65th Birthday Letter Part 2

7-20-17

65^th Birthday Letter Part 2

   I write birthday letters to my grandchildren about their births and things that happen in their lives. I kept journals of their mom’s life.  No one will be around to tell the grandchildren about the birth of their grandma.  So I am going to try.  One thing that I remember my mom saying was that she was going to name me June.  I was supposed to be born in the month of June, but I pushed my way out on Tuesday, July 1, 1952 at 1:45pm.  I did not want the name June Bedrosky, not that Rene Juanita Bedrosky was any better.  I was 22 ¾ inches long and weighted 8lbs 5 1/2 ozs.  My mother was Deloris Helen Bussell Bedrosky age 22 and my father was PFC Richard Charles Bedrosky age 23.  At the time of my birth he was in the army stationed in Germany.  I was born at St. Catherine’s hospital in Omaha NE by Dr. Anthony Ross Pantano.  My birth cost $125.25 while the hospital charged $9.50 a day.  My mother could see me at 9:30 am, 1:30 pm, 5:30 pm, 9:30pm.  My baby bracelets cost $1.00 upon leaving the hospital.  Does that mean I did not have it until checkout, so maybe I was switched at birth?  Fathers saw their child at delivery and then once each evening between 7:30-8:30. 

     I have a lot of information regarding my birth since I was the first child of four.  So my mother saved things like Reminders for Maternity Patients, bills for my birth and crib, presents, clothes, cards etc.  I threw out some of my baby things, five years ago when I was downsizing.  I saved paper things that could be kept in a three ring binder.  I have my baby hair samples and a 14k gold baby ring.  If I had remembered that ring, it would have gone to the pawn shop when we cashed in most of all the gold and silver we had for the money.  I even was selling my wedding band, along with class rings, etc.  When I got home I threw the bag that I had everything in a drawer.  Months later I got the bag out and there was my white gold wedding band.  I had lost weight and my current wedding rings were too loose, so I wear the smaller original band on top of the loose rings.  Speaking of saving things, I still have the necklace that my father sent me at birth from Germany.  I’ve worn it at times, but will be handed down to children or grands, or taken to a pawn shop when we need money for nursing care in our later years.  Funny thing about life, you come into the world costing $125.50 and leave costing thousands, if not more.  We have bought our grave sites and marker, so one less cost.  It was a weird feeling seeing our grave site marker.  I am not one to visit grave sites, but I checked my mom’s site maybe a couple of years after her death, and they had not entered her death date that I had paid for.  

    When I was born I lived at 1203 ½ South 11^th St.  I think I remember my mom saying the house had a stone lion at the entrance by the side walk.  I later lived on A street by St. Thomas More in a house that my dad built in the so called country.  Too many neighbors, so we moved to 1403 Elm.  Elm street was in a hollow on a dead end street with just a few neighbors.  The house even had an out house until my dad added a septic tank and a bathroom.  All four kids shared a bedroom in the beginning. I was in 2nd grade when we moved to Elm St., and went to St. Patrick’s grade school.  

    I was baptized as an infant on 9-14-52 at St. Philomena, the church my parents were married at on July 28, 1951.  My dad must have had a leave from the army nine months before my birth, since he was in army during his wedding.  Maybe my mom met up for a visit when he was stationed in US for training nine months before my birth.  I don’t remember how my parents even met.  Kids, grandpa and grandma met at South High senior year.  Grandpa lived less that I mile from my house and we knew a lot of the same people.  We were in English class together, and I was the cute, thin, quiet girl with the long blond hair.  Grandpa had hair back then that was dark, and weighed a lot less because he played baseball.  Our families did not have things like chips, ice cream, sweet cereals, pop etc.  We gained the weight after we got married.  Brought the stuff we did not have as kids and even ate fast foods, or went to restaurants. 

      Grandkids that is just the little bit that I know about my birth, more info can be found in my binders. You will see other things like my old pay checks, report cards, and other things I saved.  I took pictures of the things that I threw out like books, art projects that I had saved from my childhood. I am still wondering if I may have been switched at birth.  Weston when you were born we thought you were, even though I was at your birth.  You had dark hair, and looked like a foreign baby next to the blondes’ of your siblings. You now look just like them, I still have a hard time telling you and Easton apart in pictures, and Katelyn has glasses now, so I can tell the girls apart now except in dance videos, since Kate does not wear her glasses.  I don’t think I look like my family.

Happy 65th Birthday

Happy 65^th Birthday on July 1, 2017

7/8/2017

   I write birthday letters to my grandchildren, so they will have information of their births and life events when they get older.  I have been thinking of writing about my birth and life events, since I turned 65.  Back in the day, I thought 65 was really, really old!  Now that I am 65, it really is not that old.  There have been times during my life that I felt old.  It really is a mind and body attitude verses a number. 
     When I was in college, I felt so old.  I was a mother of a 5 and 7 year old starting college, taking classes with students so young.  I really did well in college, since I studied and did not party in my old age of mid 30’s.  Then when I taught school, most teachers and paras were also so young, and I was so old.  Some teachers were having babies, and I was having grandchildren.  I really feel old when I work out at the gym.  Today’s Zumba class had the young ones jumping and keeping up with the smiling young instructor, while I danced to my own beat up in the front row.  I can’t see from the back, so I need to be up front in all classes.  I did ask the instructor, “How can you smile during a workout?”  She gave me some crazy answer like, “I enjoy working out. “ I only smile during classes, as I am exiting the gym class while taking out my ear plugs.  Going to a morning gym class, gets me out of bed.  When Pat is working, I don’t have a ride, so I can stay in bed until I hear the garage open, jump up and act like I have been up for hours.  I then hustle to make lunch.

     There are times when I feel young, very young.  We have traveled to Texas the last three years for the winter.  One meets a lot of older young at heart people.  One guy walked 8 miles on his 80^th birthday.  Today I walked in the park behind my house with gives me 3,000 steps and takes about 30 min.  I came home and just wanted to crash and take a nap.  I did not since I saw that the bed was made.  I heard that one should make the bed daily, so you are not tempted to go back to bed.  I always thought it was dumb to make your bed since you would be back in it around 7pm.  I like to get ready for bed fairly early, according to some.  It is my routine, I enjoy having a routine.  The special needs students that I worked with needed a routine, and since my brain disorder, I need routine in my life.

      I feel young when we camp with our camping group, go to camping rallies, and visit nursing homes/retirement homes.  Yesterday I walked up to the retirement home behind our home to visit an 88 year old neighbor that lived across the street when we lived in the Oaks.  I went to happy hour with her.  They played song bingo, drank, and had snacks, while I sat feeling young at 65.  She told me that the neighbors next door to our old house moved back in after living in a nursing home for most of the year.  They are both 95.  The husband hated the nursing home, so if one can live out their final years in a home that they raised their children in, so do it.   When we lived in our old neighborhood, we were surrounded by older folks.  I remember putting the girls to bed, and then going out to sit with the neighbors visiting.  We just don’t do that kind of thing in our neighborhood.  Pat sits in the garage in his rocker, and the walkers going to the park will stop by and visit the 65 year old guy sitting in his rocker.  I will go to the park to walk and end up making a new friend, as I talk and walk with a stranger.

       I am thankful for Pat and me making it to age 65, with our original body parts minus a few losses for me along the way. We take no meds, have no major pains, Pat’s pain is just having to deal with me.  The Lord has blessed us with young and old family members, friends, neighbors, and camping and church friends.  I had planned on writing about my birth, for my grandchildren, but that will have to wait for another time.  It is going on 7pm and my Sat. night routine is to wash and curl my hair for church in the morning.  I had 8,825 today, and I am tired.  Before I turned 65, some days I got 10,000 steps.  I am so feeling my age of 65 tonight.

First Blog of 2017

3-27-17

First Blog of 2017

    Back when I first starting blogging during the winter of 2013, I was just trying to stay busy.  I was looking for a hobby, so I tried writing.  I had always written letters to the grandchildren to read when they get older, and I was gone.  If not dead, I thought they could visit me in my nursing home, and read to me things that I could not remember anymore.  Maybe instead of writing today, I should read those letters to help me remember my past.  I don’t want to admit it, but I do have memory issues, according to Pat.  In church Sunday, Mark was having a memory issue about finding a Bible passage.  Pat pats my leg and whispered, “You’re not the only one with memory issues.” Writing is good for my brain, along with napping, exercise, healthy eating.  I went to the gym this morning, ate a healthy lunch, and may take a nap later. 

    What to write about:  so many thoughts and ideas, so maybe I will start with, Angie needs to meet a Christian, working, kind, thoughtful, not controlling, patient man.   No Angie I am just kidding.  God has a plan for your life.  I could write about Julie, and the grandkids and all their many activities.  I could write about Pat or the dogs, but I have written about them already.  I will start with, Why I am so happy to be home, then lead into why I love being in Texas for the winter.

    Mixed Feelings

   It is great to be back in NE.  We spent some days in Grand Island visiting my daughters.  I had missed everyone and Face Time is just not the same.  Landon was not sure who I was; he wanted nothing to do with me in the beginning.  He warmed up after I took him outside to play.  I went with the kids to co op classes, and spent the day with Landon in the nursery.  Angie took me to see the girls in their first dance competition.  It was a fun time even though I could not see them dance.  Way too many girls, and sitting up too high to see.  They won second place.  Got to take the grand dogs for a long walk did lose the youngest puppy, but Julie ran after her and caught her.  I dropped her leash while I was still in the garage.  I saw the sand hill cranes, which was on my bucket list from last year.  I saw one fairly close on the roadside.  They are very tall birds. 

    It was good to get back to church and see our church friends.  We also visited some family, some old neighbors, and met new neighbor that moved in while we were gone.  Cleaned out the camper, did all the wash.  The girls that stayed the winter cleaned the house before they left.  My shower never looked so clean.  It was like I was showering in a nice clean hotel.  I am so trying to keep it clean.  I have a slight vision problem; ok I am blind and cannot see all the shower scum along with floor scum, crooked paintings, clothing stains, food on my face etc.  Weston told me once, “Grandma you don’t expect me to take a shower in that dirty shower.” We have a park in our back yard, so I took Riley for a walk.  I love walking in our park, saw robins, but lately it is too cold and rainy to walk or work in the yard.  Which leads me to missing Texas?

     We winter in Rockport, TX at Wilderness Oaks RV Resort in our Class A motor home.  Rockport is an island type town surrounded by water.  It is close enough to walk along the bay water and see the water birds.  A lot of people bike or walk.  Pat left his bike done there last winter, so he did some bike riding.  I do the walking, sometimes with my dogs, or other dogs, friends or by myself.   I do have a walking problem.  I sometimes walk out in front of cars that I cannot hear, can get lost at times, and walk like I have been drinking.  Not talking about those problems, I tend to stop and talk.  Pat will come looking for me and find me talking to friends or strangers, at their sites.  The weather is so nice that people sit out just waiting for someone to come by and talk too.  It is kind of like and outside nursing home, if you know what I mean? When I would visit my mom, the residents would hang out at the main entrance or at the elevators. So that is my winter mission, to visit and keep busy.  I keep a little book and write down names.  If you can’t find someone to talk with on a walk, then you hang out at the rec/club hall.  People are doing activities throughout the day and night.  We receive a monthly calendar, just like in a nursing/retirement home.  This resort is much cheaper, under $400 a month vs the retirement home behind us at $3,000 -4,000 a month.  The new memory home nearby is $6,000 a month.  In Rockport there is an adult daycare that Pat can drop me off, and then he can go out and fish etc., while I sit in my chair drooling, a lot cheaper than $6,000.  My Rockport friends will stop by and wipe the drool off my face, or walk me, take me swimming, or help me with a game of cards.  They do that already, thanks friends, maybe not the drool yet.  
     With minor support I can play games.  I play Bunco, card Bingo, Bingo, and other fun games that I can’t remember the names, may be marbles, fast track, another one that you start with 3 cards and 3 is wild, and then you keep going to Kings.  Friends would help me with the clubs and spades when playing card Bingo, since they look alike to me, because they are both black. Pat likes to play Cribbage with his friends. I took part in three line dancing classes during the week.  It was really good for my brain and body to have to remember the moves.  Our teacher was so patient with me and the others.  I attended a Bible study that was really good, and a great way to met new friends and share prayer requests.  We had many celebrations at the club house that involved food.  I did gain weight, and I am sure Pat did also.  We did go out to eat with NE friends every Sunday after church, and before games.  We had a couple from our camping club in NE come and visit for the week, so more going out to eat and playing games that week. 

    Back to the mixed feelings again, while I am writing about Texas.  The weather was great, a little on the windy side.  Every time Pat had a fishing trip planned it was too windy.  He did get to go on one deep sea trip, so we have a couple of fish dinners in the freezer.  He needed to get out and fish more, but maybe next year.  There are many places to visit and keep busy.  I saw many different birds, wild hogs, armadillo, and alligators.  Did not see snakes, and made sure I did not let the dogs walk in the brush.  April 1^st a lot of folks will be leaving, and heading north.  Some friends will be at different campgrounds next year in Rockport or other warm climates.  Some of those friends I will see on Face book.  Hope to winter at the same resort, if it is in God’s plan for our life. 

     We plan to travel, as long as we can.  I still worry about the cost of traveling, but I am overcoming that.  I used to think about how we have to save money for retirement.  We did that, and we are retired.  The cost of those retirement centers, helps me justify spending the money on the RV, gas etc.  No Pat we are not getting a new RV, now that this one is a 2016.   We have just the right amount of room, for the many things that I brought to TX and did not use or eat.  Pat keeps reminding me that they do have grocery stores in TX.  I did come home with more clothes than I took down.  They have a really nice thrift store in Rockport.  So next year I can just buy a new wardrobe.  That may not work since I would have to get rid of things at home.  I have such a problem with that; I am still keeping large size pants, for when I gain weight. 

     We have a busy summer planned, such as Good Sam camping, three camping rallies, campground hosting, grandchildren activities, and other events Lord willing.  I once wrote about how I could not say that R word.  Not I can now say retirement (but not for Pat) he still needs to work part time for something to do.  I am now encouraging others to retire, camp, and travel when they can.  So if you are reading this, have you ever thought of camping and traveling?  Traveling does not need to be far away.  We like to camp about 15 min. from our house.  Close enough to do laundry, water the grass, and check the mail.  Maybe our resort needs to add this into their advertisements, “Come to our outside retirement village, much cheaper than a $3,000-$4000 retirement home, we have some of the same activities but at a much lower cost.  Come and retire with us!”
Off to take my nap!

Riley and Missy's New Year Letter

12-28-16

Riley and Missy’s Holiday News Letter

Hope all our friends out there did not eat too much over the holidays.  We sure did, so mom is trying to take us on forced walks.  I love the walks, but my sister Missy would rather stay back at the RV, and sit in Dad’s lap.  She is Daddy’s lap dog. 

We have had a great year sniffing butts on our travels and walks.  We have visited our cousins/Mom’s grand dogs Maggie and Zoey in Grand Island, NE.  They have rawhide bones all over, and a really cool doggie door that we can use all day long.  Maggie is getting older and can’t jump up on their couch.  I have troubles also jumping, but not due to age but the extra pounds that I am carrying around. 

 Mom calls me “Fat Boy”.  There is a really fat dachshund here on 4th street by the dog park. He has had way too many dog treats in his life.  His mom works in the office here, and Mom takes me and sis into check the mail.  Well if she does not get me my treat right away, I bark and bark.  Mom said I am grounded from the office, because of my barking.  It is an office, and dogs need to be quiet!  I just get so excited that I bark when treats are involved.  Yes, I do bark at big dogs and some little dogs.  I can’t forget the cats that I bark at named Gracie and Rags.  Their moms walk them in a cart around the park.  They will not let me sniff their butts.  Missy did get to play with a cat at the treat/feed store that we get to go and pick out our chew treats.  She had a really good time playing with the cat.  Mom thinks Missy lived with cats in her home before our home.    Dad would find her in the trees in our back yard when she first moved in.

We go camping with mom and dad when they camp with their camping club.  We miss Nellie since she does not camp any more.  We camped with Joey from Norfolk,NE.  We first met him in Texas three years ago, but his parents make him stay in the cold of NE. We camped in North Platte,NE with a pup named Cooper. We might get to see him again in Rockport.  We also camped in Pueblo, CO for a Newmar Rally.  We met a new friend Maximillion who was a service dog.  He could go with his parents to the dinners and the shows and to restaurants.  That was not fair.  We are guide dogs for our blind mom, but we don’t have a vest to wear.  Come to think of it, we really don’t do a very good job as guide dogs.  Today mom walked out in front of a car again.  She has done that a few times in the past.  She has also gotten lost, we tried to find our way back to the camper but she did not listen.

We have some old friends coming back to the campground that are not here yet.   We are still waiting to see Sprocket and Mattie.  We have made some new friends.  There are two cuties on 4^th street named Baily and April.  Old friends like Penny, who does not bark just sits with a toy in her mouth.  I think she thinks I will steal her toy.  Samson and Goliath are back, they are really big dogs.  Last year mom went walking with them.  Samson is really scared of us.  We have also sniffed the butts of Tiny, Missy, and other short dogs.  We keep away of the big scary dogs.  There are a few of them at Wilderness Oaks in Rockport Texas.  We love the weather, our park walks, rides, treats, and butt sniffing. Have a great new year to all our friends out there.  PS  I had a lot of troubles typing this, since my paws are so large.