Champagne Corks

Be careful opening those champagne bottles this New Year's Eve. I just read an article that said corks come popping out of the bottle at around 50 mph. Yeah, fifty miles per hour. Be sure to point that bottle away from your eyes and then enjoy the bubbly.

The Dance

Merry Christmas

Waiting for Santa

Scout wearing Jo's Santa hat. This one has a jingle bell on it.

Forgotten Hat

This is a picture of Scout wearing a hat I had forgotten I had knitted. It was originally for Jo about four years ago.  When I saw the hat I had to go back and look in my book to see when I had made it. Of course since the grandkids are at no loss for hats it is no wonder I could not remember it.

Jo's Nativity

Knowing I love Nativity sets Jo made me this one a couple of years ago. She made it from one of the foamy craft sets you can get at Michaels. Love it.

Nativity 2

Continuing from yesterday here are a couple more nativity sets. Allison brought me this one from Spain when she went there for her Senior trip. I think one of the coolest things about this one is that one of the wise men is riding an elephant.

I bought this little Nativity when Allison and I went to Alaska. I got it at a store in downtown Anchorage. Notice the igloo with the eagle on top. Also there are the wolf, moose, and seal that replace the sheep, donkey and cow. I just thought it was too cute.

Nativity

I love Nativity sets. I have collected them for many years. This year Jo helped get them out and I let her put them where and how she wanted them. I debated how I wanted to post some of them, one a day till Christmas, all at once, I could not decide. Here are a few of them. The first was given to me by my mother-in-law. Notice the sheep are "upstairs". Jo thought that was where they belonged. In the past the donkey had to be there and it was interesting to see if he stayed there or if someone removed him to the lower level.

This Nativity came from Israel. It is made of Olive wood. It was a gift in 1983 from a co-worker who happened to be Muslim and who's mother still lived in Israel. Now these type may be found in some malls. Knowing mine had no camel Matthew found one and added it to the set.

This little Nativity is special. It was rescued from a garage sale. Matthew, who we called the "garage sale king" found it for me. I think he paid twenty-five cents.

Now from the traditional Nativity's to, well the modern, perhaps bizzare to some people. This is one of my favorite Nativity's. My SIL Jane gave me this. She found it in New Mexico. Mary, Joseph, and the Angel are all red chili peppers. Baby Jesus is a green chili pepper. It makes me smile. More tomorrow.

Reindeer Merry Go Round?

Yes that is Jo, Scout and Allison riding on the Reindeer Merry Go Round at Bass Pro. That had to be the cutest merry go round I have ever seen. Everyone seemed to enjoy it.

Happy Birthday TJ!

 Today is TJ's birthday. Instead of having a regular birthday cake we had two pumpkin rolls. If you have never had them they are heavenly. The cream cheese filling is absolutely wonderful. TJ was very kind and let Jo and Scout blow out the candles. Then Jo ate all the filling out of her piece. Scout on the other hand tried to put her whole piece in her mouth. Happy Birthday TJ! Love ya bunches!

Operation Gratitude 2

This is a continuation from yesterday about Operation Gratitude. Today I received an email from Operation Gratitude and included was a link to the fantastic interview with knitter Joan Mazzarelli. If you click on the blog link her interview is the second post down. Every time I watch it I am inspired. Check it out.  http://opgrat.wordpress.com/

Operation Gratitude

Today I was watching the news and saw a great story. Joan Mazzarelli is a 98 year old woman who knits scarves for Operation Gratitude. Operation Gratiude is an organization that sends gift boxes, handknit and crocheted scarves and hats, and care packages to our service men and women. This 98 year old woman stated that she knits scarves and has knit for service persons since World War II. She said she gets up and knits until lunch. After lunch she knits till dinner. She then stated that she knits sometimes till  2 in the morning. That is dedication. She said that she sometimes knits up to three scarves in one day. Being a knitter I understand the amount of time it takes to knit scarves and hats.  All of her knitting is then sent to Operation Gratitude. As our time in Iraq and Afghanistan has continued we still have many troops serving not just there but in many areas of the world. They are all deserving of our support and gratitude. They are the ones that enable us to do the things we can and want to do. Check out http://www.opgratitude.com/ . There are many ways to support our troops listed there, knitting and crocheting hats and scarves, sewing neck gaiters and bandana cool ties, collecting candy and Beanie Babies for soldiers to give to children, and donations for care packages to make the soldiers feel a little bit of home. If you are not involved in some other way think about contributing in one of these ways. As a mother of a soldier I know how important those care packages are to the soldiers. If we all do even a little then a lot is actually done. (Thanks to Operation Gratitude for the use of their banner)

RA and Heart Risks

I received and e-mail today from http://www.arthritistoday.org/. It was confirming another study done that found that Rheumatoid Arthritis is linked with heart attacks and strokes. Inflamation is a signature of RA, which is an autoimmune disease. This inflamation contributes to the build-up of plaque in the arteries. That is the bad news for those of us who battle this disease. The good news is that the study found that patients on anti-TNF including Remicade, Enbrel, Humira, Simponi, Cimzia had less thickening in their arteries. Prednisone caused more thickness but could be tempered if patients were also given a statin to lower cholesterol. Check out the full article at the website above. People with autoimmune diseases are at a higher risk for heart attack and strokes but everyone needs to check their cholesterol and their blood pressure on a consistant basis.

The Joy of Childhood

Comfy?

While putting up the Christmas tree at Nana and Blah Blah's Scout decided that the perfect place to sit was in Randee the dog's little bed.

Twins

No not really twins. I made me this shawl and then decided to make JE one also. Euroflax Linen yarn. Wonderfully fun to knit with.

Happy Birthday Drew!

            













Today is grandboy Drew's first birthday. What a cutie. Glad to see he enjoyed his cake. Happy Birthday Drew, Love ya bunches!!

Happy Thanksgiving

Yes I know it is not December. I could have posted a cute little turkey for Thanksgiving but then today I went to Bass Pro. Here is a picture of the ultimate hunter's Christmas tree. I love it. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Jester Hats from Aunt JE

Whoo Hoo! A New Computer!

Well the dinosaur computer finally died Tuesday night. That meant there was not a functioning computer in the house. So off to Best Buy and there lo and behold was a great deal on a desktop, laptop and netbook. Oh my goodness how great it is to "go fast". Hopefully now I can get caught up on pictures and knitting. Now I should be able to comment and keep in contact with some of my friend's blogs. This is gonna be so much fun!

Functioning With Pain

There is a great post on Lene Andersen's blog today. www.theseatedview.blogspot.com . It is titled Before and After and Before. Those of us who deal with chronic diseases and chronic pain are always searching for what will curb or reduce the pain so we can function more normally. Sometimes we find the answer only to have the medicine recalled or the healthcare system to defund a therapy or we lose our insurance. Somehow, somewhere there has to be an answer. Oh, yeah, and the people who are making the decisions need to have some idea of what it is like to have a chronic illness and not just decide willy nilly who has care and who doesn't. Check out Lene's post.

Veteran's Day

Today is Veteran's Day. A big thank you goes out to all the men and women who serve in our Nation's military. In my own family I have my son Joseph who serves today with the Army. My Dad who served with the Navy in the Pacific during WWII. Also my brother in law who served during the Vietnam era in the Army. Today Jo and I went to the cemetary and put flowers on my Dad's grave. She loves to do this. While we were there she worried about several graves that had no flowers. Across the cemetary there were flowers that had blown off other places so she made sure that there were flowers on graves with out them. Thanks again to all our brave military. Thank you, we love you and we are proud of you.

Happy Birthday Jo!

Happy Birthday Jo!! You are a joy to my life.

VOTE!

Today is an election day. Be sure and vote. No matter how some people feel we still live in the greatest nation on Earth. No matter how you feel about any politics going on today many men and women have sacrificed their lives for us to be able to have this freedom and priviledge. Plus it is my personal opinion if you don't vote you should not gripe about whatever is going on in local, state or national politics. Go Vote!

Pumpkin Patch

Allison and I went with Jo and Scout to the Pumpkin Patch in Flower Mound this week. It was really a lot of fun. There were many bounce houses and there was a hay maze and hayride. There were also many areas set up with cartoon characters and pumpkins. Jo had a great time and loved the bounce slides. Scout really liked the Phineas and Ferb cutout. She and Perry the Platypus were about the same size. She did not like the hay as is obvious in the one picture. I think she found it way too rough and poking into her little legs. Even though it was very hot we had a great time.

World "Arthritis" Day

Today is World "Arthritis" Day. The term "arthritis" is generally used by people to refer to any form of arthritis. Types of arthritis include Juvenile Arthritis, Autoimmune Arthritis, and "Arthritis" which is commonly called Osteoarthritis. Of the three only the Osteoarthritis has localized pain and only affects the joints. It can be controlled with over the counter medications. Juvenile and and Autoimmune Arthritis both are systemic meaning they affect the whole body system. Out of over 100 types of arthritis only 7 are classified as Autoimmune Arthritis diseases. These are serious and can include organ involvement. Autoimmune Arthritis typically occurs between the ages of 0-40. The above information was taken directly from the website http://www.iaamovement.org/ When I was growing up arthritis was known as an old person's disease. Statistics show that 80% of people will experience this type of arthritis at some point in their life. This type is called "degenerative arthritis". It comes from the wear and tear to our joints over the years. Only a small percentage of people will develop the serious form of arthritis known as Autoimmune Arthritis. I am one of those people. Although I was not diagnosed by a rheumatologist until 2001 I displayed the symptoms of Rheumatoid Arthritis in 1974. I was 21 years old newly married and in college. What most people do not understand is that Autoimmune Arthritis is not just the aches and pains in your hands, feet or hips. It is throughout the whole body. You feel tired and constantly ache. Even with wonderful biologic drugs like Remicade which I take, you feel like you have the flu all the time. One of the most frustrating things for person with an Autoimmune Arthritis to have to deal with is not the pain of the disease. It is the lack of understanding from other people over how this disease affects our lives. It can control how and what we are able to do. I get frustrated over seeing commercials on TV that say you can "cure"arthritis with this or that medication. Or well meaning people who have come across a "new and improved way" to cure arthritis. Those of us who deal with Autoimmune Arthritis know that while those "cures" might work on "old fashioned arthritis" they do nothing for what rages through our bodies. Lest I sound like I am going on a tear let me say I am blessed to have found a fantastic rheumatologist and great biologic meds that keep me functioning. Please visit http://www.iaamovement.org/ . There is so much information available there. Do you know the differences in the types of Arthritis? Go there and find out.

Laryngitis

I have laryngitis. I have never had it before and let me tell you it is weird. I had been having bad allergies all last week. The pollen count was high so of course there were the sneezes, itchy eyes and nose, plus that lovely sinus drainage. Ah, North Central Texas in the fall. Now the weather has been more pleasant temperature-wise but that is jut to trick you into forgetting that with that wonderful weather comes the dredded allegry season. Friday we went to the State Fair of Texas. I was fine until about mid-afternoon when I started sounding "throatish" for lack of a better word. By the end of the day I could not talk very well at all. I was hoping that by the next day after some rest that it would be better. It wasn't. I was watching the grandboys on Saturday so that their mom & dad could go and watch the Texas Tech/Baylor game at the Cotton Bowl. Do you know how hard it is to talk to 2 1/2 yr old twins and a 10 month old baby and you have basically about 1/4th of your normal voice? By the end of the evening I had barely a whisper of a voice. Sunday morning there was nothing. I looked up laryngitis on the Mayo Clinic website. So it is most probably caused by allergies and voice strain. Ya think? The best thing I can do is not talk and drink a lot. No do not think they meant rum. What I have found out is that if you have no voice you can't do anything. You can't talk on the phone, order from Sonic, go through the drive thru at the bank or even go to the grocery store unless they have self checkout. I did go to Kroger yesterday because I needed some Diet 7-up, my choice of liquid. I have been very lucky that I have not had a sore throat so I am able to swallow fine. Even the stupid dry cough that I have that comes from the sinus issue has not given me a sore throat. Hopefully I will be able to talk by the end of the week but having no voice has given me a new and interesting perspective on communication with others. No matter that we can text or email we still need that good old fashioned ability to be able to physically talk to other people. Once I am better I have some phone time to make up.

Where is Scout?

Drew is Army man crawling everywhere. He ended up under this chair. I think he is hunting for Scout who also likes to be under stepstools.

Everybody Needs a Soft Pillow

Dudley, a much loved soft pillow.