THE DUST WILL WAIT

Fun Monday is hosted today by Peter at Holties House. No Worries, Peter. I had help with my joke video while I'm visiting my daughter's family. It's been a rainy rainy visit. It's the kind of weather that frogs love. So I had to repeat my silliest joke, my wide-mouthed frog joke. When my daughters were very young, they were always embarrassed when the wide-mouthed frog came out to play. Wide-Mouthed Frog from Karmyn R on Vimeo . Make sure to check out the other comedians that are signed up down under the big pond!

We arrived to have dinner with Auntie Fern and to celebrate the holiday. Auntie Fern will be 99 in April. “I’m feeling punk.” She said. “I’m worried.” Her 71-year old son who lives 2 hours away wasn’t answering his phone on Christmas Day. The hubby spent some time on the phone searching, and located him in the hospital. He was experiencing shortness of breath, but would be going home after some treatments. “ I feel so much better ,” she exclaimed, “ and I’m hungry now . Our subsequent dinner conversations lead to the celebration of Christmas and how it had changed in her lifetime. I remember getting an orange in my stocking! That was something! We never got oranges any other time of year. It was a special treat to get that. My brothers would shoot a wild goose for Christmas dinner. Sometimes we would have wild rabbit instead. Wild rabbits were really good. But we had to quit eating them because they got spots. It was Tularemia, and it was fatal to people. We...

Merry Christmas from our house to yours.

Allow me to introduce Little Girl. She belongs to our daughter Amanda , who, along with all the others who lived in their apartment complex, received eviction notices for Christmas. You can read about it here . She and her family raced the clock to find an available apartment - and moved in just five days before Christmas. But - NO ROOM IN THE INN for pets at the new apartment. Strictly forbidden by the management. So, she adopted her two cats out; Baby went to Karmyn's house , and Little Girl arrived here late last night. Amanda hopes the cat move is temporary and that she will be able to reclaim her family sometime in the future. Meanwhile, Little Girl has only wandered out of her hiding place to use the cat box and Meow very loudly. I'm going to move Little Girl into my bedroom tonight and lock The Contessa in the family room. Our Contessa is spittin' and fluff-tailed over the new arrival.

DON'T FORGET TO CLICK HERE TO COMMENT!! Kelly, Passing the Torch, is one of my very first blogging friends. Last year, her company, Empowering Youth, Inc , sponsored a successful effort, Linking for Dollars , and raised $500 for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital She's going to do it again! You can help. Empowering Youth will pay one dollar to St. Jude, just for posting this announcement. Want something easier? She will accept your comments until Christmas Day, up to a maximum donation of $500 — one dollar per comment . Details are here . Kelly says: Our hope is that during the season of giving, you’ll inspire others to give as well - either from their own wallets, or by linking to us so we reach our $500 goal. How many dollars will you inspire? Please spread the word! It doesn't get any better than thi s! Thanks Kelly, for letting us be a part of your Christmas giving.

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Robin at Pensieve has challenged our creative juices this month. I wrote this, in a burst of catch up, last Sunday evening, thinking that the assignment was due last week. When I realized my mistake, I set it aside with the idea that I would write more, make it wonderful, and just be on it with a joyful vengeance. Didn't happen. So without further ado, I present my Cinquain - which celebrates my daughters. Happy birthday (December 17th) Karmyn and (December 30th) Jennifer. And,our Goddaughter, Beckie (the 22nd). I am blessed. Birthdays in December Highlight the Calendar through tear smudged Memories of Daughters Robin will have Mr. Linky up tomorrow before the sun rises - I'm going to be there or be square. ( Fun Monday is Below )

Kitten (Kitten's homeschool) is today's lovely hostess for Fun Monday. She wants to know about our house and the street on which we live. A prize will be awarded to the person living in the oldest house. That won't be me. However, the original homestead in the area sits on our back fence. I hope she enjoys the picture I included of it. * * * * We live on a quiet street - except in the afternoon when the high school kids decide to use it as a short cut. When we moved in there were many open fields with cows and horses, but there were also many new homes. When our neighbor Bill moved in over forty years ago, there were only two other houses nearby. He and his late wife raised their five children in a 1923 era home with an unfinished cellar, unfinished dormer style upstairs, and only two bedrooms on the main floor. It sat on a dirt lane in the 60’s. Barbed wire fences contained the horses and cows. The chickens, however, wandered wherever they pleased. His ...

Several weeks ago Tiggerlane tagged me with the education meme. The rules : Devise a list of 5-10 courses you would take to fix your life. It's more fun to be in classes with friends, so include one class from the person who tagged you that you'd also like to take. Tag five. (1)The amount of time that has passed since I was given this assignment proves that I already have a degree in procrastination. However, a refresher course in time management might be helpful. I would probably call it Personal Time Space Continuum 365 . (yeah, my own little universe) This class would provide an overview of the students one year journey around the sun. I just don't know if I can fit it in my schedule. (2) Especially at this time of year, Making Payday Last Forever $101 is highly recommended. We've all heard the saying "So much month left at the end of the money ," or " So long between Paydays, so short between Bills." Well, this class would apply th...

Katabug is hosting today's Fun Monday. She's being very seasonable with her choice of topics. I look forward to some wonderful posts today. The rules were: In the spirit of the season I would like to see your favorite Christmas tree ornament. Not to be confused with the WHOLE tree. I want you to zoom in and show me one or a few(you know I can't choose just one!) of your favorite ornaments. If you don't decorate a tree, show me your menorah or dreidel, Kin ara, or Yule Log. I want to see your favorite decoration for this holiday sea son. When I was a little girl (in the 50's) my favorite Christmas Tree ornament was a blown glass raspberry. My mom had a special attachment to it. Every year she packed it away with much care and concern. When she died 14 years ago, my eldest brother claimed it and keeps it wrapped securely with his Christmas decorations. (They were still in storage at his house in North Central California and I was unable to get a picture of it...

In Part 1 , the family arrived in the Touchet Valley during the late 1800s. Jennie, our Gram, was born in 1902 and grew up on a wheat farm. At age 10 she faced the death of her mother and the challenges of being the family cook and caretaker. In the final paragraph of Part 2 , the young farm hand and neighbor asks, "Jennie, will you marry me?" Her response was "Yes!" Here is Part 3 of Gram's Story. Jennie wanted to complete Normal School before she returned to the valley and into the arms of her betrothed. As always, with the best laid plans - things did not go according to hers. The first problem arose immediately following their winter engagement: John, her father, became contrary about the tuition expense. He did not want to pay for her remaining education and asked to be reimbursed for the amount he'd already covered. Jennie was penniless until she received her teaching certificate and a position. Raleigh's job as a farm hand was subject t...

Many distractions the past few week; not exclusive to computer problems and illness. The weather in our "neck of the woods" has garnered attention. Fortunately we are not in an area that had noticeable floods. First we had a cold front with snow. Within 24 hours of a beautiful snowfall, the wind blew in with a vengeance. It stayed 3 days. However, the worst of the storm hit the west side. Then it blew right over the top of us and tore through northeastern Oregon. We have returned to a beautiful snow covered morning on December 7.

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Take four little men, a big dog, and a tree, then mix it up with mom and her camera to get an early bowel full of Christmas. I invite you to get your spoonful of early holiday delight by viewing Try It If You Dare , posted by Nan over at Life is Like a Lunch Box She and her family make me smile on the inside and giggle on the outside. I always expect to be entertained and have my spirits lifted when I click on her blog. I'm never disappointed. Nan, I've nominated you for November's Perfect Post . Thank you for letting us share your joy! To see other Perfect Post nominees click on over to Lindsay at www.suburbanturmoil.blogspot.com and Kimberly at www.petroville.com .