Now, I'd Call That a Doo!

I couldn't sleep so I saw this picture at 2:00 o'clock this morning and laughed for ten minutes.  I'm not sure if it was the picture or the caption or both that tickled my funny bone so much.  What do you think? 

Bacon Ranch Fried Cabbage

This sounds amazing!

Ingredients:

1 Head cabbage
1/2 lb Cooked bacon
1 Whole white onion
1 Envelope Ranch seasoning mix
2 T. Olive oil

Directions:
After cooking bacon drain and set aside. Chop onions and caramelize in Olive oil. Chop cabbage and add to onions, cover and let cook down a bit. Add Ranch mix and bacon and continue to cook down to desired doneness...I cook mine way down. Enjoy!

10 Reasons Why English is Weird

I love a challenge!

Think First

Enough said.

Change

Change can be tough but bucking the system makes it worse.  I love the change of the seasons so why do I find it difficult to adapt to other changes?  I would say it's my age but I think deep down, I'm just good ole stubborn!

Mississippi Sin Dip

This appears to be an easy dip to throw together for your next backyard party or get together.  I am definitely going to try it!

Mississippi Sin Dip


Ingredients:

24 oz cream cheese softened
1/2 cup mayonnaise
8 oz chopped green chiles
2 cups cheddar cheese
16 oz sour cream
12 oz deli honey ham, very finely chopped.

Instructions:

1.Preheat over to 250
2. Mix all ingredients together
3. Bake for 30 minutes 'til hot and bubbly
4. Serve with corn chips or any type of cracker you like.

Weight Loss

This made me laugh so I had to share!  

Happy Thursday.

Have You Been Burgled?

This will be my Mom and Dad's house this weekend!  Our grandson (great grandson) is coming to spend a long weekend.  Since he believes that one of the bedrooms in their house is "his", he will be sleeping there.  Sorry Mom!  I will help you clean up but the energy recovery you'll have to do on your own!

Melon Sangria

Does this not look like the perfect summertime concoction?

Melon Sangria

 

Yield: For 6-8 people

Refreshing and delicious melon sangria recipe made with a mix of melons, including watermelon, cantaloupe and honeydew melons, moscato wine, honey, lime, grappa (an Italian grape brandy), sparkling water, and mint.

Ingredients

• 3 cups of mixed melon balls (watermelon, cantaloupe, honeydew)
• 2-4 tablespoons of honey, adjust to taste
• 1 lime, juiced
• ¼ cup to ½ cup of grappa, adjust to taste – can also use pisco or a clear grape brandy
• 1 (750 ml) bottle of moscato wine, chilled
• 1 ½ cups of sparkling water, chilled
To serve and garnish:
• Mint leaves
• Lime slices
• Ice cubes 

Instructions

1. Place the melon balls in a large pitcher, add the honey (2 tablespoons to start), lime juice, and ¼ cup of grappa. Mix gently and let rest in fridge for 1-2 hours or until 1 hour before serving.
2. Add the moscato wine, mix gently, taste and add more honey or grappa if desired. Keep in mind that you will top it off with sparkling water right before serving, so it’s okay if it’s on the sweeter/stronger side. Refrigerate for another hour.
3. Right before serving, add ice, lime slices and mint leaves to garnish, and top off with sparkling water. 

Notes: For a mocktail sangria variation, omit the moscato wine and the grappa, and replace with a sparkling white grape juice and sparkling lemonade.

What Does Your Finger Length Reveal?

Who would have thought you could learn so much about your personality based on your finger length? Above you’ll see three different hands labeled A, B, and C. With each one, the ring, middle and index finger are different (or sometimes the same) lengths. Put your left hand up and find the one that most closely matches you.

A) The charming but pragmatic one.

This one is me! People who have a ring finger longer than the index finger tend to be charming and irresistible to some at least. A’s are the ones who can talk themselves out of just about any situation. Additionally, they’re aggressive and excellent problem solvers. They tend to be incredibly compassionate and are often scientists, engineers, soldiers, and crossword puzzle masters.

B) The confident, get-it-done type.

People with shorter ring fingers than index fingers are the self-confident, get-it-done types. They love solitude in which to work and accomplish the things they need to do, but that doesn’t necessarily indicate introversion. They’re very goal oriented and don’t like to be disturbed. They appreciate what they have but often hunger for more.

C) The peacenik

C’s are the peace-loving conflict-avoiding types. People with even ring and index finger length are well organized and want nothing but to get along with everyone. They are faithful in relationships, tender and caring partners, but beware: C’s have a fiery core that while suppressed in normal day-to-day activities can be dangerous if unleashed. They might be peaceniks, but please, stay on their good side.

Me:  I'm The Peacenik.
What does your finger length reveal about you?

Being Joyful

This is so true.  In the world today, happiness seems to occur when we have what we want and if we don't have it, we go right out and buy it.  I am guilty of this.  I am truly thankful for what I have but need to work on living solely in the moment and being grateful all that I have.  Not the "stuff" that fills my home but the people in my life.  Life and love are more precious than anything else that I have.  If you are reading this, know that you are important to me, that you bring me joy and I love you for it.

 

Furniture Beware!

That's where I tend to do most of my Happy Dancing!

Smile and have a great day!

Santa Cruz Sunset

Beautiful.  

Now tell me that God is not the ultimate artist!

Tears

Hmmm...makes perfect sense to me.  

(Especially today - I was up half the night with a sick puppy last night.)

Books!

This is a problem at my house!

Review: The Good Girl by Mary Kubica

"I've been following her for the past few days. I know where she buys her groceries, where she has her dry cleaning done, where she works. I don't know the color of her eyes or what they look like when she's scared. But I will."

Born to a prominent Chicago judge and his stifled socialite wife, Mia Dennett moves against the grain as a young inner-city art teacher. One night, Mia enters a bar to meet her on-again, off-again boyfriend. But when he doesn't show, she unwisely leaves with an enigmatic stranger. With his smooth moves and modest wit, at first Colin Thatcher seems like a safe one-night stand. But following Colin home will turn out to be the worst mistake of Mia's life.

Colin's job was to abduct Mia as part of a wild extortion plot and deliver her to his employers. But the plan takes an unexpected turn when Colin suddenly decides to hide Mia in a secluded cabin in rural Minnesota, evading the police and his deadly superiors. Mia's mother, Eve, and detective Gabe Hoffman will stop at nothing to find them, but no one could have predicted the emotional entanglements that eventually cause this family's world to shatter.

An addictively suspenseful and tautly written thriller, The Good Girl is a propulsive debut that reveals how even in the perfect family, nothing is as it seems….

I just finished reading this book and have to say, it has stayed with me like only a handful of novels that I've read before it.  This book woke me up at 3:00 a.m. Sunday morning, leaving me to lie in the dark pondering it some more.  It's not a heart-pounding thriller but one of suspense and intrigue.  Told in the first-person narrative from three of the characters:  Eve Dennet, Mia's mother, Gabe Hoffman, the detective on the case, and Colin Thatcher, Mia's abductor.  It jumps back and forth (I won't tell you how because I don't want to ruin anything) but flows well and is a quick read.  I have already passed my copy onto my Mother and highly recommend it to everyone.  Pick up a copy today and let me know what you think of it!

In Memory of Emily DeBrayda Phillips

Okay, so you might think that my putting an obituary for someone that I never ever met on my blog a tiny bit morose.  However, I have to let you know that her family feels differently.  After surviving a single month after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer (God's mercy for certain), the family found a binder titled "Emily's Death Notebook" in which Emily had taken a walk down memory lane and shared pieces of her life with great humor and sass.  Her self-written obituary was tucked inside the notebook to be shared with not only her family in Jacksonville, Florida, but the world beyond.  This my friends, is how I would like to share my story when that time arrives. 


PHILLIPS:  It pains me to admit it, but apparently, I have passed away. Everyone told me it would happen one day but that's simply not something I wanted to hear, much less experience. Once again I didn't get things my way! That's been the story of my life all my life.

And while on that subject (the story of my life)…on February 9, 1946 my parents and older sister celebrated my birth and I was introduced to all as Emily DeBrayda Fisher, the daughter of Clyde and Mary Fisher from Hazelwood. I can't believe that happened in the first half of the last century but there are records on file in the Court House which can corroborate this claim. Just two years later when another baby girl was born, I became known as the middle sister of the infamous three Fisher Girls, and the world was changed forever.

As a child I walked to the old Hazelwood Elementary School where teachers like Mrs. McCracken, Mrs. Davis and Mrs. Moody planted the seed that eventually led me to becoming a teacher. I proudly started my teaching career at that same elementary school in January 1968, and from there I went on to teach young children in the neighboring states of Virginia, Georgia, as well as Florida where I retired after 25 years.

So many things in my life seemed of little significance at the time they happened but then took on a greater importance as I got older. The memories I'm taking with me now are so precious and have more value than all the gold and silver in my jewelry box.

Memories…where do I begin? Well, I remember Mother wearing an apron; I remember Daddy calling Square Dances; I remember my older sister pushing me off my tricycle (on the cinder driveway); I remember my younger sister sleep walking out of the house; I remember grandmother Nonnie who sewed exquisite dresses for me when I was little; I remember grandmother Mamateate wringing a chicken's neck so we could have Sunday dinner. I remember being the bride in our Tom Thumb Wedding in first grade and performing skits for the 4-H Club later in grade five. I remember cutting small rosebuds still wet with dew to wear to school on spring mornings, and I remember the smell of newly mowed grass. I remember the thrill of leading our high school band down King Street in New Orleans for Mardi Gras (I was head majorette). I remember representing Waynesville in the Miss North Carolina Pageant, and yes, I twirled my baton to the tune of ""Dixie"". It could have been no other way.

I married the man of my dreams (tall, dark, and handsome) on December 16, 1967 and from that day on I was proud to be Mrs. Charlie Phillips, Grand Diva Of All Things Domestic. Our plan was to have two children, a girl and a boy. Inexplicably we were successful in doing exactly that when we were blessed with our daughter Bonnie and then later our son Scott. Seeing these two grow into who they were supposed to be brought a wonderful sense of meaning to our lives.

This might be a good time to mend fences.

I apologize for making sweet Bonnie wear No Frills jeans when she was little and for ""red-shirting"" Scott in kindergarten. Apparently each of these things was humiliating to them but both were able to rise above their shame and become very successful adults. I'd also like to apologize to Mary Ann for tearing up her paper dolls and to Betsy for dating a guy she had a crush on.

Just when I thought I was too old to fall in love again, I became a grandmother, and my five grand-angels stole not only my heart, but also spent most of my money.

Sydney Elizabeth, Jacob McKay, and Emma Grace (all Uprights) have enriched my life more than words can say. Sydney's ""one more, no more"" when she asked for a cookie; Jake saying he was ""sick as a cat"" when I'd said that someone else was sick as a dog; and Emma cutting her beautiful long hair and then proceeding to shave off one of her eyebrows…Yes, these are a few of my favorite things. They're treasures that are irreplaceable and will go with me wherever my journey takes me.

I've always maintained that my greatest treasures call me Nana. That's not exactly true. You see, the youngest of my grand-angels, William Fisher Phillips and Charlie Jackson Phillips call me ""Nana Banana"". (Thank you Chris and Scott for having such spunky children.) These two are also apt to insist that I ""get their hiney"" whenever I visit, and since I'm quite skilled in that area , I've always been able to oblige. (I actually hold the World's Record for ""Hiney Getting,"" a title that I wear with pride.)

Speaking of titles…I've held a few in my day. I've been a devoted daughter, an energetic teenager, a WCU graduate (summa cum laude), a loving wife, a comforting mother, a dedicated teacher, a true and loyal friend, and a spoiling grandmother. And if you don't believe it, just ask me. Oh wait, I'm afraid it's too late for questions. Sorry.

So…I was born; I blinked; and it was over. No buildings named after me; no monuments erected in my honor.

But I DID have the chance to know and love each and every friend as well as all my family members. How much more blessed can a person be?

So in the end, remember…do your best, follow your arrow, and make something amazing out of your life. Oh, and never stop smiling.

If you want to, you can look for me in the evening sunset or with the earliest spring daffodils or amongst the flitting and fluttering butterflies. You know I'll be there in one form or another. Of course that will probably comfort some while antagonizing others, but you know me…it's what I do.

I'll leave you with this…please don't cry because I'm gone; instead be happy that I was here. (Or maybe you can cry a little bit. After all, I have passed away).

Today I am happy and I am dancing. Probably naked.

Love you forever.  

Emily

PHILLIPS It pains me to admit it, but apparently, I have passed away. Everyone told me it would happen one day but that's simply not something I wanted to hear, much less experience. Once again I didn't get things my way! That's been the story of my life all my life.
And while on that subject (the story of my life)…on February 9, 1946 my parents and older sister celebrated my birth and I was introduced to all as Emily DeBrayda Fisher, the daughter of Clyde and Mary Fisher from Hazelwood. I can't believe that happened in the first half of the last century but there are records on file in the Court House which can corroborate this claim. Just two years later when another baby girl was born, I became known as the middle sister of the infamous three Fisher Girls, and the world was changed forever.
As a child I walked to the old Hazelwood Elementary School where teachers like Mrs. McCracken, Mrs. Davis and Mrs. Moody planted the seed that eventually led me to becoming a teacher. I proudly started my teaching career at that same elementary school in January 1968, and from there I went on to teach young children in the neighboring states of Virginia, Georgia, as well as Florida where I retired after 25 years.
So many things in my life seemed of little significance at the time they happened but then took on a greater importance as I got older. The memories I'm taking with me now are so precious and have more value than all the gold and silver in my jewelry box.
Memories…where do I begin? Well, I remember Mother wearing an apron; I remember Daddy calling Square Dances; I remember my older sister pushing me off my tricycle (on the cinder driveway); I remember my younger sister sleep walking out of the house; I remember grandmother Nonnie who sewed exquisite dresses for me when I was little; I remember grandmother Mamateate wringing a chicken's neck so we could have Sunday dinner. I remember being the bride in our Tom Thumb Wedding in first grade and performing skits for the 4-H Club later in grade five. I remember cutting small rosebuds still wet with dew to wear to school on spring mornings, and I remember the smell of newly mowed grass. I remember the thrill of leading our high school band down King Street in New Orleans for Mardi Gras (I was head majorette). I remember representing Waynesville in the Miss North Carolina Pageant, and yes, I twirled my baton to the tune of ""Dixie"". It could have been no other way.
I married the man of my dreams (tall, dark, and handsome) on December 16, 1967 and from that day on I was proud to be Mrs. Charlie Phillips, Grand Diva Of All Things Domestic. Our plan was to have two children, a girl and a boy. Inexplicably we were successful in doing exactly that when we were blessed with our daughter Bonnie and then later our son Scott. Seeing these two grow into who they were supposed to be brought a wonderful sense of meaning to our lives.
This might be a good time to mend fences.
I apologize for making sweet Bonnie wear No Frills jeans when she was little and for ""red-shirting"" Scott in kindergarten. Apparently each of these things was humiliating to them but both were able to rise above their shame and become very successful adults. I'd also like to apologize to Mary Ann for tearing up her paper dolls and to Betsy for dating a guy she had a crush on.
Just when I thought I was too old to fall in love again, I became a grandmother, and my five grand-angels stole not only my heart, but also spent most of my money.
Sydney Elizabeth, Jacob McKay, and Emma Grace (all Uprights) have enriched my life more than words can say. Sydney's ""one more, no more"" when she asked for a cookie; Jake saying he was ""sick as a cat"" when I'd said that someone else was sick as a dog; and Emma cutting her beautiful long hair and then proceeding to shave off one of her eyebrows…Yes, these are a few of my favorite things. They're treasures that are irreplaceable and will go with me wherever my journey takes me.
I've always maintained that my greatest treasures call me Nana. That's not exactly true. You see, the youngest of my grand-angels, William Fisher Phillips and Charlie Jackson Phillips call me ""Nana Banana"". (Thank you Chris and Scott for having such spunky children.) These two are also apt to insist that I ""get their hiney"" whenever I visit, and since I'm quite skilled in that area , I've always been able to oblige. (I actually hold the World's Record for ""Hiney Getting,"" a title that I wear with pride.)
Speaking of titles…I've held a few in my day. I've been a devoted daughter, an energetic teenager, a WCU graduate (summa cum laude), a loving wife, a comforting mother, a dedicated teacher, a true and loyal friend, and a spoiling grandmother. And if you don't believe it, just ask me. Oh wait, I'm afraid it's too late for questions. Sorry.
So…I was born; I blinked; and it was over. No buildings named after me; no monuments erected in my honor.
But I DID have the chance to know and love each and every friend as well as all my family members. How much more blessed can a person be?
So in the end, remember…do your best, follow your arrow, and make something amazing out of your life. Oh, and never stop smiling.
If you want to, you can look for me in the evening sunset or with the earliest spring daffodils or amongst the flitting and fluttering butterflies. You know I'll be there in one form or another. Of course that will probably comfort some while antagonizing others, but you know me…it's what I do.
I'll leave you with this…please don't cry because I'm gone; instead be happy that I was here. (Or maybe you can cry a little bit. After all, I have passed away).
Today I am happy and I am dancing. Probably naked.
Love you forever.
Emily - See more at: http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/timesunion/obituary.aspx?n=emily-debrayda-phillips&pid=174524066&#sthash.lh9i8RmN.dpuf

PHILLIPS It pains me to admit it, but apparently, I have passed away. Everyone told me it would happen one day but that's simply not something I wanted to hear, much less experience. Once again I didn't get things my way! That's been the story of my life all my life.
And while on that subject (the story of my life)…on February 9, 1946 my parents and older sister celebrated my birth and I was introduced to all as Emily DeBrayda Fisher, the daughter of Clyde and Mary Fisher from Hazelwood. I can't believe that happened in the first half of the last century but there are records on file in the Court House which can corroborate this claim. Just two years later when another baby girl was born, I became known as the middle sister of the infamous three Fisher Girls, and the world was changed forever.
As a child I walked to the old Hazelwood Elementary School where teachers like Mrs. McCracken, Mrs. Davis and Mrs. Moody planted the seed that eventually led me to becoming a teacher. I proudly started my teaching career at that same elementary school in January 1968, and from there I went on to teach young children in the neighboring states of Virginia, Georgia, as well as Florida where I retired after 25 years.
So many things in my life seemed of little significance at the time they happened but then took on a greater importance as I got older. The memories I'm taking with me now are so precious and have more value than all the gold and silver in my jewelry box.
Memories…where do I begin? Well, I remember Mother wearing an apron; I remember Daddy calling Square Dances; I remember my older sister pushing me off my tricycle (on the cinder driveway); I remember my younger sister sleep walking out of the house; I remember grandmother Nonnie who sewed exquisite dresses for me when I was little; I remember grandmother Mamateate wringing a chicken's neck so we could have Sunday dinner. I remember being the bride in our Tom Thumb Wedding in first grade and performing skits for the 4-H Club later in grade five. I remember cutting small rosebuds still wet with dew to wear to school on spring mornings, and I remember the smell of newly mowed grass. I remember the thrill of leading our high school band down King Street in New Orleans for Mardi Gras (I was head majorette). I remember representing Waynesville in the Miss North Carolina Pageant, and yes, I twirled my baton to the tune of ""Dixie"". It could have been no other way.
I married the man of my dreams (tall, dark, and handsome) on December 16, 1967 and from that day on I was proud to be Mrs. Charlie Phillips, Grand Diva Of All Things Domestic. Our plan was to have two children, a girl and a boy. Inexplicably we were successful in doing exactly that when we were blessed with our daughter Bonnie and then later our son Scott. Seeing these two grow into who they were supposed to be brought a wonderful sense of meaning to our lives.
This might be a good time to mend fences.
I apologize for making sweet Bonnie wear No Frills jeans when she was little and for ""red-shirting"" Scott in kindergarten. Apparently each of these things was humiliating to them but both were able to rise above their shame and become very successful adults. I'd also like to apologize to Mary Ann for tearing up her paper dolls and to Betsy for dating a guy she had a crush on.
Just when I thought I was too old to fall in love again, I became a grandmother, and my five grand-angels stole not only my heart, but also spent most of my money.
Sydney Elizabeth, Jacob McKay, and Emma Grace (all Uprights) have enriched my life more than words can say. Sydney's ""one more, no more"" when she asked for a cookie; Jake saying he was ""sick as a cat"" when I'd said that someone else was sick as a dog; and Emma cutting her beautiful long hair and then proceeding to shave off one of her eyebrows…Yes, these are a few of my favorite things. They're treasures that are irreplaceable and will go with me wherever my journey takes me.
I've always maintained that my greatest treasures call me Nana. That's not exactly true. You see, the youngest of my grand-angels, William Fisher Phillips and Charlie Jackson Phillips call me ""Nana Banana"". (Thank you Chris and Scott for having such spunky children.) These two are also apt to insist that I ""get their hiney"" whenever I visit, and since I'm quite skilled in that area , I've always been able to oblige. (I actually hold the World's Record for ""Hiney Getting,"" a title that I wear with pride.)
Speaking of titles…I've held a few in my day. I've been a devoted daughter, an energetic teenager, a WCU graduate (summa cum laude), a loving wife, a comforting mother, a dedicated teacher, a true and loyal friend, and a spoiling grandmother. And if you don't believe it, just ask me. Oh wait, I'm afraid it's too late for questions. Sorry.
So…I was born; I blinked; and it was over. No buildings named after me; no monuments erected in my honor.
But I DID have the chance to know and love each and every friend as well as all my family members. How much more blessed can a person be?
So in the end, remember…do your best, follow your arrow, and make something amazing out of your life. Oh, and never stop smiling.
If you want to, you can look for me in the evening sunset or with the earliest spring daffodils or amongst the flitting and fluttering butterflies. You know I'll be there in one form or another. Of course that will probably comfort some while antagonizing others, but you know me…it's what I do.
I'll leave you with this…please don't cry because I'm gone; instead be happy that I was here. (Or maybe you can cry a little bit. After all, I have passed away).
Today I am happy and I am dancing. Probably naked.
Love you forever.
Emily - See more at: http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/timesunion/obituary.aspx?n=emily-debrayda-phillips&pid=174524066&#sthash.lh9i8RmN.dpuf

PHILLIPS It pains me to admit it, but apparently, I have passed away. Everyone told me it would happen one day but that's simply not something I wanted to hear, much less experience. Once again I didn't get things my way! That's been the story of my life all my life.
And while on that subject (the story of my life)…on February 9, 1946 my parents and older sister celebrated my birth and I was introduced to all as Emily DeBrayda Fisher, the daughter of Clyde and Mary Fisher from Hazelwood. I can't believe that happened in the first half of the last century but there are records on file in the Court House which can corroborate this claim. Just two years later when another baby girl was born, I became known as the middle sister of the infamous three Fisher Girls, and the world was changed forever.
As a child I walked to the old Hazelwood Elementary School where teachers like Mrs. McCracken, Mrs. Davis and Mrs. Moody planted the seed that eventually led me to becoming a teacher. I proudly started my teaching career at that same elementary school in January 1968, and from there I went on to teach young children in the neighboring states of Virginia, Georgia, as well as Florida where I retired after 25 years.
So many things in my life seemed of little significance at the time they happened but then took on a greater importance as I got older. The memories I'm taking with me now are so precious and have more value than all the gold and silver in my jewelry box.
Memories…where do I begin? Well, I remember Mother wearing an apron; I remember Daddy calling Square Dances; I remember my older sister pushing me off my tricycle (on the cinder driveway); I remember my younger sister sleep walking out of the house; I remember grandmother Nonnie who sewed exquisite dresses for me when I was little; I remember grandmother Mamateate wringing a chicken's neck so we could have Sunday dinner. I remember being the bride in our Tom Thumb Wedding in first grade and performing skits for the 4-H Club later in grade five. I remember cutting small rosebuds still wet with dew to wear to school on spring mornings, and I remember the smell of newly mowed grass. I remember the thrill of leading our high school band down King Street in New Orleans for Mardi Gras (I was head majorette). I remember representing Waynesville in the Miss North Carolina Pageant, and yes, I twirled my baton to the tune of ""Dixie"". It could have been no other way.
I married the man of my dreams (tall, dark, and handsome) on December 16, 1967 and from that day on I was proud to be Mrs. Charlie Phillips, Grand Diva Of All Things Domestic. Our plan was to have two children, a girl and a boy. Inexplicably we were successful in doing exactly that when we were blessed with our daughter Bonnie and then later our son Scott. Seeing these two grow into who they were supposed to be brought a wonderful sense of meaning to our lives.
This might be a good time to mend fences.
I apologize for making sweet Bonnie wear No Frills jeans when she was little and for ""red-shirting"" Scott in kindergarten. Apparently each of these things was humiliating to them but both were able to rise above their shame and become very successful adults. I'd also like to apologize to Mary Ann for tearing up her paper dolls and to Betsy for dating a guy she had a crush on.
Just when I thought I was too old to fall in love again, I became a grandmother, and my five grand-angels stole not only my heart, but also spent most of my money.
Sydney Elizabeth, Jacob McKay, and Emma Grace (all Uprights) have enriched my life more than words can say. Sydney's ""one more, no more"" when she asked for a cookie; Jake saying he was ""sick as a cat"" when I'd said that someone else was sick as a dog; and Emma cutting her beautiful long hair and then proceeding to shave off one of her eyebrows…Yes, these are a few of my favorite things. They're treasures that are irreplaceable and will go with me wherever my journey takes me.
I've always maintained that my greatest treasures call me Nana. That's not exactly true. You see, the youngest of my grand-angels, William Fisher Phillips and Charlie Jackson Phillips call me ""Nana Banana"". (Thank you Chris and Scott for having such spunky children.) These two are also apt to insist that I ""get their hiney"" whenever I visit, and since I'm quite skilled in that area , I've always been able to oblige. (I actually hold the World's Record for ""Hiney Getting,"" a title that I wear with pride.)
Speaking of titles…I've held a few in my day. I've been a devoted daughter, an energetic teenager, a WCU graduate (summa cum laude), a loving wife, a comforting mother, a dedicated teacher, a true and loyal friend, and a spoiling grandmother. And if you don't believe it, just ask me. Oh wait, I'm afraid it's too late for questions. Sorry.
So…I was born; I blinked; and it was over. No buildings named after me; no monuments erected in my honor.
But I DID have the chance to know and love each and every friend as well as all my family members. How much more blessed can a person be?
So in the end, remember…do your best, follow your arrow, and make something amazing out of your life. Oh, and never stop smiling.
If you want to, you can look for me in the evening sunset or with the earliest spring daffodils or amongst the flitting and fluttering butterflies. You know I'll be there in one form or another. Of course that will probably comfort some while antagonizing others, but you know me…it's what I do.
I'll leave you with this…please don't cry because I'm gone; instead be happy that I was here. (Or maybe you can cry a little bit. After all, I have passed away).
Today I am happy and I am dancing. Probably naked.
Love you forever.
Emily - See more at: http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/timesunion/obituary.aspx?n=emily-debrayda-phillips&pid=174524066&#sthash.lh9i8RmN.dpuf

Not To Be Missed

This is a beautiful picture from the Isle of Islamorada in the Florida Keys.  If you've never had the opportunity to take the island hopping drive from Miami to Key West, you're missing out.  The Gulf of Mexico lies to the West while the Atlantic lies to the East with only a thin strip of land or bridge separating the two.  The water is most always the Caribbean green that appears on every ocean depicted brochure publication.  It does not disappoint.  If you ever have the opportunity to take the drive, I highly recommend it.   

Wine Time Sweatshirt

Ha!  I love this and would wear it if it wasn't already hitting 90 degrees in Florida.  If you're interested, I have listed the link below:

https://teechip.com/wine-dog#id=4&c=FF6FAD

An Adult Time Out

I may not see the beach today but I am having lunch and going shopping with my best friend.  That's she's also my Mom is a double bonus!  

Good Friends

Amen Sisters!  

One can never have too many good bra's!

Dream Big

Today, I have commenced upon that new dream.  I am working on crafts for my new online craft store and very soon, will dive into the construction of my new novel.  All very exciting dreams for me which are the start a new chapter in my life.  Dream big and then implement it.  You've got nothing to lose beyond the truth that if you never start, you'll never accomplish it.

Happy Easter!

We are alive in Him.  Hallelujah! 

The Cross

This picture pierces my heart.  The knowledge that Christ entered this world for the sole purpose of dying to save me leaves me breathless.  I certainly don't deserve it. 

Faith

Though your eyes may see only darkness, 

keep your heart focused above, 

on Christ,

for He is the Light of the World.

Rest In Peace

Today, we lay my uncle to rest.  It is a sad family moment and my heart breaks for my dear aunt.  It is difficult to understand God's plan for our lives, especially when a loved one is taken far too soon.  May you wrap her in your arms and hold her tight while she deals with the loss of her husband.  One day, maybe we'll understand the how's and why's of our lives.  In the meantime, rest in peace, Gary.  We love you.   

Can You Say the Same?

HA!!!  I bet you can.  Congratulations!