Some funny moments...

There have been some humourous moments the past couple of weeks and I wish I had written more of them down. Here’s a few that I wrote notes about.

The night before Jim’s surgery I said, “ I promise I’m never going to do another crappy thing to you again.”

“Can I have that in writing?” he asked.
“Uh, I don’t think so.”

“Jim, just think this time tomorrow you’ll either wake up and be with me, or be with Jesus.”

“Yep, I’ll either win the lottery or be with you, Molly.”

“So, you don’t think being with me is like winning the lottery? You better not answer that one, Jim!”


I put a heart tattoo on the back of Jim’s shoulder after his heart cath, while he was still drowsy from the anesthesia. I thought he’d see it and assume it had been on there when he had the heart cath. I couldn’t wait for him to notice it. Well, it didn’t happen as I had planned. He ended up being admitted to the ER and never saw it. The night he was admitted to ER, one of the nurses saw it and said to another nurse, “Oh look at his heart tattoo.”

“What tattoo?” he asked. He called me right away and said, “MOLLY, WHAT DID YOU PUT ON MY BACK???”

When Chance and I went to see Jim on Monday, we met the nurse taking him for his walk. They turned around to head back to his room and Chance and I were behind them. I asked the nurse, “So, you don't make sure their butt isn't showing, before you take the patients walking?" She jerked her head around to make sure Jim’s rear was covered and then realized I was joking and started laughing. I wish I could I have seen the look on Jim’s face. I’m sure it was priceless.

I carried Jim’s clothes home that he wore to the ER to wash them. He called me Tuesday morning to tell me he was being released and to bring him some clothes to wear home. When I got to the hospital, I hid his clothes in the bottom of a bag. He said, "Honey, did you bring me clothes to wear home?"

"Oops, I forgot."

I looked at the nurse and asked her if he could wear the hospital gown home. She said it wouldn’t be a problem. Jim looked at me and said, “Molly, that doctor cut the humor out of me, so don't try this one."

It hurts Jim to laugh, and it seems like I’ve said some funny stuff lately, making us both laugh. He told me the second day he was home, that I had to quit being funny and making him laugh. He said that his lungs could collapse if he laughed, too much or too hard. I’m so gullible and thought he was being telling the truth. The next day when the nurse came, I asked how laughing could make his lungs collapse. She looked confused and said that couldn’t happen. Oh, he was so BUSTED!!!

And, my favorite comment made during this ordeal was one Chance said, that speaks volumes about his personality. When we were leaving the hospital Monday, he saw an old man walking to his car and said, “I’m not going to be a slow, old person, even if it means getting a fast scooter!

Answered Prayers

I am so tired, I seriously feel deflated. The past few days have found me spending a lot of time sitting on the porch, going to bed earlier and even taking a nap, something I rarely do. Between Jim’s hospital stay, and him being in a lot of pain since he’s been home, I've had several sleepless nights that have finally caught up with me.

About three weeks ago Jim’s stress test revealed the blood was moving sluggishly through his heart. He went for a heart cath on the 26th and the cardiologist said he needed a triple bypass. The surgery was scheduled for May 3rd. The next afternoon he started having severe pain and I had to take him to the ER. He was admitted to the hospital and surgery was bumped up to April 30th.

Jim ended up having a quadruple bypass and did really well. The doctor said this surgery usually requires a 3-5 day hospital stay, but since Jim is diabetic, we could expect a 7-10 day stay. He was released four days after surgery and came home Tuesday!

We had a lot of people praying for Jim and for me, before and during the surgery, and still have people praying for his recovery. Not only have I seen prayers answered in how well things have gone, I have felt prayers answered, in the peace I have felt during this time.

Creston and Chance were able to come and be with me during the surgery. It was quite the trip riding with them. Chance saw a duffle bag in the truck and asked Creston if it was his. Then he asked him, “What are you planning to do, rob a bank or something?” He teased Creston about it looking like a bank robber’s bag from the 70's and said he sure hoped he wasn’t taking it with him in the hospital.

The boys had me and Jim laughing before surgery. Turns out that Creston had a humorous book packed in that duffle bag and he pulled it out and started reading it to us. When Jim mentioned that he had been shaved from head to toe, Chance asked him if he was going to keep up the “man-scaping” after surgery. While Jim was in surgery, Chance found some hilarious videos on “You Tube” which had the three of us laughing out loud.

I was dreading telling Jim bye when they took him to surgery, and the waiting during the surgery. I knew I would cry when they took him back, making it worse for both of us and would probably cry during the wait. Having Creston and Chance with me, made it so much better than I could ever have imagined. Between the comments, jokes and videos, they kept me well entertained and I never shed the first tear!!!

After surgery I called several people to give them updates. One of the people I called is my friend Vicki. I told her the surgery had gone well and I had done amazingly well, thanks to comic relief from the boys. Vicki Said to me, “You’re not going to believe this, but two times this morning I specifically prayed for comic relief from the boys!” How awesome is that!

Precious Pat

Pat was transferred to another hospital and had surgery Tuesday afternoon. I went to the hospital Wednesday morning to check on her. When I walked in her room, the first words out of her mouth were, “God is good, all the time!”

Amazing, inspiring, faith filled . . . are there really the right words to describe Pat? She’s on a ventilator with a trac, and has paralysis due to neuropathy. Less than 24 hours out of major abdominal surgery, her body is racked with pain. She has a tube in her nose, drains and a wound vac. Yet her first words to me are filled with praise for God!

The nurses talk about Pat. The doctors are in awe of her. My friends, who have gone to visit, have fell in love with her. It seems she touches the lives of everyone she meets. I’m sure some people wonder what gives Pat the ability to smile in the midst of her storms. I know the answer. One can’t be around Pat very long without realizing, how much she loves God. She truly is a beautiful testimony for Him! I think we can all learn lessons from precious Pat.

The Lady with the Beautiful Smile

My heart sings with joy! I have a new friend and she has already been a blessing in my life. She is one of the most precious ladies I have ever met. I don’t think anyone could meet Pat and not walk away a different person, she’s just that amazing!

Yesterday I went to visit Tammy in the hospital. As I left her room, I happened to glance across the hall. There was a lady looking at me and smiling! I’m sure you wonder, “What’s so unusual about that?” I have been going to that hospital since August and have never walked by a room and seen a patient smile. NEVER! Pat is the first. That in of itself, says a lot about Pat. I stopped by her room on my way out and told her that I loved her smile. She smiled even more. As I walked home, I wondered about the lady with the beautiful smile.

I couldn’t get Pat off my mind and nothing would do, but for me to go back and meet her. Since Tammy was having a bad day, I thought I’d go back and check on her, and stop in and talk to the “lady with the beautiful smile.” Tammy was sleeping soundly, so I went in Pat’s room, introduced myself and asked if I could visit her. She smiled so brightly and said I could visit, come anytime, and as often as I wanted.

Like Tammy, Pat is on a trach, making it a challenge to communicate with her. After months of visiting Tammy, I’m much better at reading lips, so we were able to carry on a conversation with just a few missing words. A few minutes into the conversation I mentioned her smile. She said “It’s God.” I wasn’t surprised. It didn’t take me long to recognize that Pat is overflowing with faith, love and smiles. One of the nurses said they call her “Miss Smiley” because she’s always smiling. I stayed until the nurse took her for some tests. Pat made me promise that I would come back for a visit.

Later that afternoon I took some Bible verses and the alphabet printed out (to help with communication) to Pat. Her family was visiting so I got to meet them. I spent a few minutes talking with her family and left the Bible verses and alphabet with them.

Today I stopped in to see Pat on my way to visit Tammy. Pat was awake and smiling She asked me right off if I would read the Bible verses to her. I asked if she wanted me to put her name in the verses as I read them and she liked this idea. To give an example, I read Isaiah 26:3 like this, “Thou will keep Pat in perfect peace because Pat trusteth in thee.” In between verses, we talked about God, how amazing He is, and how much He loves us. A couple of times she looked at me and said, “You’re going to make me cry.” When I told Pat that I’m amazed at how well we communicate, she said to me, “It’s because we have a connection.” I thought she was going to make me cry with that one!

I told Pat that I am going to my parent’s house for Easter. When I told her that Dad has Alzheimer’s and Mom has Dementia, she looked at me and said, “Pray about that.” I shared with her that I have been, but sometimes I get weary and give up with my prayer requests. She looked at me and said, “Never give up!” Wow! Here I am hoping to brighten her life with a visit, and she’s encouraging and blessing me.

Sometimes the visits with Tammy are so emotionally draining for me. As God always does, He sends us just what we need, just when we need it the most. I’m thankful He sent Pat to me for encouragement and uplifting. I think of her as my sunshine on cloudy days.

"Every experience God gives us, every person He puts in our life is the perfect preparation for the future that only He can see." Corrie Ten Boom

“Out of This World” Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies

This recipe makes the best Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies ever, bar none!

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp. Baking Soda
1 tsp. Salt
1 cup Crisco
3/4 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup white sugar
1 Tbsp. water
1 tsp. Vanilla
2 eggs
2 cups (quick cooking) oatmeal
12 oz. chocolate chips
1 cup pecans


Sift together flour, soda, and salt in bowl. Set aside. Blend Crisco, sugars, water and vanilla in another bowl. Beat in eggs, one at a time. Add this to the flour mixture. Blend well. Stir in chips, oatmeal and pecans. Spoon on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake 325-350 degrees for 10-12 minutes

Irish Soda Bread

On St. Patrick’s Day my friend, Mary made Irish Soda Bread and brought it to the clinic where we volunteer. Needless to say, I made several trips to the kitchen that day to grab a piece of Irish Soda Bread. It was that addicting. My first mistake was tasting it, my second mistake was brining a piece home for Jim to try. He liked it as much as I did and we both craved more!

That afternoon Jim and I were reading the sale ads for the local Publix and much to our delight, they had Irish Soda Bread on sale. They had two different kinds, one with and one without, caraway seeds. Mary’s had caraway seeds, so we wanted that kind. Since it was late in the afternoon, I figured Publix would be sold out of Irish Soda Bread. I looked up their phone number, called the store and spoke with a real sweet gal in the bakery department. She found one loaf that had caraway seeds. I asked her to put it on hold and told her Jim would be there shortly to pick it up. I made a quick grocery list and sent Jim out the door to pick up our treat.

In this particular Publix, our cell phones will not work in their store. You have to go outside to make a call. It becomes really frustrating if you need to call home and ask a question when you’re at the store. Fifteen minutes after leaving the house, an annoyed Jim was standing in front of Publix, on his cell phone, with me. “Didn’t you call and put a loaf of bread on hold? There is a little oriental lady working in the bakery that doesn’t speak or understand English very well. She seems confused about the caraway seeds and isn’t sure which loaves have them. And, she can’t find the loaf that you put on hold.” Hmmm, I wondered, “Is it that she has a problem with the English language, or that she has a problem with a frustrated redneck???”

I insisted he go back and tell her I had just called the store, and there WAS a loaf of bread on hold. In the meantime I called the bakery department and a young man answered. I explained the situation and he found the loaf of bread behind the counter. I told him to be on the lookout for a big guy with a beard, wearing a cowboy hat, who was very grumpy.

Jim went back to the bakery. The little oriental lady had started passing out samples of Irish Soda Bread and offerend him one. He told her a sample wouldn't help figure out which loaves had caraway seeds. As he grabbed a loaf off the counter, she looked at him and said, “You don’t like, you bring back.” He informed her that he didn’t want a loaf he might have to bring back, he wanted a loaf to eat.

Twenty minutes passed and I called Jim’s cell phone. He was on his way to the house with a loaf of Irish Soda Bread. He didn’t see “caraway seeds” on the label, so it was probably not the kind of bread he went in search of, in the first place. Now I was getting annoyed and told him I was calling the store and complain.

I called the store and the same little gal I had spoken with the first time, answered. I told her that Jim had been to the store and the little oriental lady could not find our loaf of bread, nor could she figure out which loaves had caraway seeds in them. “What oriental lady?” she asked. Uh oh, I didn’t like where this was going at all. “We don’t have an oriental lady working in our bakery. Did you mean to call the Publix on Hwy 17, or the one on 220?” I told her I wanted the store on Hwy 17 and thought that’s the one I called.

“Oh, people get us confused all the time. Our store is the one at 220 and 17, but the address is listed as Hwy 17. The other one is on Hwy 17, but the address is listed as Hibernia Road. You called the wrong store.”

One mystery solved and one mistake I won’t be repeating. When Jim came home, I told him about my big blunder and we both laughed. All the aggravation, back and forth phone calls and we had the wrong store the entire time! Jim said he sure was glad that he didn’t get irate with the little oriental lady and show his butt. Wonders of all wonders on that one! He was actually proud of himself for not speaking his mind to the innocent little lady. He thought for a minute and then said, “I bet I win the lottery tonight, since I was so nice.” Sorry Jim, I don’t think it works that way. If it did, I’m sure we would stand a good chance of hitting the big one!

Dad's Follow Up Appointment

Dad’s doctor told Mom in August that he suspected Dad has Alzheimer’s and recommended she take him to see a neurologist. The doctor gave her some medicine for the Alzheimer’s. Because Mom’s memory is so bad, it’s unclear whether she gave Dad the medicine. It was after Dad fell at the post office in December, that Mom made the appointment with the neurologist, Dr. Quick.

There has been a noticeable change in Dad since he fell, and we had hopes that the fall could be blamed for his confusion and hallucinations. I met Mom and Dad on Monday for the follow up appointment with Dr. Quick and to get the results of the second EEG. Dr. Quick said he was hoping against hope that the EEG would show some improvement, but there is none. All indicators are Alzheimer’s and he thinks the fall has made the situation worse.

Dr. Quick explained what we need to do to protect Dad and what we can expect to take place. As he talked I heard Mom sniffing and I couldn’t bring myself to look at her. I knew she was crying. If I had turned to look at her, I would have broke down in tears, and I didn’t think it would be good for Dad to see us crying. As I write, I have a heart of regret and tears in my eyes, for not turning to her and putting my arms around her.

Every time Mom brings the situation up about Dad, I remind her that we have to be thankful for what we’ve had. In trying to be strong and encourage her, I feel I have closed the door on her being able to share her thoughts, feelings and fears with me. I have not acknowledged her pain and heartache and that’s something I need to do, for both of us. Telling her to be thankful when her world is falling apart, is easy for me to say, but hard for her to appreciate. Mom needs someone to cry out to, and I haven’t been there for her. I can only imagine how hard this is for her, and I’ve got to become a better listener and be more understanding. It’s hard to know the best way to be there for her, but I know how she would react if it were me, and that’s the way I need to be for her.