Mid year check up

Today I decided to see how I am doing with all of my new year's goals.

2013  goals and ideas:
1. Pray more often and more effectively~
This goal needs to be more measurable and objective. Like maybe say~ write in a prayer journal 3 times a week or something like that.
2.Maybe that means buy or keep a prayer journal. Yes I did this one,
3. Look for the silver lining. Not always but I try to do this. Again it needs to be more measurable and objective.
4.Do a good deed once a week. ( Make a list of them so I have 52.)I might have done this I just didn't write them down.
5.Decorate the walls in the living room.Yes
6.Redo the computer room and my bedroom.
7.Call my friends don't just text or e-mail. And arrange lunch dates to chat and everything! Yes I have been doing this some weeks more than others.
8.Call my sisters weekly. NO I have not done this every week.
9.Work on managing my finances. Yes I have been doing this.
10.Keep to the budget.Yes
11.Crochet 3 baby afghans.Yes
12.Get a head start on Christmas, like buy or write stuff down as I see needs. not yet
13.Go to Florida to see Cathy, Bill, Sue and others. not yet
14.Walk daily even if it is just up or down the hill. Yes I am walking but no not daily.
15. Go to California to see my sister and her family~ not yet
16.Go to Paul Jr.'s wedding~ where is that going to be? not yet
17. Start a going to China savings account to go to China in 2 years. Yes I have done this.
18. Read a book a week and report on it every Friday. I am sure that  I have read a book a week but I didn't report weekly.
19. Go to see Aunt Mearlene in Wilmington, North Carolina.
20. Include more fruit and vegetables in my daily diet. I am doing this.
21.Make a new friend or two. Yes
22.Continue to study Spanish or Chinese. yes
23.Be accountable.
24.Work in the Sunday school department at OBF. Yes
25.Study the Bible and able to answer questions.Yes
26.Sing Karaoke with Katie and friends.
27.Go Katie's wedding and have fun there! Yes
28.Volunteer at the Middle School with Suzette Yes
29.Go on 4 hikes with Katie and Dustin, one each season.
30.Go to Curves at least 3 times a week. Can't do this now. It closed. So Now I have to go to the Rec Center 3 times a week
So now I have a few left ( like 7 )  with some of them scheduled just not done yet. I really do want to get to know my son in law and daughter in law better. Guess I am getting some where this year!

July 4

Happy Birthday America. I celebrated last weekend. So today when it rained all day and I was sick, it didn't really bother me. I called two people today and talked to one of them on the phone. I just listened to messages from the other.
 I have got to get a life where I do something, but I just don't know what kind of something I want to do. Well The photo says it all. Here's to truth, justice, the American way and sun glasses.

At the Gym

Every day you should exercise. I used to go to Curves, but it closed. Now I have moved to Miami Rec Center to stretch, walk, and visit with random strangers or people with whom I am slightly acquainted.   I have also tried swimming in the pool and lifting weights.  Notice that there are about a million steps to climb before you get in the door. It is all good.
I like going there because it makes me think of those days in summer when I was 6 and learned to swim at the pool on Withrow Court.  Of course Dessie and Howard's house is no longer there on Oak Street, but I still feel like I am in the same place as that homesick little girl so long ago. The air there is different, it sort of feels  like home.

A Saturday night on a Wednesday

 When you are retired you don't have to wait for the weekend to do the things you used to do on Saturday. So on Monday Karen and I (otherwise known as Amma and Grannie) ventured into the great metropolis of Hamilton, Ohio.  We were searching for new things to try and counting on old favorites.
The first stop was lunch at Bob Evans where we both had egg beater  vegetable omelets and ice tea. The egg substitute was like yellow rubber and both of us decided not to get that again. But after a quick rest room break we went out to a new experience shopping on the Main street before the bridge.
Here we found a used bookstore with no Spanish/English dictionaries and no old copies of Nancy Drew or Judy Bolton books. They did have some old Agatha Christie's  and even a small collection of Horatio Alger books though. We also found a Bargain Bungalow Shoppe that we explored and found nothing of interest but a china or maybe paper machet fish. As we left we decided that just shopping there made us smell like mildew so we will not try that shop again.
Now at 4:45 It was time for the main event. Drum roll please. "Man of Steel" was the movie and it was in 3D. We put our black rimmed 3D glasses on and watched  as a young boy, Clark Kent, learned that he has extraordinary powers and was not of this Earth. As a young man, he journeyed to the North pole and beyond to discover his origins and his purpose. Then in very loud music and strange sort of transformer like action the  hero in him emerged and  he saved  the world  yet again from annihilation. Finally Superman became  the symbol of hope for all mankind. My opinion, I like Samllville better and Tom Welling is way more attractive then Henry Cavill. But you choose;  what do you think?
The evening was just beginning but being over 60 the two of us called it a day and came home to cook healthy dinners and relax.

Go Grannie Go Amma Go

On the longest day of the year I broke away from my Smallville fixation long enough to go play Miniature golf in 85 degree heat and about 75 degree humidity.  At about 6:30 I called Karen and said, "Here it is  Friday and the longest day of the year. We have to get outside and do something other than walk all the way down  High Street. " We had done that earlier when we ate lunch at the Wild Bistro at noon.  "But what can we do?"  Then suddenly I had a brilliant idea, and said I know, "Let's go play miniature golf at Marker's Wally's World. And so we did. To see the pictures, check out Facebook. I can't figure out how to put them on here!

The Aviator's Wife

 The Aviator's Wife is the story of  Anne Morrow Lindberg. It is a novel but it seems to me that it tells her story very well. I recommend it to anyone looking for a good book. The emotions the author reveals the first time Anne flies are so real and when the baby is kidnapped you long for him to be found.  It also portays the life style of the rich and famous very well. You almost hate the public for  wanting to know about them.

And now it is June

Where did May go? It is June 11 already.  I am busy every day.
Starting this week for 10 days, I am teaching summer school and gosh it feels great to work with small groups of children again. I'm teaching the writing group and we are writing stories and autobiographies and other things.  Tomorrow I am going to try some poetry with them. Wish I could take a picture of the group and post it here. Just so you know, two of the women I work with were once my students and at least one of the children are children of previous students.