Thanksgiving and Thankfulness

I woke up early.  I woke up at 4:50 AM.  This is on a day off and one where I would think that most people would take the chance to sleep in.  Me?  Not so much.  I woke up with my brain going at 100 miles per hour.  All the things that I can do with this day...all the possibilities!  So much to think about!  So much to say.  But what takes priority?  Journaling?  These are thoughts I write down, but pretty much just keep to myself.  Blogging?  These are thoughts that I like to share.  And if I blog, what of these many thoughts running around in my head want to be written down? 

I think I will just start simply today.  Looking over the week, several things stand out.  We have been taking a class to help get our finances in order.  It is the Dave Ramsey Financial Peace University class.  The class covers from the basics of checkbook keeping, to more advanced issues like how to invest, to the  real meaning of STEWARDSHIP.  I mean the idea that all we have belongs to God and we are just taking care of it for a time.  This is a great class and it teaches good, old-fashioned values of how to give, save and spend.  I sometimes forget the spend part, so Tim and Carl have to remind me.  Yes, money is for fun too!  Sometimes I forget. 

So on that same line of thought, I wanted to talk about being thankful for having the opportunity through that class of building community in surprising places.  Everyone in the class except us go to the church that is sponsoring the class.  I just found it on the Dave Ramsey website.  What a neat group of people they are.  We have people who are just younger than my parents, who are in their 80s, to people who are half my age, newly married and looking to grow a family.  And since they have child-care, we get the added bonus of Carl making friends too.  And although we are already active members in our own church, we have invited ourselves to join them on their Tuesday evening get-togethers.  They have these for three months each session at different times of the year.  They are happy that we would want to join them.  We are happy that they would want us. 

So today, I am thankful for having the opportunity to build community in places unlooked for. 

And looking back over the year regarding food.  We have made so many changes.  Changes for our health.  Changes for the environment.  We so enjoyed participating in our CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) for the second year.  We enjoyed meeting and talking with our farmers and their family.  And we enjoyed having fresh food that was grown lovingly and with no chemicals.  I have to admit that we had a little bit of a hard time using it all this year.  But I think that this was mainly due to our move.  But I think about the fact that we got our fruits and vegetables all summer long in one box.  We cut down on packaging and using plastic as well as getting wholesome and fresh food.  And we supported local growers...who, by the way, have a lovely growing family. 

So today, I am not only thankful for good, whole food, grown fresh and locally with a minimum of chemicals, but I am also thankful for knowing my farmers and for loving their family.  And on top of that, I am thankful that we were able to cut down on the amount of plastic and packaging that we used. 

We are eating mostly organic food now as well.  We try wherever we can to choose organic and to choose bulk food.  Cutting down on packaging and cutting down on chemicals used has become a habit over the last year.  That is good stuff.  I realize that it is not just good for us, but it is good for the land and it is good for the people who grow the food.  And by the way, I give a special thank you to my husband.  I think up these things and he implements.  What a great team we are. 

Chickens -- you know I have to say something about our chickens.  Let's see...when did we get our chickens?  I think they came to us in the Spring.  So it hasn't been quite a year.  What a crazy and wonderful idea to get them!  They have such wonderful personalities and they help me look at things so differently.  They talk to me when I come out in the yard.  And we have so much less food garbage because of them.  They have helped me make a commitment to lessen garbage all around.  At our house now, if it is organic (as in organic matter) and comes from our home, it has a place to go.  All our veggie scraps go to the chickens.  If it is meat, it goes to our dog.  If it is a little too far gone to give to the chickens or if it is tea bags or coffee filters, it goes to the worms. 

And I cannot forget to mention the eggs!  What a cool recycling process!  In goes our veggie scraps and some organic feed...out comes lovely eggs.  I gave some to my parents.  They laugh because the eggs are so small.  But I know that they are packed with nutrients...nutrients that we put there. 

Health...our health is better overall because we eat better.  Tim still has a lot of trouble with the neuropathy in his feet though.  We are working on that in a variety of ways.  I feel for him.  My goal for this upcoming year is to figure out how to get us up and moving more as a family.  We have tried several ideas, but they never seem to stick.  I know that there is something...I will keep looking.

We are working on building community in other ways too.  We have had a couple of Carl's friends over for play dates.  It is so much easier to do now that we live so centrally.  He has loved that and the boys have been so good.  Chatting with parents is a lot of fun for Tim and I as well.  And I have reconnected with old friends through FB.  I am working on reconnecting face to face as well. 

I had better say a few words about central heating.  If you have never lived without central heating, you have been very blessed.  I have lived in several places without it and I am telling you that I am VERY thankful to have it now.  I could expound on this, but I think you get the picture. 

I cannot close my thankfulness message without giving a tribute to my Gabby-dog.  I am so thankful to have had her in my life.  I am so thankful to have had the honor (and trial) of being with her when she passed.  She was a great soul and one that I am honored to have walked on this planet with. 

Love to you and yours on this day and every day.

A little song of thankfulness from Bing Crosby

Saturday again

It is Saturday.  I started a post last night that was all doom and gloom.  Just having a big of a rough ride the past month...or so.  But I erased it.  I didn't feel like sharing at that level yesterday.  But today...actually the wee hours of the morning brought out a different side of me.  I got up because the cats were going crazy. They usually can control themselves until just about 5:30 AM and then it is like they just cannot control it for one more moment.  This time Yodalina was doing her hunting trill at the window.  Has your cat ever done that?  Pretty wild sound. 

So I got up and started my morning business...feed the cats, let the dog out...WHAT?!  It was snowing!  I had heard rumors of snow, but then everyone had said that there was no chance.  Well it was snowing and not just a little bit!  The ground was already covered and it was coming down sweetly.  It was still dark out, so it was fun to be able to see the white coming out of the sky.  Belle was first puzzled and then thrilled!  I stood inside and watched her tearing back and forth across the yard.  Then she settled with a kurplunk! right in the snow.  Her breed was bread for snow in the Pyranean mountains.  Wonder how to spell that.  I should look it up.  In any case, she was in heaven. 

I let it get light and after an unsuccessful attempt at waking my son up, I got my pink, quilted, farmer-girl pants and work coat on and took Belle and myself out for a walk.  It was just barely light out, so people were surprised to see the two of us.  I made sure to wear my reflective vest too, just for that reason. 

Ok, I have to admit that it was a bit different than my winter walks last year in the woods.  Belle has no concept of cars.  She was on a long leash and she would just walk out into the street whenever she thought something was interesting.  I need to teach her a little more about cars.  And we aren't used to seeing other people either.  After we were well into the walk, this lady ran up behind me and scared the living daylights out of me.  Belle was oblivious.  The lady was quite nice and apologized.  She said she tried really hard not to scare me.  And I found it interesting that no one waves when they drive by in the cars.  I guess my arm would have gotten tired after waving to all those cars anyway.  I thought it was interesting too that most of them did not even take the time to get the snow off their windows before they got on their way.  I mean, how could they see? 

As we were walking, there was a lovely red maple with most of its leaves still on.  It stood in the snow like a beautifully dressed queen in all of her splendor. 

We walked up to a school and decided to cut through their field as I was pretty sure that the road on the opposite side was less traveled.  It was interesting how quiet it got as we walked away from the road.  We both relaxed a little as we didn't have to worry so much about watching for cars.  And then on the other side there were sidewalks to keep us up off the road.  I would have taken that road first, but it gets pretty dark back there and with the light just coming up I thought it safer to take the busier street. 

In any case, it is an adventure to live in town after years of living outside of it.  Lots of rules to re-learn.  Like when you are walking early in the morning, be careful to keep your eyes averted from all open windows.  I won't go into how I found out that this was important.  It is a reminder for you though to keep your blinds closed when you are up first thing in the morning....:-)

Well, the morning has dwindled away since then.  I collected my fresh eggs from our girls and cooked them up.  Tasty!  And now the snow is almost gone.  I am looking out at the blanket of golden leaves instead.  They are reminding me that there is work to do and the weekend is only so long. 

Love to you and yours on this Saturday and always. 

Lovely Saturday

How nice to have a clear Saturday in the Fall!  My guys were working on updating the computer, so Belle and I took the opportunity to spend it mostly outside.  Our shed had a lot of moss and other debris on it.  I worked on it for quite a while.  I couldn't finish it, but I will. 

Then I looked at the worm bin.  I have been feeding them regularly, but just haven't taken much time to check on them.  WOW there are a TON of worms in there.  They have been busy while I have been ignoring them.  The people who lived her before had started a compost bin.  I cleaned out part of our garden and dumped old tomato stocks in there.  Then I thought, well there are a lot of worms for one little bin!  So I added about half the bin to the compost bin.  Not sure how that will work, but hopefully things will break down faster.  And it was past time to clean out my original bin too.  Now just to start USING the gold in there!!  Ok, I think I will let it grow over the winter and use it in the spring. 

As I said, I worked on the garden areas as well.  I got one pretty cleaned up and then Tim and I moved the chickens onto that one so they can clean it all up and give it a good fertilizing as well.  We will dig the fertilizer in before it freezes and it should be ready for good planting next year.  Then they get to clean up the next portion.  They are so good at cleaning up weeds and such. 

Next I tackled the leaves.  We have a lot of leaves from two huge cherry trees in our yard.  I keep thinking about having them taken down, but they really are beautiful big trees.  In any case, I raked a bit and covered our non-garden areas with the leaves.  Hopefully they will protect the areas from the weather and they will keep the weeds down.  Even if they don't break down (they are thick leaves!) I can rake them off the beds and continue to compost them in another area when spring comes. 

We are just at the beginning of the leaves dropping, so there will be a lot more where those came from.  I will be able to get a good load of them onto the side gardens.  These gardens don't get much sun.  I will look at what kind of veggies grow well in more shadier areas and see if I can get some stuff to grow there next year. 

Watched a very interesting documentary last night.  It was called Forks over Knives.  It talked a lot about how it is better for our health to eat less meat, fish and dairy.  I think it would be less costly too, even with eating all organic foods.  It is tough on Tim as he does the cooking around here.  So I am thinking about doing some research and seeing what I can do.  I understand grains and vegetables better than I ever have meat anyway.  I assured him that we are not going to CUT out meat completely, but lessening it is a smart thing.  And it seems easier to do in the winter when there are stews and soups that warm the tummy and the soul. 

Carl wants the computer, so I had better go.  Thanks for sharing this lovely Sunday morning with me.

Gabby

Time flies when life is happening.  It has been too long since I wrote here.  And now I want to write about our friend Gabby who passed away yesterday.  It is a sad story in some ways, but a story of salvation in other ways. 

We first met Gabby about five months after Lizzie passed away.  Bear was moving into old age and after losing two dogs in two years, this girl was worried about Bear moving on quickly.  We wanted to get a dog who was three of four years old.  One that was young enough that he or she could have some life and energy, but old enough that he or she wouldn't drive Bear absolutely crazy.  Here enters Gabby.

I got all excited about getting a new dog.  Yeah for a new dog!  A new member of the family!  I started looking at the web...and after purusing many dogs, I noticed Gabby.  She was at our community shelter.  She was a beautiful brown and white dog with smiling eyes.  She was old.  OLD? When they say "seven" do they mean older than that?  We just gave up two dogs in two years, could we handle another who might go at any time?  And yet, she stuck in my heart. 

I was determined not to play favorites when we got the shelter.  I wanted to stay open to whoever was there.  And so I looked here and there.  Well, what did Tim do?  He went straight in and found her kennel.  "Here she is! Let's take her into the play yard."  Are you sure?  I mean she is OLD.  "Seven isn't so old.  And besides, we are used to older dogs."  Ok, well let's take her out then.  As he and Carl took her into the yard, I went to the front to ask about her.  They said she was a drop off.  The original owner went off to school and left Gabby with her little sister.  Now her little sister was getting married and she didn't want the hassle of a dog.  The shelter staff said she is a "good dog." 

I got back and walked into the play yard just in time to see Gabby jump up on Carl, very gently I might add, and give him a HUG.  That is right, a hug.  There is just no other way to describe what she did.  Carl was very pleased and this decided it for him on the spot.  Honestly, I don't remember too much more of the time in the play yard.  What I do remember is that Gabby did not want to go back into that kennel! 

As we were reminiscing recently, Tim told me that what he remembers the most about seeing her for the first time in realy life, was that she looked completely defeated.  She was laying there and the dog that was in the kennel with her was dancing on her head in an attempt to get us to notice him.  I remember the food being spilled all over too and Gabby had no life in her eyes.  All that changed when she came out into the play yard that day. 

So at the desk, I remember we had to call our landlord.  That was strange.  I realized in a split second that our landlord could say no!  I mean, we had always owned our own home and no one could say one way or the other...BUT she said yes.  Thank YOU! 

And then I had to live with the feeling that we were making a big mistake.  Was it all show?  Was she really so calm?  Was she really this smart?  Hee hee...well, she did make a lot of messes those first few days home.  She seemed to have forgotten how to go to the bathroom outside.  And then there was the time that she decided that she would eat a dozen or so eggs that were left out on the counter.  Wow that was a mess.  She liked to eat other things off the counter as well.  The routine got to be, "Did you knock that bread bag on the floor?"  No, not me.  And then we would look at Gabby. 

Bear took our new addition to the family in stride.  They seemed to enjoy each other's company.  And Gabby continued to adore Carl.  But her real true love was Tim.  Maybe it was just because anyone who came within 10 feet of us could tell that Bear and I loved each other dearly.  Or maybe it was that Tim is such a great guy. But whatever the reason, Gabby fell in love with Tim.  The other day, Tim said, "She is MY dog.  She is everything that I think a dog should be.  I chose her!" 

Well, Gabby lived through Bear's passing which was just eight months after she came to live with us.  And then she live through being an only dog for all of five months.  And then she even lived through the new addition of Belle.

Gabby got to run free in the woods.  But she never chose to stay out long.  She loved our walks in the woods and in the fields.  She loved sniffing things and digging out in the fields.  She loved life.  And she reminded us how to love life.

Well, we moved about a month ago and Gabby lived through that too.  She was a trooper.  She was worried as we packed up and on the day of the actual move.  But I think that she knew...she knew that wherever we were that was home.  And she hopefully knew that we would never leave her.

Until the other day, she was a bright shining being: climbing up on the bed every night to warm Tim's side of the bed, snoring like the dickens once she got to sleep, eating her fill of food and drinking her fill of water, and just enjoying every minute.  In the midst of all that, I noticed she was gaining some weight.  I thought, 'Well, she does have a more sedentary life here than she did in the woods.'  Then we went camping and my sis sat our animals.  I don't remember saying it, but Tim said that I noticed her weight again when we got back from camping. 

But it wasn't until last Friday that I started worrying.  I am a great worrier, so this is pretty surprising.  I noticed that Gabby's belly felt tight and it looked distended.  I called early on Saturday morning to see if I could get into the vet.  They didn't call back even after they had been open an hour.  I called again...had to leave another message.  Finally I called again and they said that it could be bloat and that I needed to get in there asap. 

So...I loaded Gabby up and went to see the vet.  The story is getting long...well, the long and short of it is that we went home that day with an x-ray and proof that her belly was full of fluid.  We took blood.  The blood work came out fine.  F I N E. Looking back, that was not fair.  On Wednesday we brought her back in to have an ultrasound.  But in the meantime she was spoiled and walked and loved on.  Then I got the call on Wednesday morning.  They weren't going to do the ultrasound after all.  They knew what it was.  She had a tumor on her heart.  Her heart cavity was full of fluid as well as her belly. 

And then we were told that she didn't have any more chances.  And it was time...before things got really bad.  She was so happy and so seemingly healthy.  We took her for a walk in the beautiful Autumn sunshine.  We went to the store and bought her a big can of the best canned dogfood money could buy.  She got the lion's share and Belle got a nibble as well.  And then we scritched her and loved on her and read her a book and prayed over her.  And then she went to sleep and slept the sleep of the beloved. 

Gabby once again became Gabrielle.  Yes, Gabrielle the Beloved.