European Vacation Part I

Hello friends. I have been missing from my blog for a few weeks and missing you but things here have been really crazy. Here is the story, beware this may be like the old days when your friends invite you over to look at vacation pictures or slides or whatever, here goes:

A few months ago my husband and I decided to take a trip out of the country. We hadn’t been on a big trip in a couple of years. Mark, my husband, was very interested in seeing Germany and some of the countries around it. We went online and started looking at some travel packages. In the meantime I was talking to my nephew Tyler, he is 17, and he said he would love to see Germany. So I said “well you should come with us you can think of it as an early graduation gift”. He actually graduates next year. So the plan started to take shape.

We actually went with a tour company called Globus. We knew for the amount of time we had, about 12 days, and all the countries we wanted to see this would be our best chance to see everything we wanted to see.

Mid June is actually a time of year that my work is slow before really going crazy during the summer. So We chose the dates June 15-25.

We decided to visit Central Europe where we would be traveling through five countries. Germany, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary and Austria.

Of course the time leading up to the trip is usually unbelievably stressful for me. I do it to myself. I know I will be having people come to the house to care for Kitty Kitty and Molly, so me in typical me fashion goes crazy trying to make my house look perfect. I don’t know why I do this because it never happens and it is just fine anyway. But as I said I had a huge list of things to do like cleaning the house from top to bottom, making my yard and shrubs look immaculate, clean out my garage, oh and work up until the day before I leave so I will stay caught up on work. Silly silly me. I didn’t get any of those things done and the trip came and went and just as I said it was all fine. I know my sisters had to see my less than perfect house, garage and overgrown yard, and it was ok. My sister in law always keeps Scruffy for us because he is a little needier.

We arrived in Munich on Sunday morning around 8:30 AM. We had to wait a bit for a shuttle to take us to our hotel. We stayed at the Hilton Munich City hotel. There was a little problem with an extra bed for Tyler but they quickly moved us to another room so all was good. After a small nap we went out to see the sights. Munich is a very busy city even on a Sunday. There was a festival going on in the town square so we walked into town and listened to some live music and of course tried the beer.

On Monday morning we had a short city tour of Munich and went back to some of the places we had been the day before. Lots of people in Munich ride bikes. There are designated bike routes everywhere. Our tour guide told us they always have the right of way. He may have been joking about that.

Later that day we traveled 255 miles into The Czech Republic to Prague. I was blown away by the beauty of this city. Prague is considered one of Europe’s most exquisite cities. We stayed at the Grandium Prague We saw the Astronomical Clock. I am adding a link here so you can check out the history of this clock. It is so amazing. http://www.pragueastronomicalclock.info The clock strikes on the hour and the “show” lasts for 26 seconds. You can see all of the people waiting for the top of the hour. It really is something to see.

We also did a boat ride in Prague and saw several beautiful sites from the river.

The Charles Bridge

As I said I was blown away by the beauty of this city. Just when I thought I had seen the most beautiful site I would turn around and there would be another one. Ahhhhh this was my favorite city.

After we left Prague we drove into Slovakia. We were only there for a short stop in the city of Bratislava. An adorable city with lots of open air vendors. We had time here for lunch and a little shopping.

Prague to Budapest was about 329 miles so stopping in Slovakia was a nice break. I did buy a few linens, a hat, I love my hats, and ice cream.

Now on to Budapest. I will cover more of the trip in part 2. I will tell you that I got incredibly homesick. I’m not sure why it’s the first time it ever happened this strong. I’m not sure if I was missing the fur babies, my friends, or maybe because it got incredibly hot and crowded or I just missed home and the familiar. I felt so very far away. Anyway a wonderful trip one I will never forget. Stay tuned soon for part 2. Heck there may be a part 3 to this European adventure.

Remember.

Love your day your way

Mimosa Trees and a Flower Moon

Hello friends, how are you?

I will tell you how I am. HOT!!!! And not in the good way either haha. Summer has arrived a little early here in East Tennessee. The last two weeks have found us with temps in the low to mid nineties. What? What happened to the spring? And it’s also humid so it’s sticky and sweaty by noon. The weather, as far as sunshine and no rain, has been wonderful. That makes for nice days on the lake, picnics, and hanging out on the deck under my big umbrella but who has the time for that. Not this girl not right now anyway.

Because of some co-workers’ vacations I have started a seven day work week. We will see how it is going by the end of the week. This is only day two.

A couple of weeks ago me and my niece Amy went antiquing in a small town near us, Etowah. We had been a couple of years ago and we were so sad to see the difference this time. What had been a small but booming town with several shops and restaurants along the Main Street had almost become a ghost town. The last time we were there we visited at least six antique shops and a couple of furniture stores and ate at a great little diner. I know booming right? you know what I mean. Well this time there was one clothing store and one antique store. There was no where on the street to eat. So sad to see the smaller shops moving out of town.

The Gem Theatre is truly a gem. Built in 1927 as a movie house the Gem Theatre was the hub of the city as far as entertainment. In 1991 the city acquired ownership and throughout the year different productions are put on by talented area residents.

The L&N Depot is also a treasure. The old depot now houses a museum.

L&N photo credit- City of Etowah

There is so much history here. You can get more information about the depot here: http://www.cityofetowahtn.com/2186/LN-Depot

We did go up the street to a great little restaurant called The Farmhouse. They serve country southern cooking. It has been there for many years. It was still as good as I had remembered.

We also visited the local farm market. I love going. They have the best vegetables and other things.

So you can see they have lots of other hand made things as well. This farm is run by the Mennonite community in Delano Tennessee. It is very similar to the one closer to me in Tellico Plains. Remember last year I bought the braided rug. Here is a picture. Of it. I’ll show you a few purchases from this trip in my next post.

I still think this sweet town is worth visiting if nothing else for the one antique shop, the Farmhouse Restaurant, the Gem Theatre, and of course the L&N depot.

I got a couple of good shots during the full Flower Moon earlier this month.

I am leaving you with a picture of a mimosa tree in my back yard. I love mimosas.

And my new favorite song by Lady Antebellum. What If I Never Get Over You.

Love your day your way

Calgon Take Me Away!!!!!

Hello friends how are you? Things here have once again been a little crazy. If you are old like me you remember those commercials advertising bubble bath or bath salts or something like that called Calgon. The commercials showed a very stressed woman trying to do about ten different things at one time. She grabs her head and yells “Calgon take me away”. It then shows her in a luxurious bubble bath with all of her problems dissolving away with each pop of a bubble. The famous Calgon bubble bath could transform you into a new person. I used to say it at work every time things got stressful. “Calgon take me away!!!!! ” One of my very young co-workers once asked, Lisa, who is this Calgon and when is coming to take you away? so cute, I had to explain that no Calgon actually was not a person.

This was my typical Calgon morning yesterday: I was running a little late to start with. I was going to wear jeans to work and decided at the last minute to wear a pair of black pants. I changed the jeans but noticed I then had very obvious VPL showing through the black pants. I raced up the stairs to change underwear. Ran back downstairs and grabbed my car keys and purse and jumped in the car. As I was backing up the driveway I noticed everything looked a little blurry. I didn’t have my glasses on!!!! I Drove back down the hill, I have a very long driveway, ran back into the house and ran upstairs to get my glasses. By this time the dogs are going wild with all the excitement. After all they don’t usually see mommy running through the house. Was this some kind of crazy game mommy was playing? Scruffy is barking and my big outside dog Molly is trying to get in the back door. My husband is standing in the middle of the kitchen shaking his head. I put my glasses on and ran back to the car. I jump in the car, which I had left running, and started again to back up the driveway. My car alarm immediately started and a light on my dash started blinking letting me know my keys were not inside the vehicle. Dang!!! I left them in the kitchen when I went to get my glasses. Again I drive back down the driveway and run to the back door and beat on the door, remember I have no key to get in. Scruffy starts going wild inside the house, barking and barking. I am praying Mark hasn’t jumped in the shower and won’t hear me knocking. Luckily he hasn’t and he comes to the back door and let’s me in. I run in looking like a crazed woman yelling my keys my keys!!! By this time big girl Molly, our outside dog, has run into the house and is galloping back and forth like a pony. Scruffy is running in circles barking and Kitty Kitty is streaking back and forth through the kitchen. I grab the keys and run back out the door. My husband just stands there like, what was that? By this time my hair is frizzy from sweat and humidity and my makeup has partially melted off from all the exertion. Yes Calgon take me away!!!!!

Sunday was Mother’s Day as you well know. I am not a mother and my mother died sixteen years ago. I was never a big fan of Mother’s Day. I admire mothers, they have the hardest job in the world. I am glad there is a day to celebrate them. Although we know they should be celebrated every day. Mother’s Day is always uncomfortable for me. I quit going to church on Mother’s Day a long time ago because I didn’t feel like I deserved the little gift they gave to all the mothers. I am not a mother. Most people just assume when you reach a certain age that you are a mother. It is something that never happened for me and I don’t feel the need to explain that when I go to church and a fresh faced youngster hands me a rose or a pin or something like that. I would always take the gift and then feel like I was an imposter.

With that said I will tell you that my mother was the best mother in the world. I never called her mother a day in my life. I always called her mama or mom. I know you may think your mother was the best but mine really was. She loved to wear red lipstick. She wore dresses and skirts a lot and she loved sandals. She worked the really hard crossword puzzles with an ink pen. She could grow anything. She could also fix any appliance or plumbing problem. Her cooking was to die for. She was the best friend I ever had. I always felt like I could tell her anything. She always encouraged me to do things I was sometimes afraid to try. She always made me feel like I was the most beautiful girl in the world. I think I was about eleven before I realized that wasn’t true. It came as somewhat of a shock but made me love her all the more for making me think that.

This is a picture of me and my mama shortly before she died. The picture is not the best quality and you can tell she is not in the best of health here.

So Mother’s Day is a little sad for me mostly because I miss my mom. And maybe wondering how things might have been different for me as a mom. I am happy for and appreciate all mothers. My sisters, nieces, aunts and friends are some of the most wonderful mothers I know. I get a glimpse of motherhood when I dote on my nieces and nephews and now my great nieces and nephews. Getting the opportunity to do things with them has always been so much fun. I go to their ballgames and school events. Me and my husband are taking my seventeen year old nephew to Germany with us next month. Spending time with them sometimes makes me miss being a mom but for the most part I am ok with things the way they are. That may sound selfish but it is my life.

Anyway enough of that. The rest of the week has been o.k. I am reading a book for book club and am about halfway finished. I have also been house sitting for my sister a few days this week while she is on vacation.

Daisies are blooming in my yard.

I love daisies they may be plain and simple but they are my favorite flowers or weeds? I don’t care what they are I love them and they are beautiful. I remember me and my friends used to mutilate them playing, he loves me he loves me not. Remember that little game where you would pull off each daisy petal while saying, “he loves me he loves me not”. You would always get that special boy in your mind that you wanted to love you and hope against hope it ended on, he loves me!!!! Ahhh if it were only that easy.

This is the book we are reading for book club on Monday night. I can’t wait to hear what everyone has to say. I think it’s pretty good and makes you think about how you shouldn’t be so hard on yourself.

I will leave you with this picture. Last weekend I made cherry cobbler for breakfast just because I wanted cherry cobbler for breakfast. It was delicious!!!

Because remember you must always

Love your day your way

Those Three Little Words I Long To Hear.

There are a lot of words and phrases in the English language that are wonderful to hear. But there are three little words that make my heart sing. Can you guess what they are?

I love you. No it’s not that.

You’ve Lost weight. Great to hear, but no.

How are you? Nope

Way to go!!! No not even close.

Of course all of these things are wonderful to hear. The three little words that I long to hear, maybe not always but certainly more often than I do, are “I’ll handle that” Ahhhhh such sweet words. Yes Yes Yes!!!! take the pressure off of me, help me with what I’m doing, make my life easier. But whatever you do don’t make me have to ask for it.

The reason that I haven’t heard this more is actually my fault. I have been my own worst enemy. I never wanted to ask for help. I will do anything to keep from asking for help. I am always willing to help someone out even if it takes away from me. I get this from my dad. He was a very hard working man and he expected his children to work just as hard as he did. It was really hard to meet the standards that he sometimes set for us. Did you notice the word hard has appeared three times in this paragraph so far? But he was an amazing man who instilled wonderful values in me and all of my brothers and sisters. But he didn’t like to ask for help he looked at that as a weakness. So I grew up thinking I didn’t need to ask for help either. No matter what. If I did I was being weak.

I have always been a very independent person. I am even independent of my husband, choosing to make my own decisions and not consulting him in a lot of things. My husband doesn’t have a problem with this. He is the same way. The last car I bought I did it totally on my own. I went to different car lots and test drove the cars. My husband never seemed to have the time and I didn’t want to wait so I just did it myself. I also take care of all of the car related maintenance and most house maintenance issues. That is just the way it has always been.

My husband and I have no children and I think if we did it would have made things a little different as far as having to share the responsibilities with each other concerning children. Maybe not, who knows.

I am next to the youngest of seven children and for some reason my brothers and sisters have always looked to me to handle most family related issues. Not necessarily big issues but just family get togethers and things like that. An example of this: My family is large and when we have a get together we may have thirty plus people show up. We always plan our meals and who will bring what etc. etc. You know I am from the south and food is a big deal. Anyway, whenever we had these huge dinners everyone would automatically assume I would coordinate everything. I would get in touch with everyone, plan the meal and let everyone know what to bring. They would always await my call to let them know what to bring. One Thanksgiving I decided I had had enough. I would not tell anyone what to bring and they could coordinate everything on their own and bring whatever they wanted. Well that was the year we had seven bowls of corn and not much else. So that was the last time that happened. I may be exaggerating a little there was probably on five bowls of corn.

With all of this said you might think I wouldn’t want to hear anyone say “I’ll handle that” but as I said it is actually music to my ears especially if I don’t have to ask. Even more so as I have gotten older and more comfortable in my own skin. I am more comfortable standing back and letting someone else take over. Because hey!! My time is just as important as anyone’s. And I hate to use this phrase but sometimes it is best when I get out of my own way. And if I ask for help the world won’t open up and swallow me. So I am trying to NOT be in charge so often and to be honest I find that things work out just fine and many times even better. WHAT???? I do regret that it has taken me so many years to learn this lesson but better late than never right? So when I am with someone and they tell me “I’ll handle that” I say O.K.

The honeysuckle vines are blooming like crazy and smelling wonderful.

Love your day your way!!!!