Cousins

 

One of the few pictures of all of us together at my Grandmother's house in 1954.

  Top row, middle is my brother Charlie, second row, far right is my other brother      Jerry and I'm the little one in front.  We've lost three of the group.
  

I have so many wonderful memories of time spent with my cousins when we were young.  My maternal Grandmother had three children and each of them had three children, so when we were all able to get together there were nine of us kids.  We all lived in different cities in Arkansas but despite that, all or part of us managed to get together on a regular basis. 

My Grandmother's house in the 1950s.

We would often go to my Grandmother’s house on holidays or weekends.  Although my Grandmother and her house are no longer here, it was my favorite place to go throughout my life.  I will always remember playing outside and digging in the dirt with my cousins at her home.  We had a few special toys we played with in the dirt making roads for tiny cars and creating new worlds.  Do kids even play in the dirt anymore?  The meals were always wonderful at her house and there would be a special “kid’s table” for the younger children.  I was the youngest grandchild so I was always at that table and that was fine with me.  

Cousins in 1948 before I was born.

  

Sometimes all or part of us would meet at a lake or creek in the summer and have a big family picnic.  I grew up going to these family picnics.  We would go swimming or play in the water and then share a big meal.  There would be all kinds of different food and always at least one big watermelon.  

One of many picnics.

I’m pretty sure I took those days for granted and did not appreciate how special they were for all of us.  Now those of us that are left are spread to the wind all over the country and we never see one another.  I do keep up with most of my cousins through email and Facebook.  In fact, that is the only reason I keep a Facebook account – to keep up with my cousins.  I was talking to one of them the other day about how much has changed in so many ways.  Those days when we got together we were kids and always into mischief.  Now all of us “kids” are the elders in the family.  How in the world did that happen?

 

A Simple Post

I’ve been busy all week but not with anything anyone wants to hear about in a post.  I’ve had doctor’s appointments and medical tests four out of five days this week.  Between Tom and myself I suppose the doctor’s office and hospital have become our August.  You do what you have to do.  Other than that, I have only gotten a few basic things done around the house.  I vacuumed yesterday – boy did it need it!  I’ve cooked every evening as usual, roasted veggies over rice last night and lasagna tonight.  I’m not the best cook but we don’t go hungry.

My Favorite Cup

I was drinking my coffee this morning and wondering what I could write about after a week like this.  I looked at my coffee cup and thought “Why not?”.  A post about my coffee cup.  It’s a special cup to me as every coffee cup I’ve ever had has been special.  As long as I can remember I have always attached myself to one particular cup for my morning coffee.  It starts my day every day.  I probably have not had all that many “morning coffee cups” over the years because when I find the right one, I stick with it as any loyal friend sticks with their best friend.  Eventually it gets broken and I’m at a coffee cup loss for a while until I find another “perfect cup”.  I often drink a cup of tea in the afternoon but that’s a different cup and it can be one of several as we have many.  It’s only the morning cup that is special. 

Do you have a favorite cup?  I’ve known a few others that felt like I do.  Tom is the same way with his cup but he has a couple of favorites.  When you get up in the morning and reach for a cup of coffee or tea do you always reach for the same cup?  If it is not available are you just a little disappointed?  Am I crazy?  (I know, probably) 

I just love this little guy hiding in the bottom corner!

I hope everyone enjoys the rest of their Sunday.  After a stressful week I think I am going to finally start a jigsaw puzzle that has been waiting a long time for me.  Take care everyone.

 

 

  

I’m Thankful for Our Cats!

 

                                                              

Sophie and Zeus

We have had a lot of ups and downs the past month or two but through it all one thing remains steady for us – our two sweet cats!  Those of you that have pets of any kind will understand my feeling I’m sure.  No matter what happens your sweet, furry family members are there for you, accept you and will never judge you.  Pure unconditional love.                                                               

When I'm at the computer Sophie holds my arm and
sleeps with her head in my hand. 

Sophie and Zeus are always near us offering love and cuddles or entertaining us with their playful antics.  If we do have to leave the house, they meet us at the door when we return.  They follow one or both of us around and generally prefer that Tom and I are in the same room.  If I’m in the back of the house on the computer and Tom is in the living room, Zeus will cry at me and try to get me to follow him back into the room with Tom.  When we are both in the same room, they will settle down to a nap nearby or in our laps or play with toys near us.  They instinctively know when we are sick or sad and they stay close and comfort us. 

Tom’s health problems have continued.  I took him to both his cardiologist and our family doctor last week.  His heart, thankfully, seems to be doing okay but he has been hit with some kind of severe dizziness problem and is very unsteady on his feet.  The doctor did not see an ear infection but gave him antibiotics in case it was too deep to be seen.  Tom did suddenly lose his hearing in one ear at the same time this started so that could be part of the problem.  He’s never had this type of vertigo situation in the past.  So, for now he has to stay in one place and try to not move around much.  I’ve been trying to take care of him and still catch up on a lot of things around the house that I have neglected.  It has not helped that I am still having trouble with the high blood pressure, but I will see the doctor Tuesday.  After that, we have to find a new family doctor as our regular one is retiring next week.  We’ve seen him for over forty years and I hate to lose him but I am happy for him to finally get a break.   

I don’t mean to just write about health problems.  Things will sort themselves out eventually I’m sure.  It’s all part of life and getting older.  But anytime we do have problems like this it always reminds me of how grateful I am to have our two cats, Sophie and Zeus!  They are always there for us.  If you have any wonderful furry family members give them a little extra love because I’m sure they are there for you in the good and the bad times.   

                                                              

They even help me when I'm sewing.

Another Year Older

As of yesterday, August 9^th, I am yet another year older.  I have caught up with my husband, Tom who celebrated his birthday this past June.  We are both now 68.  I am quite sure that when I was younger I never thought I would ever be so old!  My age has never actually bothered me though and I’ll gladly tell it to anyone.  It is some of the things that go along with age that sometimes bothers me!

This year for the first time I didn’t really want to celebrate my birthday.  The past month has been a hectic one with Tom being in the hospital and us handling his health problems.  Then on top of that I have been having some increased trouble with my blood pressure.  I’ve taken medication for it for years but suddenly it has been running entirely too high.  I am betting it is stress related but I did see my doctor to be safe.  He increased my medication and will see me again in a couple of weeks.  So much has been going on recently, not to mention me being behind on a lot of the regular things that demand my attention, I decided I’d just skip the birthday this year.

However, my son Chris and his wife Kristi invited us over to their house this past Saturday night to have dinner and celebrate my birthday.  Kristi is an excellent cook and baker of cakes and she made me a Hummingbird cake for my birthday!  A Hummingbird cake is a traditional southern spice cake with bananas and pineapple and a delicious cream cheese icing. 

                                                                  

Hummingbird Cake

It was a wonderful evening spent with family and a perfect way to enjoy my birthday.  It is a gift to me these days just to see my grandchildren and grown children!

Last night (on my actual birthday) Tom and I went out to eat, which is something we never do anymore thanks to the pandemic.  The restaurants are open at a reduced capacity and following the local Covid requirements.  We had a nice and relaxed dinner and I especially appreciated not having to cook!  

 

  

Fun Times at the DMV

It’s that time again – time to renew my driver’s license.  This year the U.S. has something new called a Real I.D.  It takes the place of your driver’s license and is required if you want to fly any airline within the U.S.  You can still get a regular license but it will not allow you to board planes and fly anywhere.  Of course, there is much more paperwork involved for the Real I.D.  Since I had to renew my license anyway, I wanted to get that type of license as we do occasionally book flights within the states. 

I knew the DMV (Department of Motor Vehicles) was a stickler for paperwork so over a month ago I studied up on all the requirements.  Most of the paperwork required was fairly basic: two proofs of residency, Social Security card and birth certificate.  However, if you ever had any change of name you have to show certified papers proving the name change.  I have been married twice so I had to have a certified copy of both marriage licenses and a certified copy of my divorce decree from the first marriage.  When I checked all my papers, I had everything I needed but for some reason my copy of my current marriage license was not certified.  Well, Tom and I were married in this county so a few weeks ago I went to the county court house and obtained a certified copy.  That was not too bad, and then I was ready to get my license.

Dept of Motor Vehicles

I called my local DMV to try to set up an appointment and found they were closed for two weeks due to someone employed there having Covid.  Great, that put me close to the expiration date of my license.  Keep in mind the DMV was already behind since they had been closed for over two months during the lockdown.  Today was the first day they were re-opened so I was there bright and early before they were even open.  Guess what?  About 45 other people were also there at that time.  That made for quite a long (socially spaced) line wrapped around two buildings.  I knew there would be a wait and I had to get my license.  I waited over two hours outside in the hot sun and then another hour and a half inside when finally, they called my name. 

People waiting in line

I pulled out all my paperwork and the clerk said it looked like I had everything I needed.  Then she looked again at my first marriage license and told me it wasn’t correct.  What?  It was a certified copy but whoever certified it 50 years ago had failed to stamp a file number on it!  They could not accept it and I could not get my Real I.D.  Arrrg!  I now have to contact an office in another state (California) in order to get a certified new copy of a marriage license to someone I have not been married to for over 40 years!  My driver’s license expires on my birthday this coming Sunday, so I went ahead and got a non-Real I.D. license for now.  I will have to order the new ex-marriage license copy and then go through all of this again sometime before the deadline for the Real I.D. which is October of 2021.  What a mess!

Sorry this post is so long, but maybe it will help someone in this country that is trying to get their driver’s license.  Many of you have asked me about how Tom is doing and I can happily tell you that he is doing very well.  He starts Cardiac Rehab this Friday and will continue with that for 12 weeks.  Thank you all again for your kind thoughts and messages!