Merry Christmas!

We're snowed in - 8 inches so far and the wind is howling! We considered going to a movie this afternoon, but decided a board game at home was a safer option.

We had anticipated spending Christmas Eve/Day with Mike's parents, so stocking up on groceries had not been on the top of our 'to do' list. After church last night, we drove by Hy-Vee only to discover they closed at 6:00pm. A quick inventory of our refrigerator/freezer determined that our Christmas feast would consist of hot dogs and mac 'n cheese. Luckily, Wal-Mart pulled through as they were open until 8:00pm. We arrived in time to pick up bananas, a pizza and some chicken nuggets. Yes, so much classier than hot dogs/mac 'n cheese.

We have ignored our blogsite far too long, so I will attempt to hit some highlights from the past month...

My parents came to visit us the weekend before Mike's birthday. My mom attended her first Nebraska football game and we successfully cheered them on to a win.


The Thanksgiving holiday included a trip to Colorado with Mike's family. We helped cheer on the Broncos and Huskers to victories!


Two weeks ago, my travels took me to Erie, Pennsylvania. During a layover in Chicago, my co-worker and I stopped at a restaurant in the airport to eat. We sat at a table next to a young woman dressed in army fatigues. When the waitress came to take her plate at the conclusion of her lunch, she told the young woman that her meal and been paid for by someone who wanted to thank her for her service to our country (he had apparently already left the restaurant). So very cool. Wish I would have thought of it first.

Wishing you and yours a very Merry Christmas! Travel safe and stay warm!

Take Me Away

It's been one month. I want to go back to Cancun. I came home after work on Friday to find water in our basement AGAIN. One of the joints in the pipe that funnels the groundwater back outside had broken apart and the sump pump was spewing water everywhere. After two inches of rain on Thursday, we were already leery of the sump pump (the fear of what happened four months ago still fresh in our minds) and had been checking it often. In fact, Mike had checked it at 3:30 on Friday afternoon. Amazing what kind of damage can occur in less than two hours. We learned the hard way that a Homeowner's Insurance deductible does not work like a Health Insurance deductible. You pay the deductible PER CLAIM, not per year. Just what we wanted to spend $2,000 on this year.

I worked from home today due to the revolving front door - ServiceMaster technicians, the insurance adjuster and the plumber all paying me a visit. The plumber was 85 years old and I felt bad for the number of times he had to go up and down the stairs. The ServiceMaster guys remembered me and were all curious to hear how my back recovery was coming along. For as often as I've seen these guys this year, they'll probably be added to my Christmas correspondence list.

Since I miss Cancun so much, I figured I would post some more pictures. One of which is the Magician that looked much like a Vampire (check out his teeth). Another is of a waiter that looked like Danny DeVito's clone. Ahhhh, it was such a fun trip!!!!!

Ann's 30th Birthday Celebration - Cancun Style

My lovely sister Ann turned the big 3-0 on August 26th. Since we weren't able to celebrate with her in Minnesota, and because her actual birthday fell on a weekday night (Ann needs to be in bed by 10:00), we decided it would be wise to have a "celebrate Ann's 30th Birthday" theme night in Cancun, especially since Addeson and Hadley were in the good care of Grandma Nancy and Papa Ron, so Ann was guaranteed a full night's sleep after a few glasses of wine.

The selected restaurant was "Maria's". The three-man band providing musical entertainment at Maria's even serenaded Ann with the Mexican version of the Happy Birthday song. Ann also received a tasty dessert treat with "Happy 30th Birthday" written in gel frosting around the edge of the plate. She even shared a bite with all of us, while we toasted her with some champagne. So much fun!!! Probably my favorite night in Cancun!

Unbelievable Surprise!!!!!!

In late July, when Mike asked if I thought I might be ready to accompany him on a work trip at the end of September that would require travel by airplane, I wasn't so sure. At that time, I was still on crutches and disappointed with the slowness of my post-surgery recovery. But, trying to think positively, I agreed. His only stipulation was that I NOT know the destination. His only hint - "Think Warm". About two weeks later, I sat down in front of the laptop to check my email. I noticed there was an active internet session, but it was minimized on the screen. Instead of opening up a new session, I thought I would just use the existing one because, of course, I figured Mike just forgot to close out an ESPN website or something. When I pulled up the browser window, I discovered a magical picture of a hotel on a beach - not just any beach, but on Coronado Island in San Diego. Ah-ha! I had figured out the secret without even trying! I figured Mike would be really disappointed to find out that he accidentally spilled the beans, so I pretended not to know. What I wasn't aware of is that my sneaky husband "planted" the internet site and he knew that I would think that I found a pot of gold. What I didn't know is that there was nothing "work-related" about this trip and California was not the destination. I realized Cancun, Mexico, was the destination when we arrived at the airport on Thursday morning. Though I thought nothing could top that surprise, I turned around at the gate in the Dallas airport (where we had a layover) to see my sister and brother-in-law coming my way. Absolutely, incredibly, unbelievable. I was stunned beyond belief. I made Mike pinch me to make sure I hadn't drifted to sleep and come up with a crazy dream. So, so, so awesome!!! My wonderful husband (and everyone else that knew) pulled off the surprise of all surprises. I had NO idea. We had a great time in Cancun - which I will share in some future posts (too many pictures to post all at once). For now, here's a video of my reaction to seeing my sister at the airport... P.S. I thought Mike was just video taping random footage - had no idea what was about to happen.

Huskers, Movie Date and a few more pics of St. Louis

Yesterday was the long awaited first game for the Huskers 2009 season. When we got to our seats in Memorial Stadium, a guy a few rows in front of us told his wife he had "goosebumps" from the anticipation and excitement.

My back/foot held out well, although I did have an increase in numbness as the game wore on. I got a great Christmas gift last year - my very own Husker stadium seat! It was very comfortable...well, as comfortable as a bleacher seat can be. Thank goodness for lots of scoring, so that I could stand up and stretch!

Before we left for the game, I spent the morning doing a bunch of touch-up painting around the house. It had been on my list for awhile; however, as you can imagine, not a high priority the past few months. I had went to Sherwin Williams to have them mix a fresh gallon to match exactly to the existing paint. Well, after 24 hours of drying, we determined it was definitely NOT the same color. Oh, great. So, Mike and I headed back to Sherwin Williams this afternoon to complain. The teenie bopper that mixed the paint 2 weeks ago had apparently screwed up the mixture. After a competent employee's intervention, our paint was re-mixed and we appear to have a much better match. My Labor Day weekend fun will include repainting my touch-up work.

After good luck at Sherwin Williams, we decided to go to a late matinee movie - The Proposal. Sandra Bullock is one of my favorite actresses. It was a cute movie. Mike even liked it.

We had a lot of good pictures from our St. Louis trip last weekend...too many for the last blog posting, so I've added a few more here.

St. Louis - Day 3

We are back in good ole Lincoln tonight - unpacked, first load of laundry done and have sifted through the mail. On our drive home, we made a brief detour to visit and have lunch with our aunt/uncle, Elaine and Bob Smart, at their new home in Fulton, Missouri.

Before getting ahead of myself, I will back track to yesterday's activities in St. Louis, which included visiting the St. Louis Basilica, a tour of the Anheuser-Busch Brewery, a Riverboat Cruise on the Mississippi and a nice dinner at the Carmine's Steakhouse.

The Anheuser-Busch Brewery included a lot of walking and I did very well. There were between 50-60 people in our tour group. The tours leave every 20 minutes, so you can only imagine how many tourists they attract on a daily basis. The tour started at the Clydesdale's stables. The cleanest barn I've ever seen in my life. We got to see the packaging process in action and that was very impressive. At the conclusion of the tour we enjoyed our two free samples of Budweiser beer.

Mike decided we should spend our last night in St. Louis dining at an upscale restaurant. Carmine's Steakhouse was the selection and within walking distance from our hotel. The restaurant was very nice - prestine napkins, comfortable seating, dimmed lighting - you get the idea. The staff was VERY attentive and were waiting in the wings to pick up each place setting as the meal progressed, as well as refilling my water after each sip. What seemed really odd was the music. Both Mike and I commented that the 90's "rock" music seemed really off-color for the setting. Right before we were about to leave, what appeared to be the manager of the restaurant, made a mad dash for the area behind the bar where the music selections were apparently predetermined. Several of the wait staff were laughing hysterically. It appeared as though a joke had been played with the music selection. As we left the restaurant, the manager thanked us for coming and said "Sorry for the Snoop Dog folks!"

I've attached a few of our favorite pictures from the trip.

The rest of Day 2 in St. Louis

Mike went against everything vacation stands for and exercised today. He ran two miles in the hotel's workout room. Maybe part of me is a litte jealous that I'm not quite ready for that yet. Probably should "walk before I run" as a continue to heal.

After Mike's second shower for the day, we hailed a cab and headed for Union Station. It kind of reminded me of the one in Washington D.C., but on a smaller scale, and the biggest difference being that there aren't any active trains through this one. It did have a lot of shopping and restaurants. We stopped at Houlihan's (Mike had been there on a trip to St. Louis in a past life - before Lisa) to have what he claimed was the best Bloody Mary ever. We sat outside on the patio and watched people in paddle boats in the little pond built in the middle of Union Station.

For our pre-game festivities, we headed to J.Bucks for a soda and some food. Jack Buck was a long-time announcer for the Cardinals and his son, Joe Buck, is one you would recognize from TV - Fox Sports (play-by-play announcer for professional football and baseball).

Outside of the stadium tonight, there were 3 different wedding parties catching a nice little photo opportunity. Not something you see very often at a ball park!

Our seats were behind home plate (up a few sections, but really good seats), whereas last night, we were in a lower section along the first base line. I forgot to mention in my last post that there were several foul balls into our section last night. In fact, one of them, just 5 rows above us, hit a guy in the face (we think it might have first brushed past someone's hand). He grabbed for his nose and was escorted by medical personnel. That is why "heads up" really means "heads down". Not quite as much drama in the stands for tonight's game. It was exciting, though, as we saw 2 home runs. The Cardinals pulled off another win, 9-4.

Tomorrow we're off to tour the Budweiser brewery! Mike can't wait for the free samples!!!!!

St. Louis - Day 1 & part of Day 2

We made it safely to St. Louis around 4:30pm yesterday. Mike was a good driver and I'd like to think I was a good rider. The back/foot cooperated well. We made a couple stops for bathroom breaks, for lunch and to stretch! I learned that Interstate 70 through Missouri is FULL of billboards. I was entertained for hours! The iPod got a workout. However, I've determined there are 3 country songs to every non-country! Thank goodness for a little Lady Gaga here and there.

Last night's St. Louis Cardinals game did not disappoint. Albert Pujols hit a bottom of the ninth, walk-off, home run to win the game, 3-2.

Due to continued numbness in my foot, I'm still limited on the shoes I can wear. I have a pair of Sketchers that seem to work best. However, I always wear them with socks. Mike told me I looked like Michael Jackson yesterday (black shoes, with white socks). For fashion sake, I ditched the socks prior to the game. In the short walk to Busch Stadium, I quickly discovered the lack of socks was festering a blister on the back of each foot. $11.00 dollars later I was the proud owner of a pair of St. Louis Cardinals socks. Mike says this is the start of an entire wardrobe. He's clearly forgotten I'm still a Twins fan at heart.

The alarm went off early this morning, as we heard the tickets to the top of the Arch sell out fast. We were there by 8:00am (it's literally right across the street from our hotel). We were to the top of the Arch by 8:15am. I didn't look "up" as we walked toward the Arch this morning, so that I wouldn't chicken out in agreeing to the trip up. It was well worth it. A great view of St. Louis (and Illinois to the east). When back down on the ground, we watched a brief documentary detailing the building of the Arch. What an unbelievable construction process!

We're headed to another Cardinals game tonight...hoping for another win.

One millimeter

Quick doctor update...I had my 6 week appointment with Dr. Noble last week. He seemed pleased that I gradually regained more feeling and strength in my leg and foot. I expressed my disappointment in the slow progress to which he explained a nerve will only heal at the pace of one MILLIMETER per day. Yikes. He further advised a nerve injury will continue to heal at that pace for up to 18 months (after which, there is little hope of further healing). Taking the "glass half full" outlook, two positive items come to mind: (1) look at the progress I've made in the first six weeks - even at a mere millimeter per day, another few months should work wonders; (2) I'm thankful for my height - a shorter leg translates to a shorter nerve, meaning there's a limit to the "millimeters" of nerve running down my leg. Dr. Noble suggested taking a Vitamin B pill each day. Some studies show that can accelerate the healing, although he made no promises. He said it's worth a try...can't hurt! He was, however, concerned that my foot is swelling so much each day (any time that I'm not horizontal). He thinks it is more of a circulation issue, so I'm wearing some sexy knee-high diabetic/circulation socks these days. I haven't taken a pain pill, nor used the crutches, in over a week!!! WoooooHooooo!

The Princesses visit Nebraska

We had such a fun time with our weekend visitors!!! Mom, Dad, Ann, Addeson & Hadley made the long trek to see us! They managed to keep Hadley strapped down in a car seat for 5 hours. That is no easy task with an active one-year old!!! Hadley wasn't so sure of us when she first arrived, but by the time she left, she was freely giving lots of kisses. Addeson has become such an independent and imaginative little girl. She loves to color. We have three beautiful pictures on our refrigerator to show off her work. With the new tea set from Grandma Nancy, she played for hours. She was great at making chocolate and strawberry soup, "princess" tea and noodles with sauce. We enjoyed several trips to the park, played with the new sprinkler in the backyard and the grown-ups even got out of the house for a few shopping trips. Ann and Mike took turns pushing me in a wheelchair in Kohl's. (Note: Kohl's happens to be a favorite store of mine and I hadn't been there for 3+ months due to my back issues!) The weekend flew by entirely too quickly. Our house is too quiet without the princesses. We can't wait to see them again soon!

For those not familiar with Runza, it's a Nebraska-based fast food restaurant with a featured sandwich which is a mix of sauerkraft and beef. Derrick tried a "Runza" at a Nebraska football game a few years ago and he wasn't a fan. It's been a bit of a running joke since then. As you can tell from the pictures, his daughters feel otherwise. They LOVE Runza!!!!!!

Evacuation

This week is my first official week working full-time at the office. What is the worst nightmare of someone on crutches? FIRE. Sure enough, the alarms sound at 9:00 in the morning. My first reaction is fire DRILL. Nope, it's the real thing. Rumors immediately fly that it's either on the 19th or 7th floor. I'm on the 9th floor - apparently right in the middle. No problem - I'll simply ride the elevator to safety. No such luck. Elevators are locked down. That leaves the stairs as my only way out. Nine stories to go.

My co-workers grabbed my purse and shuffled me into the stairwell. A very nice gentleman let me budge into the stream of people coming from the eleven floors above the ninth. My journey was a slow one, but I made it all the way down. Two of my (male) co-workers offered to carry me down, but I wasn't sure that was such a good idea for the back either. They advised me if we encountered any smoke along the way that I would have no choice - they were picking me up!

Amazingly, most everyone who was above me in the stairwell stayed behind me - patiently trailing behind me without pushing, complaining or going around me. Some of the people, from the lower floors, who made it out first, were watching from across the street. They commented that there was a total mass of people (literally, about 100) who came out of the building behind me (whereas just a trickle before me). Impressive. People are kind - even during a potentially dangerous situation.

Once outside, we had to get away from the building and used kleenex (lots of it) to wipe down a bench for me to sit (it had rained earlier, but luckily had stopped). The fire was on the 7th floor (not the 19th as had been rumored), but was easily extinguished. I guess it was caused by an air conditioning unit motor that had burned out. We were cleared to re-enter the building after about 50 minutes. Back up to 9th floor...on the elevator!!

The local newspaper was out taking pictures of the event and there was a brief story on their website (http://www.journalstar.com/news/local/doc4a65d9b92deb7545428495.txt).

Three wonderful years

Happy 3rd Anniversary to US! Our wedding day was so wonderful! Luckily, some of our most favorite moments from that day were caught on video, so we "re-lived" them tonight by watching the footage...so, so awesome! Some of my favorites are the post-reception speeches...so, so great!
I am so blessed to have such a fabulous husband and best friend. He has been through a lot with me, some especially rough times over the course of the past few weeks. I couldn't have made it through all this without Mike's love and support! He is a gem and I'm so glad I found him. Here's to a many more happy years together!!!

Another Little Step

A shower. Doesn't sound like much, does it? But I haven't taken a shower since May 24th. Tonight was the night. My incision has healed over (or so Mike tells me - I still haven't looked at it - and it's not exactly in an easy spot to view), so we figured it was okay to get it wet (the doctor said no water on it until the scab fell off). Finally. It wasn't all rainbows and lollipops as the nerve is extremely sensitive to heat. Even though the water was only running at a lukewarm temperature, the pressure across my foot got pretty intense in less than five minutes. So, it was a very brief shower, but a shower nonetheless.

Update...
I saw the doctor on July 2nd. The stitches were removed and he evaluated my progress. He reassured me that it was not at all unusual to hear that I am still having such pain in my left foot. It is a residual effect of the injured nerve and will simply take time to heal. He read through the surgery notes and said the good news was that the hole in which the herniated disc was primarily protruding was small, so that minimizes my risk of recurrence. The bad news is that the nerve was not only pressed by the herniated disc - it was pressed so hard that it was also displaced in my back. Because of the pressure on the nerve - pressure which was significant for nearly three weeks, the nerve was very red, swollen, inflammed and irritated. No magic wand to speed up the healing process. Even physical therapy will not help because it is geared toward rebuilding muscle strength; however, not nerve-related muscle weakness. Doctor's orders were rest, rest and more rest. I go back in for another check-up on August 4th.

Last week, I was able to go into the office for a half day each day. Thankfully, one of my co-workers is letting me park in her spot in the bank building. (I normally park in a city parking garage that is three blocks from my office.) I have been using crutches to get around the office as it seems to help conserve my energy and gives the left foot a break.

Our July 4th weekend was a fun one! My parents came to visit, and again, they were so helpful in getting the house cleaned and laundry done. We enjoyed a grill-out on the 4th as Mike's parents and the Foster's joined us also. On the evening of the 4th, Dad, Mike, Marcia and Casey went to Larry the Cable Guy's comedy act at Memorial Stadium (along with nearly 60,000 other fans). Mom and I enjoyed viewing wonderful displays of fireworks out both our front and back windows. (A definite benefit of legalizing fireworks in Nebraska. You Minnesotans are missing out.)

Since I've been out of the house a bit more, I've actually managed to consistently put on make-up. We figured this was something to catch on film, so Mom took a few pictures of Mike and me after church last week. Thought I would share...

The Light at the End of the Tunnel...

I can see it...finally...it might be only a flicker at this point, but there is a light at the end of this long, dark tunnel. I was initially undecided on the title for this blog posting and was toying with "When it rains, it pours", but I opted for a more positive theme. I realize an update to the blogsite is long overdue, so I'll do my best to recap the events of the past two weeks.

Mike's mom was kind enough to take me to my neurosurgeon appointment on Monday, June 15th. The intent of the visit was to discuss the results of the epidural steroid injection (i.e. little pain relief and minimal improvement) and to determine next steps. As had been the case with the past 3.5 weeks of appointments with this neurosurgeon, he was extremely indecisive. So, the following day, I had an appointment with a different neurosurgeon to seek a second opinion. His approach was as different as night-and-day. He took the time to thoroughly examine me and to review the results of the MRI by specifically pointing out the problem area. His message was absolutely clear - I needed surgery. He expressed his concern with the increased weakness, numbness and pain in my left foot and the risk of permanent nerve damage which could potentially lead to a 'drop foot'. Both Mike and I felt good about this doctor and my gut told me that a change was in order. He checked his schedule and as a result of a recent cancellation, he had an open operating room available for me the very next morning. For those who know me well, this was great news as I had limited time to worry, stress and develop a massive cold sore. The morning of surgery was a bit chaotic because there was no time for a pre-operative check-up the day before, so I'm pretty sure at least 4 nurses and 2 doctors listened to my heart and lungs to confirm they were healthy and clear. One of the six of them were supposed to draw blood for lab testing, but each one of them assumed the other completed that task and after the drama of a University of Nebraska nurse in her first month of schooling trying to kill me as she attempted her first IV insertion, I was the last person in the room who was going to remind them of the forgotten blood draw. Thank goodness Mike was there to provide some much needed comic relief. Mike's mom rounded out my support system for the day. I was taken into surgery at 9:30 and woke up in recovery at 11:25. After a dose of morphine to make me comfortable, I got back to my regular room around noon. After we accomplished drinking a glass of water, a trip to the bathroom and a few steps down the hallway (without the walker, mind you), I was cleared for release around 3:00. My at-home nurses (Mike and his mom) took great care of me the next few days. We all become experts at the 'log roll' to get me on and off the couch for bathroom breaks. As wonderful as it is to have pain relief in the hip/butt, the left foot continues to cause me issues with numbness, pressure and pain. The doctor reassures me this is to be expected. Although the "pinch" was removed, there is still swelling in that area (as a result of surgery) and the nerve itself will take some time to heal. Progress is slow, but sure. However, it should be noted that on Sunday afternoon, I put my contacts in, applied a little make-up and wore something other than sweatpants and a t-shirt for the first time in more than a month! My parents arrived on Sunday (to help us out for a few days) and we had a wonderful evening celebrating Father's Day with my parents, Mike's parents and the Fosters.

I should better explain my discarded title of "When it rains, it pours".
Lefler Dilemma #2:
The week before my surgery, Mike saw his doctor for an abscess on his cheek that had been bothering him for a few weeks. The doctor agreed it was terribly infected and needed to be immediately lansed. So, Mike experienced a small incision of his own and had the wound packed with medicated gause for 4 continuous days (even had to go to the lab on Saturday and Sunday). Three days after that, he was tasked with having to do the gause packing on his own. Thankfully, it is healing very well (and quickly) and the scar should be minimal. (My incision scar beats his, but at least mine is only noticable during bikini season...oh, that's right...I don't wear a bikini...so who's kidding who...mine ain't so bad.)
Lefler Dilemma #3:
Sunday morning, Mike woke up and came to check on me sleeping on the couch. We both heard a burst of water and assumed it had to be coming from the washing machine or dishwasher. To our dismay, it was, unfortunately, coming from the basement. Sometime during the night, the PVC piping attached to our sump pump busted - sending gallons of groundwater flooding into our storage and family rooms (we got a little over an inch of rain overnight). I was, of course, no help with the task of removing things from the affected area. When Mike rearranged several totes and furniture items, I quickly hit the phone to dispatch ServiceMaster to the rescue. Thankfully, they arrived within a few hours. They ripped up the carpet pad, but were confident the carpeting could be salvaged with a few days of drying. Good news is the last fan was removed today and the carpet should be re-layed in the next week or so. Who was the wise guy who picked the high-deductible homeowner's insurance policy? I guess if we're going to meet medical deductibles this year, we might as well go for the double play and meet the homeowner's deductible as well!

I can't close without expressing heartfelt gratitude to our parents for the help and support through the past few weeks. Also, I have simply been touched beyond words with all of the cards, flowers, food, gifts, emails and calls of concern. I will tell you this...pain pills are great, but the greatest source of healing is all of the well wishes I have received. They truly keep me going each day - THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!!!

Cruise Photos

Just wanted to share with you some of our favorite photos from our cruise to the Bahamas and Key West. Hope you enjoy!

Our cruise ship...Enchantment of the Seas


Mike and Lisa at Atlantis in the Bahamas


The centrum area of our ship


Key West


Sunset from the ship

Remember to pause and smell the flowers

Over the last month, I've learned a valuable lesson. Never take for granted the little things in life...things like a good night's sleep, walking, good health, independence.

My pain started the evening of May 8th. I finished a Tae Bo aerobic workout (the DVD has since been destroyed) and about an hour later, felt the pain begin in my hip/butt. Over the course of the next two days the pain increased considerably and led me to see the my regular doctor on May 11th. Without any testing, she shrugged off my pain as a injured hip muscle (piriformis syndrome). She gave me a pain pill prescription and told me to stretch a lot. The next 10 days were slow going, but I started to improve and was progressively able to walk more, with less pain. So, we decided the Memorial Day weekend Royal Caribbean cruise/vacation was something I could handle - rest and relaxation - what could be better healing, right?

The first day of vacation was spent in Fort Lauderdale and we had a great time hanging out at the beach - very relaxing. The second day of vacation, we boarded the cruise ship and enjoyed touring all that it had to offer. I was starting to hurt again, but we took lots of breaks to sit down and let me rest. The first full day of the cruise was a stop in Nassau, Bahamas. We had planned on a beach day excursion at the Atlantis Hotel. It was a fun day, but much more walking that we had anticipated. By the time we returned to the cruise ship, I was in trouble. We made it to the Captain's Dinner and show that night, but by the next morning, I was shaking in pain. I spent the next two days of the cruise completely bedridden, aside from 4 trips to the medical facility for anti-flammatory injections (6 total). It was a bit unsettling when the only available medical personnel was a 60 year-old Polish doctor dressed in a Captain's suit (not sure if he was steering the ship in his free time or what?) Fortunately, getting home was an interesting, yet surprisingly pleasant, experience. I had a wheelchair ride off the ship, which budged us through long lines and sped us through customs. After a short taxi ride to the airport, American Airlines was able to put us on a stand-by flight that ultimately got us back to Omaha five hours earlier than scheduled. They had wheelchairs available to get me through security and the second I stepped off the plane for the layover in Dallas and again when we arrived in Omaha. Just when I thought we were on the home stretch, I attempted to get into the Acadia in the Omaha airport parking garage and felt a burning sensation run down my leg, deep into my foot, much like I would imagine it might feel like if I had just been struck by lighting. Since then, not only have I had pain in my butt (literally), but it runs all the way down my leg into my foot.

Immediately the next morning, we took a trip to Urgent Care and they gave me two more shots to help with the pain (8 is the new total, if anyone is counting with me). They recommended an immediate MRI, which I had done that same day. The results reflected two bulging discs in my low back (L4 and L5). Next step was to consult with a neurosurgeon who felt that we could avoid surgery by treating me with steroids in an effort to decrease the inflammation. I had an injection of steroid into my arm and then took a regimen of oral steroids the first weekend in June. A week later, with little improvement, we tried another round of the oral steroid. Still no improvement. Yesterday, I went to the neurosurgeon again and he was concerned to see that my reflexes and strength in the left leg had actually gotten worse, instead of better. He recommended an epidural steroid injection to get some novicane and cortisone directly into the area where the nerves are inflammed. I hate needles, but was willing to do anything to make this wall of pain subside. The procedure really wasn't too bad. My wonderful husband agreed to come in the room with me (he had to put on the lovely radiation vest due to the x-ray equipment used to help guide the needle). I didn't feel immediate relief as I had hoped, but am able to report that the hip/butt pain is definitely better today. The foot is another story, but we've got to start with progress somewhere. If anyone was curious of the pricetag of an epidural steroid injection, it is a mere $1,200 - not your everyday shot!

In a nutshell, I have not been able to walk since May 23rd. I haven't seen the kitchen since then either. I can't do anything for myself. I can't sleep. I can't shower (thank goodness for baths). I'm not hungry. I haven't worn my contacts or make-up for over 2 weeks. I haven't slept in my own bed for 3 weeks. I have cried nearly every day for the past 2 weeks. I haven't been outside the house for 2 weeks aside from 5 doctor appointments. If it wasn't for the walker (borrowed from family), I wouldn't be able to get anywhere. The walker at least enables me to go from the couch to the bathroom and back to the couch. I wouldn't wish this kind of pain on anyone.

The bright spots...
My husband has accompanied me to every doctor's appointment and has rearranged lots of meetings to make sure I am getting the treatment that I need. He comes home every noon to make me lunch and helps me up and down the stairs with my clunky walker. He gets up in the middle of the night when I can't sleep and helps to re-adjust pillows to try to make it stop hurting.
My parents came this past weekend and cleaned bathrooms, scrubbed and vacuumed floors, dusted, did a ton of laundry, brought us some delicious meals and gave Mike a 2-day break from having to wait on me.
Mike's mom is coming to help me tomorrow while Mike is in Kansas City and she will be coming again on Saturday when he is in Omaha.
Marica/Casey, Ann and Cindy have been great about calling to check in on me - sure means a lot.

Thank goodness we have great family and friends to lean on! It's truly kept the sanity in check at this house! Keep the prayers coming. I want to be able to walk by next week - even if it's just to the mailbox and back.

I'll post some cruise pictures tomorrow. Mike captured some great shots!

Company, Easter and Sinus Infection...

I have no excuse for my lack of blogging, aside from dealing with the most awful sinus infection, which has drained every ounce of my energy the past 10 days. Prior to this sinus infection, I have NEVER had one. I hope to NEVER have one again. A throbbing, never-ending headache. Pressure that makes you feel as though your head is going to explode. A trip to the doctor on Thursday provided a prescription for Augmentin and a steriod nasal spray. The doctor also recommended I buy a Neti Pot Sinus Wash. The process of administering this wash was similar to accidentally snorting something up your nose when you laugh. And that "something" is disgusting saltwater. For all the gagging I did, it is likely that I spit up whatever was creating the blockage (gross, I know). Hard to say which medication is making me feel better, but the good news is that I've been headache free for about 24 hours now.

The first weekend in April we had great fun with my parents and Grandma Sally here to visit. The snow and extreme winds did not hold us back from having fun. Dad and Mike took in a Nebraska baseball game and witnessed a bench-clearing brawl. We enjoyed an entire afternoon of shopping. Dad had the biggest purchase of the group as he picked out a new suit. After a nice visit with Mike's parents, we cut into a delicious belated birthday cake (compliments of my Mom). To round out the weekend, we went out to eat at our favorite restaurant (Fireworks).

Our Easter celebration kicked off with a great Easter egg hunt with Evan. He loves to be outside and thought the Easter eggs filled with crackers were pretty neat. We almost ran into a problem when only 23 of the 24 eggs had been found. Even the adults in the group were stumped by Marcia's sneaky efforts in hiding the last one! After taking in the fresh air outside, we headed to Famous Dave's for a tasty Easter meal together.


Wishing you all a great week!

Happy Birthday to ME!

Thanks to everyone for all of the birthday well wishes today! By far, my birthday is one of my favorite days of the year. With everyone's busy schedules, it means a lot to receive emails, cards and calls from those who are remembering me on March 23...I just love it!

As usual, the weather on my birthday was very unpredictable. The wind blew so hard today that it took off the grill cover and "shifted" the patio furniture. High five to me on the decision not to put the garbage out (decided it could wait another week). We likely would have had to search for the empty container in the next county. First real thunderstorm of the season and due to a tornado spotted north of Lincoln, the sirens were sounded at 4:30pm this afternoon. Hopefully this isn't a sign of a rough spring of storms to come...

I failed to post pictures after my quick trip to Minnesota last month. It was an interesting travel schedule as I dodged snowstorms in both Minnesota AND Nebraska. The weekend with my family was great!!! Ann's girls are growing so fast. I really enjoyed playing and reading books with them. Everyone was fighting colds and infections, though, so I even got to accompany Ann and Hadley to urgent care...one diagnosed with a sinus infection and the other with ear infection. Thank goodness everyone is feeling better now.

Spring fever

The temp reached 76 degrees here yesterday! Although I never left the office all day, the number of people lining the sidewalks as I drove home from work clearly pointed out that I was missing out on the fun. People were out walking, running, biking and rollerblading (in shorts and t-shirts mind you). I counted 11 kids playing in the neighbor's driveway as I pulled into ours. Definitely spring fever in Lincoln!

Today was not quite as balmy, but 60 degrees nonetheless, so we thought pulling out the grill was a perfect idea for supper. Three t-shirts, a pair of sweatpants and shorts later (the laundry lady will be busy this weekend), Mike had perfected his feast of burgers and dogs. Really not sure what battle was fought out there, but apparently the grill took a beating over the winter months. The good news is that it still works.

Speaking of warmer weather, the new GMC Acadia experienced it's first car wash on Wednesday...followed by another car wash on Thursday. Mike just can't stand to see it dirty. It may be a long rest of the winter around here.

I heard an interesting statistic on the radio yesterday. Did you know that 85% of people talk about the weather at least once a day. I'm one of the 85%. Anyone from Minnesota is one of the 85%. Enjoy the weekend!

Introducing a New Member of the Family

Since I drug Lisa car shopping with me the past two Saturdays, she's asked me to write the blog about the newest member of our family. I feel obligated to oblige.

On Saturday, we became the proud new owners of a brand new 2009 GMC Acadia.

Our day started in Omaha when we made on offer on an all-wheel drive Acadia. It fell just beyond our price range so we moved on to Sid Dillon in Fremont, about 30 minutes away. There, we saw a larger number of vehicles on the lot and a few that were really close to what we were looking for.

After test driving a front-wheel drive with the heads-up display, we decided that it wasn't for us (plus it was a black vehicle with black interior...too much black for me).

We came back to the lot and found another FWD without the heads up display, but with titanium interior and a power liftgate. Perfect! So we negotiated a price and came up with what we feel was a good deal for us.

We began our ride home with just 25 miles on the vehicle, but after a 60 mile trek and errands around Lincoln, we're now around 125. It's really fun to drive and my favorite feature happens to be the Bluetooth capability so I can talk on the phone without holding it or wearing an earpiece.

So far, I've noticed that everyone drives entirly too close and I've come to the conclusion that walking all the way across a huge Wal-Mart parking lot is not too far as long as it means not getting door dinged.

We're very excited and look forward to many good times with our new family member.

- ML

Happy Valentine's Day!

Mike and I had a very nice day together. It started off with a trip to Omaha and Council Bluffs to look at vehicles. The Jeep is about to turn over 100,000 miles and as bad as the economy seems to be, we feel this might be an ideal time to strike a dynamite deal and inject our share of capital back into the market. After much deliberation (hours of research on the internet and crack...oops, I mean blackberry), Mike had determined the GMC Acadia was his vehicle of choice. We had an opportunity to test drive one today. Unfortunately, we weren't able to locate one that had all 4 of Mike's key requirements: (1) black exterior, (2) leather seats/heated, (3) all-wheel drive, (4) in the target price range. Finding our way back to Lincoln, we stopped in at a dreaded dealership (I will not name it, but am guessing those in Lincoln know the dealership I am referring to). The dealership is notorious for their pushy, overbearing sales staff. Our experience did not veer from what we feared and we found ourselves sitting across the table from a salesman who was one egg short of a dozen. He asked us several obnoxiously stupid questions, such as "If you were able to purchase a new Acadia with ALL of the bells & whistles...totally loaded with options, but for the price you are targeting, would you be motivated to purchase." How could one not respond with "Ummm, yeah, I guess." However, he was unfortunately, totally missing our message which cleared indicted we are only wanting "basic" options. He left us at his desk for more than ten minutes to which we determined he must have been in search of a key to grab a vehicle for a test drive (which we never requested), so we got up from our chairs, walked out a side door and got out of that lot as fast as we could. Not going back there anytime soon. After that unfortuate experience, it was time to start celebrating Valentine's Day in true form. We headed downtown to the only theatre in Lincoln showing the movie "New In Town". I particularly enjoyed the movie as the setting was in Minnesota (New Ulm). There were alot of "don't cha knows" in the dialogue! Mike got a kick out of it too! From there, we headed to Carlos O'Kelly's for a mexican feast. Our day of love is winding down with Mike at the helm in a game of Playstation. Hope you all had a great day too!

New Year's in Minnesota

So much for the New Year's resolution to be more diligent in blog posting, huh? We had a fun trip to Minnesota to bring in the New Year. New Year's Eve included a night out with Ann/Derrick and Cindy/Kevin. We had a great supper at the Royal Loon in Slayton and brought in the New Year celebrating at Key Largo (also, happens to be the site of a "first" date for Mike and me six years ago...ahhh, the reminiscing).




On a cold, blustery day, we got a chance to cheer on Derrick's basketball team. He coaches the varsity boys' basketball team at WWG (Westbrook-Walnut Grove). They played a small charter school and came out on top...a mere 80 points on top. Don't believe me? I've posted a picture to prove it!