This is "the first day of the rest of my life". The picture you see is the first step of a joint project my son, Chris, and I are undertaking. Chris, this is the sort of typical, frilly, feminine type of smocking that I normally do. I am not sure that this is what you want, but I need to give you a starting point. So, you can tell me"this is good, just what I want" or "yuk, way too childish and pink!" I did it in pink cause I had this fabric and it was sitting by my machine when I got the glass piece to practice on. I have lots of other ideas, but I needed to start somewhere and get feedback from you. I am so excited to do a project with Chris. I think of him as being amazingly creative, an artist, so it makes me giddy to think that I can do something creative with him, me, the homemaker, the mom, the caregiver. Do I really feel up to this? Well I may not be"up" to it, but I am over the top excited about trying. Thank you for suggesting that we try!

Blessings come in many sizes and shapes. Some are giant size, like our lives, our spouses, our health. Some are tiny like our babies, butterflies, chocolate candy. Some are intangible, like kindness from others, and a spiritual awakening. Some are breathtaking like a rainbow or a mountain meadow. Some are just everyday things like having a clean house or enjoying a hobby. One is a special day in the life of a wee one, just come from Heaven to sojourn on earth. In my church we introduce these new little ones with a formal"Blessing" pronounced most often by Dad in front of the Congregation. A name is given as well as a blessing pronounced under the guidance of the Holy Ghost. The tiny little cherub receiving this blessing is not required to wear anything in particular, but it is often family tradition for baby to wear a white dress or romper to represent the purity of these little ones in the eyes of God. When my youngest daughter was four years old, I learned a sewing technique called smocking. Aw come on, you remember, all those cute little Polly Flinders dresses, so cute, and so expensive! Anyway smocking led to Heirloom Sewing which led to Christening gowns and rompers. Which leads to another blessing for me. I have lots of hours to fill as I stay with my husband who is pretty much bed bound with a severe stroke. When my fingers get itchie for something to do, I pick up my smocking and work on a dress or other smocking project. I also had the chance to help my oldest daughter make a Christening gown for her firstborn. Yes, blessings come in all sizes, I think maybe the ones I like best come in size Newborn. Thank you.

You Can Come Home

It is said that" you can't go home", meaning that when you do go home, things will be different and it won't seem like home. As the mom of all grown up children, I want to say "you can come home, PLEASE." No, things will not be the same as when you grew up. The house will be older. The grass will not seem as green. The trees may not even seem as large. The garden where you worked hours on end may have shrunk to postage stamp size. All of the many interesting places you used to play will now seem silly or dangerous, or at best boring. Your favorite foods may not taste as good. You've had better chicken soup at the grocery store. The bisquits are better at KFC. Old man Jacobs, down the street is dead now, and your best friend across town has become an accountant with no sense of humor. The corner grocery has been replaced by a Super Selllmart, and they sure won't let you get your own dill pickle out of the wooden barrel in the meat cooler with a pair of tongs. You will not be a child anymore, you may even have to follow around a little cherub of your own. You won't feel the same carefree self you used to be.

But from the inside out, you will be the finest sight in the world. You will be more beautiful, or handsome, and smarter than you have ever been. Your spouse will be the nicest person ever, and your children will be the cutest little creatures that ever lived. And even though YOU get tired and bored and annoyed with your parents for being so old fashioned and slow, YOUR PARENT will wish you had more time to spend with them. So ok, home will now be where you live with your little family. But, to the folks who gave you your beginnings, you will always be the son, or daughter that grew up in the old house, with the run down yard, and the dangerous play places. You will always be the laughter and the tears that filled the kitchen where grandma's chicken soup was made, and the owner of the "ouwies" and the" triumphs" that demanded every waking hour of attention of that mom and dad who love you so much. So do come home, please, over and over again. No, things will not be the same. But as you share your childhood memories with you own little family, things might be as comfy as an old quilt.

Bennet in the Whitman's Den

This is the most recent picture that was taken with my camera. Two adorable little grandsons are caged because they were both a little tired or bored or in need of a new something to do. We thought it might be interesting to put them together and see what happened. Yeah, they just pretty much ignored one another. We should have added one sippy cup to see what kind of response we got then. These are both active, charming, engaging baby boys, but they do not perform on demand. At this time they just needed a little down time. Don't we all from time to time? Aren't you glad they don't make adult pack and plays (we used to call them play pens)?

SURPRISE!

This post is just to acquaint myself with my new computer and the program. I may have uploaded a picture to go with this, but all I saw were numbers, so the picture will be a total surprise to me
Today has been a pretty quiet, just go through the routine, kind of a day. I am trying to sort out alot of really important things right now, like income source, and learning new stuff, so don't really count this as a blog, it is more of a "I need to know how to figure out some things on my own" post. Thank you for your indulgence.

New Mac

Good evening. Have I ever mentioned my puppy, Mac? He is not really a puppy anymore, but a 6 year old white standard poodle. Well, technically he is apricot, because of a little color on his front knees, but when he is clean he is about as white as my laundry. We bought him a few years ago, after my husband's first stroke. We needed him to take us for walks...And he did! We used to walk a couple of miles most everyday. It was a terrible shock to his system when Bob had his last stroke and couldn't do that any more. He used to give us little gifts just to prove how much he loved missing his walks. We have worked that out.

Well a couple of day sago I got a new Mac. No, it is not a cute little poodle. It is a cute little computer. My big mac was getting old, especially by tech standards. My daughter and son in law bought me a new printer for Christmas. My computer was so out dated the it could not support the printer. So now I am learning how to use a cute little 13 inch lap variety that allows me to sit in our room with Bob while I do my computer work. We are truly blessed to have such technology to help us out. And I will get this thing figured out. I promise.

The Day

Today is THE DAY. Well maybe only The Day. It is not the Second Coming. It is the day I begin to become bread winner for my family. I had signed up to try an internet thing that just wasn't going to work out, that for a while I believed it to be a scam. I am not sure if it was or not, but they pulled a switch from what I was signing up for to internet selling and more of an investment. The money that they said I could earn was enough to replace my income, so I fell for it. It was not something I felt comfortable doing. So I am going to try what I know and love to do.
I love smocking and heirloom sewing. I have belonged to a smocking guild for many years. For a while I worked at Sew From The Heart, where I taught classes, as well as sold machines and all the wonderful things that go with sewing. SO...i am making Christening gowns to sell. It will start slow, but I have a bit to live on while I build my inventory and my business.
Please wish me luck. I'll keep you informed as I go along.Hopefully I'll have lots of adorable pictures to post of adorable babies in beautiful dresses. Top of the afternoon to you all.

"Did she die?" "No, she's not that old." "Does she have a new baby?" "Good grief no, she already has ten! And besides, She is too old for that." "Did she go to work?" No actually, she, meaning "me" actually quit work and have been full time care giver for my husband for the past three years. The first year after my husband's stroke, I mostly sat by his side and read to him, tried to keep his arms and legs moving by manipulating them, and tried to learn how to care for someone who had lost the ability to walk , talk , move his arms or body, eat , and stay awake for more than an hour at a time, except through the night. We made several trips to the emergency room and checked on or fixed several malfunctioning body parts.

The next year we acquired therapists . Physical, Occupational and speech(off and on). I got better at helping , and Bob got better at doing a few things, like his feeding tube was removed and he learned to eat again. I think he was highly motivated in this area. We still spent far too much time in medical facilities.

This year we are dealing with arthritis, making therapy more difficult. But we have become friends with a couple of pain doctors who make life more bearable. In general Bob has a bad reaction to most pain relievers and we avoid those like the plague. Sleeplessness and hallucinations are his most common reactions to pain killers. Thank goodness for orthopedic and anesthetic specialists.

This year I have also realized that I need more to occupy myself than voracious reading. I have restarted smocking, cooking, gardening, and various other interests from my past. Bob still likes me close at hand , so these projects take a miniscule corner in my day. Still, keeping the creative juices going helps me to curtail my desire to be out and going, going, going.
I hope all of my friends and family are well and happy today. Sorry for the long, long pause in blogging. I hope to catch up with those that I have missed seeing, and connect with friends, old and new. Thank you, Lord, for this day.