Updates, updates...

Yup, it's been awhile.... again. Blame it on the scrapbooking...


Dad goes back to work in the morning. Yay! It's light duty, half days, but it's a start in the right direction. :o) He's still learning how to maneuver around on his leg, and it's needed to be refitted at least once, which is all part of the process. The therapist said that most people don't need it refitted quite so soon, but she also said that most people don't push themselves to become mobile as hard as Dad does, either, so there.


Jack and I made a whirlwind trip to WVa and Ohio last week. My step-step grandfather (sounds confusing, doesn't it? My grandfather remarried after his first wife (dad's mother) passed away, then after *he* passed away, his second wife (step-grandmother) remarried, so now you see how a step-step relative is created) was diagnosed quite awhile ago with cancer, and hospice was called in a couple of weeks ago. He's been part of the family for 20 years or so. We went to WVa to visit with him on Monday. He wasn't in such bad shape that he didn't know who we were, so we had a nice visit. He slept most of the time while I talked with Grandma about crocheting and quilting. I don't quilt, but you should see some of the quilts that she's done. She takes old ladies handkerchiefs and folds them just so, stitches them to a block and embroiders around the edge to make butterflies out of them. Absolutely beautiful!


We didn't stay long, maybe a couple of hours or so, then zipped over to Mom & Dad's in Ohio for dinner on Tuesday.

We spent Thanksgiving with Jack's parents and family. Just about everyone was there at once, making it a very chaotic and happy place to be. Somebody said something about needing a scorecard to keep track of which kid belongs to which parent that sparked and idea in my puny little brain about a Christmas gift for his mother, who is quite possibly one of the most difficult people in the world to come up with a gift for. She has everything she wants already. Anyway, may I present the reverse family tree?





Instead of listing all of Jack's parents' ancestors, I listed all of their descendants, along with current spouses (or is it "spousi"?) I'm having it printed in a 12 x 12 format and will have it framed. I'm pretty sure that she won't get two of these.


I've also put together an 11 page layout of pictures from our wedding, some more layouts of Jenna, and one of the cats. I'm particularly proud of the cats layout since I designed all of it, from the background to the embellishments. The only thing that was designed by somebody else was the dark gray mats that I used behind the pictures. It took me awhile, but I'm pretty thrilled with the results.

On a side note, I'm very glad that we went to see my grandfather this past week. He passed away Saturday. He's been in a lot of pain for a very long time, he believed in God, and he had asked for salvation wayyyy back, so his passing is not a bad thing. He's probably sitting up there with my other grandfathers laughing at me about my newest obsession as I type. :o)