Catch Up

Well,  it's been a few weeks. I know I ain't blogging like I was. But I'm trying to get this book off the ground, and between that and everybody going to the doctor forty-eleven times, I'm pretty worn out, plus sick of the computer.

Husband had himself some surgery. He looks like he was on the losing end of a knife fight. (Although he reassures me that if he had been a real knife fight, he would have won, of course.)

He had this teeny weeny spot above his lip removed. Now he has thirteen stitches, a bloody, swollen mouth (think duck bill) and a bruise running down his chin and under his neck. 

What he doesn't have (now) is cancer. This is good. Right now, it's just bad and ugly.

Of course, he's not been able to bend down or lift. He's milking it for all it's worth. He's developed this whine to his voice when he says my name that reminds me of a dentist's drill.

Mother, of course, had to have a run in with the hospital during all this. She'd been on antibiotics for a U.T.I. and it caused her to develop Ulcerative  Colitis. We had the joy of spending the entire night in the ER. But she is better now, at least for now.

Other Brother passed a kidney stone. I think he got an A+ for his effort, since the doctor said it couldn't be done.

I'm still in physical therapy for my tootsies. It seems to be helping!

We won a million dollars in the lottery. (Not really, just seeing if you are paying attention.)

Our car has to have a software update. Is that totally ridiculous, or what? 

Next step in the book process is to get a nice list in order as to how I want the book to flow.

And I'm still waiting on the CD to come back from being "pressed". Either it was really wrinkled or somebody in Nashville is listening to it over and over....or I'm in a long line at the press place.

Well, I guess that's it for now. If you think of something else, let me know.

I guess baking a cake is sorta like riding a bicycle.

I had not made a cake since before I fell in January of 2006. 

That's right, over ten years.

In fact, Daughter reminded me that yesterday marked the tenth anniversary when I fell down the rabbit hole of surgery and returned damaged and  confused; my life changed forever.

Anyway, Daughter's 26th birthday was June 7, and because I've been doing better as of late, I determined I was going to bake a birthday cake.

So, I did. 

It is good.

I also cooked a birthday dinner. You will be saddened to learn I did not snap any photos of the meal. Let's just say it was a success also.

Happy birthday, my Daughter!

Mother Said There'd Be Days Like This

You may or may not have noticed that I have not blogged in several days.

Life can be so complicated sometimes, that blogging and other enjoyable things come to a halt.

Mother, as we speak, is in the hospital, and I, along with most of my other family, have been right there with her.

She has an intestinal blockage, which ain't good news no matter how you look at it.

We'll know either tonight or in the morning if surgery is imminent, and odds are, according to the doctor, surgery will be necessary since her body has not been able to pass it on its own.

Brother of Many Surgeries and His Wife both have the flu, and have anxiously called often for progress or lack thereof because they can't be present.

I know from experience, that is harder than long waits at the hospital.

Prayers appreciated for us all.

Tomorrow Is The Big Day

Tomorrow Mother goes back to the surgeon to strut her stuff.

She is walking a lot without the walker, and even walked to the mailbox this morning, using her cane.

She's called for them to come get the hospital bed, she's taken the potty chair thing off the commode (Thank goodness, that thing pinched). The physical therapist said good-bye.

She still has some burning pain below the surgical site, which I assume is the good old sciatic nerve protesting being whacked in half.

She hasn't been in a car since she came home from the hospital, but she ain't worried about it. She was shown how to go up and down steps, so she's got that whipped.

I'm a little (okay, a lot) nervous about her staying by herself so soon, and she said the Other Brother said absolutely not!

Mother's said, let's see what the doctor says.

Actually, she is walking and moving better and with more confidence than she did before the surgery.

I suspect it isn't she who is concerned.

It's the offspring.

Pehaps a Better Tomorrow

I can tell you, this has been one long week.

I'm sure it's been even longer for my mother, except for the part where she was under anesthesia.

I wish I had a list of upcoming funny blogs regarding her hospital stay and her continuing at-home recuperation.

Not a one.

It has been painful to watch. Things are better now, four days out. Although we have taken turns care taking; it has taken a toll on us all.

I can only imagine what it has taken from her almost eighty-five year old mind and body.

Plus, of course, she is ruminating over a family squabble like it is war between Russia and the USA.

Me? I just wish folks would grow up.

I ain't too happy with my own body. It doesn't like unusual places to sit or stand. It really doesn't like stooping. I won't go into detail of nights of leg and foot cramps, numbness that wakes me up, stiffness that won't let me move and zipping pain that seems demonically possessed. It really makes me angry that I can't step up to the plate more and be more confident in what I am doing.

Of course, part of that is there is not one speck of nurse in me. Give me a crazy person and I'm good to go. Physical impairment? I'm good to go there, too, just in the other direction. That embarrasses me to admit. It's like I have some core value missing.

Mother hasn't hesitated to tell each and every doctor, nurse, aide, cleaning lady, and passer by what a terrible shape I am in. They glance at my she-could-plow-the-south-forty physique and mentally roll their eyes. Color me embarrassed.

Of course, Brother of Many Surgeries gets the same amount of stage time, and he looks pretty good too, as long as he ain't naked. Don't get me wrong, I ain't seen him naked, (in many years) but I've heard rumors.

All in all, I suppose we have done the best we can. We've worked and watched, cajoled and encouraged, talked and listened.

And so far, nobody's died.

Tomorrow Is Closer Than It Was

This will be my last blog for a few days.

Tomorrow  Mother is having hip replacement surgery. She is nearly 85 years old, so perhaps you can imagine my anxiety over it.

I have not wanted her to have this surgery, even though she has been cleared by a good cardiologist, dentist, and the surgeon himself.

But you see, I don't know if my unease comes from my own disastrous surgery where many things went awry and I'm stuck with it all, or if it is her age and I'm afraid she won't live through it all, or if it is my fear of my own shortcomings when it comes to helping take care of her afterwards.

All I told my Mother was: "It's your body, it's your pain, and only you can decide what has to be done"

And her reply, "I can't go on living with this pain."

So, there you go.

My hope, my sincere prayer, is that in a few days I'll be able to regale you with hilarious stories of adventures at the hospital, as I have attempted to do in the past.

I ask that those of you who are praying folks to lift my mama up in prayer tomorrow. For the Lord loves to hear our prayers, it is a sweet odor to Him. He loves my mother more than I can imagine, and I ask that you pray with that in mind.

And if you have an extra minute, add me in there, too.

For the Beauty of the Earth

We got up extra early this morning because Husband had to have Molly (Dog) to the vet by 7:30 for surgery.

She has a bull doggy problem with her gums. It's an over growth, which is common in Boxers, American Bulldogs, English Bulldogs, Olde English Bulldogs, Bull Mastiffs, etc.

Surgery only fixes it temporarily, but as old as Molly is, it will probably be a permanent fix for her.

Anyway, after Husband and Molly left, I decided to have my coffee on the back porch, since I was alone.

Usually Husband and I have our coffee together in the living room to start the day off together.

It was slightly cool. The clouds were coming in heavier and a breeze was moving about.

The birds were starting their day, too.

The noise began. I closed my eyes to try and hear as many different birds as I could. I recognized the Pileated Woodpecker, a hawk, the crow. I counted about twelve different voices in the choir, but failed to name others.

For a city girl (and I use that term loosely), hearing birds near and far fill up the forest with their voices is a magical thing.

I really, truly believe they are praising and worshiping their Creator.

How else could they sound so perfectly in harmony as they trill their own individual song?

You ought to try this in the morning. You will be truly blessed.

It's Raining Men er I mean

It's Raining Men Leaves!

For at least two days, non-stop, it has poured leaves. And still there are more on the trees.

I've never seen it quite so fierce or constant.

I suppose (maybe) it's because we had solid green until the cold spell, late, and then BAM! everything changed at once.

So I guess they are all dropping at once.

My cats are delirious. They stalk from window to window, tails swishing sixty miles an hour, watching them fall from the sky. I don't know if they think they are birds, or what. But it is certainly keeping them entertained.

Eli sat in the bathroom for five minutes, looking up at the skylight. He would cry, look at me expectantly, cry, look up, cry. I have no idea what he was expecting me to do, but he clearly did not like what was going on.

It's been an entertainment for me, too.

Other than pacing and racing to the bathroom yesterday, until I passed the kidney stone, I haven't done much.

Now that I'm left with an infection - fever, headache, backache, tummy ache, lying in bed and watching the leaves fall is entertaining for me too.

Okay, okay. It was for about five minutes, then absolute boredom set in and so I whined loudly to anyone who could hear me.

My baby brother gave us a scare last night after doing so well from surgery, but he is stable now, and we are all breathing easier - including him!

I wonder if he can see the leaves fall from his hospital bed. Probably not, being in ICU. He'll come home to bald trees.

Well, I think I'll go back to my well wallowed bed for a little while.

I wonder if it's still raining. Leaves, that is.

A Long Trip Home

Today,  my Mother had surgery. It's a sixty-something mile drive and it's one of those trips where you think it will never end. Getting to that town is always that way, and I'm not sure why.

Going over was a bit anxiety producing, as my Mother was pretty nervous and hungry and thirsty. She had fasted since yesterday and her surgery wasn't scheduled until 1:30 p.m.

We got there early. Husband and Daughter left to get us lunch, which we thought we could eat while Mother was in surgery.

First, the place we had all slobbered over was closed down when they got there, and I think a, um, difference of opinion followed.

A place was finally settled on, and Daughter got ice cream for dessert. They handed it to her hurriedly and Husband drove off.

Ice cream sort of exploded all over Daughter because they had not put the lid on properly.

Oh, yes. Our air conditioning fan on the car seems to be dying. Good thing it was only ninety degrees today.

When Daughter got back to the surgery waiting room we weren't there. They had invited me back to sit with Mother while they prepped her for surgery. I knew they'd be looking for me, but figured they could ask around.

Daughter finally showed up, and they let her back with us. She was rather irate and sticky. She isn't feeling well to start with, as she fell all over a restaurant's floor last evening. She's has a sore hip, knee, and shoulder, which has gotten worse as the day progresses.

The restaurant put up a wet floor sign after she fell. How thoughtful of them.

Anyway, the surgery went smoothly, Mother was feeling good when they helped put her in the car. She ate all the peanut butter crackers they gave her and drank a full glass of ginger ale.

On the way home Daughter and I saw a bear at the edge of the wood on the side of the road. He was big and beautiful.

When we finally got home, the odd deer, that my friend says is a Black Tailed Deer, was in the yard. They live in South Georgia and are rarely seen in North Georgia. The doe is a loner and is eating all our plants. At least she doesn't touch the day lilies. She's very large. I don't have the heart to run her off.

I ate too many leftovers for supper, because squash, potatoes, okra, chicken, and Vidalia onions are too good not to indulge a little.

It was a long trip. I have a lot to be thankful for. Successful surgery, safe trip, bears and deer.

And leftovers.