Posted in Favorite Girl on Wednesday, 16 April, 2008| 1 Comment »
Sadly, after a 5 week visit with us, Grandma Betty returned to her home last night.
FG enjoys having GB here and was quite upset at having to say goodbye. Once we got home from the airport, she grabbed a doll GB had given her when she was four and placed it in GB’s bed to keep it warm until GB returns.
Good thing it’s only a short travel day to get to Upstate New York so I’m sure we’ll see Grandma Betty again soon…she deserves to see the North Country when it’s green and warm.
Posted in Favorite Girl on Thursday, 14 February, 2008| 6 Comments »
Valentine Fortune Cookie a la Martha Stewart
I read about these Martha Stewart Valentine Fortune “cookies” about a month ago, got all the supplies and then left everything in the bag until last night. About 7:00 pm, FG and I got everything out and got to work making them for her St. Valentine’s Day class party.
The fortune cookies are made of felt, lined in the middle with floral wire, stuffed with a couple of kisses and a “fortune” which reads “You will have a sweet year.” In case you want to try them next year or for St. Patrick’s Day (change everything to green), go here for details: Valentine Fortune Cookies
Unfortunately, I’m passing my procrastinating ways on to FG. I work best under pressure but I’m trying to do things ahead so I can teach her that projects turn out better when you plan and execute ahead of the due date.
The cookies turned out OK though so I don’t think this was a good learning experience. Maybe next time…
Posted in Favorite Girl on Wednesday, 23 January, 2008| 7 Comments »
FG turned 10 today and thoroughly enjoyed her day. There was a 2-hour snow delay and we made ice cream cone cupcakes for her classmates ~ big hit! Just before we headed out to school, balloons were delivered from Grandma B. Pink and Purple, just like the colors of her room.
Because of the delay, I was able to give her a “birth minute kiss” at 10:29 am. It’s a tradition we try to do every year. Last year, I made sure I volunteered in her class so I could be there at 10:29. I can tell this is going to get harder and harder to keep up as the years go by.
Although she didn’t get the Ipod or American Girl Doll she had listed on her birthday gift wish list, FG got flowers, “The Daring Book for Girls” book and the DVD “Holes.” She loves that movie and I’ve yet to see the whole thing. It looks so strange to me.
Hard to believe 10 short years ago, this angel of a girl came into our lives. She’s such a joy to have around…
Happy Birthday, Favorite Girl!
Posted in Favorite Girl, Fort Drum on Sunday, 13 January, 2008| 3 Comments »
Here in the North Country, during the winter, you gotta keep moving or you freeze up. I’ve kept my resolution of staying active by trying new things.
I started swimming at the indoor pool here on base. While swimming isn’t new for me ~ swimming in a pool is. I much prefer the ocean to a pool. Ft. Drum has two indoor pools but I prefer the one at Pine Plains Gym. They have women only hours M-F from 9-11. It’s very convenient for me to get a swim workout BUT the hardest part is actually getting in the pool. The water is soooo cold. I warm up as soon as I swim one length of the pool and the cold water is a huge incentive for me to get moving FAST. Initially, I was training for a team triathlon in May but we are short a bicyclist. I’m going to keep training in case we find one. Always good to have an exercise goal.
My second new thing this month is we, all three of us and a friend of FG’s, went to the Friday night USO Boot Scootin Dance lessons. Oh, my…I certainly got my exercise but it WASN’T pretty at all. They teach line dancing and have a mix of country and hip hop music. There were a lot of kids there and several adults as well. Normally, we are booked on Friday nights but I’ll certainly go back when ever we have a free night. FG will definitely go but I doubt FM will make a return appearance. He did a great job dancing but it’s really not his kind of music or his kind of fun.
Most of the adults passed on the limbo. See photo of FG below:
Posted in Favorite Girl on Sunday, 6 January, 2008| 4 Comments »
Grandma Betty has only been gone for a couple of hours but the house already feels so empty without her. She’s a joy to have around and so incredibly helpful. It’s always times like this that I wish family lived close and, by close, I mean within a 1 hour driving range. Don’t know if I can talk her into moving to the frozen north country but I’ll keep trying.
Grandma Betty was a good sport during several games of Cranium (thanks Heidi) as well as a contentious game of Hearts. I believe the Jess cousins will agree with me when I say FM’s mean streak at games can be a bit much for a nine year old.
The good news is, we’re only about a six hour travel time by plane (including the stopover in Charlotte) to her house instead of the 9+ hours to Germany or the 22+ hours to Guam. I may need a “warm-up” weekend sometime in March when it’s still freezing here but warm in North Carolina so it won’t be too long before we see her again.
Another family member will be coming here soon and we’re looking forward to her visit ~ should be fun!!
Posted in Animals, Favorite Girl on Friday, 28 December, 2007| 7 Comments »
I feel like I closed my eyes on 23 December and when I opened them, it was 28 December. The time has flown by with so much activity.
Santa brought FG a whole lot of hamster supplies so we took the hint and bought FG a hamster. I have to admit Harriet is a cute little creature and I find myself watching her as she scurries around her cage either eating, cleaning herself or exercising on the wheel. FG has become a little possessive of Harriet and keeps reminding me the dogs will get jealous if I spend too much time with the hamster. FG’s way of saying “Back off, Mommy.”
I’ve spent a lot more time cooking and baking this year. We wanted to share some baked goods with the soldiers on duty for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. I made cookies, brownies, & muffins. Of course, I had to taste each batch to make sure they were delicious.
Christmas here in the North Country has been wonderful and FG was thrilled to have Grandma Betty with us again. We spent Christmas eve at a neighbor’s home and we’re really enjoying our new-found friends.
Posted in Favorite Girl on Saturday, 22 December, 2007| 6 Comments »
We can check dressing alike off our things to do together list. My sister sent FG and I identical shirts so we took the opportunity to dress alike for the first time.
We’re not likely to do it again anytime soon but it was fun for a day.
Posted in Favorite Girl, Favorite Man on Monday, 10 December, 2007| 6 Comments »
We enjoyed having visitors this past weekend. Not only was my mom here, but 9 of FM’s family came for his Change of Command. It was great to see everyone and I especially liked catching up with Julie, Liz and Linda who I haven’t had a chance to talk to a lot in the past.
One unfortunate note: FG was particularly unpleasant and unsocial. Let’s just say she wouldn’t win Miss Congeniality. More like Miss Anti-Social. I had a long talk with her on Saturday morning and she finally came around and started acting like a normal person, but it was too late for her to apologize to Hayden (and Julie) for her behavior. FG did enjoy her Saturday showing Wally (her other cousin) the neighborhood, playing in the snow and going ice-skating. The evening was spent playing game-boy. All kid fun.
FM’s change of command was wonderful and I was so proud to see him in front of his battalion. Now if only I can do the family members justice. At least I had a great mentor who will no doubt help me through the rough spots and let me know if I’m way off base. Thanks, V.
Posted in Favorite Girl, Flashback Fridays on Friday, 30 November, 2007| 1 Comment »
I haven’t done a Flashback Friday in many months but FG’s homework assignment two weeks ago really got me thinking about a natural disaster my older brother, Benny, experienced 32 years ago ~ the anniversary date was yesterday.
Benny still lives in Hawaii but we don’t keep in close touch. When FG was assigned the following homework: Interview someone who has been in/witnessed erosion or a landslide; he was the only person that came to mind. We called him and FG interviewed him. Here’s his story:
On November 29, 1975, on the Big Island of Hawaii, Benny went camping with a bunch of his buddies. They rode horses into Halape Bay. At about 2 am, there was a 7.5 magnitude earthquake which of course woke them all up. It was the largest earthquake to hit Hawaii in over a century.
The quake caused the earth around the bay to split so they ran towards the cliffs but a landslide of falling rocks forced them toward the water. Unfortunately, within minutes of the quake there was a tsunami which hit the bay with two forceful waves. The first wave was 5 feet high and the second wave was 26 feet high. According to my brother, as he was being pulled out to sea and under the water, he came to the conclusion his “time was up.” But then, it was like someone pulled the plug in a bathtub, all the water receded and he was able to come up for air. Unfortunately, two other campers died due to the tsunami.
I’m happy to report my brother survived the earthquake, landslide, tsunami and volcano eruption and is still living happily on the Big Island.
And FG got an A+ on the assignment.
Posted in Favorite Girl on Monday, 19 November, 2007| 6 Comments »
In early October, FG’s physical education class started swimming classes. The first class involved dividing the children into those who could swim and those who couldn’t. One of FG’s girlfriends decided to “dumb her swimming down” in order to stay in the shallow end with a boy she likes. If you’re anything like me, you’re thinking “Isn’t it a little early for that?”
Well, after a few classes in the shallow end, being bored out of her mind and a waning interest in the boy, FG’s friend decided to request going to the deep end where the other kids were diving and learning different strokes. Thankfully, the teacher said “no” leaving the girl to endure another few weeks in the shallow, boring end.
I can’t remember ever playing dumb for a boy and as a witness to what her friend went through, FG has learned a great lesson ~ it’ll be a long time (hopefully never) before she’ll even consider dumbing herself down for a boy.
 | Anonymous on Favorite Beach Found ~ Haputo… |
| Anonymous on Favorite Beach Found ~ Haputo… |
| Anonymous on Guam: Poltergeist? Amityville?… |
 | Jane Fearn-Zimmer, E… on Favorite Beach Found ~ Haputo… |
 | SaaniaSparkle 🧚🏻♀️ on South Africa: It’s A… |
Displaced Beachbums 