Knees & Dinosaurs

At the beginning of June, we went to Colorado to take care of my mom after she had knee surgery. It was truly an eye-opening experience! The hospital staff was incredible. Everyone on staff was caring and professional. We loved them all. The RNs kept a close eye on mom and answered all my questions and concerns. When a couple of different problems arose in the first couple of days, they dealt with the medical issues swiftly and the concerned daughter issues compassionately. The CNAs were friendly and encouraging. They chatted with us and did their occasionally difficult job cheerfully and well. And the Physical therapists were knowledgeable and fun. Both were young girls and they really liked mom. On her last day the PT told her that they had decided she needed to be roomed with another knee patient. Mom was all about doing the PT - she wanted to get back to work. Her PT told her the other patient was whiny and didn't want to do the PT - then she whispered to mom "and, she's thirty!" They loved mom's attitude. Now mom's roommate -- she was a different story! (They were remodeling the hospital - so everyone had roommates). I don't know what she was in for, but she was pretty vocal about the fact that she'd been in the hospital a lot, and she was not nice to the medical staff - at least the female medical staff. She kept her TV on pretty much the entire time she was there. She berated a nurse for something - and my mom and I both quietly told the nurse that, as we were in the room at the time, we completely disagreed with what she complained about. She was just a genuinely unpleasant person - but she helped me realize that I could never be a nurse - because I would have said something.

Mom did much better medically when she got home. There's definitely something to be said for recovering in your own home! They would have sent her to a rehab center/nursing home had we not come because they won't let you go home alone and there was no way I wanted that for my mom! I think being around her own place - not to mention her grandkids - was helpful. She had a visiting nurse and a visiting PT - and she did great. She did hate those TED hose, though. Friends came to visit and that's always a pick-me-up. She was doing so much better by the time we left. God blessed her with a very gifted surgeon and a quick recovery. And she needed to get back to work, both because she was going crazy at home and she needed to save some time off for Josh's wedding, so it was a huge blessing that she did so well so quickly.

We continue to pray for Joel's mom who had the same surgery a week before my mom. She's had a more difficult recovery, and although she's doing a bit better now - it would be great if she were back to normal!

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While we were there, a friend of my mom's gave us tickets to the Natural History Museum. Mom convinced us to take the kids one day while her friend Lorraine and her sister came and "sat" with mom. We had a ball. We didn't even scratch the surface! I tried a little aversion therapy by looking at the huge bugs - it didn't work. Palmetto bugs still give me the heebie jeebies. We took the kids to the planetarium and it was absolutely Alex and Emily's favorite (for Caleb, I think it was his second favorite. He really likes dinosaurs). They've never been to a planetarium and there's not one near us, so it's not an opportunity that they're likely to have often. I couldn't get Caleb to go into the mummy or anatomy wings. (In truth, the whole 'Caleb passing out' thing might have been a bit of a downer). We did make it into the dinosaur wing and the all kids loved that. They also had a balcony with a beautiful view of the mountains. (Alex, when we first took the turn in Colorado and the mountains came into view, blurted out, "How could anyone think that's an accident?" Indeed.) We had a great time there and hope to go back when we travel to Colorado on the way to Josh's wedding .

Emily also got her first "real" haircut while we were there from my mom's hairdresser, Julie. Unfortunately, she went after me and I got about six inches cut off. The first thing she said when she got up on the chair was "I don't want it short." She was pretty definite about it. Julie only cut about one inch off and then french braided it, so all was well in the end. That face probably freaked out the poor Julie.