Patience

So what is the deal with these two pigeons in my photo? Ah, it is a study in patience! You see, these birds are perched above the doorway entry for Raleigh Tavern in Colonial Williamsburg. With teamwork and patience, they will soon be able to get the attention of some unsuspecting visitors arriving and departing from the Tavern! Look out below, haha!

Patience, my dears. That trait has somewhat escaped me the past few weeks, as I continue to heal and recover from replacement surgery for my left knee. And I know that my sweet visitors here may be getting impatient about the partial inattention to my blog. Rehabilitation is like taking baby steps and full recovery is a long way off. My usual pastimes and activities continue to be scaled back, including time on the computer and photography. So let’s continue to stay at our perches and wait a while longer for opportunities to have more fun together. Okay?

I am planning on participating in the next Brenda Photo Challenge, coming up this Saturday. The theme is “Keeping Cool”. I’ll be showcasing a beautiful place that we saw on a vacation four years ago. Be sure to come back and find out about this surprise destination!

Classic Chicken Salad

Since this post is about chicken salad, I decided to feature a recent photo of mine that captures the theme! Isn’t this a handsome rooster? He is an example of the rare Dominique breed at Colonial Williamsburg.

Are you tired of serving hot food during the summer months? For a cool lunch or dinner menu, we like to have a classic chicken salad. This recipe includes grapes and walnuts, two ingredients that pump up the texture. As an added bonus, this is a low calorie recipe, with only 277 calories per serving. For a richer flavor (and a few more calories), we use traditional Greek yogurt in the dressing.

Chicken Salad with Grapes and Walnuts

1/2 cup plain fat-free yogurt
2 Tablespoons reduced-fat mayonnaise
1 Tablespoon honey
1 teaspoon apple-cider vinegar
1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
2 cups chopped cooked chicken breast
1-1/2 cups seedless green grapes, halved
1/4 cup chopped walnuts

Combine the yogurt, mayonnaise, honey, vinegar, mustard, nutmeg, salt, and pepper in a large bowl. Add the chicken, grapes, and walnuts; toss to coat evenly. Cover and refrigerate at least 1 hour or up to 8 hours. Serves 4.

Happy Anniversary, Sweetie!

Piglet sidled up to Pooh from behind.
“Pooh?” he whispered.
“Yes, Piglet?”
“Nothing,” said Piglet, taking Pooh’s paw.
“I just wanted to be sure of you.”

(Winnie the Pooh)

Thank you for 28 years of being there for me and with me!

Three Weeks & Counting

It’s been three weeks now since I had total knee replacement for my left knee. Whew, this marathon is taking f-o-r-e-v-e-r!

I am getting better and now walking very slowly with a cane in the house. Yeah! I can actually carry things now! I still have a lot of pain in my leg and skin numbness around the overall knee area. There are good days and bad days. It is difficult to get comfortable no matter what I am doing: sitting, standing, and lying down. I also get discouraged on how slowly the time is passing. But my sweet hubby continues to be my cheerleader and lifts my spirits up. I know that it will be better once I am able to do more than putter around the house in a semi-vegetative state (LOL), be able to visit places besides the physical therapy and doctor offices, and regain some independence.

So please stay tuned as I continue to get well and strive to get back to my regular activities!

Turning the Corner

Today was my first post-operational visit to the doctor! I am starting to feel more normal now. Hmmm, or perhaps I should say less abnormal, LOL. No matter, I am moving in the forward direction in my healing.

The doctor expressed a little concern over a reddish area to the side of my kneecap. He believes it is a bacterial skin infection, so I now have an antibiotic prescription to nip that in the bud. He wants the physical therapist to call him on next Monday during my workout, and he will come over to the therapy center to recheck the area. He also wants me to concentrate on bending the knee joint more aggressively in the weeks ahead. Ugh. Easier said than done with a joint that resembles a basketball!

The nurse took about half of my staples out and then I proceeded to get dizzy and hot. The stress and pain got the best of me. After getting me stabilized, the nurse was able to finish the job up. Hubby came back to the exam room to stay with me until I felt I could get up and go.

So I am turning a corner today. Adhesive strips have replaced the staples. I quit wearing the surgical stocking and threw it away. And now I can resume my arthritis medicine and quit taking the shots to prevent blood clots. I am moving better each day and having less pain. On Friday, I will be allowed to take a shower again. Hallelujah!

Whew, these last two weeks have been the slowest of my life and filled with trauma. The recovery from this kind of surgery is incredibly rough. I pray that I never have to go through it again.

My immediate goals are to increase bending, further strength conditioning, and achieve more independence. I hope to ditch the granny walker for a cane in about a week. Oh yes, I also want to find more simple joys and improve my spirit. I’m sure that hubby would like that too, LOL.

Thank you, again, for all of your good wishes!

July - A Look Ahead

This month is all about my recovery and rehab from total knee replacement surgery. The procedure was a success, and hubby has been taking excellent care of me. I am thankful that everything went well in the operating room, and I did not need a transfusion of my blood. The hospital staff was not as fully attentive as I expected, but there were a few gems to help lighten the ordeal.

The rehab has been very painful. The pain medicine does very little from what I can tell. My knee is quite swollen and the skin is numb. I am making progress, but it is at a snail’s pace. I do therapy exercises several times a day and am going to my doctor’s therapy center. My staples, all 42 of them, will be removed on Wednesday this week. Everyone tells me that I am doing great. But I know that the cost of that achievement is a lot of pain. This was the part that I was dreading. I am trying to remain positive, but it is very difficult.

Our real lives are on hold, and everything centers around my rehab now. It is surreal. I’ll continue to post my routine progress and thoughts on Twitter. If I am not feeling upbeat and content, it is difficult to feel inspired enough to write a blog post.

The contingency contract on our property expired on my birthday, and the people did not renew it. They are discouraged that their house has not sold, so they gave up and took it off the market. They had two contingency contracts on it. I’ve never understood how someone can achieve their dreams by giving up, but we wish them nothing but the best. Perhaps they will change their minds later. Perhaps not. Life goes on. We have some other good prospects that are in the process of selling their properties. We’re in a marathon here, and we are most definitely not giving up on our dream to downsize and settle into a villa home.

The garden is producing summer squash and peppers so far. Hubby will be picking little cherry tomatoes and beans very soon. The daylilies are still in their glory, and I can’t help but smile when I see them outside the windows or on my way to the truck for physical therapy. From a distance, I see the sunflower plants standing tall. By the time they bloom, I hope that hubby can help me get out there to take a few pictures. We’ll see. I will be sitting out on the front porch when I feel up to it and watch the hummingbirds drink at the feeders. We’ve got some new nests in a couple of the bird houses (bluebird and wren), so more baby birds will start their lives here at our cottage.

I’m doing a little reading and watching more television than I want to. I have not felt like doing any needlework yet. It is difficult to do photography while using a granny walker, LOL, so that pastime is on hold. My life is incredibly dull and uninspiring right at the moment. Your continued patience and good thoughts are appreciated. I hope to feel up to visiting some of you soon, with the laptop balanced on half of my lap. I miss you, my friends!

Happy 4th of July!

Happy 4th of July! We have our American little flags out in the flower beds near the road, proudly displaying our pride in our country. I encourage you to take some moments to reflect on freedom’s price over the years and how our freedoms are now slipping away.

I wish that I could participate in a local tea party this weekend. Instead, I am content with reading a new book, Glenn Beck’s Common Sense.

Common sense seems to be a scare commodity these days. I highly recommend this insightful and thoughtful book. Here’s a quote for you:

“You can not take away freedom to protect it, you can not destroy the free market to save it, and you can not uphold freedom of speech by silencing those with whom you disagree. To take rights away to defend them or to spend your way out of debt defies common sense.”

Best wishes for a great holiday weekend!

Happy Birthday to My Hubby!

My hubby is 65 today! Happy birthday, my sweet fella! And he knows that we’re going to fully enjoy the days ahead as soon as I complete my mending process. Right now, he’s taking great care of me and tending to all the household and garden chores. I hope that we can get through this summer quickly - for his sake!