Time Flies When You're Having Fun!

 Christmas Morning Brunch...all ready and waiting for me...

 Carl had gone to see the new Chipmunk movie so he brought Alvin over so that I could meet Alvin.

 Thanks to Ray, Tom, and DJ, I had a smooth trip downstairs on my special chair...

 And went right into the dining room for brunch...L to R...DJ, Britt, Siobhan, Carl, Ray, Monica, Tom and me!

 Barbara made sure I got my home-made eggnog with "everything" in it...rum, brandy, bourbon...and even a touch of eggnog!

 Mr. Big was in charge of keeping the crumbs under control...

Then it was time to open presents...read Christmas cards...and have some more eggnog!

 And now I hear I'm celebrating ANOTHER BIRTHDAY next week!  Looking forward to seeing everyone in 2012!

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas!

Only a few more days...and Christmas will be here.

There are reindeer in the entry hall...

and poinsettias and orchids in the family room...

And my tree in MY room...with cards from Kyle and Kerry...

And a present from Don and Brenda...

Even my breakfast tray looks like Christmas...

Carl wanted me to get in the Christmas spirit so he made a Santa Pizza!

The finished pizza looked "good enough to eat"...but I'm slowing down on the food intake and sticking with a "soft" diet and lots of liquids...including Ensure, milkshakes, eggnog and, of course, my nightly Bailey's!  

Now we're just waiting for the family to arrive...DJ comes in from New Jersey on Wednesday, Dec. 21st and Brittany comes back from her East Coast visit on Dec. 21st.  Then the whole clan will gather at Barbara's for Christmas.

Merry Christmas, everyone!

And It's December...

Well, Thanksgiving has come and gone...and I was thankful for a lot of things...

I don't get out much now but Barbara brought in a basket of fall leaves...I forgot how autumn leaves feel, look and smell so it was a treat to run my hands through them ...and then watch the cat enjoy them!

I knew it was Thanksgiving, but didn't know who all was coming for dinner.  Dede surprised me by flying in and arriving at 3:00 a.m. Thanksgiving morning.  She helped Barbara (and Carl) with the fresh apple pie and was gone on Friday morning...even before I woke up.  But it was good to see her again.

We had dinner in the Dining Room...my old "stomping grounds".  Looks a bit different now...

Carl had Ray stop on the mountain road to "save" some newts from becoming road kill.  Doesn't everybody carry a reptile tank in their car..."just in case..."?  The cats were very interested in the newt so the newt became part of the centerpiece on the table so that the cats wouldn't have him/her for a "snack"!

I had the whole "Thanksgiving Dinner" number---turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, cranberry relish, rolls, baked squash...and for dessert, a bit of Red Velvet Cake (baked by Monica) and some home-made Apple Crumb pie with vanilla ice cream.

Carl and Ray had the traditional "Turkey Pizza" - something they are SURE the Pilgrims would have eaten had they only known about it!

Following dinner, everyone went to the Family Room for after dinner drinks and, of course, the traditional Chocolate Turkeys!

After dinner, it was time to return to my "sanctuary" on the second floor.  Thanks to Ray, the lift was working and it sure made it easier on me!

 Here I am with Brandon...enjoying a pre-dinner drink while being protected by Biggie and Six.

Brandon came down for another visit...between Ray, Tom and Brandon, I see all of them almost every week!  Brandon brought food...(of course!) as well as some white wine, red wine, port wine, and, of course, Bailey's!

Here I am, enjoying my Bailey's in bed!

Kathy and Dave are also "regulars" and it's always good to see them...they drove down just for a quick visit and promised to come back again when Lauren is home.

Well, it's almost Christmas...and of course, I have a tree in my room.  I do enjoy seeing the lights and listening to the Chrisrmas music with earphones.


The next photo is not for the faint of heart...it's just a reality when you can't move around much and your skin gets very, very thin.

  My back has been a bit sore lately...those darn pressure sores are back with a vengeance, despite a Tempurpedic mattress and an adjustable bed.

Barbara got a egg crate mattress pad to go on top of the Tempurpedic mattress and I have an egg crate cushion on the back of my recliner.  Hopefully, between the egg crate and Barbara helping me change positions every two hours during the night, healing will happen because it's not very "pretty" now...I don't really like waking up every two hours all night long (and I don't think Barbara does, either!) but that's where we are now.  I have to look at it this way...there's no way Santa can "sneak in" without Barbara or me knowing about it!

November Update

November 2011

Well, I guess it's time for an update.  I asked Barbara not to do anything to my Blog until I was feeling better but I think this is as good as  it's gonna get!

 Here I am, showing Pat, the Chaplain from Hospice, how to play Angry Birds.

 I get my breakfast brought up to my room almost every day...I'm beginning to get used to Room Service!

 It's been really great...having old and new friends stop by...Dave and Kathy came by and had dinner with me one evening and then, just a week later, Dave, Kathy, Lauren and Kevin came by and brought Pumpkin Beer, ice cream, wine, Bailey's and even some Ensure!

 Barbara made ice cream sodas for everyone...it's been a LONG TIME since I had an Ice Cream Soda!

 Herb came to visit for a week...Brandon came down from Valley Ford and cooked dinner one night and a great breakfast the next morning.

Sometimes, when there are extra hands around, I make the trek downstairs to join the crowd for breakfast, dinner or drinks.  Barbara makes sure I have interesting dishes and silverware - just like Carl!

 Some days, I don't feel much like eating...so here's a treat...an Ensure Flight (similar to a Wine Flight but not as much fun!)

I still get called on to help with holiday treats...here are the pumpkin cookies with glowing eyes!  All set for a Halloween dinner party!

 Of course, Carl and Jelly went trick-or-treating...as a wolf pack!  Ray made both costumes...can you tell which one is which?

Wish I had thought to dress up like "grandma" in Little Red Riding Hood.  Imagine what I could have done when the "wolf" came to my bedside!

Here's Joanne...she's the nurse from Hospice.  She comes once a week to see me and calls more often.  Good thing all of the caregivers like animals...they never leave my side.

Here's Fatima...she comes every day, morning and night...and when Barbara is working, Fatima stays with me all day so I'm well cared for although I spend almost all of the time in bed.  Legs hurt too much to move much and my back is also hurting now.  Old age "ain't for sissies, that's for sure!  I take pain pills every 4-6 hours to keep the pain down to a dull ache.

So...as Thanksgiving approaches, I have turkey planter on my side table along with my "call bell".  Sometimes I ring it just to see how fast Barbara can make it up the stairs!

Barbara starts me off each day with a photograph of someone in the family in a frame on my breakfast tray.  I have to reflect on who it is and where the photo was taken.  So far, I'm doing quite well!  She also finds me quotes to put on my breakfast tray..."Have a Nice Day" was one of the short ones but here's a longer one I liked...

"Time is a traveler. Where did it go? It left, but it didn't leave you empty handed. No! It left you with the gift of beautiful memories, that you can keep in your heart for safe keeping, to cherish forever, and ever."— Jane Adams

I'm thankful for a lot of things.  Special thanks to all of you who have come to see me, sent cards, made phone calls, sent e-mails...it means a lot to me to hear from my family and my friends even though I do have a hard time hearing on the phone.  (But I'm REALLY good in person...just ask Herb or Brandon or Kathy, Dave, Lauren or Kevin!)  I try to keep up with Leah and Kyle and Rachel and Mike by checking on their blogs, too.  I check on Dave and Kathy's blog and also saw Lauren's!  I also appreciate the photos that Kerry and Rachel send to my e-printer! Ray, Siobhan and Carl come by frequently and Kerry and Rachel often send pictures of Caleb and Gunney.    Brittany has come up from Monterey several times and will be here again for Thanksgiving along with most of Barbara's family.

I'm spending more and more time in bed now...it's just too hard to try to get up and move.  TV is a great companion these days...if I sleep through a show, I just watch it at a later time.  Hopefully, I'll be up for a trip downstairs to enjoy Thanksgiving dinner with everyone.  Barbara promised me a chocolate turkey if I do...and I still like my chocolate!

Happy Thanksgiving, Everyone!