Busy Days, a New Computer, and a Card to Share

My dear hubby started physical therapy at the beginning of the month.  He has been dealing with chronic sciatica since summer; he had an MRI in August, and although the results indicated no damage from his Myeloma, (which is known to eat holes in the bones), they did show some disk problems, and slight impingement of the sciatic nerve, and depending on which of Phil's doctors we spoke to, generated different opinions as to the severity of the problem.  Ultimately, we heeded the advice of Phil's oncologist and saw a spinal surgeon in January, and of all her recommendations, pursuing physical therapy seemed the best option since it wasn't invasive or likely to add to his fatigue.  So between February 4 and 18, we have had five appointments, the first of which was in the middle of a bad snowstorm!  Phil has made remarkable progress according to his therapist is now down to once-a-week visits, and his pain level is significantly reduced.  There are no promises of being pain free, and he will have good days and bad, but to be able to walk for longer than a couple minutes without tremendous pain is a huge improvement.

Then on February 7th, my daughter, Sarah, started a full time nanny job, so I have been trying to help with some of the household errands she normally does.  Because of my own physical problems - fibromyalgia and a badly arthritic knee - and accompanying Phil to his appointments, this has been very tiring for me.  It's definitely a period of adjustment for all of us.

In my last entry of January 31, I said that my computer was continuing to act up, and we decided that the most likely problem was either an imminent hard drive failure, or something with the motherboard.  Because of the cost involved in fixing either of those,  I started researching new laptops and scouring the sale ads each week, hoping to find one that was highly rated but still affordable.  I did - and both Phil and I are the new owners of Toshiba Satellite laptops from Best Buy.  Well, sort of.  We took advantage of their free 18-month financing, since we didn't have the cash on hand, but knew we could pay them off in the allotted time.  This new machine is incredibly fast, and although I don't  like Windows 7, I am learning to live with it.

I have a card to share with you, although I didn't make it.  Anthony has discovered the joy of card making, and we are thrilled that he is using our many tools and putting his own spin on cards.  He made this lovely card for his mom, and it's the first one he created.  I whited out the verse he wrote when I edited the pictures since it was personal.  Didn't he do a great job? 

 

 

What!? No Crafting?!

I haven't been doing much crafting, mostly because my fibromyalgia is flaring terribly. On Monday, I felt like I had the flu. I am more exhausted than usual. And about two weeks ago, the persistent pain which I periodically get in my upper arms and shoulders returned. The pain feels like I've gotten numerous tetanus shots (which are given in the muscle.) When I first wake up, the pain is so intense that it's nearly impossible to move my arms. If past experience holds, this pain will be with me for three to six months, maybe more, then it will probably move elsewhere in my body.

As if that weren't enough, the weather has been changeable, which also causes me to flare. I think that Monday's flu-like symptoms may have been caused by the low pressure system which is flinging itself across our area tonight. It is going to turn cold with rain and snow. On Monday, and Tuesday morning, temps were near 60 degrees F. Thursday's predicted high is something like 38 F.

Sarah and I had our usual stitching night with our friend from my church on Tuesday and I did manage to put some stitches in my niece's pinafore (Christmas gift.) I spent a lot of time unstitching and fixing a spot where I picked up three pleats instead of two. I really should try to work on this project Thursday night while watching This Old House and CSI.

The other thing I managed to do was cut out a tote bag for Sarah, which she needs to carry her Sunday School class materials in. I will have to purchase webbing for the handles, which I plan to do when I go to JoAnn's with Sarah and Grace on Thursday afternoon.

I have soaked and dried two of the fabrics I need for Julia's nightgown (Christmas gift); the fabric I want to use for piping is still running pink . . . I will pick up some ready-made piping at JoAnn's just in case I can't get it to stop. Fabric that runs seems to be my lot in life. I did finally purchase some Retayne, but have yet to try it. As I have a front-loading washer, I will have to do the "on the stovetop" method, which will be a pain, but if it saves my fabrics, it will be worth it.

I will leave you with a wonderful blinkie I found: