A Joyful Heart

Hello Dear Friends,

I don't know if any of my blog friends are still around, but if you are, I thought you would like to hear the news that my Miss Bonnie is engaged! Almost five years ago I wrote a post (with her permission, of course) about her heart that had been broken by a young man that she thought was the "one." She had me ask on her behalf for your prayers, and you all were overwhelmingly supportive of her, as I knew you would be. Believe me when I tell you that she cherished each and every prayer, word of encouragement, even some of your own personal heartbreak stories that you generously shared. So, along with the Lord's help, and time, her heart finally mended. She made a conscious decision to rejoice in her single hood, and left it up to the Lord if He saw fit to give her the gift of a mate. The next few years were spent serving Him, and just being happy in her single hood.

 

A year ago a very special young man came into her life, and I am so happy to share that she now wears his ring on her finger! I could tell it was going to be a different outcome this time. I think a Mama's heart somehow knows;) This young man has not only won Miss Bonnie's heart, he also has won all of ours! Brian is quite an extraordinary fellow. He has been blind since birth, so he has had to overcome some pretty big obstacles in his life. Brian never, ever lets his blindness define him. He is such a strong man of God, and he has been gifted with an amazing musical ability. He is a worship leader, and also a very accomplished musician. He uses all his talents to the glory of God! To me, the thing that makes Brian most special is that he doesn't see with his eyes, he sees with his heart!  We all love him dearly, and on April 13 we will proudly welcome into our family with open arms!


Much love,
Susan P.

A Gift and a Shift

Miss Bonnie's best friend is getting married over the weekend so I thought I'd share with y'all what I made for the happy couple.  Jessica loves browns and golds, she loves animal prints, and she loves contemporary, so I decided to make this initial picture. I always make my own gift bags ~ I have so much fun doing them!

Here's what I'm wearing to the wedding. As you can tell by my dress I am SO ready for Spring!  I'm playing it safe, and bringing a little shrug sweater.

Shoes I got on SALE!!  Don't you love those words?????  Now I have to paint my toes to "spiffy" up my old winter white feet.

Speaking of weddings, when I give a wedding gift I like it to be something "personal," not just some little thing off the registry.  From our wedding 28 years ago, I still have a few very special items that I cherish.  Sheets and toasters get torn and broken, but something handmade lasts a lifetime. 

Whenever I think of special wedding gifts I have to think of my sweet Mama.  Her most cherished wedding gift was a large decorated bowl. I don't know if it was because she was in love with the pattern, or if it was because it was given to her by her best friend ~ whatever it was, MAMA LOVED THAT BOWL!  EVERY time, and I mean EVERY time we had a special dinner we would always have to use this bowl.Early on Mama referred to it as the "potato salad" bowl, and the name just kind of stuck.  No matter what we were having, it was still referred to as the "potato salad" bowl. 

Mama kept it up on the top shelf of the cabinet for safety, and we were instructed to NEVER, EVER touch it unless she was around.  Whenever my sisters or I would go to reach for the bowl Mama would always say, "y'all be careful with that bowl....Mary Ellen gave it to me when your Daddy and I got married (insert correct number of years) ago."  She made us so nervous about dropping the bowl that none of us ever wanted to be the "one" to get it;) 

Mama and Daddy were married for 51 years when he passed away.  What I wouldn't give to be back in the kitchen with my Mama, cooking together, all the while worrying about dropping the potato salad bowl....... 

I know this is a totally random post, but it got me to thinking about what my most treasured wedding gift was ~ it wasn't the most expensive or fanciest gift my any means, as a matter of fact, it was handmade, too.  I'll show mine tomorrow, and if y'all wouldn't mind, I'd love to hear about (and or) "see" your's, too!

Much love,
Susan P.

Hello, Dear Blogging Friends

As you can see, I haven't blogged in a month. I have spent the last month in Kentucky caring for my Mom & Dad. Dad has congestive heart failure and has been in and out of the hospital three times in the last month. As you know, my Mom has Alzheimer's so I needed to be there so I could help take care of her. Something really bad happened one night. I was sleeping, and somehow my Mom slipped out without me hearing her. She went outside the assisted living building in only a t-shirt pants, and tennis shoes. It was 12 degrees that night and the ground was covered in ice and snow. God was really, really watching out for her, because she could have either broken a hip, or worse, frozen to death. If the guard hadn't seen her she would have. The front door automatically locks at 11:00 and she would have had no way to get in. When they asked her where she was going she said she was going to West Virginia. I felt absolutely riddled with guilt that this happened when I was caring for her. After that we had to install a lock outside her bedroom door so she couldn't get out at night. She has now slipped further and further away from us and is in stage 6 where she is having hallucinations and is becoming suspicious of people. This just breaks my heart, because she is not the Mom I knew anymore. Anyway, long story short, we ended up putting her and my Dad both in a nursing home where she can be watched 24/7, and my Dad can get the care he needs. We were so fortunate that we could get a room that they could share. The nursing home is a really good one. It is run by the Catholic nuns, and they are just amazing. I finally feel at peace with our decision, although my sister's and I cried many agonizing tears over it. The rest of my time was spent packing up all the memories, another really hard thing to do. Okay, that is all the depressing stuff I'm going to talk about ~ I just wanted y'all to know what's been going on. My next post will be much lighter. Here's a teaser: Imagine traveling 500 miles on an airplane with a cat!!!!!! Stay tuned!!!!!

Much love,
Susan P.

I just realized that is the longest, most rambling paragraph I have ever written on my blog! Sorry:)

Savoring Summer

Summer is quickly fading away ~ savor every last second you can!

"Nana" 911

After raising two children of my own when it came time to taking care of my grandson, Benjamin, it was kind of like riding a bike ~ all the basics came back to me pretty quickly and I was on my way. However, in certain cases this has proven not to be true. Case in point, children's clothing. What in the world is up with all the snaps, buttons, and Velcro? My heavens, by the time I get him dressed he's ready to be changed again! Especially not an easy task when he is squirming to get away!

Now to the point of my post. What has proven to be my "nemesis" are baby hats. I almost break into a sweat thinking about them. Here's my story: A couple of months ago it was a beautiful day and I decided it was a perfect day to take Benjamin for a ride in the stroller. There was a bit of a breeze so I thought, of course, he needs a hat. Well, I reach into the diaper bag and out comes this darling little green hat. The only thing was it had so many flaps and "doodads" on it that for the life of me I couldn't figure out how to put it on his sweet little head. Feeling a little old and overwhelmed I called in my faithful reserve, Miss Bonnie. Well, she doesn't have any experience with babies and so she was about as lost as I was. We must have spent over ten minutes trying every which way to put it on this poor child's head.

Now to appreciate this story I must tell you that Benjamin has been blessed with a most joyful personality. He is such an easy- going, happy baby. But, by the time I finished with the hat this is what he looked like:



Notice that poor, pitiful face...... He was a great sport, though, and put up with all of his Nana's nonsense. Although you can really tell by his furrowed brow he was not happy! I think he must have been thinking, "Oh, Nana, boy, you have a lot to learn!" Miss Bonnie and I got so tickled we couldn't stop laughing. We both said that he looks like he was wearing a bonnet and could be a character on Little House on the Prairie!!!! We did go ahead with our walk but in the back of my mind I was hoping we wouldn't run into anybody I knew. I think poor Benjamin was thinking the same thing!



By the way, this is how the hat was supposed to be worn. My 25 year old son put it on him. Nuff said:) I guess I better get that bike out!

Finding The Humor Amidst The Sorrow

As most of you know my Mom suffers from Alzheimer's Disease. I have written several posts about it which you can find here and here. With each day comes new challenges, as well as new sorrows. My sister called me this past weekend and told me she was going to tell me about a conversation she had with my Mama, but she didn't want it to upset me. "Oh, no," I thought, "what is it now?" She then proceeded to relay the conversation that took place. Instead of crying over it I am going to try to find the humor.

Mama: "Betsy, can I ask you something?"

Betsy: "Sure, Mama."

Mama: "I'm not really married to that man named Jim am I?" (Jim is my Dad)

Betsy: "Why, yes, you are, Mama. Why do you ask?"

Mama: " I don't think I am, because I never would have married a man as grouchy as he is."

Oh my goodness, sometimes you just have to find the humor or you would start weeping and never be able to stop.

Graphic courtesy of : Allposters

It's A "Benjamin!"



Born Dec. 28, 6:40 p.m.
9lbs. 11 oz.
21 1/2 in. !

He's perfect and already has this Nana wrapped around his precious little finger!

"A grandchild fills a space in your heart that you never knew was empty."
Author: Unknown

"Baby Watch"

I just wanted to stop in real quick to let y'all know that we are now officially on "baby watch!" Little Benjamin is due today and we are all eagerly awaiting his arrival. Something tells me he might make us wait for awhile, though! Who knows, maybe he will end up being a Christmas baby ~ how special would that be!!! :) I'll be sure and let everyone know as soon as "Baby Ben" has made his appearance! If I don't talk to you before, I wish you and your families a most blessed and Merry Christmas.

Much love from a very excited Nana-to-be,

Susan P.

After the baby is born we are bringing Ashley some Ben and Jerry's ice cream. We thought it would be very appropriate since it's named after the two men in her life!!! BTW, she has requested chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream ~ a girl after my own heart:)

Monday Night 12/22

No baby yet!!! We're still waiting.......................!!!!!!!!!!!Thank y'all so much for all the love and well wishes ~ they mean more than you will ever know. Y'all are simply the best!!

Tuesday Night 12/23

We're still waiting!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Wednesday ~ Christmas Eve 12/24

Still Waiting!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thursday ~ Christmas Day 12/25

Waited, Waited, Waited........................

Friday ~ 12/26

Stillllllllllllllll Waitinggggggggggg!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

"Cookin" Up Some Wonderful Memories!

This post is prompted by a conversation I had with a young lady at the baby shower we had in our home last week. She and Miss Bonnie were friends in kindergarten and she would visit our home quite often. After kindergarten they were in different classes in school so they ended up developing new friendships. As a result, this was the first time I had seen her in over eighteen years!

At the shower Caitlin came up to me and said, "I will always remember Miss Bonnie's birthday party because it was so much fun." This truly amazed me because she was only five years old at the time. I know I have very few memories at that age so I was really surprised that she would remember something so far back. You're probably wondering what we did? Well, first, I'll tell you what we DIDN'T DO: We didn't have a bowling party, a movie party, a museum party, a skating party, or a party at McDonald's. We didn't go to the circus, the pool, or even rent a clown and one of those bouncy things.

Well then, what did we do? We made pizza together, decorated cookies, and made homemade ice cream sundaes. We had cheapo blow up balloons and homemade games to go along with that. Boy, was I "bucking the trend" at the time. It was the "thing" to do to have your child's party at one of those different venues, never, ever in their homes. I was determined that Miss Bonnie's party was gong to be different. It wasn't about creating huge amounts of debt to have the grandest party in the class, but instead, it was all about creating wonderful memories.

Caitlin went on to tell me that she loved cooking side by side in my kitchen because she never got to do this in her home. It was truly a treat for her! I didn't care one bit that there were sprinkles all over the floor and even a pepperoni or two, or three;) All I cared about was that we were creating memories in that tiny little kitchen of mine! I can't tell you how happy it made me to hear Caitlin say, that, I indeed, had done that all those years ago. It brings a big smile on my face to know that she looks back on that day with such fondness.



Cooking side by side with Miss Bonnie is one of my most favorite things to do!

Finally, I want to leave you with this quote below. It's well worth the read.

"Home cooking is a catalyst that brings people together. We are losing the daily ritual of sitting down around the table (without the intrusion of television), of having the opportunity to interact, to share our experiences and concerns, to listen to others. Home kitchens, despite the increase in designer appliances and cabinetry, are mostly quiet and empty today. Strangers are preparing much of our food. And our supermarkets, which once considered restaurants and fast-food places the enemy, have joined the trend by enlarging their delis and offering ready-to-eat food they call "home-replacement meals." But bringing ready-cooked meals home is not the same as cooking in your own kitchen, where you are in control of the ingredients you use, where you fill the house with good cooking smells, and where you all share in a single dish, taking a helping and passing the platter on to your neighbor. Nothing can replace that."
by: Marion Cunningham

Benjamin James P.
4 D Ultra-Sound Today



Thank you Lord for the gift of this precious child!

Psalm 139:13-14

" For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb.
I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well."

A Proud Mama Moment

Just wanted to share with y'all what's been happening around our home place. There's been a lot of pulse taking, faux bed baths, and even having somebody try to move you when you are still in the bed!! This:


has been used a lot, too! Why? I am happy and proud to say that Miss Bonnie is in nursing school studying to become an R.N.!! She is in a very strenuous program and is busy, busy, busy all the time. She has so many books to take back and forth to school she has resorted to using this:



a cooler on wheels! As a matter of fact my dear daughter-in-love loaned it to her because she used it when she was in the program, too! Hey, it works:o) I know that Miss Bonnie is going to be a wonderful nurse because she is such a kind, caring, and compassionate person. I know without a doubt that any patient would be blessed to have her taking care of them. Okay y'all, thanks for indulging me, end of proud Mama moment!


BTW, I think I also need to mention that when she needs somebody to practice giving shots to I will volunteer Mr. P ;o)

Preparing A Place

As a little girl, the highlight of my summer would always be a trip to visit my great Grandmother who lived in West Virginia. As soon as I entered her home, after numerous hugs and kisses, my great grandmother would always bring down the aprons off of their hook. Every year there would be a new apron sewn just for me! Isn't that amazing how one simple act can mean so much to a child? After we donned our aprons we would scurry about the kitchen to prepare for the baking of our yearly treat, peanut butter cookies. She had an old Hoosier that was very well worn, but also well loved, that we worked upon. Side by side we would mix up the ingredients for these delicacies, while my grandmother sung a hymn or hummed a tune. Year after precious year, this was our tradition.

As far back as I can remember, I have always had the love for home and family. I believe that those special moments spent with my grandmother helped form me into the homemaker I am today. I wish I could tell her how much I appreciate all the wisdom and love she bestowed upon me, but sadly I can't. But, there is one way, one hugely important way, that I can thank her, and that is to pass down what she taught me, to my daughter, Miss Bonnie. From the time she was little we have worked side by side in the kitchen and it is my prayer that one day she will have that same privilege with her own daughter.

If I close my eyes I can still see all the gleaming, delicate china that my grandmother had in her china hutch. Why, I can even remember the wonderful smell when I opened those beautiful doors. When I would visit, one of my jobs was to set the table. Unlike today, three large meals were prepared every day. As soon as the dishes were washed and dried (by hand of course;o) they would be put back on the table in preparation of the next meal. It wasn't until the last meal of the day that the dishes were placed lovingly back in the hutch. I honestly can't remember a time when the table wasn't beautifully set and as a young child this made a big impression on me. What I didn't realize then was that I was learning a very important lesson. Of course, it taught me to think ahead and be prepared when it comes to meal planning, but the lesson that my grandmother taught me was the importance of preparing a place. Each family member had their own special place at the table and my grandmother made sure that it was always ready for them. It was conveying a beautiful message that said, "you have an honored seat at our table." What a wonderful message to send to those you love!!

That is something that we can all do, isn't it? It doesn't have to be a table filled with cut crystal and bone china, all it needs to be is one that has been lovingly prepared. Why,adding a vase of flowers, lighting a candle, or having pretty napkins can make even the simplest of dishes look beautiful. The most important thing is that it will speak volumes to those you love and to those you have prepared that special place for!


Helpful tip: I think a good time to set the table is when you are unloading the dishwasher. Instead of putting them in the cabinet you can go ahead and set the table for the next meal. It only takes a few minutes, but can make all the difference to those family members who walk through the front door.

Seasonal Book Basket

Ever since I found out I was going to be a Nana I have been searching for the perfect books to read to my new grand baby. Along with the classics, I have also been collecting seasonal books. Y'all know how much I love celebrating the seasons and I can't imagine a more perfect way to do it! What special memories I have of reading to my own babies, and now I'll have the pleasure of reading to our soon-to-be little blessing.

As a Nana I don't plan on buying lots of toys for my grand babies, BUT, books are a different story. (no pun intended:o) I think good books are a wonderful investment because they can be enjoyed for years and years to come. Old books become just like old friends that you can revisit over and over again. Don't get me wrong, I'm a big advocate for the library, it's just some books I feel are worth having on our bookshelf here at home.

As you can see by the picture, the basket is resting on a little stool. That stool is very special to me because that was the stool I would sit on when I would go to Grammy's house. Grammy didn't read out of story books, instead she made up her own wonderful stories. She would always include me as a character in the story and I can vividly recall one story that involved the two of us going on a picnic in the woods and there we met some beautiful fairies. She went into great detail about how we shared our lunch with the fairies and afterwards we all sang and danced! Such magical moments for me, and one that certainly, in my opinion, could never be recreated with the most expensive of high tech toys. So, long story short, you can see why that little stool is so special to me and why it is the perfect spot for the books to rest on!

I wanted to put bookplates in each book and found some here. As you can see by reading the bookplates, these books belong to Nana and Papa and will be here for all our future grand babies to enjoy.

My favorite book in the seasonal basket right now is "The Pumpkin Patch Parable," by Liz Curtis Higgs. It tells how a loving farmer can turn a pumpkin into something beautiful, just as God's transforming love makes us beautiful, too!

Sorry, I know I am way, way too long-winded, I just get really excited about things and wanted to share with you! Thanks for putting up with me:o) In a few short months I will be back with my favorite Christmas and winter picks so stay tuned.

Celebrate The Seasons By Strolling Down Memory Lane!

With each new season/holiday that comes along I love to look through my picture albums and take a sentimental journey down memory lane. It always puts a smile on my face and reminds me of what a blessed Mama I am. Although I don't have "littles" anymore, that doesn't mean I still can't have their pictures displayed proudly:) I take a few favorites from each season/holiday and display them front and center where I can reminisce about all the wonderful memories we have shared throughout the years.

On a side note, notice Miss Bonnie. She would be the one with the angel costume on!! The sweet little angel didn't get hair until she was almost two years old. I would cover her in pink from head to tow, put pink Velcro ribbons on the one hair she had and people would STILL say what a cute little boy she was:) Miss Bonnie would have you know that she has been blessed with a full head of beautiful hair now (that she LOVES to wash quite often, I might add;o)

To all you Mama's with grown children, start looking through those albums now and you can take a sweet sentimental journey down memory lane, too!

Family Fun
I am a BIG advocate of family game nights. There's nothing better than sitting around the table with your family playing a fun game. Every time we get together with my family in Kentucky we have Trivial Pursuit matches. Oh, what fun we have. This past month I am delighted to say that my team finally won! Yay!This is after many, many losses, we won't even go into how many:o) We always have such a great time laughing and carrying on.

I don't know if any of you have ever heard of a Mystery Party, but we had one when we were in the mountains. It's a game that actually comes in a box but it's quite different that a regular game. Everybody is given a "role" to play. You have to dress like the character, say the lines, etc. and at the end everybody has to guess "who done it?" This particular one we played took place in the Disco era and so everybody came dressed accordingly. My sweet Mama and my Dad had to dress like Sonny & Cher (only they were called Sunny & Share;o) Here's a sweet pic of them. Aren't they cute?

When Gerry & Ashley come over we love to play games, too. Last week they came over and it was "make your own pizza" night. I had all the "fixins"and everybody made their own pizzas. After our pizza we played a new game we hadn't tried before, called Apples to Apples. It was sooo much fun! You can read about it here.

I always want my home to be filled with laughter and joy and I most certainly want my children to have fond memories of home. I think that playing games together is a wonderful way to make that happen.

On a side note, Grammy was always arranging family talent shows. She would always say "everybody has a talent they can share." "You can sing a little song, do a little dance, recite a poem, tell a joke, etc.." She would then say, "if you don't participate in the talent show then you have to put a dollar in the hat and it will go to the needy" ~ to which my Grandfather would always reply, "where's the hat?"

What games does your family like to play?

A Few Of The Many Reasons . . . . .
I Love Mr. P!

I guess y'all have noticed that my posts lately have been few and far between. The reason? I haven't had a clue what to post about! I guess you could say, "the well has been dry!" Well, I never know when an idea for a post will come about, and this one is a perfect example. I got the idea for this post while I was taking a shower this morning! After the shampoo bottle fell on my foot (owie) the idea hit me like a thunderbolt~ I will post about some of the things that poor Mr. P has to put up with by being married to me!!

Okay, first thing. If y'all are anything like me you have to have your "products" in the shower. I'm talking about body scrub, shampoo, bubble bath, moisturizers, shaving cream . . . . . . .

Not to mention the cute little scrubby thing a back scrubber and a razor . . .
Guess what Mr. P has? One bar of Dial soap:) That's it!! Have you ever? lol

The bed is another example. You see the mountain of pillows on top of our bed? Guess what? None of them are actually used to sleep with!! Every night they are taken off and replaced with our "sleeping" pillows. Mr. P doesn't complain, he just scratches his head. I know y'all understand completely;o)

When you go to wash your hands at a sink in our house you might have lavender soap, cucumber soap, or even geranium;o)

After washing his hands one too many times with lavender soap he finally asked if we could get some soap that doesn't "smell." Well, over the weekend we went to Sam's Club and he bought this GALLON size bottle of fragrance free soap. Of course y'all know I have to find a "cutesy" little bottle to put it in!!

And what about the monogrammed towel and soap? "Oh, we can't use these honey?" "No, we're just supposed to look at them." Poor, poor Mr. P. I guess he really DOES LOVE ME!

A Darling Gift For The "New" Dad

My daughter-in-love made the cutest gift for my son for Father's Day this year. As most of y'all know, they have their first baby on the way in December. We were in the mountains for a family reunion over the Father Day weekend and when my son walked out wearing this we all started howling with laughter.

Ashley bought a tool belt and then she embellished the belt with stickers and letters that spell out the words DIAPER DOOTIE. Each compartment held something that will aid my son in changing his baby's diaper.

The tool belt held a diaper, powder, and cream, certainly all necessary, but it also held a mask and closepin for his nose, and earplugs for his ears! I think my son might be needing the pacifier for himself after the first few days of new fatherhood! lol I thought this made such a unique and creative gift for the new "Father To Be!" Way to go, Ashley:o)

What I Did On My Summer Vacation

I'm back! We had a wonderful week of fun in the sun at Nags Head, N.C. Perfect weather and wonderful company, what more could a person want?!! Here are just a few snippets of our trip.

This is a picture of the Corolla lighthouse. When Mr. P and I first saw we said, "are those people up there?" Well, yes they are!! At first we thought we didn't want to try it, but after a little "cajoling" by one of us (I won't say who;o) we decided to take the trek up. There are 214 steps and it is 162 feet tall. There are nine sets of winding stairs with a little landing that you can stand on in between, if you need to rest, As we were going up we met people coming down and they were really "huffing" and "puffing." They all said the same thing though, it's worth the climb. So, after much huffing and puffing and puffing and huffing we were finally triumphant and made it to the top!!

Here is a picture of part of the stairs ~ if you have vertigo or are claustrophobic this wouldn't be for you!!

Here were are at the top, sweaty and tired, but extremely happy we did it because we got to see this . . . .


Isn't it beautiful? If you want to learn more about this historic lighthouse you can read about it here.

We also did a lot of swimming . . . .

Our family loves puzzles, so every year we bring one and work on it throughout the week. This is the one that was done this year.

Ashley & Gerry

Miss Bonnie

Our tired puppies! Of course, they weren't the only ones who took a lot of naps;o)
I don't know if you can really see this, but if you look at the couch you might be able to see the flip flops that were all over it! Cute, cute!

Here's all the gang! We made some wonderful memories and are looking forward to next year when there will be six of us:o)

A "Berry" Fruitful Day,UNTIL. . . . .





We opened the jam to the taste!! YUK......it wasn't even edible, even though we followed the directions to the letter! What a disappointment. We have no idea what we did wrong! Oh well, I guess there's a lesson in there somewhere, I'll let you know when I find it! lol. . . . Gotta go now, I'm off to the store to buy some Smucker's ;o)