No matter what else life deals you, FAMILY is what GOD gives you!

We all have our genetically linked families, whether or not we're raised together; but I was one of the fortunate ones that grew up in a small, but close family. My paternal grandmother was really young when she married my grandfather. Their children are the only blood relatives on my Dad's side, that we grew up knowing.
As you can see in this photo, my grandma was a beautiful woman, with strong physical characteristics. My Dad and his sister favored her a lot. It was unfortunate that my "PawPaw Jimmy' passed away at a very young age, and he only got to 'meet' three of his grandchildren. My Mom was pregnant with my brother when he died.
As I'd said in the first so-called blog (mini-book) I'd written, we grew up in Kenner. This next photo shows my brother Glen pulling me in a wagon. Pardon my 'flashing' you guys, but apparently the kids in our neighborhood all went shirtless! HA! As odd as it is, my strongest memories come from that little neighborhood, in that little house where Glen and I slept in bunk beds. When I have dreams, they're usually about Kenner! Maybe because that was the time when we all lived within a few blocks of each other, and yes, times were just different!
But my maternal grandparents maintained nearly 100 homesteaded acres in the 'village' of Folsom, nearly 60 miles north of New Orleans. (By the way, Kenner is where the major airport for New Orleans is located). So, we'd jumped from a very urban environment to a world of rural bliss (to me, at least). It took my brother quite a while to adjust. I, on the other hand, disappeared for hours in the woods! Mom would have to honk the horn to get me to come in~for we had mini-bikes, and friends from 'the city' would come visit every weekend and we'd rake straw and make play houses, pretend to be cavepeople with the old bull skulls (YUK, huh?)...and I took pictures, as though directing my own little 'movie'!
     AND, 23 scrapbooks later, I'm still taking photos, but our world's gone digital, and it's SO much easier! From listening to SO many stories after Hurricane Katrina, from people who'd lost everything, the pictures were the one thing that couldn't be replaced~especially to those who were already widowed, or had become widowed from the hurricane's ravages. They all wished they'd stored their photos onto CD's~!

As with anyone else, I could write a book, really should do so for my daughters. When 'those in charge' change our days to have 48 instead of only 24 hours, maybe then I'll have time! We all have a heritage, lineage, that needs to be told, so that the truths of our families don't disappear.
This is my paternal grandma in the photo with my brother and I.  She's gone, too; yet her mother lived to be 97!  So, I have longevity on both sides.                                                                                                All I have left is my maternal grandmother, who will be 94 in April! Isn't that incredible? My wonderful Mom takes her back and forth between her house, and my parents'. She sits with her during the day (because my Aunt and I work); and we take turns on certain nights to stay with her at her house. Then she comes to my parents' for the weekends.

This is the photo of the house my maternal grandfather was born in! My 93 year old grandma still lives here. Of course, it's been refurbished a few times~ especially after a pecan tree fell on one side of it during the numerous tornadoes of Hurricane Katrina. Just knowing that we've had generation after generation on this land, and in that house~well, that means more to me than ANY amount of money.
My mother is the best at recording (by hand, in separate folders) the genealogy of our families. Oh, I was always 'curious', but too busy with my own life, to worry with that. I had been told I may never be able to conceive, so my whole 'outlook on life' changed. I wouldn't allow myself to get 'too close', feeling that most men would want children of their own. Yes, it may sound 'odd' to have looked at life that way, but I truly felt like less of a woman!

Well, GOD had something to show me! I guess I'd raised all of my 'friends', so HE Blessed me late in life with my own two little Angels. Although the circumstances aren't the fairytale ' happily ever after' every little girl dreams of; I'd be so very lonely and lost without my girls! They are who I live for! I can see the genetic characteristics IN them, each day. The self-conscious vanity I used to have went out the window, when that gorgeous, fat, blue-eyed beauty turned her head toward me once she heard my voice~all amidst the chaos of family surrounding me after delivery! As far as I was concerned, it was just Gabrielle and I in that room. My life was complete, and nothing else mattered!

And just when I thought I was getting it all together, my childhood sweetheart decided to 'return' and catch me off guard. We finally got married (considering I have his ID bracelet from 7th grade); and then came my precious little Bekah Lynn~whom we'd named 'Joshua Scott' until that ultrasound didn't show what was needed to BE a Joshua! And Gabrielle rubbed my belly and said, "Dat's my Bekah Lynn"! And now they're 8 and 6~ in the blink of an eye~as I'd been told by so many, my babies are 'little ladies'.
So, in these times of 'recesssion'~something MY generation has never faced~when you sit down and count your Blessings instead of counting 'what I want', be grateful for your 'FAMILY', be certain to TELL them how much you LOVE them (even if you think you don't like them) , because this is the time of year to be THANKFUL! I've seen many a young person die this year, crazy 'accidents', misdiagnosed medical conditions....please,  for a time, forget the 'material' things, and just HUG YOUR FAMILY...for no one is promised tomorrow!

WHO DAT SAY DEY GONNA BEAT DEM SAINTS?

Well, if you're not from LOUISIANA, you may not be able to appreciate this one.  But, in 1967 we got our NFL team, the New Orleans Saints. Unfortunately, we have NEVER been to the Superbowl. I have very strong memories of my Dad yelling profanities at the television! Of course, we were hidden under the big picture window, OUTSIDE of our home....any number of kids sitting there, giggling while listening to the men cursing one minute, then hooting and hollering the next.'
The SAINTS have truly been a team with challenges. One season we may have a 'great' Quarterback, but no defense; or an awesome defense, with no special teams; or an incredibly accurate kicker (of whom we'd rely on for Field Goals when we couldn't make those TouchDowns), but no Quarterback. You get the picture! We have been the 'Underdogs of the NFL', since our franchise was formed.
We've had numerous coaches over the years...'my' most memorable was Jim Mora, until NOW! Sean Payton has been the driving force behind 'this' particular team.  He tries to focus on each game, each week, as it comes.  AND, he instills that in our players as well.
He respects our Quarterback, DREW BREES, and allows him to call some of the plays, actually TRUSTS him to do so! The players, in turn, respect our Quarterback as well. He is awesome at 'threading the needle', i.e., throwing the football to his player, who just so happens to be surrounded by opposing players, yet manages to get it IN THE HANDS of our players! He has provided us, THE FANS, with an exciting game each week, both running and passing. And for our SAINTS to have a PASSING game is just plain incredible!
After winning last week, we were EIGHT wins/ ZERO losses, in other words, 8 & 0! And to put it in other words, no matter HOW it's written: EIGHT and ZERO, 8 and 0, even ATE and OH!  It sure LOOKS and SOUNDS great to all of us, THE FANS!!! People who don't even HAVE season tickets, are purchasing SUPERBOWL tickets already! I am not joking! And the Superbowl will be in MIAMI!
Well, we also beat the St. Louis RAMS today, making us NINE and ZERO! A franchise RECORD, of course, and New Orleans is floating on air! The fans meeting the team at our airport will be in the hundreds. Even when we were seriously losing, our fans, the diehards, never gave up. Others were actually wearing 'bags' on their heads, with AINTS written on them, instead of SAINTS. "I" was one of those diehard fans that was still attending, and supporting our team! But "I" never wore a bag, but ALWAYS dressed in something black and gold (for GOOD LUCK, of course~and so the team knew "I" still loved them)!
With my current financial situation, "I" won't be one of those at the SUPERBOWL (in the event we actually make it there), but you'd better believe that "I" believe, like NEVER before, that THIS team is the one CAPABLE of going! "Dahn heah, cher, we may be some haffass coonasses, yah, but we say dem SAINTS is gawn to da SUPERBOWL yah" and to all who don't believe that we can, we say "GEAUX SAINTS ALL DA WAY"...." WE Believe"..."Bless You Boys"..."and WHEN THE SAINTS GO MARCHING IN"...they have uplifted the spirits of a state full of people who are STILL recovering from Hurricane Katrina. YOU MAKE US SMILE AGAIN~

Halloween in a very small town!

OK, there are many 'variations' and 'descriptions' of the last day of the month of October, being the 31st, and supposedly celebrated, as HALLOWEEN! Living in the Village of Folsom (Louisiana), we had very limited options for this "All hallows Eve".

The divide is definitely 'black and white', and I don't mean it's racial! Either you celebrate and enjoy the 'Trick or Treating', or you do not. No grey area at all. On one side of it, it's an 'evil' celebration of Satan's followers, dressing up to receive candy from strangers. On the other side of it, you do NOT dress 'evil' and simply go to the homes of people you know to feel safe. OR you choose to go to one of the local Churches, and consider it to be a "Fall Festival", but still give all the kids candy at some point of the night.

We'd started a tradition a few years back, at the Elementary School, to have a "TRUNK or TREAT". Parents filled out forms, so the school knew who would be handing out candy. On the night chosen, they parked around the circular drive of the school, decorated their vehicles, and the kids could go around and get candy from parents they knew. This was a wonderful idea, and it was beneficial to the PTA, from the sale of hot dogs, popcorn and soda. Well, for some reason, it just didn't take place this year.

So, the alternative is to drive from house to house (remember, this is a village~with two red lights) in order to see if their porch light is on, as the signal to let us know to stop there. Yes, the parents were in a line, stopping and parking (with flashers on), to let our children get some candy. You see, the houses that had lights on, were very spaced apart. In and out, in and out...but my girls were just happy to get candy.

Once we'd made our rounds, got some candy and stopped by Rebekah's classmate's house, we went on to Applebee's and had a nice meal together. There were numerous questions, that I assume all parents get asked at one time or another (if not simply because they hear so many adults' comments), and it was sad to me to be asked, 'Why can't we eat our candy now, Mom?'

And to explain to them the dangers of mean-spirited people, which only leads to more questions.

Is it the 'time of year' that Satan's "month of feasts" come to an end? Is it the EVE of "All Saints day" for a reason? Do ALL hallows, ghosts, goblins, witches, warlocks celebrate this night, some ritual? We can ponder these questions, we can assume things, and we can make choices based on our own interpretations. We still have free will, and as with most things "it's all in how you look at it"!

OK, just WHO is the sock bandit?

As I wait for the clothes to wash and dry, I'm arranging SOCKS into piles by color and size. It never fails that there are some left alone, one stray sock here and there (which also pile up over time)! So, as most Moms will do, we make certain that the kids didn't just leave one~say, under their beds~or perhaps it just fell behind the hamper when one of them decided to practice basketball! Then you painstakingly move the washer and/or dryer, to make sure that one didn't just fall behind or between there.
Of course, this makes it yet another 'issue' when getting ready for school, especially when you have little 'divas' as I do! I've instilled in them the NEED to 'match', so of course, if there isn't a 'white' shirt, then they don't want 'white' socks! So, as they're whining, I'm madly sorting through that 'designated' basket of "LOST" socks, to find that match to make an authentic pair! Well, grrrrr....!!!! That does NOT always happen.
So, can someone PLEASE tell me: "Just who IS this sock bandit"? Does he/she actually go from home to home, dryer to dryer, STEALING just ONE sock? Could it actually be a sock PIRATE? With only one leg, and the other wooden? I'd really like to know, because I give up and actually just go buy more 'bags' of pairs for them, only to accumulate even more!

http://lisamarieinla-amomsgottabrag.blogspot.com/

Why do they call them FIELD trips anyway?

OK, so we live in a small town. My little Kindergartener had a 'field trip' this morning to a place called the "Pumpkin Patch". Imagine this...one busload of 5-6 year olds, with about 20 vehicles following it; with MOST of the parents having NO directions NOR any clue where we were going. (YES, thank GOD for cell phone conferencing)!

It's Friday, and MOST of Thursday night there was a monstrous, weather changing front coming through. And in Louisiana, that means LOTS of rain, even lightning. So, when we get to this 'family owned' farm, so to speak, and see how the cars were parking~as directed by one of the teens working there~"park only on the green grass"; one has to wonder what OTHER colors the grass may be where we're going!

We make our way in the Mommy van, through sand and muck, to the 'field' designated for parking. And, lo and behold, there was some almost black grass! Black, from the MUD that resulted from the storm the night before! They 'repaired' the entrance with SAND. Yes, sand. You should have seen the ruts! I said a silent prayer that we didn't get stuck, and followed the 'herd' of parents. This isn't unusual for us, living in a rural area, visiting yet another rural area.

But you would think that the owners would take into consideration that 5-6 year old children were coming on their property, in these conditions! There of course, was an irrigation ditch, with a pipe (conduit) was exposed and surrounded by MORE water, and mud/muck. This was at an angle to the ditch of water we had to cross to get to the pumpkin field! They added two pieces of plywood as 'makeshift' bridges. Yeah, that worked! Once several people had stepped on them, got them wet, and softened; well, you guessed it! They would collapse in the middle and cover with water. Hence, WET, muddy feet!

Then they have this AWESOME, huge RED, um, bouncy thing out in another portion of their property. It was like a big red 'pillow' made of a rubbery material, that had been filled with air, tied down, and surrounded by, yep, MORE SAND! So now we have WET SAND, requirements to 'remove shoes before jumping'; and so we proceed to remove those muddy shoes (and socks) for them to jump on the 'big red bouncy thing'. It's even fenced in!

Well, that horrendous storm the night before? Uh-huh, it brought in colder weather. SO, we have about 8 or 9 busloads of what appeared to be 4, 5, and 6 year olds, barefoot in the cold, wet sand climbing on a big, red, bouncy thing over and over again. So then "I" proceed to go back through the muddy obstacle course, to snatch one of the towels (in a bucket) that were being used to wipe off the pumpkins. Mommy was looking ahead to cleaning those wet, sandy feet to put the socks and shoes back on!

OK, so we get past this and make our way over the irrigation pipe into the field of 'already cut' pumpkins. The kids select their pumpkins, and we make our way over that makeshift bridge only to gather to decide if 'the siblings at home should get a pumpkin as well', AND how much it would cost! So we make our way to an adorable little 'country store' sort of cabin, to find that they were $5.oo each.

The father (yes, one of those rare Dads that could attend this "FIELD" trip) of my daughter's BFF (best friend forever), holding his youngest daughter in his arms, proceeds to show us the mark on her face. They went into the 'Petting Pen' and the goat 'horned' her and pinned her against the fencing! "SHE" is not yet 2 years old...and says, "Bad (baah, baah, doat)"~ironic, huh? She was so cute, but sounded as though she were chastising a lamb instead.

We let our girls peddle around a bit on the little kiddie tractor-bikes, looked at each other and said, "Are you ready to go?" (already knowing the answer)! So, we made our way back to the van, and who do we see walking? The "dad" and the baby! They were asked to leave, being told that they needed a 'sticker', to pay again (for the baby) or leave! When he complained about the goat, they told him he was in a 'restricted area'...the petting pen? Where several others were? Wait until MOM hears about this! (and yes, the drama continued from home)...

So, my carpooling friend, our daughters, and I proceed to take a MUCH shorter route, to a quaint little BBQ place to sit down and eat lunch. The sandwiches were saved for later, but the chips were eaten on the way..and "we" were back to our little town about an hour before the bus returned. I cannot wait to 'hear' the feedback on this Pumpkin Patch FIELD trip!

What ever happened to Museums? The Mint? The Cabildo? Educational, historical places that 'we' visited as students? I guess it's more fitting to go to muddy FIELDS on field trips instead!

Life in a Small Town

There were days that I never imagined that I'd still be in Folsom! My family moved here when I was almost 10 years old, my brother was almost 12. My mother and her parents/family, were of course from here, so it was the logical place to 'settle in'. We'd moved from Kenner (where the airport is), and it was growing so fast that my parents felt it would be best to 'get us out of the city' and move to the 'country'. Well, "I" adjusted well, but it was a bit different for my brother. He was an all-around athlete, could ride his bike around the corner to the park, or in the neighborhood ~safely back then~and we were surrounded by family, living in almost identical houses, the floor plan being twisted around a bit, just to sell, I guess! It was the 1960's, but things were changing. Our mothers didn't 'have' to work, so they were home when we got home from school. They listened to our explanations of what happened to us that day, at school or on the bus; they had snacks ready for us to eat...it wasn't like 'Ozzie and Harriet', but it was just, well, comfortable.

My mother helped baby-sit while my Aunt Sherrie was going into the hospital to have her youngest son; and some of those kids stayed with Mom, even after Aunt Sherrie went back to work. My mother got into a HORRIBLE automobile accident, where she and our next door neighbor went through the windshield. They were rear-ended by a Frey Meat truck at a red light! When my Aunt Kathy met us at the bus stop, my heart jumped. That wonderful routine changed for quite some time!

When Mom finally came home, she looked like a MUMMY, not MOMMY, to us. So, when she healed, she also looked different. I'm drawing some blanks, so I must have 'blocked' it from my memory. That's when Dad knew it was time to get out of there. And the plans began to move out of Kenner, across Lake Ponchartrain, to the 'country'. Oh, how grateful I am for that decision. (to be continued)