My Not so Brilliant Idea - I'm Open to Suggestions

It's been two weeks since I've written. There are so many things stopping me from just logging on and posting. 

 

I think I told you we got a new computer a couple months ago. I had the brilliant idea to just transfer everything from the old computer to the new - except for the photos. I have so many that I think that's part of what's slowing the thing down so much. I've tried putting them onto thumb drives but I have so many now, that I have to search each one to find the label with the photos I want. And a couple of them no longer work. I can view, but nothing else. It's just not convenient.

 

I keep the photos from the two most recent years on the computer, plus photos of each of the girls, grand kids, me and Chuck, photos that I print for greeting cards... I will admit there are a lot, but they're all the photos I want easy access to. Everything else is on thumb drives.

 

So I thought if we took everything off the old computer, and left only the photos, the computer would start working better.

 

But that didn't happen. And the main thing I do on the computer? Blog! So I'm still using the old one, so I can still use my photos.

 

And the old one is... still old. It's still incredibly slow, the 'w' key doesn't always work, and the computer crashes at random times.

 

PLUS! Google now requires authorization to log in! And it sends the text to CHUCK'S phone!

 

So, I hesitate to post anymore. I've got so many pictures to share with you but I need to make sure Chuck is home to do it. And I hate using our old computer. 😞 

 

So I need to find a good solution. Should I just move ALL my photos over to this new computer? If you have any suggestions, I'd love to hear them! 

Grandparents, It Hit Me Like a Wave, and a Purposeful Re-creation?

We were texting Diana the other day about wedding plans and she said something about riding with Peter's grandparents and right there in the middle of our office area, I began to cry. The grief came over me like a giant wave as I realized - again - that my girls no longer have grandparents.

My dad died in 2019 and Chuck's mom, the last of their grandparents, just died in February. 

It hit me hard and I let the tears flow.

I've had this picture hanging in the living room for many years. It's one of those iconic photos that are a part of your family. It's my dad at around 3 years old, sitting on the hood of their car.

I've seen this next picture a hundred times but never really thought about it. A few months ago I came across it again and it hit me! Was my dad purposefully re-creating his photo? This is me around 2 years old, sitting on the hood of our car.

All these years and I never made the connection!

I've re-created photos:

Me and my sisters

Our girls

Sharaya getting ready to ride on my dads motorcycle

Allison standing next to my dads motorcycle

And my girls have re-created photos - many photos! Here's one:

But to think my dad did it way back in the early 1960's, just makes me miss him even more.

Do you have a family photo that means a lot to you?

Have you ever re-created a picture?

Old Photos

Friday was a difficult day at work. I had to confront one custodian about... inaccuracies on their time sheet. They assured me it was just a misunderstanding. Another custodian is going through some personal things so after we talked for a while I prayed with them before they left.

Beth and I left there late, and we stopped at the grocery store on our way home. After dinner I was sitting on the couch and suddenly my face felt flush, like when you have a fever? And I felt like I was getting a headache. Oh no.

I cleaned up the kitchen and decided to get ready for bed, even though it was only 8:30. I puttered around the house a while and finally took some ibuprofen and headed to bed. Thankfully I woke up Saturday morning feeling so much better! (Thank you for your prayers!)

I spent most of Saturday working on a picture frame that I fill with Christmas pictures every couple of years. I hang it in our hall every December and I put in current pictures we took on Christmas Day, plus pictures from when I was little, when the girls were little... it's fun to look back year after year and see how things have changed!

That's me in the blue, my sister and her husband, and my mom's back is to us. This looks like 5th grade, around 1967. It looks like I'm holding something but I have no idea what. 😊

Our girls in 1994

 Do you display Christmas photos during the holidays?

Do you have family photos throughout your house in general?

Thankful Thursday - So Grateful

 

Linking up with Rebecca Jo

We took a walk yesterday and I can honestly say I had a heart of gratitude. I need more practice in this area and I really think these posts are helping. I'm always on the look out for things to post, so thank you Rebecca Jo! I'm thankful for you.

Things I'm thankful for this week:

Birds perched on a wire

Wildflowers

Fresh cut grass

Low-flying airplanes

Unexpected visits from family

Sweet and sour chicken

Coconut cream pie

Photos of great-grandparents

Planning vacations

Seeing results of yard work

Beautiful sunsets

Chuck continues to feel well

I hope you've had a lot to be thankful for this week!

Another Day To Be Thankful

Dinner brought to the house by good friends

Homemade banana bread

Family rides in the car

A husband feeling better every day

Waking up feeling energized

Hand-written letters

 Sitting on the back patio

The perfect cup of tea

A box full of old photographs

I hope and pray you're doing well today!

Click here for more things to smile about!

A Quick Trip to the Store

Beth called me at work today and asked if we could go shopping. She needed to buy her lunchable for Wednesday. So after work we hopped in the car and went to Safeway.

First she picked out some yogurt. My camera makes a very loud click when I take a picture and she immediately spun around, "I heard that!" :) She also bought her lunchable (pizza!) a 7-Up, some fig newtons and ranch dressing. She puts ranch dressing on everything.

 

 

 

Then it was off to the cashier. Just as I snapped the picture, she turned and asked if she should get cash back. I said no because she has $40 in her pocket.

 

 

 

We checked out and were headed to the door when she reminded me, in a somewhat panicked voice, "My medicine!" One of the main reasons we went there was to get her refill of her thyroid medicine. She hung out with the cart while I ran to the back of the store to the pharmacy. Just before we walked out I asked if I could get one more picture.

 

"Suuuure."

 

What Month is This??

It's been such a long time since I've posted anything. I remember I need to post when I'm in the shower, or riding in the car. Not very convenient places to pull out the laptop...

We're all doing fine. Beth continues to work, and go to karaoke and art and bowling. She is coming up on her 1 year anniversary at work! The longest she's ever held a job! We're so proud of her and are planning a surprise for her.

Her karaoke group is planning a production of Grease, one of Beth's favorite movies! She first wanted to try out for the part of Sandy but is now talking about Patti Simcox, the bouncy cheerleader. Not sure what roll Beth will get but the tryouts begin tomorrow.

I've been working a second job (part time) doing data entry for a friend's business. That's something I could do for hours without even blinking an eye. I LOVE data entry.

I'm still not comfortable with photos on this computer, or on my phone! I've taken pictures of Beth with her new glasses, but just the thought of getting them onto this blog terrifies me. I just don't want to take the time to figure out all the steps. I'm making a photo book for Chuck's sister and I must have spent 2 hours trying to get the photos from my thumb drive to Shutterfly. For the life of me I couldn't figure it out! Finally saved them to my desktop but even THAT didn't work. I was on the verge of tears when I just had to walk away. Chuck looked at it when he got home and figured out I had saved them as Shortcuts. Sigh. I deleted all of them and had to start again. Ugh!

Our basement is flooding, did I tell you? We have a daylight basement and I went down to the craft room to work on a scrapbook and the carpet is soaked. Had a friend come take a look and he couldn't find anything that might be causing it. He went under the house to check pipes but everything is bone dry under there. He suggested moving a downspout from next to the house and divert it so the water drains away from the house, but that was the only thing he saw. We're hoping and praying it's not a cracked foundation.

BUT, it's Spring in the great Northwest! The last couple of days have been sunny and in the high 50's. Flowers are starting to bloom, the air is drying out, it's really been glorious!

I think about you all more than you know! I hope you're doing well! Til next time...

Then And Now - The Photo That Started It All

The girls gave us a frame filled with photos for our Anniversary.

But not just any group of photos.

They got together and recreated pictures from their childhoods.

Beth and Sharaya

1989 - 2013

 

 Sharaya

1988 - 2013

 

 Diana

1992 - 2013

 

Sharaya and Beth

1989 - 2013

 

There were even more than this!

They tried to match every picture, right down to the clothes they were wearing!

But the picture that started it all, I believe, was this one -

Me and my sisters around 1963

 I took that picture of my girls about 30 years later.

And now, forever more I'll have:

Priceless!!

Finished!

Beth finished her shadow box last weekend.

First she attached the photos to white paper using double sided tape

Then she attached velcro to the back of the white paper

Next she arranged the photos on the board

Attached velcro to the medals

 Then placed the medals on the board

Finished!