An Anniversary of Sorts

This weekend, the 24th and 25th of Janbuary is the one year anniversary of my Stem Cell Harvesting.  It's been an odd year full of blessings and love.

We were sure that we were harvesting stem cells and getting them back in the fall of 2014.  However, the Fall of 2014 has come and gone and my stem cells are still in a freezer.

I look back and see all we have been through.  The  massive chemo that cost me my hair for the first time.  The growth hormone shots to force my body to make many more white cells and force them into my blood stream.  The port that needed to be sewed into my neck because my veins were not big or strong enough to handle the machine that would suck the stem cells out of me.  The harvesting itself which was harder than I hoped it would be and was as hard as I was told it could be.

I look back at how hard it was to gain my strenght again, to get back to work.  How hard it was to play with my grand girls or even sit at a birthday party and not cry.

It's been a year of up and downs, of illness and health.  Of good days and bad.  Of weeks of sleeping and days of energy.

It has been a year of watching my husband do it all, from cooking and cleaning to shopping and laundry.  Driving me everywhere and holding my hand while I slept.

A year of both dogs sleeping on me, near me, checking on me throughout the night.

A year of co workers helping out, doing my job, taking over at times and wishing me luck all the time.

A year of back and forth to doctors for things not really connected to cancer but still somehow connected.

A year of friends taking me out to dinner, lunch, and breakfast to talk, laugh, ask questions and just enjoy each others company.  A year of gifts, calls, emails, cards, funny stories and prayers.  Lots of prayers.

A year of leaning on God to do what I couldn't and to meet my needs.

It's been quite the year!  I have hair now, I have energy now, I have things to do and places to go. I have a job to keep up with and friends to laugh with.
I have a husband I can cook for, and clean up after and even take care when he gets sick.
And someplace up north are my stem cells, frozen. They can stay there for 30 more years.

GRANNY NIRVANA HODGEPODGE!

1. Besides U.S. Thanksgiving, it's also National Game and Puzzle Week...what game have you played most recently, and who were you with? Have you worked a puzzle of any kind in the past week?

The last game was Domino's that I played with our grand daughters.  I've not worked a puzzle in a very long line.

2. What is one place you were thankful for this year?

One place I'm thankful for this year was Dog Mountain.  It's an amazing place to visit and to walk around.  I hope to go back soon.

3. Take a nap, watch football, go for an after dinner walk, or hit the stores...which ONE is on your must-do list for Thanksgiving day? For those of you playing along who aren't in the US, answer as it relates to any big holiday meal.

Well since we are getting a bit of snow, going for a walk is out of the picture.  A Nap is certainly in my plans for Thanksgiving day.

4. Besides Thanksgiving, what's your favorite home cooked meal?

WOW There are several favorites that I have.  I really love the meat stuffing we will have on Thanksgiving and Hubby will make it at other times of the year for me.  I like a nice pot roast that has cooked in the crock pot all day.  I like a lasagna especially the next day!

5. What product from an infomercial would you most like to own?

I tend to change channel when infomercials come on.  They make the product sound so good and after all it's only $14.99 to try it at home for 30 days right?  I wonder what happens after the 30 days and how much you are charged after that.  Not for me.

6. Christmas shopping? Have you begun? Finished? Will you shop on Black Friday? How do you feel about stores opening on Thanksgiving Day? What percentage of your Christmas shopping is done online?

Christmas shopping is almost done! I will not shop on Thanksgiving  and I'm so sorry for those people who have to work on Thanksgiving.  If no one shopped, the stores would stop opening.  They will get the message by the amount of money it cost them to pay everyone to show up and do nothing.  But since so many are greedy, they shop.  It's sad that we talk about all we are grateful for and then leave the table to go to stores to get more.  If I do shop on Black Friday, it will be online.  A lot of my shopping has been online, more than 80%!

7. What are you most grateful for that adds beauty to your everyday life?

Life with Hubby adds beauty to my life everyday.  He enriches everyday with his tenderness and care.  He goes out of his way everyday to show me he loves me.  We still hold hands to watch TV and enjoy each others company.  We've been together for over 42 years and we not only love each other but like each other, respect each other and enjoy each other's company.

8. Insert your own random thought here.

Well the snow has landed here in NH. It's beautiful, it's white, it's snowman making snow and there is going to be a lot of it.  It really does make it feel like the start of the Holiday season and puts everyone in the mood for eggnog, fire in the fireplace, decorations and sharing things with good friends and family.
Happy Thanksgiving All!!

Thank you Joyce for the questions,  If you all have time while your  bird is cooking, visit  others blogs and answer the questions.

Weekend of Gold!

It's summer right?  Well around here you wouldn't think it was.  The windows are open, the breeze is blowing in and the night time temps are in the low 50's.  During the day it gets into the mid to high 70's.  It feels like the beginning of Fall.  I'm not happy about it. I like the heat of summer!! I hope this doesn't mean that Fall will start sooner than it should followed by a long and cold winter.

Several weeks back I got a message that a woman named Sue wanted to touch base with me.  At first I thought she was a client so I looked her up in the computer system and she was not there.  I couldn't figure out who she was but her name was so familiar. I knew that I knew her! I put her on the back burner and took care of current clients.  After a few days I remembered who she was.  My friend from my growing up years. Our houses were right next door to each other.  We could sit by our bedroom windows and talk to each other for a bit before we went off to sleep.  She is 9 months older than me and we hung out all the time.   She graduated a year before me and got married and moved away.  Her last name changed of course and I lost track of her.

Hubby and I met her way back in the early 80's or was it the late the 70's...neither of us could pin down exactly when we got together again.  Our kids were small and I'm not sure she had her daughter yet when we met up again but it was as if no time had really passed. We laughed and talked and told stories of what was happening in our lives. It was a very nice visit.  Then life once again caught up with us and we were busy raising kids, working, making homes, and living lives.

In June she moved back to the city and she found where I worked. She popped in on a weekend and left me the message and when I heard her voice (after I remembered who she was), we picked up right  where we left off.  Our kids are now adults with kids of their own but we are still friends. Different names, different histories but one thing still in common, our shared past.

So we get together, look at old pictures, talk about our kids, our husbands, our grand kids our siblings, and laugh remembering all the times we shared and all the stories we still have to share.

So in this cool weather, Hubby grilled chicken and I made macaroni salad and we laughed and shared stories and remembered.  I can't help but remember a song sung in my youth.

 "Make new friends, but keep the old. One is Silver and the other is Gold.

A circle is round, it has no end. That’s how long I want to be your friend."

It was a Golden Weekend.  How was yours?

How to Get Your Kids To Eat Their Veggies!

Or The Mother-In-Law Story

We have all heard those "Mother-In-Law" stories, right?  A bunch of people get together and in no time you will hear someone say "My Mother-In-Law is so bad...."
Well so far we have been able to top the other stories that we have heard.

Let me set the stage for you.
The year:  1976
The place:  New Hampshire, my mother's house
The event:  Between base moves.  Husband is in the U.S. Air Force and we are moving from England to Louisiana.
The cast: Hubby, me, two children (ages 5 months and almost 5 years.)....And My Mother.

We were spending a few weeks between bases as we were just coming back from England where we had been for a few years. Our daughter was born over there and no one had seen her yet so instead of going straight to the new base, we decided to head over to New Hampshire for a few weeks to show off our little girl and our big boy.  My mother had offered for us to stay with her and it was the more centrally located home of anyone else's so we took her up on her kindness.

We had become Christians and were really trying to live the words Romans 12:18 "If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone." So since she offered we decided it was worth staying with her, after all it was only for a week.

We had visited with my in-laws (who were a gift from God himself to me!) and my sister and her kids (she had 3 by then) and some friends as well.

One night we were finishing up dinner and my mother made some Indian Pudding for dessert. Indian Pudding is a concoction made from cornmeal, molasses, milk, butter, maple syrup, eggs, cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg. It's considered a true New England tradition.

Baby daughter was just 5 months while our son was almost 5 years old.

The baby was too young for it so she got whatever I had for her.  Our son was offered a popcycle instead, and I don't like Indian Pudding, never have.  Hubby was still trying to make peace with this woman so he ate some.  I asked him if he liked it and if he did I would make him some.  He told me that it was fine if I never made it as it was not very good.  It was late so we went to bed.

Sometime in the middle of the night, he was really sick. Throwing up and looking just terrible. I decided we had to go to the hospital and called 911.  We were taken to the local VA hospital where they began to run all sorts of tests on him.  At one point the doctor came to see me and asked where we had eaten dinner thinking we had gone out to some restaurant.  I told him we had eaten at my mothers house and started to tell him what we all ate.  Then I remembered the Indian Pudding and the fact that she didn't eat any. She loved this stuff and would make it often while I was growing up but this night she didn't eat any, saying she was too full.

The doctor told me he had found rat poison in hubby's stomach.  My heart sank, not only was my husband suffering from food poisoning but because of the late hour, I had left the two kids sleeping at my mothers house.  I quickly called my father-in-law and begged him to get over to my mother's house and pick up the kids and then get to the hospital. Without asking questions, they got dressed and got our kids and stuff for them and got to the hospital. I was blessed with the best In-Laws I ever could have wanted.

Hubby would be OK but he had been poisoned.  I went to my in-laws home after that and when I returned to my mothers house to collect the things that were left behind, I asked her about it. 

Her response was:
"You will be better off as a widow."

We could have pressed charges but hubby didn't want to do that. Remember, we are now Christians and we live by a different set of values.  Plus we are moving to Louisiana and may never see her again. 
He tried to convince himself that her eye sight was failing and that the box of cornmeal and the box of rat poison look similar so it was an honest mistake, right?  Only if she had eaten some of it would I ever believe that plus there is her statement to me.   

Now we did leave the Air Force in 1980 and return to NH because we had other family up here.  We did go to her home for meals - funny things about her meals - the family only ate what I ate since she wouldn't try to kill me.  This is a great way to get your kids to eat their veggies!!! See how I got the title of the blog into this story.....  

Move forward some 16 years. My mother was dying of lung cancer and could no longer care for herself.  She had to live with someone. My hubby said that we had the most room and were closer to her doctor's so she should live with us. I reminded him she is the same woman who poisoned him with Indian Pudding.  Without batting an eye he says,
"Well, she isn't cooking!"
You just gotta love a guy like that! I know, I do!

Easter Bunny Wednesday Hodgepodge.

Joyce came up with a great set of questions for this week. Thanks Joyce.

1. What are your plans for Easter? Are you cooking a big lunch or dinner? Dyeing eggs? Attending a sun rise service? Eating too much chocolate?
Our daughter and grand girls are coming over for a bit. We will have Easter baskets for them of course and some light snack for everyone. Hubby and I will exchange a card but no chocolate this year, as neither of us can really have it and we have lots in the freezer if we become weak and "need" some. Of course there will be church and I may even wear a dress (depends on the weather).

2. What is something you feel too young to do?
Die! I plan on living a very long time.....I hope you all live a long time as well.

3. "Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud...it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs..."
Of the characteristics mentioned in the biblical definition of love which do you find most difficult to live out and why?
Patient!! I want what I want, when I want it!  I have a hard time waiting for anything. I find lines annoying as well as waiting to open presents at Christmas or Birthdays.

4. What's a springtime flower you associate with your childhood?

I know that these are not "flowers" but the question is about my childhood and these two flowers screamed Springtime when I was a kid!! I loved picking them and bringing them home as a huge bouquet. I love blowing the flowers and making wishes knowing for sure that my wishes would come true.

5. Ever sung karaoke? If so, what's your go-to song? If not and you're given the opportunity, would you?
Never have but might if someone sung along with me.

6. What is something you keep in a basket?
Cards that I make and plan to send out to others. I keep them in a basket in my office and they are organized by holiday.

7. When was the last time you felt foolish?
Boy I can't think of a time but there clearly must have been times.  I bet I'll think of it later this week.

8.  Insert your own random thought here.
We've had some melting and the other day, I saw this, next to the garage door! Most of the front yard is still under snow so seeing this was JOY.  I do believe it's time to find the rake and get going.... Well maybe after a bit more melting.

So now it's your turn, how would you answer the question? 

Nope, still don't like surprises

The year was 1976, I was very pregnant with our second child and living on the U.S. Air Force Base in England. It was great day.

Taking care of a 4 year old, and being VERY PREGNANT- I always had the deer-in-the-headlight look on my face. Don't judge me...I was very tired.

Our American furniture was finally here! We could get the base furniture that had been loaned to us back to the base. Our fridge was coming as well and we could give back the English fridge which was about the size of a cooler for a dorm room and the washer was coming as well. We had the transformers ready to plug in our American appliances. (American appliances are designed for 110 volts, whereas electricity in England is 220 volts, hence the need for transformers) All the English base furniture that was loaned to us was stacked up to a wall.  It was leaving first thing in the morning. I was so happy!

Hubby was in Spain at a shooting tournament for the Air Force and was not due home for another week! What a surprise for him to come home and see all the American furniture in our home!

Our son, now 4 years old was getting a set of bunk beds and he was so excited! So after tucking him in bed and satisfied that I was completely ready for the big day I went off to bed.

After a few hours of sleep I was awakened when the front door began to rattle.

Everything was packed. He had the guns with him! Someone was clearly breaking in and this time hubby is not even in the same country! I'm not anyplace near a phone! Cell phones didn't exist yet!

The door was now open. I could hear someone walking down the hall. I did what I know to do, protect my baby!

I grabbed hubby's night stick and as the person came around the corner I yelled and swung the night stick hitting the intruder in the gut, doubling him over and trying to breath. One hand went up and in a very rasspy voice I heard my hubby say " surprise, I'm home early"

Apparently, everyone knew I was pregnant and with all the problems we had with our son, they let him get his shooting out of the way and sent him home early to be with me.

He came in and saw all the base loaner furniture packed to one side and was worried about me so he was coming right down the hall to check on us when I surprised him first. 

I was so mad! He surely knows not to surprise me right? Didn't we have something like 4 years ago, did he forget?

Apparently not. Since he had the guns with him because of the competition he figured he was safe!  Right!?

Once again he had to learn that no matter what I will stand between whatever/ whoever and protect my child. Any danger would have to go THROUGH me first.

Lesson learned.

He started calling me when he left work to let me know he was on his way home. For a while, he yelled from outside the house that he was entering the home now!

Good boy!

They can be taught.

The photo yellowed with age, this is long before ditigal camera and keeping photos safe.  Still, I'm huge with child, don't surprise me.

With cellphones, he stills let's me know when he on his way home but no longer feels the need to announce that he is outside the home waiting to come it.

He also doesn't surprise me.

I don't like surprises!

When hubby and I got married, I knew he was going to be cop so guns were going to be part of our life. We didn't have guns growing up and no member or our family were hunters so when hubby brought guns into the house it was time to get use to them

At first it was just his guns, I would watch him clean them and see how many parts they come apart into, that was a surprise to me.

Then we would go to the firing range and he would load it and I would shoot it. He then would pick me off the ground laughing because it had quite a kick back.

Laugh away big guy-laugh away!

We started to get more guns, and a rifle, and a shotgun.

We had a safety plan to make sure any future children of ours would not have access to any guns in our home and so as the kids came, they knew we had guns but only ever saw them on daddies work belt. They knew they were in the house but had no access to them

Over time, I had learned to take apart, clean and put together and load a gun. I also became a pretty good paper target shot.

One night after hubby went to work, I was watching our baby son breath. Oh come on, we all sit near the crib and watch our little miracle breath right? For me it was a blessing beyond belief because he was HOME.

If you've read this blog for any length of time, our son was a sickly child and spend 6 weeks longer in the hospital than home the first year of his life, so having him home was a big deal.

Anyway, I was watching him breath late at night with only the light from the nightlight plugged in near his crib, when I heard something at the back door. I got up to go look what was making that noise and saw a shadow through the back window. A BIG shadow. It was jiggling the back door!

Without even thinking, I got the gun, loaded it in the dark  and walked back into the kitchen. I didn't want to wake the baby with a loud "bang" so instead I yelled "I have a gun and I WILL shoot". I will admit that the yelling could have woken him as well, but it didn't. The shadow dropped to the ground and I heard hubby's voice say " Yes you can shoot, I taught you".

 Hubby had forgotten something at home so came back to get it. He figured I would be sound asleep and he would simply quietly come in, get it and leave. Huh! Simple! Really!

Lessons he learned that night

Moms watch baby's sleep

Moms hear all kinds of noises in the night when home alone

Moms will defend their children ALWAYS

I proved to myself that This girl will shoot a person and will "warn" them first.
I don't like surprises.

I still don't like surprises but hubby would have to learn that lesson again, at least one more time.

Men learn slowly don't they!

I'm still a good shot, 40+ years later.

Why elope? And Parents Reaction!

I mentioned last week that hubby and I eloped. We didn't start out planning that step but it's one that I have yet to regret.

When hubby and I were planing our wedding it was in the 70's, a time when many marriages were held on the beach, barefoot...

Or under an arbor in someone's back yard,

With folding chairs...

Or in an open field under the stars,

Wearing wide brim hats

Or a ring of flowers!

We wanted something simple in the back yard with the priest there and a few friends and family.We wanted one person to stand with us and finger snacks afterwards.

We wanted to have music playing from a the record player playing songs that were meaningful to us.

My mother was not going to have any of that! We were willing to pay for it. Again, NO

She had to invite hundreds of people we didn't know so the gifts would be good. She had to have a church full after all!  She had to rent a hall, cater 3 different food choices for them to pick from. She had to have a live band and She had to have certain songs to dance to.

I had to wear my sister's dress!

I had to wear my sister's shoes!

I had to wear my sister's veil!

Now my sister had a beautiful wedding dress but she is 6 1/2 inches shorter than me!

She also has tiny feet!

I don't know about the size of her head.

I had to have my sister's wedding.

It was big and showy.

It lasted all day long.

She was sick by time it was over.

I know because I held her dress while she threw up so nothing would land on it.

I had vowed to myself that I was not doing that for anything.

I didn't want my sister's wedding.

Why you ask? Why must I have a copy of her wedding?

Well the dress and shoes and veil were costly and my mom wanted her money's worth and no one would know it was her dress anyway. Plus she still had all the receipts so she knew who to call and wouldn't have to relearn how to plan a wedding.

Again, we told her we did not want a big wedding and urged her to just let us have what we want.

She told us that what we wanted was not nice enough and looked "poor".

However every day I heard about the cost, the time involved, the list of people coming, the cost had gone up a lot in 4 years since my sister's wedding, the time and over and over agin how I was not worthy of such a great wedding.

My future farther-in-law tried to talk to her. My sister tried to talk to her. 

She didn't care, she was going to recycle my sisters wedding for me and complain the entire time.

Finally, we decided that if we were going to break fee from her grip, we better do it right off the bat.

So under the guise of babysitting for my sister, I left the house and went to my sister's house but it was not to babysit!

We gathered my sister, her husband, their child, my future-in-laws, and Hubby's favorite uncle and aunt. They all were told it was going to happen, they were all glad for us.

We gathered at the office of the Justice of the Peace, exchanged vows, and became man and wife.

My future father in law made last minute arrangements at our favorite restaurant for a nice meal. When they heard of the reservation, they made us a wedding cake.

My sister did my hair.

In a total act of rebellion I wore pink! I have told you I'm Scottish right? I thank my dad for that.

From the Left, my neice being held by her mom (my sister) with her husband behind.
Me and Hubby
Uncle Al and his wife Terri
My new In-laws on the far right.

So I had the small wedding I wanted. We had the ones that were most important to us there. We had a nice meal and a surprise wedding cake.

My parents were married in a big church wedding-they had a terrible marriage.

My sister had a big church wedding- it dissolved a long time ago, they were miserable.

I kept the promise to myself and didn't have that.

I am glad I stuck to my guns.

After the wedding and before the meal, we stopped by the house to tell my parents.

 My mothers first words to us, and I kid you not,

"Why didn't you tell me you wanted something small and easy?"

Cross my heart - true!
And that's one of many reasons why my mother really disliked Hubby and tried to poison him a few years later....but that is yet another story another time!

Field Trip to Sonic

There are 6 states in the New England Area they are: Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode Island. There is 1 Sonic Drive In in all of the New England States.   Just 1!  I'll give you a hint, it's not in New Hampshire. It's in Mass about an hour away from our home.

Which, as it turns out is a good thing...

Because if it was closer, I would go visit more often.

We had heard a fair amount about Sonic and wanted to try it out so one day we packed up the dogs, filled the gas tank and headed south. We have a good time in the car, hubby and me. We tell stories, remember times gone by, sing along with the radio and look at the GPS on my cell phone.

If you are not familiar with Sonic, you pull your car up to a station and park, then order off the menu calling in your food order and then pay right there. Soon someone comes up to the driver's window on roller skates with your food and you eat in your car.  It's more about the experience than the food.  I had gone on Facebook asking for recommendations and ended up getting these:

Top is cheesy tater tots, bottom chili cheese tater tots.

Watermelon Slush and Caramel/Mocha Java

Grilled Chicken sandwich

Double Cheese burger

Cheddar Peppers Poppers

It was all pretty good but if you're thirsty, don't get the java drink because it should come with a spoon instead of a straw.  It's darn thick!!!  I saved my carbs for 2 days so that I could enjoy this meal.  It was worth it. 

100 Days of Dance

On the 100 Days of Dance, I managed to do 6 days of 30 minutes. Sometimes dancing to the country TV station, sometimes belly dancing, sometime stepper dancing.  In all I'm up to 21 days, so I'm right on target!! How are you doing??

Dreamy Davy Jones was the First Boy in my Bedroom

When I was teenager, I had posters of Davy all over my room. And I do mean ALL OVER MY ROOM. Ceiling, walls, doors, closet. I slept with magazines filled with him under my pillow. His pictures were on my book covers and I do remember having a lunch box with The Monkees on it.

My mother told me I could not put nails in the walls, and I was the obedient child, so instead I used glue to hold the hundreds of photos of the Monkees. I'm sure my mother did a lot of swearing in French when I moved out and the photos were still there!  I just couldn't take them down. (I think that was partly because the of all that glue!)

Now I did have photos of all 4 of them but Davy was clearly my favorite.  I cried when he was on TV. Not the sad kind of cry but the excited emotional teen girl crying as I imagined that Davy was singing just to me, through the TV.

I had all of the albums and would walk miles to the record store to buy whatever new 45 or album that was just released.
Even in winter.
In the snow.

I had one favorite song, that I played over and over again, until the 45 wore out and I would have to go buy another one. Yes, 45's wore out!

It was not "Day Dream Believer". It was "I wanna Be Free".  It spoke to my heart, my frame of mind, my life at the time.

I, along with millions of others, send my condolences to his wives and children.  He will be missed.
R.I.P. Davy

Memories: A Night To Remember

This is prom season around here and all the young ladies are looking forwarded to the evening and have their dresses and shoes bought already. They have plans to get their tans, hair and make-up done and look forwarded to that special evening just like I did - 39 years ago.  This is the very faded and not very good photo of me and my soon to be hubby back in 1972.  It was the evening that I got my engagement ring and we made such large plans for our lives.  Most of our plans didn't pan out but many did. We did travel a bit. We did have our children and we did stay together through thick and through thin and now through bifocals!  

The prom was held at hotel in Bedford and there was no after party but still the dancing was great, the location was beautiful and the handsome boy next to me turned into a super handsome, loving husband, father, and grandfather.  It was a magic night and I hope that the prom will be magic for those attending it this month. One piece of advice I would like to offer all those going to the prom. Take lots of photos of yourself enjoying the prom because after 39 years, I do not remember the names of the others in the photos that I took.  I wish I had more of me and Hubby.