Catching Up

This is my grandson's birdhouse. He won a blue ribbon on it last year at the fair because it was the only "truly functional" birdhouse entered. This is the fourth family of birds born in this birdhouse since last year. If they ever stop using it we will take it down and clean it. As you can see (just barely) from the photo, Mother bird is feeding her baby.

I am so proud of my grandson every time I look at this birdhouse in my garden. It was the first thing he built and even though it would have looked spectacular with paint on it, it would no longer be considered a functional birdhouse according to the Wildlife Conservation rules which we followed. He put a lot of work into this and already has another one built to enter this year. I'm hoping for another blue ribbon for him!

My garden had been a bit neglected this year due to all my tests, appointments and surgeries. The post-concussion syndrome and all the anesthesia certainly isn't helping matters. My husband has been doing his best to make sure things are nice, but he doesn't know what to trim and when. Earlier this year I had mentioned that I would love to put in a pond again. Of course that was met with a scowl. We started with one pond, went to a double pond and eventually just went to a water feature.




On the day of my first surgical follow-up appointment I started down the back stairs to the car and was met with the sight of my new pond. I just cried. He hadn't told me he had put it in, it was his secret. In fact, he was upset that it wasn't completely finished before I saw it. No matter what, this really meant more to me than anything else he could have done. He knew I would never make it back out in the garden to work this year and wanted so badly to give me what I wanted. I honestly have the best husband in the world. We don't fight. Sure I may get upset sometimes but I think it out and get over it. I learned long ago that life isn't worth fighting over. It doesn't solve anything and only tends to push you apart. We talk things out and obviously it works. It will be 30 years this year. He is my rock. I never would have made it through my health issues let alone my mom's. She is a six year breast cancer survivor but found out three weeks before my surgery that she had colon cancer. We got her in and out of the hospital before my surgery and we both had the same health care nurses, the Thorne Group of Youngwood. I have to say, if it weren't for them, I don't know how I would have been able to go through my surgery and recovery without knowing that she was being well cared for. They are the best!

Last but certainly not least, you never know where you will find Jesus. He has certainly been with my family throughout all the ordeals we have gone through. Mom and I had gone to our community garage sales before our surgeries. We knew we would miss out on the rest of the season so why not go now! We ended up at the one Church in Youngwood for lunch and I stopped into the bathroom. I could have fallen to the floor when I opened the door. There was this magnificent mural of Jesus resurrection. It really touched my life which is, I am sure, the reason it is there. A reminder, something to make you remember what is important in life and that he is there for us all.

I hope everyone is having a wonderful summer. Eventually I will catch up and add some jewelry pics. For now, I'll recover and just feel blessed to be alive and doing well. I have my mom by my side which is a miracle in itself. One more month and who knows where the cancer would have been. It was divine intervention that got her to have that test when she did. Even the doctor who performed the test was astonished when the results came back. She was stage 1. No lymph node involvement. That alone is a miracle.

May all of you be blessed with good health and happiness!
~Linda