A Long Wait (part 1)

I'm now 6 days post op and I thought it would be good to detail the process I've gone through to get to where we are today.

I've had bunions for as long as I can remember.  I cannot remember not having sore feet if I've needed to walk any distance, and I've walked a marathon! (I did the MoonWalk in 2007) They are a delightful genetic inheritance from my Granny Nancy, those and my 'freaky' arms.  I'm double jointed, or as I now know it's referred to as 'hypermobility' of the joints. 

Anyway, I've had bunions for years and their accompanying side effects - sore feet, hard skin, callouses - not to mention the slow change in footwear over the years!  High heels are basically a dim and distant memory (and may still be) and a shift to more 'sensible' shoes has developed over the years.  There's nothing wrong with that but I do miss the ability to just pick up a pair of shoes and buy them without wondering if I'll be able to squeeze my bunion into them.  The last new shoes I bought, a pair of sensible chunky brogues, ended up squeezing my big toes so much I ended up with bruised toe nails which eventually fell off.  Nice eh!

For years I've had various comments about my feet, you can imagine the general tone of the comments.  I've always shrugged them off, I didn't think my feet were that bad and, anyway, if I were to approach the doctor about getting something done about my bunions. surely I was too young?  Then I had a particularly comment at work about 18 months stuck with me for some reason.  It wasn't a nasty comment really, more the tone, 'Oh My God!!! What IS wrong with your feet?'. I thought I'd cut my foot or something but no, it was just the sight of my feet in a pair of ballerina style shoes, bunions bulging out of the sides!

So that got me thinking maybe I should see if something could be done.  I sat on that idea for about a year before going to my GP.  The GP took one look at my feet and announced she would make a referral to the consultant.  I didn't even get a chance to say my bit, I had rehearsed a whole speech but didn't need too.

The same happened when I saw the consultant, Dr De Leeuw, basically one look at my feet and he decided what needed to be done.  A quick x-ray to confirm his thoughts and that was it.  Decision made and name placed on the waiting list.  All I needed to do was wait for the operation date.  I think I was in a state of shock right up to the night before the operation.  It had all been too easy.  No-one had said 'no', no-one had said 'come back in a few years'. 

Things I Don't Need ......

Normal shoes, socks, leggings/trousers with a small foot hole, car keys.  Well I will need them again, but not for a few weeks.  The only thing I'm really missing at the moment are my socks!  Having large plastercasts on my feet isn't making them cold but I do miss the cosiness of a pair of socks.

For the next 6 weeks my life involves these lovely, lovely shoes.  While in all seriousness, they are essential at the moment as they allow me to walk without putting any pressure on the front of my foot, but they REALLY are the fugliest shoes (if you can even call them shoes!) I've ever seen.  Good on a practical level.  But they ain't winning any prizes in fashion stakes!

And this little bundle of goodies are also now part of my daily life..

a (borrowed) wheelchair, yet to be used other than to ferry the kids around the livingroom, a shaped foam cushion, a bed cradle and a laptop table.

The cushion is amazing, I've to keep my feet elevated and this helps with not only raising my feet but supports my knees and legs.  I've tried just raising my feet and it eventually puts pressure on the back of your knees and your lower back so the support cushion is ideal for avoiding pain elsewhere.

I'd read about other people who have had the same operation as me and a few people had mentioned a bed cradle was a useful thing to have.  Essentially it is a small frame which help lift bedclothes/covers off a limb (leg/arm) after an operation.  I wasn't sure if I'd need it and to be honest, even though I've used it for a couple of nights I didn't think it was making a difference.  Until someone threw an item on clothing onto the bed yesterday and it landed on my feet!!!  It was only a small t-shirt belonging to a 3 year old but the unexpected weight on my feet was a surprise and a bit of shock to the system.  So the cradle thingie is useful it seems.

Rightio the family are back from their adventures so I'm off to find out what they've been up to.

They're Done!

Well my operation has taken place. It's all done and I'm currently lying in bed binge watching The Good Wife on Netflix, (I have no complaints). I had planned to do a couple posts in between my last post and actually having my op but the last week has been particularly hectic. More of which I'll write about shortly.

As for now I'll leave you with a photo of my 'after ' op feet. They look sore but they really aren't - a bit achy and slightly uncomfortable at times but not sore. I'm keeping on top of my meds and it's all good. So here they are, my interesting new feet!

Countdown to Change

Life as I know it is due to change in 9 days time. Sounds very melodramatic doesn't it! It's not meant to. But things which I deal with on a daily basis - pain, calluses, blisters, etc - are soon to be coming to an end (fingers crossed).

On 24 February I'm heading off to place my feet into the hands of a lovely NHS consultant to deal with my hideous bunions. A double bunionectomy if you will! This is as best a photo as I'm willing to show at present (with a little hand just for scale!)

Nobody really wants to see how awful my hideous trotters are, suffice to say they remind me of old granny feet. Even after they've been slathered in moisturising cream!

I've not thought too much about what will actually be done them, I'm not the surgeon, as long as he knows what to do I'm happy. However it has stuck me today just how potentially immobile I will be in the early days. I've been told I've to be non weight bearing for the first two weeks. Then I'll have lovely shoes which enable me to 'heel' walk for the next 4 weeks. Now this is for both feet. So that's non weight bearing on both feet for 2 weeks.

So I've happily been thinking to myself, non weight bearing for 2 weeks - no problem I'll just stay upstairs (we only have the one bathroom) for 2 weeks and it'll all be good. Had a couple of offers of help with the children which are going to be taken with much gratitude. However today I had the thought, how do I actually GET UPSTAIRS! Today I tried shuffling upstairs, backwards, on my bum and it was difficult not to use my feet. Much harder than I expected. So that's made me nervous. It was a joint effort with me and Pedro in the end, I did make it to the top of the staircase but to be honest getting from there to actually getting into bed isn't going to be as straightforward as I'm hoping I don't think.

I'm also going to have crutches. Which will be great for getting about but I've got rubbish upper body strength. And I discovered today, while trying to lift myself up one stair at a time, that my fall last summer (when i thought I'd fractured my elbow but hadn't) has weakened my elbow and I need to be careful as it was threatening to pop out. Got to love my rubbish joints!

I'm still positive about the whole thing. There are a few hurdles which I'll need to deal with, I just need not to worry about these hurdles until, or even if, I face them.

I'm going to blog the process as there really isn't a great deal of first-hand experience/knowledge out there, especially about having both feet done at the same time. Most people just have one done at a time. What I have found is limited to 'this is what my feet look like now, not had much pain,' and that's pretty much it. Also, of the few blogs I have found, the ladies bunions have been what I would call minor, particularly compared to mine. One American woman, I could barely tell the difference between her before and after photos. No wonder she was back to work (& the gym!) barely 2 weeks after her op. Maybe I will post an unsocked foot photo, not sure though. I really do hate my feet.

Coming out of (Virtual) Hiding?

It's been a while since I blogged. And when I think about it, most of my blog posts start with me explaining it's been while since I blogged. That's me, what can I say. I'm nothing if not inconsistent!!

Life has been plodding on, my motivation for things I do comes in ebbs and flows. I only seem to blog when things are flowing in the right direction.

There are many things on the go at the moment; making things, doing things, preparing for things which are coming up in the future.  More of which I'll explain about soon, I will be back soon. I promise!!

So I'm getting back into the mode of blogging and trying to figure out the best way to do so easily. My laptop is pretty rubbish these days so I'm currently on my tablet to see if this is an option. Now to add a photo!

Here are the small people attempting to take a photo with me. Serious photos are not easily achieved with these two.

Now to figure out how to access more of my pictures. And put up some Christmas decorations. Must do that today or I'll never hear the end of it 😉

Isn't she a beauty?

This is my mum's old manual typewriter.  It's lived in my loft for years.  The husband *briefly* asked if we needed to keep it when we moved last year and was *briefly* met with THE LOOK!  As if!!

We brought it down from the loft a few weeks ago after the Dude got a library book called 'The Story Machine', all about a boy who finds a typewriter and ... well it's fairly self explanatory.  So conversation developed and I explained I had a typewriter, did he want to see it.

So it came down, still in it's original case but it needed a REALLY good clean and the ribbon barely has any ink left (which isn't surprising given the last time it was used properly will be close to 25 years ago).  A little cleaning later and it's lovely and shiny.  The Dude had a little play but given the state of the ribbon he quickly got bored.  But I decided to investigate if you can still buy ribbons for manual typewriters .... and guess what?  You can, for less than a tenner too!

That got me thinking and I decided to investigate a bit more about this specific typewriter.  I even managed to find the serial number on it.  It is a Imperial 'Good Companion' Model 6 and based on the serial number I think it was manufactured in 1964.  So it's 51 years old.  And it works!  The Imperial company used to produce these typewriters in Leceister but the factory was closed in 1974. (The year I was born!)  When I was telling my dad what I'd discovered he informed me, he thinks it either cost £18 or £24 when my mum bought it.

I remember playing with it when I was younger and typing out nonsense just to see, and hear, it working.  I also remember my mum actually typing letters on it before we bought our first computer (which was an old Apple Mac!) so that must have been round about 1984. 

I've even managed to find an instruction manual online for it.  I'm so excited to have found out so much about it.  I've always loved this typewriter and I'm not sure why.  But I do know that I'll be getting a new ribbon for it and hopefully it will continue to be loved by my children.

Organisation

My main aim at the moment is to be more organised.  In many areas of my life - kids, housework, crafting, eating, work, you name it I reckon it needs to be better organised. 

So to begin this month is my first time at being a Bee Mama!  I mentioned a bit in my last post so I've given out instructions on the blocks I would like other lovely, generous ladies in our Sibling Together Bee to make and they then make their version of my blocks and send them to me.  I've already started to receive some and they are gorgeous.  Can't wait to receive them all and get the quilt all made up. 

Another thing which needed to be organised is some cushions for the kids rooms.  When they are lying in bed getting their bedtime stories, me and hubby end up sitting on the floor next and after a couple of minutes it tends to get really uncomfortable.  We aren't getting any younger so the cushions are mainly for us to sit/lean on, but also to look good in their rooms.

The big mega cushion top is for the Dude's room

 and this smaller one, which involved some pretty cool paper piecing is for Little Miss's room.  Next is some hand quilting I think for both them.  Another first for me! (so getting organised in the way of extending my skills)

The other thing we have been up to this week or so is trying to remove an ugly decking/planter which took up a large corner of our back garden, inherited from the previous owners.  When we first moved, we had ideas of planting potatoes and stuff (there was nothing in it, just a load of soil) but then over the winter and trying to negotiate past the tiny space between the decking and the grass (which was sodden all winter and still is!) we decided it had to go. 

So the mountain of wood has been removed (how many screw/nails are needed to hold decking together?) and now we are gradually removing the mountain of soil.  Which is a slow process.  We thought we'd hit jackpot and there was going to a slabbed area underneath all of this but no, optimistic hopes dashed when we started actually lifting the wood and just more bloody soil.  So the jury is still out on the final use for this corner but lots of options being thrown about.  I'm just pleased to have some more useable space. 

So slowly things are becoming more organised in some areas, not all but hey I can't manage everything at once!