My Mom's Moves

There is something about approaching June that seems to make my Mom want to move ... or so it seems that way. I know I mentioned dealing with my Mom's health issues and being a part of the "Sandwich Generation" in my first post but I must tell you that I had nooooo idea what these phrases really meant. It all started a few years back when we noticed that her steps had become shorter and shorter. I started looking at Independent Living facilities because I was concerned about her falling. She balked on this idea and needless to say it was just a matter of time before she had a fall that put her in a nursing home and on dialysis for a period of time. From the nursing home we had to move her to an Assisted Living facility that eventually shut down causing her to have to move another Assisted Living facility. We thought we had her settled into a nice place when she started insisting on moving back to her home which is in a small town about 30 miles away. On June 1, 2007 she moved back to her home. It did not take but a few months for her to decide that she would rather be closer to all of us (there are 3 of us). So June 10, 2008 she moved back to our town and decided to finally put her home up for sale. Believe me, I am sparing you of all of the smaller details involved but I am sure you get the drift. She is now settled into a very comfortable 2 bedroom garden apartment but the drama surrounding her needs continue. For those of you who have experienced some of what I am talking about, I know you can identify but to the others you are probably saying "so what is the big deal? " The big deal is you love your mother and you want to do everything you can to make her happy and comfortable but for some seniors (hopefully not all) this is an exhausting feat to accomplish. Hopefully, today I have found someone to come to her home to do some of her small homemaking chores which I have also discovered is not as easy to get someone as you might think. Anyway, I just continue to pray for strength so I am able to fulfill the needs of an aging parent along with the occasional needs of other family members including my adult children.

Sadly Missed

I have not blogged in quite a while but today I feel so full of thoughts that I need to express. Firstly, I would like to say Tim we will miss you! I am not a person who readily feels attached to TV personalities so I must say that Tim's passing has struck me with a surprisingly deep sense of loss. I have watched closely throughout this 2008 political process and have searched for the truth wherever I can find it and can honestly say that anytime I had watched Tim Russert's interviews I would come away with a feeling of exhaustion for the interviewee and also feeling that some (often minute) element of truth had just been brought to the forefront. Tim's sense of fairness and his dedication to report the truth were qualities that I have admired and respected in him. This is a sad day and a tremendous loss ..... to all of us.

Fiberlicious!

I LOVE the luscious and vibrantly colored Japanese yarns! My favorite is Noro Kureyon that has such interesting colors and striping.



Although I had vowed not to start on another new project before tackling some of my UFOS, after seeing this delicious yarn I just could not resist working with it so I started crocheting a basic ripple stitch scarf.



Here are some of the other Japanese yarn selections that I simply could not pass by in the store.

Back to My UFOs

UFOs, UFOs, --they are everywhere sooo I have finally decided to tackle them by starting with this little skinny crochet scarf that I had worked on at the end of the last winter season. This was a great pattern with lots of crochet stitches which I had chosen to help jump start me back into doing a few crochet items. Although I had finished the scarf itself, I had neglected to actually finish the entire project by not crocheting a cute little posey that was supposed to then be attached to the scarf.


Here is the cute little posey that took all of 15 minutes to complete. Can you believe that it took me this long to start on it and finally complete the project?



The FINISHED product -- TaDa!!!



And here is the wonderful book of patterns that I used for this scarf that has many other stylish, skinny little crochet scarves. I highly recommend this book for anyone interested in creating a few fast and easy gifts for the upcoming holiday season!

More Iowa City Trip Pix

These are my guys just posing a little before we head home.

Here are a few random shots of downtown Iowa City which is a typical sleepy little college town.

This above pic is the doorway to my son's downtown apartment. Notice the Brueggers Bakery right next door. Yummmm.

On the left is the downtown mallway. Above is also the mallway taken from our hotel room.

OSU 38 -- IOWA 17

A couple of weeks ago, my husband, my son, his friend (our adopted son) and I headed to IOWA CITY to help cheer the OSU Buckeyes to victory against the Iowa Hawkeyes. This was such an exciting trip for all of us especially since we would also be visiting our oldest son who happens to be an Iowa Hawkeye! The game was so exciting and to add to the excitement my Hawkeye son and I sent text messages back and forth throughout the game just to jeer at each other which added to the frenzy. Of course, we had a fabulous time primarily because OSU played a great game and won but I also started to realize that a lot of the fun was being generated from being in Hawkeye country. This might sound strange coming from a Buckeye but I quickly realized that the University of Iowa had something special that I do not experience at the Ohio State games and it was the way the fans REALLY, REALLLY enjoy their school, their team and their surroundings.

My observations of this experience was that the University of Iowa students played a prominent role in the Hawkeye's fan base. They not only had excellent seating but they seemed to be in lock step in their support for their team. I believe this attitude even filtered over into the seating that OSU students and Alumni were provided; which were seats that were better than we have ever experienced at the Shoe. We also saw tailgaters AND Motorhomes EVERYWHERE (even approaching Kinnick stadium) which never happens at Ohio State (since they are relegated to tailgating a hidden distance away). There were even real street vendors with all sorts of goods (even Big Ass Turkey Legs) lining one of the main streets leading to the stadium. What a festive and truly enjoyable event this was with real people taking part in it!!! This experience made me realize that the University of Iowa and their students and fans still had something very special that has long been SOLD OUT at the Ohio State University.

I have a few more pix to show you from the trip but I cannot get them to load properly right now so I will post later.

Reflections

Well, here is the other photo I had previously attempted to upload but blogger would not comply. Anyway, this photo represents to me more reflections of my past. This week as I have been trying to air out and clean my Mom's house (located 30 miles away) and tidy up her yard, I have had time to reflect on times yore and the more simple life. Since her house is located in a smaller town, I have rediscovered in my shopping efforts that the retail people are friendlier and that the neighbors are friendlier and that being in her yard which is larger and a little more remote than my yard is more pleasant. Hmmm.... along with major construction and chaos near and in my neighborhood and having neighbors that are not so wonderful the idea of maybe having a little more land and/or moving to a somewhat more remote area is really beginning to appeal to me. My husband and I continue to mull over these thoughts.

My Mom in the meantime is still recovering from her hip replacement surgery and lives in an assisted living facility not far from me. She is not quite sure if she wants to return to her home but is not ready yet to give it up. Needless to say, my family is working very hard to maintain our existing homes, her new living facility and her home in another city. She is very demanding and we try to comply but this is all so exhausting!

Reunion Time

After getting my Mom through a successful "hip replacement" surgery, my husband and I thought we might get away to a family reunion down near Augusta, Ga. Although the heat and humidity in Georgia in August can be unbearable, we were spared by a few rain showers that cooled the air for which I am very thankful. Due to my sinus and allergy problems, I normally will not venture in that direction until after October but I thought I would give it a try. Anyway, the shed in this picture was one I could not resist taking since it reminded me so much of a shed that was located on my grandma's farm in North Carolina. Notice the red dirt (clay) road in the foreground. Attending family reunions certainly can take you back to a storehouse of memories that you did not even know that you had.

I had a few others pix that I wanted to post but blogger is not cooperating so I will just post this much for now.

Regaining the Balance

Upon careful thought of my hectic life over the past year, I have decided that what I need is to add balance back into my life. I have not done much in the way of creative outlets for myself for quite some time so since my yard and flowers were in such desperate need of attention I thought I would start there first. Weeding the pots and just simply paying attention and appreciating their beauty certainly can go a long way! This is one of my favorite pots primarily because of the dramatic burst of dark red coloring offered via the coleus plants.

Here are just a few more of the pots that I have on my deck.

After enjoying the flower pots, I thought I would start tackling the yardwork by doing some weeding and getting around to adding mulch that had been purchased a couple of months ago.

The photo on the left is the before image and the one on the right is after doing a little work. I really do need to venture out and clear my mind in the yard a little more.

It's Like That!

I have decided that today is the day.... I love reading other people's blogs and have often thought about why people blog. Do they all blog because they have something wonderful to say to the world or is it that sometimes they blog just to be able to release some of their thoughts so that they can think more clearly? Well, this blog certainly will not exist because I have anything profound to say to the world. In fact, as the name of this blog suggests, I will be blogging on whatever is on my mind depending on that given day since I have been known to change my focus depending on what day it is. Although I tend to lean toward artistic endeavors and I love anything fiber-related, I also find myself occasionally filled with political opinions that spill out. Right now, since I have two sons in their twenties and I am working with my Mom to help with some of her health issues, my focus is that of other "Sandwich Generation" folks who find themselves squeezed in the middle with very little time for themselves. So, anyway, here we go..........