Hurry Up and Wait...

Yes, Jack Frost came-
Two mornings in a row.

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Good Morning Everyone!
A damp, soggy, and rainy morning here- Brightened by a phone call from CaseyFace. 


I had previously written that I didn't believe that many apples would be left on the trees after the windstorms we had.

I was wrong! There are tons left...

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Now look closely at the red circle.
There is an apple that has 2 large bites out of it.
How the heck does that happen, and 25 feet in the air?!?

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Sue and Glenn came to take the apples for their deer- 
Then the pears too.

They had to fight to take a few of them...
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The fly and the bee, suckling the nectar for their respective lunches.

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After the wind ~ and unlike the apples, there were very few pears remaining attached.
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One day I will count the number of 5~gallon pails that they take. (I just know it is a good thing that they have a pickup truck).
The fruit is heavy too. 

Sue was so worn out that she apparently fell asleep...

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hehehe

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Maybe they should have used the baskets from the fields...

When I had come home from my thyroid poke the other day, and came around the corner in Flintville, all I saw were these high bobbling baskets.  I laughed out loud as I grabbed for my camera-

Taking this as I drove past them.
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At first glance I'd had no idea what I was looking at either.
Too funny!

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The weather has been changing rapidly-  The furnace will run in the morning for a bit, then later in the day it is warm in here and all the windows get opened up.
Those days that you really aren't sure what to wear. A tee under the sweatshirt works well...

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Thought this sky picture was very strange indeed.
Almost as if there are 2 or 3 fronts; one on top of the next.

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I am a jeans and sweatshirt kind of girl. Add a pair of socks and sneakers and I am comfy as all get out. ...Just don't forget the back brace... That too, very comfortable, and comforting as well.

Still, the pain. Not as bad as before though, so I am happy with that.
I will be going back in on the 13th for that second shot in my back. Damned if I do, and damned if I don't.

I finally went to the DMV to renew my drivers license. (Better late than never). I had also been given a form from the spine doctor for a DIS ID card.  I am upset about this now, but imagine it will be safer come snow and ice, not to have to take as many chances walking to/from my car.

Had a problem with parking as I visited with Roberta in the hospital- Of course Punk goes with me, so that means no valet parking.  As I pulled into Bellin, the man allowed me to park in the 30 minute space, but told me he would be off the clock in a little while too, so to keep it short.

I did just that.
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Her results were a negative pass- Her  cardiologist had given her nitroglycerin pills, and started her on some beta blockers too. She has been fainting- Her cardiologist will now be working in conjunction with a neurologist. No other news there.
This was the first time I had even seen her in almost a year.


My spine doctor (what the heck are they called anyway)?, told me that my back will probably not get better, but that there are ways to stop the progression. Not sure what more I can do, but am willing to try just about anything.
Again, I have always taken my vitamins, minerals and extra calcium...
But it gets rather defeating to hear that you can't go back.

Speaking of going back...

Master Gabriel was born 4 years ago yesterday...

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Due to the fact that the pain management clinic kept me there for over two hours yesterday, we didn't have a chance to see him- They were leaving as Casey called-  Casey will bring him his little gifts when she is done at school today.

4 years ago, things were still salvageable with respect to Roberta caring for her boys.
Not so now.
I have no regrets of admitting my own inability to care for Master Gabriel. Only for my inability.  I know it would have been near impossible to care for him and Casey last year. And even more-so, in hindsight, to have cared appropriately for him with my back like this.

Yet God has seen fit to give Gabriel a whole family.  One that loves him so, and one that cares for him too.  One that has been raising him up right too.
The State is still dragging their feet with respect to his adoption, so please just keep saying those prayers. Kristin asked me, and I couldn't answer; I don't even know if Berta knows she has lost Gabriel and Sam.  Having not been in contact with Roberta, I don't know what she knows, or what she may/may not be aware of.

I do know this much... She has not even bothered to see him, or to inquire after him, since the beginning of the year. That speaks volumes of sadness to me, and weighs heavily on my heart and in my prayers for him.
I know that she has a decent job at one of the paper mills in town. And she spoke of having to move that weekend too.  Other than that, to bring up the boys would have been too freakin' hard on me; ultimately on her too. This whole business of birthing and leaving makes my blood boil.
She did not learn that from me. wth?

I'd better close-  Casey has just called, and will be bringing out my new prescriptions after she sees Gabriel and family.

Still soggy out there. Not too sure what the forecast is, (I overslept), but I do know it's a good thing that it's rain and not snow.

My love to all.
And do have a wunnaful weekend!

XOXO
Me

Flintville's Very Own "Garden of Weeden"

I am sure we have all read this one...
I received it in my email, along with a message that I was doing good work, and to "keep up the good work"...


One day, the father of a very wealthy family took his son on a trip to the country with the express purpose of showing him how poor people live.
They spent a couple of days and nights on the farm of what would be considered a very poor family.

On their return from their trip, the father asked his son, 'How was the trip?'
'It was great, Dad.'
'Did you see how poor people live?' the father asked.
'Oh yeah,' said the son.

'So, tell me, what did you learn from the trip?' asked the father.
The son answered:

    * I saw that we have one dog and they had four..
    * We have a pool that reaches to the middle of our garden and they have a creek that has no end..
    * We have imported lanterns in our garden and they have the stars at night.
    * Our patio reaches to the front yard and they have the whole horizon.
    * We have a small piece of land to live on and they have fields that go beyond our sight.
    * We have servants who serve us, but they serve others.
    * We buy our food, but they grow theirs.
    * We have walls around our property to protect us, they have friends to protect them.'

The boy's father was speechless.
Then his son added , 'Thanks Dad for showing me how poor we are.'
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Good Afternoon Everyone;
The above picture representing still another thing I should probably not have been doing. (Not that I did much, but carry things back and forth), to build up that pile...

At about 6:30 yesterday morning, as I was changing, I heard a tractor.  never knowing if this represents my hope that the neglected fields will be finally tended to; or something else, I had to take a peek. (It was "something else"). hehehe
Neighbor Greg had his tractor and mower out there to take down some noxious growth around the fields.  He had already called work and told them he would be there by nine, so he was up early and working hard.

He offered to dispense with my "Garden of Weeden".
I happily accepted, but warned him that there were old 2 box springs out there, under those weeds. We had burned them last Fall, so all that remained was the spring apparatus within.
When Spring came and the workers came to the field, Kelli had dragged them to the garden, knowing that I was not going to be planting one this year.

So yesterday, we found one, and he pulled it free of its overgrowth.
We both searched for the other to no avail. Smiling, he said, "IOh, I'll find it", (as he pointed to his pull behind mower).

He sure did! And it shut the whole shebang down.
Thinking he could untwist and unwind it, he crawled under there. A few moments later, after freeing up most of it, he grabbed a large stick of wood from the woodpile by the grill.
And he began to pound... And pound. At that point, I'd come in and brought out a few hammers, and a few pliers and screwdrivers and a tin snips too.

Soon, all but one little piece of wire had been freed.
Wire, mind you, about an inch long, and about the width of a coat hanger.
And it was in-between the blade mechanisms and the deck.
Stuck.
No amount of leverage by screwdriver, or strength by pounding would free it.

Coffee break...

He backed it up under the willow then- Too late for him to be dry-  (The lawns all covered still with 60 degree dew). 
I too was wet- my shoes making that slursh~sloopie~ing noise as I walked. And clear up to my knees.
But unlike Greg, I had not been laying on the wet grass either.

We finally called Jim, (next door)- Greg drove it up there and was back mowing within about 20 minutes.  (About the time it had taken me to get redressed).
Enough excitement for one morning...

Casey came out... (She is now up to 101 pounds)!  YAY!
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She is currently at UWGB, getting her Student ID
Say "YAY!!!"

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At any rate, when she came yesterday, she had stopped at CVS, bringing my new meds with her.  (Which was a very good thing- since I had taken my last one at about 2 in the morning).

My appointment with the pain doctor went well. I will be receiving 2 injections in two different places in my back on the 8th. (I am not looking forward to those, by the way).
First up, I will be having an MRI at St. Marys Hospital next Friday.

Having one
heck of a time writing last night, ("finners" and brain not connecting right), I received this reply...
 "I take it the meds mixed with your dial up were too much for a blog?  Yup.

 

As Dr. Mario saw my xrays from this year and two years ago, he saw 4 or 5 bone spurs that definitely need attention too... (I would say so)!  So to keep my appointment mid next month with the "Spine"ologist.
Results from the MRI will then be in both places. (I love the digitized and shared capabilities of most hospitals and clinics)!

But we did stop at our own clinic before seeing him... Casey went in to pick up my xrays.
Punk and I played a bit of fetch.
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Looking East

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And toward the North

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Just before Casey came back outside we had gotten back in the car...

Punk dropped her ball...
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Oops.
So the "I" fetched too!
hehehe

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Later on, Casey, Kelli and Michelle packed up Miss Nadia, (one of Michelle's horses), and Miss Breezie and May, to go over to The Folkman's. Alan trims hooves.
I will leave Casey to put the rest of the pics on her blog... But just wanted to show you a few pics of the equipment involved.
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And the worried look on Miss Mays face!
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hehehe

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Walking outside with Punk the other morning-

...To be greeted by my Orange Blossom Bush-

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Which has morphed into a Morning Glory for now!

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I got to thinking about all the weeds in my pictures. 

Then I realized I would very much rather look at them than this...

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Yes, I already know that Daddy-Long-Legs are very beneficial.
They are also the ONLY spider I can stand to be near.

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Even so...  I would still rather look at my weeds.
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So there you have it! Another exciting rendition of my week so far.

Hoping you all have a "wunnaful" weekend!

XOXO
Me

No Matter What, Life is Always Good!

Isn't that the truth?
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Casey came out late last night, 
about 9:30...
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A new T~Shirt!
Sassy, but cute as always!

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Good Morning All;
Yesterday was quite a day around here-
Lots of bright sunshine, (just not so bright in other respects).
My back was trying to kill me, I swear! So I just took it as easy as I could.

The obvious first order of business was to get out of bed and to let The~Punkster outside after a long evening of being "in".
She waited so patiently for me to get out of bed. Trust me, that was not happening fast at all.
Thankfully, neither her bladder, nor her patience, wore out. (Nor did mine).

After that, the poor little pup also had to wait for her breakfast...
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No, I did not make her wait even longer while I took this picture...
I took this about 3 days ago

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Her food is kept under where those dishes are. All neat and tidy, and dry. I have more food in the back entrance for her. Just that I could not get to either supply without severe pain.
She patiently waited a bit longer...

Randy came out yesterday and set up a supply for her on the kitchen table. A very good thing!
He also pulled many many noxious weeds, greased the zerts on the rider, AND even mowed the lawns!
Thank God for minor miracles!

As most of you are aware, I made 2 trips to the E.R. this past week.
Unable to move in any way shape or form without severe pain, I thought it high time to be getting another opinion.
On Monday, I was given an IV with some toradol, morphine, zofran for barfing, and something else.
More importantly I was given a referral to a pain specialist. (Dr. Mario is the same one that Casey has).
I cannot get in until the 26th. (Which is better than the 27th I suppose)!  ?

On Wednesday, repeating the nightmare of my inability to move, Casey took me back to the E.R.
They gave me that dilauded- which left me able to move enough to get back home.
Again, and infinitely more important, I have a referral to a spine doctor!  I was not able to get all the paperwork by close of business on Friday, so I will make that call as early as possible tomorrow morning.

I am now taking the oxycodone, along with diazepam. The diazepam [Valium] will negate any of the bad effects that I was so afraid of. So far so good.

We have gotten our very much needed rains... And they keep on coming!
It is even possible for more rain today.


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Check the rain gauge...
Now that should bring up the water levels a bit!

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The rains have also brought up a few flowers on the west side of the old garage
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It is a mess of weeds and flowers, but at least there is a bit of color!

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And another shot of a few cosmos...
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Looks like the top one is morphing into a butterfly!

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It also looks like this Black~Eyed~Susan has drowned!
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Kinda sad, that...

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But at least the duck hasn't drowned!
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(He holds all the chemicals for the pool)...

And I have had no further problems with thirsty venison either!
Knock on wood...

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A few more little blooms that have really enjoyed the soaking rains...
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Casey, peeking through a few flowers!

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She found these itty bitty flowers too!
I do not know what they are...

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And I haven't quite figured out the attraction to the grasses for this Monarch.
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I thought they always went for the nectar...

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It's been real muggy too...
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It wasn't raining when I took this,
even though everything looks wet-
See the blue in the far background by the woods?
That is all humidity!

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Today is already like that- No sunshine at all, so maybe the rains will come earlier than predicted for late this afternoon!

Hope all is well in your little corner of the world!
Have a "wunnaful" Sunday!

Love to all

XOXO
Me

Is It Soup Yet?

 

A little nippy...
I think my thermometer is stuck at 14 below.
No matter. That's plenty cold for these bones.

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Good Morning;
Again, looks are deceiving. It is sunny and just beautiful outside-
The TV claims 18 below zero, without the windchill figured in.
Our windchill warnings should be past tense by noon. (Hope so).

There are no schools worthy of operating that ARE open. I believe most of Wisconsin schools have had a 4 day weekend.
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And somehow, even with the bitterest cold,
know that the darn weeds will survive.

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Even Prattville, Alabama has a severe weather advisory due to the cold!!!!
Good grief.

Back when my kids were in school, we lived out in the boonies. (Even MORE boonie~ish than where I live now). hehehe
There were days- and quite a few, that I did not agree with whomever thought they would be responsible for the safety of my children that day. Most of the time my little disagreement came from the fact that school was not closed. I tried to keep in mind that the principal did not live on Jaworski Road.

Jaworski was one of the last roads in Oconto County to be plowed out. Usually one of the neighbors would at least make a track down the road with his tractor. (This, generally as he came to plow us out). Not that we could go anywhere.

Back to the schools though. Know that this blog will not make me popular with any school administrators.

Do you know that when you do not agree with the administrators decisions that you have every right to keep your children at home, AND that they will have an "excused" absence for it? This is the law.
Use it when/if your intuition tells you something other than what you hear on the TV.

Know too that this was never a popular decision for me- (ALL of my kids LOVED school).
Still, there were a few times that getting to school was not the problem- Getting home was. A few times that the schools had to put their student body up for the night. But my own children were safe, warm and fed at home.

NOTE: My kids graduated in the 1990's.
Clearly this was NOT in the days when the rest of us had to walk to/from school, 10 miles, barefoot in the snow, and uphill both ways.

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Know that tomorrow when the sun comes up it will not be as cold.
So "they" say.

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The dogs are not impressed with the weather either; and have taken to doing their wrestling indoors.

Both are napping at the moment. (Nice, that).

They go outside in record time, and back in a flash, no arguments. And no running around the house at record speed either. Oh wait. They can't even GET around the house with all the snows... Another 3-6" expected tomorrow night.

Speaking of getting around...
Casey had picked her car up on Wednesday evening because she had two appointments yesterday. With my little illness I am not supposed to go outside at this point. (And I still feel like cold caca).
Since Casey was doing better than I there was no reason that I really needed to take her to those appointments.

• One was a blood test for an ulcer.
• The other appointment with "Dr. Mario", her pain management specialist. Sorry but I can never remember his name. He is quite Italian, and so is his name. "Mario" will have to suffice.

With credit due to Old Man Winter, know that both of those appointments have now been rescheduled for next week.

Her terrible tummy pain continues and she has resorted back to using her fentanyl patches.

Here are her own words from the comments in my blog last night.
"Hello Everyone!
I figured an update on here would reach everyone faster! I am doing about the same as I was all day. The pain I have now is stomach pain and it seizes up for seemingly no reason from time to time and that's when it's really bad. I wait it out and continue to keep up on the fluids.
I did steal some of Greg's sesame chicken and that stayed down so a little bit ago I decided to have a microwave dinner. I am hoping that stays down as well. At least a little something to make my blood sugars go back up would be nice. It even seized up on the little bit of jello I had earlier, so it is being very tempermental.
I am hoping this all will pass soon enough and I can get on the fast track to healing again!
Until then I will be waiting things out.
We (Mom or I) will keep you all posted.

Thank you ALL SO MUCH for the thoughts, powers, and prayers!!! I know enough by now to appreciate every one of them and to know they are all being heard and answered!!!

Love to EVERYONE!
~CaseyAnne"

So, there you have it, straight from the horses mouth! Please take a moment to visit her site and wish her well. (CLICK HERE for her own blog).


Stay warm.
Know you are loved.

XOXO
Anne

Hit Counter

Originally posted to my Y!360, Friday January 16, 2009 - 10:43am (CST)

Casey Sick

Good Morning Everyone;
This was Casey last night- As Greg had brought her to come and pick up her car.
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She has just called.
In severe pain, unable to tolerate even water once again.

I am going to try to get my car started, (it is 14 below without the windchill)- but in the meantime I told her to call an ambulance.

Love to all.

XOXO
Me

***
A few minutes later now... 9:58AM.
Said she has diarrhea and maybe that is why?
She is going to hold off calling the ambulance...
I will update you all in my comments below as I know more.

XOXO
Me
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