HOLIDAY MADNESS AND MAYHEM!

Well everyone - I'll try to catch up on my blogging with all of you.  Christmas was a busy and rushed time but also a lot of fun!  Everything settled down by Christmas Day though and it was a very relaxed and peaceful day.  We were at Michele and Kevin's home all day.  We spent Christmas Eve in their motor home where we felt as if we had our own little motel room!  Michele always fixes everything up so nicely for us with a coffee maker on the counter complete with cups, paper plates, napkins and pumpkin bread and biscotti!  Very cozy.  We took Pixie with us and she slept on her big pillow on the floor.  Christmas a.m. we watched them all open their gifts to each other and there were gifts for us too!  Michele made a sausage/cheese/egg dish for breakfast that was yummy.  Then, a couple hours later we started in on cheese and crackers and chips and dip etc.  About 3:30 or 4:00 we finally had our Christmas dinner of beef tenderloin and "loaded" potatoes, green bean casserole and rolls.  Later we had Christmas goodies and pecan pie!  I think it is safe to say that we all put on at least 2 pounds that day.  But it was a precious time and we were so thankful to be with our family.  

On Sunday, the day after Christmas, our Gary came for a little visit and we had lunch together and had a great time just relaxing and talking and doing some more "eating!"  It was wonderful to see him for a few hours.

Well, I have other things to share but will try to get to them at a later time.  Hope you all had a good Christmas too.  BN

HOME AGAIN!

Well, hi everyone!  I have finally gotten back from my trip to Pennsylvania (by myself!)  I actually got back on October 5 but it has taken me quite a while to get to my blog.  Unfortunately, I was not feeling well for the extent of my stay in PA.  I started having stomach troubles (stress, excitement, my usual stomach problems?) before I left and they have continued even until today!  I also had a cold while I was there!  Couldn't believe it!  But I still had a wonderful time seeing my relatives and going to an Amish community and an Apple Cider Festival.  I also shopped with my aunt in a very cute store in her town, Ebensburg.  I visited the graves of my parents, grandparents (on both sides), an aunt and uncle and their child, my 3-year-old cousin who died when I was 12.  Also found the old house where I used to visit my Grandma and Grandpa Kitchen.  People were actually living in it!  I saw the old farm where my aunt and my mother and their brother grew up and my Grandma Gould's old homestead.  There were memories everywhere.

Well, now I'm back and still having stomach problems.  I will be going to the doctor on Thursday the 28th.  Hopefully I don't have anything serious going wrong.  Would appreciate any prayers.  I will try to keep up a little more frequently if I can.  Till then.  BN

GOING AROUND IN CIRCLES AGAIN!

Well everyone, I'm back (I think)!  Life has been crazy here for quite a while!  A couple of weeks ago I was still celebrating my 70th birthday with Michele and her daughters, with a trip to the Getty Museum and an afternoon of shopping and having lunch in Hollywood!  The Getty was beautiful!  Though it was one of those places that required spending way more time than one morning to take in all the beautiful paintings etc.  We walked through the garden which had many beautiful flowers and a waterfall.  Everything was wonderful to see.  We had a great day for our outing also, a very mild and pleasant day.  

I also recently attended the Redlands Bowl to see the ballet version of the Little Mermaid. It was beautiful!  Our Micaela really wanted to see this and at her suggestion, Michele saw that we all got there.  Kevin's mom was also there.  The next week Kevin's mom invited Ray and I to see a concert there and before we knew it we were accompanied by Michele, Leanne, Micaela, Bethany, their Aunt Pam and cousin Lucy and Michele's friend and her daughter!  We were quite a group!  We had a good time and the music was great!  There was not only an orchestra but also a pianist who was unbelievable!  The evening was very warm but it was worth it to see the great performance.

There are just a few of the things I've been doing.  I will try to get back to you later when time permits!  BN

North Carolina and back!

Well, we are back from our trip to see our son, Ernest, his wife, Renee and the 3 grandkids, Brandon,
Kyle and Alecia.  We had a great time!  We ate too much, of course, but that's the fun of vacation.  We went to a patriotic concert in the park for the 4th of July with great music and fireworks after.  The day before the 4th we cooked our little hearts out getting ready for the big day.  Everything was delicious!  

We also drove down to S. Carolina to get fireworks for the kids to have fun with (including Ernest!) and we got some delicious S.C. peaches and some blackberries!  What great stuff to munch on!

Ernest and Renee also took us to see some historical spots which was vry interesting and made me feel very patriotic, especially since we were celebrating our Independence Day!  We should never take lightly what so many fought for so we could have the liberities we have today.

Now, back to the routine and also planning for the, (now famous!), Goins Reunion on the 18th!  Will let you know about that afterward!  BN

NEW ADVENTURE!

Well, I'm off on a new adventure!  To some it may seem a little silly but to me it will be very interesting!  I am going to educate myself on various topics.  I have been thinking lately about all the school I missed as a young person, what with having to "help around the house", stay home because mom was "not feeling well", and eventually quitting school all together when I was a sophomore in high school.  That was in 1954.  Even though I returned to school, attending a Christian high school in Upland, I really lacked the discipline to take advantage of the opportunity I had then.  My family's attitude was, "who needs school when you can just get married and you'll be taken care of."  So, at any rate, I have started my quest.  I made a trip to the library this past week and picked out 2 books on the American Revolution (as I hated history class in school) and (would you believe) 4 books on different kinds of turtles!  Yes, turtles!  Did you know there are about 270 different kinds of turtles that lead different lives.  Of course, this study includes tortoises also.  Now I actually know what makes a tortoise a tortoise!  What difference does it make you ask?  A lot of difference to ME!  I have learned something about the world around me that I didn't know and THAT is exciting.  There are quite a few books at the library on turtles and I'm checking them all out!  Isn't it amazing that even at (almost 70) I can still read about so many fasinating things!  Let you know how it's going next time! BN

Recipe: Yummy Cocoa Bars

Mix together:  1/4 C softened butter, 1C sugar, 1 teas vanilla,2 eggs and 1/4 C milk.  Mix well.  Add 1 C flour, 2 teas cocoa, 1/4 teas salt and 1/2 C of chopped walnuts (opt).  Place in 9x9x2 inch pan and bake for 20 minutes at 375.

Top with this frosting while hot:  1-1/2 T of cocoa, 1 T milk, 1/4 teas vanilla, 1-1/2 teas soft butter and 2/3 C powdered sugar, mixed together till smooth.  Let bars cool and cut into desired sizes.  You will probably feel like eating half the pan, but pace yourself!  These are good with ice cream or with just a glass of cold milk or hot coffee.  Hope you enjoy!  BN

ABOUT MY BLOG NAME

I know I don't HAVE to explain the title of my blog but it is one of the "good memories" that I'd like to share.  I wanted to give my blog a name that would remind me of a pleasant time in my childhood.  The first thing that came to mind was gathering violets around my farm house in Wilmore, Pennsylvania.  One of my fondest memories is going into the woods with my 5 brothers for our first adventure in the spring.  We played in the woods often.  I can still hear the crush of the "woodsy" floor under our feet as we ran through the trees.  They were looking for the perfect tree to climb or small creatures that were running through the leaves.  I, on the other hand, was looking for the first "circle of violets" that I always seemed to find somewhere in the woods.  Hundreds of violets grew in a huge circle and I was anxious to pick as many as my hands could hold to take back to my mother.  I thought they were beautiful!  I loved the heavenly smell and the beauty of lilacs also, but the violets were so small and purple and the sight of them in the forest will always be a special memory for me.  BN

My Life and Times Lately!

This last month I've had to remind myself that I am retired!!  If life gets anymore busy, I'm leaving!  You know, when you are raising your family or working in your younger years you are constantly busy and wondering what it would be like to have your children grown and out of the nest.  You visualize yourself at the beach sipping something refreshing, possibly staying overnight in a comfortable hotel and getting back home whenever.  You can't imagine what you will do with all your EXTRA time!   Then you actually retire and BAM, you find yourself replacing all the busyness of your young years not with leisure time but with necessities!  Now you go to the dentist and the doctor more often.  Now you even see "specialists."  Or your body is obviously wearing out and you must find time to frequent the dreaded "gym."  Also, there are new and different meals to be made which take up more of your time with chopping, slicing and dicing that take seemingly hours to prepare!  But it's for your own good, right?  

Well, I guess I should be thankful that I am able to still get to the doctor and the dentist and that there are specialists to take care of all the "special" illnesses that come up.  And I should be thankful also that I am able to prepare all the new healthier foods that we need to eat to keep us going and that we still have the money to buy them!  Things have to be put into perspective I guess.  I will try to remember that this week when I feel as if I'm just "on the edge!"  Later.  

Better very late than never at all!

Well, I finally made it back!  I was gone so long that, believe it or not, I actually forgot my own password to my own blog!  Well, so goes old age!  Hopefully it won't take me months at a time to get to my blog from now on.

I do want to report on finishing the book I was reading about Caleb.  It turned out to be very interesting and gave me more insight into what was happening at that time and what the people of Israel had to endure on their journey to the Promised Land.  I would recommend these little novellas by Francine Rivers anyone.

Thought I'd share a very easy recipe for Sloppy Joes.  These are good and only take a few minutes to make:

1/4 of an onion, chopped
1/2 pound ground beef or turkey
1/2 C catsup
1 T dry mustard
2 T taco sauce (or other spicy sauce you like)
4 hamburger buns

Cook the meat and onion together.  Drain and mix in the other ingredients (except the buns, of course).  Simmer for about 10 minutes and put between buns.  Hope you like them!

As of last evening I finally finished 5 of the 6 Francine Rivers books I have been reading.  I am going to start the last one tonight.  It is about Caleb and I'm anxious to see what information she gives about his life.  It is about 200 pages long (even though it is a small book) it might take me all this week - at least the way things are going right now! 

Well, just spent about 2 hours today "cooking" for the dog!  I found very cheap ground beef (about 3-1/2 pounds worth) and fried it up, along with about 1/2 pound of ground turkey.  It is all safely put into 3 freezer bags, ready when we need it.  So far Pixie is "eating it up", no pun intended.  I'm sure she thinks she is getting food from the table!   I just hope this works and she doesn't have her terrible itching anymore.  We'll see!  BN

Dog Woes

Well, we had another happy dog-owner moment today!  We found out that our Pixie is allergic to oats, corn, lamb and rice!  Yes, I said RICE!  While most dogs thrive on the little grain - not so with our dog.  So now we may go to the local pet store and spend extra money on special food (again), or we can just prepare Pixie's food ourselves, which will probably be potatoes and chicken or potatoes and every other meat to which she is NOT allergic!  Now we are reading labels before we even throw her a "little bite" of our stuff!  "Stop, what's in that??  Oh well, between watching what Pixie is eating and watching what mom is eating, things will not be boring anyway.  All I can say is, "This new regimen better work!"  The dog pound is within walking distance!  (Just kiddin!) 

My Latest Books

I have been trying to get through about 8 small books by Francine Rivers.  She is a lady who was a journalist and when she became a Christian she wrote several books on "women of the Bible."  They are very interesting and it gives new light on the lives of the women we "thought" we knew.  Times were very difficult for them also and in her books, Francine brings out the fact that many of the problems in their lives parallel our own.    More later.  "Booknut"

Ray's 70th Birthday

Ray's party was a blast!

Many of our dear friends were there!  That's what made the party so special.  Don't have pictures of everyone who attended.  Of course Kevin, Michele, Leanne, Micaela and Bethany were there and they worked so hard on planning and setting up everything.  We were so grateful to them for all their help in making it a big surprise and a lot of fun.  Ray's brother, Gale, and his wife Diane were there also.  Then our friends, Danny and Gloria Mendoza, Chris Gilli, Betty Davis, Hank and Cindy Cronin were there.  Other relatives included Steve, Cecilia and Katie Louderback and our niece, Cheri and her husband, Ron Rios and our nephew, Ronnie also attended.  Our grandson, Derek and his friend, Dana came up from Huntington Beach and we were glad they could make it.

 Our son-in-law, Kevin barbecued hot dogs and Bratwurst and there were baked beans, potato salad, chips and dip, fruit salad and, of course, yummy cake for dessert.  The candles on the cake were promptly blown out by the honoree!   Ray received many sweet gifts including Dodger baseball tickets, Macy's gift cards, gift certificate for Coco's, a Dodger clock for the patio and even a DVD of the last reunion of his school Class of 61 which he was unable to attend!  It was a wonderful birthday party and one that will be remembered for quite a while!

Here are some pictures.

Hi from Booknut!

Hi from the Booknut! I've just started my BLOG! I am excited about sharing interesting things with anyone who wants to read what I have to say. I'll be back later with something interesting - (I hope!).