New Year's Eve

The last day of 2006 - sometimes it is hard to believe that we've already lived through 7 years of the new millennium. The end of the year has had it's surprises - the death of Jerry Ford & the very quick hanging of Saddam Hussein. As we've watched the national funeral for Ford, John and I are struck by how much HISTORY has happened in our lifetime. And just how many more "icons" we will watch pass away in our lifetime. Today I am still trying to get over a bad head cold - but I do want to spend some time today to begin to plan 2007's garden. And hopefully I'll be able to fix the boys' favorite New Year's Eve snacks for tonight. Happy New Year everyone!

Thursday - Back to Work

Well the holidays are over and it's back to work. I actually worked a few hours on Tuesday doing the deposit, but no one else was there so it didn't count. Today - back to regular hours. For those of you who do not know - I've changed my hours at the church AGAIN! Now I work Monday and Friday from 7:30 am to 12:30 and Tuesday & Thursday from 10 am to 3 PM. Hopefully the two early days will enable me to concentrate more on the financials without alot of distraction. I will continue to do Deaf Ministries bookkeeping at home - my preferred way of working. Michael had to go back to work yesterday...he said there were not many children there though.

I took some time to begin to look through the seed catalogs yesterday. So many new varieties - I wish I could grow them all! I need to spend some time figuring out how to lay out a few new flower beds.

More later!!!

Merry Christmas!

I hope that all of you are having a wonderful day! I wonder how many other 49 year old women out there were excited to get a flash drive in their stocking and a stick of ram for their laptop??? But that wasn't the only surprize - the boys got me something that I've wanted for decades!! A cobalt blue kitchen-aid stand mixer! I'm getting ready to try it out right now! My arthritis has been really keeping me from doing alot of the baking I like to do because it hurts my hands so much to stir and knead, etc. But now the mixer will take care of it for me. The boys said it was a partially selfish gift - as they were looking forward to lots of food being made.


Well, just a short note for now - gotta go make our ham dinner fixin's. Merry Christmas!

Happy Christmas Eve!

We enjoyed a breakfast of Ambrosia, Sausage-Egg Casserole, Cheese Grits, coffee and juice. So nice to get out the special Christmas dishes and gather around the table with all three boys! Of course the conversation centered on computers and who wanted to switch which parts around. I just smile and nod! We listened to the Cambridge broadcast of Nine Lessons & Carols, that I mentioned in yesterday's blog. Then we did our stockings. Everyone was pleased with what "Saint Nicholas" had left. There were several surprizes in my stocking, that I didn't know about! Next we will enjoy a leisurely day, the boys are all on their computers, Daniel still has to wrap gifts, but the rest of ours are done and under the tree. I'm fixing a pork tenderloin, asparagus casserole, & potatoes for lunch today and then we will have our traditional Swiss Cheese fondue and Shrimp cocktails tonight while we watch the Bengals play. Then off to the candlelight service at 10:30 PM....should be a wonderful day. Merry Christmas everyone!

Happy Christmas Eve Eve!

It's Saturday - the day before Christmas Eve and all the boys are home! So the celebration starts today. John and I are enjoying a quiet morning with coffee and bagels while listening to Weekend Edition, while I plan out my baking for today. The gifts are wrapped and under the tree and all the groceries are in the house - so we are ready. We are looking forward to lots of visiting, watching movies together and of course as is usual in this household - lots of computer talk, fixing, tweeking, etc. We wish all of you a very Merry Christmas as we celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. May you have a special time of worship this holy day. Our church is having our traditional Christmas Eve Candlelight service of Lessons and Carols - patterned after the one in Cambridge England at King's College. You can probably find out when your own public radio station is broadcasting it - ours will be LIVE on Sunday morning at 10 AM. If you are interested in the history behind this service - check out the website
www.wguc.org/events/nine_index.asp

Where has Kathy been?

Not on the computer! Well here it is almost Thanksgiving and I haven't blogged for over a month! Mom was here in October and we kept pretty busy so I didn't have alot of computer time - but we had a wonderful month! We did so many special things and enjoyed each other's company so much! Then more recently I have been quite busy with work, yard, getting ready for holidays and recovering from a concussion received from a fall here at home. I'm fine now - but it did cut down on my leizure time activities (like blogging).
Okay - how to catch you up -
John is working days now and all of us love it! Family dinners & devotions again!

Daniel is keeping busy with school and Robotics Club and Skills USA (a leadership club). He just went to the fall conference for Skills USA in Columbus. He serves as the parlimentarian for his chapter. His senior year is going well and he is also active in the youth group at church and attended the Fall Retreat in Kentucky the first weekend in November.

Andrew is home for Fall Break and already has been hard at work helping John clean out the gutters and fixing all our computer problems.

Michael has had a rough Fall so far healthwise...several colds and sinus infections. I guess it's a side effect of teaching two year olds.

We are all looking forward to a great Thanksgiving week, filled with alot of cooking, eating, football, movies and visiting! Because of work schedules we are unable to join the Harris Family in Hamburg - but they will all be together at Jacque's and will be in our thoughts.

Still Gardening

We've had glorious weather for October and it's hard to believe that the gardening season is drawing to a close. I am definitely trying some cold frame growing this year and some winter sowing. Gardening is just too much fun to give up for a few months.
Still being so blessed with my mom's visit. I can't explain how special it is to be able to sit in the evenings and chat with her, watch a show together, even just sit quietly while we both read. I'm so happy to have these memories to store up and treasure.
Took down the lettuce bed, corn bed and part of the bean bed today. I want to ammend the soil and then plant my winter rye (green manure). Chopped a big kettle of tomatillas tonight for salsa verde. We're getting excited to see Andrew later this week on his fall break.

Welcome October!

Well it will be a wonderful October this year...my mom is here in Cincinnati for her birthday month! We've already had a great start to the month with a Birthday Celebration on the 3rd for mom's 72nd birthday! It was so fun to have her here on her special day to treat - it's been quite a few years since we've been together for her birthday.
Then yesterday we went to Tall Stacks
- a Cincinnati Festival that happens only every 3 or 4 years. This year 18 steamboats have come and docked along the riverbank. The day was a balmy 85 degrees. We got to hear many of the music groups perform, including The Real McCoys - an Irish group who sang one of my dad's favorite songs, "Loch Lomand". We are off to a good start to a fun month!

That time of year

GARAGE CLEANING DAY! We started early and we are almost done at 7 PM. I'm sure I don't have to tell any of you what a chore this job was! But it's time to begin to put things away for the winter and I wanted to be sure that Henrietta (the Beretta) had a cozy spot to park this year. (I hate to scrap off ice) Anyway we are getting very close to needing a shed for the mower, the chipper, the tiller, etc. So that is on our wish list.
Yesterday was Daniel's birthday, but we are celebrating in stages. Tonight is his special choice dinner and cake... so as soon as John gets home from work, we'll eat.

Red's Game

John was given 4 free tickets for today's game against the Giants. I was hopeful for a win, because they won last night - but they couldn't pull it off. This was the first chance this season to attend a game - so I enjoyed it, even with the loss. We invited Mary Jane and the international student who is staying with her until UC starts. Her English is very good, so we were able to explain the game to her. It wasn't the most exciting game to watch, but actually was played at a pace that was good for someone to learn about baseball.

What's a labrum?

The shoulder joint has a cuff of cartilage called a labrum that forms a cup for the end of the arm bone (humerus) to move within. Well I just found out that I have torn mine. I do not know alot about it at this point, except it does explain the severe pain I have had in my left shoulder and arm for two weeks. I see an orthopedic surgeon on Monday and will let everyone know more then. Guess I've done a little too much yardwork?

Great Weekend!

We had a beautiful break from the heat on Saturday and I was able to spend 11 hours working outside. But yesterday the heat returned and it was not pleasant sleeping last night! We had our small group over for dinner last night - our first "party" on our porch this year! We had a wonderful time, it's been a month since we got together, so lots to catch up on in each other's lives. I had fun giving tours of the garden. Now it's back to the work week with a big agenda! Today I need to do the deposit and get all the reports ready for a big financial meeting tonight. Plus closing July and beginning to enter the budget for next year. Then I need to begin the process of closing the year. At home the big projects are APPLES! I have a bushel that need attention, plus all the daily things like watering and weeding. It's definitely a busy time of year....so I'd better get at it. Have a great week everyone!

Wednesday's Heat

The sixth day of heat emergency here in Cincinnati! I'm up early to get my outside work done as quickly as possible. At 7 AM it is already 78 degrees! Sounds like after today, we will finally get some relief....at least they anticipate a cool front coming through tomorrow. Well, it's off to the garden.

Tomato Time

I will have to note in my gardening records that today was the first day we had ripe tomatoes (other than the cherry ones). Enjoyed one of our favorite meals: falafel....I learned to make it in Israel and we always celebrate the first of the cucumbers and tomatoes with this yummy meal. I will have to post the recipe up this week. The hot and humid weather has turned the garden into a lush jungle. Everything has doubled in size and I see "harvest time" just around the corner. Time to check all my canning and freezing supplies. We are under a heat alert until Wednesday - so looks like I'll be up early checking in on everything and getting the watering done before work tomorrow. Wish I could have jumped in my sister's pool today! John and I watched movies in the air conditioned house while I worked on the DMI newsletter (folding, stuffing, labeling, stamping & sealing) - a perfect job to do while watching movies. Well, time to get to bed so I can beat the heat tomorrow!

Saturday

Another hot, humid day. The cicadas are out and making a racket! I think we are fully into summer now. I know my tomatoes need hot nights to ripen, so I tell myself that this is worth being a little uncomfortable. Today is my day to plan for the next week - so menu planning and grocery shopping are the order of the day. John has things set up so nice for me to be able to work on the porch using the wireless with my laptop...with the ceiling fan going it is comfortable. I think if there is air moving - that always feels better. I also need to work on the DMI newsletter...so not alot of time for gardening today. Maybe tomorrow it will be cooler. I think we'll have our first batch of green beans soon - seems like after a rain everything really grows fast! I've changed my page a little on the sidebar...including the days that I plan to update each blog or website...hopefully that will help anyone who regularly looks at this know which other site to check.

Friday Focus

It's raining again today, so I've spent the morning researching several projects I have in mind. One is to turn our foyer/hallway into a pantry - so I've been measuring and online shopping Home Depot to see if it can be done without having to put up a wall. Now if my brother-in-law John lived closer, I'd pay him to put up a wall and I could do the finishing. The other thing I am working on for Walter is a job description for my work at NCCC. And I've been doing a little online shopping for cars - although it'll be at least a year before I've saved enough money. It has helped me determine what options/models/types I'm interested in.
The rain has not lowered the humidity at all - so we're taking things slow today. I've also been working on plans for a storage shed to be built or bought and put at the back of our driveway. This would enable us to actually use our garage for cars this winter. Lots of projects - always easier to dream about and plan than to actually put into place.

New goals

I've decided to update my blogs weekly on different days to try to be more consistent. For a list of my schedule check out my main page
www.geocities.com/mommoboys
I am trying to organize my time more strictly as the end of the summer nears and things begin to get hectic with the start of the school year and the start of the ministry year at work.
We'll see how it goes. Today is my day off and I've already gotten my 30 minute walk done, as it is going to be a hot one! I'm heading out to the garden with my long list of "to dos" and plan to enjoy this respite from WORK (meaning at NCCC) by "working" outside until the heat gets unbearable. I have some inside jobs in my pocket for the heat of the day. I miss the freedom of vacation and the open feeling each day had - but I intend to make my day off each week be my mini-vacation as much as I can. Will update everyone on my progress tonight on my garden blog.

Goals

One of the things that I took time to do over vacation was to review my goals for this year. We are 6 months into the year and a good time to see how I'm doing and re-assess to see if I still desire these goals. It is a good exercise for me - I sometimes set too many goals for myself and then get depressed because I can't pull everything off. A mid-year reevaluation helps me keep my expectations in line. One thing that I do want to be more committed to is writing. After visiting with my Uncle Joe and being reminded by him of the importance of recording our memories - I want to take more time to do that. So I need to set aside time each day or two to record memories. A blog seems like the perfect place to do that.

Vacation is over

We have had a wonderful vacation and now it is time to return to reality! It was great having some days to "play" in my garden. Then a wonderful time in Indiana and Michigan with our family reunion. We got to visit with my Uncle Dick and Aunt Kay - getting a chance to see my Grandpa's farm and all the hard work that Dick has done there. Time at Posey Chapel, visiting my dad's grave. A great Mexican meal with Uncle Joe and Aunt Pat, Mike & Patty, Dick & Kay! So much fun to have everyone together. Lots of nice visiting time...got to go to the Lake, shopping, our traditional lunch at Carlson's Drive-In, driving by all the old houses. Uncle Joe & Aunt Pat treated us to a wonderful dinner at Ryan's and then we got to look through Joe's scrapbooks from the trip he & Aunt Pat took with my parents to Scotland. Several of us went to see "Pirates" at the late movie. Then John & I drove to Iowa to see Andrew. We had a wonderful time in Cedar Rapids. Andrew took us to see a great garden, where they had every variety of flower and had them all labeled. It was so cool! On Wednesday, Andrew took the day off work and we went to the Amana Colonies. The history at the museum was so interesting. I got to see several old looms, all kinds of farming equipment. We visited Lilly Lake and all the lillies were in bloom. Then we've had several days at home to catch up on everything before going back to work.
Well that's the short summary of 2006's vacation...I'll post pictures as soon as I locate my cable to download them from my camera.
Everyone have a nice week!

Miss my Mommy!

It was so nice to be able to talk to mom whenever I wanted - and now I am really missing her! We did get her safely home and I think accomplished all the things she wanted us to help her with. Now we are planning for a big weekend with Andrew driving in from Iowa. I have a 4-day weekend and so does Daniel... we weren't expecting Monday off, but Marc told me to switch my days off so I could be home with AJ and Daniel just found out he has both days off.
Spent the day cleaning out the greenhouse and re-potting alot of plants. I have way too many tomatoes and peppers...so if anyone wants some - let me know. Back to work today and also have a DMI newsletter to get out. So it'll be a busy weekend.

Wednesday Update

Worked today, so I could take tomorrow off. My college roommate is driving over from Indiana for a visit. It'll be great to catch up on each other's families. We are having such a good visit with my mom...I hate to see it end. We are driving her home on Friday. We are going to help her finish her flower beds and plant the irises we are taking up from my neighbor's yard. Daniel will get some night driving hours in during this trip and hopefully can take his driving test soon.

Mom's visiting

Michael and I went to Buffalo last weekend and brought my mom down to Cincinnati for a 2 week visit. We are having a wonderful time with her! She has been happy to see everything that we've changed down here - since she has not been able to visit since July 2003. We've had a nice Father's Day today. I made John a strawberry/rhubarb pie with rhubarb fresh from the garden. Mom took all of us out to Applebees for lunch and then I made a big chef salad for dinner...I just love being able to go out to the garden and pick most of dinner!! I probably won't blog much this week between visiting and gardening....will write as I can.

Sorry can't "blog"

No time for blogging today - getting ready for mom's visit! Michael and I leave Friday to go get her and bring her to Cincy for two weeks! So look for a post on Saturday to hear about our trip. Gotta go run the vacuum!

Happy Memorial Day

Wishing everyone a Happy Memorial Day and hope your celebrations include family and friends as we start the summer! If you still need a great salad to take to your picnic go to my recipe blog at
http://www.freewebs.com/mommoboys/
and try my Aunt Pat's Famous Layered Jello Salad - it's wonderful and I'm serving it today with BBQ'd chicken, baked beans and potato salad!
This is a short post as we are also spending the day working on the yard and gardens. Things are really shaping up and I'll post pictures soon. I have to take advantage of having my strong men off work and school today (you lucked out again Andrew!!)
Did you get to see the race yesterday? Fond thoughts of my dad as well as a lingering sadness because I miss him so much! Heaven will be a great reunion! Sam Hornish won and Danica came in at eighth - which isn't fantastic, but she finished. Gotta go plant my corn!!

The sun is shining again

After a week of rain, today the sun broke out again. Partly cloudy, but that was good for gardening. I spent the whole day outside and loved it! Now I'm waiting to hear which of the 3 remaining "idols" goes home. This season has been packed with really talented contestants, and I hate to see any of them leave. This may be one cd I will get! I think many of the contestants will get recording contracts this season. Well - gotta go - time for the announcement!

Happy Mother's Day to all the moms!

I ho.pe everyone enjoys a special Mother's Day tomorrow - remember:
"A Mother holds her child's hand for awhile, but holds her child's heart forever"

Rainy days and updates

It's raining today (great for the seeds I planted yesterday) and also a great opportunity to do some updating on my multitude of websites & blogs. Kathy's Korner has been updated with easier access to all my sites. So if you are interested in just one of my many interests - here's the place to go to get to the site you are most interested in. And if you see a Star next to it - that means it has been recently updated. Be sure to check out my new photo album also. Check out Kathy's Korner at www.geocities.com/mommoboys
Hope you enjoy at least one of my sites! Email me with any comments or suggestions. Each site has it's own email.

Weekend Update

Saturday was a productive garden day with everyone pitching in, except Daniel who has "sore" quads from Lifetime Fitness class. We finished blocking in the tomato bed and I planted 5 varieties plus all the banana peppers. I also worked a little on the squash bed. John plans to finish it tomorrow. We are almost done with switching over all the raised beds from wood to cement blocks. I am beginning to set out many of the flowers, now that Mother's Day is a week away (that is the 'safe' day to plant annuals according to Cincy gardeners). No blooms on any of the flowers I've planted from seed - but the plants are getting huge. It will be a busy week, getting most of the seeds in. Beginning to make plans to bring my mom down for a visit in June.

Update for Tuesday

Posting is hard when I'm spending all my time outside. Briefly I have the sunflowers, sweet peas, dill, cumin, cilantro, lilly of the valley, candytuft, lavender, chamomile and tarragon seeds planted. The plants in the greenhouse are HUGE! Tomorrow we are going to have great weather....sunny and 78! So I will start outside as soon as I take Daniel to school. Tomorrow I hope to get the lettuce bed planted and finish putting the cement blocks around the second 4 x 20 bed. We finished one 4x20 and planted all the mustard family plants in it (cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, etc). We also have moved the wooden bench to the location of the new flower gardens. I need to put together my trellis for the morning glories and moonflowers. I'll try to update again before the weekend.

Everything's okay

It went down to 31 last night, but all of the plants made it. I covered everything and put lights in the greenhouse. I did not cover the new pear tree, but it is fine. Worked in the yard all day today. Finally got up to 60
Planted all my sunflowers along the back garden fence. Tonight it is only going down to 39 - so everything should be okay. I probably won't cover everything but will still put the lights on in the greenhouse.

Winter's back

Thank goodness the guys got the greenhouse assembled before this last little taste of winter came. I just spent the other day getting all of the plants off the porch and into the greenhouse and tonight we have a frost warning. I have lights up in the green house to help keep the temp above freezing. I've already planted the cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli and brussel sprouts - but had put up row covers over them when I did - at that time I did it to shelter them from the bright sun and 75 degree weather we were having, but it will work just as well against the cold tonight. Most of the flowers that are up are hardy enough and I covered my pansies just to protect the beautiful blooms they have right now. The other good thing is that the apple tree has already lost it's blooms, so it should be okay. I'm not sure if I should cover up the new pear tree or not.

Great Quote

"As a rule, young people do not care for gardening. They lack the necessary patience and perseverance. But in the years of middle life, when one's sun is slowly setting and interest in the world and society relaxes, the garden, with its changing bloom, grows ever dearer." Helena Ely

Hosanna!

"Rejoice greatly, O people of Zion! Shout in triumph, O people of Jerusalem! Look, your king is coming to you. He is righteous and victorious, yet he is humble, riding on a donkey--even on a donkey's colt."

May you have a blessed Palm Sunday!

Spring in Cincinnati

Yesterday 80 Tonight 30 Typical Cincinnati Spring. Had to cover up the new pear tree. Even though it was chilly today - around 50 - John and I still got alot of yard work done. Here's some pictures of our flowers that are up and blooming

Opening Day & Tournament Final

What a day - opening day in Cincy for the Reds (almost a city holiday) and tonight NCAA final men's basketball tournament in Indy! None of my teams made it to the final, but I'll still enjoy watching UCLA and Florida on the court tonight. The Reds lost to the Cubs...but then they almost always lose on opening day...too early to tell much about them, but hopefully we'll have a better season than last year.
Crazy weather...hot yesterday and then expected to be 31 tonight. Terrible tornados yesterday all around the midwest. We were okay here in West Chester, although other parts of Cincinnati had wind damage. Nothing like they had in Tennessee....pray for the families there. I'll have to check with AJ to see if Cedar Rapids had any of the bad weather - looked like it was south of him. How did all of you in Indiana fare? They say it is going to be a wild spring.

April Fool's Day

Well Daniel is off on a Youth Retreat, so we've been safe from practical jokes around here - although I think the biggest joke of the day is having to turn the clocks ahead tonight! When it's the semi-finals!! There's no way I'll be going to bed until basketball is over tonight. Looks like George Mason may lose...but I'm still hoping for a rally. Gotta love a team that can knock UConn out of the tournament.
Spent the day transplanting again...the plants are taking over. I need to get some of them out to the porch, but the temps dropped today and I didn't want to risk it. I think it's time to put up the row covers so I can at least get the cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower and brussel sprouts out. Well the pizza's done and time to get back to the game.

Spring is here!

A wonderful Wednesday working in the yard. I love to get out and clean up the beds this time of year. Lots of bulbs up and ready to burst into bloom...grape hyacinths, regular hyacinths, daffodils, primroses are up and my easter lilies are up. I trimmed all the mums, planted pansies, raked up leaves and weeded the beds. Michael and John helped and then Daniel when he got home from school. I was also able to get the dormant oil spray on the apple tree. So nice to be outside again. We swept the porches, walks and deck. Tomorrow it's going up to 70! I'll be able to work from 7:30 until about 10 - then I'll have to get ready for work. I only work until 4:30 - so maybe I can come home and do a little more.

Happy Birthday to me!

Well it has been a great birthday! Nice cards, wonderful, thoughtful gifts! Michael got me a pear tree for the backyard...I think it'll be 3-5 years before we'll get pears, but I am so excited! Tomorrow is my day off and we are supposed to have nice weather, so I am going to use my new organic spray on the apple trees and the grapes. This year we should have nice fruit without the "rust" spots we've had in the past. I'm using products from Gardens Alive and they have great instructions to follow.
Michael also got me a pair of those bionic garden gloves that are recommended by the Arthritis Association. He gave me a pair last year and I used them so much I wore through the fingers. Daniel gave me the special edition DVD of the Legend of Zorro! (I love Catherine Zeta-Jones and Antonio Banderas!) Michael and Daniel took me to Mimi's Cafe for a birthday dinner. John gave me a pot of tulips and is going to get me a big load of dirt for my new beds. A garden girl's dream!! My great team of co-workers gave me a beautiful minature rose plant! I got a IM birthday wish from my college roomie and lots of beautiful cards and e-cards! Thank you everyone for making this a special day!!

Basketball & transplanting

Sweet Sixteen! Of course the game I'm most interested in starts the latest (9:57 est) But UCLA plays Gonzaga - could be worth waiting up to see. I'm going to be busy during the games transplanting my seedlings into bigger pots...I have the little tv all set up in the basement. It snowed here on the first day of Spring and we are supposed to have more this weekend. I was hoping to be able to get some of my hardier plants out on the porch but I'll have to wait. So the plants are spreading throughout the house. I had to set up another small greenhouse in the living room. It's like living in a conservatory!

What a tournament!

It's been quite a weekend...seems like more upsets this year than ever! It has made for some of the best basketball I have seen. Nothing is better than a low-seeded team fighting tooth and nail against a "powerhouse" and winning! Even though the results reeked havoc with my bracket, it still was great basketball.
Today has been hard, remembering everything that happened a year ago - my dad's last day with us. But my mom told me today about a card she received in the mail from an old friend who wrote "Thinking of you as you celebrate Jack's first year with Jesus." And all throughout the year I have thought "this is daddy's first easter with Jesus" "this is daddy's first christmas with Jesus" but I hadn't thought of this one year anniversary in that way - but it is how I am going to think of the passing of time from now on. Every day brings me one day closer to joining my friends and relatives who have preceeded me to heaven - one day closer to being able to sing praises together to our Lord and King.

Hoops!

Every year I say it - every year it seems to be true: College basketball offers the best in games to watch. Always surprizes, always great first round games....the little guys upsetting a #2 or 3 seed - always a #12/#5 upset and just the most entertaining sports tv! And this year is another great one... even though some of those upsets ruin my brackets - I just love to watch them. Overtimes, double overtimes - it is no wonder we all have March Madness! I'm staying up way too late, but IU has a late game and I just have to watch. Go Hoosiers!

Update

My CT scan is clear of any more lung problems! So I don't have to take the anti-fungus medicine. All my pulmonary function tests were better than last time. I am feeling better than ever. I've lost 28 # and have a good handle on my diabetes.
Today I planted my first seeds outside - peas and snow peas. All my indoor seedlings are growing well. Only a few more days until Spring is officially here. And the NCAA tournament starts tomorrow! It's a great time of year. Of course we are also drawing near to the one year anniversary of my dad's passing - a very sad time. Yet knowing that one day we'll be together again is a wonderful gift. I think of him so often when I am working out in the yard, as I think of his dad's flower garden also and my grandparent's farm. Wonderful memories of times spent as a little girl helping with the planting. Memories of my dad and how carefully he tended his tomatoes and watched over the planters of flowers that my mom arranged each year. I am so grateful for this love of growing things that was passed on to me.

Great Doctor's Appointment!

Saw the endocrinologist today at the diabetes center. She was thrilled with my results. I've now lost a total of 26 # (since August) and lowered my A1C from 6.4 to 5.8 She said that my blood sugar levels were good and to keep doing what I'm doing (which is watching carbs and increasing exercise). I don't have to see her again for 6 months! Yeah!
No word yet on the lung culture, although the results are "in the mail" so I should be able to report soon on that. I will repeat the CT of my lungs at the beginning of March as well as a repeat of the pulmonary function tests. If I get an all-clear from those - I won't have to take the anti-fungal medicine.

Seeds are coming!

I'm so excited because last night I ordered my seeds for this year. I can't wait until they all get here and I start planting. Now I'm thinking about where I want to put everything, how I want to improve or change the beds I have and dreaming of new beds to make. I'm asking John and the boys for dirt again for my birthday. I hope they get me a big load this year....because I have so many plans. I'm working on how to document them. I've joined a garden site where I can journal, but I'd like to share my progress with friends and family. So I'll think on it for awhile and let you know if I'll continue to post on my garden journal, or if I'll move to a different site or format. Tomorrow I'm starting my pepper plants.

February!!!

I can't believe it is already February! I tried to post on here from Florida, but the computer I was using wouldn't let me. Anyway, I had a wonderful trip to Lake Mary to visit my mom and her friend, Jackie. They have a cute apartment, close to a grocery store, movie theater and shopping center. Since they do not have a car - it is good that they can walk to these things. While I was down there, mom rented a car and I drove them to see some of the things they wanted to check out. We went to Blue Springs and saw the manatees, Bok Tower, Mount Dora, Cocoa Beach and some beautiful gardens near Orlando. I got to stay almost a whole week and we had great weather (in the 80's). It was a lovely winter break - especially in one of my busiest months at work. So I came home to alot of work (which is why it has taken so long to post again) but I finished everything that needed to be completed by January 31st! Now that everyone from NCCC and DMI has their contribution statements and can do their taxes - I'm on to a new project: a building campaign at NCCC. I will keep busy during February tallying commitments and writing reports for the leadership teams. Then the last weekend of February, weather permitting, Michael and I will travel up to Buffalo to help my sister, Jacque continue to sort through my mom's old house. Before I know it - it will be March.

Cold again!

Well we reached 64 degrees yesterday! But it must have been too warm for the Bengals, as they lost to the Steelers....taking us out of the playoffs way too soon for the fans. But today - winter is back with temps only in the low 40's.
I am happy to say that I am feeling so much better each day and beginning to do "regular" things again! My bedroom got a much needed cleaning this weekend. Today I worked for 3 hours in the basement sewing room and really made a dent. We are still trying to sort through and clear out stuff from John's parent's house. When John's dad died two years ago - we were so busy that many things we had to just pile up in the basement in order to clear out his apartment when the nursing home wanted. Now my mom is clearing out her basement and seeing what a big job she has is helping me get going on ours. One bag to Goodwill and one to the trash today - plus alot of boxes sorted through and the contents put in their place. I have no idea how long it will take to get through but wintertime seems like a good time for an inside job.

Walking again

Finally I am back to walking....so far my foot is NOT hurting too much to do about 20 minutes at a time. I still probably need to get to a podiatrist, but I put gel inserts in my tennis shoes and it feels better. Anyhow, the other day the temperatures were great for a walk outside (54) but today I took my shoes to work and walked around the church (inside) after I was done working. Not as exciting as walking outside, but it was warmer.

Happy 2006!

No resolutions because I like to set goals as things come up not just on a particular day of the year. But I do hope that I will be more consistent in blogging than I have been the last two months. I think I just got tired of talking about my health!
We had a whirlwind trip to Buffalo - don't feel like we did that much, but Mom appreciated it, so I'm glad we went. So nice to see her new house. I will try to post pictures of it on the Harris site http://spaces.msn.com/members/harrishomepage/
as soon as I can.
We enjoyed a nice holiday time with the boys this year, mostly watching movies. I actually did some baking for them, although it was hard to not be able to eat what I wanted. I did try a cookie or two, when my blood sugar would allow.
Andrew is back at school - we miss him already! He is such a great guy to talk with and we really enjoyed our time in the car with him.
My mom invited me to visit her in Florida - so I will be going down Jan 18 thru 23rd. I have to drive a rental car from the airport to where she is staying - hopefully I can manage that. I'm going on Mapquest next to find the directions.