SHOW & TELL

It's Show & Tell Friday once again. Come on over to Kelli's place and join in on the fun!

In honor of Halloween I thought I would post some Jack-o-Lanterns. Over 20 years ago, while living in Lincoln, Nebraska I walked into a Ben Franklin store and found a book called "PUMPKIN MASTERS". It was full of ideas and techniques for carving pumpkins, beyond the usual geometric shapes of triangle eyes and so forth. We started out easy and over the years I tend to enjoy the challenge of doing the designs that are rated difficult. So for your viewing pleasure I give you the pumpkin I carved tonight for Halloween 2008. It is a bit blurred because I had to take the photo, normally it would be Dave, set up on a tripod but he went to bed early since he's trying to get into work super early in the morning. It's NASCAR weekend at the Texas Motor Speedway and that can be a real nightmare! So without any further adieu, I give you....PUMPKINS!


Innocent pumpkins awaiting their fate!



This one is mine! Bwah-ha-ha!




Charles turned his into Pac-Man.





Mine is a skeleton sitting in a chair!












Here are a few more pumpkins from days gone by!

WEDNESDAY'S THOUGHTS

It's Wednesday and that means a couple of things. We are only 9 days out from Laura's wedding! YIKES! That's a tad overwhelming! I have a couple of loose ends to wrap up as well as do some more cleaning around the house. There's nothing like having a house full of company to motivate you to get stuff done! It's the extra stuff you know? It's cleaning the blinds, the refrigerator (did that yesterday!), ceiling fans and so on... I am glad that my house cancelled today, I can get a bit more done in the time that allows.

Charles has early release today and so when I pick him up I will take him to early vote. His Registration Card came in the mail and he can early vote rather than having to wait until Tuesday. Yesterday he went for his first driving lesson since getting his permit. The state of Texas is doing things differently in regards to driving. The kids HAVE to take either Driver's Ed or a sanctioned "Parent Taught Driver's Program". It's a program where parents have to sign off on stuff BEFORE the kids can even get their permit. I thought it was the old, go in and take the test for the permit thing, but not anymore! If they're under 18 you have to pay for the matierials, then you have to do this pre-permit stuff and so on. It's not very smooth at all. The beauty of him turning 18 is that, that is no longer required. He did the old go in and take the permit test, last week and now VOILA! he has his permit. No more jumping through hoops. I'm sure that the state of Texas has to do it this way because of irresponsible parents but it just muddies the waters for the rest of us!

I told Charles that I want him to have his lisence by the time Dave & I leave for our January trip to Yellowstone. At that time, he will be completely on his own since Laura will be married and moved out. He'll have to be able to get to school, work and so on and I won't be here to provide those things for him during that week. Once he has his lisence, he will also have to have a job. He will be responsible for his insurance and gas money, not to mention some saving for college expenses. All of this to teach him responsibility and ownership. We have never just given our kids big stuff, they have to earn it.

I don't understand those parents who do not make their kids accountable. Earning posessions and priviledges along with accountability, equals ownership. A good example: If mom and dad just pay for college, where's the motivation for the kids to get their money's worth? I suppose there are some who would do right by their parents.

When Laura decided to drop 2 of her classes last year that we had paid for, Dave made her pay us back! Laura is growing more & more responsible as she matures. That's the goal isn't it? Maturity comes with time, hard lessons learned, practice and mistakes. Do they ever learn if parents continually make excuses for them, blame others and bail them out? No in the words of our Pastor,
"Weenie parents are raising weenie kids!"

Agree or not, I don't scrub toilets and Dave doesn't put up with railroad crap-all for the betterment of our family, to not mind our money being wasted! Even if there was a legitimate reason, our money would have not been spent on what it was intended for! Even if something happens and it was out of your control, you have to pony up and take responsibilty! I guarantee you, we work hard for our money and no one, not even our kids is just going to throw it away!

I am on a rant lately about the "entitlement" mentality that my parental peers have instilled in the next generation, coming of age!

Deep breaths... that post is for another day!

A NEW LIFE

So Saturday, Dave, Jelly Bean & I took the ladder over to Laura & Les' new apartment. They had just gotten the keys and were allowed to go in and paint. The one picture below will show you why it needs to be painted! It's neat watching how excited they are about making their own home together!

Dave & Les look over the railing from the upstairs bedroom loft.

Nice colors right?


Looking down into the living room, there's even a fireplace.



The happy couple in the living room!

They are just finishing up and will get to start moving stuff in this Saturday.

WHAT A WEEKEND!

We had our 6 year old grand-daughter "Jelly Bean" this weekend while Jessica and Steven flew to Kansas for the Texas Tech game. I alwys refer to the grand-daughters, since they're sweet treats, as candy. She arrived Friday evening and a full weekend was planned! Saturday morning after making Blueberry Muffins, we went to the pumpkin patch for a couple of hours, then to McDonald's for lunch.

Later on, we headed over to Auntie Lou and Uncle Les' new apartment since they just got the keys for it and were painting it. That night we watched "My Dog Skip" and then becasue she said she wanted to watch a scary movie, Grampy put one on. I was thinking he'd put Jurrasic Park on. Oh no! He puts on "The Messengers"! Let's just say, she saw the palm of my hands more than the movie! When Auntie Lou came home, she scampered off to her room and they watched "Mulan".

Sunday morning was church, came home and I put my "Buffalo & Black Bean" chili on to cook in the crock pot for the Chili Cook-Off at church later that evening. She and I made cookies, then sugar cookies with cookie cutters, carved her pumpkin, decorated the cookies, ate a quick dinner and then it was back to church for the Quarterly Family Meeting and the fellowship afterwards! Needless to say, she crashed in the car when we were driving to meet up with Jessica.

Making Cookies!

Carving a pumpkin!

SHOW & TELL FRIDAY!!!

It's Show & Tell Friday once again. Come on over to Kelli's place and join in on the fun!

Last week I shared about my Grandmother's trunk that was left to me, filled with the family photos. On Monday I drove down to to the Antique Mall and met up with the gentleman who has been working on my trunk. When I walked up to his booth and saw the trunk sitting there in all of its glory, emotion took over! I started to cry, it was as if my precious Grandma was standing there with me! We dropped the trunk off with him back in January so I have been waiting a bit, eager to see the transformation.

This is my S&T from last week remember? Mr McKay is very good at what he does. He had 6 trunks to restore before mine and he told me has 7 more now that mine is done. He began by taking off the old canvas covering. For some unexplicable reason, the trunk had been painted all over an ugly red color! It had soaked through the fabric and down into the wood. He sanded down all of the wood, put new leather handles and straps on it, lined the bottom with cedar and then covered it with fabric. I think the part that made him the happiest was the lock. He had extra parts (all original) and was able to repair the lock and hasp. He then was able to locate an original key (a #29) from a friend of his who collects old keys. (I have found another one on EBAY that I plan to purchase so I can have a spare). The end result, is that the trunk is once again like it used to be! Enjoy the photos! (Click on them to enlarge).



Can you even believe that this is the same piece? I am in utter amazement at how excellant it turned out!


I love every detail on it! Gone is the hideous red color and all of the wood and hardware has been restored!


This piece should last for a VERY long time before anything needs to be done on it. He suggested rubbing Tung Oil on it down the road to keep the wood in good shape.





I am thrilled beyond words! I am not typically speechless about much but I can't find the words to express how happy I am!

FEELING CHILLY OUT!

All I can say is, "it's about time!" I love Fall and miss out on the colors and everything that goes with it, living here in Texas. I joke that our leaves down here turn color also. They turn brown and fall off, come to think of it, they do that in the midst of summer if you don't get out and water! It was too chilly to sleep with the windows open last night and to think I had to run the Air Conditioner on Tuesday!

This time of year invigorates me. I like the idea of wearing sweaters, walking through leaves that scrunch under your feet, mums, pumpkins, Caramel Apples, Indian Corn, Hot Mulled Cider, smelling woodsmoke from fireplaces, hayrides and the list just goes on and on...

I am thinking of scrapping my menu plans for tonight and maybe make a pot of soup. Doesn't a bowl of Potato, Cheese and Bacon soup with a good ham sandwich sound perfect? I made a Pumpkin Trifle that turned out yummy and so we still have some of that for dessert.

I feel like putting on Christmas music and bake some cookies or something! I have already wrapped 5 Christmas presents! (Should I admit that?) I usually have my Christmas shopping done by Halloween save for a few odds and ends but this year is a different story. I didn't get much while we were on vacation, very little caught my eye! Yesterday though, I was inspired to create something special for my mother for Christmas. I won't say what it is just yet because my time right now is at a premium.

Yesterday when I came home from work, Laura who gets home from work before I do, wasn't here. The thought hit me like a brick to the head,
"In 2 weeks, this is going to be my life everyday!"
I can't believe we are 2 weeks out from the wedding!

TODAY

My morning house had to cancel so I will go to the Courthouse and vote today, rather than doing it Friday like I originally intended. Texas is one of the states that has early voting and Dave & I take full advantage of it! Of course, Charles won't get to early vote he has to do it November 4th since he just squeaked in on registering.

Yesterday, Laura started working on the flowers for the wedding. They will meet with our Pastor this week to go over the order of the ceremony. They've been narrowing down the music, all classical and the cake has been ordered. The men have been fitted for their tuxes, the dress is off being pressed and will be picked up the week of the wedding. I have everything I need for the wedding, I found my shawl last week at Kohl's, a perfect match! I have memorized the numbers of the motels nearby since almost everyone is getting rooms. (I am already bursting at the seams so I am thankful that everyone else is going that route! My house is only so big!)

Now I just need to figure out what I am going to do with this hair? Do I wear it down and straight? Somehow that doesn't seem right. (The next time I straighten it, I'll try on my dress but I really think it needs some type of an updo). Decisions, decisions!

LAURA'S BRIDAL SHOWER

This past Saturday Jessica and some dear friends of ours hosted a Texas Bridal Shower for Laura. The cake was beautiful!

















The chocolate fountain is a lot of work but it sure is cool! The temptation was almost too much to resist!


Auntie Lou with our Jelly Bean!


Auntie Lou opens gifts while the Bean and Gumdrop along with Laura's friend Meagan watch.

While she was opening gifts, her comments were written down, unbeknownst to her. When all of the gifts were opened, Jessica read the list off saying,
"This is what Laura will say to Les on their wedding night." It was hysterical as you can see by Laura's reaction!

A COUPLE OF PICTURES

Last week I mentioned Charles' 18th Birthday and how many friends spent the night. They stayed up all night long practically playing video games. When I awoke there were 5 of them sprawled all over the living room. There were 3 more in his room!


Feeding an army a breakfast of Blueberry Pancakes & Bacon. Two of his friends had to leave early that morning so they missed out!





For his birthday, Dave got great tickets for the Dallas Stars game yesterday. Charles brought his friend Brandon who is equally enthusiastic about hockey! Unfortunately Dallas lost to Colorado but the guys still enjoyed themselves a lot!

SHOW AND TELL FRIDAY!!!

Click on the picture and you'll find yourself over at Kelli's. Come join in the fun!


My Show & Tell for this week is Part One. (Click on pictures to enlarge) This trunk was left to me by my Paternal grandmother after she passed away in 2000. Grandma Arra was 86 when she died from cancer. I was very close to my grandmother growing up, she helped my mother raise me, keeping me after school, spending time with me and so on. Although my mother was divorced from her son, Grandma held my mother in high esteem!




When I was with Grandma I would beg her to tell me stories about our family and let me look through her photo albums. When I received the trunk it was filled with those photo albums! She has passed the mantle of Family Historian on to me and it's something I am very passionate about! I have shared some of my family history on Show & Tell in the past, both my Mom's (who is from Germany) as well as my Dad.


Grandma & I at Jennifer's wedding, June 1998.




The trunk was built in the late 1880's and was most likely my Great Grandmother's (Lizzie McCollum) who passed it down to my grandmother.



Lizzie McCollum age 20, in 1909.






















The trunk has been roughed up a bit but was structurally sound. The metal works on it are really nice!




Stay tuned for next week's Show & Tell Part Two where I will show my trunk, fully restored! I am getting it back on Monday!

LIFE UNDER THE BIG TOP

Some days that's how it seems! Dave is flying home from California today and that means an afternoon run to the airport. I have my huge weekly cleaning client today so I will have to be very organized to get through her house and to DFW on time. I HATE being on a set schedule like that. Inevitably, I run into something that needs a little more attention on days like that!

I have already ran around the house this morning, depositing piles of Laura's belongings in front of her bedroom door. This house looked like it had imploded on itself what with all of "hers, mine and ours" clutter! So now I am off to fold a load of towels, run to the grocery store for a couple of items, run carpool and go to work.

Yeah, that's my day! Where is my clone when I need them?

THROUGH THE WRINGER

Emotionally speaking, I feel like I have been wrung out! Last night I drove to Decatur, Texas for the Memorial Service of a sister in Christ, Jayne Hudson. The weather was rainy and Hwy 380 is a terrible highway! They need to restripe it badly! I was so tense driving last night that I ended up with a headache that is still lingering this morning. There were a couple of times I felt the car hydroplane as well as struggle to stay in the center of the lane because the markings are SO bad! I remember reading that this is one of the worst roads in Texas, accident-wise!

I have made an observation about funerals. For the most part, Christian funerals tend to be more positive and less negative than those for non-Believers. I am not saying that we don't grieve but we do grieve differently!

Jayne was only 61 years old and her sudden and unexpected passing hit me hard. She and John are retirement age and now whatever plans, hopes and dreams they shared have taken a drastic turn. Dave & I talk about our retirement years and all of the things we hope to do, Lord willing.

The men in Jayne's family sure impressed me last night! Their son-in-law Adam, Kirstin's husband, just stepped up to the plate and assumed spiritual leadership for their family! I kept thinking of how Dave & I had watched Adam & Kirstin grow up (in our previous church) and of all the Youth Group events and Bible Studies we led or chaperoned! Gone is the goofy kid from those days and there stood a capable and loving young man!

Jayne's husband John spoke to all of us extolling the virtues of his beautiful wife and how her selfless, servant's heart had taught him how to serve others rather than focus on himself. How difficult that must have been to do when your heart is broken!

Kirstin's oldest daughter Paris, who is only 7 came up with Adam becasue she wanted to say something about her grandmother. The poor little thing broke my heart when I saw her tears and how she couldn't get the words out. Adam stood there and hugged her tightly. Then...Kirstin's ex-husband Ryan, Paris' dad came up.

In what could have been a tense moment, he bent down and said something to Paris that only the 3 of them could hear and Adam took her to sit back down. But not before these 2 men shared a pat on the arm. Ryan then spoke of Jayne's love, even when he had done things that obviously had torn the family apart, she had never stopped showing love to him. When he was through, John hugged him tightly and even he and Kirstin hugged.

I went through kleenex last night even as we sang "Shout To The Lord", Jayne's favorite song. It was in part a mini reunion as well, seeing people and former Youth from our previous church. It ended on a positive note but overall, I am so emotionally spent this morning that I would love nothing more than to crawl back into bed and pull the covers up over my head and go to sleep!