I'm sure I've posted this picture on here before but just can't remember for sure. Either way, it's my blog and I'll post it twice if I want to. This was our first "sisters" picture taken the summer of 1961 a little before Ann and Tad went to Italy for a year. They had only been married a few months here. I used to try to explain to Ann when we would talk that my sisters and I who live in the same town don't really see each other all that often. As a matter of fact, I think it has been quite a few months since I've seen Ruth. She had a stressfull year last year also - Jon had some serious health issues that seem to be getting better but he is still quite weak. Rose comes by every so often and we talk more than any of the others. I see Sondra whenever I get my hair cut and we talk on the phone from time to time. Mama did such a great job of staying in touch with her family. Like all families though - you start figuring out that if you don't do it - it might not happen. SO - I decided to have my sisters and their husbands over for dinner last night.
Sadly, most of my pictures didn't turn out at all. This one is pretty good of my sisters in front. Wayne kept jumping into the picture. So what's the big deal you might say ask. Where do I begin - basically, one of my sisters makes any get
together tense. She makes everything hard period. It used to stress me to no end until I finally sat down and thought it through and decided to go back to the basics of Al-Anon - and I thought about it some more and decided NO MORE!
I will no longer be an ENABLER. Those terms - co-dependent, enabler - they don't just apply to alcoholic or drug addicts - they apply to any behaviour that is totally unacceptable. I had to take control of what I will and will not listen to anymore. When I put it in that context, I was pretty much free. Like my Mom and her sisters, we all talk over each other at times and everyone wants to say what they want to say before they forget what they
were going to say. Yeah - that's a nice way of putting it. We all have "quick minds" and getting older makes us want to get those words out there quick before they disappear I guess. I work on this quality in myself every day - some days I do better than others but I do work on it. I also have to keep it in mind when I'm with this particular sister or I get caught off guard and can feel my BP rising. We are at an age when we should ALL be able to get together and it be totally pleasant but sad to say - that ain't happening yet. I'm glad I did it though. If nothing else, BigD and I got the kitchen, living room, hallway and bathroom nice and clean. Don't go into my room or the office/laundry room. That's where we put everything. We also cleaned the floors with our new floor steamer. I think we are going to like it. Once we get some of the W/D and refrigerator paid off - I still plan to get me the smaller Dyson Ball.
Ruth's hubby digs this old picture out of my bookcase every time he comes over here and goes on and on about how beautiful I "used" to be. This is me and Roseanne back in 1981/82 I think. Look at Roseanne - she looks like a baby. That is a night we will never forget though. Looking back on it now - for the most part - it was fun.
Remind me never to buy flowers from Food Lion again. This is the second time I have bought a nice bunch and half of them were dead or dying by the next day. I wanted to show you the cute little gift Ann gave me at the beach this past November. Each little bottle has a cork and you can put different kinds of oil in them for cooking. I knew I would never use them for that but decided they make a unique vase. Since green is one of my favorite colors - you know I like it.
BigD wanted me to be sure to get a picture of his apron that was a gift from his friend's girlfriend and he added the decal to it that his niece gave him that
stands for FISH WHISPERER. When I was looking at the pictures - fuzzy as they were - it hit me that we are all getting pretty old and some of us have developed some health problems. So even though one of my sisters said as she was getting ready to leave - never again - I know I will do this again. Not anytime in the immediate future - but maybe next year. And I do plan to work harder on seeing my sisters who live right here in town more often. And I plan to spend more time with my children. I'll be going down to visit Page for several weeks soon and then I plan to go up and visit Kurt, Leah and Page2 for awhile. Leah's sweet Dad called me tonight just to tell me he had been thinking of me and wanted me to know he loves me. We chatted or awhile and then he told me to be sure and tell BigD that his call included him too. One of the sweetest men in the world. So here I am signing off - I think I've mentioned in the past that there were originally 6 of Belma's Pearls. Ann was the oldest but not the first to die - that would be Judith Lee who died as a baby at 3 months of age. Ann's clearest memory of that was Daddy holding her hand while standing at Judith's grave at the funeral and Daddy crying. So now there are 4 Pearls left - to remember. I miss Ann's memories.
I'm sure I've posted this picture on here before but just can't remember for sure. Either way, it's my blog and I'll post it twice if I want to. This was our first "sisters" picture taken the summer of 1961 a little before Ann and Tad went to Italy for a year. They had only been married a few months here. I used to try to explain to Ann when we would talk that my sisters and I who live in the same town don't really see each other all that often. As a matter of fact, I think it has been quite a few months since I've seen Ruth. She had a stressfull year last year also - Jon had some serious health issues that seem to be getting better but he is still quite weak. Rose comes by every so often and we talk more than any of the others. I see Sondra whenever I get my hair cut and we talk on the phone from time to time. Mama did such a great job of staying in touch with her family. Like all families though - you start figuring out that if you don't do it - it might not happen. SO - I decided to have my sisters and their husbands over for dinner last night.
Sadly, most of my pictures didn't turn out at all. This one is pretty good of my sisters in front. Wayne kept jumping into the picture. So what's the big deal you might say ask. Where do I begin - basically, one of my sisters makes any get 
together tense. She makes everything hard period. It used to stress me to no end until I finally sat down and thought it through and decided to go back to the basics of Al-Anon - and I thought about it some more and decided NO MORE!
I will no longer be an ENABLER. Those terms - co-dependent, enabler - they don't just apply to alcoholic or drug addicts - they apply to any behaviour that is totally unacceptable. I had to take control of what I will and will not listen to anymore. When I put it in that context, I was pretty much free. Like my Mom and her sisters, we all talk over each other at times and everyone wants to say what they want to say before they forget what they
were going to say. Yeah - that's a nice way of putting it. We all have "quick minds" and getting older makes us want to get those words out there quick before they disappear I guess. I work on this quality in myself every day - some days I do better than others but I do work on it. I also have to keep it in mind when I'm with this particular sister or I get caught off guard and can feel my BP rising. We are at an age when we should ALL be able to get together and it be totally pleasant but sad to say - that ain't happening yet. I'm glad I did it though. If nothing else, BigD and I got the kitchen, living room, hallway and bathroom nice and clean. Don't go into my room or the office/laundry room. That's where we put everything. We also cleaned the floors with our new floor steamer. I think we are going to like it. Once we get some of the W/D and refrigerator paid off - I still plan to get me the smaller Dyson Ball. 
Ruth's hubby digs this old picture out of my bookcase every time he comes over here and goes on and on about how beautiful I "used" to be. This is me and Roseanne back in 1981/82 I think. Look at Roseanne - she looks like a baby. That is a night we will never forget though. Looking back on it now - for the most part - it was fun.
Remind me never to buy flowers from Food Lion again. This is the second time I have bought a nice bunch and half of them were dead or dying by the next day. I wanted to show you the cute little gift Ann gave me at the beach this past November. Each little bottle has a cork and you can put different kinds of oil in them for cooking. I knew I would never use them for that but decided they make a unique vase. Since green is one of my favorite colors - you know I like it.
BigD wanted me to be sure to get a picture of his apron that was a gift from his friend's girlfriend and he added the decal to it that his niece gave him that
stands for FISH WHISPERER. When I was looking at the pictures - fuzzy as they were - it hit me that we are all getting pretty old and some of us have developed some health problems. So even though one of my sisters said as she was getting ready to leave - never again - I know I will do this again. Not anytime in the immediate future - but maybe next year. And I do plan to work harder on seeing my sisters who live right here in town more often. And I plan to spend more time with my children. I'll be going down to visit Page for several weeks soon and then I plan to go up and visit Kurt, Leah and Page2 for awhile. Leah's sweet Dad called me tonight just to tell me he had been thinking of me and wanted me to know he loves me. We chatted or awhile and then he told me to be sure and tell BigD that his call included him too. One of the sweetest men in the world. So here I am signing off - I think I've mentioned in the past that there were originally 6 of Belma's Pearls. Ann was the oldest but not the first to die - that would be Judith Lee who died as a baby at 3 months of age. Ann's clearest memory of that was Daddy holding her hand while standing at Judith's grave at the funeral and Daddy crying. So now there are 4 Pearls left - to remember. I miss Ann's memories.
ahh memories. Wish I still looked like that picture. LOL
ReplyDeleteLOVE the old picture of you and your seesters and the one of you and my 'mom' :) Pat favors her the most I think. And I absolutely LOVE what Ann bought for you. It really does make the perfect vase :) Sorry the evening didn't go quite as planned. Keep forcing all of you to get together anyway ;)
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