Gratitude ++++

Thanksgiving 2009 -- some of my favorites:

• That our family could be together for an entire day!
• Greg, Pat, Emma & Charley enthusiastically playing 3 board games in our kitchen.
• Ed vacuuming an hour before guests were due to arrive.
• Bob outside working on Christmas lights.
  
• Ed's relishes and Bloody Mary's!
• Andy following a recipe for a vegetable casserole dish and making it while Greg and I were busy doing turkey, potatoes, dressing in the kitchen and Raina was off nursing Eli.
• Greg & Charley playing Connect 4 over and over again.
• Henry saying: toast, shower, shoe, charley, computer, chip, wa-ter, and other fun words.
  
• Wine, wine and more wine - thanks Uncle Chuck!
• Greg making the turkey this year - and it was great.
  
• Having an uncle/great uncle/great great uncle Jim to play cards with - we are so lucky to get to participate in such a crazy (learning) experience year after year.
• And now Charley wants to play more penny poker sometime!
  
• Sequence tournament.
• A walk on a nice day in-between things - something to be so thankful for.
  
• Whosit board game and just wanting to vote....
• Edward? Jacob? "We are are still talking about this!!"
• Baileys Irish Cream..........need I say more?
  

Gratitude +++

• Bailee
• Memories
• Our kids' blogs
• Chicago with friends
  
• Our computer getting faster & cleaned up
  
• Getting ready for a trip, a baby shower, & the holidays
  
• Our kids always welcoming us to their homes and overnights
  

Gratitude ++

• Grandsons
• Punta Cana D.R. or Huatulco MX?
  
• Consignment Stores
• 3 heartwarming positive health results
• Greg is a doctor!
• A great martini
• Survivor, surviving family Survivor & enjoying family Survivor
• Bob loving the current project he's working on at PPPI
  

Eli

Dear Eli,
You are here and you are perfect! You are loved and you are handsome! You were tiny and you are so cute. It is with great joy that we all love you up, gently. Can't wait to see your little personality come alive with the guidance and flurry from Andy, Raina and Bailee. Your little smiles thrill us so much. You look wonderful in all of your outfits and dark colors make you stand out in a crowd - the way no other baby has - for me anyway! This is my current favorite photo, I have many. As your mom always says, "more later" .....Love, Grandma Barb

CBM (cry baby movie)

BONNEVILLE - wow, I just happened upon it last night on one of the movie channels. I was spellbound with a permanent smirk throughout. I want to tell all my friends to watch it. Although the premise is sad, and I certainly don't wish for the circumstances, I got past that and literally smiled for a long time, even afterward, even now, still......
It made me treasure friendships even more. I dare you, good friends of mine, to watch it some day and let me know your thoughts.

Gratitude +

• Forever stamps
• Quiet in the house
• Lemon Verbena scent
  
• Waiting for a new grand child
• Friends who will meet me for lunch
• An excited grandson calling me on the phone
  

Gratitude........

• Chuck's
• Reality TV shows
  
• Working part time
• Our one-level home
• Emma's performances
• Still learning to cook and bake new things
  

Taking a moment to count some of my own blessings~~~
Someone found my gas credit card on the ground yesterday, called me and I picked it up from him today - a nice gay guy who lives in our town and I was so appreciative for the good neighbor in the Bay.
I'm very lucky to have a husband who will do fun things with me ... most of the time. When I think of many other couples, I realize how sad it is that they may not do many things together - no matter what things they could be.
How special it is to be able to read our kids' blogs and feel and hear their thoughts and see their photos. Sharing in their lives without bugging them is a treasure. At least I hope we don't bug them!
We like living in a fun small town, in a level home, quiet & safe neighborhood, within driving of so many of our friends.
I enjoy my job most of the time, my co-workers most of the time, my boss all of the time, but I wish I didn't have to change offices - however, CHANGE IS GOOD and it made me clean out my stuff which my co-workers complain about - the fact that I have too much that is.
For some reason I'm more than loving the land and flowers around us this year, taking pictures, transplanting, trying veggies in a pot - thinking green and lush thoughts.
I love that there are always more and more books out there to read.
Well, I'm off on a bike ride - how lucky to be 62 and enjoy riding my bike - "imagine that!"

Memorial Day Weekend 2009

Where to begin??? Sarah and the boys arrived in Williams Bay when I was returning home from work so we met at the town park/playground. When Charley spotted me, he said "Grandma" and ran to me. I dropped my purse and camera and knelt down with open arms - what a joy! Henry peeked at me from under his hat, smirked and I knew he remembered me. Sarah looked awesome with her fresh short hair cut. OK, so I was in heaven.

~~Henry with his 'going to grandma's' suitcase. Inside, his favorite 2 books.

We played inside, out, in the sand at the beach, in the red Miata and on the porch. Some went grocery shopping at Sentry where the small carts are, took naps, went fishing, went to Skip's, and Sarah got to go shopping by herself for a whirlwind afternoon. Went to garage sales and then threw together a one-day sale at our house. Aunt Raina arrived with junior on board and helped us. Crazy and fun and stressful all in one. Raina bunked in with Charley and listened to his little boy deep breathing. During the garage sale we had some visitors we had not seen in a long time: Gary, Mary, Gerald, Marydonna and Grandpa Schneider. What a treat to see them all and have supper with them too. They didn't buy a single thing at the sale. It's time for all of us to get rid of our stuff.



Lots of fun in the red Miata - Charley played in there for hours! Then Henry wanted part of the action.

















Henry met a friend at a garage sale and took her hand on his own.








Aunt Raina and Henry bonding and showing where their belly buttons are located. Garage sale in progress and no we didn't sell the sofa yet.



OK, so I'm not great at laying this all out, but I'm learning. They look all perfectly centered when I preview this blog, but then ... ooops. Here are some more photos from our great weekend!

4 Grandpa Schneiders

OK, I hope the pictures put some things into words. We weren't all here, missed Greg, Ed, and Andy - it's hard to get everyone home at the same time, but they were all in our thoughts, hearts and words. There was some adult fun too - margaritas, wine, heart-to-hearts with mom, and Sarah, Raina & I played Monopoly. Bob was busy getting some odd jobs done around here because I was having a surprise party for some gals at work the next week AND he was getting ready for a fishing trip up to the Turtle-Flambeau-Flowage area near Mercer - a well deserved get-away from work! The beat goes on and more summer fun is ahead. I'm trading office spots with a co-worker next week and am worried about the temperature in that room, so wish me coolness. Life is good........

Mothers Day

Happy Mothers Day to all~~~Thank you Greg for the beautiful flowers! Thank you Sarah & Raina for the special cards and messages. Thank you most of all for loving me and keeping me in your lives in so many special ways.

"Before I was a Mom,
I had never gotten up in the middle of the night
every 10 minutes to make sure all was okay.
I had never known the warmth,
the joy,
the love,
the heartache,
the wonderment
or the satisfaction of being a Mom.
I didn't know I was capable of feeling so much,
before I was a Mom."

is it Spring?

Today I planted a couple of flower bulbs, moved a plant, fed the indoor plants and felt the dirt underneath my fingernails while the birds chirped .... I was home alone while Bob fished with Al for opening day - half a day on Geneva Lake and the other half on Delavan Lake. It was pleasant-does that sound boring? I mean it was really pleasant. Met the guys for lunch at Chuck's for a sandwich, took a bunch of papers (yes Colleen!!!!) to be shredded at an annual free shredding event at a bank, and hit a couple of garage sales. It's spring, it really is, and no matter how down in the dumps a person is, spring puts a bounce in our steps. We have these wonderful yellow flowers that come up every year and give us a smile. Once they die and the green leaves start to look drab, Bob just mows them down and it blends in with our lawn on the West side of the house. Crazy fun spring....and the birds are still chirping! The grass never looked so green, the sky so blue, the water so clean ... invigorating wherever I look. The smell of grills firing up, leaves burning, fresh mowed lawns, the fragrance of new flowers ... even more invigorating whenever the scents float past~~~~

I miss the boys...

I miss the boys - Charley & Henry. But also I love how I know them so much better as we head deeper into 2009. Henry's birthday in January; Team Grandma in February; Sarah's visit to our house for a week in March; and now I had them all to myself on Friday while Sarah & Ed visited their new niece Morgan Mary, in Elmhurst, Illinois. Then next weekend I'll be lucky to get to see them again when the Wroblewski's come down for Raina's baby shower. There is so much to enjoy, especially when I have nothing else to do - except be a Grandma!! Thank you Sarah and Ed - for letting them know us. They are such busy boys, full of life and questions and spunk and imagination too! Grandpa is already good buddies with Charley and now finally Henry is less leery and realizes that Grandpa is safe to play with. Oh, it's so quiet here....

...and more memories from the kids

• "Remember driving to New Mexico and camping in the mountains and waking up to snow." Sarah
• "Making a sailboat cake for Boy Scouts." Greg
• "Things I KNOW will be in the fridge or around the house: cheese, sandwich meat, popcorn, pretzels, cereal, noodles - the Schneider staples." Raina
• "Remember how I wanted to join Accents with Jaime and you were strong parents and didn't let me join...thank you! I am so glad I didn't get involved with that." Sarah
• "Spending a lot of time on the beach when we first moved to Sheboygan." Greg
• "Cereal in the am: Mom remember when you used to pour cereal into our bowl and cover it with tin foil? It was so fun to open that in the morning - a neat surprise." Raina
  

...More Family Memories

• "Remember Lilith Fair!" Sarah
• "Mom remember the binoculars fiasco? American Idol! Constantine, Bucky, etc...." Raina
• "Sledding in Des Plaines on the orange toboggan" Greg
• "Remember going to the hotels with people like the Kendricks and Glatzels .... and eating the big brunches with magicians." Sarah
• "Mom, remember when I missed $500 from BINGO in the Dells with Sarah?" Raina
• "Milkshake when I had my wisdom teeth pulled." Greg
• "Remember when I picked Grandma Schneider to be my confirmation sponsor and she taught me to make donuts." Sarah
• "Mom-remember when you took pictures for the Jackson yearbook? You never favored us but always made sure we were allll in a picture. That was awesome and hope you got to fulfill one of your dreams of being a photographer even if for a little while." Raina
• "Planting a pear tree in Des Plaines." Greg

And now for something completely different. In the summer of 2007, my friend Sharon G. and I promised each other that we would start keeping a list of special memories we have of our kids, just anything that comes to mind -- good and bad. So here I shall list a few of them and these are "Mom's Memories ~~~ Special things I remember about the kids, in no particular order…"

• When Sarah thanked me at bedtime for something we did that day.
• When Greg wore the Superman cape and thought he could jump/fly off the front porch in Des Plaines.
• When Raina trusted me so much that she knew I would NEVER lie to her about Santa, the Easter Bunny and the Tooth Fairy.
• When Sarah sat in the lifeguard chair at Camp Y-Koda.
• When Greg went to State for high school swimming and tears came to my eyes as I sat in the bleachers.
• When Raina and Jenny played tennis against North High in the Sports Core, and they played their hearts out.
• .....more
  
• When I saw Sarah in front of her classroom of students in Tomah.
• When Greg earned and became an Eagle Scout.
• When Raina played varsity soccer for UW Stout.
• Whenever Sarah's personality seemed to change after a new hair cut.
• When Greg hid under the table in Grandma Dort's basement so he could read.
• When Raina peeked out the bathroom window in Sheboygan at the bonfire friends of her siblings.
  

Team Grandma, Chapter 2

Forgot to mention a few things and ALSO wanted to share my photos in a slide show. This blogging is a learning experience for me! Once when my parents babysat for our kids while Bob and I went on a trip, we came home to a new long handled brush hanging in our shower - my parents determined that we needed one to wash our backs and they missed it. Well....Grandma Charlie and I felt that we would have liked to have known the outside temperature when at Sarah & Ed's so together we bought them an outside thermometer. Another funny thing was when Greg talked my mom into letting him stay home from school one day and the reason was vague. That was ok, just interesting.

Team Grandma

It was a week to remember and I don't think there was a place either of us would rather have been - referring to Grandma Charlie and myself (Grandma Barb). We were so blessed and lucky to be offered the opportunity to babysit for almost a whole week while Sarah & Ed went down to [warmer & sunnier] Florida for Ed's job. For me it was sort of like a retreat - a comfortable safe place away from the ordinary. Instructions in hand, fully stocked kitchen, each our own private bedroom and bath, even TiVO, and then two irresistible boys, what more could we ask for? Oh, we were kept busy and we got tired, but we went along with the flow each day, smiling and often saying how lucky we were. Charley was such a big helper! He told us where things were, reminded me to read the instructions for the CD player in his room, pointed out where the garage door knob was in the car, and more. We played and played, kept our eyes on Henry's meanderings, had Elly over for a visit, took Charley to pre-school, took him over to Elly's one afternoon, laughed at my GPS Gertie, and then Team Grandma braved it all one cold day and went to lunch at Perkins with both boys! We read many books and some over and over again such as "What is a Wookie?" Coffee each morning, playing it by ear as to who would play and who would cook, who would bathe and who would read, all unplanned and spontaneous. The only thing set up ahead was that I (Grandma Barb) with my bedroom closest to the boys, would get up in the middle of the night for wakings and needs of that sort. Grandma Charlie agreed to get up around 6 am, Henry's usual rousing time. That worked like a charm and I think we both loved our duties. I should interject that this is from my viewpoint (Grandma Barb's) and if I didn't pull my weight, I apologize. I treasured my quiet times with Grandma Charlie as well and enjoyed chatting and she watched my goofy TV shows (Idol & Survivor) and I watched her house shows on HGTV. Fun to dream! OK, so we played soccer - this picture shows Grandma Charlie being a goalie on her end and Charley just kicked a goal in my net on the other end. Henry loved it all too - he must have been playing defense mostly but sometimes he'd do a throw-in from the sideline. We played restaurant, board games, puzzles, storm troopers with Darth Vader, (after Grandma Charlie designed the outfit and masks), "gentlemen start your engines" with the race track, school (Grandma Charlie was the teacher), mailbox, hide the item and try to find it with clues, some Olivia TV, castle building with blocks, bus and taxi driver with an airport where R2 D2 would appear suddenly and surprise everyone. Then Henry's toys too. He would squeal with such delight and we just had to chuckle and clap along with him. It was so great getting to know both boys even better. We both felt bad because we didn't enforce Charley playing independently too sternly while we were there like Mama wanted. It was very hard to turn down his enthusiastic pleas to play. Sorry about that parents -- but hey, we are grandmothers and we loved your boys, fed them well, kept them on their schedule, but just couldn't resist playing! We'll never forget it and I value the time like a treasure. Thank you. Love, Grandma Barb

Chicago

I've been waiting for years (literally) and finally, after Bob worked 14 days in a row, we did it - took the train to Chicago from Harvard. It was $5 round trip, a beautiful snowy Saturday morning, and a pleasant 2-hour ride - which I loved because I relaxed totally and read my book. Bob was a good sport and I think he enjoyed it too. When passing the suburbs, we came up with the plan to do this again in nicer weather with the Wroblewski clan. Kids ride free, we can get off in Des Plaines, with the stroller, and head over to the Choo Choo for lunch! Hopefully some friends will join us there (are they open on Saturdays?) Nice train station and we took a cab to Michigan Avenue. We shopped a tiny bit, but didn't buy anything. Ate a fabulous lunch (for my birthday) at the Grand Lux Cafe, window seat, chicken parmesan, chicken pot pie and New Orleans Beignets to die for!

Walked toward Millenium Park and on the way stopped at the Chicago Art Museum which was open free to the public that day, so we went in and wandered around until we'd had enough (Bob and I are similar in our art viewing consumption); off to the park, which Bob enjoyed seeing - the famous silver bean, people ice skating, etc. Took a cab to Chinatown which was a disappointment, but we can say 'been there done that'. Bob had spotted the "House of Blues" from the morning cab ride, so we went there and had a couple of drinks and looked around. It was an amazing place and we almost stayed longer because, of all people, Buckwheat Zydeco was playing there that night, and of all Blues singers/groups, it's one we've heard of and Bob loves. But $27 each plus drinks and then we were worried about timing for the train ride home. So after totally scoping out the House of Blues and asking lots of questions, we walked and walked and ended up at Morton's Steakhouse and had a drink at the bar. The bartender had been to our area and guess what~~ his favorite places were Chucks and Gordy's!! Funny and lots of chatting about Geneva Lake. After that we went back to the train station, 2 hour ride home and arrived in Harvard about 7:30 pm, making it a 12 hour day - very fun. Then we topped it off with a pizza at Harpoon's - yes they make great pizzas now. There you have it. It was an awesome day in my eyes and heart. The only thing we didn't squeeze in was Manny's Deli - we'll have to go back and hit that place next time! Thanks Bob.

Fallout

Hi Dion, Kathy, Matt, Colleen, Andy & Raina:

fallout: a secondary and often lingering effect, result, or set of consequences

So...I still have wine glasses to hand wash, and the game stuff to put away, but otherwise your physical presence here is starting to fade :-<>

Dion, honestly, thanks for playing the "dictionary" game! It's so much fun when you play. Kathy, thanks for the chex party mix, and I hope I didn't hurt your feelings when I said we were going to 'spike' it with nuts -- as you saw, we were all eating and enjoying it to the max. Thanks also both of you for staying in the cold motel - I may venture there tomorrow or Friday and stop in for a chat with whoever's at the desk, we'll see. Let us know if your letter gets a reply.

Matt, you were such a good sport to come quietly into our house and willingly play our goofy games -- but then do extremely well at them while you were at it. Prizes you two! Colleen is a very lucky lady to have you. Colleen, thanks for the yummy breakfast breads and for being so comfortable at our house. I'm so proud of you (as a Godmother I can forever brag ... ) and I respect your opinions and notice your intuitiveness and great giggle too (don't ever lose that giggle). Thanks for the tip on rewarding myself for any paper workouts I accomplish.

Andy, thanks for all of your help always in the kitchen and bar and game area. Yes, you are the current champ at Hearts, no denying it, but there will be rematches galore. Raina, what can I say, without you it wouldn't have been any fun. You are the greatest assistant in the kitchen, most understanding about my hostess worries, and best roulette dealer that I personally know. I'm glad you had a bed this visit!

OK, thanks again to you all. I loved every single minute of it! Kathy, we can discuss possible weekends for our by invitation only dinner party -- think about it!

Love, Barb (& Bob too of course!)

Memories galore....they are so special

• Remember mom when you ran through the screen door in Florida to get the sunset picture...remember when you ran into the screen door...remember when you ran into the screen door." Sarah
• "Mom, remember when you would take us to the movies...and we would sneak and see 2!!! Did you ever tell dad?" Raina
• "Having popcorn for dinner." Greg
• "Remember bike trips with tunnels." Sarah
• "Dad-you are KNOWN for one thing-and EVERYONE can do it...you put your hands together and rub together REALLY fast. You sort of grind your teeth. You used to always do that when mom cooked a good dinner and when you sat down you would do that like you were conquering a meal." Raina
• "Driving through snow in the Colorado mountains in the spring on our way to New Mexico." Greg
  

Friends

Hi Sharon & Barb:

No other guests do I feel more comfortable with than when you two visit! Honestly. The smiles on your faces when you arrive start it all, going to your rooms with your overnight bags, catching up in the kitchen, opening the vino (the bottle we never seem to empty), show and tell with photos and other stories and stuff....sitting around in the living room, in our spots, fine dining for dinner, back for a flick and we even let each other doze, and off to bed with dreams of more the next day.... After Bob leaves for work we get up one by one and it's back to gabbing about anything and everything; such good friends to eat whatever goofy breakfast fare I put out; and since you both slept so well, the offer is made to come anytime you are in need of a good night's rest, even if I'm not available. Then off to Lake Geneva to do whatever. Some serious discussions even occur in stores, we all try to get each other to buy certain items, and this time a nice lunch at Egg Harbor Cafe where they stayed open an extra 15 minutes because we didn't rush (we didn't know they close at 2 pm). More window shopping in and out of stores, laughing and good for all of our spirits. And all of this because we didn't reschedule in this below zero weather - see Sharon's e-mail again below which just made my day/month as I re-read it.

"OK, I just got off the phone with Lems, Next week doesn't work for her, so we're thinking about braving it tomorrow. Looks like the worst day is thursday, and we're not leaving until 3:30. Will look forward to a dinner at Cafe Calamari and then a cozy evening with whatever surprise video you've rented. A warm sleep in our cozy pajamas, with several blankets.........and the next day.....dressing warmly & off for an adventure in downtown Lake Geneva. We're old, we're bold.....we're solid gold!!! Gotta have a little guts at our age. Barb is going to check with an employee who drives in from Germantown every day.....and she'll get the road conditions from him. So far.........it's a go! Sound ok to you, still??? Shiverin' Sharon"

Enjoy the rest of your weekend you two and let's keep planning and planning forever. We'll search for that photo booth in Chicago in 2009!

Love, Barb S.

Bailee....gotta love her!

Bailee is at our house for a few days...and yes, I love her! The positives make up for the negatives. In no particular order.....
I love walking with her and it's good for me and my weight - yes!! She gets so excited when she sees her long pink leash and she lets us know that she loves the walks too by jumping and urging us on and on and on... The best part this time is when we come in from the garage, she sits down on a towel in the laundry room while I take my coat and boots off and she waits patiently for the leash change-over -- hip hip hurray, ok so she doesn't wipe her feet, but they are being dabbed dry by the towel without her even knowing it! The second best part, this time ... she goes potty immediately when we go outside so I don't have to stand there forever. What a good girl. Bailee tries very hard to sit to welcome Bob home, but she just can't contain herself and must jump up. She loves her treats and I know of at least 3 that thrill her, so that's a good Grandma Barb. Bailee is kennel trained, so therefore, she's not used to being a good girl wandering around the house. She will find things in the quietest little minute to be naughty with, like: boots, shoes, quilts to chew open, sheets to bite pieces out of, kleenex from the bathroom garbage to tear apart, ornament hooks to chew on (what? I actually put my hand in her mouth to retrieve it! Did my mother see that from the skies?) She goes in her kennel nicely during the day, but at bedtime - no way! So now she sleeps on top of one twin bed and I sleep in the other twin bed. We shut the door and have sweet dreams. No accidents in our house, lots of playing fetch with her squeaky toy, and then she rests and rests. One of her favorite tricks is to steal your cozy living room spot if you get up for a moment. I just wish she would smile at me. Bailee and I discuss things and the fact remains that her dad plays with her best and her mom cuddles with her best, so soon she'll be home sweet home where she can run in the back yard, free as can be.