Putting the FUN in DysFUNctional

Final Fragments

noreply@blogger.com (Cyndy Bush) — Fri, 26 Jul 2013 09:35:00 +0000

Unless something changes in the near future, this will be my last Friday Fragments post at this location!
I've set up a blog on Wordpress; leave a comment if you'd like to come visit there. I'm not trying to keep it private, I just don't want to link it here. It's quite easy to find.

I am SO tired of miserable people trying to make everyone else as miserable as they are. The saying "Misery loves company" is so true. I wish they would just live their miserable lives and leave me alone!

I had a really great week at work, and the grand finale was an excellent evaluation. It was my first eval at this job and it could not have been better! It makes all my hard work worthwhile.

On Thursday night my son came over, along with two friends, to visit with us and Wiz the Chinchilla. We had such a good time. Tim took some really funny pics of the chinchilla, but he hasn't sent them to met yet, so I'll have to share them over at the new bloggy home.

My mother-in-law bought Elayna her very own flute! Elayna was THRILLED. She started playing in her middle school band last year and really enjoys it.

My niece is due with Baby #2 on August 13th, but her doctor is expecting her to deliver literally any day. We're beyond excited!!! We all have plans to get together this Saturday for a chicken & dumpling dinner; maybe Baby Alexis will get so excited for the dumplings that she'll decide to make an appearance.

Today is Dusty's 18th Birthday! Feel free to order something from our Zazzle store - all proceeds go to Dusty!

I'll leave you with the funniest thing I saw on Facebook this week - enjoy!

And have a wonderful weekend!

In Which Blogger Has Totally Pissed Me Off.

noreply@blogger.com (Cyndy Bush) — Thu, 25 Jul 2013 15:08:00 +0000

My blog is going to disappear in two days.

Why? Because it's time to renew my domain name, and when I sign on to my Admin settings to renew it, I get an error message. It's a KNOWN bug, but Blogger isn't bothering to fix it.
(check out these forum posts about a 'newly identified bug' - and they are from MAY.)

I do not have the time, energy, or patience to fight with this. And while stressing about it a couple of weeks ago, I suddenly thought to myself, "Do I really care?"

And the answer was, no, no I really don't.

I think it's time for a change. My life has changed dramatically since I started this blog, and maybe it's time that my blog evolves with me.

I have already exported my blog to my computer so I won't lose it, and if I choose to, I can upload it to my new blog, wherever that might be.

But yeah. I think it's time to retire this one.

I'm not going to drive myself crazy trying to get the new blog up, but I will keep you posted. Most of you know how to find me (I'm on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter), and I'll still have the email address if you're interested.

puttingthefunindysfunctional(at)gmail(dot)com

This is not goodbye! It's see ya soon in another location. Oh and BLOGGER/Google Apps, you suck, you have lost a long standing loyal paying customer. Peace out.

The Snugg

noreply@blogger.com (Cyndy Bush) — Wed, 24 Jul 2013 14:52:00 +0000

A few weeks ago, I was contacted by a company called The Snugg. They sell cases/covers for iPhones, iPads, and other products. They offered me a case to review for an iPhone 5 or iPad.

Since my iPhone is a 4, I decided to choose an iPad case for my mother-in-law.

Also - because she's awesome.

I asked her what color she would like and she said royal blue. The closest they had was electric blue, but it's a very pretty shade. It came in very quickly and I was excited to give it to my MIL.

And she loves it! She likes the fit (she said her other one never seemed to fit quite right). She liked the way it protects all around the iPad; it feels more secure. She also appreciates the way it folds to stand in a sort of 'upright' position.

The material is genuine leather and she likes that as well.

The Snugg iPad cover was a big hit and my mother-in-law and I highly recommend The Snugg products!

My Simple Life - Friday Fragments

noreply@blogger.com (Cyndy Bush) — Fri, 19 Jul 2013 19:20:00 +0000

I worked in the yard for hours yesterday.
It has rained so much lately that we couldn't mow or anything else, it was way too wet. But finally it's dried up enough for us to get some work done. And we did. And now I am sore! I moved rocks like a weightlifter, push-mowed, and weeded, and I am old. And tired. But - the lawn looks great!

This dragonfly flitted around us all day as we worked.
Finally I held my hand out, and he let me hold him for a while.

Things grow so nicely here. My gardenia plant is already blooming, and gardenias can be difficult to grow. I got some Mexican petunia from a friend a few weeks ago, but I didn't plant it right away and it was looking kind of sad by the time I planted it (she just pulled some of hers up for me). But I planted it anyway and now it looks fantastic! My jasmine is climbing up the tree it's planted by and is literally as tall as me.
I am also starting a rock garden. I dug up rocks and found pieces of flint and shells. I think it's a good start.

Once it got dark, I made a fire in my fire pit, turned on my fairy lights, and kicked back with a cold beverage or three. I love my simple life.

I was talking to a friend of mine yesterday while driving down our dirt road. Her husband is in the ICU, very ill. While talking to her, I looked over my shoulder and saw this double rainbow.
It didn't rain here yesterday - at all.
I truly believe it was a sign and told my friend about it! I had chills. We decided it was a double rainbow so that there was one for each of us. Good things are coming!

I took this on our dirt road the other day for an Instagram photo prompt.
It was so pretty I wanted to share it here.

At the hospital where I work, there is a large duckpond.
So it's not unusual to encounter ducks while walking in or out.
It is unusual, however, to encounter ducks trying to walk INTO the hospital!
What a couple of quacks!

Visit Friday Fragments at it's Summer Home!

And have a wonderful weekend.

The Weekend

noreply@blogger.com (Cyndy Bush) — Mon, 15 Jul 2013 03:03:00 +0000

On Saturday, we had my niece Heather's Baby "Sprinkle".

(it's like a mini-shower.)

Sidenote: I totally dominate at shower games.

It's like my super-power.

Seriously. Ask anyone.

It turned out really great and we all had a great time!

Layna & Me

Shelbie & Me

Dusty & Shelbie
(I swear that boy will do anything for Shelbie!
Note the tiara)

That monkey cake was adorable!

We had a great spread of munchies.

As I've mentioned before, my kids ADORE Hayleigh.

Hayleigh & Elayna

Hayleigh & Shelbie

Hayleigh & Tim

Hayleigh has a totally-not-secret admirer.

These kids' parents are friends and they are very close in age.

He looooves her.

She mostly tolerates him.

She prefers cupcakes.

Sprinkled with gifts =)

Hayleigh helped clean up after her Mommy's shower.
Such a good girl.

These are my Mommies!

Left to right, my Mother-in-Law, my Mama, and my second Mother,

who I've known all of my life and spent half of my childhood at her home.

Her daughter is one of my lifelong best friends.

photobombed by a kid!

I was very happy that my mother-in-law came.

Also, Heather's dad surprised her by showing up -

he lives out of state and she had NO idea he was coming!

Now we're all ready for Baby Girl Number Two's arrival.

My son Tim spent the night with us on Saturday night. I cooked a big meal for everyone and we hung out and watched TV.

On Sunday, we went to church, then had lunch at Steak-and-Shake, then spent the rest of the day at my Mother-in-Law's pool. It was absolutely lovely. We had several hours of sunshine, and I floated around the pool in full relaxation mode. Aaahhh. Niiiice.

Hope y'all had a good one!

Poe Springs - Sunday in my City

noreply@blogger.com (Cyndy Bush) — Mon, 15 Jul 2013 00:42:00 +0000

On Friday, we went to Poe Springs.

We are so blessed to live near many beautiful natural springs.

The temperature of the water is 72 degrees year round. It's COLD. When it's overcast, I can't swim, because I can't warm up in the sun and I am miserable.

It's been overcast a lot this summer, but fortunately we got some sunny time on Friday and I was able to swim. Also, Elayna and I swam down to the river, which feels like a warm bath. The temperature difference is amazing; as soon as you reach the river the water is drastically warmer than the springs.

This was taken from a floating dock on the river.
The river is very brown due to an abundance of cypress trees.

Elayna said I take a picture of this hollowed tree
every time we go. She's probably right.

It's a long walk to the springs from the parking area,
which is a deterrent for some people.
Which is great for me. I don't mind the walk,
it's worth it, and that's less of a crowd at the springs.
Win/win!

Cypress trees and cypress knees.

More boardwalk. Pretty.

Marshy area on the walk to the springs.

Visit Unknown Mami for more Sundays in my City posts!

Frag Slacker

noreply@blogger.com (Cyndy Bush) — Fri, 12 Jul 2013 16:32:00 +0000

I have been a Fragment Slacker! But it's a good thing; we've been busy doing fun things on the past few Fridays. Today we are leaving in about an hour to go to the Springs, so I am sitting down for a few minutes to Frag!

My youngest daughter and my Mother-in-Law are peas in a pod. Mary Ellen is a teacher, Elayna wants to be a teacher when she grows up. They love learning and they're both smart. They're also both musical; Elayna plays the flute in her middle school band. Mary Ellen has played piano for many years. She plays for her church. She also sings. She is now giving Elayna piano lessons.

So this week, from Monday evening till Thursday morning, while I worked, Elayna hung out with her "Nana". They shopped, swam, ate, went to the movies, and went to Wild Waters with friends on Wednesday. Nana's dog ate Elayna's flip flop; Nana took her shopping and bought her two pair of flip flops and a dress. (I threatened to start feeding my shoes to the dog!) Mary Ellen has never had granddaughters, and she absolutely loves my girls!

We all went to Chili's for lunch yesterday and
shared a brownie sundae.
YUM!

Shelbie has been on a Church mission trip in Savannah, Georgia this week. I've been getting email and text updates. She will be back this evening, and I can't wait to hear all about it.

Tomorrow we'll be going to my niece's "Baby Sprinkle", a small shower since it's her second girl. Heather has boatloads of girl stuff but the two girls are 'seasonal opposites'; Hayleigh was born in February and this little girl is due in August. So we're just having a small sprinkle. It will be FUN!

Hope y'all had a great weekend and have a wonderful weekend!

Visit Friday Fragments over at Unknown Mami's place this summer.

SIMC ~ Florida Sunshine

noreply@blogger.com (Cyndy Bush) — Sun, 07 Jul 2013 10:19:00 +0000

This weekend has been pretty great. In a very, "I am a simple girl and it just does not take much to make me incredibly happy" kinda way.

I seriously cannot express how grateful I was for a BEAUTIFUL, sunny Saturday. I can't remember when we've had one last. Here in Florida. THE SUNSHINE STATE.

It is true that in order to see the rainbow, you have to withstand the rain. I thoroughly enjoyed this sunny day and soaked up the sun as much as I could. (I'm addicted to Vitamin D, I admit it.)

These beautiful wildflowers grow alongside our dirt road.

Finding Native American artifacts on your own property
is kinda awesome. We have found partial arrowheads
and tools like this one, and tons of flint.

Today I found this piece of bone.

On Saturday, hubby and I went to the Flea Market and bought fresh produce.

Then we went to the lake that I grew up on.

This is a trail by the lake.
The greenery looked like a beautiful living carpet.

When we reached the water's edge,
I took a deep breath,
and it smelled like home.

Huge snail on the shoreline.
I wanted to bring it home. Hubby said no.

Tim came over Thursday to take care of his chinchilla, Wiz.
I had to take a pic because he matched my sofa perfectly!
PS - I have no idea what he's doing in this pic.

So cute.

On Saturday, I got my hair cut.

I got 3 inches of split ends cut off.

I like.

I hope you're enjoying your weekend, too!

Visit Claudya for more Sundays in my City posts.

10 Things of Thankful

noreply@blogger.com (Cyndy Bush) — Sat, 06 Jul 2013 12:07:00 +0000

It's Saturday again and I am thankful again!

1. I am thankful for shapewear. Seriously, whoever invented that stuff is MY HERO. My wonderful dog whom I adore (lucky for him) chewed up my favorite fat-sucking cami last week, and I was lost without it. I finally got a new one yesterday and all is right with my world.

2. I am thankful for a good hairstylist, who I will be visiting this afternoon. Split ends begone!

3. I am thankful for roadside assistance provided by our auto insurance company. When I walked out to my truck on Wednesday morning after an exhausting 12-hour shift, I had a flat tire. They had to use a regular tow truck to get the truck out of the parking garage, and a flat bed to take it to the shop. I had to wait for two hours.

4. I am thankful that I work in a hospital that has good food. I went to the cafeteria and had sausage, biscuits and gravy while I waited.

5. I am thankful for my Mother-in-Law, who brought her truck to me so that I could use it while our truck was repaired.

6. I am thankful that I am not afraid of frogs. Otherwise I would have had a panic attack when a frog jumped ON MY HEAD while I was sleeping early this morning. I save the little buggers from the dogs and cat all the time, you'd think they'd be a little THANKFUL themselves!

7. I am thankful for my new workplace. It is beautiful and equipped with awesome new technology to make the patients more safe and comfortable, while making my job a little easier. (no, I did not change jobs, my job changed locations; we moved into a brand-new wing and it is niiiice.)

8. I am thankful for simple pleasures. I had a fantastic day yesterday, just riding around with my husband, doing a little shopping, visiting a friend, and just enjoying each others' company.

9. I am thankful that my husband wants to go to the flea market, so I have to cut this short! Have a great weekend!

Cancer Sucks, Friends Rock. {PYHO}

noreply@blogger.com (Cyndy Bush) — Wed, 03 Jul 2013 14:34:00 +0000

Cancer sucks.

Having a friend with cancer sucks.

Having a friend whose son has cancer sucks.

Having your daughter's boyfriend having cancer sucks.

Having a friend whose husband has cancer sucks.

But somewhere in all of that cancer suckage, there is a little ray of sunshine.

It started with an idea of mine. I decided to create a Zazzle store to sell products and raise money for Dusty, our family friend/my daughter's boyfriend, who is fighting T-cell lymphoma.
Now to say that I am not a graphic artist is a huge understatement, but I made a very simple design with a lime green ribbon to symbolize lymphoma, and added the words "My Hero is Fighting Lymphoma - Praying for Dusty Thomas." I placed the image on several products and shared the store.

And that's when the ray of sunshine showed up, in the form of my friend Amy.

Amy lives in Canada and is one of my BBFs - Best Blog Friends. She and I have been through a LOT together and she has been a wonderful support for me. In an effort to cheer me up during a dark time, she even did my beautiful blog design!

Now, unfortunately, we have another connection - Amy's husband Ken is also fighting lymphoma.

And that sucks.

He is getting treatment in another town, so much of the time, Amy is taking care of their two very young sons on her own, while working and dealing with having a husband with cancer.

But not long after I posted the link to my Zazzle store on Facebook, I got a comment from Amy, offering her amazing design skills to create more (and WAY better, although she is far too kind to say that) designs for products to raise money for Dusty - a kid in Florida whom she's never met.

I flipping love this girl!!!! She is kind, giving, caring and selfless. And amazingly talented.

She made this offer purely out of goodness and friendship, not for recognition or praise. Just to help me help Dusty. But she will certainly get recognition and praise from me because she is truly inspirational.

The world needs more people like Amy.

I would love for you to visit my zazzle store and look at Amy's artwork. If you would like to order something to help out Dusty and his family during his cancer treatment, well, I would love that even more.

make custom gifts at Zazzle

Pouring my heart out with Shell at Things I Can't Say

It's Medical Monday ~ CNA's Brighten Days

noreply@blogger.com (Cyndy Bush) — Mon, 01 Jul 2013 04:00:00 +0000

Today is the first Monday of July, which means it is Medical Monday around these parts!

I am happy to be co-hosting this month's Medical Mondays Blog Hop.

For those of you who are new here, I am a CNA, and for anyone who doesn't know what that is, I thought I would explain.

CNA stands for Certified Nursing Assistant. Our duties vary depending on what job we take. I used to do home health care, which I love. Many CNA's work in nursing homes. I currently work in a hospital on the neuro med/surg floor. If you've ever spent time in a hospital, you've encountered a CNA, although different facilities use different job titles.

At my hospital, we are called Nurse Techs. We take vitals, assist patients with various needs, answer your call light, bring you food and drinks (other than your actual meals). I often feel like a waitress, counselor, and medical professional all rolled into one. I could never list every one of my duties because there are so many and they vary greatly from day to day, week to week. I run my butt off, I will say that! I work hard for 12 hours, 3 days a week and it wears me out. But I love it - most days!

We appreciate all our Medical Monday participants! You all have helped us develop a fantastic community of friendship and support! Next month we will be celebrating MM one year anniversary! Be sure to mark it on your calendar. Along with our regular link up party, we will have a giveaway which is sure to please!

On to this month's party!!!.....

Are you confused if you qualify for the party?

If you have a pager interrupting your life... you DEFINITELY qualify!
Do you work in healthcare?

Doctor? Nurse? EMT? Chiropractor? Vet? Dentist? Therapist?

MA? NA? PA? DA?

Are you the spouse or SO of a healthcare worker/student?

Are you a nursing student? Medical student?

Intern? Resident? Fellow?

You get the picture, right? Come on, now... don't be shy! Let's keep growing and meeting new bloggers, so we can build a community of support and friendship, learn from one another, and share our stories.

LINK UP YOUR POST!

Here are the rules:

Follow your co-hosts via Bloglovin (since GFC will soon be defunct), FB, email or Twitter.
Link up you medical/med life blog. If your blog name does not clearly state how you fit in to the med/med life world, please write a little intro or link up a specific post which clearly demonstrates your connection.
Visit at least 3 other link ups, comment, introduce yourself, and tell the your stopping by or following from MM!
Help spread the word by using our button on your post or sidebar, tweet about Medical Monday, or spread the word on Facebook! The more the merrier for all of us.

Complete step one by following your co-hosts:

Emma at Your Doctor's Wife
Jane at From A Doctor's Wife
Heather at Army Wife, Army Life
Cyndy at Putting the Fun in Dysfunctional

Want to be awesome?
Post our button on you post or sidebar and help spread the word:

SIMC - Poses, Pictures, Pets and Popcorn

noreply@blogger.com (Cyndy Bush) — Sun, 30 Jun 2013 09:55:00 +0000

This weekend has been rainy, but we've made the best of it.

Friday night we celebrated my hubby's birthday.

I forced people to pose for photos. It was great!

My Elayna, getting so grown-up.

Me, clowning around.

Just us girls

Me & Elayna

Me & Shelbie

Tim, my little boy who is all grown up.

Shelbie, Elayna, me, Tim, and Tyler behind us.

On Saturday, my son Tim got a new pet.

It's going to live here at my house temporarily.

It's a chinchilla. Super cute!!

Wiz

Saturday night, the girls and I had movie night. We all piled up in my bed and watched "Oz the Great and Powerful". We had our favorite movie snack - popcorn with peanut M&M's (festive 4th of July edition!). The girls did my hair, and even painted my toes! And the movie was really good.

~~YUM~~

I'm hoping for a little sun today.....

I need my vitamin D!

Visit Unknown Mami for more Sundays in my City posts.

10 Things of Thankful

noreply@blogger.com (Cyndy Bush) — Sat, 29 Jun 2013 10:00:00 +0000

It's time to be thankful again!

1. I am thankful that my Mama made chocolate delight for my husband's birthday dessert, because I am enjoying the leftovers right now. Mmm-mmm, good!

2. I am thankful that my whole family and hubby's whole family got together Friday night to celebrate his birthday. We had a great time!

3. I am thankful for one friend who is doing something fantastic for my extended family. I will elaborate on that later. ;-)

4. I am thankful for HOT showers. Most days I just jump in and jump out with little thought. But have you ever had one of those showers that just feels amazing? The other day, I woke up sore and crampy and crabby. I was hurting and stiff and had sheet-wrinkles all over me. I stumbled into a hot shower and came out feeling a million times better. Thank you, Hot Shower.

5. Thankful for Tums, because my tummy is currently not very happy about my late night snacking as mentioned in #1.

6. I am thankful for modern technology. I ordered a frame for my dad for Fathers Day; it's a wooden frame that says We <3 Papa and then has my kids' names all over it. It's really cool. Anyway, yesterday at Byron's mom's house, I took a picture of my dad with my three kids and then was able to print it right there at his mom's house with her printer (I brought my own photo paper so I was only mooching her ink). I just LOVE that we are able to do that; I was born in the 1970's so I am old enough that modern technology really amazes me.

7. I am thankful for these sweet boys. They were very closely watching me eat breakfast. They don't beg, they just watch. Very intently. And Patchy, the one in the back? He drools.

8. I am thankful that I was able to un-clog our vacuum cleaner with a wire hanger and a lot of hard work. Because I am Superwoman! And this Superwoman likes a clean floor.

9. I am thankful for Summer. It's my favorite.

10. I am thankful that I am co-hosting Medical Mondays in two days!! Be sure and come back to visit!

Sundays in my SWAMP

noreply@blogger.com (Cyndy Bush) — Sun, 23 Jun 2013 17:47:00 +0000

I was looking out my kitchen window this morning

and saw that one of the trees out back

had beautiful white flowers blooming on it.

The branches are very high, so I couldn't pick any blooms.

I couldn't figure out what kind of tree it was.

I could tell by the leaves that it wasn't a magnolia,

and the blooms were too big to be dogwoods.

So I asked hubby, who immediately said,

"It's a bay tree. They grow in Florida swamps."

And that definitely describes our home -

a Florida swamp.

I knew he would know what kind of tree it was.

His knowledge of the outdoors is practically encyclopedic.

Amazing.

Can you find the flowers? There are three.

I hope you aren't tired of seeing pictures of my caladium plants yet.

Because I really love them, and they're doing so well.

I have already been able to transplant some to other areas.

It's a good thing they thrive in the swamp.

It's so tropical and bright and pretty!

Yes, I know, I need to weed.

Neat plant life.

I even love weeds,
especially when they're purple.

Wanna ride?

In case you couldn't find them,
here's your cheat sheet.

On Another Note:
I have created a Zazzle store to raise money for Dusty,

Shelbie's boyfriend who has t-cell lymphoma.

If you would like to order something, the link is below!

ALL proceeds will go to Dusty's family.

www.zazzle.com/backinthebush

10 Things of Thankful

noreply@blogger.com (Cyndy Bush) — Sat, 22 Jun 2013 09:37:00 +0000

I love thankful!
This is a new link-up and I like it a whole lot.

I am thankful for......

1. Texts from my husband in the middle of the night, while I am at work, just to tell me he loves me and misses me.

2. Sunny days.

3. New buds sprouting up from the plants that I have planted.

4. Dreams about turtles, and other pleasant things.

5. Fritos and bean dip.

6. When Byron takes my hand, leans over and whispers, "You are the most beautiful woman here, and you are my wife." It melts me.

7. When my son sends me text messages that he knows only I would 'get'.

8. Summer. But it needs to STOP RAINING.

9. Four wheel drive. Without it, I'd be stuck. Literally, and often.

10. These girls of mine.

Summer is Here ~~ Friday Fragments

noreply@blogger.com (Cyndy Bush) — Fri, 21 Jun 2013 10:32:00 +0000

Happy First Day of SUMMER!!!

~ It's been raining a LOT here. But in the beginning of this week, it was sunny. WHILE I WAS WORKING. Now I'm off. And it's freaking raining.

All I want to do is soak up the sun during the day, and have a fire at night. Is that really too much to ask??
Apparently, yes it is.

~ When things in my life are rough, I dream of snakes and bodies of water teeming with alligators.
I am no dream interpretor, but I have no doubt why I dream of snakes, and it has nothing to do with the slithery bastards in my yard.
Anyway, lately, I have been dreaming of turtles. Which makes me happy.

Also, baby pigs. That's a new and delightful one. How cute is THIS?

~ Speaking of cute....remember our little bulldog puppy, Bo?

Bo now weighs SEVENTY pounds. He is solid muscle and has no idea he is large.

He still truly believes he is a puppy and/or lap dog.

He is a sweet, lovable goofball. I heart him.

~ I will be co-hosting the July edition of Medical Mondays Blog Hop! I'm so excited!

I have some CRAZY stories to share with y'all. Never a dull moment in my world!

Have a wonderful weekend,

and don't forget to visit Friday Fragments at its Summer Home,

Unknown Mami's place!

Southern Pride

noreply@blogger.com (Cyndy Bush) — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 13:12:00 +0000

As Southerners, we face a lot of stereotypes.

Many people think anyone with
a Southern accent is stupid or slow.

I just recently read this line in a book: "I'd like to permanently strike the following vocabulary from the record, posthaste. Y'all: I just hate it, and it makes you sound fatter. Punishment: For every offense, you must donate a toe to Paula Deen."

Nice.

And just before that, in another book, when a child heard someone speak with a Southern accent and imitated that person, she was harshly corrected by her Mother, who said "Don't EVER talk like that, it makes you sound STUPID."

Southerners are also assumed to be racist, rebel-flag waving,

ignorant backwoods toothless moon-shine drinkers.

And granted, some of that does apply to some people.

But it is a ridiculous, outdated, and unfair stereotype.

Which is why those of us who are CLASSY Southerners are proud,

and like to spread positive Southern messages.

I understand that we do not necessarily own the rights to sweet tea,
or some of our charming sayings.

But come on....let us have our moment.

We are simply emphasizing the positive side of our Southern roots

and demonstrating that some of us have class, grace, and charm.

We are sweet, tough chicks with manners and attitude.

We may cook and eat a little differently.

We may talk a little differently.

We may live life at a slower pace.

We may always wave at the cars that pass us - but hey, maybe you do too.

Maybe we say Yes Ma'am and Yes Sir - maybe you don't.

We probably holler at our young'uns a little differently than our Northern friends.

We love bonfires and the water - you probably do too.

We wear flip flops year-round - you probably don't.

We probably wear more camo than you, and listen to different music than you do.

We may eat more chicken and dumplings,
shrimp and grits, and boiled peanuts, and drink more sweet tea than you do.

We almost certainly bless more hearts.

Why can't we all just celebrate our similarities, AND our differences?

I reckon we would all appreciate that.

{My favorite of these? Cattywampus.}

A Glimpse Into Our Weekend - SIMC

noreply@blogger.com (Cyndy Bush) — Sun, 16 Jun 2013 03:36:00 +0000

A glimpse into our weekend,

in pictures.

And some words.

Because I like words.

We went to my parents' house to visit Hayleigh.
Oh, and my parents, of course.
But mostly, Hayleigh.

Elayna couldn't resist joining her in the pool.

Shelbie fed Hayleigh her lunch.

I made my first banana pudding,
with help from my Mama.

Hubby picked a flower for me. <3

My Mother-in-Law LOVES and collects birdhouses. I recently
found this one for her and she absolutely loves it, says it's the prettiest one she's ever seen. =D

On Saturday we went to my MIL's Family Reunion

near Crystal River, Florida.

They had door prizes, and Elayna played the Price is Right girl,

handing out the prizes.

She had fun.

The reunion was fun and the food was DELICIOUS.

They also had a pinata.

MIL's aunt and uncle live in a beautiful house on stilts right by the river.
I wish I could have gotten a better photo.

Elayna is silly.

Shelbie is, too.

Hope you're having a wonderful weekend!

Focusing on the Positive Fragments

noreply@blogger.com (Cyndy Bush) — Fri, 14 Jun 2013 02:19:00 +0000

~ Work was exhausting this week, but I am looking forward to the weekend!
Tomorrow we're going to visit both sets of parents (and the baby Hayleigh will be there!!).
Saturday, we're going to Byron's family reunion.
And of course, Sunday we'll be celebrating Father's Day!

~ Today we went to my stepson Tyler's baseball game. Shelbie's boyfriend Dusty came with us. The team won, beating a team that was favored to win. Afterward we all went to my MIL's house for a cookout.

~ You wanna know what puts a damper on all of that? On the way home, we stopped at a store and Dusty got out and threw up his dinner. Then, on the way back to the truck, he took his hat off to wipe his forehead and I saw several bald patches. Talk about reality slapping you in the face....
He had chemo this morning. This was, I believe, the fourth time this week. Right now he is doing chemo 4x a week. It's called "Hell Month". Then he enters a maintenance phase. But during this period, his body has NO time to recover from chemo before it's time for another treatment. It's so hard to see a strong, active teenager going through this. He's seventeen. This should be the time of his life, with no major worries, just enjoying the last of his carefree childhood time. But cancer ended that. And it sucks.

~ Anyway...focusing on the positive. He had a good time and has a great attitude and good spirit about all of it.

Hope y'all have a good weekend and a wonderful Father's Day!

Go visit Friday Fragments' summer home at Unknown Mami's place!

My Bargain Garden - SIMC

noreply@blogger.com (Cyndy Bush) — Sun, 09 Jun 2013 21:46:00 +0000

I had a really nice weekend.

Hubby and I did some thrifting on Friday (he is a great thrifter and spotted things that I had walked right by!). But I wanted to do more on Saturday. I asked him if he wanted to go, or if I should ask my mom to go. He was more than happy to take a pass and stay home. So, my mom and I spent the day thrifting, had lunch at Cracker Barrel, then made a stop at Lowe's for plants.

My main goal thrifting this time was to get containers to put plants into. Not planters or pots, just various unique containers that COULD hold plants. And I scored! Pails, dishes, even a big cooking pot.

This will be an ongoing project but I'm very happy with the beginning. I also found two long strands of white Christmas lights, which I've put in the trees around "My Spot", the area where I put my firepit and am fixing up as my little corner of the world.

Then I went to Lowe's and hit up the clearance plant rack. Basically, Lowe's takes the puny, pathetic, 1/3 dead plants, marks them way down and puts them on a rack. They mostly just need a little TLC and they'll thrive. Not only did I get a bunch of clearance plants, I also scored THIS amazing bargain:

Sweet deal!

Doesn't look like much yet,
but now that they're planted and fertilized,
they will flourish.
Watch this spot!

A couple more thrifting finds....
this is stained glass chili peppers.

My kitchen theme is chili peppers,
so it's perfect.

This is a small metal table.
I got it to put outside,
but hubby wants it inside.
I don't know...
I think I'm going to move it outside anyway.

Hope y'all had a good weekend!

P.S. This post was in no way sponsored or compensated by Lowe's. However, Lowe's, if you would LIKE to compensate or sponsor me, hit me up! =D

Uniformed Scrubs - Scrub Top Review and Discount Code!

noreply@blogger.com (Cyndy Bush) — Sat, 08 Jun 2013 04:38:00 +0000

I was contacted not long ago by a company called Uniformed Scrubs and asked if I would like to try out one of their medical scrub tops.
I was happy to do so!

see? that's my happy face.

I received a black scrub top. I told them I wear a size medium, and that is what they sent. I've worn a medium for a long time. I did notice this Size Medium seemed to be a little bigger than usual.
Too big is better than too small, of course, but if you're ordering, you may want to order a size smaller than normal.

Other than that, it's pretty perfect! I love the big deep pockets located in the front, with the opening on TOP. After nearly seven years in health care, I have developed a strong preference for those types of pockets on my nurse scrubs. Side-opening pockets = lost stuff. And pockets = vitally important.

For my readers, Uniformed Scrubs is offering a discount code! Just use the code "trueblue" and you will get a 15% discount until July 31st, 2013!

And you can connect with Uniformed Scrubs via social media for more info :

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/uniformedscrubs
Blog: http://uniformedscrubs.wordpress.com/
Google Plus: https://plus.google.com/102649430487593258176/about

Twitter: @UniformedScrubs
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/uniformedscrubs/

Get Your Frag On

noreply@blogger.com (Cyndy Bush) — Fri, 07 Jun 2013 03:11:00 +0000

Once again, I am EXTREMELY glad that it is Friday. Like, so glad I could kiss the calendar.

School's out for Summer. Happy about that as well!

We had a really good time on Thursday evening. Byron and I and all of my kids went to my parents' house for dinner. My son's friend Nic also came along. AND...my Mother-in-Law came! This was her first time visiting my parents' house. We had BBQ ribs and baked potatoes (cooked by me), yellow and zucchini squash (cooked by Shelbie), and a delicious strawberry dessert (made by my Mama).
I love how my mom and MIL hit it off so well. They are peas in a pod. They even like the same BIZARRE snack - a banana sandwich. WITH MAYONNAISE. *GAG*

Tim's friend Nic and my parents' dog, Ace

I haven't been thrifting in FOREVER and we're planning on going tomorrow. YAY!
Then I get to see my Hayleigh-girl, and Byron and my Dad are planning on going fishing.
That should be....interesting.

OK, sorry for the short frags but I'm dozing off and having dreams of monkeys in hospital beds. I'm not even kidding.

Have a great weekend!

Appreciation - PYHO

noreply@blogger.com (Cyndy Bush) — Thu, 06 Jun 2013 11:54:00 +0000

The feeling of being appreciated is vital to my happiness.

In fact, one of the things that got me through an extremely tough year last year was being appreciated.

My personal life was full of pain, but I worked a job that I loved and was told very frequently, "we VALUE you so much. You are SO appreciated." I heard this from both my employers who signed my paycheck, and the family of my clients, as well as the clients themselves. One of them even hugged me and told me she loved me every day. Oh, how I miss her.

(for those of you who are new, I used to do home health care for elderly clients.)

That environment, I think, was vital to my mental health. It was a beautiful, bright light in a very dark time.

Now I have a different job. I am a nursing assistant at a hospital.

Management has been through a lot of changes since I started, and since I'm on night shift, I don't see management very often anyway. But at this job, I am often shown appreciation from my patients and/or their families. Both by their comments directly to me, as well as written compliments.

Most of the nurses I work with are also very thankful and complimentary.

It's so gratifying to hear.

And now, I am blessed with an abundance of appreciation in my personal life. My husband tells me on a daily basis - often several times a day - how thankful he is for me. For everything I do for him, for being a wonderful wife, and just for being me. I can't tell you how good that feels. As much as I hate the term, I guess you would say, that is my "love language".

I need to be needed. I need acknowledgement, praise, validation. Kind of like a puppy. I am needy, I admit it. Don't judge.

My mother-in-law is also very grateful and doesn't hesitate to say it. She loves for me to come over and cook; she'd rather clean than cook so we have a great system. I cook, then I sit by the pool while she cleans. Love it! She's also thankful that I make her son very happy. That I love him unconditionally, and could see through his tough exterior to the heart of gold underneath.

And of course, my Mama thinks I'm great. She's always been my biggest fan.

Recently, after thinking about how much it means to me to feel appreciated, I was thinking about one of the people in my life whom I greatly appreciate. The lovely woman who does the scheduling at my job, who I consider a co-worker and friend, has been incredibly good to me. She knew, even at my initial interview, that I have kids and very specific scheduling needs. Not only is she great about honoring my requested regular schedule, but she has also been able to make last-minute arrangements for me several times. This has enabled me to be present for the kids' school and other events. She never complains or tells me to suck it up and deal with it. She works with me every time.

So this past week, after a last-minute schedule change so that I could attend Elayna's band concert, I decided to show her my appreciation. I picked up a small floral arrangement and a card (Winnie the Pooh, her favorite). I told her how much it means to me, AND to my family, that she is so accommodating with my wacky scheduling needs. I left it on her desk and when she saw it, she came out and gave me a big hug and thanked me. I told her "I promise I am NOT sucking up! I just want you to know that you are VERY MUCH appreciated."

I think it's important to remember to reciprocate and let people know that we are grateful for their presence in our lives.

What about you.....is feeling appreciated vital to you? Do you make a point to express your gratitude to the people in your life?

Linking up with Shell at Things I Can't Say

(btw-THANK YOU for hosting Shell, I appreciate you!)

Medical Monday (on Wednesday) - What NOT to do.

noreply@blogger.com (Cyndy Bush) — Wed, 05 Jun 2013 07:48:00 +0000

(Because, Ooops. That's why.)

New here? I am a Nurse Tech on the Med/Surg floor of a hospital.

Today I have for you FIVE things that you should NOT do while either you, or your loved one, has been admitted as a patient in a hospital.

1. Do NOT bring your very young child to the hospital to stay with his or her dad. Who is very ill. FOR THE ENTIRE NIGHT. While you go home to sleep.

2. Do NOT let your baby crawl on the hospital floor. OMG. Please. For the love of all that is clean and free of bacteria. AND COOTIES.

3. Do NOT sneak into the bathroom of your hospital room and smoke cigarettes.

4. Do NOT sneak off of the floor, out of the hospital, and into the parking lot next door to smoke cigarettes. With your IV pole and various other medical equipment.

5. If you choose to do that, do NOT tell us, when you get back, that your pain level is a 10.

I have a feeling these "What NOT to do" posts may become a recurring theme. Stay tuned!

Soaking up the Sun - Sunday in my City

noreply@blogger.com (Cyndy Bush) — Mon, 03 Jun 2013 04:12:00 +0000

We have been attending church lately with my Mother-in-Law.

Today was her church's homecoming,

and after church we had Dinner on the Grounds.

I made chocolate delight.....

....and a blackberry cobbler with fresh blackberries that grow wild

here at our home.

Shelbie, my almost-senior-in-high-school

Our puppy, Bo, has gotten big enough to get into the trash can. So I decided to get one with a lid. I wanted a pretty garbage can, which is harder to find than you may think. I finally found this one on Amazon.
It came in pieces, and my daughters LOVE to assemble things like this.
So, here is my PRETTY trash can, assembled by Elayna!

The Great Assembler, ready for a dip in the pool.

We swam and soaked up the sun.

Right after we packed up and left, the rain came

to water

all of my plants and flowers.

Pretty good day!

Hope y'all had a good Sunday.