When life gives you lemons, just toss 'em in your pitcher!

I just happen to love lemonade, especially in the hot summertime. I have good memories of stopping by Cook's Grocery Store in Elba on the way to visit Mama and Papa Smith when I was a little girl, and buying a dozen lemons to make lemonade for lunch at their house. We didn't grow lemons on our farm so they were very special for us. We grew almost everything we ate except sugar and flour. (At today's prices, I buy lemons one at a time and make my lemonade from Crystal Light powder, slicing one lemon in it to make it look like the real stuff!).   


I also like lemon curd or as my mother called it "lemon cheese".  She made this to frost white sponge cake and it was so good.


But that's not what it means "when life gives you lemons, make lemonade".

Now to tie this into my cooking! I have been working on putting recipes into cateories and putting them into a folder in my computer. These recipes I've had in boxes, etc. for years and are written on backs of envelopes, cards, torn from newspapers and magazines, and many are covered with flour, etc.

When the recipes are "failures" or I didn't have the necessary ingredients, I would write notes in the margin about what happened and what I would do next time to"fix" it. And these are the "recipe keepers" I am putting in my recipe file.


When a recipe is a failure for me, I turn it into something better - or "make lemonade from the lemon" . Sometimes the revised recipe is so much better than the original - or to us at least it is.


I have been putting my recipes in categories such as dips, appetizers, beverages, sauces, pies, vegetables, etc. Now all I have to do is go to "My recipes" file, click on the category and find the recipe I'm looking for and print it out. So simple...... no more pulling down the boxes of individual recipes and searching for that elusive recipe for Baby Ruth bars or chicken chilli.


I even made a Miscellaneous file for things such as how to crack and peel a coconut. blanching and toasting raw almonds, substitutions, and many more.


This has been a tedious task, but very rewarding. Next, I will print out all the recipes and put them in a spiral bound binder to give to my granddaughters in college. They might enjoy using some of them. I'll enclose some pockets at the back of the binder for them to put their own recipes. Now isn't that being a good grandmother?

"Oh, Say Can You See (better)?"

Yes, I can indeed see better now that I have had my eyelids tacked up. I was having trouble reading the newspaper and the computer monitor screen. I went to see my optometrist and he said, "No, you don't have cataracts. But your problem is your droopy eyelids, and that can be taken care of."

So he made me an appointment with a plastic surgeon in Dothan, 50 miles away. On the initial visit, they measured my eyes, and did a lot of tests, etc. and made pictures. I didn't include the before and after photos taken at the Dr's office. They were terrible!!

The photos here are just some of my photos I have on hand. On the left you can see the droopy eyelids and on the right, after surgery. I've also lost some weight in the photo on the right. My cheeks aren't as fat!

Eyelid surgery (I don't know the medical term) is more uncomfortable than painful. You have to put ice packs on your eyes off and on for 20 minute intervals during the first 24 hours. (I didn't get up at night to do this.) This was to prevent bruising and black eyes, etc. It worked. I never had any black/blue spots on my face from the surgery. I used ziplock bags of frozen peas. I would put one bag back in the freezer and take out another to always have frozen peas, one bag for each eye.

Unfortunately I was allergic to the antibiotic ointment they gave me to put inside my eyes and after doing this for a couple of days and having red eyes and burning, I called the Dr's office, and they said to stop using the ointment immediately. And the problem cleared up.

After about a week, my eyes were feeling much better and when I returned to have the stitches removed, I was dismissed and the Dr. said my operation was a success.

The first thing I noticed after having the surgery was that I could read the entire page of the newspaper without having to turn my head from side to side, or look up or down. What a difference it made in repairing my droopy eye lids.

I can't believe I don't have cataracts, at my age. I guess that will come a little later when I am in my 80's? Jim had his cataracts removed this spring, and no longer has to wear glasses. He bought a pair of reading glasses to see the computer screen since he has to sit so far back at his new computer desk. He has worn glasses all his life, almost. They implanted a new lens in each eye and it's a miracle how much better he can see.

Creative and Healthy Cooking Pays Off

For the past several months I have been cooking healthy meals. No more pre-packaged foods, frozen pizzas, Subway sandwiches, and things that are easy and fast to put together for a meal.


I cook fresh vegetables at least once a day, serve fruit and cereal for breakfast, and either bake or grill our meat. Plus I cook some meat in a crock pot. No more fried foods for us. We eat salt sparingly (I have to have it on my sliced tomatoes). Never use sugar anymore; sometimes use Splendar if we need sweetner. We still drink coffee with caffiene and ice tea. This summer we are enjoying a lot of fresh fruit.


These healthy meals, plus walking a mile early every morning, going to the gym 3 or 4 days a week and walking on the treadmill, and working outdoors are committments I made to myself several months ago. So many of our friends (over 75) are "falling apart" and just sit at home and watch TV or go to a myriad of Drs. every week. Jim and I want to be in charge of our health and work to stay healthy. His recent cataract surgery was a great success and he no longer has to wear glasses.


We are making plans to celebrate Jim's 76th birthday on July 15 by going on a riverboat cruise in Chattanooga, TN, on our way to a family reunion in northeastern KY, near the Ohio river. We want to stay in shape so we can continue to travel for several more years - to visit our family in several other states.


About a year ago, I joined weight watchers and to date I haven't lost a lot of weight but I have lost two dress sizes. It was so much fun shopping this afternoon for some new clothes. I came home with a new pair of Gloria Vanderbilt denim capris that have no elastic in the waist and they fit comfortably. This time last year, I wouldn't have attempted to put on a size 14. I also bought two pair of knee length Liz Clairborne cotton shorts - those also without any elastic at the waist.


It has been years since I bought shorts or pants, or skirts, without elastic waistbands. I'll have to start wearing a belt now.


I have been taking clothes out of my closet and donating them to Good Will. Many of them were given to me by relatives over the years. I only dress up once a week and that's on Sunday to go to church. So I don't need many dressy clothes. In our hot Alabama climate, cotton is the choice of fabric for summer, and very casual. Nobody wears stockings to church here in the summer; wouldn't look right with sandals.

I asked Jim to take some photos of me in my new denim capris for you to see the "new" me. I am also attaching a photo made when I started my blog in July 2007 (see photo on left). Maybe you can tell a difference. The photo on the right was made tonight, June 23, 2010 on the back porch.

I wonder how I will look one year from now? I'm going to keep eating healthy and exercising. I might be another dress size smaller next year!!!

Remembering Father's Day

One of the first Bible verses I learned in Sunday School was "Honor thy father and mother". And I never forgot to do that. I always wanted to please my daddy and mother and tried hard not to disappoint them, as long as they lived. In turn, I taught our boys to respect us as parents and we always made "Father's Day" a special time in our home. 

I remember that the boys would make "coupon" books to give to their dad for chores he wanted them to do. Once Bill drew pictures of the chores and at the end of the book, he wrote "good until I die". The coupons didn't last too long.... Jim used them all.

Jim traveled extensively during his working career and when he was gone from home, I had to be mom and dad. We always tried to make things easy for dad and treat him special when he came home from his trips. Birthdays were very special. Bill shared his birthday with his dad on July 15. We always had one big party for the two of them.

When Jim retired, and we moved to our home in the woods in the middle of our tree farm in AL,

James and I had to get used to having Jim at home 24/7. We always did the grocery shopping while he was at work. We were getting ready to go to the grocery store one day, and James turned and looked at his dad as he was getting ready to go with us, and said to me "Does HE have to follow us every where we go?" It didn't take us long to get used to having him at home all the time, and he had to get used to us as well!

It's always "Father's Day" at our house - not just once a year.

Jim's New Computer Desk

For many years, Jim has been using a desk he made by putting a  top over two file cabinets. He had a shelf on the wall to hold things and the top of his desk was always cluttered.

When the boys gave him a new computer, I mentioned that he needed to look for a computer desk. He found just what he wanted at Office Depot, and it was 1/2 price. When he went to pick it up, they told him it comes unassembled. He asked the price to assemble it and when they told him $129, he said he'd do it himself.

After struggling with lots and lots of parts, instructions that were not too clear, and heavy boards to put together. we both decided that $129 was a good deal after all. But over a period of several days, we got it assembled and didn't have any parts left over!!

Then came the task of trying to make things fit in the spaces. First of all, some of the cords were too short. He had to buy extensions, some of which he found locally at Fred's. Others he had to order on the internet.

The keyboard sits on a "pull out" shelf and away from the monitor. He had to shop for some reading glasses in order to see the screen.

At last he has everything in place, and working. He loves his new "man cave". His love for research and genealogy keeps him busy when he's not outside mowing the lawn or doing his volunteer jobs.

Oh, and I failed to mention the new camera and microphone that sits on top of the monitor for him to "Skype" the granddaughters. They love dialing us up on the computer and talking to us on the computer screen. (I also have a camera and mike on my computer monitor.)

We use our computers for entertainment in the evenings. Not much on TV to watch and we don't enjoy parlor games. We both like Facebook, email, reading newspapers online, checking news and weather online, and "googling" for info we need. We sit side by side working on our computers and sometimes don't speak to each other for long periods of time. Doesn't sound very exciting, does it? But it's fun and relaxing for us.

Our Granddaughter's Confirmation and Graduation

Caroline Rose Gilmer, our youngest grandchild (out of 5) was confirmed by the Bishop of Charleston (SC) Diocese at St. Anthony's Church, Florence, SC, on Sunday, May 29, 2010. She is standing by the Bishop. Most of the kids in the photo have just completed the 8th grade.


We were unable to attend since we were at my niece's wedding the same day. The confirmation date was set after we made plans to attend Beth's and Matt's wedding.

I helped her pick out her confirmation dress when we were visiting them at Easter. Here she is pictured with Bill, her dad (our youngest son).

The next photo is of Caroline with her sisters, Katie and Nerissa. They are both in college (Nerissa a Senior at Clemson and Katie a Sophomore. at College of Charleston).

For her confirmation, Caroline had to prepare a scrapbook of her journey in life. It contained photos of her 14-1/2 years, as well as momentos of her years at St. Anthony.

We arrived in Florence on Tuesday morning around noon and spent the afternoon with the girls, planning a graduation party for the next day at noon.

The two big sisters were busy as beavers getting things together. Katie wanted to bake the cake and decorate and got up early on Wed. to bake it. My sister Alice and her husband Jerry arrived from Charlotte, NC,  in time for lunch on Wed.  

The girls' mother died when they were very young (Caroline was 1 year old) and Alice was always there to help them out and attend their school functions, ball games, etc. She is like a grandmother to them. They call her "Great Aunt Alice Dearest".


Graduation was at 6:30 pm on Wed., June 2 at St. Anthony catholic church. Just as we arrived at the church, it started raining and there was lots of lightning and thunder during graduation.


It was a mass as well as graduation so we were there an hour or longer. There were only 6 students in the 8th grade and next year they will all enter the 9th grade at different schools. Caroline will go to West Florence and be in a class of over 400 students. When I asked if she was nervous, she replied that she was going to play soccer  and that she was excited about the big class, just thinking of all the new friends she will have. I guess that's one way of looking at it.

Caroline won all of the awards in her class but one and it was in Music. She was an A student and excelled in everything, including Spanish, computer, art, principal's award, highest achiever, and some more. When graduation was over, we went to the Parish Hall for refreshments, just as a big fire truck pulled up to the church with lights flashing. Seems the lightning caused the fire alarm to go off!

So Caroline's graduation ended with natural fireworks and red lights flashing! And it continued to rain most of the night.

We came home the next day and Caroline went to Myrtle Beach with her classmates and several adult chaperones for 3 days.

On the way home we realized we have been going to events at St. Anthony school since Nerissa started to 4K there in 1992 - a total of 18 years. We are going to miss all the events but will still go to church with them at St Anthony's when we visit.

My niece gets married

Weddings area always such happy occasions. On Saturday, May 29, 2010, we traveled to Black Mountain, NC for my niece Beth Johnson's wedding to Matthew Peabody. The wedding took place at a Presbyterian Church on the Warren Wilson college campus at 4 p.m. Beautiful violin music filled the church before and during the wedding.

It was a family event with many young cousins attending. They passed out the small vials of bubble soap for everybody to blow bubbles to the newlywed couple as they exited the church.

We left the church and went to the Wild Hare 
restaurant in Black Mountain, NC,  for the reception.

Here you see Matt and Beth with her mother Carolyn on her left,

and her aunt; Susan on front, then left to right on back: Judy, Nell,

Chris and Alice.

It was a beautiful wedding and we enjoyed meeting Matt's family from Indiana and other states. Beth's brothers Doug and Greg as well as their wives Michelle and Robin were in the wedding.

The Wild Hare is a place that caters special events. The reception buffet meal was delicious and after dinner, a DJ friend from New Orleans was there to provide music for dancing in the ballroom. Following a toast from the best man and the fathers of the bride and groom, a slide show of Beth and Matt growing up was enjoyed by all. The bride's cousin Bill Gilmer prepared the slide show, complete with music. Then the beautiful wedding cake was cut and enjoyed by all.

The bride's 5 aunts (her mother's sisters) hosted a luncheon the day of the wedding for guests coming from out of town to the wedding. A large table of deli foods with cold drinks and cookies was served in the Senior Center building overlooking Lake Tomahawk.

The only member of our immediate family that could attend was granddaughter Liz who flew to the wedding from Austin, TX. We enjoyed visiting with her.

We left Black Mountain on Monday and attended our youngest granddaughter Caroline's 8th grade graduation in Florence, SC on June 2nd at 6:30 p.m. More about that later.