Dream Fabrics - Noone Can Choose Just One!

How could I possibly narrow a choice down to just one of these? And how can I justify buying more fabric when I already have several dresses still waiting to be made up? But I went "window shopping" at Sew Mama Sew last night and started drooling over these:

Yellow Sweater

I got a sweet email from the folks at Wallflower Vintage today, telling me where in my account info I could find the pic of the yellow sweater I purchased. Here it is! I'm hoping it will work with the yellow gingham dress, but even if it doesn't, I'll have other things I can wear it with!

It's got little flowers embroidered all over it...

I can't wait to play with these vintage pieces! Yay!

Christmas Came Early!

I just wrote a quick post about Thanksgiving a few hours ago, mentioning my gratitude for the love and support of our friends and family during this challenging autumn. While Alex was in the coma, I was consistently the beneficiary of acts of kindness at the hands of friends and strangers alike. I have been constantly amazed at the human capacity for kindness and generosity. The post before my Thanksgiving post was about an online vintage clothing store, Wallflower Vintage, whose collection is amazing.

When I sat down at my computer an hour ago and checked my email, I found that an anonymous benefactor had purchased a gift certificate from this store for me. I feel spoiled, lucky, and beholden to whomever sent me this lovely gift. Thank you, mystery friend. You are very sweet (and very wicked!) to support my vintage addiction. I already had a shopping list, so of course I immediately went online and went shopping. Here's what's coming to me in the mail:


This gingham dress is a little large for me, so I'll be able to take it in and make it fit me just the way I want it. Yay! Custom-fit vintage! I have fond childhood memories of my mom's yellow gingham dress; now I have my own! Yellow was my favorite color as a child, even though they said that blondes shouldn't wear yellow...I never have been good at following those fashion rules!


This lovely brown rayon will fit me immediately and will become an instant layering favorite, destined to be worn ASAP! I used to be all about black, but I'm discovering the virtues of brown. This will be a key piece in my brown wardrobe.

I also purchased a yellow lambswool cardigan, but I forgot to snag its photo before I processed the order, and it's already been taken off the site! I'll take some photos when it arrives.

Thank you to my anonymous gift giver, one of many who have stepped forward during this chapter of our lives. I am a lucky girl. I have a circle of incredible people who love and support me, 2 happy healthy kitties who purr on command, a healthy 12 year old stepdaughter with whom I have a great relationship, and a husband who survived and is thriving in his recovery. I am blessed.

Thanksgiving Week

We have lots to be grateful for this year, with Alex's miraculous survival and recovery, and the incredible love and support of our friends and family. Here (to start celebrating early are some vintage Thanksgiving images. Enjoy!

Virtual Shopping Trip - Wallflower Vintage

I've been scouring the dress department at Wallflower Vintage, checking out everything in my size. I've learned not to look at anything in smaller sizes...it just breaks my heart! (We really have gotten larger as a species; it's hard to find vintage dresses or patterns with a 38" bust.) I love the website, especially the way they use vintage wallpaper as the background for the dresses.

Here's what I found today:

Woven "Sailor" Dress

1950's Rayon Day Dress

Silk Shangtung Cocktail Dress

Cotton Plaid Day Dress

1950's Gingham Sundress

Late 60's Brocade Dress

1960's Brown Gingham Day Dress

Espresso Brown Nylon Dress

1950's Blue Chintz Floral

1940's Snowflake Print Dress

1930's Day Dress with Interesting Draping (see below)

Redecoration Dreams - Finishing Touches Before I've Even Begun!

I've had 4 large boxes of salvaged chrome green vintage bathroom tile sitting in my neighbor's shed for years now. Someday I'm going to supplement it with some lovely white and black tile, and redo our yucky downstairs bathroom, which is decorated in early plastic pre-fab shower stall...and it's not even white, it's that ugly "bisque" color. (Ugh.)

Here are two of my "inspiration" pics, pictures of other folks' renovations that I like:



It's fun to dream of how beautiful our room could become; once the tile is laid and the ugly dirty-looking fixtures are replaced with shiny white salvaged ones, I'll have a pretty, clean-looking room, but it will need some finishing touches. Today I had fun looking at reprints of vintage posters to decorate my future bathroom. I love old advertising posters...
















There isn't going to be much wall space, so I can only choose 2 or 3 of these, and they're going to have to be small prints. Which are your favorites?

Not Quite Normal...

Ok, quit the wisecracks... (Yes, you!)

After this odyssey into hospital-land and near-death experiences, our family is starting to settle into some kind of not-quite-normal routine. I'm going back to work next week, which should make life a little more "normal," and Alex will be home alone, just as if he were working in the studio, the difference being that he will be working on physical therapy exercises and resting.

The Girl is now able to be with us on a semi-regular schedule, the difference there being that her mom and step-dad are getting her to and from her hockey practices and games. Thank heavens for family!

Our fabulous friends Marc and Carol did our grocery shopping for us this week, going above and beyond by picking up some LOVELY things that weren't on the list we sent them. (The Kid says thanks for the olives! I say thanks for the Ghiradelli chocolate chips!) Where would we be without our friends? So many have stepped in to help, it's hard to list them all...

It's weird to think about leaving Alex alone, but I should trust that he's getting around better and that he is stronger than he was when he first left the hospital. I just feel so protective of him after everything that's happened; it's hard to relinquish the role of "Mama Bear" after having to watch over him in the hospital. Hopefully he'll remember to email me and let me know that he's ok while I'm at work!!!

It's all very strange to think that while I'm at work, Alex is at home, and the Girl is on a more normal schedule, things are not the same. They will never be the same. Our lives have been forever changed, in so many ways. To all our friends and family, thanks for taking this road with us.

November Neutrals

Now that the smoke has cleared and we're settling into a routine with Alex's recuperation, I actually have time to do FUN things on the computer! One of my favorite things to do is "shop" without spending money, and with the medical bills piling up, I'm going to have lots of opportunity to do just that! ;-)

Here are my picks for a versatile, elegant, neutrals-based wardrobe. I would mix-and-match these happily for months!

En Vogue Jacket from ModCloth

A Thousand Tiers Dress from Anthropologie

Stacked Smoke Heels from Anthropologie

Creature Comforts Cardigan from ModCloth

Iced Rosettes Clutch from Anthropologie

Ice Cape-ades Jacket from ModCloth

Recital Dress from ModCloth

Pleats-and-Thank-You Dress from ModCloth

Mod's-the-Word Dress from Anthropologie

Scarf-Tied Oxfords from Anthropologie

The Parlour Dress from ModCloth

Woodward Cardigan from ModCloth

Converging Roads Sweater Dress from Anthropologie


Three Days of Peace Shrug from ModCloth

Struthio Platforms from Anthropologie

Home Free

Alex is "home free" as we used to say in hide-n-seek. We've got a new railing on our tiny stairway, thanks to Steve; we have a rental "hospital recliner" on the way thanks to the Salmon/Sherrills; we've got a chauffeur for Alex's first acupuncture appointment on Monday; we've got my parents coming over for the day tomorrow. Whew. Four things down, a million to go...

It's interesting to look at your house from the perspective of someone who is differently-abled... Cat toys on the floor, spilled water, laundry baskets all become hazards. We've got some rearranging to do!

Thanks to everyone who helped us get to this day. As tired as we are, it's good to be home.

Almost Free

Alex is being released from the hospital this Friday morning. We never thought we'd see this day! He has lots of physical therapy ahead of him, but he's doing so incredibly well. We're both busy with all the arrangements that need to be made, all the paperwork, etc., but it's such a wonderful feeling to know we're leaving the hospital!! Thank you to all of you for all of your support so far. It's been a long journey, and it's not over yet!

Once Again, No News is Good News

Alex is now able to shower without help, walks with a walker, and has a laptop so he can write his own blog posts!!! Yay!!!

I'm watching back episodes of "Dancing With the Stars" and snuggling my kitties. Life is good, but will be better when my boy is home...

Tubeless!

They pulled the trach tube today! Woo hoo!! No more choking!

And the PT team thinks he could be totally independent, able to move and live without any kinds of aids, in 2 weeks. That's my boy!

Alex managed a short post to his blog using the iPod Touch my sister and her hubby gave him, which I think is commendable. I can't type on the damn thing, and there's nothing wrong with my muscles! He may not post again until we get a lap top in his room. If you want to check his blog, look at the link in my sidebar.

Sorry this isn't much of a post but I am completely exhausted and am about to go to bed. Yes, at 7:20pm. That's how tired I am.

Burnin' Up the Track

Alex beat and 80 year old in a wheelchair race today.

He passed him at the garbage cans.

Now, before you call him a bully, you must understand that his opponent had only had a hip replacement, and had not been at death's door for any part of his hospitalization. Alex was definitely the underdog in the situation.

Just to give you an idea of where he's at: he walked (with a walker) unassisted by human hands from his chair in his room to the parallel bars in the PT gymnasium, 2 doors away from his room. His PT just about flipped.

He also successfully negotiated going up and down some 4" steps on his second attempt. You're not supposed to be able to do any of these things so soon after getting into the PT unit. I'm not sure how much help he's going to need once we get him home....we'll see!

A Touch of Bursitis

The shoulder xray shows a touch of bursitis in Alex's right shoulder, which apparently can happen when someone's gone without using a joint and suddenly starts using it again. Nothing some ice can't handle, but he's taking it a little easy on the wheelchair acrobatics for now. (i.e. no wheelies)

We took him for a spin up to the ICU so he could meet some of the people who took such good care of him while he was unconscious. I thought Dr. H. was going to burst into tears, he was that happy! Some of the nurses who had him most often were there, and everyone was duly impressed with his progress. Then we went to Short Stay Surgical, but there weren't many nurses around, so we went outside and caught some rays!

I fell asleep on Alex's bed in the middle of the day again. The staff at the rehab have seen me do that more than once; they're seeing me at the tale end of this crazy time so I'm not exactly at my most energetic. One of the nurses asked if I do anything but sleep! ;-)

Either tomorrow or Tuesday they are going to take the trach out and let that hole in his neck heal up. There are whispers that he may be out of rehab and back at home in as little as 2 weeks! Alex continues to get stronger every day, so it wouldn't surprise me.

I'm planning on going in to work 1/2 time tomorrow, and I can't stay awake, so I'm off to bed again. Apologies to anyone I haven't called today...this was all I had energy for...

A Day of Rest

Yesterday was a big day of activity and improvements; today was a day of recuperation. Alex was very sore from all the "stands" he did yesterday, and had to have extra pain meds to sleep last night and to stay comfortable today. That being said, he still had a shower, some PT, and a trip to get his chest and shoulder xrayed today, for a total of 10 "stands". He was pretty whupped by early evening today.

He saw Carol and Marc, Leah and Aurora, Lydia, Cheryl, Rachel and Garrel, and Mom and I today. Whew! (Did I miss anybody?) Thanks to everyone who came, and for all the goodies and flowers. Alex loves having company. Apologies for his need to cut some visits short today; as I said, it was a long day.

Tomorrow the massage therapist will be working with Alex from 6 until about 7:30, so you may want to plan your visit accordingly. Earlier in the day tends to be an easier time for visits for him, anyway.

Today we received an anonymous donation through "Giving Anonymous." Many thanks to our mystery donor. We appreciate the "band-aid money"! So many people have been so kind and generous. It's somewhat overwhelming, trying to find a way to express our gratitude. Thank you for all the gifts of food, most recently a HUMUNGOUS pot of homemade chicken soup from Darlene and Don. YUM!

I still can't get our @#$%ing laptop to connect to the wireless network in the hospital. I've had a few friends play with it, and we can't seem to reproduce whatever my techie friend managed to do to get it to work at Cornell. So bear with us; when we get it going, you may start to see posts from Alex on his blog!