Happy Birthday Vickie!!!!!

 

Hey Yall!!! Today is Vickie's Birthday and even though I can't tell you how old she is, I can tell you it is midway between 55 and 60. But I can't tell you the real number because, you know, old people start losing their sense of humor about how old they are getting.....

In case you can't tell which one is the Birthday Girl, look to the right. And in case you are wondering who the other two are, it would be Dick's other sister Debbie and his momma. Nice looking family, aren't they?

Happy Birthday Vickie!!! Hope you have a good one!!!

Happy Retirement Merwin!

Hey Yall! Today is a very special day! Our friend Merwin and his wife Shirley are retiring today. Oh Happy Day! They are going to take a nice long vacation at Pawleys. Frannycakes is extremely jealous! I couldn't find a picture of Merwin on my computer, but Mr. Frannycakes has graciously allowed me to post a picture of him that strangely resembles Merwin so if you see anyone that resembles this picture, please tell him Happy Retirement and that Frannycakes sent you!


Happy Retirement Merwin!

I HAVE A SECRET!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hey Yall! Long time no talk! I feel like I have been in the car all summer! We just got back Saturday from SC. Julianne's internship ended so we helped her drive back to the frozen tundra. Oh yeah......it isn't frozen yet, but it's just a matter of time!

Are you waiting to hear my secret? Huh? Well.....We didn't win the lottery....bummer....I am not pregnant....hahahahahaha! I haven't gone on a diet, again, yet....Chris hasn't graduated, but he will in May!!!!

Nooooooooo! This is really, really, really exciting! WE ARE MOVING!!!!!! And even though I can't tell you where yet, I can tell you that it is not in the north or the west. Thank goodness. I need to get back with people that talk like me. Well, kind of like me because nobody talks like me!

Nothing like a little teaser is there? I promise that the minute Mr. Frannycakes gives me the okay, I will be right back on here with ALL the details.....Until then....Tootles!

Quote of the Day

"Like the old joke goes, President Obama isn't a doctor, but he plays one on TV," said House Minority Leader John Boehner.

Thanks for the quote John!

A Little Scary and A Little True

Hey Yall! I received this quote from a friend today.....


"Joe Biden makes Dan Quayle look like Stephen Hawking"

Vacation Part Two

The Jackson Family!



Virginia, Callie, Zippy, Henry & Reese



Callie, Henry & John



Chris & Linley



Christopher



Al E. Gator



Mr. Frannycakes in his new kayak!



Virginia, Jamie, Lesley, Julianne & Mary Ann



Prepared for fun....2 tubes and a can of cold beer!



Lesley & Grace Darling



Mary Ann, Elaine & John



Mary Ann & John



Jamie, Lesley & Grace Darling

Scenes from a Vacation Part 1

Hey Yall! Why do vacations go by so fast? We had a fabulous vacation at Pawleys Island. This year we rented a house on the creek. I have to say that it worked out wonderfully for my family and the two other families that were with us. We mostly layed out on the dock and some kayaked and tubed. We had beautiful views and lots and lots of delish food. It was great to be together as a family. Here are some pictures that Mr. Frannycakes took. He is a wonderful photographer.

Don't Be Jealous

Hey Yall! Don't be jealous.....it is 62 degrees here. I know a few of you are not capable of not feeling jealous, but it really doesn't become your glistening with sweat faces. Really.

Happy Birthday Chris!

Hey Yall! Sunday was Christophers' 25th birthday! Wow, that is so hard to believe! Since we had to leave early Sunday morning, we celebrated his birthday on Saturday night. These are some pictures that Dick took that afternoon. Hope you enjoy

I'm Back!!!!!!

Hey Yall! I have received so much grief from family and friends for not posting that I decided that I had better get back to work and post. I can't guarantee that it will be very interesting. In some ways is seems like nothing has been happening, then in other ways it seems like it has. I will let you decide. Don't go blaming me if you are completely bored....you were warned!

Mr. Frannycakes and I got back to Maine early this morning.....around 2 am. We left Pawleys Island at 5 am. You do the math. Frannycakes has been in a fog all day. This afternoon, I got lazy on the couch and did some snoozing. It was glorious. And as usual, it will not affect my ability to sleep very well tonight. I love having that ability.

Where have we been? Well, we headed down to St. Marys a month ago. Gran Gran, Mr. Frannycakes mother, decided to take a last minute, vacation to the hospital. We couldn't let everyone have a good time without us, could we? Thankfully, it was a quick vacation.

Dick came home and went on some business trips and then came back down to get ready for our nephew's wedding. Our entire family came and it was nice to have all the kids together. The wedding was beautiful.

Next came our vacation. We rented a house on the creek at Pawleys Island. I only went out on the beach once. The rest of the time we sunned on the dock. Dick had his kayak and the Benson's brought their john boat. We had a bunch of floats and some of the group floated down the creek. I think everyone had a great time. Have I mentioned how wonderful the food was? It has spoiled Mr. Frannycakes. Withdrawals will be hard for him.

My parentals came for a few days when we moved into the house. It was great to have them with us. I had stayed with them for a month. My bedroom looked alot like it did when I was growing up. Hopefully it has recovered since I left.

Gran Gran and Debbie and Vickie came up the last part of the week. This was one of the first times they have been able to come with us. Hopefully they will be able to come again next summer.

This was a very condensed version of our summer so far. I will be post pictures for the next few days so you can see exactly what I have been talking about.

Talk to you soon!

The Joys of Living in Maine

Hey Yall! I get email weather bulletins and looky what I got today......



Issued at: 3:08 AM EDT 5/25/09, expires at: 3:15 PM EDT 5/25/09

frost advisory in effect from 1 am to 7 am edt Tuesday
The NWS in gray has issued a frost advisory, which is in effect from 1 am to 7 am edt Tuesday.
An unseasonably cold air mass will move over northern new england tonight, combined with a mainly clear and calm night. This will allow widespread frost to form in interior locations later tonight, as temperatures fall into the upper 20s to mid 30s. Even though some of the normally colder spots will fall below freezing, a hard freeze is not expected.
A frost advisory means that frost is possible. Sensitive outdoor plants may be killed if left uncovered.

Just some of the joys of living in Maine.....

Giggle Girl Update

Hey Yall! Giggle Girl is going great! She is still sore and taking Advil every now and then. Every day is better and better for her. She gets her drains out tomorrow and should be back to normal for starting her summer internship!

The picture above is a $5 bunch of Gerber Daisies I got at the grocery store. I got them when we stopped there for ice cream right after her surgery. I tied them up with a pretty ribbon and put them in a white pitcher and put them so Sister could see them. They still look pretty!

Hope you have a wonderful day!

Happy Mother's Day!

Photo Credit - Molly Chicken


Hey Yall! Happy Mother's Day! Hope yours has been good....mine has been GREAT! I talked with Jamie and Chris by phone and wished they could have been here. Dick let me sleep in this morning and it felt wonderful. Julianne made a wonderful WW desert for me.......mmmmmmmm......yum! Later this afternoon, I wrapped up in two throws AND and electric throw on the red couch and watched "Under the Tuscan Sun" while I occasionally rested by eyes. (That was for you Daddy!) All together....A Glorious Day! Can I get an Amen?

Here's a big Happy Mother's Day wish to my Mom and Dick's mom! Can you feel the hug? It's a big one!

Giggle Girl Update

Hey Yall! Giggle Girl, aka Julianne, giggled until right after I took the picture of her yesterday. And then it ended. She was very hungry and was satisfied with ice cream and sorbet and yogurt for a while. Then she didn't want any more sugar. So I made her some soup. That didn't really hit the spot. She had some tears and also some laughs. The laughs came from reading the blog post about her because didn't remember anything about what happened. She took some of the Tylenol with codeine prescript but she didn't feel really good after taking it. I am pretty sure it was the medicine. So we have gone back to the Advil.

Today has been a good day so far. She feels good and is just a little bit sore. I have told her to take it easy. Easier said than done!

The weather is crazy here. Cool, cloudy, partly cloudy, raining, repeat! And it is killing my sinuses! We are finally getting green, so pollen might be a part of it. I have been taking Zyrtec at night and Flonase during the day. Until this crazy weather, it had been doing great for me.

I will talk to you later....

Wisdom Lost

Hey Yall! Sister had her wisdom teeth removed this morning! Do you see that drug induced look on her face? I stayed in the room while they put her to sleep then went to the waiting room. I found a couple of magazines that I wanted to read from cover to cover and find out who's doing what to who when and where. You know the kind. Cause inquiring minds want to know. I sent Dick a text message to tell him that she was asleep and I would let him know when they were through. I had just started the first magazine and not even found out the first bit of gossip and a nurse came and got me. She said Julianne did great and was being so funny. Hmmmmmm.......funny? When I got back there, she looked like she was 12 or 13 and was giggling and telling them thank you and she wanted to do it again and giggling some more! She was cracking those ladies back there up! They gave her a prescription for Tylenol with codeine, but wanted us to try 3 or 4 Advil first to see if that would take care of the pain. Julianne said she wanted the prescription filled. I told her I thought she was enjoying herself just a little bit too much laying there in googly land to start on the prescription. They gradually raised her chair till she was sitting straight up and I held on to her arm and led her, giggling the whole time, down the hall and out to the car. She was too funny.

It is kinda cool here in Maine today. We have the heat on AND she is laying under an electric throw on the couch snoozing away. She is probably exhausted from the finals that she just finished up yesterday. A lazy day will do her good.

Don't you just love her ice packs? The nurse came in with it and told her she was going to make her into a bunny. Julianne just giggled then got serious and said, with a mouthful of gauze, "We love bunnies!" Then she giggled some more.

I will keep you updated on the giggle girl.....

Happy Birthday Virginia!!!!

Hey Yall! Today is Virginia's Birthday! Virgie, I hope you have a wonderful birthday and I can't wait to see you!

Planting the Crops

Hey Yall! As you can see, Frannycakes finally started planting the crops. I haven't finished yet. I ran out of potting soil and plants. And you kind of need both of those when you are, well, planting the crops! I have been instructed by Mr. Frannycakes NOT to plant any vegetables because he WILL NOT water them while I am visiting at the beach this summer. Since he did not water them last summer or the summer before that, I tend to believe him. Soooooooooo, no vegetables. Blah. I love growing tomatoes and peppers.

Talk to you later!