Oh, Bother...

Just when I have loads to say, I can't get Blogger to work. Hmph!  I have lots of journaling to do and pictures to post and I WILL!  It just may not be posted here.  We will see...  So today I desperately type out this little hello from the iPad, as I crave my picture laden journaling time. And hopefully soon I will be back in posting action. Xoxo!

Taking a look around

 

 

 

 

Spending time looking at things that have been part of the landscape for a very long time. 

These pictures seem so out of place now in the middle of winter, but it was part of my fall.  It was an important part of the day for me to get outside and reconnect with a bit of nature.  I was out walking with the kids (while they ran and raced the golf cart).  I was deep in thought and just felt so settled to wander around this home that we've been coming to for so long.  Taking in many of the little details that I know so well, but no longer saw.  Every little thing has a story or evokes a memory and it was just good to see them all. 

Fairies and Dollies

 

 

 

There was a time in the summer ( I think) that I signed up for a couple of crafty swaps because I missed my crafty FRIENDS so much!  I haven't done any stamping or paper crafting, (I mean for-real-paper-crafting), in a LONG time.  I like it, I'm not the greatest at it, and I can get totally overwhelmed at the amount of STUFF you can buy to make a card or scrapbook page out of.  It's crazy the things you can do to decorate a piece of paper!  There is absolutely no end to amount of things you can do. 

 

Regardless, I do love all things creative and enjoy trying to make something out of nothing.  So when this idea of paper dolls and fairies came up I was pretty hooked, (Thank you, Susan)!  Sweet P. and I had a lovely time stamping out dollies and figuring out how to color them and make their clothes.  But then I had to figure out what exactly they were going to be.  They had to have a function of some sort.  So mine became booklists that I suppose could also be used as a bookmark...?  They were fun to make and I kind of liked how they looked in the end.  I only wish I had made one to keep!

 

The other swap was to be for something one could use in a fairy garden.  Well, a fairy would need a reading nook, right?  So we put together a tiny nest of moss and crocheted tiny fairy blankets to warm the tiny fairy feet....  And I sincerely hope that if any little fairies are gracing the Hearth Room with their tiny presence, that they find comfort in our attempt to furnish them!  Just a note:  To date, I have not seen the covers at all disheveled. 

 

xoxo

 



Changing Seasons

 

 

I think I completely missed fall.  I was excited beyond words to see autumn coming and was ready to cook all my favorite heavy, scrumptious foods;  Ready to decorate for the season, carve pumpkins and play in the leaves. 

 

I think it was sometime in September, toward the end, that time got away from me.  I had to look at the date of my last post in September to see when it actually was.

 

We started some slight renovations here at the Hearth Room, totally on a whim, of course!  I mean really, if you know me, is there any other way?  So we were determined to make some quick little changes in the kitchen and hearth room and wrap it up in time to decorate for fall when the phone rang late on a Friday night.  A new nurse that wasn't very familiar with our family was calling to tell me my grandfather wasn't well.  As it was very difficult to get anyone to make even a bit of sense over the phone, I felt it best to throw some things together and pack the little people in the car so I could see for myself what was going on.

 

As it was, it came down to vocabulary.  Dehydration to the current hospice caregiver meant my grandfather was at his end.  To me, dehydration meant we need some fluids.  And by the way... how is it that all of a sudden my grandfather is dehydrated anyway... with caregivers present....?  But that's a different topic entirely.  My grandfather had just recently received a new diagnosis and was sent home with hospice care, although we all felt it was a bit premature at that point.  I'm sure I could offend a myriad by simply discussing our experience with hospice, but we have to keep in mind that people have good and bad experiences everywhere.  With that said, it was just unfortunate that we had a change in nursing care during this time. 

 

A trip to the hospital and some fluid was all it took to rejuvenate this strong gentleman once again.  All was well, with grandparents both in good spirits and my little people ecstatic to be there among family, as well as being close to the shore.  A little time was spent near one of our favorite beachy places that just happens to have one of the coolest-ever-puzzle-stores, an all-things-British store, and a truly great toy shop.  And then there was the new discovery of the lovely Nectar, shown above.   I LOVE juicing.  Love it.  There is nothing that can make you feel better quicker than introducing some extremely fresh, nutrient rich juice into your system!  And given the stress handed to us those past few days, Nectar really was a blessing!  Not to mention the fact that I also felt better simply sitting there in that café and looking at the plates hanging on the walls and the aprons...  Ah.  Comfort. 

 

So, I decided it would be best if I hung around and helped look after my grandparents for a week to make sure things kept looking up.   I'm very glad I did since things only seemed to get more complicated as time went on.  

 

Do you know what it's like when something happens in your life to cause great emotion, but you need to bury it or cover it up and just keep going at that time for the sake of those around you?  Yet all the while you know you need to feel what's happening and be in it and let it be a part of you.  Then it's so hard to return to that flood of emotion later.  It's like looking at something through water.  You can see it, it's all familiar, yet blurry and kind of distant.  That's what it's like for me now. 

 

I have some of the most touching memories of my life from the 6 or so weeks that I spent with my grandparents.  We talked about so many good memories and had to face some of the worst.  But I want to remember all of it.  Every minute detail, every word or utterance.  The lighting, the season.  If it doesn't help to make us who we are, then it certainly will remind us, won't it?

 

 

 

 



Thoughts

 

My head and heart are simply overflowing these days.  Finding the time and the quiet that I feel necessary to think has been nearly impossible. 

 

Life is so full of good things.  I am thankful.

 

Memories and makes to journal and share...  Tears to shed and reasons to smile...

 

It's quite a chapter to write, but one that is very necessary for me. 

 



Sometimes...

 

 

 

 

 

 Sometimes soft yellow and gray do grow on you, especially when you've spent so much time with them. 

 

Sometimes home baking doesn't need to be beautiful or extravagant when little people just need a really chocolatey pick me up.  And who am I to argue over a bit of chocolate?

 

Sometimes we are a little tempted and we just give in and get our paws wet. 

 

Then we just wipe the chocolate off our faces, dry our paws, and pick out a new, inspiring color and head into tomorrow. 

 

xo

 

 



Character Building

 

 

Did you see very tired eyes above?  Then pure relief and elation?

 

Well, that's what it is. 

 

This little budgie, Samson...  We dedicate a large portion of our day to his safety.  We also spend copious amounts of time enjoying his silliness and growth.  I've been told he's about 6 months old and is going through his first molt.  So we have been enjoying seeing his head turning white and his necklace spots coming in. 

 

Imagine how absolutely devastating it was to see him fly out our back door.

 

Oh, how mistakes happen so quickly and easily.  And the pain involved, the sheer pain of not being able to go back and NOT make the mistake.  Ugh.

 

Young Man had Sam out of his cage.  All other animals were safely tucked away elsewhere.  I took the trash out.  Yep, the major mistake right there.  I opened a door and went outside knowing that Young Man and Sam were in another room.

 

But then I had to open the door to come back inside.  And in that split second, Sweet P. was in the doorway crying about something and that moment of hesitation was all it took for a sweet little blue birdy to fly up into my face and subsequently over my head.  It was awful.

 

My heart broke because I love Sam, because I knew he was gone, because I worried about his safety, but more importantly, my heart broke for Young Man. 

 

We followed him instantly and talked and talked and talked to him.  We used all of his 'words' and do you know what?  Young Man spotted him in a tree in front of our house.  We have a lot of birds around the Hearth Room, but that little parrot song is unmistakable.  Once we heard him, Young Man spotted him. 

 

We immediately took his cage outside to the patio, opened it, put out favorite foods and cried, cried, cried, (keeping my own tears a secret of course). 

 

After probably an hour, we watched Sam fly down the road to the other end of our neighbor's pasture where he stopped to perch in a big tree by the road.  This was definitely getting worse. 

 

I snuck to the computer to do some quick Parakeet Research, only to find that these little guys are nomadic and don't have much in the way of homing instincts.  If the wings aren't clipped, (which we were advised against due to the fact that we have other pets in the house), then they will continue to fly and can be miles away in a matter of minutes.  The protective mother in me decided to keep this information to myself and pray. 

 

I told Young Man the old saying about, "If you love something, set it free...".  I also told him that everything belongs to God.  Even if that little budgie lives with us, he's not just our bird.  Oh, what life lessons came from this extremely sad day.  So we continued to pray for Sam's safety and for him to be brought back to us. 

 

Young Man walked down the road with sprigs of millet and talked to Sam.  We listened to him sing and chirp for the entire afternoon.  We sat outside for the entire evening listening and watching for him.  We figured our only hope was for him to come back to his cage at bedtime.  He really likes bedtime.  But he didn't come.  It was a rough night to say the least. 

When Hubby came out to make coffee in the morning, he checked the cage on the patio and told me there was no budgie.  So as he got ready for work, I grabbed my coffee and came outside to listen.  The most amazing sound came from just above my head!  It was that sweet little parakeet voice! 

 

I ran to wake Young Man with the words, "I don't want to get your hopes up, but I'm pretty certain I just heard him.  Come listen!"

 

Sure enough, it was Sam.  He had returned to the tree that he looks out at each day from our classroom window.  When he saw us he cried out his very happy song and we horrifyingly watched him fly around our house and yard.  But he came back and perched 20 feet above us.  We were so very thankful to see that little blue puff!  So happy to hear his song!  He was hungry and was eyeing his cage in a big way. 

 

So we prayed and poured out food.  We tempted him with millet and used all the happy words he knows.  We rang his bell and tapped on his cage.  He dropped down to perch on the lowest branch of the tree, just above Young Man's head.  He was really looking us over and considering our breakfast options.  And then he finally dropped down onto his cage.  Young Man told him to 'step up' and he did.  We stuffed him quickly inside his cage and were so amazed and thankful!

(sigh)...
 

That little budgie couldn't decide if he was more tired or hungry, but he was safe and  home.  We were exhausted and relieved.  We were so extremely thankful.  Thankful for safe birdy returns and thankful for small miracles.  Young Man grew up just a bit extra that day.  He learned so much more from that painful experience than I ever could have taught him with words. 

 

I still can't believe it.  And I don't know if what I read during my 'Parakeet Research" was accurate or not.  But I do know it's a real joy for us to get to see Sam's necklace spots growing in and his pin feathers opening.  We've made some new house rules for Sam's safety and it's really good to see Young Man being very responsible and extremely cautious.  We continue to be diligent everyday, but there's also a new appreciation that goes along with it. 

 

I think we just had a huge lesson in Character Building.  We both learned a lot. 

 

For that, I'm thankful. 

(And I hesitate just a moment before opening any doors).