Finally! Spring has put in an appearance in Arkansas and it has made both of us feel much better!

The baptism service was wonderful last week and it was good to cry for a good reason. We all went out to eat afterwards and "the youngun's" all left first so we just visited with my ex and his wife. He and Bill compared some military experiences and it was an enjoyable afternoon. We were both tired and glad that we weren't having evening services.

With the weather warmer and the sun shining we both felt energized. Bill and Ron cleaned out the garage and Bill even mowed the yard! We have a lawn service, but Ron wanted to treat both of our yards for moles and needed to cut the grass to do that. Since it wasn't the day for our service to come, and we didn't know if they would come this week or not, he brought his riding mower over. He started mowing and then Bill got on and mowed at least the backyard. I was busy in the house so didn't pay a lot of attention, but I think it made him feel useful again. We also took the hardtop off of the Thunderbird so it's ready to go for the summer.

Bill has had mostly good days mentally this week. I think the weather has also helped with that. We've had some good talks about various things and not just memories. We've talked about things we want to do with the house and about the kids and grandkids. I've gotten so that I can tell by his face if he is having a good day or a cloudy day. Now if we could just get his leg cramps under control. He's staying hydrated now and has even said that he's really trying to drink more, so I don't know if his electrolytes are out of whack or what it is. I've gotten him some bananas and that has helped some so maybe is potassium was low.

We did have some storms this week and we lost power in the night. I woke up right after it went off when the ceiling fan quit! The bedroom got hot fast. We both got up and I opened the front door to let some air in. It was only off for about an hour. I'm so glad that Bill doesn't have the LVAD anymore. If the power had gone off with that we would have had to switch him back to battery power and then I would have braved the weather to switch over to the generator. We didn't use the generator this time but would have switched over if the power had still been out by the time morning arrived.

Bill got a phone call from the heart clinic in Memphis telling him that his pacemaker monitor needed to be upgraded. When he told them he didn't need it anymore they were quite surprised. They have been getting reports from Mayo throughout the process, but this was a different section and she didn't have any idea that he had had the transplant. We're waiting on a callback for an appointment since that was one thing Mayo wanted that we hadn't gotten done yet.

Next week starts baseball and softball games. We have 4 grandkids playing this year, 2 in baseball and 2 in softball. The baseball schedules are set but not softball. I am color-coding the calendar with the games. We are already seeing some conflicts and when we throw the softball games in we'll be doing good to get to 1 game for each of them. But, we enjoy watching the kids play. The pollen will kill me along with the cool night air and we will have to slather sunscreen all over Bill. We probably shouldn't eat ballpark food either, or at least Bill probably shouldn't so meal planning will be a challenge.

This was a milestone week for me as well. I did my last set of books. I had decided that I was turning the bookkeeping over to the office after this quarter. That let them get through tax season. So, I finished the quarterly reports and let the clients know. I had been doing those books for about 15 years, so it was a little sad to let them go. But, it was getting harder and harder to make myself do them and I was afraid that I was going to start making mistakes that would be costly. I'm going to go in to the office the first time they are converting to their program and show them the little quirks that each client has to make the transition easier. Of course, I gave the client the option of finding another bookkeeper if they didn't want the office to do them. I hope they don't, but it's their decision.

I guess this is all for this week. I hope everyone has a great week.

Where to begin? This has been a crazy week, it seems. As soon as I got our Easter ham in the crockpot the stomach bug that Emily had earlier in the week hit. Bill got ham sandwiches for Easter dinner! But, it only last about 24 hours and I started taking meds as soon as it started so we were able to have our Easter dinner on Monday.

Our weather again was ugly, cold and rainy. Wednesday was cloudy and cold and windy, but we went to Jonesboro to shop for furniture. Bought a really pretty sofa and loveseat. All of it reclining. We had noticed that we were both nearly laying down on the sofa now so decided to go for it and get the recliners. They will be here toward the end of the month. Ryan is going to take our old sofa and loveseat. We keeping the recliner and chaise lounge.

Thursday I woke up with a very strange sore throat. It didn't hurt to swallow, but it hurt to turn my head and to touch. And, it's not my neck but my throat. As the day wore on the worse I felt and ended up sleeping on the couch to stay away from Bill. I also couldn't get comfy in bed. Em checked with her drs. and they said if there was no fever to take Aleve or Advil since they both have an anti-imflammatory. I've felt better the last 2 days but my throat still hurts some. I probably have tonsilitis. And yes, even though I'm almost 59 years old, I still have my tonsils!

The sun has finally decided to shine and today we both had lots of energy. Bill and Ron worked on the generator, getting it ready before the summer storm season starts and I cleaned and made a Walmart run.

Poor little McKenna, our granddaughter, got hit with the stomach virus yesterday morning and she got the full thing. Didn't start keeping anything down until late last night. She told me today she was very weak. She started feeling better this afternoon so I think she's over the hump with it too.

Tomorrow is a very big day for us. McKenna and Ryan are both going to be baptized! We're all going to church together and Ryan's dad and step-mom are also coming. It will be strange to be with them, even though we get along well. But tomorrow would have been our 40th anniversary, so to spend it with an "ex" will be different!

I realize these last few posts have not had much to do with Bill. He's still doing quite well. When we were shopping this week, he bought a book on learning to play the piano. For some reason he doesn't want me to try to teach him. Anyway, he was going to sit at the piano when I went to Walmart today. It will be good therapy for his hands and he said his left hand was really hurting after using it so much. He does seem to want to only sit and watch TV and it's getting harder for me to come up with ideas to engage him in something.

A young man we know had a successful kidney transplant Thursday night/Friday morning and is doing quite well. And, the friend of a young woman here in town died suddenly Thursday from a brain aneurism in Shreveport, La. He was an organ donor and it makes me wonder if Steven got Ian's kidney. We'll probably never know.

April is Nation Organ Donation Month and if you aren't an organ donor, I encourage you to do so. It doesn't cost anything, doesn't hurt, and only takes a couple of minutes of your time.

All for this week, I've rambled on long enough! Be blessed!

We had a good week this week, a little busier than the last ones. But, we had some sunshine and some warmer weather and that made both of us feel better.

Brianna and McKenna came over after school on Wednesday and it was a good thing. Their mom was sick so we got them to church. I checked on her in the afternoon, but of course couldn't get too close. Hard for a mom to do when her child is sick, no matter how old the child is! But, it was only a 24 hour thing and I was no worse for it.

McKenna also spent the day with us Friday. There was no school and Brianna was spending the day with a friend from church filling eggs for the church Easter Egg Hunt. This is always a big deal for our little town and there were 30,000 eggs to fill. They were also having carnival rides and lots of other fun things for the kids.

We went to the Good Friday service with Emily and the girls, and Bryan who was working security and parking. Emily and Brianna are on the Praise Team and McKenna is on the Children's Church Dance Team. The youth group put on a performance that was very moving and then there was an illustrated sermon that was also very moving. Several people came forward at the end which is always good to see.

The egg hunt today was shortened by rain. We went out to eat a little while ago and drove by the church. The field is still covered with plastic eggs. I imagine there will be a little hunting going on tomorrow after church!

We're having a very quiet Easter. The kids were busy with their dad tonight and they were also supposed to be together tomorrow so I planned just a small dinner for the 2 of us. As it turns out, their plans for tomorrow have fallen through, but there's not going to be enough for everyone to come here. They may come over in the afternoon, we'll have to see. We will go to church in the morning and have our dinner and then who knows what the day will bring.

It doesn't seem possible that Bill's at the 11 month mark from transplant and will have his yearly check-up in May. We did find out we won't see our friends John and Cindi this time, they are going in April.

All for this week. I hope everyone has a blessed Easter, I know we will.

This has been a very dull week. We've still been tired so the trip to Oklahoma really wiped us out more than I thought. Plus, the weather is starting to get to us  I think. We finally saw some sunshine Weds. and Thurs. morning. Thursday evening it started snowing and we got a good ground cover. It was a heavy wet snow and I loved watching it. Stood outside in it for a little while with Emily. It didn't last, seemed to melt right in front of us.

I started some spring cleaning this week. I just hope the sun comes back this coming week. It makes it so much easier to want to do things. I don't even care if it's cold...just so the sun shines!

We're taking 2 of the grandkids shopping tomorrow after church for ball gear. It's that time of year and right now mom and dad don't have the money to get it. We've helped before with the other kids so it's time to help these.

Can't think of anything else noteworthy, or interesting for that matter. Maybe something exciting will happen this coming week! For those of you in the path of the snow storm, stay safe and warm. For you in the south where there could be strong storms, stay safe and dry. And for those of you who won't be getting any "weather" have a great evening and stay safe, whatever you choose to do.

Again, sorry for no post last night. Our trip to Oklahoma whooped us. We got home about 5 yesterday evening and were in bed by 9. After 10 hours of sleep we are still tired!

As far as health goes, it was an uneventful week, although my sinuses have cleared some. It has only taken a month and I'm not sure it's gone. And, it's just in time for allergy season to really kick in! Bill has done pretty well. He's still dealing with leg cramps in the night, so I've got to make him really drink even though he doesn't want to. I'm also having to watch what he eats. I told him at lunch today, which was a potluck at church, that he didn't eat enough to make me happy. Maybe it's only because he's tired.

I know I'm tired because I'm a little short with him. I've noticed that this happens when I'm tired, so I really have to work at not griping too much.

We did get some really good news today after church. My son has been in a very dark place for a long time now. The whole family and lots of friends have been praying for him and those prayers have started to be answered. He ended a relationship that was not going anywhere and for the past 2 Sundays attended church with either friends or his sister. Today, he was saved! He was raised in church but as an adult got away from it. So, God is answering prayers in very strange ways, but His ways are not our ways! I'm not going to argue with Him, but thank Him for His goodness!

Again, sorry this wasn't posted last night. I'll try to do better next week!

Sorry I didn't get this done last night. I was pooped! It's been a crazy week, ending better than it started.

Bill is doing fine, woke up with leg cramps early yesterday morning. I had told him he was "dry" but he still wouldn't drink and he paid for it during the night! He thinks that if he doesn't feel thirsty he doesn't need to drink. But, he and Ron went to the gym 3 days last week and then Bill ran some errands so that I didn't have to.

Family crises (is that the plural for crisis? Oh well, you know what I mean) cropped up this week. My mother was hospitalized with an intestinal infection. She responded well to the meds and is home now which makes us all feel better.

My son's girlfriend decided that since she didn't want to get married there was no reason to continue the relationship. This was completely out of the blue. So, he's moved out and is looking for his own place. His children were extremely happy to see him this week-end and his daughter is thrilled that daddy is getting his OWN house!

We're heading to Oklahoma Weds. for little William's 1st birthday. It's going to be a quick trip, coming back Saturday. We're going to make plans for a trip to Illinois to see family and before we know it, it will be time to go back to Florida.

I hope everyone has a good week and that spring will finally get here! I'm ready for warm weather!

Early post today. It's spitting snow and cloudy, just like yesterday. And we thought it was supposed to be getting warmer. I'm ready to put the Christmas tree up!

This has been a week of milestones and worry. My former boss, would have still been my boss this year, had been complaining of chest pains for a couple of weeks. So his wife finally made him an appointment and he was put directly into the hospital. Had a heart cath Weds. and 2 arteries were 100% blocked, another 99% and another 70%. This is a non-smoking 49 year old. The doctor, who is one of Bill's former drs., said he saw no sign of heart attack damage and the heart muscle was working well with some "feeder" veins taking over for the blocked ones. Yesterday a quadruple bypass was done and thankfully everything went well. As of this morning, he is off the vent and sitting in a chair! Will probably be in ICU for another day and then moved to step-down. We were there for the cath, but haven't been back. Jalena has a good support system with family so I felt comfortable not being there for her. She's holding up well, had a bad moment when the dr. said he was looking at surgery, but she's been resting well. Her other worry has been the office, but the staff is running it with no problem. I'm meeting one of the office managers tomorrow after church to run payroll. She's going to print the checks and I'm going to sign them since I haven't been taken off the account yet.

So that's the worry part. Yesterday was 1 year since Bill was placed at the top of the transplant list and today is 1 year from getting the first call and having our dry run. Sometimes I wonder if it would have been better to deal with the fungus that heart had and avoiding all of the other complications that have occurred. But, it doesn't do any good to dwell on what ifs!

I'm still dealing with the sinus problem and will probably go to the dr. this week. My left ear and left side of my nose are so sore and today my throat hurts, but that is more from sinus drainage, I think! I don't know what they will be able to do. The treatment of choice is Augmentin and I can't take that. So, we'll have to see. I would like to get one of the mega shots that knock out everything and be done with it!

We're considering going to Oklahoma for William's 1st birthday on the 14th. We haven't completely decided if we are going or not and weather will play a part in it. Hopefully in a couple of weeks it will finally start warming up some. We still need to go to Illinois to visit my mother and family and before we know it, it will be time to head back to Florida!

All for this week from snowy Arkansas! Have a good week-end!