I Am Here

First off all, I want to thank those of you who have posted comments & sent emails asking if everything is okay.  I deeply appreciate your thoughtfulness & concern.  I apologize if I haven't responded to you.  Life has been difficult in oh so many ways.  Sometimes I feel as if I am at the end of my rope.

John is doing well.  We are still without our car. Thankfully we have the SUV.

Christmas came & went so quickly.  The days & weeks leading up to it were extremely stressful, but the day itself was totally the opposite.  Very peaceful & calm.  Both John & I agreed that it was one of the best Christmases we've ever had.

I didn't do much in the way of decorating this year.  Things were very simple.  

This was one of the few times since I was in high school, if not the only time, that I didn't send Christmas cards.  I thank those of you who sent cards to me, & gifts as well.  If I failed to thank you personally, please accept my thanks here.  

The new year has dawned & we are already planning our next move.  Of course we have no idea where we are going.  I am slowly packing things in preparation.  I have been focusing on downsizing.  It's a big job.  We will be starting to look for another rental home in April.  We don't want the nightmare we had trying to find somewhere to live after our house sold, nor do we want the stress of moving at the last minute, so we may end up double renting for a month or two to make things a bit easier on ourselves.  We may end up staying in this area.  Tennessee is another possibility.  We are pretty much open to anything.

I am going to try to get into blogging again.  I have various plans for this year, but I will be taking things one step at a time.  I believe this is going to be a year of changes.  I'm counting on them being good changes.  

Car Accident

John was involved in an automobile accident just before noon.  A woman ran a red light & slammed into the front end of our car.  The phone rang & it was the police.  They told me he had been in an accident & could I come pick him up as our car was not able to be driven.  He was having some issues & so they called the fire department & the paramedics.  He declined to go to the hospital. The car was towed ... an adjuster will look at it in the next day or two.  John has a bit of pain in his back & is shaken up but otherwise seems okay. He promised me that he will let me know if the pain gets worse.

God was watching out for him.  If he had entered into the intersection a second sooner ... or the other driver had gone through the red light a second later ... things could have been much worse.

Yes, I'm Smiling : )

An unexpected gift was waiting for me when dawn broke this morning   : )

Surgery & Socks & Other Stuff

Hello faithful followers & anyone passing by to check me out   : )

I had some unexpected surgery yesterday.  When John & I were in Las Vegas last February, I wore a new pair of shoes ... same brand/style/size as my previous pair ... & we did a lot of walking.  By the end of our trip, I was having a lot of pain in my left big toe.  By the time we arrived home, the toe was swollen & bruised & the nail was discolored.  I tried to get an appointment with more than one podiatrist in The Devil's Playground, but despite me describing my discomfort to their receptionists, I was told that I would have to wait weeks/months for an appointment as a new patient.  I gave up & decided things would eventually get better.  They didn't.  As the pain was increasing again, I decided last Friday that it was time to seek out another podiatrist.  I called one a few blocks away & was asked if I could come in on Monday (yesterday).  I couldn't believe the difference between a normal town & The Devil's Playground, but then again, I could. Anyway, a very nice doctor who looked like he was still in high school ordered a few x-rays to make sure there was no bone damage (there wasn't) & he then informed me that it would be best for him to perform some minor surgery to remove the nail.  I won't go into the details, but it was interesting to watch.  (He was rather surprised that I didn't want him to lay me back so that I would be unable to see what was going on, but I find medical procedures to be quite interesting.)

I think it's kind of, well, disgusting when people post photos of their swollen puss-oozing wounds, so fear not ... no photo like that is being posted here. I did, however, decide to post the following photo showing the huge bandage I had to contend with yesterday.

I got to soak the foot, remove the bandage, & redress the wound this morning.  I will have to do this for the next two weeks until I return to see Doogie Howser for a followup.

In case you're wondering, that is my crocheted blanket I let you have a peek at a while back.  I took a break from it for a while so I could search out information about hiding ends.  I am now working on the last row of the border & will be able to show it to you in full before too long   : )

I also have a new pair of socks on my needles.  It was next to impossible to take a photo that shows this yarn to its best advantage, but it is a lovely gradient grey yarn with silver metallic sparkles in it.  It is Dream in Color's Starry line with a great name for the colorway ... Grey Tabby : )  

I also knitted a little mittens ornament from some leftover sock yarn.  It was a fun pattern & I look forward to knitting more of these   : )   The mittens are about the size of half dollar.  

Can anyone believe that Thanksgiving is next week? I think this year has flown by faster than any others in my memory.  I still have to do my grocery shopping!  And before we know it, it will be Christmas!  It always sneaks up on us, doesn't it.  

That's all for today!    

Socks

Finished a pair of socks today I started back in April.  They languished unfinished for several months.  I only had to sew up the toes, but I have a mental block about that.  They only reason they got finished today is I needed the needles for another project   : )

All Kinds of Stuff

First, & most importantly ...

I sure am   : )

Secondly, my birthday was last Wednesday.  It started out with this.

A cup of Birthday Tea by Adagio Teas   : )   It has sprinkles in it!!!

Pretty cool, huh   : )

I had a very nice day.  John had lots of surprises planned for me.  He took me out to breakfast, & then we went to the mall where he bought me some of my favorite Teavana tea as well as a box of Godiva Open Oysters.  I know that the angels must serve Godiva Open Oysters to Jesus on special occasions in heaven   : )   There were various gifts given throughout the day, & then he took me to dinner at one of my favorite places to eat ... Big Boy!  I had the always wonderful bacon burger with onion rings.  In lieu of making myself a birthday cake, I planned instead to bring home a slice of BB's pumpkin pie as my birthday dessert, which I did.  I ate it while we watched a little something on DVD.  Within 2 hours, my perfectly lovely day turned into a nightmare.  Food poisoning!!!  I'm sure the pie was the culprit.  The remainder of my birthday until about 3 a.m. the following morning was not fun.  I'll spare you the details.  John wanted to take me to the ER.  I told him I'd be fine.  I'm still not quite back to normal today, but I'm better.  

On Friday afternoon I felt up to taking a little walk up & down the street.  The fall colors have been so pretty here this year ... I brought my camera along to share some of them with you.

     

They're all so pretty, aren't they?  There was a nip in the air along with the smells of autumn.  Truly beautiful!  

I've continued crocheting & have started a new blanket based on fall colors.

And I finished the ripple blanket I gave you a peek at last time   : )

It's a gift for John but he doesn't know it yet   : )

I also finished my yarn bag pieces (it was also available for peeking at in my last post) but I haven't sewn the pieces together yet.  Maybe I can share that next time   : )

I will leave you with one final photo ... a birthday gift from our poodle princess, Vickie ... a cross stitched pincushion with a pomegranate design. I've taken several photos but can't get any of them to truly show what a beautiful pincushion this is & how beautifully it has been stitched & finished.  This is the best I could do.  Thank you again Vickie!

Need Decorating Help

Okay, I need more than decorating help, but for this post it's decorating help I need   : )

I basically love this townhome we're living in.  Sadly it has a lot of issues, but it is still homey & comfortable.  I've said it before & I'll say it again ... I will be quite unhappy when it comes time for us to leave it & head off to pastures of unknown color.  One of the issues I have with this townhome are the transom windows above our front door & window.

I guess they look nice, but this side of the townhome faces a tad southwest ... so in the afternoons, direct sunlight pours through these windows as if it's pouring through a magnifying glass.  As the sun makes its way across the sky, the hot, blinding, glaring light goes from one side of this room to the other, eventually hitting John & I directly in the face as we sit in our recliners.  

What can I do to block the light coming through these transom windows?  Each of them have a sill several inches deep, so I could set something up there, but what?  Since Christmas is drawing near (71 more days until the big day!!!), I thought about maybe just getting some nice fake pine garland from Hobby Lobby to scrunch up there.  I don't know how great that would look, but it would be something.  Can anyone suggest another option?

The weather is turning much cooler now.  Temps at night are predicted to be in the 30s this weekend!!!  I am giddy with anticipation!!!  This morning I decided to open the lid on one of my favorite Christmas teas ... DAVIDsTEA's Santa's Secret.  The description reads as follows ...

Ever wonder how Santa manages to deliver all those presents in just one night?  Well, here's the hush-hush formula.  He uses a special combination of Chinese black tea, peppermint leaves & spices ... all sprinkled with real little candy canes.  It's both energizing & remarkably soothing.  All Santa needs in one cup, & his motto changes from "ho ho ho" to "go go go!"

See the little candy canes mixed in with the tea?

And it came in a nice storage tin decorated with candy canes   : )

I found some other teas that I might want to try this year.  This first one is sure pretty to look at! The name of it is Santa's Little Helper, made by Art of Tea.  

Santa's sleigh bells would not be ringing without a lift from Santa's Little Helper.  Awaken your holiday spirit with this fun & deliciously sweet infusion of rich dark tea interlaced with wintery notes of cooling mint & smooth decadent chocolate.  Steeps a wonderfully engaging cup with an expressive aroma that captivates the senses & invites you to start the day. 

Santa's Nightcap sounds good too!  It is made by Tea For All Reasons.  

A Rooibos blend that combines eggnog flavoring with cinnamon pieces & little candy sprinkles to create a yummy taste delight.  Now, won't Santa be be anxious to visit your house?

Here are a few more luscious sounding teas made by Tea For All Reasons.

Cookies for Santa

With its whimsical gingerbread men & holiday sprinkles, this is not only a delight to look at but a delight to taste!  Santa would be so pleased with this treat, especially if he is trying to cut back on the whole cookie thing.  Rich in cookie taste, our hand-blended creation is full of all the ingredients that make for an irresistible treat!

Della Robbia

Full of fruity flavoring & nuts, this super rich & spicy Christmas blend combines Chinese black tea with apple, orange, currants, cinnamon, almonds, & cloves for a spectacular taste sensation.  This may become a new holiday tradition!

Christmas Memories

A refreshing, hand-blended Rooibos tea with the addition of cinnamon, orange peel, apple bits, currants, cloves, & almond flakes.  A comforting & delicious way to remember Christmases past.

Tea For All Reason has quite a variety of Christmas teas as well as all-year-round teas.  I will definitely be ordering a few.  You can find them on Etsy by clicking here.

There are certainly more Christmas teas available on the internet.  If you know of any good ones, do comment to let me know   : )

And incidentally, what a sweet husband I have!  I told him I made a cup of Santa's Secret tea & that there are only 71 days left to Christmas, & he is now playing a Christmas CD   : )

I know my blog has been sadly lacking in stitching info these past few months.  I am still without a table upon which to clamp my magnifying light so it will be lacking in stitching info for who knows how much longer.  In the meantime I have been tackling some knitting projects, & I think I've mentioned in the recent past that I have taken up crochet.  I have surprised myself by how much I am enjoying crochet!  I am almost finished making a blanket, & my current WIP is a project bag.  I can't really show them yet as they aren't finished, but here's a glimpse of them both piled here in front of me   : )

Well, my cup of Santa's Secret is finished now, so I will head downstairs to make myself a cup of something else.  I know I have more Christmas teas in my cupboards.  "Ho-ho-ho!!!"  Or should I say "Yum-yum-yum!"   : )