Archive by Author

The Bearded Barbet

4 Jan

SUNDAY MEMORIES

 Judy Wills

The Bearded Barbet – reblog

We have lived in Central Florida since 1995 – our retirement dream.  We had originally thought we would retire here and “work” at Disney, doing something mundane, so we could see the theme parks to our heart’s content.  Well, it didn’t work out quite like that.  Within four months we had found the church where we felt God wanted us to be members, and so we joined it.

Within another six months – much to my surprise! – I became the Church Secretary.  Fred wasn’t too sure about turning in my application for the vacant position, but it just “felt right” to me, so I did.  And was hired (I was Church Secretary for nearly nine years).  I think it helped that I was an older woman, and my last position had been a Financial Secretary, and had learned to keep my mouth shut.  Financial and pastoral stuff is just something one doesn’t blab about.  Within another nine months, Fred was the Church Administrator.  It was nice working together, and we made the distinction of working WITH each other – neither of us working FOR the other!  Even with our desks in the same room, we just worked together, as it should be.

In spite of all that “work” stuff, we found time to go to Disney, SeaWorld, and Universal Studios.  We especially enjoyed going to SeaWorld after a stressful day at work.

Photo credit Google Search and SeaWorld

It just seemed like it was more restful there – not as frantic a pace as at Disney or Universal.  Perhaps it was the animals…I don’t know.  I just know that we enjoyed it and felt refreshed after spending a few hours at that theme park.

After we had been going to SeaWorld for a few years, we happened to go around a corner that we didn’t usually go around – and saw a bird “cage” along side one of the buildings.  We heard a strange sound coming from there, and stopped to see.  Inside the large cage were two of the most unusual birds we had ever seen!  And the sound was a raspy croak – called a “growling scrawk”!  

Photo credit Google Search

  WOW!  What were these birds??!!  The sign said “Bearded Barbet” – have you ever heard of that?  They, along with Toucans are mainly from tropical West Africa.

I rubbed my finger along the wire mesh, and one of them hopped right over to the metal frame, and took a good look at my finger.  The mesh was tight enough that I couldn’t be bitten – and it’s a good thing!  Look at that beak!!  But it did try to “peck” at my finger.  And it scrawked at me a few times, before it flew back to it’s perch.

Photo Credit Google Search

Every time we went to SeaWorld after that, we would make sure we stopped to see the Bearded Barbet, and were thrilled each time.

Imagine our disappointment when we discovered that they weren’t there any more – and had been replaced by Australian Kookaburras.  Nothing wrong with Kookaburras, but they just weren’t the Bearded Barbet!

Ah – the wonders of God’s world.  They never cease to amaze me!

Psalm 8:1, 3, 8-9

Oh Lord, our Lord, how Majestic is Your Name in all the earth.

Judy is living in Central Florida with her retired U.S. Air Force husband of 50+ years. Born in Dallas, Texas, she grew up in the Southwestern United States.She met her husband at their church, where he was attending the university in her town. After college and seminary, he entered the Air Force, and their adventures began.They lived in eight of our United States, and spent six years in Europe, where their oldest daughter was born. She was a stay-at-home mom for many years .

  Judy has always been involved with music, both playing the piano and singing. Always interested in exercise, she was an aerobic dancing instructor, as well as a piano teacher for many years, and continues to faithfully exercise at home.

After moving to Central Florida, she served as a church secretary for nearly nine years.Her main hobby at this point in time is scanning pictures and 35mm slides into the computer. She also enjoys scrapbooking.She and her husband have two married daughters and four grandchildren, including grandtwins as well as a great-grandson and a great-granddaughter. She and her husband enjoy the Disney parks as often as possible.

 

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Christmas Once Again

21 Dec

SUNDAY MEMORIES

Judy Wills

Yes, it is Christmas once again.  Comes around every December 25th.  I look back on all the Christmases that we have lived through – and they all bring fond memories to my mind.  The Christmases we experienced as children, my brother and myself.  My parents always did everything possible to make those times special to us. 

1952 – Bill and me – Christmas morning

My family didn’t have a lot of money, but we always had presents under the tree – and sometimes little ones hidden among the branches of the Christmas tree.  We really had to hunt for those!

I remember one Christmas that my Aunt Jessie had promised to give me a particular necklace that she had designed.  I was so looking forward to that!  Well, the only box left for me was a HUGE box!  I was beginning to feel disappointment, but began unwrapping that box…and found a smaller, wrapped box inside that one…and another smaller, wrapped box inside that one…you get the picture.  Sure enough, after about six or seven boxes, the last one was a small jeweler’s box – with that necklace in it!  What a fun memory that is.

I remember the Christmases were usually at our house, but as we got older (Bill and me) we would occasionally go to Aunt Jessie and Granny’s house for opening presents.  I loved that house almost as much as I loved ours, so it was a very special time.

1954 – Daddy opening his present – Aunt Jessie’s house

The gifts were more “grown up” then, but always wrapped wonderfully.  The idea of a “gift bag” had not been invented in those days, therefore much care and thought went into how each box was wrapped.  Aunt Jessie was particularly creative in that department!

1954 – Bill and me – opening presents at Aunt Jessie’s house

notice the wrapping on Bill’s present.

I remember that the first four years of our married life, we couldn’t afford a tree – even a small one.  Nor did we have room in our tiny apartment for one.  So I remember folding a small magazine (Reader’s Digest size) into tree shape then spray painting it green, and sticking small hand-made ornaments on it.  That was our tree.  I can’t even begin to remember how I folded that magazine!  I’ve tried several times with no success.  Oh well, it is a memory in my mind.

A.I generated image. Not the green painted mentioned above.

When we lived in Panama City, Florida (Tyndall AFB) one of our girl’s classrooms had a hamster as a pet.  At Christmas break, no one could take her home (Wheezer was her name), so Karen brought her home – plastic cage and all.  Unfortunately, she died just weeks before we moved to Heidelberg, Germany.

1984 – Virginia – Karen, Janet and Muffin

I found another hamster in Germany, but he didn’t last too long either.  So we kinda gave up on hamsters.  However, when we moved to Virginia, near Christmas time, I purchased a hamster in secret, and had a neighbor keep her until the girls were in bed on Christmas Eve.  They were both pleased and surprised the next morning to find her. They named her Muffin.  I can’t remember how long she lived.  They are called “throw-away-pets” because their life span is about three years.  But the girls got a few good years of enjoyment out of her.

Our Christmases in Florida have been many now (we’ve lived here 30 years now), and usually with one set of our girls and their families with us.  Only once or twice have both girls and their families been here.  But they have been wonderful times together.

1997 – Kissimmee, Florida – Forrest and Katie

2009 – Orlando, Florida – The Lawson family

This year we will have Janet, Tom and the twins with us.  Karen and Brian were here for Thanksgiving.  They helped set up our Christmas tree and the outside decorations – things I hadn’t thought about, and probably wouldn’t have been able to do myself.  With Janet’s family here at Christmas, they will help take the decorations down and put away.  How’s that for timing?!  

Fred and I wish all my readers a wonderful, blessed Christmas 2025.  While this year has been a hard one, we are thankful to be living another Christmas.  And we are so very thankful to God that we have family and friends who are so close to us.  God has blessed us mightily.

MERRY CHRISTMAS

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Aerobics and Hearing Aids

14 Dec

SUNDAY MEMORIES

 Judy Wills

AEROBICS AND HEARING AIDS – reblog

I wrote this back in 2013, but enjoyed re-reading it.  I hope you do, as well:

 I have been an “exerciser” for many, many years of my life.  As a matter of fact, I began jogging more than three months before I shamed Fred into jogging with me. We’ve never stopped doing something in the way of exercise.

 So it came as no surprise to me to find an “aerobic dancing” class beginning shortly after we arrived in Heidelberg, West Germany.  One of the military wives was teaching the class.  I took the class and loved it!  The interest was so great that she wanted to have a partner to help teach – and she selected me.  I taught the remainder of the three years we were in Heidelberg.   This was our logo and color.

During that time, there was one lady in my class who always stood in the front row and to my right (I was facing away from the students).  As we conversed, I thought she had a speech impediment.  After we got to know each other a bit better, she told me that she had been born with some hearing loss.  She wasn’t totally deaf, but enough so that she couldn’t hear the way most words were sounded.  That explained her speech.  But she had hearing aids that helped her so much, and she could understand all the cues I shouted out in the class.

As interesting as all that is – to me anyway – that’s not the end of the story.  We returned stateside and began our life in Virginia.  Our oldest daughter had met her future husband while in high school in Heidelberg (his father was our American pastor), and he had returned to the States to attend college – where she was attending, of course.  They married a few years later.

One evening, around Thanksgiving time, I received a call from our son-in-law, saying that, on their way to see his parents in South Carolina, our daughter had fallen asleep at the wheel and they had crashed.  I was furious that he would only say that she was “in with the doctor” and wouldn’t give me any more details – like…..is she still alive???!!!

I asked if he wanted us to come and take them back home (they were only about an hour from their apartment).  He agreed.  He then said, “wait, here is the paramedic who will give you directions to the hospital.”  This young man came on the phone and gave me the directions – with the very same intonation that my aerobic student had!!  I knew at once that he had hearing loss, and not a speech impediment.  And, by God’s grace, I was able to understand every word he said – the first time!  No repeats.  God had prepared me, all those years ago, for that very moment, when I would need my wits about me, and to understand this young man’s instructions.

I could end the story there – that is the main thrust of it – but I want to tell you of God’s gracious hand in all this.  You see, when our daughter fell asleep, the car drifted, and our son-in-law looked up and screamed, which woke her, and she drastically over-corrected.  That caused the car to roll several times.  Amazingly, there were no other cars around them – just down the road a bit – no other cars involved in the crash.  There was an off-duty ambulance behind them that stopped, and the paramedics gave aid.  They could have rolled off a bridge and crashed onto the road below them – but they didn’t – they just rolled to a stop on an embankment.  While the car was totaled, our children only suffered a few cuts and bruises.

Our God is loving and faithful and gracious, indeed.

O Lord, you will keep us safe and protect us…

Psalm 12:7

Judy is living in Central Florida with her retired U.S. Air Force husband of 50+ years. Born in Dallas, Texas, she grew up in the Southwestern United States.She met her husband at their church, where he was attending the university in her town. After college and seminary, he entered the Air Force, and their adventures began.They lived in eight of our United States, and spent six years in Europe, where their oldest daughter was born. She was a stay-at-home mom for many years .

  Judy has always been involved with music, both playing the piano and singing. Always interested in exercise, she was an aerobic dancing instructor, as well as a piano teacher for many years, and continues to faithfully exercise at home.

After moving to Central Florida, she served as a church secretary for nearly nine years.Her main hobby at this point in time is scanning pictures and 35mm slides into the computer. She also enjoys scrapbooking.She and her husband have two married daughters and four grandchildren, including grandtwins as well as a great-grandson and a great-granddaughter. She and her husband enjoy the Disney parks as often as possib

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Wood Inlay

5 Dec

SUNDAYMEMORIES

Judy Wills

Reblog

I wrote this back in 2013, but enjoyed reading it again.  I hope you do, as well

I’ve never thought I would be particularly interested in wood, types of wood, or just about anything related to wood.  I guess the first time I really became interested was when I was graduating from high school and a local furniture store gave a Hope Chest to every graduating girl in my class.  Now, I must say that the chests were VERY MINIATURE!!  More like a keepsake box.  But they were made of cedar, as a real hope chest would be, and finished beautifully.  After all these 50+ years since that time, my miniature hope chest still smells wonderfully fragrant.  That’s probably why I love the fresh smell of cedar so much.

When we were stationed in Germany in the late 1960’s, we came across some wood inlay pictures that really caught our eye.  The intricate “jigsaw puzzle” work of the artist…and the different color of the woods used…were fascinating.  We purchased just one picture, thinking that was all we could afford.  And while we cherished that picture, we couldn’t help but wish we had purchased more.

Marienplatz – Garmisch/Partinkirken 

Back to Germany we went in the early 1980’s – and we began our search for more of those wood inlay pictures, and especially by the same artist.  And we found them!  We snapped up two more.  All of the scenes are of places in Germany that were important to us and our memories.  We treasure them.  And we learned that this particular artist had cut enough puzzle pieces to make pictures for up to five years after his death! Amazing.  

Neuschwanstein Castle 
Konigsee 

But we’ve found other wood inlay that intrigue us, as well.  While visiting in the Chicago area, we stayed in a great old house that is now a Bed & Breakfast.

Roxana Bed & Breakfast 

It is situated on a lake that is reported to have been a playground for the likes of Al Capone and his cronies.  As a matter of fact, the room we stayed in was dubbed the “Al Capone Room,” and had pictures of him, one of his famous cigars, and two bullets he might have used.

Al Capone 

But what interested us the most was the dining room and sitting area.  When the new owners purchased the house, most of the rooms had wall-to-wall carpet.  When they pulled it up, thinking to replace the carpet, they found the most beautiful wood inlay floors imaginable!  So they left them uncarpeted, and open to admiration.  We most certainly admired them.  Just think of the imagination and planning that went into putting these floors down.  Beautiful!

Our favorite Mexican Restaurant in town has a gorgeous wood inlay Aztec calendar hanging at the front of the restaurant.  I’ve seen quite a few calendars before, but none this beautiful.

I’m still a carpet girl – and here in Florida, we have either carpet or tile.  But that doesn’t stop me from admiring the craftsmanship of those artists from long ago.

Judy is living in Central Florida with her retired U.S. Air Force husband of 50+ years. Born in Dallas, Texas, she grew up in the Southwestern United States.She met her husband at their church, where he was attending the university in her town. After college and seminary, he entered the Air Force, and their adventures began.They lived in eight of our United States, and spent six years in Europe, where their oldest daughter was born. She was a stay-at-home mom for many years .

  Judy has always been involved with music, both playing the piano and singing. Always interested in exercise, she was an aerobic dancing instructor, as well as a piano teacher for many years, and continues to faithfully exercise at home.

After moving to Central Florida, she served as a church secretary for nearly nine years.Her main hobby at this point in time is scanning pictures and 35mm slides into the computer. She also enjoys scrapbooking.She and her husband have two married daughters and four grandchildren, including grandtwins as well as a great-grandson and a great-granddaughter. She and her husband enjoy the Disney parks as often as possible.

 

 

 

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After Thanksgiving

30 Nov

SUNDAY MEMORIES

Judy Wills

As with last week’s blog, I wrote this a few years ago, but it fits this year, as well.  Enjoy!

Well, Thanksgiving 2023 has come and gone.  It’s amazing to me how fast that happens!  You gear up for it, then POOF!  It’s over.

So what do you do now?  Well, Christmas is on its way now, and there is soooo much to do to get ready for that.  However…there’s still some turkey left over.  Okay…more than a little turkey left over.  What to do?  Well, there’s always turkey sandwiches…made on a hoagie roll with thin slices (or thick if you like) of turkey, lettuce leaves, tomato slices, sliced onions, pickles and any condiments you like (mustard? Mayonnaise? Oil and vinegar? Some kind of salad dressing?).  Cheese of course.  Warmed in the toaster oven perhaps? Or just eaten cold.  Subway…eat your heart out!

But our very, very favorite way to eat up that leftover turkey is by picking the turkey carcass clean of all the meat (light and dark) and cubing it up in about 1″ or smaller pieces, and making my Mother’s recipe of Turkey Tetrazinni.  Fred says it is his favorite part of the turkey!  I’ve included the recipe below.  I cook it in either a 9″x13″ glass pan, or a 10″x10″ Corning Ware dish.  It works well with either.

This recipe makes quite a bit, and with just the two of us eating it, it takes a couple of days to finish it off.  But we manage to do just that!  We really enjoy this dish.  I’ve never tried to freeze any leftovers, so i don’t know how it would work.

I hope you will try this – and enjoy it as much as we do.  It’s a GREAT way to finish up the turkey!

TURKEY TETRAZINNI

By Agnes Lites Yearout

1 cup cooked rice**                                                             2 Tbsp flour

2 sticks diced celery                                                            2 cups (total) broth and milk**

½  onion, chopped                                                               Salt & Pepper to taste

1 small can mushrooms with juice                                    1 tsp Worchestershire Sauce

¼  lb. butter (1 stick)**                                                         ¼ lb. grated cheddar cheese

                                                                                                Cooked turkey, cubed

Cook celery and onion in butter until transparent.  Combine vegetable mixture, flour, broth, mushrooms and juice, and seasoning to make the sauce.  Add turkey and most of the grated cheese to the sauce.  Cook until cheese is melted and mixed in with the sauce.

Put cooked rice in a greased casserole and cover with the turkey sauce.  Top with remaining cheese.

Bake in a 350º oven for about 20 minutes.

**SOME NOTES:  

  1.    Instead of butter you can substitute ½ cup Olive Oil
  2.    For the “broth and milk” – if you have any turkey gravy left over, use that and top it off with milk to make the two cups.  If no broth or gravy, use chicken bouillon and milk.
  3.    This is really good over cooked thin spaghetti or Vermicelli (we like Angel Hair pasta the best).  We like the pasta better than rice.  We’ve not tried it over Couscous, but I think it would be good, as well.  Cook the Couscous in chicken bouillon.  I’ve also made it with egg noodles and that is good.
  4.    I like sliced mushrooms, but stems and pieces can be used as well.
  5.    I am usually more generous with the cheese – we like cheese!

Enjoy!!

Photo Credit by Google Search and Betty Crocker website

Judy is living in Central Florida with her retired U.S. Air Force husband of 50+ years. Born in Dallas, Texas, she grew up in the Southwestern United States.She met her husband at their church, where he was attending the university in her town. After college and seminary, he entered the Air Force, and their adventures began.They lived in eight of our United States, and spent six years in Europe, where their oldest daughter was born. She was a stay-at-home mom for many years .

  Judy has always been involved with music, both playing the piano and singing. Always interested in exercise, she was an aerobic dancing instructor, as well as a piano teacher for many years, and continues to faithfully exercise at home.

After moving to Central Florida, she served as a church secretary for nearly nine years.Her main hobby at this point in time is scanning pictures and 35mm slides into the computer. She also enjoys scrapbooking.She and her husband have two married daughters and four grandchildren, including grandtwins as well as a great-grandson and a great-granddaughter. She and her husband enjoy the Disney parks as often as possible.

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Happy Thanksgiving!

23 Nov

SUNDAY MEMORIES

Judy Wills

I wrote this a few years ago, but thought it would fit this Thanksgiving time.  Enjoy!

I have many and varied memories of Thanksgivings throughout my lifetime – all of them happy times with family.  I don’t remember making my own turkey or dressing until Fred and I had been married for five or six years, and had moved to Wiesbaden, West Germany with the U.S. Air Force.  Then I was sort-of forced to try my hand at cooking a turkey, whether I wanted to or not!  I did find that it wasn’t as difficult as I thought it might be.  

I have to say here, that neither I nor my brother, Bill, can remember what kind of dressing (or stuffing) our mother made!  I suspect it was cornbread dressing, since Daddy grew up in Louisiana and that’s more likely what was made there.  I never tried to make cornbread dressing, as it isn’t Fred’s favorite.  However, his mother, who grew up in New England, taught me how to make bread dressing, New England style.  So that’s what I’ve made ever since.  It’s what our girls grew up eating, and they – and we – love it!  

All that to say that I do remember some things about Thanksgivings along the way.  I remember the cranberry/orange/pecan relish in gelatin that my mother made in small forms that were placed on leaves of lettuce.

1955 – Albuquerque – Granny, Daddy, Mother, Bill

Dessert time at the Lites Thanksgiving table

Mother’s cranberry relish dish on lettuce leaves on the table (red)

1956 – Albuquerque – Thanksgiving meal

DiVoran, Bill, Judy, David Bowers (DiVoran’s brother)

Daddy, Granny, Dora Bowers (DiVoran and David’s mother), my Mother

I remember the sweet potato dish she made.  And of course there were always mashed white potatoes and lots of turkey gravy.  Pumpkin pies with whipped cream was the dessert.  I don’t remember any other kinds of desserts.

Since our girls are grown and gone to their own families for Thanksgivings now, Fred and I have fallen in the habit of going to Cracker Barrel for Thanksgiving meal – usually lunch.  We can get a wonderful meal of turkey and ham, sweet potato casserole, another vegetable of our choice, mashed potatoes and gravy.  Along with pumpkin pie with whipped cream for dessert.  All for one low price – and I don’t have to cook it or clean it up, either!! 

Photo Credit Google Search and Cracker Barrel website

However, this year will be different.  We have some very good friends in town that we have dinner with once each week – standing date.  Across the street from where they live is another couple that we are all very good friends with, as well.  We have a meal with them once each month.  Usually for Easter or close to Thanksgiving, they will have a meal for a bunch of people, and we  are invited.  Easter brings certain types of foods.  Thanksgiving brings the turkey and ham, etc., and I ALWAYS bring my bread dressing.  This year, they are holding the meal actually on Thanksgiving Day.  So we get to celebrate that wonderful time of family and friendship on the Day itself.  We are blest.  And my bread dressing will be on the table, with probably none left at the end of the meal.

Since we live in a community called Hunter’s Creek here in Orlando, we receive a monthly magazine called “Life at Hunter’s Creek.”  Last year, this was the cover of that magazine.  Since I like to bake and make cookies, this really caught my eye.  I would like to show it here to wish one and all a very

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!

Judy is living in Central Florida with her retired U.S. Air Force husband of 50+ years. Born in Dallas, Texas, she grew up in the Southwestern United States.She met her husband at their church, where he was attending the university in her town. After college and seminary, he entered the Air Force, and their adventures began.They lived in eight of our United States, and spent six years in Europe, where their oldest daughter was born. She was a stay-at-home mom for many years .

  Judy has always been involved with music, both playing the piano and singing. Always interested in exercise, she was an aerobic dancing instructor, as well as a piano teacher for many years, and continues to faithfully exercise at home.

After moving to Central Florida, she served as a church secretary for nearly nine years.Her main hobby at this point in time is scanning pictures and 35mm slides into the computer. She also enjoys scrapbooking.She and her husband have two married daughters and four grandchildren, including grandtwins as well as a great-grandson and a great-granddaughter. She and her husband enjoy the Disney parks as often as possible.

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Discipline

16 Nov

Reblog

SUNDAY MEMORIES

Judy Wills

I wrote this back in 2013, but it seems fitting to post it again.  It never goes out of style!

As I’ve mentioned in previous musings, I’ve been going through stacks and stacks of papers and pictures that we have accumulated.  I’ve found a number of cartoons that my Mother had cut out – probably the newspaper – and sent them to me.  And I’ve used some of them in my Old Things R New postings.

Today, however, I would like to share something that we found in my Mother’s Bible following her death.

She was always a hard worker, whether it was at the job where she was paid (she was an accountant, and worked at Kirtland AFB in Albuquerque to supplement Daddy’s paycheck, to purchase things that we might not have been able to have otherwise), or when she purchased and opened the Merle Norman Cosmetic Studio, or when she was cleaning the house, cooking our meals, doing the laundry….  She was a hard worker.

I think the only time I ever saw her sit down and “rest” was after dinner and clean-up from that, to watch a little TV.  One of her enjoyments – especially in her later years – was to sit down after breakfast, with a cup of her favorite coffee, and peruse the newspaper.  She would read it from cover to cover.

But this little snippet of information is a real insight into her life.  I think it was a testimony to the way she lived her life, and the way she saw life.  It certainly makes one take notice about the wisdom of the words.

What do you think?

Her favorite scripture was Psalm 118:24

This is the day the Lord has made;

We will rejoice and be glad in it.

Judy is living in Central Florida with her retired U.S. Air Force husband of 50+ years. Born in Dallas, Texas, she grew up in the Southwestern United States.She met her husband at their church, where he was attending the university in her town. After college and seminary, he entered the Air Force, and their adventures began.They lived in eight of our United States, and spent six years in Europe, where their oldest daughter was born. She was a stay-at-home mom for many years .

  Judy has always been involved with music, both playing the piano and singing. Always interested in exercise, she was an aerobic dancing instructor, as well as a piano teacher for many years, and continues to faithfully exercise at home.

After moving to Central Florida, she served as a church secretary for nearly nine years.Her main hobby at this point in time is scanning pictures and 35mm slides into the computer. She also enjoys scrapbooking.She and her husband have two married daughters and four grandchildren, including grandtwins as well as a great-grandson and a great-granddaughter. She and her husband enjoy the Disney parks as often as possible.

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Recovery-Part 7

9 Nov

SUNDAY MEMORIES

Judy Wills

I really must tell you about Dorothy – or Dot as she likes to be called.  This is a sweet old lady – I believe she passed her 99th birthday recently with a lot of fan-fare.  She has always smiled and waved at me – and WINKED at me.  But that’s not all.  One day, as Fred and I were on our “walk” we passed Dot and the healthcare nurse who sits with her occasionally.  We stopped to talk, and Dot not only smiled at Fred, she winked at him…and blew KISSES at him!  With me right there!  I pretended to be shocked and outraged, but laughed at her.  She was grinning from ear to ear!  So whenever I see her family with her, I stop and tell them her outrageous behavior toward my husband!  We all get the best laugh out of it.

There is one lady who I had a difficult time getting to smile and wave at me.  She would watch us like a hawk as we walked by, but never anything else.  Her son would arrive every afternoon and sit with her and watch a TV program, but he didn’t acknowledge us either.  And then, one day when Fred and I were leaving the urologist office – there they sat in the waiting room!  The son said, “well, hey!  Look who’s here!”  From that moment on, whenever I see her, she grins and waves at us.  If we are on our afternoon walk and we walk past her room door, they both smile and wave at us.

And then there is Susan.  Susan was a hard nut to crack.  She’s Dorothy’s roommate and her bed is by the window, and I’m convinced she has hearing issues.  The only time I’ve been able to connect with her is when she is in her wheelchair and out in the hall – not very often.  She’ll be wheeling along and I’ll say something like, “And Susan is off to the races!!” and she’ll giggle.  But I’ve seen her in her room, with Shalena (pink scrubs – cleaning lady) sitting opposite her in a chair, and they are having a wonderful conversation.  But to call her from the doorway – no response at all.  I complimented Shalena about her interaction with Susan, telling her that I had not been able to connect with Susan.  Shalena just likes people.

Then there is the lady they moved into the room across the hall from Fred’s room.  Her husband visits every day with their little dog.  The puppy is a sweet one who loves just everyone!  He said he could let her leash go and she would go directly into his wife’s room – and she does.  She does like to bark sometimes – kinda yippy – but it’s not unpleasant.  The lady is in for a foot injury, but her husband said she was in memory care before she came here.

There are two couples I want to mention….one is a Mom and her son.  We frequently find them sitting outside …sometimes under the trees in the shade or under the portico in the shade.  Again, I think she came from the islands, as she always has a sweater around her shoulders and a blanket over her legs and feet.  They are always up for a nice conversation, and the son once helped me get the wheelchair into the trunk.  Sometimes his daughter and granddaughter come to visit as well

Then there is the husband and wife couple…she is disabled somehow.  She’s always in a wheelchair.   We’ve had some lively and fun interaction with them.  He’s there nearly every day.

I hope my readers can see, by these stories of some of the people we met at Solaris, that it was a bit difficult to leave them behind.  After five months in that facility, many of them had become good acquaintances if not actual friends.  But neither Fred nor I were ready for him to become a permanent “resident” there.  I am remembering these people fondly, and writing about them has brought them to mind again, with joy!

Fred is home now, and doing well – going to out-patient therapy twice each week, and I see improvements in him.  Please keep him in your prayers…I miss terribly the man he was before the strokes.

~~~~~~~~~~The End~~~~~~~~~~

Judy is living in Central Florida with her retired U.S. Air Force husband of 50+ years. Born in Dallas, Texas, she grew up in the Southwestern United States.She met her husband at their church, where he was attending the university in her town. After college and seminary, he entered the Air Force, and their adventures began.They lived in eight of our United States, and spent six years in Europe, where their oldest daughter was born. She was a stay-at-home mom for many years .

  Judy has always been involved with music, both playing the piano and singing. Always interested in exercise, she was an aerobic dancing instructor, as well as a piano teacher for many years, and continues to faithfully exercise at home.

After moving to Central Florida, she served as a church secretary for nearly nine years.Her main hobby at this point in time is scanning pictures and 35mm slides into the computer. She also enjoys scrapbooking.She and her husband have two married daughters and four grandchildren, including grandtwins as well as a great-grandson and a great-granddaughter. She and her husband enjoy the Disney parks as often as possible.

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Recovery-Part 6

2 Nov

SUNDAY MEMORIES

Judy Wills

As time wore on, and Fred became more active, I decided it would be good for both of us to take him “out” of the facility for lunch.  I had to plan it each day ahead, as the kitchen sent out a menu for the next day’s meals.  It meant getting him in the car, then collapsing the wheelchair and putting it in the trunk of the car, then reverse it when we returned.  But it was totally worth it.  He did so enjoy getting out.

One day as Fred and I returned from a lunch out, I saw a pair of sandhill cranes by the front door of the facility.  Amazing!  I sent these pictures to our family and friends, and one friend asked, “did you ask permission to enter??”  I mentioned the cranes to a couple we see frequently, and he said they’ve been hanging around for the three years that couple had been there.  Wow!

Now let me tell you about some of the residents I’ve really interacted with:

The Hat Lady…I noticed her right away, as she is always wearing a hat – at first it was a crochet hat.  That caught my attention, and I asked her if she had crocheted it herself.  She grinned and said no, but I complimented her anyway.  Then it got to when I was to walking down the hall and seeing her, would say “there’s my favorite hat lady!”  She would grin at me.  And as the weather became warmer, she started wearing other hats, usually one with a brim that looks like a leopard skin.  One day I said, “I’ve been calling you Hat Lady, but I don’t know your name.”  She looked up at me and said “Virine” (she pronounced it Vi – REEN).  So I alternate between Hat Lady and Virine.  She must come from the islands, because she loves to sit outside even in Florida’s hot summer sun – wearing that brimmed hat and a sweater over her dress.

There are two or three ladies who are permanently in wheel chairs, residents, who take the time to brush their hair and put on makeup each day.  I admire them.  They are quite friendly, and we have struck up quite a few conversations with them.  Two are roommates and are best buddies.  One, Diane, has been there 10 years, following the death of her husband.  She shared with me that when he began to get into dementia, they went looking for a facility for him, as she couldn’t care for him.  At the one where he eventually stayed, as they were leaving, he said, “Di, I really like this place.  Can I stay?”  She said she knew they were at the right place.  As for her… as she said…this is home. 

And then there is a lady – one who makes up herself each day – who I am convinced wears a wig, because her hair is long and quite black, and she wears a turban-like head covering each day.  It took me over a month to get her to smile back at me, but now she does.  One funny incident with her…I was walking past her room one day, when she was in bed and I heard her call “purple….purple….I need to blow my nose!!”  I had to laugh at that one – calling a CNA to blow her nose – because I’ve seen her up and walking!

Carol is there for her husband, who is a resident.  He is unable to walk, always in a wheelchair.  She is there daily, and reads to him.  He must wear a head-set, and she speaks through a microphone so he can hear her.  

~~~~~~~~~~To Be Continued~~~~~~~~~~

Judy is living in Central Florida with her retired U.S. Air Force husband of 50+ years. Born in Dallas, Texas, she grew up in the Southwestern United States.She met her husband at their church, where he was attending the university in her town. After college and seminary, he entered the Air Force, and their adventures began.They lived in eight of our United States, and spent six years in Europe, where their oldest daughter was born. She was a stay-at-home mom for many years .

  Judy has always been involved with music, both playing the piano and singing. Always interested in exercise, she was an aerobic dancing instructor, as well as a piano teacher for many years, and continues to faithfully exercise at home.

After moving to Central Florida, she served as a church secretary for nearly nine years.Her main hobby at this point in time is scanning pictures and 35mm slides into the computer. She also enjoys scrapbooking.She and her husband have two married daughters and four grandchildren, including grandtwins as well as a great-grandson and a great-granddaughter. She and her husband enjoy the Disney parks as often as possible.

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Recovery-Part 5

26 Oct

SUNDAY MEMORIES

Judy Wills

I must also tell you about the people who did the cleaning.  The rooms are cleaned every single day.  Those ladies in pink really do their job and do it well.  Of course, the CNA’s wash the residents (they help with showers, too) and change the bed linens every day, and the linens are taken away and cleaned every day as well.  One cleaning lady stands out – Shalena.  She was quite industrious in her cleaning, and was always up for a good joke or story.  One day, she was cleaning Fred’s room as we took one of our walks.  The floor in his room was still damp when we returned, so I told Fred we would walk a bit more. 

 Then I told him to keep walking, and I went back and told Shalena the story about the policeman who called his Captain and told him he was going to arrest a lady who shot her husband.  When asked why she did that, he said “she had just mopped the floor, and it was still wet, and he walked on it.”  When the Captain asked if he had arrested her yet, he replied “no.”  “Why not?”  “The floor’s still wet.”  Shalena;s laugh could be heard clear down the corridor!

Sometimes there were two men who cleaned and mopped the corridor floors that were not carpet.  I believe they were both from the Islands, as they would always greet me with “Good Morning, Mama.”  I loved that!

As Fred and I took our “walks” around the corridors of the facility, I would look at so many of these people – residents – and my heart would ache for them.  Many of them never leave their beds.  Almost all are confined to a wheelchair or walker.  This has become their home, and I seldom see any visitors for many, many of them.  Someone told me that some of them had just been “deposited” there by relatives, then forgotten.  So I made it my mission to help as many of them as I could to let them see that someone actually SEES them as people, and give them a wave and a smile.  Some have taken a while to smile back and perhaps wave, but most of them are getting there. 

As I mentioned, Fred and I take “walks” down the corridors of the facility, giving him some “exercise” and a way to get out of that room for a bit.  He’s still in a wheel chair, but he actually does the “walking” by pulling himself along with his feet.  I encouraged him to do that after I saw many residents doing just that.  Unfortunately, I never could get him to use his hands on the large wheel of his chair, as he said it was too painful.  I may have my hands on the hand grips of the chair, but he’s doing the work – I just guide occasionally.  So, in our walks, as we pass the residents rooms, many who are in bed.  If they are awake, I will smile and wave at them, and they will usually smile and wave back at me.  I like to think I’m bringing a little sunshine into their lives.  One resident is usually in her bed – only occasionally have I seen her in a wheelchair – and her name marks her Vietnamese.  It took me a while to get her to smile and wave at me, but every once in a while she will smile and put her hands together in Asian greeting.  Beautiful.

~~~~~~~~~~To Be Continued~~~~~~~~~~

Judy is living in Central Florida with her retired U.S. Air Force husband of 50+ years. Born in Dallas, Texas, she grew up in the Southwestern United States.She met her husband at their church, where he was attending the university in her town. After college and seminary, he entered the Air Force, and their adventures began.They lived in eight of our United States, and spent six years in Europe, where their oldest daughter was born. She was a stay-at-home mom for many years .

  Judy has always been involved with music, both playing the piano and singing. Always interested in exercise, she was an aerobic dancing instructor, as well as a piano teacher for many years, and continues to faithfully exercise at home.

After moving to Central Florida, she served as a church secretary for nearly nine years.Her main hobby at this point in time is scanning pictures and 35mm slides into the computer. She also enjoys scrapbooking.She and her husband have two married daughters and four grandchildren, including grandtwins as well as a great-grandson and a great-granddaughter. She and her husband enjoy the Disney parks as often as possible.

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