Brief Update

Tape is all the rage, originally uploaded by Thing Family.

Saw the doctor today with some of the results from yesterday's Easter Day hospital visit. So far, it's pretty darn good news:

1. My white blood cell count is normal.
2. I have low blood volume (drink, drink, drink water)
3. The strep and staph tests are in the petre dish and so far have NOT shown signs of growth.
4. My fever is hanging out at about 100, much better than a couple days ago.

Next steps are to wait until we get the all-clear on Wednesday for the results: say it with me, "NO STREP, NO STAPH" After that, I'm all clear to go back to recovery as planned.

Another Setback

I am doing everything I'm told: take the meds I'm supposed to take, rest, like down, stretch the hamstrings, do the proper exercises. Tonight, I have a fever. And a (more) swollen knee. We've been on the phone all night with the doctors. No one is sure what's going on, but they are concerned.

I am so scared. I was scared on the hill when I fell. I was scared in the toboggan, I was scared flying home to San Jose in pain meds and children. I was terrified to find out I had blown my ACL and so very upset to learn I was going to lose a big chunk of both meniscui too. I was horrified to find out that I had gotten a bucket handle tear during physical therapy *before* surgery. I was scared when I had an allergic reaction to Celebrex and broke out in hives two days after surgery. I got very scared when I couldn't move after physical therapy four days after surgery. Tonight, I am completely horrified. They are going to do exploratory work tomorrow on Easter to see what I need or whether or not I need to be admitted in the hospital.

I'm really very scared now. I could use a prayer or two.

thanks

La Gringa

Big Toothy Milestone!

My little baby girl lost her first tooth today! For days she'd been pulling and poking at it, showing everyone in sight that she was going to lose a tooth. You could see the "I'm a big girl," look on her face. Last night, at Safeway with La Gringa it popped right out. As the story goes, she showed everyone her toothy grin all the way through the check-out line. Then, politely called back, "Have a GREAT day today!"

This morning, Thing 2 woke up to a gold dollar coin all shiny and beautiful under her pillow. She had written the tooth fairy a letter requesting that the fairy leave the tooth for her to keep, and the fairy obliged.

Coming of age. It's a wild view from here.

"Of Course I'm Not Allergic to Salsa, I am Mexican."

...and other ditties from the dark side of post surgery

I knew that ACL replacement, 80% meniscus removal and a full lateral meniscus repair wasn't going to be pretty. I had heard horror stories of out of control pain. After a lunge exercise during physical therapy sent my knee into a Bucket Handle Tear, I also knew that surgery sounded like a walk in the park compared to the unbearable pain of last weekend.

I can remember asking La Gringa to take photos. I can remember the nurse who was cool enough to tilt the bed up so I wouldn't have a double-chin in the pre-op pics. Then I remember screaming, screaming from a really not so good place inside. The surgery was over. The pain overwhelming.

Six days have gone by since the surgery, with blurs of friends and visitors and family. Blurry is the right word. Mostly I've been nauseous, dizzy and overwhelmed by how much it hurts to take the short walk to the bathroom (on crutches, non-weight bearing). I remember praying for a bed pan and for the pictures in my son's bedroom to stop looking at me. At one point I started what I thought was a seriously artistic collection of iPhone pictures of Saltines. (I'm not kidding).

There is an ice machine that runs constantly through my leg and equal running of La Gringa to Rotten Robbie for ice to put in it. There's a range of motion machine that I am supposed to use four to six hours a day.

Then there are the drugs. So many drugs. Percocet and Ativan. There was also one dose of Celebrex where I broke out in severe hives all over my body after the doctor on-call asked me if I was allergic to salsa. When I told him, "Of course I'm not allergic to salsa,, I'm Mexican," he took that as an all-clear that I am not allergic to "sulfa" drugs. For the record, I am freakishly allergic to sulfa drugs and still Mexican.

Last night, I took myself off everything except Vicodin. I realized that the pain wasn't going to feel better. I wasn't going to feel better. I was going to have to decide to put a stake in the ground and move, however slowly, forward from there so I could look back and prove that I am better.