Funny Day

The day got off to a rough start. The night nurse forgot to take Ted's continuous passive motion (CPM) machine off, and his leg was in a weird position (half bent) for about 6 hours. He was very stiff this morning. The PT helped him to stretch a bit, but their morning session was rough.





The IV came off today. More progress. Ted was a bit worried about not having the little button to push to get instant pain relief, but the percocet pills he now takes by mouth seem to do a better job, but they make him sleepy.





We had visitors today! Our friend Steve and his adopted son to be stopped by this morning and stayed for lunch. Their visit really seemed to lift Ted's spirits, and he's certainly sick of listening to me, so he enjoyed the visit. Steve and the kiddo make a great pair. I'm so excited for them and the upcoming adoption. They are perfect for each other and a cute little family.





Then, I ran home and picked up Crystal. Ted was in a great mood when we got back to the hospital. We spent a few minutes giggling about the funny looking stuff they tried to feed him for dinner- who puts whipped cream on peanut butter cookies??? YUK!





The mood was light and the laughing began. Crystal and I had some humorous moments in the elevator. The elevator ride to and from the 9th floor is tedious, but entertaining. Today, it was especially so. We headed down to the food court to get Ted some "real" dinner and to scope things out for ourselves.





The elevator stopped on the 8th floor, and a group of silly, young guys and one girl got on laughing and carrying on. I knew we were in for quite a ride.... the "big" kid in the group plopped down on the floor of the elevator remarking that it was going to be a long ride. It sure was.... the elevator stopped at every single floor, and the "kids" were being so obnoxious that nobody wanted to get on. Picture the YouTube vidoes of teens acting like jackasses in public with the horrified face of an old lady (only the old lady is me and I'm trapped in an elevator with them. There was lots of bathroom humor- picture an elevator opening to someone mooning you.... By the time we got to the 1st floor, Crystal and I had to duck into a bathroom we were laughing so hard. We tried so hard not to laugh at the silly juvenile things they said and did in the elevator, but it really was so outrageous that we couldn't even believe we experienced that.





Fast forward a couple of hours. It has been said that Ted might be discharged from the hospital tomorrow! YAY for him!





Well.... not yay..... he's still in rough shape, and moving into a chair, or using the bathroom, and dressing. I was not prepared for how much assistance he is going to need, especially these first couple of weeks. The reality of that is very scary. It took a great deal of effort and time to help Ted get up out of his chair, use his walker to get to the bathroom, use the bathroom, back out of the bathroom, line up with the bed, get in bed, get his legs in the bed, etc.



It will be great to have him home, but SCARY until he figures out how to get around!



Okay, so here's why Ted owes me BIG TIME! The physical therapist gave Ted a special toilet seat to use at home. Bascially, it just sets on top of our regular one, but it's super thick, so he won't have as much trouble standing back up. The seat is not in any sort of packaging, and it's impossible to tell whether it has been used or not before.



So, because of Ted's upcoming discharge, I decided it was time to bring the toilet seat home. We tried putting it in a bag I found in Ted's room and it didn't fit. Then, I emptied out the suitcase into the bag, and tried to fit the toilet seat into the (carryon size) suitcase. No fit.

I quickly realized I'd be making the 9 floor elevator ride and the subsequent 10 minute walk to the car carrying a toilet seat.



Crystal was mortified and walked about 1o steps behind me, rolling her eyes, pretending she couldn't POSSIBLY be with the crazy lady with the toilet seat. Sure enough, we got a comment and some laughs from a lady who joined us in the elevator. Crystal was in the corner of the elevator laughing so hard she almost peed herself.



The elevator just HAD to stop at almost every floor. Each time a person got in, I'd point to someone else on the elevator and say, "It's hers!" When the elevator finally reached the first floor, there was a crowd of people waiting to take the elevator. When the doors opened, all eyes were on toilet seat. A couple started giggling. An old lady's eyes got wide... and so began the very, VERY long journey to the parking garage with the toilet seat. I might as well have been wearing it on my head with the looks I got. I almost did, but I still can't be sure the thing hasn't been used before. Crystal stayed pretty far away pretending she had nothing to do with me or my seat. She was purple from laughing by the time we got to the car though.



The toilet seat is now home, but if we have to bring it back someday, Ted is going to be the one to do it. Once is one time too many to carry a toilet seat anywhere.

It's good that we're laughing! Just after Ted got his diagnosis, I never thought I'd laugh again... there were only tears for quite a few days. So, this funny day was a blessing, a wonderful gift. It's nice to laugh again.