Day 9 - A time honoured family tradition

Last night Brad and I finally had a few moments to talk, just the two of us, without a room full of other people, kids, patients etc, and he explained just how scared he still is. Going through something like this is absolutely terrifying, and the fear of something going wrong after (such as infection or heart issues) is just as immobilizing. We talked for a couple of hours, we discussed the whys and started to understand and touch on how to get through these fears.

It's amazing how the emotional roller coaster continues after surgery. I mean yes, you have this amazing new perspective, and do your best to put the right foot forward, but there is also this understanding that you can only do so much, that there is still a large portion of what we have been through that is completely out of our control, and what will come, will come.

Shortly after things quieted down around here Brad took his first at home shower. It was truly an inspiring moment, as he got out of the shower, and was clentching over his heart pillow, he all of a sudden realized "hey, they didn't do surgery on my hips" and walked, normally, across the kitchen. I'll admit it was a tearful occasion for me, he had been shuffling around, partially because of fear, for days, it was just so very uplifting to see him taking control again of who he is, what he is deciding, and though it may sound somewhat cheesy, it was an awe inspiring moment for me.

It was a very busy day today. We picked up the paperwork for Brad's short term disability (as we had found out in the hospital that it can only be filled out by the family doctor), I then fought the masses at the local grocery store and set up a doctor's appointment for Brad at 11:15 to have a look at his incision as it had some drainage.

Brad's blood sugar was perfect this morning, and he has lost exactly 20 lbs since we first went to the ER. So while I was rat racing around between his work and grocery shopping, he was getting himself showered and making sure the kiddos were doing what they were supposed to do.

Everything went fine at the docs and we got the little ones an ice cream cone on the way home.... that's when the first summer storm hit. Storms are truly amazing, especially after going through an ordeal like Brad had. We got home, and all ventured outside to watch the lightening and listen to the thunder, and just took it all in.

The storm only lasted about an hour, and once it started to die down, we went inside, made some popcorn and watched a movie - A time honoured family tradition that we were thrilled to be enjoying again!