A new year....

I have slacked quite a bit in my blogging. I had slowed down quite a bit before my mother passed away and then....it seems I just kind of quit. I have been lax about many things.

To my wonderful husband I apologize for being a slacker of a wife. You are so very good to me and you deserve nothing but the best.

I have mentioned before that I am a lucky woman, and I am reminded daily how true that is.

I sit here typing this and he is scurry around cleaning after he went to the store and shopped for our New Year's Eve dinner and for New Year's Day, too!

On top of that, I was um, slightly stranded at work in my new car, which of course had me wound up. Once I reached him he was on his way to get me so I would not be alone waiting for AAA.

After I got off the phone with him I called the service manager back at the Saturn dealer and asked him a question....."if it was the battery, why will the key not turn in the ignition"...well, my car made the third one he has had this happen to this week, and not the same kind of car. Apparently the steering wheel was locked in just the right spot and once I jiggled the steering wheel the key finally turned and started. Of course this happened after I went "Judy" on the dealership and they were nice to me in spite of it.

Then, I called my husband who was almost to where I was and just came home. Where I am finally and looking forward to a lovely New Year's Eve with the answer to my prayers.

I used to ad a little something to prayers at night. I would pray that God would bring me someone special, to love me for me, and who would help me to become a better person.

Well, God could not have answered all those prayers in a better way.

Tomorrow is new year, it is time for the resolutions we all make. I have many in mind this year. Mostly I resolve to be a better wife, to the man that I love, with all of my heart- my husband, Sam Williams.

Thank you, God!

Day, by day...

It sure has been a difficult few months, losing a parent is such a hard thing to get through.

When you lose the first parent you still have one to turn too when you need, your parent. When you loose the one you still could turn too, boy is that tough.

There really is not a way to discribe it.

I know many of you know what it feels like. I know too, that time is the only thing that helps...

The firsts that you go through after losing a loved ones are tough too, yet, in ways even tougher when you don't have a parent to share the holidays with.

And me, I totally blew the last holiday I had with my mother, now she is gone and I can not make it up to her.

I hope and pray, so much that my mother knew how much I loved her, and how very, very much I miss her....more and more...day by day.....

I love you and I miss you so much mom!

"modern day packaging"...

"Modern day packaging"....

Something I remember my dad saying a lot as he had a hard time opening something. I find myself saying it more and more.

Think about it....you have cold pills, sinus pills in packaging that is more often than not difficult to open. Medicines that people are taking because they are sick. You have to wonder if the manufacturer even thinks about it when they design the packaging or do they just think "oh wouldn't it be funny to have people who are sick struggling to open these pills they just bought with the hopes of feeling better".

My husband mentioned to how they put arthritis pills in child proof containers...whats up with that....people who have sore fingers and you put the pills in containers that make it more difficult to open....

Boy, dad, did you know what you were saying when you would sputter about the "modern day packaging"....(it's only gotten worse dad)

It sucks!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I WANT MY MOM BACK!!!!!!!!!!!!!

too hard to write about...

It has been over a month since I have written.

Boy, has it been one rough month.

My birthday is October 3rd. It was a nice birthday. I went to dinner with my husband and step-daughter Emlyn. We went to a nearby Italian restaurant that we like. It was a good dinner, we had a nice time. It is not a fancy place, but the waitress brought me a dessert and sang to me. I certainly was not expecting that. But it was fun.

We then came home and I opened my birthday gifts. A cast iron grill pan from Emlyn...boy is that thing heavy! Works great too! From my wonderful husband I got a great sweater, a fun and colorful bowl for pasta dinners, a Danielle Steel book, did I mention my husband is wonderful. He shopped at the new Kohl's store that just opened here, because he knows I like Kohl's...and boy does it sound like his shopping trip was an adventure.

We had a wonderful light dessert that he bought, it was very delicious and moist and I blew out candles and they sang to me.

I turned 45 this year. Numerically this was to be a cool year. On the 3rd I would turn 45 and on the 6th my mom would turn 78.....get it....3-4-5-6-7-8!

We went to bed and because I had tried to call my sister back I had the phone on the night stand next to me.

That phone rang around 2 am and I wished it had never rang. At that point my worst nightmare was beginning.

It was my sister, they were on the way to the hospital with my mother. My niece Julie had heard her fall and found her and called the ambulance and my sister, Judy. She said they would call me when they knew more.

Oh, what a long night, sitting and waiting for that phone to ring, yet, not wanting it to ring. That theory "no news is good news".

When she called back, upset of course, she told me that they thought it had been a stroke and they had her sedated. Judy was upset too because Julie kind of kept her distance from her. They are not as close as Julie and I are, but I was there with Julie when her mom died, and I lived with her and my mom since she was 10, that is half her life. It is natural for her to be closer to me.

What could I do, I am 1200 miles away. Helpless is how I felt. I tried to think of who I could call that would be a help to Judy, and Julie. I tried to call my cousin Diane, but she did not answer so I tried her daughter Stacey, and she called her mom who called me back.

Help was on its way to the hospital. Yet, I sat here in Florida feeling totally helpless.

Praying for good news, but it was not to come.

After a long sleepless night they told me I should fly back to Michigan, that it did not look good.

My husband booked me a flight, my cousins picked me up at the airport and off to the hospital I went. I was so afraid in the car on the way there to ask how mom was doing. Somehow I guess I knew it was not going to be good.

Mom had suffered a massive aneurysm. If she survived she would be in a vegetative state.

Basically they were just waiting for me to get there.

Too hard to write about in one sitting...so...end part one.

a must see....

Emlyn turned me on to a great web site. http://www.icanhascheezburgers.com/ You have to check it out. They have hilarious pictures of cats that people put humorous captions on. They also have link to "loldogs" which is also great.

Her house is the home to 2 dogs, and 2 cats. None are hers, they are my nieces, plus one of mine. Though, my mother is their caretaker. She will not admit to loving them but she does. (I know you do mom!)

This picture made me think of my mother!

I'm getting old....

Oh, man, I do feel old sometimes....especially when I think about my cousin Diane's daughter Stacey.

She was born the year I graduated from high school. Now...she has two beautiful little ones of her own.

This summer when I went north my niece Julie, and I went to the zoo with Stacey, Noah, and Taylor. Oh, what a hot day that was, but, it was my idea. It was worth the memories though.

Boy did I feel old that day....

Like mother...like daughter....

Hm...who else thinks my mother and sister look a little alike ;o)

My mother, Norma, aka Doris!

My sister, Judy, aka Big Bird!

Colors!!

We are coming up on a month since we have been back in the house. I still look around and think wow! We have some bright colors in our life now, and I am just loving it.

Some may think, "wow, bright colors" but they look so great. With each thing we put back in place it amazes me. Sam re-hung the valance we had in the kitchen, and wow, it looks even better.

It is amazing too that little changes can make such a difference. When I was still living with my mother and painted her kitchen I suggested swapping out the old outlets and switches, but no...she wanted nothing to do with that.

Well, we did and even that made a big difference. Maybe, just maybe my mother may trust my judgement on something.

We bought new curtain rods for the living room and they just play so well off the wall sconce that Sam got me for my birthday a couple of years ago.

Not only am I blessed with a wonderful loving husband, but my husband is an artist with the most amazing eye for detail, and what would or would not look good.

The wall colors look so wonderful with his paintings that grace our walls.

I even keep looking at the fireplace. Our woodwork/trim before was painted a kind of seafoam green color. Now it is a biscuit color and boy does it make the mantel look great, it even shows off the stones of the fireplace better, it revives them. We have a cathedral ceiling and there is a wall that devides our living room and kitchen. We have books lined on this wall, and it looks great...even better with the biscuit trim.

You just don't know how much better something can look until you change it.

Now, I am all for "if it ain't broke don't fix it". Well, we were broke and now we are fixed! Living in a home now filled with color!

Prayers do get answered....

I woke up this morning watched my husband sleep and was reminded of how lucky I am. Lucky that God brought me something I had always prayed for- "someone to love me for me that would help me grow into a better person". He takes such wonderful care of me, spoils me actually.

All last week for some reason I was just so tired, one night I had a sore throat. I was in bed, and asleep most nights by 9:30.

Sam, though he has a much more difficult and stressful job than I do shopped for, and made dinner all week. Now, that I think about it the weekend before he cooked all weekend. Very delicious meals.

I doubt he realized what he was taking on when he married me, he has to talk me off the ledge often. But he is good at it...

Thank you babe, for not giving up on me, and thank you, God for answering my prayers in the best way!

You won't regret it!!!

We have splashed some color into our lives!

Boy, am I a lucky woman.

God blessed me with a loving and patient man.

We are finally back in our home, and boy does it look great! I look around when I am there and still am in awe that it is our house!

It was a long 10 days in the hotel but it was sure worth it. There are still a few things to be done but….boy does it look great! Even things we have had that we put on the walls seem to have taken on a new life.

We have great new light fixtures in the kitchen and dining area, including a ceiling fan in the kitchen which really makes a difference. The ceiling fixture in our bedroom was for some strange reason in the corner of the room behind the door. My oldest stepdaughter Kendra bought us a light fixture for out bedroom when we got married we had intended to just hang it in the corner and swag it to the center of the room. Well, they moved it to the center of the room for us and it looks just great!

The kitchen is also so much more roomier. My brilliant stepdaughter Kendra had the idea to move the bar part of the counter over. They moved it over just about a foot and it seems like a mile. Sam did some measuring and reconfigured some cabinets to move the refrigerator out of the corner and wow what a difference it makes.

I will put some pictures on when I can find the camera. We are plucking away and putting the house back together.

Sam has been working like a dog, me working like a weak little puppy! Even as I write this he is headed out the door to mow the front lawn before it gets dark. I must say again...boy am I a lucky woman.

So.....If you are sitting in your house right now and just looking a white or off white walls do yourself a favor and splash some color on them, you won't regret it!!

Why are they always in the corner?

Okay, we are still at the hotel, but the house is coming along very nicely. Hopefully Wednesday night.

I was in the bathroom this morning, Sam and Emlyn both still asleep.

Look over in a corner and what appears before my eyes? Nope, not Santa. A huge brown spider!

I grab a wad of toilet paper. I work up the courage, position myself just right, work up the courage and go in for the kill.

What happens next...well...a million, did I say million, I mean billion tiny baby spiders run all over! Of course at this point I scream. Then, grab my hair spray to slow them down so I can catch them. Sam then came to see if I was okay, and went back to bed.

Then I got them all cleaned up and flushed the toilet....and well....needed a plunger. So, I came out got on some pants and a t-shirt went and snagged the maintenance guy as he was on his way out for a smoke and got a plunger. I confessed to using excess toilet paper to kill a spider, and well, he laughed, said it probably got under the door.

Why....I ask you why...are they always in the corner?