Wednesday, Dec. 8

Today is Grandson's birthday. Happy Birthday, Grandson!

Up around 7 a.m. this morning, but skipped my exercises in order to get ready to go to the Water Babes Christmas party.

Once I was ready for the day, I finished putting together the gift basket to be used as Hubbie's "dirty Santa" exchange gift at the Master Gardener Christmas party tomorrow. Then I gathered card-making supplies, which Hubbie put into the van for us.

Mother came over in time for us to head out to our party around 10:30. The party was held at the Italian restaurant, and about 20 of us showed up for it. After we'd ordered, our aerobics leader informed us that the swimming pool at the college will probably not be ready until March. We all groaned in disappointment.

Then she asked if any of us had news to share. We learned that two of our members are moving out of state, that the husband of one the members recently had rotator cuff replacement, and that one member's daughter-in-law is awaiting a kidney. My big news, of course, was my new venture into tutoring for the Literacy Council, which met with enthusiastic approval.

Re: daughter-in-law awaiting a kidney: this person is one of a set of triplets, and one of the siblings thought she would be a match, and she was, but she was rejected because she has blood pressure problems. We were told that a donor has to be in perfect health. Even if the donor is in perfect health, family members will be evaluated to see if there are other medical problems that would affect the feasibility of using the organ.

After we'd eaten, we played the "dirty Santa" game. Not surprisingly, the gift basket I brought was the first to be chosen (food gifts are always popular), and then it was stolen two more times before it was frozen. Interestingly, the lady who got my gift basket last year got it again this year.

I was the second one to choose a gift, and I got a hand-crocheted scarf...white with green and red details. It's very pretty, and fortunately, no one stole it from me. After the party, I learned that the scarf was made by the lady who stands beside me at water aerobics, and she said she was glad I was the one who got it.

Our aerobics leader brought pretty, sparkly, Christmas tree ornaments for us to choose from. Mother and I chose silver ones...a reindeer, and a wreath...which fit nicely into the scheme of my "white" Christmas tree in the living room.

The party ended around 1 p.m., and afterward, Mother and I went to an independent living center to help make Christmas cards for Caring Hands Hospice. Besides four of us who always gather for card-making, four residents of the center also attended. Caring Hands needed fifteen cards, which we produced. Mother and I made ten of them.

The session lasted until 2:30. When we were done, the center's activity coordinator, who is also a member of our card-making group, gave Mother and me a tour of the facility. If a person has to go to an elderly center, this is the kind to go to. It has nice one-bedroom and two bed-room suites, an elegant dining room, a smaller, very attractive dining room that residents can reserve for entertaining family, a library, a movie theater with comfortable recliner chairs, a spa, an exercise room, a laundry room, a beauty shop, and several activity rooms. Although the suites have small kitchens, three meals a day are served in the dining room. The facility provides housekeeping services, and transporation for shopping and medical appointments.

When we got back home around 3:30, Mother and I made two more Christmas cards to give to our friends when we visit them tomorrow afternoon. Our friend who lives about an hour and a half east of us is coming to stay with our other friend for a couple of days. We were invited to have lunch with them at a local restaurant tomorrow, but we will be at the Master Gardener party.

So we are invited to visit at the home of the friend who lives here in town. Since she has entertained us several times over the months, we want to take her a small hostess gift. Besides the homemade Christmas card, we'll take a bottle of chai tea and some homemade sugar cookies.

Later, we had a supper of the leftovers from Mother's and my lunch, plus the veggies from the pork roast we had on Sunday. Both Mother's and my meals at lunch were way too huge to consume in one sitting...Mother's was chicken primavera, and mine was breaded eggplant with red sauce. We both had fruit for our salad, plus garlic bread and marinara dipping sauce.

After supper, Mother went home, and I changed into comfortable clothes to watch our favorite college basketball team play to a win.

It was a good day, but tiring. I was plenty ready to kick back and rest.