2012

This about sums it up...

Wishing all of my fellow bloggers a "memorable" New Year's Eve and an extraordinarily joyous and healthy and peaceful 2012.

xoxo
Grammie

Did you ever read the book....

Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day ?

It was one of my kid's very favorite books. 

Well, today proved to be "Grammie and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day"!

I'm still not feeling well, had a bit of an unsettling conversation on the phone earlier, AND, to top it all off....my bathroom flooded (AGAIN) downstairs!!!

Fifty sopping wet towels later....and an expensive call to a late night plumber....and, we will hopefully find out the cause of this mess.

AAAACK!

I should have known it would hit me sooner or later...

Coughing. Sneezing. Scratchy throat. Tiredness. Watery eyes. General malaise.

Many of my friends and much of the community have come down with these miserable symptoms....so, I knew that my time would come.

And, it has.

Ah-choo... : (

It seemed like a good idea at the time...

When the cold rain stopped this morning, I decided to "kill two birds with one stone" and do my walk and get to the grocery store in one fell swoop.

I grabbed two of my "environmentally friendly" Publix bags, put in a bottled water, my cell phone and, the all important credit card and was on my way.

The store is only a little over 2 miles both ways from my home....and, I have done this before....so I was very comfortable with it.

My neighbor passed me in his car and tried to talk me into letting him drive me to the store.  "No, thanks," I replied, "this is my morning exercise!".

About halfway there, a friend pulled over, asked me if I needed a ride....when I said "no" she pulled into a driveway and we had a nice chat for a while....After that, I reached into one of the bags, pulled out my cell phone, and made a call to Mom.

Arriving at Publix, I went to the aisles that had the few things that I needed and headed to the check-out.
Of course, I got a few more things than I thought I would....so, as the gal began to check out my groceries, I became a little worried about carrying all of this stuff home.

Well, it wasn't really an issue, because when I went to get my credit card out....it wasn't there!!!!  What?!?!
I was positive that it was in there when I left the house.  A search of the store ensued by me and the bagger.
No luck.

So, I left the groceries there and headed back home to trace my steps and see if I could find my missing credit card....or, at the very least, go home, get money and head back to the store in my car.

Aha! About halfway between the store and my house, I found it lying on the wet sidewalk!  I realized that I had probably dropped it when I reached in for my phone...

Back to the grocery I went...eager to pay for my "saved" groceries and get this whole thing over with.

Finally, lugging my (very) heavy bags, I began the trek home again.  At this point, I was quite tired and was hopeful that I would now get an offer for a ride home.

It was not to be.

Like I said, it seemed like a good idea at the time.... : O

There was more than one turkey neck for T'giving!

Ugh.

I have inherited (always blame genetics!) the beginnings of, for lack of a better description, what I call a "turkey neck".

It is showing up more and more these days and is especially prominent in candid photos.  Oh, how I ahbor those photos taken when I am not aware of it.

Candid shots do not give me enough time to "get into position".  By that I mean pulling my head slightly upwards and out to stretch the area under my chin.  When standing, I can also lean a bit forward....but, have found that this can look awkward in group shots!  I have also been told that one can press the tongue up to the top of your mouth to tighten the neck area.

But, in actuality, the very best thing to do is to have the photographer get above you....WAY above you when taking the picture.  It is amazing to see the difference that this can make.

For example, with my begging prompting, my dear daughter-in-law actually stood up on a stool to take this photo of me and my sons.

Ah.....another thing to add to the joys of aging!!

Dried peas, cars, doll shoes, and wooden pieces...

As I continue to clean up the house since the " Grandchildren Invasion" : ) I am finding interesting things in unseen places.

Pushing the mop under a cabinet in the great room, a little toy car came sliding out.

While vacuuming, I came upon a multitude of dried peas....and, even a few "petrified" carrot cubes...
Several wooden pieces from the "dress up the wooden doll" kits were treasures waiting to be found.

Speaking of dolls....I have now collected several sets of "Barbie" shoes.  Not sure what to do with them....but, they are awfully cute!

All of these remnants brought a smile to my face as I continue to think about the wonderful time I had with  the kiddos in my home for Thanksgiving....and these beautiful faces that I love so much were well worth the occasional surprises found on the floor... :  ]