G.I. Joe

G.I. Joe was around in the 80's when Jack was grade school age. He and his Uncle Chuck, who was about the same age as Jack, spent hours playing war with their G.I. Joe action figures. You did not call them DOLLS, by the way.

Poor G.I. Joe was shot, blown up, run over with jeeps and tanks, and sometimes even buried. Every time one was "killed" the boys sang the Queen song, "Another One Bites the Dust." They entertained themselves for hours with war.

Chuck was killed in a car accident at the young age of 18, on his way home from work in the morning hours. If Jack were to be asked, he would admit to still missing Chuck after all these years I'm sure.

In the midst of tragedy, there are happy memories, it just takes time to get to them.

Another G.I. Joe memory for me is the old Nissan commercial, where G.I. Joe stole Barbie from Ken. Loved it. I often wondered why it disappeared from the tv airwaves, and just recently learned that Mattel sued Nissan for copying their toys for their commercials. Ah, well, I still have a vivid memory of G.I. Joe driving off with Barbie. She made the right choice--I always thought Ken was a wimp.

Remembering the good times

Grandma in the yellow house

Is Collecting shoes Contagious?

Or is it something in the hereditary traits? The females in this family are not related to Imelda Marcos, but they are like her in the shoe collecting thing. I have seen Pattie buy 7 pairs at a time, 3 just alike except for color. Her hubby Randy built her a special shoe compartment in her armoire. When Debbie was here this summer she confided in Pattie that she has over 100 pairs of shoes. Sunshine loves shoes, so do Haley and Harley.

And along comes the newest family female addition, and she loves her shoes though she is only 17 months old. She arrived from Louisiana with 17 pairs of shoes. Most of them were given to her (hand-me-downs) and she is proud of every one.

Jessica says she will try on one and twist her foot around checking it out and smiling. Just like the big girls.

Here she is, checking out her collection with Jessica looking on.

They did not inherit this gene from me. I will wear the same shoes until they fall apart. My walking shoes are 6 years old and I hope they last 6 more. I do not like shopping, so perhaps that's why I tend to wear them until someone in the family gently suggests that I need a new pair.

Grandma in the yellow house, who does not plan to buy shoes for a long time yet.

Weebles

Sunshine is now in her 30's, she might not want me to tell her age, so I won't. But when she was about 3 yrs. old she had one of those Weeble airplane toys from Playskool. (Is that spelled right?) I had totally forgotten about it and how much she played with it and loved it.

The reminder came from a cousin on facebook, who just mentioned "Weebles wobble but they don't fall down." Thanks Donna. This got my memory in high gear, so I looked up Weebles on Google, and got over 12,000 hits. One sight had hundreds of images, so I saved 3 of them to share with family, and Sunshine.

Her play set was made of plastic, but it was

really sturdy, and lasted until she outgrew

it. It was passed down to her brother Jack and I believe it was then donated to Goodwill, and probably entertained more 3 yr. olds for years. It is hard to find such a well made toy now, everything comes from China, is cheaply made and many times isn't even safe for the children to play with. (Lead in the paint, etc.)

Some things really are happy memories!

Smiling as I write,

Grandma in the yellow house

Weebles

School Carnival

The school carnival is history for this year. It seems to grow smaller each year, this is the first time since we have lived here that it was one day instead of two. The weather was cool, but otherwise great, there was a large crowd, and everyone seemed to be having a good time. We enjoyed a meal of brisket, potato salad, baked beans and cornbread, with some tasty desserts, and then a few games of bingo.
Two of our great granddaughters were royalty candidates this year, Haley for carnival queen, and Harley for carnival princess. We did not have high expectations for Haley since she is a sophomore, and the Senior girl (almost) always wins. We felt Harley had the better chance since she is 8th grade, and the winner is from the class who earns the most money for their class. Anyway, if it were a beauty contest, they would both have won their respective crowns.

So much for expectations. Haley was crowned carnival queen, but the 7th grade out-performed the 8th in earnings, close race, and so Harley did not quite win her crown.
Naturally we are very proud of both our girls. They were poised and gracious both in victory and defeat.

Grandma in the yellow house who is proud of all her grandkids

Doll House Fun

When Haley and Harley were little girls (they are now teenagers) we made mini-doll houses from 1/2 gallon juice cartons and oatmeal boxes. Haley's has survived pretty much as she made it (helped) but Harley's is missing most of the furniture. You can see Haley's picture on her bedroom wall. Her sofa and chair are made from pill bottles, the fireplace is scrap wood, the decorations are beads and mini silk flowers. The lampshade is a toothpaste tube cap.
The very first house we made was a bear house, with little plastic bears, and was done up like a fishing cabin with a patio, picnic table and bbq grill. It did not survive the many playtimes, but it provided hours of fun for them. The next one was a mouse house made from a large shoe box. Mama and Papa mouse are still living in the house, but baby mouse has disappeared again. His little cradle is empty. The first time he disappeared he was gone 3 months and we all thought it was permanent. But I got up at 3 a.m. one morning on the way to the bathroom and stepped on him in front of the door. We found no evidence that the dogs might have had him, no teeth marks or wet spots, so we decided we have a ghost that likes to play tricks. He was back home with his family, but a few months later he disappeared again, and this time he has not come back. As you can see Mama and Papa mouse look very sad.

The next project was another shoebox house but this one has no inhabitants. It looks like a small apartment even though the front door is a very fancy cutout from a catalog. The table is made from a chess piece and the tea set is beads.

Here is a close up of the fancy front door, toothpast cap lampshade and sofa from a plastic bottle cut to shape.

The next room is made from wood, 1/8 plywood cut and fitted together, with one side folding down to make the room accessible. The furniture is all hand made from plywood, wood scraps, and fabric remnants. The large lampshade is 1/2 of a ping pong ball. The books in the bookcase are tiny pieces of styrofoam covered with pieces of pink card cut from junk mail.

The girls have outgrown dollhouses for now, but there are two more on the way to being old enough for them, D'Anna and Serenity. I say for now, because I began making them after retirement age, it is never too late to do childish things. I have wonderful times with the grandchildren in a miniature world.

Grandma in the yellow house, who still likes the dollhouses.

Weekend in Electra

Small town America is alive and well. We went to Electra, TX Saturday to visit Jack and his family, and had a great time. Sunshine had to take Harley shopping in Witchita Falls for a dress and shoes for her entry in the school carnival Princess pageant, so she volunteered to take us and leave us at Jack's. Haley and Harley's friend Amber went with us also.

Didn't start out well though, just across the river and maybe 3 miles into Texas we had a flat tire. Harold and Sunshine changed it, and we made the rest of the trip on the "donut" tire.

Electra was having their annual town-wide yard sales event, so we went to several and found a few bargains. D'Anna got the most of them, 2 new babies, a stroller for them, a story telling bear, and several clothing items including pj's, house slippers and some other things to wear.

Sandy fixed us a delicious lunch of bbq brisket, potato salad and a vegetable, and we had birthday cake for dessert. D'Anna will be 3 on the 9th, which is also Harold's birthday, and he will be waaaaay more than 3. (smile) Jack made Sandy cry at the end of the meal when he proposed to her. She did say yes midst the tears. They have been together almost 3 years, so since they plan to stay that way it is time.

This is Jack, Sandy, and D'Anna on their front porch.

When Sunshine and the girls got back they showed off the new things. Harley tried on 18 dresses, and then bought the first one she tried. They went to several shoe stores and between them Haley and Harley tried on more than 3 dozen pairs of shoes. They came home with a pair of sandals each, with lots of sparklies and 4 inch heels. Ouch. Glad I don't have to walk in those!

We had a good time and met some nice people so it was a successful trip.

Grandma in the yellow house was happy to see family and even happier to be back home..............

more redneck tales

Last Sunday Michael took my 2 great-granddaughters to the river, (Red) to play in the mud. They are both teen-agers now and you would think they would have out grown this tendency by now. But it hasn't happened yet. This is Harley, 13, and her cousin Dakota, after an afternoon of playing in the mud.

The Red River is mostly dry and sandy, with a narrow, shallow stream of water meandering down it. The only time it actually looks like a river is after a very heavy rainfall upstream. It can get bank full and very swift running for awhile, but then goes down as rapidly as it arose. The problem is that there are also patches of quicksand, and if one does not know where they are it is easy to get into bad trouble. Not long ago some people were riding 4-wheeler atvs, dirt bikes, and pickup trucks on the river bed, and 2 trucks hit a patch of quicksand. Down they went! They managed to get chains hooked to one and pull it out, but the other is still there with 8 or 10 inches of one corner of the cab sticking up from the sand.

This is totally a redneck pastime. The evidence continues to emerge. I do not make these things up, just report them.

Still here as a witness,

Grandma in the yellow house

Fish

Hope you like my addition of the fish tank. Feel free to feed them, they never get too much.
Something fishy here
Grandma in the yellow house

Redneck? You Decide

My Granddaughter Sunshine swears her husband is a redneck. Some evidence:

He blew up her mailbox a year ago, July 4, 2008, with a homemade bomb, put together with firecrackers and sparklers. He had help from a couple of his brothers, and no, I don't know just how they did it.

He recently bought a mid-voltage taser, and immediately accidentally tasered himself. His remark was, "Well, that wasn't so bad." Thankfully he had not fully charged it.

His latest project is to have t-shirts made for himself and some of his dove hunting buddies with Dove Task Force printed on the fronts. They are also getting caps with DTF on the fronts. I will give them credit for not shooting up things indiscriminately, they clean and eat what they shoot.

I asked Harley if she eats dove, and she said she does. It tastes good but not as good as quail. I harbor the suspicion that she is a redneck girl in the making.

This is Harley and her (redneck?) Dad. His racecar from last summer in background. He did place second in a race or two, and it was his first year to try this. Not bad. Sunshine said the racing thing was his mid-life crisis.

Hope this is enough evidence for you to make the decision. Redneck or not.

Contributing witness:

Grandma in the yellow house

September 11, 2009

It has now been 8 years since our country was attacked by radical Islamists. We ordinary Americans have not forgotten, and we won't. Some politicians would like to gloss it over now, and perhaps the media will follow their wishes, but for most of us it is as though it happened yesterday. As a patriotic American, I love my country, but I am becoming more disillusioned by my government as they systematically take away our freedom and trample on our constitution. I believe we all will have to depend more on our God than on those who have promised to guard our freedom.

Today, September 11, is a significant day in our family also. 16 years ago Sunshine and Michael were married in Chester, Montana, while working on wheat harvest. This is also the wedding anniversary of Derek and Teresa Sanders, Barb and Jack's youngest son. Congratulations kids.

Yesterday was our son David's birthday. He came into this world 54 years ago with great difficulty, backwards, and is still doing things his own way.

Just reminiscing a little,
Grandma in the yellow house

Chili

I made a pot of homemade veggie chili today, and 00000h was it hot! I followed the recipe, added the jalapeno pepper, used the amount of chili powder and cumin listed, and thought as I added items, this is going to be hotter than my normal version. I was right! But it cleared the sinuses, and I am still breathing better than normal.
Easy recipe:
Put 1 or 2 tsp. olive oil in dutch oven.
Add 1 chopped green pepper and 1 med. chopped onion.
Cook about 2 minutes, then add 2 minced cloves of garlic and 1 chopped jalapeno pepper. Cook 2 more minutes.
Stir in 1 Tbs. dried oregano, 2 tsp. chili powder, 1 tsp. cumin
Add 1 lg. can diced tomatoes, 1 sm can tomato sauce, and 2 cups water.
Stir, add 1 can each rinsed and drained white cannellini beans and 1 can kidney beans.
Stir in 1/3 cup bulgur. I did not have this and couldn't find it at the store so substituted barley. Works fine.
We had this for our supper, and needed nothing else. Not even a cracker! And yes, it was hot, did I mention that?
One other thing, we drank more water than usual with the meal....ha
Still warm, and thankful for all God's blessings,
Grandma in the yellow house

Stagnation

We have been very quiet, and not doing much the last few weeks. Just to get the family up-to-date:

We had visitors from Florida that we had not seen for 27 years. They dropped in for a weekend while on the way from Dallas (where their son lives) to Colorado (where their youngest daughter lives) and we had a great time catching up on kids, jobs, fun things, etc.

This is how they travel, and live for 6 to 9 months of the year. They help the eldest daughter on the farm awhile, visit the other two, and Clyde does calling for square dances in between, all around the country. They were in Rayne, LA just before coming to OK for a week of square dancing. What Fun!

The following weekend Harold's brother Bob, and Georgianna stopped in for a one day visit on the way home to Mexico, MO from south Tx where they were scouting around for a winter get-away spot.

Other than those two high spots it has been quiet on the homestead. And hot! Our temps have been in the upper 90's (and a couple of days over 100) for the last two weeks. But cool at night.

Other news: my niece Stefanie is the first family member to be infected with swine flu. She missed a week of work, but is recovering now. Best wishes for you, Stef. We all love you.

Blessings and peace from

Grandma in the yellow house

Jasper Update

Jasper has a new home. He was taken to the home of a co-worker who has a pet raccoon, and he will now have a true friend. Harley and Haley started back to school today, so he would have been home alone all day, and would not have liked that. I asked Harley if she cried when she left him, and she said "No. (sniff,sniff.)"

D'Anna came to visit for a couple of hours yesterday. She will be 3 in October, and is talking so much better than the last time she was here. I even understand about half her words now. We had to pick up all the plastic bowls and lids and put them away when she left, all the grandkids have played in the plastics cabinet. She had fun with all the stuffed animals that have been abandoned here over the years, also.

Grandma Patti got buried under all the fuzzies. And D'Anna had fun doing it.

Still recovering from a busy afternoon,

Grandma in the yellow house

Back to School

All the kids here go back to school next week, and poor
little Jasper will be left home alone. It will be hard on him, as he has spent the summer with Harley. He sits on her lap, snuggles up to her neck, looks for her when she leaves the room. He thinks she is his Mama.

He is nearly old enough to be "tutored." It is either that or find him a home where he can spend his time outside. He has been raised inside with the family and small dog, so he could not survive being turned loose in the wild. He will have to adjust to spending more time away from Harley, since she will be in school all day, and will soon be involved in basketball and other school activities again. Poor baby.

Feeling sympathy
Grandma in the yellow house

Friday Stupid

Couldn't call this a Friday Funny, it is way beyond that. Who writes this stuff anyway? I have given this quite a bit of thought, and I believe it is the result of the public school systems "dumbing down of America."

Would this article title have made sense if it said 17 employees killed in shooting spree at the morgue? Well, yes. The way it is written it sounds like the already dead were the ones shot.

Schools do not teach basic skills any more. My granddaughter did not learn to make change properly until she went to work as a waitress while still in high school. Her employer was the one who taught her. Young people now depend on computerized cash registers to do the work for them. If the computer is down forget getting out of the store until it is fixed. A pencil and piece of paper are foreign objects to young cashiers. Ask me how I know this.....

Remembering the good ol' days when we learned the 3 R's in school: Reading, (W)riting, and

(A)rithmetic.

Grandma in the yellow house

Marvel's Outing

Marvel took a little car ride today with Patti. She had a dr. appointment, and he went along. He went in with her, but he had to go in the back door, so as to not scare the folks in the waiting room. Can't imagine why anyone would be afraid of a softy like him. The reason he went along was so he go visit the folks at the nursing home where Patti works on weekends. They are always asking when he is coming to visit again, so since she had to go over he got to go too.

He is getting so he loves to go for a ride. And does not get carsick any more. Good thing for all concerned.

We love our dogs.

Grandma in the yellow house

Huckleberry

Who would name a dog Huckleberry? My son David, that's who. He said the dog has a huckleberry shaped spot on top of his head, and when he goes out he often leaves a huckleberry offering in his neighbors yard. The owner is absentee, only comes there during hunting season half a dozen times a year, and by that time the offering will be long gone.

Huckleberry was abandoned by his former owner when he was hauled off to the pokey for probation violation, and David works for the city, found the dog and brought him home. He was half starved, and is still painfully thin, but is beginning to put on a little weight. He is friendly, and seems to be good-natured. He is mostly coon hound and looks it. I am sure he will be much more handsome after gaining a few more pounds.

Introducing the newest pet in the family,

Grandma in the yellow house

Serenity/hair

Meet our 1 year old great grand-daughter, Serenity. She lives in Louisiana and we have not yet met her in person. Her birthday was June 27. She looks just like her Cajun Daddy. Her Mama is our blond, blue-eyed grand-daughter Jessica, who is David's daughter.

Serenity was 7 months old in this picture, and at last report her hair is long enough that it ALL goes into ponytails. She was born with long hair. Unlike her Grandpa David who was bald until he was nearly 2. Sorry David, had to make the comparison.

Living to embarrass my kids,
Grandma in the yellow house

Serenity

Crazy Friday

I heard on the news that someone (or more than one someone) is digging up bones in Illinois and piling them up. This is as weird a piece of news as I have heard for some time. Maybe it is a good thing that we left that state, and for more than the weird factor. How about sky high taxes for one, and how about the crooked politicians. Two or three former governors are in jail, and more of them should be. I know, there are crooked politicians everywhere, but most aren't controlled by the Chicago Daley machine.

This is Friday, and the funnies just keep coming. Here is one of my "no cure for stupid" finds.

What were these people thinking? What did they expect to find when they tore down a mauloleum?

On the lookout for more stupid,

Grandma in the yellow house

July 4th Parade

The parade was supposed to start at 5:30, but because of threatening weather (I think) it started a little early, so I missed the first 3 or 4 entries. The buggy with the grand marshal had a special passenger, our great grand-daughter Haley, and I missed that photo op.

We have several classic cars in our little town, and take pride in having them locally owned.

We also had two Riding Clubs represented, the Quanah Riding Club from Quanah, TX, and the Riding Club from Eldorado.


Many of the young folks decorated their bikes, and were cheered on the way by spectators.
There were some decorated floats, several ATV's, and more horse and wagon and buggies.


The local EMS was there with our ambulance, followed by one of the fire trucks.

For such a small town, it was an impressive spectacle. The rain held off til we were home. There was a local bluegrass band for entertainment, and I suspect they had to perform in the community building. Fire works were not rained out, like they were in parts of the country. It was a good day.

Patriotism lives in small places.

Love my country,

Grandma in the yellow house

After the birthday Perks

Reasons to be thankful for reaching the over 70 age group (gleaned from internet funnies):

1. Kidnappers are unlikely to be interested in me.

2. In a hostage situation I will probably be released first.

3. No one expects me to run-anywhere

4. People call at 9 p.m. and ask, "Did I wake you?"

5. People no longer view me as a hypochondriac.

6. There is nothing left to learn the hard way.

7. Things I buy now won't wear out.

8. I eat supper at 4 p.m. and no one thinks it's strange.

9. I get into heated arguments about pension plans.

10. I no longer think of speed limits as a challenge.

11. I don't hold my stomach in, no matter who walks into the room.

12. I sing along with elevator music.

13. My eyes won't get much worse. (I hope)

14. My investment in health insurance is fnally paying off.

15.My joints are more accurate meteorologists than the National Weather Service.

16. My secrets are safe with my friends because they can't remember them either.

17. And my supply of brain cells is finally down to normal size.

Might as well smile about getting older. The alternative is dying, and who wants to hurry that along? Not me.

Hope my eyes never get as bad as the lady in the cartoon.

Grandma in the yellow house

Driver's License

This is how we will look when the kids take our driver's licenses away. smiles....

Picture is from an email forward, source unknown.

I had to renew my driver's license yesterday. The good news-it is still free in Oklahoma for those of us over 65. We also get free fishing and hunting licenses. I don't hunt or fish. Oh well, I guess it helps lots of other folks.

The bad news-they now make us take off our glasses for the photo ID. I have worn glasses since I was 16 years old and my picture does NOT look like me. I look like an escapee from Sing-Sing.

And no, I am not going to post a copy of that picture. The only way any of you will ever see it is if you pull me over on the side of the road, you are wearing a uniform, carrying a badge, gun and taser. And even then I will try to avoid showing it.

More bad news-being fingerprinted is now required to get a driver's license. I swear I am not guilty of any wrongdoing whatsoever, and now I have to stay that way. Just when I was thinking of going down to the town museum and picking all the floweres on the front lawn.

Bummer.....

The birthday is over, and I really don't feel any older than I did the 28th.

"The older I get, the less a lifetime guarantee is worth to me." Source Unknown

Looking forward to a year of surprises,

Grandma in the yellow house

Memories

I have met some friends from school on facebook, and my memory keeps getting nudged with things I had totally forgotten.

Sue Grubbs Perkins and Burgess B. Grubbs, who was in my class, posted pictures of our old home stompin' grounds, and I have to admit it made me a little bit homesick......okay. A lot homesick! The last time I went to Illinois it was to bury my mother, January 2008, and I was too sick at the time to visit any people or places, in fact I spent one evening while there in the ER. It would be great to go back and just drive around the streets of Milton and Pearl.

The pictures are the next best thing, but way down from #1.




The bandstand in the center of the Milton Square. I have no idea how many hours were spent there just hanging out with friends. I showed the picture to David, and he said, "Oh yeah, I used to ride my skateboard down that sidewalk."


The bridge at Florence as seen from the ball field, where I spent many Sunday afternoons. My family were all baseball fans (Cardinals!) and we would have a picnic there in the park before the games.
Detroit city limit sign, home of the Carter clan. We lived there the year David was in first grade. They still had a school at that time. Patti was 4 then, not in school.

Thank you Sue, for allowing me to use these photos.


Hugs to y'all
Grandma in the yellow house

Friday Funnies

Proof reading is a dying art, wouldn't you say?

Man kills self before shooting wife and daughter.

This one I caught in the SGV Tribune the other day and called the Editorial Room and asked who wrote this. It took two or three readings before the editor realized that what he was reading was impossible. They put in a correction next day.

I just couldn't help but send this along. Too funny.

Something went wrong in jet crash, Expert says.

Really? Ya think?

Police Begin Campaign to Run Down Jaywalkers

Now that's taking things a bit far!

Panda Mating Fails; Veterinarian Takes Over

What a guy!

Miners Refuse to work after Death

No-good-for-nothing lazy so-and-so's!

Juvenile Court to Try Shooting Defendant

See if that works any better than a fair trial.

War Dims Hope for Peace

I can see where it might have that effect!

If Strike Isn't Settled Quickly, It May Last Awhile

Ya think?

Cold Wave Linked to Temperatures

Who would have thought!

Enfield (London) Couple Slain; Police Suspect Homicide

They may be on to something!

Red Tape Holds Up New Bridges

You mean there's something stronger than duct tape?

New Study of Obesity Looks for Larger Test Group

Weren't they fat enough?

Astronaut Takes Blame for Gas in Spacecraft

That's what he gets for eating those beans.

Kids Make Nutritious Snacks

Do they taste like chicken?

Local High School Dropouts Cut in Half

Chainsaw Massacre all over again!

And the winner is:

Typhoon Rips Through Cemetery; Hundreds Dead

Did I read that right?

Copyright 2009 Yahoo! Inc. All rights reserved

Hope it made you smile...........

Grandma in the yellow house

$4,5OO for your old Clunker?

Another brain black-out from congress.....they want to give us poor folks a big chunk of money to trade in our old "gas-guzzlin" clunkers for a new fuel efficient car. Huh? A new car is gonna cost a lot more than a rebate and a trade-in, and all just to get 25 mpg.

What that amounts to for us is a car payment every month (which we do Not have now,) less gas mileage than we get now, probably a lot less comfortable ride, loss of sleep over how to make those payments, higher insurance, higher license and tag fees, to name a few drawbacks.

Our '94 Buick may not be as pretty as it once was, but it still runs great after over 130,000 miles, gets 27 mpg in town with the a/c on, and 29 to 30 mpg on the highway and it was paid for several years ago. At the last tune-up the mechanic said it was in excellent condition and all it needed was a change of transmission fluid and filter, and it would be good for another 200,000 miles.

I don't believe we will give up our ol' Buick for a few years yet (if ever) because it gets us where we want to go trouble free. A new car would not do any better than that.

Keep your (our) money congress.

Grandma in the yellow house

events or something like that

David was here yesterday to tell his Dad "Happy Father's Day" and during the discussions I learned the cell tower is already operational! Gotta go shopping for a cell phone! This week!
I found the perfect web site for David, it is called www.evilmadgenius.com and he agrees it sounds like a good spot. He dubs himself a mad scientist, and we all agree the name fits.

My family all think I am a tightwad, but I really am not. I am just thrifty, and with the economy in such a state that is a good thing. There was an appropriate thought to remember from Reminisce Magazine, the June/July issue that says, "When your outgo exceeds your income, your upkeep is your downfall." This fits a lot of folks I know. Living below your means is one of the best sources of contentment I know.

"The happiest people don't necessarily have the best of everything; they just make the best of everything they have." Source unknown, from an email forward.

Call me a penny-pincher if you like, I'll just smile all the way to the bank.
Grandma in the yellow house

Cell Phones

We are finally joining the 21st century when it comes to technology. One of the phone companies has erected a cell tower just outside of town, and the word is it should be programmed and ready for service on July 1.

Our cell reception has been spotty until now. You could make calls by going to the edge of town where there is a hill, or standing on top of your truck (ask David how we know this), or by standing on certain street corners (ask Sunshine how we know this.) There are actually a few places in town where one could receive or make a call, but it takes moving around, standing by the laundry room window, or on the back porch, and a few other places. The town sits down in a wide hole, surrounded by hills. That could also be the reason there has not been a tornado touch down near since 1968.

Ok, now to buy a cell phone. We are considering the Jitterbug. No bells or whistles, no internet connection, no camera, no texting, just phone calls period. Why get bogged down with all this technology when I still have to get Haley to help me with MySpace and Twitter.

Oh by the way, I will not use the cell phone while driving. or roam WalMart with one stuck to my ear all the time I am shopping, or try to impress others with my newest status symbol.

From the technologically challenged

Grandma in the yellow house

Haley's Birthday

Haley celebrated her 15th birthday on the 28th of April. She is now old enough to take drivers ed. God help us! Actually she started a couple of weeks ago, and will soon have her learners permit, to drive with a licensed (over 21) driver. She will need lots of practice, in her mother's car of course. Her first driving experience was sitting in her Dad's lap and steering the car while he managed the foot pedals.

This is Haley at about a year old. All of our grandkids have played in the plastic bowls cabinet. It is so much more fun than regular toys.

They grow up so fast!

Wondering where the time went.........

Grandma in the yellow house