Wise Words From Parent To Child

I’m not sure where I ran across this but I saved it so I could go back and read it from time to time.    I’d love to give credit for it so if anyone knows where it came from, please let me know and I’ll be happy to link back to it.    I’ll bet you can “see” yourself saying at least one or more of these phrases to your child or children.    Since my babies are grown, I especially love #22 and #27!

1.. Stay true to you. Never forget to listen to yourself before anyone else.

2. Remember that your sibling is your friend forever. When you feel like no one is on your side…they always will be.

3. Even though you don’t want to listen to me at times, I will continue to talk and try to guide you. I know that you are hearing me even if you don’t want to acknowledge.

4. Sometimes friends won’t always act like friends. It happens. Forgive and move on.

5. Take time for your passions. They will always bring you joy…even when your old like me;)

6. Surround yourself with people who make you laugh. It is the key to staying young. Laugh often. Laugh hard. Laugh until you are crying.

7. As you get older, you will be given more responsibility. It is our only true job. To help you become happy, independent and helpful people.

8. Make your decisions carefully and with a mindful heart.

9. Remember that grades are only one measure of success. Just try your best…truly your own personal best is all we will ever ask.

10. Remember that we look at everything you do online…if you wouldn’t stay/do/pose etc..…in front of us…then it shouldn’t be online for the world to see. Period.

11. From the time we brought you home from the hospital…we had to start letting you go. Remember to be patient with us…it is really hard to do sometimes.

12. Nothing good happens after midnight. It’s just a fact….so you won’t miss anything. Don’t worry about it.

13. Don’t assume things of other people based on appearance. Because what you are thinking in your head is usually very far from the reality.

14. Eat real food. Like fruit and vegetables. It will always help you think clearly…and makes your skin pretty ;)

15. Respect your teachers.

16. Empty the dishwasher…when no one is looking. Small acts of kindness will help make your heart sing.

17. Let me always hug you and give you millions of kisses on those cheeks.

18. Spend time with you Grandparents…when you are old you will miss them.

19. Nothing disappoints us more than lying. Just tell us the truth…no matter if it is ugly…we will always understand more than a lie.

20. Don’t forget to listen in church. It will help you solve every problem in your head.

21. Keep smiling.

22. If you catch me staring at you….it is just because sometimes I still see your little baby face and it makes me happy.

23. If you see a friend in a tough situation…be the one to help…because when you don’t help you are just as guilty as the one who is being mean.

24. When the world seems like it’s handing you too many problems…we will make chocolate chip cookies and we will solve them together.

25. One best friend is better than a dozen sort of friends.

26. If all else fails….watch some home movies. They will make you laugh…and help you to remember all your blessings.

27. I will call you peanut and bear when your 40…just get used to it.

28. Take the high road. Sometimes it seems that no one else is…but it proves to be the best path…always.

29. Always look for the next adventure…but be mindful to live in the moment.

30. We love you…more.

 

Since this post is all about family and children, I’d like to ask for your prayers for my son.    He is experiencing issues that may be gallbladder related and will undergo outpatient surgery on Wednesday to determine what is going on.     I’m going to Birmingham tomorrow to pick up my granddaughter and she’ll be spending the week with us here but my heart will be with him in Birmingham.    I’d appreciate your prayers for him.   Thank you!

Low Country Boil, Big Bertha and the Director

Wonder what all of that has to do with one another?   By the end of this post, I hope it will make better sense!

This past weekend we had a small respite from all this rain.   I’m thankful for it but enough already!!   So we headed to the lake for some family time which always involves food.    My sister decided we’d do a low country boil.    For those of you not familiar with what that is, it’s simply shrimp, sausage, new potatoes and baby corn….all boiled together with some Cajun seasoning and literally thrown out on a table for all to enjoy! 

We let the fellas be in charge of cooking….one pot was “spicy” and the other “medium”…I had some of both and they were both divine!

In the past we’ve “served” it on newspaper but Saturday we went all out and used a Dollar Tree plastic tablecloth!    Yeah, we’re classy like that!     If there was such a thing as a shrimp eating contest, my son-in-law would have taken the prize….here’s his plate after he finally finished….

My daughter teased him that he kept his “hammer” close by in case anyone tried to steal that lobster off his plate!   Messy but oh-so-good!

 

 

When we finished, we put the leftovers in a pan and gathered up the tablecloth with all the mess and just tossed it!   For dessert we had strawberries and ice cream…no one went home hungry!

Before eating late in the evening, the kids enjoyed swimming and riding on Big Bertha.    My two granddaughters learned how to ski this weekend too!    It was so cute to see them ski by the dock waving at us so proud of themselves.   

 

 

 

My youngest grandson had a "large” time all day and finally conked out sitting up!   

 

My son and his baby boy

 

Here’s the view from the top of the upper deck looking out toward the dock.    My son didn’t get out his pontoon boat but there were plenty of  other “toys” ….trust me!

Were you wondering how the “director” part fit into this?    My sister just got a huge promotion to director at her job!    It was a long time coming but no one is more deserving.     Congratulations Betsy!    (Just remember I’m still the boss of you”)

Featured Burlap Fringed Table Runner

I’ve just got to brag a little…today I found out my sweet friend Karianne of the fabulous Thistlewood Farms blog has featured my fringed burlap runner on her new blog here……please go over and see all the wonderful burlap projects featured.    

 

(via)

If you love burlap projects, Kari’s new blog has a lot of great eye candy!     You can also follow along on her Facebook page here.

Disorder In The Court

As some of you may know, I am a retired legal secretary/paralegal.    It was an interesting ride, sometimes sad and many times funny, some of the things people get themselves into.       I went through a very ugly divorce back in 1997 when my ex-husband got involved with….well, let’s just say, a “lady of the night”.    I won’t go into all the sordid details, but they were juicy.    Sometimes I don’t know how I survived that time in my life, but I came through a better and stronger person and went on to meet my now husband and we’ll be married 10 years in October.    Did I tell you he’s taking me to Europe for our anniversary?    Yeah…he’s a keeper!

Anyhooo..I worked for a divorce lawyer, had a friend who was a private detective and another friend who was my court reporter during our depositions.    She says my ex-husband’s “girlfriend” ranks in her Top 5 as one of the strangest depositions of all time.     One of the questions asked of her by my lawyer/boss went down like this:

Q:     Ma’am can you tell the court where you went to college?

A:     It’s gone out of business.

Q:    Okay, I understand that, but can you tell me the name of the college?

A:     It’s gone out of business.

Q:    Are  you telling the court the name of your college is “It’s gone out of business”?

A:    Yes!

Well, that was just the beginning and shortly thereafter when she was asked if her current husband knew she was involved with a married man, she got up and left the room, whereupon my lawyer/boss called the judge who issued a bench warrant for her arrest.    I told you I had an ugly divorce!

Enough about that…I want to share a few funny stories and jokes I’ve seen over the years about lawyers and depositions.     The first one is a video you just have to see.    It’s very old and grainy, hard to see and you have to really listen but it’s hilarious!    It’s called “The Deposition from Hell” and I think you’ll see why.     Here’s the link if you’d like to see it.     

And here are a few “lawyer stories” that I’ve seen over the years….I hope you get a good laugh out of these!

ATTORNEY: What was the first thing your husband said to you that morning?
WITNESS: He said, 'Where am I, Cathy?'
ATTORNEY: And why did that upset you?
WITNESS: My name is Susan!
_______________________________
ATTORNEY: What gear were you in at the moment of the impact?
WITNESS: Gucci sweats and Reeboks.
____________________________________________
ATTORNEY: Are you sexually active?
WITNESS: No, I just lie there.
____________________________________________
ATTORNEY: What is your date of birth?
WITNESS: July 18th.
ATTORNEY: What year?
WITNESS: Every year.
_____________________________________
ATTORNEY: How old is your son, the one living with you?
WITNESS: Thirty-eight or thirty-five, I can't remember which.
ATTORNEY: How long has he lived with you?
WITNESS: Forty-five years.
_________________________________
ATTORNEY: This myasthenia gravis, does it affect your memory at all?
WITNESS: Yes.
ATTORNEY: And in what ways does it affect your memory?
WITNESS: I forget..
ATTORNEY: You forget? Can you give us an example of something you forgot?
___________________________________________
ATTORNEY: Now doctor, isn't it true that when a person dies in his sleep, he doesn't know about it until the next morning?
WITNESS: Did you actually pass the bar exam?
____________________________________

ATTORNEY: The youngest son, the 20-year-old, how old is he?
WITNESS: He's 20, much like your IQ.
___________________________________________
ATTORNEY: Were you present when your picture was taken?
WITNESS: Are you *******g me?
_________________________________________
ATTORNEY: So the date of conception (of the baby) was August 8th?
WITNESS: Yes.
ATTORNEY: And what were you doing at that time?
WITNESS: Getting laid
____________________________________________

ATTORNEY: She had three children , right?
WITNESS: Yes.
ATTORNEY: How many were boys?
WITNESS: None.
ATTORNEY: Were there any girls?
WITNESS: Your Honor, I think I need a different attorney. Can I get a new attorney?
____________________________________________
ATTORNEY: How was your first marriage terminated?
WITNESS: By death..
ATTORNEY: And by whose death was it terminated?
WITNESS: Take a guess.
___________________________________________

ATTORNEY: Can you describe the individual?
WITNESS: He was about medium height and had a beard
ATTORNEY: Was this a male or a female?
WITNESS: Unless the Circus was in town I'm going with male.
_____________________________________
ATTORNEY: Is your appearance here this morning pursuant to a deposition notice which I sent to your attorney?
WITNESS: No, this is how I dress when I go to work.
______________________________________
ATTORNEY: Doctor , how many of your autopsies have you performed on dead people?
WITNESS: All of them. The live ones put up too much of a fight.
_________________________________________
ATTORNEY: ALL your responses MUST be oral, OK? What school did you go to?
WITNESS: Oral...
_________________________________________
ATTORNEY: Do you recall the time that you examined the body?
WITNESS: The autopsy started around 8:30 PM
ATTORNEY: And Mr. Denton was dead at the time?
WITNESS: If not, he was by the time I finished.
____________________________________________
ATTORNEY: Are you qualified to give a urine sample?
WITNESS: Are you qualified to ask that question?

______________________________________
And last:

ATTORNEY: Doctor, before you performed the autopsy, did you check for a pulse?
WITNESS: No.
ATTORNEY: Did you check for blood pressure?
WITNESS: No.
ATTORNEY: Did you check for breathing?
WITNESS: No..
ATTORNEY: So, then it is possible that the patient was alive when you began the autopsy?
WITNESS: No.
ATTORNEY: How can you be so sure, Doctor?
WITNESS: Because his brain was sitting on my desk in a jar.
ATTORNEY: I see, but could the patient have still been alive, nevertheless?
WITNESS: Yes, it is possible that he could have been alive and practicing law.

(source)

 

Have you ever experienced a funny or strange encounter with a lawyer or the court system?    Thankfully I can look back at mine and laugh now….but it sure wasn’t funny when it was happening.    The lesson I can pass along  is time does heal all wounds and as trite as it sounds, you will be stronger on the other end.   

Happy 4th of July!

Do You Clean Or Hire It Out?

 

 

 

 

Most of us are not blessed or fortunate enough to have full time housekeepers or cleaning services.     However, many people find it a necessity if they work full time, have small children or value what little free time they have and just work it into their budgets somehow.    Back when my kids were in grammar school and into middle school, I was lucky enough to have a “maid”.    She only came 1/2 day a week and I had to pick her up before I went to work and then run home at lunch and take her back to her house.    At the time, I considered it necessity as I worked full time and was very involved with my kids’ extra curricular activities, and I got tired of spending nights and weekends cleaning and yelling at my kids to help.    My (now ex-)husband worked about 70 hours a week and while he helped when he could, it just wasn’t enough.   Thus, I lucked out and got some help.    At first, she was fantastic!    I’d come home to a fresh smelling home, all sparkling and shiny.    Sometimes she’d even start my supper for me!     As time went on, things didn’t go as well….she got lazy and I’d have to actually go behind her to clean.    Toward the end I had her doing only the ironing…and that just didn’t cut it with me.    When she moved across town that was my excuse to not continue our working relationship any further.     I “shared” her with another girl at work and found out that one day my friend caught our housecleaner asleep on her bed!    

Just recently when my mom’s house became vacant, I needed to have her house thoroughly cleaned.    Granted, it was empty, but it needed a lot of TLC.    A friend referred someone to me that did professional housecleaning.    I contacted the woman and we came to an agreement on her cleaning my mom’s house.    It’s not a very big house but she was over there about 8 hours and only charged me $150!     She did a great job too!    So when my knee situation came up, I called her to come over to my house to give me a quote on helping me clean my laundry room.    My laundry room is very tiny and I told the cleaning lady I was going to help out and do a lot of the work along side her plus I’d do all the cleanup….i.e. vacuuming, steam cleaning the floor and cleaning behind the washer and dryer.    I mainly wanted her to help me remove all the canned goods out of there which are on a huge baker’s rack and empty the room.     Was I shocked when she said it would be $200!    Maybe I’m a little naive but I thought with me helping and actually doing more of the work, and based on how little she charged for my mom’s house, I was expecting around $100 or less.    I guess she could see the shock on my face because she started to say maybe we could work something out.     I told her I’d get back with her and that’s been over a month….I’m not going to call her back.    Do you think that sounds reasonable ($200) or  would you be upset at that price too?   

So, if you have a cleaning lady or cleaning service, what do you think the going rate would be for a small, small room that you wanted cleaned out but the “owner” was going to do as much work, maybe more, as the cleaning help?