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| This photo has a large yellow sunflower against a barn wood background that has been tinted bright sky blue. The quotation on it reads "Count your blessings and not your problems."* |
Happy Weekend!
Overall it's been a good week here in West Texas, and as always, I have much to be thankful for...
1. High at the top of the list, a family member who has been in a very abusive/destructive relationship for several years found the courage to go for help this week after an incident in which she could have been killed. She is going to relocate and has a difficult road ahead of her, but at last there is hope, and tremendous relief for all concerned. Prayers appreciated!
2. My husband has suffered from extreme migraines for many years. He gets all the symptoms, including problems with vision and speech. While they thankfully don't happen as often as they once did, I am grateful for the medication he can take as soon as he feels one coming on, greatly lessening the symptoms, and reducing recovery time.
3. I am thankful he has a boss that understands he has no control over when over when these occur, and is great about letting him lie down in an upstairs office until he feels better. Yesterday afternoon he kindly sent him home once he felt okay to drive again.
4. I am thankful for a wonderful little wedge pillow I found on Amazon.com which is designed to prop up my tablet for reading in bed or in a chair. So much nicer than holding it for a long time!
5. I am thankful for the tiny lizards that inhabit our property. One can often be found sunning himself on our back deck and isn't in a big hurry to leave when I walk by. I am not much of a fan of creepy crawlers, and definitely not snakes, but these little critters are just plain cute! Hubby says he sees a lot of them when he mows the yard, but I rarely see more than one or two.
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| This is a picture of a little Southern Prairie Lizard like the ones living in our yard. They are about five-six inches long including the tail, and have camo-style markings in gray, tan, brown, and black that run the full length of their bodies and legs.. |
6. I am thankful for new self-awareness regarding one of my behaviors that I realized was based on past fears and no longer relevant, so I've taken steps to change that behavior and it feels very freeing!
7. I put up a post on my other blog inviting people I met through the A to Z Challenge to join us at Ivy's Six Sentence Stories, and we had a great turn out this week which made it really fun. If you've never tried it, you should! Ivy posts the new cue word on Sundays and the linkup opens on Thursday.
8. I am thankful that my husband likes my hair long and turning silver. I haven't been to a beauty shop in almost nine years, and my hair is almost waist long now. He trims the dry ends for me a couple times a year, and I trim my own bangs. It saves a fortune in haircuts and coloring, and he likes my "wild child" look, it suites me. :-) I do not plan to ever cut it again, I have regretted it every time.
9. I am thankful for the never-ending antics of our furkids which always make me laugh. Two of our four have become stealth masters at slipping into our bedroom when I'm going in and out, no matter how carefully I watch for them. (We keep the bedroom door closed due to their long fur and allergy issues.) One night this week Sophie, who is 13, managed to pass through unnoticed. As I came in later in the dark to get ready for bed, something leaped up on the bed scaring me half to death! I flipped on the light and there sat Sophie purring up a storm and quite proud of herself. :-)
10. I am thankful for blog friends who write interesting stories, and thoughtful pieces, and who share their own Ten Things of Thankful lists. It's amazing how much hope and encouragement I find in reading positive things from those who are journeying with me, THANK YOU! <3
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| This is a click-button to the TToT link-up. It is photo of one of our beautiful Texas sunsets with blue still peeking through the clouds; yellow, orange and pink bands around the remaining sliver of bright sun, and a wide band of black earth below it on which I've written Ten Things of Thankful.* |
* Descriptions of the included photos are being provided for those who may be unable to view the illustrations.
A lovely list, and number one must be a huge weight off your mind. Letting your hair grow out is a great idea -- i haven't cut mine in over 20 years, and i don't color it either.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Mimi! Yes, it is a tremendous relief to have her safe and ready to make changes in her life, God willing! I love that you have grown your hair for that long, can you sit on it by now? :-) I won't ever cut mine again, I am glad Papa Bear likes it this way, it is me. When the wind is blowing too hard here and I can't keep it out of my face, I braid it. :-) I am all about celebrating my silver too, I've earned every one!
DeleteI am sorry Papa Bear suffers from migraines. I've had a few over the years, with the weird vision (I call it kaleidoscope eyes) and the only thing that helps is lying in a dark room till it passes. I'm glad his boss accommodates him. It's fun to stay connected through the blogs. I am going to go back to my blog and edit the picture captions to be more non-viewable friendly. You are inspiring.
ReplyDeleteHe used to get them so frequently, Val, before he had his stents put in and the accompanying meds, which apparently help. Prior to that he could use the injections to stop one, and then the inhalers, but they are no longer safe with his heart issues, but the Rx he takes works very well if he catches it soon enough, thankfully. I just feel bad for him when it happens, and it's always scary. I love the friendships, like with You, that I've made via blogging, such a blessing in my life! :-) Kristi was the first to start captioning her photos, and Clark followed suit. I think it's a great idea that I never would have thought of without their lead. It is challenging to describe things in words! :-)
DeleteCats (and dogs) have that thing they do so well, the total innocence when caught in the act (whatever that might be).
ReplyDeleteThe Six Sentence Story is very definitely one of the best of the bloghops out there and I did notice a number of new 'faces'.
Four legs seems to the be threshold between 'nearly human' and 'creepy'.
You are right, Clark, they have that innocent act down to a science, when in truth they know exactly what's wrong with the picture... and they know we will laugh and let them get away with it too! Makes them smarter than us I suspect! :-)
DeleteI love Six Sentence Stories, I can't wait to come on Thursdays and see what everyone has shared, the diversity of authors and responses is what makes it so cool!
You have a point, snakes are creepy because they can move far to quickly with no legs, when common sense says they shouldn't be able to move at all, very sneaky on their part! :-)
What great news about your family member who has reached out for help. I imagine this is a huge relief, and hopefully they can use this to take more steps forward to a more positive future.
ReplyDeleteMy furkids give me no end of pleasure. I love how yours sneak into your room - they're little trouble-makers aren't they!
I have a smattering of grey hairs now. I kind of wish I could wake up grey all over so I didn't have to bother with the 'in-between' stage. I'm not sure if I'll dye my hair to hide them, or if I'll just brave it out and watch them take over!
It surely is a relief Jo, we've been hoping and praying for her for a long time, better days ahead! You are right that furkids are trouble-makers, and they know that we are going to laugh regardless, a never-ending source of entertainment. :-) I had gray hair appearing fairly young too, Jo, as does my daughter. I colored it for many years, then when I met Papa Bear he loved the natural look, and his is nearly white, although he is only eight months older than me. So we do the senior thing together. :-)
DeleteWonderful TToT! Good to hear your concerns about one you care about are being addressed and help has been brought in. Bosses who truly care about the people who work for them are a blessing to work for. Happily, Papa Bear has one of the good ones. My hair is gray, curly and short. The days of long hair are long gone. I like little lizards...we have chameleons. Praying for your family. Have a great week.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Patricia! When someone is ready to make a positive change in their life God always provides a way to do that! Yes, a caring boss makes all the difference, this is a family-owned business and they typically treat him like family. He's been there for 36 years! So you really do look something like your profile illustration, sounds perfectly cute, and maintenance easy! :-) I wish I had curly hair, mine is just kind of coarse, wavy and wild. Little creepy crawlers are cute... as long as they crawl and do not slither!!! I appreciate your prayers always, I know God listens. XOXO
DeletePayers for your family member - that's so scary and difficult. I hope things continue to improve. Your husband's boss sounds like a keeper and lizards are awesome! (they eat bugs AND are cute - what's not to love)
ReplyDeleteGreat TToT!
Thank you, Kristi! Breaking free of an abusive relationship is the hardest thing ever, it requires so much inner strength. I am hopeful she is going to do ok, and I pray a lot. Yes, his boss is a really nice guy, and very considerate of my husband's age and concerns. I agree about the little lizards, I'm thinking your son would love these too! I'm not much for crawly things, but these are irresistible! Thank you for dropping by. XOXO
DeleteGlad to hear about your family member - prayers, definitely. Love the lizard! Zilla would agree that he's very cute.
ReplyDeleteI love saving on haircuts. We have done the Hub's hair here for years now. I do go to a salon because I definitely do not prefer the wild child look on me. :D But I have no intention of coloring my hair; I like my silver streaks.
Love the one about recognizing a behavior and working to change. I can understand that sort of thing. Hope it serves you well as you move forward.
Thank you for the prayers, Lisa, I appreciate them! It is so fun to find a tiny lizard sunning on our deck. Really, we are the guests in their territory. Somehow I can't see you with a wild child look either! :-) I love that you are comfortable with the silver in your hair, I think it's beautiful! We don't all want to look 30 forever. I am always happy when God makes me very aware of something that I need to work on to be a better person, this is one of those things!
DeleteI cannot imagine the relief you feel as your loved one moves out of harms way. For her I pray- courage!
ReplyDeleteI share the gray hair with you and Patricia, but like her mine is curly. It never gets long so much as BIG!
You are so right, May, we have worried and prayed for so long for her to see that she didn't have to live this way. She is engaging in recovery services and counseling, so I have great hope for her life!
DeleteI am glad to hear that there are women who feel at peace with their natural hair "frosting". I can't help but chuckle at seventy year old women with coal black or flaming red hair, but it is colorful! :-) I like your description of your hair getting BIG, mine tends to do that in humidity, or as my husband says, it gets "flighty"! :-)
That is such could news about a family member. I hope she can find a safe place to be and heal from those terrible experiences and build a new life. I will keep her in my prayers.
ReplyDeleteMigraine headaches are terrible! Although I personally haven't suffered from them some family members have.
There have only been a couple of times when I let my hair grow long, and then it only reached just a little longer than my shoulders before I had it cut. My hair is very thick and has a mind of its own with waves and curls. When it is long it is quite heavy. Although I wear it short, it isn't short enough to hide the gray hair (haha) that has been appearing more frequently, but I do not have any plans to dye my hair.
The SSS are great, even though I don't always participate. Sometimes my mind just seems stuck in a holding pen (in more ways than one) and I can't come up with an idea for the prompt.
I could just see you being startled by your fur kid in the darkened room!
Hope you have a good week.
At present she is staying at a Safe House that has counseling services to help her work on rebuilding her life. Thank you for the prayers, it will be a long journey, but one I feel she is ready for.
DeleteWhen I was younger my hair was very thick and heavy too, it has thinned some over the years, but definitely does it's own thing! Short is so much easier and at times I think about it, but my husband loves it long so much, so I keep it that way for him too. I'm glad you are content with the increasing silver in your hair, to my thinking it is a crown, a gift of advancing years.
I understand what you are saying about SSS, I have that happening with prompts sometimes on other blog hops, when I just draw a blank. I think the beauty of any of our writing venues is that we can participate when we feel moved to write and share, and there is no penalty for skipping a week. Life always comes first, and sometimes we have to wait for the muse to make an appearance.
My furkids love to play tricks like that on me. I think they are far more clever than we give them credit for! They also try to use telepathy (the stare down) at supper time, and must sometimes wonder why I am so dense that I am ignoring their signals to fill the bowls!
May the rest of your week go great too, Pat, you are a blessing to me! <3