Tradition!

Our carolers have once again gathered in front of the Christmas for one last chorus of Christmas carols!  Elijah and I moved them all onto the coffee table this morning after we got the Fisher Price Nativity put back in its boxes.  So...one step closer...of course I have to find the boxes that the carolers go in before they can be put away for another year.  The Precious Moments Nativity is partly back in its boxes.  Again...I have to find the last box that has the rest of the boxes in it.  There are a few less snowmen and trees on the mantle. And, a few less angels on top of the china cabinet. Slowly...but surely the pile of boxes grows higher and wider in the upstairs hall!

I had school this morning.  Isaac and Joseph decided to have their school time together this morning.  Then Abigail, Esther, and Joy came over for their reading time.  Elijah had his long time with me.  We divided up his time between a science experiment, a little undecorating, and then he got out the Ipad Osmo system and worked on figuring out his Christmas present from us this year--a HotWheels virtual car race game.  I think he understands it better than I!  But we had fun playing it for a little while despite my ignorance!

Today my culinary efforts went into making guacamole and later in the afternoon I made Spicy Vegetable Beef soup.  That has about finished out my energy for the day.  While waiting on the computer (it is trying my patience these last few days), I started working on my sewing cabinet...putting some things away and then dusting it.  I have plans to do a little sewing this weekend...I probably shouldn't as I need to concentrate on undecorating, but I know that I can't do the undecorating for too long before I have to rest...so sewing sounds like a good resting activity.  We'll see!

Woody is back to being able to do his printed daily crossword puzzles since we got the new ink for the printer.  He missed doing them on paper.  He says that it takes much longer doing them on the computer screen.  He walked four miles first thing this morning.  Later in the morning he ran a couple of errands.

Now we are settled in for the evening...and waiting to see if the "snow event" that is perhaps coming our way materializes tomorrow.  Will let you know!

Isaac is SIX!!!!

Last Day to be Silly & 5!

Here's Isaac on his last day to be a silly five-year-old!  He is pretty excited about celebrating his birthday tomorrow!  Party! Party!

I had a usual Tuesday of school.  Joy had her long time and got back to piecing her quilt.  It is starting to grow!  I had planned to head off right after lunch to go shopping for Isaac's birthday present, but a task had to be performed on the car before I could leave.  So I waited patiently...in other words took a short nap.  Woody walked to the barbershop to get a haircut and to the pharmacy to pick up a prescription...his walk for the day.  When Nathan got back, he aired up the tires and I took off.  I had not a clue as to what to get Isaac.  It is so hard to come up with a good birthday present when it is so close to Christmas!  But I did manage to find something that I think he will be happy with...he will be happy as long as there is a present from us!  I came back home and sat down to rest and took another nap.  We had leftover chili for supper so I didn't have to put forth any effort for that other than push a button on the microwave!  I have another box out and keep forgetting to get the Christmas item that goes in it.  I guess I will close and go down and get it while I am thinking about it! Slowly but surely!

Back to Routine!

I guess since we have started back into a school routine, I will also go back to the pictures I was posting prior to the Christmas holidays...so back to some of the barn pictures that I took on December 1.

We had a normal start to a school week.  Joseph came for his preschool time, Isaac came for his time with me and then Elijah, Esther, and Joy had their turns to read with me.  Then Abigail had her long time with me.  She started a new sewing project...top secret since she plans to give it to someone special as a gift!  She got the pieces cut out and marked so she will be ready to take it to the sewing machine the next time she comes over.  She wants it for next week...I told her that she might have to give it as a promise!  After lunch I was pretty tired so took a nap and rested.  Later in the afternoon I headed downstairs and made us a pot of chili.

Woody didn't end up getting to walk today due to it raining off and on.  He went to the Life Care after lunch and had Bible study with Jeff and then visited with Eric.  He stayed for quite a while.  Almost as soon as he got home, he said that he was going for a walk...he hadn't been out the door a minute before he was back as it had started raining again.  It's raining as I type this as I can hear it on the roof.  One thing good about the rain...keeping our temperatures up and they will stay up for several days before another front comes through to drop them again. Back and forth! Back and forth!  I heard on TV that today was the warmest that it had been since the day before Christmas...so we have had several weeks of quite cold temps.  Good to have them go back up!  Woody is happy...he can once again print out his daily crossword puzzles.  Our printer ink got here today and I put the new black ink in while he was at Life Care.  I have only taken a few things to the stack in the hall way today...but the stacks of boxes are growing taller and wider.  You still wouldn't be able to tell, if you were to come in our house, that I have done much undecorating.  "Slowly but surely"...that will be my theme these days/weeks that it takes to get all the Christmas put away and the everyday decorations back out!

Today Begins the 10th Year of Our "Dorrell Delineations" Blog

Ten years ago this date, January 7, 2009, I began this blog. I started the blog solely to be able to share about Woody's melanoma treatments and keep everyone up to date on how he was faring without having to make lots of phone calls and write lots of emails, etc. I will say that when I started this, I never dreamed that I would still be blogging all these years later...especially since Woody was given less than a year to live.   My but a LOT of water has gone under the bridge since beginning my almost daily sharing.  God has seen us through quite a few forks in the road and has kept us on a direct path to Woody's continued remission nine years later.  To God be the glory! I hope that the story that I have shared about our lives during Woody's treatments and now...through just general humdrum times in our lives...may have helped someone who might be going through similar trials to look ahead and see that there is possibly a light at the end of the tunnel.    

Here's my first blog post:

January 7, 2009

A fork in the road: which way should we turn?

I am beginning this blog so that our family and friends will be able to keep up with us during Woody's melanoma treatments.

Woody found out Monday (Jan. 5) that the bones in his arm haven't healed sufficiently--so he will need further surgery--bone grafts and a plate. His orthopedist and his melanoma doctor conferred and for the time being that surgery will be put on hold so he can get started on his melanoma treatments.

To back up a bit for those who haven't been in on the story from the beginning: Sept. 15th(2008) Woody was in a very bad bicycle accident--he will be the first to tell you that it was caused by a woman driver! He was going along at a pretty fast clip (between 20 and 25 mph). He saw a car approaching so he moved over to the paved shoulder. The driver turned in front of him immediately after passing him. He ended up braking to avoid hitting the car or vice-versa and the pavement broke his fall and he ended up with a compound fracture of both bones in his lower left arm just above the wrist. The orthopedist, Dr. Fiala, attempted to put the bones back together--but lots of bone was left along the side of the road. Dr. Fiala described what was left at the ends of the broken bones as cornflakes! Woody had surgery on Sept. 15th and a bar (external fixture) and pins were placed in his arm and hand to keep the bones in alignment with hopes that the bones would regenerate. So it has been almost 4 months since the accident. The bar and pins were removed Monday, Jan. 5. He now has a soft, half cast on the lower arm to protect it until he can have the surgery.

Early in November, he felt a soft knot behind his ear and immediately called to set up an appointment with his dermatologist. Woody acted swiftly due to the melanoma that he had had removed from his forehead 2 1/2 years ago. The dermatologist told him that he was sure that it wasn't anything, but due to his history he needed to have it surgically removed. It was removed the week before Thanksgiving. We received a call (after 8pm) from the surgeon on the Monday after Thanksgiving telling us that it was melanoma. The surgeon set up an appointment with Dr. John Zubkus, an oncologist in Murfreesboro. At our first visit Dr. Zubkus set up P.E.T. and CT scans. Those scans showed hot spots in several places in his body. Dr. Zubkus got Woody an appointment with Dr. Jeffrey Sosman, the head of melanoma research at Vanderbilt. We found out the results of the scans on Dec. 23 and we were seeing Dr. Sosman on Dec. 26th--so once in a while initial appointments with a doctor can happen quickly! Dr. Sosman has put forth several options that Woody can choose to try--and that is the reason that I call this post "a fork in the road."

Dr. Sosman put things on hold till Woody found out about how his arm was healing at the January 5th orthopedist appointment. The treatments that Woody has to choose from would not aid in bones healing. But now that the bones aren't healing, I imagine that we will be going forth posthaste with melanoma treatments and look at surgery on his arm at a date after he has recovered sufficiently from treatments. We will be returning to Dr. Sosman on Monday, Jan. 12, at which time I am pretty sure decisions will be made about which treatment/s Woody will be taking. None of the options will be any fun. Woody will be in for the fight of his life.

Once Woody chooses which treatment/s, I will explain more about it/them.

We ask that you keep us in your thoughts and prayers.

Lois

Six Days In

When thinking of a title for tonight's blog, I was thinking about it being the 6th of January...so we are six days into the new year...and after I wrote the title I realized that it had another meaning for me...six days in the house with this "crud" that I have gotten.  I am still coughing but thanks to the cough medicine, it is much better today...not as many "bad" coughing spells.

Woody is feeling better today. His ear isn't hurting.  He chose the warmest time of the day and walked to the public library for his walk of the day.  The rest of the day he has spent quietly inside working crossword puzzles, watching football, and reading.

I spent time "kitchen dreaming."  I looked up products on the internet that I might like to have in our kitchen.  I am determined to get up enough nerve this year to renovate the kitchen.  But when I start looking...trying to make some decisions, it just becomes overwhelming!  Today I looked at different types of cabinets and counter tops.  Speaking of the kitchen...just before coming in to blog, I found the box that has kitchen shadow box items stored in it.  I think that I will go do something in the kitchen...move the Christmas items out of it and put back the everyday items.  That will be another step towards undecorating.  I packed up several more things today...but so far there really hasn't been a dent made in the decorations...but I have started...a move in the right direction!

Two Peas in a Pod!

Woody and I both have felt better!  Woody started having an ear ache today so decided to go back to urgent care.  He got a shot and a prescription for an antibiotic...messed up sinuses, again...or perhaps still?  He did make our weekly grocery run this morning.  I am still coughing.  I had him get me more cough medicine and cough drops and allergy medicine...the bag he brought me back should do something to deal with what ails me!  I didn't sleep the best last night and when I finally did get to sleep I ended up sleeping in a bit later than usual this morning and I have felt sleepy most of the day and have dozed off and on. I haven't even felt like reading today. Sometime in the night I coughed so hard that I really hurt a rib...so sometime in the night I found a pillow that I could tuck into the belt on my robe so I can use it to cushion my coughs.  I am hoping that I haven't cracked a rib...I have done that in the past due to coughing so hard.  I have been psyching myself up to start undecorating and actually did put an item into a box and brought it upstairs to put in the hallway to await being put back into the Christmas closet...eventually.  I have gotten out another box from the Christmas closet so I guess it is starting to be official that I have started to undecorate!  It is a long process...but at least it is started.  I won't be setting any records in getting it undone since my energy level is still pretty low!  And, a lot of trips up and down the stairs aren't exactly what I feel like making currently.  So hopefully "slow and steady will "eventually" win the race!"