Thankful Thursday

Wow, here we are speeding our way through May. Can you believe it's Mother's Day this weekend and next week will mark the middle of the month already? Sheesh...we aren't even getting to enjoy much in the way of warm, spring weather. Maybe I'll feel it's safe to plant outside soon. Maybe.

Oh well, weather grumbles aside, there is plenty to be thankful for this week.

1. My stepdad's spinal procedure went well. Obviously, he isn't up and doing jumping jacks, but the pain has stopped. He got out of bed today and they had him walk to the door of his room and back and then he sat in a chair for a while. Wonderful after more than a week of constant excruciating pain!

2. More good news, my stepdad should be released from the hospital tomorrow to move to a rehab facility. This one is much closer to home as wound care is not the priority any longer.

3. Mom seems a lot less stressed already.

4. Our son-in-law's father had a procedure today to implant a device that will make a faulty heart valve work right. He ended up in a room just a few doors down from my stepdad so Mom stopped to see him. She reported that he was sitting up and feeling fine.

5. Our daughter discovered termites at my mom's house. She called the man who treated her house for them and he gave a low ball price due to all Mom's been dealing with and got her on the list for about 2 weeks from now.

6. Mom's (relatively) newer deck that is made out of composite has been leaning. She thought it was sinking and called someone to take a look and give and estimate on fixing it. He charged $350 to look (very unethical) and has never come back and won't answer her calls. Our daughter and the termite guy discovered the post in the "sinking" corner has rotted (no termites). Tim propped it up last night and will put all new posts under it this weekend. 

7. My coworker and I have been working on the decorations for June's company picnic. I think I've mentioned it's a Wild West theme. He's been working on murals painted on paper with cacti, fences, and an old west town. I've been making cacti out of paper plates to put on all the tables. They are turning out so cute and everyone loves them! The photo doesn't show the ones I've made (I never thought to take pictures today) but mine are like these, but all in shades of green.

7. I had fun last night taking my granddaughter to get our nails done.

8. My "check engine" light came on today. I stopped at Auto Zone to have them use their diagnostic gizmo and it turns out I need a new battery. I'll get it done this weekend as it's just starting to go and hasn't given me any trouble other than making the light come on. I'm relieved it wasn't anything worse.

9. We had a very successful day selling our crafts at the softball opener last Saturday.

That's just some of this week's blessings and this is where I'm going to call it a night. Happy Friday to you and enjoy your weekend!

Currently

I am

Reading... I'm ashamed to say it's still nothing. Just too much going on.

Watching... American Idol. They're down to the top 5 and this week they have the top 5 from the 2006 season on.

Listening... to the air conditioner. After some pretty chilly days it's warm again. Unfortunately, it's only for one more day and then it's back to rainy and cool.

Eating... I just enjoyed a big, hard pretzel.

Thinking... about an idea for a way to give back. I was talking to a friend who runs a free-store at her church. People donate and EVERYTHING is free to anyone who wants to go look. I had a thought after watching a reel on Facebook and asked her what if we took her store to nursing homes as sort of a pop-up boutique and let residents "shop" like they used to. My friend is excited, too. She's got to get her son better before we can do anything, though. He hurt his knee playing football last year and has had several surgeries already and may have to endure one more. He's in a lot of pain. Seventeen and he can barely manage to get from the bed to the bathroom. Poor guy. Anyway, looking forward to seeing if we can make this happen.

Feeling... relaxed.

Celebrating... a successful day selling our crafts on Saturday and that today was a really good day.

Enjoying... that it's staying light outside past 8:00.

Looking forward to... taking my granddaughter with me to get our nails done after work on Wednesday.

Before I get to the giggles, here's a little bit of an update on my stepdad. He is still in the hospital. They went in and put a stent in an aneurysm behind his left knee on Friday. That went well, but it's the fractured vertebra they found that is causing him terrible pain. They are going to put a needle into his spine on Wednesday and inject stuff that is supposed to fuse the vertebra and bring instant relief. 

I don't know why, but Mom seems to be so sure they are going to mess up and the needle is going to "end up in the wrong place." If it does, it won't be a good thing. Even if all goes well he is probably going to have to go to a rehab facility again for a couple of weeks. He has a LOT of little issues going on and is depressed. Mom doesn't seem to think he's going to be around much longer. He is 85, but there really isn't anything that imminent, but I learned with my adoptive dad...attitude is a huge part of the battle and if the fight has gone out of him...

Whew after that we need a laugh.

Giggling at...

Read all of it, not just the part circled in red.

A Small Update

My stepdad is still in the hospital. It's weird. They say he's there for observation. They also say that means he isn't really in the hospital. Can someone please explain that one to me? I mean...he's in their bed, eating their food, being taken care of by their staff...I don't get it. Neither does Mom. She's worried what Medicare will have to say about that.

Anyway, they've run more tests and he's been poked and prodded by an army of people. So far they say he has a small aneurysm in his left leg (the other that started all the problems was in his right leg) and a fractured vertebrae. Mom asked what could have caused the fracture and was told "old age." Bottom line is they are going to keep "observing" him because they have no idea why he is experiencing so much pain. They just keep giving him pain meds, which have him more than a little fuzzy around the edges.

Another update concerning the consumer at my workplace. He was suspended, but today all the members of his team met and decided the best choice was to withdraw him from the program. I can't lie, everyone is pretty relieved.

Now I'm off to try and catch up with some of you and also with American Idol. 

Currently

I am

Reading... nothing. Reading has been on hold.

Watching... an old favorite, The Librarians.

Listening to... rain and the hum of the air conditioner, likely the last time it'll be running for a week or more.

Eating... I had a very good Tovala meal tonight. It was cheese stuffed shells with a ground pork/spinach dish on the side.

Thinking... about my mom and stepdad. My stepdad just came home Saturday from a week at a wound-care/rehab facility that followed over a month in the hospital. He and Mom chose the second facility due to it having a higher success rate than any other facility within a reasonable distance. They defined success as patients not dying or returning to the hospital within 30 days.

So much for that. My stepdad was taken back to the hospital today. Yesterday he was experiencing a lot of pain in his back and leg, but only when he moved certain ways. Today the pain is so bad he can't walk or even stand. Hours of testing at the emergency room found nothing. So, he is back in the hospital. Mom wasn't handling him being home that well, but this really has her stressed. 

Please say a prayer for them, if you would.

Feeling... tired, but not bad. It was just a long day.

Celebrating... that nobody was hurt today when one of our consumers had a bit of a "moment." I'm also pleased that he's been suspended for a bit. This is not his first episode and it is about time there are some consequences.

Enjoying... the longer days and warmer temperatures that have the grandkids outside and running back and forth between their house and ours again.

Giggling at...

It's been an awesome weekend. Yesterday, Tim, our daughter, granddaughter, and I set out early for Paws and Claws Animal Encounters in Bremen, Ohio. The trip was a Christmas present I had given us girls. Tim went along even though it wasn't really something he was excited about. I had purchased a fourth ticket in case our grandson changed his mind and wanted to go. He did not.

It was a 3 1/2 hour drive, one way, to get there. We did make it on time...a little early, actually, which allowed us extra time to explore the grounds and meet a lot of the animals. The rule is, if they animals stick their paws out, you can pet them. You just can't reach into the cage. Our granddaughter had a ball playing with the otters.

The main purpose of our visit was an otter encounter. We were in a room with about 12 other people and one of the owners gave a wonderful presentation about the otters and four other animals. We were able to see them up close and actually interact with some of them. The otters, of course, were the stars of the show.

The only disappointment was that the otters in the encounter were only mildly interactive, preferring to run around the room and play with each other. I guess you can't tell what mood they'll be in. Anyway, Tim said we girls (not him) need to go back to swim with the otters as it's a much smaller group (no more than 6) and you are in a small pool with 3 otters. That would be awesome, but will have to be a bit in the future due to how expensive it is.

On the way home we stopped at Strong & Co. for a very late lunch in the historic town of Somerset. Great food and I need to go back to explore the town one day! All together we were gone for about 12 hours. It was a long day, but a good one. I hope you enjoy the photos.

 

Currently

The sun is shining brightly and it looks beautiful outside my window, but it's a lie. After yet another day of temperatures in the 80s on Saturday, the mercury has taken a dip. Yesterday was in the 50s. Today's high was in the 40s. We saw a few snow flurries in the area last night/early this morning. We have a freeze warning tonight. It's going to be tough on the blooming things, notably, my stepdad's fruit trees. Mom reports they are absolutely loaded with blossoms this year. If they freeze it will likely be another year (in a series of years) with no fruit. We are not worrying about that as our apple tree blew over in a storm a couple of months ago.

I'm still working on reading My Friends by Fredrick Backman. I haven't had a lot of time to read in the past week.

On the television you'll find American Idol tonight. We finished all the episodes of Tim's pick, Fubar, over the weekend and went back to Cross. Cross only has a few more episodes, I think, and then maybe we'll pick back up with Marshalls.

I've been listening to a LOT of lawnmowers in the past week. Spring has truly sprung and the grass is growing like crazy. Our daughter has mown ours twice!

Dinner was Italian tonight. We had the spaghetti special and a small pizza from one of our favorite delivery places.

I'm thinking I'm totally NOT happy with the newest development around here. You all know how much I looooove snakes. Well, I've lived in this neighborhood for most of my life and I have never seen a single snake. Our daughter reported last year that a garter snake turned up in their yard. Nooo. This year she reported seeing two or three. No-ooo! Then Saturday this turned up in my yard.

Oh, H-E-DOUBLE HOCKEY STICKS-NOOOOOOO!!!!

I'm feeling pretty achy. My feet are feeling better, thanks to a pair of wide-toe box, zero-drop sneakers I found on Amazon, but the rest of me? M'eh. I've been "collecting" a lot of videos of exercises to strengthen knees, ankles, and everything else. I need to start pushing myself to do them now. Hopefully, they will help more than physical therapy did the last time.

We're celebrating several things. Today is my stepdad's birthday. He's 85. Tomorrow is his and Mom's anniversary. And Saturday he is coming home. We're being a bit reserved in our celebration of that one. He is, of course, delighted, but Mom is very uneasy about it. He'll still have the wound vac and require visiting nurses. He gets around, but maybe not that great. Still, they say he is doing so well they can't justify keeping him. Adding to Mom's nervousness is that she has no idea what needs done to prepare. She asked his case manager and she said, "We don't know. The whole team is meeting Wednesday and we'll decide then." That will give Mom two days to get it all together.

I'm enjoying in-season fruits right now. The mandarin oranges have been soooo yummy.

This week I'm giggling at...

 

Saturday 9: Drive My Car

Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.

 

1) Who would you allow, without hesitation, to drive your car?  My husband and... yeah, nobody else.

2) When you're riding in the backseat, do you use your seatbelt?  Yes, I do, but I don't ride in the back very often. I get sleepy when I do. 

 

3) In this song, a young girl tells her boyfriend she wants to be a movie star. What were your aspirations when you were in your late teens/early 20's? Did you realize them?  I was in college studying journalism and dreaming of being a globe-trotting reporter. I didn't realize that dream as I ended up getting married rather than finishing my degree. As it turns out, I'm not all that disappointed. I loathe what the news media has turned into.

 
4) The song was reportedly inspired in part by the relationship between popular British singer Cilla Black and her future husband. Cilla wanted him on the record label's payroll, so he became her road manager and driver. Have you ever worked for, or with, someone with whom you were romantically involved?  My husband and I met at work. Workplace romances are kind of weird because everyone is watching to see how it turns out.

 

5) Although this Beatles song is credited to Lennon-McCartney, it was written mostly by Paul. He recalls showing up at John Lennon's house with the tune ready to go, and lyrics they both agreed were "crap." John gave Paul the car theme, and he took it from there. When has someone recently helped you out of a jam?  I don't think I've been in any jams recently.

 

6) Paul also handles the lead vocals. When you hear a Beatles record, can you tell which band member is singing lead?  I think so. They had pretty distinct voices.

7) When it was first released, this record got a lot of attention for the intricate guitar work by Paul and George Harrison. It's got a lot of percussion on it, too, including cowbell and tambourine. Have you ever played either cowbell or tambourine? (Do you think it sounds like fun?)  I've not played either one. It might be fun. All I can think of since you mentioned cowbells is this...

8) Lava lamps were already popular in England but they weren't introduced to the United States until 1965. Today Walmart carries more than 20 different lava lamps. Have you ever owned one?  No, which is kind of surprising since I had infinity lights, disco lights, black lights and everything else in my teenage lair.

 
9) Random question: Do you have a recurring dream?  Not that I'm aware of. I rarely remember my dreams so I suppose it's possible.

Thanks to Sam for the questions and music.

Play along here.