The Gid Gad & Gab

I'm Recovering

2009-02-16T15:32:00.002-06:00

Yes, it has taken me this long to get over the holidays, and the ice storm, and the power outage, and the loss of running water, and...need I say more? But I am looking forward to a beautiful spring--if it ever gets here. Seems like it's been a long, cold winter. The only thing new around here is the impending arrival of a new puppy. Emily and I are going to get her Saturday. We haven't settled on a name yet, but I'm sure we'll come up with something. Sean has been searching for a job, but the market has shut down. He's getting pretty desperate for something. Valentine's Day came and went without much ado. It's always kind of sad for me. Carl and I celebrated it more than we did our anniversary, so it's bittersweet for me. At least all of the reality shows are gearing back up on T.V. so life is back in the groove for me!

Oh, The Dreaded Season is Upon Me

2008-12-12T14:58:00.002-06:00

That's right, folks, I'm a scrooge. I love the reason for the season; love that our Savior was born in a manger and that we celebrate His birth at this time of year, but really, do we? There is so much going on that I find myself often putting Jesus at the bottom of the list--the list of "to do things" relating to this season that supposedly celebrates His birthday. Maybe I'm the only one who does that, maybe I'm the only one who totally forgets to pray one day because my mind is on all the other things I have to do. That's why I'm not a Christmas person--it becomes all about us and our children and our friends, and although I love all of them, it shouldn't be about what they want. That would be like giving your child a birthday party and getting so involved with the invitations, the guests, the favors, the games, the clothes, the gifts, and making sure that this is a spectacular party, that your child is pushed aside and all but forgotten. When the truly special part is spending time together and making sure they know they're loved, and remembering how wonderful the day of their birth was. That's what Christmas should be--a season to remember His birth and make sure it's all about Him, and let Him know how much He's loved. We can buy things all year long for those we care about. Surely, one holiday could be solely, totally, unselfishly about Him. Well, that's my soapbox, but when I get down, I'll go back to making the lists, checking them twice, planning menus, and looking forward to the end of the season when the hustle and bustle die down. Then in the peaceful aftermath, maybe I can hear His still, quiet voice.

Baby Showers, Fall Festivals, and Goldfish

2008-10-27T14:16:00.008-05:00

Um, sorry, no pictures of any of the items in the title. I forgot to take my camera to all said events. I do still have the goldfish at my disposal, though. He's a little tiny goldfish who hides in his Chinese temple because I suspect he fears for his life from the senior goldfish, Nemo. Nemo looks like a whale compared to the new little guy. Nemo is a very spoiled fish. Betcha didn't know fish could be spoiled, huh? Every morning when I feed the cats, when I look over at the fish tank, Nemo is going nuts, swimming very fast and bumping the corner of the tank. It's really funny to see how he tries to get my attention. Saturday was the family baby shower for Mandy and Bradley's semi-unnamed baby girl. She got lots of seat covers and some really cute outfits and other useful items some of which I've never seen before. Sunday was the fall festival at church, so I had to make a very rushed pot of chili and decorate some "eyeball" cookies for my SS class. It was also my Emily weekend and all of the busyness of the weekend didn't leave a whole lot of time for our special time, but we enjoyed what we got. Before I took her home, we went to Mtn. View and got her some goldfish because she didn't win any at her school festival. It made our parting easier since she had something to focus on besides leaving me. We have such a sweet bond and I hope it continues until she's grown so we can spend as much time together as we want without the limitations of visitation rights. I enjoyed having my brother, nephew, sister-in-law, and future niece-in-law for lunch Sat. before we girls went to the shower. My niece, Kim, who has turned out to be just so crafty that I've dubbed her "Martha", hosted the shower. The games, food and decor were so cute, good, and well, crafty. I didn't have time to take many pictures but during the short time Em and I had together, I did take some of her posing goofy.
I call the pictures: Dancing with Sucker in Hand.

The Joy of Hot Flashes

2008-10-16T13:47:00.002-05:00

I cannot believe that I am wearing short sleeves, running my ceiling fan, and still not cold! That might not sound like a big deal to some of you, but I have been the Ice Queen all of my life! Someone who used to attend my church a few years ago, came back for a visit recently and asked if I still kept a blanket at church. It took me a minute to remember those days of huddling beneath an afghan during the sermon. Then I answered, "No, those days are long gone. Now I carry a fan!" I'm actually quite enjoying the overall increase in my body temperature--it's just those dadgum "spikes" that I don't appreciate. You know, it's kind of like you're sitting there simmering nicely with your lid on, and all of a sudden the lid blows off and you're boiling over! Reminds me of cooking rice on my stove--I just can't get it to simmer low enough. We're having beautiful weather here. The leaves are starting to turn...and fall...yeah, I'm not so thrilled with that last part. I have lots of hickory trees in my yard---not a good thing, especially this year. There are so many hickory nuts on the ground that it's very hard to walk, almost like skating. I just know I'm going to go down before it's over. I used to be able to depend on the squirrels to take care of the nuts for me, but since I have so many cats now, the squirrels don't come into the yard anymore. If the squirrels knew how lazy the cats were, they wouldn't have to fear. My cats would only eat a squirrel (or anything else) if someone caught it, killed it, cooked it, and served it to them! Yep, they're that bad. My "wild oats" boy got his hands crushed in the tailgate of his dump truck Tues. so after a visit to the E.R., he's been off work for a couple of days. None of his fingers were broken, just mangled a bit. I'll bet he won't try to pull a stuck rock out of there with his hands anymore! It's too bad that most of us learn our lessons in life by being hurt, isn't it? Not just physically but mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. Those are the lessons we don't usually forget, though. My lesson for today is never believe my brother when he tells me that his dogs would not and have not ever chased or caught my chickens, even though several of their tortured bodies have ended up in his front yard. Today, one of his black-hearted canines was caught red-pawededly. So, tomorrow Henry, Melody, and Renee will be back in the safe confines of their pen.........sorry, girls.

The Facebook Frenzy

2008-10-03T16:50:00.002-05:00

I realize that I have not posted recently. My nieces and a few friends have gotten me entangled in the Facebook frenzy. It became so frustrating that I retreated from the cyberworld this week (except to check with Pioneer Woman). There are all kinds of little doodads on Facebook--you write on walls, there are little thingys that people send you and you send them--flairs, and then today when I checked, another friend had sent me a green something. I've not responded much to all of that because you never know what the heck you might be getting into. For all I know, I could be signing up to be part of a harem belonging to some desert sheik. Ooh, that sounded mysterious and romantic! Maybe I should give this another thought. Actually, the real reason I've not been very active is because, 1. my computer got fried 2. I'm really busy at work, 3. Lunch hours are short, 4. I had a tooth pulled and have been a little under the weather. I did take the Princess to the fair over the weekend along with her daddy. So enjoy the smilebox....

Make a Smilebox slideshow

WHO KNEW???

2008-09-10T13:31:00.003-05:00

Who knew that all of this blogging magic was out there? I mean, of course I knew about blogs. After all, I post to this one at least every 3 or 4 months! But I did not know how many blogs were out there, nor how interesting many of them are. I am just way hyped up on this----so far just the reading part, not so much the writing. I like to write and sometimes can even inject a slight bit of humor in my writing, but still---I just did not realize the extent of this thing. I have to thank the Pioneer Woman blog for opening my eyes. So, if the house gets filthy, the cats aren't fed, my mom wonders if I've died, and I lose my job, it's all due to my new addiction---blogging (or at this point, blog reading).

Just Dropping By

2008-07-23T11:51:00.000-05:00

Don't have anything really going on. It's summer, it's hot, and I'm sleepy and lazy. Everyone is doing fairly well in this part of the world. Sean took a trip recently to Chicago. It's been a lifelong dream of his to go, and it finally became a reality for him. As usual, with most things you build up in your mind, it wasn't all that great I don't think. He enjoyed the trip, though, so I'm glad he got to go. I'm missing that little chatterbox that has been with me most of the summer. She'll be back for the weekend but then it will be two weeks until the next visit. That is so hard for both of us. We really enjoy our time together. I had her picture made at Wal-Mart in the most adorable little outfit. I can't wait to get them back. I won't be able to post any of them because I don't have a scanner. But of course, I would love to show them to anyone in person. She is a doll, but I am a bit prejudiced! I'm posting a couple of pics-one of me that I took myself (and you can tell) and one of my kids that I took recently.

Tornado

2008-04-10T14:58:00.000-05:00

Well, I still missed posting the tornado picture, so here it is. It was taken on the straight stretch between the Guion Y and the Lacrosse Rd. near Sage. It was a huge tornado that had a span of a half mile they say.

Catching Up

2008-04-10T11:58:00.000-05:00

O.K., it has been longer than I thought since the last post! After the tornado in my last post, we had ice, big snow storms, and major flooding. This week has been very stormy with lots of rain again. The Norfork Dam is at a record level and with more rain coming, they opened the floodgates this morning to release some water. They've been holding it back in an attempt to help those downstream who are still dealing with flooding. Anyway, I'll try to post a few pictures of some of our weather anomalies of this year so far. Emily spent her spring break with me which was so much fun for both of us. It just flew by. I can hardly wait for her summer vacation. That will be six weeks long. Sean can't take any vacation until after August because he is the only bailiff. The other one decided to join the Guard and is in boot camp til late summer. Emily and I will have lots of fun, but it will all have to be close to home with the price of gas going nuts! I'm posting a few recent pics of her, Sean and me. I'm a big, fat, blob. Dr. Phil would be so disappointed with me, but I'm going to do better--really. The pictures cover Easter, kite flying in the cemetery--now that's something I'll bet you've never done, and various pictures during spring break. That's all for now, but I'll be back sooner next time.

I Am Still Alive

2008-02-06T16:31:00.000-06:00

Yes, I do know how long it's been since I posted. My camera got broken beyond repair and posts just aren't the same without pictures. We were struck by a tornado here last night, and there is so much damage. I wish I could post some pictures of that. Some people in my church lost their homes, but God was so good to spare their lives. Please remember this area in your prayers. There are also reports of some fatalities, but no one knows for sure how many yet. I still don't have electricity at my house, so I'm looking forward to an evening by candlelight (actually it's oil lamps) after church, of course. Sean keeps promising to give me his camera, so hopefully, I'll be able to post pictures again soon.

Just Checking In

2007-11-12T15:43:00.001-06:00

No new pictures, but I thought I'd better check in. I've actually been on myspace more lately. I haven't done much with it, but I plan to soon. My home computer is sick with viruses, so I can't use it except to play Zuma. Mom is settling in pretty well. My house is still in a mess, but that's pretty normal for me. Wish the Merry Maids would pay me an extended visit. Bet they wouldn't be all that merry anymore! Well, I'm looking forward to Thanksgiving since that is just about my favorite holiday. I'll post some new pics of something someday soon.

AT LONG LAST, IT'S DONE!!!

2007-11-02T13:50:00.000-05:00

It's only been 2 months, but it felt like forever! Who knew there were so many decisions to make when doing just a little remodel job! And I am such a waffler--decision-making is not my strong point. Anyway, it is finished and mom is all moved in, along with Lucy the cat. Bitsy, the other cat is still residing at the other place until the sun porch gets built. The pictures are before the furniture, well except the bed, but you can see the cabinets. There are still a few ongoing projects such as window treatments and a few more painting projects, but it's nice and comfy for her now. I also have a myspace that is a work in progress, but check me out.

Almost Done

2007-10-16T08:27:00.000-05:00

Hopefully, this week we will wrap up the work on the house. I finished laying the floor over the weekend. It looks very good if I do say so myself. My brother completed the insulation project in the attic last night. My nephew-in-law and crew finished painting the cabinets yesterday. The carpenters are supposed to work on finishing up the rest of the week. Then Mom can move in, and I can try to get my house in order-----or not. I'm really tired and have acquired a few ailments recently, so I think I'll just vegetate in front of the tube. I know, I already do that, but I'm going to seriously not do anything for awhile! ha! Well, I'm posting a picture of my little helper. I couldn't have gotten all of this work done without her. Notice how intently she's studying the ruler to make sure all the measurements are exact!

Building Progress

2007-09-24T14:14:00.000-05:00

Just going to post a few pictures to show the progress of Mom's new "space". It finally seems to moving along pretty quickly. The drywall finishers are there this week, and painting can begin hopefully by the end of the week. It's going to be cute. There is going to be a screened-in side porch and deck for the freezer and cats. We're going to call it, "Granny's Cat House"!

Raining Cats and .....

2007-09-18T14:15:00.000-05:00

It really does rain cats and ... well, no dogs, but one very cute little girl! After such a long dry spell, she was trying out her new umbrella that my boss brought her from his trip to Boston. I didn't even notice at the time that it matched her Sponge Bob shirt. The cat is Harley who used to belong to Sean but now resides at Gid with the rest of the zoo. I have now added 6 chickens to go along with the 2 rabbits, 1 goldfish, 7 cats, and 1 dog. I'm rarely on time for work anymore due to the lengthy feeding schedule of above animals.

The End of Summer

2007-09-05T11:11:00.000-05:00

Summer is officially over now that Labor Day has come and gone. I had the family in for the holiday. Rick & Karen brought most of the food--bbq, baked beans, and coleslaw. I made cornbread salad and apple dumplings. Kim made a delicious and rich (wishing I had some right now) banana pudding. It was so good and I'm not even a real big banana pudding fan. Phyllis brought the drinks and ice (non-alcoholic, of course.) Brad and Sonny got the rock on the corner of my house chiseled off so the carpenters could start enclosing my carport. Karen painted most of my little bathroom with Rick finishing it up. So, it was quite a productive "labor" day at my house. Bet no one will want to come over for the holidays anymore! ha! Anyway, I'm enclosing the carport so I can move Mom in there. We're making a little studio apt. for her complete with a kitchenette. She and I are both looking forward to spending the long winter nights playing cards and games. She'll also be able to keep closer tabs on me. She likes to know all of my comings and goings. If I'm late, she calls everyone in the family and the neighbors. You do remember that I just celebrated my 50th birthday, right? I guess once a mom, always a mom. I love her and have lots of fun with her. I'm posting a picture of Sean and Emily taken at his last visitation. To me it personifies the pain of a broken home. Emily never wants to go home and this last time was the worst ever. We both cried and for me it even continued to the next day. At least she's coming back this weekend and we'll make the most of it.

Recovering Nicely

2007-07-30T13:15:00.000-05:00

I am recovering nicely from turning 50 and have almost gotten used to the memory loss, etc. I got to see my niece, A'Larra, over the weekend which is always nice. I don't get to see her or her sister, Angela, very often so checking their blogspots is always exciting for me. Although one of them is slipping on the posting. I have new pictures, but forgot the camera so I'll post them later. We had a great day at church. I taught my usual 5-9 year-old girls and then helped in junior church which was a blessing. I also have Emily for a whole week, so it's all good this week! My son had dinner with us Saturday night which is a rare occasion these days. You know, he is single, if anyone knows an eligible Christian girl (Baptist preferred). With that, I'd better shut it off.

Fifty Plus One Day

2007-07-18T14:35:00.000-05:00

Well, today the fun is all over, but the sweetness still lingers. Most of my balloons had been done away with by the janitor by the time I got to work today. My brother, sister-in-law, niece, and nephew-in-law along with my son took me out to eat at Mi Ranchito last night. It was good until the birthday serenade began(thanks to Randall and Phyllis). The "singers" stuck a big sombrero on my head, played a drum, sang an unintelligible song, and bonked me on the head with maracas in frequent intervals during the song. Fortunately, there was hardly anyone else at the restaurant, so only the family witnessed this little event. All in all, it was probably the best birthday I've ever had. Hope you check out the picture of Sean's birthday at the bottom of the page. Well, I need to rest now. Being old is really tiring.

The Big 5-0

2007-07-17T09:03:00.000-05:00

I hope no one thinks I'm vain for posting pictures of my own birthday, but you just can't believe what greeted me today at work! The first clue was when I walked in and everyone was standing there amid birthday streamers. Then when I noticed that my office door was closed with birthday signs on it, I was pretty sure opening that door would be a real treat. When I opened it there were dozens of balloons hanging from the ceiling and waist deep on the floor! Streamers everywhere, a "birthday file" with a cute little card creation from Clan, Susan, Keith and Bobby in the service dept. My general mgr., Gene and his wife, Pam are responsible for most of this with some help from Kelly, of course! I got a t-shirt with my name on it that says that I'm the mayor of Gid, a couple of "prescription bottles" of anti-aging pills, some really cute p.j.'s with cats on them and all of this amid the shock of my life! I had NO idea any of this was going on. Gene was busy getting the balloons yesterday and I didn't even know he was gone. That's what happens when you turn 50--you kind of live in a fog and don't know what's going on around you. Anyway, thanks to everyone for the cards, gifts, etc. and I know the day has just begun. What a great birthday! Just hope I can remember it.

Monday Again

2007-07-16T16:29:00.000-05:00

Well, there's absolutely nothing to blog. I worked 6 days last week, came home and vegetated in front of the T.V. for hours and ate junk. Wow, what a life I lead! Seriously, there are probably millions of people who would love to have that life. I'm thinking of the many people in India and other poor countries in the world who probably would think I live in the lap of luxury. Compared to them, I do, but here in the good ole U.S. of A., I'm not very far up the totem pole of financial success. Oh well, there's so much more to life than money.

2007-07-10T11:06:00.000-05:00

I was waiting until I could post some photos, but I suppose it's O.K. to keep up the posting until that time, so at least everyone will know I'm still alive. I have pictures of Sean's birthday, Sonny's birthday, and Independence Day. And of course I have some of Emily that I took during our vacation. That vacation was spent just hanging out at Ma-Ma's house. We played lots of baby dolls and barbie dolls. I drove my Barbies to the lake (small swimming pool) in their Jeep. On the way home, though, they had a wreck and one of the barbies was not buckled up, so she was thrown out of the Jeep and had to go to the hospital. I thought that might slow down the barbie playing, but no such luck, since Emily got her out of the hospital and made me take her back to the lake. (A very long journey across the yard in the sun, pushing a toy Jeep full of Barbie dolls!) We had lots of fun, though, and I wouldn't trade those memories for a cruise across the Caribbean. She's coming back for at least 2 more weeks before school starts. I won't be able to take off work both weeks, but maybe one. This time we really are going to the lake!

Clarification

2007-06-15T13:35:00.001-05:00

Stupid girl is at the bottom of the blog.

2007-06-15T12:14:00.000-05:00

O.K. Don't anyone get offended about my little "Stupid girl". This really only has significance to a select few women who went on a girls' weekend to Branson a couple of years ago. So, I wanted to remind them of the fun we had and suggest another such journey. Grandkittens are doing good. I know some people don't enjoy hearing about them, but I don't have any real philosophical, political, or religious revelations that I want to divulge at this time. Batteries on the digital camera are gone, so no new pictures either. Hope that takes care of the complaint department so far. And you know who you are!! Sean is bringing Emily up for the weekend so lots of fun ahead. Happy Fathers Day to any of ya'll who qualify!

The Survivor

2007-06-14T12:30:00.000-05:00

Here's an update on the grandkittens. There are now four. I don't think MuShu was quite aware of what was happening since this was her first litter. I didn't mention in the previous post that I found a dead kitten being carried around by the dog yesterday morning. I assumed that maybe it had been born dead. When I got home yesterday (about 12 hours after the birth of the kittens), I went outside to call Mocha (the other cat). Each time I called, I heard a kitten meow. I ran down under the deck realizing that one of the first-born kittens had apparently been born out on the open deck instead in the trash can with the others. But I couldn't find the kitten on the ground. I finally located the tough little guy hanging upside down in a peach tree by the deck by his umbilical cord!! I could not believe he had survived the trauma of birth only to find himself hanging in a tree all day with no nourishment. He hadn't even been cleaned up by his mom. I think that probably he and the dead kitten had fallen off the deck during birth and the other one didn't survive the fall. MuShu must have figured out that she needed to find a better place to deliver the others. Fortunately, she took "Survivor" in like he had been there all along. He is definitely one of those cats with 9 lives! I now have 3 little boys and a girl. The boys all look alike. And they look cuter now. Free kittens will be available for a limited time only, so put your order in now!

The First Time

2007-06-13T16:12:00.000-05:00

Well, I had previously bragged about the old gal from Gid being able to set up a blogspot. That was 3 posts ago--none of which made it onto the blogspot because apparently the old gal is not all that savvy on things like this. They say the 3rd time is the charm, so I guess we'll see if this one makes it. Actually, I think Blogger doesn't work like the help section says it does, so I'm not going to take full responsibility. Anyway, welcome to my first time on my blog. I don't have enough excitement in my life to warrant a blog, but here I am anyway. I will try to keep everyone up to date on the latest news in downtown Gid. That will be an awesome task in itself!! I'll also share some photos as I become more proficient at using a digital camera. (So much to learn all of a sudden!)
I do have some pretty exciting news for my first post. Early this morning MuShu gave birth to her first (and hopefully only) litter, so I now have 3 grandkittens. They're ugly little rascals but maybe they'll grow out of that. I never did, but maybe they'll be more fortunate. Well, I don't want to overdo it on my first (or third, whichever you want to count it) time, so I'll land this plane. Do come back, though, cause there's no telling what you might read here. CS