Living Life

Such a simple title, but packs such a big bang..living life.  As a hospice nurse, I have had the honor of meeting hundreds of amazing souls that have forever graced my heart.  I've decided to dust off my old blog and change it up a bit.  

Getting ready to plan a jaunt to the beach in a few weeks, makes me think of a lovely lady in her 50's that lost her battle last summer.  Her goal was to go to the beach.  You see, she had never seen the ocean, smelled the saltwater air, or walked in the sand.  With all of her adult children in tow, along with her supply of medications to keep her comfy and her 800# to the hospice line,  they made the trip to the beach.  She did just what she set out to do - feel the sand squish between her toes, splash in the water and visit the boardwalk ~ I will forever remember that smile as she told me of her special day. 

I think it's time..

..to get back to blogging!   Not sure where to begin, as it's been a long time.  Baby steps..

A little boot cuff knitting and some roasted chickpeas.  There it is..baby steps.

Moments Of Peace

Wishing my family, friends and fellow bloggers a Merry Christmas and Blessed New Year. Take time for a few peaceful moments, you deserve it.

JOY!

Our favorite - the only kind we are making...and I think we will make several more batches before December 25th arrives. Christmas cookies are made for eating..if we save them, they will surely get stale:)

It's all about the little things

A disabled vet, who made his living jumping out of planes, receives wound care twice per week. Wound care that would have taken him half a day to complete on his own, he states. He's thankful...I'm humbled and honored to care for him. ~*~ A daughter and granddaughter providing such loving care for their mother and grandmother - thanked me for coming into their home to oversee the care and maintain a Picc line for IV infusions. Little do they know that I am blessed to come into their home, witnessing the love and compassion that envelopes their home. ~*~ An elderly man, doing everything possible to keep his loving wife in their home of 60 years, is so grateful to learn the correct way to monitor BG levels. He doesn't know that after I left his home, I thanked God for leading me on this path.

Spending some time with the knitting needles in hand, this evening. I have wanted one of those "infinity scarves", for awhile. I found a blog that I'm in love with! Knitting the "Yoshimi Loop Scarf" from her blog. Using some beautiful Lamb's Pride wool, that I purchased in Watkins Glen. Since I'm knitting with size 8 needles, this project is going to take a while, but I think the outcome may be a perfect accessory for my trip to NYC, next month!

It's good to be back to the blog. Happy week-ending, friends!

Really?? Has that much time passed by?

Honestly, I can't believe that I have not posted anything since March. March just happens to be the month that I started my new nursing venture in field nursing...busy, busy, busy! Not sure if that is a good excuse for abandoning my poor blog for so long, but I really had been absorbed in work. After 7 months, I think I really have the hang of it and breathing a little easier.

Blog traffic - wow! Around the world..really? Getting a lot of viewing from my link on all time favorite blog - a-friend-to-knit-with - thanks, Leslie!

What are you knitting on, out there? I just finished a simple, prayer shawl, for my husband's Aunt Sharon. She survived a very bad MVA with a tractor trailer, and needs continuous prayers.

Spent some time at Finger Lake Fibers, last weekend. Love the town, love the lake, love that shop!

Entertaining - here are a few pictures of our Octoberfest.

Change of Seasons

Spring, spring, spring! I think this is what I like most about living in PA - the excitement of the change in seasons. We have had a fun winter, ending it with an overnight ski trip to Sno Mountain, a few weeks ago.

Now, spring is in the air! I placed my first order from the seed catalog, anticipating planting season. I'm thinking of starting some seeds, inside, but that usually doesn't go over very well.

My most dear memory of Spring will always be: As a little girl, remembering the yellow swarm of fuzzy, baby chicks that my Nana & Grandpa always ordered - how exciting to see them for the first time, each season. Even at 42, I can easily still feel the warmth from the heat lights and hear the sound of my Grandpa's voice. I think he was always very excited to get the chicks, too.

What's up at the Abbott home? Finishing up some quick, new dishcloths. Mine were getting so worn, and I love that I can finish one up in just a few hours. A compost bin is being made. * Plans for a pavilion are being drawn up. *I have just started scrapping, again.* Orange peel bird feeders are being made by the dozens* The grill is being fired up, tonight.*

I'm stepping into the waters of community nursing! After 2.5 years of med/surg nursing, I am leaving the floor to travel the country roads and provide home nursing. The chance to initiate teachings and provide individualized care is something that I have been yearning for. The

flexability of the position is another great perk. I'm very excited about this move.

Have a great weekend, friends. Enjoy those first signs of Spring.

More of February

Finally, a craft room that I had envisioned for so long..complete!

We refurbished an antique, hobby bench that had previously set in an old, garage for probably 100 years! After scrubbing off layers of suet & dirt, we added crown molding and painted it. A few boards were removed so that a comfy stool fit up to it. Credit goes to my husband for everything, except the scrubbing. Now, to get pictures printed off & start scrapping!

Finishing up a rugby style scarf for Madison, and then may put the knitting on hold for awhile, so that I can get back in the waters of scrapping.

Spent part of the afternoon soaking up some sun and XC skiing! The views that surround our home are beautiful, especially blanketed in glistening snow.

Heading to Sno-Mountain, next week, for a few days of skiing with the family. Life is good & every day is a blessing~

LoVE iS FaMiLy

Time has gotten away from me, as I realize that I have not posted anything for the month of February - and how did it get to be mid-Feb., already?

We have been keeping busy with an array of activities, nothing "over the top," just wholesome, content, fun! Everything from homemade pizza parties, sledding, xc skiing, making ice cream, ice skating, board games & movies in the family room and cooking with my daughter.

I took on the attitude, a few years ago, to embrace what winter has to offer - the chance to slow down a bit, enjoy the coziness of our home but also enjoy the outdoor activities of winter. We have had so many bitter, cold days and few sunny, winter days. I'm hoping that the next two weeks hold much sunshine, as well as snow covered grounds. It's much nicer for sledding.

Something that I have not started = scrapbooking. I wanted to dive into pictures, paper & stickers, this winter..and as of now, I have not started. I did, however; find myself an AWESOME, antique, free workstation! This beast came from an old, auto garage. See the before & after pics. We still need to cap the ends in moulding & add a piece of plate glass to the top. My hubby is going to cut out two boards, underneath, so that a comfy stool will fit, nicely. Hopefully, within the next two days, this great find will be sitting in the craft room.

I'm keeping up with Project 365! At the end of one year, I will have the project made into a photo book - fun!

Have a nice Valentine's Day, everyone!

Coupons - I'll give it a try!

I just happened to see the show, Extreme Couponing, featuring "The Krazy Coupon Lady". It got me thinking..I should, at least, be clipping a coupon for cereal! It seems utterly impossible that a person can take 4 grocery carts through a checkout and spend under $50, but the show proved it possible. I want no part of that type of stress, but I was inspired to, at least, start clipping the coupons from the Sunday paper. I'll admit, her website is amazing. She makes printing coupons very easy. Her coupon database is right at your fingertips. Her Facebook page is awesome, as well. I don't plan on buying something just because I found a coupon for it. I'm too practical for that.

As I was working on the Drop-Stitched Scarf, I decided that I wanted to make it a neckwarmer, as I have so many scarves. The newest rage in the knitting world seem to be the neckwarmers and cowls, adorned with pretty accessories to hold in place. I loved this so much, that I made a second one for a friend. Notice the pretty, charmed accessory that I created as an anchor, to hold the neckwarmer in place. I bought some hair pins in the jewelry section of Hobby Lobby. These come with a flattened circle at the top, perfect for adding any type of bead or gem...and it works perfect to hold this accessory in place. I like! Meeting a friend for dinner, this evening - and surprising her with this. I hope she likes it, too.

Speaking of a friend, I'm very excited to be making my friend, Renee's gift, her birthday being in less than a month. I can't say what it is at this time, but it has to do with something we both love! More to come on this...

Finally, we have a winter wonderland. Everything is blanketed in white - so pretty! This is one of the views from my living room.

Scrapbooking, anyone?

Finally getting the craft room back in order. Really looking to get back into scrapping. I have everything I need at my fingertips..just need the motivation to get going! Have not scrapped in two years! Really have a lot of catching up to do! Planning on some girlfriend scrap nights, to get the ball rolling. This room now holds two 6-foot tables, which should be plenty big enough to welcome many.
Started a "Drop Stitch" scarf to pair up with my new charcoal wool coat..fun pattern and love the design.










The 365 project..a picture a day for 365 days per year. I may not be able to load the pic up, every day, but I shouldn't have a problem snapping the picture. Several of my blogger friends completed the 365 for 2010 and it is amazing. What an accomplishment! I'm challenging myself to see if I can do it! I will be using Flickr as my host.

I was crushed, yesterday, when I went to get my Rebel T1i out of the bag....the glass protection screen was cracked! Until I realized how easy this was to replace, I was devastated. Looks like it might cost $15, and the glass just pops off, only held on with double stick tape. Thank goodness the LCD screen was not damaged.

Mads and I spent Sunday evening baking & cooking. We made a recipe from the Pillsbury website, "Chicken Alfredo Biscuit Casserole." Very good! Definitely a family-style meal that everyone should love. Although it doesn't contain pasta, the biscuit topping make up for the carbs..not the most diet friendly dish, thus far!

Hello 2011!

Plagued with a chest cold for the new year. Hoping that I may be able to advert this hippo off my chest by drinking lots of fluids, consuming tons of oranges & eating some homemade soup. Made my version Olive Garden's Zuppa soup. Damn good. Chicken in the oven, to bake off the bone, for some homemade chicken noodle soup.

Said goodbye to the decorations, yesterday. I hated to take down my favorite little decoration that I purchased at Home Goods. Madison wanted to leave the bowl of Christmas bulbs, but I told her we would fill the bowl with pineconess and lights, for a winter decoration.

Of course, we needed a picture for 1/1/11. So snapped this candid of the kids & the dog. That's about all I have at this time. Lots of ideas for the upcoming months, though. Upcoming ideas & plans: 4 day ski trip to Hope Lake Lodge, a "melting pot" themed winter party, scrapbooking get-togethers, a trip to the wineries, lots of family movie/game nights, lots of baking/cooking with my daughter, a trip to Fingerlake Fibers new location and lots of knitting.

Christmas Projects & Fun

We started a tradition, long ago, of making homemade Christmas tags using stamps, glitter, fabric, ribbon, etc. Usually, this tradition takes place at the kitchen table, however; this year, we were able to use the new craft room - joy!! When we were finished, I just closed the door.

I have 4 little nieces that love doing craft projects, as well as my daughter, Madison.

Our family Christmas party was held Saturday evening. I wanted a party where my family could "step back in time". My cousins' made cookies/breads from recipes that my Nana always used. A little tree adorned old pictures and a recreated tin foil star. The star was something I remember on my Grandparent's tree, as my Nana made a star from cardboard/tinfoil and a red light after her original star broke. Fresh cedar, white lights, candy canes & old pictures decorated the tables.

My favorite decoration was taken from an idea in a magazine. I took and old window frame, painted it white and hung different sized snowflakes & black/white vintage pictures, using fishing line.

Wishing everyone a peaceful & relaxing week.

*CozY for ChrisTmaS*

My decorations may not be perfect, my shopping may not be quite done and my baking..not even started...BUT, we are cozy in our home! Just enough decorations up to enlighten the house. Christmas movies are being watched, hot cocoa is being drank, family room is full of family and blessings are being counted.

As a nurse, I have witnessed many situations that sting the heart. Each time, making me more & more aware of how precious this life is and what it holds. Don't sweat the small stuff, it's not important in the big picture.

Knitting? A little. Evangeline Christmas Red Fingerless Mitts.

Make time for an old Christmas movie and some cocoa & enjoy the coziness of your home, too!

A little B&N therapy..

A cozy table, a mile high pile of books, a pumpkin spiced latte = a happy nurse. Spent last Friday at Barnes & Nobles in Vestal, NY. One of the more sprawling versions of this wonderful place that I call "bliss". Of course, I am always drawn to the knitting section, as well as the magazines, but I did make myself spend some time looking at the reference books for RN's. I actually spent 40 minutes, reading about detailed gastrointestinal surgeries, (very popular surgeries that the patients on my floor are involved in). As always, I also love the "bargain section"...always a nice selection of big, hardcover, "coffee table" type books.


I finished and delivered the cashmere/merino wool sweater set for my friend's grandson, Carter. Hands down, the most fun sweater I have knitted, thus far. Debbie Bliss, baby ribbed jacket. The pattern didn't come with a hat, so I checked ravelry and came up with a version.











Next project, a pullover sweater for a little, active 15 month old boy. We don't get to see him much, but from the pictures that his mommy posts, he loves to be outside in the fresh air. Finishing it up in time for a Thanksgiving delivery. Also, knitting up a quick pair of "toast" warmers. Madison is in the Halloween parade this weekend, and thought she might like these. Designed by my blogger friend, Leslie, these are fun & quick to knit up..and are the perfect accessory when you don't need the big, heavy mittens.


These cookies were a hit, last weekend. I have a cupboard full of cookbooks, but it seems I have been "googling" recipes, lately..instead of searching through my books. Found this great recipe for some wonderful oatmeal, peanut butter, choc chip cookies.












That's all I got, friends! This weekend's agenda: a Saturday afternoon photo shoot..I have been trying to get my family together for the past two weekends, before the leaves all fall off. We have spent the weekends together..but no one has wanted to have Mom take pictures! Planning on heading to some neat spots, including a covered bridge, here in Bradford County. Saturday night, we are all headed to the Halloween parade, in Towanda. Madison will be dancing with her dance school. Making some crockpots of comfort food & some appetizers and having people back to the house, following the parade. Wishing the month of October would stay a bit longer!