Some days are harder than others. Unfortunately, I've been having a string of harder days. Last week I had a morning that was tough enough that I got stuck. Mom and Dad asked what they could do to help, and all I could think was, "I just want to go for a long drive."
They said, "We can make that happen!"
The three of us drove north of Springfield on one of my favorite country drives. Something you should know about me: I'm a sucker for brown road signs. Those are the ones that point you to recreation areas and scenic views. I remembered that one of my favorite brown signs on this road points to Shotgun Creek Recreation Site.
This area is mostly designed for people to have thrill rides on their ATVs. But our adventure was up, up, up into the mountains to Cascade View.
For a slow five miles we drove through forest in all its states: lush with ferns, burnt from wildfire, logged, and regrowing. As we climbed, we even passed through a dense cloud. Finally, we made it up as high as we could go, and our reward was an incredible view point.
We marveled at how far we could see - at least eight ridges deep. I joked that even Bob Ross wouldn't dare to paint a mountain scene with that many ridges. I've been there before, but I never get tired of it. And the journey was all the more special because I got to share it with my parents.
Some days are harder than others... but this long drive and distance vision gave me the perspective I needed to press on.
* Note from Margaret:
It helped Dale and me, too! Time with Jodie is time well spent.
One of my favorite ways to spend time when life's been unsteady is to over-organize my belongings. This Threads and Bobbins Project has been on my radar for years.
I've got around 50 spools of thread, each with their matching bobbin. My previous organizing system involved spool toppers that held the bobbin to the top of its matching spool of thread. The problem with the system is that because the spools are not of even height, the lids to my thread boxes wouldn't close. The stack was quite tipsy.
So I got myself some bobbin cases to hold the threads and bobbins separately. But how to match each thread to its corresponding bobbin? I decided to number them. My first attempt, using paper reinforcers, nearly worked. But not quite.
So today I used a black ultra-fine tip Sharpie to mark the front and back of each bobbin, and the top of each thread.
Voila!
Completing this organizational task makes my heart go pitter-patter.
When there's chaos in our world, in our household, and in my brain, having a small corner of order and calm delights me.
Dale and I had a number of events shake our life and rattle our hearts recently.
Our eldest is in the midst of a major life transition. Their health is in flux as well as a change in job status. As parents, Kit's struggles are hard to watch. But as a capable adult, the cascade of changes are being managed. Our job now is to give Kit space, support the progress, and keep from offering unwanted advice.
The entrance into the world of our first grandson was heightened by some challenges in utero. Born full term but two weeks before expected, Gabriel is tiny and beautiful and thriving now. Our daughter Jodie is recovering well from the surgery of helping her baby out the "sun roof."
Unfortunately, the baby shower I was hoping to host was cancelled.
Dale felt unwell for a couple weeks, then became a resident of the North Springfield Resort and Spa (aka our local hospital) for 8 days. Throughout his stay, he charmed every member of the staff with his sincere kindness, cooperation, and patience.
He came home two days ago with a drain in his side and a likely life-changing challenge. We hope to get a firm diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment plan next week. His tenderheartedness and gentle humor never flag. Though he is the patient, he remains my rock and steadying force on this path.
With a change in our Medicare plan in January, I'm having difficulty procuring one of my prescriptions which helps me manage my mental health condition. That condition is currently under stress (understatement). Dale's forbearance, persistence and diplomacy with our providers is helping to solve that problem. It's a waiting game.
Then on January 25th, I learned that my favorite co-worker and friend from my years working in the children's library in SoCal died last December. The news took my breath away. I grieve that loss.
Yesterday we smelled natural gas in our home's entryway. A kind, efficient, capable and professional young man from the gas company found a leak in our furnace. We'll be without that heat source until February 12th. But the gas technician got the fireplace working so we can stay warm through these frosty, foggy nights.
So!
It's been weeks full of challenges with more hiccups ahead of us. Our mantras?
"Follow the science"
"Look for the helpers"
"Be kind to yourself"
"Better together"
Through it all, our sympathetic, thoughtful, gracious neighbors became better friends. They each use their gifts, knowledge, talents, and compassion to help us with particular problems. We so appreciate their generosity and ongoing support. It seems we've become the neighborhood grandparents now, receiving the help of the next generations.
Any kind thoughts you can breeze our way are most appreciated. Please know that even if we don't acknowledge your messages right away, we are touched by them. It's simply ... we're a bit distracted right now.
In between doctor visits, Dale and I plan to continue sitting side-by-side with Puzzles and Podcasts, taking country rides in the convertible with the top down this Spring, short visits to parks, an easy geocache or two, and stopping to appreciate the sunsets each evening from our backyard vantage point. We still get to live some of our small dreams.
A few months ago Dale and I bought a dozen used Wysocki puzzles from someone in town. I think they were decluttering after the Covid years when jigsaw puzzles were all the rage. So over the weekend we put another one together.
It's unusual for a Wysocki image because it's primarily a single building rather than an entire town. It's called Pickwick Cottage. Dale did the original sort, put the border together, and constructed most of the cottage.
I jumped in then and concentrated on the sky and water. I enjoy doing the gradients. Then we both put the road and greenery together. This illustration has many of Wysocki's charming details, including an American flag, of course.
This artist usually has neighbors greeting one another, and a dog, and a cat. This puzzle was not an exception.
Wysocki added in a random gal sitting alone in a rocking chair on the front lawn, watching the world go by. (And look! No cell phone in her hand!)
It wouldn't be a Wysocki without at least one prancing horse pulling a carriage.
Dale said he'd like to do one puzzle per week during these wet months, so expect many more Wysocki's - and other puzzles - to come.
Our granddaughter received some Play Doh for her 2nd birthday. With her encouragement, I started playing.
I even bought myself my own set of dough and some implements. I never had a set like this as a kid. I figured it was about time.
On my own, I only played for a few minutes while backing up my computer. Predictably, I made a heart
with some details:
It's good for me to stretch this "creative play with no specific end in mind" muscle. I rarely engage in messy, unstructured play. Even before I started, I checked Pinterest for some ideas and a jumping off point. Confession: I literally had to mess up my tools before I took this photo because I tend to line things up in rows.
