Update on Dad, Part 2

Well, I'm back in Elko. Dad is still in Salt Lake. Here's an update from the information we got on Monday morning:

The doctors came by on their rounds that morning. All very optimistic about stuff. The gallbladder does need to come out. But before they can do that, they need to make sure that the infection is all gone. So the plan is to preform another Endoscopy either Tuesday or Wednesday to check for infection and if the infection is all gone, they will remove the stint they put in on Sunday. From there, they will schedule the gallbladderectomy (ok, I didn't check WebMD for the proper term). There was also talk of doing an MRI either yesterday or Tuesday, but they need to inject contrast for the procedure and one of the effects of contrast is that it sometimes messes with the kidneys and Dad's kidney function is all screwed up from the gallbladder stuff. So they're hestitant to do that at this time. (Update on the kidney function: when I talked to Dad last night, he said that his urine was clear, of course, those of you who know our father know that those aren't the words he used!)

While I was still there, they needed to replace his iv. That was a very humorous half hour! It took 3 nurses to try and find a vein they could use! It came down to a nurse from the ICE unit who rocks at finding hard-to-find veins who had to bring in a portable doppler unit to find one. They were all getting frustrated by it and Dad was the calming presence to all of them! "Don't worry, take your time and do what ya gotta do." Success was finally achieved! Yeah Nurse Jason!!

He's in very good spirits and is very appreciative of all the well-wishes and thoughts and prayers that are being sent his way!! And he's got his cell phone with him, so if you'd like to give him a call, I'm sure he'd love to hear from those who have his number!

I'll keep posting update as I get them from him!

Update on Dad

On Friday Dad called the VA nurse who handles the Veteran's in Elko (we don't have a VA facility here) to schedule his next physical. He mentioned to her that he'd been constipated for 3 days but that it had finally 'passed'. He then told her that his skin and eyes were showing signs of jaundice and she recommended that he go straight to the ER in Elko because that could be a sign for a number of things - gallstones, liver problems or a strain of hepatitis. After examination, the ER doc concluded that Dad had gallstones that were blocking the bile duct and that we 'needed to get to the VA Hospital in Salt Lake City ASAP!" They coordinated his arrival at the VA with the folks in SLC and Dad and I were on the road by 8:30 pm that night (after driving to my house so I could pack a bag then back up to his house for him to pack as well). We stopped twice - once to get gas and once at a rest area to nap for about an hour. When we got into SLC we stopped to get me checked into a hotel then headed up to the VA. When I got back up to the VA in the morning, Dad was having an ultrasound to see what they could determine from that. Dad was in good spirits, his stats were good, not running a fever, blood pressure fine, etc. When the docs palpitated his abdomen, he said he was only feeling a slight tenderness where his gallbladder was and that his only complaint of pain was hunger pain since they weren't letting him eat. later that afternoon they sent him up for an MRCP which is kind of like an MRI. Sunday they would send him out for an ERCP (Endoscopic Retrograde Cholangiopancreatogram), where they would go in endoscopically to remove the stones that were blocking the plumbing. Then they would schedule him to come back to have his gallbladder removed. At one point they were just going to back off of the GI consult and go straight for his gallbladder. They then decided that they were going to do the ERCP. They do this procedure over at the University of Utah Medical Center and would transfer us over there by ambulance. At about 6 pm the ambulance showed up and we got him all loaded up. The VA sent a nurse with him, too. At about 7 pm all the players were in place - the docs, the nurse from the U, the tech, the anesthesiologist (yep, I know it's not spelled right!) They told us that once they got Dad to sleep and intubated, the procedure would be about 30 - 45 minutes. Cody, the nurse from the VA and I went to the waiting room and switched on the Olympics. At about 8:30, Cody and I started to wonder why we hadn't heard anything, so we both snuck down the hall to see if we could find anything out. We ran into the nurse who told us it was almost over and that they would be taking him to recovery shortly. At about 9 the doctor came in to talk to us. When they got the stones out of the way, they discovered that there was infection sitting behind them. That was a surprise to all of us, since he didn't present with any sign of infection at all - no fever (the last one at the VA before we left was 99.1), no nausea, no pain at the sight, and his demeanor was typical Dad the jokester). They inserted a stint that would help with the drainage of the infection that would come out at a later date. They got him moved to recovery and at about 9:30 they let Cody and I back there to see him. He was in good spirits, just a little groggy. I can't remember what time the ambulance showed back up to take us back to the VA...I rode up front in the ambulance and I jokingly asked the EMT if we were gonna run with the lights on. He said "no", but indulged me by turning them on for a brief moment. Then he said I could hit the lights if I wanted to...so I did and it made me a little giddy :). Then he asked if I wanted to turn on the siren. "I am a 43 year old woman! How would that look?!" He said to think about it....So when we pulled up to an intersection with some cars ahead and behind us I said sure, lemme turn the siren on! So he showed me which button it was and away I went! He said that was one of the cool things about his job...but the the coolest was being able to run red lights legally! I thanked him for fulfilling one of my childhood dreams! We got Dad settled back into his room and after staying with him for a bit, I went back to the motel.

I'm getting ready to head back over to the hospital now. Want to be there when the docs come see him. So where we sit right now is scheduling him to have the stint removed and having the gall bladder taken out. I will keep everyone posted with updates when I can.

Adventures in Dentures

I won't bore you or gross you out with details, but mouth issues have resulted in me getting dentures. It's a process I started on in 2005, but then the process was waylaid by vehicle issues. I went this past Friday to finish it all. 2 hours after entering the dentists chair, I was out and about with a new smile.

Ok, so I can't smile right now, but I will one day soon!

Right now, it's getting used to these things. Learning things all over again...eating, talking, swallowing...tried to whistle just now, couldn't. So for the time being, it's pudding, mashed potatoes, yogurt and jello (not that I'm complaining!). I tried to eat some bread w/butter last night, yeah, didn't work out so well. And when I took my first sip of coffee yesterday morning, I ended up wearing most of it, haha. Good luck to me...

And other updates:

Do you remember the pictures I posted of the raised bed Jeff and I built? And all the yummy vegetables I was going to plant? Didn't happen. When we replanted the veggies in the bed, we didn't realize it was still too early, so we lost them all. There's always next year...

One of the neighborhood strays apparently got under our house and had a litter of kittens. The cats kept hanging out at the heater vents (couple of times they pulled the vent out of the floor), we figured they were cold. Then the other day, Jeff heard a kitten meow, turned around and all of our cats were circled around the vent in the dining room. He looked down the vent and a little fuzzy orange face was peering up at him. Last night we were able to coax him out of the vent. he was so cute and fuzzy and purred so sweetly. Not sweet enough for us! We called Jeff's brother Beaux, told him about the kitten, he said bring him over. So Jesse took the kitten across the street to Beaux, whom the kitten did purr sweetly enough for! So the kitten has a new home! Yippee!

The breakfast we had for the balloon festival was a hit. And all my food came out great.

Other than that, it's been business as usual here at the casa.

Spaghetti for Dan

About 2 years ago, one of the guys from work, Dan, fixed a problem I was having on my computer. I told him I would make him homemade spaghetti as payment.

Have I told you I'm a procrastinator? I think I've mentioned that before...

Well, I procrastinated.

Until now.

Dan's last day is Wednesday, so I thought I'd better get on it. I was going to come home from work on Tuesday night and get it going. I got all the ingredients Saturday, I was on the ball!!

I didn't go to work today (Tuesday). I spent the morning in the dentist's chair of pain having a tooth pulled. Ok, I was only in the dreaded chair for about 10 minutes. It took longer to give me the novacaine than it did to pull the tooth. I went home and took a long nap and when I woke up I didn't feel like doing anything, let alone cook. But I had made a promise to Dan last week that I would definetly make him spaghetti and I couldn't go back on my word, especially after putting it off for two years!

Browned 1 lb. ground beef with 2 chopped yellow onion and a gazillion cloves of garlic (ok, 4). Added that to a big can of crushed tomato, 2 med cans of tomato sauce, some tomato paste. Toss in some dried parsley, some thyme, basil and brown sugar. Brown sugar? Huh? It cuts some of the acidity of the tomato. Normally I would add raisins instead of the brown sugar, but most people say "ewww" when I tell them I put raisins in my sauce. Then I browned some Italian Sausage and threw that in too, along with a splash of Shiraz wine that was sitting around. I'll simmer it through the evening and turn it back on tomorrow morning while I boil the noodles. Then off to work I'll go with it!

Good luck to Dan in his new venture!!

Stay tuned cuz next week I'll be blogging about the breakfast I'm throwing for some family members during the Ruby Mtn Balloon Festival! We'll watch the balloons launch on Sunday morning while feasting on frittata, fried taters, muffins, apple skillet cake, scrambled eggs and bacon. Those last two items courtesy of Jeff for those who might not want frittata. Coffee, hot cocoa, spiced cider....

Thankful

Shauna & I sat outside last night as the sun was going down. We had the new patio set all put together and were sitting at it enjoying the cool breeze and the quiet and we both proclaimed how lucky we were to live in Rural Nevada.

The sky was an inky blue, thanks to a late afternoon storm that passed over us. And the clouds...it looked as though a painter had bounced over the sky with a brush dipped in white paint, then muddled it with a pale gray. There were just a few stars in the sky, the rest wouldn't be showing themselves for a little while. The moon was a thin bright white crescent. The setting sun was casting it's orange-red glow along the Ruby Mountains, turning them a brilliant deep dark red.

The only noise was the laughter of kids playing down the street mixed with the whinnies (sp?) from neighbohood horses and Gunner from next door barking at a bird that dared to sit atop his kennel.

All mixed together, it makes for a peaceful existence. And one that I am thankful for everyday.

I get to drive to work every morning and see cattle grazing in fields green with sage and tall grass. And every once in a while, I am lucky enough to catch real cowboys and cowgirls on real horses driving cattle along the cattle path that runs next to the 'highway'. One of the horses we pass on the way to work had her foal this past week. Every morning for the past few months we've look closely to see if she's had her baby...What a nice surprise to see the cute gangly baby!

You see, Elko County is steeped in the rich tradition of ranching and farming. With names that go back to the beginnings of the area. Even with the gold mines that are hidden from view, way up in the hills, the ranchers have maintained their lands and the two have learned to coexist.

We might complain about the lack of variety as far as shopping here in Elko. We might complain that we have no Carl's Jr. But I don't miss the pollution clouding the sky, the hustle and bustle of city life nor do I miss tall buildings obscuring my views.

Yes, sometimes I miss the smell of the sea air wafting over the Redwood trees of my hometown in California. And living in a house that's surrounded by the mighty giants of trees. But when I get a hankerin' for the smell of redwood, I head to Home Depot and stand in front of the redwood planks and take deep breaths. And when I long for the smells of the beach, I open up the container of sand from Capitola, CA that Jessica brought me from her vacation last year.

What are you thankful for about where you live?

Good Buy

This is the picnic table that we've been using

for the past few years.

It was left here by the previous tenants

& we just kind of took it over.

It's weather-beaten from the elements,

but still served it's purpose.

Well, OK, Jesse and his cousin Shawn were

really the only people who sat at it to eat.

It did make a good gardening bench for Shauna & me;

and the outdoor cat, Little Boy, liked to lounge on it

in the early morning hours before the sun hit it's peak.

When Shauna & I were doing the grocery shopping at Smith's

a couple weekends ago, a patio set caught our eyes.

"Wouldn't this look nice on the back porch?", said Shauna

as we plopped down in the chairs

"Yep, it would", said I, "but it's $450."

"I would even sit outside & eat at this table", said Shauna,

who is fair-skinned and overheats in the sunshine.

Then we continued on with our shopping.

Thursday morning when I pulled into the parking lot at work,

I saw that Smith's had all their patio furniture outside with

big signs screaming:

50% off!!!

Then Friday at lunch, I poked around

the selection that they had out,

but couldn't find the one that we had looked at.

When I told Shauna that they didn't have it, she said

"Just pick out one that you like."

When I went on my weekly grocery trip Saturday,

I poked around some more and found ours!

Yeah Liz!!

It went home with me.

As Jeff and his brother Beaux took

Jesse and Shawn camping that morning,

it was up to Shauna & I to put the thing together.

It took us about 2 1/2 hours,

but we kicked ass!

This is the umbrella that goes with it.

But they didn't have anymore of the bases,

so we either have to find one somewhere else

or make our own.

Here's to many a fun evening bbq'ing

and enjoying the cool nights.

Until it starts to snow again....

The Mixer Saga

For the longest time I have wanted a KitchenAid stand mixer. I yearn for one. I would give my left pinky finger for one. I would sell my nieces for one, but I don't think Jessica would like that (or maybe she would).

Enter my dear friend Pioneer Woman. Ok, so I've never met her, I just read her blog(s). PDub has been holding giveway contests where the prize is a...

wait for it...

KitchenAid Artisan stand mixer!

Oh joy! I have a chance to win one!!

This week, she gave away this one:

But I didn't win. And I have a theory on that.

KitchenAid is against me due to an incident from the 70's involving a certain white KA mixer,

my sister Stephanie and myself.

We were two kids with nothing to do. For some reason we took the aforementioned mixer down to the carport where we had previously gotten white paint on one of the workbenches. I don't know which of us did it, but the mixer ended up sitting in a glob of paint and forgotten for a few hours. The paint dried to the bottom of the mixer. The parents were not happy with us, but Momma still used the mixer.

So I guess I am doomed to life without this:

But a girl can dream....