The Pink Thing

I went down to North Carolina on the 21st of December. I had planned to go down a week earlier and drive myself. Unfortunately, I had a RA attack that felt like pleurisy in my right lung and I was down for the count. Ray took me to the ER at Riverside and they confirmed it, gave me a prescription for pain medicine and sent me on my way. If you have ever taken Vicodin, you know that they do not recommend driving while you are taking them, so I had to wait and ride down with Ray the Sunday before Christmas. That left me only a couple of days to decorate, which I was in no mood to do, so I did not decorate much.

My daughter has a new administrative position at a health clinic and doesn't have the time off with the children that she had as a teacher's assistant. She was out of work for a couple of months. She was also driving a school bus. One day when she stopped to let off children, a little girl had cut herself and Rhonda was tending to her. Two boys who lived two houses away sneaked off the bus and went home. When Rhonda got back to the school, she was given a choice of resigning or being fired. The grand parents of the boys called the school board instead of the school to let them know that my daughter did not see them get off at the wrong stop. Personally, I felt like it was extremely unfair. But, I hear that NC is severely cutting teaching assistants. My daughter even volunteered the last few weeks of school. Went to the school after it was out and helped the teacher clean up the room.

My daughter is one of the nicest people that you would ever want to have as a friend. She loves children and would never do anything to hurt one intentionally. I think it was a put up job to clear out another position. The upshot of this is that since she resigned, she could not draw unemployment and they were in need until she found another job. They had to do without until we and other family members found out about it and stepped in to help. Our resources are not so great that we can support two families for long. This was extremely unfair to her and to her whole family. She paid into unemployment for over 20 years and was not allowed to draw it because of some vindictive people on the school board. Anyway, if you are thinking of moving to NC, don't.

So, guess who cooked Christmas dinner? I cooked a Ham, Macaroni and Cheese, and Green Beans from Guatemala (new to me, and delicious). Rhonda's husband, Jesse, cooked the turkey, the dressing, and the rolls. He did a good job on the turkey and the rolls, but the dressing was about half of an inch thick and the children thought they were brownies.

The Mac and Cheese was delicious, but missing something. I did the kind where you make a creamy cheese sauce and pour it over the macaroni and blend it well. I checked everyone's recipes, from Rachael Ray to Paula Dean, and finally came up with one of my own that I thought my family would like. We did have some left over the next day. I poured milk into it and cut some more sharp cheddar cheese and mixed little chunks in the warmed up dish. Awesome, it became even better. The best macaroni and cheese we have ever eaten (don't tell mother).

Now I am back at home in Virginia. I have been sick since I got home. It is so cold here. Rhonda gave me a twin bed electric blanket for Christmas to use when I get cold in my recliner. Those electric throws that they sell just do not do the trick when it is really cold. I have been in the bed all day. I have a UTI and found some antibiotics in the cabinet around 3 in the morning. I have enough to get me by until Monday. Hopefully, I can get in to see the doctor.

Happy  New Year!

God is Good, All the time
 All the time, God is good

Home Again PINK

Jason, Cindy, & Jeremy

We went to Kentucky for the week of Thanksgiving and had an absolutely wonderful time. We stayed at my brothers' home in Nicholasville. My mother let us use her suite and slept across the hall. It was nice to have a room with a sitting area. I was able to set up my computer, but we kept so busy that I didn't have much time to use it.

Cindy and Heather

Riding for 10 hours in our car did not make for a fun time for my legs. They were almost numb by the time we got there. Our room was upstairs and I practically had to pull myself up the stairs using the hand rail. There were 17 stairs since the ground floor has 12 ft ceilings. There were about 15 stairs to the basement where the movie room and pool room are located. It was up and down stairs the whole time. And, guess what, by the time we left, I could actually climb the stairs without pulling myself up and I was using alternate feet, instead of pull up and drag. I am feeling better than in months. I did take more pain medication but I was able to do therapy yesterday without much trouble. I only got dizzy afterward. I haven't had any ill effects with the rheumatoid arthritis. That is sure a blessing.

Wyatt, Owen, & Karch

W

Everyone was so nice and made sure that I didn't do too much. We went downtown to my nephews and walked to Chipotle, a new fast food place from McDonald's. The food was very good, although the atmosphere was nil. My daughter, her husband, and the twins were also there. They really enjoyed everything. They watched all kinds of movies downstairs and played with their cousins. They got there a little later than everyone else because they did some sight-seeing on the way. They stayed at the Comfort Inn and really enjoyed it. There was a swimming pool, free WiFi, and a great breakfast included in the price of the room.

Garrett & Taylor

It is amazing that when we have stayed at the Hilton, Hyatt, Doubletree, and other high-end hotels, they charge at least $10 for WiFi per night. You would think they would include it in the price of the room, considering the cost of the rooms. Even a bottle of water costs $3. We always take our own food for snacks. We are not cheap, but we certainly aren't stupid either.

Jesse & Rhonda

Anyway, my brother had Thanksgiving catered, with servers. It was one of my best Thanksgivings ever. The ladies got to enjoy the children, watch the parade and football, movies, and we put a puzzle together at the game table in the movie room.

The Movie Room

There was my brother, his wife, 2 sons, daughter-in-law, 2 children; my mother; me and my husband, daughter, son-in-law, 2 children; my sister, her daughter, son-in-law and 2 children; friend of my brothers', his wife, and two daughters. Twenty-four for dinner. The caterer was a local company that serves homemade type food and we couldn't have had better if we had cooked it ourselves.

Bertha (my mother)

Saturday, we took my mom to her house and Ray and I went shopping. Didn't buy much, but it was nice to get out and walk some. We picked up mother and met my brother, his wife, and a son at Malone's. Malone's is a great restaurant in Lexington. They evidently eat there a lot. I really loved the food and the wait staff were superb.

Sunday morning we got up and packed and left Lexington about 8 a.m. It was raining, but by the time we reached Charleston WV, it had quit. Sonny had bought some pastries at Panera Bread Saturday night and we had them for breakfast. We stopped at Wendy's and I had an apple, craisens, chicken salad. It was great with blue cheese dressing.

My mother gave me loads of yarn to make lap blankets for hospice. Got to get busy with them. I have been making dish cloths to sell for the children's new playground at church. I hear that it is going to cost $30,000. That is a lot of yarn. LOL.

I hope you all are having a lovely season, just remember that Christmas is only about 25 days away. Take a look at my other blog for: (click to go to link)

A Familiar Poem for the Holidays! (Christmas)

Check it out. It circulates every year, usually on email, but I decided to give it a permanent home. 

Jesus is the reason for the season! 

GOD IS GOOD, ALL THE TIME!