Category Archives: Mom

Jul6

A phone call

Posted on Friday, July 6, 2007 by Dianne

My mom did call this morning. I would have called her if she hadn’t called me by 11. Her charades are so silly. She opened with ‘I’m headed for Riddle (the hospital) because my diabetes is out of whack’. Pure shock value. She was going mainly to get her prescription. Seems her 4th of July wasn’t that great, she ended up in a diner with her boarder and then they went to the movies in the pouring rain and at 10 at night to see ‘Evan Almighty’ which she liked. We did not discuss when she will come here again. I made Sean apologize for the hassle of Tuesday. She said she had everything on her patio. She could have tested herself to drive at least half the way and someone could have met her and followed her too.

Brian took off today and we may go up to the next town for their Friday night art stroll. Or we could go to Booth’s Corner Farmer Market. Sean is working tonight.

Anyway, here is a Stargazer lily that the rain broke off. The entire house smells so delightful.

That vase is skinny and tall, rather neat. It was from a special Pier One buy out Big Lots had.

Also-I’m very close to a big cross stitch finish! Can’t wait to share.

Jul5

Just a bit of shopping

Posted on Thursday, July 5, 2007 by Dianne

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In about 6 weeks, I’ll miss my shopping companion when he heads off to State College. I have taught him so well in these last 20.5 year that he is a good bargain shopper like the old lady. Really he is! So I suggested we head down to Delaware as I wanted to see if Kmart had any good floral buys. We decided to hit Value City first. They were having a buy one at the blue/red ticket price and the second item was 99¢! I got Bri a few Pierre Cardin polo shirts-a total of about $14.99. I also got some 1928 jewelry and half off garden stuff-two little oval tables-two tone peach and blue, a mushroom that looks real-all mossy (that got a piece out of it somewhere in transit, but I can just turn it so it doesn’t show) and what I have wanted for a while, a two-tier planter! It has a smaller bowl on the top that connects to the bigger one in the bottom. We did eventually hit Kmart and I found some plants for it and it’s planted already! We’re having a downpour right now or I’d take a few photos of the goodies.

We decided to go to Pizza Hut-it was warm in there and there was no server! People came in and left, but we stuck it out. We were kinda waited on. I enjoy this particular restaurant as the one near Brian’s work just can’t make a decent pizza.

I didn’t call my mom today and she didn’t call me. I did call my sister-in-law and she had spoken to my mom and said she didn’t mention me. Oh well, I’ve talked about our little spats in the past. Maybe it’s healthy once in a while to take a break from one another. I wanted to take her to Longwood Gardens and Shady Maple (a place in Lancaster). She is always worried about her house and buying storage boxes instead of downsizing as she should come to the realization that she’ll be 77 in a few months and can’t keep a 4 bedroom place in shape.

Jul4

Happy Independence Day

Posted on Wednesday, July 4, 2007 by Dianne

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And Happy Birthday to Dave!

We’re planning on grilling ‘something’. My mom was suppose to come here yet again but it fell through (and she was bringing steaks!!). Sean went to get the oil changed in his car and sat and sat waiting. He never did get it changed and by the time he left it was 4:45 and Mom was a bit peeved about it and said to forget about him picking her up. I hope Sean will be making better decisions at the main campus as he should have left after an hour of waiting, especially if some sale was going on. Not sure if Mom will come out tomorrow or if someone, probably me will have to get her. Sean is working all day. I am making the food. I doubt Brian will go down for her as he drives so much during the week. She wants to drive herself, but that makes me nervous as she is wearing old glasses as she never found her newer ones.

I fiddled around here, cut down weeds, planted some yard long beans, zinnias and teddy bear sunflowers (seeds from last year) and realized I needed to get a few picnic necessities at the market. My father-in-law is coming over and he hasn’t been here since Easter. He usually eats and leaves. Right now the yard with the shade is a mess because of the chestnut tree fuzzies called catkins (I finally looked it up and they are the male part of the chestnut). We do have a nice table with an umbrella on the back patio.
I hope everyone has a nice day-and try to relax!

Check out this cool night blooming waterlily video

Red Flare from konapete and Vimeo.

Taken minutes ago right before the rain hit. It’s been a rainy evening here in Philly. You should see the people on the Parkway in the city!

Jun28

Saunaland

Posted on Thursday, June 28, 2007 by Dianne

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It really is soupy outside! We need to cut the clovers (I hardly see any grass in the backyard), pull weeds and trim bushes. Last night we had a terrible thunder and lightning storm which knocked out my mom’s power until early this afternoon. Speaking of mom, Sean is going to get her after he takes the exam for his night class, which ends tonight. Mom hasn’t been here since January(!) and I want to take her to Longwood Gardens.

Update late 6-28

Mom misplaced her glasses and decided not to come out. We are looking to try again in the beginning of the week.

Enjoy the following photos:

Jun15

Graduation gift

Posted on Friday, June 15, 2007 by Dianne

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This is for my nephew who just graduated from high school on Wednesday, exactly 30 years after me! This is on a pale green aida (which I don’t mind stitching on once in a while to save my eyes) and it’s mounted on cardboard with a green felt backing. The school’s colors are green and gold. His middle name is Ian. The original ‘I’ looked like a lowercase ‘l’, so I made up a new ‘I’. Also in the original, there were two graduates, but I opted on using his name and info instead of the girl. I designed the mortar board as the design is from a button company and you are suppose to use their button. There are some green and light yellow beads on this too.

I learned that Tori was sick last weekend and is now fine. I was at my mom’s today and decided to drop off a goodie bag for Tori on the way home and she was cheerful and running around. Her brother Kenny just graduated from elementary school today. He’s about 5’5″ or so, he’s taller than his mom and auntie.

My mom is showering me with gifts-jewelry and clothes! She won a little money and wanted me to have a few things. Hey, I love a bargain (Monet jewelry for $5 each), but I need more clothes and jewelry like a hole in the head. It makes her happy. Everyone isn’t feeling up to par-Mom, Sean and still me. Our weather goes from hot to cool. We were lucky if it was 70 today. I’m someone who is affected by changes like that. Mom and I went to one of our favorite restaurants and I could only eat half of my chicken salad sandwich. I ate the other half for dinner.

Have a great weekend.

Jun12

Happy 84th Uncle Don

Posted on Tuesday, June 12, 2007 by Dianne

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Unfortunately my Uncle Don is in a state of turmoil right now. He was all set to go home and asked my brother Ken to get him. His stepdaughter said if Ken did that, it was going against the recommendations of the doctors and that he would be held responsible, so Ken didn’t go get him. He felt terrible and when he told my Uncle that he wouldn’t be getting him. Ken told UD that he wants him to be happy and that they would find a place that would work for him. There are retirement places around here that are fairly new. My mom sent for a booklet to check out the prices. You have to give them a $160K refundable deposit and it’s like 1k a month, but everything is done for you-no food shopping, cooking, mortages, bills, etc. My mom can’t really afford it, but my uncle could. He isn’t calling mom as he’s so disappointed about not going home. He would be so dependent on friends, family and neighbors for everything-food shopping, taking the trash out, getting the mail, that they would get sick of it. I wish him the best too.

Last night I planted a bunch of different sunflowers in the inner circle I have around the Zinnias, Mexican sunflowers and Cosmos. I don’t have high hopes for them as the deer or ground hogs will probably come along and eat them. I also tossed a row of basil in near the lilies. The basil I bought at the nursery is gorgeous right now.

So it’s the 12th of June and I haven’t planted any green beans or zucchinis. The only green beans seeds I have are from last year. This is the last thing I plan to get in. The weather is really iffy today with storms expected, so mom and I canceled Longwood Gardens. I have a sore foot anyway. I do have to go to the food store shortly and cash the check we got for Sean’s car being towed on Memorial Day. Bri had to have his car towed last year and forgot completely about getting insurance money back.

Have a great day!

Jun5

Dianne the portrait artist

Posted on Tuesday, June 5, 2007 by Dianne

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1978-86

Why these dates? I haven’t draw anything like these since Sean was little!

Here are some drawings I did way back in the late 70s when I was between 19-20 yrs old. Yeah, Al Pacino looks like Jesus a little, but that was his character in Serpico. The lady was an Irish actress Mary Larkin who appeared in a mini-series in 1980 called ‘Against the Wind’. I remember drawing this and the other-not shown (from the local tv magazine) down the shore while staying at a beach house with my mom, grandmom and little brother) I was at the age where I felt I was getting too old to go on trips like this. I know, she has a long neck! The baby was a drawing assignment from ‘Drawing from the right side of your brain’.

My mom is a terrific portrait artist and still draws when the mood hits. She is draws in a more sketchy way where I like to shade more. Mom and I are both lefties.

May16

Working hard part 2

Posted on Wednesday, May 16, 2007 by Dianne

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Today Sean and I went to my mom’s to wish her a belated Happy Mother’s Day and to plant some flowers for her. I need to go back to the nursery in Delaware as the garden centers around here aren’t that great-even Walmart! We stopped there and I couldn’t believe they wanted $10.88 for one hanging baskets. Guess I’ll be making my own. I did get a couple of waterlilies and a couple of perennials like asters.

So we get to my mom’s and I have never seen the yard around her house look so weedy and terrible. I had to fix her weed wacker and then I went to town with it! Most of her front yard isn’t fit for a mower, so you have to use a weed wacker. The leaves (mostly from Japanese maples) were never cleaned up from the fall so I did some of that. I would say that we made a nice dent in the yard and the flowers that I planted last year (white astible, white bleeding heart, hosta, lilies and barrenwort) were all coming up nicely. It was warm though breezy today. What my brother did to the back yard is really neat. Imagine a thicket of evergreens with the bottoms trimmed up and a new layer of green, green grass growing under them. It never looked like that when we were kids. (I’ll bring my camera next time).

Mom treated us to dinner at Carabbas which was nice. Glad it was dark in there as I had some grass still stuck to my legs! I had chicken, spinach and ricotta stuffed raviolis. We hit Macy’s and I bought some necklaces, a dress and a few tops.

We just found out that Brian lost his Aunt Rosemarie (she looked like Lucille Ball) on Sunday. She is also Brian’s godmother. She has two sons around my age and 3 grandchildren a bit younger than Sean. This is the auntie who was in a nursing home in Delaware, very close, yet Bri’s dad or Bri never went to see her. That is the last of my father-in-law’s six siblings. I am either going to the viewing on Thursday or the funeral on Friday as we have a 70 mile round trip from here.

Snowball bush beginning to bloom

My windowbox 2007

May14

Mother’s Day rap up

Posted on Monday, May 14, 2007 by Dianne

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I didn’t get to spend the day with my own mom, but I promised her Sean and I would come down on Tuesday to plant a few annuals in the garden I fixed up for her last year.

I have terrible dry (and a bit itchy) allergy eyes. I thought it was from handling dusty Space Bags of my summer clothes, but I’m now thinking something is pollening that is bothering me. I am using both tears and allergy formula and it helps a bit, but looking at this screen is not easy. I’ll call the eye doctor if they aren’t better in a few days. I just have some circles under my eyes (what else is new).

I got two lovely cards today and one from my friend Terri in Alabama the other day-hers was a total surprise and so sweet. Sean’s was oversized and pink and flowery with sweet reflections of motherhood. Bri gave me a musical card that played ‘How Sweet it is’ by Marvin Gaye. (James Taylor also recorded it later on).

I asked Sean to drive to a garden center at a store in Delaware, but they didn’t have one this year. We ended up at Loew’s and their stuff was just ok. I got some tomatoes and a few flowers and bags of red mulch.

We grabbed a burger at Friendly’s and headed home.

I just watched the 3-hour long ‘Survivor’ finale and reunion while trying to finish up a redwork cross stitched piece. I was cheering for a 54-yr old man to win named Yau-man, but he got back stabbed as the remaining players knew he’d win if he was left in the ‘final three’. I miss talking about ‘Survivor’ with my estranged brother who enjoys it too.

So to end this nice weekend, here are some things I admire about my mom-her beautiful, trained soprano voice, her ability to pick up a pen, pencil or marker and sketch a portrait that resembles the person she is trying to capture (and from memory sometimes) and her love of giving, though that gets her in trouble sometimes. I told her once that Penelope Cruz could be her daughter more than me as she looks like mom a little. The next thing you know someone asks if we are mother and daughter and they say ‘I can tell’. What a nice compliment.

Mom on her 75th birthday-9-23-05

and-Mom as a young mom with my grandmom and older brother Dave. (See how she looks like Penelope Cruz here? It’s clickable)

I tried the edger tool that Brian just gave me (so long electric edger) and it works pretty good, but I can see me only using it after a rainstorm like we had last night.

Apr26

Celine and Elvis

Posted on Thursday, April 26, 2007 by Dianne

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Hey did you see the American Idol gives back special Wednesday night? Not only was it an important show, but it had the cool ‘performance’ highlighting Celine Dion singing with Elvis (from the year she was born-1968). It was pretty clever. I think it’s available for download on the AI site. While you’re there, give a few bucks to help poor people-it makes a difference. I bought a bunch of the One.org white bracelets last year and Sean was wearing his today.

I had an uneventful day-did some cleaning. Yeah, stop snickering there. I am influenced (though I am not that bad, goodness me) hooked on that BBC America show ‘How Clean is Your House‘ with Kim (the lady with the I Dream of Jeanie hairstyle) and Aggie- who takes swabs of different areas in the dirty houses before they get cleaned. That’s the part I like the best as unfortunately, it scares many of them back into reality. The lady last night had such a dirty frig that Aggie suggested she ‘chuck it’ for a new one. Take the how clean is your house quiz here. I passed, thank goodness! And here are some videos with the ladies’ helpful cleaning hints.

Sean was a good guy this afternoon. He took his mom mom to the doctor so she could get a cortisone shot in her hand-for the second time in a year. She has a painful swelling in her right hand. She can’t get it in her head not to use the hand and I even saw her trying to lift a box at the book sale a few days back. I’m glad Sean was with her.

I forgot to tell you that someone was trying to report my one debit/credit card as lost and the company that issued it closed down my account, though I had to reapply for a new one. I had just gotten the new card and now I have to wait for 2-4 weeks for the replacement. I don’t want to say what company it is on my blog, but you can write to me if you want to know. I believe I used the card months ago in either a Marshall’s or TJ Maxx-one of the stores that had card #s stolen. It had to be one of them as I usually only use the card at the post office. You never know.

And just for fun…