The Tie That Binds

This year started out as the last year ended. TeenyTears Diapers. Working on these tiny diapers for special angels has been really healing  for me. . We started getting requests for small hospitals in Washington. I was really touched by this, as we had vacationed twice in Eastern Washington the past summer and as I saw the road signs for all these little hospitals I thought perhaps a few Moms in early labor MUST make it into these hospitals and need diapers. I told Jana that next time we plan vacation, I will phone ahead and see if they have a hospital and need diapers. I would LOVE to make a diaper delivery in person.

Christmas was really hard for me this year. My Grandson Carter passed away in June 2011. I think I was so busy that first year, trying to help my daughter and her family and be sure they were ok, I did not have a lot of time to process what I had been thru.You never stop being a mom! I was elated that my daughter was having a baby and then TWINS! Nothing can take the memories of that JOY away from me. While still struggling with my grief. I am also thankful for the times we shared thru Cohen and Carters birth. I did not have a page in  my “mom advice book” dealing with the loss of a child. I had never been there. I am learning so much watching my daughter walk thru these times with faith, strength, love and hope.

Having these “local” hospitals has been really healing for me to work on. I think of the times I have been to those cities. It made me remember my dear mother in law. I grieve for her, too. She was a nurse in the newborn nursery for 35 years at Stevens Memorial Hospital in Edmonds, WA. She used to come home and say how they had another “tiny” one today and how she wished she had enough time, she would love to design and make preemie clothes. There was no “preemie” section, back at that time. I felt such a close connection with her while sewing these tiny diapers. I had saved some of the fabric from her “stash” and I found some of it to use on tiny swaddlers to ship with the diapers.  I know she would have embraced this project with love!  We enjoyed shopping for fabric together, discussing sewing projects, trading patterns and buying that special piece of fabric we knew the other would love.  Our love of sewing was a strong connection for us. I now share this love of fabric, FLANNEL and the planning and sewing with my daughter. 

My super husband who had flipped HUNDREDS of diapers and his mom, Gramma R. 

Gramma  would have been so delighted at Jana having twins. Never in our families has there ever been twins! As I sewed the diapers I kept thinking of how Gramma Rinehart is up in heaven rocking our precious angel, Carter, until the rest of the family arrives! Until then, I will keep making Teeny diapers with the hope that it will ease another families pain at losing their precious child.

Pullman, Centralia, Omak, Colville

Snowed in, sorta. Today's Ramblnigs

Snowed in, Sorta

Jana wanted someone to write  a blog so she had something to read. She has the adorable baby to write about and take pictures of. I  have the dog. And he has made it known, he is NOT going outside for ANY more pictures! He has a heated mattress beside my desk and that is where he prefers to be. 

Marty-Pretending to be asleep so he does not have to go outside

He DID go out yesterday, before the winds started. But got high centered

He wanted back in RIGHT away. 

I have gotten out for several snow shoe trips around the 'hood and that has been fun. But the low temp got to 7 today and winds and blowing snow have made things a bit treacherous. Some sites say wind chills as low as -2. 

Here is a video of the snow in our neighborhood...

I had to go out and tend to the girls and my eyeballs got all dried out from the wind and my nose hairs froze. It was a quick trip. One of the eggs had all ready frozen solid, in the shell. 

Then I spent some time washing eggs. LOTS and LOTS of eggs. 

So being inside for a few days has been great. I COULD get out, but why? Our neighbors have a big drift in front of their house, where someone always tries to "shoot the wall" and gets stuck in the middle. I really don't want to be that person this year...One year it was higher than the milk truck. 

As I was thinking over what I have done today, and yesterday, I kind of made a list of "you know you have been snowed in for too long when..." I don't think I have ever thought I was snowed in for too long. I love the snow and the weather. I love the break from rain.  This is a compilation of 35 years of living out in this county. All the things we have experienced.  I know we don't have it as bad as the rest of the country most years. 

You know you have been snowed in too long when:

You convince yourself that 3 grilled cheese sandwiches for breakfast is ok. 

You use all the stuff in the cupboard to make "Chex Mix" because it sounded good, but you don't actually HAVE any chex cereal.

You spring clean the WHOLE kitchen because you have been up since 3:30 am to send your husband out into the storm to go to work. THEN decide to make soup and can it, trashing the kitchen again.

THEN decide to make "real" baby food for you newest grandson, from your garden carrots, so he has something to snack on when he comes to visit. 

This is a "warming trend"

You are making coffee and drinking it out of a canning jar, so you don't have to bother with a refill

You bought chalkboard paint and want to get your moneys worth, so anything not being used is now a chalkboard...(any body want one?)

You wonder if THIS sign caused all this.

You gut  all the closets in the house to organize them. But now have to put it all away

You decide to get some chicken feathers for your husband, who ties flies, as you are SURE he will want to start in when he gets home from work. Dry them on the heater vent and then wonder what all the white stuff is floating all over the house

You bundle up all the kids and take them out to the road to watch the garbage truck go by, as NOTHING has been down your road in a week. 

You hear shouting."She can fly she can fly!"You look out the window to see your 4 yr old sailing across the yard attached to a 1 ton plastic  feed bag. Dear brother wanted to see if she could fly in a 40mph nor'easter. Yes, she can fly, she only weighs 30 lbs! 

Your 6 yr old daughter comes in and both her front teeth are missing, they fell out on the ice. Her brother goes back out in the storm and finds the teeth, so the tooth fairy can come!

Getting dressed is putting  on you clothes and then putting your bathrobe over it all to keep warm. 

Dressing your kids in their snow suits to go to bed, as you only have wood heat. 

Your husband and boys hike over to the neighbors with 5 gallon buckets to bring home water so we can flush the toilet, as the water has frozen again...

Then sit down with a canning jar full of coffee. I am looking at the pictures the kids got me for Christmas. Remember all the happy and crazy times. Hope that they remember their childhood with some good memories. I know I did  not always do things right, but I loved it all so much.. I so appreciated being able to be home with my kids and not have to work. Things were tight, but we survived it all. It is a joy seeing them with their own families and the memories they are making. It is far more fun to have a snow man, snow woman and a snow tractor out in your front yard, and then noticing they are wearing all MY snow stuff! 

I have been blessed. Thank you Lord!

Oh good, it has started snowing again...

You can find Jana's blog here

and

Karen's Blog here

THIS cracks me up. SO true if you watch any Seattle news.. That is if your satellite dish is not full of snow...