All in a Row

All my weeks are about the same.  Busy days with sewing, cleaning and loving on LMW all in a row. That's why there hasn't been anything posted in a while. Nothing really newsworthy, but contentment reigns for now.

Since I haven't posted anything for a while, and there's really no news to impart, I'll just post a pic or two of LMW. He is growing so big it's astounding. And he is smiling and trying to laugh and grab at things, but his little hands just won't cooperate.

I bought him a little blue dog the other day and he seems to like it.

He loves it when his Grandpa puts him on our bed and plays with him. 

I'm still working on my mom's quilt, which is not as easy as the one I did for J. I'm learning how to compensate and go with the flow.  Hopefully, it will be done soon, and I can't post on The Seam Rippers.

Questions and Answers

Ok, so all you garden smart folks take a look see...

What, pray tell, is this? It's all over the brush on the south side of my house. It's rather nice looking and the berries are very pretty. I find sprigs of it trying to grow in the middle of my yard and in my flower bed.

And we know now, that my bush and trees are not going to make it. So sad.

After Y asked me if it was possible that the poison ivy killer got into the roots, I thought that was what must have happened. I can't see the entire tree dying this way, just because it caught a spray of it in the air.  So, we will be replacing two cedar trees and a rhododendron this fall. If we can find them to purchase.

In Distress

I'm in distress about two of my cedar trees. They are the ones we transplanted from the front of the house, to the back, because the ice would always pull them away from the house. We thought if they were in the ground more solid, instead of up in a raised bed, it might help.

Well.....two of them are thriving. And two are rapidly sinking into a brown crunchy mess.

I believe I know the reason why, but I don't know if it can be reversed. You see, the hubs was trying to get rid of some of the poison ivy that always reaches out to spread it's wicked venom on me. So, he did some high powered spraying. It seems some of it floated onto these two trees. That is the only thing we can think of.

I've watered them every day, sometimes twice a day. And I don't mean I gave them a drink, I mean I saturated the ground around them, even dug out shallow indentions to hold water. And still they get worse. I don't know if there is any way to save them. If anyone of you out there has an idea, I'd be grateful for any advice you might have.

I've thought about maybe cutting them back a little so there would be less of them to need all that water, but I don't know if it would be worth the effort.

And that's not all folks.....

A neighborhood cat decided that one of my rhododendrons would be his new litter box. And this is the result of that....

We've since put a stop to the bathroom issue, but no matter how much I flush this with water, it still looks bad. All the branches are brown, while on my healthy ones, the branches are green. I'm at a loss.

Ten Minutes

Ten minutes seem like forever when....

You are waiting to open gifts on Christmas morning.

You are in a doctor's office.

You are waiting for a loved one to arrive.

You are on the elliptical.

You can't sleep.

You are bored.

You are ready early for an appointment.

The preacher is long winded.

You are hungry.

Ten minutes fly by when......

You're loved one is about to leave.

You have a deadline.

You are talking on the phone.

You are listening to beautiful music.

You are having fun.

You need a nap.

You are late for an appointment.

Dog Days

Not much going on these days. Too much heat I suppose. I've been doing some quilting and loving on Little Man Win, and not much else.

Our church hired a new pastor yesterday. I am hoping and praying that this is a new chapter in our church life and he is what God wants for us. We've been 16 months without a pastor. The summer has been a little slow, as always, but here's hoping we see a big change with a new pastor when school starts again and things get back to normal.

Here are some photos of LMW from yesterday afternoon.

Look at that face!

Oh my, and look at that tummy!!

Small Blessings

I feel that I was blessed a bit this morning, and just had to share.  About 10 years ago, through genealogy research, I met a woman who has come to be a best friend to me. We only met the one time, but developed a deep relationship via email.  I know it sounds corny, but I feel that we are "soul sisters". She lives in GA, and I live in AR and we haven't seen each other in all these 10 or so years. 

Today, I got to see her again.  And we weren't really able to talk much privately, but you know what? I don't care. I got to see her and to me that is a blessing. I got to meet the daughter and grandchildren I've read so much about over the years. I got to hug her neck. And I did it several times, just because I COULD. I hope she didn't mind.

She brought me a gift.

She knows how much I love chickadees and she saw this plate in a yard sale and bought if for me. A long time ago. The first thing I did when I got home was to put it in the kitchen where I can see it from the living room.

Having no close friends here, it's a comfort to me when I know I can pour my heart out in an email, and she understands. We laughed today about being the melty cheese between the meat and bread in the sandwich that is our life. Striving to help our children and grandchildren, and also trying to do what we can for our parents.

We talked about how we can see that God was working in every sad/bad/heartbreaking situation in our lives, to work things out for good.

It's really amazing, how you/I can talk to someone over the internet for years, never being in their presence, but when you are finally together, you are so comfortable, it's as if you have been together all the time. How I wish she was closer and we could see each other more often. But, I'll take this small blessing and be thankful for it.

Here's to my friend "Y". Love ya girl.

Another Storm

After two trips in as many months to the hospital, my mother was released and told by the oncologist that the cancer was contained and that she probably had a bacterial infection. Unfortunately, we learned today that is not the case. The PET scan found cancer in the lining of her mid transverse colon, and spots around her liver. We have an appointment to see the oncologist on Monday to find out treatment options and more about what is happening.

This comes on the heels of her last chemo treatments, so the chemo med did not prevent the cancer from spreading. What a dissapointment to all of us. And a surprise to my mother who is perpetually optimistic about it all. This is the third instance of cancer, and I keep thinking the third time killed my father. It's hard to get past that.

I keep trying to stay calm, not borrow trouble or fret about it. And God, in His loving mercy gave me some scripture last night to help. Then, on the way to my Mother's house this morning he gave me the song, "Praise You In The Storm"... Isn't my God something?! I've decided that I canNOT dwell on what ifs, or what will we do if, or how will we do this or that. I can't worry about how taking care of her will effect my keeping the baby or helping plan my son's wedding. It will all take care of itself, God will work it all out, and you know.....it's. Not. About. Me.

I can't lie, this is hard. It's harder than the last two times. And it's going to be hard. But, my God is a mighty and awesome God. He can heal her if He so chooses. If He doesn't, He can get us all through it. And I've prayed that He will take away any heartsickening decision we have to make. That way, all the what ifs and how are we to dos will be taken care of. By Him. Period.

Tummy Time

I've just posted a Tummy Time Mat Tutorial on The Seam Rippers. It was fun and I hope it gives someone else an idea. I studied LMW's purchased mat, and tried my hand at making one.

I Love Corn

Just a little taste of what we had on the 4th of July.....

Yum Yum, it sure was good!!

Easy Light Summer Sweet

This recipe is easy as...well, pie. It came from a recipe book that Rison Baptist Church put together in 2005. It's on page 230.

Peanut Butter Pie

Ingredients:

8 oz. cream cheese softened

1 c. powedered sugar

1/2 c. creamy peanut butter

16 oz. whipped topping

1 graham cracker crust (I used the extra serving size and it was full)

chocolate or fudge syrup

Directions:

In large bowl, mix cream cheese, powdered sugar, peanut butter and whipped topping until well blended. Pour into pie crust. Drizzle a little chocolate syrup on top, and refrigerate.

There! Easy breezy light and sweet. Just the thing for a summer day or July 4th get together.

USA

HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY EVERYONE!!

Tee for Me

I finally created something for myself. I have a mountain of housework to do before the holiday weekend, but I can't focus unless I do a little something creative first. So, I got this job out of the way.

 I posted the process on The Seam Rippers.