Four of my six great-grandchildren share the same birthday

Shelby, age 7, was born 12-13-13.  Jaxon, age 10. was born 12-13-10.

Twins Jonathan and Micah, age 6, were born 12-13-14.

Jaxon and Shelby sang at church Sunday (12-13-20).

Sunday Salon ~ family and books

FAMILY

Above are three of my great-grandchildren:  Jaxon, Shelby, and Shiloh on their mother's lap.  Below are my other three great-grandchildren:  Micah, Raegan, and Jonathan.

BOOKS

Recently finished:

The Little Book of Hygge: Danish Secrets to Happy Living ~ by Meik Wiking, 2017, psychology, 8/10

Currently reading:

To Be Where You Are ~ by Jan Karon, 2017, fiction (North Carolina)

Looking forward to:

The Donkey's Dream ~ by Barbara Helen Berger, 1985, children's

He was just an ordinary donkey, but on his back he carried a miracle.  He carried Mary to Bethlehem on the night she gave birth.  Along the way he dreamed he was carrying a city, a ship, a fountain, and a rose.  He dreamed he was carrying a lady full of heaven.

Bloggers gather in the Sunday Salon — at separate computers in different time zones — to talk about our lives and our reading.

Hygge Holiday Challenge ~ first update

Dec. 1 ~ start a gratitude list

• Three children ~ Barbara, Sandra, and David.
• Seven grandchildren ~ Kendall, Cali, Brandy, Kenzie, Chase, Jamey, and Cady.
• Six great-grandchildren ~ Raegan, Jaxon, Shelby, Jonathan, Micah, and Shiloh.

Dec. 2 ~ add relaxing scents

I lit a vanilla-scented candle and bought a new hand soap scented with coconut water and mango to use in the kitchen.  I'm already using hand soap in the bathroom that's lavender-scented.

Dec. 3 ~ more gratitude

Since I'm retired, the challenge on the list makes no sense for me:  "sleep in 15 mins or more."  I can do that any day.  Instead, I'll add to my gratitude list.

Randi Schenberg

I'm very grateful for the Crown Center for Senior Living for being the great place for active retirees that it is.  That means being thankful for the wonderful people on the staff and the board.  Randi Schenberg, the Community Relations Director, was the first person I met at the Crown Center, when I applied to live here.  In February, Randi was given the 2017 JProStl Pillar Award, and I posted a 2-minute video about it on this blog.  Thanks, Randi, for your smiles and all you do for the Crown Center!

Dec. 4 ~ learn a new skill

I'm still trying to learn how to operate my new computer.  I've been very annoyed trying to use Windows 10.  Oops!  Being annoyed is not very "hyggeligt" ― it doesn't create a cozy environment.  I'll get someone to help me with the new laptop, but not today.  I'm going to get comfy, instead, and read a book.

Dec. 5 ~ get the Hygge book

I went to the University City Library and got a copy of The Little Book of Hygge: Danish Secrets to Happy Living by Meik Wiking.  Loosely translated, hygge is a sense of comfort, togetherness, and well-being.  It's about an atmosphere and an experience, like being cuddled up on a sofa, wearing cozy socks, and covered by a soft throw during a storm.  And don't forget to light a candle or two.

Dec. 6 ~ "unbook" yourself

Too late!  I had already agreed to drive my friend Barbara somewhere today.  Watching her enjoy old friendships was also joyful for me, so it worked out perfectly.  On our way back home, we stopped at the pharmacy to pick up prescriptions for Barbara and for another Crown Center resident, since we were going there anyway.  She and I also had lunch together in the Circle@Crown Café and visited with several people, including Judy and Marianne.

Dec. 7 ~ send a thank you note

I looked through my cards and found this one that says "Thoughts of you..." on the front and on the inside "...are the happiest kind!"  Who and why shall remain between the recipient and me, but the card is on its way.

The challenge
Click this link to see the complete Hygge Holiday Challenge calendar.

Good news ~ and bad news

First, the bad news.  My newest great-grandbaby, who is only 7 weeks old, has a mild hip dysplasia and must wear what her mom call "this crazy contraption" for 23 hours a day for seven weeks and then just at night for four weeks.  She's had a rough life so far.

Now the good news.  My daughter's hair is growing back.  Yes, it's darker and kind of curly, but it's hair.  Here she is with her three grandchildren.

Two news items about family
on this TWOsday.

Thursday Thirteen ~ family on my mind

1.  Shiloh Mae, due to arrive in November, is my sixth great-grandchild.  Shiloh means "one who is peaceful."

2.  Jaxon has been to the doctor twice and to the ER for fluids. No one knew exactly what was wrong with him, his mom reported today when she asked for prayers.  Late in the day, she had a call from the doctor and learned he has salmonella, apparently from a restaurant.  That's the only time he ate anything different from the rest of the family.

3.  My twins took part in the Race for the Cure over the weekend.

4.  I got to visit with David and Sharon while in Chattanooga this summer.

5.  Jamey graduating from the university.

6.  Micah is busy crawling through the tube.

7.  Jonathan is absorbed in his activity.

8.  Cady now has a driver's licence.

9.  Shelby and I like cats.

10.  Sandra at Raegan's school on Grandparents' Day, today.

11.  I visited my sister Ann on July 14th, three weeks before she died.

12.  Sandra and Barbara in the Race for the Cure ran into Chase on the UTC campus.

13.  Grandkids when there were only six.  Clockwise from top left:  Brandy, Kendall, Cali, Kenzie, Jamey, and Chase.

Sunday Salon ~ school and other classes

SCHOOL DAYS

First, my five great-grandchildren.  Shelby and Jaxon were excited and all ready for the first day of school — preschool, that is.  It's his last year of preschool and her first.

Micah and Jonathan are happy at "school" — actually, day care — which they have just begun this week.  Raegan started first grade a couple of weeks ago, and lost her first tooth a couple of days ago.

Then moving up a generation to my seven grandkids.  This photo shows Cady's first day as a high school sophomore in mid-August.  She's my youngest grandchild.  A couple of my grandsons are still in college.

CLASSES

My children are busy working, rather than taking classes, so I'll move up to my generation.  At 75, I attend classes where I can have fun.  My best friend Donna ("Cool people care") and I (the presumed novelist) learned how to make root beer floats.  Well, we already knew how and have done it over many years, but it was a "class" with participation.  That basically means we ate what we made, and each of us got to keep the unusual glass that was provided.

Here I am with some of my friends and acquaintenances in an exercise class where we use ballet moves.  Left to right, Linda in brown, Joan in blue, Marlene, Bella, and Mrs. Chen.  Reflected in the mirror are Vanessa (who dances professionally) in pink, Bonnie (almost lost behind Joan's reflection), and Donna framed against the closet door.

Good news!  My blood sugar level (A1C) is down so much that my new doctor says I am once again "pre-diabetic."  The term simply indicates where I am in terms of controlling it with diet and exercise.  I'm actually down 60 pounds from my highest weight of a few years ago and feeling great.

BOOK

A Heretic's Guide to Eternity ~ by Spencer Burke and Barry Taylor, 2006

Distinguishing between religion and spirituality, Burke offers what he calls a new way of looking at God, one centered on the idea of grace. He emphasizes a God who is looking to save the world, not a God who seems more intent on condemning certain practices . . . . For Burke, God is to be questioned, not simply obeyed. His challenging thesis will appeal to many people today who have given up on organized religion but still seek some connection to spirituality.

Only one book to report today.  This one arrived in the office on Friday, but the notice taped to my mailbox in the lobby didn't appear until Saturday.  The security guard at the link desk opened the office and let me sign it out, so I was able to look it over last night.  This is the book my study group has chosen to discuss over the next few weeks or months.  In other words, this is a class of sorts.  You could say we teach ourselves by intense study and commitment to reading the sections we'll be discussing.  Donna has agreed to lead our reflections as we work our way through this book.

Bloggers gather in the Sunday Salon — at separate computers in different time zones — to talk about our lives and our reading.

Books for my great-grandbabies

When I visited them last week, I took my 7-month-old great-grandsons Micah and Jonathan a couple of books (the first two below).  My friend Donna gave them the one about reading in bed.

Toes, Ears, and Nose! ~ by Marion Dane Bauer, illustrated by Karen Katz, 2003, children's lift-the-flap board book

Baby is bundled in a mountain of clothes.  Peek under the flaps of clothing to discover toes, ears, nose, and so forth as baby learns about the body.

Inside my boots I've got
[lift the flap to see] toes,
and beneath my scarf is a
[lift the flap to see] nose!

Itsy Bitsy Spider and Other Rhymes ~ illustrated by Samantha Meredith, 2015, children's board book

This colorful collection of classic nursery rhymes includes Humpty Dumpty, Three Blind Mice, Old MacDonald, Itsy Bitsy Spider, Little Bo Peep, Five Little Ducks, and Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star, plus several others.

Five Little Monkeys Reading in Bed ~ by Eileen Christelow, 2014, children's board book

After their mama reads to them, it's bedtime for the Five Little Monkeys. But they can't resist reading just one more book ... or three! Soon Mama is so tired of trying to get her monkeys to quiet down and go to sleep, she picks up their books and takes them with her. At last, the monkeys are ready to settle down ... until they hear strange sounds from down the hall. Could it be that Mama likes to read in bed, too?

Sunday Salon ~ books and great-grands

What I'm reading now

The Book of Negroes ~ by Lawrence Hill, 2007, fiction (South Carolina and Canada)

Abducted as an 11-year-old child from her village in West Africa and forced to walk for months to the sea in a coffle — a string of slaves — Aminata Diallo is sent to live as a slave in South Carolina.  But years later, she forges her way to freedom, serving the British in the Revolutionary War and registering her name in the historic “Book of Negroes.”  This book, an actual document, provides a short but immensely revealing record of freed Loyalist slaves who requested permission to leave the US for resettlement in Nova Scotia, only to find that the haven they sought was steeped in an oppression all of its own.  Aminata’s eventual return to Sierra Leone — passing ships carrying thousands of slaves bound for America — is an engrossing account of an obscure but important chapter in history that saw 1,200 former slaves embark on a harrowing back-to-Africa odyssey.  This sweeping story transports the reader from a tribal African village to a plantation in the southern United States, from the teeming Halifax docks to the manor houses of London, The Book of Negroes introduces one of the strongest female characters in recent Canadian fiction, one who cuts a swath through a world hostile to her colour and her sex.

What I have lined up

The Ugly Little Boy ~ by Isaac Asimov and Robert Silverberg, 1992, science fiction

This science fiction classic, first published in 1958, is a chilling tale of what happens when past and present collide.  When Stasis Technologies, Ltd., plucks a Neanderthal child off the prehistoric tundra and transports it into the twenty-first century, the scientific conglomerate gives no thought to the creature's human feelings.  The nurse assigned to the case must somehow bridge the 40,000-year gap to forge an emotional bond that transcends time.  And, when Miss Fellowes learns of the intended disposition of the "Timmie experiment," it is up to her to travel back through time with the "ape-boy" as he rejoins his tribe on the cutting edge of civilization.

What I just finished

Some Luck ~ by Jane Smiley, 2014, fiction (Iowa), 8/10

My five great-grandkids

Bloggers gather in the Sunday Salon — at separate computers in different time zones — to talk about our lives and our reading.