ask grandma j: Christmas

Showing posts with label Christmas. Show all posts

Thursday, December 24, 2009

Wishing You All....

From our house to yours.........

With Love and warm wishes.......

A Merry Christmas

* JJ thought Crusty was a toy...silly JJ!
So after ~~wrestling Crusty out of the jaws of death~~ what seemed like the fight of the century, Grandma J decided JJ should have his picture taken by himself. Can you tell by the look on his face he's not happy?

Thursday, December 25, 2008

MERRY CHRISTMAS to all....

....and to all a good night!

and here's a little bit of Christmas Texas style.

Wednesday, December 24, 2008

Countdown to Christmas.....

Yesterday was caaa.raaazzzz.eeeee.

As is the custom, because we've done this exactly ~~twelve~~ one year in a row, my granddaughter and I, with JJ in tow, made our way to HEB to pick up the final ingredients for our traditional, signature, Christmas ~~pile of goop~~ Rice Krispy Treat Wreaths.

We needed everything but ribbon and marshmallows.....for real. And when all was said and done......

This was the damage done to Grandma J's ~~social security check~~ Roth IRA, or better known as my estate. and just in case you think I'm a prudent shopper the coupon savings is $1.48, not $148.

Of course, we bought some stuff for dinner, because we would still be working on our Christmas Wreaths well into the evening hours....and because my grandson knows I make the best babyback ribs evah!!

This is the assembly line.....waiting for the finishing touch.

This is the Director of Traditional, Signature Christmas Wreaths...~~sitting for a photo op~~ putting the finishing touch on the project.

By "finishing touch"....I mean just that!

Here is an up-close look at what Middle Daughter will be passing out to her co-workers and the doctors she works with. She is such a ~~suck-up!~~ considerate, generous person.

Merry Christmas!

Tuesday, December 23, 2008

The Reason For The Season

or, these are a few of my favorite things.

Thirty five years ago, I friend gave me a beautiful gift that she spent numerous hours making. I have cherished these pieces and love to display them....and display them I do......year 'round.

The details are spectacular and the picture doesn't do them justice. My friend said she was going to make me add-on pieces every year for Christmas...but I said no. I love the Holy Family and wanted to keep the Nativity simple, and so it is to this day. I move it to my coffee table for Christmas, but it's so beautiful, I display it all year.

My middle daughter knew how much I loved my three piece Nativity, and decided to get me a beautiful Austrian Crystal one when they were stationed in Germany ten years ago.

It's just as beautiful and lovely, and I display it year 'round, and put it front and center with the ceramic one for Christmas.

My third Nativity is my pewter, stained glass plate that my mother, Rita gave me. It has over two hundred different colors but it doesn't photograph well....but it's another of my favorite things.

Do you have a special gift from years gone by that you display front and center every Christmas?

Disclaimer....While these are some of my favorite things, the ornaments on my tree are on even par with my nativities.

Saturday, December 6, 2008

IT'S A WRAP

That's what I'm calling it.......In the wee hours of the morning, which is really the end of yesterday.

I had chauffeuring duty in the early morning and late afternoon...which included taking JJ along, riding shotgun..

Then a doctor's appointment and two basketball games sandwiched in between.

I came home to this mess of gifts and boxes mixed with receipts, bags and junk.

After a few hours I finally got my wrapping about halfway done, and under the tree.

Once I'm done, they will be packed up to ship to Florida, California and Colorado.

I can't wait to go visit all my friends at my local Post Office.....Remember them?

Thursday, December 4, 2008

LET'S PLAY..... Remember when..

Remember when I showed you guys my lovely Christmas tree?

Remember? It's just a simple fake tree with several hundred lights.....

Remember, I have my silly garland around my door and window...with attached lights?

I love it simple. Now, I'm showing you all this because I have to rant about my neighbor again.

Remember my neighbor? The same one I ranted about last spring, shortly after I moved in here at the compound?

Remember her side of the porch? And the reason it looked so cluttered was because I didn't appreciate her storing her ~~crap~~ exotic plants and ~~mountain bike~~ birdhouses on my side....

Remember my side? She warned me that it would take a while to situate and organize her stuff.

The picture says "my side after" because it was taken last year after I asked her to remove her stuff.

Well yeah, I guess it takes a while to straighten up. She put garland similar to mine up because she wanted out sides to match. uh .....O.K.A.Y.

Ok, good job remembering! That's what I love about you.

We're not done yet....

Remember when I stayed in this Princess room last summer?

Remember how I not only felt like a Princess....

but I actually looked like one too?

Well, I have to visit them again. I'm not staying overnight. Gary sounded disappointed. Who's Gary?

Remember? He was my personal man in waiting when I stayed in the Princess room.

OK, how many got all the "Remembers" right?

* Gift suggestion #7 has been posted! Check it out because you have less than three weeks until Christmas.

Sunday, November 23, 2008

Deck The Halls With......

.......OUCH!!

No, I'm not flipping you off. That happens to be my index finger after putting up my outdoor lights, after my finger got into it with a hammer, after putting up my tree. Then I went to Taco Bueno to get some Macho Nachos for us.

But, that's not what this post is about. I was putting up my Christmas tree, and I brought out all the sentimental ornaments that I've accumulated over the years. You know the ones....the clothes pin reindeer made by a kindergartner in 1976, or the walnut skiing on popsicle sticks.

Then there are the ones for your dog. The dog that went to doggie heaven in 2001 at eighteen years old. Charlie, a cockapoo.....a very macho cockapoo.

This may be boring for some of you, and it will probably make some of you roll your eyes....it won't be the first time, so roll away.

I'll start with this picture of Charlie and me at Petsmart in 1995, just so you have a visual of him.

This is a foam handmade ornament I bought at work to support United Way in 1994.....the lollipop is nasty probably rancid. I bought everyone in the family, one of these, but I only have Charlies. I'm sure everyone else still has theirs, and puts it on their tree, right?

Then we have this one from Heart Shaped Hedges husband's two cats, Bubs and Sweebs circa 1999.

And another from those sweet kitties in 2000.

Ok, so that's it! That wasn't too bad now was it? I still miss Charlie, and I just know he would have been best buddies with JJ......maybe!

*NEW!! The 3rd in a series of my great Christmas gift ideas has been added at the bottom of the page. Check back often for more gift giving ideas.

Saturday, November 15, 2008

Not Mother's or Archway's

Here is a plethora of cookie recipes for your Holiday baking. If you can't find it here, then make me some. Happy baking!

Thursday, September 4, 2008

VINTAGE THINGIE THURSDAY

It's time again for Vintage Thingie Thursday! Head on over to Confessions of an Apron Queen and sign up to participate. If you like vintage stuff, you will find a whole plethora of amazing websites that are participating with great stuff.

This week I want to share a pewter Christmas plate that my mother, Rita gave me.

It is stain glass with over 200 different colors. The photos don't do it justice. If I use the flash it looks like thin plastic.

If I don't the colors aren't very brilliant. In person the colors are very rich.

Now, this isn't vintage in the sense of being antique. It's the United States Historical Societies 1983 Christmas Plate replica from St. John's Cathedral, New Orleans, Louisiana. The border is very detailed, and it's numbered.

So, if you really, really want to see it in it's glory, you have to come here to the compound. I'll not only feed you, I'll let you use my noodle in the pool. Yes I will.

****************************************************
**Another BBAD excerpt....Renny knocks on the bathroom door (water closet), Jerry doesn't answer so she thinks it's empty. She comes laughing into the living room where Dan and Memphis are. Jerry comes out and she yells at him;

"Jerry, please answer when I knock on the bathroom door."

J: "You barely knocked, and I was getting ready to answer you when you opened the door."

R: laughing, "You guys wanna know what Jerry looks like when he pee's?"

J: "Never mind Renny."

D: "No, Renny, please, no."

R: "Look guys, he does this....she puts one hand on her hip and the other one holding on to an imaginary piece of equipment, rocking back and forth." LOLOLOL

J: "Renny, your full of s**t."

Thursday, June 12, 2008

DISINFECTING....
The old fashion way

About once a month, I like to turn my mattress and spray disinfectant on my box spring and mattress and anything within five feet of where I sleep. I have always done this, even though I don't recall my mother ever doing it, or anyone telling me to do it. Maybe my fear of bugs, and when I was a kid, hating it when an adult would say, "sleep tight, and don't let the bed bugs bite".

I buy disinfectant spray in ~~bulk~~ the big spray can. I don't like all the new fufu stuff. I buy the old standard.

LYSOL...plain Lysol. Guess what else I buy?

This old fashion Lysol Concentrate. Why? Because it kills every germ that ever thought about settling in my living space. I put it in certain loads of laundry like sheets (oh what a shock). When I was married, I used a tad of it in loads of clothes that had heavy sweat ~~not my stuff~~. I know you are thinking to yourself, Grandma J has gone over the edge, and now she's letting the whole world know it.

Not so fast! I love to check out products and find out how they've been marketed over the years. Like I did with Lifebuoy Soap and Tide that you didn't have to rinse out.

I have to say, I was really shocked at what I found out about Lysol. Maybe I'm the only one who didn't know that our mothers, if you're old like me, grandmothers were probably shamed into actually using this stuff to save their self-esteem, and maybe their marriages with perfect feminine hygiene.

Here's a sample of ads. I only left the text on one, because it's hard to read, but they all basically say the same thing...Use me or else. And believe me, there are plenty more!

It seems to me that the perfect wife spent quite a bit of time making sure everything was Spring Fresh...between Lysol and Lifebuoy. I mean really, wouldn't you just want to bust your behind to make your man happy...so he could reward you with the perfect Christmas gift?

or maybe this one?