Memory Monday

Thank for the well wishes. Cataract surgery went fine. I was shocked at how painless it was.  Now three weeks of eye drops. 

It seems like we are crazy busy around here (mostly doctor appointments) and we have three more this week. But I still had the envelope of 1970's photos on my desk so we are stuck with those. 

I am starting with this one of me reading the newspaper since my last post had me on this floor reading the newspaper. I read the newspaper a lot in the 1970's. The table in front of the couch was my play table when I was little and is in my house right now and the wooden piano stool in front of the window is beside my chair and holding my coffee. 

I remember this gray coat and gray and white shift dress that I wore once for Easter.  I am not sure who bought it because I look horrible and gray when I wear gray.  But don't my legs look long? This is an optical illusion. 

This is me spreading a table cloth at a picnic. I hate picnics and had a phobia of bugs on food as a teenager.  There seem to be a lot of photos of me at picnics. I'm not sure if we were picnickers or they wanted to torture me. The man is my uncle from Illinois, my cousin Claire is in the white tee shirt, by the process of elimination I think the orange shirt is my cousin Simon and my Aunt Mary Ellen is on the opposite side of the table. 

My uncle, my aunt, my father and me with those long legs which are an optical illusion.  These also show my uniform headscarf that I wore from 1969-1971.  

Trading the kerchief for a floppy hat, I appear to be making s'mores with my cousin Claire. As a hoarder I swear I'm telling the truth when I say I still have this hat. It has red, white and blue designs with a white reversible side and my daughters and granddaughters have worn it, too. 

1971. Me scrubbing the roof of my dad's sailboat.  I believe this could be the last time I was on a boat. I am not a water person either.  

I do not remember ever scrubbing the boat but I do remember the bikini which was a dark orange with a yellow paisley print.  I do not still own the bikini. 

February Tea Party

I am scheduled for cataract surgery on Tuesday February 24 so I am scheduling this to post on Wednesday. I am not sure how well I will be able to see during the week and I have some other stuff going on but I hope to be back soon!

We finally were able to attend a tea party at the new catering facility in a nearby town! My granddaughter thought she was coming to tea at Mimi's house and was surprised that we were going somewhere even more fancy! 

That is a Valentine's tree.  We were the only group wearing hats. I think some need an education in tea parties! 

This is for one person. We all got our own tiered tray. They require you preorder and prepay for the tea.  I reserved three adult teas. The host who seated us told me that I could switch my granddaughter to the "princess" tea which had peanut butter and jelly and some treats for a lesser price.  I told her we would keep the adult teas. 

When we each got our individual pots of tea they again offered to switch her to the child's tea. This princess was not going to trade a three tiered tray for a plate of peanut butter and jelly!  (it was nice of them to offer the alternative). 

Even water tastes better in a glass goblet! 

She was not wild about the tea, but next time we can substitute hot cocoa.  This is a nice photo of the savories on the bottom tier. There are Egg Salad Sandwiches on white bread, a Cheddar Bacon Scone, Turkey and Honey Creme Fraiche on White Bread and Prosciutto with Caramelized Onion Jam and Apple on wheat bread. 

The middle tier had a Blueberry Scone, a Strawberry Cheesecake with the most delicious strawberry, and a Raspberry Swirl Cupcake with a Heart Macaroon. 

And the top tier featured an Expresso Chocolate Cake, an Almond Layer Tea Cake, and a Chocolate Dipped Cannoli. 

As experienced Tea Partiers we looked over the selection and decided what needed to be eaten fresh and what would travel well.  We all tried one of each sandwich, we ate the cheesecake and raspberry cupcake and macaroon and cut the scones and ate half.  

They had lovely little boxes and my granddaughter is looking forward to showing off her leftovers in the school lunchroom tomorrow! 

The total cost for the adult tea is $32 which I thought was reasonable for the experience, the pot of tea and all the foods which were homemade in house.  It was a special treat and I am sure we will go again in the coming months. 

Another nice feature they offer is that you can also order from a special brunch menu instead of ordering the tea.  If I could talk Mr Merry into attending, he could even order a burger instead of tea.  We will see if that can happen.  

Memory Monday

This week's edition will feature me! We are currently under a Level 2 snow emergency and I am very concerned school will be cancelled tomorrow. 

 Shoveling snow in January 1966. Showing that I have always been partial to a large hat and also that, despite being the only girl with two brothers, I was the one who was shoveling. 

This was a house we lived in for one year on Woodlawn.  We moved there from a Cape Cod style house across the street. (not pictured) And a year later we moved across town to this house. 

We moved from a 1950's rambler to an 1874 Victorian.  I am standing by the back porch with what looks like ice skates.  My friend Judy lived two doors down and her dad would flood the driveway during the winter to create an ice rink.  I do wonder why I am wearing a skirt. I am wearing another big hat.

Why did we move so often? I'm not sure.  My  mom liked to look at houses for sale and we were constantly putting our house up for sale and moving to a different street in our small town.  My parents were not "flippers". They did not remodel or update houses, they just moved. Once, in my Sunday School class of six first graders, two of the students lived in houses I used to live in. 

Mr Merry and I bought our house in December of 1978 and still live here. 

February

 

February. On days we don't have a snow day or days when we don't have a two hour fog delay, we eat breakfast and wait for the school bus. 

Then we drive to the recreation center and change our shoes to walk the track which goes around the upper part of the basketball courts. On a warm morning we tried to become street walkers, but between raised sidewalks from tree roots and piles of dog poo, we decided we are indoor walkers. 

Between the old man's bursitis and the old lady's issues, we walk very slowly. Very very slowly. 

One Friday I did not have any medical appointments so we went to the egg farm. It was Amish baked goods day. 

We bought a small plate with four chocolate chip cookies. 

Then we went to the home improvement store. 

Since it was a Friday and it is lent and since we were out of town where there are restaurants, I talked him into lunch at Red Lobster. 

Pretty sure this has my sodium allotment for the month. 

As did my Trader Joe Asian dinner for Valentine's Day.  

I have spent the weekend rounding up my vintage hats. I am short one large hat box with at least three hats I can name.  I am taking my youngest daughter and youngest granddaughter to the new restaurant with Sunday Tea that I had hoped to attend in January.  I am sure I will not be sticking to my diet there either. 

Last Monday I visited the pulmonary specialist who sent me for a pulmonary function test on Wednesday. I thought I aced the test since I am breathing better than I have in a long time. Apparently I am "trapping air" in my lungs, whatever that means.  This Monday I am back at the cardiologist and maybe he will know.  Then Tuesday I have my left eye cataract surgery.  

The track is closed Sunday for a big volleyball tournament. I am will be walking on Monday morning before my appointment and Tuesday morning before my eye surgery. Wednesday morning I have to go back to the eye doctor so he can check whatever.  

So that is what I have been up to.  Eating, walking and going to doctor appointments.