July 19, 2017

A Mid-Year's (and Mid-Summer) Hodgepodge

Good morning and welcome to the Wednesday Hodgepodge!  It's hard to believe we are more than halfway through July.  This summer is going much too fast!




1. Growing up, were you close to your grandparents? Tell us one or two specific things you remember about them. I wasn't close to my paternal grandmother. We didn't live near her, so I only saw her when we would visit. My paternal grandfather died the year before I was born. I was very close to my maternal grandparents, my Pappy and Nana. They raised me for the first 3 years of my life so I guess that's to be expected. Because of that I was closer to my grandmother than I was my mom.  I wrote about them several years go on another blog. You can read it here.

2. What's an item you were attached to as a child? What happened to it? 
I can't remember anything except my security blanket (think Linus of Peanuts). I drug that thing everywhere and it was patched many times over. My parents finally got it away from me before I began school. Mom saved a small piece of it (that may have been all that was left) and used it to make a "blanky" for my kids.

3. When you look out your window, do you see the forest or the trees (literally and figuratively)? Explain. 
Literally, I see the trees. We live in the suburbs so we have to drive a couple of miles to see forest.  Figuratively, I see the forest. So much has been going on in our lives that is stressful right now that I've had a bit of trouble believing we will ever find our way out of the forest.

4. Do you like sour candies? I used to love Sweet Tarts and I've eaten a Warhead or two, but I don't like sour candies as much as I used to. Which of the 'sour' foods listed below would you say is your favorite?


grapefruit, Greek yogurt, tart cherries, lemons, limes, sauerkraut, buttermilk, or kumquats 

Um....of those choices I guess I'd have to say I like sauerkraut best, though I like it made with brown sugar, so not really so sour.

Have you ever eaten a kumquat? Not that I remember. What's your favorite dish containing one of the sour foods on the list? I like a good pork roast with mashed potatoes and sauerkraut.

5. July 1st marked the mid point of 2017. In fifteen words or less, tell us how it's going so far.  It's been rough, but our youngest grandson keeps us smiling.

6. Insert your own random thought here.  I am feeling hopeful that I may have found the reason for all of my husband's health problems these last few years. After a health incident on Sunday, his sisters told me to get his thyroid checked because three of them and their mother all had problems.  He's had his thyroid checked, but they stirred my memory.  


Two years ago when some blood work showed my husband to be deficient in a lot of vitamins (D, B-12, iron, magnesium), it was also mentioned that his parathyroid was a little off.  It wasn't a main concern but it was mentioned that maybe down the road he should see an endocrinologist.  

Long story short, I went digging online and I found a lot of information, including a long list of symptoms...that my husband has all but 2 or 3 of.  He has scheduled an appointment with our doctor for next Tuesday and I will print out the information I found to take with us. We're both feeling very excited that maybe this is the source of all his problems and that if it is taken care of he'll get his life back.

Thanks for visiting today! If you enjoyed the
questions please be sure to pop over to
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25 comments:

  1. It looks like need to get together and share some pork and sauerkraut...with mashed potatoes, of course! I enjoyed reading your answers, Stacy...enjoy the rest of your week!

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    1. Thanks for visiting. A pork and sauerkraut dinner is sounding good!

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  2. We have a very similar childhood and we both like Sauerkraut ! Hope that the doctor finds what your husband has. Mine has arthritis ! Suffers whenthe weather changes !

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    1. Thanks, I think arthritis is the one thing my husband doesn't have. That one's on me the older I get.

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  3. Oh, I do pray that the doctor will be able to helpo your husband. Very interesting that his sisters should be urging you to have his thyroid checked and that it stirred your memory about the parathyroid. It never ceases to amaze me how God is in the details.

    When you said you were having a bit of trouble believing you would ever find your way out of the forest, a Scripture came to mind, so I looked it up:

    "Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth: shall ye not know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert." He will show you the way out of the forest.

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    1. I love this verse. We memorized it one year in our Women's Bible Study group, and it has really stayed with me.

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    2. Thank you, Mrs. T...that verse is just what I needed to hear.

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  4. I do hope you find some answers and an appropriate treatment for your hubs health issues. I've never had sauerkraut with brown sugar. Sounds interesting, and I love a sweet/sour taste.

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    1. It's the way I grew up eating it, Joyce. Just add some brown sugar (no more than 1/2 cup) to the roaster and sprinkle a few caraway seeds in, too.

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  5. Oh goodness, just reading about your husband's health problems made me sad. I'm glad to read, though, that you may have found the culprit. I hope the visit to the doctor confirms your suspicions. I know you'd like to have him on a more definite plan for recovery.

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    1. Thank you. I am praying this is the answer, his life has really been on hold for the last couple of years.

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  6. Oh I hope that you have found what might be the problem for your husband. Sisters can be so helpful!

    I wonder how many of us were close to our mother's mother. A lot. That leaves us paternal grandmothers a bit out of the loop.

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    1. I guess that goes with the saying that your son's your son till he takes a wife, but your daughter's your daughter all of her life.

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  7. I so hope you sre headed in the right direction with your husband's health.

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  8. It's amazing how being deficient in certain vitamins can affect us. A lady was diagnosed with Alzheimer's and her daughter decided to get a second opinion before beginning any medication. Turns out, the lady was deficient in Vitamin B (I think that was the one). Crazy. It's nice, though when it's something that can be remedied. DD2 still has her blanky and she's 30. Talk about attachment. LOL

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    1. I know...it is absolutely crazy how much one single vitamin can affect.

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  9. Thyroid problems can really mess you up! I sure hope that's the answer for your hubby! I enjoyed reading your answers!!

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    1. Me, too. I am so excited to get to the doctor's office on Tuesday. Our daughter was here last night and read through the papers and said most of the symptoms fit her, too, so maybe my digging will help both of them.

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  10. Crossing fingers, your hunch is spot-on and your DH gets on track.
    I've been on thyroid medication longer than many of y'all have been alive. (LOL) My SIL's doctor told her (that) thyroid disorders are so commonplace, they should add Synthroid to the water supply.

    Hang in there!

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    1. His mother and at least three of his siblings are on thyroid medication, but I think his problem may be with the parathyroid (4 glands behind the thyroid). Our doctor did mention once that blood work showed something amiss, but he made it seem like a minor thing to get checked out some day. From what I'm reading that's a common thing. Drs and even endocrinologists aren't terribly familiar with diagnosing it because it is rarer than thyroid disease, but also because its symptoms are so varied and vague they look at everything else under the sun.

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  11. We will be praying that your husband can get things fixed. There are certain natural foods, like almonds, that can help balance the thyroid. Hope all gets better.

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  12. I hope that everything is going to be okay and on the mend for your husband very soon. When the problems are unknown, it can be very scary. Having a clue what you're up against goes a long way toward making it easier to deal with.

    I am glad that your maternal grandparents were there for you when you needed them. How wonderful to have such a special bond with your grandma.

    I think it is sweet parts of your blanky were used to make blankies for your children. Our oldest son had one that he drug around everywhere and he chewed on it, too(I think he was part goat haha). He called it "fuzzy". It got totally ratty looking. We bought him another one, hoping to replace the first one. Didn't work...he called the second one "2 fuzzy" and drug them both around. :)

    Have a blessed day!

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    1. My daughter's blankie got so raggedy that my mom cut it down to a little piece about the size of a hanky and put the silky edging on it (that was the part she like to rub). I think she carried that around till she went to school!

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