Wait a minute….WHAT? How did weeks (or months?) go by without me doing a blog post? We’re halfway through October, and 3/4 through 2021. How does this happen? I remember January like it was yesterday. (Okay, that’s not true. I relied on all the notes on my wall calendar to compose this story!) In January (with VERY little “coaching,” and prep time), I did my first virtual interview for a podcast aired by our local archdiocese. I was nervous as all get-out, but with a bit of editing, the podcast video turned out great. It aired in March. Here’s a link if you want to see how talkative I can be!
Also in March, our youngest + husband put a bid on a house. It was a crazy time to be a buyer. They had to jump through all the “seller’s market” hoops to snag a house, but they found a really good one, only a 10 minute drive from our house! (side-note: Our oldest is 11 hours away, our middle one is a little over an hour’s drive away, and our youngest 10 minutes. I told my husband, with the way things are trending, if we’d been able to have more children, any additional ones would have never left home!) Anyway, the house-buying step set up a month of pre-moving fun. I drove around town gathering up free boxes from friends, ended up with a plentiful pile, then we started helping with wrapping & packing.
The months of Easter and Mother’s day went by in a blur of family gatherings, finished off by a trip to Minnesota. The periodical cicadas were just beginning to show signs of emergence when I headed north, but a cool-down stymied their efforts. I was afraid I was going to miss the mega emergence craziness, but they waited for my return, and were with us through the end of July. They didn’t seem near as bothersome as they used to be. When you’re looking at the world through “covid-colored” glasses, little nuisances lose their power! But the BEST thing about July is that our oldest foster child became our legally adopted grandchild. What a joyful day that was!
August brought us the dog days. I really dislike the dog days (even with my “covid” glasses!). I get SOOOOO overheated. I thought old people were supposed to be cold all the time. I guess I’m not that old after all! My elderly clients are always cold in the heat of summer, and I’m in their houses melting into a puddle. I can’t work for a client that doesn’t supply a powerful fan for me to use for emergency cool-down therapy! (And, in August I got back in the business of caregiving, only for one client, and as a helper for her son, a dear friend of ours who’s been diagnosed with ALS. I must admit though, it’s good to be back. I LOVE hanging out with the elderly, such a gift they are to us!) Sultry August managed to redeem itself midway through, by welcoming our 9th grandchild, so I’ll give it another chance! ❤️ (But, that’s my very private child, so no baby pics allowed….SORRY!)
September…..did we even have a September? Oh, yeah, I remember now. Our family campout was delayed this year until September, so the northern contingent could meet the new baby. Two weeks before the campout, the camper we always borrow from a friend was in an accident, unable to be used. Suddenly, I had to do a huge cleaning at the cabin we have on our property (and have used mostly as storage for several years). I pulled out all the stops – spending two full Saturdays at “the farm,” dusting, sweeping, removing all of the musty bedding, and lugging it home to wash (and hang on the line in the sun!). In addition, I shopped for food, baked, and gathered up toys galore, from thrift stores and yard sales, to keep the nine grandkids entertained. I would get home and fall into my bed, totally exhausted! When the camping kicked-off, I packed food, baby beds, extra toothbrushes, towels, coolers galore, etc., and headed west. We had a great time (hot the first week, cold and rainy for a few days into the 2nd week). All the craft items (most of them sent to me from a dear friend!) and the toys really came in handy during those dreary days. The kids had a blast, even when stuck in that little house! Then, everyone headed home, and after two more weekends of cleanup, it was just a lovely memory (and I lost 4 lbs! Ha, ha!).
So, here we are in October. I’ve met all of my writing deadlines for the month ahead (actually, I ALWAYS meet my riding deadlines, with the hubsters often supplying my photo illustrations! I’ve learned that deadlines are my friend, unless they’re self-imposed, and then I ignore them!). Now, I’m packing again because I’m off to Minnesota. I’ve never missed a first birthday celebration for my grandkids, and there’s one coming up soon. By the time I get home, I’ll have to drag out all of my “winter clothes,” and start thinking about Christmas decorations. What a great year I’ve had, so many gifts and blessings, and I treasure them all, and thank God for the little things. It’s always the little things that fill up our lives, and make them worth living! Find the little things in your life today, and relish the joy you find in them!
grandma's coffee soup 