Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas! We hope that everyone enjoyed their Christmas Day and that they are looking forward to 2009! We had a wonderful day of being at home here in Palm Bay and being able to relax and do things at our leisure! We enjoyed our new game of Caboo, watched some new DVDs and had some time to read! It was fantastic to have some time to be just the boys and myself! We hope that your time with family and friends was a memorable one! May you all be blessed and prosperous this coming year!

Adam Has Done It Again!!!

Good job, Adam! He received another Character Achievement Award for his 1st grade class from his new principal, Mrs. Bobersky! He sure looks proud with that medal around his neck! His Mama and big brother, Alec, were there in the crowd beaming just as brightly! Full of pride! Way to go, big guy!

Summer Days

WOW!!! Where has the time gone?? We are in my favorite time of year...SUMMER!!! That means days filled with free movies, the local aquatic center, reading, visiting friends and family, the beach and vacations!! And we have done them all! We were supposed to go to Houston to go to one of the top 10 water parks in the US with my brother, Steve, and his family in early June...well, Adam's ear put the cabosh on that trip with another infection and an adamant MD stating that there can be NO water in the ear. Even with the plugs (which tend to fall out as one whizzes down water slides), I did not want to take a chance to have the infection worsen because this was how he lost his last eardrum...so we shortened our vacation and went away to Stone Mountain, GA for 4 days.

It was fun! We spent our days at Stone Mountain (awesome firework and laser show every night), the Atlanta Aquarium (some beautiful Beluga whales there) and then to Six Flags Over Georgia (LOADS of roller coasters-we all went on one, but Alec was the brave one who went on 2...Adam and I watched). It was fun and the drive was not so bad...I dropped them off at Dave's on the way home for 10 days and then came home to a house that was recently covered in plastic and all in an uproar! I had the ceilings retextured in my absence and boy and I glad I was alone and the boys were not at home...took me the ten days to get the house back in order, but it was worth it!!!!

I then picked the boys up on the way to Lutz to spend 4 days with my Dad and his wife, Marsha. I was going to expose my boys to their first MLB game between the Tampa Bay Rays and my beloved Boston Red Sox! Since we were a house divided (I was the only Red Sox fan) I made 2 posters to bring with us and with the help of my sister-in-law's brother, we made it on national TV! What a hoot! Unfortunately my Sox were swept, but it was a great game and a super series! The boys were like fish and were in the pool at Pop-Pop's and Nana's most of the time. Their best thing was to use the supersoaker water guns and blast their grandfather! Great memories!

The remainder of our days here have been working (have to fund these fun trips and vacations somehow), enjoying the 4th of July with friends, going to the library and the beach and seeing some of the fun summer movies that are out.

I hope that you and your families are having as wonderful a summer as we are. I can hardly believe that school will be back in session in a month...

New Haircuts

Well, I thought it was time that I was able to see the big, brown, beautiful eyes of my two boys again...so off to the barber's for a Spring haircut! Adam's only criteria was that he was able to spike his hair. He received his wish! He now thinks that he is COOL! He says that all he needs now is a new, cool jacket and some new, cool shoes to complete his look! I told him not to hold his breath!
Alec, on the other hand, just wanted to look handsome for his current hearthrob, Izzy, a young girl in his class that he is gaga over! Isn't he to young for all this boy/girl stuff? He is only 8! I received the "baby question" the other night while stirring a pot of spaghetti with him. I think I handled it well and answered his questions without divulging to much information. I do not remember even thinking of such things at his age...but that was a different time!
Mom is doing well and continues to recuperate. She is now in a total knee class and goes to physical therapy 3 times a week. She has started in the regular part of the fitness center for some of her exercises and she states that she is enjoying it, but that she is tired after it is all done. She has driven once...was going to go through the garage door until I prompted her to please put the car in reverse and not drive in order to back out of the driveway!! Otherwise, she did well! We will be going to my nephew's birthday party over in Clearwater next weekend and then the following weekend is her expected date of permenant residence back in Tarpon Springs. That will make 3 months away and I know that she is anxious to see her friends again.
So hope the weekend is a lovely one for all and drop a note or comment...would love to hear from all of you!

Adam's Awards

Go Adam, go Adam, go Adam, go, go, go!!! Well, he did it!!! He has been working VERY hard for the last semester in school to make it to the stage to receive a Character Achievement Award and he did it this semester!!! He is pictured here with the principal receiving his medallion! He is SOOO proud!! Dad, Mom and brother, Alec, are proud too! Adam knew he was receiving the award last week when he brought home the letter, along with his Honor Roll report card, that stated the ceremony was to be tonight. Well, he was so excited that he was running around the corner of the lawn screaming, "Mom, I got it, I got it!!" He is currently sleeping with the medallion on his bedpost and the certificate tucked into the corner of a frame near his bed where he can see it when he lies on his side! What satisfaction! The other photo is him in all his glory! I think the part he loves the best though is the certificate for free ice cream in the cafeteria! The simple pleasures in life! Enjoy them all why you can!

Ready for a marathon...not quite, but getting there

The Mom update for the last few weeks of March...she has graduated from Home Care and is now beginning Out-patient Physical Therapy! Her initial therapist is a 74 year old man!! She says that it is bad when the PT treating you is having a harder time moving than the patient is!!
Beginning tomorrow, she is joining a knee class at therapy and the PT in charge of the class (a younger one than her original) said she is going to put some of those patients to shame!! She is doing that well!! To quote her..."Imagine me...being the top of the class in anything athletic." I tried to tell her that I would not count PT sessions as athletic, but that they were physical. She was happy enough with that statement.
She walks around the house without her cane and made it today around the block!! She anticipates returning to her home the first weekend in May! So get ready you West coast family and friends...she'll be coming home!!!

Spring Has Sprung...

Q: When can you tell it is Springtime in Florida?
A: With the return of the chimes of the ice cream truck!

As you can see Alec, Adam and our neighbor, my "third son", Donovan, are enjoying the rewards of Springtime...ice cream in the fort! The Moreys have been throughly enjoying the Florida springtime weather with walks and bike rides after dinner and I have been working on readying the front yard for new landscaping! What a long project that is, but it will be SO worth it once the flowers are blooming and the herbs are smelling divine! Even the community pool is open and it has been hot enough to partake of the cooling waters! The boys LOVE that!

We hope that wherever you are you are able to relish this special time of year and enjoy some family time together!

She's Walking Down the Street...She's Moving...Yes, Indeed.

Well, she has made it out of the house, down the street to the STOP sign and back again two times today! Look how straight those legs are! She'll be getting some whistles now when she walks past those construction workers! Great progress!

Don't let her fool you, though, she LOVES being in
those machines! Bending and straightening, bending and straightening...she says when she is not in them she can still feel her body moving like she is still attached to them! Gaining every day...you go, girl!! We are proud of you!

Home and Recovering

Well, Mom is back at the homefront and doing exceptionally well! She is fatigued (who wouldn't be after 2 major surgeries in 2 weeks), but the knees are coming along great! She had the staples removed from her right knee today and the incision is healing nicely. She is using her walker and her CPM contraptions and being a compliant patient. Alec even helped rig her up in the CPMs and is quite fascinated by the machines. Neither one of the boys are to interested in looking at the incisions though...they politely say, "No, thank you" when asked if they would like to see them. Tomorrow she graduates to walking outside with the physical therapist (a different one than me)! She does admit to being a bit cranky at times...we can live with that! And I think the meds are affecting her memory...the stories I tend to overhear are not as accurate as what really happened...chock it up to good drugs! Overall, great progress!
I started back at work today for a few hours...enough to let her have some freedom and expand what she can do on her own because she is here alone and HAS to do it, but not so long that she would have to be here alone with the boys once they are out of school. She is not quite ready for that yet!
Thank all of you who have continued to call and check on her to see how she is doing. It helps her spirits to know that you care, especially since she is not in her own home. We are childless this weekend since the boys will be with Dave, so maybe we can venture outside and hit a movie or something! Will have to see what she feels up to doing! Thanks again all; will continue the updates.

Second One Down...Home Soon

Well, Mom had the second knee replaced yesterday and she is now taller than before and has 2, count them...1, 2 straight legs! She had a more difficult post-operative period this time due to increased pain, but once that was under control, she has been doing well. She was out of bed, bathed and walked in the hallway today! Not bad for the first day!! She sure looks funny all rigged into the CPM (Constant Passive Motion) machines with each leg moving like she is riding a bicycle, but it helps alleviate some discomfort and she can rest fairly comfortably in them. The fatigue is the biggest factor at this point. She feels like has "climbed Mount Masuveous" with the smallest amount of activity. We have had some good laughs and overall, I think she has done better than she expected. She is a model patient and in her words,"I do not think I have angered any of the nurses". You know she is getting better when the doctor tells me that she is telling him how to do his job! So she will continue to be in the hospital until Friday or Saturday and then return here to my home for her continued rehabilitative recovery and some TLC! Thanks for all the prayers and phone calls. I know they have helped to brighten her day and lessen her feelings of isolation. You are all the best!

Hospital happenings...

Mom is doing splendid! She has been able to get herself to the bathroom and get washed up each morning since Thursday on her own! She is having relatively little pain (she says less than what she anticipated) and her knee is moving well. She had her post-operative dressing removed today and the surgeon stated that everything looked fine. Her blood pressure on the other hand, has stayed elevated and her medical doctor has started her on some blood pressure medications. We will pray that it decreases! She is mostly wiped out from the effort it takes to do simple things, but her energy will be back! Her surgery to replace the left knee is on Tuesday, so please pray that all goes well.
I took 1/2 the day on Saturday and the day today to meet my friend, Tim, in Jensen Beach! We stayed on Hutchinson Island, which I had heard wonderful things about. It is a beautiful area to relax and veg out! Good food too! We sampled some seafood at The New England Seafood Reasturant and Market and a great omelet this AM (nearly PM) at a little local hole in the wall! But yummy food! It was a nice to get away...we had attempted to go to the Art Show in Stuart, but it was SO crowded, we were unable to find parking, so we took advantage of the beautiful sunny day and drove with the Corvette's top down along the river and enjoyed the scenery and laughed! All I can say is that it is so soothing to fall asleep to the sounds of the waves crashing on the shore, we had our own natural white noise machine!
May you all have the opportunity to have a time to relax and rejuvenate!

One Down, One To Go...

Well, the first knee is complete and Mom is doing great! We made it to the hospital at 0530 this AM; she was in the OR by 0730 and in her room by 1100. She was a trooper!! Aside from some initial nausea and dizziness, which was relieved with medication and time, she is having NO pain! The constant passive motion machine that she has on her leg was running for at least 6 hours from 0-90 degrees! That is nearly FULL range of motion and definitely enough to walk! She is a good patient doing her deep breathing and wiggling her toes! THANK YOU all who have been praying that this surgery go smoothly; your prayers have been answered! Now tomorrow's goal is to sit in a chair and maybe walk a little bit. We will see how she fares.
I, on the other hand, besides, nursing Mom, am getting ready for an overnight getaway to Jensen Beach. I am meeting a friend there for a day and a half of meandering through an art show, museum excursions and relaxation! Am looking forward very much to my little getaway! Since I have not been to this area of Florida before, it will be a nice adventure for me!
Thanks again for all those praying and I will keep you up to date on Mom's progress.

Mom Has Arrived

Well, Mom made it! Thanks to Aunt Sue and Uncle Bob for bringing her here! She is settled into my spare room as it is her own, well...maybe not quite like her own since there are board games and toys on the closet shelves! But there is plenty of space for her and I hope that she is feeling comfortable.
We have made it to all the pre-operative appointments this week and luckily, she liked the internist that she will have while she is here in the hospital! She even was making the moves on him, telling him he was handsome and that is why her blood pressure was up!! He is young enough to be her son! He did not buy it for a minute! But it did offer a laugh! She will be going for the last bit of her bloodwork and EKG on Saturday and then the big day is Tuesday, the 19th for her right knee. She is wanting before and after shots, so we will see about getting those. I will be keeping you up to date on her progress and I know that she will appreciate any notes, cards and thoughts, but most of all she would covet your prayers.

Weekend Happenings

Well, the weekend is almost over and I have had a productive one of trying to finish up some house projects before the "big game" (Go Pats!) this evening, the arrival of my Mom and the return of the boys from being with Dave. Finished the touch up painting in the guest/playroom and when I went to finish the living room and opened the paint can...the paint had dried up!!! So that will get put off until I make a trip to Lowe's.

Since I have been working weekends for 4+ years, church is something that I had not been attending on a regular basis. While I was busy working, the church I used to attend had a "shake up" (to make a long story short) and the former pastor is no longer there. Have been back to visit, but it does not feel the same and I have decided that I will have to begin the search for a new church body. To be truthful, I hate looking for a new place. I like being rooted somewhere and involved, not feeling like a visitor every where. Since I have been in this area for so long, I had visited many of the churches prior to settling on my previous one in 1995! I know what you might be thinking that a lot can go on in that time and churches can be and probably are different from then and now, but it is the process, I think I do not enjoy, not so much the going to the churches. Anyway, today I tried a Methodist church that I have been driving by for years and the were having their service outside today and it was a beautiful morning! Nothing like this beautiful Florida weather to remind us why we live here and that God made a beautiful earth! I liked it and they have lots of activities for the family and children and studies where one can plug in to learn and grow. I will see how the kids like it the next time.
I am beginning the search for vacation spots for the summer for the boys and I. We are thinking of meeting my brother, Steve, and his family in TX to go to Schlitterbaum Water Park. It is one of the top 10 in the nation and Adam and Alec LOVE water parks so I am game. If anyone has some other ideas, please leave me a note. I can add it to our vacation folder! Am always looking for good ideas! Thanks for sharing in our lives!

Debut

Hello family and friends!
I have been told by a reliable source (my sister-in-law, Jessie) that this would be a good way to keep our ever expanding family and friend network in touch with the Moreys as well as a way for you to have a peek into what is happening in our lives. I am an adventurous soul and thought I would give it a try! So here is our debut!
I am usually very talkative, but am finding it hard to decide what to post and inform all of you about! It is a New Year of course and I can hardly believe that the month of January is over already!
The Moreys are getting ready for an extended visit from my mom, Judy, who has decided to finally have her 2 knees replaced. She will be here in a week and will be staying until the beginning of April. I have joked with her that if I begin to work full-time again while she is here, she will know that she is getting on my nerves!! We actually get along well and I intend to pamper her and nurse her back to health if it kills me!
The boys are thriving and received kudos on their report cards. Adam's teacher praised his improvements and both received perfect attendance awards! They have been enjoying the prescence of a 3rd "brother" in the household the last 2 weeks. Our neighbor across the street, Donovan-an 8 year old boy, has been with us since his grandfather has been hospitalized in critical condition and his grandmother has been at the hospital nearly every day. He has fit right in and I have already been asked when we were at the movies the other day, if all the boys were mine! That would not be so suspicious, but Donovan is black! I guess it just goes to show you in this day and age no one can tell who goes with who because we are all just humans! Please pray for his grandfather, Wiley, he remains on the ventilator and is having trouble being weaned and has multiple infections. I know his wife, Verna, would appreciate it.
Well, I guess my tongue was unleashed after all! I may just like this blog thing!