Playing ketchup in Just Blathering~

*My DE Diary pretty much left off after Scott got back surgery… which was unsuccessful and he was left unable to go back to work. He was a factory worker his entire life with no college education. He cannot stand for long periods of time, he can’t sit for long periods either. He is on pain meds all day, every day, and he can no longer drive. It took us 3.5 years to get him Social Security Disability… 1 decline, and 1 win with the help of a lawyer. The judge ordered him to be reevaluated in 2 years, which was this year. It was a bit stressful for me knowing I could potentially have to go back to being the sole provider. Scott was confident and not stressed at all. Just 2 weeks ago we got the letter saying his SSD is continuing, and there will be “periodic checks” Which sound better than 2 years.

Anyway, it’s not easy being a caregiver. Luckily over the years, Scott has learned to be more self sufficient and I no longer have to baby him most of the time… but I do have to be his memory sometimes… keeper of the meds, keeper of the medication list, keeper of the appointments. It gets old some days.... and I can tell you I miss being a passenger. I use to love to drive, but having to drive everywhere and be a chauffer can be tiresome. I jump at the chance to have someone else drive!

During the time he wasn’t working and didn’t have Disability yet, we were living on my paycheck alone, and while I was glad we were able to live (barely) on my check… I held my breath that no major bills/repairs were needed on anything. We did rack up some debt over the years… so when he got approved and got back pay, EVERYTHING got paid off. Child support to his Ex, credit cards, everything! Now with the exception of house/car/utilities, we live debt free, and for that I’m thankful. The stress lifted from getting out of debt was amazing.

For awhile I was making knitting bags to supplement our income. I was basically working 2 jobs… I finally quit, just months after the disability started, and I haven’t touch the sewing machine since!

We are now happy, adjusted to the new way of life we have had to figure out, and we are traveling as much as we can while we still can.*

Last updated June 06, 2019