bee and rose

Hello...?...? (peeks head in..)...Is anyone here??.... I've missed you all so much! I've been busy dragging Chilly to physical therapy multiple times per week (trying to get him up walking again) as well as going to lots of follow-up doctor appointments trying to keep him among the living. His doctors are 45 minutes away. As a matter of fact, my day usually begins with Willie Nelson whispering "On the Road Again" in my ear... it's kind of like that movie "Groundhog Day" where Bill Murray wakes up every day to "I've Got You, Babe". Thanks, Chilly...the good times just keep coming with you! So, Chilly and I took Catherine out to see " Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs ." It was a FABULOUS day! First of all, there was no pink bucket tagging along.......What? What does a pink bucket have to do with taking your wee gi rl to a movie? Pink Bucket hasn't left Chilly's side since he was in the hospital. I'm sure you...

Since I was a wee girl of about 6, there has been one place I could go to lose myself for a bit. This place has always been there for me...throughout my tweens , teens, twenties, thirties and now my early forties. If I'm sick or just needing a short escape, I can take a trip there and catch up with old friends. Maybe you have visited there too....it's Springfield, USA...home of the Bauers , Spauldings , and the Lewis families...the home of Guiding Light. My Grandma got me hooked on GL . (She also started my coffee drinking habit at an early age too... hee hee...shh...don't tell my mom...) She would watch it every afternoon. She actually started enjoying GL when it was still a radio program! That was 72 years ago! A few months ago, my mom told me that she heard that Guiding Light had been cancelled. (I don't know how she knew this...she is an ABC soap watcher...) I brushed her off, saying that was silly... GL was the longest running soap in history...there wa...

TGIF! It's another exciting edition of "Dear So and So..." presented b y the fabulous Kat, over at "3 Bedroom Bungalow!" Let's rock this bloggy! Dear Glee, I LOVE you! You make me laugh and feel the warm fuzzies! My Wednesday nights are so much brighter because of you. My TV says thank you because it thought I'd forgotten it existed. I love watching the "Gleeks" sing their hearts out! Glee, you're the best! Your Biggest Fan, Dear Halloween, I've decked the halls with ghoulish decor over the last few days because I want to squeeze every bit of wicked goodness out of you this year! I am anxiously awaiting the arrival of this little goodie.....the Broomba... (This life~size broom is motion activated and will move, twirl and cackle across your haunted home all by itself!) I am also loving caramel apple cider, pumpkin spice lattes, and other pumpkin treats too! Oh, All Hallow's Eve, I simply adore you and all of your autum...

Life is slowly returning to "normal" (a new normal) around the Bee and Rose.... I've come to realize during this ordeal with Chilly that I am definitely a C reature of Habit . I found that even during my trips to the hospital over the last month, I created a routine. I always stopped at the small cafe in the hospital lobby for coffee before heading up to Chilly's room. After arriving in Chilly's room, I would fluff the pillows and blankets for him, clean up his tray table, then freshen his water. I would then make all of the family phone calls to update everyone on his condition. I did this every single day in the same order. Shortly after arriving home with Chilly, I realized I was continuing the same routine at home, but now had added dispensing medications, checking blood sugar and blood pressure, and occupational therapy to the daily rounds. I think routine is like a huge security blanket for me. Do you have any routines that are your "security b...

"Did You Know" Tuesday has returned! And away we go! Did You Know.... that mild mannered Bee (that would be me...) yelled at a nurse when she didn't come to check on Chilly for OVER 6 HOURS??? Did you know that this same nurse said to me that if my husband needed her, he should have pressed the nurse call button? Did you know that when I said he was unable to do so because he had a stroke and heart attack, that Nursey McNasty smirked and said "well, can't he use his good arm?" (Uh, let's review...Would that be the arm that he was having the blood transfusion in or the one he was unable to use because of the stroke?) Oh, yes..she actually said that to me...BIG MISTAKE... Had I not been there during those 6 hours, Chilly would have aspirated multiple times due to his severe nausea, would not have had any liquids or would have been unable to go to the restroom. His blood sugars also dropped dangerously low. I was able to find a PCT nurse to help with t...

We are home....now a new journey lies before us. Over the last ten days, I have been told that Chilly's prognosis is very poor. It's highly unlikely he will survive the next two years. (The manner in which that news was delivered to me is a blogpost in itself...) His heart, kidneys and brain are just deteriorating too rapidly for his body to continue on much beyond that. I, however, have seen Chilly cheat death on many occasions. I am holding on to hope that he will this time as well. I am overwhelmed with emotion when I read all of your very loving and supportive comments. They were a lifeline to me and my children during the last ten days. Thank you from the very bottom of my truly grateful heart. In a few brief seconds, our lives irrevocably changed on Friday, August 14. That's all it took for the stroke to occur and set the heart attack in motion as well. We are savoring every second we have together as a family. The likelihood of another stroke is incredibl...

(from Young Frankenstein...a family favorite) Just wanted to quickly update Chilly's condition.... He's still in the hospital. He's out of ICU and in a step down unit. We are now dealing with brain swelling that is causing him pretty severe nausea and vertigo. He is unable to keep food down with any success. On the upside, his kidney function is much improved. His blood sugars seem to be in control. Those are steps in the right direction. His heart function is still poor. The doctors are watching him very closely, but are unable to run tests because of the extreme nausea. Those will come later. It's going to be a very long road to rehabilitation. Chilly's stroke was in the cerebellum so his motor skills on the left side were impacted. He's unable to walk right now. He has facial numbness on the left side. He suffers from some pretty severe tremors all along his left side. His left arm is a bit wonky. ...