Our trip to Jekyll Island

I decided to take a trip to the ocean before the weather gets too hot. We left at daybreak and got there around 9:30 am. (This is the condensed version of the trip with only a fraction of all the photos I took.)

I love driving over that bridge - Below is the entrance to Jekyll Island.


The first place I stoped was the Visitor's Center to read up on the wildlife and climb up on that look-out tower (carrying Gizzy) to enjoy the view.

I saw miles and miles of saltmarsh wetlands and in the distance the bridge I drove on.

A friendly gentleman with a cannon of a camera was kind enough to take a photo (with my puny digital) of Gizzy and me for my blog. As you can see, it was kind of windy up there.

When we walked back to the car to drive on, I saw this topiary of a bush near the building that was just covered with the biggest dog gone bumble bees that I ever did see. At first glance I actually thought those were smaller sized hummingbirds buzzing around those blossoms, but NOOOOooo, those were hummers of bumblers...I know you can't tell in the photo, but I was so impressed with them, I want to post a picture anyway. If I had to guess, I'd say their wingspan was a good three inches. They also had those bottle brush trees/bushes growing there that I've not seen for a while.

I stopped at one of the picnic areas from where you could walk over the dunes towards the beach.

... and that's when I did what I came here to do:

We walked further towards the beach, Gizzy being ever so hesitant since he's not fond of big bodies of water as is evident by the tucked in tail. (I know, call the SPCA - it's doggy abuse.)

But, me being the determined mommy that I am, pressed on towards the water. As I started to look for seashells, I excitedly found a sand dollar, no wait, a smooth piece of glass and just as I was about to lift it up with my bare fingers, something inside of me said "use your cane" and when I touched it gently with the tip of my cane, it was soft. I'm not familiar with jellyfish, but I think that's what it was.

Being mostly accustomed to Southern California's beaches, I've never encountered a jellyfish. This is a whole different environment. In fact, I saw two of those guys buried in the sand, which knocked the wind right out of my sails about wanting to walk barefoot on the beach.

I stayed for a while longer, being very careful, looking out onto the calm waters:

and decided to scribble in the sand while Gizzy looked on:

It was fun, but this is what Gizzy thinks about the whole beach scene:

Back over the dunes and into the picnic area

for some rest and refreshments. We sat for a little while, watching people fish, but the gnats were so bad that we had to leave.

It was still early, so I decided to take a ride to the Historical District. I love those gnarly, old  oak trees with their branches way to the ground, seemingly supporting themselves on their "elbows."  Gizzy's sitting pretty on "our" rollator/walker where he was the talk of the town. Many people commented about him having a good life and being a cute dog. (That always makes a mom proud!)

I love looking at those old mansions imagining how life must've been way back then - strolling through this district gives me a true sense of the old South. I saw people getting horse and buggy rides and families enjoying yet another beautiful day outside.

I saw a couple of feisty squirrels chasing each other around this old tree that has plants - not moss, but actual plants, growing on top of its bark - amazing! Look at the little squirt on the foot of the tree standing upright and his friend is clinging to the side of the tree where I have marked the spot...

It started to get quite warm and after I got an icecream cone from the Sweets Shoppe, I decided to drive back home. I stopped at McDonalds for Gizzy's McDouble (plain, no cheese, hold the bun) and after he ate, he pretty much snoozed all the way home...

...and he's sleeping still. Poor boy, I wore him out, but I had fun and I think he did too. I love taking him places to give him something to dream about, since he sleeps a lot now that he's getting older.

Hope you enjoyed our trip!

Another walk in the park

Life is good! It's a beautiful day and I am blessed with many caring friends - plus, I have a dog who keeps me going ... dare I ask for more?

Today is exceptionally beautiful. It rained yesterday for the better part of the afternoon and evening and it looked so perfectly clean and clear that I wanted to share some photos with you.  When we arrived at the park, this is what we saw:

Gizzy had to go visit the "Rocky's Bridge" boulder to investigate, while I tried capturing the sunlight in the water.

We walked over to the picnic table by the Azelea bushes that are showing their splendor in various colors.

We sat there for a while taking in the glorious view and I decorated my flower boy.

After walking to the rose bush, I noticed the morning dew was still on the pedals.








It was just magnificent - all that brilliant green - almost like a Disney Movie.

I adore that spring green color of the leaves - it reminds me of picnics with family and outdoor Easter Egg hunts and everything that's clean and good in life.

As I was sitting at the park bench with my Gizzy, enjoying the beautiful view, only one thing came to mind that described the magnitude of what I was feeling:

This is the day which the LORD has made; Let us rejoice and be glad in it. (Psalm 118:24)


I saw huge dogwood blossoms and a little bird sitting on top of a bush, chirping and singing his little heart out. He was rejoicing too.

...and if I should grow to an old and feeble age, I pray God grant me eyesight to the very end for the beauty of His works astound and overwhelm me with a sense of humility and thankfulness that only my tears can express.

I'm back home (and Mr. Toad)

First of all thank you so much for all your well wishes and prayers. You are all very, very kind and I'm glad to have you in my life. The procedure itself went very well, albeit it took longer than anticipated. Now I'm just waiting to hear from my GI with the results. My friend and neighbor, who picked me up told me that her mom, who is now 86 years old, had a liver biopsy done about 30 years ago. The doctors told her back then that she had an onset of cirrhosis, but she never did anything about it and lived her live quite well to this day without any liver hassles. I know everyone's different, but you just never know what's in store for you.

OK, fair warning - if you don't like toads, then don't look any further. Before I left to the hospital this morning, I saw this fellow sitting on my front porch. For some reason he struck me as handsome - I know, normally I would not consider toads handsome, but just look how proud he is sitting there - quite upright (like a dog) and look at those big, clear eyes - do you suppose I should have kissed him? Oh, well, I took his picture instead:

I gave him an empty plant pot for shelter and a bowl of water, but I doubt he'll stick around for long because of the frequently visiting strays on my front porch. I appreciate toads, lizards and yes, even spiders, because they keep the insects away...I just want them to stay outside!

Off to the hospital -

This will be short and sweet. A friend's taking me to the hospital this morning for my scan guided liver biopsy. Wish me luck! I don't want to have the Interferon treatments. I want to see a Chinese herbal doctor in Atlanta. Maybe they can help me boost my immune system to increase my 10 % chances of my own body overcoming this virus without medications - thus far it's not happening. I was diagnosed with Hep C five years ago. Turns out my antibody count is very high (not a good thing in Hep C), and my genotype is 1A, the most common, but also the most difficult to treat. My GI said he didn't want to put me through a year of misery before taking a look at my liver - I don't want to be in a year of misery, in fact I don't want to be a day in misery - I've had my share - or, so I thought.

I'm sorry, I normally don't talk about my health problems here, because this is supposed to be a fun-blog, but I'm telling you this because I consider many of you my friends; also, for those of you that pray, I would like for you to remember me in your prayers, because I believe there is power in prayer and also power in numbers. Thank you!

Gizzy's being looked after by a friend and neighbor, but I'll be back in the afternoon. He's been sleeping a lot lately. I wish I could take him with me. He's the BEST medicine. Looking at him makes my heart happy!

It's Giveaway Time!

My AWEteam is having a Mother's Day Giveaway called "The Five Days of Mother."
Entries are accepted now until April 23, 2010. No purchase necessary to win. Just read on:

Each day, starting Monday April 26 to Friday April 30, 2010, one person has a chance of winning prizes from participating AWEteam shops on Etsy! (mine included) It is possible for one person to win five prizes(one for each drawing) or for five different people to win one prize each.

Different ways to enter:

1. Make a purchase from a participating AWEteam shop now until April 23, 2010 and receive an automatic entry.

2. No purchase is necessary! Just leave a comment on http://stitchnstudio.blogspot.com/ with your contact information.

3. Mail a postcard to: Michele Delp P.O. Box 152 Mohnton, PA 19540 Be sure to include your name, email address, and Mailing address.

Again, all entries must be received by April 23, 2010. The daily winner will be chosen using Random.org. and will be notified by email!

I am offering a $15 Gift certificate for my Etsy shop, Honey Bee Crochet by SturmDM, but to see all the prizes, just click the link below:

StitchnStudio (5 Days of Mother)

Good luck!

My Powwow Experience

I had such an enjoyable time being a guest at the Cherokee Annual Spring Powwow in Saint George, Georgia. I made a couple of new friends. We exchanged e-mail addresses for sharing photos and I may see them in October, because I'm happy to say that I was invited back for their 30th Anniversary Powwow on October 7th, 8th and 9th, 2010. The property belongs to the Cherokees of Georgia, but other tribal members participated in this event as well.

Everyone was so friendly and generous. It was like one big family reunion. When we arrived, our friend had already set up our tents (we each had our own) and I felt so safe that I would not hesitate camping there by myself. They patroled the area throughout the night walking through the camps and making sure everyone was safe and sound snoozing in their tents. There was no shouting, fighting, breaking of glass bottles or any rowdiness causing people to feel alarmed, only good times and smiling faces. The campground had both motorhomes and tents and the campfires burned pretty much all night. When I was in my tent preparing to fall asleep, I could hear crackling fires and people talking amongst themselves. It was a very comforting and secure feeling. The camp smelled of sage and insense and they provided three squares at the snack shop during the powwow, so we didn't even need to bring any food. There were several raffles and one midnight auction on Saturday night to help raise funds for these events. I won two smaller prizes and chose this picture, plus another similar looking one that I gave to my neighbor yesterday for looking after my pets.

I purchased a lovely necklace that was made by a lady who is a member of the Seminole tribe. (pictured below left with my friend who invited us.)  The necklace is made from all natural materials, such as bone, silver and turquoise. See the small pink birds on there? I like that it's long enough to slip over my head and no clasp to deal with.

The festivities started out with the ceremonial recognition of the Indian war veterans and soldiers (past and present) followed by prayer and blessing of the sacred circle and the drum.

There was singing, dancing, story telling and very harmonious flute playing. These flutes were made of different hard wood and sweet grass root. I learned how the Indians cultivated corn from native plants. I also learned that besides horses and the measles (and other diseases) the first three things the Europeans braught to America that changed the land and thereby the Indians' lifestyle was:

1.) The honey bee. The honey bee is an indiscriminate pollinator, causing shrubs and underbrush to grow in the forests that were otherwise open and free of tangles and grasses for hunting and running after prey (remember, the Indians did not have horses till the Spaniards brought them over.)

2.) Tobacco and with it the earthworm. The earthworm aerates the soil causing it to change and alter its previous consistancy.

3.) The wild boar - that ate the indigenous roots that the Indians could survive on for weeks - even months, if the hunting was bad.

I learned that the poeple called "grass dancers" were Indians that danced on top of the grass till it lay flat on the ground, because - obviously - they had no lawnmowers and cutting it by hand would have taken too long.

Lastly, I learned that I CAN sleep on my side and on my stomach... in a tent!

I was fascinated with the flamboyant costumes with feathers and bells and the women's beautiful dresses and shawls with the long fringe.

It was interesting to see the various styles of dancing. There was spinning and hopping, swaying and skipping all to the beat of the drum. I especially enjoyed watching the little ones dance to the rhytm of the beating drum, like the young boy on the right.

Here's a another close up of him taking his dancing very seriously and I think he did a wonderful job. I was very impressed.

You could see faces reflecting various Nationalities, like Europe, Africa and America - these were folks from all walks of life. I even saw red heads, but they all must have had some Indian lineage in their ancestry.

This was an especially impressive costume. I was almost afraid of him.

There were vendor booths with all sorts of arts and crafts for sale, including face painting and flute playing lessons.

I also purchased a bag of herbal tea that is geared towards my health issues and I'm going to give that a try. Again, it was a wonderful experience and I'm so glad to have been invited back in October.

I have to confess that I wimped out and spent part of the night on Friday and all of Saturday night in the car. I got cold and could not get comfortable in the tent, but I will be better prepared next time with a sleeping bag and an air mattress. (Wouldn't you know I sold mine just a few months ago thinking I'll never go camping again?)

Here's a photo of the nice vest I got for a mere $3. It was previously owned, but I love the design and enjoy wearing it.

Until next time.

Wadu (everyone said that after a prayer or at the end of a statement. I was told it means: "so be it"!)

Thanks everyone

I really appreciate everyone voting for me out there in blog land ;-) ... I'm packing and preparing to leave on my camping trip to Saint George, GA (near the Okefenokee Swamp) ... I won't be blogging till Sunday night or even Monday morning, depending on how tired I am. I will bring back lots of photos to show from the Cherokee Annual Spring Powwow. My friend is so excited. We're going to sleep and snore in the same tent, unless I get too uncomfortable with these fake hips so that I may give up and sleep in the car ;-)

Keep on voting for me, if you can. Tell all your friends and family to vote too. Thanks for all the lovely compliments you've given me. I worked very hard on this doll and am kind of fond of her myself.

Bye for now,
Doris

p.s. My neighbor is going to watch over Gizzy and Middi for me. She'll probably let him hang out with her because she's watched him before and she has no pets, so he likes it there. He likes being the only one getting all the love and attention.