Holy Girl Scout Cookies!

So, last week the Girl Scout cookies arrived.  Lynda, our troop leader, and I went to some warehouse to sort all the cookies for the whole service unit.  If it wasn't so incredibly dorky - I would have taken some photos to show you just how many cookies we sorted.  It was nuts!  It took hours (like 8:30am to almost 2pm) and there were a lot of people there!

The next morning I went to Lynda's house to sort our troop's cookies for each girl scout.

Our Fearless Leader, Lynda.

I think we ordered like 183 cases or something.

Once they were sorted down to girl scout, I took Harlie's home and sorted those down to each order.  Harlie sold 321 boxes!  But, she had some help (obviously).  We couldn't have done it without my sister and nieces and our troop is so appreciative!  I will say Harlie is hard to say "no" to.  I took Harlie around to our neighbors and I programmed a button in her device to say "Would you like to order some Girl Scout cookies?" Clearly, she sold to everyone she asked.  I mean, who could resist that?

Sorting would have taken WAY longer if it weren't for my niece, Maggie.  She did most of the work!  Thanks Maggie!

We wrote the names and amounts on the bags.  Cooper spent some time just looking at the bags (there were a lot of them!).  Then, while crying, he said, "Mommy, I don't see my name!"  As if I would give him a whole bag full of BOXES of cookies.  Poor kid.  So, Maggie opened a box of hers and gave him a cookie.  That satisfied him.

So, if you ordered cookies from me and haven't heard from me yet - know I'm getting to you soon.

I had a slight setback this weekend when that stupid GI bug going around in this house hit... ME.  Grrr.  Cooper got it Tuesday (last 6 hours total).  Murphy got it Thursday (yep, another 6 hour bug).  Then I got it Sunday - at 2 freaking am.  Really?  And it lasted more than 24 hours.  And I can't begin to tell you how careful I was.  I wore gloves and washed my hands till I barely had any skin left!  I sanitized the bathroom after each and every use.  I never eat or drink after my kids.  I love them, I'm just not a fan of their germs.  And let's face it - they are germy.

So, when I got it - I was bummed.  Especially considering I was supposed to run 12 miles on Sunday with some friends in preparation for this stupid Shamrock Half Marathon next weekend.  Which, I don't even know that I'll be able to run in anyway.  Harlie's pacemaker surgery is turning out to be a bigger ordeal than I originally anticipated.  We're going to be in DC Monday through Thursday (at best).  Not exactly good conditions for getting ready to run 13.1 miles.  I guess I'll just have to see how things go.

Okay, that's it for tonight.  More tomorrow!
Thanks!
~Christy

2011 McDonald's Half Marathon

I am very happy to say that I had a GREAT time yesterday running the McDonald's Half Marathon!  I know it was the right decision and it was the running boost I needed to remember how much I enjoy running.

Since we lost our point-and-shoot camera, I couldn't take any photos before the race.  Bummer.  Tom dropped a few of us off downtown and we met up with my running group in a building to stay warm before the race start.  I think it was in the 30s.  It was cold.

The half started at 7:30.  And it didn't take long for us to warm up a little.  While Tom was waiting to see us he watched some of the 8k runners.  Here's a weird one for you...

Not sure what that's about.

We saw Tom between miles 1 and 2.

That's me with my arm up in the center.

 Then again at mile 4.

Heather, me and Niki at mile 4.

The three of us ran the marathon last year and we trained together again this year.  But, Niki ran the Marine Corps Marathon two weeks ago and Heather was battling an injury, too.  So, that's how we all ended up running the half together.

Miles 6 and 7 are in Bryan Park.  The three of us stayed together until then.  I was feeling so great, that I went on ahead and picked up the pace and ran ahead.  I couldn't believe how great I felt.  It was awesome to be able to run and not have pain - other than just fatigue as the miles went by.

The next time I was supposed to see Tom was at mile 8.  I looked for him, but didn't see him.  He did not expect me to be running faster than usual.  And he said it took longer to get there than he anticipated, and he thinks he missed me by just a few minutes.

Miles 7.5 to the finish is the same course as the marathon.  And as I ran, I vividly remembered exactly how I was feeling running those miles last year.  They were awful.  And it felt great to be feeling strong again.  And I had to wonder, what if...  But it was only for a second.   Brook Road is a particularly hard part of the marathon course and that's where you see some good signs.  My favorite this year was "Worst Parade Ever." So funny!

I kept on looking at my pace and doing the calculation in my head to see if it was possible to beat my best time.  I couldn't believe that I was running in the 8-minute per mile range.  And maintaining it!
I knew it was going to be close.  But, by mile 11 I knew there was no way I could make up 3 to 4 minutes.

As I was running the last mile, I started to run faster.  And I couldn't believe I still had so much energy.  I think my goal for now will be to work on my speed and learn how to figure out when to pick up the pace to time it so that I have nothing left after the race.

I didn't see Tom again until the very end.  And he said he barely caught me.  He had just asked a person if he could slide in beside him to get to the fence and then there I was...

Me at the finish - just up ahead.

All done.

My time was 2:01.  My best half time is 1:58 done at this race in 2009.  I had NO idea I could have gotten a PR (personal record).  If only I had listened to Heather and Niki, who told me to run ahead earlier.  Ugh!  Just a few minutes would have made the difference.  I definitely had it in me.

But, regardless of that, I had a great run and that was my ultimate goal.  It restored my love of running.  And I do think that the Half Marathon is a great distance.   It allows you to dig deep and ask a lot of yourself, without putting you into complete agony.

Murphy and me.

Me, Tom and Murphy

Natalie, Heather and me

John, Katy, Heather, me and Natalie

Heather and me

Oh, as I was coming through the food path after finishing, I saw a girl who looked distraught.  I went up to her and asked her if she needed a hug and she started crying and through tears said, "Yes."  Then she looked at me and said (while crying), "I did it!" And all I could say was, "Congratulations!"  I have to say, she made me cry, too.  You just never know what battles people are fighting.

After we were done, we went and grabbed a few recovery beers down the street.  Then Heather and I walked back a few miles to cheer for our marathon-running friends.  They all did great - I think every single one of them beat their times from last year.  Well, one was a first timer - and she did great, too.  Congratulations, Katherine!  When they arrived at the restaurant, they told Tom that they missed his support along the course this year.  It made me sad for them.  He really was awesome last year traveling to so many places along the course to cheer us on.

That night some of us met for dinner.  Good times.

Anna, me, Heather, Allison and Katherine

I see fun running in my future.  Running the Half was perfect.  It allowed me to have a great run, which was exactly what I needed.  And I'm not too broken down that I can't do anything for weeks.  Perfect!  Now I can focus on my next goal... getting a PR at the Shamrock Half in March.

Congratulations to all the runners who ran this weekend!  And thanks to all the supporters who cheered us on along the way!

Thanks!
~Christy

Richmond Marathon

The Richmond Suntrust Marathon is Saturday.  And I will not be running this year, as originally planned (insert frowny-face here).  My stupid IT band has struck again (the same injury that I had during the marathon last year).  Since I already ran 26.2 miles with an injured ITB, which affected my time and my ability to exercise after the marathon for several months, it seems silly to do it all over again.

Last year was different.  For one, it was my first marathon and come hell or high water, I was running that thing!  For another, I thought my ITB injury was "cured" when I started the marathon.  Which, turned out to not be the case.  And quite frankly, that was pretty naive of me to even think that.  Ahhh, inexperience!

However, I can no longer use any of those excuses!  For one, I have experience.  For another, I know that my ITB will hurt - there is no way I can log 26.2 miles on this injury and come away unscathed.  Period.  And I'm unwilling to forfeit the next several months of running for this marathon.

I've been thinking this over for several weeks.  And I've gone back and forth.  I want to run it.  But I just don't think that would be very smart.   I am very sad that I will miss the experience this year.  I was so close to the starting line!  The feeling of completing a marathon was like no other.  It was an accomplishment I never thought I would achieve.  Heck, I'm approaching 40 years old, I have three small-ish children, one of which has special needs.  Finishing that marathon, I felt like a super hero!!!  Who the heck wouldn't want to feel that again?

But, I know the smart thing to do is to run the Half Marathon instead.  I'm not happy about it.  And I must admit, sometimes I think to myself, "God, considering what you chose for me - why couldn't you just make me a natural runner?  Would that have been so hard?"

I think Tom's pretty happy about my decision.  Training for a marathon is a family commitment - it affects us all.  The worst isn't even the time it takes to run.  It's the time it takes to recover.  That's where I feel the biggest challenge.  When I come home from running, I have to hurry up and get busy with my other duties.  Normal running/exercising is usually energy-producing.  Marathon training (in my experience) is energy-depleting.

And this fall especially, I need every ounce of energy I can get.  Harlie starting kindergarten has really taken a lot out of me.  Between the stress of how she's doing, and is she receiving the service she needs and is supposed to be getting, and finding a nurse... I have very little time, energy (and even less motivation) to go out and run a long run.

Yes, it was a wonderfully, awesome experience to run 26.2 miles.  And I hope to feel it again one day.  But, for now my goals have to shift a bit.  I want to work on some other things - not just distance running.   Goals that are less time consuming will be good for me - much more realistic and less stressful.  Maybe something that doesn't require my body to get a lot of rest.  Because I have to stay up late to get some quiet time - and to blog.

Okay, I just went and found my Marathon Recap from last year so I could link it in the first paragraph of this post and now I'm even sadder that I'm not running it!  It's so comical to me that even though I just read all about how incredibly painful it was - I still want to do it!  Runners aren't right.

But I am not going to let my emotions get the best of me!  When I signed up for the marathon this year - I had two goals.  One - to beat my time from last year.  And two - to run it healthy and without injury.  As awesome as it was to run it last year, I really don't want a repeat of that exact performance.  And then there's that voice inside that keeps saying, "What if..."

But I'm not.  Period.  I'm going to run the Half.  And as of right now, I say no marathon training next year.  So, we'll see...

I did go back and read all the awesome comments I got on my Marathon Recap post.  Loved every one.  Thank you very much for posting them.  And the next crummy day I have, I'll come back and read them again to remind myself that I'm not so bad.  Thank you for that!!!

Hopefully I'll have a good Half Recap for you.  Now, to get excited about 13.1 miles!  WooHoo!!!

Thanks!
~Christy

Patrick Henry Half Marathon vs. Hurricane Irene

Well, as expected, it was rainy.  And windy.

Conditions at the start (7am):

Rainy, 74 degrees, 94% humidity, variable winds 7mph (which totally increased in the two hours we were running).

Honestly, I had fun.  But that's only because of my running partners...

Heather, Me, Anna and Katherine.
Can you tell which one of us is super excited about running their first half? 

I am not a fan of running in the rain.  I like to run.  But I do not consider myself a die-hard runner, running in all conditions.  Much less a HURRICANE.  Okay, the beginning stages of a hurricane.  Either way, I think it was a miserable run.

It started raining just a few minutes after the start.  It was a drizzle at first.  And then it slowly increased the entire time we were running.  The winds increased as well.  At one point Heather said something and I said, "I'm sorry Heather, I couldn't hear you over the wind."  And we were shoulder to shoulder.  Not good running weather, to say the least.

We kept on feeling like we were running fast - and we'd look at our Garmins and our pace wasn't nearly as fast as it felt.  So deflating!

They changed the course this year.  Last year we ran through the cornfields and cow pastures (well, on the streets that went through the fields, I mean) first, ran a long mile at mile 4, and then went through the little town of Ashland close to the finish.  Frankly, I liked it that way better.

This year, they reversed it, and we ran through the town first, then the pastures, then the hill at mile 11.  The bad thing about it, which they could never have predicted of course, is that we ended up in the pastures and cornfields - with no protection - as the winds and rain increased.

One thing I liked about this run last year was the sound of all the tennis shoes hitting the pavement.  With no other sounds around, it was really cool.  This year our shoes were all squishy sounding.  Not so good.

Oh, and this year the start and finish was in a different place.  And it was RIGHT next to the railroad tracks (I could touch it).  And as we turned the corner and approached the finish (close enough to see the finish, too far to sprint to it) a train came through - and it was so LOUD.  I guess the conductor thought he was being supportive by honking that stupid train horn as much as he did.  I think I temporarily lost my hearing.

Anyway, we finished just in time.  My time was 2 hours and 10 minutes.  Every time I do a half marathon, my time is substantially slower.  (My first was 1:58, second 2:05, this one 2:10) But, we were not going for a PR (personal record) today, and considering the conditions, I'm happy with our time.

This is us at the finish:

Me, Heather, Anna and Katherine.
Congratulations to Katherine for her first Half Marathon!

FYI - the dude to the right (you can see his shoes with the orange laces) wears A LOT of cologne when he runs.  Wearing cologne should be BANNED from all running.  And I can't believe that someone has to be told to REPLACE cologne with DEODORANT. We were next to him at the start.  Then we passed him twice during the run.  He was SMELLY and I thought I was going to pass out.  Ugh.

Oh, I debated on whether to wear a running skirt or shorts.  Which is better in the rain?  I guess I can't really say because I haven't ever been as soaked as I was today, in shorts.  But, I think the skirt was a good call.  I was able to wring it out several times during the run.

When I got in my car to come home the rain really picked up.  I had to use the speedy wipers, that's how hard it was raining.

Looking back, I'm glad I did it.  But, boy am I glad that it's OVER.

Okay, must finish this before we lose power.  Good luck to all my family and friends who are in this hurricane.  I hope all is okay tomorrow!

Thanks!
~Christy

Half Marathon

With Hurricane Irene approaching our area, I am off to run the Patrick Henry Half Marathon tomorrow morning.  From what I've heard, we should be done our run before the storm really gets here.  My fingers are crossed because I wouldn't enjoy running 13.1 miles (which will take 2 hours) in wet shoes.  Yuck!  And I hope it's not too windy.

Okay, I'll update you tomorrow.

Thanks!
~Christy

Appointment with the surgeon...

...eh, not what I hoped for.

She wanted Harlie to wear the brace for another month.  But we compromised with two weeks.  That way she will have it off for school.  I told her that she doesn't complain - it's me that hates it.  And I recognize that the long-term goals of healing are more important than the pain of dealing with the brace, so if she really wanted us to keep it on, I would.  But, she said that two weeks will be fine.  That way when she goes potty at school, she'll be able to do it on her own.  It is hard to get her shorts up and down with the brace because it goes past her hips.

So, I'm thinking her surgeon would not have approved of this activity...

Notice Cooper posing.  What a ham!

Weeee!

And of course, some video...

How could I deny her this fun?  There is only so much activity I can make her miss.

Anyway, when she gets home after school, we need to put the brace back on her for the rest of the day.  And over time we can wean her off the brace by waiting longer and longer to put it back on her.  She said that it can actually be more of a discomfort to stop wearing the brace cold turkey because all those muscles haven't had to work much over the last five plus months.

I asked if she could resume normal activity once the brace comes off.  I had my hopes up for a gymnastics birthday party for her since she loved it so much and hasn't been able to go since the surgery.    But she said no.  No gymnastics until she sees her next and she will decide then.

So, the next time we see her?  MARCH 2012!!!!  I am SO bummed!!!  She loved gymnastics!

On a positive note, the surgeon said that her x-rays looked "beautiful."  On the side view one, she is much straighter than she was.  She said that she could start to curve forward over time - but she hopes that doesn't happen.  Of course.

Harlie is so cute getting x-rays.  She stands there and does everything the x-ray tech asks her to do.  And he was hilarious because he said, "okay, move your little foot back some.  Exactly." and then "bring your little feet together.  Exactly".  He was cracking me up.

Oh, and she can only carry a light backpack.  Which, I already knew, really.  But it just goes to show you how long this recovery is taking and how many things are affected.  Spinal fusion surgery is no joke.  I think I would have to say it has been the worst surgery so far.  And I sure hope we don't have to do it again.

On the way home there was an earthquake that measured 5.9.  The epicenter was in Mineral, VA, 25 miles from our home.  According to FB, it was felt from North Carolina to Canada.  We were in the car not that far from home, and we felt nothing.  I guess when you're moving 70 miles an hour in a car, you don't notice the ground shaking.  So, I apparently missed the biggest news story of the day.  Oh well.

Oh, and would you believe our luck?  We decided just a few days ago to try and take the kids to the beach - together - all of us - as a family.  Harlie has never been.  Tom took Monday off.  And after I run the Patrick Henry Half Marathon this Saturday, we were going to go to Virginia Beach to stay with some friends who we haven't seen in a long time.  We were going to go to the beach on Sunday and take a baby pool and umbrella for Harlie (since she cannot go into the water - other than just her feet, of course) and we were going to have so much fun!

And now Hurricane Irene is totally screwing up our plans.  The only FUN plans we had for the entire summer.  I am so, so disappointed!!!!  And I don't think we can squeeze it in after the storm passes.  A whole summer and the kids have done nothing exciting.  The boys and Tom went camping and boating a few weekends ago - but Harlie had to stay home with me.  I am so mad at myself for not making more of an effort earlier in the summer.  But it was SO busy!!!  Well, I am not giving up hope yet - but according to reports, it is not likely to happen.

Oh!  And my nephew, Charlie, is playing in the Babe Ruth Little League 13-year old World Series Tournament in NY.  Well, tonight his team won and Charlie got MVP!!!  He hit the winning run.  So now they play again tomorrow night.  What a great experience for him!  Congratulations, Charlie!!!

Okay, that's it for today.  More later!
Thanks,
~Christy

Exciting Stuff...

We had an exciting weekend.  I'll start with the most exciting thing that happened.

Murphy learned how to ride a bike!

 

Look at him go!  At one point he said, "Daddy, let go!"  

Tom found this video showing tips on how to teach a child to ride a bike.  What a difference that made!  Tom lowered the seat so Murphy's feet could comfortably touch the ground.  Then he took the pedals off.  Murphy scooted around on the bike for about 30 minutes or so, learning how to balance.  Then Tom put the pedals back on the bike.  And I am not kidding - this was the first go after the pedals went on...

It was awesome!  

Since I was trying to video Murphy's big moment, Harlie was mad that I wasn't doing whatever she wanted me to do, which is why you can hear her "complaining" in the background.  Then I watched the video when we got home and I can't stop laughing at Harlie.  I never even noticed her standing there with her arms crossed.  

Now, of course, he still needs some practice.  He gets tired pretty quickly.  But, it was about 100 degrees and we were on a blacktop, so that was understandable.  Tom took him back out that evening and he rode up and down our street a few times.  He fell once or twice, but got right back up and rode again.  

Very cool!

Here's what Harlie was doing while Murphy was learning to balance the bike...

Here's Cooper...

Actually, Cooper was throwing mulch while Murphy was learning to balance his bike.  I don't think it's nearly as cute as he does, so I didn't get any pictures.  

It was a very busy day.  Earlier that morning I ran in the Patrick Henry Half Marathon. That's 13.1 miles.  Here's my friend Heather and me when we saw Tom and Murphy out in the middle of nowhere.  

The course was very rural, so there was essentially no cheering for most of the course.  Which was kinda strange, really.  All of the roads were two-lane roads with no shoulder.  So we were surprised to see Tom and Murphy standing there - the only spectators for miles and miles.    

It was pretty weird to be running with corn fields on both sides with no cars to hear (they had one lane open, but few cars passed).  Although it did shock me the first time I heard "CAR UP!" I think we were in the first mile or so.  That's something we hear during our training runs - but not an organized race!  But it was a small race - just over 1,200 runners.  

And there were times when all you could hear was the sound of feet hitting the pavement.  And there was a point that you could see ahead a very good distance, and it was just rolling hills, and runners ahead.  It was actually pretty cool.  There wasn't a lot of conversation, either.  But Heather and I weren't going for personal records (not in that heat!) so we chatted a lot, which was great.  

The finish was in a park and here's me coming in.  

Don't I look so happy?  It's because I could see the finish line and knew I was about to stop running.  I was tired at the end of this one.  I had a very hard time with breakfast that morning - so I ran this one with an empty belly.  Not recommended, that's for sure!  But, I survived and had a great time (thanks to Heather, who finished just ahead of me).  We did it in 2 hours and 7 minutes.  Not too shabby.  

But, since I didn't eat breakfast, I was hurting afterwards.  (Must admit that my sick mind was thinking a feeding tube would come in pretty handy for an occasion such as this!)  So, thinking about the marathon ahead (November 13th - remember, be there or be square!) got me a little nervous to say the least!  It is very hard to imagine doing twice that distance right now.  In two weeks I will run the farthest I've ever run - 15 miles!  While it is scary - it is also very exciting to think of doing something I've never done before.  So, I'm going to try to focus on that for now.  And hopefully that will outshine the scariness of it.  

Thanks for reading!

~Christy

Half Marathon Results

I am so happy with my first half marathon! My goal was to complete it in two hours. And to be honest, I was thinking that was kind of lofty (which is why I didn't share my goal in my previous post). That's a 9:09 pace. And that's pretty fast for me (for now).

So, I wrote down some goal times (what time I needed to hit certain miles) on my arm so I could glance down and see how I was doing throughout the race. I couldn't believe it when I saw that I was right on track to hitting my goal time!

In fact, I BEAT my goal!

I finished at 1 hour, 58 minutes and 45 seconds! That's a pace of 9:03 per mile!!! I am completely thrilled!

At mile 5, we entered into Bryan Park. And as I was coming around the corner I saw Tom and Murphy - and then my wonderful friends Melissa and Matt and their two girls!! They drove up from Suffolk to surprise me and cheer me on. I was so happy to see them all! And the best part was that we ran through the park and then came back out the way we went in, so I knew the whole time I was running in the park that I was going to get to see them again. That was so uplifting! I think the park was the most difficult part of the course. It was the most hilly, I think.

This is me (blue shirt, white visor) leaving Bryan Park, waving at Tom.



Then shortly after the park, I saw my friend Bethany and her boys. What a great supporter she is! She's a runner, so she knew all the right things to say. In fact, right after we passed her someone running next to me said I had a great cheering section! It was absolutely wonderful to have so much support!

My bib had my name on it, so I would hear people shout my name and say "Go Christy"! It was great! And I wore my Steelers visor. So people would yell "Go Steelers"! It was so much fun!

And a mom from my special needs mom's group (we have dinner together once a month) was on the coaching team for the training group. She rode her bike along the course giving support to the half marathon training team members. So, I got to see her a few times and got her support then, too.

It really was fantastic to have so much support. I was so grateful for all the people who came out (on a cold and drizzly morning) to support their friends - and strangers. There was one stretch (Brook Road) where the support was very thin - and at times non-existent. What a difference it makes to have people cheering for you.

And at the finish, I saw my parents. Unfortunately, I didn't see them until after I finished. But they saw me and they said that they were screaming my name. But, by that time I think I was in such a zone. I saw the time clock on the banner and I saw that it was going to be close to beat the 2 hour gun time. The gun time is when the race officially starts. But, you wear a chip on your shoe to record your personal time, since it takes a while for you to get to and through the starting line. I knew that if the gun time was 2 hours, that I had to be under that, since it took at least a few minutes to start. I crossed the finish line at 2:00:00. It was awesome.

Here's me coming into the finish...







See my name on my bib? Very cool.





After the race we went home and dropped off the kids and the dads and Melissa and I headed back out to support our friends Heather and Neal. They ran the full marathon. We went to Brook Road, since I found that to be the area that was the least supported. And it was around mile 22/23 - so I figured they could use a boost from friends. It felt great to support them. They looked great and had great finishes (4:31 and 4:35).

Natalie, me and Kelly at our celebration dinner that night. I had a great time. I laughed till my stomach hurt. I love nights like that!



Our waitress was not the best. After she introduced herself, somehow it came out that we had run the half marathon that day. She said with much excitement "OH, you ran the marathon"?! We, of course, corrected her and said "No, the half marathon". Then, looking utterly unimpressed, she said "oh. Well, our specials are..." Nice.

So, that's it. I had a great time training and completing my first half marathon. I think I might be addicted. I will definitely run another one. And, if I can find the time, I think a full marathon could be in my future. We'll just have to see...

Thank you to all my supporters! I couldn't have done it without you!

My First Half Marathon

I hate it when I can't blog for days. It is my therapy, after all. But then so many things happen and it takes me forever to tell you about it. And I don't have time to get you all caught up tonight.

But what I do want to talk about is my first half marathon. Tomorrow. 13.1 miles.

I joined a training group and we started our training program the first week of August. All those weeks of training come down to tomorrow. That can feel like a lot of pressure. So, it's easy to get disappointed when things don't go exactly as you imagined, or planned. And our accident last weekend (on our way to our training run) brought that to light. What if that happened when we were on the way to the RACE?!?!

After the accident, Natalie and I were talking and she said that she thinks that the training was the true accomplishment, and the race is just a bonus. What a great approach!

So, it's bonus time and I'm hoping it's a GREAT one! I'll let you know tomorrow!

Thanks,
Christy

Plastic surgery update

So, to continue the saga of the CT scans...

Radiology in DC overnighted the disc to Dr. Magee in Norfolk and he received it on Wednesday. He did look at them and he was able to rule out a concern - that the bone grafts didn't take. I guess there are people that can have a bone issue where the bone grafts are reabsorbed by the body, thus, they don't take. Luckily, that isn't the case with Harlie. Whew!

Her bone graft seemed to take just fine. He's thinking that it just didn't grow at the same rate as the rest of her head. And to be honest, as I was thinking about it today, I think I remember him telling us a long time ago that it is hard to say how she will grow. Since it is abnormal to begin with, it would be hard to assume that it will grow normally from here on out. I don't know what this means as far as her future goes. Since I wasn't having a conversation with him, I certainly couldn't ask him questions. I'll just have to ask him that one later.

So, he said that he thinks another bone graft jaw reconstruction is the way to go. He said that we can pick our surgery date for anytime after the first of the year. I'll call his scheduler tomorrow to see what our options are. And then I guess we'll look at Tom's work schedule so we can try to make it for a week that he's not beginning a kitchen project. The good thing is that it is not a long hospitalization. Although I am certainly not looking forward to that recovery, either.

Her first jaw reconstruction was awful. And we couldn't prepare ourselves for all the emotions and recovery issues. But this time we'll be better on all fronts. For those of you that don't know what I'm talking about... here's a summary of the surgery:

They harvest bone from her skull to insert in her jaw.
They use donor bone to replace what was taken from her skull.
They cut her jaw on both sides, and insert the bone from her skull and connect it with screws and pins.
They wire her jaw shut, with her bottom teeth pulled out and over her top teeth and a wire that runs underneath her skin is connected to a screw in the bone between her eyes.
She will stay wired shut for at least 9 weeks.
Then they remove the wires so she can open her mouth again.

I'm not looking forward to the wound care. There will be a large incision in her head (they will shave her hair only at the incision). And she will have three incisions under her jaw - right above her trach ties. Ugh. Plus, there will be bruising. And swelling. Lots of bruising and lots of swelling. You can see the pictures from her first surgery under Photo Albums on the left.

But, for now, I won't think about that. I just want her to be able to breathe through her nose and mouth so she can learn how to talk and eat. That's all. And this surgery will get us there. Eventually.

On another note...

I've been sick all week. Which stinks because I'm totally off my training for my half marathon. I haven't been able to run all week. But, I am so lucky to have so many wonderful, caring people around me. My neighbor went and picked up Murphy from school yesterday and let him play over there for the rest of the afternoon, so I could stay in bed. And Jennifer (my nurse on Wednesdays) was the one that called my neighbor to tell her that I was sick. Seriously, how great is it that my nurses can call my neighbor?? As far as home health care goes, that has to be rare!

But Tom made me go to the doctor. It was all cold and rainy outside and I had to get out of my nice cozy bed to go to the doctor - for a cold! He wanted to make sure I didn't have the swine flu. I don't. It's just a cold. A bad cold. But, I do believe that I'm getting better. Today was better than yesterday, so that's good. Of course, Tom is a few days behind me, cold-wise. He bounces back faster than anyone I know, so hopefully his won't last too long.

Now I need to get some rest. Thank you for all your comments and private messages! I love having your support - it makes such a difference!

Thanks,
Christy