Thursday, November 14, 2019

Living each day, flowers, rain, God's goodness

Hello Folks, it is a wet, gloomy day here at Plum Cottage. I've got some Christmas jazz playing, lights are on to help dispel the gloom. Three windows are still covered from Hurricane Dorian 2 months ago. One of the men who helped me had a double hernia operation so has been out of commission.  Hopefully this week or next I can get help to get these off. Then the bulb in my hanging light in the living room blew out and I cannot unscrew it. Sheesh! I don't want to break the bulb, so instead of fretting I'll just go about my business using other lighting and get on with my day.

The temp is 81 and with the humidity feels like it is 84 at 8:12 EST. The a.c. is on and it is comfortable in here I have scented wax in the warmer and it will start smelling like cinnamon and apples shortly. I've got some home caring to do in the next two weeks before Thanksgiving. I have invited my friend Rita over. She's the facilitator of GriefShare, and we've become close friends since our first meeting last fall. Now I am her assistant. She has been a widow for 5 years. I am so looking forward to fixing a special dinner for the two of us. We are both looking forward to the time spent together. (I always enjoyed making special meals for hubby and I. I've enjoyed cooking/baking since jr. high home ec classes. Now I have over 300 cookbooks. :-) I really need to purge more books, Have gotten rid of some but there are still GOBS more to go through.)

I want to say thanks to those who have checked up on me. I'm still here, trying to take each day as it comes, learning to be content with what I have been blessed with. Life certainly changed for FlowerLady when her husband was called home to be with his Maker and Savior. There are unfinished projects that I'm living with and hopefully will work on some of them myself as I can. My energy level isn't what it once was, and neither is my motivation. Visiting some blogs kind of depresses me and makes me feel a tad jealous of all that they can do. Something I'm not proud of. I've much to be thankful for. Compared to some people around the world I am rich. God has blessed me over and over, mentally, spiritually, physically and financially.

Just yesterday I was blessed with a little gift to brighten my day and it made me thank Jesus off and on throughout the day every time I saw it. 

First off, I had gone to GoodWill to look for a robe for my friend Bea, she asked me to look for one since I was going there. I did find one, nice and heavy, 100% cotton. It was $2.99, 1/2 off that price, then with srs. discount, my total was $1.20. Being 94, Bea really feels the changes in temperature and has been wanting a new, heavy robe. This one really is nice, best one on the rack. I will take it to her tomorrow.


A few stores away from GW was American Thrift store and in there is where my little gift was waiting for me. I looked at Christmas decorations first, hardly any there, hardly any at GW either. So, I moseyed up and down the isles, making my way over to the linens.  I don't really need any sheets, etc. but if I saw 100% cotton and cheap, I might be tempted. I  walked down the isle and near the end, lo and behold, I stopped short, found a price tag, oh my goodness, can this be true? I checked it over, no rips or stains. Off the rack it came and to the check out I headed. Here is my gift below costing me a total of $3.20. (not straight on the bed).



I love it. I crochet and the time that went into making this just boggles my mind. A ball of thread  would cost almost as much as what I paid for it. I am truly blessed and thankful for this gift. God gave me something to cheer me up and that was inexpensive.

Next I went to Dollar General, 2 boxes of Christmas lights, some green garland, and miniature pine cones for decorating with. I am getting into the mood.

I did crochet some angels and snowflakes to take to our GriefShare 'Surviving the Holidays' meeting this past Sat. We had 15 including Rita and myself. The angels were a hit. I stiffened them with a mixture of white glue and water, and sprinkle them with glitter.  I threaded them for hanging, and took a small tree to our meeting, hung them on there and the attendees could choose whichever they wanted. (FIY ~ It took around 8 minutes to crochet each angel, and probably around the same for the stars.


I've done some baking also, oatmeal-raisin cookies for the two guys who helped with hurricane prep work.
Two of the drop cookies came out in the shape of hearts, I ate them. :-)




 I made pumpkin cookies for our GS meeting.


Am looking forward to cooking/baking for Thanksgiving.

Now for some flowers that are in bloom lately.




'Alamanda' 

 

'Red Carpet Rose'









I've been blessed by seeing a hummingbird lately, always makes me smile and feel thankful. Unfortunately camera isn't close and even if it was, they flit about so fast it is hard to get a picture.

Last, but not least, is my sweet Miss Tork.


That's it for now, I need to get up and get 'doing'.

May your holiday season be filled with joy, love and peace.

FlowerLady

24 comments:

Barbee' said...

Beautiful post! The crocheted spread is perfect in your bedroom. It looks so at home as if it were always there.

Henny Penny said...

Lorraine, you are very sweet and very special. You've created so much beauty around you. That crocheted bed cover is simply beautiful. So glad you found it. There's probably a lot of us, like me, who are a little jealous of you. Your little cottage is adorable, and cozy.

Nancy J said...

Your flowers always are a delight, then along comes Miss Tork, a true companion, love her paws. Your bedspread, a work of love in every square, and it looks so pretty.

Connie said...

My what a lovely post. I haven't visited in such a long time and I'm sorry to say that I didn't know about your loss. I am so sorry. We have been going through the grief of cancer and chemo treatments now for the last ten months and there are days when I feel so hopeless. I want to hug my sweet husband and take away all his pain and make it all go away. It's all in God's hands and we just trust Him for every minute we have. You are so brave and it sounds like you are handling your grief well, by caring for others, God bless you.
That robe is beautiful, I love the little pink flowers and I know she will, too. Your bedspread is gorgeous and looks amazing in your pretty bedroom and your perfect little angels and stars . . . you are an angel, as well :)
God Bless You, and may you have a peaceful and delightful Thanksgiving celebration with your friend. I know that Plum Cottage will be cozy and inviting.
Connie :)

56steps said...

So nice to see a new post from you.

Both of your finds are so nice. I love the robe you found for your friend and I'm sure she will be thrilled.

Your crocheted bed spread is just beautiful. It's so fun to find just the perfect thing isn't it?

Junkchiccottage said...

Love your found treasure of the crochet bed cover. The little angel ornaments are just too adorable.
Your flowers are looking so pretty. No more flowers here in Ilinois :(. Have a great evening.
Hugs,
Kris

Ann said...

So glad to hear things are going well. You found some wonderful deals while you were out shopping.
All of your flowers are beautiful.

firefly819 said...

You are truly blessed to have such lovely flowers. Here in Michigan, our fall was sadly doomed by 10 inches of snow. Many of our trees still have their leaves, frozen, crumpled and brown. The snow came down fast and hard. At first, a magical wonderland. But now, with all the fallen leaves a big dreary mess. Oh! What I wouldn’t give for some Florida sunshine. I love the crocheted spread. I inherited 16 steamer trunks full of crocheted items from my step grandmother. She learned to crochet in a convent in Italy at the turn of the century. After she came to America, she was soon widowed with six children to support. She crocheted bridal trousseaus for Italian families in Detroit. The trunks were filled with sheets, pillowcases, doilies and crocheted tablecloths. My step aunt told me that during the Depression, many families were unable to pay for their trousseaus that they had ordered. But grandma kept it all. She crocheted every single day of her life. She never learned to speak English but she could certainly communicate with me. I was truly blessed when she taught me to crochet when I was just four years of age. She was probably in her seventies at the time. My stepfather’s family gave me everything when she died at age 92. They were going to throw it all away since no one in the immediate family wanted them because they hated to iron. I took it all and eventually became an antique dealer. I sold those beautiful memories for many years. Your post reminded me of how much I loved that beautiful old woman. God bless and have a Happy Thanksgiving.

Mrs. White said...

I think it is wonderful that your dear friend will enjoy Thanksgiving dinner with you! It looks like you found some great things at the thrift store. That robe looks pretty and warm. I love the white blanket! It is lovely!

I hope you have a joyful, happy Thanksgiving!

ellen b. said...

What great finds at the thrift stores. The robe looks so nice and that crochet bed cover is beautiful. Love your angels and stars, too. I can't do anything like that with my hands. I appreciate that talent in others, though. God bless your Thanksgiving!

Ruth Hiebert said...

What a lovely spread. I know how much time went into making that, as years ago I knit a queen sized spread for our bed.I would never attempt that again.As always ,I love all your flowers. I can also relate about not having as much energy or even desire to do things.But in all of that, God is still good.

GretchenJoanna said...

I'm glad you keep on keeping on! You really accomplish so much; when we're older, and widows, we do different things, no less important. For example, there aren't enough people who shop for their friends and take the time to find the perfect robe.

It's wonderful how the Lord is your companion through the days, giving you the good sense to leave the light bulb, and guiding you to that splendid coverlet. It is quite a gift!

Vee said...

What a darling English cottage cozy bedroom you have and that crocheted topper just makes it, a blessing from God just to let you know that He cares. I hope that you can get some help with projects that are needing to be done, but that you can not do alone. It would be nice for you to have any available light. Your flowers are gorgeous. Sounds as if you have some happy Thanksgiving plans. I am sure that you and Rita will have a wonderful day together. You always have so much to comment upon...those angels and snowflakes~stars are beautiful. What a nice gift for the grief fellowship. A pleasant weekend to you!

pilar said...

Oh Lorraine! You and your hearts! You know, I've been finding some of my own these days-- soemtimes it's just a water splash but if it's heart-shaped, it's heart-shaped, right? That's what counts. And it's a lot of fun and always encouraging. I love your crochet bedspread. I've got a crochet spread folded up on the back of my bedroom chair that I was planning to use on the bed for my autumnal decorations but I just forgot to do it. Besides, mine is meant for a dining table, I think, because it's much too short. Now... I'm the kind of person that if I begin to consider travel, it's with thrift stores in mind, haha! I would love to check out every second-hand shop around the world. Oh, I don't have time to read your post in its entirety, because I do need to leave the house, but I know this post will be waiting for me when I get back to enjoy. Lovely visiting, God bless you!

Anne Payne said...

Wow!!! That is a gorgeous crochet cover!! You certainly won a prize with that one. It's lovely how the Lord knows when we need a little extra from him. Miss Tork is always fun to see. Such a sweetie! And your flowers...oh my! They are ALL beautiful. Love & hugs, my friend!!!

Lynn and Precious said...

How wonderful to see such an uplifting message from you today, Lorraine.
I enjoy the flowers, as always, since in Ohio they are long gone. But the
crochet really touches me. I crochet and would love to get in the mood
to do a large spread! So glad you found it and took it home with you.
Early Christmas present to yourself. Your GS friends had to enjoy the
taste of home made and the enjoyment of a crochet gift. Thank you for
writing.

Melanie said...

You are one busy lady! I love those crocheted angels you made. I'm sure you will make a wonderful dinner for yourself and Rita. It sounds like you're a good cook. Over 300 cookbooks - wow! I had about 120 at one point a couple of years ago, but ruthlessly went through them and purged. Now I have about 30-35.

I can only imagine how discouraged and frustrated you get sometimes when you can't do certain things around the house; things your husband used to do. I know my mom (widowed) goes through this a lot, too. I always tell my husband that if he passes before me, that there's no way I can stay in this house. There's too many things I wouldn't be able to do and keep up on my own. He even had to get up on a ladder and clean out the gutters of leaves and ice three times this fall. There's no way I could do that and I couldn't afford to hire someone to do that three times each fall.

I'm sorry that some blogs leave you feeling "less than". That certainly happens to me, too - and also with gorgeous homes and photos on Instagram. For what it's worth, I think your home is beautiful and cozy and inviting. I'd take that anyday over some huge perfectly decorated house.

All we can do is try not to worry and take one day at a time. {{hugs}}

The Wykeham Observer said...

I'm glad you are preparing for your Thanksgiving. I'm sure it will be a nice one! The flowers are beautiful! Phil

Terry said...

Hi Lorraine!

Oh my goodness! That crochet bedspread is gorgeous!

Terry

Rebecca said...

You are WAY ahead of me in the decorating department. Weather has cooled here so much! I piddle at simple, most-necessary chores and then dive back into my comfy blue recliner to read some more....

Planning and preparing decent meals a day for the two men that I live with also keeps me occupied.

I don't get to thrift stores as often as I used to, and when I go, I keep in mind that I should be down-sizing and not collecting! 😄 Both your finds are amazing. I'm sure your friend will appreciate that robe SO much!

Dewena said...

Lorraine, you are such a gentle, thoughtful, compassionate woman. I feel so blessed to have "met" you in blogging. Your lovely crocheted bedspread couldn't have found a home with anyone who would treasure it more. And I'm sure the robe for your friend was meant for you to find. And I know the sweet little angels you crocheted will bring comfort and joy to those who received them. Let me tell you, you accomplish more than you know! God bless you!

Deb J. in Utah said...

I love your thrift store finds and your kindness to your friend. You are such a great example to all of your blogging friends! Love from UT! :-)

M.K. said...

Look at your stunning blooms, in November even! Amazing.
I'm so glad you are in your Grief Share group, and it has become a blessing (in spite of the reason for gathering), and now you have new close friends from it! I hope you have a lovely Thanksgiving Day and meal with your friend. God bless you.

Terra said...

That crocheted bed cover is a delight, and what a price. So many hours of work! A group at my church knits and crochets for charities, and put a tag on each piece that says "Hand made with love and prayers in every stitch." Also that great robe for your friend, two great finds. Of course you ate the heart shaped cookies, they are very meaningful to you. Happy thanksgiving dear friend.