wonder what happened to me?  I'm still alive and well. Having been blogging for a while because Grandpa bought me this early Christmas gift called an iPad and I have been spending a lot of time learning the ins and outs of using it.

One thing I haven't figured out yet which is why I have not been in 'blog land' is how to get the photos I take with the iPad (and believe me, it takes gorgeous pictures) downloaded to my blog. I can write on my blog, but you know me.....I love to include those photos. Anyways, until then I thought I would drag out the faithful laptop and do a little blogging after dragging out, also, the faithful digital camera to take some photos.

So, I have a few blogs planned. Enjoy the first....."Lexi's Toys".

Lexi's Toys

These are Lexi's toys......well, not all of them. There are more scattered throughout her bedroom, Shelly's car, the garage and the rest of the house. This pile of toys usually resides in the corner of the living room but we needed to make room for the Christmas tree so they got moved around the corner to the dining area and the tree went up.......

Split shot of Lexi's 'Toyland' and the Christmas tree.

I really have another reason for this post. Take a good look at all those toys....I mean REALLY take a look at it. Do you really think Santa needs to bring this little darling more toys? She has it all! If she wants to go shopping, she has a shopping cart. If she wants to hide out and have some 'alone' time, she has a tent. I usually just go in my room and close the door myself. She has a crib for her 'babies' but I haven't really seen a baby for a while, but I'm sure they are buried there somewhere. At last count I came up with about 5 various purses and/or backpacks....a girl never knows when she may need one in her travels. There's the piano if she wants to do a little dancing which she LOVES to do. Oh look! There's a pair of green reindeer antlers; they are new. All of her teeny tiny toys, blocks, people, cars, castle and assorted pieces, her cell phones (yes, plural) and other items, too many to mention, are stuffed in that big red plastic bin way in the back against the wall. The only thing missing in this photo is her lawn chair.....oh yeah, she has that in the house too, even though it is not the season for lawn chairs.

Now you decide......does Santa really need to bring this child more toys? But, then again, what fun would it be on Christmas morning without her opening up new toys and watching her eyes light up?

RESPECT......

Yep, that about covers it.....

We were raised knowing what respect was, who deserved it and how we treated those with it. Such as....

ANY adult; if you were the child, there was no questions asked.....you listened to addressed ANY adult that you would come in contact with.....which really includes all of the following:

• Your parents
• Your teachers
• Anyone in a uniform; especially those swore to keep you safe such as policemen, firemen, crossing guards, etc. 
• Clergy
• Anybody driving your school bus
• Parents of your friends

And.......a whole lot more. It was very simple....what happened?

Happy Thanksgiving!

What's New

Well, hi there......I know it's been a while but wanted to check in to let you know that I'm still here and kicking. Grandpa is doing good with his Leukemia treatment and feeling pretty perky. Can't ask for any more than that for him. His brother, Sterling, and wife, Kathy, were here last week visiting and we had such a great time! Kathy and I laughed so much that my asthma was aggravated, but I would do it again in a heartbeat. It felt so good to forget....at least for a while.....the journey Grandpa and I have started dealing with his illness. I am truly blessed having such a wonderful sister-in-law to talk to who knows where I'm at right now. Her first husband died of cancer, so needless to say, she can relate to how I'm feeling and what is going through my mind right now. She KNOWS. Not only that, she is blunt and will tell you the way it is. She does not sugarcoat anything. But, she has such compassion and understanding that I really think God sent her and Sterling to visit us when He knew we needed them. I actually got tears in my eyes saying goodbye to them. I didn't want to let go of knowing that she was here to talk to, but I know she is only a phone call away. Also, I think it was good for Grandpa to be able to spend time with one of his brothers. In fact, their visit has prompted us into looking into taking a trip up north in early December. There are so many other siblings he could see, not to mention his Mom. On my side, I would get to visit with my Mom and best of all, visit with Becky and her family.

So, we are looking into it. We would fly up, rent a car, and visit as many people as we can. I hope we can do it. It also depends on Grandpa's health and chemo schedule. But, we're really going to try and do it. Flying would be faster and in December, we would avoid any bad winter weather we might have to drive through traveling to Wisconsin. Of course, there's always the chance of flight being cancelled or delayed....but ya don't know unless you try.

Will keep ya'all posted on our plans and if we make it happen.

Me

Grandpa and Jack.......

Halloween 2013

In Madison, Wisconsin

Isabelle, the Kitty Cat......

The Kitty Cat and John, the Incredible Hulk.....

Now, THAT'S way too much candy for one child...too bad he isn't in Wisconsin; I'd make him share with Grandma!

In Sevierville, Tennessee.....

Lexi - Minnie Mouse    Mom - Witch   Madison - Ninja and Trinity - Nerd

Lexi's Minnie Mouse ears.....worn by Grandma.

Even Jack got into the fun....he actually 'glowed in the dark'.

And, I might add that THESE kids shared their candy with Grandma. I made them dump it out right in front of me so I could pick.

Halloween 2013  -  SUCCESS!