Shapes have to be just right.

Here is the picture I promised of Elena with her 'shapes' We had so much fun building the stack and then crashing it. The shapes have to be in place in the right direction or she will get all serious and say, "No." Then she fixes it. She's a third generation OCD (obsessive, compulsive disorder). She's a delight and we love the memories of times with her.

Today was a good day. We ate breakfast at the Wagon Wheel, which is a new restaurant in town, run by a young couple from church. Next week we'll go there after church for their buffet. Today the Future Teachers of America had a fundraiser luncheon at the high school, so we ate there after church with our neighbors, the preacher and his wife and three kids. We feel really blessed to have them here with us. He brings such a refreshing light to every topic he discusses. His family is precious, too. We thank God for them in our lives.

This afternoon I defrosted our freezer, which was long overdue. It's kind of a fun chore. It feels good to have it done. It's good to remind me what all is in there, too! I'm headed to bath and bed

I talked to Ruthie a while ago and she sounds stronger. She still has lots of pain, though. She goes back to her doctor on Wednesday this week; she's hoping he'll schedule her soon for the rest of the surgery so that she can get all of this into the past and move on with healing!

Fun, fun times and people.

Does this look like a fun pair? It is! I think her name is Jessica, but she is Garrett's good friend, who lives near them by a house or two. She is a precious girl and I thank God for good friends like her in Garrett's life. (My hair looks like hers when I wash it, but I don't have enough neck to wear it down, so I always wear it up.) Garrett is Gretta's son and he'll be 13 next month. The friends I had when I was 13 are still my very best and dear friends, thanks to the Internet! We met two more of Garrett's friends when we were visiting there last month, and I was impressed with his selection of friends. Gretta and Joe are good parents, too. Their house is a fun place to be.

I especially loved it! Even grandparents have fun there! Tomorrow I'll post a picture of Elena stacking blocks (she calls them shapes). We had so much fun. I wouldn't take anything for the time we spent with the kids last month . . . or EVER! God is so good to give us family and health!

Tonight we're going to Jo Ann and Frank's house for an early Thanksgiving dinner with some couples from church. After dinner we'll probably play some canasta. More thanks to give: good friends are such a blessing!

Happy Friday 13th!

The picture tonight is one Don took of Tom and me, with Linda's mother, Betty, in their beautiful sun room. We were thumbing through their old yearbooks, enjoying recalling old memories and friends. Linda's mother is a sweetie; I believe she is 93.

Today I changed our sheets and did 3 loads of laundry. Then after lunch Don and I walked, and then we came home and did the floors. He vacuumed the carpets and I swept and mopped all the hard floors. I had dusted and done the bathrooms yesterday. So, the house is in pretty good shape. Whew. I thank God we can still do this and I sure thank Him for Don to be such a great helper!

I talked to Ruthie today and she's had a really hard day, but she is better. She thinks she didn't rest enough yesterday; it's so hard to know how much to push and when is too much! Anyway, she is recovering, just slower than she wishes. She's really ready to have the other surgery and be done with it all. I can only imagine. Bless her heart! Thank you for your prayers for her. She's tough; she'll heal. I hope that next September she'll be up to a trip to Washington DC with Don and I for our high school reunion. (Itazuke High School; Ruthie graduated there.) It'll be great to celebrate her being able to travel, not to mention a great reunion!

Precious memories.

You know, memories are fun. The picture tonight is one I took of Don when he and Phil and I were waiting while Ruthie was in surgery. We expected her to be in surgery for about an hour and it drug on for 3 hours. We had to get up at 4 that morning to get to the hospital, so Don took this opportunity to take a nap. Actually, I was sitting across from him, asleep in my chair, too! Phil had a pager on and it buzzed and he woke me up to tell me he was going to check and see what they had to tell him. So I jumped up and followed him, but my leg had gone to sleep and I crumpled on the floor! The floor was carpeted, so Phil didn't hear me crumble and he kept on going. Don was sitting there sound asleep. Two other gentlemen jumped up to check on me to see if I was okay and all the women in the room swooned and said, "Is she okay?" Of course I was embarrassed to death and jumped up and stumbled over to follow Phil. I think they were telling him that she was doing fine; anyway we had to keep waiting. It was so funny to tell Phil and Don that I had fallen and neither of them even knew it. I was still wearing bruises on my chin from the fall I had taken in the street. I twisted my ankle on that fall in the hospital an it still pangs sometimes, but that was the only injury from that fall. (Don is walking with me every day, so he saves me from falling a lot. I stumble around a lot; one foot or the other just seem to get in my way!) Anyway, I smile every time I see this picture, recalling my embarrassment.

I talked to Phil today and Ruthie is doing a little better. They have made some adjustments in her medication, and that seems to be helping. Plus, I think time to heal helps some, too. Thank you for your prayers for them. I'll be so glad when I can report that they've been able to get in the car and go somewhere for fun. They're looking forward to that day, too! God will bring it.

Happy Veterans Day!

This is Floyd Johnston, a Veteran we know and love. I've mentioned him on the blog many times, and he has recently recovered from a broken hip. I wanted to report to you that he is doing very, very well. He is at home, where he lives alone, and he is doing so well. He uses his walker some, but he is able to get around his house mostly on his own. It was a difficult recovery, but he hung very tough and worked hard and he's doing so very well. Besides the broken hip, Floyd has macular degeneration and is legally blind, so it's really an accomplishment for him to be able to live alone. (He is still able to play cards, as long as we tell him what has been played!) Thank you all for your prayers. Floyd was a sailor in the US Navy during WWII. He's a wonderful friend and I thank him and all other Veterans for their service to our country.

Today was busy and church ran late tonight. I was in bed and realized I hadn't done the blog, so I'm here to say Happy Veterans Day and good night. By the way, Phil said they have changed Ruthie's medications, so they are hoping she will get better relief from her pain soon. I'll keep you updated. I thank God for making our bodies so that they respond and heal.

Cribbage memories.

The picture tonight is one Don took of me yesterday beside a couple of cribbage boards that were our friend, Tom Rose, made them for my mom when we were in high school. We taught Tom to play cribbage and he saw right away that the way to my mom's heart was through a cribbage board. So, bless his heart, he made these for her! The one on the left is made for 3 players because we used to have to get two boards for the 3 of us to play. The little bag hanging above it holds the pegs we use for scoring. We went and spent a couple of nights with Tom and Linda when we were in Tennessee and I mentioned these boards; he had forgotten that he'd made them for Mom! Linda suggested that I take a picture beside them for the blog so they could see them; that'll do until they can come to visit us here. I wish I had thought to take them with me when we went to see them; maybe we could have played a game! If Mom had never taught me cribbage, I probably would have never gotten math. It was my introduction to numbers. Even chemo brain hasn't ruined my ability to play cribbage! If you've never played cribbage, you have my sympathy. I thank God for good cribbage buddies like my friend Mike Buchanan, our granddaughter, Sadie, and, of course, Tom Rose. Linda, we must teach you!

Today was beautiful, here, again. We walked again, and I'm getting stronger. It was easier to walk today and we went farther than yesterday. It takes building up, I guess.

I even started some organizing, getting ready to do taxes. I have to have them all ready to do from Hawaii, so I've got to be prepared before we go and only have the last month to add to the 'mix.' I'm going to be so prepared that it's not a big issue . . . I'm determined to not let taxes ruin my whale watching!

Back to walking.

The picture tonight is me with my re-bloomers and notice the little miniature roses, too! Those little roses were some Don's mother planted. It's such a delight to me to have fresh flowers at this time of year. Our trees out back are really colorful, too, so we are still enjoying the fall colors.

Don and I walked today, but we cut it short because I was getting so tired. I can sure tell that I've taken about 3 weeks off from walking! It was a beautiful day for walking, though. God is so great to give us variety and beauty in our lives and good health, as well. We were grateful as we walked that we CAN walk; what a blessing.

I talked to Phil tonight and Ruthie is still really struggling after her surgery. I really wish she had gone to rehab. I think it would have been a lot better for her and not so stressful for Phil. They're tough, though, and they'll make it. They just have to get through this first couple of weeks until her body gets the hang of the healing process, I guess. I'm so sorry she has to go through all this pain, but I hope after the healing she will feel like it was worth it to feel better finally.

Lazy Sunday.

The picture tonight is little miss "I dressed myself!" Her shirt is on backwards and inside-out, but it does match her pants! Who cares about the clothes? It's the smile and the hugs I love. This is Raynie, of course.

Today has been so nice. We did our routine breakfast out at the Wagon Wheel and then church. It was so good to be back in our class and see people we miss when we're gone. Today was the fellowship dinner, so that was fun, too.

At church we have an abundance of little kids and they are such a delight. They have been studying for the Bible Bowl that is held in Altus each year, and they walked away with many, many trophies and medals. We were so very proud of them and their coaches. Our church has struggled over the years; I guess all churches do? We have a wealth of young people, though, and we thank God for them.

I called Ruthie today and she is still in a lot of pain, but gaining a little strength each day. Back surgery is a tough way to go, but we sure pray that this is the answer she was seeking when the healing is done.

I took another 2 hour nap today. Taking the antihistamines makes me so sleepy and sleep is the thing I do best, so I'm doing a great job these days. I cut some wonderful re-bloomers today. What a treat to have irises at this time of year. I love it. I'll post a picture of them soon.

A good day at home.

This is Sadie (12), Trish, and Raynie (2) as we found them on our way home yesterday. It was so good to see them!

Today has been a busy day. I had lots of unpacking to do, and I'm still working on it. I hate this part of coming home. However, our bed was so happy to have us back in it last night. In fact, I took a 2 hour nap today. I've grown lazy the last 2 weeks of doing mostly visiting, so being up on my feet and doing laundry was a rude awakening to me, today! Ha.

I talked to Phil and Ruthie is still struggling. Bless her heart; back surgery is certainly no picnic. I wish we could have stayed longer, but we left her in Phil's good hands. This is really a test for him; it's really hard to watch the person you love most in the world hurt! He's learning to perfect his cooking skills, too. I thank God for him and his love for Ruthie.

Happy Birthday, Ruthie!

This is a picture Don took of Ruthie and I the night we got to their house, a week ago tomorrow. If you look closely you'll see that my bruises had faded, but one eye was swollen shut. We have no idea what caused that! It started swelling right after I got to their house, so I took out my contacts, thus the glasses. It was better the next morning, so I was able to wear my contacts. Today is Ruthie's birthday. We left at 4:45 this morning and just got home a little bit ago. I'm headed to the bath and to bed; we're exhausted.

I called Phil and he said Ruthie has had a rough day. That is to be expected after all she's been through. She can celebrate her birthday after she recovers from this surgery. It's tough when someone cuts on your back! She had a long day yesterday, although she was doing really well. She made her longest walk at the hospital before they discharged her. Then she rode all the way home and then walked around a bunch at home. It was a really hard day, and I guess it took it's toll on her today. Phil's a great nurse and her favorite in all the world, so she's in good hands.

Don and I had a fine trip home. We still got to see lots of pretty leaves even though the peak must have been last week. We were blessed with a wonderful trip. We made a quick stop in Oklahoma City and dropped off a bunch of clothes that Gretta sent to Tricia's kids. We got to see Nate, Sadie, Raynie and Trish, so that was a treat for us. I got pictures I'll share another day. I wanted Ruthie's picture on here today. Thanks for keeping up with us. I thank God that people love us, for safe traveling, and for the health we all have.

Happy Birthday, Jilly!

This is our Gretta Jill with her son Garrett. Her name is Gretta Jill; sometimes I call her Gretta and sometimes I call her Jilly, so I'm sure that confuses people at times. Anyway, today is her birthday and we hope it will be the very best, yet, for her.

I'm in the hospital with Ruthie, waiting for her to be discharged. She is doing so much better this morning. She has gone off on a little walk by herself right now! Don went down to the cafeteria with Phil to get Phil some breakfast. We ate before we came, knowing that today will be busy with travel to get her home, etc. They have decided that she does not need to go to the rehab. She thinks she can do her own rehab at home; she feels good about it, so that matters a lot.

I wanted to do the blog from here because when I get to Ruthie's tonight I won't have this picture on her computer. We thank God for all our kids, but on Gretta's birthday, we are especially thankful for our baby!

Ruthie is stronger and stronger . . .

-------Tonight's picture is of me with my home ec. teacher from high school. Mrs. Anna Louise Joyce is 97, and dressed up like a witch for their halloween celebration. She's no witch, though; she's a sweetheart! I think of her with thanks every time I sew or cook.

-------Today went some better for Ruthie. She had a rough night, last night, but today we watched her walking very weakly this morning. This afternoon, she was much stronger when she walked. We were so glad to see the improvement. The consensus of the doctor, the physical therapist (and us) is that she should be released to rehab for a few days until she can get more mobile. I think they will probably send her to rehab tomorrow; however, this time yesterday we thought she'd be going home today, so we may be in for a surprise in the morning. She really did seem a lot stronger when we left this evening. Even if they won't release her tomorrow, I feel sure they will release her Friday morning because there is an opening at one of the rehabs in Paris on Friday and surely she'll be strong enough by then.

-------Don and I are doing just great. I'm so grateful that we could be here while she is in surgery. I would be at home wringing my hands over her being in the hospital this long! God is taking care of all of us. We trust His timing.

Ruthie is doing better and better.

This picture is one Don took last week of me with Portia Vaughn. Portia is on the administrative staff at the assisted living home where we visited a couple of friends. What a thrill to see her, too! When Daddy retired and moved to Winchester to be the hospital administrator, he was the first employee and Portia was the first person he hired. The building was being built and they had their office in the basement of the courthouse, I think. She was right out of college and this was her first job. He'd be so proud of her if he could see her now and the great job she is doing. I was 15 and Daddy and I lived in adjoining rooms at the local hotel until our house was finished. Mom was still in Tucson until that house sold. It was a cool time to be Daddy's girl, but we were sure glad when Mom got there!

They decided to keep Ruthie an extra day today, so we're back in the hotel tonight. She is really doing well, but we all feel like she will do better with an extra day to heal. They didn't walk her nearly as much as we expected today and Phil questioned them about it, so they are really walking her a lot tonight. That will be good for her. She'll be really ready to go home tomorrow, I think. She responded really well to the idea of another surgery to complete the job; she is so ready to feel good and be out of pain! I thank God that there is something to give her hope for the future and a doctor with whom she feels comfortable.

All my bruises are completely faded. Most of the scabs are off, but some are pretty deep and linger. My chin and lip are still very sore, but it doesn't show, so that's a good thing. It's good for me to have a constant reminder! I'm feeling really good. I'm coughing a lot because I do that after bronchitis, but I feel fine.

Ruthie is doing great.

-------This was Friday when Linda and Tom took us to visit one of my mom's dearest friends, Frieda Hannah. Frieda is 98 years old and sharp as a tack. It was so good to see her. Linda used to work with Frieda, so she knew her, too. Tom knew her from church years ago, so it was a good visit for all of us.

-------Now, about Ruthie. We just got checked into this hotel and we have an insecure connection, so I'm going to rush and get offline. I need to report that Ruthie did very well in her surgery. It was over 3 hours and we were expecting about an hour, so it was kind of stressful wondering what was taking so long. They did find that there was lots of repair to do, which they did, but they want to do another surgery in a couple of weeks from the front to really do the repair completely. She doesn't know that, yet, and I'm sure she won't like it, but she'll do the right thing. In the couple of hours that we were there after she came out of recovery she was improving a whole lot. She's a good patient, so she'll do really well.

-------Don and I are doing just fine. We thank God that we can be here for this time with Ruthie and Phil

Happy Birthday Dot and Floyd!

-------This picture is so tiny, but it's all I can get right now. This is Alex's older brother, Phillip, and the deer he got this morning. These Perry guys are tough on deer! Congratulations, Phil!

-------Today has been wonderful. It was so fun to see everyone at church who we always used to see when we lived here. Then we went out to eat at a Mexican restaurant and came home and took a nap. Yep; a nap, after getting an extra hour of sleep. We know a good thing when we see it! (Sleep) I am so grateful that God made us so that we need sleep; man, I'd be in a heap of trouble if I didn't get good sleep!

-------Today is sweet Dot's birthday (one who reads this blog and posts from time to time), and also our good friend Floyd in Hobart. I've talked to both of them today and they are both doing great. (Floyd is home and able to put 100% of his weight on his 'broken hip' leg!)

Congratulations, Alex!

-------Tonight's picture is of Alex, and his dad, John, with Alex's first deer. Today was his first day to go hunting and on his first shot he got this deer! Alex will be 11 in January. Can you see the pride in this Daddy's face? I love this picture and the precious comment! (Alex is Ruthie's grandson, and our GREAT nephew.)

-------We had a great trip to Ruthie and Phil's today. The weather was great and it was breathtaking to watch the colorful show of leaves everywhere! We're really getting spoiled to all these trees. We'll like our wide open spaces at home, though. God is great to give us this fun trip.

-------My computer doesn't see Ruthie's connection, so I'm using her computer. I'm glad we had Alex's picture for the blog tonight. I'll figure out how to post my pictures tomorrow . . . or sometime. Anyway, all is well here; thanks for hanging with us.

Wonderful red shirt day!

This is a picture Don took today of Tom and Linda and I with a couple we went to visit. This is Mary and Sidney Maxwell. Mary's daughter, Janice, and her son, Ray Jr. graduated with Tom and I. We had gotten lucky and seen Janice when we stopped for breakfast, but I forgot to take pictures, then! Duh! I was so excited to see her, plus we saw another guy from our class, who we didn't expect to see. It was such a treat to see them!

I'll post other pictures that we took when we got to visit my old home economics teacher, a precious friend of my mom's and my dad's secretary from when I was only 15! (Portia, Ruthie, and she said to tell you hello!) It was a great day of visiting. Plus we had more wonderful time with Tom and Linda and we spent hours searching through old yearbooks.

We thank God for the opportunity to see these many friends! We'll leave in the morning and look forward to seeing more family and friends this weekend! How blessed we are!

Glorious colors!

This is a picture of a high school mini reunion! Dana and Lloyd Long, Tom and Linda and I all graduated together. I haven't seen Dana and Lloyd since 1966; that's a long time! That's their sweet little granddaugther with us. Notice the colorful tree behind us!

We had a wonderful trip to Tom and Linda's house today. They drove us around and took us to see Dana and Lloyd and then just general places around the area that I would enjoy recalling. Tomorrow we'll go do some more visiting. Tonight we're enjoying visiting right here in their home. I sure thank God for lifelong friends and the health and ability to travel and see them! Oh, my! I must thank God for the awesome colors we have seen on this trip, too! It has been breathtaking!

No picture.

I just did this whole thing and then lost it. So, here we go, again. I'm not posting a picture tonight because I want to share a video that I think is so cool. I hope it works to post it like this. Those of you who have dial up may not want to fool with it, but for those of you who have high speed it's a must see:

http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/video/video.php?v=84093326845&ref=mf

NOTE: Gina clicked on that address and found that you have to log in to Facebook to see the video. I know that some of you are not on Facebook, so here is the U-tube address:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NHH-6ZQktRQ

Today we got to see Elise's basketball practice, and it was a real bonus for us. Gina is the assistant coach and she played the whole hour and a half with them, so we got to see both Gina and Elise in action. We're amazed at how well 4th grade girls can perform. They were pretty awesome, in my opinion. Don says, this is Indiana where they grow basketball players.

My bruises are hardly visible and many of my scabs are gone. I'm pleased to be healing pretty well, but I'm not the least bit tempted to walk by myself, yet! Sweet Elise asked me if I brought my cane with me; she remembered me walking and 'raising cane' last year. I told her I was taking a break from it right now due to my fall.

I sure thank God for creating us with the ability to heal; what an awesome God we serve.

Note: You may have noticed errors in the last few posts. Don just told me, so I fixed them. I must explain that I'm using Gina's computer and the monitor is about 2 feet away from me. I have to climb up on the desk to see what I've typed, so I miss a lot. Climbing is not a specialty of mine, anymore. Spelling never was! HA! Thanks for hanging tough with me.

Happy days!

Tonight's picture is of Kyle (12), Elise (9) and Ethan (7 in December) just last week when they took a camping trip for fall break. Earlier this year they bought a camper and they've used it 5 times already this year for great family memories.

We visited with Gina all day and then after the kids did homework, we played Rummikub. It's a fun game; anything we do together is fun. Again, dinner was awesome! Folks are feeding us too well on this trip; I doubt if it's helping our attack on our weight, but it sure is tasty.

Tomorrow we get to watch Elise do a basketball practice. I wish we could see a game, but practice will give us a big thrill. Gina was a great basketball player, and Elise runs like lightning.

Yesterday I started coughing up green stuff, so I'm sure I have bronchitis. It's so typical of me to get it during allergy season, so I'm due. It wears me out coughing, but I'm grateful that it's not something worse! We went to Wal-Mart today and got meds to attack it, plus I have a Chinese herb that always helps to nip it. Also, I'm taking colloidal silver water; we'll see if that helps any. None the less it's not any kind of flu and that's a wonder. I pray that I won't pick that up somewhere while my immune system is down fighting this bronchitis.

We're having a wonderful trip. We leave Thursday morning to head to Tom and Linda Rose's house. We always have such a great time with them and we'll be in the area where we graduated from high school, so I hope to see more friends, as well.

Talk about Americana!

This is it! This is Gina and Brian's home. It's really pretty here. I wish I could show you the whole farm, but this is a good beginning. Tomorrow I''ll get some pictures of the kids on here.

I can't connect with my computer, and I don't want to spend a lot of time fooling with it, so I just wanted to let you know that we are on a new 'leg' of this trip. This is in Scottsburg, Indiana. Brian is hunting tonight; he missed the ultimate dinner of roast, potatoes, carrots, gravy and homemade bread. He must really love hunting! (He does!)

We're playing Rummikub with Kyle and Ethan; Elise has homework, so we'll play with her another day, I hope. We sure thank God for the opportunity to be here with them! God is great!

Sitting a spell; so nice!

Here's a picture of Gretta and Don; we're having great times!

We woke up to the smell of sausage all through the house this morning. Gretta had breakfast made and waiting for us. YUM! I can't remember when anyone made breakfast for us; it was really cool!

It's been a beautiful day and we've done lots of outside things, as well as played Cribbage and watched a movie inside. It's been busy and fun! I thank God for this opportunity to visit and 'sit a spell.' Tomorrow we head for Gina's house!

A day in Kentucky.

This is a picture Gretta took of Garrett with Don and I. She said, "There's a picture of you all after Garrett beat up his grandmother and you made up." It's really great to be here with them. I'm healing more and more and feeling fine.

Elena and I took a walk today; it's a gorgeous fall day, here! I thank God for great weather and that both of us can walk! She's a hoot; she talkes up a storm. Garrett is off to spend the afternoon with his friends, and Gretta is off to the barn with Joe; she was having trouble breathing and thought she needed to go to the hospital, but called back to tell me her breathing had eased up, so she went to the barn to see if she could get by without going to the hospital. So we got to spend some great time with just Elena. I pray that Gretta can keep her breathing going! Asthma is a real bummer for her! They just came in and Gretta is breathing pretty good; no hospital!

Fun near Lexington (Midway).

Here is a picture Don took of Gretta and I working to get Elena to pose with us for the camera. No such luck; she wanted to hide!

We're having a great time with Gretta, Joe, Elena and Garrett. Garrett even has a couple of friends over, so we've got a houseful of fun!

We had a great trip. Right before we got here there was an accident on the interstate and we called Gretta to tell her we'd be late. She directed us another way to come and we made it just fine and got to see some wonderful country side. We thank God for a safe trip and for so many breathtaking views of fall colors!

Healing more each day.

(This picture was supposed to be here before, but the blog posted without it. The Internet service here is so cranky. Sorry if this frustrated you; just imagine how it frustrated me! But, alas, it's here and all is well. Happy and safe traveling is the goal for tomorrow. We're ready and I'm off to bed now that this picture is where it belongs.)
Here's another picture from the road trip, yesterday. I should have had the camera with me as we drove around Branson today, but I didn't. The trees here are absolutely gorgeous. We're so blessed to get to make this trip at this time of year. We always come here in the winter and spring, so this colorful fall visit is a real treat.

The Internet service here is just weird, so I have to hurry to post this. We're leaving at 6:30 in the morning to go to Gretta's in Lexington, KY, so I need to get busy getting things ready to load in the morning, too.

My sister wrote and asked me to not take pictures as I drive. Ha! I wont' be driving much tomorrow and I'll be ready to take pictures while DON is driving. I did take these pictures yesterday, but I don't put the camera up to my eye or anything; you know, just point and click. It's a quick one hand move, easier than adjusting the radio. Everyone relax, but thanks for your concern.

Maybe you'll be as glad as I am that my scabs are all falling off my face. I only have one remaining and it's only what's left after the big ugly one fell off. The bruises are fading, which is really ugly, because there is lots of yellow there, now. But, FADING is good. I slept last night without a bandage on my knee for the first time and went all day without one. That's great because it's drying, now, so it can heal better. It's all really sore, still, but I can get around and people have really been so nice to me. It's kind of funny how they look at me; they've got to be wondering what happened to me. I need a t-shirt that says "I fell; I'm not dizzy or sick, just clumsy." I've fallen a LOT over my lifetime. I just fell on my FACE this time, so it's so obvious to everyone. Anyway, I thank God that I can move and HEAL!

We're so excited that tomorrow we get to see Gretta and family! Woohoo!

Americana!

Here is a picture I took today while driving. Don was sleeping and I couldn't resist getting a shot of this beautiful spot. It would have been better to stop and do it right, but I just made a click as I drove past it so I could share with you in case you are in someplace that doesn't have seasons like fall. We're blessed to get to make this drive at this time of year. The sumac was blazing and beautiful.

We stopped in OKC and got to see Trish and Raynie this morning right quickly. This is a day that Trish works and Raynie was all ready to go to school. I didn't take time to dig out the camera, but I wish I had. Raynie looked like a big doll. It was good to visit a tad and exchange hugs and 'stuff' that we always trade.

Our trip here was uneventful; just a nice drive. We're all checked into our condo and got to see my favorite show, Pierce Arrow. Wow; I love seeing their show. I thank God for a safe trip. Now, if I can just get this posted. I'm having trouble connecting to the Internet. We even stopped at McDonald's to use their WIFI and I couldn't even connect there. Ugh.

Now, bruises appear!

Okay, I had to put on a picture so you all won't worry so much about me. Also, all the folks we'll be seeing will be shocked if I don't give them this preview. I look a fright, but I'm really doing just fine. My first fall on Saturday was just because I wasn't paying attention to walking and was distracted by counting those geese. Then the fall on Sunday was just a 'regular' fall for me because I don't pick up my feet very well when I walk. Many times Don catches me, as I stub my toe a lot on the flat road in front of me. It's not that I've been dizzy or anything. I just happened to fall two days in a row. I needed it to get the message that I really shouldn't walk alone. I got the message; now I only have to heal. Those bruises are going to be so lovely on my passport picture, which I need to have made while we're in Branson tomorrow or Thursday. I was shocked to see those bruises when I got up this morning. They keep getting darker; I hope they fade before I get to Winchester to see people I knew there 45 years ago. There is also a bruise on my left shoulder. I guess I fell pretty hard. I'm almost glad to see the bruises, because it explains why it hurt so badly! If you click on the picture and make it huge you'll see that the tip of my nose is skinned, too. Those 'owies' on my hands are the most painful because they are really in my use area. I'm so blessed to still have all my teeth and no broken bones!

The car is mostly loaded, but I still have the last minute things to pack and load. We're leaving in the morning, early, so I'd better go get the last stuff done, get a bath and get to bed. I'll find a way to post tomorrow night from Branson. I'm praying for a safe trip and looking forward to starting the trip off with getting to see Trish and Raynie in the morning as we go through OKC. Woohoo!

healing.

Tonight's picture is one of the same chameleon that I had on here last night. This is from a different angle so you can see how big he makes his throat. Notice that he looks greener in this picture.

Now, to the health report. I'm doing way better than I deserve. I DID NOT WALK today. I'm going to work out a while on the power plate. That will do for a while. When we get back from our trip back east I should be ready to walk, again. Maybe we'll get to walk some while we're gone, but I doubt if we'll have much opportunity to walk. All my skinned places are healing pretty well. My hands bother me the most because I can'tdo anything without them hurting. It's nothing compared to what many people cope with every day with arthritis, so I give thanks that this will heal. It's way better than when I had neuropathy from the chemo and couldn't even feel if I was holding something or not. My mouth is sore and swollen, but it mostly looks like I had botox put in my bottom lip and then spilled catsup down my chin. That will heal, too, and I can brush my teeth and eat enough to keep me going, so I really have no complaints. I am so blessed. I know that God is sending me some message, so I'm seriously working to read it. So far, I'm thinking I'm not supposed to walk by myself. I think, surely, the walking is a good thing to do. It could be that I should be using the cane for balance instead of raising cane with it. Anyway, I'm healing well. I'm so glad I can take a bath and do everything I need to do to get ready to make our trip back east. I can hardly wait to see everyone.

I talked to Floyd tonight and he is in the apartment at the rehab. They have a little studio size apartment to let him see if he can live on his own for a couple of days before they send him home. He's doing well, so far. If he continues to do well, they'll send him home on Thursday. Joan has his house all ready for him; she's been really good to him. Some adjustments had to be made, like removing shower doors, etc., and she's had all that done already. She cleaned his house, did his laundry and put on clean sheets to receive him. Thank God for sisters, huh? (And, so much more!)

Ouch.

This picture I took at Bob's house back in June. I must have taken hundreds of pictures of these guys in an attempt to get this one of him making his throat do this. Look, it's all huge and pink. It's not normally like that. He just does it sometimes. I have no idea why; I should study it and learn, but I think it's cool. One day I'll learn what is happening. I think this one is a chameleon because they are usually green, but this one is brown right here. The pictures I got of the same guy earlier showed him to be green. Go figure.

Now, the real news of the day. I went walking by myself because Don was watching football. It was a gorgeous day and I made it 4 driveways down the street before I fell. No speed bump. No excuse. Just clumsy, I think. I really have fallen a lot in my life. But this is now and I'm 61. I confirmed today that my bones are pretty good because I didn't break anything besides more skin. I skinned the same knee that I skinned yesterday, so that knee is really angry with me. I skinned both hands, again, so my hands and knee are starting to look a lot like raw hamburger meat. This time I hit my bottom lip and chin on the street, too, so I look like I've been whipped. (Don might have wanted to when I came in all bloody, again, but he helped me to clean up with peroxide and silver water.) So, I also confirmed that I don't have Alzheimer's because I attempted to catch my fall. I also learned that my teeth must be pretty good, since I didn't chip any. Also, I noted that they were knocked a bit awry, but they've already shifted back into place. (I wear those bands on my teeth every other night to keep the gaps closed. It frustrates me that my teeth won't stay where I put them, but, now, I'm glad they don't because I put them really wacky for a while today. So, I learned that I am glad my teeth move back into position, and I'm glad I can close the gaps with bands every other night.) I also scraped my chest and my belly; I guess it's a good thing I have some fat on my chest and belly or I might have broken a rib. Whew. I'm glad I got some use out of it before I lose it. Ha!

So, I'm all stove up; my body is really hacked about the treatment it's been getting lately. First I jogged and now I'm crashing. I jogged on purpose and gave that up readily. I'm willing to give up this falling, but, I think I can't be trusted. I think I will only get to walk on the treadmill when Don isn't going with me. I give thanks for the treadmill. I give BIG thanks for falls that only hurt, not tragic falls! God is really good to me! Maybe Don will let me walk if I promise to use the cane for balance and quit swinging it for exercise? We'll see.

Flunked my mountain goat test.

This is a cropped and up closer picture of the goats I had on here yesterday. I love this picture. It's not the most picturesque, I guess, but only because you don't see the water behind me! The water is gorgeos here. To me, this is the real Hawaii that few tourists see and not even very many of the locals because it's so remote. Most of the locals have to work too much to take the time to make these hikes. I thank God that we've had the opportunity to enjoy these places, even down to the goats.

Speaking of goats. My good friend, Jim Miller, from 7th grade is an avid hiker. His wife, Jill, calls him "Mountain Goat Miller." He'd be ashamed of me today, as is Don, because I fell when on my walk. (Don was home watching football and I was irreverently skipping the game.) It was a really stupid fall. I wasn't doing anything difficult; just walking. To amuse myself I was counting the geese, as if I could count and as if it mattered. It's simply an OCD thing of mine: always counting something, usually getting it wrong, and always forgetting the outcome. Anyway, I was strolling along and didn't notice the speed bump in the road until I stumbled over it and fell onto my hands and knees. Then I turned around to look for the culprit and there was the speed bump. Duh. The good thing is that I don't have Alzheimer's or I would have fallen flat on my face and my nose would be skinned intead of my hands and knees. (People with Alzheimer's don't realize they are falling or that they should put their hands out to catch themselves.) More good news is that my bones must be pretty good because I only broke skin. Skin heals pretty quickly. I came right home and cleaned it all, and I'm off to give David and Dorothy haircuts. I look on the fall as a test of my bones that is a lot cheaper than the last one I had at MD Anderson ($600).

We're playing cards tonight at the home of another couple from church, who have been playing with us lately. We look forward to it. We'll leave in time for Don to get in on most of OSU's game.