Painting, Puppies, And Shopping

It seemed like everyone was taking it easy the days following the Wish Party and the two (2) birthday parties. The weather was great. Yes, there were a few rain showers but that is to be expected in the spring. That and sunshine help make the flowers and trees bloom, the mushrooms pop up in the woods and most of all, it makes people smile.
 Some new Marleewood friends were out in the country visiting and having a ball. They were making T-shirts and playing with new puppies. How much fun is that? Grandparents always seem like they have such fun things to do. These four (4) are making their own T-shirts. Maddie, Maya, Ben and Matthew all had their own paints and shirt to paint. What a fun idea. They said they were going to tell their friends about this. It was so neat to wear shirts that they had made themselves.
The very best part of all of course, was to be with family, but those puppies were sure fun too!
Kylee and Kenlee's Nana felt the need to go shopping today. She wanted a couple of bags for the girls to play dress up with. She loved doing things with all of her grandchildren. She also had things to take to the Thrift Shop so she stopped and left her bags of clothing and other things with the lady at the counter.
She decided to look around to see what she could find. "Oh look at that black bag. That looks a lot like the one that Grandma Lu carries. I've always admired that bag. Oh my goodness, it is only a quarter. I will certainly buy that. Things are so reasonable in here. I need to look some more. I will probably buy more than what I brought in. Oh well, it is a beautiful day outside. I may even go to some garage sales when I'm through here. I need to go to the grocery store too. This is such a fun day."
Nana ended up with two (2) black bags of wonderful things that she had bought at the Thrift Shop plus some things at a garage sale. She was almost too tired to buy some things she needed at the grocery store, but decided she had better stop anyway just in case the kids dropped in. She had heard about new marshmallows that were stuffed with chocolate. "I just might look for some of those to make s'mores with. Sounds good to me," she thought with a chuckle.
But at the Mini Farm Marlee wasn't chuckling. She was deep in thought. She and her Papa were sitting out on the porch looking at the little animals and just enjoying the beautiful weather. At least that's what Marlee's Papa thought.
What do you think Marlee was thinking about?

Two Parties And A Mistake

The day after the Wish Party Marlee and her family were on the way to a friend's birthday party. It was a grown up party so she and her sister were all dressed up. There was another birthday party later in the day for Andy.
After they were on the road for awhile Marlee said, "Grandma B I got somethin' to tell you."
Grandma B said, "Okay, what's up?"
Marlee said, "Well, I gave that golden egg to Grandma Lu for her Wish Party. I told her she had to give it back in three (3) days so don't be mad at me, K?"
Grandma B smiled and said, "I'm not mad at you Marlee girl, but you should have asked me first. But I can tell, you already know that, don't you? Grandma Lu is our friend and if she says she will give it back she will. Why did you give that old egg to her anyway?"
Marlee said, "I just wanted her to have something pretty. I told her it wasn't any good for wishin' and that it was used. She was nice and gave me a hug. She put it in her purse. I hope she doesn't lose it."
They decided that they would go to some garage sales on the way to the party. Marlee liked looking at things, but Whitlee Jo decided that she would cry if someone didn't hold her. Marlee just shook her head. "I'm sure glad I never acted like that. She sure is noisy!" For a reason Marlee couldn't figure out, all of the grownups laughed, even Grandma B. "Well, I'm sure I didn't ," she thought with a grumpy voice.
Marlee and her whole family went to the grownup party. "It was fun for grown up stuff," she thought. "The restaurant had good stuff to eat."
While Marlee and her family were in the city, Grandma Lu was at home feeling kind of bored. Yesterday's party was so much fun, but today was so quiet she didn't have anything to do or anyone to talk to.
"Well, old girl, enough of this. I think I will change out bags for spring. This old black thing just won't do. I think I will see if I can't find a pretty bag from last year. If not I just might go shopping for a new one." After some rummaging around in her closet she did find a suitable white bag that would do for awhile. She took it out into the living room and sat down in her easy chair to change out her purses. "Boy, I have a lot of stuff in this old black bag. Oh, I see why. Marlee gave me that golden egg that I put in here." She chuckled to herself and put the egg on her end table until she had taken everything out of the black one into the white one. "I will put this golden egg back in the black purse for now. I must remember to give it back to Marlee next time I see her."
"For right now I think I will go through my closet and get a bag of summer clothes ready for the thrift shop."
And she did just that. She had two (2) black bags of clothes and the black purse sitting on the floor by her chair.
 Soon her husband came home and she asked him if he would take the black bags to  the thrift shop for her because she needed to go shopping. She told him that they needed to go so she had more room to get out her summer clothes that she soon would need to be wearing. He did just what she asked him to except he picked up the black purse as well as the black trash bags. You see he has heard Grandma Lu call her purse a "bag" so it went to the Thrift Shop as well as the bags of clothes.
In Texas, Andy was having a ball at his birthday party. He loves the Incredible Hulk. His mama even made green eggs! There was so much food. There was BBQ and beans and of course, his Incredible cake! Andy was so lucky the weather was nice so that he and his friends could play on the trampoline. In fact it was so nice that even his baby sister, Julia could go outside and watch all the "big kids" play. Andy wasn't a little kid anymore he was three (3) years old. He got a wonderful kitchen set. He just loves it! It has so many pieces just like his mama's big one.
His mama sent some photos for Grandma Lu's new photo album. She will be so happy when she gets them. However, I wonder if she will be happy when she gets home from shopping when she discovers that her black bag is missing. Maybe she won't even miss it for a few days. This might be interesting to see what happens...

Grandma Lu's Jar Of Wishes Party

Grandma Lu didn't live very far from Marleewood so she didn't drive today. She was humming and singing "Oh what a beautiful day" to herself on the way home. It was a beautiful day, the sun was shining and all of the new spring flowers made the air smell like lady's perfume that smelled a lot like lilacs. They were her favorite flower. She was hoping to herself that her husband was home. She wanted to go somewhere; maybe out to eat for lunch. When she walked in the house her husband was gone."Probably out to the grocery story or talking to his friends at the park." she said to herself with disappointment.
Meanwhile at Marleewood the parking lot was filling up with big cars, pickup trucks and little cars like Addie and Kanyon drive.
There were new little picnic tables and even a new BBQ started. It looked like someone was going to make hot dogs for the party.
There were centerpieces for the tables being brought in as well as food and gifts. This was turning out to be quite a party. There was a beautiful fruit plate brought as well as Grandma B's cupcakes. There were decorated Easter eggs and chocolate rabbits that were on the tables as well. Arianna and her parents and grandmother were on their way. I sure hope Grandma Lu likes her little box that Arie made for her.
Andy was at the bbq pit already fixing some hot dogs.
Jaxson and Nova Jo were on their way too.
Emma was running to get there in time.

Children were bringing pictures that they had drawn as well as some that Mrs. Owen's husband had painted. Folks had heard that Grandma Lu wanted to honor the couple by hanging his paintings  in Marleewood.
Whitlee Jo and her mama were already there. Things were coming together. Baby Addison wore her bunny ears. Such a cute little baby.
Bella and her brothers were there. Bella had made a beautiful bouquet for Grandma Lu. She couldn't wait to tell Grandma Lu that she was going to start school this fall. Kylee and Sawyer were both excited about starting school too. They hoped that Grandma Lu would be here pretty soon. They kept looking down the street to see if she was walking down the sidewalk.

Marlee wasn't here yet either. She had a surprise for Grandma Lu that she had gotten on an Easter Egg hunt at her Grandma B's house. It was a golden egg. She had heard that they were supposed to  make wishes come true too. She didn't believe it though, because it was used. Grandma B said that she had gotten it when she was a little girl. She had made a wish on it, but her wish had not come true. She kept it because it was pretty and shiny. So she had hidden it out in her yard so Marlee could find it and put it in her Easter basket. Marlee found it alright. She was going to give it to Grandma Lu.

All of a sudden the children saw Grandma Lu riding in Grandma B's car into the parking lot. They all ran over to her and started talking to her all at the same time. Grandma Lu laughed and said, "What are all you children doing here?"
The children all said at the same time."This is a jar of wishes party. We have presents for you and all kinds of food.

Marlee reached into her pocket and reached up towards Grandma Lu with her golden egg. This is my present to you, Grandma Lu. It's a gold egg. It is used and not much good. It's pretty though. You can put it by your chair at home. You can't keep it very long though." Oh Grandma Lu laughed and said, "Okay, I'll keep it just for three (3) days. Is that okay?"
Marlee grinned and said, "Yes, that's okay, then you have to give it back to me." Grandma Lu agreed and went on to talk to all the other folks and children there. She couldn't believe how many friends she had. What a wonderful day. She put Marlee's golden egg in her purse and went over to the BBQ pit and had a hot dog.
It will be interesting to read what happens to Grandma Lu and that golden egg. Remember Marlee said that it wasn't much good. Hmm.

The Morning Of The Party

There is a saying that a lot of grownups use. They will say "I guess it's a Murphy's Law Day." That means that anything that can go wrong probably will go wrong. I certainly hope that doesn't mean that there is going to be a problem with Grandma Lu's Wish Party. The children had been working so hard on their Photo Book and gifts. They had gathered flowers and planted flowers for the Marleewood playground. Marlee and Grandma B had been baking cupcakes for the party too.

Cooper and his grandpa got in the car to head towards Marleewood and all at once heard a clunk clatter clink...nothing. Oh no! Cooper's grandpa "limped" the car over to a cement driveway and he and Cooper got under the car to have a "look see". It was going to be an easy fix. Soon they were on there way.
Arie and her mama were on their way to the party too when they felt a chug chug and then nothing. Their car was out of gas. Oh no! They were lucky. They were able to coast into a gas station. Arie is getting so big that she could help pump gas. Not easy to do with your eyes closed.
Out at Bella's farm they were all eating their breakfast.
They cleared the table and put their dirty dishes in the sink. Their mom said, "Okay, everybody hop in the shower and get ready for the party. It will soon be time to get your gifts ready for Grandma Lu's Wish Party. Well, the children looked at the clock and then out the window. They could see that their goats were out by the pond.....No, Bella. Oh dear. Hopefully her mama will remember being a little girl in the spring when she was Bella's age.
Grandma B had a lot going on. She wanted the beauty shop to be open in time for Grandma Lu to get her hair done. She knew that she would love that. There had been a lot of requests for a part time beauty shop at Marleewood. There had been some volunteers so all that needed to be done was some plumbing and decorating. When you go to a beauty shop you always want to relax and come out pretty, right?
Grandma B's phone rang. All was finally ready at the new beauty shop. "Great, now I have time to put the finishing touches in there before Grandma Lu can see it. I'll take some things from home so it will look nice. She will love her surprise. I'm going to call Pat and see if we can use some of her books that Mrs. Owens gave her to put in there. Grandma Lu loved history so she would see if there were any other things about Humansville that Pat and she could dream up to make it a place where people love to go. She thought about putting a little reading nook in the corner. People loved to visit and to read. "Oh, this is going to be such a great surprise. I can't wait to make the new beauty shop a place that everyone enjoys coming to."
She had Marlee with her and Marlee was full of vim and vigor this morning. She decided to stand on the barber chair and be silly.

Before she knew it Marlee fell off the barber chair and got a bruise on her shoulder. "Oh brother, this is Murphy's Law Day for sure, thought Grandma B. "Alright slow down, Girl. Marlee is okay, thank goodness. I have some books and magazines for folks to read. I sure hope the dryer works. Grandma B checked the dryer it worked. "Thank goodness. Now I have to call Grandma Lu and get her up here this morning and have one of our volunteers do her hair before the party. I would do it but I just don't have time."
She and Marlee went back to the Mini Farm to get their chores done, the cupcakes frosted and finely to get their good clothes on. First though she had to call Grandma Lu and tell her the good news. Grandma Lu answered the phone and was so excited that she was going to be the first customer in the new Marleewood Beauty Shop. She had wanted a beauty shop at Marleewood for a long time. Grandma B had told her friend that a volunteer would meet her at Marleewood in just a few minutes. She explained that Ranger Rex and the kittens and the dogs were keeping her really busy, otherwise she would have fixed her hair just like she used to.  Oh Grandma Lu was so excited!
When Grandma Lu walked into Marleewood there wasn't anyone to meet her, but she could hear voices from the new Beauty Shop. She was a bit disappointed that she wasn't going to be the first customer, but she shrugged her shoulders and grinned for only a minute. Because when she walked in the beauty shop there was a man coloring a lady's hair red! Then the lady looked up at Grandma Lu with the most horrified look on her face. The man didn't look happy either.
Grandma Lu quickly excused herself and said, "Oh I am so sorry. I didn't know anyone was going to be using the shop this morning. Grandma B told me that there was going to be a volunteer fixing my hair this morning. I am so sorry I interrupted you."
The man smiled and said, "Is your name Grandma Lu? I was supposed to  meet a lady by that name this morning to do her hair."
Grandma Lu felt like she was going to faint. "Oh, alright, well I will sit over here in the corner and read while you finish this lady."
Even though her heart was pounding she decided to give this young man a chance fixing her hair. If you have read the past experiences that Grandma B has had with beauty operators you would understand that she was actually terrified. She sure didn't want her hair dyed red or green or purple or any other color for that matter.
Soon he was finished with his customer and put her under the dryer. He smiled at Grandma Lu and said, "Okay, let's get a cape on you and get that hair washed and set." Well, Grandma Lu slowly did what he said.

She guessed he couldn't do her hair any harm all she wanted was a shampoo set.  He washed her hair and dried it with a hand hair dryer. He turned her chair around and she looked in the mirror and let out a little squeak. She looked terrible.
 As Grandma B was doing her chores she happened to think that she had forgotten to put a coffee pot in the beauty shop.  "Oh no! I forgot to put a coffee pot in the beauty shop. Grandma Lu always likes coffee and a cookie when she has her hair done. I'll grab an extra one and run it in to Marleewood. Will you be okay with Papa while I'm gone? I'll be back in just a little bit. Then we can get dressed up for the party. Grandma Lu will be so surprised, won't she?" Marlee nodded her head and grinned. She knew Grandma Lu was going to like her gift. She hadn't told anyone. It was going to be a surprise.
Grandma B came into the Beauty Shop and grinned really big. "Oh Grandma Lu you look so pretty. Who is your beauty operator today?"
Grandma Lu yawned and opened her eyes and said, "Oh, it did turn out pretty didn't it? I must have fallen asleep. To tell you the truth I had a really bad dream. I dreamed a man was going to color my hair purple or green. She chuckled and put her glasses on and said, "Thanks Dawna, you always do such a great job on my hair. It's so nice of you to volunteer at Marleewood. I just wish I had somewhere to go today. Like they always say, "I'm all dressed up and nowhere to go."
Little did Grandma Lu know.....

Photos, Presents, And Parties

Things were getting exciting for Marlee and her friends. Their plans were starting to come together. There was a birthday party today, but there was enough time this morning to get some baking done for the party for Grandma Lu as well as for Kylee and Aadon's combined birthday parties. They were brother and sister and had a lot of friends and family so Marleewood would be hopping today. Blake and Abrielle were making cookies and Coralynn was making cupcakes. They were cute rabbits for the spring and Easter of course. Johnathon was making some cookies too. Oh, I see chocolate chips and peanut butter. They will be so good.

It seemed like the work they were doing was so much fun that smiles were what everyone would be wearing to the birthday party.

Kaysyn's mama came over to Marleewood to give Grandma B a picture of Kaysyn for Grandma Lu's photo book. She was all dressed up and was holding a little chicken. Grandma Lu will love all these pictures, won't she?

Another picture was brought over before the party. It was a picture of Ryan, Andy, and Julia. This was a perfect photo for Grandma Lu's photo album because it showed all of their Easter gifts too.
Things were going smoothly I think. Flowers were being gathered for the parties and even some children were planting some. They had heard that seeds take awhile to grow and that there would be flowers later in the summer to make Marleewood look nice. They were red and white. Aren't they going to be pretty when they grow up? They will grow every year.

Arie was making Grandma Lu a little box for her glasses. The children always smiled when they heard her say, "Now where did I put my glasses I wonder?" Arie and her mama decided that some soft cloth inside her little box would be a nice holder to sit by Grandma Lu's easy chair in the Sitting room. Maybe she could put a spare pair in that little box.
Soon it was time for the birthday party.
People started coming in to the Community Room with gifts and things to play games with. It was time to have some fun! These children were so lucky to have their grandparents and family and friends all come to help them celebrate.
Aadon had a new shirt for his birthday that had a truck and his name and his age on it. Kylee loves to paint so she had a new shirt with her age, name and a paint palette on it.
Grandma Lu was invited to the birthday parties of course, which she loved. She even played some of the games which made the children giggle. But it seemed to everyone that there was a bit of sadness in Grandma Lu's eyes. Only Grandma B knew what it was. She was working on it. Hopefully what she was planning would be done soon. And there was Marlee. What did she have in mind for Grandma Lu?