Another quick update...

This is me of late... Although it's more like so much to do, so little energy to do it.  I had my echocardiogram today and the tech said everything looks structurally sound, but of course the cardiologist will still need to read it, and my pulse galloped thru it at a rate of 109-129 bpm. Then I got wired up to the Holter monitor, and while I have tried to be somewhat more active, there is probably more I could do, especially since I fell asleep while reading and didn't realize I had dozed off until the phone rang. I apparently slept about an hour, because I last remembered looking at the clock at ten minutes to six and it was just after seven when Eric called me. Who knows how long I would have slept otherwise! Eric had an interesting observation though- perhaps my need for sleep/tiredness is because of how hard my heart is working. 

Anyhow, after we were done at the hospital we went to Walmart and picked up some refills on meds the base pharmacy didn't carry, and we wandered around a bit. I also vacuumed the main floor, which was in dire need of it, even though I just did it a couple of days ago. Then I knitted on my new shawl (a quickie, mindless knit, but using my hand spun yarn) for a bit, came upstairs to keep Eric company while he readied for work, and had my nap.  I decided to go for a walk, from the house to the trail along the south on the sidewalk, then followed it back to the back of the house... I was winded and got my pulse pounding, so if there is something going on hopefully it will show. Then I had dinner, tried to read but got bored (research papers for my project due Sunday) and knit for a bit. Now I am trying to decide if I am ready to go back to sleep or if I should try reading research again and fall asleep for sure :)

We went out to a Japanese buffet and seafood grill for Patrick's birthday yesterday, and the whole family was there. Little miss Skye looked adorable as always and was my girl. 

She is so sweet and loving! I miss her this weekend but she is staying with James' mom and some of his other nieces and nephews, and it is probably for the best. She would have a hard time with my monitor, wanting either to wear it too or help take care of me. Brie and James came back down for the night to be closer to the armory, and will be gone bright and early. 

Eric ran out first thing this morning to be in line at the local IRS office when it opened for tax transcripts for Aurora and Reimond's financial aid. Not sure what the timing is for when Aurora's is due but Rei had to have his in either today or Monday at the latest or he'd be dropped from his classes. He ran them over this afternoon, so hopefully all he has left to do is buy books and school supplies. 

Ok, I am yawning.  Just a couple more photos before I go:

This was Eric and I before we left for our fifth anniversary dinner.

This photo made me smile, taken at Reimond's graduation party in Minneapolis: me and my dear friend Debbie;

And this is the first useable amount of yarn I have spun and plied using my drop spindle, the yarn I am using now in a shawl similar to the one I made for Deb. There is 151.5 yards of it.

I think that's all for tonight. I will update again when I have results from the cardiologist.

Quick update

I have been taking my meds faithfully (all ten of them, with a hope we can reduce a few of them soon), and I have been taking my blood pressure daily, which is responding well to the med, but my pulse continues to be fairly high 90-130's. I am scheduled for an appointment with the cardiology department tomorrow to have an echocardiogram and then be fitted for a Holter monitor (24 hour EKG). So hopefully we will know soon what it is that sets my pulse to racing so. I also have a Gino appointment coming up to check for endometriosis, something my sister had severely enough that it caused he monthly abdominal pain that didn't show on any tests (until she had an exploratory laparoscopy), and resulted in her having a hysterectomy. And I see the gastroenterologist soon too. We are gonna get me figured out, hopefully sooner than later.

I am a little sad we won't be having Skye over this coming weekend, given its a drill weekend, but it is probably for the best, with my needing to run back and forth to the hospital with wearing and then returning the monitor, and I have a 15 page paper due Sunday night. Sit, I am going to miss her because I love our time together.  I am also missing not having Justin and Alexis here, but again, it is probably for the best, despite my sadness. 

Eric and I had a fabulous 5th wedding anniversary. We went out and had an amazing, Italian gourmet style dinner with multiple courses, pair with exquisite wines. We truly enjoyed ourselves and it was such fun. Exactly what I was hoping for in celebrating this first milestone anniversary. The restaurant is called Acero and we were at the "more laid back" location, versus their higher end version in downtown St. Louis. The meal lasted for 2.5 hours, and we spent that time talking, counting our blessings, and planning for the next five years.

Today is Patrick's birthday so will will be doing his family dinner tonight after Eric gets home from his overtime shift. Not sure where we are going yet, but it should be nice. 

I am doing okay. Eric has been wonderfully supportive of everything I have been dealing with these past few months and I am hoping our answers are easily fixed. As my sister told me one day last week, there is nothing wrong with "Better living through chemicals" and I will do whatever is necessary to regain my ability to function as I think I should. The hardest part for me is slowing down and accepting that I cannot overdo anything because it sets my heart to racing and I feel winded, like I ran an obstacle course instead of just running the vacuum. One day at a time is my mantra, along with a strong belief that God is with me every step of the way, is in control of my future, and has a plan for what is to come. God's grace is sufficient for me and I am blessed.

Slightly overdone...

For those who didn't know, I was in the hospital for 5 days, from last Saturday to Wednesday. I woke up with excruciating abdominal pain early Friday morning, it lessened some through the day but remained sore while Skye and I got Reimond enrolled in college at SWIC (Southwestern Illinois College), but by Friday evening I was flat on my back in bed, and wasn't much better Saturday morning, so around noon we headed to the ER. After numerous tests, morphine for pain, and being poked and prodded, they couldn't find a specific underlying cause because almost everything came back normal (my blood pressure and pulse didn't always cooperate by being in the normal ranges). so they labeled it "gastritis" or "irritable bowel syndrome" and sent me home on an additional 4 medications.  I am feeling better, and haven't needed any pain meds stronger than Tylenol since Wednesday, so I am cautiously optimistic that whatever was bugging my system has worked its way through. I am still easily tired and my pulse remains too fast (90s to 120s) at rest, but I will be following up with my own doctor this week and the gastroenterologist in another couple of weeks. I am on high blood pressure meds now, which has me kinda freaked, but I know it's necessary.

I have to admit to being fairly stressed though over being gone so long--there are things to be taken care of that didn't get done, and Eric did an amazing job of keeping Skye entertained and loved while I was incapacitated. They visited me at the hospital every day and Skye was happy to "take care of " me. I am almost 2 weeks behind on my assignments but I kept in contact with my professor and she said as long as I stay up on the current ones, I can submit the late ones without penalty so long as it is in a timely manner. If I am honest I hardly know what day it is right now because they all blended tedogether when I was in the hospital. I am extremely grateful nothing serious was found, but a bit concerned that it wasn't easily identified so that I know how to prevent it from happening again.

On Thursday Eric gave me permission to go on the last chance summer yarn crawl for metro St. Louis. He drove and helped with Skye while we went to the first five shops on the list, then I finished up the last four today with Skye, which was far more challenging, although she was as good as can be expected for almost 3. I did my best to keep my purchases focused on specific objects or colors of things I really liked so I have more sock yarn and lace-weight yarn for making shawls. I also finished spinning my roving into two balls of singles, so after plying them together yesterday I now have 151.5 yards of my own spun yarn to make something out of.  I am very excited to figure out what I want to make with it--obviously nothing too big because there isn't a lot of yarn to use... Skye and I spent some quality time sitting outside today enjoying a shared ice cream cone and watching people, dogs, and babies go by; we also saw a couple out with their macaw and cockatoo, and she was thrilled to be able to pet both. The lady even gave her a feather from the macaw that dropped while they were out and about which made Skye's afternoon. We did a lot of walking today though because St. Charles MO is a very busy and historic place, so parking is at a premium and we didn't have a stroller.  Passers-by seemed to really enjoy Skye's exuberance as she danced, flew (flapping her arms like wings) and waved her magic wand at things (a stick she picked up), all the while singing to herself and bouncing along.  She really is quite entertaining and engaging. Now though, I am glad to be home and able to sit, along with hoping that Skye goes down to bed at a reasonable hour.

I am a bit disappointed that my two grandkids from MN won't be coming down to stay with me for a couple of weeks after all. It's both an issue of money for two round trips, as well as concern that it might be too much for me (which I strongly dispute, but they are the parents, and I don't have the funds to finance the trips either). I am sure the kids are going to be crushed too when they get told because I know they were counting on coming down to see me and all the things we generally do when they are here. I will have to go out and pick out belated birthday presents for them to send north as the plan had been that they would pick out what they wanted while they were here with me as one of our outings. I am sad, but understand completely where they are coming from. I just am disappointed because I treasure my time with those two little ones and having them to myself for a few weeks.

Brie should be home sometime on Sunday afternoon to get Skye, and I don't know yet if they will be spending the night here or not. I am sure they are exhausted from all they have been doing. She is probably going to be disappointed in me that we didn't push potty training harder. We did the first week, and she did well, but once I went into the hospital diapers were just easier for Eric to manage and deal with, plus the stress of change made it harder for Skye to be sensitive to her needs, hence lots of accidents. I have really enjoyed my time with her here though, and we have played and laughed and danced and cuddled.

Everything else with all the other kids is pretty much status quo, with Rei and Aurora getting ready for school to start mid August, and hopefully Patrick and his girlfriend will find jobs so they can move forward with their lives too.  Anyhow, that is the update for today. Tomorrow is Liisa and Zack's first wedding anniversary and what a year it has been for them!  Hopefully as things settle down with the house (and the roof getting done finally) they can have a peaceful second year of marriage.  Now it's time to get some dinner for the little one, and as I said before, I hope it's an early night of baths and bed!

Mid-July and summer is here!

I am posting this picture because it makes me happy. This is a sunflower that was more than likely planted by the birds in my planter, but it is lovely and makes me smile.

June got away from me with being sick, and at my doctor's appointment a month ago my pulse and blood pressure were high. I was put on an antibiotic, which took care of the sinus infection, but I continued to have random episodes of feeling light headed and easily winded. At my follow up appointment my blood pressure and pulse remained high and my doctor started me on a dose of blood pressure medication, which I began taking today. I also bought my own blood pressure cuff and she wants me to track it for the next three weeks, with a follow up appointment in early August.  I am grateful for the medication and look forward to positive results from it, but am concerned with what brought it on (other than a family history of heart disease) when there have been few significant changes in my life over the past few months (other than stress, perhaps). Eric is of the opinion I need more exercise, which I don't dispute, and I would like to lose some weight, but while I don't see myself as an athlete by any means, I also don't see myself as terribly sedentary either.  I agree in principle that I should step things up a bit (to which end I have my sisters old school Nordic track) but I will also admit to being very self conscious about exercising where I have an audience because of bad experiences when I was young in gym classes and so forth...  I do enjoy walking, and I wouldn't mind getting out more to go to the base gym if I had a regular way to get there.  

Skye is definitely keeping me active right now though. She has been here for a week and we have spent lots of time swimming in the smallish pool we put up in the back yard (emptying it and moving it around every couple of days). It has been a god-send inn burning off her energy by mid afternoon and getting her outside and keeping her cool over the heat of the day. She is also practicing riding her two-wheeler on the sidewalk once the front half of the yard is shaded and she is getting the hang of it. As much as I am enjoying her, she is wearing me out too and I look forward to bedtime.

My class is going well and I am keeping up despite the interruptions to my days. I am really enjoying the subject matter (counseling skills and procedures) and feel like I am refreshing rusty skills. Of the kids Aurora is the only one with a job still, and she is working her butt off at the kennels. Reimond is getting organized for school and is (I think) looking forward to it. I am still riding him to get thank you notes written for graduation before the summer ends, but he has his own time tables and they don't necessarily reflect mine (although I guess that could be said for all the kids). Eric is back on overnights so our sleep schedules are a bit screwy as we navigate who sleeps when, and I am doing my best to keep distractions to a minimum for him.

Liisa is starting to get he work done on her house and got her first insurance check to pay for things. The electrical is done, the central air is limping along while parts get ordered etc. and the roof is still under negotiation between her roofing contractor, the city, and the insurance company. Slowly but surely it is coming together for her and I am so happy for her and Zack. Tony and Andrea are doing fine. My kids are in summer school and seem to be enjoying it. We still need to coordinate schedules for the kids to come down to me, but we are still looking at the beginning of August for that.  

I am getting drowsy so I think I will go for now. I am still around and we are doing ok, just busy busy busy!

Rainy days and Mondays...

For those of you NOT on Facebook, I have some photos of the storm damage at Liisa's house from Friday afternoon/evening. The old maple tree in the back yard lost half its crown in the straight line winds, taking down Liisa's power lines, ac unit, fence, and putting holes in the roof, along with lost shingles and gutters. The power mast to the house is damaged and she is awaiting info from insurance, the power company, et al on the order she needs to get things done: she has had no power since Friday.

 View from the back door...

What is left of the top of the tree still standing...

Needless to say, it's heartbreaking. Tony and Zack took a chainsaw to the branches in the yard on Saturday, and tarped the holes in the roof.  Now it is just a matter of organizing what needs to be done and getting it done. 

We had storms down here all weekend too, so we didn't go riding on the motorcycle as I had hoped. We did go see Man of Steel and it was good, although I thought the fight scenes and damage was over the top. I started with another sore throat on Sunday, almost identical to the one I had for round one of that viral crud, and today am congested, coughing, and frogged voice again. Obviously the antibiotics helped the sinus infection the original turned into, but my resistance is apparently low enough that I have round two on the virus...  Really sucks!

Eric is working his long week this week, and we are waiting to hear if we will be making a fast run to MN to pick up a friend of mine for a couple of weeks visit. She has some things going on and isn't sure yet if she is able to come down, but hopefully will have a better idea in the next few days. We could potentially be a busy household over the next 6 weeks--for sure from mid July thru mid August. I. Am all set to resume coursework on the 8th although I still need to order my books. 

Life is never dull, that's for sure.

Happy Father's Day!

This is a picture from 1970, taken on board the Lake Champlain ferry, in New York. My dad was almost 41, and he died just shy of his 64th birthday. I miss him so much. I had a really rough night the other night and when i finally fell asleep dreamt I was at my parents house. For whatever reason, in my dream I decided to lay down on my parents bed, and as I drifted to sleep, I felt my father's arms wrap around me and hold me close, like I was a little girl again. The sensation of being held was so vivid, and felt so real that the next morning I asked Eric if he had held me in the night without my being consciously aware of it, and he said he hadn't; it makes me smile to think my dad knew I needed comforting and hugged me in my dreams.

This is a bit different Father's Day for us because Eric is working today and his dad is in the hospital with pneumonia in IN. The viral crud he had while here never fully left him and settled into his lungs, so he was admitted for some iv antibiotics, fluids, and breathing treatments for a couple of days. It sounds like he is doing ok, for which we are all grateful, and we send him lots of love and prayers to be better soon! Everyone here is still coughing as well, to a greater or lesser degree, dependent on when it started, and given how rapidly it spread, I am so glad Eric took the two days off he did when he was at his worst. The VA hospital didn't need that stuff floating around...

Patrick and his girlfriend decided to be in charge of dinner tonight, which is very nice of them, so I have been doing laundry and working on my appliqué squares (Cat Academy). Now that the rain has quit I have a few other things to do as well, and my spouse is on the phone, so it's time to get going.

Wow, June has passed by quickly!

Tis is what I have been working on over the past month or so, to relax from all the partying and traveling we have been doing.

 

This is called a spun single. It is part of the first half of the hand-dyed braided fleece I used to spin on this spindle. 

These are the completed spun singles I did, about 5,580 inches of spun fiber. The ball on the left is thicker and smaller than the one on the right.

This is the ball on the left plied with itself on the spindle to make my very first two-ply yarn. Some of it looks more like colorful rope than yarn, because it took a while to get the hang of spinning singles and keeping them consistent, but ball two turned out significantly better.

These are both balls plied with themselves, approximately 74 yards of two-ply yarn. It fluctuates between being really chunky to being more worsted weight, which is closer to what I wanted.  I soaked them per instructions to set the twist, and now they are drying in the bathroom. When dry, I will wind them into balls and use them to make something:).  I can now officially call myself a spinner. Not an expert by any means, but a spinner.

That is what I have spent a bulk of my free time doing lately; that and reading. We had a lovely visit with Eric's parents over last weekend, however we all came down with a nasty, communicable virus that swept the household, so things were pretty low key while they were here and I spent Tuesday and Wednesday in bed, and part of yesterday still hanging in my room. Other than Aurora, who is still pretty miserable, the rest of us are on the mend, and Eric went back to work today. She had yesterday and today off, so hopefully will be on the mend tomorrow when she is scheduled to work again.

Today I have spent some time sitting in the yard, and I am going to start focusing on some specific projects here in the house, things I am committed to getting done this summer. I had to enjoy the gorgeous day thou, because rain is predicted for the rest of the weekend.