A Season of Sadness

It has been a difficult time since I last posted.  It began with a very distraught phone call from my younger SIL who had just discovered my FIL lying dead on the floor of his house.  He should have been in assisted living but he just couldn't bear to be parted from his house.  Bob was felled by a massive coronary attack, and we are much relieved to know he did not suffer.

My DH flew home to Iowa two days after the news, and after much thought the kids and I followed to be there for the funeral.  Our main reason for doing this was that my MIL is still alive and this would probably be the last time she got to see the kids.  It was a mad dash - we flew over on a Thursday, and departed again Sunday morning.  The funeral was very touching and my FIL who served his country well during his 20 year military career that included three tours in Vietnam, was buried with full military honors.

DH is the executor of his father's estate, and anyone who has done this can attest to the incredible amount of work involved.  As my DH is working through all the paperwork, it has come to light that the older SIL has been siphoning off my MIL's money over the last year and a half.  At the time of my FIL's death my MIL's account had been drained down to $3.00 in savings and the checking account was completely empty.  Four days after my FIL passed she withdrew thousands out of my FIL's account.  My husband got his mother to revoke her power of attorney, and put a new one in place so he could take over the finances.  It would have been great if it had ended there, but the older SIL has gotten my MIL to reinstate her as a user of the bank accounts and the money drain continues at an unprecedented rate.  We have spoken to the bank, we have called an attorney, we have transferred money out of the account to a non-local bank, but since there is a cap on how much we can transfer a good portion of the money remains accessible.   It has been so stressful, and has given us no time to grieve the passing of Rob's dad.

On a happier note, on our return flight, we had a 3 hour layover in Dallas, and the kids and I each got to see our dear friends for a quick lunch.  I was so happy to see my stitching buddies.  Thank you Michelle,  for finding a nearby restaurant with great BBQ to satisfy my craving.   I was a bit of a nervous wreck, since we all scattered in different directions.  The kids proved themselves trustworthy and everyone made it back for our international flight on time.  It was a bit crazy though.    

Not much has happened on the stitching front, currently I tend to sit and stare at my stitching more than actually doing  it.

I did finish a little something for my younger SIL who loves snowmen and I thought this would be the perfect gift for her.

Shepherd's Bush - Warm Hearts

HallowEden is making very slow progress, but if a timelapse camera was used daily progress would be evident.

ATS saw some action this weekend as well.  I have reached the bottom of page 1 on the right side.  I'll be working my way across the page to the left.

I also was a very lucky recipient of one of Merumo's needlebooks - how pretty is that?  Thank you Merumo, I will put it to good use.

Tomorrow, my DH and I leave for Normandy for a quick 3 day business trip.  We will get to spend a long afternoon in Paris ( we take the train from here to Paris, take a rental car out to Normandy, and then take the train from Paris back home).  I am planning to take in an exhibit about the Romanov family and their art, and stop by Des fils et une Aiguille.   Then again I might chuck that plan and hit the flea market!  I will probably be looking more than shopping, since the Dollar has totally tanked.  But it will be fun anyways.

Until next time, hopefully on a happier note.

Sylvia