This Boot Was Made For Walking!

Five weeks after having surgery, Josh is ready to walk again.

The Surgery Saga

Josh had ankle surgery on January 31st in Hartford, Wisconsin to treat an old sports injury (see the post Voyage to the Doctor for an explanation). His surgery was scheduled for 9:00am, which meant we were to arrive at 7:00. We decided to get a hotel in Hartford the night before so we wouldn't have to make the two and a half hour drive at 4:30.

The surgery went very well and our experience at the hospital in Hartford was extremely positive. Every person we came in contact with was kind, polite, and warm. It lifted our spirits and calmed our nerves. We could not be more grateful!

The surgery took about two and a half hours, which feels like forever when you're waiting in a hospital! The surgeon said it went well and that there weren't any complications, which was a huge relief. Josh was a little loopy, but wasn't sore thanks to a well-placed nerve block.

We recently sold Josh's Mazda 6 and replaced it with my parent's 2003 SUV, which has been FANTASTIC during the recovery process. We put down the second row and had josh sit in the third row, allowing him to extend his foot and prevent it from swelling. The SUV has been great for carting around Josh's scooter and crutches.

Getting around in this super snowy weather has been hard, but Josh has handled it like a champ. He's getting good at using his crutches on icy surfaces, and I made him a different colored fleece sock for every day of the week to keep his exposed toes warm. I don't think he minds all of the positive attention he gets while riding his scooter and sporting his awesome socks. Getting around the house seems to be even harder! His leg is a couch magnet, leaving me with pleanty of opportunities to pamper him (he takes full advantage of it).

His first cast came off, and he's now in a boot! Next week we go back to Wisconsin for an x-ray and we find out if he can start walking on his boot. Everything has been good so far, and we're expecting a good report from the doctor.

The saga continues!

Enjoy these GIFs of Josh scooting around.

Voyage to the Doctor

We spent our MLK day trekking to a doctors appointment in Wisconsin. 

Josh is getting ankle surgery in a few weeks, and the only orthapedic surgeon who specializes in foot and ankle AND takes our insurance is two and a half hours away. We want the procedure done right, so we decided the drive would definitely be worth it!

We decided to turn the long drive into a mini road trip, and tried to fit in a few fun things. 

The first requirement of any Cribbs road trip is a visit to Cracker Barrel. You can't go wrong with biscuits, gravy, and grits!  

While driving, we saw the Mars Cheese Castle and we couldn't pull over fast enough! It was a Castle of Cheese!! However, it turned out to be a grocery store/deli. We were SUPER disappointed. But we enjoyed seeing the cheese memorabilia. Sort of.

 After our appointment, we stopped at a dive restaurant called the BRAT STOP. With a name like that, and a giant CHEESE sign, we couldn't resist. Josh got a brat, I got a Wisconsin grilled cheese sandwich, and we shared cheese curds. We ate like natives and made our cholesterol levels jump. 

 

It was a long  drive for a short appointment, but it was worth it! We are excited to get Josh's surgery done right! 

Problem Solving

Everyone goes through a phase in their life where they live in a crappy apartment because the rent is super cheap, right? Well, Josh and I are currently--and very happily-- in that phase of our lives. Our rent is dirt cheap, we're close to school, close to my parents, and we love our little apartment. It's our home!

However, some new problems have presented themselves with the "Chiberia" cold snap we're currently experiencing.

Main problem: it's too cold for our neighbors to smoke outside. And smoking in their apartment would be gross, no one wants to smell that!
Solution: smoke in the hallway so we can ALL smell it.

Luckily, the smoker is a teenager (yikes!), so he spends most of his time at school or at extra curricular activities, and the odor isn't a constant problem. But when it stinks, it S T I N K S.

Josh's Solution? Duct tape.

It sort of keeps the smell out.

The tape is only around our back door, since our neighbor smokes exclusively in the back hallway. Crappy apartments create the best memories!

Snow Days

The last few days we've been braving the  storm that has turned Chicago into "Chiberia".

 It started on Sunday when we found out church had been cancelled. We were so excited to have a snow day (I promise we love church and find it extremely uplifting) so we could have an entire day dedicated to outdoor fun!  When we left our apartment, we found our cars buried in snow and blocked in by the piles created by snow plows. We don't have shovels, and spent an hour getting our two cars out of their parking spots. We realized this would be a problem when trying to leave for work in the morning, so we decided to set up camp at my parents, where we knew a snow plow wouldn't trap us! 

 

After shoveling their driveway (someone buy them a snow blower!!!), we built a snow fort and had a cuddly evening indoors. 

School was canceled for me on Monday, but Josh still had to brave the cold and treat some patients. He only had a half day, so we spent our afternoon taking down Christmas decorations at my parents house and playing a lot of Nintendo.

My dad worked from home (Chicago is pretty much shut down), so we had all been trapped in the house all day. The news reports said to avoid driving, except in emergency situations, and we all agreed that being hungry qualified as an emergency so we went to Red Robin. 

 

Then we made s'mores! And watched the BCS Championship.

Aquarium

 
A visit to Chicago with kids wouldn't be complete without a trip to the aquarium! It's a tradition for Duffield get-togethers. We spent most of our time admiring the huge center tank and watching the dolphin show. The kids were also mesmerized by the Baluga whales and the huge shark tanks. Josh and I went on our first date to the aquarium, and remember it fondly.





At the Aquarium with Lucy in January 2012 and January 2014 (I think she enjoyed it this year?)



Our first date to the Aquarium (we've been cuddly ever since!)

  

Christmas break GIFs

A lot of priceless moments were captured on video over the break, here are a few favorites.


Mikey VS. Lucy: The force is strong with these ones.


'nuf said.


I was "sleeping" and "snoring" VERY loud. Only kisses could wake me up! Any game that gets Auntie kisses is a favorite.

It was a fun break!