not necessarily in this order

 Hello friends! It's been a minute, right? The Mr. and I have been talking about how it was wild enough that we got a puppy last fall when we already felt like we were running on fumes between Lil Momma's extracurricular schedule, working on my aunt's estate, work being oof, injuries... only for me to throw this MLIS class into the mix. It's taken literally almost the entire first quarter of the year for me to feel like I have a modicum of control over my tasks and house and life, but I'm back with a catch up and hopefully back here and in your comment sections on a regular basis, too.  Yes, Maysie, I’m sitting here   For now, some catching up on what I've been catching up on: School I think I had left off saying I felt so much better once I dropped that second class that I was supposed to start mid-March. I also feel so much better because I have a better perspective on what I am trying to get out of this experience. I think I was putting in inordinate amount o...

  Random life updates :  1. More on the puppy when she’s here – expected arrival is the week after next! So much to get ready, but also so much excitement and anticipation.  2. Lil Momma survived her first few days of 7 th  grade but is having trouble with the noise levels of having THIRTY SEVEN other kids in the classrooms. There is a whole other post I could write about public schools and overrides and how we’re failing our kids and our teachers and staff, but that is not for today. Foot/Ankle/Morale Update    I am almost 5 months out from having this foot/ankle surgery. If you had asked me before the surgery, I would have thought I’d be 80% back to my life: Walking in the woods, if not hiking. Strength workouts. Slow jogs on the treadmill. Intervals on the bike. Dragging my family on weekend adventures.    That is not how it has gone down.   I severely underestimated what recovery would look like. My expectations were so far out of reality...

  Lil Momma and the Mr. are visiting family down south this week and I’ve been on my own with Bella, our dog. To be clear, they didn’t ditch me!! I’m just not walking fast or far enough for it not to be a drag or a liability on that type of vacation.   To be honest, LM and I were both a little shook - we’ve never been apart this long!! It’s one of those times I’m glad she has a way to text me and we got to talk each night about her adventures (which included dip dyeing the bottom 6 inches of her hair purple - an early birthday present!). In honor of my week here at the house by myself, here are 5 random Friday thoughts about being alone: One : I realized that I’m very rarely alone in a situation where I can just be. I’m alone in my car on my ride to work or driving back from dropping LM off somewhere, but this week was different because I could just exist in this space and be.  Two : Back when the Mr. traveled for work and LM was a baby on steroids who never slept, I alwa...

It’s been a wild July and I feel like I’ve been scattered all over the place. I figured I’d start the week off with some quick updates! Weighted dance Dino and hotel room ice cream!   PT Update I’m in this weird space where I feel like I should be progressing faster, but I’ve also come so, so far. I have to keep reminding myself that I started weight-bearing at the end of May and got out of the boot and back to driving at the start of July – it really hasn’t been that long!   Now that I’m more comfortable walking (and less terrified my ankle/foot will shatter into a million pieces), my PT is all about building strength, balance, and endurance. I’m finding that I can walk for a few minutes in good form and then I start to limp– and, the limp leads to my right hip and lower back hurting. This was exacerbated by going back into the office 2 days a week (which is so much walking) and sitting in awful chairs on the weekends for Lil Momma’s performances. So, I’m also doing a lot of ...

 A handful of thoughts from the end of June chaos… One Poor Lil Momma had a freak accident last weekend, but luckily it was more annoying than painful. Saturday night, she was headed upstairs to get ready for bed and remembers hitting her palm on the railing - but not hard enough to say anything (and she would say something, haha!). When I came up to hang with her, I noticed her ring finger was bent down and asked her about it. We quickly realized she couldn’t raise it without her other hand or assistance. Strangely, I didn’t even have to ask Dr  Google what it was (although I’ve googled a lot since haha!): When LM was a toddler, she randomly developed “tr!gger finger” in her thumb that had to be released via surgery; here’s hoping this one will have some other options. A trip to Urgent Care left her with a splint and an appointment at the orthopedic surgeon’s next week… Two …which leads us to the camp she was supposed to attend this week and next saying she couldn’t come un...

I've been deep in my thoughts and feels the last couple of weeks. I know I keep saything this, but I don't know what I expected from this recovery. I think, possibly, that I didn't expect anything because I was so busy doing so many things (so many) that I never took a beat and thought about what this might be like. Bella sitting in my feels with me, haha! Recovery so far is a roller coaster and so much more mental that I ever thought.  Tomorrow will wrap up my third week of PT.  I've gone from using both crutches and not putting my right foot on the ground at all.... to putting my booted foot down with both crutches... to using one crutch with my booted foot... to walking around inside in only the boot! Amazing, right? 3 weeks! Six appointments! I'm really proud of my physical progress and my mental progress, too, as moving on to each "phase" has come with a lot of anxiety. Will my foot even hold me up anymore? What if I fall? How do I even walk? HOW DID ...

I  started PT  last Thursday! It feels so good to be doing things! Yet – it is also hard to do things when the only thing I’ve been doing is keeping my foot elevated for the last 6 weeks. I had read so much of this is mental and that really is true. My first PT activities have included doing the ankle alphabet (literally drawing the letters with my big toe) and dorsiflexion with a band a few times a day to increase mobility and TAKING 20 STEPS AN HOUR!! (in the boot) (on crutches) (at 25%). The steps took me on a journey. First, it’s hard to step down when the whole point wasn’t to step down for weeks and weeks. Next, it’s hard to recognize what 25% pressure feels like. I did the whole thing with the scale and figuring out what it feels like, but it’s hard to know in the moment if I’m putting enough pressure on it. But, all good steps (haha) in the right direction and I’m excited to do more at my 2 PT appointments this week! Lil Momma had a tween sass-induced tech break for 24...

  42 days post-surgery. Crutches and shower stools and scars and swelling. A house I never lived in but somehow own went on the market, got oh so many offers, and hopefully closes on Thursday. A too-soon return to work (leading to a chest cold and exhaustion) and an immediate organizational change and so much stress and feelings. 3 dance competitions that involved a knee scooter, a wheelchair, hotels. tears of joy and sadness from Lil Momma, and way too much takeout. A cold and a pinched sciatic nerve. I thought I'd write more during this time, but I've been stuck. Stuck in a chair, stuck in my head, stuck in this moment. This is a big week: follow-up at the orthopedic surgeon tomorrow where I hopefully get cleared for the next part of this and then  start PT and close on my aunt's house on the same day later in the week.  I'm taking both of those happening on the same day as a sign from the Universe that it's time to start moving on and into what is next.  Wow, tha...

 Hello! It's been a minute... I had all these expectations for what my recovery would be like: I will read all the books! I will watch all the shows! I will write all the letters! I will take up art as a hobby! I will be going out of my head to get back to work! That wasn't my journey - and that's ok! It's been a wild trip so far and I'm figuring out how to navigate this moment and what happens next with grace and an open mind. Day 0 (surgery day):  My surgery was outpatient so I was a bit loopy when the Mr. picked me up. I had this heavy and huge splint on that went up to just below my knee - we were shocked! It wasn't a full cast - the front was open on my shin - but it was so heavy and impacted my balance, which made my first forays into non-weight-bearing (NWB) a trip (in more ways than one, haha!)... I had been given crutches, but they were not much help once we arrived home and I had to get up 4 stairs (SO DAUNTING) to get into the house. My poor dyslexic...

Hello from the other side! Yesterday was the big day. 5am wake-up to get ready and head to the surgery center, I said goodbye to LM and the Mr in the waiting room at 6:30am, and the Mr had me home by 1pm. I’m settled in my recliner with LM’s mat as a Bella-blocker. Overnight, all Bella wanted was to jump up and be with me which was sweet but quite ill timed. The Mr is hanging downstairs with me while I get the hang of crutches and the unexpected weight of the splint so luckily he was there to help put up my “gate”. Later this week, I hope to write up a recap and where I’m at - did I mention I got myself a laptop as one of my recovery “tools”? - so this is just a quick drop in to check in. Hope you’re having good starts to your week!

It’s a little less than a week until my foot/ankle surgery. I feel like I’ve lost the thread between all my lists and what needs to be done before this happens and what is feasible to get done before all this happens. Between trying to land cleaning out my aunt’s house that’s 90 minutes away  and getting it on the market by the end of the month - and doing her taxes - and getting all of LM’s spring and summer clothes and dance competition stuff prepared and this wild season at work with everything going on and with everything literally going on all the time, I feel like I’m all over the place (as is this too apt run on sentence, haha). Yard statues have been rescued! Here are some hot takes on where I’m at:   Pros : I have a recliner to sleep/recover in  I have a wedge pillow to elevate my foot (and it fits on said recliner!) I have a knee scooter (with a bell) (and a personalized license plate haha) I got my aunt’s taxes done on time  I’ll have time to go back in ev...

  Hello from our deck on the first warm weekend day to really appreciate it! Nothing like a romance novel and a super soaker to prevent the squirrels from taking out my birdcam again to set the Saturday vibe! Honestly, I’m sitting here like a plant soaking up some sun and avoiding my to do list. Lil Momma is running around the yard in socks, practicing her dance solo, and chattering away. The Mr is cleaning our gardens and making plans to take down a small tree that is allowed the squirrels to take out the antenna on our other birdcam a few weeks ago. Last night we went and saw Alton Brown’s final tour in Boston.The Mr and I have seen every tour he’s done and his shows (television and live) have really been one of those constants in our almost 20 year relationship. Lil Momma joined us last night, which made me super happy to do something fun as a family before everything gets crazy. (Crazier) In this very moment, she’s having her yearly realization that she loves being outside and ...

In 6 weeks or so (50 days when I wrote this), I’ll be having surgery on my right ankle and foot that’s both a long time coming and, at the same time, kind of a disaster. Random pic of wild cat wrapping paper I found cleaning out my aunt’s house that really feels like my current vibe (and reminds me of Stephany !) For the friends of Dr. Google (or with medical knowledge haha), I’m having a lateral ligament reconstruction, LDCO, and dorsiflexion 1st metatarsal osteotomy. For those who like to protect their peace (#goals), basically they’re going to tighten/clean up the ligaments on the outside of my ankle. At the same time, to address my overly high arch and standing on my foot incorrectly, they’re going to adjust my heel bone to the outside to improve alignment.  It’s a lot. It’s not driving for 8+ weeks. It’s being non-weight bearing for at least 6 weeks. It’s learning how to walk again. It’s 6 months of recovery.  It’s also the rest of my life. It’s better balance and mobilit...