Day 3

Another very busy day. Got up and got ready for church. Tina and Tony were out, so that left us short-handed with musicians. Steve even asked Vance if he would play, but Jamie and Scotty showed up. Pastor Sammy preached on John 5:1-16. We had quite a few people there today and one visitor got saved. Praise the Lord! That's what it's all about. Fox did great in the nursery. He attached himself to Mrs. Lettie - most of the kids do. We stayed around a little while so Vance could talk to people. Michelle had stayed at the house and she and Vance took some more boxes to Goodwill.

When we got home, Michelle met me at the door and said "I hope you're okay with what we did. I called Chad over to help me move the china cabinet into the living room." I told her that I always wanted it there and I was glad she had gotten my vision. But, she said I had to get rid of the sofa table. No problem. It wasn't my style anyway. Chad even had a great idea about the big piece of furniture in the dining room - to move it over beside the kitchen cabinets and use it for a pantry. That way we don't have to get down on hands and knees to find food in the cabinets. Great idea!

I had called Tabitha and told her to meet us at PoFolks so we could eat before we got started. When we got there, it was packed and the front porch was loaded with people waiting to get in. We decided to go to Arby's instead. We all ate and headed home. Vance took Fox to put him down for a nap. Michelle and I got busy and then Tabitha came over. Kim followed, so all four of us were busy in the kitchen. Tabitha and I moved the new pantry into position. It's going to be great. Kim, Tabitha and I got down and unloaded the lower cabinets. There were things in there that have been there since we moved in - oil lanterns, oil, empty mason jars. We threw out a lot of stuff. Kim put down shelf paper and we moved the food into the new pantry. We decided to use the lower cabinets for cleaning supplies, small appliances that we don't use all the time, etc. It looks so uncluttered! Tabitha got up on the counter and cleaned and moved stuff around on the tops of the cabinets. I have a black and white toile tea set that I just love. I think I've decided I want to paint the kitchen red (where the wallpaper is under the cabinets), a creamy yellow everywhere else, black and white toile curtains and pops of red mingled throughout.

Tabitha told me that her sister, Tiffany, wants to give me new counter tops at her cost and she will install them for free. That would really change the look of the kitchen. And also replace the cabinet in the bathroom. I would love that.

Vance talked me into getting rid of the treadmill. The readouts don't work and I can't compete against myself, so it's boring to walk on it. And it's taking up valuable space. I had held off cause I was afraid I'd hurt his feelings. He bought it for me several years ago. I used it then and it helped me lose weight, but it's just boring to me now. So, off to Goodwill it goes tomorrow.

Michelle, Tabitha and Kim did a lot today. Tabitha is coming back tomorrow morning to help me some more on the dining room (which will now be called the craft room.) Next, I'll tackle the computer room. I plan on putting the computer in the craft room when we can set it up. I talked to son, Vance, and he said I could put it where I want to and just run a longer phone line to it. Eventually, we'll get cable hook up (which I already have in that room). After they all left, I rested a few minutes, then started cleaning out some more stuff. I'm beginning to get the hang of this. I've thrown away stuff that I never thought I'd part with. And I didn't need anybody to tell me to throw/give it away. God has really been in the midst of all this. There has not been a single cross word spoken from anybody. We're still all friends.

I feel my spiritual life getting stronger as I clear away the clutter. I believe this is going to be a good thing for me and for Vance. That our home will become a sanctuary instead of chaos. That our lives will become even more peaceful than it already is.

That's all for tonight. It's almost 2:00am and I think I need a little sleep before I get started again tomorrow. Goodnight and God bless.............Especially bless my angels: Michelle, Tabitha, Kim, Vance, Vance,Jr, and Chad. I couldn't have done this without them.

Day 2

I stayed up till after 1:00 this morning trying to get started on the house. Slept pretty good. Woke up around 6:30 and did a little work before I fixed a smoothie for breakfast. Vance went and played golf. Nobody is going to stand in the way of his golf game. Vance, Michelle and Fox came over around 9:00. Vance left with Fox and Michelle realized he had left his cell phone, so we decided to go shopping before we started decluttering and see if we couldn't find Vance at Best Buy. Couldn't find him, but we went to Office Max and got bankers boxes. They had a good sale - $14.99 for 10, but if you bought twenty, you got 10 more free. It ended up being $1.00 per box. That's a pretty good deal. Next, we went to Target and got new canisters (square ones so there is no wasted space around them), a new toaster oven (because I burned up our old one), some more organizers (plastic shoe boxes, etc.), some cleaning supplies. Went to Jo-Ann Fabrics and found a spool organizer to hang my jewelry on. Came home and got busy.

We started in the living room. We have the built-in bookcases that were just filled with books, videos, knick-knacks.... I found myself putting most of it in the Goodwill boxes. We ended up carrying off 10 boxes to Goodwill; some pretty good stuff, too. I found out it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be to get rid of stuff. I've never been able to do this before. I always wanted to hang onto my stuff. Michelle was surprised that I didn't argue over getting rid of things. I know I've had a lot of people praying for me, and it shows. I was calm about the whole process. I had stressed for days before, but it really wasn't all that bad. Vance took my old computer and an external harddrive and put it in his car to take home. He's going to download everything and clean up the computer so I can give it to Trent and Hope to play games on. He cleaned up my computer while he was here and Fox was napping.

Tabitha and Kim didn't get to come, but I understood. Tabitha needed some family time. She, Chad and the kids never get to be alone. They always have family or friends over all the time. Kim had to take care of her granddaughters so Carrianne could work. We didn't even call Fran because she can't lift anything and I'll need her for the decorating after we get all the stuff out that needs to be gotten out. She can tell us where to put the furniture. I knew if we called her she would want to help and she'd probably just hurt herself. I sure don't want that to happen. So, it was just Michelle and me. I'm just so thankful to her for doing this with me. She says she's been wanting to do it for a long time (and she has, but I wasn't ready). Kim said she would come over Monday afternoon and help and Tabitha wants to come next Saturday and get the craft room done. Sounds great to me. I knew we wouldn't be able to get it all done in one day. Michelle is going to come over in the morning and put the kitchen together while Vance and Fox go to church with me.

Vance came home around 3:00 from golfing and you could tell he was tired. We had four boxes of his stuff for him to go through. I think he went through one box before he gave out. He wouldn't go to eat with us, so Vance, Michelle, Fox and I went to Captain D's and ate. It was nice just to sit down for a little while. Michelle and I only took little bitty breaks and not very many of them. We worked hard all day. They dropped me off and went to put Fox to bed. Vance fell asleep in his recliner, so that ended working in the living room. I moved to the kitchen and started emptying out cabinets. Put a lot of dishes in boxes to take to Goodwill. I think I filled up 3 more boxes. I washed out the old round canisters and they will also go to Goodwill. Set up the toaster oven and the new canisters. I'll let Michelle put everything where she wants to in the morning. It's almost midnight and I'm exhausted. Think I'll take my bath and go climb into bed.

Goodnight and God bless................
Thank you Michelle for all your hard work. And thank you Tabitha and Kim for the work you will be doing. And Fran for the decorating to come. I've got such great people behind me.

The Quest Has Begun

It was a much better day at work today. Mainly because I used the old timekeeping system, which is soooooo much faster. I'd probably still be there if I had used the new system. I can see that I will probably be working overtime a lot when we switch to the new system and do away with the old. Oh well, a little extra money never hurt anybody.

I finished my timesheets and was able to take 1 1/2 hour vacation this afternoon. That leaves one day that I will be taking on Monday. Then, I start all over again next week with five weeks vacation. Hopefully, I won't have to use too many for doctor's appointments for Daddy. He's doing so much better. Vance was home when I got here. He'd gotten off early, too. He's off all next week. I worked a little in the computer room and dining room before Michelle called to let us know they were getting close.

Vance, Michelle and Fox are here! We met them at Appleby's for supper. We waited for over an hour for our food. People with other servers were coming, eating and leaving before we ever got served. She did serve Fox his about 20-30 minutes before we got ours. He was so good. He kept looking over at me and saying "Nonna" and just smiling. I love it. He talks so plain and says so many words. He kept talking to the people around us. One little old grandmother stopped and talked to him on her way out.

Vance and Michelle took Fox over to Skip and Brenda's where they are staying the night. Vance said he'd put him to bed, so Michelle came back over to the house and we got started. We walked around in each room so she could get an idea of what I wanted to do in that room. She came up with some great ideas about organizing. Looks like we are going to be getting rid of the big desk and using my old little desk in the dining room for my computer. That will help me not to clutter it up. The desk I'm using right now is 3'x6'. I can put a lot of stuff on top of that. It's a really nice desk, but I'm not as upset about getting rid of it as I thought I would be. As a matter of fact, I'm not upset at all.

In Vance's closet, there were a lot of coats that we aren't wearing. We are going to install a closet organizer in that closet. After Michelle left, I packed up a box full of coats and old shirts that Vance doesn't wear. They will go to the Mission House so somebody that really needs them can have them without having to pay for them.

In the kitchen, we went through the cabinets and decided I needed to get rid of a lot of dishes that we aren't using. I have my grandmother's amber depression glasses that I hardly ever use (cause they don't hold much). I was keeping them because they are old and might be worth something some day and they used to belong to my grandmother. She gave them to me for a wedding present. That means I've had them 37 years. But, you know what? I really don't need them. So, off to a consignment shop they will go. I might be able to get some money out the stuff I've been holding onto. I have probably 20 coffee cups/mugs. Michelle asked if I could get by with four, so I'm picking out four for home and one to take to work. The rest will go to a consignment shop. My round canisters will have to go. Round things take up more room than square ones. While we were standing there talking, Michelle was able to throw away a lot of old stuff and we have about 8 round containers to wash and take to a consignment shop. Already the counter space is looking better.

We found about 20 or so record albums in a cabinet in the living room. We don't have a record player, so they will go to a used record store. I'm not even going to miss them since I haven't heard them in years. We have a built-in window seat/bookcases/under-seat cabinets across the back wall. Of course, it's all cluttered with books, knick-knacks and who knows what in the cabinets. That's where we are going to put all the pictures and albums. Loose pictures will go in decorative boxes. I'm getting excited about the organization. So far, I haven't gotten upset about any of the suggestions. I'm learning to let it go.

Okay, it's after midnight, so I've probably got at least another hour that I can do something. Maybe I'll go measure some spaces so we'll know what furniture can work where. If I'm brave enough, I may post some before/after pictures in the next few days. Maybe.....just the after.

I better get busy. I guess I should try to get some sleep. It's going to be a big day tomorrow.

Goodnight and God bless................

I'm Stressing!

It was a really stressful day at work. Timesheets have backed up, the system went down...... Not good since tomorrow is close-out day.

Then, I get home and go into my computer room. Like I said yesterday, it looks like a tornado hit. I started throwing stuff out, uncovering things that I'd lost. I put things in a bag to go to Goodwill and a bag to carry to Kim. It still looks like a tornado hit! I'm overwhelmed, ashamed and embarrassed about the way it looks. Michelle will be here tomorrow to start decluttering. I got so stressed that I thought I was going to have one of those dizzy/vomiting attacks. The room started spinning and I started praying. I can't let this get to me like this. I had to stop and go sit in the living room cause my back got to hurting. I was close to tears and told Vance that they all
would be better off without me, then they could just come in and throw everything away. He said "No, we wouldn't be better off without you." At least, I'm not as bad as my grandmother yet. You should see her house! It's not like those hoarders you see on TV where you can't walk cause things are stacked to the ceiling, but there is furniture everywhere and the closets are stuffed with things. Then, she had four sheds built to hold stuff. I think I counted 12 big plastic containers full of Christmas decorations and then there were Santas in boxes everywhere. No, I'm not that bad yet. But, she had 50 years living in that house to accumulate things. I've only been here 21 or 22 years. Maybe, with Michelle and Tabitha's help, I won't ever get that bad.

Even though I still haven't finished this room, I'm too tired to do anything else. I've got to get to bed so I'll be able to work tomorrow and then come home and help Michelle. It's going to be a long weekend. But, I'm looking forward to seeing what the house looks like when we get through. God bless Michelle, Tabitha, Kim and Fran. Fran can't really do anything until we get ready to move furniture. Then, she can show us where to put things. She's had surgery and can't lift anything. I think I'll tell her to wait until Saturday afternoon to come. Maybe we'll have a room ready to be decorated. That's her expertise.

Goodnight and God bless.............Please say a prayer for us, especially me - that I can let go of things and learn to get organized and stay that way.

Our God is an Awesome God!

I'm going to start out with a praise report before I tell you what I did all day. Who cares what I did! My mother-in-law called a couple of hours ago and said the doctors had made a mistake and Mac does not have cancer! Praise the Lord! Mistake? Maybe, maybe not..... It could be that God healed him overnight. I told you my God could heal. He is so awesome! I am so happy; I just can't stand it. Last night when Rosie called, the song "Who's Report Shall You Believe?" just kept going over and over in my head. I'd wake up in the middle of the night hearing it in my head.
"Who's report shall you believe? We shall believe the report of the Lord. His report says I am healed. His report says I am filled. His report says I am free. His report says VICTORY!" I was at peace about Mac. Today, I still felt like he was going to be okay. I just felt it deep inside and didn't worry about him. Rosie sure was in good spirits, too. She said Mac was really in good spirits. Don't you know it?! Now, he just needs to gain his strength so that he can have the surgery to put his stomach back in place.

Today, it was back at work after 7 days off. Those 7 days just flew by. Of course, I had a stack of timesheets to do. I only made it up through the 20th when I left around 5:00 today. Got to get cracking tomorrow so I can get them in on Friday. I ran up to Taco Bell at lunch and rushed back. Kim was off and I missed having coffee with her this morning. But, I did talk to her on the phone. The girls had a great Christmas. She's babysitting this week cause it was going to cost an arm and a leg for all three girls to go to daycare. Good thing she had vacation left. God blessed us both with a few days off at Christmas. Can't remember the last time I had off around this time of the year.

I came home and got started purging stuff in my computer room. Wow! I found some winter clothes in my closet when I started putting away the summer clothes in a plastic bin. I might just have enough winter clothes to get me by without having to buy anything. That will be a first. I even found a Christmas vest and sweater that I didn't remember having. Actually, they are winter vests. I make sure I don't buy any with Santa on them so I can wear them after Christmas when it gets cold here. Most of the time, it's warm on Christmas day. Not this year, but a lot of years it is. Right now, my room looks like a tornado hit. I had to move stuff off the desk so I could get to my computer to send out a praise report to the prayer group. That was something that just couldn't wait.

I guess I better get off this computer and get busy on setting the room in some type of order before I go to bed. (I could be here all night.) No, I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. I can and will get this done!

Goodnight and God bless.............
He sure blesses me!!!!!

Merry Christmas

Christmas is officially over. Whew! It has been a whirlwind of activity around the Rutherford house. As usual, I waited until the last week to do my Christmas shopping. Actually, did most of it Christmas Eve. Got some great bargains and the lines weren't very long at all. Some places didn't even have lines. Tabitha and I shopped together, which was a lot of fun. We enjoyed spending the time together. I mean we shopped until we literally dropped! Had to rush home to get over to Chip and Angie's to celebrate with my family. I didn't even have time to change into my Christmas outfit, so I just went "as is." Check out www.picasaweb.google.com/rutherford.patricia for our Christmas album.

After celebrating with the Brown's, Tabitha and I did some more shopping. Then, I went home exhausted and rested a little while before Kim came over for a visit. Really enjoyed seeing her. She had people in and out of her house all day, so visiting with us was a nice, quiet part of her day.

After Vance went to sleep, I wrapped all the gifts and got to bed around midnight. I used to stay up all night long and wrap gifts, but I guess I'm getting too old for that tradition. I need my beauty rest. Vinnie woke me up around 2:00. Guess he heard Santa flying overhead, cause he wanted out to bark at something. :) Vance got up around 3:00 to stoke the coals and put the ham on the smoker to cook.

Daddy called around 8:00 to wish us a Merry Christmas. He was going to eat with his sister, Rose, and her family. I wanted to invite him over to our house, but Mama was coming and she doesn't want to be around him. She tends to hold grudges for decades. It makes it real hard on me, cause I'd like to be with both parents. After all, they are 77 and may not be around too many more years. Christmas day is Mama's birthday.

Penny called and needed Vance to come over and hook up a battery charger to the 4-wheeler that Swayde got for Christmas. He was glad to help. He went at 10:00 to pick up Mama and Chad, Tabitha and the kids got here right after they did. We ate Christmas dinner around 11:00. Vance cooked the turkey and ham and Tabitha cooked dressing, turnips, black-eyed peas, mashed potatoes, gravy, rolls and pumpkin pie (which we didn't even cut - we were so full). We opened gifts and then they had to leave and I took Mama home. Sat with her about and hour, then came home exhausted. I came in the house and Vinnie walked over to the door and just stared at it. I thought maybe he was waiting for somebody to come, but then I realized we had not given him and Shadow their gifts. They were in a stocking hanging on the back of the door. I started to reach for it and he jumped up and started wagging his tail. Shadow didn't really care, but Vinnie was excited about his toys. He knew he was supposed to get something, too. He's 14 years old, and knows that we get him a gift every year. You can't tell me dogs aren't smart!

Started to take a nap and Daddy called, so I went over to his apartment and took him his gifts. Sat with him about an hour and a half, then came home. Vance cooked the dressing that Debb had made for us and we ate supper. He said "Now, that's good dressing." Debb was so sweet to make it for us and yes, it was delicious!

All in all, we had a wonderful Christmas, until I talked to my mother-in-law and found out that the doctors say Mac has colon cancer. That really put a damper on things. But, he's been healed of lung cancer, so I believe he can be healed of this, too. We will be praying and asking others to pray with us for his healing.

Let's never forget the real reason for the season - Jesus Christ. Like Trent prayed today when he said grace "Heavenly Father, we thank You for this food and ask You to bless it to our bodies. Thank You for the birth of Jesus, cause without Him, we wouldn't have Christmas. Amen." What a blessing coming from a 9 year old. Such wisdom...........

Goodnight and God bless.........

Only 3 Shopping Days Left.....

I slept in this morning. Boy, I could get used to this vacation thing. It's been so long since I've had one that I'd forgotten what it was like. I'm not used to sleeping late, but I slept till 8:30 this morning. But, the bad thing about getting so much sleep is that I have no energy the rest of the day. Doesn't make sense, does it? But that's the way my body works. I couldn't get started doing anything this morning. Finally, around 10:00 I started getting myself ready to go shopping. As I was straightening my hair, my next door neighbor came knocking on my front door. I looked a sight, but I answered the door anyway. She wanted to know where I wanted her to put the basketball goal that they were giving to Trent. Her son is moving out and doesn't want to take it with him, so they decided to give it to Trent. She had already talked to Vance about it. I told her just anywhere in the front yard and I thanked her for it.

Finally left the house about 11:30 or 12:00. Decided to go to Wal-Mart and just walk around until something struck my fancy. Bought Trent a new basketball and looked for a replacement net, but couldn't find one. After about two hours of shopping, I went to Chick-Fil-A to get something to eat. I had forgotten to eat breakfast, so I was getting pretty hungry.

Came back to the house just as Vance was trying to get the basketball goal in his truck. I helped him load it and he went to deliver it. He said they set it up and were playing when he left - Trent and two of the neighborhood boys. When he got back, he took his shower and got ready for my party at Rodeo's.

I had no idea what I was going to wear to the party, so I went looking through my closet this morning. Found a pair of black pants that I haven't worn in over two years and they fit, so I deceided to wear the black shirt Michelle and Vance gave me and bought a black Christmas vest to go with it. It looked very festive. When we got to the party, Vance seemed to be having a good time, talking to a couple of the guys he knew. Scotty told him he has a twin. That he had run into a man last night that looked just like Vance and even chased him down and was talking to him when the guy said he had mistaken him for somebody else. Scotty didn't know that Vance had shaved off his beard. He said the guy was the spitten image of Vance with a beard. I had heard there was somebody in town that looked like Vance. We had a good meal and was there for two hours before coming home. Vance had not realized it was my church party. He thought it was my work party. But, I think he enjoyed himself anyway. Maybe he will realize that church people aren't snobs; they are real people like himself.

I've still got a little more shopping to do, so I guess I'll do some more tomorrow. Now, it's time for bed. Goodnight and God bless...................

These are a few pictures I took when we all got together last Sunday.

Only 4 Shopping Days Left.......

Only 4 shopping days left and I'm going to use up every one of them. Got a little done today, but still have a lot to do. I'm just not cut out to shop. It's not something I enjoy, cause I just don't know what to buy for other people. I've seen a lot of stuff that I'd like for myself. As a matter of fact, I bought myself a Christmas vest today to wear tomorrow night to our Church Christmas Dinner (60% off - it pays to wait till the last minute). Vance even said he'd go with me. Biggest shock of my life. He never, ever wants to go to parties with me. I'm usually there by myself or with the other single women. It will be nice to have a man with me for a change. I'm hoping he will enjoy himself and see that the people I go to church with are just people like him, not a bunch of stuck-up, holier-than-thou snobs.

I've made a bunch more ornaments and still have a few more to go. I've got to go back to the office tomorrow and pick up some more of my old photo CD's. I don't want to use new ones. That would be a waste. I'll use the ones that have already been used for my pictures. I've just backed them up again, so the old CD's are just duplicates.

We had a Christmas dinner at work today, so I went for that. It was really good - pecan-crusted whitefish, baked beans, cole slaw, potato salad, hushpuppies and peach cobbler with vanilla ice cream for dessert. I stuck around for three hours just talking to some of the employees. Then I went to Goody's to do some shopping. Ran into Angie Coleman, who used to work with us. She was doing so good selling MaryKay that she quit and started doing that fulltime. I think she now drives one of the pink Cadillacs. I saw one in the parking lot when I drove up and thought of her. I know she had already gotten a car five years ago from MaryKay and she was still working with us at the time, cause she picked me up for about six weeks when I broke my foot and couldn't drive and we rode in the car she had just gotten.

Penny called as I was leaving Goody's to ask if I could pick Swayde up from daycare and keep him while she worked late. No problem. I went to Wal-Mart and did a little more shopping, then picked Swayde up. He was very good. Had candy from his school party that he was eating while I worked on some ornaments. He would have eaten it all if I hadn't stopped him. But, he did share. He doesn't like Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, so he gave three of them to me. That was sweet of him. He even took some Christmas paper and made me an ornament.

Penny and Tiffaney came by to pick him up. They walked around my tree looking at the ornaments I had on it, especially the ones I made this year.

Now, it's time for me to get to bed. I've got work to do tomorrow. I haven't had a chance to work on the house yet. Michelle called and wanted to know what I had gotten done. I've been too busy. I need to get all the rest of my shopping done tomorrow, so I can work on the house this weekend.

Goodnight and God bless...................

Merry Christmas to My Husband's Family

We were short on the platform this morning at church. So many people were out sick. I pray that all get better real soon. We had a lot of visitors. Just hope they come back and bring people with them. They really seemed to enjoy the service.

Went to Sam's after church and got a carrot cake and baklava to carry over to Skip and Brenda's. Came home and finished some of the ornaments that I needed to take with me. Made potato salad to take - sorry Chad, I forgot and put pickles in all of it. I usually make half with pickles and half without cause neither of my boys likes pickles. I was in a hurry and just dumped them in before I stopped to think about what I was doing. But, we had plenty of food to eat, so I'm not worried about them starving. There was a whole table full of desserts. Too many for me to sample. I just got a couple of homemade cookies that Tabitha made and a small sliver of Key Lime pie. Didn't even have time to eat all of that. We were opening presents and I was taking pictures. Vance was right - it turned cold today. Yes, it feels more like Christmas now.

I had so much fun over at Skip and Brenda's. It was hard for me to leave. Vance was ready to go right after we ate, but I love being around the family. We need to get together more often.

Everybody loved the ornaments I made them. Brenda said she was looking for one and I told her I needed to get a picture of her and Skip so I could make one. So, I got them to stand still long enough for a picture. I'll make the ornament tomorrow and drop it off later in the week at their work. I'll be off Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. I can finish my shopping and get started cleaning out stuff before the girls come.

Michelle said she talked to Vance and he's ready for the house to be de-cluttered. He's actually ready for a change. What's gotten into the man?! He never wants anything to change. I think Michelle has a good effect on him. Can't wait to see what it looks like when we're finished.

I've had a splitting headache since yesterday, so I think I better take some more Motrin and go to bed. Goodnight and God bless.....................

Christmas Shopping Done - Well, Almost

I didn't get out as early as I wanted to this morning. I'm just not a morning person. I like to laze around the house for a few hours on Saturday morning. Was working on Christmas ornaments that I am making when Michelle called. She told me to set aside the Saturday after Christmas because she and the girls (Tabitha, Fran and Kim) were coming over to do a Clean Sweep of my house. Yes, I think I am finally ready to get rid of the clutter and put my house in order. I'm so tired of not being able to find things and just piling things up because there is no place to put them. When you've lived somewhere for over 20 years, you accumulate so much stuff! Some of it may be hard to part with, but I will try not to hold on to too much. What a blessing my girls and friends are to do this.

Went shopping when it started raining. Well, not too hard, so it wasn't so bad. I just don't like all the traffic and the crowds. Got most of it done for tomorrow's gift exchange. Just need to go get something to carry to eat. I guess I'll go to Sam's when I get out of church tomorrow, then I think I'll make a potato salad to carry. Michelle suggested gift cards so that's what I got for most everybody. Kim called while I was in Target (buying wrapping paper and bags). She said she would definitely be there to help with the house.

Came home and washed clothes and worked on my ornaments. I've got several to make before Christmas. Vance came home from playing golf and I told him I'd need his truck to carry things to Goodwill on the 29th. He said he'd leave it with me. I know he'll probably be glad to get some of this junk moved out. Hopefully, he will have the bedroom ceiling put in and the room painted so we can set up the furniture.

I cannot believe how hot it is right now, but Vance says it's supposed to get cold tomorrow night. Maybe it will feel more like Christmas. It's hard to get in the spirit when it's so hot outside.

Guess I better get to bed. Goodnight and God bless.................

Have You Ever Lost Something Important?

This has been a very busy week at work. So many people are on vacation that I didn't get the timesheets every day like I usually do. That meant several days worth to do yesterday and today. I worked until 5:30 last night trying to catch up. Was supposed to go by my mother's to carry her some money and I completely forgot. I was so tired when I left work that I just headed home. Didn't remember until I was on my way to work this morning.

I was supposed to go to Chipley for a retirement reception for one of my co-workers that I have known for 37 years. Did I get to go? No, I had too many timesheets to do. So, I met my sister-in-law, Angie, and a friend that I used to go to church with and play softball with, for lunch. We had a good time while eating Mexican food. That's the first time ever that I have been able to eat lunch with Angie. When she worked at the school, she couldn't leave at lunch. Now that she works at the School Board main office, she can go out to lunch. We'll have to do this again sometime.

When I was getting ready to finish my timesheets, I realized that I had not entered the time for the Transmission crew. Richard brought me the timesheets for the week yesterday afternoon and I faxed them to Pensacola to be signed. What I did with the originals, I do not know. I looked high and low for them and could not find them. I was in a panic. I knew the supervisor in Pensacola was on vacation, so I was getting more upset by the minute. What on earth was I going to do? Debb called while I was freaking out and close to tears. She tried to calm me down. She prayed for me and tried to help give suggestions. Before we got off the phone, she said "Pat, can you do something for me? It's very important. I need you to come over to my house when you get off this afternoon." I told her I had to go to my mom's first, then I'd come over there. I still couldn't find the timesheets. I went over to the main office and looked through the mail bag thinking I might have put them in an envelope. Couldn't find them. It's possible that I did put them in an envelope and it got mailed yesterday. I tried calling the supervisor and of course, he was not in. I looked at the older timesheets that had a signature on it and it was another person altogether. I could read his first name, but not his last. I kept searching through the timesheets until I was able to read LU of the last name. So, I went to my email account, pulled up the company address book and typed in LU. I scrolled down until I found the first name and this person just happened to be in Pensacola in the Transmission Dept. I called and he wasn't in. I was crying by this time and figured I would just have to enter some account number for the guys to get them paid and then go back in on Monday and correct the timesheets. About five minutes later, the guy called. I asked him if he had gotten the timesheets I had faxed to the other supervisor and he said no, but he'd look for them. He called me back and said he found them. I asked him to please fax them back to me and explained that I had lost the originals. In 30 years of doing timesheets, I have never lost a timesheet. He was very gracious and immediately faxed them to me. Thank You, Lord! I don't ever want to go through that again.

I got off work and went to Mama's. We talked about 45 minutes and then I left to go to Debb's. She made me sit down in her recliner and she got me a glass of tea to drink. Then, she gave me a gift certificate from Bath and Body Works and told me she thought I needed it before Christmas. She told me to go there tomorrow and buy something that would soothe my weary spirit. I am so blessed to have friends who really care about me. She was the one who called Saturday when I was trying to figure out how to rearrange my living room so I could put up a Christmas Tree. I was crying then, too, and thinking the world would be a better place if I wasn't in it - well, at least Vance would be better off. He wouldn't have to put up with all my junk in the house that I can't bear to part with. She calmed me down and I was able to think rationally and only had to move one little end table out of the living room. I decorated and it looks good.

Was talking to Fran about my episode Saturday and she said we needed to do a Clean Sweep of my house (Michelle and Tabitha have been trying to do that for years). She said she could come over and help me rearrange the living room so it would look totally different. Don't know how Vance would feel about that. He doesn't like to change. He wouldn't let me get rid of the ugly drapes in the living room for over 20 years. Finally, I was putting up the Christmas tree a few years ago and the drapes literally fell apart in my hands when I opened them up. I jerked them down and put up curtains Debb had given me. I changed them out this year, and he hasn't said anything.

I also realized today that I have to go Christmas shopping tomorrow. The Rutherford get-together is Sunday afternoon. I've got six more presents to buy! I just can't seem to get going this year. I had planned on meeting some of the ladies from church and going to see "The Chipmunks" movie tomorrow. I think that's probably out. Since I don't like to shop and have no earthly idea what to buy, I'll probably be hitting the shops all day. I hate to shop by myself. Tabitha and I are planning on going shopping right before Christmas. That's more my style. I love to shop Christmas Eve. You can get some really good deals. Then, I like to stay up all night wrapping presents. That's a tradition that's gone by the wayside. Now, our families celebrate a week before and on Christmas Eve. That leaves Christmas Day for Vance and I to be alone. He wants to cook and invite somebody over, but everybody seems to have other plans. And I can't invite my parents cause they are divorced and don't get along. Hate to invite one and not the other, so looks like we'll all just be alone on Christmas Day. Maybe Vance and I can get started putting up the ceiling in the spare bedroom. He's planning on doing that and painting the week of Christmas. I can't be off that week because of timesheets, but I'll be off three days next week and the 31st. Maybe I can get some of the stuff moved out of the room so he can move around in there.

Time for bed if I'm going to get an early start tomorrow. Goodnight and God bless................

Happy Anniversary

Yesterday was mine and Vance's 37th wedding anniversary. Wow! That's a long time. But, then I think about my grandparents who were married 70 years and 37 doesn't seem very long at all.

Yesterday was also the day we buried Pastor Fred. What a wonderful celebration we had. There were over 500 people there to give their respects. We sang, we laughed and we cried many a tear. Beautiful words were spoken during the two-hour service. Two hours seems like a long time for a funeral, but it really didn't seem that long. I reconnected with many of my Springfield family during the visitation Monday night and visitation right before the service began yesterday. It was more like a family reunion than a funeral. Yes, we were sad; but we all knew that Pastor Fred would be waiting for us in heaven when our days on this earth are done. What an awesome man he was. He will be missed by hundreds. The funeral ended with an audio of Pastor Fred singing "The Anchor Holds". That was one of his favorite songs. "Goodbye Pastor Fred. I'll see you again on the other side." And I will always remember what he taught me - forgive, forgive, forgive.......

Goodnight and God bless................

A Very Great Man Has Died

Yesterday, around noon, one of the greatest men I have ever known went home to be with the Lord - Pastor Fred Melvin. He was a most humble and gentle man. He taught me so much about the Lord. One thing that he was always preaching about was forgiveness. He told us to purpose in our hearts to forgive people even before they needed forgiving. No matter what they did to us, we were to forgive them. I took that to heart and made it a point to walk in forgiveness. Whenever I got hurt, I didn't let it get down deep enough to fester. Because of him, I learned to shake it off and go on. Have I gotten hurt; yes, many times. But I'd always remember what Pastor Fred would say "You've got to forgive them. Don't give them power over you to keep hurting you. They won't even remember what they did to hurt you; but if you don't forgive them, it will continue to hurt you. Always walk in forgiveness." Pastor Fred is going to be missed by a lot of people. He never had a platform like Billy Graham; but if you ever met him, you would never forget him. He was my spiritual father and I'm going to miss him terribly. I know that when he passed from this world, Jesus was standing there with open arms saying"Well done, my good and faithful servant." I'm sure there were 100's of people that had gotten saved in his ministry also waiting to welcome him home. And he will be there waiting when I go home to be with the Lord. My heart is heavy; but it is also very joyful knowing that he is no longer in any pain and his mind is sharper than it has ever been. God Bless You, Pastor Fred..........

That's all for today. Goodnight and God Bless..................

Happy Friday!

This week just seemed to fly by. Christmas will be here sooner than you think. Am I ready? Nope.

I woke up with a terrible headache this morning. Was afraid I wasn't going to be able to go to work, but I pushed myself and went anyway. But, it kept getting worse to the point I thought I was going to throw up. When I was sending out the prayer requests for our prayer group from church, I requested prayer for myself. That's something I never do, but I was desperate. About five minutes after I hit "Send", I began to feel that people were praying for me. My headache seemed to be getting less severe. Kim sent me a prayer over email and after I read that, it got even less painful. By the time we were ready to go to lunch, it was gone completely. God is so good.

While I was in Fran's office, she told me about a lady who had colon cancer that had spread to her liver. After much prayer, she went back for another scan and the cancer is almost gone. They are talking remission. Praise God!

Then, I got back to my office and Mama called. My aunt Audrey woke up, started talking, knows where she is and everybody that comes in to visit and they had her sitting up in a chair. She has been non-responsive for days. Praise the Lord! I told you I've seen a lot of miracles lately.

One of the men we've been praying for was about at death's door. His heart was only beating about 1% of normal. The doctors had basically given up and said they couldn't do anything. The next day, he's sitting up and talking to everybody, which he shouldn't have been able to do with his heart so bad off. They sent him to a nursing home to stay for a couple of weeks, then he'll go home. Tell me my God doesn't heal today. He is still doing miracles.

We got word from Connie that Pastor Fred is non-responsive and they think it will just be a short time before he goes to be with Jesus. Hey, I'm not counting him out just yet. I've seen too many miracles happen the last few days to say that he's going to die. Even if he does, I know Jesus will be standing there saying "Well done my good and faithful servant." Cause that is one thing Pastor Fred is - good and faithful. What a blessing he has been to so many people.

Kim and I went to Debb's to eat lunch. She prepared ham, potato salad, butterbeans, cornbread, fresh sliced tomatoes, apple pie, tea and coffee. Wow, what a lot to eat! We were miserable when we got back to work. We had a great time of eating and laughing while we were at Debb's. On the way back to work, Kim and I were singing "The Old Rugged Cross". She's got a great voice.

I was very busy all afternoon. Didn't leave work until almost 5:00. Came home and Vance asked me what were we going to do Christmas Day. I told him I guess we'd spend the day alone. He said "Well, I'm going to cook a turkey and maybe a ham. How about we invite Bill and his girlfriend over if they don't have anywhere to go? And the kids can come by and get a plate to carry home if they want to." I said that would be fine with me. It just blessed me that he would want to have somebody over. God's working miracles in him, too. You just wait - he'll be in church pretty soon. I can just feel it. He's finally going to take his place as spiritual head of our home. It's coming......... I keep seeing the banner we used to have hanging in our church "The Spirit of Expectancy is the Breeding Ground for Miracles." I have such a spirit of expectancy lately and I'm believing my entire family will be saved.

I started working on a poster for Trent's room. I took pictures of him on his chopper at his birthday party. I've enlarged six photos - three of him and three of parts of the chopper in close-up. I know exactly how I want to arrange them, but I'm having trouble with what to put between them. Do I use Harley-Davidson paper, flame paper or what? I guess a trip is needed to Hobby Lobby to look at different papers. That's on my agenda for tomorrow. I'm also planning on going to another craft sale in the morning. I've also got to clean out the utility room so Vance can get the washing machine out. It's leaking and we need a new one.

Vance is planning on putting ceiling tiles up in Vance's old bedroom and painting it the week of Christmas. That means between now and then, I've got to clean it out, take things off the shelves and take down the shelves. I guess that's what I will do the Wednesday, Thursday and Friday before Christmas when I take vacation. Plus, finish my Christmas shopping. No rest for the weary, huh?

I better try to get some sleep; there are busy days ahead. Goodnight and God bless................

No Safety Meeting Today

Good thing, cause I just couldn't get going this morning. I did manage to get to work at my usual starting time, so I wasn't late. I didn't know until I got there that the meeting had been cancelled. I don't know if it's been rescheduled or not. I didn't get an email.

I gave Kim the ornament I had made for her and she cried. I didn't mean to make her cry.

Kim and I went to Hobby Lobby at lunch. I just love that place! I bought some stickers to use on my ornaments that I'm making and a silver tinsel tree that I'm going to put my vintage ornaments on. (I put them on it when I got home and love it.) Kim bought a triangular box to put a flag in. I know you've seen them. Her ex-husband's birthday is today and she had taken his grandfather's flag from his house so she could frame it for him. She said tonight at church that he loved it.

I forgot to tell you about my excitement last night. Vance cooked supper for us and I was going to toast some bread to go along with my meal. He buys the real thin rye bread that is crunchy like Melba Toast when you toast it. I love it. I put it in our toaster oven and toasted it. Took it out and it was still soft, so I turned it over and put it back in. We were standing there talking and I happened to see something out of the corner of my eye - flames inside the toaster oven. Not little flames; big flames! I opened the door and the flames went up about six inches on the front of my cabinet. I grabbed a potholder and snatched the rack (with the now burnt toast) out and threw it onto the floor, still burning. I stomped the flames out leaving charred toast on our new laminate floor. Looked up and the flames were still burning in the oven. Can you say PANIC? Cause that's what I did. I guess I flashed back to Daddy almost getting burned alive in his trailer. Did I do something stupid? Oh, yeah! I grabbed a little glass and filled it with water and threw it on the fire as Vance was telling me not to do it. Do I know better than that? Of course, I do. I have to go through fire prevention classes several times a year. I know you are not supposed to pour water on an electrical fire. But, like I said before - I PANICKED! And our fire alarm was beeping and the lady was saying "Fire, fire, there is a fire!" I looked up and said "No joke, Sherlock!" When I looked at Vance, he was holding a fire extinguisher. He just wasn't fast enough to suit me. He just turned and took the fire alarm off the wall, never saying a word. I know he must think I'm the stupidest person on this planet. I cleaned up the floor and am glad to say there was no damage there. I still haven't checked to see if the toaster oven still works. There was smoke all in the kitchen and dining room. We have a curtain hanging between the living room and kitchen to keep the heat in the living room. I had to open the back door and a window in the dining room and turn on the fans for about 30 minutes. It got cold in there, but at least I got the smoke out. Vance just kissed me and went to bed. He never did tell me how stupid I was, but I sure felt pretty stupid.

Went to church tonight and had a good service. Scotty was trying to get me to go take guitar lessons. When would I find the time? If I can't find the time to exercise, I sure can't find the time to take guitar lessons. Sure, I'd love to learn how to play, but it requires a lot of practice and I just don't have the time. Maybe when I retire........ ?

Well, I guess I better get to bed. I'm getting sleepy. Good night and God bless.................

It's been a very busy day. Started off very busy at work. Helped Kim with some orders. She is trying to close out the year-end jobs and is swamped.

Mama called. The doctors now think my aunt Audrey has viral meningitis. She still doesn't know anybody. Mama is worried that it could have been passed on to Bobby and Margurete and the boys when they went to visit. She called the Health Department and suggested they make the hospitals make people wear masks when the doctors can't figure out what's wrong with the patients.

Sylvia and her two poodles stopped by to see us before I went to lunch. She's been in the mountains for eight weeks. I really want to take a long weekend and go up there and stay with her. I wish Vance liked to travel. She would let us stay in her cabin for the weekend if we wanted to. But, Vance would never go for it.

Went to Wal-Mart at lunch to get Daddy a belt. His broke, so I got him a reversible one. Also, bought me a sweat suit. Need something warm to lounge around in at the house when it gets really cold. It was cold today - in the 30's when we got up. It was 70 something yesterday. That's Southern weather for you. Hey, it could be snowing tomorrow! Who knows.

Had to confess to one of the guys today that I ate a donut yesterday. He thought that was the funniest thing he'd ever heard. Yesterday, I managed to avoid the donuts (even after he flashed one in my office first thing yesterday morning) until right before time to go home. He had kept asking me all day if I was still on a diet. I told him I had eaten an orange instead of the donut. So, I had to confess today; not that he cared. It just made me feel better.

Bought groceries for Daddy after work. I hate that it gets dark before I can get out of the store. It was super busy today. I guess because it's the first of the month. Sat around and talked with Daddy for awhile before I came home.

Watched another Christmas movie tonight while I was making Christmas ornaments. I'm on a roll. I made two tonight. One is for Kim.

Now, I'm so tired I can't write anymore. It's time for my beauty sleep and I need all that I can get! Goodnight and God bless....................

It's Been a Good Weekend

Yesterday, Fran and I went to a craft sale at an old house that was moved from downtown. It's a beautiful old Victorian. The people who live there, move most of their furniture out and have the craft sale inside the house and on the porch. I love the house! Wish I had taken a picture of it, but I didn't. I'll have to go back one day. The porch has a gazebo on the end. I would live on that porch!

We walked through and talked to some people that I knew. James and Bobbie were selling birdhouses and angels that James had made. I bought two ornaments and a baby wipe dispenser that is covered in blue chenille. I've got a baby shower coming up and it will be perfect. We kinda rushed through so Fran could get back. She was leaving to go out of town.

After she dropped me off, I got in my car and went shopping. I went to a place that is pretty close to my house - Savannah's Garden. It's a gift shop which sells new and vintage items. I had just been telling Fran that I wanted to go to some yard sales and get some old Christmas ornaments. I found some vintage glass ornaments. Yes, they look old, but I love them! They are just what I was looking for. I got 12 of them for $1.00 each. I even got the original box they were in and it looks really old. I wish I could buy some of Grandmama Brown's old ornaments. I don't know what Bette will do with all the Christmas stuff. Grandmama has dozens of Rubbermaid containers full of Christmas decorations, old and new.

I went several other places and bought a few gifts, then I went back to the Old McKenzie House and bought a birdhouse and angel from James, two candles from a lady inside. Sure, I could probably make them myself, but they weren't that expensive and I loved the smells. It also gave me time to look closer at the house. Such a beautiful old house. The owner, Gina, said they would have the craft sale in a bigger place next year so they could have more crafters and she wouldn't have to move all the furniture in her house to make room. I think she had seven full-size Christmas trees in the house and they were beautiful. They belong to her, so they will be there after the crafters leave. I'd love to go back and see the house with her furniture back in place. I bet it's a showplace.

Went to Zaxby's and got their House Salad. It's so good. Vance came home and we went to the hospital to see Mac. He is so thin, but he's getting nourishment now through that feeding tube. He said the surgeon knew exactly what was wrong with him when he saw him. Why didn't his regular doctor run tests when he told him he couldn't keep food down? Vance said he needs to get a lawyer and sue. We stayed with Mac for about an hour until they came to get him for an x-ray. We left and went to Appleby's for supper. First time we've gone out to eat in a while. It was very good. I actually ordered a steak. I usually order the salmon, but they have good steaks and I just wanted one.

Today, we had an awesome service at church. Praise and Worship was great and Mrs. Sandi preached on faith. Kind of a follow-up on what Pastor Sammy preached last Sunday. They work well together. After church, I went to Zaxby's and got another salad. Also got some onion bites for Vance. He loves the blooming onion from Outback, so I thought we'd try these and see if they were any good. It was pretty good (not as good as Outback) but will work when we get the craving for a blooming onion and don't want to drive clear across town.

I've been making Christmas ornaments out of old CD's that you get in the mail trying to get you to sign up for AOL or some other provider. I saved them all, knowing I could find something to use them for. Just covered them with scrapbook Christmas paper and used pictures of Chad's family that I took Christmas two years ago, added some glitter and they look pretty good. That's one way to recycle something and get my pictures on the tree without costing an arm and a leg buying frames.

Now, it's time to get to bed. I missed my Sunday nap, so I'm pretty tired. Goodnight and God bless....................

Whew! What a Week!

I have been on an emotional roller coaster ride all week. I guess it started when Sue Price passed away, then Grandpa Mac and Aunt Audrey went in the hospital. (Grandpa Mac is doing better/They still have not found out what's wrong with Aunt Audrey.) Then, I got the news that my former pastor, Pastor Fred, may be leaving this world. He's not doing good. That just broke my heart and put me into a fog. He taught me more about the Bible and God's love than anybody I had ever known before. I grew up in church, but he really taught me things that no other preacher had before. I had grown up thinking God was out to get me if I did anything wrong. I never knew how much He really loved me until Pastor Fred revealed it to me and to all who ever went to his church. He taught me above all to love my fellow man and to forgive no matter what they did to me. He taught me to forgive before they ever did anything to hurt me. Cause if you don't forgive those who have hurt you, you just continually give them the power to hurt you again. And, it says in the Bible that God won't forgive you if you don't forgive those who trespass against you. You just don't know how much happier you can be until you learn to walk in total forgiveness. Sure, it's hard, but believe me, it can be done. Anyway, Pastor Fred may be seeing Jesus very soon. It will be wonderful for him, but hard for those he leaves behind. The more I started thinking about how glorious it was going to be for him, I started getting my joy back. I would never ask God to leave him here in the state that he's in, when he can be whole again and have his memory back. Right now, he doesn't know anybody or even remember that he preached. That has got to be hard on his family. Alzheimers is a horrible disease.

This week has been very busy at work, too. The new timekeeping system seemed to be extremely slow this week, so it put me behind. I worked late just to keep up. And then, all the supervisors were out of town, so I had to rely on other people to help me get the timesheets right. We were calling people on the radio and chasing them down in the hallways just to find out where they were when I didn't have a timesheet. Today, I didn't even go to lunch cause I was afraid I would have to work late. But, praise the Lord, I was able to leave an hour earlier than usual (took my lunch at the end of the day).

I'm not ready for Christmas yet. I just can't get in the mood to go shopping. And it's hard when you have so many people to buy for and not enough money to go around. I think that's why I have such a hard time this time of year. I've never really liked the commercialization of Christmas because it causes such a hardship on families who think they have to go in debt to buy Christmas presents. In today's economy, a lot of kids will probably be doing without. And that is so sad. Let's not forget the real reason for the season - Christ's birth. He's all we should be focusing on.

Well, I'm getting so sleepy I can't type or even think straight, so I better go to bed. Goodnight and God bless..................

Get Well Grandpa Mac!

Grandpa Mac had to have surgery today. When he had lung cancer several years ago, they removed a lung. The doctor's were planning to insert a feeding tube over the weekend, but found that his stomach and esphoagus had shifted over to fill up the space where the lung was removed. So, they had to go in this morning and shift everything back, then put in the feeding tube. Vance went to be with his mom during the surgery. Brenda and her mom and Jane, a friend of Rose and Mac's, was there. I didn't go because I felt like Vance and his mom needed time together. If I'm around, Vance sits in the background and lets me do all the talking. It's funny, cause other people say he talks when I'm not around. I guess that's why we don't have any friends anymore - he got tired of hearing me talk! :)

Vance called me after the surgery was over. It will take some time for Mac to heal, but we are praying for a complete recovery. I don't know how long he will be in the hospital. I have such a hard time hearing Rose on the phone that I didn't call. Her voice is in the range of sounds that I don't hear very well. Unless Vance speaks up, I can't hear him either. Do you know how aggravating that is? Not only to me, but to the people that are talking to me. I have to make Vance mute the TV and sit down at his feet just to understand what he's saying to me.

Had a busy day at work. It's timesheet week, and we had off last Thursday and Friday, so that meant starting the week off five days behind in my work. I believe I'm finished Friday's time before I left today. I went to lunch at Taco Bell. Tabitha called to check on Mac and we prayed and cried together. I didn't want to take my food back to my office to eat cause the guys were still there unloading two trucks. So, I went to a park close to the office. When I got there, the only people there were from the City and a couple of other cars with one person in them. I parked near the water and the community building. Had my camera in the car and was thinking about walking on the boardwalk after I ate, but two old guys drove up and parked by me and went walking on the boardwalk. It's a very secluded walkway, so I decided I didn't want to go out on it knowing they were there. It was probably a dumb idea anyway to go there by myself. The walkway is completely surrounded by water, so if somebody did come after me, (and who in their right mind would want to come after an overweight grandmother?) there would be no place to go but in the water. There's probably snakes in the water. No, I'm not going in the water. Besides, it would ruin my camera. Nope, I'd have to stay and fight. The place started getting crowded so I left and went back to work. Guess I'll have to go back to my old place of solitude - the downtown marina. It's not really a place of solitude; there's people everywhere. But, you stay in the car and nobody bothers you and it's out in the open - not like the park I was in. Yeah, I'll wait until we have another work function at the park to go walking on the boardwalk. (Vance and Michelle, it's where Jamie and Judy had their reception. You can see why I like it.)

Actually sat down and talked awhile with my new boss, Jeff. He seems very nice. His dream is to be a caddie for some player on the Senior Tour. He did it once and got hooked. I asked him if I could be off early today to go get my hair colored. He said of course I could and he just wished he had hair to color - he's bald. I told him I'd be glad to give him some of mine. He said he thought about buying a toupee and walking in one day with it on askance with those ugly teeth in his mouth just to see what people would say. He's got a great sense of humor - that's good. Yeah, I think we're going to like him.

I did get off early and went to see Marsha and got my hair colored and trimmed. She said it was in great shape. I told her I think I have finally found the right products to use on it to keep it healthy. Vance called at 5:50 to find out where I was. He was worried about me and I had forgotten to tell him I'd be home late. I was thinking about Mac's surgery this morning when I left for work. That was sweet of him to call and check up on me. He was worried about me because I'm good about calling him and letting him know that I'm going to be late. I just didn't even think about it today. When I got to Marsha's, she asked what was wrong with me. She knew I had something on my mind. She's known me for about 40 years. I told her I was concerned about my father-in-law and then told her about his surgery.

I came home and didn't do anything but check my email and watch TV. Vance called me in to watch a Johnny Carson DVD. It's old shows that he did and this one had a talking bird in it. It was so funny. The bird actually says "Here Kitty, Kitty." It also does impressions of other animals. It was funny. I always loved the shows that had animals from the zoo. Johnny was hiliarious around the animals.

Now, it's time to go to bed. Please keep Mac in your prayers. Goodnight and God bless...............

Happy Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving has come and gone. Did you eat too much? I think I did. Didn't gain any weight (unless it sneaks up on the scales tomorrow), but we had plenty to eat.

It wasn't the traditional Thanksgiving dinner this year at the Rutherford's. Grandpa Mac was put in the hospital the night before, so we really missed him. He always has such a great sense of humor. Grandma Rose didn't get to cook her dressing, but Jodi took over most of the cooking and it was great. Of course, we all took a dish, so we had more than enough. It was just good getting together with everybody. Chad, Tabitha, Trent and Hope were in Dothan with Tabitha's mother. Tammy has always had to work on Thanksgiving and this was her first year off, so she wanted to cook for everybody. I think it was great that she was able to be with her family at Thanksgiving. But, they were sorely missed by everybody.

My Aunt Audrey got put in the hospital on Thanksgiving day. They haven't determined what's wrong with her yet.

Vance had to work Friday. I was off. Our dog, Shadow, has been just laying around for several days and she yelps when she tries to get up. I was able to get an appointment with Vinnie's vet (Shadow's vet was closed) and took her in Friday afternoon. The vet checked her over and he thinks she may have just pulled a muscle in her hips. Since it came on so fast, he doesn't think it is hip dysplasia or arthritis. He gave us some pills for her to take for 8 days. If she is better, we will know that it was just a pulled muscle. If she's not, she has to go back for x-rays. We say improvement that same night and she has seemed better ever since. Today was the first time she yelped when she got up. These hardwood floors are slippery.

I had a funeral to go to Friday afternoon. A dear sweet lady from the church I used to attend passed away. She was also the mother of a co-worker and the grandmother of one of the boys (Matt) that I used to take to church. The service was so nice. Connie and Dave sang "The Lighthouse". It was just like old times. Connie spoke about Mrs. Sue and then Matt spoke about his granny. It was so touching. I remember a time after I had left the church and started going to the church I go to now. I was in the Winn-Dixie and heading out to my car. Mrs. Sue came running out of the store yelling my name. I stopped and she hugged me and told me how much she loved me and missed me. We talked a few minutes, then she went back into the store. I think she had left the check-out to come speak to me. That was the way she was. She was a very special lady. She will be missed by many, but we know that we will see her again in heaven. I know she will stop whatever she's doing to greet me when I get there.

Saturday, I spent at home watching Christmas movies on TV. For some reason, I was so tired. I didn't even get out of my pj's until around 1:00 when I knew Vance would be coming home from playing golf. I did wash a couple of loads of clothes, but that's about all I did. Later that night, I had to make potato salad because we were having Chad and Tabitha and the kids over today for Thanksgiving with them. It took all I could do to stir up the ingredients and pour them into a bowl. I guess I just needed some rest, cause I feel fine today.

This morning, I went to church. We had a great service. A lot of people got ministered to at the altar. A lady came for special prayer for healing. She said she felt like she should come to our church to get prayed for. I believe she got her healing.

After church, we had Chad, Tabitha and the kids over to eat. Vance cooked a turkey and most everything else. I did fix the potato salad. He's such a good cook. And his smoked turkey is out of this world. I think it gets better everytime he cooks one. The afternoon was spent resting cause it's back to work tomorrow.

I pray that everybody had a wonderful Thanksgiving and remembered to thank the Lord for all your many blessings. I know I've been thanking Him, cause I have a lot to be thankful for.

Goodnight and God bless..............

Thanksgiving is Almost Here

Went and did a little shopping yesterday. Had to buy a baby gift for a friend that I used to play softball with. Another friend told me to go to Ross cause I would be able to get more for my money. Boy, was she right! And it was good stuff. I bought a baby blanket (you know, the real soft kind that they will love to carry around because it feels so good), two receiving blankets and five oneses for under $20.00. Last time I bought a baby gift, I went to Target and didn't get that much for $30.00. I'll be shopping at Ross more often. Went to her baby shower and there must have been over 50 ladies there. She was definitely blessed. Saw some of the ball team. Haven't seen them in about 6 years. I only stayed an hour. She hadn't even started opening her gifts yet and I think they were going to play several games. There were just too many people there for me.

Worked on another faux stained glass project. I had found a book of angel transfers that I had bought years ago. You can iron them on fabric and color them. Well, they are so old that they probably wouldn't transfer any more, so I used one as a pattern for my project. I was very pleased with it when I finished. I had put it on a piece of plastic just to use as a window cling, but decided today that I wanted to frame it. I peeled it off the plastic and put it on an 8x10 piece of glass and found another pattern for the background. Drew it out with the leading, waited about four hours and painted it. Can't wait to see the finished product. I'm going to have to take pictures of them and share them with you.

Yesterday when I came home from the shower, I was totally exhausted. I guess I overdid it with all the shopping. I ached all over and just felt wore out. I wish I could remember to take my vitamins. I know I'd feel better. You'd think the B12 shot would have given me some energy, but it didn't. Maybe I am deficient in B12.

Tabitha called this morning and said she wasn't going to church. She didn't feel good. She's got a bad cold and didn't want to give it to anybody at church. Hope wanted to go, so I went by and picked her up. She loves to go to church. She just gets so excited. I turned down a different road today and she wanted to know where we were going. She said "This is not the way to church. It's the way to Trent's school. We're not going to school are we?" I assured her it was the back way to church. When she saw the church, she was so excited. We got out and she went straight to the nursery and opened the door and went inside without even a goodbye. She loves Mrs. Lettie and Mrs. Julie and all the kids.

We had a good service. Pastor Sammy was in a great mood and it showed in his preaching. We had time at the altar afterwards. A lot of people got ministered to. Isn't that what it's all about? If people aren't getting ministered to, what's the point in having church? You can watch a preacher on TV to get the Word, but sometimes you just need a more personal touch. One-on-one prayer means a lot.

Well, it's after 11:00, so I guess I better get ready for bed. Gotta work tomorrow. At least, this week will be a short one - only three days.

Goodnight and God bless..................

Pretty Busy Day for a Thursday

It's a little cooler this morning and the wind is really blowing. Makes for a really bad hair day. "Yeah, Pooh, it's a blustery day in the neighborhood."

Was able to have coffee with Kim this morning. Didn't have time to eat before I left home, so I forgot to test my blood sugar. Also, didn't get my scripts filled yesterday. (Today either.) Kim was super busy, so I went to my office to run reports and make adjustments on timesheets. It was busier today than it normally is. I felt like I wasn't accomplishing anything. Don't you just hate when that happens?

Tabitha called to make sure I could eat with Trent tomorrow at school. She has a test she can't reschedule. Of course, I can go eat with him. Talked to my boss and he will be there eating with his kids, so he was all for me going. (He's my boss for only one more day.) Finally found out yesterday who my new boss is going to be. His name is Jeff and he was the supervisor on the Beach. He came in today and I think he's going to be a good boss. First off, he said he didn't like to be called boss. He said he liked coach better. I can relate to that since I played softball for so many years.

I went over to the front office and picked up my cat stained glass picture. It turned out pretty good. I think everybody did a good job. It's so much fun. Our next Lunch and Learn class will be making jewelry. The guys said they probably won't come to that one. Went to Michael's at lunch to get a couple of paint colors that I need for my next project. I'm hooked on this stuff. I leaded one last night and have several more that I want to do.

Helped Kim make copies of single line drawings after lunch. Debb called and I really couldn't talk to her cause the office was full of people and I was trying to get the copies made and distributed. Then, I forgot to call her back. It was just a hectic day. Paul was out for the afternoon, so I had to deal with contractors wanting stuff out of the warehouse that I couldn't find (and they couldn't either). I was ready to come home when it was time. I had to lock the gate and then I headed home.

When I got home, I started painting on the project that I leaded last night. Then, I leaded another one that I'll paint tomorrow night. Found out I was missing some patterns out of my book. I think I probably dropped them in the auditorium when we were doing the L&L yesterday. I'll ask Janis and Martha if they found them. I sure hope somebody did, cause there are some things that I want to do.

Well, I'm getting tired, so I guess I'll go to bed. Goodnight and God bless...............

Half a Day Off

We had our safety meeting this morning. It was actually pretty interesting. Rankin showed a video of the Thunderbird's pilot who crashed. It was heart-stopping. It actually showed him ejecting. The camera was right in front of him and it showed him leaving the plane. He survived the crash. Thank You, Lord, for that. But, Rankin wanted to show us that even though we do something over and over again, we can still make mistakes. It gets to be such a habit for us that we sometimes miscalculate and that could be deadly.

Kim had to go to Pensacola for a meeting, so we didn't get to share a cup of coffee this morning. I had a few timesheets to enter and I was done for the day right before lunch. I asked my boss if I could take the afternoon off since I was finished and had a doctor's appointment. He said I could.

At lunch, we got to paint the pictures we leaded yesterday. Mine is a cat and I think it's going to turn out pretty good. I'll see tomorrow.

After lunch, I left and went to the doctor. No, I'm not a diabetic yet. I am right below the line and she said I really need to lose weight so that I don't cross over that fine line. She gave me a B-12 shot and put me on two different kinds of medication to keep me from developing diabetes. She also gave me a glucose test meter and told me to use it every day to test my sugar level at different times of the day. These meds are also supposed to help you lose weight. We'll see if they work. I pray that they do. I really just haven't had the desire to lose the weight. No, I don't like how I look, but I didn't want to do anything about it. I just wanted to keep eating the sweets - the worse things I could be eating.

After leaving the doctor's office, I went to Hobby Lobby and got a bottle of paint that I need for the stained glass picture I want to work on at home. I had all the other colors, but I didn't have black. Came home and washed a load of clothes. Printed out copies of some pictures of my boss to give to him. Friday is his last day with us. I hope to be able to take a group photo tomorrow of the whole bunch of us to give to him on Friday. I'll take my camera and see if I can round up the whole group. If not, I'll get as many as I can.

Went to church. We had an awesome service. Pastor Jim preached about the thief coming to kill, steal and destroy. That's the verse that got Tabitha in church. Trent went home one Sunday and told her that's what they studied in Children's Church. It got her to thinking and she was in church the very next Sunday. That's been over three years ago. I think she was expecting Hope at the time.

After church, in the parking lot, Tabitha, Kim, Carrianne and I were talking about getting together one day for lunch right before Christmas. Carrianne's birthday is the 17th. Maybe we can do it that day. You should have seen Hope. She looked like a little biker. She had on jeans and a leather vest and boots. She was so cute.

When I got home, Vance was asleep in his chair. I ate and went into the dining room and worked on a stained glass project. I guess he didn't know I was home, cause he got up and went to bed without kissing me. That's just not like him.

I think Kim is coming over tomorrow night so I can teach her the stained glass technique. It will be fun. I hope she gets to come.

Well, it's after midnight, so I guess I better get some sleep. Goodnight and God bless.................

Lunch and Learn

Today was a very busy day. Timesheets have to go in tomorrow so that we can get paid next Wednesday, before the Thanksgiving holidays. All my supervisors were wonderful. They got all the timesheets to me, even the projected ones and I was able to input everything today and finish them. Even locked all of them except one. Have one more timesheet to input tomorrow and I'll be done. What will I do the rest of the week? About 95% of my job is inputting timesheets. I guess I will do some housecleaning in my office. I may be able to help Kim if she needs me.

Today at lunch, we did glass leading for another faux stained glass project. It was a lot of fun. Janis picked out a cat for me to do. Tomorrow, we put the color to it. I had chili that I was going to take to work for lunch and walked off without it, so I was just going to eat yogurt. But, Kim was watching out for me. The engineering department had a meeting and they brought in sandwiches, so she got one for me. She also looks out for me. Hopefully, tomorrow I will remember my chili.

Tomorrow afternoon, I may take off. I have a doctor's appointment at 1:30, so I might just take the rest of the day off. I will find out tomorrow if I am a diabetic. My sugar has been going up everytime they do a bloodtest. I'm saying no that I'm not. If I can just get my diet under control, I can bring the sugar down. I don't know why I can't get motivated to do something. No, all I want to do is eat more sweets. I don't want to eat the good stuff. What is wrong with me? Do I have a subconscious "death by chocolate" wish? Just joking........... I don't have any kind of death wish. I just don't want to diet. And the only time I could exercise is around 10:00 at night and the experts say not to exercise and then try to go to sleep, cause it just won't work. I don't sleep enough as it is. I don't know what the answer is. But, I'm sure my doctor will have some suggestions tomorrow.

We had a great Praise and Worship practice tonight. Donna wrote a song and we learned it, plus two others. Several people were out sick tonight. There's a lot of things going around. I do not want to get sick. I hate being sick.

Well, I guess I will try to go to bed now. I've got to get my beauty sleep. Ha!
Goodnight and God bless..................

Where Did the Weekend Go?

Wow! This weekend sure flew by. Saturday morning was spent cleaning the bathroom, washing clothes, etc. Those things have to be done, but I wish somebody else would do them for me.

Saturday afternoon, I picked up Trent and Hope and went to the bowling alley for Swayde's birthday party. They had a blast. Hope bowled a 78 and Trent bowled a 79. Of course, that's with the help of those gutter bumpers. I could probably bowl that high if I could use them. Then again, maybe not, since I don't have much strength in my right hand anymore. That's one of the bad things about getting old; you lose a lot of strength unless you exercise all the time. And, of course, we all know that I don't!

Sunday morning was spent at church. Great service as usual. Afterwards, I took some pictures of Hope, Trent and Tabitha. They all looked so pretty. Trent was wearing a suit that he picked out for himself.

After church, I came home and ate some leftover chili and did not take a nap. That is highly unusual. I started looking around the house for glass to etch on. Couldn't find any. Vance told me to go get something, so I went to Goodwill. Found a cute little square vase and a glass frame. Then I went to the Dollar Store and bought three candy dishes and some frames to use for our stained glass class. Came home and etched two angels on the square vase. I used the sticker paper on back of a stencil and it worked great. As a matter of fact, I think it will be able to be used again cause the sticky stuff stayed on even after I washed it. And it's still tacky.

Now, I think I'm going to go to bed. Goodnight and God bless...............

Really Cool This Morning

Managed to find a long sleeve sweater to wear today. I have got to find my winter clothes. I'm thinking I gave them all to Goodwill back during the spring when I was cleaning out and throwing away. Cause I can't find them in my closets. Bummer! That's what I get for cleaning house.

Ended up having two cups of coffee this morning. I usually only drink one, but today was cool enough for two. All that did was make me hungry, so I ate some yogurt. Had planned on getting bloodwork done this morning, but got up late. Will I ever get up on time again? Maybe tomorrow.

Had a lot of work to do today, so I stayed in my office most of the morning. Kim and I went to Captain D's for lunch. I always get the baked fish, steamed veggies and had a baked potato today. It was good as usual. I wonder why they don't have a Captain D's in Tallahassee. Somebody should get the franchise. I'm sure they could make a lot of money. After we ate, we drove by my grandmother's house and nothing has been done to it. There's a sign out front stating that it's For Sale, but I didn't get the number. It's probably my Aunt Betty's number.

After lunch, I carried my candle jar over to show Martha and explain how I made the stencil. She wants to put a "W" on a glass, but can't find a stencil the right size. I gave her some ideas about looking in the hardware part of Wal-Mart. You can usually find larger alphabet and number stencils there. She couldn't understand, until I drew it out, how to use them. I told her to take the letter and set it aside and just use the cardboard that was around it to stencil from. She understood then and said that was a great idea and she'd have to go looking after work. Sometimes God just amazes me when He drops those brilliant ideas into my brain. I know it's not from me, cause I'm not that smart. But, ideas just pop in my head that make sense to people. Isn't He amazing?

After work, I went to Hobby Lobby to see about getting a stencil and maybe some jars or glasses to etch on. Got a stencil, but the jars were too expensive. I need to make a trip to Old Time Pottery or something like that. It's in Destin and they have cheaper prices. Maybe Kim and I can go after church Sunday. After I left there, I managed to get in a traffic jam on 390. I thought it was just rush hour traffic and a lot of it was, but then I got to State Avenue and saw that the police had the road blocked off. They detoured us through Venetian Villa over to Northshore, then we were on our own to find our way out of Northshore. I've only been in Northshore a couple of times - during the day. I had no idea where I was or where I was going or if I could even find my way out. It looked like people were turning around and going back out. I just kept driving a few more blocks until I say 19th Street. I figured maybe I could drove a few more blocks and manage to find 14th or 12th. I knew I could find my way from there. I found 14th and headed East. Then, I ran into another police car with lights flashing, but I think he had pulled someone over. A couple more blocks and I saw familar surroundings. By this time, I was having pains in my chest and felt like I was going to have a panic attack. I haven't had one of those in years. I started praying and got calm again and managed to find my way home. What normally would have taken about 15 to 20 minutes took about 50 minutes. I was exhausted when I finally got home. If it had been daytime, I wouldn't have had any problems. I was afraid I would get down some road and end up getting totally lost and have to stop at someone's house and ask them to direct me back out. Still haven't found out what was going on. Maybe somebody at work will know tomorrow.

Wanted to do some more glass etching or some other craft, but was just too tired. I watched CSI and Without A Trace (they were combined tonight). It was really good. Ate some more of Vance's chili. He makes the best! Now, it's time to go to bed. I'm trying not to stay up as late tonight as I have been. Maybe I can get up in time to go have my bloodwork done.

Goodnight and God bless............

Hooked on Etching

Had a hard time getting up this morning. It was cool. Temperatures in low 40's. Was looking for a long-sleeved shirt, but couldn't find one. Guess they are all packed up. Was late for the safety meeting and the guys picked on me. I don't know why I have to attend them anyway. Maybe only four or five a year pertain to anything that even remotely affects my job. Half the time, I don't understand what they are talking about, cause it's things like relays or goab switches. A timekeeper does not need to know about those things.

Kim had to go to a meeting in Pensacola. I really miss talking to her in the mornings while I have my coffee.

One of the supervisors that I work with called and asked me to lunch. He's been trying to take me, Janis and Tina to lunch for months. Tina was out of town, but Janis and I met him at Red Lobster. We had a really good lunch and great fellowship. We don't get to do that very often. Had great food, but way too much of it. I was miserable afterwards. Picked up my candle that I made yesterday. It's a pretty green with Apple Pie fragrance.

Called Marsha to wish her a Happy Birthday. As usual, I forgot to send a card. I'm getting so bad about sending cards out. I used to be johnny on the spot, but I seem to forget until the last minute, then just don't bother. That's why I called. It is also Sylvia's birthday. I called her, too, but only got her answering machine, so I left her a message. I was going to sing to her, but some of the guys walked into my office just as I was about to leave my message, so I didn't.

Came home and Vance said he was going to the store to get stuff to make chili. Yum, it's just the right kind of weather to eat chili. Went to church. Had a great service. Pastor Sammy preached on John 1. Hope was very clingy with me tonight. She wanted me to hold her. She's getting so big that it wears my arm out to hold her for very long.

I came home and Vance had the chili ready. Didn't take me long to get my bowl and dip into it. He went to bed and I ate my chili while watching CSI:New York. I love all the CSI series. After I ate, I decided to try to etch on the glass candle holder. I found a stencil that had butterflies, dragonflies, bees and lady bugs on it. I had some clear contact paper, so I placed the stencil on the sticky side of the contact paper, cut out the insides of the stencils with a razor knife, peeled off the stencil from the contact paper and put the sticky contact paper around the glass. Rubbed it all down and brushed etching cream on it. Believe it or not, but it worked! It looks pretty good. Yeah, I've got the bug. I need to find some other things to etch. Martha and Janis have created a monster. (They are the ones who teach the Lunch and Learn classes.)

Since it is almost midnight, I really need to get to bed. So, I bid you Goodnight and God Bless........

Lunch and Learn

Hooray! I was able to sleep in our bed last night and even sleep on my right side without getting dizzy. Thank You, Lord! I didn't go for bloodwork again today since I stayed up really late last night. It was so hard to get out of bed. Work was pretty much as usual. Just working on timesheets. The Chipley timekeeper is still trying to get his boss to give me his timesheets to do permanently. He really doesn't want to have to learn eSTARS. He needs to learn it, cause they will take away our old program and he will be totally lost. Don't know when that's going to happen yet. Probably the first of the year - which isn't too far off.

Tabitha called and said Hope was doing fine. She couldn't even remember which leg was hurt. Tabitha and Chad thinks Hope will be a little drama queen and try to pull one over on them to get to stay home. I've got to tell you what she did last Wednesday night at church. We had one of those Pump It Up slides and she loved going down it. Chad would tell her it was time to go and she'd say "Just one more time." Well, she kept getting "one more time" until he told her it was the last time. We walked out to the car and she started walking away from the car with her head bent down so far she looked like she was about to topple over, arms dangling at her sides. I said "Hope, what are you doing?" She didn't answer, just kept walking. I turned to Tabitha and asked her what Hope was doing and she said "She did that one time at home and I asked her what she was doing and she said 'I'm wrapping my Daddy around my finger.'" Boy, does she have that down pat. And, of course, Chad runs after her, grabs her up and she starts giggling. She is something else.

At lunch, we had another Lunch and Learn. It was glass etching and candlemaking. I did a rose on a really cute glass and made a green candle. It was a lot of fun. I remembered that I had a glass etching kit somewhere at the house. Martha said you couldn't buy kits and I told her I had bought this one years ago. When I got home, I started looking for the kit. I knew I had it somewhere. I couldn't find it before I had to leave for Praise & Worship practice, but after I ate supper, I looked until I found it in a drawer. I remembered putting it there so the kids wouldn't get into it since the etching cream would be caustic and dangerous. This kit had rub-on stencils and was dated 1995, so that meant I probably bought it in 1995 or 1996. Yeah, I hang onto things. And it was still good. I found two glasses that I had gotten from my grandmother's house when she died and etched a duck on one and an angel on the other. Now, I've got to find some more glasses or something else to etch on. I also have to find some more stencils. I might just make a bunch of them and sell them or give them away as gifts. Could make candles in them now that I know how to do that. I love these Lunch and Learn classes. Next week, we'll be doing faux stained glass again. That's a lot of fun, too.

Now that I've done all I can with the etching, I guess I'll get ready for bed. Goodnight and God bless..................

I Can't Believe It's November Already!

I woke up this morning still feeling a little dizzy when I turned my head to the right. Vance may be right - it could be positional dizziness. I'll have to see if we have a balance specialist here in town. I should have gone for bloodwork this morning, but I just didn't feel like it. Maybe tomorrow.....

Tabitha called while I was getting ready for work and said Hope had hurt her leg and Chad would be staying home with her and they'd take her to the doctor this afternoon. Could I pick up Trent? I said I'd be glad to. She called back later and said she would be able to pick him up before Hope's appointment. I called her after work and she said Hope had probably just pulled a muscle, but the doctor said if she started running fever to take her to the hospital. It could be fluid around her hip? She's to have bloodwork done tomorrow.

Went to work and felt bad all morning, but got to feeling better after lunch. Tomorrow, we are having another Lunch and Learn. It's candlemaking and glass etching. Sounds like fun. I paid my money today for tomorrow and the two classes next week - faux stained glass. It was so much fun last time, that I thought I'd do it again. Why not have a little fun at lunch?

At lunch today, I went to Daddy's and got his check so I could deposit it. Got some smoked chicken from Larry's BBQ and went back to the office to eat. I ate the chicken and cole slaw, but not the fries.

After work, I went and bought groceries for Daddy. He hasn't felt good since he got the flu shot a couple of weeks ago. You couldn't pay me to take one of those shots. We get them for free at work, but I'm not taking one.

It was around 6:30 before I got home. I'm feeling much better. Was going to wash clothes, but Vance was one step ahead of me. He already had a load going. We got our income tax check, so we'll be getting a new washing machine and refrigerator soon. Praise the Lord! I'm tired of wet floors under the washer and having to soak up water in the bottom of the refrigerator.

Hopefully, I'll be able to sleep in our bed tonight without getting dizzy. Saying that, I think it's time I got ready for bed. Goodnight and God bless..................