Sunday, December 24, 2023

Happy 101st Birthday, Mom!




Mom is standing with her first father-in-law, Herbert Garrett with her oldest child Norman who is holding his oldest son, Norman Jr. some time 1963-1965.


                                         

            This was taken at Aunt Lillian's son Richard baby shower for the birth of his daughter Emily. 
                                                                 This was around 1977.


This is the whole gang at the shower. Sharon holding Julie, Mom holding Emily, Lissa holding Daniel and Bruce holding Wendy.


This was one Christmas at my house on Old Peruville Road in Groton, NY. My favorite color was orange and when I bought the house the kitchen happened to be orange. I may have mentioned it before but Mom would say to me, "When the hell are you going to paint this kitchen?" It was 3 or 4 years before I did change it. It sure was bright!



This was the same year and Mom was opening gifts. I'm not sure if this was for her birthday or Christmas but we all made sure she got a birthday gift each year. The kids are Jeff, Robin, not sure if the one above Robin is Peter or Patrick, my brother Larry, Julie and Norm.

It sure doesn't seem as though it has been 37 years since she left this world. Lissa and I were talking about it just the other day. So many times I would love to sit down and talk to her about family history and ask her different question. I look at my grandkids and realize they will never know her and most of the knowledge that I have of her and family history will be lost.

I love and miss you Mom!



Happy Quilting, Sharon 
Permanent "Quilting the Kaye Wood Way" Certified Instructor since 2013 
'Grand Ruler' instructor for Marti Michell since 2019

Tuesday, January 3, 2023

Happy Birthday, Sexy!

72 today! WOW! I sure wish you were here so we could celebrate. I missed the 'my birthday is January 3rd, you know that, right?' speech this past Christmas season! You always made sure everyone around you knew your birthday was coming up. 

Here are a few pictures from the 32 years we spent together. The only ones that are in the correct time frame are the first one and the last 2. The first one is the very first photo of us together and is one of my favorites. The photo booth was great! The final 2 were while Carl was in the nursing home and hospital.

































The adventures we went on! A trip to the San Diego Zoo by way of Kelly's and Trebor's one year. Many visits to Western Festivals in Kanab, UT, and Scottsdale, AZ. The anniversary trip from Hoover Dam to Yuma, CA. A visit to the Shaker Village in Franklin, TN. The vacation with my sister and brother-in-law to the 'Shawshank Redemption prison in Mansfield, OH. Seeing the solar eclipse for the second time in Cottontown, TN. Visiting family at the Voorheis reunion in Reynoldsville, NY. Quilt store visits any time we went anywhere. Lake Havasu City, AZ, Zip lining for the first time in Cave City, KY. Local parks with visiting family, and in our own home we had fun! The only picture I found of Kelly was when we went to the PowWow in Fredonia, AZ one year. Of course, I only was able to get her from the back, sorry Kelly! I couldn't find any pictures of Trebor and I know we had some, but all my searching didn't give me the results I wanted. Sorry, Treb!


Love you, Beautiful!

Until we meet again!


Saturday, December 24, 2022

Happy 100th Birthday, Mom!

It is so amazing to me to realize that my Mother would have been 100 years old today!
 After reviewing my last few birthday posts I realized that I started them all off the same way! 
What can I say? It's true!


I have no idea how old she was in this picture. Somewhere in her early teens, I'm sure. She was married for the first time when she was 17 so I am sure it was before then.


This one had to be prior to 1953. I never saw her wear earrings except on special occasions when she was older.


This one was taken in May of 1985 at a grandson's wedding. Check out those shades!


Happy Birthday, Mom! I love and miss you!








Wednesday, July 13, 2022

Treasures from the past!

Recently I changed my computer desk area around and all of the papers that I haven't had the energy to take care of the past year or so finally managed to convince me to take care of tonight. 

I'm glad I wanted to sort instead of just tossing! My first surprise was the $21.00! that was wrapped in a receipt.




The second was as I was checking to make sure I didn't throw away any business receipts I started this pile of  receipts from Carl's chocolate milkshakes and ice cream. All of theses were great reminders of all the simple joy I was able to bring to Carl when I couldn't go inside and give him a hug. I can still see his smile when the staff handed him a shake or a pint of ice cream!



I also found a few old pictures while I was sorting. My very favorite one of Carl was taken on one of our trips to Niagara Falls, NY. I think it was taken the first year Kelly, Trebor and Spencer came out to spend the summer with us. What is surprising about it is he is clean shaven in this one. For most of our 32 years together he had either a moustache or beard and moustache so clean shaven was rare. I carried this one in my wallet for several years and that is where I found it when cleaning.





Great treasures with great memories!


Happy Quilting, Sharon 
Permanent "Quilting the Kaye Wood Way" Certified Instructor since 2013 
'Grand Ruler' instructor for Marti Michell since 2019

Saturday, January 1, 2022

Biggest change of 2021

The beginning of 2021 started out with Carl continuing to be cared for in a nursing facility with the COVID pandemic still in control. No inside visits until May and then they were short-lived with the doors closing again to visitors in August. Then the day that completely changed life for me was August 28. That was the day I received a call from the facility that Carl had started his next life with Heavenly Father.

The 32 years that I had with Carl were filled with ups and downs just like every other relationship but I think the ups came out on top. He supported me in anything I wanted to do and loved to be included in all things but enjoyed my quilting the most. He had a great eye for color and often helped pick out the fabric while shopping and of course, he picked out the colors of my favorite quilt. He often joked with others when telling about our vacations that they were 'quiltcations' instead of 'vacations'. I am glad he is no longer in pain, but boy do I miss him! I have no idea where this picture was taken but it was one of his better ones in these last years.

 

'Till we meet again, 
Love you, Sharon 









Friday, December 24, 2021

Happy 99th Birthday, Mom!


It is amazing to me that this is your 99th birthday! I wonder what you would have thought of all the technology that has been developed since you left us 35 years ago. I know you would have loved the internet especially Facebook and other social media platforms and the cell phones! I can just about hear the conversations we would have had to keep things straight for you. Also, I will never forget your favorite saying when you couldn't remember a word or two: get me the thingamabob on the whatchamacallit.... Yep that was always good. Mom, I haven't gotten that bad yet but I'm close. LOL! Yeah, mom that means laugh out loud, another thing that would have boggled your mind!

Love you!
Sharon

Saturday, August 28, 2021

New path to travel

Today I saw Carl for the last time on this earth. It is one of the toughest days of late. The past 18 months have been one adjustment after another. The journey to this day started way back in 2012 almost exactly to the date of his first episode that turned out to be a precursor to his stroke. 

I was working at IMS Allergy and Immunology in Goodyear, AZ and he was doing his visits to clients for Hospice of the Valley out of the Sun City, AZ office. Of course he was in his favorite town of Wickenburg, AZ which happened to be about 50 miles away from me. He called me and was slurring his words then hung up on me. Panic mode! Called him back and found out he was DRIVING! At least he was still in the town of Wickenburg. I convinced him to park the car and I would call the ambulance. That took some doing because he really couldn't understand what to do and he had a hard time knowing where to go. Finally he pulled into one of the shopping malls just north of town and was able to tell me where he was. Next hurtle was getting the squad to the right area of the parking lot. He was facing one business but that business was at the other end of the strip mall about 6 store fronts from him and of course he was parked waaaaay out in the lot. It took them a few minutes and several calls for them to locate him. So then it was off to the ER. Of course everything had calmed down for Carl by the time the paramedics reached him and they found nothing to indicate what had happened. They kept him overnight and sent him home with a few new medications. 

Then the fun began. He just wasn't himself and neither of us could figure out what needed to be done. He started having an upset stomach and couldn't keep anything down. He started hallucinating and complained of a headache. So on Labor Day September 3, 2012, I again had the ambulance come. This time he was seeing lizards (large ones) crawling across the floor and had another episode of slurred speech and was weak. The next battle was to convince the doctor that there was something organic wrong, that it wasn't just a 'mental disease' due to his hallucinations. He was dehydrated and he wasn't getting any IVs because they kept stopping it for tests. Finally, after a couple days I pitched a fit and told the doctor that he needed to find out what was wrong! As a lot of you know me you can imagine my fit! So finally they did an MRI and lo and behold they found something! He had a complete blockage in one of his arteries off the carotid. He showed none of the normal stroke or CVA symptoms. No weakness on either side of his body, no deviated tongue when he stuck it out, no headache, no eyelid drooping..... just dizziness, comprehension difficulty, double vision, and hallucinations. So when the neurosurgeon came in while I was there he showed me Carl's MRI. He shook his head and said, "I don't think even with a complete life style change things will get better." and in so many words didn't feel he would live more than 3 weeks. So I prepared to walk this path I am on now 9 years ago.

We move from El Mirage, AZ to Cottontown, TN to be with my daughter, Julie Williams and family. The path slowly gets harder to navigate. 3 years ago he has 2 noticeable TIA's which the medical profession could not corroborate and because he did not have any complaints other than being tired. He was still able to go and do things but if I went into a store he may stay in the car type things. Then in December of 2019 he starts having neck pain and is uncomfortable laying in bed. He has a disc in his neck that needs to be removed and vertebra that needs to be fused and an enlarged prostate. So in February he goes and has his neck taken care of. The pain is gone, but he still isn't comfortable sleeping in bed so he sleeps in the recliner but doesn't recline it. This in turn makes his sleep apnea worse because his head is tilted forward while he is trying to sleep. He tried the Bi-Pap machine for about 9 months and was never able to sleep with it. So we just had him using an oxygen concentrator which helped a little. During that time he had surgery on his neck and he is doing less and less as far as exercise and he ends up in the hospital. I think it was because he fell. So in March of 2020 we start the hospital, rehab, home and falling again routine. Of course all of the rehab is done in nursing homes here and they aren't working diligently on rehab.... The first rehab visit started the day before all facilities closed their doors to outside visitors because of the pandemic so basically he was on his own. Because of this, we try home health care with PT here at the house. That worked for a few weeks but again he fell and off to the hospital. They sent him home and the first visit from home health the nurse wants him to go back to the hospital because he isn't doing well. He can't even stand up with help with a walker at this point. So off to the hospital again then into another facility under the guise of rehab and again widow visits only. This facility sends him back and forth to the hospital several times for various reasons, a fall or bladder infection were the most common. Then in August, he tested positive for COVID. Off to the hospital for evaluation and then the choice was 2 nursing homes that had a dedicated COVID unit. As physically run down as he was he showed no signs or symptoms of COVID. One facility was close the other a drive so we go with the closer one. They were good to him while he was in that unit. Of course I couldn't go inside and talked with different family members if I met them while he was in that part of the facility. I was really unhappy with the last facility and it was a 45 minute drive one way to go see him so it wasn't difficult decision to have him stay where he was. So now we start with visits to the wound clinic because he was delivered to the COVID unit with a spot that broke open while he was there. So at least I could see and touch him during those visits. Then those visits stopped in October because the facility wanted to do telecom visits but they were a great big fail. At this point I am getting sick of being called, honey, darling and sweetie and not getting answers when I ask questions. I also realize that the members of this facility don't have the same knowledge, ability or communication skills in nursing that I do so I am in frustration mode as well as freezing my butt off outside in the weather with window visits and still talking on the phone with Carl. It was a good thing I was able to get him a phone so we could at least talk when it was to cold for me to visit. He is mostly ok with the facility as they love him as most people did that knew him and with his dementia he couldn't remember how long he had been in the facility so each day was day 1. While I continue to be frustrated with no communication and being called honey, darling, and sweetie when I ask questions and the answer is always, 'Carl is doing fine, sweetie'. I yelled at people enough that most of them started remembering that I wasn't their 'darling, sweetie, or honey'. There were a couple nurses that were good and actually answered my questions and I got along with them, but mostly the time he spent in that facility was frustrating for me. I never did meet or talk with the doctor or nurse practitioner all the time he was there. In May of 2021, they opened the doors so I could go inside to visit. At least I wasn't standing outside in the cold or rain. This only lasted until the end of July and the pandemic 'numbers' started rising again and the doors were closed. So I am again outside looking in and trying to talk on the phone with him when he had a hard time holding the phone. 

Then this new path I am on started on August 28th, 2021, when I received a call that Carl had passed away. I made my last visit to the facility to say goodbye to Carl before he made his trip to the funeral parlor. I had practice for over a year to get used to cooking again, get up at 6 am to feed the cats, control the TV remote, come home to a quiet house, and take trips to town without a co-pilot and now it was permanent. 

I am just glad that I have had the experiences in life with my career as well as some of the jobs I have had and my religious beliefs to help me get through this time. I am going to walk this new path for as long as the good Lord will allow me to. I told Carl the day before he passed that I would be alright and I intend to keep that promise to him until I meet him in the next life. 

Happy Quilting, Sharon 
Permanent "Quilting the Kaye Wood Way" Certified Instructor since 2013
'Grand Ruler' instructor for Marti Michell since 2019