A Quick Update

I know.  I have not done a good job keeping up on the blog.  I will give you a quick run-down of what has been going on. 

Sunday, 4/14, we had another tornado scare.  Penny and I spent the morning and part of the afternoon at Kevin and Renea’s.  We had plenty of rain and some wind, but the bad weather stayed south and north of us.  We were in the donut hole so to speak as far as tornadoes were concerned.

Monday and Tuesday were “normal” days. 

Wednesday I headed to the orthopedic doctor about my knees.  I will be having a complete knee replacement on my left knee on 5/21.  There will be a lot of doctor appointments before then.  Meanwhile, the pain continues.  I do not get a lot of sleep because the knees are bone on bone with arthritis and bone spurs.  Every movement is painful and I wake many times during the night because of the pain.  Hurts to walk, hurts to sit, hurts to stand – I am sure you get the picture.

Thursday Kevin and Renea headed for San Antonio, TX, for the funeral of one of their best friends/Army buddy.  Kevin was part of the service.  They took the camper and arrived on Friday.  The service was Saturday.  Left for home on Sunday and arrived on Monday.  They also took Shelby since I would be dog sitting, and Shelby is still a handful.  Lola and Copper are older and easier to take care of. 

However, and of course, we had another tornado watch/warning on Thursday night into Friday.  Penny and I spent Thursday afternoon, Thursday night and party of Friday at K & R’s house with the dogs.  I didn’t get much sleep watching the television regarding the storms.  Again, we were lucky.  We did get six inches of rain.  Ryan came over on Friday to drain some water out of the pool. 

Sunday was Easter so I went to Mass on Sunday instead of Saturday night.  Sunday Mass still lasted an hour and a half.  Church was packed.  There was an Easter egg hunt for the kids after Mass.  Lucky me.

Monday I had an appointment with PA Randy at the Urology Center.  All of my tests came back showing no problems.  Of course, just to be sure, now they want me to have a Cystoscopy (better known as a bladder scope).  This will also be done in May.  May sure is getting booked up with doctor appointments.  I also have an appointment with a nephrologist.  However, that won’t be until the end of September.  They kept changing it to June, then July, then August.  Finally, I said end of September because I am still hoping to get to Cincinnati for a visit.

Dr. Wolff told me I would be in the hospital two to four days after the knee surgery.  Then I will have two weeks of home therapy.  K & R want me to stay at their house when I get home from the hospital.  They will take care of Penny.

Meanwhile I have finished Jana’s quilt top including the binding.  It is now ready for the quilter.  Jana wants to take it to the place in Indiana to have it quilted.  I will take it with me when I go to Cincinnati. 

Forgot to mention that I went to the Derdoski’s for Easter dinner.  Jennifer fixed a ham and fixings.  Sure was good.  Had a really nice time.

That pretty much catches me up on the happenings here. 

I've Been Busy

Today was a very busy day.  I spent the morning house cleaning and moving furniture in my living room.  I still would like to get a new area rug for the living room since I had to throw the other one away.  In addition I did a few other inside chores before lunch.

After lunch it was down to the She Shack.  I added the first border to Jana’s quilt top and cut the pieces for the second border.  It is looking really nice.

I also finished the wall hanging for my kitchen.  I am going to try and find more material just like it so I can make kitchen curtains.  I am proud of this wall hanging because it is the first one I made that I didn’t use a panel.  This was from scratch.

 

I also remembered to take a picture of my new tote bag that I just finished.

While I was taking pictures I also took a couple of my snowball bush.  This is the best it has looked since I planted it.

Didn’t get one of the iris because they finished blooming.

However, I did get one of the pretty azalea bush.  All three bloomed, but this one was the best.

Now, I am finished for the day.  I just took two Tylenol because I am hurting.  I am going to sit and watch some television now.  I need to rest.

I got very lucky.  My first stop this morning was Hobby Lobby to check and see if that was where I had bought the material I used for my kitchen wall hanging.  And….lo and behold!  There it was in the closeout bin.  There was enough yardage that I needed.  Now I can make my kitchen curtains.

While there I also bought the material I need to make Samantha’s flag.  She wants one that says “The House Family” and has a picture of the State of Ohio.  This project will be a first for me.

Next stop was Kroger’s, and then I headed for home. 

Kevin is busy mowing grass.  He trimmed some trees in the back along the woodline so the branches didn’t hit him in the face when riding the tractor.  As of right now he has finished the back yard and is working on my front yard.  Renea helped him by mowing their front grass.  I can’t believe they finished all of the mowing in one day!

It is now Friday and another busy day.  I spring cleaned my dining room today.  After that I went down to the She Shack and finished Jana’s quilt top.  I will be taking it with me to Ohio because she wants to take it to the quilt shop in Indiana for the backing and quilting.  The colors are much brighter and prettier than the picture shows.

Ryan came over and started weeding the area in front of my deck.  He is about ninety percent finished and will be back once more to complete the rest of it.  He is also going to cut back the lantanas for me.

Had a very nice evening.  Friends of ours (Patrick and Kara) came to visit.  They actually were at Kevin and Renea’s for supper.  I was invited but since I am not eating meat on Friday (and they were having turkey) during lent I did not go over.  However, they came over to my place after supper and visiting Kevin’s fishing shack and my she shack.  We sat on the deck until after nine o’clock.  Kevin and Patrick were in the Army together for a while.  When he and Kara married Kevin and Renea were Best Man and Matron of Honor.  They have a son and a daughter.  They also have horses that they train, not for racing, but for dressage and other events.  It was great seeing them.  They live here in Russell County.  It was a fun evening.

More Doctors and More Tests

All of a sudden I am having trouble with the type in my blogs.  I am trying something new this time, and I hope it works.

I went to see the podiatrist this week.  Of course, I have strange things happening.  The toe which had the nail removed is growing (sort of) a new nail.  Along the sides of the toe is new toenail.  However, in the center it is soft and rough and weird.  We are going to keep an eye on it.  As for my big toe on my other foot, and three other toes, he took some clippings and is sending them off for analysis.  They have some type of fungus, and before he can treat it he needs to know what kind of fungus.  I just keep all of the doctors guessing.

This week I finished my new tote bag. 

I am still working on Jana’s quilt top.  I put the blocks together, and the rows are now sewn together.  Next step is the borders.  I have cut the first border.

I have decided I need more plastic tote boxes for my fabric.  I want to sort it so I can find what I need, and I just have too much fabric for the storage I have. 

Friday night Kevin and Renea invited me for supper.  Bruce, Jennifer and Bethany were also there.  Kevin had caught some catfish and a bass.  This is what he fixed for supper.  It was an evening of remembering.  One of their dear friends from the Army died of cancer.  He had been battling cancer for quite a few years.  They drank the type of beer he drank.  We looked at numerous pictures.  Many stories were told.  Dave was much loved and will be missed.

I have been having a couple of rough days.  My knees, hips and fibromyalgia has me in a lot of pain.  Part of it is the weather.  The other part is the arthritis.

I found someone to pull my weeds.  Or, I should say Kevin and Renea found someone for me.  Ryan stopped over and told me he will be pulling weeds when the rain stops.  Thank you, Ryan.

Kevin has been busy mowing grass and using the weedeater.  We have decided to take down the magnolia tree.  The leaves have brown spots and white dust on them.  When I researched this on the internet it seems there is nothing that can be done to correct this.  So, we decided to take it down.  Several of our trees that we are growing in containers are ready to be planted.  I don’t think that will be done until fall.

However, we do have another big project for this summer.  The wood on my deck is starting to rot.  We are discussing the possibility of removing the deck and replacing it with a concrete patio.  This makes more sense that replacing it with more wood. 

Sunday was a lazy day because of the pain.  I finished a book I was reading, and I watched the NASCAR race.  Sure tired of Kyle Bush winning all the races.  I keep rooting for Clint Bowyer.  Love that redneck! 

I was sorry to see Auburn lose that game in the Final Four.  I truly think the refs messed up.  I watched several angles of replays, and I just can’t come to any other conclusion.  They missed one call and should not have made that last one.  I hope Texas Tech wins the final game.

This morning I cancelled four doctor appointments.  Three were tests that Dr. Miller signed me up for and the other was the appointment with Dr. Miller.  Two of three tests have already been done by my new doctor. 

Today is Tuesday and I had my appointment for my CT scan at the Urology Center in Columbus.  Friday was I supposed to have an appointment to have an ultra sound at the same place.  Today was for my bladder.  They are trying to find out why I have blood in my urine.  Friday was to be an ultra sound of my bladder and kidneys.  Anyway, the gal that did my CT scan told me her next appointment had cancelled and she would be glad to do the ultra sound if I wanted.  I said sure, but wasn’t sure my bladder was “full” enough.  She said she would check and if so would continue with the ultra sound.  Yea, it was full enough so I don’t have to go back Friday.  Now I just have to wait until 4/22 for my appointment to get the results.

Hopefully, I will get some more work accomplished in the She Shack this week since I stopped at Walmart and Winn Dixie on my way home.  While at Walmart I bought a couple of plastic containers for my material, a couple of notebook binders and masking tape. 

Other than putting my groceries away, I didn’t do anything the rest of the day.  I had a headache and upset stomach.  I think it was from the dye they injected for the CT scan.  Tomorrow will be a better day.

My Week Before Last Post

Now that's a title :)

Continuing with the doctors.  Thursday was a trip to the Urology Center of Columbus.  After running a couple of tests I am now scheduled for a CT scan of my bladder and an ultra sound of both my bladder and kidneys.  Then it will be back to see the doctor.  All three of these are in April. 

Next week I see the podiatrist for a checkup on my toe that had the nail removed.  I also need him to check a toe on my other foot. 

Also in April I have an appointment with the orthopedic doctor to check my knees.  The shot they gave me helped the right knee, but the left one still hurts like crazy.  I haven’t been able to do my rehab exercises for my hip because they hurt my knee.  Not sure what they will do next.

Wednesday was laundry day, which wears me out because I am on my feet so much.  Then today, Thursday, was grocery day which also wears me out.  By the time I shop, load the car, drive home, empty the car and put the groceries away I am done! D. O. N. E. DONE!  Both knees are hurting now.

Friday I spent most of the day working in the She Shack.  I am making great progress on Jana’s quilt top, and I am almost finished with my large tote bag.  I have been doing some research on the computer because there are two quilts I want to make and I am looking for patterns.  I may have to make them up as I go.  I’ve done that before.  I am also looking for a couple of patterns for another type of tote bag/purse and table runners and placemats.  I may make those up as I go along also.  I have pictures of what I want to do.

Saturday was work done in the house and going to Mass.  Sunday was my do nothing day.  I did print pictures of all the items I quilted to put in a book.  I am also going to start a book on my embroidery projects.  And a third book will be for patterns for both sewing and quilting. 

Now I need to find someone to hire to weed my garden areas.  I seem to have a problem getting that done because of my knees. 

I also watched the NASCAR race on Sunday.  I thought it was boring.  I was hoping Clint Bowyer would win.  He is such a redneck, but is my favorite!  I have also been rooting for the Auburn basketball team.  They made it to the Final Four.  WAR EAGLE!!!!  I wish them the best of luck.

It’s been a busy week so far.  I have spent time in the She Shack working on Jana’s quilt.  I have been working on my tote bag.  I have been getting fabric together to make a wall hanging in my kitchen.  I hope to finish that and the tote bag this week.  I have also been doing some research for patterns on a couple of items I wish to quilt; one is a bookcase quilt and I have several ideas for some jellyroll projects.

I would also like to mention that it looks like all my trees made it through the winter except the weeping willow.  The trees in containers on my deck are looking awesome.  We should be able to transplant a few this fall.  My snowball bush is beautiful this year.  It has started to bloom and I have many blooms.  I will take a picture when I get a chance.  I have one yellow iris blooming.  It has three blooms on the stalk; one is blooming the other two are buds.  My azaleas are starting to bloom.  I have day lilies coming up in the containers they are in.  Two of the rose-of-sharon bushes made it through the winter along with the rhododendron.  Even the Franklin trees have leaves.  Okay, I will stop here and just say everything is starting to look healthy.

I am going to end this here, and start a new blog for the past week.  This is basically from the week before last.  LOL

GETTING OLD IS THE PITS!

Okay, first of all, yesterday Kevin and Renea took me to supper at a restaurant none of us had been to.  The Derdoski’s told them about it.  It is called the Mason Jar and is in Auburn.  The meal was wonderful.  The portions were so big none of us could finish everything on our plates.  Since it was Friday (and Lent) I had shrimp.  Best shrimp ever.  They are also known for the milk shakes.  We saw several varieties of them and decided they would be a meal all by itself.

Before we went to the Mason Jar Restaurant we stopped at Lowe’s (of course).  Kevin bought new rope for his flag pole.  The day of the tornadoes his rope was actually torn off the pole.  I bought two chairs for my deck.  Decided to buy less expensive ones this year since they take a beating on my deck.  I also bought the rest of the hooks for my peg board.

It was a fun evening.

Now, about this getting old!  My front yard is a disaster since nothing has been done for months.  The weather has been cold and rainy.  I have had all these stupid health problems (still do).  However, I decided it was time for me to start spending a little time each day working on the yard.  This morning I started with weeding the azalea bushes.  They look pretty sad, but are trying to bloom.  I worked a little over an hour and filled a garbage bag with weeds.  Hopefully, in the next day or say I will have it weeded enough that I can feed the bushes.  After that hour my knee hurt like crazy and I could barely walk on it to get in the house.  Therefore, I am working on my blog 😊.

Later in the day Kevin, Renea and me went to the Derdoski’s for a cookout.  Nick was confirmed in the morning, and they invited us and family for the afternoon and evening.  We had a great time.  I laughed until I hurt.  They have a swimming pool in their backyard.  The water temperature was 64 degrees.  That didn’t stop the teenagers, or some of the adults.  Everyone ended up in the pool except Renea, Jennifer and me.  Bruce grilled chicken, and, yes, he did go into the pool.  We had plenty of side dishes, cake and a large cookie.  It was a very fun time.

I had a miserable day on Sunday.  Between my knee, fibromyalgia and vertigo I didn’t do much of anything except watch the race and some basketball.  It will definitely be early to bed tonight.

Kevin mowed all the grass in both our front yards today.  It sure looks good.  He was also busy working on fishing rods.  Business is good!

Monday morning I took my car to the Honda dealer for an oil change, tire rotation and general checkup.  Next I stopped at Walgreen’s and picked up two of my prescriptions that were ready.  Got a few things done around the house and called it a day.  Still not feeling my best.

Tuesday morning I slept until 8:30.  I can’t remember the last time I did that except when I was sick.  I felt like I lost most of the morning.  Really didn’t get much accomplished in the morning.  However, that afternoon I went to the She Shack and accomplished quite a bit.  I worked on Jana’s quilt (that’s the one she gave me for a Christmas present to put together for her 😊 ).  I also worked on my larger tote bag.  I stopped about suppertime and called it a day.

I just don’t seem to be able to put in as many hours as I used to.  GETTING OLD IS THE PITS!

A Busy Week

Brian and family left here at three o’clock Saturday morning.  Apparently, they had an uneventful and safe trip home.  Now it is back to normal – whatever that is.  I finished weeding the trees that are in the containers on my deck.  There are 47 of them!  I also filled the birdfeeders.  I have been rather lax on that since my helper (Jana) left.

I went to Mass later in the day. St. Patrick is the patron saint of our church, so we were all asked to wear green.  They had a potluck supper after Mass.  They decided to celebrate on Saturday evening instead of Sunday.

Sunday was a lazy kind of day.  I watched the NASCAR race.  I took a nap.  I have been going through my quilting magazines and marking projects I would like to do.  I am also getting rid of some that don’t have anything that interests me. 

Today I had my mammogram done at 8:30 this morning.  After that I stopped at WalMart (it was on the way) and picked up a few groceries.  Came home and put everything away.  By this time my knees were really hurting so I took a break after lunch and propped up my feet.  I feel much better now.  Didn’t do much the rest of the day.

Tuesday was a busy day.  After getting a few things done around the house I made a few phone calls.  I put a roast in the crockpot.  That should get me a couple of suppers and some sandwiches.  I spent the afternoon working in the Shed.  I had a lot of straightening up to do.  I also got my hooks from Kevin for the peg board.  I hung my rulers and templates on the board.  I need a few more hooks for my scissors.  I did some research on something Samantha asked me to make for her.  She wants an all season flag to hang outside.  She decided on the State of Ohio.  I am going to work on a design for her to approve.  I also started cutting out the quilt Jana wants me to make for her.  It is almost ready to start sewing. 

While at the Shed I heard from the Urology Center.  My appointment is for next Thursday.  Yesterday I received paperwork regarding my appointment with the Nephrology doctor.  It must not be too critical since my appointment isn’t until June.

Just finished supper.  The roast tasted very good.  The dishwasher is running.  I am done for the day.  Will probably watch some television.

It was up bright and early this morning.  I had my dexa scan in Columbus.  I was told my doctor would call me with the results.  I then stopped at Walgreen’s to pick up one of my medicines.  Then it was home to get a few things accomplished.  After lunch I gathered up my supplies from the She Shed to take with me tomorrow.  I have a class at Opelika Sewing Center.  Not sure how much I will learn since I figured most of it out myself.  I signed up for the class before I tried downloading and saving embroidery patterns on my own.  Decided I would take the class anyway.  Never know when you may learn something 😊.

After that I worked on organizing my thread for my embroidery projects.  I ordered quite a bit of thread and it arrived today.  I was matching colors (numbers) with the patterns.  I also have the option of changing the colors which I plan to do on a few of the patterns.  I am really looking forward to working on these.

FYI – I took the class and thoroughly enjoyed it.  There was only one other person taking the class so it was pretty much one on one.  The gal that taught the class is awesome.  We had a great time, and yes, I did learn a few things.  Glad I took the class!

A Fun Time

Thursday was another fishing day.  Of course, it involved several trips back and forth between the house and the lake since they only had one vehicle to take the boats.  I can say these words now since the weekend is over.  They had another fun day.

Kevin and his fish

Samantha and her two fish

Tracy and her fish

Steven “almost” caught a couple of fish, but they got away 😊.  No one else had any luck.

Late that afternoon Kevin brought Tracy, Samantha and one boat home.  Meanwhile, Brian heard that his van was ready to be picked up.  When Kevin went back to get the rest of the gang they stopped and picked up his truck.  After arriving home they grilled hamburgers and hot dogs.  We had beans and chips to go with them.  Renea had backed pecan pie bars and an apple pie.  We spent the evening watching the videos of the past CRAP IDOLS.  Lots of laughter.

Friday was going to be another fishing day, but when they got up in the morning it was raining.  So, they decided to go to Academy and buy ammo so they could shoot their guns in the afternoon.  Kevin has a shooting range set up in the back.  Ryan had made some kind of contraption for them to use.  Stephanie and Ray were bringing clay discs to shoot.  Tracy doesn’t shoot guns but she does bow and arrows and they brought her target for her.

Samantha and Tracy shot the bow and arrows.

Everyone else did guns.   This is Kevin, Brian and Stephanie shooting with Steven throwing.

Kevin, Stephanie and Brandon shooting with Brian and Ray throwing.

Stephanie shooting with Ray throwing

Kevin, Ryan and Brandon helping Samantha

Ryan helping Samantha

I just liked this picture.  It is the only one I have with Steven.

They took a break for supper and then were back at it until dark.  After supper Brian built us a campfire.  We really enjoyed that – me especially.  Supper consisted of duck that Ray had shot and fish that had been caught another time.  Since it was Friday and I am not eating meat I did not try the duck.  Neither did Renea.  Renea and Stephanie had leftovers from the night before.  I had a piece of fish.  Renea also fixed hash brown casserole, macaroni and cheese with bacon, jalapeno cornbread, and chocolate cookie cheesecake.  We spent the evening sitting around the campfire talking and laughing.  Brian went to bed early since he was the driver and they were leaving at three o’clock in the morning.

It was a wonderful couple of days.  We really need to do this more often.  It’s a shame we live so far apart, but then maybe that is what makes a visit so special.

They arrived home safe and sound.

NOTE:  Bradley and Brianna did not visit because they couldn't get off work.