Great-Great Grandma Flora Cora Smith April 25, 1912-June 17, 2010

Last week my mother's grandmother passed away at the age of 98. My sister had a little tribute of sorts on her blog and it was so nice that I thought I'd just share it with all of you. My sister just had a daughter who she named after our great-grandmother, they both share the middle name Cora.

"Abigail and Lily's great-great grandmother passed away on June 17, 2010. She was 98 years old. She was born in 1912, the same year the Titanic sank. She saw Mount Lassen erupt as a young child. She was a major part of my life growing up. Outside of my immediate family, she was probably the most influential person in my childhood. When I was young, she lived (with my great-grandfather) on an 80-acre cattle farm in Cottonwood, CA about 25 minutes from our house. Us kids visited often and spent many weekends there. We spent a lot of time in her huge greenhouse re-potting and watering plants, taking walks to the end of their property to look at Cottonwood Creek and eat figs from the trees, feeding the baby cows with huge bottles or the bigger cows crab apples that had fallen to the ground. She had an organ in her den that I don't remember ever playing and Pac Man on Atari that we did play once or twice. We sat on the floor in her dark, stuffy living room and were so bored watching Jeopardy and other game shows. We sat at our kid-sized table with our tea set at the end of the kitchen counter. We stretched our imaginations playing in an old truck camper shell that was on the ground in the yard. We climbed bales of hay up to the ceiling of the barn. We even briefly had a pony that bucked us off and then soon after found a new home. We had our own room where we slept on a daybed with pictures of sailboats on the walls. We went to early dinners at North's Chuck Wagon where they charged kids by how much they weighed (maybe not so PC these days) and loved getting to choose what we wanted to eat from the buffet (hand carved roast beef!). We did all the things that kids should do with her.

We played games. Grandma Smith loved to play games. I'm pretty sure she gave me my competitive nature. She never threw a game just because you were younger than her, she wanted to win just as much as anyone else, but never in a mean-spirited way. Right up until 98 years old she played games with us. I remember her playing pinochle with her friends weekly when she lived with my parents (in the late 1990s and early 2000s) and being on a bowling league well into her 70s. She loved to play dominoes with us kids and RummyKub and Phase 10. But she was always willing to play any game and was deeply offended if she wasn't invited to play. I'm sure this helped keep her mind sharp until the very end. She was also a big baseball fan. She loved the Braves, but I don't recall her having any ties to Atlanta. We went to many Giants games in San Francisco growing up and she often came along to see the Giants play the Braves. She also liked the Lakers, which never went over well in our house. But she enjoyed watching all sports."

I thought I'd also share some of the other things that I remember about her and our time that we spent with her (other than the things my sister mention, all of which I remember doing). I remember eating tuna fish sandwiches on toasted bread with pickles on our little table at the end of the counter. I remember standing on the two-tiered folding stool helping Grandma put the dishes away. I remember looking at the Christmas decorations that she put up every year. Especially the little fake trees she had; one covered in fake birds, the other was ceramic and had permanent lights fixed to the branches. I remember the "Easter baskets" that we got every year, these were just straw cowboy hats turned upside down and filled with treats. I remember looking over the fence on their ranch and saying hi to the horses next door. I remember exploring in the garage and trying to avoid the spiders. I remember chasing the cat around the house and watching him just sitting on the porch all day long. I remember playing in the sprinkler in the front yard. I remember drinking milk that came from her cows. I remember the first time we went down to her house and all the cows were gone (this was after Grandpa Cow passed away) and I couldn't figure out where they had all gone (my mom told me that the butcher took them and that our freezer was very full and I didn't really get it). I remember playing Yahtzee on the table in the living room that looked out the window into the backyard. I remember the blue tile in the bathroom and the soft cushioned toilet seat that I thought all old people had.

In later years I was able to get to know her better when she came to live with us. She was always doing something funny. We could often hear sports blaring from her room (baseball and bowling on full blast during all hours of the day). She had her friends over for cards very often so we got to know them too. Each time they came over Grandma was in charge of cooking dinner and once she cooked some pizza with the wrapper still on. They still ate it and didn't seem to mind one bit. She also had problems with her medicines and once was prescribed 10 times the amount she should have been taking and was hallucinating. She came out of her room and told us that the boy in her closet was hungry and wanted to know if we could make him a sandwich. She also wanted to know if the train in our backyard made regular stops. It was a little scary at the time, but later it turned into just another funny thing that happened while she was here. Another funny thing she did was drive straight by Jennifer and me while we were sitting on the side of the road after just having been in an accident. We were just a few houses down from our house and my dad's truck was sitting on the side of the road with the front end smashed and there was a motor home sicking out into the street with the back end all smashed up and she just smiled and waved and drove on by. Later she said that she did notice what was happening, but that she was late for cards and she didn't have time to stop.

Her last few years were spent at an assisted living home and was known for harassing the girls that work there. It was pretty funny to see how feisty she was and that even though she was getting old she was still sharp and wanted to make sure that she wasn't getting the short end of any stick. She also wanted to make sure that no one thought any less of her than what she actually was. When some one accused her of doing something she would argue until you saw things the way she did ("I did not fall asleep." "I did not fall off the bed." and so on). It was good to see this side of her and I could imagine what she must have been like when she was younger. She also loved showing Bella all the toys that she kept in her room. She loved turning on all of her animated stuffed animals and watching Bella react to them. She always wanted Bella to play with her as much as possible.

I am grateful that we had her in our lives and I'm so glad that we got to know her as well as we did. I'm so grateful that Bella got to know her great-great grandmother and I know that we'll make sure that she remembers her and how special it is that she had that opportunity.

Pictures, pictures, pictures...

Okay, we went 4 or so months without a laptop and only a fairly slow desktop without any storage so I couldn't upload any photos which also meant I couldn't post any pictures (at least not easily). So now that we have a laptop and a way to post some pics I thought I'd give you all a little treat and show you some of the funny things Bella has been doing these last few months. Most likely these are not going to be in any order, but give me some credit, at least I'm doing this much.

I'll start of with a shot from yesterday. Kellie came up this weekend and since she won't see Bella between now and her birthday, she made Bella a little cake. So we sang her "Happy Birthday" and let her blow out her candles and then let her go at her cake. There's a video of this at the end of this post.

She was being quite in the kitchen, which is usually not a good thing, but this is what I walked in to find. Yes, that is an upside down stool.

"Oh my!" She loves wearing Mommy's shoes.

I love the way she is standing.

She did not want to take pictures in the dress Grandma Sue sent her for Valentine's Day.

Until we let her put on the sunglasses and 'talk' on the phone.

So cool.
Loves the tubby.
This is the outfit she chose for herself so she could push around her doggy and kitty. Tiara, high heels, purse, stroller... perfect.
Playing dress up as Tinkerbell.
Playing dress up with Maddy.
Playing with the computer Grandma and Papa got her for Christmas.
Taking a swig of a cold one... a cold ROOTbeer, duh.
Maybe she thought we were having water problems in the living room? Either way Mommy's wellies are so much fun to wear.
Still one of her favorite games to play...
Lights on, lights off...
Look closely at Bella's face, she is copying the dog.
Playing hide and seek with herself.
Story time with Maddy.
"Sitting" in her chair Grandma and Papi Rogerson got her last year for her birthday.
She didn't want to look through the glass, only through the crack between the wall and the glass.
Pushing her doggy around the zoo.
We went down to Medford get another look at apartments in the area and got to spend a little time with my cousin and her family.
Another good use for Bella's baby doll stroller. Jacob 'pushing' Claire.
Jacob checking out the bug on his arm.

Bella finding Easter eggs at the park by our apartment.

Playing another piggy game with Daddy.

Singing "Happy Birthday" to Bella one week early.

Bella was the director of this video. I just found this on my camera. She took it a while ago, but I never saw it. Look at that crazy hair!

Me and two of my friends are taking a photography class. Last week during class we went out and took some action shots of a lacrosse game.

Then we went over to our teacher's son's baseball game. I love the puff of dust coming off the catcher's glove.
It was a stressful game. It reminded me a lot of going to my little brother's games.But it all worked out and they won.
Jen and I were feeling a little adventurous and decided that we should go out and take advantage of some early morning light. We got up before the sun and headed out to the Portland International Rose Test Gardens. Not too many roses at this point, but it was still pretty.
The Amphitheater at the Rose Test Gardens.
One of the only roses we saw.
This flower was crazy. That one purple bud was growing right along the other pink ones.

Bella = Turkey

As many of you may know, we call Bella "Turkey." She is such a little turkey sometimes that the name just seems to fit. Well, last night I was eating a salad with ham and turkey on it and Bella decided that she wanted to help me eat it. I started out giving her ham and for every bite that she wanted she had to say "ham, please" before I would give it to her. Then I asked her if she wanted turkey, she got this funny look on her face like she was a little confused and pointed to herself and said "Turkey?" She thought I was talking about her. It was pretty funny. So I told her that that meat was called turkey too. So when she asked for a bite of turkey she said "turkey too, please." Maybe it's time to give Bella a nickname that isn't food related.

Top 10 Things to do in Portland...

Okay guys, I need some suggestions. For those of you who live here, used to live here or have even visited I would like suggestions of things that we should do while we're here. Dusty informed me that I only have 23 days until we leave for our trip to Connecticut and then we'll only be here for about 3 or 4 days when we get back before we move for good. I want to make sure that I do all (or at least some) the things that are unique to Portland. I'm looking for parks to visit, sites to see, places to eat, shops to go to, walks to take or anything else you think I (we) should do. Even if it seems obvious to you (you think we may have already done it) suggest it anyway, we probably haven't done it. Help me get out of the house and do some fun things. I may even blog about it. Thanks in advance!

Annoying.... but so funny...

Bella is our little turkey, but she's still pretty funny. She knows what she wants and when she wants is and how she wants it done. She has an opinion about EVERYTHING! She is constantly trying to get into my personal space even after I've asked her NOT TO CLIMB ON ME. She loves sitting right in front of me (or even on me), she wants to use my arm to boost herself up onto the bed or couch or chair or... whatever else she can find, and basically be in constant contact with me or Dusty (and on the occasion her favorite mommy-substitute, Jen). She wants to show me how she can climb things, jump off things, slide down things or swing on things. She wants to show me what she's playing with and what each toy can do. She wants to tell us what she's going to have for dinner and then will decide if she really wants to eat it, even if we give her what she's chosen. She likes to push the buttons on her toys that make noise until I can't stand it (if I hear, "you've made a match, look what you've found, you've made a match hear a duck sound, quack quack"... one more time...). All the while she does these little funny things that consistently make me laugh. Her favorite friend's name is Maddy and for the longest time I thought she was calling for Maddy ALL THE TIME, but then realized when she says Mommy, it sounds exactly the same. Now I can tell which is which, but she does still call for Maddy multiple times throughout the day. Her favorite letters are O and P and she some times wanders the house just saying O,P,O,P,O,P... She likes it when new people enter the room, but instead of announcing them she announces herself ("BELLA!" or "Hi Bella"). She wants to know what mommy and daddy are doing and sometimes do the same thing. Yesterday Bella and I were laying in mommy and daddy's bed watching TV and she had to have her blanket over her just like mommy did and then she had to go out to the living room to make sure daddy had his blanket on too ("mommy's blanket, Bella's blanket, daddy's blanket"). She wants to make sure that we know certain things are just for her and usually refers to herself in third person ("Bella's train"). She likes to 'walk' on the ceiling in our apartment (a game we call "spider pig") and she'll go to daddy and just say "Bella piggy" when she wants to play. On occasion she likes to play by herself and when this miraculous event happens she doesn't want you in her room with her. If you try to enter she will tell you to leave ("daddy out" or "daddy no"). She finally knows how to open and close all the inside doors in our apartment. One of her new favorite games is to shut herself in our room and then wait for you to call her or ask where she is so she can "reveal" herself. Of course while she's waiting for you to call her she's standing on the other side of the door yelling "Bella! Bella! Bella!" and will continue to do that until you call her. She loves to wear shoes and likes to put them on herself. She can often be seen with two mismatched shoes, often on the wrong feet. I think she has finally figured out the potty and some times she will come and tell me that she's going to to go the bathroom, but when I ask her if she wants to go to the potty she says "Potty, no. No potty!" She likes to go over to the front door to go to the bathroom, I guess she just wants a little privacy. She also likes to announce to the room that she has tooted. Most often, we already know (she can be quite loud... must take after her daddy...), but in case we didn't hear her she'll tell us ("I toot"). She likes to use the TV remote and turn the TV off while we're watching it. She turns it off and then looks at us, so proud of her accomplishment. She is mastering the art of the "fake cry." I think she thinks that we buy it, but as soon as you can get eye contact she stops crying. So far it's not working in her favor. She likes to repeat what we say to her, often leaving out a few words or syllables. This can lead to some very funny concoctions. These are just a few of the things that Bella does on a daily bases that make me laugh, some times so hard that it makes her laugh and then I laugh harder, then she laughs harder. It can get a little crazy around here.

Now we know...

Dusty found out the rest of his schedule for next year. It looks like we'll be in Redding for about a month and a half and then he'll start his rotations in Meford the first week of August. He got all of his rotations in the Medford area so he won't have to travel at all. We can't wait to finally get the show on the road.

Another Medford Update

Dusty got two more rotations in the Medford Area (one is in Ashland). We are super excited about moving down there and being a little closer to home, but sad about leaving all the awesome friends we've made up here. We don't know when his first rotation will start so we don't know when we'll be moving yet. We'll keep you posted.