Here Comes 2014

Apache Junction, AZ  High 72  Low 46

Just found out that the city of Sidney, MT is naming their baseball fields after my Dad – The Harold Mercer Baseball Complex. Now that is a great way to start out a new year.

Butt Kicking Crud

I’m sure hoping that tomorrow finds us back among the living. But I have my doubts.

Merry Fishmas!

Apache Junction, AZ   High 70  Low 44

This was our perfect Christmas present from Todd and Michaela. Inside the card – a piece of Santa’s beard.

We had a really nice Christmas day. Jim is feeling better, not great, but better. Struggling with his blood sugar and we’re hoping that when recovers from his cold, the blood sugar levels will settle down again.

I fixed a ham with scalloped potatoes and a fruit salad for dinner. My sister brought scalloped corn. There were five of us for dinner.

Paul

Judy and Don

Jim and I (I was taking the picture)

After everyone left, Jim and I had a relaxing afternoon.

Today, I have Jim’s cold. I woke up during the night with a sore throat and today I can barely talk. Oh goodie. Whenever I get a cold, I always lose my voice. Inherited this problem from my Mom.

However, I had a doctor’s appointment with the dermatologist this morning that I couldn’t miss. they removed some of the stitches and I’ll have the rest removed next Monday. Back home to sit in my recliner and not do anything.

MERRY CHRISTMAS

Apache Junction, AZ  High 71   Low 52

 

This is the Nativity set that my Mom made for me in the early 1980’s. One of my most priceless treasures.

Christmas 2009

This was the post I wrote when I was able to spend my Dad’s last Christmas on earth with him.

Friday, December 25, 2009

CHRISTMAS

I don't usually post my thoughts in my blog but today I needed to say thanks to my Father in Heaven and my Savior, Jesus Christ.

Today was Christmas day and I was able to spend the entire day with my Dad at the nursing home. The staff did their best to make the place cheery but nursing homes are not what we think of as happy places. So many of the people here had no one to visit them on this day and for many it was just another day to get through.

It was also very lonely for me because this was the first Christmas I had ever spent away from Jim. Sitting with my Dad while he slept, gave me time to ponder on life and death and the true meaning of Christmas.

Christ was born so that He could be crucified so that each of us could have eternal life. Today we celebrate his birth. We rejoice in His great love and the even greater love of our Heavenly Father who sent His Son to earth for us.

The Christmas's we remember best are those we spend with loved ones. They are not about what presents we got or the food we ate or the clothes we wore. It is the love we felt. The pure love of Christ. What a truly wonderful gift we have each been given - our life here on earth with the opportunity to live eternally with our Father in Heaven.

My wish for this Christmas season is that I may closer follow in my Savior's footsteps and become more Christ-like in my dealings with my fellow men and also the beautiful animal companions we have been given to cherish and love also.

My prayers are with all of you that you may be safe and know you are loved.

For those of you who do not celebrate the birth of our Savior, I wish you a Happy Holiday filled with lots of good food, friends and family.

Me and My Big Mouth

Apache Junction, AZ

Only a little more than an hour after making my last post, we were in the Emergency Room. Jim started acting very strangely. He was acting very confused and became very belligerent. Then he’s burst into tears. Stomp up and down the steps inside the fifth wheel and throw himself on the bed. Then he’d holler at me. Very scary. I told him I was going to take him to Urgent Care to find out what was wrong with him. He refused to put his shirt on. Finally got his shirt on him and then he wouldn’t get out of the chair. (All the time he was saying “there is nothing wrong with me”.)

I called Ginny and she and Mickey came over and were able to help me get him out of the chair and into the truck. We went to Urgent Care and they told us to go to the ER just down the street. I had no idea we even had an ER that close to us. It’s new within the last 2 or 3 years.

I explained how Jim was acting and they took his blood pressure which was high. Then they checked his blood sugar. It had dropped to 55. Blood sugar is considered low if it’s below 70. They immediately gave him two cups of orange juice and some cheese. His readings slowly started to rise and as they did he started acting more normal.

They kept him for a couple of hours to make sure his blood sugar wasn’t going to drop again and then let me take him home. Come to find out that he had not eaten breakfast. He got up before I did this morning and when I asked him if he had had breakfast he said he didn’t want anything to eat. I took that to mean that he had already eaten. Won’t make that assumption again.

We were supposed to meet Jan and Bill and Paul for lunch. Needless to say, we didn’t make it. Paul came out to the hospital and sat with me while we waited for Jim. After I took Jim home, Paul and I went to Los Gringos Locos for lunch.

Jim is much much better and is just really tired. He’s still fighting the cold so he’s going to take it easy. He also doesn’t remember very much about what happened.

Now I’m going to go play cribbage.

Quiet Times

Apache Junction, AZ  High 67  Low 44

Not much to blog about. Jim came down with a bad cold so we haven’t gone anywhere for several days.

I ended up with two black eyes but they are doing better today. Some of the swelling is gone but I’m still very colorful.

I did join some of the folks here in the park last night as they caroled through the park. We had a great time. None of us could really sing and we didn’t know very many songs but it’s the thought that counts.

That’s about it from our house.

My Turn

Apache Junction, AZ  High 56   Low 47

After our exhausting Wednesday we had to be up at 5:30 Thursday morning. I needed to be at the dermatologist at 7:30 for my Mohs procedure.

It went quite well. He got all the skin cancer on the first try which made me happy. The worst part of the whole procedure was when they put the numbing solution in. It really burns. But once you’re numb, you are really numb. So the only thing I could feel was some pressure when the doctor pushed down on my forehead.However, they forgot to tell me they gave me a black eye.

Took about three hours and I was out of there. Met up with Paul for lunch at Native New Yorker.

Paul was having his motorcycle serviced and after lunch he came over to the house and we visited until his bike was ready.

Tonight my head hurts and I’m really tired. I’m going to wait until tomorrow to post this. And I’m way behind on reading blogs. Hope everything is good in your world.

A Really Long Day

Apache Junction, AZ  High 68  Low 54

Yesterday we left home at 8:50 a.m. and didn’t return home until 8:35 p.m.

Our first stop was at SMIL in Scottsdale for Jim to get a chest x-ray. From there we had some time to waste so we found a party store and wandered around.

Then it was time for Jim to have his Echocardiogram, a test that uses sound waves to create a moving picture of the heart. We haven’t heard any results on that test yet. While waiting for Jim, I really enjoyed this TV or whatever it is. It kept changing pictures – very soothing.

Ready for lunch. We went to Portillo’s for a really good hot dog. Jan and Bill introduced us to this place.  Picture from their website.

After lunch Jim had an appointment with the pulmonologist. All of these appointments were in Scottsdale so we were happy to have them all in one day.

I wish I had gotten a picture of the Christmas tree in their waiting area. It was beautiful. These are pictures I took while I was waiting for Jim to do some breathing tests.

 

Of course, I was able to sneak this one picture. Jim was not impressed.

The doctor pulled up his chest x-ray and we got to see all the way down through his lungs. Fascinating.

Those dark areas are his lungs and the oval hole is his windpipe. The white streaks are blood vessels.

Jim does have some emphysema and COPD. Not real serious but something that needs to be treated so it doesn’t get worse. He is also missing the lower left lung lobe because of the cancer surgery last year. 

The doctor gave him another medication to use along with the Spiriva. She also scheduled him for some more tests in February.

We finished up about 4:30 and had made plans to meet my sister and her hubby for dinner. Headed down to Mesa and debated about where to go for dinner – you all know how that goes. We ended up at Charleston’s. I’ve often wanted to try it and I’m glad we did. It’s a little spendy so Jim and I decided to split a chicken fried steak and Judy and Don did the same. Holy cow. They brought each a plate with the meat, mashed potatoes and honey glazed carrots. There was so much food on that “half” dinner that we couldn’t finish it all. And it was very good.

Sunset through the windshield.

After dinner we had an address that was supposed to have great Christmas lights. Wrong!! Nothing there. We headed back to drop Judy and Don off and I happened to spot a huge snowman and Jim pulled into that neighborhood. It was wonderful. Lots and lots of houses decorated with lots of lights. We even had several trucks pulling carolers through the area.

This street is the pet street in Judy’s RV park.

Definitely time to head for home.

A Surprise Gift

Apache Junction, AZ  High 79  Low 52

Friday I got a call from Jan. For those of you who have read her blog, you know that she’s had a serious infection in her voice box and wasn’t supposed to talk.

So I answered the phone and told her not to talk. But she had a gift to give me and she had to tell me about it. Our Escapees Chapter 45 had planned their Christmas party at the Arizona Opry here in Apache Junction.

Jim and I had decided not to spend the money this year. Jan and Bill had purchased their tickets and Friday night was the night. However, Jan did not feel good enough to go. So Jim and I got to attend in their place.

Thank you Jan. We had a fantastic time. I feel so bad that you weren’t able to go.

Saturday we headed over to Dianna’s house. Had some things to get done on her trailer so she’s ready to go when we leave in January.

On our trip to Tombstone last year her bumper cap had fallen off and she was dragging her sewer hose down the highway. She replaced the hose and wanted end caps that would stay in place. She found some good ones at Camping World and Jim installed them for her.

She also had a piece of trim that had come loose and Jim was able to tack it down for her.

She also bought a new generator and Jim unpacked it and made sure it would run.

I think she’s ready to go.

Monday Jim and John (our 91 year old neighbor) went fishing. Jim caught the only fish but he threw it back because it’s a lot of work to clean just one fish.

Tomorrow is a day of doctor appointments for Jim. So exciting.

Butterbean Carpenter

Many of you have had Butterbean comment on your blog and I know some of you met him in person. I just read on Nick Russell’s blog that Butterbean was killed in a traffic accident. I don’t have any other details. Just wanted to let you all know.

Random Acts of Kindness

Apache Junction, AZ  High  62  Low 39

One quick note about my Chevy lovin’ hubby. When we met he was driving a Trans Am.

picture taken from CarGurus.com

And what was I driving? Can you believe he even thought about asking me to dance?

My husband is amazing. Why I got so lucky I’ll never know but I do hope he knows how much I love and appreciate him.

Why am I going on about this today? Well, let me tell you.

We headed to my sister’s place in Mesa to pick up some medication that got sent to them by mistake (a long, horrible story) and Don had brought it down with him. Don is putting up a TV antenna so Jim jumped in to help him out.

They got the antenna up and we left Don to finishing running the necessary cable.

We decided to stop at Subway on our way home. They have a December special. Their cold cut and meatball 6” subs are only $2 a piece. We were enjoying our sandwiches when a young man (maybe in his late 20’s, early 30’s – it was hard to tell) came in. He asked for a cup so he could have a drink of water.

He sat down at a table to drink his water and Jim and I looked at each other. We both had the same thought – he’s hungry. Jim got up and went over to him and asked if we could buy him a sandwich. He just lit up and said “yes sir, thank you.” Jim got him the chips and a drink also. Then I noticed the cookies and told Jim to add some cookies to his tab. I’m so glad we did because as we left those were the first part of the meal he was eating.

His communication skills were very limited and he didn’t really make any eye contact. But his whole body showed how happy he was to have something to eat.

We don’t have much money but we certainly could afford that sandwich. Sure made my day a whole lot brighter.

After we left Subway and were headed home we drove by a box on a corner that had FREE written on it. I immediately got concerned that someone had dropped off a box of kittens or puppies and had just left them there. Jim knew I was concerned and figured out a way to get around the block and go back so I could check the box. It was just full of stuff so I could relax. But he knew that it would bother me if we didn’t go back so he went back.

I bet I drive him crazy at times. Or maybe all the time. But I’m sure glad he puts up with me.

I know that we as humans seem to think of others more at this time of year but I want to encourage each of you to be aware of those around you that might be in need. Maybe just a smile or a kind word could make their day a whole lot more worth living. Others may be hungry and need a sandwich. Maybe a Mom with some little ones could just use an extra hand to carry things. Or as Rick at Life 101 did at the doctor’s office – he took the time to listen to a stranger.

Whatever it might be. Pass on those little acts of kindness. It sure does make you feel good inside.

Christmas Lights Date Night

Apache Junction, AZ  High 67  Low 46

Last night my hubby took me on a date. We went to look at Christmas lights. There was a list in the paper that showed locations so we picked a few that were not too far from us.

Of course my pictures aren’t the greatest but here they are. These two houses had the lights synchronized to music that you could listen to on your radio.

 

I loved this yard.

This house we found by accident. The lights weren’t set to music but it was certainly incredible.

We also stopped at McDonalds for a burger from the value menu. My idea of a perfect date night.

However, there was one thing that really caught my attention. There were very few Nativity scenes. In fact, I only saw two all evening. I find this very sad since we are supposed to be celebrating the birth of our Savior. That is and should be the only purpose for Christmas.

One Time and One Time Only

Apache Junction, AZ  High 70  Low 44 – Now that’s more like it.

Monday we picked up my sister and stopped to visit Aunt Happy. From there we headed to the Mesa airport to pick up my BIL. His plane was about 45 minutes late and Don was sure glad to get here and walk out into sunshine with temperatures above zero.

He and Judy took us to Sweet Tomatoes for lunch.

This is the one time only part. Don had seen a shirt in Montana that just cracked him up and he just had to send it to Jim. One day this package arrived in the mail and this is the shirt.

Those of you who know Jim, you know that he worked for Chevy for 50 years and that a GM vehicle is the only one that will ever be in our possession. But Jim wore this shirt to pick up Don and everybody had a big laugh. The shirt will not be seen again.

Do you guys read Kevin and Ruth's blog? They are in Africa and have posted some of the most incredible pictures. I love this one they took of the zebras. You really need to check out their adventures.

Another wonderful Arizona sunset.

Past and Future Plans

Apache Junction, AZ  High 61  Low 35

Saturday I got a text from Jeri. She said something about #1 Eastern Super Buffet and I didn’t have to read any further. Said we’d meet them there at 4:00.

Jeri and I got some plans rolling for the group in Q in January. We aren’t going to be parking with that group this year because we are going to join the Montana Owner’s Club “Circle”. Should be a fun group. After the Circle, we’ll spend a day or two with the Class of 2008/2009 before we head down to Yuma

We’re actually going to Yuma on the 7th of January before we head to Q. We have dental appointments in Mexico on the 8th. I’m sure we’ll have to go back down after Q to finish up the work.

On Sunday after Church we headed down to Casa Grande for Jan and Bill's Christmas party. We had so much fun. Here are a couple of pictures that I took from her blog.

Their cowboy tree:

We had a wonderful week-end with friends. Even though it was cold and miserable, it was warm inside.

 

The Three Idiots

Apache Junction, AZ  High 53  Low 30

Just for the record, I looked at my blog for this week last year and it was in the 70’s.

I also wanted to add a note about the fish tacos – these tacos are made with a white fish and a variety of 17 different ingredients including tomato, cheese, France’s coleslaw and mango salsa. I left off the coleslaw and cheese but let me tell you that mango salsa was fabulous.

I just want you all to know how much my hubby loves me. My sister is a garage sale addict. She found a garage sale that she really wanted to go to this morning and Jim agreed that he would take her and of course I went along. We got up at 5:00 a.m. (that’s five in the morning before the sun comes up) so we could heat up the house and Jim could get the girls out before we left. The garage sale started at 6:30 and we had to be there before the crowds. It was only 31 really cold degrees.

We picked Judy up and found the garage sale at just about 6:30. This garage sale was a fundraiser for the East Valley Democratic Party. So we were expecting it to be a large affair probably in some building. Boy were we wrong. Did I mention that we drove 30 miles to get to this place?

It was at somebody’s house with no lights out on the driveway. At 6:30 in the morning it is still really dark out. They clearly did not expect anyone to show up on time because they did not have anything put out. Everything was still in boxes and bags. And there didn’t appear to be much of anything. However, my sister did find something to buy (she always does) – a small white board to hang in her kitchen for $1.

We had a great laugh and called ourselves the three idiots. We did end up having a good breakfast at U.S. Egg.

We took Judy grocery shopping and then headed home to the let the girls out. Jim had a couple of projects to work on today and we had to make a run to Lowes for supplies.

First he repaired our old surge guard. The wiring got destroyed at an RV park in Wyoming. I don’t know what Jim did but I know he was able to replace some of the wiring and we now have two surge guards.

After finishing that chore, he started to work on a generator muffler box. I have no idea what it is really called but he researched on line how to build a box to put around the generator to make it quieter.

Had to order a small box fan for it which won’t arrive til Tuesday so he’ll have to finish it later.

Tonight we are tired. Watching Jim do his projects wore me out.

One more picture. When we got to Coconuts Jim backed into a parking spot which is what he usually does. I used to get out and guide him back because he has the ball hitch on the truck but with his new back up camera (yes, he also installed one on our truck) he thinks he doesn’t need me anymore. I guess this proves that he doesn’t. This is exactly how the truck ended up in the parking spot.