GIVING THANKS CHALLENGE - Day 29 and 30

Today is the last day of the Giving Thanks Challenge and I'm playing catch up again.  Reid had doctor appointments that took up a big portion of both days and with Keith here I just didn't have time last night to post. 

I'm thankful that yesterday Reid's appointment with the cardiologist went well.  His cholesterol was down to 150, but the doctor put him on Lipitor because he wants it down to 100.  This is because there might be problems later on with the coronary arteries from the radiation and he doesn't need any additional complications caused by high cholesterol.

Today I'm thankful that Reid saw the Oncologist and Plan B is finally getting underway.  This is the prelude to the stem cell transplant.  The plan is to admit him to the hospital on Thursday if there's a bed available.  If not, it will probably be the next day.  He'll be hospitalized for three days and then home for two weeks, back for three days, etc.  This chemotherapy is given as a slow drip, so it can't be done on an outpatient basis. 

I'm also thankful that the Social Security hearing went well today and he's been approved for disability income.

This is the last day of this year's Giving Thanks Challenge.  Thank you Leah at South Breeze Farm for sponsoring this meaningful event.

GIVING THANKS CHALLENGE - Day 28

This evening I'm thankful that we were all able to watch The Amazing Race together.  Everyone was here except Troy, but I know he watches it too.  It's a family favorite.

GIVING THANKS CHALLENGE - Day 27

I'm thankful that we're so busy having a good time that I don't get online to post as regularly as I normally do.  This one is late again, but no less thankful.

GIVING THANKS CHALLENGE - Day 25 and 26

I'm going to combine a couple of days again in the Giving Thanks Challenge.  Yesterday was a busy day and I didn't get a post written.

On Thanksgiving Day I was thankful that our family could all be together once again.

I know they look a little hot, tired and bored, but there's a good explanation.  (And please don't look at all the junk piled on the coffee table.  It's actually sometimes worse.)

As I posted previously our A/C went out again.  It was warm and humid and with the oven going it was over 80 in the house.  I had planned dinner for around 4:00 and thought the turkey would have to cook for 3 1/2 hours.  Well, I was wrong.  I guess I read the directions for an unstuffed turkey by mistake and our turkey took a lot longer.  I was using two thermometers and it was like waiting for a pot of water to boil.  They just weren't going up.

I had planned to serve dinner buffet style so we could take our plates outside on the deck.  The idea was to get out of the hot house, but by the time the turkey was done it was dark outside and starting to sprinkle.  So, we quickly set the kitchen table and ate there.  (You'll notice in the above picture that it's dark outside.)

The turkey was very good.  Nice and moist.  Done to perfection if I must say so myself.  The family assured me that it was worth the wait.  Of course, I forgot to take a picture.  No picture of the turkey and no picture of the family sitting around the table.  (I was hot and tired and not thinking clearly.)

I did take a picture of the cranberry casserole and edited my previous post to include the picture with the recipe.

Troy made some pumpkin bread and it was very good.  I remembered to snap a picture.

I also managed to take a picture of the apple pie.  It had a praline topping.  (Just in case a regular apple pie doesn't have enough calories.)

We also had fresh asparagus, potatoes, bread stuffing, and giblet gravy.  No sweet potatoes this year and I forgot to put the Taffy Apple Salad out on the table, but no one missed it.  Things weren't exactly perfect, but we had a good time anyway. 

I've posted the recipe for the Taffy Apple Salad in the past.  I believe others were having it this year too because I noticed people arrived on my blog after doing a google search for "Taffy Apple Salad" or "salad with apples and peanuts."  (That's something you can check if you use Blogger In Draft.)

Within an hour or so of eating the temperature outside took a nose dive.  Within a few minutes it probably dropped ten to fifteen degrees.  I went around closing windows.  I just wish the cold front could have moved in a little earlier.

Right now Keith is out in the kitchen making turkey soup which we'll have for dinner tonight.  He doesn't head back to Austin until next Wednesday, so we'll have some extra time together.  He brought Reid a couple of shirts and today he's wearing one.  I hope I remember to take a picture.

Today I am thankful that it's cooled off and it's finally turkey soup weather!

For information on the Giving Thanks Challenge click on the button on my sidebar.

GIVING THANKS CHALLENGE - Day 24

This one is so easy.  I didn't have to take any time to think.  It came to me in a flash...even with my almost 65 year old mind.  Are you ready???

Today I am thankful that Reid will soon begin his stem cell transplant at MD Anderson Cancer Center.  I am thankful that the latest biopsy still showed Hodgkin's Lymphoma and not anything else.  I am thankful that he'll have the opportunity to make cancer history.

Playing catch up again...GIVING THANKS CHALLENGE - Day 22 and 23

Yesterday I was  thankful for supportive friends.

Today I am thankful and very grateful for the medical care our son receives at MD Anderson Cancer Center.

For information on the Giving Thanks Challenge click on the button on my sidebar.

GIVING THANKS CHALLENGE - Day 21

Today I'm thankful for our A/C.  It's really a necessity here for a good part of the year.  As I type it's humming in the background and it isn't really all that warm right now.  However, they say we'll have temperatures back in the 80's sometime this week.  A/C is just as important to us as heat is to International Falls, MN.  Yes, I'm thankful for our comfort which we tend to take for granted sometimes.

GIVING THANKS CHALLENGE - Day 20

Today I'm thankful for the rebirth I saw on Galveston Island.  We took a ride down there today and drove along the Seawall and then headed over to The Strand.  I remember on one of our first trips down there after Hurricane Ike I thought the island would never be able to recover.  I was wrong.  It's coming back strong.  They're not there yet, but they've come a long, long way.

For information on the Giving Thanks Challenge click on the button on my sidebar.

GIVING THANKS CHALLENGE - Day 19

Today I'm thankful that while driving along in a different part of Houston we spotted a Dunkin Donuts.  They are few and far between here and we hadn't had any of their donuts in many, many years.  We zipped right in and bought a dozen.  (They were $6.99 a dozen and when we last had them I think they were $3.99 a dozen.)  Sounds like a simple little thing, but we were thrilled and for that I'm thankful.

GIVING THANKS CHALLENGE - Day 18

Today I'm thankful that Reid's biopsy procedure went well and there were no complications.

For more information on the Giving Thanks Challenge sponsored by Leah click on the Giving Thanks Button on my sidebar.

GIVING THANKS CHALLENGE - Day 17

Today I'm thankful for all the safe trips we've had on the Houston freeways.  Over the years no one in our family has ever been in a serious accident.

For information on the Giving Thanks Challenge click on the Giving Thanks Challenge button on my sidebar.

GIVING THANKS CHALLENGE - Days 15 and 16...catch up!

I'm playing catch up this morning, but I'm no less thankful the last couple of days.  I just didn't have time to get over here and post.  I'll try and do better this evening and post day 17 then.

I'm very thankful for food.  We never go to bed hungry like many do in this country and other parts of the world.

I'm also thankful for the water we drink.  In many parts of the world they do not have clean, safe drinking water.

GIVING THANKS CHALLENGE - Day 14

I'm thankful that Hurricane Season will officially end on November 30th and that there have been no hurricanes along the Gulf Coast of the United States this year.  The weather has cooled off and I believe we can all breath a sigh of relief now.

GIVING THANKS CHALLENGE - Day 13

November 13, 2010 would have been my Dad's 92nd birthday.  Today I'm thankful for the many, many good years he had on this earth.

For information on the Giving Thanks Challenge click on the button on my sidebar.

GIVING THANKS CHALLENGE - Day 12

Today I'm thankful for the deep blue sky and white fluffy clouds that I saw this morning while driving to the next town.  I was mesmerized by the beauty of the sky.

For information on the Giving Thanks Challenge click on the button on my sidebar.

GIVING THANKS CHALLENGE - Day 11

Today on Veterans Day 2010 I am grateful to all of our past and present military men and women.

I am especially thankful for all the Vietnam veterans who bravely served during that difficult time in our Nation's history.  Because of an unpopular war, we failed at that time to welcome you home as the heroes you were.  For that I am very sorry.  Welcome home.

GIVING THANKS CHALLENGE - Day 10

Today I'm thankful for all this crazy technology that allows me to sit here at my desk and connect with people all over the United States...and the world! 

Who would have thought?  It's all pretty amazing when you stop and think about it.

I can google a question and have an answer back in seconds.  I can find thousands of recipes in an instant.  I can visit places virtually that I'll probably never be able to visit in person.  I can connect with people that share the same interests I do.  The list goes on and on.

Yes, today I'm thankful for the technology that has opened up the world to me.

For information on the Giving Thanks Challenge head over to Leah's blog by clicking on the Giving Thanks Challenge on my sidebar.

GIVING THANKS CHALLENGE - Day 9

I'm almost 65 years old, so I'm old enough to remember polio.  Yesterday I did a post about being thankful for the invention of the X-ray and that got me to thinking once again about one of the biggest medical breakthroughs in my life.  I'm talking about the polio vaccine that was discovered by Jonas Salk back in mid 1950's. 

Today, I'm thankful for the Salk vaccine (and the later Sabin oral vaccine) which has almost completely eradicated this horrible disease.  Sadly, there are still a few places in the world where polio exists, but for the most part it's been eliminated.

Growing up in the 1950's I still remember when some of the O'Brien kids up the street came down with polio.  It was a scary time.

I was a Polio Pioneer in 1954 and had one of these buttons shown in the picture below.  I still remember how they lined us up alphabetically at school and we went in for the shot.  I wasn't too crazy about getting the shot and was so envious of Peter Zenkel.  :)

Now polio is something we hardly even think about.

Yes, I am very thankful for the polio vaccine.

For more information on the Giving Thanks Challenge click on the button on my sidebar.

GIVING THANKS CHALLENGE - Day 7 and 8

Ooops....didn't get to post yesterday, so I'm combining day 7 and 8 for the Giving Thanks Challenge sponsored by Leah over at South Breeze Farm.  Please click on the Giving Thanks Challenge button on my sidebar for more information.

Day 7:  I'm thankful for another beautiful day.  I don't ever want to take these days for granted.  It wasn't too hot and it wasn't too cool...just perfect!

Day 8:  I noticed on Google this morning that it's the 115 birthday of the X-ray.  Isn't that amazing?  It's technology that is still used today and will probably never be outdated.  My son has had many CT scans, PET scans, etc., but the first thing they always do is take an X-ray.  It's still the first thing they go to when attempting to make a diagnosis.  So, today I am grateful for the 115 year old X-ray that has evolved over the years and probably saved many, many lives.

GIVING THANKS CHALLENGE - Day 6

Today I'm giving thanks for Ashley who keeps Reid company.  I've written about Ashley before, but he is so loyal and waits outside Reid's door for a chance to sneak in and make himself comfortable.  He thinks the recliner belongs to him!

For information on the Giving Thanks Challenge head over to Leah's blog by clicking on the Giving Thanks Challenge button on my sidebar.

Reid had his appointment with the Oncologist yesterday and we learned that the biopsy was inconclusive and he'll need another one taken from the mediastinum.  The one last Friday was taken from behind his left clavicle.  If the Interventional Radiologist feels it's safe to do he'll have the one from the mediastinum done soon.  If not, we'll have to wait two months until he's scanned again to see if it can be done then.  The Oncologist doesn't want to do a stem cell transplant without a biopsy first.  He also expressed some concern that the mediastinum looked a little suspicious and we're not exactly sure what that means.  He said everything is very slow growing which is common after a relapse, so it doesn't seem like there's a big rush.  Still, the waiting drives me crazy.  Reid is calm and realistic about the whole thing.  He says, "It is what it is."  I'm thankful for his attitude too.