April 18, 2010 - bearing weight

as positive developments roll in, my sense of urgency updating the blog wanes somewhat. sorry for that. i've been working more and we're struggling at home toward an elusive sense of normal life.


things continue to improve physically for kristen. her first office appointment with dr. mehta on april 13 was brief and encouraging. on doctor's orders, she is bearing weight on her foot while standing with a walker. (yay!) her catheter is gone and her body is showing dramatic improvement. her nerve pain flare-ups have been moderating due in part to a neurontin prescription. we are really beginning to have a sense of recovery.


but the pain is not gone and that is discouraging to kristen. and setbacks are easy to come by. last week clara and mae got strep throat. normally this would be little more than an inconvenience but it felt like a cruel twist. the girls are now fine (on amoxycillin) and none of the adults in the house seem to have come down with it. but these little challenges weigh more than they should.


you don't realize how much you lean on someone until their leg gives out. after years of marriage, i learned to lean too hard. as kristen heals and breaks free of the trauma of all this, she begins to support more than just her own weight. tonight she will be cooking dinner.


i'll keep posting, however infrequently, until kristen walks with me to a nearby restaurant for dinner. (and i do mean "walks".) we have a bottle of brunello from a trip to italy in 2005 that is just now reaching its peak. we were saving it for a new house, but maybe the good memories can help bear this weight.