Some pictures from the Christmas Party at Tom and Judy's. We miss you!
Friday, February 20, 2009
Sunday, February 15, 2009
Goings on for the week-countdown to Pj's move, Mike's BD
This past week felt busier than usual. Wednesday we traipsed over to Swedish once again so that Mike could get the cardioversion done. It seems as though we've known about his condition for forever, so we have to keep reminding ourselves it's only been about a month and that these things take time. Although Mike is rather impatient to 'get on with treatment', I try and remind him he is making great progress. At first, the procedure seemed rather routine to me so you can imagine my surprise when I became emotional while waiting for the doctor to appear in the waiting room. I couldn't help but think of how much I love and appreciate my guy and how lucky I am to have him. The doctor came into the waiting room not much more than 1/2 an hour later (which felt like an eternity to me) to say that the cardioversion simply did not work, ie, his heart did not begin beating normally, not even for an instant. So, the good news is, we can stop wondering what course of action to take. It's simply going to have to be the tried and true method of using medication and a pace maker to control the beating of his heart. That's okay. Mike says he can live with that...
I woke up quite early on Thursday so as to get my 3:00 + bike ride in before rushing to pick up Pj after school. I enjoy watching him play basketball with his buddy Phillip even though it means freezing cold hands and feet for me. Why is it boys never feel the cold? After basketball, we went to his usual swim lesson. He's been going since September and seemed to make progress ever so slowly. At first he was very timid having had that terrible incident of almost drowning last year, which set him back in regards to anything to do with the water. You can imagine how proud I have been of him getting out there week after week giving it his all to learn how to swim. The kid has a great attitude about everything he does...an inspiration to me, to say the least. All this effort came to a climax when, finally, he swam a full length of the pool! Not only once, but twice!! When he reached the end of the pool, he raised his arms in triumph as I did the same! Thank goodness, he's learned to be safe in the water just in time for his move to LA. It will ease my worries as I imagine there will be a lot of swimming in CA.
I was so inspired by Pj's determination that I decided I needed to try and confront my childhood issues regarding the butterfly stroke in swimming. I have felt rather foolish in my attempt to swim butterfly all these years, simply because I am so bad at it and can hardly swim 1/2 a length of the pool. I asked the coach for some pointers and, low and behold, I was able to swim a whole length butterfly!! I did it in honor of Pj. Who knows what's next? My swimming has been coming along quite nicely since joining the Master's swim team. The old feelings of competition come out in me, and I always swim my hardest. My dad always told me NEVER let anyone beat you EVER if you can beat them (I've come to learn it shows respect for your competitors as well as yourself). It was a cardinal rule in our house :-) I was so pleased when the coach told me: "I am impressed with you", which goes to show you can teach old dogs to do new tricks after all!
Friday I picked up Pj and Phillip after school and they slept over...again, what fun for me, although tracking two active little boys is hectic to say the least. They had the choice of going out for pizza or staying home for mac and cheese. They chose the later as they got engrossed in some All Star basketball game on TV. They know all the players, the shots, the positions, the stats..amazing. Afterwards, I took them to see "Hotel for Dogs", a cute movie we all enjoyed. It has been more and more difficult to say to goodbye to him each time we meet because we both know he will be moving in one short week. Is it me, or is he hanging on to me just a wee bit longer each time we hug goodbye?
Yesterday was Mike's birthday and we celebrated by going out to dinner with our friends Dave and Nobuko. Nobuko LOVES to go out to dine, so we let her pick the restaurant. We went to a neat place in Bothell which was once the governor's mansion and enjoyed a gourmet meal..we all ordered fish as meat is becoming less and less of an option for us.
I woke up quite early on Thursday so as to get my 3:00 + bike ride in before rushing to pick up Pj after school. I enjoy watching him play basketball with his buddy Phillip even though it means freezing cold hands and feet for me. Why is it boys never feel the cold? After basketball, we went to his usual swim lesson. He's been going since September and seemed to make progress ever so slowly. At first he was very timid having had that terrible incident of almost drowning last year, which set him back in regards to anything to do with the water. You can imagine how proud I have been of him getting out there week after week giving it his all to learn how to swim. The kid has a great attitude about everything he does...an inspiration to me, to say the least. All this effort came to a climax when, finally, he swam a full length of the pool! Not only once, but twice!! When he reached the end of the pool, he raised his arms in triumph as I did the same! Thank goodness, he's learned to be safe in the water just in time for his move to LA. It will ease my worries as I imagine there will be a lot of swimming in CA.
I was so inspired by Pj's determination that I decided I needed to try and confront my childhood issues regarding the butterfly stroke in swimming. I have felt rather foolish in my attempt to swim butterfly all these years, simply because I am so bad at it and can hardly swim 1/2 a length of the pool. I asked the coach for some pointers and, low and behold, I was able to swim a whole length butterfly!! I did it in honor of Pj. Who knows what's next? My swimming has been coming along quite nicely since joining the Master's swim team. The old feelings of competition come out in me, and I always swim my hardest. My dad always told me NEVER let anyone beat you EVER if you can beat them (I've come to learn it shows respect for your competitors as well as yourself). It was a cardinal rule in our house :-) I was so pleased when the coach told me: "I am impressed with you", which goes to show you can teach old dogs to do new tricks after all!
Friday I picked up Pj and Phillip after school and they slept over...again, what fun for me, although tracking two active little boys is hectic to say the least. They had the choice of going out for pizza or staying home for mac and cheese. They chose the later as they got engrossed in some All Star basketball game on TV. They know all the players, the shots, the positions, the stats..amazing. Afterwards, I took them to see "Hotel for Dogs", a cute movie we all enjoyed. It has been more and more difficult to say to goodbye to him each time we meet because we both know he will be moving in one short week. Is it me, or is he hanging on to me just a wee bit longer each time we hug goodbye?
Yesterday was Mike's birthday and we celebrated by going out to dinner with our friends Dave and Nobuko. Nobuko LOVES to go out to dine, so we let her pick the restaurant. We went to a neat place in Bothell which was once the governor's mansion and enjoyed a gourmet meal..we all ordered fish as meat is becoming less and less of an option for us.
Saturday, February 7, 2009
Doctors and more doctors!
It seems we have been doing nothing but going to Seattle to see doctors. For two seemingly healthy people, it's getting a bit frustrating! I have to remind myself that we are, after all, in our 60's. I feel as though I'm somewhere in my 40's, but then I quickly adjust realizing my daughter Magda is almost 40...so, then I figure I must be somewhere in my 50's with Mike being in his late 50's. It's true, time goes by faster the older we get!
On Wednesday we checked into Swedish hospital so that Mike could get his cardioversion done. This is a procedure whereby the doctor uses 'paddles' to shock the heart in an attempt to get the heart to regain it's natural rythum. The longer the heartbeat remains normal, the better the chance of success abalation will be. Before the procedure Mike had a lab test done to check the Coumadin level, which had to be low so as not to create more risk than necessary of internal bleeding. It came back very high! No one could quite understand why, but when Mike explained that he had been on Coumadin for less than 2 weeks, the doc said it was best to go home and try again next week. Now the test is scheduled for this coming Wednesday.
I, on the other hand, went to see the dermatologist for a routine skin checkup. I had noticed a spot on my leg about 6 months ago, but kept putting off going in to see if it was cancerous because it appeared to heal up. I figured I was over reacting to every little mark on my body, so waited until the usual time for my checkup. Well, wouldn't you know it...it turns out it's basal cell cancer. It's rather disturbing, but not scary as basal cell is contained in one spot and does not spread. However, I will have to have it removed. I may have to delay it as my appt is the same day Mike has to go in to Swedish this week.
Training was going as planned. I was happy to have worked up to 9 miles running when I somehow tweaked my foot while doing intervals on the track. This led to a visit to my coach's husband who is a triathlete and also happens to be a podiatrist. I am in a boot hobbling around in hopes of having my foot heal within 10 days. Thankfully it doesn't appear to be a stress fracture. As a result, I've been swimming and biking a lot more. I am especially happy swimming with a masters swim team. I'm feeling strong in the water and can't wait until next week when we are due to swim 5K! Yes, that's 3.1 miles of swimming..my longest ever. I love challenges like this.
Pj will be leaving soon...Feb 21st is the date. My heart aches every time I think of him moving away, but I know I'll be able to visit him in LA. He's a popular kid at school so one of the mom's threw a going away party for him last week. He said to me "Grandma, I want you to come". So of course I went! The house was in Medina..I mean right down the street from the Gates mansion! These things are interesting to see, but don't impress me as they once would have in my earlier years. The house was amazing to say the least...BUT...I don't know. It didn't feel like a home to me...more like an impersonal hotel. Anyhow, the kids had a blast and Pj introduced me to all his buddies. The Medina moms are cliquish so I ended up talking to Eric who was the only guy there. He's just adores his son..they are like two peas in a pod, so I know even though Pj will miss me and misses his mom, he'll be okay. As I drove away, I thought, how interesting it will be for Pj to see another culture in LA. It just might be very good exposure in contrast to this "Medina" life in Bellevue.
Last but certainly not least, Magda returned from Thailand. She looked healthy and fit with a great Thai tan. After recovering from her long trip and adjusting to the time change we got a call from her asking if she could practice her massage as she had to report to Salish to work. Unfortunately, I had to leave to see Pj that day, but Mike was a willing and able subject! Hard to believe, but Magda will be off again to Puerto Rico to attend a wedding of a friend. She'll be in the sun again for 10 days. She is staying here for now, and is applying for jobs elsewhere because she says it's tolerable at Salish, but not great. They make a practice of overbooking her schedule so it's not uncommon to do 6 - 8 massages a day with hardly a break in between...exhausting! One possibility is in Guam! I have a feeling she'll be gone again soon...yet another place to visit!
On Wednesday we checked into Swedish hospital so that Mike could get his cardioversion done. This is a procedure whereby the doctor uses 'paddles' to shock the heart in an attempt to get the heart to regain it's natural rythum. The longer the heartbeat remains normal, the better the chance of success abalation will be. Before the procedure Mike had a lab test done to check the Coumadin level, which had to be low so as not to create more risk than necessary of internal bleeding. It came back very high! No one could quite understand why, but when Mike explained that he had been on Coumadin for less than 2 weeks, the doc said it was best to go home and try again next week. Now the test is scheduled for this coming Wednesday.
I, on the other hand, went to see the dermatologist for a routine skin checkup. I had noticed a spot on my leg about 6 months ago, but kept putting off going in to see if it was cancerous because it appeared to heal up. I figured I was over reacting to every little mark on my body, so waited until the usual time for my checkup. Well, wouldn't you know it...it turns out it's basal cell cancer. It's rather disturbing, but not scary as basal cell is contained in one spot and does not spread. However, I will have to have it removed. I may have to delay it as my appt is the same day Mike has to go in to Swedish this week.
Training was going as planned. I was happy to have worked up to 9 miles running when I somehow tweaked my foot while doing intervals on the track. This led to a visit to my coach's husband who is a triathlete and also happens to be a podiatrist. I am in a boot hobbling around in hopes of having my foot heal within 10 days. Thankfully it doesn't appear to be a stress fracture. As a result, I've been swimming and biking a lot more. I am especially happy swimming with a masters swim team. I'm feeling strong in the water and can't wait until next week when we are due to swim 5K! Yes, that's 3.1 miles of swimming..my longest ever. I love challenges like this.
Pj will be leaving soon...Feb 21st is the date. My heart aches every time I think of him moving away, but I know I'll be able to visit him in LA. He's a popular kid at school so one of the mom's threw a going away party for him last week. He said to me "Grandma, I want you to come". So of course I went! The house was in Medina..I mean right down the street from the Gates mansion! These things are interesting to see, but don't impress me as they once would have in my earlier years. The house was amazing to say the least...BUT...I don't know. It didn't feel like a home to me...more like an impersonal hotel. Anyhow, the kids had a blast and Pj introduced me to all his buddies. The Medina moms are cliquish so I ended up talking to Eric who was the only guy there. He's just adores his son..they are like two peas in a pod, so I know even though Pj will miss me and misses his mom, he'll be okay. As I drove away, I thought, how interesting it will be for Pj to see another culture in LA. It just might be very good exposure in contrast to this "Medina" life in Bellevue.
Last but certainly not least, Magda returned from Thailand. She looked healthy and fit with a great Thai tan. After recovering from her long trip and adjusting to the time change we got a call from her asking if she could practice her massage as she had to report to Salish to work. Unfortunately, I had to leave to see Pj that day, but Mike was a willing and able subject! Hard to believe, but Magda will be off again to Puerto Rico to attend a wedding of a friend. She'll be in the sun again for 10 days. She is staying here for now, and is applying for jobs elsewhere because she says it's tolerable at Salish, but not great. They make a practice of overbooking her schedule so it's not uncommon to do 6 - 8 massages a day with hardly a break in between...exhausting! One possibility is in Guam! I have a feeling she'll be gone again soon...yet another place to visit!
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