And going, and going....

Still going. 11:45.

And she's on the way!

Well, after getting up super early (for Rache,) and wheeling our way over to Northside Hospital this morning, Rache is now in surgery. Met a whole lot of folks, and they all seem focused and competent. Except for me.

They administered some "relaxation medicine" which made an already relaxed wife into a super-relaxed wife. Note to self. Medicine is weird.

Oh, here's a picture!

Go, baby go!!

The night before...and all was quiet...

Apart from the overwhelming number of text's, phonecalls, voicemails and facebook messages from family and friends I've received throughout the day today.

It's such a great feeling to have so many people routing for you...and one that gives me even more confidence and courage for the days ahead.

This won't be long post, and I even contemplated not posting at all, but figured I should. Figured I needed to, if only as a way of passage into tomorrow.

I'm packing my bag...with the few things I'll need in the first day or two. Jim will of course bare the brunt of my requests to 'bring me X...and don't forget to bring Y' but I know he will be all too glad to do those things. You see my husband is a wonderful man - and one who cares deeply for me. He is not a lover of the 'medical' profession, but I know he has every confidence in Dr. Schrader and that makes me really happy.

Well, as I need to be up at the crack of dawn (4:45ish) I am retiring to my bed, with a few good last gulps of water before 'nill by mouth' kicks in.

One last thank you goes to Lauren, who left me a very special and heartfelt voicemail tonight... thank you for all words of encouragement and support...they mean a lot. Please come visit (preferably after the first few 'rough' days!)

Alrighty kiddo's, I'll see you on the other side. Keep watching the blog for updates from Jim.

-Rache

Destination: Mall

So, it's a Saturday, and I like nothing more than to visit the mall on this day.
I guess it's always what we did when we were growing up and I've never really outgrown it. Saturday was the day we went 'down town'.

And today shall be no different. In fact today, I plan to carry my little hip around that mall until I can carry it no more! One good last shopping day for a while, I'm thinking, since how much shopping can you really do on crutches!?!?

I have specific things I need to pick up...so it wont be the wandering into every store like the good ole' days, but I do plan to spend a couple of hours for sure.

Pretty much wrapped up all the 'medical' stuff before my op. Had the pre-op assessment interview with Northside which took all of 30 mins and was conducted by a very softly spoken and calming nurse. One thing that really gave me a lift in my day is finding out that I can wear nail polish for the surgery!!!! Which, for anybody that knows me will know i LOVE my nail polish. Never a day without it, toes and fingers....so this was VERY exciting for me since I had just assumed, like the good ole days that the surgeon needed to be able to see your nails in case of a color change....

Got my blood work done, and was presented with a red hospital bracelet which I'm supposed to wear from the time I had my appointment (Thurs) until I go into surgery. Why? apparently that bracelet is the only thing that connects me to the 2 units of blood that will be on standby, and you bascially have to fill out a form that says if you lose, or do not have it on you at the time of surgery you will be subject to costs. Needless to say, it's really big on my wrist, so I slipped it off and have it ready to go next to a bag I will take with me next Friday morning.

Other things this week....

My new swanky DELL laptop arrived that Hubby Jim got for me...so we've been surfing the web from the couch, which is cool. I have the blog loaded and ready to roll, I just need to find out from Northside if they have wireless access or if we need to buy a 3G card...

I have decided to take next Thursday off from work. Rita, my cube neighbor and great colleague convinced me to 'have a day to chill'. And whilst I was originally planning to take half day on Thursday, I'm now just taking the full day. I don't want to be stressing about trying to get stuff done at work, and then not feeling like I've had time to relax etc. So THANKS Rita for the convincing...you talked me into it!

OK, that about wraps it up.
I'm certain I'll post again before the main event, probably on Thursday to share some pre-op jitters with you all :)

this time next friday....

I will be back in the hospital room, and probably very out of it....after a successful LPAO!

Had the pre-op meeting with Dr. Schrader last Tuesday and all is moving according to plan.... although there were 2 minor changes....

1) I had been told 7.30am by the nurse, thinking of course that I would 'check in' at Northside for 7.30 with my surgery taking place around 9ish. WRONG. Turns out my SURGERY is AT 7:30, which now means we have to be at the hospital for 5.30am. Oh joy. not only am I convinced I'll have a crappy night, the night before, but now I have even less time to get a good nights' sleep - hey-o, I'll survive.

2) I had just assumed that my incision was going to be straight up the front of my thigh over my hip....WRONG. Schrader informed me that my incision would be 'different to Lauren's' in that it would go around the side of my hip (which I've seen in some of the other hip chicks photos). I actually feel pretty good about this latest change, since I'm hoping the scar might hug, heck, even be covered by a bikini...either way, it won't be sticking out the bottom of my shorts!

In other news....

My Millenia Crutches arrived... I originally ordered the gray ones, thinking they would be metallic and match my car (yeah, yeah, I know...) but then Ken from Millennial Medical (absolutely fantastic chap!) called and said they were out of the 'nice' gray and that the latest batch looked a little ....well....'medical'. Needless to say, I changed my mind and went for the racing red!

A big shout out to Millennial Medical...Ken was great, customer service to beat any other. I would highly reccommend them. I got the 'In-Motion PRO' crutches, since I figured the spring loaded bottom would give me an extra boost!

My plan while I'm in hospital is to while away the hours with the low-effort, low-focus act of 'decorating' them with stickers....so I'll be taking a trip to Michael's this weekend to stock up on the glittery kind :)

I have my pre-op interview with Northside this Thursday, and I need to return to get my pre-op blood work done for the cross-match for the 2 units they'll have on standby. That'd be A Negative PLEASE, Red Cross!

Not really much more to do other than wait for next Friday to roll around.

Hubby Jim is now set and ready to go as the interim author during the first few days after the surgery...and I know you'll enjoy his ramblings..and potential rantings :)

I'll post again before the main event...

tick, tick, tick...

26 days and counting...

We just returned from a fab trip to England to watch my brother get married to the wonderful Alex :) What a day, the weather held out and was just perfect, couldn't have asked for anything better, and the bride and groom both looked fantastic!!

So, now I'm back, the real countdown starts...

Coming up:

Pre-op meeting with Dr. Schrader on Sept 9th

Pre-op assessment telephone interview with Northside on Sept 18th

and the week after is...well, it, the big day.

Of course, during our last few days in England, I received many well wishes from my family and friends, all cheering me on from across the pond. My parting words were "check the Blog!"...since the plan is for Jim (hubby) and hopefully mom to keep this up to date during the first few hours/days...

I've already lined up the important things to get done before the surgery; hair cut, hair color, and a facial :) and schedule permitting, I may try and squeeze in a massage the day before.

I have a couple of busy weeks ahead at work, which I know will keep my mind occupied which is a good thing and I'm really trying to not think about it too much...but I'm certain the week of the surgery (it's not until the Friday) will be a different game altogether.

'tis all for now.

7 weeks away...crutches ordered!

So, not much been happening since my last post...other than time has been passing pretty quickly!

We're getting ready to depart for England on 19th Aug, for my brothers wedding, which we're really looking forward too.

I think the fhe fact that he and the rest of the groomsmen are wearing custom made orange chuck taylor high-tops, should give you an idea as to why we're looking forward to. It should be a blast!

So, with only 7 weeks to go, I'm starting to get just a little jittery...anxious perhaps. I'm not at the nervous stage yet (which I'm certain I'll get too), but I'm beginning to think of all the things I'll need...

Lauren has been a great help and sent me a 'check-list' with almost a running commentary about what will happen and when...very useful.

Needless to say I felt like I needed to begin the preparations, I've ordered my crutches! I contemplated the blue, but decided I'd go with the grey...plus they match the color of my car - VERY sporting :)

Nothing else ordered, but just starting with this has made me feel a little more 'in control'...

I guess I still have a fair way to go, but once I return from England (30th Aug) I will be just a few short weeks away, and then the countdown REALLY begins...