Easter Time Tea

Would you like to join Miss E and I for a little tea

party in the secret garden today?  Follow the path

through the woods, we're waiting for you!

The daffodils that we planted last year are blooming

so beautifully right now, and the weather is perfect today!

Miss E is wondering why I'm taking so many

pictures instead of drinking our tea...

She is slowly feeling better after her surgery

a week ago.  But she still is taking Tylenol

for the pain.  She's been a trooper though.

We are enjoying some mint green tea today,

sweetened with honey.  It was delicious!

This cute little rose candy dish was a gift

from AJ for Christmas. 

Taking time to stop and smell the daffodils!

Thanks for your visit!

And I hope your Easter week is a special

remembrance of all Jesus did for us on the cross,

as well as rejoicing that he gained the victory

over death when he rose from the dead!

I'm joining Sandi again today!

Sweet Girl's Nightgown Idea

There are so many wonderful ideas on Pinterest, and this is one of them!  Is this not the sweetest little girl's nightgown?  Of course, I think my model is pretty sweet too... (: 

It was very simple to make, and although the original nightgown was made with a vintage pillow slip, I didn't have one so I just used 1/2 yard of fabric.  Since the fabric was on clearance, it just cost me $2.50, plus about $3 for the roll of wide lace and we were set.  I just gathered up the skirt at the chest, making it to be a couple inches more than Miss E's chest measurement, sewed the lace on, and added some straps. 



Miss E loves it and so do I!

Look what we found in the horse pen this morning!

Ouch

Our day...

4:00am- alarm clock goes off, reminding me that today is Miss E's surgery day. She is having her tonsils and adenoids removed and tubes in her ears, and then a different surgeon will repair her old g-tube site, since it still leaks.

4:30- we are off on the hour drive to the hospital.

5:45- we arrive in pre-op, where the kind nurses blow bubbles for Miss E and play her princess movies while we go over paperwork.

6:40- I dress Miss E in her hospital gown and carry her down the hall where we leave her to be wheeled away on her hospital bed to anesthesia.  She looked so small and scared in her bed.  It was hard to watch her go...

6:45- we settle in the surgery waiting room and watch her id number on the screen to see how she's progressing, praying all the while that God will guide the surgeon's hands.

9:00- finally they call me back to the recovery room.  Miss E is crying and fighting the nurses who are trying to give her a breathing treatment.  They let me climb on the bed and hold her and she quickly calms down, but they begin her on oxygen since her levels are a bit low.  The nurse is sure we'll need to spend the night.

9:45- the nurses wheel me and Miss E upstairs to our regular room, where we meet up with Andy again.  Miss E is not herself, she acts a little loopy and just rests on my lap.  But they don't restart the oxygen and she does fine.

10:30- Miss E dozes on and off while watching cartoons.  Andy and I read our new Joel Rosenberg books while taking turns holding Miss E.  

12:00- I take a walk across the street and bring back some Chipotle for our dinner.  Miss E tried some applesauce and ate it all.

1:00- the nurse tells us if we can get Miss E to sleep and her oxygen levels stay up we might get to go home today.  We were not expecting that but it sounds good!

1:30- we finally get Miss E to sleep and her oxygen levels are still great!  Now if she can eat some mashed potatoes and not get sick we can go home!

4:00- Miss E wakes up from her nap, her tummy is a little sore and it's hard to wake up.  

4:30- Miss E wolfs down most of her mashed potatoes and more applesauce, things are looking good!

6:00- we receive permission from the doctors to be discharged, and are headed home.

7:00-while waiting on a prescription we head over to get some supper from Braums.  Miss E must be feeling better because she tries to steal Andy's fries!

8:30- we are home, and so glad we didn't have to spend the night in the hospital.  Miss E is subdued and quiet but doing pretty well for all she's been through today!

Feeling Blue

After some warm spring days it has cooled off and we are getting some much needed rain.  Although I am thankful for the rain, the cold weather has left me feeling a little blue, so Miss E and I had a blue tea party today to lift our spirits.  At least, to lift mine, her's don't usually need lifting...

The tea cups are Liberty Blue, with a picture of Paul Revere on his famous ride.

Since it will be Easter soon a couple rabbits joined us.  My mom made these for the kids, aren't they cute?  She made each one different for all six children.

This cute little teapot is made by Booths in England and is called British Scenery.  I love the cattle on the lid!

For our treat today we are having biscuits with homemade sandhill plum jam.

Of course, with all our allergies the biscuits are made with a few different ingredients, Amaranth and Tapioca flour, goat's milk, and soda instead of baking powder.  They were a little chewy but not too bad.  I'm pretty sure Miss E liked them anyways!

Our dessert plates are also Liberty Blue and have a picture of Monticello.

I hope that things are starting to look up wherever you live and that spring is starting to peek out!

I am joining Home and Garden Thursday and Tea Time Tuesday

Lots of Doctor Visits

Little Miss E's health has not been the greatest since she was born.  She has chronic nasal congestion and has trouble breathing, especially while sleeping, among other things.  We have been going to lots of doctor appointments in the last month, trying to figure out what's going on with her.  Well, we have some answers now, thankfully!  She is going to have surgery in a week to get her tonsils and adenoids out and get tubes in her ears.  This won't solve why she's congested in the first place, but it will help a lot with her symptoms.  Last week we found out the results from a food allergy test we had done for her, and it's big.  She's allergic to 41 foods!  Everything from beef to milk to gluten to grapes.  So we are trying to wrap our minds around that and figure out what to feed the poor child.  She's been a good sport about it, although it's pretty hard when you see everyone else getting ice cream and you have to have apples.  Hopefully she will be better in a few years.  I am thankful God has given us good doctors to help us out!

Life is never dull around here...

Spring time

Each day we begin our home school by reading one of the devotions in the book, "Grace for the Moment", by Max Lucado.  I just loved yesterday's, so I thought I'd share part of it with you.

(We are sure enjoying springtime here, we even planted some garden!)

"But one of the sweetest reasons God saves you is because He is fond of you.  He likes having you around.  He thinks you are the best thing to come along since peanut butter.

If God had a refrigerator, your picture would be on it.  If He had a wallet, your photo would be in it.  He sends you flowers every spring and a sunrise every morning.  Whenever you want to talk, He listens.  God can live anywhere in the universe- the highest mountain or the most beautiful beach.  But He chooses to live in your heart.

Face it, friend.  God is crazy about you!"  ~Max Lucado

Another one?

~I love the way the sun shines in the window

on my dish cupboard every morning~

 

God knows just what we need, doesn't he?

 

In my last post I wrote about how if God cares about the little things like our cars, he cares about the big things too, and I am so thankful that he reminded me of that on Tuesday, because that evening I had another grand mal seizure.  I was sitting on the couch braiding Miss E's hair, when I started having an old familiar thought (I don't remember what it is now, I just know it always happens before a seizure starts) and that's all I remember till I "woke up" asking Andy what month it was.  Unfortunately the kids were all there this time so they all saw it and it was scary for them. 

 

I hadn't had a seizure for over three years, so I thought I was past that now.  Andy took me to the doctor yesterday, and he's not sure why it happened either, usually it's if your systems are overloaded then your body goes into a seizure to "reboot".  But, it wasn't immediately obvious what was causing it this time.  Thankfully I am feeling back to my old self already, just a little sore.  The memory problems that I had last time, three years ago, are not there this time, and I am so glad, because I didn't want to forget the whole process of us adopting Miss E!

 

God is good, he provides for us in so many ways, and nothing happens that doesn't first pass by him.  The worst of it all is that now I can't drive for six months...  But I like being at home so we'll survive. (:

 

If you would like to read about my past seizures, here's a link to that post. 

 

Are not two sparrows sold for a penny?

Yet not one of them will fall to the ground

apart from the will of your Father.

And even the hairs of your head are all numbered.

So don't be afraid;

you are worth more than many sparrows.

Matthew 10:29-31

 

 

~This photo is from a year or two ago, we didn't

have that much snow this year~

A Story of God's Care

--DJ enjoying the snow this weekend--

 

God is so gracious in his care for us, isn't he?

He showed me again yesterday that he is always

there, right beside me, and so I wanted to share

the story with you.  Miss E and I were on our way

to her doctor appointment (I will have to share more

details on that another time) and it was in the city

about an hour away from us.  We had just gotten

into town, and I looked down and there was a light

on the dash that said, CHECK YOUR GAUGES.

So I looked them over and noticed that the

temperature gauge was way high.  So I quickly

let off the gas and it started to go down right

away, but when I pushed on the gas again

it shot right back up.  (Thank goodness for cell

phones) I quickly called Andy and asked what

to do.  He figured I probably needed more

coolant.  Now, I have no idea how to add more

coolant, and I didn't have any idea where

to get more coolant on the road I was on.

Andy's the mechanic so he takes care of all that.

After driving/coasting about a mile, and

wondering what to do, all of a sudden I saw

a car dealership up on the left with a garage

that said "Service Entrance", so I pulled in

there, explained that I needed more coolant,

and could they get me some real quick so

I wouldn't be late to my doctor appointment?

They were so kind and helpful and filled

it up and didn't even charge me anything.

I am so thankful that God was right there

with me, helping me find just the right place

to go.  He is good!!  And, I was only 2 minutes

late to the appointment.  This was such an

encouragement to me, because if God cares

about the little things like vehicle problems,

I know he cares about my big problems.

 

Cast your cares on the LORD

and he will sustain you;

he will never let the righteous fall.

Psalm 55:22

 

Cast all your anxiety on him

because he cares for you.

1 Peter 5:7

 

What a Day That Will Be!

With so much uncertainty and evil in the world,

what with ISIS kidnapping and beheading Christians,

and our own country changing all the time,

it makes me appreciate the simple joys of life

with my family here in the country even more.

It also makes me so thankful that there is more

to this life than just this life.  If we believe in Jesus,

we have the hope of eternity in heaven with Him.

What a Day That Will Be!

"There is coming a day when no heartaches shall come-

No more clouds in the sky, no more tears to dim the eye.

All is peace forevermore on that happy golden shore.

What a day, glorious day that will be!

What a day that will be when my Jesus I shall see,

And I look upon His face- the One who saved me by His grace.

When He takes me by the hand and leads me through the Promised Land;

What a day, glorious day that will be!"

~Jim Hill~

I'm joining Tea Time Tuesday and A Return to Loveliness