Celebrate Christmas Eve: Music from the Muppets, a holiday reading from LeVar

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Christmas Eve has arrived!

Take a break from the last-minute mad dash to refresh with a celebratory song and a beloved holiday story — both befitting the day. If you have a child on hand to enjoy them with you, all the better.

The song...

And the (five-minute) story...

Happy Christmas Eve!

'Gene Kelly: The Legacy' — Patricia Kelly on her late husband, plus exclusive Q&A

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In one of the highlights of last month's Starz Denver Film Festival experience, Jim and I had the fabulous opportunity to attend Gene Kelly: The Legacy — An evening with Patricia Ward Kelly. As guests of Mrs. Kelly. What a fabulous treat it was.

Patricia Kelly on Gene Kelly

Patricia Kelly's two-hour, behind-the-scenes presentation highlighted her late husband's life and legacy in a sentimental, intimate manner no other biographer might be able to do. "Since I had the privilege of recording his words nearly every day for over ten years," Mrs. Kelly told me...

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I can keep a secret, plus four more things I learned this week

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It's been a week of highs, of lows, of lessons learned. Here are those lessons, in no particular order:

telling a secretI can keep a secret better than anyone else in one particular group I'm a member of. I'm in a group that has a secret. It's a good secret. And I am the only one in the group who has not told anyone else even though we all agreed to keep it a secret. Which surprises me because though I typically have good intentions about keeping good secrets — bad secrets and...

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The Saturday Post: Music to kick off summer edition

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Billboard Magazine released its Top 30 Summer Songs this week. Not a whole lot on the list resonated deeply with me, for a variety of reasons — mostly because I'm too old, they're too old, or they're just too not my style.

There were a few, though, that made me smile, tap my toes and cross my fingers this summer will be light, carefree, happy. Is that possible at our age? Or are such things bestowed only upon the young?

I share those here: the four light, carefree, happy and downright summery songs from the Billboard list that made me want to grab an ice-cold beer, kick back, and believe that such things are possible at any age. They're the ideal soundtrack for kicking off the holiday weekend, the unofficial start of summer.

 

 

Cheers to summer! Enjoy the holiday weekend!

Today's question:

What song screams summer for you?

What I learned this week: Phenomenal women rock my world

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This week, courtesy of my ever-phenomenal friend Ruth from Cranium Crunches, I was introduced to another phenomenal Ruth — Ruthie Foster. Specifically, Ruth shared with me Ruthie's version of Maya Angelou's poem Phenomenal Woman. Ruthie Foster has the most, yes, phenomenal voice. Take a listen:

That rendition of Maya Angelou's poem — a musical arrangement by Amy Sky (surely another phenomenal woman) so powerfully and soulfully belted out by Ruthie Foster — piqued my curiosity about the original poem. I, surprisingly, had never read or heard it before. So I searched, found, and share it here, read by Ms. Angelou herself:

That is what I learned this week: A phenomenal poem and phenomenal song that I just had to share with the phenomenal mothers, grandmothers and others in my world.

Cheers to phenomenal women! And an extra special toast to Ruth for sharing this week's lesson that so touched my soul.

Today's question:

What did you learn this week?

Sing-a-long with Grandma

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While visiting my grandsons, one of our favorite things to do was play Ring-a-Round-the-Rosie on the trampoline, with us all falling down in the most bouncy of ways.

The fun continued off the trampoline, as well, as Mac loved singing "pocka full posies" over and over with Gramma throughout my time there.

Today's fill-in-the-blank:

My go-to nursery rhyme to sing with kids is ______________.

One Baby Band kicks off the GRAND Social

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Hello to a new week! Thank you for visiting once again for the GRAND Social link party.

Today I'd like to open the show in GRAND fashion, with this from the One Baby Band:

A star in the making, no doubt.

And now, the headliner: the GRAND Social link party. Enjoy!

link party

How it works:

  • All grandparent bloggers are invited to add a link. You don't have to blog specifically about grandparenting, but you must be a grandparent who blogs.
  • To link up, copy the direct URL to the specific post — new or old — that you want to share, not the link to your blog's home page. Then click the blue "Click here to enter" text below and follow the directions to add your post and graphic to the list.
  • You can add up to three posts, but no duplicates, please, and none you have promoted on a previous GRAND Social linky. And no contests, giveaways, or Etsy sites, please.
  • Adding a mention at the bottom of your linked posts, such as This post has been linked to the GRAND Social linky, is appreciated. Or, you can post the GRAND Social button anywhere on your page using the following code:

Grandma’sBriefs.com

<a href="/" target="_blank"><img src="http://grandmasbriefs.squarespace.com/storage/GRANDsocialbutton.jpg " alt="Grandma’sBriefs.com" width="125" height="125" /></a>

 

  • The GRAND Social linky is open for new posts through Wednesday evening, so please come back to see those added after your first visit.
  • If you're not a blogger, you have the pleasure of being a reader. Bloggers who link up would be honored to have one and all — bloggers and readers — visit, read and, if so moved, comment, even if just a "Hey, stopping by from the GRAND Social."

Thank you for participating in the GRAND Social!

Friday fun: Keep Your Heart Young

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I heard this song—this artist, actually—for the very first time yesterday. Where have I been?

I really enjoy this song and thought you might, too. Just a little something sweet and simple for Friday.

Keep Your Heart Young — Brandi Carlile

My grandpa gave me a wheat penny and I kept it in my pocket

Had big plans in my backyard to build me a space rocket

Talked to my brother on a fake CB that I made from a tic-tac box

Packed my snowballs nice and tight and in the middle I put rocks


Don't trade in your tic-tac box for a ball on the end of the chain

And don't go spending grandpa's pennies buying into the game

You gotta keep your heart young

Don't go growin' old before your time has come

You can't take back what you have done

You gotta keep your heart young

 

Dad took the wheels off of my bike and he pushed me down a hill

But speed got the best of me and I took my first spill

That was back when alcohol was only used on cuts

Stung like hell so I shook my leg and mama said it would give me guts

 

Don't trade in your tic-tac box for a ball on the end of the chain

And don't go spending grandpa's pennies buying into the game

You gotta keep your heart young

Don't go growing old before your time has come

You can't take back what you have done

You gotta keep your heart young

 

So take a picture of the one you love and put it in a locket

Go dig up your time capsule and the blueprints for your rocket

Keep in touch on a fake CB and that same old tic-tac box

Pack your snowballs a little less tight but in the middle still put rocks

 

And keep your heart young

Don't go growing old before your time has come

You can't take back what you have done

You gotta keep your heart young


You gotta keep your heart young

Sometimes you don't die quick

Just like you wished you'd done

The love is a loaded gun

You've gotta keep your heart young

You can't take back what you have done

You gotta keep your heart young

# # #

Today's question:

What's one of your treasured memories of your grandfather?