It's been a while

Wow, it seems like ages since I've had the time to set and blog. I miss reading my florist friends blogs and my friends Scott, Shelley and Dan. Got to keep up with where Scott is...it's always interesting and uplifting.

Lily and her babies are doing great. Their eyes opened this week and it won't be long till they are bouncing out of their basket for play time.

I rushed home last night to mow my grass (that's the hot topic on the blogs) the weather man was saying rain after midnight. I like to mow!! It's a stress reliever for me.. hop on the John Deere and relax. If any of you know my Daddy his yard is perfect. Not a blade out of place and never a weed to be found. He mows is yard twice a week and everyone around always comments on his neatness. He has a Toro push mower. He has pushed mowed his yard for over 50 years. (Cardio workout) This is one reason he's so healthy. I follow in his footsteps except I ride. Thomas won't mow, says he can't please me and I'm too picky. Well, I am my Daddy's daughter!!
Hope everyone has an enjoyable weekend. I'll try not to be gone so long from now on........

Finally Friday

It's been a looong week. I haven't caught up from all the sleep I lost the week of Prom or Mothers Day. I've been trying.... sleep specialist will tell you that you never make up for lost sleep. I believe them.
Miss Lily is doing wonderful. She is a protective mother. One little whimper and she is running to see what they need. Sandra and her boyfriend Aaron was out the other evening and we set and talked till 10:30pm. I had thought all day that I had no meetings to attend and I would be able to turn in early...wishful thinking. But I enjoyed my time with Sandra and Aaron. So now it's Friday evening and I'm thinking about going to bed early.....enjoy your weekend!!!

Lilys babys......

It's 2am and Lily can't sleep she has been stirring for about an hour now. So we get up. We set down in the lazy boy and I rock her...nope she don't want to rock. She don't want to set, she just doesn't know what she wants to do. Then come the shakes and panting and racing heart. I know that this isn't right. So we call our favorite vet at 2:35am. We leave him a message and he calls right back. Sounds like she needs some sugar. So we follow Doc's orders. It's now 4am neither Thomas or I have had any sleep. Not even Bristol. Bristol tries to console Miss Lily and he just gets growled at....sound familiar guys?????. I'm trying to rest with my eyes wide open and trying to tell Lily just focus that's what they told me! She gives me the --focus hell look...so by now I am thinking what is on the calendar at both stores. I decided to get dressed and head for C-ville and do what needs too be done.
Lily and I head over and sure enough she is ready. We had to wait a bit cause there was a dog that was in an accident and they had to tend to her.
While we were setting there Lily was quietly setting in my lap bearing down and she wasn't waiting, her time was now. I unfolded her blanket and sure enough there was a puppy popping out his head. I tell the vet tech she's ready let go. They rushed her back. They reassured me she will be fine and they will be back with updates. It is now 8:15am. I call Thomas with an update along with Sarah, Sandra and Coleigh. The wait begins......
I over hear the Vet tell the receptionist to make sure Mrs. Bridges is comfortable and if there is anything she needs. Twenty minutes later the girls come out....we have our first puppy and she is fine. I ask, How is Miss Lily, she is fine too. Ten minutes later....you have four healthy big puppies. Now I can breath. They bring me the first puppy....and let me hold it. I have two boys and two girls. Lily is doing fine we will just stitch her up and monitor her for a bit. Every one is healthy and now we can relax. I get updates every twenty minutes and by now I have seen all four of them. We just might have a Double Dapple just like Bristol but it's still to early to tell but he has more black in him . Bristol's color variation is very rare.
So all this afternoon I was working with Lily getting her use to her babies and helping her get back to normal after the surgery. Now the fun begins.......

Make it stop......

Make it stop......that's what I kept hearing today. Our wire service orders come across the computer ( we have two, FTD and 1-800 Flowers) and every few minutes the printer would light up and print another order for us to fill. I kept telling the girls...hey, don't complain that's your pay check. They would just look up and smile.
We have been rather busy today. I had four drivers lined up for the day and we tried to get most of the orders delivered today. Makes it easy for tomorrow. But it's Mothers Day and we won't be caught up until the last one is delivered. Last night as I was working they were still printing out. I think the last one came across about 10:30pm. So here I set on a Friday night designing flowers for tomorrow. Plus I have corsages to work on for the Austin Sunshine Dance. I need to fill the front cooler with cash and carry designs and have some ready to go over to our store in Brownstown first thing in the morning. There are about 50 balloons that are going out about 11am for a party and there's 24 corsages going to a Scott County church in the afternoon and that's just half of it. Am I complaining....no way. I love my job--yes it's long hours and yes some days it's hard work. But in my opinion I have the best job around-- florist ..... we sometimes complain about the stress and overwork, but we thrive on the very things that would make most sane people run wild in the streets. Heart, hard work, artistic sense, love of people and commitment are what it takes to succeed--just in case you ask!

Miss Lily Belle

Lily and I made our way to the vet late this afternoon. Lily has to set in my lap when I'm driving. She's been that way since the day I bring her home. She will set in her basket in the passengers seat for a minute or two then here she comes. Every now and then she will set beside me and the arm rest. But now days I have to raise the arm rest since her belly is so big.
We get to the vet and all the girls are making over her and telling Lily they know just how she feels. The vet tech takes her back for her ultra sound. Within a few minutes she comes back and ask if I'd like to see the pictures....sure. There they were..... four little babies. But they are too big for Lily to have on her own. This is where Bristol would have gotten the big head!!! We discuss our options and decide that we need a c-section. We set a date of Monday May 19 at 8am. I ask if I could watch through the window and the tech says she will make a note of it for the vet. She ask how my stomach was and I informed her I had helped Daddy deliver many baby calves. Miss Lily wasn't to worried about it. Guess she takes after me. I don't let to much worry me. Life is just to short to be stressed out all the time.

Miss Lily Belle

Miss Lily is to the point where she can't jump up on the couch any more. She won't even try...she looks up to you with sad eyes.....and you can read her mind--I just can't jump up there my belly is too big....Thomas weighed her over the weekend and she was up to almost 10 pounds. Now mind you she only weighed seven pounds to begin with. Her belly is almost to the ground. I set with her in the evenings and rub her belly and you can feel the puppies moving around. My heart goes out to Lily and I try to make her as comfortable as possible. We go Thursday for our next ultra sound. We only have maybe 10/12 days left.
Doc says we will be able to see how big they are and determine if we will let her have them natural or have to take them.
Bristol has a hard time understanding why she don't want to play any more.....he takes his nose and rolls the ball to her and she just lays there. Men they just don't understand pregnancy.....

Derby Roses

The Garland of Roses placed on the Kentucky Derby winner is designed with Freedom Roses
from Ecuador. These are the same roses that we carry at Mountain Memories. I chose this brand a few years back after trying out a few others and found these roses to be the best for vase life (that's florist terms.) The girls that sew these roses to the blanket are my friends and we have talked in great detail on how they only choose the perfect rose. There are almost 500 roses placed in a tube and then placed ever so carefully and stitched in. My friend Carol the head designer takes the blanket to Churchill Downs and stands guard with it until its time for the Downs officials to take it. Carol also designs the Lily blanket for The Oaks on Friday. So the next time you see red roses at Mountain Memories remember they are Freedom Roses.

Take a deep breath....

Well, Prom '08 is over and the eighth grade formal is finished too. It was a rather interesting event. But nothing new. Same complaints just different parents. You have the mother's who say, Thanks for making my baby look handsome his tux fits perfect and the flowers were awesome. Then there is the mother's from hell. Well, his pants is an inch to short and the sleeves could be a tad longer, the buttons on his shirt needed to be a bit tighter and the tie wasn't quite the shade that we ordered.This is where you take a deep breath...you pause for a moment and try to remember how your Daddy always told you--Now, Sherry be nice....you say, I will be glad to make alterations on the pants and the jacket, you need to use the studs that were provided to button the shirt and that will give you a snug fit. As for matching the tie and vest, you did bring in the dress and lay it across the swatch and that is the one you decided was the right color--remember you even took it out side to see how it matched up with natural light. All the while you are smiling and then they say-- well, I think it will be all right he does look rather handsome maybe I'm being just to picky....... Hello......... are you listening to your self.
Being a florist I hear the same complaints every year and you just let them roll off your back and forget about them. Everyone wants everything perfect...Folks we don't live in a perfect world.