Hello, friends and welcome to July. Now will someone tell me how 2019 is half over already? It seems like June just began.
I made a vanilla cake with chocolate icing and flower sprinkles for church yesterday. Well, Joe made the cake. It was a mix but the fact that he felt up to doing it was great. He just sat at the kitchen table and I handed things to him, but it is such an improvement since his surgery. I let it cool overnight and then iced it in the morning with some leftover chocolate icing I had from the last time I baked. I made it in a 9 x 13 pan so I just iced the top and had just enough icing to do it. It turned out good and everyone was complimenting me on it. Of course I gave Joe the credit. There is about a third of it left and I put it in the refrigerator at church to save it for Bible Study tomorrow.
Joe wasn't up to going to church yesterday so I will show him the video of the message later today.
Our pastor and his wife are on vacation this week. So Joe offered to do the Nursing Home service. He assures me that he is up to walking in, sitting down, and giving the message. Tomorrow it will be two weeks since the surgery and he says he has no pain, just is tired. I looked through his archived messages and found a Fourth of July message he gave at church a couple of years ago. He is going to use that so he doesn't have to write a new one. Nothing wrong with recycling messages to new groups of people. Here is the LINK if any of you want to see it.
My hydrangea is not doing well at all. In fact it is starting to die. Everything I put out front does that. It is just too hot. I moved it away from the air conditioner hoping that the hot air from that was not the cause. I am going to water it well every day and hopefully that will bring it back. But if worse comes to worse, I will move it to the back yard.
Our four days of 90*F (33*C) weather is over -- for a couple of days. We will get spoiled with the cooler weather today and tomorrow only to go back into the 90s for the rest of the week. Five days of hot temperatures according to Accuweather. I'm so thankful for my air conditioner and thankful to Debbie's husband, Rusty, for putting it into the window.
PHOTO CHALLENGE
I have one photo for you today. Even though it is July now, I will finish the last 7 pictures for you. The word for Day #23 is "pair". A pair of what? I thought of many things, but then I decided to show you a pair of ... bananas!
Looks like we'll be eating these today or else I will have to make some more banana bread.
And now I am going to get my day started. Hope you all have a great day.
Kathy
Well, my friends, are you hot? We are in the middle of a heat wave here in Philly. It was 90*F (32*C) yesterday and expected to go to 92*C (33*C) today. Even higher tomorrow and Saturday. I know not everyone enjoys the heat, but I would rather have it hot and go into air conditioning than have it cold and not be able to get warm. Of course my ideal would be somewhere in the middle.
Yesterday Joe went out for the first time. We went to Bible Study. Pastor taught this week so all Joe had to do was sit there which was good. The bad part was when we decided to stop in Shop Rite to grab a few things. It turned out to be a little more than a few things and the walking was too much for poor Joe. It is almost dinner time and he is still in bed. I will get him up when we eat. We didn't even get the entire week's groceries so I have to go back tomorrow and finish up. I am going to take Donna with me. She has someone coming to her house in the afternoon so we are going to make it a quick trip. I will show you the haul tomorrow.
As for the garden, it is lovely. I took some pictures to show you the beautiful roses.
I took these pictures with my tablet and I think they turned out pretty good! Of course now my tablet is missing today. *sigh* And I still haven't found my missing lesson plan. *another sigh*
I haven't been feeling too well this week. Between the heat and my blood pressure (which has been back to normal) and my headaches and tiredness not much is getting done. And there is so much to do!
On to the PHOTO CHALLENGE. Day #21 has the word "summer". I really couldn't figure out this one. But last night I took a picture of the blooming hosta at church. They bloom in summer -- right?
And Day #22 was "green". That was easy. Everything is green around here these days. So I took a picture of the shady corner of my yard.
And with that I am getting off of here and making dinner. Pork chops, rice with mushrooms and veggies of some kind. I was going to have a salad but forgot to buy it last night. Hope you all have a great evening.
Kathy
Hello, friends! This is going to be a very short post. I didn't get to church today because I needed to stay home with Joe. But it's just as well because I am feeling awful. I have a massive headache which is starting to go away since I took some aspirin. I took my blood pressure when I went to Rite Aid for Joe this morning and it was very high. I think that is what is going on. I am trying to do nothing today and rest to see if I can get it to go down.
Joe is doing better every day. He has a ways to go, but so much better than he was a few days ago. Thank you so much for your prayers and good wishes and keep it up!
On the way to Rite Aid I passed a house about a block from where I live that is getting a face lift. I wish I had taken a picture before this, but at least I have this. It is a brick house, but obviously they are putting a new coat on it. You can see it's wrapped in some kind of under sheathing. I love brick so I don't know why they would do this. Nevertheless it will be interesting to watch and I hope to take a picture every few days so you can watch the transformation with me. Here is what it looks like today. As you can see a lot of the houses in this area (including mine) are three stories tall.
PHOTO CHALLENGE
I have another two photos to show you today and I hope to have two more tomorrow. Day #19's word is "refreshing". When I was at the store I bought Joe a bottle of ICE. He likes the mango orange. It sure looks refreshing on a hot day.
And for Day #20 the word was "book". I decided to give you more than one book. How else would a librarian think? Here are the top two shelves from Joe's bookcase. Between the two of us there are plenty of books in this house.
And that's it for today. Hope you all have a wonderful Sunday and enjoy this beautiful summer weather.
Kathy
Hello, friends! This has been a very busy time in my life so I won't be getting on here everyday. I will do my best to keep up with things with you, but I just have so many hours in the day. And facebook can just not expect me at all! But I wanted to tell you how things went with Joe's surgery.
It was quite the day, folks. The night before we were supposed to get a call telling us what time to be there. But... it never came. We had no idea when to show up. So finally at 9:00 p.m. with no call yet, I called the hospital. At first I was told he wasn't on the surgery schedule. I told the lady on the phone that was impossible and to check again. She looked and said he had an office appointment on July 3rd for a follow up. I asked her a follow up to what? She said his surgery that he was having yesterday. "Yes," I said. "And just what time is that surgery?" "Be here at 7:30 a.m.," she told me. OK!
So I got up at 4:30 a.m. to get all my medicine taken and have time for breakfast. Joe got up shortly after me. Around 6:30 we got a call from the hospital asking if we were still coming. Yes. "You were supposed to be here before 6:30 a.m." "What? We were never called," I told him. "We are on our way!" Joe and I rushed out of the house, and got there a little after 7:00 a.m. I dropped him off to check in and went to park the car. I went across the street, into the building, checked in, and found him in admissions. We didn't know we had to pay a co-pay so it was a good thing I was there because I had a credit card.
We were at Pennsylvania Hospital. It used to be it's own entity, but now is part of the University of Pennsylvania Medicine group. Pennsylvania Hospital was the first hospital in America, founded by Benjamin Franklin and Dr. Thomas Bond in 1751. Here is the link to a short history about it. https://www.modernhealthcare.com/article/20170227/HALL_OF_FAME/302279996/pennsylvania-hospital-a-large-dose-of-history-along-with-healthcare
This is the original building, but of course it has been added onto over the years and is much larger and more modern now. I just found out you can take a historical tour of the hospital and when Joe is well enough we are thinking about doing just that.
It took about an hour for Joe to get checked in and on his way to Pre-op. The surgeon was waiting for us and wanted to know where we were. We told him what the hospital told us last night and he said it wasn't our fault. The nurses were super nice and got him ready really quickly. When they wheeled Joe out to the operating room, the doctor was actually pushing the bed. He was almost an hour late getting to surgery!
One of the nurses walked me to the waiting room which was on another floor. What a place! I checked in with the receptionist. She took my name and cell phone number and gave me a card with a six digit number on it which was Joe's ID. On one wall was a large screen which had all these numbers color coded and showed you where your loved one was (Pre-op, Operation/Procedure, Recovery, etc.) by color and told the time they got to each step. Wow!
It was a large room with groupings of furniture. There were about six large screen TVs set to different stations so that you could watch whatever you wanted -- news, Rachael Ray type programs, documentaries, etc. Each grouping had seating and a coffee table with magazines and newspapers. There were even recliners and sofas if you wanted to lay down.
Since they had my cell phone number, every few minutes I would get a text message saying, "Patient has been given anesthesia and we are about to begin." Or "Patient is doing well. Surgery is almost completed." Or "Patient is being moved to recovery." Plus there were four in-house phones where first the doctor and then two different nurses called me to tell me how he was and what was happening. I snapped a couple of pictures of the room where I was.
There was free wi-fi so I was able to post on facebook as things went along. And if you notice, there were two computers in case you didn't have your own with you and wanted to use one. I have never seen anything like this.
There was also a really nice Liaison Nurse named Pat who went from person to person acting as a patient advocate and making sure both you and your patient were being taken care of.
I finally got the call to leave the waiting room and go to the discharge area on the 9th floor. Nurse Pat walked me to the elevators because it was like a maze in there and I would never have found them myself. When I got to the area another nurse walked me to the check in area and the lady there buzzed me in and took me to Joe's room. He was sitting in a recliner and had already eaten some crackers and drank some cranberry juice. A few more checks and I helped Joe get dressed, went to get the car and we were on our way home.
As you might suppose, he is in a great deal more pain than he expected, but all in all he is doing so well. He was able to eat dinner last night and everything seems to be OK. Thank you all so much for your prayers and good wishes. That really means a lot to us.
And now for our...
PHOTO CHALLENGE
Day number 17 was stripes. I knew just what I wanted to do for that. Last summer when I was in Lancaster I stopped in Kirklands for the first time. I really liked the place although I thought some things were a bit high. But one thing that was on sale (because the Fourth of July was over) was this "America" sign. My sister and I both got one. Mine is hanging on the front door, so here is my "Stripes" picture.
For Day #18 the topic was Something Old. I have a lot of old things -- mostly packed away. Although this isn't too old, I have had it for about 40 years so I think that qualifies. My sister gave it to me right before I moved into my house and I've been here 39 years. So here is my spice rack that is hanging on my kitchen wall. I love it because it looks so old and country like. And now I guess it really is old.
And that's it for today. I'll be back tomorrow (or the day after) with another post. Have a wonderful day.
Kathy
Hello, everyone! Woodstock looks like me today. I made the mistake of drinking iced tea too late in the day and ended up not being able to go to sleep until after 1:00 a.m. Of course I could sleep now! But really can't because there is too much to do.
Joe's surgery is tomorrow morning and there is a lot to do to get this house ready for him to come home. And you know it will be the same day because no one keeps you overnight any more. Joe has asked for privacy concerning this surgery and I will respect that. Just know it is minor but any surgery is surgery! Your prayers for his safety and recovery would be greatly appreciated.
Joe had a good Father's Day yesterday. One of the young ladies in our church has "adopted" Joe as her father since her dad died a few years ago. She gave him a box of chocolate and a beautiful card from "his little girl." And then later in the day he was able to see and talk with his son J.J. He had gone to Rite Aid and ran into him on the street. He came back with a big smile on his face.
We still had the free ham we got from Shoprite around Easter and so yesterday I thawed it out, cut it into serving sizes, bagged some up for us and cooked some for dinner. We don't have ham very much because of the high salt content. So this was good. We also gave some to our next-door neighbors Chrissy and Mike and have some packaged up for our Pastor and Rick when we see them at the nursing home today. And we still have enough for five more meals and the bone to give my sister for soup. It was a big ham!
Tonight I'm planning on a pork roast, asparagus and a salad. I want to have it early so that Joe has time to digest it before he goes to bed. You all know the no food after midnight deal with surgery. At least they are taking him early in the morning for his procedure because he is diabetic. We are continuing to try to eat healthy and still losing the weight. Slowly... very slowly... but we are going in the right direction.
So I am going to get on with my day. I have to go food shopping today instead of tomorrow. I will lose my Senior Discount, but that's OK. I will get it next week.
PHOTO CHALLENGE
I'm continuing on trying to catch up. So day #15 is "Backyard". This was easy because I have so many pictures of my backyard. Here's a recent one. It's even more cut back now and that's something I have to get back to doing. The weeds and plants grow so quickly!
I didn't know what to do for day #16 "Bright". But when I saw this on the windowsill at church yesterday, I knew this was it.
How bright the yellow tulips looked with the sun shining in on them.
And with that I have to go. Loads to do and not much time. Have a good day, everyone!
Kathy
Hello, friends! I haven't forgotten about you. It's just been really hard to find time to write.
Yesterday was the Men's Breakfast at church. I took Joe over and stayed a little bit to get some pictures for our facebook page. I thought I would share them with you also.
The tables were set so nicely.
And like the ladies had for their brunch last month, there was a program at each place.
When we got there, Pastor was struggling to cook the scrapple. Joe went to the kitchen and was drafted into taking over. He didn't mind. Does he look like he minds here?
There was coffee, tea, water and juices to drink.
Lots of fellowship before eating. Carolyn came over with some food so I wasn't the only woman there.
Rick made a great fruit salad.
Rick, Joe and Pastor Wayne, our former pastor, who was the guest speaker.
Lots of food.
When they began to eat, I left and went home. Joe called me about 2 hours later to come pick him up.
He wanted to get a haircut before his surgery on Tuesday, so I drove him to the Super Cuts that he likes to go to. There were a lot of people there, but there were three people cutting so it moved really fast.
When he was finished, we went next door to the Japanese restaurant and got food to go. Then we headed home.
Joe had just eaten and wasn't hungry, but I was and ate my Sunshine Sushi. It was so good. I love mango.
I was really tired and ended up taking a nap all afternoon. Dinner was easy -- hot dogs and fries. Not the healthiest dinner, but I've been so good for several weeks, that every now and then I can have a dinner like this. I was still below my calorie count for the day. I'm still losing weight and I hope to keep on to meet my goal.
PHOTO CHALLENGE
The word for Day #13 was "shadow". What a hard time I have had with this. I just could not find an interesting shadow. I spent over an hour looking through old photos to find something and finally came up with this. It's not very good, but at least it's something. The trees are shadowed against the sunset.
The words for day #14, Flag Day, were appropriately "Red, White and Blue". So of course I needed to show you a flag.
And now I have to go. I hope you have a wonderful day!
Kathy
Hello, friends! Did you see Philly featured on Good Morning America this morning? Wow, it was quite an honor to be the first of their pop-up programs that they are going to be doing around the country. And Philly presented itself well, too. Joe tried to get us tickets to go, but it was hard to do and he didn't succeed. Just as well since it was POURING rain and chilly. It was so cool in the house that I closed all the windows and put my little stove on to warm up the room. I am wearing a long-sleeved top and glad I am. It's getting warmer as the day is going on, but this afternoon we are supposed to have another downpour and it will get cool again.
I am sitting at the kitchen table watching the birds at the feeder. There are a lot of sparrows, four mourning doves and I just saw a female cardinal. The mourning doves think they are the size of the sparrows and can get to the seed. Nope. They are standing on the bench, though, and are on the ground eating the seed that dropped and drinking water from the puddles.
I was so chilly this morning that I made myself a cup of hot tea. I haven't done that in weeks, but it tasted so good. I'm thinking about having another cup. I was sitting here watching some vlogs as I finished my breakfast.
Yesterday was a bad day for me because I was in so much pain in my legs and back. Today is a little better so I am going to try to get all my dishes washed and scrub the stove. It is a mess! If I am still feeling OK, I want to clean out another shelf in the refrigerator (I will probably wait until Joe gets up to help me with that) and clean off the kitchen table. Another job that needs doing over and over. Items just seem to accumulate there.
PHOTO CHALLENGE
I am doing two of the challenges today. Then I will try to do two tomorrow and be caught up. The first one, #11, is "jewelry". I knew I wanted to show you this ring because it has a great story behind it. At first I took the ring on my hand, but my hands look awful! I think I might be getting old. So I just laid it on the table.
A few years ago Joe was in Walmart and saw this ring. It is my birthstone and has diamond chips around it. He wanted to get it for me and saw it was $147.95 marked down to $82.50. It was a little out of his price range, but he really loved it and decided to splurge because that was a huge markdown. When the lady behind the counter waited on him, she told him the ring was on special and it was $45.00. Even better, thought Joe. He said he would take it. When she rang it up, it came up $32.00. Because of the difference in price she called her manager. The manager explained to Joe that the lady waiting on him was a trainee and must have hit the wrong button on the cash register. She canceled everything out and rang it up herself. "That will be $18.75." she said. "Are you sure?" asked Joe. "Of course I'm sure," she replied. So Joe took the ring and thanked them. When he gave me the ring we laughed about it. So here is my $147 ring that Joe got for $18.75. I love it and wear it a lot.
Now for Photo Challenge #12 - Flowers. I told you I wasn't going to show you any more flowers, but I decided to anyway. The beautiful flowers Joe bought me have mostly died. But last night I rescued those that were still good, cut them down, and arranged them in a smaller vase. They are still so pretty.
I have had my break, so I am going back to cleaning now. I hope you all have a nice day.
Kathy
