After feeling so bad last week, I've felt better this week than I have for a long time. Sunday was a day of just trying to breathe. We made it to church Sunday morning, but I didn't make it that night.

The weather finally broke late Monday afternoon with a pretty good thunderstorm (that I got caught in on the interstate) and Tuesday was a fantastic day! Had lots of energy and manage to get some things done around here. We also got the front entryway painted and caulked.

Bill also had a good week. He's starting to take the initiative with his medications. He did have a couple of mishaps with it. He took his evening meds too soon one evening (I'm going to have to mark out the suggested times) and somehow yesterday he took his bedtime med after lunch instead of his lunch medicine. Those 2 meds are not critical ones so it wasn't a big deal. He tried to take his evening ones too early again tonight, but, my all-seeing eyes caught him from across the room and from behind the couch! But, it is a step in the right direction in being more self-sufficient!

School starts Monday, although it has no real bearing on us. But, I'm sure we'll hear from the grandkids after the first day. Brianna is a Freshman, McKenna is in 4th, Kayden is in 3rd and Kiyann is a big 1st grader now. They have grown so fast!

We've also learned that we will have a new great-granddaughter in December, due Christmas Day. I think that will be #7. I'm going to have to sit down and really figure this out before long!

We will be going to visit with Bill's sister and husband after his biopsy in October. We're both getting a little itchy to go somewhere just to relax but can't decide where to go. We also want to take another train trip. We had such a good trip to New England before we went to Mayo and would like to do something like that again, but don't know which direction to go!

All for this week. Hope everyone stays happy and healthy.

I love early morning summer thundershowers! We've had a couple of mornings this week with low rumbles of thunder and soft rain. Nothing violent or severe just nice rain, although it was heavy at times today. We have been just below the flooding areas in Missouri so it could have been us overwhelmed.

Had a so-so week, at least for me. Bill had a good week and even had to be self-sufficient for a bit. As I was getting dressed Monday I leaned over to get clothes out of the dresser and pulled something in my lower back. As long as I stayed moving it was tolerable, but once I stopped it took a bit to get going again. But, I managed to get all of the laundry done. Emily and her family brought me a birthday cake Monday evening and I got over 80 birthday wishes on Facebook, calls and cards.

Thursday morning I woke up with either the latest stomach virus going around, or my sinuses were draining so much during the night that I was nauseous from that. Either way, I felt really bad and spent most of the day in bed. Bill cooked his own dinner that night, although I supervised a little bit. He's been a good cook, but hasn't done any since the transplant. His little steak looked much better than my soda crackers, but the trade off wouldn't have been worth it. Felt better yesterday and feel pretty good today. I dodged raindrops to get a few groceries and cleaned up the kitchen. That's about it for work!

Bill has had no health issues this week. When I get any kind of stomach problem I always have to really watch to make sure he doesn't get it. But, so far so good. He hasn't been real active this week and it's getting to the point he's going to be in trouble with muscles. But, nothing I say seems to get through to him!

So, a pretty normal week for us. We're having a carry-in after church tomorrow to celebrate the month's birthdays/anniversaries and I still haven't made my dessert. It won't take long to put together but I'll do it tonight instead of waiting until tomorrow morning. We were supposed to vote on a pastor last Sunday night but at the last minute he withdrew his name from consideration. It was one that I really liked, but I understand his concerns. I don't know who will have our message tomorrow.

That's all the news from here for this week. It's about time to get dinner in the oven and get that dessert made so I can watch the Cubs game tonight! Can't miss that!

We've had a very busy week! Bryan got the hot water heater finished Sunday afternoon after church. The sink in the bathroom was not draining properly so Monday we had quite a go-round with Ron. I wanted him to take the vanity top off and start over but he managed to get it working right without doing that. And now, the bathroom is finished! The curtains and wine rack I ordered for it came in Monday and I found a print at Wal-Mart and it all looks very nice if I do say so myself. Ron was disappointed that we weren't going to immediately start another project, but he took all of his "stuff" home. I went on about that enough last week so won't go into it again.

Tuesday we had to talk to our insurance agent. We are not really pleased with the outcome, but we had no other choice. Our homeowners insurance has been with Southern Farm Bureau for several years and our car insurance with another company. We had received a letter from the homeowners telling us that they were not doing business in this area any longer and our policy would not be renewed. Well, our agent sent us a note last week and said that there was a change in policy and Farm Bureau would not offer insurance unless they got ALL of the insurance. After doing a lot of checking we could not get the homeowners with comparable coverage for anywhere near what we are paying. So, our car insurance went up $200/year, but the homeowners now went down about $100/year. Part of the increase could be Bill's age, as his life insurance went up quite a bit because age.

We had Kayden and Kiyann for a couple of hours again this week while their mom went to a meeting for work. Kayden and Pa took a long ride in the car and Kiyann and I iced a cake I had made before they got here. When they ate a piece they both said it was the best cake ever!

I did learn something this week and am proud of myself. I learned how to change a light socket! The light over my stove is just a lamp socket that had a push button. I know it sounds strange, but that's how it was when we bought the house and my electrician husband did not get around to changing it before he got sick. Anyway, it had started shocking me periodically when I would turn it on/off, the last time bringing tears. So, we bought a turn switch to replace it. Bill talked me through it, because he couldn't get under the vent hood close enough to work with it (could be why he hadn't changed it before) and we managed to get it done. So far it's working and hasn't shorted anything out!

We went to Jonesboro yesterday. It's time to get my diamond ring inspected and Bill wanted to find something for my birthday. He had looked while he and Ron were out for breakfast but Ron kept steering him away from what he wanted to look at. He was checking jewelry and Ron kept trying to get him to look at the "cheap" stuff. When Bill is buying gifts, he doesn't look much at price, he looks at what he likes. So, we headed to the mall. While my rings were being cleaned I found a birthstone set I liked. You don't see Peridot much anywhere anymore. It's a lovely ring, necklace and earring set. She told Bill the price, he said we'll take it, and after a sale discount plus a military discount, I have some new jewelry. I'll have to take the ring back to have it sized. I was going to wear it on my middle finger, but it was not comfortable there, so I'll have it sized to my ring finger.

Today has been a lazy day. It was rainy this morning and cloudy most of the day. Bill did take a walk this afternoon, but I don't know why I even bothered to get dressed! I have not left the house and barely left my chair. I've cross-stitched and knitted some but, other that cooking meals and cleaning up the kitchen, I haven't done anything else.

We got our itinerary for the next biopsy in the mail today. It's been scheduled for Oct. 14th. We're going to see about visiting with Don and Shirley after the biopsy for a few days. Still need to get with them to see if they have any plans, but that's what Bill wants to do.

All for this week. Bill's cutting into what's left of the cake. Enjoy the rest of your week-end!

We made it home from Florida on Wednesday after all. The weather was fine until 50 miles from home and then heavy rain, combined with road construction. We were really glad to be home and extremely tired! The bathroom was only 3/4 done, and still isn't done. I was told that 5 days is NOT enough time to redo everything! I don't see it myself, but, it is what it is!

Thursday was spent buying some groceries and getting resettled in, as much as can be. I'm tired of everything being upset in the house. Things are everywhere except where they belong. I want my house back! I know our handyman wants to go straight to another room but that's not going to happen. I told Bill the other night that the last 2 1/2 years have been very stressful for me and I don't want the added stress of constant turmoil and upheaval for the remodeling. I don't care if it takes another 3 years doing 1 room a year! He also doesn't understand how the last 2 years have affected me. He did admit that he "slept" through a lot of it. Yes, it was all about him, and now that he is better and able to fend more for himself, it's going to be some about me and what I need. Didn't mean to go off on a tangent, but, boy I feel better!

We had Kayden and Kiyann Friday. Mistie and Joe were both working and her babysitter quit. These kids are no trouble and we enjoyed having them. We've never spent as much time with them as we have Brianna and McKenna because they lived farther away and Ryan worked odd hours so we weren't sure when to visit or call. Anyway, we had a great time although they ate us out of house and home! After they left I started to get ready for McKenna's birthday party and discovered we had no hot water. I had done laundry and cleaned up the kitchen, but there still should have been hot water. I checked the water heater and it was not heating at all. So, we turned the gas off and headed to the party. We only stayed about an hour. It was at the bowling alley and there was a lot of turmoil with the kids running around. Lots of confusion confuses Bill more now.

Today we were off to Lowe's to buy a new hot water heater and they told us they didn't install gas heaters. So, we didn't buy it but went to another store in town where we had bought the old one-15 years ago. They didn't have any in stock, and they said they didn't install them either. They did install the old one, so I was very confused. I talked to Emily late this afternoon and she said Bryan could install it, so off to Lowe's we went. As we were waiting for them to get the heater from the top rack, I read a sign that said "Have Lowe's Install Your Gas Water Heater"! And on the box there was a picture of the Lowe's logo and "Lowe's Installation Guaranteed"! Anyway, we got it here and while the old one was draining it was off to Pizza Hut to get dinner for everyone. Got the old one out and the new one in, with some help from Joe next door, but Bryan can't get one line sealed. So, since it was getting late, we told him it would be OK to wait until tomorrow, that we could heat water to clean up with for church. Joe said we could shower at his house in the morning and Emily said she and the girls had to be at their early church service if we wanted to go to their house to shower. But, we'll be OK. I just have to remember to not use the hot water tap in the kitchen or there will be a mess in the pantry!

So, our homecoming has been eventful to say the least. Maybe by the middle of the week the bathroom will be finished and I can get my house back!

Hope all of you have had a good week-end so far. Until next week...be blessed.

Sorry for no post yesterday but I didn't get to stay for this biopsy. Dr. Hosenpud did it and he doesn't use the echo, he uses x-rays. So, I couldn't stay in the room. But, everything went well and we were finished in 2 hours.

We headed home this morning and had a great day for driving...until we got 15 miles from our hotel. Then the heavens opened. While I was taking the luggage cart back down to the lobby (we are on the 3rd floor), Tina called and gave Bill the results of the biopsy. He was again at status 0 which is no rejection at all. His Prograf (anti-rejection med) level is on the lower side of acceptable, and his blood count was a little low, but there are no changes to the meds. We go back in 3 months.

We've had some excitement here already this afternoon and evening. There have been severe thunderstorm warnings, a storm watch and we've lost power. Remember, we are on the 3rd floor, but at least if we have to use the stairs it's easier going down than up! Maybe it won't happen again. The weather report tomorrow has severe weather all along our route. We've already decided that if it gets bad we will just stop somewhere and wait it out. I have all of our medications with us, so it won't matter if we don't get home tomorrow.

We were able to visit with our friends Faith and Abner and had great time. They are really good company. We also heard about our friend Michael. He still has not gotten his heart, but he and Margaret finally got married. There is now a problem with his LVAD drive line. Depending on what the problem is it can either push him to the top of the list or get him taken off altogether. So, we're hoping he'll get bumped. He has a rarer blood type so his wait has been longer.

All for tonight. I'll let you know when we get home.

We've made it to Jacksonville! We took an alternate route yesterday. The traffic is Memphis has been horrible and there is major construction just before the city, so we went north to Dyersburg and then down to Corinth MS and over into Alabama north of Birmingham. We had to leave an hour earlier than usual and we got to our hotel at the same time we normally would have, so I don't know if the extra hour of driving was worth it to miss some traffic. We forgot to bring Bill a jacket (after all it is late July and we were in south Alabama) so stopped at Walmart before we ate dinner. All we could find was a quilted flannel shirt, but it was only $5 and it was cold in the restaurant! I have also decided that the drivers in Alabama have got to be the worst drivers in the world! And, if any of you reading this are from Alabama, sorry, but it's true!

Today's drive was supposed to be a little easier but it started raining as soon as we crossed into Florida. Before we made it to Tallahassee we had to pull to the side of the road it was raining so hard. I could see a dark shape in front of me but couldn't tell how far. So, it was better to sit for 15 minutes than keep going. We stopped again at a rest stop just up the road, but that was mainly for a potty break. Now it's my fault it rained so hard. It had been raining, but not bad, and I needed to stop. So I said God, please make it quit raining so we can stop at a rest area. The rain slowed up and a sign for a rest area appeared, but this rest area is way off the highway, so I told Bill I didn't want to stop at that one. As soon as we passed by...that's when the rains really came down! So, I had to apologize to God for not taking what He offered the first time! We got wet at the rest area when we did stop, but it wasn't the deluge it had been.

We are planning on seeing our friends Faith and Abner tomorrow afternoon. We didn't get to see them the last trip.

This has been a sad week for us. A dear friend lost his wife this week. He's going to be totally lost without her. They didn't have any children and his nephew doesn't live close. He had taken care of her for a couple of years now, so don't know what he's going to do. Then last night another friend lost his battle with cancer. He was a young man and had fought hard for about 5 years.

McKenna got home from camp yesterday and after a shower and some food (Emily said she was starving) she fell asleep about 7:15 last night! She sent me a text this morning that she was still hungry!

We're going to head out to our favorite pizza place here for some supper and then hit the grocery store for some breakfast items. We're staying in an Extended Stay with kitchenette again so we don't have to eat every meal out. The breakfast they offer in the lobby leaves a lot to be desired, so we'll pick up something for here.

I will update this again after the biopsy and then again when we get the results. Hope everyone is enjoying the week-end.

Early post this week, and I know most of you still keeping up with us won't see it until the normal time. But, with getting ready to travel, and a little bit of news already this week, I just figured I would go ahead and get it done.

We are leaving Friday for Bill's biopsy on Monday. The reservations have been made, laundry is done so the suitcases can be packed. I'm going to do that today so that I don't mess up my manicure tomorrow!

Bill is now wanting to try to use his computer again. When we were doing the 1st phase of the remodel, Bill kept track of everything on the computer. He kept spreadsheets on everything done, including tracking Ron's hours and pay. I printed out a form for Ron to use to track his hours while we are gone and now, Bill wants to enter them into the computer. So, I found the spreadsheet and pulled it up and we got the info entered. Bill was very frustrated because he can't remember how to do any of that. We had to get him a new keyboard and he was able to get it connected and running by himself last night! That's a major breakthrough. We were looking at the spreadsheet and for some reason the formulas for the cells that figure amounts are not there. Now, when I took spreadsheets in college I barely passed the course, (and failed the final...guess I shouldn't have walked out in the middle of it). Somewhere, probably packed into a box somewhere we have an Office for Dummies book that would probably help. So, I'll probably look for it today. But, at least he's wanting to start sitting at the computer. We'll get him a new email address set up before long if he keeps it up.

I know it's been frustrating for him to look at things and know that he used to do or use it. He's seen some electrical drawings and other things that he had written for work and doesn't have a clue to what they mean. I don't know if that will ever come back completely if at all. He's now talking about seeing Dr. Salguerio the psychiatrist he had seen for depression. They had told him that it wouldn't be a problem working him back in. We're going to wait until we get back from Florida and see how he's doing then.

So, that's the news for now. I'll update this again Saturday after we get settled at our hotel in Florida. Enjoy your week!