The A is for Awful- B is for Bestest- C is for Cafe in Blogland

The  ABC Cafe
Awful Bestest Cafe anywhere.

Remember the

Whistlestop Cafe

from

Fried Green Tomatoes?

Didn't you just love

Kathy Bates in that movie?

She found herself

by listening to another

woman's life story..

and because she

started a conversation

with a little old lady 

in a nursing home,

the woman's life

revolved around

the Whistlestop Cafe
and gave Kathy the couage
to HAVE a life.

I love the little things that

cause a conversation to start.

The talk usually goes in a

completely different direction

than I think it is going to go.

The other day I had an

Oldies-But-But-Goodies

radio station playing.

SweetCheeks said..

I know that song.

You do?

Yep..

I heared it in a restauhrhant.

You did?

Yep?

By now song Number 2

is playing.

Nana, I know THAT song, too.

You do?

Yep! I heared it in a restauhrahnt.

Okay- NOW I think

there is a story afoot.

What restaurant, SweetCheeks?

The ABC restauhrahnt.

Here's what it looks like

in case you are interested.

Really?

Seerioussly!

Hmmmm..

The ABC restauhrhant huh?

Yesss!

It's akctually 

(one of her favorite words 

of all time)

just the ABC restauhrahnt

because they only serve

things that start with

ABC.

Like what?

Hmmmm..long pause...

Akctually,

It is just the A restauhrahnt

cuz everything can just start

with A.

Like what?

Like  

A apple pie

and

A Burgher

and 

A  CANTUHKEY FRIEHD Chickhen.

Where IS this restaurant,

SweetCheeks, maybe I'll

 go there.

But, but, but, Nana....

Yohu CAHN'T go there.

Why not?

Ah-ha gotcha now...

you are gonna have to 

fess up that there 

IS NO such place.

Welllll, Nana, you

cahn't go there

cuz yohu arhe on a

diet and you 

can't eat any 

A thinhgs

and the ABC restauhrahnt

ONLY SURVES A THINHGS!

I can't wait to 

meet the man she

is going to marry someday.

I hope he is 

VERY SMART.

A Horse Is A Horse Of Course, Of Course...

While we were up 

Nort' for the weekend,

some little girls were visiting

their cousin's farm.

Guess what their

cousin has on his farm?

Uh-oh...

SweetCheeks is not too

sure she wants to 

ride so she walks

behind for a while.

Being a big brave girl

she mounts her

spirited steed!;>)

That's my girl...

riding in a SKIRT!

Just to be on the 

safe side,

she let's Lulu lead

her along the path.

And, after riding,

they learned how to

take care of their

new friends.

SweetCheeks decided

she was not the least

bit afraid.

She said she loved horses.

I told her I had loved

a horse or two in my time.

As a matter of fact

I wrote a little poem

about it before I

met MyHero.

You know how I love

writing poetry.

Here it is for your

reading pleasure.

The Prince of My Dreams

The Prince of my dreams

has ridden away

on a steed so cold and black.

And, never again will

I look for love

so close to a horse's back.

©Nana Diana 2012

I think y'all can get the 

hidden meaning there...

if ya can't let me know 

and I'll fill you in.

This picture should give you 

a hint!

Saturday On Sunday

Saturday on Sunday?

Confused, are you?

Well, these pictures

were taken Saturday

but posted today..

Get it?

We traveled many miles.

From Munising to Marquette,

from Marquette back to 

Munising and onward

to Grand Marias.

We love Marquette's old

historical section.

This house overlooks 

Lake Superior.

This one sits overlooking 

Marquette Harbor. 

As does this one...

MyHero loves these

old quarried stone buildings.

My favorite part of 

Marquette?

Scaling THIS hill.

Can you see why?

However, don't you worry about me

falling down that hill on my butt.

As you can see,

they DO have a drive through.

Thank you, Lord.

From there we headed to 

Grand Marias, MI.

Oh.So.Pretty.

And, as we stopped for

a quick break

I spotted a natural

CROSS

that made me smile.

Do you see it?

Cool, huh?

Almost as cool as this..

Ever seen a building built

like a Pickle Barrel before?

Nah-Not me!

And how many of these 

little old diners are left?

Not many~

And what you may ask

was the best sight of the day.

Well, it was one that made

me smile.

Back at the ranch hotel,

I spotted 

SOMEONE

in his bedtime attire

with one slight addition.

Can you spot it?

I'll bet none of 

YOUR HEROES

wears a 

Captain's Hat to bed.

Wait till you see his

bathtub boat!;>)

Where Is Nana Diana Today?

Wondering where I am?

Here's a hint..

Yes! Yes!

 The Bahamas!

Wait..

I may be mistaken.

What's that?

No palm trees?

No leaves?

Nope!

Can't  be the Bahamas

then, can it?

I love it here-

Up Nort' 

(as they say in this

area-the H is silent)

It reminds me of being

a kid again...

a carefree tree climber-

that's what I was.

The other day I told

God I sure wished I

could climb a tree again.

Do you think maybe He is

giving me an opportunity here?

Hmmmm..still a little steep

for this gal.

Now HERE'S a tree I

can probably climb.

And no one will be sitting

here watching me today...

Too cold... 38º to be exact.

We always dream a bit 

about buying a little piece 

of Heaven up here

but so far...we just look....

and dream...

and go home where

all the kids and grandkids

await us.

Just so I wouldn't get

bored without all the 

kids around I brought

along my own 

Tickle Me Elmo doll.

Notice he is gazing

at something with 

rapt attention.

Is he looking at this beautiful

view just outside our window?

Nope!

He is gazing at 

something exploding on TV.

Shoot!

I knew I should have brought

something to play with..

Oh~Wait~I did!

I did!

Maybe later, when I am bored,

I'll bring out the 

REAL FUN GAMES..

You know one of those

Fantasy Games 

some people play...

Like I pretend I'm

Sue Smith (sorry Sue)

and Sammy Slapp (sorry Sammy)

pretends to pick me up?

No? What do you mean

GET REAL?

Well, then I guess it

is back to the regular 

old

52 Pick Up Card Game!

Yep...much more my speed!

Hope  YOU are having

as exciting of a day

as I am!;>)

Butt Paste For The Bottom

This happened a while ago

when my daughter and I were

sewing and working on a project. 

"Uh-Oh...where is SweetCheeks?"

 "I dunno."

You know what THAT means.

The search is on!

I fly to the top of my steps

 minus my broom this time

"SweetCheeks", I call.

No answer. 

This does not bode well.

. "SweetCheeks", a bit louder now.

 No answer.

 "SWEETCHEEKS"- sternly now-

NO ANSWER AGAIN.

 "SweetCheeks", I call once again.

 "Say WHAT!"

 "WHUT!!

 Ahha-she is around the corner in the bathroom.

"What are you doing in there"? 

"Nuthen" 

Hmm... slide the door open...

OH MY! Her baby

 (with the cloth body-

of course it is cloth)

 is covered with ½ tube of Butt Paste 

and ½ cup of Johnson & Johnson

 lavender scented baby powder. 

She is also sporting one of BabyE’s diapers.

 Completely innocent little girl eyes 

lock onto my own . 

"SweetCheeks-what are you doing 

with your baby"? . 

"Well, I can’t get eny clowthes 

on my fatt baby 

and now hers has dyper rasch. 

Hers bottom isss sore." 

"How did that happen?", I foolishly ask. 

"Hers didn’t wipe bery guud 

when hers went potty..

and now hers is cwrying 

and cwrying cuz her butt is sore. 

And, now iss a big messss cuz 

I can’t get it offa my hands and 

I been usin lossta lossta 

baby wipes to clean em up wif."

(At least 40 by a casual count).

I don’t know whether 

to laugh or cry. 

Laugh because she

 is so darned comical

 or cry because of the mess.

 The laughter wins out. 

Uh-oh SweetCheeks

 does NOT see the humor in this. 

"Issss not funnny, Nana 

You’d be cwrying too 

if your butt hurted"

I am laughing so hard that 

I am almost crying. 

"You're right", I tell her. 

"It’s not funny. 

Come on, Let’s clean this up." 

Head nods in agreement...

"Okay..but but but Nana- 

I gotta go potty furst.

And, Nana?

Yes, honey?

I think I need sum butt paste, too.

Gee, I hope there's some left 

for the rest of us.

ps....gone Up North for the weekend..

will catch you all tonight-

God willing and the

hotel internet cooperating!

Real Gardens Full Of Weeds

You know how people

are always showing 

off their perfect 

gardens here in 

Blogland?

Well, let me tell you,

honey,

That is NOT what you 

are going to see here.

See this mess?

It is full of weeds...

and needs a good cleaning.

How it got to be this

green this time of year 

is beyond me.

We are having early June

in April here.

This bed is in front of 

the laundry room

and MyHero's office.
MyHero, by the way,
is NOT a yard guy.
He is NOT a weed-it guy.
He is a thinker.
A deep thinker.
Ahem, I wish he would think
about getting his butt
out there and doing
a little yard work.

Anyway, the yard?
This area is a mess

and it has to be moved

this year.

The plants in there form

a jungle by mid Summer.

Not pretty!

This little area has to 

be moved, too.

It is too close to the

end of the walkway

and the snowplow guys

run right over it.

I left the weeds in

for your viewing pleasure.

And, in front of the porch,

is another area that needs

attention.

I am going to have to 

bolster up the old wooden

wheelbarrow this year.

I did get the pillows on

the porch swing.

That fabric is from the 

early 1980's.  

I still love it.

I know. I know.

I did break down and buy

a new mat for the front door.

Don't ya love it?

AND

I got my Spring flag

hung out for those that 

pass by.

My son walked in and 

called me over to the front

door the other day.

Why?

What did he see?

Can you see it there?

It is a real bird in

a faux tree.

A Mourning Dove.

Isn't she sweet?

I'm thinking she got

just a tad confused

because just below the 

place where she built 

her nest I have

THIS SIGN..

See?

You think I am crazy?

You think CRAZY isn't catching?

I even have the poor birds

in our area confused!

By the way,

SweetCheeks 

NEVER MISSES
an opportunity to tell

me that I am her

Crazy Nana.

I think SHE thinks

that is a compliment.

I'll take it!

I'd rather be crazy

than boring!

IN GOD'S EYES & More 1st Communion Pictures

I didn't have all

my pictures together

on my first post.

My daughter emailed

me a few more..

so here they are..

Warning- lots of pictures here

and some came through 

a bit fuzzy.

Here is Ria being walked

into church by her

handsome Daddy.

And here she is with

her sweet little friend, Livvy.

And her other sweet little classmate

This is the priest,

Father Dave,

one of the funniest men

I know.

He came to Ria's house

for the party and told

me that when I was

young and a hottie

he was young and studly.

I found that funny...

what do you mean

I USED TO BE

a hottie?;>)

After the ceremony

we arrived to find the

house all decorated

just for Ria.

The mantle was cleared

so her banner could be

the highlight of that area.

There were pom-poms

And more pom-poms

And a chandy with fru-fru

Seen here up close

There were wonderful

little florals set all around.

And presents for her

special day including

a beautiful Bible from

Mom and Dad.

And..she...being the

sweet little girl she is

had a big kiss for her

Cousin CharlesInCharge

(that's his Daddy in the background)

And, of course,

no party would be complete

without at least one

picture of SCheeks.

This is taken with her

babysitter, Miss N.

When we were sitting at

the table eating someone

passed the comment that

MissN and SweetCheeks

looked like sisters.

Wehll, we ARHE sistahs!

We arhe ALL sistahs

and brouthers in

God's eyes!

Even Papa is my brouther,

and my cousins are my brouthers, too,

and effven my friends are my 

brouthers!

Being one that likes to egg her

on just to see what she will say

I voiced the opinion that if 

ALL boys are her brothers

then what will happen

If you marry someone will

HE be your brother, too?

With much disgust in her

voice she said..

It dussen't worhk

THAT WAY, NANA!

That's good, cuz I'd hate

to think I married

MY brother!

yeah....just sayin.....