Timing In Texas Is Everything...2009...TimeToGo!

Welcome to CollectInTexas Gals 45th Post!
You know, In this world of Blogging, Timing Is Everything!

When I started CIT back in August,
I planned for the Last Post of 2009 to be Number Forty-five!
I planned on having a different header for nearly every post!
I planned on having Roy Rogers and Dale Evans singing 'Happy Trails' in Buffalo Gap,Texas.
I planned on having a Dozen Pink Saturday Posts with the 'Chicken Dance' by Lawrence Welk as background music...
he's probably cluckin in heaven.
I planned on spending untold hours trying to figure out how to use 'Spell Check' in the 'Edit Html'.
I planned on Blah BlahBlaahhh....ect.ect.ect...and so on.


Now if you believe that I'm that good of a 'Planner', My Fellow Texan and Gooood Buddy, George Strait and I have some 'Ocean Front Property' in Arizona we'd like to sell ya!
Okay...George and I aren't Goooood Buds, but I have been to ONE of his Concerts back in the 80's.
After that concert in Odessa, Texas, they started raising a net in front of the stage to catch all the
Black Bras flying through the air.
Dang! that was my only one, too!

Anyway...Back to this GRIT Planning! I don't...plan...I adhere to that old Texas Saying..."If ya don't have a clue...Grab the Seat of Yore Britches". In other words, I 'Fly by the Seat of my Pants' ALOT!
So you can imagine my Surprise at this....

...and Jeanne makes 61! Can't leave out CIT's Backyard Neighbor!



Just look at all YA'LL.
My Gooooodness, ya'll are an Amazin Group of Bloggers!
I Love,Love,Love seeing your Smiles on CollectInTexas Gal!
Thank you all soooooo very much for 'Following' and being
My Bloggin Buds and Friends!





...And As Always, Thanks for Coming and Commenting!
...And so You did!!!

I will never forget my First Pink Saturday, the Warm Welcome and the shared 'Sewing Stories' like this one from 'Everyones Favorite Pinkie' Sherry from Country Wings in Phoenix.

Thanks to YouAll for visiting and sharing your stories and comments.
I read and re-read every one and try to Respond, Visit, Comment and Follow your Blogs.
I'm completely in awe of your Creativity in Words and Pictures, of your Generosity and Kindness,
of the Time and Effort you put into your Beautiful Blogs, and last but not least of your amazing Technological Skills.
YA'LL Rock the World Wide Web!

So, now we come to the end of 2009 and the end of CollectInTexas Gals 45th Post.
And in the words of that famous crooner, Frank Sinatra...
"I Did It Beverly's Way"...That'd be with 'A Pink Attitude'!


Here's the Button that adorns the SideBar of more Blogs than a Texas Cactus has Stickers. I can't even begin to say how much 'Pink Saturday' has meant to this Girl Raised In Texas. Thank-you Beverly of How Sweet the Sound for everything!

PS...See Ya'll Next Year! And as Always...Thanks for Coming and Commenting!

Texas MapReader, TexasSpanglish & MexicanFood

MAPS on the WWWeb? You know It!
Especially if you Spell it Backwards…
S P A M!

Betcha thought this Post was going to be a TravelLog for See America In December.

Nope…it’s too BrrrrrrCold around the USA.
Not about SPAM either...just thought I’d show off my ReverseSpellnSkills!


It's really about 'Traveling In Texas' with this GRIT as the MapReader. To put it Nicely…I’m Directionally Challenged! To put it in words of the Driver to the GRIT Navigator w/theMap…”You don’t know Snap from ShineOla”!
Okay, my theory is Always TurnRight….that way UCan NEVER go Wrong…and,
I’m always Right except when I get Right and Left confused.
This year for Christmas, I was gonna get the 'Driver' a ‘TomTomThingy’,but he said he wasn't the one who was 'Directionally Challenged' and MapReadin was his specialty!


Since this blog is about Collectin I guess I'd better tell you about this PuzzleMap I found at the AntiqueBarn. I think it's one map I can use to find my way around Texas well enough to take Ya'll on a trip to Buffalo Gap, Texas for some Collectible Pottery and Great Mexican Food.

I bet you thought I was kiddin when I said 'BUFFALO Gap'.
A while back (we use that phrase in Texas when we can't remember exactly when it was) My Three Amiga's and I took a road trip to Buffalo Gap. This GRIT was the 'Navagator', afterall I did have the 'PuzzleMap' memorized. Here's the 'BlackBox' recording of the directions as given to the Driver.

Okay, take a Right...I mean Left...Right Here. (She turns Right and we're lookin for a place to turn around).
Now, go straight til we come to a 'Y'inthRoad...Take the Left....I think....side of the Y to Abilene.
Nope, there it is....it's to the Right...I shoulda known.
Okay, stay STRAIGHT on this road til we get to FM89 then take the RightY....I think it's 89 and I'm sure it's Right. It's a ways yet!

Okay! Just a few more miles....there it is FM#89...Right to BuffaloGap...Yeah! I was Right...again! Now, to find the Pottery Place...how hard can that be in a OneBuffaloTown? Pretty Hard....when you have to decide to go Left or Right at the end of FM#89. So we go Right! Around six to ten more curves....TADA....See, Ya'll....I knew we'd drive STRAIGHT to it.

And there's the Potter. Please, Pullover and Park....I need some BuffaloGapAir, pottery and probably some other stuff. Let's go Shop!


So Shop We Did! The Potter, recently featured on Texas Country Reporter, gave us a tour of his Shop and Studio and then Poached Eggs. Course, We4, had to have an EggPoachNPot, an AppleBakeNPot and Jewelry.
PoachedEggs topped with Cheese and Salsa near Noon....Let's go Eat at Lola's.

That's Right back the way we came in. (See..that's twice I've ended a sentence in a preposition...Oh,well...I'm Texan, and if you remember I mentioned about the preposition thing in the post below).


Lola's MexicanFood Cafe is near the Buffalo Gap Mercantile, but not quite as well kept up.
Now one thing ya gotta realize....Lola COOKS...that's it...COOKS Only!
Wanna Clean Table? Grab a Rag! Wanna Order? See the Menu Scribbled on the Wall...
Go Left down the Hall...Ola! at Lola...In YourBest TexMexAccent, order Tacos...
Grab Yore Tools...Go Back down the Hall...
Politely ask the Locals Sittin at the Table You Jest Washed if you could join them.
Be aware of the rickety chair...Sez So on the Wall!
Also, On the Wall....'Men In Your Group WaitOn the Women'....
We got our own Tacos & CanDietCokes and left a HeftyTip for Lola's Waitress who, since we were Touristas, really did bring us ChipsNSalsa, drinks and Great Mexican Food.
We did go Left down the Hall...Paid Lola...said our "Muy Buenos and Muchas Gracias for the Comida". Lola replied, "Da Nada".
Like I told you, in Texas, you gotta learn Spanish before you can comprende TexasEnglish!


Before hittin the road again, I had my picture taken with this 'StoneCold Cowboy', then Uno, Dos, Tres, Cuarto Stuffed Chica's climbed back in the Tahoe with GRIT Navigator who has TahoeDriver convinced of her RightTurnTheory and without incident makes all the Right turns back to HiWay #277.
At the intersection, Tahoe's RightTurn Signal Flashes, Tahoe starts the Right Turn, and GRIT Navigator sez, "Where are you going?
San Angelo is back to your LEFT....Your headed to Abilene".
Tahoe makes a QuickTurnLeft and....O'ChasQuido! (Spanish4Snap)
That was a FedEx18Wheeler....Honkin & GivinUs the NumeroUnoSign!
I Bet He Speaks Spanish, too!

PostSpanish: Sure glad I have a New Spanish Dictionary. My 'ComoSeEscribe Check' No Habla Espanol!

Collectin & Livin In Texas Is Great...Just Ask Any Texan!

Texas is a State of Mind. Texas is an Obsession. Above all Texas is a Nation in every sense of the word. John Steinbeck

Texas IS an Obsession…Just ask any Texan!
Everything IS BiggerNBetter in Texas. Just ask any Texan!

Texas has it’s own language.
Just ask any Texan!

They’ll tell you Texans don’t have accents. You simply gotta understand TexasTalk.

For instance, in Texas all sentences should end in a preposition, and tho English is the primary language used in Texas, for some reason, you have to learn Spanish in order to understand it.
Comprende!

While we're on the subject of Ask Any Texan...This GRIT sez...
If you follow the ‘Word Links’ I’m droppin like CowPatties on a CattleDrive, you’ll browse around the BiggerNTexas WWWeb (one of the few things Bigger) and learn lots of
Texas History…Texas Jokes…TexasCountry Reporter…and about…Texas Folks.
So, Ya’ll CheckEmOut...Later.
Right now, I’ll share some CollectInTexas Gal's Quilt Blocks that will someday be my 'Texas My Texas' Quilt.
So sit back in your Saddle, TipBack your Stetson, and YeeHaw!!! we're off.


The Bluebonnet is the Official State Flower of Texas and the Yellow Rose is the UnOfficial State Flower.


The Texas State Bird is the Mocking Bird

The Texas State Mammal is the Armadillo....Really!

Texas is known as the 'Lone Star' State and as the 'Friendship State' as seen in this block of Stars.

And the rest of Texas State Trivia......
State Capital...Austin
State Tree...The Pecan
State Song...Texas My Texas and UnOfficial Song....The Yellow Rose of Texas.State Insect...Monarch Butterfly
State Gemstone...Blue Topaz
State Seal...Click HERE



Now, alota folks still think of Texas as the Wild West and a bit 'Behind the Times'. I figure this is a good opportunity to let Ya'll know that Texas has been way ahead in the world of Technology as is evident by this report...
Bubba's Better In Texas...After having dug to a depth of 10 feet last year, New York scientists found traces of copper wire dating back 100 years and came to the conclusion, that their ancestors already had a telephone network more than 100 years ago.

Not to be out-done by the New Yorkers, in the weeks that followed, in California an archaeologist dug to a depth of 20 feet, and shortly after, headlines in the LA Times newspaper read:
'California archaeologists have found traces of 200 year old copper wire and have concluded that their ancestors already had an advanced high-tech communications network a hundred years earlier than the New Yorkers.

One week later, a local newspaper in Texas , reported the following:
After digging as deep as 30 feet in his pasture near Cut-n-Shoot, Montgomery County, Texas, Bubba Rathbone, a self-taught archaeologist, reported that he found absolutely nothing.

Bubba has therefore concluded that 300 years ago, Texas had already gone wireless.
Here's Some HiTekieTexas PCLingo....So You CanBe UpToDate, too! (From TexasJokes)

HardDrive – Trying to climb a steep hill with 3 flat tires pulling a load of _____fertilizer.
Keyboard – Place to hang your truck keys.
Window – Place to hang your gun.
Modem – How to get rid of your dandelions.
ROM – Delicious when you mix it with coca-cola.
Byte – First word in a kiss-off phrase.
Reboot – What you do when the first pair gets covered in barnyard stuff.
Network – Activity meant to provide bait for your troutline.

PS..."Mamas, Don't Let Your Babies GrowUp ToBe ComputerCowboys"!

The Twelve Posts of Pink Saturday...Pink Saturday #12

Why did the Chicken cross the road?
To get to the other side!

Why is this GRIT telling the oldest 'Chicken Joke' known to mankind?
~1...because she had too much Egg Nog.
~2...because she has 'CrackedUp'.
~3...because she needed an Introduction to her 'Layed In Texas' or 'Dirty Texas Dozen' or CollectInTexas Cracked Posts by the Dozen or.....

Gosh Ya'll...It's my TWELFTH PINK SATURDAY POST!

No Yolk Ya'll...sorry, I just couldn't let that one go by...no more egg jokes...I promise!
With 2009 drawing to a close and all the Who's Who's, and the Net & New's Whose are gathering the 'Best, Worst, and Whatevers' of the Year...I figured I should close out with an even Dozen!

So before presenting the CollectInTexas Gal 'Twelve Pink Saturday Reviews' here are less than a Half~A~Dozen Pink Incredible and Edible Egg Tidbits...


Fabrege' Egg...I don't collect them, but have always admired them.



Pink Pickeled Eggs...I don't collect them either, but know a few Texans who eat them! Not this GRIT!


Pink Floral Glass Egg...Now, this I would collect! Beautiful!


I collect Buttons, but I'm 'Not Allergic to Eggs', so I won't need this one! Do You? If so, feel free to copy and paste it in your 'Button Collection'.

And Now for 'CollectInTexas Gal's Dozen Pink Saturday Posts' Review...
~#1 Four Generations of Sewing
~#2 Big Hair Little Heads
~#3 Groovy Gals In The 60's
~#4 Precious Moments and Precious Quilts
~#5 No Blowin Or Sewin On Old Hankies
~#6 Hankies Galoreous
~#7 Don't Mess With Texas Pinks
~#8 Pluckin Pink Turkey Feathers
~#9 Dear Santa
~#10 Collectin Santa and Mrs. Claus
~#11 I Believe In Santa Claus
~#12 The Twelve Posts of Pink Saturday...and a Partridge in a Pear Tree!

If one of these 'Twelve Titles' peaks your interest, they are listed on the 'SideBar'. Just CLICK on the PIC. At the Top of the List on the SideBar is our Hostess Beverly of How Sweet The Sound's Picture Link. Just Click HERE or There to visit this weeks Pink Saturday List. Beverly and all the rest of the Pinkies are such 'GoodPinkEggs'!


PS...Thanks Ya'll for making CollectInTexas Gal's Twelve Pink Saturdays a part of your Saturday Blogging.
...And As Always...Thanks for Coming and Commenting!

Collectin Nativity Christmas Cards

May the blessings
of Christmas ~
LOVE ~ PEACE and JOY ~
remain with you
throughout the year.
I received this card from my Sister Connie in the early 1980's.

Of course it came via the US Mail with a 39 cent stamp. (I sometimes keep the envelope, too) Click HERE for a bit of Christmas Stamp History and Trivia.

Now, back in the 80's I would never have dreamed I'd be sending this very Christmas Card back to Connie and to all of You from 'CollectInTexas Gal' via the Internet and a BLOG! Who knew?

May the love

of the Christ child

bless your Christmas

and all the days ahead
...and his name shall be called...the Prince of Peace."
Isaiah 9:6

A 'Treasured Christmas Card' from my Mother~In~Law, December 1970.



May His blessings fill your

Christmas day with joy ~

May His love warm your heart

today and always!
"A smile of love glowed from the Holy Child's face and made the crude stable a heavenly place...~B.J.Hoff

May the Joy
and Peace of Christmas
be with you
throughout the New Year!
Sue...CollectInTexas Gal
December 25, 2009

PS...I'm still 'Old School' and love getting cards with stamps. So here's my Christmas Card to You...Stamped! It's the 'Christmas Stamp' from 2005, and I thought a perfect stamp for this 'NativityPost'. I hope you won't mind making up the .07 cents...in 2005, stamps were .37 cents.. Oh! Also, I hope you won't mind receiving it via the 'Net'. I'm pretty sure it'll be way late via the USPS...Bless Their Hearts...They 'Kan't Help It' if they're 'Old School',too!

CollectinTexas Christmas Cards

Texans Send Texans Texas Cards...like this one this GRIT received just last week.

WISHING YOU A HAPPY HOLIDAY
...TEXAS STYLE!

And this one received in December 1997. Yep, It's a Collectin Em' Thingy!

It's Christmas!
The loveliest time of the year,
The season of love, goodwill
and good cheer
MERRY CHRISTMAS

Isn't that the NICEST greeting? So filled with good wishes, good cheer and just...well, GOODNESS!

And then there's this one I received from North of Amarillo, Texas...


'Twas the night before Christmas, in Texas, you know.
Way out on the prairie, without any snow.
Asleep in their cabin, were Buddy and Sue, A dreamin' of Christmas, like me and you.
Not stockings, but boots, at the foot of their bed,
For this was Texas, what more need be said,
When all of a sudden, from out of the still night,
There came such a ruckus, it gave me a fright.
And I saw 'cross the prairie, like a shot from a gun,
A loaded up buckboard, come on at a run,
The driver was "Geein" and "Hawin", with a will,
The horses (not reindeer) he drove with such skill.
"Come on there Buck, Poncho, & Prince, to the right,
There'll be plenty of travelin' for you all tonight."
The driver in Levi's and a shirt that was red, Had a ten-gallon Stetson on top of his head.
As he stepped from the buckboard, he was really a sight,
With his beard and moustache, so curly and white.
As he burst in the cabin, the children awoke,
And were so astonished, that neither one spoke.
And he filled up their boots with such presents galore, That neither could think of a single thing more.
When Buddy recovered the use of his jaws, He asked in a whisper, "Are you really Santa Claus?"
"Am I the real Santa? Well, what do you think?" And he smiled as he gave a mysterious wink.
Then he leaped in his buckboard, and called back in his drawl,
"To all the children in Texas, Merry Christmas, YA'LL"!

I Believe In Santa and So Does SaraJane...Pink Saturday #11

I believe in Santa Claus!
I believe in Santa Claus!
I believe there's always hope when all seems lost.

I believe in Santa Claus!
I believe in Santa Claus, I'll tell you why I do.
Cause SaraJane is here with Girl Raised In Texas...Sue!

Okay Dolly and Kenny...Sing It!!!!

Welcome to CollectInTexas Gals Pink Saturday #11 Post!

Haven't the December Themed Pink Saturday's been so much Fun!Fun!Fun!

This Pink Saturday...December 19th is 'Favorite Christmas Tradition'.
(I have one and it's coming in a minute or two)

Last Pink Saturday...December 12th was 'Favorite Christmas Decoration'.
(Mine was my Mama's Candy Cane Santa and Santa and Mrs. Clauses)

Three Pink Saturdays ago...December 5th was 'Favorite Childhood Christmas Memory'.

And that's where SaraJane comes into the picture!

My Thank-you Letter to Santa must have traveled 'LicketySplit' through my Yahoo Email.
Santa must have had a 'HotLine' to eBay, PayPal and the US Post Office cause Sara Jane arrived last Saturday, December 12th.

'I Believe' it was meant to be!
You See....we were having a 'Family Christmas Party' when the door bell rang!
"Who could it be? We are all here", I said as Papa Santa went to answer the door.

It was our Santa Mailman with a 'Big UHaul' box!

It was addressed to Sue...that'd be this GRIT...and was from Seattle'NorthPole',Washington!
Everyone gathered around and...

My Favorite Tradition for Christmas...

Picture taking in front of the Christmas Tree!
Like this one taken Christmas 2001 with our Grandchildren...Baby Mason (6 months), Kami (7 yrs.) and Taiten (3 yrs.)



And, like this one taken last Saturday, December 12, 2009.
Look, Santa, there's a 'New BabyBubba', Jackson (3 months) who is celebrating his 'First Christmas'! Yep, they sure have grown and changed in 8 years, and OK, so have Nana and Papa!

OK, Ya'll...back to SaraJane...



I just wanted to show you a few pictures of SaraJane since she arrived last Saturday, and then I'm going to let her tell you her story.

But first she wants to say a 'Big Thanks' to Beverly at How Sweet The Sound for hosting this Amazing Event called "Pink Saturday" where 'Believing' makes Christmas Wishes come True!

So, grab your Christmas Mouse and ClicketyClick HERE to visit Beverly and the other Christmas PinkParticipants!

OH! Before you go SaraJane would like to tell 'The Rest of the Story' about arriving last Saturday!

Yep, SaraJane is a Blogger and invites you to visit her blog...SaraJane's Christmas Diary. Her First entry is about her arrival last Saturday. She will be posting about her MakeOver, her New Room, and in time when she's better, her many Christmas' apart from 'The First Little Girl' for whom she was a Christmas Gift, Sue.

PS...Thanks to all of you who 'Believed in Santa' and knew SaraJane and Sue would be together again.
And As Always...Thanks for Coming and Commenting!

Collectin SnowGlobes & IceSkating in Texas!

"Nana, one of the Skaters has her arm broken".
"Yes, I know, my observant Granddaughter,
it's what happens when you try skating on 'Texas'ThinIce'".

Yep, this GRIT tried 'Ice Skating' ONCE!
At the 'Mall Ya'll'! Imagine that...IceRinks in Texas...in the Summer!

Being a 'RollerRink Skater', I figured I could Ice Skate...no problem!
Dorothy Hamill I was NOT! Not even close, and I so wanted to do a Double Axel!

Instead the only Axel on Ice for this Iowa born, (IceSkating State), GRIT was on the Axel attached to the TailBone!
And that was from trying to skate going Forward!
Now, I could skate on those 'ThinBlades' all day going BACKWARDS!


So, the Moral of The Story Is... "Let Dorothy DoIt" and...


Wrap the Skating Figurines and Tailbone Axel in BubbleWrap!

Didn't you love watching Dorothy Hamill win the Olympic Gold Medal in 1976?

Did you follow the 'Hamill Hair Trend'? Yep, if I couldn't do the 'Hamill Camel Spin', at least I could do the HairDo!

Here's Dorothy's Bio on Wikipedia and Dorothy Hamill.com...if you'd like to read more about 'America's Skating Sweetheart.'


Do you 'Collect Christmas Stuff'?
I'd really like to know!

What's your most Unique Christmas Collectible?

ONE of mine are the Santa Snow Globes!

Most of mine have been gifts from
Friends and Family who say,
"Sue's EZ to buy for...She Collects Santa's"!

I love them All and enjoy decorating with them every Christmas!
 

Precisely when the first snow globe, also called a waterglobe or snowdome, was made remains unclear, but they appear to date from France during the early 1800s. They may have appeared as a successor to the glass paperweight, which became popular a few years earlier. Snow globes appeared at the Paris Universal Expo in 1878, and by 1879, at least five companies were producing snow globes and selling them throughout Europe.
Initially snow globes consisted of a heavy lead glass dome which was placed over a ceramic figure or tableau on a black cast ceramic base, filled with water and then sealed. The snow or "flitter" was created by use of bone chips or pieces of porcelain, sand or even sawdust. As they became more sophisticated, the glass became thinner, the bases were lighter (Bakelite was popular during the Art Deco period) and the snow was made out of particles of gold foil or non-soluble soap flakes although nowadays, for health and safety reasons, small pieces of white plastic are used. Later, the liquid was changed to light oil, then water with antifreeze (glycerin or glycol). An added benefit was that glycerin and glycol slowed the descent of the snow.
History of Snow Globes from Wikepedia.

Collectin Santa & Mrs. Claus...Pink Saturday #10

Merry Christmas and Welcome to CollectInTexas Gal's Home!
Ya'll come on in and make yourself comfy!
I'm so happy you are here today to share in this Special December Pink Saturday hosted by Santa's Helper Beverly at How Sweet The Sound!
I'm so looking forward to seeing everyone's 'Favorite Christmas Decoration'.
I know there are going to be lots of wonderful decorations and stories that go with them.
So without further AhhhhChooooo.....here's mine!


Candy Cane Santa is the One and Only Christmas Decoration
I remember from my childhood.
He was the Center Piece on Mama's Kitchen Table,
and is now the Center Piece on mine.
Go ahead....help yourself to a Chocolate Covered Cherry!
There sure aren't as many in a box as there used to be.
Have you noticed that, too?
Santa always left each of us five kids a box,
and there seemed to be lots more cherries than were
in the box I bought at WalMart today!
Even the box is different, and have you tried to find Ribbon Candy?
I miss some of the 'Good Ole Christmas Days'...
at least the ones I can remember!





Behind every successful Santa, there is a Mrs. Santa Claus!
That's how he got so 'Round and Jolly'!

CIT Gals' Collection of Santa and Mrs. Claus!



I hope you stayed warm and cozy in my living room and enjoyed seeing Santa and Mrs. Claus.
Be sure and Click on over to Beverly's How Sweet the Sound
to see everyone's Favorite Decoration.
Maybe there'll be some Ribbon Candy!



Post Santa...Merry Christmas and
'As Always, Thanks for Coming and Commenting'.