Christmas is comming...REALLY????

For the first time in a VERY VERY LOOOONNNNGGGG time, I didn't realize how quickly Christmas would be HERE! I was working out with my PT and she made the comment 'So I don't think you want to spend Christmas Eve with Me, so could we just work out once next week?'. Which started the "as shopper(s) rush..." I am usually done the day after Thanksgiving. Even Clint mentioned to co-workers that I hadn't done anything. My least favorite things..

1- Driving in traffic
2- Dealing with stupid people in traffic
3- Having to drive in parking lot traffic with stupid people

And that is not even at Christmas time.

Well I'm happy to announce Christmas has been purchased, the Tree is up, decorated (after not very happily throwing every light string in the garbage and buying new lights)the porch railing is lighted and the ginger bread house is all but done.

My favorite things at Christmas....

1-Putting up the Nativity set that Dad had made for us many many years ago.
2-Sitting in a newly cleaned Living Room enjoying the lights on the newly decorated Christmas tree.
3-Having the table set all pretty for Christmas Eve Dinner and remembering Dad reading the Christmas Story from Luke..
4-Having Clint carry on the tradition.

Merry Christmas! 2009

FiGhtIng 101

Never...Never...Never assume you know more than your teenager. Oh and never assume they will listen to you! Always be aware they know more than you do. The End

Back to the Exercising

Well through out the recovery I lost 2 lbs, and lost body fat, and lost inches. PT Lindsey said she expected me to have gained about 10 lbs....I told her I couldn't walk to the kitchen so therefore couldn't eat! LOL Although I'm still a little hesitant about my hip, I'm still in the healing process, I'm amazed at what I can do. More later

Seasons

Another Season has passed for a dear co-worker Fire Chief Phil Whitney. He worked for the Fire Dpt., since 1985 and probably only called in sick 9-10 times. He called in sick yesterday at about 8:00 and his daughter found him at about 11:00 am . Phil has known me far longer than I have known him. We moved into his ward when I was in 9th grade. I started working for Springville Police/Fire in 1987 and was very intimadated by Phil, which is unusual for me. As I recall I finally got mad enough to say something. I grew to love Phil and appreciated all of his knowlege, smiles, his white hair. His un-boundless engery and attention to detail. His compassion. His willingness even up until the end to come out at any hour, answer any question.

Since moving to our new building dispatch has the feel of a fish bowl. Phil would often come by the window doing a fish face and pretend that he was swimming. His cheeks would lift with his smile. The last time I saw Phil, was two days ago about 1600 hours doing the fish dance for me at the window. I love you Phil, I'll miss you, say Hi to my Dad and have a happy reunion with Helen. God be with us and your family until we meet again.





Some weeks ago I was pulling, snipping, and tossing many of the flowers that grew and delighted us throughout the spring and summer, getting the gardens ready for the long winter.

With planning, one of my flower gardens had something blooming all season long. Various pinks, purples,lots of different greens,blues and some yellow. There were also different shapes and sizes. Ones that looked like cones, some that spread with little tiny pink flowers, some that grew like vines and toppeled over the back side. The tall ones on back and the short ones up front. No weeds, everything in it's proper place and looking pretty.

The end of the frst season left me watching the flowers die and watching the snow pile up on them. I didn't snip them, thin them or get them ready for their next season to bloom.

Season two saw the flowers grow and bloom however, this season, all was not well. As the spring and summer progressed, the vine that so gracefully toppeled over, now was running a-muck. It had re-seeded itself and got into places where it shouldn't have been. No longer were there tiers of flowers. The spreading ones with the pretty tiny pink flowers were over shadowed, and the weeds had invaded. So some weeks ago I snipped, pulled weeds, thinned and even had to spray killer on some of the vines. I hope as I watch the snow pile up on the mostly bare garden, that I have prepared the ground enough and with a little maintaince there will once again be the garden I had planned.

Bugs

Oh no, not the ones you are thinking about. We are in the new building and although it is very nice there are a lot of BUGS...The kind that watch you, the kind that bother you, the kind that keep on niggling at you until you are ready to scream, which when you finally have had it, and call the person you KNOW can fix it, not the person that you should and are SUPPOSED to call, it gets fixed and then you could get in trouble because you didn't follow Protocol. Well sometimes things just NEED to get fixed.

So why is Protocol so important, when you KNOW who can do the job? Do they want you to do the job or only 1/2 the job.

Now the watching bug...
All I can say is I'm suprised there is not one in the bathroom, however it is just as bad because "they" can watch you go in and come out.

Oh I didn't mention the 'swiper bugs'.? These are the ones that you have to carry around with you. These paticular BUGS track your every movement, they work with the Watching BUGS. So if something happens to the Watching BUGS, the Swiper bugs will stay with you. Kinda Pesky these two.

May I say that Big Brother is alive and well and it is of course all for OUR saftey.

Recovery

I had to have a blood transfusion. It made me a little scared, but they are so careful of blood these days. I thank the people who donated. I tried once (had to admit I was afraid) and they didn't like my blood.

Having an epidural for pain relief was good and bad. It gave you a false sense of limited pain. I'm not sure, when it wore off in about 1 1/2 days if the pain was less intense after a few days.

Pain: is a whole other paragraph. I had a pump that allowed me a shot of di-lotted or hydro-morphone, a minimum of 10 min. Sometimes 10 min was too short! Not to mention the itching and nausia. Thank goodness they have meds for both. The pain people really wanted me off the pump for some reason. Perk-a-set upset my stomach so they had di-lotted in pill form. Every 4 hours worked pretty well, until I started moving. - Fast forward 3 weeks. I'm now back on Tylenol and Ibruprofin. It doesn't cut out all the pain, but it is better than seeing spiders which the morphine pills were making me see, and the perk-a-set didn't upset my stomach at home, but really made me sleepy. Yes the pain is still annoying, but manageable.

HOPE

Tomorrow I go into Surgery for my hip.
I Don't know why I'm nervous. But I believe all will be well. I'll have Clint and Paul give me a blessing and I KNOW that will help. I hope the pain will be manageable. I hope that I'll able to live without Tylenol and Ibuprofen as a constant friend. I hope I'll be able to walk normally and continue with my PT and getting into shape. I hope the kitchen will stay clean. I hope I have a quick recovery. I hope Dr. Jackson is very prepared. I hope I won't be scared. I hope the people that have offered their 'good lucks', offers of help and support know how much I appreciate them and that it makes it better. I hope my family knows how much I love them, and will rely on them to help me through the next 2-3 weeks. I hope Ryan knows how much I missed him when he was on his camp out and his goodness and his true knowledge of right and wrong. I hope Charlie knows, I know, how much she does to help, and that I know she will do good in school and get her RN. I hope Michael knows how much I need his hugs and cuddling, even though he's getting to big, and I know he is smart and will do well in school. I hope Clint knows how much I love and appreciate him,....with or without facial hair. I hope Gary won't have to play "Amazing Grace" on the bagpipes for me for a long long time.I hope my Mom will be able to remember and come and see me. I hope she knows how much I needed to talk to her yesterday. I hope my kids and Clint know how much I care and love them I hope they know!

Enough!

NOT a DAY OLDER

SO I turned the dreaded 50 while we were on our trip. My motto was I don't feel a day older than 50. Denny's was nice enough to give me a free entree for my Birthday and later that night, Love's Gas station in Wells Nevada provided me with a Cheese Danish for my B-Day Cake, which I, of course shared. I got several texts from relatives but I text so s l o w, that All I said was Thanks. I hope they know how much I appreciated the texts and appreciated them for sending them.

I tell my kids not to get me anything but memories and the Oregon trip was certenly worth remembering.

I sure Love my Family!

Beaches

Picture Left to Right Top to Bottom
The tide pools at Yaquina Light House in Newport Beach
"The Crane" (me) at Gleneden Beach
Charlie's professional head shot by 'MOM' at Gleneden Beach
A Crab that was not to happy with us for disturbing him at the tide pools
Lynette Neelds Coast House ! Thanks Lynette
Family at Gleneden Beach


This is the first time I've been to the beaches in the north/west. Susan's sister Lynette Neeld has a house in Gleneden Beach that she invited us to so we packed up our family and Vinnie and went on a road trip. We stared out at Clint's Parents then up to Pendleton OR and then through the Gorge up to Astoria then down 101 along the Oregon Coast.

On the last night in Oregon, we stayed at a YURT at Harris Beach. It was fun and Harris Beach was gorgeous.

Charlie flew with Eliza, Matt and kids and Vinnie rode with us. The trip was so much fun, even with five of us in the car. We saw a lot and did a lot but still relaxed!

I want to go back!

More $10 College Words

Dysplasia (isn't that something German shepherds get and have to be put down?), Acetabulum, Femoral head,acetabular labral tear,intervertebral, Dysplastic.

Lets talk about Dysplasia of the Hip, which is what I have. Checking Wikkepidea it gave me two choices one for Hip Dysplasia(canine) or Hip Dysplasia (human). Referring to the German shepherds, I don't want to be put down, soooo I believe I chose wisely. Human.

So Wikkepidea says:
Hip dysplasia, developmental dysplasia of the hip (DDH)[1] or congenital dysplasia of the hip (CDH)[2] is a congenital or acquired deformation or misalignment of the hip joint.

What Dr. Richard Jackson told me was that my hips didn't develop properly after I I was born. I told him about my broken leg at 2 months old and being in body casts he said that may have contributed but did not cause it.

The following is a quiz...What picture best depicts what my hip looks like.



Did you guess!? If you guessed C you would be right.

So what happens now. On August 3rd I get to have a hip resurfacing which is where they place a titanium and chrome piece in.





The doctor said I'll be back to normal within 3 weeks. Much to my PT's delight, she will be able to punish/push me even further.

Oh in case you were wondering....the MRI stated I have unremarkable Ovaries.

So much for Bursitis...at least I know what it is now.

WARNING - BOYS IN THE CAR

We had the opportunity to Cook for the Stake Girls Camp Friday Night Dinner held at the Heber Camp Site. This is the night when all the Stake People are there, plus the girls and leaders. About 350 in all. We did Dutch oven Potatoes from scratch, Dutch Oven Chicken with Creamy Mushroom Sauce and 22 pans of Cobbler, using 10 dutch ovens, 2 bags of charcoal, 44 cans of pie filling, 22 cans of sprite 24 cake mixes, 8 lbs of bacon, 16 bags of chicken breasts (24 per bag, cut in 1/2) 3 Giant size tubs of sour cream, 30 cans of cream of mushroom soup, 8 cloves of garlic, 6 bags of Yukon gold red skinned potato's. And an 88 dollar easy up. These are the facts.

Earlier that morning, I had said a morning prayer that all would go well and we wouldn't have any mechanical problems. About 30 min. before we were to leave Michael noticed a nail in the Suburban Tire. With all the dutch ovens etc. loaded the Suburban was pretty heavy, and if we would have gotten a flat tire, we wouldn't have made it in time to cook. So off to Johnson Tire to get it fixed.

We finally made it to Heber Camp about 1 hour later that we wanted to. We were checking in and the Elderly Elder looked in the back and said "Whatcha got in there 1 girl and two boys?" We though that was kinda odd especially when he said he couldn't let us in because we had boys! I thought he was just joking. But turns out he was VERY serious. He made us follow him to the Admin. Building where we needed to get a hold of the Head Elder. When the Head Elder couldn't be reached on the radio, Elderly Elder kept saying he couldn't allow us in because of the BOYS. We tried to explain that they were our children and our work force and if they weren't allowed in we wouldn't be able to cook. I even whispered to him " So You Want to See my Temple Recommend?" He didn't think that was to funny, "That ain't got nothin to do with it!" I assured him I was kidding! still no smile. Then I noticed a sign they had on the front desk, a quote from Pres. Spencer W. Kimble, stating in Big Bold Letters "EVERYTHING WILL WORK OUT". I pointed that out. Again nothing!.. Elderly Elder made a decision to take us up to the camp host and let her make the decision. We followed him and he parked his truck to block the road. Long story short...The camp host made an executive decision, using common sense, and decided the BOYS were not going to ravish the girls and allowed us to cook. Of course we had to promise they would stay in our site!

Want to know the best 88 dollar investment? An easy up-We got the easy up set up and 10 min later it poured! It didn't stop raining until we were done serving!.
Oh by the by, If you ever use the ovens at the Hinkley site, they take 2-3 hours..yes hours to heat up to 350 deg.

I don't know if I can accuratly describe the noise 300 + girls make, but I sure understand why Heavenly Father is bringing more girls into the world. He would like a little peace and quiet! LOL

All in all it was a good experience. BUT....

WARNING DO NOT...EVER...GO TO GIRLS CAMP WITH ...BOYS...IN THE CAR!!

De-Gen-Er-A-Tive

I hate $10 college words. It seems the older I get, the more $10 college words I have to learn. This word, I'm not particularly fond of. Degenerative.

So when the DOC himself calls and uses the word degenerative is that good or bad? When my stomach flip-flopped I took it as a bad sign!. He told me my hip looked pretty rough, in fact degenerative with a lot of rips and tears. So off to the Orthopedist and who knows what.

Then...he said there is a problem with the lining of my uterus. It is 2 mm thick and should be 1 mm thick so I 'get' to have a D&C. Awww c'mon what's 1 mm amongst friends? Can you say FALLING APART!

I need a sedative!

M-R-EYE YI YI

OK so the bursitis is only getting worse so back to the DR. He order a CT scan. Get to the CT scan they tell me I have to drink this stuff for a contrast. I know a lot about a little and didn't think the CT scan was the right kind of scan for my problem, plus a contrast dye is yucky! I talked with the tech. and he concurred. Off to the waiting room while he talked to the DR. So then it was off to the MRI waiting room for 2.5 hours. What else did I have to do?

Claustrophobia is an interesting subject. Scared of closed in places? Worried about being buried alive? Scared of going feet first in a tiny dark hole? YES YES AND YES! I was offered a sedative,(should have done it) he (cute tired looking Jared(MRI Tech))stayed late, so I could get the MRI done. He asked me how claustrophobic(should have taken the sedative)I was. and because he didn't know exactly when It would be my turn, he wasn't sure when to give the (should have taken the)sedative, I decided to be brave especially since I was going in feet first. But you know what, HE LIED!!! Yes young cute tired looking Jared LIED!! He told me my head was going to be almost at the edge so it shouldn't be too bad!

'OK Lie on this narrow bed have your legs straight, toes touching, and just to make sure they touch, we'll tape them together. Then we'll put the coils(screws)to you oh wait, on you. Last but not least, it's noisy so here are some cute little green earplugs. Oh and most people close their eyes.'

BUT not me, remember I was brave.

As the bed motored toward the grave uh.. hole uh.. tiny enclosed space, it started to get narrow and get dark.....I CLOSED my eyes, ok welded them shut, I'm not sure where the vice grips came from on my arms,oh yeah those appendages are my hands. I wonder if earplugs swell more with tears on them?

So what do you do when you are that "brave"! Sing a hymn elder! The only song that came to mind was We Thank Thee O God for a Prophet. The MRI machine it itself was a noisy bugger, but did have great rhythm, good beat, kinda monotone, not easy to dance to, I give it an eight. My vice grips sans hands started tapping with the rhythm which wasn't very good for the song that I chose, so I started thinking about the title for this blog. It turned out very appropriate don't you think?

Some of the images were for 2-3 min, some were for 5-200 minutes. When each picture taking session was over cute tired looking Jared would tell me I was doing great and to remember to hold still. At least that's what he did until....

After the first long session the MRI got very quiet and I waited for cute tired looking Jared to tell me how great I was doing. My leg was HURTING and I asked him if I could move my leg for a minute. NOTHING..... In a flash I wondered if I could pull myself out. hello???? the MRI was silent.. HEllo??? The tiny enclosed space was still silent. The vice grips are loosening and reaching up towards my head, no wait, I can be brave....HELLO!!!!!!! the grave is closing in. My heart is racing! then I hear the click, Ruth are you ok. "I'm just a little panicked!" "It's ok I'm still here, just looking a something. Just a couple more 5 minute ones and then we'll be done" said my grave digger, cute tired looking Jared.

I should have taken the sedative!

Bitter-Sweet

We took Mom to Dad's grave and then visited Randy's grave. My Iris (yellow and purple) were blooming and the Peonies were about to bloom. The bouquet was quite pretty and looked really nice on the grave sites.

Mom had knee surgery and is doing good with that knee, but her other knee is bothering her and also her heels. Charlie-Marie and I had to hold both arms and she leaned heavy on us to make it back to the car. She was looking at the front of the headstone and said in surprise "oh look they even put my name on it." I reminded her that she had them do it when daddy died. Then she remembered.

Mom was pretty shaky and a little emotional. Michael my tender heart was very emotional,When we went to Randy's grave, he didn't want to go because he would cry, and stayed in the car with Grandma. Ryan, as always was reverent, being so careful where to step.



When we got to Randy's grave they haven't been able to get the headstone yet, but we were pretty sure where he was buried. We located the outline of the cut grass and were able to place the flowers there. It was a tough moment for Clint, loosing his brother so recently. Charlie-Marie and Ryan immediately went to hug and console their dad. It really touched my heart. I remember Clint giving the dedicatory prayer and the spirit that was with him.

Some people may think me irreverent of the dead, but I truly believe that the body is just there, what makes them them, is their spirit. Having been blessed to feel the spirit of the 'dearly departed'(which I call them because that is what they are, dear and not with us for the moment)makes me know there is life beyond the mortal body. When Sister Herring(Charlie-Marie's piano teacher) and her husband died, Charlie was playing the piano and we both felt Sister Herring in our living room, telling us all was well and keep playing the piano. When Grandma Chapman died, we were standing in the cemetery around the casket. It was very clear and very cold. I felt a warmth encircle us. I knew it was Grandma giving us one last hug.
Michael and I went up to the cabin last year and were the only ones there for the night. As we were sitting on the front porch Dad visited us. Michael came and sat on my lap and both of us were crying. Dad was almost tangible.

The Perfectly Executed Summersault

Wait, I didn't think PT was teaching me to tumble, but tumble I did...Remember a couple of posts back when the upside down hook your feet over thinger was my current hate? Well no medicine ball this time but crunches. By the by I learned it was really called the 'incline bench'! Well when we were done, I had something in the way and couldn't quite make a full sit up to grab the handle thingie that is supposed to help you up, so I got one leg untangled from the roller things, and and started sliding backwards. So I thought (first mistake) "Well I'll just be in the circus and do a perfect backwards somersault." Ok so fat ol' ladies shouldn't EVEN think that way! The perfectly executed somersault turned into a tumble off the side of the 'incline bench', ending up in tangled mess on the floor. I was laughing so hard as was PT. I gathered up my tangled mess and 'gracefully' got up from the floor. I tell you it is a good thing my face gets red when I exercise! Do you think anyone noticed how embarassed I was?

OH GOOD NEWS.. Lost 1 lb but the BEST!!!! I had to pull up my pants! (Ok figure that one out!)

Learning - Curves

The first thing PT said to me was...Is your face getting thinner? What a nice way to start a workout. I told her I didn't know but pulled up my shirtsleeve and made her feel the roundness that is taking shape...then I flexed (yes I can officially call them guns)my guns. Even with the wings underneath they are looking pretty great. Cap sleeves here I come...almost.....wings and all!

I learned how to use the pull up machine. It's not scary anymore. It's amazing what you can do when you learn the right way. PT is so good. Her blog is http://fiteats.wordpress.com/ And although I haven't tried any of her recipes yet someday when my arms quit hurting from the learning I might be able to lift them to make good stuff.

Dusty Twilight

Did you that just before the sun goes down it is dusty? Well according to Michael it's not dusk, it's dusty, then the sun goes down!...Wonder what Webster would have to say about that.

New Torture

Ok Planks aren't so bad but...how do I describe this upside down sitting up holding a medicine ball and twisting side to side while your legs are holding you upside down while you are sitting up, kinda like a sit up but without going down! I know makes no sense, but my legs sure didn't like it..and I almost had to use my one wuss out, but PT had me drop the medicine ball and I was able to complete the reps! Yipee

I really like the sit on my butt and pull (kinda like rowing but with one hand)It was fun and NOTHING HURT!

Mother Dear

I love my Mother.

But...I didn't realize it until I was in my late 30's. To Bad I wasted so much time.

Happy Mother's Day Mom!

This picture is in memory to the camera that sniff sniff had to go to the big camera in the sky.!

Jump Roping - invisable style

Pyrmiad work out today! No pom poms, no cute boys to catch you when you fall, no screaming bleacher people to ohh ahh when you get to the top! Just a lot of huffing - puffing- sweating - red faced - huff/puff/what's next, do I have to do the invisable jump rope...again.... Ahhh though the 30 seconds of rest. Seconds of bliss. One thing with the invisable jump rope, the tricks I did with that rope and never missed a beat or tripped over the rope, even on Hot Peppers. But alas 24 Robbers were not able to come knocking on my door.

The Emptyness of the Nest

My oldest is working, my 2 year old just got a job and I left my baby home alone.



I got to work and actually couldn't figure out why I was feeling so melancholy. I had to come to grips! Ryan was only 2 ...just yesterday...how could he be all grown up, how was I going to watch over him out in the big bad world. Michael is 12 but really he is about 6 months old! Charlie will always be my little scrunched up nose brand new baby. Oh and who is that man....wait I knew him once...I think his name was, maybe still is, Clint. Oh yeah the father of these cute little babies, my husband, MY man. Maybe we'll have to get reacquainted.

PT made me do the dreaded PLANKS again...but wait it wasn't just the side ones, it was a whole routine of them! Ok well sorta but (dare I say it) the plank, pushup,side plank, (huff puff)turn (huff puff)side plank routine was kinda well not really fun, but rewarding to know I could do it, even after everything else. Some day I'll be able to look in the mirror while lifting weights and only see the bulges that should be there..tee hee hee. or maybe I could just wear bigger shirts?!?

Great day I got there about 15 min early and decided to try the stationary bike (what else would it be in a gym!) I was able to do 15 min and my bursitis didn't hurt! So after my workout, I'll do the stationary bike and see how it goes.

PT made be breath HARD and my face was even REDder than normal. It was a good work out. PT figured out a routine that got my heart rate up and kept it up! Did I mention that I hate, here let me say it louder, HATE any exercise with the word PLANK in it. PT agreed, well I made her agree to one 'wuss out'. Guess which one I wussed out on. But I tried. It will only get better......
.5 lbs this week!...Next week will be better.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DADDY!

Dad would have been 82 today!

I sure miss you. Thanks for sharing your spirit when we need it. (Especially at the cabin with Michael.)

Until our spirits meet again.

I Love You!

Good Morning....National Guard?!?

Can you believe it? I slept in clear until 0500 then went back to sleep until 0600. Amazing! 0430 has been getting boring. Can't be noisy because the 'mother' thing would have to start, can't turn on the light in the bedroom because snoring hubby will wake up....what's a girl to do! SLEEP would be a novel idea.

I woke Michael up at 0730 and with eyes fluttering he said 'I'm working with the National Guard!" "Well tell the National Guard it's time to wake up." Slowly he opened his eyes, turned over and told me "Mom, that's the best dream I ever had."

Ahhh. "To sleep, perchance to dream."

HMMM how's it going?

Well last week I lost 2.6 (don't forget the .6 it's important!) lbs. PT is really good to work with my limitations, always trying to think of something new that will work my muscles but not injure the bursitis. Which by the way is not getting better....

PT and I decided that our left arms became/become stronger when children are born. This is from holding one on your hip while you do everything with your right hand. I am definitely left hand stronger due to the almost 8 lb-der Ryan.

She took measurements yesterday and the only thing I can say about that is....she only had to use one. (tape measure that is) :)

Weight Loss Journey

Yesterday I started with a Personal Trainer forever to be known as PT. Because of my stupid bursitis we can only work the top half for now. I don't hurt as bad as I thought I would but probably after tomorrow I'll hurt worse. I feel very guilty paying as much money as I am, taking it out of my family's pocket so to speak. I keep wanting to say BUT.... I'll be turning EGAD I can't say it. I said I would be fit and skinny at 40, that didn't happen. I did a gastric bypass I've done everysort of diet and yes I get skinny then I get fat! I could bore everyone with the emotions/wa wa me/even though there alot of valid reasons. NOW is the time to work hard to get fit and feel better and be happier. I can't wait any more! I'm not getting younger.

For now this blog is going to mostly for my own wailing/keeping a history/and weight loss journey.