Knee update!

Ok enough with the nonsense, lets talk about my knee. (Side note, I wrote this on Wednesday but forgot to publish)

We are now at day 10 post op and I can honestly say I'm feeling so much better than I did the first week after surgery. 

For those of you that visited the first week, man oh man was that an adventure. The first week was so painful, I believe I cried everyday for the first 7-8 days. Every act required so much assistance and just plain hurt. In addition to the pure pain, I also felt so foggy due to the pain Meds I was on. I was taking 10mg of oxycodone every 3 hours in addition to Tylenol every 6 hours and Benadryl for the itching. A.k.a., I was a hit mess. 

Today the pain is still real; I mean very real, but manageable. I've reduced my Meds to 5mg of oxy every 5-7 hours as needed and dropped the Benadryl. I'm still keeping with the Tylenol but reduced that to about twice a day. 

As for my knee itself, I'm still doing 6 hours a day on my CPM machine. The CPM passively bends my knee for me while I'm laying down. While its easy to use, it's definitely work on my end. Often when I begin using the machine my knee is so stiff that the motion can be quite painful. After some time my knee adjusts but then it's time to increase the range if motion in degrees. For example, I'll often start at 30 degrees then increase every 30-60 minutes in 5 degree increments until I can't take it anymore. Guys you have no idea how fun this is.

Yesterday I got a fancy new machine to add to my routine. It's an exogen ultrasound bone stimulator. So fancy, I know!

Basically I put it on my skin for 20 minutes and it helps stimulate bone growth. It's painless and although I'm skeptical I'm hoping it works. 

I also have a nurse visiting me 2x per week and a physical therapist named Kyle who visits 3x per week. Both are great...although Kyle probably gets the most attitude from me as his job is to make we work. He bends my leg and starting today he'll make me use crutches and start some other exercises on my good leg and upper body. 

Tomorrow is my first follow up appointment so I'll have a pretty detailed update on my current progress and what full recovery is going to look like. 

If you made it this far in reading this ridiculously

long and detailed post, you must be family or incredibly bored ;) either way thanks for your support and love.

Xoxo

I

This is how I roll

My life through pictures

Walker, juice, leg

Just the leg

I just thought this was cute

If you visit and bring ice cream as a gift, I will love you for a long time. (Until the ice cream is gone, which on average is 1.2 days)

Not my husband at all, this is me! Ha!

Has anyone read this?! I'd like to add to my list. 

Isn't this the cutest/fanciest chocolate bar ever?! Thanks Lois!

Sounds like another Chihuahua I know although his middle name is Chicharrón so it can't be the same chihuahua. 

This is said chihuahua massaging himself and his pet dinosaur on my new rug.  

Happy Monday!

 

Blend or Juice?!?

I've been juicing/bending for about 3 years now and love it. It would be even better if I didn't have an addictive personality and was able to change my recipes before I got sick of them. However, even with my lack of variation I still enjoy a good juice or smoothie. 

For juicing one of my favorites is just plain 'ol carrot juice. Carrot juice is so good and so sweet, its the perfect treat. The downside: If you tell a fitness buff you're drinking carrot juice they'll tell at you and tell you it's too high in sugar. If you don't mind, drink ahead. Be warned: if you drink too much, you'll turn orange. (That might be an option if you need a tan)

With juicing you can pretty much throw anything in that juice and it'll taste great. Kale, arugula, orange, carrot, apple, pear.... I've even juiced watermelon and froze the juice to make ice pops. Gosh they were great!!! Get crazy and add anything in your veggie drawers to your juicer... If you get scared just add some apples to sweeten it up and I promise you'll love it. 

Now for blending! My brother in law J surprised us with a nutribullet for our wedding. (Thanks J for your love of infomercials) My husband and I didn't expect much but I can definitely say that our nutribullet has been the best gift we've received. (In terms of health, the whotel bed and kitchen aid mixer were pretty sweet too)

I like to mix some greens (think spring mix and baby kale) with fresh or frozen berries (some will say that fresh is better for nutrients but I like frozen so that it's a smoothie) with coconut milk and seeds. I'm allergic to nuts so I've needed to make my own nut mix. I use raw sunflower seeds, chia seeds, and flax seed to add to the smoothie. You can get super creative with your mixes and although I'm not paid for this, I love the nutribullet because I can blend and hit the road. 

Either option is a great way to get your nutrients quickly and you can then post a picture to Instagram and brag about being on #teamhealthy ;) 

Xoxo

I

 

I fired my nurse today

And by nurse I mean my companion ChiChi. (And yes I'm obsessed with him and probably need to stop blogging about him and treating him like a person)

This little mofo decided to chase a fly and pounced on my knee (yes, the operated one) in all of his 6 pound glory. 

So while today probably would've been a better day in terms of healing, I'm here popping my pain Meds and cursing the dog out under my breath. 

I still love him so don't call the ASPCA on me. 

Xoxo

I

Today I learned...

I love this blog.  i feel that by reading this blog I increase my odds of being the seemingly smartest person in a room. Never mind  that for the next few weeks the "room" is only populated by my self and a chihuahua.  

http://todayilearned.co.uk/2013/08/25/william-shakespeare-wore-earrings/

Apparently, wearing earrings by men is not a new thing. Even William Shakespeare wore one. Earrings became an object of male fashion at the time of the English Renaissance, in the late 1500′s. At the time of Shakespeare (d. 1616) earrings were emblematic of poets.

Bean bag?! **need to borrow**

Hey friends! Here's the firsts of many asks to come: does anyone have a bean bag or bean bag pillow that I can borrow? The knee blogs recommend using one to prop my leg up.

Ughhhh - knee update day 5

Today was a rough day. Overall I was nauseous and pretty much miserable the entire day. I'm hoping tomorrow is a better day. 

Here are some pretty embarrassing photos from my stay in the hospital.

This is me knocked out...

When I woke up I thought I'd put on some makeup

The finished product, please note that I used my oxygen as a headband. 

I then proceeded to knock back out. ;)

Happy birthday Sissy!

   

   

Happy birthday to my sweet little sister Justine.  I remember the day you were born and I prayed and prayed that I would have a little sister and I'm so glad to have you. You are so brilliant and will always be my personal calculator. You're also one of the strongest and most resilient women I know. You are an awesome mother and I love you to the moon. Happy birthday sweet girl. Xoxo

Knee update day 4

I'm feeling much better than my 1st day out of surgery, but man oh man this is NOT a walk in the park. 

I'm on a constant stream of medications to help with the pain and am currently doing 6 hours a day of physical therapy on a CPM machine. The CPM bends my knee for me and the goal is the bend at 60 degrees by the end of 2 weeks. Today I managed 60 degrees for about an hour so I'd say that's pretty good. 

Tomorrow I get my first visits from the Visiting Nurse Service and from a physical therapist. I'll keep you posted on how those visits go! 

And now for the gross part... If you're squeamish don't scroll any further... Here are pics of my knee and calf. 

My knee in the CPM machine

Fashion Week! (And where to watch online)

While I'd much rather be attending fashion week, due to my knee situation I'll have to settle for watching it online. 

Mashable put together this cute round up of ways to watch and stay up to date on the NYFW shenanigans. 

Xoxo,

I

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BY LAUREN INDVIK14 MINUTES AGO

New York Fashion Week returns to Manhattan on Thursday, and there are more ways than ever to tune in online.

More than 80 designers are planning to unveil their Spring/Summer 2014 collections simultaneously on-site and to consumers via live-streaming video, about the same number as last year. In addition, backstage footage from brands will appear on social networks such as Twitter, Tumblr, Instagram, Google+ and Vine. Members of the fashion press, too, will be reporting live from the front row, following up with slideshow-accompanied reviews on their respective news sites.

We've gathered the best resources for enjoying the goings-on via your desktop, mobile phone and social media. If we've missed any important resources, please let us know in the comments section below.

Live and On-Demand Video

Fifty-nine shows will be streaming live from Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week, headquartered in Lincoln Center, and another 15 will be streaming from Made Fashion Week in downtown Manhattan. You can see complete schedules on the official website of Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week and atmadefashionweek.com. In the latter schedule, livestreamed shows are marked in red.

To tune in live at any time, we recommend bookmarking the Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week YouTube livestreamand Made Fashion Week's livestream on Rightster.

In addition to the shows listed on those sites, several high-profile designers will be streaming their collections elsewhere — on Facebook, for example, or on their own websites. We've listed those individually below.

DKNY
Sunday, Sept. 8, 1 p.m.

Diane von Furstenberg
Sunday, Sept. 8, 4 p.m.

Donna Karan
Monday, Sept. 9, 4 p.m. 

Marc by Marc Jacobs
Tuesday, Sept. 10, 3:45 p.m.

Oscar de la Renta
Tuesday, Sept. 10, 6:30 p.m.

Michael Kors
Wednesday, Sept. 11, 10 a.m.

Marc Jacobs
Thursday, Sept. 12, 7:30 p.m.

Fashion News Sites

Looking for high-res photos of individual looks or more comprehensive show reviews? Check out these five destinations:

Style.com: Thorough collection reviews, plus real-time, high-res photos. A new "Fashion Tracker" lets you view the latest Fashion Week-related tweets and Instagrams on a world map.

The Cut: Zoomable, high-definition photos and concise roundups of reviews from across the mediasphere.

Women's Wear Daily: Reviews and highlights from the collections.

Heard on the Runway: Blog-style coverage and slideshows from The Wall Street Journal.

On the Runway: The New York Times' style blog contains short updates from on and around the runway, often accompanied by slideshows.

Twitter + Vine

We've created a Twitter list featuring nearly 50 of the best Twitter users to follow for play-by-play action during NYFW, including Lucky editor-in-chiefEva Chen, The Cut's Stella Bugbee, the WSJ's Elizabeth Holmes and theFinancial Times' Vanessa Friedman. If you use TweetDeck, we recommend creating a separate column for ourFashion Week list for the duration of the shows.

To monitor the broader conversation about Fashion Week, follow the hashtags #nyfw and #mbfw.

Instagram

Few apps are more popular among the Fashion Week set than Instagram, who often upload photos — and, for the first time this season, videos — to the platform mid-show. Some of our favorites are Net-a-Porter, Bergdorf Goodman, the WSJ's Elizabeth Holmes and Robin Kawakami, Lucky'sEva Chen, Style.com, Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week and T Magazine.

Tumblr

Looking for immediate, photo-rich coverage of New York Fashion Week? Tumblr is your best bet. Our picks:Tumblr.com/NYFW, WGSN, WWD, Ann Street Studio and Christian Siriano.

Pinterest

Like Instagram and Tumblr, Pinterest has become a popular repository for backstage footage. This season, Pinterest has gathered them together in one place:pinterest.com/fashionweek. We particularly recommend boards fromOscar de la Renta (who will be "live-pinning" the show again this season) and WWD.

Google+

Google has created a NYFW hub on Google+ with running backstage footage and a schedule of Hangouts with designers, including Rachel Zoe and the sisters behind jewelry brand Dannijo.