Why my big plans dissolved. . . .

I broke (?) my ankle back in the fall, although it had been hurting for several months. I wore a boot for about 6 weeks, but it didn't help much and I didn't pursue it after I was done with the boot in December. It still really hurt, so I went to the podiatrist in early March. The xray showed a much worse break, with soft tissue that had formed around it, and encapsulated it. I was sent for an MRI which showed a torn/ruptured tendon. I went to the Dr. on Thursday afternoon, and was operated on the next Wednesday, March 17. Once he opened my ankle, he found TWO ruptured tendons, one completely separated by a couple of inches, and another about 2/3 ruptured. He repaired them - one with a "jacket" to help it heal-- and scooped out the tissue surrounding the fracture. I ended up missing 8 days of work, and working partial days when I first went back. This cast will be on until at least April 20 (although if it doesn't come off by then, I will need a straight jacket for myself).

The cast is flamingo pink and I have matching glitter toes. :) On the left picture, you can see where Brody (5 years old) signed it. The right picture shows where Laura (2.5 years) "signed" her name. When she saw Brody signing it, she was a little horrified and reminded us "We don't write on our legs!" We assured her it was OK on a cast. My daughter Kate and sister Pam signed the inside; my daughter-in-law wrote her own little poem on the bottom of my foot. Something about a break and how awful I've felt. ;)

It really has been much more painful than I anticipated. It was same-day surgery and I figured I'd be good to go after 2-3 days. Ha! I still have to keep it elevated quite a bit to keep it from swelling. When it swells, the cast is unbearable.

Obviously, I haven't been able to do much of anything.