Lessons Learned

Yesterday I came to the aide of one of my children. She was having company come from out of town...a few unexpected at the last minute. She had her hands full and I answered her call of desperation. I figured I could do something to ease the many things she had to accomplish by the end of the day.

I drove over to her house and surveyed the situation. My daughter was gone.... quickly doing errands while her kids were in school. I took it upon myself to choose what I would do to help. I cleaned some of her windows.....for some reason that REALLY helps to open up the windows and see a clean view outside. That was good for starters. Now...how do I say this kindly.....her back yard was a mess! So I set to work. Note that it was at least 106 degrees outside, but I was determined! But this is not even the point of my story.

As I was mowing, edging, weeding, sweating and trying to get it right, thoughts of my Dad came into my mind. I had visions of when I was a little girl working in my yard with my Dad. I was instantly overcome by all the things he had taught me. I smiled with satisfaction as I kept mowing. If you grew up in my home you were taught to work! Not only inside, but outside.....we called it "working on the rockpile!" As I worked in my daughter's backyard I felt very capable to "get the job done" by myself. And better yet.....I completely enjoyed it! The feeling of a freshly mowed yard does something for me! Crazy? But more than that I felt such gratitude for my Father and his constant effort in teaching me to work hard....until the job was done right. He made me come back and finish if it was not done right the first time. I took my turn weeding the "rock pile" that ran alongside our home. That was brutal....but he would check it and make sure it was perfect. Maybe that is how my "perfection" tendencies came about...for which I will not apologize.

I came from a family of 6 girls, so my Dad had it rough. He had to depend on girl-power! We all know how girls are....whiny! He hung in there. That must have been tough for him. We certainly didn't give him enough credit for his tireless effort. Every Saturday we had to answer the call to Yard Work! We all dreaded it, tried to get out of it, tried to be sneaky, maybe even told a lie or two! So true. But that didn't EVER get us out of our weekly yard duties, Oh no!

But if he could see his daughters today I think he would be proud.....all of us know how to work and get a job done. We have even tried to pass that "work ethic" on to our children. Pretty successfully....I do think. We are pretty hard task masters, capable when it comes to hard work. As I worked yesterday, I was determined not to walk away until I was satisfied with the way the backyard looked. At one point I was on my knees trimming under the swingset. I was laughing by myself! Yep, I was dripping but I had a smile on my face and a certain sense of satisfaction. Clean windows and a freshly mowed yard. Ohhhh that makes me happy!

I wish I could hug my Dad and tell him "Thanks" for his love, determination and consistency in trying to teach me the importance of hard work. Well, it worked! Who would have thought the "rock pile" could have had such an effect on my life! Hard work pays off.....Love you Dad

Labor Day with Bobby Flay You Say???

Lately...My hubby has been pouring over the little "surprise" cookbook I gave him for Father's Day in June...Bobby Flay's Burgers, Fries and Shakes. Watching the "Throwdown with Bobby Flay" and "Iron Chef." Actually, I tune in as well at times, it is quite entertaining!

Soooo today (Labor Day) he put his skills to the test and decided to barbeque a "Bobby Flay" burger for the whole family. Not just any burger, but the Blue Cheese and Bacon Burger. Now just so you know...I don't do burgers. I don't do beef as a general rule and neither does my daughter-in-law. So I bought my own little meal on the side to satisfy Julie and myself.

He meticulously went to the store with me this morning and bought all his ingredients, following all the suggestions from "Bobby," even the 85/15 hamburger blend! I went about my business, fixing the rest of the meal and leaving him to his "Bobbying." Well, yes, of course, we teased
him. He put to the test all the "right ways" to fix the Bobby Burger. We smiled. And he cooked on.

We all waited for the first bite. Blue Cheese and Bacon??? You might wonder what that tastes like. Julie and I consented to share a burger....just to be polite and not offend the cook! (However, we had our other meal on the side....cooked and ready to eat)

I have to give credit to our Bobby Boy. Our hamburgers were absolutely, incredibly, delicious! There I said it. I ate one. It was tasty. Blue Cheese and Bacon hmmmm Yummy. You did us proud! Feel free to comment....those of you who took a bite!

The First...A Special Day

I didn't get the chance to elaborate on a very special event in our family last month. My oldest granddaughter was baptized. This neglect was not an oversight.....just a result of my time management!

This sweet little girl is my oldest grandchild and as a result, she gets to experience all the "FIRSTS" in our family when it comes to grandchildren....events and activities. We shared a wonderful day with her...celebrating a very special day in her life. We witnessed the sweet moment when she was baptized by her father...all the little cousins showing much attention. Afterwards she was confirmed, again by her father, who gave her a wonderful blessing. I know that Riley was looking forward to this day for quite sometime. She is a tender, loving little girl who has set a wonderful example for all her little cousins to follow. We love her so very much and are aware of her sweet spirit.

I wanted to do something special to mark this day in her life.....something memorable that she could keep. After much thought I decided to compile a book of her family's testimonies. This required some tutoring from my daughter (computer skills), and some patience on my part. Another granddaughter is getting baptized soon, and I thought this would be a keepsake for both of them to be able to read testimonies from family members....grandparents and
great-grandparents. As I compiled this book, it became very special to read all the different testimonies from people that love Riley. Yep, I shed a tear or two! I hope this will be something she will read throughout her life when she needs a lift or just to remember how she felt on the day she was baptized. Riley, we love you and are so proud of you. You are a Sweetie!

This is fun scripture bag I made for Riley.....a tricky pattern that is so easy!

Julie had a fabulous lunch for everyone after the Baptism....even though it was a "scorcher" outside we had a fun time "inside" eating and visiting and enjoying this special day.

All is well....and it ended well!

There is someone in this family that does not appreciate my attempt at blogness! For that matter....cuteness or craftiness is snubbed as well! What to do when you live with guys who only appreciate sweat and muscles! (hehehehe) Well, us women are OCCASIONALLY expected to tap our reserves and work without questions when our craftiness and creativity are needed quickly and precisely... NOW! Without advance notice or any kind of warning...I might add!

To get to the point??? My teenage son (name withheld for protection) walked in the door (talking at the same time) from school Monday afternoon, slammed the door, and said, "I have to ask this girl to Homecoming right now!" Right now you say???? Where is the time allotted for precise planning and thinking to ensure the cuteness factor? I cannot work under these conditions! (I am making myself laugh just posting this!!) The perfectionist in me started to quiver!

This calls for help from the surrogate mother (aka Amy).....yes, great minds think alike! And besides, she's a girl! We immediately responded to the call for quick, creative, the cutest, the best we could do on short notice, simple....but to the point, no time to really think, is it good enough, is it cute enough, is it a dumb idea, will she like it, will she go with me, this is nerve-racking, are we crazy?

Amy came up with the idea and "the son" added to it. "It would be "Chill" if you went to Homecoming with me!"

The teenager would not pose, of course!

Basically we loaded a big plastic round container with ice....distributed the letters of his name throughout and stuck this sign in the ice. We did try to freeze some big, blue ice cubes with the letters inside...... but you can't work miracles ya know? Hind sight tip......no ice when it is 113 degrees outside! Unfortunately, we had no time to take a picture of the finished product....but suffice it to say it was a cute, quick drop-off!

Last night at 10:00 p.m., the doorbell rang and this was nicely "thrown" on our front porch. Sonic ice comes in handy! I totally got a kick and a laugh out of it. One cute, clever girl with one great answer!

Happy Homecoming Date! My blogness will get an eye roll from the male population in this family! But consider it a trade off for my services! We had fun!

A side note.......The clever people in this family need more notice for the next one! An advance text from school would do!