Gram's Place

I feel like I may have just stepped into a time machine and traveled back in time.... or did I travel into the future?     Either way, I decided to resurrect the old blogger account.   Perfect timing really... I mean, what better time to start blogging again than in the middle of a world wide pandemic?   A lot has changed in 7 years.  Not just a lot.  A LOT. First of all, I have completely forgotten how to write.  I'm not as witty as I used to be.  Being middle aged makes a person cynical and dull, in my humble opinion.   Secondly, I don't know how to operate the new blog formats.  I couldn't figure out how to edit my profile and "about me" section.  So I just opted not to show it - I could figure that much out.   I mean - I can't show it because it's totally not even who I am anymore.   So so so much has changed. And yet, some stuff has stayed the same.  The "stayed the same" list is sma...

Tonight I'm going to the release of the Hunger Games - Catching Fire with my 14 year old.  It's released tomorrow.  Only the movie is 10pm tonight.  I know. I don't get it either.  But, I'm just stopping by to say that I'm thankful that it's 10pm and not midnight.  I'm old and it's Thursday night. Enough said.

Our grandkids live with us.  They are age 3 and age 1. Okay wait...their parents live here too...but they just aren't as important. :) Most mornings, I love to hear the pitter patter of little feet as they wake up and begin their day.  Some mornings, the pitter patter of feet is replaced by other sounds. Today, it was screams.  Tilly screams. I know.  It seems almost impossible that this sweet innocent little one would be able to exert a extra large size tantrum.  But, believe me.  It can be done. And not only was that early this morning...that was also late this morning...and early afternoon and late afternoon as well. If she were older, I'd explain to her that yes..some days just go that way.  Some days nothing seems to go right and everything is an excuse to break down in an emotional fit.  Some days... you just want to throw a tantrum.  So, do it now.  You don't need a reason.  We will still love you when your fit su...

Sometimes I have narcissistic dreams that my blog will be some sort of memory for my children and grandchildren when I am gone.  And I panic.  Because what kind of story am I telling them with my silence?  I've dumbed down my stories to facebook status updates and instagram photos...and even then, I'm not doing so well. So, here I am.  Back at the Dull As Dishwater site.  Maybe I'll try to put a reminder in my phone to update my blog more often.  Maybe I'll write myself a big sticky note on my computer to blog before I do anything else.  Or.  Maybe I'll do this one post and then a year and a half from now I'll do another. Truth is... blogging has evolved to some crazy thing I don't know that I've kept up with.  I used to read my blogs at bloglines.  But, I can't remember my password.   So, all the blogs I used to read... I have no idea if they still blog because I can't find them or remember them.  So, today, I started a ne...

I already shared about my husband’s heart attack here .  That was September.  Now, fast forward to December.  Last week he got his blood test results back.They were AMAZING. LDL of 43! (Is there such a thing as TOO low an LDL?)  He’s been in cardio-rehab for months, and he’s been working very hard at diet and exercise…lifestyle changes in the most extreme way.  Now that he is graduating from cardio-rehab…yesterday we joined a gym. GASP!  I never did do the 10K that I was training for last year in September because the day of the race was the day Shawn was recovering in the ICU from heart surgery.  So, now I can train on the treadmills at the gym, and try again next year. Who knows….maybe cardio-boy will join us for the 10K next year. In November, Shawn’s grandmother Beulah was not doing well.  She turned 92 in May and was still living on her own with the assistance of family members.  But, in November, she had some health problems develop...

For years, I have been begging my husband to let us get a dog.  Years.  He finally agreed in June to let us get one.  So, I began searching for the perfect family dog.  Of course, I have since come to realize that no dog is perfect.  Those were my lofty dreams.  I wanted a dog that wouldn’t poop where it wasn’t supposed to,  would sleep when I wanted it to, would bark only when barked at, would not scratch my floors, and was loyal and devoted.  Basically, I wanted a giga-pet, but I didn’t know that at the time. We found Gibbs at an animal shelter about 2 hours away.  They had plenty of dogs.  He was the only one that didn’t jump on us when we approached him. He didn’t bark like the others. And when we took him out to the yard, he was calm and quiet.  Deceptive little thing. We took him home and learned quickly what having a 6 month old puppy in the house was like.  Definitely not like my trusty dependable Tamogatchi. He was...

It’s still December.  December 14.  I was thinking today about one year ago.  One year ago, we were preparing for Christmas.  Marge, my mother in law, was at the nursing home. She had a tough year.  For the entire year, she had been in and out of the hospital and nursing home. She had MS.  Had been diagnosed with it in the early 80s.  She lived basically symptom free for years.  Then, in 1996, she had an attack and the disease began to progress. She started going to the Mayo Clinic and started a series of different treatments.  One thing led to another, she switched neurologists, and saw different doctors…. and for whatever reason, she opted to stop treatment of her MS.  Sometimes she would say that she wanted to believe that God would heal her.  Other times, she tried alternative treatments, homeopathy.  And as many times as I tried to convince her to pursue aggressive treatment for the disease, I have to respect the fact th...