Tuesday, Sept. 27

Got up around 7:30, and after breakfast, we rode our bikes. The best thing about riding up the steepest hill is the race back down it. It was a perfect morning for riding, just cool enough. The sloping, still green, lawns of newer homes along the route sparkled with dew. The trees, though, are beginning to show their fall colors.

Back home, Hubbie called Daughter's house to find out if she'd be up to having company Thursday. Her husband answered, and informed him that Daughter was back in the hospital. She woke up this morning having problems with speech, and with numbness in her face.

Needless to say, Hubbie spent quite a bit of time calling family or receiving calls from them. Later, we learned that Daughter (as I suspected) had a stroke caused by a blood clot. At this time, we didn't know how long she would be hospitalized.

Then this evening, he received word that an MRI had revealed a hole in Daughter's heart. Now tests will be conducted to check the back of her heart.

If something like this happened to one of my children, I'd be practically immobilized by fear until I knew my child was out of danger. But when Hubbie is stressed, he needs to be active.

So after I was ready for the day, we ran errands...to the bank and to the pharmacy/grocery store. Since I picked up ice cream, these were the only two errands for the morning.

After lunch, we ran more errands...to the newspaper office to drop off the word search contest puzzle, to the Caring Hands Hospice office to drop off a stack of greeting cards Mother, Sis, and I made last week, and to the WDCS for groceries.

By now, it was 2 p.m., and time to go to the medical clinic to get flu shots. The clinic is struggling with a new computer system, so the receptionist needed to re-enter all our information. Because of the new computers, there was a delay before the nurse called us back. I asked if she likes the new system, and she said she isn't sure she does, yet. She preferred to stick with the familiar old system. A new system just complicates things for a while.

Getting flu shots is Mother's absolutely least favorite thing to do, so as a reward, we stopped by a pumpkin patch sponsored by a nearby church. Mother really enjoyed strolling through the hundreds of various sizes of colorful pumpkins and gourds (one gourd reminded us of the Loch Ness Monster). I've already bought my pumpkins, but I found and bought a really pretty little gourd in the shape of a white swan.

I asked the young woman who was accepting the money for the pumpkins and gourds if they had luck in selling them last year. She said the project (which funds the church's youth group activities) was so successful that they had to order two more semi truck loads of them. I asked where they come from, and she said from New Mexico.

Later, we had a supper of leftover split pea soup, with slices of buttered rye bread. I accompanied Mother to her house afterward, and then Hubbie and I relaxed in front of TV...or tried to, under the circumstances.

We are anxious to hear tomorrow when the best time will be for us to go and see Daughter.