Murphy's Law - AGAIN!

I'm glad I have a really good sense of humor and can often find comic relief in some situations.  On Monday the 21st, I went to my doctor for my post-op check; it went really well.  I am healing just as I should be and my doctor's assistant said that she hasn't seen me smile so much in months.  I felt so much better and was happy to hear that everything is healing even better than the doctor expected.


My husband wanted to take us out to eat after the doctor's appointment and we went to a chinese restaurant for the lunch buffet.  Our daughter wanted to go to the one that we used to go to when I was pregnant with her; so we went to that restaurant (not our usual).  Later that night, my husband started vomiting and had really bad diahrrea; I had a little vomiting, but nothing substantial.  Our daughter seemed unaffected, which I was really thankful for.  On Tuesday afternoon, I could not stop vomiting and had really bad stomach pain; by this time, our daughter was also starting to show signs of being sick.  Needless to say, we all were very sick and could not get out of bed for a few days.  My husband missed 3 days of work and just started feeling better last night; our daughter is feeling much better (2 years of nursing does a lot for the child's  immune system) and I am still feeling a little bit nauseous.  With the surgery and being anemic, it may take a couple of days before I feel back to normal.

A WORD OF ADVICE - before going to a restaurant (doesn't matter if you have been there several times or if it is a popular restaurant), CHECK THE HEALTH DEPARTMENT SCORE.  The restaurant we went to has 4 locations in the city and every single location has had numerous demerits with problems ranging from meat being kept at an unsafe temperature to toxic substances being improperly labeled.  This was really an eye opener for us; learn from our mistake and do your homework - it may save you from getting sick.


Oh, by the way - being that we were sick this week, we didn't get to have our Thanksgiving dinner on Thursday.  We were all really looking forward to celebrating Thanksgiving.   I love to cook and entertain (the more people, the better).  We will just have to wait a few days and have our Thanksgiving feast then.  I hope that you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving; it is such a great time for family and sharing our blessings.  Take care everyone and may you be richly blessed this holiday season.


Faithfully,


Sherri

Recipe Fun

Blueberry Crumb Cake

Ingredients

For the streusel:

• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1/3 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/4 pound (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
• 1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour

For the cake:

• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature (3/4 stick)
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 2 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon grated lemon zest
• 2/3 cup sour cream
• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 cup fresh blueberries
• Confectioners' sugar for sprinkling

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter and flour a 9-inch round baking pan.

For the streusel:

Combine the granulated sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a bowl. Stir in the melted butter and then the flour. Mix well and set aside.

For the cake:

Cream the butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment on high speed for 4 to 5 minutes, until light. Reduce the speed to low and add the eggs 1 at a time, then add the vanilla, lemon zest, and sour cream. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. With the mixer on low speed, add the flour mixture to the batter until just combined. Fold in the blueberries and stir with a spatula to be sure the batter is completely mixed.

Spoon the batter into the prepared pan and spread it out with a knife. With your fingers,

crumble the topping evenly over the batter. Bake for 40 to 50 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean. Cool completely and serve sprinkled with confectioners' sugar.

On the Mend

The surgery went really well and they not only repaired the cystocele (bladder prolapse), and the enterocele (small bowel prolapse), but also found a lot of adhesions (scar tissue) that they freed up.  This was by far the hardest surgery I have gone through to date.  They had to open me up, which was necessary because of the amount of surgery that was required, but the healing time is 6 to 8 weeks.


The hardest part is being apart from my husband and daughter; although they did come out every day.  I felt bad for my husband on my second day there, because my oxygen saturation was low and they had oxygen hooked up to me; he looked like his heart sank because he came in while I was talking to one of my doctors and didn't know what was going on.


Usually after surgery, they give you medication that is really strong and makes you want to sleep most of the time; not this time.  They couldn't find anything that really helped the pain.  My doctor had the anesthesiologist come in and they did an epidural (which I had when I was in labor with my daughter, and they are wonderful), unfortunately, the doctor had spinal fluid coming out a little bit and that causes what they call a "spinal headache".  Believe me, you do not every want this type of headache, it is really horrible.  They lay you flat, which helps a little, but you have to have a "blood patch" done.  They take blood from your arm and inject the blood into the back injection site.  After a few hours, you can tell a little difference.


It was rocky at first, but I feel so much better now and everyone is telling me how good I look.  My husband said that it was the first time he had seen me smile without pain for a very long time.  It will take a few weeks, but I should be almost as good as new.  I am very thankful to the Lord for bringing me through this and helping me to get back to my old self' it has been a long time.  Never take your health for granted, it can slip away very quickly sometimes.  


I still have fibromyalgia and arthritis, but at least most of the abdominal and pelvic issues are addressed and healing.  I am anxious to be able to be more active and not have so much pain dragging me down and making me feel horrible all the time.  I might not be able to run, but I am going to give it my best effort to walk with a little more pep in my step, so-to-speak.


Thank you so much for your prayers; they help more than you could ever know.  The power of prayer is a wonderful thing; I have been through a lot in my life and the Lord has always been there for me.  I tell my daughter that God always hears our prayers; but sometimes the answer may be "no" or "wait".  She also knows that He gives me the strength to deal with pain and whatever else comes my way.  She is a very faithful little girl and prays for others and their needs.  I am thankful for such a faithful family who loves each other and helps each other.


May God richly bless each of you and yours,


Sherri