Easter and Family

Well, another Easter has come and gone.  And it's always good to be with family to celebrate.  This year, I celebrated with Barbara, Tom, Monica, Brittany, Ray, Siobhan, and Carl...and it was quite a celebration!  Then Deidre and D.J. called and that completed calls from Barbara's family.

So...here I am...making paper mache eggs (Thanks to Rachel's blog!)  I wasn't too keen on dyeing eggs this year...after all, I've done it many, many times.  This was different...just some starch, tissue paper, and a blown up water balloon...

I knew we were having company for Easter...Barbara was getting the centerpieces ready for brunch and for dinner...

And...thanks to one of Leah's posts, we tried making Cake Pops...here are the first attempts at Chickie Pops!

On Easter morning, Tom and Biggie woke me up...(and I'd really rather wake up by myself!)

But...here I am ...with Tom...and we're both still smiling!

Here we are...enjoying brunch.  We had fresh fruit salad, orange juice with strawberries, Lee Lee Egg Strata, sausage, Deviled Eggs, French Breakfast Puffs, Chocolate Chip Crumb Cake, and Fresh Rhubarb Sugared Muffins, followed by coffee...

 Right after breakfast, we all opened our Paper Mache Eggs...here I am sorting chocolate eggs, Jelly Bellies, and little fuzzy chicks!

Carl wanted to have another Easter Egg Hunt...so we dyed more eggs... Tom and Brittany hid them, and Carl found all of them...even the hardest to find!

Carl made his dad a birthday cake so we celebrated with a birthday cake as well as flower-shaped ice cream and Chickie Pops!

Of course, kids will be kids...so here's Brittany playing in the dollhouse (with Carl's permission, of course!)

These two cousins are "Best Buds"!

 And so are these two...Great Grandpa and Great-Granddaughter~

And so ends another Easter!

It's Almost Easter!

The last time Barbara and I worked out what I wanted to put on my blog, it was the beginning of March and now it's April and almost Easter!  So...I've got a new toy to play with...drives the cat crazy!

And it really is starting to look more like Spring!  Just ask Leo!

I have a new job...once a week I brush the cat's teeth!  Yup!  You heard me right.  The cat LIKES to have his teeth brushed and, since he's ALWAYS sitting next to me, it's now my job!  I have a plastic "toothbrush" on my finger...

and use Leo's own "poultry flavored toothpaste" (which he just LOVES!)  Makes my job a lot easier!

Last week, Barbara told me it was Herb's birthday so we gave him a call.  We tried to call Don when it was his birthday, but he wasn't home.   Luckily, Herb was home and  answered the phone when I called.  Here's what Herb got on his birthday:

It's been getting harder for me to get around and get out so now we're having more "company" come to us when Barbara is in town.   Sometimes it's for Sunday Brunch...and I have to try eating something other than my standard "EGGS"!   Last weekend, I had to try pineapple, melon and strawberries, chicken and mushroom crepes, salad with parmesan cheese crisps, and tiny, tiny muffins!  (It was O.K. and I ate some just to make Barbara happy, but I'd rather have my EGGS!)

If we have company in the afternoon, we have to have "tea"!  (I'D RATHER HAVE BAILEY'S BUT NO.....IT'S GOT TO BE TEA!  Here's the home made bread (flower shape because it's Spring!)

Smoked salmon and Pate...

(The only thing I ate was the asparagus with cheese and ham!)  And the reason for the "tea" was...

Terry and Shella came over to see me.  It was good to see Terry again...we had a good time reminiscing.  Of course, Mr. Big had to be on my lap to "protect me" from the visitors!

Part of the reason for the long lapse between blog posts is that 've been doing a lot of coughing lately...I tell Barbara that I'm fine but she insists on taking me to the doctor...and you know where THAT leads!  First it's the blood test, then the chest x-rays, then wait for the results, then back to the doctor... gets me CRAZY!  Oh, and when I'm waiting, I'm not "allowed" to just sit...I have to either read or do something on the iPad.  So...here I am, playing Smashing Ants!

More doctor appointments next week...and another week of antibiotics...and we'll see where that leads.

So...just for Easter, I'm reading Beatrix Potter's "The Tale of Peter Rabbit" on the iPad.  Amazing how you can just touch the screen and turn the pages.  No problem reading the print...I can have almost any size I want!

So...that's my update for April...Happy Easter everyone!

March - in like a lion, out like a lamb (Hopefully!)

I know my blog hasn't changed for several weeks but that's because Barbara hasn't been home.  She's been working in Wyoming, Montana, Illinois, Michigan, and Arkansas and finally got home last night.

(Good News...the cat likes me best when she's not here!)

And then there's this crazy weather!!!  (In like a lion...out like a lamb!)  Here's what I see out of the bedroom window...

And here's what I see out front!

Yes, that's SNOW on Mt. Umhunum!

My HP printer has been working overtime...Kyle and Leah sent pictures of Emery...my 4th great-grandchild!  I keep them in an album so I can go back anytime and look at them.

St. Patrick's Day came and went, but the leprechauns hung around until today...and brought both "trouble" and "gold"!  Here's the leprechaun greeting me at breakfast.

Barbara made some chocolate chip cookies (one of my favorites) and somehow, while the cookies were cooling on the plate, that leprechaun walked ALL over them!

Fortunately,  leprechaun footprints taste pretty good...so no loss there.  But the best part was...

The pot of GOLD!  

My 99th Valentine's Day

Another Valentine's Day...and it's my 99th Valentine's Day!  Where does the time go?

I started off breakfast with heart shaped dishes and my coffee in a heart shaped cup. That's better than a calendar any day!  I knew it must be Valentine's Day!

Here's a better shot...fresh grapefruit, orange juice and hot coffee (heart shaped, of course) for starters...

Before the "main course", I had to open my present...

And....GUESS WHAT I GOT FOR VALENTINE'S DAY???

Leo and I had to come to an agreement before I could eat.  He likes to have me pet him CONSTANTLY...so he sits in front of me until I do pet him.

 I can't eat because I'm too busy covering my juice and my coffee!

 We have finally come to an agreement...he sits on my newspaper while I eat and THEN I pet him before reading the paper...works for us!  (as long as he doesn't TOUCH my chocolate Valentine lollipop!)

Then it was time to spend the day with my judge shows...and Mr. Big!

I ended Valentine's Day with my favorite dinner...you guessed it!

Lobster tail, potatoes, asparagus, applesauce...and strawberry short cake!

 And, thanks to technology, I'm keeping up with family and friends...Barbara puts all of my electronic mail into a binder so that I can read through it whenever I want to.  Thanks for keeping me up to date on what you're all doing out there.