Thursday, December 23, 2010

Merry Christmas!

I hope all of you have very happy holidays!

Today I am going to share a "country" version of T'was the Night Before Christmas.  It was written by my dear friend, Alice Longaker for her Christmas message in 2008.  I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

Twas the night before Christmas and across the wide plains,
The highways required snow tires and chains.
Wool socks were a dangling on a peg real neat
In hopes they’d be filled with something ‘sides feet.
The boys, under quilts, snored in their bunks--
Dreaming of fishing and puppies and skunks.
Ma decked in fleece--me in long underwear
We’d just closed our eyes after saying our payers.
When out in the pasture there arose such a ruckus,
We jumped from our blankets—thought tornados had struck us!
With pillows and slippers and covers all tossed,
I peered out the window and wiped off the frost.
The moon was fat as a fresh apple fritter,
And snow was a twinkling like holiday glitter.
But a glance at the sky revealed something queer
A flatbed trailer towed by eight John Deeres!
With a driver all burly and bundled in red
It was Santa with a cowboy hat perched on his head!
More rapid than rattlers, his curses—they came--
He whistled and hollered and called out bad names.
“Yo! Tractor, and Combine, Snow Plow, and Grader,
Hey! Mower, and Scraper, Cotton Picker, and Gator!”

Up over the fence posts--along the rock wall,
“Giddy up, giddy up, giddy up, all!”
Like tumble weeds bouncing way up high
When winter winds howl north from the sky,
So all that machinery put down on the roof
Jolly Santa and bags all filled up with loot.
In a flash, I heard tires crunching on shingles
With rumbling, putt-putting, and spurs all a-jingle.
I backed from the window, my thoughts in a jumble,
When Santa came down the chimney a-tumble.
All zipped in red coveralls (flannel-lined to boot)
Though ash and engine oil covered that suit.
He flung a bag up over his back
Just like a burlap onion sack. 

He had a friendly face--sorta wrinkled and old,
And his nose and cheeks were red from the cold.
Under his mustache, his teeth had a grin,
And curly, white whiskers grew on his chin.
His cheek swelled a bit with a plug of chew,
And the back of his hand had a snowflake tattoo.
He had a big belly—he was a big fellow;
He shook all over like Ma’s Christmas Jell-O.
He was pure country--and no city slicker
All of a sudden, I started to laugh and snicker.
Ma punched me—I gasped, but Santa just winked;
He nibbled a cookie with milk for a drink.
He never said a word—just unloaded the treasure
Filled up the socks and a boot for good measure.
Scratching his belly, tying the bag in a knot,
And tipping his hat up the chimney he shot.
He climbed on his rig—with a shout--up they flew
Filling the skies like a harvesting crew.
 I heard him bellow, as he soared ‘cross the prairie,
“I hope this Christmas is happy and merry!”


©Alice Longaker
Christmas 2008

Monday, October 18, 2010

I Am Still Here!

I know it may seem like I dropped off the face of the earth, but nope.  Still here, thank God.  I have been missing due an accident.  I fell most of the way down a flight of stairs.  Yeah, pretty lame, I know!  Broke my left collar bone and ring finger on my right hand.  The shoulder is pretty good now.  My right hand is still in a cast, but I hope it will be off soon.

My stamping business has been on hold for a few weeks, but I am working on getting that back on track.  I even have a workshop scheduled for next month.  It will be really nice to stamp without this cast.

All of my children and grandchildren were home the weekend of the 9th.  We had so much fun!  We visited a local farm stand for pumpkins, Culver's for lunch (if you have never had a Culver's Butter Burger you are missing a wonderful burger), and then to the apple orchard by Baraboo. I will include a few photos here.
















 Forgive me for not writing a whole lot tonight, but it gets tiring.

TTFN,
Ginny

Friday, August 27, 2010

High School Reunion

I recently attended my 40 year high school reunion. I went to Alameda High School in Lakewood, Colorado. There were about 40 classmates attending and it was AMAZING! I couldn't believe how I still recognized most of them. Some have hardly changed since we graduated! I had been corresponding with some people on Facebook, but it was nice to see them in person. 


I am the 3 person from the left in the seated row.  I was laughing so hard!  All the spouses were clicking away with cameras and making silly comments.

This week my dear daughter and the two youngest grandbabes are visiting.  They have been visiting various friends and relatives to pet lots of animals.  They have seen rabbits, sheep, chickens, horses, ponies and COWS!  They get so excited by it all.  We went to the town hall to play on the little playground, we have been to Madison, and the kids have had a chance to visit some of their "cousins" (dear daughter's cousins' children) to play.

My mom is in Arkansas at my uncles' home.  He had heart surgery about 3 weeks ago and she went down to help him during his recovery.  I got a call from her last night saying that my uncle is back in the hospital with a possible stroke or TIA.  He has been recovering remarkably well until last night.  My prayers are going out to him and his family.

TTFN,
Ginny

Friday, June 25, 2010

New Business!

Hi, everyone! I know it has been a long time since I posted, but I do have a bit of news to share.

Two of my favorite hobbies are stamping and scrapbooking. Once upon a time I was a Stampin' Up! demonstrator, but I had to give it up as I was working full time and wasn't able to devote the time needed. Well, now I am retired and I have oodles of time. So I am once again a Stampin' Up! demonstrator! I have a new stamping blog and the address is: www.inkorswim-ginny.blogspot.com. Come and check it out. I will be posting projects, Stampin' Up! specials and more.

TTFN,
Ginny

Friday, April 9, 2010

Threes

They say bad things come in threes. I always kind of believed this but I think it was verified for me in the last two or three weeks. First, my husband's uncle passed away. He had a long and happy life and was 97 years old. I was ready to go to the funeral when my daughter called. Her father-in-law had reached the last days of his life. I headed down to help with her small children. Her FIL passed away two days after I arrived. Then, two days after his funeral I received a call that my aunt had passed away. I ended up flying down south then. I finally arrived back home this past Wednesday. Okay, enough for bad things.

We are going down to DS the elder's home tomorrow for my oldest granddaughter's birthday. I can't believe she is 9! I am looking forward to her party. It will be fun to see everyone. I have so much fun shopping for her. She is a very girly girl and I love buying her clothes. Her younger sister has declared herself a tom boy and doesn't want anything "girly" looking.

Done for now!

TTFN,
Ginny

Thursday, March 11, 2010

I think I have it!

I think I finally have enough novelty prints to make the I Spy quilts I have been planning for so long. When I started collecting fabrics, I never realized that it would take so long or be so hard to find enough different prints. At least the quarter yard I bought of each will be enough to do several quilts in different sizes.

Lately, I have been in a bit of a slump. I have turned really, really lazy; even worse that usual. Not sure how I am going to get around it. I don't feel especially depressed, but I do feel lethargic. When I leave home it gets better, but when I am here...ugh! Maybe I actually miss Mom more than I thought. If that is the case it will be better next month. Mom is due home on April 3.

My youngest son and his lovely wife bought their first home and are due to move in at the end of this month. I am so happy for them!

They just did a report on the news about a driver killed recently. Turns out she was texting and driving and didn't notice the semi truck in front of her. Not a pretty sight and sad because it is so preventable.

I am getting over a really stupid cold. It really just affected my throat. My throat got scratchy; a little at first then quite a bit in the middle. It's so annoying because nothing helps it. But, it is getting better...I think.

Okay, just wanted to throw a couple of thoughts out here.

TTFN
Ginny

Thursday, February 18, 2010

We're Home!











Herm forced me to get on the plane; darn it! I did NOT want to come home. We had the best time in Cancun. I love it there. We stayed at the Blue Bay Club Cancun. The resort is as far from the hotel zone as you can get. That means it was low key, peaceful, and perfect. I never knew I would like just laying on the beach so much. They have thatched roof umbrella shaped roofs that were perfect for me. I can't take the sun.

We liked it so well, we joined their vacation club. As members (actually the membership is with Premier by Original) we received VIP treatment and it was wonderful. I got so spoiled having someone bring me unlimited virgin pina coladas! I know, I know, I am a wuss! I don't drink, but they taste just as good without the booze. But, the bartenders kept repeating "no booze?" in stunned voices.

My right knee started acting up at the Cancun airport. We were in such long lines for immigration and customs. By the time we got to the hotel I was getting very cranky. They warn you about the time share people at the airport and Herm got pulled in for at least 45 minutes. I wasn't happy about standing around and there were no chairs or benches. But that was the only real bad experience I had.

On Saturday we went to Isla Mujeres; a lovely, small island near Cancun. You rent a golf cart there to see the whole island. They have the most beautiful colors on their homes. They were getting ready for Carnivale and there were floats loaded with dances everywhere. We had a great day.

On Monday, Wednesday and Friday each week they have dinner theater performances. They were fun takes on Disney themes. Monday was Pirates of the Caribbean, Wednesday The Lion King and Friday was The Little Mermaid. On Saturday they had a special Tribute to Micheal Jackson show. We really enjoyed the shows.

The food was wonderful! I tried new things and found I liked them. For instance: jicama (not sure if I spelled it right). A Mexican food vegetable that's taste and texture seemed to be a cross between a water chestnut and a raw potato. Tasty!

Blue Bay Club is not a new, elaborate hotel. But the staff more than makes up for that. The service was super and we will be going back next year. Okay, now to post a few photos and I will stop boring you.

TTFN,
Ginny

Saturday, February 6, 2010

My Dear Husband's 60th Birthday Party






What a fun evening we have had! All of my husband's brothers and sisters (along with their spouses) and all of our children and grandchildren gathered at a local restaurant tonight to celebrate his 60th birthday. He is the oldest of 10 children, so his reaching 60 is a milestone.

Our favorite local party place is the Dorf Haus. A German restaurant in the tiny village of Roxbury. The owners and their staff are wonderful and helped to make things special. Herm's brother, Paul (the baby of the family), got everyone there. Paul's wife, Tina, made adorable little favors of tiny wine bottles filled with M&Ms. Tina also ordered a cake from a friend of hers. It was so neat, a singing fish with gummy worm baits in Oreo "dirt".

I ordered the entertainment. If you live within 200 miles of Madison, Wisconsin and need a singing telegram I have just the person. Her name is Catherine and she is know as the Banana Lady. She came as Nurse Nancy to make sure Herm was fit to celebrate such a big birthday. Hilarious! She even made balloon animals for the grandchildren. Herm and our son, Mike, had balloon birthday hats, too. Catherine has a number of characters that she does and she incorporates information about the person into her performance. And, of course, she gets the birthday person very involved in it as well. I will attempt to post photos here.

Monday morning we leave for Cancun; weather permitting. So, I will be out of touch for over a week. I'm a little afraid of internet withdrawal but, all in all, it should be a good thing. Nothing to do for a whole week but read and talk to Herm.

TTFN,
Ginny

Monday, January 4, 2010

Thank you!

Thanks for the kind comments and words of encouragement. Sunny, I have nothing BUT time. The question is why don't I get MORE done? Because I am lazy, that's why. I could be sewing a lot more, but I don't. It is time to get going though. My intentions are to make quilts for each of my children and their spouses in time for their anniversaries this year. I would also like to make a couple of other quilts for my sisters and my mom. We'll see how it goes. A couple of them will be lap quilts so should go together fairly quickly.

As usual I saw in the New Year all alone. Sigh! My husband and mother don't make it past 9 or 10 pm.

DH took me to a movie this weekend. We have so much fun when we go out! Went to see Avatar 3D. Um, I think I prefer 2D. It is cool to see the 3D but it doesn't have the intensity of color and sharpness of the 2D. I didn't think it was worth the extra money. I had the same problems with Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs. The fuzziness of the 3D gives me a horrible headache. That said, I LOVED Avatar! The imagination of the piece was the best I have seen since Star Wars. More about Pandora please!

I did something toward cleaning out some of my "stuff" today. I searched the house for all the books on CD I have scattered all over. There are many sets missing discs, usually because I listened to them in the car and then in the house. Some are missing the jackets. So, I matched up all the sets I could and I am taking those to the second hand book store to get some credit to buy more books. My goodness! I had no idea there were so many! I love the books on CD for driving down to Chicago; especially when I am all by myself. Mom likes it, too, and it give us something to talk about when we are going somewhere. I even listen to them while I am sewing and stamping. I get more done when I have something to listen to. Time flies!

I have to admit that the craft room got a little messy over the holidays, but I am getting ready to go up there and put things away. Believe it or not, I was sewing right up to Christmas Eve. But I did get everything done and I am proud of myself.

The Miller Christmas Party was wonderful again this year. We have such wonderful traditions that make me happy I belong to this family. Santa comes every year for the little ones. My youngest granddaughter sat on his lap the whole time he was there! Thanks to Bob Gaumont for taking on Santa duty this year. Then we have a white elephant exchange. That is one of my favorite things we do. This year I got a gift box for my exchange. That's all. A gift box. My darling youngest son said, "Take our box, Mom. It is a really good one. It's the one with the curly red bow!". He got me!

Our family also does a charitable donation each year. Anyone who wants can write down the name of a charity and put it in the "hat". We also write down the amount we are willing to contribute. The best part is that this year my charity was drawn. I am proud to say that this year the Miller family donated $1040 to the St. Joseph's Indian School in Chamberlain, SD. DH and I have been donating to them ever since his father passed away. Dad was a supporter for a long time before that. I am proud to belong to this family.

Okay, goodnight! I have bored everyone enough now.

TTFN,
Ginny