Shirley Anne’s Heart

Posted By drsao on July 24, 2011

I just got back from my annual summer trip to Kansas City (MISSOURI – that is!)  I had a good time with my family – even though I think they were having their hottest summer in history.  I do not EVER REMEMBER 106 – 115 HEAT INDEX TEMPS when I was growing up in Kansas City….LOL.

Here are some of the SPECIAL HIGHLIGHTS of my trip – just SOME of the highlights…..if you KNOW ME, you can imagine that I took HUNDREDS OF PICTURES – AND EVERY ONE OF THEM REPRESENTED  HIGHLIGHTS….:)

JIM LOOKS GOOD AFTER HEART SURGERY

We celebrated SEVERAL big events.  Look how good my brother Jim looks after having heart bypass surgery – just a week earlier…..FIVE ARTERY GRAFTS.  We are all so THANKFUL that this was discovered before our family faced a grave loss…..he HAD NO SYMPTOMS other than fatigue!  Big cheers for The University of Kansas Hospital team (don’t you love the heart pillow they gave him!)

Jim got a quilt from me for being a good patient!  JB TAKES A WIFE…..here he is with me and our daddy who just had hip replacement one year ago at The University of Kansas Hospital………..(look how good The University of Kansas patients look – Daddy with a new hip – Jim with a practically new heart…then there is me – I don’t have a NEW ANYTHING!)

MASON TAKES HIS FIRST STEPS

We also CELEBRATED another REALLY  big event.  Jim and Kerry’s grandangel took his first steps – and as you can see there was a lot of CHEERING going on!  I think Kerry (proud grandma wearing sunglasses) may have temporarily forgotten her migraine to celebrate this event!!!! Mommy Amanda took videos and wished that Daddy Tyler could have been there to see it in person!  He was MOTIVATED to walk to get a coaster….yes a needlepoint flower coaster that my mother made a few years ago…..you can see them on the coffee table!  I guess we should have suspected that a baby would be interested in something that wasn’t a baby toy – for years children have shown a fascination for the BOXES that their toys came!

 

Go get that coaster, Mason!

DADDY WINS THE  CHINESE CHECKERS TOURNAMENT

The entire week, family member after family member TRIED IN VAIN to win at Chinese Checkers…..Daddy remains the champ (once in a BLUE MOON someone wins a game but that is only when Daddy  helps – if you know what I mean!)

 

Amanda tried my trick of sitting on two pillows – supposedly to get an arial view of the Chinese Checkers board to enhance one’s chances of victory — didn’t work!  LOL  (It was my brother Dan’s idea – a good one too!)

 

DAN CELEBRATES HIS RETIREMENT

And that isn’t ALL we celebrated.  We helped Dan celebrate his retirement…… I made dinner …… white corn chicken chili…….however, during the dinner preparation, Brother Dan diplomatically inquired as to what MY CONTRIBUTION to the dinner was – since HE bought the groceries and HE cut up the onion and the chicken and HE opened all of the cans.  LOL

It was MY IDEA – MY RECIPE – and I stirred.  :):):)  Does that count?

My DH – after hearing that I made dinner (and not realizing that Dan did all of the work)  politely inquired as to whether or not anyone got sick after eating?  I sure am surrounded by some “clever” souls.  Look at these happy faces – no one looks ill after dinner!!!

Aby *the little dog*  and nephew Joey loved the sugar free cherry pie that we had for dessert (that was my idea too but I didn’t make that either!!!  I DID PUT IT INTO THE GROCERY CART – and Dan bought it!!!)  🙂

This gives a new and literal meaning to licking the platter clean, doesn’t it?

Even though HE HAD TO COOK HIS OWN RETIREMENT DINNER, Dan did seem to enjoy the quilt that I gave him for his retirement!  And I am laughing my head off right now because this quilt is called BROWN BAG PARTY – because during four months,  four guild members from my Country Piecemaker’s Quilt Guild in Powhatan, VA added a block to my brown bag – –

– – so NOT ONLY DID I NOT MAKE THE CHILI DINNER – I DIDN’T MAKE FOUR OF THE QUILT BLOCKS IN DAN’S QUILT ….sigh…..well I did design the top and the border and I did put it all together (NO I DIDN’T QUILT IT EITHER – Sara Parrish did that!  :):)  I sure have lots of help doing “MY THING” don’t I?

Dan and Glenda  took us all out to CASCONE’S – our favorite Italian retaurant in Kansas City, MO.  FINALLY Dan got to enjoy a retirement dinner that he did not have to cook!

Daddy had fun too….he and I both always get the Eggplant Parmigiana……I have eaten nothing like it at any restaurant EVER.

I had the honor and pleasure of sitting next to Tara……oh my – I got to sit next to the princess!  Her dress had sparkles, she wore a Hello Kitty necklace AND PRINCESS HIGH HEELS………….love it! Technically I think one isn’t SUPPOSED to take one’s shoes off at the dinner table in a dimly lit restaurant – but HEY – this was a special occasion and she didn’t want us to MISS the fact that she was wearing SPECIAL SHOES!  Cascone’s has been a family favorite gathering place for years – my mother’s favorite too – but this was the first time that the little children were included…..it was SPECIAL!

 

 

BREAKFAST WITH DADDY – ALMOST LIKE BREAKFAST AT TIFFANY’S

Other highlights of my trip included eating breakfast with Daddy and going to Wal-Mart….yes, you heard right!

I always have to giggle at my daddy’s breakfasts……and I usually whip out my camera too.  In his cereal you will see a banana *not that unusual*  and a piece of bread covered with peanut butter, honey and cinnamon – – ALL immersed in MILK and heated in the microwave.  No, I didn’t try it….:)  Has anyone else had anything like this????

As I was laughing and taking another picture  of ANOTHER ONE of his breakfasts, HE SUGGESTED that I take a picture of MY BREAKFAST with his…..yes I eat my cereal DRY in a glass (so I can see the beautiful layers of different flakes and nuggets) and yes I eat raw oatmeal in my cereal……OK – so I guess I got the “UNUSUAL EATING GENE!”  LOL  Daddy put a blueberry pancake and peanut butter in his cereal (Brother Dan made the blueberry pancakes – bet he never imagined that they would be eaten in cereal.)  THIS JUST MAKES ME SMILE FROM EAR TO EAR!

SISTER SUBSTITUTES

Another thing that makes me smile is having an annual girl picture taken .  Usually the picture is taken during our annual STARLIGHT THEATRE EVENT but because of the heat and the timing, we didn’t make it this year.  We did get to take the picture at home!  Even that was fun for me.  Since I don’t  have biological sisters, I celebrate the women in my family!  Sister-in-laws and a niece are good sister substitutes!!!!

Elaine – another of my sister substitutes is holding the mini-quilt I made for her………THIS IS A FEW OF MY FAVORITE THINGS……it is a quilt depicting Elaine, my brother, Fred and their sons, Joey and Eric (the snowpeople in the quilt!)

You may have seen this hanging at the Mid-Atlantic Quilt Festival in Hampton, VA  – it was one of the Colonial Piecemaker Quilt Guild Challenge Quilts…….

Elaine is  the snowperson at the top holding an actual earring that my mother made for me.  Brother Fred is the bald-headed snowman (he didn’t use to wear hats when I made this) and Joey and Eric are the snowmen wearing hats!  🙂  AND THEORETICALLY I DIDN’T MAKE ALL OF THIS ONE QUILT EITHER.  Sara Parrish did the machine quilting and my friend Catherine did the hand sewing on the border!  🙂

 

DADDY AND THE GO-KART AT WAL-MART

And last but not least – another highlight was the trip to Wal-Mart.  HIGHLIGHT YOU SAY?

That was special because I got to see Daddy riding one of those go-Karts for the first time!  It looked like fun!  It was a pretty hot day – but I needed supplies to do some baking!!!!

 

I wonder if the people at Wal-Mart thought that I was weird, taking pictures of my Daddy shopping?  (I think I heard some people snickering!!!)  OH WELL .. can I help it if I like to celebrate life events???

It was a nice visit – good to say hello and sad to say goodbye  – we will gather again for Daddy’s 90th birthday in December!

Categories: a Few of My Favorite Things, Country Brown Bag 09, JB TAKES A WIFE #1, KC July 2011, Life Comments
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