What I'm missing....

It's been almost 4 weeks since I last "stood on my own 2 feet"; and the patience quota is wearing thin. Optimistic ole Sandy has searched and searched trying to find something positive about having a broken foot ..... but I ain't found nuttin! Oh, I've found that it can be funny! Downright hilarious sometimes -- but not positive.

I have periodic bouts of self-pity (which feel quite wonderful, by the way). These are followed very quickly by an "Oh for goodness sake! I don't have time for this!" attitude (which feels even better). Then I move on to something else.

But oh the patience level! Way down!

I'm missing more than patience. Here are the things that I miss the most:

1. I miss being able to go downstairs whenever I feel like it. Going down is not so bad; it's the coming back up that does me in!


2. I miss walking in the lovely crisp air and wanting to be out then when the snow falls.






3. I miss putting up the Xmas lights outside.


4. I miss wearing skirts and pretty shoes.


5. I miss grocery shopping.


6. I miss cooking dinner.


7. I miss the favorite Xmas teas and craft shows that were on last weekend.


8. I miss going out for lunch at work; these office walls are closing in around me!


9. I miss exercise class and feeling good.


10. I miss being in control of my life!

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But you and I both know that I'm just chasing the wind! Because in the great scheme of things, me and my petty complaints are miniscule. I am but a pimple on the butt of a gnat!.
Does that get me down? No way! Because look who holds us all in his hand.....

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It's the Big Guy -- my Heavenly Dad! And He tells me that loves me and that everything is fine. HE's in control.

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(Does that stop me from complaining? No! But it sure helps me.)

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Even invalids can lead productive lives.

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I went to church today! Yeahhhhh! My first "social" outings for over 3 weeks. It was our tree decorating party; so I stayed for yummies and mostly watched as others decorated. Nova Scotia is known as the Christmas tree capital of the world (re export); isn't this one a beauty!

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Christmas trees can be found on every corner this time of year. Prices for a 4-6 ft tree start at $15 and can go up to $40 depending on the type of tree or the degree of "perfection". This year, we won't get to trek through the woods to pick out our own tree. But one of my church buddies who's father-in-law has a tree lot will do all the hard stuff for me and deliver it. Isn't that sweet!

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I wasn't totally useless at the decorating party. I was in charge of untangling the various garlands. (Some of them can also double as quite pretty necklaces.)
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I'm happy to report that my church family doesn't treat me any differently since my accident: they still respond to me with love and laughter ..... except this time, I'm what they're laughing at! This is my sad, pouty, "poor ole Sandy" face (finger under eye to emphasize the sadness -- not finger picking nose, okay!).
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It was great to get out in the land of the living and to worship with my extended family. I am filled with new hope and joy for the little things that have been getting crowded out lately with my impatience to heal. God is good!
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Do you go real Christmas tree or fake? If real, how do you guys get your Christmas tree? And what does it cost you where you live? Inquiring minds want to know!
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Come on, admit it; you know ya wanna see my feet again!

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The road to recovery is slow but quite progressive. Since I've had the cast removed, there is improvement on a daily basis -- not just in the look but in the feel.
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This is my foot last Monday:.
This is on Wednesday: .

And this is my foot today:.
Pretty good huh! I'm very encouraged!

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Still, this is what my feet look like next to each other when I swing them over the side of the bed and place them on the floor:.

You might have come a long way baby, but there's still a ways to go.

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And yes, that's new nail polish. I'm soooo bored! And I'm tired of hanging out with my sick-bed companions Betty Backache, Hetty Heating Pad and Randy Remote eating Lay's potato chips and thinking about how much I want to decorate for Christmas. Sigh!!

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God is teaching me patience, I suppose, and other things that have not yet been revealed. And I did tell him just today "Thank you, Lord, for teaching me patience."

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"Now Lord. Could we please move on to miracle walking now?"

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The First Thanksgiving « Videos « The Skit Guys

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Happy Thanksgiving to all my wonderful American friends.
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And enjoy this video!
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http://skitguys.com/videos/item/the-first-thanksgiving/

The multi-colored hues of Me!

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Let's play a game! How about "One of these things is not like the other"?
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Or we could play "Look Ma! No cast!"
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The Orthopedic Surgeon says the bone will heal on its own and I just need to listen to my body as to when to walk and/or drive. The Physio gal told me to begin to exercise my foot when I felt I could and that I should keep on exercising until it could do everything the other foot can do. (I didn't ask if I'd be able to play the violin!)

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Me and my little foot -- we're on our own now, I guess.

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Well, we do have some really good friends though. We have Mrs Calcium-Magnesium as well as our new friend, Ms Robaxisal (because I've been having awful, excruiciatingly painful spasms in my foot just when I begin to doze off! It's made me afraid to go to sleep!). Plus we have Mr double-sized, extra firm Mattress with the 5-pillow chorus -- ahhhh! I love those guys! And we cannot forget our wonderful supporting staff of family and friends. I couldn't do it without them.

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So, perhaps I'll just lie down and rest and you can play by yourself for a while!

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Goodies to help me heal!

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Sometimes when you begin to heal and the pain lessens, it gets boring. So, you decorate; you celebrate the rain outside with some flowers inside. They go round ...
and round ...
and round!.

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And then someone comes to visit and brings you beautiful fruit and wishes from the entire TOPS group. .

It's lovely to have such wonderful friends!

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And now when I yet again recline in bed with my leg propped up on 3 pillows, when I feel like complaining about how sore my bum is or how much my back aches, I can cram my mouth full of healthy, juicy fruit in order to shut myself up.

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The whole house breathes a sigh of relief!

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Achey, Breaky Foot

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It's been a tough week! What started out as moderate discomfort and occasional pain last weekend escalated into non-stop pain from Wed until Friday when I went back to out-patients. It was a crazy night so I had a horendously long wait. But when the doctor finally saw me, he found that the original cast was too tight and had to be replaced; if I had ignored it, I could have lost my foot! Egad!
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It took 1/2 an hour to remove the fiberglass cast -- very uncomfortable! Then the dr had to re-set my foot (OMG -- the pain!); and he put a plaster cast on it. Here's my new bed buddy:.

This new dr also gave me information that should have been given me last weekend AND wonderful, wonderful drugs! The pain is fairly acute at times, but it's localized to the fracture site: and Tylenol 3 does the trick at night-time so I can sleep..

My wonderful friend, Laura, not only took me to the hospital and brought me a sub for supper before she scooted off to get groceries, she also stayed with me throughout the whole ordeal -- telling me funny stories during the wait and holding my hand and praying and singing to me while I had my foot reset and the new cast put on.

She is wonderful!

In the meantime, I'm totally bored! It's difficult to sit at the computer for longer than 15 min at a time; so today's entry will not be entertaining. But when I do get to sit and read your posts, I feel better. Well, except for the times I cry with jealousy! But that doesn't last long.

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So, while you're all decorating for American Thanksgiving and/or Christmas or going out for dinner or thrifting, I'm home with my foot elevated trying to study for my exam Tuesday night (in between looking for remedies for bed sores and visualizing my bones healing.)

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As soon as I feel a little better and am slightly more mobile, I will be be-dazzling my new plaster stocking. A girl's gotta be stylin', right!

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I am Grateful!

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I am grateful for the sacrifice of others which allows me to live in such comfort and peace in this wonderful country of mine.

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Thanks you!

Leadership Lessons from Dancing Guy

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The lessons learned from this hilarious video are so true.

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Enjoy!

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Ode to a Broken Foot!

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I went to work yesterday, but I was in so much discomfort that I came home early. And here I am today -- at home. Just look at the swelling and bruising in this foot! Ouch!
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I decided that my cast needed a bit of color. So, with the help of a sharpie and some nail polish, here's what I did ...
... and I also did this! (Anyone know how to get red nail polish out of a carpet -- besides rubbing and making it worse like I did?) .

Sigh! What a dork I am sometimes!

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I searched the internet for funny pictures of people with casts trying to get into or out of the bathtub, or trying to carry their tea into the living room. But I guess no one wearing a cast sees anything funny about it! Go figure!

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Well, what with my artistic side kicking in with that great cast-art above, a poem began to form in my mind. I'd like to share it with you now.

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Ode to Broken Foot

(by Doris the currently not-so-Great)

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Oh cast! Which cast a pallor, upon once castless life.

Oh broken foot! You broke my dreams of dancing Saturday night.

Oh swollen, bruised, like-sausage toes, of yellow/purple hues

Oh pain in back and sciatic nerve; you make me sing the blues!

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I long for comfort -- yet little is found. I toss and turn and cuss;

contort my body just to bathe ----- and still I look a muss!

I hop with crutches, pant ... and rest! Hope I don't fall on ass!

God says "Relax! In 4 to 6 weeks ..... this too shall surely pass".

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"She's a Daaa-a-ay Tripper" Ouch!

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Life! Always interesting, isn't it! You have your good days .... and you have your bad days. Yesterday was a bad 'un.
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We said goodbye to our lovely cat Tolouse. He was ill and in pain and the medication didn't work. So, a tough decision was made. It sucks being a responsible adult sometimes. We'll miss him.
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Then as I was bringing the vacuum cleaner downstairs after cleaning, I somehow twisted my whole right foot underneath me -- and I mean twisted! I fell, vacuum and all, down the last 5 steps. Luckily, there were 3 green garbage bags full of the girls old clothing sitting at the bottom just waiting for me to take them to the Salvation Army store. I landed on top of the bags, so I didn't hurt myself with the fall. (Proof that proscrastination is sometimes a good thing!) ..... And yeah, the vacuum is fine as well!
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But my foot wasn't! My foot had this odd sausage-shaped swelling on the right side. After 15 min or so, I finally listened to my 20 yr old and drove myself in torrential rains to the hospital (using toes for gas and left foot for brake -- Can you say bucking broncho?). Molly doesn't have her license yet (Proof that procrastination is sometimes a bad thing!), and we're only 5 min away. I don't know if I fractured the cuboid or part of the calcaneus, but it's in that general area. And the doctor says that these can heal rather quickly. (Fingers crossed!)
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So, here I am this morning, waiting for the arrival of crutches and looking for someone to buy my ticket to the dance next Saturday night. .
But I am thankful for the following things:

• that I'm not worrying about little Tolouse and his pain (as sad as that is)
• that I was able to get in and out of emergency in 2 hours! A record!
• that all my girls were at home and able to help me get to the hospital
• that Canada has Medicare
• that I had the foresight to shave my legs before that cute young doctor had to man-handle my soft, shapely calf
• that the house was clean before I fell
• that my boss is understanding about the odd hours I may keep for the next weeks
• that it's the weekend and I'm not losing time or money as I rest
• that I made some delicious double-chocolate banana muffins yesterday (and that the in-house seagulls didn't eat them all yet)
• that I have a great book to read (The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton)
• that I have such a wonderful support system around me
• AND that my computer is in my bedroom and within easy reach
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Now, I just have to concentrate on healing and enjoying the process. It's hard for me to sit and not DO! But God knew this would happen, and I'm sure He has good things to teach me during this time.
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And while that happens, I'll be eating lots of lovely calcium-rich foods and trying not to pile on that 15 lb again!
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Any good tips or wisdom from my blog friends is always welcome as well.
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Thrifty Thursday Nov 4.10

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I think I mentioned a few weeks ago that I've lost 15 lb over the past year. So, you know what that means: loose clothes! And you know what that means: thrifting!

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I've had a good week at my local thrift stores.
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I found this beautiful wool coat at Frenchies for $11.00; other than the lining in a side pocket needing to be sewn, it's in perfect condition.

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Every gardener needs a good pair of boots, but $40 is too rich for me. This week, Frenchies have received a truckload of boots and shoes; and I was there at the right time. I got this pair for $6! .
With working an office job, I often wear skirts. I was really pleased when I found these double packs of pantie hose for $2 each and the pair of navy for $0.50.

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And then just as a cute treat, I found this sweet little set of melamine measuring cups at The Daisy for just 50 cents.

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Happy Thrifting friends. And don't forget to check out Leigh at Tales From Bloggeritaville for more wonderful Thrifty Thursday finds.

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Dancing at the Movies - Music Video

Just because it's a grey day .....

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And dancing sure makes me feel better .....

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And this is soooo good .....

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For your watching enjoyment ..........