Bernice's visit..September 2013

Fun times with my Best Friend for LIFE!

Late December 2012

Mom took a great shot of Kev and I at Pei Wei's one night!  WOW!
We were even color coordinated.  Somehow we just do that without
knowing what the other is wearing.. or at least are not aware of it.

Me and my little companion in my office!

Mom was sneaky and took this photo without me knowing...
My INCREDIBLY messy studio and desk... seems like that is the way it
usually looks especially around the holidays... no time for cleaning!

We went to Pei Wei several times.... It's an "Asian Fusion" type place with dishes
from all over the world... Thailand, Korea, Japan, China etc. 
We really like it 'cause it's so fresh tasting!

Mom made a great soup (with my addition of some spices) from a friend of
hers and it was delish!  Its primary ingredient was squash!
This was my hat Kev got me in Vegas for Christmas!  It's made out of
Kangaroo Leather!  Love it! It's so soft and breathable.

Here's our resident, pecan poacher!  She can barely move and
the Tree is STRIPPED from Pecans.  Her PRIMARY residence is
across the street in Steve and Katie's attic.... but today, she just sits
here in OUR tree tormenting the doggies.

From Kev's sister, Caroline, a COLORFUL box arrived for Christmas
with lots of goodies in it from Zingerman's! 
It's always fun to open them and see what we can find inside.

Doggies in the backyard.... February!

Vessie PINKING it out today!

May I have this dance?

Bela, my angel!  The Texas sun does a doozie on my lawn ornaments!

Booooootiful Vessie!

I think I smell a worm!

Keepin' an eye on that birdie!

You NEED kisses today! 

Will the day ever end?  When will Daddy come home? WAITING!

Tied together with love!

Pumpkin pie, Oh MY!

Listening to Christmas Music with Mom making Pies

During the holidays... I think mom made LIKE 6-7 pies and they were ALL heartily eaten with love.  Kevin loves pumpkin pie and WE love Lemon Meringue... It was nice to have mom in the kitchen while she was here.. baking away. 

I know there is something to be said about homemade pies, but I just was never one to go to all that trouble. I appreciate it when others do it, but I also think that they somehow have a love for baking "baked goods".  I enjoy making some things, but pies have never been on the top of my list. Not ever sure I have EVER baked a pie.  I have, on the other hand made Banana/pumpkin/zucchini Bread, cookies and cakes/cupcakes on a regular basis... never regular bread, though, except for the time when we had that bread machine and I went through that phase... waiting forever, it seemed... Baking pies, though, is something that my mom always did and I never carried on that tradition.

I caught her in the action ... LOL!

 It's funny how that sort of thing, in a family, gets delegated as one grows up!  My mom had two sisters and they were "known" for their cooking/baking abilities.  As a matter of fact, my aunt Carol "KK" was so inventive that she made up her own recipes and contributed to a wonderful cookbook which I refer to on frequent occasions... She even submitted some of her delicious recipes to contests but I am not sure she won any... SHE SHOULD HAVE!  When we would have a family gathering... my mom would always be the one contributing the rolls/bread and pecan or berry pies... my Aunt Lewellyne "Lulu" was the one to bring the staples such as veggies and potatoes and stuffing and things like that... KK always was asked to make a salad with her "awesome" salad dressing that only she could replicate. YUM!  She always made a couple of her "inventive", scrumptious desserts. Those were the days. As the girls (as the three sisters had all girls except for ONE boy) got older, they were "expected" to contribute as well... bringing dishes and/or making the dinner right alongside the other "wimmens".  The men didn't really have a role in the kitchen in our family... until now.  Back then.. I'm talking about 20-30 years ago, it was mainly the women in the family who cooked for everyone.  It brings back lots of old memories.

Mom's pumpkin pie in the oven... YUM!

Here is an old picture of our family growing up... My mom, grand mother and
great grandmother with Uncle, sisters and cousin. 

Happy New Year!

I know, it's been awhile since I posted, but I've had good reason. December was very busy with the holidays. My mom was here during that time and Kevin was out of work for the last two weeks.. BUSY!

New Year's Eve rolled around, though, and I had a temperature of 104 that evening.  We watched TV for awhile, but I couldn't even stay up till midnight. I got the aches and the coughing... just like everyone else, but after a week (Oh, and by the way, mom and Kevin caught it, too) I had no choice but to check myself into Club Med via the ER 'cause I could barely breathe. It turned into a very nasty upper respiratory infection in which I am still battling.  I have lots more photos I wanted to blog with, at home, but since I am here, with all this time on my hands, I figured I would write this now... perhaps adding the pictures later.

After two weeks in the hospital (when this picture was taken) I had missed a lot of LIFE around me.  The whole first week was pretty much sleeping on oxygen and lots of IV's and Respiratory Therapy.  I was eating, but not realizing it, I lost five pounds in the first week.  I had some PFT's done and they were pathetic... which I knew they would be 'cause I couldn't breathe. When you can't breathe, you can't do a test that involves "taking a deep breathe in and blowing your brains out as fast and hard as you can".  Duh!   The doctors like to torture us, though, don't they!?

I missed so much the first two weeks while I was in.  I missed the January Calligraphy Guild meeting in  which I was supposed to co-teach with Amy Lear on Contemporary Pointed pen.  Luckily, she was very squared away and got it all done with flying colors... I also was supposed to present the envelopes from the exchange last year and have sign ups for the next newbies series that weekend.  It all came together, but I was stressed that I couldn't help out and get it all done.

Then, this past weekend was the first Reggie class for the new set of students, here in Austin.  Reggie is back for another year and I coordinated the whole affair "with a little help from my friends".  I wanted to at least be there and get the last minute things together, but that didn't happen.  The picture is of me reading "well wishes" from the class in which Reggie made me a card... He wrote a Roman "A" by dipping an OLD, hard and dried up Peep (you know those yellow Easter Marshmello Peeps?) in Ink and making his marks.  He proceeded to write my name with a Pentel Color brush inside and then everyone else signed it. HOW sweet and thoughtful was that?  Kevin brought it to me in the hospital last night. Reggie says he makes all his Romans with Peeps now.  His preferred tool! LOL!

It has been successful so far, but long. I think I will reach a three week mark before I can leave.  I was
doing great before I caught the flu, but I guess this was meant to be. I was really missing my friends here at Club Med and it is nice that they remembered me and still spoil me rotten. The nurses here ROCK! 

More pictures to come.
Happy New Year!

Flowers and card from the Reggie class... This is a
Roman "A" made with a "peep".. pictured on the
bottom of the sheet o paper.