Well.... Christmas 2014 is just a memory, but oh what a great one it is.  The grandsons made this christmas season a blast.  We had so much fun singing, talking about, and preparing for Christmas.  I taught them some Christmas songs and it fills my heart with joy when I hear them singing those songs all by themselves. 
These boys are growing so fast....

Calvin & Braedy

I was going to wait til after the new year to take down the decorations, but "the mood" struck this morning so Ritzywife's "Christmas 2014"  is neatly tucked away til next year. 
I love to just sit and look at the Christmas tree so i put this picture on my phone  so I could enjoy it a little longer after the decorations were down...

Christmas 2014

Looking forward to  our New years dinner/snacks tomorrow.  I told everyone I would fix chicken wings and they all seemed to go for that....besides wings, the menu consists of chips, dips, tortilla pinwheels, meat, cheese, veggies, pickles, olives...I don't think anyone is gonna leave here hungry....
I think we are finally getting some cold weather around here.  It's only 26 degrees out now in the middle of the afternoon.  Could get some nasty weather over the next couple of days.....guess we will just wait and see what happens.  Here in Oklahoma - who knows what's gonna happen?!?
Ritzy and I are gonna go babysit the boys this evening while the daughter has a massage job to do.  Gee, I've got a neck and shoulders that could sure use her services, haha!!  The son-in-law is "on call"  this week so we are volunteering.  Doesn't take much twisting of the arm for us to make ourselves available to watch those two boys.  We love being around them and spending time with them.  Believe it or not Ritzy is teaching them things that are getting them in a little bit of trouble.  Imagine that!!  I get on to him and tell the daughter she needs to get on to her dad and not the boys, haha!!  I guess that maybe  P-Pa's do that to their grandkids just to irritate the kids, haha!?!
After the New year I start counting down to Spring, even tho Winter has officially just begun.  I start anticipating the longer daylight hours, the budding and blooming of the trees and plants and last but not least CRAPPIE fishing!!!
Well I need to go check on the fire, get clothes in the dryer and check out the roast in my new pressure cooker that mom & dad got me for Christmas.
 HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!!!
With that Ritzywife is out.................... 


 

Yesterday I stayed home from church because I had been up since 2 a.m. not feeling well.  After trying Tums and Alka Seltzer, at 4 i went to the recliner.  Ritzy got up and came in the living room to restart the fire and was surprised to find me in there.  Told him I had been sick thru the night.  Well the poor guy was about ready to go to church and I knew it was coming and there was nothing I could do.  Yep, Ritzy ended up cleaning up my "throw-up".   Poor guy!  If only that were all I was doing....
I should have just camped out in the bathroom all day.  I didn't even feel well enough to get out of my pj's the whole day....and for Ritzywife that is rare. 
At 6 I decided to take a lukewarm shower to try to feel "clean" from all the stuff going on during the day.  After the shower i was finally able to drink some chicken broth and some ginger and mint hot tea. 
This morning I got out of bed, stripped it....and the sheets an pillowcases are now in the dryer.  I want all of those germs gone!!!
I have eaten some toast and am sipping on some hot mint green tea.  The unsettled stomach is not as bad but it's still  not gone and I still have the "other problem" too.  But at least I have my clothes on.;)
The daughter called yesterday afternoon and told me she took the boys to Reasors in Owasso and Santa was there.   They are almost 3 and are loving Christmas and all it means.  I have taught them some Christmas songs and we have us a sing-along quite often.  Braedy was on his belly looking under my tree the other night and had a big grin on his face when he turned around and said "I like it".....That made this Ni-maw's day!!!!
Here they are at Reasors and looking under Ni-maw's tree

.......

Calvin had gone to get a pillow, his blanket and his tiger.  I could see that he was getting everything "situated" down there and I asked him what he was doing and he said he was going to sleep down there by the tree.  That was so sweet.  He was trying to talk Braedy into joining him.
This Christmas is going to be so much fun with those two little boys. 
Well I am still not at 100% so I am going to end with that.
Ritzywife out............................

28 years ago on 09/09 at 9:04pm Ritzy and I were blessed with our 2nd child.  A baby girl.  Our son was a little over 2 1/2 yrs old.  I decided before this child was born that I was only going to have 2 children.  I knew that was my "limit" - haha!    We were so happy when we saw that this one was a little girl.  I could have known the sex of  the baby  before hand but decided to be "surprised".  The son looked so much like his dad that I thought that no one would ever believe this child had "indian blood" in his veins.  He was a towhead and light skinned and very handsome.   But.......when the daughter was born, she showed the indian side of the family.  I thought ok, I have at least one child that looks a little like me, haha!!   Years ago,  I knew that if I ever had a little girl that I was going to name her "KERI".  A friend of my parent's named their daughter that when I was about 15 or so and I fell in love with the name.  It was just spelled different.  I thought it was such a pretty name.  Well I got the chance when this little bundle came along...I just wasn't sure about her middle name.  Right up until the moment she was born she was gonna get my middle name "Ann"  but when they asked for her name I decided to give her my dad's middle name "Joe" without the "e".  I knew I had made the right choice - it just felt right....
I just can't believe that it has been 28 years ago.....WOW!!!!
In our mother/daughter relationship there have been great years, good years and not so good years but right now we are in a great place.  I try to tell her to enjoy these years while her boys are growing up because you blink and the time is gone......
All I have to say is "Happy Birthday Keri Jo, I love you!!!"....Mom
Ritzywife out............................................................

That is how I feel my summer has been.  Heck, that's how the past few years seem to have been.
Maybe it's because of my slowing down as I get older ...... that time seems to have sped up... Who knows??  Here is a picture of the grandsons.  They sure are growing and learning.  It is amazing and such a joy  to watch them learn new words and things to do.
                         

Calvin & Braedy

Braedy & Calvin

Today.... July 30, 2014 .... marks 31 years that Ritzy and I have been married.  It has been a time of delight, sorrow, amazement, wonder, but mostly a time of loving God and  each other and being there for each other.
I cannot believe how  time seems to fly/drag by at different stages in life.  When Ritzy was still in the national guard and deployed in the homeland twice and overseas once....the time seemed to drag on and other times the time just flew.  Oh you don't necessarily notice it daily, but when you take a moment and think in terms of months or years...where did it go??
31 years ago Ritzy and I held our ceremony on  my Aunt & Uncle's covered patio.  I wanted a simple outdoor ceremony. They also lived next door which made it very convenient.. I had played the piano in several fancy church weddings and I was ready for something different.  My mom sang and I even played the piano for my own wedding.  I had "taped"  all the music on cassette (I am telling my age), and the ceremony was perfect.  I have seen where hundreds and sometimes thousands of dollars are spent on the dress alone.  We spent about $200 total on this wedding.  My dress was one I found in the Sears catalog with a cost of $25.00.  It was perfect for me.  It did and does not matter how much or little you spend,, what matters is your level of commitment to God and each other!!!  You have made a choice..now stick with it....and, I might add.....if your relationship with God is where it is supposed to be, then your relationship with your spouse will be where it needs to be!!!!
 It had been a hot July and this day was no different but about 2-3 hours before the ceremony a cold front came thru with a little bit of rain which cooled the temps down to where they were in the 70's.  God is so good!!!
 The blessings that have followed are:   a son, a daughter, a son-in-law and two precious grandsons!!!
                                                         

Braedy & Calvin

Here is where the time is flying....these little boys are almost 2 1/2 years old.  They look so grown up.  I love spending time with them.  They love "Ni-maw's/Ritzywife's" house.  They always say---go to ni-maw's house????  and if I am over at their house....they, especially Braedy comes to me and says with such a serious look ---ni-maw no go home.  Melts my heart!!  But......as much as they love me, when Ritzy or "P-pa" is around, it's like Ritzywife is yesterday's news.  They do love Ritzy and love being around him.  He is always letting them just follow him around  and also taking them next door to the bait/convenience store to get ice cream.  The owner, who is a good friend of ours, told Ritzy when they were only a few months old to bring them over for ice cream anytime. They love it!!
Ritzy and I may not have much else to invest ......but we certainly have the time and love to invest in our kids and grandkids....... and  I believe those two things are the most important investments a person can make.    We all, especially children, have a desire to know that someone loves them and wants to spend time with them.
Ritzy........I love you and look forward to our future!!!!
Ritzywife out............................................................

Well the daughter finally did it.  She took Braedy & Calvin to get their first haircut.  They were 2 years old in February.  I must admit it did change their looks.  They now look like little boys instead of  babies/toddlers.  But...they are soooooo handsome!!!!!  Ni-maw thinks so anyway...
Here's a look:

                                                      Braedy & Calvin
They are growing up so fast.  It amazes me how much they pick up on and how much they know at only 2 years of age.  Their little minds are constantly going....that is until they crawl up into Ni-maw's lap and go to sleep.  And on that note.....as long as they still thinks it's "cool" to crawl up into this Ni-maw's lap... she is gonna let them ;-)
Today - June 6, 2014 -  is my Mom & Dad's 56th Anniversary.  I am so blessed to have them as parents and to have them here so long.  As a child and young adult I always prayed for them - that they would be able to live long enough to enjoy their retirement years.  They both worked hard to provide for us and raise us in a loving home, although we didn't really have any idea what that entailed until we got families of our own.   I'm not saying we didn't have differences sometimes but we always knew the love & support was there.  I believe that love and stability in a home is the most important thing a person can give their kids and grandkids.    To always know there is a safe place to be or go  is a both blessing and a need that we all have.
My fishing this year is not at all what I had hoped.  It was terrible.  I don't know if it was because the weather was not quite right or if the water level in the lake was lower than normal, but the crappie did not come up into the creek to spawn.  They are doing it in deeper water which means a boat is necessary to get to them.
I did catch a few (very few), most were given to me.  Just enough to have a couple of "messes" to fry up and eat.  They sure were delicious!!  Oh well, there's always next year.........But I have a brother that I can bum some off of.....maybe.... if I can get him to feel sorry for me,  (his oldest sister), haha!!
Well I guess that's about it for now... Ritzywife out.....................................

I cannot believe how fast time seems to fly by.  I notice it's been a while since my last post.  Since then Ritzy and I have been busy in the garden, yard and spending time with grandsons.  I have been doing a little fishing.  This year has turned into a big disappointment as far as fishing goes.  The weather was slow to warm up and the lake has been lower than previous years so the fish just aren't coming in to the fishing hole.  I have only caught a half-dozen or so fish and that's sad.  Although one evening I was down there and I had not caught a single fish but came home with 22 nice crappie.  Some friends and family gave me 3-4 fish at a time and by the time 5 or 6 people gave me the fish they did not want to clean, I ended up with a nice "mess" of fish, take a look.............

 These two are growing up so fast.  They were holding hands and walking the other night.  At first one was not wanting to hold hands but he changed his mind and held "bubba's" hand. 









 Ritzy is watching Braedy & Calvin mow the grass.  They love pushing these little bubble mowers around.  Do not get in their way--they are on a mission while mowing Ni-maw's yard....









This is my favorite outside place to be.  In my swing watching and listening to the activity around me.  Time well spent  for "thinking" and just being "thankful".....






And with that being said........Ritzywife is out!!!!

54 it's been nice knowin ya.......
March 31, 1959 -- 55 years ago I was born.  Celebrated my birthday yesterday with family.  My sister-in-law took me out to eat at a mexican restaurant in claremore.  (did you know that mexican was probably my favorite food of all).  While dining the daughter texted me and told me they were coming out to fish.  i thought that was a good idea cause i would get to see the grandsons.  well later in the afternoon she texted me and told me they would be bringing out pizza.  Cool - Ritzywife doesn't have to cook on her birthday ;-)
Well they arrive and no pizza, she tells me the son is bringing it so i thought - OK......well when they arrived they let the two kids loose and here they came running as fast as those little short legs would carry them to ni-maw.  I loved it.  We stayed outside and enjoyed the warm evening watching the boys run all over the yard, play with their toys and get in the sandbox.  Also watched Ritzy grill our supper...He did an excellent job.  We had  steaks, veggies, salad, and cookies, cookie cake and Klondike bars.  YUMMY!!!!  Those steaks were heavenly.  We all ate till we were very satisfied.  Those two little ones have expensive taste.  They love steak!!!!
We all enjoyed the warm evening, shooting each other with nerf guns and dodging the boys shots.  It was one of the best birthdays Ritzywife has ever had.  We gave the boys their bath and before we knew it it was time for them to go home.  We said our goodbyes and came inside.  A wonderful end to a wonderful day!
Ritzy is taking me out to eat this friday afternoon.  Ritzywife is one blessed woman!!!
I have just finished reading "ONE THOUSAND GIFTS" by Ann Voskamp.  It shows me there is always something good to look for in our lives and circumstances.  A life changing book if we will let it be.  I am trying it anyways.  Writing down anything and everything I am thankful for or see as a "gift" from God.  It doesn't necessarily have to appear good to the "eye" to be considered "good" .  Truths I have heard all my life, but until I see it in action - it means nothing. 
Well, I want it to mean something in Ritzywife's life.  I want people to look at my life and wonder "what's up with her &  why is she so happy".......
With that Ritzywife is out........................................................

Wow, I never thought I would be writing such a post.   I have learned one of the hardest parts of being a grandparent---saying NO and not feeling guilty about it.....
I guess it has been building for a while now and I just put it off.  Every Wednesday I would have to leave the house by 7:15 (which meant getting up at 6:15) and I would not return home til 4:30-5:00pm.  I then would have to be at church at 6:00 and not get home until 7:30 - 8:00pm.  Made for a L O N G day.  It got so I could not get to sleep on the night before because I was anticipating having to get up so early for such a long day.  I would get 4-5 hours of sleep and expect that to get me thru the next day.   This past wednesday I was exhausted.  Well I found out earlier in the week that the boy's other nana was going to be gone so I assumed I was going to have to take up the slack which meant more added stress.  Then the daughter calls wednesday nite to tell me that "nana" would not be able to watch the boys thursday and that did it for me.  I proceeded to tell her that if I had to watch them thursday then they would not be spending the night that night and everything got quiet.  We started talking and her hubby was afraid we were not going in a good direction but we kept our heads and ended the call on a good note.  Although that call was one of the hardest things I have ever had to do.
 I want to be mom and ni-maw, for my kids and grandkids 24/7 but i realize that no one can live up to the expectations I put on myself.  I was getting stressed and worn out.  I told my daughter that I could not take up the slack any longer when nana had something else to do.  Told her that I had raised my kids and had no intention of raising my grandkids.  Told her that was her job and she only has a few short years with them until the school system takes over and they are grown.  I have spent the past two years babysitting and it was wearing me down.  I also proceeded to tell her that I was 55 not 26 like her.  I did not have the stamina i had at a younger age.  DO NOT GET ME WRONG HERE --no one could love those two little boys more than their "ni-maw", but I learned even i have my limits. 
Enter--GUILT.  I have been dealing with this all day, thoughts going around in my head thinking --well just suck it up and keep doing what you have been doing, or it's their responsibility now, not mine.  Please realize I love my family and would do anything for them, but i was no good to them if i was not feeling right.  I talked to her tonight and we are trying to decide the best thing.  I am being totally honest with myself and her.  They say "honesty is the best policy", but what they don't tell you is that it hurts like well............you know what :-/
I have prayed/cried/prayed/cried over this tonight because i don't want to leave them in a "pickle"...but on the other hand maybe they need to do something and i really wasn't helping by being so accommodating to their every call.
I told her that Ritzy and I would still love to have them spend the night every other friday or saturday but not on thursday.  Thursdays were just too hard since Ritzy and the son have to get up for work the next day.  The other two days/nights would be wonderful tho.  Did I mention that I love those two little boys and they bring so much joy to my heart but dang it I get tired a lot faster than i used to.
It's gonna take a while to work thru the guilt, I guess that's normal tho.  I only want what is best for my daughter and her family....
I also told her that I did not want to hear about every little argument that she and the hubby had.  i told her I was here to listen if she needed me but that they needed to talk and work out their problems and I needed to know that they could accomplish that.  I also told her that their children needed to see them work together to come to a solution to their differences.
Its time for me to back down a bit and let them figure things out and grow as a family.   One of the hardest things as a parent to me is to let your child make mistakes.  But on the other hand.......one of the greatest accomplishments as a parent is to see that your child can work thru difficulty without you.  You can be assured that you  have done your job right when this happens!!
With that, Ritzywife is out............................................

I have been so busy with those grandkids that I lose track of time, haha.....but that is a good thing to me.  Since my last post I decided to give up my sunday school class because it was not going to be the best thing for me to continue to teach in a class where the ones who voted against me won't even look or talk to me at church.  I am now going to the mixed adults class.  The funny/sad thing about this is one of the members who was in on that voting complained at last week's business meeting that the ladies' class had no teacher.  well...DUH!!!!!   But she won't do anything about it ...for sure.  The preacher said he was well aware of that.  I guess she didn't think he knew.....Oh, he and everyone that was present that night knew-- because I sent each one of them a letter explaining how much it hurt to have a  group of people want a secret ballot vote to take away my job and give it to one of their own.  I told them that because of the way it was handled I had no choice but to give up my class because it was going to be very awkward teaching people who did not want to be taught by me.  I also told them that even tho I had forgiven them - what they did changed our relationship and only time would heal that. I told them I loved them and i loved my church.    I told the nominating committee chairman and our pastor what i was doing and why i was doing it. 
I could go around feeling sorry for myself but I choose not to follow that path  I have decided that people are gonna do what people are gonna do, but I have the power to control what I do and how I act.  I choose to be happy and thankful for what I do have.  And the "stress factor" that came with that job, although I loved the job, is now GONE!!!!  I feel great!.  And.........you could not pay me enough to take it back now, haha!!!! Plus I have extra time for those grandsons and crappie fishing...WOO-HOO!!!   I am gonna just wait and see how God wants to use me for His service.  So, as of now my only position in our church is Pianist.
Ritzywife out.......................

That's right, most of my thoughts tonite are just a vent about what happened at church last nite.  We were to have a vote on officers and teachers last October, but because of the Homecoming plans, our vote was put off till last nite.  In a Baptist church where each church is it's own ruling body, a nominating committee is formed to ask people if they would like to retain their job for  another year or for someone else to mention that they may be interested in the job.  then we take a vote.  well it seems for the last few months i have been getting a "vibe" that something was up.  Turns out there were a couple of people wanting my and a friends job and they called their "group" together to make sure it was done.  The first vote was for the SS Director, Church Treasurer, and Church Clerk.  I am or i should say WAS the treasurer until last nite. 
These people called for a secret ballot even tho the nominating commitee already asked me if i wanted to retain my job for another year to which i said "sure" cause I love doing the job, not for the people but because I love God and want to serve.  Well the secret ballots were counted and I lost.  There were only 18 voters there....we are a very small congregation and it is hard to find faithful people to serve.  My friend kept her job as clerk by only 1 vote.  She had told me she thought something was going to happen and I told her "well, there's nothing I  can do about it.  These people put only 1 name against mine so it was an arranged behind the back scheme.   There have been other things said by this group the past few months to make us suspect they were going to try "something".   When it came time to elect Teachers, this same crew made a motion to just accept them all as nominated.  So that let me know they were after the Treasurer and Clerk job.  Well they reached half their goal.  Because of the way this "went down"  I considered this a personal attack.  If it had been out in the open, I would feel a lot different.  SHAME ON THEM!!  But you know something......you reap what you sow, more than you sow, and later than you sow!!!!
Our young pastor was pretty upset at how these people acted last night....so what does a person do now???  Act like it never happened.....not sure....but I sure been praying about it cause we are supposed to have a fellowship..haha..Saturday nite and church sunday.   Gonna be kinda awkward.  None of these people said a word to me after the meeting except for the one who took over the job.  She asked if I would show her how to do the job---she has had this job before and gave it up cause it was more than she could handle---and I told her "no".  Told her  she could relearn how to do it just like I had to learn how to do it on my own.  She will find out that I have been doing a LOT more than she ever did or ever thought about doing.  These people have no idea how foolish they look doing their little deeds.  You know, God will hold them accountable for their actions and..................I got the best night's sleep last nite that I have ever had.  When I went to bed I didn't know if I was going to be too upset to sleep or not...I think I was still in shock that people who call themselves "Christians" could be so underhanded and conniving.  An afterthought was that I should have requested a show of hands of the ones who voted against me for their accountability.   Oh, and these are the ones who are just wanting a "social club" instead of a new testament church to come to.    I am also the Ladies Sunday School Teacher and Pianist for this church and it's gonna be a bit awkward Sunday when some of these people are in my class.    I spent the day getting all the materials together and taking them up to the church, then sent a text message to the "winner" to let her know she could pick them up.  I also looked up all contact  information she might need and printed it out so she could call and start having the church's mail delivered to her home.  I did not have to do that, but I did.    It's gonna be strange getting out of the "bill paying mode" for my church.  I took this job over when my mom (then treasurer) had a stroke and could no longer do her job.  She eventually got better and we looked for someone else to do the job but NOBODY wanted it cause it was too much work, so i stuck with it and was finally getting the hang of it....Besides I love working with numbers.  Yes, it was very stressful each month getting that report ready and especially at the end of each year when I had to prepare all the tax information, but I loved doing it.  Guess I will have to find something else to occupy my time------like fishing or playing with those two grandsons..huh??
Ritzywife out.....................................