THE LOWE FAMILY NEWSLETTER: VOLUME 65 APRIL 2011

Dear Readers,

I recently celebrated another birthday with my metro area children: Bryn picked up the Pizza and Coryn actually baked a cake! Josh, Sean and Bryn were persuaded to tile my upstairs bathroom as a present. I was convinced that the three of them would easily complete the project in a weekend . Always one to pitch in (whether asked or not) I decided to make the job faster and easier for my boys by tearing out the old floor for them. I took up the quarter round strips and started pulling up the vinyl and saw that the sub floor was badly water damaged and would therefore have to be replaced. I tried to pry the vinyl and sub floor up in one go using a hammer and crow bar, laboring on my knees for hours but only managing to pull up about a third of the floor . I contemplated an easier method : a phone call with my do-it-herself-er friend Becky had me thinking that my electric circular saw set to a depth of half an inch might rip through the job in no time but when I E-mailed Josh my solution he nixed it . I decided to let my boys brawn do the rest of it. Fortunately there was a layer of plywood underneath that looked just marginally water stained – in the interests of getting the project done I decided I was fine with just covering it with some new backer board if the boys concurred.

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The first Saturday morning I was naively expecting my boys to put in a couple of hours before enjoying one of my delicious lunches - with expectations that the job would be virtually complete by suppertime. By noon my bowels were in an uproar , the boys had not arrived - my expectations tanked on realizing that they were not flush with my ' lets get it done' enthusiasm. I phoned to find out when they were planning on coming over to start the job – not until some time later in the afternoon they said, assuring me that the job was not going to take them any time. That claim was definitely true as hardly any time on any given day was given to this project! Which explains why it has taken three weekends for three boys to tile a relatively small bathroom!

Sean and Josh worked by themselves the first weekend as Bryn was out of town. The first afternoon the boys pulled out the rest of the floor,( berating me for taking so long to accomplish so little of course) removed the toilet and headed for Home Depot where they picked up some new backer board, thin-set and a toilet to replace the one that never recovered from Marc's usage during his Christmas stay. Marc flushed the tank so many times that he seemed to have taught the toilet to flush itself all day and night! He even broke the handle on the tank – Ethan tired of constantly having to reattach it while he was here - Marc of course just left it to some one else being totally inept at plumbing – not surprising I suppose since his own was never hooked up properly from the start!! I should probably send Marc a bill for the new toilet as a belated birthday present for me!Don't worry Marc – Josh picked it out so it was very economically priced!

Sunday Sean bought over a tile saw and some other stuff needed for the job but had to leave shortly after lunch as he had to drive to Omaha for a business trip that afternoon. That left Josh to put the sub-floor down.

This past weekend Bryn and Josh arrived after work on Friday and in just a couple of hours tiled the entire bathroom. I didn't even complain when they dragged my old trash compactor out of the garage and set it up in front of my porch with the tile saw perched on top! I was so happy that progress was being made that I didn't care if the sight offended my neighbors who had all been manicuring their yards in preparation for the Easter holiday !I was thrilled to see my new tile laid with the little spacers just waiting to be grouted. Josh and Bryn explained that that wouldn't be happening until after our Easter Sunday lunch as the thin-set needed time to set up. I'm sure I've seen them lay tile and grout it all in one day on HGTV! This weekend I am hoping that the boys will seal the grout, clean the tiles and put the shoe molding back down. Then I will be so grateful to my boys!

Josh has definitely assumed the most responsibility for the project as both his brothers have been traveling. Bryn went to New York and Boston to visit friends, He was able to spend some time with our Kay and his AHS class mate Alicia Sanchez in Boston. By strange coincidence the girls are almost neighbors!

Sean was in Orlando for a few days last week helping Leslee and Craig move into their new home which I am very anxious to see of course. It's in a lakeside community so should be very picturesque – just the sort of scenery I appreciate. If your dad was able to travel I'd probably move us in for the winter! Sean is flying back to Orlando again this weekend for a few days on a business trip. He has really lucked out with Cerner as they also sent him out to LA earlier this month so that he was able to spend several days with Marc. Now he just needs a trip to the East coast and Indy and he'll have the whole family visited courtesy of Cerner!

Ming-Lee came for an overnight visit at the beginning of the month, unfortunately he missed Sean who was in LA at the time. As an early birthday present he cooked a couple of meals for the family giving me a welcome break from kitchen duty. He arrived with a beautiful bunch of lilies which lasted for a couple of weeks and a gift card which I used to buy some gardening supplies. Thanks to Lori too! We took advantage of a sunny day to visit one of my favorite places, the Arboretum. My muscles appreciated Ming's taking over pushing your dad's wheelchair up and down the hilly paths.

Coryn has been playing nursemaid to Buster all month. Unfortunately one of his hind leg’s knees detached from it's socket and required the expensive services of an orthopedic vet to insert a steel pin to hold it in place. Buster was sent home with a plastic cone encircling his head to prevent him from chewing his stitches ,a shaved and stitched back leg and a shaved spot on his back where they apparently gave him an epidural! I think our bill for Marc's birth was about the same amount as Buster's surgery! Coryn was given strict instructions: Buster was to be confined to a crate for several weeks and to be kept on a very short leash when taken outside for potty breaks. Of course she broke the rules almost immediately by letting him sleep in his doggy bed by hers at night which went well for a couple of weeks until he decided to jump up on the bed. Fortunately the pin held! The vet recently removed his plastic head cone which he endured until the stitches were removed. Coryn is going to have to keep his activity to a minimum for a few more weeks which is hard with a robust dog like Buster. He’s already slipped out the doggie door and down a couple of forbidden steps to chase Ollie around the back yard! I keep warning Coryn that she is going to be paying for another surgery soon and putting herself and Buster through all the trauma of a long recovery period if she doesn't keep that dog confined. Of course she pays no attention to me.

Ming-Jon is traveling back from London as I type this, he was visiting his long time friends Sheldon and Lori while he had the chance. Apparently they are moving back here later this year after a couple of years there. Too bad he missed the Royal Wedding. I am certain that America is far more excited about the event than the Britons – most of whom are probably bemoaning how much of their taxes are being used to pay for it all. I will certainly not be getting up in the middle of the night to watch it live. I am sure it will be replayed on TV all day long so I shall enjoy seeing her dress and all the pageantry which we Brits do so well at my usual breakfast in front of the TV time.

Your dad has had numerous doctor's appointments and tests and none of them have shown any reason for his recent health problems. His seizures have been so debilitating that one of his neurologists has put him on another medication. Unfortunately to date they have continued unabated and he is continuing to suffer many falls, He gave himself a black eye somehow last week but of course doesn't remember how. I am becoming very concerned about the stairs and am considering using a baby gate. Unfortunately his newest neurologist is on maternity leave and won't be back until August. She is encouraging us to give the video monitoring another chance but so far KUMed has not got it organized. The University of Iowa was much better to work with, possibly because your dad had some medical contacts there.

Just a few evenings ago I was startled by the sight of a turkey strutting past my downstairs family room window – enough of a distraction from American Idol to send me scurrying for my camera – which was pointless as Bryn had 'borrowed' the battery for his trip – apparently his wasn't charging. Fortunately I remembered my cell phone had a camera but by the time I grabbed it and got back downstairs the neighbors dog had came charging out of her doggy door and literally sent the turkey flying over my fence in fright. I was furious to have missed the shot. I never expected to see such a bird in my big city yard. I hope he visits again instead of the usual turkeys that flock to my home pecking away at my culinary skills.

Today is glorious, the sun is seducing me outside to toil in my garden where my roses are coming into bloom, butterflies are flitting and a bumble bee is buzzing in circles over my already blooming dianthus. I am planning on digging up some plants from Coryn's yard,and transplanting them into mine this weekend and I'm also looking forward to a visit to a local nursery or two as I always seem to have gaps in my borders (just like the USA) that need to be filled. I hope that while I'm pulling weeds, digging holes and hauling soil around my back yard that I will hear the drone of my worker bee sons up in the bathroom installing this queen's throne! I can promise something as sweet as honey as a treat for a job well done and finally complete!

From my hive of activity, with love, your honey of a mother.

THE LOWE FAMILY NEWSLETTER: VOLUME 64 MARCH 2010

Dear Children and Friends,

Last month we celebrated your dad's and Josh's birthdays. As usual great demands were made on my baking skills with Josh requesting a marble cake that I almost lost my marbles over when I realized that I had mindlessly mixed the chocolate and vanilla cake mixes together instead of gently swirling one through the other – so we ended up with a pallid looking chocolate cake. However, I did redeem myself with the frosting . Josh had found a couple of recipes he wanted me to try: thinking we could have a family vote on which was the best so I whipped up two batches, one with whipped cream, sugar and cream cheese and another with Cool Whip, and vanilla pudding. I spread each cake layer with one kind of frosting and served every one two slivers of cake to determine the winner. I would say that the Cool Whip recipe was a taste ahead. After this endeavor I thought I would be free of kitchen duty for awhile but that turned out to be a half baked idea as Josh told me he had taken the next day of work to make Oreo Balls with me as he and Sean both wanted to take a batch into work. Sean thoughtfully handed all the ingredients over to me. Unfortunately the Oreo Balls are still the most requested item in their work places.

Coryn and Sean utilized my shopping skills too. Sean arrived after work one night to have me go suit shopping with him as he had a business trip the next day and his suit was a wrinkled mess since he hadn't thought to take it to the dry cleaners after he last wore it. He brought it over in hopes that I might be able to steam a few wrinkles out if he couldn't find another suit. Fortunately we found two that fit perfectly without alterations, plus some new ties and a shirt. Of course I ended up having to unpin and iron the shirt and steam out the old suit as he had more trips coming up. I did suggest that he could have avoided this last minute shopping spree if he had only planned his wardrobe out a few days ahead but he didn't seem to feel my stress! But I do enjoy watching my kids pull their own credit cards out to make large purchases these days.

Later in the month he had me help him pick out glass tile for his kitchen back splash and Coryn took me carpet shopping with her. She is planning on putting her house on the market soon and the dogs have ruined the bedroom carpets. Jeremy is hoping to sell his condo too and they plan to buy a new house together – probably on the Missouri side of Kansas City since Jeremy will still be working out of Clinton.

About the same time that the Tsunami hit Japan we were hit with a tidal wave of medical problems generated by the Asian here at home. One recent Monday morning your dad told me that his urine was bloody. Immediately suspecting a urinary tract infection I called his urologist's office to make an appointment – they could not see him for a month! They suggested I call our family doctor for treatment. This I promptly did and we were soon heading over to his new offices which I found without a problem – leaving was another matter as once again I got lost in a parking lot and had to use the GPS to get us headed in the right direction.

Norm was so uncomfortable sitting in the waiting room that he had to keep standing and walking around to alleviate the pain and then the urge to pee became so strong that I had to find a rest room for him – fortunately one of the nurses caught us and had him give her a urine sample. As soon as I saw the plastic container filled with blood I knew that this was more than just a urinary tract infection. The doctor took one look at the sample and said we needed to see his urologist today. I explained that I had called him first for an appointment but was told that the earliest appointment was a month away. The doctor said he would call and explain the situation because he believed that your dad probably had a blood clot blocking his bladder which was a medical emergency. He also felt that Norm's prostate cancer could have spread to the bladder and this was definitely out of his realm. His call produced an appointment in three days. Frustrated he told me to take Norm to KUMed's ER immediately since someone from the urology department would have to see him. We made a quick pit stop at home for my cell phone charger and granola bars and headed off to the ER.

Although I have made many trips to KUMed I had never used their ER services before. The entrance to it is virtually hidden up a side street and the underground parking lot is very small and was completely full. I knew your dad was not going to be able to deal with the parking garage so I elected to drive to the main entrance and use their valet parking. Soon I had Norm in his wheelchair and headed for the ER.

Now we are all familiar with airport security but I was not expecting a ramped up version at a hospital ER: an armed guard barred our way and ushered us through a metal detector – forgot about Norm's pacemaker again- passed a wand over us and checked my purse! I even had to hold my jacket open in case I had AK47 under there – a good job I didn't as I might have vented my frustration by firing off a few rounds. We were finally admitted to the ER, and after the usual insurance questions we finally got around to the matter of life or death that was responsible for our being there. Thank goodness I was able to say in all honesty that we had been sent straight from our doctor's office otherwise we might have endured hours in the waiting room instead of minutes.

Once your dad was set up in an examining room, wearing a hospital gown and using a plastic pee bottle (collecting nothing but blood) a doctor finally arrived and decided to set up a catheter so that they could flush his bladder with gallons of saline in hopes of breaking up the blood clots and getting his urine flowing again. The nurse had a terrible time threading the catheter in place because of your dad's prostate cancer and it was obviously an excruciatingly painful one for your dad who was already suffering. I was so relieved when it was finally in and working. There was an awful lot of blood and clots passed. Finally a urologist came to check and decided that if and when the urine was clearer Norm could go home but that the catheter would have to stay in place in case they needed to repeat the procedure and to hopefully prevent another clot blocking the bladder. He also had a very bad urinary tract infection so they prescribed an antibiotic for that. Nine hours after arriving we were discharged and I found myself heading down I35 in the dark of night desperately gripping the steering wheel as I fought through my cataracts to see the lane lines. Coryn had offered to pick us up but I didn't want to deal with the hassle of picking up the car some time in the future so I decided to go for it. She also let me know that Sean was going to spend the night at our house as he had a presentation to make the next morning at the Olathe Medical Center which is fairly close to us.

Sean pulled into the driveway right behind us, exiting his car with a bottle of wine in each hand: I was ready to pull some of Norm's tubing and intubate myself with both bottles. Thoughtful boy that he is he also bought along a couple of bags of frozen Chicken Voila in case we hadn't eaten. I had actually left Norm's bedside to pick up a couple of sandwiches and bottles of juice once I realized that we were going to be there long past my usual dinner time. Would you believe that the security guard actually made me pull my sandwiches out of my purse to check that I didn't have a bomb or something in there! I realized that some of the people in the ER looked like they might be a threat but me?

Sleep was difficult that night as Norm was very restless and still in pain. The following morning I awoke and found him on the cusp of a seizure trying to reattach his catheter bag to his leg. Unfortunately he had undone all the straps and pulled some tubing out but thankfully not the most important part ! I tried to help him but he was being very unco-operative so I was grateful that Sean was there to intervene and get him strapped and taped again. Unfortunately your dad was like a toddler with a new plaything – he just couldn't keep his hands off the tubing and kept wrapping electrical tape around it to keep it tight to his leg not understanding that he was putting so much tension on the apparatus that he was causing the tubing to pull away from the bag and thus causing frequent leaking!

I made a quick trip to the pharmacy to pick up his prescription but by the time I returned Norm was in a lot of pain and there was no urine in the catheter bag. I called the Urology department and was told they would have a resident call as soon as possible. Two hours later there was no phone call and Norm's pain was so bad that I decided we needed to return to the ER. I called Coryn to see if she could leave work early to drive us as I was having my own meltdown and I didn't think it was safe for me to drive. Fortunately her principal was very understanding and told her to take the rest of the week off too!

Once back in the ER Norm was in so much pain that he couldn't even sit in the wheelchair – the nurse said she would try to get him in as soon as possible . Another nurse came to take his vitals and ascertain his problem but she virtually shut me out of the room despite the fact that I told her your dad had dementia. We were sent to the waiting room which seemed more like a social club today. Groups of people , many of whom seemed to know each other, came in and made themselves comfortable, hugging and greeting others as they poured through the doors. They were obviously settling in for the evening. Poor Norm had to keep pacing to alleviate his pain and I was getting close to another meltdown so I went to the front desk to see how much longer they thought it might be – not that they cared!

After a while I noticed a smell that reminded me of dead fish - I wondered which of the crowd was responsible and leaned over to get Coryn's thoughts but she is not blessed with my sensitive nose and just shrugged. A few minutes later the smell caused me to check your dad's catheter bag: he had finally passed some urine but we had an equipment malfunction - a puddle had formed around his feet and his pants were wet. I hastily rushed out to the desk and explained what had happened, hoping this would get your dad into an examining room more quickly, but they were very nonchalant. I expected a hazmat crew to clean it up but the nurse came by after awhile and mopped it up with a paper towel. No bleach, no Lysol. Eventually they did take Norm off to supposedly change his bag but asked Coryn and I to remain in the waiting room while they took care of it, assuring us that they would bring us to him once that was accomplished. I thought it very odd that we were being virtually told that we could not be with him but I felt it better to just co-operate , hoping that he would be seen by a doctor very soon.

Since people were arriving with dinner in hand , all the munching around us prompted Coryn to volunteer to make a food run while we waited. She arrived back about forty minutes later with a bag of heart healthy fries and burgers and was surprised that I was still there and not with Norm. While we ate supper I began to worry about why no-one had reunited us with Norm so once again I went to the front desk and realized that a shift change had taken place and apparently we had been forgotten about . My blood pressure must have been at boiling point. Coryn and I found your dad alone in an examining room where he had scooted himself to the end of the bed and was marching in place to try to alleviate the pain. I was appalled that from a health and legal stand point that they had left your dad with all his health problems unattended. However his spirits rose when Coryn offered him a burger and french fries – he ate like a rabid dog.

A nurse finally responded to Norm's beeping monitor: Norm had pulled his finger clip off. I questioned why he was in so much pain and she assured me that he had been given pain medication and that it should take effect soon. She had a couple of prescriptions to send home with us and was about to leave the room when I asked if the catheter tubing and bag had been changed. The previous shift nurse had apparently neglected to tell her about the problem, but she said she would check it - which she did ,informing me that it wasn't the kind they used. I promptly fired back that he had been set up with it yesterday in this ER ! I realize now that she was probably thrown by all the tape plastered over it and the elastic and safety pins that I had replaced the hospital bands with as they were too easy for Norm to remove. The nurse assured me that all the connections looked fine – obviously she didn't want to change a thing!

Once again Norm was discharged into my care and I think it was about three in the morning before we were able to sleep as he was in so much pain. He would wake me every couple of hours to empty his bag even though there was little urine in it. He confused his sense of urinary urgency with urine flow of which unfortunately there was very little – until about eight in the morning. He woke me up to let me know that the bed felt wet under him. Indeed it was. Once again the tubing had come loose and we had Pyridium stained urine all over the bed. (Pyridium is a medication used to treat urinary tract infections and it stains one's urine a bright orange color which is very difficult to remove.)I had placed some towels under him but unfortunately our mattress pad cover was not waterproof so it soaked through. So I cleaned your dad up, changed him, reattached the catheter tubing and called Coryn to come and help me as I was too exhausted to go to the pharmacy, shop for a waterproof mattress cover, and clean all the mess up. She was a great help again that day, running errands, picking up food for us and watching her dad so that I could try to get some sleep. I did manage to get the mattress cleaned and encased in a waterproof cover, the bedding washed and most of the spots shampooed out of the carpet. A few days later I bought a new bedding set to ensure we were completely clean and comfortable.

I called the urology department in tears that morning with my tale of woe and they said that they would plan to remove the catheter the next day when we had an appointment with the urologist. Josh came over later in the evening to spend the night and was a great help as he repositioned the catheter bag on Norm's leg to make it more difficult for him to fiddle with it. Since I had again spent most of the night sleeping in short bursts Josh stayed with Norm late into the morning so that I could get some more sleep.

Thursday afternoon Coryn drove us back to KUMed for our appointment with the urologist. Norm was set up with an appointment for a CT Scan and Cystoscopy of the bladder for the end of the month and thankfully the catheter was removed. Fortunately your dad is pain free in that area of his body but is now having a lot of back pain and leg cramps which are keeping us up at night. He’s been having tidal waves of seizures, including incontinence and collapses. He went down in the front yard yesterday when he was trying to enjoy some sunshine – fortunately one of the neighbor's saw us and came over to help me get Norm up and back into the house.

We also have appointments with his cardiologist and a new neurologist who specializes in seizures. I am hoping that something can be done to stabilize his situation as it is becoming increasingly difficult for me to monitor him twenty-four hours a day. Like the Japanese I am hoping that something can be done to contain the situation before the fall out from your dad's ills results in a catastrophe.

The warm weather we have enjoyed these last few days has helped buoy our spirits. Norm has been able to bask in his rocking chair on the deck whilst I've been cleaning up my garden and anticipating the glorious display of my spring bulbs as their green leaves peak through the soil. I have piles of twigs and ornamental grass cuttings for the birds nesting needs; the bird houses have been hung and my bird feeders filled. I spotted a toad under a pile of wet leaves and hope to see the butterflies feeding on all my flowers very soon. The deer have already been around to feed on the few acorns left by the squirrels on the front lawn. I tried to chase them away at dawn this morning but they didn't budge. As long as they don't eat my hostas – they have already dined on my tulips. I am still amazed that living in an area so close to a number of interstates that we have so much wild life to enjoy.

Thanks to Coryn I have recently joined a Brits International group and just before Norm fell ill, enjoyed one of their afternoon teas. They hold social meetings on a frequent basis so hopefully I'll be able to join them sometimes and broaden my circle of friends here. Probably help me regain my accent too – I've certainly never lost my love of a nice cup of tea!

Let's hope that I can keep my cool as things heat up in an effort to get to the core of your dad's latest health melt down and lets hope that no more ill winds blow our way, your hard to contain, highly combustible Mom.

THE LOWE FAMILY NEWSLETTER VOLUME 63

THE LOWE FAMILY NEWSLETTER VOLUME 63 FEBRUARY 2011

Dear Readers,

I opened the deck door this morning and gingerly stepped out only to find myself flying Bambi style across it - fortunately I managed to grab the patio table before I literally hit the deck. I decided to cancel your dad's appointment scheduled for this afternoon with his urologist at KU Med - fearing that the trip on icy roads would be more hazardous to his health than his prostrate cancer. I didn't think your dad would appreciate me skating around the KU Med parking garage with his wheelchair – he's nervous enough under the best of conditions about my ability to negotiate obstacles like curbs without sending him flying. I think he should be grateful that he married someone young enough and strong enough to be able to push him around in one!

Ethan “volunteered” to skate to the mailbox and push the garbage can to the curb for me. He ended up trying to stay on the grass as much as possible because it was so slick on the cement: watching him slip and slide I congratulated myself on my wise decision to stay indoors all day.

Sean and Josh invited us over to watch a movie one weekend recently and I spent time cleaning in the kitchen – I had hoped that their new counter-tops, beautiful farm style stainless steel sink and high end faucet would be a great incentive to be more house proud but unfortunately they still seem content to wallow in the muck and mire of their bachelor pad. They so desperately need some neat freak girlfriends.

Over the last few months I have noticed that my vision seems to be diminishing so I made an eye appointment and was devastated to learn that I have cataracts. I asked the doctor how someone my age could possibly be stricken with such a thing- she assured me that it wasn't that unusual and she reminded me that one of the side affects of taking Tamoxifen was the early onset of cataracts. She thought they would be ripe for surgery in about three years. Apparently they are contributing to my night time driving difficulties. It seems that I am rapidly approaching old age before I am even comfortable with being middle aged! But worse was to come. A few days later I was chomping on a breakfast bowl of Special K when I bit down on something hard. I assumed it was a piece of almond shell and spit it into my napkin. I took a few more mouthfuls and found my tongue straying to a very rough feeling tooth. I explored my back teeth by sticking my finger in my mouth .What I felt was alarming enough to send me racing for a mirror which showed that I had lost part of a tooth. I put my reading glasses on and checked in the napkin, now seeing that the “nut shell' was actually part of my tooth. I called the dentist and am now $1000.00 poorer as the tooth had to be crowned – you'd expect diamonds for that price! The dental office declared this the first loss of a tooth to Special K in their history and seemed to find the whole thing very amusing. The dentist explained that as we age our teeth tend to fracture more easily. I realized that two health professionals had diagnosed me as having age related health issues within a week. I immediately regretted weaning myself off my anti depressant- could anything be more depressing than to be told you are obviously a card carrying ARRP member? I'm wondering if it's worth maintaining my natural hair color at this point!

Coryn has enjoyed many snow days recently – interesting that we were able to make it to the movie theater on one of them to enjoy 'The King's Speech' – very worthwhile seeing- and I was amazed to note that the theater was full that afternoon of hordes of women who I suspected were usually in the classroom at that time. It would seem that people have no problems getting anywhere other than school. I told Coryn that I was glad to see that our tax dollars were being wisely spent by her school district. I don't think she has worked five days a week since school resumed after the Christmas break.

Ethan spent his last weekend here watching the Super Bowl: he was almost sandwiched on the couch between two geriatrics - fortunately Josh arrived to save him from this fate. Bryn and Sean were attending a friend's party and Coryn and Jeremy had other plans too. Maybe it will be game on for me next year? However a few days later we were all together for a farewell dinner before Ethan left to return to England so perhaps it was just as well that I didn't have to cater two big bashes back to back.

Norm and I took Ethan to the airport on Thursday and fortunately the weather was not a factor. It seems that we have had ice and snow to contend with since the start of the new year. Ethan is now safely home again.

Your dad had his rescheduled appointment with his urologist and once again his PSA is rising so the doctor feels that it might be time to start hormone therapy again. Your dad has elected to wait for a couple of months because he is having numerous seizures again and doesn't feel that he needs any thing else to deal with now. The doctor did prescribe some medicine to help with his urinary flow – interestingly enough I think it's the same stuff that Marc has to take. Quite unusual to have one's relatively young son taking the same medicine as his aged father. Too bad Marc doesn't live here as he could double up with his dad on doctor's appointments and prescriptions.

Taking your dad to KU Med is quite a challenge at this time as the hospital is undergoing some major building work and the roads leading to the parking garage are jammed with bumper to bumper cars all trying to find a place in the multi level parking lot that always seems to be full irregardless of what time of day one goes. The spaces in the garage are so small that even if one manages to find one the chances of being able to open all four car doors are very slight - even for my compact car! I don't think I have ever found a handicap space open in the three years we have been using the facility. So once I've succeeded in getting your dad in the wheelchair I usually have to push him quite a way to the elevators which are barely big enough to hold one patient in a wheelchair - leave alone the usual hordes trying to get on board. This last trip six of us squeezed in with Norm in his wheelchair because people were so concerned about being late to doctors appointments. One poor lady was worried to death that she was going to be so agitated by the time she reached her doctor's office that he would want to admit her! She claimed that she was so stressed out by the elevator ride because she was claustrophobic. I do hope that the hospital is going to improve the parking situation as I'm sure it's not a situation that helps anyone's health. I'm surprised that they don't have paramedics right there to triage all the drivers who are probably on the verge of a stroke or heart attack driving around and around trying to find a parking space. They could really drum up some business for the ER.

Today is gloriously warm and sunny, and for the first time in ages I was able to have your dad sit out on the deck basking in the sun as he so loves to do. Josh was here so I took advantage of the chance to take a long walk although I had to climb over snow piles here and there as no-one seems to be into clearing off their sidewalks in our neighborhood - despite our home owners association sending out an E-mail to remind us that we are legally responsible for them. I’m truly grateful to my neighbor who does ours with his snow blower and of course I had Ethan to help out with snow removal too! Quite a treat for him to experience his first American winter with snow on the ground for weeks and bone chilling temperatures. I'm sure he'll find it much warmer back in England.

Happy Valentines Day to all my readers, I always think of you all with heartfelt love but I barely have time to celebrate the day before I need to start preparing for your dad's eighty-third birthday and our thirty-sixth wedding anniversary in a few days! Love Mom

LOWE FAMILY NEWSLETTER: VOLUME 62 JANUARY 2011


Dear Readers

Bryn and I collaborated on cooking our Thanksgiving Turkey this year and after much clucking over various cooking methods we decided to stuff it with lemons and put it in a roasting bag. Once the turkey was rinsed, seasoned and oiled it was declared ready to be bagged. I hefted its great slippery weight into the roasting bag held open by Bryn. “Don’t drop it Mother” he warned. I thought he meant on the floor so I carefully dropped the turkey into the bag: its weight caused the bottom of the bag to burst and my turkey was on the kitchen floor! Thank goodness I had swiffered it the day before. I grabbed that bird off the floor (within the five second rule) and stuffed it into a spare roasting bag assuring Bryn that once cooked the turkey would be germ free. Of course Bryn kept repeating that I had done the very thing he had warned me against but it never occurred to me that he meant that I should not drop the turkey in the bag! Actually I think the fall helped tenderize the bird as every one around the table declared it to be moist and delicious! However I decided against tenderizing our Christmas turkey on the kitchen floor and didn’t use a roasting bag either!

December was ushered in by the arrival of Ethan. He was immediately volunteered as my Santa’s elf to help with the transformation of our home into a Currier and Ives Christmas card. After three days of hefting storage bins and boxes from the basement our home was wrapped in lights, greenery, ribbon and Christmas baubles. Ethan did luck out on stringing the outdoor icicle lights as Sean and I had tackled that chore the weekend before. However, we decided to go all out and deck the deck to give the drivers on Quivera some holiday cheer. Unfortunately I caused myself some embarrassment when I looked out the window one night and saw all the lights and declared we had a traffic jam on the street! The kids were amused that I couldn’t seemingly tell the difference between car headlights and Christmas lights but in my defense I didn’t have my glasses on.

Ming-Jon and Ming-Lee arrived the weekend of the tenth. Ming-Lee had a FedEx flight into Des Moines with a three day layover so he decided to rent a car and drive down. Ming Jon co-coordinated a visit that weekend too so that he could spend time with some of the family as his new job and Kay’s plans to be in Singapore meant he’d have to forgo Christmas with us. We enjoyed some family games and Oklahoma Joe’s Barbecue on Saturday evening. Football Sunday we feasted on Chinese cuisine as I slaved over a hot stove preparing rice, wontons and egg rolls. I even made a batch of the Oreo Balls, so that the Mings could try the new mint variety. Sean won 1st place at his company’s cook off in best dessert category with them - I now have a cute apron to show for my efforts but it hasn’t raised my enthusiasm for making them one iota. Ming-Jon relaxed at home with us while Ming-Lee spent most of his time at the boys Condo helping Sean and Josh install new kitchen countertops which look very nice, especially with their new stainless steel farm sink and upgraded faucet. Now they need a back splash to complete the renovation. Maybe we’ll be ready to concentrate on my place next!

Marc arrived on the 21st so Ethan and I went to pick him up. Unfortunately there was a major traffic backup on the route I usually take so I had to veer off course by a few miles to get on another interstate Thank goodness for my GPS system from Ming and Lori!. We arrived about twenty minutes later than planned to find Marc patiently waiting curbside at the terminal. Ethan had used my cell to let Marc know that we were going to be late but I don’t think Marc could understand a word of Ethan’s message due to his thick North English accent!

However, this trip was a breeze in comparison to the one endured by Coryn and Ethan to return Marc to the airport. As you may recall Marc had thoughtlessly booked a 6:00am flight – knowing full well that this was not going to be a family friendly time to drive to the airport. He had high hopes that one of his brothers would volunteer as he claimed that he had made a pre dawn trip to the airport with them out in LA. I told him to plan on taking a cab. The day before he left Coryn took pity on him and volunteered to take him. Ethan immediately offered to get up at four in the morning so that she would have some company on the way back. That’s a Brit for you, always ready to be of service! Unfortunately I’ve lived too long in this country to have any sense of duty before 10:00 am.

I did force myself out of bed in the middle of the night to hug Marc goodbye and returned to it as soon as he left. I wiggled myself back into my warm mattress, pulled up the covers, closed my eyes and prepared to settle in for the rest of the night. I was on the brink of sleep when I heard a thunderous noise and immediately thought your dad was having one of his spells. But no, he was slumbering peacefully (for once). Then I remembered it was New Year’s Eve and thought that some-one might be celebrating a little early .When lights began to flash across the room I realized that we were having a winter thunderstorm. I immediately went into worried mother mode and thought of my children driving on the interstate, blinded by rain and lightening flashes. Sleep was no longer possible. I wondered if I should risk calling them to ask if the weather was as bad up towards the airport but decided against that idea in case answering my call put them at risk. As always when fast forwarding through various dire scenarios that feature my children my bowels bore witness to my imaginings. In an effort to calm myself and my turbulent tummy I sat on the potty, deep breathing, watching the pelting rain, the lightening and thrashing tree tops through the small bathroom window. I went back to bed .While I was having a nervous breakdown on my side of the bed, your dad –as always- was oblivious to the drama being played out beside him. Then before I dared to dream it Coryn and Ethan pulled up in our driveway, their headlights shinning in my bedroom window. I was surprised that I didn’t hear the garage door open so I got up to investigate. Turned out that the rain had frozen on Coryn’s car and iced the doors shut! Ethan feared for his life the whole way home because he had never experienced such strange weather. After having harrowing experiences on both trips to the airport to accommodate Marc’s travel plans I hope he decides to rent a car next trip! At least he will have a better sized suitcase with which to travel which brings me to another Marc story.

A couple of days before he was due to leave Marc announced that he didn’t think that all his Christmas presents plus some items, like a business suit which he had left behind on his last visit, were going to fit into his small suitcase. This suitcase appears to be the size of a carry on but apparently it’s not according to the airlines so he always has to pay to check it anyway. I immediately suggested that he buy a huge suitcase which would accommodate everything of his that I would like to get out of my closets –pointing out that it was going to cost him the same amount to check a bag irregardless of its size and this would also alleviate me of the chore of having to mail numerous items to him. He was concerned that he would have to leave his smaller suitcase behind. I pointed out that this suitcase was really of no use – too big for a carry on and too small to hold much- suitable for car trips only. Seeing that Marc was attached to this wretched bag I suggested that he could probably pack it and then pack into the bigger suitcase. This idea finally appealed to him and so he and Coryn shopped for a very large and much more practical bag.


Christmas was very special this year as Ethan experienced his first American Christmas: I’m sure he missed the usual English Christmas Pudding and Sherry Trifle but he seemed to enjoy our traditional American meal. We certainly enjoyed all the delicious ‘sweets’ he brought over from England, especially the all time favorite Crunchie Bars of which Coryn always eat more than her share!

Josh, Bryn and Sean were in the spirit this Christmas making a couple of trips to Costco to stock up on holiday fare; pies for desserts, boxes of hors d’oeuvres, popcorn and chips. They even prepared our Christmas Eve feast! Coryn contributed her made from scratch cheeseball which your dad almost consumed by himself! He sat for hours at the kitchen table dabbing it on crackers, declaring it delicious with every bite. I think he was worried that Coryn’s feelings would be hurt if it wasn’t consumed in it’s entirety that night! For days afterwards he would open the fridge door to see if a morsel remained despite my assurances that he had eaten every last dab of it! I dread to think what it did to his arteries - never mind his digestive tract.

Leslee and Craig made beef stew one night during their stay - I was stewing all day about the five hours of oven time it took to cook! I could hear my electric meter running. Hard to imagine that they had perfected this recipe in hot and humid Orlando!

Sean made his family favorite ‘Seanchillada’s’ for lunch on football Sunday following Christmas Day. They were Leslee’s special request and send off meal as she and Craig
returned to Orlando late that afternoon.

Not to be out done by all these culinary achievements of her siblings Coryn invited Norm, Ethan, Marc, and me to lunch one day in an effort to show that she is finally learning to put a meal on the table. She made a very nice salad, and floated tortellini in French onion soup. Norm ate with gusto, praising her efforts as if she were the next Julia Child. We also got to ‘admire’ the Christmas decorations with which she and Jeremy had decked their hall. It was a sort of traditional meets pastel theme which probably should not be repeated next year. I think they need to start afresh – I’m planning on volunteering my help as always.

The only glitch we had this holiday season occurred when no-one seemed motivated to return Craig and Leslee to the airport: thankfully Bryn rallied to the chore. Next year I think we need to make a roster of flight schedules and have everyone sign up in advance for a pick up or drop off. I am always happy to do it as long as it’s during daylight hours, but not rush hour or hazardous driving conditions.

The chimney woes which I documented in my last newsletter were fixed in time for us to enjoy a blazing fire for the holidays! Jeremy generously delivered a truck load of firewood to us from his uncle’s property so we were ready to roar. Coryn and Leslee sat by the fire one evening assembling S’mores, another American first for Ethan. We Brits are more familiar with toasting crumpets around the fire! The fireplace added great ambience and warmth to our holiday but it also caused a great stink in the house, which seemed to rise up the upstairs family room chimney only to only to descend down the downstairs family room chimney, despite the fact that the damper was shut. I am hoping that it’s the newly parged smoke chamber that’s to blame and that after a few fires the problem will be resolved.

Ming-Lee, Lori, Blake and Claudia spent the week before Christmas on the coast in Alabama at a friend’s vacation home, returning to Indy on Christmas Eve whilst Ming-Jon celebrated the day at home with Kay who left for Singapore on the 26th to visit her maternal grandma.

Josh arrived New Year’s Eve with a bottle of Champagne. For the second year in a row he spent the night on the couch with his mom waiting to see whether Dick Clark or the ball would drop first. Along with Ethan we passed the evening playing cards and toasting in the New Year. Bryn spent the night on his own couch, alone, as his friends who were planning on celebrating with him didn’t make the trip from Iowa, probably due to the weather. Coryn and Jeremy spent the night with friends in his small town of Clinton, Missouri and Sean celebrated on the Plaza. Since most of the family seemed to have a rather low key celebration I have decided to ramp things up next year by throwing my own New Years Eve bash, complete with a signature cocktail, and spectacular food. I might even rent a Karaoke machine! I’m going to start hunting through the sale racks at the mall for a festive little dress to do justice to my booty! So next year you might all want to plan your holiday travel around this event! Bring your friends and rock my house!

I am absolutely thrilled with the brand new lap top so thoughtfully given to us by our children for Christmas this year. I immediately returned the old laptop to your dad and installed the new one on my desk in the kitchen. Once I get Microsoft word or something similar installed my fingers will be flying over the keys bringing you the newsletter from the heart of the house rather than the bowels of it as before when using Norm’s office computer.

I can hear you all squealing with delight at the thought of having more of mother’s missives shoved down your throats! Something to look forward to in the New Year besides my unsolicited advice and commentaries on football Sundays!

I wish all my readers a happy and healthy 2011, love as always Mom.

THE LOWE FAMILY NEWSLETTER:VOLUME 61

THE LOWE FAMILY NEWSLETTER: VOLUME 61 November 17, 2010



CONGRATULATIONS MING-JON!!!!!
I was delighted when Ming-Jon called me earlier this week with the wonderful news that he was offered and had accepted a full time permanent job with AERA (American Educational Research Association) as a program manager, to start immediately. Thankfully he had been able to find some tempory work after leaving the Washington Center but in this present job market finding another is a challenge.

Ethan will be back in the USA at the end of this month for an extended stay into February. Great timing as he’ll be able to carry all my shopping bags for me as I shop for Santa through the mall - and he can haul all the Christmas decorations up from the basement to save my varicose veins. Of course his help won’t be required or allowed when it comes to the placement of any of these decorations as we all know I regard it as an art form. This holiday season I envision yards of plaid ribbon, bushels of pinecones and swags of greenery adorning my home: in part because I can find the pinecones and greenery for free over the back fence –well Ethan can forage in the cold for his favorite auntie. We will head to the nearest Hobby Lobby with our discount coupons in hand as we scoop up spools of holiday ribbon. Once the tree is up, festooned with lights, yards of artfully placed ribbon and my belles of balls; the gift shopping boxed and wrapped; the cookies and holidays breads baked I hope to sit before a roaring fire , cocoa mug in hand basking in the beauty of my Martha Stewart decorating skills. However this last image may go up in smoke as my chimney is in need of repairs that may not happen in time.

Not wanting my house to literally light up the neighborhood for the holidays I decided to have my chimney cleaned. I selected the “Artful Duster” (the business name of a chimney sweep) for the job. He started blowing smoke up my you know what as soon as he stuck his head up my chimney. I soon realized I was dealing with a Dickensian Artful Dodger rather than a Duster He declared that my firebox tiles were cracked and would have to be replaced. I explained that I had already had repairs made to the firebox – he insisted they were inadequate. He further fanned the flames of my fears when he discovered that my stainless steel chimney liner was in such terrible shape that he could actually see daylight coming through in places. I asked how this was possible as all the brick work is intact on the outside. I think he sensed that I was seeing through his smoke screen. He craftily suggested that I stick my head in the grate and look up. I declined, not wanting to lay down at this man’s feet with my head stuck up a black hole. He gravely informs me that my entire chimney needs to be rebuilt and relined and fortunately he knows the best mason in the business to take care of me. I show him my home inspection which only found fault with the chimney cap – he isn’t fazed assuring me that I should have had a chimney sweep do an inspection. I guess the other couple of guys I had bid or work on the job two years ago were useless too! He warned me not to use the fireplace until I had paid thousands of dollars in repairs to make my chimney fireproof.

After he left alarm bells were ringing so I did some research and decided to hire a certified chimney inspector for another opinion. He used a video camera for the inspection and found my firebox to be safe and my liner intact with no daylight to be seen. Unfortunately he did find a problem with my smoke box and chimney cap .These repairs will cost far less than the previous sweep’s estimate – which would have made a clean sweep of my bank account! The scary thing is that I used Angies List and the Better Business Bureau to vet the Artful Duster!

Your dad spent a day at KUMed last month undergoing psychological testing. I was amazed that he was able to stay awake for eight hours! He greatly enjoyed his lunch at a little cafeteria that is hidden away in the cardiology department: I found it when he was an inpatient there having his pacemaker implanted. The main hospital cafeteria has the usual hospital fare designed to drum up business with heart attack and diabetes inducing menu choices. Fortunately I have been able to keep your dad out of there on our visits. I have discovered that he is much more motivated to go to his dentists and doctors appointments if it involves eating a meal! We won’t get the results for some time but I’ll keep you all informed.

Your father’s insatiable appetite led him to suggest dinner at Bolings one recent Saturday. Josh happened to be hanging out with us so thankfully he came along too. I say thankfully because with out his help I would have had to call an ambulance to get your dad out of the place. Unfortunately after enjoying a delicious Chinese dinner your father went into full seizure mode as we were leaving the restaurant. Josh and I tried to quietly restrain him in a chair but he refused to co-operate and kept trying to stand and make a dash for the door. The staff was very concerned and helpful, bringing a chair for him to sit on while he partially blocked their doorway. At times your dad began waving his arms about, treating the diners to an impromptu floor show –a sort of seated Tai Chi display. We tried several times to steer him through the door but he would collapse within seconds.

Unfortunately we had taken Josh’s car –the wheelchair was in my car’s trunk. It became obvious that we were not going to be able to physically move him out of the restaurant and into the car. I even considered calling for an ambulance just to get him out of the restaurant – I think it would have been a great relieve to the staff. I persuaded Josh to drive home and pick up the wheelchair while I tried to keep Norm seated and calm in the restaurant. Unfortunately your dad realized that Josh was going out to the car and despite my efforts to retrain him he managed to head for the door and disaster as he collapsed on the sidewalk. Fortunately Josh spotted us and came back to help – he managed to drag his dad to a bench but Norm lost his pants in the process. What a view those diners with window seats had! I was struggling to make him decent when some very kind people stopped to help, offering a blanket as one of them helped me tug Norm’s pants up from around his ankles. They offered to call for an ambulance so Josh and I explained the seizure situation- one with which we have plenty of experience! Since this last fiasco your dad has finally agreed to use the wheelchair on all our outings.

The Kansas City kids have fallen into the habit of watching the Chiefs Sunday Football games at our house over their own this season so I have to hunker down preparing late lunches or early brunches to accommodate kick off time. I keep hoping that one of my children will decide to host an event at their home. They all seem too comfortable in mine. We are ordering in Pizza this Sunday since Thanksgiving looms – or as I think of it my rehearsal dinner for Christmas. Guess where we are having it for the 35th year in a row? I just hope the Chiefs play a better game this week than they did last – otherwise I might decide to do some Christmas shopping instead. It should be Joshua’s turn to use the laundry facilities this weekend. I’ve still got a basket of Sean’s laundry in my dinning room – not exactly the sort of centerpiece one wants the neighbors to see! The worst Sunday by far though was the one when Josh and Sean arrived with a bag of Oreo’s, cream cheese and almond bark and told me that each needed a batch of Oreo Balls for work functions! I had already spent hours in the kitchen preparing Lasagna and cherry crumble for lunch! At least Josh pitched in to help and I think he realized how time consuming the process is. I really do need to develop some balls to say NO to my boys!

Craig and Leslee will be here for Christmas, Ming –Jon may arrive a few days later as Kay is leaving for Singapore on the 26th and of course Marc will be here as he won’t want to repeat his Thanksgiving Day dinner: a frozen turkey TV dinner for one. Marc E-mailed me his flight information yesterday. Should be interesting to see who is going to volunteer for the early bird trip to the airport for his return flight on New Years Eve scheduled to leave at 6:00am! I can guarantee it won’t be me.

It’s time for this mother hen to fluff her feathers and pluck a fresh turkey from the Hen House for her brood to gobble up next week. I’ll be thankful when the last dish of the meal is in the dishwasher, my feet are up on the sofa and a glass of wine is in my hand.

Happy Thanksgiving to all my readers, I am so thankful to have you all in my life.
Love Mom.

THE LOWE FAMILY NEWSLETTER:volume 60

THE LOWE FAMILY NEWSLETTER: VOLUME 60 OCTOBER 2010


Hello Everyone,

Your dad was a real pain in the butt last month. It all came about because of his eye sight. He complained of blurry vision so I made an appointment with his ophthalmologist. He concluded that your dad had a cloudy membrane behind a lens that was implanted after his cataract surgery. The same problem was diagnosed last year in his other eye so we were familiar with the procedure to correct the problem: a laser surgery that usually takes about ten minutes. We were scheduled for the following week at 10:00 am. I was anticipating being home for lunch but we sat in the waiting room for over two hours before they finally called him in! The chairs were not very comfortable and soon your Dad was on his feet, wandering around the waiting room picking up leaflets and pamphlets to stuff in his shirt pockets. Next he decided to stand and wave his arms around like airplane wings –exercising as he calls it –I hoped all the other patients were very short sighted. I offered to run out to the car and bring in his wheelchair, thinking it would be more comfortable and hopefully put an end to his antics but he refused my offer. Instead he sat himself down in front of a televised patient infomercial while I buried my head in my book and hoped that no-one realized we were together. Three hours later we were headed home and in the next few days your dad was showing more hip action in a chair than Elvis ever had on stage. He could not get comfortable on his bony backside because all that sitting had aggravated his hemorrhoids.

We made two trips to the drugstore, one to load up on preparation H, stool softeners and zinc oxide ointment (Marc’s recommendation) and the other to buy two different donut cushions. Unfortunately if he found a position that afforded him butt relief it would cost him prostate pain so in desperation I pushed him onto the reclining sofa, yanked the foot rest out and placed a pillow under his head and told him to pretend he was watching TV in the hospital when he complained that it was hard to watch laying down! At least the pressure was on his back rather than his butt! The only positive outcome of this ordeal was that your dad was taking sitz baths in the tub on a daily basis. Normally your dad takes a green approach to bathing –seeing it as a waste of water.

Mary Brockman took the train down last week so we got together for dinner one night – she and Elizabeth arrived with Pizza and the kids.Mia slept through dinner but Drew kept us very entertained. Unlike Mia he loves to eat so he ate pizza crust and breadsticks with gusto. He does a commando crawl around the house where he wages war on everything his hands can reach and is now very adept at pulling himself up so that he can ransack coffee tables and shelves: such a contrast to Mia who was content to sit and look at books at his age.

Sean surprised us a couple of weekends ago: he treated your dad and I to dinner at the Cheesecake Factory to celebrate the fact that his stock had crept up a few dollars. His company also seems to have placed some stock in him as he was recently invited to present a report he had compiled for Cerner to the CDC in Atlanta. He flew down with the VP of his division, made his presentation and flew back that night. He certainly works horrendous hours, including weekends! Fortunately he still finds time for us: one Saturday he bought three loads of laundry and lunch for all from McDonalds. Norm was delirious with delight as he savored his fish sandwich! To reciprocate we took Sean to dinner at Barleys where once again your dad ordered his usual fish n’chips despite having had fish for lunch! No wonder those statins aren’t doing much to reduce his cholesterol!

Bryn and Josh came over on Sunday to watch the football game between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Indianapolis Colts. I was hoping for a Chiefs victory so that I could call Ming and suggest he move his family to a town with a winning team. Too bad that we lost. The boys brought Brats to grill for lunch – for once all that was requested of me was afternoon tea! Josh declared his tea delicious but said the whole experience would have been even more delightful if his mother had baked some cookies to dunk in his tea. Motherly guilt caused me to offer my emergency supply stashed in the back of my pantry. One never knows when unexpected company might arrive and I like to be prepared. Now the boys will probably tear my kitchen apart looking for hidden snacks.

I have to admit that my boys have given me quite a break from the kitchen in recent weeks: one weekend Bryn arrived with Steaks and Shrimp which he grilled for us and Josh picked up the pizza tab one football Sunday. Coryn has invited us over to her house for dinner a couple of times – primarily because she wants me to haul all her summer clothes out of her closet and replace them with her winter things while she lies on the bed with her dogs debating whether she will ever wear each item again. We thought about doing it earlier this month but your dad didn’t feel up to it. But we are now planning on being there this Thursday. Coryn suggested picking up Chinese for dinner but your dad has been tempted by the Red Lobster commercials on TV and has decided that we will eat there. I’m still waiting for Coryn to use her stove.

Myrna and Ron were hoping to visit last weekend but at the last minute they canceled. Unfortunately Myrna wasn’t feeling too well and felt her back wasn’t up to the long car ride. I was so disappointed as their visit had given me great incentive to clean my house and plan activities. Hopefully they will be able to come down soon – before I have to clean my house all over again!

Ming-Jon is still anxiously trying to find a job so if anyone has any bright ideas please make sure you let him know. Coryn and Jeremy will be visiting Kay later this month at Tufts as they are spending a long weekend in Boston to celebrate Coryn’s 32nd birthday on the 21st of the month- just in case you need to be reminded! The age I was when Bryn was born – my seventh child. I don’t think any one is going to emulate this feat!

Marc has moved into his condo and judging from the photo’s he has posted it needs work. Only a visit from me, his interior decorator savvy mother can possibly save him from this disaster. I need his credit cards and carte blanche. It is not an eligible bachelor’s pad but a pathetic I still live like an impoverished student dorm room.

Lori’s dad had to have heart bypass surgery and unfortunately had some complications afterwards but is now home and hopefully recovering well. Let’s hope he enjoys the heart healthy diet more that Norm!

Since I started this letter your dad has made another trip to the ophthalmologist: once again we had a problem. One of the office girls had inadvertently scheduled our appointment for a time when our doctor was not working at that facility. She quickly realized that I was seeing red and said he would be in the office that afternoon so she could squeeze us in then if that would be convenient for us. Of course I let her know that making another round trip was inconvenient but that we would return.

Later that day Norm’s eyes were examined and he was given a new prescription for his lenses so we made another stop to order his new glasses. Seemingly unaware of our reduced budget your dad decided on some very expensive frames and progressive lenses. The bill came to over $600.00. I mentioned that he could use the frames from one of the existing pairs he has or just use generic reading glasses but he was focused on getting the best possible materials. I hope he doesn’t have any more vision changes for a few years.

Halloween will soon be here but glorious sunny days, a yard full of flowers and fluttering butterflies plus all the chipmunks, squirrels and birds squabbling over my seed feeders make it seem as though summer is still here. The only sign of fall - the leaves littering my lawn. Fortunately there will be less of them this year as two of my neighbors have cut down trees that were bordering my yard – which means I will be digging up all my shade loving plants next spring and replacing them with sun lovers.

Don’t forget how much you enjoyed trick or treating when you were young children so pass the fun on by putting on your porch light and handing out some candy. Norm has actually taken over manning the door on Halloween - he hands the candy bucket to the kids and tells them to help themselves! I’m amazed that one of them hasn’t helped themselves to the whole bucket yet! Hopefully there will be a few pieces left over to keep my sugar levels up.

Time to check on the bats in my belfry, your spooktacular Mom.

THE LOWE FAMILY NEWSLETTER:VOLUME59

THE LOWE FAMILY NEWSLETTER: VOLUME 59 AUGUST 2010


Dear Children, Relatives and Friends,

August has been a sauna: sweat steams from my pores every time I venture outside. Daily my strong nurturing instinct (eight kids) motivates me to spend up to two hours dragging hoses and a watering can around the yard. I usually hose myself down when the steam starts rising off my skin. The bugs are so bad this year that I spray myself with ‘Off ’ and wear a battery operated bug ‘Off’’ contraption around my waist yet the chiggers still use my varicose veins as a road map to my underwear region where they burrow in, inject their saliva and deposit their larvae to feast. I have to slather myself in cortisone cream every time I come in from the garden. I have also discovered that scrubbing hard with Zum soap and a loofah helps – though it’s hard on my unmentionables. I dread to think what harmful effects the usage of all these chemicals is having on my health but since it doesn’t seem to be offing many bugs I guess I shouldn’t be too worried. I endure it all in hopes of keeping my plants out of the compost bin. When I open the water bill this month I’m probably going to need life support myself. Let’s hope your dad tries to call 911 before he gets too excited about the prospect of an autopsy.

Ming-Lee, Lori, Blake and Claudia came for a few days the first week of August, once again driving here with an overnight stop in St. Louis. I baked a birthday cake to celebrate Claudia’s 7th birthday which fell the day before they arrived. She’s a nature lover so I went with a cake shaped like a birdhouse, handmade chocolate birds and a bumble bee, which netted some stinging remarks from my boys. They claimed that my two blobs of yellow and black frosting with toothpicks sticking out of the intended head blob looked more like a space alien. They all fly don’t they?

Sean invited us to swim at his condo that evening (my one and only time )so Ming, Josh, Bryn, Sean, and Blake played catch ball in the deep end while Claudia, Lori and I kept out of the way in the shallow end. We pretty much filled up the Condo pool. The boys had to stop playing for awhile when a resident showed up to seriously swim. The water was too warm to be refreshing but for the first time in ages that evening Lori and I did enjoy feeling a drop in temperature when we finally got out and dried off.

Ming and Lori took the kids to Cabala’s the next morning, followed by lunch at the Tyrannosaurus Rex café (as recommended by Auntie C) and an afternoon tour of Steamboat Arabia which Ming especially enjoyed.Coryn and I took Ethan last summer and Roger and Lori Griswold did the tour when they were here. It’s fascinating to see all the recovered artifacts from a centuries old sunken wooden steam boat that was discovered in a farmer’s field that was once part of the Missouri river: sort of a mini Titanic experience. Ming-Lee said he would love to work on that kind of a dig. Maybe I should bury some junk in my back yard in an effort to get my boys on a treasure hunt that would create a newly dug bedding site for the flower garden I would like to start next spring. The idea of digging in the dirt and adding compost to make a new garden bed for me doesn’t seem to appeal to any of them.

Ming, my thoughtful son, insisted on cooking supper for the family and with help from Lori made chicken tacos whilst Josh made his fruit salad special with cinnamon shells. Very South American – we all know how I enjoy my dinning themes a la Martha Stewart!

Friday, Ming and family drove onto Fort Madison to spend a couple of days with Roger and Lori – Blake was especially excited about their plans to go Geode hunting. They were also able to see Ming’s god-mother and our family friend Sue Saunders for a short visit – it was a very busy time for her at the Ivy that weekend, catering for the Mormons who visit Nauvoo in droves. Then they returned to Indianapolis, hopefully stopping for lunch at McDonalds in Le Roi as I always insisted on doing when I was driving that route!

Ming-Jon was also briefly in Fort Madison this summer for this 25th class reunion but unfortunately only five classmates attended! He combined this trip with a visit to Ming and Lori’s lake house so he was able to relax for a few days with them before returning home to start job hunting. He has some already found some possibilities and has also signed up with a temp agency, just in case it takes awhile in this economy to find a new job. It worked for Josh – he was working for a temp agency too but recently was hired by an International Law firm: Shook, Bacon and Hardy headquartered here in Kansas City. They have nine offices around the world including one in Marc’s vicinity so he is familiar with the firm. Josh will be do accounting work for them. I’m relieved that he will be settled here for awhile instead of taking off to another dangerous destination – he was talking about Columbia! I would have had nightly nightmares about drug cartels slitting his throat or worse. Josh assured me that Bolivia was considered a more dangerous country: one he had survived without a scar from man or beast!
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Kay has returned to her second year at Tufts after a busy summer traveling to Japan for a family visit and to California to be with college friends. She also worked at a children’s cooking camp this summer so obviously she’ll be of more help in the kitchen than some of our other female family members. Kay is going to be sharing an on campus apartment with about nine other students so I hope it all works out. Hopefully we will get to see her at Christmas time.

Bryn and Sean also spent time at the lake house this summer, choosing to drive rather than fly. They spent several days at the lake enjoying water sports and boating with Ming and family. I’m sure Claudia enjoyed having her uncles’ attention especially! One of the highlights of their trip was getting to watch one of Blake’s soccer games – just as he use to watch them play!

Coryn and Jeremy enjoyed their trip to Charleston, South Carolina and just returned from a weekend in Chicago where they stayed with Amber Scott. This weekend they will be celebrating Labor Day at the Lake of the Ozarks.

Leslee will be celebrating her 28th birthday in Paris with Craig after spending a week or so in Sweden. I am anxious to hear all about their experiences. Leslee was learning a few French phrases in hopes of improving international relationships. Marc was most concerned about them being the targets of pick pockets and declared Paris a rather dirty town. Exactly the words I’d use to describe LA – especially the Hollywood section!

Speaking of Marc – he has closed on his condo and is hopefully settled in by now –although just days before his lease expired on his condo he hadn’t found a mover. Marc judged himself incapable of loading and driving a U-haul. He does not seem to have inherited his brothers’ physical skills. I think his realtor was trying to find someone – probably going to cost him a fortune! She did suggest that it might be a good time to get some new furniture – probably cheaper to replace it than move it!

A large new Asian grocery store has opened very close to our perfectly located home. Coryn took your dad for a quick shopping trip – limiting him to a couple of aisles and a hand held shopping basket. Norm was very impressed by the size and selection. Soon afterwards I offered to check it out with him and was amazed to find in comparable in size to a Wal-Mart’s! I had no idea that Kansas City was home to so many ethnic food loving Asians. There must be a dozen such stores, albeit smaller, within ten minutes of our home. I grabbed a cart as Norm headed for the takeout section – I quickly pointed out that we had just had lunch, but noted they had an in store eating area in case I should need to plop your dad somewhere. He was delighted to be helped by an old lady who spoke his Cantonese dialect. Several Chinese treats to go made it into our cart as I attempted to steer your dad down the first aisle. Fifteen minutes later he was drooling over the frozen wontons in the same aisle so I selected some and tried to get him into the next aisle pointing out the seafood. I was horrified to see huge live tilapia fish fin to fin in a cattle trough. If I still had my pond I would probably have bought the lot and given them a new home. Very upsetting. I decided to leave your dad in that aisle as he seemed to be doing very well and went off to check out the other aisles hoping to find some I could steer your dad away from. It looked as though we were going to be there for the entire afternoon at the pace he was taking everything in. At one point he actually found me, excitedly holding out the most garish placemat I have ever seen suggesting that I might enjoy some for our table. The man must be color blind now too I thought. I thanked him for the idea as I took it and put it back on the shelf. But I did find a piece of pottery that worked as a tea bag holder to replace the two that he has recently broken. He was thrilled that I had found something and urged me to buy more dishes. I reminded him of our limited kitchen size – which also meant that we couldn’t buy five cans of everything he fancied in the store. Looking for fried dice with black beans half way through the store, I happened to look up and noticed that sparrows were perched in the rafters. Were these on the menu or the makings of bird nest soup? I remember your Auntie Lea telling me that fried sparrows – especially the crispy heads- were one of her favorites. I wondered if the health department was making regular visits. I made a mental note to myself to scrub our purchases from the produce aisle extra well!

We did enjoy the red bean paste cake as soon as we got home and your dad put away three more treats over the course of the next day! I will probably be taking your dad there for another outing soon as he enjoys it so much.

Another Asian experience we enjoyed recently was dinning at PF Changs on the Plaza in Kansas City. Coryn and I had taken your dad to KUmed earlier in the afternoon and the appointment ran into dinnertime so Coryn suggested we eat at the nearby Plaza. Norm was thrilled to find shrimp with lobster sauce on the menu and declared it as good as Kwoks! He can hardly wait to return but I have explained that we can not go alone because parking is an issue down there – but maybe he’ll get so desperate that he’ll agree to use the wheelchair!

Last Saturday found the Kansas City Lowe’s enjoying Mia’s 3rd birthday party in the Woodbury’s backyard. The theme was Alice in Wonderland and Mia was picture perfect in her beautiful dress and white pinafore that her Grammy made especially for the occasion. Elizabeth took a very cute picture of Mia sitting on the back steps with her three Lowe boyfriends: who showed up to her party with unwrapped gifts! I babysat Mia and Drew the day before so that Elizabeth and Mary could shop for party food while Mike cleaned up the yard – a lot of poop scooping thanks to Zoë. But probably not as much as Drew produced in his diapers for me! This was a special birthday party as it will be her last to be celebrated in Kansas. My life will certainly be less full without the Woodburys. Only Mia could persuade me to tie one of Coryn's old dance costumes around my neck, turn the stereo up and twirl like a dervish for hours! But the next time she says “Let’s dance Megan” I’m going to make sure that the front door is closed and the overhead lights are off. Last time I realized all my neighbors were able to watch my performance on their way to their mail boxes! I’m not sure which embarrasses me more: being caught making such a spectacle of myself or not being asked for an encore performance

Labor Day Weekend looms – it will be quiet here with Coryn and Jeremy at the Lake of the Ozarks and Josh in DesMoines visiting Josh Bergman and family. Sean is dog sitting Ollie and Buster, I’m baby sitting Mia overnight on Friday and Bryn will doubtless be stretched out on his sofa in front of his big screen TV for four days. If he gets hungry enough he might appear for a meal or two over here.

It’s time to soak and scrub my bug bites in my bubble bath, trussed like a chicken in our undersized tub and with that lovely image I leave you for this time.

Love from your sappy and soapy, itchy and scratchy Mother.