And it begins again......

I can't believe the holiday season is already upon me again. I was so hoping that I would not have to face another retail holiday, but here I am again and Black Friday looms before me. It's totally different at this store, too. Before, I was solely on the register. Now I work in bridal, home, lingerie, women's plus-size, misses petite, and the formal dress section. That's a big section. And I am usually the working the department by myself. I also have to run the register, recover the dressing rooms, and merchandise the store. Needless to stay, I am generally never still from the time I clock in. This morning, everyone had to come in two hours early to "bust freight", aka, open all the shipment and unpack it. Long day. My cousin Kristen works at the same store with me, so that makes it a little more fun. We took our lunch break together today and both of us nearly fell asleep over our chips and salsa.

I'm also working a second part-time job at the local community college teaching a computer class twice a week. And I'm still taking online college classes that I hope to finish soon.

In my freetime, I am unpacking even more boxes at home. We have finally bought my grandparent's old home and the moving truck brought all of our things from our old home just two weeks ago. The spare room is stacked floor to ceiling with boxes. I am trying to paint, also. I should post a before and after pic of my room. It is so full of boxes and clutter that I can hardly turn around, but I have big plans for painting and organizing it next week when I have a week of vacation. I am so glad to have that week off. It is going to feel wonderful to not have to go in to work for a whole week!

So, now you are all pretty much caught up. A lot has changed for us and there is a lot of work to do, but we are getting through everything a little at a time.

An addition to our fur family....

Back in June, we became the proud owners of a new kitten. She's cute, but she's mean. Can't you tell by that face? :)

Mama

My Mama passed away two weeks ago, Thursday, September 24, at 8:55 p.m. She'd had a hard, hard time the last month of her life. She was at a hospice facility becasue we couldn't take care of her at home anymore. Sometimes she was in her right mind and sometimes she wasn't. She slipped into a colma the week before she died, but came back out of it. That weekend she was awake, and her mind was clear. She wanted to see everyone and say good bye to them. I am so thankful that we had those few days to be able to talk to her one more time. Tuesday, she began to get a little worse, and Thursday morning she slipped into another colma. This time, when she woke up, she was in Heaven.

This has been a hard journey for our family, and a difficult time for me, but we are all glad to know she isn't suffering anymore. We have a lot of adjustments and difficult days ahead, and we will miss her for the rest of our lives, but I know that I will see my mama again one day. These photos are from our beach trip back in June, one of the last times she was really able to get out and enjoy herself.

And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God.
He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away." Revelation 21:3-4

Today..

Today my parents are visiting a specialty cancer hospital. We are all hoping for some encouraging news. I've had bronchitis (again), but I'm feeling better today. I have a lot to work on this week:

• Set up senior pictures for Gabrielle
• See that her dress gets altered
• Clean up the house (as soon as I can breathe again)
• Finish my last units of a computer course

I'm thinking about trying to put together a piece of special music for Mother's Day. It won't be easy since I don't have a piano in the house, but it's worth a try at least. So, anyway, those are the projects of the week.

Happy Birthday, Princess

Even at eight, you'll always be my baby! :)

Amanda and Shane's Wedding

My cousin got married this weekend. She and Shane met when they were sixteen and have been dating for six years. And last Saturday, they got married.

My cousin Kristen and I were honorary bridesmaids. (See last pic. Somehow these pictures posted completely backwards.) She asked us to wear formal black dresses. I knew immediately which one I wanted. Kristen had to search for a while to find one she liked and ended up in polka dots.

All her bridesmaids wore clover green with bright pink sashes and carried bright pink flowers. It was a long day. Kristen and I got to the church at one. We took pictures until the wedding began at four. Then the wedding was about half an hour long. Then they took pictures for another hour and a half while the guests waited at the reception.

Finally, we got to the reception, the bridal party was announced, and we got to eat. It was the first time I had eaten all day, except for a quick snack on the way to the church! My mom had been worried she wouldn't be able to go, but she did really well through the ceremony and reception.

It was a fairly emotional day, too, of course. She's my first younger cousin to get married. And even had all had plenty of time to get used to the idea of them getting married, it still brought back memories of her going to Grandma's with her hair in a braid and singing off-key duets with her. Yeah, I teared up. :)

But I know she's happy. And that's the important thing. And we're all happy for her.

Update....

My mom went back for chemo today. They were going to reevaluate her, then do her treatment. The CT scan showed that the cancer hasn't shrunk at all. If anything, it's larger. The doctor recommended that she stop the treatments. Her reaction to them is so severe and she is not responding to them. She's not sure what she is going to do yet, but I feel like she'll stop taking them. It's a hard, hard thing. I was hoping that there would even be the slightest improvement, but there isn't. Please keep praying for Mama and the rest of our family.