Ice Ice Baby

What a week! Tuesday I started Aquatic physical therapy. Well actually I went for an evaluation and some exercises that I could do while sitting at my computer or sewing table. Of course not while sewing since I need the right foot for the machine pedal.. The folks were really nice. Before leaving they placed electrode pads on my knee and a heating pad for 10 minutes.  Felt kinda good.

So the change from Eliquis to Xarelto has been good so far. Did find out that my freedom to drink wine or any alcohol when I pleased is over. I will only be able to drink 1 glass of wine or hard liquor per day. Which is no big deal since I don't drink every day or week. Only during my time in April while with Pamela in Fredericksburg for our annual Mother-Daughter trip.  So if I don't have a drink one day, It doesn't mean I can have 2 the next. LOL  One tasting will equal a glass. I always look forward to Hill Country Distillers for drinks. Well dang.  Oh well, I'll survive. I'll just have to pick and choose which winery I'll drink my glass each day.  LOL  Such is life. Crossing my fingers that I have no side affects from Xarelto.

Wednesday (2/10) I went to see a Pain Management doctor in the Woodlands that my Orthopedic doctor referred me too. Pamela kept me company. I managed to get the street number wrong and the street name right which might have stressed me out a little. Got to the appointment to be asked to fill out a questionnaire only it wasn't easy. Hard to explain. For example it asked if I had had any prior knee surgeries. My answer was Yes on both in different years but I couldn't enter both knees or dates. Let's just say it was irritating. It asked what was the onset date but didn't allow me to answer with a date other than the current date. Finally went back and waited for the doctor. Doctor came in and proceeded to tell me they were going to try nerve diagnostic injections. They shoot 4 injections into my right knee. I'll get 4-6 hours of relief from pain if they hit the right area. I'm to report back the results then I'll go back in 2 weeks for 4 more injections. Sounds fun. Not. Hopefully they'll be able to determine what nerves to hit.  Another 2 weeks later and I'll go back to evaluate my options. Which will possible be an ablation. Where they cauterize the appropriate nerve endings (as an outpatient under mild sedation) that is telling my brain I'm in pain. That should stop the messages to my brain and I'll pain relief for up to last for a year. Hopefully somewhere after the ablation and before that year is up I'll get a knee replacement.  But Who knows.

After that appointment Pamela and I went to visit my Mom and Joe for a while.  It proved to be one of the nicest visits we've had since her dementia kicked in. She was more alert to things going on. She would still get confused about things being said or done but she was alert. Normally she's more quiet and not very talkative. This time she got to laughing a couple of different times. It was great hearing her laugh. I've missed that laugh.  It was getting late so we had to leave and head back to Pamela's place. I was staying with her since I had another PT visit. 

Thursday (2/11) this time they put me in the water. While it didn't hurt too much at the time, it was a different story later.

 I was on the phone talking to my friend Denise telling her I wouldn't be at the book club meeting this evening because of the weather and my knee. I didn't want to chance the roads to drive to Houston and back for a book club meeting. I was telling her how cold it was when I pulled up to the mailbox and noticed the icicles. Oh yeah it's cold out here. Beside my knee was starting to really hurt. Crazy crazy! 

We had dinner and by 7pm, I took a pain killer and went to bed. 

Saturday it was even colder. David had left a small sprinkler going so it wouldn't freeze and crack. LOL But instead it made a beautiful ice sculpture.  

David asked if I felt like making breakfast and I said sure. Thank goodness he wanted a breakfast sandwich because when I cracked the first egg here is what I got.

Holy shit. The brings a whole new meaning to Green Eggs and Ham.

Oh and it did stink.  I started over and the rest of the eggs were fine.

Valentines Day arrived. We had a western omelet (all the eggs were fine) for breakfast, lunch snack was a blueberry muffin and for dinner David made a pork butt carnitas for tacos. I made my Spanish rice for a side. It was all very tasty.  And should I mention it was still very cold and icy out. 

David goes out to feed the cows and donkey. While there he's tried to break up the ice in the water trough. I think the ice won. They still have the pond to drink from.

 

For my friends in the mid-west and northern states this is old stuff to y'all but in Texas not so much. I mean 2 snows in less than 30 days and more than 5 days of weather below zero. I've been in Texas since I was 15 and don't remember anytime where it got into the single digits like it has the past few days.  

My immediate area has been lucky and not lost power. Probably just jinxed myself. This is the weird part.... next week it'll be in the 70's. Only in Texas.

Pamela sent me a picture of Bri. She loves running, playing and eating the snow but her big sister Sophia not so much. The first time they went out they slide off the end of the patio. There is ice under that snow.  When Sophie tried to jump back up on the patio and went splat. 

Sophie takes after her momma Lilley. Lilley doesn't like snow and ice either. David fed her outside on the patio and the one time she tried to walk to the edge of the patio her feet slipped and went every which way. What's behind her is solid ice with a dusting of snow. You can't see the step down to the lower step and yard.

We even had a snowbank up against the back and the front door. That's Lilley's water ice bowl in the background.

You can't even see the front stairs or the step off the front porch. Pretty but it's solid ice underneath.

David also let the outdoor kitchen sink faucet drip slowing so it wouldn't freeze but instead this is what he ended up with.

Our poor Texas cows look really cold but I was told my nephew Zachariah that they're okay. If they have snow on their back that means they're retaining their body heat. Even my sister Barb sent me a link about cold weather and cows. I was glad hear and read that.

2/17 Today they are walking very very gingerly out there. It's solid on the top but as they step down it breaks thru to probably and icy ground.

A couple of my friends in Groesbeck have been without electricity since 2/11 and it came back on for a while yesterday. Haven't talked with them today for status.

Pamela went without electricity and water for a couple days then she was so happy for the electricity to come on and water slowing coming back. Her happiness was short lived. It stayed on for about an hour. Since then it comes on for 45- an hour and off for an hour or more. She snuck a shower in there and prayed she'd get out and dry before it went off again. She did. Scary part now is that she has to work Thursday morning 2/18. Several bridges and hills between her and the hospital. She'll be driving really slow.  Saying a prayer for her safe arrival to and from work.

I'm wondering if the Covid numbers will show a big fall after all these days of not being able to be out and about. Should be interesting.

Everyone stay safe and warm as possible.

I keep seeing this on FB

2020 = the year of Hell

2021 = the year Hell froze over

Pretty much covers it.

Until next post... I wish you a tolerable Thursday. That's all any of us can hope for.   ~  April Winchell

Quilt done and Girls lookin good

It's a good thing I love my friend/sorority sister Sheryl.. LOL She had asked if I would help make a quilt out of Crown Royal bags. The fun was getting enough bags and then the cutting began. So much purple fuzz. LOL. I don't know that I will do another. Only for Sheryl.

I decided to create on block by using my new embroidery machine. His nickname is Rooster. So I embroidered a square with a Rooster. You can see some of the quilting here. Here's the whole quilt.

I had some smaller squares sewn together that I added to the back. If I hadn't I would have been that short to finish the back so it all worked out. Thank goodness. Other than some scraps from the sashing, borders and binding there was nothing left. This is one quilt that used up almost everything.

Gene Stork did the quilting for me and did a great job. The recipient Ross Harper and his wife Sheryl loved the quilt and the quilting. When Sheryl pulled it out my Car she was so excited and couldn't wait for Ross to come home from his business trip.  Then he got home and called me with a big Thank you and how he loved it.  

Sheryl and I were talking away when I looked up I saw something walk across her patio. Actually more than one something. LOL  Sheryl was telling me about her neighbors cows who'd get out and come to their place to visit. And they came today too.  She shoo'd them out of her backyard area but when we walked out the front door that hadn't gone far. She yelled at them but they just kinda looked at her. So as I was leaving I chased them off the property with my car. All but one anyway.  

They ran down the road to the little creek and went down the embankment where one jumped over the fencing and the other 3 walked to the other side of the creek to ease down and just walk over the fencing. That's life in the country.

   

When I went to the orthopedic doctor last week he referred me to a Pain Management Doctor and to get aquatic therapy.  I need to lose some weight before he'll do a knee replacement but hopefully these 2 will give me some relief and I can work on the weight issue. Also going to a doctor for help with a diet.

I spent the night with Pamela also last week because we had an early grooming appointment for the girls. She and I watched a movie.... Wonder Woman 1984.  It was good. 

The Top Paw Dog Spa did a great job as always and did a great photo shoot with the girls.

Briana

Sophie

Lilley

They're so darn pretty. And such brats. And very loved.

Until next post....Friendship is a tapestry woven through the years with threads of joy and laughter, happiness, and tears