The overnight temps have continued on the cold side.  It was 36 degrees this morning, so I bundled up a little more for my walk.  John rode his bike around the loop for his exercise.  This seems to work for him right now as walking for exercise is not allowed yet.

Since this afternoon was couples' golf, John and I decided to play nine holes this morning.  We had the course pretty much to ourselves--the only other golfers were Tim M. and Paul E.  It was a perfect time to play as we didn't have to rush and could take a shot over if we didn't like the first one. 

Following lunch, John headed over to Paul's to meet up with Rodger and Gene to put new grips on some of their golf clubs.  John even put new grips on a couple of my clubs.  I'm anxious to try them out tomorrow. 

To celebrate Valentine's Day, Rodger and Tootie invited some folks over to their place for supper.  Tootie prepared a delicious main course and the rest of us provided the vegetables, salad, breads, and dessert.  As usual we had a fun time and enjoyed the evening.

 Everyone enjoying a delicious meal

  Another visitor to our Valentine's Dinner

This morning was nice and clear which meant colder temps.  The thermometer showed 41 degrees when I left the house for my walk.  It was back to a winter hat and mittens again.  John rode his bike a little further this morning and then iced his knee when he returned home.

We ate a leisurely breakfast before getting cleaned up and  heading out the door to Eagle Pass for my doctor's appointment.  My appointment was scheduled for 11 a.m., but we didn't get in to see the doctor until after 12:30 p.m.  The nurse apologized for the wait saying the doctor had to spend some extra time with several patients.  The purpose of this visit was to get the results of the x-rays taken a month ago and determine a plan of treatment.  Dr. Dennis showed John and me the x-rays explaining that one disc in my lower back is completely gone which causes pressure on the nerves, thus the pain after sitting for a while.  I also have a great deal of arthritis in the same area and a bone bulging at one side in the lower spine.  His recommendation is to have steroid injections to relieve pain and to kept walking for exercise--he also approved playing golf.  The more activity, the better.  As long as I can walk, which I do everyday, without pain, and pain doesn't go down my leg, then this is the best option for now.  If the pain gets to a point where I can't walk or runs down my leg, then back surgery is the next step.  I would have to go to San Antonio for the pain management injections, so I decided to wait until I return to Minnesota before pursuing any further treatment.  He also agreed that was the best thing to do.  I didn't want to get in the middle of treatment and then have to go home and try and get something set up there.  I was able to get copies of my x-rays and his office will send me copies of all my records to take home.  John and I felt good about the visit and the fact that we finally know what I'm dealing with and have a plan for treatment.

It was well after 1 p.m. by the time we left the medical center, so we stopped at Wendy's for some lunch and then headed to Wal Mart to pick up a few grocery items.  Then it was a stop at the mall to get a birthday present with one more at HEB before hitting the road back to Brackettville.  Hopefully this was the last of doctor's appointment for this
month--John and I are both tired of spending so much time in waiting rooms.

John was finally able to get back to some outdoor exercising.  This morning he rode his bike while I walked.  The doctor told him bike riding would be good for helping with stiffness in his knee. He didn't ride more than five minutes as the doctor told him to gradually build up his exercising.

Following breakfast, I headed down to the clubhouse for ladies' golf.  The weather was sunny but very windy and that made it a challange to play the holes facing into the win.  We all had great shots when the wind was at our backs.  While I was gone, John took care of some chores around the house and made us a nice pork roast meal for lunch.

Rodger called yesterday and set up a golf date for this afternoon, so after we ate and got the kitchen cleaned up, we headed off to play a round of nine holes with them.  The wind was much stronger this afternoon, but it didn't stop us from playing and having a good time.  

The RV park potluck meal and card playing was canceled this evening due to a conflict with another meeting on the fort, so this evening John and I attended game night at our church. 

John had an early morning doctor's appointment in Uvalde, so I didn't have time for my walk.  We arrived at the office around 9:15 and were called back to the exam room almost immediately.  Dr. Conoley was very pleased with John's progress.  He put new med strips over the incisions to protect them as they were glued and not stitched, and gave him a couple of leg exercises to begin.  John is to return for another checkup in one month.

From the doctor's office we headed out to Wal Mart to gas up the Honda and do some grocery shopping.  We didn't have much to buy, so we were soon back on the road to the fort.

This afternoon John and I looked through some things in our shed and decided we need to get rid of a few items and get it organized so we can have more room for storage.  With that chore out of the way, I spent my time working on the laundry while John did some work in the yard.  Mary Ellen stopped in for a quick visit to see how John made out at his appointment and to fill us in on what she has been doing.  Following supper, we spent the evening watching The Biggest Loser and a couple of other favorite TV shows. 

After being stuck in the house most of yesterday, today was a different story.  I was able to take my usual morning walk and even though it was a little on the breezy side, the warmer temps made it very enjoyable.

John and I ate breakfast, got cleaned up, and headed off to church where, following the service, we had a potluck meal.  When we got home, we relaxed for about half an hour before heading off to the Art Studio for their open house.  We talked to a few of the artists and saw many beautiful paintings as well as works in progress.   We've discovered there are many talented folks living here on the fort.

We returned home long enough to pick up a couple of bags of chips, grab the camera and sweatshirts, and hopped in the golf cart to head over to Rodger and Tootie's place.  They invited some folks over for a little party and, as usual, there was plenty of food.  We all made our own pudgy pies over an open fire.  You take two pieces of buttered bread and put your choice of meat, cheese, or fruit in between the slices, place them on the pudgy pie iron and heat it in the fire.  John and I never had them before and they were delicious as well as fun to make.  As the evening wore on, we sat around the campfire playing a couple of games before the party broke up.

 John getting ready to put his pudgy pie

in the fire

 

 Pudgy pies are heating up

 

 The finished pie

 The gals enjoying eating and visiting

 Rodger, Everett, and Gene enjoying

the nice evening

 

It was a pretty quiet day for us.  My morning walk was canceled due to cloudy skies with heavy misting.  The cool, wet weather hung around all day and kept us pretty much house bound.

First thing this morning we Skyped with Matt who told us all about last night's basketball game.  When we got done visiting via computer, we headed over to the RV park for the Saturday morning breakfast.  Since the weather was so miserable, many folks hung around visiting longer than usual.   

Several of the guys want to buy new grips for their golf clubs.  These grips are especially made for people with arthritic hands.  Paul E. stopped over mid-morning to show John a couple of web sites for purchasing the gripes.  After lunch Rodger, Tootie, Gene, and Jeanne stopped in--the guys to discuss grips and the gals to just visit.  Following an hour or so of discussion, the men decided what grips they wanted and John ordered them from E-bay.

We spent the remainder of the day just relaxing and watching a movie and some college basketball.  It won't be long now before March Madness is upon us and John will be in his glory watching wall to wall college basketball.

  

Cooler weather moved into the area overnight and with it came clear skies and lower humidity which made my morning walk much more enjoyable.  John also took a short walk this morning.  His knee is feeling pretty good, but still has some some stiffness.

After breakfast we spent a leisurely morning taking care of a few household chores.  Rodger called to invite us to a gathering tomorrow afternoon and asked us to bring some chips.  We didn't have any on hand, so we went into town to pick some up and to make a stop at the post office.  Since it was almost lunch time, we decided to head to Burger and Shake for something to eat.  Just as we returned home, Paul E. called asking if we wanted to play some golf.  We got ready and headed off to the clubhouse to meet him and John B.  We played 14 holes and then called it a day.  I needed to get home to start supper, eat, and get ready to meet Tootie and Jeanne at Bingo.  John spent his evening resting his knee and watching some college basketball and a few of his favorite Friday night shows.