Tag: Wisconsin

Playing catchup with medical issues

We had planned on heading to South Dakota right after Memorial Day, but life got in the way. I am good at getting my preventative medical care, and my mammogram reports have noted words to the effect of “dense breasts … consider MRI.” I decided since I was 70, maybe I should! I have had absolutely no symptoms or test results indicating breast cancer, but surprise! The MRI caught a very small cancer, 4-6mm in size, Stage 0 Ductal Carcinoma in Situ (DCIS). Of course that started a waterfall of appointments for biopsies, consultations with surgical, radiation, and medical oncologists, etc. Crazy. I had surgery on Monday, and the pathology report says there is no more cancer. In fact, they couldn’t even find it in the samples. The thought is the biopsy I had actually caught it all. So we are now planning on leaving on Wednesday and heading to Oregon. I still have an appointment with the surgeon and medical oncologist on Tuesday, but I am feeling very, very relieved!

Since the cancer was so small, very contained, and non-invasive, we did enjoy some time in between all the appointments. It took two service calls before Kevin finally got the RZR power steering warranty issue resolved, so we took a 75 mile trip along the Cheese Country Trail beginning and ending in Mineral Point, WI. It is a rail to trail graded trail that was just beautiful in the midwestern early summer.

Notice to Amish – No Buggies!
Trailside picnic area managed by the local SXS club
Beautiful scenery

Kevin also replaced the convection/microwave in the motorhome. The original one was losing display readability, but it was a pain to get the new one in. Turns out the mounting bracket wasn’t installed correctly originally, so when he tried to use the same screws, things just weren’t level. Ahh, so that’s why there were all these extra screws LOL! He finally got the mounting bracket level, and using screw jacks he got it in the right spot.

Fancy box set up to use for mounting
Done!

And is it even a post without a picture of one of the cats? This is Luna impatiently waiting for Kevin to throw her little ball for fetching.

I see you!

I also participated in the #NoKings rally in Waterloo. This was my favorite sign, mostly because the doodle looks almost exactly like our old dog.

Definitely a princess

I also got some of the internet famous Dubai chocolate as a reward after surgery. Yum. Not quite sure it is worth $5 for this piece, but it was very good.

Yum

We are now packing for the trip. More when we are on the road.

Thoughts from central Wisconsin

i have been in far northern Wisconsin, in Door County, and in southern Wisconsin, but I hadn’t ever been in central Wisconsin near where we are now. A few random thoughts.

1. This place is GREEN. Really, really green. Forests all over the place. Christmas tree farms in large numbers. Green.

2. There are lots and lots of vegetable farms here. Huge storage buildings for potatoes. Canning companies. Fields of green beans. Yup, vegetables all over. The soil is very sandy.

3. There are Amish in the area. We saw two men driving two horses each while cutting hay. We saw another man driving three horses while plowing. Another man was driving two horses down the road while pulling a baler. There are Amish quilt shops, produce stands (not open yet), and home bakeries advertising along the road. I took no pictures, respecting the Amish dislike for photographs,

4. There are lakes and wide spots in the rivers with shorelines covers with cabins and houses. Lots of water, lots of boats, lots of fishing paraphernalia. There is also a lot of good fishing for eating. I ate lunch at a diner in Hancock, and the six fillets of blue gills I had were huge and very good.

5. This place is at least as humid as Iowa, and maybe more so. Temperatures in the upper 70s felt much, much worse because of the humidity. I had thought about bringing the grandkids back here for a vacation, but I think I would melt in the middle of summer.

Feeling virtuous

I finally got my daughter’s quilt (almost) finished. The problem is that I ran out of thread while doing the final 8” of the binding! I have nothing in the stash to even kind of match, so I mail ordered. I have also decided on the pattern for the baptism gown. Now to get the fabric, laces, and ribbons.

We are now in central Wisconsin, just south of Steven’s Point. We had some family things to take care of, so we took a short trip here. We are staying at Oasis Waterpark and Campground, right on I-39 at Hancock. So far it is a lovely place with some trees and roomy enough sites. I imagine the quiet will change tomorrow though. It would be a great place for kids with lots of planned activities and a great water play area in a small pond. I can’t yet go swimming because of the wound from my basal cell cancer removal, so a lot of it goes for naught for me.

I have however done a really complete spring cleaning of the motorhome – floors, cabinetry, even the shower and the corners that never get seen behind the slides. I am not quite so virtuous as to clean the inside of the cabinets though.

Today we visited the Experimental Aircraft Association museum in Oshkosh. What fun! I like airplanes, and I love history, so it is a winner for me. Some pictures might help.

An historically accurate reproduction of the Wright brother’s first powered aircraft, complete with mannequin pilot
A partial reproduction of a 1918 Curtis showing the framework

A special D-Day exhibit opened today also. There were historical re-enactors from all services with lots of memorabilia.

One of the last D-Day transports

There was also a collection of vintage aircraft nose paintings, cut from the original aircraft and carefully conserved. There were some suitable for all ages:

And some were for more mature audiences (these are two of the tamer ones).

Sorry for the glare. They didn’t allow flash to even out the lighting.

We are staying here until Saturday sometimes, then heading home. We have to get ready for another family business trip, this time to Kansas and Oklahoma. We are starting with the Kansas City Quilt Expo though, and I have two classes scheduled. More on those later.