Turning A Corner

Last week I found myself driving through the woods on a hard-packed dirt road....up a mountain.  

Yes, I have to admit, we passed a sign like this only quite small and way up high on a tree.  Proceeding ahead with doubt, a car passed by from the other direction, and so my sister said we were fine and obviously the road wasn't closed!  We soon found ourselves climbing ever higher, encountering a few ruts and more cornering.  We finally reach the top, the road flattens out a bit and I am in a panic but my sister reassures me once again as a delivery van comes our way (how he passed us is a mystery....my eyes were shut as the road had considerably narrowed by now).  I'm trying to breathe, my mom (in her 80's) is doing her big sighs.  My sister is in the back seat.  She has no clue what lies ahead.  A sheer vertical drop!  Muddy and very rutted!  And a hairpin turn for good measure!!

I stop the car and announce that I am done and I was not driving anymore.  

Thankfully my sister climbed into the driver's seat and somehow (my eyes remained closed) managed to get us down the mountain.

A week before this hair raising experience we received a diagnosis regarding my granddaughter that has been a year in coming.  Thankfully God is in the driver's seat with my daughter and her husband as they face a sheer drop and hairpin turns.  I'll be close by, probably with my eyes shut, praying for strength and peace for them as they face decisions I do not want to face.

Keeping Busy

Welcome Fall!!

A wool felt pin-cushion kit that was a Christmas gift two years ago!  A gift from my sister, the goddess of hand sewing.  It only took two years, but I actually traced and cut and ironed and embroidered and sewed and stuffed all by myself!!

Leave Was Short

I've had some issues trying to update my blog lately. We'll see if today is successful.

Leave is over. We had lots of things we wanted to do but ended up just being although we did go to Children's Hospital Boston, walked around the Public Garden and enjoyed a ride on the Swan Boats.

My two warriors overlapped at home for a few days which was a treat to all be together even if for a short time. Four years ago the Old Man came home from a 16 month deployment during which the young warrior graduated from high school and enlisted in the Marine Corps. Before he went to boot camp we hiked up Mt Monadnock together because that was my son's release during deployment. He would come home from school and just go....rain, snow, ice, didn't matter. So, even though the weather was ridiculously hot and this warrior mom has only hiked once this entire summer, we did the hike again. I survived, barely, and ate up the whole day because I'm so out of shape, but it was worth it.

Leave ended with Labor Day weekend in Washington DC to visit soldiers at Bethesda and Walter Reed. Unfortunately for us several were well enough to have passes to go home for the holiday weekend but we were able to visit two. That was encouraging! Our son is finishing up his four years of active service and relocating to Virginia so he drove us down and spent the weekend with us. Being dyed in the wool New Englanders, we left many things unsaid but just being together was priceless.

Life Is Good

These two pictures are from a week ago Wednesday!  I've just been enjoying the husband home again and haven't thought to post!  He's been gone from here since January, but mostly gone since last October and in and out (more out than in) since June of 2009!  A short visit, he'll be gone again before we know it but we'll take what we can get.

First Attempt

Sewing intimidates me!  I've always considered a sewing machine to be right up there with a standard transmission and organs - terrifying!!  Give me a piano and I'm in control but these things with motors and foot pedals and I'm paralyzed with fear.  Over the past few years, I have overcome my fear of the organ out of necessity, filling in for our ailing church organist.  Four years ago I was inspired by my sister to by some fat quarters and a quilt pattern.  That's as far as I got, the giddy groupings sitting in a bag gathering dust in a corner of my bedroom closet.  Last year for my birthday, my husband gave me a sewing machine thinking it would keep me busy while he was deployed....that too has been gathering a bit of dust sitting in a corner of the music room.  Well, he is coming home on leave next week!!!  Motivation!!!  

So, here is my first attempt in progress.  Giddy and random!!  I am not showing my sister (sewing goddess extraordinare) until I have the top sewn!!  There are still corner and setting triangles to be added but I am impressed to be this far!