Daddy would say, "Tilt."

This picture is how the car looked after don vacuumed the glass off me, I got a bath; then I went back out to the garage and got this picture. We were 55 minutes from home when one of those horrible downpours hit right where we were on the interstate. We couldn't see a thing and suddenly there was an 18 wheeler in each of the lanes in front of us and a car beside us on the right. Everyone was stopped and while Don was slowing down there was no way to stop. If he'd hit the brakes any harder we would have slid under the 18 wheeler in front of us. So he took a quick swerve into the median to our left, but he clipped the end of the trailer of the 18 wheeler. I had visions of the trailer cutting off my head, so I was relieved that it only caved in my door and window. It didn't hurt the 18 wheeler at all. We drove home as I was so anxious to get all the glass off of me. I had it in my hair and all in my clothes. It was everywhere in the car. I couldn't move without feeling like I was stabbing myself somewhere, and there wasn't much blood, but enough to freak me out, wondering where all the glass was. As soon as we pulled into the garage I got out Don's side as my door probably won't shut if we could even open it. Then Don vacuumed all the glass off of me that he could. Then I went to the tub, thinking I'd take a nice relaxing bath to relax me. Not! There is no way to relax when you keep sitting on glass. I couldn't wait to get into the tub and then I couldn't wait to get out! How fickle we are thinking we know what we want!

Anyway, I'm out, the clothes are in the washer. I'm going to dry my hair, fold the clothes, power plate to relax me and shake my body back into place, then I'm going to bed. I suspect I'll be sore as can be tomorrow; no doubt I stiffened every muscle in my body in an effort to somehow miss that truck. God was with us and had Don do the best thing possible. It sure could have been so much worse. Don did so great. I don't know how he kept his cool like he did. I'm still pretty much a basket case; but what can you do? I'm doing laundry; that always seems like the answer. :) We had a wonderful trip and thank God for our lives and the opportunity to see Jeff and Jessie!

Look how great they did!

The picture tonight is one I took of Jessie tonight after the closing ceremonies of their tournament. The girls played every game today, through to the last game for the championship. They lost the last game, so they took the 2nd place trophy, which was also a great honor. It was really fun for us to get to see the girls play at this level and do such a fantastic job. Besides this trophy each girl was inducted into the United States Girls Softball Hall of Fame and presented with a necklace and a bracelet stating that honor.

We're back at the hotel and ready to leave FIRST THING in the morning. That's the way we like to travel; we'll be home before dark. I thank God for our safe travels and for giving us this opportunity to see Jessie play. She even pitched a while in the last game when the other pitchers were worn out. She hasn't pitched in two years, but she was able to give the others a break and she did a fantastic job. We were thrilled to get to see her pitch. She normally plays a fantastic second base. She got a home run in one of the games today, so we saw quite a show!

Sorry about last night's post.

Today's picture is Jessie and I after the game they won this morning. They played at 10 and we were there for it on time. That's because we drove all night last night to get here. That's not our style, but Don was driving well and I was sleeping good, so we did it. We got here at 3 this morning and slept until 8:15 so we could get up and get to the game. It was so worth it! We were braced to stop on the way, but it worked to keep driving. Trouble is that I never got to post the blog. I couldn't figure out how to sign onto the WIFI at 3 a.m. and didn't think I could follow instructions, since I wasn't able to follow the first ones they gave me. Anyway, with some rest, I've got it figured out, now.

We got an email from Jeff Tuesday night that he and Jessie would be in Omaha all week for a tournament. We didn't have plans for the weekend, so we decided to drive up as soon as the telephone repair man left yesterday. That turned into a long story and he didn't leave until just before 5 p.m, so we got a really late start, which is also not our style. We thank God for a safe trip and this chance to get to see Jessie play and Jeff coach. The weather is PERFECT. We didn't even sweat; there was a nice cloud cover and a nice breeze; just perfect! (Well, a little dust in our faces, but it's the ball park, so it's good!)

I know some of you read the blog the first thing in the morning, so if I worried you, I apologize. Judy, who has held my hand since day one of this breast cancer experience called me this morning to make sure I was okay. She'd been reading about my issues with the Direct TV guy and the telephone repair guy and I think she was having visions of me going round and round with some guy to someone's detriment; I don't know if she thought I might be in the hospital or in jail. I'm really working on my attitude and was pretty easy on the repair guy yesterday. I had to really bite my tongue when he reached under the bed and unplugged the phone and then announced he couldn't reach to put it back, so I'd have to move the bed out and put it back. I just don't get how it is that he's being paid to do the repairs and then he makes work for a little old lady . . . it was a good test for my attitude and he left unscathed since looks don't kill.

No rocket scientist.

Tonight's picture is one taken back when Tom Rose was here and we went to the reserve. It was a couple of months ago, but I still look pretty much the same. This is how I really am; usually wind blown and always with my hair tied up except for the part that is falling. I absolutely love to be outside and exploring. We have grandkids who love to explore, but they mostly like slimy things and I'm not so into that. They come by it honestly.

Now, today I had all kinds of technical challenges. We couldn't get online all morning. I was pretty much lost! So, I finally called the technical folks and they had me standing on my head behind the computer unplugging everything. I HATE that! Finally we got us back online, but they said we're paying for extra high speed and we aren't getting near enough megs on our line to accomplish that. They're sending a repair fellow out tomorrow and if it's inside we'll pay for the repairs, but if it's outside they'll pay. I'm not in the humor to pay, since I've been paying for extra high speed and not getting it! So, I fished around all day and learned that I can assign my land line number to my magic jack phone next month and I can drop my land line! I love that idea! I can get high speed with no phone for $19.95 a month; that will save me about $35 a month. That doesn't sound like a lot of money to a lot of folks, but that's a lot of money to me! I feel like a bird out of a cage. I can hardly wait for next month to do it! So, I may have chemo brain, and I'm no rocket scientist, and it may have taken me all day, but I figured out how to drop the land line and save $35 a month and I'm happy about that. I thank God for hanging with me all through the stress of climbing under the computer and tangling through all those wires. While I was down there on my knees I asked Him to forgive me for my lousy attitude my fix asked Him to please help me to stay calm and kind to the technical people. He even gave me the bonus of figuring out how to drop the land line! God is so good!

Sweet memories.

Tonight's picture is one I took of Don with Mason and Gracie when we were hiking in Gatlinburg. This is an old home from years ago. I probably should know more about it, but I don't remember any details. All I remember is the fun we had hiking. It was hot, but it was really fun.

Speaking of hot, it's still way hot here, but we thank God for AC! We did get sunshine today. We aren't getting rain and our basement is dry; that's great!

The Direct TV guy was supposed to come this morning and finish our installation in the basement. He didn't. That's so frustrating. We waited on him to show and he never did. I called them and they are so apologetic, but that doesn't help me a bit. It will be wonderful to have the TV in the basement, so I guess we can wait another couple of weeks. I just get the feeling we're being ripped, but it's a small thing on the grand scale of life, so I'm not going to sweat it. That's a real exercise for me, but I'm not sweating. :)

Zipper spider.

Tonight's picture is one I got of a 'zipper spider' at the pool at Runaway Bay. It was too cool. I'm sure there is a more scientific name for this guy, but we call him a zipper spider because he makes that zipper in his web. He is probably a she, too. I don't fool with those details. We just like to watch them. By the time we left there were so many creatures (flies and bugs) caught in the web that I'm sure he'll eat well this week. This spider was bright yellow and black and white. The kids thought it was so cool. They're like me; easy to entertain. Give us a pool and a zipper spider and we're way entertained.

Today has been a full Sunday. Our neighbor invited us for Sunday lunch today: she had made a roast with potatoes and carrots and squash and homemade bread. Yum! Then we went to the nursing home for a devotional. I came home and hurriedly sprayed the weeds that I'd missed a couple of weeks ago. (I remembered to get a new sprayer when we came back through Lawton the other day!) I had gotten a good kill on my last spraying, but, obviously I missed a few because they were thriving well. It's hard to tell where I've sprayed and where I haven't sprayed when there are so many. Today there were just a few, so I think I got them all. There were some areas around the edge of the house that Don wanted me to get, too. It felt good to get to finish it. It's not my favorite job, but it'll be easier if I stay up on it and don't let so many get ahead of me, again. I thank God I didn't have to pull all those weeds, and I thank Him for the Vitamin D opportunity.

Swimming in Runaway Bay.

The picture tonight is one Gabe took of Grace and Raynie and I in the pool at Runaway Bay. The pool was so nice and usually there was nobody there but us, so it was really nice. Trish went to get water toys for the kids and I asked her to get a raft for me. She liked this one because it was canvas. Well, the other good thing was that it was small so it didn't take a lot of air. The bad thing was that it was a real balancing act for me to stay on it once I got on it. It must have been a comedy to watch. It was perfect for Raynie and Gracie, though. I pulled them around a lot. Gracie swam a lot and didn't need the raft, but she had fun with it, and it was wonderful for Raynie. We got lots of Vitamin D last week and it's the first time in my life I ever wished I had a pool.

Today has been interesting. In many ways it's been challenging, but I DID get the DVD player hooked up right, and for the first time EVER we were able to watch a couple of DVDs tonight! We've had that thing for at least 3 years and never have seen a DVD until tonight. This technology challenge really has us stumped a lot of times. I thank God that He helped me get the thing hooked up right. I wouldn't quit and He gave me the determination, I believe.

No bears, but . . .

Tonight's picture is of the send off committee at Runaway Bay. We spent the last week at a resort in Runaway Bay, Texas. It's a little over 3 hours from here and about an hour north of Dallas. I didn't say anything about it on the blog because I didn't want it to be obvious that we weren't home in case someone not so ethical is reading.

When Trish and the kids left the other day we made a trip to the dumpster with the trash. After Don threw the bag in there, he got back into the car and said, "There was a raccoon in there!" I didn't have my camera with me and I figured he'd run if I looked, so I just figured I'd missed it. So, today as we left, we stopped by the dumpster with the trash and Don said, "He lives in there!" The raccoon was in there again, and I had the camera with me. CLICK! It smelled awful, so I didn't hang around for a better shot or for one with no garbage; just overlook the ick! I hate that the kids didn't see him!

We went to the pool every day and had great fun there. Trish took the kids fishing (We were right there on Lake Bridgeport) and Garrett caught the only fish with a fishing get up that he designed with a 2 liter coke bottle and fishing line! He had that idea and I had some fishing line in the car but it was braided. He and I spent an afternoon getting it untangled and then straightening it by soaking it in hot water and then hanging a couple of cans from it. It was great bonding time and so cool when he was the only one that caught a fish. (Trish had gone out and spent $30 on a pole, etc. but they caught nothing with the pole.)

Anyway, after our errands in Wichita Falls and Lawton we got home early enough this afternoon for Don to mow. I'm still getting everything put where it belongs. I like longer trips, but this one was fun. It was so cool to not be far from home, too. Now, it's really sweet to get back into our own bed and have all the amenities of home. We thank God for opportunities to travel and for home sweet home!

Great fun!

Tonight's picture is one I got of Garrett hauling Raynie on his shoulders. They both loved it. He's a great big brother to Elena, so he was keeping up his practice on Raynie. It was so fun to have the kids with us for a few days. We sure thank God for special times with them!

Today we've been collecting our wits and getting ready for day trip tomorrow. We've got some errands to run in Wichita Falls, Texas and Lawton, Oklahoma, so we'll be on the road a bit. It's not too far from home, but it's a day trip, so we have to get braced for it. I have some lab work to be done in Wichita Falls; it sure beats going to Houston! They just want to keep an eye on my liver function. Liver function is something that has always been suspect on my blood work; I mean always as in for the last 25 years. Many times when I give blood my ALT numbers are high, which makes my liver function suspect. The oncologist is concerned about it, so I have to send blood tests to her between visits to Houston. I'm not the least bit concerned about it. I've been short all my life and my ALT has always been high; it's not normal, but it's ME. Bless her heart; she has to keep an eye on it, so I do my best to cooperate.

Tomorrow is Friday; woo hoo! Happy weekend!

Mason's first lizard!

Tonight's picture is Mason with his first lizard. That lizard was as fast as lightning, but Mason caught him! He was so thrilled and I was really proud of him. He kept him for a while in a cup and then decided to free him since his mother refused to let him take him home with him. He was so cool, he hung around and Mason saw him again today! (He caught him and freed him yesterday.) Mason is 9 and will be 10 in September, but someone gave him that shirt when he was 8 and it's still one of his favorites. I love it, too; the color makes his blue eyes look kind of green.

The kids left for home today. We'll sure miss them, but it was so great to have them for a few days. I sure thank God for time with them. What joy they bring!

Technical issues.

I like to have never found this picture to post. I have it in my files, but I have it filed somewhere weird! I finally stumbled upon it. Anyway, it's the puzzle we completed yesterday. It was really a fun one to do. We're doing another one, now, that's not so fun because it doesn't have cool individual things to find; we just do a lot of checking to see if pieces fit. It's still fun to be together doing it! In this picture is Mason, Grace, Trish and Raynie; it was the 4th one I took and the only one with Tricia's eyes opened and Raynie smiling. Mason looked better in the others, but trust me, he was happier than he looks. :)

Trish is out with the kids fishing! I can't believe it, but that's what they're doing. That gave me a chance at the computer and some quiet. Quiet is a good thing, but we love the kid sounds. God is so good and generous with us!

Fun visiting!

Sorry; I just posted with only a title. We've got folks here watching TV; talking to each other, talking to me; just a typical zoo and I posted with only a title. Sorry. I do that a lot when nobody is bothering me, but it's nice to have an excuse tonight! :) It's great to have the kids here. We are missing the ones who aren't here, but it's sure fun to have these.

Okay, this is my third time to edit. I forgot to say who is in the picture. It's Mason, Sadie and Gabe at the reunion. More fun times. Got to go make chex; we're out and that's a crime with this bunch!

We're eating like there is no tomorrow. That's fun, too. I thank God for times like this when we can totally enjoy each other. We finished the puzzle I'd started and we're well on our way with another one. I took pictures of the one we finished. I'll post it tomorrow if I got a good one. I haven't had time to download them, yet. Time is flying right in front of our eyes!

Miss Raynie is on her way.

Tonight's picture is one I took of Raynie in Jackson, where we spent the night on our way to the family reunion back in June. We took a quick swim before going to bed.

Today Trish is on her way here with Raynie, Grace, Mason, Gabe and Garrett. It'll be fun to have them here and we can hardly wait. I've been working on a jigsaw puzzle and I sure need their help. They'll probably finish it right quickly. I have another just in case!

I thank God for their safe trip! They'll be here any minute!

They're coming!

Tonight's picture is Gracie hanging from a huge vine in Gatlinburg. Grace has no fear and misses nothing! I can hardly wait to see her and they're coming tomorrow night!

Trish and some of the kids are coming to join us for a few days. Nate will stay home and work. Ryan is staying with friends and Sadie is going to Tulsa with her cousin for the week. Trish is bringing the others, as well as Garrett, so we'll have fun even though we'll miss the ones who can't come. I made two chocolate chip pies, two quiches, and a batch of chex mix, so we're ready!

We'll be celebrating Raynie's birthday since this is her birthday month. She turned 3 on the 10th of this month. That was the same day I had my biopsy in Houston 3 years ago. We knew I had breast cancer before that; I had already had treatment in Tijuana, but this was when we identified exactly what kind I had and determined what treatments to follow. A lot has happened in these 3 years! Raynie was the only one of Tricia's kids to arrive without Don and I there (She has all her kids at home with a midwife, and we hated to miss this event, but Raynie couldn't wait on us to get home.) She had grown from a toddler to a little girl and she is such a joy. She had her own issues and had to have surgery for a cleft palate and tubes in her ears, but she has done fine with all of it. Together we've healed and we thank God for taking care of us.

Gatlingburg memories.

Tonight's picture is one I took when we were hiking in Gatlinburg. This falls is called Cataract Falls; I have no idea why it has that name, but it was a beautiful place and I could see it, even with my cataracts! Sitting on this log are Grace, Garrett and Sadie. I asked them to sit for the picture; otherwise they were climbing everywhere. :)

Today we drove to Lawton and went to the Golden Corral for lunch; that was a nice treat. Then we went to the Super Center there and got a bunch of groceries, but I forgot to look for a new weed sprayer. I was having so much fun I forgot the main thing. Ugh. I sprayed weeds this week and my sprayer is really dysfunctional, so I've got to replace it. I need to make a list because there was something else I meant to get and I don't even remember what that was. It was a fun day, anyway. We got a great bargain on corn on the cob! I think that's when I forgot the other stuff because the corn was only 10 cents per ear! The last corn I got was not very good, so I was really pleased when I cleaned all this corn tonight and it was so good. It's been a great year for corn. Joan is keeping us in home grown tomatoes and squash, so it's a great veggie year! I sure thank God for Joan's sharing and for the great bargain we got today.

Precious memories . . .

Today's picture is another one I took at the family reunion when Garrett was holding Raynie and Gabe was playing his guitar. In the background you can see Phil (his daughter, Deanna sitting behind him) and Don. These are precious memories and I'm so glad to have the digital camera to help me record them.

Don got the yard mowed today and I'm doing work around the house. When it's so hot and sweaty, we sure have lots of laundry to do. I'm grateful to be able to do it, though, and so thankful to have my own washer and dryer handy. We have so much for which to give thanks. I'm always glad that the basement is dry.

Speaking of basement; that's a cool place to go to do some sewing, so I spend lots of time down there. Soon we'll have Direct TV down there, so that will be nice, too. In the meantime, I enjoy radio and tapes. (Ha! When the Direct TV guy was here, he went into shock when he saw our old video player! He said, "Has that thing got 8 track on it, too?" We're just a house full of relics here.)

Happy late Birthday, Phil!

Tonight's picture is just too cool. It's my sister, Ruthie, and her husband, Phil. If I understand this right it was taken when they took him out to dinner to celebrate his birthday yesterday. I think it was the 35th anniversary of his 35th birthday or something like that. Don't they look great! Ruthie has been through so much since this time last year, with 2 back surgeries; I'm so proud of both of them for surviving it all! I thank God for my sister, Ruthie, and for her bringing this man into my life when I was 12. What a lucky break for me to have a guy like this around for nearly all my life. When he and Don are together, it's a constant hoot; they are so crazy!

Today has been so hot here, but it's DRY! Well, it's humid, but it's not raining, so we give thanks for that. The basement is still dry. That's a blessing!

I feel good and I give thanks for that. I've lost 23 pounds since I went to that hypnotherapy session last fall, and I give that a lot of credit for my feeling so good. I'm sure it makes it easier for my back and knees to not have all that extra weight. I'm sure it makes my lymphedema less bothersome, too. I'm convinced a can't carry fat because cancer likes fat, so I refuse to have it. It hasn't been so hard to lose, so my goal is to lose another 15 - 20 pounds. Then I'll be all wrinkly, but I'll be content with that and give thanks that the fat is gone.

Aunt Grammy couldn't be more proud.

Tonight's picture is one I took of my mom's great grandkids who were at the reunion. She would have been so proud and we were all very proud, too. These are wonderful, wonderful kids! In the back on the left are Phillip, my sister's grandson. Then Gabe, holding his baby sister, Raynie; then Garrett, holding his baby sister, Elena, up where we she could be seen; then Sadie. On the front from the left, is Maddy, holding her baby sister, Willow; then their middle sister, Elizabeth; then Grace, standing on one leg, then Alex, my sister's next grandson; then Mason leaning on the podium. This was a dozen wonderful reasons to go to the reunion! We thank God for all these wonderful kids and their health. When Phillip was born we lived in Tennessee within walking distance of their house. We were blessed to get to babysit him from time to time and he was my treasure to hold in church. Those are precious memories. Our own grandkids were states away from us, so we borrowed Phillip every chance we got. Our grandkids call me Grammy, so Phillip and Alex have always called me Aunt Grammy. I love that. These kids are all sunshine in my life.

It's back to normal kind of weather for southwestern Oklahoma. It was not raining or even threatening to rain today, so I sprayed the weeds. They have been so delighted and empowered by the rain we've had, so I went to war on them today. I was so glad it wasn't too windy to spray. It was 96, though, and the head index was 108, so it was not an easy job. It was easier than pulling them, though! I am so grateful that I could carry the sprayer! Two years ago after chemo, surgery and radiation I built a cart to haul the sprayer around with me. I thought of that today and gave many thanks for my strength!

Once upon a time . . .

there were two precious little dolls. They were at the family reunion and I managed to get this picture. Most of the pictures \I got of them are blurry because they were constantly on the move. They had such a grand time together, and we had so much fun watching them! We thank God for these darlings (Elena is on the left and Raynie on the right. Both are 3; Raynie's birthday was last Saturday and I forgot to mention it on here! Ugh!).

Today we woke up to a puddle of water in the basement and gave thanks that there was no more because we had 2 inches of rain overnight! We've had 13 inches of rain this month and we only get 29 inches of rain all year. That's almost half of a year's worth of rain and we're not even half way through the month. What a deal. It's soggy, but it could have been so much worse! They say it will be dry through the weekend; I hope they're right!

Sweet, sweet girls!

Tonight's picture is our youngest, Gretta, holding John's baby Willow as her youngest, Elena, and Tricia's youngest, Raynie want to help. We all are so in love with Willow! We sure thank God for our family and for these new girls who will keep our family together in future years. Gretta says, "Mom, we should never miss the reunion," and I believe she's right.

Today has been an exciting day. David and Dorothy are home from 2 days out of town to their grandson's wedding. It was a proud and exciting time for them, and it's good to have them home. After church today we had a fundraiser in town for a family whose 4 month old baby has a bunch of health issues. We didn't know there were so many people IN Hobart as turned out for that lunch. We went there with David and Dorothy instead of to the Mexican Restaurant. It was fun to meet on that level with so many folks in town who we know and love. It will be interesting to see how much money was raised.

Two more cousins.

The picture tonight is two more of our cousins at the Fox reunion. Bettye Jo is on the left (I can't believe I took this picture before she got her sunglasses removed! That show's you how excited I was to see her and get her picture.). My name would have been Bettye Jo, but Mom didn't want to use a name her sister had already used. I wouldn't have minded being named after her at all. She chose to name me Mary Josephine; Mary after my daddy's Aunt Mary and Josephine after my mother's mother, Lenora Josephine. Names are interesting to me. Evelyn is the cousin on the right. She's the cousin in the family who keeps us all together via the Internet; her name is Evelyn but we all call her Eb.

We're still in the middle of a spell of cloudy weather. It's looked all day like we'd get rain, but we never did. I'm so grateful! I would so love sunshine, but I'm content with no rain. God gives us what we need. Our grass has grown so fast that I have to go rake it from where Don cut it and it looks like we need to bale hay. Usually wind would blow it, but we don't even have wind these days. It's odd in Oklahoma! I thank God that I can rake! Woo hoo!

Ruthie and Sadie.

The picture tonight is my sister, Ruthie, and our cousin, Sadie. I look back at our time at the reunion and realize it was so very brief! We start gathering around 11, eat lunch and then leave around 2. It's such a short time to visit with so many people. My mother was the youngest of 5 children who lived. Her oldest sister had two daughters and Sadie was one of them. She and her sister, Bettye Jo, have the most beautiful southern accents, ever!

We have had clouds all day and a few little sprinkles, but not even a shower. The other side of town has had rain, so we just know we are blessed. Don was able to cut our grass today and all our neighbors got their yards done, too, so we are all in sync around here. Everything is so beautiful and green, too. It's usually all brown around here by this time of summer, so this is a treat. Our basement is still dry. Whew.

At 5 pm on Fridays our town always has a siren test. We didn't think to tell our new neighbor and preacher that. So, at 5:01 pm the doorbell rang and he was standing there asking, "Did I hear a siren?" Shame on us for not telling him about it, but we take it so for granted! His wife was in Dallas, shopping and he was home with all 3 kids. He said if it were just him, a tornado is as good a way as any to go to heaven, but since he had the kids he thought he probably ought to run to our basement. Bless his heart! We were sure glad to be able to laugh about it and we thank God there was no tornado! We also thank God for a wonderful family next door. (We've had several wonderful families next door; it's cool living next door to the parsonage.)

Basement is still dry.

Tonight's picture is one I took of Trish the day we were exploring the creek in Gatlinburg. She loved the weather in Tennessee. Our weather, lately, has reminded me of Tennessee. It hasn't been so hot as usual; we haven't had much wind; and it's been rainy with no electrical storms. I like the hot, dry and windy, better, but I give thanks that our basement is dry!

This week I've done all my walking on the treadmill with the oxygen therapy. I'm convinced that's good for me and I'm grateful for both the oxygen generator and the treadmill. Without the treadmill we'd have to get up before daylight to walk and the rain would make walking so slippery and I'd be so scared of falling. It's a blessing to be able to do all my exercise in the house.

My friend, Joan, is keeping me in fresh tomatoes and squash from her garden. Yum! I'm going to be so spoiled with these tomatoes. My uncle used to call me Tomato because I loved tomatoes so much. I still do, and think of him whenever I eat them. Rest in peace, Uncle Fay!

Hard rain is predicted.

Tonight's picture is Sadie and Raynie at the creek in Gatlinburg. Raynie loves to escape and Sadie is a great one to catch her! Sadie is such a wonderful big sister.

We are still on standby for water in the basement. So far, so good, but the shop vac and the sump pump are out ready to go to work the minute the water starts to seep, again. The weathermen are predicting hard rain for the next 3 days, so we're afraid to leave because it can make a big mess, fast, when heavy rain starts and we're at the level of saturation that we are. We had intended to go to Bruce's last baseball tournament of the summer, but we figure they may get rained out and we may get rained IN, so we'd better stay home. This is so weird to have this kind of rain in July. However, 3 years ago we had tons of rain in June AND July, thus Raynie's name! She was born on July 10th after it had stormed and rained all night the previous day and night. Trish and Rob were so surprised to have a girl; they fully expected a boy and had a name chosen for a boy. They had some ideas for a girl's name, but when she was born, Robert said, "Let's name her Summer Rayne." Who could resist that, and she remains irresistible! We sure thank God for her and all her brothers and sisters and cousins! They are all sunshine to us.

Gracie is our 'super model.'

The picture tonight is sweet Gracie when we were at the creek in Gatlinburg. She had just fallen and gotten herself all wet, but she never stops. She's tough, tough, tough but girl all the way through. She always amazes me, and I thank God for her sunshine in our lives. She always loves to have her picture made; Trish calls her our super model. :)

Thunder is making me rush because we may have to shut down any moment. Don says the storm is going east of us, but I may have to stop right away. Oklahoma City is having lots of rain and flooding, again. Parts of I-40 are closed. I'm hearing it all on the TV, but it's pretty good out here. We haven't had more rain to make water in the basement, so we give thanks! We get some wild weather out here!

All is good here. Thanks for keeping up with us.

Flooding, but okay.

The picture tonight is one I took of the pool at the condo in Gatlinburg. It was a great pool, and it was one of 3 on the property. This one was right below our building, so it was my favorite. We woke up to a growing pool in our basement this morning, so I was reminded of this.

It had rained most of the weekend, so we were looking forward to some sunshine. We got the sunshine today, but over the night we got over 6 inches of rain in Hobart! That caused flooding all over town and many people were stranded in their homes because many roads round town were impassable. We were fine and the water in the basement wasn't a big deal. We have a shop vac down there ready for times like this. If it rains more it will get nasty, but so far, so good. It's something we can handle. It's been interesting because all the Oklahoma City news teams were here and had our flooding on all the news channels. So, if you saw all the news coverage, don't worry about us; we're fine. We even got to lay out and collect some Vitamin D for the first time in several days. We thank God for the rain; the timing is great for the farmers. We also thank Him for stopping it before it got too bad; it was bad enough, but we can handle this much. If He sends more, He's going to have to send another ark.

The little work we did in the basement this morning just about broke my back, but it got so better with some time on the Power plate and a nap. I thank God for a body that heals!

The puzzle.

Tonight's picture is a better one of the puzzle we finished yesterday. I'm so hooked on this puzzle. Those faces were so fun to find!

Today was a very interesting day. Our new preacher preached his first two sermons and everyone was so pleased to have him. He and his family are fun, so I think we are blessed to have them here. We have another new couple at church who wanted to get to know everyone better, plus give everyone a chance to get to know the new preacher and his family, so they invited the whole church out to their house for a cookout after church tonight. What a gathering. I'm guessing there were 60 people, but there was no way to count everyone. I'll have to sit down and make a list. Anyway, it was a great turnout. We filled our car with 7 people and drove out there. They live in the mountains about 15 miles from town, so it was really cool to go out there and great fellowship.

This is about our 4th day of rain, so the weather is really unusual. It's cool for July 4th, so we're happy with that. The sunshine should be back in a day or two. We give thanks for the break in the heat and for our fantastic country and our freedom. I pray that we can keep it, but it sure looks to me like we are 'losing ground' if we keep up at the rate we are going.

Finished the puzzle!

The picture tonight is one of Joan and I with the FINISHED puzzle. This was the hardest puzzle I've ever done, but it was really so much fun. Joan came a couple of days ago when I was taking an off day and we spent the afternoon working this puzzle. She came, again, today and we both were so discouraged with it. At one point we had the gorilla's hands overlapping the cat's shoulder, but we didn't know how to correct it. All the pieces in this puzzle fit together, but, obviously they picture doesn't work unless you get the pieces in the right places! I never, ever had so many pieces that I KNEW were right and then took them out to put them somewhere else. It was bizarre! Tom (Rose) we kept wishing you were here to whittle some pieces to fit better; were your ears burning? Notice the cribbage boards above Joan's head; Tom made those for my mom when we were in high school. This isn't the best shot of the puzzle, but if you click on the picture, you can see it better. There are over 1,000 pieces, and this is the puzzle we started in Gatlinburg. Mason is the real hero; he found one of the pieces between our unit at the condo and the car the next morning after I'd packed it the night before we left to come home. Thank you, Mason! I figured if he found a piece, there was no telling how many pieces fell out that nobody found.

At one point Joan and I were both ready to throw the puzzle into the trash. We figured there was no way this was going to work. My mother (who died in 1986, but only her body is gone; she is here with me all the time as long as I can remember her and do all the things she taught me) wouldn't let me throw away ANYTHING, let alone something that had become part of the family!

They say working jigsaw puzzles is good for the mind. MD Anderson has them all over the place for all us chemo brains to work. I hope this was good for me; I loved doing it. I really thank God that we got it finished instead of giving up on it. It feels good to complete a task.

Tomorrow the Mexican Restaurant is closed, so David and Dorothy are coming here for lunch after church. I'm making a meatloaf and having that yummy salad of Ruthie's, some fresh baked rolls, and some fresh squash and tomatoes from Joan's garden. Yum! Terri asked me for the recipe for Ruthie's pea salad, so I emailed it to her. I think I can post it in the comments, too, in case anyone else wants it.

I believe in yard sales.

Tonight's picture is Gracie and Raynie, holding Willow at the reunion. We had so much fun loving this sweet baby doll! We thank God for Willow and all of our kids!

Today we went got a vacuum cleaner at a yard sale that sells for $2895! We got it for $20. It was way dirty from sitting and collecting dust, so it took me longer to clean it than it took Don to mow our yard! I got it all cleaned and then used it to be sure it works. It works like a charm! We knew it was a good buy because we have a vacuum cleaner just like it only we bought ours about 25 years ago. It was pricey, then, but I couldn't believe it when I looked it up on the Internet today and saw the price! Ours works fine, but I thought we should get this one in case we ever need parts. This one is 14 years old, so it's not brand new, but it has hardly been used. Anyway, I'm really pleased to have it, even if it did cause me to vacuum, a job Don usually does for me.

We went to play cards with Jo Ann and Frank tonight. We started the day out eating a late breakfast with Dorothy and David this morning at the Kozy Diner. Then I gave them both hair cuts early this afternoon and we ate an early supper at the Mexican restaurant with them. We all skipped lunch. It was a fun day with friends and I didn't do any cooking. I did make a great salad (thanks, Ruthie!) to have for the next few days. Ruthie brought this salad to the reunion and I'm so hooked on it! I made it tonight and it will be ready to eat tomorrow. Woohoo!

DIRECT TV is good.

Tonight's picture is Mason, holding baby Willow. All of Tricia's kids love babies; how could anyone not want to hold Willow? She is such a cuddly baby.

Today has been a much better day. I took an off day. I made breakfast, lunch and supper, but I didn't do anything else that was constructive. Joan came over to bring me some tomatoes (!!!) from her garden and we sat down and worked on the puzzle we started in Gatlinburg. We're close to finished! She has had some rough nights in her neighborhood, so she needed the relaxation and escape of the puzzle, like I did. My back is so grateful that I didn't do anything today! I thank God for the rest and my back is so happy about it, too!

I don't know when DIRECT TV will be back to put the connection in the basement; we haven't had it for years, so we're in no rush. We've got it where we really need it. I was so outdone with them yesterday, but I really do like it better than the DISH that we had. It works so much better in our bedroom, which is the TV I used the most. I can even turn it on and change the channels; I always had to get Don to do that for me with DISH. Ugh; I thought it was me, but I think it was DISH!