Merry Christmas

I know it's been a while since I've blogged. I don't like to blog when I have nothing positive to say. I went through a really difficult, really dark time.

I ruptured a disk in my spine. I didn't do anything specific to rupture it. I wish I had a great story about how I was climbing a mountain in the Alps and then when I tried to save one of my fellow climbers my back snapped and I had ruptured a disk. But that wasn't the case. I wasn't doing anything and all of a sudden I couldn't stand up. The pain in my leg was unbearable. I couldn't sit. I could do anything but scream in pain.

My husband took me to the ER where they gave some pain meds and did an MRI and said to go see a surgeon the next day. I got shoved around by the medical system for a few weeks. I was repeatedly told that my condition was nonsurgical and that it would get better with time. Finally one doctor said to go see another surgeon for a second opinion (really it would be about the 10th opinion!). This surgeon said that my symptoms were straightforward and that he would do surgery in 10 days. He said that surgery would take about 1.5 hours and that I would spend one night in the hospital.

My husband waited for 6 hours while I was in surgery and recovery. The surgery took 2.5 hours and I ended up spending 2 nights in the hospital.

Yesterday I went to my post-op check up. All the bandages and surgical tape was removed. I'm able to walk again. (I had to use a cane for 8 weeks). I'm still restricted in bending, twisting and lifting. But I feel so much better.

Here's my Christmas card to you:

May your Christmas be filled with brotherly love.

I Want to Wear High Heels and Dance!

Or at least be able to sit in a chair for more than 5 minutes.

I hurt my back... again. No accident, no fall or anything. My back just started hurting. To the point where I couldn't stand or sit. My husband had to take me to the ER. It's been over two weeks and I still can't sit upright for more than a few minutes at a time and that's on a good day. I've been to all kinds of specialists and tried all kinds of drugs. I'm anxious for this to be over so that I can wear high heels and dance. That's my goal.

I don't usually like to "complain" on my blog. I prefer to share the happy things. So hopefully you'll see a picture of me wearing high heels soon! Until then, I'll be on the couch.

A Busy Day

Today was a busy day with the usual chores and errands. I paid some bills, did laundry, did the dishes, mowed the lawn etc. Then after lunch I went to the craft store to look for some Halloween ideas. I stopped at the mailbox on the way home and picked my kids up at the bus stop. The busy day didn't end there. Then it was time to get homework done and then a neighborhood kid came over to play. Tonight my 6 year old had soccer practice. My friend has a son on the same team and we alternate weeks to take the boys to practice. Tonight was my turn to drive.

I pulled into their driveway and said "Hi" to my friend. Then I opened the car door to help her son hop into the backseat. I saw a small postcard on the ground. I picked it up. It was a reminder from my OBGYN that I need to schedule an appointment.

Classy, I know.

I'm very glad that it was my friend who was in the driveway with me and not her husband! I was so embarrassed. So I'm no longer going to be able to put the mail on the seat in the car again. Ever.

A New Boyfriend

Friday my 6 year old came home from school and told me, "Mom, Anne (name changed) has a new boyfriend!"

"Oh really? Who is it?" I asked.

"Tommy" he replied smiling (name changed again).

My 6 year couldn't stop giggling. So I asked, "Does Tommy know about this?"

He replied, "I don't think so."

Then I couldn't stop giggling.

What Bumper Stickers and Cell Phones Have in Common

This morning as I was leaving the gym I noticed a bumper sticker on the back of a car that said, "Where's the Birth Certificate." It was written in big black letters and that's all it said. It made me pause and read it again. I guess I was looking for a clue.

I drove away still wondering what it meant. Then I thought, that's funny. I should take a picture and post it on my blog.

So I drove back around and leaned out of my car window with my camera phone and took a picture.

Do you like the picture?

You can't see it, right? Well, not only do I not understand bumper stickers but I also don't understand camera phones. I can't find the picture anywhere on my phone.

Just last night my husband said, "We've had our phones for a year now. The contract is up and we should get new phones."

"No," I said. "I still haven't figured out how to work this phone, if I get a new one, I'll have to start all over again!"

So what do bumper stickers and cell phones have in common? They can both stump Cookie.

What's A Hippie Anyway?

Tonight I was doing a puzzle with my 8 year old son. We were joking around and he teasingly called me a "hippie." I laughed and asked, "do you even know what a hippie is?"

He said, "Isn't it the same as a hobo?"

"No," I replied. "A hippie is person from the 70's who is all about love and peace. Someone from my mom's generation."

He said, "Really?! I didn't think your mom was like that."

Good thing my mom doesn't read my blog.

Still Here!

I admit, I've been a very bad blogger lately. I'm sorry. I have thought about writing now and then. I think my last post was a short one about my nephew. He lives in Detroit. I went to visit him this summer when my sister had a baby. That's a very difficult thing for me to say, "My sister had a baby," because that's not the full truth. My sister had twins, a boy and a girl. The boy lived for 5 hours. She found out at 34 weeks into the pregnancy that the boy's lungs were not developing. Those last 6 weeks were horrible. I went to be her for the birth and the death. It was so sad to look into his eyes knowing that he wouldn't be there for long, knowing that he didn't have a chance.

The baby girl is healthy and home. The boy was buried with his great grandfather. The funeral was 2 weeks after the birth and I wasn't able to return for it. I still wish I had.

So it's taken me a long time to go back to "normal." I still feel like nothing will ever be the same. But slowly happiness has returned.

Yesterday I drove my 6 year old and one of his teammates to soccer practice. From the backseat I heard my son telling his friend, "Our car is really old. It's from the nineteen hundreds!"

He is right. The car is a 1999. But I never heard it put that way before!

And one more thing that my 8 year old said when we were at a restaurant. He ordered pasta with butter sauce and french fries. (You can only get away with that when you're 8!) My husband asked him how he liked his dinner.

My 8 year old said, "It's good, but I like mom's better."

I smiled.

Then he added, "the one she makes from the box."

My husband laughed.

The King of the Jungle

I was visiting my 3 year old nephew for a week. He picked up the book next to my bed and read me a story. He said, "I'm going to read a story called, 'The king of the Jungle'." He opened the book and read, "One day there was a king of the jungle."

Then he closed the book and said "The end."

He's destined to be a great author one day.

What I learned During Summer Vacation

I try to keep the summer filled with educational things for my kids. Tonight they learned that if you laugh and drink milk at the same time, the milk will come out of your nose. And onto your dinner plate.

This proud parent moment is brought to you by the Washington Dairy Farmers Association.

Webster's

Today I took my kids to see the movie, "Hotel For Dogs." They loved it. The theater was packed with kids. There was one line in the movie when a said, "I'm going to sue you!" My 6 year old turned to me and whispered, "What does sue mean?"

I hushed him.

Then I heard the little girl next to me say to her mom, "Mom, what does sue mean?"

Her mother replied, "It means getting money from a person."

So true.