Ethan’s Journey

 Today was spent puttering. I didn’t feel super great so I did little bits at a time. I ended up napping for a little bit.  Ethan’s friends spent the night last night. I didn’t know they were going to, so I went down stairs and woke one of them up a little after 6. I went back to bed to give them time to sleep in. They spent the morning at our house. They left to go work on one of their trucks. Ethan stayed behind. They were supposed to come back but they didn’t ever make it. Paul hung up Christmas lights. He was so excited because he bought new lights and they are controlled by an app. He is beside himself with joy.  He was cracking me up because last weekend a neighbor started putting up their lights. Paul started to get Christmas light anxiety. He called this neighbor “direct competition” however, when probed, Paul admitted that the neighbor has no idea it is a competition. MEN! Paul has been standing in the front window gazing at the property kitty corner from us. He ...

 Black Friday! Yikes. I avoid the stores. I worked all day today.  Avery and I went to a few stores and it was hectic! We survived. It is always nice to have someone else to share your thoughts on human behavior.  We had a cashier that was a chatty Cathy. After we had gotten our receipt, she started sharing her work schedule with us. The line behind us was long. People were patiently waiting. “I am done working in a few hours. I then work 3 more days, have two days off, then work two days…with three days off after that.” She barely took a breath….and then says “I have some extra vacation time that I am using up, that is why I am taking so many days off.” Avery and I started to walk away, looking over our shoulders and trying not to be rude. She continued with “we need to use it or we lose it. I didn’t use all of mine this year.” At this point Avery and I were crossing through the doors to go outside. I thought about the interaction. As an introvert, the idea of sharing al...

 Happy Birthday to my Mom! She turns 30 today. I am just 5 years younger. Don’t question it. Just accept these numbers as accurate. Happy Thanksgiving! This year was fun! We had some good laughs at the table during dinner.  My brother popped by for a quick visit! It was nice to visit with him. I prepared the bird for cooking. I took out the innerds and put a dry rub on the turkey. It smelled and tasted amazing.  I picked out Paul’s special turkey carving apron. We were laughing as he took his carving job seriously. We had some fun with it. Of course everything was delicious and we were all uncomfortably stuffed. Everyone was gathered around the table and there was laughter. At one point we were all laughing and sharing stories. It made my heart warm.  To reflect on what am I thankful for, there are so many things. I was thankful for everyone at our table this evening. I am thankful for being rich with friends and family. I am thankful for Ethan’s donor and their fami...

 I am still attending physical therapy. My physical therapist really pushed me today. My back is sore this evening and I had to do a bit of stretching to get comfortable. I felt bad because Avery was working on her resume and applications for internships for the summer. She asked for me to look o er her resume and the sitting was quite uncomfortable. She is going to apply for a few internships out of state, just to see where she lands. It would be a summer internship to grow her resume, so not forever. We prepped the cheesy potato dish. Tomorrow I will work on the turkey and glazed carrots. I really enjoy Thanksgiving. I enjoy preparing for it. I enjoy cleaning for it and who doesn’t love eating? I am hoping tomorrow moves by as slow as today did.

 I had a dilemma to work through today at work. I had kind of a miserable day. It seemed that everything I touched went to crap. I went and picked up the Wegmans’s subs for dinner with my friend in the hospital. Man, that was easy. I ordered ahead online.  Wegman’s was wild. It was full of feral humans with little awareness of themselves. I did the grab and go and paid for my stuff ahead of time! My friend and I visited. We laughed about stuff and had some good conversation. She is preparing to lose her hair next week at some point.  She is also trying to embrace this new way of living. Avoiding germs and people. She should be discharged Saturday. They are hoping for sooner. I quickly learned how to silence her pump. I still am bothered by beeping pumps. Tomorrow. I attend another physical therapy session. I hope we can avoid a deep tissue massage. 

 We have a friend from out of town that is currently undergoing cancer treatment at the hospital in Rochester. She is there for a few more days before she is able to be released.  I went to visit her to break up the day a little bit. We ended up chatting away, laughing and sharing life with one another. We talked about a lot of different things. One of the things we talked about is how things seem to happen for a reason.  There have been a series of events that have unfolded in her life over the past few months. Things they never would have anticipated. These things have all proven to be an asset to have happened, especially with this recent diagnosis. As she spoke, there were a few “the stars aligned” moments, without her even realizing it.  Sometimes life puts you where you need to be without you even knowing. Her family gets back in town Wednesday. She did say she doesn’t love being by herself all day. She is staying busy with books to read and doing things for he...

 I did some deep cleaning today. Paul helped. Even Ethan deep cleaned his bedroom! Mid day, a friend asked to meet up for a late lunch. She asked to go to MY favorite restaurant. How could I say “no”? We had margaritas and ate some Mexican food. Yum! We then went to a couple stores. We had fun and laughed at life.  At one of the stores, they had little pajama’s. Penny gets so cold and does like her pajamas. She runs around all excited to have her clothes on. Usually the necks are really big and she wiggles her front legs through the neck hole.  When I saw this pair, I knew that it was going to fit her. She got to put it on as soon as I got home. She was running all over and wagging her tail. I had stopped at a few stores prior to the late lunch. It picked up a few Christmas presents. That made me feel accomplished. We got a report that Jiminy is enjoying college. He likes all the ladies giving him attention. The house is quiet without him. Tomorrow will be a busy day for ...