My French monogrammed ribbon, an award and a RAK!

Hello dear friends,

I decided to make this a postive post and try to share some pictures with you. Alot of you know that I had ordered my ribbon from France. It arrived several weeks ago, but with all that was going on around here, I didn't take the time to share a picture with you. This is antique ribbon that was made in the 1920's! Oh, how I love it. They also sent me a small bag of beautiful buttons "just because". Isn't my ribbon pretty??



I can't wait to use some of it. My mind is swimming with ideas. :)

My dear friend CindyF sent me this sweet award and I just love it! Thank you, Cindy!



These blogs are exceedingly charming. These kind bloggers aim to be friends. They are not interested in self-aggrandizement. Our hope is that when the ribbon's of these prizes are cut, even more friendships are propagated. Please give more attention to these kind writers. When you pass the award along please include these guidelines. I am to choose eight friends to share this with. That's the hard part. I can't choose only 8. So if you are a follower of my blog, please feel free to put this award on yours. You deserve it!

Saturday I had to attend a funeral of a dear family friend, and came home to a wonderful mail day. What a perfect "pick me up". Dear Becky sent me WONDERFUL RAK and I'm just tickled to death with everything. It's obvious that she either knows me very well, or did her research. You know how I love anything red!! Look at all the pretties that she sent to me. The toile fabric in the background was also included (oohhhh how I love toile!). The little ladybug is an adorable measuring tape cover! I use DMC 115 a LOT LOT LOT, so these will definitely come in very handy. I collect scissors, so of course I love these with the beautiful scissor fob. Thank you, Miss Becky! I just love everything, and you definitely perked up my spirits. :) There's nothing like a surprise in the mail to brighten your day!



Nice, huh? :)

A short Mom update: She's about the same health wise, but the plan is for her to move down here into a nursing home for a few weeks as a transition before coming to my home. She needs physical therapy every day and breathing treatments four times a day, so they recommended this before coming to my home. I just want her HERE, but I suppose they know what they are talking about. We'll see. At least she will be 15 minutes from me and I will be checking on her ALOT...everyday, several times a day, along with my sisters.

Again, I can't thank you all enough for all of the prayers and the wonderful emails that you have sent to encourage me and offer suggestions. If I haven't replied to you, please know that I have had such limited computer time that I just haven't had the time. I do plan to try to catch up very soon, though. My Google Reader is off the charts. LOL I guess I should just mark it "All read" and start over. I just hate doing that, but I don't see myself catching up with 1000 plus posts. Besides, answering emails takes priority over that. Please continue to pray. I totally need guidance since I have no clue what I'm doing.....just muddling along and asking lots of questions.

On the stitching front, I'm hoping to have an ornament and a few other things to share with you soon. It's been forever and three days since I've posted any of my stitching. I think it's about time! Speaking of stitching, I think I'll go put a few x's in. It's my therapy.

I love you all dearly, and appreciate all of your comments. I do read each and every one of them. As soon as things settle down, I want to have some give aways for my readers and followers in appreciation, so keep coming back. :)

I wish you enough,

Love,
Carolyn

Monday update on my Mom

Thank you so very much, ladies, for all of your prayers and good thoughts. I'm worried that my mother is "giving up" and has not improved at all since being transferred to Houston. In fact, from what I can see, she seems weaker and worse. I'm trying to get a call into the doctor so that I can see what needs to be done. It makes it hard since we are an hour away to be there when they come in, since there is no set schedule for doctor's visits. I'm extremely worried about her, and to be honest, just want to bring her home.

We were told this was supposed to be a place to help her get stronger, but she's not left the bed since she's been there. It seems more like a nursing home to me, and that's not happening. I'll bring her home first before I'll have her ignored. It will be a week tomorrow since she's been there and has only had one bath and nobody even brings her the things she needs to brush her teeth unless we do it when we are there. We complained about her not having a bath, and they went into her room at 3:00 a.m. last night to bathe her????? In the middle of the night? I don't think so.

They forgot to even bring her a lunch tray the other day and when my mom told the nurse about it, she said, "Well you probably wouldn't have eaten it anyway." WHAT????????? When they DO bring her a tray, they leave it and don't even help her sit up, so she can't eat. She's too weak to sit up by herself. This is so emotionally draining because I don't know what to do except just move up there and stay with her 24/7.

I have calls in to the patient advocate, and my cell number is on the chart for the doctor to call me. Who knows when that will happen. I'm so worried about her. She doesn't even have the energy to talk on the phone, and just really doesn't even care anymore. This is breaking my heart and I just want her back here where we can care for her like she NEEDS to be cared for.

Please, please keep her in your prayers if you have the time. I firmly believe in the power of prayer and have seen first hand how they work. I love her so much and can't stand to see her going down worse in a place that was supposed to be helping her.

MONDAY AFTERNOON UPDATE:

My, my it's amazing what a phone call to someone in charge can do. I finally heard back from the Patient Advocate guy up at the hospital and told him the whole story. I told him I was ready to move her out of there and bring her home, and everything else that was going wrong. Of course, he was very apologetic and said he would take care of it immediately.

Guess who got a bath today? Guess who had help with her tray of food? Guess who had PT for the first time in a week? hmmmm....what a shame that someone has to complain to get the basic needs done. I'm NOT one to complain, but when you mess with my family, another Carolyn emerges and takes over. NOT a pretty sight!

I also called her family doctor here that had referred her up there. He was LIVID and has a call into the place. I'm still wanting her transferred back down here into somewhere closer so we can do more for her. I requested that, and I'm hoping that's what happens.

Thank each and every one of you for your suggestions, your kind and informative emails and your prayers. They have been so helpful. It's so much easier when I hear from people who have gone through this and know the ropes. Since they don't give a class on "Becoming the Parent of an Elderly Parent 101", it's a guess at best sometimes as to what to do.

Again, I ask that you keep her in your prayers, and pray that we make the right decisions for her.

Before I close, here is something that I hope will make you smile. My faith, my wonderfully understanding husband, my sweet grandbabies, son and daughter in love and my family and friends are what keeps me going right now. This is my sweet Kaylabug and one of her friends. I'm not sure if he wanted her kisses or not. LOL




As always, dear ones,

I wish you enough...

Love,
Carolyn

I will be gone for awhile....

My mother is very sick and had to be transported to Houston to a special hospital up there for pulmonary care. She has COPD but has other things wrong, too, and has not been able to breathe. This has been so hard on us girls, and her, because she realizes that she won't be able to live by herself anymore. She has always been a very independent person, but since my father passed away nearly five years ago, she's never been the same. They were married 54 years.

When she is able to come home from the hospital, which the doctors told me today would be at least 2 weeks, and probably longer depending on what they find, she will be living the majority of the time with us. My sister will be taking her on the weekends when she can. I'm the only one of us three girls that doesn't work, so obviously my home is the place for her to come to. She's not ready for a nursing home and assisted living in this area is SO EXPENSIVE that she wouldn't be able to stay very long, so this is the only solution.

I'm sorry to ramble....maybe I need to vent, I don't know. I spent the day up there with her today, and it just broke my heart. She's only 76 years old. Please, if you pray, would you please add her to your prayer list, and if you don't, just think good thoughts. I will probably need some extra prayers, too. This is going to obviously be a totally different lifestyle than I am used to, and I so want to be patient and kind in caring for her. I love her very much.

I will try to post as often as I get computer time, and try to comment when I can. My poor Google Reader is at 1000+!! I'll never get caught up with my special friends. :( I love all of my blogging friends, and miss it when I don't get to visit and comment on your blogs. Please don't forget about me, and I would welcome any and all emails/comments just to keep in touch with you all. Here is my email: singlerose4u@hotmail.com I take my laptop with me to the hospital in case she is sleeping I can try to catch up a bit. I can't concentrate to stitch.....it only brings the dreaded frog, and when I try to read my mind wanders.

I think I will go to bed. I'm literally emotionally drained from all the decisions that have had to be made in the last few days, from Power of Attorney papers to DNR papers. Again, sorry to ramble, complain, whine, whatever you want to call it.

Stay in touch, my friends, and remember....

I wish you enough,

Love,
Carolyn

WooHooo!! My fabric came from Japan! :)

I'm so excited! My fabric and ribbon arrived from Tokyo and I'm just over the moon with it. The shipping was super fast and the quality is awesome. I bought it from Matatabi's Etsy shop. If you are interested in quality Japanese fabric and ribbons, you should check her out. I. LOVE. IT. :) My ribbon from France hasn't arrived yet, but I will be sure and show you when it does. Maybe tomorrow??? *hoping* If you click on the picture, you can see the ribbon up close.



Pretty, huh?

Next up are my awesome thrift store finds. I love going into thrift stores. When I enter, I look at it like a fabric store. I'm always on the hunt for wool and other items that I can cut up and use for my projects. I didn't take a picture, but I found two solid wool BEAUTIFUL men's Ralph Lauren jackets for two dollars each. I also found a solid wool gray skirt for $1.50. They will be perfect for my primitive projects. Yep, I'm happy. Then I came across this crock and a brand new ButterBell crock for a whopping.......25 cents each. I was literally floating out of the store with my wonderful finds.





I have to share a few pictures of the two lights of my life - my grandbabies. First up is Miss Kaylabug. My niece was married in December and the other flower girls sorta backed out, so at the last minute, 14 month old Kayla had to be the stand in. All she needs is the "parade wave" and she would look like Queen for a Day! LOL She did so good and we were so proud of her. She's definitely a little ham!



I'm biased I know, but I think she's kinda sorta cute. :)

Here she is giving Daddy kisses:



Next up is the newest addition to our family - Mr. Carter Joe:





I have TONS more, but I won't bore you with them all at one time (I picked up 352 pictures at Walmart yesterday!). I kinda like pictures of my babies!

And last but not least, I have a new friend. I enjoy so much every morning sitting on my back porch with my coffee and watching my bird friends. They are too funny. They all line up on the back fence and just wait for me to feed them. Every now and then my new "special friend" has been showing up. He/she is just so pretty, but I didn't know what kind of bird it was. Bob looked it up on the net and we found out it's a lovebird. I feel bad for it because I'm sure it belongs to someone, and I wonder where the mate is. This picture doesn't do it justice because the colors are soooo vibrant. I hope it keeps coming back. I want to make friends with it.



Sorry for such a long post. I think I'm hearing yawns from all of my readers right about now! Thank you all for your sweet comments and for visiting. You make me smile!

Until next time....

I wish you enough,
Carolyn :)