Just me again...Mary Jo

I guess this is proof I have too much time on my hands....Actually, I am slowly getting back to more normal activities, even visited two of my clients yesterday. I couldn't sneak up on them very well clomping around on my cane, but I had two good visits. I must admit, it felt like I should have had some retraining. Similarly, when I took my first solo spin in the car last week, I was really nervous! Hard to imagine how soon the new routine becomes familiar and the old one seems foreign. I'm sure mom will feel that way when she moves back into her home after the summer away. I am comforted by the fact that I do expect the "normal" to return. It must be very hard for people who find themselves permanently unable to walk independently.

Thanks for the posts regarding PT. When I went to the doctor on Monday, he informed me it wasn't 6-12 weeks for recovery, but 3-6 Months!! Well, I guess 12 weeks is 3 months, but it's still another 6 weeks to go!! He gave me some side leg lifts to do (which makes the muscle burn) and told me to do those multiple times a day. He also suggested water walking, and doing the lifts in the water and an eliptical trainer machine....so I am going to go to the Y tomorrow for training on that. I also have an appointment with a PT here in town, and will talk to the head therapist there regarding his suggestions. I don't want to irritate the still-healing muscle, but I sure am anxious to walk without the limp. The hip, itself, is feeling great and I can move it in ways I haven't been able to do for several years, so I really think it will be fine. I shall keep you all informed, and you can judge for yourself how I am doing at the upcoming family events!

Well, enough of this boring medical news. Hope you are all staying cool. Paul is over laying irrigation pipe on the soybeans. Two retired guys are helping him. He says it is too hard to find kids who want to do that work. When I talk to Andrew, he always complains about "no work ethic of kids today". His lady friend has three boys....15, 10, and 4. I just smile.....

Shower photos-Kelly

Here's a few photos from the combo wedding/baby shower that the women from our home church, Knox, put together for Elissa and me last weekend. As mom mentioned in her post, it was lots of fun and we all were grateful that everyone was able to wrap their brains around a double shower on short notice due to everyone's tight summer schedule-- Baby Bright on the way soon and my very few free weekends! I'd have to say that the most creative gifts came from a very talented woman, Donna Christopherson (pictured w/ Elissa) who made Elissa a beautiful baby quilt and cleverly turned a bath towel, hand towel and washcloth into a 3 tiered wedding cake We had to open her gifts last because they are such works of art. My mom still has the towel cake on the counter at home for admiration! Elissa has another baby shower coming up this weekend so they should hopefully be prepared with plenty of baby items by the time Baby Bright arrives:)
I was glad to see posts from so many recently. It's always fun keeping up with the happenings. I agree that it was sad to hear about all of the moving Aunt Marge has had to endure this summer following the tornado but what an adventure with dentures! Mary Jo, I'm glad your surgery is done and I would highly recommend physical therapy as well to expedite and improve recovery. I was glad to see all of the photos from Nancy's trip to New York, it has inspired Paul and me to select NYC as our next vacation destination following our honeymoon which we have booked to an all inclusive resort in Mexico. The wedding plans are moving right along-we found some invitations at Target that we really like and will print those in the coming weeks so be checking your mailboxes in late August but mark your calenders for October 17th. That's about all of the news for now. I cannot wait to see Steve's photos from his feeders association trip to New York with Grandpa! The trip sounded so well planned that Paul said he would like to join the feeders association just for the vacation but I pointed out he would have to talk cattle, of which he knows little, other than his last name being Hollstein.
Much love,
Kelly

Comments from Illinois

I have chuckled a great deal reading the blog this summer. Thanks for the continuing entertainment!

Aunt Marge - I know it has been very disruptive to be completely displaced by the storm damage, but your account of the missing tooth and ensuing search for the extra set of dentures was laugh-out-loud funny (especially since I know all the characters in your story and could picture the scene at the storage unit perfectly, in my mind ). Thanks for sharing and please do post again. I had almost forgotten what a talented writer you are.

MaryJo - I have known several people who have had successful hip replacements, and the more physical therapy they had, the more complete and quick the recovery. Ed's mother's doctor didn't send her to therapy and it took her FOREVER to recuperate fully. Ed is currently having therapy on his little finger (loooong story, but it was badly dislocated while he was out of town) and has become a big fan.

Nancy - Genetics run deep - I share your photo ID obsession. I always ask family members at least twice, every time they leave for the airport, and check my wallet countless times. The one time I did not ask, Mom had left her purse hanging in my hall closet. (She had brought two purses along, and switched for some dressy event, but the wallet was in the one she left behind.) Ed was their ride to the airport and, fortunately, parked the car and took them in, instead of kicking them out at the curb like we do to all of our slightly younger guests. He called home to confirm the other purse was here, but there was no time to get it to her. She was allowed to board with NO form of ID at all. Guess she doesn't look too threatening.

Joe Warren - Any advice on fungus problems in the lawn? We have some bad stuff circulating around our area. After searching through the Scott's lawn problem book and talking to neighbors, I'm sure it's fungus. A couple of people have lost their lawns entirely. Our yard starts off great in the spring, then gets very thin in places about this time of the summer, no matter what the weather. If my memory serves me correctly, and that's a risky assumption, we have brown spot and/or summer patch. I have had it aerated every fall for the past 3 years, as the Scott's book recommended.

Elissa, Matt, and Kelly were all in this past weekend to enjoy a "two-fer" shower, baby and bridal. The original plan was a baby shower for Elissa, but Kelly's schedule was too full of working weekends and friends' weddings to come home again, so we made some phone calls, Paul and Kelly hurriedly did some registering at Bed, Bath, and Beyond, and we combined. It was great fun and a good use of resources. I would post pictures, but I was shooting with Kelly's and Elissa's cameras. Maybe they will post, when they get time.

The weather has finally cooled and the humidity is gone today, so I had better go for a walk before dark.

Love,

Janice

Start Spreadin' the News......from Nancy

Hello to everyone!
We're back from our grand adventure to New York and despite Stan's misgivings about the trip (and mine at times, I must admit) we had a wonderful time. Mark is well situated at Turning Stone and everyone we met said that he dispelled their misconceptions about Nebraskans; I won't even dignify their thoughts by repeating them here. I'm sure you can imagine..... We ate lunch on the veranda of this clubhouse, which is where Mark has worked most recently. Here's the putting green and another view of the modest(!)clubhouse.
We took Amtrak from Syracuse to NYC and found it to be a long, but enjoyable trip. I recognized that I was being irritatingly phobic about having photo ID's to get on the train; I thought I only asked Mark three times if he had his, but Stan said it was at least double that number. When we got ready to board, we were not asked for any ID at all, so I was the butt of many jokes the rest of the trip. The last several hours we traveled along the Mohawk then Hudson Rivers, so the scenery was wonderful--lots of trees on the opposite shore and big boats on the rivers. It was a bit unnerving, though, to see how close the tracks were to the water.
Thanks to Sue's suggestion to read "New York City for Dummies" we were more prepared as to what to expect, but no words on paper come close to actually being on the street.We stayed near Times Square and it is an overwhelming place--so many people, so many languages, so many sidewalk vendors and soooo much neon. I know I look like typical paranoid tourist with my pouch that I was usually clutching under my arm, but my excuse to my slightly embarrassed son was that this was my first foray into the big city and that I was on sensory overload;Mark was much more casual and embraced the bustle We did all the typical tourist things: a boat trip around Manhattan, two bus trips through "the city", ate NY pizza (Valentino's is better) and watched part of a Yankees game at the ESPN Zone. I always enjoy seeing pictures from everyone else's trips, so I hope you will indulge me with these. When we cruised by the Statue of Liberty, I was surprised at how ornate Ellis Island is.There are manmade waterfalls under several bridges as a public art project; this is the Brooklyn Bridge version.Stan has been a lifelong Yankees fan and he was pleased that our boat went close enough to see the soon to be demolished stadium.
Mark and I went to the top of the Rockefeller Center so we could see things from on high.I was drawn to Central Park because it was the only green to be found.I proudly wore my Nebraska shirt to the Today show and was on TV for about 1.5 seconds after standing outside for two hours.After putting Mark on the train to go back to Verona, Stan and I went to see Grease on Broadway. Again, my reservation paperwork said we needed photo ID's to pick up our tickets so I carefully put my driver's license in my pocket and again, when I got to the box office, wasn't asked for anything to prove my identity. After the show, we took a ride in a cart pulled by a young man on a bicycle. As we pulled away from the theater, I thought that it was a magical end to a wonderful vacation---and then we turned onto 8th Avenue. No one pays any attention to lanes so taxis, buses, limousines and a few semis(!) weave in and out of each other. That would be bad enough, but then there are delivery trucks double parked on the streets, causing even more chaos. There are signs everywhere about the $350 fine for honking but it still happens and is justifiable. We breathed in bus exhaust and lurched perilously close to many vehicles. Given his load :), our driver didn't want to have to start up from a total stop, so he was determined to find a way to keep moving. Our route crisscrossed the streets so much that at times, we traveled sideways as much or more than we moved forward. Despite all that, we got to our hotel safely and the very sweaty young man was as grateful as we were that the ride was over.
After checking our bags the next morning at La Guardia, we were standing in the line to get into the loading gates and I looked for my photo ID in my pouch--first casually, then more frantically as I couldn't find it. As we got to the very patient woman checking ID's, I realized mine was still in the pocket from going to the theater the night before. I had several credit cards, AAA, Trip Rewards and our Blue Cross Blue Shield cards, none of which were adequate to prove my identity. Stan (ever the responsible) showed his photo ID and credit cards with the same numbers, but that didn't work, either. We were shunted aside and waited for Frank, the supervisor, as many people sailed right by us. If ever I was going to have a stroke, that would have been the time. Of course, Stan (ever the patient) was quietly supportive despite my gaffe. Finally, a very bored looking Frank slowly came and disdainfully looked at all my cards until he got to the list of names on the BC/BS card. Since Stan's was the first name and he was "legal", Frank wrote his squiggle on our form and we were released. And so our adventure ended.......a once in a lifetime experience that we would have never done without Mark's internship site.
I want to thank Aunt Marge for her delightful post about her summer; while I'm sure the experience has been a huge strain, her story about the expedition to her storage unit made me laugh out loud. Keep writing, Aunt Marge!

Love,
Nancy

Greetings from Mary Jo...and a question for Joan

Greetings to All,

I do not recommend a hip replacement for a good way to spend the summer, but now that I am almost 5 weeks post-surgery, I am glad I did it! I am still lurching around on the walker, but gradually adding time on a cane. I have no pain (and really never did since the surgery), but the muscle that was cut requires "6-12 weeks to heal", so I simply do not have the strength back necessary to walk normally. The medical people say I am doing fine, but it is hard to be patient. I have learned to ignore dirty floors, overgrown lawns, and neglected gardens. Suzanne is now working two jobs and does all of the grocery shopping and laundry. Paul is busy with the farm. I am grateful for what they can do. I am doing all of the cooking and clean up now, and we had lots of help from good friends early on, so we are doing OK. I did give up and hire the lawn mowed twice and a temporary cleaning lady (which is kind of an "interesting" experience) to do the bathrooms and mopping and vacuuming. It seems like forever since I have been able to walk out of the house, jump in the car and drive myself somewhere! At the six-week point I don't have to be so careful about bending over, reaching to the side while bending, etc. (for fear of dislocation) and should be able to work at strengthening the muscle. The doctor doesn't think I will need formal phys. therapy; but we shall see.

I ended up being in the hospital for 6 days instead of the expected 4 because I had such a horrible reaction to the various narcotic pain medicines they gave me. I ended up dehydrated and dizzy and before I left the hospital I asked them to just give me extra strength Tylenol, which was plenty to control the pain. The Sunday I got home I read the article in the World Herald taken from Jason Peter's book. When he commented he had an instant euphoric reaction to the pain pills I decided I was glad I definitely did not! Throwing up constantly and being dizzy is not my idea of a fun time...

Now, Joan, I have a question regarding Interstitial Cystitis in one of our cats...The vet here says he is probably not suffering as much as I think he is and that these things can be cyclical in cats. He suggests we could try Elmiron or Elavil, but warns they won't give rapid relief, and since the one is an anti-anxiety medicine can't be stopped suddenly. This is our cat with the most pleasant personality and the best "pet" of the three we have, and it disturbs me to see him trying to urinate with such frequency. Do you have any "brand new" information that might be different than what his doctor suggests?

I was glad to see mom's posting. She has had quite a summer, too.

Family Picnic

This is your advance notice about the family picnic. Please mark Saturday, August 23 on your calendars. We will gather in Columbus's Pawnee Park around 12:30 p.m. Our meal will feature your usual outstanding creations along with meat prepared by Tom on his handcrafted grill/smoker.
We'll welcome new family members and honor Kelly & Paul with a shower.
You'll soon receive a written invitation with a map and other details.
Connie

How I Spent My Summer - Margery Warren

June 8…the day of the Millard Tornado. By now you have all heard that the roof of my building was torn off in the tornado.
My building has six units..the three on the west side received extensive damage, while the three of us on the east side had various forms of minor damage. All the air conditioners were lost, as they were on the roof. While awaiting word from the various insurance companies, we all continued to live in our units.. but by week’s end, the odor was getting stronger and stronger, as the water continued to seep down to the lower levels. I awoke one morning and opened my eyes to see water standing in the bedroom light fixture above my head. Finally on Thursday of that week, the news was passed around that we would all have to move out of our units…everything had to go….

John and Sue, Dave, Reen, Keeley and Cleone, worked all weekend packing me up… We rented a storage shed to hold my household possessions.
Where would I move to? It was the week of the College World Series and there wasn’t a spare room in the city, so it was decided I would go to John’s house… We initially thought we’d do the move ourselves, but it soon became obvious there was an awful lot to move…boxes, heavy furniture, etc..and it all had to go up a set of stairs to get out the door. Sue called Two Men and a Truck and booked them for the following Monday. Dave told me to try to concentrate on what I would need for the next few weeks, but in the end, it all seemed to get packed up and moved to storage… I now find that I have two of everything I don’t much need, and none of what I do need!

After the College World Series folk left town, we found an extended-stay motel to rent by the week, and so on Tuesday, June 24, I moved into that. It’s about a mile from John & Sue’s house and in a part of Millard that I’m familiar with. Those first few days were pretty bleak in my ‘studio’ apartment… flourscent lighting, a not-very-cozy chair, a two-burner stove, no dishwasher….nothing to do… Now, after 10 days, we’ve managed to make it seem a little more like home with the addition of a lamp and a recliner from John & Sue’s house… I’ve been eating a lot of evening meals with them, and it certainly helps to break up the day. My mail is being held at the Millard Post Office, so once I week I go there to retrieve it…and I make a lot of trips to the grocery store and keep hauling more and more stuff into the motel…

Then, last Thursday, another crisis… It all began when I realized I had broken out a front tooth on my top dentures, thereby compromising my natural beauty, and making me the object of hilarious remarks from son John, who thought I resembled a hillbilly!

I called Sue to tell her the latest news…I couldn’t even find the name of my dentist, since, once again, everything I need seems to be in storage. I lamented to her that I had an old set but they were in my dresser drawer…in storage!! I had to drive to the dentist’s office to talk to them and see if it could be fixed. The office gal was properly sympathetic and made an appointment for me for Monday.

By the time I talked to Sue again, she had decided that if I thought the spare set was in the top left drawer of the dresser, in the storage shed, then we should try to find it. So the rescue team drove to the storage complex….two warriors, sons John and Dave, organizer-daughter-in-law Sue, and gap-toothed Mom.

And the search began. The door of the storage garage was thrown up to reveal furniture and boxes piled to the rafters. Boxes were generally labeled, but many were facing the wrong way… I was enthroned on one of my own lawn chairs (that was packed in the storage shed) in the driveway, while Sue kept busy opening and re-sealing various boxes in the hope of finding other things I had been looking for. We did come across my favorite instant coffee and a box of old necklaces…The men clambered up the side of the mountain of furniture, boxes, miscellaneous containers, loose garments and objects, digging ever deeper into the history of my life!

John asked what the dresser looked like.what color wood, etc. and asked ‘Could this be it…see that’s where the mirror would fit?” I fought my way to the site and “yes, maybe that’s it.” But the piece was wedged in tightly, facing backwards of course, and it would take more moving to get the front of the drawer opened. So I went back to my ‘throne’ in the driveway and the excavating went on.

And then a shout erupted from the depths of the storage shed! “Here it is!....this is it!!” And the container was waved in the air while all searchers echoed the cry.

And now I can smile again, thanks to an exciting and successful denture search! And tomorrow morning I have that appointment with the dentist!

As for the condo....
we hear that this week the air-control people are to be in the building, making sure everything is sealed up and any mold has been eradicated....That is apparently expected to take most of this week. New windows and new carpet are both on order...items that have needed replacing for some time...David plans to repaint the walls for me, once we're ready for that... I'll keep you all posted...

Aunt Margery