10 things about my Maternal Grandma

1.       Her name was Urath Cromwell Cockey Gibson.

2.       Today, July 21, 2011 would have been her 100^th birthday. 

3.       She was born in 1911 and when she was of school age her grandmother insisted that she come live in the city because surely the country schools were not going to teach her much.  Her grandmother was a woman who was born in the 1850’s and so she imparted her Victorian ideals on her young charge.  As a result my grandmother was very Victorian in her manner and attitudes, and yet, she was also very modern.  She didn’t marry til she was 28 years old and she didn’t start having children until she was in her 30’s.  Her last child wasn’t born til after she turned 40.  But here’s the most amazing thing about all that to me…she was living in West Virginia, it was the 30’s and 40’s and she had a FEMALE OB/GYN!  How progressive is that? 

4.       Grandma was always reading and the best advice she ever gave to me was to always carry a book with me and I’d never be bored.  I wonder how she’d feel about Kindles?

5.       Grandma got her college degree when she was 78 years old.  She took a computer course cause she was so curious about what everyone on tv was talking about.  She never quite understood the “information superhighway” but she wanted to know all about it.  She also took a typing class and when she couldn’t type fast enough for the timed tests she would hold up her 77 year old hands and tell the teacher she was going as fast as she could and the teacher would let her off!  (As I had just struggled through typing class in high school I was quite incensed by her ability to get away with this!  Ironically now I make my living typing.)

6.       At her funeral the eulogist said that grandma had “boundless curiosity” and I realized in that moment that I had inherited that trait from her.  She was curious about everything and everyone she met.  She pat the space beside her and say “Come sit here and tell me what exactly it is you do?  Where do you work?  What did you study to get there? Where do you live?  Where are you from?  Where are your parents now? How do you parents like this life you’ve chosen?  What do they do? 

7.       She liked company but wasn’t shy about shooing you out of her house when she’d had enough for one day.  I remember going to visit my grandparents on Sundays when I was a child.  When 60 Minutes came on at 7pm silence was called and all the grandchildren had to settle down.  I remember lying on the oriental rug in front of the tv watching the show.  I didn’t understand most of the stories, but I loved that ticking stopwatch and to this day when I watch it I feel like my grandfather is over my left shoulder.  As soon as the show was over Grandma would order everyone out, it was time to get home so we wouldn’t be driving late at night.

8.       Grandma loved a view.  Her house sat on a hill and her favorite chair was by a window where she could watch the birds and the cows and the traffic on a nearby road.  She passed that down to my mother and to me as well. 

9.       She was fascinated by the weather!  She should have been on the news talking about the weather.  She had a rain gauge always and in later years when the electronic weather stations were small and affordable my uncle bought her one, then she would tell you all about the windspeed and rainfall and anything else you might want to know about the weather that week at her house.

10.   Grandma died several years ago, but she lived a very full life.  She was very independent and died in the home that she and Grandaddy had built back in the 30’s.  She lived alone from the time my grandfather died in 1980 until her illness at the end of her life when she had 24 hour nursing care.  I never heard her express regret about any part of her life.  She always seemed content to me.  I wish she was still alive so I could ask her about a million questions that I never thought of while she was living.

Miles' Birthday Trip - Part TWO, NYC

In all my travels to New York City, I have never once gone to a museum.  I always wanted to go to but there was always so much else to do AND being from the DC area, I'm so used to free museums that it has taken me awhile to warm up to the idea of having to pay for the privilege.  This was the trip I was determined to change this trend, and we chose the Metropolitan Museum of Art.  By the time we got ourselves up and moving and fed and into Manhattan it was already noon so we only had 90 minutes as we were meeting Katy at the St. James theatre at 1:30pm.  We were very specific in our desire to see the Picasso exhibit though, so 90 minutes was just enough time.  Needless to say there are rooms and rooms of other stuff there that we would both like to see, but at least we've made a start on NY museums.  The Picasso exhibit was lovely.  He had a huge body of work and worked for many many years, so there was a very broad variety of works to see.  I have to say that I liked his ink portraits of his "bar buddies" that he did when he was 18 better than any of his later works.  They were very detailed and small, about the size of a coaster, which means they would probably fit in my budget better as well.

After Picasso we found our way back to the front of the museum and hailed a taxi to take us to the St. James to meet Katy.  We were about to see Miles and Joseph's first ever Broadway Play!  We chose American Idiot which is based on the Greenday album of the same name.  It was a hard charging show that never slowed down.  We all really enjoyed it and we bought the soundtrack on our way out the door.  It starred John Gallagher Jr. who also starred in Spring Awakening, my all time favorite Broadway show.

It was about 3:45pm at this point and by now our donuts from the morning had worn off and we were all starving.  We had dinner plans for later but decided to grab a snack at Dallas BBQ.  My friend Nicole met us there and we had some yummy vittals.  Miles ordered the hot wings and we were all surprised when full wings came out, not just wing pieces.  It was a huge platter of food, but being a growing teenager he hoovered right through them and is still talking about how good they were.  We all enjoyed our food and catching up with Nicole and Katy.  Nicole had even brought Katy a floaty pen which is Katy's favorite thing!

Our next adventure was unexpected and delightful!  My dad's first cousin Carolyn moved from Miami to NYC many years ago and for the most part we had lost touch with her.  Recently she found me on Facebook and contacted me asking if I was interested in family tree information that she had collected over the years.  Of course I was interested!  I know lots about my mother's family, but very little about my father's so this was very welcome news.  I had met Carolyn at least one other time in my life, when I was five years old she was visiting my grandparents and she taught me to tie my shoes.  I thought she was SO cool.  I let Carolyn know that we were coming to New York and she asked if we would be interested in touring her husband Mitch's music studio.  Mitch is a music producer.  Of course we said YES!  So after our snack we called Carolyn and headed to the studio on 9th Avenue.  Mitch and Carolyn were absolutely adorable and we loved spending time with them.  They greeted us at the elevator outside the studio and welcomed us with open arms.  The walls of the studio were covered with photographs of the celebrities who had recorded there.  His studio has been there for many years.  The building is an Art Deco building from the '20's and the windows even open, which is so unusual in offices these days.  We sat in Mitch's office and enjoyed a view of the Hudson River.

Mitch and Carolyn had made reservations for all of us at their favorite restaurant just up the street, Ralph's.  We still had Nicole with us and though she attempted to back out as she felt it was a family thing, we convinced her to stay with us.  We had a lovely dinner at Ralph's, Joseph declared the fetticine alfredo as the best he'd ever had.  We shared a bottle of wine with our meal and then we all ordered desserts which got shared around the table.  Mitch snuck back to the bar and paid the check when we weren't paying attention, which was super sweet of him.  You would never have guessed that we had all just met, it really felt like we had known each other for years, we really were family.  When we finished eating we decided to walk a little and burn off some of those calories.  Carolyn told us that there was a free concert up the street at Lincoln Center so we headed up there.  Sure enough there was Caribbean music echoing from the buildings and a folks of every age dancing in the aisles!  We even saw a guy who was a dead ringer for Albert Einstein kicking up his heels!  I think the name of the band was Mazza Pucci, but don't hold me to that.

After the concert we asked Mitch and Carolyn if we could see their Manhattan apartment as I had always wanted to see one.  They have such a reputation for being shoe boxes and I wanted to see if the rumors were true.  I have to say that although their apartment was small, it was delightful.  I really loved it, it was plenty of room for two people and the location couldn't be beat!  We can't wait to hang out with Mitch and Carolyn again, we had such a good time!

We left the apartment and walked Katy back to her train and then Nicole and the rest of us walked over to the PATH station to head back to Jersey City.  As usual it was well after midnight before we got back to the rig.  Exhausted we fell into bed and didn't stir until 11am.  We called Nicole as she was interested in seeing this RV park in her town that she had never heard of before.  She walked down to where we were and hung out with us for a while.  She even drove the rig from our parking space to the dump station!  Then she directed us to a local diner that she had recently discovered and I had what may have been the best grilled ham and cheese ever!  We walked down to the waterfront to walk off our breakfast and then we said goodbye to Nicole and set off on the next part of our journey!

Miles' Birthday Trip - Part ONE, NJ

School is finally done for the semester and it is almost Miles' birthday so we gassed up the Rallye Girl and headed out of town again.  We had been planning on this trip ever since we bought the rig, as I had asked Miles first thing where he'd like to go for his birthday.  He chose Boston.  I can honestly say I was surprised by the answer although I shouldn't have been.  To be more specific he wanted to go to a clothing store in Boston.  The name of the store is Johnny Cupcakes and the reason this shouldn't have surprised me is because years ago when I took him to NYC for his first visit he wanted to visit a clothing store there as well (Bape).  My child is a clothes horse, what can I say?

By the time we got out of Strasburg it was almost time for Joseph's online class so we got off 66 at Front Royal and parked at the Cracker Barrel.  CB is one of those places that welcomes RV's and you can actually park there overnight if you like.  We were just there for dinner and class though, no overnights yet.  Miles and I amused ourselves on our computers while Joseph took his class.  We had the generator running and the AC on so we were quite comfortable.  

Now you may be wondering how we were all three online at the same time in a parking lot.  Well I am very happy to announce that we are the proud owners of our own little MiFi hotspot!!!  We had gotten so frustrated with searching for free WiFi and with trying to connect at campgrounds that advertised free Wifi but then had such a weak signal that we couldn't even check our email.  We are very pleased with our purchase and so far it is working like a charm!  

When class and dinner were done we hit the road again.  I assured Joseph that he didn't have to drive through the night.  We were headed to Asbury Park, NJ first, but we didn't have a reservation at a campground that night so there was no rush or exact destination.  Once we got north of Baltimore he started showing fatigue and was ready to find a place to plug in for the night.  

Now another aside about our other favorite gadget on the rig.  Our GPS.  We originally bought a GPS on our trip to Myrtle Beach before we even bought the rig, because we had gotten lost on that trip and didn't want to repeat our mistake.  We called that first unit Jill because that was the name of the voice we chose.  Although the unit was supposed to have all sorts of cool features, like traffic notices and exit ramp notifications we never really saw those features work.  I thought I just hadn't found the right commands and didn't really worry about it much.  Several times we would change roads without Jill's permission and she would do everything in her power to MAKE us go back and do what she said, but for the most part we were satisfied with her work.  One day though she simply stopped working altogether.  When we tried to turn her on she just blinked at us.  We weren't sure what was wrong, but the next time we went by a Best Buy we stopped in to see what could be done and the girl immediately took it back and gave us a new one.  Needless to say we were thrilled, it was less than 2 months old and I now know that it never worked correctly because as soon as we plugged the new unit in things were MUCH better.  We changed the accent on our new unit to Australian female, her name is Karen and we like her much better.  She doesn't seem as bitchy when we ignore her instructions for one thing.  ;)  For another thing, she tells us our exit before we get there.  I tell you all this in order to tell you that one of our favorite features of the GPS is the ability to find us a campground.  If you'll recall, on the way home from SML she found us the Shenandoah Valley KOA near Staunton, which was a fabulous place!  This time we weren't so lucky, but it wasn't Karen's fault.  She found us what looked to be a lovely campground near Elkton, MD but when we got there (after midnight) it was dark and locked and there was a gate with a code lock, so we couldn't even find a spot on our own and pay in the morning.  Luckily we had passed a Walmart so we back tracked a few miles and hunkered in there for the night.

In the morning we breakfasted at Waffle House and then headed on to our first destination of this trip, Asbury Park, NJ.  I had just seen a friend on Facebook mention the Silverball Pinball Museum and Arcade and knew immediately that I wanted to find it.  Of course Asbury Park was familiar to me as it is to any Bruce Springsteen fan and as it turns out the Stone Pony is diagonally across the street from the Silverball.  The deal at the Silverball is that it is a museum AND an arcade.  They have rows and rows of old pinball machines and arcade games, including skeeball in working order.  You pay $10 to get in and you can play all the games for free for an hour (you can also pay $15 for the whole day and go in and out all day long, but since we weren't staying we didn't need that option).  We plunked down our $30 for the three of us and got our armbands and headed inside.  I have never been good at pinball and today was no different, I suck at it.  

However, they also had Galaga which was my FAVORITE arcade game back in the day!  I rock Galaga, I even beat Joseph's high score, although I came nowhere close to the high score for the machine which they post on a little placard on every machine there!  When our hour was done (which felt like three minutes later) we went out onto the boardwalk and were planning to walk down to the water's edge and get our feet wet, but the "beach cops" had different plans for us.  Turns out that you have to pay to walk out on the beach there!  I didn't need wet toes that badly, so we turned around and headed to the rig, for some reason though the cops gave us the stinkeye until we were out of siight.  I'm not sure why they were so anxious about our presense, maybe they thought we were gonna turn around and bum rush our way onto the sand?

Our next destination was Hillside, NJ.  In order to tell you why I would be headed to Hillside, I have an embarrassing confession to make.   My guilty pleasure in life is the Real Housewives franchise on Bravo TV.  I have never watched the Atlanta version and I have yet to see the DC version but I love, love, love the OC, NY and NJ versions.  One of the Real Housewives of NJ, Teresa, just opened a pizzarria with her husband Joe.  On her blog one day (yes, I read the blogs too) she mentioned the address of the pizza place and said "If you are ever in the area stop by, Joe will probably be there and I might be there."  Well seeing as Hillside is very close to Jersey City where we were staying, how could I resist.  We found the restaurant with no trouble whatsoever, and even found a nice parking spot for the rig, not too far down the street.  When we entered we were greeted by a sweet man who was very enthusiastic about his menu and making sure we enjoyed whatever we ordered.  We could see Teresa's husband Joe sitting a table talking to some people, so he really does run his business in person.  We placed our order and sat down to wait.  The restaurant was beautifully decorated and a poster of Teresa and a copy of her book were prominently displayed.  When our food came they were HUGE helpings and totally delish!  Joseph got a steak and cheese wrap, Miles got paninini and I got veal parmesan.  The sauce on mine was amazing.  When we were done the cashier asked if we had come because of the tv show and we told him yes and described our rig parked down the street.  He asked if we had seen Joe which of course we had.  He asked if I wanted to meet Joe, which I did also, but I didn't want to bust in on his conversation, he was actually on the phone at this moment, so I really didn't want to disturb him, but the employee assured me that it was fine and called Joe over.  Joe was very sweet asked us questions about our rig and such.

If you’re in Hillside, New Jersey, stop by Giuseppe’s Homestyle Pizzeria at 1576 Maple Avenue!

NYC by RV

When we finally got home from our Lake trip we unpacked and got our laundry started. We were still pouting because we didn't want the adventures to stop. We drove up to Winchester in our car which felt very weird after being in the rig for a week. We went to the Camping World store there though, so we were still traveling in our souls! After shopping we stopped for lunch and while we were eating my sister called. My sister lives in Brooklyn and was feeling lonely because her roommate was out of town. She didn't have to ask us twice to come visit! We could hardly get home fast enough to pack up and take off for New York City.

Now, I know you are wondering where on Earth we thought we were gonna CAMP in New York City. Well for once Dear Reader, I am one step ahead of you. It so happens that years ago when I was married we travelled to NYC on a regular basis, but we couldn't afford to stay in the expensive hotels in the area. We usually stayed with friends, but I researched camping options (we were tent campers) so that if our friends' couches and floors were unavailable, we'd still be able to go visit the big apple. While Joseph was throwing our snacks and computers and clean laundry into baskets to carry out to the rig I looked up the Liberty Harbor Campground which I had found way back in the day. It still existed, but by the time I called it was after 5pm so I got a voicemail when I tried to make a reservation.

Liberty Harbor is in Jersey City where two friends of mine live or have lived. It has been my gateway to Manhattan for years. So directions were not an issue, from the time we left the house until we got off the turnpike I knew exactly where we were, and finding the campground turned out to be a snap. We pulled into the gatehouse and although we didn't have a reservation the night guard assured us there was room and took our information. We drove through the gate and were simply amazed at what we found. It was nothing more than an asphalt parking lot with 50 or more motor homes, fifth wheels and travel trailers. They were all parked close together just like a regular parking lot, but down the center lines of the rows were electric and water hookups. I think it is a truly amazing and beautiful idea. Whoever owns that parking lot is making themselves a mint. It was a random weeknight and the place was packed. It turned out that the campground was actually completely booked, even though we had found an empty space, and in the morning they informed us that although we couldn't have a regular space with hookups, we could still stay in lot, off to the side and pay for the privilege. We were happy to pay for a safe parking space though, we have a terrific generator for power and they had a nice bathhouse . They are located only 6 blocks from the PATH train and they have a view of the Manhattan skyline and the Statue of Liberty.

So here we are in NYC, we headed over to Manhattan around noon and our first priority was some good new york pizza! We got off the PATH train at the WTC and started walking north. Within a couple of blocks we found our heart's desire and had a slice. We texted Katy and let her know we were headed in her direction and got subway instructions. Now, as many times as I have been in NYC, I have never taken the subway unless I was with a local. It just seemed entirely to confusing and I really didn't want to be lost underground. Katy has been living there for a while now and was confident of her subway directions, so we trusted her and headed underground. We found her work with no trouble at all. She works for an adorable portrait studio on the upper west side, Portrait Bug, you can even see her pretty face on their website! She introduced us to her co-workers and showed us some portraits she had shot that morning and then just before her quitting time, her boss came in and we got to meet her and her husband as well. After we left, we made our way to several landmarks that I have always wanted to see including the flagship Tiffany's store, Trump Tower and St. Patrick's Cathedral. We also found a Tad's Steakhouse which is one of my favorite places to eat in NY. It is just a hole-in-the-wall chain, but the food is always good and the prices are great, especially for Manhattan.

The next day we left the rig earlier and made our way all the way over to Katy's apartment in Brooklyn. Katy needed food and had other errands to run, so we ran around Brooklyn with her including a trip to Costco. Katy didn't have a Costco card but I do so she was able to stock up on a ton of frozen foods that were reasonably priced. Her local grocery stores don't have the variety of frozen choices that she is used to and she hates buying fresh food and then having it go bad before she has time to eat it. She was a very happy girl, and I was actually able to add her to my account while we were there, so she can go back. After all our errand running we met up with my friend Nicole for dinner at the Cowgirl Hall of Fame restaurant at 519 Hudson and 10th Street. This restaurant had been on my list of places to try for quite awhile. I actually first saw it on Sex and the City. The food was really good and we were glad to have searched it out. It was really good to see Nicole and have her finally meet Katy. On our way out we walked through a movie or television taping. Not sure what show it was but they were filming street scenes outside another restaurant as well as filming a scene inside a restaurant, so we just moseyed our way right on down the street.

We headed back to Katy's house in Brooklyn because our brother (CAB) was on his way up from Florida and Joseph and I wanted to surprise him. He had no idea that we were already up there and I had been very quiet about it on facebook all week to keep him in the dark. We went to all this trouble because CAB loves to surprise people in this way, and it was nice to be able to do it to him for once. Once CAB arrived and was suitably surprised we played a trivia game which is pretty much a mandatory activity when a group of us in are in the same room. By the time we left it was close to midnight and by the time we got back to the Rallye Girl it was after 2am and we were EXHAUSTED.

CAB wanted to see our rig and Katy had to work the next morning so he left Brooklyn with her and came to find us in Jersey City. We hung out for a while and then we drove him back to the PATH station and we headed home. We love NY and were thrilled at how well the Liberty Harbor Marina RV Park served our needs. We know we will be back there soon!

Library Girl

In all my excitement about owning an RV and traveling all around the country with My Marine, I only had one big concern. Books! It sounds crazy, I know! The problem is that I have always been a library girl. I got my first library card from the Handley Library in Winchester when I was five years old. My parents took my brother and me to the library every 3 weeks like clockwork, we all got a large pile of books and plowed through them with glee. As a result of this early training in frugality, I very rarely buy books. There are three reasons for this, one of the reasons is that once I have read a book I'm done, I'm not the type to read and reread the same book over and over again. There are way to many books in the world for me to limit myself to stories I already know. Secondly is the expense, why would I pay for a book when the local library will let me borrow it for free?? I feel so lucky to live in a country that is blanketed with free libraries! Thirdly is the clutter. While I love books and love perusing shelves of books, I really don't want to have a houseful of them. I have always preferred small houses and right now I'm sharing living quarters with Mama and My Marine so we have enough furniture and "stuff"; that it is a blessing that I haven't bought every book I ever loved and toted them around with me.

But how can I be a library girl when I will have no fixed address and won't be in the same place for very long? This was a real concern for me and I brought it up to Joseph and everyone else that I discussed our travel plans with. Finally I asked my dad about it. He and his wife have owned a motorhome for several years now and he is also a reader and a library user, so I knew he'd have already faced the same issue. He had an immediate answer. Yard sales! Well of course! Used books. Once I started thinking about it, I realized that yard sales would be just one option, most libraries have used book shelves where they sell off duplicate copies of books, and there were also thrift stores, not to mention actual used book stores.

Since this revelation I have bought books at the Waynesboro Library, the Smith Mountain Lake Library and the Goodwill Store in Bedford. I have also been given piles of books by my dad and my friend Gramarg. I now have a lovely shelf full of books in Rallye Girl, at least 30 books and I have invested less than $20! The best part is that when I am done with them, I can trade them out for others or leave them in campgrounds or coffee shops for others to enjoy. This makes me supremely happy!

Lime Chicken Picante does not contain Marinara Sauce

Tonight I am making Lime Chicken Picante for Mama and Joseph and Wren. I am receiving lots of help with all this cooking because I am the only one of the four of us who is currently working...not that the rest of them aren't busy, but they don't have to be at work for 8 hours a day, nor do they commute another 3 hours a day...but I digress.

I originally got this recipe from Rachael Ray's 365 No Repeats Cookbook, but I have modified it and made it even easier. We already had chicken and lime juice in the house so Mama is marinating the chicken breasts in the lime juice all day. I was checking the cupboards for the other ingredients and I said:

"Do we have any salsa?"

Mama: I have this (opens the fridge and holds up a jar of marinara sauce).
Me: No Mama, that's marinara sauce, I need salsa.
Mama: What's the difference?
Me: Well, one is marinara and the other is salsa.
Mama: But they are both tomato sauces...
Me: Mama, one is Italian and the other is Spanish.
Mama: They are both red, what makes them different?

Do I really need to explain this to her? She is a grown woman, she loves to eat, she reads constantly, does she really not know the difference between salsa and marinara?

Me: Marinara sauce is made with pureed tomatoes and Italian spices, salsa is made with chopped tomatoes and peppers and onions and Spanish flavors.
Mama: Well...
Me: Mama, I'll send Joseph to the store to get salsa, don't worry about it.
Mama: Okay, if you think there's a difference. You're in charge.

So, Mama is marinating, Joseph is grocery shopping, Wren is showing up and I am cooking. I will probably be the last one there, but they will wait, because I am in charge!

The recipe if you are interested is:
marinate chicken breasts in lime juice for the day or at least 30 minutes in a glass pan
pour a jar of salsa over them and bake in the oven for at least 30 minutes or until done
mix a package of Lipton Rice and Sauce Spanish Rice
open a can of refried beans and heat in the microwave
when the chicken is done, scoop a portion of chicken into the middle of each plate, cover with some of the salsa from the pan, put a dollop of sour cream or plain yogurt on top, put refried beans down one side of the plate and spanish rice down the other. Ta Da! Super Easy! Super Yummy! Please don't use marinara sauce...

Learning to Drive

I remember how much I loved learning to drive. It is so scary at first and then when you start getting the hang of it, it is just so flipping cool! When I finally got my license at 17 and then my first car at 18 I was a happy, happy girl. My first car was a 69 vw beetle that had been in my family since its birth and I had wanted it for my very own since the age of 4. My sister was a toddler when I was 18, so I was thrilled to have an escape from the house. A boyfriend installed a cool stereo and fashioned me a hand made speaker box for the backseat...remember those bugs just had a hole behind the backseat, nowhere to install speakers. I would cruise the back roads of Shenandoah County blasting The Police and Genesis and Prince and all my mix tapes.



I am reminded of those days as I attempt to teach my darling boy how to drive. He did great in my sister's car which has an automatic transmission, but our first attempt in my car with a manual transmission did not go so smoothly! The worst part is that the accident was ENTIRELY my fault! I feel terrible, and now my sister has hidden her car from us so that we don't do any damage to it...so poor Myles is gonna have to learn on a stick first. But I've gotten ahead of myself as usual.



THE STORY

Once upon a time there was a tall, handsome boy who got his learner's permit and was excited to get behind the wheel of a car. His mother was equally excited to teach him as she remembered so fondly her own driving lessons. Mother and child went to the high school parking lot in the dark of night and practised turning corners and stopping at invisible stop signs and using blinkers and mirrors. Once the Mother screamed out "Watch out for that kid on a bike!" To test the boy's reflexes and braking abilities. He passed that test with flying colors but I think he had the shakes for about 10 minutes, because he thought there really was a kid.



That night we drove from Strasburg to Toms Brook and back and he did a great job. The next time I had him overnight I drove partway home and then had him take over. He drove from where Route 7 crosses the Shenandoah River all the way home. This involved getting onto and off of 81, which is a big deal as it is a busy highway!! The next morning he drove from the house to Hamilton where traffic was really picking up. He was doing fine and could have driven all the way to his dad's house, but I got a phone call and couldn't concentrate on what he was doing and talk on the phone at the same time.



The next time I picked him up I was driving my car. He groused that he was hoping to drive and I explained that his aunt was less than pleased that we were using her car for his lessons and that he was welcome to learn to drive stick. He refused. 20 minutes later he relented and asked for a lesson. I pulled over into a quiet parking lot to give him the basics and get him started. He got behind the wheel and drove to the other end of the parking lot. We switched seats so that I could turn the car around and then he got behind the wheel again and drove to the other end. We switched, I turned, we switched...I FAILED TO STRAIGHTEN OUT THE WHEEL! When he let off the clutch and hit the gas the car made a sharp left, went over the curb, over a small tree, down a 25 foot embankment and into a ditch, mere inches from 65 mile an hour traffic!!!!

It was one of those slow motion things, I was stomping the brake on my side of the car which obviously was doing no good, and I was yelling "brake! brake!" His foot was on the clutch as hard as he could push and was yelling "I am! I am!" Luckily he found the brake at the very last moment, so we eased into the ditch and did hardly any damage to the car at all. We were fine, the car was fine, all was fine. I had to call a tow truck to get pulled out and he had to pull us back up the embankment. When we told him what happened he laughed and said "Don't feel bad son, when I drove a stick for the first time I went right into a brick wall and my Mama was NOT happy!" I think that made Myles feel a LOT better.

10 Things to look forward to in 2010

• 34 days until the Superbowl!
• 39 days until Olympics start in Vancouver!
• 55 days until the beginning of the NASCAR season at the Daytona 500!
• 71 days until Miles can get his learner's permit!
• 75 days until the first day of SPRING!
• 90 days until Opening Day for Baseball!
• 96 days until my 45th birthday!
• 168 days until the first day of SUMMER!
• 224 days until Miles' 16th birthday!
• 301 days until Katy's birthday!

Things Change...

If you know me, then you know that things have changed in my life...again.

I am single once more and I am moving once more. Sheldon and I didn't work as a couple. We tried, we really did, but the more time went by, the more clear it was to me that I was losing all the best parts of myself in an effort to make him happy. I packed up my neccessities and my dog and left him last Sunday as soon as the snow stopped and the driveway was clear.

I have moved in with my mama, at least temporarily. She wants me to stay here and she isn't charging me rent, so it is definitely a good place to rest and recoup and make some decisions about my future. As soon as the side streets are cleared of snow I will hire a truck and get all my furniture and the rest of my "stuff" out of Sheldon's house. I'll have to put it in storage as Mama's house is stuffed to the gills already.

Right now, I feel like I can breath again, and that is a VERY GOOD feeling!

Baby Sis

So my Baby Sister moved to NYC!!! She also started a blog, so if you would like to read about her adventures you can go HERE!

I am so proud of her because she is not the type to run off on wild adventures.

I am also jealous because I absolutely adore New York and would love to be living there myself. I even dreamed last night that I had moved up there with another friend to help her and her roommate pay rent until they both had jobs.

I can't wait to load Mama in the car and take her up there to visit!!!

Brick on the Forehead for the Men in Your Life

Several jobs ago I worked with the sweetest man. I say that because he had a weekly ritual which I thought was the sweetest thing I had ever heard. Every Sunday evening he would drive each car in his driveway to a nearby gas station and fill up all the tanks. He was filling his own tank of course, but the sweet part was that he filled the tanks of his wife and daughter as well. I don’t remember how he came to tell me this story, but I asked him why he did it and he said it was just his way of letting his wife and daughter know that he loved them and wanted them to feel safe and protected and cherished. I honestly thought that this was the sweetest gesture I had ever heard. How simple. Not flowers, not a card, not money or time wasted, just taking care of an errand that all of us have to cope with. As women we do this kind of thing for our families all the time. We fold the laundry the way our loved ones prefer, or we set our daughter’s place at the table with her favorite pink plate, or we buy the snacks or sodas that our kids prefer at the grocery store. Nothing major, they don’t even realize it most of the time. It was so nice to hear of a man going out of his way for the women in his life in such a practical way. Maybe I’m too practical for my own good. I couldn’t care less about cards. I mean don’t get me wrong, I appreciate the thought but I would prefer a tank full of gas and a clean windshield that shows you love me over a $5 piece of cardboard from Hallmark that says you love me any day of the week!

If you don’t share a home or a bank account for the woman you love perhaps you could drop off her mail at the post office or pick up her dry cleaning. Before Sheldon and I moved in together he would always buy me a 12-pack of soda when he bought one for his house. This was thoughtful because soda was not something I kept in the house, but he liked to have one and my son loved having it available as well.

When I was little my mama always drank hot tea. Always. We also always had iced tea with dinner. Tea was definitely the drink in my house. But every now and then my dad would make mama a gin and tonic. I never knew why he did it but she was always grateful and she always drank it with relish (the emotion, not the condiment). I was grown before I realized that those gin and tonics came once a month. Duh.

My point? Well, be nice. Be appreciative. Show your love in real concrete ways and not just on holidays. There are many nice things you can do and you shouldn’t need me to list them for you. Look around. Pay attention. See what frustrates her or wears her out and then do what you can to ease that burden. Women as a whole knock ourselves out to take care of those we love, and often we don’t stop to ask for help.

Be sweet to her!! The rewards will be fabulous!!

I heart cloth diapers...

This is a small soapbox moment, not a dig at anyone who uses or used disposable diapers. It was only by using cloth diapers and breast feeding that I was able to stay home with my son for two and half years. For that whole first year he was basically free. He never tasted formula and never even had a bottle in his mouth. I taught him how to drink out of a straw when he was two months old and that was how he got water and juice and other liquids. I know that probably sounds extreme, but I knew from the beginning what a hard-headed child I had, and my fear was that he would like the "easiness" of a bottle nipple and never go back. I stand by that decision.

When Miles was born there was no doubt I was gonna use cloth diapers. In my family it was the norm so I never gave it a second thought, I even inherited diapers from one of my aunts so I didn't have to buy anything at the beginning and only had to buy a dozen now and then when the old ones fell apart. Old ones make great dust rags by the way. My friends all thought I was crazy for using cloth but one trip down the disposable aisle at the grocery store was enough to convince me that I was only crazy like a fox. Cloth diapers save money, save the planet, are better for the baby and make potty training easier too!

He will always be my baby.

My sweet baby will be 15 on the 16th of this month. He is over six feet tall and handsome and sweet as all get out. He broke his arm last Sunday skateboarding. I got to bathe him the other day for the first time since he was six. He was mortified, but it was my honor to get him into the tub, get him out of the tub, dry him off, clean his ears and get him dressed. Sometimes, just for a second, I miss those days of babyhood and boyhood. I was never a very patient mama. In fact, I didn't really want to be a mama. I'm glad his dad convinced me to try though. He is definitely the finest thing I have ever done.

May Resolutions

May Resolutions: hey, not bad, I did 9 out of 10 this month!!!!

1. Go to a Museum - Matt and I went to see the Jean Shin - Common Threads exhibit at the Smithsonian American Art Museum here in DC. It was a really cool exhibit using recycled materials. There were all sorts of textures and colors and as we entered each room I would say, "Oh, this is my favorite." Each time we read the description on the wall we were blown away by the backstory. It was a VERY very interesting, thought provoking exhibit. If you live nearby GO!


2. Spend time with an Old Friend - I had the most amazing conversation on facebook with a bunch of folks that I went to high school with. I had had a dream about a friend of ours who died at age 42 of heart attack and we all remembered him with stories. It was lovely.


3. Try a New Recipe - http://sarahneverstops.blogspot.com/2009/05/bacon-bowties.html. Oh the beauty of bacon.


4. Spend Some Quality Family Time - had Mama, Cricket and Miles over for Mother's Day. It was a lovely visit, the first time Mama saw the new house and the first time we all saw Miles' new hair. Plus we gorged ourselves on PW goodies!


5. Make Sheldon Watch One Chick Flick - Somehow this man has managed to avoid every chick flick, but not for long. It is now my mission to make him watch my favorites. We started with Steel Magnolias. He said it was "Cute." humph.


6. visit my Mama - see number 4. :)


7. EXERCISE - walked for an hour Friday night and an hour Saturday morning in the neighborhood. Need to do it every day, but at least I started! (Yes I have gained ALL the weight back! YES, I need to do something!)


8. go letterboxing - yay! It is letterboxing season again. Sheldon and I found two in Pittsburgh! Oh what fun!


9. Sell Something I Don't Need Anymore - fail, but I at least made inroads in this, I did gather everything in a box in my office, now I just need to take pix and post them on craigslist.


10. Crochet or Cross Stitch Something - started crocheting a baby afghan for one of Sheldon's co-workers.

100 for the 100th

It is my understanding that it is tradition to write 100 things about yourself for your 100th post. I am proud to say that I have reached this milestone and I have written the 100 things. I started working on this a couple of weeks ago because I knew it would take me a little while. Let the weirdness begin.

1. I could eat cereal for breakfast, lunch and dinner in the same day, and I have.
2. I have always wanted to ride in a hot air balloon.
3. My favorite ice cream these days is Baskin Robbins World Class Chocolate.
4. I have wanted to travel to Iceland for many, many years and swim in the Blue Lagoon.
5. My absolute favorite guilty pleasure is watching the Real Housewives of New York.
6. I grew up in a small farming town in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia but I am a city girl at heart.
7. My favorite trees are Redbuds. Love the flowers, love the leaves.
8. I love to read and do so whenever I have a spare five minutes. My Grandma Urath taught me to carry a book everywhere I go and I am so glad she did.
9. I am the oldest of 3 children, we have the same parents but we were born in 3 different decades.
10. I am part of a Mazda family, I am driving my third Mazda, my sister drives a Mazda and Sheldon owns two Mazdas.
11. My first car was a baby blue '69 VW Beetle that had been bought new by my aunt and uncle when I was 3 years old. I paid my Granddaddy Palmer $250 for it in 1983 and traded it in for $250 on my first Mazda in 1988. They had kept all the gas and maintenance records for its entire life. Sadly, I didn't bother continuing the tradition.
12. I work on the 11th floor of a building that is only four blocks from the White House in Washington, DC. No buildings in DC are over 12 stories tall, so I get plenty of sunshine.
13. I haven't had caffeine since my teens. I can't tolerate it at all. I can only have chocolate during the day or I won't sleep.
14. I worked in a movie theatre in my small town when I was 16. I got to see all the movies for free as often as I wanted and I even got to sit in the balcony which was off limits to the general public.
15. I once worked in a bakery.
16. I was a pharmacy technician for a year after high school and toyed with the idea of going to pharmacy school.
17. I once kissed James Taylor's cousin. His name was Bill Taylor and he was a comedian/actor. We were 18. I didn't believe he was related to James Taylor until a couple of years later when I saw a picture of James and realized that Bill looked exactly like him.
18. I took part in an outdoor production of Val Balfour's Oberammergau Passion Play every Summer from age 13 to 17. Usually I was just an extra, but one Summer I was the Sound Technician. (My daddy will be so proud that I spelled that right without having to look it up!)
19. My first date was on my 16th birthday with a boy from out of town named David Braunshweig. It was very romantic, right down to kisses on a bearskin rug in front of a roaring fire. I wonder whatever happened to him...
20. I read The Stand, in three days, at age 15 while I was home from school sick with the flu. Not a good book to read when you are sick, I was scared of tunnels for YEARS!
21. I didn't go to prom. In fact I only went to one high school dance and that was because I was on the planning committee. I went with a gay guy who didn't want his parents to know yet. My parents on the other hand, did know.
22. I didn't have a boyfriend until the second half of my senior year of high school and he was from another town. His name was Chip Anderson. I wonder whatever happened to him...
23. I am the oldest grandchild by five years on both sides of my family.
24. My paternal grandparents, Flossie and Palmer, had a house on Smith Mountain Lake when I was a child and I spent all my Summers there from age 5 to 12. It is still one of my very favorite places on Earth.
25. I cannot wink my left eye.
26. I am right-handed but I iron with my left hand because Mama is left-handed and always had the ironing board set up that way.
27. Periwinkle is my favorite color.
28. I had my son when I was 29. He wore me out. I can't imagine how the women who have babies in their 40's or (shudder) 50's do it!
29. If money was no object and I could have one full-time employee, I would choose chauffeur hands down!
30. My ex brother-in-law who never liked me, said I made the best lasagna in the tri-state area.
31. I never learned to cook until after I left home.
32. I love deviled eggs. I put spinach and bacon in mine!
33. I met Sheldon on Match.com. I knew he was special as soon as I read his profile, I paid to join just so I could write to him.
34. I want to be cremated and then buried in Jerome, VA with generations of my family. I want the song "Ain't No Sunshine When She's Gone" played at the funeral.
35. I grew up with cats but now I'm allergic.
36. I flew a helicopter for my 40th birthday. It was a beginner lesson and it was fabulous!
37. I never had a Caesar salad until after I turned 40 and now that is my absolute favorite. The best chicken Caesar salad in the land is made at the Lafayette Deli in Chantilly, VA.
38. My favorite painting is Flaming June by Frederic Lord Leighton. She lives in a museum in Puerto Rico. I saw her when she visited the National Gallery of Art here in DC. I want to visit her someday.
39. I graduated from high school in 1983 and then went to Lord Fairfax Community College for one year, George Mason University for three years, Towson State University for one year, back to George Mason, then Northern Virginia Community College for ASL. I'm planning on tackling my last nine classes starting this Summer. My Grandma Urath graduated when she was 78 so I'm still ahead of her record. Miles says he won't GO to college until I graduate, so I only have three more years!
40. It is tradition in my family to have four names. I had to get married to get my fourth name. My sister likes to remind me that when she marries she'll have five names. I'm not playing that game though. Once was enough for me.
41. Stephen King is my favorite author, although I love his wife Tabitha King as well.
42. I have been known to crochet at stop lights. I made 23 baby afghans in nine months, two years ago while commuting, for a church festival.
43. I love to cross stitch.
44. I drove a NASCAR race car on my 43rd birthday. I was scared out of my wits and never even managed to break 100 mph. I want to do it again.
45. I wear Chanel Chance perfume.
46. I don't handle stress well.
47. I am alergic to the whitening ingredient in toothpaste. Makes it very tricky to find toothpaste these days as almost all them have whitening in them.
48. Yellow roses are my favorite.
49. I love M&M's, Reece Cups and Mounds Bars but can't stand Milky Way.
50. I have been to England, France, Switzerland, Germany and Mexico in that order.
51. I have lived in Virginia, Maryland and West Virginia in that order.
52. I have visited 25 states and can't wait to see the other 25.
53. Other than dogs and cats I'm not a fan of critters. I'm always afraid of getting bitten or stepped on or peed on. I'd rather watch them on tv than see them, or smell them, in person.
54. Something in the Way She Moves by James Taylor is my all time favorite song.
55. I am deathly afraid of snakes.
56. I almost never use strange bathrooms. If I come to your house, chances are that I will not use your facilities the first five or ten times I visit. Weird, huh?
57. I have a thing for tall guys with deep voices.
58. I drink lots and lots of water every day and I have for many years.
59. I had a huge crush on Tom Selleck in the Magnum PI days, but I really wanted to be TC and fly the helicopter while fighting crime.
60. I am the adult child of an alcoholic.
61. I have a VERY strong sense of smell and can smell a cigar 10 cars away in traffic. I cannot even walk past Stone Cold Creamery in the mall because the smell makes me nauseous. Strong smells give me a migraine.
62. I love to play board games and card games. I don't care if I win or lose, I just like spending time with my people.
63. My Grandma Flossie made the best fried okra ever.
64. I love to cook. Especially in my new kitchen. With Sheldon. And my Stand Mixer.
65. I never tan, just freckle. I used to burn but in my 40's I seem to have outgrown it.
66. I have green eyes with golden centers, although for some reason Sheldon is convinced that they are blue.
67. I am very chatty if I know you, but I hate meeting new people.
68. I bought my first home computer in 1990 and had email and internet before anyone else I knew. Remember Tandy and Prodigy? I'm so glad that the rest of you caught up to me!
69. I am completely addicted to Packrat on Facebook and have been for almost a year now.
70. I got a unicycle for my 42nd birthday, but I haven't learned how to ride it yet.
71. I would love to own an RV and travel all over the US. Sheldon and Miles think this is the worst idea they ever heard.
72. I was never claustrophobic until I got pregnant at age 29, now it gets worse as I get older.
73. I never had motion sickness until the last year or so. I hate it!
74. I love "quest" games, Packrat, Post Hunt, Letterboxing...
75. I voted for Obama and still get goosebumps when I hear them say President Obama on the news. It makes me a little giddy that Hillary is the Secretary of State as well.
76. I would love to own my own tour bus/travel company. I would take busloads of people to all my favorite places. It would be so much fun. Sheldon also hates this idea.
77. Any medicine that is supposed to help you sleep just keeps me up all night. This didn't used to be true. I loved Nyquil back in the day. Sigh. I miss Nyquil.
78. I have never been drunk in my life. Ever. I don't drink very often at all and then usually only one. That first one always tastes so good, but I have found that the second is never as tasty and I've never had a third. I am a cheap date. This makes Sheldon very happy.
79. I like almost all types of music but not really a fan of opera, jazz or punk.
80. When I was a kid I really did walk 2 miles to school, uphill, both ways!!!
81. I am a list maker...I can't do anything without a list. I love crossing things off with highlighter when I am done.
82. Growing up I had one Nanny and three Grandmas, two Papas and two Grandaddys. They are all gone now, but I like to imagine them watching over me. I hope I make them proud.
83. I love bacon.
84. April and August are my favorite months of the year. I was born in April and Miles and Sheldon were born in August.
85. My drink of choice is Makers Mark Bourbon straight up, I sip it very slowly.
86. In the past 14 years I have collected over 57,000 aluminum cans for my local fire department. They use the money they raise to send burned children to camp.
87. I hate to scrub bathrooms.
88. I love to do the dishes, something about playing in the warm water and making things clean. Funny how that doesn't apply to bathrooms...
89. I also love laundry, the sorting, the folding, the putting it all away when it is done.
90. I get up at 4:25am in order to commute to the big city.
91. I go to bed at 9:30pm because I need plenty of sleep to function.
92. I much prefer Pringles and Munchos to regular potato chips.
93. I prefer the softness of flannel sheets all year round.
94. I like sleeping in a cold bedroom with lots of warm covers.
95. I used to sing in a praise band at my church.
96. I won the Miss Poppy contest put on by the American Legion in my hometown when I was 16 because my dad and his friends stuffed the ballot boxes all over town.
97. I am a Yankees fan and I now live with a Red Sox fan. This might be war.
98. My theory on having an only child is that if you do it right the first time there is no need to repeat yourself.
99. I ran my own direct sales business for 3 years and loved every minute of it.
100. I believe that Sheldon's cherry brownies are the secret to world peace, but I might be wrong, it could be the glazen raisen pretzels from Auntie Anne's.
     

As promised...

Here is my boy with his new/old hair. I like it SO MUCH BETTER this way.

Does he look more like a college freshman than a high school freshman, or is that just me?

My Weekend

When I got home Friday Sheldon was already mowing the backyard which was literally knee high. Needless to say it was slow going. I followed behind him for a while with the rake, but I was worn out way before he was ready to stop. I went in the house and got him some lemonade and he took a short break, but went right back at it. The next time I looked outside he had finished the whole thing. I am amazed at his stamina. Not that our yard is that big or anything, but I would have had to do the job in stages and he just plowed through until he was finished.

Saturday we went to our local nursery and bought a clematis for the mailbox, 4 gorgeous rose bushes and 12 pots of phlox, and ordered 3 trees to be delivered later in the week. We went home and planted the phlox by the front door and the clematis right away. Again, Sheldon did most of the work. He dug the holes and I just watered and patted down the dirt around the new plants. Neither of us has ever had a partner to work in the yard with before and I think we work together well. I kept expecting him to fuss at me for being such a wimp, but he was pleased to have any help so there was no complaining.

I had an absolutely lovely Mother's Day. Miles called from his dad's and asked if he could come hang out with me for the afternoon. I was quite tickled as he usually prefers hanging out with his friends. I was talking to Cricket on the phone when I pulled up in front of his house, and we he came out the door all I could say was "My baby, my baby!" Cricket didn't know what was going on and kept saying "What? WHAT?" in my ear. I got out of the car and ran over to give him a hug and burst into tears. He looked beyond beautiful with his hair short. He was laughing and embarrassed but I don't think he minded one little bit. I forgot to take any pictures, but he promised to send me one to post here.

I invited Mama over to see the new house and because I wanted to make Pioneer Woman's Apple Dumplings for her for Mother's Day. She was very pleased with her list, but she wanted me to note for all y'all that she is aware that she snores because she will awake to find the cats staring at her. She said that she still has some of that Texas map fabric, but that she HAS thrown away all the magazines.

Cricket and her friend who is not named Christy stopped by as well. Sheldon made delicious ham and havarti sandwiches for everyone and then we dug into the dessert table. We had the aforementioned Apple Dumplings AND Grandma Iny's "Spice" Cake AND a chocolate cheesecake that Sheldon made. We were all about the desserts, although I'm proud to say that I weighed 2 pounds LESS this morning than I did Friday morning! Must have been all the raking and climbing stairs while carting laundry that I was doing all weekend.

I hope all of you had as much fun and as much good food as I did this weekend. It was without doubt my best Mother's Day ever!

Happy Mother's Day!

A few weeks ago I was talking to my mama on the phone and she asked what I was doing. I explained that I was working on a list of 100 things about myself as is tradition for your 100th blog post. "Goodness!" Mama said, "I don't think there ARE 100 things about me!" I told her that I was sure that there were way more than 100 things about her. After we hung up I decided to write this list for her. My brother and sister contributed. So Mama, in honor of Mother's Day, here are 100 Random things about YOU!

1. She has the most beautiful blue eyes.
2. She reads every book she gets her hands on.
3. She volunteers at the town library.
4. She snores like a freight train but denies it.
5. She is the oldest of three children.
6. She gets terrible sunburns.
7. She is left handed.
8. She is on her third set of replacement knees and has endured at least 20 surgeries in the past five years.
9. She was an elementary school teacher for 30 years.
10. She had three children in three different decades.
11. She made my wedding dress and all the bridesmaids dresses for my wedding, I worried that she would be hemming my dress while I walked down the aisle, but she finished it before the music started.
12. She loves cats beyond all reason.
13. She suffered a spontaneous systemic staph infection two years after her first double knee replacement. She was the first patient in medical history to have this happen and is a case study.
    
14. She hates to ask for help but she will give you the shirt off of her back.
15. She lives in a beautiful, white, Queen Anne Victorian house that was built in 1907. She bought it because of the view.
16. She has the most beautiful, wavy, white hair.
17. She looks much younger than her age.
18. She loves liver and onions and always orders it if she sees it on a menu.
19. Mounds is her favorite candy bar.
20. She used to listen to Spitzer's House Party which was a radio show on WSIG back in the 70's that featured polka music, on Saturday morning when she cleaned house.
21. She is a great travel companion because she will go where ever you want to go, eat whatever you want to eat, see whatever you want to see and never complains.
    
22. She is on her church council.
23. She has a fabulous, commanding, school teacher voice, that can bring a room to silence in a split second.
24. She had to learn the alphabet backwards to teach slow learners back when DISTAR was the approved method.
25. Blue is her favorite color.
26. She used to sew me the cutest clothes when I was a kid.
27. She sewed me the cutest maternity clothes when I was pregnant with Miles.
28. Her younger brother and all his children are dentists.
29. She is a fabulous gift-wrapper.
    
30. Her father was a banker and a farmer.
31. Her mother was a teacher.
32. Her mother lived to be 96 and her aunt is still alive at 101.
33. Her cousin Frank Buckles is 105 or 106 and is one of the only World War I veterans left, he is still sharp, you see him on the news now and then.
34. When I was a kid she would smoke when she was stressed and she always exhaled through her nose which I thought was so exotic. (Cricket never knew this until a few years ago when I mentioned it in passing and she was SO shocked!)
35. She used to love Jean Nate, do they even make that stuff anymore?
36. She traveled cross country when she was a child with her parents and siblings, she saw the great redwoods. I hope I get to do that someday.
37. She married my dad when she was 20 and had me when she was 21.
38. She met my dad when she lived in the same dorm as his sister at Shenandoah College in 1963.
39. When she taught school she kept hair bands and barretts in her drawer for the little girls whose parents sent them to school without brushing their hair. (These days teachers are not allowed to touch their students, much less style their hair.)
40. Her birthday is November 27th which is often Thanksgiving weekend.
41. She is a Red Hat and has tons of fun with her Red Hat friends.
    
42. She taught me to always check the oven before turning it on because her mother stored pots and pans in the oven and had trained her to check for them.
43. She taught me to knit when I was five, but I have never known her to knit or crochet.
44. She has boundless curiosity which she inherited from her mother and passed down to me.
45. She always takes in stray cats, dogs and people. When I see a homeless woman on the streets of DC with young children I always want to pack them in my car and take them home to Mama.
    
46. She was raised Episcipalian but now she's a Lutheran.
47. She and my dad eloped and didn't tell anyone until 6 months later when they got pregnant with me.
48. She calls the mid-day meal lunch and the evening meal supper, but you out to dinner.
    
49. She pronounces it to-mah-to and my dad always used to give her a hard time about it, so the rest of us say to-may-to.
50. She drinks hot tea in the morning and iced tea the rest of the day, I'm not sure I have ever seen her drink anything else. Cricket says that she drinks coffee now because Cricket makes a pot every morning before work and Mama hates to see anything go to waste.
51. I take that back, I have seen her drink something else, when she was grouchy a few days out of the month, my dad used to make her a gin and tonic and she would cheer right up.
52. She thinks babies should always have a hat on, my sister and I have been brainwashed to believe the same thing as adults, although we both thought she was crazy when we were younger.
53. She is a member of a weightloss group called TOPS, but every Tuesday after their weigh-in they eat at the all-you-can-eat Chinese buffet in town, so I don't know how serious they are about losing weight.
54. She only has one grandchild, so far.
55. Her grandma name is Grandy.
56. She falls asleep watching tv, but she and Cricket have TiVo so Cricket has to check to see if she should delete a show they have finished watching.
57. She really loves pedicures.
58. She can't get rid of old magazines, I think she still has every Family Circle and Woman's Day since 1972.
59. She moved into her house in 1977, and it'll take more than an act of congress to remove her from it.
60. She has a great laugh and it is fun to give her the giggles.
61. She introduced us to a fabulous breakfast food called Egg In A Frame a long time ago when we were very small, and it remains a family favorite into another generation.
62. She likes driving a mini-van, though all her kids are grown. She just finds them easier to get in and out of.
63. She once made seat covers with pillows to match for our '67 Chevy Bel Air out of a cloth print of a Texas road map.
64. She can drive a stick-shift, and likely learned to do that on a tractor.
65. 13 years into retirement from teaching, and she still can't stand gum-chewing.
66. The wedding ring she wore for all the 20 plus years she was married had moons and stars on it. My dad bought it for ten bucks in a bar. I love it.
67. It took 20 years and 4 colleges to get her degree but she never gave up!
68. She loves plants and flowers and has a gardener to plant what she wants where she wants. She usually manages to kill houseplants though.
    
69. She wore black cat's eye glasses all through the '70s.
70. She had very easy deliveries with all three of her babies which was thankfully passed on to me.
71. When her dark brown hair started to turn white back in her 30's she had a white streak near the front that people often thought was done on purpose. I have the same white streak now, but mine is all across the front.
72. She has had her children under roof for the last 44 years, except for the 4 years Cricket was away at college.
73. She went for 9 months last year with no knees in her body.
74. She has no tattoos and I'm not even sure she has ever seen one up close.
    
75. She's never been one to take pictures and certainly never be in them, when she does take pictures she never gets them developed.
76. She didn't get her ears pierced until after I did when I was a teenager. She wanted to borrow all my "cute" earrings.
77. She doesn't care for swimming but she does walk laps in the pool when her knees allow it.
78. She is ridiculously frugal about her own needs but very generous with others.
79. She prefers to pay with cash and especially with correct change.
80. When she had no knees she invented a new way to get in and out of bed by herself and we had to demonstrate it to all the docs and nurses cause no one believed she could do it until they saw it for themselves.
81. She wears those big "old lady" sunglasses that fit over your regular glasses and wrap around your face.
82. She once wore said sunglasses while driving in a tunnel and kept complaining about how dark it was. Cricket and I almost died laughing when we realized what was causing the problem.
83. When she was able to sit in a chair, she would always let me take a nap in her hospital bed when I'd go visit.
84. She has fantastic handwriting.
85. She doesn't like to drive at night, or in the rain.
86. She loves to play Scrabble.
87. She buys eggs every single time she gets groceries.
88. She reads her local newspaper all the way through, every day, including the classified and ads. She even reads circulars for stores that are not nearby.
89. She loves red shoes and red wallets.
90. She wears a gorgeous diamond and gold man's ring on her middle finger, that she inherited from her father. It is believed to be a Civil War relic. When she was in the hospital I asked to wear it as a remembrance and because I didn't want it to get lost. Every time I spoke to her on the phone she would ask after the ring.
91. When she was a child she had a pony named Twinkle.
92. She gives the best hugs.
93. She'd rather sit on her own front porch looking at the view than any beach or famous vista you can name. (Preferably with tea, the newspaper and a cat close at hand.)
94. After she retired she got her Nursing Assistant Certification and began caring for the elderly.
95. She calls all three of her children Sarah/CAB/Cricket cause she can never remember which name she wants.
96. She is almost always early.
97. She adores Golden Seal Magazine.
98. She dreams of traveling to Italy one day.
99. She is terrible at remembering names, especially sound-alike names. All through middle school she called half of Cricket's friends Christy. Cricket had no friends named Christy, she had a Kristen and a Kristina, but no Christy. Cricket has NEVER had a friend named Christy.
100. She thinks of others first to such an extreme that once she was in a terrible three car pileup on the interstate and after she was CUT OUT of her van and put into an ambulance she composed herself enough to call her elderly mother and tell her she'd gotten home safely because she knew that Grandma Urath would be waiting by the phone and watching the time. She later called Cricket who was away at college, she made small talk and asked what Cricket was doing the next day and if she would drive home (2.5 hours) to drive her to her TOPS meeting because people were counting on her as the record keeper and she didn't want to let them down. Cricket had to pry the details of the accident out of her one by one. She tried to downplay it so much she nearly described it as a fender bender. Actually that story is basically Mama in a nutshell.