I Am SO Thankful: For These and So Much More!

    

I am thankful. Not just today but every day.

For three fantastic children who are wonderful adults - Tiffany, Tree and Mandy shown here just after Mandy's marriage to Adam.

For a fabulous mom and for memories of a fabulous dad.

For two sisters (Christy & Lorri) and two brothers (Rod & Shawn) I wouldn’t trade for anything (most days.)

For a great son-in-law, Adam Brantley.

For an adorable grandson, Harrison Cothran Brantley.

For remarkable friends, both old and new.

For a warm and caring church family.






For 60 good years of life.

For God-given talents and abilities.

For health.

For a wonderful extended family.

For a sense of humor.

For our military who serve us.

For law enforcement and firefighters who protect us.

For educators who touch and help shape the future.

For the power of prayer and faith.

For the freedoms we enjoy in our country and for the hope those freedoms will be around for a long time.

For volunteers who give so much of themselves in so many ways.

For the beauty of nature - colorful rainbows, glorious sunshine, majestic mountains, rolling oceans, chirping birds, laughing children, refreshing rain, seasonal changes and so much more.

And, this year in particular, I am thankful for the time I had with Carroll a/k/a “The Dawg.”

As odd as it may sound and as much as I would like for him to still be here with me, I am thankful for the way in which he left us – a peaceful death; opportunities to say good-bye to family and friends; no lingering, on-going suffering. I am thankful I was with him and in his arms as he took his last breath. What a blessing!

May you enjoy counting your blessings today - and every day!
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WW: Football and Musings from the News - Comas and Autism

Just a few days until THE football rivalry in South Carolina.  It's the Carolina-Clemson game, or, as some folks say, the Clemson-Carolina game.

I am a graduate of the University of South Carolina.  So was my dad.  Several other family members are USC grads also. 

Daughter Mandy, however, left the "religion" and married into a die-hard Clemson family.  I believe their blood literally runs orange.  :)

And, now, look at what they've done to my grandson, Harrison. 

How in the world can I be on a different side from this cute little one?   

Based on the season so far, the orange team is likely to prevail.  

And, just for the record, I wouldn't trade my orange-blooded son-in-law, Adam, for any number of USC grads. 


Now, for musings on recent news:

1.  I am totally amazed by the news this week concerning the man who was in a coma for 23 years but now has let people know that he has been alert all along or practically all along!  He could hear what was going on around him and was aware but couldn't let anyone know!!!  Does this make you wonder how many times this has happened with others?

2.  There were two stories about children with autism.  Since I have a nephew with autism, these stories always catch my attention. 

One has to do with the mother who said she helped her son and actually saved his life by baking medical marijuana into his brownies.  She and one of the doctors say that this treatment has made a major difference in the boy's health and behavior.  It has also lessened his need for many of the medications he was taking previously.  Critics say this means the boy is constantly drugged or "stoned."

The other item is about the boy with autism who survived for 11 days on the NYC subway system.  He says he survived on snacks and water. 

Both of these stories are truly "food for thought."  One thing I know is that people with autism cannot be judged the same as others.  Perhaps "judged" is the wrong word.  Regardless, especially for those with more than minor autistic symptoms, their world is different.  And so is the world for -  and daily lives of  - their families.


 Other Wordless Wednesday participants here.                                           Other Wordful Wednesday participants here.

Just Curious - - - -

Are there any commercials that you simply cannot stand?

I don't watch TV all that much but there's one commercial which gets on my nerves, and it seems to air every time I watch TV.  I won't name the company but the ad features a talking pothole or manhole.  The female voice is shrill and has a whine to it. 

There are others that I don't especially like or that I think aren't very effective.  This one, though, irritates me like crazy!

Are there some that perturb you?  If so, which ones? 

PH: Birds of a Different Feather?

Are you a weird bird?  This week's Photo Hunt theme in blogland is BIRD and I decided to take the proverbial road less traveled with this theme.  That's because I am one weird bird indeed!

Instead of birds of paradise, I've gone with some birds of music.

How about a songbird?

Or a snowbird?

Or a bluebird of happiness?

Or a blackbird?

Or a bird in a gilded cage?

Or a dancing bird?

Or even a bird dog?

Then there's the song the baby bird sings to his mom when he's ready to leave the nest:

"The Dawg" had raised homing/racing pigeons for 66 years when he died earlier this year, having started this as a Boy Scout project.   Here he is with one of the pigeons in a photo from last year.

Here are some birds The Dawg and I saw on the beach earlier this year:

And I just couldn't pass up using this picture once again.  It's an artificial bird on a rooftop at Litchfield Beach.

Finally, because we're just days away from Thanksgiving, I thought of a different bird - the turkey - and I'm sharing what I think is one hilarious video about that particular bird! 

Let me know what you think, okay?

How To Pick a Turkey

Happy Thanksgiving!

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Other Photo Hunt birds are here. 

The Leather Pants

Daughter Mandy has always been somewhat of a fashionista, although at an early age it was likely only in her own mind. (Read about that here.)


She often advises me about how to dress and what to wear – usually after the fact, of course.

She keeps telling me to get new shoes. When I asked her why, she said, “Because the ones you wear don’t fit you.”

Don’t fit me? They all feel great. I'm the one wearing them and like the way they fit.  But SHE says they don’t fit me!?!?!

Anyway, I called her recently to ask what kind of shoes to wear with leather pants.

I was really surprised when she answered, “It doesn’t matter.”

“What do you mean ‘it doesn’t matter’?” I asked.

Mandy explained, “It doesn’t matter because YOU don’t wear leather pants!”

Wait ‘til she finds out there’s also a leather jacket.

And a leather skirt.

With a slit in the back!

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WW: The picture isn't clear but the message is, well, yummy!

I saw this truck twice this morning on my 200-mile drive to Charlotte. 

Just had to try to get a picture but, as you can see, the pictures aren't very clear.  After all, it was raining AND I was driving my car AND taking a picture through a wet windshield. 

Can you figure out the message?

You've probably seen messages on trucks that say something like "If you can't see my mirrors, then you're following too closely."

This one has scrumptious, mouth-watering Baby Ruth pictures on the sides and back.  This is the message on the back:  "If you can taste the whole peanuts and chewy caramel, you are too close."

Don't you just love it?

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To see other WW participants, click here.

It's Family Planning - Of Sorts!

Our family is sorta – well, I don’t know the word to use. Some folks are nice and describe us as “unique.” Others might say “interesting.”

“Weird” and “off-the-wall” might be more appropriate terms.

If I had kept copies of all of the e-mails exchanged between and among us, I believe there’d be a book there. It takes volumes of e-mails for us to plan anything and then for us to comment and respond to comments by others. The thread just goes on and on and on.

There’s Mom; five siblings (in various stages of spouses and/or spouse-lessness); 14 grandchildren and one step-grandchild (ranging from about 3 to almost 35); spouses of four of those; and four great-grandchildren.

Yep, it takes a lot of back and forth to organize.

Just last week, there was another example of our crazy e-mail exchanges.

Since we’re approaching Thanksgiving, a time when most of our family members are able to gather at Mom’s, I e-mailed all, letting them know I’d be taking a corn casserole and a broccoli casserole for our meal. I also suggested it would be nice if others would follow suit and let us all know what they’d be taking.

Brother Shawn replied that he’d be taking Catherine, Kendall and Spencer (his wife and their two children.)

Brother Rod answered, “I’m taking a nap – after I eat.”

So much for planning ahead.


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