Christmas Future?

 After celebrating Christmas a week early with our family, we were anxious for the long Christmas weekend to arrive so that we could once again venture out into unknown territory.  Since Governor Scott gave state employees an extra day off for the holiday (in lieu of raises), we were able to head to our Christmas destination, Florida Caverns State Park in Marianna, FL on Friday morning.  The weather, like the weekend before, was just not Christmasy at all. It was cool and very damp feeling with very little sunshine; however, we did not let that dampen our spirits.    We arrived at the park and were greeted by a cheery park ranger.  He directed us to our site that we had reserved online.  It was a beautiful site.  This was our first time staying at a state park in Florida and apparently Florida's philosophy is to go with nature rather than a lot of landscaping.  We were surrounded by woods which gave us a lot of privacy.

After we got set up, we decided to take a short hike down to the Blue Hole where people swim in warmer weather.  Before we made it to the Blue Hole, I tripped over a root and fell on my knees and palms.  This is one time when fat actually helped me.  I think it cushioned my fall.  A skinny person would have probably broken something.  We cut the hike short and went back to the camper where we decided that playing Scrabble was a safer activity for the afternoon.  I fixed spaghetti for our supper and then we watched tv and read until we were sleepy.


Saturday we had a piece of pie for breakfast and decided to get out for a while, maybe eating lunch at Sonny's.  We went to the Marianna WalMart, which was not crowded and enjoyed just browsing around.  Then we went to Sonny's for lunch.  When we returned to our camper, we decided to try the hike to the blue hole again because I wanted to try out the tripod that Amy and Darryl gave me for Christmas.  We walked very carefully avoiding the many roots in the path and made it to our destination.  Then we set up the tripod and began taking pictures.

I love the picture on the bridge because Bubba set up the camera and then he had to run avoiding all the roots to get up there before the picture snapped.  He made it!  He's pretty agile for a senior citizen.  I love the tripod.  Now we can take pictures of both of us together on our outings.  Thanks, Amy and Darryl.  We enjoyed sliced pork sandwiches courtesy of Sonny's for supper and then played another game of Scrabble.  (We're hooked.)

How does he win all the time?  He can't spell !!!!

Christmas was different.  We had coffee and hot chocolate in bed and then we got up to open our gifts.  We only carried our "surprises" with us.  We opened them and then we had blueberry pancakes and sausage for breakfast.  Somewhere along in there Amelia called to tell us about Santa Claus coming and what he left her.  She sounded very pleased so I know that she was a very good girl all year.

Bubba said that these were the best blueberry pancakes he's ever eaten.

Archie loves his new bed.  As he gets older, it gets harder for him to jump up on the couch to sleep.

Bubba got out and walked some later that day.  I stayed in and read and prepared our Christmas dinner -- chili with crackers.  It was pretty good after all the holiday food we had been eating.  Christmas night we experienced a good night's sleep with the sound of rain on the roof.

Monday morning, we finished packing up and headed for home.  We had a good weekend even though it was different from any Christmas we had enjoyed in the past.  Is this the ghost of Christmas future?  We'll see.  

We're already planning our next trip.  We have decided on St. George Island. We're going to fish some on this trip.  Amy and Darryl gave Bubba a cart to haul all our stuff to the beach so we plan to try it out next time.  A nice thing about Florida State Parks is that they offer a 50% discount to Florida senior citizens.  Alabama and Georgia only offer 15%.  There are definite advantages to getting older.

Christmas Present

According to plan, we celebrated Christmas with Amy, Darryl, and Amelia the weekend before Christmas.  They came in on Saturday afternoon.  That night we had a non-traditional dinner of Barbecue Ribs, Potato Salad, Peas, Corn, Macaroni and Cheese and Yeast Rolls with Carrot Cake for dessert.

My mother would have been proud that I made the table pretty.

Following dinner, we opened presents.

Much to the dismay of Darryl and Amy, we gave Amelia a PlayDoh cake decorating kit.  She also got party hats, candles, and napkins so that she could have birthday parties for her dolls.

Amelia thought it would be more fun to have a birthday party with Nana and Paw-Paw.

Cookie, the Playful Pup, was intended to be her main present from Nana and Paw-Paw.  This is a "wonderful substitute for a real dog".  It barks, wags its tail, moves its head, and chews a bone.  We thought Amelia would love this because she is so crazy about Archie. She was very excited as she opened Cookie, but when we finally had her out of the box, she just sat there -- no barking, no tail wagging, no head moving, no bone chewing.  We decided that the batteries that came in it were dead so Bubba was going to change them when he discovered that the batteries in it were corroded and leaking battery acid everywhere.  Amelia couldn't even hold Cookie.  It was kind of pitiful.  Cookie just sat in her box on the floor and every now and then Amelia would put a PlayDoh cake in front of her and talk soothingly to the still quiet dog.  The  next day after church,  Bubba and I headed to WalMart to exchange Cookie for one that actually worked.  Amelia seemed pleased with the swap and christened the new dog, "Lilly".

Bubba received the most unusual gift of the holiday season.  My cousin, Vicky, found this squirrel feeder and thought it was the perfect gift for him.

I can't wait to see if a squirrel will actually walk into the gator's mouth to get a bite off the ear of corn that it holds.

Amelia is enjoying "The Polar Express" sitting in her rocking chair with her doll, also named Lilly.  The doll house was Amy's many years ago.  I kept it hoping that someday I would have a little granddaughter who would enjoy playing with it  -- she does.

Anyway, we had a good Christmas with our family even though it was a week early.  We had a good visit and a good time.  We love you all very much!  Merry Christmas!

Ghosts of Christmas Past

I’ve challenged myself to choose my favorite Christmas and found that it is very difficult to do.  Was it the year Santa gave me a book with a clue written in the front about where the next book could be found?  Unfortunately I didn’t realize that it was a clue to another book so it was about two weeks before I caught on and found the next book which had a clue in it pointing me to the next book.  I bet Santa was disappointed that I didn’t catch on to his game on Christmas Day.

Maybe it was the year I woke up in the middle of the night and my mother was at the sewing machine.  She was making doll clothes and working through the night to get that surprise ready for me.  I got a doll complete with an exquisite satin wedding dress and a beautiful trousseau all made by loving hands in the middle of the night.

Christmas as a newly wed was an exciting time.  We always rode through the woods looking for the perfect tree.  Decorating the tree was something we enjoyed doing.  Shopping for the perfect gift that fit our small Christmas budget was a challenge.  I can remember that I wanted some Corning Ware so badly that I could hardly stand it.  I had hinted and hinted hoping that Bubba would catch on.  Then one day a wrapped package appeared beneath the tree.  Could it possibly be the Corning Ware??  I shook the box, no rattles or clinks to give a clue.  I watched it for several days and then I had a brilliant idea.  I took a sharp knife and very carefully cut the wrapping paper from the corner of the box.  Then I cut a small hole, still no clue.  Curiosity overcame me and I cut a hole big enough to get my hand inside the box.  Hallelujah!  It was Corning Ware -- a dream come true!  I put everything back the best I could, but when Bubba handed it to me Christmas morning he noticed that the package had been tampered with. Of course he wasn't mad, but after that, he always hid the presents somewhere else until Christmas morning.

The boy on the right did a good job picking out that
Corning Ware.  Back then, he enjoyed hunting and he usually wanted camouflage vests and caps or fishing gear.  After opening our presents on Christmas morning, we spent the rest of the day with my family.  My brother was thirteen years younger than I was and it was a lot of fun to help him with his new toys.  

Christmas got even better in 1973 with the arrival of our baby girl.  The little ornament in this picture still hangs on our Christmas tree. Don't you love my big hair and dark glasses?


























Christmas 1974 was our first Christmas in our new home.  Amy was one year old and enjoyed Santa Claus for the first time.
My parents always came for Christmas when she was little.  Sometimes they stayed in our guest bedroom and many times they stayed in their motorhome in our back yard.  Christmas was a time for family and being together.  Amy always provided the entertainment.

This is another Christmas that was especially memorable.  It had something to do with the number of screws it took to hold the appliances in this play kitchen together --- about a million I'm told.

Little girls have a way of growing up.
Christmas continued to revolve around Amy but it now included her friends as well.  She always loved presents and surprises.  She would beg for clues and her dad would say something like, "It starts with p..."  Of course the answer was "present".  (Please note that we finally got rid of that hideous orange carpet.  I was quite the interior decorator in 1974.)

In 1993, Amy went away to college and Christmas changed again.  As the time approached for her Christmas holiday to begin, I would clean the house top to bottom and start planning meals for when she was home with us again.  I made sugar cookies, chocolate cookies, fudge, and cakes.  I wanted everything to be perfect while she was here.  We missed her so much and it was so good to have her in the house again.  She was busy with her friends while she was at home, but it just felt good to have her back under our roof even if it was for such a short time.


Christmas changed again in 1999 when she married.  Darryl became a part of our holiday activities.  He and Amy are Christmas opposites.  He does not get excited about gifts.  He loves giving them, but he doesn't care if he gets anything or not.  We have spent a number of years trying to create excitement over opening gifts in Darryl.  Nothing worked until......

Christmas changed again.  Now we have our precious Amelia to bring that joy that only a child can bring to the season.  

Amelia is four years old now and actually talked with Santa.  She can't wait until Christmas Day.  She makes the season special for the whole family.


Christmas will change again this year.  Amy, Darryl, and Amelia will come down the weekend before Christmas to have "Christmas" with us and with Darryl's family. We will have a meal and open presents on Saturday night while Darryl's family will have a meal and presents on Sunday.  Then they will return home to spend the actual holiday.


Bubba and I will spend Christmas Eve and Day just the two of us. We're blessed because we still have each other.  We're making plans that will make the weekend special for us. Things change and that's part of life. The title of this post is "Ghosts of Christmas Past".  It's nice to take a walk down memory lane sometimes.  One of my favorite sayings is , "You can't put a price on a memory."  The memories I have are priceless and I'm very thankful for all of them.  I want to wish all our family and friends a very special Merry Christmas.  Make it a memorable one!

I'm Thankful

Thanksgiving was a little different for us this year.  The last couple of years we have spent at home just the two of us.  This year we made plans in September to spend Thanksgiving camping at Frank Jackson State Park in Opp, AL. Earlier in the month Amy called and asked if we would be interested in keeping Amelia the week of Thanksgiving.  Of course we were excited to be able to spend a whole week with her and introduce her to our new camping lifestyle.  They came on Sunday on their way to Baton Rouge to visit with friends and left Amelia with an excited Nana and Paw-Paw.  On Monday, Bubba and I both needed to work so Amelia got to spend the whole day with her Aunt Ashley and cousin, Avery.  It was nice that she got to spend some time with Darryl's family.


On Tuesday, I worked half a day and Paw-Paw was on his own for the first time with his precious granddaughter.  This is what I found when I came home from work at lunch.

On Wednesday we got an early start with Amelia and Archie in the back seat as traveling companions.  Amelia loves Archie and he seems to tolerate her well, but it never hurts to be cautious when you are mixing an old dog with a little girl.

I bought Amelia a flashlight and the "Hi, Ho Cherry-O" game to enjoy while camping.  The first thing she wanted to do after we settled in at our camp site was to play the game.  Paw-Paw and I played for a long time with her.  Then he left to go visit his brother Joe for a little while and Amelia and I continued to play -- two whole hours!

The next day started with Nana and Amelia enjoying hot chocolate and coffee in bed.  I hate to post this picture of me, but the moment was so special I just can't omit it.  I'm thankful for a husband who still loves me even though I look like this when I wake up.

After breakfast we walked around the park, looked at the scarecrows which were still on display, and Amelia fished and fished.  She was determined, but they just weren't biting this cold windy day.

A Clown Scarecrow

Amelia was a little scared of this one.

It's a beautiful day.

It looks fishy here.

Still not biting the next day

Thanksgiving dinner consisted of Crock Pot Turkey, Dressing,Gravy, Cranberry Sauce, Baby Lima Beans, Sweet Potato Casserole, Fruit Salad, and Pumpkin Pie.  We didn't eat until 2:00 and I was sure that I could tempt a hungry Amelia with the traditional Thanksgiving fare, but I failed.  When I brought out the Mac and Cheese, she ate every bite.  That night we roasted marshmallows and made s'mores over a campfire.

The next day was spent with Bubba's brother Joe and his wife, Judy.  We were supposed to be helping them put up Christmas decorations.  I think we probably slowed them down, but we really enjoyed being with them.  Amelia enjoyed seeing the animals, riding her bike on their driveway, riding their Kubota, and picking up pecans.  

Joe and Bubba admire their work.

After a busy day, we decided to travel to Andalusia to eat at David's Catfish House.  We were a little concerned that Amelia might be a little grouchy after such a busy day, but we went back to the camper and she got a bath and changed clothes.  It was just what she needed to turn on her personality to the fullest.  She sang and talked all the way to Andalusia.  She started planning a "Decoration Party" right after we returned to Joe and Judy's and admired their Christmas lights and wreaths.  She talked all evening about what she was going to have to eat at her party and who would be coming.  We stopped by WalMart to pick up some odds and ends and she selected a Christmas tin of cookies to have at her party.  Joe and Judy introduced us to something we had not had before -- Burger King Soft Serve Ice Cream.  Folks, this stuff is really good.  If you haven't tried it, you are really missing out AND it is just 59 cents.  Amelia said several times that it was delicious and we all agreed.  Amelia said several times that day, "I do like Joe and Judy."  We certainly had a good time visiting them.

Saturday morning we packed up and headed for home.  We had a wonderful time and Amelia was so much fun to be with.  It was not one of our read a book and relax trips, but it was a lot of fun.

Amelia wanted to help Paw-Paw crank up the stabilizers.

Sticking her head out the opening on the screen door was especially fun.

Amelia wanted to help Nana shell out the pecans.   (They were already cracked and sifted.)

She was really a lot of help.

I titled this blog, "I'm Thankful" because it illustrates some of the things for which I am most grateful -- this precious grandchild and the opportunity to have her for a whole week, Amy and Darryl who are willing to share her with us, Bubba, the husband and the Paw-Paw, the beautiful places that we can park our camper, this new lifestyle that we have embarked on, Joe and Judy and their hospitality, our good health.  The list of things I'm grateful for goes on and on.  I think the verses from a favorite hymn sum it up well:

For the beauty of each hour

Of the day and of the night,

Hill and vale, and tree and flower,

Sun and moon and stars of light,

Lord of all, to thee we raise

This our hymn of grateful praise.

For the joy of human love,

Brother, sister, parent, child,

Friends on earth, and friends above,

Pleasures pure and undefiled,

Lord of all, to thee we raise

This our hymn of grateful praise.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Amelia's 4th Birthday

This weekend marked a very special occasion as our granddaughter, Amelia, celebrated her 4th birthday.  It seems like just yesterday that she was just a cuddly little baby.  This is one of the first pictures of Nana and Amelia that was made not too long after she was born.

We adored her from the first time we saw her.  We have lost count of the miles we have traveled back and forth so that she would know her grandparents.  This weekend was no different.  We wanted to be there to share her birthday with her.


We arrived Friday afternoon and she was already excited about her birthday party the next day.  Although she has really been into the "Princess" theme for over a year now, she requested a "Toy Story" party and her mom did an outstanding job of honoring that request.  You can hear the excitement in her voice from the snippet of video below.

Amy made the cutest birthday banner and decorated the tables with characters from "Toy Story".  She even decorated the cupcakes herself.  The party was held under a pavilion near a nice playground and the children enjoyed playing together until it was time for pizza and cake.  We gave Amelia some boots and the reel and rod ("fishing pole") that she had requested.  Bubba showed her how to cast and she was catching on very quickly.

Amelia is a joy to us all, a very special blessing from God.

One of the most precious things she says to me is "I love you, my Nana."  I love you too, my Amelia and happy, happy birthday.

ThingsWe Like

Amy sometimes just does a list on her blog, so I'm going to copy that and tell you some things we like that are new to us:

  This is a rug that Joe and Judy gave us when we camped near them last time.  It is light as a feather and cuts down on trash being tracked into the trailer.  Next time we are going to put some pegs through the loops on the corners to make it lie flatter. I wanted to buy one, but the price on this one was too good to pass up.  It was free!!!  

This is a sign that Joe made for us to hang outside when we're camping.  The top sign says, "Travels with Archie".  Bubba is going to paint the letters so they show up a little better, but we love this.  Anybody that knows Joe and Judy knows that you always leave their house with something.  Thanks guys, we love the rug and the sign.

These are stick on levels that I ordered from Amazon.  Bubba was skeptical at first, but they really help you determine how level the trailer is when you park.  Before you stick them on you need to take a carpenter's level and put it on the floor and the counter inside to make sure you are level.

Finally, these three items are great.  On the left are the drawers that we pack with our personal hygiene items. The top drawer is for medicine.  The second drawer holds Bubba's toothbrush, comb, razor, etc.  All my makeup, deodorant, toothbrush, etc. is in the bottom drawer.  It only takes a minute on the day we leave to throw things in the drawers as we get ready that morning.  The tote in the middle holds tall items like mirror, curling irons, hair dryer.  Both of these go in the bathroom cabinet and then everything is at our finger tips.  The little heater on the right received its first trial this weekend.  The gas heater in the trailer works fast and warms things up in a hurry, but once we warm up we can run this little heater to keep it warm using "their" electricity instead of our gas.

I've got some other things I'll share later, but we are  delighted with these things and wanted to show them to you.  Our next camping trip will include a very special guest.  Stay tuned for more later.