Gourds Will Be Gourds Even When The Vine Dies

   Well our little lonely Rogue Gourd Plant has really produced very well.this summer (it was never planted just grew from a dropped seed ! )  

As you can see they have once again gone way beyond looking like it's just one plant and it has produced very large long neck bottles and one long neck gourd. So I do believe at some point and time it may have cross germinated from other seeds on the ground or .....

The feelers/runners that come off the plants and gives them the strong support system wrap themselves around anything it can grab onto  and unless you cut them off they stay year after year long after you've pulled all the dead vines off....

Of course  our dog Kaiden checking  them out hummm....

Tis the end of the growing season and all of the vines are dying off  and soon it will reveal just how many gourds we do have  .We think there are 5 or 6 big ones ! That's OK with us for not even planting any seeds  again this year. Actually 7 total I was sitting outside and looked over and there was the biggest one of them all hidden behind the bushes ! Not to see how thick they are when they dry if they are to thin they will just sink in and rot !  If they dry good then it will be time to put our thinking caps on and figure out what they will become !

Well now as you can see the vines are all dieing off and the bushes look terrible!  But not to worry as soon as we pull off the dead vines the bushes will be back to normal  !


I guess we will have to wait until next spring to see if maybe just Maybe another gourd vine shows up !!

                           
Thanks for stopping by and reading our blog we hope you enjoyed your visit ! Next post seens from the Arts & Crafts Festival in Bell Buckle Tennessee

                                                   Until Next Time !


                                                            

R C COLA & MOON PIE FESTIVAL - BELL BUCKLE TENNESSEE

   Every year in June ( this year the  20th ) the small country town of Bell Buckle Tennessee has an old time  festival honoring the RC Cola and Moon Pies ! We've been living here 9 years and never been over to Bell Buckle for the RC Cola & Moon Pie Festival, been to Bell Buckle many times for the Huge Webb School & town Craft Festival.They also have many A Old Antique stores.

This Mural is on the side of Big Smos Shop

We had a nice time for  this being our first time to the RC Festival and it was packed with people, We didn't know that so many knew of  it but they came from all over just like they do for the Webb Craft Festival in October.

There were lots of vendors spread through out the town and the park and the shops were packed that you had to wait awhile to get inside  (the  shops downtown are like in the old west where the are set all together in a roe and under a continuous porch kinda like a strip mall ).

The front of the shops in Bell Buckle

these are the line of shops downtown

Big Smo  Shop

Big Smo has a shop at the end of the beginning of the shops downtown and he has many visitors and fans that show up on his door steps!

Take your picture inside a Moon Pie !

For a small Southern Tennessee town Bell Buckle has a lot going on most of the time ! There is like four Festivals a year like Summer ,Spring, Fall & Winter, It's such a Unique little town with a lot of old time character and charm. With a number  of Antique stores, a Great restaurant . an old time Ice Cream Parlor & many other small shop   and don't forget Big Smo !!  So if you ever make it to Middle  Tennessee makes special trip to Bell Buckle you won't be disappointed !! But if you come visit around the middle of October come look us up at the Webb School / Maple Street / Town Craft Festival....

                                                          Until the next time !!

                                                                              &;

" Cancer " By The Grace Of God & Prayer

This past February Our lives changed drastically as some of you might know.  My husband of  27 years  is a Volunteer Fireman  and  Union Carpenter a very hard worker and nothimg stops him ,he makes the money to support his family.

 ,He didn't like when I did go to work but it ended up being when he was laid off . Now I myself have a  medical issues  and cant work, still waiting myself for SS..  But  while at work in Gallitin Tennessee he collapsed , We live 80 miles away in Murfreesboro, I received a phone call about 5.45 a.m. from his work saying John had collapsed and was taken by Life Support Ambulance to Sumner Hospital in Gallitin, I was in a panic he had my van because his truck was broke down .I was in a panic trying to figure out how to get to the hospital,. One of the carpenters from my husband Job said if I couldn't find one he would come get me. It wasn't until I called my sister Sandy  that I realized  I had driven her car home the night before * she had come over earlier and picked me up at my house ) because she wasn't feeling well .
So I took off and  headed to her house.

When we got there we were escorted to a small waiting room where his union steward and a  safety officer from the plant were waiting for us. The nurse came out and got me and brought me back to the CAT scan room and then a little room off to the side where there were two doctors and a big window where I could see John and his xrays. The doctor showed me where all the blood clots were about 12 of them, one big one in his leg but most in his groin. He told me he didn't know if they could save his right leg and couldn't believe the mess  in his groin from a  surgery he had to have  about 20 years ago in Michigan  when he was in a car accident and the steering wheel crushed his iliac artery in his groin & they had to put in a iliac bypass. Into surgery they took him ,He was in surgery about 7 hours, the doctor came out and said they were able to save his leg but had to cut it open on both side to allow for blood flow and had to put a new  iliac bypass in.He had told us that the other bypass had completely rotted and was held on by one thread,he had NO idea how John was able to survive this long without loosing his leg from no blood flow.The doctor also wasn't sure where the blood clots were coming from in the first place .He was in the hospital about a week. The doctor said that he was off of work for 6 weeks but in the mean time he had sent John to get another CAT scan to make sure that there were No more clots going on . 
  So about 2 weeks after surgery we returned to the doctors where he sent us to get a CAT scan done and the next day they called us and told us they need to talk to us about the CAT scan. So back up to Gallatin we went, when the doctor came in he said " well still not sure where the clots were coming from but looks like it may have been from that iliac bypass but through the CAT scan we found  a 3/4 in spot on your upper left lung and 2 small dots in your right lower  lung " He told us that he wanted John to get a PET scan ( it's a scan with a dye that will light up showing activity if the tumor is believed to be cancerous ) a long day .
  Then a couple days after the test we were called back in to the doctors office  this time in Hendersonville Tennessee to find out the results and yes it was said to be cancer and he gave us the options .  My husbands best options was to choose surgery there a biopsy would be done to see if it is malignant and if so the protocol is to take 1/2 his lung..So before they scheduled surgery he had to go for another CAT scan and a lung capacity test..Then another doctors appointment to schedule surgery which we were told would last 3 hours , On June 2, 2015  in Hendersonville he had  his lung surgery. My sister Sandy and her husband Bill stayed with me all day, if it weren't for them being there with me I think I would have fallen apart especially after the surgery lasted 7 1/2 hours.

 Yes it was cancer ! The word hit me hard ! Not knowing what was going to happen next  ! Of course John never expected it to be Cancer ! How was I going to tell him  that they took half his left upper lung .when I saw him I cried 
I had to tell him , he cried and keeped saying he was  " so very sorry..."  I said " Oh NO no it's not your fault.Stop stop " 
     At Hendersonville Hospital you ( the spouse or anybody ) are Not allowed to stay the night in the Critical Care Unit but you can stay in the waiting room which was crowded many staying , so since I had no money to get a motel room and to far for me to drive home I slept in the car,until he was moved to a normal room, luckily the next night !

My husband was in the hospital for a week and then we had to go back  to Hendersonville 2 weeks later  for an ultra sound then set an appointment for an oncologist  thank goodness here in our town on July 2 nd.. the doctor came in an said " Wow you've been through a lot in the last five months , saved your life ! He said normal protocol is to give chemo & radiation but studies show it can be worse  it just weakens the body " so in 6 months  john goes back for a CAT scan and make sure the left lung is clear and to keep check on the 2 spots on his lower right So PLEASE Pray all will be good !

All his doctors say he can go back to work but they are not sure he will be able to do the same work he does, he will have to adjust to a new way of breathing and after 2 major surgeries and 5 months off work. He is just waiting for that  phone call any day !!,  John said he needs to see what he can and can't do , his job requires alot of climbing , extreme heat & humidity & long hours , he works at Nuc , Gas, Steam, Plants, scaffeling or form building. 

 While sitting in the waiting room at the oncologist I was listening to some of the conversations. On my right was a older couple & a son I'd say in his 40's the dad was saying to his son  " you know I have taught you all you know about everything & the band but promise me I just want to get up there and play one more time !  
  On our left was 4 older folks that were talking about how you gotta do what you have to do to survive one had to quit  his job he just couldn't do it anymore he had to get on Social Security just to try to live ! The other gentleman said he was down to a couple of hours a week but needed the money, Social Security is so hard to get on you have to wait so long.
  
 By that time you just about lose everything you've ever worked for ! 

Yes my husband can return back to work and hopefully he can continue to work but  I don't know how anybody especially senior citizens can survive the cost of Cancer or there for any devastating medical issues.

 We had already used all our savings as my husband had not been to work since February and now it's July 10th . We had to do a "forbearance" on the house and it gave us  until July 31,& they call almost every 2 weeks  to see if John is back to work yet .Well as you can see as of right now no  nothing and we pray every day that John gets called back to work  .But even then yes  money will start coming in.  With  4 months house payments and bills for the 2 major surgeries  ,ambulance  & the , first one being a Emergency surgery , ICU for the first  & Critical Care Unit for the Lung surgery,, there are 2 or 3 bills every day  46 thousand  on just one  & .on & on  in fact had our first collector call today .

It was only by " The Grace Of God " & Yes the  Blood clots  & CAT scan that the Lung Cancer was found  !

It was suggested to me to set up a GO Fun Me page to help us with saving our house and to help with all the medical bills .
We have never asked for Help but with All that has happened  to us this year ., we can't see how we will ever be able to save our house !  
If there is anyway you can Help Us or anyone else who is going through such a situation PLEASE do even a Prayer will help !


 



Thank You  & May God Bless,

Cheryl  &  John

My Shabby Lane Visit - Come With Me !!

My New Projects Camo Puff Quilt On The Back Of Chair 

Off to Shabby Lane we go.....My sister Sandy decided to take a ride with me over to Shabby Lane in Nolensville  Tennessee as you know I think that its a shop that has many talented crafters , artists, jewelry artists & seamstresses . Which is where I have my things.
If you take a good look at the pictures I have posted here you can see all the amazing items and there is something for everyone !

The Pink  Baby Puff Quilt & Purple Puff Quilt 

Even though  I do a lot of painting on gourds, glass and furniture I also sew.  I decided to take my newly made Puff Quilts over to Shabby Lane in Nolensville ..

 So for those of you who haven't been able to make it over to Shabby Lane yet I thought I would give you another look around . Every time I go I am amazed by how many more new items have ! 

Inside  the Curio Cabinet are my hand painted coffee mugs and  some of  my painted glasses that are also for sale.

Here's one of my painted birdhouse gourds at the shop

My sister Sandy 

My sister Sandy is quite the seamstress  ! She also  loves to knit. I am not a knitter, I can crochet !   She usually goes with me over to Shabby Lane ( we LOVE hanging around together ) She talked to them about maybe bringing her items over to the shop this fall to sell.

I started painting on mirrors and  in the picture above sitting in the chair is one of the Sunflower mirrors I have painted and are for sale at Shabby Lane . The frame's are also handmade by my husband  and with this one I have painted the frame black then added small leaves trailing around the corners of the frame. These would be GREAT  gifts ! Below is a frame painted blue with blue flowers and a dragonfly and in the next picture is another mirror that is pink flowers with a white frame and all have the small leaves around the corners.

Yes there is also lots of cloths !  Many stylish and cute children's clothing ! Rachael makes the cutest little  Tutu's , pillowcase dresses  and ruffled  outfits .

The pink mirror

There is also a lot of women's clothing, from pajamas, to casual wear, play time clots and yes even fancy party dud's !
Lot's of boots, shoes and jewelry and how about a hat to top off All the new cloths your going to buy !









I'm really happy that y'all decided to come with me to Shabby Lane in Nolensville TN to take a look around and maybe you just might have  seen something that you might want to buy for yourself or maybe a present for someone . Hopefully you can take the Beautiful drive over to the shop but if  not you can shop online  and have it shipped to your house !

                                                                 Until The Next Time ( hopefully sooner than later )