Yes, I know....it's been awhile, but since not very many read my blog, I figure that that's okay.
My blog is really just a means to sort out all the things running around in my head....so, today is just my ramblings....
Too many things have happened since the end of February when I last posted, so not everything will be covered.....
One most excellent thing to report is that it's 'so far, so good' in regards to Maya and her emotional health....it's been fifteen months since her last illness and we are pleased...not relaxed yet but pleased.
We've navigated through all the preparations for Paul and Sara's wedding, and we got through it! Everything culminated in a picture perfect wedding day that ran off with out a hitch.....people seemed to have a good time and we're pleased that it's all done ....although I'm not sure what Paul's new mother in law will do with all her spare time....the wedding seemed to become a full time job for her but I remember when our eldest daughter got married and I did most of the work( daughter was attending college in Chicago) that I also thoroughly enjoyed doing it all , even though it was a ton of work.
Now, onto the next big thing.....which is starting, at times, to have flashes of overwhelmness ( I don't think that's a word but I just made it up!) to it.
You see , two years ago husband Don and I were preparing to celebrate wedding anniversary number forty....we had been seeing those TV ads for river cruises over in Europe....we both thought that that would be a great way to celebrate this significant celebration...so, Don got to work and researched it all. Well, it turned out that it was going to be fairly expensive....such a disappointment but Don suggested that he'd rather have a two week vacation to celebrate instead of just one week, in Europe on a river cruise. I agreed with him because I figured that if I ever flew overseas....( the longest that I've ever flown...and over all that water...oh my).....that I'd rather have a longer time over there so that we could see more of the sights.
Since we're so close to retirement, when they'll be less income coming in, less benefits and less ...well less of a lot of things....and since we were working under a tight time constraint in regards to Don's Crohns flaring up,.....then we decided on a different holiday for our fortieth....we chose two Hawaiian islands that we hadn't been to, and decided to spend a week in each...it was a lovely holiday..we really enjoyed it.
When we returned, hubby Don said, 'well, now we're going to start saving for our river cruise'....so, two years later, that's where we're at...we've saved and saved while still trying to balance out other expenses ...like two vehicles that keep on needing major repairs, three developmentally delayed kids that always need things done...like last summer we used up the remaining small available space in our basement and built them an entertainment lounge...now they can watch tv, movies, play games to their hearts content!....we also tried to contribute to the wedding preparations, and of course the wedding expenses themselves....which we loved doing ....there were other happy occasions like our newest grand daughter being born...a sad one was when another grand daughter tragically died and we covered the burial and funeral expenses...so, ya...life ....I'm pretty sure that's what it's called....things happen, your money is used in so many places...
....but here we are.....according to the calendar, our forty-second anniversary is next month....the sixteenth of June....and if all goes well and Lord willing ( my grandfather always said that) we should be on a river cruise down the Rhine River! Don is over the moon excited...I haven't reached excited yet...like I said ...flashes of overwhelmness.....so many things to prepare....without our in house kids knowing ahead of time.....it becomes difficult to do the preparing out in the open....you have to be a little underhanded about it all...I have lists and more lists....things to be done, things to take care of the kids while I'm gone...right down to knowing Ben's work schedule so I can inform Ben and Shelley, our adult caregiver...what the kids have to do....Maya will hopefully go to Leslie's (eldest daughter) ....I always feel more comfortable that she's with someone who knows her well when I'm away....getting enough food in, getting enough money out of the kids bank accounts to cover their financial needs....little things like teaching Ben to water my plants, or put the dogs eye drops in so I don't come home to withered up , dry plants or a dog with a goopy looking eye.....setting up who will take the garbage out, who will wash the towels...( we'll be gone three weeks...I think ...if they shower...they might run out...:-). )....it's the little things to be sure....so, for now, I'll let Don be excited for both of us!
Don was offered a 'voluntary separation' from work last month....in other words, early retirement....but the offer wasn't very good, and he was hoping that we'd get a little more debt payed down before retirement, so he turned it down....it did give us pause to think though that this big trip will probably be our last...oh ya, sure...we'll have smaller trips here and there, but nothing along this magnitude.....we also realized that when that time comes we'll probably have to give up our permanent camping spot at FairHavens...it's lovely but very expensive, .....so, we've started to fix up our back deck and back yard at home, after all you do want some summer enjoyment and we do have a good sized back yard, .....we'll have to work hard to save for new flooring on the main level of our house( the dogs have destroyed the hard wood) and of course no more dogs....when these dogs die...and we just found out last weekend that our female, probably has cancer....she has a huge tumour...that that'll happen in the next two-three years...and sitting on the deck last night, looking at the shingles started to curl....well, every home owner knows what that means....so, ya...a few financial things to be accomplished before retirement ......
...but, I have to tell you.....my sisters husband left her far too soon due to cancer, my other brother in law almost did the same before his liver transplant, another friends husband has been struggling with the side effects of cancer and my friend was just diagnosed with brain cancer! There are no guarantees in this life and we need to keep in mind to enjoy each day that we are blessed with having together.
I met my husband in 1970.....we were teenagers....we have been together ever since. Don was diagnosed with Crohn's disease almost three years ago....they did surgery, removed about a foot of his bowel, stapled him shut and told him to enjoy his life and not that it could come back but that it would come back!
Every day is a gift....we can't squander it, we can only cherish it.....every moment, of every day.....I thank God for these moments...they are precious to me....this guy is precious to me...the Lord brought us together forty-five years ago......
And it was a good thing.....a very good thing.
~ Marie
