Mean while at OSU....

Trains.....an inheritance

 My dad had several hobbies: woodcarving, fishing, models, and HO scale trains..   He was so in to his trains that he took my mom on a camping trip out to Colorado just so he could ride the Durango/Silverton train...  He loved the history of trains, and I think he secretly wished he had been a train engineer...

I remember as a little girl, his train boards and the creativity he would put in them, He had a Christmas themed board that he would have under the tree...It did not seem like Christmas until dad set his trains up.
 So, back in September we were at their house going through a few things and checking on the place. We went out to my dads old wood shed. There sitting on the floor was a large Rubbermaid container gently packed with his HO trains. Ones I had not seen in years, but remembered fondly from all those past Christmases, and all those times I would stand in his "man cave" watching him play with them.

We had been in the shed before the funeral in August and  they were not sitting out like we found them that day, so I was afraid my brother had left them there so he could take them on a future visit. After a call to my sister she said go ahead and take them...as far as she was concerned dad gave them to the boys before he passed away.
So we did....This past week, we went to a hobby store and honestly I had no clue where to start, the last I knew you had to buy special track and adhere it all to a piece of plywood....boy have things changed! We met an elderly man there who gave us some insight, and introduced us to "EZ Track"  it all snaps together and you don't need the ole plywood... It is all NW needed....we put together a little oval track and the kid is hooked, and He has been playing with them ever since, He has taught himself how to take them apart and do some  repair work and has gotten 2 or 3 of the old engines running again, I think its been at least 5 years since dad had done anything with his trains, so some of them are kind of rusty...

This was dads "Santa Fe" steamer...I remember him putting a little fluid in the smoke stack so it could blow steam out....

   This Amtrak was one of dads favorites....I remember he would hook up all the passenger cars and they all lit up....

It did me good to see something my dad loved so much brought back to life, I immediatly called my sister and she got quite overjoyed about it.  I know Dad was here when we first got them running and he is up there smiling and happy that his grandsons have his precious trains, and learning more about the hobby

-JUGM

Happy Thanksgiving

I want to wish all my blogger family a very Happy Thanksgiving.. I hope you all enjoy your holiday, Enjoy the time with family and friends. And remember to set your scales back 10#s tonight....ha ha ha!!!

I was also told that since I put a picture of Libby up on Sunday, it was only fair that I had to post one of Ruger....so here is Ruger:   He often gets confused with the American Bulldog, but he is not. He is a white boxer, and an all around big puss...  Libby is his boss....lol

-JUGM

Sundays, Coffee and Boxers.....

If that face doesn't wake you up on a cold and windy Sunday morning I don't know what will...  That is our little angel "Liberty Bell"  aka Libby, aka Mrs. Wigglesworth. Oh the nicknames we have for her are endless. Having her around does make life fun.....

 

Well it has turned off clear and cold here, winds yesterday and today have been annoying though. We have been trying to get out and take care of leaves but its pointless with all the high winds. Fall color is late, but truly vibrant this year. Autumn is one reason why I am happy we made the move to the estate. By far my most favorite season.

Thanksgiving is this week, and I have to be honest and say I am not at all mentally ready for the holidays, it will be the first without dad and basically mom too. The past few days have been a bit emotional for me, as I recall all the past holidays when they got on my last nerve and wish so much to have those times back...never take your family for granted, no matter how many times they annoy you.

My sister visited mom on Friday, her weight-loss continues to get worse, she did get on the phone with me for a few seconds. I was pleased to hear her reading my name and phone number off the caller ID of my sisters phone. She told me she loved me, which made my day. I have missed talking to her and our almost daily phone calls. hearing her voice perked me up.

Now time to vent a bit...I don't mean to sound like a broken record in reference to my brother, but I need to let it out...so here goes. A couple of weeks ago, my sister who has access to my parents banking info was trying to log on to their account, well the password had been changed.  knowing she did not do that she immediately went to the bank and had everything redone. She could not figure out how it got changed since she never did it. A few days later she was packing some computer things up of my dads to send back to AT&T, as she went to get his computer modem she realized that the tower for dads desk top computer was missing...  My brother had been there and taken it! Which now explains the online banking info being changed.
My sister never curses...but let me tell you she did that day to me on the phone....  Thankfully no money was transferred out of the parents account, and now everything has since been changed and more security measures added so my brother can't get in to it.

And in addition to the computer he also took two collage picture frames of one of kind pictures of my mother when she was a little girl and of my dads family. Instead of offering to make copies for my sister and I , he didn't. We will never see those pictures again...  Which is very heartbreaking to me, because my sister and I would have liked a set.

I absolutely can not wait for the new guardianship to take over....   We are preparing ourselves for a new onslaught of his nastiness- the attorney did the paperwork we need to sign and it says "That  my sister and I chose an outside guardian because we believe our brother to be incapable of taking proper care of our mother".... Holy crap when he sees that, my brother is going to throw a real fit!
 We still think he is in Franklin, NC ...but honestly with all the smoke and fires going on its hard to believe he is still living in the campground.

Okay enough venting, and chores are calling, the chickens are going to feed themselves....Hope you all have a wonderful Sunday!

-JUGM

a little rain

A steady rain has moved in today across the upstate region, and the Good Lord knows we have needed it. Things here have been dry and incredibly dusty. ND and myself have been dealing with sinus and allergy issues for a week.  The temperatures have dropped and after an extended summer and above average temperatures the cool ,wet weather is a welcome sight.

Things have been extremely worse though for our neighbors to the north and west of us out in the mountains. Entire towns have had to be evacuated from the devastation of forest fires.  I only bring this up, because my brother and wife #3 are currently living in their RV in a trailer park in Franklin, NC. The reason for this is unbeknownst to us but, we can only speculate that his extravagant life style and his nasty demeanor has finally caught up to him and he is hiding from someone or something... 

Yesterday was NWs end of season football party and trophy presentation. I do applaud the team mom for going over and above and arranging a paintball outing..what a great time they all had. NW did pretty good, and put to use all the information he has absorbed from Senior and all the close quarter combat advice daddy gave him.  His team lost 2 out of 5 battles.  Not too bad for an 11 year old. Unfortunately, I think a "paintball monster" has been created, he is now ready to take his dad and little brother to the course and go against them.

So, I like everyone else is watching all these protest over the election. I have to say how disappointed I am but that I am not surprised. I wasn't at all happy with Obama being elected twice but, I did not burn our flag and cause property damage. Heck I just bit my tongue and suffered through the past eight years.
I think President Elect Trump summed it up best tonight on his 60 minutes interview when Leslie Stahl asked the same question... he said something to the effect of :  " if I had lost and my supporters were doing this, the response would be the opposite, Its a double standard"

-JUGM

Hopeful.....

The sun rose this morning on a new day, and an exciting time in American History. While Clinton did not shatter her glass ceiling, Trump absolutely shattered that blue wall...and I am so proud this morning to call him "President Elect".  

For me this was not so much about electing Trump, as it was for stopping another 4 years of Obamas agenda, and stopping the corrupt "Red Queen" ( thanks harry for that nickname)

I voted for the future of my boys and to protect our Constitution and Supreme Court. And to give rights back to our States and get the federal government out of our classrooms.. I voted for those who have lost jobs from EPA regulations and bad deals.

I look forward to the new administration and who he appoints to cabinet positions. Trump has a long road a head of him, sometimes it will be difficult and he will be challenged, I pray that he can deliver on his campaign promises..I pray for him and his Presidency and that  God will bless him and our Country....  

 -JUGM

PS: and God Help Mr. Trump ...because Obama is staying in D.C and I guarantee he will try to  be a thorn in his side, and continue to reek havoc in the democratic party... 

22 together

We were told that we were incompatible and wouldn't last a year.  But here we are celebrating 22 years together.  What can I say about Senior. He is my rock, he caught me and held me up the day my dad passed and has kept holding on to me ever since. When I think of how much I truly love him, I am rendered speechless as sometimes there are no words that can explain how I feel.  So today I wish my beloved Husband Senior a Happy Anniversary....I pray for 22 more years with you by my side. 

Only Me....

 

Hello Blogger friends...I know its been a while, a lot has happened since July 26th when I last posted. 

For those of you who don't know- My dad passed away on August 13th.We were told he had 6-8 months, but it turned out to be more like 6-8 days. None of us knew just how bad his health had declined, and how much he neglected himself to take care of my mother.  

His death has rocked me and my little family to the core...the boys have lost another grandparent, and Senior and I have lost much, much more. It has hurt deeply. But we all have one another and support each other daily. My dad meant a lot to all of us and he is missed every second of the day.

Mom is now comfortably in a nursing home,it wasn't anything that we actually had wanted to do, but her alzheimers has progressed so fast, that after dads health went down hill it was the best alternative for her. It is a beautiful place along the river , and she is getting excellent care. My sister and I drop in unannounced all the time, and every visit has been positive. I wish it did not have to come down to that, but it was for the best and she is where she needs to be.

My brother is still being an ass. My sister and I are getting an outside guardian for mom, as we feel with the situation with our brother and how he is behaving, that it is the best thing. All the attorneys agree, but my brother doesn't and is fighting us on it, I fear it will get much more uglier before it gets better. 

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 We have been busy this fall as both boys have been playing football. Due to their ages they were on different teams and it has been hectic. Finally the last games were tonight. With NW's team winning the county championship, and NDs team finishing in second place. We are very proud of both boys, as this was a new sport for them...there were times when they wanted to quit, but they stood tall and made it through

Well it is getting late, so I will end this for now... Hope you all have a good night...

-JUGM