Almost the End of August

 Yes, I've been MIA for two weeks.  Two weeks of very busy activities.  Looking  back over my diary entries, I realized that I have been home only one day.  Since my daughter's surgery, The Professor and I have been doing daily chauffeur duties.  Through all the busyness, I still see blessings popping up. F Here is my list of Friday Fave Fives for Willow's (Two) Week.  If you want to join the Fave Five group or read several more people's five blessings for the week, click on the LINK HERE.

1.  School started for all three local grandchildren.  Because Tall Boy's mom was out of state due to work responsibilities, he stayed with us and we had the privilege of attending the very busy high school open house with him, setting up his freshman year schedule, meeting his teachers and walking the labyrinth of the school hallways.  We also attended Little Warrior's open house and met his teachers.  I am thankful we are nearby and available to interact with our grandchildren and their teachers.

2.  One day last week was really really hard.  We lost our beloved granddog Shep, the Bernese mountain dog.  No puppy was more loved than Shep.  The only blessing from this that I can pull out is that the vet made sure he did not suffer and until the very end, he knew he was loved.

3.  Trail Life Troop had its Crossover Ceremony this week.  Both grandsons participated and they literally crossed over a bridge during the ceremony.  I love watching them interact with the other troop members and love how they shake hands and salute.

4.  The garden is slowly winding down, but I picked enough tomatoes, basil and oregano to make another batch of tomato sauce.  As I type, it is slowly simmering and the aroma is filling the house.

5.  There are still green beans, kale, and raspberries producing, so we are eating well from the garden.  And flowers are blooming.  I managed one photo of one of my favorite cottage garden flowers--cosmos.   I am so thankful to have enough space to make a garden.

Remember to give thanks in all things!

Moving Along in August

 Good Friday Evening!  What a week.  But here I am, finally relaxing a bit and reflecting on the blessing of the week.  Here are my Friday Fave Fives. (follow the link to join)

1.  My younger daughter had major surgery on Tuesday.  I drove her to the hospital at Oh Dark Thirty and sat all morning in the 'atrium' waiting room for her surgery to be finished and stayed until .  Good news is that surgery was successful.

2.  On Wednesday, I returned to the hospital to get her checked out and brought to our home to recuperate.  Her son, Little Warrior, missed her so much that he has been staying with us too.  I'm thankful we have room for them both to stay.

3.  Older Daughter has purchased a new house.  She closed TODAY!

4.  We. Have. Hot. Water.  Yay!  Our realtor suggested a plumber and within a few hours, he came to the house, checked his warehouse, and installed the new water heater!

5.  I have been enjoying cutting some flowers and putting them in little vases.  Daisies and zinnias, mostly.  Do I have photos?  No, not yet.  That's how crazy this week has been.  I haven't even taken a photo...

But I am still thankful for hot water, for my daughter's health and so many people praying for her and checking in on how she is doing.  Her co workers even sent a bouquet of flowers!

Early August Faves

 I am a bit late logging on and joining with Friday Fave Fives.  We've been out of town and just returned this afternoon.  So I am catching up as quickly as I can.

1.  I love hot water.  I am thankful when I have it.  But.  Right now at home, we don't have any because our hot water heater broke.  Fortunately, our son noticed it immediately since he is visiting with us for several days.  Why is not having hot water a fave?  It's not.  But in thinking about what I consider a blessing, hot water is one of those things.

2.  We had company for two nights just after our water heater broke.  A 'girl' who grew up in Indonesia with our children now lives in Thailand with her husband and three daughters.  They are here in the US for a few months and were traveling through our area, so they stopped to visit.  We had the BEST time with them and thoroughly enjoyed chatting and reminiscing with her.  Another nice thing about it was that not having hot water didn't phase them at all.  She grew up like my kids did, and her girls are growing up in a similar way.

3.  The same day our friends left, The Professor and I took off on a short camping trip at a nearby state park.  We took our little motor home and enjoyed three nights of 'glamping'.  Fires in the fire pit.  Relaxing in camp chairs reading books.  A couple of short walks.  We loved our camping trip even though it rained a bit each day.

4.  A long time friend (our children were in high school together) moved a couple of years ago to the area where we camped!  So she drove over and spent four hours with us, and we enjoyed our time with her especially since she will be moving to the east coast to be near her daughter and grandchildren soon.

5.  And now we are home.  I am thankful for my home.

Bonus:  My youngest and oldest children have birthdays this week!