AAM Monday

Wasn't too busy a weekend but but we had family excursions both days that either ended up taking  all day or a good portion of the day. I've also found that eating out mid-day is more than enough for my tummy for the whole day. You too?

Saturday we drove out to Leesburg VA to meet up with dh's cousin (mid 70s), her husband (older), and her mother WAAAY older. Aunt Catherine is 100.5, and will be 101 in December. She is a wisp of a thing but only retired from her work a few years ago. Can you imagine? She worked at Peace Plantation the animal rescue league she founded many many years ago.

We had lunch at a very good Indian buffet at Angeethi which suits Aunt Catherine and her daughter who are vegetarians. It was a bit like having a young child at the table so no other food pictures were taken. I wouldn't mind going back there in the fall perhaps.

We had picked up a flag flown over the USS Arizona memorial when we were at Pearl Harbor. Earl, Aunt Catherine's sil, is a WWII Vet and a survivor of a kamikaze attack. The number of those vets is dwindling and we were glad to be able to give him a special thanks again in this way.

We got to Leesburg in better time than we imagined- just over an hour , and low and behold across the street from the restaurant was a Farmers' Market. All the while in Hawaii, I had been thinking of peaches, plentiful peaches. I would have been thrilled to have plentiful mangoes but they were being sold individually just as they are here. Pooooh. I let dh pick the peaches out, 12 each of the yellow and white, and we are down to 5 of his white and 5 of my yellow. Fortunately I got a half bushel at the Baltimore market yesterday. But here are some pictures of the Leesburg market to make you hungry.

Aren't these great bread containers? made by the sellers fil

Some canning tomatoes are just coming in

They have banjo music here out near the mountains of VA

It's always nice to have tastes first

Picking carefully

These were so lovely I wished I could have taken one home. Mine didn't do so well despite my neighbor's waterings.

Well, I leave you with the Saturday pictures. Sunday was the Farmers' Market in Baltimore and then lunch with two of dh's children. All in all a very family weekend.

Bekah

About Bekah... from Sharlah's friend

The doctors told Sharlah today that Bekah's virus has progressed to pneumonia. She had a very hard night as they tried to lower the settings on the bipap. She also did not keep her feed down and her NG tube had to be replaced. Sharlah had to inform the school that Bekah will not be able to begin until January. This is extremely disheartening for Sharlah because she will need to tell Bekah. Bekah has been looking forward to starting school and returning to a somewhat "normal" life. As normal as you can get I suppose with all the struggles she faces daily. Lacey and I even went school shopping with her the weekend before she became ill and suffered the stroke. She had picked out her backpack and lunchbox with excitement and anticipation.

It is as if an imaginary hand reached out and pushed the pause button on their life and just as that hold button was released each time a gigantic speed bump was thrown at them. Then the hold button pushed again. Each event has drained a little bit more life out of a little girl that wants with all her heart to be full of life again, but each time it appears she can have a little hope of regaining the life she remembers she loses that chance. Of course, everyone around them have continued down the road of life. I went to visit the hospital on Wednesday night and watched as an almost seven year old little girl who is only skin and bones and must wear a diaper and attached to machines all around her was lifted onto a hanging scale because she wasn't allowed to stand up with all equipment attached. I watched the tears begin to fall and the crying begin because she had no idea what to expect as this was happening. She was shaking because she was cold and her eyes full of panic and pleading locked onto her mom's and Sharlah told her it was ok and she was right there with her. She just kept repeating that to her until they were done with this particular procedure.

This is the world they live in everyday. Please continue to pray for their strength and hope. Please pray for the entire family and the wisdom of the doctors as they treat her. Any prayers you can offer are so appreciated.

Flashback Friday

Look at these little darlins. They are the sons of a friend of mine from my overseas days. Her boys are close in age to my sons and so while I'm thinking it could have been taken in Bangkok, it could also have been in England. We have "Ian"s as bookends to our sons, but mine is an Iain.

Just a fyi...each of our older boys is now in his 40s, so that tells you how time flies! Hope all is well with you Sterling, wherever you may be.