AuburnChick's Adventures

Good Monday morning, friends!

Did you have a beautiful weekend like I did? The weather was absolutely divine!

Friday found me with a lot of pep in my step. There was a lot more activity on campus in preparation for our first home football game.

I ordered a vegan pizza from Mellow Mushroom, and it was fabulous!

I’m so grateful for a place that offers vegan cheese, which makes all of the difference on a pizza when you can’t have dairy.

Pro tip: use the Tiger Town To Go delivery app. The company is local, and they do the best job getting food delivered in a timely manner.

I watched the men’s semi-final. Unfortunately, Djokovic couldn’t pull out the win. I like Alcaraz too, so I wasn’t upset.

The hubby and I grabbed sushi after I got home from work, and then I started a new book.

I’ll let you know what I think about it after I finish.

I slept in Saturday morning and got in some good snuggles with Gambit.

Then, I got busy making another batch of the vegan chicken salad that I’d prepared the week before. I didn’t press the tofu this time, which helped a little more with the texture. I also used a grainy mustard, which improved the taste.

Auburn wasn’t playing until 6:30, so I had all day to relax before getting game day ready.

We rented a parking spot at a local church, which we had done last year. This makes it easier to drive to campus. In the past, we’ve driven two cars down, parked one, driven home, and then had someone take us to the mall to grab a bus that Auburn’s transportation office provides for game attendees. It’s been a pain for us, so we caved and reserved our parking spot.

We hoofed it across campus to visit a friend’s tailgate. They always do it up fancy with a hired band.

I was super nervous about someone bumping into me. Both of my shoulders still hurt, but the right one, which had surgery in June, is still a bit of a mess.

So, we walked to the stadium early to avoid the crowds. This allowed us to get settled and enjoy the pregame festivities.

The weather was perfect. It was overcast, and there was a delightful breeze.

I didn’t eat at the tailgate, so the hubby grabbed a pretzel for me. Stadium pretzels just hit differently – especially with mustard.

The university added a new Jumbotron to our end zone. I’m happy for the people who sit on the other end.

The eagle is always my favorite.

The band comes out after the eagle flies.

Then, the flyover happens. Saturday, three helicopters did the honors. I always get chills.

The game was a lot of fun. A young lady in her late 20’s sat to my left, and she was a hoot. She was probably a few drinks into her day, but she was very friendly and commented that only in Auburn can you go to a game, not know a soul, and make friends the moment you sit down.

The light show between the third and fourth quarters was exciting.

Night games are my absolutely favorite. They have their own vibe – so much more of a party feel. I loved watching our players dance on the field. College should be a time of lightheartedness. With all of the NIL crap, I feel like a lot of joy has been sucked from college sports. Watching those young men enjoy time together on our legendary field made my heart happy.

We won handily.

Then, we made our way back to our car, stopping at Toomer’s Corner for a photo under the rolled trees.

We didn’t get home until after 10:30. Whew! I was tired! Gambit was happy to have his mama and daddy home.

Sunday morning, we attended church and then got started on our Sunday chores.

I prepped a Vegan Red Lentil Stew.

I prepped everything except for the garlic, which the Mr. had to press for me.

This is a delicious soup!

I washed the bedding, a chore I try to do weekly since Gambit sleeps with me.

I don’t know about you, but I love a quilt.

I also watched the U.S. Open men’s finals. It was nice to see our president there supporting this tournament and those young men.

Oh, and a sweet bit of news.

Saturday, my son and his little family welcomed a new fur baby to their home.

You might remember that they lost a beloved dog earlier this summer. My daughter-in-law had been beside herself with grief. That little guy had been hers before she met my son. They’d been through a lot together.

It didn’t take much to talk my son into getting another dog. My son has always had a tender heart – especially for dogs.

They surprised my granddaughter with this little guy. She is smitten.

He’s already quite spoiled, but they are doing right by him by crate training him.

We FaceTimed yesterday, and it was all this little guy could do to stay awake. He lost the battle – several times while we chatted.

We will get to see him next month when we drive up for E’s birthday. I cannot wait to get my hands on that bundle of love because I am a lover of all things puppy.

Gambit and I watched the men’s tennis finals. I am so happy that Alcaraz won. It was vindication after his Wimbledon loss.

Alrighty. It’s time to wrap this up. Y’all have a wonderful week!

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I’ve hit the twelve-week milestone, y’all!

What a magical marking point it has been.

The last two weeks have blessed me with a noticeable lessening of pain – to the point where, in case you missed it, I have been able to resume driving!

I started out with a short foray to fill up my car with gas on Sunday. The lack of pain afterward gave me confidence to declare that I’d try driving to work on Tuesday.

It didn’t feel weird to be behind the wheel at all despite the length of time that had passed since my last solo drive to work back in June.

I managed to park with a minimum of exertion.

I didn’t even mind the .25 mile walk into work. I’d missed the view (the hill not so much!).

It was pure joy to regain more independence.

I have got to glean what’s in my work bag though. I’m not sure why I think I need all the things, but I do.

My daily responsibilities at work are getting easier. I have found that setting my keyboard lower has been key. I’m waiting for an under-desk keyboard tray to be properly set up ergonomically.

My reach is slowly improving. Here’s my right arm.

Compare that to my left one, which had surgery last December before Christmas.

I still cannot reach out to the side with my right arm. I feel a sharp pain when I do. I’m not worried, though. This is just my body letting me know that it’s still healing.

Another big improvement I noticed is that I can wear blue jeans again!

My boss came into work one day last week wearing the cutest pair from American Eagle. My boss is tiny, and since I’m also petite, I’m always on the lookout for pants that aren’t too long.

I ordered two pairs and had them sent to the store in the mall to save on shipping. It was weird to walk into the mall. I very rarely go even though it’s five minutes from my house.

Y’all, I didn’t think I’d be able to try them on once I got them home, but I decided to give it a go, and lo and behold, they are stretchy enough that very little pulling was required.

I bought them in black too. Here’s the link.

Unfortunately, they aren’t on sale any more.

My ability to catch a good night of sleep is improving weekly. I’ve had a few decent nights, and now that my body has gotten a taste of it, it’s craving more. I’ve been in a big deficit since this journey started a year ago.

I have a recheck appointment with my surgeon next week. It’s more of a check in really, so I’ll be able to discuss anything I’m worried about which isn’t much at the moment. My left shoulder is still giving me some trouble, so I might make mention of that.

Anyhoo, that’s about it for now.

I think I’m going to pause these updates since I’ve turned a couple of big corners of late. I’ll probably post at the six, nine, and twelve month milestones.

I pray that, should you find yourself facing this type of surgery, you’ll call to mind my updates, and they will be of encouragement to you.

Have a fabulous day, my friends!

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Happy Wednesday, friends! For those of us stateside, how wonderful was the long weekend?! Sundays just hit differently when you know you don’t have to report for work the next day.

Anyhoo, it’s time for me to share my answers to the questions that Joyce collected for us this week.

Thank you for visiting, and I look forward to reciprocating!

1. Next Sunday is Grandparent’s Day. Share a favorite memory, photo, recipe, or something you learned from a grandparent. 

I didn’t grow up around my grandparents. One set lived in Canada, and the other set were from France. I saw them twice that I can remember.

My stepdad’s mom lived in North Carolina. My sister and I spent a couple of weeks with her one summer. She was a very sweet, southern lady. That summer, she taught us how to cross-stitch after taking us to Walmart to find something to keep us occupied. I think that is what ignited a love for fiber arts. I spent many an hour making beautiful cross stitch pieces, and later expanded my crafting skills to knitting.

2. What’s a quote from a book (besides The Bible) that has stayed with you? 

My hero has always been Corrie ten Boom. I began reading her books when I was a child. The Hiding Place quickly became a favorite of mine. In fact, it is one of a very few books I’ve carried with me all of these years.

The broken spine is evidence of a much-loved book.

The following passage is from this book. The part in red is what has reverberated in my brain ever since I first read it.

And so seated next to my father in the train compartment, I suddenly asked, “Father, what is sexsin?”
He turned to look at me, as he always did when answering a question, but to my surprise he said nothing. At last he stood up, lifted his traveling case off the floor and set it on the floor.
“Will you carry it off the train, Corrie?” he said.
I stood up and tugged at it. It was crammed with the watches and spare parts he had purchased that morning.
“It’s too heavy,” I said.
“Yes,” he said, “and it would be a pretty poor father who would ask his little girl to carry such a load. It’s the same way, Corrie, with knowledge. Some knowledge is too heavy for children. When you are older and stronger, you can bear it. For now you must trust me to carry it for you.”

Corrie was blessed to have an incredibly wise father here on earth.

3. What’s your number one food pet peeve? 

I despise wasting food. I will eat leftovers for days and will take leftovers home from a restaurant as well. I find it appalling to see how much food is wasted in our country.

4. What’s one thing about you that is still the same as it was when you were young? 

I still love to read – so much. I used to pretend I was asleep on Saturday mornings when, in fact, I was buried under the covers reading a beloved book. Early favorites included A Wrinkle in Time, Nancy Drew books, and the Sweet Valley High series.

I still appreciate the telling of a story that makes me forget where I am – that drowns out the noise from a world that has lost its ever loving mind.

5. September is National Preparedness Month…does your family have an emergency plan? Do you have some sort of preparedness kit you keep on hand? If so, tell us one thing that’s kept there. 

When we lived in Florida, I always had things ready for a hasty getaway during hurricane season. Thank goodness I was prepped because I had to make a run for it a mere four hours before we got hit by Hurricane Michael in 2018. We took a direct hit from this Cat 5 storm, and the aftermath was devastating.

I always kept bottled water, canned goods, candles, lighters, and matches packed. I had a small safe that held important papers, and I kept a suitcase packed with a couple of outfits.

I don’t have an emergency kit now that I live in Alabama. I need to get a weather radio, and I would love to install a whole-house generator because we have some pretty icky storms that come through.

6. My Random Thought

Speaking of reading . . .

Here are the books I finished in August.

I’m a tough critic. It takes an incredible book to earn five ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ from me. The Room in the Attic had great pacing that seamlessly alternated between two timelines. I checked out the Kindle version of this book through Prime Reading on Amazon.

Have a great week, y’all!

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Happy Labor Day y’all!

I don’t know about you, but I am very thankful to have the day off. Labor Day is always a great way to transition from a somewhat sluggish summer season to a hectic fall one.

Let’s recap my weekend, shall we?

By Friday, I’d eaten all of my leftovers, so a colleague and I ordered lunch from Niffers. I don’t know if this is a chain, but I hadn’t eaten there in a couple of years. They offer a portobello mushroom “burger,” and I got a side of tater tots. It was delightful!

By 2pm, my brain was mush. I pushed through and managed to get completely caught up with all of my tasks. I’d fallen behind when I had my surgery back in June. The recovery made computer work slow-going, and my brain, quite honestly, was also slow to catch up.

The Mr. and I ran a couple of errands on the way home from work. He loves getting Buffalo wings from Jim Bob’s, a hometown restaurant. I also ran into Kroger for a couple jars of black bean dip.

Nothing says college football like snacky snacks.

Auburn managed to prove naysayers wrong by beating Baylor.

The Mr. and I were happy campers.

Saturday morning, I woke up in plenty of time to watch ESPN’s Gameday. It was Lee Corso’s final day on the show after being one of the original hosts eons ago.

I was emotional throughout the entire broadcast. The tributes were heartfelt.

I love me some Kirk Herbstreit. His affection and respect for Lee Corso has always been genuine. You could see the emotion on his face.

The crew moved down to the field for last, big pick. Look how Ohio State’s band honored him.

If you haven’t watched this show before you probably aren’t familiar with Corso’s tradition of donning the mascot’s head of the team he has picked to win the featured game of the day.

He ended his career exactly as he’d started this tradition – by picking Ohio State to win.

They did, quite soundly. In fact, Corso accurately picked all of the day’s game winners Saturday.

Needless to say, we watched football all day.

I eked out some time to put together a vegan “chicken” salad, made with tofu that I grated up and baked.

Baking tofu is my newest obsession. The texture of the tofu resembles chicken once it’s baked. It’s magical!

The “chicken” salad was delicious!

I also did some reading.

We watched FSU tear up Alabama. I didn’t want to root for either team. We lived in Tallahassee for five years; FSU is so gag to me. Sorry, not sorry. Of course, being an Auburn fan makes me not root for the other team in our state. Ugh.

I will say that Auburn fans everywhere were happy to see Gus, our former head coach and now the offensive coordinator for FSU, get that win. He’s a genuinely great guy who led our team to some of its best seasons.

Sunday, the Mr. and I attended church, and then we ran a couple of errands. We had Kroger fuel points to finish using up, so I decided to try to drive again so we wouldn’t have to make two trips.

Y’all, I did it – without any extra pain!

Two weeks ago when I’d last tried to drive, I experienced so much pain during the ride and all day afterward that I decided to wait awhile longer to give myself more time to heal.

What a difference!

I had to use my left arm to assist the right one with changing from drive to reverse, etc., and when I needed to make a turn, I did so with my left arm, but things were so much easier.

I wound up going to Ulta afterwards because you know – a girl’s gotta do what a girl’s gotta do.

Ahhhh. It was so nice to be able to shop without any assistance.

I did my PT exercises when I got home. Oh vey. The new exercises are challenging. My right shoulder has very limited rotation still. Trying to pull my arm inward is almost impossible.

I worked both shoulders. Seeing how far I’ve come with the left one gives me hope and encouragement for what’s coming in the next few months.

After I finished, the Mr. and I went to our siblings’ house (his brother and my sister are married) to watch more college football.

Upon our return home we watched even more football (the theme of the weekend), and I caught up with Big Brother.

I also started a new book.

Whew! That’s a lot, y’all!

I’m planning on staying home today to let myself rest. We will watch tennis all day, which I’m excited about. I’ve really gotten back into tennis the last year or so. Each major tournament has its own vibe.

I am sad for Ben Shelton, who hurt his shoulder during a match Friday. I cringed as I watched the trainers perform the very same tests I went through while trying to diagnose my shoulder injury. Ben had to end the match early because of the pain and the fear that he would do something worse.

Y’all have a fabulous day and a wonderful week!

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Happy Friday!

I don’t know about you, but the Friday before a long weekend always a pep to my step.

Having our first football game – on a Friday – makes today even more exciting!

I’m writing this as I wait in the Jeep for the Mr. to finish making his coffee. He’s still driving me to work as I continue to recover from my shoulder surgery.

I’m dressed to the nines because that’s just what you do when you work on campus and football season rolls around.

I’m sporting my Auburn-themed Sorrelli bling.

The bracelets on the arm in the photo above are not Sorrelli, but the one in the picture below is.

To finish things off, I always add my Auburn ring, which I received as a Christmas present. It’s not Sorrelli.

I found it on Amazon, if you can believe that. It’s the prettiest little thing.

I like to get out and about during my Friday lunches. Our population increases even when we are playing away. Lots of mamas and daddies visit their college babies on the weekends.

I’m going to pre-order a Pub sub and pick it up during my lunchtime stroll (with a toe that I think I broke this week when we went out for sushi).

My walk will take me through the heart of campus.

Can you tell how excited I am?

Kickoff is at 7pm; the Mr. and I will be watching from the comfort of our home, both of us wearing our Auburn apparel so as not to jinx us.

Football superstitions are a real thing, y’all.

I will be praying for the safety of those playing all across the country and that good sportsmanship reigns supreme.

Have a fabulous day!

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Another week of my post-surgery recovery is behind me, y’all!

Today marks eleven weeks since I underwent my second shoulder surgery.

This has been another good week for me.

The pain level is about where it was last week, which was a vast improvement from the weeks before.

I made a rookie mistake last Thursday evening and washed my hair. The day following physical therapy is always a rough one. The exercises and stretching that happen the day before lead to a lot of soreness, and I’m usually pretty miserable. Throwing in a hair washing aggravated things worse.

Lesson learned.

Sunday, I told the Mr. that I wanted to try to ride in his Jeep to church. He loves his Jeep, but I haven’t been able to climb in since before my surgery.

I mainly used my back to brace myself, but I was able to get in. Jeep riding is a lot of fun.

One day last week, I misjudged the space I had when I walked into my office and hit the side of my arm against the door. I’ve been sporting a lovely bruise ever since.

Of all of the things to do, I pick the worst! My middle name certainly isn’t Grace. Ha!

Sleep is still challenging, but I am loving being back in bed.

I still wake up often during the night, and 3am seems to be the time when the ibuprofen and muscle relaxer wear off. Mornings are tough as I get my shoulder moving. The left shoulder still hurts a little at night too, so it’s rough all around.

D, my physical therapist, started me on some new exercises yesterday.

I did wall slides with a towel. I had started doing these back in May, a couple of weeks before we paused the physical therapy I’d was doing for my left shoulder in the lead up to my second surgery.

I remember hurting a lot while doing these in May. My right shoulder was a hot mess still since I was waiting for surgery, and the left one wasn’t really ready to do the work for both shoulders.

Yesterday’s attempt went so much better with no pain.

Little wins, y’all. I take them wherever and whenever I can.

I also rolled a large PT ball up the wall for more stretches. This felt so good!

D had me put a rod behind my back and try to pull it upward, using both hands. The purpose was to work my inward rotation. That didn’t go so well. I could barely move my arms.

The rest of my exercises were moves I’ve been doing regularly, which I appreciated. Introducing too many new things is challenging and results in a lot of pain.

I enjoyed the heat and TENS post-therapy self care.

I was given an updated at-home regimen, along with new bands.

Overall, I am happy with the way things are progressing. I am trying not to compare this recovery to the left shoulder’s.

I’m also trying to be very mindful to listen to my body, live life as much in the slow lane as I can, and remember that this is a temporary season.

I pray that the end of your week goes well and that you have a restful weekend.

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Happy Wednesday, friends!

Per my usual, I’m participating in Joyce’s Hodgepodge.

I look forward to reading your answers to the questions Joyce wrangled up for us this week.

1. When someone finds out what you do or where you’re from, what’s a question they always ask? 

When people learn that I work at the college, they always ask, “Oh, do you teach?”

It’s actually more of an assumption than a question – one in which I’m more than happy to answer with an emphatic “no.”

I did teach (high school and middle school) for over ten years, but that part of my life is way behind me. I have zero desire to return to the classroom.

To everything (turn, turn, turn) – There is a season (turn, turn, turn) . . .

2. Did you participate in ‘Greek Life’ when you were in college, or have children who did? If so what was your experience like? Taking another tack…have you ever been to Greece? If not, is that a destination on your bucket list? 

I did not go away to college. I commuted back and forth to a community college 45 minutes away from home. As a result, I missed out on the sorority experience. I doubt I would have gone out for rush anyhow. I wasn’t very confident when I was younger. I was a little socially awkward.

My daughter attended a private Christian college that didn’t have sororities. My son attended Auburn for a year. He joined the Christian fraternity on campus and met a few lifelong friends.

I have not been to Greece, but it’s definitely on my bucket list!

3. Do you like Greek food? If so what’s your favorite dish?  

Most Greek dishes are not vegan friendly. I’d be open to try vegan versions though.

4. What incredibly common thing have you never done? 

I’ve never had Botox.

5. What is a telltale sign that you’re upset? 

I’m a talker. I was once told that I tried to talk even after being put under to have my wisdom teeth out.

When I get completely quiet, you know I’m upset.

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

Sunday, I finished reading this book . . .

Joyce reviewed it a week or two on her blog, so when I needed something new to read, I checked it out.

I don’t often cry when I read a book. I did with this one. What Japanese Americans endured during this dark period of history was shameful.

Alright, y’all! Have a wonderful week! Auburn kicks off its first game Friday night. I’m sure we will gather with friends somewhere to watch.

War Eagle!

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Why do weekends fly by so quickly?

After an extremely busy week, I was ecstatic to see Friday roll around.

After making my usual cup of tea, I got down to the business of the day.

We had a serious issue with one of our databases last Monday, which rendered it unavailable all week. Fortunately, IT fixed it Thursday afternoon. Unfortunately. I had to input three and a half days worth of data first thing Friday morning. Whew!

I’m grateful that God blessed me with a tech-minded skill set because I’d created an Excel spreadsheet that mimicked the database, so importing everything was a breeze.

My day literally flew by. By lunchtime, my brain was mush.

I normally take leftovers each day, but I’d gone through all of them by Thursday, so I ordered in Friday.

I’m convinced that chips and salsa are the fix for everything.

My colleagues and I hightailed out of there at 4:45. I don’t think we could have strung two coherent sentences together.

The Mr. and I opted for an easy dinner before settling in to watch the first two episodes of the second season of Wednesday.

This is a strange show that I have to mentally separate myself from every time I watch it. I do love the nostalgic nods to the original television series.

After reading awhile, I called it a night.

Saturday

I managed to sleep until 6am Saturday. Go me!

I sipped a cup of tea and played my word games.

I love the Emoji game, which is part of the Apple News offerings.

Mr. and I watched the last day of 21 Days of Prayer, which my church does twice a year.

After church, I had to reach out to Amazon’s customer service because we were charged for a pair of pants we returned the first week of July.

Have y’all ever tried to contact an actual person at Amazon?

This is one of the most frustrating experiences ever!

There’s a live chat feature that, if you’re lucky and persistent enough to hunt for, is available.

I’d contacted them TWICE before Saturday regarding these pants, which they claimed they never received. We always opt to drop off our items at Kohls. Kohls will return Amazon purchases, and we always get a 20% store coupon in the process.

It was a mess.

The rep I talked to refunded my money and provided the following instructions for accessing the chat:

For the record, these instructions didn’t work for me, but hey, it’s worth a try next time, eh?

It was a tech-help sort of day, y’all, because later that day, I tried to help the Mr. get into one of his apps.

I’m starting to feel my age. Things are getting more difficult as technology gets more complicated.

Fortunately, and I give all credit to the Lord, we finally got him in. My legs were actually shaking by that time. I despise tech snafus.

I took it easy the rest of the day. I did my PT exercises, and we had some football games playing on the TV. It was Week 0, so there weren’t a lot of games.

Sunday

I slept until my alarm went off at 7, y’all! Yay me!

Hubby and I attended church and then spent a quiet afternoon doing our Sunday chores.

I finished a book while keeping an eye on the U.S. Open.

We got in a nice little FaceTime session with our oldest grandchild. She’s going to be five in a few months, so her conversational skills are at the point where we can actually go back and forth for a few minutes.

It was nice to catch up with my sweet son. He’s working his way through an online MBA program, so I enjoyed hearing how his first week of class went.

I watched a bit more tennis before tuning the television to Big Brother.

I read a free short story I’d downloaded form this month’s Prime First Reads.

I did not enjoy this. The topic was disturbing, and the characters were unlikable. I rated it ⭐️⭐️

I called it a night afterwards.

I pray that you have a productive week!

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I’m at the ten-week post-surgery milestone, y’all!

This week has been the best so far during this recovery.

The turnaround began last Wednesday when I woke up, I immediately noticed that I didn’t have much pain. I also realized that the back of my bad shoulder seemed to have loosened up a bit.

One of the things that I’ve experienced post-surgery with both shoulders has been severe stiffness. The first shoulder (my left one) was very tight in the front of my shoulder.

I remember the day the left shoulder loosened up. I was at work walking out of the bathroom when I felt a pop – a release really – in that shoulder. It scared me a little, but I didn’t have any pain, and from that point forward, my progress amped up.

The right shoulder (the one I had surgery on in June) has been different, with the stiffness being in the back of my shoulder blade.

Wednesday morning, a lot of that stiffness was GONE! I never felt a release like the other shoulder. I suspect something probably happened while I was sleeping.

I spent Thursday and Friday cautiously optimistic – not wanting to count my chickens before they’d hatched, but y’all, I felt so much lighter without the heaviness of the extreme pain I’ve been carrying around since last September.

What a turnaround from the fear I’d been enveloped in Wednesday night after I’d suddenly reached for a piece of fruit I had dropped and had completely scared myself.

Thank you for your prayers. All seems to be well.

I had physical therapy last Thursday and mentioned what had happened the night before. My therapist was not concerned at all. He said that the sudden movement was to blame for the pain, but that he didn’t think I’d hurt my shoulder again – especially since the pain had abated after a few minutes.

I wasn’t even too sore after physical therapy that day, which reassured me a lot.

I’m sleeping a lot better. In fact, I started sleeping in my bed Saturday night! Hallelujah!!

I’m making it through the work day without the use of a pillow under my arm.

Last week, I asked my physical therapist to define exactly what I’m currently allowed to do and, most importantly, what I cannot do. I need parameters because I’m an overachiever who tries to do the most when I’m not supposed to.

He encouraged me to start using my right arm to brush my teeth, wash my hair, and reach into a cabinet.

I cannot reach the cabinets above my kitchen counters yet. I still need more time in physical therapy. This took awhile for my first shoulder, so I’m not worried.

I have a very hard time putting deodorant on under my left arm because my right arm will not stretch across my body. I can’t shave that armpit either. This will get better in time.

I can reach for my computer mouse and over the edge of my desk a bit to write things down.

As far as what I cannot do, my physical therapist expressly told me not to lift anything over one pound. He didn’t say I can’t push or pull anything, but my surgeon had laid out these restrictions for me during my last visit, so I’ve been following them from the get-go.

I also learned, the hard way, that I am not ready to drive yet.

Saturday, I decided that after the good days I’d had with less pain, I wanted to go for a test drive. I had a library book on hold and figured that since the library wasn’t too far away, it would be an easy drive.

The last time I had driven was the day before my surgery – mid June. I couldn’t remember when I started driving after my first surgery. It seems like it was some time in February – possibly March.

The drive started out fine, although I had to use my left arm to reach over and down to change the car from park to reverse to drive. I cannot pull anything with my right arm yet. 

By the time I got to the library, my shoulder was on fire.  Turning my head to look over my right shoulder was incredibly difficult and painful.

It’s crazy how the smallest movements can absolutely rock your world when your body is a hot mess.

When I got home, I had to sheepishly tell the Mr. that he had been right. He had tried to dissuade me from my Miss Independent excursion.

So, driving is still off of the table for me. Boo.

I hit an upswing Sunday, and every day since then was good.

I had physical therapy yesterday, and my therapist immediately noticed that my arm is hanging a little more normally when I walk. It was also noticeably less stiff when he stretched me out.

He ran me through my paces with the bands, and yes, I’ll probably be feeling all of the things tomorrow, but this is not a whole lot different than a workout in the gym.

D told me that twelve weeks is the magic point where the soft tissues have healed enough to incorporate more rigorous strength training, so I have a couple more weeks to go before I’m pumping the heavy weights.

And by heavy, I mean one pounders. 🤣

Thank you for your continued prayers as I gingerly make my way through this lengthy recovery process. I sure do appreciate them!

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Happy Wednesday, y’all! Thank you for visiting my little corner of the internet world.

I hope your week is finding you well. Classes started back Monday, and I have to say that I absolutely adore the energy that these college students bring to campus.

Even though the traffic is horrendous, the joys of living in my favorite college town and working on campus far outweigh everything else.

I guess we should get to Joyce’s questions for the week, eh?

1. What’s worth standing in line for? 

I’m not that impatient of a person, so I honestly don’t mind waiting in line for things.

Waiting to board a plane that’s about to take me to my grand babies’ house is definitely worthy of a line.

I don’t mind waiting in line to be seated at my favorite restaurant.

Waiting to get into the football stadium to watch my beloved Auburn Tigers play is something else I don’t mind. Hello football season!

2. Tell us about a favorite food related memory. 

My favorite food-related memory is recreated every time I have both of my kiddos and their families under my roof.

We always try to plan one big family meal with everyone around the table. The Mr. grills something he and the guys have shopped for, and my girls help me prep the sides.

There’s a lot of going inside and out to check on food – lots of chasing grand babies – lots of laughter and pure joy.

Any time I am with my kids, there’s always food and fun involved.

3. What are some things you find particularly peaceful or calming? 

Saturday mornings before the Mr. has awakened, and I’m sitting with a cup of tea . . .

Lazy Sunday afternoons with the TV off and my dog snoring beside me . . .

The start of a weekday before everyone else has gotten to the office, and I’m setting up for my day . . .

An overcast evening spent porch sitting, watching the approach of a storm while hearing thunder in the distance . . .

4. Is there something you do now that gets you just as excited as it did when you were a child? 

Going to bed Christmas Eve is just as exciting for me now, as a middle-aged adult, as it was when I was a child. I always had trouble going to sleep the night before Christmas, and I still do to this day.

Granted, it’s just the Mr. and me nowadays, which makes me sad, but I still love the magic of the night before.

5. To what degree are you in touch with friends from grade school? high school? college if you attended college? 

I moved a lot when I was in elementary school. I don’t remember any friends from those years.

My life settle down after we moved to a tiny town in Alabama. I went to school with the same group of kids from sixth grade through 12th grade, and I still keep in touch with many of them. Our class numbered 18 on graduation day. Social media has made it easy to keep up with everyone.

I have never, though, attended a class reunion. We had our first one when my daughter was starting kindergarten, and I didn’t want to miss that day.

I think they had an impromptu one years later, which I regret not attending. It was the last time our class was complete as one of our classmates passed away from cancer a short time later. I had no idea that she was sick. I had an appointment with the surgeon who’d operated on my ankle after I had broken it a few weeks before and couldn’t cancel it. This still makes me sad.

I only attended college for a year before I got married, and although I did stay in touch with a couple of people for a while, we eventually stopped communicating. The internet didn’t exist back then, so it was a lot more difficult.

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

I work in a fishbowl.

Literally.

If you were to visit my office, you’d come in via a glass door that sits beside a floor to ceiling window. My desk is visible from the hallway.

There’s a classroom and two bathrooms a stone’s throw away from my office.

I’m sorely tempted to buy stickers like this one, which I saw in a meme recently.

I can imagine hearing students and staff yelling at the paper towel dispenser.

This makes me giggle every time I think about it.

So, fair warning.

Y’all have a wonderful day!

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