Look No Hands.........!!!

Well away we went last Saturday, via Dunblane to drop off daughter at sleep-over with no fuel in the car but that's another story, sorry Ken! I honestly thought I might have been in for a long, boring week but thanks to fantastic weather and super company I had a thoroughly enjoyable week in the sun.

Loch Tummel is a beautiful spot and the sailing club is unbeatable. A week of racing/playing for the kids and hubby and I was kept busy chatting with old friends and watching youngest sailing any boat he could blag his way on to, with those big blue eyes he had a busy week. Daughter spent hours kayaking up and down the loch, I did have many moments of wondering if I could lower myself into the kayak with out doing any damage or probably the bigger problem of getting back out again! Don't tell anyone but I did have a sneaky ride in the rescue boat while watching daughter sail her Topper (for the first time in years, well done Storm!).

What I did succeed in was building up walking strength and from the moment we arrived the sticks were banished to the boot of the car. Plans to sit on loch side in deckchair gave way to meandering up and down watching the kids and trying to encourage them out of the water at the end of each day. I guess, all in all, I spent more time on my feet than I would have at home but what I did avoid was the drudgery of doing "stuff" in the house which ends up with over stretching/bending and doing all the wrong things.

Think we need another week away!

Grumbles

Mind if I have a moan?

This walking malarky is slow! Hip joint is fine, still no pain but the surrounding muscles just don't want to join in. Ok so I've not walked on two feet for seven weeks but I did walk round on one crutch for the best part of the week and followed that through with a walking stick, now I'm pottering round the house on two feet and still it's hard work AND I still look like a drunk penguin!
Muscles in unmentionable places are fighting back, all I want to do is start walking further and building back my fitness but right now I seem to have ground to a halt!

It's hard when you feel like you should be doing something to improve, maybe next week I'll find out how a week of rest will work, while Ken, Storm & Gregor sail I can sit and read - oh joy, think I'd rather be sailing, never mind........

Are you safe on the roads?

Ha ha I'm back behind the wheel, such freedom to just come and go when I please. As for no crutches, well a bit of a slower transition than hoped (or should I say hopped), walking with one crutch, a doddle but no crutch a bit trickier. Think drunk penguin and you should have the right image, guess not walking on my right leg for seven weeks will have had something of a negative affect. For now I'm pottering, drunk penguin-like, around the house and using a walking stick out and about.

Kids are well into the swing of the holidays, even Gregor is sleeping later, the downside, no more quiet afternoons to sit and write blogs etc. The risk of overdoing things is greater too although having my two child-slaves 24-7 is kind of handy. Funny how daughter heads out as soon as she can, before her mother hands her the vacuum cleaner again, poor child! Today she's off shopping in Perth with Grandma, I've traded having the playroom trashed with gaining some peace and quiet, youngest has his pal over for a play, thankfully the draw of mud and puddles in the garden is greater than scattering Lego about the house. So here I am, doing as told, resting and blogging.....

6 weeks old today!

Ta daa my new hip is 6 weeks old today & so far so good, I'll apologise to my family & friends now for all my gripes & moans! From now onwards I can wean off the crutches - yeah! Today I've had a couple of trips around the kitchen on one stick, and guess what, next week I can also drive, bet you're impressed!

I'm still moaning about sleeping on my back, oh and the muscle spasms I get in my thigh at night, it's apparently quite common, according to Google. What did we do before Google? So another 6 weeks until I see the consultant and he finally gives me the all clear to run up a mountain..... oh & start doing the housework again, although with youngest doing the dusting & eldest doing the vacuuming this morning, do I really need to go back to housework?

I am getting back into cooking for long enough to rustle up some freshly cooked meals, even the M&S ready meals were getting a bit tiresome, a nice bit of venison with a blackberry sauce went down well with the whole family tonight, even if dear hubby did most of the cooking side!

And yes I am taking it one step at a time, actually strangely nervous of doing too much too soon. This has to be the final op (until this hip wears out) so physio exercises are being followed & I WILL take it one step at a time.......

Home alone

Well the hols are here & the kids have cleared off to Gran's at Troon for the week, hurray I say, been to M & S for a lovely selection of salads & fresh fruit, no kids to steal it, could get used to this living alone malarkey. Ah but then I realised who is going to pull my socks on in the morning, oh & feed the dogs, do the dishwasher........? Ok kids you can come home now, I'll share my mango with you.

Yes I'm still here & although I am managing to do more I am also managing to do too much too often, boy do I feel it. It's getting too easy to just lean the crutches against something while I turn around to move whatever it is that I would have left alone a week ago. Still by Friday (6 weeks!!) I can start my 'get rid of the sticks' campaign & yes I will remember that I wont be able to immediately walk as far as I'm getting with them. Yes & a week later I will forget, get half way to shops & then say ow!

Another lovely day at Tummel, in the sunshine too, sat reading my papers while the kids played in the water. Looks like Ken is about to loose his helmsman position in the boat as Gregor did a fine job helming the boat, their race went well until they had a sponge over board incident & HAD to sail back for it, can't remember if that was before or after the opening the bailer in not much wind moment! Such a patient Daddy!