My New Year Wish

The end of December

The New Year draws near

What lies before us

In the 2008 year

The end of a war

I pray in my heart

A new leader to vote in

His reign then will start

The issues before us

Illegals and such

Must find a solution

America, can't be their crutch

Americans stand together

In this endeavor

What we do now

Will affect us forever

We still are united

I hear it in talk

We do it in whispers

Now, we must walk the walk

2008 must be the year

Stand by our convictions

We have nothing to fear

Americans, to learn Spanish

Should be simply by choice

It is they, to speak English

The language of our voice

Politically correct

I guess, I am not

I stand with the soldiers

For this land, who have fought

Americans are all colors

Red, yellow, black and white

They speak English, love this country

Fly our beloved Stars and Stripes

Health Care And Insurance

Today I am thinking about Doctors and Dentists. I read some stuff from the Boomer Chronicles and found , much to my surprise that there are lots of folks out there with no Dental Insurance. They spoke of broke teeth from soft breads and other dental catastrophes that required astronomical costing trips to the dentist for repairs. My thoughts go to a dentist, in the small town we lived in for over 20 years. I think his practice was rather new when we first started going to him, but this guy could teach some of these new fangled dentists a thing or two. His concern was not what our insurance would pay for , but what our dental needs were. He never forced any procedure on us, but was extremely thorough in his examinations and conveyed exactly what he thought we needed for our dental health. I always felt totally secure in his judgments. I can honestly say, he never hurt me....not once and this man not only did fillings , he did crowns, bridges and I even had him pull a tooth for me that I had , had a root canal done on years before we moved there from an incompetent guy that DID hurt and tortured me for hours. Most dentist today are more concerned with the cosmetic part of dentistry. They make you feel that you just don't measure up if your teeth are not perfectly straight and glowing white. Now, I care about my appearance as much as the next 50 something bleached blonde female, but the health of my teeth and gums are the reasons I visit the dentist. I am sad to say that since our move we have been unable to replace our beloved dentist and we have sifted through quite a few Doctors too that don't live up to the understanding and care we recieved from the Doctors in that same said town. Our search is ongoing and I do hope that maybe there is the same dedicated dentist and doctor out there in our area just waiting for us to call and make an appointment. I will keep trying in the quest for those same kind of professionals we were blessed to have for all our years in that small town.
That's my thoughts for now. Till next time.

Back To Normal

Things are getting back to some kind of normalcy. I spent yesterday de Christmasing the house. I get great joy in taking my house back over....all the decked halls and holiday tidings are once more in their resting place in the attic. When it comes time to put it all away, less is more....ya know, what I mean? I know, most people keep the cheer going until after New Years, Christmas trees still standing and lights still burning, but for me,the 26th of December brings an end to the actual holiday celebrations. Now, don't get me wrong, I like the festivities of New Years, but here of late I find it harder and harder to even be awake when the New Year comes in. We have never been big partiers, but we did use to at least stay up until the New Year rang in........Man, we are sooooo over the hill.
I ventured out for some errands yesterday also. I took back some shoes to Sears, I had bought for Wayne. I swear, that man's feet are almost sub human. They are just about as wide as they are long and get this, he is the only person I have ever seen with a left foot larger than his right, usually it's the other way around. I always have to get a wide and did so, in this pair, but for some reason they were still too tight. He is so persnickety and hard to buy for especially in shoes, but getting him in a store is like pulling teeth. He's gonna have to go if he wants new shoes tho.....I just got my money back yesterday and thought.....I'm not gonna make a dozen trips back and forth trying to find a shoe that fits......he ain't Cinderella. From there I went to the Bank, making a deposit I have been meaning to make for a week now. My last stop was at Brookshires. I had already cooked a pot of Red Beans and was going to put hamburger in them, which I didn't have.....uuuummmmm, I LOVE Red Beans. I put them on to cook, first thing yesterday.......I was really on top of my game...... don't ya think? I cooked them with onions and seasonings first, then add two cans of Rotel and browned hamburger. I did a real NO NO too and fried Wayne and I some potatoes. I don't fry anymore so it has been ages since we had home fried taters. Red Beans and fried taters......it just don't get any better than that. A real Texas treat. I would have loved to have had a big ole piece of corn bread, but I thought that took us over the top. Wayne had his beans over a bed of rice and I ate one slice of whole grain bread with mine. Some down home cooking after all the holiday stuffing and sweets was a welcomed change. Amongst the other things I mentioned, I also got two loads of clothes washed. I feel sooooo free today. I love the feeling of being caught up on everything.
I am looking forward to 2008 and my wish is for many great adventures and lots of time spent with the ones I love. I will say for now, till next time.

Our Christmas Schedule

FRIDAY!!!!!! AGAIN!!! This one is very important.......the one right before Christmas. I woke up this morning making a list in my head. The last minute things I need to get done and today's the day. Oh, I do still have tomorrow, I guess, but I hate waiting till the very last minute. Tonight we are suppose to go Christmas light looking......I LOVE to ride around first of all, and then getting to see beautiful lights draped on big gorgeous houses is just a bonus. The trip will be topped off with a stop at STARBUCKS.....UUUUMMMMMMM!!!! GOOOODD!! Tomorrow night is the HSE Christmas party......my BIG babysitting night. This is one of the huge draw backs of everyone working for the same Co. I will have all 4 of my grandson's. The two older ones will pose no problems, but the two 3 year olds will undoubtedly make up for it. I think things will be fine until it starts drawing near bed time.....nothings worse than 2 tired and grumpy 3 year olds. I will make it thru....no doubt, just think, last year I had 2, 2 year olds and OH MY GOSH!!! before that 2, 1 year olds. It's a wonder I am still here. Anyway, after tomorrow night it will be smooth sailing. Sunday morning is the start of our family day. First, we go out for breakfast. On our return, we will open presents. The rest of the day is going to be munching on delectable tidbits, playing games and just sitting around talking. I am looking so forward to Sunday. Monday we will be traveling to spend some time with Wayne's Mom and Dad and sister Jan. I am taking home made Lasagna, hot bread, green beans, and some kind of delicious dessert. Then, we have Christmas Day.....our plan for that day is.....WORK. Yep, we had to fit it in somewhere and it just so happened that Christmas day was the best time for it. We will miss Christmas with Wayne's other sister in Tyler, but the drive was just more than we could do this year. Sounds like a pretty tight schedule to me. I am looking forward to every moment of it, believe it or not, even Wayne and I spending Christmas day alone with one another.....after our chore, we will have time to recoup from the previous days and make ready for the rest of the work week. This may be the last entry on my blog till after Monday. I wish a Merry Christmas to all. Be safe, till next time.

Texas Weather

How great is this weather??? Wow! people, you that weren't lucky enough to be born or transplanted in Texas have no idea how wonderful the weather can be. We do dream of snow for Christmas and usually don't get any, but the beautiful sunny crisp days well make up for it. I always think that a white Christmas would be just perfect, not thinking of all the turmoil that comes with it. I dare say we Texans have no clue how to drive on ice or snow covered roads.....heck, from what I have experienced most are having a hard time with their driving skills on dry roads. I am one that craves sunshine.....dark gloomy days can get me down in a hurry. Trace was just telling me yesterday, that Texans are amongst the lowest numbers experiencing depression. I truly believe our weather has a big influence on that. The one big draw back on all this nice weather is NO SCHOOL or JOB CLOSINGS. I think we all need a break, a reprieve from the day in day out drudgery. I can remember sitting in front of the TV as a child waiting to hear if my school was gonna close due to bad weather. It always seemed like my school was the last one to call in to say they would be closed, so us kids still had to get up, get dressed and sit and wait. I am really gonna date myself, but I can remember the first time I could wear pants to school.....yes PANTS people. Little girls wore dresses and boys wore pants, now when the temperature went below freezing they would permit us little girls to wear pants, now get this....I didn't even own any pants, jeans or whatever so I had to put on a pair of my brothers. OH MY GOSH!!!!! I loved them! My little legs warm and covered and just the comfort that wearing pants had over a dress. I can't remember exactly what grade I was in....maybe the fourth, sometime in the early 60's....and I can't remember when exactly the dress code changed and girls were allowed to wear pants just like the boys, but I know it was a time of celebration for us girls. Gosh, how times have changed. Well, anyhow, I do love my Texas and all it's crazy weather, be it 80 degree temps in the winter or snow falling in the spring. You can always count on NOT being able to count on our forecast. It's any ones guess what the weather is gonna be from one day to the next. A great big ole Texas, Howdy and take care.....till next time.

A Christmas Vacation

Trace and I ventured out once more to try and find an end to this present buying......good grief!!! will it ever end. Ya know, Trace and I have talked for years about polling our monies spent on presents each year and traveling off to some exotic destination for Christmas.......wouldn't that be a blast! The only shopping that would need to be done is for the new clothes we might want to take. We have dreamed of a cabin in some snow covered mountain where we have nothing to do, but play games, sit by a roaring fire drinking hot chocolate and enjoying being together......or..... some warm tropical place just might fit our fancy. We could sit on a warm beach, watching the waves roll in and out......feel the warm tropical breeze on our faces and just lax out and enjoy the atmosphere.....WOW! that sounds soooo great! I wanna do it. To escape from this money generated, over the top, carnival that has become Christmas would suit me to a tee. I know that you don't have to buy into it and that it can remain as simple as you like.....but....geez, why not spend it somewhere that totally transforms it into a wonderful vacation. I do see it in our future....maybe not next year, but sometime in the near future......I can't wait! Till next time.

Once A Year Gathering

It seems just like yesterday I was blogging about seeing family that I only see usually once a year at our annual Christmas feast.....now, here it has come and gone again. There were certainly faces I missed seeing due to illness. There was a big void from the absence of my Uncle Bud and Aunt Billie. I wish them well and hope good health is restored. It's hard for my brain to wrap around the idea that I am getting closer to being amongst the oldest generation in our family. WOW! I sometimes still feel like the young generation, like me and my cousins should still be hanging out and talking and doing the things that we did in our youth.....boy, am I delusional???? I just can't seem to convince myself that, girl, you are getting to be an OLD LADY. I have been growing my hair out long....just one more time, I keep thinking. I ask Traci, just the other day.....do I look like an old hag with this long hair? She assures me that I do not, but the reflection in the mirror tells a different story. There are days that I think I can pull it off, but then, like the day I was in a fitting room in a store trying on clothes and I thought....GOOD GRIEF! I look HORRIBLE! I so want to blame it on the lighting and of course the carnival mirrors they use in those dressing rooms didn't help my situation either. I vote for candle light and NO mirrors, we can just go by how the clothes feel and not worry about how they look. Oh Well, at least I know that everyone of my age and generation are dealing with the same issues and I am not alone. I do have some solace in that. I am just glad to still be here and healthy enough to enjoy it. I hope that the new year brings health and happiness to us all and that next Christmas all absent this year will be able to attend our once a year gathering. Till next time.