I Can Do It..Just Watch Me

Uncle Johnny, as she calls him, is so patient with Chelsea with his guitar. She sits by the guitar case just waiting for him to open it up and take it out. The first time she played he was amazed at how she uses both her hands. I think she is a star in the making. I wonder which talent she will pursue. I wonder if she has enough of her Grandma in her that she will try and pursue all of them and get a little overwhelmed....lets hope we can get her to focus and pursue at least a few of her talents.

She watches her Uncle Johnny so closely when he plays. It is amazing the things she picks up on. I guess we better be careful of our actions. I wouldn't want her to be watching closely and pick up on the wrong thing. So many things to remember when little eyes are watching, and little ears are listening. Lord, let me be a good example for this precious gift you have given me.

And, once again those eyes. Could she be any more precious? Have I told you how much I love her to pieces?

Here Comes Santa Clause...Ready or Not

So, our first encounter of the season with Santa was, what should I call it, I think encounter is a good word. We went to Jonathan's Guard Christmas dinner and Santa was there. Chelsea was so excited and wanted to go right over there. We took about 2 steps and she froze on me. The above picture was taken at about attempt 5, she had a death grip on her Grandma and wouldn't look at anyone. We went back and forth to our table which was across the room. She was very brave at the table and would take off to see Santa, but always came to an abrupt stop before she got there.

Santa was so good with Chelsea. He came around to the table and gave everyone a candy cane and talked to us, all part of the warming up process. When she finally decided to make another attempt I was ready with my camera. Notice, she is still a distance away from him. He gradually got closer and closer and he sealed the deal when he let her play with the baby reindeer. She loved on that reindeer the rest of the day and she was even nice enough to put it back when other kids wanted their picture taken with Santa. Of course she stood right there, and may be in some of their pictures, so she could grab it back as soon as they were done.

This picture is my favorite. I wish I could of got more of Santa in the picture but maybe that was all that was needed. I am not sure but I think she liked the reindeer more than Santa, but when she sees these pictures she still says she wants to go see him. She is priceless..........................

Getting To Know You...Christmas Edition

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags?Either one is fine with me, but really, who doesn't love to unwrap a gift wrapped present. Of course, you can't break the ribbon or you will get pregnant on the next full moon. For me this would be BAD. I think I would be single, or maybe I just wouldn't tell anyone and see if they even noticed.
2. Real or artificial tree? Is it really called artificial? or is it just a FAKE tree. Either way, it doesn't smell like a real tree. Being married to a fireman I have given up the fight and since I like to keep my tree until at least the day after Christmas, and I like to leave my lights on most of the time, we have gone to the unreal ones. At least I know that it doesn't have a bad side that I have to hide, it is always very full and can hold even the heavy ornaments without buckling under the pressure.
3. When do you put up the tree? That would be Thanksgiving day or the day after. Why not take advantage of all the kids being home to haul all 50 totes of decorations up the stairs for me. This year they got to put all the decorations up while I got ready for a bazaar. And yes, silly, I was right in the middle of it supervising, telling them where to put stuff.
4. Do you like eggnog? It isn't my favorite but like it maybe just once a season. My family likes it however. Where do you think a name like eggnog comes from anyway? My friend Ronda would google that and have an answer from me within minutes.
5. Favorite gift received as a child? Did I receive any gifts when I was a child? JK....LOL!!! I think I received one. hehehe I can't think of just one, but I do remember when my mom sewed us girls all matching pajamas. If you know me well, you know that I LOVE my flannel pajamas and have to smuggle them in the house when I buy a new pair. Certain people think I have too many pairs. WHATEVER!!!
6. Do you have a nativity scene? Yes I do and I love it. It happens to be one of Chelsea's favorite things to play with also. (Don't worry, it isn't made of glass) It is a very expensive nativity that my mom started for me many years ago and has added to it along with my mother in law. You would have to ask one of them what it is called, all I know is that it is from Italy.
7. Hardest person to buy for? that is easy, that would be everyone who I have to shop for. I stress way to much over this issue, and receive very little help from any of them if I ask them for ideas.
8. Easiest person to buy for? My little princess, Chelsea. Who doesn't love to shop for little kids? Especially when they are your grandchild.
9. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? My big yellow industrial mop bucket. Actually we use it all the time, inside and outside, but I can't say I was too excited when I opened it up on Christmas morning. I was however very gratefulllllllllllllllll
10. Mail or email Christmas cards? I would never email a Christmas card unless it was just for fun.. I have allowed my life to get so busy that I haven't even mailed cards in a few years but plan to send some this year after Christmas for our 25th Anniversary. Be watching your mailboxes.
11. Favorite Christmas Movie? Easy......Christmas Vacation tops the list with Elf in second place.
12. When do you start shopping for Christmas? Usually about December 20th....the stress level is usually pretty high by then and my heart is racing to about 120 beats/minute. At this point I wish everyone a very merry christmas when I run into them with my shopping cart and they usually stay out of my way.
13. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? Recycled????? What the heck. NEVER. I may have put it in a closet and forgot about it but I didn't know you could recycle them. I have seen recycle bins for newspaper, glass, cardboard, etc but never Christmas presents.
14. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? Another easy question....FOOD! Were you wanting a more specific answer? From the looks of my waist line I wasn't too finicky.
15. Clear lights or colored on the tree? Clear and twinkling! Not flashing! There is a difference. Colored lights are reserved for the windows but they can't move, they have to be very steady to not compete with the tree. In fact I have some so steady in my windows this year that they just went to sleep and forgot to wake up. I am going to give them one more day to wake up and then they get replaced. End of story
16. Favorite Christmas song? I could not possibly pick just one song. My favorites would be about the real meaning of Christmas however, and not the commercial aspect of it.
17. Travel at Christmas or stay home? Never travel. We have never had a Christmas morning where we weren't at our own house. Besides, why decorate if you are just going to travel somewhere else.
18. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer? HELLO, you know Dasher and Dancer and Prancer and Vixon, Comet and Cupid and Donner and Blitzen, but do you recall, the most famous reindeer of all....................RUDOLPH the red nosed reindeer. But don't forget all the back up reindeer who stand ever ready to fill in at a moments notice...... Larry, Curly and Mo, along with Fred and Barney, Bert and Ernie, Huey, Louie, and Dewey, just to name a few.
19. Angel on the tree top or a star? Kinda an angel...it is a snowman angel. Still looking for the perfect one for tree #2.
20. Open the presents Christmas Eve or Christmas morning? Growing up we always opened on Christmas Eve. Since having children we have always opened them all on Christmas morning.
21. Most annoying thing about this time of year? SHOPPING
22. Do you decorate your tree in any specific theme or color? Of course I do. Do you really think that I just throw things together and settle on however it comes out. The main tree has at least one of each of the ornaments I have made over the years. I have noticed there are a few missing this year...hummmm wonder where they went? I would say that more than half of them are snowmen. I try to decorate my living room in snowmen. There are Red Christmas balls, usually candy canes (don't know where they went to this year either). The second tree in the dining room is a bit more formal with red and silver balls, poinsettia flowers in red and white, Glass hearts, candle lights, ribbon and teddy bears all around it. The dining room is the teddy bear room. Don't tell Mark, but someone gave me another tree this year so next year I will have another one to decorate. Not edzachery sure where I am going to put it yet. Maybe the bedroom. I don't think he would notice it there.
23. What do/did you leave for Santa? A trail of clothes on the floor......just kidding...gosh, some people are so testy.
24. Favorite thing about this time of the year? I think I would have to say Christmas.

Check this out!

So, I wanted to post this right to my blog for you to see but Ronda says it will only let me give you the link. Well, sit back, relax, turn the volume up and enjoy. When I get my outfits back from the dry cleaners I will have Ronda video tape me in action so I can post the video right to my blog....until then.............

http://www.scroogeyourself.com/?id=1124862127

http://www.elfyourself.com/?id=1124301977

My little "Bell" of the Ball

Every day can be dress up day when you are a princess. Especially if you are Grandma's Princess. Christen bought Chelsea her costume for Halloween, and how appropriate that she bought her a Bell Princess Dress.

I turned around and looked at Chelsea and she had stripped down to her panties. I asked her what she was doing and she matter of fact told me she was putting on her princess dress.

Well, okay then, let me help and let me get my camera. Her shoes don't quite fit because they don't make them in size "extra wide" but I am going to see if I can alter them a bit.

Somewhere she must of seen a princess sit down on the ground and fluff her dress out because she was very adamant that she sit just so and that the dress be fluffed exactly right. Who am I to argue with that.

Every day is a new day with Chelsea, we never know what the day will bring, but we are sure to be entertained. And just when I think I can't take anymore she wraps her arms

around my neck and says "I love you Grandma!" It just doesn't get any better than that.

I Feel Pretty....Oh So Pretty!

I just don't think it gets any cuter than this. It is important to know that there is an art to applying ones make up, and I do believe she has it mastered. As you can see she is very proud of her accomplishments here. I think she is the most beautiful princess in the world.

Chelsea, Don't.............

Some battles are just not worth the effort so I chose to grab my camera and capture the moment instead. My children would probably not totally understand this concept as I was too busy being a mother, which is a lot different than being a Grandma I have found. I am sure that I would of insisted that my kids get down off the railing immediately before they got hurt.
Notice, she is posing for me, this doesn't happen often. I can't just turn down an opportunity like that, now can I? I will add that no one was injured in any way in the posing of these pictures. I was able to save the plant that was sitting on the rail post and the pictures on the piano remained upright. What more could I ask for?

He's My Best Friend

I will never forget the first time Chelsea wrapped her arms around my neck and said, "Grandma, you are my best friend." My heart melted. I don't know where she learned that line, but I think it will get her pretty much anything she wants.

The other day Buddy came over with Melisa for a visit. As you can see she is once again dressed in her princess tutu, I must make a note to buy her some more of these for Christmas.
On this day I guess it was Buddy's turn. She wrapped her arms around Buddy and told him he was her best friend. She found some books in my scrapbook room and sat on the stairs and read to Buddy. She had to lay the book down sometimes so Buddy could see all the pictures. He was a pretty good sport about it for the most part. When Buddy lost interest she just sat and read by herself. I hope she never loses her interest in reading her books. Have I mentioned before how much I love her?

Never Forgotten

It is hard to know where to start with this post as my heart is heavy and my eyes are filled with tears. This picture was taken at Jonathan and Adrian's graduation from Basic Training in Fort Jackson, South Carolina in the summer of 2001, right before they started their senior year.

Jonathan and Adrian have been friends for as long as I can remember. They went to the same schools together, were in scouts together, played sports together and shared the same obsessions with anything that involved the Great Outdoors.

One thing was for sure, if the two of them were together, there was sure to be laughter involved. Man they loved to laugh and make others laugh with and at them.

Adrian joined the National Guard and it wasn't long before Jonathan was signing up too. What a day it was when they left together for basic training. One of many emotional yet proud moments our families shared together.

In January of 2005 their unit was deployed to Afghanistan. Adrian was still in flight school but was able to catch up with them shortly after they arrived over there. I remember Adrian coming to the house to tell us goodbye right before he left and how excited he was to go. It was hard to not get caught up in his enthusiasm as he was so EXCITED to be heading over there and to get the chance to fly, you see, he was living his dream. If only I had known that would be the last hug I would ever get to give him. The boys were stationed in different places over there and didn't get to see each other too often, but they chatted often and when they were on base together they sure made up for lost time. Jonathan would call home and just laugh and the stunts they would pull together. They were so excited that they were going to get to come home together for Christmas for their leave..........................that would never happen.

September 25th, 2005. The phones began ringing early that day that a Chinook had gone down. All day we waited, making several calls to the Stumps and no one had heard anything. When we finally did get a call all they could tell us was that Jonathan was okay, and they couldn't tell us anything about anyone else. When we finally did get a call telling us that Adrian had been killed on the Chinook I remember getting mad at the person who called and telling them it was a lie. When she told me she heard it from his grandma I remember falling into Mark's arms and weeping uncontrollably....why? This wasn't suppose to happen, No! Not Adrian! And then the pain we felt for his family, and the pain we felt for our son, who we were not able to get in contact with for several days. So much of that time is a blur for us, yet the pain is so real, even today.

So today, on the second anniversary, we remember you Adrian. You will always be in our hearts and we will never forget you. It is still hard to find comfort and answers, but if there is one thing I know it is that Adrian was living his dream. I don't know how many of us can really say that.

I look at my own life and think about my own passions and dreams and if I am pursuing them in the same way. What am I waiting for? Maybe now is a good time to do some soul searching, to really reflect on who I am and what it is I want to be, what I want to accomplish, set goals and work towards them. Not just let life pass me by. And most importantly, neve wait until tomorrow to tell someone you love them. We never know how many tomorrows we really do have.

It really hit home with me.

Singin' in the Rain...

This was our first day of rain all summer. With temperatures reaching 100 for most of the summer it was quite a welcoming rain. There is nothing like the smells of a summer rain. Chelsea was here and decided she wanted to go outside and play. I told her no because it was raining. Her Papa looked at me and said, "Why not? Take her outside." (Notice he didn't volunteer for the duty but thought it would be a great idea for me.) As I pondered his wonderful idea I thought, Why Not! So we took our socks and shoes off, I grabbed the camera and away we went. Chelsea was in heaven running back and forth through the puddles. Neither one of us melted away from the rain, and we didn't catch a cold....

What we did create is another memory. She may be too little to remember this moment but I will always have it to hold on to. I don't remember if I ever let my kids go play in the rain like this, but I hope when Chelsea sees these pictures, and as my children look at them, they will remember to keep that childlike spirit within them and to take the time to dance in the rain. I love it when my own children tell me to "grow up", because that usually means that I have dared to be a child again.

So, to each of you I ask, "How can you dare to be a child again today?" Will you dance in the rain? Will you jump rope with your children? Jump in the pool with them? Slide down the slide with them?....why not? I think I will even eat dessert first and hide my peas in my napkin.
Here's to being a kid again.........................

Memories of the First Day of School

As we look toward another school year I can't help but think about all those "first days of school" with my own children. All the excitement of buying school supplies and new clothes. Believe it or not I still remember how I felt getting ready for school (now that is one heck of a memory). I could barely sleep the night before and it was probably the one day of the year that I didn't have to be drug out of bed in the morning.

I don't remember if my mom took pictures of us on our first day of school but I sure remember lining my own kids up on the front porch and taking several of them. Yes, I even followed them to school and took pictures in the classrooms, until they got to an age when that wasn't so cool anymore. At that point I was banned to the front porch and just had to wave to them as they headed off to school without me.

I miss those days with my children. For some reason they felt they needed to grow up and spread their own wings. The house seems to quiet without them yet the walls seem to echo their laughter. I love it when they all come home together. They fall right back into their same "pecking order". I enjoy just sitting back and listening to them.

So, as school begins again, I think of each of them. Gone are all their first days of school, only to be replaced by many other firsts, and many photo opportunities with memories to cherish.
To Sarah, Christen, Jonathan and David....I love you. Thank you for all the cherished memories that a mom holds so dear in her heart.

What Flower Are You?

I found this quite humorous today. Love these little quizzes you can take. So, they think I am an Iris? Well, they got the color right. What do you think? How do they know me so well. Most of these quizzes that I have taken really do seem to fit me. I will post more soon, maybe even today.

You Are An Iris

You are a unique person who seeks out novelty in life. An inspiration seeker, you often have to change scenery to recharge. You don't deal well with structure or rules. You need to do it your own way. Your ideal relationships are free and flowing. No one can tie you down.

What Flower Are You?

Lincoln City Get-A-Way

Mark and I only had about 4 days of vacation that overlapped so we decided to take advantage of it and go somewhere to rest. Well, let me tell you how much fun it is to find a motel with only a few days notice. After much searching we found a place in Lincoln City called The Starfish Manor. You can imagine our surprise when we walked in the room and this was the first thing we saw. Matching bathrobes, with rose petals all over the bed and chocolates on the pillows.

Facing the ocean was this jacuzzi bath tub, complete with a rubber duckie. We were on the 3rd floor so it was safe to open the curtains and watch the ocean while relaxing in the tub. I am sure they couldn't see me! And yes, I did put the rubber duckie in the tub with me and I even brought it home. Not sure if I was suppose to or not. Note to self: Be very careful when using bubble bath in a jacuzzi tub. I had a tub full of bubbles before I turned the jets on.....need I say more. I had over a foot of bubbles once I turned them on, they were everywhere. I was cracking up. Should of got a picture of that one!

We had a barbeque on our deck and a small kitchen area so we didn't have to go far. The best part, we didn't turn the tv on. Well, maybe that wasn't the best part but I can't give you all the details. I loved getting up and having my coffee on the deck, reading my book and listening to the ocean. The weather was beautiful and we both wanted to stay longer.

We walked on the beach one day for almost 4 hours. I am not totally sure how my shorts, jacket and shirt got so wet...maybe I got a little to close to the waves when I was looking for seashells. I told Mark that instead of having a "love fern" we had "love rocks and shells". I couldn't convince him to take his shoes off and walk in the water with me though...Pansy! And he didn't want to get a pail and shovel and build sandcastles on the beach. If I only had one more day at the beach I am pretty sure I could of convinced him though. Next time I will just have to do it anyway. I know once he sees how much fun it is he would want to join in. I think I would make him beg though.
We drove to Newport one day and walked down on the docks and through the shops. Went to Mo's for dinner one night and to The BlackFish Cafe another. The food was very good but something you would find in a high class restraunt.

It was everything we hoped it would be in a vacation. On our way home we stayed in Portland one night after touring the Street of Dreams with Tim and Val Pilch from Pendleton. If you have never done this I would recommend it. The homes were beautiful but a little bit out of my price range, starting at over 2 million and most with over 4-5,000 square feet of everything you could want in a home.
But when all is said and done, I love my home the best. It is where love is, where we have built memories that are priceless, and where friends and family are always welcome.

Pictures Not Allowed

For about the last year I have really had to work to get a picture of Chelsea. She sees the camera and swells up and turns away from me. I have just decided that I will have to take what I can get so I just snap away. Here is the same sweet girl, madder than a hornet at her Grandma and not about to look at me or smile. Well, for crimany sakes, I bought her a new outfit and had to take pictures of it, thats all.
I am guessing to avoid looking at me it helps to stick your pouty lips out and then take the sidewalk chalk and write all over your legs. Now, isn't that cute!
So now we have resorted to laying down on the sidewalk and only looking at Shrek and her princess Fiona. Thats okay, I think that is a cute picture too. I wonder who is more stubborn? I win, I got pictures.

So, how did I get her to look at me you ask. Well, she asked me to take a picture of Shrek, so I did. And it was so cute, I am sure she didn't realize that I was also getting a picture of her too. As soon as I took the picture she said to me, "Thank you Grandma" and went about her business. I love this Grandma business!

Man I love this girl!

Chelsea and I had another fun play day today. The only difference was Sarah was here to capture some pictures for me. I can count on one hand how many pictures I have with Grandma and the Princess. Here she is flying...now to get this shot you have to lay on the ground and put your feet on her tummy then lift her in the air. She thinks this is a blast, and look "No hands, she is flying" If only you could hear her laughing too, it is worth whatever my body has to go through. I am sure the neighbors loved the view also.


And here we are playing around. I have her in a death grip to get her to hold still for the picture and I am tickling her so she will laugh. Well, it worked. She thinks it is real fun to tackle Grandma and throw her to the ground, then full body slam her. Good thing I have lots of cushion to absorb the blows.

A Royally Wonderful Birthday

Birthdays are good for you...statistics show that the people who have the most live the longest!





I told the girls to leave the glasses alone and stop stacking them up before one of them break!

Ronda is such a dear friend, check out the bikini she knit for me. I can't wait to wear it!

I don't think I look a day over 29! I double dog dare you to say differently.

Kirsten and Melisa

Me (of course) Amy, and Kathleen

Melisa (again)and Trini, making a toast to me...I think.

What a fun time we had. We all met at GP to celebrate and boy were we in for a treat. They actually had a band there to entertain us, maybe they thought I wasn't entertainment enough. The music was, well should I say, interesting and for sure LOUD! The highlight was when they sang me Happy Birthday. I was a little shy but I did manage to stand up so no one would be confused as to who they were singing to. LOL.