We were having lunch at home on Saturday and I was taking my Osteo bi flex.  Now, these are big, honkin` pills so I have been cutting them in half because I have had trouble swallowing them.  The first half went down okay, but the second half got stuck, REALLY STUCK in my throat.  I ran over to the sink because I was (sorry, it`s gross) gagging and kinda throwing up. I couldn`t get any air, and the pill wouldn`t budge.  I couldn`t talk, just squeak.  Hubby did the heimlech manuver on me, still nothing but a funny snap.  So he smacked me hard on the back just as things were starting to turn dark, and he was going to get the phone to call 911.  I suddenly got a little bit of air and a sip of water, and it must have dissolved enough to give me a small airway.  We were both shaking and my eyes were running a stream and I was trying to catch my breath.  It was awful!  Needless to say, I`m not taking those pills anymore!  In fact, I`m never taking any big, honkin` pill anymore.  I get chewable calcium because the pills are too big, and I did notice they have liquid brands of Osteo bi flex.  I`m also going to get chewable vitamins because I have trouble with those.

   Later on, my left side was beginning to hurt.  I told Hubby that I think he bruised my ribs when he squeezed me.  After supper, it was really hurting, so he took me to the emergency room.  They took 3 x-rays and strapped me up.  I have 2 broken ribs!  Hubby felt awful that he could have done this to me, but the doc  and nurses made him feel better.  They said when the Heimlech is done right, you do break ribs. so he must have done it properly.  MY HUBBY SAVED MY LIFE!  It is just mind boggling when I think about it!  So, I am off work until Wed. I have a script for pain pills and have to remember to breathe deep and cough every few minutes or the tight strapping around my ribs will give me pneumonia.  I am very sore today and quite tired.  But I needed to do some quiet things, and blogging is just the thing.

   So, if you read this and feel like responding a bit, I would love it!  In the meantime, if you take any pills, please be careful!!!!

                  That Girl

  I am so not over losing my Dad.  It hasn`t even been 6 weeks yet.  Yesterday evening I got a phone call from my step brother and he said that my step-mom was now in the hospital.  She went in last Friday!  No one had bothered to tell me till last night.  I had called there but didn`t get any answer, now I know why.  I guess they don`t know what happened yet.  Maybe she fell but she doesn`t have any bruises.  All they said was that she was tired and weak.  They put her in a nursing home today but I understand it is only for 3 weeks to get her rested and stronger. 

  My hubby has a meeting today at work to find out if they are laying off or cutting hours because they are not getting enough machine orders to keep the place open all the time.  So, we got a lot going on right now.  I know God only gives you what you can handle, but sometimes it seems like it`s so much. 

  I`ll find out what was said at the meeting when he comes home for lunch.  I will post it tomorrow or Friday.

                     That Girl

I am on a real warpath against spending too much money.  We have bought energy saving heaters, an on demand water heater, a front loading washer that saves lots of water, and I put clothes outside or in the basement to dry.  Then, why, all of a sudden, we get our water bill yesterday and it`s at least $10 higher than last time? I`m thinkin` that the utility companies know people are making an effort to use less, so they charge more.  I think if they can`t get the money they expect, then they raise the prices!  I`m probably wrong, and it`s probably not nice to think such a thing, but it sure does seem that way.  So, why are we doing without or cutting back when we are going to pay dearly for stuff anyway? 

   Does anyone feel this way, too?

                 That Girl

   I joined Curves last Friday, and started on Monday, so I have been there 3 times so far.  I gotta say, I love it!  It was easy to learn and the time flies so because you are so into your workout.  I feel so much better already.  I think I`m getting stronger because the first day, there were 2 machines that I couldn`t even budge, but now I am doing them on my own.  I have to modify some a bit so I don`t put too much strain on my shoulder or knees, but even that is getting easier.  What amazes me most is the change in my attitude.  I actually feel better about going to work.  I still hate it, but I know at the end of the day, I can go work out my frustrations.  I go right straight from work without stopping home, and change clothes when I get there.  They give me wonderful eating tips and I got a full body analysis.  They tell you the percentage and amount in pounds of your body fat.  i won`t reveal that, but,I do need to lose 20 pounds.  So, I go 4 times a week, Monday thru Thurs.  I sure hope I can stay enthusiastic and keep getting better and better.  If you`ve ever wondered about it, go for it!

                             That Girl

   We changed doctors and today was our first visit.  The last doc wasn`t very thourogh and didn`t seem to listen or care.  One of the deciding factors for changing was when Hubby had a problem with his ear and the doc made him an appointment with a foot doctor!  Nuff said!

   So, I had to have a checkup to get a prescription renewed but I also had a long list of questions about problems I was having.   The new doc is a female, Dr. Janet I call her.  I love her!  My shoulders have been very painful and I have very limited movement in the left one.  She said I have a lot of inflamation and possibly bursitis.  The pain in my knees, authritis.  She wants both of us to start taking glucosamine because he has a lot of achy joints, too.  The dry, lumpy patch on my head is some kind of dermatitus, perhaps psoriosis, so she perscribed a cortizone cream.  Tetracycline for my rosacia.  Toporal for my extra heartbeat, which I`ve been on for years.  She recommended that I join Curves not only to tone up and jump start my weight loss which is at a standstill, but to get some mobility in my shoulder.  She said I have to start moving it or I`m not giong to be able to.  I have an appointment Mon. after work to get my body analysis and start Curves.  I am so excited.

   I think it was my last post that I told you about the Amish made fireplaces that we ordered.  Well, when we got back from the doc`s, they were here.  Right now, one of them is running behind me as I write.  These fireplaces are beautiful!  And the room is so comfy warm.  If you are thinking about getting one, I wouldn`t hesitate, you will love it!

   I need to get some sleep now.  The doc says I need to keep better sleeping hours, because I don`t get enough and can`t stay asleep.

                              That Girl

   Has anyone gotten one of those Amish made electric fireplaces that are advertised in the newspaper?  They are on wheels so you can roll them from roon to room and plug it in and it says they use no more electric than a coffepot does.  A couple of people at work have them and say their heating bill was never lower and that they are wonderful.  So, this past Sunday`s paper had the ad in and it was get 2 free mantles when you buy the heater.  So, we ordered.  I can`t wait to get them!

  You can see them at www.amish fireplaces.com.  I haven`t checked it out yet, but I am going to.  If you have one, could you let me know, I am just curious and so excited to get ours.

   I will let you know when they come and how we like them                     

                                     That Girl

Last night we got some effects from Hurricane Ike.  I went to bed, late as usual even though I have to get up at 5:00a.m. The curtains in the bedroom were blowing, but it wasn`t too bad of a wind.  It was terribly hot yesterday, and it was still hot at night and the wind was hot coming in.  Then it started to REALLY get windy!  I thought the curtains were going to blow right off the window, I only use those tension rods for curtains, so I don`t put holes in the wood.  I could hear things blowing around outside and stuff falling over.  I got up to look outside, of course it was dark, what could I possibly see.  I put the weather channel on, and there was wind warnings.  I do not like wind.  I couldn`t sleep. I must have gotten up  about 5 or 6 times.  I tried to wake up Hubby, forget that.  So, I paced through the house.  I paced until 2:00a.m.  That left me 3 hours to sleep. So, bet you can guess that I`m real tired tonight.  Today was a very long day, and sometimes it felt like I couldn`t get through the next five minutes.  But I did.

   In the morning I got to see what the wind did.  It broke a limb off a tree next door and it was laying on the electric wires and they came to trim it after I got home.  My fall decorations that I had just put out in the gazebo were half hanging off.  I had a bunch of tomatoes ripening on the deck railing and they were scattered all over the driveway, the welcome mat was not in front of the door, and my grapevine tree was laying on it`s side.  At least nothing got damaged.  Things just needed picking up.

  So, now I am going to go to bed after Hubby goes back to work from lunch break. I hope I can sleep, I might be too tired.

                            That Girl

   I went to the bank after work and a very nice woman tried to get my checkbook balanced. (key word..TRIED!)  She thinks she got it figured out but only wrote the balance in pencil in case I had a check or deposit I forgot to enter, but I know I don`t.  I have to go back next Friday to have it checked.  What on earth could I have done that even a bank person couldn`t straighten it out?  See, I told you I was really bad with numbers!

   So, here are two thoughts on money.......

Let us all be happy, and live within our means, even if we have to borrow money to do it.

    Charles Farrar Browne  1834-1867

    Let us not be too particular; it is better to have old second hand diamonds than none at all.

                          Mark Twain

   I just thought these would make you smile.

       That Girl

   Is it me or do others have trouble balancing their checkbook?  Some months it comes out absolutely perfect and this month....GRRRR!  I just can`t figure out what I do wrong!  I feel so stupid, my checkbook isn`t all that complicated, a small deposit every week and a few checks written.  I never was good at numbers, they really confuse me.  I`m lucky I can count to 100.  No, really.  I was a straight A student till 5th grade when math got difficult for me.  It was so bad that all my other marks went right down, and all the rest of the way through school, I struggled to keep up with every subject, because I spent so much time on math.  i am so mad at myself right now that I dion`t feel qualified to be a human being!  What`s wrong with me?  Why can`t I understand simple numbers?  I guess I can`t play with the big girls, I can`t pass Go and I certainly cannot collect $200 because I wouldn`t know what to do with it, anyway.

  There.  I think I`m just about done ranting and venting.  Now tomorrow after work I`m going to have to go to the bank and have them do it again.  How embarrassing!  I go there to have them fix it regularly.  I`m probably known as a nusance there.  They probably cringe when they see me come in the door.  I am sooo mad at myself right now.

   Any way, I will relax and read some blogs, that always soothes me.  It`s funny, but I don`t usually get this upset about this.  It`s just I don`t want to make a habit of running to the bank to get it fixed.

   Thanks for listening!

                   That Girl

   I am starting to feel human again after the loss of my Dear Daddy.  I owe it in part to all of you who have sent comments encouraging and comforting me. I am so glad I blog here, I have made some terrific friends.I may have said it before, but right now having my job is a blessing because it keeps me occupied, even though I want to be a stay at home wife in the worst way.  I am also going to check into joining Curves after my doctor appt, next week.  I have lost some weight and need to firm up a bit.  Do any of you go or know someone who does?  Is it hard on your knees?  My knees are hurting right now, I think it`s the change in weather and good ol` arthritius.

   Thank you all for your thoughts and prayers, God is listening and answering.  Thank you, Lord!

                                 That Girl

   My Dad had full military honors at the cemetery on Friday.  It was rainy and quite cool, so they did the 21 gun salute first.  Because Dad was cremated the box with his ashes was on a little table under the pavillion we were all under, too.  I wondered how they were going to fold the flag because it was already there on the table folded.  What they did was unfold it,snapped it open, and then folded it again.  What precise, deliberate movements, eye contact and formality.  It was really someting to see.  Then one of them knelt down in front of my Stepmom to present her with the flag, and she told him to give it to me!  He then came over and knelt in front of me and presented me with it, and then they gave me a little plastic case with 4 shells in it from the guns.  My daughter was sitting next to me and totally lost it.  She has had a really hard time losing her Grandpa. 

   I feel empty inside.  I cry when I am alone.  It`s hard when I get home from work because I used to call him in the evening on most nights. I hear his voice in my head saying I love you in Polish, and calling me all his sweet, cute nicknames.  I am so glad I do have to go to work right now, even though I want to be home all the time, it`s keeping me occupied.

   I realise now that I will get through this, and it will not hurt so much someday.  I have wonderful friends, family, and blogg friends that are so sweet to me.  Thank you.

                                  That Girl

My Dad has been in and out of the hospital a lot and went in again in the beginning of August.  Then he went to a nursing home for 2 days and I got a call at work that they were taking him to the emergency room.  I won`t get in all the details now, but we lost him on Friday, August 22.  My stepmom, my hubby, my daughter and I were there with him.  It was the hardest thing I have ever gone through EVER!  Tuesday was the viewing and service, tomorrow is the cemetery...with full military honors.  It has been a rough few weeks, but Dad suffered so much.

   I know I haven`t updated much, but we have been spending a lot of time in the hospital with him.  I just wanted everyone to know.

                                That Girl

Hello, again!  I thought I had better check in and let you all know that I am still here.

   Hubby is back to work after healing from his broken leg.  He still has swelling and pain, but he`s doing great.  Even though we had to use all my retirement and savings, we managed to weather the storm of disability and all our bills are paid.  Thank you, Lord.

   I am still working, which is probably a good thing in these troubled financial times.  Can you believe the prices of groceries and gas?  I have noticed higher prices on just about everything we need to buy.  It really makes you think before making a purchase.

   I have been recruited to sing in a barbershop type a cappella group.  Rehearsal is on Tuesday nights.  I can`t see to drive in the dark so I need someone to take me.  A girl in the group has graciously offered.  I can`t wait to sing and learn about this style of music.

  It has been in the 90 degree range today.  I`m so glad I was at work in air-conditioning. I still want to be a stay at home wife, though, but my minimum wage job has gotten us through the rough spots.

  Well, I don`t want to be too boring, so I will tell you that I will try to update a bit more often.  I love all of you, my friends!

   Here`s something for you.....

         from "THE MONTH OF JUNE'

It is the month of June,

      The month of leaves and roses,

When pleasant sights salute the eyes,

       And pleasant scents the noses.

                                         N.P. Willis 1806-1867

                               That Girl

   I can`t believe I have to go back to work tomorrow!  I`ve been so busy taking care of Hubby and cooking and cleaning and catching up with things around here that the week has just flown by.  I have enjoyed every minute of it.  I go to bed totally exausted....but it`s a good tired, a happy tired.  Hubby is doing okay, but still has a lot of pain if he gets up to go to the bathroom or anything.  He is supposed to keep the leg elevated as much as possible.  We had a lot of company yesterday and some today.  This is funny because we hardly ever get any visitors, but I loved it.

  Hubby is pretty good on the crutches but has had a lot of close calls of almost falling.  Part of the reason I don`t want to go back to work is because I don`t want to leave him alone yet.  I will go home for lunch, though, as long as the roads are good to fix a quick lunch for us and go back.

  I so love taking care of Hubby and home.  Right now though, my measley little check is the only money that we have to live on till his disability starts up, and that is a way smaller amount than his real pay.  We will fall behind, and I`m afraid it will be difficult to catch up. I am relying so much on God`s strength to get us through all this.  What do people do that don`t put their trust in Him?  It`s got  to be so much harder for them.

   Well DD is on the phone, gotta go!

                      That Girl

Hubby is home from the hospital, he came home yesterday.  He is staying in his recliner with pillows under his leg because he is supposed to keep it higher than his heart to avoid pain and swelling.  It is still painful even with the pain meds he is taking.  He has to go back to the doc for it to be checked on the 29th.

   i am enjoying being home and taking care of him even though it is tiring because he always needs something and when he gets up I have to foloow him, I`m so afraid he is going to fall.  He did fall yesterday, right into me, knocked me into my recliner and I hit my hip on the arm of the chair, and he went on down to the floor. I have been cooking and cleaning a lot, now is my chance to get caught up on things before I go back to work on Monday.  I made chili with Fritos and blueberry muffins and cut a banana in half lengthwise, half for each of us, and drizzled chocolate syrup on it for dessert.  He wants homemade chicken pot pie and homemade bread tomorrow.  I don`t ever want to go back to work, I love being home!!!!!

                                   That Girl

Hubby`s ankle surgery went well.  It didn`t take as long as expected.  They put the metal plate in and 8 screws.  There is also a screw in the foot joint.  This will stabilize the foot .  It will stay in for 4 weeks and then he has to go back for day surgery to get that one out.

  My Sweetie DD did all the driving for us today.  To the doctor, home, to the hospital, she went to have a wisdom tooth out, andcame back to the hospital to pick me up and take me home.  We both have whopper headaches tonight.  I am going to bed soon!!!

                                            That Girl

  Valentine`s Day was so nice.  I came home from work and found 2 doz. red and white roses on the Kitchen island!  Now what is unusual about those roses is that they are artificial and they are the roses that he gave me last year.  I have them in my tea room on the top of my hutch that I display all my tea cups and tea pots.  I just chuckled because I thought he was just being funny.  When I looked closer, I saw all these little pieces of paper stuck in the roses.  He had written little love poems on them that he made up himself!  It was so special.  He even wrote one from my cat!  So, I did the same.  When he came home from work at 11:30 p.m. he had a bunch to read, too.  Sweet and inexpensive.

   So, yesterday, we went to DD`s for lunch, and pulled in our driveway about 1:30 p.m.  There was a new telephone book that had been delivered hanging from our mailbox, which is right on the curb of the road.  Hubby just stopped the truck and got out to get it before driving down the rest of the driveway to put the truck in the garage.  On his way back to the truck, I heard a whoosh!  then I heard him go AAAAGGGHHH! and I didn`t see him.  I got out of the truck and tried to get to him but it was all ice.  I was hanging on the side of the truck trying to walk.  I got back in thinking I could slide through the truck and get out on his side, where he was lying on the ground.  He got up and got in and said his left ankle hurt, and he has a standard transmission, so it really hurt to push in the clutch.  We got in the house and he laid down on the bed and I got his boot and sock off.  It was a bit puffy, but not bruised.  It started really hurting so I called his Best Bud to see what he thought.  He came right over and decided we needed to go to the E.R.  Two and a half hours later, we were home.  He had broken his leg, right above the ankle. 

   Today he had an appt. at the orthopedic surgeon and we got to see the x-ray.  It was broken in 3 places.  But he was most concerned about the large gap in the joint of the foot and ankle.  So, tomorrow he is going into surgery.  They are going to put a metal plate in there.  I guess it`s supposed to pull everything back in where it belongs.  He will have to stay overnight.  He will be off work for 3 months.  They even wrote out a paper for me to take to work so I can be home all week to take care of him.  When he fell, he also hit the back of his head on the driveway, but all there is is a little bump there now, so it`s okay.

   I think I should just quit my job so I can be available to who ever needs me!  So far this year I have been off 2 days when my step-mom was in the hospital, one day when I hurt my back, and now a week for poor Hubby.  The first of the year is usually when I do take most of my time off, but it`s usually because I`m sick.. I hope I stay in good enough health to be there for eveyone I need to be.

  I need to go check on him now, he`s upstairs and I`m downstairs.  I will let you know how surgery goes when I get a chance.

                      That Girl

When I was taking care of my Dad last week, I noticed that my eyes were itchy,runny and chapped.  The skin under my eyes was red and on the corners (like toward my ears)  it was like wide red lines.  Because I work at an optical lab, I asked one of the bosses what he thought it was.  He didn`t know but gave me some nice, soothing drops that seemed to help for Friday.  On Saturday, I got up and it looked like I had been punched.  They were really irritated and wouldn`t stop running right down my face.  We did a little shopping then went to Red Lobster for lunch.  Then we stopped at my eye doc`s, the one I used to work for.  It was so nice because even though he was busy, he took me right in.  I had just had an exam in October and everything was fine.  So he checked my eyes out, and told me I have a bactieral (sp) infection in both eyes.  How on earth did I get that?  Maybe from my cold or bronchitis or maybe from work or cleaning at Dad`s and then touching my eyes.  Stress may even have something to do with it.  So, he wrote me a prescription for some kind of steroid cream to put on them.  I have to put it on twice a day for 10 days.  It was very expensive...$50 for a teensy little tube.  But it is working.  He said I should notice a difference every day while using it, and I have.  I just look like a shiney, greasy eyed racoon when I go to work.  But it`s a good thing I went because it wouldn`t have gotten better on it`s own.  So, the running count is I have had 5 things since November....shingles, bronchitis, severe back pain that kept me home from work, a juicy cold and now this eye infection.  Enough already!

                          That Girl

   I was in bed Wednesday night and the phone rang.  It was 10:20 pm.  It was one of my step brothers.  He said that my step mom was just taken to the hospital and I needed to go there to watch my Dad.  I guess she had fallen out of bed and was incoherent.  There were so many 911 hang ups made (either her or Dad trying to call for help) that along with paramedics, the cops were there, too.  I can`t drive in the dark and told step bro that I would be there by midnight when Hubby got home to drive me.  I called DD and she went down to keep an eye on Dad till I got there.

   After we got there, DD and I went to the hospital to see her.  It was 1:00 am. by then.  She looked awful and it actually scared me.  The doc said she had pneumonia.  They admitted her.  So, now that meant that I had to stay with Dad, and I had to not go to work.  I missed work Thursday and Friday, and we brought her home on Sunday.  Hubby took 2 vacation days to stay with me, and I just lost the pay.  It was very stressful.  I had to figure out all of Dad`s meds and pray that I did them right.  We finally brought her home late Sunday afternoon.  She didn`t have pneumonia.  She had a serious bladder infection, that was starting to go into her lungs.  If it wasn`t caught when it was, it would have also surrounded her heart, and who knows what would have happened.  She hadn`t been feeling well since Nov. and wouldn`t say anything to anybody.

  I am still a wreck.  This family needs to have a meeting and discuss what will be done when something like this happens again.  They need constant care and are now alone together.  They both have dementia and are diabetics.  I love helping out but I can`t be the only one that has to miss work when something happens.  I will never allow Dad to be left alone, I will miss work if I have to.  But if I got a little help it would be nice.  I went from Wed. night to Sat. without  a shower  or seeing my kitty.  Their shower has  has too much stuff in it to move out of the way to get in.  My kitty wasn`t eating when Hubby went home to feed him because he didn`t understand where I was.  Finally, DD watched Dad for 2 hours so I could go home shower and give my kitty some attention.  I am Dad`s only child, but I have 4 step bros and 1 step sis.

   This is just a quick report of the last 5 days.  I am very tired.  I went back to work today.  I averaged about 4 hours of sleep a night because Dad is a nightowl, and we slept in chairs there.  The first night we didn`t have any blankets and I froze.  Hubby went home and brought some of ours back, but how good do you sleep in a chair, or on a short loveseat?

   I love my parents and will do all I can to take care of them.  But this has been very difficult.  I know it will probably happen again.  If you are at the age that you may be taking care of your parents, my advice is to have a family meeting and get a plan in place, don`t be like us, and panic when something happens.

                           That Girl

When I left for work today, everything was covered with a layer of ice!  It was nearly impossible to take a step!  I walked out to get the newspaper and it took me 6 minutes to go up and down the driveway to the road to get it.  I just slid my feet and shuffled in baby steps.  It was raining when I left for work and I thought oh, good, it`s warming up.  I got about 3 houses down form my driveway and my windshield iced all over!  I had to pull off and get it defrosted before I could go on.  The roads weren`t bad, mostly just wet.

   When I got to work, I put one foot out of the car door, and it went sliding right out from under me, luckily I was still mostly sitting down.  I closed my door and waited for my friend Don to pull  in, he parks near me.  When he got out of his truck, I opened my door and yelled to him that I couldn`t get out.  He came sliding over to me and got me out, shut my car door, carried my purse and lunch and held my hand all the way into work!  What a Sweetie!  But we are supposed to have more ice on Friday morning.  I think if we do, I`m not going to do this again, it`s too nervewracking.  I might just wait at home till it melts.  I don`t think a $.10 above minimum wage job is worth wrecking your car or yourself over.

   What a morning!

                         That Girl