Robin's Nest
Stockpiling and preparing for lean times...
Dear friends,
I just wanted to make you aware that I am currently writing about what to do to survive leaner economic times over at my Blogger blog.
Please stop by and visit.
Sewing Project
I've been working on learning how to quilt for the past few years and recently decided to try my hand at sewing clothing. I've always had an interest in it. My mother has many many patterns in her collection and let me go through it and pick some that I'd like to try. I found a simple McCall's pattern for a nice robe. Trevor's current robe is quite short and makes him look like a Roman soldier, so I thought I give it a try. You can see in the picture the dark blue fleece I'm planning to use. I bought 5 1/2 yards of it (on sale, of course
) and it is super super soft! I got the pieces all cut out today and now I've just got to wait until I have the time to sit down and sew. Right at this moment, Monday looks like the earliest chance I will get. I'm looking forward to it.
Neat Site
07:15, Mon 29 December 2008 .. Posted in Creating a comfortable home .. 1 comments .. Link
http://tipnut.com/50-tips-for-sewing/
http://tipnut.com/laundry-mending-tips/
http://tipnut.com/category/household-tips/frugal/
http://tipnut.com/category/cleaning/cleaning-tips/
At the bottom of each page, there are links to other lists similar to the one just viewed. At the top of each page, there are drop down menus with tons more information.
Fabric Gift Bags
In our family, instead of using paper for wrapping gifts, we've been making cloth bags to "wrap" our gifts. We use Christmas fabric for Christmas, and floral for Mother's Day, bright colored for birthdays, etc. We tie the tops closed with reusable fabric ribbons and will be making some with hook and loop tape and maybe even buttons. They are really cute, look more festive than paper, I think, and cut down on waste. Whenever there is a sale on fabric, I stock up.
Just a reminder...
I just wanted to remind everyone that I am still blogging over at
I hope you are enjoying your Christmas preparations...
Date Night With My Hubby - A Fun Date Game
22:26, Fri 5 December 2008 .. Posted in Date night with my hubby .. 1 comments .. Link
I had read something somewhere awhile back about a game that can be played with a spouse on date night and decided to give it a try with Trevor tonight. Beforehand, we both decided on a fixed amount of money that could be spent. Tonight, we decided on $10 total. Then, we split it in half between the two of us and we headed off to Big Lots. We each had to choose a gift for each other using only the $5.
The fun isn't so much in the gift itself, but in the hunt! We spent about 2 hours roaming up and down the isles looking at everything and playing together. We would joke about buying each other $5 worth of toothpaste or giant foam swords and a blow-up jail house. We found ideas for future serious purchases and talked about ideas for decorating and how we wanted our home to be. We talked about how one gift would be great for so-and-so and how this other thing would be great for a little boy if we had one.
I finally settled on a new book for Trevor written by his favorite author and Trevor chose a headlamp for me. The lamp straps onto the head and has 9 LED bulbs. There are 4 different settings depending on how bright I wish it to be. He thought I would like to use it for reading in bed (and it can also aid me in late night trips to the bathroom). I look forward to trying it out.
This was probably one of my most favorite dates we've ever had.
Atlantic Beach
When Vanessa came out to visit, we went to Atlantic Beach. It's a beautiful white sand beach on one of the Barrier Islands here in NC. The water was quite warm despite it being mid October and we had so much fun swimming and riding the waves back to shore.
Update
I haven't felt much like blogging lately, but wanted to give a small update. My mom is still in the hospital. Her pneumonia is nearly gone, but the doctors discovered some things in her lab work that concerned them. They ordered an angiogram and found that her 4 stents are not working properly and they have now decided that they need to do a quadruple bypass immediately. They are waiting until she is strong enough to survive the surgery. She is severely anemic and malnourished (due to the bastric bypass). Her BGLs have been really high and they want to get those under control as well.The nurses have been hinting that they are planning to do the surgery next week sometime. Mom has been doing much better these last few days and I think they may be right. I have mixed emotions about this surgery. I know she won't be able to survive without it and I'm grateful that we caught it in time (I guess pneumonia CAN be a blessing), but I have some serious concerns. One fear I have is taking care of her properly after she is home. I've received some kind guidence and words from people who have been in similar situations, but I still doubt myself.
My other fear is also the one of the biggest and that is the fact that she is so high risk. The hospital she is at is in the top 17 in the nation for cardiac centers and her surgeon is a high risk specialist, so that makes me feel a little more at ease, but I am still so worried. After almost losing her this past summer, her car accident, the recent cancer scare, and now this, we've been on a rollercoaster of emotions. It feels like we are pulled back and forth between panic and relief faster than we can catch our breath. I wonder if the worst happens, how will we be able to take care of it all and... also pay for it? How will I cope if that's what is to happen?
It's Hard to Know Where to Begin
02:00, Fri 21 November 2008 .. Posted in Trips and Adventures .. 1 comments .. Link
In the beginning of October through the middle of October, Trevor's sister came to visit us for about a week and a half. Then, 3 days after she left, we flew out to Denver for her wedding. I helped her do her wedding cake and decorated the sheet cakes for the reception. We had her bridal shower, wedding, and reception in two day's time. It was quite the weekend and I could sense the relief in the house when it was all over.
Then, the day we arrived home, my father came to visit us here in NC. He was here on business, but stayed with us for about a week and a half. We always enjoy his visits. Halfway through his stay, he and my husband left for a road trip back to Chicago to pick up my mother's furniture and belongings. They made the trip from Raleigh to Chicago, packed up her stuff into an open top trailer and pickup, and then headed back here to NC in 3 days total. They arrived late on a Sunday night and we unpacked the pickup that night. Needless to say, it was very tiring. We unpacked the trailer the next morning and spent the next 3 days trying to get as much settled in my mom's room as possible. That Friday, my mom and sister arrived. My sister only stayed for one day and then headed back to Florida.
My mom and I continued to get her stuff settled, but then last Saturday, she came down with a gastroenteritis which she caught while in Florida. We thought she was getting better by Tuesday, but she took a turn for the worse on Wednesday and took her to Urgent Care. It was quickly discovered that she had developed pneumonia and had to be hospitalized immediately. She's doing a little better now, but we don't know at this point when she will be coming out.
Did I mention that during all of this, two of my cavities on my upper 2nd molars decided to give me huge amounts of pain starting in the beginning on October? I've been trying to deal with the pain, but finally had to have surgery this past Tuesday morning and have both of them extracted (similar surgery to having wisdom teeth taken out). Poor Trevor had to deal with me being completely out of it from the anesthesia and vicodin, deal with changing my bandages, and also deal with my mom and try to work from home. The pain from the surgery peaked wednesday night (the night we put mom in the hospital) through yesterday. I'm feeling a little better today and hopefully it will continue to improve.
The sale on our house also fell through at the last moment. The seller has 3 days AFTER closing to change her mind and that's exactly what she did. Very frustrating. So, we're hoping to find another buyer soon. Because of this (and also having to pay for my surgery 100% out of pocket), I've decided to get a job. I'm going to be working nights so that someone will always be home with my mom. I have a second interview with the same company this afternoon, so that's a good sign.
The last month and a half have been so busy for us and I sure hope that things will settle down so we can enjoy the holidays.
Columbus Weekend in Chicago, IL
Friends,
I just wanted to share with all of you the wonderful time I had in Chicago over the weekend. Some of you may be familiar with Nancy Leigh DeMoss and her radio ministry Revive Our Hearts. The vision of this ministry became a 6,300 woman strong worship and teaching conference called True Woman '08.
I attended with five other ladies from my church. We arrived in Chicago around lunch time on Thursday. Our first stop was Moody Bible Institute where one of our friend's daughter attends. We went to Giordano's for lunch. I just had to have a Chicago deep dish pizza. The conference opened at 4:30. Walking into the convention center was rather overwhelming. On each seat was a convention bag. It was one great tote bag. It was roomy, lots of pockets, and a zip closure on top. They even gave us a pocket packet of tissues. Yes, we needed these. Worship was lead all three days by Keith and Kristyn Getty and their band. Fantastic couple. I was blessed by their hymns. The Lord has truly blessed them with a wonderful talent. John Piper and Nancy Leigh DeMoss opened up the teaching on Thursday night. I took lots of notes.
Friday morning started bright and early. I am a bit of a morning person. Apparently my friend, Linda, is as well because we were both up and showered before anyone else. We stayed at Holiday Inn Express, so we had the benefit of a continental breakfast. The morning session began with worship and teachings on the beginning of the feminist movement by Mary Kassian. It is amazing how influenced I am by this movement even when I didn't realize it. Fern Nichols, founder of Moms In Touch International, and Karen Loritts also spoke.
We were served a box lunch of a turkey sandwich, apple, chips, cookie and water. Amazingly, they served 6,300 women in about 30 minutes. We grabbed our lunches and headed out the door to eat on the convention center grounds. The afternoon teaching was done in two breakout sessions. I was blessed that they had thought of us ladies with unsaved spouses. I went to that session for sure. I was going to attend a second one on prayer, but I got closed out of that. So, I went to "Girls Gone Wild" given by Mary Kassian. She did a side by side comparision of wild women and wise women. It was very well done.
Our group wandered off site for dinner at a Mexican restaurant. The evening was spent with Janet Parshall and Joni Eareckson Tada. Actually, Joni sent in a video message as she is suffering such debilitating pain that she is unable to travel.
I am so moved to see that Lord working in the hearts and lives of the women who attended the conference. There were many tears shed and hearts were humbled especially mine. I have been profoundly affected by attending this counter cultural revival meeting.
I pray that all Christian women would embrace God's design for womenhood.
Blessings,
Jennie
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