Thanksgiving 2010

Thanksgiving Day is a time to thank God for our many blessings.   I've been sharing this meal with Ed's family since about 1998 and enjoy it more now because I know every one.

Christine and Richard Barkett were our hosts.  Richard is a brother to Ray, who is Ed's brother-in-law.

Richard made two turkeys this year!  One was a Memphis rub and the other a veggie stuffed recipe from the food channel (or something like that).  Both were delicious.

Steve Angelil, Ed's son, preserving the hosts and their turkeys.

Uncle Ray and Lorraine Angelil solve the problems of the world.

Richard makes sure everyone has something to drink.

Ray, Olivia,Nicole and Steve

Lorraine & Kay Angelil and Taylor

Kids Concentrate on Computer Games

Sean (Ed's grandson), Keaton, and Olivia

Katie Barkett and her fiancé, Michael Caysido.

Ray Barkett and Cameron Petrie, his son-in-law

Paul Barkett, Ed's nephew

It's always good to have supervision and advice.

The Siblings -- Ed, Lorraine, George

Michael Caysido and Chopin

Dana Barkett shares some songs.

Ed and MaryMay Angelil are thankful for so many blessings this year!

Ed's Scan & Mary's Therapy

Ed was diagnosed with lung cancer and was given a very grave prognosis.  Not only did he outlive the "3 to 6 months" prediction, he's still going strong after two years.  He had a scan this week.  His oncologist in West Palm Beach got the results and said there is no significant change.  Ed was delighted to hear that the doctor doesn't need to see him at this time.  His next scan will be in the spring.

Meanwhile, I went for my physical therapy evaluation.   After filling out at least a dozen detailed forms, it turned out that the therapy center was more for pain management.  So, it was back to square one.  I called another center and asked more questions this time.  They've already called my doctor in Virginia and my insurance company.  I'll be going for an evaluation the week after Thanksgiving.

Ed just came in and says he wants to go out to eat to celebrate his good scan results.  I'd better go get ready.  Byeeee for now! 

God is good!  We have a lot to be thankful for this Thanksgiving.   

Scans and Therapy

We're in "that" age group where health maintenance becomes a part of life that is a fact of life.

Ed is having a CT scan this afternoon and it should be read within 48 hours.  Then he'll go to see his oncologist in West Palm Beach.  He'll decide his next course of action -- or non-action -- based on the scan results and what the doctor says.  He really doesn't want to have chemo again.....who would?

My doctor in Virginia wrote a prescription for me to have therapy for my weak legs and jello knees. I go for my evaluation tomorrow.  You may remember from a previous post,  "I discovered that if I don't hold to a railing when going up stairs, I can NOT step up with my right leg and when I get into a car, I find myself lifting the right leg in."  

I have been refusing to help my leg when I get into the car and I can now lift it in.  I am also able to lift that right leg to cross my legs,which I couldn't do a few weeks ago.  Practicing on stairs will be a challenge because every place we go seems to be one story.   (Some people don't realize that Florida homes don't have basements because of the high water table.) 

Today is one of those lovely Florida days of about 80 degrees.  The windows are open and there's a gentle breeze.  The cats are lovin' it and so are we.

Nesting and Investing

Having a house is an investment and always involves upkeep and improvements.  We had three main things we wanted to accomplish and are coming along on all three. 

First, we used our Visa reward points and got a flat-top stove.  The old one had burners that weren't level and heated unevenly.  So far, Ed's quite pleased with the new one and since he does all the cooking in the household, it's good to keep the cook happy.

Second, we got a new kitchen sink and we're both delighted.  I do most of the clean-up and this makes the job easier.  The sink that was here was white, the two tubs were equal size, which made it hard to wash large pans, and the edges stuck up, which made it hard to clean. (Don't know if that makes sense or not but maybe the photo will help.) 

 The new faucet makes life easier, the soap dispenser is handy and we treated ourselves to an instant hot water dispenser.  And, the edge is flush with the counter so wiping the counter is way easier.
 
Our third project was to get the big tree in our front yard taken down.  When we first saw the house we said,  “Oh, we’ll have our own live oak tree.”  Little did we know what a total mess it would be.  I could sweep the driveway and in 10 minutes you’d never know I was out there.  Besides, it was really close to the house and that isn’t good in hurricane regions. 

Saturday we were out most of the day doing errands and came home to find the tree gone.  We were were glad to have missed the noise of the chainsaw.  

It took several days for the "stump" man go get here but it's finally done.  The stump grinder and the process was interesting.

 That's it for this post.  Have yourself a great day! 

Carrying the Cool Cats South

One of my friends asked if we brought the cold weather with us.  Well we brought two cool cats named Pepper and Blanche and I guess the cool weather came along too.   It was 50 degrees here this morning, which seems colder than the same temp would in Virginia -- I don't know why.

We learned a couple of things about traveling with two cats.  First, they did much better when we let them out of their carrier in the car.  I did have to be mindful to keep them away from the driver's feet but they were much happier being loose.   Second, getting a good night's sleep with two kitties doesn't happen (We stay in pet-friendly motels).  We considered putting them in the bathroom but knew they'd yowl about that.  So, they got on and off the bed, ate, ran around and did some meowing.  Oh, well, one night didn't kill us.

Our house was clean and straight, thanks to the work of my sister-in-law, Kay Angelil.  She and George even put clean sheets on the bed for us!  What a wonderful welcome.

This week was busy with getting Comcast set up so we could have internet and TV.  Ed went through a lot of hassle with two trips to Comcast.  Finally, a technician came and got everything working properly.  Now Ed's happy with his beloved High Definition for his football games. 

We are making an effort to get involved in Savanna Club activities this year.  Ed went to the Fishing Club meeting and I went to the Garden Club this week.  We also attended a presentation by the "tappettes" last evening called "Autumn in New York".  It was very entertaining and SUCH a deal for only $5. 

Stay tuned for more adventures with the Angelils!