Let's Review Last Weekend before we begin another weekend!!

This "weekend in review" actually begins with events that happened a week ago. Our friend, Steve, died and his memorial service was last week. Steve was a writer and had an amazing sense of humor. Back in 2011, he was diagnosed with Prostate Cancer (not what killed him) and he wrote a Directive of things he wanted when he died. He wanted to be cremated and then he wanted to have a "wine and cheese" reception. We can't serve alcohol in our church so we did the next best thing. We had a reception with cheese and finger sandwiches from Ouslers and fruit and nuts and white grape juice and red punch. Close enough. His Directive was read during the service by his girlfriend, Lynne. Steve was 84 years old and he and Lynne (also in our Sunday School class) had dated for 14 years. One of the things he wrote was "don't take the fun out of funeral." Everyone in the chapel was laughing as Lynne read what he had written. I actually left his service feeling better than when I entered the chapel.

My sister-in-law arranged the flowers on the table for the reception and provided the antique cloth. Our church parlor looked lovely and the family and friends seemed very appreciative of the "Cheese and juice" party.

I didn't take a picture after we added all of the food!

Steve's book is below. The book is a compilation of stories. He was a wonderful story teller. His son told those attending the service that his dad always said, "don't let the truth get in the way of a good story." I'm chuckling as I type those words.

On Friday morning, I had an appointment for color and cut (hair) and I told y'all last month that my hair stylist has moved to a nearby town. It was a 37 ish minute drive and the day was beautiful and the farm country provided great scenery.

After the hair cut, I drove 40+ minutes back to the neighboring city where I work to meet three friends for lunch. I've told y'all about them before. We meet once a month for lunch. We raised our kids together and that hour is such a needed time together. Have you eaten at Ashley Mac's? It is a nice spot to grab lunch.

Friday night, we were with some of our regular supper club folks. Two couples were unable to attend. Our friends live on a crest overlooking the "main city." I love the views.

Our hostess tried something new! We made our own Poke' Bowls. She had Ahi Tuna, Smoked Salmon, and/or shrimp and all sorts of additions from two kinds of rice to seaweed chips.

We even ate with chopsticks -- the hostess nor I are in the photo.

I actually ran back onto the porch because I wanted to snap a quick photo of the sun setting.

Friday night, the Northern Lights were showing out even in Alabama. My neighbor took this photo on our circle. I went outside at 10:00 and didn't see anything and went to bed. I didn't know you had to look through your camera lens.

On Saturday, I "played" in my office. I worked on the cushions for outside.

I cleaned out some tubs from the attic. I still have a LOT more. I'm going to try to do a couple per week. I cut out more vinyl letters to label the tubs using my Silhouette. I took a few things to the Salvation Army and I took some things to the trash!!

Ta Da! Here are the new cushions for outside.

I'm actually quite proud of them.

I think our courtyard is beginning to look lovely again. Since I took this picture (below) on Sunday afternoon, even more Hydrangeas have bloomed. We have about 40 on each bush.

I got a text message from our daughter with their newborn pictures. Here is big sister who will be five in July.

And here is new baby girl. This was taken a couple of weeks ago and she is already looking so much more awake and alert and growing so fast.

We don't have as many things to do this weekend. My class will start next week so I'm going to try to enjoy some down time!

 

Impressive Hodge Podge

I'm joining up with Joyce and the gang for the Wednesday hodgepodge! 

1. What impresses you?  I’m going with the first thing that popped into my head. Kindness often impresses me! Seriously! I love when I spot someone being kind to another person. I’m also impressed (and somewhat intimidated) by really smart people who know a lot and can talk intelligently about a subject.

2.  Where are you in your family birth order? Do you fit the stereotype of that particular slot? In what way? I am the baby. I definitely fit into the stereotypical role of the baby. I still love to get my way 😊. My two sisters would say that I still fit the stereotype.

3. What motivates you more-a reward or a consequence? Elaborate. My first thought was a reward, but after thinking on it . . .I think it might be that I’m motivated by consequences because I can be such a rule follower.

4. May 14th is National Buttermilk Biscuit Day. Who thinks biscuits deserve their own day? Do you like biscuits? Make your own? Grab one for breakfast at a drive-through now and then? Which drive-through makes the one you like best? What do you like to put on a biscuit? What's your favorite food or dish that calls for buttermilk? I didn’t know that biscuits had a day of their own. I do like biscuits. I can make angel drop biscuits, but I’ve never mastered the kind of biscuits my granny used to make. There are some great “frozen/pop in the oven” biscuits that you can purchase at the grocery store. I used to drive through different places and grab one every once in a while on the way to work. Jack’s used to have good ones. I think Hardees had good ones, too. Our Piggly Wiggly serves breakfast from the deli and they make a decent biscuit. You can get Conecuh sausage on it which is really good. When I used to go through the drive through, I would get a bacon and cheese biscuit or a sausage and cheese biscuit. My favorite food that calls for buttermilk is cornbread!!

5. Are there any weddings on your summer calendar? What's your favorite part of a wedding/wedding reception? We just went to a wedding a couple of weeks ago and I don’t know if we will be invited to any more this summer or not. I always love watching the groom’s face when the bride starts down the aisle. It is such a sweet moment!! I also enjoy watching the bride dance with her dad and the groom dance with his mom.

6. Insert your own random thought here. Look at our hydrangeas. They have the most spectacular blooms – multiple flowers on each stem. Aren't they impressive? Some of them are so heavy, they are causing the branch to bow toward the ground.

 

Mothers who weren't our mothers . . .

We actually had a fun weekend and I want to write a weekend review but decided to do this first. I actually used this as our adult Sunday School lesson yesterday in the class I teach.

2 Timothy Chapter 1 Verses 5-7

I am reminded of your sincere faith, a faith that lived first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice and now, I am sure, lives in you.

For this reason I remind you to rekindle the gift of God that is within you through the laying on of my hands; for God did not give us a spirit of cowardice, but rather a spirit of power and of love and of self-discipline.

I don’t know the relationship that you had with your own grandmothers or your own mother, but in addition to those relationships, I imagine that you have experienced spiritual mothers along the way - those women who mothered us even though they didn't birth us.

My dad’s mom was a member of Rock Methodist Church in Tarrant, Alabama. I remember her quilting friends and other lady friends who would come to visit. She loved to cook for us and I remember spending the night at her house. My mother had a strange relationship with her own mother. This Granny was very poor and I remember going to her house and she didn't have indoor plumbing! 

My mom's mom

My own mother loved Jesus and she loved us. She taught 3 year old Sunday School for years. When she was diagnosed with cancer and was approaching death, it was so important to her for my daddy to be baptized so that they could re-united in heaven some day. He was baptized and I was old enough that I still remember that night. Those of you who have heard my story know that my mother died when I was 15 – when I was a Sophomore in high school. I was called out of class by the principal and told that I was needed at home. I had walked home for lunch earlier that day and my momma had whispered, “I love you” to me and those were the last words she spoke. She died just an hour or so later.

Momma when she was young

Momma holding me and my two older sisters

After she died, I never lacked for a spiritual mother. My best friend's mother, Inez, and another friend's mother, Mrs. Parker, both took me under their wings and met different needs in my life. Inez and her husband, Herb, took me on trips all over the place - from visiting family in other towns to a cruise. Inez taught small groups that I was a part of. She nurtured me in so many ways. Due to that relationship, I was asked to speak at Inez's funeral and was honored to do so.

Karen and her momma, Inez

The Parker family had 5 children of their own, but the summer following my mom's death, they purchased an extra pool pass and the name on that pool pass was my first name and their last name. They also gave me a surprise 16^th birthday party and it was the first birthday party I ever had in my life.

Mrs. Parker

There were three couples who were active in the young adult ministry in my home church. Even though they were actually quite young themselves, they loved me and mothered me and taught me more about Jesus. They loved Jesus and they loved me.

Let me tell you about my next door neighbor when I was in my young 20’s. Her name was Agnes and she was amazing. I was going through a really rough time and she would cook breakfast for me and make me come over to her house and eat with her. She checked on me all the time.

I came to Trinity when I was 23 years old and went to the young adult Sunday School class. The mother of one of the other participants took me under her wing. She taught me to never say, “I’m bored” because there is always something to do. I was snowed in at their house for 3 days and I had never even seen real silver before and over those three days I learned to polish lots of silver.

Not long after I came to Trinity, the single’s class grew and became the Christian Singles class and our teacher was Dale Sibley and she had a direct line to Jesus. She loved us unconditionally. 

Dale

Mark and I were dating and soon married and I cried because we had to find a new class. We married in May of 1984 and the John Wesley class started in September of 1984 and we were charter members. A young couple – Polly and Jack Allison became our class parents. Jack taught and Polly mothered us. I vividly recall standing in their small kitchen talking about parenthood and marriage and all the things. We could ask her anything. Nothing was off limits.

Mark’s mom stepped in as a mother figure in my life. She and I had long phone conversations almost every day. She taught me how to entertain and how to bake and cook. She modeled what it was like to read the Bible every day and to be in Christian fellowship with friends.

Somewhere along the way, I got older – haha! I’m not sure I’m a good example, but I try to be for our kids and granddaughters. We’ve had 100’s of young adults through our house over the last 14 years and I hope that Mark and I have both been spiritual parents to some of them. Actually, I know we have been.

So what about you? Tell me about some of the spiritual mothers in your life? Who played an important role in your life?

 

Sunday Stealing

 

1.      Write about the best decision you ever made. How did you make it? Was it reasoning or gut instinct?

My decision to marry Mark was pretty good 😊! It was a “love” decision. My decision to accept the job offer for the job I have now was an excellent choice.  It was probably a decision based on reason.

 

2.      What ONE thing would you change about your life? How would your life be different?

 

Here goes the broken record. I need to lose the rest of my weight – the part that makes me feel fluffy. Losing weight would affect my mental attitude. Why don’t I just do it? Maybe I will buckle down this week!

 

3.      What is the hardest thing you have ever done? Why was it hard for you? What did you learn?

 

I feel like I’ve done a lot of hard things in my life. Saying goodbye to both of my parents before I was 25 years old was hard. Going through a divorce at 21 was hard. Getting married and staying married for 40 years is hard, even though we have a good marriage. Raising twins was hard. Being present in my home when lightning struck . . .and then rebuilding while living in an apartment was hard. What have all these things taught me? I can do hard things. Sometimes I need help, but I can do hard things.

 

4.      What is your greatest hope for your future? What steps can you take to make it happen?

 

I would love to live in a world where peace, truth, hope, and love were the norm. I can love God and love people!

 

5.      If you time travel, what would you tell your 16 year old self?

 

I wrote this a couple of years ago:

https://lisa-musingsofamiddle-agedmom.blogspot.com/2022/04/w-is-for-what-would-i-tell-her.html

 

6.      Write about the most glorious moment in your life so far.

 

I’ve experienced several wonderful moments. The day our twins were born was very scary at the time but in hindsight was glorious. The days both of our children married were also beautiful.

 

7.      What did you struggle most with today?

 

On Saturday, there was a Toll House Pie on the kitchen counter all day. I don’t even eat sweets but it called my name all day!!

 

8.      What made you happy today?

 

I woke up this morning! Also, on Saturday, I met two friends from childhood for lunch. It was good for my soul. Did I get a picture? Nope! I was in the moment.

9.      What did you dislike most about growing up?

 

Well, I probably disliked not always getting my way! I know I pitched a few fits over the years!! I didn’t like that my mom died while I was still growing up.

 

10.  Write about 3 activities you love the most and why you love them.

 

I love to be with our family. There is just something that happens to my heart when both of our kids, their spouses, and our grandgirls are all in our house. It hasn’t happened yet since the newest was born, but hopefully that will happen this summer!

I love to be with our friends, who are like family. We have been so incredibly blessed with good friendships.

I love to travel the world. I think traveling to other countries broadens our minds and opens our hearts in a way that I never expected.

 

11.  What has been your best trip so far?

 

We went to Ireland in 2021 and it was amazing. It just wasn’t long enough. All of our trips, except our honeymoon, have been wonderful.

 

12.  Write a list of 3 things (physical or personality-wise) you love about yourself, and why they make you unique.

 

I love to laugh. I like my smile! I have a very hard time saying “love” about any part of myself. I’m a good friend and can be a good listener.

 

13.  Discuss 3 things you wish others knew about you.

 

I can be an introvert. There is a running critic inside my head, so be gentle when you criticize me. I can’t come up with a third.

 

14.  Write about your top 3 personal strengths.

 

We have used Strengths Finder at work before and my top three are: Positivity, Woo, Harmony. I definitely try to keep a positive attitude. Woo means “Winning Others Over.” I love to connect with people, and I love to see people connect with each other. This is a perfect strength for my job. Harmony means I can’t stand it when people aren’t getting along and I try to look at both sides. This is from the Gallup website, “The world would be a better place if we all just got along. Harmony is more interested in what we have in common than what our differences are; in what unites us rather than what divides us.

 

15.  Is social media a blessing or a curse?

 

It is both. I love seeing what folks are doing. I feel like I’m able to keep in touch. On the other hand, social media also gives me terrible FOMO. Also, I think some people spend all their time living life in tiny vignettes – social media spots. We saw a proposal happen the other night and I’m pretty sure it was staged for the photographer. We need to live life. Snap a photo or two. Write about it so you don’t forget the details. I think we look at THE BEST moments in someone’s life and we compare it with our worst moments. For our mental health, that is not a good comparison.

10 on the 10th of May!

 

What are five things I CAN do in May??

1. I can write several blog posts!!

2. I can ride my stationary bike almost every day (I do this already :-) ).

3. I can have lunch with friends (times 2) - one group on the 10th and one group on the 11th.

4. I can go to our neighborhood supper club on the 18th and take Asian Slaw.

5. I can teach Sunday School this weekend . . .and I'm going to talk about Spiritual Mothers.

What are five things I MAY do in May??

1. I may try to cook for just the two of us a few extra times this month. I've not cooked enough lately. I've cooked a LOT but not for weekday dinners.

2. I may go to a memorial service for a cousin who died a few weeks ago.

3. I may learn something new at a conference at the end of the month.

4. I may finish sewing the cushions for outside furniture.

5. I may go to the pool in our neighborhood!

I had a harder time with the "mays" than with the "cans" which seems weird to me!

Thanks so much to Marsha in the Middle for the prompts for 10 on the 10th!!

Trotting Along with the Hodgepodge

Happy Wednesday! Since it is Wednesday, it is Hodgepodge! We are trotting along through May. How about you?

1. Did you watch the Kentucky Derby this past weekend? Have you ever been to a horse race? Ever ridden a horse? Did you enjoy it? Have you ever been to Kentucky? Do you like Bourbon? 

This is a great multi-part questions! I watched the end of the Kentucky Derby several times. That was so close. I have never been to a horse race before. I have ridden a horse several times and it was fun. I have driven through Kentucky. Mark's sister lived in Madison, Indiana and we went to visit them one time. Madison is on one side of the Ohio river and Kentucky is on the other side. There is a bridge over the water between the two. Mark loves bourbon. I don't. I bought a raffle ticket for him and the drawing is today and the prizes are all bourbon! I imagine we won't win because I've already been lucky one time and won a bottle of Pappy for him.

2.  What's something you wish you'd placed in a time capsule fifteen years ago?

I have no idea. 2009? Our kids were graduating from college that year so maybe just some memories!!

3. Are you adventurous? Elaborate. 

My husband would say I'm not. I think I am in some ways. I had never flown farther away than Hawaii or Nassau or St. Martin and in 2016, I flew to Israel for 10 days without Mark. I even went a second time without him. I feel like that was pretty dadgum adventurous. I was with other people both times but the first trip was a true learning experience. My boss nor I had been to Israel before. Luckily, we traveled with a great company and had a great tour guide. 

4. Something you want to make this year? It can be a new recipe, craft, diy project, a milestone you've set for yourself...anything at all. 

I've started making the patio cushions. I cut out the fabric on Sunday evening. They are only an inch thick so I don't have to make cording, etc. I will take two more classes this year - summer and fall and I hope to make more A's.

5. Cinco de Mayo was also celebrated this past weekend...do you like Mexican food? If so what's your favorite dish? Have you ever been to Mexico?  Margarita-yes or no?

This is my favorite question! I love Mexican food! I actually love rice and beans a LOT. I love a good cheese quesadilla. I love tacos. I love guacamole. I love queso and chips. I love Margaritas, yes, I do!! I have never been to Mexico. Los Valadores is a taco truck near our office and they are authentic. I got a chicken and cheese quesadilla from them about a week ago. Yum. Their tacos have meat, white crumbly Mexican cheese, and onions . . .maybe a sprig of cilantro. No lettuce, no tomatoes, no shredded cheese. They add two little cups of ON FIRE salsa - one is green and one is red. The green one is my favorite and I can only use a drop or two.

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

We served Mexican food to our Tuesday night YA group this week -- tacos (8 pounds of ground beef), queso, black beans, shredded lettuce, chips, shredded chicken, shredded cheese, onions, tomatoes, salsa, sour cream, jalapenos, cheese quesadillas made with pepper jack cheese, homemade guac. I told them that we were celebrating Siete de Mayo . . .

black beans in one slow cooker
and queso in the other

8 pounds of ground beef - they
ate all but a baggie full of
leftovers

homemade guac, shredded cheese,
chopped tomatoes, onions,
shredded lettuce, salsa,
sour cream, chips

Weekend in Review -- on Monday!

I can't believe it. I'm actually going to post our weekend in review in a somewhat timely manner!!

Friday morning we headed south to our daughter's house. We were there about 28 hours and I held this little nugget for a lot of those hours.

I look pretty rough - I let my hair air dry and no make-up!

Even Pops was able to hold her some! Her big sister was quite jealous and said, "Gran can hold the baby but Pops is playing with me!" Pops is the favorite of the granddaughters.

I think one of these pictures was Friday and one was early Saturday morning.

After eating a PB&J for lunch on Saturday, we headed downtown for this nugget's dance recital. It was precious. Their routine was set to "You Are My Sunshine" and they performed as well as a bunch of 4 year olds can. She was in a picture with Gran and Pops.

She was in a picture with Grandma and Grandpa.

She was in a picture with her mommy and daddy.

She was in a picture with her friend!

As soon as we finished taking photos, we jumped in the car and plugged another address into Waze and off we went to Lake Martin for an outdoor wedding in The Church in the Pines. It took us about an hour to drive from one place to another but we were on mostly country roads so it was a pretty drive.

It is an outdoor chapel that is open on all sides and it has a roof with a giant fan. Even though it was very warm outside, it was fairly comfortable during the ceremony. It was a big wedding with 14 or so attendants on each side. When we were walking in, I thought one of the musicians looked very familiar. After the wedding, I approached her and I did indeed know her. She was several years older than me but grew up in my hometown and actually played the piano for the church where I grew up. Her family meant so much to me after my mom died.

I took a picture of the flowers decorating the area above the bridal party - the flowers were so pretty!!

The reception was just down the road at the Lodge on Cocktail Slough. It was a beautiful location but it was soooo hot!!

There is an ice cream place here called Big Spoon Creamery and they had the bicycle cart filled with tiny cartons of ice cream. These two both love ice cream. Laura had Lemon Poppyseed (the couple's favorite) and Mark had Alabama Strawberry.

The live band was good!

These three guys are such good buddies.

The bride and groom - first dance.

The groom and his mom. We are all friends of the groom's parents.

The three buddies a few pictures above are missing one friend.

All four wives were able to attend but one husband was away on business. Since Mark and I had such a whirlwind of a day, we dressed for the recital and wore the same clothes to the wedding. I love the sandals I have on in the picture below, but I was so glad that I had left my birkenstocks in the car. On our way to the wedding, we stopped at a gas station/convenience store about 5 minutes away from the venue and went to the bathroom and I changed shoes and added make-up. After the wedding,  I drove home and it was an hour and 37 minute drive and I was happy to have on comfy birkenstocks.

What did you do this weekend?