I'm baaack!

 Yeah, I know, that was a short leave of absence! I missed having that connection with people more than I realized I would. Even though I was making an effort, as were others, to keep in touch, I missed the pictures and the "funnies" and the lifeline to a whole network of friends rather than just a select few. So, I'm back, for better or worse. I am being much more discriminating of what I look at though. If someone upsets me with a post, I just unfollow them for awhile. I'm trying to focus on good things and helpful things. So what did I miss? 😁

Last week was SUPER busy! We were getting ready for overnight guests that were coming Sunday evening. So we had to get the living room finished to the point that we could move furniture back into it, and get the stuff we were storing in the guest room out, so I could get it suitable for company. Dennis got the entertainment center finished, except for the doors, and I got it loaded up...discarding a lot of stuff in the process. This remodeling is really good for helping us "simplify". By the time we finish, I only want to still have things that we really use, plus some special memory items. I have gotten rid of a lot of old pictures...going through and just keeping our favorites. It is amazing how many poor quality pictures or duplicates that accumulate over the decades! That is a very time consuming process, so I just work on it a little at a time. I've trimmed down our collection of photo albums probably by half. The individual photos that I decide to keep are going in a box for now...to be reorganized eventually. I also went through all of my books and took more than half of them to a local second-hand book store. I saved my collections of my favorite authors and some that carry sentimental value. With what I have left, plus my digital collection, I think I have enough to keep me busy if I decide to reread them all! I do love books!

We still have more detail work to do in the living room: touchup painting, finish putting up trim, and of course laying the carpet at the end of everything else. I really worked on the concrete floors...getting them cleaned up (except for the stuck on texturing and paint and etc.). I think I mopped every square inch at least 3-4 times. I also got the entry way tile scrubbed. All of the (hands and knees) scrubbing I have left to do is the dining room, which I'll probably have to do in sections. Dennis is currently working on building the mantle for over the fireplace. We looked at buying a premade one, but they were ridiculously expensive! So Dennis is building a beam by gluing together 1x6's. That's how he made the corner posts on Sheila and Matt's bed, and it turned out beautifully. He will stain it to match the rest of our wood furniture. We eventually hope to replace the fireplace with a gas one, but that may take a while!

We really enjoyed our visit with Geo and Mae! We have known them for several years, but we've had little opportunity to "get to know them". They were going on an anniversary trip and graced us with a stop on their way. I look forward to many more visits in the future with this sweet young couple!

I've had a lot of CASA work lately...had two hearings this week that I had to prepare for. One case closed, so that just leaves me with two cases with one child each. I'm doing all of my visits virtually right now. Thankfully, the children are both in really good places, so I feel comfortable doing things that way. 

We are moving forward with our vacation plans for next month. We are really getting excited! Just getting away for a couple or three weeks sounds wonderful...it has been a long time since we've been able to do that. Going to a MUCH cooler climate sounds great right now. We hit 110+ degrees today. Going somewhere where we'll have to wear jackets will be such a relief! We are hoping that the crowds thin out quite a bit once school starts. Dennis has been monitoring the crowds going into Yellowstone online, and they are still crazy busy! Since we were there five years ago, we don't necessarily plan to visit the "hot spots" in the park, so maybe we can avoid the worst crowds. We are hoping to spend most of our time looking for wildlife. Dennis just bought a new lens for his camera that should help him to get even better pictures than on our last trip.

Well, that's what's up with us. What's going on in your lives?

"Keeping on keeping on"

Life is pretty much getting back to normal for Dennis and myself…our new normal, anyway. It looks like with the huge spikes in COVID cases, this may go on for a while. Wearing a mask in public is no big deal…certainly something that we can do to help contain the spread! I do miss eating out at restaurants, but we are eating healthier at home anyway. We are having “regular” sleepovers with Nam now, and we’ve been able to visit with all of our kiddos in the past few weeks. So I really have no complaints! Dennis and I keep talking about how blessed we are during all of the craziness going on.

My CASA work is really gearing up! I have three cases now. I hadn’t planned to do more than just the one, but the need is so great, it’s hard to ignore. This week has been pretty busy. I visited 3 of my 4 kids this week and observed a visit between a couple of my kiddos and their mom. Then we had (Zoom) court this morning. I have another hearing next week (on my newest case, so it doesn’t require a court report). I really enjoy being back in the work, but it does stress me out to a certain degree. You get so involved in people’s lives at one of the worst times in their life, so it can be heartbreaking. I also really get stressed out when I have to appear in court! Even though I may not seem to be the type to get nervous about speaking in front of people, I am! Any time I have to speak in a “formal” setting, I get very anxious…a type of stage-fright, I suppose…especially when it has to do with important matters and my voice is weighed heavily in the decision-making process. I’ve never had a lot of self-confidence. I’m more of a self-blamer. I constantly second guess myself and doubt myself. Anytime ANYTHING goes wrong, I automatically wonder what I did to cause it! So I guess I’m not really cut out for this type of work. But it is something that desperately needs to be done, and I have the time and desire to do it, so here I am.

Dennis is doing great! He has currently lost 25 pounds. He is now off of his blood pressure medication and has his blood sugar well-controlled. He is still working on the drywall in the living room and hallway. He’s new at this type of work and is a perfectionist, so it is taking a LONG time! It shouldn’t be too much longer before we can do the texturing and painting though. I’m ready to have my living room back!

I went to see my cardiologist for the first time in 3 years. I was concerned about some little issues that I was having. He was very happy with my checkup and couldn’t see any problems. He did schedule me for a stress test and a Doppler of my carotid arteries, just to be on the safe side. The stress test is in a couple of weeks and the Doppler, a couple of weeks after that. I also go for my regular checkup around the same time to get my bloodwork done. I always try to do my routine medical stuff around my birthday, so I can keep up with it. I am also having to return to my orthopedic doctor in a couple of weeks. My shoulders are continuing to get worse, and some days I can barely lift my arms. So I think it time for another steroid shot. I’ve been trying to put it off, because I really don’t like the idea of going to doctor’s offices and testing places right now. But the number of COVID cases is only getting worse, and I am concerned about developing nerve damage if I put it off too long.

Dennis took a quick trip to the hill country this week. He found a good opportunity for a hunting lease for a few of the guys that have been looking for one. Dennis has lost access to a couple of places that he has been hunting locally, so he is needing other options, too. He had talked to the landowner on the phone and wanted to check out the place in person. He was very impressed, so he booked a 4-day hunt for himself and a few other guys. While he was “in the neighborhood” he dropped by our favorite pecan place in San Saba and brought home 10 pounds of Nocona pecans. I had run out of my good pecans and have been having to resort to “store-bought”. There is really no comparison between the two! So I’m really happy to have some quality nuts on hand. I still have to crack and shell them, which I’ll probably try to get done this weekend. They are a large paper-shelled nut, so they are pretty easy to shell out.

Well, that’s pretty much what is going on in our world! I hope all of you are staying safe and healthy and seizing the opportunities that present themselves for doing good! This world is in a pretty sorry state right now, and we all need to do what we can to make things kinder and better. God bless!

I can't believe we are halfway through June already!

Well, we are two weeks into Texas’ Phase 3 plan of reopening the state, and, as expected, the numbers of infected and hospitalized are up. It hasn’t gone up as dramatically as it could have, so I’m hoping the warmer weather is helping mitigate the spread of the virus. Dennis and I have eased up somewhat, but we are still wearing masks in public and avoiding going anywhere (public) that isn’t necessary. I’ve started doing real visits on my CASA cases again, rather than virtual visits. I hadn’t really planned to, but I took on a new case, and it is very difficult to really get to know someone (especially children) by phone. Social distancing is pretty much impossible with littles, so I just do my best at maintaining distance and then use wipes and hand sanitizer afterwards. I am NOT going to refuse to allow a small child to take my hand or give me a hug! My main concern, now, is just making sure that I don’t inadvertently pass along anything to someone else who is high risk. So Dennis and I wear masks to church and refuse hugs and handshakes. We are now attending services at Eastside, and pretty much everyone there is at risk. It would kill me to think that I might cause anyone there to suffer.

We have had visits with all of our littles! We went to Paris a week ago yesterday. We just drove over for the day. We had a great visit with Stephen’s family! The kids are growing up so fast…especially little Gracie. I wish we’d had longer, but we were so happy for the time that we had with them. Stephen and Dennis did some work out in the barn, and I visited with Mandy and played with the kiddos. We hadn't seen them since the end of January, so we soaked up all the loving we could. Hopefully we won't have to go that long again between visits!

Sheila allowed Nam to come for a sleepover Thursday. We met up that morning, so we had him for most of two days. It was just like old times! I baked a batch of snickerdoodles before he came, and  sent what he didn't eat home with him yesterday to share with his family. I really love cooking for that kid! He’s such a good eater and loves his Granny’s cooking. He and Grandad played all of their old games. We read from some of Nam's favorite books before bedtime. The littles never get tired of reading "OOH and AAH" (and I never get tired of reading it to them!). Grandad made him a wooden dagger while he was here (he is always making something from wood for one of the grandsons). Nam took it with him to Sutherlands when he went with Grandad to pick up some supplies. Dennis noticed he stuck it under his shirt while they were in the store. As soon as they left, he pulled it back out. Dennis asked him about it, and he told him he didn’t want to scare anyone!

I took Nam home yesterday and then went for a CASA visit. I was concerned about the drive home afterwards, through FW during rush hour, but I really didn’t have any trouble. I actually enjoyed the drive. I had my music playing and was singing along and enjoying being out and about. It really has helped my emotional volatility to be able to spend time with my family and others again. I didn’t even cry when I took Nam home! (When his family came to visit a couple of weeks ago, I lost it when they were leaving!) I guess social isolation had more of an effect on me than I realized.

Dennis is doing great on his diabetic diet! He has lost 15 pounds and his blood sugar is doing much better. He plans to start bicycling again, which will help even more. He has had to avoid bike riding for the past year, since it was a possible contributing factor to his elevated PSA. We discussed it with his oncologist when we were there for his biopsy results, and he told him he could start riding again…just stop about a month before his next test. He has also lowered his blood pressure and has been able to get off his medication for that.

Dennis has been getting supplies together for jug fishing out at PK. We love eating bream (which is what he mainly catches using a rod and reel), but they are so messy to eat and we aren’t comfortable serving them to the rest of the family (especially the littles) because of the bones. So he is concentrating on trying to catch catfish. He went out for the first time Wednesday. He caught a couple of catfish and quite a few perch, which he plans to use as future bait. We had enough catfish fillets (with what he caught, plus a package from the freezer) that we fried up some on Thursday, when Nam was here. That kid loves fish as much as his Grandad does! Dennis hopes to take him out with him on his next visit. He showed him all of the floats and hooks and lines and explained the process to him. He is looking forward to trying it out!

I’m taking a lazy day today. The past couple of days were pretty busy, and I usually need some time to rest up after having grandkids. Sheila loaned me the book “Just Mercy”. I watched the movie a couple of weeks ago. She was reading the book at the time. She said it was even better the movie. It breaks my heart to think about the injustices that still go on in society. People can be so cruel and ugly. No matter what “side” you are on in the whole upheaval that is going on right now, I hope most people can see that kindness and mercy and justice are the answers to societal ills. How to achieve that in this old sinful world is up for debate. As long as hatred and bigotry and violence prevail, things will continue to degrade. In my opinion (for what it is worth) people need to do a lot less talking and a lot more loving!

Stay safe and be kind!

Week 7 (I think) of Quarantine

Well, today is the first day of Stage 1 of Governor Abbott’s “Open Texas” initiative. Since Dennis and I fall in the “at risk” group, our lives won’t really change much, if any. I’m just hoping people don’t overreact and act like nothing is wrong anymore. The numbers of new cases and deaths (in Texas) actually rose more in the past day than they have been. I know that it is too early for this to be from the easing of restrictions, but it emphasizes that the risk is still out there. Texas is seeing about 1000 new cases every day.

Dennis’ back is much better, and he is steadily working on the house again. He has put up sheetrock on most of the hallway and hung both closet doors. He also came up with a brilliant idea! We had to tear out our old linen closet in the hall bathroom in order to enlarge the door. One of the hall closets abuts the bathroom wall (where the old closet used to be). Dennis suggested adding a door inside the bathroom that accesses the shelves in the hall closet, so we can keep towels within reach of our guests. The shelves will have access from both the hall and the bathroom, so I can refill them from either side. I love it!

View of hall from LR

New hall closet door

Dennis’ blood sugar has advanced from the pre-diabetic stage to diabetic. Our insurance company has a program that they provide (free) for diabetics that he signed up with this week. They furnish all of his testing supplies. The tester transfers his readings to the company, so they can monitor them. He also takes a picture of all of his meals and sends them, so they can see what he is eating and how it affects his blood sugar. That will enable them to better help him manage his diet. It should be very helpful!

The past two Sundays, Dennis and I met by ourselves. Since I had had a stomach bug for several days, we didn’t want to take any chance of sharing whatever germs caused it. Since the standard 14 days (for COVID-19) have passed, we will be able to assemble with our little group this coming Sunday. They’ve been meeting at Kirk’s house. I’m looking forward to being back with the others. I am definitely missing social interaction!

I ventured over to Weatherford today to pick up groceries (curbside) at Brookshire’s. I had had trouble accessing Walmart’s online shopping, so I decided to try them out. Their selection was a little better than Walmart’s. Their service was more “personal”. Rather than doing everything on an app, a real person texted me with questions about my order. It is too far to drive to do all of the time, but it was nice for a change of pace. Plus I was able to fill up my car with cheaper gas than we have in MW! It was the first time I’ve bought gas in about 6 weeks. Now that’s a record!

We’ve actually been eating better than normal with the quarantine. I’ve always cooked supper every day (except for an occasional night out), but we used to eat out for lunch a lot. Now we are down to getting take-out once or twice a week. So we are eating much healthier. With Dennis’ diabetes, he is being much more careful with his diet. We are enjoying having sourdough again. I’ve made garlic/cheddar biscuits, pretzels and bread since I began my starter. I try to bake once a week. I used the leftovers from my last loaf of bread to make croutons…yum! The trouble with homemade bread is that it is good the day you bake it…not so much, afterwards. I’ll probably process my leftover croutons to make some bread crumbs and store them in the freezer. We are really trying not to waste anything right now!

I made cheese/poblano tamales yesterday. They are our favorite! I was afraid I had ruined them though. I cook them in my Instant Pot. That way I can go do something else and not worry about them until it beeps at me. Well that didn’t work very well when I forgot to add water to the pot before sealing it! I had a MESS to clean up! But, after cleaning up the burnt mess, I added the water and tried again, and they turned out just fine…a little messy (from melting the first time), but still tasty. Yesterday was just one of those days when everything I touched went wrong!

I am feeling the grief from losing Daddy more now. It isn’t a constant thing, but it sweeps over me at some of the most inopportune times. Like today, on my way to pick up groceries, I thought about when Daddy and Bobbie lived at Brookdale (which is close to the store I was heading to). That was all it took to bring me to tears. I was afraid that I wouldn’t be able to get myself under control before getting to Brookshire’s! But I finally did. I just never know what’s going to set me off. This may sound strange, but I really miss the nursing home! I developed a close relationship with several of the staff and other residents while I was tending to Daddy. Last week, when they had their drive-by parade, I was really excited to participate and see them…even if it was from a distance. I didn’t realize how much it would affect me though. I cried the whole time and had to stop by the park afterwards to get myself settled down. Even though I am always a big crybaby, I really hate crying in front of people. If I’m going to cry, I want to be somewhere private!

I also REALLY miss my family, as I’m sure all of you do. My arms ache to hug my kids and grandkids! Zoom and facetime are great, but they don’t take the place of being together physically. I’m sure that is also affecting my grieving process (or my grieving is affecting how much I miss them). That is the one thing about COVID-19 that scares me the most. Those infected and hospitalized have to be isolated from all of their loved ones at THE WORSE TIME OF THEIR LIFE! I don’t know about y’all, but in our family, if someone is in the hospital, YOU GO BE WITH THEM! Just the thought of having one of my family members, or myself, having to be hospitalized with this awful virus and being ALONE brings me to tears EVERY SINGLE TIME. Dennis and I discuss it from time to time, and I break down every time. It absolutely breaks my heart to think about it. I was determined, when Daddy was dying, that I would be with him when he passed. I was so very thankful that I was able to be! People need to have their loved ones with them when they are sick and dying! Thankfully, I was able to be with both of my parents at the time of their death. It just really matters a lot to me.

Well, enough of that!

I’m still knitting dishrags, but I’m easing up a little. I’ve already finished and mailed out all of the ones that people requested. So now I’m just rebuilding my stockpile. I’ve also had to start work on my court report for CASA. I have a hearing coming up in a couple of weeks (via ZOOM…now that ought to be interesting!). All of my case work has had to be done by phone…as well as some training that I’ve had to do. I’m very thankful that my child is in a good place during all of this!

Well, that’s what’s going on around here. How are all of you managing during your “stay at home” time?

Back to Remodeling!

We are getting a good start to our year. Dennis started on the living room this week. He has moved the furniture out and removed the ceiling beams. We have moved all of our “stuff” out (from the bookshelves and entertainment shelves). I’m sorting through my books as we go to donate ones that I don’t really want to reread and keep. (I have A LOT of books.) I also have some more (more recent) photo albums that I’ll need to go through and get rid of pictures that aren’t particularly good or meaningful. It feels good to start working on the house again! (Of course that means that our home will not be suitable for company for a while!)

 I’m also getting back into the routine of working a CASA case. We had our second hearing on the case last week, which opened up some very interesting opportunities. It feels good to “get back in the saddle.”

We had our Vietnamese dinner last Friday night with the kids. The eggrolls were a big hit! The pho garnered mixed reviews…as did the almond cookies. It was fun regardless! Then Nam spent the night with us. It was a short visit, since his parents had already planned to take him to Asia Square the next day to celebrate Tet (the Lunar New Year that is the major holiday in Vietnam). Nam really enjoys going to that every year!

Sunday we had our monthly guest speaker and potluck. Bobby Womble was our speaker. We really enjoyed visiting with him and Becky. Even though I’ve known them for decades, I’ve never really spent any time visiting with them. It was good to change that oversight!

Dad is doing about the same. He’s eating pretty well (sometimes) and getting nutritional supplements, so he has gained back a little of the weight that he had lost. He still mostly just eats and sleeps. He likes me to stay for 5-10 minutes, then is ready for me to leave, so he can go back to sleep. If any of you decide to visit him, you can expect the same. He won’t really act like he’s enjoying your visit, but he does. He doesn’t smile anymore…ever. Sometimes I can get a little “chuckle” out of him and one corner of his mouth moves a little, but I think he is incapable of actually smiling anymore. He also doesn’t speak much, if any. He says more to me than he does most people, and I mostly get just “yes” or “no” from him.

Gwen had her lumpectomy yesterday. The surgeon also removed 3 lymph nodes. She won’t get the biopsy results until next week. She is doing great! She told me that she isn’t having to take anything for pain. Please continue your prayers for her that she doesn’t have to have any more treatments, other than radiation!

Dennis and I joined the gym at the hospital’s cardiac rehab center. Dennis has trouble walking because his feet are worn out from being a mailman; and he can’t ride a bike now, because it elevates his PSA. So our doctor recommended that he work out on an elliptical. The gym has everything we need to get a good workout. I look forward to using their weight machines to increase my upper body strength and flexibility. I also want to try out the rowing machines and elliptical. My plan is to ride my bike 3-4 times a week and then go to the gym on the days in between. The gym will be convenient to go to when we go check on Dad. It is right down the road from the nursing home.

Well, I guess I’d better get back to work. I hope you all have a great week!

Busy time of year!

Dennis and I had a “date afternoon” last week and went to see “It’s a Wonderful Day in the Neighborhood.” I loved it. Mr. Rogers was such a dear, sweet man who loved people, especially children. I read an article that said he agonized over every word and action in his show…making sure that there was nothing said or done that could confuse a child. He was so gentle and loving! I really recommend the movie to anyone who hasn’t seen it yet.

We had a care plan meeting for Dad last week. Things are about the same…just steadily getting weaker and more tired. The hospice social worker visited him Tuesday…first time since he was first admitted to the service a month ago. She was surprised by how much he had declined. She doesn’t think he’ll be around much longer. He still gets up for meals and to go to the restroom, but the rest of the time he just wants to sleep. She suggested that I read to him during my visits, which I did on Wednesday. When I asked him yesterday if he wanted me to read to him, he said no, that he was too tired. He did have a visit from Ralph and Linda S and Diane B on Monday. Diane said he seemed to enjoy it and stayed awake the entire time.

I had decided to take on a new CASA case after the first of the year after my year-and-a-half long sabbatical. Last week, our director sent out a list of new cases that needed advocates, and one caught my eye. It was just what I needed to get back “in the game”. I met the child and foster mom on Monday and attended the adversary hearing Tuesday morning. Things have changed since my last case and I feel really rusty, so it will take me awhile to get reacclimated!

Last Friday evening, Caleb had his piano recital at Bass Hall. (It was actually in the building across the street where they hold the Van Cliburn competition.) We went to Matt and Sheila’s, early, to take them their deer meat and Christmas presents. Then we all (including Andy and Sherry) went to eat supper together before heading downtown for the recital. It was fun! Most of the students were beginners, so I got a bigger kick out of watching Nam’s reactions than listening to the numbers. He was hilarious! During one piano piece, the little girl was playing a familiar tune. Dennis whispered to Nam the name of the song, and Nam looked askance at him and asked, “How can you tell?!!!” (I admit, it took me a minute or so to recognize it myself!) Caleb did a really good job, though. I was so proud of him! He had the biggest cheering section too!

Sheila and Nam came over for several hours on Saturday. Nam and Grandad played, while Sheila and I did some cooking for the freezer. We really enjoyed their visit! All three of us are looking forward to Nam’s two-night sleepover in a couple of weeks.

We didn’t take Dad to church on Sunday for the first time. I didn’t tell him before hand, we just didn’t show up. We went by later to take him communion, but he was sound asleep, so we didn’t disturb him. He hasn’t said anything about it all week, so I’m not sure he even realized that we didn’t take him. He used to would have been really angry with us! I don’t know whether it is a matter of not noticing or just being too tired to care anymore.

We had some visitors from Amarillo at Highway Sunday morning, so a few of us went out to eat lunch together. We had a great time! It is nice to be able to do things like that again. It has been quite a while since we've had that freedom. Dennis and James S left from church that evening to go on their hunting trip. They got back yesterday afternoon with a LOT of meat! We probably have plenty now for us, as well as being able to share one with Amber and Ricky. Dennis loves being able to provide meat for the whole family!

I went back for my follow-up visit with the doctor Tuesday. I’m definitely needing a CPAP machine. I should be hearing from the company who will provide it soon to set up a time to come out and get me set up. I hope I adjust to it quickly and start feeling more rested!

After my doctor visit, I headed over to Diane B’s house for the night. We met up with several other ladies from Henrietta Creek at the Palace Theatre in Grapevine to watch “White Christmas”. The theatre is a historical landmark. They do things a little differently from other movie theatres. There were no ads or previews. Instead, a lady came out to tell everyone a little about the theatre and the movie. There was a balcony section, which sounded like fun, but one of our ladies was concerned that she wouldn’t be able to handle the stairs. The house was packed and the crowd was more interactive than usual at the movies (clapping after certain scenes and at the end of the movie, lots of laughter, and you could even hear a few people singing along with the movie). We loved it! We talked about making it an annual event. The section of Grapevine where it is located is all decorated up with lights and photo ops, with Christmas music playing. It was really pretty!

After the movie, Diane and I went back to her house, put on our jammies and watched an OLD Fred MacMurray and Barbara Stanwyck movie before turning in for the night. I always enjoy our “girl time” at Diane’s house! Btw, her broken wrist is much better! She doesn’t have to wear her splint anymore and is hoping to be released this week. She still doesn’t have full function back (which may take a year), but she is steadily making progress.

Wishing all of you a very Merry Christmas!

Countdown to our meeting!

Just one week until our meeting starts! *panic mode* I just love it when we are fighting a deadline to finish a project on the house in time for company. (Can you hear the sarcasm just dripping from my words?)

Of course, we won’t have the guest room completely finished by then, but we should have it habitable. We started laying the floor today and would have been finished if we hadn’t run out. Dennis is picking up some more laminate as he takes Nam to Jessica’s office (she’s keeping him while Sheila has a night out). We have the top shelf and pole put up in the closet, so we can put stuff back in there for now and finish installing the shelves later on. We have the crown molding painted and should be able to put it up tomorrow. Then we just need to do the window sill and baseboards and hang the new light/fan, and we can start moving furniture back in. Gina will be keeping Nam on Thursday and Friday next week, so we can get the house back in order and do a thorough cleaning.

We are about to wash away around here. I can’t even remember when it started raining, but it has been going at it pretty solid for a week or so. Our yard is a quagmire! It is an adventure just trying to get to the car. (Our garage is currently in workshop mode.) Nam has been going stir-crazy, not being able to get outside to play or ride his bike. Trying to get our work done and keep him occupied has been challenging. I normally don’t like for him to watch much tv, but I’ve been making an exception this past week. He has his window seat where he plays with his blocks and cars, and that’s about the only room he has for doing anything right now. Of course he loves to help us do EVERYTHING, but we can only take “so much” of his help. LOL! He really wants to help and tries, but he is just four years old! He was about to drive Grandad crazy today! So I decided to put on “Lady and the Tramp” for him to watch.

I took Daddy to get some bloodwork done Monday, so he decided to go ahead and relinquish his DL and get an ID card. Glad to get that done, even though it took ALL morning! We went early, and I was hoping the bad weather would keep people away, but they were pretty full. After filling out the paperwork and standing in line a half hour, we ended up not having the required proof of residence that he needed (had one, but not an acceptable second one). So we had to leave, go to the bank to get a statement to use, and then go get his bloodwork done. By then, it was time to pick up Nam. So when I took Daddy back to the DMV, I sent him in by himself with all of the necessary paperwork and stayed in the car with Nam. After about 15-20 minutes, I got worried, so we went in to check on him. He was still sitting and waiting on the lady to process him. I gave Nam my phone to play a game, and after another 15-20 minutes, we finally got through. Then we took Daddy back to Brookdale (just in time for lunch) and I took Nam to McDonalds for being so good for me during all of that!

Nam’s sleepover last week went very well. He didn’t have any problems at all. He and Grandad slept in our bed, and I slept in the other bedroom. He said his momma told him if he didn’t have fun, he wouldn’t have to do it again. But he told us Saturday morning that he had fun!

Sheila and Nam came over to Highway on Sunday to celebrate Dennis’ birthday. Nam took up with Layne, since Ricky and James were gone to Arkansas. He asked him to lead “Oh Thou Fount of” (as he calls it). When Layne got up to lead it, Nam belted it out at the top of his lungs! You could see smiles all over the building. After services, Sheila took us out to eat at Antonio’s. Then we took Daddy and Bobbie back to Brookdale. Bobbie wasn’t feeling very well. Sheila and Nam came back and visited until time to go back to afternoon services.

I’ve got a couple of batches of cookies and a loaf of banana nut bread baked and in the freezer. I’m hoping to get my pies baked and frozen tomorrow. (I’ve been planning to do them every day this week, but something else ends up taking up my time.) We are doing Subway sandwiches and hamburger/hot dogs on Saturday, so that means we only have to cook one meal for Sunday. I’ll be getting my food prep for that (and breakfasts) done up Friday. We are keeping Laura and the girls and maybe one other family.

Dennis and I had to go get fingerprinted…again…yesterday. In order to work with children (whether in a paying job or as a volunteer) you have to be fingerprinted with the FBI and the state of Texas. Every time one of them changes their system (which seems to be every few years), you have to go through the process again. They had fits trying to get Dennis’ fingerprints! He has done so much sanding on the drywall lately, that he sanded his right off. They kept having to moisturize his fingers to get anything to show up. But we got it done…until they change things again! (Dennis is my CASA Pal, which is why he had to be done. That means I’m able to discuss my cases with him, and he can accompany me on any visits that I make.) I’m still on my “sabbatical” from CASA, but I’m staying current so I’ll still be qualified when I’m ready to take on a new case. Still not sure when that will be! I may not start back until Nam starts kindergarten next fall.

Well, I hope to see a bunch of you next weekend at our meeting! If you are coming, have a safe journey and bring lawn chairs, if possible! Stay dry!

A week of changes

This past week, Sheila decided to start a new schedule. She and Nam will only be spending one night a week with us…Thursdays. We will also start meeting halfway to get him and hand him off. That means that they will only be eating supper with us on Thursday also. (They've been eating here 3-4 times a week.) This will give them more time by themselves, which will be a good thing. It will probably take a little getting used to for everyone, but I think it will be a definite improvement. (And Gina will be keeping him one day a week…Wednesdays, unless something else comes up.)

We had a good week of adventures and firsts with Nam. We took him to the state park on Monday and walked (as I mentioned before). Then Tuesday, we had a hotdog cookout (his first time to eat one that we know of) and then a trip to Cabela’s. He REALLY liked the cookout! He enjoyed Cabela’s, but he was much more interested in looking at the toys than the taxidermy. Ha! I hadn’t planned to buy him anything, but I ended up not being able to resist getting him an old-fashioned pop gun. Our kids loved those when they were little.

Ricky did quite a bit of work on the outside trim of the house and shop, so Grandad and Nam spent a lot of time out there watching and “helping” him. Then Friday, Nam and I worked on a couple of projects. I made some finger paint out of cornstarch and food color and turned him loose. For a kid that can’t stand to get his hands messy while eating, he sure loves diving into the finger paint! He had the stuff up to his elbows! Fun times!

On our day off Wednesday, Dennis and I went to meet with a nutritionist. He is still struggling with his blood sugar (although he is still just “pre-diabetic”). I knew most of what she told us, but it was helpful for Dennis to hear it all. He has always been a carboholic (as am I!). We have decided to make some very dramatic changes in our eating habits. I’m spending a lot more time at the grocery store (replenishing fresh veggies) and a WHOLE lot more time cooking. I normally cook breakfast and dinner, but we eat out a lot for lunch…or have sandwiches and suchlike. Now I’m cooking all three meals a day, with very limited use of bread or other carbs. Even though we’ve only been implementing the changes for 3 days, Dennis can already see his blood sugar slowly coming down. We have also moved our walking to evenings. It was just too hard to keep up a regular schedule with Nam here. We should both start shedding weight and feeling better soon.

We also (finally) got around to ordering the replacement pane for our bay window Wednesday. It will take a week or so for it to come in. Then that afternoon, I went for a haircut. I’ve been wanting to get it done for months (even before our trip to Vietnam), but never got around to it. It is a little shorter than I wanted, but it will grow fast. I love the way it feels right after a cut! The longer my hair gets, the more it tangles. When it is halfway down my back or shorter, I don’t have problems with tangling. Plus it is SO much easier to wash and brush…and has more body! I would love to keep it trimmed to just below my shoulder blades all the time, but I just hate going to the beauty shop. So I usually just let it grow for a year or so, then chop it off and start over again.

We are still waiting on little Miss Gracie to make her appearance. Her due date was last Sunday. I know Mandy must be miserable! We’ve been talking a lot about her with Nam. I can’t wait to see how he interacts with her! (He loves babies!) While waiting for Gracie to be born, Melissa rushed ahead and had Nora Grace this week. Even though she came almost 5 weeks too early, it looks like she is going to do just fine. I’m very happy for her sweet family!

Today has been a really slow day. We woke up to cool temperatures and rain, for which I am very thankful! I did a webinar for my CASA continuing education and finished a book that I’ve been reading. We decided to eat out for lunch (grilled chicken salad at the Mesquite Pit), so I haven’t really done much of anything around the house. I bought some frozen zucchini spirals that I plan to use for spaghetti noodles (for Dennis and myself) for supper tonight. We really are able to eat most of the same entrees that we normally do…just tweaking them here and there. The main changes we are making are lunchtime and snacks…plus adding a LOT more veggies all day long. Ricky is eating most of the same things that we are. He is focusing on his health, too…working out and eating healthier. He actually wants to gain weight, while we are needing to lose, so he isn’t restricting his carbs like we are. I’m thankful that Nam is such a good eater. He may not eat everything that we do, but he will eat most of it. He is sad that we no longer stop to buy donuts though…and Granny isn’t baking cookies as often. (I do plan to still bake them occasionally for him…and then send them home with Sheila!) But we explained that we need to do this, so that Grandad and Granny can be healthy to take care of him for a LONG time. He’s ok with that!

The past week...

It has been a busy week! Let me see if I can sort through it all…

Last Wednesday, we were sitting around the table after lunch. Nam was standing in his chair and someone saw a squirrel in the neighbor’s back yard. Nam turned around to look, leaned forward too much, and down went the chair…busting out a bottom pane on our bay window. It scared us all, but Nam didn’t have a scratch on him. Ricky cleaned up all of the glass and Dennis boarded it up until we can get a replacement pane. We have always wanted to put in double paned glass to save on energy, so I guess we will get started on that….

Thursday, I decided to bake cookies. I wanted to try Nam on oatmeal cookies again, but also made a batch of snickerdoodles, just in case. He liked the oatmeal cookies this time, but “snickermoodles” are still his favorite!

Tonette took her mom to the orthopedic doctor Thursday morning, and he determined that she had a couple of cracks in her foot, a bone cyst on her ankle and possibly a hairline fracture on it. He wants her to wear a boot and stay in a wheelchair until she is healed. Then Saturday morning, she woke up short of breath and was taken to the ER. Her hemoglobin was about 6.5 and she tested positive for blood in her stool, so she was admitted and given 2 units of blood. There was a GI convention going on, so they ended up sending her to a hospital in Arlington, which was supposedly the only one in the area to have a GI doctor on call for the weekend. They did an endoscopy on Sunday and a colonoscopy on Monday. They found a stomach ulcer and some internal hemorrhoids and diverticulitis, but none of them were the cause of the bleeding (which they never did find). Even though she had just had an iron infusion on the previous Monday, and was given 2 units of blood in the Weatherford ER, her hemoglobin only went up about one point. Then she had a bad nosebleed Monday night, which dropped it back to 6.8. They gave her another unit of blood yesterday. She still needs to have the test done where she swallows the camera capsule, so they can look throughout her digestive system, but they want her to do that as an outpatient with her normal GI doctor. She is also being referred to a hematologist to see why she is so anemic. We are hoping that she is released from the hospital today, but she has developed a bad cough, and they are going to do a chest xray first. She really needs to go into rehab for awhile until she can get around better in her boot. The girls are trying to get her into the one in Weatherford where she has been before. That will make it SO much easier on everyone!

Sheila had planned a First Night Bag party at Heather’s house on Saturday morning. There is a place in Weatherford that provides goods for foster families. They also put together 1^st Night Bags for foster kids which include PJs, toothbrush/toothpaste, underwear, socks and something fun. The idea of the party was for everyone to bring items for the bags and to assemble as many as we could to donate. We ended up having 12 filled bags and quite a bit of extras to donate. Nam and Asher had fun playing together, and with Bethany (who was great to look after them!). It was a good party (although I was a bit distracted with Bobbie’s situation)!

I had asked Jamae (Tonette’s daughter, who was helping with Bobbie that morning), if she could take Daddy with her over to Arlington, and then I would come later in the evening to pick him up. That saved me from having to make two trips over there that day! After I finished up at the party, I went home and took care of some things around the house. Then after supper, Dennis and I headed over there. Daddy was totally exhausted. I was afraid that he wouldn’t be able to make the long walk back through the hospital and out to the car. We had to stop several times for him to rest, but he finally made it. Sunday morning, we took him to church. Then while the other guys stayed for a business meeting, Daddy and I went back to Arlington for the afternoon. I was nervous about him wanting to stay with Bobbie at the hospital, and she asked him to, but this time he realized that he needed to go back home. We headed over first thing Monday morning and stayed until about 2:00. I needed to get home to cook supper for my bunch (Sheila and Nam spend Monday nights with us). We had hoped Bobbie would be released yesterday, but her nosebleed caused them to keep her another night. I am really hoping today is the day she gets to go back to Weatherford!

Yesterday morning was Daddy’s back procedure. They burned the nerve endings in his back to deaden the pain that he has been having for years. His legs were slow to “wake up” after the procedure, so I brought him home with me for a few hours, until he could walk ok on his own. Nam was really sweet with him. Every time Daddy had to get up, Nam would go hold his hand to help him. Then he would tell Dennis, “Grandad! Come help PawPaw! He too old, he needs help to walk!” I love watching how Nam interacts with Daddy…it is the sweetest thing!

Dennis dropped Daddy off on his way to take Nam home. I checked on him last night and this morning, and he is doing great. They had told us to expect him to have more pain at first from the procedure and that the “pain-free” benefits might take several weeks to kick in. He said he can already feel the benefits of the procedure and can stand up straight. He isn’t hurting at all…just fells some “tightness” in his back. I am SO thankful to see him feeling better already! I hope this “fix” lasts the rest of his life! I have business to take care of at home today, so I can’t drive him to Arlington. That will “allow” him an extra day to recover, which should also help. Hopefully, Bobbie will be moved to Weatherford today anyway!

Nam got a phone call from his primary caregiver from the orphanage on Sunday. He was thrilled to “face time” with her! The call has generated a lot more conversations. He talked to Sheila about one of his friends who “didn’t have a momma and daddy, they died”. Nam was really sad about that. Then he perked up and said, “Maybe Jesus will make him a new momma and daddy and he can come to America to live and have toys!” Sheila later found out that he has been adopted, so that makes everyone feel better!

Sheila contacted me last night to let me know that she had “the adoption talk” with Nam. I just sat and bawled over the things that he told her. But with his improved language skills, he can finally talk about his fears, so that Sheila can alleviate them (as best as she can). He is such a sensitive little soul! I’m SO thankful that Sheila decided to adopt him, and that she is doing such a wonderful job at providing the love and training that he needs!

Well, Dennis and Nam will be here soon and I’m still in my robe! I have enjoyed having this morning off! I was totally wiped out last night. I have to get ready today to testify in court tomorrow morning. That stresses me out BIG time! I’ve never had to testify on the stand before, and this is not going to be an easy case to start with. I don’t do well speaking before an audience in the first place. I know I don’t seem like a shy person, but I definitely suffer from “stage fright!” Plus there are a couple of lawyers that I am terrified to answer questions from. At least in our court, Judge Moore does NOT let the attorneys “bully” his CASAs.

Well, I really have to go! Happy (2^nd day of) Spring!

Meanwhile on the home front...

While I was in Vietnam, Dennis and my brother, Rodney, took care of Daddy’s needs. I was hoping for a very uneventful couple of weeks, so they wouldn’t have to do much; but the best laid plans….

Daddy fell the week I left and bruised up his face pretty bad. He didn’t want to go to the doctor, but Dennis talked him into letting him take him to the ER…just in case. There wasn’t any internal bleeding, just a lot of bruising (plus his blood pressure shot up really high). Afterwards, his hand started hurting. Don’t know if it was a mild break or just sore from trying to break his fall. It is still giving him some trouble but is slowly getting better. His doctor decided he probably needs some physical therapy to help him gain some strength in hopes of preventing future falls. He has been pretty unsteady lately. They haven’t started the therapy yet. Daddy was supposed to go see his primary care doctor today, but we had a last minute cancellation, so it will be next Thursday before I get to talk to him about it. They also changed a couple of his medications while I was gone, because his blood pressure had gotten too high.

He actually looks worse now. The bruising has spread all over his face!

Daddy also lost his driver’s license while I was gone. He received a notice in the mail that it would be revoked unless he appealed the decision, which, of course, he did. Dennis took him for his court appearance, and the judge ruled against him. Daddy says he is going to fight it, but I don’t see anything coming of that. So now we are driving them wherever they need to go. So far, it has gone pretty smoothly.

Sheila and Nam spent most of last week with us. Sheila came home with a nasty cold and wasn’t getting much, if any, sleep at night with Nam having his sleep cycle off. We were able to entertain him during the days, so that she could get some rest. We were also able to celebrate Thanksgiving after all, since we got home three days earlier than expected. I picked up my smoked turkey on Tuesday, on our way home from Sheila’s, then finished my grocery shopping and baking/food prep on Wednesday. We kept our celebration to just the five of us, because we figured Nam didn’t need the extra stimulation of a big group. We were right. Although he is adjusting very well, he is still an active four-year-old who has been raised in an institution.

We took Nam to church Sunday night for the first time. Dennis stayed home that morning with him, so Sheila could rest. We were having our “singing service” for our afternoon assembly, which was a perfect initiation for Nam. (He LOVES singing!) You should have seen his face light up when the singing began! He wanted to hold his song book and have the page turned to the correct number. He would sing along on a lot of the songs…especially when Dennis lead “Jesus Loves Me”. He KNOWS that song! He did really well throughout the whole service. We were really amazed! He also enjoyed meeting all the new folks. He would shake their hand or give them a hug, and even told a few ladies, “I love you.” Afterwards, we took them and the folks out to Chicken E for supper. Nam had fallen asleep in the car on the way and was pretty grumpy when we had to wake him up to eat. It took a few minutes for him to get his attitude adjusted and finally eat his supper. Then we went with Sheila to her apartment, so she wouldn’t have to drive a heartbroken little boy home alone. He fell asleep in the car and she was able to transfer him to bed without waking him, so Dennis and I just came on home. They have been on their own since.

I’ve come down with Sheila’s cold now. I’m not as sick as she was, though. Her lack of sleep really made her susceptible to it, and she was miserable! I’m doing ok…just coughing and hoarse and tired. I took Daddy for some tests yesterday morning, then took him and Bobbie to Walmart to get a few things. Talk about a circus! They are easy to keep up with on foot, but when they both get on a scooter…watch out! I spent half my time trying to hunt them down. They would each take off in a different direction. When I’d find one, I’d tell them to stay put while I hunted down the other, but no…when I returned, they would have disappeared again! They wore me out!

Daddy has more tests tomorrow morning, but Rodney is taking him for that appointment. Dennis and I plan to go visit Nam. When he woke up yesterday wanting to see us, Sheila told him we would come over in 2 days. He held up his finger and said, “One day!” LOL! Then I plan to go with Sheila to take him for his first checkup with his pediatrician on Thursday. They don’t plan to do any “needlework” that day, so it ought to go fine. Then Saturday, we are going over for his birthday party. We decided to postpone the party a week to give him more time to “settle in” before the overstimulation of a party.

I have a CASA visit tonight and then a court report to write. I had a long talk with the CPS caseworker yesterday, trying to get caught up on all that had happened in my absence. I sure had hoped to have this case completed before getting Nam home! I have to admit that my heart just isn’t in it right now. I’m looking forward to taking some time off when we finally get this case settled. Right now, my family needs all of my time and attention.

I hope all of you had a wonderful Thanksgiving with your families!

Grand Canyon, here we come!

Our "official duties" have all been done and we are heading west in the morning.  Woo-hoo! I don't know when I've been more ready for a vacation. We plan to spend 2 nights with Lawrence and Sharon and then leave Texas first thing Monday morning. We will have no cell phone service where we're going, and no internet for most of the trip, so I'll do my vacation pictures posting where we return. We plan to see some awesome sights over the next week! And the temperatures are supposed to dip down into the 30's where we'll be. It sounds WONDERFUL!

Got some more jerky made yesterday, so we have about 2 gallons made up.  Probably won't take all of it with us, but we do eat a lot of jerky on these kind of trips. Where we'll be there are only one or two restaurants, so we'll be doing a lot of snacking. We always carry lunches with us when we are out exploring.

I took Daddy to his pain management specialist and also for a venous reflux ultrasound in his legs this week. The pain management doctor wants to hold off doing anything more until we see a kidney specialist first. I made an appointment for him to see one right after we get back from vacation. His kidney function continues to decline, so we need to find out what's going on and what we can do about it. Still haven't heard the results of the test they did. We will also see his primary care doctor when we get back, who will have the test results. Daddy has four doctor appointments that week! Hopefully they will slow down after that!

Ricky came over for supper last night, and we had a good visit with him. He is really doing well on his job!

Today was our annual CASA advocate appreciation luncheon. I missed the last couple of years, but I really wanted to be there this year. I was very pleased with the award recipients! The CPS caseworker who won Caseworker of the Year is the one that I've been working with on my current case. I just love working with her! I was really hoping that she would win. Dennis was the official photographer for the event, which gave him something to do. (He doesn't like going to stuff like that.) I enjoyed visiting with some of the other advocates and staff and other guests...and I always love the "freebies" that they give us!

Afterwards, we ran by Brookdale one last time before leaving for a week. The folks were doing well. I had a picture to show Daddy that Jesse had sent him via Stephen's phone. It was of a minion blowing a kiss to him. Daddy really got a kick out of that! Stephen told me that it was completely Jesse's idea to send it, which was awfully sweet. He has only seen Daddy about once or twice a year (mostly at Thanksgiving). The boys had sent pics to Dennis and I this week, too, so I guess he decided Great-Grandad needed one, too! Such a sweetie!

Dennis and I got our flu vaccines this week, so I am all caught up on my immunizations for our trip to Vietnam, except for the typhoid shot. Sheila and I plan to wait on that one until late October. We have to go to a special clinic to get it.

Been ordering stuff for Sheila's adoption shower over the past week. Gina and Jessica are throwing one for her in early October. It is SO hard not to buy too much! I check her "wish list" every day to see what has been purchased so far.

Well, I guess that's all for now. I hope to have some gorgeous pictures to share when we return in a little over a week (provided by Dennis, of course). See you on the other side!

Jerky Day!

We leave for vacation one week from today, so I’m making a batch of jerky to take with us for snacking on and having for lunches. I am REALLY ready for this trip! We have a full week ahead of us before we can go, but there is a definite light at the end of the tunnel.

I took Daddy back to see his primary care doctor on Wednesday. His kidney function has been declining over the past three months. Even though he also has bad fluid retention in his legs, the doctor had to reduce his “water pill” to take pressure off of his kidneys. He did more blood work and said if it continues to decline, he will have to send him to a kidney specialist. The good news, though, is that the echocardiogram showed his heart function to be good. I take him back to the pain management specialist on Monday to see what they want to do about his back pain. Then on Tuesday, I take him for a venous reflux sonogram to see if the swelling in his legs is due to valve failure in his leg veins (which the doctor strongly suspects). That will be the last (I hope) doctor visit until after we return from vacation.

Dennis and I went over to Sheila’s last night. Dennis is working on a bench/storage unit that fits in front of her fireplace (which she doesn’t use) and covers up the (brick) hearth. She was concerned about the probability of Nam falling and hitting his head on the bricks and wanted something (useful) to prevent accidents. Dennis had the base put together and wanted to make sure that it fit just right, which it did. Then he made a trip to Cabela’s to exchange a game camera that was defective, so Sheila and I had time to work on plans for our trip to Vietnam, as well as discuss other things pertaining to Nam…which is our favorite pastime these days!

I attended a mandatory training for CASA Thursday evening. Our CASA office has incorporated a new program into their website that will allow advocates to securely communicate with our supervisors and turn in our hours as we do them, rather than send in an hourly report at the end of the month. It is really going to streamline things and make our jobs much more efficient. I’m already enjoying the “time reporting” function and look forward to the time when all of our communications are conducted via the program. It will take time for all of the advocates AND staff to get up to speed on how to use it, so it will be a work in progress for a while longer.

Next Friday is our volunteer appreciation luncheon for CASA. I haven’t attended the last couple of years, so I look forward to being able to go to this one. Dennis has been “conscripted” to be the official photographer for a photo booth they plan to set up. He really doesn’t enjoy going to this type of thing (he never HAS gone in the past), so I figured this would give him something to occupy his time. Ha!

Daddy and Bobbie will come over for dinner tomorrow, which will be last time for 3 weeks. We will be gone the next 2 Sundays on vacation. Then the Sunday after we return, we will be in Shreveport. Dennis will be holding a short meeting for them Saturday and Sunday. Sheila plans to accompany us on that trip. Looking forward to visiting with the folks there!

Plans have been made for Sheila’s adoption shower in October. Things are really getting exciting and “real” now! She is so excited and busy making plans and buying stuff for Nam! She has some really cute stuff picked out for him on her amazon wish list. It will be fun to see what all she gets. I’ve already ordered a couple of things from the list…and will probably order some more (if what I really want to see her receive isn’t bought by someone else!). We could be leaving to go get him in just a couple of months! With everything we still have to do to prepare, it doesn’t seem like that far off anymore. I am sure ready to get that new grandson home and love on him!

General update

Things are slowing down a little around here. Daddy went back to both of his dermatologists a couple of weeks ago. The surgeon added a different cream for his nose, because the other one hadn’t reacted as well as he had hoped. He has already finished with this new cream, and it has REALLY reacted this time! The doctor wants it to heal up for about 6 weeks before we go back and he schedules his Mohs surgery. He looks terrible right now, but it really hasn’t irritated him much…which is great. The other dermatologist told him to use the original cream on a couple of other places on his face to see if it will heal them up instead of having to freeze them. We won’t go back to see him until after he is finished with his Mohs surgery, so that gives us a reprieve from both of them for awhile.

He also saw the pain management PA last week, as a follow up from his injections. The steroids caused his blood sugar to really spike, so we don’t want to do those again! They want to watch him for another month and see how his pain level is and what happens with his blood sugar. They may go in and cauterize those nerves, which would provide pain relief for 6-18 months. Or Daddy may decide that he can live with the pain, since he can mostly control it using Tylenol.

We saw his primary care doctor yesterday. He is still trying to get Daddy’s blood sugar under control, although it is doing better now that the steroids are wearing off. Daddy is also having a lot of swelling in his legs, which they are trying to improve. We go back in a couple of weeks to allow the doctor to check on that and see the results of some more bloodwork that he ordered. Thursday, I take Daddy for a echocardiogram to see what his heart looks like. He had been diagnosed by his previous primary care doctor with CHF, but it was based solely on bloodwork. This doctor wants to get a look at his heart function to see what kind of shape it is in.

Dennis and I are changing to Daddy’s primary care doctor. I talked to them yesterday when I was there with Daddy and got the paperwork to fill out and scheduled an appointment for both of us to get established with him. Our old doctor is retiring and we aren’t very happy with the doctor that is taking over his practice. Plus this will simplify things…working with just one doctor for all of us!

Saturday before last, we spent the day at Sheila’s apartment. She had a couple of jobs for Dennis to do to help her get ready for Nam – rhymes with ham. (She has decided to leave Nam as his first name and make Josiah his middle name. Since he is almost 4 years old, it would be harder for him to adjust to being called a different name than he’s used to.) He also took measurements to build a bench seat that will be set in front of the fireplace. Us girls went shopping, looking for material to make a cushion to go on top of it. We also did some fun shopping (I found a cute toy) and bought some clothes from Kids to Kids. It was a great day!

Then this past Saturday, Sheila and I went to Bellamy’s first birthday party. Poor thing was SO tired by the time the party started, but she did great. She was much more interested in running around the community center in her walker, chasing the other kids and trying to escape, than in presents. She did enjoy the icing on her cake though! After the party, Sheila and I went over to Kay’s to visit for a couple of hours. I knew Dennis would be tied up most of the day in a men’s study, so I wasn’t in a big hurry to go home.

I went to court on my remaining CASA case this morning, and it has been extended for 6 more months. I had really hoped it would be over before Nam comes home, but that ruined that! I will try to remain on the case after we start keeping Nam, but it will not be easy. At least Dennis will be available to keep him if I have to leave for visits or meetings or court. I’m still planning on taking some time off when this case is finalized.

Sunday is our monthly potluck and singing. Layne/Heather and Jamie/Renee have been trading off hosting it every month. They will both be in Vian this weekend, so Dennis and I decided to have it here this time. Our house is still not what you’d call company ready, but we do have room for the smaller crowd that we’re expecting. We aren’t having an out-of-town speaker this time, so it will just be us locals minus the 2 families who will be in Oklahoma. I don’t think anyone in our group will have a problem with our bare concrete floors or disheveled den (where we are storing the china cabinet and work supplies). It has been a long time since we’ve had anyone other than family over, with all of the upheaval from our remodel. We are both ready to change that!

I had my 6 month checkup with my cardiologist yesterday. Everything is good, except I’ve had a chronic cough that we think may be caused from my BP medication. The doctor wanted me to quit taking it for a week to see if I could tell a difference. If so, then we’ll change the type of medicine that I’m taking. He hates to change it without good cause, since it is doing a great job of controlling my BP now. I go back next Wednesday to see what we are going to need to do.

Dennis hasn’t been working on the house much lately. He got the large cabinet installed over the freezer, but that’s all. He installed shelves for Daddy and Bobbie in their apartment, and he’s been working on a project for the grandsons. It is also time for him to get his deer stands and feeders ready for bow season in October, so he’s been working on that quite a bit. He brought his stand and feeder that he had in Spur back home to use at his local hunting spots. He doesn’t plan on hunting back out at the farm anymore. He’s never killed a deer out there, and it is too far to drive to try to maintain his equipment (the wind out there kept blowing things over and tearing them up!). I doubt much will get done on the house until after deer season. The fall is Dennis’ time to enjoy his favorite recreation…and he really needs a break from the house!

Our vacation is now less than one month away, Lord willing!  Whoo-hooo! I am looking forward to turning my phone off and spending 8 days having fun with no responsibilities!

Well, I guess that’s about all for now. Take care, all!

A lot of doctor appointments!

It is nice to have a day to catch up around the house! I didn't have to leave the house today, except to go grocery shopping.

Last week was on "off" week for doctor visits. I went to the doctor on Monday for my crud, and then went for my annual mammogram on Thursday (which was normal...yay!).  This week has made up for it though. I took Ricky to the doctor Monday morning.  We got back just before lunch. About the time I got home, I got a call on my CASA case. A situation had arisen that I needed to deal with, which took the rest of the day.  I left the house about 1:00 and didn't get back until 9:30. That made for a long day! Then yesterday, I had my yearly checkup and bloodwork done. Then in the afternoon, I took Daddy to the pain management doctor. He is scheduled to go in Monday for injections in his back to try to block the pain. If it works, they will go back and cauterize the nerves for a more permanent solution. I hope it helps him. I hate to see him in pain all the time, but I also don't like him having to take pain meds every day.

Tomorrow we go back to his dermatologist/plastic surgeon to see about his nose and when they will want to do the Mohs surgery. He also has to get some bloodwork done. His blood sugar has been running pretty high lately and he has also had a lot of swelling in his legs. He saw his primary care doctor Monday morning. I had hoped to take him for that visit, but it was the same time that I needed to take Ricky to his appointment. The doctor has him coming in once a month until he can get everything regulated, so I will make sure I'm available for next month's visit!

A brother at the Eastside congregation, Lanelton Holloway, passed away last Wednesday, and his son asked Dennis to conduct the funeral on Saturday. That pretty much filled up Dennis' schedule for the latter part of the week. He also came down with my crud, so he wasn't feeling well at all. Thankfully, he didn't lose his voice like I did! I do believe it was one of the hottest funerals (at the cemetery) I've ever been to. However, the family wanted it "short and sweet", so we didn't have to stand out in the heat for very long. Believe it or not, Dennis was actually able to keep his remarks short! He really did a good jog...especially for not having the known the man well at all.

Dennis is still feeling pretty rough this week. I'm pretty much over it now...just dealing with drainage and a little coughing. I feel fine though. It was a full 2 weeks of feeling rotten before getting to this point! So Dennis probably has another week or so to go.

This Sunday is our monthly guest speaker and potluck and singing. Buddy C, from Nacogdoches, will be our speaker. Looking forward to seeing his sweet family again. I think they've had a couple of babies since the last time we saw them.

I've been sitting on pins and needles all day, waiting to hear about Chris and Karley's baby! I feel for Karley that she had to go over her due date by over a week. But it will all have been worth it when she gets that sweet baby in her arms! Can't wait to see pictures. The baby is bound to be adorable with such cuties for parents!

Stay out of the heat and have a great rest of the week!

Getting ready for the Summer Camp Meeting!

This week has been mostly dedicated to getting things straightened up around here before we leave town for a week.  Dennis did get the last cabinet doors installed in the kitchen...just has some detail work to finish.  I'm so glad to see things starting to look like their supposed to!  I'm hoping, when we get back from the Summer Meeting, that Dennis will start on the "window seat" for the boys in the dining room.  After that, it will just be a little more trim work, caulking and painting.  Then this part of the remodel will be finished!

I've had a little "hiccup" on my remaining CASA case this week, which has taken up quite a bit of my time. These cases can be really stressful at times.  Not only do I have a responsibility to watch out for the safety of my kiddos, but the repercussions of actions taken can be devastating to the families. I'm very thankful for the wonderful caseworker that I'm working with on this case. It makes it so much easier when we can work together and agree on what needs to be done! I appreciate any and all prayers on behalf of these little ones that are at the mercy of others. I've heard of several devastating events in our area lately that just break my heart.  It is really hard to be gearing down right now and not taking on any more cases when the need is so great. If I didn't have Dennis helping by reminding me to "just say NO", I don't know if I could hold out.  But I know that once the ball starts rolling with Josiah's adoption that I will have my hands full!

Still no word on when Josiah will be coming home. This wait is getting more and more difficult.  Sheila found a blog of another family who picked up their daughter from Vietnam in March. I read it yesterday, and it helped some. Their daughter has done so well and is already speaking 2-4 word sentences in English, and she is only 4 years old. I daydream about what it will be like when we first meet Josiah and get to take him back to our room. I hope and pray that he will have an easy adjustment and bond quickly with us!

Today we are getting ready for leaving in the morning to go to Clarksville.  I've got most of my things packed already...except for last minute things I'll need to throw in tomorrow morning.  I'm going to Brookdale this afternoon to get the folks' meds, so I can get them sorted out and ready. We have a walker "reserved" for when we arrive.  We don't have room in our car to take theirs with us.  I tried to rent a couple in Clarksville, but they don't rent walkers. We may rent a wheelchair for Bobbie, if she thinks she needs one once we get there and see how much walking we'll be needing to do. Tomorrow will be a hard day of traveling for them...and us!

I heard from the dermatologist on Daddy's biopsies this morning.  They were both basal cell carcinomas.  The one on his arm can just be excised in the office.  The one on the side of his nose will have to be removed using Mohs surgery. I have an appointment set up with the surgeon the week after we return from Arkansas. I've heard that surgery can be pretty unpleasant. Prayers would be appreciated that all goes well!

Well, I'm looking forward to a week of spiritual revival and sweet fellowship! I am looking forward to "getting away from it all" for a few days and catching up with old friends, as well as making new ones. I hope to see some of you there!

Rejoice in the Lord alway: and again I say, Rejoice.

Today is a wonderful day!  The money from Daddy's house sale was wired into his account at the close of yesterday; so this morning, Dennis and I funded his investment account with Stephen.  This is the first time Daddy has ever had any money for investing!  At this point in his life, we will be keeping most of it in very stable investments, which aren't high yield, but will increase his assets slowly.  I think he is pretty excited to have a portfolio!

About a month ago, we discovered that Daddy had never reported Momma's death to the Teachers Retirement System.  Since his monthly annuity from them is based on him having a beneficiary that would continue to receive the annuity after his death, Dennis said that he should have some back pay coming to him (plus a raise in his monthly check).  So I wrote them, sending Mom's death certificate, and explained the circumstances.  Daddy got a letter from them this morning stating that he would soon be getting a check for over $28,000 in back pay!!!  That, along with what he made off the house, should ensure that he has plenty to last him as long as he lives.  I am SO thankful that God has allowed Daddy to have enough resources to allow him to live comfortably for the remainder of his life!

I found out yesterday that one of my (two) CASA cases is finally closed.  It has been going on for two years, and the last 5 months have just been waiting on little details to be taken care of...very frustrating for everyone!  Now this family can move on and not have to answer to CPS for everything.  I KNOW they are very relieved to finally be finished with all of the hassle.  That leaves me with just one case, and it is scheduled to close in August, if all goes well.  I'm not taking on any more cases for awhile.  Handling Daddy's affairs has been very time consuming and stressful, and I really don't have the capacity right now to take on anything extra.  Hopefully, we will also be going to get Josiah this fall, which will then completely fill my days!  So I'm taking off for a year or so until things settle down and we adjust to our new routine as full-time grandparents.

Ricky came over for supper last night.  I promised him fried deer steaks...a family favorite, but especially one for the guys.  He has been training as lead on his new job and is starting to really enjoy it.  He'll like it even more when the raise kicks in!  He has been sick with a sinus infection for a couple of weeks, but was finally able to get into to the clinic yesterday for a shot and some antibiotics.  He was already feeling better by suppertime.  (Prednisone shots really can perk a body up!) 

Looking forward to Sheila coming over tonight.  We missed our time last week, since we were in Arkansas.  Tomorrow, she, Ricky, Stacey, and I are planning to go watch the new "Pirates" movie.  Those three used to get together every week and watch reruns of the other "Pirates" movies.  Sheila's first birthday party, after we moved into this house, was pirate themed (and, of course, Stacey was here!).  So I'm expecting tomorrow to be a good time to be had by all!

Finally, on this wonderful day, we got a great rain...with more to come over the weekend.  Things had really started drying up around here, so it is very welcomed!  After a stressful few days, it is so nice to have a day in which everything seems to be going great.  Hope you can say the same!

Settling into a routine

The guys have been putting down floor tile for the past week.  It has turned out to be a lot more work than any of us anticipated!  It is going well…just very time consuming.  It has to cure for a couple of days before walking on it, so the placement has been very strategical.  The dining room is (as of today) done, as is half of the entryway and most of the kitchen.  I expect everything to be laid by the end of today, except for the laundry room and pantries.  I’m hoping that we’ll be able to move all of my kitchen appliances back in on Wednesday, so I can start cooking again.  It will probably be the end of the week before I can do laundry here again.  Thankfully, we have a laundromat just around the corner.  My dryer is still hooked up, so all I’ve had to do is wash at the laundromat and then bring everything back home to dry.

After all of the tile is laid, we’ll still have to grout it and seal the grout.  It should all be finished by this weekend.  I’ll post pictures once it is all finished out and looking good.  Right now there are still spacers between tiles and gaps where the grout will go.  I’m really happy with how it is looking though!

Bobbie’s surgery went well last week, and she hasn’t had much pain since the day after surgery.  The doctor said her bones are very soft, so we are hoping that it holds this time.  Rather than using screws, he just wired it all together really well.  We have tried to emphasize to both her and Daddy that they really need to be careful, so she doesn’t fall anymore.  She is too fragile to take chances!

The girls had an estate sale at Spur over the weekend.  Toni said they didn’t sell anywhere near all they wanted, but they still did well.  Our estate sale planner has already started working at the Saginaw house.  It is so nice to see things moving along!

The folks will be gone for 5 days this coming weekend.  Toni and Kathy are driving them to Abilene for the Young family reunion.  They are really looking forward to it!  Afterwards, they’ll drive them up to Spur for a couple of days.  It has been about 4 months since the folks have been to Spur!  That is the longest they have EVER gone!

Everything else seems to be going along pretty smoothly.  It is great to finally have things start to settle into a “normal” routine.  I’ve gotten to where I make a couple of trips to Weatherford a week and have most of Daddy’s business taken care of…or in the process of being taken care of. (I still have some medical records that I need to access in order to file a claim on Daddy’s cancer policy.  I’ll have to make a trip over to NRH to get that taken care of.)  The folks come to Highway on Sunday mornings and eat lunch with us.  Yesterday the house was too treacherous for them to come over, so we took them out for catfish.  Then they went to visit my Aunt Coez.  They go to Eastside for the afternoon services. 

I’m thankful that my CASA cases have been pretty quiet lately!  I finally got the final orders for one of my cases (that I’ve been on for 2 years).  So all we have left to do is have the final hearing for them to be ok’d by the judge.  That will just leave me with one case.  I won’t be taking on any more until after Josiah comes home and we get him settled (and get used to OUR new routine with him).  Still haven’t heard anything on that front.  Hoping and praying for Sheila to hear something SOON!

Have a great week!

Setbacks and Progress

Well, I really think things are starting to come together for Daddy and Bobbie.  Of course, most of you know that Bobbie is going to have to have her elbow surgery redone.  That was a big disappointment!  Her bones just aren’t what they once were, so the screw didn’t hold.  This time the doctor will use a longer screw and wire it to secure it.  Hopefully her recovery will go smoothly!

I think we’ve finally got Daddy’s prescription mail order service working smoothly.  That is SUCH a relief!  I’m not sure if Bobbie’s is lined out completely, yet, or not.  They were still having some issues the last I heard, but they should have things smoothed out soon, if they don’t already.  I love being able to check on the status of his prescription deliveries from my computer!  The office manager at Brookdale is pretty happy about it, too!  We’ve gotten to be pretty chummy over the past few weeks.

I believe we’ve found a good estate sale planner!  I met with two last Tuesday, but I pretty much already had my mind made up before meeting with them.  One lady had been so helpful and informative in her correspondence with me.  She had provided references, which I called, and they raved about the service she provided!  When we finally met, I knew she was the one I wanted to handle the sale.  She is very professional, very knowledgeable, very compassionate, and a hoot to boot!  She plans to start working on getting things ready around the end of April, and the sale should be early in May.  We signed a contract, so the house is now off-limits to Daddy and Bobbie…no more sneaking over there and finding more stuff to keep!  This ought to keep them home more, too.  They were constantly running back over to Saginaw for one reason or another!

I think they are starting to settle in and enjoy their new home now.  Daddy’s been working out in the garden some.  They had some kids come last week and plant flowers.  Daddy seemed to really enjoy that!  They also have another couple that they seem to really enjoy visiting with.  Daddy is determined, now, to try to talk Mayrene into moving to Brookdale!  He thinks it would be perfect for her!  LOL!

Before we could close Daddy’s bank account in Saginaw, we had to find out what a certain monthly ACH withdrawal was (he couldn’t remember).  I got the name and contact info last week and called.  It turned out to be an insurance company that he had purchased a cancer policy from back in ’02.  He then forgot he had it.  So I cancelled the policy and explained that he had been diagnosed with prostate cancer in ’08.  They said they would send me a claims packet, so that we could file on it.  So if I can get Daddy to remember who his doctor was, he can recover some of his expenses from his treatments. 

I started feeling much better this past week and was finally able to get in a couple of CASA visits before the month ran out!  I was cutting it pretty close!  It is so nice to be about over that crud I had.  I’m still coughing a little, but not bad at all.  Still having quite a bit of drainage, but that may just be from allergies. 

Dennis’ fall on Friday sure scared me and Ricky.  I was in the house, and Dennis decided to go ahead and do some painting on the garage before Ricky arrived.  All of a sudden I heard a crash and thud and then a loud growl.  I was out the door as quickly as I could go and found the ladder lying on one side of the driveway and Dennis on the other.  He was holding the back of his head and blood was all over his hand.  He managed to get up and come in the house, and Ricky showed up about that time.  Dennis was in a LOT of pain and dizzy and nauseated.  His vision was blurry, too.  I was sure convinced that he had a concussion.  I tried to clean up his head, so we could see how bad it looked.  There was so much blood, I couldn’t really tell anything.  I tried to get him to let us help him to the car to go to the ER, but he was too dizzy to get up.  We waited until he finally felt like he could walk on his own, and I drove him to the hospital, with Ricky right behind us.  They took him right in and processed him as soon as he walked in.  We saw a doctor within 5 minutes of arriving!  His dizziness and blurred vision had already cleared up by that time, and his pupils were reactive, so the doctor just stapled his head gash shut and sent him home.  His headache went away quickly, without taking anything for it!  I was amazed at how quickly he got over it.  He set up a chair on the front lawn to “supervise” Ricky finishing up the new gable over the garage.  Next thing I knew, he was back up on the ladder helping him!  *shakes head wearily*  Today has been his worst day since the initial fall.  His muscles all over are sore!  He never did have any more headaches though.  His right elbow is very tender to the touch.  His bottom and elbow took the brunt of the impact.  He came out of it pretty well, considering!  I’m hoping he will wait to do ladder work until someone is out there with him from now on! 

The girls, Diane B and I went to watch Beauty and the Beast yesterday afternoon.  We loved it!  The girls were both skeptical about it, since they both LOVED the animated version from their childhoods.  But we were all impressed with the good job they did on this one.  I especially liked the backstory…filling in some of the blanks.  After the movie, we went to eat at a new Vietnamese restaurant that the girls had discovered.  As much as I love pho, I decided to try something different this time.  I really enjoy trying out new things, and I’m glad I did.  I ordered a vermicelli dish that was delicious!  It was very simple, but extremely flavorful.  (The egg rolls were delish, too!) 

The guys had a “between services” business meeting this afternoon, so Daddy, Bobbie and I came home and ate leftovers.  I had cooked a chicken and rice enchilada casserole Friday night, expecting Sheila to come over.  She was feeling poorly from a cold and decided to stay home.  The recipe makes a LOT, so I took some over to her yesterday, and we ate off of some more of it today.  There is STILL enough for Dennis and I to have another generous meal.  The folks and I had a good visit, and then they left to visit my mom’s cousin, Vera, before heading to Eastside for afternoon services.

Dennis hopes to start laying floor tile this week!  I am really excited to get that done!  Thiess is supposed to come over to help him get started, since Dennis has never worked with floor tile before.  I think it will go pretty fast once they get the hang of it. 

I’ve got a couple of CASA commitments this week, plus I’m supposed to meet with Teddy to sign the contract for listing Daddy’s house…plus Bobbie’s surgery is Wednesday.  I’m hoping for a pretty calm and productive week!