Changes...

It has been six and a half months since I last wrote here...

Yikes!  
And wow...

Life has been a blur, moving so fast that I can't keep it in focus.  I've gotten lost in the colors and ticking of time.  More so than usual.

Where do I begin again?  

The full-time hours at this current job didn't last, and I moved to another location to go back to part-time.  Way more than I could handle at this phase.  Made the plates I'm balancing too uneven and I wasn't up for the challenge.  At that point.  It's better now.
 

My Colie & Ben <3

My third grandbaby, Benjamin Michael, will be arriving any day now.  My baby is having such a difficult end to this pregnancy due to her heart and brain disorders, but her strength even in difficult moments continues to amaze me.  She is so beautiful inside and out... and I am so blessed to have her in my life.  My granddaughters keep me filled with good, too.  Just their little hands touching mine make the world okay again.  

Rob has gone through much poking and proding and testing since I last wrote... the last of which was over the last couple of weeks.  Tomorrow we go see his surgeon to figure out what's going on with the results we now have.  I'll update Rob's blog tomorrow.  

Darby and I in happier days

In August, I lost my sweet Darby-girl to the ravaging results of kidney and liver failure.  Devastation is not a big enough word.  I will never get used to her not being here with me, my beautiful loving shadow and companion.  It's supposed to get easier, but it hasn't.  Each thought of her still brings those quiet, aching tears.  Saying I miss her barely touches the surface of my hurt.  I am thankful that I could share my life with her for just over 12 years. 

Riley and I

Forty-eight days of missing her brought me to an adoption event with a rescue group, and I found myself coming home with a new little black furry bundle who in turn rescued me.  His name is Riley, and he's given me a smile in my heart, and something to love and hold again.  Not a replacement, but an addition to my life.  Mischievous and sometimes a wild-child, but smart and so wanting to please.  And when he sleeps on my lap (for now  -  the vet says 65-70 pounds is expected), I calm myself with his little rhythmic breaths, and slowly dream-running feet.  So worth it.  It's all good. 


The hours (years) of missed sleep are slowly catching up with me.  I seem to watch the days disappear in a flash, when these same days used to last forever.  Strange.  It hasn't changed, but I'm noticing it more.  I'm trying to do better. 

It is Autumn here in Michigan, and I don't think there's a more perfect example of God's handiwork anywhere... the splashes of color, the swirling winds, and the leaves chasing each other across the streets and fields.  Fresh air, cooler weather, sweater season.  It's a good time to be alive.  

And it's my absolute favorite season.  The coming Thanksgiving holiday, and Christmas... time to rejoice and be thankful for all of the blessings in our lives.

And they do surround us.

Even in the midst of much turmoil and change, we are blessed.  We have food to eat, a roof over our heads, and for this day, enough of what we need.  And I am so thankful for that.  I am thankful for the prayers I am able to offer and the prayers I feel holding me up.  I am thankful for the quiet moments when my mind is free to wander.  I am thankful for the glimpses of my creative me so I know she's still there.  

Mostly, I am thankful that God will work all things for good for those who believe.  And I believe.  So I patiently wait and ask Him daily for his peace and patience, for understanding when I don't, and for the ability to know that no matter what, it's all going to be okay in the big picture.

And I'm good with that.

I'll update Rob's blog tomorrow night, RockonRob.blogspot.com.   Hopefully.  I always seem to have big plans for the evenings, and I sit down, and fall asleep.  :)

Okay, I'm off to bed.  This coming week is already full, and I've got to try harder.  At everything.  Especially, sleep.   ;) 


Be blessed.  
Love.  

It's all good.


In Love and In Peace,

Cheri 
♥