"Spring is when you feel like whistling even with a shoe full of slush." -Doug Larson

On my last day off of work I decided that it was time to get ready for Easter/spring so I made this banner. I went through all my scraps of fabric and found ones that looked fun. All the fabrics came from dresses that I have made Josie over the last 6 years. I then just cut out the letters and some pieces of burlap and sewed them together. It brightens up the fireplace.  The bunnies in the frames are just printouts that I found on Pinterest. Simple cheap decorations!

Sharon

Back to my real life.......

 Oh my 20 days off went way to fast! I had visions of getting all kinds of stuff done but that did not happen. It was very nice to have the time off to recover. My hands are doing very good, almost fully recovered. So today's blog will just be a little catch up on what I have been up to.

On March 13 we drove down to Louisville KY for the Indoor Nationals. We left at  5:00 in the morning and got there around 5:00 that evening. After getting to Louisville we went to the convention center and Rick checked in for the shoot. This year we decided to get a hotel in Indiana because the hotels in downtown Louisville are super expensive and the hotel we stayed at was only 10 minutes away from the tournament.

After checking things out at the convention center we decided to head back to our hotel and try and find some place to eat. Since it was a Friday night and already 7:30 everything was packed.

So right across from the hotel was a Golden Corral. So we figured we would just go there. Neither of us have been to a Golden Corral in years and years and now I remember why. We laughed at the "seafood spectacular" because it turned out to be deep fried shrimp and some other kind of deep fried fish. And lets just say I felt like I was overdressed in my blue jeans and henley shirt. We had a good time "people watching."

Rick shot Saturday and Sunday afternoon. It was not his best scoring weekend but he had lots of fun shooting. We left Louisville around 6:00 and made it to the border of IA and then stopped for the night. Monday we stopped at Chrsita and Jese's house and picked up the dogs and were home around 3:30. It was fast but fun weekend away.

 I finally got back down to my sewing room. I  had this skirt cut out to make Josie for 2 months and never had time to sew it. It turned out super cute.

As you can see Josie loved it. It is a little long for her but that is okay since it is more of a winter skirt. It will fit her good next fall.

I went back to work on Tuesday. It was a sad, sad day. I really did not want to go back, I did not miss it at all. Those 20 short days I had off gave me a taste of what retirement will be like and I loved it. It has made me even more motivated to set things in motion so I can go down to working part time in the next few years. Hopefully within in the next two. I can only dream......


Sharon

Endoscopic Carpal Tunnel Surgery.......

 

Otis update....He is adjusting very good to our house. The only trouble we are having with him is sleeping in the kennel. After 2 weeks of sleepless nights we let him win and he has moved into the bed with us. Now most nights he sleeps all night. He still likes to get up once in awhile to go poop. We are working on a feeding schedule to put a stop to that. Morgan is also adjusting well to Otis. She likes having another  dog around.

 This is me about 2 hours after I underwent endoscopic carpal tunnel surgery on both hands. I chose to have it done endoscopic rather then the old way where they cut open the palm of your hand because it is a lot faster recovery.  I will only have two weeks of recovery vs four to six weeks the old way. I was also able to have both hands done at once because I was able to move my fingers and hands right after the surgery. The doctor told me that endoscopic is also way less painful.  I was a little nervous about having them both done at once but it all went good. About the only thing I could not do the day of the surgery without help was unzip and unbutton my pants. And open the cover of my pain pills. Once I got home I put on some sweat pants and Rick gave me my pills and I was set for the day.

 After two days I got to take the wraps off. It felt so good to get them off. As you can see in the picture above my hands were still pretty swollen. I also go a huge blister on the side of my left hand. I think the warp was a little to tight and when my hand swelled up after the surgery in rubbed. Since my hand was numb for 12 hours I did not notice it until the next day. As the swelling went down over the next few days the bruises showed up. My hands were pretty sore still but I was able to do most things. I could not do any heavy lifting and still had a little trouble opening bottles and jars.

 This is how they look six days after the surgery. The swelling is pretty much gone along with most of the bruising. The stitches will come out on Thursday, 8 days after the surgery. 

They are still a little sore but everyday they get better and I am getting most of the strength back in them.  I still have to be careful when doing things. If I turn them wrong it will hurt like crazy.  I also found that if I over use them they get sore.

The really good news is they are no longer going numb and the pain I was having in them from the carpal tunnel is gone. The pain I am having now is just the healing pain. I am so glad that I had the surgery. I am also glad that I had them both done at once. I had so many people tell me not to do them both at once but I trusted my doctor when he said I would be able to take of myself from day one and he was right.  I had to take two weeks off of work and I think that will be about right. I think by the time I go back they will feel pretty good.

I got lucky to have such great weather for my time off. I'm sure my time off will go by too fast and then it will be back to work for me :(

Sharon

“Individually, every grain of sand brushing against my hands represents a story, an experience, and a block for me to build upon for the next generation.” ― Raquel Cepeda,

 A few years ago when we were in Zion National Park I loved the color of the sand that was everywhere. I told Rick I was going to take some home. I had no idea what I was going to do with it I just knew I wanted some. Once I got home with it I put it into a bottle and put in on the fireplace mantel. And that was the beginning of my obsession with sand.

Now every time we go on a vacation I like to get a little bit of sand and bring it home. Mostly I get sand from State and National parks we have been at while camping. It amazes me all the different colors and textures of the sand.

It is a cheap way for me to keep a little something from all of our travels. Now every time I look at the mantel and see them there it brings back happy memories of the great trips Rick and I have taken together.

Sharon