Fishing for Pink

Ah... What a great way to spend a Saturday morning! Fishing for pink salmon on a beautiful misty morning. I had 5 or 6 on my line, but unfortunately, only brought one in. Here it is - about 3 lbs/20 or so inches. My biggest catch!

Catching up, post-op

Sometimes I amaze myself. No seriously - I amaze myself with how unpredictable I can be with journal-keeping. Both the hard-copy kind (and actual journal) as well as the online kind (blogging). No doubt anyone who tracked my blog has pretty much written me off at this point. The good news is that anyone who uses RSS feeds will get my posts whether or not they actively track my blog. :)

In any case, I have quite a bit more time on my hands for the next few days, thanks to doctor's orders to stay off my feet and in this "continual passive movement" (CPM) machine for most of the day for the week after my surgery. So, let me take a step back... (Warning: If you have a weak stomach, you may not want to read about my surgery/recovery below.)

On Friday morning, I had my right knee (ACL specifically) reconstructed. I may post the two minutes of video sometime that my doc gave me after the surgery, for those of you who get a kick out of the blood and guts thing. Truth be told, there was no blood in sight in the video -- everything was white (kind of like chicken). Kind of strange... Anyway, thanks to a priesthood blessing on Wednesday evening (thank you, Derek and Luis), lots of prayers by me and others and a highly referred and skilled doctor (Dr. Bruce Rolfes, at the KneeFootAnkle Center in Kirkland, for those of you who may need his services someday), the surgery went very well. I was in the office by 6:15 a.m. and out by 10:45 a.m., loopy from the oxycodone (i.e., Percusset) and on my way home. Kirsten -- bless her heart -- waited for me the whole time in the surgery center waiting room, despite being bored out of her mind.

I was really nervous the 30 minutes before the surgery. The anesthesiologist had explained to me that he would be "blocking" my leg, which would essentially make it numb for about 18-20 hours. When he explained the process, I wasn't excited (to say the least). Put a big needle in, feel around for the right place, then inject and pull back out to make sure they didn't strike an artery or something. He told me I wouldn't remember anything, but frankly, I didn't want to be conscious of it in the moment either.

When they finally brought me back, it was different than when I had my first surgery 19 years ago. Before, they brought me into a dimly lit pre-op waiting area and put me under. This time, they brought me straight into the bright operating room and had me lay down on the table. They covered me in a sheet and a plastic bubble-wrap like blanket that had warm air flowing through it (makes a VERY efficient heat blanket!), and started chatting me up about how it happened, where I work, etc., while the anesthesiologist put the IV in. The last thing I remember, I was chatting away. Next thing I know, I'm waking up in the recovery room, stuck for a while in an almost-awake state and sounding really silly to the nurse, I'm sure. They helped me get dressed, get into a wheelchair and head out to the waiting room with Kirsten. They gave me my meds, put me in the car, and off we went. All done...

When I got home, Kirsten set me up on the couch downstairs with my ice machine and my CPM machine, a blanket, lots of pillows, my XBOX controller and TV remote, a book, my meds, water, something to eat, etc. And that pretty much describes the last two days since returning home. Two straight days of reading, games, movies and tv shows (Jericho and the latest episode of Heroes, to be exact) and dozing. To be honest, I'm starting to go a little stir-crazy. Kind of dull to think that I have five more days ahead of me like this. Ugh...

Good news is that I'm progressing very well. The doc last night was pleased that I had gotten myself to 90 degrees mobility already, and that I've tapered off the Oxycodone a bit (one every six hours instead of 1-2 every four hours). I took my dressing off and took a shower this morning, as all was well there. Not TOO swollen and everything was dry...

So there you go... I'm on my way back. I've been surprised that the pain has been less than I anticipated. I'm pretty sure it will get worse, though, as I start rehab. (I get to start riding the stationary bike today or tomorrow -- 30 minutes a day). But I'm determined to work hard to get back to good in as short a time as possible while doing right by the knee.

Before I close out this post, I have to give a shout out to my wonderful wife, who has so selflessly taken care of my every need these last two days (and will continue to do so for much of this week). I love and appreciate her more than I can say.

As for the blog... I'll try to post more this week than I have in the past couple of months, which should be easy. ;) I also have a ton of photos that I can post. Both the older boys started basketball, I went on a snow campout last weekend with the scouts, and lots of other events. Till later...

Moments Earlier...

In the Bat Cave... (This is how I first found him.)

Finger Pickin' Good!

Ah... You gotta love when you catch Batman pickin' his nose! :)

Christmas Eve

Catching up from the holidays... We had a fantastic Christmas Eve, with a lot of our family at our house for a nice sit-down dinner. We broke out the Lips game for the XBOX and it turned out to be the hit of the party. We ended the night with every family sharing a favorite song or story. My mom read the first chapter of "The Best Christmas Pageant Ever" and gave everyone a copy to finish with their kids at home. Several others played songs on the guitar and piano. While we listened and enjoyed the peace of the experience, we ate cheesecake and then called it a night so the kids could all get home in time for Santa to make his much-anticipated stops... :) Here are some pics of the evening:

Laughter

It's funny how you can be walking down the hallway and something profound can hit you in a split second... I just had one of those moments on my way -- of all times -- to the restroom after a client 1-on-1.

I was walking fast, focused on the million things I need to do during my one free (i.e., not in meetings) hour this afternoon. I passed in front of the elevators...

*** Totally useless interruption: I just saw a truck drive by outside with
a big, red "open sleigh" in the back... Tis the season! ***

...where a couple of women were laughing as one was holding the elevator door open and saying goodbye. It was obvious their laughter was genuine -- not just a polite laugh between professionals kind of thing.

My "moment" came when I looked up and smiled. Nothing intentional, not meaning to say hi or anything. Their laughter tore me out of my hurried and harried (or maybe overly focused) condition and just plain made me smile. And that smile must have made the endorphines flow or something, because I was suddenly happier than I was just a minute before. And it struck me -- laughter makes people smile. Sounds like a "duh" statement, huh? But it feels so profound! Laughter can shake others out of their minute-to-minute grind and shoot a ray of sunshine into their day, like the one tiny hole in the clouds outside my window right now provides a glimpse of blue sky on an otherwise totally gray day (ok, now it's gone, but the point remains).

The other impression I got that hit me in the same moment was that I don't laugh/smile enough, at least not in a deep and true way. I have let myself get too sucked up in the daily grind to remember very often how truly good life is, even amidst all the turmoil in the world right now. There is so much for me/us to be grateful for. Why be stressed? I love my work and there will be more of it tomorrow! ;)

Finally, I'm going to admit something I'm not very proud of. I know, I know -- too much disclosure going on here... But it's important to me. Too often, I get put off by my boys' laughter. It's loud and sometimes obnoxious. But what would I rather have? Sad and sullen sons? Of course not! I love that they're happy and enjoy playing with each other and being kids! I need to let myself be more infected by their laughter and energy! I need to laugh with them and play more often.

Hmmm... I think I just identified next year's focus (I don't like to call them resolutions or goals -- it's rather the thing I want to keep in the back of my mind all year, at all times)... This year it was peace -- and I still have a long way to go on that one. But next year, it's going to be "Be of good cheer!" Smile! Laugh!

And, of course, these are my favorite smilers/laughers in a couple of my favorite smiling photos:

The Robot

I had to post this one... This is O's best impression of a robot. :)

Welcome Holidays!

We welcomed in the holiday season after church by building a gingerbread house. It was good fun for all, and we have a beautiful centerpiece now for our dining room table. (We'll see how long it lasts there!)

Paint Job

I know it's taken a while, but I finally took some photos of our finished living/dining room with the new paint job... Turned out pretty good, and the color change isn't nearly so shocking, now that we're used to it.

Temple Trip

We had the most amazing trip to the temple yesterday! My parents had taken the boys on Friday night and kept them through Saturday, so we could get a break and think through some critical family issues. As part of this process, we attended the temple. We ended up getting to bed a little later Friday than planned and decided to sleep in a little and attend a later session. As we walked into the chapel to wait for our session, we ran into John and Sandy Nielsen (Becca's parents) and said hello. It's always a wonderful surprise to see them, but an extra special treat to see them in the temple. Given what Sandy's been through over the last couple of years, I was pleased to see her looking so great. We had a good chat and separated, as they were invited out of the chapel.

We no sooner sat down (near the back, mind you) when we were asked to be the witness couple. We led the way up into the endowment room and, again to my surprise, found John and Sandy waiting in the same room! And to my even greater surprise, they were there with Jill and Craig and their oldest son, who was receiving his endownment for the first time in preparation for his mission! What an awesome experience to be there in our position for such a momentous occasion for a family I love so much!

After the session, as I met up with the family in the celestial room, I spoke for a moment to Jill, who said how great it was to have us there - "It was almost like having Greg and Becca here! We miss them so much!" That made me feel great. I also shared with her that, when I saw her and her son together in the session, I envisioned my lovely wife there with our sons as well. The thought brought tears to both of our eyes, and she told me to cherish the time now, because we'll be in their position before we know it. I don't doubt it for a second, although it still feels like a long time until then.

And, lest you think that was the end of the pleasant surprises... My family's long-time home teacher when I was growing up -- Bro. Gubler -- sat next to me in the same session. Sitting next to him was his son, who was also getting his endowment in prep for his mission. Too cool...

As He does so often, I'm sure the Lord had His hand in guiding us to the session we attended. It was exactly what I/we needed...

Down by the River

Today, the weather cleared for a while and we took the opportunity to drive down to the Cedar River to see how high it is after all the rain we've received lately. Pretty high, but not as high as I've seen it. Still an impressive sight.

While we were there, we snapped a few shots around the little park off of Issaquah Hobart Road.
Unfortunately not as clear as I'd like, but I had to post it just because I love it so much.

Looks kind of eery with D in the background...

Courtesy of K...

K pointed out the one flower in the visible area, so I had to shoot it. I love that the bug was sitting there...

Halloween

Every year, it seems we get to the last day before Halloween and still haven't though of costumes for the boys (let alone for us -- I don't know that we've ever dressed up). I don't know -- dressing up just isn't our thing... But the boys love it. They were stressing out about not having thought of a costume, so we broke out the makeup and did a job on their faces, making them into "zombie soccer players." They turned out pretty good, actually.

Oli is the exception this year, of course, as he's been wearing the Spider Man costume we picked up at Goodwill for $2 or so for the last month. Every day he woke up and asked if he could wear his Spider Man costume, and every day he asked whether it was Halloween that night. Well -- he finally got to wear it last night, and they all got tons of candy, then came home and watched Haunted Mansion. A fun evening in all... :)

Here are the little monsters:

Painting Project - In Progress

I'm done with the painting project for now (THANK HEAVENS!), but I wanted to post some of the in-progress pictures anyway, then I'll show you the final product.

The obligatory picture of me holding the paint roller.

The entryway...

Living room...

Painting

I'm home for the week (my first true week off this year!) to take care of some "honey-dos," the biggest of which is painting our living/dining room. I started prepping and painted the first coat on one wall on Saturday evening, and it looks really good. But before I post any photos of the progress, here's what it looked like before any painting...

Photo Shoot

We took the boys out on Sunday to try and take some family photos at a couple of locations in Redmond near my work. I've got a long way to go, but some of these turned out alright, so I figured I'd share...

Rainier Walk

We went on a drive and short walk today at Mt. Rainier National Park. It's amazingly less than 90 minutes away! Why did we never take advantage of this before??? Such a beautiful place! Following are a few pictures from the day...

Me and the boys - S, O and D...

O got tired... From what I hear, it's payback from when I was little and complained about walking around Green Lake. ;)

K leading the pack along a nice easy little walk with amazing views!

Like I said, amazing views of Mt. Rainier. Gave me a chance to try out the polarizing filter from my mom.

Another view...

Old Friends...

Wow... What an afternoon! Several of us from KR and KW high schools who went to seminary together met up after 17 years at the church building we all used to go to. It was incredible to see these great people after so long -- Shauna, Christy, Julie, Ryan, Jill, Jana, Carrie, Jessica, Todd, Mike and, of course most of their families. For those who know them, can you still tell who they all are in the photo below? I'll give you a hint. None of these are Jill and Jana, who weren't able to make it until after we took the photos. I'll drop one of them in below. ;)

I took photos of each family as well, but I'm going to set up a photo album somewhere to post those, rather than put them all into my blog. Watch for the link...

And here's Jana and Jill (and Sis. Simpson):

Excited For Tomorrow!

I'm really excited for tomorrow afternoon. An old friend decided to arrange a quick and dirty get-together of a bunch of the old gang we used to hang and go to seminary with in high school (i.e., a scripture study class we'd go to at church every morning for 4 years at 6 a.m.). I haven't seen most of these folks in about 17 years... I'll report back tomorrow and post some photos for those who know and remember all these old friends. ;)

Happy Birthday, O!

O turned 3 yesterday, and we celebrated by going to Woodland Park Zoo. He's been talking about going to the zoo for the last month, and it was a blessing that it turned out to be a beautiful day. The zoo was packed, as they had a ton of Easter egg hunts, but once we got outside the egg hunt area, it turned out that the crowds weren't so bad. We all had fun, and most of the animals were out and about -- we actually got to see a few of them abnormally close-up.