Friends

 Did you ever notice that when you are with people you love, you usually laugh a lot. I am in two quilter's groups and when we get together, we have a good time. Some of us are quietly working on projects by hand or machine, but we all have good stories to tell. One will start and then another joins in with another funny story and suddenly we have spent a half hour laughing. 

I think it's the same with family. Just being in the same room as my kids, their spouses and grandkids causes instant elation. And they all have dogs. I miss my dog Messy, who died last month, but I am still grieving for a while. It's great to get jumped on and licked (ooh, ick) and adored by them. Of course, I always have a little treat for them.

It's still November and heaven knows what December will bring, let alone a new/old presidency. I am reading uplifting books and pages, talking to friends, and sewing, writing, walking, cooking. I always balance my life with the gratitude that at least I am not in a nursing home YET. Still, I bet I can find the troublemakers in a nursing home and have some fun when I do go.

The Holidays

 The holidays are so much fun for small children. Starting with Halloween, kids are so excited at the approach of the holiday. I had the pleasure of a delightful afternoon with two of my grandchildren in Whitefish Bay, Wisconsin this year. The weather was warm enough for the two princesses to go bare-armed and the town really got into the spirit of the day. My daughter and her husband wore costumes and I wore a ruana I had gotten in Bogota, Colombia in 1972. For each block we walked, the girls got to eat one piece of candy. They were pretty wiped out by the time we got home. In case you haven't read my favorite Halloween story, go to this post.

This year I was having a hissy fit because I didn't think I would have family home for the holidays. I managed to invite them, rather than just assume, and they invited me. I'm ancillary to their families now, and I think that's supposed to be a good outcome to having children, but how I miss having them all together at once. 

This weekend my daughter and family stayed overnight. Within five minutes of my granddaughters' arrival, they had changed me into a princess. Now that they are both preschoolers, I can almost keep up with them. I will cherish these moments of joy, just as I cherish the moments with my children and my downstate grandchildren. I have been writing again, and that's one of the good things about not having to clean, cook and decorate. Let's hope I get my first book of poetry done this year!