TRIBUTE to Lovely Lady on Valentines Day

How this happened I don't know, but I love it.

Favorite New Zealand Photo

The highlight of our trip has to be all the family time we enjoyed. We are front row and included in my sister's family portrait. The only one missing is husband Tony who had to be in Christchurch on business. Not only did he miss being in the picture, he didn't get an ice cream cone. Took a long time to cone-up this group, and many gobbled theirs down before others were served.

Father Finds a New Chair

I wouldn't let him bring it home!

Advice

When was the last time you tried to organize you photos? Don't wait for 50 years. By that time you will have forgotten who's who and the date. I'm finally getting to my in-laws packed boxes of old photos. I'm finding so many classic and wonderful pictures that have no names or dates on the back. I can't believe my mother-in-law left this world without doing this. What a scramble it is to get them identified. Most of the ones who knew them died a while back. So, I'm depending on relatives who might recognize someone or the picture of someone. Sometimes, just getting one person named allows the picture person to identify the same person in other photos. Still, too many remain unknown and lost to future generations..

Gotta Love the Hair

Granted, he just got out of bed, but this boy has a record number of cowlicks. My favorite it his Alfalfa look. Aside from the hair, it's also great that he is reading. I know, you see him reading the funny papers here, but you're just as likely to see him with a thick book. A grandmother could go broke buying this boy books. I keep promoting the library and borrowing. When was the last time you visited your local library... well, that's too long.

Visiting Grandchildren

Yes, you see Hunter with a hammer destroying what was a boom box. Truth is, it was a 70's model we no longer use. I rescued it from the trash where Walt put it, and kept it for a "take-apart" project for the boys. Ethan became bored with after about 15 minutes, but H2 and I stuck with it for a couple of hours. That was one tough plastic encased unit. Our goal was to reuse the parts in an art project, but we didn't quite get to that part.

Fishing Pictures

Just so my New Zealand Family knows they don't have a corner on the market of "cute kid fishing pictures."

Sunday Dinner with Big Grandma

We invited Jim and Edna to dinner, and got Bob and Gloria as well. What a treat to have all of them. Bob and Mom hadn't been together since Dad's funeral in 1994. She was so excited she couldn't sleep that night. Bob charmed her in a big way.

Green Christmas Salad

This is a Christmas family tradition for for decades. Until, that is, my children came along. It absolutely horrifies them. I doubt a single one of the three has even taken a bite of it...if so, I bet it was spit out. Just a simple lime jello salad with cream cheese or cottage cheese, canned pineapple and nuts. It's cool and sweet and LOW in calories. Use sugar-free jello and even the diabetics and large folks can eat guilt free. Great leftovers. These days, I have to make it just to create a little drama at the Christmas table. I'm tickled when they protest so much and make fun of my jello salad.

Now, not the case with my nephews. They believe in traditions like green Christmas salad. I heard from my sister that nephew Brice was talking wishfully about it at their Christmas dinner in New Zealand. When I explained how easy it was to make, she informed me that NZ jello just wasn't the same. I've written a note to myself to send HEB lime jello to NZ for next year.

I wonder if others have a Christmas traditions that gets mixed reviews?

Good Surprise

We came home yesterday from a lovely late lunch to discover our daughter Stehle had popped in for a surprise visit. Praise the "use or lose your vacation days before the end of the year" edict! So far we have had morning coffee on the deck (one of my favorite things) and attended an art show in progress in the picture. Currently, Stehle and Dad are tooling around in the T-Bird. Tonight may be the river boats in downtown SA with all the Christmas lights in their glory (another of my favorite things). All of you should be jealous.

It's True!

Start working on your family history, and you get sucked in. Finding the pieces and placing them in the right spot is the ultimate jigsaw puzzle. And, like any less than brand new puzzle, there are always missing pieces.

The Importance of Saving

Who knew when I stored that 8mm film in the box 45 years ago that I'd someday have a computer that would let me transform it into something as portable as a you tube video. Slicing and dicing, packaging and applying sound is a learning process. This was an afternoon project, but I'm ready to share it with family.

I love my new computer!

When Old Is New

I recently open a box that had been sealed for 25 years.  In it was some 8mm film taken 45 years ago.  Got it digitized and worked it into this film, my first You Tube upload.  It's only important to family members.  To me, it is a real treasure.

Ghost of Halloween Past

Chocolate Pie

This past week celebrated the birthdays of my youngest, Stehle, and her son Blake. Stehle always plans a vacation week with her Mom and Dad in San Antonio. We took this opportunity to celebrate Blake's also. His official B-Day is in May, but this is the first we've seen him since. His birthday request was a chocolate pie. I baked it while the rest of them went to the movies.

Evan

There is a young man in my life that makes me very proud. He is such a special boy...sweet, loving, considerate, charming, smart, athletic, adventuresome and loved by all kinds of women. I've prepared a bit of a look at him through the eyes of the women, children and pets that love him. I'm the lucky woman he calls "Aunt."

Sisters

What a pleasure to have my two daughters join me on a girl trip to New Zealand! We had a chance to interact as adults and to celebrate family. My sister lives there and so do all her children. We had a wonderful time. I invite you to share in our adventures.

ALL TOGETHER

Seldom does the entire family get to visit San Antonio, but we got to have them the last week of summer. Mason works and goes to school during the week, and Dijea works weekends. That doesn't leave an opportunity for the whole gang to travel south. Mason was between semesters, so they opted to visit. While I had them here, I managed to get a new family photo. The one that resides on Big Grandma's fridge is from Christmas two years ago. Time to replace.

We enjoyed the boys and their folks. They are a pretty good bunch of kids.

Generation Gap X 2

The oldest and youngest of our family shares a book. Big Grandma is 86 years old and reading to her youngest great-grandson, 2 1/2 year-old Tommie Charles Bodden, who lives in New Zealand. It is his first trip to America and his first meeting with Big Grandma and his American family. All his great-grand cousins came to call. It's big deal!

Return to Normal

We enjoyed the month of May enormously. My sister, Susan, who lives in New Zealand visited for a month. What a joy to have her. She totally spoiled our mother, and now I am instructed to do things "the way Susan did them" by the mother who used to think I could do no wrong. OK, so I have to give her credit! Not a bad thing.

Her being here brought in all sorts of company to visit her and us. Dijea and her boys drove down. Friends from Corpus came, and so did our cousin Lois. Susan went to Dallas to visit my girls and my grandchildren. She also went to Fredericksburg with Lois for a "girls luxury weekend," had a pedicure, and two massages. We tried to pamper her a bit too. She also gained weight, dispite going with me to CURVES while she was here. No more fajitas and breakfast tacos for a while!

Now there is not so much to do. Life is less brite withour her sunshine. We miss you, Girl!