MIA and Farewell to a Friend

Hallo Friends!  I know I have been M.I.A. over the last week. Sorry to say it has been for a rather sad reason  and one I would rather have done without. Remember me telling you about celebrating my girlfriend M's birthday last monday? Well, to everyone's great shock, M. had a massive stroke on Tuesday and passed away on Saturday. Her funeral was on Tuesday. As you can imagine, it has been a very long week with her being in the hospital and than the after. I still can't believe that I have lost one of my Best Friends in Life and it is sinking in slowly. It also makes you realize that you have to treasure each moment you have with loved ones and those close to you. We have to make each moment count for something and try to laugh as much as possible. Those are the moments we remember the most.

Good Bye my very Special Friend M. You will always be Loved and so very much Missed!

It has now been decided, that her husband and I will continue her company and make the river runs from now on. We had one on monday, even so it was a short one. I would like to share a couple of pictures with you here. The first one is from the old bridge that goes across the Mississippi from Memphis to Arkansas. I just love the old steel bridges. 

The second one is of a barge going north towards Illinois. It always amazes me how much cargo these barges push up and down the river. It is harder to push a barge north, as it is against the flow of water and can take triple the time it takes to go south. It also amazes me, how the pilots of these barges stir these large bodies of a barge around small and tight bends. 

This is our cat named MARMELADE. Isn't that just a funny name for a cat? Over the last few days she has been known to terrorize all the dogs in the house, by jumping on their backs, swiping at them from under furniture and just plain chasing them throughout the house. The dogs are getting a bit fed up with her. Personally I think she has Spring Fever, like the rest of us.

This is LULU, the Bulldog. Isn't she cute? I always say, she has one of those faces only a Mama could love. She looks like she is smiling in this picture. She is a very sturdy dog and not really liteweight, but she always wants to sit in your lap. You just gotta love her.

As the weather was really nice yesterday and so wonderfully sunny, I decided to take a small drive by myself around the area I used to live. Since coming back to Mississippi I hadn't had a chance with all the other stuff going on. I am so glad I did. Not only to see and remember everything, but it also gave me time to take a deep breath and relax for a while. Very much needed. Things have changed quite a bit around here in the last five years that I was gone, but so much has also stayed the same. It feels good coming home.

This is the little country store I used to help out at right across the street from my former house in the country. Except the cooler they built on, it has not changed at all. After all these years it is still the same people going in and out as back than. There is something rather nice about the familiar surroundings. The next pictures shows you a pond on which I have caught many a fish over the years. Looking forward to doing some of that again in the near future.

The next picture is of a tree I just absolutely love. Those big roots amaze me. I have spend many a sunny day under the tree reading a good book or just enjoying a sunny day in the shade.

As for crafting, I must admit, not much has been happening. I guess so much is going on here every day, that I have not found that quiet moment yet in which to relax and sit back and getting back to the business of crafting. I keep telling myself it will come and I am sure it will, but the moment has not come as of yet. I decided not to pressure myself on this and just to take it one day at a time and than it will come by itself, as it has always in the past.

Before I go for today, I thought I would share two pictures of a rare white moose with you, that a friend send me yesterday. They couldn't believe their eyes when they saw it and luckily had a camera on hand to take these pictures.

Are they not amazing? Such Beauty!

For today I bit you all farewell I we will talk to each other again soon. Have a wonderful and sunny day and most of all enjoy Life!