Christmas

It seems like Christmas rolls around faster and faster.  Next week, a week from today, is Christmas again already.  Winter snows and cold have really set in and it is a couple days yet until the official first day of Winter.  We are definitely going to have a white Christmas.  There are always so much baking and cooking going on.  Everyone looks forward to the good food.

Thanksgiving Gathering

I was invited to extended family for a great Thanksgiving.  There was enough food for an army of people.  I am sure we all ate till we couldn't eat a bit more :0)  After eating, we played games.  They were so much fun.  We had so many laughs and such a good time.  Laughing is so good for everyone.  Then a lot of the women made a craft.  They make a different one every year.  It is really neat.

Birthdays

Two of my great grandchildren had their 6th birthday just 13 days apart.  It seems like they are growing up so fast.  They are such neat little kids.  They are cousins who really enjoy spending time together.  One lives on a farm so it is fun for the other kids to go out and see all the animals.  They have chickens, pigs, ponies and kittens to name a few. I think it is very healthy for children to grow up on a farm.  I grew up in town though and enjoyed it.

Birthday

It is my brother's birthday today.  I took him a card and gifts.  Also took a meal over and we sat and visited quite awhile.  He had surgery on his back awhile back and he was ready for a nap after we had visited awhile.  He was watching a hillarious program on TV and it was really funny.  I enjoyed spending time with him after church.

New Trailer

This is the new trailer next door to me.  They completely gutted an old trailer and made everything new from top to bottom.  It has 4 bedrooms and 2 baths.  They just got moved in and got the old trailer moved away.  It gives them a great big yard for the kids.  I am so happy for them.

It really looks nice and everything is new.  I am so happy for them and they are so excited as you can imagine.

Back Surgery

My brother had back surgery last Thursday.  He had a nerve pinched in his lower back.  It was causing him great sciatic nerve pain all down his leg.  He wasn't getting much sleep and it hurt him in the daytime as well.  He had the surgery at 10 am and went home the next day at 10 am.  He can't drive for a week but that's good so he will stay home and rest and let his back heal.  I helped him yesterday to change the bandage.  His daughter changed it the day before.  He is doing real good now.  I took over a Mexican lunch and we both enjoyed that very much.

My Special Birthday

I had a great birthday party 2 weeks ago.  It was a very special one.  All my children and grandchildren came to celebrate with me.  The many little great grandchildren were there too and just had a wonderful time with all their cousins.  We had great food and also a fun game was prepared by a daughter-in-law with real talent for those things.  Many friends and extended family also attended and a good time was had by all.

Family Pictures

It is always a good time when family gets together.  Out come the cameras.  Then many pictures are taken.  Here are my children having a good time at a party.  We all had such a good time.  It isn't always easy to get everyone together.  Everyone is so busy with their own lives.  But this time, all were there but maybe three. That's a miracle in itself.

My 80th Birthday Party

Wow!  What a party my kids threw for me.  A most beautiful birthday cake, good food and all the family were there.  My kids, grandkids, great grandkids, extended family, brother and sister, and a great many friends too.  There was plenty of good food, laughter and many pictures taken.  Will be fun to see all of the pictures.  Have already seen several on Facebook.  I really had a great time and was so tired when I got home, I just sat down in my easy chair for a couple hours.  Then I got started opening the many cards.  I received 72 cards in all, some through the mail and some at the party and several gifts too.  It was quite a birthday celebration.  Such fun!

New Construction

Our neighbors family has grown so much.  They are so crowded in their 3 bedroom mobilehome.  The landlord is going to move in another 3 bedroom home and join the two together to make a big double wide.  They will have plenty of room then for the whole family to have separate bedrooms.  With 3 of the children becoming teenagers, it has been quite a feat to live with only 3 bedrooms.  It will be exciting to watch this all come to pass.  It will all be sided the same color and I am sure it will really be a great addition to our court.

Fun on the Trampoline

What does an 18 month old little great grandson do on a trampoline?  He loves it.  But just look at the concentration on his face as he tries to walk on it.  It is so cute.  He has so much fun with his sister and brother.  They can all 3 play together on the trampoline.  They are growing up so fast.  In a couple days school will be out and then they will be able to play together every day.

Blogs and Surveys

One way to keep busy is to blog.  You can sign up to blog for companies if you wish.  You can also sign up to answer lots of surveys.  Sometimes, some of them will send you a product to test for them.  I wish more of them would do that.  It is neat to get a new product that is going to come out for sale and they give you a chance to evaluate it before that.   Blogging can be fun and a way to pass time too.  You can write about anything such as your family, shopping, weather, the subjects are as many as you can think of. I like blogging.

New Baby

Another new baby has been added to our extended family.  Here is little Kimberly who was born a few days ago.  She was a big baby.  She weighed in at 8 lbs 13 1/2 oz.  She has a big brother who thinks she is pretty nice.  They have a nice family now with a boy and a girl.  She will be getting lots of attention from her Grandmother, my cousin.  Babies are such a wonderful miracle and gift from God.

SanFrancisco, California

One of my grandsons was married this summer.  His wife has a lot of family in Northern California.  They take quite a few trips there to visit.  They love to ski when it is that time of the year.  They will be going again for Christmas too. Here is one of the many pictures they took while they were out there on one of their last trips.  It is beautiful there.

School Pictures

Our little great granddaughter started pre-school this year.  Boy, was she excited.  She is ahead in knowing her numbers, colors, etc. and is going to do very well in school.  Here she is all dressed and ready for her first day.  She could hardly contain her excitement.  I don't blame her.  She has been going several weeks now and she absolutely loves it.

First Halloween

Isn't he just the cutest little guy with a big smile.  It is his first Halloween.  He wasn't sure what to make of the costume.  He wanted to take off the cap.  His folks brought him and his brother and sister over for trick and treat.  They all three looked so cute in their costumes.  He is going to be one year old next week.  Saturday we will be going to his early 1st birthday party.  That will will be fun.

Holloween Masks

There are certainly all kinds of Holloween masks and also costumes.  Kids can be most anything they want today.  But those costumes are 5 times the price they were when we were kids.  We didn't have the money to buy any, so our Mom dressed us up free.  We went out and collected gobs of candy, eating lots along the way, I am sure.  We had a very good time and things were dangerous like they are today.  Parents didn't need to go along with their kids to be sure they were safe.  Here you see one of the great grandsons getting ready to be Batman. Looks pretty fierce doesn't he?  :0)

Always Smiling

There is such a difference in children.  Some walk early, some talk early and some are very quiet.  This little fellow, it seems, has been smiling almost from birth.  Maybe he takes after me, his great grandmother.  My grandma said I was born smiling.  My husband said I smiled in my sleep.  It is so much fun to greet this little guy as he always has a big smile for you.

Mountain Fun

My daughter, her husband and sons went to Colorado for a wedding. Here you see them posing for a great picture. They had a wonderful time. The mountains are so beautiful. After they left, there were quite a number of bad forest fires. I feel so bad for those people who lost their homes. I am glad, however, that our family was out of there before they started.

Small Town Celebration

Here in our little town, we are having a two day celebration starting today. It is in honor of the Duesenberg brothers who invented the Duesenberg auto. They had a little shop right on main street and the building was still there when we moved here in 1970. It has since been torn down, but the celebration continues. There will be lots of food and plenty for the children to do. Saturday night, they will have a dance for the adults. Tonight they will choose among the 6 year olds to decide who will be Little Miss Duesey. Our neighbor girl is competing and the judging will be tonight. I hope she wins. They will have a Parade tomorrow and she will have a special place in the parade. I will go and sit with family and watch the parade.