tour de grandmothers - round 3

I'm a little late posting this, but my week has been hectic to say the least. Barely enough time to eat and sleep, much less to blog.

My last stop in Texas was Houston, Deer Park, actually to see my adopted grandmother, Bertie. I probably anticipated this stop over any other because of the closeness I have with her. As a baby, I would be fussy for anyone else but her. She and her husband (PapaWes) became additional grandparents to me. Growing up, I saw no difference in the love I had for them versus my blood-relatives. Well, maybe I lied a little. Perhaps I loved them more because they spoiled me. PapaWes would take me to his garden to help pick okra, then I'd come inside and help Bertie fry it, eating raw okra covered in cornmeal while I waited. Bertie taught me how to cross-stitch and would allow me to spend hours going through her sewing supplies (zippers, ribbons, buttons). Later in the afternoon, PapaWes would treat me to an IBC root-beer that I'd eat with a spoon.

Yes, I was a confused child, but this was fun to me.

Anyway, while battling with infertility (not that it's over by any means), the subject of adoption obviously arose. It's my love for Bertie and PapaWes, who is now deceased, that never made me question if I was open to that option. I knew that blood didn't matter when love was involved. Sure there are more questions to answer, but my relationship with them proved to me that blood truly is irrelevant.

I could tell you more about my trip and visit, but I'll leave it at that for now.

So, here's some sneaks for the upcoming July kit:

Made using the main kit: CONTINENTAL. I also used Walnut Stain, Broken China, and Antique Linen distress inks.

Made using a combination of LaSalle, Lewis&Clark, and the main kit plus Blank Canvas Paint.

On most of my layouts, I use the American Crafts Precision Pen 03 to journal. It's just the right thickness for me.

round 2 continued

While visiting my aunt, I dug through her photos for an exciting new eBook Studio Calico will be promoting and found this. Yikes!

I know I've mentioned I'm a twin, but seriously, one person should not have been allowed to sport that hairstyle, let alone, two. I must say the south-Texas humidity did add to the already thick/frizzy hair.

Can you guess which one I am?

By the way, if you clicked that link before Tuesday, it won't work.

And, to top this post off with some randomness, this green hutch was delivered while I was gone and Greg was sweet enough to take a photo so I could see it. The house is slowly coming together, so I'll have more pictures to share in the next couple months, but for now, this is the only pretty corner in my house.

I have 7 people staying with me this week and had to kick my parents out to accommodate the crowd on the limited beds we have. So far, so good. We had a great ride to feed the cows this morning before the temperature rose to 100 degrees and then a sausage/bacon/pancake/fruit breakfast followed by a quesadilla lunch. But now, I'm exhausted and the week has just begun.

More to post later about my third grandmother on the tour.

tour de grandmothers - round 2

Location: Corpus Christi, about 3 hours south of grandma #1
Purpose: Visit maternal granny, aunt, uncle, and cousin Shana (pictured above)

Activities: Sonic. Sonic. Sonic and more Sonic. Apparently, Shana and I have that in common. It's a daily necessity and our life is not complete without it. The only difference is that she likes to listen to blaring country music while sipping/gulping her drink, and I prefer it in peace and quiet.

Sailing (see below)


Shana's sail was all wrapped up so her boat was going pretty slow. She looked half-bored the whole time, so as she was coming off the dock, we asked her if she had fun. She didn't lie. Gave it a thumbs down right in front of all the volunteers.

I didn't get a picture with this Granny because when I thought of it, we were leaving this morning she still had on her nightie.

All in all, it was a successful visit. Had some good Texas BBQ (brisket and sausage) and a great hamburger at Hurb's. Trying to get some iron since the doctor said it was low and he's retesting me in 2 weeks. It's like cramming for a test :)

On to round 3 today in Houston.

tour de grandmothers - round 1

First stop: West Columbia, TX - home of paternal grandmother
Population: 4255
Temperature: high 90s
Gas Station: Yes
McDonald's: Yes, but only within the last 5 years
Wifi Internet: non-existent if your aunt doesn't know the password

Sleeping Situation: Grim - note location of cuckoo clock to bedroom door.
Visit: Successful. Ate at Luby's Cafeteria. Talked. Ate again. Talked. Slept. Ate. Talked. Slept.


Funny Moment #1: Reading a magazine and having my grandmother ask me if I'd like to look at hers. Yes, the bosom is growing, but not to this extent.....yet.

Funny Moment #2: Having my grandmother surmise if her home-health nurse had indoor plumbing then continuing with telling her how to flush a toilet and to only use four squares of toilet paper.

Reality Check: Upon arrival, Grandma was on the floor in her closet leaning up against a file cabinet and had been for 4 hours. She had fallen and couldn't get up, but it wasn't as funny as in the commercial. Luckily, she has good bones, but for the 3 people it took to get her up, they might have strained a few muscles. Oh, and we're also lucky that she had bladder control during that time. There's always something to be thankful for, right?

Since this leg of the trip was so eventful, I thought I'd leave you with a sneak (my only one so far) of July's kit. This is made with the Lewis&Clark add-on. Plan to get this one. Trust me, you won't be disappointed.

head over to CK today...

I'm happy to announce I'm guesting over at the CK blog today.

It's a fun layout mixing the June SC kit and the Documentary line. I hope you like it and the tutorial made using my Slice.

I mentioned in my article that I have a bun in the oven and boy is that bun getting bigger. I only have one pair of pants where buttoning is even possible. Total weight gain is 6 lbs at 17 weeks.



I'll have more to share later, but running out the door now and preparing for the annual tour de grandmothers. AKA: week-long trip to Texas to visit 3 grandmothers spread over 350 miles. Time of departure: 4:00am tomorrow.