No partridge but other birds, Merry Christmas from Dixie

Annual posting of Christmas tidings and best to all....for those who do not celebrate Christmas, season's best as well....

This year we tried to do something different, be on the road south before Christmas heading for the sunnier south; we  barely did so.  I was too busy with too many activities yet again including a hair appointment December 16th which I could not miss.  Well, so then we could leave the 17th?  Nope, again, I was too hectic.  I thought not decorating  our home  as we would not be there would add all sorts of time, but not so.  I tried to set up small decor to travel along, such as our small tinsel tree, but left hose behind in my skeltered readying. I did miss getting out some decor that I only see once a year, a and although I do far less than the displays I used to put out in the past. If the  2nd market ever returns I have a massive collection of exquisite and pricey decor to sell, but for now  they reside in the closet until this time of year.  I found that the limited shopping I do, gift wrapping, mailing with all those 80 some Christmas cards we send consumes lots of time and continuing my physical activities all morning at the Y consumes hours in  my day. 

Cardinal in a pear tree this morning  a red
splash on  my walk  toward the beach.  

   Nevertheless we got on the road on December 20 and send this from  Bay St Louis, where we will stay until January 2 then proceed on to Florida. We'd have liked to stay 3 weeks, but in the holiday tradition there is no room at Bay Hideaway,  this RV inn.  Fortunately I am neither pregnant nor riding on a donkey and so we will go to Pensacola where we will spend a week  before moving on to Tallahassee, then to Tampa for the Fleetwood RV Rally.  At least we have a home over holidays.  We arrived here on Monday, December 22 ahead of the torrential rains that swept across the Gulf. There was another tornado near Hattiesburg devastating the holiday for  many. 

This holiday on the road enhances my independent perspective, and gratitude for what we do have, health and comfort to travel and reason to do so--curiosity. So far, we have driven 1209 miles in 19 hours and 45 minutes driving time, spent $627.26 for diesel fuel.  

The local Christmas stork at the conservancy marsh

Our  coach tree and reindeer
Thanks to good friend Carlie
I left the tinsel tree and intended
decorations at home.  Proves good friends
come through and sense what's
needed, they care and are aware. 

Friends are the family we choose

A good blog  friend sent us the most lovely Christmas card, Bea,  yes you did, with a wonderful photo of a cardinal on a snowy branch. with handwritten lines, "friends are the family we choose."  So very true.   Here we are two empty nesters anticipating  more of the care free life and at a time when we  should be free of responsibilities tying us down.     I miss my old folks, or maybe it's that now I am the oldest survivor,  the family historian.  For whoever cares.  That's the point, hardly anyone does care. We have been thinking more and more about things in general this year and how to begin to really live our lives as we choose, not by obligations dictated by the needs of others.   Tomorrow is promised to no one. Good friends recently reminded us of that; another good friend  has suffered strokes and is now debilitated.  We have been blessed with good health.    



December  2012 Florence right seated, blue and gray
 in the SNF with Santa, the annual Christmas party.
For someone who will be 96 in January, not bad.  

 Our retirement move here from CA was to provide a better quality of  life for ourselves. However we had another problem, that remains with us, MIL,  who continues going rather strong physically just as she continues further along the dementia road at almost 96 .  Wherever we moved we had to bring her along and  at the time she still had a sister, aunt Marie living here so she was amenable to return  home to MN.

Florence in the middle uprooting  Jerry and his sister,  Dianne
from MN  for CA 1950

Jerry is a saint he deals with everything without any assistance only from me,  although he has two siblings, neither of whom are involved and neither of whom would be even if they lived closer.  In 1950, shortly after the sudden death of her mother and despite advice and pleadings to not do so, MIL  left MN with Jerry and his sister for CA , to  marry Lyman.   Jerry left CA  returning  to MN alone to live with his grandfather and then enlisted in the Air force at 17, stretching his age to enlist. After Lyman died in 1990, MIL became Jerry's responsibility. She has been one of those women having to be cared for, looked after by someone else all her life and it has worked for her.

Florence and Lyman their 25th anniversary in CA

My career in long term care along with my family gave me an abundance of expertise and experience yet it is tiresome.  Jerry's  full sister has been dead for several years but the other two, his halves, the  younger Larson children,  roll along merrily without any responsibility for their mother. I suspect if they think of anything, could be that they will not inherit the $$ they thought they would; it is being paid to the SNF which has enhanced our lives. Still it is the  overseeing, frequent check in visits, follow ups with medical issues, appointments, my doing laundry, keeping her in clothes, buying, and on it goes.  We have more freedom to travel today yet hesitated to plan too far ahead, the back of our minds nag,  "what if...."   It makes me laugh out loud when some of the "family" say that they would like to come to see her, but then they never give up any part of their lives or plans and so they merely chatter along.  So many excuses.

But slowly we are working through this trial just as  we have others in our lives. Today we booked a 20 day land tour and cruise package to Alaska for August 2013 John Hall's Alaska, the Klondike, the works.  It is expensive, but we are also looking forward to spending our  hard saved money while we can.  Here is the link to the tour package by a local MN company out of Lake City.  They will even babysit our car and take us to and from Minneapolis for the  connecting flight.  http://www.kissalaska.com/   Destined to become good friends,  that's what happens when you lack family, you choose friends. 

Our own plans are going to take first place, if we do not do this for ourselves,  there is no one else who will.  Besides all that, we deserve it in spades. It's a new attitude.  Make way for us.  This is our time of life,  our friends have assured us of this repeatedly.

When you start to notice things



Door off the sun porch, 4 season room has been bugged

 A friend and I have gone buggy this year, she knows who she is....2012 is our  self proclaimed year of the Lady Bug .   I'm not sure how it all started, maybe with the pins, maybe with a comment maybe because the bugs are red and black and that was our high school colors and we will be celebrating a 50th High School Reunion in PA in September but it has been fun and we still have months to go.  She even found a ladybug hose for me, which is quite welcome outside this year where we had to water more than ever before in a MN summer.   

Now others who have become aware that I will buy most anything tasteful, because we are  rather diva-ish in our ages, with lady bugs on it are helping me, looking out  for all things ladybug decorated.   A long time dear friend  from CA recently sent me unannounced two pair of great ladybug socks, one pair to share with my other buggy pal because Sandy knows I like to share.  That generated a comical episode as I dashed off an email thanking Carlie for the socks.  My gratitude set her to head scratching because she had not sent me any socks since  winter when the 3 "monkey" matched style buggy knee hi's arrived, perplexed, she  emailed right back, "I must be losing it...."   My quick look at the package receipt showed it had been purchased by Sandy in CA and so the fun began.  Confusion and laughter. Jerry pitched in to say, "..don"t admit anything, just let her wonder until we get to PA in September." But I'd already fessed up.  After I called Sandy she explained she'd sent  two pair, one for my friend which was interesting because that is what I thought I would do when I saw two duplicate pair, but at first I wondered why Carlie sent me two pair.   

For a short respite I had given up, I could find no more lady bug things at least nothing I thought tasteful enough to  add to our mutual collections.  So I painted a couple stones to send her.  I have not painted stones for many years, something I did back in CA when a group of friends mutually declared we would only give home made gifts.  Wanting to indulge in something different, I painted sayings and roses on stones. 

Now our lady bugs, are showing  up in the most unexpected places.  I mailed a herd of bug items off  forgetting I had something else on order which arrived the day I mailed the first group.  Our lady bug phenomena has gone to another level, analogous to what happens when you buy a certain color or model vehicle and  then see it on the road.  Did you ever notice how that happens, suddenly that car is all over the place. Where before ladybugs were hard to find amid decorative items, they are now showing up. 



This is one of our favorite brands of ice cream.
And the Lady Bug flavor was irresistible
Caramel and chocolate swirls, two delicious additions to vanilla

  Last night I served  Lady Bug ice cream.  I have no idea why the Cedar Crest brand so named it and I cannot send this to Carlie, so she will have to just see the photo on this post.  This was new to me and I am wondering how many more lady bug related or named items will show up in 2012, Year of the Lady Bug.  I do have another ladybug project underway which will take  time as I am adjusting and tweaking a design.