January 28, 2012

My Mundane Life

I love to read blogs written by people who post daily.  What is up with this one?  Why don't I post daily?  I guess I feel like my life is a little boring.  Or maybe it's too depressing.  Either way, I'm going to try to start blogging a little more regularly. 

Not a whole lot has been going on in my crafting world.  I came across Rebecca Danger's book, Big Book of Knitted Monsters.  I've wanted to make one of her monsters for the longest time, but I'm a big chicken when it comes to new knitting patterns or techniques.  How on earth I ever learned to knit socks is beyond me!  I sent a copy of the book to a friend of mine who made two of them for her cousins.  After asking her if she thought they were easy enough for me to make one (and she did think I could!) I pulled the book out again.  I'm on my second one now!  I LOVE them.  No, I don't have any pictures of them yet.  By the time I remember to take a picture, it's too dark.  Oh well, I will try my best to remember during the day!

Life has gotten a little hectic around here.  I haven't really shared a lot of our problems over the past few years because I wasn't quite sure how to go about it.  Most of you know that my father-in-law passed away in January of 2009 after suffering from lung cancer.  A little over a week after we got home from his funeral, my father had a stroke and never recovered.  He passed away in February of 2009.  Since that time, RL and I have been helping our moms anyway we can.  From time to time RL will fly or drive down to Florida and tend to things for his Mom.  My Mom lives about four miles away from us and we tend to her needs.  Shortly after my Dad passed away, my Mom went into a major depression she just couldn't shake. She was diagnosed with it and her medication was changed.  She was also diagnosed with a few vitamin deficiencies.  The major diagnosis was the beginning of dementia.  That was a real blow.  We haven't really gotten a firm diagnosis because the depression has been in the way of that.  So.....our lives have changed quite a bit.  No longer is it just the four of us, it's the five of us most of the time and sometimes the six of us when RLs mom has a need.  Gone are the days of knitting non-stop.   I don't read much these days either.  Shoot - gone are a lot of the things I enjoyed doing in my free time.

All of that to get to this .... I have to make myself slow down now.  I have to find the time to knit, read, work a crossword puzzle, sew, steal an hour to go to the bookstore, go to lunch with RL, go to therapy to learn how to be a caregiver.  The kids have been teaching me to slow down too.  I don't always want to slow down or just sit, but I have to so I can maintain some level of sanity which was shaky to begin with!  :)  

Last week, on a very cold day, the kids built a small fire pit in the backyard and loaded it up with wood for a fire.  They asked if we could roast hot dogs and marshmallows.  My gut instinct was to say no.  I had too much to do.  I didn't want to just sit around.  Excuses, excuses, excuses.  So, going against what I felt I needed to do, I did what I truly needed to do.  We didn't notice the cold because the fire was so warm.  The hot dogs were wonderful!  Don't know the last time I had one fixed over a fire.  The marshmallows were hit or miss....sometimes they hit the fire and sometimes they missed our mouths, but the ones that we did eat were great.  Harper even managed to get a taste or two.  Such a bad dog!

So, bear with me as I learn how to met the needs of my Mom, cope with adult children learning to truly be adults, and most of all, learn to stop and take time to just breath.


OHHHHH - before I forget!  My daughter has started a blog:  Linsey Woolsey.  Go check it out.  It's pretty good - if I do say so myself!

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