Me, Myself and Memories

Updates from August, 2013 Toggle Comment Threads | Keyboard Shortcuts

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  Noreen 4:26 am on August 2, 2013 Permalink  

  Graduation Day 

  Today was my last physical therapy appointment from the April 25th, 2013 reverse shoulder replacement.  I officially received my degree to “go forth and enjoy life.”  It was by no means two months of appointments.  The first six weeks the arm and shoulder were held in place within a sling.  Since that time I have seen Mike T. at the hospital’s physical therapy unit just once a week.  Michael Tonsanger holds a doctorate in physical therapy.  I have been in excellent hands.  Today’s appointment took place in the gym of the hospital’s physical therapy unit.  I was put through the drills of arm and shoulder strength and I can assure you that Mike had plenty of resistance on the bands that I used for pulling, punching and lifting.  The entire while I was going through the drills Mike was hands on as he was checking to see how the muscles were firing.  It has been a great surgical success and I love the ability for mobility without the pain of the severed rotor cuff.  Great days ahead.

   
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  Noreen 1:37 am on August 1, 2013 Permalink  

  Crumble Dessert 

               Rhubarb Crumble Dessert 

  

  Rhubarb Crumb Dessert

  •  Blend 2 cups of flour

  2 cups of Oatmeal

  1 cup sugar

  2/3 cup of cooking oil

  •  Press 3/4 of mixture into a 9″ x 13″ baking pan

  •  Add 6 cups of Rhubarb evenly on top

  •  1 cup sugar sprinkled on Rhubarb

  •  Dot with butter

  •  Add remaining crumble on top

  Bake at 350 degrees for one hour

  As rhubard is best cut before July 4th, use frozen rhubarb or a large can of blueberry or cherry pie filling can also be used.  Dessert can be served with whipped cream or ice cream.

   
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  Noreen 4:56 am on July 28, 2013 Permalink  

  Less is More 

  

  Dinner Plate Size Anna Bell Hydrangea Blooms

  This kind of weather is what I really like.  Less heat makes me just want more days such as these.  I know, I know – be careful what you wish for.  It being July 27th I am confident that the mid temps will not last. I don’t mind hearing the forecasts that mid eighties will return next week after having a great break this weekend.

  After the 2/10 of rain earlier this week followed by cooler weather the gardens seemed to respond with foliage standing straight and tall rather than wilting trying to protect itself. The Anna Bell Hydrangea is one of my favorites this time of the year.  They give the illusion of giant snow balls waving in the breeze.  With the help of the rain shower and the cooler weather the garden soils have all been turned.  The hot drying winds with no rain for a substantial amount of time left the surface of the soil crusted and hard. The next rain that we enjoy will actually have a chance to soak in rather than run off.  Yup, life on Stauffer is good.

   
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  Noreen 2:36 am on July 26, 2013 Permalink  

  What Was Work is Now Fun 

  

  The Goose’s Blue Rock

  I challenge any farm kid to look back on picking rocks out of the fields in the early spring to call it fun.  It never failed to amaze me that the 80 acres we had walked the year before to the satisfaction of my Dad had an entire new crop of rocks in the next year.  In the depths of the groves that surrounded farm yards would be this huge pile of rocks that had been harvested over the course of the crop years.

  If we ever wondered if the job was appreciated, the proof of the pudding was when one of the elusive rocks was picked up by the snout of the corn picker in the fall of the year during harvest.  Harvest was always extremely busy as we would also have milk cows freshening.  Why was the birth of new calves called freshening? I have no idea.  During the hot summer days the amount of milk that the dairy cows would give was so diminished that they were allowed to “dry up.”

  

  The Little Kids Love the Green Rock

  Back to the elusive rock in the corn picker.  The rock would be carried into the depth of the corn picker and either cause a chain to break or become so wedged that there was metal that needed to be hammered out.  The last thing Dad needed was to have harvest stalled due to a rock.

  Fast forward to Stauffer Avenue and I am always on the lookout for rocks that complete my gardens.  Who would have thought?  It used to be that when we traveled I would point — Dennis would load the rock and away we went.  Now when I see a really good one — I mark it — and I seek and search someone much younger and stronger to come back with me later to get it home.  I recently scored two really good rocks this summer from the building site that Dennis’ son had lived on.  Young and strong neighbor Matt rides shotgun as Dennis mans his little red pickup.  It’s a good thing.

   
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  Noreen 6:20 am on July 22, 2013 Permalink  

  This is the day the Lord has made and I am so enjoying it. No huge amount of bells and whistles just a feeling of liking where I am and what I am doing with my day. Catch ya later.

   
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  Noreen 7:54 am on July 21, 2013 Permalink  

  What a great day. Could we please have many more? I had been playing it low key during the heat and humidity and this morning I had energy to burn. The patio porch had been cleaned after the winter snow thaw but we had a downpour of rain afterward, totally flooding the patio and the porch. The silt needed to be washed and broom brushed off of the exposed agate patio. That led to realizing how many birds had deposited their business on the patio glass doors. In the end, Dennis was inside the porch running the vacuum and organizing his collection of items. It was such a great day we hated to call it quits when we needed to clean up and get to the VFW to sell tickets for the monthly steak fry. I am hoping tomorrow is a repeat. In the meantime, in between time, what a treat to sit out and about after the cleaning frenzy. Dennis knows that all I believe I deserve in our day to day life is a clean home, and as much as we use the patio and the patio porch, it definitely is part of our home. Catch ya later.

   
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  Noreen 8:37 am on July 19, 2013 Permalink  

  What can I say? Heat and humidity took the starch out of me today. Catch ya later.

   
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  Noreen 6:47 am on July 17, 2013 Permalink  

  It’s been a day of heat and humidity but life does not stop. Dennis and I are doing a tag team effort of stopping in to see and check on Dennis’ son’s wife Sarah. Sarah is dying of brain cancer and the difficult time is coming for Ken to decide that Sarah should not be staying by herself at all for any duration during the day. Sarah wanted to be in her home when she died. In April all medication to control the cancer was stopped. The only medication she is on is just to keep her comfortable. Her cognizance is diminishing while her spirit is strong. Ken needs to maintain his employment for insurance purposes but also for a sense of balance in his own life. Now is the tough love time for Ken that Sarah may not have her wish honored. Sarah needs more care than can be given in her home. Times like this I cannot help but count my blessings with my own children.

   
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  Noreen 5:14 am on July 13, 2013 Permalink  

  Home – Oh So Sweet 

  Oh my gosh, I have only been gone since Wednesday morning and here we are Friday evening and it feels like it’s been weeks.

  My cousin Mark lives at Finland, Minnesota, following in his parent’s footsteps of being a part of a community of less than 200.  Mark and his wife Monica have faced huge financial crunches from Monica’s triple valve heart surgery.  Mark has served on the fire department and rescue squad for fifteen years and his fellow volunteers put a benefit on for them Thursday evening in Finland.

  Leaving on Wednesday gave us a chance to check into a motel in Silver Bay just nine miles from Finland.  Dennis’ daughter Sue and granddaughter Taylor made the ten minute trip from their home to come and enjoy the indoor pool.  It didn’t take long and granddaughter Erin and her two toddler daughters had their towels under their arms to join in the mini family reunion.

  I did check out two quilt shops in the area but came out without so much as a stray thread to make the trip back to my sewing room.  It was fun to look and to touch but I have plenty on my plate here at home.

  Well, back to the reason we traveled up north: the benefit was a huge success with a turnout that would compare to any opening of a Harry Potter film.  The food was fantastic, the live entertainment was foot stomping and the amount of items  on the raffle table were surpassed only by the tables full of silent auction items.  I scored a wooden cane made out of Diamond Willow that Mark himself had made.  Beautiful craftsmanship.

  Dennis and I are a bit out of our element doing almost 400 miles in a day of driving.  We are home safe and sound and thankful to have shared in an event that meant so much to a family member.  I think I was in my bathrobe within a half hour of being home.  I love it here.

   
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  Noreen 6:00 am on July 9, 2013 Permalink  

  It is quite miserable today with humidity and the chomping mosquitoes. They are not just stinging they are chomping. Catch ya later.