That's What She Said: We're All Still Here!

So, it's been quite a long time since I had anything that I could put into words; that I actually felt like putting into words. I woke up this morning and figured, what the heck, give it another go. I decided to talk about the rest of this year, since April was the last time my words were officially in print.

Actually, I'll backtrack a bit to last January, a trip home, and I lunch with friends. Haven't managed to do another one of those since. I need to get on that.

End of February, my sister's husband passed, very unexpectedly and suddenly. That is when all of our lives began to change - for the better. She came to live with us, my parents were still looking for a home in Quincy, and we would all settle into our "new" normal.

My parents officially moved here end of April, first of May. That of course was great news! Except the move was hard. But then again, nothing is easy in your late 70's. Heck, I was a big part of the move and I'm here to tell you, nothing is easy in your mid-50's! A lifetime of stuff is just difficult to go through, pack-up and move. But we did it! It was done.

The end of May, my mother came down with pneumonia and spent a day or two in the hospital. That was her first introduction to Capital Regional Hospital. And as you all know, even though she was back home and on medication, you don't just jump out of a bout with pneumonia. There were boxes galore still needing to be unpacked - with no energy to do it.

That was the happenings on Quail Roost Drive. Meanwhile, 10 minutes away on South Lowe Street, we were smack in the middle of a never-ending house renovation. The process which was said to take 8-10 weeks, started in March, we would not see the end of that project until late August. That was very possibly the longest five months of my life.

End of June I would reunite with my long-time friend, Darla and finally get to meet the man of her dreams over an early dinner in Marianna, Florida. Plenty of laughter and hugs, just not enough time.

First of September, my sister who had been living with us since the end of February, left us, to take her place, acquaint herself with her very own bedroom, with my parents at Quail Roost. They took special pains to have her room decorated and made to suit her tastes, so that she would feel at home once she arrived.

Everything was gliding along, seemingly; one by one, they were unloading boxes and arranging their new home to fit their needs.

Second week of September, Mom fell ill again. She was admitted to Capital Regional once more - this visit lasted 19 days, including a journey with sepsis, diverticulitis and a major surgery, before it was all said and done.

She comes home and it's close to October now. She's in full recovery-mode, or trying to be. But it's hard. And I hate to keep repeating myself, but a major surgery in your late 70's is no joke. As a matter of fact, my mom is one of the toughest people I have ever known, and she was struggling.

Middle of October, I had surgery to have a hernia removed - something that I had been putting off for a year or two. The surgery was uncomplicated and healed as such.

Thanksgiving was spent with family, everyone was doing well, and life was good on Lowe Street. December rolls around, 2nd week, and she is sick again. She is admitted once more to Capital Regional, this time with pneumonia and strep. They keep her for 4 days. The next week she went back for her post-op checkup and she was admitted once again for an irregular heartbeat. Her b/p meds were changed, she came home 2 days later, December 20th, 2 days from her 79th birthday.

Do we know all of the nurses staff at Capital Regional yet? No. And no offense, but we know everybody we want to know at this point.

So to summarize, if you ask me how my 2019 went - I don't have a lot of positive things to say about it - but there is this:

My parents DID get moved down here, and I am telling you now, I could not have imagined going through the last 8 months with them being at a distance of almost 2 hours on a one way trip. I just can't. That they have been less than 10 minutes from us, and no more than 40 minutes to the hospital for visits in Tallahassee - well I just can't tell you how much that as meant.

My sister's husband is no longer with us, but his death brought her back to all of us - and it brought her back to life. She is whole new person, in mind, body and soul. I'm so proud of her, for her, I have no words other than to say sometimes there truly are good blessings that come from bad happenings.

My kids are doing good. Life is treating them both well, it's giving them everything back that they seem to be giving to it. They both have wonderful, loving partners, comfortable places to live, and jobs that bring them not only monetary value - but joy. And as we all know, if you can like what you do every day - your life is just that much more enriched with the golds so many others are seeking to find. I haven't seen my oldest in two years - but there are talks of a Spring visit and I'm crossing my fingers.

And lastly, my husband and I are loving our new made-for-Hollywood bathroom, our new floors and again, we LOVE having "our people" right here, right where we can get to them, help them, with anything and everything they may need, with a quickness. There is something to be said for peace of mind - and if we don't have anything else - we have that.

So for 2020 - I'm hoping for less sickness. That's it. Sure, we could all plan for this or strive for that; but the bottom line is: if we all stay healthy, we're still employed or happily retired, and we're all still on the green side of the grass - the rest is just bonus.

Happy New year Folks - make it the best you can!

Our year in pictures in no particular order: