…in front of our house saying, “opossums welcome”? We must, because we have just trapped for release the fifth or sixth one we have had in the past year or so. It was in the garage. They have all been juveniles. On two separate occasions, one made it all the way into the back part of the house far from any of the entrances. The first was in our closet about a year ago. We figure he came in a bathroom window we opened to air out the house after a week of rain. About two months ago, CPI found one in his bedroom while he was home from A&M. No clue how it got in that far. The bedroom opossum was a bit skinny and dehydrated, so we kept him for about two weeks to be sure he was stable. Then, CPI took him up to the country and released him. That is where the one we trapped last night is going today. I hope this is the end. I have nothing against opossums, but they do not belong in my house.~~TSG
Posts Tagged ‘family
do we have a sign…
…and then HE said…
As most of you know, I am a Christian. In addition to petitioning God for help, I also listen for what He would have me do. This is not to say I always like it, but I have to do it if I wish to be a true follower of Christ.
As I mentioned in my last post, I have given up my right to be angry about the cancer and its aftermath. Yesterday, the Still Small Voice whispered that I had something else to give up. Something that has gone on much longer. There was a person in my life who, over the course of many years, harmed our family in numerous ways. I have long nursed my anger at this person. God says I have to give that up, too. So, here I go again. I am giving up…MY RIGHT TO BE ANGRY AT THIS PERSON. I am done. I may have to do this every day, too. So, more prayers, please! Thanks!~~TSG
here comes 2015
For me, the new year officially starts the day we go back to work for the Spring semester. That would have been yesterday. I have, as is traditional, decided to make some changes this year. I am not calling them “resolutions” since I intend to keep them. When I do, they will lead to great improvement in my life.
I am currently reading “People are Idiots and I Can Prove It!” by Larry Winget. It is unlike any “self-help” book I have read before. Mr. Winget’s process calls for a lot of writing and serious contemplation of how I got to where I am and what I must do to get out.
The part that has really gotten my attention is the “Jerry Swaggart Moment”, that one thing that you have done that is totally stupid and absolutely MUST go. Mine is this: I have allowed 2.5 years of cancer and its aftermath to derail the last 12 years of my life. Yes, more than FIVE TIMES the actual span of the event. So, what I am willing to give up (another list I made at the suggestion of Mr. Winget) in order to achieve real change in my life is…MY RIGHT TO BE ANGRY ABOUT THE CANCER. Yes, you read that correctly. I have a right to be angry about the cancer, but I cannot afford to indulge that right. I am, therefore, giving it up. I may have to give it up daily for a bit, but that is just what I am going to do. Pray for me and for those who must deal with me. Thank you!~~TSG
…this morning’s events at the Gaudy house:
I woke at 6:30 to discover that one of us had tipped over my contact lens cleaning system during the night, leaving my contacts still in a soup of hydrogen peroxide. I had no idea how long they had been this way, but the process takes at least 2 hours. I set up the bottle, hoping it would finish before I had to leave. Meanwhile, I washed my hair. I can’t see anything and also can’t find my emergency glasses. I wake up CPI so he can begin getting ready. He puts my pants on the couch so I can find them easily. The dog decides that they will make a lovely bed in the front hall. I put on a skirt I wore earlier in the week instead. This means that I need to clean off the shoes I wore Monday when the parking lot was full of mud. CPI says he will clean off the mud (now caked dirt) while I fix my hair.
I put sticky stuff in my hair and begin blow-drying and styling it. This consists of blowing for a bit and then leaning as close to the mirror as possible to look at the results. This entire time, we are both trying to figure out where the bottle of plain saline solution that is usually in my purse is so I can rinse the contacts and wear them. It is inexplicably missing. Finally, we decide to buy some on the way to work. CPI begins to throw up (a combination of his seasonal allergies and whatever was in the mud, we think). New plan; CPI will drive me to the store, buy the saline solution and bring it out. I will rinse my contacts, put them in and take him back to the house. Partway to the store, I remember that the contact case in my purse may have solution in it. It does. I rinse the contacts, put them in and take CPI back to the house.
At work, I decide that I deserve a coke. I get this from the fancy machine in the cafeteria where you can mix your own. Returning to my office, I hang up my sweater (a new one) to discover that I have been wandering the campus with a tag attached to an extra button dangling from the back of my sleeve.
The worst/best part of the whole thing? I like my hair better today than I have in some time.
off we went…
Today, CPI and I went with Papaw, Aunt J, ES and LS to the zoo. No, we do not want to comment on why it took five adults to take 2-year-old LS to the zoo. We all had a grand old time. We saw lions, bears, giraffes and even baby elephants. The biggest hit was the sea lions. We watched them for some time while Papaw took a phone call from a friend. They put on quite a show! The two young ones chased one another up and down the slide. Then, dad came out and took a ringside seat on a platform. Finally, mom came out and swam about watching the fun. The water looked really cool and inviting. LS suggested jumping in. ES (typical ‘mom spoils it all’) said that he couldn’t. When Papaw’s phone call was over, we had to practically peel LS off the fence between us and the sea lions. We only saw about 1/2 of the zoo before LS got sleepy. We’ll have to go back another day and take in the rest.~~TSG
rejoice,…
…the Lord is King! IRP was told by the doctor today that she does not need any further surgeries. He took out the final drain and declared her finished. She has another checkup next month, but other than that she can just get on with her life.~~TSG
the new normal
Praise God! IRP is happier and healthier now than she has been in years. She is relieved that, with the permanent colostomy, she knows what to expect. As she said to me, “at least I won’t wake up every day wondering what is going to break and will it succeed in killing me this time?”. This is not the solution we really wanted, but it is one that is working. I could not ask for anything more. Thanks and love to our prayer partners!~~TSG
this is getting old
Well, here we are again. IRP called at about 10:30 this morning in terrible pain. I ran her up to her doctor and he had her admitted to the hospital. The hospital was full, so it was nearly 3:00 by the time she got a room. Since then, we have been struggling to keep her out of pain and to get her to keep contrast liquid down. Finally, I decided to have the nurse tell IRP’s doctor that she was never going to be able to keep anything down unless he could get, and keep, her out of pain. The nurse had already come to this conclusion and informed the doctor. She was actually on the way to IRP’s room with a syringe full of morphine and the information that the scan would be performed without contrast fluid. They will be coming for IRP shortly. Please pray that the reason for the problem will be relatively mild and quickly solved. Thank you!~~TSG
our ways are not his ways…
IRP went into surgery at 1pm. At 3:15, the doctor came out to speak with us. The fistula has been successfully closed. However, IRP will have to deal with a colostomy for the rest of her life. There is simply not enough material left to reconnect her in the normal manner. In fact, the colon could not be stitched to the stoma today. A temporary plastic stent has been put in to allow for the growth of scar tissue. In three or four weeks, the doctor will use the scar tissue to complete the connection.
IRP has been dealing with the difficulties caused by Hirschsprung’s for her entire life in one way or another. This is the end of that. The permanent colostomy does not make any difference to her fiancé who says it is “just a thing” which has nothing to do with her as a person. 🙂 I asked the doctor about IRP’s main concern; would she be able to conceive and carry children. He said that she has the correct equipment and it is in fine shape. Should scar tissue prevent regular conception, there are other methods to conceive. Most importantly, she will be able to carry a child to term. It has always been IRP’s worst fear that her condition would make this impossible.
God’s ways are not ours, but I know they have a purpose. Please continue to pray for a quick recovery and return to normal life. As always, thank you!~~TSG
IRP needs surgery once more. She has developed a fistula and the doctor will have to repair it and give her a temporary ileostomy again. I will let you look up the meaning of ‘fistula’ for yourself if necessary. Suffice it to say that it has given her an infection and made life much worse for her. As you probably guessed, IRP is very tired of all of this. She tells me that, if there is even a chance of anything going wrong after this, she is just going to keep the ileostomy. I am praying for God to heal this breech before the surgeon has to. Please join me; IRP really needs this to be over. Thank you!~~TSG
In the Ensuing Panic 
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