CLOSING OUT FEBRUARY

February is just about over.  I have noticed a difference this year from the past several years.  They all just seemed to fly by and this year is moving along just right.  I tend to live each day to its fullest and this has made a big difference to me.  Each day is chock full of stuff to do but I'm not fretting if I don't cross everything off of my list.

My temperature afghan is coming along.  Here is the month of February.  It still has a lot of blue in it, but now there is more green and even some yellow.  The yellow is our 70 degree weather.  The light green is the 60s and the dark green 50s.  The light blue is the 40s.  Just a few days of dark blue 30s.  It's so interesting to watch this afghan come to life.

Here is the entire thing so far (January and February).  The white stripe separates the months.  I can see this will be harder to do as it gets bigger.  I'll have to stand on a ladder or something to fit it all into one frame.

A look at our Breathtaking Views calendar for February.

 Sunrise at Kauai, Hawaii

Goodbye February.  Hello March.  I'm looking forward to seeing what you have in store for me.

 
Kathy

IT'S DOUGHNUT DAY!

This has been quite a week and it's still going on.  Please forgive me for not getting to all of your blogs.  I will try to catch up as I can.  But I have no time for anything anymore.  I can't even keep up with my own blog.

Sunday we had a crowd (for us) at church.  It was so good to see so many people there.  My friend Natasha and her two girls came out.  I haven't seen them in about a year and was so glad they were there.  I got smothered in hugs from Olivia and Olizabeth.  Joe wasn't able to come to church yet, but was well enough that I could leave him alone at home for an hour or so while I went.

It was my turn to make the treat for Fellowship Time so I got up early and made a peach long cake.  It's a specialty of mine.  The recipe is here. 

On Monday morning we went to see Joe's doctor to get his stitches out.  But they had already fallen out on their own.  We think that when his scabs fell off the stitches must have come with them.  He is looking more like himself now that his wounds are healing and his black eye has gone away.  The bruise on his leg is almost gone also.  It's just his finger and thumb that are bothering him now.

Monday afternoon we went to his VA primary doctor.  We brought a copy of all his papers from the hospital and I added the photos I took of him which you have all seen.  

On the way home we stopped by church so Joe could talk to the pastor.  He stayed in the car and Pastor Ralph came out to him.  Joe said it was so good to be out and see him and talk with him.  He hopes he will be well enough to go to church this week.

After we left there, we stopped off at Shop Rite and got a rotisserie chicken and potato salad for dinner.  I also got some fruit from the salad bar -- oranges, cantaloupe and grapes.  We sat at the table watching a show on the computer and munching on the fruit until we suddenly realized we had eaten it all!

Our Shop Rite store has a refrigerated case when you first go into the store which has a recipe of the week.  There is a printed card with a recipe and then in the case is everything you need to make it.  This week it was Slow-Cooker Chicken Thighs with Garlic and Lemon over Rice.  I thought that would be easy for tomorrow so I picked up everything I would need. Some of the things I already had (like the lemon juice, garlic and rice) so I saved some money there.  Dinner for the two of us is costing $5.50.  Not bad.  I like that they have this recipe spot.
 
I also got two bunches of daffodils, Joe's favorite flower.  They were pretty tightly shut but are all opening up.  The scent is wonderful and just fills the house.  I'm so glad that I got them.

Today we were supposed to go back to Pennsylvania Hospital to see the orthopedic surgeon but Joe said he just couldn't do it.  So I called and rescheduled it for two weeks from now.  We did go to Nazareth Hospital to get his x-rays done.  But the request was written incorrectly so only his finger was x-rayed, not his thumb.  We have to call tomorrow and get that straightened out.

It will be a busy day again tomorrow.  This time I am the one going to the doctor.  I am having an endoscopy.  I have been putting it off for awhile, but my situation is getting worse and I just have to find out what is going on.  Please pray for me.  I know I will be fine, but it isn't pleasant to have a test like this.  Fortunately I will be asleep and was told I will sleep most of the day.  Good news for me because I have been running myself ragged and can really use the sleep.

Today being the day before Ash Wednesday is Doughnut Day for me.  Some people call it Mardi Gras, or Faschnaut Day or Fat Tuesday.  Growing up we always called it Doughnut Day and we always had doughnuts.  I went to the store today and got doughnuts for Joe and me.  I'm wearing my Mardi Gras beads too.

Joe and I have been watching a series on youtube called "Tales from the Green Valley."  Five historians and archeologists go "back in time" to 1620 for an entire calendar year to see how farmers in Wales lived during the time of James I of Great Britain.  It's wonderful.  There are quite a few of this type of show and we are up to watching all of them.  It's so nice to watch them together and then talk about them.  We have learned so much!
 
I am going to go now and try to get some sleep.  My appointment tomorrow is 11:15 and my friend Carole will pick me up at 10:45.  Hopefully I can get some things done before I leave.

Until later...

Kathy

Sunrise:  6:35 a.m.

Sunset:  5:52 p.m.

11 hours and 17 minutes of daylight

Showers

Temperatures:  66*/56* 

THIS AND THAT

You certainly don't need a fire around here (except to toast your marshmallows).  It is so warm and spring like.  We broke all kinds of records having three days in the 70s (20s C.) in a row.  I am enjoying the warmth, but somehow it doesn't seem right being so warm so soon.  It's going back down into the 40s (single digits C.) by next week though.  And right now we are having a very windy thunder and lightning storm.  It sounds awful and I'm so thankful for my dry and warm home.

On Wednesday I took Joe to his doctor's appointment at the VA Hospital.  The doctor was running behind and we had to wait over an hour to see him.  But when we got in I didn't have the heart to be upset.  The guy was sick.  I said to him that he should have stayed home and he said he was too busy that day but hoped to go home early.  I hope he did.  He said something that I thought was very profound to us.  I mentioned how quickly Joe was healing and said it was due to all the prayers being said for him.  Dr. B said it was because God heals, doctors just treat.  And without God no one would get well.  I never thought about it that way, but he's right.  It's so refreshing to have a Christian doctor.

Joe is doing so much better.  Almost all of his scabs have fallen off.  His bruises are going away instead of new ones popping up.  Thank you a million times for all of your prayers for him.  Two weeks ago I would never have believed he would heal this quickly.

On the way home from the hospital we were both hungry so we stopped at East Coast Wings.  It's the first time Joe has been out since the fall.  It was good for him to see something besides the inside of our house.  He got a burger because it was easy to eat and fries.  I got my chicken wings, this time with Honey Garlic sauce which was so good, and tortilla chips.  I had mango iced tea too which was awesome.

 
 Joe is still not back to himself.  He is lightheaded a lot and his blood pressure drops often.  But he is so very much better than he was.

I finally burned my jewelry candle down to the jewelry.  I had ordered a necklace candle but when I opened the package it was a ring!  But a pretty ring.

 The paper that came with it said it is a white cubic zirconium with a sterling silver setting and is worth $50.  Joe said that is a good return on my $15 investment.  It is a larger ring than I usually wear so I will use it only for going out.

I made some muffins today using a new recipe that I got off of epicurious.com.  They are OK, but not really great.  It's good to try something new.  We will eat them, but I will not be making them again.  They are more like a biscuit than a muffin.  I'll try again with a different recipe.
 
Oh, it sounds as if our storm is over.  Guess I'll go start dinner then.   Hope you all have a great evening.

Kathy

Sunrise:  6:39 a.m.

Sunset:  5:48 p.m.

11 hours and 9 minutes of daylight

Whoo hoo!

Temperatures:  73*/35* 

 

A ROCKWELL WEDNESDAY -- LET'S GIVE HIM ENOUGH AND ON TIME (1942)

It's time for another Rockwell Wednesday.  Here's one of Norman Rockwell's paintings that I have never seen before.  And it's done so well, I thought it was a photograph.

Many of Norman Rockwell's illustrations honored the dedication and sacrifice of America's military personnel.  During World War II, particularly, he used his skills to help unite citizens behind our armed forces.

Kathy

UPDATE ON JOE

It's been a week now and I can definitely see an improvement in Joe.  He is still hurting a LOT but things are beginning to heal up.  Bruises still pop out here and there, but I guess that's to be expected.  He told me I could take pictures of him and post them, so all of these are with his permission.

 This didn't come out very well, but there is a huge bruise covering most of his upper arm.

This is much better.  The redness is gone and it is scabbing over.
 

This is the huge bruise on his leg.  There is a lump under there that he says hurts.  The doctor in the hospital seemed to think it was nothing and so did his primary.  I'm glad he's going to see his VA doctor next Monday to get a third opinion.

His broken thumb is changing colors and not so black anymore.  You can still see the bruise at the bottom of his thumb where the bone is chipped.
 

His finger is still in a splint and this finger is what gives him the most pain.  This is the finger that was dislocated.  The knuckle is still swollen.
 

 Some of the scab on his chin has come off and we can see the stitches better even though you can't really in this picture because of his beard.  He hasn't been able to shave because of the stitches and the injury although he made a good attempt to shave around the area after this picture was taken.

 The scab on the cut above his eye fell off and the abrasions are healing up.  He still has somewhat of a black eye, though.

Joe said to say thank you to each and every one of you that has prayed for him and has cared about him.  He is very thankful for each one of you and you have touched his heart beyond belief.

Thank you from me too.

Kathy
 

Sunrise:  6:46 a.m.

Sunset:  5:43 p.m.

10 hours and 57 minutes of daylight

Partly cloudy

Temperatures:  57*/42*

CENTER CITY AT NIGHT

Going back and forth to the hospital last Monday was a different experience each time.  While taking Joe down at 11:30 p.m. I found almost no traffic.  Center city with no traffic?  I was glad though because I made good time and got there quickly.

At 11:30 a.m. later that day it was jam packed with cars and trucks and even a fire engine that I tried to get out of the way of.  (I finally had to turn the corner even though it wasn't where I wanted to go.)

And when I went back at 7:00 p.m. to pick him up to bring him home, there was some traffic but not like at noon.

I wanted to show you some pictures of Philly at night.  It's a very different place than in the middle of a work day.  Some of these are my pictures and some are from Google.  I grabbed my camera every time I got a red light.  I love Philly day, night or any time.  I hope you enjoy them.

 This is my picture.  The tall lit up building in the background is the Comcast Building.

Fourth and Market Streets.  You can see how light the traffic is.

 This is Spruce Street.  I was just about a block away from the hospital at this point.

This is Independence Hall.  I got this photo from Google.  I wanted to take this shot.  I was right there and even had the camera in my hand but the light changed.

 Another photo from Google.  Again, I was right here but couldn't stop and get a shot.  The Comcast Building is on the left and Liberty Place One and Two are on the right.

I must have driven through Chinatown about six times.  Another Google shot.
 

 This is City Hall and Broad Street.  The Academy of Music is on the left where the bright white lights are.  I wasn't here that night but I sure do like this picture.  (Google shot)

 And finally a shot of center city from the Benjamin Franklin Parkway.  Again I wasn't there and it's a Google shot.  This is another one I love.  I used to work right around there and would love walking to the train station to go home at night and seeing all these tall lit buildings around me.  I find the city beautiful and invigorating.  I guess I'm a real city girl.

I hope you enjoyed your visit to the night time city.  I will have an update on Joe tomorrow.  Thank you for your prayers.  He is getting better much faster than expected and I know it is because of everyone praying for him.

Kathy

 (Yes, I'm in the bathroom.  No, I'm not on the commode.  My husband asked me that.)

Sunrise:  6:47 a.m.

Sunset:  5:41 p.m.

10 hours and 54 minutes of daylight

Partly cloudy

66*/39* 

FRIENDSHIP FEAST

Last Sunday was the annual Friendship Feast at church.  We always have it around Valentine's Day.  It was started to show that even if you don't have a "valentine" you are still loved by those around you -- specifically your brothers and sisters in the church and most importantly by God.

Last year we had 22 people at our luncheon and this year we had 6 adults and 1 child.  But we all still had a good time.  I made a meatloaf and some cupcakes.  There was also a green salad, penne pasta with ground beef and mozzarella, scalloped potatoes, green beans, beef stew and cheesecake.  Everything was wonderful and we ate up.  There wasn't much food left to take home.

After we ate we just sat around and talked for about an hour.  What a good time we had.

I didn't take any pictures except for these couple of the table decorations.  I thought they were so pretty.  Carolyn and I do a good job.

The ladies at church are starting a knitting club.  I want to be a part of it and was all set to go today except since Joe got hurt I can't leave him alone for very long.  I ran to Rite Aid to get my medicine but then came right home.  I will go another week.

Joe says that he feels better every day, but I can tell he is still in pain.  Each day there are more bruises coming out.  The bruise on his leg is ugly looking and his broken finger is swollen.  His broken thumb is all black.  But he tells me how much steadier on his feet he is since his medication was adjusted.  I think he is walking better.  I told him to take it easy this week and next week we will start him walking more and further than just up and down the steps once a day.

Tomorrow I am planning on going to the farm.  I also have to stop over at church and leave the bulletins for Sunday.  It will be the longest I have left him since the fall, but he assures me he will be OK and will call my cell phone if he needs me.  He will not be up to going to church Sunday and I am going to stay home with him.  We will see what next week brings.

And with that I am going to head to bed.  It's almost midnight.  Take care, folks and I will be talking to you soon.

Kathy

Sunrise:  6:50 a.m.

Sunset:  5:39 p.m.

10 hours and 49 minutes of daylight

Mostly sunny

Temperature:  45*/26* 

VALENTINE'S DECORATIONS AND AN UPDATE ON JOE

This has been quite a week.  Not at all what I had planned.  Our Valentine's Day will be celebrated on March 14th this year.  We figured Joe will be much better in a month.

But I still had some decorations up.  Time to take them down now.

A pretty wreath from Dollarzone in the window.
 

A few little figures on the table.
 

New flowers in the outside pot.
 

Wooden roses in the heart vase.

Not much and nothing at all after the accident.

I want to thank each and every one of you who prayed for Joe and/or sent him your best wishes.  He has been to his primary doctor twice, yesterday and again today.  We thought the stitches were coming out of his chin today, but he wasn't healed up enough.  He has a black eye, bruises covering his arms and one leg, cuts, scrapes, broken finger on the left hand and broken thumb on the right, no skin on his chin and four stitches in it to hold what little skin is left together... Basically he looks as if someone beat him to a pulp.   Even worse now than when he was in the hospital.  Every day more bruises show up.  I'm so glad he was wearing shoes or else his toes would be broken too.

Joe spends most of the time in bed, for which I am glad.  He is taking pain killers which make him sleep a lot.  Once a day he comes downstairs for dinner just to sit up and get out of the bed.  He is feeling better, though, since his medicine has been adjusted.

Please keep him in your prayers.  He has a long way to go.  More doctor visits next week and the week after.

Kathy

Sunrise:  6:51 a.m.

Sunset:  5:37 p.m.

10 hours and 46 minutes of daylight

Partly cloudy

Temperature:  39*/25* 

SPENDING THE NIGHT IN THE HOSPITAL

Joe wasn't feeling too good yesterday and so did not make it to church.  He really wanted to go since it was Communion Sunday and we were having our Friendship Feast after church, but just didn't feel he could do it.  So I brought him some lunch home.  Beef stew, penne pasta, green beans and scalloped potatoes.  I took it to him in bed and he ate up.  Everything was good and he loved it all.

We were both full and didn't eat dinner, just went to bed.  Around 11:30 p.m. we were watching TV and we heard the wind pick up.   I had forgotten to take the trash can to the back yard.  It was still in front of the house from trash day.  I started to get up to do it and Joe told me he would do it.  I said to him that he wasn't too steady on his feet and he said he would be fine, put on his jeans and shoes and left.

A couple of minutes later I heard him screaming, "Help me!  HELP ME!"  I went running downstairs and here he was coming in the front door covered in blood and with what we thought was a broken finger.  He asked me to take a picture of it.  If you have a weak stomach, don't look.

I quickly got dressed and we rushed to the hospital.  Center city doesn't have very much traffic around midnight.  I parked outside of the ER and asked for someone to bring out a wheelchair.  They did and as he was being wheeled in I went to find parking.

He had x-rays, cat scans, blood tests and who knows what else done on him.  Because the blood was pouring from the cuts around his eyes and the cut on his chin they thought he might have injured his neck and so immobilized it.  His clothes are covered in blood.  I don't know if I can get it out, but I will try.  The nurse told me to used hydrogen peroxide.

Here is the scrape on his arm.  He must have hit the back step because of the way it's a 90* angle.
 

Joe's finger was not broken, but dislocated.  The doctor set it and he said it feels 100% better.  He also got four stitches in his chin.  When Joe falls, he does it right.
 

We got there around midnight and I stayed until about 5:30 a.m. when Joe insisted I come home to get something to eat and a couple of hours of sleep.  He wants clean clothes, a pair of glasses since his were broken, his Bible, and one of his medications which they don't have there.  He also wants me to run a couple of errands for him before I come back.  He is being held in observation for a couple of days.  Probably coming home on Tuesday, but maybe Wednesday.  The one doctor thinks the culprit to his frequent falls is one of his medications and they will see what they can do about changing the dosage.

Please pray for Joe.  Thank you in advance.

Kathy

SUNDAY PRAISE -- HOW CAN I KEEP FROM SINGING

I am very fond of all of Chris Tomlin's music but this is one of my very favorites.  How can we keep from singing?

 

SNOW DAY

We were expecting a big snow storm on Tuesday.  Four to eight inches were predicted.  And it sure looked like that would be the case when I got up at 7 a.m.  My car and the sidewalk were already covered.

And the snow was coming down fast and furious.

At 8 a.m. I went to the kitchen to get something to eat.  It was so beautiful in the back yard.  It looked like a fairy land.

And the snow was starting to let up.

By 9 a.m. it was starting to let up.  One of our neighbors cleaned our sidewalk for us.  I don't know which one.  I heard someone outside but by the time I got to the door, no one was on the street.

And by 10 a.m. it was all over and the sun was out.  Our predicted 8 inches turned out to be only 3 inches.  And it warmed up so most of it is gone.

It was bitterly cold today.  I put out the trash but the cans are still out front to bring back to the yard.  I'll do it in the morning.

If you pray, please pray for Joe.  He had two very bad falls yesterday and today.  One of them down the stairs.  I am taking him to the doctor tomorrow morning.  I've got a lot to do tomorrow so it's going to be a long day.

And on that note I am going to bed.  Until later...

Kathy

Sunrise:  6:59 a.m.

Sunset:  5:31 p.m.

10 hours and 32 minutes of daylight

Mostly cloudy

Temperatures:  33*/22*