She's Moving Tomorrow... Unless She Doesn't.

I feel like I've been gone forever from this place and have returned "home." 

I'll be leaving early in the morning to stay with my mother for a couple of hours.  Lord willing, they will be moving her to the new rehabilitation facility.  I will be so glad to see her moved and her rigorous therapy started.

We had such a wonderful visit yesterday.  She looked beautiful, her cheeks were full of color, we laughed and talked and shared some things about the Lord with each other.  It was sweet.  She was able to pull herself up on the side of the bed and with the help of the physical therapist, she was able to stand up and then sit in her wheel chair.  They wouldn't let me push her off the floor she's on, but I did get to push her around the halls on her floor.  It was sweet to see how excited she got to see some of the trees in the parking lot in full bloom.  I wish I could have taken her onto the patio for a little bit.  But maybe we can do that at the new place.  It'll be good for her to get some fresh air!
This picture was taken just a few days after her surgery.  We had just come from the kid's awards banquet at church.  It was the first one she's missed in nine years, since Justin was in SIGMA.  She was so sad.

 The next two were taken a couple of weeks ago when we were out celebrating my friend's birthday.  We had a good visit and some good laughs. 

 We made her wear Amanda's angel wings and halo.  Isn't she cute?  LOL  She's gonna whip me when she sees I put this on here.

She was having problems with her blood pressure being too low this morning.  They took her off a nitro-patch, her bp meds, and water pills.  It seems to be rising again.  Her temperature got down to 95 and was falling, but it's going back up too.  So we're very thankful for that.
She was to learn Psalm 19:3 this week and tomorrow I'll have another verse for her to learn and focus on. 
So tomorrow she moves.  Unless, of course, she doesn't.  Which is a possibility if they can't get her bp regulated.  But I'm going to the hospital in faith that she's moving!!  :)

Psalm 19:3 "There is no speech nor language where their voice is not heard." 

A Little Catching Up

I turned 42 last week.  That was fun.  Bruce grilled steaks and invited his mom over.  I loved it.  Just wish my mama could have been here too.  She always enjoys coming for our birthday dinners. 
Justin had to work and we missed him, but he made up for it on his next day off with a sweet visit.
Bruce is planning on taking me to Mt. Airy soon.  That's actually what I wanted to do for my birthday.  So when mama gets things settled in at her new rehab facility, we'll slip off for the day. 

Speaking of mom, unless things go hay-ninny again, she'll be moving to the new rehab Monday.  Very excited about this next move!  We'll be on the fast track to rehabilitation! 

Hannah is working for Chick-fil-A now.  She loves her job and they are a great company to work for. 

Harrison is enjoying his summer.  He's already been to one camp and is planning on another soon.  He's spending time with friends right now and I'm sure they will be in a ton of mischief this weekend.   

Justin is still working for a company in Gaffney and doing his time at the fire department.  He bought a new car recently and is living on his own at my mom's house.  He'll be taking care of things until mom comes back home later in the fall or until he finds another place to live.

It looks as though Bruce may be going to first shift soon.  This will be a HUGE change in our home, considering for the last twenty years, he's worked swing shifts or permanent second or third.  We have no idea if and when it is actually going to happen.  But if and when it does, we'll be very happy. 

The photography business has been good.  I sure can't complain.  Still taking pictures and still enjoying it.  Three weddings this Spring between March and June.  The first couple just found out they're expecting their first baby.  We're all very happy and excited for them. 

 The second couple is working and enjoying their summer, awaiting the time when he returns to Bible college in the fall.

And the third couple is the newest of the newlyweds.  Lovin' life and enjoying marriage.

 



 It's been a good run of beautiful weddings.  I've enjoyed each one.  Praying for these new couples as they begin their lives together.  Love them all and want to see many blessings fall on them.

I'm Back!

I didn't want to leave Thimble Thoughts.  It was my first blog and I liked it!  It was me. 

Bullies made me stop blogging.  They took all the fun out of it.  So I started another one and kept it as private as possible.  But it seemed as though I just couldn't make myself write blogs there.  It took a lot of self persuasion to write a post.  I was telling this to a friend of mine (RC) and she encouraged me to keep up the blogging.  Little did she know that her few words of encouragement encouraged me to, not only blog again, but blog again here.  So.... here I am.

We have had a very exciting few months with my mom.  She fell and broke her femur in the early morning hours of May 22nd. One of the two worst bones in the body she could have broken.  Daddy always did tell us that if you're going to do something, do it big.  And boy, did she! 

She ended up needing a plate from her hip to her knee.  She was moved from a hospital to a nursing home and rehab facility in Charlotte an hour away.  There were so many things wrong with this place it was terrible.  One night she was having very scary symptoms that resembled a heart attack.  Lack of care, being what it was, I ended up having to call 911 for her because we couldn't get anyone on the phone to get to her room.  She was taken straight from that rat hole to a hospital closer to home.  There was no heart attack, thank the Lord!  But they did find pneumonia and an infection in her wound.  They had to open her incision back up to remove the infection and sent off cultures to see if they could find out where the infection came from and what kind it was. They left the wound open and packed.  It is healing nicely.  The last week or so, she was having other episodes and has been moved from the third floor orthopedic floor to the fifth floor heart ward several times.  Every heart test they have done shows her heart is in great working order and her blood flow is equally great. I spoke to several nurses and told them what I thought it was... anxiety.  They agreed.  I think they thought it was that anyway but needed to test her for everything just to make sure.  Which I'm glad they did.  They have been so good there and so caring.  I appreciate all they've done.

Our next step is getting her to a very good rehabilitation center about forty minutes from here.  Lord willing we'll be able to get her there as soon as possible and this week!  I would love to see that happen.  She has been through so much.  Since she hasn't been able to put any weight on the leg for a while and has been in bed since May 22nd, I am very eager to get her back up and in the throws of very strict rehabilitation.  She's been getting about an hour a day.  At the facility she's going to she will receive three hours a day.  This place is a hospital whose main goal is rehabilitating a patient back to independence.  And that's what we want for her. 

She has faced some very dark days and the Lord has showed us many things through her trial.  I am thankful she has had the Lord to pull her through.  We have both shed some tears, been frustrated, tired, and scared.  But we have much to be thankful for and much to praise our God for. 

My friend (RC) is the main blogger at Mountains and Valleys blog.  As I thought about her and the title of her blog, I thought about how mom has been in the valley and how I've been there with her.  Some would feel sorry for us being there in the valley.  But as I thought about it the other night, I realized that being on the mountain is good, but being in the valley is almost better.  Being in the valley is where we find the green pastures.  The still waters.  The shadows from the mountains around us keep us shaded.  Yes, there are things in the valley that will attack us and try to destroy us.  But the Shepherd is there to protect us if we just trust Him.

Do I glory in my trials?  I don't know if I can say THAT!  LOL  But I do glory in my Savior.  And He will eventually lead us out of this valley and we will once again stand on the mountain for those below us to see and know that what God did for us, He will do for them.   

I have so much to tell you and so much to share with you.  I'm just glad to be back at Thimble Thoughts.  I've missed it.  I've missed you.

Saying Goodbye to Thimble Thoughts

Well, this is the very last post for Thimble Thoughts. I'm shutting it down. I'll keep it up for archiving, but all comments and things like that will be off.

I've started a new blog. If you are interested in having the link to my new blog, please email me at kristim71@yahoo.com or leave your email in the comments of this blog post.

I won't promise I'll be sending it to you. For now I'd like to keep it for those that I've known through blogging or I know personally.

For those of you I won't add right away, I'll be happy to copy and paste an email for you for a while until I'm comfortable about sending you a link.

Thank you so much for being a friend to Thimble Thoughts and I look forward to starting fresh and new at my new blog.

Registered and Ready to Go!

Hannah took her placement test to start classes at our community college.  She did very good and so we got her registered today to start classes towards her diploma in Early Childhood Development.  She placed out of her English and Math, which means she doesn't have to take it now unless she wants to.  I think she might want to, just to get it out of the way.  She is nervously excited to begin.  Going through the bookstore on campus I was shocked at how expensive it is to rent a book.  Not BUY one, but RENT one.  Justin's were never that expensive.  They have really gone up on the books in the last couple of years.  Thankfully, a few of the books she needs can be downloaded to her Kindle.  That's nice.  But they're still rentals at $70 bucks.  LOL

So, we're heading into a new year.  How ya likin' it so far?    We had a great time at Brother Ken and Mrs. Tammy's house New Year's Eve.  We shot guns, ate bbq, and had some terrific fellowship.  More friends showed up and it was several hours of laughter.  We had a GREAT time!
I'm not making a resolution.  I don't really believe in making those.  I do believe in setting goals.  My goal this year is to be more compassionate toward others, to pray for my leaders in government no matter how I feel about their politics, to shine the Light of Jesus more to those I come into contact with, and yeah.... lose more weight.

I lost two pounds between Thanksgiving and Christmas.  But I gained them back between Christmas and New Year's.  But I'm ok with that.  I stayed the same and I'm good.  I'm ready to get back into the swing of things.  Which I've already begun.  I received a Cato gift card for Christmas and decided I'd hold on to it for motivation and when I lose fifteen more pounds I'll go buy something new.  I love Cato's, so this is good motivation!

Bruce was bitten on his hip the other day by something, we're not sure what.  It swelled up pretty good and looked bad enough to go to the doctor and sure enough it was infected.  So the doctor prescribed him an antibiotic.  I'm glad he was able to do that before the weekend got here.  Hopefully it'll be looking better by tomorrow.

A Month of Christmas Festivities

Wow, did I really go this whole month and not post anything??  Guess so.
We've had a great CHRISTmas season.  This month has been fabulous! 
I was blessed with several photo shoots.  Some for Christmas, but mostly for engaged couples.  What fun we've had!

Bradley and Bethany are getting married soon.  I believe they are 90+days away. 

Had fun shooting this family.  They're always ready for a good laugh and we had plenty during this shoot.

Hannah and Nathan B all tangled up in lights.  LOL

Rebecca and Matt will be tying the knot next year.  They are really fun to be around and I know they'll have a happy life together.

Ashley will be Gary's June bride.  Looking forward to this wedding.  Daddy would have loved to have seen this boy get married and he would have had fun getting to know Ashley.

And the last one this month was the Mongiello family.  They wanted to do a Happy new Year card at their Inn of the Patriots Bed and Breakfast in Grover, NC.  So we snapped some shots and their little girl was ever bit the two year old she is.  She was all over the place.  It was funny.  LOL  I had the opportunity to snap some shots around the inn and I'm excited about seeing all the pictures.

~~~~~

We celebrated our 22nd Anniversary.  We spent the day doing things we enjoy and having a good time together.  I sure do love that sweetheart of mine.

 Christmas Eve was spent at mom's house.  Josh was with us this year and read the story of Christ's birth before we opened our presents.  A tradition my daddy insisted on for as long as I can remember.  The story never gets old.

 Christmas Day we spent at my mother-in-law's house.  We had a great time with our family and always look forward to being together.

 Anyone who knows me personally, knows I like to carry a drink everywhere I go.  Hannah made me this super cool, on the go cup.  I LOVE it!  It has definitely made the top of my favorite things list.

 Our Sunday school class had a good time at our party.  We had some kickin' food, fun, and fellowship.  I love my class.

 One of the highlights of this month was when Hannah and I took mom and Marie (my mother in law) to see The Real Christmas Story at Narroway Productions in Rock Hill.  We took them to dinner and then the show and, even though I was suffering TERRIBLY with a kidney stone, we still had the BEST time. 

 Last Sunday I directed our Christmas play, From the Cradle to the Crown.  There were several saved and several getting things right with God.  The play was beautiful.  Some laughs and many tears.  The last time we did this play was nearly ten years ago and my dad was one of the people in the play.  The Holy Spirit was all over it!

 Sigma went to see the lights here in town, out to eat, and back to the fellowship building for games.  We had a blast that night.  Those Sigma kids are nuts.

I was happy to reveal myself as Anna's secret pal.  She was fun to buy for this year and I love her sweet spirit.

The churchwide Christmas party was a hoot!  And this table sure did sing their part of The Twelve Days of Christmas!  They had "..five golden rings" and they let it rip, I'm tellin' ya.  It was hilarious.

 And last but not least, we celebrated Bruce's birthday.  I won't mention how old he turned.  But there's a not-so-hidden clue in this picture. :D

 It has been a very busy month.  Pretty sure I've missed something.  But oh well.  Whatever.

We had a joyous and special Christmas and I am looking forward to seeing what the Lord has in store for 2013.

~~~~~

We'll be celebrating New Year's Eve at a friend's home, shooting guns before they're illegal and piggin' out on BBQ.  What will you be doing?

Please forgive any grammar or misspelled words.  It's late and I'm too tired to proof read.  I'm goin' sleepy-time.

-_-

Dinner With Friends and New Traditions

First of all, thank you for those who have prayed for mom.  She had her first doctor's appointment since she was in the hosptial and she received a very good report.  Lungs seem to be all clear and she doesn't have to go back until after the first of the year.  Praise the Lord for the good report!
~~~~~
Last night a friend of mine took me and another friend out to dinner for Christmas.  We had such a great time.  We sat and talked at the restaurant for a while, laughing and telling stories.  It was so FUN!  She also gave us each a Bath and Body Works wallflower...Frosted Cranberry.  I plugged it in as soon as I got home.  It smells sooooo good! 
When we left the restaurant she took us to a neighborhood where a couple of the houses had their lights set to a radio station.  So we listened to Christmas music and watched as the lights danced to the music.  It was so beautiful and I can't wait to take Bruce and the kids to see them.
We weren't ready for the night to end so we ended up sitting at Dairy Queen and laughing at more funny stories.  I always come home feeling refreshed after dinner with those two.  I love my buddies!
~~~~~
We put the tree up and decorated yesterday.  Everything looks festive now.  Our calendar is pretty well filled up until January 5th.  So yesterday really kicked off our season and we are now into the full swing of the holiday festivities.
~~~~~
Today began a new tradition for our family.  I found a recipe for Grinch cookies on Pinterest and decided we would have a "Grinch Day."  So for lunch I used my Christmas china and fixed a yumm-o-licious lunch and afterward, I served the Grinch cookies with Grinch punch and we watched the classic version of How the Grinch Stole Christmas.  It was fun and the family liked it.  This will be one tradition we'll keep.  :)

Here's the recipe for the punch and cookies:

The punch is simple... I used the Hawaiian Green Berry Rush, 2lt Ginger Ale, and a can of Pineapple juice. You can stick those in the freezer until they're slushy or keep them in the fridge overnight so they'll be cold when you mix it. But you'll want to taste it as you mix to make sure you get all the flavors just the way you like it. And if you're feeling really Grinchy, you could add some lime sherbet floating on top. Oh yum, yes!

Under normal circumstances I don't like to use a premade cookie mix. Especially around the holidays. But since this was my first time making this I followed the directions and used one pouch of sugar cookie mix. However, I don't see why you couldn't use your favorite sugar cookie recipe.

*1 pouch of Sugar Cookie Mix
*1/2 c butter or margarine, softened
*1/4 to 1/2 tsp mint extract (My men do not like mint. So I did not add this.)
*6 to 8 drops of green food coloring.
*1 egg
*1 c creme de menthe baking chips. (Again...my men. I made half a batch mint free, and half a batch with the Nestle's Dark Chocolate and Mint Morsels.
*1 c semi sweet chocolate chips
Heat oven to 350* In large bowl, stir cookie mix, butter, extract, food coloring and egg until softened dough forms.
Stir in baking chips and chocolate chunks.
Drop dough 2" apart on cookie sheet.
Bake 8 to 10 min until set.
Cool 3 min on pan, transfer to wire rack for complete cooling.
Serve warm or cold. Store tightly at room temperature.

Thanksgiving and Pictures

For Thanksgiving, we spent the day with my Aunt at her home and most all of my mom's brothers and sisters.  Some of my cousins were able to make it and that was a true blessing for me. 

The picture above is of my mom and her twin brother, Jay. 

I don't get to see this side of our family as much as I'd like to.  Maybe once or twice a year.  If that.  So the turkey and dressing and oh-so-yummy yeast rolls were fantastic, but seeing my family was the icing on the cake, so to speak.  We had a fabulous time and there was a good crowd there.  We were even able to take our new son, Josh, with us.

 

Speaking of cake, I made a luscious, four layer pumpkin cake with caramel topping. 

 

 

I found the recipe on pinterest and it was a big hit.  Might make another one for our Sunday School Christmas party next week.

 

I was glad mom was able to spend Thanksgiving with all of us.  She had just gotten out of the hospital the Sunday before Thanksgiving.  She had a severe allergic reaction to her blood pressure medication which ended her up in the hospital.  While she was there, the doctors discovered she had pneumonia and that apparently, she had had it for a very long time.  Which would explain the cough and illness she has had for the last two years that has been continuously diagnosed.  The doctor said she was fortunate to be alive after taking those pills for so long.  If you are on medication that ends in "pril" and you have swelling off and on in your mouth, tongue, cheeks, or a persistent cough, have your doctor change that medicine right away.  The doctor said one more and it would have killed her.  She's been on them for several years.  Every once in a while she would call and tell me that she woke up with swelling in her mouth or jaw.  We couldn't figure out what it was.  Now we know!  She is currently home and recovering.  However, she is still a very sick lady and I am hoping that she will be much better by Christmas.  I'm thinking she has a good bit of recovery ahead of her.

 

I've also been busy with photography.  I've had the opportunity to get some beautiful pictures of beautiful people recently.  It's been nice to be busy with something I love doing.  Here are a few of my favorites from recent shoots...

 

The Brackett Family...

 

 Miss Madilyn...

John and Heather, newly engaged...

 

 The Rollins family...

Bradley and Bethany, newly engaged...

 

 

Cheyenne, sweet 16...

 

We've been fighting the stomach virus here at our home the last couple of days.  Hannah and Harry came down with it early Friday morning.  So far the rest of us are ok.  I'm hoping it passes through and doesn't hit the rest of us.  I'm not holding my breath, though.  Considering it's an airborne virus, I probably should be.  

We've been taking a home remedy of a tsp of apple cider vinegar every so often.  I hope it works.  I'd hate to be taking that nasty stuff for nothin'.  I chase it down with Ginger Ale.  LOL

 

I guess that's it for an update.  Hope y'all had a Happy Thanksgiving and that you begin to enjoy this beautiful season of Christmas.