Mine Eyes Have Seen! Oh Goodness

Good morning and come in and have a cup of coffee while it is cool enough to sit on the porch. Another hour or two and we will have to drink iced tea. It is going to be hot here again today, but no worse, not as bad really, as some of you are experiencing. Any way it is never too hot for our coffee  and I am really glad to see you. Literally. I had no idea how bad my eyes were until the fog was lifted.lol I am four days post op from the second eye, and was in the kitchen starting the dishwasher and happened to look up at my microwave and WHAM! It was certainly not clean. All of my appliances are stainless with the exception of the microwave, it is white.(When you buy at a yard sale, you don't choose your color) You didn't know that? We found this at a yard sale still new in the box 10 years ago for 20.00. Anyway it was NOT clean and shiny. It is now. Wonder what my friends thought? LOL That is not all. I have cobwebs on my ceilings! Yes I did. No longer. They are vamooshed along with the ones on the light fixtures and between the doors. Oh yes mine eyes have seen.
I thought today I would share just a few of my favorite "smalls" We all have them. Of course my knife box, spice box have been shared many times, so I won't bore you with them again. I love lighting. Figure you can't have enough(Now we know why, don't we?)Here are a few of my favorites.

I like this old Aladdin kerosene lamp, converted to electric. I have two of these.
I also love mirrors. I think the old ones with the rough board backs are the best

This is one of my very favorites. It now hangs in the living room. Can you see where it is pegged?
Of course you all know about this one its history.

My friend Marshall over at the Bama Planter 
 is like me, loves the backs of furniture. I always check out the backs of old pieces. He said one day he would like to display his pieces with the backs showing and I think I would like that too.
Can't talk about smalls with out sharing these.

This is Gabe in his daddys old firetruck. We gave all of the grands old pedal cars one year at Christmas. The parents loved them and they all still have them.

Mollie and Andrew at the beach.

Mollie not understanding her finger lighting up, the morning she had tubes in her ears. She is doing great.

This boy. He loves looking around and seeing his kingdom.

She just thinks she is queen and could care less about the kingdom.
Well those are just a few of my favorite smalls. Thanks for coming Through My Back Door where life is good.
betty
PS: Yesterday afternoon I had the nicest surprise. My friend Joy, over at the
The Olde Farmhouse
Called me from California. We have so much in common and truly enjoyed our visit. She has actually been to Knoxville, although neither of us were blogging then. I think blogland is absolutely filled with the nicest and I mean that, people.Drop over and visit her.
PSS: I promised a special picture last blog. Well here it is.

Looking at this beautiful family, fills your heart with praise. Seeing Amanda with hair is just something beyond description to me. We reenacted the Christmas picture just for you all last Sunday! Even Clay has hair too.lol You all were so faithful in your prayers, I just wanted you to see. Again, thank you from the bottom of all our hearts.
PSSS: Once more. So many of our blogging sisters are going through a difficult time right now. I won't name names, but you probably know who they are. Lets continue to lift them and their families in prayer everyday.

"For Your Age"

Good evening to each of you and I am so glad to see you. Of course help yourself to the coffee. Don't you love the choices? Kona or DD? I do I have one of each every day. Is that gluttonous? I don't think so, I call it wonderful. This has been such a good Fathers Day. I spent it with Deb, Michael, Clay, Amanda and the kids. Andrew was so excited with the gift he made his daddy at Sunday School. I wish I had taken a picture, but I didn't.It was a "I love my Daddy because" paper. His teacher had filled in the lines with his own words. You all will be surprised to learn the man I posted the tribute to for Fathers Day is only 2 feet tall and weighs 16 pounds! In his sons eyes. lol He finished the last line, which was I love my Daddy because, with because he loves me! I promise Clay is well over the height and weight that Andrew described. This is the age when everything is special and I was so happy they included me.
Have any of you over a certain age,(have no clue what age that is) ever had someone pay you a compliment and just when you are feeling so puffy, they add "for your age?"  Instant deflation!!!! A friend of mine and I were having this same conversation earlier. The doctor says to me,"Boy you are in good health. ------for your age".
My beautician says, "WOW, you have great hair!---- for your age."
My grandson Seth, who is stylish and dapper,(he'll laugh at that description) says to me one day. "Mamaw you are one of the best dressed women I know." Man am I feeling good. Puffed up a little. My 23 year old Grandson thinks I dress well!!!!! Yeah, you got it. Then he adds,"for your age". Now I have you wondering, don't I? How many times have you heard this? Last week end my Grandson in law, Ryan, the orthopod, says to me, "You know you have really good posture." I waited and waited. He never said it. Not at all. I Love him.
Well I have been working in the house. Actually, I had to work in the house. It was a total mess. I was hosting dominoes Thursday and they all have good eyes, (for their age)lol so I had to clean and cook. don't know what happened, but I got motivated. I have eye surgery again this week, so I had to get it done. I did my porch. I even tweaked a bit.

Don't pay any attention to my shoes.Deb swears I have been a bad influence on Curt. He kicks his shoes off everywhere too. Right now typing this, I see three pair by this chair! Oh my goodness.
I got this pot of flowers for my birthday and I love them.

I have enjoyed sitting out here so much. I couldn't do it until I got it cleaned up.

I love geraniums in a white basket. It says summer to me. The boards hadn't dried well when I took this picture. It really is clean.lol

 My rosemary is thriving. So is my lavender. I went out the other day and the lavender was covered with honey bees. Curtis  would have loved that because he always worried their weren't many honeybees.

By the time I got my camera there were only 2 or 3 left . I was going after the bees not the bush. I am going to get out there and cut some.
I even did some tweaking in the house. I love my new floor cloth. It makes me want an even larger one. Sandi(Daybreak Place) and I were going to make a large one. She came over we were going to work on them, but that was when we got the results of Amanda's biopsy and we didn't touch them. We both still have the canvas and may one weekend this late fall we will start on them.
My friend Carol brought me this onion bottle from Williamsburg.

I like this bowl setting in this wreath. I KNOW it looks Christmasy, but I LIKE it. Well I e-mailed Sandi a picture, and when she replied I got the message. No, she didn't say, "it looks too Christmasy," instead she very tactfully replied, "Have you thought about putting the wreath IN the bowl!" Doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure that one out,  so I have now changed the tavern table to this.

 I love this book, entitled, "An Old Sweetheart of Mine," by James Whitcomb Riley. This particular copy is copyrighted in 1903. In the fly page it is inscribed. Well, I'll show you.

I think this old book is holding up well. For its age.
Thank you for coming Through My Back Door, where life is good.
betty
PS: I have to say to my friend Pandy. This post is for you. I think you look really good-----For Your Age!!!!!!!(She is the friend I was referring to having the discussion with.) (She does look good.)
PSS:I also want to do a shout out to my friends Jim and Judy Robertson who celebrated their 50th anniversary on Friday.My whole family loves them and say Jim, our retired pastor, marries us and buries us! Happy Anniversary you two.
PSSS: Next post I have a special picture to show you. I can't wait!

A Special Tribute To A Special Father

I am so happy you stopped by on this beautiful evening. It is perfect outside, so we can have a cup of coffee and sit on the porch if you like. It isn't decorated with hanging plants this year, as I have been gone so much and more trips looming on the horizon.lol However the grass is mowed and the other things are blooming, so it looks pretty and peaceful out there. It always makes me happy when you visit and when you leave a comment telling me you were here.
Fathers Day is this Sunday and my Daddy has been gone for many years and I still miss him. However this post is not about him.
Most of you have traveled the journey of Amanda's breast cancer diagnosis, the mastectomies, and the chemo with my family this past year. You have prayed, Gina made her a hat and some other goodies, so I feel you have been with us through it all. I always wanted you to see her picture so you could put a face with who you were praying for. God heard your prayers and ours and she is doing wonderfully now. During this you have seen a picture here and there of her family, including her husband Clay. Well this tribute is to Clay. In my opinion he is Father of the Year. He is a good Christian man and a doting husband and father. He would get up get things done before work, Deb would go and then later I would and one of us would stay until he came home from work. If friends hadn't brought dinner, he would see to that. If any medical procedures had to be performed he did it. He gave baths to the children, as well as helping Amanda with hers. Every night she was in the hospital he spent the night too. He never complained. When we would brag on him, his answer was always the same,"I'm doing what I am supposed to do." He has taken Andrew to birthday parties and has done all the things he could to keep their lives as normal as can be, during this trying time. SO, do you see why I feel this a special tribute to a special Daddy? He will be so embarrassed when Amanda tells him this, but so be it. His family is so proud of him and we have every right to be.
Here are a few pictures of this young man I am proud to call my Grandson in law.

He and Andrew making pizza on clays birthday. He buzzed his hair for Amanda.

Their family Christmas picture.

At her Chemo is Over Celebration party.

At my nieces wedding a week before she was diagnosed.

Fishing with Andrew at the beach a couple of weeks ago

showing off Christmas presents with Curt, Ryan and Andrew.lol
Anyway I just wanted to share with you my grandson in law, who in my opinion deserves a special tribute. Yes, he did what he was supposed to do, but he did it with love and without ever complaining.
I can't end this special tribute with out including his whole family. They are all wonderful and love Amanda so much. So I say thank you Joe and Dawn for raising such a fine young man.

See that precious little girl on the left. That is Clays sisters baby and she calls me Mamaw Betty ,too. Love her. Aren't they a beautiful family?
Thanks for coming Through My Back Door where life is good.
betty
PS: I only wish Clay's Nannie and Poppy knew what a fine young man their grandson became. Somehow I think they do.
PSS: One more thing about Clay. He came up last night after work, took my car to his house and detailed it for me. It looks like a brand new one. See, one more reason I love this fellow.lol
PSSS: Please continue to pray for our fellow bloggers who are still doing chemo

So Much Going On

I am so happy to see you coming Through My Back Door this evening. There is so much going on I just have to share with all of you. First things first. Coffee! We can have Kona or DD coffee in the Kureig.does that make you as happy as it does me? I hope so. My friend Linda Rudman, Behind My Red Door, found Kona and sent me some. I was so happy, as I hadn't had time to get on line and hunt it. Right after Mothers Day, when I got the Kureig, we left for the Florida vacation. Came home on Friday and on Monday morning I had cataract surgery. ( Yes, I thought only "OLD" people had cataracts.lol.) Then on Thursday I left for Springfield, Il. But wait, I am getting ahead of myself. Get you a cup and choose your brand. Not only do we have Kona, but I found DD in Springfield at the hospital where my granddaughter will be practicing. Again, whoa! I am getting way ahead of myself. Coffee does that to me, you know.You have no idea how excited I was to get the Kona. I tore into the package and had a cup immediately.

I did major damage to the box!lol
Then when we went to Springfield and went to DD I found this.
Beth, my granddaughter who reads my blog, had gotten me some already, but I bought more.

So here in East Tn is a very happy coffee drinker.
I have had an easy time with my surgery. I can see so well.(out of one eye) I have said, repeatedly, I feel imbalanced. That is NOT to be confused with unbalanced.lol
I can't wear my glasses, so the readers are only good for a while. I will be happy when the other eye is done next Monday and I have two good eyes again.
I went to Il this past week with Deb and Michael because my granddaughter had completed her residency in internal medicine. She has worked very hard and has been working toward this goal for many years. Counting her four years of premed, about 11. She spent lots of weekends studying and not doing the things she wanted and it has paid off.

This is her Friday evening before the banquet with her handsome husband Ryan. Ryan is finishing his residency in Orthopedic Surgery, so he has two more years, plus a fellowship. They were married four years ago and are so supportive of one another. Can you tell I am a proud Grandmother? Of both of them?

The three generations on Friday evening.
I will share a story as I know she looks so young. She went into a patients room and introduced herself one morning. He took one look at her and said,"My goodness. I have socks older than you!" I love that story.
We antiqued on the way up Thursday and Deb and Michael found several goodies. I bought a box. Don't know what I will eventually use it for, but I really liked it. Any suggestions?

I thought it could hang on the wall. Somewhere.lol
I am not a gardener. Angela Phillips is always saying she sits on the porch and tells Mr. P what to do. That is my idea of gardening too. The one exception is I love daylillies. I have several scattered all over the place. I also love my rosemary and lavendar. Here are a few of my daylillies.

Here is one of my two huge butterfly bushes. The hummers, as well as the butterflies love this bush.

Well, I am so happy you came Through My Back Door where life is good.
betty
PS: I think you all know I am addicted to ice cream. Well most of the rest of my family is too. While in Fla, Dodd, Olivia, and I had a dish every evening. Deb, Beth,Ryan,Andrew, and Clay love it too. Amanda and Curt can take it or  leave it. It looks like the next generation is going to continue the tradition. This is Mollie enjoying a cup of ice cream on a hot Sunday afternoon.

She had her bathing suit on, so she went straight into her "little" pool.lol
PSS: I will share some more little prim faux flowers in a post soon. I love them, but don't have them in place yet.
PSSS:I will quit talking about my family soon. I have one more "family" post I want to share. I promise to get some neat prim decor on here soon. There has just been so much going on.

Home Sweet Home

It is wonderful to have you stop by tonight. The house is in a mess but the coffee is on, or should I say ready to put on. The Kureig is such a neat little machine. I am going to have to get on the web and find my DD or Kona in this. I have had doughnut shop, but it isn't quite the same.I do love my DD and Kona. Well I just returned from a week at the beach. We go to a beautiful beach between Destin and Panama City, called Seagrove. It is a quiet family oriented beach. This time it was only Dodd, Renda, Olivia, and I. We had such a good time and the weather was beautiful The water was so green.(Thus the Emerald Coast) Greener than I have ever seen it I think. All we did was sit on the beach or by the pool. We ate, rested, and read. I read about 4 books this week. Such fun. I love seafood almost as much as I love prims. However, my family says I am a lobster snob.Imagine that! After having the lobster experience in Maine, I just don't care for lobster anywhere else. I ate crab cakes, shrimp, fish, more shrimp, you get the picture? This is my favorite place to eat in Destin. It is called Dewey Destins. We eat there every chance we get. They have two places. One is on the main highway the other is off the beaten path. It looks like you are turning into a trailer park, but at the end is the best seafood ever!

Here is where the actual cooking is going on.

They are waiting in line to order. It is a boat dock type restaurant and you stand in line to order.Renda, Dodd, and Olivia.

The lines are usually long, no matter when you go. This is an outside view.

This is inside.
I love this place. Can you tell? The fish is caught fresh and served the same day. It just doesn't get an better than this.lol
When I go away Dasko goes to Doggy Camp. He must do a lot of activities, because this is how he has spent the day since he got home.

 It is an hour each way to camp, but well worth it. Laura raised and showed rotties and she loves them She is a tiny petite lady, but Dasko does whatever she says,  I love watching her make him heel and walk like a "show dog." He was actually bought to show but didn't get big enough. Any way he and I are glad to be back in our routine. For a while. Another trip is just around the corner.lol
I haven't had time to do any decorating. I put a few flags up for Memorial day. Nest week I will try to do a bit more. Here is all that is going on for now.

Kind of sad, I can't get into the groove. It will change I promise. I still want to show you some more quilts my Mother and Grandmother made.
There are lots of things I want to do, but you have to stay home to do them, and I haven't been doing that.lol

I love the flag and I love buntings. Buntings make me think of New England.
Well its good to be back at Home Sweet Home and I am so glad you came Through My Back Door where life is good.
betty
PS: Here are a couple more beach bums.Andrew and Mollie.

 PSS: Country Sampler Photographer Bill Mathews and stylist Gloria Gale are looking for some homes in Tn, NC, SC, or Ga. If you live in those states send Bill some pictures. If you e-mail me I will give you his e-mail address.
PSSS: Congratulations to my daughter in law Renda, for being one of the top Nine teachers in the state of Tennessee. The winner will be announced at a banquet in Nashville in the fall. This is Renda's second time to make the top nine. The first time was for middle school English, and this time it is high school Theatre. We are all proud of you Renda.