Tuesday, March 22, 2022

Spring!

Hello, friends!  It's been a while. . .and it's Spring!  Well, in my neck of the woods it doesn't really look like spring, no crocus' or any flowers popping up as far as that goes, but I do have faith that they will be showing up soon.  We still have snow in the shadows and ditches and of course there's the mud and lots of it.  There is something to be said about frozen ground when you live in the country.  

In our family,  there are plenty of March birthdays, here are the latest three birthday boys. . .and can I just say that they are wonderful young men who stole their grandma's heart the first time I saw their little faces.  


This is Christian, he's my oldest grandson and we sure do love him.  He chose to come and spend the afternoon of his birthday with us, and in fact, he brought us gifts!  That night we had dinner with him and his family.  I made an apple crisp instead of cake, at his request.  Christian is quiet, super talented, strong, fun, and giving.  We've spent so many fun days watching him play football, camping, hunting and fishing with this amazing man.  I hope it continues for a long time to come.


This is Brody, he turned 18 this year!  Brody is wonderful, funny, very funny, kind and intelligent.  He never ceases to impress me with his kindness and ability to make anyone smile, and did I mention that he is funny?!  I especially love those days that he just stops to say hello and give us a hug, not even realizing how much I needed it.  He's a great cousin, and a wonderful grandson.  And most impressive, he's always willing to set at the "kid table" to hang out with the littles.  This is a boy who has gone through more than most adults and has persevered and stayed strong through it all. . .we love him to pieces!

Meet Caleb!  Caleb is such a fun, happy, sometimes shy but always humble young man.  He loves to fish and hunt and does both really well.  The day before we celebrated his birthday with him he went fishing with his dad and brothers and they caught 19 huge fish.  Last fall he went elk hunting with his dad and uncle and they got their elk!  After they shot their elk, he and his uncle hiked about 7 miles out to the road to meet his dad. . . in deep snow, up steep hills, in the dark and in freezing weather,  he's a true hunter!   We have also spent many hours around a campfire with this amazing boy.  We sure do love him. 

Today was my mother's birthday, she would have been 94 years old.  I sure do miss her and love her.  


I was feeling a little sad today, so my husband loaded me in the car and took me to see the swans.  I love going to see the swans that gather in the empty fields as they migrate through our area.  There are thousands of them, but they're pretty shy and tend to stay as far away from the road as they can get.  But there are always those few swans who just can't resist a puddle.I forgot my good camera so all I had was my phone.  These were the closest shots I could get and they are still a little grainy.  I love how they always turn their back on us and try to quietly walk away!





As we were driving down the road, Bob spotted this big Bald Eagle.  By the time we got stopped and I got my phone ready to take his picture he decided he would take flight, but he was beautiful!  Again, a grainy photo.  A little further up the road was a young fledgling sitting on a phone pole.  I'm just betting that it was one of her babies.  We also saw a few huge raven and a coyote.  It was a lovely day, despite the tears.  

A health update.  Bob is doing well, his left shoulder is bothering him more than it should.  Today he went to the doctor and they took an x-ray.  It was hard to tell, but they suspect that there might be a fracture on the top part of his shoulder.  They'll take another x-ray in a few weeks to see if it looks any different.  But he has good motion and is coming right along with his therapy.  

I am healing up from my surgery, but still having complications because of covid.  When I first got covid I lost my taste and smell.  After my surgery it came back,  but slowly started to leave again.  Along with losing my smell and taste, came other terrible side effects.  Most foods, especially meat or strong flavored food, anything tomato based, taste like I'm eating very acrid, almost burning chemicals, it's not good.   I also had vertigo for almost a month and still have to be very careful standing up quickly, bending down, or turning around too quickly.  If any of you have experienced these side effects,  please leave a comment and tell me how you are doing and what you have done to make it better.  There's really not much help out there.  Also, covid brain is a alive and well.

I'll be really honest, it's been a long winter and I have more than struggled with anxiety and depression.  I'm hoping that spring sunshine will make me feel better.

Still praying for Ukraine...and peace.

Stay safe, XOXO

Hugs and Love,
Barb

6 comments:

Deb J. in Utah said...

Hi Barb. Happy birthday to those handsome grandsons of yours and your mom in heaven. So sorry to hear that you and Bob are taking some time to heal up. I will remember you in my prayers. I have heard that the long-term effects of Covid can be pretty rough. I hear you on the anxiety and depression. That is something that you just have to take one day at a time. As you know from my blog posts, that is a struggle for me as well. That was so good of your husband to take you out to see the swans and I loved the picture of the Eagle. Getting out in the sunshine is a great way to combat the blues. I am hoping that as spring blossoms we will all feel a little better. So glad to see you in blog land. Hope to see you in this space again soon! Take good care, my friend!

Vee said...

Only a grandmother could have described those grandsons so well! I am sorry for the side effects you have experienced and will pray for the sun to shine and for the flowers to bloom. That often lifts the spirits right there. I had vertigo three days last week and it nearly drove me bonkers so a month of it would be way more than enough. Did you get any medication for it? My doctor prescribed something that helped me a lot.

Take it easy!

Lorrie said...

Hello Barb,
What a gorgeous trio of grandsons you have, each with their individual personalities that you described so well. I'm glad you were able to go on an outing with your husband on a day that was sad for you. Those lingering side effects sound like NO.FUN.AT.ALL! I hope that with the coming warmer days you will soon feel better.

Kerin said...

Barb, I love how you feel about your Grands, and I can tell how much they are loved!
Grands are just the best!!
It's wonderful as a grandparent to see our Grands thriving and seeing their strength through their trials grow :)

I'll bet your mom is having a great celebration in Heaven :) I know that you miss her, and aren't you so grateful that it's never goodbye, it's just until we meet again?!

As for your struggles with healing physically and getting through the blues, I know that you can do hard things! You are so wonderfully strong and resilient and have a sweet testimony and know that our Savior loves and cares about you. If it is important to you, anything and everything, it is important to our Savior. Lean into your faith, rest your worries with the Lord, and get outside on a ride with your sweetheart any time that you can.

I haven't said anything, because it's personal, but I have had great struggles the past 2 years with health and sadness losing my mom, etc.
Know that you are not alone.
What has worked for me is all of the above things that I mentioned. Prayer, faith and perspective. I have so, so , so much to be grateful for and my sweet husband gets me out of the house, we go for rides and I see all of the beauty that our Father in heaven has created for us. I also refuse to go down with the ship...lol!
I won't give Satan one second of my time in self pity... I guess I'm stubborn that way!

Sending hugs :)
~K.

Carrie @ Cottage Cozy said...

Hi Barb - I am so sorry to hear about all your lingering symptoms from Covid and how they are affecting your surgery recovery! I will certainly pray for you...Happy Easter to you and your family.

LeAnn said...

My dear friend,
This was such a lovely blog post. Of course, I love that Christian boy too. I loved the photo and he is such an awesome man. I love his talents and always enjoy our moments with him. It's been fun to have him over and he came for Easter dinner; that was the best.
I can hardly believe that Brody is 18. He is a handsome man; I love his cute smile. Then your Caleb is a cute one. You do have special grandchildren and I have always enjoyed your entire family. I love those shared Grandchildren so much. It's great to be co-grandparents. We love Bob and you!!
I do hope Bob and you can be back feeling totally better again. I feel sad that you are still having Covid symptoms; that sounds awful. I do hope Bob doesn't have the facture.
I'm still missing my Mom too and I know those Birthdates can be hard days. I'm happy you could take a drive and you did get so see some great birds. I like the photos.
I do hope spring comes soon and we can maybe get up your way. I'm struggling with the lack of Sun. We have had so many cloudy days lately. It is kind of depressing for sure.
I loved conference this year and that helped to lift my spirits.
Sending loving thoughts, hugs and prayers for you two!

Happy Spring!

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