Cecilia

West Texas Rainbows

2010-04-16T19:13:00.000-05:00

After two days of much needed rain, these are the rewards we can enjoy.
This is just across from my house, and it seems like it was right there!
The pictures look better if you enlarge it.

Easter Weekend

2010-04-06T17:16:00.003-05:00

Had a fantastic Easter weekend at J.G.'s. Sure did wish Cindy and Paula could of joined in on the fun, but they weren't able to get a dog sitter for the weekend.

We left Thursday afternoon and had all day Friday and Saturday to do plenty of sight seeing and shopping. J.G. took us to up-town Dallas and stopped off at the Cupcakery. Boy! are their cupcakes delicious!

We attended Easter Vigil Mass Saturday afternoon and really enjoyed it. The choir was awesome! Like always, J.G. was the perfect host. Thank you, Mijo.

2010-03-22T08:54:00.000-06:00

WISH I COULD QUIT MY DAY JOB!

2010-02-14T10:12:00.000-06:00

I love it! Well, my birthday isn't until Feb.23., but Dad ordered this through Apple and was delivered a week early. Of course I wasn't going to wait for my birthday to open the box. I gave him one for Christmas this year and he is really enjoying it. The thing is, our taste in music is completely different, so I had to have my own.
Sure does beat having to load up a box full of CD's every time we get in the car.
Thanks Dad.

Morning Coffee

2010-01-15T10:15:00.004-06:00

So this is what I find every morning when I walk into the kitchen!
Since I can't move my joints in the morning, my darling husband leaves the coffee, cup, and sugar ready for me so I don't have to reach for anything.

Isn't that sweet? And after 38 years of marriage!

West Texas

2009-12-04T10:33:00.004-06:00

This is when I really love living in West Texas. After a light snow the night before you can wake
up to something as natural and pretty as this. ENJOY!

Hi!

2009-10-14T09:43:00.004-05:00

Well, I decided I'd better post an entry since it has been awhile. My first complaint is the weather. I'm sitting here typing and hating how this horrible humidity affects me. I HATE IT! Feels like we're in south Texas. As bad as I dislike winter, right now I'm wishing it would get cold and leave this humidity behind.
Ok, enough about the weather. Second complaint: who fixes a scramble egg at 7am and then eats it (or tries to) at 9:30am! The scary thing is I don't even know where those 2 hours went!
Ok, Hey I bet you thought I had another complaint, huh? No, that's it for today. Tomorrow I'll probably have more.

But for today, I wish everyone a wonderful, productive day. Stay safe.

Labor Day Weekend

2009-09-08T17:02:00.003-05:00

We had a wonderful Labor Day Weekend in Round Rock, TX. Did a lot of sight-seeing while there. We saw the capital at night, which is very attractive. We got to see the UT Building/Tower with the ever so famous 'Owl' at night. Great Sight!
First night we were there Paula taught us how to make sushi. Boy, was that fun. Below is a picture of her fabulous dish. Now that I mention fabulous dish, cindy had lunch ready for us when we got there. Great Mexican dinner. Taco, refried beans, spanish rice, and guacamole!
She was frying the taco shells when out of nowhere she screams,"Oh Shit!". Yes, were were getting ready to sit down to eat when she remembers she hadn't cooked the meat filling for the tacos! HA! HA!
We all had a good laugh over that. Just minutes before I was complimenting her as to what a great cook she'd turn out to be! Well, it took Paula no time at all to cook the filling and it was delicious. We all enjoyed the great meal. Also, below are the taco shells without the filling.
Can't exactly remember where all they took us, but we sure did have a great time sight-seeing and visiting.
THANKS. YOU'LL WERE GREAT HOSTESSES

2009-09-08T16:59:00.000-05:00

Dentist Cancellation

2009-08-24T07:29:00.002-05:00

So, this is the kind of notes Dad leaves me hanging anywhere he can find. I've found them on top of my night water glass, in front of the toilet (eye level), etc. This one was hanging in between the kitchen and dining room door. Just a reminder not to forget to cancel his dentist appointment.

The Red Planet Is About To Be Spectacular!

2009-08-06T11:20:00.002-05:00

This month and next, Earth is catching up with Mars in an encounter that will culminate in the closest approach between the two planets in recorded history.

It is believed that Mars has not come this close to earth in the last 5,000 years, but it may be as long as 60,000 years before it happens again.

The encounter will culminate on August 27th, 2009, when Mars comes within 34,649,589 miles of Earth and will be (next to the moon) the brightest object in the night sky. It will attain a magnitude of -2.9 and will appear 25.11 arc seconds wide.

Mars will look as large as the full moon to the naked eye. It will be easy to spot. At the beginning of August it will rise in the east at 10pm, and reach its azimuth at about 3am.

By the end of August when the two planets are closest, Mars will rise at nightfall and reach its highest point in the sky at 12:30am. That's pretty convenient to see something that no human being has seen in recorded history. So, mark your calendar at the beginning of August to see Mars grow progressively brighter and brighter throughout the month.

SHARE THIS WITH YOUR CHILDREN AND GRANDCHILDREN. NO ONE ALIVE TODAY WILL EVER SEE THIS AGAIN.

Walter the Goat

2009-07-12T14:56:00.005-05:00

Passed by my Dad's house earlier and saw him pulling weeds in his vegetable garden. Doesn't look like the same man some 40 years ago. He had a birthday yesterday and turned 84. Which led me to think of a certain incident some 40 years ago. (Give this old lady an applause! I can still think 40 years back!)

Ok, so it was on a Saturday morning and my Dad and brother Eddie were taking Walter, their old male goat to the auction barn. He had been replaced by a younger "Fabio" looking goat. So it was his turn to step down and let Fabio knock their lady goats off their feet.

I'm sure Walter took one look at Fabio, and that's all he needed to get him in a pissed off mood. Boy, was he fuming! My Dad and Eddie had parked the stock trailer near the entrance to their house and they put a rope around Walter's neck and tried walking him to the trailer. Apparently Walter had decided he wasn't gonna make it easy for them.

He gave them a really hard time getting him onto the trailer.

First he got away from my brother and ran off with the rope around his neck. They finally managed to bring him back and give it another try to load him up again.

Boy, this time all three were very upset. Walter was about to explode by now. They managed to load him up, but he was so furious, he tripped the latch on the trailer and got loose again!

Ok, third try at getting him back. Dad and Eddie were working up a really good sweat by now and what was coming out of their mouths is not worth repeating. Alrighty, again Walter gets caught again. Another try for the trailer. By now Walter is huffing and puffing and seriously thinking of bucking whoever gets in his way. So, he starts chasing both Dad and Eddie now, (oh, forgot to tell you, Walter has good size horns on him.) He aims for Dad. Both Dad and Eddie not having anywhere to take cover, so they jump in the trailer! So, they're inside the trailer and Walter is staring at them giving them the "it's over for you" look. That was so funny watching both Dad and Eddie holding on to the bars on the trailer staring at Walter, and Walter is still huffing and puffing and staring right back at them.

The picture was completely reversed. Wasn't it suppose to be the other way around?

They tried letting him cool off awhile and slowing tried getting off the trailer and Walter met them right outside the trailer door.

They tried a few minutes later, determined to finally get out regardless of what Walter had up his sleeves. (sleeves?) They managed to get out and step away a few feet when here he comes again. Both flew back into the trailer and this time Daddy loses his hat and Walter flattened it like a pancake. Ok, two attempts and one flattened hat later, Walter walks off headed to the coral to take one last look at Fabio and his lady friends. There Dad and Eddie handcuffed him and read him his rights and Old Walter went willingly this time.

Who says there isn't any fun at the farm?

All this time Daddy and Eddie had no clue Mom and I had been watching the whole incident through the living room window! What fun.

House Cleaning Part #2

2009-06-29T20:55:00.002-05:00

A Week of Cleaning House

2009-06-27T11:11:00.002-05:00

Been really busy this last week trying to clean and straighten up my parents house. Mys sister, Helen, is the most thorough house keeper I've known. I hate when we both do a cleaning job together cause she always seems to wind up going over what I've already cleaned!
This is the kind of person you'd want doing your house cleaning. Never have I stepped into her house and it not be spotless. I so hate that!
Anyway, back to my parents house. Their health has gotten so bad in the last few months and they honestly do need someone to come in daily to help out. Mom no longer realizes that when she feels hungry she has to eat. To us she used to be the best at cooking and always doing deep down cleaning. (That's where my sister picked it up from). Not me, I could give a s_ _ _ less about house cleaning. I'm more into sewing and crafts.
Again back to my parents. My Dad's (Tata) sister is coming in from L.A. on the 4th of July, and he is so excited. She'll be there visiting 8 to 10 days. Expecting to see lots of cheerful and happy moments during that time.
Changing the subject a little. Dad starts his new job on Wednesday. He's really excited about it. Soon he will make new friends at this new job. I expect it to be a little different from his previous job o 37 years. You see, his new friends will be small, shirt and pant pulling, screaming kids!

Wonderful Time at Retirement Luncheon

2009-06-15T06:39:00.002-05:00

A wonderful time was had by all Saturday afternoon. The kids planned a late afternoon luncheon for Dad to celebrate his retirement.
Dad loves going to Humperdinks in Arlington, so J.G. took care of reservations so we could take him there. (Dad loves drinking his 'Butt Faces' there!
I had such a great that I didn't even have time for pictures. But, as you can see on J.G.'s blog, he kindly took care of that.

Dad had to great surprises Saturday. First J.G. and I drove him to James Avery and surprised him with this beautiful Alpha/Omega ring. I let him choose his own ring.
Later on when we were getting ready to go to the luncheon, Cindy brought Tommy in with her from Round Rock. When they were nearing J.G.'s apartment, Tommy called Dad to let him know how much he wished he could be there to join him. Tommy kept him on the phone the whole time he was actually walking into the apartment! They both happened to be in the apartment talking on the cells, Dad was giving his back to the door when Tommy continued talking to him when Dad turned around and saw him standing there. Talk about a SURPRISE!
Let me tell you, I don't how many times J.G. , Cindy and I almost gave the surprise away during our conversations. It was hard, but we managed to keep it a secret and it worked out really well.
If interested in viewing the pictures, log onto J.G's blog.

"Just A Short Note"

2009-06-03T09:01:00.002-05:00

Just a short note to let everyone know we're still around!
Been really busy now that Dad's home. Alot of things to do around the house and not enough time. It seems like we have something to do in town almost every day? I don't understand this! I mean, really. What's there to do in C-City? We're gonna have to put our heads together and figure this one out!
What was that you asked? Oh, Dad's to do list? Has he finished it?
I'M THINKING HE DOESN'T EVEN KNOW WHERE THE LIST IS! lol
Tell you what. I'm gonna put on the table again and check to see if he picks it up. I'll be happy to see him take a quick glance at it.
Later guys!

It's Over

2009-05-16T16:54:00.003-05:00

Well, since Thursday, May 14th, Dad is finally a free Man!

His last day was May 31st, but he left 2 weeks early cause the guys that are now replacing the retirees are having to train for a couple of weeks.

He is so excited! I can't recall what I asked him yesterday, something to do with a certain date, and instantly out of habit, he got up and started to check his monthly schedule. SURPRISE! No more nasty schedules on the refrigerator.

He now has so much to do, he doesn't know where to start. What he doesn't know is that I've already got a list (a rather long list) of things that need to be done. I'll blog in about a week or so to report whether anything on the to do list has been checked off.

Last Countdown!

2009-05-04T16:37:00.003-05:00

Finally got some much needed rain huh? not as much as the Metroplex! Here in West Texas we got about a fourth of what you guys there got. Hey, we'll take it, after all, it's better than nothing.

It seems like maybe, just maybe I've got my family back to normal. Had been having trouble with Mom and Dad's health for the last month or so. They both seem to be doing alot better.

It can be really stressful when they are both down at the same time.

Now they are both out and about almost every day.

I usually call daily to check up on them, and when I do, Dad answers his cell phone because they are already up and down Interstate 20! !

Let me tell you, I'd rather they be burning gas and not in the hospital.

Changing the subject a little. Remember a few entries ago, I wrote about Dad's (John) retirement? Well, it's here!

His last day should be May 31, 2009!

We are both so excited.

37 years at Texas Electric Power Plant.!

J.G. and Cindy have planned a special weekend celebration for him in honor of his retirement, and he's really excited and looking forward to it. Promise to take plenty of pictures and share them with all of you.

Here above is a picture of Dad at work. If I'm not mistaken, I think it was taken in 1979. He was 31 years old. Time does fly. He's turning 61 this coming July. I thank God daily he has let us have him around this long. Life would not be the same without him.

Eight Injections

2009-03-31T11:42:00.002-06:00

Had another appointment with my Pain Management doctor again yesterday.
Since all the other injections on my neck and the new medications, nothing has really helped me so far. Yesterday he gave me 4 shots, 2 on each side of the lower neck and shoulders.
Painful? It was horrible. Hadn't had so much pain during such a simple process!
To top it off, had to spend the rest of the day in bed without moving. If this procedure doesn't work, it's back to another surgery.
Please pray for me during this special Lenten season that I don't have to go through surgery again. God Bless.

Lujan's Pediatric Ward

2009-03-17T19:13:00.003-06:00

Bet you'll are thinking that just in the City there are pediatric Wards. Well, actually we have them out here in the country also!

A couple of days ago, I stopped over to see my folks. anytime you see both Mom & Dad out together at the 'Ward', you know there are new additions to the family.

Three of their goats had just delivered, I missed it by about 10 minutes. I did all I could to take pictures of the newborns, but the new mamas kept trying to get right in front of the camera. Guess they wanted recognition for the good job they had just done.

The baby goat near the water trough had just been born a few minutes before and was trying so hard to stand on his own, and just as I started to walk away he decided to stand for a picture.

COUNTDOWN ! ! !

2009-03-07T14:05:00.002-06:00

I'm so anxious to share our news. It's 2 months away for Dad's retirement! !
We are so excited. Although he is going to look for another job, cause he doesn't want to stay home. Hopefully it'll be an 8-5 job and no weekends. He is so tired of shift work.
Retiring is great, but sad in a way, cause that's been his life for 37 years.
We were blessed with a good job for a town as small as this.

Church Incidents

2009-03-02T10:51:00.002-06:00

I read my Bea's blog, about Lauren. I'm sure if anyone other than family heard her, they didn't think it was funny, but since it's family, I thought it was.
Which reminded me of several incidents I've witnessed during church. Kids will be kids no matter how close you're watching out for little mishaps.
One I will never forget is one little boy (about 2yrs. old). His dad was holding him and the little boy decided it was time to clean house. He stuck his finger in his tiny nose and went to town with it, I feared he was cleaning out his sinuses too. After the thorough cleaning, he preceded to administer his 'moqitos' into his dad's nose. Hey, what else was he suppose to do with them?

Another time, Dad was attending church, and was running late, so there had not been time for a cup of coffee, so he headed out on an empty stomach. Well, wouldn't you know it, sitting in front of him was a couple with yet another toddler. Of course, like all mom's, she had taken a few Ritz crackers for the little girl. It took Dad all his strength not to grab those crackers out of her hands! He said, 'he had never seen anyone savor crackers like that before'. And, of course, immediately after chruch, if anyone who really knows Dad, he raced to the nearest grocery store to pick up his box of Ritz Crackers. Talk about one happy man!

Birthday Bouquet

2009-02-23T20:08:00.002-06:00

Wanted to share this beautiful birthday bouquet Cindy sent me today.

Isn't it Beautiful?

It had purple, pink,yellow and orange colored rose buds.

Mija now resides in Round Rock, Texas, suburb of Austin.

She seems to really like it. Quiet different from West Texas I'm sure.

She's really excited cause she's about 35 minutes from Tommy, who lives in San Antonio.

Another Birthday!

2009-02-23T19:28:00.002-06:00

Yes indeed. This old hag turned 59 today!
So, anyone wanting to send me birtday wishes may certainly do so.

Dad and J.G. Get Together

2009-02-17T13:29:00.002-06:00

Dad is in the Dallas/Ft.Worth area this week. He's at a meeting with a couple of co-workers from Luminant. He was a little upset cause he thought he wouldn't get to see J.G., since he was staying off I-20 closer to his meeting place.

Well, at the last minute, he decided to call a motel closer to where J.G. lives and bid on a rate.
Luckily he got it for almost half the price! He's about 2-3 minutes from J.G.
I called them last night and they were both having a great time together visiting at the motel. Dad didn't get into Dallas until after 5:30pm, so they planned to visit after J.G. got off work at 10:30 (second job). Turned out good. Dad called this morning and said they had a really good visit.

Wedding Attire

2009-01-31T21:00:00.002-06:00

I was just sitting here in my living room enjoying the beautiful day outside. Dad is working the night shift right now, so he's gone to work. I have about 3 hours of day light after he's gone to work.
Like I said, I was sitting here thinking of all the years we've had together, when something dreadful pops into my mind.
Yeah. Our wedding day. I hope no one remembers this.
Dad drove up wearing a black tuxedo and brown shoes! ! !

Yes, and I ain't lying either.!

Apparently he'd been out drinking with a cousin til the early hours of the morning, got home, took a short nap, showered and got dressed not realizing he was wearing brown shoes. Thank God he did notice when he got to the church. Thomas DeLoera was his life saver, he let him borrow his black shoes.

I'll never understand why Dad does the things he does.
I guess that's what makes John who he is. And I'm hoping there's not another one out there like him.

Weekend At J.G.'S

2009-01-27T18:07:00.002-06:00

Dad and I had a wonderful weekend in Arlington with Juan-Gabriel. We thought we'd see him here in Loraine for the DFR meeting, but with this second job he has, he doesn't have much time for anything else. He's off one day during the week, and that's when he tries to catch up with laundry, straightening up around the apartment, grading and posting grades.
We enjoyed the visit cause we didn't have anything planned, which was very relaxing.
J.G. had company over after lunch Saturday; Ian and Bree visited for awhile and we enjoyed them both. That little Bree is something else.
We got lazy after we had supper and were relaxing on the sofa's, when out of nowhere, J.G. insisted we get up. We put our jackets on, did a drive-by at Starbucks and headed down Dallas to see the lights. (this was about 10:30pm!).
We had a great time sight-seeing, the lights are fabulous.
We stayed out till after 12:30am. Which is not late, but for us old country folk it is.

Help Me! ! !

2009-01-14T03:04:00.003-06:00

Does anyone out there know what to do for insomnia? I've got it really bad. Right now it's after
3am, and I haven't been able to sleep at all since I went to bed at 10:30pm.
If I had plenty of hair, I would pull it right this second. What makes it worse is that Dad is working nights this week, and I hate being alone at night.

In these last few hours, I've recited a rosary, did my nightly prayers, and blessed the whole family from all directions in Texas.
I filed and conditioned my heels, did my nails, plugged my eyebrows, read my Family Circle Magazine, and some of the Catholic Digest.!

I can't possibly go on like this every night. If someone knows of a good remedy, please pass it on to me. I'd appreciate it. Thanks.

AGAIN, I'VE LOST MY DENTURES!

2009-01-05T13:10:00.003-06:00

Aye, Dios Mijo. Yep, I've done it again.
Lost my dentures!

You know I went almost 2 years without dentures cause I wouldn't keep up with them. So finally one day I lost them and never saw them again. I'm thinking they went in the trash. Oh, I'm so good at throwing things away. Pot holders, silverware, letters, etc. I just don't think, and when I clean up, I want to hurry and finish so I have two laundry baskets, one for trash and the other with stuff that needs to be put back at it's original place. The second basket hardly ever has anything but the trash basket is always full. You can't believe how many times Dad has pulled out stuff that shouldn't be thrown away. Boy, does he get angry!

So, I need to start a prayer chain. I really need those dentures or I'm not allowed to go out in public without them. Hee, Hee. No. Seriously, you'll pray I find them cause this time around I honestly don't think I'll get a second pair.

We're Back! ! ! ! !

2008-12-30T16:30:00.002-06:00

Bet everyone out there in blog land thought "oh good, the old couple is dead", so we don't have to bother with their blog anymore. Sorry. We are very much alive! Just gotten rather lazy.

Juan and I hope everyone had the best of the holidays. Now that Christmas is over and 2008 is almost gone, maybe now the DeLoera clan can start getting really excited over the reunion.

Before I forget, I want to let all you DeLoera's out there in case you were not aware: of how much time and hard work Maruca (Mary Thomas) has put into this reunion.
Don't misunderstand me, from what I hear there are several committee's working really hard also. A BIG THANKS TO ALL.

Dad and I really enjoyed having both Cindy and J.G. here together this Christmas. I love when both my adult kids come over and stay. You sit back and watch them in how they act, do and speak of things, and you think back and say, " are these the same kids we raised a few years back?" It's funny how a parent will always think of the time when the kids are growing up, not when they're grown up. Ok. Ok., can feel my lips quivering already. Better stop it!

30 years ago!

2008-11-26T08:47:00.001-06:00

Our youngest' birthday...Happy Birthday, JG.

Found Him in the Classifieds

2008-11-15T09:04:00.003-06:00

I finally came to the conclusion that I could no longer keep up with my house work. So, I decided I needed to start looking for someone to help me out at least one day a week.

It didn't take me long to realize I had that perfect someone living with me.
The best part of it all is, 'he really works for almost nothing!'
Maybe a good massage or a good home cooked meal. Every once in a while he'll clean twice weekly. That's when he gets rewarded with dessert.

Tell you what, he does a cleaning a whole lot better than I ever did. And guess what?
YEAH, HE VACUUMS UNDER THE REFRIGERATOR!

You ladies out there outta try it.

Mi Querido Esposo

2008-10-31T17:37:00.002-06:00

Yeah, that's right. Aye, este Juanito is so thoughtful. He had a day off today, but still went out to the plant cause they were honoring the employees with a steak luncheon. If I'm not mistaken, I think they do this 2 or 3 times a year.
First they work their asses off and then feed them half a cow on each plate! No. Really they really do go all out for them, which I think is great.

Anyway, to make a long story short, Dad went on to the luncheon and I was curled up on the sofa with a cup of coffee crying my eyes out because of this horrible pain. I guess that made him feel bad that he was having a great lunch, and like usual I was left home not feeling well.

When he got home, I was sitting on the sofa folding laundry, he came up and removed the ottoman where I was setting the clothes aside, and spread out a cloth on the ottoman. Right then, I thought, 'oh shit, this looks like it's gonna get good!"
Sure enough, here he comes with 3 containers full of food. One of the containers contained broiled lemon chicken, hot roll, and a huge baked potato. The smaller one was the Caesar salad, and he left the best for last. THE FRIED MUSHROOMS ! ! !
Oh, how I love those little boogers!
Isn't he just the sweetest little Juanito you ever heard of? Well, I definitely think so. And another thing is I'm not sharing him with absolutely no one.

So, How's Everyone Doing?

2008-10-14T20:31:00.002-05:00

Hadn't posted anything lately, same old thing, not feeling very well. Today was not as bad, which in a way was a good thing, cause Dad and I had to get flu shots, so I was able to make it.
Which made me remember maybe about 10 years ago about this time, I would insist that Mom and Dad get their flu shots, because they were now that age. Well, I'll be damn if Daddy asked me the other day if we had already gotten our shots! ! WOW, WHAT A SHOCKER! We're now that age.
We were in Arlington the 1st weekend of October. We were there since Friday and came home mid afternoon on Monday. How nice to get out of the house for a few days. Dad has still has vacation days he has to take before December, so he took off 14 days. Sure has been nice. We've been up and down and accomplishing absolutely nothing.
Dad and I were really excited when we planned going into Arlington, cause we thought Cindy was going to be able to join us, but that week she had some medical testing she needed to have done (medical, not mental, we've been told there's nothing we can do for her in that area). It sure would of been nice if she could of joined us, but maybe next time.
Dad had J.G. laughing like crazy one of the nights we decided to sit around the pool till 1 or 2 am
in the morning. Dad started out with his jokes, one after another. I know when J.G. can't take too much when he starts throwing his head back and starts rubbing his chest where he just can't take anymore. We enjoy watching him laugh more than the actual jokes.
Well, it's my privilege to announce to everyone that Dad has been acting sooooooo good, hasn't gotten into any trouble or anything. I sure hope he's not coming down with anything.

Can't Seem To Get Rid of Him!

2008-09-25T08:54:00.002-05:00

This last Tuesday was my second visit to the arthritis doctor. I entered the office and was signing in and both the receptionist and nurse both said, (at the same time) "Oh, you allowed him to come back with you?"
"Yes," I said, but he did promise he'd be on his best behavior. So, I'm giving him a second chance."
On our way over there, I told him I'd let him go to Lowe's (which he could spend hours in there) and take him to Starbucks for a nice frozen treat, if he would act good, and try not to touch anything or for that matter, not even speak during my visit with the doctor.
GUESS WHAT? He did Great! Even the office ladies were proud of him.
Now I wonder why he couldn't of acted this well the first time around?
Oh well, that's past, so why dwell on it.
Who said you couldn't teach an Old Donkey new tricks?

John Muñoz a Doctor's Assistant? I THINK NOT!

2008-09-12T20:22:00.002-05:00

This past Tuesday I had another appointment with yet another Arthritis Specialist. I'm hoping sooner or later, I should find the right doctor. There haven't been many doctor visits which Dad has not been there with me. He has always made it possible to take me and always been there for great support.
Although I'm thinking maybe this last Tuesday, might very well be the last time I'm allowing Dad to join me.

During the visit, the doctor decided he needed to give me 4 injections on my neck and shoulders, and change my medication. Meanwhile he gave me an examining gown and to lay face down on the examining table, and he and the nurse would come back in as soon as I was ready.
Immediately Dad comes out with, "Orale, Vieja, como le vamos aser aqui?" (reason being, I can't bend my knees to get on the table then turn over). Ok. I must admit I couldn't get on the table cause I got tickled at what Dad had just said and the expression on his face looking around like he wanted to call out, "uh, Hello, I'm I not getting any help here?" Alright, finally get situated and just as I'm ready to call the doctor and nurse back in, I feel my walking cane on my ASS! Helplessly I yelled at him to STOP! His remarks to this was, "hey, just checking your oil and reflexes!"

So, during the actual procedure of being injected and it not feeling too good already, Dad has stepped back and out of the way and happens to lean on the wall, and yeah you're right.
WITH HIS BACK HE TURNS OFF THE LIGHT SWITCH! ! !
TOTAL DARKNESS. INSTANTLY I THOUGHT, 'I'M DEAD.' HE CAN'T SEE AND HE'S GOING FOR MY HEAD WITH THE NEEDLE!'
Dad realizes what he's done, and immediately flips the switch back on.
He said the nurse just looked up at him, shook her head and just smiled. That's it? I can't understand why they didn't kick him out of the room! !
On our way home I kept thinking with my left arm resting against the windshield and looking up to the beautiful heavens, "Lord, why do these things happen to me?"
ANSWER: JOHN MUÑOZ

Story of an Old Red Ranchero Truck

2008-09-01T16:46:00.006-05:00

Many years ago, I'd say about 20 years, there was a red ranchero pickup which had the misfortune of being bought by a man by the name of Sir John Muñoz.

John needed a vehicle badly to get to and from work. Oh, John was so excited over his new pickup.! You know, when you get a new car or truck, even if it's not a brand new one, how you just can't seem to wash it enough, and get that nice blinding shine! Well, this lasted for about a week or so. Hey, even I was proud of Old Red. It really seemed like it was gonna turn out to be a good work truck.

Dad had been driving Old Red for almost two years, when he had the misfortune of getting hit on the passenger side early one morning on his way to work. He hadn't even made it into town, if I remember correctly, I think it was about a mile from the house. If any of you know where Richard and Michelle Muñoz live, it was right there near their crossroad. Like I said, Dad was on his way to work, enjoying a good bean/egg burrito with coffee when he saw this man come up to the stop sign and actually stopped. But, when Dad was passing the crossroad, the little old man decided to go on and cross also. Well, if any of you know John really well, you can just imagine the language! ! It wasn't just about getting hit, but trying to control Old Red with one hand and not letting go the burrito with the other.! Old Red was riding on its two left wheels for a short distance till dad was able to straightened her back on all four wheels. He sat there awhile with hot coffee all over him and looking at the driver's side window smeared with what was left of his BURRITO. He looked back and the little man that hit him was in the middle of the road, with his hands and head resting on the steering wheel. (I can picture this and I think this is so funny).
They finally decided what they had to do and the man was nice enough to bring Dad back home. That was beginning of Dad's bad luck with Old Red. It sat there with a totally broken windshield, passenger side door almost resting on the steering wheel, (not a pretty site).

Ok, so he got her all fixed up again a few months later, and Old Red kept going for a few more years, until she finally started getting tired of taking Dad back and forth to work. Her transmission starting acting up and Dad knew it was either time to replace the transmission or replace Old Red.

Well, folks, Old Red had plans of her own. She didn't give Dad much time to think about his choices. She took him to work one day and from there she decided she was no longer gonna let Dad drive her in forward anymore, (only in reverse).

Yep. that's the day J.G. will never forget. Cindy, J.G. and I can never understand why John does the things he does. He could of left Old Red at work, and I could of picked him up, but NO.
What if someone decided to drive away with it! ! ! (you know how anyone would just love to drive off with a 1967 red ranchero, which does not run forward).

So, Sir John decides to leave the plant in reverse! He says he remembers the look on the security guard's face when he drove out the security gate in reverse. Dad just waved and went on. Actually his plan was to drive it all the way home (almost 8-10 miles). On his way into town, he kept passing people and just waving. He had to stop a couple of times cause "his neck was getting really tired," he said. He'd rest his neck awhile and kept going. He tried taking the back streets into town to avoid all stop signs. But, that didn't work out well. Try to imagine Dad stopped at a stop sign driving his truck backwards. That would make him stop face to face with the car stopped behind him! Aye, Aye, Aye! ! Embarrassing? Yes. Wouldn't you think so? After a few more of these stops and a really stiff neck, he decided to park Old Red at his brother's house in town. He could go no longer. His neck couldn't take it anymore.

That my friends is where Old Red decided it was time to hang up her wheels and go to eternal rest in some quiet salvage yard and away from the hands of John Muñoz.
After so many years, it's still hard to believe Dad actually did this!

He says, "when you're young, you try anything"!

Our 37th Anniversary!

2008-08-28T09:44:00.002-05:00

On this day 37 years ago, we became Mr. and Mrs. John Muñoz at 3:00pm.
Today, we both wish we weighed what we did back then. Oh, well. That's why they call it the past. Right?
Dad came in from work this morning, (I was still in bed) came in with my usual morning coffee, which he picks up for me each morning, and a 'chorizo and egg burrito'. WOW! You talk about an excited Bride!
Before he went to bed in one of the other bedrooms, he said to wake him about 11am, and if I was feeling up to it, we'd go out and have lunch. (He has a meeting tonight, so we have to do lunch). OK. SOUNDS GOOD TO ME. So, that means if I want to be taken out, I really need to start straighting the house up, vacuuming, moping, washing windows (11), doing laundry, ironing, and finally, polishing his shoes. No biggy, cause this is what he's probably dreaming as I write this blog. It's never happened in 37 years, and it ain't gonna start now. Ha! Ha!
One things for sure, Dad's a spender. He likes to go all out for anniversaries. And, I'm sorta thinking this year it'll be SONIC. Yeah, almost sure, cause I happened to mention they now have that delicious looking fried ice cream for desert.

When you guys have time, check on my archives towards the very beginning, where I starting blogging about our anniversaries. Hope you enjoy it. Later, and God Bless

Old McMuñoz Had a Tractor!

2008-08-21T15:44:00.003-05:00

Uh Huh. Mr. Muñoz has been wanting an old little tractor for years now so that he can haul dirt over from one side of the house to the other, clean up around the house and actually just play around with it.

So, yesterday as we were driving home from Sweetwater, about a mile or so from Jesse and Mona Deloera's house, he spotted the damn tractor of his life! I thought to myself, please don't let him turn back. Well. He did. And yes, he did buy the ugly tractor.

So, there goes my newly ordained farmer and his tractor on the side road off I-20.
I wanted so bad to just pass him and get the hell home, because the Tractor of My Life doesn't go over maybe 20 miles per hour. I couldn't do that to him though, it was really hot and humid. I thought, " what if he passes out from a heat stroke, or dies of thirst, I would never forgive myself.

For about 2 hours, I would pass him and park about a mile or so ahead, (usually under the underpasses where I had a good shade). Sit and listen to the radio, till I could see Old McMuñoz coming up behind me. I'd let him pass me, he'd smile and wave each time. We continued this about 5 or 6 times down the interstate. Till we got to Loraine, I really needed to get to the bathroom, (during this not so exciting drive home, I managed to down my coke and a bottle of water). I still couldn't find it in my heart to leave him on the road by himself. I managed to hold off till I turned off on our county road to the house. BOY! I FLOORED IT THEN! !

Well, he made it home. Comes inside the house and says, "Gotta take back the tractor in the morning, having trouble changing gears, gotta be the transmission" (all of a sudden he knows all about the worthless tractor)!

So, I suppose you're wondering if we took the tractor back? Yes. Indeed we did. Same trip, opposite side of I-20, but today, I didn't leave the house until maybe half hour after he left.
I still caught up with him just outside Loraine. I was hoping he'd be further along. This time I passed him and went onto Roscoe, picked up some good hot coffee, muffin and newspaper, found me a nice place to park along I-2o. Enjoyed the hell out of my breakfast and daily paper.
As for McMuñoz, he seemed a little down, but at the same time he was thankful he had found it was messing up, cause he couldn't have been able to afford the repairs.

I hope now that he took his little ride on his dream tractor, he can forget about it and get himself back to work tomorrow.

Finally Got a Digital Camera!

2008-08-14T21:05:00.002-05:00

That's right. Good ole John surprised me with a digital camera. I could of kept on using my Cannon camera, but I embarrassed J.G. at Nate's wedding. Yeah, I thought I had a full roll of film and of course I didn't. So, there goes my good old camera rewinding the film and making that very loud rewinding sound, which nearly made J.G. want to leave the reception.
If I remember correctly his words to me were: "Oh my gosh, Mom, please put that thing away, I can't believe you still have that camera". Oh, yeah. I love embarrassing my kids!

I hate parting with my old camera. It holds a lot of special memories. Just the fact that Dad bought it for me about 20 years ago when I had my hysterectomy! I guess he must of thought that if he bought me a camera, it would lessen the pain. You know Dad, always being thoughtful!

So, now I have a new camera and I can't seem to find what to take a picture of! Maybe, tonight since Dad started his night shift, I can actually take a good look at it, read up on the instructions, send in the warranty, and if I can figure out how to work it, maybe tomorrow I'll go out to the back yard and take a few pictures of Daddy's 30 goates and miniature donkey!

Spirtual Killer

2008-08-06T11:31:00.002-05:00

One of today's silent but most deadly "Spiritual Killers" is pornography- - - especially Internet Pornography.

NO WONDER THEY CALL IT "THE WEB"!

DFR 2009

2008-07-31T09:37:00.002-05:00

I've sorta been trying to keep up with the preparations on the reunion. It sure is great that you can either log on to the web site or the toll free number. You people are really getting it together aren't you?
It's great to have such easy access to any questions about the planning.
I really enjoyed Elizabeth's photo shots on the first get together.

Dad and I think you guys and gals are doing great so far.

Update on Anthony

2008-07-22T21:22:00.002-05:00

I talked to Jr. this afternoon to check up on Anthony. He says all is going very good. Today he had an appointment in Abilene and the doctor seems to think he is doing quite well. The only thing is he drove a while and got a slight headache and tired a little, but Jr. says that's somewhat to be expected since it's been a while since he's driven. It's just gonna take time to get his complete strength back, but he'll be 100% soon. He still needs to wear his oxygen mask when he's out in public, but even that is just when he's out of the house around other people.
I asked him about the doctor in Abilene, he's the one who referred him to his doctor in Dallas, so he'll be doing his checkups in Abilene so he won't have the long drive back into Dallas. Pretty good news wouldn't you say?

Jr. also happen to mention he'd seen Daniel Alvarez, one of our high school classmates. Don't know if any of you may remember him, I know Maruca does.
MARUCA REMEMBERS EVERYTHING AND EVERYONE! SHE'S GOT A GREAT MEMORY. WISH I DID TOO! Anyway Jr. is still wanting to have a 40th class reunion this year. I'm not going. I know I'll come home with all the awards, Most Oldest, Most Obese, Most Balding, Most Wrinkles, Less Teeth, Most Sagging Skin, Most Age Spots (and that's only on one hand), and it goes on and on. I'll probably have to make a file for all the awards. NO. NO. AIN'T GOING! ! No pets, no grandchildren, no rose bushes, oh, my gosh, I need to stop.
Blessings to all you readers out there. HEY! BLESS ME BACK! CAN'T YOU SEE I'VE GOT ISSUES HERE?

BREAKING NEWS JUST IN ! ! !

2008-07-16T12:34:00.001-05:00

ANTHONY'S COMING HOME!

Our Strong, Very Strong Son!

2008-07-02T09:01:00.002-05:00

So, Monday our 30 year old Son, texts, texts, and texts AGAIN, then emailed, and finally called later that night about his knee hurting. He sounded frantic, (like I'm dying here, kinda frantic). I ask myself, why are men such babies? I've been asking myself this question for years and still can't come up with a reasonable answer.
Dad and I thought we may have to pack up and find him in the Intensive Care Unit!

Just a bruised knee from playing basketball. All he needed was an ice pack and an extra pillow.
He's doing quiet well now. Aye, este Niño.

THINK OF ME ONLY, TODAY! !

2008-06-20T09:42:00.002-05:00

PRAYER!! Constant, don't let up not one second kinda prayer is what I need today.
I'm taking mother shopping for clothes!
Don't misunderstand me. I love my Mom dearly., but when it comes to taking her shopping, I almost have to start a round of Xanax 3 to 4 days earlier.
She has got to be the pickiest shopper I know.
Believe it or not, but we're just shopping for one outfit today. And that still freaks me out.
So, again I beg you. Pray for me!
If I don't publish another post, chances are I didn't make it through the day.

Great Father's Day Weekend

2008-06-16T17:36:00.002-05:00

It was a good Father's Day for me again. Praise God I still had Dad for another year. Although I wasn't able to see him till late Sunday afternoon. I sorta made up for it, cause I visited with him until almost 10:30pm. I don't usually do that cause I know they both tire quickly, but we all seemed to be enjoying the conversation. He loves when we start asking him about family members and about his younger years. His face just lights up.

J.G. wasn't able to make it down. But, that's ok. If you get a chance, you might want to log on to his blog site. He wrote his Dad a very sincere note for him, which made Dad get teary eyed. Hey nothing wrong with that, we get older and it takes a lot of strength to hold back tears.

Cindy invited him to go over and she bar-b-qued for him. Boy, howdy, can that girl Q. ! ! She wanted him there by 1:00pm. If you don't know Cindy that well, when she sets a time, we know to make it there by then. We walked in about 1:30, ( Dad seems to always get side tracked at all the car lots, even though we actually aren't shopping for a car). She didn't say anything about us being late, I guess she held back what with it being Father's Day! !

We all enjoyed the great meal. Really enjoyed the three kiddos. They're so much fun. I had to play with all of them, Barbies, cops, water guns, etc.. I was very proud of myself, seems I haven't forgotten how to comb Barbie and dress her up! Dad played it smart. He went on to Academy, so he wasn't forced into playing for almost an hour or so.
I hadn't bought Dad a gift since we were going in to Abilene, so I asked Dad if he wouldn't go for me, ( he loves to SHOP!). I had set my mind on getting my Dad a pair of Crocs for his Father's Day gift. Dad asked if I had a limit on how much I wanted to spend on the Crocs, I said, " hell no, Daddy's getting old so I'm going all out this year. Make it $5, hey wait a minute! make it $6, I really feel like doing some really serious damage this year!) What the hell, we're not gonna have around for ever, right?

Another Great Time in Arlington

2008-06-12T18:38:00.002-05:00

Dad and I went to Arlington this past weekend and I'm just now finding time to post our visit. I don't understand it. I never used to be like this. Something weird is happening. I told Dad when he came in from work this evening, that this morning after listening to daily mass on TV, I got up to put a load of laundry in the washer, when it suddenly hit me. I couldn't remember if I had already taken a shower or not ! Not Good Huh?

Dad and J.G. spent most of the day together, I love when they do that. I stayed and did absolutely nothing, which is exactly what I wanted. I read some of J.G.'s books, watched some TV, and actually put on makeup! I don't usually wear makeup when I'm down in Arlington, cause the humidity is so bad my makeup just runs down in minutes.

Later that evening we went out to eat. We met up with the Moore's and Edward. Edward had come down on Friday to visit his buddy, Anthony.
We had a good time visiting together and freezing our asses off at Cheddars, it was so damn cold in there! I'm not being rude, but the best part of the evening was watching two waiters run into to each other. (poor kids, they were really busy). The one coming down the stairs had a large tray full of plates, and here comes this other waiter at full speed and ran into him. I felt so embarrassed for him. He had mashed potatoes on the tip of his nose and eyebrows, some kind of white cream was covering his left cheek, and some of the cream was also on his nice spiked hair, of course the rest of the meal was all over his clothes. After the incident is when we all got tickled over it. Poor kid, he made my night.

Sunday morning the three of us made it to church, and afterwards went to visit with Anthony. He looks so good. Doesn't even look like he's gone through a transplant. It sure makes a difference when you're young and healthy. We had agreed to stay only 30 minutes or so cause we didn't want to tire him. Jr. and Anita look happy to see his son doing so well.
Oh, talk about Jr. and Anita. I could of and really wanted to choke them to death. They knew we were coming cause we called ahead of time. But, did either one of them bother to mention to me that there was an elevator up to the apartment (which is on the second floor)!!! NO Fat ass with just 5 weeks into a total knee replacement climbed about 10 stairs. Boy, was I ticked off. Jr. opens the door and looks at us and first thing he says, "you didn't just climb up those stairs did you?" Right then I could feel my shaky hands on his neck!
Him showing us where the elevator was when we were leaving didn't empress me at all. I had already been through torture. That's ok. One day I plan to get back at both of them.

Anthony's Updates

2008-05-27T05:40:00.003-05:00

For a more recent update on Anthony's
condition, log on to J.G.'s blog.

He's been able to make a couple of visits.

Mary (Maruca) Thomas Never Sleeps!

2008-05-22T09:19:00.002-05:00

Maruca emailed me this morning (Thurs.),
to tell me that her and Christopher and Nicholas
visited with Jr. and Anita yesterday.
Like I said, her brain never stops working.
'Para quando yo voy, Maruca ya biene!'

She asked Jr. to write something down so that
she could email it to us. She states she didn't want
to misquote him, so here it is:

'Today May 21st, Anthony received his last of five
radiation treatments. At 1:30pm, he started receiving
stem cells that were blessed by the hospital chaplain.
These stem cells were donated by Anthony's older
brother, Jeremiah. Jeremiah donated his stem cells during
a four hour process the day prior. The nurses and
chaplain wished Anthony a HAPPY BIRTHDAY, this
being his first day with his healthy cells. "Gracias A Dios"

Before leaving I asked Anthony what he wanted me to
tell everybody,- - - he said to tell everybody hi and
thank you for the prayers. AMEN BRO'

THANK YOU SO MUCH, MARUCA.

DALLAS MORNING TIMES! "Bone Marrow Patient Downs Burrito Before Transplant"

2008-05-21T20:43:00.002-05:00

Just as the title reads! !
From what Anita informed me, Anthony
was able to eat one of mom's burritos this
morning. What da you think of that?

Anthony did really well this afternoon during
his long awaited procedure.
It started about 1pm and was almost completed
by 2:30 or 2:45 this afternoon.
No signs of rejection during the process!

Soooo pleased to hear this great news.
Keep it up Anthony.

Thank You, Jeremy

2008-05-20T20:24:00.005-05:00

Had a call from Anita this afternoon.

She said everyone is doing alright.
Anthony's' last radiation treatment is
tomorrow. He has been experiencing
some nausea, but not anything severe.
Hey, he even got on an exercise bike yesterday
afternoon! Pretty strong guy, wouldn't you say?

Jeremy donated his super good blood this
morning. He started his procedure this
morning at 7am - 12pm. Anita says after
that, he went to the apartment to get plenty
of rest, since he and Jaime will head
back home tomorrow.

Tomorrow afternoon Anthony will start
receiving Jeremy's' blood. We pray that
everything goes well and that he not
have complications with infections.

Juan-Gabriel's Visit With Anthony

2008-05-19T08:39:00.002-05:00

Juan-Gabriel visited with Anthony yesterday
after church. I was really glad to hear that
he looks good and doesn't even look like he's
sick.
The chemo is sorta starting to get to him
a little though. Apparently he wasn't in the
best of moods for awhile yesterday morning.
Do you blame him? Supposedly the doctor
came in to check on him and was checking
the port on his chest and the doctor had
coffee breath, which pissed off Anthony, cause
it made him really nauseous! Ha!
He walked around awhile, but tired a little
and went to sleep. Sounds like he's really
doing good.
Mijo, was kind enough to take Jaime and Anita
out for awhile. He showed them around Dallas
and the beautiful homes and shops. Hope they
enjoyed getting out for awhile. Hopefully that
released some stress. Thanks, J.G.

UPDATE ON ANTHONY

2008-05-16T19:31:00.002-05:00

Super great news on Anthony.
Talked to Anita this afternoon (Fri.),
and they were just leaving for the
hospital to admit Anthony at 2pm.

The good news is that yesterday (Thurs.),
they attended a meeting, explaining
all details as to what is going to happening
daily, plus a schedule of his procedure.

Apparently this process is not taking as long
as they had thought.
Today, he starts chemo for 3 days.
After the chemo, he has 3 days of radiation.
Then after that, hopefully by next Wednesday,
they will be able to do the blood transfusion.
He will probably receive Jeremys' blood all
in one day.

I got to talk to him and he sounded really
strong and positive.
I pray to God that everything goes well.

Oh, almost forgot. He won't be in isolation!
In fact, if a family member wishes to stay
overnight, they will be allowed to. Of course
there are certain precautions they have to
go through because of infections.
So, seems like things are really going good today.

MUÑOZ FAMILY ADDRESS

2008-05-15T12:22:00.002-05:00

Hey guys, thanks to Maruca (Mary) Thomas, I now
have Jr. and Anitas' address there in Dallas.
They have been there since Wednesday, I think
Jeremy has been going through more testing since
then. Don't quote me on this. I'm really bad at
getting my shit straight. But, I know for sure
that Anthony will be admitted to the hospital
tomorrow. (Friday)
This is all I know as of now. Maybe Maruca can
give you more detailed information.

Here is the address:
2732 Gaston Ave. #124
Dallas, Tx 75226

214-748-9968

A special friend sent me an email this morning,
and at the bottom of the letter she sent this
beautiful poem:
Happiness keeps you sweet,
Trials keep you strong,
Sorrows keep you human,
Life keeps you humble,
Success keeps you glowing,
But Only
GOD KEEPS YOU GOING

ANTHONY MUÑOZ

2008-05-13T17:06:00.002-05:00

As many of you already know, Anthony is
having a very delicate procedure done this
coming week. It has something to do with his
bone marrow. From how Anita explained to me,
it is a rare blood disorder found in almost
one in a million people.
So, please pray along with the family that
all goes well for him. He may have to spend
the whole summer in Dallas, which to a young
man, that has to be very hard not being able
to hang out with his buddies. But, what is one
summer if it means curing and saving his young
life from this disorder.
The family hero is JEREMY, Anthony's brother.
He matched Anthonys' blood and will be giving
Anthony his good,strong blood.
This bone marrow procedure does not involve
any surgery. (Praise God). It is all done
by blood transfusions.

Hopefully soon I can acquire Jr. and Anita's
address there in Dallas and have it posted so
that family or anyone who wishes to keep in
contact with them can do so. Oh, forgot to
inform you, this will take place At Baylor.

For right now though, let's keep Anthony in
our prayers. May God grant Jeremy, Jr. and Anita
the strength and courage to get through this
rough time in their lives.

Doctor Visit Went Well

2008-05-07T19:35:00.002-05:00

Had my first appointment after surgery this past Monday
and everything seems to be going well.
No infections and swelling seems to be going down plenty.
I didn't realize it until they were removing the staples,
that I actually was carrying around 34 nice silver staples!
I've really never had this much pain after
the other replacements. I'm thinking maybe I take soooo
much pain medication for my arthritis, that I may
be immuned to simple pain meds. So, he had to
change the meds to something stronger. Wow!! A LOT STRONGER!!
Other than that it seems like I may be well on
my road to recovery. Till next time. Adios!

Surgery Finally In The Past

2008-04-26T15:42:00.002-05:00

Well, I finally got the knee replacement out of the way! AGAIN
Went into the hospital Monday 21st, about 4:30pm and I
think I remember being back in my room about 10:00pm.
Maybe not. I don't quiet remember. But, I've done great.
Praise God. I did have a little trouble right after surgery, I've
always told them several times before my surgeries, that
morphine does not do anything for me. Guess they just don't
believe me and they have to check for themselves that I'm
right. Once they got the right stuff into the IV, and kicked
in rather slowly, I was good shape. I have been feeling good
since. I was a little sore or pain, I don't know which, after
this morning's exercises. I think I may be walking around
too much.
Other than that, I feel great!
I will make one correction on J.G.'s blog.
It's really two knees, one hip and two shoulders I've had
replaced. Hope this is the last.

Grouchy Old Bitch

2008-03-30T14:55:00.002-06:00

That's right. That's what Ive turned into.
( Hey, I don't wanna hear anyone say, " oh,she's
been like that all her life!" ) Honestly, Ive tried
very hard not to be like that. But, now I feel
like I've gotten to the point of o return.

My freaking left knee has given out completely.
So, I'm having it replaced April 21. Not looking forward
to it at all. After this replacement I'll have only
my right hip that hasn't been replaced. But, hey, give
me a year or so and I promise you that's gonna
go too.

It gets a little rough not being able to get around
and do as I was, but, I'm sure there are people out
there with more serious problems than this.

If you blog readers would be so kind as to send
a few prayers down this way, you absolutely
don't know how much I would appreciate it.
Don't know if I can take the agonizing pain till
then. This is way I need prayers. Thanks.

More Good News!

2008-03-13T04:35:00.002-06:00

Indeed it is GOOD NEWS.
J.G. has now lost a total of 117 pounds!
Dad and I are so proud of him.
I could never go cold turkey like that!
Well, you know what?
Maybe I could, once the doctor tells me
it's a matter of life or death.
Yeah, the more I write on this subject,
the more I think I Just Might Do It.
But, it's gonna have to be after I finish
off this bag of Oreo cookies. It would be
a horrible sin to throw the bag away since
I just bought it yesterday.

New Addition to the Cindy Muñoz Family

2008-03-12T20:37:00.002-06:00

So Cindy has her first placement as a foster parent.
She got called Monday morning saying they (CPS) had
a 5 year old little girl, and her 2 year old brother. I'm so
glad they didn't split them up, I've seen it happen before.
It has got to be the most painful situation to watch.

The first night, Cindy said the little girl walked in the house
and went straight to a corner and cried with sooo much
pain and hurt. Poor child, can you imagine being picked up
by someone you have never in your life seen before, travel almost
3 hours to get to Abilene, then get delivered to strangers
and a house they've never been in before? This hurts me
so much. I sat and cried till almost 2:00 am, just thinking
of the children and how they must miss their mom, and
wondering if they'll ever see her again. I prayed that they
both have a good nights' rest without crying.

Cindy called me the next morning, saying they had slept so
well and were just talking and smiling. Cindy made some
time to hold and caress them for awhile before taking
them to daycare and school. These innocent children need
so much love and affection, or simply just for someone
to pay attention to them every once in awhile.

They came with few cloths and I think only the shoes they
had on. But, I tell you what, Cindy and Traci have the
most wonderful and caring friends. They immediately
started looking for clothing, shoes, etc. I called my niece,
Bea, and she's got a lot for me to bring home. Apparently, she
mentioned the situation to her co-workers and they also
promised to bring in some clothes, toys, etc. by Friday.

Cindy was so happy over such good news and people
helping out so quick. She says, "now little Abrianna
doesn't have to be embarrassed about what she wears to
school. I asked Cindy about the length of Abriannas' hair.
She responded with a very confused answer, " I honestly
don't know what to tell you about her hair, she put the
scissors to her bangs and the sides of her hair! !!! We're
trying to do the best we can till Friday's hair appointment.

I'm thinking I'll be getting daily phone calls about stories
these little ones are going to get into. I'm proud of Mija.
She knows she will go through a lot of pain if these children
get placed for adoption and leave. She says she understands,
but if she can just give them a day, a week, or months of
love and affection, she'll be satisfied no matter how much
it hurts. Just as long as the kids are not out there starving
and being neglected. Very proud of her.

Relaxing Weekend

2008-03-03T13:19:00.002-06:00

Do you remember on one of my much older
blogs, I had stated that I wouldn't sit with
"the boys", (Cindy's dogs). Well, guess what I
did this past weekend? That's right. I watched
the three idiots again.
This time around it wasn't as bad as the first time.
I only had to watch them one night.
Cindy had left all their food in their individual bowls,
and labeled with their names on each. Simple.
I still wish they would train them to unlock the back
door, go outside and do their thing, run around for
awhile, come back inside and lock the door behind them.
Hopefully. You know some dogs are pretty smart!
I don't know about these though.
About the relaxing weekend. That's exactly what I did.
I had a list of places and things to do, but wasn't able
to do them. About 2 weeks ago, I hurt my left leg, I
don't know how, but it has been giving me trouble since
then. Well, this past weekend it was really bad. I was
just able to get up to the bathroom, let the dogs out,
and back to bed with my leg elevated. Such serious
pain. Today is Monday, and I have a 3:00 pm appointment
with the doctor and I'm hoping he will xray it and
see what the hell I did with it. It doesn't feel like
arthritis pain. So, I pray it's not anything serious.
To top it off, it is snowing like crazy right now. Hope it
doesn't start freezing and I go fall on my ass.
Pray for me that everything goes alright.

? ? ? ? ?

2008-02-25T16:27:00.002-06:00

Well, I'm dummer than I think! !!!!!!!
I was informed today (Monday) afternoon that I am
not 68 years old. I'M ONLY 58 ! ! !

J.G. texted me and asked if I had any intentions
on changing the age on my blog. I was on the road
when I received his message, and I replied with
a simple, "Why?"

I got home and went straight to the blog and sure
enough, there it was, the biggest 68!!!!!!

I think it's time for a pray chain!!

Thank God for My 68th Birthday

2008-02-23T21:04:00.002-06:00

February 23, 1950, I decided to make my first
appearance into this world, and well, I'm still here!
In fact the hospital in which I was born still stands.

I had a wonderful birthday today. Cindy had called
earlier during the week to ask where I wanted to
eat. She told me about a new Chinese restaurant
which just opened up and is really good and the atmosphere
is really nice. So, I agreed. Lets try it.
She reserved a table for 12:00 noon, cause since it is
new she says it really gets packed quickly. So, we all
get there and there is this big sign on the door.
'Sorry for the inconvenience, but our power has gone
out. Trying to fix problem soon!'

Alrighty then. So what to do now. They left it up to me
since I was the one having the birthday. It didn't take
long, cause we were all starving. We dined at another
Chinese place that was super great.
At times like this I feel bad that my kids don't live
closer together so we can all celebrate our birthdays'
together, but, hey, that's life.

Dad and I spent the rest of the afternoon in Abilene,
since we had quite a large list of things we had to do.
Just spending the afternoon together was fun. As you
well know by now, I hate to shop! Dad on the other
hand, loves it! So, each time we stopped somewhere,
or at the mall, I stayed in the car, took out my reading
material and enjoyed the hell out of myself just reading.
Weird Huh? I'm sure Dad was having a great time
shopping cause I wasn't around nagging him to hurry.

We finally made it home about 7pm. Got into my p.j.'s
then started getting unexpected company. My sister,
Helen came by with the most beautiful candy bouquet.!
I'd never seen anything so pretty. It had all different
kinds of finger size candy bars, and was decorated beautiful.
Joey and his wife, Cassie and the boys gave me the
most beautiful cross, and seems to be made out of adobe.
Something really different. And of course, Dad presented
me with two dozen beautiful yellow roses! ( my favorite)
Later during the evening had calls from the rest of the family
members, including Tommy, from San Antonio.
He's my favorite brother-in-law from San Antonio. Shush,
Shush, don't tell the other members of Dads' family!
I thank God for a wonderful and Blessed Day.

Super Good News at 9:30 pm !

2008-02-20T21:31:00.002-06:00

J.G. called us at about 9:30 pm. Wed. night.
He had just got home from the gym.
The great news is: 108 lbs. lost ! ! !

J.G.'s Trip To West Texas

2008-02-20T13:38:00.002-06:00

J.G. had a three day weekend because of Presidents' Day.
He decided to make a short visit to Loraine. Just so
happens, Tommy was also down from San Antonio, so
all of Nanas' sons and daughters were also here to visit
with Tommy. Since the early part of the week, the weather
was suppose to get nasty, but thank God it didn't, that
made it much easier for those driving into Loraine.
Jaime had his twins for the weekend. Fernando and Sharon
also were here with their twin boys.
Nana had a full house Saturday night and all seemed
to be having a great time visiting.

Cindy wasn't able to join us. Guess why? Yeah, that's right.
One of the "boys", (Odis) the male boxer had a cancerous
tumor removed from one of his eyes Friday, so he couldn't
be left alone with the other two idiots for fear they'd
mess with his eye. Cindy wanted me to send Odis a get
well email card. Yeah. Like that's gonna happen!
Which reminds me, Feb.29th., I'm watching the "boys"
again. ONE NIGHT ONLY! ! ! And they better not
be on any medications, I had enough of that the last time!

Oh, by the way. J.G. brought us great news. He has now
lost a total of 106 lbs. It's been tough for him at times.
Very proud of you J.G.

Dissapointed by the Monk

2008-02-10T20:28:00.001-06:00

Yeah. That's right. Mr. Monk dissapointed me.
The church was soooo packed. I didn't even get close
enough to see what color eyes he had.

I thought he'd be dressed in a monk suit. You know
black hood, black vestment, etc.. But no. He wore
a baret and regular clothes, trimed little beard,
completely opposite of what I was expecting.

Although his lecture was mainly to all the youth of the
parish. He blessed and prayed over each one
individually, so by the time he finished with them,
he still had to prayed over the rest of the two hundred
other people. I was there almost 3 hours and started
hurting real bad, so I had to leave. I was so bad, one
of Dads cousins had to help me to the car. Once I
got in the car, I sat there and cried for awhile, took
my medication and managed to get myself home.

As far as the jerky. Hell, by that time, I didn't even
care if raw rabbit is all he lives on !!!!!!!!!
I did find out something very interesting and unusual.
They have to live in a monastary for a certain length
of time before they become hermits!!!!!! Weird, Huh?

Meeting A Real Life Monk! ! ! ! !

2008-02-10T10:12:00.000-06:00

So today at 1:30pm, I'm going to a healing service
given by Fr. Anthony, a Monk from the Monk Monastary
of Christoval, Texas. I had no idea we had them
so close. Anyway, I'm really excited to meet him.
So from now till 1:30 pm, I'm going to concentrate
really hard and figure out how to check out his
vestment pockets!!!! I hear they live off bread, water,
and jerky. I'll let you know later how it turned out
and if it's really true about the jerky. I may come
home with with a bruised face, but for some reason
I have to find out about the the damn jerky!!!!

Fantastic Weekend in Arlington

2008-02-08T15:40:00.000-06:00

Last week J.G. called to see if I might want to come spend
some time with him. Dad started working the night shift, so
I thought that would be fun. So, Cindy drove me to
Eastland, Friday after she got off work. J.G. picked me
up there and we came on.
Mijo and I sat back and chilled Friday night. He ordered salads
and bread. Don't know where the hell he ordered them from,
but you talk about big, heavy salads with everything
you can think of putting into a salad. We did alot of catching up
that night and enjoyed each others' company.
Saturday, J.G. picked Haley up and she went along with us
to the mall. I am not fond of going to the mall, but this time
I had to go. There were several things I needed to get, so
Mijo was quite patient to join me at shopping. (he's never
done that before! I think maybe he has matured a bit).

I thank God I had a good day Saturday, and that I was able
to enjoy the whole day and later into late night with he and
his "compadres", and the Moores'. That was a very enjoyable
evening together. Of course, I got to meet Miss Bree, she's a
doll. Looks just like her Dad. Little Miss Bree is very lucky
to have Ian and Carmen as parents. They're great with her.

Dad got in Monday mid morning. He got off work at 6am, went
home, threw some things together and took off to pick me up.
Of course he had to stop at a rest stop and catch up on
some sleep. He does this all the time. He gets very sleepy
while driving. He didn't want to sleep when he got to J.G.'s
apartment so we took off to do some more shoping!
Daddys' plans were to stay with J.G. until Wed., but the
plumbing to our washer had busted a day earlier, so we had
to get home. I loved it. It was a very relaxing weekend.
WE'RE GOING BACK THE 15th OF MARCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Damn Sinus Infection!!!!!!!

2008-01-13T14:54:00.000-06:00

Sad to say, I have not been able to enjoy my New Year yet.
Two days before the new year, I starting getting a sore throat,
(really bad one too). So, for about 5-6 days, I carried along
with me a rough mans' voice, that made Dad sound
like a pre-schooler!!!! Well, I'll be damned if after I finally
started getting my voice back, here comes this horrible
sinus infection. This infection has stayed with me for 9 days
already. I feel lousy. I never knew what a sinus infection was
until now. I'd rather be shot between the eyes!!!! To top
it off, the antibiotic I'm taking, (which looks like I picked up
from the vets' office) does a bad number on me. It makes
me drain through my throat instead of my nose, and you
take about NAUSEA. Poor Dad hasn't had a cooked meal
since 2007. Cannot stand to go into the kitchen and smell
anything cooking. He's really great though. He doesn't complain.
I'm just getting a little worried, cause he is looking somewhat
more pale, weak and fragile than I am!!!!!!!!
You'd think I would of lost at least a pound or two since I
haven't been able to keep anything down. BUT NO.
Been living on crackers, Gatorade, and lemon water.
So, if you guys don't mind, send a little prayer down this way.
I sure could use one right about now.

Memories with Music CD's

2007-12-28T16:19:00.000-06:00

Wonderful Christmas with Cindy and J.G. .
We enjoyed every little minute of our time
spent together. (which at times was a little hectic)
Very much needed gifts from the kids.
I feel bad them spending money on us, Dad and I
are very blessed, we need nothing. Please don't
misunderstand this. We're not wealthy, by no means,
but we are very happy with what we do have.
We have our family and all in good health, and that
to us is like have millions. You know Dad though, I
tell him every year about how bad I feel about the
kids spending their hard earned money on us, and
each year he comes up with the same thing, " Oh, you're
being silly. Let them. We bought for them for many,
many years!!" Of course he's kidding.

One of Cindy's gifts to us was a CD. I got Fats Domino,
and Dad received, Odis Redding. For those of you
out there that grew up during our era, you can imagine
the look on our faces!!!!!!! My gosh, do they bring back
memories. Things you thought you had forgotten, come
back the minute you start listening to this wonderful music.
Told Dad we better burn each of these CD's for back-up.
Cause we intend to play the hell out of these!!!!!!

LATER! AND HAVE A SAVE AND HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!!!!

JESUS AS THE SAVIOR OF ALL PEOPLE

2007-12-28T15:27:00.000-06:00

I was searching for just the right prayer
for Epiphany season, and I found what I
wanted.

I want to share this with anyone who wishes to
pray it for the coming of the New Year.

Father, we thank you for revealing yourself to us in Jesus Christ,
we who once were not your people but whom you chose to adopt
as your people. As ancient Israel confessed long ago, we realize
that it was not because of our own righteousness, or our own superior
wisdom or strength, or power, or numbers. It was simply because
you loved us, and chose to show us that love in Jesus.

As you have accepted us when we did not deserve your love,
will you help us to accept those whom we find it hard to love?
Forgive us, O Lord, for any attitude that we harbor that on any
level sees ourselves as better or more righteous than others.
Will you help us to remove the barriers of prejudice and to tear
down the walls of bigotry, religious or social? O Lord, help us realize
that the walls that we erect for others only form our own prisons !

Will you fill us so full of your love that there is no more room for
intolerance. As you have forgiven us much, will you enable us with
your strength to forgive others even more? Will you enable us through
your abiding Presence among us, communally and individually, to live
our lives in a manner worthy of the Name we bear?

May we, through your guidance and our faithful obedience, find
new avenues in ways that we have not imagined of holding the Light
of your love so that it may be a Light of revelation for all people.

We thank you for your love, praise you for your Gift
and ask for your continued Presence with us, and bring
these petitions in the name of your Son, who has truly
revealed your heart. AMEN

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL!

2007-12-22T00:15:00.000-06:00

I wanted to post a small message to all
of Dad and My friends.
I don't know what it is about the holidays
that make people think about family, friends,
the homeless, etc. I figure God opens our hearts
to the Spirit of Christmas to express our love
for special friends and family.

Right now we're very excited cause both J.G. and
Cindy will share Christmas day with us. We love
having both of them home again and staying in their
bedrooms. They are adults now, but to parents
during the Christmas Season, it feels so special having
them both home at the same time. Listen to me, you
would think they were living in different countries.

To all friends and family, Juan and I want to wish everyone
a Very Blessed Christmas Day this Tuesday.
Hope everyone enjoys this huge Birthday!

Love and The Best to All.
Juan & Cecilia Muñoz

Our Baby's Birthday!

2007-12-01T08:52:00.000-06:00

Just wanted everyone out there in Blog Land that
our baby boy turned "29" yesterday, Nov.30th.

He's going to be so excited about me posting this
information to everyone.

Wish I had DSL so that I could post some of his baby
pictures. Believe it or not, but to look at him now, you
would not believe he had a head full of curly locks!!!
Dad and I keep asking him to please let his hair grow
out, but of course if you really know J.G., he's gonna
do the opposite of what is asked of him.

A special Thanks to God for letting us have him around
for another year, and hopefully many more years to come.
Love You, Mijo. Mom & Dad

Confusion Setting in Already?

2007-10-19T14:22:00.000-05:00

So it's been awhile right? Well, I've been a little
under the weather the last two months or so.
I've been enjoying Ian and Carmens' pictures of their
new addition to the family. Sweet little angel.
J.G. it seems has been busy posting a lot of baby
pictures too !! Tell you what, all of a sudden, all these
babies everywhere !!
Nothing new over here. I had my Dad in the hospital
a few days. He went in for a knee replacement. I was
really proud of the little 81 year old guy. He did great.
He's a really bad diabetic and I was somewhat concerned
about that, but he did wonderful. I took him back for
his one week check-up, and he was so happy to have gotten
his stitches removed so quickly. He could have jumped for
joy ( if he could ).
My 2 brothers and sister sorta worked out a plan, that we would
take turns weekly caring for him, so this was my week. Went
smoothly cause Dad was off a few days and helped me out alot.
If I can do maybe one or two errands or anything else they
need per day, boy! that's plenty for me. The rest of the day
I'm in bed. So, I'm really proud of myself.
One little episode the day Dad and I went into town for their
grocery. I already was not feeling well, so Dad was so sweet
to offer to go with me and get all errands done quickly.
Tata was having trouble watching TV in their bedroom since
he got home from the hospital. It was driving him crazy and
he was driving me crazy each day I'd go check in on him.
HE WANTED THE DAMN REMOTE FIXED! It seems that it
was more important to him than his knee. The day we went
into town for groceries, he put the remote into my hand so
I could stop by the office and have it checked. Pissed me off.
(Remember, I'm barely making it to the grocery store.)
We went by the office. IT WAS CLOSED. I WAS SO RELIEVED!
Got home, he was right there waiting for the remote. When
I told him the office was closed, he got out the DISH NETWORK
MANUAL from his filing cabinet. He said, "just take a quick
look, see if you can find something out under the troubleshooting
page." Any other time, I would of thought, " Oh, hell no." But,
I've been through what he's going through four times before, I'll
just pretend I'm trying to find something out. Of course, I didn't
find anything I could do with it, then he says, " here, right here
is the 1-800 number."
I'm already 5 1/2 hours late with my meds.
Got on the phone, stayed on the damn phone for almost an hour
and a half. They were trying to walk me through all the steps
of re-setting the remote. I was talking on the phone and handling
2 remotes at once!!!!
When I started talking into one of the remotes and pointing the phone
towards the TV., I thought, " ok. enough of this shit. " I'm going
home to CRY.
At the same time I was thinking this, the technician tells me the
trouble is in the remote. They'll send him a new one out in 2 days!!!!!!!!!

This is turning out to be like an old horrow movie.
Today, ( exactly 2 days later) he calls: Mija, " you got time? the remotes in! "

14 Hour Visit to Arlington

2007-09-01T12:32:00.000-05:00

Dad and I got to see J.G. , Thursday night. We had expected
to leave Loraine earlier that morning, but we were informed
that one of Dads' close friends father had passed away and the funeral
was Thursday morning. That's alright, and plus Dad felt better
about being able to be there for him.

We enjoyed the trip. Felt bad for Dad, cause he had worked a 12 hour
sift the night before, came home and took a 45 minute nap to try
to make the funeral. I had to take medication, cause I was hurting
really bad since it was getting cloudy and really humid, that always makes
me hurt two times worse. I wish I could of helped him with the driving,
but I could not keep my eyes open. He assured me he was alright and he'd
let me know if he couldn't handle it any longer. He said at one time, he was
passing this eighteen wheeler, and heard the truck slowing down or trying to brake,
(you know the sound the brakes make when they step on them, almost like a letting
steam out kinda sound. That's the best I can describe.) He passed the big
truck and kept hearing the same sound until he took a really close look and
it was me! He's such a shit. Since I'm missing some of my side teeth, he said
I must of been snoring and letting out that hissing noise at the same time.!
It use to bother me at first, cause all three would make fun of me, it's usually J.G.,
that tells me not to laugh in public, Dad tells me I should of done something about those
teeth years ago, and Cindy just gives me this, 'oh Mom, you poor thing you look!'.
Gonna do something about them this week. I PROMISE.

J.G. took Dad and I out the eat Thursday night when we got there. He said that
was our anniversary dinner he wanted to give us. We loved it. He called
his friend Pita to join us, and we all enjoyed each others company. We had to call
it a night early cause they both had to be a work early. So, that's all we saw of Mijo.
Just to know he's doing ok is good enough for us.

If anyone out there that reads my blog and knows how I can get pictures on
my blog, would you be so kind as to let me know how to go about it?
I have dial-up services so that may be a problem.

36th Anniversary

2007-08-28T17:27:00.000-05:00

Yes. It was 36 years ago today (Aug.28th, 1971) that I
Cecilia Lujan became Mrs. John Muñoz at 3:00 pm, at
St. Ann's Church in Colorado City, Texas.

Can't believe it's been that long. Marriage is the most wonderful
union, (that is if you have met the right person), in which
case I feel that I did.

I was lying in bed last night thinking. It's funny how things change
the longer you stay married. The first anniversay, you give each
other jewelry, small diamonds, watches, etc. . A couple of years
later, the gifts go down to the exchanging of clothes for one another,
colognes; oh, you know, stuff like that.
After the tenth anniversary, we go way down to maybe, work clothes,
work shoes for him. Oh my gosh!, I just remembered that was
the year I received bed sheets! Yeah, and I'm not talking ordinary
bed sheets either. 280 count bed sheets!!!!!!!!!!! How do ya like that?
I thought, "shit!, was this a gift or what?" Bet, none of my friends have
never gotten something so special.

Ok. Let's keep going here. Let's go for the fifteenth anniversary.
You start receiving stuff like, hair dryers, curling irons, (really large
cosmetic trays). Alright. I'm getting the message here. It's like
telling someone, 'hey, you really must do something about your appearance.'

Twenty-five years later. Oh Boy!, here come the (whole set) not two or three
pieces, but maybe eight or ten piece set of pots and pans, give or
take a lid or two. What's really weird is you think, "shit, this is really
getting good." Funny how your mind works. You still can't see the picture.
YOU IDIOT! YOU'RE LOVING THE HELL OUT OF THIS STUFF!.

The years go by. You keep receiving these odd gifts, but you still don't
see it. That's because you're still so much in love with the person that
knows exactly what you need and want.
Let's see here. Oh, yeah, there was the year he had to work the evening
shift, so we were not able to go out and eat. Hey, that's still ok. That's
the year I took out a frozen Chinese Stir Fry dinner, and coated some
strawberries in white chocolate. He, on the other hand drove 30 miles
to get me a bouquet of yellow roses (my favorite). He got off the car
with flowers wrapped in clear cellophane paper in one hand and a
blue vase with white polka dots on the other hand. (Had nightmares
over that vase for years, till I sold it this year at a garage sale).
He quickly filled the vase with tap water, dropped the roses just as they
were, and opened the back window close to where the car was parked
and slipped a CD in the cd player and turned the volume up full blast with,
"VOLVER, VOLVER". All this time, I'm sitting at the dining table watching
him work all this shit out like a little ant. Gotta remember, he's got all this
planned out just perfect.
So, with music going full blast, he rushes in (almost out of breath) and hands
me the flowers (polka dot blue vase, remember?). I later found out he'd
purchased the vase at Dollar General when I went to rinse out the water
and add fresh water.!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Ok, so with the same soft voice as all the previous years, he says, "Happy
Anniversary Honey, I Love You So Much." I'm sure you gals out there
are just so very jealous by now.
Up to this very day, I can't figure out why John Muñoz never used the
stereo system we had indoors! Sure could have saved all the going up and
down, in and out, and especially all the sweating.

Wait, I'm not done yet. Last night he had to work from 6pm-6am.
He walks in this morning with a bacon and egg burrito and a cup of
freshly brewed decaf coffee. HOW'S THAT FOR A 36th ANNIVERSARY?

Ay, Esta Pobre Gente Mía

2007-07-24T16:52:00.000-05:00

My kids are so much like their Dad.
I just read J.G.'s blog on Cindy and her
fractured thumb.
A couple of weeks ago it was J.G. that
fell off the treadmill at the gym!
Dad fell off his riding lawn mower!
As he tells it, I think he was trying to reach
for his cap which had blown off. I guess
he thinks he can still move as fast as he used to.
He tried grabing for it, and missed. And of
course, down he rolls off the mower. He got back
up, dusted himself, and got back on and
continued mowing. Well, that's how he tells the
story since there was no one around to see it.

Heat Wave?

2007-07-10T09:50:00.000-05:00

You know, those Northeastern people! You just gotta love 'um.
I'm sitting here this morning enjoying my cup of coffee,
and I should say, I'm really enjoying it, cause it's just 80 degrees
and it's only 10:00 am.
Poor little people. They think they're having a heat wave cause
they've been experiencing high humidity and 90 degree weather!!!

That's what we've been having for the last two months or so.
And wait. it's not even August yet! Now, that's really hot. I'm
thinking, "Oh, how I'd love to see them go through 102 degree
weather for a whole month." Aye, esta gente chiple.

Ok. Time to go back indoors. My coffee is hotter now than when I
poured it out of the carafe. ha, ha.

Parents

2007-06-28T19:38:00.000-05:00

Hey. I'm still around. Haven't had much
time lately to sit down, relax, and post.
Days are longer during the summer, but for
some reason mine are getting shorter.

For those of you reading this blog, I guess
you noticed I titled this as, 'Parents.' To those
of you who don't have your parents anymore,
I apologize cause I honestly don't want to make
you feel bad because of what I'm fixing to write.

A few days ago, I had the privilege of driving my Dad
to the doctor. First time I have had to do this.
Well, if anyone knows Mother, she felt she had
to come too. Which, I knew she would. What was she
going to do at home but just worry while we were gone.
It really felt odd. I don't know why. I'm guessing
cause it was the first time for me to actually do
something for them, simply because they were just not
able to do for themselves this time. Well, this time
and from now on it looks like. I knew that one day they
would be getting older and would be hard for them
to do things they were used to doing. In other words, they
were going to loose their independence. They knew it
and so did I. But, it seems like it got here sooner than
expected.

To those of you that still have your parents, please don't
make the mistake I've made. I was always too busy raising
my kids and taking care of my own family. Which when
you marry, that's to be expected right? But, always, always,
please try to put some time aside for your parents. I realize
lots of time it's really hard to do, when distance is involved,
but maybe more phone calls, send them an unexpected card,
a package in the mail, anything that you know will put
a smile on their faces. Something, anything just as long as they
know they are loved and appreciated. I've always lived
next door to my parents, and had the opportunity to visit
with them regularly and I missed the chance, simply because
of the fact that they were right next door, and I knew they
were fine.

Taking half a day to just visit, drink coffee, or just sit outside
and listen to them tell stories about when they were young,
their memories of their own families. I remember a few
times when my Dad would get so excited just taking about
his childhood, friends, and when he was courting my mom.
Those were stories that put a glow in his eyes and a big smile
on his face. The same goes for Mom. She used to tell stories
of her growing up, her wedding day, going to a catholic school
and many, many more stories. I remember laundry day at
our house, we used to have to go into town to do laundry, and
then come home and hang out all the clothes on a clothes line.
Mom would sing songs to my sister and I, she'd dance and pick
up alot of dust. She was so young and so happy. She is now
so fragile, small and thin. What's worse is that she has developed
dementia, and cannot remember all her stories, songs, friends, and
the things that used to put those big smiles on her face. It's too
late now. I feel I've missed alot. Just because I didn't make
enough time for them. I'm glad God still has me here to look
after them now that they need someone. I feel I will never repay
them for what all they did for me, which I know they don't expect
it, but I'm one that has always been sick of serious illnesses and
always wondered wondered how the hell I recovered so quickly
after each one. I feel that God does have a plan for each of us.
I know now what his plan is for me. Yeah, to be around for the
old folkies, to watch after them, drive them to their appointments,
take them for their haircuts, etc. Please don't make the mistake
I made. God has given me a second chance of making time for my
parents, don't wait as long as I did. Trust me, it'll bring alot of tears
if you don't.

"Friends"

2007-06-09T16:55:00.000-05:00

This afternoon, June 9th, I had the privilege of talking
over the phone with Mona Deloera. For those of you who
don't her, Mona is married to Jesse Deloera (Chuyio) as Dad
would call him. Jesse and Dad are cousins. I really feel
bad saying this, but Jesse is not much better than Dad (mentally).

I sorta feel bad for keeping Mona on the phone as long as I did,
but I always enjoy talking to her. She laughs at anything.
Maybe that's why I enjoy talking to her, her laughter just makes
you feel so good and relaxed. She may not know this, but I
see this as a special gift.
I've always thought that I depress people in seconds, babies cry
and scream like crazy when they see me. Oh, my gosh! I feel like
I already depressed myself.!

I'm sure you all out there have heard the saying that, 'friends are free'.
Well, I'm here to agree on that one.
Mona has always been special to me, and I'm hoping it'll always be
like that.
And as for choosing friends, "Go ahead. Start now. I did many years ago.
And remember, THEY'RE FREE"
I DID!

AYE, QUE DOLOR!

2007-06-05T04:52:00.000-05:00

At the bottom of this post, you'll notice what time I decided
to sit down at the computer. Actually, it was 3:00 am when
my arthritis pain woke me up. Took my meds with a glass of milk,
and two (small, very small chocolate chip cookies). This medicine
does a number on me if taken on an empty stomach.
On the prescription bottom, it specifies milk and cookies.

So now I'm waiting for the meds to kick in. After they do take
effect, I'm back in bed, so I try staying up as long as I possibly can.
This will be short, cause once I start feeling the effect, no telling
what I may write. Just ask Cindy and J.G. They seem to think
it's funny how I speak and what I say, but at least I have an excuse.
Not like poor Dad. He wasn't on any medication the day he went to church
and they were reciting the Hail Mary. You never know what is going
through Dads' head, but he started off with, Mail Harry, Full of Grace!!
Up to this day, he insists the reason for his lack of concentration was that
he was hungry! Este Hombre!!

Before I close, I wanted to let you guys know that Dad and I visited with
J.G., May 28th - 31st. Had a really wonderful time. We spend alot of time
riding around and he did a wonderful job of showing us some really pretty
sites in the area. I wanted to stay a few more days, and enjoy him all to my
self, but I never once heard him say, "Yeah, Mom stay awhile, or that's a great
idea." Oh, well. I'll get over it.

Stay well everyone. You'll here from me later on this week. Dad's working
the night shift, so I'll have more time after he leaves for work.
God Bless each and everyone of you.

Baby Sitting for Cindy

2007-05-22T16:45:00.000-05:00

So Cindy calls me about two weeks ago wanting to know if I can sit with
the dogs. Two boxers, one male, (Odis) female boxer (Brazil) and old
grandpa, Shadow the schnauzer. I had to think about it for awhile, cause
it was Dads' long weekend off. Well, I thought, it won't hurt, it' just
for the weekend.

I get there and there is a long list of things I have to do for the dogs.
I'm thinking, "what the hell did I get myself into?" Can't do much.
I'm here so I might as well follow the list and make the best of it.
The list consist of: Don't speak loud to them cause they get their feelings
hurt, don't feed them table food, (they'll get sick), I'm thinking what kind of
dogs are these? Don't forget to give them their treats, oh, and what
really blew my mind was when Cindy told me over the phone, "Mom, I left
some wipes on the counter for Shadow (the schnauzer). "OH! HELL NO!
I AM NOT WIPING THIS DOGS' OTHER END. NO WAY!!
"Mom, she said, "they're for Shadow's mustache. Please wipe him down
after he eats cause his mustache gets into his food and it gets hard and tangled."
Well, ok. I guess it's not as bad as having to wipe his a--, I guess I
can handle that. It went rather smoothly during the day, everything
seemed to be going good. But, come night time. Didn't sleep much.
Usually Cindy will tell them it's time for bed, and all three will go into their
bedroom and lay on their own beds. Well, not Saturday night. They decided
they would all go into my bedroom. Told them to get out twice. None of the
three budged. Finally got one to leave, when I finally got the other two out,
the first one was on his way back into the bedroom. Aye! Aye! Aye!

REMEMBER THE LIST? DO NOT SPEAK LOUD TO THEM OR
THEY'LL GET THEIR FEELING HURT? Well, scratch that off the
list. I sounded like a Drill Sargent. "GO TO YOUR BEDS NOW!!!!!!!!!
There they go, one after the other. Why didn't I do that in the first place?

2:00am. (Brazil, the one with the bladder problem) decides she needs to
go out. OK. Here we go. I waited awhile. Let her back in. OK, lets get
some shut eye.

6:00am. Again with the full bladder! This time I made all three go out,
I wasn't gonna do this again in another hour. So, I let them back inside.
I sat there and thought, "I'm taking a shower and getting the hell home."
Drank my coffee, absolutely no makeup, (at this hour, I didn't care what
I looked like), started packing, gave them all a treat and left.

Don't plan on doing this again anytime soon. Poor Cindy, she'll probably
get her feelings hurt when she reads this, but honestly three pooches is too
much for me to handle. I enjoy them when we go visit, I guess cause I
don't have to take care of them then. Oh, wait, there's more. That's not
including having to stuff a Wiener with an antibiotic capsule for the lady
with the bladder problem, having to groom grandpa's mustache, and
having them follow you everywhere you go, kitchen, bedroom, bathroom.
I took my shower and left the door open, what the hell, it was just me.
Felt a cool draft while in the shower, and there's Brazil sticking her head
in the shower. Had to call her out 3 times. WOW!! WHAT A WEEKEND.
AND I THOUGHT I LIVED A BORING LIFE??????????

Another Power Outage!

2007-05-08T18:12:00.000-05:00

It's been almost a week ago that we had bad weather.
It's 4 pm. Tuesday afternoon, and we're getting it again.

Of course the power is out again! This time I didn't recite a rosary or take a nap. I decided to light all the candles in the house, and it smells heavenly. I have a candelabrum that holds 8 large size candles in my bedroom and feels sooo cozy. I unwrapped a Butterfinger candy bar
and enjoyed every little bite. Felt like a Queen!!!

While I was eating my candy bar and feeling like a queen,
I made plans for the next time the power goes out.
Gonna hire me two large size men, one on each side of the bed,
so they can fan me. So, I'll have to make sure I have plenty of
fresh fruit like, bananas, strawberries, mangos, etc.

Wish we had a water fountain inside the house so it'll really
sound relaxing, but that's ok, I'll just run the bath water and
pretend it's a fountain. Not bad huh?

Pests or Pets

2007-05-06T21:47:00.000-05:00

I don't know what I was thinking when I agreed to drive into Roscoe to check out, as dad put it, "real cute little dog, and that breed of dogs are very smart." Sure, sure, he's thinking that after 35 years of marriage I don't know his way of thinking!! Actually, I know what he's thinking before he knows what he's thinking. Anyway, on the way there, the whole conversation was about the damn mutt. I totally ignore him, cause the whole time, I'm thinking we're coming home with a damn dog, which is something I didn't want. Don't misunderstand me, I enjoy pets, but we've had dogs all our lives. I begged that once, just once, I'd like to plant holly shrubs in front of our house. We've never been able to because each time I'd water the plants the dogs would dig everthing up. Can't blame them for wanting to keep cool, but go dig elsewhere. He also knows me pretty well. He knew I'd break and agree on the beast. You know that any little puppy is adorable especially when you hold them and they snuggle up to you. We brought him home on a trial basis. If he starts digging, chasing after cars, or chasing the neighbors' chickens, he'd be going back to doggy motel.

Should of seen Dad! He drove to Wal-Mart to buy a crate, food and water tray, dog food, a squeeky toy, shampoo, a large chain link fence kennel with a fitted tarp on it!! I thought, where in the hell is his TV? Actually, he has been doing ok. He likes to hide everything, including his food tray, and all his toys. Dad is the one having to look for everything before putting him into his kennel each night. He's still in his kennel because of coyotes. They smelled him the very first day we brought him home. They circled around the house for 3 or 4 days, till they figured out they couldn't get to him. Yet!!!

They say these dogs are very protective of their owners, and are good with children, I sure do hope so. It looks like he'll be making this his permanant home for now. He's a black and white border collie with light tan spots on his cheeks. He has no tail, and we've named him Paco Muñoz.

A Special Thanks to My Family

2007-05-03T14:19:00.000-05:00

Just when I decide to clean up a little around the house. Guess what? Yep, the power goes off. That was Wed. May 2nd when we all had severe thunderstorms and extremly high winds.

The power is off, so I have two options, pray a rosary or take a nap. Well, I did start off with the rosary, but finished with a nap. During that quick nap, I had the best dream; I dreamed I had passed away, and I was soooooo happy because my family had fullfilled my wishes.

I have always told Dad, Cindy and J.G. that when I die, at the viewing, I want them to position me catty-cornered in the casket. The reason I don't want to lay in my casket directly on my back is because I have a horrible nose. (in fact I really don't care much for my whole face). But, back to the nose, I have Apache blood. My great-great-great grandmother was Apache Indian. So, thanks to her, I have a horrible indian nose. Plus, estoy muy trompuda.

I know for that I'm gonna have a large spray of yellow roses on my casket, cause I've bothered them sooooo much about it, so I know I'm getting those for sure. Now I'm hoping my dream comes true, and I get to lay on my side during my rosary and visitation.

So, a special thanks to Dad, Cindy and J.G.

Love, Mom

I bet all of you are thinking, "What a nut case!" I'm not. Just like having fun!

WATCHING CABLE OR TORNADOES?

2007-04-25T09:07:00.001-05:00

Which would you prefer?
Well, if you happen to live in West Texas, you actually do have a choice.

Monday night just happened to be the first time for this year that we had to go into the root cellar (not wine cellar). Let me tell you right now, it is not fun! Especially when you've got 2 shoulders, 1 knee and a hip loaded with metal. In the first place, you sure as hell don't want to be struck by lightning, second it's a funny sight watching someone sooo loaded with extra ammo
go down and back out of the damn cellar and still try to act and sound lady like!!!!!!!!!!

I'm gonna confess to you guys the reason why I was so upset. For weeks now, I'd been savoring a delicious steak. Two days before, I get myself to the grocery store and pick out some really good steaks.

So, Monday, dad decides to do the yard. I go out and check on him regularly and he is really getting down big time. He finishes the yard and weed eating, and jumps over and continues to ride the mower on about half acre around the house. That's when I decide to take out the steaks. He's been out there all day and I decide to grill the steaks, do baked potatoes, and salad for an early dinner, so he can shower, eat and chill the rest of the evening.

I started the steaks, and it was still very nice outside. Actually it had been nice all day. About 5pm, Cindy calls and tells us to watch the weather cause she had just seen on TV where we were under a TORNADO WARNING! " Yeah, Yeah, Cindy. I'm trying to finish up dinner here, don't have time to play around." She tells me to turn the TV on to watch the weather. I do. You should of seen me go. Boy, I rushed out to tell dad about the storm. (he was already opening the cellar door and watching one of the tornadoes drop down and then back up into the clouds about 2 or 3 times.

You know me. I have to eat! What if this was gonna be my last meal? There was no way I was going down the cellar without at least one bite, well, maybe two or three bites out of my steak.
We decided we had time to eat right quick, since by now it looked like the clouds had moved over us. We swallowed our meal (cause really neither one of us remember chewing on any of it).

By this time, our weather radio went off, and the local scanner was telling everyone to take cover. I actually had to go down in reverse, taking about one minute per step (about 8 steps down). It's a good thing about these scanners and cell phones, you know exactly when it's gonna hit you. All the time we were down there, I kept thinking, 'next time I'm bringing my movie camera'. Time to get out. Again here I go up (in reverse). With each step, I had to lean on the cement wall and push myself up. It was more painful going up than actually going down.

The tornado looked really scary. A little damage in town, but no one hurt. Dad says we have to do a couple of dry runs into the cellar. I agree. I'm going into town later and get me some material so that I can finish up my spiderwoman outfit. For the next time, I guarantee, I'LL FLY DOWN THE CELLAR!!!!!

Mexican Blondes?

2007-04-12T14:44:00.000-05:00

Have you ever asked yourself if there are Mexican blondes out there?
Well, I'm here to tell you, "yes indeed there are!"
Infact I have one living right next door to me. Which happens to be my dear, sweet mother.

I'll make this a short story. During spring break, my mom and dad had the privilege of keeping their two great-granddaughters for the week.
Kyle and Bea's daughters, Haley, age 7, and Lauren, age 3.
They really enjoyed being out on the farm, and it just so happened that there were 14 new baby goats. Haley of course felt she had to be out there helping out her "Tata" from early morning till late at night, or the goats were just not gonna be looked after as they should be without her help.

Getting back to the blonde. Mom had told me the week before that her and Dad had found the best homemade peanut brittle they'd ever had. So, of course I had to drive over to Westbrook, just west of Colorado City to get me some of that so called, "best peanut brittle ever made", just to make sure Mom wasn't lying to me. ( do you think that maybe, just maybe this is the reason some of the clothes hanging in my closet keep shrinking?)

Ok, back to the blonde. We decide to take the girls with us for a ride. We get Lauren's car seat and position it in the back seat of MY car. Have you ever tried strapping a child down onto a child seat? Not easy when you're not used to doing it on a daily basis. It was taking an 80 year old grandpa, 76 year old grandma, and a hefty 57 year old aunt (me) to strap the kid down. Believe it or not, WE WERE NOT ABLE TO DO IT!

That's when the 76 year old mexican blonde steps in and says, ( with index finger on forehead ) " Hey, why don't we try the car seat in MY car?" Well, why didn't grandpa and hefty ever think that the color and model of the car would make all the difference in strapping down the kid?

The old man and I laughed till we hurt. By this time, poor Lauren was so restless and probably wondering what the hell we were laughing about, and the old lady STILL couldn't figure out what she'd said that was so funny!!

Us country folk need to get out more!! LET ME TELL YOU, THAT PEANUT BRITTLE WAS THE BEST EVER!

Happy Easter Bunny Everyone!!!!!

2007-04-08T14:42:00.000-05:00

Well, I'm back. I ONCE WAS LOST, BUT NOW I'M FOUND!
Don't exactly know what happened to my first entry, I'm sorta thinking it was J.G. since he was the one that helped me create the blog. He'll never admit it was his fault, he's always telling me that I don't have a very good attention span.

Well, this will prove that I can do anything I set my mind to. (without his help). Not bad for a 57 year old huh? Well, I'm at a loss now. When I'm not picking on my adult kids, I really don't have much to say. Well, actually I do have something to write about. About 2 weeks ago, about 7 priest from around Colorado City, came to help out Fr. Georgie with confessions. They've been doing this for awhile now. They have priest all over the church and you have the option to pick which priest you think you may feel comfortable with. Well, they introduced each one by name and parish, and then designated each one to their location. I don't know how familiar you catholics' out there are with Saint Martin de Porres. He is my mom's favorite saint, in fact she's always told us that when she passes on, she wants to be dressed in a black and white vestment just like his. Oh, before I forget to tell you, He's Black. So, I see him, and I tell Dad, "Oh, my gosh, he reminds me of St. Martin. I'm getting in line to go confess with him!" Well, the rest is history. My turn comes up. We make contact by hands and I tell him he reminds me of St. Martin. Up to this moment I think he responded with a, "Thang oou." That's what told me I was in deep,"@#^*+~". Well, I was right. Right now, this very minute, I don't know whether he gave me a penance of 1,000 Hail Mary's or sentenced me to prison.

So, now I have to go again, cause I honestly don't have a clue as to what he told me. Isn't this sad. I left the church sooooooo confused, not knowing which way was left or right. I got in the car and told Dad my story, and bless his little 'ole heart'. He always knows how to make things right for me. SO HE TAKES ME OUT FOR AN ENCHILADA DINNER!!! MY HERO!!