Wednesday, July 31, 2013

Looking Back

Today is Mia's 2nd Birthday. 

Mia is truly a miracle.

Two years ago Mia was born with CDH.
The details of CDH are HERE on Tonya's Blog

Mia is an angel that changed all our lives forever,
but none so more than her Mommy & Daddy...


I wrote about 

Sometimes it's hard to look back at this picture.
So much mixed emotion, and heartache. 
Hungering for just a glimpse of hope. 
Struggling every moment to just hang on. 

But WOW- we have come so far, so very far indeed, and at times it seems so very, very, long ago. 


Still, every time I look at Mia I am reminded at how fragile life can be.
How precious is each and every breath, every beat of the heart, truly precious.
If I think too much about it, I cry very easily. 
But most of all it reminds me to never ever take anything for granted again, never.  
That life is truly a blessing, 


HAPPY BIRTHDAY MIA
I Love you to the moon and back-
Grammy

The Girasole Lady

Thursday, July 25, 2013

Doing my Best

It's 5AM.
I'm the 'all or none' personality, and because of this I've been holding back from blogging, afraid that I cannot give it my all, so I give nothing, and regret it later. 
This morning I will agree to do the best I can, at least for today anyway. 

This is baby Harper...
she is 7 months old now. 
(I did not take this picture, it was taken at a lovely wedding we attended a few weeks ago)

Harper is my 3rd Gran-daughter. 
She stays with me on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays
(sometimes Wednesdays too),
while her Mommy goes to work. 
She'll be here this morning around 6:45. 
She keeps me busy, happy, entertained, and yes- tired by the end of the day. 
I am ready at the end of each day for her mommy to appear again around 4 O'clock.
I love her, and all the Gran-babies, to pieces. 

My biggest help with Harper comes from baby Mia...
 Mia holds her...
(perhaps a head lock might be a more appropriate description)
 Loves her....
and pats her. 

Truly these two girls have a very special bond. 
They both light up like a light when they enter the same room as each other, one being just as excited as the other. 


 Mia will share her baby...
 AND her blanket...
Oh- it doesn't get any sweeter than this. 

Laci...well... she cautiously watches the "babies" from a safe distance...

she knows how crazy these two can play together. 

Our family just keeps growing with Gran-babies. 
I've mentioned before that Tonya is due with baby #3 in November.
Hold your hats...IT's A BOY!!!
That's BIG news in our family, as I had 3 daughters, and they have had only daughters themselves, up until now. 
It's weird to think about having a little boy around, as I have absolutely NO experience in raising boys whatsoever! We are all excited, and can hardly wait to meet him. 

Ok- that's it for the Gran-baby news. 

Our back porch addition was finally poured last week.

See the brackets in the concrete? 
There are six of them, which will support the posts for the roof. 
I covered them with planters, upside down, both for safety and appearance, and arranged smaller planters on the top with flowers. 
The roof will come in the Fall when Caveman is done working 12 hour days/7 days a week. 
Yuk- for Summer hours! 
I still have yet to get it all organized with furniture and pretty stuff. 

The garden is good...
 I'm brave enough to show the weeds too...

I'm still loving the smallness of it all.
We get just enough fresh cucumbers and zucchini, for now, and the rest I get from Farmer's Market on Saturday mornings. 
Pretty soon we'll have our own tomatoes. 

There is a large patch of wild Morning Glory that is growing next to the garden beds. 
I'm leaving it there as is, just because I think it's lovely. 
Yes- Lovely, even among the weeds. 

July has been dreadfully HOT! My Sis came for a visit the week of the 4th, and the weather was so miserable we didn't do a thing, except eat, stay indoors, and complain about the heat. 
EVERYONE was a little crabby by the end of the week and we ended up ALL heading to Sonoma County for some cool relief from the heat, and a BIG family gathering with family that lives in Santa Rosa
(more on that gathering later). 
It was great fun, and a wonderful time had by all. 

An hour has passed and I need to be getting ready for the day....

"Learn from yesterday,
live for today,
hope for tomorrow"
-Albert Einstein-

The Girasole Lady