Sunshine and Shadow

Life is a little hard right now. Mama is home and undergoing dialysis treatments on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday of each week. She is not doing well with all this. She is weak and has to be moved around in the wheelchair instead of her trusty rolling walker. She can't be left alone and so our family is taking care of her. The good thing is that she is eating well and we have hope that this is only a temporary thing and that she will get stronger. At 86, its not that easy to bounce back!

No matter what we are going through, the seasons keep rolling along.

This picture is of my daughter and grandson enjoying one of the last warm days of fall:



The cotton is gone! I have really enjoyed having it right outside the door all summer and fall.



Have a great day!

Our Fall Garden

*** Update on Mama. She is still in the hospital and the dialysis treatments she has had in the hospital have been going well, except for the fact that they wipe her out afterwards. I hope that the side effects will get better when she gets used to having the dialysis. Fingers are crossed that she can come home today. Thank you so much for your thoughts and prayers.

*********

We still have a few veggies growing outside. These squash are almost ready to start picking. It won't be long before we have a frost, maybe 2 or 3 more weeks, so we need to eat them while we can!



This is the fall garden. These plants are the squash from above, turnips and rutabagas.



Okra:



These are Bell peppers grown in pots that I grew from seed earlier in the summer. The good thing about them being in pots, is that I can protect them from frost by moving them inside a building or under a shelter.

A Small Update

Update on Mama: Her Nephrologist made the decision that she does need to go on dialysis and so today the surgery to insert the Portacath will be done. I'm not sure how much longer she will be in the hospital, but I suspect at least 2 or 3 more days. As much as I dread this new burden for her, I realize that it is a blessing that dialysis exists to help her live a much longer life. So, "it is what it is!".

Thanks for your comments, thoughts and prayers!

A Couple of Updates

I haven't mentioned my mother lately, so I thought I would give a little update on her. She is 86 now and slowing down in the things she is able to do. She is still able to attend church every Sunday, but other than that is pretty much home bound.

This week she is in the hospital with kidney function problems. We are hopeful that the doctor can stop the rise in her creatinine levels so that she doesn't have to go on dialysis. For three weeks now the level has hovered around 6 and so her doctor is highly recommending dialysis if the number doesn't come down in the next 2 or 3 days. We could really use your good thoughts and prayers right now! Dialysis would place a great burden on Mama and we are hoping and praying to avoid it.

I will be scarce on the internet this week, both in posting on my blogs and leaving comments. But, I wanted to show you the finished "Razzle Dazzle" quilt. I apologize to those who may have already seen this quilt on my quilting blog.

I can't for the life of me get the pictures on my camera to download to the computer, so I had to settle for these taken with my camera phone, and then sent to my email address.

It was very windy when I was trying to take the pictures.




I hope all of you have a great week. Thanks in advance for your thoughts and prayers. I will give another update on Mama when more is known.

Octoberfest Chili

Here's how I made our chili for our private Octoberfest last weekend:

Octoberfest Chili

1 lb (or more if you like it meaty)Browned hamburger cooked together with cut up onion and bell pepper. (drained of course)
1 can of original rotel tomatoes
1 regular sized can of diced tomatoes (mine were flavored with garlic, or italian herbs or something)
2 regular sized cans of white beans (navy, great northern, etc.)
2 regular size or 1 big can of pork and beans.
1 large dollop or big rounded tablespoon of tomato paste ( I freeze individual portions of canned tomato paste, because a whole can is too much.)
1 scant tablespoon of chili powder (I pour what looks like a little tablespoon in the palm of my hand and toss it in. It may be less than a tablespoon.)
Sprinkle in some Cumin (optional)
1 cup of water

I'm sorry some of the ingredient amounts are so vague, but chili is one of those dishes that I throw in a little of this and a little of that. Each time its a little different.

Let simmer until flavors have mingled awhile.

We still have three more October weekends, so lets celebrate!

Glimpses of Home

Octoberfest

We had our own little private Octoberfest last weekend. We had really nice cool weather and it was perfect for making chili and sewing!




These Hamburger Pinwheels went well with the chili. The recipe can be found HERE.



Quilting progress:



Sorry, but we didn't have any Octoberfest dancing! Maybe next year......

I hope your October is going well!

The Barn

We've been living in the farmhouse for a year and a half now. The house had been renovated, but the outbuildings were in need of some serious repair. This barn was a solid structure, but needed a lot of work. Here are some before and after pictures.

Those plants beside the barn are our okra.

The sky

We have had the most beautiful blue skies and puffy white clouds lately. Another one of those things you might not notice, but if you pay attention you will be in awe!

Here are a few pictures.