I wore my new hand brace last night.  When I woke up, the thumb wasn't numb!  So I'm wearing it today while gardening.  The verdict is still out on that one - I get some shooting pains, but maybe they'd be worse without the brace.

Pictures:

Some different shots of my spring garden.

This is a Jack Frost Brunnera.  Notice the tiny little blue flowers, much like forget me nots.  But the leaves on the Jack Frost are wonderful all season long.

Solomon seal in bloom.  Delicate little white flowers all along the stem.

These are both shade lovers.

Jacob's ladder.  This was variegated last year when I bought it, but lost the variegation.  It's still pretty though.  Sun.

Azalea.  Also sun.  As you can see the iris are all about ready to pop open!

This jabobs lader is still variegated.  It's next to a neon Euphorbia.

And finally, an almost blooming allium.  It's in front of a pot full of pansies, which are no longer there.  I planted my summer annuals in pots this morning. 

I'm way behind in book reviews.  This one is so good I recommended it to be one of the books we read next year for book club.  Set in modern day Pakistan so you get some culture as you read!  It's a different kind of love story.  Not trashy.  Classic.

This is just a quickie for the morning.  I'll post garden pictures later.

Please pray for my friend ladycarolina

She is recovering from a heart attack.  She could use all our prayers.

Michelle is facing up to the idea that this baby is not coming early;  he just may decide to stay inside mom forever.  GRRR.  On the one hand, we are all anxious for Kaden to come, on the other hand, some of us realize that life will never be this simple again.

New hand issue that I need to call the dr on.  Now my left wrist has developed a painful growth on the side.  I have the call the doctor right at 9.  I don't think I can get a brace fitted with the wrist like it is.  I'm just falling apart.

We visited the er yet again this weekend.  Michelle was dizzy and seeing double.  So, after calling the doc and being told to go, they took her blood pressure and it was fine.  No other labor signs, so we were sent home after the obligatory two hour time.  One of these times we are going to leave with a baby!

I have book club this morning.  We're going to discuss Wicked.  Should be a good discussion.  The book asks the question, "What does it mean to be Wicked?"  It's very good.

The thumb seems to be a ligament/tendon kind of thing.  He uses really big doctor words and they don't always compute.  But, bottom line, it probably all started back in my harp playing days and now I have to get a brace.  So on Monday afternoon I'll get fitted for that. 

Michelle and Sam headed off to Napanee for the night - seems she wants to spend some quality time with his mom tomorrow.  Ok.  They took two cars in case she has to drive herself to the hospital while he's at work.  All rightie then.

I'm subbing math again.  Got a bunch more jobs lined up while I was there today.  Teachers have to get their personal days in before they lose them.

This book is for kids, but I enjoyed it.  I read it last week while I was subbing at the alternative school.  Finished the book I brought with me, so found this on the shelf and thoroughly enjoyed it.  I'd like to read all the past yearly winners of the major childrens book awards.

Just a quickie.  No baby yet.  We saw the doctor yesterday and no change from last week.  The doctor wants her to go early too - she's got a wedding in DC over the due date weekend!  I told her she won't have it now until May 20 and she got really mad at me.  Could happen.  Probably won't.

I see the hand doctors this morning - all four of them as a group consult.  I pray they can figure out why my thumb has been numb since January.  Then I'm meeting a friend for breakfast, then subbing at Penn.  They have a late start day today so it all works out well.

Ken is home for the day - got in last night, will leave tonight.  He's done with his junior year.  Amazing.  He's taking a senior seminar for May term for the next three weeks, then he'll leave for Camp Manitoqua and be a camp counselor for the summer.  He's ripping those apron strings and their almost separated now!

The latest alphabet mystery is extremely well done.  Don't miss it.

We've made it through another week.  Two to go until the due date.  We did spend time in the hospital on Saturday, but they sent us home.  This time with 2 monitor belts, which she has packed in her luggage for the next try.  One of these days......

I spent all yesterday afternoon in the garden.  Sheer bliss.  I planted the perennials that I had purchased.  I haven't planted the annuals yet.  Still a little early I'm afraid.  I really think the frost-free date has moved up, but I don't want to chance planting them in April!  I usually plant around mother's day, but I think I may be otherwise occupied that day!

We have a new project in our house (besides the baby).  Dave is going to install laminate flooring in the family room, just like he did in the dining room a year ago.  So we spent last week moving the furniture around to other rooms, then taking up the carpeting and the pad.  It doesn't sound like it should take all week, but it's all the stuff on top of the computer desks, and moving the computers and other equipment.  But the room is empty.  Dave had to pick out all the staples and now is sanding the floor to make it even.  He is a stickler, but his projects always turn out great.  I'm more slap and dash, so it's good that he's doing this and not me!

Let's see.  Read a few more books.  Which one to comment on?  Janis Harrison writes a mystery series based in a small Missouri river town.  The protagonist is a florist and manages to get herself entwined in all sorts of interesting entanglements.  I enjoy them. 

No baby yet.  I thought we had something going last night but the doctor even did a litmus test and it was negative.  So the wait goes on.

I took pictures of the yard tonight.  You want to see them right?

bleeding hearts and daffodils in the back

My neighbors tree

Some of my buys from the day at the nursery

Hanging baskets

purchases and existing stuff

Look at what grows in my garden!

I subbed today and again tomorrow.  Might as well, right?  I am feeling much better.  Thanks for all your encouraging words.

Still on baby watch.  Now at least she's taking walks which may help expedite matters.

Still suffering from this cold/allergy/sinus illness.  But I didn't succumb and spent the morning helping write bylaws for a garden club, then went shopping at Kohls for a bridal shower present.  While there I checked out the new mom sleepwear and found an adorable set - a nursing gown for mom with a matching sleep sac for baby.  Too cute not to get.  Plus she only has one nursing gown.  Gotta wash those things on occasion!  Then I had to check out the clearance rack in the baby department - they were running one of their frequent clearance sales - take 50% off the yellow tagged clearance price.  So I got some larger sized outfits for our boy.  After that it was time to meet the lunch bunch for Mexican food.  Yum.  I rested briefly when I got home, then it was time to tutor Tyler.  I served up the rest of the Easter lamb for dinner and then took a walk with Dave.  Then went to Bible Study Fellowship, but only stayed for the small group part.  I was tired!

Tomorrow I am taking a group of 17 ladies on an "off-the-beaten-track" trip to Vite Nursery in Niles, Michigan.  We're to get a guided tour.  We're going to lunch first, then the tour starts at 1.  Fun, fun, fun.  I hope to get most of the flats that I'll need for the season since I don't know when I'll be able to get back there with the baby arriving any day.

Good thing I know how to take it easy, right?

Some fun pictures of Sam playing with Barney.

Silly boys.

The baby's room (also Michelle's) is ready.

And the closet is full.

Most of the stuff is Michelle's but the baby gets 1/2 a rod!

Some sad news - two of Dave's post docs, who are married, had their apartment ruined in a fire on the south side of town over the weekend.  They are bunking with one of his other post docs, and can stay here too if need be.  They told Dave that the fire got way out of control even after the fire department was on the scene.  How sad.  I don't know if they had renter's insurance or not.  She is just about to start a new job in Chicago and they were planning to move to Michigan City, half way between their two jobs.  I hope they can salvage some of their belongings.  They are originally from Poland.  You hate for things like that to happen to anyone.  You hear about these things but it doesn't often happen to people you know.  Although, in our old neighborhood, we had two houses burn to the ground in the 18 years we lived there.  No one was hurt in either fire. 

Anyway, Val's book review of the day.  I picked up this book in the new book section of the library because it looked intriguing.  It really was.  There's a book that comes before it, which I haven't read.  I'll have to read that soon.  The library didn't have a copy on the shelf when I went on Monday.  Anyway.  It's a tale of life in a small Nebraska town.  There are problems and this man returns to save the town again.  It's got some good moral and ethical stands and some questionable ones.  But, over all, an entertaining read.  If you read it, tell me what you think!

Just came back from the doctor.  I'm now on amoxicillin and some old guaifenex - he told me it would be OK to take it, it wasn't that old.  He says they've been seeing a lot of illness the last few weeks, after a really calm winter.  Go figure.   Then after the exam we got to talking about the baby, the Amish, and then alternative fuels.  We always talk for at least 15 minutes when I go in there.  So now you know why your appointment is late - the doc is in an exam room chatting with a patient like me.  I think I make him laugh.

I'm reading Wicked for the next book club.  It's pretty cool.  I'm almost done with it.  See, when I get sick, I read.  Oh wait.  I read anyway.  But when I'm sick I can read a 400 page book in a day.  I didn't quite do that yesterday - I left about 100 pages to read today, but now I'm almost done.  I took some time out to sleep.  What's with that?  I mean in the afternoon, as well as at night.

I'm trying to decide if I should go to the play tonight or not.  I really want to, just don't know if I ought to.  As I told Dave, I'm feeling way better than the time I had to go see the Nutcracker with Michelle when I was falling over with Pneumonia (or something similar) and Dave couldn't take her and she had to go to fulfill a dance class requirement in high school.  If I could do it then, I could do this tonight.  It's not like I have to drive - Dave will do that! 

But, on the other hand, I really want to shake this quickly so I can be with Michelle when she delivers.  Oh me oh my, what to do, what to do!

Blessings for a great weekend.

No baby.  Yet.  The contractions were consistent for about an hour, then petered out.  We're hoping she can hold out past tomorrow night, when Dave and I are driving up to Hope to take Ken out to dinner and go see "Love's Labors Lost", the latest campus production.

Please check out the serial mystery over at doahsdeer.  I have jumped in again to help write it.

I've been tagged for this q&A:

Before I die, I want to......

1.  See my children happily established with homes and families of their own, happy in their lives and living and walking daily with Jesus.

2. Make sure that all my friends and family will be with me in glory.

3.  Visit Europe.  The parts of England that I didn't get to go to, plus France, Germany, Switzerland, Holland, Italy and especially, Slovakia, since that's where most of my ancestors came from.

4. Watch my grandchildren grow up and succeed in their chosen fields in life.

5.  Attend the ceremony when my husband wins the Nobel Prize in Chemistry.  (hey, I can dream, right!)

6.  Glorify God with how I spend each day.  This is my daily goal.

If I think of anything else, I'll add it.  Feel free to jump in and do this too. 

Breathing at night is something I'll try not to take for granted again.  I woke up in the middle of the night panicky because I couldn't catch a breath.  So when I woke up this morning my throat was totally sore from having my mouth open most of the night.  I hate colds.  I hope this goes away before I have to go to the hospital with Michelle!