Things have been rough and a roller coaster ride of emotions over the last several weeks. My father in law had to have surgery which removed his left foot at mid calf level. My husband left to go up to help take care of everyone up there in whatever way he could be supportive. I am happy that he was able to leave and go up there. I was sad to have this going on with my father in law but knew that my husband would be a good tonic for his spirits. Little did I expect that my father in law would be the one cheering everyone else. Apparently when he decided that the doctor was right and the foot had to go, he was at peace about it. He is working hard towards healing and getting mobility back. I got a call from my husband this morning and found out it will probably be another week before he comes back to me and the kids but I fully understand and support that decision.
Today my hubby is watching his sister's babies. H is 2 and is potty training. J is 6 months old and scooting around. He is watching them so his sister can visit with his father and then when she returns he will go up and spend time with his dad. I am glad that not only is he able to be there for his father but also for the rest of the family.
Friday, March 18, 2011
Saturday, March 12, 2011
I can do all things.......
I can do all things through Christ who stregnthens me. ( Phillipeans 4:13)
Sometimes it is hard to remember that as a human I am not able to do it all. I can't fix everything the way I want. I am not able to make someone happy or to make the world do what it ought to. Sometimes it is about just giving it all up and giving it all to God. He is almighty and all powerful. He knows what is needed and what is just a want. He has a greater design in mind than what I can see with my failing eyes.
It isn't easy to admit that I am not able to do it all. It feels like a failure to me to not be able to reach in my pocket and just provide what I want to for my children. I hate going out and seeking help when it is needed. But I do what I must and that is where the verse above comes into play. I can do what I needs to be done because God gives me the ability to see past my wants and desires and shyness and lets me do what what I need to. He helps me to give the push that is needed as well as the words to say.
Sometimes it is hard to remember that as a human I am not able to do it all. I can't fix everything the way I want. I am not able to make someone happy or to make the world do what it ought to. Sometimes it is about just giving it all up and giving it all to God. He is almighty and all powerful. He knows what is needed and what is just a want. He has a greater design in mind than what I can see with my failing eyes.
It isn't easy to admit that I am not able to do it all. It feels like a failure to me to not be able to reach in my pocket and just provide what I want to for my children. I hate going out and seeking help when it is needed. But I do what I must and that is where the verse above comes into play. I can do what I needs to be done because God gives me the ability to see past my wants and desires and shyness and lets me do what what I need to. He helps me to give the push that is needed as well as the words to say.
Friday, March 11, 2011
The Eyes Have it
I have been blessed with three sisters by birth. Each of them is unique and special to me. However there is one thing they all share. They each have beautiful eyes. Each of my sisters has blue or hazel eyes. One sister has bright blue eyes that have such life and vitality in them. Another has hazel eyes that sparkle when she smiles. The third sister has grey blue eyes that hold mischief and mystery and change with her moods. There is a saying that the eyes are the window to the soul. I know the eyes reflect the soul and personality of each of my blessed sisters. I love them all.
So Proud
Last week my daughter went to the GA State Hosa Conference. The conference was from Thursday through Saturday and was a series of classes and competitions for students planning to enter the health care feild. My daughter and her partner were competing the the first aid/cpr competition.
Prior to dropping her off at school on Thursday her father and I both told her to go and have fun and not worry about the competition portion, we would be proud of her if she placed or if she didn't. We wanted her to enjoy herself and the opportunity of being around other like minded students with similar goals as she had. The conference would allow her to meet other students in the state that were pushing forward with those goals.
The two students had to take a written test on Thursday to find out if they would qualify to do practical competition on Friday. My daughter called me on Thursday night and told me that the written test grade was high enough to allow them to do practicals. Again, I reminded her to have fun and relax. I knew she would do well. I passed on the best wishes from the rest of the family and friends who had asked me to do so.
Friday evening she called and told me that she was done with practicals and didn't think they had done really well as their scenario was different than what they had been practicing but that their coach was proud of them anyway. I told her that her father and I were proud as well and that she should enjoy the rest of the conference and I would speak to her the next day.
Saturday morning I was on pins and needles through the morning as I waited for her phone call telling me how they had done on the practicals. She called to tell me that they were on their way home and that she and her partner had placed 3rd in the state for their competition. Their placement meant they were eligible to go to national level competition in California in June. I was over the moon with excitement for her. Not only had she done better than she thought they had done but they had placed high enough over other students in the state to be able to go forward.
She kept telling me that she didn't see how they could actually go to practicals though because it was so much money to send them and there is less than 3 months to come up with the money. I keep telling her to not worry about it. That if God wants her there the money will be there. We will find a way for her to go.
Tomorrow we will go out and try to gain sponsers for her and her partner to be able to go to California in June. It is not that far away and it will be a good opportunity for her to compete on a national level even if she doesn't place there. I am proud of my baby who is growing into the wonderful giving and caring and smart woman God would have her be. I know it is going to be a challenge to her to overcome some of the shyness she has and go compete. I know it will be a challenge for me to let her go and trust that she will be safe but this is part of letting my baby fly into adulthood.
My heart is still swelling with pride and I am going to do everything I can to help her go and to achieve her dreams.
Prior to dropping her off at school on Thursday her father and I both told her to go and have fun and not worry about the competition portion, we would be proud of her if she placed or if she didn't. We wanted her to enjoy herself and the opportunity of being around other like minded students with similar goals as she had. The conference would allow her to meet other students in the state that were pushing forward with those goals.
The two students had to take a written test on Thursday to find out if they would qualify to do practical competition on Friday. My daughter called me on Thursday night and told me that the written test grade was high enough to allow them to do practicals. Again, I reminded her to have fun and relax. I knew she would do well. I passed on the best wishes from the rest of the family and friends who had asked me to do so.
Friday evening she called and told me that she was done with practicals and didn't think they had done really well as their scenario was different than what they had been practicing but that their coach was proud of them anyway. I told her that her father and I were proud as well and that she should enjoy the rest of the conference and I would speak to her the next day.
Saturday morning I was on pins and needles through the morning as I waited for her phone call telling me how they had done on the practicals. She called to tell me that they were on their way home and that she and her partner had placed 3rd in the state for their competition. Their placement meant they were eligible to go to national level competition in California in June. I was over the moon with excitement for her. Not only had she done better than she thought they had done but they had placed high enough over other students in the state to be able to go forward.
She kept telling me that she didn't see how they could actually go to practicals though because it was so much money to send them and there is less than 3 months to come up with the money. I keep telling her to not worry about it. That if God wants her there the money will be there. We will find a way for her to go.
Tomorrow we will go out and try to gain sponsers for her and her partner to be able to go to California in June. It is not that far away and it will be a good opportunity for her to compete on a national level even if she doesn't place there. I am proud of my baby who is growing into the wonderful giving and caring and smart woman God would have her be. I know it is going to be a challenge to her to overcome some of the shyness she has and go compete. I know it will be a challenge for me to let her go and trust that she will be safe but this is part of letting my baby fly into adulthood.
My heart is still swelling with pride and I am going to do everything I can to help her go and to achieve her dreams.
Thursday, March 10, 2011
Gardens
When I was a girl we lived on the eastern tip of Long Island in New York State. The yard around the house I grew up in was mostly moss and sand with a little bit of grass trying to grow. It wasnt anything that wouldn't be like most houses out there where there were 5 children in the household along with an assortment of neighborhood children that would play at each others homes. We had oak trees for shade and they did shade the yard well. I never really thought about it, it was just our yard.
When I was married and moved out on my own, most of my siblings were no longer in the house full time either. I guess Mama decided it was time to do something with the yard. She began to plant. There were gardens all over the yard then. I don't know for sure what she planted and where other than knowing that she had a few azaleas that were from my wedding and some hostas that I gave her from the front of my first home that my husband and I had purchased. I didn't take much interest in it truthfully other than to be glad that Mama enjoyed what she was doing. The front lawn didn't have much moss anymore as she had grass and assorted plants. She put in a walkway down to the transplanted mailbox in front of the house. The oak trees were still in the front yard though and provided shade still.
The backyard had an assortment of plants waiting for their beds or already in their areas. Papa, my stepfather, was a tree surgeon who also couldn't resist a plant that needed care. He brought home many a free plant that others felt were past their prime. Somehow in that sandy soil, Papa and Mama made them grow.
As an adult with land of my own again, I find I have married a man who enjoys finding bargain plants, many of which others would think well past their prime. They maybe are past their prime for this season or the times when he purchases them, but I take them and put them in the ground and see what will happen. Sometimes they grow and give me blooms and joy the following spring. Sometimes they die.... but that is the nature of plants. I never thought I would be one to enjoy digging in the dirt and trying to figure out flower beds and where things will do best.
Honestly I don't plan much. I sort of look and see where I think I would like to see flowers the next spring or where something looks a little too bare for my taste. Then I put a plant in the area. I have a lot of bulb plants. I like them because they don't take a lot of care. You plant them in the ground and they grow. Sometimes you have to split them off after a while, but I love the look of a very full bulb bed as I call them. Mixtures of crocus and daffydils and tulips and iris and hyacinth bless me every spring when they come up. The little shoots of green leaves coming up through the frosted earth and then the buds bursting forth into a riot of color give me such joy.
The summer months bring my roses to bloom. They grow and send forth buds and flowers in an assortment of colors and varieties. The fall brings me mums and pruning of my other flowers to get them ready for winter.
Oddly, I am turning into a gardener of sorts.... or maybe I just like the sight and scents of the flowers.
When I was married and moved out on my own, most of my siblings were no longer in the house full time either. I guess Mama decided it was time to do something with the yard. She began to plant. There were gardens all over the yard then. I don't know for sure what she planted and where other than knowing that she had a few azaleas that were from my wedding and some hostas that I gave her from the front of my first home that my husband and I had purchased. I didn't take much interest in it truthfully other than to be glad that Mama enjoyed what she was doing. The front lawn didn't have much moss anymore as she had grass and assorted plants. She put in a walkway down to the transplanted mailbox in front of the house. The oak trees were still in the front yard though and provided shade still.
The backyard had an assortment of plants waiting for their beds or already in their areas. Papa, my stepfather, was a tree surgeon who also couldn't resist a plant that needed care. He brought home many a free plant that others felt were past their prime. Somehow in that sandy soil, Papa and Mama made them grow.
As an adult with land of my own again, I find I have married a man who enjoys finding bargain plants, many of which others would think well past their prime. They maybe are past their prime for this season or the times when he purchases them, but I take them and put them in the ground and see what will happen. Sometimes they grow and give me blooms and joy the following spring. Sometimes they die.... but that is the nature of plants. I never thought I would be one to enjoy digging in the dirt and trying to figure out flower beds and where things will do best.
Honestly I don't plan much. I sort of look and see where I think I would like to see flowers the next spring or where something looks a little too bare for my taste. Then I put a plant in the area. I have a lot of bulb plants. I like them because they don't take a lot of care. You plant them in the ground and they grow. Sometimes you have to split them off after a while, but I love the look of a very full bulb bed as I call them. Mixtures of crocus and daffydils and tulips and iris and hyacinth bless me every spring when they come up. The little shoots of green leaves coming up through the frosted earth and then the buds bursting forth into a riot of color give me such joy.
The summer months bring my roses to bloom. They grow and send forth buds and flowers in an assortment of colors and varieties. The fall brings me mums and pruning of my other flowers to get them ready for winter.
Oddly, I am turning into a gardener of sorts.... or maybe I just like the sight and scents of the flowers.
Saturday, January 22, 2011
Dog for sale
Does anyone out there want a beautiful black and caramel mutt that looks a little like a greyhound and likes to eat furniture? She is mostly sweet tempered but for some reason can not keep from eating my couches. She also seems to like to eat stuffed animals. Maybe she has a stuffing deficiency or something. I don't know. My daughter has named her the Goat.
When my husband found out that I thought I was ready for another dog after losing 4 in about two years (two of them to parvo in the same week), he came home with Candy. She was a tiny little thing that someone had abandoned on the side of the road. She didn't even look to be old enough to be away from her mother. Our lab-pekinese mix took to her quickly and was playful and protective with her. It seemed like the perfect thing.
Candy liked to play tug and to be with us. She reacted well with other dogs and was a cute little thing. She ate all the time and while she grew she never seemed to be the right weight for her skeleton. I always worried she wasn't getting enough food.
Eventually we found that she was chewing everything up. At first it seemed like typical puppy behavior and we would correct her whenever we would find that she had done it.... shaking the item she had chewed and swatting her bottom or her nose. It didn't stop it. Over the past year and a half that we have had her she has now destroyed three couches and two twin mattresses not to mention the formal dress for a party my daughter was to attend and countless stuffed bears.
I asked the vet why she feels the need to do this. The vet couldn't give me an answer. Keeping her outside and away from furniture and other items she likes to chew is not an option for me at this point but I am seriously starting to think that it would be cheaper to put up a seven foot tall fence that had an additional three feet sunk into the ground to keep her from tunneling under, than it will be to keep replacing the daggone furniture she wants to ruin.
Thursday, November 4, 2010
bigotry and bullying
I read another blog today that had to do with a woman who allowed her 5 year old son dress as Daphne from Scoobydoo. Apparently the child loves the show and for some reason had chosen this costume to be what he wanted to dress up as. The closer it came to Halloween and taking him to preschool in his costume the more he became concerned that people would laugh at him in a bad way. Several of his friends moms knew what his costume was to be and told him it was great as they walked into the school. However when the child and his mother reached his classroom several other mothers made a point to question this woman as to why she would allow such a costume and was it one that he had picked out and if he was in Kindergarten she would have had to put her foot down and not allow it at all.
This blog got my blood boiling! How DARE anyone question a costume for Halloween unless it is totally not age appropriate. This mother posted a picture of her son in costume and it made me smile. He was very cute. Now granted I wouldn't want my son to dress in drag on a regular basis but for a Halloween costume there isn't anything really the matter with it.
As I read this blog I thought about how hatred and bigotry and bullying tend to start at home and get brought out into the public areas. If parents can't find a way to understand that there are all types in this world of ours then how are children to learn that it is ok to be different? How are they to know that it isn't ok to call other people hurtful things or behave in a hurtful manner if their parents are spouting garbage in their homes and calling people that are different ugly names and terms? Children learn by example and while some things may not be the norm or really acceptable in todays society there are ways to let your child know without being rude, crude, and nasty about it.
Ok... I step down from my soap box and try to accept that life is as it is and I have raised understanding and non bigotted children. Thank you.
This blog got my blood boiling! How DARE anyone question a costume for Halloween unless it is totally not age appropriate. This mother posted a picture of her son in costume and it made me smile. He was very cute. Now granted I wouldn't want my son to dress in drag on a regular basis but for a Halloween costume there isn't anything really the matter with it.
As I read this blog I thought about how hatred and bigotry and bullying tend to start at home and get brought out into the public areas. If parents can't find a way to understand that there are all types in this world of ours then how are children to learn that it is ok to be different? How are they to know that it isn't ok to call other people hurtful things or behave in a hurtful manner if their parents are spouting garbage in their homes and calling people that are different ugly names and terms? Children learn by example and while some things may not be the norm or really acceptable in todays society there are ways to let your child know without being rude, crude, and nasty about it.
Ok... I step down from my soap box and try to accept that life is as it is and I have raised understanding and non bigotted children. Thank you.
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