Friday, August 31, 2007

trying to take the doctor's advice

I made my annual trip to the doctor yesterday ... actually about 3 months late, and I confess I only went because they wouldn't refill my blood pressure medicine without my going....haha to the doctor that wrote that original prescription....I went to a different doc!

Ok, so here's the deal -- I hate going. I don't need the doctor to tell me that I'm overweight and getting older.....all I have to do is look in the mirror-- TA DA, diagnosis complete.

What a difference a different doctor can make. The last one treated me like I was just an after thought.....I don't think so!! This one is SO much better.

So, here's what the doc says:

my blood pressure is under good control -- and we like the nice side effect of the blood pressure meds that make the migraines stay away

we need to do something to make a dent in the cholesterol issues -- the previous doctor had said basically "you're just out of luck"! Not so, says the new doctor, so we have a new 5 step program:
1. increase the amount of fish oil and niacin that I take on a daily basis from 2 to 3 each
2. even though taking aspirin makes my ears ring, we're going to try taking 1 baby aspirin every other day and take it in the evening so the "ringing" doesn't bother me so much
3. every other day 1/2 of a Crestor 5mg tablet (I get to cut them) -- and she gave me 4 packets of these little lovelies, so I have no out of pocket expense while we figure out what works
4. walk the dog -- no we're not talking about yoyo tricks here, we're talking about taking the four footed critter that lives at our house on an outing every day -- not too far at first, we need to work our way up to long distance (and the other projects I'm working on, like moving piles of rock from one side of the yard to the other and sanding and painting the storage shed are good activities too) It was a joy to have a doctor really LISTEN to my issues about exercise
5. drink a glass of red wine -- at least once a week -- hmmmm, this almost sounds like a reward for doing the hard stuff as a glass of wine with a good italian meal is a delight

Of course the hard part of the doctor discussion had to do more with asking for advice on the other issues -- those days when I want to just pull the hole in over me and hide. The fact that its hard for me to even ask is at the very core of the problem -- I have not ever been very good at asking for help or asking for what it is I need. Too many years of being told "you always put others first" -- the problem with that approach is you can mentally and emotionally starve to death that way, you can not give others something to drink from an empty well, and if you never do for yourself you can't refill the well.

(Okay, intellectually I KNOW that, but I still have a hard time DOING something about it -- I also have a problem not feeling guilty about doing anything for me that costs anything)

That said, I am beginning to realize that all of the healthy body steps make no sense if emotionally I'm a "basket case"!

Instruction from the doctor -- keep writing (okay, that won't be too hard), work on asking for what I need, and maybe find a group to belong to where I can share a hobby or something that doesn't require me to pay a big fee or always be the teacher -- and this part will be as hard as the exercise!

Friday, August 24, 2007

more doggie day camp



warm weather is a good time for a little sun bathing.....

Elphie and Soma hang out on the patio to catch some rays.....this was after they had chased squirrels and dumped over the bucket of water (then carried the bucket out into the yard!)

They were just having a lovely time



I guess Soma was in need of some extra comfort last night as she decided that she was a lap dog and crawled right up!

Elphie is in the chair behind them, watching to make sure nothing is happening she doesn't approve of.

Tuesday, August 21, 2007

doggie sleep over camp




Soma






Elphie







As I mentioned yesterday, we're keeping our daughter and son-in-law's dog while they are off on their honeymoon.

So today's pictures are of yesterday's play in the yard while we were mowing the grass.

Soma will chase a ball until her tongue hangs clear to the ground! We put a bucket of water out on the porch so the two dogs don't have to run in and out of the house to get a drink, and Soma used it to dunk the ball in. By the end of the day there was a layer of dirt in the bottom of the bucket and a "slick" of grass clippings floating over the whole top --- YUCK! Needless to say, we dumped and rinsed and today they started out with a fresh bucket full.

Monday, August 20, 2007

thoughts on being a new mother-in-law....




On Saturday evening, my daughter married a great guy. I know its totally cliche to say, but I do feel like instead of loosing a daughter, I gained a son.

One of the things the pastor said to them during the ceremony was that they would laugh together and cry together, and judging from all the tears during the ceremony, they've got the crying part down already.

Its so sweet that they are both tender, emotional people, and that they also know how to laugh and have fun.

So this week I am doing my first mother-in-law thing, taking care of their dog while they go off to Disneyland for their honeymoon.

Friday, August 17, 2007

sneek peek of wedding cake......


Well, today is the day we take off to Northern Colorado for our daughter’s wedding.

This week we have had two friends here with us from California and have spent most of the week working on flowers and cakes and putting quilting stitches into the quilt I put together for the happy couple.

Yesterday was especially hectic in that there are certain things that simply cannot be done until the last minute. So, yesterday morning at about 10 we started in on the final decorating of the cakes. We had so issues with frosting texture and these cakes being so moist and very tender, so a lot of time was devoted to just getting a clean layer of frosting on them. Decorating was easier, and they look pretty nice. I think they will look even better when we get them set up on the stands with the lace and the flowers.

We had just enough time to have a quick bite of lunch before it was time to head off to pick up the flowers. We decided to rest a bit and have dinner before starting into the flowers.

At 7 we began cutting and wiring individual flowers, and by 10 we had completed the bride’s bouquet, flowers for 4 bridesmaids, 10 boutonnières for various men to be honored and 9 corsages for various ladies. We also had a bucket full of flowers left that will be used as decorations on the tables, around the cake, etc.

So today, we’ll be packing up the van and heading off.

There will be lots of posting about all the festivities next week – with pictures!

Tuesday, August 14, 2007

OUCH!



Yes folks, that's my foot.

Don't you love the delightful blue at the base of each toe?

And then there is the puffy little knot just below the second toe.

mmmmm, note to self: do NOT set the leg of a heavy antique dining room chair down on a bare foot....it hurts!

Ok, so right now I'm really glad that my daugher's wedding (on Saturday --- THIS Saturday!) is not of the very formal kind that requires me to wear heels.....my lovely new white Crocs will be just fine, thank you.

Monday, August 06, 2007

Deja Vu of a different kind.....

I spent some time yesterday afternoon writing addresses on the envelopes that I will send wedding announcements out in.

Since this is going to be a small wedding, my daughter invited mostly just her very immediate family that lives in our area, and I am sending out announcements with a photo of her and her soon-to-be-hubby to the rest of the family and friends that are scattered about the country.

As I sat and addressed I had that odd sensation of "I've been here before", thinking about similar August evenings 24 years ago when I was writing many of these same names on announcements -- announcements of her arrival in this world.

Its been a very fast 24 years -- probably more so for me than for her.

As I recall there were a few tears spilled then too --- maybe not as many as our "love affair" was just beginning then -- I can tell that I best have several hankies in my pocket in 12 days -- I'm sure I'm going to need them!

Thursday, August 02, 2007

its that feeling of deja vu

as I sat and watched, fascinated, horrified, at the pictures from Minneapolis.

Its been almost 18 years since the Loma Prieta earthquake in the San Francisco Bay Area, and those pictures last night were all too familiar.

It was made even stranger as I listened to Keith Olbermann describe the event in words that were poetic, beautiful even, regardless of the terrible situation.

Weirder yet that his was a voice we heard that night in October, 1989, as he was a sports caster then, in the Bay Area for the World Series games that were interrupted by the quake; suddenly turned news caster, describing the destruction around him.

And the reports of a hundred little miracles --- the school bus that didn't go over the edge; the Red Cross facility practically at arms reach; the Red Cross official that was ON THE BRIDGE and helped those kids get out of that bus as it lay at an odd angle; the whole class of student nurses in the Red Cross building to aid all those kids as they came off the bus ----- no sir, it was not any of those kids day to die.

Then the stories that rip your heart out as one young man described his last words with his fiance as she was on the bridge saying to him "the bridge I'm on is collapsing" and then the awful silence. I wonder if he has found her yet, I wonder if she survived or if she is one of the bodies they are searching for this morning.

And finally the anger at a political situation that has continued over the past 6 years to drum the word terror into our ears over and over until one of the first questions out of our collective mouths is "Was it an act of terror?" And yes, it was terror for those people on the bridge, but not THAT kind.