Be Nice

It's tax season! Can you tell? Chatty has been dreading it since April 15th of 2010 (the close of  last tax season). Tax season tends to bring out the ugly in people. So I beg all of you who are having a professional prepare your taxes this year, please be nice to the people at the tax office so I don't have to come home to this face every night for the next 2 1/2 months!

Wedding Day is Over

They did it! My step-son and his fiance were married this past Saturday. YAY!!!! We have added another girl to the family. We girls are still out numbered, though. 5 girls, 7 boys. But there is another grandchild due in December. Maybe it will be a girl and we will shrink the gap.

They had planned and rehearsed the wedding to be outside in a beautiful courtyard, complete with an elegant water fountain. But as I suspected it might, it rained ALL day and late into the evening. And it was very chilly.  They decided to go to Plan B. It was moved into the reception hall (Did I mention Plan B was unrehearsed?) There were a few glitches and ad-libbed things. But all-in-all, it turned out to be a great event!

                                      

This is the Bride and Groom (plus the Maid of Honor). Aren't they cute?

Oldest step-son & one of the Bridesmaids

This is the Groom's twin brother with yet another Bridesmaid.

The groom's 1/2 sister..my daughter (Chatty) with the Groom's step-brother.

The groomsmen

The Bridesmaids

Chatty helping the Bride. I guess now that she's part of the family I'm going to have to think of a name for her...hmmm...until I think of something better, we'll call her Chit-Chat.

Me with our youngest granddaughter. Her hair was beautiful just 3 minutes before this...she was extremely hot. Once her clothing was changed and she cooled off, she was up and running again.

Mr. Chat and I tripping the light fantastic!~We may not be Fred and Ginger. But at least we can still keep a beat while NOT falling down.

Welcome to our family, Chit-Chat!!!!

Blog Party

Blog Party

There's an amazing blog party going on. If you want to join in, just click the above link to join. Or click on the banner that I have posted on my sidebar. I think you should join in because there are lots of free prizes and give aways. Sounds fun, right? So take my hand and come with me to this wonderful party. I hate arriving at parties by myself. There's something very intimidating about going to a door alone.  I took a glimpse at the people over there and they look quite friendly. Don't wait too long and don't dawdle because I'll leave without you. I'll go alone....I ain't scared.

I'm suppose to introduce myself so I can easily get acquainted with everyone at this party. OK, well....My name is Debbie. Since that's a name from the 1950's and 1960's, you can easily gather that I'm no spring chicken. I have 1 daughter (Chatty) and 3 step-sons. It doesn't seem possible but my daughter will be 21 years old this year. Her brothers are in their mid-to-late 20's and have blessed us with 5 grandchildren. My husband (Mr. Chat) is a delivery driver for a popular foodservice company. He likes to fish, camp and work on landscapping. I'm a bookkeeper for 4 restaurants and 1 recreational dealership. I love to talk, visit old shoppes and historical towns, try to find the ultimate coffee shop, read and Blog. I like to meet new people. Did I mention that I love to talk? Anyway, that's me in a nut shell. As I re-read my intro, my life and I sound pretty boring. But I promise I do have my moments. At any given time AND without warning, I can cut loose and have a good time with the simplest things in life. I'm not a complicated person at all.

Yada-yada-yada. Now that that's out of the way, lets go look at the prizes and see if there's anything to eat.

Vacation Highlights

We just got back from Branson. We had a great time. Now that we're back home, I'm feeling it. I'm tired. But I would go again if I had the chance. We went to 3 music shows and 3 attractions. We even rode a train to Arkansas. I've been on plenty of kiddie trains at places like the zoo, etc.. But this is the first time I've ever been on a real train. It was a Zephyr. I felt like we stepped back in time. We went to a house of Mirrors. I'm glad Mr. Chat was leading us through the maze, because if I had been leading, we would probably still be there trying to get out. I was wanting to go to a Haunted House, but Chatty went to a Haunted House with some friends the weekend before and she vowed to never step foot into another Haunted House.

The scenery in Branson was spectacular. The changing colors were beautiful  (even if it means that the temperatures are getting colder....yuck!)


If you like Country Music and you ever get the chance to watch Neal McCoy perform, you really must see him. It is well worth the price of a ticket!!!!

Sorry, I forgot to invite you to my daughter's wedding. But you know, we had to be very discreet. Maybe at their next party we can slip you in via the back door. (Because you know----I'm good to my blogging friends that way)! A fun time was had by all. May I introduce you to Mr. and Mrs. Johnny Depp. LOL! (This was at the Wax Museum. Don't you love the way Chatty's brown sleeves compliment the wedding dress?)

We stopped by to help the Idol crew decide who would make it to Hollywood. Chatty, Paula and Simon were very indecisive on this contestant. They debated over it FOREVER and decided to crush this poor person's dreams. Randy and I found the contestant quite charming and we liked the performance. But a vote of 3 against 2 does not win a trip to Hollywood. So if you auditioned and didn't make it...blame the 3 on the end!!!

Jackie Chan did not agree with Chatty's American Idol decision. (Did I mention he was the one auditioning?)

I thought maybe Jeannie and I could blink up a new house with all of my belongings moved in.

Chatty joined this crew on their trip to Oz. She figured if they could ask for courage, a heart, a brain and a trip to Kansas, she could ask the Wizard for more height.

 

 I'm thinking about doing something like this on my front porch (minus the wine bottle and the wooden menu).
















Down on the Landing, every hour on the hour, water and fire dance. The song "Around the Bend" by Creedence Clearwater Revival was playing when these pictures were taken.

Isn't it pretty amazing?

I didn't take a camera to the music shows. The pictures that were taken on the train were not all that good. But the important thing is that we had fun. We didn't watch Bubba perform. There was so much to do, we just ran out of time. Maybe next time. He is moving into the Osmond Theater next year. (I wonder if that means the Osmonds are leaving Branson)? Wayne, Jay and Jimmy were performing at their theater while we were there. That's another show I'll have to see another time. If for nothing else than for my own personal nostalgic reasons.

Well there you have it...our 3 day vacation. It was back to work today. I'm ready for another vacation. LOL!

Looky, Looky!

Back in 2007, I signed a guest book on a web site that had family pictures of a family who had the same last name as my maiden name. A few months went by. I never thought any more about it. In fact, I had forgotten that I signed the guest book. Then about this time last year, I received an email from someone who was unfamiliar to me. This woman explained that she saw my signature on her guest book a few months before but she had been very busy and hadn't had time to respond. She told me that her mother had the same maiden name as my maiden name. She referred me to a genealogy web site. After I filled in all of my family information, we found out that we are 5th cousins (I think it's once removed---In genealogy, they don't count cousins as I was always taught...you know...1st, 2nd, 3rd, etc...). Anyway, we have been corresponding for close to a year. Even though I have never met her in person, I feel like I have known her all of my life. She's taught me so much about the Internet and different computer functions. She's actually the person who introduced me to the world of blogging.

She's a great seamstress and quilter. How do I know? Because I have seen some of her creations on her blog. She stays really busy with all of her projects. I really don't know how she gets all of them done. Not only does she sew and quilt, she plants beautiful plants and flowers out in her yard. See, I told you she stays busy! Since it's summer, she spends a lot of time outside. Does she run in and out of the house for things that she needs? NO! She just whips up an apron to carry her phone and supplies that she needs to carry from the house to the yard. Isn't that smart? I told her that I usually keep running from room to room to get the office supplies that I need to do my book work. So, guess what? Yesterday, I received a very pretty package in the mail. Not only was the package pretty, but the item inside the package was gorgeous. Yep! Now I have my very own "cousin-made" apron. She calls it a cobbler's apron. But I think a "cousin's apron" sounds more fitting, don't you? This is what it looks like:

And this is what it looks like on me:

Yes, I have a head, shoulders, more legs and feet...but I wanted to show the apron...isn't it very pretty and very modern looking? I think most aprons look old ladyish...but I think this one has a younger look to it, don't you? Chatty fell in love with it. I may have to share with her. What I love about it is the pockets are really deep. It looks like there is only one pocket...but it is divided into 4 sections, making 4 pockets. The two middle pockets are smaller than the two outside pockets. The little brown patch on the front is actually a pocket, too! It's great for putting a pen, pencil, or ear phones in. I am so proud of it! It's more special to me because she took time away from her other projects to make it for me!!!

Thanks, Eileen! I will be looking for a vintage "Thank You" surprise for you!

 

The World through Chatty's Eyes

I know this is my 2nd post for today, but I'm on a roll!!! Being that it's been a couple of weeks since my last post, I hope you'll forgive me for being piggish and gabby today.

If you've read any of my posts, you know that Chatty is my (almost 20 year old) daughter. I LOVE teasing her. I tell her it builds strong character. But in all reality, it's just plain fun for me. hehehehe!

Anyway, Chatty is the photographer for most of my blogs. I always tease her and tell her she is fired when she misses opportunities to take pictures of the main points of interest for my posts. But when she is photographing for her own personal pleasure, she takes some pretty amazing pictures. She points her camera at the things that most people take pictures of... but her eyes and hands will slowly gravitate away to something else that grabs her attention. Her focal point is usually slightly to the left or to the right of what most people would shoot. When she tells me what she wants to take a picture of...I always roll my eyes....but when I see the results, I am amazed. I guess I have no imagination.

I mentioned in the previous post that we went to our friends' house for a barbecue for 4th of July. Well, I would like to show you what Chatty saw as she took a stroll through their yard.

Pretty amazing, huh?

A Late Holiday Post

I didn't get a chance to wish all of you a Happy 4th. So I will say it a day late. I hope everyone had a fun, safe 4th of July. In the midst of all of the celebrating, I hope we all remembered to say a prayer of thanks for our freedom and a prayer for those who are fighting to make sure that we keep our freedom. I say a prayer for our military people and their families every day. But this year, the words and the meaning of what I pray were put into reality. Just a couple of weeks ago, our home town streets were lined with flags and hundreds of people as they waited for a hearse to bring one of our boys back from Afghanistan. So as I look at our country's flag, I not only feel pride and honor, I also shed a few tears. Because to me, the flag represents more than a piece of cloth with stars and stripes. It symbolizes a couple of hundred years of human sacrifice and the many citizens who worked hard to make this the country what our fore fathers envisioned. It also symbolizes a great land that up until recently, ALL Americans wanted to be "one nation under God".
We went to friends' house for a barbecue and a quick swim in their pool. Well, actually for Chatty, her friend, and me it wasn't quite swimming. They floated and I stood. This has been a tradition for me for years. The girls just started doing this since they have been old enough to wear makeup. My friend swims. She has a perm that she just fluffs up and she wears no makeup, so for her it's not a problem. I bet you're wondering why it's such a problem for me, aren't you? Well, right after the swim, we always go to the public fireworks display in town. You still don't get it, do you? Well let me put it in terms you will understand. My hair is not the care free kind of hair. It requires a curling brush and some maneuvering. And let's just put it this way, if I went straight to town right out of the pool....I would look like a raccoon from all of the mascara running down my face. Get the picture? So I don't swim. I just stand and do my favorite thing....TALK.

Even though our kids are grown and Mr. Chat's hair is thinning and some of his blond hair is being replaced by silver, he still has a lot of kid left in him. He disappeared while most of us were still eating. I knew where he went. And it was confirmed when I heard the big bang go off in the yard. He does love 4th of July and he still likes playing with fire.

And what better way to end the evening than to be with friends sitting in a safe country!

So I hope all of you were able to celebrate in a way that brought you peace and joy! May God bless you all!