Oh Snap! Shots Friday...errrr...Saturday

We are in Delaware doing a bit of traveling. My husband has to work down here for a few days, so we decided to drive down and join him. I just got connected to the internet in my hotel room. It took me forty-five minutes. Me not so tech savvy.

Anyways, my husband said he'd do the laundry while we're here. (I 'bout passed out.) There's a washer and dryer where he's working, so he volunteered. I was pretty excited because now I won't have to spend afternoons in a laundromat with my two boys like I'd expected. It's a win-win.

Or so I thought.

This morning when I woke up to find the laundry, it was still in the dirty bag...wet. Oh, he'd done the laundry all right. He just hadn't dried it. So, I guess that's on the agenda for tomorrow. I'm sure it will smell all kinds of wonderful. But, God love him for volunteering. (Can I reiterate that the clean clothes were put back into the dirty bag? You guys know how I feel about recontaminated laundry!)

Speaking of laundry...

In real life...

Oh Snap!

Laundry piles up.
"Wait a minute... Where did the baby go? "

Little Ones Love to "Help".

You have to buy more detergent because
someone decides to play in the laundry powder. 

You can't even do the laundry because your
husband is "fixing" the dryer...

Laundry is hard to stay "on top" of.

Thanks for the precious pics you sent in! I should have snapped a pic of my laundry room in my scary basement. I went down Thursday for the first time since having surgery back in early June. Yeah. It looked like a small explosion had occurred. Oh well. A momma's work is never done...

Next week's theme for Oh Snap! shots is "Dog Days of Summer". Send me pics of your summer stuff. Funny vacation shots, creative outdoor games, front porch hang-outs, indoor activity mishaps, or funny pool shots. Anything SUMMER! 

So, what are you guys doing this summer?? Please share! 

Gimp Hip In NYC

Well, my hip labral repair surgery is officially over. I must say, for my first surgery, having it done in NYC was pretty cool. I mean, how many times do you get to go to the Upper East Side in Manhattan to have surgery at one of the top hospitals in the world? I am easily impressed, what can I say? I am sure there will be hurdles to jump through with recovery, (Eek, maybe "jump" was a bad word to use...) but thankfully, so far, everything has gone much better than expected.

I took lots of pics throughout the rainy day. You know you are officially a blogger when you are high on painkillers, but snapping photos in the back seat of the car to capture the ride home. HA! Enjoy!


 11:45 am. The Lincoln Tunnel. 

12:15 pm. Heading Up 42nd Street 

1:00 pm. Checked in at the Hospital for Special Surgeries in Upper East Side. (Insert The Jefferson's theme song here: "Movin' on Up, to the East Side...". And oh yeah, we did sing it. Numerous times.) Had to sign a Health Proxy, which gave my husband permission to pull the plug if anything went wrong. And ONLY if something went wrong. 

2:00 pm. Called into Prep Room. Dressed in sexy purple hospital gown, cozy green socks, and blue paper shorts. (I was rockin' it) Signed 500 papers confirming that it was the right hip that needed to be operated on. (glad they were very thorough on that note) Had hip bathed by some young male nurse. (and, no, he wasn't hot. Bummer) Answered a gazillion questions with three different nurses. (Geez) Had my hip signed by my surgeon (yeah. weird. I guess he signs all of his masterpieces) Blood pressure checked. (Squeeeeeze) IV inserted. (OUCH!)

My Hunter Green, Cozy, Double-sided Tread Socks. Lovely. 

4:00 pm. Led Into Operating Room. (Creepy) Strapped to a table. (AHHHHHH!) Oxygen inserted in my nose. (Annoying) 

Last thing I remember hearing: "I am putting this into your IV. It will make you feel like you have had a couple of cocktails." 

Two seconds later?

OUT. COLD.

That was WAY stronger than two cocktails. 

6:30 pm. Out of Surgery. Woke up in Recovery. My husband joined me and took this lovely picture for you to enjoy.....or laugh at. High. As. A. Kite. And my nose was red from me scratching it. Those pesky oxygen tubes made it itch.

7:30 pm. Ate and drank for the first time in 24 hours. The post-op meal of champions? Turkey Sandwich on Whole Wheat and a side of blueberries. Well, two sides of blueberries. I asked for thirds, but the nurse said there weren't anymore. She better be glad I had just had hip surgery or I'd have chased her down. 

8:30 pm. I was able to go to the bathroom, which meant my bladder was awake. (too much information? Sorry. I've had two kids. I don't know what too much information is anymore.) Since I peed to their standards, I was released to go home!  

8:45 - 10:00 pm. Contended with NYC traffic. Two of the three streets we needed to travel on were closed by police. Soooo, my amazing husband improvised and maneuvered around cars, yellow taxi's, tour buses and a sea of pedestrians who never obey the cross-walk signals. He was honking his horn like the best of 'em, too. If I wouldn't have been out of it in the back seat, I may have just had to kiss him. 

11:00 pm. Arrived home. Emptied bladder. (again, too much info?) Climbed in bed. Oh, how nice to be home in my bed. A couple more painkillers and Zzzzzzzzz....

This morning......

6:30 am. Can't believe how great I feel. (Obviously, I am on painkillers, but still....) The hubs is brewing coffee, cooking breakfast and taking care of my toddler who is getting into everything. Some might feel a little guilty for just sitting back doing nothing. Not me. I have no choice and no guilt. Beside's that, it's pretty cute watching Superdad in action. He is earning some major brownie points. So, for now, I will let him do his thing, assume my position and enjoy the view from here.

Thanks for all of the prayers and encouragement! I feel so blessed!




'Til Next Time, 


         BRI

Uh-Oh. Daddy's In Charge.

On Monday, June 4^th, I am having hip surgery. “Hip surgery?” you might ask. “How old is this chick?”

Well, if you must know, I am thirty-two. And I have a labral tear in my hip, which medically speaking, means my hip hurts badly.

It apparently happened around twelve years ago when I must have had some trauma to my hip. It has progressively gotten worse and most recently has had me stuck on the floor unable to get up. The pain is excruciating and forces me to cry out loudly, which scares my toddler to death.

So, we knew it was time to do something about it. I wondered, though, “How will I juggle everything on crutches? I have a toddler who loves his mommy and an eight year old who relies on me for a lot, too.” But, my wonderful husband was able to get two weeks off from work to take over Mommy duty.

That’s right. My husband will officially be my replacement for two whole weeks. He has been gearing up for the challenge by making spreadsheets for meals and snacks (I’m not kidding) and planning daily schedules. I have a little apprehension about his temporary role for a two reasons.

A.     I must let go of total household control.

Cooking. Cleaning. Laundry. The works. I know he will do a great job, but there are certain things that concern me. Like, when he does the dishes, will he rinse out the sink afterwards? Sure the laundry will be done, but will he cross contaminate by putting the dirty clothes in the clean basket and the clean clothes in the dirty basket? These are all serious issues people. I mean, how can I rest knowing there might be food particles stuck to the sides of the sink?

    

B.     He might actually out-do me.

I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t a tad nervous that his spreadsheet organization might just set a new standard for how this household runs. I mean, I am more organized than I used to be, but I am still a sanguine personality, which means I enjoy flying by the seat of my pants to some degree. What if he actually gets it all done and at the end of the day thinks, “Man. What does she complain about? She’s got it so easy. This is a cake walk.”

I know what you’re thinking. “Brianne, that won’t happen.” But, to some degree I guess I worry that my flaws as a household manager might be exposed in a rather dramatic fashion.

Truth be told, I do know it will not be easy for him. I know that no amount of planning I have ever done prepared me for the unexpected. Kids get sick. Recipes flop. Fatigue kicks in. Laundry gets backed-up. You forget to turn the crockpot off and cook your seven-hour recipe for thirteen hours. (Uh-oh. Did I just say that out loud?) 

Being a Mom is hard. Heck, being a woman is hard. Throw in our responsibilities, insecurities, expectations and our complex multi-tasking abilities and we tend to harbor on borderline skitzophrenia!

So, as I glance over my shoulder at my husband’s lofty plans for his two-week stint as Super-dad, I must remind myself to let it go. Whether he forgets to spot treat the laundry or vacuum under the edges of the rug, I am blessed to have a husband who is willing to be my hands and feet when I am down.

But, that doesn’t mean I won’t be doing inward fist pumps when he has to revise his spreadsheets.