Merry Christmas

May you and your family be blessed this Christmas......

GRATITUDES:

Jesus.

Family and Friends.

Holiday food.

Take Care,

Jennie

I am back.....

I haven't blogged for a couple of months now.  It has been on my "To Do" List every week, but somehow, my heart just hasn't been in it.  Today I finally decided that I just needed to do it.  My girlfriend in Arkansas says she has been missing catching up with me on Saturday mornings with her coffee.  That is reason enough.........besides, I really do miss it.

My little man, Rascal, developed a very strange looking mass on his side back in October.  He began to lick it and it became angry and bloody......not good.  A trip to the vet and a needle biopsy identified it as infection, but after ten days on a strong antibiotic it was worse, not better.  Despite a heart murmur and old age, he successfully underwent removal of the mass and initially did well despite the fact that the mass was cancer......hemangiosarcoma.  Less than two weeks after his surgery he had a serious flare of his degenerative disc disease with neurological deficit in his back legs.  He was never able to recover from this and we lost him on October 18th.  Needless to say, we were both brokenhearted and still haven't quite recovered from his death.  Despite the fact that we had him for 14 1/2 yrs., it is never long enough.

Outside, always his favorite place to be when the weather was pretty.

Snoozing in his favorite sunny inside spot.

Roxie, his littermate, had never spent a night of her life without him and was confused and looking for him for a week.  She and Poppy have settled into life together now, though, and for the first time in their lives, are sleeping together.

My previously mentioned "unnamed project" was finished and presented to Christi and Rob as an early Christmas gift.  The pattern is "Over the River" by Crabapple Hill.  I added an extra border to make it a bit larger, and Debi Gilpin machine quilted it.

Rob had his first MRI post initial chemo and radiation treatment on November 19th and his doctors declared that it was "Great".  A wonderful early Christmas gift for all of us.  And how cute is this family photo??

Sara Ashley continues to love everything "Horse".  Here is her latest feat.....

I will be trying to play a little "catch up" over the next few days.  Thanks to all of you who read my blog!

GRATITUDES:

Today.

A brightly lit Christmas tree in the fading evening light.

Clean clothes, fresh from the dryer.

Take care,

Jennie

Squeezing it in

Never made a September List, so I guess that justifies my minimal stitching progress for the month. A poor excuse is better than none, I suppose.

In light of feeling disappointed in my lack of progress, I picked up the other quilt that Debi had quilted in August and got it bound on September 30th and Voila, a finish, and a UFO finish at that. Better than nothing.  Here it is....the pink and brown thangles sampler that I started at least 7 years ago. Sorry, the pinks in the photo look a bit orangey.

Heartstrings and Sew Crazy were without a meeting place as a result of our local quilt shop closing, so I offered up our place.  Heartstrings met on the fourth Wednesday of September and we worked on 6 1/2" blocks with red centers. Only three of us Crazies were able to make it on the following Friday, but we were quite productive, finishing thirty one 10" finished blocks for our QOV quilts.  More than us being productive, being with friends, stitching, laughing and sharing was incredibly healing to my battered soul.  Thank you, friends.

Rob and Christi spent weekend before last in Athens, with Robert joining them on Saturday for the GA/LSU game.  It was a very special weekend for them.....and it did my heart good to see them having a regular old good time. It didn't hurt that The Dawgs won a real nail biter !!

Macy looked adorable dressed up as Dorothy during Spirit Week at her school.

And Sara Ashley was able to drag her birthday celebration out through Tuesday with a family get together at Red Robin.

GRATITUDES:

Joy in the everyday, commonplace events of each day.

Unexpected shows of support.

Everything Fall.

Take care, 

Jennie

Seven became Eleven

On Saturday morning Sara Ashley and I did a little shopping.  Not your usual shopping spree, mind you.  You see, on the Saturday following the County Fair, 4-H Chicken Club members hold a big sale at Tractor Supply to sell some of their chickens, with all proceeds going to the 4-H Chicken Club.  The chickens are old enough to recognize pullets vs. roosters, and are healthy and good quality birds.  It is a win win situation for everyone.

And so, SA and I bought these two chickens, which she named.

This is Carrie Underwood, named after Sara Ashley's favorite country singer.

She is an Easter Egger and will lay either light blue or light green eggs like Puff does.

And this is Madison Short for Maddie.  Her name is a pun.  You see, SA has a friend named Madison Short.......and Maddie is a shortened name for Madison.  Pretty clever, SA.

Maddie is a White Laced Wyandotte and her feather pattern is gorgeous.

The first afternoon, she rewarded us with this lovely egg!!

After SA had a chance to shop in Tractor Supply for some treats and grooming supplies for her horses, it was time for her to go home so that she could go to Gay with her family.

Once I got home, I kept thinking that we really NEEDED a black chicken for the flock.  You see, Chloe was black, but she turned out to be a rooster and we gave her/him away, so we don't have a black chicken anymore.  Well, back to Tractor Supply I went, ending up with TWO more flock members.  I know, don't even go there...........

This is Scarlett, who has lovely black iridescent feathers and is very sweet.

 

Scarlett is a Black Langshan.

And finally, this is Speck, who is a rare breed Russian Orloff.

 She is quite odd looking, but oh so sweet and loves to be picked up and held.  

So, now the seven are eleven.  They are physically separated for the moment while they adjust to their new home and I am sure everyone is healthy.  They can all see each other so that they can become acquainted.  In a week or so, I will start the integration process.

GRATITUDES:

God's unique creations......I mean, look at these girls!!

Making memories.

Sleeping with open windows at night.

Take care,

Jennie

Summer's End

Hard to believe we are already entering Fall!!  It is my favorite season.........love the colors, the weather, the odors.  Here are a few photos of the last days of summer in our gardens.

Sara Ashley celebrated her 12th birthday with a spend the night party at Blalock Lake.  Here are the girls following an afternoon in the pool.

And here is my little man, Rascal, who is still quite handsome and active at  14 1/2 years of age.  

We have much to be thankful for here.  Rob is doing great and tolerating his treatments like a champ.  He started back driving on Friday and is attending work meetings, enjoying his family, church and friends.  It is hard to keep up with him.

GRATITUDES:

The rustle of crisp leaves in the soft afternoon breezes.

The Harvest Moon.

Feeling brief periods of normal.

Sleeping snug with my little grandson.

Take care,

Jennie

UFO Finish

Debi quilted this UFO for me last month and I was able to get the binding on and put it into use, but had failed to show it off.  It is actually a panel, but one of the nicest ones I have ever seen....by Moda, of course....and everyone I show it to is fooled by it.  The feather stitching, in particular, appears hand done from a distance.  I made the pillow last year when I added the borders to the panel.

The second Saturday in September is always the date of the Adcock Family Reunion, and this year was no exception.  For the last several years we have enjoyed hosting it at our home.  Preparation is lots of work, but it also means we attend to lots of Fall chores around the house and yard.  We had a great turnout this year, the weather was beautiful and the food was delicious.

Robert and Rob are really into Air Soft.  It looks a little scary to me.  Rob is on the sidelines temporarily, but he got this photo of Robert doing his thing yesterday.

Now, this I totally understand..........Sara Ashley grooming her horse after her lesson this week.  This was me at her age.  She is doing great with her new teacher, Ansley.

It looks like a chicken massacre in the chicken run.

Thank goodness, it is only molting.

Ron the Rooster's fine tail feathers 

Have been reduced to this......

How embarrassing.

Hope everyone is having a relaxing Sunday and beautiful end of summer weather.

GRATITUDES:

That hint of Fall in the air.

Seeing Blake reminisce about times past with his family.

Love.

Take care,

Jennie

Love

This is the block I was working on almost 4 weeks ago when our lives were so drastically changed.  I inked the Word to Live By after Rob came home from the hospital........Love.   How appropriate it is for this time in our lives.

1 Corinthians 13: And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.


I have done little needlework over the past few weeks, but knowing I was hosting the Autumn class gave me the incentive to get my piece crayoned.   It was a first for me, and I actually enjoyed the process and wouldn't mind doing more.  Here is my piece before stitching.  I can tell you, that having seen Debi's block before and after stitching, the stitching makes a huge difference in its appearance.  We basted and started the stitching in class, but I haven't gotten anything done on it since then.

I am now working on a project that, while large, doesn't require me to follow written directions......it is a blissful kind of mindless stitching.  Just what I need at this point.  I won't show it to you, as it is a gift for someone who reads my blog.

Rob was able to stretch his forty second birthday out from Thursday to Tuesday.  Sometimes it is a real advantage having lots of family groups.  We celebrated here on the Sunday following his birthday with a Southern country meal.......his choice.  And I think he was surprised and pleased with his gift (it appears from his Facebook page that he is already putting it to good use).  He continues to do well, has a great attitude and now has several chemo and radiation treatments under his belt.  He is amazing.

Jackson, the youngest of our grandchildren, started pre-K.  How sweet is he??

He and Macy recently took in a Braves game at Turner Field and got to run the bases.......

and get these neat T-shirts.

Please bear with me as I try to regain my focus.  I actually started this post almost two weeks ago and am just getting it finished and posted.  

We are determined to forge forward, living our lives with joy, faith and hope.............and a new brand of normal.  To all of you who have and continue to love and support us, we are so grateful.  Please, continue to keep us in your prayers, especially Rob, Christi and kids.

GRATITUDES:

Each and every day.

Sermons that surprise you by "hitting the nail on the head".

The comfort of routines.

Take care,

Jennie

One Foot in Front of the Other

While we didn't receive the diagnosis that we had prayed for, we continue to believe in God's faithfulness and eternal love. We are overwhelmed with love, caring friends, family, even strangers. We are thankful. And Rob is determined and prepared for the fight of his life. What a testimony he and Christi are for our Lord.

Please continue to lift all of us up in prayer as we love one another......and put one foot in front of the other.

                    GRATITUDES:

              The promise of eternal life.

                 Friends to lean on.

                        Hugs.

                   Take care,

                     Jennie

Pray

Please continue to pray for Rob, Christi, Robert and Sara Ashley.  Rob's surgery went well, but pathology reports are pending.  He should be out of ICU tomorrow and hopefully home by Saturday.
I am staying with the children every night and trying to nurture Christi and Rob during the day.  My life is consumed with those people I love most.  I wouldn't have it any other way.  Everything else can wait.

Seen in downtown Newnan today:

Thank you, Phyllis at "Let Them Eat Toffee"

GRATITUDES:

A family that prays together.

Hope.

Friends who rally when you absolutely need them the very most.

Take care,

Jennie

The Post I would never have chosen to make

My life is fairly simple. Sometimes a little busy, but by choice.  My children, well, their lives are full of the things of young families.......jobs, school, church, sports and social activities. As it should be. We are not usually prepared when something intrudes in an unwelcome way to interrupt what we know, and redefines the very lives that we have been living so comfortably.

Such was the case when, so unexpectedly, we were forced off track by Rob's diagnosis of those feared words, brain tumor.  Words that fill us with dread and anxiety and the questions that just can't be answered right away in order to allay our fears.  Christi explains it best on the Caring Bridge page she has started for Rob:

http://m.caringbridge.org/visit/mightytosave

Please join with us as we pray for total healing and recovery for

 Rob, as well as strength and faith in his healing for Christi, Robert 

and Sara Ashley.

Rob & Christi celebrating 25 years of dating in July.

The Estes crew at a GA game last year.

GRATITUDES:

Unflappable faith

Kind, competent medical staff

Praying friends

Take Care,

Jennie