Saturday, October 29, 2016

Fall beauty, kitties and a prayer request...


"There should be new words every October for the 
colors gold and scarlet and bronze and russet.
There they are, living fire, and a re-establishment
of God's good will to earth."
~Gladys Taber

This October has been too warm for the trees to put on a lot of color this year in my area.  Last year it was much the same, well as I remember.  The photo above is one I found in my archives from a few years ago.  There are some beautiful trees around, but they are mostly in the residential areas. 

It's hard to believe that soon we will turn the calendar page and October will just be a memory.  I've loved every minute of October and watching the changes each day brings.  


October 29th is National Cat Day.  I personally think every day is Cat Day at our house.  lol!  Stormy certainly thinks so.  She is one smart kitty and understands a lot of what we say.  She has her ways of telling me what she wants.  Part of it is just the way she looks at you.  Can you tell I love her?  I love all of our pets, but I have to say that there is just something special about my Stormy girl.  I often think of the kitties that are at the Humane Society hoping to find a forever home and say a prayer that they may find someone to love them as much as we love our kitties.  Someone might say...you pray for animals, too?  Why, yes, I do. 

   
A table full of a few of my favorite things caught my eye...dishes and roosters and sunflowers.   Aren't the colors wonderful?  

I was very tempted to buy a couple of the mugs, but BG reminded me that we had plenty of coffee cups and didn't need any more.  Spoil sport.  Never mind he's right and I don't have any room for another thing in my cabinets, but I really, really wanted these.  I do have a cute pair of fall mugs that we're using right now that I bought 2 years ago and put away because of that lack of room and then...I hate to tell this part...I couldn't find them last year.  But this year when I cleaned out a junk storage closet...voila!  There they were...so I washed them and made room for them to use this fall season.  Oh, to have a dish pantry!

  
The beautiful bouquet of flowers was given to my daughter for Boss's Day which was Oct. 16.  See the beautiful rose at the top?  I wish I'd gotten a closer shot of it, it was so gorgeous with apricot edges fading to a soft yellow in the center.  Other smaller roses were also in the bouquet.  

My friend Ell's hubby raises the most beautiful roses.  I met Ell over 30 years ago at church and we've been friends ever since.  In the summer, they would almost always bring a big bouquet of the most beautiful roses of varying colors to place on the table in front of the pulpit. 

Ell called me this week and gave me some news that was hard to hear.  She has Stage 4 heart failure.  One side of her heart is pretty much dead and she has blockage on the other side.  The doctors tell her that there's nothing they can do except put her on a list for a heart transplant.  They gave her a batch of pills and pages of things to do and not to do.  She told me that she nixed the idea of a transplant saying that there were many younger folks who needed one worse than she does.  Ell is 75 and has a strong faith, but she has already dealt with many health issues and she is not very strong physically any longer.  I am asking for prayers for her health and also that she and an estranged daughter will be reconciled before it's too late.


Thank you for your prayers.  Thank you for being my blog friends.  I didn't know when I came back to blogging after being away so long if anyone would be by to visit.  And then I lost my blog list and I'm still trying to get it back up to speed.  It's a busy season for many of us and I've noticed blogging has slowed down for others too.

Enjoy this last weekend of October! 

xo Cheryl

29 comments:

  1. Hello, Cheryl. I am so sorry to read the news about your friend. I will keep her in my prayers. Beautiful images, the fall leaves and trees are gorgeous. Happy weekend to you!

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  2. Cheryl, I am so sorry to hear about your friend. She sounds like she has a very strong faith, and I hope she's able to reconcile with her daughter. I am in the same place as you are with my blog . Taking some time to be my myself this summer and take care of family business I wasn't sure how many readers I would have either. Also my blogroll disappeared too so it's been hard getting back together. So happy we have reconnected.

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    1. I'm happy to have you back on my blog roll, Laura. I was lost without mine!

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  3. way back when you were blogging, I usually had 38 comments, now I get 10 or 15, all the people that were blogging back then have gone to instagrams and FB and other places or just stopped. there are only 3 left from back them, the others are a couple of years old. I keep doing it because I would have nothing else to do and I like it.. I love the colors of the rooster dishes and the rose is beautiful. I pray for animals also, and God bless Ella and help her through this time in her life. my mother had the same thing, but back in 1986 heart transplants were not being done .. she would have done the same thing Ella did.

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    1. I love blogging, too, Sandra. Sometimes life interferes with it for awhile, but I hope to keep on going! I don't do FB or those other things.

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  4. forgot to say, what I did was look on side bars and comments and I found several new friends that I really love. I started commenting and now we are friends. I have a friend in Africa, Portugal, Bosnia and there blogs are amazing.

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    1. I've been wanting to visit some new bloggers as I just love to read blogs, but haven't done it yet. Maybe after things slow down here a bit I'll get to visit more. I think this is a busy time for everyone else, too.

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  5. Just today another blogger said that is not going to blog anymore--
    I love blog sites and having one--so thanks for keeping yours going--
    I started with just quilting--but now have different sites I follow and 2 main sites I post on--
    not daily--but at least once a week for the one--
    will add your friend Ella to the prayer list--
    love and laughter, di

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    1. Thank you, Di. It is sad to read of bloggers quitting but I understand, too. It's just that you get to know them and it's like losing a friend.

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  6. Just today another blogger said that is not going to blog anymore--
    I love blog sites and having one--so thanks for keeping yours going--
    I started with just quilting--but now have different sites I follow and 2 main sites I post on--
    not daily--but at least once a week for the one--
    will add your friend Ella to the prayer list--
    love and laughter, di

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  7. All those colors were a feast. Especially loved the rooster mug.
    I am so sorry about your friend and I pray that she and her daughter reconcile. Family is everything. Perhaps the daughter will read this post. Anyway to send it to her?

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    1. No, Patti, but I wish I did have a way to communicate with her. She has absolutely nothing to do with the parents and refuses to answer letters. She'll even send back gifts that were sent to the children. It's a sad thing.

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  8. Beautiful colors you are sharing. Here's a tip: When you find something you very much would like to have, by all means purchase it, but then go home and decide which things must go to make room for it. I am in a stage of purging that began at The Ponderosa and has now found its way here. First thing I am purging? The multitude of coffee mugs that I don't particularly like anymore.

    Your friend sounds like a salt of the earth person, very unselfish and caring. I am praying for her healing because God has the power. Either way, every little thing is going to be all right. My own recent story is one of reconciliation after long years so I know God is in that business, too.

    Now go cuddle with Stormy girl and have a good evening...

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    1. Thank you, Vee, for your prayers and for always knowing just the right thing to say. And you are right about the mugs, I should have bought them! Oh well. Next time!

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  9. What a wonderful fall post, Cheryl. I love my fall mugs, too, and bring them out every year.
    I will pray for your friend, Ell. I had a aunt (by marriage) that lived for 10 years with only 20% of her heart working. She was in her 70s when they discovered all her issues. I will pray that Ell has some quality of life and that she is not in pain or uncomfortable.

    Blessings- xo Diana

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    1. Thank you, Diana. That is very encouraging to hear about your aunt!

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  10. Of course we visit...you are not easy to forget, Cheryl!

    Sending prayers and hopes for the strength Ell needs. She sounds so selfless.

    Jane

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    1. Thank you, Jane. Yes, Ell is a very selfless person. As someone said, the salt of the earth.

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  11. SO sorry to hear about your friend.I pray that God gives her a deep peace and whatever it is she needs.i also pray that she will be able to reconnect with her daughter.

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    1. Thank you, Ruth. I, too, so hope and pray that her daughter will want to reconcile with her mother.

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  12. I agree with Vee, Cheryl...I would have those rooster dishes and/or mugs in a heartbeat! Roosters and sunflowers are two of my favorite things too! When we had our cabin in VA, that was pretty much the theme of the decor. I am so sorry to her about your sweet friend. It sounds like she has a peace about her decision. I admire her for that. Hugs to you, sweet friend and have a blessed Sunday :)

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    1. Oh, Debby, you don't know how often I've wanted to kick myself for not buy them! I adore sunflowers and roosters both and they were the cutest mugs. Hugs back to you!

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  13. Yes, you know that I was gone for about a year due to Phil's health problems. And when I returned, I was surprised that not near as many were blogging. Many deserted for Facebook. Your first picture of the trees is gorgeous!!! And your last close up picture of the flowers, stunning. I love the dishes and mugs!! Mugs are my weakness too. I just bought some awesome fall ones at Wal-Mart last week. I will post them shortly. I feel so bad for Ell. Surely when her daughter finds out what condition she is in, she will reconcile. I will pray for both of them.

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    1. Thank you, Ginny. It is a shock to find so many leaving blogland. I don't do FB so it's hard to understand why the bloggers are leaving for it. Maybe it's less time consuming?

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  14. Fall wasn't as "pretty" as usual here either......too warm and not enough rain.
    I'm hoping for next year.
    I am so sorry to hear of your friend's health issues. Back in May 2014 my husband was told ....at the age of 63....that he was in end stage heart failure. Difficult words to hear. I pray that her daughter sees the light and forgives and reconciles before it is too late. **hugs** diane @ thoughts&shots

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  15. Saying a prayer for Ell....will keep her in my prayers.

    I am like you with roosters and sunflowers...I LOVEthem, but i just do not have room.

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  16. Hello,
    Sending a HUG! I am also sending up prayers for Ell.

    I love the roosters and sunflowers. :-)
    Carla

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  17. Oh dear friend, I will diffiently pray for your sweet friend Ell and her daughter. I'm getting close to her age so I can feel the sadness on this one. What would we do without lovely friends that bring so much joy into our lives.
    I really loved your photos of the flowers and of course, Stormy. What a beautiful cat she is. They are so smart and become such friends.
    The dishes you love are just lovely! Sending prayers and loving thoughts your way!

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