I love November!

 November has been a pretty busy month socially. The weekend of the 11^th, we attended the Friday and Saturday activities at Highway. It was so good to see everyone and hear the good lessons and enjoy the wonderful singing. I had forgotten how good the acoustics are there. Of course, having a full building really helps, too! We really appreciated Jamie and Renee opening up their place for everyone to come out and enjoy the fellowship (and food!).

On the 16^th, Diane and I met for lunch in FW and then went to the movie theatre to watch “To Kill a Mockingbird”. I love that movie, and it was even better on the big screen! I was surprised to see a pretty full theatre…especially since we attended the 1:00 matinee. It wasn’t just us old folks either. There were quite a few young adults present. I’m glad to see the younger generation appreciate such a wonderful classic movie. As always, I really enjoyed my time with Diane. Looking forward to watching “White Christmas” with her next month!

I’ve been struggling with carpal tunnel problems for a few years now. It has gotten increasingly worse in the last year or so. So I went to my orthopedic surgeon on the 22^nd to see what needed to be done. He is going to do surgery to “release it” on the 7^th of December. The recovery time is supposed to be quite short…about 2 weeks. He said it may take a little longer than that until I’m comfortable clipping my rag quilts, but I shouldn’t have any trouble sewing. I’m looking forward to getting that taken care of! Right now my hand goes numb whenever I knit or crochet or do any handwork. I have to do those things in short spurts with recovery time in between.

This week has been wonderful! *Sigh* It began last weekend with Ricky, Amber and Archer spending a couple of nights with us on their way to NM. We spent the day Saturday shopping, visiting with Linda and Charles, and then finished up by driving through “Radiance!”, the light display at the Parker County Sheriff Posse grounds. We were afraid that Archer would sleep through it, but he was mesmerized! He is so much fun, and we love every minute we get to spend with him! They went to church with us at Eastside and then headed west after lunch. Archer was quite the hit with our bunch!

Our anniversary actually fell on the weekend that Ricky's family were here. 45 years together! We are going to have a little delayed celebration next Saturday. My kiddos gave me an early Christmas present of season tickets to the Bass Hall Broadway Series. The first performance will be "My Fair Lady" on 12/3. I am SO excited!!! It has been AGES since I got dressed up and went to something like that. 

We had a small Thanksgiving gathering this year. All of my kiddos were celebrating with their in-laws, so we invited friends and family that might not have other plans to come. Most had other plans or didn’t feel up to getting out, so there were just four of us, but we had a great visit and tons of food! I loved being able to finally cook a REAL Thanksgiving dinner again.

After our guests left, I baked and decorated Nam’s birthday cake. His birthday is today, so his family came over to celebrate. I fixed his favorite soup (Zuppa Tuscana) and Sheila brought some delicious homemade bread to go with it. Nam had requested a cake that looked like a volcano, so it wasn’t too complicated. He loved it! And I was FINALLY able to give him his rag quilt that I made him months ago. He was quite pleased with it. We really enjoyed the day with him and Sheila and Matt! We are now looking forward to having a sleepover again when he’s off on Christmas break next month.

Enjoying his gifts

9th Birthday Volcano Cake

Big Cat Rag Quilt

We haven't done much on the house this month. We got in the base for our shower this past week, so Dennis will start working on it probably next week. We still need to go pick out the tile that we want. We will probably go next week to get that. In the meantime, Dennis has done a little hunting, bringing in 2 deer so far. We sent some meat home with Sheila and Matt to free up space in our freezer, so he plans to go out again this next week. I cooked up one batch of jerky before Ricky and Amber's visit, but I still have 2-3 more batches to do from last year's meat supply. It took so long for the weather to cool off enough to run the oven for hours! We ought to have some good days over the next couple of weeks to make up the rest.

I hope that you all have enjoyed this special week with family and friends and took time to be thankful for the many blessings that we enjoy!

Ps 100:3-5 Know that the LORD, He is God; It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves; We are His people and the sheep of His pasture. Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, And into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, and bless His name. For the LORD is good; His mercy is everlasting, And His truth endures to all generations. (NKJV)

Good Day for a Road Trip!

 We like to go to San Saba in November to get our year’s supply (or more) of pecans. We first stopped at the San Saba River Pecan Co. 30 years ago on a trip out to San Angelo to go hunting. We loved visiting their store, and their pecans are the best we’ve ever had. So we’ve been going back ever since. My supply from last year is almost gone…not enough to get me through Thanksgiving…and we had some down time waiting on our shower base to come in, so we decided to drive down this morning to get some. We drove through several rain showers both going and coming. Hoping some of them make it here! We saw some color on the trip, nothing vivid, but still pretty. We also saw a handful of deer (not counting roadkill). We usually see a lot more wildlife. Not sure why they weren’t stirring more today.

We stopped in Goldthwaite for lunch and decided to browse through the Mills County General Store afterwards. What a little gem! It has just about anything you might need. I picked up a couple of bottles of Mrs. Meyer’s liquid hand soap in scents that I don’t usually find elsewhere. I also found a cute little bundt pan that will work perfectly for a volcano cake that I plan to make later this month for Nam’s birthday. Then we made it to San Saba. We loaded up with lots of pecans both for us and as a gift for some special friends. I also picked up a couple of jars of their preserves…one Jalapeno Peach and Pecan, and one Cranberry Chili Pecan. (I love spicy jelly!) We stopped on our way back to MW for a little blizzard treat and still made it home by 4. Such a nice day!

Like I mentioned, our home remodel is pretty much on hold right now until our shower base is delivered. In the meantime, Dennis has done a little hunting. He killed a doe in bow season and got a spike (actually a 3-point) Saturday, which was opening day of gun season. Both are aging in our spare frig. We had to buy a new one this year. About a month ago, we noticed a terrible acrid smoke smell coming from the garage. It was our old frig that I had bought for my cake business when we were in Nacogdoches…probably 25 years or more ago. We decided it wasn’t worth trying to repair, so we found a good basic refrigerator on sale to replace it. I’m sure glad we noticed the problem before it actually caught fire! (And it was right before we left town for several days!)

Last weekend (Oct. 29) we took a short trip to East Texas. We spent Saturday night in Nacogdoches. We made it to town early enough to drive around and see how much things have changed and/or stayed the same. We drove by 3 houses that we used to live in. I couldn't believe how good the little duplex looked that we rented when we first moved to Nacogdoches 44 years ago. It was new when we rented it, and it still looks exactly the same! So nice to see a place that has been so well cared for and maintained! Sunday morning we went to church at Rocky Hill. It was so good to be back and visit with the folks that are still there. It has been too long since our last visit! The Trekell family invited us over for a quick lunch before heading out to the cemetery for Johnnie's memorial. My heart breaks for the family...especially for Larry. I don't know what he'll do without his lifelong sweetheart. 

I finished my 2^nd vintage rag quilt from the blocks that Little Granny had made and gifted it to my cousin Gwen.

I had one block left and turned it into a pillow, which a gave to another cousin.

front

back

I also made a ragged snowman pillow (for myself).

I’m now working on another rag quilt for one of my kiddos. After finishing all of the grandkids’ quilts, I told my kids that I’d make one for any that want one. I have four “orders”…three lap quilts for individuals and one “double” for Stephen and Mandy. It is so much fun figuring out what patterns I want to do and then finding the perfect fabrics for each project!

Take care, be kind, and enjoy the changes of the season!

Ec 3:1 To everything there is a season, A time for every purpose under heaven: (NKJV)

I love October!

The weather is finally starting to get the way I like it…cool days and chilly nights. The leaves begin changing color (although not dramatically in our neck of the woods). And some of my favorite people were born in October. 

 We had a sleepover with Nam earlier in the month. Since he’s in school now, we can only do one night instead of two. So we just try to cram as much into the time we have as we can! 

 We went to Arkansas a couple of weeks ago to celebrate Dennis’ 70th birthday and Archer’s 1st birthday (a little early). We had planned to spend a night on the way with Stephen’s family, but they came down with a stomach bug that week. Thankfully, they recovered by the weekend, so they could still make the birthday celebrations. We made it to Arkansas Wednesday evening, in time to meet up with Rick and Amber for supper before church. Amber and I spent the next two days baking and getting ready for Archer’s party, while Dennis spent his time helping Logan work on his house. All our kids got in Saturday in time for lunch. We had already given Archer his present from us…a Little Tyke pickup…so the kids took turns pushing him around the driveway. They all greatly enjoyed themselves! Everyone else showed up around 2:00 for the festivities. Archer very much enjoyed his smash cake, as well as seeing all of his presents. He looked so big, sitting in his rocking chair and examining everything! He got a lot of very nice gifts! We enjoyed visiting with all of the family and friends that came to the party. It was a great turnout! We had to cut things a little short, so we could make it to the restaurant in time for our reservations for Dennis’ party. All of our kiddos, Warren and Linda, Charles and Belinda, Melissa and Jared’s family, and Ben and Laura’s family, as well as Ken and Kelli all went with us. We ate at Brown’s Catfish Buffet, where we were treated royally. It was a wonderful day! We really appreciate everyone who helped make it so special! 

 After church Sunday morning, we went to Charles and Belinda’s for a sumptuous lunch and then had to head home. We had originally planned to stop somewhere on the way to spend the night. Once we got on the road, we decided to drive all the way home. We were both ready for our own bed! We made it in by 9, so it was a good decision. 

 Dennis has gutted our bathroom and is working on chipping away the concrete to work on the plumbing. He found this cute little handheld jackhammer for less than $20 that has been a lifesaver! It uses a lot of compressed air to run, so he has to take frequent breaks for the air compressor to fill back up. (It also allows him a break from such grueling work!) I am really going to be excited to see our new shower going in! 

 I completed my vintage rag quilt and am now working on another one using the rest of the “blocks”. I also talked to my kiddos to see if they wanted me to do quilts for them. I have 4 more “on order”. I love the planning stage…picking out fabric and working out the design. I probably won’t start on them for another month or so (the actual cutting and sewing). I have a couple of small projects that I want to do first. I am so happy that I discovered this craft! I never enjoyed sewing when I was younger, but I love it now! 

We were very sorry to hear about the passing of Johnnie Trekell earlier this month. I know it was a blessing for her to finally have an end to her suffering, but she will be so greatly missed! Dennis and I were telling Nam about her (when we learned of her death), and he said, “She sounds like she was an amazing woman!” That pretty much says it all. 

 I hope you all are enjoying the change of the seasons and the anticipation of the upcoming holidays. I just love this time of year! 

 In honor of Johnnie: Pr 31:10-31 Who can find a virtuous wife? For her worth is far above rubies. The heart of her husband safely trusts her; So he will have no lack of gain. She does him good and not evil All the days of her life. She seeks wool and flax, And willingly works with her hands. She is like the merchant ships, She brings her food from afar. She also rises while it is yet night, And provides food for her household, And a portion for her maidservants. She considers a field and buys it; From her profits she plants a vineyard. She girds herself with strength, And strengthens her arms. She perceives that her merchandise is good, And her lamp does not go out by night. She stretches out her hands to the distaff, And her hand holds the spindle. She extends her hand to the poor, Yes, she reaches out her hands to the needy. She is not afraid of snow for her household, For all her household is clothed with scarlet. She makes tapestry for herself; Her clothing is fine linen and purple. Her husband is known in the gates, When he sits among the elders of the land. She makes linen garments and sells them, And supplies sashes for the merchants. Strength and honor are her clothing; She shall rejoice in time to come. She opens her mouth with wisdom, And on her tongue is the law of kindness. She watches over the ways of her household, And does not eat the bread of idleness. Her children rise up and call her blessed; Her husband also, and he praises her: "Many daughters have done well, But you excel them all." Charm is deceitful and beauty is passing, But a woman who fears the LORD, she shall be praised. Give her of the fruit of her hands, And let her own works praise her in the gates. (NKJV)

My current quilt project

I am working on a very special project right now. In my last post I mentioned that I had a quilt that my granny had started as a young woman. I had "misremembered" the details, so I went back to the original post that I did over 10 years ago, when my Aunt Coez had given me the quilt blocks. It was HER granny (my great-grandmother, Little Granny) who had started it and given it to her. Coez was about 15 when she got them, so that would have been in the 1940’s. She never finished the quilt, but she wanted someone in the family to finish it and treasure it. I promised her that I would do something with it.

the original blocks

As I’ve mentioned before, I’m not a quilter. I don’t have the skill or patience to do that kind of precision work. I also no longer have the eyesight to work on tiny little HAND-SEWN hexagon pieces. The material is also very old and some of it is quite fragile. But I finally figured out a way to use the blocks in a way that I am capable of managing.

Since the material is so old, I don’t want this quilt to be “used”. I only plan to use half of the blocks to make a lap-sized rag quilt to go across the foot of the bed in our smaller guest room. I was able to find enough material that I liked for the project from my stash. I’m alternating rose and tan fabric for the back and using white flannel for the middle (which isn’t seen except for the “ragging”). I removed all the old muslin and green cotton that was meant to be used to piece the blocks together. Then I appliqued the flower blocks to new muslin and used a decorative stitch to quilt the blocks.

appliqued, but not yet quilted

finished (quilted) block

I’ve got all the blocks appliqued and half of them quilted. I’ve sewn the quilted blocks together in two rows of five blocks each, which is half of the quilt.

front and back of what I've gotten done

halfway done (except for ragging)

I’m very excited to see how the finished project will look! I'll be sure to post a picture of it when I'm done. It will be special to me no matter what…knowing the finished quilt will be a collaborative effort of Little Granny and me that was about 80 years in the making! 

September Fun

 Fall has finally arrived! Not the cooler temperatures, mind you, but the actual season. We are getting a bit of a reprieve this week, though. The high was in the 80's today, and it is supposed to drop into the 50's tonight. Last week was HOT!

We got our new windows installed on the 8th. I love them! I haven't gotten an electric bill since then, so I don't know how much, if any, difference we'll see on our bill. But I think it will eventually make a big difference! The new windows are so pretty that we are keeping the blinds open much more and enjoying the view. I love this picture window in the small guest room!

On the 16th, I had planned to go to a quilt show in Weatherford. I got up that morning and got into my morning routine, when it hit me...maybe Diane was available and might want to meet me there. Sure 'nough, she was and did! We met up for lunch and then headed over to the show. It was quite a treat! Beautiful works of art to enjoy, plus the company of a dear friend. Good times!

I finished Jesse's quilt and made matching pillows for both him and Shepherd. It feels so good to get those projects completed! Shepherd's birthday is coming up in a couple of weeks. We plan to take his quilt to him on our way up to Arkansas next month. It just happened to work out that the night we are planning to be there, Stephen and Mandy had dinner plans, so we'll be watching the kids. I love it when that happens! Looking forward to some special time with those three!

When we leave Paris, we'll head up to Ricky and Amber's a couple of days before Archer and Dennis' birthday parties on the 15th. I wanted to be there to help Amber get everything ready. If nothing else, I can entertain Archer while she does what needs to be done. It's hard to believe that he is almost a year old! (He'll actually be almost 11 months old at his party...we are celebrating early.)

Speaking of Archer and his folks, they were down this past weekend. Amber's family all came to town for a get-together and zoo trip. Rick and Amber came a day early and spent one night here before meeting up with the Hays bunch at a guest house in Santo. Archer is at such a fun age! He is so much more sociable now...as well as mobile! He's very well behaved though. Even though he was tempted by a couple of things, he kept his hands off! He loves to play...and eat! I had made a double batch of snickerdoodles for the weekend. It was his first time to try one. He is a fan! I took the rest to the zoo on Saturday, where we met up with the whole bunch. It was fun watching the littles (Archer and his cousins) enjoy the animal exhibits. When something particularly caught Archer's eye, he would do his funny little wave at it! He really liked the giraffe, the flamingos and the rhino. The flamingos were squabbling, which I guess sounded a little like music to him, so he started dancing "with" them! 😁After a couple of hours, when everyone was hot and tired, we all went out for lunch together and visited even longer. It was a good day!

Dennis is making good progress on the vanity in our dressing area. We picked up the hardware Saturday on our way home from FW, and he has all of the drawers assembled. He still has the cabinet door to do, plus painting everything. I really like the way it is turning out. We are going to have SO MUCH storage!

Last week I made a new deer lovey for Archer. Rick had contacted me a couple of weeks prior to that asking if I could make another one. Archer has about worn out the old one! Of course I was happy to comply! It warms my heart that he enjoys it so much. When they arrived Thursday night, he was a bit shy. But when I held out his new lovey, he was quick to grab it! Now Amber has a spare for when one needs washing. (She still had the ear that he had pulled off the old one, so I was able to repair it.)

I also started making some fabric "ragged" pumpkins last week and added the finishing details today. I'm happy with the way they turned out. For my next project, I plan to do something with an old UFO (un-finished object) that my Granny started when she was a young woman. My Aunt Coez had given it to me years ago and made me promise to finish it someday. It was intended to be a flower garden quilt. The material, I'm sure, is old flour sacks and scraps from clothing. My idea is to sew them onto muslin and make a lap-sized quilt. I haven't decided if I'll do it rag quilt or traditional style. I'm a little nervous to try doing a "real" quilt! I'll have to take some time and work out some ideas on how I want it to look, and what I think I am able to do.

Saturday, when we got home from the zoo, Dennis discovered a shed snakeskin in our front yard. It is about 3 ft. long. I sent a picture of it to Sheila to show Nam. She immediately texted back that he wanted us to save it for him! He is supposed to come a week from Friday for a sleepover. So it is waiting for him on our "window seat".

As I was going outside to snap the picture of the snakeskin, I noticed a large sphynx moth on the screen of the garage window. They are so neat looking! So, of course, I had to get a picture of it, too! I do enjoy critters.

That's pretty much what has been going on around here this month. I hope that all is going well with y'all, and that you are enjoying the early days of fall!

Ps 104:24 O LORD, how manifold are thy works! in wisdom hast thou made them all: the earth is full of thy riches. (KJV)

Time spent with loved ones

This past weekend was the annual Labor Day Gathering, hosted by the Young family and Henrietta Creek church, after a 2 year hiatus (due to COVID). We got over to the park, where Saturday's activities were taking place, around 10:30. It was SO good to see everyone again! The day was pretty warm, but not nearly as hot as the temperatures had been in July and June. The park had a wonderful playground and splash park for the kiddos. A few of the older ones cooled off in the splash park, too! It was a great day.

I woke up yesterday morning at 3:30 sneezing my head off. I had been surprised that I didn't have any allergic reactions during the day on Saturday. It was a delayed reaction, instead, and boy was it a doozy! In spite of using my nasal spray and taking Benadryl every six hours, I spent the day blowing and sneezing and snoozing in my recliner. I was miserable. So Dennis had to go back over to Henrietta Creek for the day by himself. I hated missing it! I was able to sleep all night last night (thanks to Benadryl) and woke up feeling slightly human this morning. (Yesterday, I would have qualified more as a zombie.) I love the changes in the weather that come with approaching autumn, but my allergies DO NOT. 

It was nice to have milder weather this August. Instead of daily temperatures in the 100's, most days had highs in the 90's and lows in the lower 70's. We got several rains, too...just right for saving our grass. Things went from brown and dead looking to lush and green practically overnight. 

Last month, I did a movie night/sleepover at Diane's. It was a lot of fun, as usual! Dennis and I also took a short trip to Paris to see Stephen and family. It had been way too long since our last trip! The boys gave me a little fussing out a few weeks ago during a video chat, which made me realize we were long overdue for a visit. We enjoyed the visit. We went to a tiger refuge up in Hugo, OK, which was amazing! I definitely want to return sometime in the future with Nam. He would love it!

Progress on the house is coming along slowly. Dennis has finished the walls and floor in the dressing area of our bathroom and is currently working on building the vanity. He expects to have it completed this week or early next week. We heard from our window guy that our windows are in, so we are just waiting until he has an opening in his schedule to install them. He could have done it Friday, but we were too busy getting ready for the Labor Day festivities to mess with them. 

I finished Shepherd's rag quilt and am getting close to finishing Jesse's. This one has taken me longer and has challenged me more than any of the others that I've done. I'm working it "on point". It is amazing how that has messed with my head! It took a LOT of figuring to work out the design before even beginning. Then once I started sewing the rows together, I had to rip out a LOT of them! I've finally (after doing 12 of the 17 rows) gotten to where it is coming along pretty routinely. I've been enjoying my new sewing machine. I've used a decorative stitch for making the X's on each sandwich. I also plan to do a different decorative stitch around the outer edge of the quilt. It is just a month until Shepherd's birthday, and I'm looking forward to giving his to him. He and Jesse recently moved into a new room and redecorated. Their quilts were designed to go along with their new decor (Star Wars). 

I heard from Ricky last week that Archer needed a new lovey. I had made him a little deer lovey last winter. He has about worn it out! Thankfully, I cut out 2 when I made it. I just never sewed up the second one. So once I get my current project finished, I'll put it together for him. It warms my heart to hear that he loves it so much!

We aren't getting to see Nam as much now that he has started back to school. We had his family over for Matt's birthday last month. That had to count for our monthly visit with him, since we just didn't have time to work in a sleepover. Ricky and Amber are planning a trip down here in a couple of weeks to meet up with the Hays bunch to go to the FW Zoo. We're going to have Nam for a sleepover at the same time and take him with us to meet up with them at the zoo. That ought to be a lot of fun!

Next month our bunch is planning a get-together at Rick and Amber's to celebrate Archer's 1st birthday and Dennis' 70th. (Archer's actual birthday will be on Thanksgiving Day, and they will be in NM.) I'm looking forward to having everyone together again. It's hard to believe that it has been almost a year since Archer was born!

Well, I guess that about wraps up what's been going on around here. I hope that you all are staying well and enjoying your Labor Day weekend!

1Co 15:58 Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord. (NKJV)

To Old to Cut the Mustard Anymore?

Today started out pretty routine. While delivering meals, however, I noticed the car was struggling to start. I called Dennis and told him I thought the battery might be going out, and he needed to check it when I got home. I left the car running during my remaining deliveries, so I wouldn’t end up “dead in the water”. I made it home fine, and Dennis took the car to the auto parts store to get it checked out. Sure enough, the battery was bad…and the alternator also needed to be replaced.

Dennis has always done our car maintenance and repair, when possible. The last few years, however, he has started taking it in for getting the oil changed. And we haven’t really had any repairs in a long time (other than body work). Prices have risen so dramatically, the parts alone were pretty expensive. So he decided to go ahead and replace the alternator himself. He has done it dozens of times in the past!

About six hours later, he is still working on it. Auto manufacturers do not build engines that are easy to work on anymore. Dennis has watched MANY You Tube videos trying to learn all the tricks for working on this vehicle. After over an hour of trying to get ONE bolt off (which wasn’t visible without using a mirror, and wasn’t accessible without using several socket extensions), he finally got the alternator unhooked…but now he can’t get it out. I’m not sure what all he is going to have to take off before there it a space large enough to fit it through! Then he’ll have to reverse the process while installing the new alternator. I’ve been trying to be his “mechanic’s assistant”, which basically means holding the mirror and light, so he can see what he’s doing. Nothing too strenuous, but unpleasant none-the-less in 105 degree heat. He is hoping to finish tonight, but I’m not sure that’s going to be possible. His poor hands are all scraped up and he has bruises all over his forearms. I think it might have been worth hiring this job done! We are definitely not “spring chickens” anymore!

“When I’m 64”

 I saw a short clip of Kevin Bacon singing this song the other day, after he had just turned 64. The gist of the clip was 64 isn’t nearly as old as we used to think it was…or at least it doesn’t seem as old anymore! It does seem weird to be at an age that was considered to be ancient when I was young. I read an original poem the other day (written by a cousin of mine) that dealt with the paradox of aging. We see an old person in the mirror, but we don’t identify with that image. Our minds and hearts still think we are young. Anyway, guess how old I am now!

July has been a beast! The temps have been  around 105 degrees (or more) most days. It is supposed to be in the 110’s most of this week. It is dry. The big fire northwest of here was finally contained, but smaller fires keep popping up regularly. Dennis and I (plus a lot of other people) have been struggling with covid. I’m ready for fall!

We did enjoy a short vacation at the beginning of the month. We went to Canyon to the meeting for a couple of nights. We really enjoyed visiting with everyone who was there (although we haven’t enjoyed the “souvenir” that we picked up). We went from there to Russellville for a few nights. Dennis started feeling bad the first day in Arkansas, while we were visiting with Ricky’s family.. That night at services at Clarksville, we learned that we had been exposed to covid while at the meeting. Sure ‘nough, Dennis tested positive the next morning; but I tested negative. I explained the situation to Rick and Amber, and they said the weren’t worry about being exposed…they had already had the virus more than once. I had promised to babysit Archer Thursday morning, and they still wanted me to come over, so I kept him while Amber went to get her hair done. (They never got sick, thankfully!) We had so much fun! Archer was really good! He has gotten SO much more social since the last time we visited. I’m very thankful that I had that special time alone with him.

Dennis spent the remainder of our trip in our hotel room, resting. We left for home early Friday morning, with me doing all the driving. After we got home, unpacked, and I got the laundry done, I started running fever and feeling bad. We stayed in and just rested for several days. Dennis was feeling much better by the end of the weekend, so he actually spent Monday mowing the grass. (He’d just do a little at a time, so as not to overtax himself.) I ran fever up until Monday night, then gradually started to feel better. Towards the end of the week, we were both still struggling, so a got my doctor to call me in some antibiotics for a sinus infection. Dennis had to make an appointment to see his ENT. Friday morning, before leaving to head to FW, he decided to test again for covid to make sure he wasn’t still contagious. He tested positive again, so he had to cancel his appointment. I also tested positive, so more quarantine for us! I am still having quite a bit of head/sinus congestion (along with some brain fog), although I haven’t run fever in a week. I decided to retest this morning and am STILL positive! Dennis plans to wait until tomorrow or Wednesday to test. His last test was very faint, so he expects his to be negative this time.

Dennis only lost his sense of smell/taste for a couple of days. Mine has been gone for a week. This morning I finally started detecting the slightest smell of very strong odors (such as vinegar or bleach). Dennis offered to go get takeout for me for lunch, so I ordered Kung Pao Chicken. I wanted to get some very strong flavors to try. I could detect a little bit of saltiness and heat. I can also get a mild taste of sweet from anything that has sugar or sweeteners in it. I’m really hoping my senses return soon. I have a coupon for my free steak dinner that I have to use before the end of the month. I am REALLY looking forward to having and tasting that!

I had promised myself awhile back that when I had lost 60 pounds, I would celebrate with a cinnamon roll from the donut shop (even though I always end up getting sick when I do). By the end of June I had lost right at 59 pounds. I had seen a travel show where a guy had been in Sweden and raved about their Swedish Cinnamon Buns. I decided to find a recipe and try them out (instead of eating a greasy cinnamon roll). They were SO good! I’m definitely going to be making them again! I may eventually go ahead and buy one of my old favorite cinnamon rolls, but I think I’ll be quite satisfied with these in the meantime…and they don’t make me sick!

I’m still working on Shepherd’s quilt. I’ve gotten 2/3 of it finished and am really liking the way it is turning out. While I was sewing on it last night, my 45+ year old machine froze up and died. We decided to order a replacement as my birthday present. It is supposed to be here tomorrow. It is a much nicer machine than my old one, with a lot of decorative stitches. I’m looking forward to trying it out and getting back to work!

Haven’t accomplished much in the remodel, since Dennis has been sick and quarantined. He did get my closet door painted and rehung. I’ve gotten us “moved” into the hall bathroom and gotten myself moved into the guest room. (My allergies can’t tolerate sleeping in a construction zone.) As soon as I feel well enough, I plan to completely reorganize the guest room closets and figure out how I’m going to arrange all of my crafting supplies, sentimental mementos, and miscellaneous stuff that I need to store. Up until now, we’ve just been stashing stuff away where we could find space with little thought or design. Now that all of our storage space is completed, I need to finally assign a place for everything. Right now my brain isn’t functioning well enough to put the thought into it that it requires! Brain fog (from covid) is real!

I hope that all of the rest of you that contracted covid are recovering nicely. Stay safe, stay cool, and be kind!

Isa 25:1, 4 O LORD, You are my God. I will exalt You, I will praise Your name, For You have done wonderful things; Your counsels of old are faithfulness and truth…For You have been a strength to the poor, A strength to the needy in his distress, A refuge from the storm, A shade from the heat; For the blast of the terrible ones is as a storm against the wall. (NKJV)

Family Time, Crafting and New Closets

 Good morning! I am SO thankful for the cool front that came through yesterday. Woke up to a nice 72 degrees this morning, and a projected high of 91 (instead of 100+). We are not supposed to hit the 100 degrees mark all week, for the first time in about a month. The cooler temps and change in wind direction seems to be helping the firefighters on the Dempsey fire, too. It is now 27% contained and holding steady at about 11,600 acres. 

Sheila's family came over last night to celebrate her 36th birthday. It was great to visit with them! She and Nam had been to a camp sponsored by their adoption agency. Nam loved it! He even got to play the drum while leading the lion dance (which he has ALWAYS loved!). We had shrimp etouffee, artisan sourdough bread, and lemon supreme pie for dessert. YUM! I had to cut Nam off at just one piece of pie...he kept begging for a second! But I sent the leftovers home, so he probably got to have a second piece before bedtime.

After a solid month, my styes are finally gone. I was beginning to think my eye would never get back to normal! It wasn't really bothering me the last couple of weeks, but you could still see (and feel) the bump on my lower lid. I really hope that is my last experience with that! Other than that, I've been feeling pretty good (for an old woman). I went for my checkup a couple of weeks ago, and my doctor was very pleased with everything. My BMI finally dropped below 30, which significantly lowers my risk from heart disease or diabetes. I've lost almost 60 pounds total and am MUCH more active than I was a year ago. My blood pressure and heart rate are the best they have been in decades. I'm enjoying my new "lease on life". 

I finally finished Nam's rag quilt, pillow sham and decorative pillow set. I did show him the picture of it, but have stashed it away for his birthday (at his request). Now I'm working on Shepherd's and finally got the design worked out for Jesse's. If you'd asked me a year ago if I would ever enjoy ANY kind of sewing, I would have said "no way!" I'm really glad that I decided to give it a try!

I have also started a new craft, called slow stitching. It is kind of a cross between applique and embroidery. It is a free-form type of stitchery that is meant to tap into one's creativity and also provide a means of relaxation and mindfulness. I'm really enjoying it! 

We really enjoyed our little road trip with Nam earlier in the month! We picked him up in FW and headed east to Tyler. We stopped at Pancho's (one of the 2 or 3 left in the DFW area) for lunch, which we all enjoyed tremendously. The first night we just stayed in and chilled in our hotel room. "Chitty, Chitty Bang-Bang" was on when we got settled, so we watched that. Nam loved it! The next day we went to the Caldwell Zoo and the Discovery Science Center. The zoo was fun, but Nam LOVED the Discovery Center! It was a gigantic indoor playground. There were so many different "sets" for kids to play in... a restaurant, grocery store, courthouse, bank, hospital, vet's office, firetruck, etc. There were also different science activities to engage in. Nam's favorite was a play area with giant foam blocks. He loved building structures to play in! We spent 3 hours there and could have stayed longer. We would love to go back sometime and take all of the grands.

Dennis completed my closet last week, and I've started "moving in". I've moved all of my clothes and shoes in there. Today I plan to start moving "stuff" onto the shelves. That will take quite a bit of planning and reorganizing! I have SO much space to utilize! I love having my own space, since he moved all of his things into his new closet. He was also able to fit all of his hunting clothes/accessories into his closet. That helped clear out some of the stuff that has been stored in his den for so long! Closet space is WONDERFUL! 

I also need to empty out our bathroom and reorganize the hall bathroom, so we can move into it. We have already been using the hall bathroom, exclusively, because our shower developed a leak. We've moved our daily essentials, but I haven't done a real overhaul like needs to be done. Since Dennis will begin demo-ing our bathroom this week, it is time to do a major restructuring. I love seeing everything taking shape!

The camp meeting starts this weekend. I'm so looking forward to seeing everyone! We don't plan to leave until after church Sunday morning, since our congregation is so small. We should be able to make the evening assembly though and stay through the Tuesday morning assembly. Then we plan to head over to Russellville to get some "Archer-time". I'm ready! I've really been missing that little guy.

I guess that pretty much sums up what's been going on around here. I hope you are all managing to stay cool during this extreme heat. I hope to see some of you soon. Stay safe and be kind!

May update

A lot has been going on lately! This week has been pretty intense. Dennis had his dental implant surgery on Tuesday. It went well, but he has had to take ibuprofen round the clock for the soreness. It has to heal for about 3 months before the dentist can build the crown on the implant post. He isn’t supposed to chew on that side until his follow-up appointment with the surgeon in 8 weeks. He will be SO glad when he can finally eat normally. With missing molars on both sides of his mouth, he has had to use his front teeth to do most of his chewing for quite some time. It will be next year before he gets the other implant, due to the expense involved. This year isn’t a good time to be liquidating stocks!

Flowers from Dennis' oral surgeon. What a nice surprise!

Sunday night, when I was getting ready for bed, I noticed my eye felt irritated. When I woke up the next morning, it was almost swollen shut. It didn’t really bother me at first, but the longer it has gone on, the sorer it has gotten (and itchier!). I went to the doctor yesterday and she put me on antibiotic drops. She said it is probably a stye coming on. Dennis and I noticed 2 spots on my upper lid last night. One has disappeared today, but the other is definitely becoming more pronounced. Glad that it is just a stye! It is very uncomfortable but not serious!

I’ve gotten in all of our family pictures that I ordered! I love them!!! I ordered a 20x30 of the bunch of us walking. The frame that I ordered for it came in today, so it is ready to be hung. I have all of the others framed and ready to hang, too, as soon as Dennis feels like doing that for me. (Hanging pictures is not exactly his favorite thing to do!) I also received our photo books today. I got one for each family. I love family pictures! Once I get everything hung up, I’ll share some pictures.

Dennis now has his own closet! He still has to build some shelves on one side, but it is already “operational”. As soon as he completes it, he’ll demo our old closet and redo it for me. I’m so excited to be able to have and arrange my own closet! After the closets, we’ll move onto our master bath. That will be a pretty extensive job! I still think it is possible to completely finish this year, or early into 2023. So exciting!

I’ve been working on Nam’s quilt for the past month. I took a couple of weeks off from working on it when he came for a visit. Dennis started putting together a deer head puzzle during that time, and it took up a large portion of the dining table. I finally asked him to move the puzzle (it is taking a LONG time to do!), so I could get my sewing machine back out. The quilt is going well. It is supposed to be his birthday present, which isn’t until late November. Don’t know if I can wait until then to give it to him! I plan to work on Jesse and Shepherd’s quilts simultaneously, since I’ll be using a lot of the same fabrics on theirs. I’m excited about their designs. They both wanted a Star Wars/space theme. The colors are really pretty! I hope all of the recipients of these quilts enjoy them as much as I do making them. Hopefully they will realize that a lot of love went into them!

Well, it has been a year now since I started losing weight and I am down 57 pounds. I’ve really slacked off for the past couple of months. I’m still losing, but it is VERY SLOWLY! I just got tired of being SO strict with my eating habits. So I’m still logging my food and restricting my calorie intake (for the most part), but just not as low a level as I had been. I still want to lose another 30 pounds or so, but I expect it to take me at least another year to get there. That’s ok, though. I’m feeling so much better and able to do so much more already. Every further pound that I lose is a bonus, no matter how long it takes to come off! The downside of losing that much (at my age) is all of the loose skin that is left behind. I looked online, and they said that due to the decreased production of collogen as we age, it may not ever tighten up. Oh well, I’ve never been all that concerned about my appearance anyway (or at least I try not to be!).

I hope you all have a wonderful Memorial Day weekend! Be kind and stay safe!

Family Weekend!

What a wonderful weekend! I have been wanting a new family picture for quite some time now. Several months ago we finally settled on a date to do one and plans were made. Since the date ended up being the day before Gracie’s 4^th birthday, we decided to also have a party for her while we were all together. After months of planning and waiting, we finally did it! I loved having everyone together, watching the littles playing and enjoying one another, seeing the excitement on Gracie’s face, getting some cuddle time with Archer, hanging out with my kiddos, and getting some quality pictures (thanks to Candice) to celebrate our time together. I can’t wait to see how they turned out! I’m sure they will be amazing…Candice was great! She did better at getting genuine smiles out of the littles (except Archer) than anyone I’ve ever seen!

In preparation for the weekend, Dennis and I had to get the guest room finished. That took some mad scrambling, let me tell you! We put in some long, hard days, but we had it ready to be occupied just in time for Stephen’s family to arrive. Dennis still has some detail work to finish, and I still have pillow shams to make to match the rag quilt, but we can slow down and work at a more reasonable pace to accomplish that. Today, we plan to take things pretty easy and rest up! These old bones and muscles are TIRED! (I’ll share pictures when we get all of the finishing touches completed.)

We had fun with Gracie’s birthday party. She is at such a cute age! Mandy brought stuff to decorate (the theme was Frozen), and we served all of Gracie’s favorite foods for lunch, so it was mostly finger foods. She loves berries, which we had in abundance, so we decided to go a little fancier and do chocolate covered strawberries…always a hit! This was the first time that I made her birthday cake. I always loved doing doll cakes for little girls, so I did Anna, from Frozen. She loved it! (And, of course, she had the doll after the cake was served.) At the end of their visit, I asked what her favorite part of the weekend had been. After giving it a little thought, she answered, “Playing outside…and my presents!”

Archer actually did better than I expected with all of the craziness going on. He doesn’t like a lot of noise or people around, and there was plenty of both this weekend. He really enjoyed watching the kids. We spent some time with him outside on Saturday, which he loved! It reminded me of another time about 8 years ago, when we were all together, sitting outside on a quilt playing with our first little! Sweet memories!

I hope that you all enjoyed your weekend as much as I did ours! Have a good week and be kind!

Ps 127:3 Behold, children are a heritage from the LORD, The fruit of the womb is a reward.

Staying busy

Well, spring has officially arrived, but winter hasn’t quite relinquished control yet! Today is very windy and COLD! I’m thankful, though, that we didn’t have any damage from the storms that moved through yesterday. I got a message on my phone around 3:30 saying to take shelter, because we were under an imminent threat of tornado and/or hail. We unplugged all of our electronics and appliances and kept a sharp eye out, but other than HEAVY wind and rain, we were fine. Our electricity never even went out…just flickered a few times. Folks to the northeast of us didn’t fair so well. Between the tornado damage in the Jacksboro area and the fire damage out west of us, there has been a lot of devastation this week.

Nam went home this afternoon after spending a couple of nights with us. We also got to see him and his parents last week at Harvey’s funeral. We got rooms in the same hotel in Lubbock, and he rode with us to the funeral. We left a little early, so we could drive around Littlefield and I could show him where I lived when I was young. We found our old house, but it looks very different than it did when we lived there. As to be expected, the neighborhood has really declined in the 57 years since we left. We also drove by the elementary school, park and church house…as well as the hospital that I was born in. I think I got a lot more out of it than Nam did….brought back so many memories. The whole trip did! It had been 2 years to the week since Daddy had died, and he was very much on my mind the whole time. It was good to see the folks at the funeral, some of which I hadn’t seen in decades. My heart breaks for Joy and the rest of the family. I know that Harvey is going to leave a huge hole in their lives and hearts.

Our windows for the guest room came in a little earlier than expected, and Dennis got them installed. He has all of the sheetrock up, too. He is still working on detail work on the drywall…corners and such. Hopefully he can start texturing next week. We also got the flooring in that we plan to put in there. Things should go fairly quickly once the walls are finished and painted. We are HOPING to have the room finished before the family comes on the weekend of April 23 (for Gracie’s birthday and family pictures).

I am really loving my new hobby…rag quilting! I am currently working on two. I started the one for our guest room and got all of the sandwiches pinned together. Then I realized that I had less than 3 weeks before Caleb’s birthday, so I put that one aside and started working on his. I’m trying something a little different with his. I’ll share a picture of it once I’ve completed it and given it to him. (He knows that I’m working on it and has had some input as to the design.) It has kind of taken over the living room and dining room. I do my cutting and pinning on a long table in the LR and then do the sewing on the DR table.

We have plans to go to Arkansas this weekend. We will, Lord willing, attend Warren and Linda’s anniversary party on Saturday, and then head up to Ricky and Amber’s that evening. Then we’ll come home Monday. Dennis has an appointment to get his other tooth pulled first thing Tuesday morning. So he’ll be tender-mouthed again for a few weeks. Once this one heals completely, he’ll go see the specialist about getting implants. He will sure be glad when he isn’t suffering from toothaches anymore!

It is about time to go get supper started. Take care and be kind!

Pr 25:19 Confidence in an unfaithful man in time of trouble Is like a bad tooth and a foot out of joint. (NKJV) 

Family, friends and crafting

Well, it looks like winter is about over and spring is drawing near. Of course, that could change from day to day! This week is pretty spring-like, anyway.

I finally reached my 50 pounds lost goal on Valentine's Day and got my DP shake to celebrate! I haven’t made any real progress since then though…just hovering around 51 pounds. Weight loss for me isn’t linear. It is a constant zigzag. I eventually go down, but not until I’ve bounced around quite a bit! I’m trying not to obsess over it. As long as I continue to eat healthy and moderately, exercise, and the scales keep reflecting a loss, however slowly it may be, I’m happy. As I’ve said, this is my new lifestyle, and I’m happy with the benefits that it has provided.

Nam came for a couple of nights sleepover two weeks ago. We didn’t do anything special…just our regular stuff. His family came on Saturday to pick him up and had lunch with us. We always enjoy our time visiting with all of them!

The following week was Diane’s sleepover and our painting class. That was the same week that our other winter storm came through, so we were on pins and needles all week, hoping that the roads would be clear (which they were). Diane had a minor plumbing emergency just as she was getting ready to come, which almost knocked her out of making it. She ended up getting here just in time! The class was fun, although it was much more intense than we expected. Sheila came over for it, too. We really enjoyed our evening. I would love to take more classes. I’ve always wanted to learn how to paint. Diane and I are planning to take a watercolor class next weekend. It will be a much simpler design! In the meantime, I am getting hooked on watching the old Bob Ross shows. Maybe one of these days, I’ll get some supplies and try my hand at it for real.

Diane went to church with us the morning after our class, and Charles and Belinda also came over for the day (after having attended Tommy T’s funeral). We all went out to eat together after services and had a good visit. Afterwards, Dennis and I went home with Diane, so he could take care of her plumbing repairs. That gave us even more time to enjoy one another’s company! It was a great weekend!

I finished making Archer’s lovey and stopped with just the one. I had forgotten how difficult it is to sew on such small projects! By the time I finished, I didn’t want to even try to do the second. Maybe later…I saved the pieces that I had cut out. Instead, I did some knitting and started working on my next rag quilt. I am REALLY enjoying making them! I’ve always wanted to make quilts, but they require such precision and take so long. I’m afraid that I don’t have the patience or skill set needed. But rag quilts are quick and “forgiving”…right down my alley! I hope to make one for each of the grands eventually. I just finished the one that I’ve been working on. It is in the wash right now. I still have to wash, shake, wash again, shake again, dry, shake, dry and shake again before it is nice and fluffy. I should have it done by day’s end. I’m hoping to do one to go on the bed in the guest room that we are working on next. I want to use homespun fabric in darker colors for that one.

Archer with his lovey.

We are still waiting for our windows to come in for the guest room. They were supposed to be in the latter part of February. Now they are saying it will be the end of March. Not much else that Dennis can do in there until we get them. He did finish the ramp at the church house. He still has a little trim to add, which he is working on this week. It turned out really well!

I finally go see the ENT Friday for my phantosmia. Funny thing, tho, I haven’t had a flareup of it for the past 8 weeks. I’ve never tracked it before, and I don’t remember if I’ve gone this long without smelling the cigarette smoke before. This may just be a normal part of the “cycle”. It will be interesting to talk to a professional about it tho. My allergies/sinuses have been giving me fits for a long time, so it won’t hurt to get them checked out anyway.

I hope that you are all staying safe and well. There is so much pain in the world right now. Let’s all try to ease someone’s burden and make our little part of the world a better place. Take care and be kind!

Ec 9:10 Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might; for there is no work or device or knowledge or wisdom in the grave where you are going. (NKJV) 

Winter weather and fun times with family

We had planned to leave last Friday morning to go to Paris. With the snow and ice that moved in on Wednesday and Thursday, we decided it would be prudent to wait a couple of days. The snow was beautiful! I just hunkered down and enjoyed it from inside my comfy house.

The roads had pretty much cleared by Saturday, so we left right after church Sunday morning and drove to Paris. Stephen and Mandy had plans to go out that evening, so we volunteered to babysit the kiddos. We really enjoyed our time with them! We played games of all sorts, I played “babies” with Gracie and danced to her music box, and then we wound down with bedtime reading. We visited some Monday morning with Mandy and the kids, then met up for lunch with Stephen. Afterwards we conducted our business, then hit the road towards Arkansas. We didn’t make it before Archer’s bedtime, but we had a good visit with Rick and Amber that night. Then we had all day Tuesday to love on and enjoy our littlest grand! He is so sweet and cuddly! He is really starting to coo and gurgle. We had some pretty interesting conversations. I love his little smiles! He is such a big boy for 2 months old…over 15 pounds! His sweet momma is taking good care of him!

Grandad and Archer having a good talk

Isn't he adorable?!

We got up Wednesday morning and left first thing to drive down to Warren and Linda’s. It was so good to see them again and see how well Linda is doing. We talked all day and even enjoyed a walk down their lane. We also enjoyed visiting with the bunch at Salem Road that evening. It had been a long time since we’d seen so many of them.

After a hearty breakfast and some more visiting Thursday morning, we headed to MW. We loved our round of visits with everyone, but it was nice to get back home.

My herb garden experiment was a failure, so I decided to buy some succulents at Walmart this morning (for $2 a piece!) and plant them in the pots that I had used. I’ve been wanting some for a long time! I hope I can manage to keep them alive!

Dennis has about all of the drywall done that he can in the blue room until the windows come in. He also finished the drywall in his new closet. He bought a new saw to use to build a ramp at the church house in the east foyer. There is a bit of a step-up leading into the building that we’ve been worried might be a hazard for our older ladies. It shouldn’t take him long to get it completed. I’m hoping that the windows don’t take too long to arrive, so he can finish out the guest room. We are really ready to get it done and start in on our room!

I enjoyed working on Archer’s rag quilt so much, that I decided to do another couple of sewing projects. I found a really cute pattern for a deer “lovey” that I want to make for Archer. My material came in while we were gone, so I’m looking forward to starting that tomorrow. Then I plan to make another rag quilt. My material is supposed to start arriving tomorrow, so I can begin cutting the squares as soon as I finish the loveys (I plan to make 2, so he will have a spare).

I hope all of you weathered last week’s winter storms and are staying warm and well. Take care and be kind!

Job 37:5-6 God thunders marvelously with His voice; He does great things which we cannot comprehend. For He says to the snow, 'Fall on the earth'; Likewise to the gentle rain and the heavy rain of His strength. (NKJV)

Slowly, but surely, progress is being made!

Winter has finally arrived in North Texas. December was so mild that I was beginning to wonder if we’d have one at all. But I’m getting to enjoy our fireplace most days now. That’s about the first thing I do in the mornings is to fire it up while I’m brewing my coffee. Dennis bought me a new throw blanket, which I’m also enjoying daily. Even though I’m a Southern gal, I love snuggling up in cold weather (as long as it doesn't last too long!).

Dennis is making progress in the back guest room. Demo is completed, and he started putting up sheetrock last week. It will take a while for him to finish with that, since we are having to wait on our window order. They said it would take 6-8 weeks for them to come in (and there is no guarantee that they will be here even then). He is thinking about going ahead and doing his new closet while we are waiting. It will make things a bit messier in our bedroom, but it will ease the load in our current closet when he gets it done.

I have started a new project…making a rag quilt for Archer. This will be the second one that I’ve ever done…the first one was for Jesse when he was born. I’ve got my squares all cut out, sandwiched, and hand-stitched together. Now it is time to start sewing the blocks together. I haven’t used my sewing machine in years, so I’m hoping that it works ok!

Last Sunday I spent the night with Diane and went with her the next morning to Paris for an appointment she had with Stephen. We all ate lunch together, then Mandy, the kids and I went to the park to play while Stephen and Diane took care of business. It was fun to spend some time with the grands. I also enjoyed road-tripping with Diane. She’s a good travel buddy!

As I was backing out of her driveway to come home, I plowed into a parked car across the street from her house. I never even saw it! I felt terrible! Thankfully, the man who drives it (it is his company car) was super nice about it all. It only did a minimal amount of damage to our Highlander. Dennis plans to take it in to the body shop this week if they have an opening. The insurance money has already cleared for our repairs. I tell you, I am now paranoid every time I back up!!!

We are planning a short trip in early February. We are going to Stephen’s to take Jesse’s birthday present and visit with them (and take care of a little business). Then we plan to head north to see Archer (and Rick and Amber). Sure looking forward to seeing that little guy again. Even though we saw him a month ago, he is changing SO fast! We also hope to get in a little visiting with Dennis’ siblings while in Arkansas. I hope the weather cooperates!

I got off diet maintenance mode at the first of the year and am trying to lose, again, in earnest. It is slow going, but I’m still making progress. I’m down another 3-4 pounds (depending on the day). It is really nice to pull out old clothes from my closet that I can fit into again! Every once in a while, I will try something on that is just too baggy to wear anymore, so I add it to my donation stack. I can finally wear my wedding band again! I’ve been having to make do with silicon bands for a good while, as my fingers were too pudgy! As slow as it is going now, it will probably take me most, if not all, year to reach my goal weight. I’m ok with that though. The longer I work at it, the more it becomes “natural” for me, and will be more sustainable. I am determined that this will be a new healthier lifestyle from here on out! I want to be able to play with my grandkids, go hiking with Dennis on vacations, and do a lot of other things for a good while to come!

I hope all of you are enjoying the new year and staying safe and warm! Take care and be kind!

Ps 92:13-15 Those who are planted in the house of the LORD Shall flourish in the courts of our God. They shall still bear fruit in old age; They shall be fresh and flourishing, To declare that the LORD is upright; He is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in Him. (NKJV)

Happy New Year!

 Another year has come and gone. Time is racing by at an ever increasing rate. Makes you take stock and appreciate what time you have.

2021 was a good year for me. My health has improved: I'm 43 pounds lighter, no longer need BP meds,  have more strength, flexibility and energy, and had my right shoulder repaired. I gained a new grandbaby. I finished out my CASA commitments and ended my career seeing two new beautiful families grow. 

I am looking forward to seeing what 2022 brings! I hope to continue my weight loss journey...reaching my goal of 80-90 pounds lost. Dennis and I hope to take a trip to the Blue Ridge Parkway this fall. I hope that we will finally be able to finish our home remodel (I know I've said that before, but I do believe it is possible!). I plan to spend as much time as I can with those that I love. And I hope to continue to grow as a person and a Christian.

My hope for all of you is that you have a safe, happy and productive new year. Appreciate and enjoy the blessings that you've been given. Learn something new. Spend time with loved ones. Most of all, remember the One who makes all things possible and honor Him with your life.

Ec 12:13 Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.  (KJV)