Grandma Mo

Haven't written for a while.  We've been kind of busy at work.  But I thought I should take time for a short post.  Remington is hanging out with me tonight and I asked what I should write about.  His recommendation was 'your mohawk'.  

I'm sure you're thinking, 'what mohawk?'  Well, I have natural curly hair.  I wear it short because otherwise it just gets totally out of control.  My hair appears to be a fascination for my grandkids.  It always has been.  My oldest granddaughter used to give me 'makeovers.'  She liked to 'do my hair' while we were in the pool.  She has straight hair and mine looks straight - for a while when it's wet. LOL  She always wanted to give me 'big hair.'  

Well, Remington likes to pat my head. He says it's 'bouncy'.  He asked me tonight if he could give me a mohawk.  I told him sure, why not.  So he went and got the hair gel.  He found a container of "bed head".  Not sure why we had that but we did.  He proceeded to take this and arrange the middle of my hair into a mohawk.  He worked hard to get it to stand up straight.  He then decided that my new name would be Grandma Mo.  

 Here's a picture of me and my hairdresser. 

Childhood Favorites

Remember when you were a kid and how simple life was?  Simple things brought you pleasure.  I've compiled a small list of simple childhood pleasures that I enjoyed.

1)  Camping out -- didn't have to be in a tent.  Just grab a blanket and a pillow and some snacks and head outside.  First 'campout' of the summer was always pretty close to the house but we expanded our horizons as summer wore on. 

2)  Laying on your back and watching the clouds drift by.  Hours could be spent this way. I am prone to motion sickness and if I laid there to long I would be dizzy when I sat up.

3) Jump rope -- this is fun - nothing else to say about it - it's just fun

4) Coloring -- I still love to color. If you don't have a color book then just make a 'scribble' picture.  You know -- take a crayon and draw all over the page then color in the design.  I do this a lot.  Something soothing about coloring.

5) Tea Parties -- these are so much fun -- I enjoy them more now than when I was a kid.  I had three brothers - I don't think we had tea parties.  That's a shame - they missed out on a lot. 

6) Reading -- I loved reading as a kid.  I still love reading.  I get lost in the book I am reading.  I live the book I am reading.  I sit there all chilled as I read about the snow storm that has the early settlers stranded in their cabin for weeks.  When I finally pull myself out of the book I am surprised to see that it's 80 degrees and sunny.

7) Hide and Seek -- this was so much fun -- the great outdoor - so many places to hide.  Trying to sneak back to 'home'. 

8) Secrets -- Not bad secrets - just secrets -- whispering in someones ear -- "I know what we're having for dessert but you can't tell"  Just sharing a secret with someone creates a bond.   

9) Walking in the Woods --- I loved, at our house, to go down to the creek and then follow it to the other end -- this was probably 3 -4 blocks in length but you went down a hill and then were in a valley like depression that meandered around corners.  Up each side of the hill was 'civilization' - even the main highway leading through town - but in the creek you were away from all that trees on both sides blocking out everything.  It could be dangerous jumping over the creek and you could only cross over at certain points. 

10) Fishing for minnows -- not sure why we wanted them but at my Granny's we would go down to the creek (it was a little bit farther than at my house as Granny lived in the country) and wade in the creek and try to catch the minnows. 

11) Fishing -- I had a cane pole I used at the pond. We would dig up some worms and head down to the pond.  I dont' remember that we ever fried up anything we caught there but I spent a lot of time at the pond with my dad and brothers.  Later on it was hand-fishing -- what a great way to spend a Sunday afternoon.

Take some time to enjoy some of these childhood favorites now that you are an adult.  Share them with your child or grandchild or even on your own.  Get away from the 'rat race' of everyday life and enjoy something simple.  You won't regret it. 

From My Bag

If you read my blog you know that I like to write.  You also know I like to write poetry.  I usually have numerous ideas floating around in my head.  Sometimes these ideas make it to the notepad on my phone or on slips of paper.  Every so often I take these slips and add them to a file in my Dropbox called In Progress.  I have a lot 'in progress'.  Now my In Progress folder can be anything from a line or two that popped into my head and I want to expant on, to almost an entire poem or story that just needs to be finished.  Sometimes the ending stumps me.

I have a couple of different tote type bags I use to carry things in back and forth to work, church etc.  Depends on how much I want to take with me that day.  Today I brought one I hadn't carried for a while.  I decided to clean out all the papers that were in there.  Most of it was trash of course. This is a picture of the bag.  Everyone in the family had one at one time.  Charlie and I made them for a family reunion. 

I did however find one poem in progress that I had forgotten about and one completed poem.  Good thing I'm in the process of organizing all my writing into Dropbox.  That's exactly where these two gems went.  I will share with you the completed poem.  And I will try to get busy and finish up some of those 'in progress' ones. 

“I AM WITH YOU”

There is no testimony without the test.

We must strive to do our best.

It’s a battle we must fight

As we strive to do what’s right.

 There is someone who is nearby

Who always hears us when we cry.

You are not in the battle alone.

Jesus sits upon the throne.

He knows our sorrows and our fears.

Whenever we call, He will hear.

The road may be long and hard to climb,

But He will not leave us behind.

 Stumbling blocks may cross our path,

Do not worry, they won’t last.

Hold the course, steadfast and true.

The road you’re on is not new.

 Take comfort from the words you read.

Know that He answers every need.

He spoke these words as a friend.

“I will be with you to the end.”

 

Written by:  Kathie Marrs

                      July 28, 2010

 

Anchor In My Life

 Anchor  When I looked this word up in the dictionary it is listed as being a noun (five definitions for this), a verb (six definitions or examples).   It also listed four idioms for this word. 

Anchor - short definition - device dropped by chain, cable or rope to restrict motion.  A person or thing that can be relied on for support.  To hold fast. 

In church we are talking about Being the Body. We have a commitment to each other.  The thought that keeps circling around in my mind is an anchor.  What is the anchor that holds our church together?  What is the anchor that holds me? 

We are a part of a team and we need to be the anchor for each other.  You don't climb a mountain by yourself.  You are part of a team and you connect yourselves together.  In the event that the lead person (or any other member) should fall, the rest of the team would then become the anchor that would be the life line for the fallen.  This takes commitment from every member.  If you fail to hold the rope in place for the person on the end it could end in tragedy.  As part of the team, you encourage each other.  You have to be a willing participant.  Someones life is dependent on your actions. 

Do we look at our relationship with Christ this same way? Do we make Him our Anchor.  The One whom we can rely on for support to always be there.  The One who will hold us fast?  By the same token, are we the anchor for the ones we come in contact with?  Are we willing to share our faith with others and be their anchor?  This means putting yourself on the line.

Cross the room, cross the street - get out of your comfort zone. Share your faith with everyone you come in contact with. Do this by sharing your testimony.  Everyone has one - it comes from the tests you have gone through. Did it make you a better person?  Did you learn something that you are able to share to help someone else going through the same test?  Don't like to speak in front of people?  How will they know that Christ died for them if you don't tell them?  

It means you make the time to check on others, encourage them as needed in whatever way is needed.  It's an investment of yourself.  It has to be intentional.  It doesn't just happen unless you make it happen. 


Bottom line -- I know that Christ is my Anchor.  He keeps my path steady.  He keeps me from drifting in the wrong directions.  He is a constant on whom I know I can depend.  There is never a question of whether or not He will be there. I want everyone to have that same stability in their lives.

Be the one to make waves, share your faith and become someones anchor. 

Food for Thought

What's your favorite food?  Mine would probably be fettuccine Alfredo.  I should have been Italian.  I love pasta and sauces.. the saucier the better.  Not good for me though so I have been trying not to eat as much.  :(

Is there a certain food that makes you think of your childhood?  Mine would probably be macaroni and cheese baked in the oven.  Granny made this and it was sooooo good.  Another food that makes me think of my childhood?  Oatmeal and hot tea.  That's what my brothers and I had a lot for breakfast - especially during the winter.  Our parents both worked and left for work early.  We would make our own breakfast before going to school.  Usually it would be a pot of oatmeal and a pot of hot tea. Just what we needed to make that long trek to school.  LOL -- if you knew me as a kid you know that we lived 'spitting distance' from the school.  Not a real long walk for us for sure.  It got longer when we moved up to Junior High and High School. 

Another childhood favorite would be shoestring potato chips and black cherry pop.  Good stuff.  Didn't get this at home but Uncle Peno would buy it for us when we went to eat with him and Grampa on Friday nights.  Gooood stuff.  Also had circus peanuts and cockle burr candies.  Oh the good stuff. 

Have I made you hungry yet?  Oh there's more.  Anyone want a fried bologna sandwich?  Or how about root beer barrel candy?  You might think I was hungry from reading this blog.  LOL  Well, I just finished a snack of celery stalks and string cheese.  Not quite what I would have had when I was a kid but it still tasted good.

Actually what brought about this blog was the fact that I just packaged up the tenderloins that Gary and I prepared last night.  Looking forward to eating some of these later this week for Gary's birthday.  Where I come from tenderloin is pretty common.  You can get it at most restaurants.  The tenderloin two to three times the size of the bun.  However, it is hard to come by if you aren't in the Northwest section of Missouri.  I couldn't get it when I lived in Saint Louis or over in the Panhandle of Texas and Oklahoma or even here in Tulsa. 

When I visited my brothers a few years back we were talking and I mentioned that I sure did miss tenderloins as I could not get them.  Guess my brothers still spoil me.  They went out and bought a pork loin, sliced it up, pounded it out, dipped and breaded it and then fried it up.  Oh man did that taste good!    Since then Gary and I will periodically buy a pork loin at Sam's.  We then set up a production line and cut, pound, dip, and bread anywhere from 25-35 tenderloins.  We freeze them individually then bag them up.  Yummers!  Everyone in the family looks forward to them. 

So here's to good food and to my brothers.