HOPE.

Those of who you are reading this on my Facebook page, already know about the medical issues that have plagued me for the past ten months.  For those reading this on my blog, I’ll give you the ‘Reader’s Digest Condensed Version’ of what all has gone on since last April.

I live in a rented duplex.  They have a landscape company that comes out weekly to mow the lawn.  There are ‘dirt areas’ in most of the individual yards where the tenants are allowed to plant and maintain their own gardens.  (You’ve seen MANY pictures of my garden!)  Management emphasizes that the landscape company that mows the lawn DOES NOT maintain the tenants garden area; which is fine by me!

A bit of my medical history needs to be explained at this point.  I have quite a few medical issues, but have learned to do the best I can with the limitations those issues bring to my life.  I have asthma and scoliosis, both of which adversely affect my lung function.  About 5 years ago I learned that my lung capacity is only 30% of what it should be.  But I was used to it, and as my bad back limits most strenuous activity; the limited lung capacity really did’t limit me much further.  I could still ‘walk for exercise’ and go on ‘easy hikes’.  BUT, because my lungs are so small and weak, my doctors informed me that I should NEVER be put under general anesthesia.  Reason being: MY lungs would not be strong enough to recover and work again on their own.   Meaning that if I were ever put ON a breathing machine, I would never be able to come off it and breathe on my own ever again.  Kind of daunting.  But I deal with it.

So, I don’t have very good lungs to begin with; and over the last decade have been prone to getting upper respiratory infections.  I get my flu shot every year and have had both pneumonia vaccines, and just TRY to stay healthy.

I have a supplemental oxygen system at home.  It was prescribed by my pulmonologist a couple of years ago when my breathing became more difficult just after the first of the year when the weather is extremely damp.  I really didn’t need to use it very often though.  During the hot dry summer months, I didn’t need it at ALL that first year.  Once the damp fall weather rolled in, I needed it now and then.  Became a noticeable trend that my breathing worsened the higher the humidity was.

Towards the end of last April, my asthma flared up, which usually turns into a respiratory infection.  I wasn’t feeling ‘sick’ quite yet, but needed something more than my asthma maintenance and rescue medication to breathe normally again.  I went to urgent care and they prescribed a five-day course of steroids.  I took my meds and got better.  Then my asthma flared up again.  Back to urgent care for more steroids, and scheduled a follow up appt with my pulmonologist.

About this time I noticed that along the borders of my flower garden areas (three full sides of my home!)  where the lawn ends and the garden soil begins, was ‘dead and brown’.  You know, the annoying tufts of grass that creep into your flower beds along with the weeds?  This was the beginning of my 5th year living here and I have always ‘hand weeded’ my garden.  Remember, tenants are told that the hired landscapers DO NOT maintain our garden areas.

For some reason, it really didn’t ‘click’ with me.  WHY all that grass and weeds were DEAD.  A neighbor was walking by and stopped to chat and I was telling her about my breathing issues.  She asked if I noticed that they had started at about the same time as I noticed all the dead grass on my garden border.  Ding.  DING!!  DING!!!  She and her dog had both also become really sick and she had learned that the landscapers had sprayed Round Up in all those areas.  No notification.  No warning.

THAT had to be what made me so sick!!  I had had really bad reactions to herbicides and pesticides over 20 years ago, well before my lungs were so compromised.  That would explain why I wasn’t getting better.

I shared my ‘Ah-HA!” moment with my Pulmonologist at my next appt; thinking/HOPING that the additional information would help him come up with a more effective, LASTING treatment.  Alas, all he had to offer me was a longer course of oral steroids.  Again, I got better . . . for a while, but when I had tapered down to the lowest dose, I was having difficulty breathing again, and needing to use my supplemental oxygen 24/7.

It got SO bad that I had to go to the ER twice; and was admitted to the hospital both times; for a total of 12 days.  First for just 2 days, and yes, MORE steroids; which made my symptoms improve again   . . . for a while.  Symptoms bounced back even WORSE a couple of weeks later, and they kept me in the hospital for 10 days; treating me for CHF (congestive heart failure) but it was NOT my heart.  They could not figure out what the cause was; and I continued to tell every doctor or nurse who asked, that I was certain that it was caused by the exposure to the Round-Up.  I had fluid on my lungs, but it was not pneumonia; so they gave me a diuretic to dry out my lungs.  As the fluid dried up, my breathing gradually improved.

After I got out of the hospital I was STILL taking oral steroids and continued improving.  Even had about a week where I only needed to use my oxygen every now and then.  Had a follow up appt with my cardiologist, who was absolutely certain that I was NOT in congestive heart failure; but, he did not have an alternative diagnosis.  My pre-existing heart issue (aortic regurgitation) had been shown to be stable in the latest echo-cardiogram.

The hope was, that I would get better over time.  But my symptoms just kept bouncing back.  In early fall, I succumbed to the pressure that my doctors were putting on me to ‘get off the steroids’ because they do have negative side effects from long term usage.  (loss of bone density).  I was miserable.  I could barely ‘shuffle my way through the day’.  I was tired and just wanted to sleep ALL the time; WHILE using my supplemental oxygen 24/7.

I kept in communication with my cardiologist and pulmonologist regarding the progression of my breathing symptoms, and they seemed to feel that there was nothing more that they could do.  I eventually had enough of ‘just barely getting through the day with no real QUALITY of life’, and went back to my pulmonologist and INSISTED that I be put back on a therapeutic dose of oral steroids.  If I was never going to get any better, at least I wanted to improve my quality of life.  A broken bone will heal.  ‘This’ was crushing my spirit close to the point of no return.

I am currently still on that last round of oral steroids.  My pulmonologist has referred me to a neurologist, to see if he can diagnosis and figure out a way to treat this mystery illness that is plaguing my life.  But of course it takes 3 months to get an appointment with a new specialist.  Soooooooooooooo . . . . .

Having my morning tea and toast a couple of weeks ago, while I perused Facebook, I came across a post about a free seminar for stem cell treatment for ‘bone on bone’ knees.  Yep, I have one of those too!  (my right knee has NO cartilage left in it and my left knee is half way there)  The seminar was free and nearby.  I was curious about this ‘stem cell stuff’.  MY son had told me about the Mel Gibson podcast , where he tells about getting stem cell treatment for his 92 year old dad instead of the Dr. recommended hip replacement surgery; so I signed up to go to the seminar.  At that seminar I learned that stem cells can repair damaged LUNGS too!

Condensing a lot of thought and prayer and research into one sentence here: in a few hours, I will be getting some new stem cells!  The procedures I am having done are NOT the ones currently approved by the FDA.  I don’t WANT more of my own stem cells.  My stem cells are SUCKING the life right out of me.  Besides, I don’t put much confidence in what the FDA does or does not approve.  Look at how many drugs/treatments that the FDA HAS approved over the years, that have later proven to be very BAD!?!?!

My lungs have been permanently damaged from the exposure to Round Up and need to be REPAIRED.  When we are young, our own stem cells quickly go to work repairing damages to our bodies.  That IS what God created stem cells to do.

I will be receiving stem cells 3 different ways.  First via an IV.  This infuses the blood with new stem cells that will travel throughout my body via the bloodstream; and will go to work ‘seeking out damaged areas of the body to repair’.  For my knees, I will be getting stem cells directly injected into the space where the cartilage shroud be.  Then for my lungs, via a nebulizer.

After receiving the stem cells, I will be getting an acupuncture treatment.  Then weekly acupuncture treatments and follow up visits with the clinic’s naturopathic/Chinese medicine Dr. for the next six weeks.  They also provide some specially formulated nutritional supplements, and require you to refrain from eating ‘gluten, sugar and dairy’ for 30 days.  The dietary changes will be the most challenging for me, because I also have to eat a low sodium and low potassium diet.  BUT, they have you consult you with their nutritionist; which will be very helpful for me.

PLEASE say a prayer for me as I venture into this ‘new world of medical treatment’.  It truly IS my last resort.  All the time and money I have ‘thrown into my treatment’ for the last 10 months has only given me minimal and temporary results.

Please do NOT lecture me on the ethics issue you think these treatments raise.  I did my homework, and the stem cells used are safely and ethically sourced.  I truly believe that God created stem cells with the capacity to be ‘transferred’; and allowed man to discover how to retrieve and administer them for this very purpose.  It’s weird and futuristic in a way, but it’s also very simple and basic when you really think about it.  We are using the building materials that God gave us to repair bodily damage.

I’m very intrigued by the ‘pairing up’ of this new scientifically based treatment, with some of the oldest medical practices of Chinese medicine and acupuncture.   I am looking forward to LIVING my life again; instead of just ‘barely getting through the day’.  I’ll keep you posted.

 

Good news / Bad news

Well, I have some bad news and some good news.  Bad for ME.  GOOD for you.  The bad news first.  This is what the passenger side of my car now looks like:

It actually looks a lot WORSE in person.  You can’t really see how DEEP the dent is in the photo.  It’s deep enough that I can’t open that door anymore.  I’m fine.  My car, notsomuch!   Thanks to another driver in a parking lot who ‘saw me but thought I was going to let him to go by’, even though he had a STOP sign and I had the right of way.

Currently dealing with insurance and just waiting to hear what they decide.  Here’s the ‘back story’.  The ‘Cruiser’ is 15 years old and has served me well for the past 7 years.  I definitely ‘got my money’s worth’ out if it.  Because it’s got such a low resale value at this point, it was futile for me to have full coverage on it anymore; and most likely it is going to be deemed ‘totaled’.  And while I knew the day was coming, in the not too distant future, that I was going to have to replace it, I really can’t afford to do so just yet.  I was really hoping to get at least another year out of it.  It’s still driveable, but isn’t going to be worth squat as a trade in.  sigh.

So, what’s the GOOD news?
The good news is that because I need to drum up considerably more funds to replace my vehicle, I’m having a 50% off sale in my booths at Stars.

Look for these red and white ‘50% OFF’ coupons in both of my booths.  You have to have a coupon to get the discount.  The discount is good for everything you purchase from my booths, through May 31, 2019.  After that, I’ll be extending the sale ‘as needed’, until I have enough to replace the Cruiser.

You can also print a coupon directly from the Stars website.   The coupon on the site will look a little different than the ones I printed on my PC, but the offer is the same.

I was just in Stars yesterday, rearranging and restocking, so there is a huge variety and selection of goods awaiting your shopping, and SAVING, pleasure!  And IF there is something that you have seen in my booth in the past and always coveted, but don’t see there just now; feel free to ASK ME!  It might just be something that I pulled and took home when I changed out inventory.  I’ll be happy to take it back in for you; and even have them HOLD it ‘just for you’ at the front desk.

Time for pictures!

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As you can see, both booths are jam-packed with goods.  I will continue to bring in MORE stock every week.   I’ll be making more and resupplying the coupons too.  IF, for some reason you can’t locate a coupon while you are there; ask them to CALL ME, and I will give them a verbal okay for your 50% discount.

So, come and get it while the gettin’s are half off!!

Stars is open 7 days a week; 11am – 6pm.

The next chapter in my life

Not a whole lot has been going on since the big show (which was FABULOUS, btw!).  I’ve been re-sorting and organizing the left-over product and deciding where it will go next; to my booth at Stars or to the ‘Every Husband’s Nightmare’ Spring Bazaar.  I’m doing a little work for an interior designer, whom will be opening her own shop in the area soon; AND learning how to get around the house while tethered to THIS thing!

Yep.  that is a portable oxygen machine.  An oxygen ‘concentrator’ actually.  I don’t have the big heavy tanks of oxygen as this machine MAKES the oxygen as you use it.  The small portable (???) tank on wheels is for ‘away from home’ use.  It holds 2 hours of oxygen and gets refilled on the concentrator, but it takes four hours to fill.

But you probably didn’t really want to know all that.  You’re probably wondering WHY, all of a sudden, I need supplemental oxygen?!?

First off, it’s not an all of a sudden or unexpected thing for me.  I’ve known for quite some time that I was eventually going to need it.  Albeit, not quite THIS soon.  I just have weak lungs.  Even as a child, I remember not being able to hold my breath under water for as other kids at the pool, or my siblings could.

It has a lot ot do with my bad back too.   I have scoliosis.  I had surgery to prevent my curve from progressing past the 50 degrees it had reached in 2001.  That surgery was supposed to make my life better and prevent my premature death from congestive heart failure.  Reason being, that once a spinal curve reaches 50 degrees, gravity will quickly accelerate it’s progression, causing the ribs to crowd into the heart and lungs causing CHF.

When the spine specialist (typically a neurologist will do spinal disc surgery) did my spine surgery, he removed a few ribs; scraped out all the ‘disc material’ from the affected discs; straightened my spine to the extent possible by attaching titanium rods and ‘jacking my spine up’ (much like you jack up a car to change a tire.  Seriously, THAT is how he explained it to me!) then securing the rods with screws and filling the empty discs with bone graft.  (they actually ground up and used my removed ribs for this!) So my spine, from C-7 through T-9 is a solid piece of unbendable bone; so it cannot curve anymore.

That surgery left me severely limited.  Much more so than I was forewarned it would.  (And I asked, believe me!)  I also asked about post op pain, and was told that this surgery was NOT done to address pain issues; and that once I recovered that my pain level would be the same as it was before the surgery.  Thing is, my back didn’t hurt or even bother me before the surgery.  I had the surgery ‘sooner’ as opposed to waiting until later to IMPROVE the quality of my life and my longevity.  I guess I’ve got the longevity; but certainly NOT the quality of life!

 I worked in the restaurant business around second hand smoke for 27 years.  In 1995 I developed asthma.  Just prior to my first spine surgery (I ended up requiring a secondary surgery a year later to remove the titanium rods) it was discovered that I had a heart murmur caused by a defective aortic valve.  All the more reason to have the surgery to prevent my ribs from ultimately crowding into my heart and lungs.

I started going to a pulmonologist a few years ago for my lungs and had a pulmonary function test done.  That test showed that my lungs were only functioning at 30% of normal.  Still, I felt fairly normal still, and because I couldn’t be athletically active because of my spine anyhow, it really didn’t affect my everyday life very much.

Alas, a few months ago I began to notice that I would get out of breath doing everyday things.  Rushing in the rain to carry groceries into the house from the car, vacuuming the house etc.  Then I noticed that my feet were cold ALL the time.  Even with the thermostat set at 70 and wearing 2 pairs of socks and slippers around the house.  And then I noticed that the base of my fingernails had a purple tint.  I had a feeling that ‘it was time’.  And the pulmonologist agreed.

I don’t need the oxygen ALL the time (yet!),  I’ve just been using it around the house when I’m not going to be doing too much moving around.  Just that little bit of use, her and there has made me feel better for the rest of the day.  And I sleep much more soundly after having used it before bed time.  (don’t need it while I sleep)

By the time I need to use it ‘away from home’, I’m hoping to qualify for one of those little ‘purse size’ devices that you can carry over your shoulder.  The ‘portable’ ones I have now would be pretty difficult to do anything with.  And they are NOT very light weight at all.  I’d probably hurt my back just lifting it in and out of the car and in and out of shopping carts at the store.  Kind of difficult to push a shopping cart with one hand and pull a small oxygen tank with the other!

So, I’m really not sure what’s next for me as far as my ‘work’ goes.  The Junk show REALLY took a toll on my.  I was wiped out for nearly a week afterwards, and that was WITH my son and daughter in law doing most of the tear down work.  I’m HOPING that the supplemental oxygen will allow me to do ‘one last show’, next February.  but only time will tell if I am physically able to do so.  I’ll continue to do Every Husband’s Nightmare bazaar in the spring and fall because it’s a week long ‘blended show’ and I don’t have to ‘be there’ manning a booth.  Just deliver and set up; then pack up at the end.  They sell for me and send me a check, minus their commission.  So it’s not nearly as labor intensive as the junk show is.

I foresee myself most likely shifting to more small hand work kinds of projects, and less furniture pieces in the future.  Eventually I’ll have to ‘go with the flow’ of what everyone else at the antique mall does; and just sell vintage finds and give up making them over.  But I’ve always foreseen that as happening.

And that is how this next chapter in my life begins!

All gown up!

Remember this little cutie patootie?!?!

That’s my sweet grand puppy Willow.  AKA Silly Willy . . .  Willie Manillie . . . Willapalooza . . . Willy Nilly . . . Willadoodle . . .

The above picture is from July 2016.

And here she is July 2017!  From a lovable little goof to a BIG lovable goof!

Surveying her kingdom.

Going bye-bye!

She still comes and visits her grandma once a week or so.  And she STILL thinks that she is a LAP dog!  She insists on laying on my lap for at least 15 minutes a day.  We’ve worked out a routine.  She always waits until I am seated in my recliner chair and reclined half way back.  She will sit with her chin on my lap until I invite her up.

She carefully climbs over the raised foot rest and sits right on my lap.  (which IS a bit much at that point!)  Then she lays down, so her hind end is supported by one arm of the chair and her front end by the other; keeping a good % of her 65lbs supported so she’s not too heavy on my lap.  Every so often she will lay her head on my chest, right over my heart.  Gotta love her!

My latest Re-purposing project . . .

My latest Re-purposing project is . . . . 

 . . . . is repurposing a portion of my LIFE.  It’s time to ‘let go’ of some of my old ways and invest my time and energy into something bigger . . . and more purposeful.  

The ‘letting go’ part of this upcoming repurposing project involves my blog.  Can you believe that I have been spending the time and effort to keep my blog going for almost TEN years now!?!

I remember ‘in the beginning days’ of my blog . . . .  constantly worrying about whether or not I could come up with enough content to keep it going for even a year!  And just like that, (or so it seems!) nearly a decade has gone by.  Wow.   A lot of pictures taken (and even more that I forgot to take!) A lot of paint and sand paper and sawdust and old things made new again.  THAT was the easy part.

 I will continue to do all that; maintain my booth at Stars and my etsy shop and  working on my home decorating projects.  I just won’t be sharing the step by step of it all in my blog anymore.  It takes a lot MORE time and effort to write about what you do, than to actually DO it.

The time that I will be saving by not blogging anymore will be invested in something MUCH more valuable and important.  Helping children.  More specifically, helping children who have been neglected or abused and removed from their homes, and ended up in foster care; by volunteering through the CASA program.  (Court Appointed Special Advocate)

 I’ve gone through the vetting process (informatin seminar, application, in person interview, TWO background checks) and will begin the training classes in a couple of weeks.

Sooooooo . . . .  “It’s the end of this blog as you know it . . . . ” 

I will leave the blog in place and hope that it will continue to instruct and inspire others to revamp their old items instead of throwing them away.  And I ‘might’ occasionally still post; for special events etc.

For the most part from now on, I’ll be using my Facebook page to ‘keep in touch’ with family and friends.  While my blog  posts automatically plug into my Facebook feed; my Facebook posts do NOT post on my blog.  So if you really want to keep in touch with what it going on in my life, you can follow my Facebook page  HERE.

EDITED TO ADD:  Sorry everyone!  I thought you could ‘follow me’ on Facebook, but NOPE.  Go ahead and send me a friend request, and I’ll set up a special group to put my blog readers in.  I WON’T get your Facebook posts, but you can get mine, and post on my page.  Sorry for the kerfuffle!!

 I ask your forgiveness in advance for my not ‘friending’ every one of you who might send me a Facebook friend request.  I just CANNOT keep up with that many people’s updates in my feed.   You can ‘follow me’ on Facebook without being ‘friended’ by me.

Lastly, I ask for your prayers and positive thoughts that I can do ‘good things’ for the children over whom I am given the responsibility of protecting, and guiding through the foster care system; and forward into a productive and happy life.

Thank you for friendship and support.

Your help is still very much needed . . . adding another ‘PERK’ to reward your kindness!

When I wrote my last post about Nicolle needing financial help due to her terribly knee injury and current lack of medical insurance; I felt an immense sense of urgency to ‘put it out there’ right away; and I did so.

AFTER posting it . . .  (and myself being sick for the better part of last week (but I HAVE medical insurance and received the doctors care I needed at a minimal cost to me)  I tried to think of something MORE that I might do to encourage those of you whom are ‘able to’ help, to do so.

Here’s what I’ve come up with:  The raffle for an item from my etsy shop will still take place.  IN ADDITION, I will also GIVE to everyone who donates to Nicolle’s cause a FREE e-book from my etsy shop.

(DON’T FORGET to put “T2T” before your name on your donor info to be entered in the raffle) 

To receive your free e-book; send me an email at

 folkartoriginals @ yahoo.com

Tell me which e-book you want and I will email it to you right away.  The raffle will take place the end of this month.  The winner will be announced here on my blog.

CLICK HERE  to go to Nicolle’s donation page.    And PLEASE share her plight on your Facebook page.

There, but for the grace of God; go I.

ANY one of us could end up in such a situation someday, and be reliant on the kindness of others.  Think about all you have to be thankful for . . . and share what you can to help.  There is no such thing as ‘too small of a donation’.

Please.

URGENT!! A FRIEND NEEDS YOUR HELP!!

Dear Readers of my ‘Trash2Trasure’ blog.

I have a friend here in Portland who is in dire need of financial assistance to pay for current and on-going medical treatment for a badly injured knee.  As a fellow single mother of one grown child, struggling to get by one her own and dealing with medical issues and the constant pain they bring with them . . . I can really relate to what she is going through.

SHE would never ask for the help herself.  Her daughter set up the donation page for her.  You can see in this picture how bad her knee is; and this picture is after two months of being worked on!!

I know that most of you are not from the Portland, Oregon area and have no idea who Nicolle Camarata is.  I would not post this in my blog for ‘just anyone’.  I can SOOOOOOOOOOOOOO relate to what she is going though.  The pain attached to the medical issue.  The overwhelming FEAR of ‘How am I ever going to PAY for all of this?!?’  That feeling of “Maybe it’s time to shoot me and just put me out of my misery!”  (I said those very words to MY doctor once while I was in the midst of the worst with my back issues and surgeries.  I wasn’t REALLY suicidal, but just ready to be OVER IT!! )

My heart truly goes out to her and I want to do as much as I can to help ease the financial burden.  When you are stressed and worried the healing process takes longer too.  PLEASE help me help this dear woman with her medical issues AND help restore her faith in humanity.

I’m hoping to use my blog as an instrument of hope and kindness for this fellow human in need.

If the information I share in my blog has even been of inspiration or encouragement to you . . . .  If you have ever used one of my tutorials or instructions  . . . . if you have ever dragged home a ‘piece of trash’ and turned it into a treasure after seeing what I have done with some of MY trash . . .  if you have ever appreciated all the time and effort I put into taking pictures and posting in my blog; on top of doing all the hand work on the items itself . . .if you have ever wished there was a way for you to show your appreciation for all the information that I share in my blog  . . . . .

THIS IS YOUR CHANCE TO ‘PAY IT FORWARD’!!  Please go to Nicolle’s  ‘YOUCARING’ page HERE and donate what you can to help her.

Even the smallest donation WILL make a difference for her.  I have already ‘put my money where my mouth is’ and made a donation.  I hope you will do the same.

I‘d like to do a raffle of some kind to reward your kindness in donating to her fund.  Let’s see  . . . . .    I could do a drawing of one name from all those who read my blog whom and have donated between now and the end of the month.  How does that sound?   As for HOW to collect the names of those who donate after reading this post????  When you enter your  name on the donations page, put “T2T” BEFORE your name.  And I will collect the names from the donation site.   If you choose to keep your donation anonymous, I will not be able to include you in the raffle prize drawing.  

How about something from my etsy shop as the raffle prize??  Suggestions for that item are welcome.  I’ll post what item has been selected as the prize sometime next week.

In the meantime, please open your hearts and your wallet.

“Be not forgetful to entertain strangers; for thereby some have entertained angels unaware.”  Romans 13:2

Thank you and God bless you!

Look what I got for Christmas!

Yep!  That’s ANOTHER Keurig mini Plus in RED!  hehe.  Every year my son asks me what I want for Christmas, and every year he gets me exactly what I asked for.  I had asked for a wedding photo enlargement and a medical alert system, since I live alone now and have a lot of medical issues.

SO, I had no qualms about buying the Keurig for myself.  Plus, I never imagined that my son or daughter in law actually ever READ my blog or Facebook posts!  Apparently they DO!  And they decided to surprise me with the Keurig, and had already bought and wrapped it when I posted that I’d bought one.

We all had a good laugh about it, and they gave me the gift receipt so I can return it.  (if anyone LOCAL wants to buy it from me, it’s brand new, still in box, unopened.  $80.00)

My ‘other’ gift from them more than made up for the Keurig kerfuffle though.  I was expecting one 8×10 wedding photo; they had an entire wedding ALBUM made for me!  I LOVE it more than I can even say!

Now I REALLY need to get that day bed / sofa and a coffee table to put the album on!!

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and are looking forward to joy and new adventures in the New Year!

NOT that I ‘needed’ them.!.!.!

Catching up on my thrift shopping now that my hand is better and I CAN shop.  Look what I found yesterday!

The ‘mixed’ jar was in the front and I ALMOST didn’t pick it up because I really only wanted the white ones.

As I pulled this one from the shelf to look closer at the white buttons, I noticed the FULL jar of white one behind it!!  I could not grab that one fast enough!!  hehe

Aren’t they beautiful!?!  And most of them are small and extra small ones.

Like I said, I did not NEED any more buttons, as is evidenced by the above photo if SEVEN jars of just white buttons (and one jar of black ones!)  My colored buttons are in show boxes; 3 boxes full.

While I really didn’t NEED any more white buttons, still I sorted through all of them and picked out the ‘special ones’ (unique shapes and the super smallest ones to add to my jars.  Then I decided to ‘share the wealth’ and filled three pretty apothecary jars to sell in my booth at Stars.

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These jars are about ‘pint’ size.

Progress report on my hand post-op.  This picture was 4 days after surgery.

13 days, just after stitches were removed.

And today!!!  The incision is completely healed, and hand ‘function’ is at about 85% and improving considerably every day.  Just yesterday I still could not turn on the ignition in my car with my right hand; and today I could!!  woo-hoo!

The Wedding.

This handsome young man escorted his mama down the aisle, gave her a big hug that prompted a few happy tears and seated her; then waited, beaming, for his bride to be to ascend the aisle.

The bridesmaids and groomsmen have all traveled down the aisle followed by the flower girl.  The music changes and the crowd stands and turns to look back in anticipation of the bride.  Here comes the beautiful and teary-eyed bride on the arm of her equally teary-eyed dad who is proudly sporting the Clarey family kilt.  Attempting to smile through the tears, they hug and he tenderly ushers her into place facing her husband to be.

The ‘uncle of the bride officiant’ gratefully erases everyone’s tears momentarily with a bit of humor.  Happy tears though they be on this joyous occasion, we’d really prefer to not become so tearful that our noses begin to run!

The cloud filled sky shelters the sun from the eyes of the guests and sunglasses are removed and tissues held at the ready and they say their I do’s.

The officiant forgets to tell the bride to put the ring on the grooms finger and begins to move on to the next part of the ceremony.  The bride quickly slipped the grooms ring onto his finger and everyone chuckles in unison.

The clouds begin to thin as they repeat their personally written vows to each other.  Just as they are being pronounced husband and wife, as if right on cue, sun bursts through the clouds as they presented as the new Mr. & Mrs. Howard.

That is ALL the pictures I took!  I was just too caught up in soaking it all in to remember to keep snapping photos. I didn’t want to miss anything by being too preoccupied with taking pictures.  I’ll leave the rest to the professionals and wait to see those later on.

It was a beautiful ceremony and fun reception; as was the rehearsal dinner for ALL the guests the evening before.  Since it was a ‘destination’ wedding and nearly all the guests had already arrived the day before, the bride and groom included everyone in the rehearsal dinner.  It proved to me a nice ‘pre-meet and greet’ for everyone.

The brides rehearsal dress was almost as beautiful as her wedding gown!

It was very overcast and SMOKEY from all the wild fires at the rehearsal, but the smoke had almost entirely dissipated by the wedding.

The view just behind the spot where the ceremony took place.

OOPS!  I cut off the end of the banner in my photo.  It reads #howardlyeverafter2015 their tag for Instagram pictures.

Entrance to ‘the Barn’ where the rehearsal dinner was held.

Casual and family friendly seating for the rehearsal BBQ dinner.

Congratulations Megan & Elliot!