Five on Friday: Facts You May Not Know About Me

 

Hello Friends! 

Happy weekend to you. ☀️🍁🧡

Thank you so much for your kind words on a recent post where I shared what I did in a day and it included my time I work at the hospice house. I mentioned being a social worker and I realized I probably hadn't mentioned that in the past. So I thought I'd just do a post of fun facts you may not know about me. 

And I hadn't finished this yesterday, so it's getting posted today. So it's 5 on Fri on a Sat. 😉

ONE

I attended a local private Catholic college called the College of St. Scholastica. There are Benedictine nuns still living and working on the campus. That building is one of the main buildings on the campus and it's called Tower Hall. I always loved it looks like a castle. 

The school was known for its medical programs, especially nursing. And that is actually what I initially majored in. I have Aunts that are nurse practitioners and I wanted to be them. :) Plus, I always loved the sciences. I even had anatomy and physiology classes, in college, that included cadaver labs. I did a whole year of studying that and I did very well. But I got into clinicals that included helping living people with colostomy bags and basically interesting smells, blood etc and realized it was not the area for me. Lol 

So I went into medical social work instead and ended up on the 5 year plan at college. But it was the right decision and I loved my social work jobs. 

TWO

I did social work for close to a decade - until Aaron was about 4. I was working part time then because I wanted to be home with Aaron too. My case load kept growing (& stress) and by then the businesses my ex (that I was also a part of behind the scenes at times) were doing well enough that I we could afford me to be a SAHM. So I then changed to full-time Mommy life with both of my kiddos. And it turned out to be a blessing as my MIL developed Alzheimers and I was needed as a caregiver for her.

When my MIL progressed to a point where she had to go into a facility and my kids were getting older, I wanted something spiritually for myself. I had dealt with a lot of grief work and death and dying as a medical social worker in a long-term care setting. So hospice volunteering just felt like a calling to me. As you saw in my "day in the life post" about what I do in hospice: some days I scrapbook obits, or I bake or help in the kitchen, or I visit with dying patients and their families. I do it all in the name of service. 

I have often sat with a dying patient that has no one - putting lotion on their hands. Praying over them. Singing to them. And I feel like a part of my soul knows it's doing what it was meant to be doing on this earth. I get way more out of serving the Lord in this way than I give. I guess that's the definition of a calling. :) 🙏🏻💗

THREE

For how much I loved social work. And I feel so honored and blessed to have been a SAHM. A part of me feels if I could go back in time I would have been a French teacher. I have always loved the language. I had 4 years of it in school. And I would have loved to travel to France every couple of years (& have had summers off!) 

FOUR

And speaking of the French teacher thing brings me a bit to my 4th fun fact. French always came easy to me as a lot of their words have articles before them and they change based on masculine and feminine. And I have always seen letters, words and numbers as such. Masculine or feminine. It's a form of synesthesia. 

Synesthesia is when your brain routes sensory information through multiple unrelated senses, causing you to experience more than one sense simultaneously. Some examples include tasting words or linking colors to numbers and letters.

What can I say - I'm weird. Lol 😁

FIVE

And the last thing I thought I would share is that I know many of you know I love scrapbooking as a hobby. And I have made many little decorated albums as gifts for others through the years. But I have through the years seriously thought about doing an Etsy shop or something related involving scrapbooking. I never took the plunge in the past - though I have come very close. But now I feel almost a calling related to that too. I would want it to involve "legacy" books for others. 

For example:

This is a recipe "cookbook" that I'm working on. This could be a project for someone to add their favorite recipes to for themselves. Or to give as a gift - adding in a legacy of family holiday recipes through the years. 

Aren't these the cutest holiday recipe cards? 

But I would also love to maybe work on completely different kinds of albums... spiritual ones. Where folks could make a legacy album related to their dying loved one. As a legacy to them. Or to continue a mission of theirs or their story. If that makes sense? 

So stay tuned. It may turn into something over time. It's something I work on and pray about where I want to put my focus and energy. No matter what I'll continue my work in hospice too. 

Thanks for going on this little journey with me and some things you may not have known about my background. I just know a FAVORITE FACT is how much I love blogging and sharing with such a fellowship of amazing women!! My love and blessings to you all. 

xoxo

The Gift: Part 1

I haven't talked about my Mom-in-law for a bit and I thought you might like to get an update on things with her. 

My MIL and Ruby

As many of you that visit me regularly know - I have been a caregiver part time for my MIL with Alzheimer's for years now. Well recently she had worsened in her condition and due to increased depression, anxiety and behaviors my Father-in-law had decreased his work time (because she does the best at home and with him) - so I was caregiving only part of "part time".  

Unfortunately a few weeks ago she has even worsened more and meds were increased and my FIL made the brave and loving decision to stop working for now and stay home with her full time. We talked to him about burn out...about other options etc. He was adamant that he wanted to do this and have as much time with her as possible, while he can still manage things and she's safe to be there. So we have respected his decision. We are however still involved regularly and helping whenever we're able. My Mom just took her for a haircut a few days ago. I still take her for MD appointments and make sure her fungal toenails are taken care of (clipped and to pedi appointments). I still bring them meals at least 2 days  a week. My hubby & bro-in-law (their sons) often have lunch with them during the work week when they take a break. I call and check in. As the weather improves I will go get her for walks and visits here to give my FIL more of a break. They go out to dinner with other relatives one night a week.  So for now there is a rhythm and routine that appears to be working. My FIL said when he feels the time is right he will let us help him look at facilities for her. 

Many years ago now I talked my MIL into going to a scrapbooking class with me. I knew I was going to get into it no matter what - but I'd thought it'd be so much more fun to share with someone and she had always been really artistic and liked things like that. She agreed and thankfully the rest is history! For many years we scrapbooked regularly together. Due to that we have the wonderful gifts of the scrapbooks she made during that time. They're a legacy of love - as well as a history of the family that we wouldn't probably know if she hadn't done that. I believe it was God's hand and we're all incredibly grateful for it!! I have looked through the books with her many times and she used to have some connection and genuinely triggers of some memories of family/relatives. Now there appears to be no real memory to any of it. So sad and feels unfair.

Anyway, I know this post is lengthy but I wanted to give you the update and share this info - as I thought that for a time here on Tuesdays I would share some of the pages of her different scrapbooks she made. Today I'll start with the gift of the heritage scrapbook she made for each side of their family - my MIL's and my FIL's.   They're so beautiful and special and I feel this is a way I can honor her a bit. So here are a few pages from her side of the family. I may share a few more next week and then my FIL's side after that. She made family trees that I won't share here due to privacy of names etc. 

The inscription she put on the inside cover of this album.

Her grandparents are the young man in the front right of the first photo and the young lady in the front left of the second photo.

Different photos of her grandparents. Aren't old photos just the coolest?

I love the blue paper she used in that top one - like old wallpaper. I love looking at the old cars and styles of their clothes!!

My MIL said this was a photo of her grandpa up in a tree with a friend. Love the caption that was on the back! Lol

Look at those old cars. And the hats and boots of the ladies! Right out of Downton Abbey don't ya think? ;)

Here are those pages side by side in full layout so you can see the together how they are in the book.

This is my MIL's grandparents. I believe Alzheimer's can have a genetic component as this maternal grandma of hers also had Alzheimer's/dementia fairly young (started in their 60's) like my MIL.

I love the way she pieced the borders on these pages - looks so old fashioned. And I love the stickers like the old trunk & the watch.

My MIL's mom. She was an only child. 

These are those pages side by side to see the full layouts. 

Thank you for tolerating this lengthy post. In the future series of posts they won't be nearly as long. This one was due to all the updating as well. Thank you for all of the kind thoughts and prayers you've shared as we go through this journey. They mean so much, and I've shared them with hubby too and he has thought it's wonderful that I'm finding such sweet friends in blogland. So again -thank you and blessings to you!!