The Ultimate DIY – Saying Goodbye to Your Mom
I was doing the ultimate DIY sitting alone in a hospital room tending to my mom who had a major stroke that morning. I’d already been through losing a father (30 years ago when I was 26) and then was dealing with a part of life no one wants – watching a mother decline and trying to figure out how to make her as comfortable as possible, manage all the family’s read more…
Dresser Turned TV Stand – Building Family Memories
I delivered my Dresser Turned TV Stand project while sitting in the hospital waiting room. My daughter and SIL were covering, sitting next to G’ma watching over her. It seemed so nostalgic to me to tell you about this project. Making memories is the beginning of a foundation that you will draw on in difficult times. You need to hold onto your “normal” life while read more…
This Christmas season was different for our family. We were a family in crisis. There were no chestnuts roasting on our open fire. Normally I would have been writing a post about our Christmas Home Tour complete with staged pictures of my home in the middle of Christmas celebration. (Last year’s Christmas Home Tour) It’s what we do as DIY bloggers. We decorate and then share it. I had it all planned. I did manage to read more…
Mother-in-law Apartment Reveal
This was graduation day for my mom. She stepped through the gates of heaven at 12:23 on December 23, 2014. I thought it fitting that on this day, on my DIY blog, that I shared with you the before and after pictures of her apartment. We bought our quad level home after nearly 2 years of searching for a home in the country with a yard for our grandkids and a MIL apartment for my mom. It was in rough shape, but we knew we could read more…
5 Ways to Survive a Loss – With No Regrets
The days sitting at the hospital and hospice house were past. The preparations to lay my mother to rest were done. We’ve had our friend and family get-togethers. My last child had left to go back home. We were back to work and life went on. When your world stops, everyone else’s keeps spinning. It’s hard to jump back on. Eventually we all are faced with the question, “What do I do now?” Read more…
Life After Loss – Is Closure Possible?
Is Closure Necessary? When you’re charged with carrying out someone’s wishes, sometimes you need to throw tradition out the window. My last DIY for my mom was to throw a Pepper Party and lay her to rest in a way contrary to tradition. My mom had always told me that when it was her time to go, to…dig a hole out back and bury her in a pine box. It was the family joke. We found a way read more…
12 Ways to Support a Failing Parent
It’s Coming – Get Prepared. {At the end is a free Psalm 91 Word Art.} Most will experience one or more parent’s decline in health, whether it be mental, physical or both. You can’t be 100% prepared, but perhaps my 12 tips borne from personal experience can help make your journey easier. When it comes your turn, I hope you will read more…
The Pepper Party – A {DIY} Non-Traditional Funeral
The Pepper Party – a Funeral Alternative: Pepper Party: pep·per /ˈpepər/ par·ty /ˈpärdē/ n. 1. a. A ceremony or group of ceremonies held in honor of Pepper, a mom, grams, and meemaw. A non-funeral in celebration of life for the benefit of those left behind. Be a rebel with a cause – do things your way, do it yourself and thumb your nose at tradition – change the rules for your family. Sometimes DIYing is the best way to care for your family. Let me show you read more…
How long should grief last? It’s been 243 days. Should I be moving on by now? Is the past in the past? For those of you who will be experiencing grief in the future, or those of you in the throes of grief let me encourage you. Don’t put it off. Don’t avoid it. Don’t wish it away. Read more…