The "sound"of a smile

My daughter called today.

I "heard" the smile in her voice.

It is amazing how much you can read a person even if you can't see them. I answered the phone and instantly heard, "Hi Mom!" And I heard it ... the smile behind the voice.

We chatted about everything and nothing but we enjoyed the call.

And then I passed the phone to Alan. His huge "Hi Bussy" lit up his face and sure enough, a big smile was there too.

It's amazing how much you can "hear" from a voice only.

What a beautiful sound.

Whew!

My house is quiet.

Over the last few weekends, my home was filled with family. Noisy? OMG yes! Fun? It sure was. The anniversary weekend was everything I had hoped for. It was wonderful for me to go from room to room and see my family members in continual chatter and laughter.

The restaurant was great. They had our clan in a seperate room and the table was decorated beautifully. At first glance at the long, long table, I thought there were too many seats. But, alas, we filled them all!

There is nothing in this great world of ours that is more precious than family. The love hangs in the air and the laughing sometimes makes your stomach ache!

Embrace your loved ones. I know I did.

Anticipation

Anticipation is great.

Having something fun to look forward to is almost as much fun as the event.

This weekend Alan's Mom and Dad will be celebrating their 60th wedding anniversary. One of Alan's sisters planned the weekend for everyone here in Saltsburg at "The Ranch".

Some of the family will be staying here with us and some of the family will be staying at a Comfort Inn near Saltsburg. We will have from Friday evening until Sunday afternoon to visit, laugh, tell stories and, in general, have what is most important with family and friends ... camaraderie. We will have dinner at a local restaurant and I have emailed everyone "THE MENU". Everyone has emailed me their selections and I can feel and see the excitement we all have in planning and anticipating the weekend.

Family is so important in my life and I so treasure every moment with all of them.

What a weekend it will be!

I made my daughter proud today ...

I have been watching CNN and Fox for months watching the presidential race. I have watched the debates religiously and have kept up-to-date on both candidates.

I almost didn't vote.

When I don't know how to do something, I don't want people to know. I get embarrassed easily and try to avoid those situations. I wasn't sure if I could figure out the new computer way of voting so I wasn't going to go.

I drove past the street twice trying to decide. And I voted! It was really quite easy. The pride I felt when I walked out of our township building was HUGE. I am so happy I faced "my challenge" and shot it down FLAT! Today this senior citizen rocks!

I know, Bethany, that I made you proud today! :)

Is it Wii or Wheeeeeeeeeee?

Having been a super freak of Nintendo years ago (and actually starting on Atari), I have been intrigued with the popularity of the Wii. I've watched two grandsons, a son and a daughter play this with great intensity and fun. Watching my two grandsons (who are both five years old), it looked sooooo easy. Having debated for the last year, I decided to buy a Wii. Now my logic for this was "the grandchildren will like it when they visit". Yeah, right. So anyway, I made my purchase about a week ago. Luckily for me, my son-in-law Chris, Bethany and Carter were visiting and it took Chris all of five minutes to hook it up. I watched Bethany and Carter play the Wii for a day and we all laughed and got caught up into the games. My confidence was soaring when they left.

Well, sir, I sat down today to get familiar with the Wii. I thank my lucky stars that I was alone. I found out you have to be familiar with 6 buttons all at once, you have to shake the controller to attack, you have to double click something to jump and so on and so on.

I just took two Tylenol.

I almost took three.

My arthritic shoulder is throbbing, the tendons in my arms are screaming and my blood pressure is up from swearing. I've developed a serious twitch in my legs and sides from leaning to the left or right to steer and watching my knees jump when I tried to use the kick control.

Hope these Tylenols kick in soon. Sigh.

The Queen of Knick Knacks

My daughter once accused me of being a "knick knack" housekeeper. When I visit her home, her bookcases, stands and counters are tastefully decorated with simple but appropriate items. You can actually SEE her counters.

With cooler weather setting in this week, I decided I'd better get around to doing some house cleaning. As I whipped out the Pledge and Windex, I began to wipe everything clean. As I moved each item to polish underneath of it, I had memories of the many people who gave me little gifts. A family member, a friend, my Mom and so on and so on. I seriously did try to snatch some of the items for a box for the attic but every time I tried to put it in a box for the attic, a part of me argued and back they went in the same spot.

Soooooo ..... in addition to being a Mom and a Grandma, I've decided to stake a claim on the title "Queen of Knick Knacks".

I think I would win. All I need now are bigger counters and tables.

No Electricity

Right before half time during the Steelers game Sunday night, our power went out. It was one of those times when the power blinked, came back on, lights dimmed and it blinked once more before going out. It was hot, humid and I sat in my living room in total darkness swearing because I couldn't see the rest of the game. I even texted a friend who kept me up-to-date on the score. The power remained off until 2:00 p.m. today. During that time, I couldn't do much of anything. Because of the quiet, I was able to think about all of the people who lose their homes, families and lives because of natural disasters. We all watch CNN and "see" everything happening but I cannot even begin to imagine the trauma and hell that they go through. I felt very, very lucky that the only inconvenience I had after a wind storm was the loss of electricity. We should all count our blessings.

"Jim and Jo"

My husband's side of the family is notoriously loud. I don't mean a little loud ... they are very loud. When there are family get-togethers, you almost need earplugs. My father-in-law is now hard of hearing so the "normal way of speaking" is to yell.

As my husband and I venture into our senior years, we often laugh about how we are becoming the new "Jim and Jo" of the family. For instance, last year he wanted me to cook venison for him for dinner. Now I do not like hunting, will not eat it but will cook it for him on occasion. I had told him to get some from the downstairs freezer for me to cook. I was upstairs later that evening and yelled down the stairs, "Alan did you get the venison?" He yelled back, "Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat ???? Did I take my medicine?"

Something tells me that we are seriously the new "Jim and Jo".

An All Around Good Gal

My oldest son is engaged to a wonderful girl named Karrie. Over the last year or so, I've watched how happy she has made my son and what a great girl she is to his three children. Karrie also has three children of her own so it was a challenge for the both of them to adapt to six kids. And, yes, they have heard all of the "Brady Bunch" jokes. Alan and I were invited to a picnic she had for her family. Sitting back watching her, I saw the devotion she has to her family. From her parents to her elderly grandfather, she was caring and attentive to each family member. She is such a blessing to our family. We welcome her with open arms to the Slapinski family.

Letting go .....

One of my grandsons started kindergarten last week. I got a call from my daughter telling me all about that first morning. Like me, she cried when the school bus came to whisk him away. That same afternoon, a friend of mine stopped by and was crying because her youngest had started college and was now a few hours away from home. From kindergarten to college, it was never easy to "let my kids go". I can remember every heartache in saying those goodbyes. Unfortunately, it never got easier. There are times I would give anything to have my kids young again and living with me. The only thing that helps is knowing how happy they are now as adults and living their own lives. For those of you who haven't had to "let go" yet, I can assure you it won't be easy but you will adapt. We may not like it but we all do.

Neal E. Boyd

If you have not watched America's Got Talent, you need to go to their website and check out Neal E. Boyd. This gentleman is unbelievable. He is an insurance salesman and has one of the most wonderful voices I have ever heard. Neal is a very humble man with a great love for his family. I have never been a fan of opera but if he ever comes out with a CD, I will buy it immediately. Give yourselves a treat and hear what this man is all about.

Back to this Senior Citizen stuff ...

I was thinking today about this senior citizen thing. It really began when I turned 55. All I heard about from people older than me were the discounts they got once they reached senior citizen age. Our one grocery store in town gives a 5 percent discount on Tuesdays to senior citizens. It took me a couple of weeks to remember to tell them I was "of age" and the cashier gave me that glorious 5 percent discount. Now this cashier was not, and is still not, a very friendly gal. I had tried numerous times to entrap her into small talk or a smile but, alas, no luck. (Doesn't it irk you when you try to be nice and the person on the receiving side totally ignores you?) A few weeks later, on a Tuesday, I went to another cashier and reminded her that I was a senior citizen. (I had given up trying to buddy up to the other gal.) This other cashier looked at me oddly and asked how old I was. I told her 55. She then proceeded to tell me that the discount was given to people 65 and older! So now becomes the big question ... did the unfriendly cashier think I was 65 years old? I don't think I want to know! Needless to say, I avoid her checkout as much as I can ! :)

Give your parent an extra hug

While on vacation, our host at the cottages in Canada, lost her father. She stopped at my cottage when I called out the door to invite her to dinner. She was crying and I asked her what was wrong. She had just come from the nursing home and the doctors told DiAnne that her father would probably not last more than a few days. He died that evening. When I arrived home from vacation, I got word from my daughter that her mother-in-law's mother had passed away the evening before. Having lost both my father and my mother, I could immediately relate to how DiAnne and my daughter's mother-in-law felt. Losing a parent is one of the hardest times in a child's life. It does not matter how old that child is. For those of you who read this and have a parent or parents living, give them an extra little hug next time you see them. You have no idea how very lucky you are.

I so miss my Mom

Last week I looked for a gold chain that had one of my Mom's favorite rings and a gold half moon. My Mom died 8 years ago but most of the time it feels like yesterday. Anyway, I couldn't find the chain. I have gone from frantic mode to a deep sadness because that chain, ring and half moon were favorites of hers and it held a huge sentimental part of me. Last night I couldn't fall asleep. I had looked everywhere. I even, today, called the last motel that Alan and I had stayed in to see if someone had found it in our room. I was gently told that nothing had been turned it. My Mom often talked about how, when she died, she would send me "messages". I would be horrified that she was even hinting that she wouldn't be here forever and she would laugh like crazy and continue with her "message" talk. Tonight I again went to the bathroom drawers where I toss some of my jewelry. I know I had looked there at least a dozen times in the past week. Again nothing. I was crying and was "asking" my Mom to please help me find it. My eyes were red and I hurt like it did the day she died. I opened one of the drawers AGAIN and noticed Christmas jewelry. I pulled the jewelry out and my breath caught. My gold chain, ring and half moon was there. I know some of you will never believe my Mom had anything to do with me finding it. But I know that my Christmas jewelry is kept in a different drawer and that I never put every day jewelry there. If some of you reading this think I am goofy, so be it (because I actually am most of the time) but, tonight, my Mom touched me.

Thanks Mom. I miss you so much.

American Idol

I just got home from the American Idol show in Pittsburgh and it was WONDERFUL. One of the benefits of retirement is having lots of free time to watch my favorite shows. I went with the daughter of one of my best friends. She, over the years, has become one of my best friends too. We arrived early and had a nice leisurely dinner at a restaurant across the street. The concert began with the 10th runner-up and continued on to the Idol winner this year ... David Cook. For those of you that watched AI this year, the two "Davids" were very popular and when they performed, the crowd went wild. For an evening, I really felt like a kid again. I so enjoyed the evening and forgot my new status of senior citizen! We should all take the time out of our lives to do something special for ourselves. This was one of those times for me. :)

Sticky Notes and Coffee

When my husband "retired" from AT&T, we took the money and invested his retirement money. However, he was too young to retire so he went on to another career and I retired for real. He works very hard. It all started accidentally but one morning I left him a "post-it" note about something stupid which was beside the coffee pot. I don't drink coffee but each night I get the coffee ready so when he comes downstairs, it is ready for him. Well, the "sticky notes" have become a part of our morning ritual. It might be a little joke about something we've laughed at or just a note that says "I love you" but, nonetheless, the note is usually there. And, sometimes, he leaves a little note for me. Making his lunch every evening for the next day, getting his coffee ready and leaving silly notes is a small way to tell him I appreciate him and thank him for working so hard when I don't have to.

So here's to "sticky notes" ... a small way to say a whole lot ... :)

Whatever

This is the one word that can make my mood go from sweet to sour in an instant. The other day I stopped at Subway and ordered a sub. The sub I ordered had various meats and, of course, cheese, etc. I told the girl I only wanted one type of meat and to substitute extra American cheese for the forgotten meats I didn't want. When I stepped up to pay, she stated my order and said it would be so much extra for the American cheese. I really, really, really, in a nice tone, asked why I was being charged for extra American cheese. She shrugged her shoulders and said "WHATEVER". I cannot describe what that one word did to me.

Having worked at a bank for upteen years, I know what it is like to work "for the public" so I quietly paid the bill and left.

The ride home was rather loud. I was by myself and ranted and raved about that one particular word. Why is it that one eight letter word can cause such rage? (How many of you counted the letters in that word to see if I was right?) :)

Anyway, that is my gripe for the day. Whatever ....

A Little Yellow Bird

Growing up, my Dad always had bird feeders in our yard. I loved watching for birds with my Dad. Our yard also had squirrels. One of my funniest memories was watching Dad grease the metal poles. He wanted to feed the birds ... not the squirrels. So the squirrels would make a running leap onto the pole and quickly slide down onto the ground shaking their heads.

Throughout the many places I've lived since then, I always had bird feeders. The other day, while walking into the house, I passed my feeders and noticed a little yellow bird that didn't fly away as I passed. It was clinging onto a net feeder that I had bought for wild finches. I went over to the feeder and the bird didn't fly. One of his feet was caught in the netting. It was a hot day and I don't know how long the bird was there.

I gently cupped the bird in my hand and gently released it's foot. I walked to the other side of the yard where there was plenty of shade and placed the bird onto a tree limb.

I watched as the little bird sat there for awhile and it finally flew away. What a feeling of joy I had as I watched him regain his freedom.

I am sure many people would say that it was just a stupid bird. But not me. It deserved a chance to live and I helped.

So next time you see a yellow bird at your feeder, take the time to wonder if it was my little yellow bird.

Dad would have been proud of me.

My new blog ... Dang!

Reality. Sometimes it is nice and sometimes it is not! I am 57 years old and during a recent holiday, I walked out of a grocery store with a cart full of groceries. A young lady came up to me and said, "Mam'm let me help you with those". I looked around and sure enough she was talking to me. I nicely refused and told her that I was okay but thanked her anyway. She insisted on following me and when I got to my car, she proceeded to place every bag from my cart into my trunk. She then asked me if I had someone at home to help me. I smiled and said yes and thanked her. Hmmmm .... on the way home I didn't know whether to laugh or to cry. I laughed because I certainly did not need the help but was touched by her kindness. On the other hand, I felt like crying because I realized ... dang, I am a senior citizen. Guess being 57 has it perks!