Chaos!

Life at our house has been an explosion of chaos.  It has been hard to sit down to blog.  Many heart breaking things going on.  We praise God that our Thanksgiving was peaceful.  Eric called to wish us a happy day.  Brandon was able to take time from his busy schedule to join us for dinner.  We went over to a friend's house and had a wonderful time.

However, since Thanksgiving day there has been plenty of trouble of the heart breaking kind with both boys.  Currently, we are not on speaking terms with Eric.  And Brandon has taken a turn and has decided he does not want to go into the Army.  He wants to drop out of high school and move to California to be with a girl he knows.  On Christmas Eve Brandon will be 18 years old and he says he wants to leave soon after he turns 18. Please pray for us as you feel so led.  Thank you!

Thankful for Small Things

Life is ever moving and flowing.  Sometimes it seems it moves by too quickly.  Other times it seems to be in slow motion.  That is how it has been for Mark and I lately.  We are edging more and more into the slower pace, but not quite there yet.  Every now and then we get a taste of that slower pace and we really enjoy how it feels.

Definitely, the slower pace will allow for my creative juices to flow more freely.  There are so many ways to be creative and I think sometimes I discount the little things.  I think that I have to do something grand to call myself creative. Well get over it!  I am going to be thankful for the little things.  God works in the small things as well as big.

Lately, I have been blessed with ideas in the kitchen with new products I've found at the grocery store.  Take for instances the picture below.

Used these products to make a tasty morning breakfast.  Its husband approved!  The new Natural Bliss coffee creamer doesn't have to be used just for coffee.  Using it on your morning oatmeal is a great way to give your oatmeal a flavor boost.  Another product I've tried is Land O' Lakes cinnamon sugar butter spread which they put out just for the Autumn season.  We have used it on our pancakes and its given them the flavor of "french toast".  Very yummy!

So enjoy Autumn, be creative and rejoice in little things. 

Empty Trees

Mark has been on business in Singapore for a week now and we are working on week two.  At the end of this week he begins his journey home.  It will take over 24 hours for him to get home.  This time I am missing him very much even though we have been keeping in touch twice a day via Skype.

Our big news is that our youngest son, Brandon, has decided to join the Army.  We are very proud of him for making that decision.  It has been Brandon's dream since he was little to join the service.  We met with the recruiter and signed paper work before Mark left for Singapore.  Last week Brandon took the written test and passed.  After that I went in with Brandon, bringing along important documents they needed to start his file.  This week he will be taking his physical and afterward he will be officially in the Army.

As for my oldest son, Eric, we do not hear much from him and what I do hear, breaks my heart.  Brandon keeps in some contact with him, but he is always disappointed by his brother.  When Brandon told Eric he was joining the Army Eric's response was not what he had hoped for.

I titled this post "Empty Trees" for a reason.  This morning as I was doing the dishes I noticed that more light was coming into my kitchen.  The leaves from the trees in our backyard are almost completely gone.  Soon the branches will be completely bare waiting for snow to grace them.  This made me dwell on the fact that my youngest will soon be off and my nest will be empty.  However, my youngest will go with a bright future.  That makes me smile.

Osteoporosis

Last week I got a letter from my doctor which told me that my bone scan showed osteoporosis in my spine.Between lack of hormones and not being able to eat properly my bones have suffered.  I sulked about it over the weekend.  I think its a case of one too many apples in the apple cart.  This morning I went to see my doctor and together we came up with a course of action.  She wants to run a few more tests, but she is on board with me taking HRT.  Given my history with HRT I am a bit leary, but feel it is the best option.  Hoping HRT goes well for me this go around.  Good news is that my tummy has continued to behave itself and I am eating normal meals and picking up some weight.  I know it is of Him...thank you Lord!

Autumn Color 2012

Mark and I dropped Brandon off at his job and then went to the park to take an evening walk.  Here are some pictures to enjoy the season.

The small lake at this park was full.  You can see the sky reflected in the water.

Here Canadian Geese are coming out of the water.  Aren't they gorgeous?

Autumn trees spreading their joyful color beside the lake.

Those beautiful leaves against the cloudy sky.

The mix of color as the lake reflects the sky, so pretty.

Now go out and enjoy Autumn where you are!

Autumn Thrifting Finds, etc.

Happy Autumn to you all!  I have continued my thrifting into Autumn.  Pictured below are a couple of finds.

This is china by Lenox in the pattern called Westwind.  Lenox began making this china pattern in the 1950's.  Silly me prayed to blessed with some Autumn dishes and behold 4 place settings of this china appeared at my nearby thrift store.  I got 4 place settings for $23.01!

Here are the delicate tea cups.  I think this 1950's teapot I was blessed to receive from my mom-in-law is a good compliment.

This is a purse I picked up at the thrift store.  When I saw it I just could not pass it up.  It was not a steal, but probably less than in a department store since it is beaded.  It appeared to have never been used.  I love it!

Not the best picture taker, but here is part of my mantle decorated for Autumn.  So many things have sweet memories.  The crystal vase, the plate and the word Hope all from dear friends.  The birds nest was found by my son Brandon.

Here is the left side of the mantle.

This is the scene on the right side of the mantle.  Love that pear shaped gourd I found at a pumpkin patch Cindy and I went to in Boulder last week.

Here is my Grandmother's antique table all decked out for Autumn.

HAPPY AUTUMN!

Autumn brings Change

Well, as the leaves are changing color the plans we make can change as well.  And so change has come to Sunflower Cottage.  Mark and I planned that we would have my surgery on November 13th.  Well, a few things have arisen since making that plan.  First, the original plan was that Mark was only going to be spending one week on business in Asia before the surgery.  Well, while on business in Germany the bosses decided to tack on an extra week which cut into our time planned for surgery.  Second, I prayed and asked the Lord to make my tummy cooperate while Mark was away on business.  Well, the Lord answered my prayer and my tummy has been doing very well.  Pain has been at a minimum and to my surprise I have picked up a few pounds.

Mark and I decided that it would be best to cancel the surgery for now.  To keep the date, Mark would be home from Asia on the 10th.  We felt that was cutting things close as we know both of us are going to be exhausted from being apart as we usually are.  It takes us about a week to get back on track.  With the Lord timing is important and we know the Lord often works through circumstance, so we are seeking Him in these circumstances.

Another thing that is changing is that a dear friend of ours is moving to Durango, Colorado.  My dear friend Tara, the teacher, who had her baby this past summer.  I have so enjoyed being able to look after her baby from time to time.  If you will remember in a prior post, I took in her guinea pig, Snowy.  Piggy and I had so much fun together, but it turned out that I am very allergic to her.  So Tara set me up with a little boy who wanted Snowy.  I passed Snowy into his capable hands last weekend (sniff).  He was so excited to receive her.  So Snowy moved on and now Tara and her baby boy are moving as well.  Big sniff!

Change...it is one thing we can be sure will happen...just as long as the Lord is in it we can rest assured that all things will work together for good.