I am missing these guys today.  I'm also missing Henry, but he wasn't at the computer that day, I think he was only 1 at the time.  But boy, can he do the screen time as well as the rest of them now!

Kind of fun so see the house.  Oh, and I need to get that quilt out with the sunshine angel, I do have a place to hang it here.  Lot's to do actually.  Though if I could do what I wanted today, I would just edit photos via PicMonkey.  Becoming my fave online obsession, which is better than Farming, right?

Normal

Just the word "normal" caught my eye today when I opened the blog to think about doing a posting.  What the heck is normal.  I've heard someone call it just a setting on the dryer.  When I was teaching childbirth classes, and got to the segment covering life with a baby, my couples would often ask, when life would return to normal.  A big lesson for them to learn, was that they were going to establish a "new normal".  Which is pretty much what I have finally come to accept.

So my new normal for day to day living no longer includes children or grandchildren.  They have been so much of what identifies me.  In some ways they were a convenient, and lovely excuse to not have to really take care of myself.  And it has taken me a lot of months to come to realize it.

My new normal is slowly starting to come together.  I am moving more, and eating less.  Since the trip to Florida and the time changes, I'm now usually asleep before midnight and up with Lynn around 8.  My next step is to get into my sewing room and get it reorganized, so that I can get to the work that I need to do.  I have lots of new projects in mind, which is good.

Tomorrow, I'll spend some quality time in there, move some things to the garage and make a good list of what needs to be done.  Lynn has a rare evening meeting, so I'll be able to work without having to stop and make dinner.  It is part of the new norm, that he is basically 9 -5 everyday.  In the past he had a couple of evenings each week that he would have commitments, so this is different.

It looks like we won't be back up north until near the end of August.  And I also have come to accept that none of the kids will make it down here anytime soon.  And that just has to be okay.

Moving forward.

Mothers Day

This is my Mom.  I think this photo was taken when she was in her late teens, but she couldn't remember exactly what age.  Love the coloring of this photo.  

Mom was child #3 of 9, and the second oldest girl.  Her older sister Adele is 2 years older, and also still living, independently and I believe still has her drivers license.  Mom still renews her license every year, but hasn't actually driven for several years.  Thankfully Dad is still able to drive.  

Don't you love the typewriter???  Mom was a working girl.  She married young and had my older brother Steve and then five years later along came me.  As happens, that marriage ended and Mom went to work at the naval shipyards in Bremerton where she met Dad.  Was actually his secretary!!

This photo to the left was when she was either still in high school or soon thereafter.

And this one to the right was when she was working for Dad, before he was Dad....

The Wedding Kiss!!  

I was so happy when I found these photos during our last purge of old boxes of photos. 

I do love this photo.  I'm going to have this one printed and put it on the wall.  On the top step are Candy Gramma and Grampa.....named because whenever they came to visit, they had candy in their pockets and purse for us.  Mom and Dad in the center, with my Uncle Dan, one of Dad's 4 brothers standing left of Dad, To the right of Mom with one leg up is Water Grampa......named because they lived in a house on the beach in West Seattle.  In the front row from the left are my Aunt Adele, Aunt Mary (married to Uncle Dan) and then my Water Gramma and Uncle Phil (married to Aunt Adele)  

What a gorgeous wedding party!

These two photos were from a bunch Dad took while they were on their honeymoon.  Mom actually made her suit!!  Look how that plaid is so straight!!

She was a very good seamstress.  Made my sister's bridemaid dresses for my wedding.  She also made clothes for us when we were small.  My two sisters and I always had matching shorts and shirts sets.  

She never got into quilting, but did a lot of knitting and crocheting.  But only until each of us had a sweater.  She says she could see no reason to do it anymore after that - LOL!  Long before the days of "stash". 

 One Christmas, my gift was a box filled with clothes she had made for my Barbie doll.  Amazing things.  So many times I wish I had somehow tucked those things away, or wished that she had.  

She had a Featherweight, that she says she loved to sew with, but Dad thought she needed something "better" and new, so he bought her a new singer with a sewing table.  And off to the Goodwill went the featherweight.  She tells me she has missed it ever since...

 These two photos were taken when we took a family vacation to California.  This was taken at the beach at Oceanside.  We had a great time playing in the waves and enjoying the sun and sand and then discovered that the car had been broken into and Dad's wallet was stolen. 

She was a busy Mom.  Birthed and raised 5 children, went back to school and got a degree in early childhood education.  The property next door to us, a small rambler became available and my parents bought it and converted it.  And for the next almost 20 years Mom opened and operated a successful preschool.  NOT a daycare, but a preschool.  

Now she is Grandmother to 12 and Great Grandmother to 13 1/2.  (Number 14 due in October)

Here is a photo of her today, with the flowers I sent for Mother's Day

Looking good Mom......I can only hope to be doing as well at 86.