The loss of a great man

I just recently found out about the death of a man I hold close to my heart. It was such a shock and I still don't think I've fully accepted it. Mason was my friend and mentor and influenced my life tremendously. All that I know about retail, fashion, wholesale buying, and managing I owe to him. I never would've opened my own business without the training and confidence in my trade that I recieved from working under such a brilliant man.

Mason was from Damascus, Syria and grew up in the wholesale business. He always spoke of Damascus and its splendor. He made it sound like the streets were lined in gold and surrounded by magnificent buildings. He always said one day he'd take me there to see it's beauty. Mason moved to America on his own right out of High School to attend college in the States. Believe it or not his major was in Electric Engineering. He later went on to open the most successful Boutique business in NW Arkansas. I was blessed enough to work with him for 7 years as his business grew and prospered. He had such an amazing talent and I could've only dreamed to be the success he was.

He wasn't only an amazing mentor and boss but a great friend. Always happy and cracking jokes he had the best personality. Having to put in my notice and leave his side was one of the hardest moments I can remember. I was getting married and moving here, to Illinois. My husband and I were just looking at our wedding pictures and came across a picture of Mason standing tall with us at our reception. I guess that's what inspired this blog. I often wonder where I would be if my husband and I had gotten to stay in Arkansas and I continued working for him. Who knows?

A couple of years ago he was diagnosed with brain cancer and last week he lost the battle.

Mason will forever be in my heart and I will always consider him the man who changed my life. You will be missed, Mason!!

Bed Rest: Day 5

Well....still in bed.

I'm so over television...something I never thought I would say. There's just nothing good to watch during the day and by the time my shows come on at night I'm over it.

I started reading a book....again, not normal for me but I'm getting desperate.

Yesterday my husband asked me what was on my agenda for the day. He said "So, do you have a big cross-word puzzle to solve at noon?" Smart ass.

My friends have been very sweet. They've brought me meals and treats. They've all offered to go get me anything I need. In case I'm stuck here longer I'm waiting to take them up on those offers. It could get ugly if I cash those in too early and end up having an extended stay in bed. I can't solely count on my husband for help....he just doesn't get it.

My poor dogs don't understand why I'm not getting up and playing with them. My husband decided that they are officially on bed rest now too because all they do is lay around in the bedroom with me. Now I'm promoting doggie laziness and obesity. Great.

I think I'm gonna take a shower today so that's pretty exciting. This and going to the bathroom are the two things I'm allowed to do. Also exciting. Having a functioning bowel is quite the accomplishment these days.

Well, I'm afraid that's as good as it gets for now. If I do anything crazy like tackle that cross-word puzzle I'll make sure and let you know!

Long time, no blog...

So, it's been forever since I wrote anything but blogging has been the last thing on my mind these days. I'm pregnant!! Wow...still a little weird. I'm at 10 weeks an counting and thankfully past the nausea. That sure was brutal! My husband and I have been trying for a while and were getting frustrated when it was happening for everyone around us but not working for us. You just never know what's gonna happen. We had started some infertility treatments and were really hoping we wouldn't have to go too far into it...thankfully we didn't.

It's been a very different experience for me. First of all, I never thought I wanted kids. For most of my life and the majority of my marraige my husband and I didn't think we wanted children. We were so focused on our careers that we didn't have time or room for anything else. Over the last 2-3 years we began to change our minds and now it's all we want. Crazy how that happens!

Ufortunately, I've had some minor complications. I have what's called low-lying placenta previa. In most cases it fixes itself so it should be fine. Until then, I'm on bed rest. Ugh. Talk about boring. I guess I'll have plenty of time to blog now, huh? This is really no surprise since, medically, I've always done things the hard way. I don't think I've ever had any kind of medical experience where something didn't go awry. I've got this!

Until next time (probably tomorrow) I bid you adieu!