Christmas Advent Ribbon 2020

Charlie, I love that you are a snappy dresser.  I love the bow tie.  Did you know that Poppa used to wear a bow tie all the time when I first met him? You are definitely your Poppa’s “mini-me”.  Diva

 

 

Charlie, this is one of my favorite pictures of you.  I am so glad that you and your family can still go on camping adventures.  Do you still like to fish?  You make me laugh and give me the best hugs.  Your Diva

 

 

 

 

Charlie, thank you for being a good friend to our Dog Lady.  We still miss her.  You were always very kind to her.  I know you will really be kind to Madeline as she grows out of the puppy stage and stops chomping on your ears...Ouch!  Diva

 

 

 

Charlie, you are the middle child, your mom is a middle child, Diva is a middle child also.  You need to know that you play an important role in your family.  You can relate to Oscar and his interests yet still be a good friend and role model for Henry.  The best part of the cookie is the sweet middle that holds it all together.  Just ask Oreo.  My special boy.  Diva

 

 

 Charlie, Charlie,  my kindest, sweetest, sensitive child.  I have to laugh that you would choose to be Darth Vader.  Evil henchman of the Emperor.  You definitely have the chokehold perfected.

 

   

I love this picture of you.  My fierce dragon boy.  I have no doubt if I was in trouble you would swoop down and save me.  Love you, love your costumes!  You are always in trouble ...Diva  P.S.  I love your sweet prayers for me more than I can express in words.

Charlie, I love my boys.  Thanks for always giving me hugs. I run on hugs and you and your brothers keep me “fueled up”  Diva

 

 

 

Charlie, it was so much fun watching you and your brothers meet Madeline.  I can imagine many adventures you will have together in the future.  Just remember babies like to nip and your ears must be irresistible.  Diva

 

 

Charlie Bear, who knew I would enjoy watching you and Henry in a bubble blowing contest.  Henry is full of hot hair so he blew the biggest ones but you my clever boy blew the most and had the biggest pile.  I love this picture of you both.  You look so pleased with your accomplishment.  Your Diva

 

 

Charlie, I have always loved this print of you and feel very privileged to have witnessed you putting on the star for the tree.  I know you don’t like heights and you were very brave and proud.  I love being part of special moments.  Diva

 

 

 

What a strange year 2020 has been.  I am proud of you for doing your best and getting all your work done from home in a timely manner.  You inspire me to always do my best.  Diva

 

 

 

 

Charlie, how much do I love you?  To the moon and back again.  YourCrazy Diva.

 

trouble you would swoop down and save me.  Love you, love your costumes!  Your always in trouble ...Diva  P.S.  I love your sweet prayers for me more than I can express in words.

 

Diva's Favorites Things

 

This is one of my favorite pictures of Lexi Anne.  She is growing so quickly.  It is very hard only getting to see her and her sister once a year.  We appreciate Rachel posting new pictures frequently of the girls.

This is another favorite picture of our current household.  Diva, Poppa, and Dog all together.  Lady has filled a big hole in our hearts and is a much loved, comical relief.  She is always ready for a walk or a cuddle.  She knows our habits and loves to nap with Poppa in the afternoon.  Last night she went upstairs to bed without us.  What a dog. 

Some of my Current Favorite Things.....

Dark Chocolate Hershey kisses,
Blue Bunny white chocolate cookies and cream 
weekly visits to the library 
babysitting with the grandboys
popcorn shrimp
grits and cheese
heart-shaped rocks
daisies
dragonflies and fireflies
seeing the scale go down
baby giggles
funny cat videos
pictures of the family
a rock tumbler
adventures
organizing my kitchen storage
using my air fryer
cooking new recipes
double recliner (big enough for Charlie, Lady and me)
spontaneous hugs from the boys
monthly Sunday Sermon with Charlie at the nursing home
pixel art app
video games
birthday cake
Advent calendars
Fall, leaves, sweaters, mums, pumpkin everything, apple everything
Christmas decorations and tree
chicken decorations
taco salad
homemade soup on a cold day
a fire in the fireplace
a warm blanket
hot herbal tea
a good book
flowers on my table
pandora (Christian radio)
turquoise jewelry and also my favorite color
Sunflowers
a new laptop for my birthday (yes, that's a hint)
spending time with friends
learning a new craft
making hearts with melty beads with the grandboys
binge-watching my favorite shows on Netflix
Thanksgiving
Christmas
Hallmark sappy movies
time travel anythings
mysteries
Diva Camp with the grandchildren
prayer partners
checking off lists
hats
haircuts
swing on my porch swing
flowers in the garden
air conditioning in the summer
scented candles
grilled cheese sandwiches
pockets
cool purses

how I met your Poppa

 I met your Poppa at church in a Sunday School class for College and Career.  I was new to the church and had seen him singing in the church choir.  I liked him instantly and decided to meet him.

I was working as a night nurse (11 to 7) shift at a hospital in Virginia Beach.  I had every other weekend off but decided I couldn't wait for a weekend that I was off so the following Sunday (after working all night) I went home and prepared "to meet HIM".  Yes, dear children, I stalked your Poppa!  I showered, curled my hair, wore my best dress, sprayed on Shalamar perfume, grabbed my Bible, and headed out the door on my quest to meet my Mr. Wonderful.

I arrived early and eagerly waited for him to show up.  He was late. Class started and after a preliminary welcome, we were encouraged to mingle and meet newcomers.  At last, my moment had come and I started my quest to meet him only to be stopped 4 times by people wanting to meet me.  My momma did not raise me to be rude so I missed my opportunity to meet him.

It was a big class (about 25 people) so we were divided into groups by counting off into groups of four.  I listen to whatever number he said and went directly to his group as soon as we broke up. I sat next to him and marveled at how smart and articulate he was.  (I should add that your Diva is attracted to Nerds.)

After class, I asked him if he was going to go to church so I could sit next to him.  He smiled sweetly and said "Yes, I am, I sing in the choir!  ( Rats!  I forgot about that.)   I gave him my best smile but it didn't persuade him to skip choir and sit with me.  So I sat by myself and dozed off and on through the sermon since I had been up all night long.  Hopefully, it looked like I was in deep meditation or prayer!

After church," I lingered longer" in hopes of accidentally bumping into him.  When that didn't happen I decided to give up and go home to bed defeated in my purpose.  When I got to my car, guess who was parked behind me?  Yes, dear children, it was your future Poppa.  God is good!

We talked, I flirted, and then he asked me to join him for lunch!  I forgot how tired I was and instantly agreed.  We went out for pizza and it felt very comfortable talking with him.  We laughed, and conversation seemed to flow in both directions. 

 When the bill arrived he discovered the restaurant didn't take credit cards and he only had a dollar in his pocket.  So yes dear children, I ended up paying for our first date and as I like to remind him....I've been paying for it ever since! 

 We met in March, got engaged in April, and were married in July. So you can see that even though your Poppa was shy and quiet when we met he definitely was just waiting for me.  We just celebrated our 46th anniversary this year.  

Summer recap

 

Hello, long-forgotten blog... I'm back!

I always have such good intentions!  However, my follow-through has a lot to be desired.

I love the fall.  I love the cooler weather, the fall foliage, apples cider, pumpkin everything, warm sweaters, mums, my birthday, Thanksgiving, and Christmas.

This summer was busy with a long-anticipated visit to Texas to meet our newest grandchild Lexi, and love on her big sisters Lyra and Lucy.  We came home with an unexpected blessing...Lady, our granddog, now our dog.  We flew to Texas but drove back in a rental car with Lady and all her belongings.  Our cats were not very receptive to the new family member but gradually realized she was not going anywhere so finally tolerated her.  

We loved having Becky, Emma, and Danny for two weeks in June and July.  It was an action-packed time with lots of activities, games, side trips, Diva Camp, 4th of July fireworks, and yes, the traditional family photo.  We miss them so much so have to get a year's worth of fun in the two weeks we have together.  Emma is 12, she is so tall and a real beauty.  She loves cats, art, girl guides, acting, and animals.

Suzy turned 40 this year.  How can that be?  My children are middle age!  I turn 70 this November!!  Yikes!  Becky starts her work on her  Doctorate this month.  She hopes to finish by the time Emma graduates.  Emma is entering 7th grade. 

The grandboys seem to grow every night.  Oz started 5th grade, Charlie 3rd grade and Henry is in first grade.  I love that they come running to give me hugs whenever we see them at church.  I know to soak it up now because there will come a day when they will be occupied with cars and girlfriends.


We no longer have our two cats JJ and Lucy.  Lucy was having many seizures each day and JJ had some serious intestinal issues and was losing weight.  They were littermates and lifelong companions.  They slept huddled together every night and neither would have done well without the other.  They were almost 18 years old and are missed daily.


My desire is to write more.  I need to get back to water aerobics at the senior center and fill my days with adventures.

Hearts in Nature

 

I am a very sentimental person.  I love watching Hallmark movies, even though I know how it will end.  I love happy endings, treats, thoughtfulness, hearts and flowers, and random acts of kindness.  I am definitely "a happily ever after" kind of girl.  

I was reading a devotion today from a book called "Devotions for the Hungry Heart" and she shared this story with her grandchildren that I would love to share with mine.

God shows us His love by showing us heart shapes in nature.  They are all around us and pop up in unexpected places.  I like to see them so He shows me them to me.  It's like a little note from heaven right in the middle of the day.  When I see it, I think about how much God loves us and I have a little party in my heart.

Had to laugh at the heart-shaped bum.













I loved the hearts on the wings of this butterfly.













Heart-shaped rocks.



So my darlings, I am hoping to have some heart adventures with you this summer.  I will start collecting some I can show you and start taking pictures of the ones I find.  Don't be surprised if we go on a heart hunt adventure.   I hope you know you are always in my heart and never far from my thoughts.

What I love about your Momma

This picture reminds me of my daughter Suzy.  I have seen so much personal and spiritual growth in her lately.   She is the mother of 3 active boys, works full time as a school librarian, and still manages to find time to greet each person who comes into the library with a friendly hello and a smile. 

She is a little bit cheerleader, a little bit magical, the keeper of secrets, and seems to know just what book you need (even when you don't). 

She loves to dress up during book week as a favorite character in a book.  She loves to see who can guess what character and from which book.

She recently has had to face some hard truths and decide what is more important to her...financial gain or ministry?  She chose ministry.

Ministry costs time, energy, creativity, and full commitment.  Ministry entitles you to be misunderstood, criticized, and have your motives questioned by those who feel intimidated by your giftedness.  In short," ministry is not for wimps."

So baby girl, know how proud I am of you and your commitment to the Lord.  Hold on and Jesus will carry you through.  

You are an amazing mom, a great daughter, and the first one I want to talk to whenever life is good, (and especially when it is frustrating!)   

Diva's Remembers....skating

When I was 8 years old one of my favorite past times was roller skating.  The picture below is the street skates I used, complete with a skate key to tighten up the clamps on my shoes.  The skate key was very important or else the skate fell off every time you picked up your foot.  I lost many skate keys growing up and had to get my dad to use a pair of pliers to adjust the clamps so I could skate.

Not only were the skates heavy and awkward but I learned to skate on the sidewalks outside our home in Abilene, Texas.  Our sidewalks were cracked and if you had any speed at all and hit the rough and uneven pavement a fall was the predictable outcome.  I don't remember how many times I fell but I usually had bruises, skinned knees and elbows, and lots of colorful bandaids to show for my skating adventures. ( Remember this was long before knee and elbow pads and helmets.  So if occasionally Diva acts goofy its probably from a childhood skating accident.)  Occasionally my parents would take pity on my injuries and take us skating at the local roller rink.

Ah.....the roller skating rink with a smooth wooden floor with lots of room to skate and shoe skates that they rented out.  Back in my day, it was 8-year-old heaven.  For my 8th birthday, my parents rented out the roller rink and had my birthday party there.  I was the most popular girl in school for that brief week.  I was able to invite all my classmates, Sunday School class friends, Brownie troop, neighbors, and friends. What could be better than shoe skates, birthday cake, presents, music to skate by as well as skating games and "couples only" skating time  I skated with Jerry Cleveland my third-grade crush....he had braces, bright red hair cut in a crew cut, thick glasses and was the smartest boy in my class.  (Yes, sweet sweetie....your Diva was attracted to Nerds even back in the day.  Jerry was a math whiz and did my math homework for me. (But don't tell great grandmother--she just thought I got really smart in math in that year!) 

   I broke my arm roller skating.  It was the first of three broken wrists that I experienced in the first, second and third grade.  My cousins used to say that "I was slippery", I think they meant that I was breakable or clumsy.  It was my left wrist.  I was going too fast down an incline and couldn't stop myself from hitting a parked car.  I used my left hand to try and stop myself but it bent backward and I heard it snap.  I wore a cast on it for 6 weeks.

In high school, I used to watch Roller Derby on TV.  The girls skated on a banked track and it was really a physical contact sport.  My friends always laughed at me that I enjoyed watching it and called me the Roller Derby Queen.  I actually got to go to a game in Norfolk and meet one of my heroes...Joan Westin of the Bay City Bombers.  I laughed when your Auntie Becky told me she was interested in skating with the Roller Derby in Saskatoon.  Who knows maybe she will fulfill one of my long lost dreams and be a roller derby queen.

As I write this for you today I want you to know how excited we are to see you dance, sing and create.  Poppa and I love you very much and pray for your every single day.  Know that you are always in my heart and in my thoughts.

Your Roller Derby Skating Queen......Diva