back pain

Belated Date

Posted by Lisa Eirene

I had yesterday off from work and I had been looking forward to having the day for “me” for weeks! Well, we woke up to snow on the ground! I wasn’t sure yet if that was going to change my plans for the day. Michael made us breakfast (sweet potato, onion and sausage hash topped with eggs).

He drove Logan to daycare and I got dressed to go to the gym. When Michael got back, though, he said it wasn’t safe to drive yet. The roads were clear of snow but they were icy and he slipped a few times. Scary!

I still wanted to get my workout in and I had a massage scheduled for the afternoon so I couldn’t wait til then to work out in hopes the ice melted. So I did an at-home workout! I did body weight exercises, free weights, kettlebells and then finished up with 22 minutes on the bike trainer while I watched the new “Queer Eye” on Netflix.

I did squats, pushups, my PT exercises, mountain climbers, plank jacks, kettlebell swings, bicep curls, triceps, and core work. For being at home and being limited in what I had available, I got in a decent workout! 400 calories is pretty good!

Next I showered and we drove out to IKEA to get some stuff for the house (more on that in another post). The roads were clear by then, so that was nice.

We had originally planned on going out to lunch to celebrate Valentine’s Day (since we kinda spent it in the ER last week). We went to Screen Door and it was at least an hour wait for a table. The line was crazy! We decided to just leave and went to Smokehouse Tavern instead.

I’d been craving a Bloody Mary for awhile now. It was pretty tasty! We lucked out and it was Happy Hour all day since it was a holiday! Sweet! We got the Deviled eggs appetizer. I always order deviled eggs if they are on the menu. It’s always fun to see the different ways they make them.

The smoked sausage on top was spectacular. Next time we both want to order the sausage entree.

We both ordered the meat + two sides lunch. I got the brisket and the pulled pork with collard greens (my favorite) and mac n’ cheese. Michael got the brisket, pulled pork and ribs plus fries.

The food was pretty good. I think I prefer Reverend’s BBQ in Sellwood. Their food is better. But the pulled pork was delicious and succulent. It was a nice, quiet, relaxed lunch. It wasn’t too crowded (definitely not like Screen Door) and we had a leisurely meal and then headed home.

Next up was my massage. I try and go once a month since insurance covers a certain amount and it’s been really beneficial for my various aches and pains due to working out. I really feel like regular massage has helped keep me from being injured. My massage was fantastic and I fell asleep during part of it.

Later that night Michael picked Logan up from daycare and we hung out playing with his cars and watching the Olympics. It made me want to watch “The Cutting Edge”! I haven’t seen it in years and I used to LOVE that movie!

I might be doing that this weekend. 😉

Be My Valentine

Posted by Lisa Eirene

I thought I’d give a bit of an update…we’ve been…busy this past week!

First, I have to say: Friends are amazing! Last week a dear friend seemed to just know we were struggling and needed help and offered to drop off dinner. She picked up amazing pizza and salad and it was SO nice of her!! Michael was basically bed-ridden at that point.

The pizza was great and we had leftovers for several meals.

I’ve been trying to do everything and taking care of Logan, the animals and Michael. And working. And doing house chores and trying to still work out. It’s a lot. I feel like I’m not doing any of it very well right now. The meal was very nice and helpful and made me feel some relief.

Michael’s mom brought us ham and bean soup (delicious)! (And over the weekend she came to babysit and brought us a casserole.)

In better news, Logan got his first Valentine! 😉

A card made by his BFF Winnie and some stickers! So cute! Another friend dropped of chocolates and a balloon! Logan is popular. 😉 He had a Valentine’s party at daycare and that looked like fun. Plus, mommy and daddy got a valentine from Logan!

Michael and I had leftovers for dinner on Valentine’s Day. Then…his back went completely out. He couldn’t walk or stand or lay. He ended up going to the ER. At least I can cross off “hot firemen in my bedroom on valentine’s day” from my bucket list…?? 😉 Made me think of that Friend’s episode.

Family came over to be with Logan and I went to the ER with Michael. He ended up getting an MRI (thankfully) and he has a herniated disk. I stayed late at the ER until he was going in for the MRI. It was going to be several hours for it and I had to get home for Logan.

I was in bed by midnight and got a few hours of sleep. I got Logan up and to daycare, went to work for a few hours, then left and went to the hospital. They aren’t doing surgery immediately. The heavy-duty meds Michael got in the hospital seemed to help a lot and relax whatever was going on and pinching the nerves. So after spending almost 24 hours in the hospital, he got to come home!

And he got to hold Logan for the first time in 6 weeks! We were all happy. <3

My cousin Anna hired some babysitting to help me out. A friend of Michael’s picked him up from the hospital because I had to go pick up Logan. It was SO nice how many people stepped up to help out. We have the best friends and family.

He’s doing better. He has a lot of follow-up appointments (Neurosurgeon, PT, spine clinic, his regular doc, I don’t even know what else). I hope we get some good answers for treatment. I really dislike that doctors just want to “manage” stuff like this with pain pills. That DOESN’T FIX the problem. And with a lot of people, it causes more problems. Neither Michael nor I are really pill people so we’re both determined to find another answer to fix this.

So it’s been an overwhelming, stressful week! Sheesh.