I cleaned out my closet and have a pile of clothes ready for the collection box. I plan to do the same thing with my cupboards. I have such a huge supply of dishes, casseroles, small appliances and other kitchen items that I never use.
Maybe I will actually (hopefully) accomplish one of my resolutions in 2010. I am determined to downsize.
I had a lovely quiet Christmas. My daughter and her family came over Christmas Eve, so we got the excitement out of the way early. Christmas Day my good friend came over for coffee and brunch and a nice talk. After he left, I dismantled the tree and put away the stockings. Some of my family and friends have questioned why I do it so early, but that tree had been up since the day after Thanksgiving and it blocked the extra daylight we are now gaining. I cleaned the window so I could see the birds better and am now seeing a change in the daylight as well.
The day after Christmas I phoned my parents and found my mother fell on Christmas Day and hurt her shoulder. She had been visiting my brother and fell on her way out to the car, right by the concrete steps at his back door. She declined a trip to the emergency room an hour away, and she and my father sat up all night - she in pain, he to ensure she was ok.
Saturday my brother took her to the hospital in Harrisburg where they discovered her shoulder is broken. The ball is in four pieces. After many hours and much discussion and several changes, they gave her pain medication and sent her home. Her arm is in an immobilizer, strapped tight against her body to prevent movement of the shoulder. When the swelling goes down, they will operate. Right now, all we know is she will see the doctor on Jan. 5 and they will give her date for the surgery to replace the shoulder. They have already ordered a ball for it. She is in pain, but the medications are helping somewhat.
Fortunately, my brother and his wife live across the yard. One of my sisters is five minutes away. Another sister is 30 minutes away. My sisters, sister-in-law, niece and nephew (both 20-something) have made daily visits to see if my parents need anything, bringing food and whatever else they need. I've called frequently this week, and Mother seems to be holding up fairly well. She suffers a bit of queasiness from the pills and doesn't have much appetite, but she sounds good. I'm relieved that my siblings are close enough to visit daily, because neither parent would let someone spend the night with them since the accident.
I'll be phoning them tomorrow to wish them a Happy New Year. My daughter and family and good friend are coming for our annual pork & sauerkraut dinner, a nod to my German ancestry and PA Dutch upbringing.
Tomorrow is also my granddaughter Maddy's 5th birthday. She is a delightful child and I'm so blessed to have her living nearby.
I went out to the get the mail a little while ago and the sky was so pretty I had to come back in and grab my camera. I wasn't dressed warmly enough to go far enough away to get the photo without the power lines and light pole. Though my thermometer said -9, it felt much colder than that.
Happy New Year. May your 2010 be a healthy happy year, filled with much love, great friends and wonderful moments.
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