Life With The Stanfords

Thank-full up to the top...

Just wanted to share some pictures with you from this Thanksgiving holiday. I love my family. I'm going to give you an insider's look at them (you've been warned)...

Here's a few pics from Jade's parent's home. This is Jade's mama and one of his little sisters, Gracie. They always look like this. Really. Jade's family has the "make lemonade from lemons" gift. I love them so much for that.

Here's a Thanksgiving tradition - the men trying to solve the world's problems after lunch, right before they give up and fall asleep in front of the football game on T.V. This is Uncle Jim, Jade, Granddad, and Paw Paw Jeff.

Thanksgiving Volume II happened today at my sister's home. Doesn't she set a pretty table?

And check out the dessert table!

Here's my Grandma Farlow and her relatively new daughter-in-law, Nanette. Uncle Jesse Lynn works offshore (way offshore) and when he's gone, Grandma Farlow and Nanette keep each other company. My Uncle Jesse Lynn has had some hard times in the area of love. He had to go all the way to Malaysia to find a sweet wife (and two sweet boys to boot), and we're so glad he did.

Here's my Dad (I'm crazy about that guy) and my little Evelyn. He likes to feed her - a lot. Remember, food is love.

The highlight of the day was a fierce bingo tournament. I managed to win four boxes of candy cigarettes (don't worry, they don't call them that anymore) and a one-eyed reindeer sucker. My stepmother, Gay Nan (in the blue), won the Connect Four tournament. She got the Scrabble To Go game, which she has promised to regift to me at Christmas.

Take a look at these two.

 

That's my little brother, Eric, and his son, Jesse. If I was superstitious, I'd call them lucky. My sister and I always say Eric is the golden child. Good fortune has always seemed to follow him. Jesse is following in his footsteps. They won all but three of the bingo games between them. I'm not bitter, though. Really, I mean it.

Now here's something you don't see everyday - at least in the circles I run in. This is two grown men taking a nap together. Eeewww. That's kind of gross. I guess we should be glad that Jonathan (Candice's husband) and Eric are secure in their manhood.

On the other hand, this is so sweet. These are the two oldest grandchildren, my Claire and Laura Rose (Candice's daughter), watching a movie together. Sweet ol' girls.

Dress-up must be important to our kids. They always seem to be doing it. This is my Ethan and Lily, Candice's daughter. They were so proud of their costumes today. I just hope they don't run off and join the circus one day.

This is my Uncle Charles. He's pretty neat. He used to run a successful business, then retired. He's always been a good photographer and he is a pilot. When he retired, he took up aerial photography. That's what keeps him busy. Aunt Peggy took off to D.C. with their daughters for Thanksgiving, so Uncle Charles was flying solo (pun not really intended). He came and hung out with us today. Cool!

Here's our whole crew. My Uncle Charles somehow manages to get a picture of all of us every year. We take a sort of serious picture and a silly picture. Serious:

Silly:

Thanks for letting me go on and on about my favorite people in the whole world. Dang, I'm thankful. And that's all I have to say about that.

Frivolous List Friday (11)

This week's list: The Best Things About Thanksgiving...

Family.

Food.

Family.

Family.

Family.

Happy Thanksgiving, you lovely people!

We have had a lovely day today at Jade's parent's house in Opelousas. Here's the menu: fried turkey, rice dressing, cornbread dressing, broccoli and cheese, green bean casserole, cheesy onions, salad, and homemade peasant bread. For dessert: pumpkin cheesecake, pecan pie, apple pie and fudge. Good stuff. That turkey must have had a lot of tryptophan because I had to take a two-hour nap today.

Or maybe I was a little sleepy since the movie we saw last night, Australia, was three hours long! It finished up at 1:00 a.m. It wasn't the best movie I've ever seen, but it was engaging and had a good story. That's the first movie Jade and I have seen (in a theater) in about seven years.

Tomorrow, we'll do Thanksgiving Volume II at my sister's house.

I couldn't let the day go by without listing some things I'm thankful for. Some are random, some are not:

My salvation. If you don't know what that means, click here.

My family. I love all of them - both sides. Most, if not all, of them know Jesus and that is a blessing indeed. That means we get to do Thanksgiving together forever.

My friends. Friends are relatively new to me. I didn't really have any friends growing up. We moved too much. But in my grown up years, I have been blessed with the most motley crew of people who I love and love me back. I never really appreciated quirkiness when I was young. Now I relish it. When I say my friends are weird, I mean it as the highest compliment. They make the world go round.

My blog. Even if it is just a silly, mommy blog, it has been one of the best things to ever happen to me. I have so enjoyed putting thought to "paper" . I love the people I have met, too. I couldn't get through the day today without checking to see what my blogging buddies did today. Blogging has greatly enhanced my life.

Food. I love food. I'm pretty sure there will be food in heaven. Don't ask me to back it up scripturally (except for the feast, of course), but how could there not be Coke, fudge, homemade bread, fried turkey, etc? Aren't those all just little bits of heaven on earth?

Beautiful clothes.

Beautiful anything.

Music. I really hope Miles Davis and Louis Armstrong were saved. Also, I would really like it if John Mayer finds Jesus. I would like to hear them all play in heaven. I will be a jazz singer in heaven. My voice will be smooth as silk. Anyway, I'm thankful for music.

Other stuff. I'm thankful for comfortable shoes; hot showers; laughing; thought-provoking books; the smell of my children, my husband, rain and clean sheets; memories; gum; brand new boxes of crayons and clean sheets of paper; flowers.

Happy Thanksgiving! Blessings to you and yours.

The Thanksgiving Proclamation

Today is Monday of Thanksgiving week. Since my head is full of holiday cheer, nothing else can get in. So that's what I will be blogging about all week. Sunday, our pastor read the original Thanksgiving proclamation by George Washington. Wonderful words by one of our founding fathers. I thought I would share it with you here. It looks long, but it's really not too bad - and it's worth a read.

Also, there is a lot of argument these days about what our founding fathers meant when they moved here, when they fought for their freedom, when they wrote the constitution, etc. See if you can guess where their faith lay and "what they meant" when they set forth our government...

WHEREAS it is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and humbly to implore His protection and favour; and Whereas both Houfes of Congress have, by their joint committee, requefted me "to recommend to the people of the United States a DAY OF PUBLICK THANSGIVING and PRAYER, to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many and signal favors of Almighty God, especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to eftablifh a form of government for their safety and happiness:"

(Is that one of the loveliest paragraphs ever written? It would take days to tell of "the many and signal favors of Almighty God" in my own life.)

NOW THEREFORE, I do recommend and affign THURSDAY, the TWENTY-SIXTH DAY of NOVEMBER next, to be devoted by the people of thefe States to the fervice of that great and glorious Being who is the beneficent author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be; that we may then all unite in rendering unto Him our fincere and humble thanksfor His kind care and protection of the people of this country previous to their becoming a nation; for the fignal and manifold mercies and the favorable interpofitions of His providence in the courfe and conclufion of the late war; for the great degree of tranquility, union, and plenty which we have fince enjoyed;-- for the peaceable and rational manner in which we have been enable to eftablish Conftitutions of government for our fafety and happinefs, and particularly the national one now lately instituted;-- for the civil and religious liberty with which we are bleffed, and the means we have of acquiring and diffufing useful knowledge;-- and, in general, for all the great and various favours which He has been pleafed to confer upon us.

This proclamation was written 13 years after Washington crossed the Delaware River with his ragtag army to defeat the Hessians. Washington was a hero, but who was his hero? "...that great and glorious Being who is the beneficent author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be..."

And also, that we may then unite in moft humbly offering our prayers and fupplications to the great Lord and Ruler of Nations and befeech Him to pardon our national and other tranfgreffions;-- to enable us all, whether in publick or private ftations, to perform our feveral and relative duties properly and punctually; to render our National Government a bleffing to all the people by conftantly being a Government of wife, juft, and conftitutional laws, difcreetly and faithfully executed and obeyed; to protect and guide all fovereigns and nations (especially fuch as have shewn kindnefs unto us); and to blefs them with good governments, peace, and concord; to promote the knowledge and practice of true religion and virtue, and the increafe of fcience among them and us; and, generally to grant unto all mankind fuch a degree of temporal profperity as he alone knows to be beft.

May we all "beseech Him to pardon our national and other transgressions" this Thanksgiving.

GIVEN under my hand, at the city of New-York, the third day of October, in the year of our Lord, one thousand feven hundred and eighty-nine.

(signed) G. Washington

Source: The Massachusetts Centinel, Wednesday, October 14, 1789

We have a godly heritage in our nation and for that I am thankful. May His wonders never cease.

And so it begins...

The Holiday Countdown is on! I am in the middle of making out my gargantuan grocery list for this week. I was just thinking, "Why did I wait until Saturday to go Thanksgiving grocery shopping?" That was really dumb. When I get to Wal-Mart, I will be rubbing elbows with about 1,000 other people all trying to grab the same can of cranberries -- if there are any left -- it's already 3:00 p.m.

I'm also wondering if Wal-Mart is going to have any Brie cheese or Japanese bread crumbs (I'm trying out some new recipes) or coconut milk or jarred red bell peppers for that matter. I'm not Martha Stewart, but I want to be her real bad. And if not Martha, perhaps Pioneer Woman. But I ramble.

I'm starting to get that slightly panicky feeling like I've already failed Christmas. I should have my Christmas cards addressed by now and the pictures printed to go in them. I should have my kids' toys ordered by now. I should have all my spiritual object lessons planned and prepared for the next month.

I have not chosen the perfect wrapping paper yet, but the red and white houndstooth at Hallmark is looking like the winner. Also, I did not do Samaritan's Purse this year. I ALWAYS do Samaritan's Purse. In fact, I organize it at my church - usually.

You do realize that Christmas is only 5 weeks away? Do you know all that must be accomplished in those few short weeks? Jesus must be exalted, charities must be given to, memories must be made, people! This is the Superbowl for moms everywhere. Breathe! Breathe!

Someone comment and tell me everything is going to be O.K., would ya'? Please?

Dessert Test...

Here's something fun for the weekend. My mother-in-law sent me this email yesterday. You have to pick a dessert and then you will find out all sorts of wonderful things about yourself according to your answer. My mother-in-law is carrot cake, which fits her perfectly. I am chocolate cake with chocolate icing, naturally. What are you?

If all of the eight desserts listed below were sitting in front of you, which would you choose (sorry, you can only pick one)! Trust me..this is very accurate (Sure it is). Pick your dessert, and then look to see what psychiatrists think about you.

Here are your choices:

1. Angel Food Cake

2. Brownies

3. Lemon Meringue Pie

4. Vanilla Cake With Chocolate Icing

5. Strawberry Shortcake

6. Chocolate Cake With Chocolate Icing

7. Ice Cream

8. Carrot Cake

No, you can't change your mind once you scroll down, so think carefully what your choice will be. OK, now that you've made your choice, this is what the researchers say about you...

1. ANGEL FOOD CAKE-- Sweet, loving, cuddly. You love all warm and fuzzy items. A little nutty at times. Sometimes you need an ice cream cone at the end of the day. Others perceive you as being childlike and immature at times.

2. BROWNIES -- Youare adventurous, love new ideas, and are a champion of underdogs and a slayerof dragons. When tempers flare up you whip out your saber. You are always the oddball with a unique sense of humor and direction. You tend to be very loyal.

3. LEMON MERINGUE-- Smooth, sexy, & articulate with your hands, you are an excellent caregiver and a good teacher. But don't try to walk and chew gum at the same time. A bit of a diva at times, you set your own style because you do your own thing. You shine when it comes to helping others and have many friends.

4. VANILLA CAKE WITH CHOCOLATE ICING -- Fun-loving, sassy, humorous, not very grounded in life; very indecisive and lacking motivation. Everyone enjoys being around you, but you are a practical joker. Others should be cautious in making you mad. However, you are a friend for life.

5. STRAWBERRY SHORTCAKE -- Romantic, warm, loving. You care about other people, can be counted on in a pinch and expect the same in return. Intuitively keen. You can be very emotional at times but a true person in every way. You like to do things for yourself and help others learn about themselves.

6. CHOCOLATE CAKE WITH CHOCOLATE ICING -- Sexy; always ready to give and receive. Very creative, adventurous, ambitious, and passionate. You can appear to have a cold exterior but are warm on the inside. Not afraid to take chances. Will not settle for anything average in life. Love to  laugh.

7. ICE CREAM -- You like sports, whether it be baseball, football, basketball, or soccer. If you could, you would like to participate, but you enjoy watching sports. You don't like to give up the remote control.  You tend to be self-centered and high maintenance.

8. CARROT CAKE -- You are a very fun loving person, who likes to laugh.  You are fun to be with. People like to hang out with you. You are a very warm hearted person and a little quirky at times. You have many loyal friends. You were meant to lead and teach others. A wonderful role model.

Now, wasn't that fun?

Frivolous List Friday (10)

I scored big time on some cute Christmas presents for teachers, Speech Therapists, etc. I found these at a gift shop in town (Royal Standard on Perkins for my local peeps).

These are painted, ceramic cake/cheese plates. They were only $7.95 each! They sell the spreaders for $1.99 each! Put them together and what do you have? CUTE! CUTE! CUTE! I am thinking of making some round fudge or some sort of cheese round to put on them. Then I'll wrap them up in clear cellophane and tie them with a big, red bow.

That brings me to my list: Cute, cheap Christmas gift ideas. I would love some additions to this list. Give them to me in the comments. Really, I am always looking for cute AND cheap. But then, who isn't?

Williams-Sonoma: Flapjack pancake mix (cute package) and a spatula or apple cider mix.They will wrap your present in clear cellophane with a cute little pineapple ornament for free! Very nice. Pancake mix is $10.00, apple cider mix is $8.00? Spatula is $6.00?.

Also at Williams-Sonoma: Pre-wrapped (very nicely) sets of Peppermint counter spray and Peppermint dish washing soap of $25.00. Smells great!

I found some really cute Christmas dessert plates at different places. They run between $4.50 - $6.50 each. Four of these would be really cute wrapped up with a bow. Or you could buy just one and buy a little easel to go with it for display. Easels are cheap.

Here's a cute idea for kids or grown-ups who still think they're kids. The Toymaker has beautiful, full-color, paper toy patterns you can print for free. Print them on card stock, tie them up with a bow that has scissors and tape attached. Unique and fun to do. Claire and I stayed up for hours making toys one night...or several nights.

If you do have a little time, I think these things are so cute and easy to make:

Fabric fortune cookies - I think these are precious. You can add your own messages and put them in a take out box. I also think these would be great New Year's presents. Cute hostess gift, too! Lots of reasons to give these. Take a look around Brassy Apple. She's got tons of cute ideas like this. She's also the Mary Poppins Bag lady.

Fabric beach balls - these are low investment, high return. Takes about 30 minutes to make. You can leave them "as is" or make Christmas ornaments out of them. You could put essential oil in the stuffing so they're like sachets. If you really have some time, you could do some embroidery before you sew them together. Just like Brassy Apple, Tanya Whelan has other really cute patterns to share.

Lazy Day Skirts- I just made another one of these for Evelyn in less than an hour. I am planning on making these for my nieces this year. If I can find some really cheap white shirts (maybe Wal-Mart), I'm going to applique their initials on the front to go with the skirts.

Last but not least, there's always the pajama pant. Usually just one or two pieces to cut out and can be put together in under an hour. Use really cute fabric and add some embellishment (ribbons, buttons, patches) and you've got a winner of a present.

There are tons of other ideas. For example, one year my Uncle Charles and Aunt Peggy gave their grandchildren huge garbage bags full of multi-colored sponges. That may sound absurd, but you should have seen the fun those kids had when all the sponges were poured out on the floor. Crazy fun! So, go forth and gift creatively...and have a good weekend! 

I did it! I got smashed!

You know, I typed the title and then I remembered that "getting smashed" in most circles means getting drunk. I did not get drunk today, although perhaps that would have been more enjoyable. Guys, if you're here and "girl stuff" makes you uncomfortable, you may now stop reading.

Today I had my first mammogram and visit with a Breast Specialist. After my post about Breast Cancer Awareness Month, I figured I better hurry up and take care of it before someone dragged me over there. I had my blood drawn to test for the breast cancer gene. I almost passed out because I hadn't had anything to eat and getting blood drawn makes me really queasy. I felt kind of high-maintenance. Anyway, my doctor said she doesn't expect me to have this gene since no one else in my family has had breast cancer except my Mama. That's pretty good news.

Then I asked her why she thought my Mama might have gotten breast cancer. I didn't realize it until that moment, but that question has been on my mind for over 20 years now. "What if she hadn't drunk coffee everyday? What if she had exercised more? What if we stressed her out less? What if? What if? What if?" Dr. Christian said the most likely reason is that she was a woman. And what she meant by that was that doctors don't really know why some women get breast cancer and others don't. Oddly, that was a huge sense of relief for me; like a burden had been lifted off my shoulders.

Afterward, I went next door to have my mammogram done. I was sitting in this room with a bunch of other women in pink jackets. I saw a couple of women get asked back a second time. You could see the concern on their faces. I saw one woman crying. I was terrified.  All my fears welled up in me and made me want to bolt right then. I stayed the course, though. Getting smashed was not so bad. I expected it to hurt a lot worse. It was just mildly uncomfortable. And I guess after having five kids that my modesty is completely gone because baring my chest didn't bother me in the least. Afterward, I went back to the waiting area. Then,...they called me back again.

They wanted to look at my right breast again. How can I express the fear? My Mama's cancer was in her right breast. And for whatever reason, my right breast is always the one that feels tender or sore or whatever. It's the one I always think I'll get cancer in, if I ever do. I sat back down for a few minutes that seemed like hours. A different person came out with my pictures and that scared me even more. She very quickly informed me that everything looked fine. Apparently, they hadn't smashed me sufficiently the first time. "Whew!" is all I can say. I did it! So, I am taking a bow now. Thank you, thank you very much.

In other news, my Breast Specialist informed me that my beloved OB/GYN, Dr. F.A. Moore, has decided to retire from private practice. I am devastated. He has seen me through seven pregnancies and five children. He is more than a doctor to me. He is a dear, sweet Christian man who I look up to with the utmost respect. Did I mention he also speaks French fluently? Dr. Moore has decided to go work at our local charity hospital and serve the needs of less fortunate people. I love him for that. I'm trying to be brave about it. I don't think I'll ever find another doctor who will discuss spiritual matters with me while I'm in stirrups. Just keepin' it real.

Weekend recap...

OK, sorry I've been distracted by Facebook. I have been part of the biggest family/class/work reunion ever the last two days. Guess what? I have 18 friends. Woo hoo! That seems really great until you visit another friend's profile and realize they have over 300 friends. Am I a total loser then? I think not! Quality over quantity, my friends.

Anyway, in all the Facebook hub bub, I forgot to blog about my weekend. Jade and I had a fun time. We got to go out two nights in a row! Yes! Here are a couple of pics from our Sunday School party.

 

My pastor's wife, Sonya, is in the middle:

We played Outburst and Mad Gab. Turns out I am a Mad Gab champion. Who knew? Also, here is the half-eaten Chocolate Coconut Almond Cheesecake I made for the party.

It was da' bomb. There was also a chocolate peanut butter cheesecake that was da' bomb as well.

Here's the wedding we went to. Meet Chris and Mary Cockerham.

I have never seen a groom look so sweetly at a bride in all my days. He was the sweetest thing, ya'll. He loves that girl, let me tell you. Here's my adorable husband and my pastor, Bill. He officiated the wedding.

Mrs. June, Mary's mama and my friend, is the one who tore me up. You should have seen this woman looking at her daughters. First, Brittany walked down the aisle (she was the maid of honor). Mrs. June saw her and just welled up. So I welled up. Then Mary walked down the staircase like an angel. Mrs. June was just heaving with tears. Ya'll, I just couldn't take it. I must be hormonal (sorry I said, "hormonal", guys) because I cried like I was the Mama!

Now take a look at this.

Yes, the picture is awful. But this is Mr. Terry and Mrs. June dancing to Sunshine On My Shoulder by John Denver. That's the song they danced to at their wedding years ago. It sounds silly, probably, but that is the sweetest thing I have ever seen. They were precious. They made me look forward to getting older and dancing at my kids' weddings.

I am a total sap, I guess. What can I say? Love rocks.

Facebook is cool.

I know I am waaaay behind the times, but I just now signed up for Facebook a few days ago. My sister-in-law had pictures posted and I couldn't look at them unless I signed up.

Facebook is kind of cool! I have found quite a few friends that I have not seen in years. It's so nice just to know where they are and how they are doing.

Here's a frustrating thing, though. Most people make their pictures really small so you can't see what they really look like. So all those people I went to high school with, I can't see unless I become their Friend. And you know, I would feel kind of creepy to ask to be someone's friend that I haven't seen in over 20 years. Anyway, I just want to see what they look like now. I'm not stalking them. 

The other thing is how many friends my friends and I have in common. That is just so crazy to me! It's a small world after all.

Are there any Facebook rules I should know about before I embarrass myself?