Happy Halloween.

Jan arrived last night from California and came this morning to be with Marita all day. Kathy popped in as usual on Fridays. They shared with me the challenge of feeding Marita breakfast and leaning on her to take her meds.

I took a hiatus down to the office to return my parking pass and visit a bit with my co-workers. My office calendar still showed September 8. This was only the second time back since then.

In my absence Sherry came back again to make sure Marita was okay. In addition to yesterday's discomfort Marita complained of a headache today.

Brenda and Eiland also came to visit. Brenda brought dinner. Eiland dabbed Marita's hands and feet with lotion just as Marita has done with the kids at school.

Darrell stopped by on his way home from the local puppet show.

Trick or treaters cleaned us out by 9.

Not a great day. Marita was very uncomfortable when she woke. Sherry came early to help get us to a better place.

Marita is spending more time asleep during the day now. She is not showing the kind of energy she had before.

Vanessa and Claudia were here for the early afternoon. Today would have been tough without them.

Elaine came to visit after work. She helped Marita with dinner.

An early start allowed me to put in thirty minutes on my rower. Finding the opportunity for exercise and then doing it has been difficult so far. Still we were able to be ready for the day earlier than usual.

Today we met Delores for the first time. She is a volunteer from hospice who will be visiting with Marita every Wednesday. Vanessa arrived with Claudia just before Delores. It was nice getting to know one another.

Margaret came from Annapolis to bring a seat cushion for Marita's wheelchair. We tried it out right away and it looks like it will work fine. Margaret had T-Bone in tow so she brought him in to meet the children.


Prudy and Linda joined us in mid-afternoon to have a visit and dinner with us.

Tuesday is Dan's day with us. Today we had a morning appointment at the University of Maryland Hearing and Speech Clinic to see what options were available to help Marita hear better. We ordered an assistive device called The Conversor.

Dan entertained and cared for Marita all day. Glenda came to give Marita her weekly massage.



Sarah and Sue visited with Marita later in the afternoon.





Deniz came after work to be with us.

We had an early morning podiatry appointment today in Kensington. Traffic was a mess as usual but less aggravating to Marita than the tight fit of the examining chair. The chair was positioned too close to the wall so the aide couldn't get the backrest back far enough fot Marita to be comfortable. It wasn't pretty.

We were back in time to welcome Steven. He is in town from Nicaragua. He is a rowing buddy. It was great to have him hang out for a few hours. We hadn't seen hime in some time.



David came with Vanessa and Claudia. He brought a very tasty, and spicy, Vietnamese Pho soup.





Several of the Red Strikers came in mid-afternoon.

Lynne brought a pan of ziti for dinner. Since it arrived hot we had to enjoy it almost immediately. Marita had multiple helpings.

Today started off as usual. Marita was ready for breakfast by 10. Carol and Carolyn dressed her and made sure she had what she wanted



Leni came over for a quick visit around noon.






Abby and Price stopped by on their way back from a christening in Alexandria.
Maureen checked in with us later in the afternoon but Marita was napping.

Carolyn and Carol were pleased to share a bit of Pinot Grigio during the dinner hour. Diana provided all the dinners for the weekend.

Ingrid and Geoff came down from RI and Margaret joined them in Annapolis to visit with us in the afternoon.






Marita worked on her physical therapy with assistance from Ingrid.


Lori and John shared time with us later in the day, while Dennis showed up for another Guinness while tackling a cosmetic problem in the bathroom.

Carolyn came down from NY to be with us for a few days. She arrived in time for the dinner which Diana prepared for us.

Kathy arrived just in time for breakfast. Marita had her usual cereal, fruit, juice and milk.
Laura stopped in for a noontime visit, thanks to her hubby watching the children.


A little later Diana arrived from Oregon with some mighty delicious, locally-prepared crab soup, quiche and bread rolls. Magically, Ann and June showed up to join the reunion for the rest of the afternoon.

This allowed me to pick up Aunt Carol at the train station. She is down from Providence for the weekend.

Jim returned today to be with us again for the day. He has trooped in from the Virginia hinterlands three times in eight days. Today we made a road trip to the opthalmologist to evaluate Marita's loss of sight in her right eye and also to make sure her bruised right eye was healing properly.



Ellen and Charlie brought a Mexican dinner in the form of soft tacos and key lime pie.

Today started with a 9am audiology appointment in Largo. Dan was on board all day to help wheel Marita around and generally keep her happy and comfortable. I woke early to get ready and get Marita fed and dressed so we could have some margin navigating the wheelchair to the car. One can do it but it is much easier with extra hands.

We hope appointments with the audiologist and the ear doctor provided the information we need to get the device that will assist Marita's hearing best. It turns out that the simple aids we have may be the best type of product but we need something more sophisticated.

Maryann came this afternoon to be with Marita. She also did a few housekeeping chores and prepared dinner.

Marita was exhausted by day's end so we retired early to be ready for an eye appointment tomorrow.

Today was another up at 8 and 9, bathe and eat by 10 start, complicated by one's desire to do an 8lb. roast beef on the grill. It would have been easier without the phone calls. Jim showed up just in time to put a rub on the meat and get it on the grill.

Jim sat with Marita all day, letting her rest, feeding us lunch, and working Marita through the PT exercises on Jake's videos at opportune times.

Glenda came for Marita's weekly massage at 2:30. Marita really enjoys these quiet relaxing sessions. Tami stopped by to say a quick hello.

Adrian joined us for dinner. Jim headed back to Warrenton afterward.

Katie and Jake stayed over for breakfast and into early afternoon, giving Marita some sisterly love and a little PT. They left for home after Sherry's hospice visit. Jake made a few PT videos for everyone to use when giving Marita a workout.


Thelma and Louise made a lunchtime visit, sitting with Marita and taking her for a spin in the walker.

Jesse came to provide supportive counsel, a little music and some spiritual readings.

Adrian returned from Minnesota. He brought a gift from Courtney: matching hand-painted stemware.

Today is Drew's fourth birthday. He and Chase spent last night with us. Chase insisted on sleeping outside in a tent. Chase and I sang "Happy Birthday" to Drew once he was comfy in the sleeping bag. I told him he would be four years old when he woke up. Drew lasted about an hour before waking up. Jake took him under her wing, brought him inside and got him into a real bed. He said he didn't see any birthday cake around yet.

The boys wanted pancakes for breakfast. Marita followed suit.

Jake and Katie exercised Marita and did some PT. Then Marita nodded off for a while.

Dan and Vanessa came with Claudia in time to watch the game and organize Drew's birthday cake. Tom and Halie provided the best gift of the day, a transformer.

Marita slept in a bit today. It was almost ten when she got up. Kate and Jake took care of getting Marita ready, fixing breakfast for her and organizing dinner.
They also gave me a few hours off to go see the second half of my soccer team's game. I hadn't seen everyone since June and missed their comradery.

Gerry and Linda were on board early, helping with a few household chores, yard work, and various loose ends. Dan, Vanessa and the kids came after their morning soccer was done.

We had quite a few visitors in the afternoon. Robert, Rima, Barbara, Keisha, Lina and Vlad were all here to share time with Marita and offer comfort and support.

Jake prepared a hearty pea soup for dinner. We also had buffalo chicken and two fantastic salads from Elena.

Chase and Drew influenced the dessert choice: ice cream. They are staying over tonight to celebrate Drew's fourth birthday tomorrow. They are sleeping in a tent in the patio. Drew's first time ever.

Sherry, Gina, Kathy, Kate and Elaine

Marita's black eye improves


Elaine, Marita, Gina and Kate






Mick showed up to solve Marita's problem with hearing TV. He brought some extension cables from his band. We changed the sound settings on the TV so the headphone volume was high enough for Marita. Star Trek, here we come.

Gerry and Linda arrived from NJ later in the afternoon.

Jake arrived from NY in time to have dinner.

This morning Lally had breakfast with us and then had to be heading home to NH. We had a amazing week together. We look forward to her return in a few weeks.




A kiss goodbye







At noontime we had our first visit with Jesse, a pastoral counselor from hospice. This was a time to get acquainted, explore spiritual roots and take time to face the pain we now feel. Mercy joined our discussion when she arrived for lunch.




Kate arrived from VA to spend a few days with us.

Today started early. I had a dental appt before 8am and had to check out for an hour. It was fortunate that Lally could stay another day and cover the watch. Marita doesn't want me wandering off, even with backup.
By the time I returned we were running a little late getting set. We were still having breakfast when Jim and Claudia arrived to spend the rest of the day with us. We raised the possibility of visiting Deniz' shop to get Marita out for a change. It was more than she could handle so we decided not to try. She is so fearful about going somewhere and not being able to return safely.
We took a lap in the backyard instead. The routine Marita likes is to set up a few chairs in back which she uses to rest and mark her progress on the walker. Her left side has weakened to the extent that she cannot move her foot forward with help. Still, she is trying to find exercise opportunities even if it tires her.


Jim and Claudia in the backyard



Prudy, Maryann, Frank, Lally and Gerry at dinner


Lynne stopped in briefly to drop off a few more shopping list odds and ends. I think we are covered for meals through the weekend now.

Today we faced a major challenge, getting out to Kensington for a Neurology consultation. Thanks to an assist yesterday from Thelma and Louise we have a wheelchair now. It was just the ticket for bypassing the front steps and scampering around back. Now it looks like Marita can be out without much worry.

The neurology appointment was very helpful. We were able to get a clearer picture of the test results from the spinal taps performed during the hospital stay. The neurologist also spent a fair amount of time explaining what the physical tests indicated.


Lally escorted Marita for a short walk near the park across the street.

Clark and Eileen came from downtown to bring us lunch. We enjoyed Clark's potato leek soup. Eileen fed my pretzel habit and brought a few meals we stored for later.

Rita stopped in to see how we were and to bring an oven-roasted chicken. She hung around to share stories with Clark and Eileen.

Lynne came by around dinner to bring meat loaf, mashed potatoes and bread but we already had Linda's spaghetti pie heating in the oven. This is like heaven for the leftover lover in us.

Dan, Vanessa and the grandchildren came to have dinner.

The day began with a call from Delaware. A fellow named Ryan wanted to schedule us for the coming Friday in Lewes. That was easily done, but the moving thing to me was how the conversation changed to Marita and the words of kindness, faith and encouragement Ryan gave us to start the day.

Others have come forth with letters and personal expressions of support. We are so warmly held in your hands. It is humbling to feel the love from family, friends, colleagues and just plain nice people.

Sorry we didn't take any photos today.

Sherry came at noon to check on Marita. Thelma and Louise dropped by with some fantastic chicken soup from Kathy and a dinner from Linda for later this week. We had four on the soup at dinner and it looks like we have at least ten more hits to go.

Deniz came for dinner. She told us about her frightening experience closing her shop last night. An intruder entered the store and pocketed some items. He was approaching her in the back room when she encountered him. Apparently, and fortunately, she was more than he could handle. She managed to stop him in his tracks, empty his pockets of his haul and chase him away.

The cousins returned for breakfast. They brought bagels and filled in some holes in our shopping list. We had a couple of nice hours before they had to head back.
Marita made a game effort working her legs on the stairs to see them off.


Jennifer, Bill and Matt share a bit of sunshine with Marita.





Lally and Marita



Later in the day we had a special surprise. About forty congregants from a nearby pentacostal church came to pray for Marita. We read Psalm 91 and prayed with them.

We had a quiet evening. Marita retired early.

Beautiful Fall weather continues.
Cousins Bill, Matt and Jennifer are on the way from NJ as Lally, Marita and I have scrambled eggs and bagels for breakfast. We move the party outside when they arrive. Vic and Maureen join us a little bit later.
Marita worked with the therapy balls, assisted by Lally, Jennifer and Maureen. She has great difficulty lifting and moving he left leg.


Vic and Maureen

The afternoon group broke up around four so we took some restful downtime.

Julie and Darryl brought dinner. They prepared chicken in a sauce with figs and cous cous. For dessert we selected from an assortement of pastries and ice cream. It was a very mellow and convivial evening.



Three's charmin'.

The dinner party mugs for the blog.

Another nice day. What a pleasant week it has been.
Lally prepared our breakfast. Ham, sausage, scrambled eggs, cereal and fruit. Now Marita is worried she will gain 500 pounds. Yeah, right.


Catalina stopped in to say hello. She brought us rotiserrie chicken for dinner. Kathy was here to fill in various loose ends. She sat with us during breakfast, read to Marita and generally helped make things easy.


Nancy joined us at two, adding her butternut squash and apple soup to our arsenal of good eats. Nancy also put Marita through some PT exercises concentrating on range of motion and strength in her legs.

Cousin Pam was making a college visit to UMCP with her daughter Jodie and husband Lou so they made it a point to see us for a few hours before heading home to NJ. They brought us a full shelf of soups and pastas. It's sink or swim for leftovers now.

Caught nothing in the trap last night but the bait was gone.

Today was an easy day. Sleep is going well. The pain meds are keeping Marita comfortable but not too groggy.
Veronica came early to bathe and dress Marita. When we are in sync this allows time for getting other things organized, like checking to see if I have caught a groundhog out back.
Marita's appetite is soaring. She has her cereal and then clamors for yogurt, bananas and whatever else she can scam.
Sherry came at one to review the meds and monitor the health metrics.
Lally took on the caregiving duties for the day, walking with Marita, grabbing the odd soup or snack, and so on. This gave me time to do some remote work on the computer and also run out for a prescription refill.
Father Dillon visited from St Mark's. Lally contacted him before she came down.
Then Ann's ice cream delivery from Graeter's arrived via UPS, 12 pints of immediate temptation. I don't think these will last long.
Dinner was coq au vin from Arlene, followed by grazing through the sweets collection.

Today was amazing.
We got off to a good start, the night having gone well and we were organized around 10.
Glenda came a little bit early to leave some more space for friends to visit later. She gave Marita her regular weekly massage. Of course, the end came too soon for Marita. She can't wait until next time.
Rob and Charlotte returned after breakfast. Charlotte helped write some thank you notes and get Marita started on journaling and thinking positive thoughts. Rob and I ran my FMLA paperwork over to the doctor's office. Then we hung out until they had to head back to Colorado. Rob downloaded some PT video we can use to help Marita work out with the therapy balls. What a special time, what a special pair of friends! We will miss them until they return next month.


Arlene and Eileen, friends from Marymount days, arrived around 2. Just as Glenda came early to give everyone else time, they came a little later to give Glenda more time for the massage. It all worked out well anyway. Eileen was there the night Marita and I met in February 1965. She came through on her way back to Puerto Rico. We all walked with Marita in the backyard. Then Delme and Eugenio joined us to share some of the fancy sweets friends have sent.
While all this was going on sister Lally arrived from NH. Of course, she immediately helped out with the pastries.


Dan P arrived sortly after 5 and began preparing our dinner, lemon chicken with roasted sweet potatoes. Tracy joined us bringing dessert, two insanely rich pie selections. Hmmmmmm, good.

Another nice Fall day here. We are up at at 'em at the crack of 10. Marita had a good rest. I don't think I got enough but it is what it is.

All is quiet. It's just the two of us. Breakfast is a mixed bag of cereal, chicken and bean soup and juice for Marita. For me it's leftover heaven on a bagel.

Rob and Charlotte are back from Annapolis. Rob read the Times to Marita. Charlotte made sure Marita's soup appetite was satisfied, even making some gravy later in the afternoon.

At lunchtime Brad Pitt showed up with Thelma. They took Marita for a walk around the backyard and then did some therapy ball exercises for her legs and arms.

Tammy came by after work to sit with Marita and walk with her.

Grilled burgers for dinner.

Elaine stopped to drop off a dinner for later as well as a heating pad.

Marita decided to skip the debate and retired early.

Better late than never. Marita had a good day today. No pain breakthroughs. Good appetite. A little trot in the backyard.
She has just gone to bed after a relaxing evening with just the two of us, perhaps the first time since she came home. She played Goldilocks a little trying to find a comfortable rest position. The winner tonight was the carpet.
Dinner was chicken and rice soup with bread, some leftover casserole and lemon meringue. Believe me we truly love this. Tastes great, more filling, and easy dish duty.
At day's end I performed my first telecommutation. It wasn't much but it was timely. It looks like this can work. I am relieved to know that I can keep the ball rolling on some things at the office.
Charlotte left for Annapolis just before dinner after mending a few "sentimental" fabric pieces she found in our laundry. Waste not, want not. Rob had left earlier. They will both return in the morning.
Marita ventured again around the backyard. Those who have seen our front hill can appreciate that a flatter alternative is like a new route to the Orient was 500 years ago. She is very determined to push to keep her legs working as long as she can.
Sherry was here after lunch to go over medications and Marita's comfort questions. We had a big scare when we woke this morning because Marita's right eye was filled with blood. It was nasty looking and we called hospice for help. Sherry assured Marita that it was okay but would need several days to clear. We suspect that she broke a blood vessel last night while getting massaged. We'll see.
Tony & Dail left shortly after noon to return to NJ. Thanks to Dail I will be able to find more of Marita's clothing more easily. I would have been clueless about the transition to cold weather clothing in the coming weeks.
Marita rested well again last night in spite of an unsettling pain breakthrough just before retiring.

Sorry. No pictures today. This weekend's selections told more than their fair share of words.

Another lovely day in the neighborhood. Marita took a few minutes extra snooze time but she had a good night's rest and was ready to enjoy the day.
Tony and Dail arrived last night. They organized breakfast this morning: bagels, scrambled eggs, bacon, fruits and cheese.
Anne sent this shot of Marita's Combos team from a few seasons back.

Vic and Maureen joined us after noon. While Maureen and the ladies engaged in parallel activities,

the gentlemen took a short break at a car show nearby followed by libations during the second half of the Skins-Eagles game.


Dail put out a spread of cheeses and baked goods for everyone to graze on all day. Tony made a stew with chorizo and pork which was served with garlic bread.

Prudy and Gerry stopped by on the way back from Rehoboth, bringing clothing we had left there last month and confirming that the refrigerator was not longer a Superfund candidate.

Today started slowly. For once we both slept past 8. But we had to get a move on quickly because today was the town yard sale and we had stuff to move. The day itself was beautiful.
Charlotte and Rob picked up a few things at the store before coming over.

Rob, Adrian, Jose and I started moving stock to the street. Of course, as soon as the heavy lifting was over Tom and Halie, Dan and Vanessa, Chase, Drew and Claudia showed up from the boys' soccer game. Later Tom, Dan and Jose provided local delivery service for some of the heavy stuff.






Breakfast ran into lunch as the cast of family and friends mined the refrigerator for sustinence.
We had a few quick sales on our "legacy" pieces. For these we took donations to the Susan B. Komen Foundation. Adrian's stuff was newer and in better shape so Charlotte tried to drive a harder bargain for him with mixed success. The sofa and dinette set found buyers but the rest remained unclaimed.



Rita, Colen and Elaine, Connie and Gina made cameo appearances during the afternoon.

Eileen and Lori came from Virginia as the yard sale was closing down. They spent afternoon with Marita looking at pictures and sharing news. Eileen introduced beef to our soup menu with a hearty vegetable beef offering. This really hit the spot for Marita as our bulging refrigerator lacked the taste Marita was craving at dinnertime.


We had some quiet time for dinner and then made a few calls to family before turning in. Tony and Dail drove down from NJ this evening and arrived in time to kiss Marita goodnight.

Coffee is ready, the decks are clear, but Marita is getting a little extra zonk time this morning anyway. In no time we will be running through our morning paces to be ready for the day's activity.


Kathy stopped by to say hello and make sure we were okay. She will be our Friday morning sunshine.

Rob and Charlotte came around 11. They flew in from Colorado to help lighten our burdens for a few days. We caught up on recent news and then Charlotte took Marita under her wing while they sat outside in the sunshine and talked. Mercy passed through to drop off a chicken dinner and chat awhile.

Chaya came from hospice, providing counsel and leaving resource information.


Rob and I lugged some redundant furniture for tomorrow's town yard sale. Charlotte will be our price setter to protect Adrian's interests. They are looking forward to seeing old faces from the neighborhood.


Dennis repointed a few worrying mortar joints and then shared a Guinness with Rob and me. Jose stopped in to say hello after school.


Ellen and Charlie and Michaela and Mike brought dinner. Charlie grilled burgers and Michaela prepared her favorite beans and served some yummy cupcakes.

I apologize for all the calls I didn't return today. There was so much going on I couldn't get it done.