Disce Pati

Happy Sunday everyone! Today turned out to be a sunny day and not too cold. It truly has been a roller coaster of a Winter so far.

All is good in the Duncans' home. Today is Day 10 following Russell's TKR surgery...not that we're counting. It's been a bit of a rough week, pain wise, but Russell seems to have turned a corner today. Did you know that the moto of the Duncan clan is Disce Pati, "Learn to Suffer"? He does that well, I must say. We have both learned a lot this week about pain management. Knock on wood, this is our first experience, in our 36 years of marriage, having to deal with any sort of surgery. So, this whole thing about taking serious pain killers is foreign to us. After talking to the visiting nurse and our pharmacist, we realized that Russell wasn't taking enough of the "blue pill"...that would be the narcotic, might as well call it what it is. That pill, combined with two Tylenol 1, does the trick for pain. As the nurse so well said, healing goes hand in hand with managing pain. So, Russell is now taking his pain meds on a rigid schedule, no more than he has too, but no less either. In another week or so, the little blue pill will start to become a thing of the past.

What aggravates the pain are the exercises that Russell has to do every day. He could choose to skip a day, but that's just not him....learn to suffer. After having said all this, a number of areas have improved. The swelling has gone down quite a bit, as measured by the physiotherapist. His ability to bend his knee has also improved, from last week's 74 degree to this week's 81. Getting closer to the 90 degree mark. The bruising is virtually gone, just some yellow in the thigh area. This morning, a nurse came to remove the 50 staples or so on his incision. She said the surgeon was very generous with his staples. She applied a bunch of Steri Strips on the incision, which will fall off on their own within the next 10 days or so. And, the best news of all, Russell can now take a shower!

So, all in all, Russell is doing good. He is on track for a full recovery. He will see his surgeon on March 6, at which time he will be given the go ahead to drive.

Cooper and Spicy haven't missed any of their daddy's exercise sessions. Each and every time, they jump on the bed and watch. They totally know that something is amiss. Our daily routine is somewhat different. At night, we don't go downstairs to watch TV, we stay upstairs, all those little things that we do differently but they adapt. In a few weeks, we will be back to normal. No big deal. Yesterday, I went for a nice walk with them. It was their first walk in quite a while, mostly due to the weather and road conditions. Russell booted them up and off we went. Russell continues to do their daily grooming and teeth brushing. We brought up the grooming table so it's easy. It's their one on one time with their daddy. They love it.

As for me, I'm good. I didn't go to the gym last week nor did I attend Cooper's training class. I wanted to stay home and be with Russell. I will resume my normal routine starting with a visit to the gym tomorrow.

This coming week will be a repeat of last week for Russell. More exercises, some rest, walk around the house with the walker, two home sessions with the physiotherapist and more improvements. This week will also mark my dad's one year anniversary of his passing, on Tuesday. It's hard to imagine that he left us, so suddenly, one year ago. It seems like yesterday. Always in our thoughts and in our hearts.

That's my blog for this week. I leave you with random photos that I took of Russell while doing his exercises, with the pooches supervising. Russell also wanted to show a photo of his knee, taken today, after the removal of his staples. Looks pretty good, I say!

Have a great week everyone! I'll write back in February!

Spicy is hands on while Cooper is the general foreman type
supervisor as Russell does his knee bends with a strap.

...more deep knee bends using stability ball for more
leverage...tough action.

Spicy' cheers on her human daddy....two more...come on!
Cooper is tired of watching 

Coop all settled in to watch some TV with daddy...we got you
covered!

Spicy says nothing better than a morning nap on daddy's lap.

50 plus staples removed....with Steri-strips as the replacement...
Russell calls this stairway to heaven. Swelling and bruising...
have reduced significantly.

22 Hours

Hi everyone! I hope your Monday is off to a good start. Ours couldn't be better. At 3:40 this morning, we were awaken to the sweet sound of our furnace. Twenty-two hours earlier, we lost power due to some kind of Hydro equipment malfunction. We still don't know exactly what happened and why it took so long for the hydro to get restored as most people in the West Island got their power back much earlier. We were told by our city councillor that it is being investigated. Regardless, we were happy to have our heat back...our house dipped to 11 celsius during the night. By the time we got up at 6:30, it was already up to 15 celsius. As you can imagine, we slept with layers on and loads of blankets on our bed, including our two doggies who snuggled up against us all night. We could hardly move.

Enough about this and on to more important news, Russell's TKR surgery. Everything went as planned. We got to the hospital at 9:30 am last Thursday, Russell walked into the OR at 1:15 pm and returned to his room from recovery at 5:45 pm. I was waiting for him. It was a beautiful sight to see him joking around with the nursing staff. Given the time of day, there was no physio nor was he taken out of bed. Russell took great interest in telling me all about his surgery...he didn't feel a thing of course but heard everything...the sawing, the hammering, the conversation between the surgeon and the residents, he even smelt the grout that they used to put everything together. Although he was fully aware of everything going on around him, he felt as if his lower body didn't belong to him. Kind of cool, don't you think?

Russell came home Saturday afternoon. His release was conditional on being able to go up four steps on his own, with the use of a cane. The physiotherapist was impressed and gave him the thumbs up. His recovery since getting home is going as expected. Today, he had his first physio session and it went well. He was able to bend his knee at 74 degrees. When he left the hospital, it was between 55 and 60. The goal is to be able to bend it at 90 degrees by day 14 following surgery. Today is day 4, so he's on track to achieve this goal, no problem. The nurse also came today to change his dressing. His leg is quite swollen, to be expected. His staples will be removed next Monday. He's been doing his exercises religiously, while resting as he should. The pain is very intense but managed with a little "blue" pill and a couple of "white" pills. On a range of 0 to 10, he was told to never let the pain be above 4, so he is being smart about using his temporary new "best friends".

Of course, being home means that he sleeps better, eats better (surprise?) and is surrounded with love all around. No better way to recuperate I say. So, we're glad it's behind us. Although the rehabilitation is intense and quite long, each day can only get better. Getting a new knee is no small feat but the end result will far outweigh the pain he had with his old knee. As Russell's mom used to say on New Year's Day,  "out with the old, in with the new".

Other than that, it is life as usual for me, more or less. Last week, I resumed Fun Obedience class with Cooper. It was a fun start to the new year as we did a Rally match. Spicy and I visited the residents the week prior and we had a nice visit. I will return to the gym this week. Russell can't drive for six weeks so I'm the designated driver for a while.

Cooper and Spicy are doing wonderful and are so happy to have their daddy home. They looked for him the two nights that Russell was in the hospital. They say that dogs can sense when their humans are sick or not well. So true. They have been by his side since he came  home. Heartwarming to watch.

That's it for my blog this week. I leave you with a few photos that I took at Fun Obedience and a couple of Spicy's visit with the residents. Have a great week everyone!

Cooper, Blu-Belle and Macey are at full attention at the LDTA
Fun Obedience session..Rally Match...wonder what they
want us to do?

Cheese please and make it snappy.

Cooper loves his cheese while Macey and Blu-Belle
patiently wait their turn.

Spicy loving up Mrs. D, a precious
and fulfilling moment 

Spicy loves the attention Mrs. P
lavishes on her...the feelings are mutual.

Russell, safely back in his room post total knee replacement...
a new journey begins with a new knee.

Ahead of schedule

Hello everyone! I hope your Sunday is a good one. Ours is good, sunny, not as cold as it has been but cold just the same. We've been in a somewhat deep freeze for the past four days or so. That's Winter so not complaining. We got a bit of snow last week which made us very happy as our ice rink is now covered with a nice layer of the white stuff. Safe for us and the doggies.

Last week started on a high note....on Monday, Russell got a call from St-Mary's Hospital...."we have a cancellation, would you be interested in getting a new knee three weeks sooner than planned"? Yes, Yes and Yes! So, the surgery is set for this coming Thursday, January 17. Needless to say, that phone call set the tone for the rest of our week. First order of business, Russell had his pre-op appointment last Thursday. He was at the hospital for a full 4 hours. Following the usual blood work and ECG, he then met with a nurse, a physiotherapist and a doctor. The MD declared him very fit and good to have the surgery. Not surprising. He then attended a group education session on what to expect, the "dos and don'ts", etc. 

My next order of business was to get doggie day care for the days that I will be at the hospital with Russell ...done. Next, Russell had to get himself a walker and a toilet booster. He got the toilet booster without a lid...not sure if he's trying to set a new standard in this house LOL! Today, Russell practiced walking around the house with the walker and getting on and off of the booster. Easy peasy. We installed it in the guest bathroom, easier to maneuver.

After getting the "physio" equipment, I had to go to the mall shopping for Russell's hospital stay. Apparently, he needs a robe and pyjamas for his stay at the hospital.  He doesn't own any of those garments, neither do I for that matter. OK, enough said about this.

Then, we lined up the physiotherapist. In addition to having physio at home, Russell will be able to rely on his personal trainer Melissa, a Certified Athletic Therapist, who will be on hand for support when needed. He plans to start his physio as soon as he can, realizing that his body will need some "down time" after surgery. Russell's attitude is extremely positive and it will play a huge role in his recovery.  After getting all that done, we had to reschedule a few appointments, one of them being Russel's dental hygiene appointment for tomorrow. It is not recommended to have any dental work done prior to surgery or three months after. Done.

So, Russell is totally ready, physically and mentally. I must say that having this done sooner than later is so good. First, the waiting for the new knee is virtually done. Second, getting a new knee now means that Russell will be that much more ready for our trip to Barbados in....three months from today. It's all good.

That was our week in a nutshell. I will take over the grooming of the dogs for a few days, and the teeth brushing. We plan on moving our grooming table to the main floor so that Russell can resume his "grooming duties" sometime next week. It will be good for him and for the doggies. Luckily, we live in a bungalow, so we can easily live on one floor for as long as we have too. It's all good.

That's my blog for today. Needless to say, this coming week will be busy. Tomorrow, I have my dental hygiene appointment. On Tuesday, the Coop and I resume our weekly Fun Obedience class. Looking forward to that. On Wednesday, the pooches will have a bath. Then on Thursday, Russell and I head for the hospital.

I leave you with a few pics. I will give you an update on Russell's surgery in next week's blog. Until then, I wish you all a great week. Oh, by the way, I'm late writing this blog because I watched the Patriots/LA Chargers game.....Brady won! So so excited! All the best Russell on Thursday, I will be by your side the whole time.

Cooper and Spicy enjoyed the comfort of warm socks this
past week in the minus double digit temps.

The ice rink is gone...our duo enjoys the snow and a place
to go!

Play time due to frigid temps means 'chuck it' and...
retrieve with dentals chews in the comfort of the basement.

Cooper and Spicy inspected the new equipment for post
surgery...they approve. What could be better then...
a walker, a cane and a toilet seat booster....YAY!

January cuddles

Happy Sunday everyone! Did you know that today is National Cuddle Up Day? Gotta love it! Sundays are the perfect days to cuddle up, especially in Winter months.

All is good with us. Our weather today is sunny and a bit cool. The snow storm we were supposed to get on New Year's Eve never materialized, we got rain instead, which didn't help the already icy backyard. On Friday though, we woke up to a nice layer of wet snow,  not a lot,  but enough to cover the ice rink in our backyard.  The snow was wet though so when we took Cooper & Spicy out first thing in the morning, they were covered with snowballs. That's when we decided to bite the bullet and get them the infamous Hurtta Slush Combat Suit that our Havanese friends in Quebec are using. The perfect coat for wet snow and slush. Light, easy to put on and off and they don't mind it one bit...and for us, much easier than removing snowballs. So, now we're truly hoping for more snow just to keep the backyard safe for us and the dogs. Crazy Winter!

Our New Year's Day was nice and quiet. We took it easy, watched the Rose Bowl Parade, a tradition for us, and just relaxed. The next day, there was no Christmas left in the house. We put away the decorations, gave the house a good cleanup and life was back to normal.

Our dishwasher broke down on New Year's Eve. Believe it or not, we were able to get a service call that day, hoping it would get fixed, but that wasn't the case. At least, we were able to order the part, which should arrive sometime this week. So, Russell and I have been doing the dishes by hand....just like his parents did all their lives, although they did get a dishwasher at some point but used it for storage.  They were funny that way. I can think of worse things happening than a dishwasher breaking down so it's all good. The upside is we don't have a dishwasher load to empty LOL!

This coming week will bring back our normal routine after the holidays. Spicy and I will resume our visits at the retirement homes, tomorrow and Thursday and every other week after that. I have four classes booked at Orange Theory this week. I look forward to it. Russell went back to the gym last Friday. He is still doing "pre-hab" exercises with his personal trainer to help strengthen the area around the knee that will be replaced. This will help his recovery a thousandfold.

So, that's my first blog of 2019. I leave you with a few photos that Russell took of the doggies....he likes to use them as his subjects for practicing photography. Why not! Since it is National Cuddle Up Day, we will spend the rest of the day doing just that! Have a great week everyone!

Spicy and Cooper in their natural cuddle pose...
in honour of National Cuddle Up Day.

Happy New Year! All the best in 2019.

Cooper and Spicy romping in their new Slush Combat
Suits....snowball free in the backyard.

Cooper has eyes that can melt your heart and he knows how
to use them.

Spicy is a striking beauty and she knows how to show it off.

Spicy and Cooper trying to get a much needed
mid-morning nap.