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| First swim of the season for the girls |
Well, I survived my surgery (if you were wondering why I completely dropped off the face of the blogging world). Unfortunately, practically nothing goes as planned in my life (or anyone else's???) so my recovery process has been much more arduous than originally anticipated.
Although the cholesteatoma is gone, and I have a revised mastoid, a rebuilt eardrum and a partially rebuilt hearing bone- I have only limited use of my left arm. A neck positioning error during my surgery compressed some of the nerves going from my neck to my shoulder and arm. The official diagnosis being Brachial Plexitis or Brachial Neuropathy. A fairly rare injury in itself according to my physical therapist, also a fairly rare presentation of the effects of the compressed nerve- severe scapular winging which goes with nerve pain from shoulder to fingers.
So I'm home- still- since pretty much May 18th- and I'll be home at least until the end of June because nerves heal slowly. Painfully slowly. I've been avoiding posting anything here because typing just isn't that comfortable. Though I've managed to find a decent position this morning in the recliner with pillows in the quiet while everyone else sleeps.
My worst case scenario was not making it out of surgery (crisis averted there), but I just assumed if I survived that I'd be back up and around for the most part within a week-ish. So I planned accordingly not dreaming for a minute I wouldn't be able to work for more than a month. Not considering that I would be dealing with 4 doctors, more prescriptions than I can count, Short Term Disability and all the lovely paperwork that goes with that. But here I am and so it is.
Of course I am looking for a silver lining here...I get to spend a little more time with the girls as the school year winds down. I have some time to think and plan and I know this too shall pass. Life keeps on keeping on. There are still dinners to cook and chores to do, school functions to attend and believe it or not I'm still turning 30 next week.
One of these days I'll find the energy to post pictures of the talent show, John's birthday, Kendra's science fair and whatever else we have piled up on camera's memory card. Now I'm just going to go enjoy some quiet.
We walked onto the Edmonds-Kingston ferry for a mini adventure on Sunday afternoon. It felt good to get out of bed and do something. I was able to focus on doing what we were doing instead of the amount of pain I was in. The warmth of the sun and the wind in my hair felt amazing. The sound of the waves on the beach was beyond relaxing. It was exactly what I needed. I loved watching everyone find their happiness there. Lily playing in the waves and collecting shells, Martin exploring way down the beach, me soaking up the sun. We were all exhausted by the time we got home but it was SO worth shrugging off our normal Sunday chores. That morning I was also lucky enough to get beautiful flowers, breakfast in bed, a lovely new teapot with some special tea and lots of cards and artwork made by the girls. I was truly spoiled this Mother's Day- for which I am so grateful. 
On April 30th I got bad news. The ear infections and burst eardrum turned out to be the least of my issues. I actually have a large Cholesteatoma in my middle ear. It is a non-cancerous cyst that has been growing in my ear for at least several years. Unfortunately, it has already destroyed two "hearing bones" and my sense of taste on the right side. The upside being that it hasn't eaten a hole through my skull and gotten into my brain or paralysed my face. The down side? 1) I am in a lot of pain and 2) I need surgery- very soon. 
Sneak Peek at Kendra's Birthday Party on Saturday! The girls had a blast and were so good! Still, Martin and I are so thankful we don't have five kids. So, so thankful. I have lots more pictures but I just haven't had time to go through them all yet. 
Both girls were excited to dye Easter Eggs last week. I don't think we did them last year at all. Neither of them eat the hard boiled eggs too much (one is plenty) so Martin gets lots of Egg Salad sandwiches this week for lunch. 
