JANUARY 2019 Walker Monthly Newsletter

Hello and HAPPY NEW YEAR!

The winter so far this year in the Tennessee Mountains is mild.  You'd think it was Spring. It swings from one day to the next with freezing temperatures to nice sunny weather up in the 50's so the flu and colds are everywhere. We need a good solid freeze- hopefully not at the end of March when everything is starting to bloom- to kill germs and bugs. Meanwhile it's good to  know that the Lord is in control.

Most of December was a whirlwind trying to get the house decorated for Christmas, finish all my Christmas projects (this year I took on more than what was sensible, but what is new, huh? finishing a big painting for Annette, crocheting an afghan for Dawn, painted a large flat stone with Dwight's name on it, making matching holiday scarfs, and sewing buttons to make flowers on shirts for my granddaughters). Then getting all the presents wrapped, make up clues, and hide presents for the grand-kids. We've never spent large amounts of money on Christmas, but instead focus on having fun and making memories while opening gifts after our candle-lit supper. 

 Since Katie is learning to read and knows her colors I used colored dots for each room her present was hid in where she had to find the matching dot in that room. For my grandsons I made up a code they had to decipher to find out where their presents were. Annette turned sixteen so I put her with the adults. The last couple of years I've been wrapping up their presents with the names inside where they have to try and guess what present is theirs, but decided to shake things up a bit more. With Annette there was two guys and two girls so I put them in teams guys against the girls. Not only did I mix up the wrapping paper, but if they got a present from the opposing team they would lose a point instead of gaining one. I allowed them to feel and hold a present with the stipulation if they made a hole in the paper they had to take it. Things got real exciting when the girls started losing points. Gifts were pawed through, shook, and squeezed until the ribbons and bows were coming loose and falling off. Even the kids got involved giving advice as points were gained and lost. The guys finally won. As usual our family time together was too short, but oodles of memories were made.

I mucked out the henhouse (5 wheelbarrows full that I put on my flower beds), put down fresh straw and refilled the nests, and then another day filled up a large garbage can 5 times with leaves that I spread around in the chicken yard.  The hens were quite excited- you should have heard all the clucking and scratching going on. It was quite the hen party. I'm keeping water in the heated bowls as well. It's well worth pampering the girls as they produce such lovely fat brown eggs each day.

Another day I was out enjoying the warmer weather as I planted some bulbs for spring. Then I did something I’ve wanted to do for a couple of years now. I spray painted some snowbush blooms I had dried a light blue, dabbed some silver metallic paint on some of my money plant dried blooms and with some of the regular whitish blooms made up a winter bouquet. I thought it turned out quite lovely. Who says you can’t have flowers in the winter?

To start out the New Year I had to take Dana back to the hospital again where he was kept for a week in the psych ward as he needed some of his meds adjusted again. Dawn and Annette came and met me at the hospital parking lot the next day and took me back home with them. I hadn’t been able to visit them for over two years. It was thrilling to see what all they had done to their house that is almost finished getting completely remolded, get acquainted with their goats, chickens, ducks, new cat, and dogs.  I called the hospital twice a day to keep informed and in touch with Dana and for the first couple of days felt a bit lost not having to keep up with all of his meds, insulin shots, oxygen, etc. It was so wonderful to be able to spend more time with the grand-kids and see Dawn’s Christmas decorations. Dawn and her family totally spoiled me. What fun cuddling on the couch crocheting with Katie (she is now doing a double crochet stitch) and working with Annette on her afghan! I was able to go with Dawn to church Sunday morning to worship and see some folk I hadn’t seen in quite awhile. It also was neat getting to visit with Judy (the other Mamma) that lives down the road and is like an older sister. By the time I left to come back and pick up Dana, I was quite rested up and feeling more like myself.

Just what I needed as since then life has been quite fast paced getting back into Dana’s schedule again, spending a morning with the home health nurse going over all his meds and hospital notes, updating his meds, putting cream on Dana neck a couple times a day that got stiff in the hospital, taking his blood pressure a couple times a day trying to run down why it was raised more than normal the first three days in the hospital, and keeping an eye on Dana’s increased fluid. I took Dana to the primary doctor for a visit, got him rescheduled to see the cardiologist, and then visited the lung specialist where now he not only needs to have three breathing treatments a day, but also use a spirometer and inhaler to try and see if this won’t help increase his oxygen level. Some days I feel like I am running a hospital with myself the only staff member. Dana’s dementia is also worsening.  He will get confused and forget what he was trying to say.  At Christmas he had to keep asking what his grandchildren’s names were. One day when Dana was trying to read a verse in the Bible- one he had quoted by memory for years- it was like hearing someone just starting to learn to read. Seeing his brilliant mind deteriorate is heartbreaking.

I’m thankful for all the prayer support you have given us. It means so much. How wonderful to know that when things around us change, God never changes and He is our sure foundation.

Until next month-

Dorcas

DECEMBER Walker Christmas Newsletter

Hello! 

Here we are once again at the end of another year. How the weeks and months whiz by. God has certainly been good to us through all the up's (a spot here in the Tennessee mountains that we can call home, full pantry & freezer, fresh brown eggs from the chickens, new hen house close to the back door, caring home health nurse & physical therapist that sees Dana weekly, children and grandchildren only a phone call away and always ready to help, wonderful pastor and church family, and a host of wonderful friends like you) and down's (Dana's two hospital episodes- in the spring when I was battling a flare-up of my RA- and later in July, three falls that thankfully didn't result in any broken bones, tick bites, black bears invading our property, another mini stroke that set Dana back, rat infestation in the hen house, having a wreck where no one got hurt, prolonged mouth bleeding from a pulled tooth, and Dwight's internal chronic back muscle bleed that continues to flare up) of life. Just skimming through my journal of the past months is enough to make me dizzy. I'm so glad that God is always by our side as we never know what another day will bring. Having the confidence of God's faithfulness in the past we can face what lies ahead in the future.

Halfway through November, we took Dana to the lung specialist, who was quite concerned about Dana's low oxygen level despite being on oxygen. She set up tests to rule out blood clots. So the day before Thanksgiving (the very day Dawn and her family were coming that evening) I had to run Dana back down to Cookeville for scans at two different places. They were able to do two of the tests, but couldn't do the third as they were unable to get access in a vein.  Dana's increased weight and fluid is making it difficult to do any blood work on him. Dawn brought lots of food with her- Randy smoked a turkey- and with all the baking I had done the day before we had a loaded table for Thanksgiving. What a joy having everyone gather around our table once again.

The next two days were a whirlwind as Randy, Dawn, Dwight, Annette, and William built a new pen and fixed up the small barn/shed turning it into a hen house. Saturday morning they moved all the hens in their new place.  While 6-year-old Katie Dawn babysat Grandma everyone else was a buzz of activity. I mainly stayed out of the way and kept food going. At one point, William was up on the roof sweeping it and clearing out the gutters as Annette ran back and forth to town on errands. What a joy to have Katie beside me helping gather eggs, learning to crochet, and baking cookies!

Winter has arrived here on the mountain with freezing temperatures, biting winds, and snow flurries that dust the ground. I stay busy keeping the wood stoves going- nothing like a cozy crackling fire to warm the bones- and making pots of soup to nourish the body.

Our wish for you in the coming New Year is for God's presence to daily surround you with the assurance of His everlasting arms to hold, guide, and strengthen you.

Dorcas and Family

MERRY CHRISTMAS and a HAPPY NEW YEAR!

November Walker Newsletter

Hello!

Before the first frost came, I brought all my hanging plants and pots back inside. I even bring in my two window box containers and keep them indoors over the winter in my sunroom. That way I don't have to start from scratch each year and I still have lots of green and booms to tide me over when the snow is blowing outside. I cleared my enclosed garden path around the goldfish pond that each year keeps trying to get overgrown as well as digging up some blackberries that also love to stray from their spot beside the garden. The leaves changed color so quickly this year and now most have fallen to the ground.  With the colder temperatures, I'm busy keeping my wood stoves going, raking out ashes each day, and carrying in wood. I'm so thankful that although I shall turn 60 in a couple of weeks, I'm still able to keep things going. Ever since Dwight had the long internal shoulder/back bleed, I've been hauling- or rather dragging and grunting- 50 lb bags of feed as well each week for the animals. I have turned into quite the farm girl.

Dana's oxygen levels remain low despite oxygen so he is weaker and more unstable. The other week I took Dana to see a new neurologist that we had waited to get in for six months. We would have arrived early as planned, but just before we left when Dana put on the smaller oxygen tank he realized it was almost out. That took him almost ten minutes to get changed out. Then it was raining so I didn't go at top speed, but still would have made it in good time. Lo and behold if the directions I copied off the internet wasn't correct and I turned in the wrong direction. I stopped to ask directions so by the time we finally got to the doctor's office we were running late. And of course it takes Dana five minutes or so just to get in or out of the vehicle while I get his roll-aider out of the back. When we got up to the desk to check in we were informed that the specialist wouldn’t see us because we were ten minutes late!!! Can you imagine? I had gotten up at 6:30 am and drove over an hour to get there. While I explained the circumstances to the lady at the desk- she went back and then said that the doctor had already left- a couple minutes later didn’t we see the specialist himself come in, get keys, and leave? We waited over an hour to see if the next two appointments would show up. They did so we drove back home after the clerk profusely apologized saying she would try and work us in as soon as possible. After three weeks, I took Dana to the local doctor, who couldn’t believe what had happened either and is working to get us another neurologist. Such a crazy time!

            Then I had an episode with a new dentist. I had two bad teeth that needed pulled right beside each other. Going to the dentist always stresses me out big time as I hate getting all those shots to numb you so I only go when things get desperate. When I arrived my blood pressure was real high so I had to wait. Thankfully my blood pressure came down enough the dentist could start. Halfway through pulling one tooth, he stopped and asked if I was on blood thinners, which I’m not. When the dentist finally got the tooth out he said he couldn’t understand why I was bleeding so much. Here I am with the whole side of my face numb and my mouth swelled up trying to tell him not to worry as I bleed more since I was a hemophilia carrier. When the dentist finally understood the word hemophilia he started freaking out. I had put it down, but somehow it never got put on the computer. He stopped and refused to pull my other tooth because he said I had lost too much blood- more than he had ever seen- while I begged him to yank it out while my mouth was already numb dreading the thought of having to make another trip. They really packed my mouth with gauze before I left. By the time I got back home after driving an hour I was feeling quite weak.  I ended up hardly able to get around for about a week or two. Slowly but surely my strength has returned again, although I still get worn out more quickly.  A couple years before when I had a tooth pulled I lost quite a lot of blood and they sewed it shut before I left. So it looks like I may need to get on a clotting pill before getting any more teeth pulled again either due to my blood pressure or my clotting level going wacky. Isn’t life grand? If it’s not one thing you can be sure it will be something else.

            My daughter and family will be coming to my house this year for Thanksgiving. I am so looking forward to having my family all here again for a couple of days. Now if I can just get some house cleaning done between doing up menus and baking- what fun!

            While I count my blessing, I pray you will have a blessed Thanksgiving season on your end as well.

            Till later~

dorcas

OCTOBER WALKER NEWSLETTER

Hello!

Frosty mornings have arrived here in the Tennessee Mountains and soon all the leaves will change color. It is the weather for jackets and sweaters; also boots as we've had some more rainy days. I've picked the last of the garden tomatoes- even the green ones before the frost hit- to ripen on my kitchen windowsill and brought all the house plants indoors.  One day I harvested a big batch of lemon mint that I dried and use for tea.

My daughter loves autumn- personally I'll take spring any day when everything comes alive instead of dying.  As the temperature drops I have more increased bone pain, which slows me down more than I like. I do enjoy seeing and smelling the wood smoke curling up in the air and sitting beside a warm crackling fire in the wood stove when the weather is bad.

As the squirrels race around storing nuts for winter (and eating my bird seed) I too am trying to scurry around and get outdoor chores completed before it gets too cold. I've been transplanting raspberries, mums, ferns & hostas and doing some last minute outdoor painting a hunter green color on my clothesline poles, backyard swing, and backyard pots. That way I'll still have some green showing when everything is gone. One week I went around cutting sprouts growing on the trees- that should have been done months ago (just don't tell anyone)- and picking up branches all around the house to tidy things up. I even went over to Dwight's apartment in town one morning and weeded out the small space beside his door that nothing had been done to since he moved in and to me was a terrible eyesore (after all he is my son) putting in iris, lilies, mums- that I got from my flower beds- and daffodil bulbs that will come up and bloom all own their own. When I told Dwight what I was going to do, he smiled and shook his head at me. I'm sure Dwight has some hidden "green thumb" genes somewhere inherited like his sister and mother, who go crazy over plants. What a mother won't do- ha!

This past Sunday, Dana was able to make it to church finally for the homecoming after not being at church for over three months. Since his last mini stroke, Dana's oxygen stays low, it is harder for him to get around, and he has had a couple of seizures again. Then to make life interesting, his insurance decided not to pay for his increased prescription of insulin. Can you imagine??? So we were busy on the phone with the pharmacists, who gave us four boxes of insulin to tide us over while he and the doctor dithered around with the insurance company. Thankfully after a week they agreed to pay for Dana’s insulin. It should be outlawed that an insurance company can up and quit paying for something a person needs to live without warning. Such is life!

Then I had a scary experience heading to town one rainy morning. I had a wreck- something that never had happened to me before in almost 60 years. My vehicle went into a skid around a curve on a side road. Thankfully no one was coming, I missed a pole at the last minute my vehicle flipped around, I skidded backwards over a ditch, and landed on a wire fence that kept me from flipping over while I prayed and hung on. I had to climb out and over the passenger’s side to get out. The cop said it was a bad morning as another girl on a curve completely flipped her car down an embankment. I called Dwight, who was able to pull the Durango out with his pickup. I was quite shaken. Dwight told me to go back home and he would pick up whatever I needed in town. I was very thankful to pull back into my own driveway again in one piece. The next couple of days I had to increase my pain meds. Needless to say I’m avoiding that side road, whose curves are bad for wrecks, and driving extra slow when it rains.

The next week I took Dana down another very curvy road to see a specialist. The very next day when I went into town at the first stop a fellow told me I had a flat tire. To my shock the tire that had slid into the bank/fence was completely flat and sitting on the rim.  So I called Dwight again and was able to air the tire up enough to get me to the shop. Like the fellows thought mud had gotten in-between the rim and tire causing a slow leak. I had noticed that morning that my blinkers weren’t working so asked Dwight to check them for me as well. Lo and behold if not only my blinkers, but the brake light was out. The guys spent a couple of hours trying to run down what was causing the problem while I kept tabs on Dana via the phone. I left with all the lights working feeling quite grateful that on the day before the Lord had watched over me when I drove long distance keeping my tire aired up and the lights working. I’m so thankful to have a Heavenly Father watching over me!  What would we do without the Lord???

Oh yes, Dawn and her family came up for quick visit one weekend and along with Dwight and our two neighbors, with two chain saws going full steam and our log splitter three large trees and a smaller one was cut down, split up, and stacked in one day to clear space for the new chicken yard! Everyone was busy as bees- even the grand-kids. Six-year-old Katie Dawn helped me in the kitchen, gather eggs from the chickens, and run water and snacks to everyone else busy with the trees. What fun having the little Miss beside me for the day.

And did I tell you about sweet Princess (the only chick that survived from the batch of chicks hatched out this year) that I was sure was a hen, has turned into a rooster? Life stays crazy here on the farm. Well I need to close and get this out in the mail before another month goes by.

dorcas