Tag Archives: thankful Thursday

Thankful Thursday

Posted in books, budgeting, budgets, cash envelopes, Gratitude, Lake tahoe, library, swimming by

I am very thankful this was a week with NO appts and no Dex. Boy, did that do me in last week. I guess I’ll go back to taking dex after I get home and not in the evening. maybe that’s the difference or the BP spike has been there all along and I just didn’t take my BP and notice. We’ll see.

I’m thankful we had a beautiful day in Tahoe with picture-perfect weather.

I’m thankful that all the month’s bills are accounted for and are in the budget. Slowly, I’m getting more envelopes set up for the annual bills. Even though I didn’t have the full amount, I did have something and that helped. As I think of different line items for our budget I add an envelope. I also bought on Amazon a binder that is for the 100 envelope challenge. Lots of cash envelope budgeters on You Tube have this as a way to do an extra savings. It’s not a quick thing as each envelope is numbered 1-100 and you put that amount in each one. I do like having these little challenges to keep me focused.

I’m thankful I got to swim on Monday but it was one of the few times it wasn’t pleasant. First, the pool was packed which I thought odd but then realized that it was a holiday. Second, I don’t circle swim( when there are more than 2 in a lane), but some woman plopped into the lane I was sharing with 1 person and proceeded to circle swim. I was not a happy swimmer. I go too slow and at some point, she cut in front of me and almost kicked my face. Anyway, at least I got my 30 minutes in.

I finished all the books I got from the library (8 books) so today after the gym I’ll go in and see if I can get a few things off the shelves to take to Capitola. The new Kellerman book ” Ghost Orchid’ is okay. I like his writing and the 2 main characters are well developed. So far all the Craig Johnston Longmire books have been great. Definitely worth reading the series although I haven’t read them in any order.

Thankful Thursday

Posted in California, cancer, Gratitude, knee injury, swimming, Walking by

Admittedly, I’m feeling a bit stressed this week by a number of things. Mostly due to some medical stuff that still needs sorting and of course, my increase in Kappa light chains in one month. I try to take some deep breaths and tell myself this too will pass. I’m grateful that I’m usually able to change my attitude towards things but this week there were number of things that just added up. I’m hoping by next week things are clearer.

I’m very thankful to walk without my walking stick and I’ve increased my steps too. The PT does seem to be strengthening my knee. I have 2 more sessions. My leg does ache occasionally but I’m still trying to power through and walk and swim.

I’m so excited and grateful to be back in the pool. I’m going later and it’s a whole different crowd than the 6:30 one. It’s ok for now because I’m still only in the water 20 minutes or so. Next week I’ll try and increase to 30 minutes.

We have sunshine!! It’s chilly but after all the gloomy days the sun is nice to see and it does cheer me up. Plus the daffodils are all up. I picked some and filled 2 vases with them for the table. I can also see the flowering cherry is budding and soon will be blooming.

Thankful Thursday

Posted in books, cooking, Gratitude, knee injury, social security by

Whew, I am so grateful to the PT that I saw yesterday. She explained what I needed to do to help my left knee and leg get back to at least being stable and stronger. I have the exercises to do daily and I’ll see her once a week. I could do 2 but she only works M, T, and W, so I didn’t see the point in going M and then W.

I’m grateful for Medicare/UHC which is covering this cost. I’m not sure what PT costs but I’m guessing it’s not cheap. Even my Velcade infusions, once a week, are over $6000. So in one month that’s $24,000. Crazy?? I’m grateful to be at this age and have those safety nets in place.

I’m glad we had one day of sunshine; today is also supposed to be sunny. Yesterday the rain was coming down in torrents when I left for Auburn.

As always, books to read. Books have always been so important to me starting when I could read(early) and throughout my life. I’m enjoying the Hillerman books especially because he really takes you into the culture in the Southwest.

I’m grateful that I love to cook and made a delicious red lentil curry for dinner. It was warming and delicious. 

Thankful Thursday, a day late, and Frugal Friday

Posted in budgeting, budgets, cash envelopes, cooking, frugalism, meal planning, Myeloma, simple foods by

I’m thankful I thought to call the ortho’s office since I hadn’t heard from them. It seemed like I wouldn’t get a call at least for a while:( So I have an appt to meet the doctor’s PA next week. I’d rather meet with the doctor but I guess it’s better than nothing.

I’m thankful I could go to the gym and even though I have the brace on I can do some upper body weights.

As always, grateful for the library where I got a bunch of old Tony Hillerman.

I’m grateful for LLS helping with insurance. I guess funding has been closed since I got my award and that’s over 6 months.

We’ve had a break from the rain and that’s always nice.

Frugal Friday Stuff:

We went to Trader Joe’s after the gym and I spent only $95 which included some wine. So that should get us through till the next budget starts.

We had another few meals from the freezer: mac and cheese, some breaded shrimp with veggies, grilled chicken/ tofu with rice. This coming week I’ll try and use at least 3 more freezer/pantry meals. I took out a frozen pizza dough to make pizza tonight. I have some extra red lentils that need using so I’ll probably do a curry with that.

Gas usage was low again as I’m not driving to the pool 2-3 times a week. I might start a cash envelope with gas money I think I’m saving for when I will be able to get back in the water. 

Today is a home day and I plan on doing more pantry consolidation. I have 3 bags ready to go to the food bank of stuff I probably won’t use so I’ll pass it on. I emptied one bin under the bed and the second one needs to be gone through. That one has foil, wrap, dried beans, and some oatmeal. I think some of the oatmeal ( Bob’s) is dated so I may need to use that in something or toss. I also have way too many boxes of pasta so I’ll throw a few of them in too.

Simplifying meals and food prep is a goal for this year. We basically eat the same thing week after week with just a few new recipes added in. But overall, that works best for us. I do love cooking so there’s that.

Thankful Thursday and bad news on the knee.

Posted in Blood test, California, cooking, Pantry, Walking by

I’ll start with the update on the knee. It’s a complete ACL tear and will need surgery. There’s nothing to be done by leaving it alone. But at least the MRI gave me the facts and I can go forward. The PC doctor referred me to the ortho surgeons and I’m waiting to get the initial consult. Recovery is 3 -6 months so it’s not quick, jump up and start doing things. Of course, I’m upset by it all but I’d rather know what I’m dealing with and then deal with it. So no walking, swimming, etc. I have to call PT and get that set up too. In the meanwhile, I’m trying to be uber careful and not have my knee buckle again. Certainly depressing but I’ll get thru it.

I haven’t gotten my light chain numbers back but expect them today. That’s the other thing I’ll have to pause the Velcade as I’m certainly not doing surgery, rehab, and Velcade. I’ll message Dr. L tomorrow so he has the updates.

So thankful things are:

The MRI was revealing and now I know what’s wrong with the knee.

B and I went to Louis Vuitton and I got my replacement Neverful. I waited 2 years to do this so I don’t think of this as unfrugal or impulsive. Did I need a LV, no but it was near and dear to me so there’s that.

A delicious soup of all kinds of veggies, broccoli, potatoes, onions, spinach, and carrots all whizzed together and then cheddar cheese added. Yum.

The rain we’ve been getting to help keep California out of a drought.

That I know every day is a gift and that our health is always the most valuable thing we can ever have. Even though the Torn ACL will take a while to heal after surgery, generally it is a complete recovery so that’s what I will look forward to and stay off of step stools.:(

The pantry is getting used up and it’s about half of what it was.

Thankful Thursday

Posted in California, Gratitude, husband, Walking by

I’m thankful this week for :

  1. getting my last Velcade shot in this cycle. Now I will go to monthly. So I have 28 days till my next shot.
  2. good food and enjoying it.
  3. B for getting up part of the new fence that will block the view into our neighbor’s parking area. He hasn’t been there since his father( Leo) died in May? June? But he is going to sell and I just want to have where they park screened from view. I am weird about things like that.
  4. My PC doctor getting back to me about a referral for an MRI. This knee thing has gone on too long so now we need more info so the only way to do that is an MRI. The only other factor I can figure out is Dex is causing my knee muscles to weaken and not get stronger despite walking, swimming, etc. Dex is known to cause muscle issues and it does seem to correspond when I take the dex and the next few days when it wears off. At first with dex, you don’t feel the pain as much as it is a steroid but then as it wears off and I’m still doing my usual stuff the knee buckling, etc starts to happen.
  5. I didn’t walk this morning due to my knee but I hope to start again tomorrow. Walking is one thing that keeps me going and sane.:)

Thankful Thursday

Posted in California, Gratitude, reading by

That my knee is 95% better after the cortisone shot. I hadn’t even considered that option so I was pleased the doctor offered. The x-ray only showed minor arthritis which at my age is expected.

I am so grateful to be able to walk yesterday even though it was only 1/2 a mile. I planned on walking this morning but it’s raining. Normally rain does not stop me at all and in fact I love walking in the rain. But with pampering my knee, I don’t need the extra factor of slippery leaves on the path.

I also walked through Costco yesterday and as you know Costco is a big store and I did fine. I was grateful B was there to push the cart and get the heavy stuff. It was another expensive shop with laundry soap, TP, Swiffers, and what else was on the list. But shops like this do keep my grocery bill way down as most of this stuff is not just for this month but at least the next 3 months or more. I suppose I could try and work that out in the budget but it seems like that’s too much work. Plus I know that laundry soap is going to last at least 3 months and same with Swiffer dusters.

I’m grateful my shot went well and this time I was in and out quickly. Maybe 20 minutes at the most. I came home after Costco and took the 16mg of dex instead of 20 which he thought would make it a little easier. So far it does seem slightly less dexy.

Today is just a home day and I plan on going through each zone and doing one or two things. Like in the bedroom zone, get under the bed wipe the bins, and see if anything can be decluttered. In the living room, wash mirrors and dust. Just a few little things to keep the momentum going.

I started to read the new Ann Patchett book” Tom Lake” and couldn’t find the rhythm in it and found it boring so I put it back in my library bag to go back next week. So now I don’t have a book to read so I may need to look on my Kindle for something I’ve read or buy a new Kindle book.

Thankful Thursday

Posted in books, California, camping, Gratitude, library, Myeloma, travel, Uncategorized by

We had a terrific drive home. Traffic was minimal in our direction, terrible going toward Napa. So I’m thankful for that. We (meaning Barclay) had us hooked up, tanks emptied by 9:45 am. Boy, do I love full hookups!!. But plenty of places we love don’t have them so, it’s do what you can.

I’m thankful I wasn’t in any hurry yesterday as the infusion nurse was working 5 chairs alone and it took an hour to finally get my shot. Then I got stuck in traffic on 65 as there was construction on I-80 where it merges with 65. One hour later, I was headed home. So a normal hour and a half trip ended up almost 3.

I am thankful for the Roseville Library and the books I picked up yesterday too!!

So the most exciting news and what I am most thankful for is Velcade is WORKING!! My kappa light chains went down 100 POINTS !!!! Yay!!!! I see Dr.Laptalo today. B is driving me as it is a dex day and I never drive on dex. I could do it for sure but my judgements are just off on Dex. Hence, the no knives rule too.

Feel free to share what you’re thankful for and if you are traveling in blog land, the Frugal Girl’s blog on Thankful Thursday is always inspiring.

Thankful Thursday

Posted in California, cancer, cooking, seasonal things, simple foods by

My 4th shot went well, and now I finished Cycle 1. The nurses are very kind and competent.

I decided to try and swim before my shot so B dropped me off at 7:50 so I could be done by 8:30. The pool was great. I got a lane all to myself and it definitely was not busy which is so nice. I may try and do this again but probably not on Saturdays because there are a few regulars that show up later being, Saturday I suppose.

After infusion, we went over to Costco( which we were supposed to do last week) and it went well. I spent more than I expected but got things that were on coupon and pantry stock-ups, so I’m okay with it. I bought a rotisserie chicken and some of their Yukon gold mashed potatoes so dinner was handled. When we got home I had to do some rearranging in the chest freezer and the refrigerator freezer. It took a while.

I’m grateful I’m handling dex better although I do have some snarky/bitchy moments usually a day or two after. Generally, something very ordinary will just set me off. I’ll try and get a grip on that for my next cycle.

I had some broccoli languishing in the refrigerator so I made a lovely broccoli cheddar soup. The bread is whole wheat sourdough from the bread machine and then baked in the oven.

Thankful Thursday

Posted in cancer, Gratitude, Myeloma, Walking by

We had quite a bit of rain the other night and I’m pretty sure that ends fire season. So that’s a huge relief.

Our walks have been starlite and so beautiful. I walked this morning and had some Dex breathing issues. It makes lung capacity a bit of a struggle but it does pass. Also, my heart rate is up some from Dex so that’s something to watch. I usually have a higher heart rate but this was a little more elevated.

Yesterday’s appointments went well and I left the infusion center by 12. I left Sacramento by 10:15 so I got up to Roseville with plenty of time to get a sandwich at Nugget. Traffic also wasn’t too bad.

I’m grateful for all the meal prep I do, so last night’s dinner was ready, and my daughter just had to put together the salad and boil some egg noodles. I had made honey mustard chicken the day before, so it was ready.

Tonight, I’m making crepes with spinach and mushrooms I need to use up. I’ll make a mornay sauce to cover. I’ll have it prepped so someone can just heat it up.

I’m so grateful for my LLS grant. My UHC premium was paid and it helps a lot.

Anyone have some thankfuls to share?