Anniversary party a success

I forgot to mention in my last post that the 50th anniversary party was wonderful. My in-laws and all their guest had a lovely time, enjoyed good food and festivities. Three moments stand out to me:

1. When Mom and Dad first arrived, and looked around, wide-eyed, at the party atmoshpere and guests. I don't think they expected all the fuss - fancy food, candles, a slide show, a wedding-style cake, champagne, etc. They thanked us again and again.

2. Hearing each of the kids' speeches to Mom and Dad. They were really good, and drew laughter and a few tears.

3.When Mom sang her own version of "Thanks for the Memories" to Dad. It was funny, but also sweet, and got a lot of applause.

At one point during the party, my cousin-in-law, Sarah-Marie, told me something she over heard Noah say upon sipping the punch, "What kind of champagne is this?"

I'm so glad I got to be a part of throwing this party for them. They've been so good to us. It was nice to give something back.

Cozy computer nook

I have a new place to post and surf: the office/laundry area in our basement. It doesn't sound nice, but in fact, it is very cozy. The pc is sort of in a corner, by a large window, with a lovely view of our dogwood tree out back. There are lace curtains on the window, and hanging on the walls are two pleasant pictures, one of roses and the other of quails. On the table near the pc is a little metal lamp painted a dull green with little black decorations overtop. It's a candlesctick style lamp. I can hear my family above, as they move around, and watch tv, but I'm not bothered by their noises. I can hear someone leaving or arriving. I can jump up and fold warm clothes out of the dryer 10 feet away. It's perfect. And I wouldn't have discovered this spot if my laptop hadn't become problematic. David had to wipe it and reinstall its programs, but still hasn't gotten it back online. We're going to have to pay someone, which means it'll be put off for some time. Oh well. As long as the boys aren't doing homework, I can use this pc. Yay for unexpected nice discoveries.

My hysterectomy/tummy tuck will be in December, close to Christmas. I learned this a couple weeks ago. When I first learned this, I was not happy. But then I realized that much of the holiday prep will happen before-hand anyway. And I can make cookies early and freeze them, as well as shop and wrap early. My mother-in-law is more than happy to make the Christmas meal. I only hope I can make it to my Dad's Christmas Eve. But, then again, feeling rather sore, I may not mind staying behind with Maisy, and perhaps my mom and in-laws.

"Why are you having a major surgery so close to Christmas?" you may wonder. To save $800.00. We already met our deductible this year, and so we must have the surgery before the year ends.

Another benefit is that the kids will all be home from school, so they can help out around the house, instead of my mother and mother-in-law doing all the dishes, etc. Also, I won't be allowed to drive for 2-3 weeks. With the kids being home, that should cut back on driving demands that my mom and mother-in-law would have to perform.

It's late, and I'm sleepy. G'night.

Anniversary party

Well, I have yet again neglected my blog. This is mainly because, on Noah's first day of school, my brother-in-law, Jeff, called me about putting on a 50th anniversary party for his and my husband's parents. I was delighted to do so. It's been a busy month, though, and I'm eager to see it happen this Friday night. As Jeff is out of town, I'm the "Event Manager", doing everything from finding a place, to finding a caterer, getting a cake ordered, shopping for a pendant for my FIL to give to my MIL, to putting centerpieces together. And then there's the scanning and organizing of 150+ snapshots for a pc slide-show, as well as making slides to introduce each "chapter" of Mom and Dad's lives. They have been so good to us, I was glad to do this for them. I look forward to watching them enjoy their time in the lime-light. 50 years is quite an accomplishment. Just staying alive that long is something, but staying married that long is huge!

Noah finally admitted to me that he liked kindergarten a "little bit." That was because they had gym today, and he apparently really likes that.

We're having a little party tonight for Sarah Jane. She's soon 22. ( I'm the mother of someone old enough to be a wife and mother herself - a sobering thought. ) I'm proud of my Sarah Jane. She's working hard at getting her BSN, and she is living her life responsibly, and in fear of God. It makes my heart glad.

A movie review: Undertaking Betty (2004)
I caught 30 minutes of this movie on TV recently, and it was rated PG-13. So I rented it from blockbuster.com. When it came, it said it was rated R. Confused, and wanting desperately to see how it came out, I watched it. It seems to be PG-13. It was one of the sweetest and funniest movies I've seen in a long time. Set in modern-day Wales, in a little village, it's a fable about love that has to wait until mid-life to bloom. Starts Brenda Blethyn, Alfred Molina, Christopher Walken, and Naomi Watts. My daughter, husband, and teenage son all enjoyed the movie. (I edited 2 scenes) If you're a mom or dad, watch it with your other half, and then know where the scenes are to "edit." Otherwise, it's delightful.

September

It's September - one of my favorite months. I always liked this time of year as a kid. I enjoyed going back to school, and liked the cooler weather as well.

Noah started kindergarten this year. So far, he's not impressed. I'm hoping he'll soon look forward to going, to join his friends and learn new things. I cried a little after walking back into the empty house that first day. I guess it marked the end of his baby/toddler-hood to me. Especially since he's my last. He told that he missed me a lot that first day too, and that warmed my heart. We were both fine the next day.

The girls are back at college. Rebekah is out of state, but Sarah Jane lives here. SJ is practicing her harp as I type. I love to hear her practice.

Rebekah is so happy at college. She has a tight group of friends, and only calls about once a week. Sometimes she calls just to talk to Noah.

My little sisters, age 21, are coming over any minute. They want to see Josh's hair, which he bleached blonde the day before school started. I don't like the way it looks, but most people compliment him on it. (I think they just don't know what else to say.) His natural color is brown, and that looks great on him. Oh well, as David says, at least he didn't get a tattoo.

Sarah Jane, inspired by Josh, bleached her hair as well. It looks very natural on her, as her skin is blonde-friendly. So now, after years of having dark-haired kids, I have two "blondes."

Beach, Maisy, Becka turns 20

Oops... I've neglected my blog...

We got back from our trip to the beach a couple weeks ago. We went to Bethany Beach, DE. The big kids had a lot of fun. Noah had some fun, as did I. David got a terrible sunburn on the first day of the week, and had to hide out for the next few days. He did enjoy the boardwalk at night, and did have a nice day in the surf the day before we left, but I felt really bad for him most of the time. He wasn't very discouraged, as he enjoyed having the beach house to himself for large blocks of time, to watch what he wanted on TV, and to read a book he had been wanting to finish. So, all in all, it was a good trip.

I learned something during the trip: Noah is not a beach person, at least for now. He played a little in the waves, got knocked down, then spent the rest of his beach-time whining to go back to the beach house. He wouldn't even build sand-castles with me. The sticky sand and hot sun bothered him. He very much enjoyed the boardwalk rides, and feeding french-fries to seagulls. Also, he enjoyed flying the little kiddie kite we bought him. We found that 6-8pm was our family's favorite time to go to the beach.

I tried going to the beach in the morning for my devotions, and found it to be too bright and a bit muggy. I walked on the early morning beach, and also found that less than enjoyable. I guess evenings really are the best time for some to be on the beach in July.

When we returned from the beach, my Dad and step-mother, Brenda, brought our dog, Maisy, back to us. Brenda had asked me if she could take Maisy to her Sheltie's groomer while they were keeping her, and of course I was fine with that. (The summer-clip I had given her was looking sad, and a fresh cut would make her cooler... ) I asked only that her ruff and tail be left alone. And that is what Brenda told the groomer. But when she returned, Maisy's ruff was gone. Her tail was still fluffy, but she now looked like a mix between a Jack Russell and fox terrier. The groomer told her that the ruff needed to grow in along with the body hair, or it would look bad. Anyway, I thought she looked cute. She's fluffed out since, resembling a Corgi, but here's how she looked right after the groomer's:

And last but not least, Rebekah turned 20. Various friends and family joined us for her party the other night. She was very pleased with all the decorations and effort that went into it, and made a point to personally thank everyone. I can't believe it's been 20 years since the second time I heard the words, "It's a girl!" I'm so glad God blessed us with Becka. She's a lovely young woman.

endometrial hyperplasia

Try saying that three times fast. That's what a doctor told me I had when I went in to see her Monday, about having a roller-ball endometrial ablation done. It seems I need to have a hysterectomy, as this hyperplasia can turn pre-cancerous. The heavy periods I've had for some time are caused by this condition. The hyperplasia is caused by a hormone imbalance. (I believe I'm lacking in progesterone.) So, at the tender age of just 40, I'm going to lose my uterus. And gain relief from heavy blood loss, and the anemia it has caused. And, frankly, I'm OK with it.

Now I just have to figure out the logistics. It has to happen sometime between getting Noah settled into kindergarten, and Christmas. October seems good. We'll see what my doc says this week.

awake

I cannot sleep. I drank some coffee around 10pm and I'm still up on it. Also, I seem to have caught a "summer cold" and my nose has become a faucet. It's not fun to lay in bed, constantly changing my tissue-nose plugs. Finally, frustrated, I found myself poking around the meds for a dry-em-up. I found some Benadryl. What would I do w/o it? Tomorrow I'll use a Neti-pot.



Sarah Jane and I just got back 1:30am. We should've arrived at 9:35, but I overshot our exit off the Garden State Parkway. We knew we had gone too far when we saw flat land and sand in the soil...



God was good and saw us safely home. I have a cold and my nose is running like a faucet. And this coffee... And I think I'm just so happy to be back with my own family. I missed them!



One thing I did while in CT was really fun: Clair took me to see Nunsense at the Ivoryton Theatre. It was great! If you have a chance to see it, go! We laughed and laughed. There were a couple not-nice lines/jokes, but generally it was fine. The one character, "Mother Superior," was played by a man. "Mother Superior" seemed to weigh about 300 lbs, but moved with amazing agility for "her" weight. He/she was a great dancer. Clair was amazed at how nimble this heavy person was. I told her I thought he was padded. After the show, the actor came out in street clothes, and he was a trim man, about 5'7", weighing maybe 150. The padding really looked like real extra weight.














My friend had her baby. She had a girl, her third child, though poly-cystic ovarian disease has bothered her for some time. I think God must feel such joy in making these miracles happen. Makes me want another one. I guess that never goes away. If God wants to, He can make it happen, but so far, in the 15 years since getting my tubes done, nothing has happened outside of the IVF we did to get Noah. He knows best.