corazon gitano: January 2012

Lab tests before surgery

Not much action with our blog since Hélène was admitted to the hospital for her new hip on Jan. 4. This little undertaking started over a year ago. In a café. We got our Mexican insurance and talked to people who’d had this experience. I started a little notebook of ideas, suggestions, and advice.

The insurance company approved us on Dec. 16. In the 2 ½ weeks that followed, Hal and our neighbor Sam built a ramp so we’d be able to get me in and out of the bus easily. And neighbors started asking around if we were vegetarians.

We spent the holidays very close to home. By the last couple of weeks, I could barely move because of the arthritis pain.

When we arrived at the hospital on the 4^th, we were blown away by how quickly and efficiently we were admitted. I was prepped and into the operating room within a couple of hours. Every person who was in the operating room working on me came by prior to the operation and introduced themselves to me and told me what their particular job would be. Kind, professional…. wonderful staff.

I was Skyping my children within minutes of being back in my room. In the 3 days I was in the hospital, I had no pain and loved the nursing staff.

From our arrival back home and almost every day since, we’ve been the recipients of soups, casseroles, homemade bread, biscotti, muffins…..

Hal has been totally in charge of EVERYTHING. Shopping, kitchen, laundry, appointments, paperwork, plants, me. He has made this bus so easy for me to get around in. There are handles, straps and supports everywhere that I can use to lift myself up and move around with.

I’m so grateful to be healing up in such a sweet, clean, efficient, loving space.

I have about 2 more weeks of being wheelchair bound or on my walker. Then I will start putting weight on my new hip. And learning how to walk normally!

And today, I will be having my first ride up and down the ramp with the help of an electric winch. So much fun stuff always happening around here.

So that’s the report! Hal is doing good – working hard for sure, but always with a smile and a loving touch. I am doing good. My only job is to heal. And most of the time it is with a smile. As it turns out for us this is a most fun adventure.