thread for middle age to older Christian women.

Chris, thank you. My Mom always used to say you should write a book. LOL Not because I am a great writer but I have had so many unusual things happen to me.

I bet it is exciting seeing your big landscaping project coming together. I'm glad you got to go flower shopping and lunch. That sounds like a fun day to me. I know having little stamina is hard. I am tired from PT and doing some shopping so I understand how frustrating and disappointing it can be.

Hershey, maybe you might see me on the next episode. LOL Enjoying flower photography and knowing bees get on the flowers is just something I have to deal with. I am sure if people saw me when I just had a bee flying around my head it would NOT be pretty. Well, guess what. After walking around Home Depot trying to find the hoe you had suggested they didn't have any in the store. I have to laugh at the name of some of them that I had seen online that are not made by Craftsman. They call them Hula hoes. LOL Does that mean you have to do the Hula as you hoe. That is for another TV episode. I just got an alert that my Craftsman hoe is ready for pick up from Lowes. Yeah. I watched a lot of YouTube videos on this hoe and it sounded like the best thing next to sliced bread so I am anxious to use it. Thanks for the recommendation. I'll let you know how it works. I know it will not solve my Canada thistle problem I have had for years because they have deep roots running down and horizontal and multiply if you break the roots. I bought some Round UP last year and every time I was waiting for a day without rain my landscapers would weed whack them down to the ground. Plus I was scared to use Round Up anyway. I bought some 30% vinegar today which I will try first and see if that works. I had been using the usual household strength and that was doing nothing. This hoe will work on some other areas of my yard. Can't wait to use it.

Take care dear sisters. Have a good night and hoping for no more grumpy days. 😁

Love,

Nancy

teka, that's lovely!

Good morning all. This popped up in my devotional today. I thought it was appropriate… I wish I was good at making posters. I can see the raging ocean as a background with rays of sunlight shining through.

Psalm 93:4 NLT ~ But mightier than the violent raging of the seas, mightier than the breakers on the shore— the Lord above is mightier than these!

This is what I woke to this morning with a high of 36° and a low of 30°. Yesterday it was 70°

intolight, WHAT??? That's crazy. We're in the Palm Springs area for the week. CRAZY winds yesterday. Blew our BBQ and a chair into the planter, and blew over other furniture. I'm glad we were here to rescue them. I can only imagine what it was like for the people at the Stagecoach Festival in Coachella. The polo grounds where Coachella and Stagecoach are held are not that far from here. Today the winds are calm—at least for the moment.

Nancy, I don't know whether to laugh or come over with a pot of tea for you. Sheesh! Sorry about your earbuds. You painted quite the picture in my mind…

Nancy, so sorry you have to manage all the maintenance issues alone. How is your knee? Praying PT is working for you.

Hi Chris,

I call my furnace company yesterday and they came out in the afternoon and was able to tune up my AC earlier than my apt. I pay for the year and it was totally free. The guy struggled to get out the furnace filter and didn't charge me since he was already hear for the tune up so that was a huge blessing!!!!

How are you feeling? I hope your snow is gone. We have had some great days today and yesterday.

Love,

Nancy

Kerry, I have continued to pray for you and the job situation with your DH. I will keep praying for the perfect job for him and I pray the Lord will provide for you in the meantime. I know this must be a scary time. I am so happy you are finished with radiation. Every person needs to weigh the pros and cons of Arimidex. I will say that your history of cancer already is a concern even though it wasn't breast cancer. I was on Arimidex for 5 yrs. When I started it that was the protocol as it had not been out all that long in 2014 for them to have long term studies on it. Now they recommend some women to be on it for 10yrs. I could have chosen two more years and my oncologist didn't think the benefits would outweigh the problems I had with it. I have been on BCO for 10 yrs and I remember one lady in particular saying she opted out of taking it because her quality of life was more important. That same lady ended up with stage IV cancer. I struggled the whole time I was on it but I kept telling myself it was better than the possible alternative like the lady I just mentioned. This year marks my 10 yr survival so I am glad I hung in there with it. Some ladies do just fine on it. I would advise to at least start it and then make your decisions after giving it a try. I know my oncologist wanted me to wait for a month after I finished radiation so that the side effects of radiation would not be erroneously pointing to Arimidex. Did you say that you had another surgery to go through first if I am remembering correctly.

I am so glad you have got all those radiation treatments in your rearview mirror. One less challenge to deal with. Your daughter's gift of the pink socks is adorable and awesome. We didn't get to ring a bell so that is pretty cool as well.

I am glad to hear you are staying in the Word. That is MOST important. I just finished my zoom Bible study. Let us know how we can best pray for you.

Love,

Nancy

Wheatfields, I hope you have a wonderful visit with your sister. Are you talking about private messages in BCO. I believe they are still there but I am going to check now and see for sure. These were not emails per se. They were sending private messages via our user name.

I'll see right now.

Love,

Nancy

Thank you Nancy, for your suggestion. I did find them by doing what you said and it was a couple years ago I had written. You are right they weren't really emails but PM's on this BCO. Thank you so much!

Kerry, I am almost to the end of my five years on Arimidex (in June), although I started with Tamoxifen for almost the first year. I wasn't willing to deal with the side effects of Tamoxifen and switched to Arimidex and haven't had any trouble with it. I agree with Nancy, I would try it and then make a decision. We are continuing to pray for you and also your husband and a good job opportunity to open.

Love, Wheatfields

Kerry, congratulations on completing radiation therapy! Radiation treatments are so important in reducing recurrence risk, and I'm glad that you could ring the bell to recognize your crossing the finish line.

My oncologist typically prescribes Aromasin instead of Arimidex. She said that her patients tend to have fewer side effects from the Aromasin.

Sometimes patients need to take a few months off and then restart the medication or switch to a different aromatase inhibitor if side effects become intolerable. That's okay, as treatment doesn’t have to be continuous to be effective.

It's disappointing that a good company hasn't offered your husband a wonderful employment opportunity. Disappointment, worry, and anxiety were never part of God's perfect plan. Those things are not for us, and they are not from Him. We will continue to pray that a great job offer is right around the corner.

Nancy, you've made such good progress with your recovery and rehab. Your physical therapist and surgeon must be very pleased. You are faithful in doing your home exercises, and now your PT discharge date is just 2 visits away! Yay!! 👏

Nancy, your crabapple trees are glorious and bees must find the flowers irresistible. Oh my, your lawn is so lush from all the rain. Larry, Curly, and Moe are adorable. Their hairdos and expressions are too cute!

Thank you Teka. You have a nice area of blooming trees. Your backyard looks big. Do you ever have deer that come and try to eat your flowers and trees? We are close to deer even though you would never know it but we have a river that goes through our neighborhood and woods along the river.

Hershey, thank you. We have had tons of rain and the grass is growing so fast but it is nice and green. Yes the bumblebees were after my blooms. If you look at my second picture on my parkway is a newly planted tree as of last fall. It is a silver linden and it will have flowers on it that are supposed to attract bees. That tree in some cultures is considered spiritual and if you make tea from the flowers it claims to have healing properties. I chose this tree as I had to pay half and the city paid half. Even though I am scared to death of bees I loved the history and the idea that you can make tea out of the bloosoms.

Thank you Chris. Is snow this time of year unusual for Colorado? It sounds like it is. I know you are so anxious to get your plants in. I don't have my flowers all in place yet. I have many planters to fill. Today was supposed to be running errands to prepare for that and I had my exterminator here instead.

When you had the Memorial for your brother was your half sister a part of that get together? Your half sister dilemma is a tough one. Did she initiate the idea of her and her boys coming? I know if I were in your shoes I would make it very clear that you are not up to being a hostess like you used to and are not well enough now to entertain. Bringing two teen boys sounds like a challenge for sure. Could you suggest going to a nice restaurant after suggesting a nice motel for them to stay and possibly coming back to your house for dessert.

She doesn't know you before bc and I know that makes it so difficult. Do you email or talk on the phone a lot? When you met before I can't remember how that all happened. I don't know how comfortable you are with her. She must know of all of your health challenges and the fact that you are on oxygen. You have every right to put boundaries in place for your own health.

That is my two cents worth. The fact that she wants to see you again means that you are the type of person that is warm and loving and is a testament to you and your heart.

Happy Mother's Day to everyone.

Love,

Nancy