Flop Bott: VALENTINE'S DAY 2013

FEBRUARY 14th. Yes, we love you Anne Frank and vintage lady holding our beloved beverage:

Coca-Cola!!

I feel so sorry for those of you out there that have only one person to mug on today.

Kidding.

Yes, I'd love to have a man give me some perfume, chocolates, jewelry, a bunch of money.

Actually, I love home-made Valentine's the best. Cause it's from the heart!! And if I correctly recall V-day, when married became one of those holidays that actually starts to morph into birthday-like attention because as you age: It's Not a Big Deal.

But I like to make it a big deal for the tinies. And for J.

J. got his Valentine stuff already, amongst his stuff: a package in the mail!!!!!

I loved receiving packages in the mail as a kid.And this came to him as a surprise from his Utah Grandma.

Which is doubly special.

The best part of life is being with the lovies: your babies and the other grand babies.

So.....

The other day as I had my nephew Kay- Dub drawn up next to me real close so he could hear a story about my first real love- my dog, Scamper.

(vintage K.W.)

Who died.

Because he had to go to the farm to live due to Padre's strict no pet policy. He'd let us get one. Because we were really good at cajolling and begging and then we'd get the dog, not do our part of the bargain, or Padre would see that they ruined the yard. He did say we could have the stuffed kind.

Which, really, now that I am older, is so much easier to take care of.

And they are so cute.

This story about Scamper CAPTIVATED K. because he loves dogs, lives on a farm,

AND

knows Padre

AND

can't believe

he'd have such a strict pet policy.

BUT he could identify with Padre's "pet peeve" with their excrement in the yard, cause his own mom had a problem with his dog, Indigo Blue's poop on the porch.

Fertilizer on the porch doesn't work that well I tried to explain to him.

I reassured him that his dog wouldn't die a car death or any death-

please, Lord, makes this be true,

because he has fence around his farm house.

So I told him the love story of and how that dog was even loved by a cousin named Jared. Who picked up Scamper, after he'd been hit by a car, from the highway and carried him to Aunt Annette.

Who was the mom of the farm.

Oh! This pic reminds me of my own mom. Thanks Aunt 'Nette for being the surrogate mom to Scamper and having to take his body in such a state. Sorry if this post makes you cry.

Immediately K and J wanted to know if there were pics of the dog (after he'd been hit by the car). Then they needed to see pics of Jared and Aunt Annette.

Of the farm.

Where Scamper was buried.

Dang. Didn't have any pictures of the burial plot. And, no, I don't think I could find the plot if I walked in the field, as it wasn't their farm anymore and I was sure the little stick had been plowed over. But the day cousin Jared took The Torment and I out to where our dog rested was emblazoned in my memory. It was a really windy day and a cold spring wind whipped past my face. It was a sacred moment when Jared pointed to the dirt that covered our dog.

Scamper's death was the single worst funeral/death I've ever endured!

I'm sure everyone can testify to the love of a pet being so strong that it evokes more emotion than a relatives.

(Here is a vintage tin that my ancestors kept all their extra buttons..... )

So,, in the middle of me telling this story, J. decided to try his hand at asking Padre for a dog. Literally, right there in the middle of the story.

Nope.

Thank you, Padre.

But..... he got a stuffed dog in his package!

It had a lot of candy in it, too.

Thanks, J''s Gma! He loved opening it. With a nail file. He couldn't wait to go get his knife so he used my nail file from my purse.

boys.

However, the stuffed dog goes to show:

The Lord answers your prayers in different ways than you expect. But He always answers them.

Where was I??

Oh, single, and why you should be jealous.

Because sweet single people think of you. I got a card from an older lady who I think is amazing. She's one of my little guardian angels..

Isn't that nice? This woman is a petite white haired grandma that is so sweet. has a wicked sense of humor, looks adorable in pink, has a giggle that makes you giggle, loves to iron,and has had romantic history that has made me weep.

And she has never cried. Not even over her own story. She attributes this to simply being given a "gift" of faith to know all would be okay. But not to cry even through pain?

She's mentally and physically tough. Heck, it's making me cry just blogging about her.

She wrote her story and it's better than any World War II movie/love story you have ever heard seen.

Seriously.

If she sent her story to a publisher, it would be in Barnes and Noble before the Ides of March. But it's too sacred to tell, or share with anyone but those near. Thanks, sweet, Eva, for honoring me with a Valentine. I feel very undeserving of all your worries and kindnesses. But you have come to my mind in some of my darkest moments and helped me through. As have your loved ones. Why are you so amazing? I am so glad I read your book. Wow. I can't wait until you are re-united with your sweethearts. But am selfish and don't want you to go anywhere.

So stay here.