A January we will never forget....

This is a difficult post to write, and I/we have been postponing a blog posting because how do we even to start?  So, perhaps the short version is best.  My (Kim's) father has been in a nursing home in Collingwood, Ontario, Canada for the last year and a half, and I have been making visits in the fall to see my Dad and visit with my Mom, and my brother and his family.  The last visit my father did not know who I was, but that was still ok, because he always knew who my mother was and still could joke around with the staff there. He enjoyed someone bringing him ( aka sneaking in ) a peanut butter sandwich, or a Timmy's coffee or his favorite: Ice cream. In December, he started to fail, and passed on Christmas Day.  He was a great Dad, husband of almost 60 years to Mom, and grandfather and great grandfather.

My mothers brother, Bob, is a year younger than my mother, and with his wife, Joyce were extremely close to my parents.  They stood up for each other at their weddings and we were always together with their family.  My aunt Joyce passed away also while I was still there, on January 14th.  I had the honour of spending the whole night before her passing with my Uncle Bob, whom I love dearly.

My flight back to Palm Springs was booked for the 15th, and I dearly would have wanted to stay for her funeral on the following Friday, but I was sick with a terrible bad cold and hacking cough, and felt I was feeling so low, I just wanted to get back to Donald, the beautiful southwest, and get this cold/cough behind me.  The swimming pool at the Sands was calling my name, as just prior to leaving for Toronto on December 28 , I was up to swimming 60 plus laps, or 3/4 of a mile.  I have a great teacher, my neighbour Deb!  While in Toronto, I took advantage of the treadmill in my mothers' condo building and loved doing 4 plus miles a day on that.

My mother developed this cold and cough while I was there, and understandably so, as it is the season for that and her immune system was probably low due to my father's passing.  Four days before I left to fly back to the southwest I thought I caught her cold.

Well, turns out when I flew to Toronto on December 28, I developed blood clot(s) with no indication of doing so ( no leg swelling, no readiness, no leg heat... ) those clots moved to my lungs, and hence my shortness of breath and excessive coughing.  I of course still thought I had a cold, and did not seek medical assistance till Wednesday....and we can't say enough about the angels at Eisenhower Memorial hospital in Rancho Mirage, Ca.  I am a very very lucky lady to have caught this and survived.  Some of the doctors could not understand how I was walking around,speaking and conversing with them with Pulmonary Embolii, other than the swimming had increased my lung capacity and strength so much that that was perhaps the reason.

So, I am mostly fixed up and on the way back to health, even though it will still be a journey.  Speaking of journeys, yes we are on our way back to Canada, and will finish out the winter in Victoria under the supervision of my GP , and the BC medical system.  We hope to leave Tuesday or Wednesday from the southwest, and are so very sad to be leaving our friends who have given us so very much support and love over this past January, it is impossible to put into words how grateful we are.  The upside is, is that I have survived, and I'm looking forward to "playing" with our friends again, and seeing and enjoying our family.

News to come later.....

Kim is in Collingwood, Ontario for a couple of weeks and it's -22 Celsius.  enough said. Brrrrr.

News to come later.....

Kim is in Collingwood, Ontario for a couple of weeks and it's -22 Celsius.  enough said. Brrrrr.

Thank you Rick and Paulette!

What a wonderful day! Don and I were invited to take a trip to San Marcos and the Grand Country Quilt Shop... well Donald went along for the ride not being much interested in the quilt shop.  He says when the gals and I start talking quilting, it sounds to him like the teachers voice in Charlie Brown TV shows " whaa waaa waaaa waaa wan ".  Incomprehensible. To him.

Donald got the great pleasure of a couple of dog walks with Rick and in particular a fantastic hill park in San Marcos where they could see San Diego and our Mt. Jacinto in the distances. Lunch was great in a little town called Oceanside. Buccaneer Roadside Stand was calling our name for a burger and drink!

Rick continued on driving through Oceanside to the small craft marina, and what is driving in front of us, but a 4x4 truck from Coast Mountain GM in Smithers. BC. We tried to get a look at who was driving, but were not very successful.  What are the odds of that?

The weather was beautiful and clear and the ocean was magnificient.  Lots of public beach access at intervals between the oceanfront homes, with families enjoying the Christmas break.  We wondered how much those homes cost???? ( except you could hand your next door neighbour a cup of coffee without leaving your house ).

This morning we are off to pancake breakfast with our gang at 8:30, then Donald and I are on the hunt for some dates as I fly to Toronto this afternoon on WestJet for a couple of weeks. My father, a wonderful man, passed away Christmas afternoon.  He will be so missed.  It has been a great support to have friends here to lend their support. I had a difficult time on that day, but the thoughts and prayers of others is such a comfort.

Christmas dinner was still fun though and a few laughs.  Well, more than a few. We had the task of booking the hall and cooking the turkeys.  There are some who get up at 4 am to start their turkeys, and some who start them at 2:00 pm - we are the latter and there were a few raised eyebrows about whether those turkeys would be done!  They were small at 10 and 14 pounds, and a fresh and a frozen turkey, kept separate for taste comparison.  Well, no one could tell the difference except for the carver, Ken, who said the frozen turkey was way easier to carve.  Paulette made a yummy ham, and the rest of the dishes were ooooohhh too scrumptious.

We decorated the hall with our red geranium for a centerpiece, and Christmas/Winter quilts. Paulette had hers gone before I could get a picture, so check out her blog! I managed to get these ones done in time:

The tree quilt is 3-D in effect. For those who hear quilter talk and not the Charlie Brown teacher talk: it is a pattern, and I changed it by using Peltex in the tree parts, making it much more stiff, and stuffing those parts with dressmaking netting. There are also Swor. crystals in the background.  Ok, enough of the Q talk!!!!

I think we have seen more of Mr.Mason in blog talk, which is wonderful and he is some cutie, but here is Miss Emma ( and no, it is not a grandchild competition...)

She was enjoying waiting for the Black Ball ferry in Poppa's truck!

and her big brother.  Ok kids, Nanna's about to get all her winter gear on and leave the heat.....brrrrrr.

Merry Christmas

We want to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas.  We have not posted for some time, and on Monday I ran into a new RV'er in the park who reads our blog, and I humbly mentioned how tardy I have been with posting.

I must say how very very lucky we are to be in place this winter with friends who are so supportive and caring.  We would like to let everyone know how very thankful we are.

I have booked the north hall here at the Sands, and 16 of these extra special people are gathering tomorrow for Christmas Dinner ( after golfing, of course ).  Our duties are to cook two small turkeys, one fresh, one that was frozen so we have a bit of a " taste test " just for fun.  We also managed to get a big bottle of Bicks Mixed pickles before we left home, as with all the myriad grocery stores in the Coachella Valley, there is no such thing as mixed pickles. Music is supplied by our Sirius satellite radio and its boombox. 

Friday we are off to San Marcos with Rick and Paulette, which is a real treat!  Of course, yes, quilting will be in the agenda. Come on, what else????

Donald has been busy baking his birthday cake for the end of January. Yes, it has to sit for a month.
Take a look at Paulette's blog today to see what I've been up to!

Saturday I fly off to Toronto for an indeterminate amount of time.  More on that later. So, these wonderful group of friends will no doubt keep Donald busy when I'm gone.  Do I have winter clothes? No. Brrrr.