Chatbug Karen

Our family has always loved camping. When I was a little girl, our family would camp in a big brown tent. I loved the way the canvas smelled and how the lantern made everything in our tent feel cozy and safe.

When our own children were around 7 and 11 years old, we bought a pull camper. We took it to the reservoir that is not far from where we live. We also used it at a KOA campground where friends of ours also camped. If you want to get together and camp with an awesome group of people, check out, www.goodsamers.com. You can meet some awfully nice people through that organization.

Our daughter talks about getting an Airstream camper someday. We surprised her with this Hallmark Keepsake Christmas ornament this year.

Isn’t it cute? It measures approximately 3″x 2″ and the awning pulls out just like a real awning on a camper.

Let me introduce you to my Granddog, Chandler. The kids decided they needed a furry baby and so they made a visit to their local Humane Society. Once they were approved and they purchased the necessary dog supplies, they were able to bring a much loved dog home to their apartment.

Chandler appears to be a Boston Terrier, Fox Terrier mix.

My daughter in-law has been working on teaching him to sit, lay down and roll over. He just about has it!

My son holding his new baby:

Wow! What a whirlwind weekend we had. We visited the kids in St. Louis and picked up a mattress and box spring that was in their way. It meant unloading some truck accessories from hubby’s truck to make room but that was alright. I had been chomping at the bit to visit the newlyweds.

We met our new granddog. He is a cutie and extra smart too! I think he is going to be a fine addition to the family. Our daughter in-law already has him minding very well. She has been teaching him a few manners. He has to sit, lay down and roll over if he wants a special treat. I think a few more days and he will have it down. I volunteered to take him for a walk this morning and that was when he decided to do his business, of course. Good thing I had instructions for how to use the whole poop in the bag trick. Eeew!

The kids have their apartment looking very nice. It is cozy and comfortable. I love how they have put their wall hangings and painted a few walls to make the apartment “their own”. I’ll bet this first year of marriage will fly by for them. It was nice to visit them and see that they are settling in just fine.

Thirty five years ago, these two young’ins were married.

Our son was frustrated with the car stereo he had bought less than two years ago. Needing to have a hands free phone option in his car, he thought he would be able to use a Bluetooth adaptor with the stereo. He, unfortunately, found that not to be true. He began a search for the type of stereo for his car, but was having issues finding one that worked with his iPhone. Those of you that have ipods, know how valuable they can be on long trips. Greg is in his car a lot, so he really wanted his stereo to be compatible, but the issue that he found was that his fairly new receiver was already too old. How many times have we experienced that with computers? To make a long story short and to not go into the frustration of dealing with technicians who like to pass the buck, he finally was able to find a stereo and get it to work the way he needed. We gave him a new receiver for his birthday, but it ended up being useless with an iPhone. A terrific technician allowed him to return that receiver and pick out one that was recommended for use with the iPhone, and now it works great! His music plays in his car via wireless connection, and the Bluetooth lets him talk handsfree using his car speakers. He is a happy young man and had a happy birthday.

THIRTY MORE DAYS UNTIL THE WEDDING!

I knew this would happen. Two years ago, it seemed like it would take forever for July of 2009 to come but now it is happening so fast. It is getting exciting. Tuxes have been ordered and even though the store that some of them were ordered through went out of business, they will be nice. The new store is actually more convenient in regards to picking up the tuxes.

Things have gotten back to a bit of normalcy here at home. Our daughter was here for two weeks and I sure do miss her. She did a lot of cooking and provided a lot of company for me while I worked. When the kids live away, it is fun to get together and hear about their every day lives. Phone calls are just not the same. It might be time to check out Orlando vacations and a visit to Florida to see Stacy.

Greg is home and has been working on his thesis for his master’s degree. I don’t ask him how it is going because I don’t think I would understand his answer! LOL He has been cooking too. He is making healthy lunches for us each day. I love having someone cook for me. I could get used to it!

I know that, as a parent, we are supposed to raise our kids and prepare them to live on their own. That said, it doesn’t mean that I have to like it.

My husband and I are home from our son’s college graduation. We had a wonderful time with our son and we were beaming when he went on stage to accept his diploma. He has worked hard for this day. The rain stayed away and it turned out to be a beautiful day.

We finally got to see the classroom where our son has been teaching for the past two years. We also saw his office. Oh my! He has made a cozy work place. I think he might miss it a tiny little bit.

Our daughter, Stacy, was here for a week. She lives in Florida so we don’t get to see her very often. Her visits will be a bit more often during the next few months because her brother, our son Greg, is getting married in July. She is coming home for his fiance’s bridal shower and then for the wedding. Her visit this time was brought about because she missed us! Aw!

We took her to the airport today and yes, I cried. I didn’t mean to but it happened. I have been sitting here thinking about the things I did with the kids to make their days special. I used to pack lunch boxes with a sandwich and a snack, lay a blanket out in the back yard and let them have a picnic. They loved that! I also made homemade bubble solution and let them blow bubbles. The homemade solution is a bit better than the kind you buy in the store. You can get some huge bubbles with this solution.

Homemade Bubble Solution

1/2 (500 ml) cup dishwashing detergent
4-1/2 (4.5 liter) cup water
4 tablespoons (60 ml) glycerin

Measure out the water, detergent, and glycerin into container with a cover and stir gently. The longer you let the mixture set, the larger the bubbles are and the longer they seem to last.

What are some things you do for your children to add a bit of change to their day? Do you remember things you did as a child?

I can remember hooking a rope to the back of my sister’s bicycle and “letting” her pull me while I wore roller skates. I can still hear the clicking sound of my skates as I went over each crack in the sidewalk.

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