Thursday's Bits 'n Bobs

Snow arrived here yesterday.  Just an inch or so.  It's winter weather for sure with cold temps and much wind the last few days. I've been feeling sorry for the animals and birds that are trying to survive the harsh weather.

I've been trying to get back to the purging/decluttering.  We had another water pipe leak downstairs and while I was cleaning up the water which had fallen onto a computer desk...which has been just a catch-all lately...I was taking a really good look around and decided that a lot of stuff needs to go.  Too much has been accumulated for too long. 

The stacks of magazines?  This is just part of my collection.  They need to go, I've accumulated way too many.  It's always been hard for me to throw one away.  And why, I ask myself, would I want to spend so much of my time going through each one and clip out recipes and photos of interesting things I might (or most likely will never) try out some day?

I talked about age in my last post.  I think I need to remember my age and forget clipping ideas that I will never get around to.  You know that you can find about anything you want online these days.  Recipes and decor ideas are plentiful.  Many of the best ideas are on blogs.

About aging...from the comments on the last post, I think the main point we all agree on is to keep active.  Stormy and I have been napping sitting in the recliner too much lately.  I need to tell myself that when I'm going up and down the stairs to do laundry that I'm getting my excercise and that's a good thing!  The doctor's office called and told me that my A1C numbers were good.  Yay!  I celebrated by buying a box of donuts at WalMart.  I know...I'm bad.   But as soon as I hit the Publish button, I'm going to be going up and down the stairs doing laundry.  Exercise, exercise!
 

   
BG rode with me to the nearest town that has a WalMart yesterday after he came home from work so I could get some things we were almost out of and he kept the car running and warm while I shopped.  We buy a lot of cat food, 30 pound bags at a time.  There are several feral cats that come to our house for food and we do try to tame some of them when we can and find them homes.  

The kitty in the photo above showed up here recently.  I don't know where he came from, but we figured he must have heard through the grapevine about the free Pond Hollow meals that are served daily on the patio.                

 
While I was in WalMart, I saw many Valentine's Day goodies in the grocery section...the decorated cookies, cakes, and many beautiful flower bouquets.  I usually tell BG not to bother with flowers...am I outta my mind, or what?  Really, I'd rather go out for a nice dinner.  Sometimes he'll ignore me and get them anyway.  Would you be disappointed if you didn't get flowers on Valentine's Day?  I'll probably make one of the three above desserts for my sweetheart.  After we get back home from dinner, we can have dessert while we watch a movie.  That is a good evening in my book!     

If I don't get back here before Sunday, have a Happy Valentine's Day!  Love to all...

xo Cheryl    

Age...It's All Relative, Right?

~Missouri River, photo courtsey of my daughter~

If you want to see old friends and acquaintances, and if you live in a small town like I do, one place to find them is in the doctor's waiting room. 

I had the chance to see a few folks that I'd not seen in a while when I went for my six month checkup yesterday.  The wait is a bit long as my doctor is slow.   So slow in fact that I often feel like I might need to go home and shave my legs again before I get to see her. 

One sweet lady, who is in her nineties, stopped by my chair on her way out.  She is still living alone and driving.  I asked her what her secret was and she said "good genes" which of course is true, but she also goes to the doctor regularly and takes good care of herself.  I wondered to myself...I do that a lot, do you?...if she still eats a banana a day, but didn't ask.

Okay, before you think I've lost it...I remember visiting with her where she worked many years ago and she was eating a banana.  She said that she ate one every day for a snack and I've never forgotten that for some strange reason.  I doubt if bananas are the key to good health, but I do believe eating the right foods surely is one factor.

I knew another dear woman who lived a good, long life and she thought the onions she adored and ate every day might be the key to her longevity.  

My 70th birthday is coming up next month, so staying as healthy as I can for as long as I can is of paramount importance to me.  Yikes.  I can't believe I just said that.  70!!  How did that number come up so quickly?? 

I certainly don't feel like I'm about 70.  Well, unless I have to get down on the floor for something and I have a hard time getting back up.  And forget those items on the lowest shelf at WalMart.  My knees hurt too much to squat to see the print.

I've been fortunate these last several years to hear many say that I don't look my age.  I didn't appreciate the youthful looks back when I was 30 or so and was still being treated like a youngster.   And I remember several years ago having to show my ID to a hotel clerk because they snorted when I asked for the senior citizen discount.

I took something by my daughter's business the other day and she introduced me to a couple of the teachers.  After I left, somehow it was brought up to them that I would be 70 soon.  What??  they said.  No way could I be that old, because I looked like I was in my 50's.  They just didn't believe it.  Well, 50's is certainly a stretch, they are young, but I appreciated hearing it!

My doctor did say yesterday that 70 was now the new 50, but I believe I detected a little smirk on her face when she said that.  lol!  

Aging is a state of mind, they say.  And I quite agree with that.  It's important to have a good attitude about things and doing those things you enjoy.   As the song goes, I plan to live, live, live until I die.  Even if living well means nothing more some days than relaxing in the recliner with a good book.

Okay, enough talking about my olden self, but it is kind of a nice segue into a question I want to ask.  I know there are many 50 and 60 somethings out there in blog land who also don't look their ages and are in good health.  I know who you are...yes, I do!  Tell me, what do you do to maintain that good health?  And do you have a particular beauty regimen you follow?  Please share your tips with the rest of us. 

Have a wonderful and healthy weekend!
xo Cheryl

January Wrap Up

Where did January go?  It doesn't seem like nearly two weeks have passed since I last posted.  My dad used to tell me that the older you get, the faster time flies by.  He was right.  I wish I could say that I've gotten a lot done, but that isn't the case.  Part of the time, I've dealt with a virus.  And napped.  I didn't feel much like reading due to some vertigo issues so I turned on the seldom used TV a few times.

One day I was looking for something to watch on Netflix and found a movie that turned out to be very good.  It was about a dog named Hachi and starred Richard Gere.  The movie is based on a true story and the original Hachi lived in Japan.  Hachi is an Akita, a very beautiful dog who, by the end of the movie, had me wishing I had a dog again.  I won't tell you what happens, but I will warn you that you'll need Kleenex if you watch it.  But don't let that stop you, I could watch this movie again just to see the beautiful, smart and loving Hachi.  Richard Gere wasn't hard to look at, either.  

We've had some unseasonably warm weather the past several days.  It rained last night, so Phil didn't get to see his shadow this morning.  I won't complain if we have an early spring.  The barren landscape is not all that appealing to me, but I will say we have been treated to  some really beautiful sunsets this winter.  

BG and I haven't been too far from home lately.  We did motor down the interstate one weekend to meet our son for BBQ at a new place.  I won't be ordering the sampler platter again, though.  It was way more than I could eat although it was very good!  It was a nice day trip and trying out new places to eat is always fun.  

BG and I...well, mainly BG...need to get back to work on the rental house aka The Project.  I'm sure our friends and neighbors think we're never going to get it finished.  But we will!  It's just a matter of getting started again and keeping at it.  We tend to take too long of a break.  Much like when I step away from blogging a few days and before I know it, a couple of weeks have gone by.   

Our landline phone was out for several days.  It was so nice not having those phone calls that bug us even though we've got our names on the no-call list.  You know, the "hello!  you've won a free cruise to the Bahamas" type calls.  I have been dealing with my cell phone company, too.  It's so frustrating when they tell you the manager will be calling you by the end of the day and then you never hear another word from them. 

It's not unusual to look out just before sunset and see 4 or 5 deer in our Back 6 or in our back yard.  They are looking for a full bird feeder so they can have a little snack.  We also put out cat food for several feral cats that hang around and you might see a raccoon or possum eating as well.  BG was saying that we might as well forget about trying to have a vegetable garden, as we can't keep the critters away  from it.  He shoots at them with a BB gun, but that doesn't seem to scare them away for long.

     
Our son came in Saturday evening and spent the night with us.  We enjoyed a late supper and then Brett suggested we watch the first episode of The Blacklist as we'd never watched it.  He and Lindsey had caught up with all the previous episodes on Netflix and really liked it and thought we would, too.  BG quickly fell asleep on the couch, but Brett and I ended up watching 4 episodes.  I'm hooked!  Now I will have to stop saying I hardly ever turn on the TV.  Do you watch this show starring James Spader?  Tell me how you like it, but don't give anything away!  I have got many episodes yet to go to catch up. 

Sunday we all played a few card games after dinner.  That photo above is one I snapped of Kim yakking on her phone and we're saying hurry up, we have a game to finish.  We had fun especially since the girls beat the men 2 games to 1.  Ha!  The phone interruption was one of her teachers calling to say that she was still battling a strep throat and wouldn't be able to work the next day.  There is a lot of sickness going around.  Kim is now battling a bad cold herself and was going in to work late today.

There are many different viruses going around and while they are not fun to deal with, you know that they will pass and you'll eventually feel good again.  Unfortunately, there are many friends in blogdom who are dealing with much more serious issues than a virus.  A sweet friend, Gert, just recently lost her husband.  Another blogger, Diana, is watching her husband battle cancer.  Please pray for these dear blogging friends and many others who have needs as well.

The sun is coming out!  Yay!  I'm off now to go visiting...via the computer.  :) 

xo Cheryl

Remembering Mother This Wintry Day

Hello!  The snow is falling as I type this.  A good day for staying in, although I did run to the grocery store for a few things before the roads were snow covered.  Today has also been a day of remembering.  My sweet mother's birthday would have been today.  The house below is where she was born.  That is her parents on the right.

As you can see, it wasn't January when this photo was taken.  I don't know what the weather was like the day my mother was born.  No one ever said and I never thought to ask, until today.  Now there is no one to ask.  I suppose it doesn't really matter all that much, it's just curiosity on my part.  But, I do wish I'd paid more attention to details when I had the chance to find out such things.

When I was a youngster, mother was usually found in the kitchen.  Or maybe at the kitchen table where she would set up the sewing machine and sew many outfits for me and for herself.  

She was a wonderful cook, but would say that she had a lot of practice.  Fixing 3 meals a day, 7 days a week and often with some farm hands that my dad had helping him with farm work to feed, too.   She worked hard at keeping her family fed and clothed.  She had to do the laundry the hard way with an old wringer-type washer and then hang the clothes on the line to dry.  I remember helping hang clothes.  That was before the wrinkle-free material existed, of course.  The clothes were brought in when dry, then they were sprinkled down and rolled up and were ironed the next day.  It took many hours to iron clothes for the 5 of us.  My mother almost always wore dresses and when I was very young, we had to wear skirts or dresses to school.  No jeans were allowed on girls unless it was very cold and then we wore them under our dresses.  
 

My mother loved her family and liked to play cards, read and occasionally go fishing.  I remember the times that picnic lunches were fixed and the neighbor friends would all gather at a fishing spot on the creek.  Those were fun times.  She also loved music and enjoyed playing the piano.  

My daughter Kim was the apple of her eye and she would have loved my son, Brett, as well.  She loved sports and would have enjoyed going to their ball games and would have been their biggest cheerleader.   She and BG got along famously because they both loved to talk about the games and watched them together when we were visiting.  She also just thought he was a good guy.  :)  

My daughter was only 5 and my son was 2 weeks old when my mother was taken from us by the horrible disease, ALS.  Many of my long-time blogging friends have read about that.  I was only 31 and I've missed her every day since.  Oh, it's true that time lessens the grief and there are a few days when I might not think of her, but she will always be in my heart.  Always.  I love you, Mom.  Happy Birthday!

I could write a book about my mother, but I'll stop with this poem:

If Roses grow in Heaven, 
Lord please pick a bunch for me,
Place them in my Mother's arms
and tell her they're from me.
Tell her I love her and miss her,
and when she turns to smile,
place a kiss upon her cheek
and hold her for awhile.
Because remembering her is easy, 
I do it every day, but there's an ache
within my heart that will never go away.     
                               ~Author Unknown

Stay safe and stay well!
xo Cheryl

Cat Naps

I don't know why this is, but my kitties seem to need to be near me as much as possible lately.  Even Sissy, above, who has never been a lap sitter...and still isn't...wants to be close and jumps up onto the foot rest of the recliner when I'm sitting down.  

Don't mind me...I'm still in my nightie...and trying to read and comment on blogs while Sissy naps by my feet and legs.  Meanwhile there is still room for....

Stormy and....

Callie...who both take turns sleeping on me while I'm trying to hang onto the laptop.  Forget the typing.  Keeping furbabies happy comes first.  I do manage to maneuver the mouse so I can at least read even if I can't type.

I might have even joined them for a little nap every now and then.  It's been a good time for resting lately as it's been too cold to get out of the house.  And most days have been too dark to want to work inside the house.   

We didn't get but a dusting of snow.  That's okay with me as we've had too much rain and didn't need the added moisture.  

With all the Christmas things put away, the house looks bare and in need of a few things to perk it up.  I've tried shopping the house, but nothing appeals to me.  Probably because I've had the same stuff around forever.  I think some of it must have come over on the Mayflower.  Ha!  

The new bathroom looks a little barren.  The only decorative things in there are the bottles I've had for awhile.  And I swear they were evenly spaced before I took this shot!  Must be the angle as I was sitting on the edge of the bathtub.

  
Stormy makes for some cute bathroom decor, doesn't she?  I often find her in the sink, silly girl.  She's so big that she makes the sink look tiny and it really isn't.  

It's supposed to be warmer today, maybe 40 degrees plus.  So I think I will take a spin to the Big Town to look around a couple of flea markets and see what I can find.  

Please forget what I said about staying away from flea markets a post or two ago.  This is serious shopping.  Yes, indeedy.   I need something different to perk up the house.  Also, I think one more piece for my gallery wall is needed, too.   

Have a great day!

xo Cheryl  

The Escape

Every now and then I just want to do nothing but escape from the real world and read feel-good books of a kinder, gentler time by authors such as Gladys Taber.  Or perhaps read Susan Branch's pretty blog.  She has a way of bringing sunshine into the gloomiest days.  And I love to see what her kitties, Jack and Girl Kitty, have been up to.  It's fun to see photos of them on Susan's table or perched high up on a cabinet or sitting on top of a stack of laundry needing to be folded.  It makes me feel like my house is pretty normal after all.  :) 

Wednesday...

To escape from the decluttering project,
needy kitties whining for treats, and the online news that gets more alarming nearly every day, and needing bird seed and wanting to
find a particular book,
I hopped into the car and drove to the Big Town to look around in the book store.  I still had a credit on a gift card to use.  Then, walking down the mall corridor, I stopped at a kiosk and bought the cutest Lang calendar featuring kitties, and marked half-price, for my little office space.

After leaving the mall, and I don't know how it happened, my car just found it's way to the resale shop.  I'm hopeless.  But I only bought a couple of books off the mystery shelf.  One is called The Ideal Man and is most likely more romance than mystery.  The ladies at the counter and I had a good laugh over the title of that book.  Does such a man really exist?  lol!  About as likely to exist as the ideal woman, I'd say!
 
Back home, BG had just gotten in from work and was hungry, so I
warmed up left-over chili from last night.  Then I settled down to 
escape into my new-to-me book to see what an ideal man looked like.  My man took to the couch and escaped into a TV program.

Thursday...

I finished the book which was about a young surgeon who had a couple of bad guys wanting to do away with her, for different reasons, and the FBI agent who rode in on his white horse to save her.  They fell in love (yep, I was right about the romance) mid-way through the book and the ending was pretty much a fore-gone conclusion.  Not even close to being about a kinder, gentler time, but it was an interesting escape read for awhile to see how it would all play out. 

I'd love to escape to a sunny climate about now.  It was dark and it rained all day.  The kind of day that is good to curl up with a good book.  How about you?  Where do you go to escape/get away from it all for awhile?

Friday...

I will be running the vacuum and straightening the house.  Old habits die hard.  I have cleaned house on Fridays most weeks for over 40 years.  You know...in case someone comes by!

Have a nice day and enjoy your weekend, too! 
xo Cheryl

Something Old (A Goal) and Something New

Happy New Year to you!  For me, the year is off to a more relaxed start then it ended.  I've been napping and resting up the last few days.   

We saw the old year end with old friends here for supper.  We had a great time visiting and laughing over some old stories and new ones, too.   Ell admired my red and white buffalo check curtains.

I told her how I'd seen these on several blogs...Ell doesn't blog, so she doesn't know what she's missing with all the wonderful ideas out there...for a few years now.

Anyway, I found buffalo check tablecloths online several months ago and ordered a couple in red and white, also a pair in black and white for when I wanted a different look.  I just bought those rings with clips and put them on the rod.  No sewing was required.  I also ordered 4 napkins which I used to drape over the rod in the smaller window over the kitchen sink.
 
I had planned to get them hung up before Christmas, but procrastinator that I am, I put it off.  There are many other things I put off last year, too.  I have many goals for this year and one is to get back at the decluttering.  I'm determined to get better organized and only live with those things that I really love or need. 

There are so many things that I don't need taking up space, but it is very hard to part with them.  For example, I have 3 sets of  long-stemmed crystal goblets.  One set is mine, one set I inherited from my mother and one set from my grandmother.  All are sets of 12.  I love them all, but I know I don't need them.  I don't even use mine when I set the table for special occasions, preferring to use a more simple, larger goblet.  I don't see myself parting with any of them, not yet.   

Now that I've stated that I have too much stuff, someone please tell me to just look and not buy even if it's a great bargain when I go to the resale shop!   Well, okay...it depends on what it is.  :)

I hope your new year is off to a good start.   Take care and stay well.

xo Cheryl

Is It Really Over?

 

The most wonderful time of the year...Christmas.  I'm not quite ready for it to be over.  Not only do I love seeing the house decorated and the tree lights, but it's just too much work to dismantle after a short time.  I will enjoy it all at least another week! 

Our Christmas was so very nice.  Hope yours was, too.  We had some great weather until the rains began and it has rained and rained.  Our son and daughter were here for both Christmas eve and Christmas Day.  We had our traditional pizza on Christmas eve and I fixed a big turkey dinner the next day.  Wasn't it just a few days before that I fixed a turkey dinner for Thanksgiving?  Time flies between the two holidays.   

I only baked a pumpkin pie for dessert, having gone to the Amish country again for some baked goodies.  My daughter went along and we made a day of it, going to lunch in Columbia and doing some shopping, too.

That is the table set for dinner in the collage above.  BG is sitting at the head of the table waiting impatiently to eat while I snap a few pics, son is on the right, but you can only see his hands.  I got a good shot of daughter and J that day, but I can't remember now what they were laughing at.  We had a good time and laughter is always part of our family gatherings.  We played cards and ate and napped and ate.
   
We really had too much food.  I still fix the same amount for 5 as I used to fix for 15.  It's nice, though, to have leftovers and food to send home with our son.  Some of the candy has been put in the freezer.  

We got some nice gifts.  My new bread box pictured in the collage that my son gave me will be handy.  One of the gifts from our daughter was a pretty gift basket with goodies and a couple of movies to watch that look good.  I also got some new ornaments and other nice things.  And badly needed potholders!  Do you put off buying potholders like I do?  lol!   

My last gift from my younger brother is the nativity set shown in the collage and is always on display each Christmas.  It's sitting up high along with my collection of bottles out of reach of the furry ones.  They have been trying my patience with knocking ornaments off the trees.  They think they were put there for their amusement, I'm sure!

Our friends, Ell and Bob, will be here tomorrow night for New Year's Eve dinner.  I am making lasagna, salad and rolls.  A quick and easy chocolate whipped topping pie will be dessert.  That will make a nice change from all the ham and turkey we've been eating this week.
 
I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday and I wish each of you the very best New Year ever!  Thank you for your comments and friendship this year.
  
Happy New Year!
xo Cheryl

Merry Christmas!

My Christmas gift this year was a long weekend trip to Branson.  This photo was taken just a few miles out.  I thought I'd share a few of the highlights of our visit and photos, not in any particular order.  
   

The weather was very nice, although it turned cloudy Sunday when we went to Silver Dollar City.

 

We both love seeing the park decorated for Christmas.  The lights on the trees and buildings are fabulous.

It is good to be children sometimes, and never better than at Christmas when its mighty Founder was a child Himself. ~Charles Dickens

I don't think I would like to do without our modern conveniences, but the old buildings and the old-fashioned ways of long ago fascinate me.  Life was undoubtedly hard then, but it was a simpler time.  

We stopped in to listen to the Homestead Pickers at the cabin on the left.  They were entertaining as always. 

We didn't get a carriage ride, but it would have been fun!  

My little camera just doesn't capture the lights as well as I'd like.  The colors are so much better than they appear here.  See the 5-story tree in blue?  I wish I could share my video of the tree light show, but it's too long to upload. 

 

We drove past the Dixie Stampede on the way to the downtown area.  I just had to stop in at Dick's 5 & 10.  Later that Saturday night, we met our son and L and her kids for a visit.  They were down for the weekend also.  We were invited to eat pizza with them, but I had my heart set on Shorty Small's for the best bbq ribs I've ever eaten.  Yum!  And yes, I had room left for cinnamon ice cream and apple dumplings the next day at SDC.  Double yum!

All too soon, it was time to pack up and head back home.  It was a fun trip.  Now it's time to finish up the little bit of wrapping, cleaning house...does that ever end?...and prepping some of the food for Christmas Day.  We'll have snacks and a light supper Christmas eve.  Are you ready?  It's almost time! 

I haven't been able to do as much blog visiting as I'd like the past few weeks, even months.  Thank you to my blog friends who have stayed with me all this year as it's been such a busy one.  Hopefully, next year will be quieter!  

In case I don't get a chance to visit before then, I'd like to wish each of you a very Merry Christmas!

 

xo Cheryl

Catching Up and Some Thoughts

Hello everyone!  I'm still around and ready...almost...for Christmas!  I will be heading out to finish the shopping as soon as I finish this post.  Are you busy getting ready for Christmas or have you finished and are now sitting back and enjoying your prettily decorated home?

I had to push myself to get all the dust the bathroom project created out of my house and get the trees up, but it's all done and I'm glad I kept going even though I might have been heard grumbling a time or two.  

My little audience might have heard me saying things like "why can't Christmas be in January...it's too close to Thanksgiving" and "I hate putting the lights on the tree".

 

The bathroom is finished except for a few pieces that need staining and the oak board on the divider will get a few coats of clear varnish.  I haven't hung anything on the walls yet in the way of decor.  That will take some thought when things slow down a bit.  

Actually, things are slowing down until after Christmas.  Let's just say the electric wiring is driving BG nuts and we had a family meeting and decided to take a break.  Our daughter didn't want him hurting himself trying to finish so she could move in before Christmas.  Besides that, a water line downstairs sprung a leak...twice...and needed fixing.  That took up some of his time. 

Another deciding factor in the postponement on the work on The Project was that her fella J had some health issues recently.  In fact, J got to ride in the ambulance to the emergency room when he had a seizure in the middle of the night.  He is diabetic and it was found that he had been getting too much insulin via the pump.  He's doing better now, but it was a scare.

Kim and J have painted most of the rooms and J made a clever cover-up for the ugly tile that was on the corner fireplace hearth.  He had a piece of sheet metal cut to size and spray painted it black, then used some leftover oak flooring for the surround.  We think it turned out great!

I'll share more photos of the rooms after Christmas.  When BG gets the wiring figured out, it shouldn't be too long before it's ready to move in.  The wiring was done in a haphazard fashion.  And a hazard it could be, because BG found some frayed wires in the attic.  Needless to say, they are now disconnected.

I am glad for a break from "projects"!  After the bathroom was painted by moi with help from BG who painted around the ceiling, and the new trim stained or painted, my hand was cramping and swollen.  I am ready to retire from DIY jobs!  

We had our children here over the weekend.  Our son and his girl, L, and daughter and J were here Sunday for pizza.  L brought us a beautiful poinsettia for Christmas.  I will be careful to watch that the kitties don't nibble on it.

I haven't been too busy to keep up with the news.  It's hard to ignore it, much as I'd like to.  I have read a few blogs also when I sit down to relax, but I haven't tried to comment.  Some I would have liked to comment on, but it was just as well I didn't.  

Now, I have to say something that doesn't fit into the sweetness and light that we hope for in our blog posts most of the time.  Not everyone has the same view or opinions, of course.  I respect your right to your opinion even though I may strongly disagree with you.  I hope you will respect mine.  

Someone, the one I wanted to comment on but knew it would be better not to, was railing against guns in one blog post and suggested some chapters in the Bible that those of us who are for the 2nd Amendment needed to read.  Then she went on in another post about how we are to be tolerant and just love each other regardless of what country we're from and how heartless we idiots...yes, she did say that in response to a comment...are when we don't want to let certain people come into our country.  She was speaking particularly about the latest suggestion from a presidential candidate about stopping those people from coming in for a season.  Which has been done before and is constitutional by the way.  

I'm all for loving and respecting my fellow men and women no matter their color or nationality.  What I'm not for is letting people into our country who can't be vetted properly while we have this group who hate us and want nothing more than to destroy us.  As they have said themselves and we've already seen what they are capable of here as well as overseas.  And just for the record, I'm not endorsing any presidential candidate as yet.  There is a long way to go before the election.

I'm getting worried.  Just here in Missouri, there have been multiple cell phones bought by...shall we say...foreign men.  A hunter found a stockpile of explosives in a wooded area that were said to not be something that would be purchased for recreational purposes.  Although the sheriff of that county tried to downplay the possibility the explosives were tied to terrorism, it also was stated that they really didn't know that for sure.  Who knows what is next?  I am not naive enough to think that just loving people will change their minds or goals.

And about guns.  I am NOT for assault weapons.  In my humble opinion, no one needs them but perhaps the military and law officers.  But having a gun for protection or for hunting is perfectly okay in my book.  Maybe I partially feel that way because I grew up in a community where everyone had guns for hunting.  We were used to being around them.   

My father bought me a gun when I was 17 years old.  I had driven to our small country church one Sunday by myself.  I don't remember now why my family didn't go as they usually did.  Maybe it was during Vacation Bible School, I can't remember.  Anyway, I was the first one to leave and as I pulled out of the driveway and headed down the gravel road, I saw a car pulled over on the shoulder.  As I passed by, I looked over and saw a lone man in the vehicle.  I went on and then noticed in my rearview mirror that he had pulled out and was following me.  I got a bit worried and sped up.  So did he.  Even though there were some sharp curves in the as yet unpaved gravel road, I noticed he was keeping up with me.  As I turned left onto the other road that would take me to the turn off to our farm, I really floored it because that road while hilly was very straight.  I could see that he was trying to keep up, but the dust from the gravel and my speed kept me ahead enough that I whipped into our lane and saw him cruise on by.  Of course, I immediately told my parents and my dad called the sheriff with the description of the car I gave him.  In our community, everyone knew each other's vehicles and I had never seen this one before or the man, either.  That is when my dad soon after brought home a gun for me to carry when I was by myself.  

I tell all this because if you've ever had a scare like that, it makes you feel safer to know you have protection when you are alone.  At least, it did me.  No, I never had to use that gun.  But I would have used it if push came to shove.  I wish someone in these latest horrible situations had had a gun.  It might have saved a life.

Okay, enough of that.  I have some travel plans to share, but will wait for another post to tell about them when I have more space.  I have talked too much already, as usual.  I do have a question for you before I run along, if you don't mind my asking.  What is your favorite Christmas candy/cooky to make?
  
xo Cheryl