My Sunday Thing: Praising God at the First African Baptist Church in Savannah

July 14, 2014July 14, 2014 / apronsandappetites.com / 1 Comment

the sanctuary

This photo is from the web site of the First African Baptist Church in Savannah, Georgia. It is taken from the pulpit looking back toward the door that goes outside, the door we came into Sunday morning to spend in worship with our brothers and sisters in Christ.

It was awesome!

The HHHs are back. The Hogbottoms are on our annual trip to Hilton Head (thus the Hilton Head Hogbottoms). It’s only been two days and true to our name we have bellied up to the trough at several wonderful restaurants and ate like the ~~hogs~~ little piggies we are when we come to this lovely island.

Today after our fantastic time in worship with all the others at church, we strolled along Bay Street looking for a place for lunch. We settled on Your Pie, a great pizza place. Just a little spot on the corner a couple of blocks from Montgomery Street where the First African Baptist Church is located. Great crust, great toppings! Of course, it only took a few hours till we were starving again. This time is was the Crazy Crab on the island. YET another good choice! Cheesy grits, crab cakes with chipotle sauce, grilled shrimp, parmesan crusted grouper. These people know how to cook!

But the highlight of the day was the worship service of the morning. The coming together to give God our time, our thoughts, our offerings, our love. As the song says that we sang this morning, “Forget about yourself. And worship Him.” I wish I could have had a video of the congregation singing that song because it was powerful. If you haven’t heard it, take the time to listen to it. Just click here.

The offering was made important: blessing God, giving with joy and fellowship with Him and each other. We took our tithes and our offerings one at a time down to the front and dropped it in two buckets. Coming in a line, one after another, adults came with sealed envelopes, young ones came flapping their dollar bills. The Hogbottoms came with folded money and our visitor card. Dropped in to mingle with all the other joy from giving. The whole time the choir and congregation singing I Will Bless The Lord At All Times.

It’s a song by Joe Pace with these lyrics:

I will bless the Lord at all times, He’s good

I will bless the Lord at all times, He’s good
I will bless the Lord at all times, He’s good
I will bless the Lord at all times, He’s good

He’s good, so good, real good
Each and every day of my life
I’ll bless the Lord for He’s good

Yes. I’ll bless the Lord. At Hilton Head. At Savannah. At home.
He’s good. Real good.

And worthy of my Sunday morning.

The Day of the Mysterectomy

May 9, 2014May 10, 2014 / apronsandappetites.com / 7 Comments

For a month I hadn’t slept well (actually it was probably years) which meant I was extremely tired which meant I was rather anticipating that “getting-put-under” moment. Sleeeeeeeeep. It was worth going under the knife.

And, of course, I trusted Dr. Garwin.

silly

So I got all gussied up in my hospital gown, hopped into bed, and laid bare my arm for the I.V. It wasn’t long till I was feeling loose and relaxed, so I inquired of the little nurse if they had put something in the I.V. to relax me. She just looked at me a little odd and said, “No.” So I guess it was just the lying down… or the finally “getting-er-done”… or the I-just-can’t-imagine. Whatever happened during the pre-surgery moments caused me to be so relaxed that I was downright silly.

It wasn’t long till I noticed my pastor and his wife walking down the hall. I leaned way over the bed so they could see me and yelled, “Hey, you guys, come on in.” This wasn’t a private room. It was a long room with lots of beds with people in those beds awaiting various procedures or surgeries. Jack and Millie had a bit of a surprised look on their faces as they came to the bed. Maybe I’m not that friendly on a regular basis. I know I hadn’t been that happy for quite a long time.

It was time to go; the big moment had arrived. I was wheeled into the after-pre-surgery-pre-surgery room. This was the room between the super relaxed room and surgery. The room where they made sure you didn’t remember anything of what was to come.

I liked this room. I really liked this room.

Sandy, Doc’s great nurse, had arranged with me for her husband who was in nursing school to come in and observe the surgery… as long as he brought me a shake later. So all the players were there: Doc, Sandy’s husband (I still don’t know his name), and all the other people who poke, prod, cut, sew, suction, etcetera.

We were shower capped and ready to roll. I was in relaxation haven.

this soooooooo hurts

Until the next day. The day I clicked the little button in my hand hoping it would just keep pumping that pain-relieving medicine into my bloodstream. I had no idea that day those masochists set it on a timer.

At some point during the day Doc came in to check on me. She stopped right inside the doorway with this huge grin all over her face.

“What?”

“You don’t remember anything about yesterday, do you?”

“No. What’s so funny?”

“I told them you weren’t going to remember any of that.”

“Any of what?”

“Oh, you were saying all kinds of things.”

“I was? What was I saying?”

“Wow, this is great stuff! What is this, man? I love this stuff.”

I know it sounds like I am an old hippie. I know how it sounds.

Doc goes on to tell me how they all really enjoyed the show I was putting on; I must be a happy drunk, so to speak.

Last but not least was Sandy’s sweet husband who brought me a shake, a chocolate shake. Who also enjoyed the show: the cutting, poking, prodding part and especially the “I love this stuff” part.

It’s still all a big mystery to me though, and truthfully, I don’t want to know how it’s done, what happens in the surgery room, none of it. I’m happy with the mystery… especially the mystery of that forget-forever-pre-surgery shot.

When I Grow Up I Want To Be…

April 21, 2014 / apronsandappetites.com / 4 Comments

… a quilter.

Those handmade quilts with the beautiful designs in them are awesome pieces of artwork. I have some that are probably 100 years old. And I love them!

Which is why I want to quilt. Which is why I want to be just like these ladies.

a quilt like mine

… a horticulturist.

When I become a horticulturist, I will know every plant by its Latin name.

cannabis sativa or cannabis indica

See? I have already learned there is a difference in the cannabis plant.

I can’t even say it’s name!!

EEEEEEEEEK!!! How did that thing get in this blog? Am I going to have to deal with those to be a horticulturist?

The real story of my horticulture endeavor shall be growing plants that will have color names because I can’t even remember the common name for them; thus, I will have blues and yellows in my gardens. Perhaps chartreuse or salmon or — well, the list is rather lengthy.

my kind of plant

… a traveler!

traveling down life’s highway

From east to west in our little home on wheels (when we get it) we shall travel the country, meeting people and making friends, seeing all the sights, living in warm weather when it’s freezing-your-butt-off temperatures at home.

The plan is to have a little more horsepower than this RV with perhaps an added amenity or two or three. Plusher pleasure is my goal.

… an actor at Universal!

Darla at Universal

Yes. This is the plan for my sis and I. We are going to drag our husbands down to Florida in the winter months so that she and I can work at Universal.

We can’t wait to see you all there!

… a sleeper.

(Yawn.) A goal that’s been a lifelong goal is to sleep at night. To just go to bed, lay my head on the pillow, and start snoring. I’ve seen people do this, and I’ve heard it’s quite common; however, my dear father passed the no-sleeping gene down to me. (Thanks, Dad.)

But while I wait to grow into that, I’m going to count all the things I have grown up to do so far. Sort of like counting sheep.

garden… scrapbook… play piano…….. (yawn)……. bake… cook………(yawn)………….paint/maintain pools…..wire houses…………(yawn)(yawn)….nap in the car…………….zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

Soothing the Soul with Seeds

April 7, 2014April 22, 2014 / apronsandappetites.com / 1 Comment

THE FINISHED PROJECT

The Greenhouse

It’s not too big; just right. It’s not fancy; a hodgepodge of containers and lids-with-no-home to catch water. I’m not a seasoned greenhouser, horticulturist, grower-of-good-stuff. But, it’s already sprouting something. I’m not sure if it’s a tomato plant or a sunflower seed from the dirt I used to sprout the tomato plants. All I know is the little plant is coming up in the tomato lid.

I dragged out all my seeds; it didn’t matter how old they were. Some were in packages from the store; others were in containers; the seeds I had saved from plants in my yard… or someone else’s yard. I guess I’ll know what they are when they turn into mature plants. It’s the growing I care about. Watching the seeds turn into something to nurture.

seeds are all planted… some I have no clue what they are.

As you can see, my little greenhouse is as haphazard as I am. The seeds that were in marked packages, got marked as that. The others are just those surprise plants. I’m so excited to find out what they are!

Since the greenhouse sits on the site of the sunflower house, there are already sunflowers poking their little heads up through the lime and rock, asking “What’s going on here?”

There are other plants coming back to life after their winter siesta: peonies, sunflowers, sage, coreopsis, lilac, honeysuckle, ivy, bulbs of many varieties, lamb’s ear, baby’s breath, butterfly bush, roses. Just to name a few. The summer plants that have been waiting patiently in the garage for the spring rains are partying it up in the sunlight and April showers. Or downpours as is the case right now. Over six inches in 24 hours.

The rest of the oasis — my backyard — is a mess. A big pond of muddy water sits where we had to dig up the sewer line, still waiting for the extra dirt it needs after settling. The fence is down for the backhoe. The deck is a mess of “stuff” for summer fun that needs cleaned and set to rights. The pool is covered with the plastic that is covered with rain water, awaiting the right temperature for the uncovering. Right now it’s just getting rain water pumped off.

But I know in a month, after a lot of hard work, our backyard will once again be that beautiful place of peace and tranquility. Better (almost) than going to the beach.

Why I Would Never Force my Kids to go to Church

March 27, 2014 / apronsandappetites.com / Leave a comment

This is just so great I had to repost it. There are some awesome bloggers out there!

TruthNotes

My parents forced me to eat three times a day growing up. No joke. Three times. Every. Single. Day. And it wasn’t always stuff I liked, either. Matter of fact, I complained a lot about what my mom made. “Ewww, gross! Sauteed zucchini? Seriously? Mom, you know we hate this stuff!” So as I approached adulthood I made an important decision. Since my parents forced me to eat while I was growing up, I decided I was done with meals. Oh, here and there I’ll eat out of obligation. I mean, family traditions like Thanksgiving and Christmas, yeah, I’m there. But daily eating? No way. I’m done.

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MERRY CHRISTMAS!

December 25, 2013 / apronsandappetites.com / Leave a comment

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Have a Merry Christmas from Giggy, Kate, and Ava

Making the Most of Snow Days

December 11, 2013December 11, 2013 / apronsandappetites.com / 1 Comment

My daughter came over and tried her hand at photography. She didn’t do a bad job for someone who never takes pictures. A few details were missed: the strap on my dress, a head turn here or there. But all in all, she did a great job.

I had this big idea for some Christmas pictures. And it was a pretty great idea, too. Here. See for yourself.

getting the boots off

I know this is a great idea!

All set with matching dresses

Darn that strap

A great pic — except for that stinking strap!

preparing for the red nails in white snow pic

We were supposed to have our red-painted fingernails in the snow beside each other.

Mmmmmm. It needs work. My butt needs to be smaller, and we definitely have to work on the hand placement. I can’t believe Kate is acting like she can barely stand to put her hands on the snow. She has been out in it for days! Loving it! Sledding, eating snow, throwing snow balls. She did have on gloves, though.

perhaps the planning was a tad flawed

Then we tried for the red toenails. Kate, who is the hot potato, never gets cold, runs around with shorts all winter, was acting like she was freezing! Normally she is one tough cookie… especially when it comes to cold! I never know about that girl anymore. She’s seven going on 17. BooHissBoo

Actually it wasn’t too bad.

We had fun sticking our toes in the snow.

Maybe we’ll try again on the next snow storm.

The Joy of Dance

July 30, 2013 / apronsandappetites.com / Leave a comment

Ava after her ballet program

She is just so stinkin’ cute!! And she was exceptionally cute during her dance routine. As were all the other little ballerinas that night.

Coming out for a bow!!

The after-party was fun too. Held in Gigi’s Highlander on the way home!

A good time was had by all.

The times of my life

July 8, 2013 / apronsandappetites.com / Leave a comment

oysters Rockefeller

Tonight was the Old Oyster House, or something like that. So, of course, we had to have oysters. How can a person go to an oyster restaurant and not have oysters? It’s sacrilegious!!

So we ordered Oysters Rockefeller. And they were pretty doggone good. As was the stuffed flounder and the most delicious chocolate mousse in an almond meringue basket… and the creme brûlée. I so love desserts.

Then on to the movies. We are going to OD on movies this week. We’ve already made our minds up and we are not going to feel guilty! Tonight’s movie was Heat. It was great except for all the cursing. Very heated words in that movie and also very funny. LOLed rather loudly, but so did a lot of other people. Really. It was a laugh-out-loud movie.

Good times tonight. Simple times. Trying-something-new times.

No Expectations

July 6, 2013 / apronsandappetites.com / 2 Comments

It’s easy to tell that Hilton Head will be on the horizon before too long. The laughter and hilarity is rampant in this awesome new van of our sweet friend, Terah.

We’ve already discussed having to tuck Lisa in bed (I can’t give the details)(oops! I was supposed to change the names of the innocent and not-so-innocent). “Who’s going to bring me my coffee in the morning?!”

The topic on Darla going G. I. Joe since her emergency appendectomy along with the benefits of wearing or not wearing thong underwear (and the reasons for or against wearing thong underwear) have been, to say the least, informative.

I’ve already had my nap and tried to comprehend how to “flush” the door as I exited the vehicle for a pit stop at McDonalds. That train of thought shouldn’t be too hard to follow.

Geri is our official cleanliness inspector. After several years of going now, only Darla is Rambo enough to room with her, standing up to her demands for at least one more shower or bath before bedtime. Geri also washes our clothes every night which is a good thing since Commando only brought two pair of underwear.

Everything is funny! The near head-on collision with a bird has kept the two up front in stitches for miles. The two in the middle are getting ready for a midday snooze. How could they not? Those seats are recliners!!!

And me? I am once again back in my cubbyhole enjoying the show.

Ah, the throwing off of stress. We go together expecting nothing from one another… and give each other pure, unadulterated fun.

Friends.