Great Is Thy Faithfulness, Lord Unto Knees

(See what I did there? Don’t worry, I think I’m out of knee/hymn puns. Probably.)

Well, the patient is currently gently snoring away in the parlor-turned-recovery-room that Maddie Rose and Charlotte set up for him downstairs. I just peeked through the crack in the big wooden pocket doors, and I would have opened it wider to get a better look, but those dang doors creak like you wouldn’t believe. He was definitely breathing though, so we’ve got that going for us. The girls brought down one of the antique twin beds from our guest room, and set it up against one of the sofas, and placed our leopard pattern ottoman close by to hold all of his meds, water bottles, Cokes and coffee- yeah, they may have sawed off the ends of his leg bones, but that’s not gonna stop the boy from DRINKING COFFEE, for crying out loud.

Russ did really well yesterday, which is why they let him go home from the hospital. He doesn’t start outpatient physical therapy (heretofore referred to as PT, because it’s shorter and I’m lazy) until tomorrow. My sweet Brad Pitt-lookalike nephew Josh, who is also a physical therapist (heretofore referred to as PT-ist, because See Above), has already called the place Russ will be going to in Shelbyville for his therapy and given them the heads-up to welcome him with a ticker tape parade and delicious snacks and possibly a confetti cannon. Also, he pre-screened the staff and tracked down a couple of Gaither fans, so basically Russ is all set.

Update: He’s up! He went to bed really early, around 9:00 pm, and just told me that he didn’t even wake up to take any pain meds all night– which sounds impressive to me, but upon reflection (and the look on his face right now) may not have been such a good idea… However, he just took them with his COFFEE, so relief is on the way. Say what you will about our many-surgeried Russ (gall bladder, rotator cuff, benign adrenal tumor, *blah di blah blah I may have forgotten a few*), the boy is a dang quick healer. He’s sitting up in a chair now watching the pope address congress and it appears all is well in his world.

I’ll leave you with this photo and this thought: I don’t know how or why that whole ‘long, baggy shorts for guys’ thing came into fashion, but can we all just agree that they are not a good look for most guys, (up to and including Justin Bieber) but most especially for men who are, shall we say, a certain age with tiny bird-like legs who just had knee replacement surgery?

Because seriously, Russ kinda looks like somebody let all of the air out of an NBA player and gave him a walker.

Behold:

1RTwalker

(I rest my case.)

We Kneed Thee Every Hour…

Why, hello ‘Bloomr Nation– long time no write, right?! I’ve missed you fiercely, and there’s SO MUCH to tell you when we have time to catch up, but for now–

I’m making a quickie post to let you guys know that Russ is having knee replacement surgery tomorrow morning, and ask for your prayers. This is a big honkin’ surgery with a substantial recovery time, and even though Russ is so ready for it to be over that he’s about >thisclose< to grabbing a kitchen knife and doing it himself, we know it is going to be A LOT. So your prayers would be very much appreciated.

He has been in so much pain for so long. Honestly, it has affected every aspect of his life for about the last year and a half, and it is now so bad that he basically spends about 80% of his day sitting on the couch in the parlor with ice on his knee– and to add insult to injury, that doesn’t even help because it hurts even when he’s not moving! Dealing with the pain drains all of his energy, and there’s not much left for anything else. It’s kind of been like living with a ghost in the house, bless his sweet heart. Luckily for all concerned he hasn’t been really grouchy or whiny, which is why I haven’t had to kill him in his sleep. But I am so ready to have my husband back, and to see him enjoying his life again.

The main problem is arthritis, but also hereditary– his parents and brothers have all had knee troubles. (Our poor girls have inherited crap knees from both sides of the family!) His doctor is the same one who did his rotator cuff surgery a few years ago, and has been treating Russ’ knees for over 5 years.  He also does knee replacements all the time, several a day. We have already tried injections– several kinds in fact, including the latest technology. But his knees have deteriorated waaay past the point where the shots can help, and they are absolutely no longer effective. We’re not sure how long his recovery will take, and how long it will be until he’s able to travel, so as far as upcoming concerts are concerned, we’re just taking it a day at a time. And Russ absolutely does know how important it is to faithfully do his physical therapy after the operation. He did great after his rotator cuff surgery because he was so conscientious about not slacking off, so I know he’ll follow through this time, too. The surgery is happening in Nashville, but he’ll be able to do his PT somewhat closer to home, like maybe Shelbyville or Murfreesboro. The plan is for him to come home on Wednesday or Thursday, barring any complications.

We head to the hospital (way too) early tomorrow morning. I will be staying with him for as long as he’s there, and will give you guys updates here on the blog and on Facebook.

Again, I would truly appreciate you sending some love and prayers our way. It is going to be so hard to see him in post-op pain, and I know we are in for a long haul, but at this point his quality of life has been so affected that we are entirely ready to just get it done. We want to get this boy up and running again!

1rtAlaska

 

Tori Taff

I’m Tori, and I’m a late-blooming Baby Boomer. Read more!

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