Thursday, April 28, 2016

MY LAZY WEEK AND SOME THOUGHTS ABOUT THAT....

Well truthfully I have had another pretty slow week, and honestly I have enjoyed every minute of it. There are times I will be honest when a little bit of guilt creeps in when I have had such a week, as SOO many just don't have that privilege.  But I know that kind of guilt does NOT accomplish much, and so I do my best to push it right back out.  Goodness knows I have put in MANY years where I was just as busy as I could possibly be raising my 4 kids and running our home, involved with their schools and their sports and activities, and both opening my home for women's Bible studies and leading some of them myself. But again, sometimes the guilt creeps in there too as I never really had to work outside of our home, and I know many who had no choice.  I was grateful that this enabled me to do just what I had always desired to do, which was to BE a wife and mother and a keeper of our home.  It took me a while to settle into what in essence is "retirement" for me, even though my hubby is still busy working.  All of my children have LONG since been raised, are married, and are off busy on their own lives.  Not something that I gave much thought to truthfully when I was dreaming about my life as a wife and mother as a young girl.  Didn't at times really think that these days would actually ever arrive either when I was knee deep in it all.  Something else I didn't give much thought to was the possibility that this old body may not hold up as well as I figured it would if I took care of it. But in fact it REALLY limits what I am able to do now.  I know I have done PLENTY of complaining about my knees, but I am also experiencing the beginnings of Rheumatoid Arthritis as well.  And this I am finding out can at times be an even larger problems then the knees. And then there is also IBS, hypertension, AND pre-diabetes and let's not forget my bout with breast cancer...sigh. I WANT to be able to be active and DO soo much more then I do, but honestly I am finding myself more and more limited, and hey I am only sixty one!  But again I believe in my heart that my God has allowed ALL of these physical limitations in my life for a reason, and believe me I am SOOOOO grateful that I am able to be in position to have a slow week and no one is the worse for it.  Whatever would I have done had I had to deal with all of this when I was SOO busy?!  And again, I know some who do.  Soo all of this to say I have spent some time this week not doing much at all but enjoying the ABSOLUTELY gorgeous spring weather that we've been having, while sitting on my porch sipping tea and chatting with my ninety one year old neighbor woman Phyllis, who has seen soo much life, and whose stories are so interesting, they could entertain me for hours.   I've begun a new Karen Kingsbury book and spent some time enjoying that too.  There has been a couple of naps I might as well confess, and talked quite a bit on the phone with my daughter while she sat in her back yard watching her babies play.  How I LOVE doing that.  Even listening to her as she interacts with them reminds me soo much of days gone by.  In one of our conversations this week I was doing a little complaining about the fact that she was taking Claire for her one year old pictures and I wasn't there. About how I'd love to be able to be able to go with her and watch, or sit in that yard with her and watch the boys play, or many other just simple, everyday little things.  It just seems there is never time for any of those things when we are there, as time goes fast and there is always something specific going on or needing done.  I wondered aloud to her how it was that God had allowed my only daughter to live 1000 miles away from me, and this stage of my life as a result was just not how I had ever pictured it.  She had some very wise words to say to me, that as I contemplated them more later, filled with me a gratitude that she has indeed become a very mature Christian woman, and has the attitudes that she does.  She is no longer a little girl of course, but she is not even really a very young woman who just married and begun either as I often think of her being.  She is going on eight years already now, and has gathered MUCH wisdom and insight and growth along the way.  There is no doubt God will use her in some way I believe.  But anyway, she said, "Mom, never in a million years did I ever think that I would end up living in another state SOOO far away from you and the rest of my family, not to mention pretty much every friend I had ever known, AND! living a completely different way of life in the country, ON a dairy, and dreaming about building our new home on a farm.  NEVER IN A MILLION YEARS....and yet here I am.  And I KNOW deep in my heart that God has me just where He wants me to be... married to this man, and raising these children He's blessed us with, and involved in this small farming community with many more GOOD friends that I ever thought I would have out here.  And I find such comfort in the KNOWING.  I trust He has my best at heart and He always has.  I miss my family for sure...YOU in particular, but I am where I am supposed to be, and so are you.  I don't worry about our future the way I used to because I KNOW God's got it, no matter what should come our way."  It was words I needed to hear trust me, and I even though I was humbled somewhat by hearing them from my daughter, I was encouraged and delighted at the same time.  I love that she is happy, and that she has that relationship with God that I always desired most for her, and prayed about from the time she was a little girl.  I guess I will just have to trust as well that she IS right where God wants her to be, and be grateful for the times we do get to go and be with them, and for phones, face-time, Facebook and Instagram in the meantime.  Sooo I did do some embroidery this week as well which I did for the sheer pleasure of doing so.  My sister came across some flour sack towels and gave them to me I think I mentioned and I found some machine embroidery designs that were the days of the week and so I purchased a couple of sets of them and got busy.  It was sooo much fun that I am hoping to make several more sets, though the towels are a little more pricey then I hoped.  Let me show you...

I TRIED TAKING THIS WITH MY NEW MINI I-PAD, BUT IT WAS BLURRY WHICH I DIDN'T NOTICE TILL I POSTED HERE, BUT YOU GET THE IDEA AND I HAVE A GOOD PIC OF EACH ONE INDIVIDUALLY SO I WON'T BOTHER TO TAKE THIS AGAIN.










I thoroughly enjoyed doing these sunbonnet umbrella girls. Which one is your favorite?  I felt like I was coloring as I deliberated over what colored thread to use etc.  I did pick up a few new colors as well when I ran to the store to pick up some more stabilizer.  I always have such a hard time choosing...there are so many to pick from.  The towels have such a vintage look, and remind me of course so much of my mom.  I will keep this set for myself, not only because I can really use them, but because it took me a while to get them positioned where I wanted them on the towels and like it, and they are not exactly uniformly done, lol.  I will give you a glimpse of Claire's one year pics as well though these are NOT the professional ones, just the ones Melody snapped off to the side.


I GUESS SHE GAVE HER A CUPCAKE IN THE SESSION TO SEE HOW SHE WOULD DO.  SHE LOVED IT AS SHE DID HER CAKE WHEN SHE FIRST SAW IT, BUT AS SOON AS THE FROSTING STUCK TO HER FINGERS SHE WAS NOT A HAPPY GIRL, LOL

MELODY HAD ORDERED THIS LITTLE JEWELRY BOX TO GIVE HER ON HER FIRST BIRTHDAY BUT IT DIDN'T ARRIVE IN TIME.  SHE HAD PLENTY OF OTHER GIFTS FROM OTHERS TO KEEP HER HAPPY ANYWAY.  BUT IT FINALLY CAME THIS WEEK AND SHE WAS TOTALLY DELIGHTED WITH IT!

LOVED THIS....AND SAM'S FACE WATCHING HER, LOL
Well I guess that's it for now.  I do have the fabric and an idea of how I am going to put it together to make a cover for my new Ipad.  Hope my plan works out the way I see it in my head.  Hope you are all having a GOOD week.  Many blessings to you all!  Debbie



8 comments:

  1. Do we have to pick just one? I will go with Sunday, but they all bring back so many memories when we used to embroider dish towels, pillow cases and my mother even did little designs on our white socks to match details in the matching dresses she made us. It is a lost art along with so many other things that were a part of lives back when. I love Claire's sweet face as she's looking at the jewelry box.

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  2. you have no reason to feel guilty about taking time for yourself. you need to take care of yourself. Claire is so cute. I love all of the umbrella girls, you are very talented.

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  3. Debbie
    Your tea towels are so cute, very vintage!
    If anyone deserves a break, it's you. You are so busy sewing and making for everyone.
    Don't feel guilty for taking a break. Sweet Claire sure is a cutie.

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  4. Love the tea towels very much! Cannot believe that sweet Claire is a year old already, she is so cute!!

    Hugs!

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  5. Gosh, it just seems like Melody was pregnant and you were making baby clothes. I can't believe she is already one.
    I love the towels! They are just so wonderful. I think I like Tuesday. :) You know, it is hard having my daughter and her family not here. I have though, have seen and am seeing the way God is growing her up into such an incredible woman and I know why God had to have her move away from me. It hurts so much, but I see God's wisdom. I see so much growth in her and her husband. It might not have happened had God let her stay. I understand how hard it is on us Mom's. Melody, is learning and growing and learning so much and it is good she is able to tell you about it. It sure doesn't make it any easier.
    Lovely photos today Debbie.

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  6. I agree with our friend about it seeming like yesterday that Mel was pregnant. How time flies! Debbie I am always inspired by just how much you accomplish and I don't think you cut yourself any slack. You certainly sew and embroider more than I ever have. You are such an amazing woman, wife, mother, grandmother, writer, creator and friend! PS, Clair is adorable.
    Hugs,
    Noreen

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  7. I absolutely love to embroidery and these dish towels are just so charming. I enjoy smaller projects like these, or bigger ones, as well, when there is time.

    That Claire is simply precious!

    Enjoy your slow weeks, Debbie. You've earned them.

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  8. Your discussion is reminiscent of one a friend and I had yesterday where we decided to do as much as possible as long as possible because it is unlikely that life is going to get easier. That's the sad reality, but another truth is, as Melodie says, "God's got this." I like Wednesday's towel for the yellow sash, but then you could have guessed. =D Hope that you are enjoying a lovely weekend.

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I am so glad that you would take the time to comment on my thoughts and feelings, it is such a blessing to me!