Road Tripping With My Daughter-Florida, The Carolinas & Graceland!

After we dumped the rest of the family

off at the airport

My daughter and I started driving home.

Here she is at the onset.

She is the SELFIE QUEEN!

Remember how she looks here.

It is important later on in the blog.

Speaking of QUEENS....

We took a little U-Turn

from the Orlando airport.

and drove south about 3-1/2 hours to

Cape Coral, FL

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 We went to see my good friend

Queen Margaret...Queen of  Crazy...

(which is why I love her)

She is starting a whole new life and is 

the happiest I have ever seen her.

Thanks for lunch, Your Royal Highness. 

From there we headed North.

We made a swing to the ocean and drove

A1A from Daytona to the top of Florida.

Then headed to the North Carolina shore.

We visited our dear friends,

Carol & Dr.Allen.

Allen had brain surgery a few weeks ago.

He has a cancerous brain tumor

and has had radiation and is on chemo

so please pray for him and his wife.

He is one of the most brilliant men 

I have even known.

We used to play a game called

STUMP DR ALLEN...

Let's just say whatever we mentioned

he knew something about it.

The man is a walking encyclopedia.

Love you guys!

After we left there we headed almost directly West.

My daughter said that 

EVERY AMERICAN

needs to see GRACELAND at least once.

Being as I am an American I figured I had to go.

My daughter told me I could not go 

looking the way I did.

She insisted I not straighten my hair.

My hair curls when I let it....

So...here ya go....

I'm thinking curls are a bit much on an old lady..

but there you have it.

Graceland-Home of Elvis Presley-

It was a chilly day but the people 

around us were warm and friendly-

all coming to pay tribute to a man they loved.

We saw a couple of  old fat shoe-polish black hair Elvis "clones"

and that was interesting.

It was much like you would expect inside.

Lots of glitz and glamour.

Smoked mirrors were all the rage in

the 60's & 70's.

We did not see the chapel.

 I would have liked to see that...

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Elvis would be 80 today.

I can't imagine an OLD ELVIS, can you?

I think we remember him at his best-

young and handsome.

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We had one little scare when we 

stopped at a hotel---

my daughter getting out of the car

wondered...

"Mom, Why is that man 

STARING AND STARING at me?"

Ummm...Could be because he is a

CARDBOARD CUTOUT..dopey...

I thought I would wet my pants laughing---

but I didn't-thanks for asking.

Leaving Graceland we beat

a path home.

We were missing the family.

Now I'm not saying I am a boring conversationalist

but I was talking and looked over at my daughter

to see this.....

So--if you are looking for a traveling companion

and want to sleep the whole way-

call me-

I'll talk and drive and you can

well.....whatever!

So-now that I have bored you silly

with all our mis-adventures I

will change it up tomorrow.

Pinky promise!

DOING DISNEY- And It's A Wrap!

The truth is that there is so much

that goes on at Disney World that you 

just can't even begin to tell it all.

MyHero and I only went two days.

We spent one day at Epcot

and one day at the

Magic Kingdom.
The kids went five days.
God bless 'em.

We had a wonderful time at
THE MAGIC KINGDOM.

We started with brunch at the 

Crystal Palace here

Gotta love old Pooh Bear.

He's always got a smile on his face.

Lulu still smiles riding the big carousel.

Ria smiles hugging Tigger

Doesn't Eeyore have sad eyes?
I have always thought our 
SweetCheeks has sad eyes, too.

Although as you can see 
she is pretty smiley here!

All three girls were mesmerized by
The Little Mermaid.
I think the men liked this exhibit, too

So, folks, that's about all the Disney
I am gonna bore you with.
Here we are headed out.
That would be 
Minnie (Naomi)  and Goofy 
you see here.

Yeah- wouldn't you just love to take 
HIM home from Disney World?
it was really a great time!

Tomorrow I just MIGHT share a bit
of the road trip my daughter and I 
enjoyed on the way home.
Well-except for driving in a whiteout
but I won't mention that.

Doing Disney With Sappy, Happy & Yappy

Seeing Disney World through

the eyes of a child is a whole experience

unto itself.

They are enthralled by the magic 

of it all

and I am smitten watching them.

So- I will give you the 

short version of 

DOING DISNEY.

source

My daughter and I 

and the two girls

got there 2 days ahead of time.

I need to tell you that all my pictures are taken

with an iPhone 6 because my camera

was packed away

so~ bear with me.

My daughter worked her magic with

Travelocity and got us a deal at

The Swan.

The girls are in the lobby and out behind the hotel

Wonder what they are looking up at here?

Oh!  They are just like their Nana.

They like light fixtures!

Isn't this one a beaut?

After everyone else arrived

 we went to Epcot

and ate our way through the worlds.

My favorite was the 

Fish & Chips towards the end of the day.

I will say that I am NOT a big seafood fan-

but I loved this!

Hot and greasy-what can I say?

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The girls had fun visiting all the countries.

and really enjoyed 

their breakfast with the princesses.

They enjoyed themselves even though 

the day was a bit nippy.

Poor Lulu forgot her jeans in her bag.

I had a blanket along that came in handy.

Sweet Cheeks is getting to be a big girl.

 This might have been 

THE BOYS 

favorite star stop.

Mighta been Miz Jasmine's costume?

 My favorite ride in Epcot is SOARING.

You feel like you are moving 

through space although

you are actually stationary once

you are raised a few feet off the ground.

At one point it seems like 

you are going to hit the water.

Three years ago SweetCheeks told me-

Whatch Yoah Feet, Nana, so they doan't ghet wett.

Her legs were shorter so she wasn't worried about her own feet.

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See the pretty girl here with my girls?

That is Miss Naomi-
or Nomes as the girls call her.  
She has been babysitting the girls

since SweetCheeks was three or four.

She is 20 now and joined us at Disney.

She is a hair and makeup specialist

and will soon be working on the 

Disney Cruise Line.

She is excited and we are excited for her.

She is as sweet as she is cute!

Everyone assumes she is an older sister.

That about rounds out Epcot.

The Mom says-

C'mon Yappy-

Time to go!

Ah---silence----

Back tomorrow with a bit more

DISNEY WORLD

and then I'm moving on so

I don't bore you to tears.

FEAR-A Give Away AND A Health Update AND Happy Valentine's Day

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY

Care to join me for lunch?

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Now-
My friend, 

JETTIE PARRISH

asked me to post this for her.
I did a post about the book here.

She is giving away a copy of her book

The GIVEAWAY is on Facebook

AND here on my blog.

Here is the FB Link 

and you can sign up 

for it there.

You can also sign up here

on my blog.

Just leave me a comment below.

Signing up both places will give you 

two chances to win.

I am feeling better everyday.

I got home from being

Down Sauwth'

this morning.

This is what I left!!

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I came home to temps below

zero and arctic winds blasting.

Shoulda stayed in Florida but the

old boy isn't too good being on his own

MyHero flew home last Monday,

along with my son-in-law

and Lulu, Ria & SweetCheeks.

My daughter and I just 

wound our way home in the car.

I'd say I am 80%  better with just

a bit of cough left over.

My energy is picking up

and I plan to start blogging again

this coming week

Thanks to everyone that signs up

for the giveaway.

You will enjoy the read!

Happy Valentine's Day!

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FEAR ( A story of abuse)

Good Morning!

This post is NOT about me today!

No, indeedy!

This is for my friend, Jettie!

FEAR is a novelette written

by my friend

JETTIE PARRISH.

This is a fast read-

about 120 pages-

and it is loosely based 

on real life circumstances.

It is a good storyline 

and an accurate account of the effect 

abuse has on not only the victim but

other family members as well.

It makes liars out of honest people

when they try to protect the victim.

I loved the storyline and it has a surprise ending.

Here is the link to FEAR on Amazon.

It can be downloaded

and you can read it that way

-or- 

you can get it in paperback.

If you have a moment pop over and check it out.

WHERE IS WALDO-ER-WHERE IS NANA DIANA?

Good Morning Blogger Friends!

Can you guess where I am?

Here's a picture to help you figure it out.

Know where I am?

Here's another hint.

It is somewhere that a window frames 

beautiful flowers that bloom in February.

Getting warmer?

Got a guess yet?

I was here the day they opened
October 1, 1971-
Does that help or just make me old?

Here's another hint.

They serve food from different countries.

And SOMEONE might get mad

if the "baby" of the family

tries to eat the last piece of pastry.

I think the quote was 

"Do you want to go to the moon, Alice?"

Anyone remember the show THAT saying

came from?

What do you suppose this little girl is looking at?

It might be something like this-

Getting warmer?

Do you know yet?

If you get too tired you can have
Daddy pick you and your ears up and
CARRY YOU!

Ummm...that "ride" only applies
for children-not Nana's!

How about this?

It's Ria with Papa-er- I mean Eeyore!

We met up with Eeyore here-

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Ahhhh yes!

Some of you may have guessed where we are.

Do you know the 

VERY BEST PART

about 

BRUNCH in the CRYSTAL PALACE

at 

DISNEY WORLD?

It's the fact that they keep your

CUP FULL

of coffee!

Guess what kind it is~

STARBUCKS!

Yes! STARBUCKS!

Waiter-oh-waiter-

My cup is almost empty-

I am happy, very very happy!

AND feeling better day by day.

I'll be back soon.

Just an afternote:

If you think of it pray for a friend of mine.

I won't name her at this point but there is a

lot of upheaval going on in 

her and her husband's life.

Please pray that they find some peace and see 

A CLEAR PATH

laid out in front of them so they know 

that it will all turn out okay.

Thanks-

and as Mickey Says:

SEE YOU SOON!

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I'M TAKING THE GEOGRAPHICAL CURE-HEADED SOUTH

Good morning friends.

I know I have been gone a long time.

The pneumonia I had really knocked

me down.

Even though my lung x-rays are clear

I continue to cough and feel exhausted.

I want to thank each and every one of you
that follow this blog and that 
contacted me with well wishes,
healing thoughts and prayers.
I am truly blessed to know
and to have
such wonderful, caring blogging friends.

I have decided I will NEVER be a good

COUCH POTATO.

That means that MyHero may have

to find a different partner someday!

Anyway~

This cold weather means that I have

spent a lot of time inside the house

this winter.

I am not a good INSIDE person.

I need to get out at least for coffee 

every day.

My dear friend 

(thank you-you know who you are)

 sent me a 

bottomless cup of Starbucks for the

month of January.

I have used it but had to send someone

to fill it for me every day.

NOT my idea of FUN!

I, along with my daughter and her girls,

am taking off for parts unknown.

Let me just say it is somewhere warm.

I will share pictures when I get back.

My plan is to blog again on a limited basis

in mid-February.

So, bear with me.

I am not giving up-

just giving in to something that has

been beyond my control.

Here are my traveling companions.

Sappy, Happy & Yappy.

They could form their own TV show.

I am leaving this other 

sweet little granddaughter

behind with her Mama.

Is she too cute for words, or what?

Don't you love the one little piece of 

hair sticking straight up?

When her hair is wet it is a mass

of curls like her Mama had.

That's all she wrote, folks.

I am going-going-GONE!

Physically, not mentally, the old brain is still functioning...

kind of.......

See you all soon.

No Sledding For Me Yet! Hello & Health Update

Thank all of you that have written 

to me and sent me cards

and notes.

You are all too kind!

Anyway,

I am still recovering.

This has been a long process-

full of ups & downs.

The 2nd round of meds seemed to do the trick

and my lungs are clear of pneumonia.

I am still coughing but it is not

body-wracking like before.

Over-all prognosis is that another week

or so and I should be back to normal

(or as normal as I will ever be).

BEFORE I got sick I did get a 

couple of projects done.

One was painting an old sled I had for

my DIL.

She loves it!

 The lettering is done with a Sharpie

 Anyway,

I just wanted to let you know that I am okay

but still recovering.

I hope to be back on a regular basis soon.

Meanwhile, I think

CHILD LABOR LAWS

should be used to protect this child.

Little Bright-Eyes Mama Mimi put her here

to sort socks!

(because it is Mimi's least favorite job)

At least it looks like the 

ENTERTAINMENT COMMITTEE

is working overtime to keep the 

workers happy.

Ummmm..and where did HER sock go?

Have a wonderful Wednesday!

Happy New Year-2015 & A Health Update

Thank you!  Thank you!

THANK YOU!

I just wanted to let you know that

I am still above ground!

Thanks to all of you that have reached out

and left me comments.

Thanks, too, to each and everyone that sent me

emails that tell me that you are

praying for a speedy recovery for me.

You all are

THE BEST!

Seriously!

Who knew that bloggers could, and would,

care so much about each other?

I am sorry that I seldom responded to 

your comments and emails.

I have been dozing off and on

and watching old movies.

I can't even read because it is hard

to cough and read at the same time.

It is NOT CUTE!

They ran blood tests and lung scans
yesterday.
I only hope everyone has a doctor
that is as good as the one I have.
She leaves no stone unturned.

I will continue on another 

round of treatment
for two more weeks.

I have some new, stronger meds
that I hope will nip this 
thing in the bud.

I cannot believe how long this is hanging on.

I started coughing on 

December 7th at a concert

and have not stopped coughing since.

I have missed the parties

and all the Holiday preparations 
that  I so  love~

but I did 

CELEBRATE CHRISTMAS

with my family.

I hope to post a few pictures soon.

Let's hope that happens before

the 4th of July-

which will be here before we know it.

So that is the update and

with that being said~

I just wanted to wish you a 

BLESSED & WONDERFUL

NEW YEAR!

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I pray for 

HEALTH

HAPPINESS

&

LOVE

for you and your families in the upcoming year,

And, lest you think I lost my sense of humor

I have been thinking a lot about

aging another year.

I have decided it might not be too bad after all!

Bet that doesn't surprise you in the least.

I will be back soon!

Pinky Promise!