Williamson County Fair 2011 Quilt Story

Robin and I went to the Williamson County Fair last night; needless to say I am quite tired this morning, but it was so much fun. I had not been to a fair in over 10 years, but it was a little more expensive than I thought.

There was one section that was called the "Old Days", and there were quilts, lanterns, weaved baskets, looms, and the sad part is that I remember some of these items from my childhood. I'm not as old as some of my friends (Paulette, Lori, Georgia, Vicki and etc.); I bet they would remember all of these old, precious things.

One of the people manning this exhibit told us a story; I'll never forget her telling it, and I wanted to share with you. There was this beautiful quilt hanging on the wall; during last year's fair, everyone could participate in creating a quilt square that would be quilted together for display this year. She said that this big, burly, tattooed man came up to her, and asked if he could create a square. Of course, and he put together this purple star burst with a dark color in the background. The attendant asked him if there was a story behind that square; he said yes, and began to tell his story. His mother had passed away within the past year; he wasn't able to go to the funeral due that he was in prison, and they wouldn't let him out to go. Purple was his mother's favorite color, the dark color of the background was how he felt about not being able to go to the funeral. He thanked the person who helped him put together this quilt piece; he said it helped him to have closure. Everyone in the exhibit was hoping that he would come back this year to see his square quilted together with all the other squares; they had it displayed on the back wall of the exhibit.

The lady telling this story to us said, "You never know who you are going touch, or even help out"! She had an image of this guy with all the tattoos, being in prison to be such a bad guy, but it turned out he was just a big old teddy bear. (That was her exact words.)

Don't judge a book by it's cover, and no matter how much stuff you have or don't have, there's still a chance that you can help someone else. This was just a quilt square to most of the other people creating them, but it meant the world to this man who seemed to love his mother dearly.

Amazing, Amazing story that brought a tear to both Robin and my eyes; I sure hope he came back to the fair this year to see that quilt! I wished they were creating squares to make a quilt for next year's fair; I would have made one, and tried to put as much thought into as this nice man did.

Monday's Recipe - This is for Abatha who is out of the Country for her 10th Wedding Anniversary!

Slow Cooker Taco Chicken - Penny's Creation

4 frozen boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
1 Bag Broccoli Florets
1 Package McCormick Taco Seasoning
1 16 oz Can Diced Tomatoes
1 Package of Whole Wheat Pita Pockets

Place chicken and Broccoli Florets in slow cooker. In a bowl, mix the Taco Seasoning with the 16 ounce can of diced tomatoes. Pour over chicken.

Cover and cook for 3-4 hours on High or 6-8 hours on Low. Serve in whole wheat pita pockets. Optional items on top are sour cream, green onions and salsa. Of course, I put Heinz ketchup, but I put Ketchup on everything! YUMMO!

Note: Abatha has a probe on her crockpot that sticks in the meat. You can set it so that when it reaches the "cooked" internal temperature, it switches the pot to warm so that you don't come home to scorched food if you have to be gone more than 8 hours a day. I don't have a probe, my crock pot is way old, but the chicken was falling apart after 6 hours on high.

Enjoy!

Paulette is a Grandma! - Boy is she old!

Owen Harris Maynord

Born July 26, 2011

11:40 AM

6 pounds 1 ounce

19 3/4 inches long

Robin & I drove to Cookeville last night to see this precious little boy named Owen; Caitlin and Brandon were so excited, and were doing GREAT with him. Of course, Grandma Paulette couldn't put him down. She was able to pull away from him for just a few minutes so Robin and I could hold him. I haven't held a baby in over 20 years I think; he was so little, and made all these faces. Thank goodness Paulette was sitting next to me, because at any moment I thought he was going to start crying. He didn't cry though!

I got to see the nursery, and Brandon & Caitlin's house. It was so beautiful! Clothes and more clothes for Owen; I hope he gets to wear them all. Robin and I took them a "Snowball" plant with a blue bloom; I just had to get that plant, Paulette always corrects me on the name. It's really a "Hydrangea" plant. Poor Paulette; does she know that I just like to harass her? Maybe? The sweetest gift that I saw (besides Owen) was a ruby/diamond ring that Brandon had gotten Caitlin; it was a push gift, and the ruby is Owens birth stone. The diamonds are Brandon's birthstone! Two for one; it's so sweet that Brandon thought of that, and it was completely beautiful. Paulette and John raised an amazing son; I have no doubt that Caitlin and Brandon will raise an amazing son!

Congratulations Maynord Family!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!

See Mom, I remembered your birthday! I found this picture; it's the exact way I want to remember you, a smile on your face and a Pepsi in your hand. Boy, you liked those Pepsi's almost as you liked all your kids. Wendy, Robin and I were lucky to have you as a Mom; Debbie and Kris were lucky to have you as a Mamaw, you were a GREAT Mom and Mamaw.

Happy Birthday Mom (July 24th); we love you!

Skate of the Union Address - Predators Fan Day 7-13-11

I receive the Predators newsletter weekly, and last week I noticed there was going to be a Predator's Fan Day open to the public on July 13 from 10 a.m. until 8 p.m. My life has been a little stressful lately; I needed some shopping therapy and fun. Thank goodness Paulette was up for this adventure. We both got off work, and planned the day.

We met at Cracker Barrel at 8 a.m.; Paulette ordered 2 eggs, bacon, granola, yogurt, and a blueberry muffin. Of course, I had to be like my friend Paulette and said "I'll have the same". Well, it was nutritious with protein, carbs, fiber and surely something else. It did last until 1 p.m. when we had lunch.

We parked and got to the Predator's arena at about 9:45 a.m., there were a few people there, but not too many. When they opened the doors at exactly 10 a.m. we saw all these people running to get in line for something. We ran to the sidewalk sale at the Pro Shop instead; it was amazing, shirts for $5, hats for $5, bags for $20. Boy, I racked up on a few Christmas presents and a few items for me.

After that we found out why people were in line; it was the used equipment sale, and it didn't start until 11:30 a.m. It was 10:30 a.m., but Paulette and I took turns going to get free Cola drinks at the pizza place. Free drinks and Free popcorn all day long. AWESOME! While standing in line, Paulette had to go to the ladies room. She left me in line to hold our place; while she was gone the line started moving, and only season ticket holders could go in. I'm not a season ticket owner; boy did I panic, but the line stopped four people from the door. They were only letting fifty people in at a time; thank goodness Paulette made it back to the line once she found where I was. I purchased a hockey stick used by GOC and a Predator's long sleeve new shirt that Reebok had made for the team. Only forty dollars, Paulette purchased a hockey stick and shirt. John (Paulette's husband) loved his hockey stick.

It was lunch time now; we didn't have to be back to the arena until 2:30 p.m.; that's when we needed to be back to get the Predator's Dancers and Skaters autographs for Paulette's husband. Merchants is where we ate lunch; we had fried green tomato sandwiches and fries. It was a swanky place with the water already on the table within a glass bottle. The food was excellent, it was a little pricey, but was worth going. Nice employees; I would go back, but probably not often.

Then it was onto the tour of the locker room at 4 p.m.; we road the elevator down one floor, and we got to go through their locker room, lounge, play room and weight room. It concluded at the rink where Paulette and I got paws painted on our face and took a few pictures.

Next it was to go stand in line for the hockey player autographs; the line was wrapped around the arena, and it was suppose to start at 4:30 p.m. It didn't, at 5 p.m. they were not there yet due to an interview. Paulette and I were tired, so we decided to skip out on the autograph session. They only had an hour to sign autographs; we were so far back in line, I don't know if we would have made it. So, we got a picture and autograph from Gnash the mascot. He was ridding a scooter.

We went and bought a t-shirt with their new logo on it, and then started walking back to the car admiring all the buildings along the way. Their new Jerseys would be reviled that night at 6 p.m. at the Skate of the Union Address; the new logo had a yellow stripe though the predator head, and it had some additional features. Musical notes, keyboard, guitar pick with the Tennessee logo of three stars within it. They had a yellow and a white jersey for the 2011 & 2012 season.

There was a card board cut out of the player TooToo right where we were leaving; we both took a picture by it, and Paulette had to tell someone close by that she almost had to hurt someone at a game due to the fact they kept blowing their whistle when TooToo came on the ice. I so am getting her a TooToo whistle for Christmas!

Good Things Happen on the 4th of July 2011

I am proud to be an American; I don't know how proud I am of my neighbors shooting fireworks off until 11:30 p.m. when I have to go to work the next day, but I'll be a good neighbor and be happy they had fun. Probably will rethink that decision when I have to get up early in the morning though.

I did have a fun 4th of July weekend this year!

1. Robin found my favorite wine at a local liquor store; it's from the Mountain Valley Winery close to the Smokies, and it's called Country Red. Tastes just like grape juice.
2. Jim mixed some champagne with a peach mix that you freeze; it was completely delicious, and I still have some.

*I didn't drink that much!

3. My Aunt came to stay with us for a couple of days, and we got along for the most part. :-)
4. Went to "Franklin on the 4th"; there were crafts/vendors around the square downtown in Franklin, TN, and we walked/shopped for a while (It was a little hot!). FUN!
5. My niece Debbie called; I got to talk to her and her son Grady, made the whole weekend the best. Her husband Mike may have a job offer close to Las Vegas; glad she is doing well, and boy do I miss her. We're getting matching tattooes when I go visit her; Robin says I will chicken out.

Hope everyone had an AWESOME July 4th like I did!

It's the Little Things that Make Us Happy!

My boss went on a trip, and left her car keys with me. She was returning today, and I realized that her keys looked different. That's because her car starts by pushing a button; I just had to go try it out, and I needed someone to take the fall in case the alarm went off. So, my buddy Paulette went with me to check it out. See we found the button, but it wouldn't start. Paulette's foot wasn't on the brake. Don't laugh to hard, we did finally get it started!

Short video below:

Kathy: thanks so much for having such an awesome car, letting us start your car, take photos standing by it, and making our day. You are the best ever!

You will leave your keys with me again right?