WOW...

It's been a tough few weeks--a surprising number of difficult events tripping over one another:

Sadly, jb lost her Mother a few days ago. This blog is not the place to say much more than that, exceptthat jb has been courageous and loving throughout her trip to say goodbye and her return home with her heart filled with the hope that her Mother is now lovingly at peace.

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In the last couple of days jb's been blessed with prayers, calls, cards and sweet arrivals at the back door. Today our friend Tracy came by with a beautiful plant and card. Yesterday this "edible" flower arrangement arrived from jb's work colleagues. How cool is this--fresh fruit flowers on sticks!

My dear Mother has completed rehab. for her broken hip and has moved in with jb and me for a month or so, while we figure out the best long term living situation for her. She uses a walker to get around, has physical therapy at home 3 times a week, and we've hired a couple of "companions" to stay with her a few hours at a time since she cannot be left alone and I HAVE to get out of the house at least once a day.

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I love my Mother and she is a wonderful person. She will not be able to live alone again, she thoughtfully and understandably does not want to live with us, and her memory leaves her often confused and sometimes afraid about how she has come to be here and what will happen now. We do not have an extended family locally around to pitch in and that makes for a difficult situation--even me the optimist is struggling to stay above water.

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The only thing I can say is love and resourceful planning will take care of this in due time.

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SO. Not an easy time, right? But wait: there's more!

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Yours truly is having knee surgery this Thursday. I should be laid up for a max of two weeks, just in time to help jb because she TOO is have knee surgery--much more extensive than mine, with a much longer recovery period.

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Holidays? Well....I like the Holidays. This year? Well.....I can't really say. I'm mantra-ing one of my favorite sayings, "Ride the Horse in the Direction She's Going". As well as, "Bend, Like a Tree".

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Ok: that's enough campaigning for the sympathy vote. Plus I know how to end with a bang.

SO: May I re-introduce Mr. Ryan, who is now crawling, smiling with four teeth, and preparing to be the recipient of his No-Name Grandmother's destiny with her new guitar.