Pecan Grove (www.pecan-grove.net) Pecan Grove and Senior Residence

March came in like a Lamb, which we are thankful for. Here is a picturesque view of the fountain, showcasing just how beautiful of a month it has been. Also, a beaver has returned to our pond! Here it is nibbling on some trees near the edge of the pond, and lastly a nearby pond neighbor: a water moccasin.

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We had several birthdays in March so the month flies by. First was our beloved manager Salena’s birthday. Here she is with her new plush toy whale shark, and again at the dinner table as well as taking her turn posing with a puppy. Lastly, we have a shot of her thematic birthday cake and her resting her eyes for a bit.

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Esther turned 90 this month! We always enjoy her birthdays because we always serve her favorite: Lamb. She had a very festive party, with many a shamrock to commemorate her St. Patrick’s Day Irish heritage. Here she is at the table enjoying her themed birthday, and one of Abigail and Salena serving the cake.

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Don and Jenny Waldo came for a visit with their three kids Ava, Jaina and Oscar. Here is everyone at the lunch table and again with the whole family taking a photo.

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We had several special visitors come this month. First, Ty Nordics parents, Gary and Sharon came to visit him and stay with us. It was his birthday so they came to celebrate with us. Here they are with the two Joyce’s in front of the fire place.

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Some of our visitors where just passing through and could only stay for a meal. Here is LeRoy Sandford and his niece Virgie Sandford, as well as two of our workers who came for a quick visit, Joyce Lawrence and Emma Perez. The second photo is of them with Salena, and again with all of our worker residents. Next is of our visitors Tony and Donna Hottell who brought a friend Val Killam for lunch. Lois Pace came down from Minnesota to spend the winter in the valley. She knew that Marilynn was here but did not realize that she would recognize so many of our friends here. Here she is with our resident Minnesotans. Blair and Deb Hoseth, Tom and Jean Jeske and Steve and Wynesta Dale also visited.

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Andray has continued working with Kenny around the farm. They have had some interesting escapades recently, such as finding multiple crawfish and burning one of our large burn piles. Here is Andray holding some crawfish and again using a flame thrower to start the bonfire.

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Kathy had knee replacement surgery this month. Her knees have been bothering her for a while now, but she seems to be recovering well with the help of physical therapy. Here she is just after returning home from the hospital.

Resident Journals

Ronald Elliott

Ronald had his niece, Mary Becker, and her husband, Mike Harvey, came for a while. They spent a lot of time playing scrabble and reminiscing. Here he is all tuckered out after a long morning of visiting.

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Esther Duncan

Esther does very well and likes to help out in the kitchen or make a dessert. She takes good care of Joyce and Marilynn, checking in on them daily and making sure Joyce has a walking buddy when she wants to go feed the fish. Her favorite holiday is the good old Irish holiday of St. Patrick’s Day where she can dress in green and celebrate her heritage. Here she is in two different dresses posing with a little toy leprechaun.

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Elton Cleveland

Elton is still the same, except his hearing is worse. He claims that when he eats the chewing makes him go deaf! We all do our best to get through to him anyway. He still plays the piano everyday and the residents are always grateful. Here he is at his favorite restaurant Golden Coral, getting a dessert plate.

Marie Mounce

Marie is still struggling with her blood pressure issues. Now she tells us that when her blood pressure is low she gets weak and shakes. The doctor is still trying to nail down an appropriate combination of meds at specific times. Here she is cleaning chickpeas to make Hummus with Joyce, and then cooking breakfast pitas.

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Alice Oetken

Alice stays about the same. Here she is in a group photo with Jim and Kathy Edwards from Minneapolis.

Joyce Naber

Joyce’s brother, Galen and wife Marilyn visited from Minnesota. They had wonderful visits, looking at old pictures and discussing family.

Elsie Schroeder

Elsie’s still working on puzzles! Her son Don and wife Becky visited and played Scrabble and Hand and Foot with her. Elsie usually wins!

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Marilynn Frye

Marilynn is doing about the same. She still uses oxygen most of the time. Her brother Doug and Barb Frye are planning on visiting in April. Here she is with Joyce and Lois Pace.

Gwen Farmer

Gwen is also about the same. She’s on this picture with the Hottells at the right.

Fern Duncan and Gilbert Reese

Fern and Gilbert are doing about the same. We often find Gilbert in his spot near the window and Fern in bed. This time when Elton went for a visit with Abigail they were both asleep, but happy for a visit. Fern doesn’t respond much during visits but she smiles a lot. Here they are with Elton.

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February has been mild which allows the residents ample time to go for their walks. We had several special visitors this month who knew most all of our residents and brought tidings from their different states.

There were not as many birthdays this month, only two — Patty Maki and Mimi Mille. Patty had quite the turn out, and we enjoyed her three layer cake of berries and lemon. Salena put dried pansies on the outside because Patty loves gardening. Here she is at the table, and again in the entrance posing with her party goers.

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Mimi Mille came to celebrate with us at the end of the month. She does so much for the residents out here and we all really appreciate her. Here she is with her French inspired Tiramisu Crepe Cake.

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Lyle Schoeber came for a visit with all of us. He was our special meeting visitor and stayed to share a few words of wisdom with our eager listeners. Afterward we had a hymn sing to close out the visit. Here is everyone at the table, and again during the hymn sing.

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Kathy’s aunt, Jane Jacobson (MT), visited for a few days. Here she is with Sue Dawson.

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Esther’s good friend Carolynn Dunn came with some of her friends, Andrew and Sherry Aragon. They drove from Albuquerque to share a leg of lamb with us, which they know is a favorite of Esther’s. Also, it just so happened to be Mardi Gras that day, so Abigail made a king cake for us. Here is everyone at the table, and Abigail presenting her king cake.

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Shawn was so excited that we were having lamb that he asked Kenny to write a poem about lamb. He enjoyed it so it was passed to everyone to read. Here is what Kenny wrote.

Clarence came to pick up Carl and take him to be at the Sathoff’s. This happened to be the same time as Elsie’s return with Becky and Lana. Joyce Lawrence was here for a quick visit and to collect her mail. Here is a table picture of everyone enjoying a good spaghetti dinner.

The Sunday morning meeting here on the farm was moved from the Hoffman’s home and into the residence. This helps the residents get to meeting without as much exertion. Marilynn, with her oxygen, appreciates the move as it does not take as much out of her to go to meeting now. Here is a photo of our Sunday morning meeting attendees missing only the Milles who were away.

The men have been working hard dealing with a lot of dead trees and downed limbs across the property. We enlisted the help of one of our friends, Andray Howell, who has been working here off and on throughout the month. We have him doing odd jobs, but mostly running a chain saw to remove the dead trees. There were two dead sweet gum trees near the Bunkhouse that had rotted so bad they had become hollow. Here is a picture of Andray up in the bucket ready to start cutting the trees.

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Dawn and Wayne had a visit from Dawns brother and his wife: Kelly and Marlene Olson, from Idaho. Here they are after our Wednesday afternoon study meeting.

Here are some miscellaneous shots of daily life here at PG. First is of Shawn cleaning the oven, next is the February study board drawn by Salena. Followed by Abigail’s’ valentine-inspired cupcakes and a happy accident that happened when Joyce tried to pass the salt but it got away from her. Also, here are the grand kids, each with one of the new puppies, and the puppies in their pen. Last, is a hand drawn picture which Marilynn asked Abigail to create in honor of the staff during our covid lockdown last year.

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Ty and Amy Nordic’s daughter Shanaye Raschein is having a baby, so they held a baby shower for her. She meets with us sometimes and knows the residents, so she invited all the ladies from PG to attend. Here you can see Marie helping Joyce with one of the baby shower games.

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Ken and Kathy took a trip to OK and AR. One place they visited was Redbud Canyon. It was good to meet the residents and staff there, and to compare notes with Rusty and Amy Willhoite. Ken liked the blood moon puzzle/picture they had on wall (behind Amy), so he ordered one. Elsie and Gwen are now challenged with a 1500 piece puzzle!

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Resident Journals

Alice Oetken

Alice has been about her usual just more tired. She seems to be sleeping a lot more during the day and staying up at night. This means that she has trouble making it out to things when she gets overly tired. Here she is in her favorite chair enjoying some one-on-one time with Kitty Kitty and again with her favorite cup.

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Joyce Naber

Joyce is still her sweet self, she likes to get a laugh when the visitors are around. She had shots in both of her eyes this month, but the doctor said that they seem to be working. So she no longer needs them every four weeks, but can get them every eight weeks. Here she is with Marie at the baby shower sharing a laugh about the answers to a quiz.

Gwen Farmer

Gwen has been growing accustomed to living here. She struggles with different food ailments and has been helping the staff to find out what she can and cannot eat. Here she is with two of her old companions, Fe Gatan and Alice Oetken.

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Marie Mounce

Marie has been doing well, the staff still continues to monitor her blood pressure several times a day. She is one that likes to get out and do things. She goes to town often for the shopping trips. Here she is happily sharing her newly blossomed orchid, and again with her new recipe: Swedish meatball pizza.

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Elsie Schroeder

Elsie was taken up to San Antonio to attend Louis interment. Becky Schroeder came the day before to pick her up and drive her there. She enjoyed seeing her family again, and having of a reunion. Here she is after returning from her trip with her daughter-in-law Becky Schroeder and granddaughter Lana Newman. Next, she is at the puzzle table with our visitors Andrew and Sherry Aragon. Lastly, with Gretchen Weiss who came for a visit after hearing how much her sister Eileen enjoyed it.

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Elton Cleveland

Elton is doing well, there is not much change in his condition. Elton’s daughter, Karen, stayed with us for a few days. His son, David, came to see them. He still plays the piano everyday and has steady correspondence that he looks forward to. Here he is with his daughter, Karen, in front of the fire place, at the entrance, and again with them both Karen and David outside.

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Ronald Elliott

Ronald has been having back pain again. The topical ointments and creams we have tried are no longer providing any relief. His nurse prescribed him a higher dose of his pain medicine which seems to be working. Here he is with his daily reading of the newspaper, and getting a dose of puppy love.

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Marilynn Frye

Marilynn has her good days and her bad days. She receives physical therapy regularly and is moving around easier, but she still uses oxygen everyday. When seated or resting she does not need to wear it, but when walking she definitely needs it. Here she is posing with her old companion, Sue Dawson.

Esther Duncan

Esther does well, she keeps up with a lot of correspondence and seemingly receives mail almost daily. She helps out around the kitchen everyday, and usually conscripts Joyce to help her set up the breakfast table. Her friend, Carolyn Dunn, came to visit and brought Esther her favorite: lamb. We all appreciated the kind gesture, and Esther made it taste fantastic. Here she is with her friend Carolyn Dunn and again with Shawn enjoying a visit from the puppies.

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Carl Hamilton

Carl has been staying with us while he received physical therapy. He was evaluated and released at the end of the month. He is now back with Clarence and they intend to hold gospel meetings soon. Here he is happily helping with the dishes. Carl was at Chad Wooten’s when he fell sick, so Chad visited him at PG.

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Gilbert Reese and Fern Duncan

Gilbert and Fern have been doing about the same. They enjoy getting mail and having it read to them. Fern is completely bed ridden but the staff keeps her clean and healthy, and often clear when we come for a visit. Gilbert’s memory is not what it once was but his spirit is sweet and endearing. Here he is in his spot by the window, and Fern happy to chat with Marie.

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In honor of February we must say we love all of you who keep up with the blog and remember the residents. We truly appreciate all of your consideration and correspondence with them. It brightens up their day to hear from you and to know they are remembered.

Kenny & Ken

Winter has finally taken hold. January has been wet and foggy, which means the residents who enjoy walking now have to pace around the table instead. You can see here our bridges they usually walk on being submerged. Pecan Grove is one of the highest points in our county, so no damage is done when the lake overflows.

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This January was Gilbert Reese’s 100th birthday! The staff made arrangements with Park Manor to have him ready so that we could bring him to celebrate at Pecan Grove. This way all of the residents could see him, as well as his close friends in the area. Look at the camera line! Genuine Paparazzi here. Here Gilbert is coyly grabbing a birthday cupcake with a grin, and lastly posing with most of the residents in front of the piano.

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We have already had some wonderful visits this year. Lyle Schober and his companion Timothy Uzzell came for a lunch visit. Lyle was kind enough to sit for a while afterward and impart some wisdom to the residents and staff. Here they are in front of the entrance.

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Elsie enjoyed a visit from some old friends Linda and Terry Boelter. They used to meet together in Illinois. They also knew Marie and Marilynn well. Here they are with Elsie, Marie and Marilynn.

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Marilynn also enjoyed a brief visit from Lyle and Roberta Overby, accompanied by Linda Sorenson. Here they are with Alice and Joyce at the table.

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Because December was really busy we had our annual holiday staff dinner in January. We often play some fun games and give gifts, then take a staff photo. Here is Abigail enjoying some coffee after lunch, and a picture of our current staff. We really appreciate their hard work!

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Shawn and Anita’s dog Bayla had a litter of 7 puppies! Here is a happy Patty holding one, and the rest in their box., and lastly a proud Bayla meeting the residents.

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Carl Hamilton had a sick spell which affected his walking. He’s with us here at PG temporarily, and making good progress in his recovery. His brother David and Virginia visited. Also, Lyn Sorenson, Lyle and Byrd Overby visited today.

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Resident Journals

Alice Oetken

Alice has been doing well this month. She still has trouble swallowing and sometimes takes her meals to her room to finish. Other than that she is in good spirits. She asked Salena to visit Fern and Gilbert after a dental appointment. Here she is posing with them.

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Elton Cleveland

Elton has been doing well. He still plays the piano regularly and keeps up with his correspondence. He misses his daughter Karen and still looks for her emails each night. Here he is with his good friend Gilbert on his birthday.

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Joyce Naber

Joyce is all smiles and sweet as can be, which is her usual. Unfortunately, she still has some eye trouble and has to get shots in her eyes routinely. She never complains though. She is one of the ones that doesn’t get out much and was so excited to have Gilbert here for his birthday. Here they are at the lunch table.

Ronald Elliot

Ronald has been experiencing back pain again. The physical therapist recommended that he get new shoes with greater support because he usually wears sandals. He switched shoes and it made quite the difference, still painful but not as bad. Here he is returning from another successful snack foraging mission.

Elsie Schroeder

Elsie enjoys her visitors, she often feels lonely back in her room. She has been spending a lot of time doing puzzles and bonding with the other puzzle ladies. This brings up her spirits and you can often hear them laughing. Here she is with her two visitors from Illinois, and again with her son Don who came for a quick visit.

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Esther Duncan

Esther takes daily walks. For the few days this month that it was freezing she circled the dinning room table instead. She sticks to her routine and this actually helps Joyce Naber as well because Esther often requests her help with small tasks. Every night the ladies strip the dinner table and prepare it for breakfast the next day. It is always good to see her looking out for Joyce, working with her and reminding her of things. Here she is happy to meet the expecting mother of all the puppies.

Gwen Farmer

Gwen still enjoys coming out and working on the puzzle with Elsie. It can be quite crowded around the table sometimes because several have taken interest in the puzzle building. The ladies put them together so fast they average about three a week! Here she is with our central Texas visitors David and Virginia Hamilton.

Marie Mounce

Marie is doing great, except she has been having trouble with her blood pressure again. The doctor gave her a new medicine that has helped combat this issue, but it still persists. She has a good spirit about it and tries to obey the doctors orders. She still loves working in the kitchen, finding new recipes to try out on our hungry residents. Here she is posing with Abigail and her latest creation: Salmon Wellington.

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Marilynn Frye

Marilynn has had a rough year so far, but she keeps trying to have a positive spirit. She got off of oxygen back in December but because her levels keep dropping she is now back on it for a while. When her oxygen drops she gets really dizzy and weak. She has been trying to recover her strength by walking around the table at least once. Here she is on the right chatting with a few of the ladies during a visit.

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Fern Duncan

Fern is about the same, she stays in bed mostly and sleeps a lot. She is clear when she is awake and enjoys seeing visitors she remembers. They have her on powerful pain medications because she moans in pain when off of them. This contributes to her sleepiness, so some visits are cut short when she falls asleep. Here is a different picture of her visit with Alice.

Thank you for your interest in us here at Pecan Grove. The residents truly love getting mail from you and seeing how everyone is doing.

Kenny and Ken