Category Archives: Mom

Sep14

90 odd miles

Posted on Friday, September 14, 2007 by Dianne

I put about that on the van these last three days. Yesterday I went back to the gyn and had a ‘newbie’ midwife. She was really sweet and explained ‘everything’ she was going to do before she did it. I felt young again! She’s the one that called the doc upstairs the day before as the baby she was delivering had an erratic heart rate.

I’m pleased to say I’ve sold a few things on eBay these last few weeks. I packaged them up and off they went across the states and across the county! A guy near here bought a Herman Munster Halloween mask.

I went down to see my mom today and she was not herself at all. She spent two hours Thursday using the weedwacker and she was just loaded with mosquito bites! She treated me to my favorite lunch (chicken salad club) up the road and I enjoyed that. We ventured to JoAnn’s where I left two of my finished cross stitched pieces for framing. I got 50% off, but it was still very expensive. I’ve only had one piece of my work framed all these years, and it was an embroidery I did of Holly Hobbie when I was 16. I guess I’m due for a treat. My mom did pay for one of them. They should be ready in a few weeks.

I came home earlier as mom had been feeling poorly in JoAnn’s and needed to lay down as she felt a migraine coming on. I think I’m going to have to go clean at her place once a week as I didn’t like what I saw. ~~Decorating~~, I mean helping out at my uncle’s house is too much for her. She runs away from her own mess. I’m concerned with her driving skills too as she got too close to a barrier at a gas station and put a nice dent in her car. I had done almost the same kind of thing years ago at McDonald’s with one of their barriers. My kitty Jade had a seizure and I was upset about that (left her at the vets) and wasn’t careful enough at the drive-thru.

I wanted to tell you about an elderly gentlemen that I think everyone overheard the other night in the restaurant where we had dinner. He was with a young guy, late teens. He was one of the founders of the New Bolton Center where Barbaro the horse was treated last year. He talked and talked and had a sharp memory. When he said he graduated from high school in 1937, I figured he was 88 (correct?)! Wow. I was impressed.

Have a great weekend!

Sep13

Wild goose chase

Posted on Thursday, September 13, 2007 by Dianne

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I went to the gyn office yesterday, which isn’t that close to here, about 20 miles round trip. I get there, pay the fee, go in the exam room, get my BP done and answered questions and then get in that open in the front gown. So I’m sitting there next to the doctor’s office. I had seen him sitting in that office. After about 10 minutes the nurse pokes her head in and said that Dr. H. had to go upstairs for a minute. So I said okay, maybe it’s a ‘just see’ upstairs. Well a few minutes later she opens the door again and said an actual delivery was underway and I had to come back at a later time! That’s never happened to me before. Ahhhhh…all the nerves I had. So I am going back today at 4:15.

I stopped off at a shopping area on the way home and enjoyed looking around a Hallmark store and did a little birthday shopping for my mom. I stopped off at another store closer to home and found a few more mom things. Tonight I ordered from Amazon and a Creative paper place. I was looking for a blank journal so she could make her one collage one. I know she’d be good at it, or she can do it when she comes here for a visit.

Bri took me out to dinner and when I started eating, I just didn’t feel great. I ordered steak which was good, but I brought half of it home. I guess I got myself in a stew before the trip to the hospital.

College guy update: Sean is doing good. He said he feels like he is on vacation?! I guess he means it doesn’t feel like home to him. He is going to church and joined a group there, something he never did at our church. He went to a picnic and a few other things with them already. I did say the ‘nice’ girls probably go to church. ; ) Statistics is proving to be difficult for him and he is struggling a bit. I told him to utilize the internet and library. He may have to get help. He also shrunk a shirt he likes and got medicine for his face on another and spotted it. Live and learn!

Sep9

Around the county

Posted on Sunday, September 9, 2007 by Dianne

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Our Sunday afternoon was a bit warm and crowded. We headed up to the Mushroom Festival and parked in a bank lot-what luck! We couldn’t really look at what the vendors offered-how many baby strollers are there out there and people who are in a daze? A store in town had some collaged cards that caught my eye. I told them I like being inspired. We heard that Ilan Hall and Miguel Morales from Top Chef were doing a cooking demo at 2:30 and waited inside a tent for half an hour. We could have met them before hand as they were standing outside the tent for about 15 minutes. Oh well. I got a few good shots and Bri said the heat was getting to him so we left.

To my surprise Bri took me to Chadds Ford Days! Now that’s when I felt the heat! Lots of vendors, artists, antique dealers and local restaurants. I did get a 9 month free membership to the Chadds Ford Historic Society and I can go to ‘the big pumpkin carve’ next month for free. I’ve never been to that event! We saw some vintage cars-a 41′ Woody and an early 1960s Lincoln Continental similar to the one JFK was riding in when he was assassinated in 1963. The later vehicle was owned by someone at Chadds Ford Days. I saw a Martha Washington cabinet like the one I had, but it had been refinished and looked like new. The asking price was $185. We saw a child’s MW cabinet at another vendor.

Bri treated me to dinner at Ruby’s Dinner (yummy burgers with avocado and the works) and we went over to Borders where I purchased some awesome art magazines. I have to cook up some chicken for tomorrow (meant for tonight) later, but I plan to relax and get some great ideas from my new purchases.

Some of the photos in this collage were just things that I liked-the sunflowers with their hanging heads, a tractor, and old barn (I guess they are all in the collage).

We didn’t eat a single mushroom dish! The guys from Top Chef were talking so much, they burnt the mushrooms they were cooking!

The only things I bought were handmade soaps from a Virginia couple at Chadds Ford Days. I didn’t see my other soap people from last year at the Mushroom Festival.

To tell you the truth, I’d rather go to flea markets and yard sales. My mom was here yesterday and we hit a yard sale up the road. I got some vintage compacts-one has a little powder holder, rouge and lipstick. Mom went a little nuts there and I had to whine because the 90 degree heat from getting to me. She loves shopping-second hand seems to be her new thing.

Aug9

Big box heaven

Posted on Thursday, August 9, 2007 by Dianne

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I never saw a guy get so excited about big boxes of food like Sean was in BJs Wholesale Club today! He loves that place. ☺

Since we have a small family, we don’t shop there that often. He was looking for snacks and meals he could have in his dorm room. He got lots of soup-the noodle kind and Healthy Choice, Chex mix, dried milk, lots of little boxes of cereal, Starbursts(!) and a few other things. He also got a ‘safe’ made especially for his laptop with a combination lock on it and a wire that loops around something for added security. He also got a Penn State folding chair. His room has a microwave/frig combo. He’s been using a lot of his work pay this summer to buy the things he needed. He helped today with BJs too.

I did buy myself a few things. Two scrapbooking books-called Instant Memories-Travel and Love editions. They have vintage images on nice card stock, but you also get a CD with all the images in the book. I saw them on Amazon with a bunch of other editions for under $6 each (used and new), half of what I paid. I also bought a faux scrapbook by Cicely Mary Barker, the flower fairy illustrator. It has little envelopes you can open up, one of which may have what is suppose to be a butterfly wing. That is also a good price at Amazon.

So Sean is all set!

We went to Bertucci’s, a brick oven pizza/Italian food restaurant. Mom had fettucini with asparagus and shrimp while Sean and I shared a Shrimp Bella Venezia pizza. Best pizza I have tasted for a while.

Going to my mom’s still makes me anxious as there is a lot going on there, mostly things that need cleaning. Her yard needs attention around the house. I guess the first cooler day I’ll have to go weed wack down there. And the inside is crazy. She tries to go through too many boxes at once. Plus instead of going to the department stores, she is now going shopping at the Goodwill! She bought a nice glider rocker that was new (Sean loved it) and a small wing back chair with a saggy seat. She thinks it is comfortable and more so then a leather chair I bought for her many years ago at a nice department store. I’m thinking about bringing the white leather chair home. I like it. It has big arms and you can curl up in it and read or stitch. We have a recliner that is a good make (Lane), but I have never liked it and it’s Bri’s chair. He said he’ll have to check out the leather chair.

We had to drive home tonight in the pouring rain and had to get the stuff in between raindrops. Bri is complaining about his new job already. Says that when he drove around a lot, it helped with his salary. He’s not driving that much, but he has more ads. We’ll have to see how it works out.

For Zoey, are you watching ‘The Parker’ about the Palm Springs hotel on Bravo? Just wondering.

Guess I’ll play with my new books tomorrow.

Jul29

Getting taller than me

Posted on Sunday, July 29, 2007 by Dianne

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I’m pushing 5’3″ and so are most of my flowers in this bed! Well the sunflowers are taller than me now. I look a little beat in this photo from the past few days of emotional turmoil. Mom apologized today and I said we should have followed our plans for Tuesday and stayed out of the stores. Mom was out yesterday with Jim her boarder to get the rest of her stuff she left behind on Wednesday. She brought her camera and took photos of my gardens and flowers. I was flattered.

Here are my flower shares for the day:

I’m surrounded by Cosmos, zinnias (out of shot) and sunflowers. Bri took this photo.

This is a Fantasy lily that the previous owners planted out back so they’ve been there over 20 years.

The Mexican Sunflowers (torch flowers) are blooming too! I am raising these from seed too.

By the way, everyone is talking about their bargains and I got 5 rose plants (two trees!) for under $15 at Kmart last night. They were getting rid of their plants at a buy 1 get 1 free special. I tried to pick the nicest ones as they were really neglected. When I got them home, I snipped off the dead branches and gave them a dose of Miracle Grow and bug killer (you never know what you’re bring home!). I have the rose trees across from the front door for now. One is like a fuchsia color and the other is a Peace rose.

Jul26

Maybe by fate

Posted on Thursday, July 26, 2007 by Dianne

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I went to call my sister-in-law this morning and speed dialed mom instead. When I heard her voice I was like ‘uh-oh’. She sounded like a small child who was sent to bed without supper. I was going to give her a good ‘cooling’, but maybe it was another ‘force’ that made me dial her up instead of C. We rehashed a few things, but I don’t think she’s going to change her ways which is too bad as she is set in her ways like we all tend to get. There’s gotta be little old ladies out there with 10 nice outfits and who save up their social security checks for their bills. Unfortunately my mom isn’t one of them.

As I said to my guys last night, I just want to make people happy and to be happy. We’re only here for a short time. I may be like my mom in some ways, but I try not to buy too many things to make up for happiness that may be lacking in my life. Things are just that ‘things’. Mom said she was happy to sit in my yard and all. I was glad of that, but she was running away from her overflowing house too. If she would only let me go there and toss or donate things. I know it’s going to have to happen sooner or later.

Right now I am suppose to be at a retirement community on a tour! She called them up and gave them my name as being interested. First of all, you have to be 62 to get in. I have a few more years. Wish she had just used her own name. Oy!

Jul25

Aye Carumba!

Posted on Wednesday, July 25, 2007 by Dianne

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Yeah, mom is still here and no surprise, she is mad at me! It’s so juvenile I know. So I learned not to take a compulsive shopper shopping and then tell her to put things back. And I learned that two days is really enough time for a friendly visit, after that it’s downhill. Sean and I were going to take her home yesterday and on the way have a nice lunch at Ruby’s Diner. Mom figured that since her car also needs brakes, she’d hang around a few more days. We did go to the Olive Garden last night and have a nice dinner. The mistake was going to Kohl’s (and later Barnes and Noble) where they have those 60-75% off sale racks. I went to look for swimsuits as mine are old as the hills. They hardly had any left and they were still pricey. I go to find mom and she has an arm full of clothes. You can have discussions galore with people like her and she just wants to spend. I also see her personality change in a store, even a crappy store like a Dollar Store. She had two of the same tops in different sizes, two pairs of slacks, a jacket and another top that was the same as the two she already had but in pink. I made her try the jacket on at the checkout (as it was the most pricey item) which she said was embarrassing and it was too big all over for her. She ended up saving about $30. Now she had just bought things in Peebles the day before. She said I can’t take her to stores and not expect her to buy things when Sean and I were. I guess, but she had just borrowed money from me and there she was wanting to spend a chunk of it on clothes she doesn’t need. She has 4 bedrooms in her house and all of the closets except two contain clothing. And that’s not even mentioning the Rubbermaid containers of clothing.

So today she is ignoring me and I have to go to the dentist in a few hours. This makes me a bit anxious. I had a 10:40 appointment, but Dr. B figures he’ll need more time with me, so I got bumped to 2:40. I probably would have taken mom home.

Thanks for lending an ear. I guess some people just can’t stand hearing the truth. I’ll keep you posted.

And thanks to Su for the adorable house fob she sent my way yesterday. It’s in a place of honor on my special cross stitch tree.

Update-I had to get a filling in the bothersome tooth and was gone from 2:30-4:00. I came in and my mom didn’t ask what was wrong. She came to the doorway of the family room where I was numb to the gills and announced she wanted to go home after dinner. Things kinda blew up and I went out to make a nice dinner. She got on the phone and started crying to my brother and then he wanted to talk to me. To make a long story short, Sean had to take her home with no dinner in his belly and just ate it at 7:00. So I don’t know what to do about her and she doesn’t remember things and makes them ten times as worse in her brain. Yes, company and fish stink after 3 days, thanks Vonna and Ben!

Jul23

In the company

Posted on Monday, July 23, 2007 by Dianne

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I’m still here and so is my mom! I went to get her on Saturday. She got a new frig just like mine, but a shelf smaller in both sections. She didn’t have one of the shelves separated, so I did that and rearranged items in it for her. She tossed a bunch of stuff out of the old one. I started to get a big allergy attack there that unfortunately lasted all day. I took mom to the farmer’s market for lunch and then we dropped by the Goodwill as I had a bag of stuff (old cross stitch leaflets) to leave. We went inside and I struck pay dirt! Someone had dropped off a bunch of cookbooks-Emeril and a few other Food Network people. I also got a white wicker buggy for my teddies. By the way, the guys went on the bus to Atlantic City with Bri’s dad as they hadn’t been down there for a while. I would have been by myself all day.

We came home and just vegged out as I wasn’t up to par. Bri and Sean didn’t get home until after 10 as there was a ton of traffic on Saturday. They went to the new mall and were most impressed by the new fountain and light show that rivals the Longwood Gardens show! I went to bed early but didn’t sleep all night! I couldn’t turn my brain or bladder off. Sunday was a sit around day. Mom seemed to enjoy sitting in the lounge chair and painting with her ‘Watercolor a day’ calendar. We ordered Chinese food which I was disappointed to do as I like to cook for mom when she comes here.

We watched the finale of ‘The Next Food Network Star’ and I swear I could have gone to bed at 9 when it started I was so wiped out. I voted for both Amy and Rory, to be fair I thought. I was happy Amy won as they don’t have someone quite like her on the channel. Rory looks like she has a popular restaurant she just opened in Texas. Good luck to both of them.

Today we were planning on Longwood Gardens, but it looks like rain. Bummer. Sean and I will take mom home tomorrow. Then on Wednesday I have to get a tooth checked out as it hurts every time I eat. My dental woes continue!

Jul16

More travelin’

Posted on Monday, July 16, 2007 by Dianne

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We decided to help Sean move into his dorm next month. We originally were going to take a run up there at the end of this month and then he was going to fly solo in August. I just couldn’t see him doing all that, though we’ll have two cars heading there instead of one. When I moved in the dorm way back when, I had my mom and grandmom to help me. So he went to book a hotel room on campus and couldn’t get one. We have to drive 12 more miles and stay in a Holiday Inn in a small town up there. I’m glad we got that room!

And next month we are headed back to Fenwick Island, DE for a few days at this quiet beach community. I may bring along my mom if she is able to travel. She’s gotten herself in a BIG stew and I sure hope she can get out of it with the help of her kids and the friend that lives with her. I still think she needs to think about selling her house and moving into an assisted living place. They seem to be sprouting up all over the place. There are 4 nice ones I can think of within an hour of mom’s house. Her car is also on the blink. She was driving it with a bum air conditoner compressor and my brother the mechanic (who was away all last week) said it could have caught fire! She is also getting a new frig, and I plan to go on Wednesday to see what I can move out of the way so the delivery guy has room to breeze in and out of there quickly

I actually picked up the Nicholas Sparks book I put down months ago. I think it’s a bit wordy, but now that there is a new conflict, think I’ll finish it up. So many books, so little eye power. My brain is foggy and my eyes hurt today. Brian cut the grass over the weekend and all those catkin flowers from the chestnut trees are breaking down and I know they are getting to Bri and my sinuses.

I went outside to check out the tomatoes and pulled some weeds. I gave that up quickly as the humidity was making me sweat bullets. My coleus experiment is still going on. I have now planted 4 baby coleus in my one shade garden. I’m curious to see how well they do. To me they are plants that like pots, like geraniums.

Rory, from the Next Food Network Star show has me on her mailing list and I got an email to ask me to vote for her. I checked out how many people she sent it too-there must be 100s-I sure hope I don’t start getting lots of undesirable mail. Speaking of ‘that’ show-I can’t believe what happened last night. It’s Jag and Rory as the final two. Then they find out that Jag lied about being a culinary school graduate and serving in Afghanistan. He withdraws and now it’s Amy and Rory! I read where Rory is being compared to Rachael Ray- I can see that. Amy’s more like the Barefoot Contessa. I think both stand a fair chance of winning. I didn’t even know Susie the judge was expecting (she had a big belly last night!)

1st veggies of the garden-a Roma tomato and a green pepper though Bri said the pepper was on the plant when he bought it (cheater!)

Jul12

Mom circa 1950

Posted on Thursday, July 12, 2007 by Dianne

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Sean and I had a nice visit with mom today-we mainly went shopping! : ) I am always happy to find paper craft stuff at the Dollar Tree. Also got a few things at Value City (new badly needed bath towels) and JoAnn’s where I got a few magazines and discounted garden stuff.Mom gave me this copy of her at about age 20, so it was 1950-1. I was playing with it in PSP7. Brian took a photo of the copy for me. I’m not really done with #2, but I thought you’d like to see some improvements. She was and is still a pretty lady. She also has an outstanding soprano voice, though I haven’t heard her sing lately. All are clickable…

This was cut out and glued on paper! Not sure what the definite shading is on the right side of her face…

Here I airbrushed boo-boos-where her hair and blouse had been taped, the unbalanced background, the drawn in eyelashes at the corner of her eyes. I did add ‘whiter’ flash dots in her eyes to make the photo looked newer. As I said, I still need to touch it up. This was over an hour’s worth of work.

And finally some artistic effects…