AND THEN...SHE STITCHED

 

 

OH...TAMMY!

I received another wonderful gift from a Dearie named Tammy. 

This little guy is called a Warmie, and he's weighted with lavender scented beads that can be warmed in the microwave for even more comfort. 

What Tammy didn't know is that this Warmie is the exact size, weight, and softness as Stewey! and I haven't been able to put him down. The feeling of aaaaaahhhhhh that washes over me is just indescribable!

Dearies....I am so grateful, humbled, and amazed by your support. I'm not sure how I got so lucky to be surrounded by so much love, but I know I will never forget it or take it for granted. Thank you!

Happy Thursday! We are home safely from a 7am dentist appointment for my JB. He is one step closer to getting his pearly whites completed! I managed to drive, sit in the waiting room with a book (!) and get us home without incident, so we're just going to tuck in for the duration.

(!) I haven't really been able to read or stitch yet, but I decided to just pick up my book and go for it, and if I follow it...great, and if I don't...that's OK too. I'm reading Winter's Tale by Mark Helprin, which is already a pretty dense and complicated read, but the writing is lyrical and I'm just letting that be the focus (rather than intricate plot points).

My hope for the weekend is that I can slowly tackle one room at a time and get us back to square. There is lots of laundry to be done (as usual), Louie supplies to organize and find a home for, Christmas decorations to take down (zip it, Betty), and things to scrub, polish, sweep, and fluff. Before you worry...I solemnly promise that I will be super careful and will not do anything to impede my recovery. I know that I am only four weeks post-op and will not be 100% until the 12-week mark, so the old/silly me that used to go at it like the Tasmanian Devil will sit this one out.

I've been asked a few times how my weight is doing, and although I took a rough path to do it, I've managed to lose 20 pounds so far. I expect that this will continue, since my appetite, diet, and portions have changed drastically. I don't have any dietary restrictions, and can eat anything I want (per Dr Thompson), but I am intuitively reaching for whole foods and lean proteins while very slowly re-introducing fruits and vegetables. I did a complete gut rest (nothing but ice water) for eight days in the hospital, and I think that really helped to get the healing started on the right foot.

(Yes...you read that correctly. EIGHT DAYS without one single sip of damn good! I'm sure the drugs helped, but I didn't have any withdrawal/side-effects!)

OK. Time to contemplate a little nap. 

I hope you have a wonderful weekend, Dearies, and that you get to do all the things! What's blowing your skirt/sweats/pajama bottoms up? Come tell me all about it!

LOUIE

Oh my goodness!  Susan, Her Very Self, has just done me in! I had absolutely no idea about THAT Louie, but I thank her for the info!

My Louie is from something I said circa 1995 when I was diagnosed with Crohn's disease and told my Lima sis Denise..."Until somebody like Chanel makes colostomy bags, I'm not getting one"...and then we talked about how having a colostomy was my very worst nightmare.

Fast forward almost thirty years, and here I sit...with a colostomy. But since we all know that my tiny little brain just seems a bit bent...here's the provenance of Louie:

I was in the big girl sleigh bed the first night home having my first proper meltdown when I heard "Louie...I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship", and then I started thinking about bags...designer bags...like the aforesaid Chanel...then Hermes...and then finally it hit me.

Louie.

As in Louie V Tawn.

......

BECAUSE HE'S A BAG!

Get it?

So Louie it is. And today he went for his first follow-up with his surrogate Dad...Dr Thompson...who took great delight in meeting his little guy.

(This is where Annie might pop in and tell me to knock off the cutesy again. Do you remember Annie? She is the Dearie who gave me a good talking to about the joking and clowning around and playing the fool during dialysis with all of my Buzzy nonsense. And you know what? Her words stung mightily, but she was absolutely right to chastise me for making light of something so damn serious, because I think she thought I was making light in real life and beyond the pages of this here blog. But I wasn't. I was just trying to cope.)

So.

I am now the very proud caretaker of my two most precious little creatures in this post-Stewey era. Belly Bean is the OG and is, thank God, doing his thing very happily on the right side of my lower abdomen, and his new roommate, on the left side of my middle abdomen, is...Louie.

Now if you'll indulge me, Dearies, I'm going to go quiet for a bit. I have several important appointments in the coming days with my transplant team, gastroenterologist, nutritionist, physical therapist, occupational therapist, ostomy nurse, etc. I feel like an awful lot of information is coming my way, and I need to be on my best game to receive it all and get organized for this newest phase of my beautiful life.

Back in a flash...I promise. Please come tell me everything new and wonderful in your corner of the world!

THIS IS A GOOD DAY

 

Hello, Dearies.

Today is the best day yet. I was up super early and we were out and about by 8:00 for an appointment with Dr Thompson...my surgeon. Staples have been removed, questions have been answered, restrictions have been lifted, and I am just overwhelmed with gratitude for the progress I've made in these last four weeks.

I have a new normal now...a bit slow and tender, but each day there is a little spark of that hapless spinster who used to bumble her way through the most ridiculous adventures. I'm not quite back to full-on flower-squirting clown mode just yet, but...

Louie.

His name is Louie. (*)

Cheers, Dearies. I am still so very very grateful to you for the continued love and support. I hope that you have a fantastic Fat Tuesday and a Happy Chinese New Year and all of the other things that are happening today! 

Whatever fun you're having...come tell me all about it!

(*) You get Super Spinster status if you can guess who Louie is and how he got his name.

HAPPY DAY, DEARIES

 

Pain and I are having a conversation today, and have agreed to try to co-exist in moderation. I am nursing it with Tylenol, as I have been since two days post-op, but I do have something stronger in the event that conversation isn't enough.

I have always said "I am better with pain than I am with pain meds", but that was before I saw the effect that uncontrolled pain has on healing...no bueno. My trusted dear friends that so generously offer me their professional advice remind me often that there is absolutely no honor in suffering, and that BellyBean is safe thanks to the careful watch of Dr Thompson, my beloved surgeon on this case.

I had big plans for the day...laundry and showering and cooking and reading and stitching and all of the other things that rattle around in my brain, but resting with my face in the sun is my only accomplishment thus far, and I'm perfectly happy with that.

This little road trip isn't at all linear. There are a lot of twists and turns and stops and pauses and even a few retreats to feeling a bit worse rather than better than the day before. I suppose that selecting "surrender" as my word for the year was somehow clairvoyant. I meant it in the sense of surrendering stress and worry and the need to run run run and go go go, but now I see that it actually means surrendering control and the need to always be the boss of things.

I had the Blessing of the Sick from a priest when I was in the hospital. He spoke with a very heavy accent, so when he asked if he could provide this Sacrament, I thought it meant that he was giving me Last Rights. It was very odd, actually, since the only thing I felt wash over me was complete peace, since I figured there was nothing I could do but pray, and as he applied the holy oil on my forehead he actually prayed that I would surrender all fear and worry and just trust that all would be well and according to plan.

Yowsa.

So. No big updates or long lists of things I accomplished today, I'm afraid. But I'm here and very happy to be so. Blankets are tucked, heating pads are on, and for now I'm really enjoying the slow and quiet of a late Sunday afternoon.

Are you well, Dearies? Are you, too, learning how to live in the slow and quiet? Come tell me all about your adventures!

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY, DEARIES!

 

MYSTERY SOLVED AND MORNING TREATS

Good morning, Dearies.

The candle mystery is solved. My dear friends Lou and Marissa are the senders! I have known them since my college days, and they are two of my very favorite peoples on the planet....true Dearies to me, indeed!

I was up and out early this morning for BellyBean labwork, and then we ran some errands. Nothing too exciting...just a car wash, oil change, gas station, and then McDonald's for an EggMcMuffin and an iced coffee.

(Betty, before you throw a tizzy, know that I am behaving myself perfectly in terms of diet, and both the EggMcMuffin and iced coffee are allowed.)

Time now for a nice shower, clean clothes, and a nice long nap. Stamina and strength aren't quite there yet, but each day gets better and better.

Thank you, Dearies, for your continued love and support! I am so grateful!

A MYSTERY GIFT

Dearies, I have been gifted candles from QVC, but don't have any idea of the sender! Please come forth, dear friend...via email if you prefer to do so...so that I may thank you properly!

My email address is: spinsterstitcher@aol.com

WEEKEND MIRACLES

The weekend was slow and quiet. Days blur into one another and things stand out. Like sunshine on my face. And a long hot shower. And Andrea Bocceli singing Nessun Dorma at the Olympics.

Nothing feels normal yet. No reading or writing or stitching, but I know it will come with time. Until then, there are lots more moments and miracles to collect and enjoy.

I am so...grateful.

 

 

THANK YOU, GOD

I'm still quiet. And slow. And not the person I was two weeks ago.

But I'm here. And I take my victories in very different forms now,  and celebrate the miracles with a lot more humility.

The healing of all of this is a great battle for me, but at the moment that I think "I just can't do it", I remember who I am and I get on with it.

Rich has been remarkable for a guy that is so...scared. I don't ever expect him to be able to be in the same room during nurse visits or procedures or anything else medical, but he has mastered the morning coffee tray, and keeping our home running, and tirelessly doing all of the things that allow me to just concentrate on getting better. For better or worse and in sickness and in health aren't part of our deal...but he's living it every single moment of 

every single day and I love him even more for it.

The outpouring of love and prayer has sustained me. I read your comments over and over again and am still in perpetual awe to be surrounded by so many truly perfect friends. Thank you for that.

I'm sorry for the quiet, but this is what I've got for now. My strength lies in my gratitude for you, Dearies, so I hope you will come tell me all about the miracles in your own little corner of the world.
 

HOME

 

I am home, but quiet. This one hit harder. And knocked me down further. Medically I am considered stable, but mentally and emotionally I'm flat on my back and will be so for a bit. At the moment, I don't have the spark...the humor...or the strength that is my usual fall-back position. There is no clown car this time, nor funny names, nor minimizing.  At the moment, it's just...rough.

There were and are continued miracles, of which my world remains full of every second of every day.

Those aren't going anywhere.

Thank you, Friends. For the love, the prayers, and the good wishes.

I love you.

coni

THIS IS HARD. BUT SO THANKFUL FOR YOU

 I am a mess, but am so thankful for you, Dearies. On grateful wings I fly.

Thank yoi.

AND THEN....THE WORST THING HAPPENED

 I'm in the hodpital, Desries. Recovering ftom emergency surgery to remove my colon. It perforated yesterday. 

And now I have a colostomy.

Pray for me. Mentally I'm there and have started to accept it. Emotionally...not so good.

I MISS FUTZINGDAYS. AND TEA WITH STEWEY.

Hello, Dearies.

I realize that January is almost over, but I seem to be permanently stuck in that week in between Christmas and New Year when the days all blur together.

(But I'm not complaining.)

Life is slow and quiet and cozy and full of reading, tea slurping, lots and lots of damn good, and the stitching of my Blessing Sampler at night. I'm reading Winter's Tale by Mark Helprin, (which has me really scratching my head), and I broke out the winter tea pot last night for a little bit of peppermint tea (to help an upset tummy). I'm ashamed to confess that CS2 is in need of a thorough scrubbing, but Christmas decorations need to come down first, and with all of these grey days, I'm enjoying the lights too much to go without just yet.

I'm getting ready to re-set my school bag, and have decided to keep going with History of Philosophy, Art History, and Shakespeare. (This time I'll read/study As You Like It in anticipation of a performance over at Notre Dame next week!) As for fiction, I am thinking about Anna Karenina...once I finish Winter's Tale.

My Jersey Boy is looking forward to the re-construction of his mouth, and has been a real trooper when it comes to his meal choices. Tonight we're having meatloaf and mashed, and if I get my act together, there will also be some sautéed spinach to fulfill our vegetable requirement. My appetite has been so completely "off" lately that I've done very poorly trying to make good choices, but that will be remedied tomorrow when I prep my big a$$ salad with grilled chicken rather than rely on myself to go without a plan.

BellyBean, God love him, is doing better than ever, despite everything else falling apart. This gives me great comfort knowing that I must be doing at least one darn thing right! 

So that's the report from the hinterlands of Hoosierville! What's new and exciting in your corner of the world? Come tell me all about it!

HOOOOOOOSIERS!

 Yes, I know. I went to Notre Dame. But I've lived in Indiana longer than any other place, and more importantly...my BellyBean is from IU! Congratulations, Hoosiers! ❤️

 

SATURDAY NIGHT SPINSTER BLISS

 

I can't seem to get motivated to do anything other than sleep, eat, stitch, read, and repeat....so that's exactly what I'm doing! Rich is ushering, my Irish are balling, and I'm just enjoying a very quiet, very cozy Saturday night!

Time enough tomorrow for the laundry things and the cleaning things and all of the other things!

Are you doing all the things? Come tell me all about it!

MOVING RIGHT ALONG!

 

MAKING PROGRESS IN BETWEEN NAPS

 

About the only thing I've accomplished in the last several days is lots and lots of sleeping (thank you permacloud), and a fair amount of stitching.

How about you?

FRIDAY EVENING SPINSTERING

 

Rich just left to do his ushering, I've finished my chores and grocery ordering for the day, and now it's time for Julian and I to find something easy for the TV and to play with silk.

THIS is my idea of Friday bliss!

AND THEN...IT WAS A NEW YEAR

Here we are on January 1st, Dearies, and I'm happy to report that the day has been a lovely start for Yours Truly! I had a good sleep, plenty of hot damn good, and then spent the day playing with my new start for the year....a Blessing Sampler called All Manner of Thing by Shepherd's Bush.

I like the sentiment very much as a good theme for 2026, and I've just ordered the book from whence the quotation comes: Revelations of Divine Love by Julian of Norwich. (*)

(I'll tell you more about Julian after I've read the book, but I know that she was the first woman to write in English and she was a 14th century anchoress and mystic.)

(I think an anchoress is a person that lives a contemplative life in seclusion?)

(Which pretty much describes me, but I don't think contemplating snacks and which pair of sweatpants I'm going to wear for the week is quite what they mean).

But.

Today has been slow. And quiet. And happy and peaceful and cozy. My JB is doing amazingly well after his dental surgery Tuesday, and although he is missing almost all of his teeth now, he's making the very best of it and not complaining at all.  

I hope that your day was exactly what you needed it to be, and that your own blessings were abundant!

Happy New Year!

(*) The full quote is "All shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of thing shall be well". This was part of Julian's divine revelations that offered comfort amidst suffering, emphasizing God's ever-present love even during dark times like the Black Death.