Hey Hey We're the Monkees....

Hey Hey We're the Monkees.... Taking my sister to the Monkees Concert. Heart be still.
My daughter and her husband are taking me (and my "poor" husband) as my mother's day (father's day) gift and I am taking my sister.

Davy Jones is from our mother land, Can't wait to hear that accent...
Of course I loved Mickey... gotta love those drummers.

When my daughter wanted to know if I would love to go to the concert, since I "forced" them to listen to that "old" music (that they now love) while riding in the car... My response to her was, "The Monkees are my NSYNC of your generation."

So look out Monkees, I will be sitting in the audience with all the "old" gals that loved you then and still love you today.
I think I will play the Monkee CD all the way there and maybe all the way home... LOL

Transplanting.

I am looking up information about transplanting plants. I want to change the layout of my garden.
I have moved some of the plants before. They did survive. I think I will be okay as long as I use some of the rooting solution to help them and then keep them well watered until we get into a rainy season again.
I may even try putting them in the refrigerator for a few weeks so they will think they have wintered over. I have read that this can work.
Maybe I will do both. See which one will do the best.

two hours

I just spent 2 hours in the garden. It does look lots better. Wish my garden guy would come by this year. I think my husband scared him off when you reminded him that he owed him money for his habits.(drinking) We are willing to let him work it off, however we have not seen him for some time now.
Maybe he found a "real" job.

Hot and....

Hot and muggy... that is the weather forecast. Wish it would just be clear and pleasant. Off to work in the garden.

Save the date...

I need to get the save this date cards out to people this week or weekend. Lara has given me a date for the baby shower ~ August 20, 2011. Now I need to start the planning phase.
Boy does it come in handy having a sister who has already given a baby shower. It has been too many years ago for me to remember. Rachel's is the last one I gave. Marianne gave Casi's. So I will once again claim the "grandma" clause and schedule this one.
Time to start finding some great ideas for showers.
I have asked Chris' mother to help with the shower. I think she will enjoy being involved it.
So family, save this date.

Fireworks....

The 4th of July is approaching quickly. I know my son-in-law will be out of the country. We maybe out-of-state. My granddaughters have ball games and life goes on.
We were discussing where to go to see a really great show. A few years ago we went to Arthur to watch the fire works.
Any suggestions?

Pat Downs....

I believe we as Americans are stupid for allowing our government make us look like a bunch of limp rags. No guts!
The terrorist groups love our FEAR of them. This is what they live on.
I have also noted that there seems to be some racial bias going on. Has any one noticed that most of the people getting these "Sexual assault" pat downs are white by black agents?
Humm I am not a racist, however I believe it is time we take a look at our laws and see just how unfair they really are. Do you think a white agent would get by with this "sexual assult" of a black child or an elderly black lady?

Selma

Mother has wanted a stone for Selma, her sister, for many years. We went and ordered one two weeks ago.
The cemetery called today and wanted to know where Selma is buried as their records burned up in a fire many years ago. The only records they have are the ones current and that they have gone out and recorded themselves.
As a person who loves family history this fact saddens me.
The person at the cemetery said they found it odd that someone would want to place a stone for someone who had been deceased so long... one hundred years...
I explained to them that this is my mother's sister, whom she never met. That her mother had always wanted to have a stone for her, but could not remember the dates, too painful... Selma was only three when she passed... so mother made this one of her goals in life. So now Selma has a stone being placed...an this makes me happy.
I have told mother every Memorial Day, as we visit each cemetery and place flowers, that I wanted her to leave money in her will for Selma a stone. That I would make sure it was made and placed.
Mom decided she wanted to do it this year. So we did. And now Aunt Selma will be recognized as a living person.

Blog each day?

My goal was to post one post each day this year.... well I have not kept that goal.... So do I want to try and make up for it or just chalk it up to one of those things?

I think I will work on having the amount of post I need to make that one each day.

Now let's see how many of them will get read.

Thinking.....

Thinking.... I know Lara loves sugar cream pies.... wonder if she would like a sugar cream tasting custard?

Good Memories.... Knowles and the 4th of July

I have such great memories of my father's family and the 4th of July. We would all head to the GAO Grotto for a fun filled afternoon of corn on the cob, chicken on the grill and other sides; games, games and more games; swimming and skiing; visiting with the family. We would go home and have dinner and then go back for an evening of fireworks. Grandma loved those fireworks, except the boom ones. We would sit on the blankets, my cousins, sisters and me, and our parents sat in their lawn chairs. The ground display was fabulous, as was the air show.
I don't think it was just the fireworks that brings such wonderful memories, I think it was the family and spending time with them.

Going through...

Going through some pictures I came across these two. I love them.

Ruby, Elizabeth or any suggestions

Ruby, Elizabeth or any suggestions?
Austin gave two names as his suggestion. Chris likes Ruby also. However Lara doesn't seem to be keen on the name. Mom wants Elizabeth. I think I'll just call her Little Lu Jr.
Name suggestions are welcome.

Trip to Wales?

I sure hope that son-in-law Chris gets sent to England or Wales soon. I have a hankering I will have a genealogy trip I need to go on.
It seems that my mother has another uncle. An Uncle William, that did not come to America. I am wondering if their sister Sarah also did not make the trip. I just wonder if she was a servant or something at the time they moved here. I sure wish I would have been older and asked more questions of grandma.

I have evidence of William. I have evidence that he was ill. I now have my mother telling me that her mother talked of her brother William and that he was too ill to come to America.

I also know she has another uncle I cannot account for. Great-grandma Jones talks of him in numerous things, however I know nothing about him and my mother doesn't either.

Oh the trials of a genealogist. The search quest. I will keep plugging away and hope to find my answers.

I need lots of trip money also. I need to write my book.

Great article about schools and testing

How true this author is in his thinking. For many years teachers have said the problems in schools is more than just the teacher. It is a community and family problem also. Read it. Sound off to congress... get rid of NCLB and its testing. Let's get back to REAL teaching in school. Make education more realistic. Not all students want to be rocket scientist... and there would not be enough jobs for millions of them.

Tomorrow...

I think tomorrow will be my baking day. I am in the mood for some cookies and I don't have any.

I also think I am going to start the mints for the baby shower. They will keep good in the freezer, so I need to find some baby molds so I can get started on those.

So much I could be doing; however here I sit in front of this computer.

Think I will scan some of the postcards I have and then some of the magazine articles I have. ...

Life is good. Enjoy it.

Thunder, lightning and wind oh my....

Thunder, lightning and wind oh my....
It is doing it again...storming. Little rain so far, but lots of wind, lighting and thunder.

It has cooled it down. Comfortable sitting outside temperature. Love it.

Casi would be loving it right now. She loves thunderstorms. Just like her dad.

Hamburger balls and loaf

Okay, Devon is here. We were going to have meatballs, however we can't call them that we have to call them hamburger balls. He is now a confirmed lover of hamburger balls.
I asked him if he wants meatloaf for dinner tomorrow night. He said I don't like meatloaf. So I asked do you like hamburger loaf? And the answer, YES!
His reward for eating his hamburger ball all gone... ice cream

How is retirement?

I keep getting asked, "How is retirement?"
Well I don't know. I am technically retired, however I have always had summers off so it does not feel like retirement in most ways.
I have noticed that when I drive by the exit for the school, I think about what I need to do and if I should see if my room is ready to start preparing for next year. Then I catch myself. I don't have to go get things ready for next year.
How is retirement... ask me in late August.

I've been workin' in my garden....

(to the tune of I've been working on the railroad.) I've been workin' in my garden all the live long day...
Yes I have been working in my garden. The flowers are all starting to bloom. Here are a few pictures for you. Remember these are raw, untouched pictures. I have more. This is just a sampling. I am waiting so I can transplant them.
I am going to spray, yes I know I have a wildlife habitat certification, however weeds are overtaking the beautiful flowers that draw my wildlife to my yard.

Graduation for a Swede

Graduation for a Swede ~ Ours anyway. Emilia will be leaving us soon to go home. We will miss that beautiful smile and her love of Harry Potter.
I have made chocolate chip cookies for her graduation party along with some iced sugar cookies. I am also making some butter cream mints. (graduation caps and books)
Will miss you Emilia. It has been really nice getting to know you.

Retirement

It does not feel like I am retired yet. Of course this could be because I always have the summers off. In the fall I think I may miss not teaching. I have caught myself a few times thinking of things I need to do in my "classroom" soon. Isn't it funny that teachers start planning for the next school year just as their regular year ends?
I know many people believe that teachers do not work during the summer months. They do. Not always just on things for school, but second jobs and classes.
This will be a strange year for me. No workshops, no classes I need to take for those CPUs and no planning for next years classes.

Garden

Wow I really need my Gardener to get out of jail. His drinking gets him in trouble.
I went out in the garden today, spending about 2 hours just weeding and digging up a few plants for a former student that gave me a dozen cannas bulbs.
I am thinking I need to redo the garden. I don't know. I think this will have to be a fall project as I am afraid to dig some of my plants up this time of the year. I will think on this a bit.
I am thinking of taking the master gardeners classes. That would be fun.
I am off to think on the garden bit, taking notes of what I have and then decide what I want to do.

Emilia and the kite

Emilia told us that she has only tried to fly a kite one time. It didn't go so well. There were too many trees in her neighborhood. So we took her kite flying and picniced.

Devon and the Hamburger balls

Okay we all know meatballs. Devon loves hamburger balls, aka meatballs. He doesn't like meatballs though. I guess it is all in the name.
Austin ate 5 and a half meatballs. He just wants his uncle Chris to know that he ate more than he did and that he holds the family record right now.