Visitors Day

Friday night Trudy and Sadie came over about 7:30 PM. I went to bed at 9 and they went to bed at 10:00 PM. I was up at 7 AM. They had slept in the living room so they couldn't sleep too late for the birds know when they should be uncovered and they start making noise and no one can sleep, even in my room! Trudy and I made a pass at card making but my heart wasn't in it. I made a book mark and that was all. Trudy looked on her laptop at various cards. She found a way to make a small schedule and was pleased with it.

It's in the 50's again today. I'm not complaining. It may get very cold tonight and we could have snow flurries!

I got my size 8 Forever ring yesterday. and got a return address label today to return the larger ring. I like it. It's just right-not too beg, not too little!

K-Mart Bound

Walmart doesn't carry the blue cap Maalox and I have to go to K-Mart to get it. While I was there, I bought other things I could have gotten at Walmart but since I was at K-Mart, I got them there. After that, I had to go to Walmart for some food. I thought Trudy and Sadie were coming over at 5:00 PM and I bought some food to cook for them. It was pork chops and potatoes cooked in the oven. The oven surely makes the chops tender! They called and said they wouldn't be over til later so I put the food up. We have plenty to eat.

My Forever ring came in today. The size 8 fits my right hand. It is pretty with small diamonds in 24 carat gold. It's engraved "forever" on the inside of the ring. I don't know what I did to change the lettering. I think I hit between the cracks and came up with this font. It's too late to get Dad in here to help my get back to the regular letters.

Trudy is studying for a Young Women lesson and Sadie is watching Disney channel. I think Rosko is finally settled down. Rikki watches me put her medicine on her food and she likes to eat it.

Half A Day, Half A Day

Half the day was easy and the other half was hard. This afternoon I took Rikki to the vet. in Hartselle. I don't like to drive at high speed anymore (70 mph). I like 55 mph which is 5 miles slower than the speed limit, but it saves on gas and I can look around more.

Rikki's liver is enlarged and a kidney looks larger than it should,too. I got some medicine to give her and Dr. Jan said she would call when she gets the blood test results back. Even birds get fat, isn't that the pits?!

The 19 year old car drives great for it's age. Will be glad to get a newer model.

Foiled By The Weather

My Wednesday day out was spoiled by the weather. Karen called about 9:30 AM and said it was sleeting and snowing at her house and it was coming my way. She didn't want to get out in this kind of weather. I knew it wasn't going to get really bad and I was game to go but she was driving this time and she didn't want to drive in sleet and snow. It did sleet some at our house but not enough to keep me in. After lunch, I'm going to K-Mart and then to the pharmacy to get Dad's prescription. I'm all dressed up with no place to go!

Time has been my enemy lately. I have too much of it and nothing to fill it with. I've lost interest in card making for the moment, and keeping the house clean and picked is no problem. What to do, what to do?

Where Has January Gone?

January 27 already. Whew! Time is really flying by. I went to town to get some prescriptions from Dr. Walker's office and then by the pharmacy for Rx's for both of us. I could have gotten a free large pizza at 4-7 PM, but Dad didn't want pizza and I didn't want to go back into town and the thought of standing in line turned me off. It's a new pizza place where Stacey Decker works. They make the pizza and you take it home and cook it. I bet it's good but not tonight. The Decker's gave me the coupon and I hope they won't be mad that I didn't get it.

I cooked pizza in a bowl without the pepperoni. Dad said it was very good so I'll have a new recipe to make. I hope there'll be some left for when Trudy and Sadie come over. I'll probably have to make something new, maybe like pork chops with out the bar-be-que sauce.

I ate some sugar free chocolates today. I was hoping to get some energy from the candy. Plus, it's pretty good eating! Didn't get much energy though.

At The First of The Week

Maybe Sunday is the first day of the week, but I always think Monday is the first day of the week. I did get to exercise class. I didn't walk any because my knees were hurting. It was good to get back. I forgot to go by the Dr's office to pick up a couple of prescriptions there and while I was at Walmart, I didn't think of getting any milk. I just went to exchange some things and didn't have milk on my mind. I'll go tomorrow.

Wednesday, Karen and I will go to the new scrapbook store outside of H'ville and then on to a little store near Five Points that has a variety of things and is fun to look through. I went with Trudy one time and it was fun. Thursday, I'll be taking Rikki to Hartselle to see the Vet. She might have fatty liver disease and that's a very serious, but treatable disease. Dr. Jan will take some blood and maybe an x-ray. Rikki is a blue fronted Amazon bird.

I asked Frank when he would be well and he said he didn't know. He has some kind of infection now and I'll get his medicine tomorrow. He might need to have another operation so he can control his urine flow. I was wanting to know so I could schedule the operation on my knee. I guess I'll just have to be patient and wait.

It's supposed to warm up tonight and rain tomorrow and Wednesday I heard something about snow flurries! We've noticed the days are beginning to get longer. We've got about two months of winter left before spring comes.

Need to Blog

Since blogging is en lieu of journaling I better blog each day. It surely is better than my writing and much easier to read!

Church was good today. They sang Happy Birthday to me. I didn't tell and expect Karen told on me. This was in Primary not church! Got a nice Sunday nap.

Frank is trying to get used to the side effects of his operation. We go back to the Dr. in a couple of weeks.

I'm going to try to go back too exercise class tomorrow. I'm out of the routine and it's going to be hard to get up at 7 AM and get ready to get out the door by 8:00 AM. I need to get out of the house and see how the world is going. Staying home all the time is not good. I'll go to Karen's tomorrow evening to study scriptures but I need to get out of the house anyway. I have a $25.00 off coupon from a boutique in town and I need to check that out. If our money is going to be devalued what good will it be to hold on to it? I don't really understand what devaluing the money means unless it means that it won't be worth anything anymore. Who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of men....the Shadow knows!

Didn't Blog

I guess I missed blogging Wed. and Thurs. because I was down. I read somewhere that if you change to a generic drug from a name brand it can effect you, and my thyroid medicine is generic now. I just feel listless and don't care about anything.

Today, I cooked another recipe from Mary Lou's cookbook. It had potatoes, onions, cut up chicken, noodles cooked in the chicken broth. It was a pretty good recipe...maybe if it had some biscuits on top or peas in it would make it better. Yesterday, I cooked pork chops in catchup and
coke.It made a little bar-be-que sauce. I baked the chops in the oven and the were really tender. Dad didn't like the sauce but I know how to cook pork chops now. Tomorrow, I cook Bucket Steaks. That's cubed steak cut into 1" pieces and drenched in flour and browned and then liquid added and cooked with the top on the pan. It makes it's own gravy. I've cooked cubed steaks before but I didn't steam them like that. I bet Frank will like them. I'll have plenty of food for when Trudy and Sadie come over next week end.

Today's been a bad knee day. I really look forward to getting the right knee replaced. I keep saying that, but when the time comes, I'll be concerned about the pain. I'm ready to go through it right now.

Frankie says that something is wrong with Rachel. After exercising hard she had something like a stroke. The Dr's are running all sorts of tests on her.

Cold Week

It was in the 20's all day and I think the week will be about the same. Went VT this morning and had a good visit with Sis. Perry. We go to see Amy Boston Thursday. Maybe it will be a little warmer by then. I keep up with Amy with her blog. She always has such good pictures of the boys I feel like I live right next door.

Went to town to the Dr. office to gets some prescriptions and then to the P.O. to mail Rachel's coat back to her. I've had it in the package ready to mail since Christmas, but I didn't want to wait in line during the Christmas rush so I'm just now getting it mailed. I stopped by the pharmacy and then came home. Tomorrow I'll go back to exercise class. Maybe if I get up at 6:45 AM, I won't have to rush as much. Trudy and Sadie will be coming over to spend the night Jan.30th. That will be a fun time.

"Tiz Monday Again

I have Gertie out and he is under my desk chair and I have to keep an eye on him so he won't get into trouble. I got up early to go to exercise class but it is a holiday and they were closed. I had to put Gertie up. Now I can concentrate on what I'm doing.

I was making appointments for Visiting Teaching and found that one sister and family had asked to have their names taken from the rolls of the church. They had found another church and were happy going there. So now we just have two sisters to visit.

I made a couple of bookmarks over the week-end. They weren't too inspired. I haven't had the desire to make cards in quite a while, yet I've ordered two more punches. Just trying to jump start my creativity, I guess.

Tomorrow, January 20th, Oboma will be installed as our next president of the United States. I probably didn't even spell his name right. I don't really want to watch TV because of all the pageantry and all the foaming at the mouth by the press. I remember when John Kennedy was president and there was a lot of pageantry and I don't care for all of that.

It's funny to hear Nancy Polocey, the Speaker of the House, talk about getting the country back on its feet as if mere mortals could do that. It's like global warming, a sham, made up by the likes of Al Gore, to make money off the tax payers with all their malarkey. It makes me ill to even think about it much else trying to write about it. I just worry about them trying to socialize the medical care system. I hope I'm not around to see that happen to our country.

We've had tiny snow flurries today. The temperature is supposed to drop lower than freezing, but don't think we have to worry about any snow.

Refrigerator Saved

Yes, our refrigerator is running again. We will keep the rented one two more weeks just to make sure.

After two previous days of activity, I just rested today and enjoyed it! I needed to take a shower but it was cold in the house so I kept putting it off until the afternoon, so I got to stay in my muumuu all morning.

My Forever ring came in but it is too large. I'm going to call them tomorrow and see if I can mail it back and get a smaller size. I thought I wore a size 9, but I guess it needs to be an 8. Sure hope I can do it. The ring is pretty.

I cooked a pot of beans today and I need to make a meat loaf or something. Maybe we still have some Omaha steak burgers left, I'll have to see.

It has gotten a lot colder today than yesterday. Tonight, from 9PM to 9 AM there is a chill factor warning. Don't know just how cold it will get but my fingers are cold typing this.

Fun Filled Day

Karen came over about 10:00 AM and we left in her van. We stopped at the Southern Reproduction furniture store. It was very interesting. Their prices seemed reasonable. They had some nice pieces for flat screen TV's. Then we went to find the Flying Carpet store. We found it but the owner was out at that time. We peered through the doors and then left. Oh, before that, we strolled through T.J. Max in Madison. Then we went to the Pottery Place and walked through it. At the last isle, we both found something to buy. Karen got some metal stakes to put in her flower beds to hold the sprinkler up. I found a small ceramic chicken that looks like wood. It's light green with a red comb.

After I got home, I had to go by the Co-Op and pick up 4 bales of wheat straw. Frank wanted to cover the well before we have the very cold weather that's predicted for tomorrow and the week-end. Our neighbor, Bobby Adams, came over and helped spread the straw. Frank tried to help a couple of times, but I had to stop him. I think it would be bad news for him to strain his insides so soon after his operation. Bobby saved the day!

I had the bills out trying to post them in the bill book and organize them, but ran out of time to finish. We paid the January bills December 30th so I was confused as to where they should go. I'll finish them tomorrow. The Sears repairman comes tomorrow. Maybe our refrigerator will get fixed for good!

Busy Day #3

My Visiting Teachers were coming over around 12:00 PM so I straightened up the house a little. Karen and Stacey Decker are my V.T.s. It was nice having a visit and message. I've got to get with Mary Lou and make appointments for doing our V.T. I'll call after this week.

Karen and I are going out tomorrow to visit a furniture store that has reproductions and then to Madison to the Pottery Place and then to H'ville to the Flying Carpet store. I want to see the reproduction hooked rugs. Just to see what they look like since I did some rug hooking at one time. It will be a fun day.

I went to Athens Pharmacy to exchange something and to get some more tape to tape up Frank's wound and then to Lowe's to pick up some spring hardware that goes to our new storm doors and then to Walmart for some food and shower liners. One for our bathroom shower and the other two for the well and the straw that will be put over the well top. I was proud, my knees didn't hurt a bit with all the walking.

Thursday the Sears man is coming to fix the refrigerator again. Maybe they will just give us a new frig. Maybe so, maybe not.

Frankie will have his foot operated on Marc 12th. They will fuse some bones together. He won't have the side to side motion, but he doesn't haves that now. The Dr. wrote a prescription for a brace for his left ankle. Poor dear, his body is falling apart and he's not 40 yet! I told him no one ever gets used to not being able to do things they used to be able to do, no matter what the age!

WaHoo!

Wa-hoo! It's Monday again. Where is the time going? We had Stake Conference this past week-end. We went to the Saturday night session with local people talking and then Sunday, we went to our Ward and watched a 7 Stake video from Salt Lake. It was nice going to church at 10 AM and getting out at 12 PM! Georgia and Florida must not be in the South Eastern area for their Stakes weren't mentioned.

I have done nothing this day but get up and get dressed, read the scriptures and study for Sec. 27,28 for tonight's study.

The refrigerator is not working again! We had one day of it working and then it stopped again! Out came two coolers and the ice bottles. It may be three days this time before someone looks at it. The refrigerator is only 5 years old and is breaking down. I'm through with Sears appliances now. They used to make good appliances but not anymore.

We called Rent-To-Own again and will get the some refrigerator again. It was so nice to get the extra refrigerator out of the kitchen but I wanted it out prematurely.

Happy Birthday

Yes, January was a good day, for me anyway! It was the day I was hatched. This day wasn't too special. Frank didn't get me anything so I went to town and went to Goodies and bought some jewelry and on to Walmart and got a sweat shirt, a black button up shirt and a blouse that claimed to instantly slim you! I'm short waisted and the shirt was long waisted so back it will go. Mary Kate and Trudy called to wish me a happy birthday and Richard and Sophia called. Nate got on the phone and said his daddy told him to wish me a happy birthday. Richard fussed at him and then he said his daddy didn't tell him to say that!

Dad got rid of the bag today. Tomorrow is prednsone day. He has been feeling better because he had upped the prednsone, but he'll eventually have to come down from the higher dose and that can be tough.

I believe our country is headed for a depression. I wish my parents were still around so I could ask then how to live through a depression. I think we're okay, but there's alway the fear of the unknown...

New Storm Doors

The new storm doors were installed today. They are really nicer than the old "newer" ones we had. The door handle is a lever which is easier to open than the latch door of the old ones.

I had an appointment for a hair cut at 3:00 today, so I left the house at 1:00 PM and went to the bank and then to Walmart to do some shopping. After my hair cut, I went to Athens's Pharmacy to get some supplies for Dad and then came home. It was 50 degrees and very windy today.

Trudy and Mary Kate are at their scrapbook retreat. I hope they have a good time.

Good Report

Saw Dr. Morgan today and Frank had a good visit. He still has a large wound that we'll have to dress every day. Taking prednsone makes his immune system next to nothing so he's a slow healer. His score on the cancer was thought to be a 6, but after the operation is showed a 7 which is a more aggressive cancer. Dr. Morgan said he wouldn't have done the operation any differently so he thought he got all the cancer. Time will tell, but I believe he got it all.

After lunch, I rested. We finished off the last of the impossible hamburger pie. It was a cheese burger impossible pie except I didn't have any cheese so is was just a hamburger pie. I'll have to get some cheese and make it again. I've been looking through Mary Lou's cookbook and getting some ideas. I would have to half the recipes for 6-8 servings would be too much for us. I could make a impossible blueberry pie and use Splenda so it wouldn't be so full of calories.

The sun was out some today but I think we can still have showers. It got in the 50's today. Usually January, February and half of March are our coldest months, but the way the weather has been going, it may never get cold. That would be fine with me!

Today's The Day!

At this moment, the repairman is behind the refrigerator getting it fixed! We have moved the birds into my room so when he starts to weld , we can close the door and the birds won't get any of the smell. It will be so good to get the kitchen back to normal! We take so many of our modern conveniences for granted.

Last night I went over to Karen's house for scripture study. It was raining just like the previous time. I predict it will be raining next week too. Her daughter and grandson left but they didn't take their two min pins (dogs). There's an area in the kitchen that's fenced off and the dogs stay there at night. They have two Shih Tzu's of their own, so that makes 4 small dogs in the house. They do go outside to do their business and play.

As I'm writing this, Rosko is chowing down on his food. We used to give the birds a treat of three Nutriberry's a day, but they were getting fat. They were also getting a lot of their nutrition from the Nutriberry's too. Since We've stopped giving them, they really chow down on their regular food, which is better for them. They are just little pigs in birdie suits!

Another Good Day

We are still having rain or the threat of rain but it hasn't been cold and that's good. There's lots of snow in Wisconsin where I have a good friend. It must be hard to have snow all the time. It's what you get used to. In Key West, in the summer it was hot and in the winter it cooled down some and you didn't go to the beach as much. The vacationers stood out for they would be at the beach in the winter. I was glad to get back to Alabama where there are seasons for I missed them in Florida.

Had a nice Sunday yesterday. After church I had a small nap. Sunday naps are so good.

I ordered a ring from the Danbury Mint today. It was the Forever and Ever ring that had been advertised long time ago. I had kept the advertisement for when Frank and I were dating, he had a friend make me a card and he signed it he would love me forever and 'ebber. So when I saw this Forever ring, I wanted it. I hinted and hinted to Frank to get it for me, but he wasn't impressed. He'll order a weather station for me, but not a ring. I'm glad I was able to get it myself.

We go back and see Dr. Morgan in two days. Frank has really done well with this operation. He's still has lots of time to heal but I have been so pleased with his progress.

A Good Day For Visitors

Trudy and Sadie came over around 11:00 AM and my Brother (Bubba) and Ruth came a short time after that. Ruth had brought some food, chicken and dumplings, and a fruit cobbler - all very yummy!). The chicken and dumplings were comfort foods and they went down mighty easily.
We all had a nice visit. They brought me two birthday presents, that were very nice.

Frank was able to come out to his living room bed to visit and we all had a good time. Trudy and Sadie left after Trudy had a little rest and then I had to go into town to the pharmacy to get some things that Frank wanted. It was good to get back home and vegge out.

Information Please

We got to the hospital at 5:30 AM Tuesday. Frank got registered and went on back for the operation. They called us every hour to let us know how things were doing. After one such call, we left and went to Hobby Lobby and Mary Kate bought some Christmas ornaments (very small) for her preschool class. They would be for counting. We had lunch in the hospital cafeteria and then went back to waiting. About 12:30 PM they called and said they were through and everything went alright. We then had a consultation with Dr. Morgan and he told us Dad did fine. He would be moved over to Huntsville Hospital and he was in room 537. He looked pretty bad and looked like he was in a lot of pain when he woke up. The nurse came to give him a pain shot and then he went to sleep. Mary Kate wanted to stay at the hospital all night so we both came home and then she went back. All the nurses and staff at the hospital were top notch. I had heard bad things about Huntsville Hospital but our experience was a positive one.


I got there the next day and Dad seemed to be doing better. He still slept a lot and Mary Kate and I thought he might need another night in the hospital but when he woke up he said he wanted to come home Wednesday so that afternoon after walking the halls the nurse got him ready to go and we brought him home. He's really done well seeing what he went through. He had prostate cancer but it hadn't spread beyond the gland.

Today he ran a 103 temperature but he does that sometimes on a prednsone day so we didn't think it was related to the operation. He took some Tylenol and that took care of the fever

I was pretty lost the whole time. Mary Kate really helped me through it. She has a young brain and young nerves and she moves pretty fast. It amazes me. Maybe I was like that long time ago. My neighbor Brenda Adams called this morning and said she was making some chicken stew and she would sent some over. It's good and not too salty(to me) so maybe Dad will eat some.

Frankie said something about coming down Friday and maybe he can. I'm so used to taking care of everything that it's hard for me to know when I need help. After Frank gets better, I'll schedule my right knee replacement. I'll be so glad to get rid of the pain I'm in with my knees. I'll really need to be retrained when I can get two new knees!