April Made Me Do It!

I have not done any sort of writing in a very long time. I have even thought about taking this off line and being done with the whole thing. I discussed doing just that today, with my sister April. She felt that I should try and continue, so this is her fault! (Just kidding Sissy!)

This post is going to be in list style as it's 1:45 in the morning and I need to go to sleep.

1. I am recovering from a bout of CHF and a visit to the big hospital in Danville. I have a team of nurses, therapists and aides who are working hard to get me healthy again.

2. My house has never been cleaner. I hired a dear friend to come and clean. She has tackled every room... Every dresser, all the closets and my porch. Really, there are only a couple of drawers in e kitchen that she has not cleaned out and organized.

3. I have purged my closets of a good portion of work wear, shoes and handbags. Tons of household goods have also left this house... All given to those who can use it. Makes me happy to know someone else likes my things and ,asking good use of them.

4. Did I ever share that I finally won my case with Social Security Disability? That was a happy day. 

5. We did have to make a difficult decision about Cooper dog... He was becoming more aggressive and he went after DH one night while DH was assisting me with Punky dog, who had a bad dream and was crying and shaking. We put him down, as we realized he couldn't be trusted not to flip out and try and bite us. We've each been bitten by him a few times previous. It was sad, but had to be done.

6. I have been sick the last few days with a virus. The nurse checked me today and I had a good fever going. 

7. DH called from the freeway his morning on his way to work. Large trucks flew by, kicking a large rock that broke our windshield. Not good.

That's all I have.... Thanks for reading! 

Suzanne

The Sunday Seven...

I have not blogged in quite a long time... because I have been dealing with some health issues. Things that are on-going and some things that are coming up. Here is a list of seven things that are going on or have gone on in the last few weeks! Lists are an easy thing for me to do, so here we go!

1.  We had so much snow this week that my DH's work actually closed for the first time in years!

2. We have so much plowed snow in our yard that the piles are over 8 feet high. Those won't melt away until late April.

3. I made some awesome things in the kitchen recently... homemade macaroni salad, Korean beef, Potato soup, thick cut pan fried ham steaks, just to name a few things!

4. I see my rheumatologist this week... I think she is going to be very surprised to see just how far R/A has progressed in my hands. All 5 fingers and my wrist on the left and 4 of my 5 fingers and wrist on the right all show signs of inflammation and with redness and nodules. I have to be very careful with water in the kitchen now as only light warm water feels ok... hot water is all very hot and very cold water really hurts too.

5. I have been going through my personal closet and so far I have boxed up over 20 pairs of shoes and decided to part with the majority of my handbags. Many of which are bags costing over $100 - $300. I have a former co-worker than is willing to take all of this off my hands. She is a lucky girl!

6. I have been working really hard at trying to get my house back under control from my canning season to now... Yeah, it's been that long since I have deeply cleaned because I over-did it so much at the end of Summer and into the Fall. My Fibromyalgia was diagnosed in October and my body aches and fatigue have been off the charts. My endo changed my Synthroid dosage to 225 mcg from 250 mcg... that has made a huge difference in my energy level to not be so "suppressed."

7. Did I tell you that one of the silliest things to ever happen to me was a few weeks ago. I had taken my usual dose of Ambien and also some pain medicine. I fell asleep at the very edge of my bed. I actually ended up rolling out of bed and hitting my head on the night stand (which is solid maple) and landing on the step to get into bed and then the floor. My husband scooped me up and took me to the ER to have my head x-rayed and to make sure I didn't crack a rib. I had a huge goose egg and my left ear was purple. My goose egg has gone down and my ear is almost back to normal... but for almost 3 weeks, I couldn't touch the left side of my head. (Only me!)

Thanks for reading... have a Blessed Day!
~Suzanne

Things I am looking forward to....

Fall is upon us... in just a couple of days!
I am looking forward to a few of the following things:

I am looking forward to the tv show Parenthood returning next week!

I am REALLY looking forward to Million Second Quiz ending. I am sick of that thing!

I am looking forward to my DH's next day off... thinking it will likely be Oct. 5th.

I am looking forward to have a few more things crossed off the "Master Honey-Do list" that is attached to the side of our fridge. This is a long list with lots of projects, both big and small. I would so love to see a bunch of the small stuff crossed!

I am looking forward to finally getting enough money saved up to get my DH's truck back on the road.

I am looking forward to doing one or two more canning projects and then putting all the canning gear away for awhile.

I am looking forward to doing some fall baking... pumpkin bars for one... and some pumpkin scones.

I am looking forward to sitting down at my sewing machine and starting a new quilt project.

I am looking forward to starting a few more chapters to the book that is in process.

Oh... and I am really looking forward to the schedule changing for DH... we are not liking the 11-11 schedule at all!

That's a pretty good list. All realistic and attainable, don't you think?
Thanks for reading! Please have a blessed day.

~Suzanne

Five Good Things on Friday...

1. I have managed to stay home in bed for most of the week to heal my body from Pneumonia.

2. We are going to be helping a family out who are flood victims... they lost all their appliances and we just happen to have a spare washer and dryer!

3. We are also hoping to help out their neighbors who lost everything with extra furniture taking up space in our basement.

4. The weather has turned and it's quite cool at night... good sleeping weather!

5. My DH took me to Cracker Barrel for dinner... I have leftover shrimp and hush puppies for lunch this weekend.

That was fast... I could think of a few more things... Punky is happy to have me home, she really missed me while I was in the hospital. It's time to clean up flowers and get some mums purchased... maybe next week tho! I made my first batch of pumpkin bars for a bake sale at work... and came home with none left!

Thanks for reading... be blessed!
~Suzanne

So Busy!

My life has been a blur since Thursday morning! With only 6 days to get ready for a Total Knee Replacement (TKR), I had a lot to do. I had to get grocery shopping done... and I zipped into Wal-mart... getting a snazzy electric cart, and got as much as I could get into one of those things. I got it all out to the car, loaded it and then had to unload it at home... by myself. That part did me in... I couldn't do too much after that. I do remember fixing something for dinner, but DH went to Men's Fraternity at church. He was going to skip it, but I told him it's too important to miss right now.

On Friday... DH came home from work early. We were setting down to plan out what we were going to do to start out the weekend.... and he got a call for a repair job, just overtime, not double because it was still before 4pm. That took care of what we were planning, that's for sure! I spent part of the day at the doctors office doing my medical history and my pre-op lab work. There was a discussion on my cardiac clearance... that took a few phone calls back and forth with my doctors office... but today the surgical center office has it!

Saturday... we went to breakfast at Cracker Barrel and then we went to Sams Club for new tires for the car. We put new ones on the front 2 weeks ago, now it was time for the back ones. This time, I again used an electric cart... DH also had a shopping cart. We actually took our time as the wait time for the car was 2 hours. We partook of some of the demo items... and had a nice little snack going on. We spent a good amount of money on stuff... yoga pants and hoodies... cami's for the hospital... along with some yummy frozen stuff for DH while I am gone. (The man isn't going to starve at all!)

We came home and cleaned... and we put stuff away... and I had to rest as I was just BEAT!

Sunday... we went to church... and then headed back to Sam's as I didn't really like most of the stuff I had picked up once I got it home. (I think it has to do with no dressing room or mirror, the stuff just didn't look good!) We ate lunch while we were there, to satisfy my craving for a hotdog and pizza since it will be awhile before I get that again. Again... we came home and cleaned up another area... and took the shower doors down. We put up a regular shower curtain and took the rails off the side of the tub so that I can sit down on the edge and swing my legs over. (That is a good thing!)

Today... DH left for work very early... I went to have the car inspected. They didn't tell me when I called for the appointment that I would need my registration (which was in the car...) but that I would need my proof of insurance... (I am always forgetting to put the new one in!) So... along with walking back to the car and bringing in what I had... it was all for naut! I was not happy. I don't like the place where DH likes to go... last year they tried to sell me a set of tires during my inspection because they had some "feathering" at 10% wear. (I didn't need new tires! They passed the inspection just fine!)

So... along with errand for nothing... I also had to go to the pharmacy. I had to find another inspection place (tomorrow at 10:30) play phone tag with the guy who wants to bring me my knee machine for physical therapy, play phone tag with the doctors office about cardiac clearance and if I needed to be there by 11:30, and play phone tag with the surgery office about my anesthesia consult... I have that tomorrow after the car! I also stopped at our local market for milk and dog biscuits and some cans of soup... and the discount market for snacks for DH. I also went to the post office and mailed my sisters birthday gift... she'll get it a day late. (Sorry!) That was my day... I'm beat!

Speaking for beat... DH was down in Philly today... and he got called to a job in NJ... for a computer lab that had a real issue with a conveyor. He is just now walking in the door from work... and it's 10:55! I guess that covers the time he's taking off on Wednesday to be with me.
I also need to stop by the rehab hospital tomorrow and talk to them about what I need to have DH bring me when it's time to transfer to there. I want to get that packed so that he doesn't have to guess at what I want... and it helps keep me sane! Time to get DH's lunch stuff cleaned out of his lunch cooler and ready to repack early in the morning.

Thanks for reading... be blessed!
~Suzanne

Weekend Weather Report!

Oh... My... Stars!!!! It's going to be WARM here today!

And it's going to be even WARMER tomorrow! I cannot begin to tell you how

happy that makes us over here in the valley. It means that soon, I can take down the clear insulating plastic from the south windows. It means that soon we will start construction on my flower beds. Soon... it will mean that I will be going to all the nurseries around here, buying up plants to go in my flower beds!

I just love, love, love SPRING! And this will be a fun one, I am hoping!

I have a long list of things that I need to acquire... shovels, spades, a turning fork, new hoses, new faucets, lumber, stakes, garden gloves and tools.... it all makes me so excited and happy inside! Last night... I could barely sleep, thinking of all the fun that DH and I are going to have in planting and doing some landscaping... and enjoying our yard. Last year, we didn't get to enjoy the yard too much, as he was gone so much. This year... he's working more locally and of course, we are here to get things started and understand some of the lay of the land now.

I don't want anything to elaborate... I like to keep it simple. If it gets too crazy, I won't be able to keep up with it if DH gets too busy with work. I also have to bear in mind, my own limitations with my poor knees and my energy level as I readjust medications in the coming months. Of course, it should be easier... once I start getting some sleep. I am going to ask the doctor to prescribe some sleep aids... as I am only sleeping through the night about 2 or 3 nights a week now. (Not good... I'm not a mommy... and I do require a good amount of undisturbed sleep.)

Well... how did I get so off track? (Could it be... not enough sleep????)

I'm off to work on my lists... and to figure out how much soil I am going to need. And what plants I want to put out there... and what plants I want to place over on the other side! See... I get so excited when it comes to flowers and outdoor living in the spring and summer!

Thanks for reading... be blessed!

~Suzanne

This was fun!

I totally borrowed this idea from another blog that I read... I love this and I could expand on the idea quite easily.

Questions for you: Food Edition!

1) Think about the best meal you ever ate in a restaurant. What was the restaurant?

2) What is your favorite kind of cheese?

3) What is your favorite varietal of wine?

4) Have you ever eaten foie gras? If so, did you like it?

5) What is your favorite flavor of potato chip?

What are your answers?

Here are mine:

1. My most favorite meal is a tie... the first being a meal that was at a corporate awards dinner in Portsmouth NH... the restaurant was called 71, set in an old church. The food was amazing... and I had steak dijonnaise that was wonderful... with the best steamed shrimp ever. And to tie that is The Melting Pot... it's fondue... nothing more needs to be said!

2. We are cheese eaters at this house... but if I'm gonna splurge... I love Emmenthaler Swiss or Gruyere`. We eat a lot of colby/jack for grilled cheese too!

3. I don't drink wine. (I can't... no thyroid!) But if I did... I like a good champagne cocktail. I mostly drink diet pepsi or lemonade.

4. Yes and Yes... it was at the same corporate dinner... the chef really knew what he was doing... it was so flavorful and rich... not a lot of people ate it... but it was really good!

5. My favorite potato chip is Utz Honey BBQ. I love those... sweet and smoky! Hubs likes the crab chips they do as well... I can't eat those...

That was fun and I can't wait to read what your answers will be!

Oh... it's snowing here... we are going to get around 3 inches today, more tomorrow and on the weekend too. I'm ready for winter to be done. On a personal note... please keep those prayers a'comin! I have applied for several jobs... and need one! Please join me in seeking what God wants for me to do. Thanks!

Thank you for reading! Be blessed!

~Suzanne