The Texas heat has arrived and so far the cats are still enjoying being outside!
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I do notice that after a full day out they usually stay inside for most of the next day.
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We are not early risers but we do try to get out and water the kitchen side of the back yard.
Watering is time consuming and I encourage Louis Dean to do it as often as he can.
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My herb garden was suffering from the direct sun so Monday Louis Dean and I made a small awning from shade cloth to give it some protection. Plus we can use the shade as we water.
However, I got too hot and was down and out on Tuesday.
No Tuesday Treasues or housework or anything but staying either in the bed or in the den.
Louis Dean was lonely that day but I couldn't help it and I couldn't take care of him or myself.
I opened a can of chicken noodle soup (he can't figure out how to use the can opener) and he heated it for me.
He hovered a good bit but I honestly just wanted to be alone and rest.
I ended up watching all eight episodes of I Will Find You and it was well worth the watch and kept me entertained with all the twists and turns of the plot.
We have a new HEB right here in Irving!!
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Amber picked me up on Wednesday afternoon and we had a great time shopping and visiting together.
Amber and I were introduced to HEB back in 2011 when she and Mike lived in Katy, Texas.
Amber found a few favorites as well as our old standbys....
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She was excited to find her very favorite sugar cookies!
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Amber never comes to visit without spending time with her dad.
She has loved him since the first day she met him and he loved her and legally adopted her in 2012.
She wanted HIM to be the official and legal granddad to her children plus - more importantly - she wanted HIM to be her dad!
And so he is!!
Louis Dean had an appointment on Thursday with his cardiologist......
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Alas, an hour before we were to leave, he had an encounter with a bottle of Gorilla Glue!
He was trying to thin down a thick bottle of glue with hot water.
This did not end welll.
I took him to the appointment in his dirty overalls and soiled shirt while he was still picking flakes of Gorilla glue on the way.
As we sat in the waiting room - he kept peeling dry flakes off and left a trail through the waiting and examining rooms.
They even gave him a pair of those blue exam gloves to wear!
In spite of the circumstances - Louis Dean received a good report!
His pacemaker is working 98% of the time.
Last year it was 88%.
So it's doing its job!
We did errands on our way home and then I more or less went in a stupor.
I am constantly realizing more and more the limitations Louis Dean is experiencing.
Even simple things aren't simple anymore.
As in loading the beverage fridge in the gazebo.....
he can no longer take the trash out or follow simple instructions.
It's easier to do everything myself while still finding ways he can help and feel useful.
Opening jars and doing small repairs that require duct tape or Gorilla glue - and that's risky!
Watering is another thing he is good at and he has the patience of Job!
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Since he saves me time in watering for me, I worked in the kitchen and made a good potato salad.
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With homemade hamburgers and fresh watermelon and cantaloupe - it was Friday night's supper!
And to top it all off - a program Louis Dean is loving!!
I close with this photo of my beautiiful sister, Nita.
Monday marked her fourth year of being in heaven.
Not that there's actual 'time' in heaven.
I asked God to let her know how much I love her and that I am looking forward to seeing her before too long.
I can't imagine how hard it is to watch the decline in LD and to have to take one more tasks yourself. It must be incredibly stressful to have to watch to make sure he doesn't do anything that will hurt himself.
ReplyDeleteI just saw an add for Little House on the Prairie yesterday. I don't know if I would like it with different characters.
Still praying for you Linda. RHill, TX
ReplyDeleteI wish we had a HEB here, but I have never seen one anywhere. It must be a Texas thing. Do you have any air conditioning? I hope you will be taking it easy! Things are getting harder for me as well. I often look back in wonder at things I used to be able to do, and wonder how on earth I could do them. It seems like that was another life. I remember your posts with Nita so well. She seemed so sweet. Great news about Louis Dean!!
ReplyDeleteOh Linda, my heart goes out to you. You are such a ray of sunshine but the hard times can certainly take it's toll. I'm saying extra prayers for you and L.D. ! Please write to me if there are specific things you want me to pray for you both. I know you have prayed faithfully for me this past year. Sweet hugs, Diane
ReplyDeleteyou look great linda!! it's hard for me to imagine that you did "nothing" for a whole day!! i am not surprised ld is a helicopter husband, chuck is as well!! chuck is able to do a lot, he has had a lot of practice and he is a bit younger. i am having trouble with the heat, it wipes me out!! i'm glad ld's checkup went well, he looks good too!! thinking of sweet nina, that is a GREAT picture of her!! stay inside, even though the rest of the world loves summer and this terrible heat, i am not a fan!! oooooh and we watched, i will find you, i thought it was so good!!
ReplyDeleteHi Linda! Came across your blog from Debbie's and enjoyed reading it. You live in Irving and we live in Richardson... not many of my bloggers live close, so I had to say hello. It certainly is HOT... stay out of the heat if you can.
ReplyDeleteI know you miss Nita. You decribed her as so sweet, and her smile shows her sweetness!
ReplyDeleteYour dishes always make me hungry--they're so pretty.
I pray for you and Louis Dean---that things will get better and not worse. God bless you, my friend!
Linda, I admire your patience. Tell L.D. this is how my week went. Cooked a big pot of "not your Momma's beans" for music fellowship .Mowed my yard on Tuesday had to take two breaks. Wednesday cut two small trees out the neighbor's corner spot(could not see safely down the street) . The girl has back issues. Threw that on a tarp and pulled to the alley. Thursday go to Drs. appt. for my yearly check up. New N.P. , she said I was good to go for another year . Friday woke up at 3:00, everything was hurting, got out of bed and could not walk. Here it is Sunday and thank my Lord above for helping me get back to almost myself. I guess it was all the cutting and snipping and two hours i of hot noontime sun , did me in . Praying for all of you. Now I realize I can not stand that long in heat. So LD needs to slow down too.LOL Love you guys,xoxo, Susie
ReplyDeleteHow can I pray for you this week
ReplyDeleteLinda, some days must be harder than others, but you manage to get through them with such a good heart and positive attitude. It is so sad when the loss anniversary of our loved ones or friends comes around.
ReplyDeleteI had no idea it had been 4 years since your sister went to heaven. I know how much you still miss her. hugs. I had a whole weekend that I did NOTHING. I laid in bed all day except for getting up to do meals and do what I had to do to help Bob. slept two hour in the am and 2 in the afternoon and 9 hours that night. on Sunday I sat or laid all day, on Monday I felt much better and back to the new normal.
ReplyDeleteburgers, potato salad and melon
ReplyDeletewould definitely hit the spot.
I love this post, so full of blessings and joys even in the midst of difficulties and sorrows. God's love still shines through you to us, and we are blessed. (((HUGS))) for you as you still grieve the loss of your precious sister Nita. Grief is not something we can just turn off and on at will. It has a mind of its own and it sneaks up on us when we least expect it. I do understand, and no, you will never forget your precious little sister. I loved seeing you and your beautiful daughter shopping together. What a joy that would be! What a blessing. And gorilla glue and super glue are nothing to fool around with. I've stuck my fingers together several times with super glue, and it isn't fun trying to get them apart. Now I try to remember to use plastic gloves, but then they get stuck too.But still better than my fingers. Your potato salad looks so good. That is definitely a labor of love. Your sweet kitty looks so pretty in the grass. Our kitty is staying indoors for a good part of the day during this very high heat, but then he stays out all night. I don't know what he does or where he goes, but he's always at the door waiting for his breakfast at 5:30 a.m.. His body time clock never fails. I may need to start training him to wait a little longer, but we generally get up around then anyway. However we go to bed around 9:30, so that's why. Whatever works for each one. I enjoyed this post, and I pray you will stay strong. God is with you.
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