A ‘Timely’ Wednesday Hodgepodge…

Hello again!  It’s Wednesday, which means it’s time to participate in The Wednesday Hodgepodge!  I hope you’ll join me as I attempt to answer our hostess, Joyce’s, varied and thought-provoking questions for this week.  Here we go:

1. October 21, 2015 is Back to the Future Day. Did you see the movie? The sequels? In the second film, Doc takes Marty into the future to prevent Marty’s future son from making a mistake. They leave 1985 and land on a ‘skyway’ on October 21st, 2015. So tell us, what were you doing in the fall of 1985?

Yes, I have seen Back to the Future, and, at least one of the sequels.  The fall of 1985 was a long time ago, but I’m sure I was busy taking care of our three children, who would have been ages 7 years, 3 years, and 3 months old.  Fun times that went by entirely too fast!  I was probably busy making Halloween costumes for them, too.  Back in the day, I enjoyed doing things like that!

2. If time travel were possible, would you want to go to the future? The past?

If time travel were possible, I definitely wouldn’t want to go into the future.  I’m in that phase of life where I really don’t care to know what the future holds.  It might be too depressing.  However, I’d gladly go back into the past, to relive my late teens and early twenties–or even my thirties! It would be nice to experience how it feels to be young and healthy again, plus it would be great to spend more time with all of the loved ones I’ve lost since then.

3. We’re not flying cars, but some of the technology imagined in the 80’s film has indeed come to pass in real life 2015-flat screen TVs on the wall, tablets, fingerprint recognition, video conferencing, online banking, 3-D movies, motion controlled video games, drone cameras, and smart glasses (Google glass). Do you worry technology is growing at a rate so fast we’ll soon be unable to keep up with it’s demands? Do you think the Internet does more harm than good?

Yes, I’m astonished at the rate technology is growing, and I do worry.  Case in point, we recently bought a new vehicle, and it’s equipped to take certain voice commands, and also help you drive!  We can even ‘keep tabs’ on each other’s driving, if we want to!  This is a far cry from our first vehicle, which had manual windows and door locks–and no a/c!  Ed and I will probably have one foot in our graves before we figure out how to work all of the technology on our new vehicle.  I’m a bit overwhelmed.

As for the internet, I’m sure it has caused plenty of harm to plenty of people, but it sure is nice to have!  I’ve learned so many things and ‘met’ some of the nicest people through blogging!  If only people would use the internet only for good, but, of course, there’s evil everywhere.

4. Your favorite dish prepared in a slow-cooker? Your favorite fast food?

My favorite dish prepared in a slow-cooker is ‘Crock Pot Barbecue.  My favorite fast food is probably pizza.

5. No time like the present, down time, face time, pressed for time, in the nick of time, make time, mark time, or just in time…which timely saying most relates to your life right now?

Since Ed and I are both retired, I guess “down time” most accurately describes my life right now.  Unless we have an appointment or something specific planned, time has no meaning to us anymore.  Every day feels like a Saturday, which is really kind of nice.

6. Tell us about a place you went as a child or younger person that’s no longer there or is now something else. How does that make you feel?

The last home my paternal grandparents owned no longer exists.  I was a pre-teen, but I can still remember how happy and proud my grandparents were when they purchased their land and home back in the 1960’s. (Prior to this, they lived and worked on a farm belonging to someone else, for as long as I can remember.)  About ten years ago, I sadly watched as my grandparents’ former home was torn down by a cousin who now owns the property.

7. Describe your comfort zone.

My comfort zone is being [with my husband, Ed] inside of a little house, designed and built by us, which sits next to a secluded section of pine trees, located in the back corner of Ed’s parents’ farm.  It’s home, and there’s no place else I’d rather be.

Random:

Our oldest grandchild, and only granddaughter, Madison, will celebrate another birthday, on Friday, October 23.  It seems like just yesterday, when I was a lot younger and Madison had just been born.  In truth, it’s been almost nine years!

The picture below was taken after I’d spent five long nights sleeping on the floor of my daughter’s hospital room, waiting for this little bundle of joy to be born… (It’s a complicated story you can read HERE if you want)  and, yes, I look tired because I was exhausted!  Stress, along with sleeping on a hospital floor will almost kill you.  These days, I’m afraid this “Mimi” might not be able to accomplish such a feat, but I was determined back then!

Praise the Lord, our little bundle of joy arrived safe and healthy! These days Madison is quickly growing into a beautiful and smart young lady.  I’m afraid she’ll be grown and gone before we know it, but I’ll never forget the nine long months leading up to her birth!

Happy birthday, Madison!  I hope it’s the best one ever!

Me On Monday…

As usual, the weekend went by in a blur!  It’s Monday, again, and I’m tired.  I actually thought about not blogging today, but I’m a creature of habit, so here goes…

I’ll begin by participating in “The Monday Quiz” over at Acting Balanced.  Here are Heather and Wayne’s questions, along with my answers:

1. When you went trick or treating as a kid; what did you hope people were giving out?

When I was a kid, I loved candy, ALL KINDS OF CANDY, so I didn’t really care what people were giving out–as long as it was candy 🙂  ( I have the cavities to prove it!)  

2. What radio station do you listen to while driving?

I listen to the classic oldies of the 70’s and 80’s or today’s country music.

3. How much do you think should be the maximum one would spend on a three-year old’s birthday party?

It’s been years since I planned a birthday  party for a little one, so I really have no idea how much a party would cost these days.  I suppose how much someone spends should depend on their bank account.

4. When do you know that you trust someone?

As a rule, I trust people until they give me a reason not to.  Sometimes it works out, sometimes it doesn’t.

My question:   Are you prepared for an ’emergency situation’?   

Ed and I watched last night’s show, on NAT GEO, entitled “American Blackout”.  The two-hour show depicted what would happen in America, in the case of a blackout.  The show was quite thought-provoking!  Watching that show made me thankful I don’t live in a ‘high rise’ apartment in the city!  In fact, it made me even more thankful I don’t live in the city, period!  

Weekend wrap up:

It was a fun, but busy weekend in our ‘neck of the woods’.  Our oldest grandchild celebrated her 7th birthday with a fun birthday party.  The day started out cold (47 degrees), but by party time, it had warmed up nicely (high 60’s).  It was a ‘carnival’ party, so we spent the entire day outside, which was nice.  There were games, bouncy houses, hot dogs, popcorn, candied apples, cotton candy, and more…

Look at all those treats!

Madison and her guests, waiting to play the games

Madison, opening her gifts

Playing on one of the bouncy houses

After partying all day, on Saturday, Ed and I went ‘to the city’ to visit our youngest son and his wife, on Sunday.  I called and told them we were coming to spend ‘their last quiet weekend’ with them 🙂  The nursery is finished and waiting for baby Evan, who is scheduled to arrive this Wednesday.

Chances are, after this week, Evan’s nursery won’t ever be this peaceful or organized again, but that’s a good thing.  Thank heaven for little boys!!!

On that happy note, I’ll end this post!  Have a great Monday, everyone!

Hodgepodgin’…

It’s time for a little mid-week ‘Hodgepodgin’ with Joyce and friends!  By now, we all know the drill–answer the questions, then hop around and visit each other to compare answers. Thanks to Joyce for furnishing the questions and for hosting The Hodgepodge.  Thank you (in advance) for your visits and comments!

1. When it comes to good manners, what two top your list of most important?

(1) Say “please” and “thank you”

(2) Wait your turn.

These days, it’s getting harder and harder to find people who are willing to do either of these things.  It seems like gratitude has fallen by the wayside.  Everyone expects everything to be given to them, and nobody seems to appreciate anything.

Believe it or not, an elderly woman actually broke in front of me in the check out line, not long ago!  I was appalled!  I certainly expected better behavior from a ‘senior citizen’!

2. Let’s open a proverbial can of worms…Common Core. Are you familiar with the term (talking education reform in the USA)? If so, care to share your thoughts? In your opinion, what is one of the biggest issues schools (in your home country) face today?

Yes, I’m very familiar with Common Core, and it’s one of the reasons I’m thankful our granddaughter is being ‘home schooled’!  As far as I’m concerned, Common Core is rotten to the core, and needs to GO!  (Has anyone seen the new method used to teach math??? Crazy!)  More big government agenda…  Parents wake up!!

The biggest issue our schools are facing is our children’s (lack of) education.  Our children have been (and still are) being ‘dumbed down’ thanks to our government.  Having spent nearly 15 years working in public school and seeing what’s taught there, or should I say, what’s NOT being taught there, versus seeing what’s being taught through ‘home school’ programs is all the proof I need.  The difference is like night and day!  For instance, in public school, cursive writing is gone, math drills are gone, and spelling is sporadic–and that’s just the beginning.

3. Name a celebrity whose fashion sense you admire and share why.

It’s sad, but I can’t think of one celebrity that I admire for fashion sense.  When I think of most celebrities, and how they dress, I generally think “trashy”.

4. How are you affected by the changing seasons?

Spring always makes me feel renewed and refreshed.  I have lots of energy and always feel good in spring!  Winter, on the other hand, makes me feel tired and depressed.

5. Scariest book you’ve ever read?

I haven’t read a ‘traditional’ scary book in many years.  However, I love to read autobiographies.  A while back, I read a book entitled Escape by Carolyn Jessup, which made the hair on the back of my neck stand up.  She lived (and finally escaped from) a life with the FLDS church.  I also read A Stolen Life, the true story of Jaycee Dugard which was the horrific story of all of her years in captivity with her abductor and his wife.  Scary stuff, and true!

6. What time of day are you most hungry? What’s your go-to snack?

I get hungry for a snack around four o’clock in the afternoon.  These days, my go-to snack is a banana or an apple.  Sometimes I’ll also have a few cashews.  A far cry from my former snack of cookies or a candy bar!

7. Do you lean more towards being too needy or too independent? Which do you find harder to deal with in others?

I tend to lean more toward being too needy.  I grew up in a time when women depended on their husbands more.  Most women didn’t work back then, and my grandmother and mother never even knew how to drive a car!  I’m much more independent than the women who came before me, but I’m still needy at times.

I’m not sure which trait I find harder to deal with, but I’ll say ‘too independent’ simply because it goes against how I was raised.  I’ve never been much into ‘women’s lib’.

Random:

Seven years ago, today, we were blessed with our first grandchild, Madison Elizabeth.  She’s brought so much joy to our family since her birth, and continues to do so each day.

While I miss those sweet, precious ‘baby days’, I’m so proud of the young lady that Madison is becoming!  She works hard on her school work, and is learning so many new things!   She makes me smile…

 

Happy Birthday, Madison! I hope your birthday is a great one!

Someone Special Turns Six Today…

Six years ago, today, someone special entered the world–and my life!  Her name is Madison, and she is the daughter of my daughter…my first grandchild.  I quickly learned why we call them “grand” children!

Time passes so quickly!  It seems like just yesterday,  Madison was toddling around the house playing with Dora the Explorer and watching Mickey Mouse Clubhouse on tv.

These days Madison is already in her third year of schooling. She has learned to read and write, and  is growing into quite a lovely young girl.  Madison has put Dora and Mickey aside, and now enjoys watching The Fresh Beat Band and playing with her new puppy named “Jack”.

Oh, how times have changed since October 23, 2006–and so has Madison.  Here are just a few of my favorite “Maddie Moments” from the past six years…

Happy sixth birthday, Madison!  

Share It With You Sunday…What A Weekend!

We had a busy weekend here in Gooseneck–but it was a good weekend!  Our little granddaughter, Madison, turned four on Saturday.  We spent the weekend celebrating–and I do mean the entire weekend!

Our Birthday Princess...

Now I know that all grandkids are special, but Madison is a wee bit more special to us for several reasons.  First of all, I wanted to be a grandma for five long years before Madison ever arrived.  Then when our daughter and her husband finally decided to try to conceive–it took quite a while (15 months)– and they had to have a little help(fertility drugs).  Once Madison was conceived, it was a problem pregnancy–bed rest almost the entire time–ending with an emergency c-section delivery!  By now I guess you’ve got the idea…Madison didn’t come easy.

Every year on Madison’s birthday, we recall all of the trials and tribulations that we went through to get her here:

…How Brandy had to give up her job due to being on bed rest

…How she and her husband learned to manage on one income

…How they eventually had to move in with my husband and me for the last two months of the pregnancy, after Brandy was hospitalized for several days

…How Brandy was sent to the hospital for an emergency c-section(two weeks early) after going for a routine office visit

…How Brandy’s regular doctor was out-of-town at the time that she was sent to the hospital

…How the attending physician suddenly changed his mind about doing the c-section after the nurses at the hospital convinced him that it wasn’t necessary!

…How I got ugly with the attending doctor(and threatened him) when he told me he was going to send Brandy home

…How the attending doctor agreed to go ahead with a c-section–if an amniocentesis was done showing lung maturity

…How it took Brandy an entire day to get up her nerve to have the amnio done

…How the c-section was scheduled–then cancelled– when the amnio results showed the baby’s lungs weren’t mature

…How finally after five long days of Brandy being  in the hospital–her regular doctor returned(death in family)

…How on the very day that her regular doctor returned–her baby went into distress again but it would take all day to get any relief…

…How finally at 7:40 in the evening an emergency c-section was performed–and little Madison was born, perfect,  healthy, and with mature lungs! (the test was wrong) Her cord was wrapped around her neck,  causing all of the distress

…and last but not least, how I slept on the floor of Brandy’s hospital room most of those five nights–because nobody would give me a cot or a reclining chair–and I wasn’t leaving (it’s well over an hour’s drive home)

Now that I’ve remembered and written all that we experienced trying to get Madison here– I’m tired!  Actually, I am tired from two days of partying and celebrating with her–but I wouldn’t trade a minute of it for anything!  Like the old song says…Thank God for kids–and grandkids!

Me holding Madison for the first time...

I’m including a photograph that was taken of me when I held our precious granddaughter for the very first time…Can you see the look of relief and joy on my face?  What a moment!  I am not ashamed to tell you this– I sat in that hospital chair and held that little bundle of joy the entire night, while her exhausted parents slept.  That was as close to heaven as I’ll ever get here on earth…Happy Birthday, Madison!