Today is Pop’s 84th birthday! We plan on celebrating tonight with a swim, and supper, and cake! The whole family will be here with the exception of Ben, who is working with the Army cleaning up the oil spill on Dauphin Island. And, Ian, who is not able to get away from Birmingham and make it here. We will miss having them here, but we’ll just party harder to make up for missing them.

Pop, we love you. We are blessed that you lead our family. We admire you, we learn from you and we respect you.

When I was in the 6th grade we moved to Florence Street. Pop had the house built there while we were living on Third Ave. We loved our new house. All the bedrooms (3) were in a row down one side of the house. And, the great thing was…….they all had their own bathroom!!! Not huge, but a bathroom, none the less. And, oh! how Joy and I loved having our own space! ‘Cause she was the little sister who always got into my stuff! 🙂

We moved next door to the Peacocks. They had 3 daughters…2 were older and one was right between Joy and I in age. Oh, the adventures we had. But, I’ll have to talk about those another day, this is about time shared with the families.

My Uncle Allison and Aunt Katherine were some of the finest people I have ever known. Aunt Katherine lives with Jesus now. She and Mom have probably started a WMU (Women’s Missionary Union…it’s a Baptist thing ) in Heaven. And, if those 2 decided they wanted to start a WMU in Heaven…you can bet it’s going strong! They were 2 very determined women! Uncle Allison is still going strong. I could say alot about him, but I’ll just say this…I think when I see Jesus, He will remind me of my Uncle Allison is many, many ways.

Our families became very close. Whenever Mom or Aunt Katherine cooked something special, they made another dish for the other. Why, neither would even think of cooking one pie…always 2. But, I think the most favorite was ice cream! Now, Aunt Katherine and Uncle Allison LOVED them some ‘cream’! They had some every night before bed. There was always several varieties in their freezer. But, none of that compared to their love of home made ice cream! I can still hear Uncle Allison sticking his head in the back door and saying, “Y’all leave room for some cream. It’ll be ready in about 30 minutes!”

He would haul out the old worn freezer, along with the ice and the rock salt. Aunt Katherine would have mixed up the ice cream recipe in the mean time. Then she would pour it into the tall silver cylinder and insert the ‘do-dah’ with the little ‘flapper thingys ‘on it, down inside the cylinder. This would then be handed off to Uncle Allison who would pack it into the big bucket, and pack ice and rock salt around it. Then the top would go on. And, the hard work would commence.

I have memories of many folks in my life making ice cream. We always had a freezer…and we used to have lots of ice cream suppers at our church. All manner of freezers would be lined up out under the bus awning…and each owner working feverishly to produce the best of the night! For a long while, this consisted of the men having to turn the crank themselves. They would try to get the sons to help, but they were too clever to come near while the cranking was going on. Occasionally, they would ask one of the kids to come and sit on top of the freezer. (I never knew if that was of any benefit or if it was just a joke to see how long the kid would sit on that freezer!) They would turn and turn and crank and crank…and then without warning they would say…”It’s ready”. The tables had been gotten out of the storeroom at the end of the fellowship hall and depending on the weather, set up inside or out. The ladies then covered the tables with white butcher paper. One by one all the freezers would be opened and brought into our old fellowship hall and put on the tables. Every third or fourth freezer or so, there would be a pound cake or some cookies. A long line of silver cylinders holding ice cream made by some of the finest! I never understood this either…almost always they would leave the’ flapper do-dah’ INSIDE the silver part. It made it so hard to dip down in there and get the ice cream out. Maybe there was some reason or maybe it was just always done that way! Anyway, it was always tasty and the perfect end to a Sunday spent at church!

I also remember there always being home made ice cream when we visited in NC. It would seem as if you could not be together without several ice cream freezers going at once. My Aunt Evelyn made a wonderful peach ice cream that was soooo good, I remember it still after all these years! And, I can recall many freezers made at my Aunt Della’s home.

But, oh how nice it was when they made the electric freezers. NO MORE CRANKING!!! They could just fill them up and turn them on. The men still watched them though. Walk by and pat them approvingly…maybe add a little ice…sometimes throw a towel across the top. I think it may have made the men a little sad that their muscles were not needed to make this frozen treat anymore. The freezers may have gone electric, but the keen eye of the man in charge was necessary to be sure all was going as it should.

Really, home made ice cream was just about everywhere we went in those days. ‘In those days’…lots of things were different. Whole families got together. And, the kids all ages and sizes would play outside, even after dark. Or we would go to the den or the living room…wherever the adults were not! And, we got along. Or we didn’t. But, we got over it quickly because we knew we were all going to be together again soon! We had no video games to play, but we would occasionally watch TV…but being together and talking and playing was much more fun. After the adults had gotten the ice cream they wanted, they would call the kids. We were free to have whatever we wanted…of what was left. Usually the best was already gone! But, none of it was bad, so we were good!

In the spirit of full disclosure, I must now make a confession. I really do not like home made ice cream. I do not like how inconsistent the flavor is. I do not like having to dig it out of those cylinders full of flappers and cream. But, mostly, I do not like the texture. It is not smooth. It’s bumpy. It is grainy. There are rivers of milk running in it. It just doesn’t suit my palate. All through the years, I have pretended to like it, because I never met anyone else who didn’t. But, I figure I am old enough now not to care. ( The only exception being the peach that Aunt Evelyn made…it was smooth and creamy.)

I do not know much about the early life of my Granny and Granddaddy Townsend. But, I loved to hear my Granny T. talk about the first time she ever had ice cream. She was 16 years old! It used to delight her to tell us all about that day. And, as we become older and she become older still…..we knew it would be impolite to tell her that we had heard the story before. Instead, we learned to express our awe and amazement one more time…and we began to take the delight in waiting for the telling to come again. Here she is outside her home in Douglasville, GA.

When we are children, we can’t wait to grow up and do all the things that grown-ups do. And, know all the things that grown-ups know. What we don’t know is that the older we get, the more the ‘magic of childhood’ fades away. And, the more the cares and concerns of the world get heaped upon our shoulders. But, if we are wise, we keep just enough of that ‘magic’ hidden away, to share with the little ones in our lives. And, if we tell them the same stories over and over again…it’s OK…we were taught by the best!

My sweet DIL has a problem. Well, she doesn’t see it as a problem, but it is. I’ve tried telling her that we can fix this. But, she’s oblivious to all she is missing. So…I have decided to take matters into my own hands and send her a message via my blog. Y’all don’t think that would be considered being a meddling MIL, do you? I think it just shows how caring and loving and concerned I am! And, who knows? Some of you may have this problem, too.

She has sensitive toes. She does. It’s probably because she is just a sensitive soul (and I mean that in a good way). But, friends, it just is not right for someone of her young age to miss out on so many of the good things. You know…the good things that are shoes that fit between your large and second toe…FLIP FLOPS!!!! She has only one brand that she will wear, (they come in a yellow box) because the others all “hurt her toes.” Now, I am in no way making fun of this dear sweet girl, bless her little toes. It just is not that essential to her life that she wear anymore than that one brand. But, those of us who are ‘of a certian age’ know what all she is missing. Oh, just think of all she is not experiencing. It’s just not right. I wanted to bring her a ‘darling’ pair home from Maui, and she said “No, they will hurt my toes. So, this post is to give her ways to branch out, be bold, be daring, get more flip flops!

Now, if I found a pair of FF that I loved and they hurt my toes, I wrap a band-aid or a piece of tape…even a piece a duct tape, if I really liked the FF!….. around the offending appendage, and wear that until a callous formed. But, she’s not able to do that. So here are some things that may help.

Friends, these things are terrific. I usually keep some in my purse. If a new pair of shoes rubs a blister, this will keep you from making a fool of yourself by walking round with one shoe off! I understand this…I’ve been there. Once a blister on my heel was so bad, I thought about just going barefoot while in the grocery store. And that’s what I had to do. It solved my immediate problem, but people gave me dirty looks and I had to put the shoes back on to walk out to the car. ANYWAY…these are good for anywhere on the foot. Here’s what the box says: Band-Aid Advanced Healing Blister Cushions ($4.99) feature a gel pad that relieves pain while helping to protect the blister. The bandage is tapered on the sides, making it easier to wrap around toes, in particular, and also provides a super-duper seal to protect the blister from dirt, water and germs.

They also state that these ‚Äùcushions‚Äù are waterproof and provide a ‚Äúsuperior adhesive‚Äù that can be worn for several days before changing, even in the shower. And, it’s true. Once on, they don’t come off till you are ready. None of that wadding up. They are good for your heels as well.

Everything they said is true! This is a wonderful product!

Sandal Gel Toe Spreader. Soft Silicone Spreaders with built-in slit for sandals/thongs…not THAT kind of thongs!!! It wraps around the thong to reduce friction and enhances walking comfort in thongs, flip flops, and sandals.

• This Spreader‚Äôs built-in slit fits around the sandal‚Äôs thong, thus keeping it from slipping or moving out of place.
• Reduces friction and irritation between toes.
• Helps relieve pain of soft corns, overlapping toes, and bunions.
• Aids in maintaining proper toe alignment. Improves cosmetic appearance of the toes and feet.
• Invisible silicone color makes spreader discreet as possible.

I can offer no endorsement…I just found these on the Internet. Have never seen any IRL. Order from www.ourdoctorstore.com. That Dr Jill has been busy, you wouldn’t believe all the things she has designed to make our tootsies feel better! I wonder if she is a REAL doctor or just plays one on the World Wide Web!

These are the last that I have to show, and they are what started this whole trip down Flip Flop Lane. They are called Thong Wrappers. (But not THAT kind of thong!) I found these while out shopping one day and had to buy them for Sweet Suzanne. (Oh, please forgive the horrendous picture above, but I gave away all my talent to Adam obviously, and kept none for myself). But, these are a strip of silicone and you wrap it around the toe thingy and then it is a cushioned toe thingy! These I found at TJM, for $3.99. They stick to themselves and you can wash them and use them again. Isn’t that a good thing?!

OK, Sue Ann, I have you a box of the Band-Aids, and 2 pkgs. of the toe thongs…Now let’s go shopping and I’ll introduce you to the wider, wonderful world of Flip Flops!

We’ll get YOU a pair or two, and ME ? well, it’s possible I may could be persuaded to try on a pair or two…if it will make you feel better……

Whatever you do on this July 4th………

ENJOY THE DAY !

What is it that little girls dream of when they sleep? They do not go happily to their rest, for what a pity it would be if they should miss something important. “Would you like me to lie down with you?” I say…in an effort to ease her into dreamland. “No, I’ll just read,” she replies. And as she turns each page of the book that came in her kid’s meal, she imagines and makes up the words to fit with the pictures as she sees them.

“You just stay over there, Aunt Tonja,” she commands, with a flip of her hand to the couch behind the daybed. And, so I do. I stay over here, and write on my laptop. “Too quiet,” I think…and choose a Norah Jones CD from my files and begin to play it softly. Her head swivels to look at me. “Aunt Tonja, are you singing over there?” she asks. (Oh, that I could sing like Norah Jones) “Why? Is it bothering you?” I ask. “No,” she says, “I like it.” (I’ll just let her think I sound like an angel a little longer…she’ll find out soon enough) And, I heard no more.

Her grandmother stuck her head in to see if she was off to dreamland. I got up to make a picture, and as I sat back down and picked up my laptop, I began to think back.

Since she came in this morning, we had….. opened up the new toys she saw and separated the ones for JT from the ones for her…..gone to the potty…..walked out to the pool to try out the fishing net and fish…..got the bottom of her shorts wet…..took shorts off…..tied up shirt so it would not get wet……bent down too far and got panties and shirt wet…..went to the potty…..went back outside to gather up toys because she was ready to go inside…..changed her clothes…..had a snack of lemonade and animal crackers…..go to the potty……go into the studio to open up the toy drawer and pull out her favorites…..she needed paper…..she needed the colored pencils sharpened…..she drew…..I drew…..we sang together…..we pasted…..we talked about her mother and her sisters and her daddy……we looked at the pictures on my computer (most especially the ones of her)…..went to the potty…….we went for a ride in her grandmother’s NEW CONVERTIBLE!!!!!…..we stopped at Chick -Fil-A…..we let the wind blow through our hair (until the rain started)……we made up a song about the rain…….we came home and ate…….and that’s when Nap Time rolled around.

I wonder if she’s dreaming of riding in her little motorized police car, or maybe she’s imagining swimming in the pool. Or having fun with her sisters, or watching the dog shows with Alex. Is she dreaming of dancing under the stars, or riding on a pony? Or maybe eating all the chocolate ice cream she can hold. Is she reliving her fun at Disney World, or perhaps playing in the snow when she went to the mountains. Perhaps, she is swimming with the dolphins that play on her shirt.

Oh! She just raised her head and looked over here at me. “You quit singing,” she said with a sleepy voice.”I’m sorry. Lay back down and listen,” I replied. She did and I pressed play. Music filled the room, and off she went…back to finish out those dreams.

She lasts about 20 more minutes in Dreamland…and then it’s over. “Aunt Tonja, can we do something?’ she says quietly. “What would you like to do ?” I asked. She answered me with determination in her voice,” Well, I got lots of work that I have to do. And, I need paper and paper…and paint.” I jumped in quickly here because painting requires advance planning and that was not in the plans for today…”No, my dear, painting another day…but not today.” “Cause we can’t paint when it’s raining, right?” she said. Not really into long discussions today, I said, “Well, it is raining, and we can’t paint.” “OK”, she said, “I’ll just take markers.” “Lucy Jane,” I say, “do you ever get to use markers here at my house?” “No,Ma’am…..I..I..meant I wanted the pencils that have the colors,” she said. “Well, you’ve just had a grand idea,” I say,”Let’s get out those colored pencils”. And, we pulled out the colored pencils…the short ones and the long ones and the paper…and she set about to do her ‘work’. “Aunt Tonja, you just look after Minnie, OK?” And, I was relegated to mouse sitting. She was in the corporate world and I was in Childcare!

Now in case you are not aware…’work’ is very peculiar if you are 3. It consists of taking a magazine and putting a sheet of paper inside…then putting it in the foyer…and repeating it 5 times. So there are now 5 magazines lying on the floor. Go back and take all the paper out, but leave the magazine. Then make some marks on each paper, and reinsert them into the magazines. Then she took 3 CDs and put them on top of the mags. Oh, I imagine it could have gone on and on. Now, even though I did not understand one little bit about what she was doing…she knew…and that’s really all that mattered.

How many little girl’s are there in this world that have similar ideas running around in their head. Things they would like to try. Things they would like to experience. Things that would serve to further fill their little brains with information about the world they live in…and about themselves…and how they fit into in this world. Oh, the possibilities in a little girl’s mind! But, they will never have a chance. Perhaps there is illness that stands in the way. Or perhaps poverty. Maybe there is just indifference from the parent. Maybe the child has learned it’s better not to ask. Or maybe their life is so deprived they don’t even have dreams to dream. And, that would be the saddest thing of all.

But, the little girl who spent the morning with me is full of life and dreams and beautiful smiles. She is blessed to be surrounded with family and friends who love and care for her. She will never know want. And, there will always be someone around to answer her questions. And lead her in the right direction. And stand ready with hugs when needed…..me included!

“Lucy Jane, I’m so glad you are my friend. I love you!”

(sitting in Alex’s chair waiting for him to put on the ‘dog shows’…which are a set of around 50 beautiful pictures that Adam took of Scooter right after we found out he was sick. She loves to watch these over and over.)

And, now all the little toys and things she likes to play with are put back in the bottom drawer that is reserved just for her. There is no sign that a little girl spent a morning here and played and sang and worked. But, it all lays there waiting for her to come and bring them to life once more. See you soon, my sweet, little friend.