My disappearance

Here it's the first day of February. I've been struggling with MRSA for over a year.

I've had no other choice but to continue down this journey of my life presently.

For the past two months, I have had considerable hospital stays in the months of

December and January. At times, I admit, I felt sorry for myself asking God why?

It's progressed in my lymphatic system. I was wondering what now? My frame of

mind is totally different now. It's had to be, or I might not make it period. I have

way to much living and joyous times with my kids and grand babies to accomplish.

I am ready to fight this full fledged again. Katie, a best friend of mine found me in

bed unable to even get to the hospital. She got me there with my 12 year old son,

Walker in toe. They started Cubicin immediately and Saturday I had surgery. It

wipes all the strength out of me and for about 5 days all I do is sleep. Katie, being

Katie, one whom I go on mission trips with in the summer is so predictable. When

in a crisis, we all like predictability. My Granny, made the best blackberry

cobblers and you would always get a whiff of her masterpiece baking in the oven.

Still to this day, I remember that scent. Predictability gives one a since of

belonging well this is how Katie makes me feel. She was there during the dark

periods when my Mamma died a few years back. She came to visit me in the

hospital as she did every day on her lunch hour from The Girl Scout Counsel. She

was telling me about this book her Dad had lent to her to read. It's called

" THE SHACK" by Wm Paul Young.

This man had a horrible abusive childhood at the hands of an alcoholic father

who beat them regularly. He ran away around the age of 13 never to return and

this is where the story began. He married a practical, loving gal and they had

children. "The Great Sadness" happened and it changed his life profoundly. He

had always been angry at God. After their loss, it was more embedded in his heart.

His parents were long gone from this world, and suddenly during an ice/snow

storm a letter appears in the mail box. Enticing him back to the crime scene of a

few years back, but it was signed Pappa. His father never lived up to the name of

Pappa. His sweet Nan called God, Pappa. Her relationship has a strong loving

bond. Hmm, how perplexing, we do tend to categorize God don't we? He's all

knowing, and how wonderful to have a relationship with our Heavenly Father. I

don't know why this has happen to me, but more importantly I am not alone. I

have a sense of peace; I haven't had for sometime now. God is with me as he has

been through this gruelling ordeal. I apologize for not posting, but I was just so

darn mad at the world and feeling sorry for myself. I've picked myself up by the

boot straps and will post more regularly. I highly recommend this book even if you

are mad at God.

Until we meet again..

Rooster crowing verses Alarm Clocks

I am in the middle of suburbia USA. Tiger, my cat, had found freedom for a brief amount of time

this afternoon. The temp had risen a little today and my cat ran as fast as he could go so I

wouldn't try and catch him. He succeeded for a short period of time.

He hides in this water pipe that isn't in use. It's a few houses down from us.

I'm whistling for my fur baby, "Tiger bee come here." I have taught them to come to my

my whistle. I hear a faint meow and sink in ewey, gooey, swishy mud near the pipe. Here

comes the over sized yellow, tabby kitty. I hear a rooster. For a minute, I wonder where am I?

"Earth to Gabrielle," ok now my thoughts are back to this planet. I asked Walker when he got

home from school about the rooster?

He tells me this menagerie of a zoo is a few houses up from us. The owners welcomes all the

children in the neighborhood to come see their zoo. Walker proceeded to tell me "they have

approximately 20 chickens, 3 roosters, 12 cats, 4 dogs, and 30-40 rabbits.

Gees.. the city counsel is trying to in-act an ordinance the "4" per household.

Their covered though, any animals before it goes into effect they are allowed to keep at

their residence. I am for everybody having pets in town, if they so chose to do so.

This is way to much don't you think? I wouldn't want their feed bill.

I came in with the cat and begun to think about Grandma Howard's farm. We didn't need air

conditioning, there was a cool breeze from the huge oak trees in the front yard during the

summer. If it was winter time, she had one of the hottest ole houses. She burned coal in a

huge pot belly stove in the front room.

We piled the quilts on those cozy feather beds throughout the winter months. It got dusty but it

sure was warm. The rooster's woke us up

every morning with their cock-a doodle-do's . We were guest sort of, so my cousin, Carolyn

would let us have her room downstairs when we were there. A pan of bacon was always frying,

and oatmeal steaming on the stove. The coffee peculator had pipping hot coffee ready to go.

Maybe that is why still to this day I don't cook oatmeal often! We ate so much at Grandma's.

It's funny what we remember from our childhood.

Back to the roosters, I would chase those chickens

and roosters around in a tirade. Carolyn would holler "Gabe Brielle stop chasing them hens."

"We need eggs tomorrow!" Carolyn, was my favorite older cousin. We use to talk about big girl

stuff. She explained the _ _ _ topic to me. Shh.. don't say it out loud. I was about 10 years old

then. We would go to the country store and get a Dr. Pepper or an ice cold, bottled Coke. She

saved me once from a sick o neighbor named Wesley who was a second cousin too.

He was walking up the private road to the farm house and I was near

the fence post by our private cemetery when Wesley came by. He had some juicy fruit gum

and had the audacity to offer me a piece of gum if I would lay down in the field and let him kiss

me. Eww... I ran home and told Carolyn and Carolyn told Grandma.. He got a chewing out I

tell you. Never again did he had a colorful conversation with me. I grew up that summer and I

was only 10 years old. Someday I want to live on a farm again.. I want the roosters to wake me

up and not the dreaded alarm from my cell phone.


Until we meet again..

Oprah and her free offer, for U.S.addresses

I was watching Oprah yesterday, she made an offer to her viewers. You must visit Oprah.com and follow the link. Like most of us, we need to find creative ways to get family and friends Christmas presents. Money is tight, and I have bled my turnip dry. If this suggestion helps you by all means go and utilize this free offer. :)

Overwhelmed by what to do with growing piles of your child's art projects? Peter has

a great solution! "Take digital photos of their artwork, upload them to Snapfish.com,

and they will send you back a beautiful, bound book of the kids' artwork. So, over

time, you can build a library of your children's artwork—let the pieces go, but keep

them in this form forever."To help you get organized, Snapfish.com is offering The

Oprah Winfrey Show viewers a free 8" x 11" custom-cover photo book! *Create a

Snapfish.com account now or log in to your existing account to receive this special

offer. Get your free book! * This offer is only good for one standard 20-page 8" x 11"

custom-cover photo book per household. Coupon dispersal ends at 11:59 p.m. PST

Friday, November 14, 2008. Free photo book must be redeemed by 11:59 p.m. PST

Sunday, November 16, 2008. Offer does not include customary shipping and

handling changes or additional pages. Offer applies only to mail-order delivery to U.S.

Until we meet again...

Shhh...

When I was a child, cursing wasn't allowed in my home. This was the norm of my friends houses too. For a girl to say a cuss word, was worse yet. My ds and I were watching a movie called "Gold Diggers Secret" Friday night. I use parental controls on our T.V.'s. I have to put a 4# numerical code to allow anything higher than PG13 to be viewed. This movie was PG, so I thought I was in the clear. Kids are such sponge's and if you slack off just once. I will hear from my ds "you did it Mom.' It was about a teen going to stay with her Grandpa. Adjustments made on both sides was an understatement. She met a girl there which told her a legend of gold being left in the mountain near the island. It had some profanity here and there. You know, I just cringe when I hear "those" words. It's like my Mother, who has passed on bless her soul is over looking me shaking her head. I feel guilty. My older kids curse but not around me. It's a respect issue with me. We were a 3x per week church going family. Anyways, my Granny differed with my Mom. Maude had a sitcom out in the 70's and were one of the first to have a little profanity. She would say, " I am old enough it's not going to affect me." I thought, " alrighty Granny!" With me being a Grandma, I remind my older kids the importance of watching their words around the babies. Kids are good about embarrassing you in front of others. In those days, we had a moral compass, we knew right from wrong. We were taught good manners. I will continue teaching my grand-babies right from wrong. The world is a better place when we treat each other like we want to be treated. There is hope. Until we meet again...
Posted by Southern Gal at 4:05 PM 9 comments

Pioneer Woman

Synopsis - Ree's description of her life, read further..
http://thepioneerwoman.com/confessions/

Ree in her own words from her blog,

"Howdy. I’m Ree Drummond, The Pioneer Woman. Welcome to my frontier!
I’m a thirty-something ranch wife, mother of four, moderately-agoraphobic middle child who grew up on a golf course in the city. I attended college in Los Angeles and wore black pumps to work every day. I ate sushi and treated myself to pedicures on a semi-regular basis. I even kissed James Garner in an elevator once. Then, on a brief trip to my hometown, I met and fell in love with a rugged cattle rancher. Now I live in the middle of nowhere on a working cattle ranch. My days are spent wrangling children, chipping dried manure from boots, washing jeans, and frying calf nuts. I have no idea how I got here…but you know what? I love it. Don’t tell anyone."

Marlboro Man is a rugged rancher and he brought me to tears when he gave his account of him and his girls in Dominican Republic with other bloggers and their children. In his own words, he felt helpless and deflated. What he did observe is a " Tale of Two Houses." One house didn't have faith and no hope. In the other house, faith was present and laughter. Simple people can make a difference in this world. This pushes me to reflect on my own life. This is a GREAT read!

Until we meet again...

Nominate your favorite Blog :)

Please go and vote for your favorite blog. Here is the address :

http://www.divinecaroline.com/awards/

If you don't see your favorite site, nominate your favorite site. Good Luck! :)

Until we meet again...

Zayn, my grand-baby and blogging...

This is Zayn, my grandson, he brings me laughter and joy everyday. I am so thankful for both of my grand-babies. Their love is so pure. A child to me is perfect. They don't hold grudges, nor store up anger. In simplicity; a child, brings one back to time of our own childhood. I use to love to swing on Grand Ma Howard's metal fence on our family farm. Supper time approached, and I could hear Aunt Carolyn calling me to come in and eat. I didn't want to stop playing to eat. I encouraged my kids to use their imaginations to the fullest extent. In my kitchen, Zayn has his pots and pans like his Daddy and Uncle before him. I've given him dried beans and rice to cook. I get an array of dishes from those items. His imagination never ceases to amaze me. Mamma's and Daddy's work so hard and have so much on their shoulders. When you become a Grand Ma, your perception of things changes. Time and experiences have been very humbling to me. I wanted to share my precious grand-baby with you.

My personal Synopsis to begin blogging. Thank you all for welcoming me with open arms. May God bless you and bless our country. May we all pray for the safety of our service men and women in lands abroad.

I have read blogs from many parts of the world. An interest in blogging began, when I went on a mission trip here in the states with my youngest son, Walker. When I began to read blogs from other parts of the world, began with mission trips from local college age kids of friends here in Missouri. Katie, has a daughter who went to Kenya to assist with inoculation of children. She saw malnutrition, poverty, and malaria which could have been prevented with a sum of a few dollars. Katie's husband, went to Ethiopia to assist with a medical group in that impoverished country. Jacque, Sharon's daughter, has went on mission trips with us here and abroad. I have a strong conviction for helpless children in this cruel ole world. Our children need a voice.

Until we meet again...