Today is Nephew's twelfth birthday. Happy Birthday, Nephew! Nephew called me today, and I was so happy to hear from him. He and his family are planning to visit us on July 17, and we are really looking forward to it.
Yesterday, Daughter, Sis, and Older Nephew arrived after lunch to visit with Mother. Older Nephew headed back home after supper, but Sis and Daughter stayed the night.
We had a good day yesterday, even though we didn't do anything but relax and visit all afternoon. Later, we enjoyed a supper of beef hash, a choice of butter beans and Lima beans, salad, cottage cheese, and slices of sourdough bread. Dessert choices were cantaloupe or ice cream.
This morning, Daughter accompanied me to water aerobics, where she enjoyed herself immensely. The ladies were happy to meet her, and invited her to come back when she could. The water was cool when we first got in, but felt wonderful once we were in it for a few minutes. Some of the ladies wore patriotic hats and costume jewelry in recognition of Independence Day this weekend.
Back home, after a lunch of grilled cheese sandwiches (Hubbie did the honors of making them for us), Daughter was ready to leave for home. But she discovered her cell phone wasn't working correctly. So I drove her to the cell phone store, where we learned that when she charges her phone, she'll get a reconnect message, and she should just push the center button to reactivate her phone.
Daughter left a little after 1 p.m., and Sis stayed on for the afternoon and visited with Mother while Hubbie and I packed things into the camper and van, and then ran to the grocery store again for last-minute items.
Back home Hubbie and I gathered up the mama cat and the kittens with eye problems and took them to be boarded at the vet's office. The vet was discouraged by the two kittens who have the worst eye problems and said he didn't think they would make it. Nevertheless, he is going to treat them while we are gone to see if he can help their eyes. I asked if they would be okay if kept in the house, and he agreed they might be able to survive that way. I just can't face the idea of him putting those two sweet things down.
Back home, Hubbie fed Shih Tzu and walker her, and then we went to a catfish restaurant for supper. I skipped eating the deep fried hush puppies, the over-salted beans, and the tomato pickles, and I ordered grilled catfish with no salt, and a baked potato. Mother ate half of her baked potato and one piece of fried fish, plus a little coleslaw and a hush puppy. This was a pretty fair quantity of food for her, especially since she ate nearly all of her grilled cheese sandwich at noon. This is an encouraging sign. But her legs and feet are still very swollen, and she is having difficulty walking.
Sis headed home from the restaurant. Mother was ready to go her house, too, after she had read the evening newspaper. Hubbie occupied himself with several tasks related to our trip, but I didn't do much except play on my computer and watch TV.
What beautiful weather we are having...low temp, low humidity. I wish it would continue into next week, when we'll need to be outdoors during a photography workshop with kids. But TV forecasters say we'll be getting back into the summer mode after July 4.
Friday, July 2, 2010
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
Wednesday, June 30
The last day of June already. Where did the month go? Of course, I'm not sorry to see it end, since it was one of the hottest Junes on record for our state. Today, though, has been absolutely glorious in our corner of the world...lower temp and lower humidity. But there is a burn ban in our county, thanks to a lack of rain.
Got up at 6:30 to go to water aerobics. It was pleasantly cool walking from the parking lot to the gym and back again after aerobics. Not as many showed up for aerobics, given the very nice day. Maybe that's why they didn't show up. They might have decided to spend the cool of the morning working in their yards, or something.
Tale from the pool: the lady I stand next to during the session has a grandson who is a paramedic in Memphis. He recently had the new experience of resuscitating cats following a fire in their owner's home. Apparently, there is an animal oxygen mask in the ambulance, and this was the first time it was needed, so it was big news on a Memphis TV station, and at a Memphis newspaper. I went online to the Memphis TV station that carried the video story and learned that five cats and one dog were saved with the oxygen mask, but fourteen cats died. The owners had 22 cats and a dog in their house.
I then checked the story at the Memphis newspaper site, and printed a copy for my friend. Unfortuately, I was unable to print the accompanying photo, because of copyright protection. Several paramedics were shown in the photo, but I don't know if any of them was my friend's grandson.
My friend, who is 81 years old, and is a world traveler, does not own a computer. So I called her to see if she could access a computer at a nearby friend's house. She said she thought she could. I told her there was a good photo in the Memphis newspaper, but since I don't know what her grandson looks like, I didn't know if he was featured. She said, "I'm not bragging, but he's a good looking man, with dark hair and eyes." One of the men in the photo does have dark hair, I noticed.
Back home, while Hubbie ran errands to fill the truck with diesel and pick up cat and dog food, I gathered what I needed to mix photographic chemicals this afternoon, and checked to make sure I have enough pinhole camera paper cut, for a workshop I'll conduct in the Capital City next week.
Mother was ready to come over to our house around 11 a.m., so I accompanied her. After a chicken noodle soup lunch, I mixed the photographic chemicals, and then Hubbie and I ran a few more errands...to the jewelry store to pick up a bracelet that needed repairing, to the bank, to a grocery store to get the microwaveable potatoes that I couldn't get at the WDCS yesterday, and to the other discount store for a few items.
At home again, I didn't do much else before suppertime. Had leftover roast beef and veggies, with gravy, plus sliced tomatoes, cucumbers, and radishes. It was just as yummy the second time around.
Mother ate small helpings of everything, but her appetite is still not up to par. She's still suffering from swollen ankles and feet, too, though not quite as much, since she took half a dose of her water pill this morning. From time-to-time today, she got up and walked around the house for exercise, but this evening she complained of sore muscles. She attributed it to too much exercise. I attribute it to a lack of exercise.
Later, Hubbie and I watched TV....the PBS shows, "Lark Rise to Candleford," and a Miss Marple mystery.
Got up at 6:30 to go to water aerobics. It was pleasantly cool walking from the parking lot to the gym and back again after aerobics. Not as many showed up for aerobics, given the very nice day. Maybe that's why they didn't show up. They might have decided to spend the cool of the morning working in their yards, or something.
Tale from the pool: the lady I stand next to during the session has a grandson who is a paramedic in Memphis. He recently had the new experience of resuscitating cats following a fire in their owner's home. Apparently, there is an animal oxygen mask in the ambulance, and this was the first time it was needed, so it was big news on a Memphis TV station, and at a Memphis newspaper. I went online to the Memphis TV station that carried the video story and learned that five cats and one dog were saved with the oxygen mask, but fourteen cats died. The owners had 22 cats and a dog in their house.
I then checked the story at the Memphis newspaper site, and printed a copy for my friend. Unfortuately, I was unable to print the accompanying photo, because of copyright protection. Several paramedics were shown in the photo, but I don't know if any of them was my friend's grandson.
My friend, who is 81 years old, and is a world traveler, does not own a computer. So I called her to see if she could access a computer at a nearby friend's house. She said she thought she could. I told her there was a good photo in the Memphis newspaper, but since I don't know what her grandson looks like, I didn't know if he was featured. She said, "I'm not bragging, but he's a good looking man, with dark hair and eyes." One of the men in the photo does have dark hair, I noticed.
Back home, while Hubbie ran errands to fill the truck with diesel and pick up cat and dog food, I gathered what I needed to mix photographic chemicals this afternoon, and checked to make sure I have enough pinhole camera paper cut, for a workshop I'll conduct in the Capital City next week.
Mother was ready to come over to our house around 11 a.m., so I accompanied her. After a chicken noodle soup lunch, I mixed the photographic chemicals, and then Hubbie and I ran a few more errands...to the jewelry store to pick up a bracelet that needed repairing, to the bank, to a grocery store to get the microwaveable potatoes that I couldn't get at the WDCS yesterday, and to the other discount store for a few items.
At home again, I didn't do much else before suppertime. Had leftover roast beef and veggies, with gravy, plus sliced tomatoes, cucumbers, and radishes. It was just as yummy the second time around.
Mother ate small helpings of everything, but her appetite is still not up to par. She's still suffering from swollen ankles and feet, too, though not quite as much, since she took half a dose of her water pill this morning. From time-to-time today, she got up and walked around the house for exercise, but this evening she complained of sore muscles. She attributed it to too much exercise. I attribute it to a lack of exercise.
Later, Hubbie and I watched TV....the PBS shows, "Lark Rise to Candleford," and a Miss Marple mystery.
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Tuesday, June 29
Skipped my exercises this morning to get ready to take Mother to a doctor appointment. Mother is experiencing some swelling in her feet and ankle, and she has gained four pounds, because she hasn't been taking her water pills. The doctor suggested she cut her water pills in half and take them to see if it reduces the swelling.
The nurse checked her blood pressure while Mother was lying down, then sitting up, and then while she stood. Again, her pressure dropped...though only 20 points, instead of 40 like it did ten days ago. Still, Mother got woozy when she stood up.
Also, she still has microscopic blood in her urine, so the doctor ordered a urologist appointment. She'll go for that on July 21. There is no protein in her urine, which would indicate that she doesn't have kidney disease, but the doctor said she might have a polyp that's causing an irritation.
Back home, Mother relaxed, because she was pretty tired after her outing to the doctor. I threw some noodles into the chicken broth for soup for lunch. After lunch, I put a beef roast in the slow cooker for supper. Mother insisted on preparing the veggies for it.
Then we did this and that while we waited for the pest control guy, who was to come sometime between 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. to deal with an ant infestation in our kitchen. He arrived close to 3 p.m., naturally, and sprayed for ants, wasps, and dirt daubers.
When he had finished, Hubbie and I ran a few errands...to the pharmacy, to the health food store, and to the WDCS. I'm getting more and more frustrated with that store, because more and more items I want are either being eliminated, or being replaced with the store brand.
Today, there were absolutely no microwaveable white or sweet potatoes. I read or heard on TV that the store is experiencing stagnant sales. Well, no wonder. I find that I'm shopping more frequently at the store's biggest grocery competitor in our town, where I can find the products I want, or can request they be ordered.
We got back home just before 5 p.m., and sat down to our slow cooker meal. The beef was succulent, cooked with carrots, onions, and potatoes, and seasoned with garlic, pepper, no-salt seasoning, and paprika, and roasted in beef broth. The broth made a very tasty gravy. Mother ate fair-sized helpings of everything.
Mother went home afterward, and Hubbie and I watched the movie, "Not Forgotten," a 2009 R-rated film starring Simon Baker. In a Tex-Mex town, the young daughter of a re-married widower is kidnapped. He and his Hispanic wife enlist the help of a blind Hispanic psychic in an effort to locate the child.
Followed this psychological thriller with another thriller called, "A Perfect Getaway." In this one, two pairs of lovers vacation in the Hawaiian islands and are stalked by psycopaths who murder tourists. Lots of spectacular scenery in this movie.
The nurse checked her blood pressure while Mother was lying down, then sitting up, and then while she stood. Again, her pressure dropped...though only 20 points, instead of 40 like it did ten days ago. Still, Mother got woozy when she stood up.
Also, she still has microscopic blood in her urine, so the doctor ordered a urologist appointment. She'll go for that on July 21. There is no protein in her urine, which would indicate that she doesn't have kidney disease, but the doctor said she might have a polyp that's causing an irritation.
Back home, Mother relaxed, because she was pretty tired after her outing to the doctor. I threw some noodles into the chicken broth for soup for lunch. After lunch, I put a beef roast in the slow cooker for supper. Mother insisted on preparing the veggies for it.
Then we did this and that while we waited for the pest control guy, who was to come sometime between 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. to deal with an ant infestation in our kitchen. He arrived close to 3 p.m., naturally, and sprayed for ants, wasps, and dirt daubers.
When he had finished, Hubbie and I ran a few errands...to the pharmacy, to the health food store, and to the WDCS. I'm getting more and more frustrated with that store, because more and more items I want are either being eliminated, or being replaced with the store brand.
Today, there were absolutely no microwaveable white or sweet potatoes. I read or heard on TV that the store is experiencing stagnant sales. Well, no wonder. I find that I'm shopping more frequently at the store's biggest grocery competitor in our town, where I can find the products I want, or can request they be ordered.
We got back home just before 5 p.m., and sat down to our slow cooker meal. The beef was succulent, cooked with carrots, onions, and potatoes, and seasoned with garlic, pepper, no-salt seasoning, and paprika, and roasted in beef broth. The broth made a very tasty gravy. Mother ate fair-sized helpings of everything.
Mother went home afterward, and Hubbie and I watched the movie, "Not Forgotten," a 2009 R-rated film starring Simon Baker. In a Tex-Mex town, the young daughter of a re-married widower is kidnapped. He and his Hispanic wife enlist the help of a blind Hispanic psychic in an effort to locate the child.
Followed this psychological thriller with another thriller called, "A Perfect Getaway." In this one, two pairs of lovers vacation in the Hawaiian islands and are stalked by psycopaths who murder tourists. Lots of spectacular scenery in this movie.
Monday, June 28, 2010
Monday, June 28
Up at 6:30 to go to water aerobics. The water was positively warm today. Felt good. But the dressing room was frigid. There's a basketball camp going on in the gym this week, so I think they lowered the temp to keep it cooler for the players, but it was very uncomfortable for those of us in wet swimsuits.
Back home, I hopped in the shower and slathered my hair with conditioner. Suddenly, the water went off. Hubbie had no idea what the problem was. He checked the breaker, to no avail. Nothing for me to do but towel my hair the best I could and then dry it and get dressed. My hair was so limp and dull that it looked like I hadn't washed in a month. Naturally, I needed to go shopping today.
I helped Mother come over around 10 a.m., and she insisted on chopping veggies for boiling chicken. She's not up to par yet, but she's getting around better and is feeling well enough to help with kitchen duties, a thing she loves to do.
I called her doctor before lunch and made an appointment for tomorrow morning. We didn't do much else after that. Following lunch, Hubbie and I ran errands, and when we got back, Hubbie peeled potatoes to boil for mashed potatoes for supper, and I washed grapes and blueberries, and pitted cherries, for an evening snack later.
At lunchtime, we enjoyed slices of a nice sweet cantaloupe, grown in a town near us. While I was at water aerobics, Hubbie bought two of the biggest melons I've ever seen from a roadside vendor. The cantaloupes weigh about 10 lbs., around the size of small watermelons. The vendor didn't charge for one of the melons that was overripe on one end, because he knows our Shih Tzu loves them, and he would have had to dispose of the melon, anyway. Once that end of the melon was cut away, though, the rest of it was fine, so we sampled it. Shih Tzu didn't mind.
Near suppertime, Mother made gravy from the chicken broth, and I mashed the potatoes, and sliced tomatoes and cucumbers. Meal preparation is generally a community effort around here. Hubbie usually assumes the duty of dishwasher following meals.
The boiled chicken dinner was requested by Mother, who was in the mood for mashed potatoes and gravy. With the tomatoes and cucumbers, a side of English peas, and slices of sourdough bread, it was very good. Mother ate small helpings of all of it...more than she's eaten since she first got sick. So I'm hoping she's on the upswing.
After supper, I accompanied Mother home, Hubbie went out to work in the yard for a while, and I read one of the volumes of poetry we got at my 50th high school reunion. The volume is titled "The Spell of the Yukon and Other Verses," by Robert W. Service. It is a very old volume, dating back to 1907.
Tonight, I was especially touched by a verse titled "The March of the Dead," which tells of the triumphant return of troops following victory, and the joy of the flag-waving people welcoming them. But then the tone changes as the writer describes the ghostly march of the troops who died in battle, described as "the limb that trailed, the head that failed, the bloody finger tips!" And "...crimson wrecks of pride; with faces seared, and cheeks red smeared, and haunting eyes of woe." This verse and others are as timely today as they were over 100 years ago.
Later, Hubbie and I watched TV, including a Lifetime Movie Network feature called "Wide Awake." A narcoleptic woman works in a lab that has discovered a serum to cure the malady, but when it is tried on humans, they promptly die. The woman discovers a conspiracy, but can she stay awake long enough to solve the problem?
Back home, I hopped in the shower and slathered my hair with conditioner. Suddenly, the water went off. Hubbie had no idea what the problem was. He checked the breaker, to no avail. Nothing for me to do but towel my hair the best I could and then dry it and get dressed. My hair was so limp and dull that it looked like I hadn't washed in a month. Naturally, I needed to go shopping today.
I helped Mother come over around 10 a.m., and she insisted on chopping veggies for boiling chicken. She's not up to par yet, but she's getting around better and is feeling well enough to help with kitchen duties, a thing she loves to do.
I called her doctor before lunch and made an appointment for tomorrow morning. We didn't do much else after that. Following lunch, Hubbie and I ran errands, and when we got back, Hubbie peeled potatoes to boil for mashed potatoes for supper, and I washed grapes and blueberries, and pitted cherries, for an evening snack later.
At lunchtime, we enjoyed slices of a nice sweet cantaloupe, grown in a town near us. While I was at water aerobics, Hubbie bought two of the biggest melons I've ever seen from a roadside vendor. The cantaloupes weigh about 10 lbs., around the size of small watermelons. The vendor didn't charge for one of the melons that was overripe on one end, because he knows our Shih Tzu loves them, and he would have had to dispose of the melon, anyway. Once that end of the melon was cut away, though, the rest of it was fine, so we sampled it. Shih Tzu didn't mind.
Near suppertime, Mother made gravy from the chicken broth, and I mashed the potatoes, and sliced tomatoes and cucumbers. Meal preparation is generally a community effort around here. Hubbie usually assumes the duty of dishwasher following meals.
The boiled chicken dinner was requested by Mother, who was in the mood for mashed potatoes and gravy. With the tomatoes and cucumbers, a side of English peas, and slices of sourdough bread, it was very good. Mother ate small helpings of all of it...more than she's eaten since she first got sick. So I'm hoping she's on the upswing.
After supper, I accompanied Mother home, Hubbie went out to work in the yard for a while, and I read one of the volumes of poetry we got at my 50th high school reunion. The volume is titled "The Spell of the Yukon and Other Verses," by Robert W. Service. It is a very old volume, dating back to 1907.
Tonight, I was especially touched by a verse titled "The March of the Dead," which tells of the triumphant return of troops following victory, and the joy of the flag-waving people welcoming them. But then the tone changes as the writer describes the ghostly march of the troops who died in battle, described as "the limb that trailed, the head that failed, the bloody finger tips!" And "...crimson wrecks of pride; with faces seared, and cheeks red smeared, and haunting eyes of woe." This verse and others are as timely today as they were over 100 years ago.
Later, Hubbie and I watched TV, including a Lifetime Movie Network feature called "Wide Awake." A narcoleptic woman works in a lab that has discovered a serum to cure the malady, but when it is tried on humans, they promptly die. The woman discovers a conspiracy, but can she stay awake long enough to solve the problem?
Sunday, June 27, 2010
Sunday, June 27
Up at 7 a.m., but skipped my exercises again so I could get dressed and ready to bring Mother over to our house.
Spent a couple of hours in my usual Sunday routine of programming the DVR, reading the Sunday newspaper, etc. Around 9:30, Mother insisted on sitting at a small table in the kitchen and cutting up veggies to add to a big pan of cranberry beans for lunch. The beans came from Son's and Daughter-in-Law's veggie garden. We cooked them with onions, carrots, banana peppers, a little garlic, beef broth, and low-salt ham, no salt seasoning, paprika, and pepper. They were delicious served with baked potatoes and boiled cabbage, and cornbread.
Mother ate reasonably well, though not a lot. She ate a fair sized slice of cornbread, a quarter of a potato, and a couple of spoons of beans and cabbage.
After lunch, I accompanied Mother back to her house for a nap. I brought back several pairs of jeans and casual slacks to iron for her. She's just not up to standing at an ironing board, yet.
Relaxed the rest of the day, watched TV, and played with the kittens who have eye problems. The black kitten of the three, Rambo, seems to be doing fine. He's much bigger than the other two, and he's very rambunctious (hence the name Rambo). He's forever pouncing on his litter mates, who huddle in a corner trying to stay away from him.
Tonight, we watched a Lifetime Movie Network feature called, "Second Sight." A young woman lawyer is psychic and races against time to save a girl she has been having visions about.
Spent a couple of hours in my usual Sunday routine of programming the DVR, reading the Sunday newspaper, etc. Around 9:30, Mother insisted on sitting at a small table in the kitchen and cutting up veggies to add to a big pan of cranberry beans for lunch. The beans came from Son's and Daughter-in-Law's veggie garden. We cooked them with onions, carrots, banana peppers, a little garlic, beef broth, and low-salt ham, no salt seasoning, paprika, and pepper. They were delicious served with baked potatoes and boiled cabbage, and cornbread.
Mother ate reasonably well, though not a lot. She ate a fair sized slice of cornbread, a quarter of a potato, and a couple of spoons of beans and cabbage.
After lunch, I accompanied Mother back to her house for a nap. I brought back several pairs of jeans and casual slacks to iron for her. She's just not up to standing at an ironing board, yet.
Relaxed the rest of the day, watched TV, and played with the kittens who have eye problems. The black kitten of the three, Rambo, seems to be doing fine. He's much bigger than the other two, and he's very rambunctious (hence the name Rambo). He's forever pouncing on his litter mates, who huddle in a corner trying to stay away from him.
Tonight, we watched a Lifetime Movie Network feature called, "Second Sight." A young woman lawyer is psychic and races against time to save a girl she has been having visions about.
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