What a week

This past week's events are the making of a novel. It started a week ago Saturday with a visit from my younger brother John, his wife, and two grandsons. We hadn't seen John in over two years. It was a nice time together. The kids are really well behaved and were eager to go camping with their grandpa. They left in an older ATV for the coast around 5:00 pm. All was well at the old homestead. Then on Sunday and Monday Richard just wasn't feeling well and he took a long naps. Tuesday, he was feverish and had an upset stomach. So I gave him something for both and they helped for awhile. But by Wednesday he was miserable and I noticed some discoloring in the area of his hernia. So as soon as Dianna got home from work I asked her to take he dad into the ER. I suspected a strangulated hernia or a bowel obstruction. He actually had both, an obstruction caused by the hernia. They admitted him and did corrective surgery on Thursday afternoon.

That same afternoon, I was given the OK to put weight on my healing leg. According to the Dr. weight at this stage will actually help complete the healing process. How is that for the Lord's timing? Richard had been my legs for the last three months.

On Friday our son-in-law Paul was placed on a surgery schedule for cleaning plaque from his carotid artery, our son Rich injured his back when he stopped at the coast on his way down here from Washington and the clean up at the house began. The huge dumpster was delivered to the driveway and Dianna, Shelley and Eric spent a couple hours loading debris. Then our granddaughter and her husband Chris got a ticket just 20 minutes from the house.

Saturday everyone, including Eric's niece Sarah, got an early start cleaning up a section of the yard that included the shed Rick tore down two weeks ago, a couple large plywood containers and of course the junk that was in them. Lissa, another granddaughter and Nate, her husband arrived a bit later and helped as well. Paul was the official photographer and cook for the group. Even the three great-grandchildren helped out after all the glass and nails had been removed. I'm told the place looks really good. But I'm not quite ready to check it out. I'm on crutches, the terrain is rough, and no one else is here should I fall.

Lots of bad things happened this week, but they are balanced with many good things. Richard is slowly improving, Paul had his surgery and all went well, and we had a mini family reunion. We even may have met a future member of the clan. Never a dull moment at the Moreno household.

Ready for change

I am so ready for change. Sitting here writing this, I can hear the sound of Rick mowing the lawn. It has really needed it for some time now, but no one has been either available or capable to do it.

Yesterday, Rick took me in my wheelchair to the back driveway. It was no small task over the rough unpaved surface. But I needed to see what was going on as far as disposal of items being sorted from an old shed. Rick emptied two sheds and tore down one. He essentially made two piles, to keep and to toss. That up front work will make it a lot easier for the crew of family to load a big dumpster during a cleanup week end after next. The change in the yard is way over due. Rick asked me to say hi for him.

We are actually having company (family) over three week ends in a row. Rick & Preston this week, my brother John, his wife and two grandsons next week, and then three of our kids, their spouses, four grandkids, one of their spouses, and three greatgrandkids the week after. It will be good to see them all, just wish I could get around and at least cook for the. Guess I'll have to settle for what I can do.

I received a call from Dr. Ryan's office today. I made an appointment to see him on September 14. That will be his very first day in Corvallis. Dr. Ryan is the orthopedic surgeon who will be doing my knee replacement. He comes highly recommended as having performed over 700 joint replacement surgeries. He is currently completing a fellowship in San Diego. He is originally from New York. This surgery constitutes a huge change, one that I hope will allow more freedom of movement. Maybe I will be able to walk for exercise again.

Several of our kids are having health issues. I am not at liberty to go into detail, but some big changes are on their horizons as well. These will include, but are not limited to life style changes. This could be a great thing. I would like to see many more decades of good health for all our kids.

One change that we need is in the weather pattern. It has been way too hot and dry here. Not the first hot summer we have experienced, but I don't like it. We need rain. After a similar heat pattern some 25 years ago, all our neighbors spontaneously ran into the street and embraced the rain when it finally came. I am ready, bring it on.

Good new and bad

Good news today. The company that supplies Richard's oxygen and services his C-pap called and apologised. Based on the receipt I supplied they dug a little deeper and have confirmed the old C-pap they accused us of keeping and trying t sell is in their possession. They had gone so far as to bill us for over $1,700. This for something that we did not have. OT for His faithfulness in giving us stress and financial relief on this matter. Now if only insurance or some other source would cover the nursing facility bill.

More good news. I have found someone to do some cleaning. Kristen is a dear friend, the leader of my bible study group. She was looking for a way to earn money to help finance her son's trip to a national music contest in Orlando. She is energetic, does very good work, and has a great attitude. She came on Tuesday and cleaned my kitchen. Next week she will work on the entryway and clean the bathroom. Thanks Amy for this blessing.

Shelley has been working on my kitchen floor (solid vinyl). Yesterday she sanded it down (thank you Shelley) and over the next few nights I will put several coats of verithane on it. The only problem was that the sanding created a lot of dust that covered my clean kitchen. I managed to get most of it with a damp rag, but not all (hard to reach some areas without putting stress on my leg). But I do not want Kristen to spend all her time just on the kitchen.

Bad news. I was doing so well, getting around in the wheelchair and being able to do more in the house. Then my occupational therapist shot me down. She said I was not allowed to balance using my broken leg when standing to reach into the cupboard or refrigerator. She had me call the doctor to verify this. According to the doctor, my type of break can slip very easily and even if there is no pain or sense of pressure, it may still be enough to cause harm. So I can balance only if I am very very careful. So much for progress. Our pastor broke his leg last fall and has just recently been allowed to walk on it. Earlier this week he caught his toe on a restaurant mat and automatically used his bad leg to prevent a fall. He is in such pain that he has had to be in bed and won't know till Monday when he sees the doctor, if any real damage was done. Guess I better take heed to the caution I was given.

OK, Time to Regroup

Yesterday I reported that the lady we hired to do some of the housework seemed to be working out well. She is very nice, did a good job, and was flexible. But last evening she called and told me that the extra work on the other side of town was not working out for her. All her other jobs are close to where she lives. What can I say? We will have to start all over.

The other person I know who does cleaning on a private basis had a critical medical condition surface with a family member yesterday. She will be spending all her down time at the hospital for the next few weeks. So where do I turn? I will figure it out.

More Updates

This week has brought several small changes to my life. On Monday Richard & I both had roughtine Dr. visits. We got the results of lab work and Richard had x-rays done on his wrist. He had jammed it some time ago and it still really bothers him. No breaks, but he does have advanced arthritis and the wrist had been sprained. Richard may also have a thyroid problem.

My level of vitamin D is extremely low and may account for my osteoporosis. I have been taking medication for this for about 4 years, but it may not be working. So I have another Rx. Massive amounts of D designed to kick start calcium absorbtion. Other than that I am healthy.

Tuesday our cleaning lady started. She has a great attitude and does a good job. What a blessing she is. There are some things that we can do, but some are not doable right now. This arrangement is short term, but really nice.

Just A Trim

Richard has a lot of hair & it was starting to look pretty shaggy. Well, let'd face it, it has looked shaggy for some time. He last had his hair cut in mid-April while we were in Germany. The problem is that I am his barber. In fact, I have cut his hair for the better part of 40 years. So my inability to do anything that requires sitting straight up or standing (on one foot) for more than a few minutes merely postponed the task, not cancel it. That is why today I took it on. My stamina is not great, so it actually took two tries. After about 4 or 5 minutes of trimming I began to get a bit shakey and had to stop. Then a couple hours later I was able to finish it up. Probably not my best job, but certainly an improvement. Happy Father's Day honey.

Still more helps

Today there has been an increase in the amount of help we have/are receiving. This morning we hired a lady to come in twice a week to perform some of the household chores such as cleaning the bathroom, wiping up kitchen counters, doing some dusting, and mopping floors. She will start next Tuesday and we will see how things go. Amy suggested this & she & Rick will cover the cost. Shelley comes over on Fridays. She usually takes out the trash and changes my bedding. Dianna does the laundry & runs errands. All our kids have stepped up to help us through this trial. We can not express our gratitude too much.

This afternoon, a volunteer came to install grab bars in the bathroom to help us in & out of the showerr / tub and adjacent to the toilet. This is a safety factor and will make transitions a lot easier. There are sure a lot of great volunteer organizations and services in our area.