Sunday, December 09, 2007

It's been a while, and I




thanks those of you who contacted me privately to say I was missed. The last few months have been hectic, to say the least. My son contracted that MRSA that you may have read about in the papers. It started with what we thought was a bad toothache, maybe an abces. He went to a dentist, it was the dentist realized that it wasn't a dental matter and whatever the problem was, it needed immediate attention. She contacted our family doctor and then upon his recomendation a specialist and insisted he see our son within the hour. The specialist then sent him to begin immediate intravenous antibiotics for the next several days. He emphasized that this infection was very near the brain, and had to be contained and controlled quickly. Months later it has improved greatly despite several frightening relapses and we are now trying to schedule some surgery to clean out the last of the infection. Bless that dentist! The specialist said if we had delayed even 24 hours we would probably be burying him!

Meanwhile, my mom took a fall and took her first ambulance ride. Fortunately, she was bruised but not broken and they released her. Two days later she took another ambulance ride, this time with a stroke. She went from hospital to a nursing and rehab center where they said she would need long term care from now on. I have spent a lot of time trying to find and then move her into a facility, now I am dealing with the piles of paperwork that goes along with all of this. I must say, every single person that I have dealt with has been both helpful and very, very nice. Blessing in the midst of turmoil.

Those are just the two most serious things from the past few months, but there have been smaller excitements, too. You know.......life! Anyway, all of this has kept me either to busy, or too exhausted to do any blogging or sewing. This weekend is the first time I have gotten into the sewing room since the last time I posted. Need I say that my plans to give everyone a quilt for Christmas have gone out the window. (to put a positive spin on it, I have a great start on NEXT year's gifts!!) This weekend I caught up on my BOM swap obligations. Once these babies hit the mail, I'm finished! I must say that I will be glad to see the end of this. I try too hard and wind up doing not as well as normal, it takes the joy out of things. These are the blocks for October, November and December. They are not as crooked as they may appear in the photos, I put them on the back of the sofa to take the pictures, instead of laying them flat. OOOPS!

11 comments:

KC Quilter said...

Welcome back! And yes, you have been missed. Hope both your son and your mom are doing better. My brother-in-law has dealt with MRSA off and on for a while now and because he has diabetes and heart trouble, his doctor is always right on it. Your blocks look wonderful, by the way!!!

Sweet P said...

I'm sorry to hear about your son and mom. But I'm glad to hear they are doing better. Relax and take care of yourself. It sounds like you need some "me time".

QuiltingFitzy said...

You have many things to be thankful for this holiday season. Take time for yourself and sewing is great therapy!

Glad to see you back.

Patti said...

Oh dear, Gail! I'm so sorry for all your trials! Thank God your son is going to be OK. I don't know what MRSA is but obviously it is something very awful. I can imagine how you feel. About 15 years ago our son got osteomyelitis caused by the bacteria that caused toxic shock. He was in the hospital for 8 days and on IV antiobiotics for 4 weeks.

I sure hope the rest of the year is looking up for you, and that you can enjoy the holiday season.

Clare said...

Oh poor you - MRSA - how awful! So pleased the dentist and doctors got it in time. Hope what is left of the year pans out for you and 2008 will be a good quilting year for you.

Love the colours of the first block.

Greenmare said...

Oh my goodness, you poor thing. You need a nice peaceful season now to renew yourself. Take it easy and dont' try to finish up next years Christmas presents too soon!

Mar said...

oh my, what trials and tribulations you have endured. Welcome back, hope life gets a little smoother so that you can enjoy the holidays!

Unknown said...

Thank heavens for that dentist - we hear lots about hospital gained MRSA in the UK media - hadn't realised it was a worldwide problem - hope that Christmas and 2008 will be less stressful and healthier for you all :o)

sewprimitive karen said...

Hi, Gail, you had a lucky escape this year, then. Thank goodness your son got such excellent medical care. Bet you're relaxing and thanking your lucky stars this Christmas Day.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Darling Jill Quilts said...

I am glad that your son is doing better and I hope that your mom's recovery is going well! I hope you had a Merry Christmas!

dot said...

Oh my goodness. I have heard of so much destruction from this nasty stuff. I am happy to hear things are getting better for you. I hope you had a nice peaceful Christmas. One thing is, when things like this happen it helps us to put things into perspective. Happy New Year to you and your family. I have started on the October challenge by Judy L if you want to take a peek.