January 2026

Jan.1 Joanna flew to Tulsa with Emily to visit her for a few days.

The quilt that Emily helped me start in Dec, I got a few blocks done and put together. God gave me extra strength for a couple weeks to be able to work on it.

Rebecca Kruse came to visit Elizabeth for a day and night. We taught her how to play Chicken Foot (dominoes), had good conversation, and caught up on her recent travels.

Breakfast the next morning.

Working on the quilt in the sunroom.

One Sunday morning, the Jr. church kids sang a special song.

In a Sunday evening service, Sis. Sankey and the Stetlers sang a special song. We thank God for the special touch He's given to Sis. Sankey recently.

I look better than I feel most of the time.

My kalanchoe plant is blooming so pretty - Jason and Karen gave it to me last year. 

A beautiful sunrise one morning.

One of the only neighborhood walks this year so far.

All 20 quilt blocks made but not sewn together yet.

All sewn together one Saturday, without borders.

Waiting for calcium results at an appt one day.

We went Thursday night to GBS revival, but we watched online the nights after that because of my pain.

Elizabeth curls my hair sometimes to give it more body.

Pinning the border pieces together for the quilt.

Working on the border of the quilt.

Elizabeth and I went to Ladies Meeting at church on Jan. 20. I was thankful to be up to going!

Rowen ironing seams open was very helpful.

Rowen doing some cutting for me.

Rowen's 68th birthday!

Jason and Karen came over for supper and the evening for Rowen's birthday.

We had a fun time with them!

We took lots of pictures together.

Randy and Joy sent these cheery flowers for Rowen's birthday.

On the 23rd, I had a dr. appt for my anti-estrogen shots, and after waiting 3 hours to get my calcium levels back, we found out it was high, so I had to have an infusion again.

Emily ordered this shirt for Daddy Rowen for his birthday.

I recorded this "Twig the Collie" book on Audacity on the computer for our kids. It was one we read aloud during our homeschool years.

Our big snow came on Jan. 25, and we haven't had above freezing temps since then, so we still have a lot of snow. It snowed several times and altogether we got 12 inches.

I like to be able to water the plants when I feel up to it, on Wednesdays.

Working more on the border of the quilt.

Breakfast one morning

My daddy, Rex Scoles, turned 90 on January 30. We video-called him for his birthday. Thankful we still have him!

Attaching the border to the quilt.

Rowen got me a back brace in hopes that it would help my back pain. I wear it when I'm sitting and walking, not usually in the recliner, but I was trying it out in this picture. Emily was on a video-call with me on my phone.

The first part of January was definitely a better health time for me than I'd experienced for awhile. The infusion on the 23rd and shots caused me great pain, nausea, and vomiting.

December 2025 Part 2

 Josiah, Mandy, and I played a memory game with pictures on the 
cards from our lives in Colorado. (It's a homemade game.)
While we had strong helpers with us, it was time to do some 
heavy furniture moving. This desk was moved out of
our office area to the sunroom, and eventually was
put in a trailer and went to SD for Randy's new office/shop.
Then the hospital bed that has been in the sunroom for over
a year, was moved to the office room, after our other desk and computer set-up
was moved to the other side of the room.

It was a tricky and heavy proposition, and had to be turned on its side
to get through the door to the sunroom.

Much consultation, and then it was lifted and put back on its
wheels and moved easily to its new home.

Josiah was pretty concerned as he watched the progress.

But it eventually got to where it was supposed to be.
This was before we had everything all set up nicely, but we are
so glad to have that big job done when we had the right people here
to do it!

We had a fun time when Jason and Karen came over that evening.
Jewelyn, Karen, and Mandylyn.

Jason and James

Just checking--Jason is still the tallest in the family.
Jason and Karen with James and Micah

Jason playing for Jewelyn and Mishael singing the song
Jewelyn wrote about Diabetics and Christmas, to the
tune of Jingle Bells.

Jason and James again

Karen, Jewelyn, and Mandylyn

Everybody at the lunch meal together, except Mandy seems to be missing.
Playing Play Nine with Uncle Jason

Just visiting around the table

Another meal shot

Just cozy on the couch

Some more one-on-one pictures
Mishael

Josiah

James

Pictures with each of the kids:
Mandylyn

Mishael
(My hand is bruised from the MRI IV I had on Wednesday that week)

Jonathan

Jewelyn

Josiah

James

Micah

Mish and Josiah sitting on Aunt Emily

Mandy getting cuddles from Aunt Elizabeth

More table talk

Catan with Aunt Emily

Randy also wanted One-on-One time.

More reading with Aunt Emily

Mandy having time with just Aunt Emily

Josiah playing "Dress the Bear."

Mandy playing with our felt dolls.

Randy and Joy and family drove home to SD on December 20. We are thankful for all the blessings of our week having them in town, though they stayed in a motel for our convenience. It was a hard week physically for me, but they were a great distraction! 
The report on the shoulder MRI showed cancer in that joint, (which was included in the radiation), and a partially torn subscapularis tendon, which explains why I haven't been able to lift that arm. 
My nausea and vomiting lasted through Saturday evening, so I was afraid to try going to church on Sunday. Rowen and Elizabeth moved my recliner to the computer, and I had my regular Sunday morning video chat with my daddy, Rex Scoles. Then we watched other online services while Elizabeth and Emily went to church.

This shows the configuration of the study now with the hospital bed in place,
though usually my recliner is in the living room.

We put the nativity quilt in the hallway this year, rather than the dining room.
Elizabeth took this sweet picture of Emily and me coming down the hallway.
Brittany Stamper gave us this tin of popcorn for a Christmas gift.
I was able to enjoy it Sunday and Monday, before the next phase of 
my radiation reaction hit on Tuesday
(a big "lump" in my throat, very sore, which has put me on a liquid
or pudding consistency diet).

Emily made us this Shutterfly puzzle for Christmas.
She and I started it on Sunday afternoon.

It is composed of six of her photographs.
I was able to go to church Sunday night, and I was so happy to see Janet Sankey,
who had been out of town and very unwell for several weeks.
It was so good to see her up and around again!

We decided to try curlers in my hair on Monday. 
And we continued to work on the puzzle.

Until it was done!

How the curlers turned out.

Besides the continuing dry mouth and sore, lump in the throat,
I had terrible sores on the inside of my lower lip. 
This was before it got really bad.

I am so thankful that the salt water swishes healed it completely!
On December 23, Emily started helping me make the two baby blankets I 
had asked the Lord to strength me to make.

Emily sewed "leaders" onto the flannel, so I could 
quilt to the edge of the flannel, making the blanket as big as I could.
She also made burp cloths and a soft pillow out
of the leftovers of the flannel.

I have only slept in the hospital bed once so far.
When I need to sit upright suddenly in the night, 
because of the pain and dryness of my throat,
the hospital bed is too slow to sit up. The recliner
works better for this. So I intend to sleep in it after
my throat situation resolves. (No one seems to know
how long that radiation side effect will last.)

The bed was very comfortable though.
The weather was warm enough to walk around the block!
And I felt strong enough!

I pushed the wheelchair 2/3 of the way around our big block, then
Emily pushed me in it for the inclined part.

Emily and Rowen loaded each of the blankets into the quilt machine.
Emily did all of the basting around the edges, 
as I did the quilting. On this quilt, she did one of the
across swatches of quilting.

This particular day, I did the binding on both blankets,
and Emily finished up the burp cloths and the soft pillow.

This one is for Samuel Black. I put his birth
announcement at the start of December Part 1.

I wrote Samuel Black in the quilting, readable from the green side.
I UPS'd it to Nikita, and she was very pleased to get it.
This one is for our youth pastor's baby boy.
He will not be born for a while, so I am saving it
for a baby shower.

It says Baby Albring on the blue side.

On Christmas Day, Emily played some carols and other hymns for us.
Our family Christmas picture

My brother, Wesley, had requested all of his siblings, and our daddy to write
fiction Christmas stories to share for Christmas.
So we took turns reading them aloud.

Christmas dinner

Play Nine game using 10 cards instead of 8 to see what would happen.
We were playing two different memory games at once! 
It was pretty confusing, because of it being our family pictures from
different years.

On December 26, Brittany Stamper and Emily had chai tea together and
then Brittany came over for a visit.

We had Jason and Karen over for December 26,
and we had such a sweet evening together.

Jason won this chess game.

Sunday, December 28 pictures

Emily wanted me to wear her bow in my curly hair.


Another family picture before church

Joanna Johnston came on January 29 for a few days.
She loved the game Dahlias.

It was a great time to catch up with her, since we hadn't seen her
since May at her graduation.

We dressed in teals, matching on December 30.
Lunch together

Emily and Joanna took down Christmas tree and decorations for us.
Carol Gardner, our friend from church, gave us a fun and challenging puzzle for Christmas.
It was all plates of cookies, a mug of cocoa, and a candle.
We started it about 1 pm

And finished it at 5 pm!
It was a marathon puzzling session!

This is the new winter wreath Emily bought for our front door.
Darrell and Regina stopped by on December 31 to give Emily extra good-bye hugs.
Emily helped me get started on a new quilt by cutting all the strips for the quilt.

This is the first block that is done.

Joanna cut the vegetables for the salad the last night they were here.
Emily took this picture through the sunroom window, where we were cutting strips.

Our last game together before we went to bed early on
New Year's Eve, so the girls could go to the airport at 3:45AM!
We had a wonderful December with all the family and guests who
love us. It was a hard, up and down month physically. At the end of
it, I can say that the radiation did lessen the pain I have in my shoulders and
neck, but I am still dealing with the pain and lumpy throat problems for I
don't know how long. I definitely missed eating all of the yummy snacky
things that happen during the holidays. Ensure has become my best friend.
God has been so good to take us through another year, and has shown
how much He loves and cares for us.