Post-Op

My surgery went very well.  I checked into the hospital a little before noon on Wednesday.  Stephen and Mandy met us there and I got to visit with them for a while before they took me back to prep me.  Then Daddy and Bobbie showed up.  I'm glad Dennis had the company.  My surgery lasted about 3 1/2 hours.  I was pretty groggy the rest of the day and don't remember a whole lot.  Dennis stayed with me the whole time.  They had a couch in my room that converted to a bed.  I'm afraid he didn't get much sleep tho.  Every hour or so someone was coming in to check on me or the IV pump would start beeping...typical night in the hospital!  But the nurses were great and took good care of me.  I refused to use my morphine pump Thursday, so they were giving me "super ibuprofen" for the swelling and hydrocodone, by mouth, for pain.  After my packing and catheter were removed Thursday morning, I was able to start getting up and walking.  That really helped me feel "human" again!  I was able to start eating solids by lunchtime and FINALLY learned to do self-catherization that afternoon.  So when my doctor came in at 7:30 or so, he told me I could go home.  Woo-hoo!  The drive home was unpleasant and I felt pretty bad by time we finished the hour-long drive.  But I was able to sleep well all night (except for doctor prescribed "potty-breaks" every 3-4 hours).  Sheila came over and babysat me all day yesterday and cooked supper for us.  I really appreciated having her around!  Last night I slept even better than Thursday night and have done very well today.  I'm still having to take a pain pill every 3-4 hours, but I'm regaining my strength.  I was able to walk around the "short block" this morning by myself and then walked with the girls this afternoon to the far end of our street and back.  My doctor is wanting me to work up to 2 30-minute walks/day.

The girls are coming back over tonight to cook supper.  They also plan to cook dinner tomorrow.  I'm so thankful to have them close to help out!  I'm planning to go to services here in MW in the morning.  Hope I'm able to last the whole time.  My greatest discomfort right now is sitting.  I do fine reclining or lying down, but sitting is not at all pleasant.  Dennis has a camping recliner that he may take with us in the morning for me to use.

Thanks to everyone who has remembered me in their prayers and called or written!  I love and appreciate you all.

Getting ready for surgery

Well, my wait is almost over.  I go into the hospital Wednesday for my surgery.  Sure looking forward to getting this over with.  The doctor expects me to spend 2 nights in the hospital, but I MIGHT get to come home after just one.  Got all my pre-op stuff taken care of Friday, so I'm ready to go!

Dennis had to return to work today.  He is usually ready after being off for 2 weeks, but he really wasn't this time.  His ribs are much better...the time off was a God-send for allowing them to heal.  We got quite a bit accomplished during his vacation and had a great time, too.

Rick left for Arkansas last Tuesday after work.  He started his new job in Ft. Smith Thursday morning.  He is still in training for the rest of this week.  Right now, he and Josh are staying with Mike and Meghan.  They are supposed to be able to move into their apartment the first of April.  Meghan is a sweetheart for putting up with them that long!  It was hard to see Ricky go, again, but I'm hoping that this will be a good move for him.  I will miss him!

After he moved out, I was talking to Dennis about looking for some cheap furniture at garage sales or similar venues for putting in our "new" guest room (since Rick took his furniture with him).  Dennis told me that after 33 years of living with hand-me-down furniture, he thought we ought to buy us a bedroom set.  So we spent several days shopping last week and finally found one online that we really liked and was a good deal.  It is on order and should be delivered in a couple of weeks.  I'm so excited!  We've never bought furniture before...except for the kids bunk beds when they were little and our 2 recliners when we sold our house in Nacogdoches.  I feel a little guilty about it though.  I'm not used to spending money on ourselves like that.  Usually we buy something because we need it...not just because we want it.  I've never "fixed up" a house before...not really talented in that area...but I'm starting to get the bug.  I ordered new curtains (on clearance, of course!) for the guest room, so I can get rid of those awful blinds.  We will move our current bedroom furniture in there when the new stuff arrives.  I hope to repaint the walls as soon as I'm able.  I'd also like to paint all of the interior of the house, but that will be a long-term plan. 

Well, I'd better get busy.  I need to get all the laundry done, groceries bought, and the house tidied up before Wednesday.  I hope everyone has a good week and good health!

Vacation

Our vacation was so relaxing and enjoyable!  We drove to Benton on Friday and stayed 3 nights with Maxine.  We spent the whole weekend visiting with Dennis' family...such a wonderful visit!  Then we left Monday morning and drove to Harrison.  After a tasty lunch at Neighbor's Mill Bakery and Cafe, we headed over to Kenneth's house.  Had a wonderful afternoon listening to stories from his younger years, then went to Ken and Kelli's for supper.  We really enjoyed our time visiting with them!  We spent the night at Kenneth's and then drove to Branson the next morning.  Thanks to a tip from Kenneth, we spent a good part of the morning browsing around in Dick's 5 & 10.  What a trip down memory lane!  I found an instruction book on making sock monkeys (and other sock dolls) and bought it and the socks to make a couple of projects.  The girls and I had recently been discussing sock monkeys and wondering where one could still get them.  (They have both "put in their orders".)  After lunch and a little more shopping, we visited the Titanic museum.  Then we headed out to Big Cedar Lodge to check in.  We didn't actually stay in the Lodge, but rather in a condominium on the lake.  I was blown away when we walked in our rooms!  Definitely NOT what we are used to!  That night we ate supper at the Keeter House restaurant at the College of the Ozarks.  It was beautiful, the service was great, and the food was yummy!

The Keeter House

Yummy dessert!

The next morning we had to spend 2 hours listening to a sales pitch for a time share (which is how we were able to afford staying there!).  Our salesman was very pleasant and friendly...until he realized we were NOT buying anything.  But he was still nice. 

Thursday, we checked out and headed towards Springdale.  Storms were blowing through Arkansas that day, but we made the trip with no problems.  We spent the night with Gene and Glenda and thoroughly enjoyed our visit with them.  Then Friday, we headed to Paris to spend the weekend with Stephen and Mandy.  The girls met up with us the next day.  We spent Saturday browsing in antique shops and going to the history museum.  That evening, we visited and played games.
Dennis and I headed home after lunch on Sunday, so we could make it back to Highway for evening services.  The trip was great, but it was good to be home!