August 27, 2005
Another Dead Computer
As of now, I'm computerless. I'm using Sarah's to leave this post, but she's gone back to Roy and will probably come get this one today. Last night when Mikyla called me to come up there, that she was sick, I took off, and forgot my computer was on. When we got home, it was lightening, and my computer won't do anything. I'm thinking the lightening killed it. It won't load windows to allow me to use the go back features, and the recovery system insists it can not continue. Figures, eh? So it'll be a while, but I'll get it fixed eventually. Take care!
August 22, 2005
Another Woman's Body...
...was found behind a gas station in town on Tuesday. She was 21, and had been missing from London for a while.
The news never did tell what caused the Eldridge woman's death a few weeks ago, they said her autopsy results would be back in a month.
The paper only had a small blurb on the 2nd woman's death, just giving her name and age, but not saying how she died.
Could it be that we have a killer around here, nearby?
My Birthday
It was wonderful. Thanks, everyone for all the beautiful gifts, as always, you did waaaaaaaaaaaaay too much. I'll post pictures of them tomorrow!
Mom, you're too much. Thanks again, for everything. I love you.
August 19, 2005
Mikyla and School
She got to spend the night with me again tonight..and she's doing just fine. This was her 2nd full week of school, and she's decided she likes it after all. The crying has stopped, the long face is gone and she's Mikyla again! Thank God!!
The Christmas Village
God that place is gorgeous. I want to go back and spend a whole day in there!
Joel, Wednesday, In Gatlinburg
He didn't seem very impressed..
He saw all these animals...
But still..
Even these didn't seem to get his attention..
He just seemed to be 'above' it all..
One would think these critters would have made him smile...
But...
These things...
...just didn't do a thing for him at all!
Then he saw this.. and it was like.. "that's more like it!"...
I think he liked the Aquarium the best!
August 18, 2005
August 12, 2005
She hates school :(
As soon as she gets out, she starts crying and fretting about having to go back the next day. Yesterday, and now today, the same thing. She says she hates it, it takes too long and she doesn't want to go back. She goes on like this until it's time for her to actually go home and get ready for school again. I hate that she's so unhappy. Lord this is hard. :(
August 11, 2005
Revised Hospital Announcement
They forgot to add Maegan's middle name in the first one, so I thought I'd capture a screenshot of the revised announcement.
Mikyla's 2nd Day of School
This one didn't go so well. She was ok, Sarah said, until a little boy was dragged in, literally dragged in by the arm, by his mother. His feet were donkey style stubborn on the floor, pushing as his mom pulled, he was crying and screaming, thrashing about, "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Like his mom was delivering him into the pits of hell itself. And his fit of temper scared Mikyla. She didn't cry, but tears welled up in her eyes and she hid her face in Sarah's shirt. She was gung ho until she saw this.
Boys! Maybe they do have cooties after all!
She was so glad to be picked up by Sarah after school, and tonight she flat didn't want to go home. She begged me to talk her mom into letting her stay here, and not go home, she said she was just too sick to go to school, and then she threw up on the grass outside twice, to prove it.
I don't like seeing her so upset, I hate this, just hate it. Why.. WHY did that boy have to come in screaming like that today. Sheesh.
Meli's Card To Maegan:
Isn't that the sweetest thing? Thank you Meli, you're wonderful!
Of the Corn...
Bonnie's landlady told her she wanted the corn out of there today, for her to go pick it all, and so Bonnie came to get me and pick it we did!
Sarah happened by when we were on the way over there, so she went a-corn-pickin' right along with us.. We had a blast!
We got over 2 and a half bushels of ripe tomatos too, took those to mom to can tomorrow.
All of us got tons of vegetables to put up, I got about 5 dozen ears of corn, and I've got them all ready and waiting in the freezer. One, just one package is marked with a little sticker "Christmas Corn." This, peaches and cream corn, will be for my Christmas dinner. I have my Christmas green beans all ready too. They're not marked though, because no one will bother the beans.. corn though, that's a different story. Everyone will eat corn.
So...
Behold! I have frozen the corn. I have given you every bag of corn to eat, but of the corn in the bag with the label marked 'christmas corn', ye shall not eat of it - neither shall ye touch it, lest I cry.
GodAMightyTimesAFlyin'!
First of all, a little about Maegan. She's a DARLIN'! She sleeps, and sleeps, and sleeps, and the only time she cries is when she's ready to eat, or when she poops (or when you lay her down). She loves being held, and those big eyes just seem like they're taking in everything. We talk to her and her brows go high up on her forehead, like she's trying to concentrate on what we're saying. Even if she's sleeping, when she hears talking she is listening. She's going to be a spy!
This was Maegan yesterday:
Look how alert she is, how big those eyes are!
Now, on to Mikyla. Her first day of school was a BIG success. She was cute as a button in a new outfit, she had her lunch packed, her backpack ready, she was rarin' to go. Now, Sarah, not thinking about later in life, has been jesting with Mikyla for a while now, that 'boys have cooties'... just a joke, just a harmless comment meant to make me laugh, showing us that she wants the boys to stay away from her little girl, by injecting Mikyla's mind with the idea that boys have a germ and therefore are to be avoided at all costs. So.. without Mikyla's cootie protection shot, she sent her to Kindergarten. Lo and Behold, where does the teacher place Mikyla? Spang between two cootie filled boys. Cooties to the left of her! Cooties to the right! What was Mikyla to do aside sitting stiffly with her elbows close to her sides, a worried smile on her lips,
and not one Kleenex to hold to her nose for in case those boys sneezed Cooties her way! When Sarah got ready to leave, she was bracing herself, thinking Mikyla was going to cry and beg to go too, but Mik just waved Sarah off, told her, "Go on Mommy, I'm gonna be just fine."
And she was. She got 2 good choices from the teacher too. (This means she made good choices twice, by "staying quiet" when the teacher asked the kids to please stop talking.)
Her day went well, until she missed her bus stop on the way home. None of us had thought to tell Mikyla, "Stand up when you see our house! Tell the driver, this is my stop!"
We assumed the driver would know where to stop, and boy did we assume wrongly.
The Missed Bus.
At 20 to 3, Sarah called the school, to find out which bus Mikyla would be on. She did find out, but at 10 to 3, she called again, just to be sure. Again, she found out. At 3, she drove to the school, just to be sure they put Mik on the correct bus. The woman again checked the school schedule and gently told Sarah, "Go home. The best way for you to help your daughter, is to be waiting right there at the bus stop for her."
Mik was on the right bus, just the driver didn't stop. Talk about major panic over here, but egads when Mik wasn't home by 4:25, Mom was ready to tear the town down with a teaspoon to find her. She panicked worse than Sarah or I did. She hadn't wanted Mikyla riding the bus, but for Sarah to pick her up for a few weeks to let her adjust to school first. That was a tough lesson learned. It scared us all to death!
The bus driver took her back to school, where her Mommy was waiting for her, and so by 4:30, they were back here so that Mik could eat the cup cakes that Mal and I had made for her. They were good too!
After their cupcakes, the kids let us place them in the big chair so I could get a picture of them with Maegan.
Isn't that precious? I think that's my favorite picture now. Mom printed it out for me to frame, I'll have to get a frame for it tomorrow.
All of these kids are gorgeous, but there's no denying the fact that Mallory is just a living doll. I can't say she's the prettiest grandchild I have, because that's not nice, but I can imply it, and no one can do a thing about it! But see...
...she just has that something that makes her shine a little more than the others!
Joel knows how to hug a gal!
Then Bonnie had to get in on the Maegan action!
They, okay, we, wore the poor thing out!
I thought this shot of Mallory was particularly beautiful..
August 08, 2005
And the...last...for last.
My last entry tonight is sad for me, we had so many 'lasts'. This day went by so fast. I guess it was knowing that it was the last one we had before our comfortable, safe, secure, happy, play-filled lives were interrupted by kindergarten. I tried hard to stretch it out, and it was a good day. We made a few more memories, and I took a few more pictures. I confess, I couldn't help it, once in a while I got all teary eyed realizing that this was it...
... the last batch of cookies at the table before Mikyla has to start staying home for school...
That old table never looked lonlier to me than it did with our crumbs sitting there on empty plates, the chairs pushed back, the kids finished with their cookies...
We had one more game of hide and seek...
...their last bubble bath (just for fun, not for the clean of it, though the clean of it part was pretty helpful)
...and last but not least, one more bag of popcorn, and one more movie.. "Benji" was the movie Mikyla picked for tonight...
The movie's over, Mallory is sleeping, and Mikyla is watching 'Full House', waiting for me before she will be able to sleep. Joel's gone home and the house is quiet now.
I can't begin to express how lost I feel. The past 5 years have been so good. So very good. This child, my first grandchild, has been such a joy. Every day taught me something new, something fresh and wonderful - about myself, about her, about others in our family, about human nature. I know that special times with her aren't over, not completely...just her earliest days... before school and routine, and 'best friends' and little girl responsibilities have arrived to help her grow up into a young woman.
Five wonderful years. And I didn't waste a second. I love you, Mikyla.
Wacky Dog...
We still don't know who owns him, but he's pretty interesting. We were sitting on the porch, and Roy said, hey, that dog's sliding.. I glanced up, but didn't see what he meant. But.. while I watched, the dog came around the tree, climbed up the ladder and slid down the slide again. He did it a third time, and then a 4th time. We could only guess that he'd watched the kids do it, so thought to give it a try and liked it. *laughs* Later..when Nick came over, we told him what the dog had done. Nick had to coax him up the ladder that time, but the dog sure enough did it again. Wacky!
Maegan Here This Evening
I fed her and she burped right in my face, not once, but twice! *laughs* Yum!
August 07, 2005
Straw Doll
This sucker was on my side porch yesterday morning.. I attributed it to the pup carrying it here from someplace. But then this morning, on the walk right in front of the side porch, someone had piled 2 to 300 gravel from my driveway. It vexed me because I just scrubbed the walk yesterday so it'd be all pretty and clean for when Sarah brought Maegan here from the hospital today. The gravel wasn't there last night when Bonnie went home after work because I'd have noticed it and would have been vexed then, so I know Mikyla or Mallory didn't do it. Someone practicing a lil voodoo, reckon? *laughs*
August 05, 2005
No Allergy Shots for Mik Today
I took her for them, but since she has a cold, and is wheezing, they wouldn't give them to her. Maybe by Tuesday this cold will be gone and she can get them. I hate it when she's sick :(
School
Mikyla will be starting on Tuesday, and on this past Friday she and Mallory went to their orientation. Both girls got face paint, Mikyla had balloons, and Mallory got a flower. That was cute! Mikyla really likes the idea of school, but I can't seem to get her to get out of bed before 11 anyday, no matter how hard I try!
Have you ever really listened to the nonsense songs little girls sing, while they're holding a hair brush or something else they're pretending is a microphone in their hands? Tonight I had to laugh at Mallory, she was singing into the Bissel sweeper handle, in the den, and I just caught the words,
You don't have no armpits, you're just a shoe!
I didn't want to laugh out loud, because I knew if I did, she'd stop singing - so I just stiffled it and listened as she sang, no.. crooned to the shoe. My shoe. She sang to that shoe for over 30 minutes, about how it had no neck, it's just a shoe. It had no arms, it's just a shoe. It had no ... you name it, it didn't have it.. why? Because...
You're just a shoooooooooooooooooooooooooe!!
Presenting Maegan Jessica
She was born this morning too quickly for me to be there to see it happen! She's perfect, 10 fingers, 10 toes, one beautiful smooshed little nose! She looks just like Mallory. Both Mikyla and Mallory are in love with her. Isn't she precious?
She weighed 6 pounds 14 ounces, but I forgot how long Sarah said she is. I do know she has feet like her mother, HUGE feet! *laughs* I'm glad it's over and they're both doing just fine.
Added later tonight: She's 19 1/4 inches long, and was born at 8:19 this morning!
Congratulations, Sarah & Roy & Mikyla & Mallory!
Later Today..
My family will increase by one. One teeny person who will one way or another, make a huge impact on all of our lives. What will she be like, I wonder? Will she favor her namesake? Will she have blue eyes, or green? What color is her hair? Is she going to be a physically active person, or will she prefer a quieter existance, reading and doing jig saw puzzles? Will she be a loner, or the life of the party? Who is this little person, exactly?
I have a prayer for you, little Maegan.
First of all, I pray that you're a healthy little girl, both physically and mentally. I pray that God keeps me on my toes, striving to be a better person, because little eyes are watching me. I pray that those around you strive as well, to teach you to have character, integrity and honor. I pray that you'll have a good sense of humor and are touched with the gift of forgiveness, but not forgetfulness. I pray that if you have physical imperfections, you overcome them, and work on what's inside, and come to really understand that's what's most important, anyway. I pray you have a curious nature, and not an accepting one. Never settle. I pray that through those around you, you come to know that you, little girl child, are as important and as loved and as capable as any boy child could ever be - know this in your youth, as you age, and throughout your entire life. Most of all, I pray that you have the ability to love, always, with all of your heart, and that God blesses you with only those along your path, who love you equally as hard. For all your life.
I love you very much already.
Mikyla and Mallory and Joel and Sarah and I Have Colds.
We made it to August 3. It has begun. For us, anyway. Cold and flu season. We'll be sick with some virus or the other now until May of next year. Bleah!
August 04, 2005
Maegan..
...is 3 days overdue. Sarah had a doc appt. today, and he told her if she doesn't have it by Friday morning, he wants her in the hospital so he can induce it at 7:00 A.M. So far Maegan's just waiting...quietly. She's gonna be something. Spiteful, I think. She tried for months to be born early, only to get foiled by medicine and bedrest. Now.. it's like she's all stubbed up and ignoring us. Now, she's getting even. She's telling us.. "I tried. I've tried several times. You stopped me, so now I'm just gonna stay right here." *laughs* Poor Sarah. She's gonna have a long row to hoe with this one!
A Woman's Body Was Found
In the river pretty much where the rescue crews had been searching. She matches the description of the missing woman, but they're not saying if it's her yet. Word around town though is that it's her. Bless her heart. Now I wonder how she died. Guess we'll know in a day or so.
August 02, 2005
Local Woman Missing
Saturday evening, about 8:00 P.M., the woman in the story (linked below) was walking from her brother's house, to pick up her daughter less than a mile away, and she just vanished. Someone thinks they heard her scream "help" but no one saw what happened to her. Now search and rescue teams are set up in the park across the street from here, and they've been flying over the house on their way to try to find her. The news said tonight that she disappeared approximately 200 yards from where the rescue headquarters are set up. That would put her dissappearing 4 houses down from us, at the stop-sign on the road turning into our lane. Scary, that. I hope they find her safe and sound.
This is my porch roof. For a little bit, I might have been able to jump on my porch rail and touch the helicoptor. It seemed like it was that close.
http://www.wkyt.com/Global/story.asp?S=3668324
http://www.wkyt.com/Global/story.asp?S=3668574
Finally, he can eat!
This poor fella's been looking at the corn in this feeder since November of last year. The thing was, he couldn't get into it. Stan kept insisting he had it up right.. that the squirrels should be able to open the door and help themselves to the corn, then close the door back. Maybe so...but we never saw a single squirrel up there opening and closing the door to the feeder. Not one. Finally, the weather has broken the little latch, and the little door is always open, and now.. lol.. the squirrels are beginning to come around more often!
Ugh
Mikyla's going to start staying home at night now, so her mommy can get her used to getting up early for school. She'll be starting on the 9th and it's just around the corner. I've dreaded this for so long, and I'm going to miss her so so so so so much! But she's going to have a good time, and she's really looking forward to school. I'm happy for her that she's finally going to get to go.
The only thing I know for certain now, is that this formally brings my babysitting from daylight to dark, and grandmothering constantly - to a close. I'm torn about it, because they've been the highlight of my life for so long. 5 years for Mikyla, and 4 for Mallory. Mallory stays where Mikyla stays for the most part, so she'll be content to stay home now that Mik is going to be staying there. That only leaves Joel.
I've pretty much stopped babysitting for OJ now, just on rare occasions for her, and since Sarah quit work, I don't have to sit for the girls now.
I have to confess a touch of relief. It wasn't bad at all when it was just Mikyla. It wasn't too bad when it was Mikyla and Mallory. Then Acey came along. Then Joel, and then Breanna got to wanting to come stay too. With that many, I was, most times, overwhelmed.
Now, with Maegan on the way.. I'm certain that I just can't do it anymore. I'm too old to be able to keep up with them. Maybe Sarah will let them stay with me sometimes on the weekends, but I just can't keep up with so many of them anymore, and the thoughts of tending to a newborn for long hours every day just makes me break out in a cold sweat! Yeah! Once in a while the way grammas are supposed to do, but that's it for me.
I'll have 3 more years until Joel is in school, then Mammy is completely retiring from the babysitting business. I told Bonnie tonight.. don't have anymore if you're going to rely on me to sit, because it's not gonna happen. I've put in my resignation 3 years in advance... so she can't say she didn't know!
Kids it's been a wonderful 5 years. I've enjoyed the HELL out of getting to see them grow, playing with them, learning from them. I can't honestly say I'm not going to miss it, because I am. Thank you for letting me share in their lives for so long as you have, and now..
...