Monday, April 28, 2008

Wow, What a Whirlwind....

HEY EVERYBODY! I HAVE MISSED COMMUNICATING WITH YOU. Well, let's see...where to start. I'm still waiting for the pictures from Mom's birthday party so I will post those as soon as I receive.

I saw a commercial on TV for Free Mammogram and Pap Screening so I signed up. I used to be faithful to get these tests annually but unfortunately a few frustrating medical moments caused me to fall off the bandwagon AND THAT IS NOT THE RIGHT THING TO DO. Anyway, I am still waiting for the results on those tests but when they checked my vitals my blood pressure was through the roof! What a shock to me. As some of you know, over the past 3 years or so I have made many drastic changes in my life to improve my physical fitness and I had never had high blood pressure before so this news blew me down as Popeye would say. Consequently, I was sent immediately to the emergency room and from there given meds. Believe it or not, my pressure has not come down yet (they say it takes about 10 days for the medicine to kick-in) and I have had to see the doctor 3 times in 1 week with a standing Tuesday @ 1pm appointment. They keep sending me for more and more tests and the only thing left to do now is the dreaded colonoscopy...yikes! Though some of the results have not come back yet, those that have are, per the doctor "better than great!". Let's see, I have had 2 sets of blood work checking for anemia, thyroid, kidney function, cholesterol and EKG and a CAT Scan. Whew!

So at this point, they are saying it is either "one of those things", "hereditary" or "something is critically wrong that they have not found yet". I appreciate your prayers in this matter and I PRAISE GOD for allowing me to have the opportunity to be checked out but just in case you were wondering I FEEL FANTASTIC!!! I have none of the symptoms that they are telling me I should be experiencing with hypertension. I am still power walking 3 - 6 miles a day, eating right, drinking 64 oz of water per day and slowly but surely my weight is coming down so I will keep you posted.

Hypertension is called THE SILENT KILLER. I recommend everyone get their pressure checked regularly, with or without health insurance. You can go to any fire station and they will be happy to check your pressure for free. Not sure how accurate the machines are at the grocery or drug store but that is also an option. Don't ignore high results. Take care.

Wednesday, April 9, 2008

SPRING CLEANING IS IN FULL BLOOM

These past 4 days have been just glorious! Mom's 92nd birthday was yesterday (more about that later and I will post pictures too) and in honor of that, my sister-in-law, Phyllis, wanted to come in and do a good old fashioned Spring cleaning for Mom. And what a magnificent job she did spending roughly one day on the kitchen and another on the living room scrubbing every nook and cranny, washing walls and curtains, etc. The place really sparkles and the wonderful pine scent radiates throughout. Another part of this that was so special for me was that having someone there for such an extended time, seeing her moving things around and hearing her sing from her vast array of Christian CD's, made me think of days gone by, when Mom was moving around the house like that. It felt like old times and that made me so happy. Mom enjoyed her being there too. She loves music and she did her best to supervise. Though it was meant as a gift for Mom, it was truly a special gift for me as well. I could tell Phyllis really enjoyed herself and put her heart into this effort. Sometimes getting away from the normal routine and having alone time or partial alone time to focus on a project can be very therapeutic. Maybe that's why I enjoy mowing the grass so much. Though Dad has been gone 28 years, it feels like he and I are out there handling it together the way we did when I was a teenager. It relaxes me, refreshes me and exhausts me all at the same time. Every now and then, I appreciate someone doing it for me but for the most part, I simply love it. Well, here's a big THANK YOU to Phyllis!!! Also, my son Micah decided to tackle the yard and the garage on Monday so another big THANK YOU goes out to my son Micah, my nephew Rocky and his son Ryan for outdoor cleaning and getting allllll the trash out just in time for trash collection this morning. May the Lord bless all my family!

Thursday, April 3, 2008

A Television With A Mind Of Its Own

Last week I noticed a couple of times that when I entered Mom's livingroom, the television was off. I thought, "Hmmm, she must be getting tired of watching it and is now remembering how to turn it off."
There are days like that with Alzheimer's victims. One day they may not remember how to wash their face and the next day, you might find them handling complete body care and getting dressed. I try not to be overbearing. I watch to see what she remembers and what she doesn't and from there step in to help where needed. I always make sure to lay jewelry out for her because that is something she liked to wear daily before the Alzheimer's. Some days the jewelry goes right on...other days she will hold up the earrings and ask "What are these?" Anyhooo, yesterday I realized her television is on the fritz. I checked to make sure the sleep timer was off, so that is not the problem. It shuts off sometimes every 5 minutes and other times it shuts off after several hours. Her 92 birthday is April 8 so I think a new television would make the perfect gift! I'll send out the good old family e-mail to see if anyone is interested in chipping in. Enjoy today's beautiful sunshine my friends! Let me know if you know of any great electronic sales.