Cats, Vintage Jewelry, Visit with Lillian and Nita's Pre-Birthday Party!

 We came home on Monday and Tuesday afternoon we went over to the Bells to pickup Tabitha and Samantha.

Our Amber loves them every bit as much as we do!

She said Samantha was all dressed up for Halloween with her black nose and coloring.

Amber has a busy household with four 9-year-olds, one male older cat named Bandit and Ginger, who is a littermate to our cats. But I do believe that she would take on two more kitties full time in a heart beat if she needed to!

It was a rainy day and I rode with Amber to do the school pickup.

The kids were surprised and happy to see me - and then reality registered and they knew I was going to take the kitties home!

The kids loved seeing Granddad. though!

We visited for a little while before heading back home before traffic.

In the DFW area, I'm always thinking about traffic before I go anywhere.

It continued to be a cold wet Tuesday evening and both cats came right in and made themselves at home just as if they had never left.

Samantha favors a basket of some kind.....

while Tabitha prefers the velevt sofa, or a comfy chair.

Tabitha totally missed Louis Dean!

She loves on him all the time but doesn't give me the time of day!

I've been busy this week taking fall down room by room.

Summer is here with us this week and she took this pic when I was about to pack away a little autumn bear with a lame leg that Louis Dean fixes last year! Alas, when I picked him up, the bad leg  broke off and then, unexpectantly, so did the other one!!!

So far I have two 'clean' rooms void of any extra debris. 

They look lonely!

I ordered some jewelry cleaner from Amazon and have been cleaning my vintage collection a little ar a time ever since we got home.

This pin is one of the oldest piece of costume jewelry I have......and all I have is costume quality ...but it still sparkles and shines once it's cleaned.

The pic is really silver colored and it came with the 'wedding dress' Mother bought for me in April of 1963. It was a simple white A-line dress - with the pin - and I have kept it all these years.

I was 14 years old and I'm now 73. Why have I kept this all these years? I have no idea. 

Some of the jewelry came from my mother......I remember her wearing the blue earrings.....

The lady bug pieces came from 2004 after my divorce.

Have you seen the film Under the Tuscan Sun?

If so - you understand the lady bug connection.

So many pretty pieces and now they are all cleaned and laid out in drawers where it's easier to chose what to wear......

and I've decided to wear a bit of bling each and every day!

Today - Thursday - I sent Louis Dean off to his dentist appointment.......and that is a whole 'nuther story! Suffice it to say, there was drama, trauma, a near 'silver alert', and a rescue by Summer before he finally arrived at Sterling Dental on Pioneer in Irving. As soon as he was safely there, Summer and I headed west to Fort Worth!

We had the very best visit with Lillian!

She was so happy to see us and what a blessing it is to come in the front door, sign in, take our temps and walk back to Lillian's room. Such a difference from when the nursing home was in shut down for well ove a YEAR!

The staff and residents there at Trail Lake Nursing Home think we are family.....

and so we are.

Lillian gave me a huge stack of cards and was telling me all about the people who wrote them and what they said. Lilliand said, "They talk bout YOU, Linda!" She loves that she is loved. Don't we all?

I would like to say that every card y'all have sent over the past few years has been a blessing to Lillian.

She reads and rereads them before giving them to me and then I read them - one every morning - and I pray for the one who took the time to write to a lonely lady they have never met but have come to love through the writing of these letters and cards.

Summer and I left there with a happy heart and a grocery list for Walmart and Aldi which we will take to her tomorrow before we go home. It was 6:30////

We drove to Nita and Mike's where we are spending the night.

Nita's 68th birthday is tomorrow.....but I could not wait another minute to give her present to her.

It's a canvas print of the Santa Express!

The  pic is distorted because of the plastic covering the canvas.

Nita and Mike love trains and I knew they would love this!

The red Christmas truck will be my Chinese Christmas Tree gift and I only painted one!

While we wer finishing our dinner, Nita got a phone call and it was Joni!

Joni is sister in law to Nita and she has had a rough week!

It was fun to talk out our struggles and come away from them laughing and feeling better about everything!

Happy Birthday to my sister, Nita!!

You are God's blessing to so many people...

We love you!