The Toledo Zoo

Sunday evening my two friends came and picked me up and took me to the Toledo Zoo Lights before Christmas.  It was wonderful!  Above is a picture of a very large tree.  It could be seen from almost anywhere in the zoo.  I forget the number of lights in it but altogether in the whole zoo there was over 70 miles of Christmas lights strung.  Of course we did get a chance to see a few of the zoo animals.  Most were hiding in the dark, I think.  I saw a snow leopard licking up some water.....and some Siberian Tigers sleeping, some penguins standing like statues and some elephants pacing...  All in all it was a very nice night to walk the zoo...temps in the 50's.  Very unusual weather for Michigan.  We are still without snow...will we get any before Christmas? 

Next week by this time I will be in Florida visiting my daughter and her family....so maybe I won't see snow until January. 

Hope you all had a lovely weekend....I sure did!

Hi everyone,

Today was 12-12-12.....did you realize we won't see another one like this.  The next one will be in 100 years. 

When I was raising my children I never thought about a lot of things.  Now that I work in a school I sometimes think that I missed the boat with my children.  I never made sure that their homework was done.  Yes, even in first grade there is homework.  And believe me, it really makes a difference in the ones who do it and the ones who don't.  In our classroom the ones who do their reading each night and have their parents sign a slip, get a shiny star to put on their chart....plus a small piece of candy.  After they accumulate 10 stars they get a trip to the prize basket and get to chose a small prize.  My heart goes out to those who show up day after day with no signed slip.  Of course the teacher eventually talks to the parents, but by then the child is behind in their reading skills.  Then there are the children who show up at school with uncombed hair, no mittens and no hats.  What are the parents thinking?

My teacher is a gem.  She has a whole box of mittens and gloves.  She has a lady that knits hats and she makes sure each child has a hat to keep them warm at recess.  And she also collects boots and has them on hand.  Today on her lunch hour she went to the Dollar Tree and bought hair brushes and pony tail holders....there were three girls who show up every day with wild hair....now they have a hair brush to keep in their lockers!   I love the teacher I work with. 

Well, I need to get busy and finish my daughter's Christmas present.  Have a nice evening.

Greetings!

Hello everyone!!

Sorry I haven't written a blog for a while.  Just nothing much to write about.  My days are pretty boring.....going to help out at the school in the mornings and coming home to nap and then the evenings to watch tv or work on some craft. 

I have been working on an afghan for my daughter in Florida for Christmas.  I don't know if she even needs it since it is mostly warm there, but I thought sometimes the air conditioning can get cold when she is lounging on her sofa (maybe she does that) and she could just throw it over herself.

She has invited me to travel to Florida for the Christmas break and I am torn as to what I should do.  I would need to stay for the whole 16 days.  Sometimes after being away for just a while I am ready to go home.  I don't have a lot of money for sight-seeing although I wish I did.  However, if I stay home I will be bored out of my mind.  Nothing to make me get up in the mornings....quietness all day long in my small apartment.....since my friends will be celebrating the season with their families.  So what to do?  Any suggestions?

I haven't even decorated for Christmas....I am just the Christmas scrooge this year.  I did do a tiny amount of gift buying (what my pocket book would allow).  Those gifts are wrapped and in a Santa bag in the corner of the living room.

Today we had a few snowflakes and it brought cheers from all the first graders.....oh to be young and excited like that again!

Hope your holiday season is going well.

A long week...and stay away from Butler Street

It has been a long week for me. 
On Tuesday I attended our resident's meeting and got up and spoke about the upcoming craft class.  It seemed to go over well.  I posted the sign up sheet.

On Wednesday...I looked at the sign up sheet....no one had signed up.
On Thursday...there was one name and she stopped me and paid for the class...she is my next door
neighbor.
Today...no one else has signed up.

It gave me second thoughts.  Maybe no one really wanted to do crafts.  What if no one else signs up?  Do I do a class with just one person?  Or do I cancel?  So last night I got to thinking that maybe I should take a bright post it and put a deadline for signing up.  That way I will know if I should continue or not.  People who live here are a strange lot.  They complain that life is boring...there is nothing to do....but if you offer them a solution they disappear.

So tonight I just had to get out of my apartment.  I decided to get a new fall top.  As I was returning a lady was sitting outside.  She was one of the people that I had talked to in the Spring about the class.  She asked me how many did I have to have to go on with the class.   She says that she intends to sign up.  (ok...so why hasn't she?).

I guessed I am bummed about it now.

On the brighter side.  Hardly a day doesn't go by that one of my 1st graders doesn't ask me about whether I have a husband or not.  Today was no different.  Each day two students are chosen to have lunch with me and then after lunch we play board or card games.  Today the little girl asked whether I had a husband.  I said no.  She said...."Are you looking for one?"  I said,  "Sometimes, do you know someone?"  She said,
    "No, but stay away from Butler Street."   I am guessing that is the street she lives on.  So out of curiousity I asked why....and she said that an old mean man lives there.  He won't let them pick his flowers and says he is going to call the police on them.  I told her thanks for the tip. 

I am really enjoying my time at school...the children are amazing and we have already formed a bond. 

Well, have a good Friday night and a lovely weekend.  I have no plans so it should proved to be a relaxing two days for me.

Where were you 11 years ago?

Today marks the tragic day when the United States of America was attacked by terrorists.  It started out like a lot of other mornings for me.  I was then married and my husband was a truck driver.  He had headed out the night before for a long haul.  I was working in a real estate office.  That morning we were having our weekly meeting and then off to view new listings.  I was one of two new realtors and it was mandutory to be at the meeting.  I, like always, arrived early and we were just sitting down after getting our coffees or teas and I looked around and didn't see the other newby.  I wasn't surprised because she was late lots of times and sometimes didn't make the meetings at all.  I was patting myself on the back (mentally) when she came rushing in.  She was the one who broke the news to all of us about the attacks.  I can still remember the sick feeling in the pit of my stomach...and we were are frightened and concerned for the people in the towers....then word of the missing plane, and the pentagon came in and we were all sent home.

After getting home my husband called to make sure I was all right and told me to stay indoors.  Looking back I think then we were overdoing it a little, but it was better safe than sorry.  Everyone was glued to their tv's.  Mostly I noticed the absence of planes in the sky.....if there was one it was watched very closely.  Once I saw some military planes fly over the farm.  In the days that followed I noticed how almost everyone had a flag outside their homes....and people seemed closer...knowing that we were all in this together.

So where were you on 9-11?  What are your memories? 
Do you think it brought us together as a nation...or is it just something to look back on?

New Endeavor

A few months ago I thought that too many people where I live had nothing interesting to do.  I live in a senior apartment community.  I see folks sitting in the main floor lobby just watching people come and go.  So I thought maybe I could begin a craft class.  The main activity in the building is playing games...Monday is Bingo....Tuesday is game night....one night is Euchre....but I thought maybe crafts would be something interesting for them to do.

I talked to the building manager and she thought it would be a great idea.  So then I started the search for an interesting craft for the first class.  This is what I came up with.  The picture doesn't really do the pins justice...I think they are cute.  They are made from Polymer Clay.

 

 

Let me know what you all think.....do you think a $10.00 charge for 2 pins and having a light refreshment  is reasonable?

 

Any ideas for easy crafts?

 

Today was our second day of school.  I am enjoying my new students.  For those that don't know I volunteer in one of our public schools as a foster grandparent.  I help 1st graders with reading and writing and interact with them since many don't have real grand parents that are with them much. 

I love listening to their stories and hearing about what their lives are like.  Today at lunch I actually got to see my kids from last year....they look so mature, and told me that 2nd grade is going well.  

I love my time at school and would recommend it to everyone.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 





Labor Day weekend!

Just got the call from the automated system that there is a 2 hour school delay today.  I woke up around 3 am and it was very foggy.  I couldn't see the mall from my balcony window.  It is still a little foggy now at 6am but I guess the country roads are worse than here in town.  Lots of children are probably excited to start their school year and will be disappointed to have a 2 hour delay.  It means that school will start at 11 am....then lunch is at 11:30.....it will be a strange and short day.

My Labor Day weekend was fun.
Saturday was just another Saturday....ran some errands and loafed around the apartment.  Sunday was a cook out at my daughter's.  It was also a celebration for her finance, Chuck, who just graduated from nurses training at the University.  Now he will take the test and get his license in about six weeks.  I wonder why they make them wait the six weeks?  Anyway, it was a great party and there was about 50 people there....the food was good and there were 4 cakes.  Needless to say my daughter sent me home with a couple of pieces (which I didn't really NEED) and a cup of the taco salad which was delicious.  Sad to say, although I made sure my camera was in my purse, I completely forgot to take it out and take pictures.  Didn't even think of it until I was on my way home.  Bad me.

Yesterday I got up early and headed out to meet up with my gal friends, Vicki, Gratia, and Deb.  We went to South Haven, MI and enjoyed the beach and shops there.  Deb refused to have her picture taken but here is one of Gratia, Vicki and me.

Here is the beach (this is early in the day...later it got real crowded)

and here is Gratia...slattering on the sun protection

and of coure, here is the lighthouse....

I hope you all had a good holiday and as much fun as I did.

Strange things sometime happen in grocery stores.  I just read that a shooting occurred in a grocery store.  It made me stop and think about my trip to the store
yesterday.

I just finished our back to school meeting with the foster grandparent program and decided to head to the grocery store before going home.  Once inside I grabbed the small cart because that way I wouldn't buy so much....I like grocery shopping and if I take the small cart (available at Meijer's) I don't seem to buy as much and living alone that is probably for the best.

I was in the cracker isle and all of a sudden I heard shouting.  Right away my listening ears perked up.  I could tell it was a mother and an older man having it out.  She was yelling that he shouldn't interfere with her children and he was yelling back that she should do something about them.  She yelled that she was their mother and it was up to her to tell them what to do....and he yelled back that he didn't like it and should be able to go to the grocery without young children under his 90 year old feet.  Feet that had fought for our freedom and security in World War II.  By this point I looked around at the other people in my isle and everyone had just stopped dead in their tracks and were listening.  I looked across from me and the other lady and I just smiled at each other.....it was a sample of how two generations think so differently.

It made me remember when as a single mom with four little children that I had to take to the grocery store with me every time.  I don't remember them ever getting in trouble but there were times that they tried my patience and I often wished that I had family nearby to help watch them for a few hours while I shopped or did something I wanted to do.  I remember once when my daughter was little, she reached for an orange that was part of a pyramid....the whole pyramid started to collapse and oranges were everywhere!  Living in a small town she had never seen black (Afro-American) people.  Once in the store there was a black man who was very dark....her eyes about popped out of her head and she said, "Mom!  What's wrong with him?  Look at his skin!"  I was embarrassed and hurried away...hoping that he didn't hear her.....later I showed her pictures of people from different races and explained that not all people look the same but we are all God's children and have like feelings and desires.   I think that helped because today she has many friends and never judges anyone by their looks.

So the holiday weekend is upon us.   What are your plans? 
My daughter and her fiance are having an end of summer party...which I will go to on Sunday.  Then on Monday, my gal friends and I are going on a day trip to Lake Michigan.  So this will be a chance to get some new photos and have a good time too. 

Hope you have a nice day and a good weekend.

 

Summer is fast ending here in Michigan so I wanted to post a crazy picture of my family having fun on the beach at Lake Michigan.  I so love the Lake Michigan beaches and was glad to have an opportunity to go again and watch my daughter, Arlene, compete in the Ironman Triathalon.  For those who didn't read my blog on Multiply, it was her first Triathalon and I believe she did quite well.  In this picture she is in the back with the sunglasses on and my grand daughter Hailey is half buried in the sand and Andrew is giving me a mean loock for taking his pic.

I haven't done a lot this week but today I did go to the movies.  I saw the movie named Hope Rising.  I expected a funny movie and it didn't let me down...but it did have some mature points dealing with sex that I wouldn't have been comfortable seeing if I was going on a date.  But that is just me.  I am fairly conservative and like to keep private things private.

It is quite late and I am still up.  One of those nights when sleep eludes me.  I am already on my second book for tonight so I thought I would try doing my second blog on here.  I am still trying to figure out how this all works.  When I hit new blog it seems to want to create a new page....so I went to the other blog I wrote and found a button to add on....let's see if it works.

Well, back to my book and maybe to sleep.  Have a good night.

New blog site for me!

This is my first blog here on Blogger.  So I hope you will excuse any obvious blunders.
I have been on the Multiply site which will be closing in December.  I hate when sites do that, don't you?  You just get use to their ways of doing things like uploading pictures, changing backgrounds and so many more and then whoosh they dump their site.

It will take me a while to learn this site and any suggestions will be greatly appreciated.

A little about me.  I am living alone in Michigan and have four grown children and six grandchildren.  I keep busy by doing volunteer work for the public schools in the mornings and working on my art and writing later in the day. 

This is one of my current projects.  It is a seaside picture that I am attempting to recreate from a phote that I found on the internet.  The phote isn't a really good one and I am struggling to get the background to look like the photo.  Perhaps when I have it finished I will repost.

Well I hope this blog takes....give me your thoughts and feel free to join my circle.