Threshold Disease and Other Things......

I heard something interesting today and it made my life make total sense.  I am aging.  It is not something that really worries me.  I have full intentions of enjoying everyday and when my time runs out then so be it....no death wish, just no fear.  What I do fear, however, are those awful "senior moments" or "brain toots" when all that is in my head suddenly leaves.  I am loosing my train of thought.  I cannot remember what I was doing five minutes ago, and if I do not keep a very detailed calendar I sure don't know what I am supposed to do tomorrow.  So it seems as though there really is a name for this.  It is referred to as THRESHOLD DISEASE.  It is a real condition in the elderly.  It's symptoms are loss of memory when you cross the threshold from one room into another.  It is that awful feeling that you moved from the bedroom to the living room but you surely cannot remember why.  The only cure is to return to that spot you were standing in the bedroom and try total recall in hopes that it will work.  Been there done that more times than I care to remember....truth is I can't remember how many times because I have the disease.  It is a relief to know it is a real malady...a diagnosed problem.  I will not longer cringe when my kids make fun of me...for I know I am old and one of the surest symptoms is the onset of THRESHOLD DISEASE.

The following pictures are posted so that somewhere down the line I can remember why I smile all the time when my grandbabies walk through the door....

 Because craft time is always time for silliness and messes! 

 Because when you put your goggles on upside down it makes everyone laugh!

 Because cousins are cool!

Because there is nothing more fun that a swimming on a hot day

and we sure have had plenty of those!

And because blogs are a great way to overcome the fear of forgetting!

Just Another Day In Paradise!!!.....

I woke up this morning and looked out the window at my backyard and smiled.  My plants look great. I love my yard and the rain has kept everything from drying out and dying.  That means a little more life in the flowers I LOVE so much!

Then I saw this picture...PARADISE!!

Not my backyard and nowhere I have ever been.

Might be a nice place to visit though!

I have not been here either but a week in this hut might be like the best PROZAC ever!

Africa is another place I have never been, though Tim is in the middle of this now, and knows this way of life is real.  What I am betting is that these people may wish for better, but they know this is what they have and they are happy with it.  Maybe they are happier than those of us that have it all.

 I know that a few days with these precious girls and the flowers growing in my backyard is "my paradise" and I am very, very lucky.

Lucky enough to wake up and think....

Just another day in Paradise...my way!

"Blessed are the people who who know the joyful sound!  They walk, Oh Lord, in the light of your countenance.  In your name they rejoice all day long, and in your righteousness they are exalted."         Psalm 89:15-16

Goodbye Sweet Max.......

It was a sad day.  

Max, our precious Boston Terrier went to the lake for the last time last weekend.

We knew he was sick.  We just did not realize how sick.

During the night he simply went out his dog door and laid down under the pecan tree and died.

That made it simple for us and he probably knew that.

No decisions had to be made and he was in his favorite place.  

For Jimmy, finding him there was not so simple.  That was his lake buddy.

Max was Sara's dog, but he was Jimmy's best friend.  

There was not a weekend in 13 years that Max did not hop in the truck at the mere mention of the word "lake".  He sat on the dock and watched us fish, he ran the perimeter of the yard over and over, and then he sat on the couch at night to recoup for another day.

It is hard.  This is the first time in about 28 years there has not been a dog in our house, at times multiple dogs.  We are animal free.  We are sad.
A pet does become a part of your family...man's best friend.  All of the platitudes about them not judging,  loving you no matter what your mood, and being totally forgiving is true. Max was loyal, loving, and frisky until he began to age.  Then he simply laid down by you and was your companion.
It is not as easy to replace a pet as it was when you were 30 or 40...truthfully Max simply cannot be replaced. anyway.  He was one of a kind.
 So, I guess for now and maybe forever we are a family minus a pet...and that is kind of hard for all of us.....
Goodbye Sweet Max

Guilty....

Yes, it was me that complained to the manager of Hobby Lobby a month ago that Christmas items in June was really almost sacrilegious.  When we were buying sunscreen, they were unpacking Christmas ornaments, and I was not pleased.  

Well, shame on me!

I am the person that rejoiced when I heard Silent Night on the radio two days ago.  

Yes, it is true.  My favorite radio station was celebrating Christmas in July and I just sang along.  

Christmas is indeed the happiest time of the year.  Last years holiday was a bit of a downer with Tim celebrating alone in Africa...but this year will be different and I am going to be ready!!!

 I was not only singing along to holiday favorites, I was buying out Hobby Lobby for a planned craft day with an old friend.  What was on the agenda....Christmas crafts!!!!

She is a lover of the month of December just like me!!!

Her home is my inspiration for all things red and green.  

 While many friends were taking the before school starts trip to the beach...we were covering snowmen with glitter.  The only thing missing...Perry Como and Bing Crosby....ahhhh, next time!!!

I am happy!!!

In doing some research I found out that in Europe Christmas in July is pretty much a custom. 

It is a chance to call the family, drag out the cookbooks, and make some holiday favorites.

Who says you can not make turkey in the summer?

Hobby Lobby, I am truly sorry!  I am grateful that today I could buy some ornaments for the top of my paper Christmas tree.  After all it does not matter if the temperature is 102 degrees outside....

Christmas is a feeling in your heart!!!!

Pirated Again!........

Happy late 4th of July.....

pirated out of Mandy's Snapfish account!

It seems I have been making a habit of this type of behavior!

Don't want to miss remembering these happy faces on July 4, 2014!

A Story Of Faith......

I have without permission pirated these pictures from the post written by a dear friend of 36 years.  It is about a dad, father, and grandfather and a family of great faith. The Crouchs' were our neighbors and in the short two years we lived across the street from each other we became good friends.  We moved but we stayed in touch because we shared much.  One of the things we shared was a Catholic church...St. Josephs.  We saw each other at mass frequently.  We never missed and opportunity to visit after church.

Last week I was at a weekday mass where I saw the whole family in attendance.  To make this story that has so touched me brief I will just say that they had just gotten news that Bob was diagnosed with a large and almost always fatal brain tumor....a glioblastoma.  They were in church on a Tuesday morning to pray together and to receive the anointing of the sick as Bob faced a very difficult surgery.

I spoke with them after mass.  Bob was strong and steadfast in his belief that his life was in God's hands.  While the rest of the family and myself fought back tears, Bob smiled.  As he stated..."if I do not make it through surgery I will wake up with God.  How can that be bad?"

Oh to have such faith.

 When I got home from church that morning I sat down to send my friend a personal message being unable to express to her my thoughts as we stood there with Bob in church.  My calendar that day read:

"Mary and Martha were sitting at Lazarus's death bed waiting for Jesus to arrive.  They knew Jesus loved their brother.  They knew Jesus had the power to heal.  They knew Jesus would know what to do.  Though they struggled with fear and doubt, they had the underlying assurance that Jesus would eventually make everything all right."

You can read the words but do you dare to believe there could be hope?  If you have faith you do.

 Given six days to prepare for this, the family spent every possible moment together.  Amy did an amazing job of journaling and sharing pictures throughout the week.  They are part of a very strong faith community and prayers went up from everywhere for healing and strength.  

 This morning Bob held tight to his belief in God and the plans he had for him as he went into a five hour surgery.

 At 12:30 this afternoon the surgeon came in with the news....there is no tumor.  The tumor that was
measurable on an MRI a week ago was not there.  There was pus on the brain from a fungal infection and labs were sent out but there is no tumor.  How do you explain that?  If you have faith you know it was a miracle.  You know that there is more power in prayer than there is in the hands of a skilled surgeon.  We all know that sometimes Gods answer is not what we pray for and we don't always understand why..... but today this family can celebrate the healing power of prayer.

As for Bob....I think he believed all along.

All Synthetic......

 I am absolutely not a selfie fan!

 I laugh at people that constantly post selfies on their Facebook page....thinking if they need to take a picture find a friend with a camera....but that is just me. 

So here I am with my own selfie and it really took me a minute to figure out how taking a picture of yourself even worked!

The reason...to send my friend a picture of my new synthetic hair.  

We are going on a trip, to France, in three months.  While some people stress about finding the right wardrobe for the 10 day tour, my biggest worry is my hair.  I know...really???

My hair has always been an issue.  It is awful.  It is genetically awful.  My mom must have had bad hair because I really never remember her without her wig on.  So as I pondered a 9 hour flight, sleeping on the plane, arriving, deboarding, and immediately beginning to tour all I could think about is "what do I do with my ridiculously unmanageable hair???"

Yes, there are hats.  I am onboard with that but then at the end of the day you end up in a nice restaurant with unruly hat hair.

When I seriously say this has been keeping me up at night I mean it.  I want to enjoy my trip and not look like a wet rat in the rain.  So impulsively (as is the case with most things I do in my life) I got up one morning and googled wig shops.  If I can afford a trip to France then I can find some fake hair to make my stay stress free...and I did.  Within 5 minutes of arrival I had the hair of my dreams at about one tenth of what I thought it would cost and all of the instructions on how to keep it clean.  Dawn dishwashing liquid of course.  Surely that is what I would have gone with had she not told me!

I am like a person who has discovered freedom after years locked in a cell.  I can be up and out the door in the morning in about 20 minutes now!  I do not have to get up an hour and a half ahead of schedule to work with hair that will immediately deflate when I walk out the door.  That is priceless!

I gave the new hair a test run the other night.  You see, I am not going the way of using this as my permanent "do".  It is strictly my vacation security blanket.  But to be sure I was not going to totally scare anyone with the synthetic, I put it on and headed to church to see if my friends would stand in horror when I arrived.  It worked....no awkward "what the heck is on your head" stares.  No one even looked at me like they were at a loss for words.  Such relief!  

My new friend is now hanging on the vacuum handle in the closet.  I smile when I walk by because now all I have to remember is not to stand too close to any pizza ovens because if they open the door the synthetic will melt in an instant.  Heat is not the friend of plastic hair.  Guess I could get a spare to keep in my purse just in case.

The Bride.....

These are my friends Barbara and Kit.  Barbara is the one in the middle.  Yes, the picture is awful but that is what happens when you pluck a random person off of the sidewalk and ask them to take a picture with your phone.  

I met Barbara about a year ago at church and we became instant friends.  She could be instant friends with anyone. That is just the kind of person she is.  Barbara is twelve years my senior but she has more energy than someone twelve years my junior.  We work together in the kitchen at church and she always makes every endeavor fun....she is just merry!

And speaking of merry...that is why we are out together.  She is going to MARRY again.  She lost her husband six years ago.  Her fiance lost his wife five years ago.  She told us that fiance sounds a little ominous when you are 78!  Barbara and Doug have gone to church together for about 15 years, they even went to the same mass but never knew each other until about three years ago.  They met and became instant companions.  Let's face it being alone when you are old is not fun.  Their companionship grew stronger and in two weeks they will wed with the complete approval of both of their families.  

Doug just sold his house and has moved in with Barbara...but make no mistake they are not living in sin as she says.  That comes after the wedding!  As she tells it, she almost fell out of bed the first night he was there because she slept so close to the edge!  That is why you have to love Barbara!  

She is the epitome of the old school Catholic!  

When they wed, they will walk to the church columbarium together and place flowers in front of the niche of each of their spouses.....as fate would have it their spouses are interred only five spaces apart.  I am quite certain they will have their complete blessings.  

I love this story, just like I love Barbara.  It is a gift that you love someone and miss them so much you do not want to be alone.  I think it is a tribute to the spouse that passed.  

I again think these ladies came into my life for a reason.  They both are at such peace with everything in their lives.  I have seen in both of them God's plan at work and his plan is not always what our plan may be...that is the beauty of faith.

Just Another Day in Paradise......

We call it "Buddies Weekend"....it is our yearly get together at Richland Chambers Lake and it always reminds me how awesome good friends are.

It truly is another day in paradise!

I do not know how many years we have gathered to visit, eat, boat when there is water, and just laugh but it never disappoints.  What I have come to realize is when you are with friends with a history as long as ours is no matter what is on the agenda just simply being together is all that matters.

 It is not often that you find a group of friends where the guys get along as well as the women.  These men could talk about anything for just about as many hours as we women can.....and oh goodness, that is a long time.  And what is even better is that if you don't feel like talking that is fine too.  I even managed to sneak off and take an hour long nap one afternoon and no one even cared.  That is true friendship.  It is when you do not have to be anyone but who you truly are and everybody is okay with that.  

 (These friends got the wear green memo...did not bother to let the rest of us in on it)

These are a bunch a happy faces....getting old happy faces.  

It is 35 years of memories we have made together...and hopefully another 15 or more years of memories ahead.  

Cannot wait until Buddy Weekend 2015!  Paradise revisited!

It's A Wrap!......

It's over. 

 I never thought that would make me sad but it does.

When on a whim I grabbed a VBS volunteer form at church I had no idea what I had committed to...I do now and I would do it again in a heartbeat.  

In fact, I think I will!

I think back on the years I signed my kids up for VBS because it was a form of free child care in the summer.  I did not appreciate what went into a week of sharing God with children.  I wish I could back up and thank the people who tended my children for five days.  It is work, more than I ever imagined, but oh so worth it!!!

These were my children and the amazing co-workers that I was blessed to have on my team.  We came in strangers but left as friends forever.  We will be back next year...as a team.  I cannot imagine working with anyone else.  

An added bonus of spending the week at church with the kids...bringing Brooklynn along with me.  We were a team.  She helped me plan crafts, helped me make mats for the kids, and told me very politely when my verbiage became a bit "nerdy"!  Only a four year old would know that I should say "good job" instead of "pat yourself on the back"!

Our youth music crew??? 

 There are not superlatives that adequately describe the job they did with the kids!  

They were on their feet singing and dancing for five hours everyday with enthusiasm that could only come from kids that truly love what they are doing.  

I have a whole new appreciation for the youth at our church.

The drama crew...ditto the above remarks! 

My cute door decoration...second place prize!!!

Thank you Pinterest for another great idea.  Thank you, too, to my team who took the plan and put it up.  

It was eight days of constant planning and working but what a great time we had.  

Again, I find blessings where I least expect them.  

New friends, precious children, and the opportunity to share God and the bible in such a positive environment. 

What an awesome week!

The Men In My Life.......

It's Father's Day!

 The day always brings back a flood of memories...all good ones.

I grew up with an amazing dad.  He was a good Christian, a great provider, and a man with no enemies.  He loved people and people loved him back.  I very rarely saw my dad angry.  He lived life with such enthusiasm.  He worked well and he rested well.  It was a gift.  I watched my dad suffer through so much but he never complained.  He died 21 days after his third bypass surgery.  He never came off the ventilator.  His eyes were never sad.  He knew if he lived it was good...but if he didn't it was okay too.  I know my dad realized how blessed he was and at the end of his life I am certain he earned the right to be with Jesus.  He was a gift to me and to his grandkids.  I am sad they did not have more time with him.  He had so much wisdom to share.

There are two other special dads in my life.  My husband and my son.

They, too, are gifts.  Tim inherited his dads sense of loyalty, commitment, and hard work.  They are both amazing providers.  Their support is not all monitory though.  They give of themselves and ask nothing in return.  

Today also makes me miss my other son, who I know would have been one of the worlds greatest dads.  Matt was much like his grandfather.  He had his artistic ability and the gift of being friends with all.  He was joyful.  Like my dad, he worked well and rested well.  It is a great combination of traits.

I am blessed.  I look back over the years and know how many gifts have been given to me.  When there have been troubles the men in my life have given me strength.  Not everyone is so lucky. I would not trade the men in my life for any other.

When a man walks in integrity and justice, happy are the children who come after him.
Proverbs 20:7

Too Many Ends......

It is the end of tee-ball season.  That is probably a really good thing since the heat even at 6:30 at night is crazy.  But, it is an end and I simply do not like endings.

The little ball players actually "got it" this year.
 They fielded the ball and with a little coaxing knew where to throw it when they got it.  That is growth....and growth makes me sad.
I seem to want to put everything on hold right now.
Life seems good so why don't we just "PAUSE".

This is the time of year when there are way too many "ENDS".

I am the one that takes everything in on a very emotional level.  

I over process everything.  

I came by it honestly from my dad.  He was the one who could watch "Here Comes Peter Cottontail" with me and cry.

So on that note let me add...

It has been one year this weekend since we celebrated the wedding of Drew and Heather.

It was perfect.  All the planning and crafting and working and the result was total perfection.

A year has passed, which makes me one year older.  

In that short year since the ceremony so many things have happened.  

This time last year I was stressing over Medicare.  Now I am using it.  

This time last year Tim had no idea he would be camped out in Africa spending a year back in the Navy.

Hello Djibouti!

It was twenty years ago that we celebrated Matt's high school graduation.  

Twenty years????

These kids are nearing 40 and all have families and jobs they have been at quite awhile.

I watched two high school graduations streamed via the internet this weekend and realized how quickly 20 years passes.

When the kids I watched graduate today are celebrating their 20 year reunion I will be 86.  

Is it any wonder I am awash in sentiment right now?

I could be using that spot in the columbarium at church we recently purchased.  :(

I truly don't know whether to relax and enjoy the evening or whether to hurry up and finish the four quilts piled in my sewing room.  

As previously stated I am awash in sentiment right now, which is the perfect time for a glass of wine.

Say It Isn't So......

Yes, it is HOT...but not nearly where we will be in another month.  It is June 4th and the high was 88 degrees.  The heat is coming and we will be moaning about the fried grass, dying plants, and testing the old frying an egg on the concrete trick much too soon.  

I made a trip today to HOBBY LOBBY....where I can manage to spend a months salary in moments.  I have bags of stuff I may need someday...the same bags of stuff that my children will pitch when I die (another post altogether)  I was hunting stuff to make a new door wreath for the Fourth of July.  

 Well....seems that I may have to rethink my choices.  The pickins' are slim for anything patriotic but I sure can find shelves of supplies if I am in the market to decorate for Christmas.  Right next to the "HOT, HOT, HOT" yard flags were......

Wreaths and ribbon.
I have no words.
 I had to circle the store twice to make sure it was for real.  It just cannot be so.

Christmas is 6 1/2 months away.....

There is no reason for this.
Even Santa and his elves are probably relaxing in the Caribbean right now.  One has to detach....think seasonally.

It is wrong in the worst kind of way.  

They just boxed up the left overs from last years holiday.

So..I boldly asked the manager just exactly why the rush.

I know he only follows the directive from the corporate office, but surely he finds this as offensive as I do.  His answer..."Well there are so many people that like to craft".

Craft a beach towel, craft a birdhouse, craft a flower pot...craft something that fits summer.

I would love to be able to boycott....refuse to shop at a store that makes us rush through life...

BUT

I can't.  It's HOBBY LOBBY and I love to craft.