POO ON TUMORS!!!!

So for those of you that don't know about Laura and Weston, let me fill you in...

I've known Laura since elementary school, we met playing soccer. Fast forward many years later, passed high school, being each others bridesmaids, being pregnant together and being the only 2 out of six friends pregnant together (no, none of us planned that) to have boys and we find ourselves here.

Here being, several months ago Laura's husband, Weston, told his chiropractor that he was feeling numbness in his legs. Upon further questioning his chiropractor told him to go see a doctor immediately for tests. He said he suspected that he might have a tumor. Sure enough, tumor growing INTO his spine!!!

I can give you all the gritty details if you like, you can ask me, it's an incredible story. But here I shall keep it as short as possible. Within 18 days of discovering this tumor Weston was up north seeing a world renowned neurosurgeon who was able to open Weston up, remove his part of his spine along with A TUMOR THE SIZE OF A LEMON and then replace his missing vertebrae with titanium!!! The doctors were shocked, they said the MRI gave them no indication it would be that big and they had no idea how it was possible for Weston to be moving around, let alone walking. (Leaving the tumor WOULD have left Weston a parapalegic and the danger of surgery MIGHT have left him in a wheelchair too!!!)

We are soooo excited to find out that Weston's tumor was benign and they have no reason to believe there will be anymore. He has already gotten feeling back in his legs and they said he should be able to resume his old life (mountain biking!?!!?) within the year. Truly amazing!!!

Now, in the aftermath and euphoric glow the cold hard facts are these....the parts alone (just the titanium they used to replace his missing spine) are about $40,000!!! Egad!!!! They do have insurance but they aren't covering very much. Weston works for an autobody shop and has too be out of work allowing his body to heal for quite some time (poor guy, he's going stir crazy, we know...but he never complains)

Laura and Weston have asked for nothing. They are not people that would use their circumstances to gain pity or anything else from other people. But times are definitely tough for them right now. Laura is cleaning homes and finding odd jobs to help make ends meet till Weston goes back to work. Their little family of 3 is living in pretty cramped quarters in their RV/trailer and the bills are starting to roll in.

We aren't asking you to pity these people, they are strong, courageous and beautiful and above all, BLESSED! They are so happy about the outcome of everything and as I said, not complaining about the bill. But my sis and I decided we wanted to play a free show and have any money raised by donation (in our tip jar) go to this remarkable family.

Anyway, we hope you can make it and bring people with you as well!!! I'm out of words...not sure what else to say but that I love them and hope we can help them out and come together as the family we are.

The Sullivan Ballou Letter.

A week before the battle of Bull Run Sullivan Ballou, a Major in the 2nd
Rhode Island Volunteers, wrote home to his wife in Smithfield.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

July 14,1861
Camp Clark, Washington DC

Dear Sarah:

The indications are very strong that we shall move in a few days - perhaps tomorrow. And lest I should not be able to write you again I feel impelled to write a few lines that may fall under your eye when I am no more.

I have no misgivings about, or lack of confidence in the cause in which I am engaged, and my courage does not halt or falter. I know how American Civilization now leans upon the triumph of the government and how great a debt we owe to those who went before us through the blood and suffering of the Revolution. And I am willing - perfectly willing - to lay down all my joys in this life, to help maintain this government, and to pay that debt.

Sarah, my love for you is deathless, it seems to bind me with mighty cables that nothing but omnipotence can break; and yet my love of Country comes over me like a strong wind and bears me irresistibly with all those chains to the battlefield. The memory of all the blissful moments I have enjoyed with you come crowding over me, and I feel most deeply grateful to God and you, that I have enjoyed them for so long. And how hard it is for me to give them up and burn to ashes the hopes and future years, when, God willing, we might still have lived and loved together, and see our boys grown up to honorable manhood around us.

If I do not return, my dear Sarah, never forget how much I loved you, nor that when my last breath escapes me on the battle field, it will whisper your name...

Forgive my many faults, and the many pains I have caused you. How thoughtless, how foolish I have sometimes been!...

But, 0 Sarah, if the dead can come back to this earth and flit unseen around those they love, I shall always be with you, in the brightest day and in the darkest night... always, always. And when the soft breeze fans your cheek, it shall be my breath, or the cool air your throbbing temple, it shall be my spirit passing by.

Sarah do not mourn me dead; think I am gone and wait for me, for we shall meet again...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A week later Sullivan was killed at the first battle of Bull Run.
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I wish I were as brave, as selfless, as sacrificing, and as strong as those before us. How pathetic I am, complaining so easily, so quickly about the things that don't go the way I want. I am inconvenienced and it's the end of the world....these men and women loved fiercely yet gave willingly.

I pray I can be as fierce in my love and conviction of what is right, and if the time ever comes to sacrifice everything for what is true, I hope I can do it with as much grace.
Sighhhh...

Lovies and love stories everlasting,
-K

ps. found the link to this letter
at this lovely blog.

Hope Heidi's b'day is a Thriller!

Happy birthday to my dear friend Heidi! This is in rememberance of the time we tried to learn the choreography for Thriller.....and gave up halfway through. ;-) Well, I did anyway, I think you managed just fine.

I love you, my dear!

My birthday...

My b'day is coming up next month and it's a big one...a frighteningly big one. I keep trying to think of what to do for it but can't think of anything. I'm usually all about themed parties but after this last year and our Marie Antionette, Mad Hatter, Black and White, Charlie Brown Thanksgiving, and Red and White Christmas....I cant think of anything! Sigh....

So I beg you, my 12 readers, what ideas might you have? Keep in mind, money is a bit skim.

Latest thrift store find....

For no reason whatsoever The Mr. brought me flowers, I usually just stick a bouquet in a mason jar but got inspired whilst trimming the stems and suddenly realized I have been wasting bouquets all these years by keeping them together when I can rearrange in various containers and get four out of it rather than just the that was haphazardly assembled in the first place.

Got a new (well vintage) garter belt with some Christmas money. Boy howdy, does that thing work! Not like the silly pieces of tiny elastic that do nothing for you except slowly creep towards to floor following your socks and trying to take your underoos with them....all whilst making things very sausagey in the hip/waist region. Ew. I've been using it almost everyday as I have many extra long socks since I cannot abide tights (the webbing, oh heavens to Betsy, the webbing!!!)

I can't tell you how much I love this dress so I won't even try.

Nor can I tell you how much I love The Kidlet, though I can say that I love him even more than I love this dress.

This was my grandmother's broach, I think it's the only thing of hers that I own. But it's one of my favorites.

I've been hanging around my favorite thrift store a lot lately (dangerous) but feel thoroughly justified since I have found some truly fantastical things. I didn't even see this latest little number but my dear friend W. happened to spy it hiding in the back looking like it was hanging with the clothes that hadn't been marked yet. Boy howdy, am I glad she did! The detail thrills me to the bone and the fact that it was only a dollar-something pretty much seals the deal on awesomeness.

Blessings on whomever it was that bought this up at H&M, brought it back to our H&Mless town and then sent it to my (I feel some sense of belonging with this place, I admit it) thrift store.

Eep, i must go get my bread in the oven....
Yipppeee skippy!

Lovies and Locks,

-K

So many posts in one day?

Pendleton Suit
UrbanOutfitters clearance blouse
Espirit shoes
Vintage Amsterdam Pin of wooden shoes (made of plastic!?!?!) Ebay

It always makes me nervous to post so much in one day....as if it's going to jinx me into not posting for a really long time. So oddly superstitious for someone not superstitious but odd...silly.

But here you have it, a quick peek at one of my newest thrift store finds. A Pendleton skirt-suit of navy blue wool. I LOVE IT!!! I wore this to see Bright Star this evening. The plant was a surprise from The Mr. He brought it home today with a flower-bunch to boot! He's so thoughtful!!!

The Mr. is quite a bit taller than me and tonight we discovered the reason I look so hobbity short in so many pics (besides actually BEING hobbity short, which I am ;-)) is due to the angle he takes the pics at from so high up! After we took pics and the camera died and I loaded them, we were able to make this discovery, but it is too late to worry about recharging the camera and I am going to bed, worn out from crying at Bright Star but happily clasped in the arms of my dear one.

As always, Lovies and Love Stories,
-K

Star light, star bright...

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"How horrid was the chance of slipping into the ground instead of into your arms. The difference is amazing love."

Just got home from Bright Star........sigh. I am listening to the soundtrack now....more sighs.

I don't like to watch sad, tragic love stories more then once....but I will watch this over and over again. The New York Times said of it, " Bright Star is perfectly chase and insanely sexy". But I don't feel that "sexy" is the right word. There is a term used by some yoga teachers which I have been trying to accomplish in my practice as well as pass on to my students to do the same...."passionate calm".

That is the closest thing I can come up with to explain the feel of the movie and how it makes me feel in turn.....it isn't sexy, it is MORE than sexy. Sexy makes it sound cheap as it is such an understatement. There's nothing wrong with sexy, I like sexy! (ok, so actually I don't, I hate that word, but I can tell and enjoy when a movie is...that word....I've typed it too many times I can't do it again.) It's not cuz I think the word is bad, it just doesn't do justice to what the feeling is.

Passionate calm...yes, I think that's the best explanation I can come up with.

Lovies and Lights,
-K

The first week of January....

So now this picture is making me rethink the Etsy shop name all over again. Gee Whillikers I just cannot decide. At this point, that's the only thing holding me back. Siiigh.

Well, here are some little lovelies that I found at Yoshi NOW! (a vintage shop...outlet? here in town) I was sooo excited to stumble across them and though there are numbers missing from the stamp set and the "I" missing from the Lion puzzle (which I didn't realize when I bought it...I could have SWORN that "I" was there) I still adore them. The stamp set really need some TLC and is overwhelming with mold and mildew smells. Just in the 2 minutes it took to snag these pics I had a massive allergy attack. Fie on you, mold allergies, FIE I say!

In other news of the new year we have been biking and cooking and I am trying to master the art of celery root consumption. It turned out ok so I tried to puree it with turnips but didn't like the flavor very much (and was running out of raw butter) so then I added mashed potatoes* into the mix and it was DIVINE! *(also salt, pepper and raw cream) It is a very intimidating looking food but fear not my pets, try it and you just might be delighted. (you have to enjoy the flavor of celery and turnips though) Also, a platter of organic, free-range chicken. Mmmm.

It's been a dull week. I just went thrifting today after class and need to get some pics up and alter some stuff. Just you wait!

Lovies and Hot Honey Lemonade,

-K

A little late, I know.

As you can see, if took several tries to get this pic...and we finally gave up.
And yes, that is my dear from The Cat and The Cow

Happy New Year!!! 2010???? When, in the name of all that is holy, did THAT happen?!?!?!

I usually try to stop in to as many parties as possible and it's generally quite stressful (though fun, I admit) but this year, due to transportation, babies, and lack of motivation to stress myself out, I only ventured out to stop by my parents with The Kidlet, The Kidlet's Cousin, The Sister, and The Brother-in-law. My father (procrastinator that is he) decided to have a party at about 5pm that day so my mother whipped up some stuff to entertain and sent out the word to the friends and my dad's music buddies. We stopped by early on and said howdy-doo then headed to The Sister's and Co. Got there by 9 and hung out till almost 3am!!?!?!? (The Mr. had to work but made it by about 10:30.) As if we are still bright young things that don't have wee ones to wake us up in the morning regardless of what time we fell in bed......which was close to 4am....such scandal!!!

Actually we got to bed just AFTER 3am but stayed awake because The Mr. was finishing a book and I just HAD to finish the last half of a book that I've read 5 times already. (Silly, I know) In my defence I lost my copy of the book (Rose In Bloom....Thank you Ms. Alcott) a couple years ago and it had been a while since I'd read it. I had to cry (literally) all over again for the loss of the dear, though maddeningly foolish, Bonny Prince Charlie, (For the record, I do not cry nearly as hard as I do when reading Jack and Jill, that one is so much more heart wrenching for me) and sigh with rapture at the man that The Bookworm turns out to be.

So there you have it, all the close friends, the family and dear hearts that I love so well, ringing in the new year with little ol' me. Yep, life is pretty good.

I decided to make one resolution this year (I gave up making them forever ago seeing as I always fail keeping them)

1. Stop being so insecure and fearful and get my dern Etsy shop started.

So there you have it. It's written in stone (or rather internet type...the stone of our time) If it's not done by the end of the month. Harrass me. If it's not done by the end of next month demand a free gift from the not-yet-finished shop. Motivate me.

Ok, so maybe one more resolution...take more pics. I am looking through my pictures from the evening and am super sad that I didn't capture more of our fun. I got home a bit ago from the cafe (The Cat and the Cow's parents own it) and my pa had his stuff up for Art Hop tonight. He played music too and we hung out and played scrabble whilst enjoying his delightful display of talent. Did I get any pictures? Nope. Was I wearing a new Pendleton Skirt Suit that I purchased this last week at a Thrift Store? YES! But nary a photo of it. Blast!

So yes, Etsy Shop.
More Photos.

Happy New Year!

Lovies and Laughter,

-K