I am a Sapphire baby ~ well, I'm not a baby any longer.  Actually I have two grandchildren that are sapphire babies as well; isn't that neat?

In my family we celebrate the entire month of our birthday and as per tradition I have been doing just that.  I was out for lunch Monday for my birthday, and today is actually my birthday.  My family from the other side of the state is coming here to celebrate on Sunday with a BIRTHDAY PARTY for us "September Babies."  My nephew, who lives in California is home to celebrate his birthday with his parents, and will also be joining us here for another birthday.  And my daughter-in-law is a September baby. 

So, I'd like to have a party here on tblog to celebrate my birthday.  Come to the party.  No gifts please ~ pshaw!  This old lady needs nothing more in her life, except the love and respect of her family and friends.  Can you stop by for some cake and ice cream?  Of course there will be coffee, tea, and soft drinks.  Oh, one more thing, lot of kisses ~ Hershey Kisses ~ love, love, love those!

Food we can't eat for various reasons:

Beef ~ Mad cow disease

Can't eat chicken ~ bird flu

Can't eat eggs ~ Salmonella

Can't eat pork ~ fears of trichinosis

Can't eat fish ~ heavy metals in waters poisoned their food

Can't eat fruits and veggies ~ insecticides and herbicides

Hmm ~ M M M M M M M M M M ~ !!!

I do believe that leaves "Chocolate"

Now that's a good thing!

Kisses anyone?

As in chocolate kisses!

Today marks the end of summer, in some places in this world.

Here in my corner of the world people are returning from the last of the summer vacation in preparation for the children to return to school. 

When I was a youngster our family took the last three weeks in August for a vacation to the home where my mother grew up.  We went up to the upper peninsula of Michigan to the old family homestead.  My uncle still lived in the family home and it was like stepping back in time.  Really!

The house was a lovely white two-story house on Main Street.  It had a covered porch all across the front of the house.  It had four bedrooms, parlor, a huge kitchen, and a coal room.  The house was heated with a coal stove in the parlor.  There was a barn out back that my uncle parked his truck in, and he built the ‘outhouse' inside of the barn. The barn was not as large as one might think, as this house was inside the township.  It basically looked like a three-car garage.  My uncle was a lumberjack and earned his living cutting timber from his property out in the woods and he made a comfortable living for himself.  However, he didn't need much to be happy!

The house did have electricity by this time.  That was all.  There was a huge wood-burning cook stove in the kitchen, which kept the house warm in the winter, and summer !   There was an area on the side of the stove, called 'the well' where one could always obtain hot water to do the dishes, etc. 

Water was obtained from the free-flowing spring down the street about two blocks away.   Many a time we kids were sent to literally ‘fetch a pail of water' and away we would go.  Of course by the time we returned there was only about half a pail of water left inside.  First of all, we couldn't carry the pail if it was full, and we would probably slosh half of what we had gotten on the ground by the time we got back to the house.  But that was not a problem.  The folks didn't mind.  Of course, dad could have driven down and obtained the water but it was a good way of keeping us kids occupied.  And how we loved to fetch a pail of water. 

And, when you wanted a drink of water you were to use the ladle and pour water into your glass, not take a drink out of the ladle like we had seen our uncle do.  He had to try really hard not to do that in front of us kids, as of course living alone, it didn't matter if he drank out of the ladle. 

As I grew up and later reflected on this, I marveled how my mother could return each summer and prepare meals for us using this old way, which was very different than how we lived back in our small house down state.   And this was in 1962! 

The Presbyterian Church across the street eventually bought the house from my uncle and added improvements; running water, bathroom, and all that stuff, and it became the church parsonage.  A strikingly beautiful home ~ still in use to this day!  Sitting on the front porch one could/can watch the freighters sail up and down the St Mary's River.  This is one of the very special places in my world. 

Ah, sweet memories!