I feel like I'm Ninety!

Good Morning Company Girls!

How are you all doin'? Me..well, I'm doing okay, I guess...except for one of my toes...that I broke yesterday!...


You can even see some of the nail polish from my pedicure a few weeks ago...which was an okay experience...maybe I'd enjoy the next one more...this time I just kept wondering what she was doing next and since she had an accent (and I'm terrible with understanding any accent) I wasn't sure sometimes just what she wanted me to do, wasn't as relaxing as my sister swore up and down that it was going to be. I told my hubby, when I got home that now I'd have to be taken to somewhere to show off my new nail polish, but unfortunately he didn't get the jet out and whisk me off to someplace tropical!

I was going to show you a pic of Maya's new hairdo....so, here it is....





I will admit that other than having her hair long and natural...beautiful curls...(that unfortunately, she doesn't know how to look after...my fault cause I had her hair braided , every few weeks since she was three) this seems to be the best do for her...wash and go...she likes it...

Emma is still in Toronto...staying at a shelter there, (at least I hope that's where she's staying) I have my suspicions though that the bloom is definitely fading off the Toronto rose....will see how this week coming turns out.

I've been busily working on the 64 log cabin blocks for my next quilt....on the last set of 12 today and determined to get it done so I can get it laid out and put together....once that top is completed then I will put together another one...similar pattern but different colours...my plan is to have both tops completed to take to the trailer, to hand quilt this summer. Nobody told me when I chose two similar patterns of log quilt blocks that log cabin was soooooo tedious...good grief, I do believe that these will be my only log cabin quilts!

Eleven years ago today I became a grandmother...nana to my grandkids....it's Jairus' birthday today!


Jairus was born with a disability that has hindered his speech for all his eleven years...he was 8 years old before I even heard him say 'nana'...every week he goes to speech therapy and slowly he's learning new words and he works very hard at it....he's a sweet boy, very stubborn, a little OCD, extremely sensitive, and very smart! We love him dearly, and we couldn't have asked for a better first grandchild. He even holds his own with his three younger sisters...


Happy Birthday Jairus!

Hope you all have a wonderful weekend....we were suppose to have Jairus and his two sisters tonight (one was going to a highland dance competition tomorrow but as of last night she was busy being sick).....so, we'll see if they end up coming....

Wishing you all a blessed Palm Sunday this Sunday as we celebrate the triumphal entry....hope you all have a lovely day.

...and the beat goes on.....

Good Morning Company Girls!

So, weather wise, in my neck of the woods, it's been fabulous...a little (a lot) concerning for the farmers and grape growers in our area though because everything is growing and budding and for sure we're not done with the cold weather yet...it's actually been just like Florida weather...but we stayed home...interesting...

It's been quite the few weeks...so much going on but the high lite of it all was our two youngest grandsons coming for a visit....their mom and dad went for a well deserved couple of days away to Niagara-on-the-Lake and we got to look after the boys....they were very good...no problems...well, except for 7 month old Samuel...who isn't weaned yet, wouldn't take the bottle...only wanted his mama for that...thank the Lord he was on solids or we would have been in big trouble....but...other than that it was a great time...so good that I forgot to take pictures.. :0(

March Break wasn't a break...on the road 4 out of the 5 days, taking kids for appointments ....one was to get Maya's hair cut REALLY short.....when she was a toddler and her hair was just growing it came in in soft little curls all over her head....because Maya is biracial, she has hair that isn't fuzzy or 'nappy' as some people call it....I didn't think I was going to like it short but I will admit to it looking nice on her...I'll have to get a pic taken for sure to show you...another appointment was to take her to a private college where she wants to take a course to become a Personal Support Worker..PSW....she doesn't want to spend the rest of her life working at Tim Horton's so, that's a good thing....she hopes to start in September ....right now she's just waiting for April 1st to see if she got accepted to go to the camp up north (that she worked at last summer) for the summer....I sure hope she gets it...she's been going around here like a bear with a sore rear end waiting on it...if she doesn't get in, well, we're ALL in trouble...think I'll spend a lot of time at the trailer this summer!

Speaking of trailer...we have to get ours put back together soon....last fall hubby and eldest son took it apart to remove the rotting floor...now we have to guesstimate how much flooring we need to put down..right now it's just the plywood subfloor...then we have to find a new table cause hubby doesn't want to do the old one that attaches to the wall...he wants a free standing one..so, I think we'll check out Ikea...although eldest son thinks it would be better to make one..unfortunately he's the only one qualified to do that and he doesn't have the time...I hope he'll have the time to put the trailer back together though or I wont be going anywhere this summer!

Speaking of sons...I have one that I don't talk about very often...his name is Corey...he's the second oldest son, in our family. I haven't seen him that often in the last few years...he's had some prison time and the woman he's living with is kind of controlling...he called me the other night...he was trying to get ahold of his son's mother but the phone number didn't work...she said I could give it to him if he asked, so I did...while we were talking Emma called...Emma, in her infinite wisdom has taken herself to Toronto to live...at a shelter..in her words it's a rich shelter, do those two words actually go together?...anyways, when I told Corey that I had to take Emma's call, he said he'd call back...and he did...she was in Hamilton for the day and wanted me to drive her back to Toronto, with some of her stuff that she had rescued from her room she had rented in Hamilton...long story involving police, landlords and housing workers....I told her to call me back in a few minutes...meanwhile Corey called back to see what she wanted....when he heard ,he was emphatic that I not do that...well, I had already decided that...I don't do Toronto..I find it an intimidating city....and especially at night...by myself...I told her I'd get some of her stuff and store it but she'd have to find her own way back on the bus...she was good with that...Corey insisted on meeting me at the Hamilton shelter that she was calling me from....he's like that...he doesn't see or talk to you for months but he's very overprotective, so I agreed. (Don was teaching and I couldn't get in touch with him while all this was going down)....so, Corey met me and Emma was still there...we loaded her stuff in the van, than I took her to the bus station where she caught the bus back to Toronto....I'm really not sure what's going to happen with that girl..I just keep on praying...

There have been many, many other things going on in my family...some I can talk about...but this is just suppose to be a blog post, not a book...(although a lot of people have told me that I should write one)...and other things that I wouldn't want to talk about....life goes on...I don't know all the answers, I don't know the future...and that's a good thing...but I know the one that does, and that's a very good thing because without that knowledge I couldn't go on....

Hoping you all have a wonderful weekend......my little grandsons are getting on a plane this evening with their mama to fly north to visit her family for a few weeks...praying that all goes well for them..and for my son, who is left behind...I think he's going to find his house strangely different for the next two weeks, with just him and his dog! Those little guys really get into your heart...I hope their other grandparents enjoy them as much as we do...

Take care Company Girls and all those that read this blog....may the Lord bless you today.



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Good Morning Company Girls!

well, this is what's going on out my bedroom window this morning.......






and yesterday I saw the first Robin and the day before it was 16 degrees celcius (about 62 farenheit)....good grief...it really should make up its' mind! I didn't mean to post the same pic twice...but now I don't know how to delete the extra...sorry...

It's been a busy week....quilt class, book club, ladies luncheon, dealing with my kids and their ever present difficulties resulting from their delays...I really think it's getting worse....eeeek!......today, I hav to drive one of them about 35 kilometers away, drop her off at an appointment, then hurry myself to a dental appointment..(pray that my van doesn't get the window smashed in again), then go to a mall, where I am meeting my sister and where I'm supposed to experience my very first pedicure....when sister announced it at our luncheon yesterday, all the ladies exclaimed just how much I was going to enjoy it...sister said I had to wear sandals so I didn't wreck the nail polish...ummmm....you want to look at this pics above...don't think it's going to happen...think I'll just have to try and make sure the polish is good and dry before I put my shoes and socks on....

this week I read a book..not the one I was suppose to have done for book club....the store backordered it and I didn't get it in time...this one was a fiction quilting book called Sonoma Rose......I enjoyed it....

Last Saturday we went out to help at eldest daughter's new house.....'the men' were drywalling a room and so I helped with cleaning and unpacking..came home exhausted but pleased that the kids enjoyed the things I made for their rooms....

a wall hanging for the girl's room...








and since i didn't think my grandson would appreciate something like that...i quilted a small pillow for his bed...

front...



and a colorful back...




now, it's time to get back to other quilting projects....I started a quilt top before Christmas but abandoned it to do the kids projects so I really need to reacquaint myself with it...then...i picked up some flannel the other day after watching a self binding receiving blanket tutorial on Missouri Star quilt....looks kind of neat and I have a baby shower to go to in a week....wouldn't mind getting a couple of those done.....

yes, trying to avoid the obvious....this week is the start of spring or March break in our area.....Ben and Megan will be home...all day, every day....good grief....

and this Sunday we've got family coming for Ben's 21st birthday! Where has the time gone....he's also been bring home stuff pertaining to his graduation in June....(delayed kids can stay in school til they're 21 in our area).......now, we'll have to look at finding him a job!

So, that's about it for me....hope you all have a wonderful weekend.....and if you're going away somewhere sunny and warm for March break...I really don't want to hear about it... :0) Take Care!

The Readers Digest Version...

Dear Company Girls...I am so sad...I just wrote a very long post...my first in over a month...and with one touch of my stylus I lost it and can not find it....it's beyond finding.....oh my.....

so, this is the readers digest version cause i just cant go thru it all again....this month has been extremely busy...full of stress, drama, angst and tears.....three daughters have and are moving...(2 have and one tomorrow)....

March is coming...full of appointments....annual physical for myself, :0(
...cardiology checkup for Megan which involves multiple appointments, orthodontist for Megan, new social group for Megan which goes on for 15 weeks (it's a special group for special needs kids that helps them with their social skills), March Break (another fun time as Ben and Megan sit zoned out in front of the television for the week and Maya complains about how they can be in the zone while she has to go to work), received a letter saying I had to go for my mammogram....not a fun time...do they really expect you to be ABLE to breathe when they say..'don't breathe'....I fully expect them to say sometime 'don't move'..really....

good times in March...it's one month closer to April, which is my happy dance month....I love spring...yes, I know, by the calendar spring comes in March...but really...have you really looked at March...not possible...April is much more conducive to the mindset of spring! I'm suppose to go for my very first pedicure...sister is going on a cruise and when she heard that I've never had the pedicure experience she insisted on me going with her...to the pedicure, not the cruise....something about her 45th wedding anniversary..I think she'd rather take her husband....

Birthdays in March...son Ben hits the big 21! Grandson Jairus...our eldest is 11...son in law James has a birthday but not sure of his age...I'm terrible at remembering facts....

Grandsons William and Samuel are suppose to come for one of the weekends...their mom and dad are getting away for a little marriage break...something we all need from time to time...so we get to look after the boys...yea! Little kids are sooooo much easier that teens!...just as exhausting but easier...

So, now I've brought you all up to date...not as detailed as the lost post...but, maybe that's a good thing...you really didn't want to wade through all that anyways.....

Take care...please have a good week...


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commitment.....

Good Morning Company Girls...and a grey day it is today in my little corner of the world....

It's been an interesting week....for the last few months we knew that eldest daughter and her family were scheduled to move from their house to a new house in the month of February,and now...since I last communicated with you , we found out that two more daughters are moving...yes, can you believe it? Last week second eldest daughter and her partner purchased their very first home...and yesterday I found out that Emma is moving to a place of her own on the first of February!! I see the coming month as one of excitement and upheaval, joy and tears, stress and exhilaration....it should be interesting...if hubby and I can handle it all!

I was forced this week, to give some serious thought to relationships...I was asked to come to our local Children's Aid office to talk about being a foster parent who adopted a few children.....when I was asked, I laughed...and laughed and laughed some more.....you see, things aren't going so well with some of my kids right now, so I at first thought...'I am the LAST person that you want to have come and talk to prospective adopted parents!'....then the social worker said to me...she knows what has been going on....'Marie, even if you are feeling inadequate right now, people need to know about your commitment....that is the most important thing right now'. So, I went....I was suppose to talk for an hour to an hour and a half....when the worker said the evening was done, I had been sharing for 2-1/2 hours....relationships and the complexities of the lives of our children....not hard to talk about is it...not hard to find enough to say...you can go on and on and on....the interweaving of feelings, the fine dancing on eggshells as you try to navigate the patterns of their lives.....

as a mom, you want to fix things...but you cant...it's not as simple as when they were little and they fell and scraped their knee and you kissed it all better...a kiss all better doesn't solve the problems anymore...the weight of the descension overwhelms you and falls on your shoulders like a heavy cloak....it feels like the weight of those coverings they lay on you to protect you in an exray....although this cloak doesn't protect you from harmful rays or bitterness and anger...you feel every jab, every barb....every thrust wearies you.....

you try to figure out these relationships because you feel that if you could just do that then it would be a start...a start to the healing that is required...unfortunately, you also realize that it is too big...much bigger than you, as a mere mortal can handle ...the intertwining threads of their lives remind you of those huge electrical boxes filled with multicolored wires that you couldn't possible figure out.

I read many blogs and one talked about all the different papers and charts that there is to organize your life...from menu planning to thot planning...yes even to organize your thots, your prayers your challenges, your goals....I said to my hubby that I couldn't possibly do that....right now, my mind reminds me of those snowstorm days...you know when you are driving and the snow is coming at your windshield...so many white spots coming at you at a speed you can barely take in...or, if you don't live where there is snow and thus find it difficult to visualize..then, outer space...and the space ship is traveling and all the stars are coming at it...you must have watched star trek at some time....well, that's how I feel right now....all the facets of my life are traveling at me and there is no way I could ever compartmentalize into all the many categories that are required to be organized....

okay...so I ramble on....but there must be a key...a key to unlock all of this...I just haven't discovered it...and maybe I never will this side of heaven....I'm sure God has the answer....at the sharing time the other night, one parent asked me 'what keeps you going...what keeps you going to the hospital in the middle of the night...or being willing to go and help them when they've treated you so badly'? and I think the answer is that you never know when you'll be able to undo the wiring, see each individual snowflake as it comes by....you never know when your simple touch, your love will be enough to break thru all the mess...and you'll see a smile, a genuine smile filled with joy that you can feel deep down in the depths of your heart. That you've finally been able to convince them, whether they be birth child or adopted, that you are their mom, that you care...that you aren't going anywhere until the Lord takes you home...and even at that time I'll still be praying for them from heaven...I will not stop.





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Back to Normal...Whatever Normal is....

Good Morning Company Girls!

Normal...have we ever figured out whatever normal really is? Whatever normal is for one is completely out the window for another.....for me...it's getting back into routine...the older I get the more my mind and body crave routine...sounds like I'm a stick-in-the mud, doesn't it? Well, I guess after living for over 60 years, being married for 38-1/2 of the years, giving birth to 3 children, adopting 7 children, having 7 grandchildren..and lest I forget ...having numerous dogs in the family ...7 I believe...good grief, I'm seeing a pattern!....anyways, routine is good, routine is normal for me.

So, after four weeks of having house guests, and Christmas, New Years, and such thrown in,..this was our first 'normal' week in the house! Hubby went back to teaching two nights in the week, thus making it long days for both him and me on Mondays and Wednesdays (he goes to his day job and then pushes on to his evening classes)...on those days I usually don't cook...I tell my older kids 'it's get your own supper' night and they are used to that and make themselves something they enjoy....Maya goes off to work at the local coffee shop and Ben and Megan go off to school. The house is sooooo quiet after 7:30am....the dogs settle down and go back to sleep and I usually spend some time reading on the computer...catching up with emails and blogs and the ever changing Facebook statuses .....have you ever noticed some of the statuses..do I really want to know that you cooked a turkey, and a roast, cleaned your whole house, made 5 dozen cookies for the bake sale AND did it all before 10:30 in the morning!! Maybe I'm just feeling guilty cause I'm just in my nightgown reading this but good grief! Anyways...no, I'm not normally in my nightclothes still at 10:30am...I exaggerate....but sometime these statuses just give you far too much information!

Yes, life is getting there ...had two appointments yesterday...one was with our Children's Aid office...(NO WE ARE NOT ADOPTING MORE...WASH YOUR MOUTH OUT).....they wanted to talk to me about going to an information night for foster parents wanting to adopt...they thought I might have some knowledge in that area....after much laughter, I agreed to do that....and then I was suppose to go for a massage in the afternoon but on the way home from the first appointment I ran into a freak snowstorm....good grief...I'm not sure just what is going on with winter in our area of Canada but it's really weird...so far we've had two minor snowfalls, including yesterdays and it's coming up to the end of January....the weather guy said last night that we'll lose this snow by Sunday! Now, personally, I'm not a snow person, I know,....people in Canada are portrayed as loving snow and cold but really....some of us prefer the milder temps...really...honest! Back to my massage appointment...that I ended up rescheduling when it took me forever to get home from the first appointment and when I slowed to take a corner my abs brakes kept coming on to prevent me from sliding...I thought...'okay, I'm not willing to end up in a ditch just to get a massage and in all likelihood, undo any benefits of the massage! So, I rescheduled for today....which is hubby's alternate Friday off...which up until last night he said he'd have to work it....but..last night he said he was taking it off...so, hubby's day off wont be anything spectacular- grocery shopping, massage, paint shopping...finally picking out colours for the office (the bedroom that used to be Maya's)...and then taking the kids to youth group this evening...a ho hum regular day.....

Oh, and I'm working on a quilt wall hanging for the grand girls new bedroom,...they don't know about it so don't tell....it has a lot of appliqué which I've never really done before but it's kinda cute...I'll have to take a pic when it's done....so, ya..off to a regular routine day.....hope you all have a good one!

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My Day..

Good Morning...the sun is shining, hubby is 'at the gate', according to his text, at Buffalo airport waiting to board for his flight to Florida, Ben and Megan have left for school, Maya has crawled into bed ( after working her first night shift at Tim Horton's )..... And the dogs are sleeping...the house is quiet...I'm sitting here, contemplating my day....many things to do...tidy up from the weekend, put the quilting room in order cause little William should be sleeping in it tonight....eldest son Ryan is coming down, with his family, to join in the effort to get eldest daughter's house built so they can move in, five weeks from this Wednesday. Last week number three son helped building walls also....he said he enjoyed it....good thing he likes the cold....no heat on in the new house yet.....but number three son went back to the army, ( his regular job, he normally lives on base about five hours away from here)....which is good, cause them Maya could move back into the room he was using (which was hers, before army guy came home,) to make room for eldest son's family, to stay in her new room....confused yet? It's like musical rooms(chairs) around here! That's okay...we will survive! .....when Maya wakes up then I'll get the vacuuming accomplished.....sometime today, I'll get my quilting stuff gathered up cause tomorrow is quilting class! Yea!! It'll be good to see the ladies again. I have to try and find out today, just what is going on with Emma, our wayward daughter...she is suppose to be returning to the youth home today....if she behaved herself all weekend and came home for her curfew at the youth shelter(which is a different place than the youth home).... Haven't heard from her since last Thursday when she sent me some confusing texts....I sent her a text last night but she didn't respond. So, I guess i'll try the shelter and see if she's still there. It's a sunny day, and there are things to do, places to go, people to see...guess I'll get on with my day...have a good one! - Posted using BlogPress from my iPad