Hi Friends! It’s the weekend and I get to spend time with you! Does it get any better than that? N to the O!

Well, we have a forecast for some snow this weekend, but I am just going to assume that is the weatherman’s sense of humor, what a jokester!

My life this week:

So many of you know I fell back in February on the ice in my driveway when I went to start my car for work, and I broke my ankle like Humpty Dumpty. I still can’t believe after all those years in my youth of figure skating that when the chips were down, all that grace went right out the window! Thankfully, my son Jake was warming his car up too, and he rushed me in to the hospital.

So this meant surgery, lots of therapy both in my home in the beginning, and now outpatient. They put Humpty Dumpty back together again with everything but the kitchen sink, and they may have stuck one of those in there too!

Lots of ice, lots of leg elevation (almost constantly). And lots of exercises to try and keep as many of the leg muscles in shape as possible getting ready for the day I am able to walk again! Just recently I was given the green light to begin to start putting weight on my broken ankle. In all honesty, it’s kind of scary to do that in the beginning. But I’m getting better at it!

There are so many precious people that work together to help me through this. My husband and son are in the trenches with me every single day. We have a good system. I am in a makeshift bedroom on the main floor and I can get to the downstairs bathroom, the kitchen, the family room and my bed all on my own. But I don’t do so well at carrying things. So they make sure I have a big glass of ice water twice a day. I can get in the fridge and “shop” as I call it. I grab a yogurt or Jello cup or cheese or an orange or hard boiled egg or turkey slices… that right there is a huge part of my daily diet. My PT person says I need protein and calcium and Vitamin D to get those bones to heal. I can make the coffee but I can’t carry it, hah! So I get it going and Jake or Troy will bring me a cup before they leave for the day.

My friends and parents and siblings, their calls and texts are priceless. Because this is such a long recovery, the encouragement from others is literally a game changer. My eyes have certainly been opened on what it means to be housebound.

The doctors and therapists are a gift straight from God. I absolutely marvel at what they do! Mind you, I had never had a broken bone or a surgery in my life, so I was wide eyed and pretty nervous. And every person I met was calm and kind and encouraging and so professional. I honestly am so grateful!

The therapist gives me new things to do all the time building on what I have been doing. All of it is meant to further strengthen and stretch the muscles in my leg, ankle and foot. They have become increasingly challenging, but I also am finding that I can handle it as she gives them to me. Tonight she told me she is going to increase the resistance on the bike next week to try and further strengthen those muscles. There is this giant circular thing that looks like a big “dreidel” and I put my foot on it and rotate in a clockwise motion 30 times and then counter clockwise 30 times. That forces your ankle to move at just about every angle imaginable. This is very good for my ankle. There are many exercises like this. They ice me up before I leave each time for 10 minutes and it feels so good!

You see that dark blue and green tennis shoe? He has been the only shoe I have worn. The other foot gets the big black boot. One of these days they will say to me, “Amy, it’s time to wear a regular shoe on your left foot too.” Which means I need to find that other shoe!

So another thing they work with me on is they have me use something like a “thigh master”, a device to strengthen your thigh muscles. Well, I ordered one on Amazon so now I have my own!

Boy I will tell you what, I had no idea how weak my muscles were! This is helping!

They also have me use a 1 lb ankle weight on my bad ankle for many of my exercises. I ordered one of those too! I also use in on my knee for a few of the exercises.

And then I went and got a tape measure. Oh boy… this is not for the faint of heart! I have a little notebook for recording measurements and exercises. I have not gotten the scale out yet. I am working myself up to that one! (It’s probably not safe for me to stand on it… yeah, we’ll go with that! Hah!)

And on my wrist, my Fitbit! Troy bought this for me a few years ago on Mother’s Day. I haven’t used it in several months but I thought this is the perfect time to use it! So Jake found it for me and charged it up! And now I can track how many steps I take in a day (Ok… so it is pathetically small compared to when I was walking 2 miles a day, but I have to start somewhere!) So at least I can see my progress. And my Fitbit also tells my heart rate too. No stairs for me yet. But one day I will get there.

There have been so many hurdles that at the time in my mind seemed massive. That first trip to the ER, everything felt like it was completely out of my control and really kind of scary. But I knew the doctors and nurses all were working so hard to provide the best care. Past hurdle #1! Then a week later was surgery. Ok, I was scared. I had never had anesthesia. But I trusted the doctors and nurses. And when I opened my eyes, there sat my dream team! My husband Troy, My son Jake and my Sister Stacey! And I was ok! Past hurdle #2! Managing pain meds and beginning physical therapy. Past hurdle #3! Getting the cast off- I was scared! (I didn’t look! I know, I am such a chicken!)  Past hurdle #4! Stitches out (I didn’t look again!) Past hurdle #5! And putting partial weight down on my foot- I was scared, but I did it. Past hurdle #6! On and on it goes. And with each challenge, I am one step closer. And in the background of my heart I keep hearing a whisper, “Don’t give up, you are going to get through this.” And I know one day I will be walking on two feet, pain free! And one day, maybe even running!

There have been challenges like that in all of our lives. Goodness, sometimes we can look back and think, “How did I ever get through that?”  and yet, it’s a series of tiny steps that take us through those tough times, and all along the way, even if we don’t always know it, we are never alone. The one who made us takes every step with us, even the hardest ones, with a tender loving arm holding us as we limp along.

I don’t know what you might be going through right now. But I want you to know you are not alone, and you are dearly loved. Don’t give up!  If you just take it one step at a time… even a baby step, you are going to be ok.

I hope you have a fantastic weekend! I’ll be back Tuesday with another Tasty Tuesday!

Love Always,

Amy

You may not be there yet, but you are one step closer than you were yesterday.

~Author Unknown