Happy Birthday Mom!!!

Today is Mom's 85th birthday.  We met Lori, Jim and Maren at The Bleu Olive (Mom's favorite place) for a very nice dinner and as usual, lots of laughs.  Lori and Jim scored a primo parking place right in front of the restaurant and we sat at a table where Lori could keep an eye on Snoopy, who was in the car.

Snoopy was quite the item of interest to everyone who passed by which was fun to watch.

Mom is celebrating with lots of presents, flowers, mangos and peach ice cream.

Mom as the flower girl in a Tom Thumb wedding

And, from last night:

Love, Leslie

Crazytown: And Welcome To It

This morning I was reading the Sunday New York Times and waiting for Mom to get moving so I can fix her breakfast. 

The doorbell rings.  All the dogs are barking like fiends.  Mmmm.  Wonder who is here this early. 

The UPS delivery man.  And this package addressed to Mom:

So I open it to see what she purchased:

Yes, you are reading it correctly.  A smushed box of two packages of onion soup.

I am still laughing.  And I wondered about the amount of crap that was moved here 3 years ago ~ and I have decided that the only reason Mom and Dad were never featured on an episode of Hoarders is that they moved a bunch of times in their married life.  So stuff was disposed of.  

Mom is crazy. 

Love, 
Leslie

Spring Visitors

I put bird feed on the deck railing so I can get an up close view of the birds.  It is the usual crowd, mourning doves (that Lori called pigeons), finches, sparrows, tufted titmice.  But today I got a gold finch and a blue bird!

We also had a nesting pair of red-tailed hawks right off the back yard ~ I could hear them both and saw them.  I haven't seen any of the babies yet.  I may not.

Love,  
Leslie

Dare I Say It?????????

I just got back from taking Mom to the dentist.  She is seeing Amy's dentist.  His name is Dr. Kevin Matthews.  He is a Marine and his father is USNA Class of 1963.  I really liked him and so did mom.
Mom has a filling out ~ she told me about it a month ago and OF COURSE she says that it has been since two years ago.  
Any hooo.......
I have found some old photos of Grandad and I have put them on the hard drive:

Can you pick him out?  He is the only one who looks resonably happy.  What a derelict looking bunch!

And, I found this heirloom:

And our mothership.  Love the hat.  

It is pretty slow around here.  I said it.  Now I have to duck for cover.

Love,
Leslie

Happy Saturday! 

It is very quiet, I just took Mom her breakfast.  Her first comment was "what kind of compress do I need for my eyes?  See how swollen they are?"  I told her I would bring her an ice pack ~ I think just sitting up will make them better.  She is retaining some fluid.  Her left leg is seeping and I have upped her Lasix to the dose the doctor told me to do last time.

We'll see.

On a happy note, I just put out the humming bird feeder.  I should be seeing them at any time.  The birds have been having a blast with the new bird feeder from Carole.  No squirrels have figured out HOW to get into it, and I have seen one look up at it from the grass with a quizzical look in its eyes.

This past week, we had several days that I have to cover the clematis, the rose bush and the hydrangea because temperatures went down to 25 degrees at night.  We MAY be over that.

The wild Redbud

The wild Dogwood that is waking up

The new bird feeder

The hummingbird feeder and the vew of almost Spring

Basketball is on.....I need to check and see what my brackets look like ~ Michigan is one I did not pick at all.  Darn them.

Enjoy your weekend!
Love,
Leslie

A Comedy To Watch ~ Trial and Error

As traumatic as the trial was and the eventual overturning of the verdict AND Orlando Hudson allowing Micheal Peterson to take an Alford ~ this new show has been getting alot of press here in Durham.

John Lithgow plays Michael Peterson.  That in itself will be funny.  I will be watching.

I guess Jayma Mays is "playing" Jim or probably Freda.  I wonder who will play Jim's mom in the courtroom?

And, just in case you don't know how we all feel:

Love, Leslie

First Trip to the Emergency Room

Yesterday, mom announced that she had a pain in her left knee.  And there was a red area to the side and behind and it was swollen.  I didn't tell Mom blood clot, but I said that we probably should go to the Duke Urgent Care Clinic.  She did not want to go, and I said OK. Then she came back and said she did want to go and I said OK.

We go to the Urgent Clinic and it was full of people in masks!  Coughing, etc.  Oh dear.  I have managed to avoid people during flu season and we have just walked into flu central. The nurses were very kind and decided that Mom needed to go to the Duke Emergency room because she needed an ultra-sound to check for blood clots.  The nurse said she would call over to the ER and let them know Mom was coming.

So we go to the ER.  They valet parked my car for free.  (Very nice).  We enter thru a metal detector (a bit strange).  Go to the desk and are pointed to the waiting room.  As we move towards the waiting room, a nurse immediately calls for mom.  

We are taken to a cubical and Mom is assisted into a hospital gown and onto a bed/stretcher.  They hook her up to a heart monitor, do all her vitals, take her blood, take her for an x-ray and finally for an ultra-sound.  The nurses, the orderlies, everyone was so kind and nice.  AND, it was so quiet!  And calm!  I asked if it was normally like this and the nurse said "oh no, it is very busy!" And like all ER's on a Saturday night, the police were there ~ I saw several officers as we went to the ultra-sound room.  

There was a tv mounted on the wall so we were able to watch college basketball from 4pm to 9pm.  We were there a long time.

During that time, Mom decided that she really did not want to stay at the hospital, which is good, I guess.  

After 4 hours, all the tests came back fine.  No blood clot.  All good for Mom.

Now there were moments of frustration.  Everyone comes in and asks mom why she is there ~ and she always starts with "the blisters on my head that no one sees, the blisters on my arm........" I have to say "No, she is here for a possible blood clot on her left leg".  I also had to keep reminding the staff to use gauze and no tape for mom's arm after the blood draws.  They had to put a port in becase her veins are so tiny.  And when they removed the port I reminded this nurse (we were now on the second shift) to use gauze and that she was a bleeder.  The nurse said ok and when I looked while I got mom dressed, the clear pressure bandage that they put on her (@#$#####) was actually blowing up like a ballon full of blood.  I went and got the nurse because that thing was going to blow and it was not going to be good.

The nurse comes in and sees the blood and her eyes get big and she says "Oh my you are a bleeder!!!!" 

When she takes off the bandage blood goes all over Mom's lap -luckily (?) it pooled on her black cashmere wrap.  Can't see it so it is not a freaky crime scene.

I actually had to hold gauze and apply pressure while the nurses went and FOUND gauze pads and gauze wrap.  Now I was getting frustrated.

But, they were successful, Mom is happy and we can go home.

Mom did tell me that she was going to listen to me for the next 6 months because obviously I did know what I was talking about.  Ha!

Love, Leslie