Pecan Grove (www.pecan-grove.net) Pecan Grove and Senior Residence

It’s hard to believe 2012 is finished!  We have much to be thankful for, and look forward to 2013!  The residents did well in December.  Esther recovered her strength, and now walks with Bea down to the “river” every evening again.  (It’s a 7 acre lake but Esther, who is nearly blind, insists it’s a river.)   Jean was sick some… had a flu shot and then thought she had the flu.  It turned out to be gall stones.  She’s still somewhat weak, but is feeling much better.

Naomi “died” again at bible study.  I believe this is the 4th time, though it has been several months since the last time. They noticed she was passing out so Samuel and dad loaded her on a walker and as they walked her back the hall to her room she passed all the way out.  They lifted her into her bed and that woke her up.  She looked up at Samuel and said, “Samuel, have you hung up my calendar yet like I asked you to?”.  Fortunately (for Samuel) he had!  The first time this happened (see the middle of the January 2012 blog posting), we had her taken (by ambulance) to the hospital.  Now she warns us repeatedly, DO NOT take me to the hospital… let me die!  Destiny asked her what we should do if she fell and broke her arm… she said, “let it be broke – no hospital!”  It’s interesting, because when she came back from the hospital in January she talked a lot about how wonderful the hospital was.  She said she was in a room “filled with equipment” (it was actually the emergency room).  “There was so much equipment in that room, it must have cost a thousand dollars!”

Here’s a picture of the current 11 residents, from left to right, Naomi, Doris, Bea, Teresa, Jean, Roger, Esther, Frances, Barbara, Betty and Mary Jane.

We had lots of visitors in December… didn’t get pictures of all of them.  Here are Randy and Esther Wyatt with Esther Potts.  Mark, Julia, Elisa and Jeffery Hilligoss visited Barbara.

Ron, Pam and Russ Lacock visited their daughter Sara who is in this field.  Here they’re shown with dad and mom, Kathy, Betty, Samuel and Conchita in Samuel and Conchita’s house.  The second picture is of Sara with Sharon.

Kenny’s girl friend, Salena Thorburn and her dad Jim Thorburn are shown with Kenny.   Travis, Jamie and Aliyah Bolt visited.  Travis works for Cormorant Engineering here on the farm.

John Wilbur visited with his brother Dan and family who live about 50 miles from PG.  The first picture shows them with the residents.  The second shows John with Esther Potts.

Dennis and Jen Benjamin visited with Don, Jenny, Ava and Jaina Waldo.  Don works with me, sometimes at PG.  A gecko latched onto Dennis’s finger (they don’t really bite, have no teeth!)

Jack and Mae Nelson, and Dan and Elaine Parsons (and 3 kids) were here to visit.  Jack helped with the building of PG.  Dan is my sister-in-law, Ann Newman’s brother.  Their daughter, Danelle and Ann are starting a business together in Houston.

David and Lois Evans from PA were here while visiting Howard and Mary Ann Colson (who live about 20 miles from PG).  Jeff and Julie Evans, and Julie’s son David Accola visited from Minnesota.

Virginia had foot surgery and has been working with her knee on a rolling support.  Her birthday was in December and she has had some of her family in to help out when working at PG.   The pictures below are of her birthday, and then with her sister Mary Jane Barr and her daughter and family Jenny, Juan, Ethan and Eleana Salazar

Juan cleaning and Ethan playing the piano with Teresa.

Samuel and Conchita have 2 new puppies, Milley and Pilley,  Here’s Samuel, Conchita, the Salazars and the dogs.  The second picture is of the dogs and the kids.

 

Mom’s 81st birthday was today (Dec 31st).  Here’s she’s shown with dad, and then with Joyce and Emma who are visiting for a few days.

We have plenty of pecans to sell.  Don and Jenny Waldo and our 3 kids have all helped man booths at farmers markets locally, selling pecans.  Here’s a picture of Kathy at a booth in The Woodlands.  At this rate, we’ll be at a lot more farmers markets!

We’ve had a deer feeder running at the back side of the orchard, with a motion sensitive camera near by.  There are lots of deer, mainly does, at least 1 small buck and raccoon!  Here are a few pictures.

Finally, the requisite picture of the twins… as snow angels.  We’re currently in Minneapolis visiting Kathy’s family.  Also, a picture of the twins with our good friends, Lee and Sharon (Wahlin) Clark.

Ken

We’ve had beautiful weather in November!  The many changes that began in October continued.  Evelyn Wilson left to be near her family in Missouri, and Mary Jane Pike came to be our newest (and youngest) resident.  The first picture below is of Audrey and Amos Purcell, and Tom Davis with Evelyn just as they were leaving to take her back to Missouri.  The second is of the four who brought Mary Jane with Mary Jane.  In the picture they are Alice Christopher, Waverly Pierson, Carolyn Porter, Mary Jane Pike and Sandra Wilson.

 

Mary Jane is in better physical shape than the other residents… and some of the rest of us!  When she first arrived she suggested to Destiny (who played basketball in school) that we needed to start a PG basket ball team!  Then she looked around the great room at the residents and their walkers, and said “maybe not”!    She’s constantly looking for something to do, so each trash can gets emptied multiple times per day.  She enjoys finding sticks and dried plants in the woods and making dried arrangements in flower pots.  She and Roger are a big help when we clean pecans.  We’re glad she has settled in well and seems to enjoy being with us.

Esther Potts (97 years old) spent a week in the hospital in November with congestive heart failure.  They drained the fluid off and changed her medications.  She was weak when she first came home, but has been gaining strength and seems like her old self again now.  We all admire her spirit!

There were changes in the staff also.  Kathleen Stancliff moved back to Arkansas.  A  Mexican couple from south Houston joined the staff, Samuel and Conchita Valdez.  Samuel is taking the place Brandon Chandler left at the end of October and Conchita is taking Kathleen’s place.  The first picture below shows Kathleen with Conchita.  The second shows Cindy Erickson with Conchita and Samuel.

While showing pictures of our staff I’ll include a picture of Destiny Minor who was part-time but now works almost full-time, with Virginia McKnight.  The second picture is of Waverly Pierson with our daughter Karin Kelleher.  So in summary, our full-time (and nearly full-time) staff are Cindy, Virginia, Destiny, Conchita, Samuel and Karin.  Volunteer part-time help includes Kathy, Leona, Jack and Ken.

Visitors in November included Jeanette Ford and Martha Houston who were with us for a week.  Esther keeps trying to convince Jeanette that she needs to move into PG, but Jeanette isn’t ready for that move yet.  The first picture shows Martha and Jeanette.  The second shows them with the residents: Naomi, Martha, Esther, Jeanette and Barbara.

Steve and Wynesta Dale from the left coast (California) visited.  Wynesta is a niece of one of our residents, Frances McPherson, and a good friend of ours for many years.  The first picture shows Frances, Wynesta and Steve.  Ralph and Louise Hartsuiker visited on their way to the valley.  In the second picture they’re shown with Jean Hagemiere.

Our son-in-law, Brendan Furrow’s (father of the twins), sister and family visited from Ohio.  The first picture below is of Karena and Doug Hager with their kids Aubrey and Andan, and the twins, Maren and Maven.  Bea’s sister Bobby and her son Chris brought Bea back from a two week visit with them.

Two sets of couples, the Myers from Indiana, the Klopfensteins and Chappells from New Hampshire visited on the same day, not knowing the others were coming – and they were related!  The first picture below is of Faye and John Myers, Norma and Ivan Klofenstein, and Genny and Ralph Myers.  The second is of Kent and Sharon Chappell.

Linda Ronhaar visited and led a sing with some of the residents, Martha and Jeanette.  Betty Lawrence had her 87th birthday.  She fell recently and is currently on the mend.

A group of home schooled kids (including Wesley Leighton) were working on a project to invent something to help the elderly.  They came and made a presentation to our residents of their device.  The first picture shows the kids with the residents.  The second shows the device, which helps folks who have had strokes turn a door knob.

We have LOTS of dead trees to take down after last year’s drought.  Kenny, Samuel and I felled a tree that was close to and leaning toward the driveway.  I was driving the tractor, and hoping that the rope was longer than the tree was tall!

Two (more) pictures of the twins, one with Doris (behind them) and one with Jack (great grandfather).

Kathy and I spent a week in Aberdeen Scotland in November.  For those of you familiar with Aberdeen, here’s one picture of the Kitty Fulton, Cyril & Harriet Bell, Bob Kerr, Alan Beggs, Kathy, Alex and Betty Main.

The fountain and a small buck.

 

Ken