yes, i've been MIA...... know that hasn't bothered many peeps, but I have missed blabbing. but those of you that know me personally are aware that the fam has had a bit of shake-up going on and we've all just kind of been closed lipped. anyway, i am slowlyyyyyyyy getting back to checking emails and reading blogs and i've just got to say i am green.......with ENVY of all these young women and their talents! OMGosh.....the creativity is nearly beyond my comprehension.
but more than that is HOW they can find the energy to come up with these marvels when they have families and jobs outside the home. WOW!!! and too, i'm looking at laundry room makeovers and kitchen re-dos and thinking how can someone your age have a home that large and organized or how do you have the funds to remodel your kitchen already?? *sigh*
i was born in the 1954 while my dad was in medical school. my mother worked for IBM and made $1.00 an hour-and that was because she had a college degree. minimum wage was 40 cents an hour. my dad "made" seven cents an hour while he was in school. a loaf of bread was $.17......a gallon of gas was 22 cents! a gallon of MILK was 92 cents. the average YEARLY income was $3,960.00, a new car cost $1,700.00 and a new house averaged $10,250.00. i heard stories my whole life about my parent's first apartment--there was no dining area and we ate off a card table. once that card table was set up, you could not open the oven or the refrigerator and my high chair was out in the hallway!!! hard to imagine, isn't it? my brother is 2 years younger than i am and we shared a room until the family moved to t-town; i was 8 yrs old.
i'm sure prices then and now are comparable in some way, but i am still amazed at how much young people have so soon.......and how so many of them cannot fathom it being any other way. i am amazed at how and where they get their strength and stamina. but mostly, i am amazed at how there is time for them to do all this creative stuff when they have children at home and school, a house to be cleaned, meals to be cooked, clothes to be washed, etc etc etc. AND while they're making all these groovy things, they are taking pics and blogging about it...........i wonder if their days have more hours in them than mine do??!!??
i think i kind of went off on a tangent.........that happens to old people, especially late at night! :)~
i don't feel i have any talents at all and so, i had a green day today......but it won't last long as i am content with my status quo.
i'll be back soon............and i know you're hoping i've got better material then!
hugs, karen
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
Monday, July 19, 2010
give....and....take
i don't know why the particular story i'm about to tell came to mind recently--it's 30 years or more old--but obviously it did and i want to share it.
MANY years ago when microwaves first came out, they were ginormous! it took a near chef's sized kitchen to be able to house one. crazy! well my dad went out and paid a small fortune for a microwave and brought it home as a surprise gift for my mother. oh, my dad was so excited about this gift! the family was at the breakfast room table for dinner and he's going on and on about how great this addition to the kitchen was going to be, what a help it would be for mother in preparing the meals, etc. well mother was less than pleased with the gift as it was going to take up precious counter space, space she'd waited 20 years to have in their dream house. dad goes on about how they can make it work, find the right spot and all.......and mother is like no, no, no. he's "but babe, at least try it before you decide it against it for sure"......and then all of the sudden my mother gets up from the table, storms out of the room and goes and locks herself in their bathroom!! i was freaking out as that move was so unexpected and dramatic. dad, rick and i continue to eat our dinner, not a word being said. best i can remember about 10 minutes passed and then my dad gets up and starts leaving the breakfast room......i asked him where he was going and what he was about to do and he said he was going to apologize to my mother.
i'm like WHATTTT?? you bought her a fab gift, she freaks out and you're going to apologize to her??? i said if anyone is going to apologize, it should be her to you! he looked at me and said "i love your mother and i hate seeing her upset. i'm going to do whatever it takes to make things right". man, he was special and i think they broke the mold with him. anyway.............
i was 20-ish when this happened, not even thinking about getting married yet and did not realize the sacrifices that spouses should be willing to make for each other. no marriage is perfect, but it can be close as long as both people are willing to work at it and compromise when necessary. we all have faults and have to decide if we can accept them in our partner. larry's really messy but i love him anyway......and i'm such a (deaf) bitch, but he's still around.
no one can tell someone what they can or cannot accept in a partner because each of us is different and wants different things. will you be able to always accept him wanting to be babied when he's sick or him wanting a back rub every night?? only you know. will he be able to always put up with your extreme gas problems and lousy cooking?? only he knows. are you willing to give even when you think it's his time to give?? again, only you know the answer. hopefully there will be time when you both get to be givers and takers, so as to keep the status quo.
the new PEOPLE magazine has a scoop on courtney cox and her husband going to a marriage therapist. she says "we're not lazy about our marriage. we still have the same arguments we've had for years. some things just never change, and you should realize that the intriguing things you fall in love with will probably become the things you don't like". hmmm....food for thought, perhaps???
oh, by the way.....that microwave went back and mother did not get one til one could be mounted over her cook top! she was totally serious about not giving up her counter space!
peace...........karen
MANY years ago when microwaves first came out, they were ginormous! it took a near chef's sized kitchen to be able to house one. crazy! well my dad went out and paid a small fortune for a microwave and brought it home as a surprise gift for my mother. oh, my dad was so excited about this gift! the family was at the breakfast room table for dinner and he's going on and on about how great this addition to the kitchen was going to be, what a help it would be for mother in preparing the meals, etc. well mother was less than pleased with the gift as it was going to take up precious counter space, space she'd waited 20 years to have in their dream house. dad goes on about how they can make it work, find the right spot and all.......and mother is like no, no, no. he's "but babe, at least try it before you decide it against it for sure"......and then all of the sudden my mother gets up from the table, storms out of the room and goes and locks herself in their bathroom!! i was freaking out as that move was so unexpected and dramatic. dad, rick and i continue to eat our dinner, not a word being said. best i can remember about 10 minutes passed and then my dad gets up and starts leaving the breakfast room......i asked him where he was going and what he was about to do and he said he was going to apologize to my mother.
i'm like WHATTTT?? you bought her a fab gift, she freaks out and you're going to apologize to her??? i said if anyone is going to apologize, it should be her to you! he looked at me and said "i love your mother and i hate seeing her upset. i'm going to do whatever it takes to make things right". man, he was special and i think they broke the mold with him. anyway.............
i was 20-ish when this happened, not even thinking about getting married yet and did not realize the sacrifices that spouses should be willing to make for each other. no marriage is perfect, but it can be close as long as both people are willing to work at it and compromise when necessary. we all have faults and have to decide if we can accept them in our partner. larry's really messy but i love him anyway......and i'm such a (deaf) bitch, but he's still around.
no one can tell someone what they can or cannot accept in a partner because each of us is different and wants different things. will you be able to always accept him wanting to be babied when he's sick or him wanting a back rub every night?? only you know. will he be able to always put up with your extreme gas problems and lousy cooking?? only he knows. are you willing to give even when you think it's his time to give?? again, only you know the answer. hopefully there will be time when you both get to be givers and takers, so as to keep the status quo.
the new PEOPLE magazine has a scoop on courtney cox and her husband going to a marriage therapist. she says "we're not lazy about our marriage. we still have the same arguments we've had for years. some things just never change, and you should realize that the intriguing things you fall in love with will probably become the things you don't like". hmmm....food for thought, perhaps???
oh, by the way.....that microwave went back and mother did not get one til one could be mounted over her cook top! she was totally serious about not giving up her counter space!
peace...........karen
Thursday, June 17, 2010
the name game
my name is karen and i didn't like it at all until i was well into adulthood. i never had a nickname and always wanted one. come to find out, my parents gave me this name because it couldn't be shortened nor could they think of any nickname that could come out of it. so, i have always been (just) karen. kind of blah when you're a kid, i suppose, but it's been quite nice that i don't have a really common name. those of you that know my maiden name will surely agree that karen was the best of choice of the parental considerations, the other choices being linda and cynthia. no offense to women with those names, but can y'all imagine me having to go through life as cynthia s-----d??? GAG!!!
my dad was a junior and hated it so there was no way my brother was going to be a 3rd! also, he went by his middle name, which he also disliked. he spent virtually his entire life being called by his first name and having to explain that he went by his middle name.......apparently that was quite a frustrating chore at times, so out of that came the fact that both my brother and i were given the names the parents wanted us to be called as first names; end of confusion. i happen to like this idea and did the same with my kids and i hope they will do the same.
my ex-husband, my father and father in law all had the same first name and none of them went by it.....2 middle name users and a nickname all his life, respectively. but to honor all of them, that first name is marshall's middle name.....kind of cool i think. but i hope he will not give the name to his son unless it is also a middle name and he is called something else. as for how marshall got his name, i had a high school boyfriend with the name and always loved it because it was not something you heard all the time. but after he was born, we found out that his paternal great grandmother's mother's maiden name was marshall! got a family name in there without even knowing it.
allison's father decided on her name and it, too, was the name of a former "flame". we had not heard the name often at the time of her birth, but it has ended up being a fairly common name for her generation. there were times when she was younger that she wished for another name and even asked a time or two about using her middle name so she wouldn't be lost in the crowd. i really hate that for her. i had the hardest time deciding on a middle name for her; in fact the hospital business office was on the verge of threatening me to come up with something so they could finish her paperwork. a few years ago, allison thought she would give her middle name to her daughter, but i think now she's leaning in a different direction.
i always wished my maiden name was one that would've worked nicely as a first name for either of my kids, but it just really isn't....and that makes me especially sad now that my brother has no children and the family name will die with him. my mother's maiden name would've made a good boy name, but i just have one son and i like his name very much. i have a friend that gave both her daughters her maiden name as a middle name.....don't quite get that, but hey, to each his or her own, right?
naming your baby is exciting but also important. we can't be too cutesy nor should we be too far out because the child will have the name his or her entire life, barring any legal name changing that is. it's a daunting task. as one who has always had to spell out her last name--all 3 of them!--i would also like to say that crazy spellings of first names is a no-no to me. there are lots of unisex names out there now and while different may be neat, i would always wonder if my daughter felt we really wanted a boy when we named her taylor, for example......or if the son felt the same way by being given the name cameron. i'd also wonder if that cute little baby girl named brandy or candy or sissy would have trouble being thought of seriously as an adult, especially say if she were to become an attorney. as i said, naming your child is a daunting task. you also need to make sure his or her initials are acceptable and don't inadvertedly spell out a word they would be uncomfortable with.
so there are my thoughts and opinions on names.......hugs!
my dad was a junior and hated it so there was no way my brother was going to be a 3rd! also, he went by his middle name, which he also disliked. he spent virtually his entire life being called by his first name and having to explain that he went by his middle name.......apparently that was quite a frustrating chore at times, so out of that came the fact that both my brother and i were given the names the parents wanted us to be called as first names; end of confusion. i happen to like this idea and did the same with my kids and i hope they will do the same.
my ex-husband, my father and father in law all had the same first name and none of them went by it.....2 middle name users and a nickname all his life, respectively. but to honor all of them, that first name is marshall's middle name.....kind of cool i think. but i hope he will not give the name to his son unless it is also a middle name and he is called something else. as for how marshall got his name, i had a high school boyfriend with the name and always loved it because it was not something you heard all the time. but after he was born, we found out that his paternal great grandmother's mother's maiden name was marshall! got a family name in there without even knowing it.
allison's father decided on her name and it, too, was the name of a former "flame". we had not heard the name often at the time of her birth, but it has ended up being a fairly common name for her generation. there were times when she was younger that she wished for another name and even asked a time or two about using her middle name so she wouldn't be lost in the crowd. i really hate that for her. i had the hardest time deciding on a middle name for her; in fact the hospital business office was on the verge of threatening me to come up with something so they could finish her paperwork. a few years ago, allison thought she would give her middle name to her daughter, but i think now she's leaning in a different direction.
i always wished my maiden name was one that would've worked nicely as a first name for either of my kids, but it just really isn't....and that makes me especially sad now that my brother has no children and the family name will die with him. my mother's maiden name would've made a good boy name, but i just have one son and i like his name very much. i have a friend that gave both her daughters her maiden name as a middle name.....don't quite get that, but hey, to each his or her own, right?
naming your baby is exciting but also important. we can't be too cutesy nor should we be too far out because the child will have the name his or her entire life, barring any legal name changing that is. it's a daunting task. as one who has always had to spell out her last name--all 3 of them!--i would also like to say that crazy spellings of first names is a no-no to me. there are lots of unisex names out there now and while different may be neat, i would always wonder if my daughter felt we really wanted a boy when we named her taylor, for example......or if the son felt the same way by being given the name cameron. i'd also wonder if that cute little baby girl named brandy or candy or sissy would have trouble being thought of seriously as an adult, especially say if she were to become an attorney. as i said, naming your child is a daunting task. you also need to make sure his or her initials are acceptable and don't inadvertedly spell out a word they would be uncomfortable with.
so there are my thoughts and opinions on names.......hugs!
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
a little wedding update
i had my sweet shuggie with me last night and a good portion of today and it was SO nice. as many of you t-towners know, she is part of the "FAB 5" and all of them were in dallas monday morning for the miracle of cohen's birth. she was able to switch with someone at work to get today off and so she headed here from dallas monday afternoon.
we were able to get a little time at traditions bridal salon and try on some gowns as well as look at bridesmaids selections. oh what fun that was!! we have what we think is such an awesome plan/theme for the wedding and are looking for THE perfect everything for everybody. time consuming--oh yeah.........frustrating--for sure......exciting--definitely!! :)
today we had some florist appointments and that was both enlightening and shocking! LOL i was surprised at the reasonable prices of some items and the shockingly high prices of others....
and honestly it was all reversed from what i had in my mind that it would be. guess that shows you how much i know! :)~ i love beautiful flowers but know nothing about them........i can count on one hand the flowers i can recognize--seriously. that doesn't bode well when you're trying to make your daughter think you actually know something AND trying to prove to the florist that you really aren't an idiot! nothing was finalized today, but i think shug and i know which way we want go, PROVIDING there can be a little better "meeting of the minds" in regard to the buckaroonies with our front runner.
i have some vacation time at the end of the month and allison & i will be getting together. we want to check out low's bridal shop in brinkley, arkansas.....it amazes me that a little town like that has a bridal store that attracts people from all over the place! i went to low's in 1977 when i was planning my wedding and it was big and awesome and well known way back then. crazy! a trip to dallas is also possible. we definitely hope to get the wedding gown ordered and it would be icing on the cake to have the decision made on the attendant's attire as well. we know what we'd like for the bridesmaids but finding the look we want for a price we are comfortable with is proving rather difficult.
now would be a great time for a couple of things to happen--one would be money started growing on trees and another would be for me to win the lottery!!
hugs, karen
we were able to get a little time at traditions bridal salon and try on some gowns as well as look at bridesmaids selections. oh what fun that was!! we have what we think is such an awesome plan/theme for the wedding and are looking for THE perfect everything for everybody. time consuming--oh yeah.........frustrating--for sure......exciting--definitely!! :)
today we had some florist appointments and that was both enlightening and shocking! LOL i was surprised at the reasonable prices of some items and the shockingly high prices of others....
and honestly it was all reversed from what i had in my mind that it would be. guess that shows you how much i know! :)~ i love beautiful flowers but know nothing about them........i can count on one hand the flowers i can recognize--seriously. that doesn't bode well when you're trying to make your daughter think you actually know something AND trying to prove to the florist that you really aren't an idiot! nothing was finalized today, but i think shug and i know which way we want go, PROVIDING there can be a little better "meeting of the minds" in regard to the buckaroonies with our front runner.
i have some vacation time at the end of the month and allison & i will be getting together. we want to check out low's bridal shop in brinkley, arkansas.....it amazes me that a little town like that has a bridal store that attracts people from all over the place! i went to low's in 1977 when i was planning my wedding and it was big and awesome and well known way back then. crazy! a trip to dallas is also possible. we definitely hope to get the wedding gown ordered and it would be icing on the cake to have the decision made on the attendant's attire as well. we know what we'd like for the bridesmaids but finding the look we want for a price we are comfortable with is proving rather difficult.
now would be a great time for a couple of things to happen--one would be money started growing on trees and another would be for me to win the lottery!!
hugs, karen
Monday, June 7, 2010
AMEN!
it can't be said any better than cathy @ cathryn & co. said it....... welcome to the world COHEN--so many people have been waiting for your entrance. we've said prayers that you would "do good" on your arrival. you are such a lucky baby because you have the most wonderful mommy and daddy, as well as super grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins......andddd you've got a FABulous set of "aunties" that not only came to support your parents and be there for your birth, but that plan to spoil you rotten from here on out! yes, i know you've got a long road ahead of you, but you've got SO many people praying for you..........and we know miracles happen. hope you feel the love--it's all around for you and your family.
THANK YOU GOD FOR COHEN...PLEASE WATCH OVER HIM AND HIS FAMILY.
AMEN
THANK YOU GOD FOR COHEN...PLEASE WATCH OVER HIM AND HIS FAMILY.
AMEN
Thursday, May 27, 2010
lucky lady
five years or so ago, a good friend of my parents' passed away and i went to the house to pay my respects to the man's wife and children. several weeks later i received a lovely note from the widow, thanking me for coming by and for the pie i'd taken. i'd known this family since i was a kid and really did care about them. the thing that caught me so off-guard about this woman's note was her saying that she and her husband were so grateful for their young friends. some of you may chuckle a bit at that, but when you're 70 or more years old, 40-something IS young! haha anyway, i always considered this couple my parents' friends and honestly never ever thought about them being MY friends too, much less them considering me one of their friends.
i hadn't thought about those people or that note in forever, until recently--obviously! i suppose trying to get the guest list for the wedding worked out prompted that memory. anyway, i'm realizing i feel very much like that woman did in being grateful for MY young friends. over the years, larry and i have gotten Christmas cards, notes, birth announcements, etc from our kids' friends because they consider us THEIR friends. we've met young adults through friends that have invited us to their birthday parties, anniversary celebrations or house warmings. as an "old lady", it is so heart warming to know that young people enjoy your company. i feel almost like sally field, ca. early 1980's at the academy awards, when she won an oscar and got up on stage and said to the crowd "you like me, you really like me".
every generation has something to offer, so count your blessings if you're lucky enough to have friends of all ages. your life will truly be enriched....this i know firsthand.
hugs~karen
i hadn't thought about those people or that note in forever, until recently--obviously! i suppose trying to get the guest list for the wedding worked out prompted that memory. anyway, i'm realizing i feel very much like that woman did in being grateful for MY young friends. over the years, larry and i have gotten Christmas cards, notes, birth announcements, etc from our kids' friends because they consider us THEIR friends. we've met young adults through friends that have invited us to their birthday parties, anniversary celebrations or house warmings. as an "old lady", it is so heart warming to know that young people enjoy your company. i feel almost like sally field, ca. early 1980's at the academy awards, when she won an oscar and got up on stage and said to the crowd "you like me, you really like me".
every generation has something to offer, so count your blessings if you're lucky enough to have friends of all ages. your life will truly be enriched....this i know firsthand.
hugs~karen
Thursday, May 20, 2010
sad truths of middle age
getting old is hell. there is apparently just no escape from bad and annoying things as you age. you sag and bag everywhere--your skin is dry and sandpaper-y, at least in the areas not covered by your mustache and beard......your smile lines are no longer cute, but have manifested into crows feet at the eyes and craters in your cheeks and forehead.....your pores are as deep as the grand canyon and your broken capillaries and age spots make your face look like a red bell pepper and mushroom pizza.
i can handle these problems because i think they are happening to most middle aged women. however, i noticed a problem today that made me cringe......in fact, when i saw it i said to myself "what the f__k?" seriously, i'm praying some other woman has this problem. i was sitting at my 10X magnifying mirror and saw it--i have freakin' nose hairs!!!! not "inny" nose hairs, but "outy" nose hairs....and they are black. do you wanna puke or what?? well i guess i know now why people have been looking at me lately! i thought they liked my clothes or my hair or just thought i was dang cute in general, but noooooo...... (sniff sniff)
taking this hairy nose to bed now............karen
i can handle these problems because i think they are happening to most middle aged women. however, i noticed a problem today that made me cringe......in fact, when i saw it i said to myself "what the f__k?" seriously, i'm praying some other woman has this problem. i was sitting at my 10X magnifying mirror and saw it--i have freakin' nose hairs!!!! not "inny" nose hairs, but "outy" nose hairs....and they are black. do you wanna puke or what?? well i guess i know now why people have been looking at me lately! i thought they liked my clothes or my hair or just thought i was dang cute in general, but noooooo...... (sniff sniff)
taking this hairy nose to bed now............karen
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