The Joy of the Holidays....

Its that time of year with friends and family are all in our thought and usually our homes.  The smell of cinnamon, cookies and cakes are filling our thoughts of childhood memories and diet plans for spring.  I love to bake and make things for my friends at this time of year and usually I'm a head of the game but this year I'm slower than molasses in January. 

Our family wishes you and yours a very Merry Christmas and a safe New Year! 

What will the summer hold....

Camping in the back yard, bon fires & s'mores, fishing in the neighbors pond, yard sales, swimming partys and lemonade.  These are the things that summertime is made of.

Well I'm not 20 years old anymore.....

     As many of you know, I went back to college last fall.  Well, this spring was my 2 sememster after a 15 year summer break and man is my age catching up with me. 
     No longer can I stay up all night for last minute cram sessions with buckets of coffee and little debbie snacks to keep me going.  No longer can I take a test with only 3 hours of sleep and remember the formula for  slope-intercept. 
     I want to scream from the rooftop...I"M NOT 20 ANYMORE....but that means that I would have to climb up the stairs and my 37 year old body said....hahahahahaha  NO!!! 

My beautiful son.....Garrett

This past weekend my son was blessed at his Grandma Nita's church.  Even though I have my own issues with that particular church, he seems to like going there.  So I agreed to this blessing.  When it was over he came back and sat with me and asked if I had a piece of paper.  Well all I could find was the church program so I gave him that.  He started writing on the back of it like most kids do during the sermon. But what he wrote was the sweetest thing.  He said "On this day I was blessed by ............. and I feel like a whole new person."  I'm a very lucky mom to have a son that is so sweet, loving, and cares so much about his family and friends.

I have discovered....

that I have a fabulous husband!!  I know in the begining of this blog I was complaining about him.  And there are still times that I want to ring his neck but I have come to appreciate him more.  Yes, when I'm in class he is on his computer or taking a nap or checking on his mother.  The dishes aren't getting done, the laundry is still in the floor and the bath tub still has a ring around it.  BUT.... he is always there for me when I need him to make me feel better about my self, to reassure me that me going back to college is NOT a huge ass mistake, and to cook all the meals so I don't have too!  : p  No I don't get showered with flowers and jewlery but I know that he loves me with all his heart and soul.  And thats all that matters to me!!

Remembering Grandma today...

I been thinking about my Grandma Duke today. She was an interesting woman. I wish I had payed more attention to things she did and said when I was younger. She was a fabulous cook and very family oriented.

We would go to her house on Sundays after she went to church and have a wonderful lunch that she cooked ..... usually from scratch ..... of Goulash or Barbecue Chicken in a paper bag with Green Beans, Creamed Corn, and Coconut Cake. That was the lunches I remember most. Her version of Goulash was alot like Spaghetti but different. I would give anything for that recipe. She made the best Coconut Cake and Homemade Boiled Custard for Christmas.

When I was really young and we would go over for dinner or lunch and I usually didn't like what she had spent all day cooking so she would make me Grilled Cheese Sandwiches. Dad would fuss at her and ask her why she didn't do that for him when he was little. She said "Cause you weren't my Grandchild."

On weekends that I would spend the night she would spoil me and let me do things like bake cookies and pies and cause I was little she had a stool that I had to stand on so I could reach the counter tops. She let me have cereal for breakfast that Mom had forbid which I always thought was funny. I hated the TV shows that she would watch. They were boring back then. I never saw her watch anything but Hee Haw, Lawernce Welck, the Andy Griffin Show or some preacher.

I miss the old ways that she would do things, the old aprons that she wore and the way that her house smelled. And the lesson that I have learned from these memories is to pay more attention to my Mom and Mom-n-law so that when I miss them, I will have better memories of their ways and not wish I had done better. And when I become a Grandma....to make sure I spoil them just like she did me.

Happy Valentine's Day!!

I wanted to say Happy Valentine's Day too all my friends in Bloggerland!! I hope Cupid has found you your one true love.

Today in History.....

These are just a few things that happened today in history:

1858: Virgin Mary appeared to St. Bernadette in Lourdes, France

1916: Emma Goldman was arrested for lecturing and distributing Birth Control Information

1990: Nelson Mandela was released from his South African prision after 27 years

Do you ever get in a funk?

I seem too get into that funk alot more now, than I did when I was younger. Is this another wonderful GIFT from the Old Age Fairy??

More mood swings, more cravings, less energy, less time to do things, more crap to do and less patients for stupid people.

WHY?? Who did we piss off??? Who hates old people that much?? I would think that Mother Nature would be kinder to us ..... she's not exactly a spring chicken herself!!

Men and their Razors

So my husband is shaving his face and breaks his razor. He asked me if I had an extra one and I told him where they where ..... and then told him that there is one in the shower if he can't find a new one.

OMG ..... you would think that I had asked him to shave his face with a rock! After telling me all the reason to NEVER use one of the razors I use on my legs, he goes on to tell our 10 yr old son why he should for no reason EVER use a woman's razor to shave.

And so it begins, one of LIFE'S LESSONS that Garrett will learn from his Dad.

Stupid People.....

PISS ME OFF!!! You choose not to educate yourself that your choice. But you don't have to prove to everyone you meet that your stupid! Some dude passed me on the Dyersburg highway yesterday and he had a sticker on the bumper of his truck that said "LIFT IT - FAT CHICKS CAN'T JUMP".

Now really .... ?? I'm a fat chick and could have easily jumped into his dumb ass truck! That sticker didn't prove a thing other than how much of a stupid, ignorant bigamist that he truly is.

This is something that I posted on a social network in 2007 and I wanted to post it here too....

"Now I know that some people don't think that the words BEAUTIFUL and FAT should not be used in the same sentence together, let alone to describe someone.

I know that socially we as people are taught to think that THIN is BEAUTIFUL and FAT is UGLY. Thin is not the only way to be beautiful, attractive, seductive or hot.

FAT is an adjective, a way to describe something or someone. NOT a curse. NOT a plague. NOT a handicap. Its just a 3 letter word to say that something is not small, thin, tiny or petite. DO NOT let these 3 letters ruin your life."

FAT CHICKS ROCK!!!

Snow!! Snow?? Snow....

I've lived in Tennessee all my life and we've had snow, we've had ice, we've had snow and ice.....I'm not new to snow on the ground. But as other southerns know....1 in. of snow might as well be 1 ft. of snow. WE FREAK OUT!!! I personal love the snow.... on the grass!! Not the roads, not the sidewalks or anywhere else that it will prevent me from getting to where I want to go. Why can't the snow only fall on the grass?? Why won't it work with us on this?? Its just rude!! RUDE SNOW!! :p

Betty Crocker or Betty Page??

I'm hungry!!

A friend of mine was blogging about her cooking 3 or 4 meals ahead and freezing them so she doesn't have to cook on some nights (she homeschools her 3 kids). And this got me to thinking....would I rather be Betty Crocker, making wonderful meals and being a perfect hostess or Betty Page, with no clue how to boil water much less a souffle but she knew just what to do in the bedroom.

Now I love to bake and cooking is ok. I do LOVE to play hostess!! I love all the morals and ideals that come the era of the 1940s and 50s housewife. I even love the clothes. But would I want to cook meals from scratch 2 to 3 times a day. No ..... I love my microwave too much!!

I'm also intrigued with the Betty Pages' of the world too. The good looking women that know how to turn a man's head (I've never had that ability in my life) and make him drool. Not necessarily all the sex and domination that is associated with Ms. Page but the sex appeal that she became so famous for. No ..... I don't want to do that either .... that means I would have to wear makeup everyday and not sweatpants!

I guess I'll just be me and be happy about it.

Making a change.....

Being an aspiring Historian, I'm curious about alot of different cultures and periods of time of history. So in history class today my professor talks about looking around for internships and volunteering at the library or historical places. OK!! My hometown history is very interesting to me however, there is not historical society that I know of, no museums or historical places. SO!! I'm going to start doing some research!! I'm going to find something that is fascinating and provocative about this town .... even if it kills me! :p Times like this I wish my Grandmother was still alive. She was full of history and fun stories. I wish that I had paid more attention and taken notes when she would start telling her stories.

I sure do love my son....

Garrett, my 10 year old boy, was told to get ready for school this morning and his reply was "I'm wearing my overalls and you can't stop me". He thought that I would tell him NO and was gearing up for a battle of wills. But I just laughed and said "ok" and he started arguring with me saying that I wasn't going to stop him cause he loved his overalls and that is what he was going to wear! After I didn't comment back, he looked a bit puzzled and then looked at me. I just smiled and said "Ok, I didn't say you couldn't wear them." I think I've finally figured out my child. Just don't argue with him...and it will all be OK.

LOL.....fat chance of that happening!!

I have the BEST FRIENDS ever!!!

So after my ranting earlier I called a few girlfriends of mine to get some feedback. They are the best. After they all threatened me with my life if I let him mess up my grades at school and cause me to drop out or worse...flunk out, I realized that I am the only one that can make me happy and make sure that no one messes that up for me.

So now that I have decided what to do with my issue of the week. I want to thank my best friends, Trish, Jamie, and Lacey for all the help, advice, love and support they give me everyday and through every pothole that I seem to step in.

I love my gal pals!! You Rock!

What was I thinking??

So I decided to try...once again...to work on the marriage that I'm stuck in for some unknown reason. And so far I am terribly disappointed. I know that marriage is something that has to be worked on everyday and its not easy. But OMG....this weekend has been horrible! He was drunk when I got home from class on Friday and was ready for a full fledged fighting mode.

Last night was my best friends birthday party and once again....he's drinking. I'm tired of the fights, I'm tired of the drinking, I'm tired.....I'm freaking tired of it all!!

Ok...I'm done.

So how was your weekend?? :p