WHAT DOES YOUR LIFE SOUND LIKE?

I am talking about MUSIC
oh my, how I love music

all kinds of music

(pinterest)

So, since I've kinda got diddly squat to blog about

I am going to share with you the Music

that shaped my life.

so here's a little

do wah diddy diddy dum diddy day

(she looks good, looks fine,looks good, looks fine, that I nearly lost my mind)

and only if you are old as me will you have the slightest Idea what that is about

So I am going to give you a little melodic insight to some songs

that were specific to my life

kinda game changers perhaps

1. Did you all have that lullaby you grew up with. That your mom or dad sang to you. MY DAD always sang to me "Good Night My Little Buckaroo". Hmmm....little did he know I'd end up marrying a cowboy. Foreshadowing????

2. I always sang for MY kids "Golden Slumbers Kiss Your Eyes".

and what is cool is my daughter sings it to her girls.

3. When I was 15 (don't judge)...I remember getting my first SERIOUS kiss to the song "Goodbye Ruby Tuesday".

4. Then, when I was 16, at a party, I got my first FRENCH kiss to "Summer in the City". I was freaking scared. I was pretty naive and really thought I was "slutty" over that whole stupid kiss. FUNNY...the guy never asked me out again (tee,hee)

5. Me and my Best friend here in Alberta would do a lot of skiing together. (well, for me, more like snowplowing) We'd ride up that ski lift belting out the tune "Bottle of Wine, Fruit of the Vine".....yet I had never had a sip of wine pass these virgin lips.

......well, virgin.....except for that french kiss.

6. Then when Mr. Gorgeous and I were dating, for my 17th birthday he gave me the ALBUM of Diana Ross and the Supremes.

"Stop, in the Name of Love". I didn't need to really "think it o--oo-ver. I was pretty much smitten.

7. Then along came the 70's.

(google)

How deep is your Love.

Travolta was HOT.

Kinda sad, that although I Love music.....I can't dance worth horse nuggets. Remember Elaine from Steinfield, and her famous dance moves....I'm kinda like that. But SHE'S better.

Go ahead and You Tube it...The Elaine Dance.

8. Gotta love "Love Shack". It is one of our family favorites. One time when everyone was together, I put the song on and we all proceeded to Dance around the house. The little girls jumped onto the counter and did their Jay-Lo moves. Jazz hands and everything.

9. Another very VERY favorite of my families is "Islands in the Stream", with Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton. It all started with one of our LONG trips from Utah to Canada and I'd play the CD in the car, over and over.  All the kids heard it so many times, we'd all sing it together. Then over the years we would sing it for family gatherings. Me, my daughter and 4 sons.   Oh yeah, we had it down baby. I hit the notes just like Dolly...even without her ample Lungs.

And another thing that makes this song pretty special, is me and my kids all sang it at a Thanksgiving gathering. It was the last time I was able to sing it with Matthew. 
Now when I hear this song, you can bet that I shed a tear.

10.  Then lastly.  When Mr. Gorgeous and I were dating, our song was  "Love is All Around" by the Troggs (original version) and then Wet Wet Wet made a redo of it. (who calls themselves wet wet wet??)
So when we got married, we had that song playing as I walked down the stairway from upstairs at my parents place to my sweetheart who could.....
"feel it in his fingers, He felt it in his toes. His love was all around me, and so the feeling grows"

(2009)

I can't imagine a world without music

can you??

What are YOUR favorite songs



The game changer ones

(pinterest)

.......so there......

and So it Goes......

Every now and then

Just when you think things are calm and going well in your life

that sun warms your shoulders

and clean, crisp air is breathed into you lungs

that your heartbeats are at a peaceful rhythm

Suddenly

without any warning you find yourself having to walk into the mist

the fog

the darkness of the UNKNOWN

That was my weekend

Saturday night I received a call from my youngest child

that his wife was taken to the Emergency Ward

she was very ill with uncontrolled vomiting

nausea

and dizziness

(my son and his wife)

The hospital did an immediate MRI

and found this

an unexpected mass growth on her brain

I could not believe what I was hearing

tears flooded my eyes

suddenly that clam heartbeat

took an erratic beating

I felt chilled

and felt like I was trying to "suck in air"

Sunday they performed surgery

to remove this mass

She is now in recovery and the Dr. said the operation

went well !!!

They do not expect any cancer

and she should hopefully have a Full Recovery

I know, I KNOW

that it was due to the many, many heartfelt prayers

and well wishes

on our families behalf

I was humbled and amazed by all the caring people

who "walked with me"

on Sunday

Because soon, Becky will be doing this again

smiling her pretty little face off

back to pursuing her education

in the field of Pharmacy

she is actually an intern right now

in the very hospital she was operated in

Can we all get a Fist Pump Here.

whoooopeeeee

When you have come to the edge of all light that you know

and are about to drop off into the darkness of the unknown

Faith is knowing

one of two things will happen.

There will be something Solid to stand on

Or

You will be taught to fly

(unknown)

Our family is flying high right now.



THERE'S A HOLE IN MY BUCKET

Do you guys know that song??

There's a hole in my bucket dear Liza, dear Liza

There's a hole in my bucket, dear Liza a Hole

Then fix it dear Henry, dear Henry, dear Henry

then FIX it, dear Henry, dear Henry FIX IT

With what shall I fix it dear Liza, dear Liza

with WHAT shall I fix it, dear Liza with WHAT

Well, In THIS song

I am Henry

I gotta Hole in my bucket

(pinterest)

Meaning What, ask all of you

Well..I read on many of my blogger friends Blogs

a BUCKET LIST

you all know what I am talking about

those things we want to accomplish before we Kick the proverbial Bucket

and then I think to myself

Holy 2 gallon buckets

You guys have some good stuff listed there

from sky diving

to traveling the world

to finding your inner zen

to writing books

to be on Celebrity Apprentice

that kind of stuff

I. HAVE. NEVER. HAD. A. BUCKET. LIST.

Perhaps I do not inted to ever "kick the bucket"

not if I have my say

(which I never do)

(pinterest)

Maybe because I always DID think it was impossible

Or Risky

Or pointless

so I DID NOT Try

I guess I have always had things I've wanted to do

but not to the point that I PURSUED THEM

if they happened COOL, if not, then no biggie, I didn't think it would anyway

I am not really a pessimist

I just think for all these years of my life I Did Not Expect Much

I've tried things like

sewing, cooking, crafting....No sireeee, not for me

or school...Um that really didn't work out either

When I was in college my first semester

I had a 1.5 GPA

letter was sent home to my "paying" parents

Crap, I thought I was just there for the fun

class, shmass

I try different things and they kinda fizzle out on me

like that saying

 "I have not failed, I've just found 10,000 ways that don't work"

Thomas Edison

That being said

I am trying to think of Goals

I mean, come on folks

this country chick is 60

I better do SOMETHING

 I don't want to be a jackass

(pinterest)

although they do look like kinda sweet and easy going little critters

I NEED A BUCKET LIST

cause right now, there's a hole in my bucket"

With WHAT shall I fix it

hmmmm

right now, I'll start slow

like just trying to get back into the jeans I wore when I first

moved here

that would be EPIC

Yeah...I'll start with That.

You've got to get up every morning

with  determination

if you're going to go to bed

with satisfaction

G. Lorimer

I can't get no, satisfaction, I can't get no satisfaction

cause I've tried

and I've tried

and I've tried

AND I'VE TRIED

(come on , sing along with me and do your Mick Jagger moves)

WHAT'S LOVE GOT TO DO WITH IT

Well HELLOOOO

It's Valentines Day

Love had EVERYTHING to do with it.

This will be just a little post today

(not my usual saga's)

I personally LOVE the OLD style valentine cards

And I actually found a little book of them

These are actually the kind of valentine cards

I used as a kid in school

you snap them out along the "serrated line"

and then put them in a little envelope that comes with it.

sometimes the cards FOLD and  it has a little "tab" that slides in

so it has a back and a front

I ADORE THEM

So, in the spirit of Valentines Day

I TRIED (tried being the operative word here)

to do a little craft thingy and did end up sending

it out to a few friends.

I Labored over that stinking craft thing for 2 days.

I HATE CRAFTS

so for me to even DO THAT, means I like you, quite a bit

second

I made cupcakes today to take around to a few neighbors

you know

Spread the Love kinda thing

I HATE COOKING

and, they turned out, sorta

so for my neighbors

You gotta know I like you to even attempt stinking cupcakes

there

"whew"

Valentines day with be relatively quite around here

I asked hubby the other day

"Um, do you remember Tuesday is Valentines Day"

"Yeah," he said

"I got you a nice box of shotgun shells"

nothing screams love like shotgun shells
(he was kidding..I think...I hope)

So for all us country girls out there

and you city slickers

who might want to know what Love is like at my house

I have just a few lyrics from Cindy Church's song

LOVE ON THE RANGE

Sun's going down and the work day's through

All day long he's thinking of a rendezvous

Puts up his saddle gives his horse some hay

takes the long drive home, it's an hour away

(chorus)

It's late in the Evening but his Sweetheart knows

He's burning up his tires on the gravel road

She just can't wait till she sees him again

That's the way it is with Love on the Range

*****

I was going to try and down load it for you

but that kind of stuff gets really complicated for me

frustrating

stressful

so I didn't

Cause I am only allowed a certain amount of swear words

in one day

and that would have put me over.

Bottom line, I am lucky

I got lots and lots of people for me to love

and I am bubbling all over to share it

cause

That's What Love's Got to Do With it

SHARE

how do YOU do

Here is the story about the DO

as in Hairdo

I am sure, like all of you, we have really had our share of hairdo's

over the years.

good ones......the "what was I thinking" ones

I have basically had BANGS the bigger part of my life

Not because I am particularly a fan of bangs

but due to a head on car collision when I was 17

I had some pretty good injuries to my forehead

some scaring, almost could have taken out my eye

(dad took this picture of our car way back then)

see the hole in the windshield, that is where my head did a Slam Dunk


The fellow who hit us had been drinking
fell asleep at the wheel and hit us head on

My mom was driving....serious hip and leg injuries
grandma in the middle, only some lacerations and broken collar bone
ME
since we didn't wear seat belts in those days
I hit the windshield with my head

At the time I had my hair in BIG ROLLERS

BIG ones
 and since I had a hard time keeping them in place

I came up with a brilliant idea

I used my dad's 6 inch nails, stuck them through the rollers

and they became immovable

When they wheeled me into the hospital

and started taking out the rollers

I remember the x-ray dude

say "holy #(@&*^;^), Nails"

"I can't believe these weren't pounded into your head"

Not a single hole in my head

despite what people have tried to tell me when they'd say
"that's crazy, do you have a hole in your head?"

just serious forehead lacerations.

Here is a close up of that eye
see the scar

NO...I'm not talking about the WRINKLES around the eye
Just the scar....FOCUS
 that totally became my commitment to BANGS
so now "she bangs, she bangs"

I thought I'd also take you on a little journey through
hairstyles that I had
(feel free to share some on yours ..if you dare?)

how about these golden oldies
So what if it took me awhile to "blossom"
Pre bang era...eight and 13 years old



some improvements

sixteen years old and eighteen years old

here is a photo of the kind of rollers I had in my hair

Yes, I did the Tennille bob

the Farrah flip

and kill me now....the perm and stupid bang flip up thing

I'd love to have a hairstyle that didn't require bangs

I am tired of bangs

and

I can only have them a certain length as I can't stand it

when they start getting into my eyes

I saw Goldie Hawn on a talk show a few months ago

and her bangs were hanging pretty much over her eyes

off to the side a bit

and she was always pushing them out of her way

NOW, I love ya Goldie

but just cut your dang bangs.

I have had to make peace with bangs

and at 60, I think I've blossomed about as much as I'm gonna

and I don't have any holes in my head

I Can Only Imagine

Today Is Matthews Birthday

He is 37
I wonder what he is doing today
I know he is having a GREAT day
I KNOW he KNOWS that if he were here with us
there would be presents
cake
crab legs
all his favorite things
family

I wanted to share with you a FUN tradition that Matthew always
had with his family on New Years Eve

They would collect many Christmas trees
from the neighbors
put them all in his large fire pit in their backyard
invite everyone over
and light it up

Matthew lived life LARGE
and everything he did had to be "over the top"

 Here is Matthew at his tree burning
TA DA
gotta love it

His children are still carrying out Matt's tradition
(with help from mommy of course)

Equally excited
same pose
It makes them happy to still share that with their dad
I am sure he See's it
that's what I imagine.

Life continues to repeat like tides and waves of the ocean
always changing
yet forever the same
(anonymous)

I imagine that is how it should be
yes, Matthew is not physically with us now
but he is part of everything we do

I miss him still so very much

not a day goes by, perhaps even an hour

where he doesn't fill my mind and heart

But despite the pain that is with those he left behind

I CAN ONLY IMAGINE

that he is happy, free from "his" personal pain

surrounded by beauty

and with people who love him, those who have passed on before

it's "their" reunion

I really love this song

so if you take the time to listen to it

I think you will smile with me

as my eyes fill with tears again

cause, I can only Imagine.

When I first heard this song, it was sung by Alex Boye, he sang at Matt's funeral as is a friend of theirs

he is a professional artist
but I could not find his version on you tube.

GO BIG OR GO HOME

You all know these sayings...right

Go Big or Go Home

Big is Beautiful

If ya wanna run with the Big Dog's get off the Porch
I love big butts and I can not lie

I have been thinking lately about BIG

everything lately seems to have to be big

I am bigger now then I have ever been in my life
yeah yeah yeah, it's my own fault
(as I punch me in the face)

So I am trying to fix that
You know the drill, exercise (#_)^*&^#*)_), eat right, eat less
I'll "get er done"
it's a process for crying out loud

But this post is not just about ME

it has to do with how EVERYTHING is getting bigger

example:  Look at the different sizes of plates here.
the smaller one is what people USED to eat on
we've Upsized
also the cups

no wonder we are getting Fluffier
(p.s. the roses are NOT dead, they are DRIED)
my sweet friend Claudie told me to Water my roses. so funny

and look at what we are eating

don't spend a lot of time looking at it
as you might gain 5 lbs on sight

it is a burger, bacon, jalapeno cheese, egg
topped with a Krispy Kream donut
Fries on the side
(my weakness is fries)

But it is even more then just food
we all want bigger houses, take bigger vacations
big screen tv's
king sized beds

and what about parties
Seriously, some kids parties are becoming Oscar worthy

I monumentally failed in the birthday party giving
Yeah my kids had them
but we played pin the tail on the donkey
spin the bottle
musical chairs

I am not saying I am against any of these things
(except that burger thingy)

But maybe it's time to rethink BIG

Heck, I am even finding when I say my prayers
thanking first
then putting in my request for a better day
help me with this and that
and don't forget to bless so and so

I find myself wanting to say
"And, could you Supersize that for Me"

amen

GO TAKE A HIKE

now, that was fun to say.

(before I start this post, some of you misunderstood the poem I had on my post below.  My cousin Did NOT die. That poem was written by my NIECE, (Matthew's cousin) when Matthew died, about Matthew)

NOW, about the Hike

on THIS mountain

you saw a photo of this mountain on my post below

Old Chief Mountain....I refer to it as MY mountain

If you look at it, the way it got it's name is because

it is the side FACE of a chief, laying down
 with his headdress behind him

the left end is his chin

can you see it

LOOK HARDER

pretty isn't it

(google)

Well my dearies, I CLIMBED THIS MOUNTAIN

Yup, this rickety old lady actually DID

Now, today anyway, I can barely climb the stairs as I have started my new exercise regime

and I am stiff...STIFF I TELL YOU

But back when I climbed this mountain, I was lithe, calves like steel, arms like rocks, and abs you could spin a nickel on

(I may have exaggerated here a little)

Back when I was 30'ish (can't even remember the exact time) 

 I was visiting my folks, who live quite close to this mountain.

My Uncle, challenged me and my sister to climb the mountain

Since I was living in the states at the time

He called me a YANKEE SISSY

HA.......I was certainly going to show him

So, this particular day, he and his wife and 2 of his boys

some of their friends

 MY 2 oldest boys

me and my sister

headed out

cause I had an IMAGE to maintain

First, indulge me just a moment to tell you a little bit about this mountain.

It has an elevation of 3000 feet.

THREE THOUSAND.....DO  YOU HEAR ME

It is actually in Montana. That's how close to the border

my folks live

It is in the Glacier National Park area

The Blackfoot Indian youth used to climb this mountain to fast, and to experience their vision quest.

(I was seeing visions myself by the time I got to the top)

Chief Mountain has been a sacred mountain to

Native Americans for 100's of years.

The  Blackfoot name is Ninastiko.

--------------now that reminds me of a little story to tell you------

I love Indian Names

and often times, in my family

we like to come up with unique Indian names to give ourselves

We try to fit it to the personality of that person

Like...my daughter was Falling Rain, because she used to cry a lot

My youngest son was Wild Turkey

cause he was rambunctious

Well, the summer that I was getting ready to move up here

and marry Mr. Gorgeous

my sweet DIL

said I should be called

"She who warms many buffalo robes"

(since this was going to be my third marriage..smarty pants)

sorry, back to the mountain

There is a legend about Old Chief...that goes like this

"the Blackfoot Indians believe that IF this mountain falls, that means the spirit of the mountain is not happy

with the white man

and therefore, The Indians will once again rage war

upon them.

Now, I don't even know if that is TRUE, or not

but I grew up with this story

And FYI, the face of this mountain is starting to slide. SO, they don't really even want people climbing it anymore.

SO LETS GO

put your hiking boots on and I'll take you there

(all these next photos are from google, all Old Chief ..from hikes)

This was the beginning. We all drove our vehicles 

 to the base of this mountain.  We went as far

as was possible in the car. 

Then we started our hike, going to the RIGHT

headed around to the backside

And then you see THIS

those mountains are in Glacier National Park

Ah...the fresh air, the magnificent sights

I felt good, being the FIT person I was then

It starts to get difficult

The backside is loose with softball sized rocks

and it is hard to get your footing. 

Uncle is feeling a bit cocky about now

I am trying not to grimace

We started at the BOTTOM folks

by now I am sucking wind

and seeing those visions I was talking about

the Uncle and young boys seem to be having no problem-o

 I started doing a lot of THIS

standing to ENJOY THE VIEW

(and rest.....holy mountain goat, I needed rest)

Then FINALLY

many hours later

We made it to the top

THE TOP IS NARROW !!!

only 8 feet wide in some places

and there is a BIG drop off

and it can be really WINDY

I sat my tush down, and didn't move

my uncles boys and MY boys

were walking back and forth, across that narrow top

I thought I was going to throw up

BUT I DID IT
This Yankee Sissy DID IT

(and I never did it again, I'm not stupid)

I was so happy though that I had that opportunity

met the challenge

lived to tell about it

"sometimes all you need is 20 seconds of insane courage

to change a lifetime.....anonymous"

This is a more recent photo

a grandaughter, last summer

I love this mountain

It has been a part of me my whole life

It's home

Chasing angels, or fleeing demons,

go to the mountains

Jeffrey Rasley

DON'T LET THE NEW YEAR HIT YOU IN THE BUTT ON YOUR WAY OUT

Speaking of 2011

see...yaaaaa

was a hard year for me, glad to be moving on

I am putting "positive vibes" into the universe

for 2012

Oprah said, whatever you throw into the universe

you get back

(and we ALL know Oprah knows everything)

so 2012, Here I Come

gonna get'er done

make improvements

find Wendy again
learn

seek

grow

I had a fabulous time visiting my family in Utah

We laughed !!!!

and laughed some more

and tried to grab a nap

and danced

 and picked our nose

and posed

and postured

and goofed

and sang

and gathered

(here's a line up for ya...from left to right, My FIRST husbands wife, DIL Caryn, DIL Rena ,ME,  SECOND husbands mother, DIL Becky

front row DIL Leslie, DAUGHTER Emma)

yes we are a unique family

(DIL and her hubby.. my Son.. Daughter)

and last minute shopped

and remembered

AND IT WAS ALL WONDERFUL

My very best present from my children

was THIS

a very large photo of all ten of these angels

my grandkids

 (ranging in age from 15 to 3)

The only thing better then the photo would be bringing them home with me

OH NO....WAIT

that's the joy of being a grandma

you spoil them, then leave them at home (tee,hee)

Mr. Gorgeous and I spent  New Years Eve at our friends house

(some of  you readers may remember it was just last New Years Eve, while we four were out celebrating that our friend Ricks only brother and SIL were Killed in a car collision)

We wanted to keep things a little more low key this year

but we did sport the party hats

an toasted in the New Year

I do know that 2012 will come with its share

of joy and heartache

every year does.

but for whatever comes

I want to be STRONGER

and better

and be more charitable

Keep on loving each other as brothers

Do not forget to entertain strangers

for by so doing

some people have entertained ANGELS

without knowing it.

Hebrews 13:12

and that is my Toast to all of you