Blessed.

Check me out! New header, hey heyyy!! I'm pretty pumped about it personally!

So I'm back from the boonies aka Eastern KY! I feel lucky I even made it back... I was almost snowed in! Honestly, if I didn't have to work a double the day after Christmas I probably would have been fine to stay snowed in. It might have been kind of nice! But only kind of, let's not get too crazy.

I'm off today & as you can see, (new header + new post) I'm being productive! Current state: On the couch, 80's jams playing, cup of coffee close by, & a completed To Do List for the errands I plan to run today! I love this day!!

Let's recap Christmas though... Shall we? Strap yourself in, because it was a hot mess.

So my mom, sister, & I arrived in Seco (the BFE town my grandparents live in,) the day before Christmas eve. As I mentioned in my last post, my grandma had started refusing to take her medication, & as we learned when we got there, is incredibly frail. It's like taking care of a child... She can literally do nothing on her own. Not to mention she is very much out of it. Nothing she says makes much sense & it's so difficult to talk to her. My Poppy, needless to say, is exhausted & exasperated. But God love him, he's powering through it, just like he has in every other aspect of his life. I feel so blessed to have someone like him in my life. He is such an inspiration to me because of his perseverance in tough times (& all times) & I really hope I can be just half the person he is. I hope the person I marry sticks by me & cares for me the way he has my Nana. He has truly been with her in sickness & in health, & I firmly believe that only death will part them. How amazing is that? You can see the pain in his eyes when my grandma is confused about who he is & you can also see the incredible love he has for her through that pain. My heart breaks for him every day, & that's what made this Christmas so difficult. The situation they are both in is just tough, to say the least.

Now on to the day of Christmas Eve. My grandpa was having lunch (leftover porkchop) & while he was eating, my grandma yelled for help. It startled him so much that he gasped & there went a piece of porkchop back into his throat. Ultimately y'all, it gets freaking stuck & he can't get any liquids or food past it. We wait 24 hours & take him to the hospital on Christmas day. & believe me, getting him to the hospital was a test on everyone's patience & nerves. He fought us about it for a long, & I mean L-O-N-G, time. But whatever, he went. But I mean really? Merry Cluster Christmas. He's fine now, they got it out after a one night stay, but good grief... What else? Honestly, what else can happen? The entire process was a complete mess & stress for everyone involved. But I can't help but laugh at this point... This kind of shiz happens to only our family. Really.

I made it back, safe & sound, late Christmas day & tried to enjoy some time with Boski. We exchanged gifts & just chillaxed! I was glad to be home, but ever since I came back, I've had a pretty heavy heart. I feel guilty sometimes leaving my grandparents because I feel like I should do something to make their situation easier... But what can I do? The resistance to change alone is like going head on into a brick wall at 100 miles an hour. I just pray every day that things will get better & I have to trust that everything happens for a reason. This Christmas, as tough as it was, helped me realize the many blessings I have in my life. I have an amazing family & support system. No matter what I do my family is behind me & no matter what happens, we all stick together. Through thick & thin, as my Nana used to tell me when I was little! I missed seeing Boski's family this year & that was another blessing I couldn't help but recognize... I basically have a second family. Not only do I have one great family, I have two! Two!! Throughout the pain this situation with my grandparents has caused, I am still so lucky. & I can't thank whoever is out there looking after me enough, because things could be so much worse, & I'm incredibly blessed that they aren't!

So that's my update... Nothing incredibly exciting... For us anyway. We're all used to it! :) I am staying positive & trusting that everything is alright & as it should be. Now to continue enjoying my day off!! Did I mention I'm off tomorrow too? Yaaaa!!

X0<3!!

3 Days! And...

Yes! Just 3 short days! I cannot believe how time has flown by! As I get older I feel like each year gets even shorter... & this was definitely one of those years.

I'll probably be MIA for a little while (psh, like I'm always in touch as it is,) as I'm leaving early tomorrow for Eastern KY to be with family for the holiday! If anything especially exciting happens, I will definitely follow up with a post. I cannot wait to see my grandparents... It was so hard to leave them after TGiving! They treat me like I have absolutely hung the freaking moon. Like I'm their princess & they spoil me with compliments & love... So much love! What girl wouldn't love to be around that?! They mean the world to me & each additional Christmas with them, at this point, is incredibly precious to me. This will most likely be my Nana's last Christmas with us. She has Alzheimer's & it's getting much worse very quickly. My Poppy is her sole caretaker & is unable to get her to eat or take any of her medication. She visited the doctor a couple days ago & has pneumonia in her left lung & of course, refuses to take her antibiotics. They've done IV antibiotics, thankfully, but she won't take any pills. The sudden rebellion is disturbing to me, & is somewhat unexplainable. She's become increasingly combative ever since the disease started to get worse, especially with my Poppy. He seems to be the person she directs all her anger towards, I guess because he's always with her. I can't wait to get there & just give him love. I love him with all my heart & know he's hurting so much... More than I can comprehend. I hate that & just want to hug him forever.

It sounds odd, but for the most part, I feel like I've started to let my Nana go already. She hasn't been herself in so long, I almost feel like she's already gone. Of course there are rare moments where she seems closer to being the Nana I know & love, but for the most part, she's just not herself at all. I am sad, incredibly sad, about the way things are at the present moment but I've really started preparing myself for what's to come. I'm scared of what I'll feel when she actually does leave us. But these are things that happen to everyone eventually. I'm starting to get very used to changes... Big changes. I know I'm strong & I have an amazing support system behind me, so I know I'll get through it. & it's comforting to know that she will go to a better place & get to be with all the loved ones she's lost throughout her life. & she'll always be in my heart. Always.

Ok then! Here's something that definitely makes me smile!!

Looooove that Santa baby!!

Well, that's it for me... I have a few more gifts to finish up, a kitchen to finish cleaning, laundry that never ends, & packing to get to! X's&O's <3>

8 Days!!

10 Days!

I L-0-V-E Christmas!

Before I begin... I don't know what's up with the layout of my blog. I'm trying to fix it but I have no real knowledge of this stuff & can't fix my problems with what little knowledge I have to work with. None of my pictures are showing up where I've designated them, so I've just removed them altogether, (hopefully just for the time being :/) my 'Blog Archive' is down at the bottom, instead of to the right where it is supposed to be & it's the same with my 'About Me'! Not to mention my presh background is being a fair weather one; coming & going as it pleases. Humph!!

Anyway, it's officially 10 short days until Christmas!!!!!!! Have I mentioned I love love LOVE Christmas?! It's my favorite holiday! Although I do love the Fall Holiday Time in general (Halloween, TGiving, Christmas, New Year's) I think Christmas is my number 1 favorite! Ever since I moved into my own place & was able to decorate the way I wanted to decorate, my love has increased even more. This way I can make my surroundings as Christmas-y & ridiculous as I please! I think I use the decorations to express my love for the holiday & the decorations simultaneously increase my love for the holiday... It's a very special relationship ;)

This is what we're workin' with this year as far as trees & decor!

Gettin` ready to decorate. I wait patiently while Boski gets all the branches just 'so' :)

While he does the patience-required part, in addition to the above, I also do this!
*** (Please note tiara + feathers aka my tree-topper this year) ***


Worth the wait! I do the majority of the decorating & then Boski gets to go in & fix what bothers him!

A few of my lil' favie ornaments <3



Here are a few of my favorite household Christmas decor items as well!



** The little gold decorative balls in the apothecary jar on the right were meant just to be for the Holiday season, but I'm leavin' 'em year-round! I love them & they go perfectly with our normal decor! How great is it that it worked out that way?!? **

& to wrap it up, this was the day I had today:

Relaxing + productivity! I'm so proud of myself!! :)

XxO!!