Starting the odds and ends

 In some ways I am surprised that we are nearly to the end of February, and in others, it feels like 365 days already! Humans can cram a lot of life into a short amount of time, can't they? Normally I would have had my Valentine decors up for some color during the dreary Winter days, and by now, I would have taken those down and put up the St. Patrick's Day stuff. I suppose I could still have done it, put up what I could and asked Woodchuck to help with the rest, but I have so much other stuff to focus on right now, and need a little less clutter around me.

I spent some of my post-op working on a gift for my cousin, and finished it. I also started a second gift for her, though am kind of getting out of the Yule mood now and might need to move on to other themed items. I can finish her second gift later this year 😀 Here's the finished one:

And the next one that was started! This one will be all traditional holiday colors of red, green, and white, and will have some sparkle too.

I've read 6 books this year so far, started 3 or 4 that I didn't like and gave up on, and am currently reading a really good one about the traditions, stories, and values of the Lakota people. It really is a fitting read for the times we are in, and kind of calms my spirit down. (This book that is pictured is not that current book).

I've had a headache/migraine every day for months now. When my head doesn't hurt, I still have all of the visual stuff, and I'm getting really tired of it. Once again, doctors can't determine what is going on. Some think it's something in my neck causing it, others think it's hormonal. My sister gets them too....we have a lot of medical consistencies, lol. So on my worst days, and when it is so dreary outside that I don't even want to get out of bed, I wear these beauties. Let me just say, you don't really realize the difference they make until you take them off! My safety glasses that I use at the land and at home when I mow are yellow lenses, and when I take them off, it's a shock to the system! My shoulders literally droop and I'm all like, "Oh man, everything looks so blah now." I got these for $1 at a resale shop 😍

As of yet, the hip surgery hasn't helped my various ankle and foot pains. So I finally broke out the grounding socks. I really need to get better about using those and the tens unit, because right now I am just relying on a natural/home-made pain oil, and ice packs, along with all of my exercises. 

We finally gave in and got Netflix just so we could watch Stranger Things. We borrowed season one and two from a friend years ago and have been resisting the Netflix lure. We pay so much already for t.v./phones, etc. that another $20 a month was not in the cards, but we figure we could swing one month and then cancel once we were done watching, lol. Turns out that Pierogi likes the program too! Initially, Woodchuck was so into it that he was able to stay awake, but now I spend my evenings yelling for him to wake up because he's missing the good parts. I try to be understanding....one day I will be his age and maybe I won't be able to stay awake either. 

Speaking of Pierogi, she is really enjoying having her replacement feather toy! She loves playing on the bed with it, because when she runs she has traction on the bedspread, lol. Speaking of, I am SO looking forward to a new bedspread when we move into the new house! This one has faded, has nail holes from Pierogi, is all lumpy from numerous washes, and has shrunk. Some times it's the little things like a new bedspread that perk you up. I haven't decided yet on what to get. Woodchuck wants something big and fluffy, I want something unique and artsy and probably colorful. I will figure it out when I need to.

I got myself out to the local library down the road for a Valentine gnome craft. I had a lot of fun and stayed for about an hour. Another person in attendance even made me a cup of hot tea 😍

I need to trim the beard, and figure out how to keep the hat tassels from fraying anymore, but other than that it's done and adorable!

I've also been watching this spot on the upstairs bathroom ceiling. When we had the roofs redone last year, we asked them to check it out. He told us that because there was no rotten wood anywhere, etc. that this would be something with a beam and insulation and not to worry. But with every thaw, the spot gets darker. 

We recently had to go to the land to meet with the septic guy. When the elevations were thrown by his employee, we were told that we may need to remove another row of trees and they would know in about a weeks a time. We never heard from them. So the owner was going to meet us out there to take a look. We need to know now because 1) I can't help Woodchuck cut and move trees because of my hip surgery 2) he has sinus/nose surgery in about two weeks in early-March and will have restrictions on lifting and straining 3) if they break ground in April, we need to have those trees out by then. All of that and Woodchuck working 6 days a week, also doing the demo work on the oldest boys bathroom right now, and the weather is back to Winter. 

But on the day we went to the land to meet the guy, it was beautiful! The snow was mostly gone, and I could do some walking around, but I couldn't do any work. We waited for half an hour past the meet time, and he hadn't showed up, so Woodchuck called him and left a message and we hit the road. Here are some pictures from the walk around.

The ice shelf on the front ditch was no joke! There was also a couple of tiny rapids but the videos won't load here anymore.

Nearly every single pumpkin, and all seeds from them, have been eaten now. I doubt anything will be left to take hold  and to grow. The largest pumpkin was left with just a shell, like it was a paper mache' bowl! Maybe I'll repurpose it and put some nuts and seeds in it for the birds.

I made some mental notes of what needs to be done by us right away. The arborvitae we planted up front last year have been completely stripped again, so we need to cage them ASAP. Of course, this day out there would have been perfect to do it, and when we head back out tomorrow to meet the septic guy, there will be snow on the ground and more danger for me in moving around without getting hurt. I just have to pause, exhale, and remind myself that it will all work out.

After making stops on the way home, we finally made the cheese crackers that I've been wanting to try for the past few months! I am not great with dough, but also just wanted us to do something fun together instead of it always being work. We would do some things differently next time, and they really didn't taste just like store-bought, but they were good! WAY too much fat to eat them often though 😩The recipe is from Crowded Kitchen, and they have a new cookbook being released! I ordered it for myself for my birthday.

Look at them! Because some of the dough was left thicker, some of them didn't crisp up well. The recipe said you could pop them in the oven the next day if you wanted to crisp them back up. I mistakenly left that up to Woodchuck.

And he burned them. I still ate them because they are really expensive to make for such a small amount of crackers, but yuck! 😫 Struggles with his attention, focus, understanding, comprehension, etc. seem to be getting worse and that makes my worry grow at the thought of living on 15 acres that we need to take care of. He insists that he is fine, but when would anyone actually admit that they aren't? I am moving forward like everything is a go, but I can't shake the feeling that we are making a mistake by building a home out there.

We had a couple of GLORIOUS days of fake Spring. Temps near 70, sunshine, open windows, birds singing. Even Pierogi crawled out from her Cat Cave (a tent I make her with the comforter every morning) and ran to the open window. After getting too hot in the direct sunlight, she decided to lounge on her cat tree.

Of course, I had just started to let myself daydream about how to go about utilizing things from here at the land. The rain barrel was one recent thought. And then, on one of the beautiful days where I had the back door open and was near it doing dishes, I saw the rain barrel split open. We ALWAYS drain it, and tuck it away for the Winter....this was the first season that we didn't. I'm going to look into ways to try and fix it before casting it off. Anyone have this happen and have luck trying to fix it? Unfortunately, it's not an even/level crack, which might make it harder to fix?

While I am stepping back from the business right now and not making a lot of commitments with it yet, I did decide to get more business cards after recently using the last one up. I do have one market on the calendar in June where the theme is eco-friendly!

I am mobile, and motivated enough now to finally start getting through some stuff in the house and thinking about what I want to take to the rummage sale in April, pack up, donate, etc. We made a plan to not pack up too much more until after the rummage sale when we know better what we will be left with for the move. I've got some art projects that I want to finish that were started last year before surgery. I also recently attended an online seminar for invasive aquatic plants and it only reiterates how I am horrible at aquatic anything. I am a Pisces, I love water, but maintenance of it and all that inhabits it is not my forte'! 

And for a bright spot in the writing....a photo memory of Pierogi popped up recently. This was not long after we adopted her, and her tummy was still shaved from being fixed. She was so young in this photo that she didn't even have any of her nose freckles yet. Her eyes used to be a peachy color, that would some times be more yellow. Now they are more yellow, that some times turns more of a hazel green. She, and massive amounts of sheer will power, are the only things getting me through each day without being in the corner, crying and sucking my thumb.

Stay tuned! Land updates, along with updates on the demo of our oldest sons bathroom, are coming next!

Imbolc/Snow moon 2026

 I had figured that I wouldn't be writing a post for quite awhile. There's nothing going on with me that is post worthy, worthy of letting anyone know, but then the moon, and then Imbolc, and I figured the little bit I am going through might resonate with someone else.

There's been posts going around social media for a few months now, near the full moons and the new year, about cinnamon. One of the things that I dislike about social media witchery is it coming across like "you have to do this!" in order for you be taking proper advantage, to be letting in all of the good, to be harnessing all of the energy. Horse poo. But last night (this was started the night of the Feb. full moon), I felt myself once again wrestling with the emotions of not being able to do what I want to, or what I felt like I should do based off of all of those posts. Sure, most of those posts are meant only to remind us of what we can do, but when your feed is getting bombarded with the same reminders over and over again, and "do this!" it becomes a bit overwhelming.

I lit a candle, which I am trying to do daily when I home, and I held my amethyst and sought out the rainbows that the sun cast through crystals.

I flung open the curtains and shades to let in the sunlight, that elusive sunlight. At this time of year when the color of the sky matches the snow-covered ground, that warm, yellow glow was so needed! Even Pierogi the cat came more alive, was more relaxed and less grumpy.

I would look outside each night before I went to bed, to catch a glimpse of the moon, stars....anything to break up this monotony that I am living in right now. Yes, this picture was after 9 p.m.!

I am still doing the affirmation book my sister got me for Christmas and am trying to find a more clear path for myself this year. First up was the outdoor market that I did last year. Do I want to do it again? I had been making a list in my head of the pros and cons, but that wasn't getting me far. So I decided to write it all down. And of course, the list was exactly even on both sides. But one of the cons is kind of a big one for me. It's also not like I made a big return on it, I broke even, but is it more important to me to move some things into their forever home, be outside in nature selling, and meeting new people? Those are some of the things that I need to continue to weigh.

I continue to make a smoothie nearly every day, to get in vitamins, minerals, other supplements that I can add to them, and to curb my cravings for refined sugar and junk food when I am hungry before dinner. I found that if I have one between 11 and 12, it doesn't negatively impact my appetite for dinner, but keeps me from snacking. This particular smoothie had mango coconut yogurt, peaches, avocado, sprouts, aloe juice with lemon, grapefruit juice, vegan protein powder, maca root powder, moringa powder, powdered mushrooms, bee pollen, and dates.

I did it my way, as usual. I go off of gut feelings, intuition, and yes, that's right! I fly by the seat of my pants.

Did I lose out on anything by not putting crystals or water out to charge? By not doing the cinnamon thing? By not writing something on a piece of paper and then burning it? No. Not at all. By not doing those things, all it did was make me feel bad because those posts said that I should. And I was already feeling bad. About being stuck in the house for 3 weeks now, except for physical therapy a couple of times a week. About the state of the world right now. About the lack of interaction in anyway with friends and family. About all that I am seemingly missing out on. 

I always feel a bit guilty when I start thinking in the "what about me? what about relationships, friendships, humanity caring for each other?" kind of way. But I have practicing releasing some of that guilt by saying that it can be both ways at once. It can be that the world is on fire, but that I acknowledge the blessings. It can be that I reach out to others, while grieving the loss of not getting anything in return. That shouldn't make me feel guilty, though feeling these ways is one con of being human. 

I was thinking earlier about what keeps us going? In the face of unfairness, adversity, solitude, death. Our bodies can keep going, our minds can keep going, but what makes the spirit keep going after tragedy? The only answer I could come up with was: purpose. We are still going because there is still some purpose left, some opportunity to do good and to take the tragedy and help someone else from it. The purpose of bringing more love, light, connection, humanity, kindness, etc. It is the only thing that I can think of. 

As I sit here feeling so alone, and so incapable of so much, it is not lost on me that someone else would love to be in my shoes right now. I am blessed, I am loved, I am healing, I am warm, I am fed, I am alive. And so I try not to slide too far down the rabbit hole, but also let myself feel what needs to be. 

Then, last night, I was thinking about interactions. People who are easily overwhelmed, introverts, etc. And I thought about how we close ourselves off when things become too much. It goes beyond recharging, regulating....it is isolation, hiding away...and that doesn't teach us much. So I started thinking about what might help us more? Socializing on our terms. People-ing in our way. Interacting on levels that we CAN tolerate, instead of not at all. When we close ourselves off from people, not only are we missing out on the beautiful things our friendship and interactions can bring US, but we deny them all of the wonderful aspects we bring to them too!

 I see the majority of my friends (and I only have a few that are local) a couple of times a year, and that is a dedicated "let's get together" event, not the "when are you coming to town? Maybe we can go for a walk or hit a resale shop" that I am talking about. While most of my friends live long-distance, the ones who are local rarely reach out and ask about getting together. It's usually me, and for some it's always me going to them. I get it. They have lives, work schedules, family, etc. But I constantly surround myself with "unavailable" people. Physically, emotionally, attention-wise. And I've been trying to figure out why. Maybe so I don't take the chance of becoming overwhelmed? Well, that would boil down to boundaries. So, socializing takes boundaries, right? That is such a hard topic to navigate, for sure!

None of this is meant to make anyone feel bad, I am literally picking my brain, rolling subjects around in my head. Wondering, feeling, thinking, at a time when I can do little else. Every kind of relationship takes some sort of effort, and I see where many are making friends feel bad for asking for more in it. We all can only do what we can do at any given moment, but when numerous friendship aren't fed, what happens then? How may of us are looking for connection, are feeling lonely in a world full of other lonely people, and looking around not understanding what is happening. We tout about connection and helping each other, but ignore what is right in front of our face. Why can't we say, "Hey look, I love you, but I don't understand why I don't see you." If they say that they just have it in them, then you have to make a decision, right? Man, none of this easy. Stay friends and be ok with the little you get, the ways that you have to keep being the one to reach out and invest, etc. OR nothing at all. Compound that with nearly every relationship lacking what you need, and it makes it hard to know what to do.

I remember back in the day when I was first on FB with our business page, and I would post my frustrations at the lack of sales, exposure, etc. while those other businesses I follow(ed) on there were making a killing. A friend said that she didn't want to feel punished for not making a purchase from us, and that's what my posts came across like. That has always stuck with me. How do I then be transparent without making people feel like I am chastising them? I am still trying to traverse that, and probably not doing it well....in business and personal life. It is hard for me to be transparent without also showing my frustration. So that is one thing on my radar this year to work on.

So to those that feel bad about any of this, I'm sorry. That is not my intention. To my inner self, whom I have compromised for so long, I am even more sorry. I really am trying to figure this out. 💜

The one-two jab

 I've been having the itch to write here. Some times I can go months, other times weeks, and occasionally, I knock posts one after another. Writing is a way for me to process, and to purge. Just as with my creative, hand-made projects that build up in my head and eventually need to come to life through my hands, writing about feelings and life and the thoughts that build up in my head, come to life through my hands and the keys on my computer. Some times my burden is heavy, and laying it all down on my keyboard is my only way of relieving some of it. So grab a cup o' something and nestle in while I unpack some Winter joy, and happenings.

As I age, I have come to embrace the seasons more. When I was a child, I loved them all! Every day out in nature was magick, always something to do and see! In the Spring and Summer, I played outside alone and with friends. Riding bikes, playing at the park, kickball, etc. In the Fall, I was that kid that jumped in everyone's nicely raked pile of leaves on the curb. In the Winter? I'd find a small area of frozen water and would spend hours pretending like I was ice skating, or would run and slide across. One of my favorite sights of Winter is sparkling snow. But then again, I love anything sparkly. Sparkly is my version of "squirrel!".

As an adult, I still find the magick in Winter. The sparkling snow in the sunshine, the tracks left by animals, and then the more Science-y parts like sun halos. Freaking. Awesome. And to think that this beauty would go unnoticed on a planet not inhabited by humans. I couldn't imagine never seeing this kind of beauty. I am grateful to be able to witness these things.

We are in the part of Winter where it truly is time to hunker down. Even if I wasn't recovering from surgery, there would be more time at home, less driving, though maybe still walks locally. I kind of got used to seeing browns, and some greens, even into the Winter months. But at some point, the seasonal weather has to move in, right? Things are the way they are for a reason, Mother Nature knows what she is doing.

Forecasts are all over the place, so I am getting used to feeling with my body, and seeing with my eyes. Preparing, but still living. We have typically been well below the forecasted amounts, but it's been less about the totals and more about the iciness and the way people drive that becomes the concern.

Hobbling around in this crap is hard. And dangerous. My other hip surgery a few years ago was done later in the year, so ice and snow were less of a concern. It brings about things you didn't have to think of before, like: closer parking spots to the door of physical therapy (which some times are filled by able-bodied people and then I have to walk on crutches across an ice and snow covered parking to even to get to the icy sidewalk in front of the business). Having enough space in the parking spot to open my door completely wide open, and finagle myself and crutches out of the car without slipping and without hitting the other car. Once I get to the business, how do I open the door? I'm on crutches, trying not to slip, while also trying to open a door, hold that open while making it through on the crutches, and not have it close on me. Then there is the issue of wet and slick rubber stoppers on the bottom of my crutches once I make it inside. Luckily, therapy has carpet, but I have to be really careful when we get home and immediately dry off the tips before trying to move across our laminate planking floor, because the crutches slip around. I have yet to go to a physical therapy appointment without Woodchuck because of these things.

Just yesterday, after PT, and while we were waiting for a business to open, we stopped to get breakfast. I dislike trying to be in a restaurant right now. Slick crutch stoppers, trying to find a place to put my crutches that make them still accessible to me but also out of the way for everyone else. Then if I need to go to the bathroom? Getting in there, taking the brace off, keeping the crutches handy but out of the way, and don't even get me started if one or both fall over to the floor! But when we came out of the business, another person had parked so close to my car that I had to move sideways to get past our mirrors. Sideways. On crutches, in ice and snow. That person was still sitting in their car when we came out, Woodchuck waving when they looked, and pointed to me and our car. They did nothing to help the situation. They could have easily moved their car a little farther over, but sat there on their phone, with the vehicle running. Woodchuck normally goes ahead of me, while walking backwards a bit to keep on eye on me, then he opens my door for me, etc. The other vehicle was so close, he couldn't do that, had to let me go ahead of him and then come up and open the door. I barely had room to maneuver to get myself and my crutches in without causing damage somewhere. But it worked out, no thanks to the self-absorbed, entitled jerk in the other vehicle.

We continue now to have more snowy days than not, because of course. Honestly though, I would be nervous about most surgeries at this time of year and moving around outside. I remember when I had my shoulder surgery in 2020....I was so scared that I was going to slip and fall outside, or in the shower, and land on that shoulder!

The worst part, physically, of this surgery? The stitches. DUDE! I know they have to be tight and tough to handle the movement of the area, but they burned and stretched and would catch on my clothing. Not to mention that the major one was nearly in the crease of my leg where the elastic of my underwear sat. We resorted to me wearing Woodchucks loose and roomy boxer briefs, which were a breath of fresh air in so many ways! They were heaven when I had on loose pants, but if I had on something more form-fitting, the underwear would bunch around my legs and other parts. How do guys do it?! Don't answer that.

I took some time once I could comfortably sit on a hard chair, to go over SD cards from the land. I had changed them out recently, so there wasn't much on the main ones, but we had the new one by a previous den of sorts on the West edge of the pond. That one caught some beauties! We normally have the trail cams higher up on trees, but we put this one lower, and were rewarded with some beautiful shots!

The snow continues, and I sit and wonder what it looks like at the land? What will it be like to be able to watch it from the windows of the new house? And to just throw on Winter garb and head out the door for a walk in it without having to drive to it first? I am trying to curtail my enthusiasm while still looking forward to it. Life has had a way of crushing joy and excitement, so I am very, very careful now.

In the first couple of weeks after surgery, there was lots of snuggling with my feline nurse, though she was careful about getting around my hip. She tried once, but I still had stitches and wasn't ready for her to touch that area, even through fabric. As I become more mobile, she finds her patches of sunshine, which we are both grateful to feel.

Woodchuck has been great about trying to keep up with things around the house, while still working full time, 6 days a week. I think that he might have a better appreciation for how much I do in a day, and how often it has to be done. SAYING you are appreciative and understand is totally different from SEEING it for yourself! One of the extras that I couldn't get to before surgery was patching the wall inside the front door that got damaged with the couch delivery. Normally, Woodchuck isn't allowed to caulk, paint, etc. But there was no holding him back. For the most part he did a great job, but true to Woodchucks form, he kept going. There was a spot on the stairway that got damaged when our youngest graduated from college and moved his stuff back in. I didn't know he was going to try and fix it too. Once I saw that he had put the spackling on, I asked him about the paint. Had he found it? I knew he had been looking for it. He brought me the paint that he had found, and I told him that it was not the same color as the living room and kitchen wall, which is the paint he had found. As you can see, that didn't stop him 😂 It doesn't matter, whomever buys the house will repaint anyway, but Woodchuck needs to work on listening, lol.

He and the youngest had their eyes on yet another piece of workout equipment to try and fit into the workshop space. It's dangerous territory over there. You either trip, smash a shin against thick metal, or hit your head on something. Have I mentioned that I am looking forward to a space that is entirely mine and mine alone at the next house? Looking back I can see how I have integrated others, and their stuff, into my own. In so many ways. I am slowly reclaiming my own, sacred spaces. 

Trying to make room for the new piece required Woodchuck to clear up a corner that he had hoarded and ignored. So he stopped to get several totes, filled them up, loaded my car, and we made a quick trip to the land. I never got out of the car, it was too cold and too dangerous with the snow and ice. 

It was going to get even colder than this, so I am glad that we made the trip now, though it would have been even better while Woodchuck was on his vacation in December. I had reservations about making the trip on this day, because we had had snow and that can build up at the end of the driveway, making it hard to get in. Getting in turned out to be the easy part. He got my car stuck in the driveway trying to get out because of the lower elevation of it leading up to the road...that the rope he has tied across the driveway that is only a car length in. He eventually had to undo that to be able to back the car up farther to get a running start. Have I mentioned that Woodchuck really needs to start listening to me? 😁

I can see that with Woodchucks decision to not put any snow system in place on the barn roof, we will now need to remedy that after the fact. The snow slides right off and piles up in front of the doors. We plan on having a metal roof on the house too, and can't have this happening. He says he doesn't care if it happens on the back side of the house, but doesn't want it on the front side. I say, why pick and choose? If you are dealing with the front part of the roof, why not just deal with the whole roof? Why have piles of snow sitting up against the sliding back doors? Maybe there is something I don't know that he does? Either way, it will all get dealt with this year. Along with the man-door on the barn that tends to get testy in the cold temps.

As I sat there in the car, I scanned the woods. Would there be anything up and moving around in this weather? I was rewarded with a deer! It was too far away to get good pictures. But we looked at the fort I made, and nothing has used it yet. That doesn't surprise me, it is at the front of the land, and probably not all that great of a structure. I don't take offense! The wildlife are better builders than me anyway!

The first meal that I've been able to make since surgery was a yummy ginger and edamame pasta. It was SO good, but I think I can go even heavier on the ginger next time. I haven't been cooking much because it's too hard to get around on crutches, while also being able to carry ingredients and utensils, etc.

I also feel very lucky to finally be catching up on reading! I have stacks and stacks of books in my closet to read and wasn't getting the time to! I really didn't want to have to move a bunch of books that hadn't been read yet. I've read 4 books so far this year (one was started last year). My reading book challenge was 6 books for the year. I figured that would give me a couple of months per book, though there are times, like right now, that I am getting through more books than usual. It all evens out, is how I look at it. This book was REALLY good, I read it in 3 days, and kind of on target for the times we are living in. I got most of my books from the resale shop that I used to work at, but also book sales along the way. I have to stay away from those books sales because I have NO self control when it comes to books!

A friend that works at the resale shop still, sends me pictures occasionally of items that come in that she wants to know if I want to buy. This fabric was the most recent! It's absolute perfection 😍 I haven't seen it in person yet, but am daydreaming of ways to use it at the new house!

I had my post-op just under two weeks after surgery. I was nervous about getting my stitches out, as I always am. I asked Woodchuck ahead of time if he would go into the room with me in case I needed a hand to hold. The nurse took the stitches out right away, and no, Woodchuck did not get out of his seat. He said he didn't want to get in her way, but I am sure she would have accommodated if she knew why. But I survived! The main one didn't want to come out, so that was painful, but I am looking forward now to moving around without them pulling and catching.

On a late trip to town for physical therapy, I got to see sun beams break through clouds. 

And on our way home, I got to see the sun set, and a wonderful sliver of moon. I am grateful to be healing underneath all of this beauty. 

There has been all kinds of funny memes on FB as we hit an arctic freeze that is holding on.

So I am spending a lot of time snuggled in, warm and safe, with my best friend. I do not miss having to go to work at all.

Because right now, my job is to heal well. In person physical therapy twice a week on days like this are difficult for me. If it weren't for Woodchuck, I might even talk myself out of going some days.

We have also found out that Woodchuck himself will be needing surgery. Scheduled for mid-March, I will be just healed enough to be able to handle switching roles. He is having his deviated septum fixed again. It's a bit of a story as to why it didn't work the first time. In fact, he didn't even finish getting out of the healing stage before it was evident that something went wrong (through no fault of the surgeon). I also have another 2-3 other things that I am monitoring for myself, to see if they will need surgery or not. There's been a lot of back and forth about it, medications, braces, exercises, etc. This is the year it needs to happen if I am moving forward with it. But for now, I can rest.

I hope you are all staying safe and warm.