Kindness

I had planned to participate in The Perk Project with Stacey at Poofing the Pillows, but...

What is The Perk Project? Here is an excerpt from Stacey's page... Our goal is to put more  Positive*Encouraging*Real*Kindness into the world with your help.
She and a friend blogger had a four week series on each word. Check it out with the link to Stacey's blog at the top.

but.... time got away from me, but I will go ahead and share with y'all some of my thoughts anyway and what I have been up to.


Kindness was this week's topic. I think it is much needed in our world these days. I came across this quote from Charles Kuralt. 
---The everyday kindness of the back roads more than makes up for the acts of greed in the headlines. 

Oh how I miss Charles Kuralt, and I do hope he is right about the everyday acts of kindness. 

A smile is needed so much these days. There are many people going through really tough things and just a note, visit, and even a smile could go along way.

Recently, I had to help my son obtain a mortgage loan. I am NOT the business person in my home. For 31 years, Hubby took care of all business. I paid some bills, but I didn't think beyond that. When I retired, I sort of took over everything all at once. YUK is all I can say about anything to do with business. 

Anyway, back to the point. Our bank doesn't do home mortgages, so I was tasked with finding one. I looked around and called a few places. Some didn't do the kind I was hoping to get. To make a long story short, I drove down the road looking for one place and ended up in another. When I walked in the sweetest lady met me with a smile. She had me with that smile. She wasn't the loan girl, but put me in contact with the correct person. That loan person got my business because of the initial girl's smile.

After the grueling month long process where I had to come up with one thing after another, I dropped by the bank to drop off a note to thank the lady for her smile and her warm welcome. It makes a difference y'all!!!!

I also still believe in handwritten personal notes!!!!!

Making desserts is my love language, so today I made a REAL banana pudding. I mean real as in cooked custard, because I do NOT believe we should call anything made with box pudding banana pudding.

I have two neighbors that have been on my mind. One is a couple that are just a bit older than me. The lady retired two years ahead of me from teaching too. Her husband is suffering from Alzheimer's. We have been down that road with Hubby's mom. A horrible disease. I have watched him go down from early onset Alzheimer's. He is now bedridden, so I took Lemony, the Golden down with me to deliver some banana pudding. They have always loved Lemony and if Lemony was missing she was usually down there begging for a dog biscuit. She is so astute. She knows he is not right and hasn't gone lately. We took her into his room and let him touch her. Lemony was a pure angel. 

My other neighbor is an older gentlemen who lost his Beagle the same week Lucy, my Springer died back in April. He used to walk his dog all the time. We spent a morning crying together last April. I have been a bit worried that he wasn't going to be getting out anymore, so Lemony and I dropped some pudding off to him as well. He has been having some back problems. 

Both neighbors seemed so touched by the visit. The pudding I could make in my sleep. 

I am not patting myself on the back at all. Please don't think that. I just felt led to show some kindness today and I am really trying to listen to those leadings and follow through. 

I will be back tomorrow with some sewing and cross stitching pics.

Check out Stacey's blog. She has been blogging for a very long time. She recently built a new home, and it is so pretty.

Scattering kindness,
Sandy

Confessions and Catching Up

I didn't plan on staying away so long, but sometimes you just get caught up in other things.

After the long hot summer, I said I wouldn't complain about winter this year. Last year's winter was pretty much nonexistent. One cold snap last January that killed all my geraniums, and then I was walking on the beach all of last February.

This year it is VERY cold. I have a newfound appreciation of my northern neighbors who are hearty souls. With all that said, my idea this winter was to hunker down and take care of some household chores and reading. Just use the winter to nourish my soul.

I have been doing just that these first two weeks of January.

I have cleaned out closets. Still have a few to go.

I have taken care of my piles. I am a pile maker. I tend to clean up a room and make a pile of things that I am not sure what to do with ---well, get rid of the pile is what I should do, but I keep thinking of ways to I might need that or reuse it or just plain procrastination. It is a horrid problem. My piles are not necessarily eye sores. I am actually a clean and tidy person, but they are a BURDEN on the brain. This past week I decided to get rid of every pile, not just stick in a closet either. While I am confessing all my problems, I have another secret. My closets are probably one of the cleanest things in my house. I can organize and label things in the cutest tubs ever. I just can't get rid of stuff. Quite the sentimental girl.

Anyway, I got off track a bit. I have been a pile cleaning machine.

End result. There is not a pile in the house ANYWHERE y'all. It has been wonderful. I took a massive load to Goodwill midweek. It was quite freeing actually.
So much so, that I may have become a redeemed pile maker. At least I hope so.

I have made a list of things that need to be done like touch up painting and new curtains in the laundry area. I hope to start ticking those off slowly during these weeks of inside lock down.

I have also been reading, sewing, and stitching just a little. I will share more later.


On anther note for catching up, we have decided to sell our farm. I have known since before Thanksgiving, but wanted to make sure we were solid on the decision. It has come after prayer and realizing it is just too much to keep up at this time in our lives. I actually was ok with it first, but wanted to make sure my husband wasn't going to be too sad.

I guess nothing stays the same and life is pretty fluid. The work required to keep it mowed alone was enough. Those amazing pecan trees drop an enormous amount of limbs. I could go on and on, but basically Jeff worked all weekend this summer and well into September and October. I tried to help, but all I could contribute really was lots of mowing. I didn't hate it, but I wondered all along if it was what we needed for NOW.

I am not sure how long it will take to sell. I don't think a lot of people are looking for 90 acres everyday, but the decision has been made and that feels better and right.

I have plans for my furniture in the gathering room. I will save that for another post as this one is turning into an encyclopedia volume.

Gus is 7 months old. He is just the sweetest thing. He fits into the family quite well.

One thing I love about January besides the feeling of restarting is the bayou. Not something you would imagine, but it is quite lovely this time of the year. I snapped this picture earlier, but most days it is a bird festival out there. One day is for ducks, another pelicans, another gulls. Every January I love looking out to see which species is having their convention in our bayou. Right after I snapped this picture there must have been 30 pelicans fly by and land just a ways down.

This year I am trying to save my geraniums. I have some just inside the kitchen and a bunch more inside downstairs. We will see. There have been numerous nights in the 20's here. No ice on the bayou because the wind has been howling.

Lemony just needs to sunbathe so badly, that she is willing to sit outside with 40 degree temps and 15-20 mile per hour winds. I just shutter every time I walk out.

Through the window. Too cold for me.

That is what I have been up to this past week. I will be a better poster next week.


Staying inside,
Sandy