December 29, 2012

Ok….  We have once again been remiss on keeping the blog up to date.     Middle of October to end of December in one quick writing…  

Betsy took the camper to Wallowa Lake State Park at the end of Oct for a girls camp.  They had fun….

First week of November found us at Elk Camp.  Camper with the cargo trailer in tow.  This is primarily a girls elk camp, but Bob tagged along to split firewood and keep the gen sets full of fuel.  Gave him some time in the Man Cave (cargo trailer) to watch TV, in semi-heated comfort, and have a toddy or two. 

Towards the end of elk camp, we escaped to Seattle for a quick Dr. appointment at UWMC.  Betsy got an excellent report and they said not to come back until April. 

Last two days of elk camp it snowed.  We drove out on a Monday morning and did not chain up.  Slow down the hills, but we made it fine. 

The only other trip with the Camper was to a bunko party in La Grande.  While we ‘rarely’ over consume beverages, we also do not drive under the influence.  It is easy to load and unload the camper… 

Christmas in Cove with family.  Lots of relax time and great family time.  Cassie will be with us until Jan 1 when we deliver her home.  She is a very mature young lady. 

Next trip… with the camper and trailer/w tracker will probably be in April for another week in Seattle (medical testing).  The tracker will give us easy travel means in the city, and the cave will let us stretch a little.  Then maybe a trip down the Oregon Coast. 

Wishing everyone a wonderful new year!!! 

Friday, October 19

Boy, the weeks just fly by!  We have been very busy finishing up the cleaning and sorting of the shop.  The truck and camper are now parked inside although the air conditioner on top of the camper rubs on the garage door when pulling in!  We could park it in the barn but it is more convenient to have it closer to the house when we want to use it.  Also makes a nice ‘guest room’ if we need it. 

 

I have been feeling great and feel so fortunate to be alive!  In the past few weeks I have canned apples, made and canned applesauce, canned plums, Asian plum sauce and spiced plum chutney.  We have tons of plums on our plum tree and felt like trying a few new recipes and preserving some.  We also dried plums and put some sliced apples in the freezer for pies.  The next thing is to do something with the pears that our neighbor brought us. 

 

We finally had a good dose of rain several days ago so we were able to burn all the ‘trash’ that has been accumulating over the past few months.  Had a nice campfire…  Still have a pile of yard debris that needs to be torched one of these days. 

 

Had a great visit from Dan and Carlyn who were on their way back to Kansas City.  Violet is getting used to AFP’s in the field!  (Arctic Fox People). 

 

This week we had a visit from Mary and Bill from Gig Harbor.  They are on their way to Texas to spend the holidays with her daughter.  (more AFP’s!)  It is so nice to have people stop by to visit and glad we have an RV spot for them.  We sat on the patio with a fire in the red stove and enjoyed some wine with them.  It’s great to finally feel comfortable having a fire now that we have had some rain. 

 

Had a great brief visit with Adam (the leading AFP) last week...  It was good to see him again and we look forward to the 2013 Rally.   

 

Bob is spending more time in his shop cave, now that is a lot cleaner and stuff sorted out.  Working on the new cargo trailer and hoping it’s ready for elk camp in a few weeks.

 

That’s about it!  We are just loving life and enjoying our place.  The leaves are gorgeous right now and yes we are looking forward to the first snow! (maybe this week) 

Saturday, September 29, 2012

Having trouble keeping up with this blog since we have been home.  Too many things to do here!!! 

 

The Oktoberfest was fun and we hope to go back again next year.  Enjoyed the music, food and of course the beer and wine.  LOTS of people there, especially in the evening. 

 

The last week or two we have been cleaning and sorting both in the house and in the shop (loft mainly).  Had quite a few things so we had a short notice garage sale today.  Didn’t make a lot of money but at least we got rid of quite a bit of ‘stuff’ and the rest will go to charities in town on Monday.  It was just the tip of the iceberg on sorting but at least it is a start. 

 

We do have several more trips before elk camp in November.  This Thursday we are driving to Beaverton to help celebrate Marci’s 40^th birthday!  Jim has made reservations at a supper club in Portland (Tony Starlight’s) and I think about 14 people will be in the group so it should be fun. 

 

Several weeks after that “the girls” are going on a camping trip to Wallowa Lake.  Libby and I will take our RV’s and Sheri and a friend will stay at the cabins.  We will be celebrating all of our birthdays since they are within a week or two of each other.  It should be a fun time! 

 

The following week is Elk Camp!  Can’t believe how fast the time is going by!  I need to work on the menu and think about food for that week….  It will be here before we know it… 

 

Bob has been working on fixing up the new cargo trailer with shelves, tiedowns, etc.  The Tracker fits in it nicely and leaves room for other things we might want to take on an extended camping trip or other outing. 

 

We had a nice visit from Art and Connie with the Arctic Fox Group.  Hadn’t seen them for about 5 years and it was great to catch up on all the happenings. 

 

Eventually, Nelson's Travels will again become that...  our travel blog...  Have a few things to put in place first, but soon. 

 

More later…………

Friday, September 7, 2012

It’s been awhile since we blogged.  Our granddaughter, Cassie, spent the month of August with us and we had such a great time.  She is 13 (almost 14) and such a joy to be around!  She is polite, takes care of herself and doesn’t complain about anything (except maybe Grandpa and his sense of humor…).  My sister and her granddaughter came for a visit while she was here and Cassie and Carly had fun hanging out together.  

Cassie and Grandpa spent quite a few days drivin’ and shootin’ up in the woods!  Cassie learned to drive the Tracker (stick shift) and shoot a 22.  There are miles and miles of back roads for her to practice on near our house.  Gpa says she has a ‘natural eye’ for the target.  Can easily put the majority of rounds in a 24” group at 100 yards..  Not bad for a starter…

We have been busy doing projects both inside and outside.  Hoping to have the shop cleaned out before bad weather hits so we can put the truck/camper and Durango inside.  We have enough space this year between the shop and barn to have everything under cover.  Yes, we are looking forward to the change of seasons.  Can’t wait for it to rain so we can have some campfires.  It is so dry right now that we wouldn’t take a chance. 

Violet loves being home and sitting out in her yard just watching and listening to all the critters.  We have a family of deer that come through almost every evening and they are so fun to watch.  Bob is working on enclosing one area of the patio with glass since we get very cold wind from the south in the winter.  Want to be able to sit out in front of the wood stove and not be blown away!!! 

I’m doing well, although I have nausea quite often and I think it must be one of the medications that is causing it.  The doctors have not been concerned about it and my lungs are doing fine so I’m very happy about that!  Still feel so fortunate that I can breathe and do things that I wasn’t able to do before.  I am thankful every day that I was given the chance to live.  Next appointment in Seattle is November 9.

Next week-end we are going to Mt. Angel to the Oktoberfest with Jim, Marci and Cassie.  Jim made reservations so we can park our campers a few blocks from the festivities.  It will be fun!! 

After that, we are hoping to stay home until Elk Camp which is November 2.  Have plans to do major sorting and cleaning of cupboards, drawers, etc.  Time to eliminate items we don’t need and there are many!!!!  It is amazing how much ‘stuff’ we accumulate in such a short period of time. 

Hope you all enjoy the end of the summer!

Friday, July 27, 2013

We have been busy putting stuff in the camper so it is ready for the trip to Seattle next Tuesday for a doctor appointment. The cargo trailer is empty now and will be for sale soon since Bob ordered a larger one so we can put the Tracker in it if we want to. We can also just tow the Tracker behind the truck which is what we will do on the Seattle trip since we will need a way to get to the hospital and be able to park in the underground parking facility. The truck/camper certainly wouldn’t fit! Have a reservation at Lake Pleasant RV Park and look forward to seeing friends there.

Photo of the camper with the red towd, and the back of the camper with the new Fox Landing on the rear b umper. 

Jim, Marci, Cassie and their friend Sarah will be here later today for the week-end. Their first time in Cove in almost 2 years!!! I have food and drink ready for a great time… It was fun planning the meals and cooking once again.

We now have a new garage door opener on the big door of the shop and the propane stove in the shop is fixed and ready for winter. Lots of things to do here at home!!! It’s been fun though.

Friday, July 13, 2012

Today is our son’s birthday (Friday the 13th!) and it is 13 weeks since transplant… which was on a Friday the 13th!

I actually weeded a small flower bed this morning and it was difficult but felt good to do it. Bob has been busy fixing faucets, rain gutters, etc. Lots of things to do but so nice to be back here. I am really enjoying my kitchen and being able to cook since that is one of the things I really missed when I was so sick.

We finally made the decision and are trading the Arctic Fox 5th wheel for an Arctic Fox truck camper (the 1140 model). It was really a hard choice but decided this was our best option for now. We want to be able to tow the Tracker or a cargo trailer and you just can’t do that with a travel trailer or 5th wheel… Looking forward to doing some REAL camping in the wilds!

It has been hot for the past week, in the low to mid 90’s, so we tend to move indoors in the afternoons since we have air conditioning. Even the dog wants in when it gets hot….

I’ve visited with my primary care doctor in La Grande and my pulmonologist in Walla Walla and continue to get weekly blood draw at the hospital here so the folks at UW can monitor my meds. So far, so good!!!!

Friday, June 29

HOME AT LAST!!!!!  We arrived back in Cove around 7:30 Tuesday evening.  It was a long day and drive but it felt so good to see our home again…  We both slept good in our own bed.   

Since then we have been busy working on unpacking the RV and finding homes for all the stuff we accumulated in the last 14 months.  Violet loves the yard and being able to run and not be always on a leash.  We are working on her barking though.  She barks whenever someone goes by on the road and sometimes runs out to greet them.  Fortunately it doesn’t happen often!  She doesn’t go after cars, just people walking, jogging or bicycling. 

Can’t believe what incredible friends we have!  Our yard looks like a park and we have been gone 14 months!  Libby had a bottle of wine chilling for us, some snacks to go with it, signs along the highway and in the yard, and then she even brought dinner!  Oh, and potted flowers on the patio and a tomato and pepper plant!  Wayne and Rosemary also brought a nice hanging basket.  I was overwhelmed…. 

Today I went to the Mennonite (neighbors) nursery on the corner to buy a few more plants and Esther gave me a beautiful hanging basket.  She said she and Harley were going to bring one down but since we were there she wanted me to pick it out. 

We are finding we need to get used to the elevation here.  We have lived close to sea level for 14 months and now at 3400’ so we tire easily.  Definitely taking our time unloading the RV but there is no hurry!  Lots of naps. 

Thank you all for your prayers and encouragement during this journey.  I just can’t say enough about our friends, family and neighbors….  You have been wonderful.

Tuesday, June 26

The last few days have been emotional.  We had lunch with Paul and Caron at JAKs, a popular restaurant here in Seattle.  It was great to get together and we hope to visit them in Homer some day and maybe they will visit us in Cove before they head north.

Sunday we had another great meal at Dan and Terri’s and it was a nice evening.  So emotional to leave the friends we have made here in Seattle and our support system here.  It is kind of like leaving the nest….

Monday evening we took dinner to Billie and Steve’s house.  Billie has been on the transplant list for almost a year.  Violet played with Buddy and we enjoyed visiting.  Hope Billie gets new lungs soon…    

Said goodbye to our RV Park family. 

Friday, June 22

Drove to Leavenworth last Saturday and wished we had gone during the week as it was pretty crowded.  We did spend some time shopping and walking through the main area.  Violet was in the car and it was a warm day so we didn’t stay long.  I got a chance to drive and that was fun.  Bob didn’t appear to be tooooo nerrrrrrvous… 

Saturday evening we attended the monthly pot luck at the yurt and it was a full house!  I made chicken enchiladas Friday night so all we had to do was put them in the oven when we got back from our day trip and that worked well.  We sat outside even though it was a bit chilly and windy. 

Violet was groomed on Sunday morning and she looks really good.  She enjoys making her rounds of the park and greeting the other dogs along the way.

Monday I drove myself to get a pedicure!!  It was really fun to be on my own again and not feel dependent on Bob to haul me around. 

Tuesday we went to Maltby Café with John and Karen Nelson (‘cousins’ who took care of Violet while I was in the hospital, before Libby took her home).  It was fun and of course way too much food!

Dr. Raghu visit on Wednesday and he surprised us by saying we could move home anytime!!!  He wants to see me in 6 weeks and then if all is well, in 3 months.  I do have a low white cell count they are monitoring and I will need one more blood draw.  That is planned for Tuesday morning and we are hoping to be on the road home on Wednesday morning.  I can get periodic blood draws at the hospital in La Grande after that. 

We saw Paul and Caron at Dr. Raghu’s office and she is looking great after just 3 weeks!  Got her staples out and is feeling good. 

After the doctor visit, we headed to Beaverton to pick up some stuff we had stored at Jim & Marci’s house.  Had a nice visit with Marci and Cassie and spent the night there.  Jim was in China…. 

Thursday morning Bob attended a volunteer training with ‘Donate Life’ in downtown Portland.  He is still wanting to speak at various service organizations (Rotary, Lions, etc.) about organ donation.  Not sure when we will start that but it will be fun to travel around the state promoting organ donation and seeing the sights as well. 

In the near future we have lots of settling in to do at home!  Cassie is planning to spend late July and most of August with us.  She has really missed our home in Cove as much as we have. 

Thank you all for traveling this amazing journey with us.  With any luck, the next blog will be from home!!!!  And then maybe on the road for more of ‘Nelsons’ Travels’. 

Did you know that the human body donation of organs or components can save or enhance the lives of 32 separate people?   Please Donate Life. 

Friday, June 15

I’m finally enjoying planning meals, shopping and cooking!  It has been so long since I have been able to do that… 

Kathy and Mike from Post Falls came on Monday for dinner and we did some meat on the Traeger.  I made all the sides and it was really fun.  The weather was nice enough we were able to sit outside at the picnic table for the first time since Mother’s Day.  Mike had appointments at UW and said things are fine.  He doesn’t have to come back for 6 months!!! 

Tuesday was the Lung Transplant Support Group Meeting and my first one since transplant.  It was great to see everyone and to be on the recovery side of things.  Tad from Montana who was transplanted about a week after me was there too and looked really good. 

Caron went home after only being in the hospital two weeks and seems to be doing great also.  It is so wonderful to be a part of this group of people who appreciate every breath they take.  We will probably be friends for life!

Tuesday was Bob’s birthday so Kathy and Mike brought him an ice cream ‘log’ from Baskin Robbins.  It was delicious. 

Libby and Richard drove here on Tuesday to help celebrate Bob’s birthday.  We fixed dinner here in the RV and played our pegs and jokers game.  They brought Violet back and it is wonderful to have her with us again.  She is a little bummed that she didn’t get to go with them when they left though.  They kept her so busy and she had Bell to play with.

They brought their truck and loaded it up with a bunch of our stuff.  We have accumulated so much since we have been here the past 14 months that there was no way it would fit in our truck/RV and Durango.  It will take a long time to sort through it all when we get home…

Really sick Wednesday night from something I ate…  Managed to get through the night but stayed on the couch most of Thursday recovering.  Bob was not feeling great either.  Glad that is behind us…

Had therapy this morning and V went with Bob on his walk.  It is a beautiful sunny day finally!  We both got haircuts and we are getting new batteries in the truck.  It has been dead the last 4 or 5 times Bob has tried to start it. 

We might drive to Leavenworth tomorrow…  Want to try some elevation to see if it affects my breathing and I need to practice driving again.  Haven’t driven for about 18 months.  This activity is a little scary for Bob, but he will make every effort to sit quiet…..

Another potential transplant has moved into the rv park.  A 36 year old guy waiting for a heart.  Has a backpack with a pump for his artificial heart.  Another potential heart recipient will be here in a few weeks.  I think there are at least 12 units here on some form of medical need.