#ThisIsMS – Amy's Axons

June 2025

Around Our House

June 3, 2025June 3, 2025by amysaxonsLeave a Comment

Fledgling male Downy Woodpecker – he was a marvelous creature and I love how he was showing off his wings

My sister asked me to make a stuffed dog for her use at work. I went through my fabric scraps and thought these would go together well.

I appliqued the muzzle, nose, and eyes then used a zigzag stitch for the philtrum and mouth.

After the puppy, I was inspired to use up some more of my mountain of cotton fabric scraps and thought I’d try my hand at book sleeves. This is one of my favorites 🤩

I especially think the pocket is handy AND cute

Whew, I certainly need to go through my scraps more often. I ended up making 49 book sleeves (!) and still have leftovers 🫣

I also had a lot of leftover canvas fabric and wanted to make something useful with it. Fifteen years or more ago my Mom, sister, and I made key wristlets. I decided to try it again and here are the first few I did. I think I ended up with about 25 by the end.

My Dad got a flat of strawberries back in May and shared some with us. My Mom always made strawberry shortcake with homemade pie crust so, of course, I do too.

On Memorial Day, we made the homemade ice cream recipe my Dad always made when I was growing up in the 70s and 80s. It was just as good as I remembered and it was fun to share it with Hubby 💕

Cats are cats are cats and cat naps are one of my favorite cat behaviors – so cute 😻

Wally keeping Clemmy close with a tail-wrap 🖤🤍🖤🤍

May God be with you! ❤️, Amy

April 2023

Whew, What A Week!

April 27, 2023April 27, 2023by amysaxonsLeave a Comment

When it rains it pours! Our dishwasher gave up the ghost Saturday morning (my birthday) and flooded the kitchen.

Thankfully, Hubby is a pretty smart cookie and got the water shut off.

He wrangled the dishwasher out of it’s nest and discovered the water lines from it were bad and the tub on the bottom had a crack.

Though we had to look for dishwashers on my birthday, we managed to squeeze in a yummy lunch at a delicious cafe/bakery. My favorite there is an almond croissant 🥐😋!

We found a replacement the same day and my Dad helped us get it home and supervised Hubby’s installation.

It was a lot of work, but Hubby got the job done and it was sealed with Pip’s approval. 😻

Speaking of Pip, we have been dealing with a bit of a scare with him. Last month during his regular, annual check-up we learned he had a grade 2 heart murmur. Our vet referred us to the University of Missouri Vet Clinic to see a cardiologist to investigate the issue further.

It’s a three hour drive from Springfield to Columbia one way… it’s been a long day for us all.

She gave us some good news today that it looks benign and we are scheduled to go back next year to keep an eye on things.

Pip was still kinda stoned from the sedation on the way home. He curled up on my lap and insisted, by way of nudging my hand, that I rub his head the whole way ❤️😻.

Here’s a random picture of the lunch I made myself Monday.

In this month’s Universal Yums box they included a recipe for Belgian Meatballs, Hubby wanted to try them so I made them on Wednesday for dinner. I served them with baked new potatoes. Verdict? 😋😍👍

Our lilac tree is now bursting with blooms and filling our backyard with the most wonderful scent ever smelled. I took this picture last week just as one of the bunches was starting to open up.

The weather has been nice enough each afternoon this week and, despite pretty lousy MS fatigue, I’ve been able to make it onto the patio to watch the birds. They fill my heart with joy and gratitude to God for the wonder of His creation.

This photo collage of my sister and I popped up on my memories this week. I love my sister, she is one of my greatest blessings and my best friend ❤️.

Thanks for stopping by. I hope you have a wonderful day! May God be with you. ❤️, Amy

February 2023

Through the Picture Window

February 7, 2023February 7, 2023by amysaxonsLeave a Comment

Winter came to our backyard in January, she was exquisite ❄️.

One morning before breakfast, I looked out the window and straight into the eyes of this fine hawk. I’m lousy at identifying hawks. I think it’s a Red-tailed, but it might be Sharp-shinned. Please let me know if you know which it is.

The same lovely person who gifted us a 6-month subscription to International Yums as a Christmas gift decided to spoil us for Valentine’s (a little early) too! We’ve had such fun tasting our way through these goodies. Though I must confess, Chicken-Larb flavored fried seaweed was not a hit in our house 😝.

On the other hand, these easy home-made whole wheat english muffins are one of my favorites. I frequently make a double batch of these and stick them in the freezer for a toasted breakfast delight. If you’d like to try them, I’ve snapped pictures of the recipe and added them below 👇.

At the end of January I had a blood test to see if my immune system was rebuilding itself after stopping my MS treatments about a year ago (March 1st to be exact). The good news is yes, I have some nascent cells emerging. The bad news is I don’t have very many. I’m still immunocompromised, but the tide is slowly turning 🥳.

My MS has been all over the shop. Two weeks ago I had a string of good days and was able to cook and sew and putter around the house. Yesterday afternoon I couldn’t sit up or hold my head up and spent hour after hour in bed. Today, I’ve been able to sit up and ride around the house on my scooter, but my legs are like concrete and won’t work. Tomorrow? Your guess is as good as mine. The only predictable thing about MS is its unpredictability.

Laudy and Pip finishing my oatmeal a couple weeks ago 😆.

Thanks for staying tuned and stopping by. May God be with you! ❤️, Amy

January 2023

MS Haiku

January 18, 2023January 18, 2023by amysaxonsLeave a Comment

Energy all gone,
Feels like I’m in a coma –
A puddle of goo.

I think I’ve melted into and become one with my recliner these last four days.

Thankfully, once again, my feathered friends have come to the rescue and filled the long hours with the joy of their songs and avian antics.

Cardinal at takeoff. I love how you can see the individual features of his right wing.

Though the image isn’t great, I was able to document my first ever sighting of a gorgeous Pileated Woodpecker across the road in our neighbor’s tree on Saturday!! This sighting was absolutely thrilling for me and I was on cloud nine for the rest of the day ☺️.

Another source of happiness filling my idle time has been the company of our cats, Laudy and Pip. They have no idea what a blessing and source of company they are to me, but I count them as one of God’s treasures gifted to my keeping. And they are experts at the art of resting 😻.

A person very dear to me gifted Hubby and I a fun surprise, a 6-month subscription to Universal Yums. It’s a monthly box featuring snack food from different countries around the world. This month’s box arrived yesterday with treats from… Austria 🇦🇹 😋!

Hubby’s favorite was the Waffelz and mine was the Auer Baumstamme.

I hope you are well.

God be with you! ❤️, Amy

June 2022

A Beautiful Day In the Ozarks

June 3, 2022June 3, 2022by amysaxons1 Comment

Sunny with a high of 78* F and a gentle breeze. I rode my scooter to the neighborhood lake and spent a couple hours besotted by God’s creation.

The touch of amber on the wings is stunning 😍

These wings shimmered like diamonds in the sun.

Though I’m pretty sure this is the equivalent of a weed in the water, the colors are striking.

I sat on the patio for a while after I got back from the lake and caught this pair of House Finches at the feeders. I love to hear them sing 🎶

Thanks for stopping by. May God be with you. ❤, Amy

February 2022

Feathers, Flurries, Felines, and MS

February 3, 2022February 3, 2022by amysaxons2 Comments

Hello again, it’s been a while. I’ve been remiss in writing, distracted by other things in life. Well, actually, just one thing (drumroll)…my MS. Shocker, I know. The last couple of weeks have been simply outrageous. I’ll spare you the details, but I have IV steroids coming my way to try and get things under some sort of control. Yesterday, the day the home infusion nurse (yes, Bill 😀) was ready to come to the house and hook me up, winter storm Landon arrived covering the roads with ice. Today, Landon dumped 7 inches of snow before going on his merry way. Bill texted to say he will come over this weekend to get me going once the roads become traversable.

The snow has been beautiful to watch as it swirls and blows in frigid gusts. We’ve had 30+ birds at a time come to the feeders these past couple of days for an easy meal during the storm.

There’s a dark-eyed junco somewhere there in our lilac tree.

As ever, the cats are keeping me company.

Gratefully, neither they nor my sweet Hubby see someone with MS when they look my way, they just see me – full stop. I feel so loved, and I know it doesn’t get any better than that.

God be with you. ❤️, Amy

November 2021

Autumn Leaves and A Recipe From 1909

November 2, 2021November 2, 2021by amysaxons2 Comments

I rode my scooter around our neighborhood this past week. Autumn is my favorite season and, despite a later than usual start, trees in our neck of the woods are glowing with color.

The last of our neighbor’s summer roses.

Our River Birch leaves in the throes of death.

A couple of obligatory bird photos because, well… I love birds ❤️.

I’ve been seeing a lot of this female downy woodpecker lately.

Friendly carolina chickadees are frequent diners at the feeders.

My Dad has slowly been giving me a lot of our family pictures and genealogy material this past year. As I looked through the latest batch I found a small book of “receipts” in the Edmunds Cookbook, compiled in 1909. Edmunds is a town in Indiana where my great grandparents lived in 1909 as members of the local Quaker community. I thought it would be fun to try to make a cake from the scant directions provided.

I have no idea who Mrs. Henry Berg was but I chose this cake because (a) I had all the ingredients on hand, (b) it seemed seasonal, (c) my hubby would probably like it, (d) it looked pretty easy.

And.. it tasted DELICIOUS with a moist, airy crumb. The mix of raisins and spices provided a pleasant spicy sweetness.

This is me sitting down at the kitchen table to go through the cookbook to choose a recipe. 😹🐾😻

I hope you have a wonderful day! God be with you. ❤️, Amy

August 2021

Breath In, Breath Out

August 16, 2021August 16, 2021by amysaxons2 Comments

Sometimes I’m really proud of myself for being able to keep the rhythm of breathing going, such is the joy of MS fatigue.

In my last post I said I would try to write something about my MS, so here it is. Whew, this summer has been a challenge! I have had a smattering of a few good days here and there and even a few strung together in sequence, but more often than not I’ve been under the thumb of pervasive, domineering MS lethargy. Nope, it’s not the kind of tired that needs a nap and sitting to rest for a spell doesn’t shift it at all. Like having a bone dry fuel tank, no matter how hard you try to go, you end up getting absolutely nowhere. The engine won’t start, the wheels won’t go anywhere, the brakes won’t compress, the electric windows won’t budge… technically it’s a car, but it’s good for nothing. I still look like Amy on the outside but there’s no juice to animate me. The electrical wires of my nerves are stripped and the signals my brain tries to send to make my body move either can’t or only partially get through. As a result, I don’t walk right, my hands don’t work the way they’re supposed to, my bladder doesn’t know if it’s holding or letting go, my thoughts struggle to be strung into words, and my balance is all over the place making me stagger around like I’m drunk. Normal things like showering, getting dressed, eating, and even sitting up use inordinate amounts of energy because my nervous system is having to work 1,000 times harder than yours just to get the signals through. Some days, for some inexplicable reason, I spontaneously recharge fairly quickly and I get to do things other than basic human functions – these are my good days. Other days, most days if I’m honest, time passes from my favorite chair or lying in bed. I read, listen to audiobooks, put puzzles together on an app, watch TV, and snuggle with our cats.

MS and heat don’t mix, it makes all symptoms worsen, so I haven’t been on the patio taking pictures much the past few weeks. However, the past couple of days have been milder allowing me to snap a few pics of my feathered friends.

I’ve learned to love bluejays and all the sounds they make.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, cardinals are one of the most beautiful birds of all!

Mourning doves are another personal fav.

The butterfly bushes we planted in the spring have more than doubled in size and smell wonderful!

There have been 5-10 hummingbird moths around the butterfly bushes all summer.

Hubby has just a couple more days before he heads back to work. This chore has been on his list and he’s glad to have it done. It’s still hard to believe God has blessed me with such a perfect guy ❣️

May God be with you! ❤️, Amy

May 2021

A Bumpy Ride on the MS Bus

May 7, 2021May 7, 2021by amysaxons1 Comment

Hello, friends, it’s been a while. I’ve tried to write a few times but my thoughts have been all over the place. It’s hard to write intelligibly when you’re being jostled every which way riding at the back of the MS Bus over rough terrain. I’ve had some smooth spots here and there but there have been plenty of pothole infested gravel roads that have caused the wheels to come completely off.

I think the worst day was when I had wandered out onto the patio to watch the birds and got stranded for close to three hours. I was home alone and knew I was tired but misjudged the severity of it and entered a sort of locked-in state unable to move and get back into the house. There were birds a plenty at the feeders that day to keep me company, as well as butterflies and bees visiting the then blooming lilac bushes. However, as I rounded into the second hour, my bladder started to send a signal that became a blur of non-stop, unbearable …—… It was a true cliffhanger! Would my legs recover enough to get me inside before I lost control of my bladder?!? I’m happy to report that thirty minutes later, at the end of my bladder’s tether, my legs kicked in and saved the day!

Per usual, I’ve been snapping a few pics of the birds around the house. I was finally able to put the feeders up again about two weeks ago with no signs of sick birdies. I sure missed my little feathered friends! A pair of house finches made their nest on the wreath on the front door. Their brood of six have all made it so far, as you can see below. Mom and Dad have been keeping the nest floor clean by putting the little nippers’ poo on the edges of the nest. That will be fun to clean up 😝.

Here are a few of my favorites from the backyard.

Thanks to many of you, I am thrilled to report that I came in first among the local MS Walk fundraisers! From the bottom of my heart, I am truly grateful.

The ride is getting bumbier all of a sudden and I am going fuzzy again. I hope you are doing well and enjoying the beauties God has made all around you. ❤️, Amy