It is getting harder and harder to find time to blog!  I am hoping that after "Scrooge" (that Betsy is directing and that I am helping to interpret for and that Jim is in), life will settle down a little bit!

A few days before Thanksgiving, I was asked if I would host a local college international student.  It was a girl I had met at one of the international activities at our church missions conference, so I asked all of my family, and they said it was fine with them.  I was thinking she would be here all weekend, and Betsy suggested we see if she wants to bring a friend because there were a few times over the weekend that the girls wouldn't be around and it might be boring.  So she wrote back to me and asked if she could bring 2 friends!  So, that was fine, and although I just about had time to get ready for them, Amanda helped me Wednesday morning, and by 2:00 that afternoon, I picked them up.  Turned out that they couldn't even stay for Thanksgiving Day - I needed to get them back to campus for a dinner they had to go to, but they did want to go with my girls shopping on Black Friday, but then needed to go back to school.  So, they were only here a short time, but we enjoyed them!  They were delightful and wanted to help us get ready for our Thanksgiving dinner!

Suzanne was home that day too, so she and I got started on cooking and showed our girls how to make some traditional American things!

Here they are:  Olesya on the left, is from Russia, and Raquel, on the right, is from Spain.  They are both here at school for just one year.

                                      

Here, Nomin, from Mongolia, is with Suzanne.  Nomin is here at school for all 4 years.

                                      

Olesya, Raquel, and Suzanne -

                                     

Learning to make pie -

                                     

And then just relaxing.  They were such a delight - all spoke very good English, were chatty, loved hearing about our traditions and talking about traditions in their countries, and were a pleasure to have with us!

                                     

                                     

They loved shopping, and so on Wednesday evening we went to the mall where Betsy works so they could see her and shop a little.  Thursday around noon, I drove them back to school, and picked them up again at 10:00 at night.  Then on Friday, the girls all got up early, went to our larger mall, and shopped for most of the day!   Then they had to be back at school again.

Thanksgiving was very nice at our house!  We had our usual family members - all of us as well as Jim's parents and his brother and family.  And Betsy's fiance, Bryan.  We ate at 6:00 so that Betsy and Bryan could go to his family's dinner at noon.

Amanda and I decided to try something new this year and we loved it!  We read the suggestion in Taste of Home.  I put the turkey in the oven first thing in the morning, and when it was done, I sliced it and put it on warm in my crock pot with the juice.  I cleaned up all of that mess with the roasting pan and the cutting board early!  We were thrilled (I have been cooking Thanksgiving dinner for most of our 32 years of marriage) to avoid some of that last minute rush to get the turkey out of the oven and everything else ready at the same time!

Here are random pictures of our day:

                                   

                                   

                                   

                                   

                                   

                                   

                                   

Joan had loaded the dishwasher for me, and Kip did all of the rest of the dishes, with Elinor drying them.  Thank you to them!

                                   

                                   

                                   

Pajama time!

                                   

Another wonderful Thanksgiving!  We did miss our friends Bob and Sherrie, who have, since last year, moved.  They used to spend every Thanksgiving with us! 
                                 

Today Luna had her first experience in a store.  We went to Gander Mountain, a sporting goods store that allows dogs in.  It is the place that Karen takes service dogs to train in going to public places most often for their first time.  It is not terribly crowded during the day, and there are not usually a lot of other dogs in there.

Here is Luna, waiting to see what will happen next -
 
                                  

That strap-like thing around her mouth is called a Gentle Leader.  It is not a muzzle, although it looks a little like one, but she can open her mouth and eat with it and all.  But it is a way of training her to stay focused - especially since she has had trouble dealing with other dogs.  It is working beautifully!  Luna really improved in her training once she started wearing the Gentle Leader - Betsy just leads her away from whatever she is not suppose to focus on.

Here is Karen giving Betsy instructions in the parking lot before we up went to the store -

                                   

                                   

                                   

The training involved walking up to the entrance, sitting, waiting until Betsy told her to go in with her.  Every time she did it right, she got a treat.  When she did it wrong, she was lead away to try again. 

                                   

For a half hour, they went through the automatic doors, then walked in the entryway, then through the turnstile, across the front of the store, then out again. 

Luna did great!  She seemed to love it!

This past weekend, I went to quilt camp!  I promise to have pictures on here of that weekend soon!  There were a lot of pictures, so I decided to show Luna's day first.

                                   

                                   

Amanda and I spent the day making applesauce and canning it - we did some a couple of weeks ago, but it is slow going with 2 little ones!  So, we made some more today - sorry, no pictures of that process - I was busy the entire time!  After the 2 days, we have a total of 10 quarts and 28 pints.  Not as many as we hoped to end up with, but that was all we had the time and energy for!

I did take a few pictures, though - of what to do with 2 little ones while Mommy and Grandma are busy in the kitchen (besides that fact that we fed them, played with them, got out crayons and paper, read books, put one of them down for a nap!)

                                    

Watching "Sesame Street" and then watching an ASL kids video -

                                    

                                    

                                    

                                    

                                    

I wasn't very good at taking pictures this weekend.  What a busy weekend!  I didn't have a minute to think about pictures!  Well, I guess I had a few minutes, because I did take a few!

On Saturday night, we celebrated Betsy's birthday, although the whole family couldn't be there.  So, there was me and Jim, Bets and Bryan, Suzanne, Amanda, Charlie and Megan.  We had lots of fun!

Betsy loves cookie cakes instead of regular cake.  This year, we got her cookie cake from Sam's Club, and it was VERY good, looked great, and was much cheaper than the one and only cookie store in our mall!  Betsy decided to get an Elmo cookie cake, because not only is Elmo adorable and she has always liked him from her youngest days, but CHARLIE likes him a lot, and so we had a party that made Charlie very happy!

                                         

We even got some cute Elmo plates and napkins.  Here was Charlie, looking so happy!  He helped Aunt Betsy blow out her candles.

                                         

Here is Bets, ready to cut the cake -

                                         

Megan with her Aunt Suzanne -

                                         

It was a fun birthday!

                                         

Happy 23rd Birthday to Betsy!

                                       
                                    

                                   

                                   

                                   

                                   

                                   

                                   

                                   

                                    

                                  
                                         

                                                                          

                                      

                                       

 After a recent day of rain and wind, our yard is full of leaves!  And the other day when Grandpa blew leaves off, he left a nice pile for Charlie to play in.  So, yesterday, there were more leaves on top of the pile, making it a lot of fun for this little boy!

                                         

                                         

                                          

I haven't blogged in awhile - it's a busy time of year!  Here is what I have been doing:

- trying to stay ahead of the dust balls, stink bugs, fleas, and general disarray in my house!  Borax and salt - that's what the vet told me to sprinkle all over the carpets since we found fleas on Luna.  Leave it for a few days, then vacuum it up.  So far, we haven't even seen fleas in the house, and only a couple at a time on Luna now, but the Borax/salt mixture is definitely a safe and effective way to get rid of them.  The vet said that this is the worst year for fleas she has ever seen - and I thought the stink bugs were bad!

- rehearsing for the sign language interpreting of "Scrooge" that will be at our Civic Center the first weekend of December.  Betsy is the director!  And 6 of us are interpreting one performance.

- finishing, finally, the piecing together of my bear applique quilt, and I made a pieced back of the left-over fabric.  Now to send it to the quilter.

- getting other projects cut out and ready for quilt camp in a few weeks.

- shopping with Betsy for a wedding dress and we found one!!!!

- working on the cross stitch Christmas stocking I started for Charlie last year and that will be finished soon!

- still taking care of paperwork for my mother's care and visiting her at the nursing home - she seems to recognize me, and sometimes nods or shakes her head, but otherwise, no longer responds to my chatting or my questions.

- enjoying seeing my grandchildren as often as possible!

 

No pictures today, but I thought I'd write about my weekend - such a nice one! 

Friday night, we had the Gibsons, Bryan's parents over for dinner.  I'll see if I can get pictures next time.   They are so nice, and a lot of fun to be with!  We really enjoyed our evening!

Today, I went to a Sign Language workshop on Vocabulary and Transliterating Skill Development.  The woman who gave the workshop came from Richmond as she does occasionally to do workshops here in the Roanoke area.  There were only about 8 of us, and we learned so much and had a very productive day! 

This evening, Betsy and Bryan were out, so I had the downstairs to myself - that's where both the piano and my sewing machine are.  Jim and I had eaten left overs for dinner, so there was hardly any work involved in getting dinner and cleaning up.  So, I practiced the piano for almost an hour (I'm still not ready with the pieces I am doing - I think I'll be playing the same 3 pieces the rest of my life!) and then sewed for a couple of hours - I finished piecing the top of the pieced/appliqued bear quilt I have been working on, and then started piecing the back together.  I am nearly finished!

Bets and Bryan came home and took Luna for a walk, and then Bets and I gave her another bath in her special shampoo - she still has some of those bugs on her, whatever they are, but we seem to be keeping them under control. 

It has been a very nice weekend!

The highlight of my day was playing with this little cutie pie!  He was being silly, and putting Mr. Potato Head's glasses on himself -

                                   

What fun!

                                  

Megan went with Mommy to the doctor for her 6 months check up, so Charlie came to Grandma's to play!  Shhhh - don't tell on Grandma, but I gave him 2 chocolate chip cookies in the morning.  What else was I suppose to do when he came up and asked in voice and sign, "Please may I have a cookie, Grandma?" and then when he finished that one he signed, "More, please?"

And he played so nicely, even while Grandma had to be on the telephone with all those Social Services and nursing home people, and he did let me take a few pictures in between!

                                  

                                  

Then we went outside and colored on the driveway with sidewalk chalk and walked through the million leaves on the driveway - he loved that!

I have mentioned before that I am taking piano lessons from Amanda.  I try to take a lesson every week, after her students leave on Mondays, but it doesn't always happen.  Sometimes there is something one of us needs to do at that hour.  Sometimes I am just not ready and need another week to practice.  But this week, I did have a lesson, and my lessons are so much fun because Charlie is playing and chatting with us, and sometimes plays the piano with me!  I am taking lessons just for my own enjoyment and so I love it that Charlie loves it when I have my lesson!  He has had to stay upstairs during the real students' lessons, but then when the last one is gone, we all go downstairs with a little snack for him, and he can play with the toys that are down there just for him!  Megan lays on a quilt and watches us all!

I am currently working on ( for the 3rd or 4th week now) Brahms "Lullaby" from a book that has classical pieces for intermediate students.  It's harder than I might have thought it would be!

Poor Luna!  On Friday, we started to notice that she was scratching a lot.  On Saturday, Betsy saw what we thought were fleas on her.  We hadn't seen fleas around here the whole time we've lived here, I don't think!  I put the Frontline stuff on Minuette , but not even every month - ususally just when I see a tick on her.

So, I asked one of our dog training teachers (she was on Facebook at the same time I was) what to do, and she suggested bathing Luna in a flea shampoo and then putting Frontline on her.  So, I bought some shampoo, we bathed Luna - her first bath with us - and when she was dry, put the Frontline stuff on her.  Oh, and on Minuette too, although she didn't have any signs of fleas.

Let me interject in here that Betsy has been sick with a very, very bad cold or whatever.  Sick enough to have canceled everything she had to do, find a replacement person for herself at work, and hasn't been able to be up for very long at a time.  She helped me with that bath, but that was all.

So, I have been taking care of both dogs all weekend, which is quite a challenge.  They can't be outside at the same time, but Minuette needs to be outside and then in again before Luna goes out or for a walk, etc.  I have been trying to keep up, and go up and down the stairs to take things to Betsy - juice, food, medicine, and I have been walking Luna her 2 - 2 1/2 miles a day, since Thursday.

Then there was all the bedding to wash - not only Luna's, but Betsy's, since Luna sleeps in her room, lots of vacuuming to do, etc.  That's really about all I have done since Thursday - take care of dogs, Betsy, and the clean-up.

So, this morning I walked Luna, fed her, put her back in Betsy's room, put Minuette out, fed Minuette, etc, and went on to church.  We knew that Luna was scratching even more this morning, but when I got home from church, Betsy told me that the bugs were all over Luna!  So, I called our trainer and described them, and she suggested I call the emergency vet.  So, I did - she immediately, without my even saying much, said - those are ticks!  Ticks!  They are tiny, tiny little things!  Not like the ticks we normally find around here.  She told me to buy a flea comb and comb them all out, dipping the comb in alcohol each time.  Then bathe her again, 24 hours from when we put the Frontline on her.  I had to go to 2 pet stores to find a flea comb - do you suppose everyone in our area is having the same problem?  Then, Jim and I started combing and combing - he helped me all afternoon.  We skipped all the other church things we usually go to, and just now, at almost 11:00, I am finally finished taking care of both dogs.  We combed her, then combed her a little later, and I walked her twice during that time, then fed both dogs, took Minuette for walks because Luna was NOT coming in this house and so Minuette couldn't just be let out, then tonight, Betsy helped me bathe Luna in the flea shampoo again.  Here is the poor little wet Luna!

                                 

                                 

She looks as exhausted as I am!!

Oh, and in between all of that, I cleaned and disinfected the whole downstairs because I wanted to get rid of any stray germs - tomorrow is piano lesson day!

I am reminded of this line from a song from "Scrooge" - "Some days are up days, some days are down days. . . "

Some blogs are happy blogs, with pictures and news of grandchildren, wedding plans,  missions conferences, quilting, lunches with friends, ASL study groups, and the beautiful autumn days we are having.  Some blogs are about things that are not so happy, but are part of real life, and real life is not always happy with circumstances.  Yes, full of God's peace, love, mercy, and joy, but still with the down days of the life God has given us.

So, today is a down day for me (although my grandchildren are coming over in a few minutes and that will make me happy!)  I had to do what I had hoped never to have to do - fill out and turn in my mother's application for Medicaid.  The one thing my mother feared most was for either her or my father to be on Medicaid.  I don't know why exactly - I reassured her and reassured her that her care would be the same.  But it felt like charity to her, I guess.  Anyway, her money is almost gone and she will soon be on Medicaid.  If she had been able to stay in assisted living, her money, with a little help from us, would have stretched for several more years.  But, these 8 months of nursing home care have taken care of that, and so, Medicaid it is.

She doesn't know it, though.  She no longer can ask me, as she did almost daily, how much money is left.  She really doesn't ask me anything, barely talks, just tries to nod appropriately so that maybe I won't see that she has no idea about the people or situations I am talking about.  I chatted the other day about Betsy and Bryan and the wedding plans, and I knew she didn't understand.  I asked her if she remembered Jim visiting her the night before, and she didn't.  I told her about how big Charlie and Megan are getting, and she gave me a glassy stare.

In ASL, there is a perfect sign for heart-wrenching, and that's how I feel today.