Saturday Solution

Did anyone figure out what we gave Graham for his 13th birthday? Well, here is the solution for those that are wondering...Space+Rocket+Robot+Camp=5/24-5/29/2015...the solution=Space & Rocket Center Robotic's Camp May24-May29, 2015 in Huntsville, AL. I think that he is looking forward to it! I think that this is a week camp that is right up his alley. We have had a pretty usual Saturday. Woody did manage to head out for his usual trip to the library and WalMart. He came back pretty tired. Today it actually got into the 50's...temperatures are on the rise. I asked Woody if he was going to take advantage of the warmer temperatures and go on a walk, but he said that he got his exercise at the store. While he shopped I got busy and put together some rye bread. The loaves came out of the oven late afternoon. We are planning to use it for Reuben sandwiches. Then this afternoon I have been working on Isaac's shirt. Woody has read, watched basketball, a DVD and pretty much rested after his morning excursion.

Pondering "13"

Well, it is official...Graham is 13. The following picture shows Graham and several of his siblings trying to figure out his gift from Goosey (Woody) and Grammy (me). It took a little while for him to understand the secret message.

Here's the secret message:

I'll let you ponder the solution and will tell his gift tomorrow night...then you can see if you guessed right! Today has been a rather quiet day. The snow is pretty much gone. But I still didn't have school because it is Friday...hmmmmm...a week off for me. I woke up early and worked for a while on the Sunday School lesson for Sunday. Then I pretty much moved into my sewing room. I did a small sewing project and then I cleaned/straightened up my sewing machine cabinet...dusted it quite well...all the little nooks and crannies including drawers and little shelves. So now it is all clean for a new project. I did finish my sweatshirt yesterday. Next project: a knit shirt for Isaac. I just finished tracing a pattern. It is sort of going to match his baby brother's. He mainly wants a pocket on his shirt like Joseph has on his! Little boys and pockets! Woody has done very little except rest and attempt to stay warm. He did change a light bulb in our bathroom. He didn't sleep well last night due to his cough so he did a bit of resting of his eyes today. It never got warm enough today for him to venture out for a walk, though he did venture out for the mail. He's not showing a lot of energy these days. Maybe he will feel better when it warms up as it is supposed to by next week. We are all ready for warmer temperatures.

Igloos & Cake

Looks like we are online...we have had it sporadically...so I will take advantage and post quickly before it is gone again. We turned into a winter wonderland once again...this was the prettiest snow that we have had and enough that the children were able to have lots of fun. By the time that they got home from church last night there was enough snow on the ground for them to make several snowmen. It was the nice packing kind of snow. The temperatures were such that it wasn't bitterly cold to be out playing in it. This morning they got up and had more snow fun. This time they decided to make an igloo. I'm impressed...they even got it closed at the top and there was enough room inside for several of them to be in there at the same time. Woody and I pretty much stayed in trying to stay warm. Woody has been really cold these last couple of days...perhaps a side effect of the Keytruda? Most of the pictures that I took were through windows. But I did venture out to take a couple of pictures once the igloo was finished. This afternoon we both ventured forth and went next door to celebrate Graham's 13th birthday which is tomorrow. We had cake and ice cream and presents. Seems just like yesterday when Nathan called us from the hospital in Texas just after he was born so we could hear him cry. Time does fly! Kathy reported today that once Graham is officially a teenager tomorrow...that it would be 19 years before they would be without a teenager in their house!!!!! Lucky them!!!!! Well, I will post quickly while I can! Maybe I will blog tomorrow night and maybe I won't...internet circumstances will dictate that.

Library Blogging

Since snow is predicted and I am out of public library books and close to finished with a church library book, I decided that I would go to the public library...guess what...free wi-if! I really do feel cut off from the world without the internet...but got caught up on emails and Facebook...nothing much would have been missed if I hadn't checked! I do want to mention a couple of other things about Woody...he told the doctor yesterday that he is now close to pain free! He told me on the way to Vanderbilt yesterday that he can now lie on either side when he is sleeping...it used to be that he couldn't put the pressure of his good leg on the leg that had had radiation. He told the doctor that he just has a twinge now and then. Truly God is good! I cut out my sweatshirt this morning and started preparing the machine embroidery design that I am going to do on it. I got the design "delivered" to my machine and I chose all the colors...so next is positioning the design and then stitching it out. I can get a little reading done or watch a DVD while it is stitching. I have to stay near the machine in case it runs into a snafu...that way I can press the stop button quickly. Woody did his weekly Wednesday Krogering. He had that same extreme tired in his upper body bringing in the groceries. He has decided that taking these Keytruda infusions have to come with side effects and that this is one of his. He just has to sit down and rest after such exertions. He will take that side effect over others that might and have come his way! Well, I'm going to go choose some books and perhaps a DVD and then head home and wait for the snow.

Wait, wait, wait, and wait again!

it has been a long day of waiting...an especially long time of waiting for labs. I think that there was such a logjam because of last week's snow and ice. Lots of people here. We got quite far behind in appointment times. We were called in almost immediately to Dr. Sosman...less than 5 minutes after Woody was finished FINALLY with labs. Problem there was that lab report wasn't back yet...we did find out that his lungs are in excellent shape...so cough isn't due to his lungs. Cough can't be explained except that perhaps a side effect of Keytruda...as perhaps his getting so tired when he does anything using upper body strength. Anyway, he sent us upstairs for the infusion...to wait...till labs got back so they could order infusion med from pharmacy. His appointment for his infusion was 2:30...infusion was just started a few minutes before 5:00. We will be cutting it close to get our car before the valet parking folk close-up shop. There is a phone number to call if they are closed for the night. It has been a long day. We left the house at 9:40 and it was smooth sailing all the way here...no traffic problems. But getting here early today didn't help a bit. Now for the reason that I'm blogging early from Vanderbilt. We will be without Internet for a while...probably at least a week if not longer. So the blogs will be far and few between, if at all, till we are once again connected with cyberspace! We will see if I have withdrawal symptoms. I plan to sew, read, and perhaps cook and maybe clean! I'll "see" you when we are connected once again.

Monday Muddlings

I can finally get away from weather report blogs/photos, as today was just a cold blustery day...a day that it felt good to stay inside and do "whatever." Neither of us had to do anything specific or go anywhere at any specific time so we pretty much just let what happened happen. Woody did venture out once to get the mail and another time to walk to the pharmacy to pick up prescriptions for him and me. It is a shorter walk and at the moment the weather just hasn't been letting him get out and do his four-mile jaunts. He is still coughing so probably best that he hold off on those longer walks. I wonder what tomorrow's chest x-ray will show. His appointments are later tomorrow...after noon, but he does have to have a chest x-ray before his labs so we probably need to get there at least an hour before his first appointment. So tomorrow he has in store for him: chest x-ray, labs, doctor, and an infusion. He will get an infusion unless the doctor feels that there is a reason for him to not get one. I have spent the day sewing. I made myself a pair of sweat pants...not too thrilling...but will be comfy! I had planned to make a sweatshirt too, but ran into a snafu when I realized that I needed some ribbing for the cuffs and neck band and the band that runs around the bottom of the sweatshirt. After looking around on the internet for a while for some, I happened to think about a fabric in my stash that might work...and I think it will. But time was lost so doubt that I will get too far on the sweatshirt tonight. Since I have been sewing, I thought that I would show pictures of the outfit that I made for Joseph for his one-year pictures.

Mother of all Inventions

I guess I will give one more Middle TN weather report. Woody did a couple of things that he hasn't done in I don't know how long today...he didn't do his normal Saturday errands--the library nor WalMart nor did he go out to get the mail. Today the temperatures rose, but it took a long time for all the ice on the steps to melt away. The following picture was taken at noon or there abouts:

It's sort of hard to tell but you are looking down at four steps. This is after Kathy came over and poured some salt on them and attempted twice to sweep them off. So for quite a while it wasn't safe to venture off our front porch. Here is another reason...the street...definitely better than yesterday but still very slushy and slippery at noon and it was a few hours later till it was totally clear.

And, the reason that the mail never got brought in...by the time the ice on the steps melted it was so soggy and rainy that conditions weren't all that great for him to go out. And, it was probably good that he stayed in today anyway...he is still coughing. Now...I could have gone out and gotten it...but getting the mail is one of Woody's daily activities so I didn't want to deprive him! And, I'm sure that whatever might be out there can wait till tomorrow to be brought in when we get home from church. The next picture was taken a little before dark...note all the puddles in our yard...snow and ice meltage along with quite a bit of rain. It was also getting foggy when I took this picture. But the roads are clear as are our steps! Just wet and soggy out now. And the temperatures rose into the upper 40's today...a heat wave! But I still felt cold all day. I think that it is the dampness.

I got the Sunday School lesson ready last night so I could play today. I headed into the sewing room and got things straightened out from the latest projects that I had worked on. I have the sewing table all cleared and the cutting board on it along with the fabric all nicely spread out on it and the pattern on the fabric...but I never got around to getting it cut out as when I was ready to do that it was time to make a pot of soup. And, that is where tonight's title for the blog comes in...the answer, of course, to that title is "necessity." Today I had planned to make our Spicy Vegetable Beef soup. Well, it calls for diced potatoes and we only had two small ones...not enough. So I wondered if our friendly "neighbor's store" (Nathan and Kathy) would happen to have some extras. Kathy happened to come over to borrow our pizza stones so I asked and they did have some. A little later she came back with three...our neighbor's store even delivers! So I was all set and came back down the middle of the afternoon to make the soup. I got the recipe out, looked at the recipe and couldn't remember putting away either tomato or V-8 juice on Wednesday...Woody's last trip to the store. So I asked him...nope...he hadn't gotten it. So I got to thinking what I could use instead. I gathered quite a few cans of tomatoes and popped them into the food processor...and voila...pretty good tomato juice...at least tomato puree and added some tomato sauce. Worked great and tasted very much the same too. So in the end I managed to get this pot of soup together and we had it for supper tonight. And, now that I could go back to my sewing I am too tired...there is always another day to sew. And, by not sewing today, my sewing room will stay clean for a little longer!

Mixed Bag

Looks like the predictions have been pretty close to correct (snow turning to ice/freezing rain). Woody ventured out a little after noon on the walk to the drugstore to pick up one of my prescriptions. This was the first walk he had gone on in the last few days. It has just been too cold for him to venture out. Today's temperature was near freezing when he went out...so a heat wave compared to the last few days! He said that there was a little precip when he was out there...little tiny balls of frozen precip. There is a name for these little "frozen balls" but my memory for the name has lapsed. I think that in an earlier blog I told their name...but today that name will just not come to this old brain. The first picture was taken a little after 2pm when the first burst of snow & more little white pellets started. Not long before this was taken the roads were totally black. So this was the start of the next winter activity for this week for Middle TN.

I was talking to Cheryl (my favorite, one and only sister) on the phone a little before five when I happened to look out and it was fast becoming a winter wonderland...big fluffy snowflakes were coming down. I snapped this next picture just prior to 5pm...pretty much the same view as I had taken a little after 2pm...note that the roads were at this point totally white.

This next photo is what I didn't want to see...this is a picture out the same window which we can no longer see out of because it has now turned to sleet and frozen rain. What you are seeing on the window pane is frozen onto the pane. We really don't need an ice storm. There is one good thing that is promising...the temps are supposed to start rising and by sometime in the morning all this is supposed to turn to rain. So the build-up of ice won't be on trees and wires long...but how long is too long...well, time will tell. I look forward to the thaw that is predicted for middle TN over these next few days.

I had fun recording the progression of the latest winter storm to roll across our area...I played around with three of my cameras. Tonight's photos were taken by my newest camera...the top two and my oldest camera...the bottom. The middle picture was a still picture that I captured while taking a movie of the snow coming down. One thing that my new camera has is a setting to take pictures through glass...since all these were taken from inside that is a good feature to have. I took pictures with three cameras so I could compare images. I also did some wash today and worked some more on the Sunday School lesson for Sunday. I planned to do some sewing, but so far haven't as I started using my cutting table as a clothes folding table. "Maybe" before the evening is over I'll get around to spreading out the actual fabric for my next sewing project..."maybe" once I get this last load of wash folded.

Downright Frigid

Joseph is keeping warm in his jammies and snuggling with Mr. Bear! The last that I looked at Weatherbug it said that we were at 10 already tonight. Brrrrrrrrr! I have felt cold all day. This morning we didn't have school as Nathan, Kathy, and Graham were going to look at a used piano and Goosey (Woody) and I went next door to take care of six of the seven neighbor grandchildren. I got Joseph down for his morning nap and then Joy and I came back over to our house for her sewing time with me. She is the best one for thinking up what she wants to sew next...of course, they are usually things that I don't have patterns for and usually have no idea where she is going with the sewing idea! And, Grammy is pretty much a play it by a pattern and instruction sewer. But today she got across to me what she wants to make...it will end up assisting her in doing a magic trick or two. I think that we got it mapped out and cut out and next time we will do some sewing on it...and perhaps even get it finished. The next picture is a picture of true friendship:

Only a true and long-time friend would come over and move a piano in way below freezing temperatures on a snow day off from teaching! But the piano has been moved into it's new home. I haven't seen it yet as it was so cold that I snapped this picture and a couple of others and scurried home to get out of the cold. Kathy said that Abigail was trying to figure out how to play it using a beginner piano book. They will have to get it tuned, but it should serve them well and perhaps several little ones will learn to tickle the ivories! I came home and had lunch and then went upstairs for a little while and snuggled under a fleece throw and read and worked on Sunday's Sunday School lesson. Then mid afternoon I went downstairs and made turkey soup. The turkey soup warmed us up some when we had it for supper. After supper, I was reading but next I knew I was waking up from a little snooze. Woody has stayed pretty close to his recliner except for the time that he spent next door this morning. Oh, a little weather update...we are due for more snow and ice later tomorrow...OH, BOY!!!! I "believe" that it is supposed to turn to rain on Saturday...rain can only mean warmer temperatures...rain sounds good!

More Snow=More Fun!

We woke up to more snow this morning. And, not long after breakfast, giggles were coming from out in front of our house. They had quite the time being pulled along by their dad and/or one of their siblings. The best fun was probably when the one pulling let go and the sled continued on. Not many cars out this morning as Tullahoma schools were out once again so they pretty much had clear sailing. They also went a ways down the street that runs next to ours to go where there is a better hill in a church parking lot. Joseph stayed with us. They came back saying that there was more snow in front of our houses than there was in that parking lot. They played a bit more and then headed into their house for hot chocolate. I had a photo session with Joseph. Graham came over for his long time with Goosey (Woody) and Esther came over for her time with me. Esther finished getting her notebook caught up to date. After lunch, Woody headed out to do his Wednesday Krogering. By that time the main roads were pretty clear and the side roads that he had to be on just had patches of ice and snow on them. I got busy cooking. I made red clam sauce for our meal tonight...but made it with canned mussels that Woody bought on a whim one time. We both prefer clam sauce over mussel sauce...but we will eat it. BUT Woody did say that he wouldn't be buying them again! We had cooked a turkey breast the end of last week and I made broth with the bones and what was left on said bones. I have that cooling and will skim off any fat tomorrow and then make turkey soup of one sort or another tomorrow. I had just come upstairs to rest my weary back when Kathy texted me about perhaps taking Joseph today for his first pair of walking shoes. I sat for a few more minutes and then hopped in their vehicle as they came and picked me up. It is a tradition that Woody and I get the grandchildren their first pair of walking shoes from Clayton's Shoe Store in Tullahoma. This is the 9th pair that I have bought for the nine grandchildren. I believe that Florence, owner of Clayton's, has fit all nine of them with their shoes. He was so cute getting them. He sat so still and just stared trying to figure out what she was doing to his feet when she measured him. Then he was so funny making that first attempt to walk in the shoes...they must feel like lead weights on their feet at first!

I came home and rested some more and then went down and got the water boiling for the pasta and strained the broth so it could go into the refrigerator. We had supper a little later than usual and then I got busy washing the dishes that hadn't fit into the dishwasher earlier. While I was doing the dishes, the phone rang and it was our friendly recorded message reminding us of Woody's next week appointments at Vanderbilt. More snow isn't predicted for tomorrow...just very cold temperatures. It is already down to 14...predicted to go as low as 4! Brrrrrrrr!!!!!!! It is a faucet dripping night to keep pipes from freezing.

Little Snow=Lotta Fun!

We mostly got frozen rain, but sometime in the middle of the night it did turn into snow and this morning everything had a layer of white on it...enough for the neighbor grandchildren and their parents to go out and play around in it for a while even though it was VERY cold! Joy even made a snow angel...and made it where her grammy could take a picture without going out into the cold...took it from our bedroom window. They played around and most didn't come over here for their school time...though they did have school at their house. Joy was the only one who elected to come over to read. So I went about working around the house. I got the Hummel bookshelf back to non-Christmas. Woody made a special lunch dessert treat for the neighbor grands and their parents = one of his specialties--pumpkin pudding. Abigail returned the tray that he took them over on and then stayed for a little while helping me get our dining room table and kitchen table back to a smaller size. She was a great help clearing things off and going to get things, etc. After she left I got the cutwork table "doily" ironed and back on the dining room table and got the centerpiece back on it. Then it was time for getting supper. We had Eggplant Parmesan...very tasty. Then I got the kitchen cleaned up from both Woody's and my cooking messes...did some dishes and got as many as possible into the dishwasher. By that time I was ready to head upstairs and rest my weary back! Woody's stiff neck seems to be better today. I heading off now to my cozy recliner and read...if I can keep my eyes open! They say that it may snow some more over night. What we got today had pretty much gone by late this afternoon. There was quite a bit of power outage in town over night, but our area managed to stay on...so thankful! This afternoon when the sun came the ice on the trees was so beautiful. I attempted to capture the glisten...but that seems to be hard to do. I'll post two that I took when it was so sparkly outside. The sparkle shows better if you click on them and make them larger. It looked like millions of diamonds hanging in the trees!

Presidents' Day 2015

It has been a cold, dreary, drippy day here in Middle Tennessee. We ended up below the line of the snow and the sleet...we have just mainly had rain...which is freezing on the trees...not good. I'm praying that we don't have the type of ice storm we had "several" years back...one when we lost electricity for almost a week. When I hear the words "ice storm" I get a dreaded feeling. I was so hoping that we would have snow so the grandchildren could enjoy it. I'm blogging early just in case the tree limbs start breaking and bringing down electric wires with them. The night of the ice storm that I am remembering all night long it sounded like we were under artillery siege...the limbs breaking sounded just like guns being fired...not a pleasant memory! Since it is Presidents'Day we didn't have school, but I did have Abigail's sewing time. She got the rest of the doll dress cut out and we machine embroidered a heart on the bodice and she sewed the shoulder seams. So she is underway with her next sewing project. I got up and hit the ground running determined to get some things done around the house. I have vacuumed, dusted, washed and dried a load of clothes, swept the kitchen floor (after a rather messy tea party/picnic put on and attended by Elijah, Esther,& Isaac...Esther said the blame rested on Isaac...and I think that she was right!), cleaned bathrooms...all that while adding things back into the decor of everyday status...lots of trips up and down the stairs getting pictures for the walls and decorative items for the tables and shelves. The living room is "almost" back to everyday status...I still have my little bookshelf that houses my Hummels to arrange but have decided that that job can wait till tomorrow...or my back says that it needs to wait till tomorrow! I have to move furniture during this "getting back to normal" so I have done a lot more than I usually do. Woody has been sort of "stove-up" today as he woke up with a stiff neck. He and the heating pad have been best friends today. I have suggested a couple of other things that he could do besides the heat to help it, but so far he hasn't taken my suggestions. The rain continues to come down and the temperature continues to drop. Here is the view of of our back yard at three o'clock this afternoon...you can see that the trees were starting to take on a glassy, white look:

Beautiful...BUT...really not a good thing...especially as the rain continues to fall and freeze on trees and bushes and it is now once again below freezing...so what ever falls will just build up more and more. When I was closing curtains a few minutes ago, I noticed that one of the large bushes on one side of our house was laying rather flat...ice had weighed it down...it will bounce back up once the ice melts...but more brittle branches will just come down. If you don't hear from me tomorrow, figure that we are "iced in" and huddled under piles of blankets praying that the electricity folk work quicker than last time!!!! What happened before was that we and two other houses on our street are on a different line than the rest of our subdivision...and all the folk around us had their electricity back on and we still didn't...it was finally discovered where we were getting our electricity and once that was figured out we were back on rather quickly. This time at least we know to let workers know the direction our electricity comes from...anyway I hope knowing that will help! The recliner is calling to me...off to rest and read a book that I am enjoying. I wanted to sew, but think that is being put off till another day, too!

Valentine's Day 2015

Tonight's picture is of my mother and me on Valentine's Day 1950--oh, my...I just realized that was 65 years ago! Yikes...guess that dates me! Woody had his routine changed a bit this morning as I went with him. I needed to go to the library and also to WalMart so decided that I would go at the same time as he did...which got me out and about a lot earlier than usual. I needed to go to the library as my privilege to check out e-books had expired. I realized that I probably needed to renew my card. I got that accomplished and also checked out a couple of books. Then we were on to Walmart. After we got home I put away the groceries that we got. I did manage to get the buttonholes cut open and the buttons are on...so one-year-old outfit for Joseph is now complete. Next we need to go shopping for his first walking shoes. He is walking more and more now...next we know it he will be running and keeping up with the rest of his siblings. We are now taking care of the seven little Dorrell's so their mommy and daddy can go on a Valentine date. I slipped out to do the blog.

A Different Kind of Exercise

Today Woody didn't go on a walk due to it still being so cold...so his exercise came in the form of filling out our income tax...good job done for another year. I have sewn or lolled around most of the day. I just didn't seem to have much energy so a good day for finishing up Joseph's outfit. I got the snaps pounded on this morning and then this afternoon got the buttonholes sewn. I still need to cut them open and then sew on the buttons in the correct spot on the straps. This afternoon it worked out well as Abigail came over with Isaac and Joseph about the time that I was finishing sewing the buttonholes, so I was able to pull the overalls on over what Joseph was wearing and can pretty much tell that they fit. While they were on I marked where the buttons need to be sewn. I have started on a project for myself...nothing too exciting...a sweatsuit...but something comfy that I look forward to wearing...especially if the cold lingers and they are now predicting snow for next week. I am taking apart an old pair of sweatpants as I like their style and I haven't been able to find the style I like in the stores...so will use these worn out pants as a pattern. It did get above freezing here today...but still cold! The only time that I went out the door was to take Isaac home this afternoon. They've been doing "once-a-month cooking" next door...smelled delicious when I walked in the door! Kathy and Nathan were both pretty tired after this Herculean task...a month (+ or -) of meals for nine!

A Shivery Day

"And, how cold is it?" you ask. Well, it is colder than I realized! I just checked Weatherbug and it says that it is 21 and feels like 10...no wonder we have both stayed in today. Woody didn't walk today due to it being so cold and windy. I only had Joy's sewing time today as they went to Nashville to pick up their daddy at the airport...the rest of yesterday's story of them needing to be in several places at once...Nathan at the airport to catch a flight to Wisconsin, Abigail (and her mommy and Joseph) in Nashville for an appointment with her ear doctor (He did suggest another ear surgery for Abigail.), and the rest of us here. Nathan performed at a church last night in Wisconsin and then headed back towards so he could catch a super early flight back to Nashville. They were back home by 10:30. So Joy came on over for her time with me. We completed catching up her sewing notebook today. Now on to the next sewing project whatever that may be. She has an idea of what she wants to do...something that I have no idea as to how to do it...she says she knows how...guess time will tell! It is for a magic trick...guess we'll know if she did it right if the magic trick works! I finished Joseph's knit shirt today...so now just buttonholes, buttons and snaps on the overalls and his outfit will be done. I cooked a turkey breast this afternoon and decided that hot turkey sandwiches sounded good...which meant making mashed potatoes and gravy...a good meal for a cold day! Woody says that the main thing that he has done today is "try to get warm." I think that he has felt cold all day. He did venture out long enough to get our mail...his walk for the day! I just looked and it looks like cold temperatures are here to stay for the next few days. Makes me shiver when I see the temperatures (and, perhaps even snow) that they are predicting for the days ahead.

Foggy Morn

Our day started before I realized that this fog was out there this morning. We headed next door when it was still dark and I didn't notice the fog till I went back home to get something a little later. This was a day of many and sundry appointments, etc. for Nathan, Kathy and family. Three needed to be in Nashville at two different places so they divided and conquered...four (parents and two children) went to Nashville and five children stayed at there house with us. There was also an orthodontist appointment here in Tullahoma for Graham so Goosey (Woody) took him to that...and I stayed with the other four and got underway with their school...or at least tried to! When it was time for Esther to have her sewing time with me, Goosey and Graham were back, so she and I came over to our house and worked on her sewing notebook. Then she and I went back and got lunch ready. It was Esther's day to be a helper in the kitchen. She's a great helper! About the time that they were all chowing down on the sandwiches that Esther made, I slipped out and got ready to head to the church library. Fran and I worked for a couple of hours processing more new books. By the time I got home from church, Woody had come home from next door and had left again to go on his four-mile walk. I came home and headed straight to my recliner and "rested my eyes" for about an hour. About the time that I woke up, Woody headed off to do our weekly Krogering. I put the groceries away. I was very glad that we had soup that I made yesterday so supper was easy. Let's just say a busy day for both Dorrell households!

School, Sew, Soup

Tonight's three-word title come close to summing up my day! We had our usual Tuesday school day...all six cycled through between 8:30 and noon. During that time Woody was transportation for a friend to and from the church prayer room. He decided since he was out and in the vicinity of the church and knowing that no one else was scheduled for that particular time slot, he went on and went to the prayer room. That way he didn't have to walk to prayer room in the cold tonight. I think a wise decision since he still has a "tickle" that is causing a cough. He also got a hair cut at sometime in his time out and about. After lunch I got back to sewing. Joseph's little knit shirt is taking shape. I am ready to put the sleeves in. After lunch Woody went to visit a friend. Mid afternoon I pried myself away from the sewing machine and headed downstairs to make a pot of one of our favorite soups: J. Hatheway's Italian Sausage Soup. We enjoyed that for supper. After I got the soup simmering, I loaded the dishwasher with what it would hold and got it running. Woody has been working on what didn't fit in the dishwasher or wasn't dishwasher safe off and on this afternoon. After I ate, I went back to sewing. Woody watched various newscasts and now has the TV going...but I'm thinking that he is "resting his eyes" more than watching whatever is on TV. Oh, and this afternoon I ordered a new Christmas tree stand...hoping to prevent our large tree from toppling over ever again!

Clowning Achievement?

About tonight's title...really it is a "crowning" achievement as Elijah couldn't have clowned around very much to have read two of these big Dick and Jane books this school year. This one had close to 200 pages as did the last one. He just happened to show up for school with his clown nose...didn't have anything to do with finishing this book...but has a lot to do with this fun loving little boy! Congrats, Elijah. When he had his Grammy time after lunch we decided to go to the church library and check out another Dick and Jane that he hadn't yet read. We have a lot of little Dick and Jane books but those stories happen to be included in these big books so we decided that he needed some new fun Dick and Jane stories. Abigail started her next sewing project...a doll dress to match the dress that she made for herself. The rest of the crew read to me at their designated times and Isaac went through his usual lessons with sounds and counting. Woody went for a four-mile walk this afternoon. He said that he "thought" about doing a couple of other things today, but never got around to doing them. He did help me wash some of the cooking pots that I dirtied yesterday when I made potato soup. I loaded everything that I could into the dishwasher, but that was as much as I could do after I cooked so I left a couple of pots for him to do. This afternoon after the children finished school, I did manage to cut out the knit shirt that I am going to make for Joseph to go with his overalls. The computer has been giving me fits this evening so I am going to stop here as it may take forever for this to publish. It has taken me about an hour to get to this point as the picture didn't want to load, then the software took forever to come up...let's just say that nothing wanted to cooperate tonight and I even "tried" to get it done early tonight. Oh, well...

Sunny Saturday

We haven't seen a lot of sunshine this winter...so a bright sunny day is very much appreciated. And, today the sun even brought warmer temperatures (low 60's this afternoon). I think that Woody must have really enjoyed the temperature when he went on his four-mile walk this afternoon. This morning he did his usual library visit and our Saturday grocery shopping and made a couple of visits at the local hospital. He brought home several choices for me to cook...now if I just would "feel like" cooking them! Today has pretty much been a sewing day for me. Joseph's little overalls are finished except for hammering the snaps on the inner leg seams and making two buttonholes and sewing on two buttons. I let Disney's The Swiss Family Robinson entertain me this afternoon while I sewed. That video was part of the pickle present this year and this was the first time that I had a chance to watch it. It was a pleasant reminder of seeing it as a child. I forgot to say last night that I got the corner tree taken down yesterday and Woody brought the box up and has gotten it placed back in the Christmas closet. Today I have been working on getting the living room tree down and put the last branches in the box just a little while ago. I took it apart differently this year...took off branches and took them upstairs a few at a time and put them in their box while it stayed in the Christmas closet rather than dragging the box downstairs. I felt that it would help preserve the box that has seen better days and also save the backs of whoever attempts to push it back up the stairs and down the hall. I still have ornament boxes downstairs behind the love seat. I was waiting to put them upstairs till the tree box came down and then went back up. So I guess now they can come upstairs and await their turn to go back in their place in the closet. Now that the tree boxes are back in the closet, the repacking of other boxes can commence...that BIG job is Woody's...so at this point I turn all the Christmas decorations over to Woody! Woody is watching a movie that he checked out of the library this morning. I think that I am going to go look at the pattern for the knit shirt that I plan to make for Joseph to wear with his overalls. The first thing that I did this morning was add the next four sets of Vanderbilt appointments to my iPad calendar. I keep the appointment sheet in the bag that I carry to Vanderbilt, but it is helpful to be able to check the calendar for them too...a quick way to check what time they are...and the times are really scattered this time...some in the morning and some in the rather late afternoon...hard to keep the times in mind...at least in this mind of mine! Woody still has his cough.

This and That Friday

I got up today realizing that I needed to head to the church library this morning if I was going to get done what I needed to do, as the church closes in the afternoon on Fridays. So I did a little library work here at the house and then headed to the church. I needed to get a book processed for someone who wants it Sunday. It had just arrived in the mail earlier in the week and due to Woody's Vandy appointments on Wednesday I didn't get to work in the library as I usually do on Wednesday. I got the book ready and then headed off to pick up a friend and take her to rehab. I sat and read in the waiting room while she had rehab. By the time that I got home it was lunch time. After lunch I got back to working on the overalls for Joseph. They have started taking shape. I am using a pattern from a Finnish magazine...it is printed in English...but everything is in metrics...so this takes a bit more thinking than some patterns that I make. I haven't ever made this one so I am experimenting with how I want to do it...I find that I don't always go along with how they say to do things. Also because these patterns come in a magazine form...30 or so patterns in each magazine...which have to be traced off and seam allowances added, etc...there are lots of patterns and not a lot of space for instructions so instructions are terse and sometimes I have to really think as to just what they are telling me to do...not sure if that is due to terse instructions or if there is a bit lost in translation from Finnish to English. Anyway, I often branch off and do it "my way." I knew from the start that I would adapt this pattern as they sew up the inner leg seam and I want to add snaps to make diaper changing easier...so I had to find the patterns that I have that have good methods to do that. Anyway, I have pretty much quit looking at their directions and time will tell if "my way" will work! But it does take a bit more concentration than some of my sewing does. Woody walked four miles this afternoon. The temperatures rose a bit today, but the wind still makes it feel pretty nippy.

Lazy Daze

Today has been one of those days that just seems to have gone by...not accomplishing "a lot" but guess we accomplished "enough"...at least the day is drawing to a close and seems to be none the worse for wear for what we have or haven't done! Woody helped me out with the chicken recipe that I cooked by skinning the chicken (not a job that I relish...doubt that he does either...but he did it voluntarily). I made the chicken recipe. Woody made us salads to go with the chicken. We have eaten several times today. I have cut out the overalls for Joseph. Woody walked his four-mile route this afternoon. I did manage to pack up the last of the ornaments...the trees still stand. We have both watched a bit of TV...me on my iPad and Woody on the TV and have both read a bit. That about sums up a rather uneventful day in the Dorrell household!

"Ecstatic"

"Ecstatic" = just the word that one loves to hear their doctor say about their latest scans! And, "ecstatic" is just the word that Dr. Sosman used when he talked about how he felt with what he saw when he read Woody's PET scans. He said that Woody's results from the Keytruda at this point are among the best that he has seen. He has seen some patients respond to the Keytruda about the same as Woody, but couldn't say that he had seen any respond better! Music to our ears! He also said that not everyone responds to Keytruda. Also whatever was in Woody's lung at the time of the PET scan didn't show the chest x-ray taken today. Dr. Sosman couldn't explain Woody's cough, but plans to keep an eye on it and Woody will have another chest x-ray in three weeks when he goes back for his next infusion next. Dr. Sosman did recommend that he go on and have a Keytruda infusion today. Woody hadn't really been expecting to get one today so he didn't have the folk in the lab leave the line in when they did his labwork this morning so he had to get stuck twice. We got to Vanderbilt rather early since he had to get the x-ray and we didn't know what kind of wait it would be. It ended up that we didn't have many traffic slow-downs on our way to Vanderbilt and also getting the x-ray was really quick so we were early for the rest of his appointments which put us slightly ahead of the Vandy game...though, a lot of waiting none the less. His Keytruda infusion was scheduled for 1:30 and it was started at 1:20 and we were on our way home a little after 2pm. We did stop at Steak and Shake on our way home. While Woody got signed into the infusion lab, I got his appointments for the next four infusions--one every three weeks--so he is back on an every three-week schedule once again. We got home and found this "bouquet" on our kitchen table. Nathan has started up a balloon ministry called "Believe It Balloons." He is making balloon sculptures (animals. bouquets, etc.) to sell to raise money for their next mission trip. He shows up at various times at our local bowling alley and also will do parties or special orders such as this balloon bouquet. They are all planning to go to Poland on a mission trip later in the year. Woody headed off to do his weekly Wednesday Krogering about as soon as he set foot in the door. I don't know about him, but I am worn out from our day. I slept a good part of the way home and have already taken another nap since we got home. We are praising God for such a positive report/response from the Keytruda infusions. We knew that it was good last week when the nurse practitioner shared the results, but hearing it from the doctor in such glowing terms was just icing on the cake!

Tuesday Reflections

We were back in school mode this morning. Each of my six students cycled through during the morning hours. After lunch I went to get my haircut...and "of course" had to take several pictures of Lake Tullahoma...tonight's blog picture being one. I thought this one looked like "Reflections on Rest" or perhaps "Waiting Patiently." I have managed to get all the ornaments off both of the trees. I still have to pack the handmade ornaments into their storage boxes. Then I will attack the trees and wrestle them into their boxes. Christmas is ALMOST over for our household at this end of the year! Woody did a couple of errands this afternoon and then late afternoon he walked to the prayer room at church. He returned a little while ago. It has been a bit of a brisk day, but not quite as cold as the last couple of days. We will head off to Nashville/Vanderbilt in the morning. He is to have a chest x-ray, lab work, see Dr. Sosman, and perhaps have an infusion if Dr. Sosman okays one.

Almost...

Just before coming upstairs to blog I put all the ornaments that are on the coffee table in this picture into a storage box. Now all that are on the tree are needlework ornaments. So close...but still can't see the end of all this undecorating...but soon...I hope! Woody and I have mainly stayed inside trying to keep warm on this cold wintry day. I got up rather early and started into work on getting a pattern ready to make some overalls for Joseph. Then when I went downstairs I got back to work on the tree. By this afternoon I was really tired and my back was hurting so I retired to my recliner and took a nap. Then I got up and went back to work on the tree. Woody only went out today to retrieve the mail. I'm not sure how his cough is...at times we think it is better and then we aren't sure. I'll be glad for Wednesday to arrive so we can find out what the chest x-ray shows and what Dr. Sosman says. Woody did help me out today by unloading the dishwasher and also washed the dishes that didn't get into the dishwasher. I am heading downstairs now to "sit" in the family room and watch a TV show with Woody...but hope that I manage to get the ornaments off the corner while I am "sitting!"