Best Day Ever

You guys!  I had the best day yesterday and it was doing nothing but puttering around this house. I got up and made some kick butt coffee (I bought a new coffee frother and it is bringing me such happiness), made myself a yummy breakfast, took care of some YMSL and Love Box business, cleaned the kitchen, cleaned off my desk, spent some quality time solving the world's problems with Harry before he headed to work, shredded a bunch of paperwork that has piled up over the last several weeks, wrote some birthday cards, did a little laundry and then was interrupted by a knock at the door.  My day was only getting better!

My sweet neighbor Judy sent me an edible arrangement that was absolutely darling. Look at this....it is in a miniature grill!

Thick apple slices covered in chocolate and decorated like ladybugs.  Come on!  That is just some kind of cute. 

I ate an embarrassing amount of the fruit because it was perfect. Perfectly ripe.  Perfectly sweet. It was the best fruit I have had all summer. 

Then I made a giant juice with a ton of spinach and some pineapple from the arrangement, threw in some ginger and half a cucumber and it was so lovely. 

I made a giant skillet of lemon garlic chicken pasta for Harry to eat for dinner and then crashed on the couch to watch some Netflix.  I felt so good to be productive.  

I don't even want to mention my k***, but for Bob and Lana...it feels so dang good.  No pain.  Don't want to jinx it, but I think it is going to be fine. 

I am off to a great start this morning and actually got up, took a shower in my own bathroom, put on some makeup and some real clothes and am drinking some coffee and feeling like a non-injured person.  HOORAY!!! 

Hope your Sunday is wonderful and you find lots of things to celebrate! 

Knee Report - Some Good News

Happy Friday!!  I just had a little good news to share about my knee before I get into the weekend!

First, and most exciting....I made it upstairs to the bedroom for the last two nights in a row and slept in my own bed!  It was AMAZING!  After sleeping on the couch for 26 days, it was pure bliss to be able to spread out in a queen size bed!  The BEST!

Second, When I woke up this morning I did not have any pain in my left knee.  The knee is still a little bit swollen and feels kind of tight, but not even a twinge of pain. Hooray!!!  Things are definitely looking up on the leg front!  Two more weeks to go using crutches, but I am cruising along and feel like it is going to be fine.

Last, the boys returned my wheelchair to the rental place this afternoon....no looking back now!

That is all I have for now.  Hope your weekend is excellent!

Fun with Crutches

I was cruising along this week with very little pain in my knee, until a split second incident yesterday morning where I straightened my bad knee too much on a step and YIKES!  Pain that was super intense, but thankfully passed pretty quickly.  Knee was a little swollen and sore the rest of the day, so today I am going to be extra careful so I don't set myself back any.

In the meantime, let me tell you about the fun I am having with crutches:

1. To add to the rash on my arms, I also have two pretty awesome raw spots about three inches below my armpits.  I think it is from the material of my shirt rubbing every time I take a step with crutches - at least that is when it hurts the most.  I keep repositioning the crutches, but the raw spot just gets bigger.  It is fun.

2.  While cooking dinner on Sunday, one of the crutches I had leaning on the counter slipped and landed on the big toe of my good foot. It hurt. I may lose the nail.  

3.  I can turn on and off light switches with my crutch, even though it isn't really a necessity. 

4.  I can turn on and off the sink spigot with my crutch, even though it isn't really a necessity. 

5.  I can reach the toilet paper in the bathroom closet from the toilet with my crutches, and sometimes that is a necessity. 

6.  My children use my crutches randomly just for fun and then unintentionally (or maybe not) leave them somewhere that is not near me.  Super helpful. 

7.  I used my crutch to put a barrier between Chip and Cooper when they were playing fetch in my office and things got out of hand.  Here is what we think happened....Cooper had his Wubba (dog toy) in his mouth, Chip was pulling it away from him to throw it and accidentally also grabbed one of Cooper's long thick whiskers and pulled it out of Cooper's face (we found it on the floor), along with the toy. Cooper lost his mind. Now, these are not small hair like whiskers, these are thick hard whiskers that are like porcupine tines. Cooper was not happy about it and was giving Chip some pretty angry hard barking.  Cooper did not try to bite Chip, but he sure sounded like he wanted to.  So, we all three need therapy to deal with our angry feelings over the situation and the Wubba has been removed from  the playtime rotation. 

8. I can knock down cobwebs that are in high corners of my house with my crutches.  

9. I can shut doors, move kitchen chairs, close the dishwasher, straighten out rugs and push down the recliner footrest with my crutches.  

10.  Finally, I can goose my children when they walk by or hit them if they sass me.  Actually, I have only hit Chip once and it really was on accident, even though he would probably tell you otherwise.  

I know....it could be worse...at least I am improving...there is an end in sight...it won't last forever.  I am grateful for all of that and also praying that soon this time recovering will just be a distant memory!  

Happy Hump Day! 

Coffee Crutch Olympics

The news from the doctor's appointment was not what I wanted to hear.  He did not tell me to take off running, go clean my house, take the stairs two at a time to dive into my own bed and swan dive into my bathtub for a well deserved soak.

No, he told me I could move into partial weight bearing using crutches only (no more wheelchair) for three more weeks.  That might seem like an improvement to some people, but to me it sounded like three more weeks of torture.  I was despondent.  I was aggravated.  I was deflated.  Basically, I was a mean, angry, bitch.  No other way to say it.  I could not be cheered up or humored yesterday and probably owe apologies to both my children and my dog.

Anyway, today is a new day.  I slept pretty good, even though it was on the couch AGAIN and for some reason the alarm in my bedroom upstairs started going off at 4:00 a.m. and I had to call Harry to wake him up to go turn it off.  Also, my forearms itched liked crazy several times during the night.  That doesn't seem like it should be a big deal, but my cortisone cream was all the way in the kitchen and the thought of dragging myself there to get the cream was harder than just scratching my stupid arms.  You know what happens when you scratch an itch...it itches more!  So, lesson learned....tubes of cortisone in every room from this day forward!  Isn't this lovely?  What the heck?  It does fade and tame down once I hit it with the cortisone so I am grateful for that.

BUT, let's get to the part where I woke up and the sun was shining and my knee didn't hurt while putting somewhere between 10% and 25% weight on my bad leg.  No idea how to measure that percentage, but that is what I am going with.  The bottom of my foot on that leg hurts like a mother, but I think I just need to stretch out those tendons that have been out of operation for five weeks.  After being up and around for a couple of hours my foot already feels better.

My first challenge of the day was how to get a cup of coffee down my neck!  With crutches, you can't carry things, especially not hot, liquid things.  I put on my Lana thinking cap, because Lana can figure some things out.  I thought about a thermos, in a cross body bag like a purse.  Kind of a pain in the butt and I really don't think drinking coffee out of a thermos at your kitchen table has the same taste as if you were drinking coffee out of thermos while sitting in a hunting blind or on a stakeout (neither of which I have ever done, but still...)  I really wanted my coffee in a coffee cup.  It is the small things.

After running through a couple of options, I developed a coffee moving strategy that I will forever call the Crutch Coffee Olympics!  Y'all, I have already cut my time from 6 minutes to 2 minutes on my very first day of training!  If you want to play along to be my competition when this becomes an Olympic sport, here is what you need to do. Get an empty cup down from the cupboard and put it as close to the left side of the sink as possible...crutch yourself towards the coffee pot on the right side of the sink, just far enough that you can barely reach the coffee cup on the counter.  Grab the cup and move it across the sink and close to the pot.  Pour your coffee.  Reverse your actions and move the full coffee cup back over the sink.  Crutching just far enough away that you can stretch and reach the cup and bring it towards you.  Then you repeat (crutch, stretch, reach, crutch, stretch, reach, etc.) going from the counter to the island and the island to the kitchen table.  It takes some time and when you first get started your coffee is already lukewarm and ready to drink by the time you sit your butt down to drink it!  You very quickly improve your time and I am shooting for less than a minute by the end of the weekend!

To wrap things up, I am in better spirits, my leg doesn't hurt too bad and cortisone cream works.  It's all going to be fine.

So Close!

I am about 24 hours away from my follow up doctor's appointment to check out this leg!  All indications seem to be it is healing up and I am optimistic that my recheck will be favorable and tomorrow night I will be sleeping upstairs in my own bed!  CANNOT EVEN WAIT!!!!

Here are my plans once I get the green light.....I am going to take a hot bath for many, many hours!  I am going to clean this house from top to bottom!  I am going to take my dog for an early morning walk!  I am going to hug my boys standing up!  Then my leg will probably swell up again and I will be super sorry about all of the above.  Maybe I will start with the hugging and the bath and work up to the rest!  Lord knows this dirty house isn't going anywhere.

If the follow up appointment requires additional days/weeks on crutches, you will find me screaming into a pillow on my couch/bed.

In other news....

• Our Love Box Group had another fun outing with our foster family!  We took them to Build-A-Bear, to lunch and had a little birthday celebration for one of the pumpkins that was turning five.  I have some of the most adorable pictures from our outing, but I don't want to post them out here on this world wide web, but when you see me next ask me to show you these darling little children.  I have gobs of pictures on my phone!  Also, it took an army of people to get me from the house into the car with my wheelchair.  Thank goodness I know a lovely army.  
• I have developed some weird rash on my forearms. Seriously. WHY? I am treating it with anti-itch cream, which seems to be helping. 

• During my convalescence, while not itching and/or complaining, I have watched all seasons and all episodes of Grace & Frankie on Netflix.  Loved it.  I am a mix of Grace and Frankie - and not all the best parts either!  If you are a woman of a certain age, watch it and laugh hard.

That is all I have for today!  Please stand by for the update tomorrow on my leg.  It is going to be so exciting!  Have a terrific Thursday! 

They're Home

Hooray!  My boys finally made it home on Wednesday night! They had a great time, as they always do, at The Bad Farm. We visited and caught up and then the two legged boys took the four legged boy around the block for his first walk in way too long!  Cooper was so happy. I watched the three of them walking home and my heart was happy too!

In other news:

• Only seven more days until the recheck on my leg!  I hope it is healing and doing all the things it is supposed to be doing.  Still having lots of swelling in my ankle and foot when I sit or stand for any length of time, but I think even that is getting better.  
• I am going to have to repaint some walls in my house once this ordeal is behind me. Hallways just aren't wide enough to accommodate a girl in a wheelchair, holding her crutches with her dog refusing to leave her side.  And also, my wheelchair driving skills leave much to be desired. You would think I was driving a bumper car the way I ricochet off the walls. Scrapes and dings all over the place! 
• I drove a real car yesterday and it felt great to get out into the world, even for just a few minutes!  Unfortunately, I made the mistake of heading to the car in my bare feet and very quickly I remembered that concrete in Texas is ridiculously hot in July.  Chip had to save me and run in the house and grab me a shoe! 
• My short driving excursion yesterday was to take Chip to his driving lesson.  He drove all over town with his instructor and then he had to hang around to do an observation.  I assumed that meant he would ride along with another student who was learning how to drive.  No, it meant that he sat in the back of a Corolla with two other dudes while a kid took his driving test!  Can you even imagine how nervous you would be as a sixteen year old taking your driving test with three dudes you don't know in the backseat?  I thought that was hilarious!  The kid passed his driving test with a 100%, so kudos to him.
• Harry is digging his job and baseball season just seems to be flying by!  He had to work three or four away games while he was in Alabama, but how awesome is it that he could do that from a remote location?  Pretty awesome. 
• My niece Megan is getting married this year and when she was trying on wedding dresses this week I was getting a ton of pictures of the try-ons.  I got so teary eyed and my nose started burning, because she is Disney princess gorgeous and because she was just born. Ugh, these kids doing all this adulting, just stop it already! 

Here's hoping your Friday is great and the weekend ahead is stretched out in front of you like a lazy cat in a sunbeam!  Have a spectacular day! 

Hanging in There

Today marks my 12th day on wheels and crutches instead of my own two feet - only nine more days to go!  My knee is feeling pretty good, although my leg below the knee is still giving me some fits.  But even my lower leg is feeling better for longer periods of times and when it does hurt, the pain is not as intense. All that is good news and I am optimistic that when my doctor's appointment rolls around on the 21st I will be given the green light to put weight on my left leg and get moving. Can't wait.

Cooper can't wait either!  He is hanging in there too, although even he is going a bit stir crazy being trapped in the house. He used to go out in the backyard at least six or eight times a day, even if it was just to chase some squirrels or bark at someone walking in the alley.  That was in addition to the daily walks we went on or trips to the dog park for some hard romping and wrestling. For the last several days, it is all I can do to convince him to go out twice a day.  Even then, he cautiously sticks his head out the door like he is listening for any of those pesky fireworks from the 4th. Mostly, he spends his days chasing a toy in the house, staring at his leashes in the laundry room, standing in front of my wheelchair while I am trying to get somewhere or like this. We are both so ready to get back to our walking/dog park routine!

My boys have been in Alabama for a little vacation and were supposed to be home on Monday.  Unfortunately, their flight home was cancelled on Monday and AGAIN on Tuesday. They spent an hour on the plane yesterday, sitting on the runway waiting for weather to clear in Dallas.  Then they rolled them back to the terminal and cancelled the flight.  I am getting annoyed with that situation, but hopefully today is the day they get home.

While I wait on their return, let's all take a moment to marvel at this dinner my friend Cindy brought over. Not only was it beautiful, but it was delicious!  Here is the ingredient list if you are interested in trying to pull this together for yourself:

Carrots and bell pepper
Roasted Asparagus
Quinoa
Tomatoes
Black Beans
Roasted Cashews
Ground Chicken cooked with Kale and Garlic
Avocado
Roasted Sweet Potato
Sliced Strawberries

I have eaten it for dinner, lunch, dinner again and honestly think I could eat it every single day, forever and ever.  Really!

World Cup Soccer today!!!  England vs. Croatia.  Can't wait!

Time for me to get to work!  So grateful that I work from home and can just roll my wheelchair right up to my desk.  What a gift!

Hope your Wednesday is awesome!

The Grabber

I have been rolling around the house all morning, just amusing myself.  I have had several cups of coffee, read a little bit, dusted the surfaces I could reach, folded some towels. No rush, no urgency, just piddling around.

I also played hard with my new toy...the Grabber.  In fact, I played with it so much that my hand and forearm kind of hurt.  HaHa!  How bad a shape are you in that using a damn Grabber for an hour makes you sore? Cooper has been working on shredding his nylon frisbee and there are tons of orange threads all over the house.  I rolled around picking up those threads with my Grabber and putting them in my hand to throw away.  Between picking up threads, I also had to rub Cooper's belly with the Grabber because he would not leave it alone.  Now I am contemplating the need to ice my forearm.

I have groceries being delivered this morning and my friend Sheri is going to pick up my mail for me this afternoon. Big day around here!

In the meantime, my dog is snoring on the couch and World Cup soccer is on the TV.   It is raining outside and feels like a great day to stay home.

I hope your weekend is off to a wonderful start and you can move through it at a slower pace that feels relaxing and restful.

Friday Notes

Some quick Friday notes:

• I have survived over 33% of my sentence of being non-weight bearing on my left leg.  Long week, but only two more to go! 
• I have watched The Ranch on Netflix from beginning to end.  It made me laugh and cry. My two favorite emotions.
• I ordered one of those grabbers off Amazon to help me reach and move things and it arrived today.  I am now living Bob's life.  Bob has grabbers all over his house and even has a cemetery on the side of his house with the deceased "Claws" as he calls them.  I wonder how long this one will hold up and if I will start my own cemetery when it breaks or reaches the end of its useful life? 

• My friend Liz sent me a message and said "I keep trying to comment on your blog but can't figure it out.  Can Bob give a class on how to do it?"  Cracked me up!  Bob often calls me and tells me he keeps commenting but has no idea if it is on the correct post or if I ever even see his comments.  I assure him I do and they are the best!  Not sure why it is so hard to comment, but if Bob can do it, you can do it!  Keep trying! 

Hope your weekend is awesome!  

What's the Lesson

Hello all.  I hope you all had a great time celebrating Independence Day and that your dog went outside to use the bathroom in spite of the rain and the fireworks.  Cooper went out at 10:30ish or so in the morning and then would not go out again.  Even with the promise of a treat - he would only stick his head out the back door.  With my limited mobility there is only so much I am willing to do to convince the fellow to go outside. As far as I can tell he did not relieve himself in the house, so I assume he has the bladder of a camel or will be coming down with a kidney or bladder infection in the next few days.  Probably, both.

The pain in my leg has subsided for the most part. Still having twinges in the calf/shin region, but very mild compared to how much I was hurting on Tuesday night.  I am so grateful for that relief and it has made sleeping so much easier.

My boys have gone to Alabama with their Dad for a little vacation at The Bad Farm.  Blanche misses her nursing home helpers, but also is managing just fine. They did get the grass cut, do laundry, stage the kitchen so everything is within reach for me before they left and that was a huge help.

While I have a quiet house, I have been trying to figure out the lessons in this season, discerning what God is trying to teach me through this injury.  I really am spending quite a bit of time thinking about it.  Lord knows, sometimes I have to be hit over the head a time or two to learn something and I really don't want to miss what I need to know.  I feel like it may be more than one thing.  Is it accepting help, relying on myself, having more compassion and empathy for others, proof to myself and evidence to my children that I am strong and resilient and/or that I am human and hurt and cry and feel powerless?  Is it to appreciate my health, fuel me with the incentive to use and care for my body better? Maybe I should slow down. Do less. Or maybe I should be doing more. Live life to the fullest.  It can't be all of those (or maybe it is!), but I think the more time I spend praying about it and thinking on it and remaining open to it, that the lesson will become clear.

In the meantime, and in a way less spiritual realm, I am hyper aware of some other things:

1)  My bottom kitchen cabinets need a thorough cleaning. You don't notice that kind of thing until you are eye level and see it close up.  I have been tackling them one at a time, but man I can't wait to be able to crawl all over the place and clean them top to bottom.  Don't even get me started on baseboards.  Yikes.
2)  Houses should be built with wide halls and doorways.  It should be standard.
3)  It doesn't feel like it is hot and humid outside, when you aren't outside.
4)  World Cup Soccer is so, so good.  I can't believe how much I am loving it. I felt so terrible for Japan when they lost after being such an underdog and playing such an amazing game. And how about those Japan fans cleaning the stands and the team leaving the locker room in immaculate shape after losing. Sports are the best.
5)  The mobility allowed by using a wheelchair is a monumental relief to me, however having a giant dog that can take things off your lap is a problem.  I have to move food around the kitchen like this....

And even like this, Cooper is almost able to reach up and take it out of my mouth with his!
6) Cooper's calling may be to be a service dog.  He has been so attentive to me.

Here's hoping your Thursday (that feels like a Monday, but also a little like Friday) is off to a great start!  The weekend is coming!  Yay! 

Victories

Small victories to celebrate:

1) My wheelchair fits through the door to my office, so I can roll right up to my work computer and get busy!

2) I took a shower!!  It was equivalent to an athletic event and I was exhausted after I got dressed! But I am clean and my hair is washed. I still look like a hot mess, but clean is good.

3) I am training Cooper to be a service dog by giving him lots of commands he doesn't understand.  It goes something like this:

"Cooper - Bring me the blanket from the green couch.  Get the blanket.  Go ahead, it is the soft red blanket on the green couch.  Just put it in your mouth and bring it to me."  I just keep this running conversation up until he leaves the room.  I have done it with lots of items.

"Cooper - Grab the remote from that table and bring it to me."
"Cooper - Pick up that piece of paper I dropped and put it in the garbage."
"Cooper - go get my phone charger.  It is on the chair in the den."

It is highly entertaining for me.

4) Last night, the entire lower half of my leg (not my knee at all) was killing me.  Shin and calf ached so, so much and I could not get comfortable. Just burning and I kept involuntarily flexing my left leg.  UGH!  I was getting so angry about it.  But this morning, it doesn't hurt!  I am grateful!

Happy 4th to you and yours!  

My Knee

I know, I know....I just keep going on and on about this dang leg of mine.  For anyone jumping in on this drama late, here is a summary....on Day 3 of my 10 day vacation, my hiking boots got hooked together and I fell hard on a rocky path at the first Icelandic waterfall we visit.  I did not tumble down the cliff to my death, but damn did it hurt.  I thought for sure when I looked down at my leg that a bone would be sticking out, but it wasn't.

I hobbled around Iceland for the remainder of my trip, with a combination of help from my sweet, patient, sometimes exasperated family, the beautiful Icelanders and occasional wheelchairs.  Honestly, it was only the first step anywhere that was excruciating and then my knee would basically go numb.  Once it was numb, I could get around pretty good.  And by pretty good, I mean holding on to all kinds of things (people, cars, benches, tables, chairs, door frames, etc), swinging my right arm as if I was winding up for a knock out punch and taking baby steps like I was eighty-seven years old and recovering from hip replacement surgery. I walked unassisted a lot towards the end of our trip and managed to climb in and out of a van and go up and down three flights of stairs more times than I can count.  Still in pain, I made an appointment with an orthopedic doctor for the Monday I returned to the States.  By the time I saw the doctor, it was eight days after the incident and although still swelling and hurting I was driving, walking and getting around pretty good.

They took some x-rays and didn't see any structural damage to the knee, so the doctor examined my leg by manipulating it all around.  I was white knuckling the table and saying through gritted teeth "I want to punch you so hard!"  I did not punch him, but was laying in a pool of sweat when it was over.   Based on my restricted movement and pain he suspected damage to my ACL and/or LCL and set up an MRI to get a look at the soft tissue.

The MRI was scheduled for Wednesday and man was that a weird experience.  I was a tiny bit worried about going in the tube, but fortunately because it was my knee I was able to keep my head outside of the machine.  And it was just my head outside the machine because I was rolled in there right up to my neck. What I didn't know about MRI machines is how loud they are!  My goodness, they hand you ear plugs the minute you walk into the room and say something like "It is a little loud so be sure the ear plugs are in good."  What they should have said is "This machine is going to make noises that sound like you are an astronaut and have been ejected from the space shuttle into this tiny capsule that is re-entering the atmosphere and will be crashing into the Atlantic Ocean. Hope you make it."  I mean, there were alarms and beeping and terrible scrapping noises and digital countdowns.  It was not relaxing at all and people who can sleep through an MRI are surely on drugs.  I was in there for 15 minutes with my head out and it seemed like a lifetime.

I went back to the doctor on Friday for the MRI results.  Funny story...while waiting for the doctor to come into the examination room I picked up a National Geographic magazine and I'll be damned if there wasn't an article about the very Icelandic waterfall that tried to kill me. Pictures were gorgeous.  I thought that was hilarious.  Anyway, the doctor came in and the good news was there was no soft tissue damage...tendons and ligaments were okay.  Bad news, they found an intact fracture at the top of my tibia. On the screen it looked like it was about 1.5 inches long and is right where the tendon meets the bone which is why when he was pressing on my tendon during the exam I wanted to club him to death.

The prescription is to get off of my leg for three weeks and then go in for a recheck.  That means crutches.  UGH!  They are the worst.  I call them Devil Sticks!  Here are just a few major problems with crutches:

First - I have very little upper body strength.
Second - I have a load on the bottom half to move.
Third - Who is coordinated enough to do this?
Fourth - You get four minutes of instruction and then out the door you go to your car?  Shouldn't there be a class or at least some YouTube videos to watch?
Fifth - How the hell do you carry anything?
Sixth - Bladder issues not helped by hopping along on crutches and getting to the bathroom takes FOREVER!

Anyway, I used the frustrating devil sticks Friday afternoon and evening and had a big crying jag on Saturday morning.  My poor Chip, watched my meltdown and was so sweet.  I just felt so unbalanced, unsteady and helpless on them.  Once I pulled myself together I started looking for a wheelchair.  I found a place that rented them and was open on Saturdays and Harry went to pick it up for me.

This is the face of relief!  A boost to my mobility and my spirits!  I can do this!!!  It's only three weeks!  How lucky that I don't need surgery!  Heal leg, heal!

My boys have been great...although seeing their mom in a wheelchair has been both hilarious and depressing.  I am now called Blanche and there are many laughs and comments about my nursing home as I am traveling through the house. I am still pretty grouchy and bossy, but nothing they can't handle. 

And how about The Worst Dog in the World, being an absolute SAINT for his injured mother.  He has been right by my side the entire time.  Very gentle.  Hasn't jumped on me (much) and only snapped at me once when he was kind of trapped between my wheelchair and the wall in the hallway and I tried to push him backwards and out of the way.  

So, we are getting along okay.  My right leg is an absolute champion and has really carried more than it's fair share since the incident.  Also, I am not in much pain.  Funny, how when you quit walking on your fractured leg, it stops hurting!  

I have done the calculations....66 hours in my rear view mirror, and only 438 more hours to go in my three weeks of confinement!  Hopefully, I will not be Vitamin D deficient from lack of sunshine by the time I am mobile!  

Now I must be on my way.  I have to see if my wheelchair fits through the door of my office so I can get to work!  Have a great Monday!  

Iceland Day 9 and 10 - Trip Home

It was a LLLLOOONNNNGGGG trip home.  We arrived at the Iceland airport about 3:00 in the afternoon on Saturday and checked in and dropped off our luggage.  Security went really quickly so that was great for my bum leg.  Once we were through security we were able to wait in a really nice central terminal area until our gate was assigned.  We ate and visited and got psyched up for the plane ride home.

Esra snagged a wheelchair for me in the central waiting area because he said the walk to the gates was long.  He was not kidding!  Callie was kind enough to push me and we headed through customs.  Wouldn't you know I got randomly selected for additional screening?  Ugh!  Thank goodness for that wheelchair!  We finally made it out of the super duper extra special custom review and headed to the gate.  Weirdly, they don't have chairs at the gates, you just stand in a line to board the plane.  Me and Callie were at the back of a really long line and a nice man came over and said wheelchairs should go to the front of the line.  We made our way up there and were able to board early. I got settled into my aisle seat with my left leg hanging out in the aisle.  I was so glad I would be able to stretch it out for the flight, although it would've been better if I could have elevated it.  Swelling was still a problem in my knee and ankle.

The flight was uneventful...watched a couple movies and rubbed my knee a lot.  We landed in Boston about 7:30 p.m. and it felt GREAT to get up and move my leg!  I passed on a wheelchair and decided to walk.  Probably should not have done that in hindsight!  It took us forever to get through customs! We got a hotel room for the night and dropped into bed about 9:30.  My knee was throbbing so much, but a couple of Grandpa's giant ibuprofen and I finally fell asleep. The alarm went off at 4:00 a.m. and we staggered downstairs to go back to the airport.  What the hell were we thinking?

I said good-bye to my people on the shuttle bus because we were flying out of different terminals.  I got a little teary eyed because we had a great time, I love them all and now I was on my own for the last flight home!  They were probably thrilled to get off the bus without me!

I immediately dropped off my big piece of luggage and got through security with no problems.  I upgraded my seat to one with more leg room and that the best $80 I have ever spent.  I had plenty of room to stretch out my leg for the 4 1/2 hour flight.  Once we landed, I had a nice young fellow grab my luggage off the carousel and the parking shuttle man put my luggage in my car for me.  People are so, so good.  

My foot and leg were really swollen and black and blue after my travels.  After I hugged my boys, I immediately got on the couch and elevated my leg.  My sweet friend Mary brought me a knee ice machine that was magnificent!!!!  It felt so good to be home.

It was a wonderful trip and I am so happy that I got to see Iceland and meet all of Esra's family.  What a spectacular country that is only out shined by the people who live there!  I could not have had better travel companions and I only hope my injury didn't put too much of a damper on our activities.  I love them hard and can't wait until out next trip!   

Iceland Day 8 - Afram Island!

I have been on crutches and in a wheelchair for less than 48 hours and I am super grouchy about it. I will do a separate post about my doctor's appointment on my knee, but first I have got to finish up the last few days of the Iceland trip!  

Friday in Iceland was all about World Cup Soccer!  We got up and out of the house for breakfast in downtown Reykjavik and also indulged in a sweet treat!  Look at this crepe!  It was so good. 

We watched Game 1 in a bar and it ended in a tie - which brought Icelanders to tears with joy!  We really wanted a win for Game 2!  Iceland vs Nigeria!  AFRAM ISLAND (which I think means "Let's Go, Iceland!")  I yelled it a lot, even with no clear understanding if I was using it correctly.  We watched Game 2 at Esra's mom's house!  

Kristin was ready!  

Iceland has never been to the World Cup! 

And also, they are the smallest nation ever to make it to the World Cup (population of the entire country is 340,000)!  Many of their players have side jobs because the Iceland national soccer team is  only semi-pro.  In fact, the goalie is a filmmaker and made a rocking Coca-Cola commercial that made us tear up during the game.  The team coach is a practicing dentist. All of this made it very easy for me to adopt Iceland as my very favorite soccer team ever and get 1,000% invested in this game.  

A momma and her boy!  Nothing better! 

Callie was ready! 

Esra, his momma and his two beautiful sisters. All soccer players!  Did I mention in a previous post that we came upon a book in a Iceland bookstore called something like the Women of Iceland...it was a coffee table book about women who had played soccer for Iceland.  Esra's mom was in the book on nine different pages!  She played from about 19 years old to 29 years old.  Esra played for UAH.  His sister Asta (on the right) played for Florida Atlantic and now plays in Iceland.  His youngest sister in the white shirt is apparently the best of them all!  She just graduated high school and is trying to decide whether to play at the collegiate level or try for professional women's soccer.  These people KNOW soccer!  

It got intense really quickly! 

Esra tried everything to turn the tide for Iceland, but they ended up losing to Nigeria.  He loves this team!  Still one game remaining, and if all the cards fall into place Iceland could still move on. 

Our last night in Iceland we ordered pizza that was so dang good!  

Our flight was at 6:00 pm the next day, so Saturday would be all about getting re-packed, cleaning up the awesome apartment we called home and getting down the stairs one more time!!