My Bad!

Yeah, so I've been busy, sorry! At the end of March I caught that bug. Do you know that bug? The one that seems like a simple cold and then knocks you flat on your ass for a couple of weeks?! Yeah, that one. Man did I feel like crap!

In April I was in a show and I would say that I did as well as the last time I was in it (which was in late 2006). For skipping a year, that's pretty good. But I also received several orders outside of the show venue. It backed me up for awhile at work. The thing that I hated the most was that manufacturers had several backorders as well and there wasn't a whole lot I could do about that! I just wish I'd known before the show started! I had a deadline to meet so that I could decide which products to display in the show and didn't receive my order until after the show had ended...WITHOUT more than half my order! To this day, there are still some on backorder from one company. It gets frustrating to me because they have to wait because I have to wait!

The day after the show started, my husband called me from work and told me he'd been put on the alternate list to deploy. He said he probably wouldn't go though because that would take everyone out of his shop above a certain rank. Yeah right. If they'd created the list and had already blown through the alternates what makes him think he's getting out of it?! He was firmly in the "I'm not going" area, while I was in the "Well I'll still count on it" area. You can't be married to the military for over 4 years without picking that up!

My mother, who was living with us, had decided to move out and go back home to Indiana. She planned on going in June because she thought we'd try to make a visit out that way and she could ride behind us. Well, due to gas prices, and a potential deployment, our visit was put on hold. So shortly after the beginning of May, she chose to leave earlier than expected...May 12th to be exact! So I lost my serger girl about 2-3 weeks early! That was pretty hard for me as far as business life goes. That's just that much more I need to do.

Also, she encouraged me to sign up for both of the shows (Spring and Fall) because she would be there to help and now she's gone. *sniff* (We won't mention the great built in babysitter she was too! Or at least another woman in the house to chit chat with! LOL I'm back to being surrounded by testosterone!)

So yeah, where were we? May, still catching up with orders, still had backordered fabrics, Mom left, and then hubby says there are people trying to get out of the deployment and he probably will go. Then in late May, he asks if it's ok with me if he pulls first sergeant duty. The first sergeant we now have, had to go away for a couple month's training and then take some leave after it was over. (For those of you who don't know, the first sergeant is kind of like the commander's right hand person.) I said, "fine with me, but what about the alternate list?" He went in to talk to the first sergeant and commander and they said that no one will be getting off the list so he wouldn't go and they wanted someone in that spot because we're getting a NEW commander so they wanted some consistency (otherwise they have people alternate every 2 weeks on first sergeant duty).

Ok, so we were back to the "he's not going" thing. Then new PCS orders come out (Permanent Change of Station for those of you that don't know. This means they're moving to another base)...one of the guys on the deployment has orders and the report by date is before they get back....not only that...it's to HAWAII!! EVERYONE has that on their dream sheet for years! No way could they cancel those orders for him! Even my husband said that! So the commander tried to get the report by date pushed back, but no, they weren't having it, so as of yesterday, he is officially on the list!

Wait, that's not even all of my life's story the last few months! My uncle David (keep in mind he's about 8 years-ish older than me) was lifeflighted to the hospital one early Tuesday morning because of severe stomach pains. He was doing very badly. They finally got him into surgery and found that several feet of his bowels were dead. Unfortunately he was so weak that all they could do was clamp them off and close him back up and wait a few days. They basically said if he lives until Friday, they would open him back up and try to remove the dead parts. Meanwhile, they kept him sedated the entire time.

I was due to fly out that Friday anyway for my cousin's wedding. Remember that wedding sampler I stitched below? Here was the finished product (minus the names and other pertinent information as I'm sure they wouldn't like that info splashed all over the net):



Anyway, back to the story, I flew in on Friday evening and it was late (for them, I was on a 2 hour earlier time zone!) and it was very hard for me to get to sleep. We had to get up at the crack of dawn and go get dressed and go to the wedding as it was in the morning. The wedding was great with the usual family drama. Drama? Oh yes, my family is FULL of it!

1. At the wedding my uncle and cousin (father and son) were videotaping and my grandpa turns to my aunt (the wife and mother of the above) and says, "You know, they don't look like father and son, in fact, he (my cousin) looks like Tim's kid" Tim being my uncle's best friend. I apparently missed it because I was discussing with my mother and aunts about picture taking angles as they were stuck behind a pole and I had a clear shot. My aunt related the story to me and was turning at least 15 shades of red in anger!

2. At the reception the groom's mother walks up to my cousin and basically calls the groom's stepmom a crazy bitch. More to the point: "I hope you didn't place me next to that crazy bitch." Ooooh, my cousin was so mad. She couldn't act like a grownup for her son?!

3. At the reception, my 18 year old cousin made my 11 year old cousin (her younger sister) cry and she crawled under the table at the reception and cried there for I don't know how long.

4. My uncle got mad because my other uncle (who married into the family about 8 years ago) didn't introduce his parents to everyone. Keep in my my family is very large and very boisterous and none of us have a problem introducing ourselves to others so I'm not sure what the whole problem was.

I know there was more, but I just can't remember it all! Anyway, that day of the weekend was shot! But Sunday I was able to get up to the hospital to see my uncle (he's on the other side of the family by the way. My cousin is on my mom's side, my uncle is on my dad's side). I also got to see an aunt that I hadn't seen in about 12 years. We walked in and my uncle's eyes were open. I wasn't sure if that was normal or not, but then he started struggling and all the lights and sirens started going off and I almost broke down in tears. I thought I'd walked in just to see him die! I was scared. My grandmother said that was the first time they'd seen him move in days!

Later he opened his eyes again and would actually look at us, but he couldn't speak due to a ventilator tube in his mouth and he wasn't nodding or anything. Later that night, just as I was about to leave, the nurse said that when asked if he was in pain, my uncle shook his head. So it was progress that he was responding now!

I left and came back and spent the entire next day there. He was nodding and shaking his head and shrugging alot to all questions so that was great! Later that day they pulled his tube and he got to speak. It was hard to understand him because he was sort of mumbling and slurred. They started halving his pain meds so he could be more clear. He started joking around and was so funny! I was incredibly happy as we went from dire news to seeing him act normally! When he first started talking I sat down and my grandmother and my other uncle went up to stand by the bed, and I hear him say, "Where's Lori?" So my grandma says, "Lori, he wants you." I walked up there and he looks at me and says, "Can you please get me a Mountain Dew?" I had to laugh, it's his favorite drink! He continued throughout the evening joking and making us as well as the nurses laugh. I had to fly home the next day knowing he was on his way to getting better.

Later that week, he took a turn for the worse and started bleeding internally. He had to have several blood transfusions and they couldn't find out where the bleed was. They were afraid to open him up after 2 surgeries and the weakness due to blood loss. Finally they did go in through his throat and were able to cauterize the area. I haven't heard much since then. I had been trying to call every 2-3 days to check in but the last time I called, my grandmother sounded upset at having to relay bad news and said she would just call when something happened. I would like to call because my dad's been moving, so he hasn't heard much.

Talk about your emotional roller coasters! Up, down, Up down! My uncle was near death, and then doing well, and then near death, and now stable? My husband is deploying, not deploying, deploying, not deploying, and now deploying.

Oh yeah and the fabric companies had told me the fabric would be here May 16th, then May 30th, and now maybe in the next 7-10 days.

PICK SOMETHING PEOPLE and stick with it! Frankly, I'm exhausted!

Stitching wise, I did manage to get a Triquetra Knot done. It's by Celtic Obsessions. I haven't gotten it framed yet. I'd like to have it framed and have some writing on the mat that says Cead mile failte which is Gaelic for 100,000 welcomes! Here is that finish:



I've also been working on my Moon Fairy Spirit. This is the design that started everything for me. I really want to have Jill Rensel frame her (though now that I have the color Dark Fury out, I'd love to do the design again on that piece instead of the Stormy Night that I stitched her on...I don't think I have the patience to stitch that moon again!)

Here she was in March 2006 the last time I took a photo of her:



Here she is after working on her in May:



I did get alot of that moon done. That was what had me set her down for so long. I absolutely adore this design, but all that yellow was killing me! LOL

I also started Glendon Place's A Grateful Nation for my grandfather (my dad's dad). I did one a couple of years ago for my other Grandpa (mom's dad) and gave it to him for his 80th birthday. This is American Veteran by Stoney Creek:



So now I'm going to stitch one for my other grandpa who was in the Navy. I don't have much finished on it yet, but I absolutely love the colors and I'm doing it on Jobelan Raindrop Flair. I'll snap a pic soon!

That's about enough of a novel for today. I'll be sure to get back to posting regularly now that I'm more caught up at work!