If you've followed this blog, you know things have been pretty tough for my mother and father-in-law. It hasn't gotten easier...
She's had a lot of bruises lately from plopping down to hard in her chair or on the bed. Her legs just don't support her anymore and she's too heavy for us to hold up. A while back, she almost fell but my FIL pushed her toward the bed and she landed on the mattress. Still, with her brittle bones, a bed could cause damage. She had been complaining about her back hurting since she twisted it in bed one night. It appeared to be muscle spasms.
Early last week, when no one was in the room, she tried to get up on her own and fell... again. We called the non-emergency number for the ambulance crew to come pick her up and get her back in bed. She insisted she was not hurt. But, after a couple of days, her back was giving her so much pain, we took her to the ER to have it checked. That was Thursday. They didn't see anything on the X-rays, but decided to keep her for observation. Over the holiday weekend, MRI's revealed she has a cracked vertebra. She is not a candidate for surgery of any kind!
My FIL was worried. He asked Hubby, "How are we going to get her back in bed? We can't handle her like this..." He began to see that the time had come... the thing he dreaded most in all the world.
Hubby's sister and brother came over tonight to discuss the situation. The hospital will release her tomorrow. She cannot stand. She cannot sit. Is she coming home? No one wanted to say the words. The brother's wife handles their medical stuff (POA) because it's her profession. She stated that she was not going to make the decision for them. She asked them what they wanted to do. She asked them over and over. FIL and his kids mumbled about how we just can't take care of her this way. They agreed it was no longer safe for her here. Everyone agreed about everything, but still... no one would say the words.
If it isn't sad enough to have a family gather together for this conversation, the remaining conversation should never have to take place...
Tomorrow, SIL will be in touch with the nursing facility and the hospital advocate trying to get MIL prequalified for Medicaid. The general feeling is that she should qualify. We won't know though until tomorrow. If she doesn't qualify, she will come home, broken vertebra and all, and we will do our best to take care of her. I pray to God that we can.
Monday, July 6, 2009
Sunday, July 5, 2009
Horses Making Friends
It's been three years since Maggie has seen Nekoda. I don't know if horses remember each other or not. Buddy had not yet arrived at our farm when Maggie left; We still had crazy Misty! Maggie seemed to remember me and this farm. She's been very lovable, wanting lots of rubs and kisses. She knew right where her old favorite patch of grass was! The stalls are across the aisle from where they were and the run-in shelter is farther from the back of the barn; but it all seemed to be familiar to her.
Horses establish a pecking order within their herd. Any additions to the herd can rearrange the whole line-up. The bottom horse can quickly become 2nd in command with a different leader! I had a feeling Buddy would have to give up a little rank...
It's important to introduce them slowly. You don't just open the gate and shove the new one in. They can be violent and hurt each other. And since Maggie is a senior citizen in horse years, I wanted to make sure that she didn't get injured by the younger ones. Since we got home late last night, Maggie didn't get to meet her pasture mates until today. Maggie spent the night inside Buddy's stall. Our horses only go inside to eat or if there is ice or some other weather that threatens their well-being. So Maggie had the barn to herself. (If Maggie had been boarded at a large facility or around lots of other horses, she would have been quarantined for a while before she got around the other two.)
While I was at church, Hubby moved Maggie to the round pen so she could roam around and eat grass. When I got home I opened the stalls and brought the young ones in. With Nekoda and Buddy safely locked in their stalls, I brought Maggie in on a lead. It went very well. Horses will sniff each other's breath... (Much nicer than the doggie version of greetings.) Maggie and Nekoda stayed nostril-to-nostril at the bars for a while, inhaling deeply. There was no stomping or kicking. After a bit she moved on over to Buddy's stall door. There were a couple of loud neighs & squeals, but nothing really aggressive. Neither attempted to nip between the bars. (Sorry there's no video, but working a camera at a time like this is a bad idea.)
After they satisfied themselves with exhaled horsey air, I turned Maggie out to the back pasture. She headed for that sweet spot and was out of sight of the barn door. I then took Buddy out of the paddock to the round pen. I figure I'd let him meet her later...
I put a line on Nekoda and led her to the opening to the pasture where Maggie was grazing. They both raised their heads up and eyed each other. Nekoda is not the least aggressive and I wasn't really worried about the two mares being turned loose together. I walked her part way down the pasture, then, with a quick warning to behave, turned her loose. She took off for Maggie. They sniffed each other's breath again and dropped their heads to graze. I exhaled. One down, one to go...
I left the girls in the pasture for awhile to bond. Buddy was happily munching on the overgrown grass in the center of the round pen. (It's not had a lot of use while I've been sick, so it looks more like a pasture than a work-out ring.) Occasionally, Nekoda would run back to the barn gate to yell over to Buddy. They don't like being separated! But then she would return to the grassy end with Maggie.
After a while I decided it was time to introduce Maggie and Buddy. I brought Nekoda back into her stall. She protested loudly! With Maggie at the other end of the pasture, I walked Buddy toward her. Buddy is pretty laid-back, but I wasn't about to take him up to Maggie on a lead. That could be dangerous. I would be just close enough to split them up if needed. Buddy was very attentive to Maggie, but seemed pretty calm as we got closer. I finally reached the end of my comfort zone and removed Buddy's halter. He trotted over to her and they sniffed... He smelled her neck... She squealed at him... He backed off... They started grazing! Wow, that was easy! I watched them closely for awhile. They stuck together, but respected each other's area.
Horses establish a pecking order within their herd. Any additions to the herd can rearrange the whole line-up. The bottom horse can quickly become 2nd in command with a different leader! I had a feeling Buddy would have to give up a little rank...
It's important to introduce them slowly. You don't just open the gate and shove the new one in. They can be violent and hurt each other. And since Maggie is a senior citizen in horse years, I wanted to make sure that she didn't get injured by the younger ones. Since we got home late last night, Maggie didn't get to meet her pasture mates until today. Maggie spent the night inside Buddy's stall. Our horses only go inside to eat or if there is ice or some other weather that threatens their well-being. So Maggie had the barn to herself. (If Maggie had been boarded at a large facility or around lots of other horses, she would have been quarantined for a while before she got around the other two.)
While I was at church, Hubby moved Maggie to the round pen so she could roam around and eat grass. When I got home I opened the stalls and brought the young ones in. With Nekoda and Buddy safely locked in their stalls, I brought Maggie in on a lead. It went very well. Horses will sniff each other's breath... (Much nicer than the doggie version of greetings.) Maggie and Nekoda stayed nostril-to-nostril at the bars for a while, inhaling deeply. There was no stomping or kicking. After a bit she moved on over to Buddy's stall door. There were a couple of loud neighs & squeals, but nothing really aggressive. Neither attempted to nip between the bars. (Sorry there's no video, but working a camera at a time like this is a bad idea.)
After they satisfied themselves with exhaled horsey air, I turned Maggie out to the back pasture. She headed for that sweet spot and was out of sight of the barn door. I then took Buddy out of the paddock to the round pen. I figure I'd let him meet her later...
I put a line on Nekoda and led her to the opening to the pasture where Maggie was grazing. They both raised their heads up and eyed each other. Nekoda is not the least aggressive and I wasn't really worried about the two mares being turned loose together. I walked her part way down the pasture, then, with a quick warning to behave, turned her loose. She took off for Maggie. They sniffed each other's breath again and dropped their heads to graze. I exhaled. One down, one to go...
I left the girls in the pasture for awhile to bond. Buddy was happily munching on the overgrown grass in the center of the round pen. (It's not had a lot of use while I've been sick, so it looks more like a pasture than a work-out ring.) Occasionally, Nekoda would run back to the barn gate to yell over to Buddy. They don't like being separated! But then she would return to the grassy end with Maggie.
After a while I decided it was time to introduce Maggie and Buddy. I brought Nekoda back into her stall. She protested loudly! With Maggie at the other end of the pasture, I walked Buddy toward her. Buddy is pretty laid-back, but I wasn't about to take him up to Maggie on a lead. That could be dangerous. I would be just close enough to split them up if needed. Buddy was very attentive to Maggie, but seemed pretty calm as we got closer. I finally reached the end of my comfort zone and removed Buddy's halter. He trotted over to her and they sniffed... He smelled her neck... She squealed at him... He backed off... They started grazing! Wow, that was easy! I watched them closely for awhile. They stuck together, but respected each other's area.
By now, Nekoda had had just about enough of being shut in the stall. I opened the door and let her out. She took off for the grassy end of the pasture and I went for my camera.
And again, things are as they should be...
And again, things are as they should be... Saturday, July 4, 2009
As it should be...
Hubby was too tired from putting up hay yesterday to make the trip... So I told him I would just go by myself... So here we are, driving up together to bring Maggie Mae home.
She was the proverbial sight for sore eyes! You have no idea how much I missed this girl! She looked even more beautiful than I remembered...
Hubby was as anxious to see her as I was. I can't believe how much everyone was cheering for me to have her back! In all the little towns we went through, people were lining up on the sidewalks and waving! They gathered around grills and ball fields, and any vacant lot in town. The police were out in some areas directing us through. They even set off fireworks the whole route home! I wish our country could show that kind of solidarity on other matters...
Thank you everyone for making my special day even more special.
July 4th, 2009 11:00pm
Tucked in and ready for bed.
Goodnight my beloved Maggie Mae...
Farm update
All's well that ends well. Isn't that what they say?
The farrier made it over today, so both horse have pretty feet. Buddy's cracks aren't too bad. His front hooves are excellent! Hopefully, he will remain barefoot this summer. So, not much damage done by waiting an extra week. Plus the extra length gave Sadie a little extra snack! It's her favorite treat. Yep, she eats the hoof trimmings! No wonder she's overweight.
The hay was bailed today. Seemed to be plenty dry. Hubby ended up buying another parcel too, so he and his son put up 240 bales tonight. With a second cut, we will have plenty of extra hay... Enough for Maggie, too! The goats don't eat much and we've still got plenty left from last year to do the summer and fall. We'll probably end up selling some. This is an old picture, but that's about 100 bales... just to give you an idea.
If Hubby's not aching too bad tomorrow, we'll go get Maggie! I'm so anxious to see her. I'll have to remember to record the introductions when she meets Buddy. I'm sure that Maggie will be her usual Alpha mare! I remember when we temporarily housed my daughter's gelding... He couldn't blink unless Maggie told him it was OK! I love watching their societal roles evolve.
I was fortunate to miss the hay tonight! Probably would have been tough on my breathing anyway. But it was the BIG BIRTHDAY PARTY! Gracie's 5th, complete with fireworks and a very special cake! If I don't make the trip tomorrow, you'll be reading about it on my essay's blog. Everyone had a great time.
Ali is staying home with her family for the long weekend and won't be back until Monday evening. I'm going to take advantage of the time and hopefully ride, plant and write! I may have a whole week's worth of posts!
Oh yeah... the chickens are still inside!
Thursday, July 2, 2009
This week on the farm...
We've had some fun and some not so fun days. Ali's 5-yr-old sister Grace came home with us Monday night. One minute they are so loving and kind to one another; the next, I want to shoot them! Fortunately, they've both had more fun than grief. They had planned on swimming non-stop, but the unseasonably cool weather dropped the bomb on that.
We did make it down the bike path today. It was Gracie's first time. Usually, that's an activity we save for the older girls. It's hard for the toddler bikes to crank out the necessary RPMs. Plus we have to go out on the highway to get to it because there is no bridge over the creek that cuts the woods in half between the house and the bike path. It's almost a half-mile trek round trip to get to the road and back down our gravel lane. They found a creature (dead butterfly) to take back and show Papaw.
Our big discovery this week is that the big sitting rock in the iris bed makes a perfect stage for impromptu performances! All you need is a push broom to amplify your voice and a sister with a couple of garden stakes to keep the rhythm.
Mommy came and got Ali tonight to give her a hand preparing for tomorrow. They are having a BBQ to celebrate Gracie's birthday (officially last Sunday) and the 4th.
Last week we had so much hot, dry weather. It was great for the farmers trying to get in their hay. Not so for us. We buy most of our hay from a neighbor two parcels over. He had arranged for the same guy to cut it that cuts the field beside us. Apparently, there was a communication problem because they only cut the field beside us. The guy finally returned our neighbors call and said he would cut & bail this week depending on the weather. I think he meant, "If it's too bad to do anything else... "
The weatherman forecasted rain. He didn't use the words slight, scattered, spotty, chance... He said there would be rain. So the guy comes and cuts the hay. Now the hay is raked into wet piles on the ground. This is not good. For you that are not country folk, would you leave your wet laundry in a heap? It molds.
It sprinkled some this morning, but I think we may be in luck. The guy turned it over to let it dry some more, and they may be able to bail it Saturday. I'm hoping they didn't ruin the hay. We won't buy wet or moldy hay. Barn fires are serious business and horses can't eat moldy hay. But even if they salvage the crop, it's still a bummer for me... Saturday, I was going to go pick up Maggie!
Even though I'm sad for my friend having to give her up, I am getting excited to have her back. Since neither my friend nor I had anything planned for the 4th, Hubby and I were going to drive up that morning to pick her up. If they bail the hay Saturday, we have to stay home and get it in the barn. I could take the trailer myself, (they probably wouldn't miss me in the barn) but hubby will probably need his truck to pull a hay wagon. So everything's up in the air!
Our horses were due for their farrier visit last week. Hubby's gelding has drier hoofs than my mare's, and we've had trouble in the past with them cracking. It was a long battle to get ahead of the problem, but finally his feet were looking terrific. Then our farrier got hurt. He called last week, the day of the appointment, to tell me that he would call back later. His back went out and he was headed to a chiropractor. Well, that was last week. We've heard he's working, but he hasn't returned our calls. And now Buddy's hooves are looking ugly. So far it's just chips and surface cracks, but if we don't get something done soon, we'll have to start all over.
That about sums up the week... Oh, except for the chick report: Nothing to report. The big green yonder is still far too threatening to venture out from the coop. Maybe tomorrow...
We did make it down the bike path today. It was Gracie's first time. Usually, that's an activity we save for the older girls. It's hard for the toddler bikes to crank out the necessary RPMs. Plus we have to go out on the highway to get to it because there is no bridge over the creek that cuts the woods in half between the house and the bike path. It's almost a half-mile trek round trip to get to the road and back down our gravel lane. They found a creature (dead butterfly) to take back and show Papaw.
Our big discovery this week is that the big sitting rock in the iris bed makes a perfect stage for impromptu performances! All you need is a push broom to amplify your voice and a sister with a couple of garden stakes to keep the rhythm.
Mommy came and got Ali tonight to give her a hand preparing for tomorrow. They are having a BBQ to celebrate Gracie's birthday (officially last Sunday) and the 4th.
Last week we had so much hot, dry weather. It was great for the farmers trying to get in their hay. Not so for us. We buy most of our hay from a neighbor two parcels over. He had arranged for the same guy to cut it that cuts the field beside us. Apparently, there was a communication problem because they only cut the field beside us. The guy finally returned our neighbors call and said he would cut & bail this week depending on the weather. I think he meant, "If it's too bad to do anything else... "
The weatherman forecasted rain. He didn't use the words slight, scattered, spotty, chance... He said there would be rain. So the guy comes and cuts the hay. Now the hay is raked into wet piles on the ground. This is not good. For you that are not country folk, would you leave your wet laundry in a heap? It molds.
It sprinkled some this morning, but I think we may be in luck. The guy turned it over to let it dry some more, and they may be able to bail it Saturday. I'm hoping they didn't ruin the hay. We won't buy wet or moldy hay. Barn fires are serious business and horses can't eat moldy hay. But even if they salvage the crop, it's still a bummer for me... Saturday, I was going to go pick up Maggie!
Even though I'm sad for my friend having to give her up, I am getting excited to have her back. Since neither my friend nor I had anything planned for the 4th, Hubby and I were going to drive up that morning to pick her up. If they bail the hay Saturday, we have to stay home and get it in the barn. I could take the trailer myself, (they probably wouldn't miss me in the barn) but hubby will probably need his truck to pull a hay wagon. So everything's up in the air!
Our horses were due for their farrier visit last week. Hubby's gelding has drier hoofs than my mare's, and we've had trouble in the past with them cracking. It was a long battle to get ahead of the problem, but finally his feet were looking terrific. Then our farrier got hurt. He called last week, the day of the appointment, to tell me that he would call back later. His back went out and he was headed to a chiropractor. Well, that was last week. We've heard he's working, but he hasn't returned our calls. And now Buddy's hooves are looking ugly. So far it's just chips and surface cracks, but if we don't get something done soon, we'll have to start all over.
That about sums up the week... Oh, except for the chick report: Nothing to report. The big green yonder is still far too threatening to venture out from the coop. Maybe tomorrow...
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
One down...
Tomorrow perhaps there will be a new video showing tons of little chickens scurrying around the grass... or maybe not!
I got home tonight right before dusk and there was one chicken outside of the house! One. It probably fell or got pushed. I don't know what the record is for longest time to step out into the real world. Maybe I'll google it!
I got home tonight right before dusk and there was one chicken outside of the house! One. It probably fell or got pushed. I don't know what the record is for longest time to step out into the real world. Maybe I'll google it!
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