Savings Catcher Update and We Head South

Kristen told me yesterday about a deal that Bluebird is offering for a limited time.  If you have or sign up for a Bluebird account, you can redeem your Walmart Savings Catcher money by depositing it into Bluebird.  Bluebird then doubles your Savings Catcher money.  It was easy to do and I immediately went from about $14 to $28 and suddenly I have some real money in there! This deal ends by February 28, 2015, but Bluebird can end this at any time so jump on board now!

Yesterday was a quiet day--Bob's face was swollen and uncomfortable so we stayed home.  But today we are on our way south! We should be on the Gulf Coast in a few days.  Hopefully we can find wifi to post blog updates.

It is so hard to leave the kids and grandkids but this is something we just have to do while we are young enough to do it.  And we are only a phone call away!

"How Can I Miss You if You Won't Go Away?"

A few years back when we were newlyweds Bob had a small, irregular pale brown patch on his back that was itchy.  I urged him to have the doctor check it out, and when the ointment she gave him had no effect I made an appointment for him to see a dermatologist.  It turned out to be basal cell carcinoma, much less aggressive than melanoma and easy to treat by removing the lesion.  The doctor has been seeing Bob regularly ever since, and removes a small lesion almost every year.  Early this year a lesion appeared on Bob's nose.  This time the dermatologist referred Bob to a plastic surgeon, and yesterday was the big day.

She removed some tissue, did a quick biopsy and then removed a little more. At that point there was a hole in his nose the size and shape of three stacked dimes.  By the end of the day (we were there from 8:45 until after 4:00) the hole had been neatly stitched up, with instructions to remove stitches in one week.

Poor Bob. His face swelled on the side of the lesion and as of last night he could barely open his left eye.  A large bulky bandage covers the wound, making it impossible to wear his glasses anyway.  We are here for another night it looks like.  Kristen and Jason are so sweet about not minding time to heal, but I really don't want to wear out our welcome. I guess we will be playing it day by day.

Somebody's Getting Married!

I apologize for the few posts last week.  On Thursday we left our campground and drove to eldest daughter Kristen's house in preparation for our son's wedding on Saturday.  Kristen and I spent all day Friday shopping for last minute wedding necessities in a nearby town with lots of upscale shops.  It was a tough job, but had to be done! ;)

Saturday was wedding day! My sisters Cheryl and Gail, and Cheryl's husband George arrive about 12:30 and we quickly dressed to leave.  We drove to the church, an easy 25 minutes away.  How fun to see family arrive and have a few minutes to start to catch up with family news!

The church was lovely, as was the wedding service. And the bride and groom, my son Tim and now daughter-in-law Bernie, looked great together.  Bernie was beautiful and radiant, and Tim handsome in his wedding suit. And the children of course were adorable.

The couple had planned for a reception at a barn in Swedesboro and it was a perfect venue.  Decked out in fall colors and glittery lights, it had plenty of room for the dinner and dancing afterwards.  The children who were old enough to sit away from their parents had a table with coloring books and crayons, stickers, goodie bags, and nibbles.  They had a blast sitting together and then playing inside and outside the barn. What a great party we had!

Sewing Projects

I had a list of sewing projects to complete yesterday.  First off, we needed a curtain for the bathroom window, so that we could have privacy when the window was open, or when the shade was up. I picked up this fabric a few days ago and it was perfect for what I had in mind.  I'm really happy with the way it turned out.  A tension rod holds it in place.

Next up was hemming three wash cloths from a sample I had woven.  Pretty!

And last, I wanted a "stealth bag" that Auggie could fit into.  He hangs his head out of the bag and settles right down in this.  I decided to simply make an outer cover for the canvas bag I had been using, since I knew the bag was the right size and because I wouldn't have to make or purchase straps for it.  This fabric was on clearance for $3, and I bought a piece of black nylon mesh to top it.  A drawstring closes the opening, and even with his head hanging out, Auggie is somewhat camouflaged. He seems to enjoy being in it.

Crocheted Slippers

I like slippers, and wear them often during the day.  So I have had my eye on this pattern here for a while.  My sister Cheryl gave me some Red Heart Jeweltones in pink and RH Supersaver in cream, so I crocheted up a pair this week.  I did go down to an F hook because the H hook specified made for a huge slipper with this yarn.  It was a fast project, about 11/2 hours per slipper for me (and I'm pretty slow.) I may or may not put the button on--what do you think?

Yesterday was cloudy and damp. We took a walk but otherwise stayed in.

Emily

Monday morning

On Saturday my youngest daughter celebrated her birthday.  Emily is a lovely young woman with a great husband and two adorable little girls. She put herself through Optician school and has earned her license to practice.  How would I describe her? Emily does not see closed doors as locked, but barriers that must be opened. She is very social and loves to be around others. Even as a child, she enjoyed helping people, and accepted them as they were. I could not be prouder of the person she became. I love you, Em!

Sunday was a very nice day, and Bob and I decided to go for a drive.  We visited Craven Hall, a historical home in Warminster that was saved from the wrecking ball by a group of local residents.

Erik Fleischer, President of the Craven Hall Historical Society gave us a tour of this lovely house.  I
was excited to see that there was a framed wedding certificate on the wall with some Bennetts listed.
In my family, my great great great great great great great grandfather was Captain John Bennett, who
served in the first Seminole War and brought back a Seminole woman as his bride.  There is a John
Bennett who signed the wedding certificate, but it is doubtful that it is my ancestor.  Still, who knows?

The Hall boasted a flax wheel

And a great wheel

Plus a very interesting loom.

Next to the Hall is a small museum commemorating John Fitch, the man who invented the steamboat.  And you thought Robert Fulton had done that! Nope.  Fulton's steamboat was actually built 22 years after Fitch's steamboat.  Unfortunately for John Fitch, however, he was not able to obtain financial backing or public support for his.  Fulton's was backed by some strong investors, so it became a success while Fitch died penniless.

New Campground

Friday morning
We moved yesterday to a new campground near Quakertown, PA that has WiFi, but the signal is so poor that if you try to use it after 7:00 a.m. it doesn't work.  I was able to upload yesterday's blog but when I went to view it a minute later, someone else must have gotten on the internet and was trying to download a video or something.  At least, that's what I blame it on.  :)  This post may have to wait to be uploaded later today when we can stop in at a McDonald's.

We took a drive yesterday around 4:00 and found that we are in an area that has a WalMart Supercenter, a JoAnne Fabrics, and a Lion grocery store. And a Lowes, if Bob needs to go visit some tools that we have no room for.  Whoo hoo!  We also have full hookups and supposedly cable, although we were not able to figure out the set up yet.  But we will eventually.  Until then, we have our own videos.

I realized that I don't have nearly enough photos of our cat, KC.  I will try to remedy that.

The people in the motorhome next to us have gone out, taking their YouTube-loving teens with them, and WiFi suddenly works. Coincidence? I think not.