MIA

I know I've been MIA for a while now, but there's been a lot going on lately.

Keith came to Houston on a business trip the second week of November and I decided to give him a ride back to Austin and stay and visit that weekend.  The weather was beautiful and we had a wonderful time.  I did manage to take a few pictures.

We went to a place called The Oasis which overlooks Lake Travis.  It was an overcast day, but still very pleasant.

I thought this statue was cute...

And this map of the United States made me laugh...

And Keith gave his elderly mother some apple juice...with brandy.  It's good for aches and pains.

And I had a nice visit with my grandcats...

Then I came home from Austin and didn't feel well for about a week.  Nothing got done around here for a while, but things are back to normal now.

Reid did have his appointment with the oncologist and his infusion that week and also saw the stem cell doctor again on the recommendation of his oncologist.  The mass had shrunk again, but it wasn't gone.  Based on that the oncologist felt he should now consider another stem cell transplant.  So, things are moving along in that general direction.  Reid is scheduled for another PT scan on the 30th and if the mass is still shrinking (and hasn't started to grow) he will probably be having a stem cell transplant using Keith's stem cells shortly thereafter.  They're talking about possibly admitting his sometime around December 12th.  Of course, all the other testing has to come through OK too.  He'll also be having the bone marrow aspiration on the 30th and Keith will have to come to Houston for more testing.  Then Keith will donate the stem cells and Reid will be admitted.

I believe he'll be in the hospital for around a month and then we'll have to live down in the Medical Center again for a while.  I'm not sure how I'm going to be doing all this with the dog and cats.  Last time Jim came home to let out the dog and feed the cats while I was at the hospital.  Keith and Troy tell me not to worry that they will help, but I do worry about EVERYTHING!

I did wrap Christmas presents last night and hope to get the ones out of state mailed this week.  Then I'd like to tackle Christmas cards.  I'd skip them this year except there are people that don't know that Jim died so I'd like to get them out.  There are lots of old friends that we only communicate with at Christmas.

On Monday the people will come back and finish the slab work (hopefully).  I called the flooring company and told them what's going on.  Hopefully, they can get a crew in to put down the new floor before things get any busier around here.  I'd like to get the house back in order.  Right now we have boxes piled all over the dining room.  And I need to take down the Halloween/Thanksgiving decorations.  I probably won't be putting up any Christmas things.  There's only so much time.

Reid and I drove to Brenham and met Keith for Thanksgiving Dinner.  Brenham is about half way between Houston and Austin.  It was a beautiful day and we had a very good dinner at a Brenham restaurant.  Then we found an empty table outside a closed coffee shop and played a game while we checked the Houston Texans football score on our phones.  What a game!  Reid and I listened to the rest of the game on the radio on the ride home and then watched the game that evening.  We had recorded it just in case the game was exciting.  It was!

I forgot the camera and took these pictures with my phone.  This is the empty table we found for our game.  In case you're wondering the game we played was Pandemic.

And this is Keith and Reid shaking hands the germ free way like Howie Mandel.  (We're becoming very germ conscious again with a possible stem cell transplant looming.)

I'll try and drop in from time to time with updates.  I just find myself kind of worn out in the evening and if I haven't had time all day to get online I just skip.  I've been doing that a lot lately.

I'm so tired of blogger and this new dashboard.  I had everything in this post evenly spaced and even though it looks OK once I hit publish it's all messed up.  I give up!

"X" as in X-TRA work for Alphabe-Thursday

 
Yes, I know that's not how extra is spelled.  I'm just spelling it that way for Alphabe-Thursday and I already did X-RAY previously in another round.  So, today it's X-TRA as in lots of X-TRA work.

Even though I feel a little overwhelmed right now, my X-TRA work is nothing compared to what the people cleaning up after Sandy face.  I grew up in northern NJ and had lots of fun at the Jersey Shore.  It's heartbreaking to see what has happened to NJ and NY.  However, I remember Galveston after Hurricane Ike.  Our first ride down there after the storm convinced us that Galveston was finished.  However, we were very wrong and today you have to look for evidence of the storm.  I know Sandy was much more widespread, but I'm confident that NJ and NY will come back.

Now on to my X-TRA work.  In Texas most homes are built on concrete slabs.  Our soil is mostly clay which expands with moisture and contracts when dry.  This causes the house to kind of rise and fall.  Eventually the concrete slab cracks and the slab becomes very uneven.  I've heard them say that it usually takes 20 to 30 years for this to happen and large trees don't help the situation because they drink up so much of the moisture.  We keep soaker hoses around  the outside of the slab and water a lot during the summer, but sometimes that just isn't enough.

It was time for some more piers.  The piers go under the slab and help hold the house up.  They go deep into more stable soil and are adjustable.  We already have piers around the outside of the house and some inside, but this time we needed four more inside where the den and kitchen had fallen off.  What they do is come in and take up the carpet and use jack hammers to get through the concrete.  Then they take out lots of dirt and pour the concrete piers.  Right now the holes are covered with plywood while the concrete cures.  Then they'll come back in a couple of weeks and do all the jacking.  Afterwards, I'll have new floors put down.

I spent last weekend packing things up in the kitchen and den and moving them into the dining room.  I also covered a lot of things with plastic in hopes of cutting down on all the dust. You know how dust is...it gets everywhere!  I especially didn't want to have to wash all the dishes and china in the dining room.

Here are some pictures of the dining room:

And I had to protect my dolls too...

Some stuff was piled in the entryway...

And I tried to protect all my cookbooks in the kitchen.  It would be a real drag to have to take them all down and dust.

After going through the concrete slab they brought out lots of dirt:

And then they started bringing the concrete inside:

Yes, right through the backdoor and into the den and kitchen:

Here's one of the holes in the den floor.  Most of the den furniture and carpet is under the plastic that you see to the left.  They added two piers in the den and two in the kitchen.

Then they put plywood on top of the holes and put the carpet back down.  We have two bumps now under the carpet in the den.  They placed plywood over the holes in the kitchen too.

I just have to remember to look where I'm walking for a while.  They'll be back in about two weeks to finish the job and I must remember not to break my neck in the meantime.

Then I'll have the same tile that I have in the dining room put down in the den, kitchen, utility room and hallway.  I really like the brick pavers I have in the kitchen, but I don't have enough extra this time to make repairs, so it will have to go.

I thought I'd try and be a lady of leisure the next two weeks.  No sense in cleaning or dusting until the job is done...right?

Please drop in on Ms. Jenny's blog for a list of other participants in this week's Alphabe-Thursday event.  Thanks!

Some more busy days ahead...

It's official...Fall finally arrived today!  It was warm when I went outside this morning with the dog, but a few hours later the temperature had probably dropped ten degrees.  I actually had to turn off the A/C this afternoon.  Still don't need the heat, but it's so nice to turn off the A/C for a while.

The squirrels are running around gathering nuts for the winter.  I'm not sure why since we don't get snow and the ground never freezes, but I guess with all the pecans falling they're in a feeding frenzy.  They love to tease my cat.  I can see this tree from the computer room window and most mornings Baby is up there with the squirrels.  Yesterday there were three squirrels having a good time teasing him.  Of course, it was kind of difficult to get a picture because they all move so quickly.  If you look closely you can see Baby and two of the squirrels. (Click on the picture to enlarge.)

Reid drove to Austin this morning to visit Keith and attend a convention.  He was going to go yesterday, but didn't feel well in the morning and decided to wait. Troy is driving over tomorrow for the day to attend the same convention.  I'm sure they will all have a good time.  Reid plans to drive back on Monday morning.

He had his infusion on Tuesday and spoke with his oncologist.  The mass continues to get smaller, but he's not in remission yet and because of that the oncologist now feels he should consider another stem cell transplant using Keith's stem cells.  He told Reid to at least speak with the stem cell doctor and see what he says.  We also found out that Reid's oncologist is moving to Sloan Kettering in January or February.  That was disappointing to hear since he's considered a leading expert on Hodgkin's, but the Fellow said that it's a wonderful opportunity for him and he deserves it.  So, I guess Reid will be seeing another oncologist in the clinic when he moves on.  It was kind of a mixed bag of information.  Good because the mass did get smaller again, but not so good because of a possible stem cell transplant and his doctor leaving.  I might have told you before, but there are many emotional ups and downs with cancer.

And Monday they begin the slab work on the house.  I think this is more a Texas thing, but the homes here are built on a concrete slab and we have a clay type soil.  Because of the clay the ground expands with moisture and contracts with drought.  Having large trees makes the situation worse.  Although we have soaker hoses around the slab and water all the time the large trees drink huge amounts of water.  Once again, the slab has cracked and our house has dropped off along the back.  So, on Monday they'll be coming in and tearing up the carpet in the den and the kitchen floor and adding some interior piers.  They come in with jack hammers and go through the concrete, take out wheelbarrows full of dirt, and then pour concrete piers to hold the house up.  The concrete will have to cure for two to three weeks and then they'll come back, open up some of the interior and exterior piers we already have, and officially jack up the house.  Then I'll have to get new floors.  Needless to say, I'm going to be busy for a while.  In fact, I've spent time this week packing up stuff in the kitchen and den and temporarily moving it into the dining room.  I'm just hoping I can get everything done before we get too busy with Reid's treatment.  This was all supposed to have been done last June, but I put it off until October after Jim died.

I'm going to be very busy in the coming weeks, but I'll try and post here once in a while.  And I'm planning to take pictures on Monday because seeing is believing!  Reid took the camera to Austin, but I got an iPhone5 last week and can always use that for pictures.  That reminds me of something and I'm hoping someone can help.  I downloaded the Blogger app but can't figure out how to read blogs with it.  It just takes me to the page where you write a blog post.  Anyone know what I'm doing wrong?

"V" as in VINTAGE for Alphabe-Thursday

I wonder how many people will use the word VINTAGE for Alphabe Thursday this week?  VINTAGE is really hot right now.  Just look at all the blogs you see that feature VINTAGE furniture, VINTAGE clothes, just about VINTAGE everything!

In case you're interested in seeing for yourself how many others use the word VINTAGE head over to Ms. Jenny's blog at Jenny Matlock..."off on my tangent" for a list of this week's participants.

I'll admit...I was stumped.  What kind of a post could I quickly put together using the letter "V" this week?  Finally, I googled "letter V" and found a list of words that began with V.  When I saw VINTAGE I thought I just might be able to pull this off. 

I'm VINTAGE.  If you don't believe me...here I am in Kindergarten in Westwood, NJ back in 1951. That's me in the front row on the left.  I was always in the front row when class pictures were taken.  That's where the short kids usually went when they lined us up.  My teacher was Miss Cornell and she lived right across the street from us on Mill Street.  I think I've posted this picture before, but hopefully you've forgotten or there are some new people that haven't seen it before.  I already had some of these pictures scanned and ready to go.

Here I am in first grade at Ketler Elementary in Westwood, NJ.  I believe it was a brand new school that year.  That's me all the way to the left at the front of the classroom with the braids and glasses.  My teacher, Miss Moore, was VINTAGE.  She had been my mom's teacher too.

And this was second grade with one of my favorite teachers, Miss Lichtenstein.  I thought she was beautiful and very, very nice.  That's me at the beginning of the second row with glasses.  See the little boy at the beginning of the third row?  That's Alan Friedman.  He was also in my Kindergarten class and he told me that there wasn't a Santa Claus.  Isn't it funny how you can remember something like that many years later?  I remember it as if it were yesterday.

I actually have VINTAGE pictures from all my elementary school years, but these are the only ones I have scanned.  Since I'm VINTAGE I'm not sure if I've put all of these up on my blog before.  Hopefully, a lot of you are also VINTAGE and won't remember if I did.

Here's a VINTAGE picture of my older sister, Carol, and me sometime in the early 1950's.  We were playing a game and she was probably winning.  She always won.  Do you think she cheated?  I still sometimes wonder.  Does anyone have any idea what game we were playing?

I've always loved playing with dolls and now collect some of the VINTAGE dolls I grew up with.

Yes, I know it's silly, but I enjoy setting them up in scenes.  Here's a Build A Bear Workshop that I created for them some years back.  Most of these dolls are Vogue Ginny dolls and some are VINTAGE and from the 1950's and some are modern day dolls.

I don't play with them as much anymore and it's been a while since I set up a scene.  In fact, the last scene I set up was last Valentine's Day and I still haven't taken it down.  But, I still enjoy just looking at my dolls.  They always make me smile.  I've probably put a few of these pictures up on my blog before too, but my VINTAGE mind isn't sure which ones.

And this is my childhood Ginny.  She's certainly VINTAGE!  She's a 1954 painted lash walker. You can see that I cut her hair when I was little, but I've re-wigged her since this picture was taken.  She's still a redhead, but she now has braids.

Thank you for visiting and please visit Ms. Jenny's blog for more information on Alphabe-Thursday.

Busy Days Ahead...

I've been meaning to write a quick post for almost a week.  I kept thinking I'd get some pictures taken to go along with an update, but never got around to doing it.  I did go to the Houston Italian Festival this past weekend, but forgot my camera.

Reid finally got the results of his latest PET scan last week...almost a week after the scan.  He had called and left a message a couple of days after the scan and never heard anything, so he called a second time last week and the P.A. called him back pretty quickly.  I guess they hadn't gotten the first message.  Anyway, the scan still shows activity (cancer), but it's gotten smaller again.  I was hoping it would be completely gone, but smaller is still good.  Originally his oncologist was thinking about 8 or so treatments.  I believe Reid has now had 7.  The drug was approved for up to 16 treatments, so we'll see what the doctor says when he goes back for the next treatment on October 23rd.

Meanwhile, I'm getting ready to have slab work done on the house.  Unless you live in this part of Texas you probably have no idea what slab work is, but I can tell you it's a pain in the "you know what."  Homes here are built on concrete slabs.  The soil is mostly clay which expands and contracts with moisture.  This causes the house to kind of go up and down.  Eventually, the slab cracks.  You can tell when doors stick, windows don't close easily, and cracks appear above doorways.  The problem is made worse by dry conditions and large trees which drink up the water and dry out the soil.  It usually takes time to happen...20 to 30 years.  Anyway, we've had work done before and now need some additional interior piers.  That means they have to come inside, rip up the flooring, and go into the concrete slab with jack hammers.  Needless to say, it's a big mess.  We were originally scheduled to have this done last June, but when Jim died I put it off until the end of October when hopefully it would cool off.  I need to put the dog and cats in the garage.  We've only had a few cooler days a week or so ago.  Other than that the A/C runs night and day.  It's been in the 90's, but today felt better and I think it was only in the 80's.  I just hope it will be cool on October 29th.  I'll be sure to take pictures.  Seeing is believing!

I miss the old Blogger Dashboard!

Alphabe-Thursday: "S" as in STOP the madness!

It's time again for Alphabe-Thursday sponsored by Ms. Jenny at Jenny Matlock..."off on my tangent."

OK, I'm a football fan.  I'm not into college football.  I prefer the NFL and specifically the Houston Texans.  We've been season ticket holders for 7 or 8 years.   I watch a lot of football during my favorite season of the year.  Recently we got AT & T Uverse so now I have the NFL Network to watch too.   However, I'm starting to go crazy.

Please STOP the madness.  I am so tired of hearing about the substitute officials and all the mistakes that are being made.  The game announcers are constantly pointing out each little or big mistake or how long it takes for a decision to be reached, etc.  Sports Radio talks about little else it seems.

I watched the Packers/Seahawks game on Monday night.  Yes, the Packers were robbed of a win.  It shouldn't have happened, but it did.  Now can we move on?

It is what it is.  All the teams have substitutes officiating.  Everyone is in the same boat.

Will the NFL and the regular officials ever reach an agreement?  Who knows?  The NFL is so rich, big and powerful that they can pretty well do whatever they want.  People are not going to stop buying season tickets or turn off their TVs.  That's how mighty NFL football is in this country.  It's an addiction.

It is what it is, so let's STOP complaining and move on. I don't think any of those substitute officials go out on the field with the idea of doing a bad job.  It's not their fault.  They just haven't been prepared properly by the NFL.

What concerns me is the way people are talking about the officials.  Just remember who is listening.  Have you ever been to a football game and heard some small child boo the offiicial's call?  Or at a baseball game when a young person screamed at the umpire?  Whether you like it or not these officials are authority figures who should be respected (or at the very least politely tolerated) by adults and children alike.

Don't worry about the Green Bay Packers.  They have some of the most dedicated fans in the world.  Have you ever seen them sitting in the stands when it's a zillion degrees below zero with snow falling and icicles hanging from their eyelashes?  My goodness, I really admire those fans.  Do they really come early and shovel the snow off the seats at Lambeau Field?

 

Talk about dedication.  
 
The Packers now have legions of additional fans outraged over Monday's result.  I know I'll be rooting for them to do well (just not on October 14th when they play the Houston Texans).  So, let's not feel too sorry for them.

As for the Seahawks...they know they got a cheap win, but I have to feel kinda sorry for them too.  They also played hard the entire game and never asked for the officials to blow that call.  Besides, they've already got a lot on their plate.  Have you seen their new uniforms?  Who in the world designed them?  Navy blue with neon green and some kind of fancy stripe down the side of the pants.  My goodness...they look more like dance costumes and a dance troupe than football uniforms and a football team.  Those poor guys have to wear those outfits week after week.  In my opinion they're already being punished. You can see pictures on the team website here.  I'm so sorry gentlemen.  You deserve better.  My apologies to any Seahawks fans I might have offended, but the matching neon green gloves and shoes are a bit over the top...don't you think?

Anyway, it's time to move on.  The Seahawks are the winners and that's all there is to it.  Let's STOP all this craziness.  We're in the middle of a Presidential election, we have troops overseas in two wars, and there are other things far more important than football going on.  Hey, I love football too, but I love it as a form of entertainment.  That's all it really is.

By the time some of you read this the NFL and the regular officials might have already settled their differences and STOPPED this insanity, or perhaps that's just wishful thinking on my part.

Now join in the fun by heading over to Ms. Jenny's blog for a list of other participants in this week's Alphabe-Thursday.

Can I have a little RELIEF?

I hope you don't mind if I jump in here with an "R" post for this round of Alphabe-Thursday.  I believe I've managed to get at least one or two posts in for each round since Ms. Jenny began this event.  I haven't been as active recently, but hope to do better in the future. 

I chose the word RELIEF.  Reid's poor cat was crying out for RELIEF one day a couple of weeks ago.

Talk about a freak accident.  Poor Ashley sat on a piece of Press 'N Seal.  In case you're not familiar with Press 'N Seal it's a product similar to Saran Wrap only much better.

It's very versatile.  We first became acquainted with Press 'N Seal when Reid had a Central Venous Catheter going into an artery in his neck.  The hospital told him to use Press 'N Seal to cover it for showers.  It would be an ideal product to cover casts, stitches, etc., so if you have kids remember this tip.

Anyway, I left a used piece of Press 'N Seal on the counter.  Ashley must have jumped up and sat on it while I was out of the room.  All of a sudden I noticed Ashley running around the house in a panic.  Yes, Press 'N Seal even sticks to a cat's bottom.

To say Ash freaked out is putting it mildly.  It made this crinkling sound as he moved.  Of course, the other cats became curious and had to see what was going on.

In order to take pictures I had to use cat treats.  He kept running away.  I wanted to pull the Press 'N Seal off and give him some RELIEF, but I couldn't catch him.

After a few minutes I finally caught him and pulled the Press 'N Seal off.  Much to my surprise look at what fell out.  (Examine the picture closely.)  What an amazing product.  Press 'N Seal can seal anything in.  This is photographic proof.

Ash and I give this product a four star rating.

Finally, Ashley was able to hide under the desk.  It's traumatic having the "you know what" scared out of you.  With the Press 'N Seal (and more) removed he was able to get a little RELIEF.

Thank you for visiting.  Now please head over to Ms. Jenny's blog, Jenny Matlock..."off on my tangent"  and visit some other Alphabe-Thursday posts.

Moving On Along...

I meant to get a blog post up sooner, but I had to think about what to write.

Last Tuesday Reid had his appointment with his regular oncologist.  When the nurse came in he told her about seeing the stem cell doctor the week before, but she didn't seem to know anything about it.  Then she told him that she had pulled everything up and his doctor was reading it before he came in to talk with him.

The doctor came in and Reid explained to him what was going on and how he had no idea a stem cell transplant was planned for after the Adcetris treatment.  We were both under the impression that the Adcetris would be tried first and if that failed the back up plan would be another stem cell transplant.  I don't believe the doctor had spoken with the stem cell doctor, but he explained that the drug is so new that there's no one accepted treatment plan like there was when he relapsed the first time.  An auto stem cell transplant with ICE chemo first is pretty well accepted as the way to go with the first relapse.  Now we're kind of in uncharted territory with a new drug with the second relapse.  There are different opinions as to the best way to go.

His doctor said that if he felt very motivated about having a stem cell transplant then he should go through with it.  If not, he said he would do what Reid is doing and stay on the drug and see what happens.  There's no right or wrong way to go.  For now he can just think about it.  When I mentioned that the stem cell doctor said he wouldn't recommend another stem cell transplant if he relapsed again, this doctor gave us the impression that it wouldn't be a problem.  He also said if he relapsed he could go back on the Adcetris again and that there were other drugs to try.

To be honest, I don't know what to think.  I've been in a funk for the last two weeks.  In the past everyone was in complete agreement.  This whole thing is unsettling.  I did a google search and found a blog where the gal had just had a stem cell transplant after being treated with Adcetris, but I don't know all of the circumstances.  I've learned over the years not to dig too deep for information since it can be worrisome.  Not everything you read on the Internet is up to date or necessarily accurate.  It can drive you crazy sometimes.

Reid seems to feel a little better now after speaking with his regular oncologist.  He had his treatment and hasn't seemed as sick this time.  The plan now calls for another scan after his next treatment in two weeks.  Needless to say, that will be another stressful period.  I'm trying to think positive and pray that the Adcetris continues to work.

After all we've been through Keith decided it would be a good time to come for a visit.  He drove over from Austin early Saturday morning and left for home Sunday afternoon.  We had a really good time in a little over 24 hours.  We ate, shopped, played a game, and Keith got some things done around here for me.  We went to Walmart and bought a table and bench for this room.  The old table was falling apart and the one leaf was collapsing from the weight of the sewing machine.  Keith put the new table together and we dragged the old one out into the garage.  Then he hung another plate rack in the dining room for me.  So, in a little time we got a lot accomplished.

I wanted to take a picture of Keith and Reid together, but Reid got tired and was sleeping when Keith was ready to leave.  So, I asked Keith to pose for a picture in the backyard this time.  I always take pictures of him by the car as he's leaving.  This is Keith posing by my mobile garden.  We've had tomatoes and jalapenos this year.

Today I told Reid I had to take a picture of him before I wrote this post.  So, here's Reid cleaning up after dinner.

Usually he doesn't start bouncing back until ten days or so after the treatment, but this time he seems to be doing better.  This chemo is still so much easier than the chemos he's had in the past.

Thanks again for your comments, E-mails, and prayers!