Life in the Bristolwood

I have mentioned here previously about my friend, Eunice and her tiny baby, Susanna. 

Yesterday,  Mark drove his mom to a doctor appointment. When this was done,  I asked Mark if I might be able to visit with Eunice.  We drove over to the Ronald McDonald House where Eunice is staying. I found her there and she invited me into her room to visit.

Through a miscommunication, Mark thought I was going to call when I was done visiting, whereas I had asked that he call me after about an hour and I would leave.  As it was, Mark was awaiting my call!  So, in the end, Eunice and I visited for about two and a half hours!

Mark finally did call and when several family members arrived,  I took my leave!  I had to wait a few minutes for Mark and the kids to come pick me up, so I walked around the Ronald McDonald House grounds a little.  This house is for parents and family to stay when a child is in the hospital.  Most of the children are in pretty serious condition and so the house offers a pretty setting, even though it is located in the city.

What a great alternative this house offers to parents.  It is much nicer than staying in an expensive hotel room and people may interract if they would like.  The house offers refrigerator space,  pantry space,  a cooking and baking area, and also a nice library.   Eunice told me they also offer dinners (food donated by local grocers and warehouse club) that are cooked by various churches and other organizations.  What a comfort to suffering families!

I ask that if you are inclined, please lift Eunice, Noah, Chris, and little Susanna up in your prayers!  Susanna happened to have surgery yesterday and although Eunice was told everything went well,  I know this is so stressful for the family.

On our way home, we saw some incredibly beautiful skies!

T’was a bit of a struggle photographing the sky through the rear window of the truck traveling about sixty miles per hour….using the camera on my cell phone!  Ah well, you get the idea!

As I was getting ready to go pick up my friend Eunice’s mother-in-law yesterday,  Mark said that he thought he might like to drive us.  I was a little worried, because I was unsure exactly how many passengers we were going to have, but it all worked out perfectly!

We arrived to pick up Sarah Mae at 11:30.  She told me Eunice would want to stop on the way home at a grocery store we were going to be passing, so we stopped at Sarah Mae’s sister-in-law’s house to pick up her shopping list as well.  An observation I made yesterday was that these Amish women are very efficient and well-organized!

We arrived at the hospital and found Eunice sitting in a chair, holding tiny Baby Susanna against her chest.  I have never seen a baby so tiny (she weighs 2 pounds, 6 ounces) and she was just so very beautiful!  Everything about this wee baby was perfect!  Her ears, eyes, hands, feet, and full head of hair look so amazing!  I was  surprised to see that Susanna’s coloring is rosy and so healthy looking!

Eunice encouraged Sarah Mae and me to grab a chair so we could sit beside her and chat while she snuggled the little one against her.  Since the doctors and nurses convinced Eunice it would be good for her to go home for a few days to be with her family and friends,  she wanted to hold Susanna as long as she could before leaving.

We left the hospital shortly after 3:30 and had to stop by The Ronald McDonald House where Eunice and the two young girls who have been staying with her the past few days had a room.  They went inside to gather belongings and to clean the room before leaving.  Mark and I waited in the truck in the parking lot for a few minutes and then when they came out, we began the journey toward home.

Eunice was in good spirits and I was in awe of how well she seemed to be handling the fact that she would be entrusting the nurses and doctors with the care of her tiny one.  She was certainly looking forward to seeing her two-year-old son, Chris, though. 

We stopped at the grocery store and I went inside for a little while with the ladies, picking up a couple items Michelle had requested.  Eunice and Sarah Mae were so quickly cruising the aisles, getting the items on their lists.  Eunice grabbed several cans of pineapple juice, explaining to me that Sarah Mae had taught her the juice can be used in place of sugar. I left, allowing the ladies to concentrate on their shopping.

I went back into the store a little while later,  wondering if perhaps Eunice might need some help. Sarah Mae had already finished paying for her items and since this store doesn’t  automatically bag items,  the girls had found some boxes to fill with te goods.  I helped pack a box and then we headed out to the truck.  I was amazed when we actually loaded six boxes full of groceries into the back of the truck.

We were on our way once again and Mark plotted on GPS where each person lives….we had three stops to make.  Mark was following along on the GPS and we ended up on a road unfamiliar to the ladies.  Now, remember, we were in a pickup truck, which is wider than a typical automobile. 

The road we followed was narrow, but passible.  We giggled and laughed as we traveled along.  Suddenly, the road grew even more narrow and there was only gravel on the two sides where the tires pass over, with grass growing in the center.  I said, “Uh oh…looks like we are heading into someone’s camp!”   Eunice giggled and said she agreed!  Mark told us never to fear….he would have thought the same were it not for the GPS advising us that the road Eunice lives on was perpendicular to this road (goat path?) just a few hundred feet ahead!

We came to a large hill and the hilarity grew even more intense! By this time, the giggling had grown to full-blown laughter.  I turned and asked if the ladies ever had any drivers take them on an “adventure” before! Sarah Mae spontaneously roared, “This is a first!”

We made it down to the botom of the hill to find that Eunice’s house was only maybe half a mile down the road!  This caused another round of laughter and as we pulled into the driveway, Noah (Eunice’s husband) and Chris were out in front of the house, waiting!

We unloaded Eunice’s luggage and groceries and were ready to drop off the others.  Noah gave us some sweet corn and a huge zucchini from the garden before we left.  It was almost with some sadness when Sarah Mae and her daughter left the truck..

I asked Mark what he thought of the trip and he said he enjoyed it!  He couldn’t believe how happy the ladies and girls were.  We smiled as I said that I imagine there will be laughter aplenty amongst the Amish when Eunice and Sarah Mae tell friends and family about our most awesome “adventure”!

Think of little Snoopy dancing about, gleefully, nose pointed straight up into the air. Yes,Snoopy would be doing the Happy Dance.  Well, I am too!

YES! The deep dark chocolate brown is now all done!

Now all that is left is the floor and the “doodads” on the poles!  All of the painting left to do should be a walk in the park.  I am so happy!

Tomorrow, I won’t be able to paint as I am going to be transporting some Amish ladies!  My friend’s mother-in-law is going up to see little Baby Susanna with me, then I am going to bring my friend, her mother-in-law, and two young girls back to their homes.  My friend has been in Rochester since the birth of her baby and the doctors and nurses advised her to take a little break by going back home for a few days.  She has a little boy who is two and I imagine he misses his mama, so it will be good for the whole family.  Please continue to pray for Susanna…she has such a long way to go to be out of the woods. Also pray for Eunice (Susanna’s mom) as she is being so strong, but she is going through some pretty hard times right now, worrying about her little tiny girl.

And why am I posting this at 1:30am? No! I do not intend to turn into a night owl, posting blog entries late at night.

After going to bed late last night,  the Scottie boys decided to do a little nail-tapping dance duet across the hardwood floors at 5:15 this morning.  There was no way I was going to concede to their notion that I should arise even before the sun came up…no way at all!  I hopped out of bed and took them outside, returning to bed where I linger until the unbelievable hour of 9!

Our mailman came by late this morning, delivering a large handful of mail since we had the mail held at the post office while we were gone.   As I sorted through the pile,  I spotted a letter from my Amish friend’s mother-in-law.  I quickly opened it and couldn’t believe what I read!  My Amish friend, Eunice, was due to have a baby October 26.  Well, the little one apparently wanted to see the world,  arriving three months early on July 17.

I had been doing laundry this morning and was getting tired so fast!  The kids wanted to go to see their friends’ band perform up in Rochester tonight.  Their friend Jonathon is leaving once again, for college soon so he won’t be playing with the band until next summer.

I found out that Eunice is staying at up in Rochester, so I thought since the kids wanted to go there anyway,  I could visit with her. And so, we left this afternoon for another adventure. 

The kids did see the band and I did indeed visit with Eunice.  We did arrive back home at nearly 1am! I am soooo tired!

A  couple of weeks ago, I saw one of my old friends on Facebook, so I began a live chat with her.  She wrote and told me she was heading out for dinner and would get back to me later.  The next day,  I received an email from her saying she has been diagnosed with cancer.

My first reaction to the email was to feel like sitting down and crying my eyes out.  When I first came to the Rochester area back in 1988,  this friend and another invited me to come and live in their spacious three bedroom apartment.  I was thrilled and we certainly had some fun times! And so, I wondered, what can I do?

Well, I bought a book over a year ago that has patterns for “prayer shawls”.  The book includes both crochet and knit patterns to make shawls and throws for people going through a change in their lives…mostly medically.  There are prayers included in the book.  Well, since I am rarely at a loss for words,  I have been working on the prayer shawl and as I work, I pray for my friend. 

I haven’t knit in so long, but as my neighbor used to tell me, there are *only* two stitches…knit and purl! How right she was.  I am working rather slowly on this piece,  but that’s okay.  I figure when my dear friend receives the shawl, she will certainly be covered in prayer!

Or, kinda!

On Friday, Mark and I worked together,  lightly sanding the hot tub to get it ready for a coat of protection.  I brushed the oil on and we all “ooohed and awwwwed”  at how much better it looked once done.  We left it in the garage to dry and on Sunday morning, Mark and the kids hauled it off into the woods next to the house!

On Sunday, during the party, some kids had talked about meeting up at the mall.  Jonathan was going to do some school shopping and the kids realized they might not be seeing him again for a couple of months once he leaves. Mark agreed to take Ben and Michelle to see Jonathan and his cousins, Cole and Katherine.

The kids were at the mall a couple of hours when Mark said we needed to pick them up as he had an appointment.  I went in to see if they were coming out and took my camera along…

Cole was simply hysterical as he rode his little horse. (ever hear tell of a “toothy grin”?

Ben seemed to look a bit stunned.

Pretty Katherine gave me a most excellent smile.

Cole?  What on earth?

Michelle was busy taking pictures.

Okay Cole.  Do you realize just where the horse’s head is located?  Ummmm…….

Jonathan just looked like he was chillin’ on the swing.

And Cole, now accustomed to his (backward) stance, decided to stretch out!

And as the ride came to an end,  Jono looked shocked!

The kids got off the carousel and said their good-byes.  They hugged Cole and Katherine, telling them they would see them in a year.  (Cole came down and stayed with Jonathan’s family for five weeks)  It was a little harder saying good bye to Jono,  but he told the kids he would be home for Thanksgiving in November.

Growing up can sometimes be so hard to get adjusted to……

Today is a day that US citizens think “picnic” and “fireworks”!  It seems these are synonymous with the fouth of July!

As I did some digging about on the internet regarding the holiday, it would seem that this US of A has drifted rather far away from the nation we began.  People are often offended by the mention of  God, not realizing the deep convictions our forefathers had when they formed this government.  Today, Godlessness is more in vogue than Godliness….

So, I offer this photo, taken at the little white clapboard-sided church just a short distance away, as a “timely reminder”……

  God Bless America!

Oh, and lest I forget,  a VERY Happy Anniversary to Mr. and Mrs. Bill Anderson over in Scotland!!!

Today was one of the oddest days I have ever encountered.  After getting a call from a friend this morning, we ended up taking her to the emergency room this afternoon, where she was examined and released.  She was having an allergic reaction to a medication and was concerned.  After the examination, she was feeling better just knowing that the reaction wasn’t severe enough to be overly concerned.

After taking our friend back to her house,  we decided to take a short ride not too far from home.

A few years ago, Mark received a newsletter from a spinal cord association and in it was one little piece of really cool information.  It explained how New York has special areas where physically-challenged people may drive their vehicles, including ATV’s, on trails to enjoy the out-of-doors.  Mark called the state concerning this and was sent a key that unlocks the gates to these specially-designated areas.

So today, we took a peek at a couple of entrances…The pictures for today were taken with the little Panasonic camera.  I didn’t think it would have been appropriate to take along my whole arsenal this afternoon, so I had to settle for “stealth”!

Wow, we are “authorized”!

And, we have a key!

These pretty flowers are found everywhere along the roadside. Ben brought a couple stems for me to smell! They looked so pretty on the dashboard!

As we were driving along a road a few miles away from home,  Mark made a remark about the truck’s steering pulling to the right. He gave a few different scenarios that could cause such a phenomenon but we continued on.

We stopped at the area where the geese families had been near Woodville,  but there wasn’t a goose to be found!  Instead, we found some pretty wild Irises growing right at the water’s edge.

There were also lots of the pretty flowers like Ben picked me.

We drove a few hundred feet and Mark pulled into the Woodville boat launch….

Yup, a flat tire was the LAST thing we needed! Mark dialed AAA and they said they would send someone out to change the tire.  In the meantime, Mark and the kids got out and took out the spare tire.  Then they jacked the truck up and changed the tire!  Mark had to call and cancel the call for help.

It was interesting sitting in the truck with the Scottie boys and watching the passers-by.  Many people looked and gawked as they saw Mark sitting in the wheelchair with two teens working on changing a tire. A Sherriff’s deputy came by and he offered his help, but when Mark told him the kids were getting a lesson in tire-changing, he smiled and moved on.  Two other older fellows came by and offered their services as well.

We finally arrived back home shortly before eight. Wow, it is so cold out…there is a frost warning for tonight!  It was so good to come home to a warm and cozy house.

The most bizzarre part of today was when Mark commented that it was ten years ago that he suffered the spinal cord injury.  In so many ways, it seems like it hasn’t been that long and in others, it seems like it has been forever….

As for tomorrow, perhaps I will just remain in bed and pass the hours watching videos, reading, sipping tea and just relaxing!  Okay, so maybe not!

Even though I have decided that I REALLY need to slow things down a bit, with two teens in the house, I guess that just isn’t about to happen any time soon! Thus, Michelle sent me off to Canandaigua yesterday morning with a list of groceries to purchase.  She stayed home to clean, as her friends, Jacob and Jeffrey, were coming over later in the afternoon.

Mark didn’t go in for physical therapy yesterday, because he felt like he was coming down with a cold.  Trying to move about while sneezing and blowing his nose would only cause his efforts to seem worthless, so he cancelled.

I left the house and drove on to Canandaigua. And, you, dear reader, who have any inkling of what I do or am about, know that stopping lakeside was a prerequisite.  I pulled into a small parking lot and thought about getting out to take a few photos.  As soon as I began to open the door of the Explorer, a wicked gust of wind caught it and whipped it out of my hand.  I grabbed hold of the handle and yanked the door shut.  No way I was going out into that! Feeling a bit defeated, I leaned back on my seat and rolled my eyes.

Just then, a group of Canada Geese flew overhead.  I reached for the Panasonic camera at my side as I watched them looking as though they were also struggling against the wind to make headway!  Silly me….I snapped a photo through the glass.

I was about to delete this photo, but just turned the camera off and put it away.  I figured even if I had no pictures to show, I always have *something* to say on my blog, after all!  Now, I am really glad the photo was kept. It is very “artsy”   and I love the dark blue color from the band of dark glass at the top of the windshield!

I scurried off to Wegman’s and made my way through the aisles, picking up all the listed items.

I rushed to get home as quickly as I could.  Michelle had invited her friends to come at 3, and it was going to be after 2 before I got back home. 

As I drove along the road, I spotted some suspicious characters walking about….

I pulled over and took a few pictures and as the turkeys felt a bit threatened, they formed a line, single file, and walked away from me!

I carried all the groceries into the house and Michelle quickly fished out the eggs.  She had planned to bake Jacob a white and chocolate checkerboard cake for his birthday.  She rushed about and had two layers all baked by the time the two boys arrived.  She went to the garage, along with Ben, to play a game of Foosball.  I removed the last layer of cake when it was down.

 Michelle came in the house at about 4:30, and between cooking chicken lo mein for dinner for everyone, she decorated Jacob’s cake….

Wow! I could get used to someone else doing the cooking here! Michelle did a very nice job and everyone seemed to enjoy the lo mein.

I got a photo of the lit birthday cake before it was blown out….

But no photo of Jacob.  The boys stayed until about 9, and by that time, I was so tired! I thought I felt like I was catching a cold, too, but I guess I was just exhausted!

As I was going through the photos on my cards, I found this one I took last week of my Christmas Cactus. I had said I wasn’t going to take any more photos of it, but I loved this photo…the texture and color of the flower was pretty incredible!

The temperature today is still below freezing, but with no Arctic blasts of northerly winds blowing, it feels downright balmy out there!

Jeanne over at BermudaBluez wondered on one comment she left if perhaps Spring *is* coming.  This got me a tad bit curious, so I went out to the garden beds to see if there were any signs of life. What I found was quite amazing to me!

The Columbines seem to always be ready and willing for the snow to disappear so they can shoot up!

A little surprise that caught me off guard was the Daffodils peeking up from under the leaf litter!

And the biggest surprise of all was the greenery on my Mum!  This plant put on such a spectacular show this past Fall.  What a terrific addition to the garden!

Today was Ben’s birthday. He decided not to have a birthday party, but rather, a gathering of his friends.  He invited eleven kids and they all came! Carly also came with her three kids, so at one point,  there were nineteen people here!  What a riot!  I think everyone enjoyed themselves and Mark enjoyed playing Foosball with the kids.  We had Tacos for dinner and it was just a lot of fun having everyone here.

Carly pointed out one pair of rather unique shoes….

Yup, the kids’ friend, Sage, wears his intense green Reeboks with bookworms on them! They are quite appropriate, actually, as Sage is in his second or third year of college at the ripe old age of sixteen!

A most busy and entertaining day. One of the highlights was when the Hardy twins were getting ready to leave. Before departing, they went to Ben and sang their version of “Happy Birthday” in two-part harmony. Fabulous!  It really was a great day, full of fun and lots of good memories!

Umm…one thing…I think we will just ignore the weather report calling for rain, freezing rain, and snow….The flowers cannot lie, after all, can they?