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Showing posts with label Christmas. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Christmas. Show all posts
Saturday, December 27, 2008
Santa Claus' Punch and Judy
My haven't things changed in the last 60 years! I came across this old Christmas film from 1948. Children then enjoyed much simpler toys and entertainment. Society was much less obsessed with being "Politically Correct". Sit back and enjoy the entertainment. © 2008 Barry T Horst
This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
Friday, December 26, 2008
The Night After Christmas Morn; A Reprise
'Twas the night after Christmas morn, when all through the house
Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse;
The stockings and such lay on the floor in a mess,
In hopes that it would surely not block our egress;
The children were playing all snug in their room,
While visions of new games danced in their heads I presume;
And momma in her finest, and I in my finer,
Had just settled down for a long winter's nap in my recliner,
When out in the den there arose such a clatter,
I sprang from the recliner to see what was the matter.
Away to the hallway I flew in a rush,
Tore open the doors and stood with a blush.
The light on the breast of the new-fallen tree
Gave the lustre of calamity to the objects I see,
When, what to my wondering eyes should materialize,
But 7 cats from the branches, "What am I to surmise?"
With a mischievous leader, so lively and quick,
I knew in a moment it must be Mister and his sidekicks.
More rapid than eagles his cohorts in crime came,
And I fussed and I yelled, and called them by name;
"Now, Peanut! now, Tabby! now, Callie and Boo!
On, Mister! on Rory! and now Bristow, you too!
To the top of the chair! To the end of the hall!
Now dash away! Dash away! Dash away all!"
As dry leaves that before the wild tornado fly,
When they meet with an obstacle, they jump to the sky,
So to the end of the hallway the cohorts they flew,
With an ornament of catnip, and a candy cane too.
And then, in a twinkling, I heard Grandma quite clear,
She was scolding each cat, each scofflaw that was near.
As I drew up my hand, and was turning around,
Down the hallway Mister came with a bound.
He was dressed all in fur, from his head to his tail,
It was all tarnished with the pine needles that fell;
A bundle of toys he had in his mouth,
As he looked like a tramp, beginning to head south.
His eyes -- how they twinkled! His tail was so comic!
His nose started to twitch as his whiskers he did flick!
His curious eyes were drawn down the hall,
He squinted and stared at his apparent downfall;
The bundle of toys he held tight in his teeth,
By my feet he stopped and left them beneath;
As if to leave an offering of peace,
An apology for being so caprice.
He stood regal and erect, a right stately old cat,
And I laughed when I saw him, as away he did scat;
A twinkle in his eye and a twist of his tail,
Soon gave me to know I had nothing to bewail;
He made not a sound, but went straight to our room,
And started to refresh; and also to groom,
And laying himself down upon the furniture,
He gave us all a nod, and started for to purr;
He opened his eyes, to his cohorts gave a mew,
And away they all flew with barely an adieu.
But I heard him exclaim, ere he nodded off contrite,
"Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good-night."
© 2008 Barry T Horst
This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse;
The stockings and such lay on the floor in a mess,
In hopes that it would surely not block our egress;
The children were playing all snug in their room,
While visions of new games danced in their heads I presume;
And momma in her finest, and I in my finer,
Had just settled down for a long winter's nap in my recliner,
When out in the den there arose such a clatter,
I sprang from the recliner to see what was the matter.
Away to the hallway I flew in a rush,
Tore open the doors and stood with a blush.
The light on the breast of the new-fallen tree
Gave the lustre of calamity to the objects I see,
When, what to my wondering eyes should materialize,
But 7 cats from the branches, "What am I to surmise?"
With a mischievous leader, so lively and quick,
I knew in a moment it must be Mister and his sidekicks.
More rapid than eagles his cohorts in crime came,
And I fussed and I yelled, and called them by name;
"Now, Peanut! now, Tabby! now, Callie and Boo!
On, Mister! on Rory! and now Bristow, you too!
To the top of the chair! To the end of the hall!
Now dash away! Dash away! Dash away all!"
As dry leaves that before the wild tornado fly,
When they meet with an obstacle, they jump to the sky,
So to the end of the hallway the cohorts they flew,
With an ornament of catnip, and a candy cane too.
And then, in a twinkling, I heard Grandma quite clear,
She was scolding each cat, each scofflaw that was near.
As I drew up my hand, and was turning around,
Down the hallway Mister came with a bound.
He was dressed all in fur, from his head to his tail,
It was all tarnished with the pine needles that fell;
A bundle of toys he had in his mouth,
As he looked like a tramp, beginning to head south.
His eyes -- how they twinkled! His tail was so comic!
His nose started to twitch as his whiskers he did flick!
His curious eyes were drawn down the hall,
He squinted and stared at his apparent downfall;
The bundle of toys he held tight in his teeth,
By my feet he stopped and left them beneath;
As if to leave an offering of peace,
An apology for being so caprice.
He stood regal and erect, a right stately old cat,
And I laughed when I saw him, as away he did scat;
A twinkle in his eye and a twist of his tail,
Soon gave me to know I had nothing to bewail;
He made not a sound, but went straight to our room,
And started to refresh; and also to groom,
And laying himself down upon the furniture,
He gave us all a nod, and started for to purr;
He opened his eyes, to his cohorts gave a mew,
And away they all flew with barely an adieu.
But I heard him exclaim, ere he nodded off contrite,
"Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good-night."
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Monday, December 22, 2008
Picture Monday, December 22, 2008
Here is the list showing the 12 gifts:
12 Posts for Scratching,
11 Sprigs of Catnip,
10 Beds for Sleeping,
9 Windows for sunning,
8 Ribbons waving,
7 Fish a-swimming,
6 Mice for Playing,
5 Pounds of Cat Food,
4 Kitty Snacks,
3 Sachet Fresheners,
2 Litter Strainers,
And a Bag of Kitty Litter, Dust Free.
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Sunday, December 21, 2008
HO, HO, HO...More Christmas Fun!!!
There is still time for you send that email to Santa, even though Christmas is 3 days away. Santa will reply even while making his rounds. I think he has a Blackberry or an iPhone or something so that he can text and email from his sleigh. Apparently Santa knows where all the dead zones are and stays away from them.
Check out Email Santa Claus. It's a great site for you and the kids. Be careful though, you may spend too much time there and forget to finish your holiday shopping.
Confidentially.....I found out that I was still on the Nice List. Imagine that!
Oh, while I'm thinking about it, you need to know that NORAD still tracks Santa Claus. After all, we don't want to mistake him for a nuclear missile gone wild. Here is a video and a link to the NORAD Tracks Santa site. Pick your language and enjoy. (The video is on the Norad site).
Here is another fun site: Sfeervol Nederland. It is Dutch and I can't read much of it. The page title very roughly translates to Attractive(ly) Netherlands. It probably is closer to Netherlands Holidays or something similar judging from the content.
Perhaps one our many friends from The Netherlands can help me with the translation.I like the page because on the left hand side of the opening page there is a link to various Christmas web cams and I have spent all day exploring them.
It is amazing to sit in your bedroom and visit the world through these web cams and experience the holidays with so many. I can imagine this must be how the first shortwave radio enthusiasts felt when they spoke to people half way around the world.
AMAZING!
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Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Little Surprises are the Best Surprises
Now a surprise for you, a letter from Santa.
Well not exactly a letter from Santa from me; just a link to where you can print one. It is located at DLTK.com.
Here it is: Print your own Santa Letter.
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Monday, May 05, 2008
Picture Monday, May 5, 2008
Here I am with my Grandmother. This is Ethel Creswell, my Mother's Mother. I knew her as Grand Mammy. It looks like this is when I was doing my residency and having to make house calls.
It's me again, the tall one in the back. This was my Cub Scout Pack. We were a strange looking lot back in those days weren't we? I like the sneakers on the guy up front.
Here I am at my brother's wedding. I am holding my niece, Meredith. Look at those sideburns would ya.
I guess it's not all about me. Sometimes it's about Christmas, Christmas 1958 to be exact. I was two. I'll bet the little stool, the Fisher-Price Popcorn Popper, spinning top, and the other box was mine. I'm just guessing that the bike was a might too big for me and I certainly hope the doll was not intended for me. I love the curtains. If you look close you can see the little pom-pons on them. Ahhh, the height of home decor fashion in the 1950's.
© 2008 Barry T Horst
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Please visit the Giveaway of the Day at the bottom of the page for free software downloads daily.
Sunday, March 23, 2008
The Meaning of Easter
"The Passion of the Christ" refers to Jesus' final hours of torture and execution on the cross. Read this "crucifixion" story from an ancient biographer (Mark 15). Christians recognize Jesus as God, and the cross as God suffering a penalty on behalf of humans. Christians believe therefore that God no longer needs to punish (can forgive) humans for their wrong doing (sin).
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Friday, February 01, 2008
B-Day, Here We Come
Chris and I went shopping last night for Jace's birthday. The big day is Thursday, February 7. He will be 6.
We were at Wal-Mart. My goodness what toys they have. Jace likes cars and dinosaurs and dragons and most anything else. He doesn't like dolls though. But he does like GI Joe. GI Joe is not a doll; it is an action figure.
We looked at dragons and decided on one from Fisher-Price. It was an Imaginext Adventures Dragon. Then we saw a different toy in the Imaginext Dinosaur line called Mega T-Rex. The moment I saw I thought, "Cool!" This thing is really neat. There is a button on the tail that makes the dinosaur move and roar. It reminds me of a small animatronic figure from a tiny Disney World. Had to get it. Got it. Put the dragon back. It wasn't as cool as the dinosaur. Now the dinosaur resides in our closet until the big day. There are a few other things in the closet for him too. Those are surprises. His Mom has told him that he's going to just get clothes for his B-Day since he got so many toys at Christmas. I thought about getting him some underwear and telling him they were character building. I wimped out and went with the dinosaur. Chris was glad. Jace will be more ecstatic.
© 2008 Barry T Horst
This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
We were at Wal-Mart. My goodness what toys they have. Jace likes cars and dinosaurs and dragons and most anything else. He doesn't like dolls though. But he does like GI Joe. GI Joe is not a doll; it is an action figure.
We looked at dragons and decided on one from Fisher-Price. It was an Imaginext Adventures Dragon. Then we saw a different toy in the Imaginext Dinosaur line called Mega T-Rex. The moment I saw I thought, "Cool!" This thing is really neat. There is a button on the tail that makes the dinosaur move and roar. It reminds me of a small animatronic figure from a tiny Disney World. Had to get it. Got it. Put the dragon back. It wasn't as cool as the dinosaur. Now the dinosaur resides in our closet until the big day. There are a few other things in the closet for him too. Those are surprises. His Mom has told him that he's going to just get clothes for his B-Day since he got so many toys at Christmas. I thought about getting him some underwear and telling him they were character building. I wimped out and went with the dinosaur. Chris was glad. Jace will be more ecstatic.
© 2008 Barry T Horst
This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
Wednesday, December 26, 2007
The Night After Christmas Morn
'Twas the night after Christmas morn, when all through the house
Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse;
The stockings and such lay on the floor in a mess,
In hopes that it would surely not block our egress;
The children were playing all snug in their room,
While visions of new games danced in their heads I presume;
And momma in her finest, and I in my finer,
Had just settled down for a long winter's nap in my recliner,
When out in the den there arose such a clatter,
I sprang from the recliner to see what was the matter.
Away to the hallway I flew in a rush,
Tore open the doors and stood with a blush.
The light on the breast of the new-fallen tree
Gave the lustre of calamity to the objects I see,
When, what to my wondering eyes should materialize,
But 7 cats from the branches, "What am I to surmise?"
With a mischievous leader, so lively and quick,
I knew in a moment it must be Mister and his sidekicks.
More rapid than eagles his cohorts in crime came,
And I fussed and I yelled, and called them by name;
"Now, Peanut! now, Tabby! now, Callie and Boo!
On, Mister! on Rory! and now Bristow, you too!
To the top of the chair! To the end of the hall!
Now dash away! Dash away! Dash away all!"
As dry leaves that before the wild tornado fly,
When they meet with an obstacle, they jump to the sky,
So to the end of the hallway the cohorts they flew,
With an ornament of catnip, and a candy cane too.
And then, in a twinkling, I heard Grandma quite clear,
She was scolding each cat, each scofflaw that was near.
As I drew up my hand, and was turning around,
Down the hallway Mister came with a bound.
He was dressed all in fur, from his head to his tail,
It was all tarnished with the pine needles that fell;
A bundle of toys he had in his mouth,
As he looked like a tramp, beginning to head south.
His eyes -- how they twinkled! His tail was so comic!
His nose started to twitch as his whiskers he did flick!
His curious eyes were drawn down the hall,
He squinted and stared at his apparent downfall;
The bundle of toys he held tight in his teeth,
By my feet he stopped and left them beneath;
As if to leave an offering of peace,
An apology for being so caprice.
He stood regal and erect, a right stately old cat,
And I laughed when I saw him, as away he did scat;
A twinkle in his eye and a twist of his tail,
Soon gave me to know I had nothing to bewail;
He made not a sound, but went straight to our room,
And started to refresh; and also to groom,
And laying himself down upon the furniture,
He gave us all a nod, and started for to purr;
He opened his eyes, to his cohorts gave a mew,
And away they all flew with barely an adieu.
But I heard him exclaim, ere he nodded off contrite,
"Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good-night."
© 2007 Barry T Horst
This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse;
The stockings and such lay on the floor in a mess,
In hopes that it would surely not block our egress;
The children were playing all snug in their room,
While visions of new games danced in their heads I presume;
And momma in her finest, and I in my finer,
Had just settled down for a long winter's nap in my recliner,
When out in the den there arose such a clatter,
I sprang from the recliner to see what was the matter.
Away to the hallway I flew in a rush,
Tore open the doors and stood with a blush.
The light on the breast of the new-fallen tree
Gave the lustre of calamity to the objects I see,
When, what to my wondering eyes should materialize,
But 7 cats from the branches, "What am I to surmise?"
With a mischievous leader, so lively and quick,
I knew in a moment it must be Mister and his sidekicks.
More rapid than eagles his cohorts in crime came,
And I fussed and I yelled, and called them by name;
"Now, Peanut! now, Tabby! now, Callie and Boo!
On, Mister! on Rory! and now Bristow, you too!
To the top of the chair! To the end of the hall!
Now dash away! Dash away! Dash away all!"
As dry leaves that before the wild tornado fly,
When they meet with an obstacle, they jump to the sky,
So to the end of the hallway the cohorts they flew,
With an ornament of catnip, and a candy cane too.
And then, in a twinkling, I heard Grandma quite clear,
She was scolding each cat, each scofflaw that was near.
As I drew up my hand, and was turning around,
Down the hallway Mister came with a bound.
He was dressed all in fur, from his head to his tail,
It was all tarnished with the pine needles that fell;
A bundle of toys he had in his mouth,
As he looked like a tramp, beginning to head south.
His eyes -- how they twinkled! His tail was so comic!
His nose started to twitch as his whiskers he did flick!
His curious eyes were drawn down the hall,
He squinted and stared at his apparent downfall;
The bundle of toys he held tight in his teeth,
By my feet he stopped and left them beneath;
As if to leave an offering of peace,
An apology for being so caprice.
He stood regal and erect, a right stately old cat,
And I laughed when I saw him, as away he did scat;
A twinkle in his eye and a twist of his tail,
Soon gave me to know I had nothing to bewail;
He made not a sound, but went straight to our room,
And started to refresh; and also to groom,
And laying himself down upon the furniture,
He gave us all a nod, and started for to purr;
He opened his eyes, to his cohorts gave a mew,
And away they all flew with barely an adieu.
But I heard him exclaim, ere he nodded off contrite,
"Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good-night."
© 2007 Barry T Horst
This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
Tuesday, December 25, 2007
The "W" In Christmas
Below is the text of an email I received from a friend a few days ago. I believe it is appropriate for today's post:
"As every December, I vowed to make Christmas a calm and peaceful experience. I had cut back on nonessential obligations-extensive card writing, endless baking, decorating, and even overspending. Yet still, I found myself exhausted, unable to appreciate the precious family moments, and of course, the true meaning of Christmas.
My son, Nicholas, was in kindergarten that year. It was an exciting season for a six-year-old. For weeks, he'd been memorizing songs for his school's Winter Pageant. I didn't have the heart to tell him I'd be working the night of the production. Unwilling to miss his shining moment, I spoke with his teacher. She assured me there would be a dress rehearsal the morning of the
presentation. All parents unable to attend that evening were welcome to come then. Fortunately, Nicholas seemed happy with the compromise. So, the morning of the dress rehearsal, I filed in ten minutes early, found a spot on the cafeteria floor and sat down. Around the room, I saw several other parents quietly scampering to their seats. As I waited, the students were led into the room. Each class, accompanied by their teacher, sat cross-legged on the floor. Then, each group, one by one, rose to perform their song.
Because the public school system had long stopped referring to the holiday as Christmas, I didn't expect anything other than fun, commercial entertainment - songs of reindeer, Santa Claus, snowflakes and good cheer. So, when my son's class rose to sing, "Christmas Love," I was slightly taken aback by its bold title. Nicholas was aglow, as were all of his classmates, adorned in fuzzy mittens, red sweaters, and bright snow caps upon their heads. Those in the front row-center stage-held up large letters, one by one, to spell out the title of the song. As the class would sing C is for Christmas, a child would hold up the letter C. Then, H is for Happy, and on and on, until each child holding up his portion had presented the complete message, "Christmas Love."
The performance was going smoothly, until suddenly, we noticed her; a small, quiet, girl in the front row holding the letter "M" upside down totally unaware her letter "M" appeared as a "W." The audience of 1st through 6th graders snickered at this little one's mistake. But she had no idea they were laughing at her, so she stood tall, proudly holding her W. Although many teachers tried to shush the children, the laughter continued until the last letter was raised, and we all saw it together. A hush came over the audience and eyes began to widen. In that instant, we understood the reason we were there, why we celebrated the holiday in the first place, why even in the chaos, there was a purpose for our festivities. For when the last letter was held high, the message read loud and clear:
"C H R I S T W A S L O V E"
And, I believe, He still is. Amazed in His presence... Humbled by His love.
May each of you have a Merry Christmas as you reflect on His Amazing Love!
It's me again. I am not certain of the song mentioned above. I have done some searching and this may be it: Christmas Love from Tru North Music. It is the only song by that name I could find. Try the link.
And again, Have a Blessed and Merry Christmas!
© 2007 Barry T Horst
This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
"As every December, I vowed to make Christmas a calm and peaceful experience. I had cut back on nonessential obligations-extensive card writing, endless baking, decorating, and even overspending. Yet still, I found myself exhausted, unable to appreciate the precious family moments, and of course, the true meaning of Christmas.
My son, Nicholas, was in kindergarten that year. It was an exciting season for a six-year-old. For weeks, he'd been memorizing songs for his school's Winter Pageant. I didn't have the heart to tell him I'd be working the night of the production. Unwilling to miss his shining moment, I spoke with his teacher. She assured me there would be a dress rehearsal the morning of the
presentation. All parents unable to attend that evening were welcome to come then. Fortunately, Nicholas seemed happy with the compromise. So, the morning of the dress rehearsal, I filed in ten minutes early, found a spot on the cafeteria floor and sat down. Around the room, I saw several other parents quietly scampering to their seats. As I waited, the students were led into the room. Each class, accompanied by their teacher, sat cross-legged on the floor. Then, each group, one by one, rose to perform their song.
Because the public school system had long stopped referring to the holiday as Christmas, I didn't expect anything other than fun, commercial entertainment - songs of reindeer, Santa Claus, snowflakes and good cheer. So, when my son's class rose to sing, "Christmas Love," I was slightly taken aback by its bold title. Nicholas was aglow, as were all of his classmates, adorned in fuzzy mittens, red sweaters, and bright snow caps upon their heads. Those in the front row-center stage-held up large letters, one by one, to spell out the title of the song. As the class would sing C is for Christmas, a child would hold up the letter C. Then, H is for Happy, and on and on, until each child holding up his portion had presented the complete message, "Christmas Love."
The performance was going smoothly, until suddenly, we noticed her; a small, quiet, girl in the front row holding the letter "M" upside down totally unaware her letter "M" appeared as a "W." The audience of 1st through 6th graders snickered at this little one's mistake. But she had no idea they were laughing at her, so she stood tall, proudly holding her W. Although many teachers tried to shush the children, the laughter continued until the last letter was raised, and we all saw it together. A hush came over the audience and eyes began to widen. In that instant, we understood the reason we were there, why we celebrated the holiday in the first place, why even in the chaos, there was a purpose for our festivities. For when the last letter was held high, the message read loud and clear:
"C H R I S T W A S L O V E"
And, I believe, He still is. Amazed in His presence... Humbled by His love.
May each of you have a Merry Christmas as you reflect on His Amazing Love!
It's me again. I am not certain of the song mentioned above. I have done some searching and this may be it: Christmas Love from Tru North Music. It is the only song by that name I could find. Try the link.
And again, Have a Blessed and Merry Christmas!
© 2007 Barry T Horst
This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
Monday, December 24, 2007
Christmas Present (No Not A Gift) and Christmas Past
Today is Christmas Eve. There is so much to do today that I started yesterday. I planned on having smoked brisket for Christmas Dinner this year. I had to trim the brisket and season it yesterday. It has been resting in the refrigerator since noon. I will fire up the smoker this morning and start the brisket around noon today. It will need to smoke for 12 hours; give or take a couple of hours. I chose a smoked brisket this year because I got a new smoker last month. I smoked a turkey for Thanksgiving and it was great.
Yesterday I also prepared a ham and a pot of broccoli and cheese soup. I suppose I cooked the ham too soon. Most of it is gone now.
Later today I will make a couple of desserts for myself and Chris' dad, Hank. The desserts are sugar-free since we are both diabetic. This year I will make a pinwheel type of pastry using pie crust and sugar-free preserves; strawberry and orange marmalade. Also, I will make a cream cheese and cherry dessert using no sugar added cherry pie filling. The crust will be ground up sugar-free pecan shortbread cookies.
Later this evening will be the grand event of the day-opening presents with the kids. The best part of this is seeing Jace open his presents. It seems that when he finishes opening all his presents he wants more to open. I am not sure if the fun is in getting a lot of presents or in opening a lot of presents. Tell me if you've seen this before: Child tears into present and barely notices what is inside then sets it aside for the next present; Procedure is repeated until all presents are open; Then the child announces, "Is that all?" or "Do I have any more?" Better yet, the child plays with the wrapping paper or the boxes and forgets the toys altogether.
I can remember when I was much younger waking up on Christmas morning and walking down the hallway to the living room. My parents were standing in the doorway. No one could go in until my older sister and brother were there also. I was always first, I was the youngest. Then, my sister Michal and my brother Lance appeared in the hallway and we were all allowed to go into the room and see the tree. Underneath the tree were the toys and things that "Santa brought" to us. Somehow Santa was always able to arrange things so that all the toys he brought were next to all the presents that my parents already placed under the tree. It seemed like the entire room was filled with toys, and yes clothes. We got clothes for Christmas too. We always got stockings filled with candy, nuts, fruit, and a coconut. I can remember my brother and I spending a portion of the day trying to get into the coconut. By the time you got into it the coconut wasn't like the kind in the store but it was still great anyway.
One year I remember snooping in my parents room for the Christmas presents. My parents would buy through the year and hide them in their closet. One day while snooping I can remember seeing something that I really wanted for Christmas, although now I haven't the vaguest idea of what it is. The important thing is that I really wanted it then. I could hardly wait for Christmas. Christmas Day came, I looked for my present, and there it was. On my brother's side of the tree. It was his, not mine. I didn't snoop much after that disappointment. The most memorable Christmas was the last Christmas before my father passed away. He had always wanted a model train set and had never been able to get one. My dad got an electric train set for Christmas that year. He was so excited about it. We set it up and we all got to play with it. He passed away 3 months later,
I better stop for today. The keyboard is getting wet and I need to find the Kleenex.
Have a safe holiday.
© 2007 Barry T Horst
This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
Yesterday I also prepared a ham and a pot of broccoli and cheese soup. I suppose I cooked the ham too soon. Most of it is gone now.
Later today I will make a couple of desserts for myself and Chris' dad, Hank. The desserts are sugar-free since we are both diabetic. This year I will make a pinwheel type of pastry using pie crust and sugar-free preserves; strawberry and orange marmalade. Also, I will make a cream cheese and cherry dessert using no sugar added cherry pie filling. The crust will be ground up sugar-free pecan shortbread cookies.
Later this evening will be the grand event of the day-opening presents with the kids. The best part of this is seeing Jace open his presents. It seems that when he finishes opening all his presents he wants more to open. I am not sure if the fun is in getting a lot of presents or in opening a lot of presents. Tell me if you've seen this before: Child tears into present and barely notices what is inside then sets it aside for the next present; Procedure is repeated until all presents are open; Then the child announces, "Is that all?" or "Do I have any more?" Better yet, the child plays with the wrapping paper or the boxes and forgets the toys altogether.
I can remember when I was much younger waking up on Christmas morning and walking down the hallway to the living room. My parents were standing in the doorway. No one could go in until my older sister and brother were there also. I was always first, I was the youngest. Then, my sister Michal and my brother Lance appeared in the hallway and we were all allowed to go into the room and see the tree. Underneath the tree were the toys and things that "Santa brought" to us. Somehow Santa was always able to arrange things so that all the toys he brought were next to all the presents that my parents already placed under the tree. It seemed like the entire room was filled with toys, and yes clothes. We got clothes for Christmas too. We always got stockings filled with candy, nuts, fruit, and a coconut. I can remember my brother and I spending a portion of the day trying to get into the coconut. By the time you got into it the coconut wasn't like the kind in the store but it was still great anyway.
One year I remember snooping in my parents room for the Christmas presents. My parents would buy through the year and hide them in their closet. One day while snooping I can remember seeing something that I really wanted for Christmas, although now I haven't the vaguest idea of what it is. The important thing is that I really wanted it then. I could hardly wait for Christmas. Christmas Day came, I looked for my present, and there it was. On my brother's side of the tree. It was his, not mine. I didn't snoop much after that disappointment. The most memorable Christmas was the last Christmas before my father passed away. He had always wanted a model train set and had never been able to get one. My dad got an electric train set for Christmas that year. He was so excited about it. We set it up and we all got to play with it. He passed away 3 months later,
I better stop for today. The keyboard is getting wet and I need to find the Kleenex.
Have a safe holiday.
© 2007 Barry T Horst
This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
Saturday, December 22, 2007
Tis The Season
This has been a very good year. We continue to live in Robinson on the “Farm”. I just did not “farm” this year. Some of you may know that I am referring to my vegetable garden. It seems that our spring was so wet and my Spring schedule so hectic that there never seemed time to prepare the ground and actually get to work on it. While we all missed the fresh vegetables from the garden it did allow me more time to work with my flowers. Chris and I worked very hard last winter to protect the flowers and we had several that survived. I was kept busy all summer with the survivors and the new flowers that were planted, but it was worth it. The garden was very pretty and very restful to work in. Some of the flowers I had were marigolds, gazanias, carnations, dianthus, zinnias, geraniums, mint, chrysanthemums, and many others that I can’t remember the names of. I apologize for not having pictures posted but the hard drive containing the photos is not being cooperative. Guess I will need to get a new one.
This is my 4th year working in Waco ISD. Good news. I have been promoted to Kindergarten. For the last 3 years I taught Pre-K. The district realigned the campuses and moved all Pre-K classes to 4 “Pod” campuses. I did not want to leave Brook Avenue, so I asked to move up to Kindergarten if there was an opening. There was! I work with a wonderful group of people at Brook that really cares about the children. I could not ask for a better group to work with. It has been an adjustment getting accustomed to a different curriculum, but I think I have finally adjusted.
Chris has a lot more time on her hands since our grandson Jace has started Kindergarten and we quit running the antiques booth at the Cedar Chest. It proved to be more time consuming for us than we had hoped. Jace still visits often and has to stay for short periods when his parents schedule requires it. Yes, he also comes to visit just to visit. Chris has enjoyed using this extra time decorating the house. She also likes to shop for things that she thinks Jace will like. Chris has also discovered eBay. She loves to search for small items which she uses to decorate with. She has found several Gurley candles and other decorative items this way. As always, Chris loves to take care of her family.
Julie graduated from MCC with her Associates Degree. She has been working at HEB in the pharmacy. This has been hard for her since the pharmacy is open 24 hours and she has had to work some late shifts. She is planning to return to college soon and possibly pursue a degree in education. She has mentioned that she is interested in Elementary Bi-Lingual. She enjoys helping with Jace, so I know that she would be a good teacher. Julie also designed the logo for Grandpa Hank’s car lot.
Scott has returned to MCC also. He is working very hard to keep his grades up because he would like to pursue something in the Medical/Nursing field. He still works part-time at Circuit City. With any spare time that he has he works on cars, helps us do many things here at the house (Lifting, Moving things, etc.), and helps his Grandpa at the car lot occasionally. Scott, Jessica, and Jace have moved to Robinson and live nearby which makes it very easy to visit each other and help out each other when needed.
Jessica is a Pharmacy Tech at HEB. She has been there long enough that she is now working Monday – Friday and is able to have weekends off to spend time with Jace. This past fall Jessica and Jace also went to many Baylor football games with me. Jessica loves football, especially if she gets to go to the game and see it live. Jessica was also able to visit her family in East Texas several times this year. Jessica’s family came to Robinson for Thanksgiving this year.
As mentioned earlier, Jace is in Kindergarten at Robinson Primary. He thoroughly enjoys school and stays on Blue most of the time. Jace helped his Grandma Chris and Aunt Julie decorate our tree and the house for the holidays this year. You may look at the decorations by clicking here> CHRISTMAS DECORATIONS SLIDESHOW. I had to run some errands yesterday and Jace went with me. We were talking about school and his Christmas party. Out of the blue he said, “Mrs. Ringo knows everything!” I agreed with him and assured him that since I am a teacher I also know everything. He agreed. It seems that part of our discussion had centered on who stayed in school longer; his class or my class. My class left at 12:00 Noon. His class left at 1:00. Try explaining to a 5 year old that his class stayed longer because they stayed until 1:00 instead of 12:00, “But Grandpa, 12 is a bigger number than 1. Your class stayed longer. We left first.” That lasted a while but we soon called a truce and continued with “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer”.
Hank, Chris’ dad, continues with the car lot. For those of you that do not know, Hank operates Aardvark Auto’s in Robinson, TX. He enjoys his time there and going to the auto auctions. He still has his rental properties. Between the car lot and his rental properties, Hank is kept very, very busy. However, he does find time to sing at church and visit his sister June in Moberly, Missouri.
That sort of catches you up on all of us in a nut shell, a big nutshell. Kinda like a coconut shell.
We would like to take this opportunity to wish all of our family and friends a glorious holiday season. Please remember that while we get busy in the day-to-day hustle and bustle of shopping, gift-giving, and holiday parties; the real reason for this holiday season is the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ. I would also like to ask all of you to take a moment to remember the families of those who are fighting for our nation overseas during this holiday season.
© 2007 Barry T Horst
This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
Wednesday, December 12, 2007
Still Working Hard At This Thing
Today was a good day. The day was cold and got colder. The day was wet and got wetter. I was able to leave work at 3:15 PM. (The operative word here is "ABLE". ) I actually did not leave until 3:30 PM. That is still better than 4:30 PM. I also received my evaluation today and got good reviews. (I sound like a movie.)
The kids at school are a little wild. They are getting excited about Christmas. The teachers are getting excited about the Christmas holidays. I am just excited!
Hold on just a moment! I'll be right back.
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I'm back! I had to take Tiger Lily out and feed her. Tiger Lily is Julie's dog. I call her Puppy, not Tiger Lily. Fortunately she was quick. It is 38 degrees and misting.
Please continue to visit. As the days go by I will be adding pictures, slideshows, etc. I invite all of you to comment if you wish. I especially would like for you click on one of the ads on the bottom of the page. If you do, you will witness one of the miracles of the Free Enterprise System. I will get paid a phenomenal amount of money per click-thru. (Well, not really a phenomenal amount. But, it will add up over time.)
Have a great night and visit often.
© 2007 Barry T Horst
This work is licensed under aCreative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
The kids at school are a little wild. They are getting excited about Christmas. The teachers are getting excited about the Christmas holidays. I am just excited!
Hold on just a moment! I'll be right back.
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
I'm back! I had to take Tiger Lily out and feed her. Tiger Lily is Julie's dog. I call her Puppy, not Tiger Lily. Fortunately she was quick. It is 38 degrees and misting.
Please continue to visit. As the days go by I will be adding pictures, slideshows, etc. I invite all of you to comment if you wish. I especially would like for you click on one of the ads on the bottom of the page. If you do, you will witness one of the miracles of the Free Enterprise System. I will get paid a phenomenal amount of money per click-thru. (Well, not really a phenomenal amount. But, it will add up over time.)
Have a great night and visit often.
© 2007 Barry T Horst
This work is licensed under aCreative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
Working Feverishly
I am sitting at the computer working to create this blog. I have been at school until 5:10 PM. And then I had to go to the school's Christmas Choir Concert at the WISD PLayhouse. I finally, got home around 6:30 PM and it was pouring. Thankfully, I did not melt.
Please keep in touch as I continue to work on the blog and endeavor to fine tune the entire site.
Thanks for visiting and be sure to leave a post.
© 2007 Barry T Horst
This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
Please keep in touch as I continue to work on the blog and endeavor to fine tune the entire site.
Thanks for visiting and be sure to leave a post.
© 2007 Barry T Horst
This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
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