Family & Friends – Page 12 – The Dackel Princess

Wednesday Hodgepodge

1. Your favorite chocolate treat?

Chocolate Peppermint Bark. It’s only available at Christmas, but oh, it is so yummy. Truth be told though, I’ll eat anything chocolate!

2. What more than anything else makes you feel loved?

It’s the very little things. Hugs, cuddles, smiles, the look in someones eyes, etc.

3. Cherries or blueberries?

Since we have three Cherry trees, I’ll say Cherry, but….our friend has Blueberries, and we go over and pick like crazy, and I make things with those too.

4. What is the one trait you most want the leader of your country to possess?

Integrity. Definition: Integrity is a concept of consistency of actions, values, methods, measures, principles, expectations, and outcomes. In ethics, integrity is regarded as the honesty and truthfulness of one’s actions. The word “integrity” stems from the Latin adjective integer (whole, complete).[2] In this context, integrity is the inner sense of “wholeness” deriving from qualities such as honesty and consistency of character.

5. Are you a saver or a spender?

I used to be a spender. I really love to shop. Now, I have learned that it’s best to be a saver.

6. If you gave a party for all of your friends would they already know each other?

Not at all. I have friends far and wide. I think they all know of each other, but they haven’t met.

7. Are you interested in antiques?

Only family ones. For instance this Noah’s Ark came from Mülheim an der Ruhr, Germany, with my grandfather, when he emigrated to this country. He was just 9 years old at the time. I love this little ark, and the memories of him that it evokes.

8. Insert your own random thought here.

For all of you who have been following my blog friend, Joanne’s progress since her stroke, there are great things to report. She is eating pop-cycles, and using an Ipad to communicate with everyone! If you go to this post you can read and see her progress. This post was written by Joanne’s sister complete with some of the most beautiful pictures! Her sister and husband are in a few of them, and Joanne’s beautiful hands! So go HERE and read and see how God really does answer our prayers.

What I Did This Past Weekend

Our host is Gattina. Come join us and tell us what YOU did this past weekend! After all, you never know when you will need an alibi!

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Friday night found Hubby and I off to a party at our friends home. It was a warm and inviting home, and the group that gathered was fun together. It seems when we get this particular group of people together, we all find a lot to talk about and to laugh about. So, it was definitely good times!

We came home before the fireworks began to take care of the dogs. Usually Fritz is our scared pup, but this year it was all three dackels. In fact Arnie was shaking!

We popped the cork on a bottle of bubbly and toasted the New Year and hit the hay right after the Ball dropped in Times Square. I feel old…

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The next morning, Greta woke me at the crack of dawn. and I never did get a nap during the day. So, by 8:30 last night I was so tired that I took the dogs out for a walk, and then went to bed, falling instantly asleep. Hubby said he came in not too long after I went to bed, and I was snoring soundly.

Sunday morning I woke with a cold. My throat was sore and my chest was burning and I still felt tired. I somehow managed to cook breakfast and lunch, but spent a lot of time cuddled under a blanket watching TV.

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It was on Sunday that I got the happiest news, that my eldest nephew asked a really wonderful woman to become his wife!

Mike and Karan

Mike and Karan are two of the nicest, sweetest people I know, and they are so good together. Congratulations to them both!

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The week ahead finds me trying to shake this cold, as the first of the year meetings begin!

I’ll miss the sleepy peace that seems to settle in after Christmas and lasts until New Years. Now it’s back to the grind and meetings.

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Have a good week every one!

Family & Dogs

I was off to the great state of Massachusetts to see and take care of my cousin, Janet. She really is doing better than she was, but her recovery will be a long one. Her surgery was on her back, and she has a 4 inch incision. She is on massive amounts of antibiotics, and at this point, needs lots of rest.

On Thursday night I did cook my, “World Famous Chicken”

It was a big hit, and made Janet smile. So, it was totally worth all the work making it and then cleaning it up! As I said yesterday, I need someone who likes to wash dishes after I cook because I tend to use every pot and pan in the kitchen!

This morning the Visiting Nurse came back again to give Janet her antibiotic infusion. Once again, Wolf got all freaked out! Poor guy. I sat him down next to me and tried to calm him.

Eventually he started to relax and respond positively to my calming kisses and snuggles.

I stayed until early afternoon when Janet’s friend Lauren arrived. She was going to stay until Dave got home from work. Then he will be with her all weekend.

Saturday I am off to see my daughter and her boyfriend and I have a dog sitter coming to take care of the pups. Am I the only one you know who gets a baby sitter for their dogs? Just call me a loving dog Mommy!

Hold Tight!

I’m down at my cousin’s home showering her with a lot of TLC! I made her favorite meal of Roasted Chicken, green beans, butternut squash and mashed potatoes, and everyone ate like crazy. In fact, Janet’s boyfriend went back for seconds! I was glad I spent the time to make this dinner!

The ride down here from my home went well, and was pretty uneventful. I made it in record time and really never broke the speed limit.

Janet’s dogs were thrilled to see me, and naturally very happy that I took them out for walks. However, poor Wolf really suffers when Janet’s home Nurse comes in to change her dressings and administer her medication.

Today I thought Wolf might have a seizure he was panting and shaking so hard. I sat with him wrapped in my arms so he couldn’t see what was happening and he stayed there for a very long time. I was glad to be able to calm him.

Max, Me and Wolf.

After fixing the great meal, it was time for the great cleanup! I’m starting to think that Julia Child had the right idea. Be the great cook, and then let someone else do the dishes!

Later on Thursday I will head home to Hubby, my four dogs and the Great State of New Hampshire!

Living Love

My cousin Janet has been quite ill. In fact she was in the hospital and had to have emergency surgery. She scared the heck out of me! In fact, I think she scared a lot of us that love her.

However, her surgery went well, and she is recovering better than I would have, (I get a splinter and want a morphine drip!) and she will be going home soon. I’ll be leaving Hubby overnight and going down to cook her a meal full of comfort food, and to shower a little tender loving care on her.

You know, I have thought a lot about life recently. How we should really relax and enjoy the good times, maybe appreciate them more, because life is full of those difficult times, the ones that we somehow struggle through, but the ones that challenge our emotions, nonetheless.

Janet’s surgery reminded me that I need to pay better attention to the good things in life. That I need to love my family and friends consistently and let them know.

I think I am going to go and hug Hubby now! I’m feel just a tad emotional!

Family of Friends

I have always believed that one can form a family of friends. I have been lucky enough, in this life to find many wonderful people that, although not related by blood to me, have become special and precious in their own way.

This is the relationship I have with Emily. A young woman who came into my life when she was just eleven years old. Her parents rented the house next door, and one day Emily came into the yard bringing back a dackel. I think it was Greta, although I cannot recall.

Before I knew it, I put her to work in the kitchen, as it was Peach season and I desperately needed the help!

After that we were pals and then friends and then family.

I’ve never tried to replace her parents. Goodness, they are both wonderful people, who love her very much, but I have tried to be a friend and someone that Emily could always count on. That is something that won’t change.

Emily grew to love the pups as much as I do. In fact, over the years she has “doggy sat” for me and helped me when the puppies arrived.

However, she has grown and her parents are moving west. We will be separated by a couple of time zones. At first I felt pretty sad, and then I realized that I can hop on a plane and go and visit her whenever she has a long weekend!

You see, no matter where she is, I know, and she knows that we are together in our hearts!

On Monday we spent some time going around the yard taking pictures together. Hubby helped so we could get some really nice ones.

I know she will come back, to the lake that we both love, and spend some time here again. Right now it’s time for her to go off on a new adventure.

Safely knowing, I will always be here, waiting for her to return and tell me all about it!

Love you, Em!

What Did You Do This Weekend?

Our host is Gattina. Come join us and tell us what YOU did this past weekend!

This was a great weekend for us here in the Dackel Princess House. Our very own Emily was here for the weekend and we did what we love to do the best when Emily is here!

We cooked and we baked and we played games and watched movies and we hugged dackels!

This morning we took a few more pictures. I was just awake, still in my nightgown and a jacket, as we had cold weather move in last night, so please forgive my somewhat disheveled appearance.

You can see how Greta helps me write my blog!

Then it was my turn to take pictures of Emily. The pups were spreading their love onto her, and she enjoyed every minute!

After this, Emily was off to visit with her other friends for the afternoon and I watched The US Open Tennis. Hubby has been complaining that he is “Tennis-d Out” and longs to watch almost anything else on the TV. He better be careful or I will put on my favorite junkie TV show, “Ice Road Truckers”! He really hates that!

So with family, friends and dogs, my weekend was nice and relaxed and very, very, full of love!

Jam Making

Today at the Dackel Princess house we spent the day cooking. Our big project was the preparation, cooking and canning of our very own Plum Jam!

As you know, Emily is here, and today her boyfriend, Ben came over as well and the four of us set about putting it all together.

In the end, we had eleven half pints of Jam, and it came out very well! Best of all, we had fun doing it!

Friendships

On Monday Hubby’s Buddy from the military came with his lovely wife to take us out for a wonderful luncheon meal!

We drove over to the Common Man Restaurant and had a wonderful meal. Jim and I had the Lobster Salad, and Geraldine had the Crab Cakes and Hubby had a weird Reuben Hamburger sandwich! We all had French Onion Soup as well! Yummy!

At the end of the meal Geraldine and I decided to have an ice cream puff. Now last week I watched Julia Child make these and they were the size of a half dollar coin. Small and sweet. They brought out our orders and they were just huge!!!

Can you believe how big this is? Hubby helped me a little to eat this, but in the end, there was still plenty on the plate. I do admit, though, it was very good. Still, I ask myself, why it had to be so big?

After we took a nice drive, stopped in a few places to shop and came back to the house. We walked around looking at the fruit trees and then we chatted and caught up on life.

Toward the end of the day we decided to take a picture of the four of us. Now we both played with our cameras in order to figure out how to take a timed picture. We worked and worked and finally I figured out how to do it! I was so proud!

Arnie was insisting that we include him.

We came home and enjoyed more time together before they said good bye and headed out. Hubby and I had a small meal later in the evening and then went to bed.

What a very nice day we had!

Birthday Celebrations

I’m sitting here writing after a lovely day. I drove south and got together with Mandy and her Grandmother to celebrate Grammy’s birthday! She turned 85 years old!

I was so happy that I had the chance to spend the time with her. You see, although she is my former mother in-law, I love her just as much as I did when I was legally her daughter in-law.

I guess some things don’t change with the signing of divorce papers. Isn’t that wonderful?

We had a three hour lunch just talking about the old days, and Mandy’s birth, and how I’ve known her since I was just 15 years old.

We shared so many of the happiest days of my life, the saddest too. But today we talked about the happy ones, like Mandy’s birth and the wonder of her grandchildren.

Love never dies, does it? I know with my first marriage, sadly, we went to different places after the accident, but the love for some of my ex-husband’s family, has stayed with me all of this time.

I am a lucky woman!