Going to my son's house was a nice little mini-vacation. I had to cut it short by a day because I had a pre-op appointment sprung on me, but at this point, I really want nothing more than to get this knee taken care of, so I simply returned a day early.
I got there Thursday, and the youngest girl was so excited to see me. The first thing she wanted to do was to show me her bedroom. She has made the move from a crib to a regular bed. Plus...there is a fish named Lucy sharing the room and this is something that I needed to see right away. Her vocabulary has grown by leaps and bounds since I saw her last, and that part is fun too, holding actual conversations with her.
I met the oldest girl at the bus, and there was joyous shouts of "Grandma!!!!" and wide flung arms.
The guest room is new too. It used to be the nursery, but now that 'baby' has moved down the hall, to the room directly across from her sister's room, which is where the old guest room used to be. New paint, new furniture, new art on the walls, new bedding and curtains. I was the first guest to use it, and it was a very comfortable room.
The competition was a long day, but fun, and another gold medal came home. She thinks that she is rich.
The following day was too short, but I was on the road by noon. It was a windy day, and the trip was exhausting. Truck traffic was heavy and the wind was causing the trailers to veer. I hate that. I got home by six and was in bed by nine.
The pre-op stuff went well. I have a knee replacement 'what to expect' meeting on the 8th, six days before the surgery.
It was a beautiful day today. I spent the afternoon in the sun planting flowers at the new house. The cats meet us at the house now that the weather is nice. Spaying is in their near future.
Tim got the bathroom ceiling painted, we got the paint for the walls. He decided against the darker wall color and we went with a lighter gray. Compromise is everything.
Home again, home again. Stir fry for supper,
Our local news had a reporter who was one of 100 reporters invited to tRUMP's first hundred days press conference. It was easy to see why. He interviewed Marjorie Taylor Greene to get her take on tariffs and the 'under represented people of Pennsylvania'. He talked about 'illegals'. He was enthusiastic. There was one side to all this controversy as far as I could tell.
Meanwhile, the tariffs have resulted in a 49% drop in Chinese imports alone. This is expected to have a ripple effect. Layoffs at the docks, followed by layoffs for long haul truckers. They are predicting COVID level shortages on store shelves by the end of May.
https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/economics/product-shortages-empty-store-shelves-loom-falling-shipments-china-rcna202812
All properties in our county are being reappraised for tax purposes. We got our first appraisal back. They have determined the property value has increased seven-fold, which is crazy. This is an 1104 square foot house, two bedrooms, one bath. The average price for houses here is $87 a square foot. This is not a luxury house by any means. $138.000 is crazy.
So that was today. Still burned out.
Much success on the knee treatment. I hope you recover rapidly.
ReplyDeleteThe surgeon had both knees replaced in March and is back to work, so I figure that with good determined effort, I should be back to business as pretty much usual by the mid- to end of June. I am also blessed with a pretty high threshold of pain, so that's a comfort as well.
DeleteYou will be so glad to get the knee fixed and operative again. Goid luck with the process, and I hope it goes smoothly for you.
ReplyDeleteI honestly am expecting good things from this.
DeleteGet that knee done before the surgery parts increase in price! Good luck with recovery. Linda in Kansas
ReplyDeleteLOL. It hadn't occurred to me to check where my pieces and parts will come from. The top 5 countries manufacturing knee joints are the Netherlands, Ireland, US, Switzerland and Belgium. Their exports account for 67% of the world's supply.
DeleteThat was nice about the grandkids Debby... I am keeping you in my nightly wishes for a good turnout on that knee, you just have to be patient.
ReplyDeleteIt was so much fun. I really do enjoy my time with them so much. They are still young enough to think I'm the bees' knees.
DeletePatience is my middle name. (Bahahhaahahahahahaaaaa!)
We had reappraisal last year. The prices are outrageous. You could schedule an appeal hearing, but the board is the people who did the appraisals. Our taxes went up over 400 dollars.
ReplyDeleteWhat a fun getaway with your little ladies! And a tour of the Big Girl Room! So exciting. Sorry you had to come home early, but yay for getting the knee thing on the road!
I keep reading that the ports are empty, the truck deliveries are slowing down and soon the stores will be empty. People seemed shocked that Temu & Shein are adding tariff costs. I can't figure out what they are so surprised about. Duh.
Well...reading over the specs, they did have the house listed as a two family home, which is nuts.
DeleteJust got my knee replacement scheduled for June 19th, so if I am doing the math correctly, you'll be a month-ish ahead of me.
ReplyDeleteYep. May 14th. At this point, I just want to get it done.
ReplyDeleteWelcome home, Debby. It sounds like a good but tiring journey, but worth it, right?
ReplyDeleteRest well. The knee plans sound good, and you will be glad to get it done i know.
It was a lot of fun. I don't usually mind the drive, but in dicey weather, it makes the trip longer and it makes me a lot tenser.
DeleteI've had two knee replacements. Before the first an acquaintance told me to do everything I was told to do. That worked for both and it's been 20 plus years for #2. So follow the instructions!!
ReplyDeleteI'm planning to be a pretty motivated patient.
DeleteIsn't it fun to spend time with grandchildren? They are such a joy! Mine are grown but I do have one great-gran that is such fun! I'll be thinking of you when you have the knee surgery. That's one of those things that is great to have behind you!
ReplyDeleteYou're from Minnesota, right? I was thinking of you during the spate of bad weather out there.
DeleteI really do enjoy my time with the grands. My grandson is a teenager now, and granny isn't quite as cool as she used to be. Part of the process, I guess.
Sounds like you had a lovely time. I'm glad you won't have to wait much longer for your knee surgery.
ReplyDeleteI did. I had a great time. They are such snuggle bugs. It was a lot of fun to see the oldest curl up with the latest installment of Bluebell the fairy. Things are quite dramatic right now. While she was taking cover during a very sudden heavy rain, she was set upon by a cat. She was rescued by her animal friends, but she has a damaged wing and cannot fly! She read the story (and found a typo, which I was quite impressed by) and is quite anxious to read what happens next. I haven't decided for sure.
DeleteA good trip and good knee news.
ReplyDeleteTaxes...wow...seven fold is crazy
That's the appraised value of the home. I hope that the taxes don't increase seven fold. We'd have to sell them.
DeleteI'm glad you enjoyed your trip away and pleased to hear that your knee is going to be sorted out soon.
ReplyDeleteI see that the scales still haven't fallen from some eyes in the USA. How much more will it take?
Really Jabblog, it is not going to hit home until it bites his base. They are all well and good seeing other people suffer, but I have a feeling that once it hits them, the scales WILL fall from their eyes.
DeleteThat sounds like it was a great time with not often seen family.
ReplyDeleteThe NBC news piece is very much guessing what might happen, which I think is unwise with the total idiot changing his mind daily.
I assume the revaluation of your properties is not related to #47. That increase is extraordinary. I hope you have an avenue to appeal what clearly is wrong.
I'm not sure how it will all shake out. But that is our smallest house. If it is valued at $138,000, welp, then, we are millionaires and didn't even know it! Look on the bright side, I guess.
DeleteThe property taxes on my two bedroom house are now $9000. A year, too much I think. You will be happy to feel the results of knee replacement in a few months time, just do the exercises and if its too painful take some painkillers beforehand. You should not need them for long. My “new knees” are close to 30 years old now. Lol. Your granddaughters sound delightful, glad you had a great time with them. Yes to spaying the kittens before you have a bunch more. Gigi
ReplyDeleteYour new knees have stood the test of time. If mine last that long, I'll be 98 years old and beyond caring about them.
DeleteAre you referring to the new build? If you put a house where there was only a vacant lot, would that not increase the value significantly?
ReplyDeleteOther than my silly question, it seems you had a great visit and are about to get your knee problem resolved. 👍
No. We haven't received the assessment on that yet. We've got eight properties, and have received the reassessment on just this one, so far. It actually was not a vacant lot. The old house still stands down the hill from the new build. We decided not to renovate that house. It is built around a cabin that is probably 150 years old. Tim was shocked at how far apart the rafters were. It's set too close to the road, which is due to be widened, bringing it even closer to that old house. We decided to put up a new house.
DeleteI bet you can't wait to get your knee done, so you can get started healing and moving on. You have so much fun new stuff to do at your new house! Glad you were able to visit your grands, and had a good time. Our property taxes have gone way up, too, and we l live in a 2 bed, 1 bath duplex. I used to pine for a bigger house, or at least a little more room, but I am glad we have only this.
ReplyDeleteI am very glad to be moving into a smaller house. It's just too much.
DeleteI have 4 granddaughters, two are local and I see almost every day and the other 2 are in Buffalo. It is very special to see them but not a drive I'd do by myself. Glad you were able to spend the time with them.
ReplyDeleteNo knee replacement in my history but I second the advice above - do everything you're told to do to recover.
I haven't seen the girls for a while, and from last fall to now, they have changed a lot, both of them. I hate to be missing all of that. Now that the weather is good again, maybe I can get out there more often.
DeleteDo you ever secretly think that at least now you'll get a little bit of a rest after your knee surgery? You do so much, Debby! And with a new knee, you'll be doing it all with a lot less pain. But yes, do rest and heal. You don't need any complications!
ReplyDeleteOh, I will very carefully follow instructions as they are given. I don't mind resting when the occasion calls for it. Today I filled in a ditch, painted the bathroom, planted three trees, and listened to a Crime Junkie podcast.
DeleteGlad you had a sweet visit with the grands!
ReplyDeleteYes to what Bettina commented - do all of the pre-surgery PT and follow instructions! You are organized so you will do great!
I intend to. My brother in law had such good results from his. Seeing what is possible makes me even more determined to do it right.
DeleteI'm having my face cancer surgery that same day. Much easier than yours, of course. I will think of you. Having time with the little ones is good for the soul. :)
ReplyDeleteOh, I'll be thinking of you Rita. Good luck! Be sure to check in when you can. And yes, you are right...spending time with the little ones does make your heart feel lighter.
DeleteI hope you can appeal that appraisal. And yeah, it's going to be very interesting to see how the tariffs affect what's available in stores. I can mail you stuff from the UK! :)
ReplyDeleteGood luck with the knee! I know you'll be glad to get that sorted.
Well, the first thing that we're going to do is challenge their determination that it is a two family unit. I can't even figure out where that came from.
DeleteWelcome home. It's cool that the grand kid has more language now. What is the estimated recovery time for a knee?
ReplyDeleteI'm expecting that mid- to end of June, I'll be back to normal.
DeleteI think Lucy is a fantastic name for a pet. Kudos to your grandchild for excellent taste in picking out names. Glad you had a good time with the family and home the knee surgery goes well.
ReplyDeleteHa! I didn't even think of that! That's great. She'd have a lot more fun with your Lucy though.
DeleteSo I'm wondering if those government folks that tried to make you pay for that water connection on one of your other properties (and lost) are now trying to get the money by taxing you a bit extra on your own house. See what happens when you go down the rabbit hole of conspiring theories! :)
ReplyDeleteShould get three year tax info on our house in the next month or two. Not expecting good news, but nothing compared to property taxes in places like PA and NJ; much higher property taxes than my state.
You know, that did occur to me, but the assessment is being done by an outside assessment company. This is their business.
DeleteGlad you were able to get away and enjoy your family. I wish you all the best for your surgery. As for the mess of our country - I have ran out of words.
ReplyDeleteIt was a very special visit. You know, I find that some days, I just can't deal with the bullshit. I feel guilty as hell for sticking my head in the sand. Right now, Bondi and Hegseth are researching the domestic use of military force. I find myself wondering when things will be scary enough for MAGA to begin to step up?
DeleteIt is beyond my comprehension how the people that voted for him (many of my own family and friends) can accept this.
DeleteWell, best of luck on your knee replacement! I am having one on the tenth of June, and am also hoping for really good results, as I am having trouble walking these days. :). Glad you visited the grandkids, it's so special.
ReplyDeleteThank you Della. And yes...grandkids do make any day a special day.
ReplyDelete