Saturday, October 25, 2014

It was a very slow, dull week compared to everything last week. But slow and dull can be good!




The gastro dr. called Wednesday and said that the pathology on the polyp removed was benign. So, he's good to go for another 5 years.




I think we're going to do something we haven't done before, mainly because of me...we're going to vote early this year. I have always been against voting early unless a person was not going to be able to vote on election day, such as being out of town. We voted by absentee ballot while we were in Florida and we had both done that before. But, because crowds bother Bill and disorients him some, we're going to vote early. Hopefully the lines won't be long. We also vote in a bad neighborhood and if we're not there during daylight hours it's not safe to go. This may seem terrible to say, but facts are facts.




We went to an awards ceremony for McKenna Thursday. She got several awards, even made the A/B Honor Roll for the first time. She also got a citizenship award, perfect attendance and a medal for scoring above average on the benchmark tests last year. We then checked her out early and brought her home, after a stop at Sonic for some ice cream. She and I then picked Brianna up after she got out and we went to their mom's office to get flu shots and back to the house, after another trip to Sonic for Bri to get some ice cream.




It's been cool this week and I finally broke down Thursday and turned the heat on. It hasn't been on continually yet, just to chase the chill away. I love fall and winter, but I'm not ready for the heat to be on!




Tomorrow is Pastor Appreciation Sunday and we're having a bbq after service. We're supposed to bring a dessert and I'm taking a pumpkin cake. I had to clean the oven this morning though before I can bake it. It was terrible and because of the broken seal on the window I was afraid to use the self clean setting.




That's about it for this week. As I said, it was a very dull week!

Saturday, October 18, 2014

We made it through the week, although the end of it was tough, more for Bill than for me, but still tough.

Bill started his restricted diet for the colonoscopy Monday and it wasn't much different than the one we usually follow. I did let him splurge Wednesday night with a steak and baked potato, but both were on his approved list.

Thursday was "prep" day and after some scrambled eggs for breakfast, nothing but liquids. We left for Memphis in the afternoon and traffic was horrible. I decided to try the south leg of the bypass. Normally this would take about the same amount of time as the north leg, but not this time! We crossed the "old bridge" at 3:30, and we still hadn't made it to the hotel by 4! Not only was the traffic heavy, there was construction with cars trying to merge just driving up the shoulders where possible. We saw a little blue car just about drive up the back end of an 18-wheeler because they were in such a hurry they were cutting in and out of lanes at a pretty high speed. We finally go checked in and it was a good thing that I had brought me something to heat in the microwave because I sure didn't feel like going anywhere to eat.

I couldn't get it through Bill's head that he needed to really be drinking all day. I think he thought that because he couldn't eat that he wasn't supposed to drink either. When he started his prep kit, I didn't think he would get it down. For all of you who have had a colonoscopy, you know what I'm talking about! But he only had to drink a liter of the stuff, followed by a bottle of water. He only drank enough water to take his medicine. He was up about every hour through the night, which meant that I was awake every hour also. Friday morning's prep did not go well, he only got the 1st glass down and gagged on the 2nd one. I decided not to push it. He had said that everything that was coming out was just clear liquid so I knew he was empty. He drank enough water to take his pills and that was it.

I went down to breakfast and asked the desk clerk if we could check out at noon instead of 11 since his appointment wasn't until 1 and we were only 5 minutes away. She said it wouldn't be a problem and we could have a 1 checkout if we wanted, but noon was okay with me.

We did get checked in early at the dr. and he was called back to be prepped about 45 minutes early. I did get to go back to the holding area to answer some questions. Usually they don't let the "driver" come back until after the procedure, but since Bill can't remember as easily, he told them I could answer all the questions.

The procedure got started about 1:30 and I was brought back at 2 and he was awake, still a little groggy, but awake. The dr. came in and said the only thing he saw was a small polyp that is now gone. Nothing to worry about and he would see us in 5 years! We were on the road about 2 hours before I thought we would be. The clerk at the hotel had told me which would be the best route out of town, but since we were earlier than I thought we went the way I went the last time and it was not bad at all. Bill still wasn't hungry, just very uncomfortable from the gas. And he couldn't pass it! He cramped all the way home and into the night.

He feels fine this morning and we've already been out to breakfast since there are very few supplies here in the house. I must go grocery shopping for a few things anyway today!

When I was at breakfast yesterday, I noticed a big red and black bus parked in the back or the hotel. I didn't think too much about it, there were no markings on it that I could see. Thought it might have been a ball team of some kind. A man was checking in and I could tell from the conversation that he was registering for several people. A few minutes later a younger man came in for some coffee and I could tell that he had just woken up, so thought he was probably someone from the bus. I decided to load some things into the car while Bill was getting dressed and shaving and talked to the desk clerk again. She was very friendly and pleasant to everyone. Anyway, she was telling me that she had 69 check-ins for the day, but the one she was worried about, the group, was already done. Then she asked me if I liked country music. When I said I did, she said the group that had checked in while I was at breakfast was Diamond Rio, and they were on the same floor we were on! She said they're just normal folks and if I saw them in the hall just to say hi to them. She also said that if I wanted tickets to the concert just to let her know and she would get them for us! Unfortunately, we couldn't take her up on that.

So that's our week. But, with the good report for Bill, it was all worth it. I don't know if he would agree that it was worth it. I think if he had to go through the prep again sooner than 5 years he would refuse to do it. Maybe in 5 years time they will have a better way of doing it. At least he only had to try to drink 2 liters, broken into 2 days, than the gallon I had to drink when I had mine. I'm going to change drs. when it's time for my next one because the dr. I went to still does that prep!

Hope everyone has a good week ahead. Ours should be good, the weather is fantastic and is supposed to be all week.

Saturday, October 11, 2014

It was a dark and rainy day...and it's going to last awhile longer. We have a flood watch for the next few days and they are forecasting 3-5 inches of rain. So far the bulk of it seems to have gone south of us, but the main area is supposed to get to us Monday.

Our trip to Memphis went very well. The traffic Sunday afternoon was a lot heavier than I thought it would be, but the decision to go on Sunday instead of Monday morning was a good one. The hotel was 5 minutes from the dr...in the right direction...and it was a lovely room. The staff was friendly, breakfast was good, all in all a good choice. Bill's appointment went well and his colonoscopy will be Friday afternoon. We're going down Thursday afternoon so that we don't have to make the 2 hour drive AFTER he's taken his colon prep. He starts a restricted diet on Monday, can have scrambled eggs Thursday morning and then nothing but clear liquids. He takes half of the prep Thursday night and the other half Friday morning. It's a whole lot easier than trying to drink an entire gallon of stuff at one time. The worst part of this trip for me will be leaving Memphis at rush hour. When we came home Monday I was able to take another road through town some and then get on the interstate and miss the construction. I may do that again, or take another road that will get us through downtown. I'll just have to see when the time comes.

The rest of the week was pretty uneventful. We finally got the paperwork for the car so we got the tag transferred. We also got the payment book and I can't set the payments up online UNLESS I open a bank account with this bank. I'm not going to do that. I've thought about going to our local bank that we have banked with for more than 20 years and see if they would refinance. I'll have to remember this for any future car purchases!

We're going to visit Bill's sister and her husband in November after our Mayo visit and we're looking forward to that. We're going to stay at the little resort at the beach where we've stayed before. It's within walking distance to the beach and restaurants. I still have to make a reservation for stopping on the way home, but I haven't decided where to stop yet. We still have a little time, maybe I'll do that today before I forget.

That's all for this week. We'll just try to stay warm and dry. The temp today is not supposed to get out of the 50s. I wish I had the makings for some soup, but I don't and I don't think I'll go out to get it! We'll have to settle for something else!

Saturday, October 4, 2014

Good morning everyone! It's quite cool this morning, only in the 40s and only 68 in the house. Didn't turn the heat on...yet. But, the coffee is hot and it's a beautiful morning.

My car arrived Saturday afternoon. I tried to post a picture of it, but it kept turning sideways. Don't know just what the problem is with it. If you want to see a picture of it, you'll have to go to my Facebook page.

We've had a good week, started out fast and ended slow it seems. I finally got Bill's appointment made for his colonoscopy. We go Monday for the office visit and then they will set the appointment. The nurse thought the doctor would want to do it at the hospital instead of the office, but that decision will be made Monday, I suppose. The office is right in the middle of a huge construction project on the highway, and the time is right in the middle of rush hour, so we're going to go to Memphis tomorrow afternoon and spend the night. Hopefully the hotel I picked is not too far, and in a good area of town. We usually stay at the Hampton Inn across the street from the hospital we use, but I picked one that looks to be about 3 blocks from the clinic. Woke up this morning hoping that is 3 blocks in the right direction. There is so much crime in Memphis now that we try to avoid it as much as possible.

We also got his Mayo itinerary. His appointments are Nov. 10 and they are basically what I thought they would be, labs, echo, nurse coordinator, doctor. They have us scheduled to see Dr. Patel, and we haven't seen him since we came home in 2012. He's my favorite of the 3 doctors, but don't tell Dr. Yip or Dr. Hosenpud!

The remote to the video system in the car, and the wireless headsets for the video system were missing from the car so we took the drive to Jackson to talk to our salesman. I had tried to call several times and couldn't get him and it was starting to bother Bill, so we had a nice drive. I do like the way this one drives and rides! It was a pretty day and traffic was really light so it was enjoyable. He's tracking them down and they will be sent directly to us.

We had some severe weather Thursday night and I had to get Bill out of bed for a tornado warning. There were several tornadoes but it seemed like they formed, dropped, and went right back up. No damage in our area. Since we don't get local weather with our satellite system I was watching it online and when he said they were going back to regular programming, we went to bed. We were supposed to get heavy rain most of the night, but after the first wave went through it stopped raining. So, we were very lucky. That front is also what brought the cooler weather, only supposed to be 60. The weather has just said we could see frost in the morning!

Bill hasn't had anymore problems with cramping this week, but he's also been drinking more and has been a little more active. I've told him he really needs to be walking more or Dr. Patel will not be happy, so he's spent a little more time on the treadmill.

All for today, he just asked me if we were going out for breakfast so I guess I'd better get some clothes on and comb my hair! Have a good week!