* QUITE A FEW CHALLENGES *

You know how sometimes it seems like a lot of good things happen all at once?
No, me neither!

But, it does seem like challenges, crises, stressful situations kind of come in bunches. I'm going through some of those right now.

Charlie is getting surgery tomorrow morning to have a cyst removed and checked for cancer. (This is our first doggie to ever need surgery.)

My oldest son, Scott, has been going through A LOT for way too long and doesn't seem to think he needs help.

I've got some health issues that don't seem to be serious, but have been stressful and a bit worrisome.

Well....isn't this a cheerful blog post?!

I just felt the need to share these things tonight and to ask for well wishes/prayers/etc. I will post updates on Charlie as soon as possible, and on any other happenings concerning the above info.

And below are some favorite photos/jokes from long ago blog posts. 

* I'M HANGING IN THERE, AND STAYING STRONG *

Can you believe it is already June 2016?

 

I don't know why, but it seems to be part of human nature that as every month and year goes by, we all say, "I can't believe it is.....fill in the blank...already!"

 

Although I really do enjoy all the little things in life (Mr. Robert Brault!) and savor as much of each day that I can, life just gets in the way sometimes of our "plans." It's kind of like watching or listening to the weather forecast for the upcoming week. Don't bother making your outdoor plans according to those predictions. They usually change.....

 

Case in point: About six weeks ago, neither Ron nor I could have predicted what our lives would be like during these first few days in June. About a month ago, Ron had part of his right lung removed due to a cancerous "nodule." The surgery was successful and there was no chemo or radiation involved. Thank goodness! But during his recovery at home, he wasn't getting much better, and had trouble breathing. But when he went for his follow-up appointments to his lung surgeon and lung doctor (yes, two separate ones) both said things like: It takes time. You're doing all the things you're supposed to, etc.

 

Then, over the weekend of May 14th and 15th, Vern rapidly got sicker and our vet said without a doubt we were making the right decision to say goodbye to our sweet, beloved, senior guy. As most of you know, we'd had Vern just over five years and he would've been 15 years old this August. Although Vern was our third dog, Ron bonded with him much more than he ever did with the first two, and it really hit him hard. For me...I'm grieving about the same as I did for our other two, much-loved fur babies. I have my good days and my bad days.

 

So, a couple more weeks went by, and I kept telling Ron I thought he had pneumonia. I've had it enough times in my life to know the sounds and symptoms. It's not "normal" to wheeze and rattle when you breath! But, did that happen when the doctors listened to him with their stethoscopes? Of course not. One of them looked at me a bit patronizingly at that point, because I had voiced my "knowledge" but he wasn't "hearing" it.

 

....................................................... To Be Continued ...................................................

 



* Nostalgic Sunday *

Two Saturdays ago, my oldest son, Scott turned 40. (Yes, I was a child bride!)

I made him a card/book to celebrate the occasion, using eight pages (sixteen sides) of 12x12 construction paper, 3-hole punched, and laminated with a Lifetime Guarantee, from me! 

The below page is the first one in the card/book. I've always loved this photo of him. He was so cute and sweet, and his pose looks like Jack Benny's!

I dug through boxes of loose photos, and searched through photo albums, looking for the ones that were Just Right. Then I used stickers and did a little of my own printing. I used binder rings to keep it all together, and he really loved it, which made me very happy.


The below page explains what pictures are on it; Germany 1973. Scott was only three months old when he and I flew by ourselves from St. Louis to Frankfurt, Germany. 

Scott sent the below photo of himself standing in front of Stonehenge in June 2010. I think it was the very next day he was rushed to a hospital in London for emergency removal of his burst appendix. It was a very scary time, as you can imagine. If you'd like to read my posts from then, just click on appendix in the Labels below. 

Happy Birthday, again, Scott. I love you!

"Grown don't mean nothing to a mother. A child is a child. They get bigger, older, but grown? What's that suppose to mean? In my heart it don't mean a thing." ~ Toni Morrison, Beloved, 1987 

** A Cautious Sigh of Relief **

Thanks to all of you that left heartfelt comments and/or sent e-mails of prayers and well wishes.

The family member who had emergency surgery is my oldest son, Scott, who I'd just wrote about on Monday, the 21st. He is in England for business and I posted the photo of him visiting Stonehenge.

(Scott and me the day before he flew to England)

I'm not exactly sure of the time of events, but sometime soon after that tour at Stonehenge, he was rushed to a hospital for emergency removal of his burst appendix, which also resulted in having some gangrene.

That was all I knew for many hours, which was the reason for my intense fear. And obviously, with him being a zillion miles from home, made it all the worse.

This afternoon, Scott called me from his cell phone and we were able to talk for quite a few minutes. His voice was weak, but oh how wonderful it was to hear it and to talk with him! He wasn't sure when he was going to be released from the hospital, but thought it would be at least a couple of days from now. After that, he said he'll stay at his hotel and rest up until his already scheduled flight home, which is on July 1st.

His British supervisor has been so wonderful through all this, keeping in touch with Cindy, Scott's wife, and notifying her whenever he knew anything.

I titled this post "A Cautious Sigh of Relief" because although it appears that Scott's surgery was successful and all the gangrene was removed, I won't be able to actually sigh with relief and/or breathe properly until he is safely back at home.

(*Note to Chatty Crone. Yes, I am indeed Scott's mom. I was a mere child when I was married the first time, so I was a very young mom!)

"Grown don't mean nothing to a mother. A child is a child. They get bigger, older, but grown? What's that suppose to mean? In my heart it don't mean a thing." ~ Toni Morrison, Beloved, 1987

** Please Keep Me in Your Thoughts **

We've all heard sayings about not taking life for granted, take time to smell the roses, and we don't know what tomorrow may bring.

The past 24 hours or so have been difficult for me. A very close family member had emergency surgery, and I don't know much else than that. It's something that can be quite serious, though, and I've been really worried and fearful.

I'm sorry if I seem secretive, but I don't want to divulge anything else at this time.

If you'd like, please send good thoughts and wishes my way.
I'll also accept prayers, good karma, peace....whatever you'd care to send....including virtual hugs....(thank you, Karrie!)

Hopefully, I'll have some good news to post sometime tomorrow.

"Don't ever save anything for a special occasion. Being alive is the special occasion". ~Author Unknown