Yummylicious

Thank you Sheila for giving me the Happy 101 award aka yummy cupcake award. I'm supposed to pass this award on to 10 friends but instead I'd like to pass the happy & yummy around to all my friends. Snag the award if you'd like and grab a tray of cupcakes and pass the happiness around.

Since Sheila wants snow and we're all having a party I thought I'd bring along the snow burgers.

While the snow burgers are grilling I'll grab the biggest bowls I can find and make snow creme to go along with our yummy cupcakes for dessert. You might want to bring extra bowls with you because there's plenty of snow for our party.

This isn't the best scenery but I opened the kitchen door this morning and took a couple of pictures. The snow started around 7 last night and by the time it ended this morning my guess is we have around 8" (official report from the airport is 6") on the ground. I know it doesn't look like that much in the 2 pictures above but believe me it is. I'm just too lazy to wrap up and go outside to get better pictures. Baby it's cold out there!

Digging out a year ago.

Trying to clean the walkways & parking lot but the ice keeps falling.

This is my youngest brother Jeff who lives in another part of Kentucky.

I don't have any pictures of the Jan. 26-28 2009 ice storm but the 3 pictures above were taken by Jeff after we'd already been pounded by the ice and it moved on to his neck of the woods. Yes, that would be garbage bags Jeff is wearing because he was being pelted with ice while he tried to shovel.

The snowstorm last night was a very heavy wet snow and the roads were super slick within the first hour but it was nothing compared to the ice storm a year ago. Last year we lost power for 13 days and many were still without power for 20+ days.

Early Tuesday morning we received an unexpected snowfall, they had only predicted flurries but we got more than an inch of very slick snow. There was one fatality about 4 miles from my hometown. Gary decided to take a couple of backroads to the main highway for his trip to work. When he got to the main road he had to turn around because there was an accident and the road was blocked. He called his employers and told them he might be late because he had to take the backroads into work. The road he had to travel is like a rollercoaster with all it's hills & curves. He made it safely but he told me it was a very hairy drive.

Last nights snowstorm was huge and covered areas of the country that seldom get snow. I hope everyone is safe.

Blissful harmony

He looked over at her with a loving smile and asked her if she were having withdrawal symptoms yet. Sheepishly & shamelessly she admitted she is an addict.

Earlier she had called her sister-in-law for moral support. Afterall, they were both using the same professional services to feed their addiction. The full impact had not hit her sister-in-law yet and she was still able to get her fix for a few more hours.

After 3 hours of pacing she placed a call to the 24 hour hotline. The hotline was closed due to technical difficulties (it was Sunday) beyond their control.

Sleepless, tossing and turning, she tried again to no avail. Later in the day she would again try to contact the professional help she needed. Only to receive a message that left her feeling numb.

When her husband came home from work that night it was the first thing he asked her about. This time she thought she saw a smirk in his grin. She knew he had an addiction of his own but said nothing.

Listening to the sounds of the night she gave in and visited some of his popular friends. Not everyone can be best friends with John Wayne, James Garner, and many more including Mr Ed the talking horse and his friend Wilbur. Tonight, Wyatt Earp had come to pay a visit. The visit was so entertaining it put him into a deep slumber as he rested on the couch and she started flipping until daybreak.

Having errands to run would ease some of her withdrawal symptoms but she had to give it one last try to find that help she was seeking. She placed a call and again received a message but instead of hanging up this time she decided to choose one of the options given her because afterall it had been 3 day without her fix. She was told what she was experiencing should soon have a solution leaving her feeling more relaxed about this situation she found herself in.

After eating supper Tuesday night she and her husband were discussing this matter. While he was taking his bath she took the plunge, sat in front of the computer, clicked connect & gave him a thumbs up when it logged onto the internet.

Feeling ecstatic that she could once again visit her friends online he was happy for her and smiled as he strolled off to the living room to visit with his friends. While peacefully getting ready to enjoy herself she heard him let out a yell with a few choice words. She knew how he felt and took pity on him, he'd lost the signal for the tv show he wanted to watch. With a smile closely resembling a smirk she told him his addiction is just as bad as hers.

***As a sidenote***

Please keep Terri in your thoughts today. She's wanted to do this for a long time but she's very nervous about this final step to a beautiful smile.

What a tangled web we weave

I seldom turn the light on in the bathroom because during the day there's plenty of natural light coming through the window and at night I don't need a personal tour guide to lead me where I'm going. Got to save on that electric bill ya know.

While washing a load of clothes yesterday I heard the commode bubbling and gurgling. Yeah, I hear ya saying "Sheesh! Is she ever gonna quit talking about her & her washer?" Give me a break will ya? I'm trying to make a point here.

Now where was I? Oh yeah...

Getting a plumber to snake a drain out around here is like pulling teeth. They don't want the little piddley jobs they want the big bucks. We used to be able to rent a professional snake but the rental place closed down. So we just put up with the little burps and annoyance that go along with the washer draining out the same pipe as the kitchen sink, bathtub & commode.

Usually when the washers draining it sucks most of the water out of the toilet bowl but it was bubbling more than usual yesterday so I thought I better take a look. The toilet bowl had more water in it than it usually has so I decided to plunge it to see if that would help.

Our bathroom is pretty small and there's no place to put the plunger out of sight so I keep it in a wastebasket in the closet outside the bathroom door. I seldom have to use the plunger so it's kind of out of sight out of mind.

I lifted the toilet seat and was getting ready to plunge when I saw something huge and black fall off the plunger into the water. I gasped as I watched it swim around trying to get out. Being a bit anxious I went with my first instinct and flushed. I gasped again when it came out of that hole as the toilet bowl was filling up. I flushed again and this time claimed victory when the bowl filled up and the swimmer didn't come back up with the water. To make certain it was gone I gave it a couple more flushes.

I was rather proud of myself for sending that huge black spider to septic tank heaven. Or is that hell?

I've read that there's a spider within 3 feet of us at all times. I'm not a cruel person and that's fine and dandy as long as they stay out of my territory and leave me alone but if they're crawling on me or anywhere around me in this house they are doomed.

After all the excitement I decided to google black spider images because I'd never seen such a huge black spider before and believe me I've seen some big ones around here. Google had no images that even remotely

resembled my intruder.

It's obvious that spiders can survive in water otherwise there wouldn't be so many of them around. Which lead me to wonder if they can survive after being flushed into a tank of sludge. So I googled it...YES they can! After they crawl to a dry spot and their body drys off they can crawl back up the same drainage pipe they swirled down in.

I'm worried. I'm turning the bathroom light on at night and taking a look around before I sit down. Huge black spider is out for revenge! It ain't gonna take no crap! It's crawling back up that pipe to get me! It knows what I look like it's beady eyes saw me twice! It's waiting for a nice juicy bite outta my butt! I can feel it now! Ouch! That hurts! Now that's cruel!

Vanished without a trace

If I was devout in my Catholic faith like Mom & Judy were I'd be praying to Saint Anthony right now because I've lost something that can't be found.

Grandad H. and Terri...you know you're a hillbilly when you put on a pretty dress and run around barefoot.

Our family at Uncle Frank's house...Mom, Dad, Marty with his hands on Steve's shoulders, baby brother Jeff being held by me, Linda holding Rut, Kevin, Judy & Denny.

Mom & Dad on January 21, 1999, the day of Grandad's funeral. In the upper right corner of the curtain a heart shaped reflection. I like to think of it as a reflection of love.

On the day of Grandad's funeral my sister-in-law Pam was taking pictures. I didn't say anything but I thought it to be a bit inappropriate to take pictures on such a sad day, so soon after our final goodbye's to Mom's loving father & our Grandad. How wrong I was in that assumption.

After Grandad passed away I thought to myself the next funeral we'd be attending would probably be Uncle Frank's because he wasn't doing well. I was so wrong. It was my Mom's.

When Mom passed away Pam let us look at her pictures and choose the ones we liked and she had reprints made for us. One of those pictures was the last family picture taken when our family was complete.

I've been pretty emotional because when I went to get our family picture that was taken 11 years ago today to scan to the computer it was gone. I've looked everywhere for it and I can't find it. It's disappeared.

I'd never framed the picture because it's an odd size and I haven't found that perfect frame I'm looking for. Our entertainment center has a curio to the side that I keep my Angel's in that have been given to me. I had our family picture propped up in front of the Angel's given to me by my brothers Rut & Jeff and my daughter Terri. Every once in awhile I'd get the picture out and look at it but I haven't done so lately. If I've moved it I don't remember doing so and if I had I know all the places I would have put it but it's not in those places either.

I can have one of my siblings make another copy for me. It's upsetting and puzzling how something I treasure so much can just vanish.

A bang for a buck

They say if you haven't got anything good to say don't say anything at all. My lips have been sealed, my fingers still.

Out with the old, in with the new. I don't know who came up with that phrase but it doesn't seem to work that way for us. Unless, of course, you look at it as a new day, new year, same old crap. It could be worse.

I cringe when I hear the beeper on the propane truck backing up our driveway. I cringe even more when I look at the bill that's due 6 days from delivery. I really cringe when I see the amount they're charging us per gallon. It's never the same, it's always different. This time, $4.15 per gallon. Well, that's not exactly true, it was $4.1490. Outrageous!

Gary had an accident today. He was sitting in a parking lot trying to turn onto a 4 lane highway. Traffic was thick going both ways so he decided to back up and take a different exit from the parking lot so he'd have a traffic light to enter the highway. He looked behind him and didn't see anything so proceeded to back up when he heard a horn blowing & slammed on his brakes. It was too late, he backed into another car. Nobody got hurt and the only damage was a scratch to the bumper of the car he hit. Gary was going to call the police department to have an accident report filed but the man said no more damage than was done he didn't have to do that. Anyone who works in body work on vehicles knows that even a small scratch can be costly to fix and Gary was honest with this man and told him he knew how expensive body work is. After talking it over they decided to exchange information and go from there. Most likely we'll be paying for this out of pocket because of our insurance deductible. The reason why Gary couldn't see the car behind him was because our old washer is still in the bed of the truck, he hasn't had a chance to dispose of it yet because the landfill is closed when he's off from work. That old washer is going to it's resting place this week, it's getting costly laying on its back in the truck.

Our grand daughter Mikayla can't seem to catch a break. After learning she's deaf in her left ear we did hear a bit of good news that she's a candidate for the Baha implant which is extremely costly. It's my understanding this procedure can't be done until she's at least 5 years old. Last week she had to get glasses because of her eyesight and a few days ago she fell and broke one of her front teeth.

I'm trying to read blogs but my comments are few and far between because I'm having problems with the computer. It's got a mind of it own, it does what it wants when it wants, and I'm not sharp enough to outsmart it. It's taken itself back to set-up for Oct. 8, 2003 and I've figured out how to get online but I haven't figured out how to change the clock and the date on the set-up program but I know how to set it from the desktop once I get there.

Complaining just gets you stuck in a rut. I don't want to go backward, I want to move forward. And so life goes on here in the boonies.

Angels at our door ~ Blessings in disguise

I hadn't felt any Christmas spirit this year until the day I wrote my last entry almost 2 weeks ago. When Santa (my brother) showed up at our door with a basket full of food and we learned we were going to be grandparents again I felt a bit of excitement. I was determined not to let the Christmas season stress me out like it did last year.

And then what little spirit I had went down the drain.

I was already frustrated at my internet because for the past 2 weeks it's been iffy at best. Not sure what the problem is but I do know when it all started they were working on the phone lines in our area and it's been crappy ever since. I haven't attempted to leave comments on anyones blog because I'm just happy if a blog will load so I can read it before I get knocked offline. I'm not even sure if this entry will publish because it's showing an error in the left corner.

The internet was the least of my problems and my problems aren't near as worrisome as many others who are dealing with life altering situations. I try to remember that not only in the Christmas season but throughout the year. But it's so easy to feel sorry for ourselves and our circumstances. Isn't it?

Monday before last I was washing a load of clothes and I heard 6 loud bangs in the wash cycle that sounded like metal hitting metal. When the washer went to the spin cycle the noise stopped and it seemed a bit quieter than usual. After the washer went through all of the cycles and I opened the lid it had let the water out the drain but hadn't spinned out the excess water in the clothes. I put it on spin cycle again with the same ending results.

Gary took the front off the washer when he got home but couldn't find any of the usual suspects that cause problems on washers. He told me to put another load in so he could see what it was doing while it was washing. It seemed to be fine until we noticed water dripping at a heavy rate hitting the motor and quickly accumulating on the floor.

Dummy me thought it would be fine to go ahead and wash the clothes and I could put them outside to drip dry a bit before I put them in the dryer. My hubby who is smarter than I am told me not to try it he was afraid I'd get fried by electricity. Now why didn't I think of that?

I knew this time of year the sale prices are marked up on appliances and we really couldn't afford to buy a new washer anyway. We started looking for a used washer for sale with no success.

I use my washer every day. I may not get much else done around here but at least we always have clean clothes.

So the blahs kinda hit me.

I waited a couple of days and went to Terri's to use her washer. I took my detergent with me. She doesn't use powder she only uses liquid detergent. So I wasn't only using her washer I was also using her detergent. Thanks Terri!

We had our family Christmas gathering at Dad's last Sunday. I left the house early so I could wash a few loads of clothes at Dad's before everyone else arrived. Gary told me he'd be there in a little while and I thought nothing of it because we usually do drive seperately. I usually stay later than he does.

I got everything loaded in the car an off I went. A few miles down the road I realized I'd screwed up big time. I was in charge of contacting everyone in the family to let them know when our gathering at Dad's was going to be. I thought I had. But I hadn't. I forgot to call Mike & Chelsey(Judy's husband & daughter). Where had my mind been? I always call them.

So I really got the blah, blah, blahhhhhhhhhhhhhh's.

As soon as I got to Dad's and my brother helped me unload the car I got on the phone and called Mike's cellphone. No answer. I called Chelsey's cellphone. No answer. I called their home phone. On the 5th ring I hung up. I couldn't bear for the answering machine to pick up on the 6th ring and hear Judy's voice. It always brings me to tears. I wasn't too far from that anyway.

I called my sister Linda and told her I'd forgotten to call Mike & Chel's and neither were answering their phones. She told me she thought both of them were working but she'd call Mike and leave a message just in case they weren't.

I got my clothes washed before everyone started arriving. Dad wanted me to dry them there but I was already running up his water bill I didn't want to run up his gas bill too. I just threw the clothes in a trash bag and brought them home with me to dry in my own dryer.

When my sister arrived she told me she'd put a tray of goodies in my car. My brother who'd given us the basket full of food walked in with his family and I thanked his wife for the basket and she hugged me then my brother told me he'd put some more stuff in my car. And when it was time for dinner Chelsey walks in the door. She'd just gotten off from work. I apologized for forgetting to call them and she told me that my niece Ashley had told her a week ago. What a relief!

Where was Gary? As the afternoon moved on he still hadn't arrived and I brushed it off with everyone that he'd probably fallen asleep on the couch watching tv. Little did I know what was really happening at our house while I was away.

I decided to leave a bit earlier than I usually do at our family gatherings so I could come home and get started on drying our clothes. My sister walked out with me as I had a couple of boxes of her canning jars in my trunk from tomato juice she had canned and given to us a couple of years ago. As I was getting ready to get in my car she opened my hand and put something in it. I looked and starting puckering up and trying to hand it back to her. She wouldn't take it back and I started crying. She told me she had been fortunate to have a job she loved and was able to work and she knew I wasn't.

I was overwhelmed with emotions.

When I pulled in our driveway I noticed our washer sitting in the back of Gary's truck and wondered why he'd taken it out of the house since we didn't have one to replace it yet. I walked in the door and he was getting dressed to come to Dad's for our family gathering that he thought was at 4. He'd heard me talking to our kids on the phone about the Christmas gathering at "our house" this coming Saturday. Yikes! I hadn't even told my husband what time the gathering was at Dad's. Where has my mind been the past few weeks?

Then he showed "it" to me and then he wanted to show me how "it" performed. And then I was overwhelmed with relief because "it's" performance was perfect.

After I had left for Dad's house Gary had a friend stop by to visit. Gary asked him if he knew of anyone that had a good used washer for sale. This friend knew exactly where Gary could get one and it wouldn't cost us a dime. We could have it if it was still working and we wanted it. He'd tried to give his washer to his son & daughter-in-law when theirs had quit working but it wasn't good enough for them.

When we had the ice storm earlier this year Jim's pipes froze and when they thawed they burst and ruined his flooring where his washer & dryer were. Jim put them both on his porch and sealed off that part of his home. That's where they've been ever since. He's tried giving them away and nobody wanted them because a few leaves and a little dirt had gathered on them.

Gary and Jim brought the washer over and hooked it up to the outside faucet to see if it still worked before bringing it in the house. Gary washed one of his coats to put it to the test. They then cleaned it up and brought it in the house and hooked it up and Gary washed another coat.

By golly it purrs like a kitten! I'm in heaven! I can wash our clothes at home!

We used to be able to help others when their chips were down. The last few years not so much. The tables have turned and now it's others helping us.

Don't believe in Angel's? Or Santa? I sure do! They're our family and friends.

I don't have any pictures from the Christmas gathering at Dad's because I had so much on my mind I ran off and forgot the camera at home. I thought I'd share a few pictures of Christmas past in our family. I'm not sure why the pictures look so blurry.

Terri sitting on Santa's lap at my brothers house which is now where Dad lives. What mother in her right mind would put a shirt on a little girl with the wrong name on the sleeve? Well, that would be me I guess. It came from a garage sale. It was cheap!

Christmas at the house we grew up in. My youngest brother Jeff, Mom & Dad. Hey Jeff, I hear plaid pants are in style again. HAHAHA!

Judy & Terri in front of the Christmas tree at the house we grew up in. Hey Terri, I love that "hairdo" ya got going on there. HAHAHAHA! Terri wanted a perm. I gave her one. HEHEHEHE!

Christmas at our house in 1986. Mom sitting in the corner looking at Jeff after he opened a gift. Yeah, that's me sitting on the couch with Gary sitting beside me.

Our family the Christmas before Mom passed away. We had given Mom & Dad matching recliners. Mom may have sat in hers once or twice, she had a spot on the couch where she felt comfy.

Mom and Dad have 23 grandkids (which includes my stepchildren who aren't pictured here) 20 of them are in the picture above. The youngest is now 18.

My hubby sitting in Mom's recliner at our Christmas gathering in Dec. 2000. Mom had always wanted to fix the house up real nice with new curtains and painting but she wouldn't let any of the kids do it for her. She never got to see how beautiful hers & Dad's house is now. It was our Christmas gift to Dad in memory of Mom.

Christmas at Dad's in Dec. 2001 a few weeks after several of us lost our jobs.

Dad and his daughters Christmas 2001. Dad had just recovered from hip replacement.

Linda giving Dad a big ole smooch on the cheek. If I'm going to embarress Terri and Jeff in my earlier pictures I might as well confess. It's hard for my family to get a picture of me at our family gatherings because....well....I usually don't have my choppers in. The first thing I do when I get there is go to the bathroom & take all of that plastic out of my mouth and wrap them in a paper towel. Do you know how many times I've gone home without them and had to make a trip back to pick them up? I finally got smart and now wrap them in a paper towel and put them in my purse. That way I won't leave them behind. Just call me Gumby! HAHAHA!

I've added a few pictures to a couple of entries I wrote for Christmas last year. Both entries are special to me because each year we feel the loss of our loved ones in our family.

Mom and Judy were both very devout in their Catholic faith: "The Family Rosary".

Merry Christmas to each of you & your family. My wish for you this year is the same as last year "The Christmas Box" filled with love and memories.

Miracles of Christmas

Santa came bearing gifts today, not once but twice. It's strange. The first time he looked a lot like one of my brothers. He got out of his sleigh and carried a large bushel basket full of food into the house. I wasn't expecting it. He'd called me earlier in the week and told me he had a ham in the freezer that needed to be cooked soon and he asked me if I wanted it to cook for our family for Christmas. I said, "Sure". What I didn't know is he planned to bring enough food for a whole meal. The basket had a ham, all the ingredients for a couple of large potato casseroles, large can of green beans, large can of corn, a dozen ears of corn on the cob from their garden, bananas, grapes, pecan pie & 2 boxes of chocolate covered cherries.

I don't know what we've done to deserve such kindness and thoughtfulness from my family. I do know it feels good to know they care.

Jeff, Terri, Michael, Kareena, Me, Gary & Marisa on our son's wedding day.

Gary went to visit his son this morning and came home bearing news of a gift we're receiving from him and his wife. We must wait in anticipation for several more months before the package is delivered.

We're going to be grandparents again!