Tuesday, November 1, 2011

" Best Laid Plans "



Plans
 
We all have them. And our housewifely heroine, Diana, was no different. Despite the fact that she has always thought that making plans was somewhat futile. Inevitably something or someone always seems to mess them up. So she generally prefers to let things "Come what may" so to speak.
 
These last few weeks of her recovery from her Bilateral total knee replacement have left her feeling very meloncholy.
 
 
  

It hasn't helped a bit that she has been sick three times, had two infections and her tendonitis in her foot decided to pay her a visit making it nearly impossible for her to walk for four days.

All of this has left her with absolutely no desire to visit cyberspace. The most strenuous thing that she has done over the past few weeks  is to crochet. And even that has left her hands numb from carpel tunnel.


Teens


Alas all is not lost. It seems that teenagers have decided that Diana's house is the place to hang out. This has had a strange effect on Diana's mood. After all, teens can be fun, silly and goofy. Oh and lest we not forget, HUNGRY. This too has made Diana's life more of a challenge but teens like wild animals seem to have a talent for scavenging up food. Cooked or not as Diana found out that her very own teen likes turkey bacon, uncooked. Yuck!!!


Photo taken in the middle of Diana's teeny, tiny, kitchen floor.
   

Since Diana's house has become the official hang out place, she and her husband managed to make a spot in the garage for them to hang out in on warmer days. And they managed to get the yard ornaments packed away for winter.



Three Months. Post-op visit


While Diana manages to have energy one day and then exhaustion and lack of energy for two days, she could not help but wonder if this was "Normal" post-op feelings. She intended on asking her surgeon at her three month visit last week.


  

As things turned out it was an uplifting visit for Diana. She was told that she was healing beautifully. When she expressed her concern that perhaps she was just being over anxious about her healing, her Doctor told her that those where the kind of patients that he liked because it just means that they don't like to sit around and do nothing. Boy he had that right she thought. He also confirmed that what she was feeling with having one good day and two not so good, was perfectly normal and that with time those bad days would get fewer and farther between the good ones.

The best news of all however was the fact that she doesn't have to see the doctor again for three months!


  


The Good Husband


Part of Diana's recent feelings of unhappiness has been the absence of her beloved husband. So he has decided at least for now, to switch from an over-the-road truck driver to a regional one. Which simply means that he will be home every weekend instead of every other weekend.

He has been doing his best to help his wife who has been having trouble keeping up with her home and jobs as of late. He has even taken her places when he is home to try and cheer her and himself up. As times have been tough lately.

One weekend they went to the city park to watch the ducks and geese and to walk to a swing that Diana has been wanting to walk to since her surgery. A goal so to speak. It was far enough away that she would not have attempted it before the surgery. It wasn't very far for the average person but for Diana it seemed a mile away.

But she made it. And so that sat together and swung while watching the geese and the turtles.



The Past Weekend



This past weekend was the best one Diana has had in a long time. Months really. Her teen, Katie, was gone for the entire weekend on a Fall Retreat with her church.

Diana's husband came home and declared Saturday to be Di's day.
She could pick anything that she wanted to do and they would take off and go!

She had so many ideas in mind. She had been wanting to go see "Puss and Boots" at the theater. Go out to dinner. Take a ride to Alto Pass to take in the beautiful foliage. But the one thing that she really wanted to try was "Geocaching".




So Diana joined the website and her husband loaded the app to his phone and away they went. Geocaching is a seek and find game using coordinates on ones phone or navigator. 

Diana and her husband tried four Geocache locations and WALKED for HOURS!!!! They didn't locate any caches on their first try but they were looking for tiny ones which they later discovered that they should have looked for larger ones on their first time out.
None the less they had fun and plan on doing this again. It seems to be a great hobby that only costs a bit of gas and is great exercise!

That evening Diana's hubby offered to take her out to dinner but she decided to go and buy some steaks to grill instead. They bought some beer and had a fire in the yard. A beautiful fall day and evening.
This, Diana decided, should be done every week!!


All in All


The past weekend and the doctor visit seemed to help Diana start to feel a bit more like her old self.

Will she continue to improve physically and emotionally?

Will Diana and her husband seek out more treasure hunts?

Will the teens continue to come to Diana's house nearly everyday?  

And what about those geese? Just how long will it be before they fly south?

Or will they fly south at all??? 

17 comments:

Shelley said...

Oh what wonders and adventures you have had of late my dear. Recovery and teens what a a combo!

GeoCaching you say? Hint: be sure to check through past logs to ensure the cords weren't updated by another user (moved due to muggles/construction) and not yet updated by the owner. Great fun it is! NightBlossom suggests ones in the park areas - you can often sit down, but they are also often smaller.

God luv ya - take care Di.

Sharon said...

"Like sands in the hour glass..."

Sounds like an awfully lot going on, the doctor's report was promising! Your legs look good!!!

Somehow a bunch of teens and getting better seems like they would clash a bit. Maybe? 'You're a better man than I, Gunga Din'!

Next year this will be naught but a memory!

{{{HUGS}}}

Christine said...

Oh, Dianna your knees are looking beautiful! I still have lots of crazy up and down days and I haven't even had my knees down yet. Some days I don't even want to get out of bed! I go to see the orthopedic surgeon on Nov. 22 to set up my surgery. I hope I do as well as you! You are a blessing dear girl! So glad hubby is going to be home more now!

Rebecca said...

I can't begin to tell you what a relief it is to hear how your World is Turning!!!

Sounds like the Young and the Restless are keeping you entertained...

Since I'm totally ignorant of Soaps, I'll give up on my attempts to be clever here, and just say that I'm glad to hear you're following doctor's orders and that he's pleased with your healing.

I suspect your good days will outnumber the bad from here on out.

I will stay tuned to hear if the geese fly south and other happenings in the Days of (Y)our Lives.

Wanda..... said...

Sorry you've been down in the dumps and not feeling so great, Di. Seems the worst is over though. Maybe that was the only way your body knew how to slow you down! Glad things are looking up and that Jake will be home more often. Also glad Katie and her friends like your company, but that raw turkey bacon has me a bit concerned...living dangerously! :)

Jackie said...

Hip Hip Horray!!! Di is back on line...
I was worried....and you know that I do that.
I'm glad that Jake is home more often now....and how wonderful that the two of you spent quality time together.
Your knees look great....and I am glad that you are able to walk further and feel a bit better now, my friend.
I lub you....!!
J.

Cindy said...

Di, so sorry you have been feeling down, look at all you have been through. great news that those bad days will get fewer and fewer. Your house sounds busy. I have heard of Geo caching, my niece and nephew are big into it...good for you for trying it. I have missed you and am sending you wishes that you feel better and better. hugs to my dear friend.

Barb said...

Oh, it's so good to have you back, Di I'm glad Jake can be home with you over the weekends. (Another of my Blog friends geocaches and loves doing it.) It's good that the teens are coming to your house - at least you know what they're doing! (Could be hard on your refrigerator, though...) Your knees are looking better and better. Keep healing, Di, and don't overdo! PS It's snowing here.

Sandi said...

Oh Di, I was thrilled to see your comment on my blog and I rushed over to read what's new with you! Fantastic news! I remember exactly being where you are/were . . . one good day, two bad days, two good days, one bad day, a vicious circle it seemed! But, the doctor is so right, almost the exact same words my doctor said at 3 months.
We're both going to make it, my friend!
Love, Sandi

Rob-bear said...

I was getting ready to send the St. Bernards to find you, but you reappeared on your own. Good News!

Seems you are making excellent progress, with your knees and local teens. This is also good news!

As for the Geese, they may stay around for a while. Were you thinking, perhaps, that one might grace your Thanksgiving table at the end of the month?

Blessings and Bear hugs.

Anvilcloud said...

It's sounds as though things are beginning to pick and you're beginning to perk up.

I am wondering about our geese too. They are very busy flapping to and fro in large skeins lately. To me, you are south, but I don't know how the geese feel about the situation.

I tried geocaching a few times but discovered that our GPS wasn't accurate enough. It's a 2003 model, which is, technologically speaking, ancient.

Unknown said...

those seem like some really good laid plans! I am so glad you are feeling a little bit better each day. It is exhausting to feel CRAPPY EVERY day! I know! And just think you can look forward to the hubby being home on the weekends and the time will FLY by every week before he gets home! Just think of where you were 4 months ago and where you are today! What a huge difference! Now I feel like I have to go walking after reading your blog! lol good job Di!

Ginnie said...

Sounds to me like you're getting back to your "old self"...only with better knees!
Believe me I know about the one day up and two down ... emotionally it can be a roller coaster. Today is week 4 since my hip replacement and I feel just like you...but it gets better every day. Hang on !!

Joy said...

Hi Diana, what a WONDERFUL post... is this written by you or your daughter? No matter, it is cuter than all get-out. Love it all. Sorry you were feeling bad, but glad you are nearer to feeling like your old self. You are in fact, doing more fun things than me! (Except for my recent trip.)

And those knees...they could win a beauty contest!!

quieten said...

Sounds like your days are full of love and laughter. How good to hear that the DI we know and love is back and feeling like herself(almost!). Good news from the Dr, hubby in the area and a kitchen full of kids....Life is Good!!!!
Huggz to you, my friend.

Dee said...

I look forward to getting back into blog land myself and can relate to why you have not been wanting to blog. I love your writing style and look forward to the follow up. Good luck with those teens..I predict some realy fun and interesting posts from you.

Geoff Maritz said...

Hello Di.
Long time no visit, sorry about that. You seem to be living it up quite a lot for someone who has recently had knee surgery, they do look pretty good to me.
So you've got a teeny tiny kitchen, I like that. I would love to have kids in my home again, it's been years since my children grew up, no grandchildren yet though, Hmph!
Take it easy on those legs of yours and may you find lots of unexpected treasures on your outings with hubby. God bless you girl, Geoff.