The Making of a DOCTOR WHO Quilt

I had made quilts for all of my late husband's grandchildren except the youngest one. I have to admit when the last grandchild of my late husband said to make a "Doctor Who" quilt, it wasn't so easy to design it. In my grief, I was hardly being creative anymore. 

A phone booth? I hadn't been watching that long-running "Doctor Who" series, but I found out the phone booth is where the characters go to call the police. Then I read about the little space figures that are in this long-running TV series from the UK, and I wondered how I could use that in the quilt. I had a pocket from one of my late husband's shirt. Not so sure how it would be possible. 

How do you turn a phone booth 

into a quilt?!

Her father made this cardboard phone booth for her.

I started with the phone booth and used jeans fabric for the structure of the phone booth. Jeans fabric is easy to piece you just sew on top. Then the jeans seemed a little harsh, or masculine, so I added some lace. 

My deadline was to give it to this wonderful young lady before I moved from Plant City where she lives. I found some flannel material with those "space figures" in them for the back on the quilt. 

One Thanksgiving

Granddaughter as an infant stole her grandpa's heart. 

A quilt with a little of her late grandfather in it--a pocket from one of his shirts sewn to the back for the use of a cell phone! Her cousins had those grandpa shirt pockets in their quilts. Gradually I got some of my creativity back. I bought flannel with space figures for the back of the quilt and blue and white poke-a-dot fleece for texture and a little warmth for the top and for the side binding. The phone booth sign came from
http://www.spoonflower.com/tags/doctorwho; however, I am not sure they still have it. 

I set out to design it with great tools.

Near the end I had to rush to Lakeland's Fabric Warehouse for help.

Becky and Brandon to the rescue. I hadn't been sewing much since my husband, her Grandfather, passed away last June. This helpful staff came to my rescue and refreshed me on how to use this great Swedish quilt-making machine, a Husqvarna Viking.

I had slept by my husband's hospital bed in a single bed. After the hospital bed left the house, the master bedroom became a sewing room, with a single bed in it. Didn't do much sewing however, until I made up my mind to finish this project before I moved next month. 

I used the stool from the pub table from the den to sit on as this height helped me not have trouble with my carpal tunnel syndrome in my wrist. Yes, I missed that pool table for quilt assembly, but it came together on that single bed. The top of the phone booth even has a place for a pen and a tablet.

Tonight  I heard that this granddaughter is pleased with it! 

Does Medicine Always Work for Us?

My husband had been on the Exelon patch when he was first diagnosed with dementia. He was working then. Hubby did more yard work and he could sweat off this patch. I felt the Exelon pill was easier to take with DH's other pills and he would not sweat it off.

Coconut Oil Fudge, Pills and Whatever
We Can Manage Have Hubby Eat

For several years now he has had Exelon or Rivastigmine pill morning and evening. At one time my husband experienced nausea with it when he didn't eat and had that pill in the morning. How he eats a small breakfast with the pill (if we are lucky here), but can get diarrhea several hours later. In April I wrote about one sort of humorous incident HERE. So I have not been giving him his Exelon morning pill some days such as Tuesday when he goes to the senior center and Sunday when we go to church. But I think we need to return to the patch and so does Canada.

Canada is going for the Excelon or Rivastigmine patch as reported HERE.  Two pills are not needed and the patch can be applied once a day.

My carpal tunnel syndrome seemed to have gone away and so I wasn't taking MSM. Bad idea. Hands are showing signs I need it. Will buy more of it to take.

Currently I am off of my thyroid medicine because I am undergoing another test on June 17 and need to be off of the medicine for that test and also no fish--bummer. I have been so careful to not gain weight and do get hungry without that thyroid medicine. I have a small twinge in one eye that I used to get when I taught in the stressful public school system full-time. I wonder if this stress is because my system needs that thyroid medicine.

To save money I have been taking one of my medicines only at night with my doctor's knowledge. She may let me get off of it entirely.

My husband also takes a full strength aspirin instead of Plavix in the mornings. This suggestion came from a comment on this blog and his doctor has always approved.

What do you do to evaluate or save money on your medications?

Senior Health, Part Six

My wrists hurt and fingers can tingle and are worse with bending. Think of all the times you bend your wrists! My wrist braces help me not bend my wrists. I have carpal tunnel syndrome for the second time in my life.

The first time I got it was in the 1990s. I had the wrong angle on the computer and would type on the computer many evenings. I was a widow then and this is how I would pass my time--on the computer--not organizing clutter! My old Apple computer was up high on an old oak desk--wrong angle. At that time I researched alternatives and used MSM from a health food store to help with the carpal tunnel. I wore braces all the time for about a year. I declined the surgery which I heard was not always effective. I am taking MSM again and it has a lot of other benefits maybe even for Alzheimer's, but I do not know about research on MSM. See here. There are a lot of sites about this syndrome that you can Google. I got the graphic on this post here.

When my carpal tunnel returned last summer, I was taking class notes on my notebook computer in a seminary counseling class. My wrists were too high up. Very suddenly, as in the 1990s when I got this condition for the first time, my wrists hurt--both of them. The right one is worst and I jokingly say that getting into Pinterest did it.

What is the correct placement of the wrists when you are on the computer so you don't get carpal tunnel syndrome? 45 degrees. I also have a pad for the wrist by the mouse on my home computer and now place my notebook computer more carefully when I take notes on it. My home keyboard is slightly slanted, but one can get ergonomically correct keyboards that are slanted more. 

I resisted getting a smart phone, until I crashed my five year old cell phone and was due for an upgrade with Sprint. An iPhone or any smart phone helps with the carpal tunnel. With my iPhone I can use the speaker phone and not have to hold the cell up to my ears, stressing my wrists. I can use a stylus with my left hand to delete e-mail on the iPhone. I can easily play Words With Friends on the iPhone with a stylus rather than on the computer. I probably can blog on that iPhone, but haven't tried yet.

One difference with this round of carpal tunnel is that I went to chiropractors.  They are great and I pay for the visits as my health insurance doesn't cover that office because it is so worth it--much less pain than when I had carpal years ago and the wrists are getting better faster. I mainly wear my braces when I sleep now.  (This chiropractic office also restored my hands and back after the crash we had two years ago that I wrote about on this blog.)

I have lost weight this year through Weight Watchers--very slowly--tremendous health benefits come with this exellent program. But my wrists and my hearing are now my Achilles' Heel, healthwise, so to speak. Both situations do hurt my caregiving and working part-time outside the home and in the home. Both handicaps may qualify me for Vocational Rehabilitation help from our goverment in getting expensive hearing aids--an application has been submitted last week and it may take several months to find out. Often I cannot hear students when I teach part-time or hear what my husband is saying at the house. Organizing, de-cluttering and having to do everything around the house mean stress on my wrists. I cannot lift heavy items any more. Working out with weights is also out of the picture. Brisk walking is my best exercise and I enjoy working that in with our wonderful Florida weather.

Nonetheless I do thank the LORD for the health I do have at this point and for all the help I do receive from others. For example, our friend Jake on Friday did a tremendous job of weeding our yard while Sally and I substituted in public schools.

There are five bags of clippings now! I spent three hours putting the clippings in a bag in a tash can on Saturday with my wrist brakes on (great exercise) and then wheeled that trash can to the curb and dumped out each bag. I do not understand why those five bags are still out at the curb now after Saturday's trash and garbage pick up, but that is another issue. Maybe they have to be hauled to the dumb. Oh my aching wrists! Monday I am calling the trash collectors!

Another thing I have to be thankful for is Sunday mornings. Our church is meeting in the afternoons now, and Sunday is truly a day of rest as it should be. This morning I enjoyed my devotions and my two mile walk listening to hymns. Now I best get off the computer to rest my wrists!

The Joy of Having a Working Den

Above is a picture of ridiculous stuff I found that will be no more in our den: 3 junk bunkers, one dead chameleon, and one box of envelopes all sealed closed.

I never really moved into our den with my current situation, but now I have. It would be embarrassing to find things. Now there is a place to file, a hidden place to sew, a hidden iron and iron board, and more.

Computer desk, copier and teaching materials

I teach a class for DUI offenders and one for first-time drivers. My crates and the moving cart now have a home when I am not teaching as you see above. I used to put these in a bedroom when there was company. I have a real desk that used to be my husband's desk. I use a second screen from his old computer. It is our desk, just like our one car is our car. I haven't changed that desk much so he feels at home.

FlipFold on Pub Table

I now FOUND the  missing FlipFold and now have a place to use it to fold the laundry where I can see my husband in the family room watching TV. It is so important that I be with him at this stage in his Alzheimer's. This FlipFold saves my carpel tunnel wrists and is a great organizational tool and folding on that taller pub table is perfect for me. See demonstration on YouTube. I pinned this in my Useful board on Pinterest and it has already been repinned. I use FlipFlop on the pub table which used to have the sewing machine with items to be ironed or mended. Now I have a "mend/alter" shelf in the guest bedroom. The sewing machine is in a cabinet.

It is truly amazing when you find things and then place them in a new home. I FOUND the chord and instructions for our GPS. The voice was in another language recently but and I can update this tracking device and have "Miss Garmin" speak in English again. (I wrote on this blog about my husband using this when he drove before his Alzheimer's got worse.) 


Study Center

Above I have a box for cleaning in the den including screen cleaners. On the front of that box is The House That Cleans Itself card that Mrs. Clark, author of The House That Cleans Itself mailed me when she mailed us all books that I have distributed. I created a box for Weight Watcher meeting material. Now it is not clutter in the dining room and I can plan my meals there. The copy machine is in the corner to use in my planning. I have a devotional area with Bibles, etc., including Dana's book on Galatians. I also study here for my counseling course work. I do use it as a station to plug in electronics. Perhaps I can find a better place for my plug-in station.


Game Center

By the French doors I have a little cabinet which stores a Discovery Toy marble run for children who visit. Coasters for drinks are on top for people who use our pool table. The antique desk in back of it is now a game center.  

Where did it all go? The bins under the pool table will be used for clothes storage. I have too many clothes of various sizes. Hopefully I will be able to move those bins elsewhere or better yet get rid of clothes. A book case in the living room contains extra books that I will decide upon.

My hubby and I played pool recently in the den. He won. Just to think of all the opportunities to play pool that I kept him from with my clutter!

Thank you, LORD,

for this very special den.

It works for us now. 

May we use it for hospitality,

fun and study.

This and That

• I couldn't wait to tell you. Please pray for blogging friend Dolores and her husband who is in a coma. She wrote this week:

David is in a coma, no food or water since Wednesday evening last week. He's nearing the end of his journey here on earth. He's moving forward to Paradise.

I'm overwhelmed and honored by family, friends and blog friends . Your love and encouragement are lifting me up and helping to sustain me through the darkest time in my life.

• Pray for the plane trip of Sally and Jake, our friends who live nearby, whom I often write about; you know--our husbands tell each other the same stories over and over again and it doesn't matter because both have Alzheimer's and don't remember the stories anyway.
• Interviews. In addition to Dolores' interview here last month, two more are scheduled. Yesterday I interviewed LaTane, whose husband died from Alzheimer's, and that interview will be posted some time this week. Also  in October Laurie and I are planning an interview of her journey with her husband's Early Onset Alzheimer's.  
• For all the ladies whom I promised a free copy of The House That Cleans Itself, I have not received them  from the author yet, but Mrs. Clark assures me they are on the way. Barb couldn't wait and got her own copy on Nook. A new edition of this book will be out in early 2013.
• I am still collecting funds for the Alzheimer's Association Walk in early November. You can contribute by clicking on link above right. This will be my third year walking.



New Way I Am Learning To Handle Clutter

• Last Saturday at Weight Watchers I had lost 26.8 pounds. When asked what I was happiest about this loss, I was at loss for words! Can you believe that!  Actually the discipline going through my house and decluttering it using the strategies from The House That Cleans Itself makes me the most happy--more than losing weight which I do periodically anyway. That vertical file above at right is working so well.
• Hubby is happy, but so needs encouragement to take his medicine and to eat. He quips about getting whipping from me if he doesn't do this and also jokes with others that I hit him and that is why I wear wrist braces.
• My carpel tunnel syndrome on my wrists is being treated by my chiropractor and my wrists are slowly improving. This is great, because I do not need surgery. I wear braces especially at night, take MSM from the health food store, and go on Pinterest less.