My Birthday Weekend

It is extra special when your birthday falls on a Sunday, because then you get a birthday weekend!!!! It all started yesterday. My mom and I made plans to spend the day together, just like we did 49 years ago. She asked where I wanted to go and there was only ONE place!!!McHenry! My town. Sweetheart and I raised our boys here and I have such fond memories. My dearest friend lives there still....we have been close friends for 27 years, never losing touch and I don't think we have had one real quarrel. So that is where we went. We picked up my friend Sue , and went to Applebee's for lunch. It was wonderful. After that, we all drove by the old house. This is where we lived through most of our boys childhood.I was more than taken aback at the state of the yard and house. Though the house looks the same, it is not like Sweetheart kept it. I have such comforting memories of my time there. We went back to Sue's house and had such fun visiting and remembering our time spent together. We lived about 4 miles from each other and spent a lot of time together. Our children grew up playing with each other and we spent HOURS sewing together. Oh, the quilts we each made from start to finish, sharing the details every step of the way. Here are a couple of Sue's quilts. You can see her many quilts by visiting her blog. She hand quilts, hand appliques and hand/machine pieces. My mother is in awe of her!! (so am I) You will also get to "meet" her wonderful children (she has 6) and her youngest, Ruthie, is a dolly. Ruthie would not let me take her picture, but she was at the door, all smiles to greet us, and to wave goodbye!

My family gave me cold hard cash for my birthday and I went to Joann's for some purchases. I got 3 different corduroy's...2 for Charlotte and one for me...all for new skirts.And 3 yards of orange (Bear's orange to be exact) and a batting for an upcoming quilting project.
Yes, I used some of my birthday money to buy fabrics for other people....it was what I wanted! I still have money left over and plan to visit 2 quilt shops tomorrow. I came home around dinner time and found a box had arrived with my name on it. Inside was an abundance of wonderful smells and colors!!!Joann, my blogging friend, had sent me my favorite Bath and Body Works scented lotions and shower gel, a journal, an Elizabeth George book, a scented candle, Christmas dish towels, silk flowers, and 4 Let It Snow place mats. I felt very spoiled! Thank you, Joann!

Today is very laid back and low keyed. I baked pumpkins pies, drank coffee, and have a roast and potatoes in the crock pot for dinner.My son, daughter in law, and grandbabies are all coming for dinner very soon! Other than that, I was able to finish my second miniature and start quilting the third.....Seeing all of Sue's (4) large Christmas quilts done and bound made me want to get on the ball to finish my little ones!!! She has that effect on me!

Until tomorrow, when I will be visiting here.... I am praising God for His lovingkindness!

I Forgot.....

I forgot to tell you all which song belonged to which kid. Back a few posts, I had some videos and asked you to guess....

Here are the answers....

Bud and Rachel had "Everything" played at their wedding

Kyle's favorite is "I Can Only Imagine" (my own favorite at the moment)

Charlotte's is "The Lost Are Found"

Zach's fav is "Awesome God" He plays it DAILY!!

and TJ loves the Cartoon Song!

Emerson did great last night and is very tired but breathing great. TJ is still here and may spend one more night. We'll see....his mommy misses him terribly!! I am quilting and planning a tied quilt for Kyle for his Christmas gift. I have Bears fabric here and will do a checkerboard of that and a solid orange. He will love it!! Other Christmas projects are a couple of skirts for Charlotte and a pillow and Bible bag for Zach. It is coming up quick!!! What are you all making for Christmas gifts??

Emerson is Home

PawPaw and I went up to the hospital to visit our little Emerson. She seemed much better, except for the awful coughing fit she had while we were there! She loved the big hospital crib and seemed to enjoy crawling from one end to the other. We brought her a pink elephant that is soooooo soft and she hugged it. It was very sweet. Her stridors are gone and she is sounding good. She was released while we were there and will be on steroids for 5 days. Please continue to pray healing for her. That cough gags her and she is in visible pain from it. TJ will stay with us for at least another day so he does not catch that nasty croup!!!

Cheryl put it perfectly....it has been a roller coaster few days!! I am ready to get off this ride!!!

God is faithful and what an awesome healer He is!!

Another praise....my mother in love is coming home from rehab on Wednesday. Her hip replacement is doing well.

An Emerson Update

Emerson was admitted to the hospital tonight for croup. The x-rays done at the hospital show no signs of pneumonia in her left lung as the immediate care had said. (Thank you Jesus!) Her trachea is narrowing from the croup and that is a concern. She has what is called stridors....the following is taken from kidshealth.org on croup symptoms.

"At first, a child may have cold symptoms, like a stuffy or runny nose and a fever. As the upper airway (the lining of the windpipe and the voice box) becomes progressively inflamed and swollen, the child may become hoarse, with a harsh, barking cough. This loud cough, which is characteristic of croup, often sounds like the barking of a seal.
If the upper airway becomes increasingly swollen, it becomes even more difficult for a child to breathe, and you may hear a high-pitched or squeaking noise when a child inhales (this is called stridor). A child also may tend to breathe very fast and might have retractions (when the skin between the ribs pulls in during breathing). In the most serious cases, a child may appear pale or have a bluish tinge around the mouth due to a lack of oxygen. (we are not at that point!)

To treat this upper airway swelling, they use steroids. Emerson was given a shot but the results were not what they wanted. She was given a breathing treatment and that brought some relief. The problem is the relief is not lasting long enough and her stridor is coming back before the next treatment. She is being admitted overnight to be watched and prayerfully, the stridor will be gone by morning. My sister's son had croup all the time as a child and she remembers the steroids sometimes taking overnight to work.

Your prayers are most coveted.....Bud and Rachel are both staying with Emerson overnight at the hospital and I am thankful for that!!!!

"The prayers of a righteous man (and woman) avail much!!!!!" Now since our righteousness is in Christ, I am confident your prayers will work!!!!

Pretty Girl

The tree in our front yard has shed all it's leaves, save the ones used by a squirrel to make her nest. See it? It is not at the very top, though it is pretty far up there, which means our winter will not be mild, though not the worst in history.

My pretty girl, Emerson.....

This is a picture of her taken just yesterday morning after she and her brother spent the night. She slept sound all night long and woke up full of smiles and giggles. What a sweet baby she is. They went home about 10:30 and she continued to play and ate a good lunch. About 20 minutes into her nap she woke up screaming and began a horrid barking cough. Her breathing seemed off so Rachel took her to immediate care. Her O2 was 94 but did come up to 97 on it's own. A test for RSV came back negative, and she was tested for the A & B flu, which I just found out came back negative. She had no temp but her breathing seemed shallow and panting, though no retracting or actual struggle to breath was there. Still....scary. Grandma diagnosed croup, but what do I know??? Last night Rachel text me that her breathing sounded funny so I went over. She did appear to be panting some, but she was not struggling and gave me lots of smiles. She was clingy and tired and had a temp...not too bad, only 100.5. We decided I would bring TJ home with me and that way if they needed an ER run in the night, my son could go too.TJ's little bed is made up in my bedroom and he may be here a few nights depending on the test results. Also, croup is contagious and he is only 4, so is still susceptible to it. As I type this, Rachel and Emerson are back at the immediate care. Her breathing started to have a "funny sound" to it and Rachel thought it best to have her re-checked. She is a very good mommy. Her O2 level is 98, so that makes me feel good. Her temp still hovers at 100.5. Say a little prayer for them if you think of it. I have been saying many!!!
The neighbor girls that I home school are both sick with the flu....tested positive for A AND B...and have high fevers and bad coughs....Anya and Alphia could use some prayers too. They will not be here this week so we are taking it at a slower pace here too. We are keeping busy though!!!! Charlotte is working on her "Bears" blanket for her Daddy's Christmas gift.She is doing quite well!! I am getting my desire to quilt back....how??? By just doing it. I think the border I am quilting is not to enjoyable. I love the effect, but it is a very small, twisty, turny design that causes you to only be able to take a stitch or two before you have to turn....not as fun. I am almost done and then I can do the straight line quilting I love so much.I have never done a border first....I always start in the middle, but the markings on this were so light I thought I would get it out of the way. Glad I did. Because it is so small, it really was no big deal. I would not suggest this on a larger quilt.
Well, I am just waiting to hear more from Rachel (who just text and said they are doing more x-rays and tests). I am assuming they will tell her to continue doing what she is doing. I think I will go sit with a hot cup of coffee and read a book to the kids.
Have a blessed Monday and thank you for your prayers!!!!

UPDATE: Emerson has Pneumonia in her left lung. It was not there yesterday, but shows up today. Please continue to pray for her.

Prayers For Emerson

Please say a prayer for Emerson. She is sick with either the flu, or croup....not sure which. A trip to the immediate care center showed a lower than normal O2 level, but in an ok range when she left. She is running a temp and having some difficulty breathing....nothing critical at this point. The doctors said to watch her closely as it can change so fast! Please say a prayer for her healing and for Rachel, who is more than a little bit worried.

My Kid's Favorite Songs

Here are my kid's favorite songs....can you guess which one is Kyle's, Charlotte's, Zach's, TJ's, and the one that Bud and Rachel had for their first dance as husband and wife????