The Scoop on Granny

Name:
Cathi

Status:
Dreaming of the mountains...


Who is Granny?

I'm the incredibly blessed mother of 9, "Granny" to 16, and wife of "The Papa," the knight-in-shining-armor whose loving support has made it possible for me to stay home and give my life to mothering, homemaking, and 26 years of homeschooling. Life at Granny's House is full of laughter, friendship, books, music, lively debate, writing, and good things to eat. My days are made even more meaningful by coming alongside other moms, giving them the support and encouragement that I lacked as a young mother and helping them to network with each other in ways that strengthen homes and families. A few times a year I board a plane to visit my "away" kids, to attend the birth of a grandchild, or to enjoy some lazy days with my best friend, but I always love coming back to...Granny's House.

My Complete Profile

On Granny's Calendar
  • August 15 - SAC Day begins
  • August 16 - Sam is 7!
  • August 20 - Kristen's birthday
  • August 30 - THE WELTYS ARRIVE!
  • Sept 3 - FAMILY PICTURES
  • Sept 3 - Chris' birthday
  • Sept 5 - Henry is 9!
  • Sept 7 - Isaac is 10!
  • Sept 17 - The Papa's birthday
  • Sept 23-30 - Granny and Papa go to Hawaii
  • Sept 26 - PawPop is 88!
  • Sept 29 - Tim is 15!
  • Oct 2 - Cheyenne's birthday
  • Oct 4 - Liam is 5!
  • Oct 7 - John Caleb is 17!
  • Oct 18 - Tony's birthday



  • Email Granny!


    Get your own calendar



    Granny Cares
  • Care Calendar
  • Agape Pregnancy Help Center San Antonio
  • World Vision

  • Granny Cooks (and Eats)!

  • The Pioneer Woman Cooks
  • Once a Month Mom
  • $5 Dinners
  • Full Bellies, Happy Kids
  • A Year of Crockpotting


  • Granny's House (and yours!)

  • Simple Mom
  • The Nesting Place
  • Between Naps on the Porch
  • The Inspired Room



  • Granny gets around...
  • A Holy Experience
  • MommyLife
  • Confessions of a Pioneer Woman
  • Preschoolers and Peace
  • Breathing Grace
  • theMangoTimes



  • Granny stays informed...
  • Real Clear Politics
  • Fox News
  • Drudge Report

  • Granny Thinks...
  • Al Mohler
  • Between Two Worlds
  • Blog and Mablog
  • First Importance
  • Equipping the Saints
  • Desiring God

  • Granny says you may go to...
  • PowerLine Blog
  • Michelle Malkin
  • SteynOnline
  • WSJ Opinion Journal Best of the Web
  • GetHuman
  • Home School Legal Defense Association

  • Granny goes to the movies...
  • Netflix
  • Rotten Tomatoes
  • ScreenIt.com

  • Granny is watching!
  • Blue Pencil Editing
  • SPOGG
  • Mighty Red Pen
  • Conjugate Visits

  • Granny smiles at...
  • Purgatorio
  • ScrappleFace
  • LarkNews
  • Sacred Sandwich


  • Sunday, February 28, 2010
    Sunday snippets...

    It's sad saying goodbye to the Olympics. They've been a pleasant companion to me the past two weeks. Not that boredom is ever a problem for me, even in these months. I can find things to complain about on bad days, but boredom is never one of them. Still, the Olympics filled the afternoons and evenings with a completely different element and I will miss them...

    But just about the time I am bidding the Olympics farewell, I get a little care package from Lyric with one of my recent favorite movies, The Time Traveler's Wife. I don't watch many movies more than once (Fiddler on the Roof and The Sound of Music would be about the only exceptions), but this one was such a delight that I will be watching it again soon. As in tomorrow night. She also sent a CD that I'm listening to tonight: The Canadian Tenors. Divine harmonies.

    In the month that I've been home from the hospital but still confined to my room, I've been getting a stream of flowers at the rate of one arrangement a week. They come from friends all over the country and have brightened my days more than anyone knows. But it took me about three weeks to figure out that the regularity with which they were arriving smacked of some kind of benevolent orchestration. I'm not asking any questions, I'm just enjoying the color, aroma, and kindness these bouquets represent. Thank you so much to all of you who have blessed me this way!

    While I have my own thoughts about who "won" and who "lost" in Thursday's health care kabuki theater, it seems the country and the pundits are rather divided on its success. Nevertheless, I don't think it got us any closer to the Dems' goal of Health Care Reform Destruction than we were on Wednesday. So have we dodged a bullet? Or will something be pulled out of a hat at the last minute to give Madame Speaker her slim majority? If I were inclined to bet, I'd be putting my money on her. And that's not a good thing.

    When I'm tempted
    to complain about our medical insurance, I sometimes forget how much our Tricare has been worth to us in the past eight years. The bill for my 23 days of hospitalization in December/January arrived: $420. That's the total...nothing else for doctors, tests, drugs, anything. Since '02 I've had over a dozen surgeries on my hips, legs, and other places, and our contribution has been a pittance compared to what I've received. Yes, military care can be exasperating at times, but the benefits gained from The Papa's years of service turned out to be much more valuable than we ever dreamed they'd be. Thank God for His provision.

    Another blessing...Dave and Kristen (our second-oldest daughter) and their children have "moved in" with us during The Papa's latest trip to Hawaii. Because I currently need a lot of care, it's so helpful to have extra hands, cooks, drivers, nurses, etc. around. Plus the fact that they're just plain good company :-) And it's good to hear the foot-patter of the elves once again. Thanks so very much, Slaughters...

    It's okay for Michelle Obama to tell us all what to eat and how much to exercise, but Barack is still sneaking out the back door for a smoke.

    I haven't gotten all the way through The Help yet...but it's one of those rare pieces of fiction that I'd don't want to ever be over. So I'm listening...slo-o-o-owly.

    As you enter this month that is said to come "in like a lion and out like a lamb," I hope you'll enjoy the crocuses and tulips coming up through the last of the snow. As for us here in the unfrozen south, we'll be watching for the first bluebonnets. Happy March!

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    has spoken at 2:53 PM
    2 Backtalks to Granny



    Saturday, February 27, 2010
    This is why we must be vigilant, or else turn over to our children and grandchildren a country we won't even recognize:

    The American political system has remained stable mainly because its political parties have remained rational over our history. That rationality has been mainly based on the accepted principle that there isn’t more to power in our system than winning elections, which can create short-sighted leadership at times, but also discourages sweeping changes to the country by a party on a political suicide mission. A party with a leadership of zealots, though, could choose to use a two-year session of Congress to fundamentally remake America if it accepted a humiliating loss of power as the necessary trade-off. [Emphasis mine]


    And don't count on the next Republican Congress categorically undoing this remake. Once a majority of the electorate gets a taste of all these expensive benefits (and most of the ones who will are ones who pay little or no income tax so won't care about rising tax bills), it will be all but impossible to take the benefits away. And I use the term "benefit" rather loosely here, as none of this truly benefits any of us. Least of all our grandchildren. Try paying back $10 trillion before they pull your credit line.

    Are Democrats choosing to run off a cliff with ObamaCare?

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    has spoken at 6:04 PM
    0 Backtalks to Granny



    Wednesday, February 24, 2010

    Friends, just wait. Britain R Us.

    Patients were routinely neglected or left “sobbing and humiliated” by staff at an NHS trust where at least 400 deaths have been linked to appalling care.

    An independent inquiry found that managers at Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust stopped providing safe care because they were preoccupied with government targets and cutting costs.

    The inquiry report, published yesterday by Robert Francis, QC, included proposals for tough new regulations that could lead to managers at failing NHS trusts being struck off.

    Staff shortages at Stafford Hospital meant that patients went unwashed for weeks, were left without food or drink and were even unable to get to the lavatory. Some lay in soiled sheets that relatives had to take home to wash, others developed infections or had falls, occasionally fatal. Many staff did their best but the attitude of some nurses “left a lot to be desired”.

    Ya think?

    Read the rest here. And pray that Thursday's booby trap for the GOP fails. Otherwise, prepare to wash your own sheets.

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    has spoken at 9:48 PM
    4 Backtalks to Granny



    Tuesday, February 23, 2010
    This situation speaks for itself in answer to those who believe Canada has the model health care system. Danny Williams, premier of Newfoundland and Labrador, needed a specialized heart procedure and needed it immediately. He wasn't going to the back of any line; neither would it have been publicly acceptable for him to go to the head of a very long line, free or not. He went to Miami instead and paid his own bill.

    'My heart, my choice,' Williams says, defending decision for U.S. heart surgery

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    has spoken at 3:40 PM
    0 Backtalks to Granny



    Sunday, February 21, 2010
    Sunday snippets...

    Today it feels like spring in south Texas...not that I've been outside to enjoy it, but the chill is gone from my room and I know that spring is not far behind. But I'm in no hurry...I'm looking forward to a couple more cold snaps before our inexorable march toward heat and humidity.

    I've now seen my original target date for being through with the antibiotic treatment come and go and I'm still waiting. I'm still hoping for a surgery date by at least mid-March but that is looking less likely with each day that passes. The wait is hard, though I've become used to the routine and I've found plenty of things to keep me busy. My days consist of: reading, both books and on my Kindle (which I can also access on my computer and it's easier reading that way); enjoying audio books, currently listening to The Help; working puzzles in my book of Brain Games; helping the kids with schoolwork; doing a little work and other writing projects; and devising creative strategies to keep lunch down. Sometimes the latter takes precedence over everything else, and I find that sleep is about my only weapon when the nausea is bad. But at least I have lots to keep me busy in the in-between times :-)

    As if that's not enough to keep me busy, I'm poring over The Teaching Company's catalog, trying to decide which course to "take" next. I'm leaning toward something in the American literature area, perhaps one on the American short story. If you haven't ever considered this route of expanding your knowledge in some field, you should. These courses are terrific! (Just make sure you never buy anything that's not on sale. Every course goes on sale every year, and you just need to wait for the ones you want to come around!)

    I'm fascinated by the current duel between those who say that the ObamaCare strategy to destroy health care is "dead" and those who are still saying it will be rammed (or "Rahm'ed) through within 60 days. I still think that something will be passed; I can only hope that whatever it is a mere skeleton of what the Left wanted and that the harmful parts will be repealed by the next Congress before enough people get sucked in by dependence on government coffers. It's really hard to vote no on something once you've gotten a check. (And I include myself in that. I would hate to give up my mortgage credit on our income tax, and yet I believe that the government should not give such credits. If anything we should be encouraging saving, not borrowing. But then that's a whole other argument.)

    As predicted, the Olympics has been such good company for me in these waiting days and I'll be sad to see them end. I don't necessarily enjoy every event (watching hockey as I write, and it's certainly not my favorite), but I've kept it on no matter what the event. I'm proud that USA is, at least now, far ahead in the medal count and representing us well!

    Another distraction: Tim Challies has a project this year of reading every New York Times bestseller and reviewing them on a blog he calls 10 Million Words. How this guy can manage to fit in reading all these books into his already crazy-busy life is part of the attraction for me. Whether or not I ever read anything he's reviewing, it's a very interesting blog to follow. And then again, there are a few books that have caught my attention that I might never have thought to read without his recommendation, such as The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks. Put this blog on your Google Reader or Bloglines and follow a fascinating project.

    I must buy a new computer. I must buy a new computer. I must buy a new computer. I would rather endure bamboo shoots under my nails. And it has little to do with the expense. It's just such a headache. Not only the choice, but the transfer of everything in my life to a new machine is more than I can bear. So this one limps along.

    I'm having fun helping Shelley plan her senior piano recital. She's working hard on the music and I and some good friends are working on the reception. This will be the first time we've ever done this, and I'm really excited about displaying and honoring all her hard work at the keyboard!

    Snip, snip, that's all, folks!

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    has spoken at 2:14 PM
    2 Backtalks to Granny



    Friday, February 12, 2010
    I've received a lot of flowers in the past few weeks, and I treasure them so much...they make me smile.

    But so far, these are my very favorite, made by granddaughter Molly:



    Thank you so much, Molly! These are keepers!

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    has spoken at 9:23 PM
    2 Backtalks to Granny



    Tuesday, February 09, 2010
    The many faces of my beautiful daughter #4...Happy 23rd, CJ!











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    has spoken at 2:45 PM
    3 Backtalks to Granny



    Monday, February 08, 2010
    Hear, hear!

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    has spoken at 5:40 PM
    1 Backtalks to Granny



    Friday, February 05, 2010
    This is great.

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    has spoken at 10:56 AM
    1 Backtalks to Granny



    Thursday, February 04, 2010
    In a world of bad news...

    ...there are a few bright spots. And isn't it about time we didn't have to put up with these little things anymore?

    (Although I admit to being surprised that the government didn't mandate it sooner.)

    Heinz revamps ketchup packets

    Labels: ,


    has spoken at 11:58 AM
    1 Backtalks to Granny



    Granny's Mission Statement
    "...Tell to the coming generation the glorious deeds of the LORD, and his might, and the wonders that he has done....that the generation to come might know, even the children yet to be born, that they may arise and tell them to their children."
    ~Psalm 78:4-6

    My Focal Passage for 2011...
    Philippians 2:5-11

    5 Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus,

    6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped,

    7 but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.

    8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

    9 Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name,

    10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth,

    11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

    ~Philippians 2:5-11 (ESV)


    Oxymoronica...

    "The vanity of being known to be trusted with a secret is generally one of the chief motives to disclose it."

    ~Samuel Johnson


    [Oxymoronica, n., A compilation of self-contradictory terms, phrases, or quotations; examples of oxymoronica appear illogical or nonsensical at first, but upon reflection, make a good deal of sense and are often profoundly true.]


    Books on the iPhone, the Kindle, or on the nightstand...


  • The Good Husband of Zebra Drive, Alexander Mccall Smith
  • The Valley of Vision: A Collection of Puritan Prayers and Devotions, Arthur G. Bennett, editor



  • Books finished in 2011...

  • Oxymoronica, Mardy Grothe
  • Some Sing, Some Cry, Ntozake Shange, Ifa Bayeza
  • English Society in the Eighteenth Century, Roy Porter
  • One Thousand Gifts: A Dare to Live Fully Right Where You Are, Ann Voskamp
  • His Word in My Heart, Janet Pope
  • The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, Rebecca Skloot
  • Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide, Nicholas D. Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn
  • Reading Lolita in Tehran, Azar Nafisi
  • Think: The Life of the Mind and the Love of God, John Piper
  • Moonwalking with Einstein: The Art and Science of Remembering Everything, Joshua Foer
  • Blue Shoes and Happiness, Alexander McCall Smith
  • The Red Queen, Philippa Gregory
  • Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy, Eric Metaxas
  • The Confessions of Saint Augustine, St. Augustine
  • Complete Poems and Selected Letters of John Keats, John Keats
  • Unfamiliar Fishes, Sarah Vowell
  • Words That Work, Frank Luntz
  • NurtureShock: New Thinking About Children, Po Bronson and Ashley Merryman
  • Poke the Box, Seth Godin
  • Why We Get Fat: And What to Do About It, Gary Taubes
  • A Patriot's History of the United States, Larry Schweikart and Michael Allen
  • Song of Saigon: One Woman's Journey to Freedom, Anh Vu Sawyer
  • The Artistic Mother: A Practical Guide for Fitting Creativity into Your Life, Shona Cole
  • The Politically Incorrect Guide to English and American Literature, Elizabeth Kantor
  • The Greater Journey: Americans in Paris, David McCullough


  • Oh, the thinks you
    can think...
  • Tapestry of Grace
  • Anatomical Charts
  • America's Library
  • George Washington's Mount Vernon - Virtual Mansion Tour
  • Thomas Jefferson's Monticello - Virtual Mansion Tour
  • Hurricane Demo

  • Oh, the places we'll go...
  • The Alamo
  • Majestic Theater
  • The MAiZE
  • Magik Theatre
  • Sheldon Vexler Children's Theatre

  • Granny always says...
    Saying goodbye...
    Sunday snippets...
    Summer.
    Sunday snippets...
    Coming soon to a country near you...
    Making (a) room...
    Just in case this might make an impact on your spe...
    Midweek snippets...
    What's up?
    She said YES!

    Granny used to say...
    October 2005
    November 2005
    December 2005
    January 2006
    February 2006
    March 2006
    April 2006
    May 2006
    June 2006
    July 2006
    August 2006
    September 2006
    October 2006
    November 2006
    December 2006
    January 2007
    February 2007
    March 2007
    April 2007
    May 2007
    June 2007
    July 2007
    August 2007
    September 2007
    October 2007
    November 2007
    December 2007
    January 2008
    February 2008
    March 2008
    April 2008
    May 2008
    June 2008
    July 2008
    August 2008
    September 2008
    October 2008
    November 2008
    December 2008
    January 2009
    February 2009
    March 2009
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    May 2009
    June 2009
    July 2009
    August 2009
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    October 2009
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    December 2009
    January 2010
    February 2010
    March 2010
    April 2010
    May 2010
    June 2010
    July 2010
    August 2010
    September 2010
    October 2010
    November 2010
    December 2010
    January 2011
    February 2011
    March 2011
    April 2011
    May 2011
    June 2011
    July 2011
    August 2011


    Grace Notes

    "Were the whole realm of nature mine
    That were a present far too small...
    Love so amazing, so divine
    Demands my soul, my life,
    my all!"