Checking In....

I just wanted to let everyone know that I'm dealing with some health issues again, and that's why I've been MIA this week from being on line. As soon as I can, I'll be doing an entry and also catching up with yours.

Love & Pooh Hugs,
Linda

Just Maddie!

My Grand-dogger......Maddie :)



After I did my Thankful Thursday post, my daughter informed me that I had hurt my little Grand-dogger's feelings by not saying I was thankful for her. In fact, she told me that little Maddie was in the bedroom howling with sadness, howling louder than she did when she got her shots! :) So, I had her tell my little girl that I would do a post this week entitled "Just Maddie".....it's the least I can do, don't ya think?

For those of you who may not know......Maddie is my daughter Mandy's toy poodle, and they live in Celebration, FL, about five minutes from Orlando. She is five years old and just the sweetest thing ever. I am very thankful for Maddie, because she brings Mandy so much joy, and keeps her from being lonely. She is there waiting for her after a long day of dealing with thousands of tourists, and cuddles up close to her at night, keeping her company into her dreams.

She is very spoiled, not just by me & her Mommy, but by all of Mandy's friends, especially Josh, and Mandy's roommate, Casey.....everyone loves Maddie. She goes everywhere with them, even some places she is not allowed (shhhh). She's a tiny little thing....she just looks bigger in my pictures because she was way over due for her haircut, she only weighs 6 pounds, but she is all attitude :) She loves dingo bones, chicken jerky, and McDonald's fries.....and just about any other treat you have with you, also!!! LOL! She loves her Grandma too....she definitely remembered me me this trip, and I brought her a little pink hoodie sweatshirt, and some carob coated biscuits :)

She does two things that are just adorable, and crack both me and her Grandpa up. Our favorite is her ballet poses. After she does her business outside, she kicks her back legs like many dogs do, but she kicks one leg straight out.....holds it for about 5 seconds, then kicks the other leg out and does the same thing, back and forth for about 2 minutes. Kick, stretch, hold, and repeat! LOL! She also does this after she wakes from sleeping, she goes to stretch, but turns it into a work of art :) Our other favorite thing is when she tells Mandy she wants to go "bye-bye".....it is so adorable. Mandy will ask her if she wants to go, and of course she is all excited and runs over to Mandy. Then Mandy says to her "convince me"...."convince me"....."convince me"! Well, Maddie takes a couple of attitude steps backwards and starts "talking"....all kinds of growls, grumbles, and noises, "convincing" Mandy that she does, indeed, want to go bye-bye!!!! LOLOL!

So, that's my little Granddogger.....a sweet little baby for my baby to love. We are very thankful for you, too, Maddie....and I hope this makes up for Grandma slighting you the other day. I know all my blogger friends are going to think you are simply precious :)

Pooh Hugs, Maddie's Grandma :)

There's No Place Like Home!

Tonight at 8:00, TNT is broadcasting one of my favorite movies of all time, the classic "Wizard of Oz". I love this movie for so many reasons, but mainly because it is full of life lessons. No matter how many times I've seen it, and even though we have it on DVD, I still get excited when I hear it's coming on TV, and will watch it beginning to end, in some ways like a child I suppose....hehe. So this entry is just a few things...."Oz" :)

My favorite exchange in the movie comes towards the end, when Dorothy is left wondering how she will ever get back to Kansas, when Glenda once again appears:

Dorothy: Oh, will you help me? Can you help me?
Glinda: You don't need to be helped any longer. You've always had the power to go back to Kansas.
Dorothy: I have?
Scarecrow: Then why didn't you tell her before?
Glinda: Because she wouldn't have believed me. She had to learn it for herself.

Dorothy insightfully explains what she has learned from her experience - during her dream of being in Oz. In a self-revelation, she realizes that everything she could ever have wanted was right in her own backyard - IF she had wanted it hard enough. Glinda reveals the meaning of the ruby slippers and that they will carry her and Toto back:

Dorothy: Well, I think that it, that it wasn't enough just to want to see Uncle Henry and Auntie Em, and it's that if I ever go looking for my heart's desire again, I won't look any further than my own backyard because, if it isn't there, I never really lost it to begin with. Is that right?
Glinda: That's all it is!
Scarecrow: But that's so easy! I should have thought of it for you -
Tin Man: I should have felt it in my heart -
Glinda: No, she had to find it out for herself. Now those magic slippers will take you home in two seconds!


How true is that? If we can't find a way to be happy within ourselves, to find a way to be happy right where we are now.....chances are we won't be happy wherever we think the answer lies.

My other favorite exchange is when the "Wizard" is giving the Tin Man his heart:

Wizard: "Therefore, in consideration of your kindness, I take pleasure at this time in presenting you with a small token of our esteem and affection. And remember, my sentimental friend, that a heart is not judged by how much you love, but by how much you are loved by others."

Another life lesson! Love isn't love until we give it away. Letting others benefit from our kindness will give us the self worth & acceptance we need to feel truly loved.

Of course, how wonderful is the music in this movie!!! I'm sure almost everyone can sing along with each one, and they just make us happy & joyful, don't they? My favorite, as is many others I'm sure, is the timeless classic "Somewhere Over The Rainbow". Did you know we almost never heard that wonderful song? It tested badly in preview screenings so it was cut out, then later reinserted after reflection by a new director brought in to finish the movie....good thinking!! So many people have recorded it over the years, way too many to even begin to mention. But I thought I'd end this entry with a few of my favorites, I was able to find all but one of them on You Tube. Many different versions....I hope you will enjoy listening to them.

The Original & Best.....Ms Judy Garland



Rufus Wainwright



Israel Kamakawiwo'ole



Eric Clapton



Connie Talbot



Beyonce



Ray Charles

Placido Domingo



Willie Nelson




If you watch the movie tonight....enjoy, and know you have a friend in Michigan watching along with you :)


Pooh Hugs, Linda

Thankful Thursday

In Betty's journal entry yesterday, she asked everyone to do a Thankful Thursday entry today, so....here is mine, Betty :)


(1) I'm thankful for my parents, their presence in my life is a blessing to me in new ways every single day. I'm also thankful for the way in which they raised me, to love the Lord, to love my country, and to have a kind heart. I'm very honored and proud to be their daughter and fear the day I lose either of them.

(2) I'm thankful for my daughter Mandy, who is just joy defined. She teaches me to be a better person and just when I think I cannot love her more....I do. She is my saving grace and voice of reason, and on days when I'm feeling like a failure.....All I need to do is think about who she is as a person and I know I am not, for she is my greatest triumph. She also keeps me in stitches with her sense of humor....oh how thankful I am for her wonderful, contagious, laugh!

(3) I'm thankful for my husband, Marv, who truly is my soul mate & love of my life. In this 29th year of our marriage, we have been tested, and although battered at times.....we are still way ahead. He offers me unconditional love and and a hand to hold when I can't walk the path alone.....he loves the me that I cannot always love, and that's what keeps me whole. I love him so much.

(4) I'm thankful for my one year old Cocker Spaniel, Abby Cakes. When we lost Molly, I thought I may never be happy again. But just as Molly taught me when we lost Lacey, and Lacey taught me when we lost Kiley....my heart has the capacity to fall in love again. None of them have replaced the other, because they simply can't be replaced. They are their own special brand of joy and Miss Abby is a pure love sponge! She is a scamp of great proportions, which keeps us laughing....and tired!!! But that face, and those expressions, and those wonderful kisses.....we love her so much, and can't ever imagine life without her in it. Thank you Abby....for helping me to smile again. :)

(5) I am thankful for my best friend, Wendy, I would be locked away in the funny farm by now without her to keep me grounded. Everyone should have a friendship like this once in their lifetime....she is the sister I always wanted.

(6) I'm thankful for my Internet friends, whom each bring something different to my table. Some bring wisdom, some inspiration, some laughter, some knowledge, some bring great stories, some joy, some sadness, some bring great recipes, some teach me about photos and animals, some teach me about their country, some help me face the scales, and some help me face myself, some draw me closer to the Lord, and some draw me into their life and close to their heart. But everyone brings me blessings beyond measure and I'm so thankful for each and every one of you.

(7) I'm thankful for this small, cramped, dim, drab, apartment, for even though it is not home....it is shelter & warmth when many have none. I'm thankful that I have a place where my family can be together, including Abby.

(8) I am thankful for music....simply everything about it is wonderful & inspiring.

(9) I'm thankful for television, because even though I shouldn't be....I'm so addicted to it and it gives me a lot of pleasure watching my shows. Okay, you know I'm thinking it, so I'm just going to say it....I'm thankful that Patrick Dempsey is so pretty to look at :)

(10) I'm thankful for Blog Spot. Even though it was a pain to learn....it allowed us to keep our little cyber family in tact, and I still have a place to rest my head when I'm tired and need someone to listen to me whine about nothing in particular, or everything important. Thank you AOL for showing us we were tougher than you!

Singing Loudly All Day......

I have waited and waited for this C.D. to be released so I could dowload this song to my i-pod! It came out yesterday, and now I'm a happy girl :) The Song is "White Horse" by Taylor Swift.

"White Horse" Lyrics

Say you're sorry
That face of an angel
Comes out just when you need it to
As I paced back and forth all this time
Cause I honestly believed in you
Holding on
The days drag on
Stupid girl,
I should have known, I should have known

[Chorus]
I'm not a princess, this ain't a fairy tale
I'm not the one you'll sweep off her feet,
Lead her up the stairwell
This ain't Hollywood, this is a small town,
I was a dreamer before you went and let me down
Now it's too late for you
And your white horse, to come around

Baby I was naive,
Got lost in your eyes
And never really had a chance
I had so many dreams
About you and me
Happy endings
Now I know

[Chorus]
I'm not a princess, this ain't a fairy tale
I'm not the one you'll sweep off her feet,
Lead her up the stairwell
This ain't Hollywood, this is a small town,
I was a dreamer before you went and let me down
Now it's too late for you
And your white horse, to come around

And there you are on your knees,
Begging for forgiveness, begging for me
Just like I always wanted but I'm sooo sorry

Cause I'm not your princess, this ain't a fairytale
I'm gonna find someone someday who might actually treat me well
This is a big world, that was a small town
There in my rearview mirror disappearing now
And its too late for you and your white horse
Now its too late for you and your white horse, to catch me now

Oh, whoa, whoa, whoa
Try and catch me now
Oh, it's too late
To catch me now

Many Pooh Hugs,

Linda

Six Things

I got tagged by a few people in the e-mails and journals I caught up on, so here are my six things you may or may not know about me!


(1) I love browsing through, & sending greeting cards......I spend hours in Hallmark stores!

(2) If I open a bag of potato chips, I will dig through the bag to find all the "folded" ones first.

(3) I love dishes! Especially serving platters, bowls, & holiday pieces. I know I have too many, and then I'll see this cute little bowl or plate and.....I just need it ;)

(4) I feel very deeply, and I always see things in a situation that lay beneath the surface. When I read a letter from someone, I read between the lines, so it does you no good to lie to me......everyone who really knows me says I would make an excellent profiler! Have you seen the new show, "The Mentalist?" Every week when we watch it, Marv says "he is soooooo much like you it's scary". LOLOL!

(5) I have said this one before, but I detest them so much it needs to be repeated! I HATE onions, all peppers, cucumbers, & tomatoes!!!

(6) I sleep with a towel curled up under my head.....I don't remember how it started, but I've been doing it for years, and I can hardly sleep without one now!

Eat To The Beat

I forgot to mention the "Eat To The Beat" concerts that we saw in EPCOT during the Food & Wine Festival. The three different nights we went over there, we saw Kool & The Gang, Atlanta Rhythm Section, & David Cassidy. They were all so great and it was so fun to see them now! I didn't take any pictures because I was too busy enjoying myself, but Mandy did remind me before David Cassidy was over to snap one! It's not that great, but it gives you an idea. I put a You Tube video of each band to remind you of one of their songs....take you back does it? Fun stuff :)

David Cassidy In EPCOT

Kool & The Gang


David Cassidy


Atlanta Rhythm Section

Disney Trip

Here are a few more pictures as promised! We had so much fun together, and the time just flew by. We spent time in all of the parks, and of course.....wore ourselves out! A few new things to see which is always fun.....especially the Toy Story Mania in The Disney Studios, where the wait was 80 minutes and more in the stand by line! They also have a new parade in the studios which is called "Block Party" and it's really awesome....don't miss it if you head that way. The Food & Wine Festival was once again, FABULOUS! We ate way too much, and I'm taking the fifth on how much wine we sampled ;) I think Marv & Mandy enjoyed the Lamb in Australia the most, while the Ziti in Italy won my vote! I didn't buy too many things this trip because until we see what collectibles we have to replace, there is no sense to it....although we did buy a couple of new pieces of art work. I did send home a box of goodies to Connor, Emmy & Peyton though, and can't wait to hear if they liked them....Emmy is into Cinderella, so that part was soooooo much fun! Oh, and Sugar.....as soon as I'm on my feet, you have a little surprise coming your way because I couldn't resist :)

Seeing Mandy at work is always a time of pride for us, because all bragging aside, she was simply born to do this job! Her ability to both firmly control "situations" at a moments notice, and happily socialize with thousands of people each day just amazes me. We met many of her cast, and some of her co-workers, everyone was so nice. But the best was hearing the words that make every parent happy...."You did such a wonderful job raising your daughter, they don't come much better than Mandy". Oh if you think we were both proud & teary eyed.....you guessed right!! :)

We spent one day taking her shopping, and after many furniture stores, she finally found the perfect couch, it is really nice. Because she special ordered the color, she has to wait a few weeks for it, but I'll try to have her take a picture when it arrives. We also spent some quality time in Sephora....I mean, ya just have to spoil your girl with some make up and sparkly stuff, right? ;) Her Daddy was a good sport and sat out in the mall & read....as to how many chapters he was able to get through, well, that's just our little secret! (LOLOLOL!)

I did pretty well on food, I always ate a bowl of Cheerios for breakfast, and a very light & sensible lunch, and then had whatever I wanted for dinner. I had a few desserts, but did not go wild and order them at every meal.....I'd probably say I had them 4 out of 10 dinners, and we usually split it between us. The only two days I over ate, were the days we went through the Food & Wine Fest....it's almost impossible not to, YUM-O! As soon as my swelling goes down, I will get weighed, but I really think I did well enough that I'm not worried that I gained a great deal at all. Yeah me! :) I will also tell you that people were pretty well behaved with their cruel comments, I only had two incidents where their ignorance tried to ruin my trip. However, it did not......I held onto my knowledge that the problem was theirs, not mine. The stares were a bit worse, but I did okay with those most of the time.....I just kept repeating over & over in my head "to smile and be proud of who I am". That worked 90% of the time, and the other 10% I had Marv & Mandy to catch me when I broke.....they were very comforting glue :) I've been back to eating right since I've been home though.....this trip was a huge wake up call, and when I'm ready, I'll share some of that part of it with you. I know I can't remain where I am any longer weight wise, or I won't be able to travel anymore, and maybe I won't even be here to enjoy my family. It was a sobering realization, but one which I needed to have.

I'm still suffering the effects of extreme swelling in my lower extremities, but I will try to start playing catch up tomorrow. Until then.....Pooh Hugs & Love :)

Happy Mom & Mandy :)

Mandy's Friend Josh Joined Us For the Afternoon

Eating Dinner Together in Celebration, Where Mandy Lives

Mandy & Marv In "Chef's De France" In EPCOT

My Handsome Hubby....I love this picture!

Eating Sushi!

Got Frozen Pina Colada?

Having Fun In The 50's Prime Time Diner

Mandy's Sweet Roomate, Casey, Joined Us For Dinner.......Just Pals :)

In Love In Paris....(hehe)

Back Home!

We got home last night, and now we need a vacation from our vacation!! LOL! We had an awesome trip and spending time with Mandy was wonderful.....she looks so good and is very happy. It was so hard to leave her behind, but now I'll start counting the days until March when we will see her again :) Miss Abby did well staying with Connie, she loved playing with the kids and the two puppies.....but she was so happy to see us and is being a little snuggle bug today.

Those of you who have been with my journal for a while know that I swell terribly when I travel, and this trip was no exception.....so I won't be catching up on journals until this weekend when I'm able to sit for longer periods of time. Until then, I'm catching up with my parents and helping Marv unpack. I can't wait to see what you all have been up to though....I hope all was well in your lives while I was away :)

Oh, and as we came home to a new President Elect, I will congratulate all those who supported him. I did not, and was not very happy with the outcome of the election. However, just as I have always supported President Bush, I will support President Elect Obama...I believe strongly in a country standing behind their leader, even if they do not always agree with his policies. So, I am sincerely praying for The Obamas as they prepare to take the helm of our nation, there is much work to do and the road will be long. I hope everyone who, like me, voted for John McCain, and those of you who didn't vote for either, will now close ranks as simply, Americans, and support our new leader. May God bless President Bush in his final months in office, and as always.....God bless and protect the troops who serve.

Here are just a couple of pictures to tide you over until I post this weekend with more about the trip and more photos.

Me & My Girl

My Family, Together Again!

Me & My Bear