Christmas 2020

 

Lyra, did you like your Ribbon this year?  Did you like the candy or the toys?  Poppa and I miss our girls so much. We are always so happy to talk with you on the phone or watch you dance.  

Poppa and I know you like to dress up in Princess Dresses and that you love Disney princess movies.  We suspected that maybe it is hard to share dolls so thought maybe having extra dolls so everyone could play with their favorite might be fun.  We love seeing your smiling faces and miss you so very much. We are so happy that you live so close to Pops and Deedee.

Did you like the warm bathrobes that Auntie Suzy made you?  I thought she did a wonderful job.  I love that they have your name on them too.  They will help keep you warm after your baths or when you go swimming this summer in Pops and Deedee's pool.  I like the pretty colors.  I bet they are very soft too.

We know you had a really fun Christmas morning.  We miss your hugs and kisses.  We love you and pray for you every single day.

Your Diva

Advent Ribbons

 A Bennetch Christmas Tradition. 12 days of Christmas ribbon

 Years ago when our children were very young and had no sense of time they would get up every morning hoping it was Christmas.  They were so excited and would follow up with the next question such as......" Will it be Christmas tomorrow?"   

 So being a very poor pastor's wife we would make a paper chain with the exact number of links till it would be  Christmas. We would hang it by the table and every day we would cut off one link.  That way they could see how many sleeps till Christmas day.

As they grew older we would write an activity on each link to do for that day.  There were activities such as baking cookies, make Christmas cards, watch a Christmas movie, have a snowball fight, or sing a silly Christmas song.

As the children grew older each one wanted to make his or her own Christmas chain and write their own activity. Of course, they never wanted to do the same thing at the same time so that idea was quickly abandoned.

The next improvement was each child would tell me what colors they wanted their chain to be.  I would cut the strips and number them so one child got to be the leader in an activity, another got to be the one to pick out the book we would read together and the third child got a special message ( either a compliment or a  timed challenge with a reward ).  As you can easily see this led to hurt feelings with 3 preschoolers so this was quickly abandoned for our present-day solution.  

  

Now, Mom wraps candy with a  special note inside for each kid and glues it on a ribbon.   It used to be 25 notes times 3.  Each note had to be heartfelt, funny, or what I admired about them. And yes, they would compare them with each other to see who mom loved best.   

Our kids are grown now with kids of their own. I still make them ribbons every year as well as for each grandchild. The tradition is now the 12 days of Christmas. 

I also decorate and make some ribbons for extended family and friends.  Of course the older I get the more friends I've made.  So if you receive an Advent ribbon from me know that you are holding a special piece of my heart. 

Advent ribbon 2020

 

Lyra Jane,  you made the perfect Dorothy for Halloween.  I especially love your little dog and red shoes!  I love seeing your costumes every Halloween.  We miss you!  Diva and Poppa

 

 Lyra,  I love your enthusiasm for watching Superhero movies with your Daddy man!  Daddy-Daughter dates are the best.  Love your matching shirts.  Take care of him for me!  Diva

 

 
 

Lyra, I love that you were so excited about going to school.  Your Aunt Becky waited her whole life to go to kindergarten too!  She loved every minute of it.  I love your school uniform.  Miss my big girl.  Diva

 

 

 Lyra Jane...I love to see my ballerinas and hear that you and your sisters have dance parties frequently.  I am so glad you like to dance.  Diva does happy dances (when no one is watching!) Miss you! Diva

 

 

 

 

Lyra, what pretty finger polish you have!  I love it!!  What a wonderful mommy you have!  I think we should keep her,
don’t you?  Miss you more than hot chocolate on a cold day.  Your Diva

  

Lyra Jane,  I love this picture of all my Christmas elves with  Daddy Santa.  Do you get matching pajamas every year?  Diva and Poppa always look forward to seeing your pictures.  Miss you ...so much,  Diva and Poppa

 

Lyra, this is my favorite picture of you with your beautiful Momma, and your sisters.  I love that you have matching sister dresses.  I did too when we were growing up.  Love your bows.  Diva

 

 

 

 

Lyra Jane,  What a lucky girl you are to have a unicorn party.  I love this big unicorn blow-up.  Wish we could have been there to celebrate with you.  Five is Fun!  Diva and Poppa

 

 

 

 

Lyra Jane, thank you for sharing Lady with us.  She was such a sweet dog and brought us much joy.  She loved to cuddle and kept us active by walking her around the neighborhood.  We miss her.  Diva

 

 

 

Lyra Jane, what a lucky girl you are to have so many people that love you.  I am so glad your Dede and Pops live nearby so you can see them.    We miss you and your sisters but are happy you have a wonderful loving family nearby.  Diva and Poppa

 

 

Lyra, do you remember making handprints for Diva and Poppa?  I have them on my refrigerator so I see your little hand as well as your whole family.  Sometimes I put my hand on top of all of yours.  Miss you sweet girl.  Diva

 

 

 

Rub a dub dub, three girls in the tub.  Lyra when your daddy was little your Poppa used to help me by bathing all three of our kids in the bathtub at once.  There was always lots of giggling and lots of water on the bathroom floor.  Happy memories...Diva

 

Advent Ribbon 2019

Lyra, Poppa, and I loved being with you and your sisters this spring.  You are such a good big sister and a good helper to your Mommy and Daddy.  We love you to the Moon and Back Again.  Your Diva and Poppa

 

Lyra, Poppa, and I were so sad to hear about you hurting your leg this year.  Daddy Man told us you were very brave.  We pray for you every day and love you so much.  Diva

 

 

Lyra, your sisters will always be good playmates.  Remember to be kind and sweet to each of them even when they get into your things.   Diva and Poppa

 

  

Lyra Jane, I love this picture of you and baby Lexi.  It makes me smile.  Your Diva and Poppa both had big sisters that we love and talk to frequently even though they live far away now.  There is nothing as sweet as your family.  Diva

 

 

Lyra, I love my “Polka Dotty Girls”.  Your Mommy and Daddy love you so much and take good care of you and your sisters.  Thank you for being a good helper to them.  Diva

 

 

 

Lyra, this is one of my favorite memories from this year.  We love being with your Mommy and Daddy and all of our favorite Texas girls.  Lady misses you and sends you doggie kisses.  Diva and Poppa

 

 

Lyra, I love your purple pony.  I know about all the ponies from watching cartoons with your teenage cousin Emma.  She has been a big fan for many years and can tell you about her favorite ponies.   Love you, Diva

 

 Lyra , your Tennessee cousins are all into Scouting.  Here is a picture of them selling popcorn at the hardware store.  Isn’t Henry funny with the corny hat? Poppa and Uncle Tim help with the troop.  Your Daddy was a Cub Scout too.  Diva

 

 

Do you remember your big Cousin Emma?  She will be 13 in January.  She loved Lady and Lady was crazy about her.  Emma loves animals and has worked at the zoo during the summer.  She also loves art.  I think you will enjoy each other this summer.  Diva and Poppa

 

 

 

 

Lyra, we hope you have a happy Christmas and don’t forget to sing Happy Birthday for baby Jesus.  I love to hear you sing.  Love Diva

 

 

Lyra Jane, you are a special gift from God to our family.  We love you very much and love to see pictures of you and your sisters.  Did you know that your Daddy Man was once my little boy?  Be kind to your parents and thank you for being a good helper.  Diva

 

 

Merry Christmas from your Tennessee grandparents.  We love you so much and pray for you every day.   Love, Diva and Poppa

 

How I met your Poppa

I met your Poppa at church in a Sunday School class for College and Career.  I was new to the church and had seen him singing in the church choir.  I liked him instantly and decided to meet him.

I was working as a night nurse (11 to 7) shift at a hospital in Virginia Beach.  I had every other weekend off but decided I couldn't wait for a weekend that I was off so the following Sunday (after working all night) I went home and prepared "to meet HIM".  Yes, dear children, I stalked your Poppa!  I showered, curled my hair, wore my best dress, sprayed on Shalamar perfume, grabbed my Bible, and headed out the door on my quest to meet my Mr. Wonderful.

I arrived early and eagerly waited for him to show up.  He was late. Class started and after a preliminary welcome, we were encouraged to mingle and meet newcomers.  At last, my moment had come and I started my quest to meet him only to be stopped 4 times by people wanting to meet me.  My momma did not raise me to be rude so I missed my opportunity to meet him.

It was a big class (about 25 people) so we were divided into groups by counting off into groups of four.  I listen to whatever number he said and went directly to his group as soon as we broke up. I sat next to him and marveled at how smart and articulate he was.  (I should add that your Diva is attracted to Nerds.)

After class, I asked him if he was going to go to church so I could sit next to him.  He smiled sweetly and said "Yes, I am, I sing in the choir!  ( Rats!  I forgot about that.)   I gave him my best smile but it didn't persuade him to skip choir and sit with me.  So I sat by myself and dozed off and on through the sermon since I had been up all night long.  Hopefully, it looked like I was in deep meditation or prayer!

After church," I lingered longer" in hopes of accidentally bumping into him.  When that didn't happen I decided to give up and go home to bed defeated in my purpose.  When I got to my car, guess who was parked behind me?  Yes, dear children, it was your future Poppa.  God is good!

We talked, I flirted, and then he asked me to join him for lunch!  I forgot how tired I was and instantly agreed.  We went out for pizza and it felt very comfortable talking with him.  We laughed, and conversation seemed to flow in both directions. 

 When the bill arrived he discovered the restaurant didn't take credit cards and he only had a dollar in his pocket.  So yes dear children, I ended up paying for our first date and as I like to remind him....I've been paying for it ever since! 

 We met in March, got engaged in April, and were married in July. So you can see that even though your Poppa was shy and quiet when we met he definitely was just waiting for me.  We just celebrated our 46th anniversary this year.   

Summer recap

 

Hello, long-forgotten blog... I'm back!

I always have such good intentions!  However, my follow-through has a lot to be desired.

I love the fall.  I love the cooler weather, the fall foliage, apples cider, pumpkin everything, warm sweaters, mums, my birthday, Thanksgiving, and Christmas.

This summer was busy with a long-anticipated visit to Texas to meet our newest grandchild Lexi, and love on her big sisters Lyra and Lucy.  We came home with an unexpected blessing...Lady, our granddog, now our dog.  We flew to Texas but drove back in a rental car with Lady and all her belongings.  Our cats were not very receptive to the new family member but gradually realized she was not going anywhere so finally tolerated her.  

We loved having Becky, Emma, and Danny for two weeks in June and July.  It was an action-packed time with lots of activities, games, side trips, Diva Camp, 4th of July fireworks, and yes, the traditional family photo.  We miss them so much so have to get a year's worth of fun in the two weeks we have together.  Emma is 12, she is so tall and a real beauty.  She loves cats, art, girl guides, acting, and animals.

Suzy turned 40 this year.  How can that be?  My children are middle age!  I turn 70 this November!!  Yikes!  Becky starts her work on her  Doctorate this month.  She hopes to finish by the time Emma graduates.  Emma is entering 7th grade. 

The grandboys seem to grow every night.  Oz started 5th grade, Charlie 3rd grade and Henry is in first grade.  I love that they come running to give me hugs whenever we see them at church.  I know to soak it up now because there will come a day when they will be occupied with cars and girlfriends.


We no longer have our two cats JJ and Lucy.  Lucy was having many seizures each day and JJ had some serious intestinal issues and was losing weight.  They were littermates and lifelong companions.  They slept huddled together every night and neither would have done well without the other.  They were almost 18 years old and are missed daily.


My desire is to write more.  I need to get back to water aerobics at the senior center and fill my days with adventures.

Diva's Favorite Things

 

This is one of my favorite pictures of Lexi Anne.  She is growing so quickly.  It is very hard only getting to see her and her sister once a year.  We appreciate Rachel posting new pictures frequently of the girls.

This is another favorite picture of our current household.  Diva, Poppa, and Dog all together.  Lady has filled a big hole in our hearts and is a much loved, comical relief.  She is always ready for a walk or a cuddle.  She knows our habits and loves to nap with Poppa in the afternoon.  Last night she went upstairs to bed without us.  What a dog. 

Some of my Current Favorite Things.....

Dark Chocolate Hershey kisses,
Blue Bunny white chocolate cookies and cream 
weekly visits to the library 
babysitting with the grandboys
popcorn shrimp
grits and cheese
heart-shaped rocks
daisies
dragonflies and fireflies
seeing the scale go down
baby giggles
funny cat videos
pictures of the family
a rock tumbler
adventures
organizing my kitchen storage
using my air fryer
cooking new recipes
double recliner (big enough for Charlie, Lady and me)
spontaneous hugs from the boys
monthly Sunday Sermon with Charlie at the nursing home
pixel art app
video games
birthday cake
Advent calendars
Fall, leaves, sweaters, mums, pumpkin everything, apple everything
Christmas decorations and tree
chicken decorations
taco salad
homemade soup on a cold day
a fire in the fireplace
a warm blanket
hot herbal tea
a good book
flowers on my table
pandora (Christian radio)
turquoise jewelry and also my favorite color
Sunflowers
a new laptop for my birthday (yes, that's a hint)
spending time with friends
learning a new craft
making hearts with melty beads with the grandboys
binge-watching my favorite shows on Netflix
Thanksgiving
Christmas
Hallmark sappy movies
time travel anythings
mysteries
Diva Camp with the grandchildren
prayer partners
checking off lists
hats
haircuts
swing on my porch swing
flowers in the garden
air conditioning in the summer
scented candles
grilled cheese sandwiches
pockets
cool purses