I’m in a hurry to get things done
Oh I rush and rush until life’s no fun
All I really gotta do is live and die
But I’m in a hurry and don’t know why.

Lately I’ve been living those lyrics and night before last I was reminded of why I should slow down.

I was doing three  things at once, which some people call multi-tasking and my husband says is  “not smart.”  I was cooking supper, unloading the dishwasher, and talking on the phone. Obviously with all that going on I wasn’t paying attention to what I was doing. I had left the dishwasher door open and when I hustled around the island my foot made contact with the corner of the dishwasher door. Normally it might not have done much damage but when I say hustling I mean hustling. I was in a hurry and moving fast because I had somewhere I was supposed to be at a certain time and as usual I was running late. So picture me in my kitchen doing the Edith Bunker shuffle, running around like a chicken with it’s head cut off.

Can you say "OUCH!"

I spared you the picture of my whole foot (as I’ve said before, I have the ugliest feet in America…but they work, so I’m thankful!) But this photo gives you an idea of how hard I hit the door.

My sweet husband put me on the couch, got me a bag of ice, looked at me sympathetically and said loudly, “You need to slow down!”

Yep, I believe I do and not just in the kitchen.

Last night our granddaughter was here and I purposely tried to go slower. I cooked supper but I didn’t go at it as if I was in a race. Then we played school. She was the teacher, of course. Then we had bath time. I can watch her in the tub from my room and listening to her sing “Jesus Loves Me,” while she played with her tub toys was the highlight of my day.

So if you are like me and find yourself running around like Edith Bunker, slow down. Stop and smell the roses or whatever is blooming at your house (ragweed here, sniffle, sniffle)

Or at least shut the dishwasher door!

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If you can’t say “Sesquicentennial” you are not alone! But 150 years is a big deal and there will be the biggest celebration this little county has ever seen this weekend. If you live close by we hope you will come visit. You can check out all the events on Facebook by typing in Metcalfe County and then going to the page that says City of Edmonton Sesquicentennial Celebration.

Thought I would share some of the photos provided by Vicki Stephens of some of our community members helping get ready for the big event. My friends, The Kentucky Headhunters will be giving a free concert Friday night and Black Stone Cherry on Saturday night. My husband Bill’s band, (I call them The Wheezer and Geezers), plays Saturday on the square at 11:00.

So come on over! It should be fun!

Decorating the court house on the square

My friend Mary Ann hanging wreaths on court house

My buddies Freeda and Jane Rhea decorating

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My grandmother lived through the Great Depression and because of her experiences she “saved” everything. She took wrapping paper off Christmas presents, folded it and stored it. Then used it the next year to wrap her presents with. She also kept lots of things we gave her and “saved” them, because they were too good to wear. She had several house coats and night gowns that she kept in her dresser case she ever had to go to the hospital and she might need something nice to wear.

I was reminded of ’saving’ things not long ago when my cousin Martha came to visit.  She saw some of my crystal glassware in the cabinet. “I ought to give you my stemware,” she said. “I never use it and we have the same pattern.”

I don’t use mine very often either, only at Thanksgiving and Christmas. The glasses are fragile and don’t hold enough liquid to suit my house full of men. My husband got tired of the small glasses we had and went to Walmart and purchased huge fruit jars.

I suppose Martha Stewart would be appalled but Bill’s fruit jars are okay by me. I grew up drinking out of  glasses that had the Flintstones pictures on them (or jelly jars), but for some reason when I drink iced tea (with a twist of lemon please) I prefer stemware.

I had been pouring my tea in some stemmed glasses I got at Arbys several Christmas’s ago, but when Martha commented about the crystal glasses it made me think of Grandma Layne and all the things she saved and never got the pleasure of using. So I went to the china cabinet, got out a crystal glass and poured it full of iced tea and I’ve been drinking from them ever since.

So what if I break one? The world won’t end. I have survived broken dishes before.

Yesterday is a memory. Tomorrow is a dream. The good Lord has blessed us with today and that is really all we have!  So thank you God for jelly jars, Flintstone glasses and crystal ones too.  My cup (or glass) literally runneth over. You have blessed me with gifts beyond measure and I am so very grateful and filled with praise for you!

Now here is my challenge to you, dear reader. What are you saving and more importantly, what are you saving it for?

Drink your iced tea in crystal glasses and go dance in the moonlight in your new nightgown and housecoat.

Carpe Diem!

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It’s too long to go without cheese cake. (not that I would)

It’s a long time to go without seeing a friend.

But 30 years goes by in the blink of an eye when you are married to someone you love.

I decided it might be fun to see if I could come up with 30 things I’ve learned in 30 years of marriage. I started writing and realized I could probably come up with a lot more, but for the sake of space I’m going to stop with 30. No matter how long you’ve been married, you might have learned some of the same things!

1. There are few things better than being married to your best friend.

2. The art of compromising is critical.

3. Snoring is a reminder that your loved one is close by.

4. Laughter and a sense of humor are essential.

5. Finding “alone” time is hard when children are little, but important.

6. It’s okay to have different interests and hobbies. He plays golf, I don’t. I can sit entranced with a good book for hours, he can’t. A few years into our marriage we figured out that we didn’t have to do everything together.

7. Holding hands is always a good thing.

8. Having a shoulder to cry on makes tough times easier.

9. Raising a child (or children) together is one of God’s greatest gifts to a marriage.

10. Growing together in faith is a stepping stone to a stronger marriage.

11. Never go to bed mad.

12. Tell each other you love each other every day. We never know when it might be our last.

13. Make lots of pictures. You think you’ll remember everything but you won’t.

14. Never yell at each other in front of the kids. It scares them and you shouldn’t be yelling anyway!

15. Little things mean a lot. A sweet note, a hug, even a quick text just to say “I love  you,” can bring a smile on a cloudy day.

16. Trust is essential.

17. Always have your spouse’s back.

18. Don’t be afraid to give compliments. No one ever gets tired of a kind word.

19. Fight fair. There are certain areas we are all sensitive about and those are off limits during disagreements. I call it “hitting below the belt” and it’s a no-no for a happy marriage.

20. Keep your personal life private.

21. Pick your battles carefully. It’s best not to battle at all but it’s easy to fall into the “nag” trap. After 30 years Bill knows that if a jar lid isn’t screwed on, I probably did it. And about ten years ago he stopped complaining about it. I just can’t remember.  He loves butter and gets it out to butter his bread…and never remembers to put it back in the fridge. I gave up on that one about the same time he quit complaining about my not screwing the jar lids back on.

22. Share the load. I saw a survey recently that said the happiness level in marriages was always higher in marriages where both spouses shared household chores. Makes sense to me!

23. Decide early on who pays the bills and how you will budget your money. Set goals and work toward them together.

24. Take vacations (with the kids and without).  Even if you can’t afford it, find a cheap way to go somewhere. Home always looks better when you come back from a trip.

25. One of my grandmother’s favorite sayings was, “If you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all.” That’s good advice for a marriage too.

26. Work together to make your house, apartment, whatever, a home.  It doesn’t take a ton of money and an expensive decorator to make a home. It just takes a family who loves each other being there together.

27. Surround yourself with happily married couples, either through church, family or neighbors. Happy marriages inspire other happy marriages.

28. Realize that hard times will come and support each other in any way you can when they do.

29. Brag on each other. We brag on our children and our grandchildren, why shouldn’t we brag on our spouse. I love the fact that my husband is musically talented and love to brag on his piano and guitar playing. My husband rocks (literally)!

30. Remember love isn’t just a feeling, it’s something we do.  Bill knows I love cheese cake so he goes out of his way to bring me a slice if they serve it at the hospital where he works. He calls me every day before he comes home from work to find out if I need anything from the store. He’s thoughtful about all the little things I like and I try to do the same thing for him.

Saying “I love you” is wonderful but showing someone you love them is even better.

Happy Anniversary, Bill. You are a great friend, husband, father and poppa! Thanks for making memories with me for the last 30 years and may God bless us with 30 more!

August 30th, 1980-The beginning of our journey through life together!

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