Bed Rest Mommy

Amber is home and doing quite well.  She does have to go back for another surgery in a couple weeks, but so far all is going quite well.  She has physical therapy coming in soon to work with her so all seems to be going better than hoped.

If you want to send her a care package or card at home, I can provide you with her address.  Just leave me a comment here and I’ll reply via email as long as you make sure your email address is correct when you comment.

Amber will be heading home tomorrow! So if you read the last post, do not send her any more cheer cards unless you send them to her email address.  If you don’t have it, contact me and I can pass it onward.

She’s NOT done yet, she has to go back on the 6th for another surgery, but only be in a few days.  She’ll have 18 months of recovery to work through as well, so she’s not nearly done yet.  But from the looks of things, when it’s all said and done, she’ll be better than ever!

Okay, I’m sorry for the lack of updates, but I’ve been waiting to hear a few things before updating.  I just got off the phone with Amber and she’s in really good spirits.  She is in a lot of pain still, but she has been up out of bed, had her necessary x-rays and is facing 2 more surgeries before everything is said and done.

Now, first things first – Per a discussion that Mike and I had regarding flowers and care packages and cards.  Right now, it’s best that we not send anything to the hospital unless it’s through their cheer cards on the website, which I will share at the end of this post.  Flowers and care packages are best sent after she is home, due to the fact that she may be moved to a different room by the time anything gets there.  When she has her second surgery, there is no way of knowing what room she will be in, since the last time she was in a burn unit due to lack of space anywhere else.

She can have the computer at the hospital, but it’s too difficult for her to see and type, due to the pain when she tries to sit up, plus she has a monitor attached to her finger as well so the updates will still be coming from me whenever I have enough worthy of it’s own post.  Mike has been posting on her plurk, so I’ll compile those to post here.

1/19 -
Amber has been walking all over the place today! Well sorta anyway. PT came in a couple of times to help her out and she even made it a few steps down the hall. She’s been watching friends all day and not sleep as much also. I even got her to eat a little bit Little buster parfait from KFC.

1/16 -
Amber is improving every minute! She stood up for several minutes yesterday to get an X-ray. it hurt like hell, but she was able to do it and even walked from her bed to the platform with some help from me and a nurse. I had to keep her stable while she stood, but it is still a major accomplishment. As of last night she was still in the ICU, but there was talk of moving her to a regular ward this weekend. I’ll find out when I get back tomorrow evening. for today though, her brother is spending some time with her. Oh, and she was getting pretty pissed off at the nurses for not letting her roll over too LOL.

If you want to send Amber a cheer card, click here and choose send to the hospital for printing.  The name to send to is Amber Dickerson.  You don’t need a room number for her to get it, so no matter if she gets moved, she’ll get it.

More information as it’s available.  I’ll be calling her again tomorrow when my phone is fully charged.

Now that I have more to update from Mike, I’ll post more information.

Amber is doing well, but she’s still in a lot of pain and in and out of consciousness. There was a little complication during the surgery though. There was a cyst on her spine from the old hardware and in removing it, the Dr. tore the dura and had to stitch it up. So Amber has to spend tonight on her back, which is not helping with the pain as she can’t roll. Tomorrow she gets out of the ICU and goes back to the surgical ward.

Now the bad news… when the doc got to the lumbar spine she found that contrary to the X-rays, there was a tremendous amount of damage from arthritis, so in about ten days, she is going to do another surgery and add some plates and screws to help secure those vertebrae.

So this goes without saying, Amber will be in the hospital for most of the month before she gets to come home. Amber has feeling and motor control of all her limbs, and can see as well….. Blindnesss was a possible side effect to having spent so much time on her stomach yesterday (13 hours) Her face is still very swollen, but is returning to normal extremely quickly.

I will keep you posted when I know more.

Amber’s breathing tube is out, she’s awake! She should be moved out of the ICU tomorrow! Again, I don’t have much news, but I figured that I’d share what I do have.

Hey folks, I don’t have much in the way of an update for everyone, but I do want to let everyone know that I heard from Amber’s husband last night that the surgery went well!  This is good news. He said there’s a lot to update and once I know more, I will be back to pass on the information.

For those asking about an address to send cards and flowers, I do not have one yet, but I will let y’all know as soon as I do.

Hi folks, I thought that I should at least introduce myself before Amber heads off for her surgery.  My name is Margaret, but go by Bella, Bellasera or Serena for the most part.  Some of you know me, some of you don’t.  I’ve known Amber for quite a few years and have seen her through a lot of the trouble she has gone through with her back.

Most people would think that Mike would be the one to update here, but with all that he’s already going to have on his plate, I offered to do the updates since I have more time.  One thing that everyone needs to be aware of is that I do not and will not have all the answers for you guys, I will only be able to tell you what Mike tells me.

I will be keeping you up to date as much as I can until Amber is able to update for herself.  If you have any questions about me, feel free to ask.
~Bella~

Current Mood:  calm

And, today is my oldest sons Birthday! I officially have a teenager. He’s 13 and strutting around proud like today.

… and here I planned on making a post today with some witty humor, updates and everything else in between. But instead, I think I’ll save it for tomorrow. And go enjoy this time with my newly teenage son and other kiddos. Rockband anyone? Mwhaha. It’s his choice… no.. really!

And you count on the fact that I’ll be pigging out on cake – who knows how long it’ll be ’till I’m able to enjoy some again?!

So with that – Happy Friday everyone! And I’ll see you sometime this weekend with a post or two more before the big ‘S’ day (as Skippy called it earlier) arrives.

….to get caught up!

Oh boy, I’m over-due a post here, huh? Bad monkey!

Things have been going ok here. I’ve gotten sick – twice. First a cold, then some sort of stomach thing, flu or my moms guess of food poisioning. Sheesh, all right before surgery. I’m on anti-biotics for a bacteria infection as well. Don’t you envy me? (haha)

Despite all that, I really am doing ok. Sorry for the delays in posts the last few days, though! With the Holidays and spending time with my family, by the time I’ve reached my laptop lately, my eyes are fighting to stay open and I have to insert little soft edged toothpicks to keep them open long enough to check my email.

Speaking of email – seems I’ve gotten a few new fans. I’ve gotten some nice messages from some of my readers out there offering prayers and good thoughts and etc. And I want to thank all of you. It means so very much to me!!

So, surgery is next week. The 13th to be exact and it’s approaching awful fast now that the Holidays have gone by! I’m getting a bit more nervous and sound like that little train guy – “I think I can..I think I can…” But trying to change it to..”I know I can.. I know I can..”. Have to go in there with my head held high and a positive outlook! I do believe that is very important. So every day.. here is me.. “choo chooo.. I know I can, I know I can!”  Bionic woman, here I, um, become? hah. No, that may not have made sense. But you try to stay on track when on diluadid. Track, train.. hey, maybe I am on track here! Oh, stop me now. (shakes head at lame humor,haha)

I’m sure by now I have mentioned that I am easily amused, yes?

So, yep. All is about said and done here. And don’t worry, I will have little birdies update you all on how things go during surgery, and even throughout recovery, as soon as I am able to type, I’ll be back to continue on as usual! But don’t say goodbye yet! Still have a week of posting to do before the big day. 8 days, Yikes!

I hope you all had the most wonderful of Holidays, and an even more wonderful of a New Year! 2009 is going to be a hard year for me, but in 2010 – Ooo, look out!!!!

… she cannot clean right now.

And…

I miss cleaning. Yes, you read that right – I miss cleaning! For me, it’s a stress reliever, and I’m more comfortable and can rest easier when things around me are in it’s place and cozy. I’m also a decorating nut! But, as you all know I’m not allowed to do anything of the sorts. Cleaning and decorating have no part in my daily schedule now, or for a long while to come from surgery(15 days, Yikes!) to a year of recovery and physical therapy. Whats a girl to do? Well, write about it, of course!

Being the clean freak that I am, I’m always looking for good cleaning products. However, I’m picky about what I use because I try to keep my home as natural as I can by using organic and natural products. This doesn’t always make things easy! While there is plenty of homemade cleaning mixes you can make and use, it’s not always convenient to do so. Especially for parents!

But, my sanity was saved last year as I was strolling through Target, on my never ending search for non chemical ways to clean. I spotted a cute bottle with the method label on it. I had heard raves about this new natural product but have yet to try it. I snatched up the tub+tile eucalyptus mint cleaner and read the label:

people against dirty

Your bathroom: You’re naked, it’s naked, everybody’s naked. Well, unless your bathroom surfaces are sporting a layer of harsh chemical residue from bleach and ammonia-based cleaners. That’s actually kind of dirty. method’s biodegradable formula removes soap scum and hard water stains without leaving nasty toxins in it’s wake. And that’s good news for you and your body–your beautiful, naked, toxin free body that is.

I was instantly sold on trying this product, it’s non toxic AND they have a sense of humor! Oh,and it’s not tested on animals, great!

Meanwhile, my husband is looking at me like I’ve lost it as I dance about a new product, I convince him we must hurry so I can go home and clean our new bathroom- we had just moved, by the way, and the place needed some serious cleaning before we could even unpack!

After trying the product, I was one, happy, cleaner lady! It smells great, it worked great and I didn’t have to worry about all those horrible chemicals as I bathed, or bathed my children.

Since then, I’ve tried all their products and was a faithful method user. The prices are reasonable, the bottles are recyclable and my home was much happier!

But then, more changes came along. My husband got a job out in farm land. We have a Walmart, a small food market and a bunch of, well cow and corn lots. The one big downside to Method, is I’ve only been able to find it at Target. I suppose I could shop online for it, but, I know I’ll never do it. And really, to drive an hour to get to the above mentioned precious cleaning product is just, well, stupid. So, in my never ending quest of keeping a clean environmentally friendly home, I searched again and came across another product. One that you can buy pretty much at any grocery store, Walmart, etc.

Green Works natural all-purpose cleaner, from Clorox. It’s a coconut-based cleaning agent that works on grease, grime, dirt, soils and messes and is safe on multiple surfaces throughout your home. It’s never tested on animals, uses biodegradable ingredients and works great! The smell is nice and light, and rather refreshing and IMHO, it’s a wonderful new product. The price is very reasonable, too!

Wherever you shop, I highly recommend both products. You, your home, and the environment will be happier for it!

Did I mention I miss cleaning? Yes, I need help. Hah.