A blast from the past...(50's style)

A blast from the past day at school.  Jonathon dressed up in 50's style clothing.  He is such handsome little guy!

Snow at last.......

February finally blessed Nebraska with lots of snow.  Alyvia and Jonathon got new snow bibs and boots for Christmas and couldn't wait to use them.  This snow storm brought several inches of heavy snow; perfect for building a snowman.  It was quite cold and still snowing, but Alyvia and Jonathon couldn't contain themselves, so we bundled up and went out to play.  Ted was outside shoveling the driveway, so he was able to capture these fun pictures.   It was a good time by all!!   

Here we are happy and satisfied with the snowman we built!!

Sadly, Mr. Snowman didn't last for very long.  Ted found him knocked over the following morning.  Why do people do that???  I would like to think it was the wind, but I'm afraid that's not the case.   

Christmas Parties 2011

 

Aldersgate Preschool hosted a Christmas Party to celebrate the Holiday Season with the cutest 4 year-olds ever.  All the children came walking into the church with jingle bells in their hands and singing.  Alyvia was glowing with the biggest smile on her face.  The kids performed several Christmas songs and then got to sit on Santa's lap.  She was so excited to let him know what she wanted for Christmas and happy to receive a bag of goodies from him.   

The next day we attended Jonathon's school party.  They had games and lots of goodies for the children.  The hostess for the party did a great job. Jonathon was thrilled to have us there to celebrate with him.  Alyvia was excited to be at his school with her brother.  They are the best of friends!!  

JGP decoration his goodie bag.

Blog Updates Coming Soon......

Slow start for 2012.  Since my surgery, things I wanted to do or achieve have come at a much slower pace.  I feel like at times I'm just treading water and wondering if I will every catch up.  

I'm so behind on blogging that some of the events I plan to post may seem so long ago.  I guess it really doesn't matter, I feel they are important to document and remember those wonderful times with my family.

Today, I started with a refreshing walk/run session.  It was so good to be outside again and breath the fresh air into my lungs.  I have missed for a long time the feeling you get after you complete a run.  My body is healing well and I'm no where that I once was, but I hope that I will soon be in great condition to be able to run all three miles again.

Exercise gives me energy to do more, so hopefully I can get to blogging and be able to cross it off my to-do-list!!        

Updates soon to come!!

6 Weeks Post-Op Spinal Fusion L5-S1 (1-23-12)

My body continues to heal and get stronger every day.  I have decreased my medicine to only taking Tylenol in the morning and Norco at night.  I'm now walking up to 2.5 miles 5 days per week.  Sleeping is better as well.  I still have some throbbing pain in my leg/foot in the morning, however it gets better after I take my medicine and increase activity.

I saw the physical therapist and my doctor this week.  I was given some stretching and strengthening exercises to do twice a day.  I'm amazed at how weak and stiff my muscles are.  I never have been very flexible even when I was in shape.  That is something I hope to get better at.  I don't have to wear my brace all day long, I can wean my self off of it, starting with 2 hours on then two hours off and increasing the time until my body has adjusted and I no longer needs it.  I was given the okay to do more things around the house, like vacuuming (so happy to have cleans floors!!!), etc., as long as I'm careful not to strain my back.  I use my legs a lot when lifting and picking things up.  

X-rays were taken and I got to see the difference in my disc space since having the surgery.   My sciatic nerve should have plenty of space now to function normally.  Nerves can take weeks/months to heal, so I'm hoping by summer that I'm pain free.

My goal for next week is to walk 3 miles 5 days a week and start lifting weights to strengthen my arms as well.  

Thanks everyone for your prayers, thoughts and well wishes.  They have helped a lot!!