Healthy Healing and a Happy Birthday

Dad Update: My dad's surgery went well for the most part! His ligament was pressing on his spinal cord for so long that when they removed it, part of his dura mater (the outer layer of his spinal cord) came with it. The doctor was stunned he wasn't in there sooner. They ended up putting a few rods and pins in his back, too, because it was more degenerated than they initially thought. The surgery took 5 hours instead of 2, and after he was on bedrest for 24 hours, laying totally flat, to make sure his CSF fluid didn't leak from the dura mater tear. Hopefully this won't cause any complications. Today, he already walked with the nurses a little bit. He seems to be hanging in there!

As far as healing goes, my knee has been getting a little bit stronger each day, and my ROM (range of motion) is thankfully increasing without too much pain. I like to play Kanye West's "Stronger" in my head when I'm doing PT exercises because I'm cool like that, and I swear it makes them less difficult to get through. At my post-op appointment on Monday, I was at 50 degrees on the CPM machine. She said bump it up by 10 degrees each day, so I did, and I made it to 90 degrees on Thursday! Ninety degrees was the goal, so I called to ask if I should increase it even more. She said to stay at 90 for now since it's the "therapeutic range", so that's where I'm at for the next two weeks. Hooray!!!

I've also been hanging my lower leg over the edge of the couch and bed to increase my ROM. Sometimes this REALLY hurts, and other times, it feels totally normal. It always makes me a little nervous. This was me getting to 90 degrees a few days after surgery (when I was at only 40 on the CPM machine) on the side of the couch. It may seem like nothing, and it was something I took for granted every day before, but I was thrilled this first time I got to 90 degrees. Baby steps! 

Ninety degrees for the first time!

My knee is also getting more stable and hasn't been buckling inside the brace as much when I walk. I've now mostly been walking without the crutches. Occasionally I need them a bit more if I'm over-doing it (Like when I went to visit Dad at the hospital-that was a bit much and I ended up needing a wheelchair to get back to the car. Woops.), but typically I can sloooooowly walk without them. 

My dad recently bought a NutriBullet, and the book that it came with has a section on building healthy bones. I doubt I get enough calcium and vitamin D since I'm lactose intolerant, so we've tried to make a few of these smoothies to help my bones repair themselves better from the surgery. 

NutriBullet bone-building recipes 

This is the first one my mom made for me. It had avocado, banana, chia seeds, almonds, and spinach. It was so gross because of how thick it was...but I didn't want to waste it so I drank it anyway. Maybe the next one will be better!

Gross smoothie..the next one will be better!

Another essential part of healing...lots of chocolate. Kevin brought me this bar that is over a pound of chocolate. It's dairy-free but doesn't taste bitter. It's one of my favorites! Thank you, Kevin!

Awesome chocolate bar

I have also been getting all sorts of get-well cards and wishes. They make my day! My mom gave me a book called "Blissful Moments for Women." It has a bunch of Bible quotes and short passages, and it's perfect for right now. My grandma gave me a Willow Tree figurine, and a cross ornament. My cards are lined up on a shelf that I can see while I'm laying in the CPM machine. Erin visited me all day Tuesday and helped out while my parents were in the ER. She helped with my brace and CPM machine, brought Noodles & Co. for lunch, and brought Shakespeare In Love to watch. I was so thankful for her help and company! Thank you to everyone who sent something, called, visited, sent well wishes on Facebook, and who is praying for my dad, my family, and I! I appreciate every single thing everyone has been doing for me. 

Card from my Grandma Votino

Card from the Loisells

Card and book from my parents

Card and gifts from my Grandma Haase

I have also been continuously entertained by this goofy little dude (my nephew) since my parents babysit him 3 days a week,

(John Nathan being a cool dude)

and have had endless cuddles with my other precious nephew. Look at those cheeks!

James taking a nap on me

My birthday was perfect. I woke up to this awesome poster-board sign from Caitlyn, and these beautiful roses from my dad. Each year he gets me my age in roses on my birthday. My mom made me breakfast, and then I hung out with the CPM machine for 2 hours. I took a real shower, too, instead of a sponge bath/washing my hair in the sink. It felt glorious! I never really fully appreciated how amazing a shower can make me feel, or how simple of a task showering used to be compared to now. It's getting a little easier each time though.

Thank you, Caitlyn!

Twenty-five gorgeous roses from my Dad.
Thanks, Dad!

Jessica came to visit and brought me the awesome Strawberry Poppyseed salad from Panera for lunch, and then Ashwin stopped by to hang out and brought me one of my favorite desserts in Columbus: a flowerless chocolate torte with raspberry sauce from Hyde Park. Thank you, Jessica and Ashwin! 

My mom made chicken fajitas, salad, and fruit salad for my birthday dinner followed by ice cream cake! My corner had dairy-free cookie dough, and everyone else had real black raspberry chip. It was delicious! I got some pretty awesome presents, cards, and Facebook wishes. My parents are getting me a new camera that I get to pick out as soon as I feel up to it. John & Kel got me an adorable framed picture of Caitlyn and I kissing John and James' cheeks, and Kevin's parents sent me a hilarious card with a gift card for my Kindle. So far I've only rented library books on it, so I'm really excited to buy some books for my Kindle!

Kevin got me a giant box of fancy dark chocolates from Anthony Thomas (I'm seeing a theme here...everyone brings me food!), and ballroom dancing lessons for us to do together once my leg is rehabilitated. I can't wait to get better so that we can start! I went to a ballroom dancing club my freshmen year of undergrad with a friend, and it was so much fun. I've forgotten it all now though, so I am excited to learn again! This will be even more motivation to get through physical therapy and everything. 

Kevin and I after our walk

One of the best parts of the day was going for a little walk. We made it about three and a half houses down, which is the furthest I've gone without crutches, so that was another small victory. It was an incredibly slow walk, but everything seems to be incredibly slow lately.  It felt so nice to get out of the house, and it was a beautiful evening! It was a great way to end the day. 

P.S. I don't know what is going on with the spacing..it's normal when I write then gets messed up when I publish the post. I'll try to figure it out.