updates

1. The Carbohydrate Addict's Diet

I feel like I have finally found a method of losing weight that works for me!

I hadn't tried to lose weight for about 10 years (really) because I didn't want to yo-yo up and down by doing something that I couldn't stick with. Also, I refused to give up baking, which is one of my true loves.

When I first started, I honestly didn't know if I could eat starchy foods and sweets only at dinnertime. I didn't know if I could go without eating snacks in between meals. I discovered that I have self-control! (Who knew?) I have more energy now, I have been healthier, I eat way more vegetables than I used to (even though I have always loved them), but the best part is that I feel so much more in control of myself.

I won't say that it isn't hard, though. I still want to eat muffins or toast for breakfast and homemade bread with peanut butter for lunch, but I know that I can always eat those things at dinnertime if I still want them, and that totally works for me. It takes more planning to make sure that I have the foods I need on hand and I have to prepare meals for myself instead of grabbing whatever is convenient. But it has been a lot easier than I anticipated. I have not deviated at all (except for one night when I ate beyond my 60-minute limit).

I can still bake! And I do so frequently. I can go out to dinner and eat whatever I want!

I have to weigh myself daily, which is not my favorite. I have always known that I feel kind of bloated when I get my period, but last week I gained a pound every day! Very discouraging. This week, however, I have slowly been going down every day. It's interesting to see that the fluctuations are greater than I suspected. Last week, I had to give myself pep talks to keep going – I was afraid that it had stopped working for me, but I stuck to it.

Today makes 12 weeks since I started, and I have lost about 15 pounds. Slow and steady, but at least I know I am going in the right direction! Some of my clothes have gotten too big, and I have pulled out some smaller items that I haven't been able to wear for a long time. It's a good feeling.

2. My knees

After I completed my 8-week knee therapy program (in March), I was experiencing quite a bit of pain relief, but not as much as I had hoped. My doctor told me that the positive effects would continue, with maximum pain relief occurring in another 6-8 weeks. My knees feel great now.

I have found that it is more difficult than I anticipated to do my exercises at home. I was relieved to be finished with my therapy appointments because they took up so much time, but when I had to keep an appointment, I actually did the work. Now that I'm on my own, it's not so easy. I don't always remember to wear my braces (cyborg legs). I'm working on it.

I ran a little bit with Eva during her school race and was amazed to discover that I could do it! I haven't done any running in years. Many years.

This treatment has been far more successful than my surgeries were. (I'm sure that losing weight helps as well.) I am feeling very optimistic.

tales from PT

My 8-week course of knee treatments is coming to an end and this is my last week of physical therapy!

My 24th and final visit will be on Friday. Each visit lasts an average of 2 hours long, which means that I have been spending 6 hours or more a week at the facility. It's funny – when you spend that much time with a group of people, you get to know a lot of things.

I calculated that there are at least 12 employees that I have worked with and talked with on a regular basis.

There's Candace, who was 7 1/2 months pregnant when I started the treatments. As time went by, she had a countdown and her co-workers had an office pool going to guess her delivery date. One day when I was there, I heard that she wasn't feeling well and went home. She delivered a beautiful baby boy a few days later!

Brittany is newly pregnant and a little green around the gills. She eats oranges to keep the nausea at bay, and sneaks candies out of the treat drawer to give to Eva.

Katherine is very petite, I think 4'10", so she often puts on/takes off ankle weights to help out her co-workers, especially the pregnant ones. She and her husband just bought their first house and moved in and she is happily unpacking and organizing.

Jeb is the loudest guy in any room. He is comfortable conversing with anyone, on any subject. He likes to talk dinosaurs with Eva because she knows about the newer ones he has never heard of before. He teases everyone, and the older patients seem to really enjoy it. He sees me reading and keeps telling me about his favorite book, Vertical Run. It is apparently a real action page-turner with quite the body count. I've told him it's not exactly my style, but he hasn't given up trying to persuade me. He has a 5-month old baby girl and lives for the weekends when he gets to take over her care and spend lots of time with her. He's got a gruff exterior, but he's really a softie.

There are about 10 other patients that I see frequently, as well.

There's Pat, who seems to be an ex-military guy. I think of him as a show-off. When he does his leg raises, he puts his foot all the way over his head and touches the wall. I don't like to do my exercises next to Pat. He always has a book with him, though, so I guess we do have something in common.

There's the woman with dark spiky hair (I never caught her name) who is always bubbly. She is cheerful and talks to everyone. I am even more reserved than usual when she is around.

There's the man who turns the speed way up on the anti-gravity treadmill and runs on his tiptoes. When the PTs ask him to slow down and walk heel-toe, he is belligerent and demands one good reason. (They have many good reasons.) I can't really blame him, it is a delightful feeling to be able to walk (or run) without pain.

Then there's the woman who comes to work out with a different, ginormous ring every time. What a character!

Blaine, a distinguished-looking older man, is polite and cooperative. He wears pink oxford shirts and jeans and has a quiet, dry sense of humor. I found out yesterday that he has made 9 trips to Ghana to help build a school. I love Blaine.

I've learned all kinds of things by talking to people at physical therapy.

I heard a terrifying story about a woman who unknowingly got a spider bite. She had a little red mark on her hand and didn't think much of it. She went out with some friends that night and they noticed a dark line going from her hand up to her elbow. They persuaded her to go to the E.R. (she didn't have insurance and was trying to avoid it). By the time she got there, it was up to her shoulder. She had blood poisoning and the doctors told her that if she had waited until morning, it would have gone to her heart and killed her! A cautionary tale.

I learned about a shooting app for smart phones. Apparently, you can enter in the type of gun you are using, and it looks up your location and factors in the wind direction and speed and tells you how to compensate. There's an app for everything!

I learned about a diet I had never heard of before – The Carbohydrate Addict's Diet. I got it from the library, read it, and am now on day 5 of following it! Who knows, maybe I'll lose all this weight and have physical therapy to thank for it!

I'm going to miss some of the people. I'm going to miss the anti-gravity treadmills. I'm going to miss the end-of-workout shaking machine. I'm definitely going to miss the knee massage and icing sessions – the reward after the pain. I'm not going to miss the big chunks of time (close to 3 hours with travel time).

I'm not sure how I used to spend all of that time when my kids are all at school, but I'm excited to find out!

p.s. My knees are feeling much, MUCH better than they did before I started!

high excitement

There has been some high excitement around here. First of all, Lucas got new shoes. (He needed new shoes in the very worst way.) He picked out these Vans and a pair of basketball shoes. He walked around with a huge smile and told us numerous times that he can run faster and jump higher now.

Also, he went back to school today, after missing 6 days due to another sinus infection! Oh, happy day.

Max is going to the state competition for his cello solo! He has worked hard and long on that piece, and we are so proud of him.

Recently, it was finally Eva's turn to bring the "Sound Box" to school. (Somehow, the only picture I have is on my phone, and I can't figure out how to get it here...) Each child takes a turn with a different letter of the alphabet. Hers was T, so she had to fill the box with things that start with the letter T. Even though she brought the box home several days before she was to return it, filling it was of the utmost importance, and we had to drop everything to hunt for T objects. We put in a bag of miniature Twix bars for a T treat.

Yesterday morning, she badgered Marc and I into putting together quick sound boxes of our own, for her entertainment. The girl has got skills.

A rather frightening photo of one of my new leg braces.

I got my new, super-expensive, custom-made leg braces. My family teases me about my "cyborg legs" – they really do make me look part machine. But the combination of the braces, the physical therapy, and the injections must be working, because I can now walk down stairs normally most of the time! And I no longer avoid putting on the brake in my van for fear of not being able to release it. Cause for excitement indeed.

As for Marc, he has been having a rough go of it, and I'm not sure that he's all that excited about anything right now. Well, maybe his spring study abroad program that he'll be splitting with another professor...

before & after

I finally got my hair cut and colored on Saturday (only a month overdue)! I took before & after self-portraits to document the extreme transformation. Now if only I could look like the after shot every day. I have tried and tried to just reconcile myself to my curly hair, but it's not working.
















Today I started the injection phase of my knee treatments (one per week for 5 weeks). It was cool – they use an x-ray and contrast dye to guide the injection and insure its correct placement. I was instructed to take it easy for the next couple of days and ice my knees several times. Pain relief will probably not be noticeable for another couple of weeks. Obviously, I'm hoping for an extreme transformation in this domain as well.

five for Friday

In addition to Jill's, I got another belated Christmas gift this week: my grandpa gave me a copy of the book Charlotte made about our grandmother's life. (She interviewed her before her death and transcribed the tapes into this book for all of us.) It is such a treasure!

I read it immediately. Although I already knew most of what she wrote, there were a few surprises, and it's just wonderful having it all documented and available for re-reading. I only wish it were longer! A big thank you to Grandpa and Charlotte.

I made a treasure chest cake for New Beginnings. The YW/YM theme for the year is the 13th Article of Faith, and we have decided to focus on the seeking good things and to be treasure-seekers. Although I made this cake 3 times in a row for Lucas's birthday with great success, the one I made yesterday started to completely fall apart in back.

I thought we were going to serve it after our program, but the advisers brought brownies and I came home with the cake intact. Max was shaking his head over the apparent inability of the young women to eat brownies and cake. My family was not complaining, though.

I have been wearing these shoes a lot (highly unusual). I have physical therapy three times a week now, and I felt rather foolish wearing street shoes.

I was measured for custom knee braces, only to find out that they are going to cost $380. Each. Out of pocket. (Insurance pays 80%.) I've had to think on that. I don't want to forego an important part of the treatment, but I also didn't factor in another $800 in our FSA! The jury's still out. The injection portion of the treatment starts next week!

Emily came over on Saturday to hang out with us and she's coming again tomorrow. It's really not too exciting around here, but I'm always glad that she wants to be here. She's so entertaining, and a great sport. She's content to do errands, cook together, or just hang out and knit. She pays attention to the kids and she likes to play games. She even offered to do some cleaning. You can see why she's always welcome here!

A little neighbor wanted to borrow a yarn needle. I gave her one and told her I would love it if she brought it back when she was finished (for some reason, I am always losing them). This is how she returned my "neetle." Love it.

p.s. I took the kids to get haircuts the other night and heard Eva telling her stylist that a boy in her class is a bit of a tomgirl. That's a new one.

a really good thing

A few months ago, I found out about a state-of-the-art pain treatment center that provides non-surgical alternatives for knee pain. (It's right down the street from Jill's house!) I went in for a consultation, had new x-rays taken, and found out about their programs.

As it turns out, I am an excellent candidate. My arthritis is advanced enough to benefit, but not so extreme as to render it untreatable. Here are a few of the things I have difficulty with:

setting/releasing the brake pedal in my car
putting on pants
putting on socks
extended periods of walking
extended periods of sitting
extended periods of standing
walking quickly
walking down stairs
kneeling

Also, my relatively young age works in my favor. (At this facility, I am a bona fide spring chicken!)

The 8-week program involves extensive physical therapy, custom-made leg braces, electrical stimulation, massage, and a series of injections that gradually build up a synthetic cushioning in the joint. Instead of having knee surgery every 2-3 years until I am old enough for knee replacements, I can repeat this program every 2-3 years as needed, indefinitely, with a high probability of never needing replacements at all!

I was completely convinced, and wanted to start the program immediately, but as even our portion of the cost is kind of high, I had to wait until we got our new FSA allotment in January.

Anyway, today was the day! Today I started what I hope is a whole new life of reduced pain and increased activity and mobility. I am filled with hope.

Part of my physical therapy includes using a zero-gravity treadmill. What a strange experience! Basically, you wear a special pair of neoprene shorts, then you get zipped into this contraption that pulls up around your waist. The machine weighs you, then you can tell it what percentage of your body weight you want to exercise with! My PT punched in 50% of my weight, and I walked, completely pain-free. When my time was almost up, she punched it up to 80% and I felt the old familiar pain return immediately. Before turning it off, she put it up to 100% and I felt a serious twinge of disappointment. Man, it felt good being 50% lighter!

I did all kinds of targeted exercises, and then was treated to a knee massage and ice packs. Ahhhhhh. I could get used to this! Two more weeks of physical therapy before the injections begin. I am really feeling like this could be my big break. Hoping and praying.

p.s. All of the other patients I saw were easily 30 years old than me. It makes me feel really old. Or young, depending on how I look at it!

La Villette

During our last week in Paris, we finally made it out to Cité de la Villette, which is even more enormous than I realized. It has several museums, a park, and a geode IMAX theater.

We started with the Musée de la Musique, which Max had really been wanting to see. I didn't know what to expect, and I was quite impressed with their collection of beautiful instruments (4 floors).

The amount of ornamentation and detail on the clavichords is truly amazing.

Blurry photo, but check out the keys on this one! I wish my black keys had stripes!

The blacks and whites are reversed on this keyboard.

We saw guitars that were equally ornate. Inlaid wood necks!

Look at the incredible carving behind the strings. Unbelievable.

Max was particularly curious about this "experimental cello." I wonder what it sounds like?

They have several miniature sets that kept Eva entertained. Just one of many reasons we wished we could have brought Kristen to this museum!

During our visit, we were fortunate enough to see a live musician. We were his only audience for awhile, and he was very gracious. He would stop playing and tell us about his instrument, a théorbe. According to Wickipedia, its English name is theorbo and it's related to the lute. The music was beautiful. He showed us his sheet music, and it was completely incomprehensible to me. Fascinating.

If Jill had a centuries-old grand piano (or clavichord, perhaps), she would need this smashing red & black model!

I loved this little musician's toolkit.

This is a finger gym! A plethora of exercises to keep the fingers nimble and strong. Never seen anything like it.

Max had read about this octo-bass and was excited to see it in person. Nothing could prepare us for how huge it was! We heard a recording of what it sounds like when played and the notes were the lowest I've ever heard.

I was completely smitten with the back of this violin.

After spending a couple of hours in the music museum, we walked through the park over to the Cité des Sciences.

Unfortunately, at this point the hands-on exhibits for younger kids were going to close shortly and they wouldn't sell us tickets for them. Eva especially was disappointed, but we salvaged the visit by going to the vision exhibit.

It had tons of optical illusion type games and all kinds of activities designed to teach about the way our eyes work and respond to light.




Every station had instructions that were, of course, in French, which required my translating skills. This proved difficult as the kids all wanted to go to different stations so they could each be doing something at the same time. At this point I was having excruciating knee pain and could barely hobble around. Needless to say, I was definitely ready to leave before the kids were.

La Villette is a place we will explore further in the future!

T-5 days and counting...

We leave in 5 days to go back home.

We have a long list of things to do before leaving. (I'm referring to the list the kids and I made. Marc has his own, even longer, list.)

On Monday, we went to the Army museum at Les Invalides, which Lucas has been lobbying for now for quite some time. It was cooler than I remembered. Also, Max went to a cello concert at a church that night.

Yesterday, we went to the Musée de la Musique and the Cité des Sciences, which Max has been lobbying for now for quite some time. It was so great, we wish we had discovered it earlier.

Today, we discovered that the museums are all on strike. (Strikes are like a national pastime in France.) Whew! We could not have timed that better!

Also today, we returned Max's cello -- and got all of our 500 euro deposit back! I planned meals and went grocery shopping, strolling down Rue Cler and visiting the butcher shop, the bakery, and two other stores. Then we finally went to Carl Morletti, a fancy, relatively new pâtisserie we discovered. Oh my, oh my. Probably for the best that I didn't go there until now...

Yesterday, my left knee suddenly started to hurt so much that I couldn't take a step without tears coming to my eyes. Max had to take over stroller duty, and I could only walk down stairs by holding on to the rail and holding my left leg straight, actually causing small children to stop and stare. I was stranded way out at Porte de la Villette, where there are stairs upon stairs upon stairs and I actually wondered for awhile if I would be able to make it back to the apartment.

Today when I woke up, my knee had returned to its pre-Tuesday dull pain. I have no idea what is going on.

We have much (to attempt) to do in the next few days. I am trying to balance resting my knee, helping the kids to squeeze in the things on their list, and knocking some things off my list as well. It's a busy time, but a good time.

And I have some very good reasons for wanting to get home. So, once again, Paris is bringing out the conflicting feelings in me...

ice and treachery

{I seem to have an icicle fixation this winter.}

It was not the best of days. When I left the house this morning to take Lucas to go play at Jill's, I carefully held Eva's hand to make sure she didn't slip on our permanently icy steps. Instead, I fell on the ice and hurt my left knee pretty badly. I cried out in pain, which caused Eva to have an instant meltdown because she was so upset (are anyone else's kids like this? Because all of mine are). So in the midst of my pain, I sat down on the ice and held her and reassured her until I was wet and freezing as well. Not a great way to start out.

The rest of the day continued thus, with a whole string of annoyances, irritations, and tantrums. Nothing major, just enough small things to stretch my patience very thin.

Tonight we had to attend the stake youth cultural night, because Max was a participant. Not a big participant, just singing in a big group number. He has hated all of the rehearsals, he didn't really want to go to the performance, and neither did I, but I felt like it was something we needed to do just to be supportive. (I'm glad we had that goal in mind, because other than that it felt like a waste of time.)

And if I heard "I want my daddy!" once today, I heard it 50 times. It's the first thing Eva tells me when I get her up in the morning, and the last thing she tells me when I put her to bed at night. Thank heavens today is the last day of the Sundance Film Festival!

A little while ago, I heard a car spinning its wheels outside my house. I opened the shutters to see if it was teenagers out joyriding (that shows you what an old stick in the mud I am) and was surprised to see my neighbors' Suburban, completely stuck in the ice. They were out there pushing it, gunning the engine and getting nowhere. I am not exaggerating when I say that it lasted for about 20 minutes, and while of course I realize that they were not engaging in this fruitless exercise to annoy others, I felt like I wanted to throttle someone! I hate it when I have surges of anger that seem to come out of nowhere. I blame it on hormones.

After all of the kids were finally in bed, I noticed that my knee was really hurting, and my spirit wasn't faring too well either. I made a batch of muffins, took a long hot shower, and now I'm contemplating icing my knee. I say contemplating because those ice packs are really cold, and while I welcomed that throughout the spring, summer and fall, it's not seeming like such a treat in the dead of winter.

And that got me to thinking about how it's been less than a year since I had my first knee surgery. That even though I went through months of my nightly icing ritual, I haven't yet had to do it in the wintertime. Yet another example of the ways in which the passage of time confounds my mind. It seems like so long ago, can it really have only been about 9 months? But I can hardly remember the time before I had knee problems! How can that seem like ages ago, but the month of January zoomed by in the blink of an eye? It seems I'll never be able to sort it all out.

I'm just thankful that for now, for this brief moment, I am not responsible for anyone but myself. So I will nurse my knee and my troubled mind, maybe watch a movie or read in bed, and be so grateful to start anew tomorrow.
p.s. in addition to my cup of tea and hot muffin, this also lifted my post-shower spirits! I just bought it yesterday, and it smells so good. I have also used the vanilla chai scent and loved it.

misc. updates

I'm not sure how I went 3 days without posting, but now I'm left with a bunch of miscellaneous updates, not my favorite way to post...

On Saturday Lucas, Eva, and I caught the part of Landon's last soccer game. I haven't been to one of those in ages! It was fun to see Landon play,

Randy coach, and Jill shooting photos and yelling from the sidelines.


Whitney and Eva entertained themselves with sticks and branches. Of course.

As we were leaving, Jill gave Eva a little handful of Jelly Bellies for the ride home. Eva clutched them as I buckled her into her carseat and said, "Jill gave me jella beans! It's my happy birthday!" Who knew she was so easy to please? (Yep, she says jella beans. And gumma bears.)

Marc put a coat of paint on our new bookshelf. He bought it at the BYU surplus sale for $10!! It has sliding glass doors and is 6 feet long. The plan is to have it finished and ready to move into the family room after we finally get our real carpet installed -- whenever that is.

{It's been nearly 4 weeks since the wrong carpet was installed. They found the right carpet and ordered it over a week ago, no word on when it will go in. We thought maybe we would get the kitchen and entryway tiled before the new carpet came, to simplify things. The quote came in tonight for, brace yourselves: $2003! Those of you who know how small our kitchen is and how miniscule our entryway might be reeling now, as I am. Maybe we won't be tiling now after all...}


I put a coat of primer on one of our old bookshelves. Marc had the great idea to paint it and put it in a corner of my studio for an awesome storage addition. Excellent! (Why didn't I think of that?)

On Saturday night, Marc and I left Max to babysit while we went to see Waitress at the dollar theater. The theater has a new owner, who was out talking to people waiting in line to be seated. He was showing the BYU football game on two screens, which I thought was quite a brilliant idea. It looked like there were tons of people there to see it, all decked out in their blue & white, and although they were cheering pretty loudly, it didn't disturb our adjacent theater at all. Anyway, he said he is trying to bring in more films that don't get distributed to our county. So... we'll be able to see movies that we couldn't normally see, and it will only cost a dollar? Count us in!


I really enjoyed the movie. It had plenty of quirky characters, and I laughed a lot. (Although every time the jerk husband was on screen, I was completely tense, I just could not believe that guy.) Sure it had its predictable parts, but the good definitely outweighed the not-so-good. And, come on, anything with pie as a central role is alright by me.

Here's the killer, though: I ended our date by crying, again. I think Marc is somewhat concerned about this disturbing post-date trend. (Our last date, you may remember, was when we went to see a movie I cannot now recall -- shortly after Jessie moved -- and the two sisters in the film made me completely break down on the way home.) I don't know if I was already emotionally keyed up by the movie of what, but when we got up to leave and my knee gave out on me, necessitating a humiliating and painful hobble to the car, the tears welled up. I kept it in check until we got home, but then I couldn't restrain myself and I started crying in earnest while I did the dishes.

Here's the rundown, in short -- last weekend: feeling very optimistic about my knee recovery. Monday: doctor visit, in which I was encouraged to start exercising. Tuesday: worked out on the elliptical machine and felt great. Exhilarated. Wednesday: worked out on the elliptical machine, and knees started hurting. Thursday: decided, on Marc's advice, to maybe give my knees a break and exercise every other day. Friday: knees worse. Saturday: hobbling. Optimism dissipated.

Sunday, on the way home from church, Max informed me that he wanted to make cream puffs. Um... ok. (knowing that this would require help from me, as he has never before made cream puffs, or custard filling) But I am not in the habit of discouraging any burgeoning interests, least of all those that involve cooking or other household duties!

He made chocolate custard from scratch, cream puffs from scratch, and then filled the puffs with custard and topped them with a dark chocolate icing and whipped cream.

The finished product: tasty and attractive!

The best part was that Marc's parents called us in the evening and asked if they could come by for a visit. This was ideal for two reasons: Eva was so excited she was speechless, and Max was able to share his foray into pastry-making with his grandparents.

Today we were all feeling the effects of this lovely September, one of the worst months for allergies here (or so says Marc's allergist). Eva was stuffy and sneezing all day, and every time she sneezed, she would collapse on the floor, cry for a tissue, and say, "Oh no! I need more medicine!" Even with the most minor of illnesses, she becomes very fussy and emotionally volatile (yes, more than usual). She even fell asleep in the car after taking Lucas to school, at 9:00 a.m.! Good grief. Suffice it to say that I did not accomplish much today. A trip to the library and a load of laundry are the only things that come to mind. (Oh, and I caught two more mice. But I don't want to talk too much about that, following on the heels of talk of food and all.)

Speaking of the library, I found it surprisingly difficult to find books for Eva. The board books were too elementary (although she still enjoys a lot of her board books) and the picture books were so verbose. I had to really search to find books that were longer than board books, but didn't have so many words to a page that she lost interest. So if you have any suggestions...

And one final note: as we were reading the library books we got before bed tonight, I noticed a dedication on one of them was, "To Katie, and her hamhocks, with love." What?! I thought I was the only person who called my kids' thighs hamhocks!

sweet, sweet cortisone

My knee seemed to get worse continually over the weekend, to the point where I could barely walk at all. Every 3rd or 4th step, my knee would just buckle under me, causing great pain at the same time. I had to stay home from church when I fell after getting out of the shower.

I had called the doctor's office on Friday morning (I could see things worsening) and the soonest they could get me in was Wednesday. I called this morning to see if anything had changed, and they had me come right in!

They think that it's post-surgery inflammation that's causing me so much pain, so we decided to try a cortisone shot. Apparently, the effects of the shot aren't complete for 2-14 days, but they also add a numbing medication. So.... right now I can walk! Not completely without pain, but at least I can walk. The numbness is supposed to last for 3-4 hours, so I am hurrying to get stuff done before it wears off. My parents arrive on Wednesday night for Lucas's baptism, and I have a lot to do!

back in the fray

...of my life, that is! Marc went back to work yesterday, so I'm back to real life. Well, modified real life. I haven't really gotten the kids back to their chore schedule, and I haven't gotten back to cub scouts or piano lessons. Hey, I think I like this real life! At any rate, I'm glad it's summertime and things can be a little more laid-back.

Jessie and Hannah came over yesterday with their girls. Hannah did some scrapbooking, Jessie was working on a project, and I was just kind of hanging out, but I was sure glad to have some company! After spending most of last week in bed, I was bored and lonely.

I'm not sure why I didn't get any pictures of Hannah or Kaylee (sheesh), but here a few shots of the morning. The three bigger girls got along pretty well together!

{Eva & Bella}

{Eva, Bella & Mya}

{Jessie & Eva}

I have no idea why Eva was wearing a combat helmet, but it was definitely humorous. Eva was completely infatuated with Kaylee, and I realized that it was the first time she's seen a baby close-up! When she got up from her nap, she said: "I want to see the baby again!"

I went to the doctor yesterday for a post-op checkup. I have to say it was a bit depressing. He said I'm healing nicely (thanks, no doubt, to the absence of frantic preparations to leave the country!) and that after going to physical therapy a few times, I should start biking again. Good news. He said that he doesn't have any other patients my age with osteoarthritis. He also said that osteoarthritis tends to get worse over time, so I can expect to repeat these surgeries every few years. Also that I'm probably headed towards knee replacements at some point. Right..... That's the bad news. I'm going to start taking glucosamine/chondroitin and see if it helps.

After my first day of being up and about all day, I was totally beat and my knee was killing me last night. Thank heavens for pain meds that I now take only at bedtime. This morning Jill took my boys to the freedom festival to watch the hot air balloons, and Eva and I went outside while it was still cool. I did some deadheading in the yard and she played on the slide. Good times.

spt -- hello

Here are the definitely scary spt photos I took on Monday but haven't had a chance to post yet...


I had to write on my knee so they wouldn't mistakenly operate on the wrong one! (Nothing but spt could possibly induce me to publish a photo of my scary scary knees!)

all's well that ends well

Good news: I only had to have ONE knee operated on on Monday!

The surgeon thought we should leave well enough alone with my right knee, since it seems to be healing pretty well from the previous surgery, and hopefully that will do the trick. I was shocked to hear that he didn't find a tear or injury in my left knee, as I was convinced that was what was causing all this pain, but he thinks it's just arthritis. So, he's going for the minimally invasive route, and I am just hoping that I will be on the path to being able to walk pain-free again (and, who knows?, maybe even ride my bike!).

So far so good. I think this recovery will be easier because we are not getting ready to leave the country. And since I was prepared to be in a wheelchair for a few days, and on crutches for 3 weeks, this now seems easy breezy. Marc is able to be around, and he's been taking care of me and everything else. Pretty nice! (as Eva would say) I'm not able to sleep as much as I would like because of the pain (thus my 4:00 a.m. post), but other than that I'm doing pretty well.

Incidentally, this is my 401st post! woohoo!

And, I have some good mail to report:

Jessie sent me a package in Paris, which was returned to her. It was a bonanza! It included this lovely box of flowers


a handmade Mother's Day gift


as well as some little envelopes of still more flowers, and a hilarious postcard from Real Simple reminding me to check my moles for any signs of change! (So good to know she cares.) Oh, and an ad from Michael's showcasing the new Martha Stewart Crafts line -- I can't believe no one told me about that!!

When our book club met last week for "lounge club", Amy brought me the most darling gift!:


a very cute handmade bag, and if that wasn't enough, she filled it with goodies she has discovered since I've been gone!

two items from MS Crafts, two items from the new Amy Butler scrapbook line, and some fat quarters from a fabric store she discovered. All so very pleasing, and color-coordinated, to boot!

Tasha sent this wonderful children's book. I love it!! I don't know how she is managing to send out good mail with a newborn and an impending move... I guess I'd better get on the ball.

Thanks for thinking of me, girls, it definitely made the transition home sweeter!