Around the Neighborhood

As I've mentioned, we have a six month old Papillon puppy and have been working on leash training. To say the least it is a work in progress, with some days being better than others. Recently on her first walk around the neighborhood, I had the opportunity to see things through her eyes. As we walked along she saw a bird on the ground for the first time. That was a hoot. I was so very glad I had a good hold on the leash. She jumped and ran so quickly I was amazed how hard the leash jerked. Without the leash she would have been long gone and I would have been crawling through the woods trying to catch her. She was also very interested in all the different smells we encountered along our walk. Smells of other animals that had walked the same path, a chipmunk, the birds. Not being accustomed to being on a leash, she tugged and pulled, coughed, sneezed, choked and was very tired by the time we reached home again. She had a very exciting first trip around the neighborhood. I on the other hand noticed the plants, the differences in the landscape down the street as she explored them. I discovered we have at least two families of cardinals.

When we came back to the house after a short rest, she was still in the discovery mode so I took her out to the back yard. Everything she found had to be checked out, pine cones, sweet gum balls, bark from the flower beds. It is like watching a baby discover their world. Everything is new and to be examined. I am enjoying watching her as she grows and learns about her world. Although I'm not always as enthusiast about cleaning up the "treasures" she sometimes brings into the house.

Seven Weeks

This afternoon I received a text message from my son. The last time I received a "multimedia" message was when he let us know they were pregnant. So when I saw today's message I knew before I opened the image, what it would be. Our daughter-in-law is seven weeks pregnant and we have a sonogram picture of the baby. A blurry, hard to make out the details, picture of our first grandchild. It was beautiful!

There was one small incident that marred the moment. While we talked tonight my son made a comment that really bothered me. He seems to think his wife is being influenced by the stories other women have told her about their battles with morning sickness during their pregnancy. I love my son and he is very smart, but on this subject he's being a dufus. Being pregnant and all the changes occurring to her body can easily cause her to experience nausea. I did not have morning sickness while pregnant but I did have a bout most evenings around 6 PM. Every woman is different but pregnancy is a huge change to the body and that alone can cause an upset to the system. I do hope he doesn't say as much to his sweet wife. He doesn't need both of us upset with him.... ;-)

The picture says: Pregnant!!!!

Thank You

I went back to work yesterday after a long weekend, making this a short three day work week. Being off for several days, the first day back, seemed long and I didn't accomplish as much as I'd hoped and I was really tired by the end of the day.

The bright spot of the day was an email from a co-worker to say "Thank you" for assistance I had provided to them over the holiday weekend. It made my day. It also made me want to pass the good feeling on to others. I want to make sure I let my co-workers and others know how much I appreciate their assistance. So that is my goal for the rest of the week, to say "Thank you" when ever the opportunity presents itself.

I'm starting right now: Thank you for reading my blog.

Perspective

We went to see the new Indiana Jones movie today. I enjoyed it, but I can't say it is the best movie I've see. Before we had our son we went to the movies frequently. After he was born, we didn't have time nor the extra money to go very often. I think we developed the habit of not going to see the hot new releases. Often we wait to see them after they hit TV.

As we have gotten older the things that are important to me have changed. I used to feel I just had to see the new movies soon after they were released. Now, it's just not as important. We don't go unless we are very interested in the story or really like the actors.

I am looking at life from a different perspective now. I don't care about "going to the movies" as much as I did in my youth. I'd rather spend time with my husband or family and see the movie on TV. I'd rather stay home than go out.

I'm trying to figure out if I have matured or gotten lazy.... I'll let you know what I decide.

Weekend at Armuchee

Wow, the "road trip" was fun. Our pup, Trixie, did very well and was a hit with lots of folks. This was her first over night trip and we were very pleased with how she acted. Not too many problems at all.


The other great thing that happened this weekend was our son and his wife were able to come up for a while on Friday. It was so good to see them and to be able to share their news about being pregnant and the fact that we will have a little grand child in just a few months. It was very nice just to be able to visit and relax together.

(This picture wasn't taken this weekend. I didn't use my digital camera for their pictures and I haven't gotten them developed yet.)

We were also able to spend time with our dear friends Mark and Candy. We live in different towns and aren't able to see each other as much as we'd like,and being with them this weekend was wonderful. Back in the 80s and 90s we played music together. But eventually, you have to make a choice and family and children must come first, so we stopped playing on a regular basis. It makes our visits and the times when we do get together so very special.


We are so close to them that our son called them aunt and uncle. In fact John's niece thought Mark was my brother until a couple of years ago.

Friday night John and I along with Carl and Buzzy were scheduled to play at the Armuchee Bluegrass Festival. We were thrilled when two songs into the set, Mark and Candy walked on stage. I find it amazing that we can still hit the harmonies even without rehearsing.

We did have a scare early Saturday morning. Their 17 year old son was working with a crew to clean up downed trees and limbs from the recent storms. They received a call that he had cut his leg with a chainsaw. Of course Candy was ready to head to the hospital but he promised it was a small cut and may not even need stitches. He was only calling to get insurance information. So she waited about leaving the festival with his promise to call her as soon as he spoke to the doctor. It turns out he needed 21 stitches. Not quite a "scratch" but fortunately he is fine.

This weekend was a much needed time away, and so fulfilling to be able to spend time with family and dear friends. John and I both are exhausted after the trip but we both had wonderful time.

Morning

One of my favorite things to do early in the morning before anyone else gets out of bed, is sit on the deck with a hot cup of coffee and listen to nature. I don't do this nearly often enough, but today is a holiday, so I took advantage of it and spent an hour or so in the cool morning air. The traffic sounds were thankfully muted and I could hear the birds singing and chirping. The chimes from a church in a near by town tolled the hour and beautiful tones filled the air.

I had my quite time while on the deck and decided I must make more opportunities to do this. There is something about being in nature while communing with the Creator.

I continued to sit there and think about life and how mine is changing. Our son and his wife are expecting their first baby. My husband and I have both lost our fathers. My dad died Feb 2006 and father-in-law passed this past January. Both our mothers now live alone. Birth, death, joy, pain, change, it's all part of life. We must cherish the times of joy, lean on God during the times of sorrow and pain and seek Him at all times.

Happy Memorial Day.

Remembrance

This weekend we went to the 26th Memorial Day, Armuchee Bluegrass Festival. Being Memorial Day and a time for remembrance, it brought to mind many friends we have met and the ones we have lost over the years.

But this year we have the pleasure to spend time with some wonderful friends that are like second parents to us. We played music with them for many years but they moved back to Kentucky to be close to their family and grandchildren and we only see them a couple times a year now. They inspire me. He is 85 and she is 81 and drove six hours from Kentucky to Armuchee. They still play music every day and he can still fiddle all those wonderful fiddle tunes I remember so well. They have had health problems, and faced the loss of their beloved daughter much to early. Yet they continue on. They face their pain and acknowledge it but do not let it define them. They have a wonderful family back in Kentucky and revel in their lives and shared the joy they have in the wonderful things happening with grandchildren and great grandchildren. I long to emulate them and live life to the fullest.

They are quick to point out that relying on God to provide their strength and get them through the valleys of life. It was wonderful to see them and to share the weekend with them. They were sad when they left but assured us they would be back in September for the Labor Day festival.

A precious memory I will treasure for a very long time, was when Carl met a man wearing a gold chain with an image of Christ. Carl walked up and said "I see we have a mutual friend." Then he proceeded to explain he loves Christ and depends on Him to make it through each day. At 85 years old he is full of life and wants to make sure others knows the Saviour he loves. What's my
excuse for not doing the same?

Road Trip

We are going out of town for the first time since we brought home Miss Trixie, our Papillon puppy. We took her to a Bluegrass Festival last weekend and she did very well. At the fair grounds where the event took place there was also a dog show. I stopped by to see what it was all about and found it was an agility trial. I made some good contacts for getting her trained and involved with the club. She did very well around the other dogs. I was very glad to see she did not bark at everything in sight.

Today we are taking her with us to a Bluegrass Festival that is out of town. I am reminded of the days when our son was little and we had to pack the house to go anywhere. I'm looking forward to some much needed R&R and hope this will be a fun weekend for all.

Waiting for the other shoe...

When things are going wrong and you expect more bad news, there's a saying about "waiting for the other shoe to fall." When someone takes off their shoes there is the sound of both shoes hitting the floor. Sometimes, it's a soft sound of being placed there but others they are dropped with a decidedly louder sound.

Well that's my day today. This morning started out so very well. I was excited because I'm off for a few days and am looking forward to some much needed R&R. I was able to book a great cabin in the mountains for our vacation in July. Then this afternoon, I received a phone call. nothing major but something was wrong. I made a phone call to try to correct the problem, and it suddenly became worse. I stepped into it not just with one foot but both, and I'm up to my knees and sinking.

So now I'm left with the feeling of "what next?" ...when is that other shoe going to fall to the ground.

In an instant

There were storms in Georgia last night that resulted in damage to homes. The worst of the damage seems to have been in Alpharetta and Cherokee County. We have friends that live in Cherokee County and I've not been able to talk to them today so I am not sure how they faired through the storms. I am sitting here watching the news reports about the damage that occurred.

It strikes me now things can change so quickly and they don't have to be very far away to have a drastically different result. We watched the storm roll by last night and had some thunder and lightening but no damage. We are hoping our friends did not have any damage to their house, but I've not been able to reach them to see how they are doing.

I am thankful that we haven't heard any reports of injuries at least no serious injuries. Instead of sitting here being concerned we could be planing to attend a funeral. I thank God there wasn't any loss of life. Things and stuff can be repaired or replaced. A life is much more valuable.

Pregnant

We have only one child. I miscarried twice before I became pregnant and carried almost to term. He was a month early yet weighed over 7 lbs. Amazingly he was only in NICU for 1 day. That was 23 years ago. Today I found out he and his beautiful wife are expecting their first child. My heart is overflowing. We are going to be grandparents and are thrilled.



....to be continued.

Mother-in-Law

Often we hear jokes about horrible mother-in-laws. Well, my mother-in-law breaks the rule of that old joke. She has always treated me with love and respect. She has been kind, truthful and even tough when she needed to be. She has been a wonderful role model for me now that I am a mother-in-law.

We lost my father-in-law in January of this year. He had been sick for a long time, and finally had to be moved to a nursing home when she could no longer take care of him at home. She spent her days sitting with him and making sure he was treated well and had everything he needed. Her days were long and we worried about her health too.

Spending such long hours at the nursing home was taking a toll on her. She looked tired and drawn. We worried how she would handle loosing him, but she is some lady. Of course she grieved, but she has picked up her life and is doing things she hasn't had a chance to do for a long time. Recently she spent two weeks in the mountains with her daughter. Just last week, she went to the circus her other daughter. Tonight we had a wonderful dinner to celebrate Mother's Day with her.

I think a big part of her secret is she doesn't focus on herself. She calls to check on us, to see how we are doing. She doesn't sit at home waiting on something to happen in her life. She faces life as an adventure and looks forward to the ride.

I hope the same can be said about me.

Happy Mother's Day to all the mothers out there, and to my mother-in-law and mom, "I love you."