Photo Quilt

This is a picture of the quilt I made for my mom for this Christmas. It is a replacement for the one she lost in the fire in 2011. It includes photos of all of her grandchildren - a baby picture and a current picture of each one. There are also some photos in it of her with the kids. I'm only sharing this with you now because I didn't want to spoil her surprise in case she might see it in my blog. I'm really happy with the way it turned out and she really loved it!

"Because I said so!"

This post is long overdue. Originally, I meant to write this about Mother's Day wishing all my family and friends who are moms a very happy day. Instead it sat here because I wasn't sure at all about what I wanted to say on this topic. I also felt that I had to find a way to offer a public apology to my daughters for every time I used this phrase - "Because I said so..."

It's something I heard my mother say often enough. She had some memorable sayings for us when we asked for something that she wasn't prepared to give us. For instance, one of us would ask for something like a cookie and she would say, "you know, people in Hell want ice water, too!" Or the other thing she used quite often was "tough tittie, said the Kitty, but the milk's all gone!" It's no wonder I grew up a bit warped! Mind you, she wasn't being mean, Mom was just being funny. Except for the "Because, I AM YOUR MOTHER AND I SAID SO, part. On that score, she was serious.

When my girls came along, I wanted to do everything differently, perfectly, I thought. I am going to be the best mom in the world. My daughters will talk to me about everything and we will be the very best of friends. We will never fight with each other and I would never say "people in Hell want ice water, too!" And I'd rather pull out my tongue than say...BECAUSE I AM YOUR MOTHER AND I SAID SO!!

But I did it. I used the evil words. Honestly, I don't remember SAYING them, but apparently I did, because all three girls remember hearing them. Well, CRAP! If that wasn't a monumental failure on my part. In my own defense, what I really meant to say was that because I am your mother and I love you and I'm trying to help you make good sound decisions so that you can be happy and successful and go to a good college so that you will have a satisfying career and then meet the partner of your dreams and have wonderful children and then live happily ever after in a comfortable house and have great friends that you entertain on the weekends you should hear me out. Yes. That's what I was trying to say...it just came out in a frustrated, "Because I said so!" Do you think that's what my mama was trying to say, too?

I hereby publicly apologize to my three daughters for every time I used the evil words. I think they have all survived and thrived in spite of it all. In fact, it may have given each one of them a bit of "well, I'll show her..." and that's ok, too.

The Golden Girls of Houston (formerly of Magnolia)

People have been asking me how Mom is doing these days, and it has occurred to me that I haven't given an update on her and Aunt Esther for a while.

It's been a little more than 2 months since they were forced to evacuate the house in Magnolia before it burned down. Well, I am very happy to tell you that they are just fine! They found a nice rental house in Houston just 3 miles from Robbie & Maggie. It's been a lot of work for them as they have had to start completely from scratch. That means they have had to shop for and purchase every stick of furniture, every dish, every towel...every THING that goes into making a house complete. Some people might enjoy the opportunity to re-do their decor and do all that shopping...just remember that these two ladies are in their 70's. Aunti has done the majority of the "heavy lifting"in the shopping department since Mom's energy level is pretty limited - she is amazing.

It's been exhausting for them, but it's just about done. They are settling into their new home and learning their way around the new neighborhood.  They are getting comfortable in their new digs.

The other day I caught myself before asking Mom to take some pictures of the new house....she hasn't bought a new camera yet. I think I have a good idea for a Christmas gift for them....

Out of the Ashes...

  Update on the Golden Girls of Magnolia...

It's been exactly one month since the ladies received confirmation that the house in Magnolia was lost to the Texas wildfires.

After returning home from Houston, I have talked to Mom on the phone every day. Understandably, she and Aunti Esther have had good and bad days. Once Aunti was finally able to get out to the property to see what was left of the house, I think the enormity of all she had lost really hit her. Then, there was all the work that needed to be done. She and Robbie sifted through the ashes to see if they could find anything worth saving. There wasn’t much of anything. There were meetings with insurance claims adjusters. Then she had to have huge dumpsters delivered to the property so that it could be cleared of the twisted metal and debris and then bulldozed. Aunti has finally has had some positive response from the insurance company.

The Golden Girls of Magnolia are still camping out at Robbie and Maggie's house. The next project is hunting for a rental close to Robbie. Then they have to outfit the house. I'm thinking of having a "virtual" housewarming party for them. I would like them to register at Target, JCP or Kohls for housewares, towels, dishes, etc.........

The ladies are so ready to be back in their own space and to get back to their routine, but it's a ways off and there is still quite a bit of work ahead. I have offered to fly back out whenever they need me, but they are telling me that for now they think they can handle it. I am sure they can - they are a couple of tough old birds...something like a phoenix....out of the ashes....

Homeless but not Helpless!

Mom and Aunti Esther - ALIVE and WELL!

You all know that I try to look at the bright side of any situation - so before I go any further - here is the bright side...Mom and Aunti Esther are  fine...totally un-singed! Truthfully, they are both as tired as I have ever seen them, but they have been through hell - fire and all.

Robbie and Maggie are being very gracious hosts and are doing a great job driving them here and there and making sure that they eat. Robbie was nice enough to pick me up from the airport and didn't complain once about how far Houston Hobby Airport is from his house  - it took us almost 2 hours to get to his house from the airport during Thursday rush hour. (That's the airport that Southwest flies into...oops!) Anyway, Aunti Esther has a good son in Robbie and I think he will be very helpful in dealing with the insurance company. He has driven her out to Magnolia every time there was even a remote possibility that they could get in to see the property. Unfortunately, the fires are still not contained and the police are not letting anyone in - even when Maggie offered the police officers ice cold beverages and lunch! She's a hoot and quite a funny gal!

Mom is doing better than I thought she would. She only really teared up once or twice and considering how emotional she usually is, that's saying a lot. She is tired because she isn't sleeping well, but she is managing her MS symptoms fairly well. The day before I got there, she got the good news that her MRI showed no progression of the MS. See there - something else to be grateful about! She is incredibly sad about the loss of all her photos and a quilt I made for her a few years ago, but I kept reminding her that she made it out safely and that is the most important thing. Photos and quilts are replaceable - people - not so much! As long as the rest of us were reminding her how lucky they were to get out of there safely, she was ok. I imagine that she will continue to need to be reminded in the difficult days ahead.

Aunti Esther is the one who amazes me. It was her house that burned to the ground, after all. When I talked to her on the phone before going out there, she kept telling me "It was only a house...they were only things." She did finally have a good cry before I got there, but she was over it by the time I saw her. She had a bit of a laugh and told me, "Laura Lynn, we're homeless, but we're not indigent!" Every so often I would see her or Mom looking off into the distance with the saddest looks on their faces. Aunti would say to Mom, "Oh, Patsy, my purse that Robbie made me..." Mom kept doing the same thing. "Oh, Esther, all my books..." They kept remembering one thing after another that they had lost in the fire. But Aunti is a trooper and she is already making plans - she is a mover and a shaker even at 77 years old. She is sad but has accepted the loss and is ready to move on to the next phase of her life. I only wish that I will be that strong in the face of adversity.

It was a short visit for me, but we got some things accomplished. I brought Mom some things from home and took her shopping for a few things. Since she and Aunti only had 20 minutes to grab things before they were forced out of the house by fire and police officers, Mom made it out of the house with her meds, the shoes on her feet, a couple of the mu-mu dresses she like to wear, her purse, one pair of eyeglasses and her car. That's it! Trying to make Mom smile I told her, "OK, Mom. You've been through fire and flood. Now all that's left is famine!"

So, our Golden Girls have some decisions to make. They are starting with a clean slate. Now, what do they do...where should they live? They have time to think about it. In the meantime, I want to send hugs and kisses to family and friends who have been so loving and supportive. It has really lifted their spirits to know that so many people care and love them! Thanks, Everyone! We love you, too!