I think my daughter has a good idea.....

I was riding in the car with my daughter, Kim, the other day. We were going to a community garage sale, and we happened to get behind a driver who was going, at top speed, approximately 15 mph. This frustrated Kim, and I must admit that had I been driving, it would have annoyed me, too. So, my daughter said that she wished she had a paintball gun so that every time she got behind a stupid driver, she could shoot their car with a paintball gun. She said that by doing so, it would mark every car in town so that other drivers would be alerted when they saw a car with paintballs, they would know that the driver was a stupid driver! (I know my sentence structure probably sucked there, but please forgive me....I haven't had any sleep in the past couple of days, so cut me some slack!) I think this would be a good stress reliever! No one gets harmed....only the car gets a new paint job....and drivers everywhere will know to avoid that car like the plague! Pretty good concept, don't you think?!

Counting My Blessings...........

OK..........anyone who knows me knows that I don't like change. It takes me a long time to adjust to new settings or new environments. Having said that, it onl stands to reason that the move from Tennessee to Ohio has been a BIG adjustment for me. I absolutely LOVED Tennessee, and I miss it every day...but if I sit down to count my blessings, then my move back to Ohio becomes less stressful. So, here are some of the blessings since moving back to Ohio.....

1. Living in the same town as my oldest daughter.

2. Watching my grandson, Kyle Matrthew grow up.

3. Being able to spend time with my daughter, Kim, doing simple things, such as going out for breakfast or going to garage sales to see what toys or clothes we can find for Kyle.

4. Watching Kyle develop each day---seeing him change and grow so quickly.

5. Watching Kyle and seeing how much he adores his mommy.

6. Having good jobs so that when the bills come in, they can get paid.

7. Having cheaper rent here than in Tennessee---MUCH cheaper so that we don't have to stress over paying it.

8. Having the money to pay for the van repairs.

9. Having money to buy groceries.

10. Meeting wonderful people who helped us get a fresh start when we moved to Ohio.

11. Hoping to be able to see my youngest daughter in Cincinnati more often once the van is safe to take on the highway!!! (the van has issues, but after all the repairs get done, it will be a NEW van!)

12. Having wonderful landlords---that's very tough to find.

13. Living with the love of my life who has supported me through all the good and bad for 9 years now, and I couldn't have done it without her.

We moved back here in January and it's hard to beieve that we've been here 4 months already! In that time, I've watched Kyle go from being an infant to looking like a toddler! Kyle gets cuter every day....what a heartbreaker he will be.

I look forward to being here for Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas. Major milestones in Kyle's life.

So, do I miss living in Tennessee?? Every single day of my life!!! I miss the mountains, the hiking, friends, the WEATHER, etc. HOWEVER, when I start to feel homesick, I think about all the blessings that I have listed and things don't seem so bad after all!!

So, when things seem gloomy, count your blessings!!! It's a great attitude adjustment!

Until next time.....................

Days gone by......

Happy Memorial Day! Having today off has given my mind time to wonder a bit....to think about days gone by. I remember growing up when our family used to get together on different holidays, such as Memorial Day, 4th of July, Labor Day, etc....and we'd get together for a cookout and some actual together time! I also remember that while at these family gatherings, we actually had FUN being together. There was always the wiffle ball games played by the entire family...adults and kids alike. If it wasn't wiffle ball, it was softball, volleyball, badminton, croquet...just about anything we felt like playing. It really didn't matter what we were playing....it was just fun because we played as a family. After my mom and dad passed, it seemed like our family got together less and less, and now, if we get together once a year, we're lucky. I know that as we get older, we have more responsibilities, and our schedules keep us from visiting like we want or need to. But, I miss those times of togetherness. It seems like in this day and age, that the family unit is falling apart. It's like the only time a family really sees each other is at a funeral, where for one brief moment, it's like a mini-reunion, where everyone promises to stay in touch, but sadly, it never happens. I think a big reason that families fall apart is because of differences of opinion on life topics. Wouldn't it be a whole lot simpler if everyone could just agree to disagree, and for a few hours, put differences aside just so the family unit could stay intact? It's sad that we lose touch with family members and barely know our own relatives. I wish things could be different.

Until next time............

A Happy Time in My Life

I'm sitting here in my living room watching the American Idol finale. I must admit that I'm addicted to this show, and it provides me many hours of entertainment! And, the finale is always bittersweet because I know that I'm going to have to wait several months before the next one comes on. Tonight, however, one of the special guests was Donna Summer. When I was in high school, she was very popular, and my first true love, John, who I wrote about in an earlier blog, LOVED Donna Summer! I believe he owned every album (yes, back then they were called albums) that she created. Every dance we went to had Donna Summer music blaring over the speakers, including my Senior Prom, with the mirrored disco ball and all! Anyway, hearing Ms. Summer sing on American Idol tonight brought back a flood of memories from my junior and senior years in high school! Dancing to Donna Summer at high school dances, as well as dancing in John's living room and singing like we were rock stars with hairbrushes in our hands! Those were such good times! So, John, if you are up there listening......I sang one of your favorites in honor of you in MY living room, as my dog, Peanut sat with his head cocked as if I had lost my mind! I'll love you forever, my love!

Until next time...........

Strange Yellow Object

I just wanted to inform you that there is an unidentified yellow object up in the sky here today! After doing some research, I've been told that the yellow object is the SUN! So, I guess the sun really does shine in Findlay, Ohio every now and again. I'm hoping to see more of the big yellow ball more often! Just thought you'd like to know.


Until next time.............

My cousin Judy....

Every time I eat cauliflower, I think of my cousin, Judy. Judy was my mother's niece, but my parents raised her, so Judy was more like a sister to me than a cousin. Anyway, when I was little, I can remember Judy in the kitchen with those little boxes of cauliflower. She asked me if I wanted some, and, being the finicky child that I was, declined. She finally convinced me to just take a bite and try it, and after some hesitation, I took the plunge and tried it. To my surprise, I loved it! So, every time Judy made cauliflower, I'd join her in this "treat". She must have really loved it, because all I remember her eating was cauliflower! Obviously, she ate other things, but Judy should get credit in getting me to try something new in the food group, considering the fact that I grew up eating a lot of peanut butter sandwiches due to the fact that I didn't like trying new things. The other thing that Judy absolutely went crazy over was icecream.....any icecream was good to her, but her all time favorite was homemade icecream. When our family would get together for various occasions, homemade icecream was just a given! We would usually make 2 containers of it....one vanilla and usually one banana. Now, I love icecream just as much as anyone, but my cousin Judy could eat us all under the table! She'd eat bowl after bowl of homemade icecream....and she wasn't a big person at all! Where she put all this icecream is beyond me! So, everytime I eat icecream, I still think of Judy. My cousin is no longer with us....she passed away a few years ago from cancer. And I miss her, because she was like a sister to me. But, I made cauliflower last night for dinner, and couldn't help but smile, because I can still see her trying to convince me to give it a try! I'm so glad I did! Cauliflower and Icecream! Together.....not a good combination, but separately.....pretty awesome. One more thing that reminds me of Judy is my dad's homemade nutbread...I can still see her at family gatherings munching on this! She was an awesome lady, and she gives me many fond memories. Cauliflower, Icecream and Nutbread! Thanks for the memories, Judy!

Until next time......

I need my mom............

The past few days have been bad days for me. The weather doesn't help. I am a person that needs a lot of sunshine and a lot of warm days, neither of which is happening here! Sometimes, I feel like I live in Seattle! It's during these hard times that I need my mom. If she were still here, I would be handling this in a much better fashion! My mom and I used to talk every single day. Even though we didn't live in the same town, I still got to hear her voice every day of my life. And we'd talk sometimes for hours on end about absolutely nothing! My mom was a huge sports fan....especially baseball (the Reds) and basketball (college and pro). I was a huge Cincinnati Bearcats fan, and there were many games where we'd talk on the phone through a Bearcats game, analyzing the game, the coach, the players....it's just what we did. During March Madness, when the brackets would come out, mom would be the first person I would call, and she'd give me her predictions on who she thought would win each game....we'd literally go through the entire bracket, one by one. She was usually 80% accurate on her picks. 99% of the time when I would call, she was watching some type of game on television. That's how she spent the majority of her time. I miss my mom so much! Today is one of those days that I wish I could just pick up the phone and hear her voice again, and we could sit and talk about absolutely nothing! (I know she would have plenty to say, however, about the current Cincinnati Reds team and management and it wouldn't be good!) I don't care how old you get.....you always have days that you want your mom, and this is definitely one of those days for me! I need my mom..............

Until next time...........

Mother's Day.......

It's Mother's Day! Today, I have posted a picture of my beautiful daughters, Kim and Kasey. They are the light of my life, even though they may not think so sometimes! Mother's Day is a time for me to reflect on just how lucky I am to have been blessed with the two daughters in my life. Kim was born in January during a blizzard. Dan and I were lucky to even make it to the hospital that day. Thankfully, we did, and 4 hours after being admitted, Kimberly Blair was born, weighing 7#3oz. I remember when the nurse put Kim into my arms. I couldn't believe she was mine. All I wanted to do was hold her in my arms, and look at her, watch her every move. I also remember when we took Kimberly home and how, after all the years of trying and waiting for a baby, I finally had my baby girl! My mom came to stay with me, and I remember that all she wanted to do was help me get settled into a routine with Kim, but she was driving me crazy! I couldn't wait for her to go home so that I could get into my OWN routine.....yet, when she left, I sat on the couch and cried because I missed her already! Hormones are such a wonderful thing! Anyway, everything turned out just fine, and I enjoyed watching the different stages of Kim's development. Kim was the first grandchild that LIVED close to my mom and dad, so she was showered with love from her grandma and grandpa on a regular basis. My mom and dad adored her and would think of any excuse in the world to come and see her or they would think of a reason for me to come see them. And then there's Kasey! She was born in December, 1 week after my birthday. Birthing rooms had just come on the scene, and I must say that it was such a wonderful experience......mind you, it doesn't take away the pain (I was a "pioneer" in that I had both girls naturally)....but the room was so "homey", with soft, pastel colors on the wall, lamp lighting, pictures hanging, and a "normal" bed. It was the closest feeling to home that you could get. I had been admitted the night before Kasey's birth, because my blood pressure had skyrocketed, and I was to be induced the next morning. Kasey had thoughts of her own! I went into labor at 10:30 p.m. that night and Kasey was born 2 hours later! I got to hold Kasey the minute she was born and she weighed in at 5#11oz. (I must say that I was very fortunate to have such easy labors.....4 hours and 2 hours.) Kasey was so incredibly small, but I enjoyed that because she didn't seem to grow up as quickly....at least in size. She was full term, she was just a small baby. She was every bit as beautiful as Kim was. The difference between the two births was that with Kasey, I got to have her in my room at all times, so I really enjoyed that. I remember doing the same with Kasey that I did with Kim....I would just hold her for hours and memorize every inch of her body and watch all her little moves. Kim got to come to the hospital to see her little sister, and once we came home from the hospital, I made sure that Kim felt just as special, and made it a big deal that she was now the "big sister". As the girls grew up, I was very lucky to have 2 very responsible girls. I have been truly blessed, and I've enjoyed watching them grow up and watching them bond with each other. Sure, they have their arguments, but they would lay down their own lives for each other. They are both grown up now, on their own......Kim is married and has a baby boy (my first grandchild), and Kasey is on her own in Cincinnati. Even though they may not always be in total agreement, I know they love each other, and that will never change. They are complete opposites, but I think that's why they clash sometimes. And that's ok. All I know is that I thank God every day to have them in my life. I am truly blessed.

Simpler times.....

When I was younger, my parents and I would go to visit my mom's sister, Lou, in the VERY small town of Santoy, Ohio. This was a mining town years and years ago, and you could basically kick a stone from one end of the "town" to the other. It was very remote, and my aunt and uncle lived up on top of a hill. Their house had no running water and no indoor plumbing. So, the outhouse was the only bathroom! I can remember as a kid just dreading the urge to "go" because I didn't want to have to go into this building and fight the cobwebs, spiders, flies, and whatever else might be crawling around in there! Since the house had no running water, my aunt and uncle would fill their car with at least 20 plastic gallon jugs and we'd drive down the road to a well to fill these jugs with water. This is the water that was used for drinking as well as the water we used to heat up the water to pour into a basin to take a "bath". It was a real eye opener for a kid who had all the modern conveniences! To brush your teeth, you filled up a little tin cup with water and used that to rinse after you had finished brushing, and this was usually done outside! Even though I didn't care for the "inconveniences", I did always have fun with my aunt and uncle. This was one of my dad's favorite places to visit due to the fact that it was so remote, and he felt like he could relax and enjoy the solitude. It was also a treat for my mom, because she was able to spend time with not only her sister, Lou, but also her sister, Geneva. When the three of them would get together, there was a lot of laughter in the house, and their favorite thing to do was to sit around the kitchen table and play the game "Trouble". They would sit into the wee hours of the night playing that game, and I would lay in bed, listening to the popper that rolled the dice, and would fall asleep to the laughter of 3 sisters taking that game so seriously, but having fun at the same time. Those were simpler times, and I miss them very much. My Aunt Lou raised 8 children in that house with no running water and no plumbing! They all turned out just fine! They all relied on each other, and I think that that is something that is missing in today's families. We have forgotten how to be a family to each other. Perhaps we need to go back to simpler times!

My First Love

I'm feeling sentimental today, so I thought I'd write a little quip about my first love. I was a late bloomer, I guess. My first actual boyfriend was when I was in junior high, which lasted all of 2 months. Both of us were very shy and were basically afraid to communicate face to face. He wasn't my first love. My second boyfriend was in 10th grade, and I met him in marching band. His name was Brian and after band practice one night, he asked me if I would like to go to the courtyard dance with him. (Our high school was built in a circle, and in the middle was a beautiful courtyard, and every fall, it was the first dance of the school year.) I remember the first slow dance and even remember the song that we slow danced to. We had a very nice time, and he asked me if I would go to the Homecoming dance with him, and I gladly accepted. He was a little less shy and we could actually talk with one another, but it wasn't a hot romance at all. I think we were more friends than anything, and that lasted about 6 months, and the romance faded. He wasn't my first love, either. My first love came to me the summer before my junior year in high school and I met him at church camp. His name was John Sturgeon and my love for John will never fade as long as I live. He was absolutely adorable, and when we met, I found out that he lived in Marion, too, but went to a different school than I did. He was a year younger than me, and we clicked instantly. I fell hard for John and he fell hard for me. We had a very sweet courtship, and I remember every single second that we spent together. We had our ups and downs, but we stayed together for 2 years, and then we drifted apart when I went off to college. If ever there was true love, it was between John and me. We went to all the various school dances at his school and mine, and went to alot of movies together. We just loved spending time together. He enjoyed writing poems, and he was constantly giving me poems that he had written. I wish I would have kept them. John was the first boy to give me my first kiss, and we had several in the 2 years that we were together. I will never forget those kisses, either. Anyway, more than the kisses was just this incredible bond. We did everything together. Then, when I graduated from high school, I went off to Ohio Northern University, which was only about an hour away, but the distance was enough to pull us in different directions. He still had his last year of high school, and when I would come home on the weekends, it seemed as if we just couldn't get our schedules to connect. It was sad. I missed my friend. We always vowed to each other that we would never let our friendship fade away, but in time, it did. So, I went on with my life at college, and ended up meeting the girls' father and we got married. I hadn't heard from John since I left for college. I had been married to Dan for about 2 years, and we were living in Marion at the time. I just happened to be grocery shopping at Kroger, and when I went to check out, the man bagging my groceries came up and said, "Hi Mary." I looked up and there he was! John was working at Kroger as an Assistant Manager. It was so good to see him. He walked me out to my car and told me that he had met someone. He told me that he was gay and had found his life partner and was very happy, but that he always hoped that he would see me again someday. We vowed, once again, to keep in touch, but we never did. The fact that he was gay didn't phase me in the least. I still loved him and wished only the best for him. A few years later, I was talking to an old high school friend on the telephone and she mentioned John's funeral. At first, I didn't think that I heard her correctly. I asked her to repeat what she said, and she told me that John had died from AIDS. The funeral was the next day. She thought that I knew this already. I had to go to the funeral! He was only 26! I found out the details of the funeral, and went. When I walked into the funeral home, I wasn't sure that I could handle seeing him. I put on a brave face, however, and sent inside. When I walked up to the casket, I half expected them to just have a picture of John, but the casket was open. When I looked down, I thought I was going to faint. This beautiful, attractive man had withered away to nothing. He looked 80 years old instead of 26! It broke my heart. I learned at the funeral after talking with his sister that he died in a nursing home, which broke my heart even more! How I wish I could have been there for John. Had I known about his illness, I would have been by his side until the very end, trying to make his final days as painless as possible. I miss my first love. I think about him so often. I do not regret my time with John at all. I will always consider him to be my first true love, and I will always consider him to be one of my best friends. So, here's to you, John. You will always be an angel to me, and when I think of you, I smile.

Until next time.................