This afternoon, my stitches (all two of them) are coming out, and tomorrow begins physical therapy. I would appreciate your prayers, because I’m a little nervous about pt. I dreamed the other day that they made me do squats (like in weight training), and I woke myself up terrified with real tears in my eyes! 😦

On a happy note, I am able to bend my knee 90 degrees, and I can support all of my weight on my right leg for a brief time. Yet, certain actions that seem fairly simple (like bending & lifting my leg to dry my feet after a shower) still elude me. I did manage to shave my legs this morning, so I hope my orthopedist appreciates the effort. LOL!

No. 5 asked Mr. Lemur to keep me company while he was at school.

My knee surgery went well on Thursday. I was able to bear weight and even walk from the kitchen to the laundry room that same day! Unfortunately, Friday morning’s arrival was a huge disappointment, as I woke up in a lot of pain, could not bear any weight on my leg and had to use my borrowed walker to get around the house.

The ice chest/insulted brace contraption eased some of the much increased pain, and I spent the bulk of the day on the couch. I guess I still had some of the “good” IV drugs in my system on Thursday! Even though I was taking the Rx version on schedule (including waking up during the night), Day Two was definitely the worst.

Saturday was a little better; I found that I could balance with the walker but pretty much support myself standing. I still couldn’t walk more than a step, though. Saturday was glorious, regardless, because I was allowed to shower. Just unwrapping my wound and giving the back of my knee a good scratch was remarkable! That cottony gauze stuff they used as dressing was itchy! The boys were both impressed and disappointed to see that I had only two stitches in my knee.

By Saturday night, I felt pretty good. The pain medicine helped the achiness but didn’t make me feel dopey at all. I made a test drive around the neighborhood that evening to prove that I could work the brake left-footed. I woke up on Sunday feeling even better. I was able to take several steps without the walker and drove the boys to church. Getting in and out of the car was, by far, more difficult than actually driving it. I mean, my foot works just fine! Once I got in the car, I could work the gas with my right foot and brake with my left.

Pass interception foils the Mustangs’ TD attempt! Sic ’em for the return TD!!!

Once I had demonstrated that I could drive, I decided to stick with our plan of attending the first Baylor home football game. Since I still had the walker, I sat in the handicapped seating area, which offered a great view, and I could still see the kids in our ticketed seats (only the two oldest plus a friend — even I am not brave enough to take all five to a football game solo!). The only downside was the number of chatty passers-by (since the seating area was an alcove of the main aisle/walkway), and many folks lingered at the railing to carry on their conversations (despite the sign that clearly read: “NO STANDING. [wheelchair image] ONLY”).

There were more frustrations getting to our seats, to begin with, including some unanticipated stair-hobbling on my part, but I have already tweeted my frustrations and won’t belabor that further. One thing I will say is that for once in my career at the university, I didn’t feel like the pandemonium would somehow be blamed on my department. That may sound silly to anyone who has never worked in Development, but believe me when I say that anything that can (and will) go wrong will be blamed on the fundraisers, somehow. It was nice just to go to the game as a fan.

Bedtime conversation on the next-to-last day of summer vacation:

Me (to No. 5): “I want you to make really good choices in 2nd grade and not get in any trouble. I don’t want any more gray hair.”

No. 5, examining my head in the semi-dark: “You have gray hair?”

Me: “Yes, hon, but thanks for not noticing it.”

No. 5: “Oh, I saw it. I just thought they were white.”

Thanks for keepin’ it real, kid.

I hereby declare that this is the school year in which I will know where each and every certified copy of each and every identifiable document for each and every kid is located.

I have reorganized the fire box and will create folders for each kiddo. Need a Social Security card, immunization records or birth certificate to go with whatever obscure stamped-in-wax and signed-in-blood form they ask for next? By golly, I will have it handy.

I will do anything to avoid having to go back to the Social Security office anytime in the next decade.

It’s that time of year — back-to-school dental & eye exam time! My eldest and I went to the optometrist today, and we both had our eyes dilated. The last time I had it done, I didn’t have Transitions lenses (the light-sensing glasses that get dark), so I used the freebie sunglasses inserts that they give you at the checkout counter. Today, however, I just handed a pair to my son as we walked out the door.

About five feet from the door, the sun hit me like a laser light show, and like a dummy, I shielded my hands over my eyes as a make-shift visor and kept walking toward the car, eyes watery and blurry … and promptly tripped over the handicap ramp/curb and landed on my knee.

Oh, yes – my knee. That would be the knee with the torn meniscus, the one I’m having repaired next month. The one that now sports a skinned-off piece, which – amazingly – didn’t rip my pants. How does that even happen?

It feels ok now, though my pride is still wounded, and I’m going to have a lovely scab in a couple of days. The knee itself – praise God – doesn’t hurt worse than usual.

I had to laugh when my son took off his sunglasses insert and handed them to me: “Here, Mom – you obviously need these more than I do.”

I did something today that I seldom do; in fact, I make every effort to avoid it. I went to the grocery store with kids … and not just one kid … with three kids. Usually, I will sweet-talk my mom (Thanks, Mama! 🙂 ) into picking up a few items here or there for me (and pay her back – don’t worry, I’m not a moocher), or I’ll get the eldest to babysit after the younger ones are in bed one evening and go by myself. Today, however, we were desperately out of a few things, so I decided to stop by after picking up three of the kiddos from day camp.

It was a last-minute decision, so I didn’t have my grocery list with me. I thought of most of the items as I was driving, so I asked the boys to help me remember (since I couldn’t jot them down). Creative lil’ dudes that they are (and totally on their own accord), they made up a song for the list, and it went something like this (sound it out sing-songy, and you’ll get the gist):

“Mom needs wiper fluid, shampoo, milk and spray starch!”

A mile or so down the road, I remembered that I also need hair mousse. I said that it’s by the shampoo, so let’s work it into the list. They sang:

“Mom needs wiper fluid, shampoo, mousse, milk and spray starch!”

That resulted in a hysterical laughing fit where we speculated what moose milk must be like.

Then, I remembered that we’re out of bananas:

“Mom needs wiper fluid, shampoo, moose milk, spray starch … and bananas!”

Needless to say, we didn’t forget anything on our list! 😉

(No, not like the movie … that was a different job. LOL)

It has been a great first week on the new job, and having a day off in the middle wasn’t too shabby, either! For the first time in, well, ever, I am wearing a t-shirt, jeans and tennis shoes to work. And I’m not breaking the rules. It’s liberating, I tell ya! I understand the whole dress-for-the-job-you-want-not-the-job-you-have mantra, and for the most part, I agree with it, but sometimes, it’s just nice to be normal like everyone else.

Part of the fun in starting a new job that didn’t exist before is that I get to create my office space. When I arrived on Monday, there was a desk, couple of chairs and a filing cabinet. I brought three of my favorite plants, my diplomas, some picture frames and a wall tapestry. I also rescued a lamp from the basement leftovers stash and brought a few wicker baskets that look cute on my desk.

Re-purposed butter dish

Today at lunch, I went to the dollar store for a few things, and this caught my eye. It’s a butter dish! A cute, etched, plastic butter dish. Isn’t it perfect for writing utensils & keys? 🙂

I cannot remember the last time I smiled so often during work hours.

It is a great first day. There is still much to learn, but I already feel welcomed, appreciated and valued. It’s a good feeling.

(What does that saying really mean, anyway? When I had a cat years ago, I had to scoop her up in a pillowcase in order to transport her anywhere, because she was terrified of carriers. She would flail around, bite and shriek like a banshee!)

Anyway, I believe it means the news is public, so if I could get a drum roll, please …

Badumbadumbadumbadumbadumbadumbadumbadum …

I have a new job! 🙂

I will start in 17 days, 14 hours and 59 minutes the first week of July, and I’m very excited about it (if you couldn’t tell). In a nutshell, I will be working on gerontology research projects within the School of Social Work. I tried not to get too geeked out when they started talking about analysis and methodologies, but I am stoked about the opportunity to be involved in the research process!

Some of my role will be helping to code qualitative interviews, wrangling various projects that are taking place around the division, keeping track of deadlines, reviewing literature and editing. It sounds fascinating, and I can’t wait to learn more!

This is the situation that I alluded to the other day about trusting God and not feeling like I have to solve everything myself, because, quite frankly, my solutions pale in comparison to what God has in store.

The past several days/weeks/months have been a growing process for me, especially in recent days as the pieces have come together. This experience has taught me to be careful about becoming complacent, to be thankful for my provisions, and to recognize that “my” skills and “my” expertise only exist because of my awesome and amazing Maker.

This new role is a shift in career paths, which is by no means a bad thing, but it does mean that the road looks different. I’m just focusing on learning the way and enjoying the scenery as I travel. For too long, I’ve been staring at the center stripe and anxiously glancing in the rearview mirror. It’s time to look forward, roll down the windows and welcome the fresh air!