"As the World Turns"

     Some of you may not remember that phase "As The World Turns"!  It was an old soap opera way back in the day, very popular from what I remember.  And very poetic/true.  No matter what may occur in our lifes, the world keeps on 'a-going'!  And so do we.

     Our Christmas holidays were marked with my mom going back into the hospital for breathing troubles on Christmas Day.  She is going back to the hospital more and more often and staying for longer 'visits'.  She just got out this past Monday and went back to the nursing home.  Her little body is holding on but each episode takes more and more away from her mind.  She rarely lives in reality anymore, often forgetting where she is, why she's not at her own home, who's alive and who's not (this one is very hard on her--she keeps believing my dad is still here) and she is always very disoriented.  It's hard to see my mom that way---she has always been so together and snappy.  My older sister is retired and taking care of all the issues that come with an aging parent.  I feel bad for Barbara since she must fight her own battles as well.  Please say a prayer for my mom 'Goldie Marie' and for our Heavenly Father's loving arms to be wrapped around her.

     On a different note, I had foot surgery on my right foot 4-days ago.  I knew it was going soon---I taught water aerobics for over 18 yrs---that's 18yrs of jumping on the side of the pool like a crazy person--something had to give and I guess it's my feet!!  Bone spurs, bunions and a bone that needed to be repositioned are just no fun, but I got it done and I'm at home recovering.  Wish I could say I've been able to work on lots of new projects, but the truth is, the pain drugs have better much kept me 'out of the loop' until today.  I do have some ideas a-brewin' that I'll share as they develop!

   So, that's it for now, foot is starting to complain so guess I better elevate it and make it smile!!

                          Yes, those are frozen veggies on my foot---couldn't find anything else!!


God Bless all and any who read this!
Pat, A Remade Life

Saying Good-Bye to a Wonderful Woman

     We experienced the loss of a wonderful woman the day before Thanksgiving, my precious mother-in-law passed away.  In truth, she was actually my 'ex' mother-in-law since I've been divorced for over 20 yrs, but she has always been "Mom Gill" to me.  She had been ill for several years now, including a recent pace-maker operation and Alzheimer's.   She had become confined to a wheelchair, mainly due to her loss of balance which had caused several broken bones from falls.  Her little 90-yr old body just could not take anymore! 

     She was an amazing woman, raising 9, yes 9, children while moving from base to base---my father-in-law was in the air force.  I believe it was the loss of her husband, my ex-father-in-law, just 1yr ago, that took a major tole on her.  She and "Big Morris" as she called him, had been married for 76 yrs!!  She told me stories of moving to Panama and arriving at the base in the middle of the night.  She turned on the lights to their base home and found........it was FULL of giant roaches!!!  Not one to get discouraged, she cleaned one of the rooms, placed all 6-young children in there to sleep and then spent the rest of the night 'de-bugging' her new home-----and she was pregnant with her 7th child at that time!!!  AMAZING!!

     I was very fortunate to have her in my life.  She was a wonderful example of the Proverbs 31 woman:
                                "She opens her mouth with wisdom, And on her tongue is the law of kindness.
                      She watches over the ways of her household, And does not eat the bread of idleness.
                      Her children rise up and call her blessed, Her husband also and he praises her:"
                                                                                                          Proverbs 31:26-28

     I could say soooooooo much more about this wonderful woman, her creativity, her stamina, her LOVE for all those she came in contact with.  She was a constant inspiration to me and I will miss her greatly.

     And so I say, "Good-bye, Mom Gill--rest well in the arms of Jesus.  I will see again someday"

God Bless all and any who read this,
Pat, A Remade Life

Mischief Is In the Air!!

     I don't know about you, but when the mornings start getting a little cooler (and I do mean A LITTLE--it's still about 76 degrees in the mornings and topping out around 94-100 by the end of the day!!) and the trees start thinking of shedding their leafs.....well,I find myself feeling all frisky and, dare I say it, mischievous!! NOT in a bad way, but kinda like wanting to run up behind people you know and yell "Boo", then giggle and run off! What?...you don't think of doing that kinda thing?! Well, you should!!

     As I get older (I just had a b-day last month) I find myself thinking more and more of my childhood and all the things the kids in the neighborhood use to do. Things like staying outside until our parents practically dragged us back inside; or playing tennis in the middle of the street until we just got too tired to chase the ball anymore; or just sitting on the street curb and talking...not about anything in particular, just talking.

     Those were good days, but these days can be good too! So I invite you to 'get a little mischievous' (in a good way!) Grab your best bud and go running through the sprinklers before it gets too cold, or invite friends over for pizza and have a food fight (in the backyard of course--NO ONE likes to clean the kitchen!), or just sit on the street curb and talk about nothing in particular---I think you will find it will help to 'cleanse' away all your tensions and stress...and hopefully give you a refreshed outlook on life!

      Before I leave you, here are a few pictures of my curent ongoing project, one I am very excited about. I may try to have a 'grand opening/reveal' before the holidays...at least that's my goal. There is still lots to work out and I can't reveal too much at this time but will try very soon!!

Well, that's it for now----anyone in the mood for pizza!?!?!
God Bless All and Any who read this,
Pat, A Remade Life