CATS

Everyone knows I am a crazy cat lady.  This label has been used on me more and more as I get older.  I suppose I just have more time for my cats now that the children have moved on.  Or who knows, maybe I have just become more crazy!

I have encountered and owned many cats throughout my life.  They each have a story to tell.  I suppose that is why T.S. Eliot wrote "Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats" and Andrew Lloyd Webber adapted it into the musical "Cats."
T.S. Eliot wrote this book which was a collection of whimsical poems about feline psychology and sociology.  Being the cat lover that I am, I have read this book countless times.  Andrew Lloyd Webber had the genius and foresight to turn this collection of poems into one of the greatest musicals of all time.  I would probably be too embarrassed to say how many times I have seen "Cats."
Both the book and the play start out with the naming of the cats.  This is always my favorite part.  It seems so sophisticated and so mysterious.  Each cat has 3 names:  one common, one fancy and one only the cat knows.  Somehow this tickles my funny bone!

I don't know the moment I fell in love with cats, but I honestly don't remember a moment when I DIDN'T love them.  So I must have been fairly young.  I can picture one of those tiny little hardback books that we all had as kids entitled 'Kittens.'  I can see it so clearly in my mind.  It was a light blue book with an adorable white and grey at on the cover looking at a butterfly.  Maybe Santa brought me that book and that began my love affair with the furry little felines.  I remember looking at it again and again and I would circle and draw hearts around the pictures of the kittens I liked the best.  I think when I go back to Mom's house one of these days, I am going to look on the bookshelf and see if this or any of my Little Golden Books are still there.  It would be awesome if I found this book!

I also loved the Dr. Seuss books about The Cat in the Hat.  These were very different types of books from the sweet book about cats and kittens that I loved so much.  The Cat in the Hat was known to be a mischievious cat and was always 'up to something!'  I think Dr. Seuss must have been a crazy cat person himself.  He captured our hearts with these books and touched on the true side of mischief that cats are so known for.

I always load Mom up with books from the library.  She has become an avid reader.  She particularly loves biographies, but occasionally I choose another genre of literature and sneak it into her stash.  She pretty much reads whatever is put in front of her these days.  Recently I got the book "Dewey" for her.  Someone had recommended it to me and I never got around to reading it.  This book was written by Vicki Myron and Bret Witter.  It is a true story about a cat named Dewey Readmore Books.  Dewey was the resident cat at the Spencer Public Library in Iowa.  Someone put this cat in the book return in 1988.  The library board agreed to neuter and declaw the cat and keep him around.  I can't imagine who could put a kitten in a book return and leave him for dead, but God did His work and turned this tragedy into a blessing.   Dewey lived a good life and didn't die until 2006.  18 years for a cat is a good long life.  When I look at pictures of Dewey, I think of my own sweet cat, Leo.   They look a lot alike.

I know I forced this book on Mom, but she did admit to enjoying it!

We all remember the Cheshire Cat in "Alice in Wonderland" and of course the endearing Puss N' Boots.  But my love of cats stems far beyond the world of arts and literature.  Cats are very real to me and are a very necessary part of my life.

I have had several cats in my lifetime beginning with a little kitten I got in kindergarten.  I came by this cat in a most peculiar way.  My grandmother, on Mom's side, was such a lovely and fun woman.  I loved to visit her and spend time with her.  I only knew her for a short 7 years, but there are some things about her I will never forget.  I have two stories about her that I have told over and over again.  I guess they are stories that make me happy and so they bear repeating.  One of these stories is about a sleepover I had at Nanmama's.  I didn't like to sleep away from home very much, but I was happy to have a special day/night with this sweet woman.  She certainly had the true 'grandmother gene,' because she let me get away with a few things that my mother wouldn't.  Nothing bad, of course, but she did allow me to eat corn and olives for breakfast!  I never have been a breakfast eater and mom always had trouble getting me to eat anything in the morning.  When my grandmother asked me what I wanted, I told her leftover corn and olives.  She didn't flinch.  Corn and olives it was.  I remember she let me play in the backyard.  She had grapevines and I loved to pick the grapes.  They were those slipskin grapes where you just pushed on them and the juicy middle popped in your mouth and the skin stayed put.  Thinking back, I ate these until I was stuffed, and I didn't wash a one of them.  I pulled them right off the vine and popped them in my mouth!  She also had pecan trees and I am sure she loved it when she convinced me to gather the pecans in a pail and bring them in and help her shell them.  It was okay.  It was simply a good time spent with my Grandma.

The other story I love is about a kitten.  I can't remember the circumstances or the whys or wherefores, all I know is that my grandmother had a tiny gray tabby kitten and she gave it to me!  Yes.  Without asking my mom or anything!  That was pretty bold of Nanma, but I am sure she figured Mom would be okay with it since everyone knew of my passion for these little creatures.  How could Mom tell me I couldn't keep the kitten when her own Mom gave it to me?   That kitten didn't last long and he had a very sad demise.  I won't write about that now as I don't intend for this blog to contain anything sad or unpleasant.  Let's just say I know Mom feels very badly about what happened to that little guy.

When we moved to Ridgeview Drive I was in the 3rd grade....8 years old.  Martha met the girl across the street, Karen, and they became fast friends.  This friendship lasted throughout high school.  Karen had a cat who had a litter of kittens.  Soon after we moved in, she showed Martha these kittens and offered to give her one.  Of course, Martha told me and we began the begging and pleading for this pet.  Mom and Daddy finally agreed but the rules were that we had to feed him and keep after him and he had to be an outdoor cat.  We were willing to agree to anything!  We also knew to keep the cat away from Daddy because he really didn't like cats at all and I guess we were lucky that he gave in (or should I say, caved in?)  Mom doesn't really like cats either, but I don't think she was as bothered by the idea as Daddy.  She would let me sneak this cat into my room often when I got home from school.  I would keep the door to my room shut when I played with him and I made sure he was back outside before Daddy got home from work!  My dad was far from a mean man, he just didn't care for cats!

Martha and I were not very original as we named this cat Tiger.  He was my first of several orange tabby cats and he did have beautiful markings and looked just like a tiger.  Someway somehow throughout the years, we began at some point to call this cat Dinkle.  I think one time he was being a cute little kitty showing off for us and I giggled and said he was 'such a Dinkle cat!'  Martha thought that was really funny so the nickname stuck.

Tiger Dinkle lived a long time.  The summer before I went off to college, he passed away.  My dad was the one who had to handle the situation and break the news to us.  I was devastated, but I really have fond memories of all my years of growing up on Ridgeview Drive with this cat.

When Jim and I got married, we became more 'dog people.'  I think Jim always wanted a dog and so I was happy to have a dog.  We had several dogs throughout our marriage, but we finally decided to get the kids a kitten when Madeline was just 2.  We surprised them with an orange Tabby kitten.  He was so precious and Joseph, Jimmy and Madeline were totally surprised and they loved him!  They all decided to name him Oscar, which turned out to be a fitting name for him.  Madeline was really too young to get into the naming of the cat with her big brothers, so it was a battle of the wits between Jimmy and Joseph.  One day Madeline was watching "Sesame Street," as she did religiously, and the boys were watching Oscar the Grouch with her on "Sesame Street," and thus the name!

Oscar moved with us to Florida a few years later.  There was no way we could imagine not bringing him as he had truly become a part of our family.  Jim was already in Florida, so I drove down with the three kids and the cat in my mini van.  I took Oscar to my friend, Dino, who is a veterinarian in Shelby.  He gave me a couple of tranquilizer pills for Oscar to help him with the travel.  They worked magically and Oscar traveled like an angel!

Oscar lived several years with us in Florida until one day he disappeared.  We believe he just went off to die, because he had disappeared before and returned....more than once.  Oscar was a beautiful cat and we always say he truly had nine lives!  Never has a cat had more mishaps and survived than that guy.  

Before we lost Oscar, we got yet another orange tabby cat.  His name is Peabo and he is still with us today....17 years later.  Peabo is without question the sweetest cat in the world.  He never meows or complains.  For years we thought he didn't know how to meow because he was so quiet!  He always made way for Oscar, as he knew he was the Alpha Cat.  They never fought and life was peaceful with two cats in the house.

Peabo, as I said, is a very sweet cat.  He is old and his fur is matted.  He seems to have trouble seeing and hearing, but he is still quite lovable and is always ready to be petted and brushed.  He does purr a lot to let his human-folk know that he is still quite happy.  Madeline worries about him and I understand why.  She sort of "took to" Peabo and views him as her cat.  In fact, she likes to call him Her Prince.  I wonder what Eric thinks of that?  Ha ha!  Peabo loves Madeline too, and I know he will be missed by her when he's gone, just as he missed her terribly when she was in Philadelphia for 5 years.

We now have Leo and I vow not to be TOO obnoxious as I write about him.  He is my BFF right now and I sometimes feel silly because I love him so much!  I know he came into my life at a time when I needed him and for a reason that is unexplainable.  My husband surprised me with this 8 ounce orange tabby kitten that was rescued from under the dumpster at his office.  I am sure Jim thinks I give Leo more attention than I do him, and he might be right.  But I always tell him it's a reflection that he did a wonderful thing by bringing Leo home.  I shudder to think what might have happened to this little guy (who's not so little any more) had Jim not rescued him.  So, really Jim is my hero!

Although Jim has always tolerated the cats we have owned, he isn't a true cat lover.  That is, until Leo came along.  Even Jim says that Leo is 'like a dog.'  He says it like it's a good thing, so I go with it!  Leo is unusual and anyone who comes in contact with him agrees....from Leo our painter, to Phyllis who helps me around the house, to my bridge friends, to any handyman or repair man who comes in to do something in the house, to the pool guy that Leo loves to 'help,' to any visitor we have.  No one is exempt from Leo's true affection.  Even Mom has warmed up to Leo.  Leo kind of makes you love him.  He loves everyone and therefore he thinks everyone loves him!  

Leo doesn't run from the vacuum cleaner or the mop.  Instead, he wants to run behind them and act as if he is helping.  Leo is always in the room....the middle of the room....where everyone else is.  This cat doesn't know about hiding under beds or under sofas.  He is always in the center of the action.  If several of us are sitting around the family room watching TV, he literally plops in the middle of the room facing us so that he can have each person in his view.  When he was tiny, he was always on my chest or in my lap.  Now he just likes to be around everyone.

Leo isn't annoying.  He doesn't beg for food or meow.  He 'squeaks' occasionally when he wants to be let out onto the lanai, but he never makes annoying sounds.  He only eats dry cat food.  You can't get him to eat anything else.  He isn't messy.  Eric thinks it is so funny that when he hears my cars keys he runs to the back door and rubs against me and 'squeaks.'  He never wants his 'mommy' to leave!

I sometimes think something is wrong with me because I love this cat so much.  But like I said, he is very lovable and he came into my life when I needed him.  I met him when I walked into the door from a trip to Philadelphia.  Martha, Porter, Mom and I had gone to see Madeline.  It was my birthday.  We had a wonderful weekend that I will cherish forever.  It was my last time to be with Martha before she was in the hospital.  Leo was there for me during my terrible period of grief.  I talked to him and hugged him and he was my constant companion.  I think I needed him as much as he needed me.

Leo is good to Peabo.  I think he wishes Peabo wasn't so old because he always wants to play with him.  But he realizes that Peabo is not much for playing, so they often just nap together.  Not too close, but always in the same room and always facing one another.  We all talk about Leo every day and there is not a day goes by that he doesn't make us point, laugh, or comment about something he is doing.  He provides a lot of entertainment for us all.

Throughout the years, we have had names for the poses our cats make.  Martha and I started out with these and they have stayed and been carried down to my kids.  A few of our favorites are the 'laying eggs' pose.  This is when the cat tucks all four paws completely under him but has his neck and head very erect.  He looks just like a hen on a nest laying eggs!  Another is the 'praying pose.'  This is when he is in a similar pose to the laying eggs pose, but his eyes are shut and him nose down on the ground, as if he is bowing in prayer.  Madeline thinks Peabo is the cutest thing when he licks his paw to wash his face and she loves it when Leo sits tall after a meal and licks his lips.

The cute things cats do could take up volumes, in my opinion!

Lately I have come across some adorable cat and kitten pictures on line.  I like to post them on Facebook.  I guess I think if these pictures are the cutest things in the world, others will too.  I guess I am a lot like Leo!  Porter was teasing me recently about all the pictures of cats I put on Facebook.  Madeline told me it was one of the reasons she wasn't going to close her Facebook account....she looks forward to my pictures!  I think Madeline will grow up to be a crazy cat lady too.  She's already closer to it than she might realize.

There are so many cats that I have encountered in my life it is hard to mention them.  There are a few, though, worth mentioning.  There's Pebbles and Cooper....these are my friend, Carol's, cats.  I love them both!  I recently stayed at Carol's house when I was visiting Shelby.  I fell in love with both of her cats.  She had told me that Pebbles was sort of mean sometimes, but he never showed that side to me.  I think cats know who love them, so Pebbles became my buddy and let me hold him and love him often.  He is a calico cat, and I love the way he looks.  Cooper is Carol's other cat.  He is tiny, soft and fluffy.  He is unique, kind of like Leo.  He looks totally different and acts totally different from Leo, but he is a very social cat and likes to be around people.  Carol is a dog person, but I think Cooper has changed her heart a bit.  When I was leaving and Carol gave me a hug goodbye, she said "I love that you love my cats."  She needn't say more.  I knew exactly what she meant and where she was coming from.

Another special cat is Mr. Cat.  He is a big gray cat and he belongs to Sally and David in Shelby.  I might say, David belongs to Mr. Cat.  Again, not particularly cat people, these dear friends of mine took in Mr. Cat and now they know the meaning of having a cat be a part of your family.  Seeing David with Mr. Cat makes me chuckle and warms my heart.  I can picture the two of them snoozing in the recliner together right now.

My son and his wife have a cat, Aphex.  They are really crazy about him and although I've never met him, I have seen many pictures of him.  I guess Aphex is my grand-cat!  There's Skittles, Eric's cat and Sugar Baby, Jane's cat.  Skittles is skittish and isn't the center of attention in that household.  On the other hand, Sugar Baby is truly the Princess of Jane's house.  The two cats look and act totally different.  All cats have their own distinct personality, that's for sure!

There was Midnight, Beth's cat.  He was a huge black cat that was so sweet.  Madeline and I used to look after Midnight in the summers when Beth and her family would travel to Maine.  Madeline also watched our next door neighbor's cat, Diamond, when they went away.  Unlike Midnight, Diamond would hide and Madeline never saw him.  She only knew he was okay because when she would go back each day, he had eaten his food.  Again, two totally distinct personalities.

Mom never has really been a cat person, but simply by virtue of the fact that she's my mother, she knows a lot about cats.  She knows how much I love them, so I think that's enough for her.  She has bought me many cat things in my life.  I have cat statues and pictures all throughout my house...many of those from mom.  It's a case of Love Me, Love My Cat.

Cats.  Real cats.  Statues of cats.  Pictures of cats.  Books about cats.  Stories about cats.  Art and music about cats.  These are all a part of my life and who I am.  Call me a crazy cat lady.  It's okay because memories are made of this.

dancing cats

AWWW......

Stressed out cat

One of my all time favorite pictures!

Little Leo playing on Madeline's bed

Madeline dressed as cat for Halloween

Madeline with Peabo

Madeline with Oscar and Peabo

Leo helping me with the laundry

Tiny Leo

Leo is about to go swimming!

Leo and Peabo with play tunnel from Aunt Linda

Prince Peabo

Peabo

Porter and Madeline love Peabo

Needlepoint pillow from Mom's

Leo is Eric's partner in a game of cards

Leo celebrates with Porter on his birthday

Tiny little Leo

Leo lying next to me as I write this blog
L.O.V.E.

This Really Happened

Christmas has come and gone yet once again.  This holiday season was bittersweet, as I think is often the case.  I am now torn with the sadness of my favorite holiday over with and an excitement for a new year with new beginnings.

This was Mom's first Florida Christmas.  I really think that was the best part!  It was fun shopping for her and having her with us on Christmas morning.  We had trouble keeping her at bay with the unwrapping.  We always have our certain places we sit and we always go around the circle and open a gift.  Everyone watches and comments.  Of course, near the end, we all get a bit anxious and don't follow the rules.  However, Mom wanted to just open all of her gifts quickly!  She only made about 2 rotations and then she just did her own thing!  But that is okay.  I suppose 'doing your own thing' is a rite of passage when you are 87 years old!

We also had all 3 of our children here on Christmas....AND our new daughter-in-law.  It was wonderful and I must say that having a daughter-in-law is a great thing.  I am happy to say that I don't have any of those awful 'mother-in-law' feelings that I have heard and read about!  Another female in the family is great for me.              

   Madeline bought matching pjs for Mom, Ashley, herself and me.  We got a kick out of wearing our matching pjs on Christmas Eve and Christmas morning.  It was a sea of red plaid and I think it made everyone smile!  Madeline always pulls out the old family videos during the holidays and we love watching them.  When she was little, Madeline and I often had matching pjs or matching Christmas sweaters.  It is one of those things that girls just wanna do!  I was glad that Madeline decided you are never too old for this and brought back the tradition.  It was a great year for it with the addition of Mom and Ashley.  I hope each year we will all pull out our pjs and strut our stuff!

Not only did I have the pleasure of having all my kids, my husband, Mom and Ashley.....Bob and Porter flew in on Christmas afternoon and we got to enjoy them too!  It was a first for them to spend part of their Christmas in Florida, and I think it was fun for everyone.  Porter always seems to have fun and he always brightens things up for everyone with his laughter and giggles.

To add to my pleasure of being surrounded by loved ones, Eric was home for the holidays and on Christmas evening he came over and so did his parents.  I loved having the whole crew in my house!  What seems like chaos and work to some is really just me living life and loving every minute of it.

Christmas night after we ate brunswick stew, chili, Mexican corn bread and my famous ham "thingies," we all went out in the back yard to christen Jim's Christmas gift....a portable fire pit.  It was actually a cool evening by Florida standards, so it was fun for everyone to sit out in the dark by the fire pit and make their own dessert.....s'mores!
Jim was a bit confused on Christmas morning as he unwrapped his packages.  First, a bag of marshmallows.  Later, a box of graham crackers.  Then a package of Hershey bars.  More marshmallows.  More chocolate.  A package of kindling wood.  Some Duraflame logs.  A small bundle of firewood.  And finally, we brought the new firepit in!  It was nice of him to share his gifts with everyone.  We enjoyed it more than one time during the holidays.  A firepit is a great gathering place and a good time for conversation, 'what if' games, wedding planning, laughter, ghost stories and just plain silliness!  I can definitely see Jim's gift getting a lot of use around here.

Not only does Christmas bring families and friends together, it means food.  Lots of food.  I love everything about this....planning menus, making shopping lists, grocery shopping, putting the groceries away (not so much!), setting tables, cooking, serving, etc.  Mom always thinks it is too much work, and she is right.  But I am a hard worker and  this is work that is pleasurable to me.
The night Joseph and Ashley arrived, we had lasagne, meatballs and sausages, caesar salad, and garlic bread.  A cook's greatest pleasure is seeing everyone enjoy the food.  Joseph couldn't get enough and went on and on about how great the dinner was!  Ashley wants my recipe.  I don't actually have a recipe, but I can tell her how I do it.  I know her husband would love for her to make this meal for him sometime.  We've all heard from our husbands that he wishes we'd make something for him 'just like his mother did!'  I think at least Ashley will be receptive to this.
We followed this meal with a little 'surprise' for Joe and Ashley.  Since we weren't with them when they got married, we had a little minature wedding cake for them with a cake cutting and champagne toast!  It was nice to celebrate this happy occasion with them.

We broke with tradition on Christmas Eve.  Instead of going to the traditional church service at 7:00 p.m., we went to the earlier service.  It was a contemporary family service, so there were a lot of children there.  I love contemporary music, so that appealed to me...especially since we still sang my all time favorite "Oh Come All Ye Faithful," even though it had a contemporary twist to it.  The candle lighting at the end with the lights dimmed and the singing of "Silent Night" was the same.  That never fails to put a lump in my throat and move me to tears.  It is such a beautiful sight, sound and feeling.  It sums up the true meaning of Christmas.  I always feel ready to go out into the world after that.  It is the reminder that I need.  As Pastor Chuck always says of the nativity:  'This really happened and it happened for you.'  I have this printed on a card and sitting next to the nativity in my foyer.

Not only did we go to a different service, we came home and ate pick-up foods.  I usually do our traditional Christmas dinner, but it is late and no one seems hungry enough.  I decided to do this dinner on the 26th when Bob and Porter would be there and Joe and Ashley would still be here.  That way we would have everyone.  So on Christmas Eve, we had shrimp, mussels, cheese and crackers, seafood spread, spinach dip in a bread bowl, and some other pick up foods.  It was perfect and easy.  No one went to bed too stuffed.

Our day-after-Christmas-Christmas-dinner was fun.  We had been used to casual dining, but this meal was served in the dining room with candlelight and Christmas china.  I fixed a spiral ham with a special mustard dipping sauce that Porter loved.  I made green bean casserole, which is my favorite.  I only make it at Christmas time because Jim and Madeline don't really care for it.  I thought it would be a dish only for me, but I thought wrong.  When Joseph went back for seconds, there was no more!  Apparently Jim and Madeline are in the minority.   Eric, Bob, Jimmy, Joseph, Ashley, Porter and I all love it.  We also had pineapple casserole with cheddar cheese on top.  This is another dish I love that I only make at Christmas time.  We had rolls and broccoli and topped the meal off with fresh blueberry cobbler and vanilla ice cream.

The week ended with Bob treating us all to a delicious dinner at Kobe
Japanese Steak House.  I had announced earlier that day that I was off duty in the kitchen!  We all love the hibachi cooking and it was a real treat.
All of this explains why I am now best friends with My Fitness Pal....a calorie and exercise tracker.  It was worth it, but I will have to work hard to get rid of a s'more or too!

Gifts are always fun.  I think opening gifts is a highlight for us.  Madeline and I love to get into it and we like to be creative with our gift giving.  Jim got tickets for me to see "Hair" at Ruth Eckerd Hall.  I always love getting tickets, and although I have the music for "Hair" memorized, I have never seen it.  For a theater lover like me, that is unusual!  So, I look forward to a date night in April....
Jimmy helped Mom with her scratch-off lottery tickets.  Everyone gets these in their stockings each year.  Mom was excited...she said it was her first lottery ticket ever!  Unfortunately, there were no big winners in my living room, but it was fun to scratch them off with a small glimmer of hope!
Joseph painted a picture for me.  I saw it and immediately thought it was a version of the Madonna and Child.  He actually hadn't intended that, but he could 'get' why I thought that.  Although it is abstract, I don't think I can view it in any other way. I can't wait to hang it in my little art gallery.  I am about to run out of wall space.  Joseph has such talent.
Madeline got a new iphone.  It was her first iphone.  Eric got one too.  So did Porter.  Needless to say, Siri got a workout for a few days!
All of my gifts were wonderful and special, but I have to mention just one more.  It is a book entitled "I Could Pee on This and other poems by cats."  I think everyone knows I am a crazy cat lady, so when Porter gave me this book, I just laughed out loud.  The day after Christmas was rainy and we were all just sitting around the family room for a while and Madeline and Porter were making a gingerbread house when I decided it was a good time to read this book aloud to everyone.  I laughed until I cried.  It is a bit weird how much I could relate to these poems.....

You would think this house was full of children because we play so much.  Our "baby" is 17 year old Porter!  But we still managed to laugh as we watched Madeline, Eric and Porter Wii dance.  It is a sight to behold!  Madeline pulled out the old standard Wii Dance and we delighted to Porter and Eric dancing to Beyonce's 'Crazy in Love.'  That will always remain a classic in my mind.  Madeline also got Wii Country Dance and Wii Dance 4 for Christmas....lots of new songs and dance moves!  We played Christmas trivia and learned a lot of new Christmas facts.  I learned 2 new games:  Flux and Dutch Blitz.  Both games were fun despite the fact that I lost miserably at both.  I like to win games, so I am just warning my opponents that next time around I plan some serious revenge.  Just saying.

I am about to finish taking down the decorations.  This is always a hard and sad thing for me.  I love to get my house back in order, but Christmas ending is sort of sad.  I miss having a houseful of people and I miss all the laughter and happiness that comes with it.  This year as I take down the decorations I am separating some and packing them in boxes, sealed and labeled with Madeline's name.  I am passing on some of these things for her to use when she and Eric start their new life together and start their own new traditions.  I hope as she unpacks these boxes and sees the ornaments and decorations inside she will feel some of the wonderment and excitement that I have always had during this time of year.  I will be happy to pass the torch and I know Madeline will be great at making the holidays special in her own home.

And memories will be made of this.

Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night.

The Breakfast Room

Mom's breakfast room was one of my favorite rooms in her house.  I liked the look of the room, but the reason it was one of my favorite rooms is because what happened in the breakfast room.

Breakfast, of course, happened in the breakfast room (often accompanied by burnt toast!).  Breakfast for me is usually just coffee.  Black coffee.  And lots of it.  The best part of the day is having the time to sit in the breakfast room and drink this massive amount of coffee in a relaxed manner.  It is also best shared with someone else.  Mom and I spent many hours in her breakfast room drinking coffee.  Whenever I came back to Florida after a Shelby visit, Mom always called me to tell me the thing she missed most was waking up to coffee and me sitting at the breakfast room table.  We often said we solved a lot of the world's problems during that time!  We talked about everything.  Those moments will always remain some of my fondest memories with Mom.  I think she feels the same way.

One Valentine's Day I sent her a pink coffee mug.  I knew it would be symbolic of these morning spent with her.  I was always amazed at how the morning would creep close to noon!  I am an early riser, so this means a lot of time was spent drinking coffee.  I was always relaxed on my visits to Shelby.  It was special.

Of course, breakfast isn't the only meal we ate at that oak table.  We ate most of our meals there unless there were too many people to fit around the table.  It was usually big enough once we added the two leaves.  Whenever Jim and my kids were able to come to Shelby, we often had delicious meals at Mom's house in that breakfast room.  The Yeltons usually joined us and we would have some wonderful conversations and laughs. 

Mom and Gene loved to play gin.  They played gin almost every afternoon at that breakfast room table.  Mom said that whenever Gene came over he rarely made it past that room!  I think she let him go down the hall to the den whenever there was a ballgame on tv.  Seriously, I think those games of gin were a blessing to both Gene and Mom.  They had a lot of good conversations and some laughs every day when they played.  They also had some serious betting going on!  Mom said she usually lost one to two dollars to Gene each time.  I think he must have had the upper hand....or he often had the luck of the draw!  I know that since Mom moved to Florida, probably the thing she misses most is those afternoon gin games with Gene.  I know he is lonely without her, but he does play gin frequently with his brother, Bill. 

There is a plaque on Mom's breakfast room wall that says:  'Be kind to your kids.  They choose your nursing home.'  Stratford Court is far from a nursing home, but Mom totally and completely trusted Jim and me to find it and choose it for her.  It was a bit stressful, but I think I can rest easy now.  Mom loves it there and we all know it was the best thing for her to do.  I give Jim a lot of credit for doing the research and for finding Stratford.  Mom loves it that her son-in-law actually did this for her and that he actually wanted her here.  None of those mother-in-law jokes come out of Jim's mouth!  He really loves Mom and does not find her to be a burden in any way.  I know this to be true because he keeps her stocked with Snickers Bars and Baby Ruths!

Mom went to the local art gallery, Buffalo Creek, and bought an odd statue.  I know Martha thought she was a bit off her rocker!  It is unusual and not quite Mom's usual taste.  It is basically a wood trunk with a skinny neck and a flat head.  It is supposed to be a man, and I can see the artistic interpretation in the piece.  I think Mom bought it with my son, Joseph, in mind.  Joseph is an artist and a musician and because of that, he has been stereotyped into one who likes 'weird' stuff!  I guess he doesn't mind.  When Grandma moved, I made sure Joseph took this piece.  I knew he would truly appreciate it.

Mom's breakfast room table was used for meals and for playing cards.  It was also used for letter writing, bill paying, newspaper reading and wordsearch puzzles.  Mom used to complain about being worried about 'losing it,' as she calls it.  I told her she had to exercise her brain as much as possible.  One way I decided was to have her work on wordsearch puzzles.  All throughout school, as a student and a teacher, I used wordsearch puzzles.  They were a great tool to help students use their brains and logic and to search for spelling words or vocabulary words.  I started making wordsearch puzzles on my computer and mailing them to Mom to work on.  She really got into them.  I tried to theme each one and personalize them so that they were more fun and meaningful.  One Christmas I found a giant wordsearch puzzle book and gave it to Mom.  I knew she would always have it and would not have to wait around for me to create new puzzles and mail them to her.

Now that Mom is at Stratford Court, she keeps that wordsearch book next to her chair in her little den.  She says that she is never bored as long as she has something to read or that puzzle book to work on!

Mom's breakfast room was decorated with all sorts of things.  The serving counter had Joe's artwork entitled Arizona Sunset hanging above it.  He gave that to his grandma one Christmas knowing she loved to display things that her grandchildren made and also knowing the breakfast room was a perfect spot for it.  It is a great piece and after Mom moved, I made sure that piece came with me.  It now hangs in my little hallway where I have a lot of Joe's artwork displayed.

Porter is another creative grandchild.  He made a collage for Grandma one Christmas.  He put pictures on it and used each letter of Grandma to start a sentence about her.  It is really sweet and special and it had a prominent place on the wall in her breakfast room.  It now hangs in her bedroom at Stratford Court and she sees it, along with Porter's picture, every morning when she wakes up.

We often tease Mom about having so many pictures of Madeline around, but then, so do I.  Madeline has always liked to have her picture made, unlike my boys.  Also as a dancer and performer, there have been many photo shoots and opportunities for pictures.  It's hard not to have an abundance of these pictures on display.  Mom's breakfast room had a little collection of Madeline photos in the corner of her counter.  I think the boys understand why there are so many pictures of Madeline around.  I hope they don't feel slighted!  Tim, Madeline's future father-in-law, got a 'tour' of Mom's apartment one night after we had dinner at Stratford Court with her.  He saw the collection of pictures of Madeline (and Eric) on her refrigerator and he leaned over and whispered in my ear, "looks like Madeline is the favorite!"  Of course we laughed and I knew he didn't mean it, but I have since gotten a collection of pictures of all the other grandkids to put on Mom's refrigerator to even things out a little!  

Mom had a  blue antique bowl on the center of her breakfast room table.  She brought it to Florida with her and it is in her den.  It has always been a piece that brings a smile to us.  We call it her Buick. 

When Jim and I were young married 'kids' without a lot of money, we needed another car.  Sharing a car was getting kind of old.  Gus Gregory is a dear family friend and he had an old Buick 225 that he was trading in for a new car.  When he learned that we needed a car, he sold us his Buick for $225.00.  He was just a kind man doing a huge favor for two struggling newlyweds.  It was a bargain.  Jim loves to brag that we drove that car for a year and then sold it ourselves for $325.00!  It was probably one of the best car deals we ever made. 

One night we were visiting Mom and Dad and having dinner at the breakfast room table.  We commented on the pretty blue bowl, and somehow in the conversation we learned that Mom paid $250.00 for the bowl.  It was extravagant, but she said it just happened in a weak moment!  Jim was totally amazed and he said astonishingly, "that is more than I paid for my Buick!"  Thus, the Buick bowl.  We call it that to this day.

Mom has some interesting things in her breakfast room that people gave her for gifts.  Mom really is a good cook, but she likes to claim she isn't.  I guess as she has gotten older, she has truly gotten away from cooking a lot, so the jokes about her cooking have continued.  (The burnt toast is not a joke, however.  Just ask anyone who has been over to Mom's for breakfast!)  Someone gave her a cute porcelain plaque that says:  'Many people have eaten in this kitchen and gone on to lead normal, healthy lives.'  Mom wasn't insulted.  She proudly displayed this plaque right on her cabinet!

Another friend gave her a beautiful mosaic stepping stone inscribed with the 23rd Psalm.  It is also proudly displayed in her breakfast room.  It is a wonderful reminder to all of us that the Lord truly is our shepherd.

 Mom had some Russian drinking vessels on the wall in her breakfast room.  We moved those to Florida and hung them in her kitchen above the tea cart that we also moved from her breakfast room.  It made that little kitchen look special!   Mom and Dad purchased these drinking vessels in New York at Yale R. Burge.  They are unique 18th century vessels.  These same vessels can be seen in "Fiddler on the Roof," which is always special to me because I know that was Daddy's favorite musical.  He loved it!  I cannot hear "If I Were a Rich Man" or "Sunrise Sunset" without thinking of Daddy.

Another unusual thing Mom had in her breakfast room were sconces on the wall.  They are made out of real spindles from a loom.  They are significant because Shelby really became a mill town after 1920 and the cotton industry was important to its growth and success.  We left those sconces on the wall when Mom moved, but when I was there just last month I saw them and decided to ship them to Florida to my home.  I now have them hanging in my breakfast room above the old wooden table crumber that Mom also had hanging in her breakfast room.  So many memories.



Mom had a couple more things in her breakfast room that hold significance for me.  One is a beautiful needlepoint pillow on the captain's bench under the window.  This pillow is of two kittens and I love it!  When I asked Mom if someone made it for her she told me no that she bought it because I liked cats and it matched the sofa.  Sounds like good reasons to me.  Mom isn't much of a pet lover, so I felt like she really did have me in mind when she bought the pillow.

Probably one of the most interesting things Mom had in her breakfast room is an antique high chair.  She did move it to Florida and has it in her dining room.  It has always been a conversation piece.  She bought this high chair when I was pregnant with Joseph.  She actually used that high chair for all 3 of my children and for Porter whenever any of the grandchildren visited.  I can't believe an antique high chair survived all of that!  It was not the most comfortable or practical high chair, but it will always be special.  I have dibs on it if I ever have a grandchild.  But I guess I can let Mom enjoy it for her great-grandchildren for a while!

I suppose that the breakfast room in my house is used about as much as any room in the house.  Jim likes to use it for his 'desk.'  He claims the internet connection is better there than back in our bedroom where his real desk is.  I think it just feels more homey and keeps him closer to the actions of home.  Plus, if you strain your neck you can see the tv from the breakfast room table!  I often use the table for my craft projects, so I can't say much.

My friends and I play bridge at my breakfast room table and my family and our guests eat most of our meals there.  Sometimes we eat on the lanai or in the dining room for special occasions and sometimes we eat in our easy chairs in front of the tv!  That is a perk for being empty-nesters and having raised 3 kids who ate 3 meals a day at the table.

Many Christmas cards have been addressed at my breakfast room table and games have been played on my iPad at that table.  We play cards, Yahtzee, Apples to Apples and a myriad of other games at the breakfast room table.  We sit there to drink our morning coffee and read the newspaper.  I do the crossword puzzles out of the paper at that table.  Jim and I enjoy morning conversation sitting at the table before our busy days start.  It's nice to sit in the breakfast room and look out onto the lanai and see the pool which always looks so inviting.  I have sat alone at my breakfast room table and said my prayers of thanksgiving, and I have sat there and cried over my losses and my sorrows.

I looked up a definition of breakfast room.  The American Heritage Dictionary entry reads like this:  'Breakfast Room.  n.  A room, as in a house or hotel, in which meals are eaten.'

This definition only skims the surface.  A breakfast room can be a central meeting place for families.  It can be a significant place for conversation.   I cannot count the number of conversations have taken place around Mom's breakfast room table or my own.

I say pour another cup of coffee and let's talk and let's play.

And memories are made of this.

What Happened to November?

Today is December 1, 2012.  My question is this:  what happened to November?  I have always heard that time flies and that the older you get the faster it seems to go.  I have never felt that way so much as I have the last few months!
November was a packed month for us.  Looking back on my calendar for November, there is hardly a blank space.  It started with a day of bridge....what a great way to start the month!  I was host for our Marathon Bridge match.  I always enjoy a day of bridge at the table with the 3 Marys and Anita!  Afterwards, I served lunch and no sooner than I had recuperated from that, it was time to go to my friend's house for a night of bridge!  I am in a couple of bridge groups that meet regularly and this was our regular night to meet.  One can never have too much bridge or the friendly fellowship that accompanies it.  It so happens, the very next morning my other bridge group met!  I (almost) had my fill of bridge, and I enjoyed every moment of it.

November was also a month for arts and crafts festivals.  I love going to them.  There is so much imagination and talent out there in the world.  It just makes my heart soar!  Of course, I am always looking for ideas for my own crafting, but I also bought several things for gifts.  I bought a pottery butter dish for to take to Carol in Shelby.  Little did I know she has a "thing" for butter dishes!
I am always in favor of supporting artists.  My friend, Anita, and I actually wore ourselves completely out one Saturday after attending the Arts and Crafts Festival at my church and then making our way to Dunedin for their annual Art Harvest.  It was huge!  We had such a wonderful time.  Susan Gott was the featured artist at Art Harvest.  She works in several mediums, particularly glass.  Her work is exquisite.  She designed this harvest moon glass sculpture specifically for Art Harvest.  This design was used on the tee shirts sold for Art Harvest.  As Anita was buying some of Susan Gott's artwork,  I met her and she mentioned the tee shirts and told me to go buy one so she could sign it for me.  So of course I did.  I am a sucker for long sleeve tee shirts and I don't think I own one that is signed by the artist herself.

This November was also a time for our country to elect our new president.  Although I am not sure everyone in our family agreed on who to vote for, I am happy that everyone chose to exercise their right to vote and we all went to the polls.  Our votes were cast and our voices heard.  It made watching the election results that evening much more exciting and meaningful.  It feels good to know that you participated in this huge and important event.

November seemed to be a month for appointments....for both Mom and myself.  We had to keep a close watch on our calendars to see who needed to be where and when!  It always feels good to get those appointments completed and marked off the to-do list.  And it feels especially good when the results from the doctors and dentists are all healthy and positive.  

I went back to Shelby in November (although I had just been there the month before) to see Porter's performance in his school production of 'Blithe Spirit'.  He played Charles Condomine in Noel Coward's comic play from 1941.  This is a demanding role and Porter found himself on stage almost entirely throughout the production.  He had to learn a multitude of lines and he spent a lot of time working on the play (as he was also the stage manager). The hard work certainly paid off.  I thought he was fabulous!  Having done some community theater myself, I know first hand what goes into a production like this.  Not only were these young people dedicated to putting on a first-class performance, they all managed to continue to keep up their schoolwork.....AND their good spirits!  I am glad I was able to see Porter perform.

As I watched Porter on stage, I had all sorts of thoughts, feelings and emotions.  I guess the worst of them being that I was so sorry his mother was not there. She would have been so proud.  But the best part of that is knowing that so much of Porter's determination and work ethic are attributed to her wonderful mothering.  

I also saw my own children up on that stage in Porter.  I had never realized how much he looked like my kids until that night.  Family genes are truly amazing.  Porter definitely has some of those Porter genes!  

I remember one time when Mom came to Florida to see Madeline's dance recital and she kept saying afterwards that she saw Jimmy on that stage.  It was the first time she had seen such a family resemblance between those two siblings.  Of course, it helped that Madeline was dressed as a boy in that particular performance!  I do know what Mom means....now more than ever.

While I was in Shelby seeing Porter's play, I stayed with my friend, Carol.  Her hospitality was wonderful!  I slept later each morning than normal because she created such a comfortable room for me to sleep in.  She drove me around, lended a listening ear, and fed me livermush and cheese grits....what could be better than that?!  

One day Carol, Sally, Beth and I went into Carol's basement and spent hours working on a fun craft project.  Carol made chili for us and had a fire going in the fireplace.  We listened to Christmas music as well as some good old 70's tunes and we laughed and talked a lot as we worked.  Carol also made homemade vanilla ice cream and blueberry cobbler.  It was truly a wonderfully perfect afternoon and evening.

Thanksgiving was a little earlier than usual this year.  I had a lot to do to get ready for our Thanksgiving week.  Bob and Porter came from Shelby.  Madeline and Mom are living here this year.  What a blessing that is!  No more airline tickets and airport pickups to coordinate.  Jimmy lives here in Clearwater, so it was nice having almost everyone.  We missed Joseph and Ashley, but they just couldn't make it down.  They are coming for Christmas, so we really look forward to that!

Thanksgiving week begins with lots and lots of grocery shopping, cleaning, and organizing.  This year I organized the first annual Turkey Olympics.  We had Team Bob and Team Jim.  In hindsight, the teams were not exactly even, but Bob is a true sportsman and graciously conceded.  Team Jim won on most accounts, in particular the Corn Hole Tournament.  Mom was such a good sport and decided to try to play.  You should have seen her face when she got one of the beanbags in the hole!  It was priceless.  I love that she was willing to try and join in on the games.  Madeline made a giant chart to tally all the points for each of the different events.  I can't believe I won the coloring contest this year....I had some stiff competition.  Porter and Madeline take their coloring seriously.  Mom improved her guessing skills significantly over last year.  She won the guess for the number of peanuts in the jar.  She was (rightfully) proud of herself.

Madeline won the guess for the mini marshmallows in a jar.  Amazingly, she was actually only 4 marshmallows off.  I don't know how she managed to guess so closely.

The best part of Madeline's big win was what she chose to do with her prize of this jar of mini marshmallows.  I cannot remember ever laughing as hard as I did when I walked out on the lanai Thanksgiving night and saw Madeline sitting at the table with a small tea light candle, toothpicks and mini marshmallows.  She was diligently roasting these mini marshmallows on toothpicks over the tea light bonfire!  It was a sight to behold!  Of course, Porter and I jumped right on the bandwagon and joined her.  These little marshmallows taste really good when you burn them and eat them off the toothpick.  It was about as close to a campfire as we get here in Florida!

Thanksgiving morning started bright and early with us all trekking to Clearwater High School to participate in the annual Turkey Trot.  It is a tiring walk for me, but it really sets the tone for the day.  I loved walking with my family and the Barnes family.  It was chillier than it has been in years past, so it felt a bit more like Thanksgiving.  Porter, Eric, Adam and Tim were happy for a little reprieve in the weather as they always run the 5K.  The rest of us enjoy it at a slower pace.

We celebrated the holiday with our usual feast.  Porter made the macaroni and cheese casserole again, and it was a group favorite, as always.  Porter also peeled carrots for me.  He said it was his first time ever peeling carrots and he agreed that it is sort of fun to use that handy little vegetable peeler!  Madeline has perfected the stuffing so now that has become her annual job.  

My pound cake fell for the first time ever and I made the wrong caramel frosting recipe, but Porter forgave me and ate it anyway.  The pumpkin pies spilled in the oven and the 22 pound turkey was a bit dry, but I still think it was one of our best Thanksgivings ever!

 

At our Thanksgiving dinner table, we had English crackers at our places.  It was fun to crack them open and read the riddles and find the prizes.  I loved seeing everyone around the Thanksgiving table with their paper crowns on their heads!  In the spirit of the Turkey Olympics, we decided to award a prize to the person who kept their crown on the longest.  My crown stayed on throughout dinner and clean up. Bob watched football with his crown resting proudly on his head.  Finally Bob and I called a truce and decided we both won....thus a point for Team Bob and a point for Team Jim.  These crackers were a little added bonus of fun.  

Also at the table, I gave out copies of this blog that I had printed and made into a nice bound book.  I think everyone appreciated them and I hope they enjoy re-reading the posts from time to time.  It is a bit of family history and is certainly full of many memories.  I hope next Thanksgiving I can give them yet another blog book full of even more wonderful memories!  We are on our way towards creating those memories and every day we are living our family's history.

The night before Thanksgiving was a treat for us as well.  Mom had 10 of us in a private dining room at Stratford Court for dinner.  Not only was the meal fun and delicious, it meant a night out of the kitchen for me!  Stratford Court cut no corners.  We had shrimp cocktail, filet mignon, asparagus, salad, rolls, baked potatoes and Boston Cream Pie.  This was a good kick start for our stomachs to prepare for the feast ahead!  Thanks, Mom, for arranging this truly fun evening.

Jim's brother and sister-in-law came the day after Thanksgiving.  Bob, Tommy and Jim got to play a great golf course together and do some male bonding.  I'm sure a day on the links was a welcomed change to being inside watching football and eating massive amounts of food.

And of course, the Yelton's visit would not be complete without a visit to Sungroves for ice cream......FOUR TIMES!

The month rounded out with taking down the Fall decorations and putting up the Christmas decorations.  I do love October through December.  It is a fun and festive time and a wonderful time to spend with family and friends.  

This November I decided to enjoy a little less Bah Humbug from my husband and a little more joy about decking the halls.  Jim has been wanting those large blow up Christmas characters for our front yard for quite some time.  I teased him and fought him on the matter as I have always thought they were tacky.  This year, instead of standing my ground, I decided to throw caution to the wind and head out to Lowe's....on Black Friday, no less.....and buy some of these blow up characters.  I bought an 8 foot snowman and a 4 foot penguin.  Jim was delighted with this surprise!  After putting them up and decorating several trees and bushes with lights, he decided he needed yet another blow up character.  So, he went to the store and bought a 4 foot snowman to go with the large snowman and little penguin friend.  I have to admit, these guys are growing on me!  They kind of make me smile now when I see them.  Our cul-de-sac yard is a perfect place for them as they stand proudly under our large palm tree.  The greatest thing about them is the pleasure they are bringing to Jim.  He is like a kid at Christmas again and I love it!

This November we also booked plane tickets for Joseph and Ashley to fly down here for Christmas, and Madeline and I hung our stockings on our doors in anticipation of a surprise each day from December 1st through the 25th.  This is a tradition we started many years ago.  It is a way for Madeline and I to prolong the season and the gift-giving and surprises.  We both love Christmas so much.  In fact, today we each found our first surprise in our stocking!  I can't wait to see the next 24.  

Last year I started a new tradition for Porter.  Martha liked our stocking idea and kept saying she should do that with Porter.  I don't think they ever got around to it, but I knew it would be something he would enjoy.  Last year I mailed a big box to him with 26 (there was a special surprise for the day AFTER Christmas) little gifts in it.  They were individually wrapped and numbered and he had to open one per day in order.  He reported to me via Facebook what gift he opened that day.  December 1st was an advent calendar so he could begin the countdown to Christmas!  Porter hasn't reported his gift to me today.  I am waiting to hear about it.  I decided to send the box of 25 gifts to him again this year.  Some things we never outgrow!

November's extra activities didn't stop to make way for the usual chores, errands, cooking, cleaning, bowling league, poker group, more bridge, and all the things that just go into any month.  It just made for a jam-packed month.  But that is okay with me.  I like to shake things up from time to time and holiday time 

busy-ness and work is still enjoyable for me.  I can tell that I am getting older as I am not as worried about everything being perfect.  I think that is a good thing.  It allows me to enjoy it a little bit more.  I always think of some of the wonderful words of wisdom that Erma Bombeck spoke about at times like these.  I do plan to worry less and enjoy more.

As time marches on, we continue to pass the torch from person to person, generation to generation.  Some traditions remain and some change. Some new ideas are introduced and are good enough to last and some turn out to have not been the best of ideas.  However, the thing that remains constant throughout this passing of time is the love and the bond of family.   

And memories are made of this.

(Speaking of the late, great Erma Bombeck, here is one of her more humorous statements):

"Thanksgiving dinners take eighteen hours to prepare.  They are consumed in twelve minutes.  Half-times take twelve minutes.  This is not coincidence."

~~Erma Bombeck