So many good things have been going on that I have MEANT to blog about….

You can check out the flickr stream for the visuals.  In the meantime, here’s a quick update.

Chloe is doing BETTER!  A bit.  But We’ll take it!  Big meeting on Tuesday night with all of the Doctors to make a plan for the summer.  We’re just trying to go with whatever each day serves up and making the best of it.  She is still really dizzy all of the time, and there are some days that feel bad, but there have been other days with SWIMMING, and SKATING at roller derby!  ( see Jimmy’s blog for details  )  That’s HUGE!!  We’re really happy and hopeful that we’ve seen the lowest point now with the POTS adventures.  She has started outpatient physical therapy, which will help her work on her strength and endurance.

And it’s almost SUMMER… which helps with the moods around here for sure!

Lil is great, and looking forward to school’s end in a couple of weeks.

She’s still loosing teeth too.

Today we wrapped up a project that has been in the works for a couple of years.   It’s been a  lot of fun and makes me really happy.

Now I get to smile  about them every time I go out in the garden.:)

Here’s a slideshow if you’d like to gander at the individual flags.

We will NOT negotiate* with garden terrorists…

* But we will feed them organic produce and send them on a FREE all-expenses-paid exotic vacation.

Ode to the menace I’ve named  “BROWNDOG, LOL.”

He will also answer to “crap-weasel,” or “here is some lovely lettuce and brussel sprouts.”

My sister Sharon and I share a common enemy.  Marmota monax. Latin for Terrorist Varmit.

Cute, right?  Name a holiday after it!!  A movie!! Call it sweet things like “woodchuck” and wonder about how much wood it would chuck….If it only could.

Bake it a bless-ed cupcake.

Here’s that little sweetie now–

or more commonly

That gaping maw is where it will put your garden.  Your WHOLE garden.  This blog has some beautiful illustrations of the havoc they can wreak on a garden.  This is just what the NJ sister and I have experienced without the nice pics to show you.

The almighty WIKI reports that most live 2-3 years… except for that little trucker Wee Wiarton Willie– who lived for 22 years.  Ours lives under the front porch in a nice cave dwelling with garden terrace.  He often rolls out of bed to a loverly breakfast al fresca.  For the past years he’s eaten a mile-wide path of destruction through anything we’ve grown in the garden.  Except peppers and basil.   He likes to shake it up too… last year he waited a long while and employed the element of “SURPRISE, I didn’t die over the winter.”

I DO love me some Guinea Pigs and Hedgehog, but Hates. Him.

Maybe he is dead this year??  It’s been 2 of the could-be-3 year life span…

Not tough enough for bad-nature-karma-death-tactics, we are trying the havahart dining-car.

If LOL happens to be DEAD– rest his angelic soul– the havahart will reside like the sublime-Buddah-shrine in a nail salon.  I will place offerings of fruit and burn sweet incense all season long in honor of our varmit-free renaissance.  Maybe we’ll catch a raccoon or 2.. Or some of Erin’s stealthy cats.  Please note, previously promised vacations are only for LOL.

I somehow doubt that dreamy possibility however…  As Jim says,  “Make your own luck.”

That there is what Sharney and I like to call the FOUR DOLLAR CANTALOUPE.

Praying for this–

Here is a bit of information on what to do next…  Don’t worry, I’ll be sticking a stamp on him and sending him some place legal to release him… Or at least it won’t be near your yard.

This is the most awesome exterminator since Sir Burroughs.  Maybe we’ll call him in if old LOL wins again.

I’ve also decided that it’s maybe about time to start researching “We’ll come and fix your house up shows.” I  think it might be our end-of-the-world strategy.

God save the Queen.

Back to my spinning wheel.

The cleaning-up part of the garden year has not historically been one of my strongest talents.  While I’ve been know to pull off some 11th hour jungle-takeover heroics during the season, I am not so much a fan of the fall clean up.  Stupid, as it just means more work, and more weeds, in the spring.

I have the awesome blessing of being much healthier this new year than in many past… and I am marveling at the renewed joy and total stress catharsis of slogging around in the garden.  Last week was so nice on cello lesson day, that I settled Lil and Ryan on the front porch and made like a groundhog in the garden beside them.  For one thing… I think cello accompaniment should always be available when there is gardening to do.  That was a nice idea, for sure.

Then I kicked weedy-butt.

I did.This was the sad blueberry hedge– which is now TWO bushes that aren’t doing all that well.  The strawberry plot has fed no one but SLUGS for a few years now, so I ripped that apart as well.

Don’t think it’s all freedom and ease, there are a fair few mulberry roots that are giving me fits and conniptions….  I reached a standstill on this one… I cannot get it loose, and am not sure how to KILL IT FOR SURE at this point, so if anyone can advise, please leave a comment!!  I do not want to see it’s nasty devils-snare tendrils ever again.  As you can see it is right near the retaining wall, so no tying it to the gnomemobile and heaving-ho.  The roots appear to go down under the wall and driveway.

So it’s one of the most exciting times of the year for me… garden is cleaned up and ready to go, and I just need to make a new plan.

Please send any ideas you want to share… I need a new full-sun ornamental vine idea to grow on the fence– I have grown hyacinth bean there in the past but am looking for a new inspiration.

I am also WIDE OPEN for garden orphans and contributions… If you have an overabundance as your seeds go in and your gardens grow give me a yell!!  We have lots of sunny and shady spaces in need of plant material, I’ll come and thin out your crowd and give them nice homes!

Tomorrow, part two– the BAD and the UGLY.

This site is organized a bit differently now…. Jimmy has been making some changes.   Now you can click on “fiber arts” to see the latest gnomegarden and fiber related developments. Those yarny exploits will be kept mostly separate there for those of you who don’t care to follow the rest of the family adventures and vice versa.  The blog will continue to follow the life and times ’round these parts.  Please stay tuned.

I have not updated you on our POTSy life of late… I wish it was because all was SO GREAT that I forgot all about it. Not so much. POTS continues to rule the days here at the Delight Ranch.

We are working with a new team of providers and new-ish treatment protocol for the past month.  The focus now is not so heavily on medications, but on restoring her physical conditioning as well as some different medication choices.  It seems to me very similar to the approach they take with astronauts who experience similar orthostatic hypotension as a result of being in little to no gravity.  Chloe now has a regimen of exercises to get through each day, in addition to getting vertical and moving around a bit more each day.  It is slow progress, and unfortunately is not met with actually feeling better at this point.  It’s still ALL DIZZY, ALL THE TIME. Which just makes her doubly sad and really uninspired to push herself.

We restart each day.  Try to keep a hold of any progress made and to break with the frustrations that were part of the previous day.  She is up and around more– and we take that as some improvement.  It would just be so much better if she either could SLEEP or just didn’t feel quite so dizzy all the time.

Bob watching his favorite show

mysterious result of Lil’s playtime.

Bob face-timing Chloe.  Telling her to get up and come play, no doubt.

CRAZY MAMA.

To catch you up from  end of last post, We did not make it to the roller derby bout as a family, but Jim and Lily did. They had a great time, and Lil even got to skate as jammer for the team at one point! You can check out the pics on Jimmy’s blog.  We are hoping to attend the next one all together–

Chesapeake Roller Derby’s Game Two – The Land Hos v. The Vampirates

Time
Saturday, April 23 · 5:00pm – 8:00pm
Location
Shipley Areana
706 Agriculture Center Drive
Westminster, MD

Chesapeake Roller Derby
More Info
Don’t miss out on seeing a hard-hitting match-up between two of Chesapeake Roller Derby’s three intra-league teams – The Vampirates and The Land Hoes. What will the Rolling Plunder be doing?? Refereeing, of course!

Get ready for roller skating pirates, live music, cool vendors, family fun and fast-paced derby! Come dressed as your favorite pirate!

Doors open at 5pm, game at 6pm!

Advance Tix: $10 adults, $5 12 and under
At the Door: $15 adults, $8 12 and under
Season Tickets now available – Get 3 or 5 games at up to 30% off!

Tickets available at http://www.chesapeakerollerderby.com/ in the online store and at Starry Night Bakery (330 One Forty Village Road, Westminster MD) & Blue Sage Florist (3411-B Sweet Air Road, Phoenix MD) Credit cards accepted at all venues!

Yarrrrr!

Last night a roller derby team dropped by our house.

Seriously, how often in your life do you get to say that sentence?

Yep.  A bunch of skaters from the Chesapeake Roller Derby team came by visit Chloë  last night.  You can check that link to read about how awesome they are.  Don’t tell too many people– but what a bunch of amazingly sweet skater-folk — you know, for a bunch of kick-ass roller derby people, that is.   WOW, DO THEY ROCK!  So, so much.

You see, you might not know this, but Chloë really wants to be a roller derby girl– She was working on it and then she got sick.  So, she says now it’s going to be as soon as she feels better.  It’s a dream.  They came bearing smiles and get well-wishes and lots of pirate-love.  She is still totally blissed out over it.  Just sits there in the recliner with her skates on.

All of this came on the heels of a very tough day–  It was so great to see her happy and smiling and INSPIRED!!

She is to be their guest at this weeks opening bout.  She’s taking US!  We are conserving all energies in order to get her there.

It was thunder-storming when they sailed up to our back door.  I think they moored the ship on the giant circus peanut out there.  They weren’t afraid at all to go up to Chloë’s room. 

They brought her booty and love.  (Piratey team swag and also nice red booty!)

They sent get-well cards.

They signed her skates and brought her autographed skates from the whole team and left her so, so happy.

Thanks from the bottom of the Doran family BIGHEART.

We made them THESE cupcakes, but with devil’s food to feed to the team.  That’s right… there’s a lump of frozen cookie dough in the middle so its sort of the world’s best cupcake. In theory at least, we didn’t actually taste test them first.  Derby people are tough though… even if they came out bad, they’ll be fine.

I sure hope they realize what a special gift they gave to our family yesterday– and how very thankful we are for that.

xoxo Dawn

ps.  There’s a lot of POTS chronicles stuff to update you on… and a YARN PARTY fast approaching to show you some pictures of stuff for– maybe tomorrow.

Darling, I know you’ve been tired lately, but I hafta tell you that you dyed your daughters instead of your wool! Good colors, though. And they don’t seem to mind. I’m afraid to show my daughters …

xxxx
Francine

30 pounds of wool is all there was… what else is there to do?

Carding, carding, carding today.  Spinning around to the sounds of Pomplamoose.  I find it is IMPOSSIBLE to be anything but joyful while listening to them.  Go ahead–give it a try.   Here are 3 of my faves.

n.

I hope you enjoy learning these new words as much as I do!  That was the greatest thing about reading the Series of Unfortunate Events book series with the kidlings.  All of the great words Snicket snuck-ed in.

This week brought a few changes for Chloe.  The trip to Reston was exhausting as usual.  A few minor changes in meds.  The doctor thought that her blood pressure numbers were better.  The changes in her meds are to meant to further address the dizziness now.  It  hasn’t budged as of yet–but she has been feeling well-enough to have a couple of friends visit this week.  That is a good thing and it’s so nice  to hear laughter coming from her room.

For whatever reason–much less sleep than usual going on for her and thus the family.    Falling asleep lately looks like 4-5am for her.  Homeschool classes at 8am.  Big bummer.  Have to figure that one out.

The home-services ball is rolling very slowly.  Making more calls on those tomorrow.  On Friday we’ll be seeing another cardiologist in hopes of finding someone to follow her locally.

Not much else to report for the past week really.

I cannot leave this post without a big THANK YOU to the awesome families at The Montessori School who have set up a “meal train” page for us.  We have enjoyed some amazing soup and bread from Dear Vivian, yummy butternut squash soup from the Field family and the most amazing pork barbecue that any of us have EVER tasted from Jill Woodward and The Bachvaroff family.  THANKS to you from the bottom of our hearts and bellies!  It is a great help and comfort to have a meal appear with such love.   You are all very appreciated!

The super colossal THANKS this week goes to Dr Shoe, one of Chloe’s orthodontists. Chloe got  braces put on early  this past fall.   Our orthodontic experience has been super great with their practice.  Their staff is so friendly  and they make it almost FUN to have braces.  There all all sorts of incentive programs for the kids and a comfortable, fun atmosphere in the office.   Chloe has always looked forward to her visits.   All of that aside… Dr.  Shoe MADE A HOUSE CALL this week to take care of Chloe’s mouth.  He brought  things to help Chloe in caring for her braces.  He changed her wires and gave her an awesomely colorful mouth!  Having sore teeth for a  few days never felt so good!  I cannot believe how lucky we are to have them caring for her!  Thanks a MILLION times over.

Drs Siegel. Pick and Shoe.  Orthodontic Rockstars.

Fiber update on the way.

xo, Dawn

****************************

Squinky  & squinty

In Reston, super bummed.

WOwee!

Lots of updates this week!

Things are pretty much the same with Miss Chloe.  She has settled back into her old meds.  We return to Reston this Friday to see if Dr. A will make any changes.  It is all sooooo. slooow.  The meds take so long to show if they will benefit at all.  The Doctors … well, are so busy.   We are working on some additional options and now have a case manager to help in the crawl towards wellness.   Phone calls today might mean help in a few days or few weeks.   Lists are long. Improvements are so tiny, if  they come at all, and hope is so hard to believe in.  Alas and alack– it is the only way right now.   We’re all hanging in just waiting for a grain of sand to shift and movement towards the positive.  Spring is coming– those few nice days were great, weren’t they?  Got the windows open and made friends with a few more stink bugs.  Going to get the garden catalogues out soon and start to think on this years growings.  Also this years groundhog hunting, else the growings are in vain!

Keeping busy– Chloe is still drawing loads of eyes, writing art-letters, keeping at her school work, and skyping with her cousins.  Lil has been sewing and is about to begin embroidering some dish towels.  She is also getting ready to play cello at her first public appearance!  Very excited about that.

I’ve been doing lots of dyeing and spinning.  Went to a small show last weekend and had a nice day.

Jim has been making some amazing tiny dioramas and was a “Pick of the Week” online and made Flickr’s explore.  Check it out.  I think his new stuff is awesome. ( photo stolen from jim’s blog)

More news as it happens.

Family Art planned for this weekend.

Here are some  days…

What else? Scones. ( In her Coraline sweater)

BOB!

Sometimes…

Other times…

Lil in with the faeries

DAISY!

Pigs in a blanket

Wool for dinner, again.

On “special” last week at Trader Joes

Play it 20 times!

The Indie Artist Celebration

Secret Equipment.

ESME!

Again with a DAISY!

Prickly snoogling.

Who does that without checking the weather forecast??  Now, imagine a drying rack filled to collapse and fiber strung from every pipe and rogue nail in the basement.

Lesson learned.

Didn’t check rightwaytodothings.com.  again.

Weather is to be drippy or flakey for most of the week.  Guess it’s time to spin some wool instead.  I suddenly have a few shows lined up and some good yarny things to share.  More on that a bit later.  Time to get the little to bed.  Test is over for Chloe tomorrow!!!  So glad to get back to some medicine!

sweet dreams.