It's My......

BIRTHDAY!

Nothing big planned for the day. MammaBear and I are going to join the madness of "Black Friday" shopping. We go more for the fun of it rather than the "must have deals". So, we usually avoid the places we know will be swamped! Then it's off to physical therapy in the afternoon. I'm pretty sure that a conference with my pillow and ice-pack will be in order after all of that! (if not between shopping and PT!).

Speaking of physical therapy, the back is getting stronger, but much slower than I had anticipated. So, I have decided, after conferring with my PT and Dr's., that it would be in my best interest to take another 2 weeks off from work. I just do not yet have the consistent strength or stamina it takes to teach a full day/week of PreK-8th grade!!

It's hard to believe another b-day has snuck up on me. You know how when you're "younger" and you "think" you have your life all planned out? Well, by now, I was to be happily married with at least 2 children. So much for those plans!! But I'm still holdin' out on hope with a "wing and a prayer"! All in all though, as stated in my last post, I am still very blessed!

Well, take care, thanks for stopping by, but I'm off to enjoy MY day :) - Elizabeth

Happy Thanksgiving!

I'll admit it, it has been a rough year, well....a couple of rough years. There have been definite times when it has been very hard not to dwell on or make lists of all the negatives, hardships, and worries, that life has dealt out.

But, today was not designed for us to gorge ourselves on good food (a nice perk!), but a time to reflect on what we are truly thankful for. So, here are some of mine; not necessarily in order of importance:

My health - even though I just had surgery, things could have been/be so much worse.

My parents - who are my best friends!

A warm home with a good roof over my head and plenty of food in the pantry.

My friends (including you bloggers!) and family who make life so much more interesting :)

My God - who always gets me through; even though I may not always like or understand the "process".

For the members and pastor of the church I play piano for once or twice a month. Even though I am not a "member", they have encompassed me as part of their "family". I have truly been in awe of the compassion I have received from them, some of whom I don't even know!

So, to all of you reading this, including my overseas/cross the border friends - where it may not be your "designated" Thanksgiving Day: Have a Blessed and Thankful filled day!

Take Care - Elizabeth

To Dad:

You went through a hell that, others may be able to relate to, but that no one can ever truly understand. And, for a cause that is just now starting to receive recognition/acknowledgement.

Unlike so many others, you came home, and I thank God every day for that. For without you, there would be no me!! There would not be some of the great memories of pulling a tree down with a garden hose, singing the "nothin" song, starting the back of the pickup on fire, feeding corn chips to the fish at the golf course, the margarine tub full of bells and clothes pins for a Christmas present, and one of my all time favorites - the "I love Elizabeth" song.

We've had our rough patches (like any normal kid and their parent), but I love you and I am proud to be your daughter - in so many ways! - Elizabeth Ann

Happy Birthday MammaBear!

For those of you who don't know, MammaBear is my Mom and today is her day!

Happy Birthday MammaBear! Love You - babybear

Need a Hug

You know how a person sometimes just needs a hug?

Well, here you go - and then you see, I get one in return :)

Happy Halloween!

I love Halloween, but have decided to lay low this year. I'm even being a scrooge and not handing out candy. I know - I'm "one of those houses". :)

I have found some motivation/energy to start a few crafty projects. One of which I gave you a glimpse of in my last post, and the others I don't have pictures of yet.

One of them is a paper piecing project. As an early B-day gift to MammaBear (Nov. 2), I signed us both up to take a paper piecing class at our local quilt shop.

Neither of us has ever taken a quilting/sewing class nor were we very confident in our paper piecing skills (very new to me), so it was a great class for us. Plus, there were only 3 of us signed up, so we had plenty of one-on-one time with the teacher.

We learned a lot, have homework to do and then we'll finish it up at our 2nd class this next week. The only down side was the 3 hour class was a little too much sitting for my back, but I got up and took mini walks around the shop, so it worked.

Speaking of my back. It will be exactly 1 month since surgery on Mon.!! I was back to the Dr. on the 26th and had the blasted 9 inches of stitches removed - and yes, I WAS BLANKET STITCHED!! The nurse could not tell me the "exact" medical term, but that is what it looks like and it is the most common type of stitch used on long incisions.

According to the Dr. everything is looking as it should. I just need to behave myself (ha!) and I start physical therapy at 3 times a week for 4 weeks this Mon., and then we re-evaluate about going back to work.

The hardest part about where I'm at now in the healing process, is that you start to feel good, so you do things or too much of one thing and then you pay for it later. Boy-do you pay for it later!!

Thank heavens for my heating pad, ice pack, pain meds, and a MammaBear who is willing to do back rubs!!!

Again, I thank you for all your kind comments and kind thoughts - they are so appreciated!

Take Care-Elizabeth

I'm Still Here!

It will be 3 weeks from surgery tomorrow! And no, I am not going stir crazy-yet. The time has flown by! Pain meds, although not as strong nor as often, the ice pack, and the heating pad are definitely my main friends! Oh, and my grabber thingie - and yes that is the "technical term" for it :) It's one of those long handled things that allows you to pick up items up off the floor etc. without bending over (which I am not supposed to do). My first one broke and for 2 days, I was completely lost with out it! Not to fear, I got a new one today and have already used it several times!

I am getting stronger little by little, and am able to walk about 2-3 blocks at a time. I'll either go for a little walk outside or I'll walk up to my public library which is 1 1/2 blocks and sit and rest and then get up and do "laps" around the building.

I'll pick up a kids book or two during my meandering and then sit and rest and read them. Can't quite handle an "adult" book yet as I'm still suffering from "drug induced ADD" - no great attention span! Then, I walk home and either lay on the couch and snooze or crawl into bed and take a nap. I'm heading more towards the "healing tired" stage vs. the "drug induced tired" stage, which is nice because I can now type an e-mail or have a conversation with someone without falling asleep in the middle of it!

I've also got enough oomph that I've been able to start a little stitchery project. It isn't much, but at least I feel like I've accomplished something during the day - even if it's just a few stitches.

Here is a sneak peak:

And that, as exciting as it may sound, pretty much covers my day.

Overall, I feel pretty good. My foot is still pretty numb/fuzzy, it might yet turn around, or I may have to get used to it being a permanent thing. My next Dr.'s appointment isn't until the 26th and then I get these blasted stitches out!! Trust me it's time for them to GO, GO, GO!

For you sewers out there - mom says it looks like I was "blanket stitched" together. I'm going to ask the Dr. what his medical term for the stitch is - wouldn't it be funny if it really turned out to be a blanket stitch!

I also wanted to thank you for all of your prayers, good thoughts, and wishes for a speedy recovery! Whenever I need a pick me up, I read your comments and the spirit is instantly lifted - THANK YOU - Elizabeth