doctors meet and my optimism soars

Yesterday I had to go to sign my consents

with Dr. Donner the neurosurgeon

and Dr. Marino the general surgeon who happens

to be my local surgeon for my bowel issues.

I will share now what I love already about these

doctors and the people they employ.

They, after just seeing me two times, know me.

The receptionist who also seems to have the big

job of a lot at Dr. Donner's office knows my name

as well as my nick name, Lilly.

She knows everything about my case and when

she tells me she is going to call me tomorrow,

she calls me tomorrow.

She is funny and I can joke around with her.

I know that post operatively I will be able to call her for anything

and get my needs met.

I do not wait as I am escorted by Stacy into Doc Donner's office.

I like that he is waiting for me and all the consents are ready to go.

I like a doctor who takes you into his personal office.

I like a doctor who takes the time to get his own consents signed.

Before he asks me to sign he goes over everything I thought

I had to question. He has a spine model waiting for me.

He shows me exactly what he plans on doing.

He goes over every known complication that could happen

from a block to the artery to a bowel ileus.

I like this in a doctor, tells me everything prior to signing

the consent. I ask if he has gotten any notes from my

visit from Dr. Marino and he says that they had a lunch

pow-wow to discuss my case.

Well this, of course, being the nurse that I am, impresses me.

I know I am probably not the only patient they discussed

but they actually met to discuss me as a person and

what my case means to each of them.

Well that is impressive.

We go over the individual issues I have with the abdominal

scar tissue and he agrees just as Marino did that

if it seems to be too much to go through the abdomen

they will not hesitate to abandon the surgery.

However, unlike Marino had suggested about

maybe going through the back on the same day,

Donner explains that this is not the approach he is going to take.

He will allow me to heal from that surgery prior to giving

me the option of the plan B. He explains that his reasons are

he is just not sure he can go that route and give me

freedom from the chronic pain I already live with now.

I like an honest doctor.... this means so much to me.

I sign my consents knowing exactly what the surgery will

entail. I will be in the hospital anywhere from 2 to 5 days.

There is no way of telling how long it will take me to

feel well enough to go home on oral pain management

and free of possible complications from the surgery.

I asked how long, how long before I can return to work.

If no complications and all goes perfect,

8 to 12 weeks, 8 to 12 weeks, well I can do that!

This fires me up....

There is a possibility that I will not need physical therapy

depending on how much I can do on my own.

Half of his patients feel so well after surgery that

they can do more than they could before surgery.

There are those who need the help but some don't.

Yes, I am going to have to wear one of those lame

back braces, this is the cast for the bones that cannot

be casted any other way. He promises me that by

the time I go back to work I will be brace-free.

It is worn just until he is confident that the plate has

held and the fusion is healed.

I am impressed and optimistic of all of the above.

This doctor takes this surgery thing very serious.

It is all and more of what I have heard about this doctor.

He has taken my whole case into consideration.

He even brings up the bladder and one kidney issue

and assures me that Dr. Ray will be consulted and follow

my case. I will have a catheter for some time just to

make sure that I have no neurogenic bladder complications.

I then head to Dr. Marino's office to sign those consents,

they do not know I am coming so I doubted they would

have the paperwork ready but another office that

not only do they call me Lilly but they know my case,

they know when and what day I am having surgery.

I am known by the doctors that are about to open me up.

This gives me comfort that I am in the best hands.

Optimism runs deep in this Riera and with the days

I have been having with pain, even half of pain relief

will be great.... I am not asking for much.

To be with pain that does not require pain meds. and

can allow me to go back to work, it is all I need.

So that is the update as I approach surgery that may

change my life.

Love to all!!!!

Chile celebrates as 33 miners are rescued

Sixty-nine days after being held prisoner in a mine

that many thought would become their tomb,

all trapped miners were finally saved from a hell that many

of us could not even imagine.

I was glued to the different stories over the last 69 days.

I prayed for the miners and their families as I could

not even imagine what this must have been like for all involved.

For the first 17 days it was not sure whether they were even alive.

17 days of pure hell for the families.

Once that camera got to where they were and saw that not

only were they alive but thriving the momentum changed

and all was done to assure that these men would all

be rescued safely and healthy.

However, for many of them, their road to recovery

will be a long one.

Post traumatic Stress Disorder is a real and serious illness.

It causes lots of mental symptoms that eventually start

showing in physical ways.

The youngest of the 33 miners is only 19 years old

and it is said that he, after being pulled out of the mine,

seemed very disconnected, non-celebratory like the rest were.

When he found himself captured in the mine he had

a two month old baby now he has a 4 month old.

He is the one they are most concerned about.

Unlike us older people who can see that life will go on,

at 19 this becomes a big part of all your thoughts.

I thought it touching that the "boss", the foreman

who kept everyone's spirits up through the ordeal,

insisted to be the last to come out of the mine.

Like a Captain going down with his ship,

his thoughts were for all others rather than himself

and his own family who were awaiting up on land.

I rejoice for all involved.

For all who spent countless hours to assure that

their freedom would not be rushed, that safety would be first.

For the miners, their road to health has just begun.

Many have been through less than this and suffer

from PTSD so they will need much help in the months and

maybe even years ahead.

God Bless Chile as all slept well for the first time in sixty nine nights.

pondering thoughts...

As I sit here this morning I am okay.

I am okay with the fact that while all my school peers

return to work today, I will not.

I thought I would be sadder but I actually am relieved.

As I said in an earlier post, the pressure is off.

I no longer have to drag myself up at 5 am each morning

after sleeping a very restless night to convince myself

that I can do this, I can get through a day facing all the pain.

I no longer have to feel guilty over the fact that

if I leave early from work I am leaving others in a bind.

I awaken early this morning with peace even though

I slept very little last night.

Peace in knowing that I am doing the right thing here.

I will miss all but if I am to return to this job one day,

I have to do this.

As I told one of my teacher friends early this morning,

sometimes God has to make it really hard for us to get us to

listen to him and make the changes he wants us to so

to follow the plans he has for us.

I am good this morning mentally.

Physically, not going there... lol

Tedi-girl goes home today

.... and I just know when she pulls out the driveway,

I am going to be really sad.

I love all the time spent with the little ones

but when they get to be teenagers, there is so much

less you have to do to entertain them and so much

more that can be talked about.

Tedi-girl and I we did lots and lots of talking over the

last three days.

Thanks to her Mom, we were able to extend her stay

to today. I know this is a big sacrifice for Tif because

she too was off of work and had to loose time

spent with her own child but it has been way to long

since I had my time with this godchild of mine.

She has grown so much and sooooo good.

When you spend this much time with your Nannie

who likes to talk about life and deep conversations

I am able to find out a lot about where a child is.

This child is moralistically well.

She also loves to have fun and in some ways

reminds me of myself such as when

at bingo last night someones musical ring tone

goes off she breaks out into a dance.

Such as when the man sitting next to her wins a pot

and she decides that he is pretty cool but it is obvious

that he is a "slow adult"

she goes out her way to converse with him a few

times through the night.

She and I, we talk about a lot last night as we stayed up

until 2:30 am to wait for baby girl to get off and to

savor every minute we had left together.

TIffany, you are doing an amazing job with this child.

Yes, I do understand that a lot of her principals she

was born with but I also know that you are nurturing

those qualities. Keep up the great job

and as I told TEdi-girl last night,

it makes me sad because with each passing day I

realize that her time with me will become far and few

between. She promised me she will alway make time

for me and especially BG as she looks up and adores her

so much.

The best medicine this Auntie Lil/nannie can get is time with

such a sweet teenager that I call my godchild.

SIMPLE PHOTOGRAPHY is simply fantastic!

I have this wonderful friend, Becky Clement who teaches SPED

at my school. She is multi-faceted just as I am and so we hit

it off right away when we met 6 years ago.

Becky is not only a wonderful teacher but an amazing mother

to her four children. I had the honor of teaching her oldest

child, William religion and he is quite special and I know her

Mothering has something to do with just how special and

smart they all are.

Another passion my dear friend has is photography.

She hopes one day, when she retires. to begin

a full time photography business.

I have been one of her biggest fans and critique since

she began about a year ago.

Something amazing happened with Becky and her

business she calls SIMPLE PHOTOGRAPHY

She right away began having jobs!

She is so darn talented. She loves the outdoors

and her work is unique in the way her main objective

is to capture the person behind the physical look.

She does this beautifully over and over.

She has become obsessed with her camera

and this passion comes third only to her God

and her family.

She has been asking for a Baby girl shoot for some time

and it is something that I kind of promised her without

really asking BG how she felt about it.

BG is modest about her beauty, it is not important to her

so she rarely speaks of it and remains quiet when others

talk about it. Becky was wanting a photo shoot with her

and what mother would not want that of their child?

She texts me on Saturday to see if BG has plans

for yesterday and I kind of offer her services but I

also say Tedi-girl is visiting soooo maybe she can take both?

I am such a pushy friend.

I know Tedi-girl is an added bonus for Becky.

She is beautiful and has won many pageants as a young one

and many, many photogenic awards.

Becky is all on board for that not to mention how excited tedi is.

Becky loves taking photographs, can't get enough of it

and knows the more she takes the more she learns.

So brace yourself because following are just

a small glimpse into the world of

SIMPLE PHOTOGRAPHY

What beauty. Baby girl is such a wonderful role model to

her little cousins and this photograph reminds me of that.

Tedi-girl adores BG and cannot get enough of her,

wants to be like her.

This above picture is now my computer wall post and made

me cry when I saw it.

Beauty, simple beauty. I took one look at what Becky captured

here and took a deep breath knowing that I have been

blessed to have this child call me her Mother.

Showcasing BG's new tattoo was on Becky and my agenda.

I was not crazy about BG marking her beautiful body

in such a way but never said a word.

She is an adult and it is her body.

When I saw where it was and how it was done

I right away knew this was classic BG.

Becky did a fantastic job of capturing this also.

Becky was so excited about having two models to work with

and in the way BG is modest and maybe even a little

uncomfortable taking pictures,

Tedi-girl is the polar opposite.

After being in many pageants she is a born natural

for photo taking.

These pictures of her are simply beautiful.

This one is soooo BG!

Casual, down to earth, all her...

Becky informed me that the above picture was with not

one stitch of editing at all.

She said the subject and lighting were just perfect.

I have to agree.

Although Tedi-girl wears blue tinted contacts

her eyes really are this amazing blue color,

captured in this photograph.

I love the edginess of this one, again

so baby girl. So daring so darn gorgeous!

I cannot thank Becky enough for this honor.

However, last night while seeing these it became

very clear what I need to do for my friend.

I must combine my love for scrapping with

her love of photography and make her a scrapbook

showcasing some of her work.

An album that she can show her future clients.

I can't wait to start it, she doesn't even know yet.

Well..... she will once she reads this.

We have also hired her to come to Mumsie's 90th

birthday party to capture those memories for us.

If you are looking for a photographer for anything,

please look up or contact my wonderful friend, Becky.

You can find her on facebook by searching

SIMPLE PHOTOGRAPHY BY BECKY

or google the same name for her shutterfly account.

Keep her name in your mind because this

wonderful photographer is going places

and I am honored to be her friend.

SIMPLY AMAZING!