Today is mom’s 89th birthday. She hasn’t been feeling well lately. She has a lot of pain in her back and can’t stand for very long. Since we’ve been home, we’ve taken her to the doctor’s several times to try to get to the bottom of her pain and she has another appointment next week where they might fit her with a back brace. Her family doctor said that she has severe scoliosis of the spine and the vertebrae are twisting around and causing the pain. In a recent trip to the ER we found that she has an old compression fracture in her back so that probably isn’t helping either. Since we’ve gotten back to the area, we’ve taken over mowing her lawn for her. She has about an acre of grass to mow and bouncing around on the mower was not helping her back at all so we told her we’d do it for her.
My mom has always had a green thumb and loves the flowers that she has around her house. Linda and I weeded out the front bed and mulched it really well so that the weeds won’t be so bad for her, since she can’t bend over and work in them anymore. It’s tough to see her in so much pain and not know how we can help her. 
Tomorrow she is going to the casino with my sister and we’re going to have a surprise waiting for her when she gets back. We drove by this gardening place today and stopped to look around. They had this lily that has huge, dinner plate size blossoms on it and the greatest fragrance. We bought it and a purple butterfly bush to put in an empty spot that mom has right off the deck where she can see it. She hasn’t seen many of her flowers this summer, that are out in the yard, because she’s afraid to walk out there by herself…for fear of falling. This way she can see it from the deck as it blossoms and it is loaded with blossoms !
Mom thought that a new, adjustable bed, would help her get a good night’s sleep so she bought one and the guys delivered it and set it up. I think she’s spent maybe two nights in it since she got it. It’s too hard for her to get in it and get situated where she’s comfortable so she just spends her nights in her recliner. I hope that the doctor can figure out something for her this next week that will get rid of the pain and make it easier for her to get around.
Linda and I have been busy the last few weeks. We’ve trained two different teams
since being home and they are now out, working jobs and doing great. One couple is originally from Pennsylvania and the other couple is from Texas. We love helping these teams get a great start on their new career with AGS and seeing them do well. We feel 
like proud parents that send their kids out into the world to make their way.
Today Linda had to help out at the Grand Canyon Marathon, working a water station at the first stop. I went along to help out. She volunteers with a group called Haven of Tioga County, which is a group for victims of domestic violence and sexual assault. There were 600 runners signed up for today’s race but I don’t think they all showed up. Today it was a half marathon of 13.1 miles and tomorrow is a qualifying event for the Boston marathon with about 200 people running 26.2 miles. We had to get up at 4:30 and be in Wellsboro at 6:00 a.m. but we were all done by 8:00. It was a fun morning.
I guess it’s been a while since I’ve put a post on the blog. The week of July 4th, we took the rig up to Seneca Falls for Linda’s family get together. It was great to see everyone…some I hadn’t seen some for over a year. Last summer I had gone to Terra Haute, for my organic gardening internship, and 
didn’t have a chance to see many of Linda’s family. The weather was really hot and humid the first few days we were there and then we got a break and the temps dropped back into the 70’s and was very comfortable. 
Some of her relatives only come to visit once a year so it’s a special time for all of them to get together. Lots of great memories were made this summer…..
My scars keep healing and getting better. I rub some of the bee bar, that my brother gave me, on them each day to help to soften them. In the near future I’d like to go to a massage therapist and see if she can help the numbness and nerve pain. The pain has gotten much better but just the feel of material on my underarm sometimes is really irritating….just the feeling against my skin. I want to make sure that the tissue is really healed up well before I go but I think it would be beneficial. We are staying in Mansfield, at Bucktail Camping Resort, for a while so that we can be close to mom and help her with errands and appointments. She hasn’t driven since she fell at the end of May and has had frequent doctors appointments to try and get her pain under control. Life goes on and we’re rolling along, taking what comes. We’re thankful to have time with family and enjoy life.
I apologize for the delay in getting a post on here to let everyone know what the pathology report said. Most of you heard it on Facebook but the surgeon called and said that they got all of the melanoma in my arm and the two lymph nodes were clear. Wahoo ! Tears of joy flowed from Linda and I as Dr. Nicole gave us the news. We were just pulling into our campsite from visiting mom so I was really nervous and wanted to get the car parked, not knowing what emotions I might have when I heard which side of the coin the news came down on. It was all glorious and all our prayers paid off.
I asked the doctor about the numbness I have in my armpit. It’s such a weird sensation (or lack thereof) to rub on deodorant and not feel what you’re doing. She said, “Oh yeah, I forgot to tell you that you might have some areas of permanent numbness”. Wow, that’s a big side effect to disclose. She said that most of the feeling should come back but when nerves get cut, it’s hard to tell what areas will stay numb. The numbness I can tolerate…I mean, cause well I don’t feel anything there. The part that really bugs me is the nerve pain that starts about 2” from my elbow and goes almost the whole way to my armpit. It’s been really hard to explain to Linda what it feels like so she can maybe offer up suggestions for what might make it feel better. Then one night, I thought of the perfect analogy.
When I was around 12 or 13, like most pubescent girls, I was starting to get that downy hair on my legs. While it didn’t bother me, I knew that most of the other girls in my class were shaving their legs so I thought that was something I should do. I asked my mother one day if I could start shaving my legs and she said “no”. Well, it must have been at that early age that I adopted the philosophy of “Don’t ask permission, just beg for forgiveness later” (which I’ve used extensively ever since). My mom had one of those clunky, steel razors that when you twist the handle, the razor compartment doors lifted up to reveal the blade inside. I remember being mesmerized by the action of opening and closing that thing. To a wide-eyed young girl like me, it was like gull wing doors opening on a Delorean sports car and it seemed so cool. Knowing that this was back in the early 70’s, it was not a head pivoting, contour following, aloe gel covered, triple action blade razor like we now have. One blade in a fixed, non-forgiving stainless steel instrument. Those weren’t gull wing doors on a Delorean sports car. They were more like Bilco doors on a damn root cellar. So I found myself in the bathtub and this was the day that I would take that rite of passage of clean shaven legs. With that razor in my hand, I started at my ankle and drew it, in one fell swoop, up to my knee. I wouldn’t have to worry about fuzzy legs for quite some time, because that maiming device in my hand had removed every hair follicle from my ankle to my knee. You know that pain you feel when an area of your skin has been ripped raw and is exposed to the air ? That’s what the nerve pain on the underside of my arm feels like. Linda gets it now and I think, like the numbness in my armpit, it will just take a while for it all to settle down and heal. I don’t remember my mothers reaction at learning I had disobeyed her in regards to my attempt to shave my legs. Without telling her, it was pretty evident by my raw shin. I hope that she gave me some lessons on the fine art of doing it but that was many moons ago and I really don’t recall. But I do remember what the pain felt like and now I have a modern day connection to my past. How special is that ? LOL
In other news, we are spending a lot of time at mom’s house. I took her to the doctor earlier this week, because she still has a lot of pain in her hip to knee area. They x-rayed her and nothing is chipped, broken or cracked. They gave her the usual shot she gets in her hip and she’s feeling better most days. We have to remind her to do things in small batches. If you clean the whole house in one day, chances are you’re going to feel it the next day. She is really frustrated that her body is not keeping up with what her mind wants to do. I know how she feels.
Last night Linda and I went to dinner with a group of friends that I haven’t seen in maybe 15 years. It was so great to see familiar faces (I had trouble remembering names) and catch up on what folks have been doing. They are going to try and start getting together each month so we’re hoping that we can be part of that.
We are training a new AGS team this week, here at Bucktail. Anxious to work with Tim and Cindy and get them off to a great start. Hope everyone has a great week. I know we will….every day is such a blessing when you don’t have a serious health concern hanging over your head. I feel very blessed !
Today is mom’s 89th birthday. She hasn’t been feeling well lately. She has a lot of pain in her back and can’t stand for very long. Since we’ve been home, we’ve taken her to the doctor’s several times to try to get to the bottom of her pain and she has another appointment next week where they might fit her with a back brace. Her family doctor said that she has severe scoliosis of the spine and the vertebrae are twisting around and causing the pain. In a recent trip to the ER we found that she has an old compression fracture in her back so that probably isn’t helping either. Since we’ve gotten back to the area, we’ve taken over mowing her lawn for her. She has about an acre of grass to mow and bouncing around on the mower was not helping her back at all so we told her we’d do it for her. 
Tomorrow she is going to the casino with my sister and we’re going to have a surprise waiting for her when she gets back. We drove by this gardening place today and stopped to look around. They had this lily that has huge, dinner plate size blossoms on it and the greatest fragrance. We bought it and a purple butterfly bush to put in an empty spot that mom has right off the deck where she can see it. She hasn’t seen many of her flowers this summer, that are out in the yard, because she’s afraid to walk out there by herself…for fear of falling. This way she can see it from the deck as it blossoms and it is loaded with blossoms !
since being home and they are now out, working jobs and doing great. One couple is originally from Pennsylvania and the other couple is from Texas. We love helping these teams get a great start on their new career with AGS and seeing them do well. We feel 
like proud parents that send their kids out into the world to make their way. 
Today Linda had to help out at the Grand Canyon Marathon, working a water station at the first stop. I went along to help out. She volunteers with a group called Haven of Tioga County, which is a group for victims of domestic violence and sexual assault. There were 600 runners signed up for today’s race but I don’t think they all showed up. Today it was a half marathon of 13.1 miles and tomorrow is a qualifying event for the Boston marathon with about 200 people running 26.2 miles. We had to get up at 4:30 and be in Wellsboro at 6:00 a.m. but we were all done by 8:00. It was a fun morning.
didn’t have a chance to see many of Linda’s family. The weather was really hot and humid the first few days we were there and then we got a break and the temps dropped back into the 70’s and was very comfortable. 
My scars keep healing and getting better. I rub some of the bee bar, that my brother gave me, on them each day to help to soften them. In the near future I’d like to go to a massage therapist and see if she can help the numbness and nerve pain. The pain has gotten much better but just the feel of material on my underarm sometimes is really irritating….just the feeling against my skin. I want to make sure that the tissue is really healed up well before I go but I think it would be beneficial. We are staying in Mansfield, at Bucktail Camping Resort, for a while so that we can be close to mom and help her with errands and appointments. She hasn’t driven since she fell at the end of May and has had frequent doctors appointments to try and get her pain under control. Life goes on and we’re rolling along, taking what comes. We’re thankful to have time with family and enjoy life.
