Namesake Update

I was SO close to the mark with my questions to Luke about naming the baby after me or him but I quit too soon!

Our latest grandson is named for his Pappa, Bruce Wayne Stevens and Pappa is so so proud. Just the announcement of the name has brought tear to many an eye. We have pictures of him on our computers and gaze lovingly, anxiously waiting for our trip down next week to do the formal introductions.

Here we are at Grand number 7 yet the thrill and joy is as great as the first...maybe more so because we know how wonderful it is to enjoy their lives. We are even looking forward to Spring moving in for a month or two between houses this fall. We're crazy!

Is it hot or is it just me?

Summer winds down and none too soon as far as the heat goes. Third summer now with intermittent hot flashes and it makes winter look good to me....almost. One son in law wanted to replace my front door because there is a draft up over the right corner but I said leave it...it feels good to me.

I can remember my grandmother leaving her kitchen door open in winter....never knew why!

The other day my cooks were complaining about the heat...(what's that saying, "If you can't stand the heat..."? )....every time I came into the kitchen they were using the meat thermometers to check temps all around the room and calling out numbers..."Oneohfive here" So the she/bear got tired of hearing it...they've never worked in a restaurant AND had hotflashes so I snapped at them, "I don't want to hear any more about the heat. It doesn't help at all, you just make yourself more hot by thinking about it. (switching to my normal tone) And now I will tell you what I came out here to say, compliments to the cook for the wonderful omelet."

Their eyes bugged out of their heads...they were speechless. I turned on my heel and walked back out front. Two minutes later I returned and shaking my finger at them and glaring I said "Don't ever talk about how hot it is to a woman in menopause" ...gave them a nice polite smile and left again. I heard the laughter of relief as I got out the kitchen door.

I like it when people are afraid I might snap! REshaping my world through menopause! hahah

namesakes

I was named for a girl my father met in Finland in the late 1940's. Now that made for some interesting speculation over the years! But her daugher has been my bestest friend for the past 37 years.

My son Luke and his wife B are due to have a baby any minute....and my birthday is on Monday...so I asked if it was born on my birthday would they name her/him after me? He said he'd ask. So then I asked if he/she is born on his birthday, the day after mine, would it be named after him? He said no. That's probably good because it would require an overnight sex change.

I'll let you in on a secret

Don't waste money on bikini underwear when you're over 50!!!

After 5 years of dieting I decided I'd try out those nice underwear that it seems like everyone wears, (except one of my waitresses who shared she doesn't wear any) . So I bought a 6 pack and got one pair free! Nice, one weeks worth of undies, fresh from the showroom floor. Well, those bikini's only make one extra line in your clothing....making it look like you have one more roll than you allready have! So your rolls have rolls....what's the point....I'm back to nice smooth cotton....Anyone under 50 need some nice new undies?

How do you know when to laugh?

I often laugh at what others consider inappropriate things. Hey, may as well laugh I figure.

Yesterday a large 12 passenger econovan drove over the railroad ties and into our building at work, smashing 2 windows, destroying a bathroom and taking out a support wall. We made the phonecalls, the police, our carpenter and the insurance agent....in that order. Then the jokes started rolling in. One employee feigned disgust that he wasn't informed that we were putting in a drive-thru. After all, his son married our daughter, you'd think he'd be let in on it. So we told him it was a spur of the moment decision...we'd try to do better.

Today I ran into a customer whose son has recovered from hodgkins disease and she shared some of the wonderful things that have occurred since that time. Her son is thankful every day that he had the cancer and that God has a purpose for him to be still here. Then she shared the amusing things that have happened along the way, saying, "Hey, you have to laugh".

Reflecting, I think we should laugh at anything we don't have control over....so what do we have control over? Not much....so we need to laugh at most anything and everything!

Grandchildren are Grand!

Today I got the joy of grandmotherhood from my oldest daughter. My grandson Levi, who is 7,lost a tooth, the second top front one...that looks wonderful...'-) and the 3 1/2 year old granddaughter Phoebe nearly wrote her whole name. All the joy and I didn't have to clean anything up afterwards! Amazing this grandmotherhood! I remember getting my daughter to pull a tooth, it was yelling and threatening and crying the whole way. And that was just her side of the conversation.

good news/ bad news

It all started when a friend sent me a link to a website that helps you calculate how long you'll live. You start with answering about 12 easy questions, age now, sex, health habits etc. As I answered the first one, my expected age was 83. Then as I continued through the list, the age went up and up and up. I used to joke that I'd live to be 100 because my family has a history of being "long livers" but my view from the other side of 50 has made me think that's not such a good idea. So after answering them all I came out with age of 94, my sister got 93 because she doesn't exercise. Now, why is it that I faithfully walk in the summer and in winter work out? To live an extra year? Anyway all of this just isn't good news to me so I think that after 70 I'm going to take up the pipe and start eating fried food and any other vices that I might have missed along the way. Of course, by then, probably I won't tolerate fried foods.

A new time of life

These days, I could care less about controlling the remote for the tv, it's the remote for the air-conditioner that I covet!

just normal conversation....

Several of us were sitting around chatting over lunch and the subject of cleaning came up, agreeing that when you do clean, that it's only clean for a day. My son in law perked up and said, "Did you say you were coming over to clean for a day?" It happens to be one of my good days, when the old gray cells are working just fine thank you, and I returned without missing a beat, "No, I'm Queen for a Day I said and I'm sitting right here"! Phew escaped that one.

Is this necessary?

I have titled my site "The Bear Went Over the Mountain"...from the song...because there have been times over the years when this She-Bear rises up and takes care of business that the quieter, softer side might deal with differently. Lately I've been visited by the She-bear a little more often...they say it's the hormones....so I've put her to work to take care of a few things that need attending to....reshaping my world.

Why did the bear go over the mountain? To see what she could see so the song goes. Now, this She-bear has climbed another mountain...passing 50 and plodding through menopause...and my view from this side of The Mountain is wide eyed, spectacular, and is even occasionally humorous....I even get a kick out of myself..... so I was encouraged by a sibling that writes well to put my thoughts down on paper. She even gave me the assignment to do a paper this month! Pushy huh?

In writing I miss the instant gratification of telling my story and getting a response...a laugh...an expression not to be repeated..... so I thought I might just blog as I go and hopefully a few friends or fiends will give me feedback, and I might give them a few chuckles. It is a family trait to laugh at the most inappropriate things so "bear" with me if some of this hits a sensative point. These things often come to me in conversations so most of what I write will be quoting what went before....or sometimes come to me in the wake of a tumble down that Mountain. I've heard one picks up speed going down hill! HA! It entirely depends what day it is if I agree or disagree with that.