December, 1955

I have a Debbie doll, and I have a sister, Debbie, and I got them both at about the same time.

The "bathinette" is yellow.  It is a table -- tall.  It has a rubber hammock and a length of rubber tube for Mommy to fill the hammock with warm water to give Debbie baths.  The bar of Ivory soap is smaller than the bars we use in our bathtub.  I think that Mommy got it at the Hospital.  It makes the water scummy -- just like it does in my bathtub.  But Debbie's skin smells sweet, when washed -- just like my skin smells when I get washed.  And Debbie's little bald head smells like Johnson's baby shampoo -- just like mine does.

Debbie has a black scab where her belly button should be.  She is so little.

The bathinette has a lid to cover it, which makes it into a "changing table" that Mommy uses to change Debbie's diapers.  The diapers are cotton -- white.  Over them go rubber pants. When they are wet, Mommy swishes them in the toilet while it's flushing, and then puts them in the diaper pail.  After the diaper pail is full, you do the wash.  Then you tumble them in the clothes dryer.  If you hang them on the line, they get too stiff, and give the baby a rash.

Debbie sleeps in my old crib.  I sleep in Mommy's old bed!  I saw her in this bed when I was a baby myself.  My crib was in the same room as Mommy's bed.  My earliest memory, probably 1953, was looking out the crib at Mommy laying on her bed (now my bed).  We lived with Grandpa and Grandma on Rathbone Street.  Daddy was in the Navy, and I didn't know him yet, back then.

My bed is gray.  It has a bookcase headboard.

(This will always be my bed until I marry Mark VanZyl in 1972.)

Mommy puts a "receiving blanket" on my lap, and lets me hold my baby sister.

I am three years old.

I've been surveyed

     President Obama (via the Democratic National Committee) sent me a survey today.  He/they wanted me to rank his/their performance on various "issues" that he/they had chosen to statistically rank. The survey is NOT anonymous - it has my name & address on it.  It was up to me to let them know I am a female.

The final section of the survey left some blank lines for comments about the president, the party, or the issues our nation is facing.  Here is what I wrote:

"The federal response to the BP oil spill has been a farce.  BP never intended to cap that well until they had their "relief well" drilled.  That's been clear to me for months now, and I am neither a scientist nor a politician.  I'm more disgusted with the "watchdog press" for not yapping about this, than what I am with Congress or the President for just using existing laws & saying BP has to pay.  But whatever the gov't's reasons -- you did turn a blind eye & let the pollution continue (in a very Republican manner, it seems to me).  Shame!"

... On second thought -- guess I won't mail back the survey.  Ranking a total of 13 issues in order of their priority is something I am not pleased with my answers to.  Several categories were repetitive actually. We had the economy, unemployment, and regulation of financial institutions & markets.  I have regulating institutions & markets #1, lowering unemployment #4, and America's Economic Situation #10.  Well, if I'd rated them all way up there, then Energy Independence and Fighting Terrorism couldn't have been in the top 3.

... Okay, on third thought -- maybe I will mail back the survey.  I just think that 3 categories that are all the same kind of skews the stew.  Ah well, they will have their statistics once we've all mailed back our surveys.  But how do they even know if they've got the mind of the people if they don't realize that they may not have asked the right questions?

Afterthought -- Back when Clinton was first elected, I had written him a letter (regarding his pro-abortion position).  He sent me back a response that was probably his pat answer to pro-lifers like me.  And for months thereafter I was CONSTANTLY being surveyed by the "President's commission on this- or-that" until I finally started to refuse to participate in their surveys.  These were phone surveys at the time -- and at that point, I had NEVER voted for a Democrat in my life.  At least this survey is by mail, and I did vote for Obama.

Just so you know, I'm pretty sure the democratic party doesn't actually know I voted for Obama (unless they read my blog).  They've been hoping to get me to donate to their cause ever since I voted in the Democratic primary the year George W. Bush ran the second time. Bush already had the Republican nomination as a done-deal.  I wanted to help choose the Democratic candidate, in case the dems would win the election that year.  In Michigan, you can vote in either the Republican or the Democratic primary -- not both -- but you do not have to be a card-carrying party member to vote in one or the other.  My guy didn't make it through the primaries, and turns out that was a good thing anyway, since it was John Edwards I had voted for.

Sigh.  I don't want to discuss the various issues here, BTW.  I vote fairly regularly, and try to keep up with the current events, just because I'm American and believe I ought to.  I don't at all enjoy political discussions, though.

I vote for the person, not the party; lately I do seem to lean a little more left than right on some issues; but I'm not necessarily proud of that fact. 

So I'm just going to keep this blog private for the time being.

Stuffed Green Peppers

Prepare 3 large green peppers by slicing off the stem ends, removing the webs, and then boiling them for 5 minutes in salted water. 

While the peppers are boiling, combine the following in a separate bowl:

1/2 lb. ground beef

1 c. cracker crumbs

1 T. chopped onion

1 t. salt

1/4 t. pepper

1 can (8 oz.) tomato sauce

Drain the peppers and place them in an ungreased casserole dish.  Stuff them with the ground beef mixture. Cover the casserole dish, and bake at 350 for 45 min., then uncover the casserole dish and bake 15 min. longer.

I usually serve these with baked potatoes that share the same oven, and with frozen corn prepared on top of the stove during the last several minutes before the peppers are done.

The nest is NOT empty

 Up early with a nice cup of coffee -- yesterday was an awesome day -- after 2 weekends of serious shopping, hubby and I finally found just the right set of tables for our living room.

Couple of weeks ago, youngest son (nearly 20 now) moved out of the nest.  I was a little at odds with myself wondering what to make of this new phase of life, and frankly, I was feeling rather sad and possibly useless.  I've been raising children quite a while, you see.  That job is now finished.  They all are grown, and nice young men, and God is good; but what do I do now, I wondered.

Well, as life would have it, I stumbled upon the answer.  After-the-fact, as usual LOL.  (I believe I have mentioned before that I always know exactly what to do -- ten years after any given life cycle challenge I am going through.)

Well, it just hit me when I woke up happy this morning:  Nesting is something you do with your mate... not your offspring.