I went to the doctors on Friday to have the bandages changed, have an x-ray, stitches removed and generally see how everything was doing.
When I arrived, the office was running a little behind so I had to wait for a short time. There was a family ahead of me, waiting in the exam room, with 3 boys and a girl. They all ranged in years but the youngest was a little girl about 2-3 years old. Her older brother was trying to help mom out with taking her for walks, as they were waiting for the doctor to see them.
It was constant walking of the little girl and her brother. They would go outside and walk a little bit and then come inside to see mom. She would send them back out again, so they would leave once again, only to return a few minutes later. Her brother was doing whatever he could to entertain his sister but his sister was getting tired of waiting. The office staff offered candy to them to help with the wait. This caused things to be OK for awhile but then the meltdown started by the little girl. You could hear the doctor in the room trying to talk to the mom and her son about what they were there for and I did feel sorry for the whole office and doctor. It was hard for me to sit there listening to all the commotion and crying. I also felt sorry for the mom as she was trying her best to keep things under control and still have the appointment.
It is hard for anyone to have to wait for an appointment but even more so with children in tow. The office does not usually get many children for these services so it was difficult for them to come up with ideas to keep everyone happy. They did the best they could but it was quite unexpected to be in a doctor's office that had the noise of children when usually it is very quiet.
After the family left, I was called back into a room. I didn't think anything would be wrong and just expected to go through everything that was explained to me after the surgery. The doctor removed the bandages and I saw my foot for the first time. I will definitely have scars all over the foot but the important thing was that my toe was in the right place. I was so happy. I then heard the doctor say, "I am concerned about this red area. It may be an infection so I am going to start you on an antibiotic and I want to see you next week."
So the foot was wiped down and medicine put on the stitches and the foot was rewrapped. I was given an antibiotic prescription and off I went. I was so hoping that I would not have any issues but I guess that can't happen with me.
One good thing did happen though; I am able to drive my car. I didn't have that ability for several weeks after the last surgery. I am able to get out of the house. YEA! Of course, Sam is not happy about this as he is concerned that I will overdo and set myself back from the recovery. At this point, who knows what will happen. I will just manage whatever comes my way.
Sunday, December 11, 2011
Tuesday, December 6, 2011
Recovery Day 1 1/2
This is officially my first full day of recovery from the surgery yesterday. My foot hurts and is swollen. I am too keep it elevated and put ice on it 20 minutes on, 20 minutes off through my waking time. I haven't been real good about the ice but I am keeping it elevated. The pain meds do help but I usually have to take 2 at a time. It doesn't phase me taking that much. One will not handle it.
Everything went very well. The doctors and nurses at the outpatient surgery center are very nice and I didn't have to present my ID or Health Cards as they just recently had them from May. I mean I was getting oh, you are back again. We just saw you in May. That is sad when they know you by name.
I will get the bandage changed on Friday with another set of x-rays and a check on things. I was told it will take 6-8 weeks to heal. I also was told I could fly December 23 to Maryland but I will just double check on that to be on the safe side.
I had to sleep in the recliner last night as sleeping in the bed didn't work out. Besides it being a little uncomfortable, Sam keep me awake with his snoring and movement. Something is going on with him and I wish I knew what to do about it. In my opinion, I really believe he wants to stop working now and to take up residence in our home in Bluffton, South Carolina. This will happen soon but probably not as soon as he wants right now. Now he seems to be having a problem with his heart and high blood pressure. Naturally he doesn't believe its anything to worry about and tries to blow it off. I know better and won't let it go. He will see the doctor whether it be him making the appointment or myself, he will be going.
I will just keep this updated as time progresses.
Everything went very well. The doctors and nurses at the outpatient surgery center are very nice and I didn't have to present my ID or Health Cards as they just recently had them from May. I mean I was getting oh, you are back again. We just saw you in May. That is sad when they know you by name.
I will get the bandage changed on Friday with another set of x-rays and a check on things. I was told it will take 6-8 weeks to heal. I also was told I could fly December 23 to Maryland but I will just double check on that to be on the safe side.
I had to sleep in the recliner last night as sleeping in the bed didn't work out. Besides it being a little uncomfortable, Sam keep me awake with his snoring and movement. Something is going on with him and I wish I knew what to do about it. In my opinion, I really believe he wants to stop working now and to take up residence in our home in Bluffton, South Carolina. This will happen soon but probably not as soon as he wants right now. Now he seems to be having a problem with his heart and high blood pressure. Naturally he doesn't believe its anything to worry about and tries to blow it off. I know better and won't let it go. He will see the doctor whether it be him making the appointment or myself, he will be going.
I will just keep this updated as time progresses.
Saturday, December 3, 2011
House is off the market
Our house has been taken off the MLS for the month of December. We have had several phone calls already from other Realtors asking why we have taken it off and could they be the next person to list the house.
We have a plan in place with our present realtor. We are taking it off this month because there usually aren't showings as people are concentrating on the holidays and not looking for a house. In January, we will list it again with a different price, different pictures and a new realtor; same company but just a different person. This way it will look like a new listing.
Our realtor is doing it this way so it doesn't show like a reduced listing even though you can get the history of the house sale. I don't know...the crazy things they have to do to make a sale. We are hoping it will work and we do get a contract. Sam is wanting to make that move to South Carolina. He is so ready to get the break from the stress. I am ready for him to have that break too so he can at least sleep through the night without nightmares. He becomes so active at night, thrashing about, and you know he isn't getting the rest he needs. He will sometimes be fighting someone so the covers can go all different ways, or he will call out in his sleep. I have actually had conversations with him yet he doesn't remember the next day what we have talked about. He could be physically standing up, I ask if he is OK, he says yes, lays back down and he is sound asleep.
Clark is pursuing a job in Edmonton, Canada, for their hockey team. They want a new arena for the team. This process will work with his work schedule of 3 months working. It's a good thing he has a passport. Maybe he will learn Celsius and Miters.
We have a plan in place with our present realtor. We are taking it off this month because there usually aren't showings as people are concentrating on the holidays and not looking for a house. In January, we will list it again with a different price, different pictures and a new realtor; same company but just a different person. This way it will look like a new listing.
Our realtor is doing it this way so it doesn't show like a reduced listing even though you can get the history of the house sale. I don't know...the crazy things they have to do to make a sale. We are hoping it will work and we do get a contract. Sam is wanting to make that move to South Carolina. He is so ready to get the break from the stress. I am ready for him to have that break too so he can at least sleep through the night without nightmares. He becomes so active at night, thrashing about, and you know he isn't getting the rest he needs. He will sometimes be fighting someone so the covers can go all different ways, or he will call out in his sleep. I have actually had conversations with him yet he doesn't remember the next day what we have talked about. He could be physically standing up, I ask if he is OK, he says yes, lays back down and he is sound asleep.
Clark is pursuing a job in Edmonton, Canada, for their hockey team. They want a new arena for the team. This process will work with his work schedule of 3 months working. It's a good thing he has a passport. Maybe he will learn Celsius and Miters.
Friday, December 2, 2011
What has been happening?
I know it has been awhile since I last posted but life does get in the way sometimes and your time disappears on you.
We spent Thanksgiving with Jennifer and Jon and Michelle in Colorado this year. The weather was decent, no snow but just cold. We can handle that with no problem. We also went to a new version of the Christmas Carol. This has been a tradition for us each year since our kids were little. We always liked the version at Ford's Theatre in Washington DC. Since that time, every other version we have seen was always compared to the original we saw. There has only been a couple that may have come close to the original. At this point, we know all the words of the story and how it will go, so we look for how they will handle the story. The play will go through the same premise but not quite the way the original one we saw many years ago. It is still a tradition so we won't be stopping seeing it each year.
We will be spending Christmas at Tony and Abby's this year. This time it will be only with them and not splitting time seeing Jon and Michelle in West Virginia. As you saw in the last paragraph, they are in Colorado now. The visit will be different but still a great visit with Tony and family.
The house still hasn't sold nor has an offer been made. We have had many, many viewings and people have liked the home, but they say they have a house to sell themselves so they can't do anything right now. We also get those that really, really like the house and want it, BUT they don't make that offer. Another version, is the price is too high. Well, make an offer! Very frustrating...
We will get it sold; it is just a matter of time. We have had talks with our realtor and we plan on lowering the price in January to see if we can get any action that way. It won't keep us from moving to South Carolina next year. It will only mean we will continue to have two houses until the California house sells.
I will be having surgery on that left foot again December 5. Why you may ask? Well the big toe keeps folding over the second toe and I want it to be fixed and straightened out. It will require me to be in the boot again but I know what to do with that now. Like they say,"Been there, done that!" The biggest problem that I see will be leaving the house when a realtor brings a client to look at the house. We usually leave the house so they have the privacy they need to speak frankly with one another. When an Open House is done, we usually are away from the house for about 4 hours. I should be OK though as we really haven't had many showings as of late and our realtor will be taking the house out of the MLS. This way, when we advertise it again in January, it will look like a new listing. They will change the pictures around, have a new price, and start the process all over again. We just need to keep good thoughts and prayers that the house will sell finally and we can move on to our new adventure. We also want to be able to decorate our house without it being the incorrect issue due to offending someone that might want to look at the house. I am getting very tired of having the house in the best showing state. We have been doing this since the end of August and it still continues.... Tough real estate market!
We spent Thanksgiving with Jennifer and Jon and Michelle in Colorado this year. The weather was decent, no snow but just cold. We can handle that with no problem. We also went to a new version of the Christmas Carol. This has been a tradition for us each year since our kids were little. We always liked the version at Ford's Theatre in Washington DC. Since that time, every other version we have seen was always compared to the original we saw. There has only been a couple that may have come close to the original. At this point, we know all the words of the story and how it will go, so we look for how they will handle the story. The play will go through the same premise but not quite the way the original one we saw many years ago. It is still a tradition so we won't be stopping seeing it each year.
We will be spending Christmas at Tony and Abby's this year. This time it will be only with them and not splitting time seeing Jon and Michelle in West Virginia. As you saw in the last paragraph, they are in Colorado now. The visit will be different but still a great visit with Tony and family.
The house still hasn't sold nor has an offer been made. We have had many, many viewings and people have liked the home, but they say they have a house to sell themselves so they can't do anything right now. We also get those that really, really like the house and want it, BUT they don't make that offer. Another version, is the price is too high. Well, make an offer! Very frustrating...
We will get it sold; it is just a matter of time. We have had talks with our realtor and we plan on lowering the price in January to see if we can get any action that way. It won't keep us from moving to South Carolina next year. It will only mean we will continue to have two houses until the California house sells.
I will be having surgery on that left foot again December 5. Why you may ask? Well the big toe keeps folding over the second toe and I want it to be fixed and straightened out. It will require me to be in the boot again but I know what to do with that now. Like they say,"Been there, done that!" The biggest problem that I see will be leaving the house when a realtor brings a client to look at the house. We usually leave the house so they have the privacy they need to speak frankly with one another. When an Open House is done, we usually are away from the house for about 4 hours. I should be OK though as we really haven't had many showings as of late and our realtor will be taking the house out of the MLS. This way, when we advertise it again in January, it will look like a new listing. They will change the pictures around, have a new price, and start the process all over again. We just need to keep good thoughts and prayers that the house will sell finally and we can move on to our new adventure. We also want to be able to decorate our house without it being the incorrect issue due to offending someone that might want to look at the house. I am getting very tired of having the house in the best showing state. We have been doing this since the end of August and it still continues.... Tough real estate market!
Thursday, November 10, 2011
Update on Jenny Craig
I have now been on this diet for about a month now. There have been times when it has been difficult to maintain the diet, especially when I see something I really want to have. I did fight through that desire but it hasn't gone away. I still struggle but I have been pretty good in not eating anything extra.
I have lost 10 pounds now. I am very proud of myself for this accomplishment. I still have a ways to go but this is a good start. The food isn't bad and you can add fresh vegetables at each meal. Most of the vegetables are a free add on so you can them anytime of the day. I am not supposed to eat potatoes, peas, or corn. This has been fuzzy to me as some of the meals have just those items. I really think it is all about the size of the portion.
I am continuing on in hopes that this will be the last diet I will have to be on; I am pretty sure it will the last diet. There will be times when the weight will go on because of medications. I can't stop that but I want to give myself a fighting chance. Besides, the doctors I see want the weight loss too.
The holidays are coming up quickly but I can deal with this too. I can eat anything I want but I just need to watch how much and control the extra eating. I have enjoyed the holidays and making all the cookies, fudge, pies, etc., but this will be a big test to see if I can manage my diet. Right now, I am confident that I can do this too.
I have lost 10 pounds now. I am very proud of myself for this accomplishment. I still have a ways to go but this is a good start. The food isn't bad and you can add fresh vegetables at each meal. Most of the vegetables are a free add on so you can them anytime of the day. I am not supposed to eat potatoes, peas, or corn. This has been fuzzy to me as some of the meals have just those items. I really think it is all about the size of the portion.
I am continuing on in hopes that this will be the last diet I will have to be on; I am pretty sure it will the last diet. There will be times when the weight will go on because of medications. I can't stop that but I want to give myself a fighting chance. Besides, the doctors I see want the weight loss too.
The holidays are coming up quickly but I can deal with this too. I can eat anything I want but I just need to watch how much and control the extra eating. I have enjoyed the holidays and making all the cookies, fudge, pies, etc., but this will be a big test to see if I can manage my diet. Right now, I am confident that I can do this too.
Tuesday, November 8, 2011
Trip to South Carolina Hampton Lake
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| White Egret standing on a log off our dock |
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| Two new chairs for the house. View is from the patio |
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| 3 Turtles of many that we have in the lake. They were hard to take a picture of as they would go back into the lake every time you tried to take a shot. |
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| Another view of the new chairs. We are getting there slowly with decorating. We do have pictures up on the walls. Step by step... |
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| Eddie, Karen, and I before they left to go back to Florida. We had a real nice visit and it was good seeing them. |
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| Frankie (shot was taken at our CA home) |
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| Flight of the Egret |
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| A Blue Heron So many birds of different species You can bird watch all day |
We spent two weeks at Hampton Lake the beginning of October. The fall leaves were just beginning to turn. The days were wonderful and very relaxing.
We did have several items that we had our list to accomplish. The first and major one, was having the Internet, TV, and phone service hooked-up. We now have our own South Carolina home phone number. The Internet service is wireless so we can be anywhere in the house when we need to go online. The TV service was something we added but we didn't need too. We had been enjoying listening to CD's and/or watching movies. We have a great flat screen television that is 3-D ready but the picture is so clear, you don't feel like you need this option.
We did have visitors while there. Karen and Eddie came up from Florida to visit for a few days. It had been a very long time since we had seen one another. Karen and I took the time to catch up and talked about everything. It was a fun visit having Karen there.
After they left, we had our financial planner come down from Maryland for a quick one day visit. We spent a good portion of the day just reviewing our options as Sam is getting ready to retire. The outlook looks to be pretty good.
The retirement will be happening starting the beginning of the new year. Sam will be working three months and off three months. This will be going on for the next 2 1/2 years. Sam is ready to slow down and get away from the stress he has been under for all these years. He is ready to enjoy life without having to do that grind of traffic and work.
We do have our house on the market and we do hope we will get that buyer soon. Once it sells, we will then organize ourselves for the big and final move to Hampton Lake, South Carolina. Sam will still need to fly back and forth to California for work, but we will be settling in to South Carolina. We will switch our driver's licenses, fill our new voters cards, and all the other things you need to do when you move to a new place.
This move is happening faster than I expected. I assumed we would be in California until Sam fully retires. Sam had other ideas. He can't wait to make the move to our new home back east. It is now up to me to arrange to get copies of all the heath and dental records, arrange for termination of utilities, say goodbye to friends and neighbors, but especially to go through the house and get rid of items we really don't need any longer. Much of the furniture we have in the California house will be staying as we have already purchased furniture for the Hampton Lake house. We basically will be taking dishes, glassware, clothes, my car, and anything else except the furniture. I still can't believe this move is just around the corner. I have mixed emotions as we have been here for 11 years but California is a hard state to live in as it is expensive.
Before all this happens, I will be having foot surgery again. Same foot (left) but it is to correct the position of the big toe. It doesn't want to stay where it should be but will cross over the second toe. The surgery will take about an hour and a half. It will be at the beginning of December but it won't slow me down to fly to Maryland for Christmas. This will be the last time for surgery on my foot.
This year, 2011, has been a bust for me. I seemed to be either ill or the surgery with my foot that lasted much longer than anticipated. Why should I be continuing with surgery? It is to have a better quality of life. I can't move that toe normally now and I have high hopes I will be able too when it is done. My feet aren't the nicest things to look at anyway.
The future will be full of unexpected surprises. Ready or not, the wheels are in motion.
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
Jenny Craig
I have started on the Jenny Craig diet. I have only been on it for three days but the food isn't bad. I am doing it to lose weight (obviously) from all the steroids I had to take for the MS. This has been something I have been wanting to do for some time. I want to look and feel better.
Of course, my weight has not been an issue with my better half. He loves me just the way I am. I am grateful for this, but unless you feel OK about yourself, it is difficult to accept. I have always struggled with my weight. It is part genetics but the medication I have to take everyday, doesn't help. I am not able to do much in the way of exercise so the diet is my only option right now. I am hoping that by losing weight, I might be able to do a little more than what I can right now. Once retirement is in place, I want to be able to enjoy the rest of our lives together whether it be traveling, volunteering, or just visiting family.
What got me thinking more in this direction and actually doing it, was a promotion that Jenny Craig offered. They were offering the diet half off the current price. That was a big savings! When I heard that, I couldn't pass it up.
It does require us to have two different meals but we are going to work through that problem. So far it has been working fine. I know this is the beginning but I have high hope that I will succeed.
Of course, my weight has not been an issue with my better half. He loves me just the way I am. I am grateful for this, but unless you feel OK about yourself, it is difficult to accept. I have always struggled with my weight. It is part genetics but the medication I have to take everyday, doesn't help. I am not able to do much in the way of exercise so the diet is my only option right now. I am hoping that by losing weight, I might be able to do a little more than what I can right now. Once retirement is in place, I want to be able to enjoy the rest of our lives together whether it be traveling, volunteering, or just visiting family.
What got me thinking more in this direction and actually doing it, was a promotion that Jenny Craig offered. They were offering the diet half off the current price. That was a big savings! When I heard that, I couldn't pass it up.
It does require us to have two different meals but we are going to work through that problem. So far it has been working fine. I know this is the beginning but I have high hope that I will succeed.
Update on Frankie and me
We have decided NOT to have any surgery done on Frankie as we had told you before. Frankie seems to be doing better and is running and jumping without any pain. He is even getting back to his old self of wanting to play and not just sleep all day. We can always do this surgery later if we think he needs it but for now he isn't going under the knife. We have a friend that had this surgery on his dog and after 2 months, is still not right. I was told it would take about 6 months for everything to be back to normal but I also have heard that the dog is not the same. We just couldn't risk having Frankie's personality change.
I had my doctor's appointment today with the podiatrist regarding my foot. He took x-rays to see how the stress fracture was doing and it showed not one but two fractures. It was the second and third toe. They are still healing but I am able to wear regular shoes instead of the boot.
The one area that I am having a problem with is with my big toe on that same foot. Ever since the surgery on the bunion, that toe will go across the second toe and not stay flat. The doctor can correct this by another surgery. He would take a pie shape piece of bone out of the toe and move the toe over so the toe will be straight and away from the other two toes that have the healing fractures. If this is done, it will mean 6-8 weeks. I would be in the boot again for 4 weeks with things finished in another 2-4 weeks. After the 4 weeks, I would be able to wear regular shoes.
I am not sure which way I want to go with this. I don't like the fact my toe moves over the others which makes it a little more difficult to walk. I really thought that this problem with the toe laying over the other one was part of the reason for the stress fractures as I was not walking correctly because I was not using that big toe. The doctor said, once this is done, then my foot is finished.
I still have some swelling from the fractures. It has been 6 weeks at least for the fracture problem. I had the original surgery back at the beginning of May. Can I survive with the toe the way it is? Probably. It will be a problem for me the rest of my life though and do I really want to live like that. Such a quandary! Do I put up with the boot and surgery again or just let it go and hope for the best? I just don't know which way I should go. Initially my first thought was to go ahead and have it done. I just want this whole problem to come to a conclusion. I don't want to switch doctors as he knows my case and I do feel confident with him. I also don't want to move to South Carolina and still have an issue that I will be noticing every time I look at my foot and saying I wished I had done something.
I know it sounds like I have made a decision about this but I just want to make the right move for me.
I had my doctor's appointment today with the podiatrist regarding my foot. He took x-rays to see how the stress fracture was doing and it showed not one but two fractures. It was the second and third toe. They are still healing but I am able to wear regular shoes instead of the boot.
The one area that I am having a problem with is with my big toe on that same foot. Ever since the surgery on the bunion, that toe will go across the second toe and not stay flat. The doctor can correct this by another surgery. He would take a pie shape piece of bone out of the toe and move the toe over so the toe will be straight and away from the other two toes that have the healing fractures. If this is done, it will mean 6-8 weeks. I would be in the boot again for 4 weeks with things finished in another 2-4 weeks. After the 4 weeks, I would be able to wear regular shoes.
I am not sure which way I want to go with this. I don't like the fact my toe moves over the others which makes it a little more difficult to walk. I really thought that this problem with the toe laying over the other one was part of the reason for the stress fractures as I was not walking correctly because I was not using that big toe. The doctor said, once this is done, then my foot is finished.
I still have some swelling from the fractures. It has been 6 weeks at least for the fracture problem. I had the original surgery back at the beginning of May. Can I survive with the toe the way it is? Probably. It will be a problem for me the rest of my life though and do I really want to live like that. Such a quandary! Do I put up with the boot and surgery again or just let it go and hope for the best? I just don't know which way I should go. Initially my first thought was to go ahead and have it done. I just want this whole problem to come to a conclusion. I don't want to switch doctors as he knows my case and I do feel confident with him. I also don't want to move to South Carolina and still have an issue that I will be noticing every time I look at my foot and saying I wished I had done something.
I know it sounds like I have made a decision about this but I just want to make the right move for me.
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Frankie
We will be having Frankie have some surgery on his right hind leg. He will have his knee cap put back into place as well as having the two bones realigned as they are twisted right now.
His recovery will take about 8 weeks. He will have a soft padding put on his leg similar to a cast but not. He will have that on for two weeks and taken off and the rehab will begin.
This was a difficult decision to make and one that Sam did not want to have to make. He is already nervous about it. He is very concerned that he won't be the same afterwards. I feel in my heart that he will be OK and better than ever. Frankie needs to loose some weight before surgery. I am trying not to give him anything other than his dinner but Sam just can't stop himself. They are after all buddies!
I really do want everything to work out as this would be devastating to Sam if something should happen to him.
His recovery will take about 8 weeks. He will have a soft padding put on his leg similar to a cast but not. He will have that on for two weeks and taken off and the rehab will begin.
This was a difficult decision to make and one that Sam did not want to have to make. He is already nervous about it. He is very concerned that he won't be the same afterwards. I feel in my heart that he will be OK and better than ever. Frankie needs to loose some weight before surgery. I am trying not to give him anything other than his dinner but Sam just can't stop himself. They are after all buddies!
I really do want everything to work out as this would be devastating to Sam if something should happen to him.
House Update and a Me Update
We haven't had an offer of any kind yet. We did have a couple come back a second time and was asking a lot of questions with our realtor during an Open House on Sunday. She felt we should have a contract from the way they were talking and even went so far as trying to place furniture. All good signs, right? So far there hasn't been any offers or communication from either side. Frustrating when you get excited about the idea and it doesn't happen. We will continue on to keep the house for sale. Maybe we will get an offer, like Jon did when he was on vacation. We are going to South Carolina for two weeks. Maybe...
I am still in my boot. I had some pain with my foot so bad that I couldn't stand on it. I went to the doctor and he took an X-Ray again and the stress fracture is healing but not quickly. He said all the pain I was having was still from the stress fracture. The doctor did give me an anti-inflammatory to take twice a day to help reduce the inflammation and pain. There are times when I think that I am getting better and then I do too much walking and the foot starts to hurt again. I am to see the doctor in a month and he is hoping everything will finally be better. I have my fingers crossed.
On a different note, it looks like we are going to have to have Frankie get an operation on his right hind quarter around the knee. His knee cap keeps moving and it is putting a strain on his bones and ligaments as well as giving him pain if he runs a certain way. There will be a lot involved in rehabilitation but if we don't do anything, Frankie's leg will become lame. This is the hardest decision for us to make. Frankie seems to do OK and we think, "OK, he is doing alright so we wait and see if there are any changes." Then he yelps from pain when he has done something and then we go back to the surgery. I have a call into the doctor to ask a few more questions. It really does look like we will getting the surgery for him. What he has is called Medial Patellar Luxation.
I am still in my boot. I had some pain with my foot so bad that I couldn't stand on it. I went to the doctor and he took an X-Ray again and the stress fracture is healing but not quickly. He said all the pain I was having was still from the stress fracture. The doctor did give me an anti-inflammatory to take twice a day to help reduce the inflammation and pain. There are times when I think that I am getting better and then I do too much walking and the foot starts to hurt again. I am to see the doctor in a month and he is hoping everything will finally be better. I have my fingers crossed.
On a different note, it looks like we are going to have to have Frankie get an operation on his right hind quarter around the knee. His knee cap keeps moving and it is putting a strain on his bones and ligaments as well as giving him pain if he runs a certain way. There will be a lot involved in rehabilitation but if we don't do anything, Frankie's leg will become lame. This is the hardest decision for us to make. Frankie seems to do OK and we think, "OK, he is doing alright so we wait and see if there are any changes." Then he yelps from pain when he has done something and then we go back to the surgery. I have a call into the doctor to ask a few more questions. It really does look like we will getting the surgery for him. What he has is called Medial Patellar Luxation.
Monday, September 26, 2011
Exciting Update
We had our Betty's Builders Golf Tournament on Friday, September 23. It turned out fantastic! We had invited 60 players and 60 players showed up. We wanted a bigger turn out than this but others that were contacted had other plans and could not make it.
All the golfers were either sub-contractors or contractors. They all received a goodie bag which contained the golf shirt, golf shoes, sunglasses, and a couple dozen golf balls. As the tee-off time was at 1:00 PM, we provided a box lunch. The lunch consisted of either a Turkey or Roast Beef sandwich which had lettuce and tomato, a bag of Dorito chips, an apple, and a large chocolate chip cookie. Everyone seemed to enjoy the food as all the lunches were taken. The drink was either the water that was provided on each golf cart or they had to purchase a drink.
The tournament lasted a little longer than expected. The 4-some's were to play best ball but they instead all took their own turns playing their individual balls. The course was very challenging to everyone. Pechanga is an Indian reservation. On the golf carts was a GPS which would also explain the hole you are at, give the English name and the Indian name of the hole, and the particular plant that was around it and how this plant was used or something interesting about the course. This course was an 18 hole course but it also was very spread out. The cart paths were like a roller coaster. You would drive up a steep path up the mountain with the return going down just as steep but add on a sharp turn. You have to look out for other golfers being on the path so it did get cosy driving by each other. Once at the hole, you could be shooting over ravines or across streams. Once you were on the green, you still had to deal with the different curves and gullies. As I said, tough course!
This whole day was timed out to the minute. Of course, it doesn't quite work out that way. The players were supposed to play the best ball, which meant that the four would tee off and whoever had the best location, the rest would pick up their individual balls and play from that location. It turned out the some of the golfers were playing their own ball right where it lade. This caused quite a few to be late for dinner. We had to hurry them up from socializing to getting their dinner and sitting down so the program could be started. We lost quite a few of the golfers as it was getting late so they just left. The ones that stayed heard from me as I told my story. Writing my story took some effort as I had to condense 30 years to 2-3 minutes on my life with MS and how the MS Society has helped me. Everyone said that the speech was good.
We raised for the National MS Society, Pacific South Coast Plaza, $52,700.00. We were so excited and pleased as this was the very first tournament for Betty's Builders. We already have the course scheduled for June 2012. Now we get to start recruiting for the next tournament.
All the golfers were either sub-contractors or contractors. They all received a goodie bag which contained the golf shirt, golf shoes, sunglasses, and a couple dozen golf balls. As the tee-off time was at 1:00 PM, we provided a box lunch. The lunch consisted of either a Turkey or Roast Beef sandwich which had lettuce and tomato, a bag of Dorito chips, an apple, and a large chocolate chip cookie. Everyone seemed to enjoy the food as all the lunches were taken. The drink was either the water that was provided on each golf cart or they had to purchase a drink.
The tournament lasted a little longer than expected. The 4-some's were to play best ball but they instead all took their own turns playing their individual balls. The course was very challenging to everyone. Pechanga is an Indian reservation. On the golf carts was a GPS which would also explain the hole you are at, give the English name and the Indian name of the hole, and the particular plant that was around it and how this plant was used or something interesting about the course. This course was an 18 hole course but it also was very spread out. The cart paths were like a roller coaster. You would drive up a steep path up the mountain with the return going down just as steep but add on a sharp turn. You have to look out for other golfers being on the path so it did get cosy driving by each other. Once at the hole, you could be shooting over ravines or across streams. Once you were on the green, you still had to deal with the different curves and gullies. As I said, tough course!
This whole day was timed out to the minute. Of course, it doesn't quite work out that way. The players were supposed to play the best ball, which meant that the four would tee off and whoever had the best location, the rest would pick up their individual balls and play from that location. It turned out the some of the golfers were playing their own ball right where it lade. This caused quite a few to be late for dinner. We had to hurry them up from socializing to getting their dinner and sitting down so the program could be started. We lost quite a few of the golfers as it was getting late so they just left. The ones that stayed heard from me as I told my story. Writing my story took some effort as I had to condense 30 years to 2-3 minutes on my life with MS and how the MS Society has helped me. Everyone said that the speech was good.
We raised for the National MS Society, Pacific South Coast Plaza, $52,700.00. We were so excited and pleased as this was the very first tournament for Betty's Builders. We already have the course scheduled for June 2012. Now we get to start recruiting for the next tournament.
Saturday, September 17, 2011
Golf Tournament for Betty's Builders
I spent this morning at Clark Construction's office putting together bags with golf goodies (golf shoes, shirt, golf balls, sun glasses, and golf baseball hat) for all the golfers that will playing this Friday, September 23, at The Journey, Pechanga's golf resort and casino.
We barely were able to load all the stuff we will be giving away, into our Ford Explorer. It was packed to the top, from side to side, every space taken. We could not even see out the rear view mirror but had to use the side mirrors. Luckily the traffic moved well so it was not necessary to change lanes very often.
Upon returning home, the top tier of stuff was removed and brought into the house or garage. The bottom layer stayed in the Explorer.
The vendors used, for the shirts and shoes, need to go back to school and learn how to count. We didn't receive enough of the correct sized shirts or the correct sizes in golf shoes. We did have plenty of golf balls and sun glasses.
We had ordered the golf shirts and had the Betty's Builder's logo put on the sleeve and on the golf hats. We haven't received the golf hats yet so this will be a last minute stuff into bags when they arrive.
This tournament is the first one of its kind for us. We are doing this to raise money for the National MS Society. It looks like, at this point, that we will be able to give a check to the Society for about $43,000. We haven't finished collecting money though, from raffle tickets, mulligans, and a reverse auction that will be held after dinner. A reverse auction is one in which we are asking for money, to provide needs for those who are living with MS and can't afford it any other way, from the audience. A sample would be asking a $100 for a wheelchair or $7500 for 2 or 3 scooters. All the added money will then be added to our present amount with the final total amount going to the Society. We are hoping to get to $50,000.
Lunch and dinner will be provided. There also will be contests for the longest drive, closest to the hole, best score, etc.
As I said, this is the first year for this event. Plans and thoughts are already flying for next year and doing the tournament even bigger.
During all the speeches during dinner, I have been asked to speak and give my story, as well as, tell how the Society has helped me. I have started to write things down but so far it isn't going very well. I haven't liked my beginning sentence so the flow is not there yet. Telling my story can start back many years or within the last 10 years. I may touch upon how I was diagnosed and then move to the present. I don't know what I want to do with this. I better figure it out soon as the golf tournament is this Friday.
We barely were able to load all the stuff we will be giving away, into our Ford Explorer. It was packed to the top, from side to side, every space taken. We could not even see out the rear view mirror but had to use the side mirrors. Luckily the traffic moved well so it was not necessary to change lanes very often.
Upon returning home, the top tier of stuff was removed and brought into the house or garage. The bottom layer stayed in the Explorer.
The vendors used, for the shirts and shoes, need to go back to school and learn how to count. We didn't receive enough of the correct sized shirts or the correct sizes in golf shoes. We did have plenty of golf balls and sun glasses.
We had ordered the golf shirts and had the Betty's Builder's logo put on the sleeve and on the golf hats. We haven't received the golf hats yet so this will be a last minute stuff into bags when they arrive.
This tournament is the first one of its kind for us. We are doing this to raise money for the National MS Society. It looks like, at this point, that we will be able to give a check to the Society for about $43,000. We haven't finished collecting money though, from raffle tickets, mulligans, and a reverse auction that will be held after dinner. A reverse auction is one in which we are asking for money, to provide needs for those who are living with MS and can't afford it any other way, from the audience. A sample would be asking a $100 for a wheelchair or $7500 for 2 or 3 scooters. All the added money will then be added to our present amount with the final total amount going to the Society. We are hoping to get to $50,000.
Lunch and dinner will be provided. There also will be contests for the longest drive, closest to the hole, best score, etc.
As I said, this is the first year for this event. Plans and thoughts are already flying for next year and doing the tournament even bigger.
During all the speeches during dinner, I have been asked to speak and give my story, as well as, tell how the Society has helped me. I have started to write things down but so far it isn't going very well. I haven't liked my beginning sentence so the flow is not there yet. Telling my story can start back many years or within the last 10 years. I may touch upon how I was diagnosed and then move to the present. I don't know what I want to do with this. I better figure it out soon as the golf tournament is this Friday.
Friday, September 2, 2011
Injury again
I went to the doctor's on Thursday because I had been having swelling with my left foot. This is the foot that I had bunion surgery on. I had put ice on it, took Advil for the pain, put it up, and nothing worked. A week went past and I thought I should have it checked out. I thought maybe there was a problem from the surgery that popped up. That was my first thought anyway.
I called twice trying to talk to the nurse and did not get a reply. I was thinking that nothing must be wrong as no one was thinking it was a problem. How wrong was I! Yesterday I received a phone call from my doctor's nurse saying he wanted to see me and could I come at 11:00. Sure, I said.
I had a conference call at 10:00 which lasted until about 10:50. I thought I was going to stop the call so I could get the appointment. It ended in time for me to leave. It was also a good thing that the doctor is pretty much around the corner; I got there right on time. Signed in and waited. And waited. And waited. I didn't get into an exam room for an hour and 20 minutes later. I was brought to an exam room and waited another half hour. The office had many new patients so they took longer with their appointments. I couldn't be upset by that as I would want the same care too.
When my doctor finally came into the room, he only had to take one look at my foot and knew the problem. He pressed on my foot around the toes and asked if this hurt. I just remembered that cartoon where someone goes to the doctor and says, Hey doc, it hurts when I do this and the Doc replies, don't do that. Well, that is what I wanted to say to the doctor. Yes it hurts! Don't do that! He told me I had a stress fracture. He would take X-Rays but it probably would not show up. The doctor told me it was probably due to the way I was walking. Ever since the surgery, I would try to avoid putting a lot of pressure on the right side of the foot. Because I had done that instead of walking normally, it was pulling on those tendons which caused the stress fracture. He also told me that had I continued to walk on it, the stress fracture would have become a complete fracture.
The treatment: I have to go back into my boot for 2 maybe 3 weeks and then if it feels OK, try to go back into the regular shoe. I see him again September 30 to have the foot re-Xrayed. I don't know what will happen if it isn't healed! If I have to continue with the boot, then I guess I will continue with the boot.
We will be flying to our house in South Carolina starting on October 1 for two weeks. It won't stop the flight, just maybe activities.
Here, I thought I was finally over everything. I guess I thought wrong...
I called twice trying to talk to the nurse and did not get a reply. I was thinking that nothing must be wrong as no one was thinking it was a problem. How wrong was I! Yesterday I received a phone call from my doctor's nurse saying he wanted to see me and could I come at 11:00. Sure, I said.
I had a conference call at 10:00 which lasted until about 10:50. I thought I was going to stop the call so I could get the appointment. It ended in time for me to leave. It was also a good thing that the doctor is pretty much around the corner; I got there right on time. Signed in and waited. And waited. And waited. I didn't get into an exam room for an hour and 20 minutes later. I was brought to an exam room and waited another half hour. The office had many new patients so they took longer with their appointments. I couldn't be upset by that as I would want the same care too.
When my doctor finally came into the room, he only had to take one look at my foot and knew the problem. He pressed on my foot around the toes and asked if this hurt. I just remembered that cartoon where someone goes to the doctor and says, Hey doc, it hurts when I do this and the Doc replies, don't do that. Well, that is what I wanted to say to the doctor. Yes it hurts! Don't do that! He told me I had a stress fracture. He would take X-Rays but it probably would not show up. The doctor told me it was probably due to the way I was walking. Ever since the surgery, I would try to avoid putting a lot of pressure on the right side of the foot. Because I had done that instead of walking normally, it was pulling on those tendons which caused the stress fracture. He also told me that had I continued to walk on it, the stress fracture would have become a complete fracture.
The treatment: I have to go back into my boot for 2 maybe 3 weeks and then if it feels OK, try to go back into the regular shoe. I see him again September 30 to have the foot re-Xrayed. I don't know what will happen if it isn't healed! If I have to continue with the boot, then I guess I will continue with the boot.
We will be flying to our house in South Carolina starting on October 1 for two weeks. It won't stop the flight, just maybe activities.
Here, I thought I was finally over everything. I guess I thought wrong...
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
Update on house and me
We have had a few open houses and according to the realtor on duty, we have had a lot of people through. Everyone says they like the view and the house is beautiful and then they leave. We have not had one offer yet or even a return visit from someone. I think there are too many short sales and foreclosures that people are looking at to get the lowest deal out there. Those type of sales do take longer because the bank has to agree to the asking price. I know I need to stay patient as we really don't need to move any time soon but I am so tired of having to make sure everything is hidden before I go out. I am pretty quick about going from room to room to do this feat but just once I would like to leave a glass on the counter or a piece of paper by the computer. I have been through this process many, many times and with kids too. I didn't like it then and I don't like it now. I know, patience, patience, patience...
I am having another problem with my left foot. It has swollen up on me and I don't know why. It was looking great and I was walking with no problems. I did do an exercise that was a simple one that required you raised up on your toes and then down, holding onto a counter for balance. I did it for maybe 10 times. This was the one and only time I did. I guess the foot didn't like it. Later that day it started to hurt to walk; the foot was giving me pain.
I put an ice pack on it but it is not doing too much. I have a call into the doctor's and they will call me sometime on Wednesday. Well, I did have a week or so before something else happened. Maybe this is my third problem and I will be free from problems for awhile.
I have jury duty this week. I just have to either call in or look at the court's website to see if I need to report that day. So far I haven't had too. I have to call by noon and if I need to report, I need to get to the courthouse by one. I can do this without a problem but it does make it difficult to plan anything. I only have this week and then it will be over.
The weather is very pleasant again and I have all the windows open. We really haven't had the hot weather that you expect in summer but we did receive a few hot days. It wasn't like the desert or even the east coast. We have been very lucky.
I am having another problem with my left foot. It has swollen up on me and I don't know why. It was looking great and I was walking with no problems. I did do an exercise that was a simple one that required you raised up on your toes and then down, holding onto a counter for balance. I did it for maybe 10 times. This was the one and only time I did. I guess the foot didn't like it. Later that day it started to hurt to walk; the foot was giving me pain.
I put an ice pack on it but it is not doing too much. I have a call into the doctor's and they will call me sometime on Wednesday. Well, I did have a week or so before something else happened. Maybe this is my third problem and I will be free from problems for awhile.
I have jury duty this week. I just have to either call in or look at the court's website to see if I need to report that day. So far I haven't had too. I have to call by noon and if I need to report, I need to get to the courthouse by one. I can do this without a problem but it does make it difficult to plan anything. I only have this week and then it will be over.
The weather is very pleasant again and I have all the windows open. We really haven't had the hot weather that you expect in summer but we did receive a few hot days. It wasn't like the desert or even the east coast. We have been very lucky.
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
Possible Hurricane and other stuff
Wouldn't you know that a hurricane may be coming to the Carolinas'. I don't think we will have anything to worry about with our house but I will be contacting people there to make sure our house is boarded up if necessary and other things.
We will be going to the house in October and hope to find everything just fine. We were told that hurricanes very seldom bother that area as they are tucked in and the most they will have is rain and maybe some wind. I really hope that stays true as our house is right up against a nature preserve and all I can see is the branches coming down from the trees or even a tree itself landing on our house. Maybe thinking that way will prevent it from happening.
I am finally getting back to normal from all the illnesses I have had over the last few months. I never thought it would happen. I still have a cough in the evening I still need to deal with but on the whole, I am much better. Hurray!
I will having an MRI done on Friday, August 26. This was already something that was planned for but I am having one sooner than was needed. The doctor's office had told me, when I was asked to get one, to try and have the MRI done closer to the next appointment, which is in October. Because I had some issues pop up because of the illnesses I have had, I elected to do the MRI sooner rather than later. If my MS is active, it will show up on the scan. I am having the spine and brain scanned with and without contrast. What this means is for any new lesions that may be active and where they are located, will show up brighter. The MRI does not hurt but it is noisy but you get used to it after awhile. I am going to ask to have the results sent to me too but I am not sure they will do that for me. The findings will be sent to both of my neurologists and to my general doctor.
I have to make a call on Friday after 5:00 PM to see if I need to report on Monday for Jury Duty. I was asked to be on Jury Duty six months ago but I was having the foot surgery so I asked to have the date moved, which I got. Now I don't have another choice except to follow through and to see if I will serve. Maybe I will luck out and there will be nothing on the docket for a jury. I can hope anyway!
We will be going to the house in October and hope to find everything just fine. We were told that hurricanes very seldom bother that area as they are tucked in and the most they will have is rain and maybe some wind. I really hope that stays true as our house is right up against a nature preserve and all I can see is the branches coming down from the trees or even a tree itself landing on our house. Maybe thinking that way will prevent it from happening.
I am finally getting back to normal from all the illnesses I have had over the last few months. I never thought it would happen. I still have a cough in the evening I still need to deal with but on the whole, I am much better. Hurray!
I will having an MRI done on Friday, August 26. This was already something that was planned for but I am having one sooner than was needed. The doctor's office had told me, when I was asked to get one, to try and have the MRI done closer to the next appointment, which is in October. Because I had some issues pop up because of the illnesses I have had, I elected to do the MRI sooner rather than later. If my MS is active, it will show up on the scan. I am having the spine and brain scanned with and without contrast. What this means is for any new lesions that may be active and where they are located, will show up brighter. The MRI does not hurt but it is noisy but you get used to it after awhile. I am going to ask to have the results sent to me too but I am not sure they will do that for me. The findings will be sent to both of my neurologists and to my general doctor.
I have to make a call on Friday after 5:00 PM to see if I need to report on Monday for Jury Duty. I was asked to be on Jury Duty six months ago but I was having the foot surgery so I asked to have the date moved, which I got. Now I don't have another choice except to follow through and to see if I will serve. Maybe I will luck out and there will be nothing on the docket for a jury. I can hope anyway!
Saturday, August 13, 2011
Open House Today
Today we had another Open House. We only had to be away from the house for 4 hours. It is hard to figure out what to do especially when you have a dog with you. You are so limited.
The Open House went fairly well. We had a realtor with a couple that did not want the house only because it was not ocean view. Our realtor did have a number of others through but no one said yea or nay on it but just was looking.
We did replace the carpet in both bedrooms; it had to be replaced as it was very old. We got it from Empire Today and they did a great job. If you ever use it, go online and request someone to give you an estimate as they will give you a discount, at least that is what they did for us. Some one came over on Thursday, we picked out the carpet, and they installed on Friday; Open House Saturday. It can be said that the carpet was just put down and mean it. We were going to replace it anyway and this just gave us that extra push to do it. We are very happy at how it turned out and would be fine with the carpet even if we stayed here for awhile.
We keep getting good marks for the look of the house and the view but that is as far as it goes. Just comments! Someone will want it. Just have to be patient. After all it has only been a couple of weeks.
The Open House went fairly well. We had a realtor with a couple that did not want the house only because it was not ocean view. Our realtor did have a number of others through but no one said yea or nay on it but just was looking.
We did replace the carpet in both bedrooms; it had to be replaced as it was very old. We got it from Empire Today and they did a great job. If you ever use it, go online and request someone to give you an estimate as they will give you a discount, at least that is what they did for us. Some one came over on Thursday, we picked out the carpet, and they installed on Friday; Open House Saturday. It can be said that the carpet was just put down and mean it. We were going to replace it anyway and this just gave us that extra push to do it. We are very happy at how it turned out and would be fine with the carpet even if we stayed here for awhile.
We keep getting good marks for the look of the house and the view but that is as far as it goes. Just comments! Someone will want it. Just have to be patient. After all it has only been a couple of weeks.
Thursday, August 11, 2011
Just Stuff
I am still able to talk real well as my voice is non existent or so low it is hard to hear me. I have been taking my medicine and cough syrup and I was hoping for a quick turn around but that doesn't seem to be happening for me. I have two more days of the antibiotic and if I am not better then, I wait 5 days and start another course.
I am so tired of this whole illness thing. I am still having MS issues but I don't want to contact my doctor until I am over this strep/congestion/cough/pneumonia thing. I am able to get some sleep so the cough medicine is doing its job. I just wish the rest would go away. I am just so tired of it.
This all started back in April when I had some foot surgery. That went just fine but as soon as I was healed from it, the shingles started. Once that was almost over, the MS flared up. Took steroids for it to stop the flare up and now this strep/congestion/pneumonia/cough thing. The steroids helped some with the walking but I am still not back in remission. I am having a numbness feeling with both legs and up to the middle of my back. My hands also do not feel right. MS is such a mystery and you just never know what will happen with this disease from day to day.
On another subject: we are having carpet replaced in the two bedrooms. We do have the house on the market but that carpet was in the house before we moved in and we have been in the house now for 8 years. It has served its purpose. It is in bad shape. So tomorrow we will have Empire Today come to install. We will also have them remove furniture and replace. Booking an appointment online gave us another discount on top of the sale price. They even have a deal that if you find the same carpet for a lesser charge and can show them the difference, they will go underneath that price.
Another day and life goes on.
I am so tired of this whole illness thing. I am still having MS issues but I don't want to contact my doctor until I am over this strep/congestion/cough/pneumonia thing. I am able to get some sleep so the cough medicine is doing its job. I just wish the rest would go away. I am just so tired of it.
This all started back in April when I had some foot surgery. That went just fine but as soon as I was healed from it, the shingles started. Once that was almost over, the MS flared up. Took steroids for it to stop the flare up and now this strep/congestion/pneumonia/cough thing. The steroids helped some with the walking but I am still not back in remission. I am having a numbness feeling with both legs and up to the middle of my back. My hands also do not feel right. MS is such a mystery and you just never know what will happen with this disease from day to day.
On another subject: we are having carpet replaced in the two bedrooms. We do have the house on the market but that carpet was in the house before we moved in and we have been in the house now for 8 years. It has served its purpose. It is in bad shape. So tomorrow we will have Empire Today come to install. We will also have them remove furniture and replace. Booking an appointment online gave us another discount on top of the sale price. They even have a deal that if you find the same carpet for a lesser charge and can show them the difference, they will go underneath that price.
Another day and life goes on.
Wednesday, August 10, 2011
Doctor Appointment
I was surprised that I was able to get in to see the doctor yesterday. When I had called in the morning, I was told he was all booked up and that they would send a prescription to my local pharmacy. His receptionist told me she would call me to let me know when it was faxed over. When I didn't hear by 3:30-4:00 that afternoon, I called again to see what the status was on the prescription.
I was told there was one at the pharmacy but then she asked how close I was to his office. I said fairly close and then she asked if I could come right now. They had a cancelation. I said sure and I went off to the doctor's.
Well, the doctor did check me over, ears, throat, lungs and this was the decision. The ears were clear, sinus clear, but the throat was very red and he said it was probably strep. Listening to the lungs, he heard whizzing and said that was pneumonia. The cough, he gave me cough medicine. I am on an antibiotic for the rest of the stuff. He thought it should all clear up in a few days. I am contagious for 48 hours, but I have been around people not knowing anything was going on. I guess that doesn't count and now I could give this to someone else. :-D
The other problem that I have been having with the numbness or sensitivity of my legs, bottom, and upper back is not all related to the shingles I had. The numbness would only be in the areas of the shingles and no where else. Any other place would be the MS.
I am going to wait to get over this congestion, pneumonia, strep stuff before I pursue the neurologist.
I want this illness train to stop and let me off!
I was told there was one at the pharmacy but then she asked how close I was to his office. I said fairly close and then she asked if I could come right now. They had a cancelation. I said sure and I went off to the doctor's.
Well, the doctor did check me over, ears, throat, lungs and this was the decision. The ears were clear, sinus clear, but the throat was very red and he said it was probably strep. Listening to the lungs, he heard whizzing and said that was pneumonia. The cough, he gave me cough medicine. I am on an antibiotic for the rest of the stuff. He thought it should all clear up in a few days. I am contagious for 48 hours, but I have been around people not knowing anything was going on. I guess that doesn't count and now I could give this to someone else. :-D
The other problem that I have been having with the numbness or sensitivity of my legs, bottom, and upper back is not all related to the shingles I had. The numbness would only be in the areas of the shingles and no where else. Any other place would be the MS.
I am going to wait to get over this congestion, pneumonia, strep stuff before I pursue the neurologist.
I want this illness train to stop and let me off!
Monday, August 8, 2011
Another viewing today
We will be having a realtor showing our house at some time today. She called last night around 6:00 PM wanting to show the house but was running late and could she show the house today. Of course she could.
This call came in at dinner time for us. We were in the middle of fixing it and the house obviously was not in show ready. Why would a realtor think that we would drop what we are doing, especially at the end of the day, and welcome them with open arms. Yes, we are trying to sell the house but there has to be some common sense too. Our realtor said if they had a client or it was a second showing then we should let them do it. If the realtor just wanted to preview the home, they could wait until the next day.
One thing is for sure, we have had a lot of activity. People have looked and commented they like the house. I guess there is so much out there between short sales and foreclosures that the buyer has much to look at and figure out. Our house is neither of those so it should be a very easy sale. That one buyer is out there, I know it. They just have to show up.
This call came in at dinner time for us. We were in the middle of fixing it and the house obviously was not in show ready. Why would a realtor think that we would drop what we are doing, especially at the end of the day, and welcome them with open arms. Yes, we are trying to sell the house but there has to be some common sense too. Our realtor said if they had a client or it was a second showing then we should let them do it. If the realtor just wanted to preview the home, they could wait until the next day.
One thing is for sure, we have had a lot of activity. People have looked and commented they like the house. I guess there is so much out there between short sales and foreclosures that the buyer has much to look at and figure out. Our house is neither of those so it should be a very easy sale. That one buyer is out there, I know it. They just have to show up.
Sunday, August 7, 2011
UPDATE ON THE OPEN HOUSE
We apparently had a fantastic open house. Several neighbors stopped by, which were not counted but our realtor said we had about 20 couples looking. We even had another couple stop by after he left and we did the showing of the house. They seemed to like it.
Our realtor said he was surprised and pleased with all the activity. He had told us there were people interested. Being interested and making an offer are two different things. We shall see what happens.
We will have an office caravan on Tuesday. These will be the realtors from First Team only. I will be out of the house for about an hour and a half. On Thursday, again we will have another brokers caravan. This one will be a lot longer for me to be away from the house. It starts at 9:30 goes until 1:00. This is the day where I need to figure out what to do with myself for that length of time. I will also have Frankie with me so my places are limited. I could drop him off with a dog sitter but I am unsure.
Today we are getting our chores done, laundry especially. We are just happy that we can stay home for a while. Listening to music and relaxing before the week begins.
Our realtor said he was surprised and pleased with all the activity. He had told us there were people interested. Being interested and making an offer are two different things. We shall see what happens.
We will have an office caravan on Tuesday. These will be the realtors from First Team only. I will be out of the house for about an hour and a half. On Thursday, again we will have another brokers caravan. This one will be a lot longer for me to be away from the house. It starts at 9:30 goes until 1:00. This is the day where I need to figure out what to do with myself for that length of time. I will also have Frankie with me so my places are limited. I could drop him off with a dog sitter but I am unsure.
Today we are getting our chores done, laundry especially. We are just happy that we can stay home for a while. Listening to music and relaxing before the week begins.
Saturday, August 6, 2011
Open House Today
We will be having an open house today from 12:00 - 5:00. We have straighten up the house as much as we can and it does look pretty good. There will be those that do not like the house, the area, etc., but that part is out of our control.
We were told there were a couple of people interested but so far nothing has proceeded from the comment. We thought that the house was going to sell fast from those comments and we began to wonder about how we would feel if that should happen. A little unsettling to be sure but one we would deal with if it came to be.
On another subject:
We switched our phone service to Verizon phone service and it will save us about $30 a month. We have unlimited calls whether long distance or local or to land lines or cells. We have unlimited minutes to cell phones. We can also take the wireless with us to where ever we go and we can get the service there too. It sounded like a win/win for us.
We were told there were a couple of people interested but so far nothing has proceeded from the comment. We thought that the house was going to sell fast from those comments and we began to wonder about how we would feel if that should happen. A little unsettling to be sure but one we would deal with if it came to be.
On another subject:
We switched our phone service to Verizon phone service and it will save us about $30 a month. We have unlimited calls whether long distance or local or to land lines or cells. We have unlimited minutes to cell phones. We can also take the wireless with us to where ever we go and we can get the service there too. It sounded like a win/win for us.
Friday, August 5, 2011
New changes
No we have not sold the house but I did upgrade my cell phone to an IPhone 4 last night. I also bought one of those covers for it and it looks so neat. It is a black phone but the cover is a medium purple. Looks very cool! We are with Verizon and we may be switching to Verizon for our phone service too. It is done wireless and the neat thing about it is that we can take the base with us to anywhere and still be connected to the house phone. This means, we can take the phone with us to South Carolina and get our calls there or even just being able to have a phone service whenever we decide to move there full time. The only thing that might be a problem is that it is not a land line which might be a problem when the power goes out. We will have our cell phones still but once the battery dies, well, I guess we will have to send smoke signals out... ha ha
We have been having some good feedback on the showing of the house. Of course there are those that do not like the area or the house but it will only take one to sell. Apparently there are a couple of people interested but so far nothing has progressed except being interested. We aren't in a hurry but that does sound promising.
I am still having some problem with my legs but I just keep going on with life. I can't stop anyway or it would get even worse. I have good days and bad so I just continue on. I am used to it. MS will always be with me, it will just depend on how bad. I will be getting another MRI next month and that will tell me how things are going by showing if any new lesions have appeared. I will also have my blood checked to make sure that is all good too. It is what it is. I just keep moving forward.
We have been having some good feedback on the showing of the house. Of course there are those that do not like the area or the house but it will only take one to sell. Apparently there are a couple of people interested but so far nothing has progressed except being interested. We aren't in a hurry but that does sound promising.
I am still having some problem with my legs but I just keep going on with life. I can't stop anyway or it would get even worse. I have good days and bad so I just continue on. I am used to it. MS will always be with me, it will just depend on how bad. I will be getting another MRI next month and that will tell me how things are going by showing if any new lesions have appeared. I will also have my blood checked to make sure that is all good too. It is what it is. I just keep moving forward.
Wednesday, August 3, 2011
Another viewing
Yesterday I had another realtor show up when I wasn't home. I had gone to lunch with my honey so I was not aware that someone would show up. Frankie was at home and at first when I came back home, I did not see him around. The worry was there that he got out of the house when the realtor was not looking and they did not realize it. It was short lived as he popped up after a few minutes.
I did get feedback from the first viewing and they seemed to like the house but was not excited about the area. It is an older area of which I can't change. The realtor said that looking at similar houses in the area, ours was by far the best she had seen. She liked the updating and the look we had shown.
The realtor did note that it was a possibility that an offer would be made but I really don't see one coming. The person looking would try to buy at a very low price. This was definitely not going to happen as we had just started and we were not in a hurry to sell. It was a good feedback I thought because they would not change anything that we had done. The process has started and the anticipation of finding that right person who wants what we have to offer.
I did get feedback from the first viewing and they seemed to like the house but was not excited about the area. It is an older area of which I can't change. The realtor said that looking at similar houses in the area, ours was by far the best she had seen. She liked the updating and the look we had shown.
The realtor did note that it was a possibility that an offer would be made but I really don't see one coming. The person looking would try to buy at a very low price. This was definitely not going to happen as we had just started and we were not in a hurry to sell. It was a good feedback I thought because they would not change anything that we had done. The process has started and the anticipation of finding that right person who wants what we have to offer.
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
We had one viewing
Yesterday we had one realtor come out to show the house. I spent so much time hiding everything to make the house look so open, it looked pretty good I thought. The person was to be at the house between 11:00 and 12. So, close to 11:00, I packed myself up and took Frankie and we went for a walk.
I wasn't sure what to do or where to go. I had keys to the clubhouse pool area and the actual clubhouse but I wasn't really wanting to do that as it was already warm. Not hot by any means but warm to me. With taking a steroid, I really feel the heat and I can get very red in the face quick. Frankie and I were taking our time.
We were taking our regular route when we saw a neighbor out watering her lawn. Joan and her husband, Alan, are good friends and Joan really likes Frankie and Frankie, her. Whenever he sees her, he just runs as fast as he can to her. They have a scottie named Maggie and Frankie and Maggie kiss each other when they meet. It is funny to see.
I was able to sit on her porch, in the shade, and just talk for the hour while waiting for the realtor to show up. Now, I could not tell which car, that turned into the development, was the realtor. So I waited an extra half hour just to make sure no one was there when I went back home.
We were asked by our realtor to leave a plate or something on the counter for their business cards they are supposed to leave when visiting the home. I had the plate and the sign that said leave your business card. The realtor left it, not on the plate, but on the counter not even close to where it was supposed to be. I guess she couldn't read the sign.
No feedback yet. It is the first showing anyway. We will have a Broker caravan on Thursday when I need to be out of the house from 9:30-1:00. What am I going to do then?
I wasn't sure what to do or where to go. I had keys to the clubhouse pool area and the actual clubhouse but I wasn't really wanting to do that as it was already warm. Not hot by any means but warm to me. With taking a steroid, I really feel the heat and I can get very red in the face quick. Frankie and I were taking our time.
We were taking our regular route when we saw a neighbor out watering her lawn. Joan and her husband, Alan, are good friends and Joan really likes Frankie and Frankie, her. Whenever he sees her, he just runs as fast as he can to her. They have a scottie named Maggie and Frankie and Maggie kiss each other when they meet. It is funny to see.
I was able to sit on her porch, in the shade, and just talk for the hour while waiting for the realtor to show up. Now, I could not tell which car, that turned into the development, was the realtor. So I waited an extra half hour just to make sure no one was there when I went back home.
We were asked by our realtor to leave a plate or something on the counter for their business cards they are supposed to leave when visiting the home. I had the plate and the sign that said leave your business card. The realtor left it, not on the plate, but on the counter not even close to where it was supposed to be. I guess she couldn't read the sign.
No feedback yet. It is the first showing anyway. We will have a Broker caravan on Thursday when I need to be out of the house from 9:30-1:00. What am I going to do then?
Sunday, July 31, 2011
The House
We now have flyers and our For Sale Sign out front. The official start will be this evening and then we should get phone calls wanting to look at the property.
There is now another house in the community which has the same square footage as we do except it does not have a great view and it has a detached garage. It is actually lower by $200,000, they just did a price change. We are not in a hurry to sell so we will be OK. It isn't very good news for us but we will deal with the problem.
We do have a lock box on the front door. We had an option of either putting it on the whole time or put it outside when we leave. I just said put it on the door. It is one less thing I have to worry about when making sure all the other rooms are ready to be viewed. Of course we don't think it will sell very quickly but that is usually when the opposite happens. It would be great for us if it does sell quickly or at least sell for the price or close to it. We would then rent for the remainder time we are here and still go back to the South Carolina house in the spring and fall.
Now I was told not to stress about the house. We are not going to sell just to sell but wait for that right offer. Hmm, I think I will still stress about the house because I want it presentable. It would be my luck to go out for a short trip and have someone show up to look and it isn't straightened. I always hated this part of the selling.
There is now another house in the community which has the same square footage as we do except it does not have a great view and it has a detached garage. It is actually lower by $200,000, they just did a price change. We are not in a hurry to sell so we will be OK. It isn't very good news for us but we will deal with the problem.
We do have a lock box on the front door. We had an option of either putting it on the whole time or put it outside when we leave. I just said put it on the door. It is one less thing I have to worry about when making sure all the other rooms are ready to be viewed. Of course we don't think it will sell very quickly but that is usually when the opposite happens. It would be great for us if it does sell quickly or at least sell for the price or close to it. We would then rent for the remainder time we are here and still go back to the South Carolina house in the spring and fall.
Now I was told not to stress about the house. We are not going to sell just to sell but wait for that right offer. Hmm, I think I will still stress about the house because I want it presentable. It would be my luck to go out for a short trip and have someone show up to look and it isn't straightened. I always hated this part of the selling.
The house will be on the market by Sunday night
We will be getting fliers tomorrow, our sign, the lock box, in preparation for the official launch of the house sale. We now have to make sure everything is picked up and looks the best it can be in case anyone wants to take a look. This is the part I am not thrilled about as it causes you to have to plan extra time to double check your house before you step out the house.
We are excited about selling as it will be one step closer to moving to South Carolina. Hearing the temperatures right now in Bluffton, I am not real anxious to getting there too quickly. I do want to go though as shades have been put p in some of the rooms and I am wanting to see them.
We haven't had a chance to do much else long distance. We arranged the shades before we left from the last trip. We have a pest control service in place because when Alycia and Chris stayed there one day, they were seeing spiders and ants around. The Palmetto Exterminators started their service for us. The same company will also be putting in a Mosquito Mister to help keep those pests down.
Jon and family discovered that Hampton Lake has wild life. The family saw a small herd of deer upon driving into the community. Wait until they see wild turkey, or maybe rabbit, or even an armadillo.
I look forward to hearing their feedback on the house and community.
We are excited about selling as it will be one step closer to moving to South Carolina. Hearing the temperatures right now in Bluffton, I am not real anxious to getting there too quickly. I do want to go though as shades have been put p in some of the rooms and I am wanting to see them.
We haven't had a chance to do much else long distance. We arranged the shades before we left from the last trip. We have a pest control service in place because when Alycia and Chris stayed there one day, they were seeing spiders and ants around. The Palmetto Exterminators started their service for us. The same company will also be putting in a Mosquito Mister to help keep those pests down.
Jon and family discovered that Hampton Lake has wild life. The family saw a small herd of deer upon driving into the community. Wait until they see wild turkey, or maybe rabbit, or even an armadillo.
I look forward to hearing their feedback on the house and community.
Day One Over
I had my steroid infusion of solumedrol today at the Hoag Cancer Center. This is where their outpatient center is for infusions. The nurse, Mary Lou, was excellent. I had the needle put into my left hand as the veins were in good shape. I also wanted to leave my right free to be able to write in my journal and do word search. I had my tootsie roll pops as the the steroid leaves a metal taste in your mouth and you can't get rid of it by drinking water. You can drink sugared iced tea and eating does not get affected. It doesn't last a long time. Usually until dinner time. I had my infusion at 9:30 AM and it lasts 2 hours.
I am having the same problem I usual have in that I can't sleep. I even took a sleeping pill which usually helps and it is not doing anything for me tonight. The other problems is I am due to have another infusion tomorrow morning, or I should say today, Sunday, at the same time, 9:30.
I am usually stay awake all night and day before I sleep the next night. How will this work if I am having back to back infusions? Will I be awake through tomorrow night too? If so, I would be wake for 3 days before I can sleep.
I am having the same problem I usual have in that I can't sleep. I even took a sleeping pill which usually helps and it is not doing anything for me tonight. The other problems is I am due to have another infusion tomorrow morning, or I should say today, Sunday, at the same time, 9:30.
I am usually stay awake all night and day before I sleep the next night. How will this work if I am having back to back infusions? Will I be awake through tomorrow night too? If so, I would be wake for 3 days before I can sleep.
Friday, July 29, 2011
A steroid again!
I had been dealing with shingles for almost a month now. The majority of the pain and rash disappeared but I still have a few spots on my foot. They don't hurt and they are not causing a problem. The one lingering problem has been the numbness from the bottom of my foot to the top of my waist. I had called my neurologist and was given prednisone to try to correct that problem. It didn't!
I still have the numbness on my right but now it has moved to my left foot. Umm, I don't think it should be going this way so I called my neurologist again. I explained the problem and he told me that the shingles might have triggered my MS. He suggested that I have two infusions of Solumedrol, which is an IV steroid. This steroid has the ability to keep me awake all night. After I finish the infusions, I then start another round of prednisone.
There is a possibility that this steroid treatment could trigger the shingles again! I am trying to get rid of a problem and yet I could be back to where I was before. Gee, I hope not.
I have finally been set free from the podiatrist and the foot surgery I had. The left foot is still a little swollen but that will come down over time. He did say that I seemed to be walking on the side of my foot away from the surgery site and I needed to make an effort to walk straight and put more effort on walking completely through.
I am so tired of having all these problems. I have not been able to do much or go anywhere where there has been a lot of walking. Now, this problem with the flare up of my MS. I really hope this will be the end. I am not planning on doing anything else, especially another surgery, for quite some time. I just need things on my body to heal and stay that way!
I still have the numbness on my right but now it has moved to my left foot. Umm, I don't think it should be going this way so I called my neurologist again. I explained the problem and he told me that the shingles might have triggered my MS. He suggested that I have two infusions of Solumedrol, which is an IV steroid. This steroid has the ability to keep me awake all night. After I finish the infusions, I then start another round of prednisone.
There is a possibility that this steroid treatment could trigger the shingles again! I am trying to get rid of a problem and yet I could be back to where I was before. Gee, I hope not.
I have finally been set free from the podiatrist and the foot surgery I had. The left foot is still a little swollen but that will come down over time. He did say that I seemed to be walking on the side of my foot away from the surgery site and I needed to make an effort to walk straight and put more effort on walking completely through.
I am so tired of having all these problems. I have not been able to do much or go anywhere where there has been a lot of walking. Now, this problem with the flare up of my MS. I really hope this will be the end. I am not planning on doing anything else, especially another surgery, for quite some time. I just need things on my body to heal and stay that way!
Saturday, July 23, 2011
Photos have been taken
The photographer came last night to take photos of the house. It didn't take too long but she did take many. We had to remove some things out of the way that didn't look bad but the realtor wanted a clean shot of the rooms. The photographer will take the pictures and do her thing by cropping or editing the pictures and send these to the realtor. The realtor will write the copy for the ads, flyers and MLS listing on the Internet. She will pick out what pictures will be used and then send it to their layout person to finish.
Sometime next week, we will have the For Sale sign in place and then the real fun begins. All the realtors from this office will make a trip to the house to view it and then it will be open for all the other realtors around to come take a look.
We are in no hurry so if it takes a while to sell, we are OK with that. If it is sold before we are ready to make that move to South Carolina, we will rent around the area until that time arrives. The house looks terrific and we have done everything we can to make it presentable to people. There will always be people who come in and make comments as to why they don't like something. Everyone will have their idea in their mind as to what they want and if they don't see it or feel it, this is their decision to make to walk away and look at another place. We did the same thing when we looked for a single story house. Some of the homes were in poor condition, or needed a face-lift, or just wasn't in the right area. So many things you have to look at when buying. It took us a while to find the home we are in right now. You just have to have patience when selling but it isn't easy. You are anxious to get your life moving on and not wanting to go through that waiting period.
So now it is on to the next step in the process. We are excited and anxious to get that first person to look at the house and get their comments. Comments are just that, comments. It is not a reflection on you but what fits with them. It is still hard not to take it personally and grumble about their intelligence but we have to keep it to ourselves and smile and know you will get through the waiting.
Sometime next week, we will have the For Sale sign in place and then the real fun begins. All the realtors from this office will make a trip to the house to view it and then it will be open for all the other realtors around to come take a look.
We are in no hurry so if it takes a while to sell, we are OK with that. If it is sold before we are ready to make that move to South Carolina, we will rent around the area until that time arrives. The house looks terrific and we have done everything we can to make it presentable to people. There will always be people who come in and make comments as to why they don't like something. Everyone will have their idea in their mind as to what they want and if they don't see it or feel it, this is their decision to make to walk away and look at another place. We did the same thing when we looked for a single story house. Some of the homes were in poor condition, or needed a face-lift, or just wasn't in the right area. So many things you have to look at when buying. It took us a while to find the home we are in right now. You just have to have patience when selling but it isn't easy. You are anxious to get your life moving on and not wanting to go through that waiting period.
So now it is on to the next step in the process. We are excited and anxious to get that first person to look at the house and get their comments. Comments are just that, comments. It is not a reflection on you but what fits with them. It is still hard not to take it personally and grumble about their intelligence but we have to keep it to ourselves and smile and know you will get through the waiting.
Friday, July 22, 2011
House almost on the market
Today we will having a photographer come in to take pictures of the house. We have signed our contract with the realtor so the next step are pictures. I just need to make sure everything is in its place and is looking the best it can be for the shots. I also hope the weather will corporate and the fog will lift and we have sunny skies.
The next step will be for the realtors to put the flyers together and the listing posted on several sites. We should have a For Sale sign in the yard by next week. When the house sales, and it is before Dad is ready to retire, we will rent a place. You might be asking why are we doing this now rather than later, it is because we are not sure how quickly it will sell. Of course, we are being told many different things. We have done all we can do to have the house ready. We have the neutral colors, de-cluttered as much as we can, staged the house to give the best look possible, and everything is neat and tidy. Now we wait for that buyer.
We are looking forward to moving to our house in South Carolina. We haven't spent much time there but when we do, it is so relaxing and the people are so friendly. We are looking forward to our trip in October. Hopefully it won't be too long after that we will move there permanently and enjoy everything around us.
The next step will be for the realtors to put the flyers together and the listing posted on several sites. We should have a For Sale sign in the yard by next week. When the house sales, and it is before Dad is ready to retire, we will rent a place. You might be asking why are we doing this now rather than later, it is because we are not sure how quickly it will sell. Of course, we are being told many different things. We have done all we can do to have the house ready. We have the neutral colors, de-cluttered as much as we can, staged the house to give the best look possible, and everything is neat and tidy. Now we wait for that buyer.
We are looking forward to moving to our house in South Carolina. We haven't spent much time there but when we do, it is so relaxing and the people are so friendly. We are looking forward to our trip in October. Hopefully it won't be too long after that we will move there permanently and enjoy everything around us.
Sunday, July 17, 2011
House has been staged
We are getting ready to put our house on the market and because we had taken so many things to our other house in South Carolina, our house was pretty bare. We were able to live just fine in it but to try and sell a home with wide open spaces, it does not give a buyer a sense of what it could be. So we had it staged.
Staging a home requires someone to come into your house, take pictures, look around to get a feel of the house, and return later to change everything. This is what happened on Saturday, the 16th. The realtor we have, had someone that could do just that for us. We did not have a bed in the second bedroom and used that room more as a catch all. It now looks like a bedroom. They placed a day bed, covered it, put on some pillows and placed a tray with napkins and a clear coffee cup filled with coffee beans to represent a cup of coffee. She had us remove a book case (we had two) to make it less cluttered, move some things around and it looks like a regular bedroom now. I will have to post some pictures later.
The designer went to the master bedroom and really did not have to do too much. She placed another bedspread on top of the one we have, which had different shades of blue, added more pillows, and the room popped. Very pretty! We had a dull room after seeing what she chose. We did like the change.
The second bathroom was next. Really not too much was added but some small touches to the counter. It just dressed it up. Everything else stayed the same.
The main room took the biggest change. We had purchased a couch before Jennifer, Noah, and Madilynn came to visit, as we did not have seating for them. We had moved the leather couch we had, to South Carolina. All we had were two recliners for our own use. Those chairs and couch were moved from their original positions. The couch was moved to the place of the recliners. The recliners were moved to the opposite side, facing the couch with our large coffee table in between. It was a nice set up for visiting with people but not a great layout if everyone in the room wanted to see TV. Because it is just the two of us, it didn't matter, as long as we could see it.
We have a long room, so with the couch moved up, the room behind it was a place for a small table and two chairs. It was going to be set up to use as a game table or a place where you could play cards, or even for that cozy place to have a cup of coffee or tea, and to look at the great view we have.
An end table was repositioned with a lamp, a divider was put up with a large ceramic pot with reeds, and some other touches. The dining room table was kept pretty much the way it was except a table runner was used instead of the place mats. The other built-in we have contained the wine cooler, on top of the counter, had a large sailboat that Dad had put together. This was left in its place as well as an empty wine rack for the over flow of wine bottles that did not fit into the cooler. A decorative plate that went along with the wine theme, was placed. A painting, we had of dolphins and the undersea, was replaced with a mirror. Upon looking at the mirror, you had the reflection of our view.
Anyone that has placed a house for sale, knows the stress you get from having to make sure the house is the best it can be, for the buyers. Our house now looks great but it has caused some upheaval with me. Things have been moved and changed. I have been needing things to be kept in its place for my own cognitive needs. It has been stressful to not have that sameness. I will get used to the placement of the new things and where the old things were put, but it was a lot to handle in two hours.
We are hoping to sell the present home so we can take the proceeds to place on the new home in South Carolina. We are really hoping that it will be enough to pay that home off. We would then be without a mortgage. My car has been paid off. We don't have a lot of debt from credit cards either. A good position for retirement.
We would not move to the new house just yet but would rent for probably another year to a year and a half. Of course, this depends on how quickly it sells.
The For Sale sign has not been placed yet but should be in the next few days. Then the "fun" begins.
Staging a home requires someone to come into your house, take pictures, look around to get a feel of the house, and return later to change everything. This is what happened on Saturday, the 16th. The realtor we have, had someone that could do just that for us. We did not have a bed in the second bedroom and used that room more as a catch all. It now looks like a bedroom. They placed a day bed, covered it, put on some pillows and placed a tray with napkins and a clear coffee cup filled with coffee beans to represent a cup of coffee. She had us remove a book case (we had two) to make it less cluttered, move some things around and it looks like a regular bedroom now. I will have to post some pictures later.
The designer went to the master bedroom and really did not have to do too much. She placed another bedspread on top of the one we have, which had different shades of blue, added more pillows, and the room popped. Very pretty! We had a dull room after seeing what she chose. We did like the change.
The second bathroom was next. Really not too much was added but some small touches to the counter. It just dressed it up. Everything else stayed the same.
The main room took the biggest change. We had purchased a couch before Jennifer, Noah, and Madilynn came to visit, as we did not have seating for them. We had moved the leather couch we had, to South Carolina. All we had were two recliners for our own use. Those chairs and couch were moved from their original positions. The couch was moved to the place of the recliners. The recliners were moved to the opposite side, facing the couch with our large coffee table in between. It was a nice set up for visiting with people but not a great layout if everyone in the room wanted to see TV. Because it is just the two of us, it didn't matter, as long as we could see it.
We have a long room, so with the couch moved up, the room behind it was a place for a small table and two chairs. It was going to be set up to use as a game table or a place where you could play cards, or even for that cozy place to have a cup of coffee or tea, and to look at the great view we have.
An end table was repositioned with a lamp, a divider was put up with a large ceramic pot with reeds, and some other touches. The dining room table was kept pretty much the way it was except a table runner was used instead of the place mats. The other built-in we have contained the wine cooler, on top of the counter, had a large sailboat that Dad had put together. This was left in its place as well as an empty wine rack for the over flow of wine bottles that did not fit into the cooler. A decorative plate that went along with the wine theme, was placed. A painting, we had of dolphins and the undersea, was replaced with a mirror. Upon looking at the mirror, you had the reflection of our view.
Anyone that has placed a house for sale, knows the stress you get from having to make sure the house is the best it can be, for the buyers. Our house now looks great but it has caused some upheaval with me. Things have been moved and changed. I have been needing things to be kept in its place for my own cognitive needs. It has been stressful to not have that sameness. I will get used to the placement of the new things and where the old things were put, but it was a lot to handle in two hours.
We are hoping to sell the present home so we can take the proceeds to place on the new home in South Carolina. We are really hoping that it will be enough to pay that home off. We would then be without a mortgage. My car has been paid off. We don't have a lot of debt from credit cards either. A good position for retirement.
We would not move to the new house just yet but would rent for probably another year to a year and a half. Of course, this depends on how quickly it sells.
The For Sale sign has not been placed yet but should be in the next few days. Then the "fun" begins.
Monday, March 14, 2011
We have trips and things coming up
We have a very busy end of the month of March and most of April. At the end of March, on the 28th, we will have some of our furniture and things packed up and then on Tuesday, the 29th, we will have everything loaded to be sent to Bluffton and our house. On Thursday night, we will be flying to Ft. Lauderdale, FL for my 40th High School Reunion. It will only be a quick trip; we will get there on April 1, early in the morning after doing the red eye from LAX. Friday night we have an ice breaker get- together and then Saturday night, we have the reunion. We will fly out on Sunday morning, April 3, to get back to LAX and then home.
Dad has a bid on Thursday, April 7. We have the MS Walk on Saturday, April 9. We will then fly again to South Carolina to see our house and spend time there on April 10 and will be there until the 24th, which we will fly back home.
On Monday, April 25, I will be meeting my foot doctor to go over what will be happening on May 2 when I have bunion surgery on my left foot. I won't be able to put any weight on that foot for a couple of weeks but the healing will take about 6-8 weeks. I am hoping for the lesser side.
Our anniversary is June 12. We wanted to plan something but I am not sure what I will be or won't be able to do. We may have to wait and celebrate in the fall. This will be our 40th anniversary - WOW! I have known Dad for most of my life. I meet him when I was a freshman in High School at the age of 14 and we dated all 4 years. After graduating and three weeks later, we were married. I still can't believe it has been that long. I had only dated one guy and it was Dad. I guess you can say he was my soul mate.
What we will do the rest of the summer is still up in the air. A family reunion has been talked about but that has not been finalized. It will be just nice to stop and catch our breath.
Dad has a bid on Thursday, April 7. We have the MS Walk on Saturday, April 9. We will then fly again to South Carolina to see our house and spend time there on April 10 and will be there until the 24th, which we will fly back home.
On Monday, April 25, I will be meeting my foot doctor to go over what will be happening on May 2 when I have bunion surgery on my left foot. I won't be able to put any weight on that foot for a couple of weeks but the healing will take about 6-8 weeks. I am hoping for the lesser side.
Our anniversary is June 12. We wanted to plan something but I am not sure what I will be or won't be able to do. We may have to wait and celebrate in the fall. This will be our 40th anniversary - WOW! I have known Dad for most of my life. I meet him when I was a freshman in High School at the age of 14 and we dated all 4 years. After graduating and three weeks later, we were married. I still can't believe it has been that long. I had only dated one guy and it was Dad. I guess you can say he was my soul mate.
What we will do the rest of the summer is still up in the air. A family reunion has been talked about but that has not been finalized. It will be just nice to stop and catch our breath.
Friday, March 11, 2011
The Tsunami
We are fine here in Southern California. We are close to the beach but we are on high ground. All the beaches are closed. Two schools close to the beach are closed. Not expecting really high waves but the current and waves will be bad so people are being kept from the water. The tsunami is just now coming into shore. The water is being sucked out to sea and then comes back after a couple of minutes. This tusmani will be lasting for a few more hours before it is all done. Large boats have moved out of the harbor into deeper water. Harbors and walk paths have been closed for safety. Everyone along the beaches are keeping updated. No major evacuations are being given but if one is requested they are urging people to head the request. Fascinating by what is happening but glad to be on high ground. Boats in the harbor of Santa Cruz, which is north of us, has had damage of their boats in their harbor. No injuries to anyone.
Just think, the earthquake happened in Japan and we are feeling the effects of it now. Wow! This is a first for us being here in California. They said the earthquake in Japan was 3,000 times as powerful as the earthquake in Riverside CA which was a major earthquake that did a lot of damage.
Just think, the earthquake happened in Japan and we are feeling the effects of it now. Wow! This is a first for us being here in California. They said the earthquake in Japan was 3,000 times as powerful as the earthquake in Riverside CA which was a major earthquake that did a lot of damage.
Thursday, January 13, 2011
What I am worrying about...
I am to have another colonoscopy next Monday, Jan 17. That unto itself is no big deal. People have them all the time. It is not much fun, especially preparing for it but once you reach the age of 50 and beyond you will need to start having them. Usually after you have one, it is not required to have another for at least 10 years if everything is OK. If you have a polyp that they have to remove and everything is still OK after looking at it, you will be asked to come back in 5 years for another.
Now if they find a polyp that looks suspicious but is not a definite diagnosis of colon cancer, they will ask you to return in three years. This is where I am at. I have been asked to have the procedure because apparently I had one removed three years ago that was suspicious of colon cancer but it wasn't definite.
This came as a big surprise to me when I went in for that appointment. I was told that my results were normal and now I find out they weren't. So I have to worry (and really try not too but that is hard to do) and wait for Monday. My procedure is scheduled for 12:20 PM and I will be going home by 2:15 PM. I really do hope that I get some results before I leave and not have to wait for any biopsies if they have to do anything like that.
I am now on a restricted diet for three days before I start the prep work on Sunday for Monday. The prep work consists of drinking a gallon of this preparation that is awful to drink. It just cleans you out. I know TMI (too much information). I guess you can look at it as a very quick way to lose weight but not in a very pleasant way.
So that is the news I am worrying about. It has caused me to have a headache everyday just from tension and not to sleep real well. I am able to get a sleeping pill to help me on that. I am scared but I try not to say too much. Dad will be with me on Monday. If it is what it is, we will deal with it, what else can we do. We just have to think positive that I will be OK.
Now if they find a polyp that looks suspicious but is not a definite diagnosis of colon cancer, they will ask you to return in three years. This is where I am at. I have been asked to have the procedure because apparently I had one removed three years ago that was suspicious of colon cancer but it wasn't definite.
This came as a big surprise to me when I went in for that appointment. I was told that my results were normal and now I find out they weren't. So I have to worry (and really try not too but that is hard to do) and wait for Monday. My procedure is scheduled for 12:20 PM and I will be going home by 2:15 PM. I really do hope that I get some results before I leave and not have to wait for any biopsies if they have to do anything like that.
I am now on a restricted diet for three days before I start the prep work on Sunday for Monday. The prep work consists of drinking a gallon of this preparation that is awful to drink. It just cleans you out. I know TMI (too much information). I guess you can look at it as a very quick way to lose weight but not in a very pleasant way.
So that is the news I am worrying about. It has caused me to have a headache everyday just from tension and not to sleep real well. I am able to get a sleeping pill to help me on that. I am scared but I try not to say too much. Dad will be with me on Monday. If it is what it is, we will deal with it, what else can we do. We just have to think positive that I will be OK.
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