Lists and Loved Ones

Sweet Elise....almost Sweet Elise Harrington!


Sweet Conner Steven Harrington--"Do I look almost 1 year old?"

After Conner left this afternoon, before picking up all of his toys and starting dinner, I did two self-portraits. I looked overwhelmed in both of them.....that's because I am right now. I have so many things coming up that I'm finding too many things crowding my brain. Here's what is in my brain:

Things to get for the wedding: (Items in italics completed or on schedule)a dress
shoes
a cake for the rehearsal dinner N/A
punch for the " " (get my punch bowl back from Chris.)
a card for Don and Elise
a gift for the wedding and one more for the shower
a cake for the ss
fruit for the ss
cook out food for the bachelor camping trip (Chris and Nate did this.
get surprise for " "

For Birthdays:
Get Andrew a gift
Get Conner a gift
Get Nathan a gift
Get Elise a gift

Things I've promised to do:
Bring cake and fruit to the shower
Get groceries for the bachelor party/camping trip (For Don and Nathan)N/A
Set up time for Kristen and Elise to see the stuff at the house for decorations
Attend Andrew's birthday party on Aug. 31st
Make a birthday dinner for Nathan on Sept. 13th
Attend Conner's Birthday party on Sept.14th, armed with camera,film and video camera.
Help with surprise eventPick Ansel up at the airport and drop him off (He can't come... :(
Babysit Conner on the AM of the bachelor partyDecorate the tables for rehearsal dinner
arrive early for rehearsal
Go to NY with Don to see his family (work on sewing project) (sick...didn't go)

Things I need and want to do:
Continue daily God time (not daily)
Pray for others (almost daily)
Exercise
Sign up for my fall art classes
practice sketching
work on paintings I started in the workshop
go to Pennsylvania with Jennie
Clean house from top to bottom
Keep the laundry done (so far--Don helpeed when I was sick)
Get the yard ready for fall.

Summer's End....Here comes September!!!

This is NOT a universal wedding invitation! :) I just want to share the beautiful job they did on the invitations!

I usually feel a little blue to see summer end, but also have a feeling of expectation when fall arrives. I enjoy all of the seasons, but none is more beautiful to me than fall in Virginia! This year, September should be phenominal in our family! Almost 23 years ago, on September 13th, our youngest son was born, making Friday the 13th a great day for us. Now, September 11th has become a great day for our family, because our little grandson, (nephew, and son, Conner Steven, was born almost a year ago! (I can't believe it!) And this year, we are adding another new member to our family, our sweet new almost daughter-in-law, Elise, who will marry our son Don on Sept. 27th! This is a day our family has been eagerly awaiting for at least a year, and philosophically for over 24 years. I prayed diligently for my future daughters-in-law when my boys were babies and growing up. Cameron is a blessing to our son, Chris, as he is to her, and now Elise will bless Don's life, as I'm sure he will hers. Our September is already completely booked up! The first week, Don's brother Les is going to his 50th high school reunion--YES 50th! We are meeting Don's family in NY state for that weekend.
The following weekend, we celebrate Nate's and Conner's birthdays--Conner's first so it's going to be a huge gathering...Nate's a family event...and another wedding related event! The next week, the boys and Don (hubby) are giving Don a bachelor camping trip up in the Blueridge..... (I will be chillin' at home, panicking in peace, I'm sure...), and I hope to attend another wedding related celebration for someone NOT in my family. The following week, my nephew comes into town for the wedding on Thurs., we have the rehearsal dinner on Friday and the wedding on Saturday!! Sunday the newlyweds will fly to Jamaica for their honeymoon, and Monday we will take Ansel, my nephew, to the airport. AND the first weekend in October is both Christopher's 32nd birthday AND a Ladies Retreat in Lancaster, PA where I am going with Jenny Jackson! So don't expect to see many blogs here for a while! (Or I may be doing a lot of processing here!) It's really an exciting time for our family! I am so thankful for God's blessings!

Long Time no Blog.....

Don and I had a wonderful couple of weeks on our anniversary and staycation. We didn't stay home, though! We spontaniously decided to take a trip up to the BlueRidge and the Shenandoah and stayed at Skyland, our home away from home about four times a year. We got a beautiful room with a king sized bed overlooking the valley. We really love it up there. I'm really excited about what I was able to do!
Throughout our time raising the boys up until my knees got bad and I got lupus, Don and I used to hike White Oak Canyon trail, usually with a baby in a backpack on me and at least one on Don's shoulders. We would bring sandwiches for lunch, hike down to the waterfalls and back up. Well, in the past several years...more than 10, Don and the boys have had to make that hike without me! Well, Tuesday I told Don I wanted to try that hike. I don't think either of us thought I would make it all the way down to the first falls, because we decided since we had just eaten breakfast and I had had coffee and water that we didn't need to carry water or a snack! Well the trip to the first falls is straight down the mountain, with some pretty steep climbing in places. I did great, and we even played on some rocks and waded in the first waterfall. We actually hiked a bit past the first falls but decided it was too steep for us to go any further. Don decided we would rock "hop" across the stream instead of going back over the bridge like "normal" 50 something year old people would do. I tenatively agreed, SO he threw my tennis shoes across the stream and said, "NOW you're committed!" (He's always trying to help me challenge myself!) SO I was the first into the ice cold stream....and the walking surface choices were....REALLY slimey slippery rocks on which to balance on my very tired knees....and sharp gravel! I started out on the slippery rocks and quickly switched to sharp gravel. Luckily I had my walking stick we found at the trail head! Once we were across and I assured Don that he wouldn't be getting his hands on my shoes again any time soon, I climbed on the rocks looking for a better view of the upper falls from just above it while Don hiked up a horse trail to investigate what ended up being a ranger's truck with an igloo cooler on the back, and a water bottle with a hole in it. Don filled up the water bottle and dranks some and brought some back to me.....told me to get off the rocks and drink some water. As soon as I drank the water we started back up the trail, and I realized my blood sugar was getting low....and the road kept going and going. We were looking around for blackberries but didn't see any, although people were picking them up the road from where we were.
It was over 2 miles back to the top--straight up, and about 3/4 of the way up I just couldn't go on anymore. My knees weren't the problem...my blood sugar had gotten too low and I was really dehydrated. I sat down on a rock and Don was going to run the rest of the way up to get me an apple when we heard a BIG noise in the woods, so he wouldn't leave me...and I didn't want to be left in case a bear thought I looked like an easy meal! So I stumbled the rest of the way up the path, and made it to the car, ate an apple and an oatmeal cookie and drank a bunch of water and started feeling better. That night we listened to a really good singer and had dinner and then watched the Olympics in the lounge, and the next morning I felt great. SO we decided to hike up Hawksbill (Upper Hawksbill) Mountain which is the highest mountain on the drive, but only a 2 mile round trip hike. I was fine going up and coming down, because I had hydrated and eaten before hiking, but I must have gotten more dehydrated than I realized the day before, because when we got in the car after hiking up, climbing on the rocks at the summit and hiking down, I got very dizzy again and also nauseous. Don stopped and got me come candy, but that just made it worse and we had to get out of the mountains, because the curvy roads were making me sick. We had planned to go through Front Royal and have lunch, but we just went home and I managed not to get sick or pass out in the car. By the time we got home I just wanted to lie down, so we went straight home, and I fell down trying to lie down on the couch. Don helped me upstairs and I tried taking a shower--in case I had to go to the ER, and after that I was just so tired, I went to sleep. The next day I couldn't walk without being dizzy, but I was slowly getting better because Don was giving me bananas and potassium salt in water, and by Sat. afternoon, I was back to normal. Saturday afternoon we walked at Meadowlarke and yesterday after church we ate lunch with our son and his fiance and some friends and then went to our friends' TR and Cynthia's house and swam for a long time. I feel completely back to normal, but I'm not going anywhere with out water and maybe diluted Gatorade. I still feel a great sense of accomplishment that I can hike such long and challenging trails again! I'm really thankful, because Don and the boys and I have great memories of hiking in the Blue Ridge. The boys have been backpacking twice a year together since they were in high school. Maybe I'll practice carrying a backpack....at least I'd be sure to have water and a snack! I'll post about the rest of our "staycation" later.

Tags......

TAGGED BY JAIME: (I'm guessing at the questions...my answers)
1.Do you like being pregnant? I LOVE being pregnant, too. I'm not pregnant either....I would probably be a widow if I was! :)
I really sometimes feel "lonely" knowing I won't ever feel that feeling of having a baby inside, moving etc, and I felt beautiful. (Don always thought I was beautiful pregnant.) I feel affection for pregnant mommies...especially my daughter in law when she was pregnant.
2. Do you have any quirky sleep habits? I sleep with one foot out of the covers, and Don always covers up my foot--I've never told him that I put my foot out on purpose, because I think it's sweet that he takes care of me that way. (He doesn't do blogs.)
3.How do you feel about fake nails? I hate fake nails--they are oppressive to me, and I fight biting my nails. It helps me to put polish on my nails and occasionally get manicures.
4. Do you like fans in the bedroom? We both like fans blowing year round for noise and air circulation.
5. Which do you like best--fruits or vegetables? I love all fruits and veggies, but I can only eat 2-3 fruits a day.
6. Do you write "To Do" lists? I keep lists in my head but recently have had to start writing them down. I also cross off and carry items from the list to the next day, for the same reason.
7. Do you like organizing or cleaning best? I enjoy organizing, and I love the smell of the house on days that I clean, but I try to finish quickly. I'm a fanatic about making the bed and changing the sheets often, so I make the bed the minute we get up. Don just told me the other day how much he likes it that I do that.

Tag: Erin L and Erin G, Lisa G and Lisa J, Jill Y

FROM ERIN G's BLOG

1. What time did you get up this morning? I woke up at 5 AM and got up at 5:30.
2. Diamonds or pearls? Diamonds
3. What was the last film you saw at the cinema? The Dark Knight
4. What is your favorite TV show? Dancing with the Stars
5. What do you usually have for breakfast? Oatmeal or a boiled egg and E.muffin
6. What is your middle name? Aleecia
7. What food do you dislike? mango
8. What is your favorite CD at the moment? Michael W. Smith "Rain"
9. What kind of car do you drive? Hondai Elantra Station Wagon and PROUD of it!
10. Favorite sandwich? homemade hamburger
11. What characteristic do you despise? deceitfulness
12. Favorite item of clothing? jeans and a white t shirt
13. If you could go anywhere in the world on vacation, where would you go? France (countryside)
14. What is your favorite way to pass the time of day? Other than spending time with hubby and grandson and our family, oil painting, writing or playing the piano/clarinet, or reading
15. Where would you retire to? Virginia countryside in a homey country house with a little land for a garden and some animals.
16. What was your most memorable birthday? All 33 of the ones since I've been married
17. Furthest place you are sending this? France (to Claire)
18. Person you expect to send it back first? Jaime
19. When is your birthday? Noevember 4
20. Morning person or a night person? Morning person...I am sometimes up at night, but I don't want to be.
21. What is your shoe size? 9
22. Pets? We HAD an adorable toy poodle, Charlie, until a month ago. (He died.) :(
23. Any new and exciting news you'd like to share? I had a very successful art workshop this past weekend, and Don and I went away to celebrate our 33rd anniversary
24. What did you want to be when you were little? a teacher,a Mommy and a writer
25. How are you today? Happy to be with my grandson today!
26. What is your favorite flower? lilacs
27. What is a day on the calendar you are looking forward to? Sept. 27th, our son's wedding
28. What are you listening to right now? Conner eating sweet potato puffs
29. What was the last thing you ate? a chicken pot pie
30. Do you wish on stars? I used to...can't see the stars anymore.
31. If you were a crayon, what color would you be? yellow
32. How is the weather right now? Beautiful, sunny and cool
33. Last person you spoke to on the phone? Don
34. What is your favorite soft drink? Diet Dr. Pepper
35. Favorite restaurant? Pacino's
36. Hair color? blonde with white (without color...white with dirty blonde)
37. What was your favorite toy as a child? my doll
38. Summer or winter? summer
40. Chocolate or Vanilla? vanilla
41. Do you want your friends to email or blog you back? yes
42. When was the last time you cried? On Saturday
43. What is under your bed? Don's vitamin books on his side nothing on mine...
44. What did you do last night? Watched Olympics and read
45. Are you afraid of Death? No, but I want to be here for my family and see what happens.
46. Salty or sweet? salty
47. How many keys on your key ring? 3
48. How many years at your current job? 33
49. Favorite day of the week? Sunday
50. Do you make friends easily? yes
51. How many people will you send this to? everyone who reads my blog
52. How many will respond? 2-3
53. Do you like finding out all this stuff about your friends? yes

TAG: Jaime S, Erin L and G, Lisa G and J, Jill Y

Eventful Week

33rd Wedding Anniversary August 9, 2008

After today I am going to post calories/exercise every few days, because I am doing really well, and posting on both Sparkpeople and here takes a lot of time. I did the express Cardio overdrive with the Firm, and that wasn't enough, so I also did the regular workout this morning before Conner got here.
I am feeling so strong now. Also, I forgot to take my meds this morning with breakfast, because Conner was here. I remembered at lunch time, so I took my blood sugar before lunch, and my reading was normal without having taken my blood sugar meds. this morning--and I had two pieces of toast for breakfast! I am making some really important progress now. Thanks to God, because I have been asking Him to help my body function the way it is supposed to. Just last week, AFTER exercising and before eating breakfast, my blood sugar was 100 pts higher than that.

I am also going to do the weight lifting DVD from the Firm and yoga to stretch out. Wed. I have more time to exercise, since I'm mostly finished with my work around here....I just remembered I left the water on in my garden. Well I now have a nicely meandering stream in my backyard, and I'm sure the garden eating critters are just having a ball about now! My neighbor and I were talking today, and I was looking out at the backyard when I noticed the squirrels out there--about 6 of them--going from one plant to the other. Now I know why my plants keep making flowers and growing bigger but are not producing cucumbers, tomatoes and squash! Charlie may have been a little pipsqueak toy poodle, but he kept the squirrels and birds at bay! I'm going to rent my neighbor's cat, Seven--he brings home squirrel tails as trophies. He's the wildest long hair beautiful cat I've ever known! I usually don't
get too mushy about cats, but if they serve a purpose.... (Cats are too aloof--I need constant adoration!) :)

Speaking of constant adoration, have I mentioned how much I adore my grandson? Well, he has a cough that has not impressed his pediatrician much, but it has mommy and grandma concerned. He and I played with the bouncy balls I bought him and the stacky rings, and I got down on the floor with Conner to take pictures. Then I read him one book and he was too sleepy for anymore, so I put him down. He had just fallen asleep when he started coughing and got strangled, so I picked him up and camped out with him on the couch until he fell asleep. Cameron found us both asleep when she got here--I got up at 5:30 again this morning. I don't see him again until Friday, and then we have only two days next week, and he'll be going to the beach with Chris and Cam and two other couples for a week! After that, we are back to school schedule.

This weekend is our 33rd anniversary and also my art workshop, which lasts all weekend....for 2 hours Friday night, for 6 hours Sat. and Sun. In the evenings Sat. and Sun. night, Don and I are going to do things in Old TowneAlex. and DC, like take a ride on one of the riverboats and eat in one of the sidewalk cafes. This is our gift to each other. While I am in class, Don is going to enjoy our hotel, which is really nice, with a pool and a workout room and a two room suite. The class is on Developing an Idea, and I am supposed to bring all of the media I have. I am bringing oil, acrylic, pencils, charcoal and ink....as well as canvas, a sketchpad and canvas sheets. I only have to buy ink. I am also supposed to come with ideas of things I would like to accomplish with my art. I am bringing a few of my children's book ideas and some poems. I feel like I'm really making progress with this part of my life, too. I haven't decided what classes I am going to take in the fall, but I plan to take 2. I'll post my calories later. So far I've burned 864 and eaten 1300 and something.

For our vacation this year, Don and I are staying home and pretending to be tourists, and do the stuff we usually don't have time to do. I hope you all are enjoying your summer, too.

Things are changing....

I'm finally starting to see some progress in my muscle strength and my weight loss. Don noticed that my legs are looking better, and I've noticed that my knees are definitely functioning better. Yesterday I didn't get online and figure out calories, but I did eat healthily and exercised in the pool at Bull Run Park. I tried to sign online, but after about 5 tries, I gave up. I finally had to unplug everything and restart. At that point, I just didn't care anymore.

I'm also seeing progress in my attitude. I'm reading a tidbit of scripture and devotional from the Lose it For Life materials with Don every morning. I have been asking God to be in control of my appetite, my health and my energy. I have seen and felt a change in my perseverance.

Thurs. Son Don is getting the apartment he and Elise will be living in after they are married. He said he'll probably just move in their stuff and stay here....he said it would be weird sleeping there when everyone is here and Elise is still at her parents' house. I'm going to miss Don. He always comes in and talks to me and seems to enjoy it. I know I do. Conner really will miss him.

Tonight Don Sr. hollered up at me, "Jerri, I'm going to walk Charlie!" I almost answered, "Okay!" Then I remembered Charlie isn't here anymore. I went out and took a walk with Don, and he didn't even have to wait for me to sniff the trees etc.
:)

We will be married 33 years on Sat. It's been a great 33 years, too! God knew what he was doing when he gave Don and me to each other. We may not be perfect (by any definition of the word), but we're perfect for each other! :)

Oh, by the way, Don loved the 8 by 10 of him and Conner. I framed it and put it on the piano to surprise him.

Great Day

Do you think this will be a good 8 by 10?

It was a really good worship service this morning. I was ready to worship....sometimes going to worship is like finding an oasis in the middle of a desert! We sang some really great songs, Abbie Mills was baptized, and Bruce preached a really great sermon about Paul's conversion. It was encouraging to me to consider how Paul, when he was Saul, persecuted the church (and Christ) and how God's plan was carried out in his life. I want God's plan for me to be carried out in my life. I need to learn how to just give myself over to His plan....I'm always striving. I need to be still and wait for Him. I'm not good at waiting. He's always faithful to me, though.

Don and I went to see The Dark Knight--we were peer pressured into it by Bruce. :) Actually, Don has been wanting to see it, and I've been promising to go see it with him. Afterall, he saw Mama Mia with me last week! :) It was pretty well done, if you like action packed, bloody movies with lots of really ugly bad guys. When I got tired of the non stop action, I got up and got myself a cup of coffee. The coffee was really good! :)

Today I went to Walmart and bought Little Man two bouncy balls and a stacky toy. He really loved the bouncy balls at VBS last week. I can't wait until Wed. when I get to play with him again. I also copied some prints to send to my mom. He's growing up so fast! I got a really nice picture of Conner and Don made into an 8 by 10. We need to get a good one with me....I'm always taking the pictures. He won't remember what Grandma looks like when he gets older if something happens to me!

Tired with a Headache

I was too tired to go online last night after we got home at 10 PM from going out with our friends for dinner and a movie. I did well with my eating out...I just ate part of a crab cake, some mashed potatoes, about a quarter cup of corn, some broccoli and a lot of cooked carrots....no dessert and no popcorn at the movies. The bad thing was I also didn't have time to exercise yesterday at all. My friend Christine came over for lunch and stayed until Cameron picked up Conner....who was sick with a runny nose. I had just enough time to pick up and then meet our friends and Don for dinner. Since I didn't exercise, I was relieved not to be tempted to eat a lot for dinner or tempted by popcorn.

This morning I caught up on sleep for the week. I haven't slept my eight hours all week. Now my head is hurting. Go figure...my body isn't used to me getting my sleep. Today I'm giving myself some time to paint and recharge my batteries. I am going to either go to the Cub Run pool and swim or go to my friend Cynthia's house and get in the pool. I haven't gotten in the pool all summer. I've been walking and doing other exercise. I miss it, and my joints are hurting, so I think a day in the water would help.

Last night we saw Swing Vote. I am surprised it was such a thoughtful movie. I think our two party system has become such a hypocritical bunch of hot air! I don't think a person who wants to run for any political office stands for anything at all when he or she hides behind a party platform and neglects to speak any of his or own truths. I am never again going to vote for a man or woman based on his or her political party. I don't know how many politicians I have heard invoke the name of JFK, Roosevelt or Lincoln. At a time in our nation's history when we need great leaders like they were, we have men who need political parties and advisors to tell them what they believe. That's why I liked Hillary Clinton. I didn't agree with her about everything she believed, but she wasn't afraid to speak up for the poor people in our country...who are getting poorer. I'm not sure if either of the other candidates care at all about what is becoming the larger part of our population. Okay, so I am cynical about politics....but not about the what God can do.