Christmas Past and a New Year Beckons

The weather here is VERY, VERY, VERY WET!  And it is VERY windy!  We left our Edmond home today driving on icy streets as sleet was falling.  Yuk!  Fortunately, we were in Jerry's truck that has 4-wheel drive.  We are now back home in Kingston where it is several degrees warmer, but buckets of rain are falling and blowing.  Ponds are overflowing and some roads are flooded.

GoodNESS!  The dogs are in.  The cats are in.

Honestly, we can't complain.  The weather has been wonderful for weeks.  The weather was very nice Christmas day.

And, speaking of Christmas, I'm sure you all want to know about my super secret gift.  Here it is.  It is a quilt with a bunch of nurse sayings and clipart I put together for my granddaughter who is in nursing school and working 12-hour shifts at OK Heart Hospital.

I have a video on my cell phone of her opening the gift, BUT I cannot get the video to go to my email.  I have sent it at least six times, but it never does transmit.  UGH!

Lindy was sweet and said she liked it, but I think her Mother liked it more than she did.  She didn't even read the pictures and sayings.  I did point out two or three of them.  I spent so many hours on them, but nobody realizes what goes into something like that until they do it themselves.  Hopefully, she looked at it all later.  She was concerned about her boyfriend's whereabouts and kept texting.  It kind of hurt my feelings, but...

Sometimes, what we think is going to be really special to someone, is kind of a flop.

I think it is PAY BACK for when I did something AWFUL one year when my kids were little.

NOTE:  I am NOT insinuating that what Lindy did compares to what I did in the story I'm about to tell you.  Lindy was very sweet and said she liked the quilt.  I'm just saying, maybe I deserved a little disappointment.

My daughters were probably 8 and 10.  My Dad and Mom were ALWAYS at our house for Christmas.  My Mother was an excellent seamstress.  She decided to make me and both my daughters KNIT, LIME GREEN skirts with tie belts that had BLACK FUR BLOBS at each end of the belts.  With my Mother's skills, she probably whipped them all up in less than an hour.  Elastic waists and one seam rectangles.

My Mother had a thing for fur.  I, however, did NOT.

Anyway, I hated the skirts, and the girls hated the skirts.  None of us looked good in lime green, and none of us liked fur blobs on the end of our belts.  I gave them to the Salvation Army as soon as she left.  She asked me later about them -- and STUPID ME -- told her the truth.  She was quite upset, and I realize NOW how much that must have hurt her.  I wish I could go back and REDO that and all three of us wear them at least once and have a picture taken in them.

Christmas night was at my daughter, Tammy's, house.  She does Christmas like I always did.  Lots of presents and lots of food and lots of fun.  This is Tammy and her hubby, Len:

I took ham.  Tammy fixed AuGrautin Potatoes, Green Bean Casserole (in a very fancy way) and the YUMMIEST salad!

She got the salad recipe from a nurse friend of hers -- I think she said.  It has a can of crushed pineapple with the juice -- chopped apples (she uses different kinds, but NOT "Delicious") -- a box of vanilla or butterscotch pudding -- and a container of cool whip.  You just mix it all together and chill.  You won't believe how delicious it is!

I should have taken a picture of it.  Well, actually I probably would have except I got MANY comments from Len about "everything having to be on my BLOG".  It made me feel a bit intimidated, so I didn't do a lot of what I would have otherwise.  I don't want to make people uncomfortable, and a lot of people don't like their picture taken, and I was at HIS house, not mine.

This was the VERY FIRST present I unwrapped.  It was from my oldest grandson, John.  (I call him "Boo Bear".)  He is a Sergeant in the Army and is stationed at Fort Hood.  He also gave me a wonderful framed picture taken at his promotion, but we left it on Jerry's desk in Edmond.

I squealed with delight and ran over and jumped in John's lap for a photo.  LOVE IT!  His poor fiance' about got crushed.  She is lucky I lost 15 pounds!  There were comments floating around the room such as, "He has ALWAYS been her favorite!"  I don't know WHY they would think that!

And this is my sweet granddaughter, Lindy.

She is the one I made the special nurse quilt for.

She is in nursing school and works in the Emergency Room at the OK Heart Hospital where her Mom also works.  Her Mom works for a doctor there.

Obviously, she is my favorite too!

Lindy gave me a gift card to Hobby Lobby because they sell fabric and beads, and she also bought me several pair of warm, fuzzy socks that she remembered I really like.  She got her Papa several bags of dark chocolate (his favorite) and a nice shirt.

And THIS gorgeous young man is Jacob Troy.  All I can say about him is that if his life choices were as good as he is looking, he would be a very prosperous, happy, successful young man. 

Unfortunately, that has not been the case up to now, but I am expecting a major miracle in 2016 for this very loved grandchild of mine who is constantly in my thoughts and prayers.

I told him he was so handsome, he could be a model, so he was modeling his new shirt for me.  He can be QUITE the charmer.

 He played Santa for the night.

And, yes, my husband WAS there.  This is the only picture that was taken, and my camera was on the wrong setting, so it is very fuzzy.  You get the idea, lol.

OHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH, I almost forgot to show you one of my BESTEST OF ALL gifts.  My daughter is an excellent knitter/crocheter, and I have BEGGED her to make me some fingerless gloves.  I opened these and was so excited.  Tammy kept saying they had a mistake in them, but I told her NOT TO TELL ME!  If there is a mistake, I sure don't know where it is, and I have looked and looked.

I ate a hamburger with these on today!  

IF the video of Lindy opening her quilt EVER COMES ACROSS from my cell phone, I will share it with you.  

Hugs, Joy