The Beach Boys

We took the boys and the dogs to the dog beach just south of Santa Barbara on Thursday.  They were so excited and had such a fun time.  They wanted to bring this boogie board so Jeff helped them catch a few waves... catch soup actually.  I assume everyone knows what soup is... but maybe only beach people know that term... soup is the foamy white water after a wave has broken.  Here's a short video clip of Jacob riding the soup.

Today is the last day of camp for both Ryan and Jacob and school doesn't start until the week after next so we have all of next week with the boys and no place for them to go.  We decided to come up with a few field trips for them.  I made online reservations for Monday to go see the Space Shuttle Endeavour at the California Science Center.  Remember when I went to Malibu and took a video of the space shuttle arriving in Southern California?  Have a great weekend!    

Who-Who, Who-Who!

Saturday we went down to Justin's to the Orange County Fair and the Roger Daltry (The Who) benefit concert for Teens with Cancer.  I've never been to the OC Fair before but it seemed much bigger then the Ventura County Fair that we took the boys to last summer.  That was my first ever County Fair.  Before the fair, we met Justin and Sarah at Justin's house and went out to dinner at The Triangle.  There are lots of restaurants to choose from and we decided on the Saddle Ranch Chop House.  They have outdoor seating and fire pits where you can make your own s'mores.  Coincidentally, it was National S'mores Day!  The site I just linked to has an ongoing list of what "National (or International) Day" every day is.  For example, today, August 12th, is International Youth Day.

We had never been to the Pacific Amphitheater inside the fairgrounds but thought it was a really great concert venue.  It's outside and like a mini-version of the Hollywood Bowl so even the seats in the last row (unlike the Hollywood Bowl) are decent seats.  We were right about in the middle of the amphitheater.  They also serve beer and wine inside the venue which probably explains the off-key chorus of who-who, who-who's you'll hear in the short video below.

Handy Dandy

We've been busy with the boys this summer, especially now that Ryan is out of school.  Between that and my lack of activity due to my back surgery, I've really nothing to post about.  As you know, Jacob is going to summer camp at the recreation center right down the hill from us.  He goes MWF 9 to noon.  Right next door (they share a parking lot) is a church that we can see from our windows.  This week, they have had a Bible Camp for kids 5 and up so we signed Ryan up for that.  It is from 9 to noon also but M-F.  The best part is that it is free!  They only ask for a $5.00 donation and for us to buy a blue t-shirt ($2.00 at Michael's) and iron on a camp decal.  They are having lots of fun activities and also doing nice things like making shoeboxes full of goodies to give to underprivleged kids.  Ryan tells us, "I love camp!"  So that's great!  It's very convenient how close it is and Jeff walks them down "the dangerous shortcut" each morning and back up at noon.  I have lunch ready for them and then I do summer homework with Ryan.  Jacob is rebelling against naps (he's almost 4) so he is having "quiet time" like Ryan has after he finishes his homework.  Ryan is in the upstairs bedroom with my iPad and Jacob is in a downstairs bedroom with Jeff's Kindle Fire.  They spend a good 2 hours doing that and then when they get up they either want to go in the spa or watch "The Avengers" for the umpteenth time.  Here's a photo taken from my house of Ryan's church camp down the hill from us.

     

I had my recheck with my doctor on Monday and all is going well.  I was pleasantly surprised that he took my back brace and pulled out the hard backboard part and the bulky side supports.  I wasn't even aware that it could do that so now I have a much lighter weight and comfortable brace to wear.  He wants me to keep wearing it until my next appointment, September 5th.  Well. there went my whole summer!  After that appointment, I will probably start physical therapy just to strengthen my back and all around get back into shape!  Looking forward to that.  Don't worry about me if I don't post... I think my blogging days are soon coming to an end.  Maybe as the fall and winter holidays approach, I'll feel more like I have something to write about.

Disguise

We have a birthday party to go to this Saturday night.  It's for a fire chief friend's 60th birthday.  They have really fun parties.  The last one we went to was a "Casino Night Party" where they hired people to come in with roulette wheels, blackjack and craps tables, etc...and you were given chips to bet with and there were prizes at the end of the night.  We weren't sure I'd be able to make it when we RSVP'd because we knew it would only be one week after my surgery but I am definitely feeling well enough to go.  I went shopping at Kohl's with my 20% off coupon plus I had an additional $10.00 off any purchase and a $5.00 off any purchase as well.  I ended up getting two similar tops that were originally $36.00 each for a total of $30.00 with tax!  They completely cover up my back brace and they are really 4 tops because each one has a matching camisole that goes underneath.  Normally I don't wear flowing type clothes but I'd rather wear this than have the back brace over the top of my clothes.  Here's a photo.

  Have a great weekend!

Wiggly Hair

Kid's really do say the darndest things.  Here's a recent one from Jacob that made me laugh out loud...when he saw this photo he said, "Ryan's hair is sharp and my hair is wiggly."

This is Ryan's last week of summer school so we are trying to find things for him to do since Jacob's camp is still ongoing every MWF until August 16th.  Although Jacob's camp is for 3 to 5 year olds, most of them are 3 or 4 so Ryan would feel out of place there.  Right next to the camp (which is below our house) there's a church and they are having a one week Vacation Bible School that starts next week and it runs the same time as Jacob's camp- 9 to noon- so Jessica signed Ryan up for that.  And it's free!  They only ask for a $5.00 donation.  We'll be on the lookout for other summer activities for Ryan.  I think 2013 is going to go down for me as a lost year!  Certainly the 1st 6 months were a literal pain and now I have a long hot summer with "my new best friend" and after the 6 weeks of wearing the back brace, I will have 6 to 8 weeks of physical therapy.  I will at least be happy to get to the physical therapy stage because I hate not being able to exercise and be active like I'm used to. 

Piece of Cake

So far, this whole microdiscectomy surgery has been a piece of cake!  Far less than I had imagined.  Makes me mad that I wasted so much time (6 months) waiting for it to get better on it's own.  I haven't even needed to take any of the pain medication the doctor prescribed.  Even though I scoffed at the idea of wrapping my mid-section in saran wrap for my shower Sunday morning, I couldn't really think of a better way to keep the area dry especially since I wanted to wash my hair.  I don't know how they do it on Survivor but just waiting 2 days for a shower was about all I could take!  After my shower, Jeff was able to change the bandage on my back.  The incision is pretty small and vertical- probably 1 1/2 inches long.  It's down low on my back so if I was younger, a well-placed tramp stamp (tattoo) would cover it nicely.  Really need to go shopping and see if I can find a cute flowy sundress or loose tops to wear over my new best friend (back brace.)

Look what arrived over the weekend all the way from Jules in New York!  Isn't this a lovely, cheery bouquet?!  I have it on my console table in the living room and it smells so great every time I walk by. Thanks Jules, Michael and Shawn!

  

My New Best Friend?

Quick update:  Things went fine!  The surgery began around 7 AM and I was able to go home a little after 10 AM.  It's almost 2 PM as I write this and so far, I don't feel any pain.  When I was changing back into my street clothes, I noticed I have little marker dots on my inner calves and inner thighs on both legs... makes you wonder what goes on while you are under!  My doctor also signed his name on my back.  Can't wash off this body graffiti until Sunday when I can shower...but only getting my front wet.  If I want a complete shower they suggested wrapping my mid-section in Saran Wrap!  Don't think I'll be going that route!  Thanks for all the prayers and good wishes!  

When I had my pre-op appointment on Monday, the nurse said, "Let me introduce you to your new best friend."  It's the back brace that I have to wear for 6 weeks after my microdiscectomy Friday morning.  I have to be at the surgi-center at 5:30 AM and the surgery is scheduled for 6:30 AM.  My doctor said, "6:30 AM!?  I better have lots of coffee!"  I'm not counting on it starting on time because I've never waited less than an hour for an appointment with him and it's usually more like 2 hours.  It's supposed to take an hour to 90 minutes at the most.  Jeff will wait until it's over in the waiting room so the doctor can come in and tell him how things went.  Then I told him to go home and wait until they call and tell him I can go home.  I'm hoping that's around noon.

So back to the back brace... The doctor said that people are most likely to re-injure their back 2 to 4 weeks after the surgery because that's when you start feeling back to normal but you really aren't healed yet.  After 4 weeks, scar tissue builds up which makes it less likely for the disc to herniate again.  So for those 4 to 6 weeks, I am going to try to follow the instructions of "no BLT"- bending, lifting or twisting- by wearing the back brace like I'm supposed to.  Thankfully, I don't have to wear it at night.  When the nurse fitted me for the back brace, she came with a medium but it was too big so at least I was happy I wore a small.  Once you put it on, it has a little pulley cord to tighten it.  Reminded me of Mammy pulling on the laces of Scarlet O'Hara's corset.  Here's a photo of me modeling my new best friend.

Isn't this going to be fun to wear through all of the summer?  Like I'm going to want to walk around in public wearing this!  Maybe I can buy some big muu muu type dresses to wear over it.  I'll try and post an update Friday afternoon or maybe have Jeff do it for me if I'm too doped up.  I have two different pain medications the doctor prescribed since when he asked me my preferred pain medicine, I didn't have a clue since I've never really needed any before.