Warmer weather is here! The change in temperature has enabled us to take on a few outdoor tasks. Nati [the cat] was taken to Becky’s house in Greene. Guest room painting and decoration advanced. Animals were being cute. Physical therapy continued. Let’s look at the week’s activities.
I am going to start with outside activities. Pam grabbed our edger and went around the oak tree flower bed. It was time to do this as the day lilies are beginning to turn green. (The bridge came out from under protected cover on the north porch about a week ago.)
I was active, completing several projects. One of them was getting the pressure washer out and giving the car a good outside cleaning. (Look at me, balancing the pressure wand with my right arm!)
Converting the John Deere LX-176 from winter use to summer mowing was next. With Pam’s occasional assistance I was able to remove the snow blade, tire chains, and extra weights and re-mount the mower deck and bagger. I took a quick spin around the yard, hoping to pick up many of the leaves that had blown in and wintered on the lawn. That went pretty well, although I need to get out the lawn vac and clean up around the fence lines yet. That will be a task for later today.
The garden hose was retrieved from the garage attic and water for the outside faucets was turned on. The bird feeder was taken down and cleaned, ready for use next fall. I raked a portion of the lawn under the oak trees as this area had a lot of small branches and twigs that would not be picked up with the LX-176. There is a limited time I can rake before my shoulder starts to complain, but the yard looks much better after this clean up.
Pam is about 65% done with details in the guest bedroom. She is adding ribbon border that defines the walls from the ceiling, plus she added decals to the light switch. The room is looking quite a bit fresher with new white paint, the new windows from last year, and continuing updates.
Our outing this week took us to Becky’s home in Greene. We transferred Nati to Becky’s care per Becky’s request. Becky reports Nati is settling in well and appears to be developing affection for Becky, jumping into Becky’s lap and even going to sleep there. We hope the transition goes well, but Becky has another cat, Vanna, and a lot of plants around her house. So far Nati has been confined to a bedroom; the real test will be when the two cats come face to face and Nati is – eventually – given more space to explore. If this does not work out, there will be a Plan B to take Nati back, but we hope for the best.
My twice-a-week physical therapy continued, as it will for many weeks yet. I am making progress and can reach a few more things than I could in the past. Still, it is occasionally frustrating that I can’t use the arm freely. Below is a photo of the sign in my rehab center.
On the down side, our good friend Henry (Hank) Tourtillott, who lives in Arizona, is having a tough time as of late. Hank is 96 and has been living with his daughter, Pat, for several years. Pat was diagnosed with congenital heart failure and is no longer able to take care of herself and Hank. To make matters worse, Hank recently had an accident and broke his tailbone. Pat’s son, Marty, is there and helping but long-range plans are mostly on hold. We offer encouragement and positive thoughts; I wish there was more we could do for them. Age and distance reduces our options to assist.
I am going to close this post with a couple of animal photos taken this past week. Our animals do a lot of sleeping, particularly the older ones.
That’s it for now. Thanks for looking in! Happy Easter to everyone!
Pam’s Penny
The coming week may be just warm enough to break out the Mary Lynn Memorial Garden plaque and put Gretel the lamb (statue) in the planting bed with the tulip and daffodil starts. The Mennonite greenhouses will be opening in a few weeks– yes! I do wish my lifelong friend Mary was alive to enjoy this most magical season as it arrives once again. Bittersweet.
Happy Easter.
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