Daydreaming while waiting impatiently!

My Dad was offered a steroid shot in his hip for his arthritis. He declined for years because on e of his friends told him it didn't work for him and the shot was sooo painful. After we got my dad the lift chair, he finally went to the doctor and had it done. He said it helped for a day or two, then didn't help at all, but seeing how active he is now, I think it worked better than he is willing to admit.
I can't criticize too harshly, I avoid going to the doctor as much as I can also.

My garden plan is done! My garden is 900 sq ft. I can only manage about 3/4 of it. A local friend lives in an apartment complex and is on the same expensive high-veggie diet I am on. I offered her a section of my garden, and she accepted! win-win! DS11 has committed to 2 beds. Giving him potatoes and kale because they're easy to hoe around, and potatoes are easy for him to plant. And he isn't completely grossed out by potato bugs and potato bug larvae. 2019 is the year to try to solve my potato bug problem! I'm not rotating potatoes around my garden until that's resolved. I've read that rotating only spread the bugs around. I've written out my seed order and will sleep on it a bit before ordering. I didn't choose any rare seeds, so I don't think there's too much risk of them selling out in the next couple weeks.

I am happy to report DS11's behavior pattern has shifted! From Misguided Power (second row in chart below) to Undue Attention (first row in chart below). Thank goodness! I can deal with this so much better!

Christmas parties and everything have been going smoothly here! Woot! I skipped the stressful family party, visited my parents, and invited MIL to come up and do Christmas with my kids next week. We've been doing a little gift-opening and cookie eating each day. DS11 is with bio dad today.

I'm happy to be cleaning and putting things back in order. What a mess!

DH put our good-wool / aggressive ram in with 2018 bottle babies for breeding. I want to get some more of his lambs out of these girls and then he is gone! Stuck with him all winter, just in case they don't produce any live ewe lambs this spring. I won't go in the barn at all now because he's in a lamb pen with short fence/gates. He could go right over them!

If you are lucky your friend will help in other areas of your garden. It's ALWAYS more fun to garden when there is more than just you to enthusiastically work it! Heck, I'd be happy to share the produce with anyone who would give working it as much as I would.

In my neighborhood I honestly do not see even ONE garden working anymore. Used to be a guy up the road but he's in a nursing home now. There is one guy about 2 miles away who "MAY" be interested. He has only about an acre, which has a feeder calf, chickens, rabbits, his house & family. He is strapped for useable space and I am NOT. He's trying to homestead and I may be able to get a family assist here for just some time & produce. It could be good for both of us. Need to talk to him & wife about their wants, interest and availability.

@tortoise (and anyone else interested), this woman is in one of my FB groups. I thought of you when I read her story. She is beginning to homeschool her daughter for medical reasons

https://patientworthy.com/2018/12/0...-mCxz_sJXGSeI4wVZPXNQWiab-h0_vAg5w1egfYHLV9cw

Unfortunately that sounds all too familiar. I am not as severely affected. I have the MCAS but thankfully I have not been allergic to any medications! Thank you for sharing!

I had my second appointment with my new integrative doctor. The one who actually knows about this stuff! I am so thankful to be able to access her. Rural WI is not the type of place to find good medical treatment! And she is private pay - I have friends who desperately want to see her but can't afford it. :'( My doctor tweaked my medications and supplements. And I eliminated grain and dairy from my diet starting 1/1/2019 (10 days ago). My doctor is treating me for neuroinflammation, central nervous sensitization, and MCAS.

I am *shockingly* functional today. My pain has been tapering off over the last month and is now down to a tolerable level that doesn't affect my activity. I spent yesterday cooking: pea soup, chili, 10# baked potatoes, among other things. Today I'm working towards catching up on housework. My house is in disarray. This is the best I have felt or functioned since May 2018 (8 months ago). I'm struggling to stick to my pacing. I want to do all the things!

Bay has had a couple more weeks off. I had a pea-sized lump removed from her neck, up behind her ear. She still has stitches in. It will be a while before she can wear a collar. She's still trying to work.

That is wonderful news about your improvement. I hope you continue to improve. Give Bay a hug from me, she is a sweetie.

Baker Creek order done! I was so slow! Thankfully they were only sold out of one item I wanted.

Bay's lump removal is healed. Then she donated blood for the vet clinic and had a couple days off. Then boarded for a weekend vacation, and came home with her eye conjunctiva swollen - again. And she has 3 rashes. One appears to be from her harness. (Apparently blue color dogs tend to have sensitive skin like this. Next dog will not be blue!) Despite her ongoing "medical leave", she has surprised me a few times with correct reactions to my symptoms. I didn't think she had the ability, but she's responded correctly to the last 3 in a row. She is also developing stronger alerts for my medication alarm. I'm shaping her behavior to physical contact. I notice her hanging near me in the 15 minutes before my alarm goes off, so I expect she will be able to do medication reminder independent of me having an alarm.

2019 budget progress: We spent more than I wanted to last month, mostly because of a spontaneous weekend resort vacation. My goal is to spend $500 - $1000 less per month than last year, and pay the amount saved on the mortgage. I get to pay extra $575 on the mortgage! It's less than I hoped for, but a solid start!