The Highlights of 2008

...and considering Father Time has been on me all year, I'm looking forward to 2009. I would say, "Can things get any worse?" But sure as I do, things will get worse. And I just don't want to jinx it.

My Top Ten highlights from 2008:

10.The long-awaited Dark Knight came into theaters. Unfortunately,in January, Heath Ledger died. That was really sad. So young.

9. Met Jim Caviezel in April.

8. Got to see my husband more in 4 months (with his new job) than in the two years he was with his other job.

7. Watched as America elected a new president.

6. Finished the Boy Scout Quilt for Chip.

5. Finished the quilt top for "Stars Fell on Alabama" quilt for Grandma Hunnybunny.

4. Reconnected with a lot of old friends on Facebook.

3. Got a Minnesota Treadle from 1904 for $10!

2. Watched The Legal Adult become gainfully employed.

1. Put another son in kindergarten and lived to tell the tale.

By the way, I hope and pray for your family a Happy New Year!

It's a girls' night out.......

....and honey, there ain't no doubt....blah, blah, blah. Wasn't that a Judd's song? It's not really a girl's night out as much as it's a LONG weekend for me. I'm going to see my best buddy, Robin, down in Chattanooga because I'm drowning in the testosterone ocean at my house. I'm hoping to get a little shopping done for those guys since they won't be around.

I was inspired by my friend,Katie, over at My Sandbox to take a look at Craig's List and just see what I could find. I've always dreamed of owning a treadle. My Grandma Gussie had a treadle in her sewing closet and always told me someday she'd teach me. Well, she passed in 1985, so that didn't happen. Anyway...here's what I found:
This dear lady had this Minnesota "C" and it was on her porch. I nearly had a hard attack! She obviously wasn't a collector.















She threw in the ORIGINAL AD from the Sears and Roebuck catalog from 1904 as well as the pristine attachments still encased in their original, velvet-lined, metal box!





I always look at old machines like Linus did Charlie Brown's Christmas tree..."All it needs is a little love..". And sewing machine oil, and maybe some WD40.



Here she is, all cleaned up. Guess how much I paid?
$10!

Up to Hoosierville, U.S.A.

We headed north this past weekend. This was due to HB's new job which is based out of Indiana. We were attending the Christmas party, and it was the first time I had met his new comrades. I say new job, but he's been at it awhile now. Basically, he works from our bedroom. He has a business line, laptop, fax machine, the whole works. And he is in sales now. He loves it because he used to do all the research for the equipment he is selling now. We've seen him more in 3 months than in two years. While he loved working at the church doing media for them, the hours got to be too much on our family. So, God is good...all the time.
I guess it's confession time for me. I've been married to Hunnybunny since 2002. This past weekend was our FIRST weekend away without the boys. Wild, huh? If we had the time, we had no money. And vice-versa.
Christmas came early for me this year as Hunnybunny found a Sony store and bought me this Cybershot Digital camera. So, you know me: I went kind of camera happy. Sorry these are taken from the car.












This is the
Soldiers and Sailors Monument in the heart of Indianapolis. It was pretty cool looking. It was only 15 feet shorter than the Statue of Liberty.








I wish I could tell you something cool about this church, but I couldn't find anything online. Of course, we were driving through town on GAME DAY! It was a miracle that we could tool around at all.

Conversations with The Pickle: How Old is God?

"Mommy, did you know that Christmas is Jesus' birthday?"

"Yes, baby, I did,"

"So, Christmas is when Jesus has His birthday?"

"Yes, Baby, we celebrate Christmas to celebrate when Jesus was born."

Long pause......the wheels were turning.......

"So is He going to be born-again?" Pickle looked at me with total confusion.

"No, Baby."

Another long pause, "Mommy, how old is God?"

No response from me as my wheels were turning...

"Mommy, how old is God??" He definitely used his playground voice

So, I did what any other parent who doesn't know the answer: I passed the buck.

"Go ask your dad," I replied.

From the other room I could hear the interrogation,"Where is God? What do you

mean He's invisible?" "Is He in this room?""Oh, God, I'm coming to find you!".

And that's my prayer everyday.

Father Time is whooping up on me

Coming from the mailbox,I was so excited..three packages, for me for a change. However, the joy was bittersweet. Two of the three were reminders that Father Time has announced his presence.

First, I finally got my glasses! Why I'm excited about that escapes me. Nobody could ever get me to wear them and now I can't read the back of a can or a street sign without them. Remember when I told you about this site, Eyebuydirect.com a while back? Well, I got them. Two pairs for $25.00. The other pair I'm going to use for reading and needlework. I'm just glad I didn't have to pay a fortune just to see.



Recently, I won a $25 gift certificate from Christian Bloggers Online. The gift certificate was for Amazon.com. You'd think quilting books, a movie, something cool like that, right? Nope...it wasn't what I needed. I thought I'd try these:Exciting, no?


Okay, sue me, but I was watching an infomercial about these. I go through shoe inserts so easily I thought maybe they would work. I have that heel spur thing, and translated it means I've been running around barefoot way too long. They feel great, so I'll keep you posted.
It really reeks getting old, doesn't it?

Thanksgiving By The Numbers

1440 miles NOT driven by me as Hunnybunny wanted to drive.

2 different hotel stays: one down, one up. HoJo's isn't as bad as it used to be. Go and price on Hotels.com. Saved us a bundle!
1 visit with a blogging buddy in Marietta, GA. Deborah is so cool!
25 cups of coffee and/or lattes during that week.
2 Older sons not with me this year....one staying at my house because I had heat, one with his dad in Tennessee.

2 turkey dinners and both were righteous. I even learned to like dressing without cornbread in it.

4 viewings of WALL-E on Hunnybunny's laptop by the Pickle on the way down.

25 or more times asked, "Are we in Florida, yet?" by the Pickle.

3 yards of Beatle fabric (You seriously didn't think I was going to make a trip and not buy fabric, did you?) purchased at Wal-Mart in Hunnybunny's hometown.

7 extra pounds of weight due to the way I ate while gone. Diet went totally out the window.

7 copies of Women's Day read cover-to-cover as Grandma Hunnybunny keeps them until I come to town.

45-15 Florida vs. Florida State, in the pouring rain, no less. Now, that was priceless!