Out With the Old...

In With the New....

PLEASE!

Although I have so much to be thankful for, seriously, there will be no tears to shed by having 2014 behind me.

January- I placed 3rd in my division in the New Year's Day Run. I was on my way to a great running year.

February- 28:05 New 5K time

March- 29 minute mile swim!

April- Swim Across America!
          27:08 5K

May-  26:50 5K
          RUGGED MANIAC-The most fantastic obstacle course ever!! With The     Biologist and her friends. I can't wait to do another!!!

June- 2 Stadium Runs- The NEW Levi Stadium  5K and AT&T 10K.
         School ended June 25- I started a week of Camp June 30
         My summer vacation July 26 and 27.
July- July 2. All I know is that everything that could go right, when something goes wrong, went right. I spent every waking hour in ICU from July 2 until July 15. I wiped him down with a wash cloth when the heat rash on his back was most likely irritating him...because he couldn't talk to tell us what hurt. I had to guess. I kept him from pulling out the many tubes- 3 drains, one intubating, oxygen on the nose, one catheter and a wires for a heart monitor. If I stayed at his bedside he did not have his hands and legs tied down. He hallucinated and fought us. And as quickly as he came to, he went back to being Frankenstein. When he returned to us, he made stuff up and the doctors believed it...his wit and humor returned before his sense of reality. Then moved to the Cardiac Surveillance Unit for 5 days...and then to the world's worst rehab center....I still should have listened to my instincts and brought him home from the hospital and skipped rehab. There they held heart medication and sent him into A Fib again. We left rehab via ambulance and returned to good old Sequoia Hospital, to the doctors we trusted. They ran some tests and sent us home.

August- I wasn't sure whether or not I would return to work, or who would stay with The Captain while I went to work. But we all survived. I returned to work having a total of 2 days of summer vacation.

September- Burning the candle at both ends. Teaching, shopping, yard work, bill paying, laundry, lifting- oh....and what I seemed to forget until 10:30 every Thursday night....putting out the trash bin, recycle bin and compost bins for pick up Friday mornings.

October- Will this get better?
              Ran 2 Half marathons 2 weeks apart with The Biologist.

November- Social Security Disability denied.

December- There is light at the end of the tunnel...I see a NEW YEAR coming! I have filed an appeal, burned the hospital paperwork and bill notices...(paid of course,) and 2 of my kids were here for Christmas. The Botanist is now a resident of New Zealand!!

HAPPY NEW YEAR my friends....Wishing you HEALTH & HAPPINESS in 2015!

*LIVESTRONG*LOVESTRONGER*LAUGH HARDER*RUN BABY RUN*

303 BABY!

I ran over 50 miles last month...exactly a mile and some change over...last year I did that at the end of December....just a bit ahead even though I didn't run for 2 months this summer.

*LIVESTRONG*LOVESTRONGER*LAUGH HARDER*RUN LIKE A GIRL*

Seriously, Enough Already....

Just returned from the hospital....The Nuclear Physicist, The Biologist's boyfriend was there all day and had emergency surgery to blast a huge kidney stone that was lodged...somewhere up there.

Tuesday I was in Walgreen's picking up plastic spiders for a Halloween art project when my cell rang...it was BIG Foot...in a lot of pain...I told him to have his roommate drive him to ER....seemed he had the same symptoms that The Nuclear Physicist had...(a mom can dx from 1,000 miles away you know...) So it turned out he did...and they gave him painkillers and told him to drink lots of water....but what does mom know, BECAUSE he drove himself to ER and now had to have his roommate pick him up because he was given pain killers and they would not let him drive home.

Two months back, The Captain had gall stones and we were in ER. Still dealing with his health issues from July's aortic dissection and stroke....and jumping through the hoops to get social security disability....and doing all the work at home, the yard and my job...it's tough.

THEN just to top it off, my district has not negotiated fairly with us- no contract for going on 3 years- and we may be headed for a strike. We are working to contract and it is very hard for me since I usually get to work at 6:30 a.m. Walking in at 8:10 just doesn't work.

I read on someone's Facebook page that, "God only gives you what you can handle".... in this case, God must think I am one bad ass!

*LIVESTRONG*LOVESTRONGER*LAUGH HARDER*STICKS AND STONES

ARE NOT FOR ORGANS*

SLAM Dunk!

THE END                           13.1 MILES 

S.F WOmen's Nike Half Marathon....last Sunday...that's me in the air...and my The Biologist in the middle...(I have no idea who is stopping their Garmin on the left.) 

*LIVESTRONG*LOVESTRONGER*LAUGH HARDER* JUMP HIGHER THAN YOU EVER THOUGHT YOU COULD*

Nike

I wasn't going to run the S. F. Women's Nike this year BECAUSE I didn't get in the lottery. It is the only expensive run I do because it benefits the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society...but I didn't get in. THEN, I was at the shoe store Adventure Run last month and they had entrees to give away....I just had to log on and pay the fee!

SOOOOOO, I quickly text my friend in New Jersey and told her I was in! She is a legacy runner and always gets in. But she hadn't been training because she wasn't planning on coming out...since I didn't get in.

Sooooo, Ali took her place...and I promised I would run slow for Ali. I did hold to my promise except I did run up the BIG MOTHER RUNNER hill at mile 9.5 because baby steps were killing me! I did wait at the top...and then I slowly ran the finish and we got our photo holding our hands above our head as we crossed the finish....and then I jumped and danced and hopefully got some silly photos at the end.

Here we are at the end with our Tiffany necklaces....there were no firemen giving out the necklaces this year...just a few that you could take a photo with...I think they were all fighting the big fires in California right now.....so we loaded up our swag bags and headed for home.

*LIVESTRONG*LOVESTRONGER*LAUGH

 HARDER*RUN LIKE A GIRL*

It is never very smart....

to run a half marathon without proper training....and although it sounded good last spring when I registered, and what I had been training so very hard for.....but it all fell to pieces July 2nd.

But when you pay to run, and you planned this with your daughter, her boyfriend and another good friend, what else is there to do but run anyway, right?

I was in coral 7, The Botanist and Nuclear Physicist in coral 8, and The Bio-Engineer in 9. I took off knowing full well those kids would pass me. I just wanted to run half of the run, a 10K, in less than an hour. 

At the 5K mark I was at 26 minutes...at the 10K I was at 56 minutes...I was so pleased that I dogged it for the next 3 miles...then I looked at my watch and got mad at myself for going slow...I wasn't tired...my mind just set on doing well for half the run. 

I still hadn't seen my kids pass me yet so I picked up the pace.

And I came in a whole 5 minutes before the kids!
It was very hot by the end of the run...here I am sporting a wet towel they passed out to use with our medals.

I hope to be able to run more so I can get back in the shape I was in prior to July 2nd.

*LIVESTRONG*LOVESTRONGER*LAUGH HARDER*RUN THE ROCK AND ROLL*

Ragnar Vans- Ragnar Part 2

S.F. to Napa Wine Country Part 2:

So part of the fun of Ragnar is the themed teams and their vans. Some funny names are:

Kiss My Asphalt
Ran It Through The Grapevine
Van Haulin'
Worst Wine Tour Ever
I Thought They Said Rum
This Isn't a 5K?
Will Run for Wine
Bad Ass Mother Runners
Squeeze Me, Stomp Me, Make Me Wine
Half Corked
My Third Leg is Bigger Than Yours
Wanna Take a Napa
Tater Trots
Sole Sisters
Saving the World One Glass at a Time
VAN-ity Fair
Blue Van Group
and my friends team....
"If I Have to Pull This Van Over, Someone's Getting Spanked!

At stops, teams "tag" other teams...with magnets, like this...

and window paint, and "LIVEWRONG" bracelets and Peeps on antennas....(those melted...Ghak!)

It is like one big rolling party....without the alcohol of course. But who needs alcohol when sleep deprivation and running through the night keep you pretty much toasted.

It was fun...and I returned so well rested that my whole week at school was pleasant and I was back to my old happy, worry-free self.....until this weekend...full of lawn mowing, yard work, dog washing, vacuum repair, vacuuming until the beater bar broke, grading math tests, grading spelling tests, grocery shopping, cooking, washing dishes, getting gas at Costco, doing laundry and all the other things I have to do.

I think a Ragnar in So Cal with my kids is sounding pretty good...April...Huntington Beach to San Diego.

*LIVESTRONG*LOVESTRONGER*LAUGH HARDER*RUN A RELAY* 

RAG NAR! Wine-o-poly was our team name....

12 LADIES- (All of whom could have been my children...youngest 31.)
2 VANS
205 MILES
Golden Gate Park, S.F. to NAPA
                     RAGNAR RELAY
Go ahead....Run like a girl!

I needed a break...I was due for one....and a team needed a runner....so they text me and asked me if I would like to run....the answer to, "Do you know how old I am," didn't seem to scare them off. So I made some sub plans for Friday, left Thursday night with a pillow, a Snugee, two sets of running clothes, running shoes and some socks....oh, and my toothbrush and some Rockstars.

We got to the motel, unpacked and met everyone for dinner at 5 Guys. We were back at the motel and in bed by 11. Our alarms went off at 4:30 and we were packed and in the van on the way to Golden Gate Park by 5. We ran through the safety check, got our safety flags (for crossing the street to help our runner,) got our numbers and sent runner #1 off!!

We dropped off runner #2 at the exchange and then headed across the Golden Gate Bridge...next exchange in Saucalito and then it was my turn to run...

I was pumped and it didn't seem hard as the map had it set as....I don't even remember the hill...the sun was not out but there was 94% humidity. I was pleased with my run...

as shown with the 2 thumbs up in the photo.

Each of our 6 runners in the van ran their leg and then we met up with our other van...they got to sleep in and they met us around lunchtime...we passed off the slap bracelet baton and went to lunch

and then for a nap while the other van ran legs 7-12.

We slept for about 2 hours...light sleep because it is like trying to sleep in an airplane...and then we started over again for legs 13-24.

I was leg 18....it said "Very Hard" but the other said Hard and I owned that leg! I got the bracelet, made the first turn and started up hill.....and thought, the night air feels so good....I can keep this pace up! I was doing 8:50 minute miles...and the hill began...and kept going...and going.....there is no way this chart is correct. I ran uppppp and uppp for 6.2 miles according to my Garmin....there it leveled off some....and then as I rounded a curve it began to go uppppp some more. My time slowed greatly but I made my 8.3 mile leg and just wanted to lay down. Our next two runners had long runs also and by the time we passed off the baton and got to the morning exchange it was 1:30 a.m. We dozed in the huge parking lot at the Fair Grounds in Sonoma...but with other vans coming and going as their teams finished and started again it was very busy....and the lights came on at 4 a.m.!

Our first runner was off at 6:40, so she didn't have to wear a safety vest and lights. My knees hurt from the sloping road the night before. We passed a little deli that had opened and the girls wanted coffee...I got a bagel with cream cheese and a fat slice of tomato on top....I ate half of it and felt so much better. I began to want to do my final leg....I wanted to start right now!

By the time my leg came I was in the chute like a racehorse! I took off and ran up that first bit of hill...my right knee hurt from the slope of the road the night before...but soon the signs had us run on the same side of the street as traffic and now the slope was on the opposite side and my knee was now feeling pretty darn good! I made 7 kills....(which are how many people you pass,) but I still got passed by people.

After our van had finished we headed to the end of the Ragnar Festivities...we got our free pizza but not our free beer....we sat on a blanket at the fair grounds and rested....we had our costumes ready for when our final runner came in....

...then we all crossed the finish line together and took our team photo:

Tomorrow I will post some awesome photos of vans from Ragnar!!

*LIVESTRONG*LOVESTRONGER*LAUGH HARDER*RUN A RELAY*

5K, 10K, OK

Saturday I ran a 5K that started inside Great America, ran around the rides and then into the parking lot and into the brand new Levi's Stadium! I really didn't want to run two runs in one weekend but I couldn't pass up the chance to go inside the new stadium...because the chances of me goign to a game there are slim....who can afford $$$$ tickets!? It was a nice, short, untimed run for charity.

Then Sunday morning, The Biologist and the Nuclear Physicist and I ran a 10K starting outside of AT&T Park, down to Fisherman's Wharf and ending inside the park!! ON THE FIELD!! Like...I now have a baggie of warning track dirt in my classroom :)

I hadn't run since July 2, except for a mile on the treadmill....so putting in 9.3 this weekend was pretty good...and I broke an hour in the 10K which was what I wanted to do....by 2 minutes to be exact!!

*LIVESTRONG*LOVESTRONGER*LAUGH HARDER*RUN TO THE STADIUM FOOLS!*

8 Weeks Post Traumatic Event

8 weeks ago today....The Captain was found in the driveway by the Coach...who, I recently found out was not going to come home right then, but was going to get lunch...and he wanted to get in the left turn lane....but someone cut him off so he just came home...and found The Captain.

Today was The Captain's 2 month check up with the cardiologist. He is doing well but he is so anxious to get back to doing normal things...like lifting more than 5 pounds...and taking less meds and having a cup of coffee with caffeine!

We celebrated after the appointment with dinner at the Spaghetti Factory. I LOVE their balsamic vinegrette dressing!! It was such a nice evening...we came home and walked the dog and it was still so warm and pretty out.

8 weeks we wouldn't have had!

The woman who did the scan of The Captain's heart today said, "You are lucky they found this before it became trouble."

The Captain said, "What do you mean trouble?"

"If this ruptured it would have been bad."

"It did rupture," The Captain said....and her reply..."you were very, very lucky."

Yes....we know :)

*LIVESTRONG*LOVESTRONGER*LAUGH HARDER*THANK YOUR LUCKY STARS*

Ring Pillow and Wedding

I promised a ring pillow for the wedding....way back when they became engaged last year. I knew I would have time this summer....but after my chaotic summer, the pillow had not been sewn. Nor had the fabric been purchased. Time kept ticking until 3 days before the wedding.

I spent Tuesday night on the embroidery. Wednesday night sewing the pillow together and Thursday night sewing on the "diamonds" and ribbons. The wedding was Friday at 5:00.

I left work at 11:30, got home and got the car loaded and we were on the road before noon. AND we hit traffic...lots of it....I was sooooo tired from the first week of school and no sleep and sewing...and all the work I do since The Captain cannot. It was about 130 miles to Forest Hill...near Auburn. 

But the pillow was sewn....and we arrived at 3:50. I think it turned out lovely and so was the wedding.

The ribbon on the back was for the ring bearer to slip his hands through to hold the pillow. The little "diamonds," ($28 worth,) were sewn by hand and a loop of thread went around each and every one. This is around the 6th one I have sewn but is by far my favorite.

*LIVESTRONG*LOVESTRONGER*LAUGH HARDER*ENJOY A WEDDING*

Grants and Obstacles

It was like Christmas!!

The Biologist and I got up at 6 a.m. to drive to a Target store up the peninsula....we arrived early so there was time to fool around....see, we got up early on a Saturday to receive a $200 gift card to target for teaching supplies! We both applied and we both got accepted! PLUS...the bonus was it was all tax free!

And they even had a food truck that made breakfast for us! (Don't my shorts look funny full of my keys and glasses....all pokey-outie!)

Here's all the stuff I bought!! I only spent $3.47 of my own money...I am so excited about all those books :)

BUT there's more...as soon as we got home we changed into our ROC Race running gear and headed to San Jose...to the Santa Clara Fairgrounds. There we had an 11a.m. wave to do this.....

It is a 5K obstacle course run....there are slides and monkey bars, silly big balls that knock you into a pool of water...and just plain silliness.

Here are 4 of us beforehand....

I wore my GO Pro and haven't gotten it uploaded yet....
Here we are after...there were 9 of us ....

 My daughter and her friends...I cannot convince their moms to participate...so I am the only "old" person tagging along...BUT I had a BLAST! And actually ran ahead of them so I could get them on the GO PRO as they went through the obstacles...AND...my PR...I made it across the monkey bars without dropping...so did the Biologist!

*LIVESTRONG*LOVESTRONGER*LAUGH HARDER*ROC THE RACE*

Thank goodness for dentists....

This morning I dropped The Captain off at the dentist....kind of like daycare.....I was able to run to the bank and take the dog to a local park and run 2x around it. I did have to stop 2 times to pick up after her...but no matter as I was sucking wind after about 50 feet. I haven't run since I ran to work July 2....and then my world changed.

Summer is gone. I have a class next week and then it is back to work. This week is filled with Dr appointments and therapy. The kids are all back in their respective countries, states and apartments....and it is back to just us and the Coach here....and now that it is volleyball season for Stanford we see very little of him. 

Today we met with the cardiac surgeon...I love that guy...so nice, and of course, so skilled. We got to see The Captain's CT scan prior to the emergency surgery. He showed us what he used to repair the aorta and checked on The Captain's healing. He gave us the name of another surgeon for the gall bladder and also told us the stone may dissolve on its own...something the other surgeon did not tell us was an option. Did I say I love this guy?

Things are getting more back to normal....every day is a day we wouldn't have had :)

*LIVESTRONG*LOVESTRONGER*LAUGH HARDER*KISS YOUR SPOUSE*

Seriously....

I have GONE CRACKERS......

My friend gave me these crackers...she thought it was funny...seriously funny...but I didn't....you know why? It is true...if you saw my Facebook post you already know.

We have been having a good time recuperating at home...enjoying the few days of summer that I have had this year....and then....just because it was 2 weeks since we had been to the E.R, I guess The Captain was feeling a little homesick and we went for a visit at 3:30 a.m. today. Seems he now has some gall stones...and that gall bladder will need to come out- soon...just as soon as the heart heals. We just need to eat light and hope that it doesn't flare up again....because it just wasn't fun for anyone.

 At least we know everyone there now. At least I feel okay enough to go to the thing that doubles as a cafeteria while the real one is under construction to buy a banana, a Kind Bar and a chocolate milk while we waitwaitwaitwaitwait  for the next procedure. We left E.R. at 11, with a card to make an appointment with the surgeon on Monday. Just because Monday was free on the calendar...

But in the meantime, I am crackers...GONE CRACKERS for sure. I will go outside, close my eyes and pretend I am on vacation in Tahiti. I have always wanted to go there....and stay in those huts out on the water where you can jump into the warm water whenever you want...and watch the fish from the glass floors.

*LIVESTRONG*LOVESTRONGER*LAUGH HARDER*GONE TO TAHITI*

She is now a resident....

of New Zealand....N. Zed as the locals call it....

We parked and walked into SFO with her...after one month here, I was so sad to see her go.

At the check in counter, her bag was weighed and it was 7 kilos too heavy. She had her boarding pass so we went out of line to sort the bags and redistribute the weight....she has a big interview on Monday so she really needed her botany books and notes....we stuffed them into her carry on. But still...it just wasn't working. We weighed the bag at home but somehow she had the wrong weight limit.

So we went back to the Air New Zealand counter and planned to drop $150 for a small bag...there really wasn't anything else we could do. This time we were with a different clerk and she could see we were definitely teary-eyed and stressed. The clerk opened the zippered bag to see the text books and spiral notebooks. She asked if the botanist was traveling alone...she looked to the next counter to make sure no one else was listening and said, "We will gate check this bag. There is no charge." We both started to cry....it was just too much. Then the sweet clerk looked at the seat the botanist was assigned- mid plane, middle of the row- and she asked if the Botanist would like a window seat....OF COURSE!! So she gave her a window seat with no one in the middle seat...and a nice young girl in the aisle seat. An 11 hour flight is much nicer when someone isn't snoring and leaning on you :)

We said Goodbye at the security gate...and shed some tears....and watched our Kiwi Botanist head back to N Zed where she is now a resident. I know I couldn't have made this past month without her....she asked the Dr's good questions, helped with therapy homework and made me laugh. 

*LIVESTRONG*LOVESTRONGER*LAUGH HARDER*LOVE YOUR KIDS*

One Month

One month post emergency open heart surgery for the ruptured aortic aneurysm, stroke, 13 day ICU stint and 23 total days of hospitalization/rehab was celebrated with 4 good friends at the Bone Bash XV concert at Shoreline.

I got the tickets from my district's big fundraiser in the silent auction back in April. Up until a few days before I was still unsure we would be able to go...just navigating the crowds was my fear and The Captain was anxious about it too....but we made it. Boston, The Doobies and a guy from the Eagles entertained us well.

Now my mother-in-law has left after a week's visit, friends are all back home and it is just a few days until The Botanist returns to N. Zed.....I will miss her dearly.

Then Back to School for me....I officially had 2 days of summer vacation before the Sh#@T hit the fan.

*LIVESTRONG*LOVESTRONGER*LAUGH HARDER*ONE MONTH OUT AND LIFE IS GOOD*

Sunset....

 ....from my front yard this evening...

....it was inspirational...and enjoyable...

...and a great way to end a very hectic day.

*LIVESTRONG*LOVESTRONEGER*LAUGH HARDER*THE WINDOWS OF MY SOUL I THROW WIDE OPEN TO THE SUN*

John Greenleaf Whitter

The Nightmare of Yesterday

The best laid plans that went wrong....and yesterday's top my list of days I never want to repeat. The Captain was to come home Friday morning. The Botanist and I were going to clean, visit The Captain and then head to the Adventure Run at the Running Store. I haven't run or worked out in 23 days...

5:15 am I woke up, walked the dog, pulled the sheets off my bed and started laundry. Paid some bills and cleaned the kitchen. Ate a quesadilla with chicken, jalapeno cheese and green chile verde sauce (don't judge,) all we have in the house is dinner food.

7:45 I started to order groceries online....password didn't work so I spent some time with online help. I just aabout finish the order when...

8:10 Land line rings...(who uses that?) The Botanist answers and in a panic I hear her say, "You've got to talk to my mom." It was a Dr. from the rehab facility....and he said.....

"We think Russ is having a 'small' heart attack. You don't need to rush down here. We are going to transfer him to our hospital in Mountain View."

NO WAY! He has his own Dr's here at Sequoia who know his history. He will NOT be transported anywhere but Sequoia!

8:25 The Botanist and I are in the car going 70 MPH in the 65 all the way there.

9:05 We rush into his room to find him sleeping in bed with no monitors and looking very peaceful. He awakens and says "Hello!" We are so panicked and shaken that we can barely talk. He has no clue that he is supposed to be having a heart attack!!!!

9:10  Someone comes in to do an EKG. I can see he is in A Fib again but that is about all I can read. Then a Dr comes in and I ask about his medications.....seems someone felt it necessary to "hold" two important meds because his blood pressure was "too low." When he was admitted I specifically said that I was to be notified of any changes to his meds. That way I could work with his cardiologist. The Captain's case is very unique....no one survives this and the Dr's have been very specific to tell us why he is not receiving meds that they would normally give in this situation. I had the nurse give me print outs of the medications and note which ones were held. I was also upset the day before because The Captain is on a caffeine free diet and twice I came in to find a can of Pepsi or coffee on his tray....wtf kind of place is this? Definitely not a cardiac rehab.

10:55 Ambulance transport to Sequoia Hospital. My 3rd ambulance ride- none of which have been for me....one for The Biologist, one for a student at school who broke her arm and this time for The Captain.

11:05 Admitted to the ER...thank you very much that will be another $150 copay please.

11:20 EKG, blood tests, visits with nurses who were on duty July 2 for the original admit. All were so sweet and had admitted they followed up to find out how well he was doing while at the hospital...all told him how lucky he was and how frightened they were when he was in ER.

12:00 Cardiologists confirm there was no "small" heart attack...his A Fib was back unfortunately. 

1:40 Upstairs to have a cardio-version and the shock to the heart to attempt to get it back into rhythm.

3:00 The team finally assembles...The captain is prepped, throat numbed and propophyl given and the camera is sent down to see if there are any clots in the heart...then the zaps are administered. The anxiety I felt during the two of these procedures take its toll on me...I have only felt this fear when The Biologist was dx with cancer in 2002.

3:20 The Botanist and I can hear the zap machine 3x...we know that isn't good because they can only try 3x...The Captains heart just wouldn't reset. But tests reveal that his heart can handle the A Fib for right now. We are allowed back in the room where we visited with the Dr and nurses until The Captain was discharged.

5:10 We are discharged! Sprung!!

5:25 We are in the car at the height of rush hour on our way to pick up all the prescriptions.

6:20 We arrive at home!! I am sooooo hungry I could eat clams...and I hate clams...but I hadn't eaten since 5:30 a.m. I dropped everyone off and headed to El Chorrito for burritos. While I was waiting for my order I heard my name being called...I was so happy to see and get hugs from a student who I taught in Kinder, first and through December of 2nd grade...a sweet little girl and her mom were eating there. What a nice way to end my evening!

7:00  Dinner alas!!

7:30  Meds and a little TV and The Captain was crashed in his chair. I had to go in and put the clean sheets on the bed. I had a little more energy from dinner...but what an exhausting, unexpected day.

10:30 I was out for the count.

*LIVESTRONG*LOVESTRONGER*LAUGH HARDER*NOT MAKING ANY PLANS HERE*

We're Home!

And I may just spend tomorrow in bed.

Lucky Part III

Day 18- Yesterday we busted loose! 

We got the paper work around 3:00 and headed for Los Gatos to the rehab facility. We checked in and stayed for dinner....a nice single room with a window. After getting settled for the night, my kids and I drove home to pack up BIG Foot. We got to bed around 12:30.

The alarm went off at 4:25...BIG Foot's flight was at 6 a.m. He had been home for more than 2 weeks and although I hated to see him go, he had to get back to work. Now it is just The Botanist and I at home. For some reason we can't seem to get to sleep before midnight and we wake up way too early. I came back from the airport and slept for an hour and then got stuff together to head to rehab.

How did we finally break loose? The Captain's heart was in A Fib since surgery...the medications did not work...and it didn't sync on its own...A Fib can cause a stroke...but the heart can being shocked back into a regular heartbeat...which can also cause a stroke. On Wednesday it was decided that 2 weeks post surgery was enough.... a camera was driven down The Captain's throat, and it was determined that there were no blood clots in the heart. Then his heart was ZAPPED! It only took one zapping and his heart rate was back to normal...Bye Bye A Fib! Talk about nerve wracking!!

I don't believe life will ever really be back to normal but WOW what a second chance we have been given.

*LIVESTRONG*LOVESTRONGER*LAUGH HARDER*LOVE YOUR HEART*

Lucky Part II

Day 14. Yesterday The Captain was moved from ICU to the Cardiac Surveillance Unit. It was confusing for him and he was agitated with the roommate noise (and smell,) and traffic in front of the door. After walking the entire 2nd floor and settling back in after the roommate was discharged, it was more relaxing. But the day is filled with Respiratory Therapy treatments, Speech Therapy, Occupational Therapy, antibiotic IV drip and a visit from the social worker, case work and a herd of cardiac doctors. No rest for the caregiver or patient!

The stroke was located in the vision center and it is coming to light through therapy just exactly what we need to work on. His memory center of the brain was not affected although his short term memory was so poor it was frightening! He just wouldn't talk about long term things so it was hard to tell he could remember. Each day there is improvement with his short memory...in fact there is a difference from morning to evening thank goodness! Today he has been talking about the dog, Chicago and the fact that my summer is almost over. Whew! If you were to look at him there are no visible signs of a stroke.

He has only been conscious since late Friday night/Saturday morning so much progress has been made. Tomorrow my kids and I are going to look at a rehab facility where he can get 3 hours of therapy each day. I felt first that I wanted him home but now I see that this may be best. I cannot believe that some people just choose a facility without going to visit...unless I think I could stay there, there is no way I would send a family member there!

Thank you for your kind words and prayers.
XXOO!

*LIVESTRONG*LOVESTRONGER*LAUGH HARDER* HUG YOUR CAPTAIN*

Lucky?

I was washing finger paint off 12 sets of hands at camp on Wednesday when my brand new phone started ringing. People know not to call me at work unless it is an emergency...just text and I will get back to you when I can.

I looked at the caller ID and it was from Coach who lives with us...so I answered.

He had called 911 and paramedics were at our house. Seems he had just come home and found The Captain lying on the driveway between the truck he is working on and the porch. He was conscious but in pain. The paramedics spoke to me and asked his birth date, allergy info and which hospital I wanted them to take him to. It didn't seem to urgent. The Captain's chest hurt a bit but his stomach was where the pain was mainly. He had thrown up a little.

Since I had run to work early at 7:10 to meet a friend to walk before camp, I had no car. Coach came to get me from work. I called for someone to come relieve me BUT THE PHONES WERE OFF 15 MINUTES BEFORE LUNCH TIME!! NO ONE ANSWERED!! I left an angry message. What if I had had an emergency with one of the children? A parent came early to pick up her son and I asked her to stay and dismiss the students.

Coach came to get me and drive me home so I could get the car. I drove a few miles to the hospital and parked outside E.R. Once inside I saw The Captain on the bed in so much pain it was like he was possessed. He was rolling from side to side groaning. An ultrasound was displaying his heart and I overheard the discussion of fluids building up around the heart...pericardial effusion. I stood at his side and kissed his cold head...he had no idea I was there.  As they rolled him off for a CT Scan he caught my eye so I knew he knew I was there. A cardiac anesthesiologist I saw previously who walked in drinking a Rock Star came back in and told me it was serious. I asked if he had finished the Rock Star because I wanted him to be awake. He smiled and said he was finishing. The Captain was supposed to be brought back to E.R. but a nurse came by to bring me upstairs to the surgery waiting room and told me he was going straight into surgery from the scan. A surgeon came and introduced himself and said it was an aortic aneurysm that had ruptured...it went from the top to bottom and this was what John Ridder had and he died...I told him, "Save my husband," and he said he would.

I waited forever alone....finally The Biologist and the Nuclear Physicist showed up...then a co-worker and my friend the school nurse...then a friend who is a nurse at the hospital who had the day off and her husband....we all waited...and waited...and waited. The liaison came by and told us that it had calmed down in the O.R. now...it was a very tense start. She also said to call any children living away from home and have them come home.

We talked...and the mood lightened...and we waited and talked. FINALLY the surgeon came in with a smile on his face. He went to shake my hand and I said "NO!" and gave a big hug. He said they repaired the upper portion...there was still blood pooled but it would drain...and if he had to go back in for that he would be happy to do so as it would be simple. We had to wait an hour or so to see The Captain. As we waited, the friends left one-by-one and that just left The Biologist and her boyfriend the Nuclear Physicist. We were warned that he would look scary. ACTUALLY he looked soooooo much better than he did in E.R! The ashen color was gone and he wasn't writhing in pain. Later that night when I went back alone I saw his stitches. His chest was sawed open to give access to the heart...then it was wired shut and sutured with twist tie wires....very neatly like a quilter had done it. He was covered with tubes which were attached to every part of his body and had more hanging bags of fluids and breathing machines then I ever imagined possible.

Today I was told that from the time he entered E.R. to the time he was on the operating table it was just 62 minutes! Amazing!...and the scariest fact of all that the surgeon told me today....The Captain had 5 -7 minutes of life left when he was on the table...if it weren't for The Coach finding The Captain, or the quick response of the paramedics, or the quick thinking, Rock Star drinking cardiac anesthesiologist who phoned the other upstairs and told another cardiac anesthesiologist to prep the O.R. because he identified the problem and knew time a factor....and the time of day....because I was told if this happened at night there would NOT have been a surgical team that could have been put together as quickly as they assembled.

A night nurse asked me if The Captain has a nick name..."Russ" was my answer...he said, "Oh, we are calling him Lucky!"

SO there you have it...my life since Wednesday. We were supposed to have left on vacation this morning. Now it is day by day....today the ventilator was removed and when the sedation was lessened we had awakened the monster from Young Frankenstein....grunts and all. He is in a lot of pain and they have had to restrain him. I have had to help hold him down....not pretty! Let's hope tomorrow brings a little less monster!

*LIVESTRONG*LOVESTRONGER*LAUGH HARDER*THANKING OUR LUCKY STARS*

Finally...

*I got to see (and touch, even though I wasn't supposed to,) the S.F. Giants World's Series TROPHIES!!

*AND finally I finished a run where I placed 1st in the old ladies category...not 2nd or 3rd....but FIRST!

...and I won 2 tickets to a San Jose triple A ball game. It wasn't my fastest 5K time but I will take a win...I am always beat out by some fit 50 year old...not today!

*LIVESTRONG*LOVESTRONGER*LAUGH HARDER*GET AN AWARD FROM A TROLL*

Summer Scamper!

This morning I got up early and drove to Stanford Univ. I used to make this trip daily...it isn't that far from my house...around 12 miles...but it is the traffic that is painful. But early in the morning on a weekend there is little traffic making it a pleasant drive.

The Summer Scamper is a Fun Run to raise money for the hospital. The Biologist and I have run it for the previous two years...this was my 3rd year and the 4th annual run. This is my "giving back" to the hospital that helped save my daughter. 

Each time I run now, I am just hoping for a small improvement on my time. I looked up my time from 3 years ago...30:02. I was hurt and Ali finished ahead of me. Last year I was in better condition and finished in 28:54. Last week my Garmin watch died so today I was running without having any idea of my pace. I was frustrated because even though we were to line up by the pace cards with the mile times, walkers and slower runners still blocked the course. I told some walkers 6 abreast to "move it!" I just don't understand why walkers start with the 7 minute milers. Next year I will line up with the faster runners to avoid the walkers and strollers.

At the end I was surprised to see the time on my iPod as 27:00 and even more surprised to see my official time of 26:54 posted at the result wall! I was second in my age group- 50-55...and I was beat by a 50 year old youngster! Just wait til next year...I move up to the next time bracket!

*LIVESTRONG*LOVESTRONGER*LAUGH HARDER*RUN FASTER*

Graduating Kindergartners

Today I went to a graduation party for one of my little kindergartners....who was in my class in 2000. He has grown into a fine young man and will be attending Cal Poly San Luis Obispo in September.

There were 6 of my former students at the party...I am so proud of all of them- each one off to college. I worked at a very transient school so most of the students in my kindergarten classes have moved years ago and I have lost touch. I am so thankful to have been in each of their lives.

*LIVESTRONG*LOVESTRONGER*LAUGH HARDER*LOVE YOUR JOB*

Are You My Mother?

One miracle duckling made it! There were a dozen eggs to begin with...one was not fertile and another stopped growing at day 1 or 2. The other 10 I kept in the incubator...and on Friday, day 30, one little guy had made a pip in his egg. Saturday morning he was not yet out when I checked...but when I returned to school again on Saturday night....he was out!! I brought him and the brooder home. He chirped and the dog was worried...she kept staring at the duckling. So I let her see him....just like the rats she licked and licked the tiny guy. Then back in the brooder he went and we went downstairs. The duckling would chirp and the dog would whine at me....I kept reassuring her it was okay. A bit later it was quiet...then The Captain went upstairs and called me to "come quick!!"

Apparently the dog had had it with my lack of parenting...she put her head in the brooder and carefully took the duckling out. When the dog saw The Captain, she kind of looked guilty and the duckling toddled out from her chest, between her paws as she had been licking the little guy!

The dog loves the rats....I have to open the cage so she can put her head in and kiss them. She is such a mommy! She and I took the brooder to school tonight so I can ride my bike to work tomorrow...and she was not happy when I closed the classroom door.

The duckling's foot was splayed....the feet must have been developing when the power went out. It looked better this afternoon and he was eating, but I think that foot kept him from hatching sooner. No pips in any of the other eggs but I did leave them in the incubator. It is not likely though as tomorrow is day 33...25 is the usual incubation time for ducklings. But I am grateful the kids have one miracle duckling!

*LIVESTRONG*LOVESTRONGER*

LAUGH HARDER*QUACK QUACK*

Got Mud?

Under the barbed wire...you can see the Biologist just entering the mud crawl...

Here is the Biologist crossing the balance beam over the water...which was just after climbing that big dirt hill behind...

After climbing a wall, then a sagging net to the top of the slide...I glided to the finish with a splash...

I have to get the photos from the balance beam over the water pit...I didn't get any of the rings....which I totally sucked at and definitely need to practice.

What I don't understand is how the guy behind me went down the slide at almost the same time as me but ended up way behind at the finish line.

*LIVESTRONG*LOVESTRONGER*LAUGH HARDER*CRAWL IN THE MUD AND LOVE IT*

And the good news is.....

when our plane landed in San Fran on Friday night at 11:30 p.m.....I had two things on my mind...1. OMG!!...in 5 1/2 hours I will be getting up to run the Rugged Maniac....AND 2. I need to candle the duck eggs.

We were home in no time and hauling our stuff inside. After plugging in the candle-er and carefully took one egg from the incubator and I was surprised to see the egg was much fuller than Monday when I was so worried that the ducklings had died. I was so happy that I didn't bother to check another egg I just brushed my teeth and headed to bed.

I slept so hard I did not wake up until 5:15. It took a while to decide on what to wear...I didn't want to lose my pants climbing from the mud or water...but I didn't want to wear shorts and skin my knees....finally I decided on capri yoga pants and a shirt from the Rock N Roll San Jose half marathon...it's ugly and I didn't care if it got ruined :)

I filled jugs with water and got old towels to rinse and dry with. I got a blanket to sit on afterwards and packed the car. First stop was Safeway for a power bar and some Rock Stars and Red Bulls....I don't drink coffee and just recently had a Rock Star and realized why people drink coffee....the caffeine zap is almost too much for me!

The drive was about 45 minutes away but there was an accident on the freeway but we were able to get off and take surface streets to the fair grounds. We got an excellent parking space, checked in, used the restrooms and waited around until it was time to climb into the starting corral....YES, you had to climb a wall to get in!

Pre race picture

The first stretch was a run- the first obstacle was 4 walls and that sort of thinned the herd. I was very cautious on the obstacles. That is what enabled my daughter to stay close behind...she was faster on the obstacles and I was a faster runner...and I did cross the finish before her :)

There was mud...and mud...and mud....tunnels and hills of dirt, 25# bags of something to carry through a maze, walls to scale, nets to climb and pits to jump over. Unfortunately there wasn't fire- the fire marshal declined the permit...but there was a bubble machine that made a mountain of foamy bubbles to run through. I can't wait for the photos!

The event ended with a wall climb, that led to a net climb...that scared me at first because I thought I could fall through...but once I realized I wouldn't, I rolled to the bottom of the net, which was sagging, and then I climbed up to the top and there was a giant 45 degree water slide into a pool of water...and I quickly climbed out and crossed the finish.

Post race picture

3.1 miles, 25 obstacles, and I was the first woman in my wave to cross the finish. I was the first person in my age group to cross the line- male or femail...In fact the announcer said to my daughter, "you're the 2nd lady!" to which she exclaimed, "Ya, that was my mom!" 34:58 was my time...I can't wait to do it again! AND there is an award for the over 55 winner...I beat that man's time this year...but it is over 55...and I am only 55.

 *LIVESTRONG*LOVESTRONGER*LAUGH HARDER*RUN A RUGGED MANIAC*