A "Thankful" Post

 

   Aww...Maggie Mae brings me such joy and laughter.  She is a silly dog and I frequently find her sleeping in such weird positions.  On this particular day it was hot and she had her paws up in the air to cool off.  She is learning "manners" now like sitting and waiting for her food until I tell her she can eat it instead of trying to knock me over to get to it. 😉 We are still working on trying to get her to not be right behind us when we are in the kitchen so that she does not trip us.  She was used to being right beside my cousin Jeremy at all times and being the center of attention, so being with us and having to share attention with the 4 cats is a big adjustment.  There is not a day that goes by when I don't look at her and think of my dear cousin.  I will forever be thankful for all the time we did have together, the laughter we shared, and being able to reconnect our family once again.

   Jeff's aunt Helen will be moving to another care facility.  There is just not the staffing needed to give her the care that she deserves and requires where she is now.  She has met with some of the people that run that facility and she seems to like them.  Next Tuesday Jeff and I will be going up to help her get moved up and settled into her new "home".  It is further away from us, but we will continue to make every effort to get up to see her as often as possible and they are going to be setting up Zoom calls for us so that she can still see us and talk to us on a regular basis.  We bought her a Squishmallow to hug and hold onto.  We wanted her to have something soft and cuddly.  We are seeing more and more moments of her mind slipping away to somewhere else so we are more and more thankful for the times when she is totally "present" with us.  We are so very blessed to have her in our lives again and we cherish every moment we do have with her.

   Our garden is starting to grace us with cucumbers, squash, the first of the tomatoes and I can see that we have many cantaloupes coming on.   The blackberries are starting to ripen and the apples will need picking in the next few days to make into applesauce.  The raspberries and blueberries are about done, but the strawberries are giving us a second cropping.  I used some of the last of the raspberries to make another batch of raspberry gin since I gave my last bottle that I made to Chris.  I need to pick and dry some of the herbs from the garden and I need to process all the squash.  Some of the squash will be shredded and dehydrated and some with be peeled, chopped up and then frozen to add to stews, soups and other dished throughout the Fall and Winter months.  Of course I am also using some of it now in different dishes and breads.  I'm thinking that this first batch of cucumbers will be eaten in salads and some will be made into quick refrigerator pickles.  I'm needing to prune back the tomatoes to give them more airflow between the plants and I need to tie up some of the branches to get them up off the ground.  The garden and its bounty are keeping me pretty busy these days.

   I went through my clothing for the upcoming colder months and realized that I needed more soft and cuddly things to wear while at home.  I went to my usual sources (thrift stores) and found some nice loungewear type pants and some jersey material sweaters in gray and black.  Gray and black are my go-to colors, especially gray as it looks good on me.  I find that the older I get, the more that I just want soft and comfortable clothing and supportive shoes.  I still want nice purses though and it continues to be a weakness of mine.   Speaking of purses, I hit the motherload at Goodwill the other day.  Someone working in the back and pricing things really had no idea what they had and put out a beautiful blackberry shade small crossbody purse that looks to be brand new for $5.99.  They also put out a Kate Spade green zippered pouch type bag for $3.99 and a B Makowski black purse for $5.99.  I bought all three and will be keeping the first bag and most likely selling the other two.  Some of the other treasures that I found were an old advertising yardstick for a bank in Idaho (I will use this as part of my kitchen decor) and some beautiful decorative plates that I also use for kitchen decor, some small Thomas Kinkade framed prints, and a pretty and much needed picture frame.  Some books also made it into my basket...no surprise there. All of these things make me very happy and do not cost much at all, in fact some will make me more than enough money to pay for all of the other items.

   Heather, Rachel and I had a "girls' day" lunch date last Sunday and the guys all had "male bonding time".  The girls and I went to Applebee's and then did a bit of shopping while the guys had a BBQ and played some outdoor games at Chris and Heather's house.  When the girls and I got back to the house, we all headed out to see their garden and Isaiah, my garden loving grandson, sent me home with some rather large squash for both myself and for Shannon next door.  I almost forgot, I gave the girls some really cute house slippers that I found on sale and they loved them.  It was a "just because" gift.    It has now become a "thing" for the girls and I to go out to lunch together and just have some time without the distractions of the kids and husbands. 😊  It is something that we all look forward to and the guys really enjoy their "male bonding" time too.  I wish that Josh, Lauren and the littles lived here too so they could have joined in the fun.

   I had better get going and get a few things done before the heat of the day sets in.  Be blessed my friends and try to find some "calm and beauty" in the middle of the storms of life.  There really is so much to be thankful for and sometimes it is the simple things like a beautiful flower in the garden, a hug from a loved one, the silly antics of a pet or the hummingbirds flitting around the garden and stopping for a moment right in front of you as to say "thank you" for the food that you provide for them in the hummingbird feeder.  For me this morning it was having hot cup of  coffee while there was a cool breeze on my back porch. I settled in on my recently bought comfy outdoor chairs bought at an estate sale while a cat cuddled up on my lap.  It was a beautiful and peaceful way to start my day.  Yes my sweet friends, you can find pockets of calm and beauty if you just seek them out every single day.

   

   

   

   

   

And Yet Another Long Overdue Post

 

   The picture above is of my paternal grandparents on their wedding day.  I absolutely love my grandmother's wedding dress and veil.  She died when I was very young and only had one time getting to know me when I was about 2 years old.  I have no memory whatsoever of her and that is something that really makes me sad.

   This leads me into some other thoughts.  I cherish my time with my grandchildren and get to spend lots of time with the 3 older boys who live close, Bradley 12, Isaiah 11, and Steven 7.  I so wish we lived closer to our two youngest grandchildren Tate and Peyton.  Jeff and I are trying to figure out when we can go and visit them that works for both us and for them.  Since we had to cancel our trip earlier this Summer, this is something that we really feel we need to do soon.  Praying we can find a way to make it work for all of us.

   Life has been beyond busy here and time seems to just fly by.  We have been determined to keep the gardens alive with this horrible heat.  We had one soaking rain come through is the past 3 months.  The thirsty ground took it all in and I could see that the plants were happier for a day or so before the heat again took its toll on them.  I frequently have to water twice a day.  The heat is also taking a toll on the hummingbirds who are drinking up all the nectar I put out for them.  I have to refill the hummingbird feeder every 3 days now.  It used to be once a week.

   I have been harvesting squash, potatoes, raspberries, strawberries and blueberries from the garden.  Our tomato plants are starting to set fruit, as are the cantaloupe plants.  The cucumber plants are starting to produce tiny little cucumbers.  The pole beans are struggling, and I don't know if we will get anything off them.  Our apple tree and pear tree seem to be struggling and producing little sized fruit.  I believe this is due to the heat and lack of water.  I need to get better at making sure they stay well-watered.

   Jeff and I spent about 2 weeks getting ready for our townwide yard sales.  We did sell a bunch of stuff and made about $100 for us, $38 for Jeff's aunt and Heather also made money selling her delicious homemade huckleberry cinnamon rolls.  We had lots of stuff left over so we took the sheets, blankets and bedspreads to the Red Cross Shelter that had been set up for victims of a big fire burning south of us.  We met a sweet mother and daughter there who had left with only the clothing on their backs and asked if we had any sweaters since it got cold in the shelter at night.  Jeff gave them a big bag full of sweaters from our yard sale and they were so grateful.  I really do pray they have a home to return to.  The rest of the items were donated to one of our local thrift stores that keeps the money in our community to help people get back on their feet again.

   We have made many trips up to see Jeff's aunt and will be going up to see her once again tomorrow.  We will deposit the money from the yard sale from the sale of some of her things into her account at the care center for her to use as she pleases.  I really do enjoy our visits with her and am so glad that we are in each other's lives again.  She is always pleased to hear how her cat Remmie is doing and this time I get to tell her how Remmie now cuddles with me at night and sometimes even during the day.

    While in town tomorrow to visit Jeff's aunt, we will also be going to an appointment with a Medicare broker since Jeff will be 65 next month.  Is it just me or is this whole Medicare thing confusing?  Hopefully I will understand more after tomorrow.  My reward for sitting through all of that is being able to go to a few thrift stores.  The Goodwill up there has been newly redone and the items there are really nice.  I have a few more things that I would like to pick up like some soft cotton lounge pants and I am hoping to find some either there or at another store.  The last time we were there I found some needed things and some nice artwork.

   Speaking of thrift stores, I found a really nice cuddly blanket that is perfect for this Winter and Christmas time.  I also found a knome, a decorative plate, a shirt, and a few other items.  The stores are putting out more Fall decor now and I am here for it!  Today I actually went through the Fall decor I have on hand here at home.  Most of it came from thrift stores.  Very few items were bought new, as I find great stuff at the thrift stores, and I can't stand to pay retail for anything if possible.

   I had better end this post here.  I need to get a few things done before Chris comes to pick me up.  We are having a birthday party for Isaiah at the skating rink (no, I will NOT be skating), followed by dinner at Panda Express.  Jeff is working today so he has my car and he will just meet us at the party.  This way I only have one car in town, and it gives me a chance to have some one on one time with Chris.  We rarely get that chance anymore and both and I enjoy our visits.

    Be blessed my friends and keep praying, staying strong and keeping your eyes and ears open.  So much is going on in this crazy world and we need to be able to separate the truth from the lies.  Make sure to also take time to relax, unplug and enjoy life to the fullest.  We all need that balance to keep us sane.