Winter 2011
Greetings Friends and Family,
Most of you have not received our Christmas Letter for several years. Hope-
fully this is a new beginning. And we enjoy hearing about many of you also.
In 2011 we centered most our hours around care for Renee's mother, Muriel, who
came to live with us November 2009. She struggled to take care of herself
while in the Senior Assisted Care Home in Lancaster after Tony passed away and
was really too proud to as for our help.
Jeff saw she was having issues and asked her to come to live with us. Visibly
relieved, she joined us after an extensive remodel of the bathroom and guest
bedroom. The deer, quail, and rabbits in the back yard provided afternoon
entertainment. She particularly enjoyed going to dinner at the Nineteenth Hole
Restaurant in the Horse Thief Country Club every Friday night. Every Wednesday
at lunch she would ask Jeff, "Are we going to the Country Club Friday night?"
with hopeful anticipation to have her Black Russian drink.
On June 1st at age 87 years 8 months and after a long struggle with COPD,
Muriel passed away. Just 3 weeks earlier she was playing the Slots in Las
Vegas and eating at Harrah's Buffet – one of her favorites. She always looked
forward to a Las Vegas trip.
In July we went to help Jeff's father, David in Wisconsin, recover after a near
fatal hip replacement surgery. We spent the entire month with David helping
him regain mobility and adjust to his house with stairs, cooking, and care for
Jeff's mother, Rozie, who has Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease. David wanted
to move to a Senior Assisted Care Center in October, but Rozie wants to go in
2012. So, they continue in their own way living at home.
While in Wisconsin, we took a trip to Duluth, MN for a visit with Renee's High
School classmate, Sandy, and her husband Dennis. They took us to the "Tall
Ships" festival at the harbor and we found being close to the water of Lake
Superior a relief from the overwhelming heat. We had a good time searching for
Norwegian Leftsa but found Betty's Pies near the Canadian border a real Lake
Superior Sugar High!
In November we went to a Traders Expo in Las Vegas at Baileys Convention Center
and met with friends that we've know through the years. Visiting with them and
exchanging strategies was exciting. And while we were there our dog Scout,
while still at home, swallowed a rawhide chew-stick that got stuck in his
throat. He nearly suffocated to death. Lucky for us, and him, our neighbors
took him all the way to the UCLA Hospital Veterinary Clinic to have it
extracted. Just in time. We all love our little Scout and are lucky it was
just an expensive day at the vet.
Jeff & Renee's quest for weight loss and better health:
Some of you may know about our quest to lose weight. Because Jeff is a type 2
diabetic and had high blood pressure, triglycerides, and glucose, he decided in
December of 2010 to find a way to drop his weight. His goals were to lose 165
lbs., be able to discontinue his meds, once again fit in his tuxedo and gain
enough strength to learn surfing with his buddy Dan in Florida.
By the time he went in March for his blood workup and doctors visit he had lost
40 lbs. All his tests in the workup were better than in December. His knees
didn't hurt while climbing stars and cloths fit better. During this same
period Renee lost 30 lbs and a few dress sizes.
The June physical showed even more improvement in test scores and a 70 lb
weight loss. But this was still not enough for any reduction in medications.
Renee was now at a 45 lb total weight loss for the year and during all of this
we could see dramatic improvement in our health.
In the September review with his doctor, Jeff was able to switch his diabetes
medication and reduce the dosage which was an improvement, but still not at his
goal of no medication. His doctor indicated that because of his age he may
need to stay on a statin inhibitor. Only time will tell on that issue. At any
rate all the tests were markedly improved and Jeff's weight was now 90 lbs less
and Renee's 60 lbs less for the year.
Now it's December and a year later. The appointment with the doctor is
scheduled for the end of this month and Jeff bought a new belt as we didn't
have an old one small enough. He has lost a total of 95 lbs and we hope it
will be 100 lbs by the time he has the appointment. We have more energy and
need to go shopping for new cloths during the post holiday sales. We enjoy
sharing our story and if you ever feel the urge to learn how we did it, please
feel free to call our email us. Everyone could use more energy and deserves
to feel great.
May this letter find you celebrating the season in good spirits. We wish you
all a Merry Christmas and a Happy, Healthy and Prosperous New Year.
Your Friends and Neighbors,
Jeff & Renee Haswell
