Tuesday 5 May 2009

Todays picture is another taken yesterday when I let the horses out to run and stretch their legs for a few hours. This is BB and April, the two fillies that our friends' daughter is showing in 4H this year. Larry and I gave April to her as she is a very dedicated young lady and BB is going to be our showstopper we hope because of her unusual looks and with Kendal being a little thing, BB is huge beside her.

Of course they got to rolling in the mud and we are working on getting them fit and fat for the County show in June/July. I really hope she does well with them both. We are not going to do riding classes this year but depending on how things go this year that will definitely be on the cards for next year.

I have had a truly amazing day today. Larry's son was really worried about a man's ring that had been passed down from generation to generation in the family and that I did not ever remember seeing, and believe me I have packed and been through everything here a few times over the past 8 years. I told him I would keep my eyes open for it because I would be having to go through everything again to tie up all the loose ends and make sure everyone got what belonged to them. A lot of stuff had been stolen over the years by the help coming into the house too, among which was a woman's diamnd ring so I didn't hold out much hope. I hadn't looked in the office which is a bit of a dumping ground, although I have tidied it up on numerous occasions during the past years, and was looking for a cartridge for one of my printers today when there right in front of me was a green velvet box. When I opened it I was amazed to see that it had the ring that he was looking for in it!!!!! Now bear in mind I have been over this same spot hundreds of times and now today all of a sudden it was there right in front of me. It has diamonds in it and is of great sentimental value. I am so amazed that it was there!

Then I was taking some papers to Larry's sister this evening to sign and as I was driving down the drive saw something splashing around in the few inches of water left in the field from the rain. I got out of the truck and found a carp about 12 inches long struggling in a few inches of water. It always dries up so I knew that I had to move it or it would die as the water dried up. I think it is what you call a carp. No I didn't have my camera!!!!! and it was getting dark. I couldnt get a hold of it so after getting myself all muddy and wet, drove on to get the papers done and when I came back looked for it again only to see another one further down the field, this one about 16 inches long also struggling in the shallow water. The first one had got into slightly deeper water and swum back up the pipe that runs under the road from the property over the road where there is still a pool of water. I must have looked a sight because I ended up soaked and muddy but I managed to get a hold of the fish eventually by the gills, trudged out of the muddy field and zoomed off in my truck to a lake just down the road where I released him. I will be looking out for the other one for sure as the water dries up because it will only be a matter of days before it does and these were pretty big fish!!!

Who says miracles don't happen and that people don't watch over us? I am not a religious person but not an athiest either and I have finished the day with a very good feeling. I just wonder is Larry had anything to do with the finding of that ring or the fish LOL?

That's it for today, it is late and I still havent eaten dinner so am off to cook. (((((Hugs))))) everyone.

Lori

Friday 1st May 2009 - New Beginnings

Today's picture is of the little B&W colt that I bred three years ago and was bought by my friends Stan (who is riding him) and Val, His name is Eb (DBD EBONY WONDERBAR). I went trail riding on Sunday as I just felt I needed a day away and snapped a few shots while I was out there.

Okay you guys I know I have said it before but I really am going to try to get this blog up and running again and keep it going. I am still a bit numb and there is still an element of disbelief that Larry is not with me anymore, it gets lonely here on my own and I find myself looking for him or thinking about him often.

Thank you so much EVERYONE who sent me messages of support, good vibes, positive thoughts and Hugs while I went through this ordeal, they were all greatly appreciated during a really difficult time.

There is so much to arrange and ends to tie up and without your support and the support of my friends Tiffany, Pepper, Michelle and Lisa along with my sister-in-law Rita and my "grandkids" I don't know how I would have got through it. The arrangements for a funeral here in USA are so different from what I am used to where I come from and seeing Larry for the first time at the viewing and then the last time before going to the cemetary were definitely the hardest part.

I still find myself wandering around the house aimlessly not knowing where to start but somehow everything is getting done (I hope).

The first and most important thing is that I need to find a constant source of income so may have to find a day job because there was no will and no insurance as Larry's insurances had been depleted when he first had his accident. So basically all the debt, taxes etc. fall on my shoulders, and you don't want to know what a funeral costs here either! They did a wonderful job though and at least I have good memories and pictures in my mind of Larry as I last saw him.

We have just had one of the 7 wettest Aprils ever recorded in Indiana and May is normally our wettest month of the year, so everything is just mud and puddles. The poor farmers havent been able to plant their corn and beans because the fields haven't dried enough for them to get them done with one day hot three days freezing and raining repeatedly. No relief in sight from the rain for the next 5 days so here's hoping that it stops for long enough before the middle of May so they can get their crops in or it will start getting too late to sew, and grow enough to get it harvested before winter. That of course will make the grain prices crazy again and they are still high enough now.

I am making plans to get all the horses that are saleable broke to ride and safe and then sold (or given away if necessary) to good homes for whatever we can get for them and believe me you can buy a horse for $100 at a sale these days so they are not bringing much, but at least I feel that I am giving them a better chance at finding good homes and being safe to ride this way, rather than ending up in a slaughter house. Drew is a great trainer and he, Annette and Tanya have already found possible buyers for 2 of them but they have horse flu in their barn at the moment and need to get that cured before they can take horses in or out of the barn as it is highly contagious. Drew, Annette and Tanya have been a godsend to me with this dilemma and I can never thank them enough or repay them for their help with this.

I made my first sale on Etsy.com last week!!!!! Three sets of trading cards, I mailed them yesterday so I hope that the buyer will be happy with them. I am going to start listing more stuff there today and start preparing stock images again for the photo agency and magazine because I have a feeling that this will be how I earn an income with the job market being so bad at the moment.

Well that is about it for today, I am sure there will be more trials and tribulations over the months to come so hold onto your seats.

Tuesday 14 April 2009 - Hanging in Here

I have been blessed with wonderful friends and family who have all come forward and taken all of the burdens and worries off of my shoulders and allowed me to stay sane. I am still very numb and it all seems so unreal.

The viewing for Larry will be on Thursday and the Service on Friday at 11am. The custom here is that the deceased will lay in an open casket for people to come and pay their respects and then the funeral is held afterwards and on to the cemetary. This is not a custom that I am used to because we always just had the funeral or cremation ceremony, most of the time in a closed casket and it was all done the same day. Afterwards we went on to the family home to mingle a bit and have snacks etc., so this is very foreign to me and I am not too sure how I am going to handle it as during the viewing the family will stand with the casket and greet all the mourners as they come to pay their respects. This is done in three 2 hour shifts over the 2 days.

My only solace is that I have this vision of Larry, with his body whole again and able to walk and ride, with his family who have preceded him and the one horse that he so dearly loved that we lost shortly after coming over to USA. Please keep him in your prayers. I may not post in the next few days because I am totally shattered.

I want to thank everyone for their notes and condolences, I will get to you all as soon as things have calmed down, all of your kind words are greatly appreciated by me and his family and I find them very comforting. (((((Hugs))))

Lori
xx

Monday 13th April 2009

I am writing this because I just don't know what else to do with myself at the moment. I received a phone call at just before 5am this morning to tell me that Larry had gone into cardiac arrest and that they had been unable to revive him and that he had passed away. I am numb and needed to vent.

Thanks all for all your prayers and thoughts. I will probably not be in contact for a few days. ((((Hugs)))))

Lori

12 April 2009

It is hard to absorb the fact that it will be 2 years since Taxes was born on 15 April 2007. Here was one of his first pictures when he was only a few hours old, it was cold had been snowing and was muddy and miserable. He got his first day outside when he was 3 days old but didnt like to get his feet muddy. I don't have and newer pics of him right now but when they have finished shedding I will post some.

I have had a long trying day so will not post any more on my saga, but yes it does seem to have a happy ending, after today I am not too sure though. I will elaborate tomorrow.

Happy Easter everyone!! ((((Hugs))))

Lori

Saturday 11 April 2009 - Life's Little Tests

Not my usual type of shot but this is one that I shot when Lisa and I went on Safari and got lost last week LOL. I thought it was a bit of irony considering the auto industry situation at the moment.

(Click on pic to enlarge)

I have just had a dreadful week as some of you know. I didnt post on here when it all started but did on Facebook so this will be old news to some of you, sorry.

I woke up last Saturday morning to my husband in a non responsive condition. He was breathing and that was about it!!! I called 911 and they were there in minutes. When we got to the local town hospital the EMTs had got a breathing tube into him and had determined that he had a temperature of 105 and was in critical condition. Other than that they couldnt tell me much more and arranged immediately to have him taken by helicopter to a hospital in Fort Wayne who are better equipped to deal with these extreme cases. It was a different hospital to the one he normally goes to in Fort Wayne, about 10 miles further on. Our neighbor Richard brought me home and I arranged lists of telephone numbers and things that I thought I would need as he was critical and they really didn't think he would survive as they didnt know how long his temp had been that high.

I have to say this hospital was like night and day compared to the one we normally go to, these people actually show that they care, are extremely efficient and obviously enjoy their jobs. I am convinced now that L wouldnt have survived if he had gone to his usual hospital which is where I told them his records were and where he normally went, but they decided to take him to the other for whatever reason, I dont know why but I am so glad. I dont know what the man above has in store for Larry but he has defied the odds over the past 26 years so many times that there has got to be a special purpose for him.

When I arrived at the hospital his sister and daughter joined me and we just had to wait. His temp peaked at 105.9 and they had to put him onto a thermal blanket which pumps cold water through it. He was diagnosed with sepsis brought on by a bladder infection which is common with quadraplegic patients as they have a catheter and any foreign object in one's body will react so we had had these infections before but never this bad. They thought he may have had a small heart attack as a result and he was on a ventilator which was doing the breathing for him. His blood sugar was 315 (normal is around 100) also brought about by the fever, kidney stones which were also infected because of the bladder infection, the one being about 1.5 inches across. He had a small one in his other kidney and a large one about the same size in his Gall bladder. He also had pneumonia.

The doctor had no good news for us, he was comatose and they had him sedated because of the tube down his throat for the ventilator so he wouldnt try to pull it out. We all slept in the waiting room that night after speaking to the doctor who said "he is a VERY sick man" and literally told us that he didnt expect him to survive and if he did then the chance would be that he would have to stay on a ventilator or have some type of permanent mental damage. Because he was in the Critical Care unit they don't allow family to stay in the rooms out of visiting hours so we were directed to the lounge. I didn't sleep a wink all night, you couldnt turn the lights out and could only dim them slightly so it was a bit hard to sleep on two chairs pushed together with bright spotlights above you.

To be continued ........

((((Hugs)))) everyone, dont forget to visit my Etsy shop the link is on the top right side of my blog. I did a lot of crocheting over the past week so I will be posting a lot more LOL.

Lori
xx