Use the 1st letter OF YOUR LAST NAME to answer each of the following questions. They have to be real places, names, things,Nothing made up. Use different answers if the person in front of you had the same 1st initial. You can't use your name for the boy/girl question. Have Fun!!

1. What is your last name? Ratliff
2. Name an animal....Rhino
3. A Boys name...Robert
4. A Girls name…… Rae
5. An occupation.... robot builder
6. A COLOR... Rose pink
7. Something you wear...Rubber boots
8. A beverage ... Rose hip tea
9. A food... radicchio
10. Something found in the bathroom...Rug
11. A place: Romania
12. A Reason for being late....Robbed
13. Something you shout... Run!

Happy Memorial Day to all--may we remember our fallen and our loved ones gone on before...

Love to you all

Happy Birthday to Sami

A very HAPPY BIRTHDAY to our Sami, with Love

The ABC's about me!

You've been tagged! You are supposed to write a note with the ABC's of YOU. At the end, choose 26 people to be tagged. You have to tag me so really you just need 25 more people. If I tagged you, it's because I want to know more about you - but not in a creepy stalker kind of way. ( I am not going to tag 25 people - seems a bit excessive!)


A - Age: 61

B - Bed size: Queen

C - Chore you hate: cleaning the oven

D - Dog(s) name: none

E - Essential start your day item: prayer

F - Favorite color: any shade purple

G - Gold or Silver: both

H - Height: 5'10"

I - Instrument: recorder, tiny bit of piano

J - Job title: Grandma, library tech

K - Kid(s): Thane, Trent, Trevor, Tyson, Torri, Taron, Tevan

L - Living arrangements: Me and Tevan right now

M - Mom's name: Marj

N - Nicknames: Vic, library grandma, Grandma, Mom

O - Overnight hospital stay other than birth of child: Hysterectomy 2004

P - Pet Peeve: people with NO regard for others

Q - Quotes you like: "We don't have to be perfect today. We don't have to be better than someone else. All we have to do is be the very best we can be." (Joseph B. Wirthlin)

R - Right or left handed: Right

S - Siblings: 2 sisters

T - Time you wake up: between 7 and 8. (I already did the early stuff!)

U- Underwear: Um...Yes.( I don't really get it.)

V - Vegetable you dislike: Brussel sprouts

W - Ways you run late: trying to cram one more thing in before I go

X - X-rays you've had: leg, sinuses, hand, wrist, foot (three times)

Y - Yummy food you make: rolls, orange bow knots, breads in general, lots of other things--I am a pretty good cook when I am motivated to cook

Z - Zoo favorite: sea otters, elephants, giraffes, monkeys, penguin, tigers.

I tag anyone who is interested, I would like to learn more about any of you reading this.

Finished!!

The bathroom is finally finished! We finished the medicine cabinet and the towel rods yesterday. (Well I still have to put up the baseboard, but its too windy to paint it outside today, so it might have to wait for calm.)

General Conference

I so enjoyed conference this weekend. So many good talks, so much to work on, such a boost. I agree with Aimee on her post of being so thankful for a prophet. I am so grateful for President Monson's positive outlook. Four main themes stood out to me: temples, being of good cheer, following the prophet, and talks on the Savior. Some of my favorites were:
Elder Packer on building on bedrock and surviving storms, and being acquainted with the "voice" of the Holy Ghost so we automatically follow it in times of stress and turmoil.
President Eyring on the challenge we all have in common--adversity, and how we need adversity and trials to be prepared, tested and to qualify for eternal life.
Elder Cook who talked about faith and the stumbling blocks to it, and about Faith being a source of great power. We need to keep our balance of faith greater than any causes of disbelief.
President Uchtdorf on discipleship, faith and unity and how the theories of the world come and go but the gospel of Jesus Christ has answers to all of life's questions.
Elder Snow on change, and getting on with our lives. To do so we need to Follow the prophet, Keep an eternal perspective, and move forward with faith. The formula for happiness and faith is to see the light of Christ then see our faults which leads to repentance, and then the gift of the Holy Ghost (after baptism) gives us constant companionship which leads us to extend ourselves to others. We need to remember too that it is not a sprint but an endurance race, so it takes time to do these things.
Elder Holland who spoke of the Savior's atonement in such a touching way- for all who feel alone (as we all do at some time or other). He talked of the Atonement as the most lonely task of eternity, which meant that we in turn don't have to make this journey alone, and we also have people with us on both sides of the veil. I like that thought!
President Monson taught us to focus on the blessings of the Church in this troubled time. He said to make the gospel the center of our lives and all will be well in spite of everything going on in the world.
Elder Oaks on unselfishness and service, and how we are more filled by what we give than what we get.
Elder Bednar on temple work and how that changes our focus on life. When he talked about sacrament covenant was willingness to take upon us the name of Christ, and in the temple we do take His name upon us, it really made sense.
The challenges of President Monson in his closing remarks gave us much to think about and work on: to live closer to the Lord, to pray always, to love our families and tell them, and pray for them, avoid pornography at all costs and in all forms, and get help if caught in that trap, and go to the temple often. He also blessed us that our testimonies will be strengthened and homes filled with harmony and love. What a great blessing. He asked the Lord's blessing on all of us.

It was a great conference and I look forward to printing off a few talks as soon as available this week and to getting the Ensign in May.

Share your thoughts and some of your favorites too.

5 Things

Tagged:
5 things I was doing 5 years ago:
1. Are you kidding? Sometimes I can't remember what I was doing 5 Minutes ago!
2. Went back to work after being off for surgery for 6 weeks.
3. Had my last post op exam
4. Went to Provo for Tyson's graduation from BYU.
5. Getting Taron to dr. appointments for mission.

5 things on my to-do list for today:
1. Listen to general conference.
2. Work on fixing some tops for Cori.
3. Do the Saturday chores between sessions
4. Pay some bills. (ugh)
5. Work on bathroom.

5 things I would do with a million dollars:
1. Finish the upgrades on my house.
2. Save enough for everyone to finish education.
3. Give some to each of my kids
4. Save some for the last two weddings
5. Give some to some dear friends for things they need to do.

5 places I have lived:
1. Davis, California
2. Provo, Utah
3. Lawton, Oklahoma
4. Schwaebisch Gmund, Germany
5. Ridgecrest, California

5 jobs I've held:
1. Motel maid
2. Cleaned student apartments at end of year (ugh!)
3. Custom sewing
4. Dental receptionist
5. Library Technician

5 things I want to be doing in 5 years:
1. Still be around
2. Being a good Grandma
3. Be healthy
4. Still be learning
5. Still be working on my projects--that will mean I still can!

Have YOU read them?

Apparently the BBC reckons most people will have only read 6 of the 100 books here.

Instructions:
1) Look at the list and put an 'x' after those you have read.
2) Add a '+' to the ones you LOVE.
3) Star (*) those you plan on reading. (Let's just say everything I haven't read is *ed) :)
4) Tally your total.Then, post your total read at the bottom.

1. [x ] Pride and Prejudice Jane Austen
2. [+] The Lord of the Rings JRR Tolkien
3. [ x] Jane Eyre Charlotte Bronte
4. [+ ] Harry Potter series JK Rowling
5. [x] To Kill a Mockingbird Harper Lee
6. [ X] The Bible
7. [x] Wuthering Heights Emily Bronte
8. [ x] Nineteen Eighty Four George Orwell
9. [ x] His Dark Materials Philip Pullman
10. [ *] Great Expectations Charles Dickens
11. [+ ] Little Women Louisa M Alcott
12. [ *] Tess of the D'Urbervilles Thomas Hardy
13. [ x] Catch 22 Joseph Heller
14. [ ] Complete Works of Shakespeare
15. [ X] Rebecca Daphne Du Maurier
16. [+] The Hobbit JRR Tolken
17. [ ] Birdsong Sebastian Faulks
18. [] Catcher in the Rye JD Salinger
19. [ ] The Time Traveller's Wife Audrey Niffenegger
20. [ ] Middlemarch George Eliot
21. [+ ] Gone With The Wind Margaret Mitchell
22. [X ] The Great Gatsby F Scott Fitzgerald
23. [ ] Bleak House Charles Dickens
24. [ ] War and Peace Leo Tolstoy
25. [ *] The Hitch Hiker.s Guide to the Galaxy Douglas Adams
26. [ ] Brideshead Revisited Evelyn Waugh
27. [] Crime and Punishment Fyodor Dostoyevsky
28. [X ] Grapes of Wrath John Steinbeck
29. [+] Alice in Wonderland Lewis Carroll (AND Through the Looking Glass...twas brilig and the slithy toves....)
30. [ x] The Wind in the Willows Kenneth Grahame
31. [ x] Anna Karenina Leo Tolstoy
32. [ *] David Copperfield Charles Dickens
33. [+] Chronicles of Narnia CS Lewis
34. [ *] Emma Jane Austen
35. [* ] Persuasion Jane Austen
36. [+] The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe CS Lewis
37. [* ] The Kite Runner Khaled Hosseini
38. [ ] Captain Corelli's Mandolin Louis De Bernieres
39. [] Memoirs of a Geisha Arthur Golden
40. [ X] Winnie the Pooh AA Milne
41. [ x] Animal Farm George Orwell
42. [X] The Da Vinci Code Dan Brown
43. [ ] One Hundred Years of Solitude Gabriel Garcia Marquez
44. [ ] A Prayer for Owen Meaney John Irving
45. [ ] The Woman in White Wilkie Collins
46. [ X] Anne of Green Gables LM Montgomery
47. [ x] Far From The Madding Crowd Thomas Hardy
48. [ ] The Handmaid's Tale Margaret Atwood
49. [X] Lord of the Flies William Golding
50. [ ] Atonement Ian McEwan
51. [ ] Life of Pi Yann Martel
52. [ ] Dune Frank Herbert
53. [ ] Cold Comfort Farm Stella Gibbons
54. [ X] Sense and Sensibility Jane Austen
55. [ ] A Suitable Boy Vikram Seth
56. [ ] The Shadow of the Wind Carlos Ruiz Zafon
57. [X] A Tale Of Two Cities Charles Dickens
58. [ x] Brave New World Aldous Huxley
59. [ ] The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time Mark Haddon
60. [ ] Love In The Time Of Cholera Gabriel Garcia Marquez
61. [X] Of Mice and Men John Steinbeck
62. [ ] Lolita Vladimir Nabokov
63. [ ] The Secret History Donna Tartt
64. [] The Lovely Bones Alice Sebold
65. [x] Count of Monte Cristo Alexandre Dumas
66. [ *] On The Road Jack Kerouac
67. [ ] Jude the Obscure Thomas Hardy
68. [ ] Bridget Jones's Diary Helen Fielding
69. [ ] Midnight's Children Salman Rushdie
70. [ x] Moby Dick Herman Melville
71. [ X] Oliver Twist Charles Dickens
72. [* ] Dracula Bram Stoker
73. [X] The Secret Garden Frances Hodgson Burnett
74. [ ] Notes From A Small Island Bill Bryson
75. [ ] Ulysses James Joyce
76. [ ] The Bell Jar Sylvia Plath
77. [ ] Swallows and Amazons Arthur Ransome
78. [ ] Germinal Emile Zola
79. [x] Vanity Fair William Makepeace Thackeray
80. [ ] Possession AS Byatt
81. [X] A Christmas Carol Charles Dickens
82. [ ] Cloud Atlas David Mitchell
83. [ ] The Color Purple Alice Walker
84. [ ] The Remains of the Day Kazuo Ishiguro
85. [ ] Madame Bovary Gustave Flaubert
86. [ ] A Fine Balance Rohinton Mistry
87. [X] Charlotte's Web EB White
88. [ ] The Five People You Meet In Heaven Mitch Alborn
89. [ x] Adventures of Sherlock Holmes Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (Again, Tyson has read this one)
90. [ ] The Faraway Tree Collection Enid Blyton
91. [X ] Heart of Darkness Joseph Conrad
92. [x] The Little Prince Antoine De Saint-Exupery
93. [ ] The Wasp Factory Iain Banks
94. [X ] Watership Down Richard Adams (Freaky rabid bunnies!)
95. [ ] A Confederacy of Dunces John Kennedy Toole
96. [ ] A Town Like Alice Nevil Shute
97. [*] The Three Musketeers Alexandre Dumas (have them, Tyson has read them)
98. [X ] Hamlet William Shakespeare
99. [X] Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
100. [*] Les Miserables Victor Hugo

I have read 46, an would like to read 11 more. Some I read in High school, and don't remember much about, and some I really didn't like (i.e. Of Mice and Men), but this was an interesting list!

1st pregnancy tag

1. WAS YOUR FIRST PREGNANCY PLANNED?
Yes and long awaited!!

2. WERE YOU MARRIED AT THE TIME?
for me-no other choice

3. WHAT WERE YOUR REACTIONS?
nervous at first as I had had a miscarriage already, then when I was sure all was well, ecstatic

4. WAS ABORTION AN OPTION FOR YOU?
NO WAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

5. HOW OLD WERE YOU?
26 1/2

6. HOW DID YOU FIND OUT YOU WERE PREGNANT?
Since I was so anxious to have a baby, I went to the doctor as soon as I suspected.

7. WHO DID YOU TELL FIRST?
Bill

8. DID YOU WANT TO FIND OUT THE SEX?
that was not an option in 1974

9. DUE DATE?
January 18th, 1974 (I had three babies due that date- but never hit it)

10. DID YOU HAVE MORNING SICKNESS?
Extreme queasiness for 4 months, but no throwing up. Smells really got me.

11. WHAT DID YOU CRAVE?
ice cream (but no pickles)

12. WHO/WHAT IRRITATED YOU THE MOST?
I don't remember anything. I was so thrilled to be pregnant that I really enjoyed the new experiences--except the nausea! My biggest irritation related to pregnancy was when one of the doctors at the army post medical center was doing a pelvic exam for something else, and said oh, it looks like you might be a month pregnant. So he had me do a test, and it came back negative. So he said well you aren't pregnant, so if your period doesn't start we'll give you something to start it. I still thought I might be pregnant and so I waited, and I was, but at 3 months I miscarried. It just irritated the crap out of me that he was so cavalier about it and assuming the test was absolutely correct. It didn't help that he was an irritating arrogant guy in the first place! The other doctor there, and his nurse were super nice.

13. WHAT WAS YOUR FIRST CHILD'S SEX?
boy

14. DID YOU WISH YOU HAD THE OPPOSITE SEX OF WHAT YOU WERE GETTING?
No.

15. HOW MANY POUNDS DID YOU GAIN THROUGHOUT THE PREGNANCY?
20 to 25 lbs. the same for all 7

16. DID YOU HAVE A BABY SHOWER?
Yes - our friends in Germany gave me one before I left. I came home when I was about 7 months--the latest I could fly, because Bill was rotating to Oklahoma in December, and we would have had to extend to come home in February if I had him there. We had been gone for two years and were ready to come home.

17. WAS IT A SURPRISE OR DID YOU KNOW?
I knew about it.

18. DID YOU HAVE ANY COMPLICATIONS DURING YOUR PREGNANCY?
No, other than doctors at the Army post in Oklahoma not being ob's, and kind of ignorant of some of the aspects of child birth. (that is another story)

19. WHERE DID YOU GIVE BIRTH?
Lawton (actually Fort Sill) Oklahoma

20. HOW MANY HOURS WERE YOU IN LABOR?
about 12, but all the rest were under 2 hours!

21. WHO DROVE YOU TO THE HOSPITAL?
Bill

22. WHO WATCHED YOU GIVE BIRTH?
Bill did. He was there for all of them, but it was just beginning to be accepted, so I had to request it

23. WAS IT NATURAL OR C-SECTION?
Natural.

24. DID YOU TAKE MEDICINE TO EASE THE PAIN?
I did have an epidural or something for that one, but not with any of the others--they came too fast,

24. HOW MUCH DID YOUR CHILD WEIGH?
7 lb. 4 oz.

25. WHEN WAS YOUR CHILD ACTUALLY BORN?
January 11, 1974

26. WHAT DID YOU NAME HIM/HER?
Thane William

27. HOW OLD IS YOUR FIRST BORN TODAY?
35 I had to think about that.

Finally some progress on the bathroom! Tevan has completed the laying of two of the walls. Hopefully he will be able to do the last wall on Thursday. Then he can cut in the bottom row and do the grout! It is exciting to see how it looks.

The main focus of my mental and monetary energy the last 3 weeks or so has been Tevan's jeep, but finally we seem to have all the issues dealt with and he is so excited to actually be able to drive it. He has done a couple of quick drives out in the dessert and he loved it. So I thought it would be appropriate to put up a couple of pictures!






He looks pretty happy, doesn't he?

Another Tag!

Another Tag!

TAG - YOU'RE IT! If you opened it, you have to do it (it only takes a couple of minutes!) Then, send it back to the person who sent it to you and to the rest of your friends!

Five names you go by -
1. Vicki
2. Vic
3. Mom
4. Grandma
5. Sister Ratliff

Three things you are wearing right now -
1. Sweater
2. Blue jeans
3. slippers

Two things you want very badly at the moment -
1. my bathroom finished
2. Tevan's jeep registered

Three people who will probably fill this out:
1. Aimee
2. Stacey
3. Torri?

Two things you did last night -
1. Read
2. Watched CSI

Two things you ate today -
1. black beans
2. biscuits

Two people you last talked to on the phone
1. Alexandra
2. Trent

Two things you are going to do tomorrow -
1. Go to Ian's and TJ's birthday party
2. work on the bathroom maybe

Two longest car rides -
1. Ridgecrest to South Dakota (with 4 little boys and a 5 month old baby girl)
2. Davis California to Lawton Oklahoma

Two of your favorite beverages -
1. juice
2. Milk

Getting to know you 2009

Welcome to the new 2009 edition of getting to know your family and friends.


1.What is your occupation right now?
Grandma and Part time library tech

2.What color are your socks right now?
brown with pompom balls on them

3.What are you listening to right now?
the quiet
4.What was the last thing that you ate?
banana chocolate chip muffin

5.Can you drive a stick shift?
that's what we learned on back in the day!

6.Last person you spoke to on the phone?
Sabrina

7.Do you like the person who sent this to you?
YES!!

8.How old are you today?
61 years young

9.What is your favorite sport to watch on TV?
Olympics

10.What is your favorite drink?
right now hot chocolate

11.Have you ever dyed your hair?
yea- hence the 61 years YOUNG!

12.Favorite food?
prime rib

13.What is the last movie you watched?
Eagle Eye

14.Favorite day of the year?
Any holiday with lots of family around.

15.How do you vent anger?
tears and pacing

16.What was your favorite toy as a child?
my baby doll

17.What is your favorite season?
spring or fall


18.Cherries or Blueberries?
fresh sweet cherries

19.Do you want your friends to e-mail you back?(or in this case post on their blogs)
most have already done it

20.Who is the most likely to respond?


21.Who is least likely to respond?

22.Living arrangements?
right now, me and Tevan

23.When was the last time you cried?
last night

24.What is on the floor of your closet?
shoes, slippers, box of old purses

25.Who is the friend you have had the longest that you are sending to?


26.What did you do last night?
Helped Torri work on organizing toys

27.What are you most afraid of?
letting someone down

28.Plain, cheese, or spicy hamburgers?
Cheese

29.Favorite dog breed?
not really a dog person, but medium sized ones like sheltie. we had an Irish setter once that was really pretty too.

30.Favorite day of the week?
Sunday

31.How many states have you lived in?
5

32.Diamonds or pearls?
Diamonds

33.What is your favorite flower?
pansy, carnation, rose