So, I am experiencing the Holidays anew this year… from the unique perspective of “No Bending, No Lifting, and No Twisting!” On November 14 I had back surgery to fuse my L4-L5 vertebrae. Having really only had a tonsillectomy in 1st grade and one other hospital stay (besides the births of the kids!), this was a big jump for me in the realm of surgeries. I was trying to be calm and confident about the whole thing, but my blood pressure reading said otherwise; as in, it has never been that high before! (Now that the surgery is behind me, my BP is right back down to its normal (and good) level.)
Knowing that I would be unable to do the Thanksgiving Dinner, Natalie and I embarked on a plan. About 2 weeks before my surgery, I did a tutorial of sorts with Natalie and we fixed a turkey and the whole Thanksgiving dinner menu. Natalie is already good in the kitchen, so this was just a matter of getting the particulars down for a turkey and the dinner. The practice Thanksgiving was delicious, and Kristin, Eric, and Addison happened to be here for the weekend, so it really was almost like our Thanksgiving dinner - we missed having Chelsea here, though.
When Thanksgiving arrived, Natalie fixed the whole thing, with a little coaching from “No B-L-T” me. Not only is she ready to tackle Christmas dinner, but she has been doing a lot of the day-to-day cooking for me as I recover. I’m very thankful for her willing heart to be such a big help to me.
Here are some pictures of our actual Thanksgiving:
P.S. The surgery went very well and I had very little pain and discomfort - well, the first day after surgery was challenging and I wasn’t feeling too great - but after that each day was a little better. Chris has been a tremendous help and coach for me. He was home for the first week with me - taking up all the slack for the house chores on top of caring for me. I am doing as well as I am because of the excellent care he and Natalie have given me. I love you both! For the next 2 months I will still have restrictions and be wearing my “corset” back brace, but I am getting around pretty well and I have my handy-dandy “reacher” if I drop anything on the ground!
