A Birthday, A Root Canal, And A Cancelled Trip…

It’s been a few weeks since I’ve blogged here.  In fact, it’s been so long, the site actually made me sign in with my username and password!  But here I am, and the title of this post could easily sum up the past three weeks of my life!

Yes, I had another birthday.  My sixty-fourth, to be exact.  Way back in the days when I listened to the old Beatles song, When I’m Sixty-Four, I didn’t think much about ever being sixty-four, but here I am.  How did that happen?!

Although I hadn’t felt well for several days prior to my “sixty-fourth”, I actually felt pretty good on my birthday.  Early that morning, Ed and I threw our lawn chairs in the back of the van and headed for St. Simon’s Island!  All I really wanted was to spend the day lounging in the shade of my favorite oak tree, while enjoying the view.  God blessed me by giving me a “good day” and Ed made sure I got my birthday wish!

my birthday view

The day was as close to perfect as it could be.  A gentle breeze blew, there wasn’t a cloud in the sky, and there were no annoying people around.  In fact, there were very few people around at all!  When we got home, that evening, I even found a freshly baked pound cake waiting on my kitchen counter–courtesy of my daughter-in-law, Jennifer.  It was the perfect ending to a perfect day!

Two weeks after my birthday, I celebrated again with family.  Yes, I said, two weeks after.  That’s how long it took our family to coordinate schedules to celebrate mine and daughter-in-law, Jennifer’s, birthdays. (Her birthday is two days before mine, so we celebrate together) 

 

We celebrated our birthdays at the new home of our oldest son.  (This was their first ‘official’ get-together since moving in.)  We all celebrated with bar-b-que spare ribs and all the trimmings, plus cake/ice cream, and lots of gifts.  It was a nice evening, and we all had a big laugh when Jennifer opened one of her gifts–a witches broom!  Being the good sport she is, she immediately hopped on it and galloped around the room 🙂  (There’s a story behind this gift, but I won’t take time to explain today.)

Just a week after my official birthday, and a week before the family celebration, I experienced my first root canal.  Happy sixty-fourth to me!

 

I’d been dealing with this ‘bothersome’ tooth, since my last checkup, six months ago.  I’d mentioned this tooth to my dentist during that visit, but he suggested we leave it alone for as long as possible. When I went back for my regular cleaning,  x-rays finally showed trouble was brewing, and the dentist said it was time for a root canal.  Fun times!  The procedure was not fun, but wasn’t nearly as bad as I’d thought it would be.  In fact, the most painful part was paying the bill!!!

You see, way back in June, on a whim, I signed [Ed and me] up to take a bus trip to Key West during the first week of November.  If you’ve read my blog, you’ll know that visiting Key West is on my bucket list.  In fact, it’s the only thing on my bucket list!

 

So, I’ve faithfully saved money for the past three months, in anticipation of our upcoming trip.  Little did I know I was saving up for a root canal, instead!!!  I was actually planning to mail the large final payment for the trip on the day I found out I had to have the root canal and crown.  Cost of the root canal and crown?  The same price as the trip to Key West!  Long story made short, I tearfully cancelled our trip, three days later.

Yes, I could have put the root canal or the trip on our credit card, or even taken the money out of our savings, but I didn’t feel like either of those things was the right thing to do, at this time, because six birthdays are coming, plus Christmas, and yearly taxes will soon be due, as well.  Also, for some unknown reason, I’d already been having second thoughts about this trip, so I took the ‘unplanned expense’ as a ‘sign’ that maybe I should just cancel.

Perhaps there will be another travel opportunity sometime in the future.  Who knows?  In the meantime, I’ll keep dreaming of Key West–while wearing a new crown on a very old tooth!  Year sixty-four has certainly started out with a bang!

 

Catching Up…

It’s Monday again, and that can only mean one thing.  It’s time to play ‘catch up’.  Boy, the weekends pass in a hurry, don’t they?!  Ed had another three-day weekend, but, still, the weekend passed in a hurry.

Only two words are needed to describe our weekend–hot and wet!  The temperatures were almost unbearable on Friday and Saturday, with highs reaching the 100 mark!  By 10 a.m., each day, simply walking out on the porch was reason enough to make one sweat! Needless to say, we stayed inside as much as possible!

We originally had a day trip to the beach planned for Friday.  Once I saw the weatherman’s predictions, I knew there was no way I was going to sit outside–even under my favorite oak tree at St. Simon’s Island!  We postponed our trip until Sunday, when the temperatures were predicted to drop.

Ed and I made the best of being ‘shut ins’, by watching lots of television and taking naps.  Both days, late in the afternoon, Ed fired up the grill and cooked supper for us.  Saturday evening, on a whim, we even ate grilled steak, salad, and baked potato by candlelight!  Fun times.

Sunday morning, at the crack of dawn, we were packed and headed toward St. Simon’s.  I should have known it was going to be ‘one of those days’ when I realized that I’d forgotten to bring my shrug.  (I always wear a sundress when going to the beach, but bring a shrug to wear over it when going anywhere other than the beach.)  The sky was overcast on the way, but had cleared by the time we reached the island.  It was shaping up to be a gorgeous day–or so we thought!

When we arrived at The Village, I noticed there was an arts and crafts festival being held in the park.  It was the first festival we’d been able to attend all year, so we headed over before unpacking our beach chairs.  I enjoy browsing the exhibits, even though I rarely buy anything. Sunday was no exception.

Before long, Ed and I were settled in our chairs, underneath our favorite oak tree.  A stiff breeze was blowing, and I noticed the water was a bit choppier than usual, but it felt so good to be outdoors!  Before long, I looked to my right, and spotted this…

I’ll bet you can guess what happened next!  Within the next hour, the rain began to fall!  Ed and I quickly grabbed our chairs and headed for the car, where we sat and waited to see if the cloud would pass.  The longer we sat, the darker the skies became, and the more it rained.  It didn’t just rain, it poured!  We’d been on the island just over an hour…  After another hour of waiting, and watching the downpour, we gave up and left the island.

We didn’t go straight home, though.  Instead we did a little shopping, in nearby Brunswick.  I was disappointed about missing my ‘island time’, and felt naked without a shrug to cover my skimpy sundress, but we made the best of a bad situation, and still had a nice time.  In the end, that’s what really counts.

Before long, summer 2014 will be winding down, but there are still enough days left to get in a little more ‘island time’!  Ed has a four-day weekend coming up, and it’s my birthday weekend.  Guess where I’m hoping to be, at least one of those four days?  The ocean and the oak tree are calling my name…

Happy Monday!

All Things Monday…

It’s Monday.  Ed’s gone back to work after a long, four-day weekend, and the house very quiet–and very messy.  Housework hasn’t been very high on my list of priorities lately!  Mondays usually mean it’s time to join Heather’s Monday Quiz About Me, then recap what’s been happening around here, so that’s what I’m going to do!

1. What is your favorite summer activity?

Going to the beach!  Did you even have to ask?
2. Do you have a honey-do list? or a to-do-list of your own?

It’s common for me to have a “honey-do list” and a list of my own.  I actually had a combined “to-do list” a couple of weeks ago, but we completed everything on the list, while Ed was on vacation in June–well, almost everything.
3. Would you go for a massage? Facial? Spa treatment?

No, I don’t think so.  None of those things have ever interested me very much.

4. What was the last song you danced to?

The last time Ed and I danced was at our youngest son’s wedding, two years ago. I can’t remember the title of the slow song we danced to, but the fast song was “The Twist”–our kind of music 🙂

Extended weekend recap:

Our long weekend began on Thursday, July 4th.  We spent most of the day watching it rain every two hours 😦   The sun would peek out briefly, then another shower of rain would come.  Our family cook-out eventually turned into a family cook-in over at our daughter’s house.  The men grilled under the carport, and we ended up having to eat indoors.  July 4, 2013 will always be remembered as WET!  Somehow, our county managed to set off its fireworks, in between rain showers, believe it or not!  The younger generations of the family went to see the fireworks, but Ed and I opted to just stay home.

Unfortunately, the Friday after the 4th turned out to be a carbon copy of the day before.  It rained every couple of hours, just like clockwork!  I busied myself doing some last-minute canning, while Ed ran a few errands and piddled around the house.  The highlight of our day, on Friday, was when we made our last house payment.  Now there’s a reason to celebrate!!!

On Saturday, I packed away all of the July 4th decorations, and brought out the “beach-themed” decor.  Meanwhile Ed mowed our grass, and cut down part of the garden. The spring gardening season is almost over!   (We have to harvest our watermelons and peanuts, then we’ll be officially finished with the spring garden.) Yet, another reason to celebrate!  Once I decorated my ‘year round tree’ for summer, I began to feel like summer had officially arrived!  Once Ed cut down part of the garden, I felt a greater sense of freedom, too!  Just in case you’re wondering, it rained again on Saturday, too!

Sunday turned out to be the best day of our four-day weekend.  Ed and I threw our cooler and our lawn chairs in the back of the car and headed back to the beach!  After so many days of clouds and rain, I was in serious need of some “beach therapy”.  Although rain sprinkled on us a few times, on the way to the beach, once we actually got there, it was actually sunny and beautiful!  Just what I needed!

Ed and I were just beginning to enjoy our usual “Subway Picnic” when suddenly we saw our daughter, her husband, and our granddaughter approaching us!  Sunday was the couple’s twelfth wedding anniversary, and they decided to celebrate with a day at the beach, too!  They brought their own subs, and joined in our little picnic.  What a nice surprise!  Eventually, they decided to go swimming, while Ed and I sat, and continued to enjoy our favorite spot under the massive oak trees.  We said our goodbyes, and they headed for the water park that’s located down the beach.

One of the reasons I enjoy sitting under those oak trees, at St. Simon’s Island, is because there is never a dull moment.  It’s relaxing, and there’s always something different to see.  Last time we watched two guys trimming up the palm trees in front of us.  This time we watched a girl doing a few tricks on a long, purple cloth, which happened to be hanging from a tree!  Actually, the girl was trying to teach two other people how to do some tricks, by demonstrating.  My burning question was– Why was there a long purple cloth hanging from the tree in the first place?  Had there been a show on the beach, earlier?  Whatever the reason was, whenever the girl finished using the cloth, she placed it back up high in the tree, where nobody else could get it!

I’m happy to be able say that Ed and I made it safely to the beach and back home without any trace of car problems, this time!  What a relief, after being plagued with tire and brake problems on our last two trips!

My extended recap leads me to my question for you today:  How did you spend your Fourth of July weekend?

Another Monday…

It’s another Monday, and I’m still canning vegetables!  Peas, beans, tomatoes, and okra are within my sight.  Sounds like a fun way to kick off the week, doesn’t it?  Before I dive right in with Monday’s chores, I’m taking a few moments to participate in the ‘Monday Quiz’…because that’s what I do on Monday mornings!  Thanks to Heather for hosting–even though her ‘honey’ just arrived home, yesterday, from a two-week trip to China!  Welcome home to Wayne!

Here are today’s questions:

1. June 26th is Forgiveness Day – will you be participating? Forgiving someone else or asking for forgiveness?

I think Forgiveness Day is a good cause to participate in–and there’s always something to ask forgiveness for!

2. Do you play card games? Which ones are your favorite?

I don’t play cards much anymore, but I used to like “Rummy”, “Crazy Eights”, “Go Fish” and “Old Maid”–and, occasionally, “Five Card Draw”.

3. What is your favorite flavor of Birthday Cake?

Chocolate with whipped frosting.

4. Do you like amusement park rides? What is your favorite? If not, why not?

Yes, I still like amusement park rides, but they don’t like me anymore.  I tend to get motion sickness, these days.  The last time I tried, (which was about 5 years ago) I could still get by with riding the Ferris Wheel, so it’s my new favorite ride.

My question for you:

5. Have you seen anyone wearing anything “strange” lately?

While out shopping, I saw a rather large woman wearing a nude-colored ‘body shaper camisole’ as a top, recently.  It wasn’t a pretty sight!  She needed the ‘body shaper’, but she certainly could have used a blouse!

Weekend Wrap Up: Our weekend began with a little family time.  Two of our three grown children and their families came over for a Friday evening visit.  The evening ended with our daughter-in-law not being able to find her car keys.  After spending a good bit of time searching through our house, her husband checked the car and realized she’d locked the keys in the car!  Not only had she locked  the keys in the car, she’d locked BOTH sets of her keys in the car.  Fortunately, our son had his car at our house, too, so they weren’t stranded.  On Saturday, Ed showed our son how to break into  the locked car.  Now our son will be prepared if the keys ever get locked up again!

On Saturday, our day began bright and early, with a trip back to the garden.  We picked some peas, some butter peas, and gathered more tomatoes, then some okra…  After that,  the REAL work began–canning the ripe tomatoes!   We spent most of the day shelling peas and canning tomatoes.  We finally called it a day around nine that evening.

On Sunday Ed and I took another little trip back to the beach!  It wasn’t planned, we just sort of went on a whim.  I think sometimes those are the best kind of trips.  By now, we’ve got our beach routine down pretty good, so we were loaded, unloaded, and sitting at the beach within two hours of deciding to go!  There’s no place I’d rather spend a hot, sultry afternoon…  Almost every time we are lounging under our favorite oak tree, enjoying the tropical atmosphere,  someone will walk by and remark  “You two sure have got it made!”  I wonder why they say that…perhaps it’s the smile on my face.

For the second time in a month, Ed and I experienced a little car trouble on our  trip home from the beach.  Last month,  we had some tire trouble, and ended up buying a new set of tires.  This time we’re not quite sure what happened, but we think one of the car breaks may have gotten temporarily stuck.  I’d noticed the car slightly pulling to the right.  Then, on the way home from the beach, the steering wheel suddenly began to shake and vibrate, and we smelled ‘something burning’.  We pulled over, Ed checked the wheels out, hit the brakes hard a couple of times, and after that, everything seemed okay again.  I’ll be sending my car to the shop this week to have the brakes checked out!  If this trend keeps up, we’ll be doing some car shopping sooner than later!

I have more canning to do this week, as well as some housework to do, but I’ve been missing my blog friends.  I’ll be doing some visiting and some posting as time permits, this week.  Hope to see ya’ soon!  Have a great Monday 🙂