Not a Good Week.......

This has not been  a good week at all. First part of the week I heard my first ex husband was getting worse. He has lung and bone cancer. I know after Hospice comes in you don't have long. My daughter Darla is on the way down to Brownwood tonight. She said they are not looking for him to live through the night.

Back when he was 19 and I was 18 he was a pretty wild man. I had first met him in the 6th grade. Went to the movies with him then. Met him again when I was 17. He was a good race car driver at one time. I was with him for seven years. We had five kids.

I have forgave him for all of that now. I feel so bad for him having to suffer so much. No one deserves that. It will be  a relief for him and everyone else when he is at peace and an ending to his suffering.

Then today I had took my next door neighbor to work. She works way out on 35. On way back I thought I would stop at the Below Five store. They have good cell phone stuff. When I stopped I seen I had a message on facebook. It was a friend from Sweetwater telling me my grandson Devon had died in a car accident early this morning. I just sat there crying and shaking. He is 21! Such a shock.

When Devon was very young he and his brother Dillon and Mom Christy  and my son Charles lived here with me for awhile. I babysat them while she worked. But then she moved back to Sweetwater. They broke up and she came down one time with her to be husband. She told me I could always see the boys. But I really didn't. They were both on my facebook page. I seen Devon a few years back when I went to my grandson Zacks graduation. That was the last time I seen him.

One never knows how long anyone will be here in this world. It is always a shock when a young person dies. I have been in shock all day. I can only imagine what his Mom and Dad are going through. I know how that feels. I have been there.

I think Lita summed it up when she said, " My heart is crying for you....It should not happen twice in a lifetime for one person...but in the blinking of an eye....

RIP Devon Freeman.

Nice Memorial Day Weekend....

Its been a nice Memorial Day Weekend I guess. It could have been worse. Of course it has been rainy weather but I didn't have to go far. Just right around in my little neighborhood.

I did hate it that I had to miss my grandsons graduation on Friday night. At least all the kids sent me pictures. I just don't drive on those roads like that. It is very scary the way the drivers go faster when it rains .

On Saturday my son Charles came over. He was putting a new pantry door in for me. One of those glass ones that says Pantry on it. Very pretty. I cleaned out a little room I have off the family room that used to be Jeff's office. Making me a craft room out of it. If anyone knows me they know I don't have just plain white walls. I am painting this room four shades of orange. Then I got some unique pictures of Sweetwater I am putting in there. I will have all my scrapbooking materials and pictures as well as sewing machine and Avon stuff.

Saturday night I went over to Jana's. We had hot dogs. Sunday Charles and I worked on the house some more. Sunday night Jana invited me over to have enchiladas. My favorite food! Kaylee and Connor came home and spent the night with me.

Today Jana invited me over for lunch and we had tuna sandwiches. For some reason they remind me of the old days when I was young. I had to call my doctor and get some medicine. Have a UTI. First one in a long time. So glad she called antibiotics in . Then tonight I went over to Jana's Mom and Dad in Law for dinner. Potato salad, beans, pulled pork, rolls, peas, watermelon and cantaloupe. Dessert was banana pudding and cake.

All in all it was a good Memorial Day. Been busy. Tonight I am watching some mystery movies. Just lots of rain the whole weekend.

My Grandson, Rhyne Allen Carter Graduated Tonight

I had made plans all week to go see my grandson, Rhyne Allen Carter graduate tonight at 7 pm at Prestonwood Baptist Church in Plano. He had  attended Prestonwood Christian Academy . I watched the news this afternoon thinking maybe I could go but the more they said the more I knew I couldn't. My son Allen would call me a big sissy. He thinks you shouldn't be scared of anything. Raining and driving on a freeway just scares me. It is bad enough driving on dry land in this big city.

My daughter Darla went though and I ask her to send me pictures. She sent me one when she first got there of the inside of the church. Looked like a big crowd was there.

Rhyne is named after his Dad and he looks like him too so they named him right.  He will be attending Oklahoma State University and studying Business Management and Entrepreneurship. Sounds like he wants to be like his Dad. Allen is a real good businessman. I have a feeling Rhyne will be a good one too.

I think having your own business kind of runs in my family. My Dad had a small business as a mechanic and trading cars. My brothers both had car lots and done very well. I have had a cleaning business and a daycare. I just never liked to work for someone else. Allen started with drycleaners and has a really huge one in downtown Dallas now.

I am real proud of my grandson and I hope he knows that. I was there watching him graduate in my heart. Sad because I wasn't there in person.

My Sister Never Got To See Her Grandkids.....

When I got up this morning and logged on Facebook (like I do every morning) I seen that it was Toby Forbes birthday. He is my sister Janice's grandson. That got me to thinking....  Janice never got to see any of her grandkids. That is just so sad. She was such a nice lady and she loved kids. I  know she would have been such a good grandma. I wonder what they would have called her?Grandma, Grandmother, Granny, Nana or like my grandkids call me Ma?

I know that is an unusual name to be called Ma for a Grandma. That is because my grandchild Tiffany could not say Grandma. She would say Ma and it stuck. Now all the younger grandkids call me that.

I wish Toby could have met his Grandma. She was one of the sweetest ladies I have ever known. She only had two boys. Arlin was 19 and Cliff was 17 when she died. She got colon cancer. She was 38. She was such a tiny little thing. She never weighed over 89 lbs. And talk about cooking. She was a great cook. A great seamstress. She was a painter and loved to draw. She had so many talents. She was great with crafts too. I named my younger daughter after her, Jana. I think she took after her a lot. She is a great cook and can sew and do crafts too.

Arlin and Cliff both took after Janice in being small boned and short. And then there kids kind of did the same thing. I don't think any of them actually took after her husband, Eugene.

I just wish Janice could have been here today to see her grandson. But I know she is in heaven with her two boys. She is smiling down on Toby. I can hear her saying, " That is my grandson and he looks just like his Daddy did .And one day we will meet. "

Elaine of All Trades.....

I think I am Elaine of all trades. I am trying to do an errand service and I already have a cleaning service. I don't do much cleaning  but a few places I have done for a long time. I do a little writing. I do this  blog a few times a week. Trying to get better so I can write that book or at least maybe articles for magazines. Meanwhile since I am a struggling freelancer I still have to make money so that is why I am trying the errand service.

An errand service can mean  a lot of different things. This one does. I have a site on my facebook page that tells more about it and what I do. I will take lunches to people working or residential homes. If someone needs  a ride I can provide that. It is just on the west side of Fort Worth but in certain circumstances I might go further. I will deliver documents for offices or run a number of different kinds of errands for offices.

I have watered flowers while someone is gone on vacation. I will housesit while waiting on utilities or something is expected. I will do shopping or run errands for clients. I will even help pack if you are moving. Anything I can do I will be glad to help you do if you have a need. Just run it by me and we will see if I can do it.

I just need to advertise more to get the word out there I guess. Advertising is hard and it is costly. Word of mouth is  a good way but you got to get that started somehow too. Most of my facebook friends are not from herein Fort Worth so that is a hard way to advertise too. I would like to have  a billboard but cant afford that. Not yet anyway.

I will keep just plugging along and hope it gets better. That is all I can do. Right?

Another Mother's Day Gone......

Mother's Day has changed completely I think  from what it used to be. Back when I was a young Mother I never once missed getting my Mom something for Mother's Day. I still would if she was alive. I don't remember when I started getting my daughter's something but now I always do.

This day was great. My daughter Jana's husband fixed us breakfast. We had biscuits with gravy, bacon, eggs and fried potatoes.They invited me along with his Step Mom for lunch. We had hot dogs, steak , baked potatoes and salad. Dustin(my son) came over also with his wife Lana and daughter Ella.

I got two bouquets of flowers. A gift card form Barnes and Noble. Flowers on a stand for outside. A family birthstone necklace . When I got home my next door neighbor brought me  a single rose. I had a nice time.

Still when you get home from all that excitement and then your all alone it is just  a let down. Not because I have nothing to do either. I got plenty to do. I have to write an article of 3,000 words by tomorrow. I have put it off. I got to really get on that soon as I finish here.

I think having a large family of seven kids ruined me for living alone. When I get home from    visiting family I just feel so lonely sometimes. Then again sometimes I love being alone. I love my private time. Don't get me wrong.

And I cant wait until tomorrow when I take my gift card to Barnes and Noble and purchase some books. I am most happy when I am buying books. I don't know if I will get them all read in my lifetime but I am going to try.

Hope everyone had a great mom's Day.

I Don't Like the Dark......

I like living alone just fine. Until after dark. I don't know why it bothers me so much. I guess because I am a sunshiny person. The first thing I do when I wake up is open all the blinds. Let the sun come in. We made a family room/movie room out of the garage. I have three sets of French doors and two windows. When I get up I open all those blinds and go out and get my paper. I have a glass of orange juice and read the paper. I am busy all day and pretty well content.

And then night time comes. When I close all the blinds I feel like I am closed in. I turn on a lot of lights. When I go to bed I leave the hall light and the bathroom light on. I cannot stand total darkness. I don't know if that is why I keep waking up during the night. My street is kind of a busy street.

I have a security system and that makes me feel  safer. But still not safe enough I guess. Living on a busy street doesn't help matters. I got  a real nice neighbor that looks out for me . She says she is just a holler away. That makes me feel safer.

Now why do I read all the mysteries that I read? Because I love them dearly and couldn't quit if my life depended on it. They don't seem as scary as watching them in a movie. Bates Motel scares me a little. That family is not normal.

Maybe I need a roommate. Unless the roommate is scary. You hear about that too. I guess I just been watching too many scary movies and reading too many scary books. But I am not going to quit.....

Mystery Movies.....Love Them

I like nothing better than to curl up on the sofa and watch a good mystery. Hallmark and Lifetime have lots of mystery movies on the weekend. I can't wait until tomorrow night. Joanne Flukes book about Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder will be on. I have read a lot of her books. Just recently I found the Aurora Teagarden mysteries too. I read the first one. There was a movie about the second one that Candace Cameron Bure is in. Watching it right now. It is called, "Bone to Pick :An Aurora Teagarden Mystery."

There are so many mystery books that have been written. Starting out with Nancy Drew as a child and now on to bigger and better mysteries. I love Mary Higgins Clarks books as well as her daughter Carol Higgins Clark. Then Mary Jane Clark who is some kin to them. Two local ones that I read . Judy Alter and Laurie Moore. Their stories relate to this area and I love that when I know the streets or the restaurants.

I have always wanted to write my own mystery but I don't think I have that much imagination. Maybe one day.

I just bought a new book of Mary Higgins Clark the other day called  "Death Wears a Beauty Mask." She actually started it in 1974 but never finished it. She wrote instead "Where Are The Children?" It is only 83 pages long. I can't wait to get started on it. First I got to finish the one I am on. Laurie Moore's" Getting Mama Out of Hell." It is kind of a strange book compared to what Laurie usually writes. But it is a good book . And when Judy's next book comes out on the Kelly O' Connell series I will be reading that one. I feel like Kelly is a close friend.

I have a stack of books yet to read. I may never get thru because authors keep writing more. It takes me about two weeks to read  a book. If I can't get into it that much it takes even longer. But I am always on a book. I will never run out of reading material. And that is a good thing. I am happy when I got a good book to read.