The Weight is Over

My birthday is in February and this February I turned 50. Being 50 feels no different to me then when I was 20, 30 or 40 but the way people respond to me is different and that is a little hard for me to get used to.

For instance, I was sick a couple of weeks ago with an upper respiratory infection and I had to go to the doctor. While at the doctor’s office there was also another lady there who had the same last name as mine. When the nurse was calling us back she assumed that the two of us were together. We said no, we are not together and we went back one at a time.

When the nurse called me back she explained to me that she had thought we were together because we both had the same last name and we were both women in our 50s. Well, I had only been 50 for about 3 days at that time and I hardly thought that made me a woman in my 50s.

I pondered over this for a while and I began to realize that I am now a woman in her 50s and that is how it is and will always be (until I become a woman in her 60s, 70s,…). So I decided to embrace the whole concept and enjoy it. I will now except my senior discounts and senior coffee and be happy that I have been blessed to become a senior. My mother always said she wanted to live as long as the Lord would bless her to live and she hoped that that would be 100. She was always very proud of her age and thankful that she had been blessed to live a long and happy live.  I think I am beginning to see what my mother was talking about. I hope to enjoy as many years as the Lord blesses me to have and be happy that I am a woman in her 50s.

Often when I am shopping for toys and treats for my two dogs I see these really cute outfits and imagine what Lexus and Buddy would look like in one of them. Usually that is as far as I go with the whole idea but this past weekend I let my imagination run away with me and I bought a cute little dress for Lexus and a football shirt for Buddy.

I think they look really cute in them. They seem to think that we think they look cute too. Lexus really got an attitude when she got her dress on and she pranced all over the place. Buddy seemed a little jealous because he didn’t have his shirt yet. When I put his shirt on him they walked around together smelling of each other and holding their heads up high. All the excitement made them really tired and they went to sleep right after that. 

It was fun for us all; I guess this means there will be more outfits in the future…

As the snow is beginning to melt today I have been continuing to relax at home and ejoy the extra time off from work.

I am so thankful for my warm home.

And my 2 wonderful pets, Lexus and Buddy. (Buddy and Lexus playing at home).
They are sitting with me now as I type this post. Pets are the dearest “friends” we can have. They want nothing more than to be with you at every opportunity. We could learn a lot from them and their unconditional love.

I am also thankful for my wonderful husband. I have been married to him for 28 years. We have been together most of my teenage and adult life. I am thankful that I met him early in my life and didn’t have to go through too much trial and error before settling on the right one.

Hope all of you are enjoying this day and remembering the ones you love and how thankful you are for them. It is a great time to think and reflect while the snow is melting and the weather is warming a little…be happy.

Yesterday, 2.12.2010, we had another snow day in Anniston, Alabama. The pictures below were taken from our front porch.

It was a nice time to relax and stay home. Most times when we are home on the weekends we have so many things to do to prepare for the next week of work that we don’t have much time to relax. Having the snow on the ground and not being able to get out and move about forces one to stop and be still for a while. It seems that we are all too busy these days. We have to have “something” to slow us down. Isn’t that odd about the way people live now compared to a few years ago? The more we learn, the more technology that we accumlate the more we think we have to do. It seems like all the knowledge would help us not have to work so hard. But to me we are all so busy now that we don’t even have time to enjoy one another’s company. So, I for one have loved the snow day and the time to be with my family and friends and enjoy a few things that I love to do too. I hope it was a good time for all of you as well.

Today was a holiday from work. It was nice to be home an extra day and relax and think. I was looking at some of my pictures and realized that I had not posted a picture of some of my finished projects so thought I would do that today:

Scarf Knitted for my Niece:

Dish rag knitted from the pattern gotten from yarnmiracle dish rag tag pattern 2008:

 I was not a part of the Dish Rag Tag race but I enjoyed making the pattern and can’t wait to get the pattern from this year http://yarnmiracle.com/2009/10/12/top-eleven .

A collar I crocheted for my sister.

 
A praying Hands dish rag that  I knitted for my sister.

 
A dish rag that I crocheted.

 I haven’t made any new things lately but I have got some thoughts racing around in my mind. Maybe I will get some of them done and post some new pictures soon. If not, maybe I will have another day of reflection and find something else to share.

Yesterday was Buddy’s annual VET visit. We found out during this visit that the rabies shots have been changed and will only be required every three years. Great news for Buddy who becomes so nervous during his visit that he has to be muzzled and comforted by his special friend (mine too).

 Here with Mike (our best friend).

 Here looking beautiful even with a muzzle on.

After all was over Buddy checked out fine and we headed to McDonalds to get him a nice cup of ice (his favorite treat). Then we went home to take it easy and relax.

 There is just no place like home!!!

I have completed the week and I am back at home for the weekend. It has been a strange experience for me this past week. I have felt such a void with Mama being gone. There are so many thoughts that I have of her each day and especially in the last year when she has been so sick. I am always thinking about going to see her, what she might or might not need, what could I do for her on the weekend that might make her feel better. Now I feel lost. My husband and I were making plans today and I told him that I felt like I needed to work in going to see Mama but there will be no more going to see Mama now.

I am very thankful for the time I had wih Mama. And I am very thankful that she was my mother. I know I am who I am today because of her and Daddy. They were both great parents. I learned valuable lessons from them both. My brother and I were talking about them the other day and we were saying to each other how we felt we had the perfect parents for us. We would not have changed any thing.

So, I know there is more days of adjustment to come. And I know that life is going to be so different now. I am almost 50 but I still feel as though I am a child who has lost her parents and there is such a void there. I do have my husband (wonderful friend and companion), my brother, my sister, nieces, nephews, aunts, uncles, cousins and friends. God has been good to me and I know that He will continue to bless me as long as I have faith in Him. Brighter days will be ahead.

My mother passed away on September 27, 2009. Today I was thinking about her and this poem came to me. This is the first poem I have ever written. It is a tribute to my wonderful mother.

Mama

Mama I love the talks we always had; Mama you always made my heart feel glad.

Mama I love the ideas we shared;  Mama I always felt like you cared.

Mama when the whole world felt like it was coming apart; Mama I knew you would help heal my heart.

Mama the world will never be the same for me; Mama no one can show me the beauty you could always see.

But Mama I won’t be sad; I’ll rejoice and be glad.

For Mama you always said, no one stays dead.

Mama I look forward to again seeing your face; Mama I can’t wait for you to tell me about God’s heavenly place.

By: Carla Noles, September 2009