Saturday, January 7, 2012

Saturday, Jan. 7

Since it was after midnight last night before we headed to bed (up late watching our favorite college football team in a bowl game that I'd recorded on DVR), we didn't get up this morning until around 8 a.m.

Right after breakfast, I started two pans of 11-bean soup simmering. Then did other things around the house. Never did get around to exercising, though I'd suited up for it. Just didn't feel in the mood.

Got ready for the day, by which time it was noon. Hubbie had accompanied Mother to our house, so I fixed Ramen noodle soup for her, and heated the rest of the leftover stir-fry and rice for Hubbie and me.

After lunch, Hubbie and I ran a couple of errands...to the WDCS for a few things, and to the greeting card shop.

Back home, I spent most of the afternoon relaying information about my ex-husband's condition (based on my Daughter-in-Law's phone calls) to my daughter, whose phone and laptop are temporarily down. She communicated with me via a friend's laptop.

For supper, I boiled macaroni to add to the remainder of the tomato soup, which we had with slices of French bread.

Mother went home afterward, and Hubbie and I watched TV for a while. At 8 p.m., we watched our favorite college basketball team play to a win. Since we couldn't get the game on TV, we watched it on my laptop, and turned on the radio for commentator play-by-play, because the sound on my laptop is not strong enough for Hubbie to hear adequately.

Friday, January 6, 2012

Friday, Jan. 6

Up late again, around 8:30. Skipped my exercises in anticipation of going for a bike ride this afternoon, since it was such a nice day.

After breakfast, and once I was ready for the day, I went to Mother's house to help her take a shower.

Didn't accomplish much else for the morning, other than locating the wall hangings and other decorations for the living and dining rooms, some of which were a challenge to find, because Hubbie boxed part of it, and then couldn't remember where he'd stored the box.

This is a frequent occurrence with Hubbie. Yesterday, I searched everywhere for a binder of scrapbook templates, which I finally discovered that Hubbie had put in a closet with similar looking binders of family photos. The appropriate place for the binder is with my other scrapbook supplies.

A few weeks ago, he insisted I had put some papers someplace when I was clearing surfaces in anticipation of company coming. I couldn't remember ever picking them up, but I searched in all the places I usually stash stuff, without result. I finally asked him if he'd checked his briefcase, where he keeps most of his business papers. Sure enough, that's where they were, right where he'd stowed them.

I've decided it's time for us to use a notebook to record where we put stuff.

After lunch, Hubbie accompanied Mother to our house, where she sorted a couple of batches of beans, and diced onions, banana peppers, and ham for making 11-bean soup tomorrow.

Then we relaxed and watched the Rose Parade that I'd recorded on DVR, but only got around to watching today.

Good news today: my ex-husband came through quadruple bypass heart surgery just fine. And my cardiologist's office called to say my stress tests are normal.

Around 3 p.m., Hubbie and I went for a bike ride. It was a mild day for a ride, though it was a little windy.

Back home later, I fixed a supper of biscuits and gravy, with a side of scrambled eggs for supper. Hubbie accompanied Mother back to her house afterward, and then we settled down to watch TV, including a Lifetime Movie Network feature called, "Gossip." A woman returns to her hometown, divorced and with a ten-year-old child. She meets an old college flame, and they both find they still have feelings for each other. The problem is, the old flame is married to her daughter's new soccer coach, a woman she has recently befriended.

Later, we watched our favorite college football team play in a bowl game. Our team won. Yay!

Thursday, January 5, 2012

Thursday, Dec. 5

Up late, around 8:30, on this lovely, sunny, mild day, and did a treadmill session and weights exercises after breakfast. I wondered if I'd be able to use my weights with my bandaged finger, but I did just fine.

It took a lot longer to get through my shower routine, though, because it was awkward trying to put on the rubber glove and then peel tape off a roll and apply it to my right wrist with my left hand. Taking a shower one-handed was interesting, too, but I finally managed it. It was also a challenge conducting my dental hygiene routine, as well as applying makeup. It's amazing how much I relied on, and took for granted, that right index finger (since I'm right-handed).

It was noon by the time I was ready for the day. Funny: Hubbie and I decided on pb&j sandwiches for lunch. He got all the stuff out, and put a couple of slices of bread on each of our plates. Then he proceeded to prepare one of the sandwiches.

Meanwhile, I set the couch pull-down table with napkins, glasses of water, etc., then brought my plate to the den, settled in to watch the noon news, and took a big bite of my sandwich. I immediately returned to the kitchen and said, "I'll bet this sandwich would be a lot better with pb&j in it."

Hubbie broke out laughing. "I thought you'd fix your own sandwich," he said. "I never know how much pb&j you want."

After lunch, Hubbie accompanied Mother to our house. I gathered the materials necessary for making thank-you cards, and we spent the afternoon doing that. The cards are for Hubbie's daughters, who brought Mother and me lots of neat gifts the weekend before Christmas.

Once again, it was a challenge doing the things necessary to card-making...using scissors, punches, rubber stamps, colored pencils, etc., but I managed. The project was good for Mother, and she enjoyed it.

Since Mother's and my handwriting is awful right now, I typed notes to include in the cards. Typing is a bit of a chore, too, but I just have to resort to the hunt-and-peck method with my right hand.

Later, we had a supper of homemade tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches...Hubbie did the honors with those. Hubbie accompanied Mother back to her house afterward, and then we watched TV, including a Lifetime Movie Network feature called, "Ultimate Deception." A woman bartender marries a man, and wants a baby. But her husband turns out to be infertile. So he resorts to murder and deception to provide her with the child she wants.

Wednesday, January 4, 2012

Wednesday, Jan. 4

Well, it's been a day. Started just fine at around 7:30 a.m. Did a treadmill session and resistance exercises after breakfast. Once I was ready for the day, I went to Mother's house to help her take a shower. She came to our house afterward.

After that, we decided we wanted to go to another town for a matinee showing of "War Horse." But upon re-reading the theater information online, I discovered that matinee showings are only on Saturday and Sunday. So if nothing comes up, we'll plan to go Saturday.

So, since we would be home all afternoon, I decided to make a double batch of tomato soup. The electric can opener doesn't work right, so I resorted to the old-fashioned manual one. The lid didn't come completely off, so it was standing up. The next thing I did was really stupid. I laid a package of frozen onions/peppers on the counter and tried to hit it with my right hand. Instead, my finger met with that sharp lid.

It sliced through the skin down to the fatty layer. Oddly, I didn't feel it...I guess it was such a swift, clean cut, that my brain didn't have time to register it. Hubbie immediately took me to the urgent care clinic, where I was told that although the wound looked wicked, it's actually superficial. I had a choice of stitches or bandaging, and I chose bandaging. Some sort of dissolving bandage was applied, and then it was stabilized with a self-adhesive bandage. I'm to remove the self-adhesive bandage at night and encase the finger in a metal "frog." The wound will take two weeks to mend, and I was told it'll leave a scar.

I was given a combination tetanus/diphtheria shot. I commented that I'd had diphtheria as a child, but was told the shot came as a combination, and it wouldn't hurt to have a booster of the diphtheria serum.

The doctor's assistant and the nurse debated if I should be given the tetanus/diphtheria/pertussis combination, or just the diphtheria/tetanus one. It depended on my age, and the assistant thought I was 60. The nurse said she was sure my chart said I was 69.

"We decided," she said, "that we want to look as good as you when we're you're age." That made me feel a little bit better about hurting myself today.

I was also pleased that my blood pressure reading was 120/62.

Just before we left for the clinic, Mother's occupational therapist arrived. She was still here when we got back. She'd had time to accompany Mother back to her house, observe her exercise routine, watch her use the new transfer bench/chair to get in and out of the bathtub, and see what adjustments had been done to the house (like completely clearing the hallway, so she can use her walker without obstacles).

With Hubbie's help, I'd managed to finish making the tomato soup (after I'd stopped the bleeding and taped my wound), before we went to the clinic. The simmering soup really smelled good when we came in the door. It was making the OT hungry, too. The soup wasn't for supper, though. We had leftover stir fry later.

We weren't home from the clinic long before I remembered that the nurse had said she was going to give me some rubber gloves and tape to use when I shower. And I'd also forgotten to stop by the Catholic Church to get a mass card.

So off we went again. At the Church office, the lady who helped me complimented me on the color of my hair, which she said suited my skin tone. She might have been trying to make me feel better, after I'd told her the card (and mass) were in remembrance of a classmate who died recently. "It really makes you feel vulnerable, doesn't it?" she said. Yes, it does.

Hubbie accompanied Mother home after supper, and then we spent the evening watching TV, including a 1993 movie called, "Sommersby," starring Richard Gere, Jodie Foster, Bill Pullman, and James Earl Jones. Just after the Civil War, a woman thinks her husband has been killed in the war. But he returns, a changed man, not as unpleasant as before. So is he actually the husband, or an imposter?

Tuesday, January 3, 2012

Tuesday, Jan. 3

Up late this morning, around 8:30, and did a treadmill session and weights exercises after breakfast. It was a very cold day, so Mother stayed home, of course. I didn't visit her today, though Hubbie checked on her several times.

She was busy enough, since a nurse, and the physical therapist assessed her today. The nurse, a male this time, said she is doing very well, though she has been approved for a few more weeks of occupational therapy to make sure she's doing okay in activities of daily living. The physical therapist, however, said his job is done. Now it's up to Mother to use her own initiative to do the exercises he has outlined and helped her practice.

I spent my day doing laundry and other household chores, and then after lunch, I cut up veggies for a stir fry supper...onions, carrots, mushrooms, celery, bell pepper. In doing this, I found that the veggie drawer was past due for a cleaning, so I discarded gone-south veggies, and washed the drawer.

Then I made two batches of chai tea...one decaf/low-fat/sugar-free kind, and one regular kind.

While I was doing these things, Hubbie visited his doctor. He's had a couple of episodes of burning in the groin, and we wondered if it was related to the hernia repair he had a couple of years ago. The doctor allowed that it might be related, but that Hubbie should play the wait-and-see game. If symptoms increase or become more frequent, then he'll refer Hubbie back to the surgeon for consultation.

Later, I stir-fried the fresh veggies, and then added a package of frozen stir fry veggies to it. Then I cubed the leftover rotisserie chicken and added it to the veggies. I also added fresh ginger and a variety of spices, and then thickened the mixture with low-sodium chicken broth, to which I'd added light soy sauce and corn starch. We had the stir fry with helpings of instant rice, and slices of crusty bread. Hubbie took a helping of the meal to Mother.

Afterward, Hubbie and I watched TV, including a 2007 Lifetime Movie Network feature called, "Mr. Brooks." Kevin Costner stars in this drama about a serial killer controlled by his murderous alter ego. Demi Moore, and Marg Helgenberger co-star.

Later, we watched our favorite college basketball team as they played to a win.

Monday, January 2, 2012

Monday, Jan. 2

Today is the anniversary of my brother's birthday. He would have been 68 today.

The new year is getting off to a rocky start. Yesterday, Hubbie learned that his ex-wife fell out in front of her car at a dollar store parking lot on Sunday, and was whisked to the ER. Doctors determined she'd had a sudden drop in blood pressure, but haven't determined the cause.

Then this morning, Daughter-in-Law called to tell me that my ex-husband suffered a heart attack yesterday. Tests show that he has blocked arteries and an aneurysm on his heart. He is now awaiting open heart surgery.

This afternoon's local newspaper brought the obituary of a lady we've known for years. She was only 56, but she had suffered many physical problems over the years. At one point years ago, she was so anorexic that we thought she would surely perish. But she got help for that and became healthier. Several months ago, though, we learned she was a closet alcoholic. Her latest physical problems were related to cirrhosis of the liver.

This lady always confused Mother and me, and whenever she saw me at the greeting card shop where she worked, she called me by Mother's name. Mother and I were members of an Extension Homemaker's club that she started, and her husband and I served together for several years on the community theater board.

This morning, we got up around 7:30, and after breakfast, I did a treadmill session and resistance exercises. Once I was ready for the day, I went to Mother's house to help her take a shower. It's still a struggle for her to get onto the new bench seat, but it's a lot better than the shower seat she used the last time.

Naturally, Mother's space heater decided to bite the dust today. It had been full of lint, and Hubbie had it blown out, but today when I turned it on, it worked for a couple of minutes, made a ghastly noise, and then shut down.

Following her shower, she wanted to use her old, thin towels to dry off, because she wanted to "save the news ones" I bought her for Christmas. I would hear none of it. I got the towels for her, because she commented at my house how nice and fluffy the towels are, so I'm determined that she's going to use her new ones!

While she was dressing, she said that her bath scales had quit working, too. So after lunch, as part of Hubbie's and my errand running, we bought a new space heater and bathroom scales for her.

Our errands included a trip to the grocery store/pharmacy to pick up a prescription, and a plain chocolate cake mix. Then we went to the WDCS for everything else. On the way home, I stopped by the Catholic Church office, which was closed...guess the staff is taking an extra day for New Year's. So I'll try again Wednesday.

Back home, we relaxed for an hour or so, until time for me to prepare supper. It was an easy meal of leftover pork roast and trimmings from yesterday. Since a bitter cold wind blew all day, it was too uncomfortable for Mother to walk to our house, so I sent a microwave dish of food to her.

Later, we watched TV, including a 2010 Lifetime Movie Network feature called, "Second Chances," about a woman journalist who gets backlash when she interviews a serial killer of young women, but fails to turn him over to police. Consequently, another woman is killed. She loses her job, and now she is a professor of media ethics. But one of her students can't forget her past.

After that, we watched a 2010 movie called, "Fair Game," starring Naomi Watts and Sean Pean. A woman CIA operative's cover is blown after her husband writes an editorial criticizing the Bush administration.

Sunday, January 1, 2012

Sunday, Jan. 1

New Year's Day, 2012. It'll take a while getting used to writing it and saying it.

Got up late, around 8:30 on this sunny, but sharply cooler morning. Skipped my exercises. After breakfast, I put a pork roast, onions, carrots, and small yellow potatoes in the slow cooker. I also started a pot of black eyed peas (for good luck), simmering with onion, ham, and seasonings. Then I seasoned a dish of acorn squash (preserved from last summer's garden) to put in the oven later.

While I was doing this, Hubbie went to Mother's house to accompany her over here. Spent the rest of the morning taking down Christmas decorations. Mother participated by helping pack away mugs, candles, and small collectible Santas. She was able to do this while seated in the comfortable rocking chair in the living room.

The morning also brought happy news, when Daughter-in-Law called to announce that Granddaughter is expecting her third child in late September or early October. This will make 28 great-grandchildren for Hubbie and me.

Lunch was very good. Afterward, we continued packing away Christmas decorations. I washed a couple of loads of Christmas-themed table clothes, dish towels, etc., and now about all that remains is to take apart and box the large Christmas tree in the sunroom. The winter village is still on the mantel. We'll take it down in February.

About 3 p.m., Mother was ready to go back home. I accompanied her. Before she went home, I had her fill her pill carriers, so I could observe that she did it correctly. She did. We've been contacting her each morning to make sure she has been taking her medications at the proper times. She has.

It was a pleasant day, and Mother was in very good spirits.

Hubbie and I spent the rest of the afternoon relaxing, including watching a 2010 movie on DVR, "Hereafter," starring Matt Damon. The lives of three people, a blue-collar American, who is a psychic, a French Jounalist, who has a near-death experience in a tsunami, and a London schoolboy, who loses his twin brother to an accident, intersect based on their beliefs about death and the afterlife.