Counting Our Blessings - Linkup!!

I had my second round of chemo yesterday on Monday. I've had two fairly decent weeks after the horrible week right after my last chemo treatment. I've been extremely tired, but I think that's just something that comes with this. My sleep has been off, with me being up all night and then sleeping during the day. This, too, is from the chemo.

One thing I've been doing is my quiet time in the middle of the night. It really is quiet! 😄 I always do my In Touch devotional from Charles Stanley and then add my Bible reading and other devotional readings. I've also been working on my gratitude book that my youngest son got me.

I also finished my hat that I was crocheting. I was spurred on because my hair is falling out in clumps now. It's been rather disconcerting but, again, it's part of the chemo. I made two roses for my hat as well - one pink and one turquoise. I will simply pin them on depending on what outfit I want to wear.

Here it is with the pink rose...

Here I am with my hat on with the blue rose.  My birthday was last Friday and I'm holding the beautiful cake my husband got for me. It was as delicious as it was pretty!

After my last surgery, I started a doily and have had it finished for quite some time. I wanted to share a picture of that, too.  I just love the texture in this doily! The first picture shows the texture so beautifully!

However, this is not the true color of the doily so I took a picture with a flash to show you the true color. It loses the detail but you can at least see the true blue color. 😊

I absolutely love it! I'm making another doily in pink that is oval but haven't worked on it for a while. It's quite tricky and I just don't have the energy for it right now. However, I'm working on my fall pumpkin doily and will try an finish it in time for Thanksgiving.  We shall see - it will really depend on how bad my side effects from the chemo are this time. It is what it is.

I feel like I'm going to be better prepared for this chemo treatment. I saw my pain management doctor and he put me on a regiment of pain medicine as well as nerve pain medicine. He also gave me lots of nausea medicine so I will be protected there, too. He told me to make sure I take everything the day of chemo and from then on for the hard days. I'm praying that this will stop the horrible pain I had last time and get me through those hard days better. My Oncologist also gave a me a couple new medicines to help with the side affects and to help me just sleep for those two really bad days. I was so nervous and anxious today that she gave me something in my IV to help me to calm down. I slept for 2 hours! Plus, I was very calm! lol 😂😉

Driving home from Phoenix, the moon was coming up and it was so beautiful over the desert! Here are some pictures I took from the truck and, while they aren't the best, they are still so beautiful!

Isn't it gorgeous? I just reminds me that the Lord has created everything. My heart worships Him for who He is and how He holds everything in His hands, including me.
A beautiful Scripture depicting this is Psalm 148:1-6

Hallelujah!

Praise the Lord from the heavens;

praise Him in the heights.

Praise Him, all His angels;

praise Him, all His hosts.

Praise Him, sun and moon;

praise Him, all you shining stars.

Praise Him, highest heavens,

and you waters above the heavens.

Let them praise the name of Yahweh,

for He commanded, and they were created.

He set them in position forever and ever;

He gave an order that will never pass away. 

*Check this Scripture out on BibleGateway to read the entire chapter and to find out more about it in the study notes they provide. Here's the direct link to this Scripture HERE

This happened on Saturday. 

You could probably see in the picture on my birthday how little hair I had peeking out from under the hat. It was really quite silly looking and so I asked my son to just take the clippers to what was left of my hair. As much as I was dreading it, it really hasn't been horrible and I am looking on the bright side of it. I don't have to shampoo my hair or style it. I feel much cooler, and I get to wear great hats of all types as fashion statement! I actually crocheted myself another hat - a beanie to be exact - and here I am in my new little hat.

I really like this hat because it's super soft and lightweight. I'll probably make more in different colors. 

I have been so blessed with continued cards coming in the mail and more sweet gifts from friends. Oh, how these bless me and touch my heart! They also give me strength because I know I'm being thought of and, believe me, as I'm going through this, I need to know I'm being thought of and prayed for.  I also had a dear friend bring us soup, rolls and flowers one evening. What a blessing! It's not always easy to make food as we are all exhausted. I have had so many blessings to count! I hope that you have had the same. 

My prayer request is that this round of chemo will not be as hard on me and that my pain will be well controlled.  I'm also asking for prayer regarding my surgery.  They will be doing a CT scan after the third round of chemo to see if the little spots on my lung and liver are gone.  If they are, they will then do the hysterectomy! I feel like this will give me a big boost to get the offending organ that is producing this cancer out of my body. Would you please pray that this will be so? I may to still to more chemo, however, I feel that getting the thing that's making the cancer out of my body will really help me to eradicate the rest of the cancer! 

Thank you all so much for the comments, emails, cards, gifts, encouragement and, most of all, your prayers! I have been so well love through all this and I am so grateful! It gives me such a boost and gives me the strength to fight this and stay strong! 

I would love for you to share your own blessings on the Linky below! Share anything at all that you would like. I see so many wonderful things here that are fun and encouraging! 

Many blessings to you, my friends - Julie

Counting Our Blessings - LinkUp!

I'm back with our linkup, dear friends! I've been having some bad and good days and sometimes, I just don't have the energy to do everything I'd like to do. But you know what? It's all good because God has seen me through so much and He will continue to heal, strengthen and comfort me. What a blessing!

46.  Remember the beginning of my afghan I showed you last time? I finished it and got it shipped off to the person I was making it for! I made this for my Mother for Mother's Day. 😊

I had a two day marathon to get this done in time to ship it but I made it and she got it a few days before Mother's Day. I think the colors are so pretty!

47.  I finished my Celtic Santa - Wales! I had been anxious about doing the beard and mustache but, you know what, it ended up being quite easy. I did have to take the beard out once because I didn't get it even, but the second time was the charm. Here is my finished Santa!

Next, I will cut him out, make a hanger and then back it with felt. I'm excited to start a new Santa soon from the Celtic series.

48.  Remember this?

Yes, I'm still working on it. After finishing the Santa, I decided to go back to one of my big projects and work on it for awhile. I only have two big projects going and I like to switch back and forth. I have one big project in my craft room and one in my family room so I can work on which ever between little projects.

My stitching has been sporadic because I have aggravated a tendon from my wrist to my thumb. I had x-rays last week and will be getting a shot in my hand next week, which I understand will be almost an instant cure. I'll be so glad! It's quite painful.

Your turn to share your blessings! Share on the linkup below (or in the comments)



Blessings - Julie

Finished Crochet Afghan!

I finished my son's afghan! It's really big and perfect for his twin bed. I'm really happy with how it came out and it will definitely keep him warm.

I'm sorry the picture isn't really great but I'm taking the picture at 4:00 in the morning and the lighting isn't really too good. It's draped over my recliner so you can see how huge it is.

I used the Caron Cake yarn in the Cake Pop color. The pattern I used is HERE.  I did the twin bed size in case you want to do one this size, but they give you the starting chain and pattern for different sizes. 

I'm starting a new project today as a gift for someone special. I'll share pictures as I go along.

I went to the surgeon yesterday and had my staples removed! He was very pleased with my healing and I don't have to see him again. I'm so thankful that I'm doing well and that I'm on the road to getting my life back! I'm still very tired and quite sore but he said that's normal considering the type of surgery I had. It's going to take some time to feel fully recovered but I'm going to take it easy and make sure I do fully recover.

Have a wonderful Saturday!

Blessings - Julie

Counting Our Blessings - LinkUp!

I hope your week has been full of blessings! I've had a rather difficult week again. I spent over six hours at he Emergency Room last Friday and was diagnosed with diverticulitis again. It's starting to get me down physically and emotionally. Your prayers are so greatly appreciated!

12. Thankfully, I had a lovely Valentines Day with my hubby! I was so pleasantly surprised to receive some lovely gifts from my him including these beautiful flowers

and these amazing cookies!

We had a couple of the cookies and then I froze the large one and the rest of the little ones for a treat for my hubby and I another day. My beautiful flowers are still looking as fresh as the day I got them! They cheer me up so much.

13.  I'm trying to work on handwork as I recover and have been crocheting and doing cross stitch. I started this little Geisha Girl from a little kit I received in one of my stitching magazines. Here's my start on her

14.  I also started this Virus Afghan using  Caron Cake yarn. I'm really loving this afghan and it's quite easy to work up. The pattern is a repeat and I love how the colors in the Caron Cake really make this pattern pop.

If you're interested, you can find the pattern HERE.   She also has a wonderful step-by-step video you can watch. I found this really helpful in seeing how the pattern in worked. You can search YouTube for the Virus Blanket.

15.  As always, my girls, Cookie and Mitzi are one of my greatest blessings!

 

 

These pictures were taken the day they came home from the groomer.

I also chose by random number, the winner for the Designed to Pray book. My winner is Tamar. I will be emailing you to get your mailing address and congratulations! Thanks to all who entered the giveaway!

Now you can share your blessings on the linkup below. Thank you for being a part of my linkup!

  


Blessings - Julie

Counting Our Blessings - LinkUp!

Hello, dear friends! I know it's been awhile since I've been here with a personal post, but it's just been difficult for me as I'm still dealing with insomnia. Oh, my...not getting enough sleep can really make things difficult in ones life. I'm trying to do what my husband says and just do what I can and not worry about things. It's difficult at times, though. Praying, praying, praying for some relief from this!

I'm trying to create when I can so I'm going to share some of the projects I've worked on over the past few weeks. Again, I'm so thankful that I have my craft room in the house as it's made a huge difference for me!

100.  I found this cute paper mache pumpkin at Joanne's on sale for half off and just knew it would be adorable when painted. Here's a picture of the finished piece.

I just adore this and am so happy with how it turned out.

101.  I also started this cute pumpkin doily! I wanted something for fall and don't have anything made for the season so decided it was time to make something. I found those wonderful crochet hooks with the handles so I can now crochet with thread again. I'm enjoying it so much!!

Can you see those cute little pumpkins in the round? This is just the center of the doily and it will be much bigger. The next part of the doily is the light peach again so those pumpkins will stand out quite nicely! So fun to be crocheting these again and such a blessing!

I hope you've had a lot of blessings in your life! Please share in the linkup or in the comment section! I love hearing about all your blessings.

An InLinkz Link-up

Blessings - Julie

Counting Our Blessings LinkUp!

It's that wonderful time to count our blessings! I love reflecting on my blessings and then reading about yours in the linkup or in the comments.

94.  I was so incredibly touched by the display my town did for the 9/11 remembrance. They had a flag for every person lost that day on display around our town hall. Here's a picture but it doesn't do justice to the display. I wasn't able to get out and go to the higher area to take a picture so this one is done from my car.

I am so blessed to live in a town that remembers and honors the fallen on that day. I am so blessed that they go to all the work of placing each of these flags and giving the town a place to remember that fateful day. It truly brings tears to my eyes!

95.  I have been working in my new craft/art area! It's such a blessing to have a place to work and that I can go to at anytime - day or night! Here's a little bird I drew with colored pencils.

96. I went to Joann Crafts last week and was so excited to find a crochet hook with a handle for making doilies! I haven't been able to crochet with thread for a long time because of my arthritis. I decided to give it a try and I'm able to work with it without a problem!  Here's what I'm working on

You can see the crochet hook above the doily. I'm so glad to have found this!

What are your blessings for this week?  Please share on the linkup below!

An InLinkz Link-up

Blessings - Julie

Counting Our Blessings - LinkUp!

How was your week? I hope it was full of blessings! Let's get started!

84.  Have you been watching the Olympics? I've enjoyed watching everyone do their best and have celebrated when they have won. The most exciting part has been seeing several of the athletes profess their faith in Jesus. It's so wonderful seeing them use their tremendous platform to show light for the Lord. It really touches my heart!

85.  I have been working on my crochet as I watch the Olympics. I'm putting some of the squares together right now to determine how many more I'll need. One thing I've noticed is that I have some that are not quite up to size. I worked on these squares when I was going through all my surgeries and infections and I think I must have used the wrong size hook here and there. lol I'm excusing myself as I was going through so much and I've also decided to keep them because it's a beautiful reminder of how I made it through all that - with the Lord's help! Here's a picture of the two large strips I've made so far.

I'm making it big enough for a twin bed I have a lot of squares made so I'll see if I need to make more as I put it together. I'm really enjoying this afghan!

86.  I did finish one little square on the counted cross stitch bear I'm working on. It's such a small thing, I didn't take a picture of it, but I did work on it! lol

What are your blessings this week? Please share on the linkup or in the comments so we can celebrate your blessings with you!

An InLinkz Link-up

Blessings - Julie

Counting Our Blessings - LinkUp!

What a week! It was so cold here all week with the high, bitter cold winds. I'll be so glad when Spring finally comes to stay. I know many of you probably feel the same way - especially those of you that actually got snow last week.

We are feeling better at the homestead and for that, I am so thankful! I am still tired a lot and still need my naps most days, but they aren't as long and I don't feel as exhausted as I did. Huge blessing right there!

So, let's get started on our blessings for this week. Don't forget to share yours on the linkup below and  share something from your blog that blessed you, you made, or that you think would be great to share as a blessing. Remember, you can grab my button for this link-up on the tab above and I am so thankful to those of you that have. I am also so thankful for all of you that come back, week after week, and share on my linkup. It's really you who make this the great thing that it is! Thank you!

45.  We had to go to the big city last week for my hubby to go to the vascular doctor. He sees the same doctor that put the bypass in my leg when the artery was cut in surgery. He's an amazing doctor and such a blessing to us! My hubby's tests came out good and that was a huge blessing.

46.  I was able to go to Barnes and Noble while I was there and found the cross stitch magazines I have really been wanting from the UK. I am having a really hard time finding them in my town and I knew that it was best to look in the huge city we go to. They were all there! So happy!

47.  I didn't really work on any cross stitch this week because I'm making some crochet gifts. Here's the start of some little baby booties that I'm making. Don't you love this yarn? Such beautiful baby colors all in one skein! I'll share pictures of the finished project when I get it done, shipped and the person I'm making them for receives it.

48.  I shared here that I'm doing the daily Scripture writing from HERE. I have actually been doing it has been such a blessing! Here's the pages for today and tomorrow. I drew something with my gel pens on the one page and unfortunately, it came through to the other side. I won't do that again. Anyway, that's what that shadow is you're seeing on today's page. I really love writing out Scripture and find it to be such a great way of really focusing on a Scripture and seeing things I might not have seen if I had read it only.

Join in on the fun using the linky below!

An InLinkz Link-up

Blessings - Julie

Counting Our Blessings - LinkUp!

It's been a tough week here at the homestead. Still suffering from the back injection I had and then we had sickness again. Bleah. So tired of not feeling good and I'm sure you're tired of hearing about it. It is harder to search for the blessings some weeks but they are there, dear friends, they are there.

41. 

My orchid has bloomed again. I am always so excited when they bloom. This one has bloomed twice since I've had it. Such a blessing!

42.  I finished my shawl I've been working on for a while. I put it aside for a few months but decided to finish it off this week. I'm really happy with it.

I added the edging in the dark purple because I didn't have enough in the right dye lot of the lighter purple. I couldn't find any either so went with the dark purple. I actually like it very much.

43.  I worked on the cross stitch again this week. Here's an update of how it's coming along.

I've almost got the arm done since last time and will hopefully finish off the leg as well this week. Such a fun project!

44. I haven't shown off the girls for awhile. They had their hair cuts and look and feel so much better!

 Mitzi looks so silly here with her ears back like this. Silly girl! She gets so excited when it's picture taking time. I do better if I can take candid shots of her.

Cookie is always so elegant! She loves having her picture taken and sits like a little princess. I just love these girls!

I hope your week was full of blessings!! Share on the linky below!

An InLinkz Link-up

Blessings - Julie

Counting Our Blessings - Link Up!

Sometimes it's hard to focus on our blessings. Sometimes, things are so hard or we're in so much pain, that the blessings seem to be avoiding us. I've been in the hard place, attending the pity parties as the guest of honor. Believe me, no one wants to be the guest of honor at this kind of party. My pain has been worse, my isolation oppressive, but God. There are those two wonderful words we see throughout the Bible that give hope. Things can be horribly wrong and all can seem lost but God is there. His presence, His love and His comfort giving me hope and helping me to keep my eyes focused on my future and Him. With Him, I know I can get through another day of pain and I also can focus on my blessings. Oh, thank God for those blessings - and for Him!

56.  I have really been trying to make sure I keep my hands busy, even when just watching TV. I find that it helps me to feel productive and feel like I'm accomplishing things. To that end, I've been crocheting on my granny squares and have made great strides! Here's some pictures of my squares.

Here they are all laid out. I almost have enough to make the blanket I want to make.

(You can see that Cookie made herself right at home on top of the squares. Shortly after this, she scratched them all up into a pile and made a nest for herself! lol)

I'll be putting a border on the blanket, too, so that will add some size to it. I thank God every day that my grandmother gave me the blessing of learning to crochet all those years ago.

57.  My poodles just bring me so much joy! They were both groomed not too long ago and doesn't Cookie look just too cute?

I love the little bow that they put in her hair. Mitzi had one, too, but it didn't last even one hour in her hair! lol She's just too active.

58.  I've been teaching Mitzi how to do tricks. She can sit, give me "5", shake hands, and do her "pretties". This is when she sits up and moves her paws up and down. She gladly does this for her treats. I was able to get a picture of her doing her pretties. It's a little shaky, but so cute, I had to share this picture of my little blessing.

59.  I made Mitzi a little blanket all her own with the yarn I had left over from making my tassel for my planner. I can't tell you how soft this blanket it! I would love to have a huge one for myself, but the yarn is so expensive, it would cost a small fortune to make it. Mitzi loves her blanket and I think it's so cute!

An InLinkz Link-up

Blessings - Julie