Family

Commentary on family members and family events, as I see them

An Interesting Birthday Gift

For my birthday this year, my mother chose an interesting birthday gift for me. Rather than the standard present or gift of money, she decided to provide five pizza meals from Jets. I was allowed to select the timing of each meal. This gift was a little unusual, but since I like pizza I decided to enjoy it (and I have). Mom was also a beneficiary of this gift because we share meals.

Mom’s birthday is exactly three months after mine. My cousin, who lives two doors down, and I decided that we would give Mom a Sunday dinner at Lelli’s, an upscale restaurant in the area. Mary Jane and I would split the cost of Mom’s meal and pay for our own. After church on the day before Mom’s 99th birthday, we celebrated with this dinner out. My share of that single meal was more than five pizza dinners! It was worth it to see Mom enjoy the meal so much. Both of us had an interesting birthday gift this year!

I admit I was a bit remiss about finding a birthday card for Mom. On her actual birthday, July 17, I went to the local CVS after work to find a meaningful card for her if I could. I was fortunate to find one with text I liked. What is much more interesting, however, is that while browsing through the selection of cards, I found the “purrfect” one for my own birthday three months earlier. This is it:

An Interesting Birthday Card

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Anniversary Post

It has been exactly one year (to the day) since I last posted to this blog.  Happy Anniversary to SweetMewsic’s Musings!

The last year has, for the most part, been a happy and productive one. There are two exceptions to this worth noting:

  • My handsome orange polydactyl, Pawscar Awesome, had to have his right eye removed in June 2016. The pressure went out of control, and he had no vision remaining. A laboratory examination could find no explanation for the eye problem, which made me glad I had not agreed to a risky procedure to remove and analyze fluid from his eye that had been recommended some time ago. In the next few months we struggled to keep the pressure in his left eye in the normal range and cope with the diabetes which resulted from long-term steroid use for his eyes. In November, Pawscar’s left eye experienced the same rising pressure, and it seemed that I might soon have a blind kitty. Then I noticed the feel of “bubbles” under the skin of his hindquarters. I took Pawscar to Dr. R., who was able to remove some fluid under the skin for analysis. By the next day Pawscar was clearly miserable, unable to use his litterbox without pain. I made the difficult decision to let him cross the Rainbow Bridge on November 16, 2016. It was only when I returned home that evening and got a Facebook notification email that I realized that November 16, 2012, was Pawscar’s “birthday”: the day I first met him at Gasow Veterinary Clinic and determined to adopt him.
  • My husband, Jim, injured his back in the summer. One morning in late August he awoke and was not able to get out of bed, even with my help. He had a fracture in his back, which was repaired surgically. The surgeon said he could come home, but our internist wanted to wait a day. By then, Jim was weak and not eating well. So began five months during which Jim alternated between a nursing home (with rehab at first) and the hospital. Finally, on January 20, 2017, Jim passed away. I am now a widow, like my mother and my sister Judy.

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Birthday Photos

The birthday photos that were taken by LifeTouch for our new church directory arrived at last. I am not really thrilled with any of mine, but they do provide an idea of what I looked like when I turned 65.

Birthday Photos
I arrive at 65.
Birthday Photos with Family
Mom, Melissa, and I

By the way, the birthday cake and flowers were surprises from my sister Melissa. The cake was delicious.

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