It's Christmas!

Sweet sugar at Black Rock Mountain State Park

We have just been living our best life this fall and now look, it's Christmas already!  

We went to the North Georgia mountains for Thanksgiving.  Had us a good old Waltons' mountain Thanksgiving, we did.  We rented a house in Tiger, Georgia and spent four amazing days in Clayton, Rabun Gap and Dillard.  We stopped on the way up at Tallulah Gorge and it was absolutely breathtaking.  Biggest hole we'd ever seen!  Of course, Larry had to go stand out on the edge and scare the mess out of me.  Of course he did.  

This is why they call 'em the Blue Ridge mountains.  Pic taken at Black Rock Mountain State Park, with its altitude of 3,640 feet.  Scared me half to death climbing that mountain!

The house we rented was in a holler, with mountain all around and it was just the cutest thing.  Fireplace, gorgeous kitchen, spa shower, wraparound deck with the most beautiful, peaceful little creek in the backyard.  We had our breakfast and coffee out there every morning, listening to that sweet little babbling brook.  We took Banjo and he was so happy running around in the yard and down by the creek with Daddy.

We had Thanksgiving dinner with about 3,000 other folks at The Dillard House and even though we stood in line and waited in the gift shop and out on the porch for two hours and then waited another half hour to get fed AND it was $60 for the both of us, it was so totally worth it.  They serve the food family style, where they bring bowls and platters of food to your table and you share with everyone sitting at your table.  Larry and I had our own table and we ate ham and turkey and pork loin with dressing, squash casserole, ambrosia, peas, green beans, rice and gravy, Silver Queen corn, rolls and pie until we were about to bust.  The restaurant is so pretty and so cozy and comfortable.  We were so happy that we went.  The ham was a big hit!  Best country ham we'd EVER had.  Alton Brown from The Food Network agrees!  

We did some Black Friday shopping at the antique stores and flea markets up there and there are hundreds!  We got to as many as we could and had so much fun finishing up our Christmas shopping.

And then Friday night, we went to a drive-in movie!  There's a drive-in there.  I was SOOOO excited to be able to go to the drive-in with Larry.  We were totally robbed of SO MUCH in our past and to be able to scratch this one off "the list" was amazing.  Such a wonderful surprise!  We saw "Ford v Ferrari" with Matt Damon and Christian Bale, surrounded by vintage cars, campers and Christmas lights.  It was the best.  And, OH THE POPCORN.  It was the most delicious popcorn I have ever had in my life.  I brought every kernel home in Ziploc bags and ate it for days.

Last weekend, we took the SAM Shortline Christmas train from Lake Blackshear to Plains and enjoyed the heck out of that.  The train was sloooow and it took about two hours to get there so we just sat and talked and looked out the window at trailer parks, abandoned tires, graffiti and the like.  Trains go through the worst of areas, I guess.  We made up a "12 Days of Christmas" song of the things we saw, only ours was more like "12 mobile homes, 11 broke-down cars, 10 old tires, 9 busted toilets, 8 fallen port-a-potties..."  Ha!  And ONE big old smilin' peaaaaanut!  President Carter isn't feeling well and had just gotten out of the hospital so he couldn't meet us at the train station but that's okay.  We just want him to get better.  Besides, we already met him!
  

We got to meet Santa, though, on the train and sit on his lap.  I was scared we'd break the poor man's leg!  I'd never seen Santa Claus with a ponytail but this one had one.  I mistakenly thought he was one of "us" but when he asked Larry what he wanted for Christmas and Larry said, "A new president", Santa actually bristled!  That was hilarious!  I'd never seen Santa Claus bristle before either and leave it to Larry to make him do it.  He just looked up at us and said he doesn't get into politics.  Probably a good thing, Santa.

We met up with my lifelong friend, Lisa, and her little girl, Bella, and then her nieces showed up, too!  What a wonderful little reunion!  It was a great day and we were happy-tired when we finally got back home.  

Larry spent two weekends getting the yard decorated and it's amazing!  We definitely have THE best yard in the neighborhood!!

And here's our tree.  The Super Fabulous Schneider Christmas Tree of 2019!

We're looking forward to having a quiet, peaceful Christmas at home this year.  2019 was a rough one for us and we are hoping that 2020 brings good health, happiness and even more love to our home.

And, oh yeah, a NEW PRESIDENT!

Surgery number two

We arrived at Jack Hughston Memorial Hospital at 1:00 Thursday, January 3rd, went straight to the ER as we were directed, I was admitted and I was in surgery by 3:30.  I woke up in recovery to the sounds of nurses and techs talking about real estate and buying new houses this year.  I had bitten my bottom lip sometime while under anesthesia, really, really hard, and I could taste blood in my mouth.  I couldn't feel anything in my foot at all.  
After a while, they took me up to my room on the fourth floor, where Larry was waiting for me.  I was attached to a wound vac to begin this negative pressure wound therapy to try and get this thing to HEAL.  My bloodwork came back positive for staph so I was put on IV antibiotics for a day and a half.  The hole that had formed in my wound was actually one of the anchors coming loose that my doctor put in to secure that tendon in place.  He fixed that as well.

Larry stayed by my side, "sleeping" on a cot one of the nurses brought him.  I put that in quotations because he didn't sleep at all.  He had his own stress test and doctor's appointment on Monday so I sent him home Saturday to get some rest and see about our boys.

Here we are snuggled up in that tiny hospital bed, watching that tiny TV but we were home.

I joked on Instagram that here's me and Nikki in hospital beds at the same time!  I got to watch my story on that tiny little TV but not much else.  It only picked up 18 channels and the only "news" channel it picked up was the fakest news out there.  Oy.  I ended up watching a lot of "Everybody Loves Raymond" and "King Of Queens", two of my very favorite old shows anyway.  Probably did me good to take a news break.

This was the view from my room Saturday afternoon.  There was only me and two other patients on the whole floor.  The food was delicious, the care excellent and the pain meds kept coming.  

And this was my nighttime view.  I always looked forward to those seven little lights glowing across the way.

I came home Monday, on two weeks of strong antibiotics and attached to this.  A portable Genadyne NPWT Pump.  I hate it.  I hate having to carry it around.  I hate the sound it makes when it's sucking fresh good blood up into my wound, I hate everything about it.  I have a home health nurse who comes twice a week to change the dressing and when she was here Thursday, the dad-blamed thing actually looked better to me.  

The treatment has gone 117 hours and 2 minutes so far.  I'm told three to four weeks should do the trick.  After the pump has done all it can for me, a less invasive bandage/dressing will finish it on up.

I'm excited for that.  For spring, for warm weather, for sun on my face and for days spent planting flowers.  Lots and lots of flowers.  Lantana, I think.  And sunflowers.

One thing I've learned through this whole nightmare is hard times show you who loves you.  My Larry has been phenomenal through the whole thing, taking such good care of me and Banjo, Tabbie Hoffman and Kismet.  Our housekeeper came while Larry was with me in Alabama and she fed the boys and let Banjo out to potty.  That sweet boy had NO accidents.  My friends from work call and check on me, text me and come see me, bringing tons of food and love.  My precious mama checks on me every day, even though she's going through her own private hell.  When I tightened my circle, I absolutely kept the right ones inside.  My friend, Debbie, came yesterday bringing coffee, sausage and egg croissants and maple doughnuts and we talked about doing our annual Peaches to the Beaches jaunt March 8th.  

Eight weeks.  Foot, get ready.  

Earth Day and a birthday!

I left Larry at home today on Earth Day cutting grass and replacing more of the fence and finishing up a chest-of-drawers that he's been working on and I spent some of the day down home in Montezuma for our Katie's third birthday party.  Katie loves Minnie Mouse so a Minnie party it was, complete with cake, cupcakes and pizza!  She got Minnie clothes and toys and Larry and I gave her a Minnie Mouse sofa!  She was so cute opening her stuff.  

I just love this picture of her when she saw Minnie on that little sofa.

Here she is tooting her birthday horn!

Clumsy me, I busted my camera while I was there today.  The strap came loose and I dropped my camera on the concrete step.  10 seconds earlier and it would have landed on the soft dirt and been all right.

Owwee.  Hopefully we can get it fixed.  I finished the birthday party taking pictures with it and they all turned out good so it still works, you just can't see the picture.  I probably won't forget hearing that craaaaackkk any time soon.  It sounded like my ankle felt when I broke it.  Owwee.

I came home and finally got my little garden planted.  I decided to try container gardening this year so I planted my 'maters and peppers in a pot and I planted zinnias in the middle.  In two other pots, I planted my lavender, sage and rosemary.

I still have flower seeds to plant --- wildflowers, zinnias, marigolds and mums and I even got a pack of catnip to plant in a pot for Tabbie Hoffman.

Maybe tomorrow... 

Tabbie Hoffman is FOUR!

We celebrated first thing this morning with catnip-filled toys and coffee.  Well, maybe Larry and I had the coffee.

I left the blind up in the living room so he could have his sunbeam all day and he was allowed to have all the treats he wanted.

I think he loved his toys!  For about a minute, anyway.  He got a new "kicker" and some cute little catnip tea bags.  

He's had a stubborn little case of feline acne that we've been fighting for a while now.  I'm doing everything the vet told us to, it just doesn't want to let my sweet boy go.  :(  We're scrubbing with Stridex pads and peroxide, washing with Dial soap, washing bowls in hot soapy water every day and we took away his carpeted scratching post.  If anybody out there has any ideas, I'd be grateful to hear 'em!

He's also found a new little hidey-hole that he likes.  Right outside the mudroom window.  

Here's Banjo looking out...

This picture just cracks me up!!  

Happy, happy birthday, Sweet Tater!  You are FOUR years old already!!  Time sure has flown and you've been nothing but pure joy.

Happy Valentine's Day!

I found some vintage Valentines online and I just LOVED this one.

This is what I got from my Valentine.  A yummy box of chocolates and Breaking Dawn!  In Bella's wedding dress box with the huge fabric wedding photo poster.  Oh my!  :)

And I got a chocolate rose from my mama and daddy!

I have some friends on Facebook who say they hate Valentine's Day.  Even when I was single, I didn't hate it.  Valentine's Day is all about love and that doesn't necessarily mean romantic love.  Everybody has SOMEBODY they can love on today.  Parents, friends, pets, but if you still don't have any of those, pick a flower today and give it to a stranger.

There's nothing you can know that isn't known. 

Nothing you can see that isn't shown. 

Nowhere you can be that isn't where you're meant to be. 

It's easy. 

All you need is love, all you need is love, 

All you need is love, love, love is all you need.  (The Beatles)

Happy LOVE Day!! 

Crazy, Stupid, Love

Imagine, guys (if there are any guys reading my blog!), having dinner at a restaurant with your wife of 25 years and you're looking over the menu together, trying to decide what you want.  All of a sudden, your wife blurts out what she wants.  A divorce.

That's what happens to poor Cal Weaver (Steve Carell) in this movie.  She tells him she cheated with a guy from work, David Lindhagen (Kevin Bacon) and that basically, it's his fault because he took her for granted.  I went to see it today and I loved it.  (I know I say I love every movie I see but I DO.  The only movie I ever didn't like was "Brokeback Mountain" and not because the guys were gay.  Because they were pathetic.  I felt more sorry for their wives and children than for them.  But, anyway, I DO love every movie I see.  I check them out carefully, wait for months to see them and I am very rarely disappointed.)

So Cal and his wife, Emily (Julianne Moore), separate and he tries to move on with his life.  He meets ladies' man, Jacob (cutie patootie Ryan Gosling), who changes his look and his wardrobe to give Cal back his manhood and make Emily "rue the day she ever decided to give up on him."  

But Cal, who hasn't dated in years (Emily was his high school sweetheart and the only woman he'd ever been with), bombs at dating because he can't shut up about Emily.  He does get better at it, though, but he's never happy.

This movie is hilarious, sweet, romantic and sad all at the same time.  I cry a lot at movies and this one did it to me, too.

This scene right here got me.  Cal had been sneaking over to the house at night to fertilize the flowers and snip the dead blooms off, trim the hedges, that kind of thing.  He's watching through the window when Emily calls him to "help her light the pilot light in the basement."  So he walks her through the process, all the while standing in the yard, looking at her through the dining room window.  She wasn't in the basement, she didn't need help lighting the pilot light.  She called him to just hear his voice but her pride would not let her tell him that so she made up a reason to call.  He stood out in the yard with tears in his eyes, she had tears in hers and Lordy mercy, so did I.  Why do people have to be so stubborn when it comes to love??

And why is that I can't see Julianne Moore on anything without seeing her as Frannie (and Sabrina!) on ATWT and Kevin Bacon as Tim on GL??  AND Marisa Tomei is in this movie, too.  Marcy on ATWT!  God, I'm old.

The movie's great and has a wicked little twist at the end that's hilarious.

Go see it this weekend.  And take somebody you love.

Let there be spaces in your togetherness...

Cookie love!

I had chocolate cream cookies today with Larry and when I opened this one up to eat the middle ('cause that's how you eat an Oreo and Oreo wannabes, oh yes, it is), the cream pulled away in the shape of a heart!

It reminded me of another time we found love in our visitation room snacks.  :)

Fairy Tale Friday

Crazy kids.  Makin' me cry and stuff.

Unless you slept all day or were hiding under a rock all day, you probably heard about a little something going on in London.  

Prince William married his Kate.

It was a beautiful ceremony, the bride was stunning and the groom was so handsome, he made me cry.  Lookin' just like his mama!!!

I remember waking up really, really early that summer morning and watching his parents marry.  I was 14 and so absolutely awestruck by the whole thing.  Mama got up with me and we watched it together.  I couldn't stop thinking this morning as Prince William married that his mama should be there with him.

I'm sure she was.

The kiss!

And the pout!  Hilarious!!  

Somebody's about ready for a nap.  Ha!

In honor of William and Kate's big day, Michelle made us blueberry scones for breakfast at the office!  They were amazing!! She brought along some of her grandma's homemade blueberry and rhubarb preserves. 

We felt a little less common with them on the table.  :)