Today I was thinking about....

Today I was thinking about friends. I've had many friends over the years. Some that I've known for many years and some not so many years. My favorites are the ones that, even if we haven't seen each other for a long time, we pick up right where we left off. My sister-in-law, Lora, is like that. So are my friends, Leslie, Cathi, and Wanda. We don't see each other often, but it's great fun when we get together. I'm thankful for the friends the Lord has given me...they are all good women.

After knitting frantically all weekend, including the drive to and from Seattle, I finished a baby blanket at midnight last night. It's blocked and ready to go in the mail tomorrow to a yet to be born baby girl of a friend in AZ. I enjoy making things for babies...and when it's for someone special, I enjoy it even more.

I'm getting excited about going to Phoenix to see our family. I've missed them all a lot and it will have been nearly 3 months since I've seen them. Emily has changed a lot, Jason a little bit...Caedon will be taller and Megan is getting prettier. I'll be glad to be there. Nine more sleeps!

A good Christmas

We spent our Christmas in Seattle with Craig's folks. His mom's birthday is Christmas eve, so we were able to celebrate both occasions with them. We drove up there Wed. and got home today around 3:00. The drive up was pretty miserable...it rained a lot nearly the whole trip. It should be about a 5 hr. trip but took us a lot longer. Visibility was poor and that caused drivers to drive pretty slowly. Then there were places where there  was so much traffic, it was stop and go...mostly stop. But we made it and had a very good time. I feel very blessed to have Norm and UnaJean MacDonald for my other parents. I have learned a lot from both of them. The first time I met them, they had just lost their daughter in a plane accident...I learned how to mourn with grace. They insisted on continuing on with plans for a reception so I could meet friends and family all the while making me feel welcome. I fell in love with them on that first meeting.

I got the opportunity to spend some quality time with my sis-in-law, Lora, while Scott (her hubby) took Mother for her hair appt. and dad to shop. We always have a good time together. I love her dearly and hope, now that we're closer, we'll be able to see them more often. We all went out to dinner Thurs. night for Mother's birthday, then to Mark and Mimi's house for more food and visiting (Mark is Craig's younger brother). That was a good time...lots of talk, catching up, etc. Mimi had put out a beautiful table and the food was wonderful!

On our way up to Seattle, we stopped to look at a manufactured home. We are now considering buying  one of those instead of building. We have a lot of research to do to compare the costs of both, and this was the first step. The one we looked at was very nice...924 sq. ft, a double wide that's shorter and narrower than the usual double wide. It had 9 ft. ceilings and didn't feel all that small. It was very nice.

Tomorrow there's no church...they cancelled it because so many people weren't going to be there. So we're headed to a Starbucks to study...Craig will work on his book and I'll study for the Sunday School lesson I'll teach next Sun.

It was a very good Christmas and I am thankful for my family...immediate and extended.

What is he thinking?

Our dog, Bear, has a funny habit. When I set down his food, he pulls the dish away from its' intended spot. Sometimes he pulls it to the middle of the kitchen. Then he sticks his nose in it and walks around the bowl...with his nose in it! Then, at what he sees as just the right time, he eats. Sometimes he picks out one little piece of food and sets it on the floor; that gets eaten after the rest of the food is finished. This is a routine he goes thru twice a day. It's funny to watch. I wonder why he does that.

I've gotten the valances that I've been working on up and wanted to post the pictures of them. These are for the bedroom, "hallway" (although, a single wide's hallway is really narrow), and the kitchen. In the first picture you can see Craig's truck. 

It's raining, it's pouring......

Oh, my goodness! It sure can rain a lot here! I mean a LOT! In the last 48 hrs. we've had about 3 inches of rain! Our whole place is mud...we take our shoes off at the door on a rug, but the dog runs in the house so fast after he's been out, there's no chance to wipe his feet off. The floor needs to be cleaned but there's no point until we get a little dry weather. 

I've been busy the last couple of days getting the valances finished and hung. I'm please with the way they turned out...they help to sort of soften things. I'll post pictures in a day or so. I've got my sewing machine set up on a tv tray in the kitchen. The ironing board is hanging from the pantry door. Not my usual set up...but I didn' want to take the time to straighten up the 2nd bedroom to make a space to sew. Tomorrow I'll work on my last Christmas gift and then I'll put everything away. I'm getting a little tired of the mess so I'll be glad to put it all away.

Tomorrow is my "little" brother's last day at the post office. He's been working as a temporary employee for about 8 years. After tomorrow, he'll be retired. He has a good work ethic. They will miss him a lot. He's the sort of guy that, when he finishes his work, he looks to see who he can help. He's the kind of worker that people like having around.

Tomorrow night we will go to a surprise birthday party for one of our new friends and Sun. night will be a Christmas party at church. So, our social calendar is full for the weekend.

Traditions

I started a tradition when Megan and Caedon were little. Every year I make an ornament for them. One year I knitted them each a little sweater ornamet, another year I cross stitched something...I don't remember what...maybe a gingerbread man. Every year...always handmade. I started out doing that because I wanted them to have Christmas ornaments to take with them when they grow up and move out on their own. Now I think it has more to do with teaching them that simple, handmade gifts are as good (or better) than something you go to the store and buy. When you make something for someone, you are giving them a part of you...your creativity and your time. Also, I want them to know that I love them so much that I made something especially for them...that the ornament, just like Megan, Caedon, Jason and Emily, are one of a kind.

The pictures are of what I made for each of them. Megan's is the cat...it's her favorite color and she likes cats. Caedon's is the gingerbread man with bites out of him...he has a great sense of humor, and I knew he'd get a kick out of it. The dinosaur is Jason's, and I knew he'd like whatever I gave him. Of course, the baby carriage is Emily's for her first Christmas. The polar bear and squirrel are for the children of the pastor Craig worked with in Costa Rica this fall. The robin is what I made for my friend, Cathi, in AZ.

I may or may not make ornaments for Pastor Alonso's kiddos again or for my friend, Cathi...but I'll make them every year for my grandkids...and maybe even my great grandkids. Traditions are a good thing.

Time flies......

As of yesterday, we've been in Oregon 2 months. It's been a fast 2 months in some ways, but a long 2 months when I think about how long it's been since I've seen our kids and grandkids. I miss them an awful lot....I can hardly wait to see them In Jan.! I know that that Caedon will look like he's grown a foot, and Jason will be bigger and smarter than ever. Emily is crawling and will probably be pulling herself up on the furniture. And Megan...my sweet Meg...with such a big heart and glowing smile. She will be a little more mature and, if possible, more beautiful. I am blessed with such a wonderful family. God is so good to me.

It rained all day yesterday. So we pretty much stayed in all day. I got another set of valances cut out...that will get sewn tomorrow. I also worked on one of Caedon's Christmas gifts...I'm making Minecraft shoes for him. I'll post a picture here when I finish them. And I got the ornaments finished for Michelle and Aubri. Every year I give them a snowman ornament ...this year I decided to make them. They will go in the mail tomorrow. 

This morning I took my first turn in the nursery at church. The pastor's daughter was in there to help me even there were only 2 kiddos in there. She's only about 7, but is the oldest kid in church. That made me think of Megan and how she was the oldest kid in our church for a long time. It's not easy having no one their that's your age. So she and I talked. She is pretty grown up for such a young one. But I enjoyed it. And I was so happy to be back to serving at church. That's what "it's" all about.

"Lord willing and the creek don't rise"

It's been raining...a lot. We've already had more rain this month than Phoenix sees in a year. And there's a lot more to come. Tonight the 10 day forecast shows the only dry day will be next Tues. The above picture is our creek. We've never seen it with this much water in it. It's usually NOT that wide and way more shallow. I just read that the governor has declared a state of emergency in 13 counties...and ours is one of them. There are many little creeks around here and a few rivers. They are all swollen. I overheard a conversation between 2 men yesterday and they were talking about the flooding on their properties. Our home (MoHo) is up the hill from the creek, so we won't get flooded. But it's still a little scary to see our creek fill up like it's doing.

Over the last several years I've done a lot (most) of shopping at Walmart. I've always liked that they would price match to other grocery stores. Doing that price matching was always easy. But, when I want to price match here, it's a very big deal with the cashiers. It's as tho' no one but me is doing this. They are reluctant to give me the price unless I have a copy of the ad to prove the price I'm trying to match. I actually prefer shopping at the Fred Meyers...the employees are very friendly and they have a better selection in many cases. I get points for reduced gas price at Fred's gas station...We got gas for $1.73 a gallon last week with gas points. So now I need to decide if I want to continue going thru the hassle with Walmart or if I'll stick with Freddies.

Those were the days....

I wore my khaki pants today. They're actually the pants I used for work at the hospital. I had on my navy sweatshirt and realized I looked like I did a lot of days at work...khaki pants, navy shirt. My first thought was of my former co-workers. I worked with some really good nurses and nursing aids and I miss them a lot. Then I thought about the time before that uniform. For a long time we could all wear whatever scrubs we wanted. Then, someone decided there needed to be more distinction between the different staff positions. That's when I ended up wearing the standard Walmart uniform for my job as a unit secretary. It left something to be desired, but no one mistook me for a nurse anymore. I really like wearing fun scrubs when it was allowed. I would make my own tops and buy the pants.  When I worked at the children's hospital in Michigan, I made them out of cartoon fabrics. When I started working at Del Webb in AZ, I made them out of pretty fabric...and some fun fabric, too.

Making the change from fun scrubs to required uniform was the first big change I saw in my work in he medical field. That was sort of a cosmetic change. Most of the other changes  I saw had much more affect on people...so much so that I was glad when we decided I could quit. I saw nurses and nursing aids stretched beyond what seemed reasonable...caring for 6 patients per nurse and many times 20 patients per aid....in most cases, that's not what those people signed up for. The constant pressure to create a good patient experience, constant documentation, not enough help...I've seen too many nurses burn out. They want so much to help people, but the hospital setting is so different now, many are leaving to find ways to do that without so much pressure. And who can blame them? It's just so sad that the corporate powers that be have decided that the dollar is what medicine has become rather that serving the public in the best way possible.

Okay...I'll step off my soap box now. Thanks for "listening".

Sewing again

I haven't done much sewing in a really long time. When I worked at Rogers Dept. Store in Grand Rapids, Mi for 10 years, I did a lot of sewing...both at work and at home. I did alterations at the store and for people at home. So, I guess I sort of overloaded on sewing. It had been a hobby for me for a long time. But, when it became my job, it kind of sucked the fun out of it for me. Today I set up my sewing machine and worked on a few Christmas gifts. When I finished that, I brought out some of the fabric I bought and got the bedroom valances made. It felt good to get back to my hobby. I got very spoiled by the sewing space I had in our houses. Today I set up the machine on a TV tray in the kitchen. I'll make a space in the second bedroom later, but just wanted to get some of this done  and didn't want to take the time to get it set up in there.

All in good time.

The Hallmark Channel?

Yes, I'll admit it...I stay up late to watch smarmy Christmas movies on the Hallmark channel. These movies all seem to have pretty much the same "plot"...
boy meets girl, girl resists boy (or vice versa), boy and girl admit they're in love and they live happily ever after. The acting isn't very good in some cases, okay in others. I guess I just like a nice love story.

Today was a stay home and get stuff done day. Baking, cooking, working on some Christmas presents. It was rainy for most of the day. Tomorrow I'm hoping to get out in the garden and do some more cleaning up out there. It's very overgrown...I got a good start on it earlier in the week but there's lots more to do. When I was a kid, I hated (HATED) doing yard work. On the Saturdays my mom said we'd all be out working in the yard, I promised to do all the inside work if I just didn't have to go out there and work. I don't know why I hated yard work so much. And now, I really like being out in the garden. Maybe it's because it's my garden...I don't know.

It's the little things.

We babysat for the couple we had Thanksgiving dinner with. Dad is a stay at home dad and mom is a dr. Dad had a chance to play hockey today and mom called and asked if we could come watch the 2 girls. We said yes. She hadn't told him that she'd arranged for us to do that and surprised him with it this morning. He was very happy that we could stay with the girls. It sounds like such a little thing, but for him, it was a big deal. It got me to thinking about gift giving at Christmas. There are so many great things to buy and give those we love....so many expensive things. Robyn's thoughtfulness didn't cost a dime, but it meant a lot to her hubby... and gave her joy in return. I think that when we go out of our way to make others happy, it makes a huge difference for the giftee and the gifter. Just something to think about.

We had a busy morning before we went to babysit. We went out for breakfast to a place with great bacon, then stopped at a place that sells Stihl chainsaws (we bought one), then stopped at a place to get 2 windows for Fred. Home for an hour then off to babysit. And that's life on Baker Road....