Knee Update

My knee surgery recovery is plugging right along, and everything is going as expected.  I am 8 1/2 weeks post-op, and the last two weeks have been tough as I have been putting more and more weight on my leg.

I go to therapy twice a week, and I have been slowly transitioning from two crutches to one.  I continue to wear my brace to give me extra stability as I put more weight on my leg.

After today's physical therapy appointment, my therapist told me I should transition from one crutch to none over the next week . . . I need to continue to strengthen my quad muscles to get there.

Slowly Melting

Yes, there's still a lot of snow in our front yard, but it is slowly melting.  We are beginning to wonder if there will be snow on the ground for Julia's birthday next month?

Camera Fun

I was sitting on the love seat in the window room, and the girls were coloring at the table.  My new camera was close by, so I thought I'd play with the zoom and take some pictures.

 It's a cloudy, snowy day, which gave a soft light - not too bright.

 Look closely and you'll see snow flakes falling around the wood duck (another migratory bird) . . .

Ducks!

Our Spring birds have arrived this week!  We have heard red-winged blackbirds singing (a migratory bird that usually heralds the beginning of Spring), and we have seen several ducks in the creek in our backyard.  Even though there is still a bit of ice and snow on the ground, we are happy to see the first signs of Spring!

The duck in the picture above is a male mallard, and the two pictured below are hooded mergansers (the male has the fancier feathers and white on his head).

After-School Whirlwind

The girls came home from school today at 3:25.  After they had said their hello's and taken off the coats, shoes and backpacks (and shown me the highlights of their day), this is what the entryway to our house looked like.  Crutches or not, I certainly wasn't the one who picked up all of their stuff!

New Camera and Birds

Just over a week ago, I got a new camera.  This guy is an upgraded version of what I previously had, so some things were similar, and some things were improved (like the zoom).  Over the past nine days, I have been experimenting with taking pictures of birds in our back yard, and I am really pleased with the results.

 Here's a shy brown creeper, who only comes to our feeders when there's snow on the ground.

 This is a little downy woodpecker.

 Moments before I took the picture below, there were actually two red-tailed hawks sitting in the tree.  That's unusual - there's normally just one hawk hanging around at a time.

 I like how this little junco has snow around its beak.

 The zoom let me capture the chickadee with its mouth full of a safflower seed.

 Here's a nuthatch, in a popular pose.

 Okay, I couldn't resist taking a picture of this cute little red squirrel.  Clearly it was looking for some buried treasure.

 When the ground is covered with snow, song sparrows come to feeders for seeds.

 This little titmouse is about ready to take flight with its prized seed.

 A sign that Spring is around the corner:  the male goldfinches are started to grow their summer feathers (finally!).

Physical Therapy

I start every physical therapy session the same way - 20 minutes on the stationary bike.  Every time I go, it's easier to get on and off the bike, which is all I can hope for.  After warming up on the bike, I proceed to do about 45 minutes of (easy) strengthening exercises, followed by 15 minutes of ice.  I go in for therapy twice a week, and the other five days I try my best to exercise at home once or twice a day.  I'm working my hardest to make my surgery (and recovery) successful!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Summer Dance Intensive Audition

Broken pinky toe or not, today was the day Evelyn auditioned for the Summer Dance Intensive program at Festival Ballet in Providence, Rhode Island.  This is the SDI program she did last August, and she absolutely loved it.  She has her fingers crossed that she will make it in, again, this year!

Taking the Bike Out

The driveway and street are cleared off enough that Evelyn can ride her bike (finally!).  She has to be careful and watch out for patches of ice and sand, but she has been itching to get this guy out of the garage for weeks.

Do Re Mi

This evening, Julia performed with her Wednesday Musical Theater class, singing "Do, Re, Mi."

 It was great fun watching our little Sunshine perform on stage - she was very charismatic and seemed to have a wonderful time being in the spotlight.

5 Weeks Post-Op

My knee surgery recovery has been going as planned.  Yes, I do still have some swelling, but not as much as I did right after the surgery.  Also, all of my scabs have fallen off, so the incision looks a lot better.

I am still completely non-weight-bearing, which means I still need to wear a compression sock all of the time.  I also keep my knee wrapped to help control the swelling.

Broken Pinky Toe

Last weekend, there was a crazy incident between the girls where Evelyn significantly bumped her toe.  We put some ice on it and told her to shake it off.  Evelyn was still complaining about her toe yesterday morning, so I made an appointment to see her pediatrician this afternoon - I figured something must be going on if it was still hurting.

Yup.  Evelyn broke her pinky toe.  She should have been resting it all this past week so it could start healing (i.e., not going to ballet and gym class).  From here on out we will do our best to promote healing - "buddy taping" it every day and no ballet or gym class for two weeks.  The lesson I learned is, whenever Evelyn thinks she has injured her foot or a toe, I need to have it looked at.  Even a small injury can turn into a big deal - to my dancer - if not treated.

Party Planner Extraordinaire

Julia has begun planning next month's birthday party in earnest.  You'd never guess what the theme is . . .

Art Show

Today was the annual art show at Evelyn's school.  Every student has a piece of artwork on display, and all of the art is grouped by grade level.  The girls really enjoy looking at ALL of the art, not just Evelyn's piece (which we took home with us when we left).

Bluebird Visit

My favorite birds visited this morning - five little bluebirds stopped by to nibble on some suet.  Bluebirds don't come to our feeders very often, and they don't stay for long, but I certainly enjoy seeing them when I can!

Snowy Yard and House

As I drove back to the house from bringing the girls to the bus stop this morning, the amount of snow in our front yard really stood out to me.  We have had over six feet of snow so far this winter, and our yard is an ocean of white.  When looking at the house from the street, you can't even tell that there's a sidewalk leading up to the front steps.  I wonder how much more snow we will get?  (Winter really isn't over, yet . . . )

Girl Scouts International Day

As part of their Girl Scout troops, Julia and Evelyn each represented different countries at International Day today.

 Can you guess which countries the girls' troops represented?

 Julia's Daisy troop learned about Spain, and Evelyn's troop presented information about Greece.  Always a fun time learning about so many different places (and who doesn't like dressing up?).