Silver Linings

A few weeks ago I sat in the kitchen in tears, when Brad broke out in laughter at the possibility of me having knee surgery on his birthday.  Just a little over a year after he had surgery on mine. And then that exact thing happened.  

Brad and I had been counting down the days to his birthday.  It was his birthday which was great and exciting in itself, but it also meant we'd be dropping the boys off at my parents house and enjoying the day together and have a really special night planned out together. Just us.  We haven't had a night just us in over three months I think and so it was one of those things that was just...so needed.  But sometimes messy life can get in the way of all the great plans you have.  When I broke the news to Brad that his birthday weekend plans were having to be thrown out and he'd be on nurse duty instead, his reply was "Don't worry about my birthday, we have forever together."  Wow.  I just love this man so much.  I love how he always pulls me back to what is important in life. I had wanted to cry.  But then I realized even with messy life you have chosen to go through life with the most amazing partner and that it doesn't matter if you are at a nice restaurant dining on over priced food and drinks or find yourself in a pre op room of a hospital on a Friday night.  The great benefit (sarcasm) of having a 4:00 surgery time is my doctor was running late from the other surgeries he had performed before mine so surgery was very very delayed.  But the real benefit of surgery being HOURS delayed is time.  I know that makes no sense, but while it was frustrating having to wait and we were ready to get things over with, it was also a blessing.  No, we were not sitting at nice dinner we had planned but that didn't matter.  We were still with each other.  Just us.  And yes, an occasional nurse or doctor, but mostly just us.  We talked and laughed and just felt our love and it was really nice.  You know what else is really nice?  Having that love take the world's greatest care of you ever.  And you know what else is really nice? Having the best parents ever that are there to take the world's greatest care of your boys. What a huge burden to have lifted from me, not having to worry if my boys were okay during all the surgery mess.  That was one thing I didn't even have to question.  So amazing.  We were lucky enough to have them keep the boys Saturday night as well so I could get a little more settled before diving back in the world of parenting.  Brad picked up chinese take out and he set me up on the couch with pillows and my ice/dvt machine and we snuggled and watched a movie.  Wasn't what we had set out for that weekend.  And I certainly wouldn't choose it over the other, but we sure did find the silver linings in the deck of cards we were dealt.  One reason I love being married to Brad, is he's always helping me find the silver linings out of any situation.  

Me before surgery with my good attitude smile even though surgery is so delayed

My leg hooked up to the ice/dvt machine.  I call it my leg ventilator.  Brad calls it my leg Darth Vader mask. That's what it sounds like.  Brad's been a trooper sleeping with this thing on.  Its helping prevent a blood clot.

The boys had a great time over the weekend with Grandma and Papa.  Blake requested putt putt but Papa said it was too hot, so Blake said, "Let's bowl then because that has air conditioning."  So bowling they went of course.  Can't argue with Blake's logic.  

My parents were texting me about the boys cuteness all weekend.  Those boys crack me up!  The boys usually sleep until 7:30 in the morning, sometimes even later.  But on Saturday morning at their house they woke up just after 6.  Brady said the sun was up and it was time to get up.  When my parents said "Your mommy and daddy would have said go back to bed!" They agreed but said, "For Grandma and Papa we just say to get up."  They sure know already how much they have them wrapped around their fingers!!  Then Blake told my parents on Saturday night that he liked spending the night but wouldn't be doing it again for awhile.  It was just too much.  HA!  My parents said how much they like having them spend the night and Brady quickly spoke up that he would spend the night again soon!  And when my dad went into their room to tell them to stop talking and it was time to go to sleep Blake said, "But we have a lot to talk about with each other!!"  Sunday they ended up sleeping in until after 8!  Hooray!  The boys were SO proud of themselves and Blake said he was going to be well rested now for his soccer game later.  Love those two!  
My knee has been recovering well.  A much better and faster recovery than what Brad endured last year. I did have a complication from the anti blood clotting shot I was on however, which was no fun and brought a pricey visit to the urgent care center.  Needless to say I've stopped said shot and am doing much better. Everyone in our house, Darcy included, is ready for me to be back to normal.  Our normal routine is greatly missed.  Home cooked meals are greatly missed.  But everything in due time.  One day as Brad said we'll cross the finish line and we can put all this health crud behind us and just live life.  Sounds delightful.  

Life Lately

A few weeks ago is what will be known in the Jones house as, "The Week of Mario and Luigi".  Blake for some reason thought about their Mario/Luigi costumes from Halloween and asked if we could take them down so he and Brady could dress up in them.  So I did. And they did.  They were obsessed.  They did not want to take them off.  The morning would come and they requested their costumes be put on first thing and would wear them ALL day long. They went to run errands in them.  Went to the park in them.  We went to Grandma and Papa's house in them.  Love these boys so crazy much.

Our dress up fun came to a crashing halt when some minor sniffles the boys had been having turned into some wheezing and trouble breathing well for Brady.  He went downhill so quickly.  We were out running errands in the morning and by the later afternoon Brady was a pile of mush, not able to move he was so weak, getting warm and fell asleep in my arms on the couch, something that never ever ever happens.  While I sure LOVED those sweet Brady cuddles, once I could see him struggling for breaths and starting to wheeze I became alarmed and it was 4:00 the day before the 4th of July holiday.  Thankfully we have a great pediatrician's office and when I explained his symptoms told us to get in the car and come up there immediately.  So relieved we could get Brady set up on his needed meds before they were closed for the holiday.  Brady is a horrible medicine taker.  Its been such a struggle anytime we have to give him medicine. But the bonus of him getting older is his understanding with why he needs the medicine.  The medicine he was prescribed was awful tasting but he would tell US he needed his medicine because he just didn't want to feel sick anymore.  And he took all his breathing treatments like a champ.  I was so proud of him.  I need to write a post dedicated to Brady soon because this kid.  His personality, the things he says....he kills me with his cuteness and I just want to eat him up every second of every day.  

Our 4th was nice but we couldn't all enjoy the day as fully as we normally do since Brady was so sick.  I packed up his breathing machine and a bag full of meds and we all went to my parents house.  Brad swam with Blakers while I stayed inside watching Scooby Doo with Brady.  My dad grilled out and was nice spending the day all together.  We got the boys in their jammies and sat out on their balcony to watch the fireworks show that goes off right next door.  Can't ask for a better seat!

This past week the boys have been doing swimming lessons every day.  They are definitely improving and getting more confident in the water which is so great!  We are continuing on this week and they really look forward to going.  On Friday morning as a nice summer treat for being such awesome boys I took them to see Monsters University.  I was impressed we made it through twenty minutes worth of previews and the entire movie.  Towards the end of the movie Blake whispered, "Momma...thank you so much for taking us to the movie."  Oh my heart.  Totally worth every penny. And when I tucked Brady into bed that night he said his favorite part of the day was the popcorn.  Love.

Looking forward to this coming week with these two cuties and REALLY looking forward to this weekend for my man's birthday and a much needed date night.  WOO WOO!  

What are the odds??

*pre-reading disclaimer: I am not pregnant*  As Brad and I were trying to get pregnant with Blake and it just wasn't happening and we suffered a miscarriage and we were told our odds of getting pregnant the "good ole fashioned way" were pretty slim to none, I had lots of highs and lows.  I would find myself realllly down, just feeding the negativity.  And then I'd get to the extreme opposite end of things and start trying to be "ok" with what life would be like without kids.  We can travel!  We'll have so much time to just be with each other!  I'll focus on me and finally get a body I'm happy with!  So, I signed up for a boot camp at my work and got out of bed at 4am so I could be at my office by 5 for one heck of a crazy intense work out.  And for anyone that knows me in the slightest, me waking up at 4am???  HA!  I am the epitome of NOT a morning person!  And for working out?!  But, I was committed to this new life of mine (one where I couldn't have kids, so I thought) so, there I was waking at 4am.  And after a week, maybe two weeks?  I started feeling really awful after the workouts.  Instead of that "high" one feels after a really great workout, I felt NAUSEOUS.  Like, soooo nauseous.  I felt light headed.  I just felt icky.  And finally when I was so incredibly sick one Sunday morning at 5am, I decided to take a pregnancy test even though I couldn't possibly be pregnant.  And there on the digital pee stick was the word 'pregnant' and I of course was the happiest person on the planet.  And there ended my journey of the perfect body.  And then came Mr. Blake.  And then at around month 7 of Blake's little baby life, we decided we'd stop being "careful" so we could have years to try and get pregnant the "good ole fashioned way" and not STRESS about it.  And shortly after that I decided to join a gym and get the perfect body before my next pregnancy.  And then God decided to laugh at me.  And one or two weeks into my new gym membership I started with that icky feeling and on the way home from a workout bought a pregnancy test and yup...pregnant.  Don't get me wrong, I'd GLADLY a million times over trade "the perfect body" for my two best gifts of life ever, but, its just so funny how timing works out sometimes.  

Enter present day.  I mentioned a few posts ago that I started a very part time job.  Through a mom friend of mine I learned of an opportunity at a really awesome gym just down the street from us that I could work at a few hours a week, bring the boys with me while I work if I need to, get a few extra dollars in my pocket and get a free membership!  Sign me up!  My workout routine over the last few years has been pretty inconsistent.  But, for the last few weeks I have worked out pretty much six out of seven days of the week.  I've been feeling the best I've ever felt.  I've been training to run three miles without stopping so I could do a 5k race in the fall.  I was making really awesome progress.  And the biggest thing?  MY PAIN HAS BEEN PRETTY MUCH NON EXISTENT.  Even with the medicine I had been put on recently, I was having some pretty bad days, but since I started working out, I have been feeling so good!  I joked at dinner just this last week with a few of my best girl friends that I was kind of waiting for me to get pregnant even though I am taking precautions, just because of course that would happen!  Nope, not pregnant, but I did have something else happen that would prevent me from hitting the gym.  Knee injury.  From hockey.  Ugh.  

After EVERYTHING we went through last year with Brad's knee injury, yes, from hockey as well, I've been pretty darn upset at the prospect of having to go through anything remotely close to that.  It was just awful.  I was literally in tears Saturday morning not from the pain, but just from the realization I wouldn't be able to keep up my workouts (so ridiculous I know) and just the whole thought of going down that surgery road once again.  And then Brad started laughing and before I could punch him for laughing at me, he told me why he was laughing.  He realized last year he had surgery on his knee on my birthday and now, his birthday is only like three weeks away, and I really didn't have to go and do this to pay him back.  And then I laughed too.  And then I cried some more.  The doctor is hopeful its a sprain, as am I, with worst case scenario being a torn meniscus requiring surgery.  So, I'm on crutches and I'm having to say "No, I can't play with you" to my children once again which is ripping my heart into pieces.  When Blake is literally in tears because he wants me to play soccer with him and Brady won't play with him and he just wants someone to play with.... Ugh.  Anyways, just one day at a time.  Thankfully I have the most awesome husband who is way positive and keeps me on the positive line of thinking track more often than not. And most importantly is there to bring me ice packs and play soccer with Blake when he gets home from work.