Nuts anyone?

Wow, our pecan trees are really full of nuts. I can't believe it! They only give every other year and this is their year to give. All 4 trees are full. I spent Saturday morning with John & Jacque and Belinda and Michael, picking pecans. Hmm, is that why my thighs are sore. Bend & Pick. Bend & Pick. Bend & Pick. OMG, talk about a workout. We only picked from one tree because the other trees have not opened their shells yet. But they are loaded and waiting for a really good hit of sunshine.

Today I'm spending the day kind of alone because mom went to bed after breakfast and has really been sleeping. I did the dishes, vacuumed, and am now in the process of washing, drying and folding clothes. Oh yea, I also baked a cake for Michael because he not only helped us pick pecans, he was our tree climber and also got on top of the house and not only shook the branches but also swept my roof. Now I just need to sweep my driveway.

Now I just need to get stuff ready to begin the day tomorrow. Hope everyone had a great weekend, too.

WooHoo!!!

We are now the proud owners of a new washer & dryer. After 22 years our two have given all they had to give. It was hard to make the decision of not just getting them repaired but we did decide that it was time for a new pair. Besides after 22 years, they may not have parts for us anymore.

Our new pair arrives Thursday (tomorrow) between 4pm - 8pm. I'm so excited and I can't wait to begin washing without having to put a towel down on the floor because of a water leak or having to inspect every piece of clothin from the dryer for scorch marks.

I didn't get fancy and go for a front loader. Just stuck with the plain old top loader, white. Wow, now all I have to do tonight is clean out the utility room so they can have room to haul away the old and install the new.

Thank you to everyone!

I just wanted to say THANK Y OU to all my family and friends for giving our mom such a special day. She truly loved it. We gave her a surprise birthday party and she enjoyed herself so much. Not only did she enjoy herself but so did everyone who attended. It was just he right people for just the right occasion.

Good Lord willing we'll see everyone again next year!

Wow, animals really are sensitive to people's needs.

I took my mom to my brother's house on Saturday. He and his wife were throwing a graduation party for my niece Audrey. We had a really good time sharing and laughing with everyone. My sister-in-law Maria has a really nice family and she and my brother have some really nice friends, too.

One thing that stood out from the whole event was something that their American bulldog, Buster, did to my mom. Now mind you, Buster is full grown and weighs in at a good 100 lbs. Cito, my brother, and Maria had decided to put their two dogs, Raven & Buster, in their bedroom because it was just too hot to keep them outside while everyone was in the house enjoying the party. After we had all eaten and we were all just standing and sitting around talking we convinced Cito to let Raven & Buster come out and join us. Of course when they came out they were so excited to be part of the fun that they were going from person to person nudging and searching for caresses and such. When 100 lbs nudges you it more of a giant shove.

My sister Maria and I were standing in front of my mom who was sitting on the couch and all of a sudden Buster comes to see who is on the couch. What he did was so awesome I'm gonna try and describe it for you. He came over and of course nudged me and Maria and then he turned and saw mom sitting on the couch and I was waiting for him to be a little rough with her but he stopped dead in his tracks, looked at her, and then very gently walked toward her and then gently laid his head on her lap and looked up at her whild she caressed his head. He stayed there until someone called his name. He went away and then returned later and again, stopped in his tracks, as if to compose himself, and then gently wallked over to my mom and again, gently laid his head on her lap so she could caress him. This time, after a little caressing he put his two front paws on couch next to her and stoop up and put his head on her chest for her to caress him and then gave her two gentle nudges with his head. Of course then my brother Cito told him that was enough and so he got down and walked away. He came back while I was helping mom eat some cake and he just sat there patiently waiting for mom to share with him, which she did.

One more thing, by no means am I leaving out Miss Raven, but she has always been full of love and just a beautiful dog who will always be our Miss Raven.

Thank you Cito & Maria for a great time and for loving your pets because the love really does flow through and from them.

Family Night at the Gonzales Household

Well, we had our first official family night at Mom's house last night. We couldn't all be there because Ramona is still recuperating from her surgery. Thanks be to God, she's coming along really good. Maria and her kids took her husband Tommy to San Antonio for Father's Day. So, it was me and my 2 brothers and my 2 sister-in-laws and Mom. We started the evening sitting around talking and sharing with each other. Then we all chipped in and ordered some pizzas. When the pizzas got here we went into the dining room and ate. After we ate we played Seinfeld Trivia. We ladies knew we were in trouble because both John and Cito are Seinfeld "fanatics". They can probably re-enact every episode, which they did each time a question was read and answered. To help lessen the handicap we ladies decided to help each other out by also playing cherades to help the other get the answer. It worked, Maria, my sister-in-law won the game. It was really fun. Mom really enjoyed seeing her two boys, John and Cito, having a good time.

After we finished the game Mom was ready to go back into the den so we all went in and Jacque, my other sister-in-law, had brought the dvd of "Madea Goes to Jail" so we made ourselves comfortable and watched it. It was really good and up to par for a Tyler Perry movie. His movies never let you down. Our cousin Belinda arrived and watched the rest of the movie with us.

I had bought some chips & dips for everyone to enjoy and of course the carb nap started wanting to kick in so I remembered that I had a bag full of chocolate candy in the refrig from our coupons. This of course brought everyone back to life.

Mom and I really enjoyed having everyone here just enjoying each other's company. Good Lord willing we'll be together again next month when we celebrate Mom's birthday.

One more thing, I noticed that Maria had her camera with her but I guess no photo opps this time around but hopefully we'll have plenty of photo opps in July.

Couponing

Wow, what a trip. We started our day by helping my cousin give a coupon class to a church group so that they could go out and purchase stuff for themselves and their church at very low cost. After class we (cousin, sister-in-law, & me) went to lunch and then went to do some shopping of our own. We went to several CVS stores because they had their L'oreal makeup on clearance and with our coupons it was gonna be really, really, cheap. Boy, did we make a savings. We bought $1,500.00+ and paid $80.00. I love coupons. We also went to some Albertons's stores and stocked up on the paperplates and bowls. The plastic cups were all gone but one of the store managers told my cousin when their next truck would be in, so, we'll be back. We also had some coupons for some SunSilk shampoos and conditioners but they were all out. Oh, well.

Today is Sunday and I'm just gonn chill doing some laundry and looking into my very, very neglected bedroom. Later in the day I'll be helping my cousin separate more coupons. We got a little bit behind last week and so, we have alot to do to catch up. But boy the outcome is so much worth the effort.

It's times like these that I really miss my Dad.

Dad was the person I shared my thoughts with, especially when it came to work issues. We are creating a new position at the office "Liturgical Coordinator" and the beginning pay is $40,000.00. I really need to share my thoughts on this with him. I'm considering putting my name in the hat for the position and I know that he would be proud of me for doing so, but you know, sometimes you just need to talk to someone about it. Someone to discuss the pros & cons. Someone to fill you with encouragement. I know that everyone will say, if this is something you want then go for it, but you still need someone to talk to about it.

My brothers and sisters are so busy with their families and stuff and I know that they would be supportive of whatever I choose to do but the difference with Dad is that he would give me his full attention without being distracted. I've been speaking to him all weekend long and he's answereing me. I guess I just miss the hug he would give at the end of our discussions. OMG, it must be the weather. I can't believe I'm feeling so needy. Snap out of it, Juanita!