Lots of Worker Bees!

Today was the day that work crews showed up. Two crews of Dorrell ramp stainers and one AC/Heat crew to fix and replace duct work under the house. The first crew to arrive consisted of Nathan, Kathy, and Elijah. They worked till a little before lunch...broke for lunch and to take Elijah and Esther to work. They work at a local family run grocery store. Before they left our workers from Stroops Air Conditioning arrived and got to work. They were finished before Nathan, Kathy and their next crew arrived. This time Nathan and Kathy brought Joy, Isaac, and Joseph to finish up staining the ramp. I think that it ended up being a bigger job than they anticipated! Isaac came away the most decorated! It's great to have both these jobs done! We did turn on the heat for a few minutes this afternoon to see if we could tell that the job had been done...and, there was a marked difference in my opinion. I think that we have been dealing with messed up duct work for some years...reason that the family room, sun porch and laundry room were never very warm. In the cooler days to come we will test this out more. When getting out something from the freezer a little while ago, I discovered a blue mess on a package of food...discovered that it was an insert for a cold wrap...I guess it had gotten a hole in it...what a mess. I had to take most of what was in the bottom freezer drawer so could get it wiped out...interesting...it was not frozen...just a goopy blue mess. Mess is cleaned up and frozen items are back in the drawer...and, I know a little more what is in the freezer! I discovered two packages of frozen vegetables that had gotten out of the usual frozen vegetable spot...didn't know I had those. So I reorganized that drawer a bit. Dialysis went on while the work crews were busy. Everything went well today...including giving the iron infusion and then his anemia shot after the treatment was over. I once again managed to give the shot and not hurt Woody...so that nursing skill met with his approval today! I still DON'T like giving shots! This may go back to not wanting to get a shot when I was a child! I have all the ingredients out to make Woody's breakfast sausage so will at least put those ingredients together tonight. I "might" go on and cook it too, but not sure about that yet. At least the ingredients will be ready to cook in the morning. I was really tired this afternoon and ended up falling into a deep sleep for my nap...one of those times that it was hard to move after waking up! That nap might have me awake enough to go on and cook the sausage...or perhaps I should get back to working on Sunday's Sunday School lesson. This will be the first time that I have taught since we started on hemodialysis...hard to concentrate on anything except dialysis! We'll see how getting back to it goes on Sunday! I have enlisted Nathan to do the introduction for the lesson. We are studying the book of Jonah and Nathan tells the story of Jonah with balloons. Well, I guess kitchen tasks are calling! Be safe! Be well! Be cautious!

Thursday

Well, September days are fleeing! I am really having trouble realizing that October is upon us. I guess I have been blinking too much! Time is just flying by! We had another good dialysis day and the dialysate batch "brewing" as I type this. Tomorrow may be interesting. Woody gets another iron infusion and also his shot for anemia. Giving him that shot is something that neither of us look forward to! I got word from our nurse today that she has ordered more iron...but just two of the smaller doses...one for next week and one for the next. Last week I gave three of the larger doses and two this week...at least it will be less! BUT the smaller doses are even harder to draw up into the syringe. I won't think about those...just want to get through tomorrow's! Today I made another cran-apple crisp. So Woody got dessert with his supper tonight. Tomorrow we are supposed to get the duct work done under our house. I'm glad I'm not the one having to work under the house! I'm enjoying the new book that I'm reading...a random choice...one I didn't know if I would enjoy...sort of like the last one I read. I ended up enjoying that one too. Sometimes it is good to crawl out of my usual reading rut...new author, different genre, etc. But it won't be long till I am ready for a cozy mystery or a legal thriller or a historical fiction...or...Be safe! Be well! Be cautious!

Added a Little Touch of Fall

I left adding the touch of Fall till the end of my day. I got a couple of other things done first on this day off from dialysis. I did get everything back into my two upstairs bathroom lower cabinets and the one cabinet in the kitchen. Good jobs done! I was glad that I had taken pictures of my lower kitchen cabinet as I unloaded it. I looked at the pictures and worked backwards through the photos till I had everything back in place. And, what had come out did all fit back in! I took a morning nap instead of an afternoon nap. I knew that I would be gone at the usual time of my afternoon nap and didn't want to miss it! Plus I woke up quite early this morning so I was ready for a morning nap. This afternoon I went to get my hair cut. I was a week later than usual and was very glad to get it cut. Woody has had a quiet day...free to move between the couch and his recliner without three hours hooked to his dialysis machine and having to stay in his recliner for the duration. He's surfed a bit online with his laptop and worked four crossword puzzles and watched TV and rested his eyes several times and has eaten three meals! That about sums up our day. Be safe! Be well! Be cautious!

Tuesday

We've had a pretty ordinary day for our "new normal." The dialysis went well...I just had to do an iron infusion during his treatment...which I still would rather not do as it is just one more thing that can go wrong while doing it. The main problem with that is the timing of when to give it and the drawing up the iron into the syringe. But managed to do it...just one more of those this week and we will be done with those till they send us some more. I'm sure we are doing these infusions hoping for better lab results the next time we do labs, I think that is next Monday...the first Monday in the month. I will know thwt for sure when we receive the labels for the lab tubes in the mail...guessing those will be in the mail toward the end of the week. After lunch, I headed off to the store down the street to get ground pork for Woody's breakfast sausage and also got some eggs. Getting eggs will let me out off my trip to Kroger for a few more days. During the dialysis time today, I did make Sweet 'n Sour pork and we had that for lunch. The kitchen is all cleaned uo and the dishwasher is running, In other words the kitchen is closed for today! I did finish a book today. I'm getting ready to do some cross stitching...still stitching Christmas ornaments. I "think" this one is for my sister. Woody has settled in for the night. He said that he was hoping to get some sleep in. It has turned cooler here and I hunted down a heavier fleece throw for Woody. It's supposed to drop down into the 40s tonight as it did last night. It was a very pretty day...nice temps...didn't get out of the 70s today and low humidity...very nice! This is one of the perfect times of year in Middle Tennessee! Be safe! Be well! Be cautious!

An Interesting Day

My sister, Cheryl, has asked me to take a picture of the front porch with the mums on the front steps. I keep forgetting to take the picture so decided to do it a minute ago and realized it was bit dark...will do better another day! Today was a usual morning of dialysis. Nathan had arranged to pick me up after he was finished at the Baptist Student Ministry Center at Motlow. We were going on a mission to Lowe's to get stain and other paraphernalia needed to stain the ramp. He is forming a crew to do this task for us. We suggested that Isaac take this on and make it a Tom Sawyer project! We tried to explain that he needed to make the job sound so good that his sibblings would want to do the job and take over for him! Isaac thought that Esther needed to do the job. I told him that I wondered just what it would look like once she put her artistic touch on it! We found all, we hope, that will be needed to do the job when the day is just right and the workers are available! But we are one step closer since we have the stain, etc. to do the job. i don't think that I shared last week something that I discovered on the garage door that goes into the house. I was getting into the car that was parked in the driveway...but I could see into the garage and noticed a shadow of something on the door that looked pink. I got out of the car and went into the garage to check out just what I was seeing. It was a bill from our airconditioning folk They had come sometime back to check on a problem under the house and to fix it. We were away on the day they came so they had tucked this, what I thought was a bill, into the garage back door. This door is one we almost never use...for one reason it is a very hard door to open and for another reason it has steep steps down into the garage with no railing...so we use either the front or back doors. I had been wondering why we hadn't received a bill...only thought about the bill when we were out and about and would see one of their trucks...never thought about it when I could call and check with them. Well, when I found this, I came in and wrote an apology for being so late with payment, etc. and wrote them a check. Well, today, they called with a question about the check they had received from us and the ESTIMATE they had given us. Nathan had told me that he had given the okay to go on and do the work and that they would send the bill to us. I didn't realize that what was on our door was an estimate and not the bill and according to our call today the work had not been done! Did we want it done or should they send the check back? I had Nathan look under the house, when he came, and the ducting had not been reconnected so I called back and said that, yes, we want it done! I guess just the power of suggestion had me thinking that those two ducts had been reconnected! I have received a call back and they will be here to do the work on Friday! Rolling eyes, but also thankful that we live in a small town and use people we know who run honest companies to do work for us! That check could have been easily cashed and we would have never been the wiser! And, it wasn't just a small check! Live and learn...I guess!!! Today's dialysis went fairly well. I did have a problem when making the dialysate...guess I opened a door too soon or maybe too late? I had to call and have one of the nice tech guys walk me out of my latest flub. He got me back on track and the dialysate batch is in the process of the six hours that it takes to complete it...filling that tub with 50 liters of water takes a bit of time! And, that 50 liters only does two treatments...25 liters are used every treatment in the blood cleaning process. There is a cylindrical filter that his blood and this dialysate flows through. At the end we have to evaluate this cylinder as to whether the filter shows streaks, clots, or is clear. Most of the time Woody's is very clear...a good thing! That means that the heparin that we are introducing into his blood just prior to his treatment each day is enough. The nurse upped the heparin amount one time at the start, but since then that amount seems to be keeping his blood from clotting during the dialysis. Enough about dialysis! I seem to think about it when awake amd when asleep! Need to "talk" about something else! I've started working on this Sunday's Sunday School lesson for my ladies' class. I got Nathan to commit to come into the class this Sunday to do the introduction to the next two weeks' lessons that I'm going to teach. We're studying Jonah those two weeks and Nathan has a very unique way to tell the story of Jonah...so I enlisted him! Now for me to work more on my part of the lesson! Be safe! Be well! Be cautous!

First Fall Saturday

It has been pretty much just a regular dialysis day. All went well for the dialysis and even me giving him his iron infusion went fine, too. The dialysis process takes up the whole morning...I come downstairs and make Woody's breakfast. While he eats, I get going on the set up. It takes more than an hour for the setup and then three hours for dialysis and then a little longer to get him disconnected. Today I out his lunch in front of him around 1pm. I still have a little more to do i tearing down and cleaning up. Today I needed to go to the pharmacy to pick up one of Woody's prescriptions. They close early on Saturday, but I managed to get there and get it and then look around at the gift items that they have. Today during dialysis, I attempted to do some cross stitching and was able to do it with just my new glasses and no extra mafnification. I enjoyed doing that for part of the time. I managed to stitch a snowman's hat and a couple of holly leaves and three berries. Later this afternoon, I started stitching on the snowman's head...he got a forehead, spaces for eyes and a carrot nose before I dozed off! After my nap, I came down and made a meatloaf so Woody can once again have meatloaf sandwiches. Woody has done his four crossword puzzles and watched several football games on TV. We also watched a movie that started right at the end of his dialysis time. We both enjoyed it...a football movie..."Rudy." It's based on a true story. I have done a little reading, too. I don't think that Woody picked up his book today. He has checked out articles on the internet about last night's Cardinal baseball game and special home runs hit during the game. I guess we have both had a pretty full day! Nathan just stopped by with Isaac to pick up that last load of clothes. I'm laughing...they forgot to bring a laundry basket...so mine traveled home with them. I left it with Isaac to remind his dad to bring it back to me! Be safe! Be well! Be cautious!

Yard Crew Came!

Because Woody was in the midst of dialysis, I wasn't able to snap many pictures and missed the third in the crew. Joseph was out ofnthe picture picking up sticks. It's looking serious for Isaac and Nathan. Isaac had started the mower but stopped it and this particular mower doesn't like to restart after being stopped! They did finally get it started again and because of the mower's idiosyncrasies Nathan ended up doing most of the mowing. At one point when he was going through a lot of dust, I handed off a mask to Nathan as he drove by! Of the three on the work crew, Nathan and Joseph sampled my oatmeal cake. Isaac opted for peanut butter crackers. He doesn't care for coconut or pecans. He seemed happy to make his own snack. I gave the boys a little lesson about how kidneys work and how Woody's machine does the work of his kidneys. The dialysis treatment went well today. It was a day off from giving iron...tomorrow that gets added back in. Our nurse called today and talked me through what to do if an alarm goes off during the time that I'm administering the iron. I will be glad when we don't have to give iron so often! Three times this week and two next week and the hopefully we will be done with iron for a while. I had to make another dialysate batch today and there was an alarm before it got started. But I jostled lines and moved a couple of things and pushed "go" again and it kept quiet and is almost finished making it. So I guess problem solved. Nathan just arrived with what to him is a small load of clothes...at least threr loads for us! Their drier isn't working. So he is trying out his daddy's recliner. This may be a lot like watching paint dry! I am working along on my next Christmas ornament. This one is going a lot faster than the last one! My new glasses are working well for stitching, too. Well, guess I will donsome visiting with Nathan while we watch 20/20. Be safe! Be well! Be cautious!

I Can See Clearer Now!

Just before time to leave the house for Woody's appointment, I got word that my glasses were ready. The glasses place is about a block from Woody's appointment so we made a quick stop on the way home from his appointment. His appointment went fine. We were told that he is being dialized very well...better than others they were seeing this morning. So I guess we are doing something right! I fixed Woody's lunch after we got home and then I started getting his dialysis treatment set up. He got off just before supper. So literally most of his day was taken up with dialysis...either at the dialysis clinic or connected to his treatment. Nathan and Kathy stopped by while I was setting things up. Nathan was checking on the length of the grass. He and his work crew may be back tomorrow. I understand that Isaac wants to mow it with their new small riding mower...they aren't sure that he has all of his driving maneuvers worked out to be able to work in the smaller confines of our yard...he's used to the wider open spaces of theirs. I baked a cake during Woody's dialysis today...trying out a new pan that I had ordered. I have been slowly replacing some of our 50+ years old cooking items. I made an old-fashioned oatmeal cake with a broiled icing. I had been wanting one for a while. It's not Woody's favorite. Now at one time, that would have made no difference and he would eat it anyway. Today he ate one very small...1-inch sauare...piece of it. I was thinking that I could share it with the work crew tomorrow and then realized that some don't like coconut...oh, well, I can still offer it! I am going to go finish cleaning up the kitchen from my baking foray and then going to test out my glasses while stitching for a while. So far I am very pleased with them. Speaking of stitching, I did get the project I was working on last night finished before I went to bed. So today it is on to another Christmas ornament. Be safe! Be well! Be cautious!

So Close!

I was so hoping that I couod report a cross stitch finish, but not quite finished! All that is left is some backstitch and some straight stitches...only two colors left to use. It's a really tunynstitch...but lots of stitches packed into the 2-1/4" x 2-1/2"! Every "square" in the fabric is stitched. It's what folk, these days,are calling a full-coverage piece. Lots of teeny tiny little Xs. I was doing this piece when Woody started on hemodialysis and for a while I just didn't stitch. But this last week or so I have started picking it up again in the evenings. Today, since it was a day off, I even stitched some during the day. I have also worked on getting things back in my lower kitchen cabinets. I have the one cabinet that is pretty much packed like a puzzle to still do...another day! I did take pictures of how it was packed so maybe I will be able tonget everything back in! Woody has done his usual crossword puzzles...four these days and has done Wordle and perhaps another one or two word puzzles. I'm not sure if he has done much reading since he finished the first book. He thinks that he has figured out how to keep his left hand from hurting so much. I did take advantage of a day off and after lunch, I headed out tonrunna couple of errands. I went to Hobby Lobby and then to Lowe's. I wanted to see Fall items at Hobby Lobby. Of course, along with Fall, they had out Christmas, too. I wasn't going to look at Christmas, but in the end did take a quick walk through the Christmad aisles. I came away with very little...just four things that I plan to use as part of my cross stitch finishes. My goal at Lowe's was to find some pretty yellow mums, which I did...or at least, hope they will be pretty. I chose two that weren't in full bloom hoping that they will be in bloom longer. They are residing on my front porch steps. I watered them well along with the hanging baskets on the front porch. Today has been a really hot day...appropriate for the last full day of summer. I heard om TV that this will be out last day in thr 90s till next summer...hoping so. I'm ready for the crisp feel that Fall days have. Tomorrow Woody has his appointment at the Fresenius Kidney Clinic here in Tullahoma. He will see his kidney team along with Dr. O. I did make the dialysate batch today and it is already finished and readyfor tomorrow's treatment. We will wait to do his dialysis till after his appointment. Be safe! Be well! Be cautious!Oh, and, you can see just a tiny bit of my stitching as it is a gift and the recipient reads the blog...so want the stitch to be a surprise.

Another Day…Another Dialysis

Everything went well for Woody's treatment for today. And, now we have a day off...though I will have to make a batch of dialysate. During his dialysis time, I did manange to make a pot of soup...so when he was finished, our lunch was ready. Neither of us did a lot this afternoon except for lying around. I headed upstairs to my chair and a heating pad. I have a bit of a stiff neck. So I did a little bit of reading and a lot of napping. Today wasn't one of those days that you really want to add extra heat. The last few days of summer are showing that summer isn't over...yet! It got to 90° today. I did water this evening...hoping to encourage the perennials to come back next year and encouraging the last tomatoes and peppers to turn red before frost. I almost forgot that it is Tuesday and the night to take garbage and recycle to the curb, but I got that done just as it was turning dark. It didn't take long for the days to grow shorter! I am heading to go out the last dish into the dishwasher and head upstairs for the evening/night. Maybe I can do a little stitching this evening since I slept so much this afternoon. Woody has settled in for the night. I plan to either read or stitch. Be safe! Be well! Be cautious!

"The Only Good Bug is a Dead Bug!"

I was told that this morning as an extrrminator killed a spider as he came in our front door. Of course, he did say that it could be left to add to my Fall decor...no thank you! Now I know that there are good bugs, but even good ones aren't welcome inside the house! I think that some had taken up residence as the weather cooled down and are not welcome so I called a very friendly exterminator...he was quite the talker! This gentleman came to our house at the time of our kitchen remodel to make sure that some of the damage that we discovered in the floor in the dining room was just water damage and not bug damage. At the time, he didn't charge us anything. He said that he figured that we would call him when we needed someone. So his kindness three years ago, paid off today when he came to do some spraying. Woody's treatment went smoothly today and I was even able to give him his iron without too much trouble. It is very hard to draw the iron into the syringe...it's a tiny vial of medicine and it doesn't like to come out of the bottle...or at least I haven't learned the trick to coax it out! I told our nurse that I only splattered a little of it on the direction sheet. She laminated the directions knowing of the probability splatters! I have five of these vials to give him this week and next. Three this week and two next...and they have to be at least 48 hours apart. So I guess today, Thursday and Saturday this seek and I'll figure out next week when we get to next week! Because the extrrminator was coming this morning, we started Woody's treatment aftrr he left. So today's treatment went farthrr into the afternoon than we are used to. We both went to prayer meeting tonight. Woody is having pain in his hand on the arm that his graft is on. It bothered him enough in the night that he asked me to get him some Tyelenol between 3 and 4 am and then it got to bothering him again during his treatment. His hand is also very cold. He is not sure if the two: have anything to do with each other...whether being cold is causing the pain. I did find one of his fleece neck warmers and wrapped his hand in it. It doesn't seem to be bother him too much at the moment. I'll check with him before we go to sleep. I think that this is common with arms that have grafts in them. The nurse suggested a warm compress...should help with both the cold and the pain! She also said that we would talk with Dr. O about it when we see him on Thursday. Be safe! Be well! Be cautious!

Last Summer Saturday

Today's dialysis went smoothly...so guess that I hadn't stopped the machine correctly the two days prior to today. My consolidated instructions for ending the dialysis worked well. So I will go by those two pages instead of flipping multiple pages. Tomorrow is a day off, but I will have to make a dialysate batch. I could make it tonight...but think I will wait till tomorrow. I don't like having dialysis duties when it is a day off from dialysis...but batch making doesn't take too long as long as I don't mess up and push buttons at the wrong time! I'll be careful. During dialysis today I gathered all the ingredients for potato soup and then made it after lunch. We both had some for supper. It's one of my favorite soups, but not Woody's. He did say it tasted good...he doesn't say that often these days! I would think that a change would taste good to him. But these days he seems to prefer the same ol', same 'ol! I just came in from watering. Plants are beginning to be passé, but I want to keep watering the perennials so they will hopefully show up again next year! After I finished making the soup, I took a break and called a long-time friend/former boss for 27 years/Melany and Nathan's Montessori preschool teacher...and the list goes on. It was very nice to catch up with Pat. It was her birthday yesterday so it was a "better-late-than-never call!" After we visited for a while, it was time to finish cleaning up the kitchen from my cooking mess. That is done except for turning on the dishwasher. Woody did his four crossword puzzles, watched some football and some other TV today. I'm not sure if he has read any today, but yesterday he finished the first book of the ones I got him the other day. And, he has started another. It's good to see him reading again. The evening is closing in on us once again. The days are passing by so quickly. It sounds like our fall-like weather is going to let summer come back for these last few days of summer. We're supposed to get back into the 90s. It was a bit warmer today, but the humidity was still low. It was very pleasant watering this evening. Be safe! Be well! Be cautious!

Finishing Touch

I added the finishing touch to our Fall door...a new Fall doormat. It was delivered this afternoon and I am pleased with it. This was a joint choice...I had a couple doormats picked out online and I let Woody choose the one he liked best. Tonight we are both pretty tired. Woody had both a dialysis treatment today and his oncology appointment and thus his Keytruda treatment. I also gave him his Mircera shot for anemia today. That adds up to a lot of treatments. I am just tired. I have been doing a little cleaning today...working on cleaning out some of my kitchen cabinets. I'm done in for the day. I will start the dishwasher in a little while and call it quits and head upstairs. Woody has already called it quits for the day had me turn out the overhead light in the family room. His dislysis went well until the very last once again today. The nurse and I figured out what I might be doing wrong and it was confirmed by one of the NxStage techs. The buttons on this new machine aren't responding the way the original machine did and I am having trouble pushing them at times. It has been decided that I'm probably not actually stopping the machine/pump at the end when I push the stop button. So tomorrow I will be more diligent about pushing and making sure that the pump has actually come to a stop. I have taken several pages of end treatment steps and combined them into a list on one page so I don't have to keep flipping pages while I am trying to push buttons! Anyway, all this thinking and problem solving has my brain fried for tonight! But hopefully a good night's sleep will have my brain refreshed and ready to give the dialysis another go tomorrow...then a day off! Be safe! Be well! Be cautious!

Thursday Doings

Tonight's photo I posted a few weeks back. But we haven't gotten back to a game since I took this pucture, so will use it again, as I have news to share about tonight's game. Isaac, the boy who was afraid to swing on the night this photo was taken, hit a triple tonight! And, Joseph got a hit, too! Nathan just texted this information to us. And, bottom line...their team won! So a good night at the old ball park! Woody just didn't feel like going this evening. As a matter of fact at the moment, Woody is sound asleep. So he doesn't know this news yet! We have had a pretty good day today. We did have an alarm right at the very end of his treatment, when we were ready to do the rinse back. I attempted to stop the alarm, but ended up having to call the nurse. When this happened the dialysis treatment is over and at the very end I connect the arterial tubing to the saline bag and it washes the blood that is still in the tubing back into his body so he doesn't lose any blood during the treatment. It can't sit in the tubing very long or it clots. He did have more clotting today than usual...I'm guessing that blip at the end was the cause. If only alarms could stay away! As soon as I got to the clean up part after the treatment (wiping down the machine, etc. with clorox wipes), I got Woody his lunch. Then I cleaned up the machine and got the next dialysate batch underway and then headed to the grocery store. Got that job done and came home and put purchases away. I got the grocery list done and wiped off the refrigerator shelves during the dialysis treatment today. Woody worked puzzles, read some, and watched some TV during his treatment. He has a baseball game on right now...but I don't think he knows what is going on! Not his team so he isn't as interested in the game as he might be if it was his St. Louis Cardinals! Be safe! Be well! Be cautious!

How is This Encouraging?

When I made our dialysis supply order yesterday, I signed up to receive notifications by email. That means that next month when it is time to order supplies they will notify me by email and I can make our order through a link that they will provide. I guess in signing up for that, it means that I will get other notifications from them also. Fresenius is still the parent company, but NxStage is the hemodialysis part of the company. I got our first email this morning welcoming us with an "encouraging" tip for the week. Here is the tip: "Remember – this is a journey. Know that it is totally normal to feel overwhelmed; allow 6-8 months to get comfortable with your new routine." Somehow that statement is not encouraging to me!!! Sounds like forever/perhaps never to me...at this point! We started July 13th so we have been doing hemodialysis for two months. Today being a day off with no appointments or anything that had to be done made the day seem like our old normal...until I would realize that it is only today and we will be back in the dialysis routine for the next three days before another day off. But I do appreciate the days off! I have taken advantage of the day off and have worked around the house. I even managed to not take a nap today. Woody has also done a little of this and a little of that. He worked a bit on his coin collection with this year's proof sets. He has plans to work more on those at his desk another day. He also read some today. I'm glad that I made that trip to the library yesterday. I did take a few breaks today and read some on my latest book. It is a book that I haven't decided if I really like, but am now committed to reading it as I want to learn more about the story...guess the book has sucked me in! We are watching the finale of Master Chef at the moment...though I think that Woody has dozed as he didn"t answer when I asked him a question! Guess our day is winding down. I have a couple of tasks planned in the kitchen tomorrow during Woody's dialysis and am also planning to do a little more inside Fall decorating in the dining room. I think that the dining room is close enough to Woody's dialysis...if not, I will do it after. I also have plans to do grocery shopping tomorrow...that will definitely be after dialysis, but I can get the list together during dialysis. Always trying to think of tasks that can be done during those three hours that keep me close at hand in case of alarms! Be safe! Be well! Be cautious!

Another Good Day

We've had a good day...another pretty fallish day. Woody's dialysis treatment went smoothly again. That is an answer to prayer...and I always give a big sigh of relief once it is done with no glitches! We look forward to a day off tomorrow...and, like this past Sunday there's nothing that needs to done for the dialysis process. I ordered dialysis supplies today. We filled out a questionaire that needs to be returned to the Fresenius social worker next week when we go in for an appointment. After lunch, which was later in the afternoon because we didn't get started as early this morning, I went to the library to get Woody some books. He hasn't been reading much lately, but when I asked if he would like me to go to the library he was enthusiastic. Now, I just hope I chose some that he will enjoy. Be safe! Be well! Be cautious.

Fall is Definitely in the Air!

Woody and I got home a little while ago from Monday Night Furnace Room Prayer Meeting and there is a chill in the air. I heard that it is supposed to get down into the 50s during the night. But I also heard tha this cool off is just for a few days and the temperatures will go back up into upper 80s. That's okay. We're used to the temps going back and forth as the season changes. It's days and nights like today that let us know that Fall is definitely on its way! We had a very smooth day for dialysis today...thank goodness! I did several cleaning jobs in the kitchen and also did a little cooking. I can work in the kitchen and still keep a close eye on Woody's dialysis. Even though it was a smooth day, I was still ready for a rest this afternoon. Nathan, Kathy, Joy, Esther, Elijah, Isaac and Joseph stopped by for a few minutes this afternoon. We had a couple of "sonny-do job" for Nathan to do! Thanks, Nathan! Good to see most of their crew, too! After they left, I headed upstairs to rest for a while and ended up taking a longer nap than I meant to. Maybe I can do a couple of things that I meant to do this afternoon this evening since perhaps I'm a bit more rested! We'll see. We came home from prayer meeting and had a light supper. Now Woody is settling in for what to him can be a long night...of both sleep and wakefulness. I finished another book and am starting another so maybe I can at least read or put in a few more stitches in a Christmas ornament. My stitching has slowed way down. I was doing so well getting underway early. I do have quite a few stitched...but many more to go and at the rate I am stitching these days, what I want to get done won't get done. Thanks to Cheryl for the cute turkey that got added to my Fall decorations today. Be safe! Be well! Be cautious!

September Bloom

This bloom was a little smaller than its predecessors, but still stunning. I wonder if it is through blooming or if it will surprise me with some more before it gets cold. Yesterday's mess with the dialysis just got worse after I blogged last night. It was just about 20 minutes before the drain was supposed to be finished and an alarm sounded...saying that it detected a leak!! Why it waited all that time to tell me, I wonder! I had not tightened a connection correctly...I screwed the connector on crooked...it was tight, but crooked and so water had been leaking into the tin vat that holds the 50 liter bag of dialysate. So with this tale...all water was contained and did not get out into the room. I had to make a call to find out what I had to do...only thing to do was to drain it...did I have a wet vac? Well, I have a very tiny carpet/upholstery cleaner that does suck water up...but so tiny we would have been at it all night! I quickly called Nathan and he was on his way home and closer to our house than his. So I asked him to stop here and we would try to problem solve together! He quickly came to the conclusion that he would go home and get his wet vac. Eventually we got the 50 liters drained and the vat dried out. Then I had to make another call to find out how to be able to get the machine back to start so I could make another batch. After many verbal instructions from someone in Massachusetts, I was finally back to go...only had to stand on my head a few times and crawl around on the floor for a short time! I told him that it just wasn't right for a 74-year-old woman to have to do this. But do it I did! And, managed to get another batch of dialysate going so it would be ready this morning...and, it was! Had a few glitches at the start of Woody's dialysis...had to call the nurse twice as they were problems that we had had before and I knew she knew what I needed to do. Whereas, someone in Massachusetts would not be on the same wave length with me. We got things straightened out and we were off and running and everything went smoothly after that. I think that this new machine responds a bit differently than our last one to touch and settings are also a bit different. All dialysis equipment has been put to bed and will stay asleep until Monday! Today's task that I had never done before was flushing the drain...that was an easy task which has to be done at least monthly...but just one more thing to add on to what has to be done. I got a pot of soup going during dialysis time and finished it later in the afternoon after I rested a bit. I rested while I talked on the phone with Cheryl, my favorite (and, only) sister! We chased a lot of rabbits...we usually do! Woody has been watching various college football games and is now keeping up wih thr St. Louis Cardinal's game score via Alexa. Our day is waning. I just have to start the dishwasher and then I'm heading upstairs. This has seemed like a very long week! Looking forward to a REAL day off from dialysis tomorrow! Be safe! Be well! Be cautious!

Fall is Just Around the Corner

Well, today has been interesting. I decided that since I had the morning open that I would work on the front porch...lots of spider webs had accumulated and I decided that it was time to declare Fall from our porch. I got into my Fall decorations and pulled out what I wanted for the front porch. Now if I feel like sitting on the front porch I won't have to share a chair with a spider and its web! Of course, said spider may spin its home back by tomorrow on same chair! Las night's dialysis went well. Today I got up and made the dialysate batch which takes six hours. After lunch our nurse stopped by and got the tecnology reattached to our machine so it can communicate via iPad. That was a pretty quick fix. The batch still wasn't finished when she left so I planned to get Woody's treatment going once it finished. I took a break, as in a nap, while I waited. I slept a little longer than I planned to, but finally woke up enough to get underway. All went well, till I was checking for chlorine in the dialysate batch and somehow pushed a wrong button, or perhaps the right button, but at the wrong time. And, ended up not being able to use the batch...it is in its two or three hour drain time. Insert BIG eye roll. I talked to our nurse and she said to just skip his treatment tonight...there is a way to do the treatment without the dialysate batch...but it is a pain to do...involves five hanging bags. Since Woody is doing well and we had just done his treatment last night, she said that it we ok to skip tonight. I will remake a batch once this one drains and then do his treatment in the morning. That will put us back into our usual routine that we broke with this week due to the machine failing. What a week! I hope that tomorrow will go well with new machine, newly connected machine and iPad, me pushing right buttons in right order...or whatever and get over all the things that have seemed to go wrong this week. Woody has had good dialysis the times that he has had it and has absolutely no swelling, as a matter of fact we haven't had to pull off any extra fluid at any of his treatments lately...a good thing. So this one missed treatment isn't putting him at risk...and we will be doing it in just hours anyway. I called the tech person and he told me I just had to drain the batch that there was no way to test the chloramines at that point. But when I let our nurse know she said she wished that I had called her as she did have a work around...oh, well...I just hated to bother her...she has had a rough week with all her patients and needs her weekend without interruptions that aren't absolutely necessary when there is another place to get an answer! I guess it is a case of live and learn. I know the work around now. I'll try to remember it, but also hope that I don't get into this situation again! Tomorrow I will work through that part of set up v e r y s l o w l y and read directions very carefully! Woody has had a good day as far as I know...no complaints anyway. Be safe! Be well! Be cautious!

Another Upside-Down Day

Tonight's photo was taken at the end of the exit we take in Murfreesboro. It always intrigues me that the barn/farm is still there in the midst of the hustle and bustle of Murfreesboro, one of the fastest growing cities in Tennessee. We didn't have to get going too fast this morning since we weren't going to do Woody's dialysis till this evening. we were hoping that the box that connects the iPad to the machine would get here in time. It finally got here, but not till nurse had gone home and we were getting set up. So hopefully we will have it back up with technology all connected tomorrow. Last night's dialysis went well. The new machine kept very quiet and behaved...no alarms. And lab draws went well as far as I know. The labs got picked up by FedEx Express this afternoon. Late morning I went to choose new glasses frames. I did pick a pair out. I don't have all the choices that lots have as my frames have to be titanium. Something in my system messes with whatever other types are coated with and they start peeling not long after I get them...so I stick with titanium and they seem to hold up. Now to wait for them to come in! Woody's appointment went well...very quick...in and out. The surgeon...listened with a little ultra sound type machine. I guess he liked what he heard. he pronounced that we can start using the graft for dialysis. Not exactly what I was hoping to hear...not looking forward to changing over to this method of access. But our nurse said that it will be a month or more till she can train us how to do it. That is not a problem for me! I'm glad that the doctor was pleased with Woody's healing. Our nurse had asked us to have the surgeon map the direction of the blood flow in his access. So now Woody has red arrows that shows the way the blood flows through his graft. According to the nurse we have to know this to know which way to put the needles in. You should see the size of the needles that I will be poking through Woody's skin and into the graft...2 plkes each treatment. When we get the needles, I will try to remember to take a pucture of them. I will have a numbing cream to put on Woody's arm so hopefully it won't hurt! We're about halfway through tonight's treatment. And, so far so good. Be safe! Be well! Be cautious!

Upside-Down Day—Quick Check-in

I'm not even going to look for a photo tonight...hopefully routine will be back tomorrow night! Woody's new dialysis machine came this afternoon and our nurse got it set up and left around 5:30. I got Woody's supper and then got underway with setting up. I pushed the kidney button (starts the dialysis) at 7:15pm. In that set-up time I managed to draw 4 of the test tubes fo his pre-dialysis labs. That went fairly smoothly. The one tube is spinning in the centrifuge as I type. The one glitch with the new machine is that we went the part that connects the iPad with the machine...oops! Remember...our nurse is new at this too. She felt really badly about letting that part get away. we just have to keep up with everything without the ipad beeping at us. I have a lot of little tiny writing to do to fill in a chart! And, lots of clock watching! I got my eyes checked today...eventually I will find the time to pick out frames! And, now...it's about time for the next blood pressure check and other statistics to record. Tomorrow Woody goes to see his surgeon in Murfreesboro. Be safe! Be well! Be cautious!

Unexpected Day Off

This day didn't pan out the way we expected. When I was setting up Woody's dialysis this morning, I stated getting red 10 alarms...some were quick and reset by themselves and others had to be dealt with...but they kept coming back. In a half hour I got more than 10 of the same alarm. This is an alarm that our cycler machine has given us since the start...even when we were at the center. Our nurse said more than once that she wondered if we shouldn't get a new machine. Well, when I called the tech number, I think they saw how many times I have reported these before and had me do several things, but, when the alarm kept coming back, she said that she thought it would be best to abort today's treatment, which hadn't even begun, and order us a new one to be overnighted. It is to be here tomorrow between 2 and 6pm. Of course, nothing can be easy. I have an eye appointment that has been on the calendar for months at 2:15pm tomorrow. I think we have it set up so it can be delivered even if I'm not here. And, hopefully it will come before our nurse goes home from work! It isn't an easy set up...nor was it an easy take off. We had to take off all the accessories...like the IV poles, heater for manual bags, etc. I was able to get it all knocked down except for the piece that you have to turn the 75 pound machine over to detach something from the bottom. Our nurse came by and did that part and we had Woody's nurse visit here at the house rather than having to come into the center this month. I have said that I don't dare make an appointment for me as inevitably an appointment will pop up for Woody on the same day...and...proved true this time! The courier will call and Woody can direct him/her back to the family room. They pick up the old and leave the new all in one trip for the hemodialysis cycler machines. With the PD, a new one was delivered. We got it set up and put the old one into the box new one came in and they set it up to pick it up another day. Same company is doing this dialysis, but a different branch of it and they do things totally different. I don't know if we will have things situated to do a treatment late afternoon/early evening tomorrow or not. If we don't, we will only be doing 4 treatments this week. The nurse may have to talk me through settings if she is off work...the settings that are specific for Woody...then the tech folk can talk me through the rest of the set up. If the machine gets delivered before I get home from my eye appointment, Woody is supposed to call our nurse to let her know that we have it so she can see if she can fit us into what is left of her work day. Obviously today's labs were put off. We can still do them tomorrow even if it is too late for a Fed Ex pickup. They can be refrigerated till the pick up can be arranged for Thursday. Of course, we were planning on our other day off this week to be Thursday as Woody has an appointment with his surgeon who put in the graft. We will have to be up and going early that day in order to be at the doctor in Murfreesboro by 2:15...but we should be able to do that as long as "things" run smoothly with the new machine! Lots of "ifs!"I made banana nut bread today and a washed a load of towels...still drying part of that load. Even though I had a day off, I still didn't accomplish much. I told myself that I needed to make hay while the sun shines...but...well, the sun really never shone...maybe that is why I didn't get much more than usual done! Be safe! Be well! Be cautious!

Labor Day 2022

Not a lot of laboring has gone on here today...except for dialysis duties! Woody sat through dialysis patirntly and I did the set up, connecting and taking off. I also attempted to get "things" ready for tomorrow for Woody's lab draws...something that I am still not all that confident about doing...especially the one lab draw that I have to do at the end of his treatment. There is an order to the drawing of which test tubes...so I decided to get the test tubes out and get them lined up correctly. They are all color coded and the 2nd one is supposed to be royal blue...well, I don't have any royal blue test tube tops. I texted our nurse and she told me that another one that we have is a substitute for the royal blue one. the substitute is supposed to have a clear or white top. The one that I have doesn't look clear or white to me. But I took a picture and sent it to the nurse and she said it was the one I am to use. Glad I got through that confusion before in the morning! I have the new dialysate batch making. So I guess we will be ready to get underway in the morning. I have read the post treatment lab draw instructions several times...haven't done the post lab draw as many times as I have thr pre...pre makes more sense and the treatment hasn't gotten underway when I do those. The post draw is done at the end of treatment, but before the final rinse back so I have to insert a different step in prior to doing the final steps so it is a little confusing. We'll see if it gets done properly. Once the labs are drawn...then one tube needs to sit for 30 minutes to an hour before it is spun in the centrifuge and three need to go in the refrigerator soon after being drawn and not spun and the last one needs to be spun but doesn't have to wait the 30 minutes! Insert eyeroll here! The tubes have to be labeled with the proper labels and put in a special plastic holder to be sent off. I have to pack them with an ice pack...get them packaged in a box and box taped...apply label...and, at that point call FedEx to arrange for an express pickup! Tomorrow is going to be such a fun day...not! Woody has done his puzzles, looked at a few things on his computer, rested, and watched TV. These days he isn't doing much reading. I have managed to do some reading in some of my down time today. I'm about to finish another book. Be safe! Be well! Be cautious!

Busy Saturday

We had a morning of dialysis...everything went smoothly. Always happy to be able to report that good news! Tomorrow is a day off from dialysis. We both look forward to a day off! This afternoon, I got a text from Kathy asking if Abigail could come over to bake a cake in our oven...one of the elements in their oven had gone out. So we had a nice visit with Abigail while her cake baked. She shared her adventures as a preschool teacher at a local church's preschool/day care. Sounds like she is being kept busy! Abigail has such a love for little children! This evening I made another cranapple crisp for Woody...one of the things that tastes realy good to Woody these days. And, that's about all either of us accomplished today. Well, Woody did work four crossword puzzles. I have added to his two puzzles that he has done for years...he needed more to occupy him during the three hours he is hooked up to his dialysis machine! I started looking for new ones when it looked like I wasn't going to be able to print out one of the ones because they were going to require subscribing to their online paper. But so far I am still able to print it so I am for as long as I can. But found two more so have added them in, too. Well, time to check on the apple crisp and to clean up the kitchen...again! Be safe! Be well! Be cautious! We hope you are enjoying your long Labor Day weekend!

Friday…We Think!

We'll call this photo "September Rose." When I watered, I noticed that the little rose bush that Nathan, Kathy and family gave me earlier this year had one bloom on it. This is its first bloom. We have had a very uneventful day...a very good thing! We made it through Woody's dialysis treatment with no alarms and I managed to get the dialysate batch going with no glitches. It is still being made...it won't be finished making till 10pm. During dialysis today, I managed to make our lunch...Sweet 'n Sour Pork. Woody must have liked it as he had two helpings...something that rarely happens these days. We will get up in the morning and do it all over again...but I won't have to make a dialysate batch. Since we have Sunday off, I won't have to make another batch till Monday. It lasts for two treatments. During a break this afternoon, I read a couple of chapters in my latest book. When I head upstairs in a little while, I hope to either read or stitch. The kitchen is cleaned up and the dishwasher is going. I'm heading to put a load of clothes into the drier. Woody has settled on his couch/bed. So I guess our day is winding down. The reason for tonight's title is that just a few minutes ago, Woody wanted to know what day it is...these days it is really hard to keep track! I'm sure his days and nights tend to run together. I am able to keep a little better track since I have to fill out daily records on the dialysis iPad daily. And, I am the one who has to keep up with dialysis days, days off, appointments, etc. So I have to keep tabs on what is happening via my iPad calendar...check it often! Be safe! Be well! Be cautious!

It's September! Time to Play Fall Ball!

We're just home from the ball field. Isaac and Joseph are both playing on the Bama team. Isaac hasn't shown an interest in playing after he played one time...so he is a bit hesitant when it comes to batting/swinging the bat. But he came away realizing that he is hitting against the older players on the team...10-12 year olds pitch to 10-12 year old batters and the younger players bat against younger pitchers. I was wondering why pitchers were changing a lot. Isaac is a bit gun aka ball shy as he was hit one time when Joy was pitching to him. Since Joseph played in the Spring league he is more ready to swing the bat. Plus he is batting against less seasoned pitchers since he is in the younger bracket. This is the first year that they have played on a team where the players pitch. Before they had played on coach-pitch teams. Oh, I forgot to tell why Isaac decided to play this year. He usually goes with his mom or dad to the practices and he decided he'd rather play than watch practice! There is no score board for Fall Ball...or at least the score board wasn't run tonight...so I came away not sure what the final score was and the boys didn't know either. But I thought that their team had crossed the plate more than the other team and I was right. Nathan and Woody had kept track...Bama won 5-4 over Vandy. The boys were surprised when they heard...but happy. Today dialysis went well except for one little problem before we got the treatment started. I spotted a small blood clot (piece of clotted blood like a scab) poking out of the plastic end of the access going into the tubing. I took a picture of it and sent it to our nurse and then called to ask her what we should do. That access end had an empty syringe on it and she had me open the clamp and pull back and pull blood into the syringe and hopefully pull the clot into the syringe...hard to tell since you really can't see through blood! But she was pretty sure that would solve the problem and then had me attach a saline syringe and flush that into the line...no clot could be seen at that point so she said we were good to go. And, as I say most days...things must have gone at least ok as Woody is still alive! The rest of the treatment went as it should. Be safe! Be well! Be cautious! Happy September!