Tag Archives: family

Simple Sunday on Monday

Posted in California, cooking, Walking by

I started this but got sidetracked so here’s an updated version.

The week ahead looks sunny but not very warm. I think the highs are only around 60 degrees. Still, it’s such a pretty time of year. Barclay loved this time around Thanksgiving when all our oak trees turn golden and the light is filtered. I miss sharing it with him. I suppose that’s one of the hard things that he’s not here to share little tidbits with. 😦

The day was so pretty out. I went into the Auburn gym and did my usual 30 minutes. I also went to the park and walked, although more slowly, and my foot did ok. I only walked 15 minutes and wasn’t limping, so that was good. I did ice it later in the day just for safe measures. Hopefully, my Merrills will show up tomorrow. My foot is a little sore this morning, but not terribly. Maybe a 3 on a pain scale.

I then popped into Safeway for a few random items: celery, carrots, whipped cream, and? I checked out their turkeys, figuring if the deal was good, I’d get one for the freezer. But I didn’t see any sales, or at least where I was looking. The prices seemed pretty high to me.

Today, my daughter and I are going down to Costco, which is probably crazy, but I need her to get 2 cases of water. I can’t lift their cases, so that’s the reason. Plus, I figured, while I’m there, get a wreath for the door.

Menu Plan for the week:

Last night we had hot dogs, sauerkraut, beans, and macaroni salad.

Monday- I might try the nut loaf piece I made to see how it cooks up ,with some instant mashed potatoes.

Tuesday- beans in the crock pot,tortillas,

Wednesday- Maybe breakfast for dinner, pancakes, scrambled eggs.

Thursday- we’ll eat dinner @ 1pm. Organic Diestel Turkey breast, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce, stuffing, green beans, plus the nut loaf and gravy. I usually do an olive plate, but I think I’ll skip that. No one really eats it except me:) or B .

Friday- Leftovers or eat what you want.

Saturday- chicken of some sort and baked potatoes.

Do you have a traditional Thanksgiving or something unusual? I’d love to try, next year, something totally different. B and I always thought we’d go away at Thanksgiving, but then I’d feel bad for the kids. But they have their own stuff now, so?

Frugal Friday and misc. stuff

Posted in Blood test, budgeting, budgets, California, cancer, decluttering, frugalism, Multiple myeloma, Myeloma, Uncategorized by

We ended up having a lot of rain!! But now it’s blue skies and the temperature is lovely. We should be having day temperatures in the 70s. We have some outside things to do, so that’s perfect. I need to paint the new gutter that S put up and tidy the patio up for winter.

I have a small pile to go to the thrift store and will probably do that on Sunday after the gym. I’m still going through different areas to find more things to add to the pile.

My son and his partner came over on Wednesday afternoon, along with the partner’s parents. They are lovely people, and I wish B could have met them. But they were here for the dad to check out my son’s Subaru. The dad is very mechanically minded. My son is giving( with my permission, as it is my name) the Subaru to him for free. They checked it out and will take it hopefully soon. As soon as that’s done I can take it off the insurance and that is going to save me over $700. I’ll call allstate as soon as it’s signed over.

My daughter and I went to Costco yesterday to finish shopping for the stuff I didn’t get last time. Most of it was non-perishables like the smoke alarms( wow, they were expensive even on sale), TP, and laundry soap. water, and a few other things. From there, we went to my favorite pizza place for a slice of New York pizza. It was fun. I also got the car washed since Quick Quack was just across the street. Costco ended up a little over $300 but I need to break down non food and also long term items and see what the total was.

My food budget for the month came in at about $350, so I’m really getting the hang of not buying so much. The Costco trip I’ll be putting on next month’s budget, which starts next week.

In not-so-happy news, my labs came back with a 4-point increase, so myeloma is definitely on the move. I checked in with Dr. L, and we decided to go one more month and see what the next increase is. I’m disappointed, but it was to be expected at some point. I just wish I could have had at least some period of time with things ‘normal’ after B died. Well, at least I’m asymptomatic which is good. Also the ratio of kappa / lambda was the same so that’s good. The plan will be to try to do biweekly,depending on how next month goes, and if that doesn’t work switch to darzalex fast pro. I’ve made it 20 years with Myeloma and know I’m one of the lucky ones. Still reality sucks that I have to deal with this. 😦

Simple Sunday

Posted in books, budgeting, budgets, California, camping, cancer, decluttering, Lake tahoe, library, Uncategorized, Walking by

It’s been so hot again. Today is the hottest at 99. The coolers go off and on all day. I always turn them off by 7:30, even if it’s still hot out. We have two more days of heat, and then it drops back into the 80s.

I’ve had fun reading this book,

It’s quite funny, although if you’re offended by the word fuck, then this isn’t for you. It’s quite motivating. I bought it as a Kindle book.

My walk was nice this morning. Only one person was showing up as I was leaving. My legs still don’t seem to be recovering as well as I’d like, and my app for iHealth still shows my walking steadiness as low. I’m guessing my right knee is still causing some lagging in my gait. Of course, that’s just a guess.

I picked up my holds at the library, and one was chair yoga and pilates. So far, I like it and may buy my own copy. I have it for 3 weeks, so I can give it a bit more time to see if it’s worth it.

The week ahead is Dr. appt in Sacramento, and Velcade in Roseville. That pretty much covers the week since Friday, I’ll take my Dex. My daughter starts back at her college job this week, too. We talked about maybe doing a day trip to Tahoe. Just the West Shore, as it is closer to Tahoe City. I’ll have to see how motivated I am to do that.

I still haven’t canceled one of the Tahoe trips in September. I guess I’m procrastinating. I’ll do it soon. We had booked 2 reservations that overlapped, so one will have to go, and even the one that’s left is questionable. I’m still not sure how we could pull it off without Rubi, and that is not an option. I suppose my son’s huge tent is an option, but not really a great one. I’d have to buy an air mattress and some other things, and I’m not sure I want to do that. I guess I’m waiting for some inspiration to show up. Kidding:)

My daughter has finished painting the studio, and it looks really nice. A pale green with a cream trim. We gave away the Ikea cabinet yesterday on Facebook Marketplace. Fortunately, the guy coming was nice and prompt. He had a van, so my daughter and he were able to slide it in. It was a brand-new hybrid Pacifica. Wow, it was quite nice. I checked the price and they run around 55K.

Well, off to do some stuff as I’m not heading out to the gym this morning.

Thankful Thursday and a reality check.

Posted in budgets, California, cancer, Gratitude, Retirement, social security by

I’m thankful that most of the things I’ve had to deal with, like changing me to primary, have been met with support and graciousness from the customer service people. Even changing the AARP was easy enough, and they even sent a sympathy card which was very sweet. Verizon was a challenge, and I didn’t end up changing much because it started to get way too complicated.

I still need to go to the bank to take him off the account, but I will make an appointment to do that. When I talked with them yesterday, the teller was very kind and told me what I needed to bring.

I’m sure there are a few outliers that still need to be dealt with, but that can come later.

I’m so thankful my LLS is back and I can give a sigh of relief that my UHC insurance will be covered. They increased my premium because it’s only me now.

The reality check is at our ages,72 and 74, there was no life insurance, no CDs to fall back on, no IRAs, no massive savings, just SS. The reality is we were never in a position to be able to have that kind of money. We really just got by. After my myeloma diagnosis in 2005, I couldn’t work at anything major, but when I got my little library job in 2007, that boosted my SS points, and that was the reason for doing that to some extent. Besides, I loved that job.

Fortunately, even with still having a mortgage, SS was enough to get by on. The reality of losing almost 1/3 of SS is tough, but I’ve mostly figured it out, and some bills are lower. This summer we’re watering way less and don’t have a vegetable garden( Barclay was starting to go downhill in the spring), and no one felt like gardening. So our water bill is less. Ditto with our Verizon bill because I cancelled his phone. Since my son is using the truck for now, he’s giving me money for that, which helps.

Thankful for what is.

Friday Things

Posted in budgets, California, cancer, Death, frugalism, husband, peritoneal mesothelomia, Uncategorized by

I’m still processing things from Barclay’s death. It’s very weird, honestly, to be the person left to keep on going. I take some comfort in that he lived a good life and got to be 74, almost 75. Look at those poor kids in the Texas flood who didn’t get past 10. Very sad. The last year has been so hard watching his decline, and the last 3 months were pretty awful. He really didn’t have a chance with peritoneal mesothelioma. It’s just one of those cancers that you don’t get over and go into remission. I got the letter already from SS, which I’m happy about, so I don’t have to go into the office. I’m losing over $1000 a month, so quite a hit. I’m sure there will be ways to figure it out. I cancelled his UHC, so that and his Medicare covers almost $500. Insurance is outrageous. The rest, I don’t know. I do plan on selling the Triumph in a few months, so that will, if it sells, generate a few dollars. The totally weird thing was when I called Allstate to take him off as a driver, she said our insurance WILL GO UP ANOTHER $125. WYF??? After talking to our local agent, she got it to go up only $65, so half. The issue is his good driver discount being taken off. JFC, really? Oh well, done is done.

I’ve gotten through most of my list of things to do. There’s still the bank where I need to take him off our account, but I’ll get to it eventually.

As I said, very weird to deal with this stuff. We all miss him so much.

My daughter ordered this from Shutterfly. We hung it out on the upper patio where he spent the last 4 months of his life sitting when the weather was nice.

Frugal wise, I haven’t been spending too much. I did order a new Speedo from Amazon on Prime since I need a new one. I go through a swimsuit about once a year, with the chlorine from the pool. It was 30% off, so it was a good deal. I also bought some black frames for some watercolor pictures my daughter has done, and some that B did too.

I signed my daughter up as a user on my Costco card, so she went in after work and did some shopping. I appreciate the effort. Mostly it was flavored waters, olive oil, coffee, and some wild cod. She’s very susceptible to histamine attacks, so she’s been on a low-histamine diet, hence the fish purchase. The total came to a little over $100.

Our weather is very hot, and the coolers are running most of the day. If I close everything up, I can usually wait till 11 am, and I always turn them off by 8pm, even if it’s still hot out.

I started going to LLS every morning to apply for my grant, but so far, there’s no luck with funding. I’m hoping the wait isn’t too long, as I depend on that money for my insurance.

My son is using B’s truck since his car( older Subaru) is leaking oil. So he got off work early yesterday and took a load to the dump. There are still 2 more to go with metal stuff, and then the old wood from the chicken coop. It was hot yesterday, so I appreciate him doing it and getting it done. I’m pretty sure we’ll keep the truck, but unsure about Rubi. I just don’t know if I can emotionally handle going out in the RV without him. I guess I’ll just have to wait and see when the time comes, and we can plan something. My daughter has volunteered to be the driver, which she can totally handle; it’s more me dealing with it. Plus, Rubi is really designed for a couple, not 2 people. It’s one bed, and the couch does fold down, but it is very uncomfortable to sleep on. So another decision down the road.

Well, that wraps up what’s going on here.

How’s things in your world?? Summer plans?

Simple Sunday

Posted in books, camping, meal planning, swimming by

I am enjoying my new iMac. It’s so pretty and nice to work on. It was such a thoughtful thing my daughter did.

Yesterday, we ventured out to the pet bookstore. I picked up some old Hillerman, in which I always enjoy being immersed in the Southwest. After having lived in Tucson for 5 years and then a small stint in Santa Fe, the southwest does get into your being. I wouldn’t ever move there again, too many people, too much congestion, too many people using water that isn’t really there, etc, but we did love it when we were there. The smell of orange blossoms lining the neighborhoods is a favorite memory. Plus, riding our bikes all over town. Back then, you could still drive through campus, but that changed a number of years ago.

I also picked up a Japanese lifestyle book called Wa. I looked through it yesterday, and there are a few interesting ideas.

After the bookstore, we went and had some tacos.

I’m trying to stick to my routines as much as possible, but some days I just sit and do nothing. Today, I need to write my list for the week and figure out what I’m doing and when. I pick up Barclay’s ashes this week, so that day will be hard. I’ll probably just go down and straight back home.

I know I want to swim at least once. During my last swim, I felt much better, so I think I can catch up soon to where I was. Additionally, I want to go to the Maheny gym and the library.

Meal planning has gone out the window for now, and my daughter and I just figure out dinner daily. I do have lots of freezer stuff, so I am working with that. We did have a small BBQ on the 4th of some steak bits. That was yummy. We had a Cobb salad on the side. Mostly, I’m looking in the fridge, staring blankly, and then figuring out some game plan. Also, my daughter has been cooking meals up, which has been nice.

My son is coming up today to do some more dump run stuff. I hope he can get rid of all the metal stuff. ( old pool frames, carport frames, etc.) There’s still a load of old wood that needs to go too. In the past, B would just have a burn pile in the winter for the wood, but none of us want to do that. So to the dump it goes.

I gave away a few dozen canning jars for free the other day too. I’m not planning on doing a lot of canning so I figured someone could use them. They went very quickly and I will do another box soon.

Other than that, just hanging in there.

What wonderful things are you guys up to? I hope making the best of it.

Simple Sunday and some updates

Posted in California, cancer, Lake tahoe, Walking by

Today, Father’s Day, would have been the day we left for Tahoe for the week, so that’s a little hard for me. Barclay isn’t all that aware, so I don’t think he remembers.

Things are about the same here, maybe a little worse.

We had hospice come on three different days: one was the intake nurse, one was the RN who would be our nurse, and then the social worker. It was all good, although a bit overwhelming. The nurse set up getting a wheelchair, bedside commode, oxygen, a shower chair, and a walker. So, lots of stuff.

He’s using the oxygen, so that helps some. We’re all taking turns being around so he has someone here. We all gave him his Father’s Day cards this morning, too.

Overall, just being here.

We’ve had simple meals( my daughter and I) like Costco pulled pork on tortillas, salads, hot dogs, and one night just sandwiches.

It’s been nice weather and not too hot at all.

Today, my son is coming up to do some yard work and take some cardboard to recycle. He still needs to plan the dump runs, as there is a lot to take to really clean up around the barn. My daughter has the chicken coop almost all the way down. She’s done an incredible job, really.

I’ve had a few nice walks and am rotating my PT exercises so that continues. My knee seems to be doing better overall all and I’m not using my brace anymore, just a compression sleeve.

This coming week I have Velcade, so that’ll be interesting. My daughter had to change her work week so she could be here for me when I’m gone. I don’t have any plans to go to the pool or the gym till we’re done with hospice. No sense trying to add something else in right now.

I hope your world is a happy one, and on a positive note, the No Kings demonstrations were a huge success. Let’s hope the orange man starts to act like a president.

Midweek Musings

Posted in California, cancer, cooking, hospice, peritoneal mesothelomia by

We met with the hospice intake nurse yesterday. I was so impressed with the efficiency and information. She was so obliging with everything. She made a list of what B needs, like oxygen, a shower chair, etc, and by 5:30 that evening, it was being delivered. I was kind of blown away. They showed us how the oxygen works, so when he needs it, it’ll be there. He hasn’t really needed it yet.

Today, I need to go to town to pick up his medication. All of his meds now will be through hospice, but his pain med had already been filled yesterday. I couldn’t go get it because my daughter headed down to work.

Last night I did the big salad of spring mix, tomatoes, cucumbers, and the leftover polenta. Then I pan-fried the Costco breaded chicken(freezer), which, by the way, is quite good. B ate some polenta and a bit of salad.

The nurse gave us a binder with info and a 24-hour call number if anything comes up. My biggest concern is B falling. Especially because it most likely will be his low blood counts that he will succumb to. When his hemoglobin drops too low, then that’ll probably be it. The drop in hemoglobin will cause him to be even more unsteady.

I’m continuing to putter around the house, and I have a nice little load to go to Goodwill. Any duplicates of things are what I’m focusing on. Also, in the kitchen, I have a number of OXO containers I’m not using and don’t foresee using, so I’m passing those on. As always, I am looking around for ways to streamline the house. It makes it so much easier to tidy up, clean, and maintain.

I hope these days find you well and living your best life. Life can turn on a dime, as they say.

Happy Mother’s Day

Posted in California, cancer, husband, peritoneal mesothelomia, Walking by

I hope it’s a nice day for moms out there. Whether you’re a mom to kids, furry ones, or anyone who needs a mom. I hope it’s lovely.

Simple Sunday

My son is coming over and he’ll make a brunch for us all. He’s not staying over, though. He’s on the schedule to take B on Tuesday to infusion. I have my Ortho appt that morning, so I really didn’t want to go out twice.

It’s been quite warm here in the mid-80s, but now we’re in a cool down. There could even be some rain this week.

I went for a brief walk again this morning. Lots of Canada goose families at the park. They are cute, but you don’t want to go near them as the parents will attack.

I can tell I’m not used to walking even this little bit, which is such a shame after all the effort I put into walking, swimming, etc. I do hope that after my ortho appt, I have a clearer path to how long this will take to heal and what else I can do. Since it was a spontaneous snap of the meniscus caused by age, I guess it’s just trying to be more careful and keep strengthening the knee muscles. Getting old is tough when you realize these things can happen out of the blue.

B continues to have no energy, and there doesn’t seem to be any improvement. I’m guessing at some point we’ll need to discuss hospice with the doctor. I’m hoping these next few immuno’s make some difference. He will get a PET scan after the 6th one, but that’s not till June. It’s hard on everyone.:(

Tomorrow we should hear back on the VW, and since B can’t drive right now, my daughter and I will go in and get it. I hope this is the last thing to fix, as after this, I wouldn’t put any more money in her. I do love buggie, but there is a point when the cost just doesn’t justify it. We’ll see how it goes.

We don’t have anything special planned for dinner, but I may make some salmon I have in the freezer. On that note, Ciao!

Thankful Thursday

Posted in Blood test, Bone marrow transplant, California, Gratitude, husband, peritoneal mesothelomia by

B had his transfusion on Tuesday, so he did feel better yesterday. But he got labs yesterday, and though his hemoglobin came up, it wasn’t enough to get over the 8 mark. So he needs another transfusion. I’ll take him Saturday, and my daughter will pick him up. I’m very grateful to the oncology infusion nurses, who called him and told him his labs were still low and scheduled him. Very thoughtful of them.

I’m also grateful for his doctor, who has been very proactive in all this. She mentioned to B, though, that he should contact his BMT team to see if his needing blood transfusions may be a relapse of his MDS. It seems a stretch to me, but his needing transfusions when he’s not even going through chemo is a problem. She had said the side effects of the immunotherapy are not blood-related, so now we have another puzzle piece to figure out. Very odd.

I’m thankful for our sunny, warm days. It’s been really lovely. I do miss terribly not walking and being out at the park. But I should know by next week what the story is and how to proceed. I’m sure they will recommend PT, and I’ll do that to help strengthen my knee.

I am, though, very grateful to still be able to get around with the use of a cane for stability. My son found one at Goodwill, and it’s been very helpful. I had been using my walking stick, but that has a different grip. So the cane has the handle you put your hand on, and it does give a lot of support.

I’m grateful that the kids are so helpful with driving and doing stuff around here. My daughter has been mowing and weed-eating all week. It’s a pot of work that B usually did.

I’m very thankful tRumps approval rating is tanking. Let’s hope it tanks even further.

What things are you thankful for this week?