Wrapping up another week

Well, last weekend we were able to spend time with the Stox family. It was so good to actually talk and catch up with them and their lives. My great-niece Lucy is an extremely laid back baby. Ellen says she felt God gave her such a relaxed child because she had such a rough pregnancy. I think she's probably laid back because her Dad is a very laid back person, but she might surprise us all with her own unique personality. She slept through supper Friday night. I had the chance to feed her during supper, and she didn't cry not one bit when I took the bottle from her to burp her or to shift positions. She has a tendency to fill her mouth up before swallowing, which means some of it dribbles out the side of her mouth. Saturday morning she slept the whole time, and only wiggled around in my arms when she needed to pass gas or if I set her on the table without my arm under her. I don't think she liked the hard table (although that kid was so well padded I'm not sure how she could feel it! I couldn't help but think about the play the Princess and the Pea I saw in elementary school.)

We hit the ground running upon our return. I've been trying to learn the songs for the kids' Christmas musical (practice starts tomorrow!), Quilts of Valor has suddenly had a huge number of presentations for our area (after having almost none all year) and one of them involves putting together a veterans day program for a nearby YMCA. Elections training is nearing an end (one more day of teaching and assisting!) and then I need to start contacting all my officials before the election, plus look over the ballot myself so we can vote!

I did manage to get all the pecans washed and cleaned and into a basket this week. Not quite half a bushel, but I'm certainly not complaining with the amount we have. I'll check around the trees again toward the end of the week, as it's still early to be gathering. I honestly think had it not been for the storm, we wouldn't have the ones we have now.

I am very tired. I keep telling myself that November 7th and December 3rd is coming. If I can make it to those two dates, I will survive. Ready or not, they're coming!!!

waving as I go...

There are times when life seems like a parade route with slow moving floats that never want to go anywhere. And then there are times when it seems like something from a movie where the floats take off in fast motion and the people are waving frantically as they whiz past the crowds.

Spring is always one of those crazy times when things pick up the pace faster than should be allowed, but there's not a lot that can be done about it.  But there are some really good things happening among that craziness.

The two teens who help us out some assisted me in putting up the fencing around the garden area yesterday. It made a world of difference having two extra sets of hands. One rotated the roll of wire, one pulled the wiring taut, while one of us attached the wires to the posts. We rotated positions some throughout the procedure, and hopefully that made it a little easier on everyone. I think it looks so much better than the first section of the garden I did a few years ago.  I've planted most of my pole beans (though not all!), and everything else will be slowly planted over the next 6 weeks, depending on when the seed should be planted. I'm excited, but also a little sunburned and wondering what on earth I've gotten myself into this year. :) And in the midst of cleaning out the garage to get the brooder box outside where it belongs, the rain water barrel we bought almost 10 years ago is finally outside near the shed where I should have put it years ago. :) Finally!!!

I swept all the dust (much of it coming from having the biddies and the brooder box inside the house the last three weeks) last night, then mopped the living room a few minutes ago, and it STILL looks dusty in some spots to me. The rain last night washed a yellow line of polled against the dam, and I can't help but wonder if some of this is pollen we've tracked inside and not actually dust. I've been off my allergy meds since January, and I've noticed an increase in congestion and pressure, but am holding off on taking anything as long as possible. And despite the complaints of many people, I am THANKFUL for the rain coming when it is, both for staving off a summer drought AND for hopefully making some of the next 3 pollen weeks less miserable.

And this weekend is the kids Easter party at church. Due to a lot of changes and transitions in how things are done, this is a last minute planned event, and I've got a LOT of stuff to do between now and tomorrow at 2pm. So starting in a few hours, our schedule from now through Monday week is way busier than I care for it to be. I'm trying to keep my focus on one thing at a time and what IS being accomplished and not what is waiting by the wayside. So far that's resulted in a few mistakes (typing in our address backwards on an order, etc) but so far nothing that is so drastic that life is truly messed up.

And with that, I'm signing off to make my Wal-mart list.

openings and closings

• Tuesday night, December 19th - Jr Church Caroling Not the most promoted of our year's activities, but we pulled it off nonetheless. We narrowed our road map this year and attempted to sing to all the widows plus two other families in the church. One wasn't home; one was a little bittersweet as her husband was barely hanging on this time last year (and the kids clearly remembered she had made them cookies last year!), but the funniest was when we visited the home of a younger widow who has recently started attending our church. The sidewalk to her front door was a little narrow, and when the leader got beside her car and started walking, he jumped back in shock. There was a HUGE cat sitting on the trunk, and it was at the same level as his face! Once the initial shock was gone everyone was laughing.
  
• Wednesday, Dec 20th - Packing Day Bobby got up early to take a friend to the hospital to have a pacemaker put in, and I headed out in the rain towards Washington, NC. There were plenty of men from the church helping load things into the truck, so I headed inside to help my sister. We pulled the remaining things from the attic, cleaned the bottom kitchen cabinets, cleaned out the laundry closet once the machines were loaded, and I swept floors while she mopped. Then we swapped out and I mopped a floor while she cleaned a bathroom. By that point the truck was back from loading up Todd's office, and it was time for me to head home and them to finish and freshen up for church.
  
• Thursday, Dec 21st- heading to TN. Stopped at a quilt shop on the way and met a girl whose entire family had attended BJU. Checked into our hotel and rested a bit before meeting Susan and David at a neat restaurant for supper. Bobby gets sick once we returned to the hotel.
  
• Friday, Dec 22 - TN & AL Bobby is still very sick on his stomach, but drops me off at the house Todd and Mindy are renting in Gallatin then heads to be with Susan's crowd in Hendersonville. Still raining. We get the truck unloaded, met some really neat people, including two young boys named Larry and Steve. After lunch at 2pm my brother dropped me off at Susan's before heading back to AL. We had Christmas with the Moffitts, then headed to AL as they finished packing to head to NC. Stopped to eat supper at Cracker Barrel so Bobby could hopefully settle his stomach and take meds. He ate 3 bites of his dumplings, but felt well enough to drive on in (that was being debated prior to stopping). Got him in bed and started washing clothes as soon as we made it to Mom & Dads. My sister-in-law has the flu. My Dad, brother, and nephew had rebuilt the ramp at the house, and I was SO thankful. I don't have to help Bobby in the house now!
• Saturday, Dec 23 -my birthday Bobby was able to eat a little that day. My younger sister made lasagna for supper that was incredible. My older sister and her husband made it in from TN. A good evening with family, though we missed Amie who was still running a fever and the oldest nieces who spent this Christmas with their new spouse's families.
• Sunday, Dec 24 - Christmas Eve. Church in the am, family time in the afternoon/evening.
• Monday, Dec 25th - we didn't open presents until the evening, and our family really scaled things back this year, but it was a great time of laughter and memories.
• Tuesday, Dec 26th - took Mom to the Jasper Pickers. It was her first time. It's an interesting mix of booths that vary from thrift store to antique to flea market type stuff. We got home to learn that they were predicting sleet through the night, so we decided to head home early and left AL at 7pm and drove through Atlanta.
• Wednesday, Dec 27th - While the stomach bug is gone for Bobby, the lingering side effects/problems are still there. He had a long, rough drive home. Mom and Dad's 55th anniversary.
• Thursday, Dec 28th - After another rough night we slept in this morning (or I did and Bobby was just stuck resting). Was able to get a lot of laundry done as well as some needed cleaning.
  
  And tomorrow the round of dr appointments and meetings that have been scheduled for a while start. I'm amazed at how quickly January is filling up before it even gets here. But we are blessed, and I'm thankful we had some great time with family, even if the health issues were unpleasant.

hodge podge of life

These last few weeks have been both pleasant and hard, fun and yet full of work. 

Insurance has agreed to pay for repairs caused by the tire blowout, so the week we had reserved in hopes of celebrating our anniversary is now dedicated to getting the van repaired and celebrating at home.  And while it wasn't exactly what we had in mind, it really does turn out to be the best of both worlds. Still no word on the new wheelchair and what insurance's refusal on a key component will do to the whole process.

The garden is still producing, and there is a small part of me that will be glad when it is over. I'm not to the "how much longer is this going to last?" stage yet, but the first inklings of that attitude began to creep in yesterday. Today is another day to work outside and then come inside and can tomatoes. It's also the first day this summer I've had to remind myself that in a few months I'll be thankful for my canned stash.

Jimmy Aldridge, a dear family friend, died a week ago yesterday. I'm thankful he's no longer suffering and that he never reached the point where hospice had to give him the heavy doses of medicine. My heart hurts for Janie and the adjustments she has to face right now. Other than that, it's simply too close and personal to write about right now.

A hawk has been hovering in the back yard, so we've been anticipating losing a few of our 4 biddies. We did have one scare one night where we thought they were gone, only to be shocked to suddenly see a head stick out of the momma hen's wing. The other two were still present, just in hiding. It was such a funny sight.

The former owner of the snake skin made an appearance in my garden this past week, prompting me to work in the heat of the day instead of early morning or evening.

Our humming bird at the nectar feeder has made us laugh on more than one occasion. Maybe one day I can get it on video.

And quilt expo is this week! I'm excited to be going with a friend. No classes this year (those are at local shops in August), but the exhibits and shows will be enough.

My first meeting with elections is the last day of the month. So I'm trying to get some projects and things done before then, as I know my schedule will quickly start filling up once that hits. 

And that's a brief summary of the last two weeks.

Poof!

Tomorrow will be 6 months until Christmas Eve. Normally that statement would cue the holiday gift list making in the back of my brain (I inherited that gene - my Grandma White would already have presents WRAPPED and hidden by this point in the year). But this year, sigh, is different. I've finally concurred agreed to abide by my siblings wishes and only do presents for parents and children. SIGH. They have no idea how many times this year I've already pulled things off a store shelf with them in my mind, and then put it back. I LOVE to shop for other people. And this year, I almost can't. It's a bit sad, really. But a promise is a promise.

And that is not where I was headed with this post, but I guess the date has my brain whirring in all kinds of crazy directions.

Highlights from this crazy week:

• Quilted a full size quilt top in 2 hrs at Thread Waggle Quilting (a long arm rental place in Raleigh)
• Spent yesterday cutting grass on a borrowed zero-turn lawnmower (ours broke down and goes back to the shop Monday).
• I stupidly did not apply sunscreen and am slightly pink.
• Uncovered the cabbages to weed in their bed and left them uncovered for less than 24 hrs. We are now 2 heads less. One is totally devoured; the other halfway. Oh those dear, stupid chickens.
• We're checking daily now for little heads to be poking out from Momma hen. Monday is the official day, and next Wednesday is don the gloves and throw out eggs if nothing has happened day.
• E5 bp readings are becoming a trend in our household again.
• Bought a LulaRoe shirt that I LOVE!!!
• Finished some sewing/store samples for a friend/quilt shop owner.
• Spent a lot of time browsing on CraigsList this week. 
• Potential training slots for election schedules came out this week...so not ready for it to be that time of year again.

the month of repairs

We kicked off May with wheelchair repairs, followed by van repairs. Then last week we realized our tiller isn't working correctly, and last night...my specialty sewing machine died. So my tiller is sitting in the shed while I debate whether or not it's worth the money to get it fixed this year. At this time of year it will take about 3 weeks for it to be repaired, which is about the same amount of time it would take me to hoe all the weeds out if I spend an hour or two every weekday morning out in the garden. We've had this problem once before, two years ago, where it would crank, but every time you activate the blades it shuts off. I don't remember what the part/problem was, nor how much it cost to repair it. But right now I'm not sure that's where I want to put my money. But my sewing machine...the large one I use on quilts...that went to the store today. The repairman will pick it up tomorrow and I should know sometime soon what the problem is and how much it will cost and whether or not that part is still under warranty. I know that in the scheme of things my sewing machine is the next to the bottom of the totem pole of things to break, but I use that thing...a lot.  I'll probably pull out my classroom machine soon (it's small and lightweight, costs little and doesn't sew quite as well, but does the job) so I can hopefully keep inching some projects along toward the finish line. Otherwise I might go into cleaning/creating mode, which means I'll only prepare even MORE things that need to be finished. Janome 9900, please come home soon!!!

bullet points

SO much has happened since my last post that I'm not even sure where to begin. But since this blog is for me to practice writing and keep a record of life, I'm going to simply highlight things and maybe I can come back to some of them in more detail later.

• Our road is paved and painted. 
• I'm not thrilled with the mess they call "right of way" and part of our yard.
• The school built a nice privacy fence.
• Construction should officially be over March 6th. No more house rattling!!!! :)
• Heading up our local Quilts of Valor group is more work than I anticipated.
• Learned more about Mom's health diagnosis (not sure how to spell that in the plural form)
• Made a quick trip to AL when Mom's heart rate escalated to more than double and she was admitted to the hospital
• Another heart oblation is scheduled for March
• Celebrated Dad's 75th birthday
• February is half over and I've yet to finish January's projects. 
• I baked 5 batches of tea cakes for a kids activity at church. (What was I thinking?)
• I was asked how many grandkids I had by a waitress lately. And when I stopped to think about it, I do know four people my age who are grandparents. 
• Reality of never being a Mom is setting in, and most days it's not too hard to deal with.
• Heartaches for several families I know...such things never get easier.
• A decision about whether or not to continue as a poll worker the next few years is coming up soon.
• We need to find a new definition for our normal.

And that's all I have time to type tonight...but it's enough!

this week

Is today really only Monday?

This week (ie, since Sunday):

• a chicken found and ate a small snake...slurped it, actually
• same chicken pecked me yesterday for not feeding them fast enough
• and it followed me way too close for my comfort during feed time today
• my sewing room is picked up and packed up and only needs vacuuming
   (my niece will sleep there this weekend) 
• construction next door started at 4am this morning
• our great-nieces showed up at 6:45am
  (grandma who usually keeps them is out of town with a new cousin who arrived Friday)
• babysitting went way better than I expected...great kids
• my parents arrive tomorrow, Lord willing
• Mom spent the day at urgent care with another infection :(
• my husband has really gone above and beyond expectations this last week in helping out with things...could not have survived without him

the insanity of my to do lists

Often when I have a lot of things to do, I find that making a list helps me prioritize and not forget anything important. But there are times, more than I care to admit, when that is not the case. I have this nice long list made it a day/days before, and the day ends and....only one thing, or less, is crossed off.  Case in point:

Yesterday's List of Things To Do:
 - find a place for glass jars
 - clean the chicken house
 - change batteries in dog collars
 - Call the Dr's billing dept.
 - Call a painter
 - CD to cousin
 - get out cooler for Wed
 - wire peas and plant the 2nd row (carryover from Mon)
 - finish removing bathroom wallpaper/glue paper
 - ironing

What I Actually Did Yesterday:
 - finished sorting slides
 - covered plants for cold weather
 - cleaned chicken house
 - spent time at Lowe's with Bobby
 - ran 2 errands
 - vacuumed the bedroom
 - cleaned up some yard debris
 - put out rocks around the end of Bobby's ramp to help deal with erosion
 - filled an "ankle breaker" size hole the dogs dug
 - called a painter

So cleaning out the chicken house was the ONLY thing on my To Do List that actually got done!!! Ok, well, two if you count the painter that I did call but had to leave a message. But that's okay. All of the things I finished were things that needed to be done as well, even if they weren't quite as high on my priority list. I'm sure if my husband reads this he will close his eyes and shake his head, much like I stare at him without blinking when he painstakingly tackles a day long task with almost no breaks until it's done.

So today I didn't create a list, because I really need to finish things from Monday and Tuesday. Yeah, some of Tuesday's things were carry-overs from Monday. Se la vie! Or at least, my life.

Thankfulness

It's so hard to believe that today marks the end of the first week of 2016! So here's my first list of thankfulness for the week:

1. Rain - I know we've had a lot, but with all the droughts of last year, it truly is a blessing (unless you're one of those who lost your house due to flooding.) One of the leaders in CA was saying they were able to store up enough water from rain run-off this week to provide for 40,000 people. That's not a lot for such large cities, but it's truly amazing when you stop and think about it.

2. Heat -  We've joked some this year as I've upped the temp in our house a degree or two (our thermostat is now on 70). And yet, there are days I've still been cold. Bobby is normally the cold one in our house, and he claims it's been too hot for him a few days. I'm thinking maybe I need to invest in some sweatshirts. Either way, I am very grateful for the heat we do have, and that it's more than adequate.

3. A Dryer - we had to replace our dryer right before Christmas. I am AMAZED at how much easier it is to do laundry now. I guess I ran the dryer 2-3 times to get some loads dried for so long that having everything ready to be folded or hung after one cycle is mind-boggling.

4. Flexibility - Even though our schedule is full in the mornings and evenings, we do have some flexibility as to how early/late that schedule can be (which we would not have if we had a health aid come in) and our daytime schedule is very flexible. We tend to fill it up, but it's nice knowing that I can adjust and rearrange things as we need it.

5. Laughter - We had a great time at Christmas, and since we've been back we've laughed at little things quite a bit. And that in and of itself is a blessing.

I could list so many more things, but I'll stop here!

headache day

There are days that are "lost" to headaches. Most of today was that day. So, no shower head repair, no completion of cleaning out documents from the desk, no quilt work, no prep for election training,  no phone call to check on someone who loves to talk, no reading, no cleaning from my housework list...but I did manage to get in a few errands this afternoon. Gel Tablet ibuprofen is my friend on days like this.

highlights

We had snow flurries yesterday. It lasted for a whopping 20 minutes.

Garner granted approval for Bryan Road Elementary School to be built, without curbs and gutters (which is what the school system suggested to much outroar at the last meeting). I'm not sure why the meetings lasted as long as it did, but I was thankful I made the choice to stay home.

Making a quilt at someone's request is not as fun as doing it as a gift. In fact, it can be stressful.

I never dreamed I'd say this, but the book Plague of the Frogs (about all the deformed frogs found in Minnesota in the 1990s) has become quite interesting in the last 100 pages. Everything I thought was going to be the reason behind the atrocities is turning out not to be the cause. I may be quite surprised by the end of it.

My favorite section of the newscast this morning? The number of people interviewed on the street who have already broken their new year resolutions. Ha!

December 1

Today is/was my father-in-law's birthday. Some days it seems like he's been gone forever. Other days it seems like yesterday.

But today has been interesting for other reasons as well. We have a new puppy. I woke up to find a rope and a fan belt on the back porch. No idea where either came from. Both dogs also got outside the fence line and began chewing the landscape fabric off of my garden pallet. What is it with dogs and landscape fabric? If it wasn't supposed to be raining tomorrow, underground fence line flags would be going up and training would be commencing immediately.

And we had the big heron and three wild ducks at the pond this morning. As well as eight deer running through the field across the pond. The small trees in the field have finally started turning colors. When the sun shown before the mist and clouds totally covered everything this morning, it was absolutely beautiful. I snapped a few pictures. Come this time next year, that view from my bedroom window will be the progression of a three story elementary school.

Last year I had this brainstorm to make something for my family for Christmas. I ran out of time and didn't get it done, so thought I'd complete it for this year. I now have 22 days left, and I'm still not finished. Up until now, I've said "Life still goes on" so I've tried not to let these projects consume everything, but I think it's now to the point I've got to say "No" to any extra activities if this is going to happen. I've so badly wanted to post pics as things progress, but as soon as I do, someone in my family will decide to check my blog.

Meanwhile, the last of my Christmas decorations went up today, and hopefully tomorrow I can organize boxes and containers and reclaim the room that looks like a box explosion.

My younger sister is moving, and I'm not there to help. It stinks.

Meanwhile, I'm reading "Plague of the Frogs" about the abnormalities that happened in Minnesota in the 90's. I'm to the point where EPA is getting involved, and the perspectives on that are interesting. Growing up in a coal mining community and having friends and family members who work for power companies, I don't think I ever heard EPA mentioned in a positive tone. But my thoughts on that subject will have to be a post for another day.

There's been a lot whirling through this crazy brain of mine while I've been tackling projects. Some of it I may eventually get around to writing down.

plodding onward

Life doesn't stop. Not for company, not for illness, not for projects, not for anything. It just keeps going and going and...yeah.

So a brief update on what's happened/happening:

Since my last update, Bobby blacked out one morning, spent 2 days in the hospital, and we are currently trying meds to see what can help raise his low blood pressure (low for even a quadraplegic, which is REALLY low) and irregular heartbeat.

Quilts of valor...but that deserves it's own post with venting and bragging.

A parental visit...which included all kinds of fun things...that's like 4 posts worth of stuff

house cleaning - it's happening

Squirrel issues - they don't share the way I think they should

Chicken updates: 10 biddies nearly fully feathered and 2 teens have started laying

Books: I clearly have different thoughts and tastes than most; my pile is oh so slowly shrinking

Christmas....it's coming!

More elaborate posts to come...hopefully this week!

ideas

Every week, I'll have one day where as I'm in the middle of something (like making jelly, cleaning the bathroom, etc) and I'll  have several "that'll make an awesome blog post" moments. But since I'm in the middle of something, I don't write them down. When I finally do sit down at the computer and open up my blank page, I can't exactly remember what it was.  Yeah. That old age thing.

So here's a few topics that I've thought about the last few weeks, but don't want to write about.

Immigration - a college friend's Mom is going for yet another interview in an attempt to get an American visa. She's only been waiting for 20+ years.

Organ donation - my cousin's husband and a former co-worker, both my age, are now on kidney dialysis and both are on the transplant list. Makes me miss Mary all the more.

The View and Nursing - never watched the show and have no desire to do so. Not surprised or upset they dissed nursing. Shock and disturb...isn't that the whole point of talk television and radio?

The Refugee Crisis - absolutely horrified by the attitudes of many Americans

The Presidential Election - it's not even 2016 yet!!!

Adoption - the ups, the downs, the heartaches, the misinformation, the good, the bad, the cost, the process

And my non-serious matters or things I feel I can rationally write about? You'll get those topics in the coming days. :)

September already?!?

I think this may be a first...a harvest of pears, apples and grapes...all in one year! I don't think this has ever happened before. Usually we lose at least one, if not two, of those harvests. But this year...we've got all three!

September is an unusual line-up for us. The last two weeks of this month I'll be teaching a training class for the Board of Elections and gearing up for October's election, where I'll be overseeing precincts I've never visited before, as well as "mentoring" a coordinator in training. That last part scares me a little. The first election I worked as a coordinator, it was to be as a substitute, and my coordinator would be back the next election. That was 3 years ago. A year after I started, they began the mentoring program, but since I was then considered "experienced" I was never mentored. I've always wondered if I were doing things correctly, or if there was a better way to do things. Yes, I'm one of those weirdos who like to have rules and boundaries so I know what to do.

It's also time to clean up the garden mess and get everything ready for the winter. And we have about a dozen eggs set to hatch around the middle of the month, which means an extra 30 minute job every morning and evening once they hatch.

And somewhere in the midst of this is more doctor appointments and quilt time (if I'm going to finish quilts for Christmas, since I didn't do it last year).

This month is "manageable" but if we have any more major things thrown our way, then I'll have to start emptying the schedule somehow. My husband says I'm not a nice person when I'm overbooked, and I'm trying hard to be more realistic with how much/how little time I have.

On the upside...Bobby's chair is repaired and he's now back in the driver seat in the van!!! The dogs are ecstatic to have us back in our normal routine. Sunday when I wheeled him out of the house to the van, they acted like he had been gone forever. Which to them, Mr.Outdoors had been "locked up" for over a week, which would be forever. We're hoping with two new motors, this chair will last us another four-five years. I know the back will need replacing in the next two years, but for now it's holding. And hopefully by the time we have no choice but to replace this one, we'll have a better idea of what will work and won't, and all the insurance upheaval will have settled down so everyone is clear on what options, if any, there will be. To be honest, I'm glad he doesn't have to make a decision now. Imagine shopping for clothes that you would have to wear every single day for the next 8-10 years without being able to try anything on, and the cost of those clothes are equal to the price of a car. That's a fairly good description of what wheelchair shopping is like for quadriplegics. And we get to postpone that! :)

Happy September!

whirlwind

Bobby's youngest niece and nephew stayed over after their family left for four extra days, so we enjoyed the busyness that comes with having middle school/high school visitors in the area. And now that they're gone, we're playing catch up and moving on with our busy summer calendar - after a mandatory day out with a migraine yesterday, that is.

So, what's on our schedule these next few days?  Yard work. Housework. Kids party from our class at church. Quilting Class for me on Saturday morning. Manual reviews for upcoming election training. Clarinet practice (a group of us are finally going to play at church in a few weeks). And if time allows, start cleaning the porch railings for painting later this summer.

I hope you summer is as blissfully busy as ours! :)

summer whirlwind

My agenda for this week: cleaning house
One unusual event: neighbors (yes! we actually have some now!) are coming over for supper Friday
Good news: one of those things I should have said "No" to but didn't was cancelled. :)
Bad news: I'm having neck/shoulder problems again
Garden update: harvested first onions yesterday; chickens (two in particular) are flying over the fence and digging up plants...grr!!
Chicken update: had our first snake of the year in the pen last week; biddies are all feathered and should be ready to mix with the adults by the end of next month
What I'm reading: Counter Culture and Secret Missions of the Civil War
Quilt projects:  hahahaha...whatever I pick up at the moment. There's at least four projects out on my sewing/cutting tables at the moment.

count your blessings

I have a version of the old hymn Count Your Blessings on my ipod that I love but makes my husband wrinkle one side of his face when it plays. I've thought a lot about that song the last few months. When I was a child, my Mom would sing as she did housework, and that was one of the songs she often sang. In middle school, whenever I complained about things I didn't like or that made me unhappy, she would gently chide me to be thankful for the things that were good that I did have/experience. A few years ago I read Ann VosKamp's One Thousand Gifts, and it made me think of my Mom so much.

So today, in honor of my Mom and my many aunts who were almost always positive in their outlook, here's my thankful list:

• a family that loves me
• that God truly knows what is best, even if it's not what I like
• Dr. Pepper
• M&Ms
• the children in our church
• a husband who faithfully worked and saved for years
• that God gave me a husband whose philosophies and practices match mine
• the internet
• modern medicine
• freedom to criticize our government or its policies
• electricity
• clean, running water
• Facebook - it's SO easy to keep in touch with long distance family this way!
• rain
• the local hardware and agri-supply stores
• Target
• books
• the gift of laughter
• a church family that doesn't pretend to be perfect
• music
• fried chicken
• a washing machine...that's in my house!
• the US post office...prompt delivery and no snooping (we grumbly Americans don't realize how good we have it!)
• outside flowers
• fabric
• that a tool like the seam ripper actually exists
• elastic
• sunshine
• strawberry fields
• Bobby getting someone to till the garden for me
• a hot water heater
• quilt shops
• craft stores
• shoes that don't hurt my feet
• people who can cut hair
• cameras

May your Tuesday be filled with a few moments of thanksgiving!

today

Today:

• Washed clothes...and the washing machine quit working halfway through a load.
• Spent 3 hours with a seam ripper tearing out 2/3 of a row of quilting that is absolutely horrible. Not sure how much is user error and how much is a quilting machine that doesn't quilt like it is supposed to.
• Attempted not to focus on the remaining 5 rows that must also come out. One moment/stitch at a time.
• Pieced a little on a QOV quilt.
• Tried not to look at the wheel tracks in the floor...that I just cleaned Friday afternoon. I could fill up a planter.
• Rejoiced that the pond drain is FINALLY unstopped and water levels are almost where they need to be.
• Spent some extra time in prayer for Bobby's sister and niece as today was his oldest nephew's birthday. He would have been 38.
• Got the phone call that the father of same nephew died tonight. While he's not been a part of the Bryan family since I've been on the scene, he was one of the few friends that didn't treat Bobby any differently after his accident - and that is huge.
• Answered the phone. It seldom rings here...but it seems we've had a call at least once an hour today.
• Checked on incubator eggs...still no chirping or piping.
• Mentally geared up for tomorrow...dog to train on a new collar, medical supply company to deal with (a-GAIN!), and errands to run.

So thankful that my joy is not found in circumstances!