Post-op checkup

We went to see Grace's pediatric ophthalmologist today for her post-op checkup. She kept saying she didn't want to have surgery again the poor thing. Both Julie and I reassured her that she wasn't and this was just a checkup. Once we actually got to the doctor's office she did quite well. She even read the letters for the doctor loud enough to hear her and everything. She's normally so afraid/shy that she either won't say them out loud or she says them so quietly that you can't hear her.

He was very pleased with her progress and said she'll just continue to improve every week. The stitches he said would dissolve in the next week or two. We also only need to apply the ointment once a day at bedtime. She's actually gotten much better with the ointment. At first she was fighting us with all her might but we finally won the battle and she now even holds each eye open for us. She complains that she can't see after we put the ointment in. I think it just makes things blurry for a few minutes.

She is wearing her glasses as she was before with no complaints anymore either. That was actually one of the easier battles. She hasn't fought that hardly at all to not have to wear them. She never did take any of the pain medication that she claimed was "icky." Just that 1/4 teaspoon from the first time we tried. Fortunately for us, she didn't really complain all that much about how they hurt. She only complained a few times a day at first and then after a few days had passed she stopped complaining all together. So I'm guessing that it just didn't hurt that much for her. Maybe she has a good threshold for pain. That may explain why she doesn't complain about everyday things that bother her; maybe she doesn't really even feel it.

So we're pretty much done with all the surgery dealings. We have to go back in for another checkup in a month. She has to wear her glasses as normal and we have to put the ointment in her eyes each night before she goes to bed only for the next week.

Now we're all looking forward to getting back into our normal routine and not worrying about all of these extracurricular activities related to Grace's eyes. Grace is excited to be going to school tomorrow. I did end up taking her for about a half an hour last Friday. She could have spent more time there, but she wasn't moving fast enough to get to her class any sooner so that's about all the time she had was about a half an hour of her two-hour class.

So overall so far this experience has been pretty good. Thanks to the book we found online Grace was super prepared for the surgery and for the most part knew exactly what was going on. The doctors on the surgery day commented on how well prepared she was. I don't know if some parents don't prepare their children because they don't think they'll understand or what but there's a good reason to make sure they're prepared. Get that book "Blueberry Eyes" and read it as often as you need to. Maybe not every night considering it's length, but you need to read it to them and explain that this is what they will be doing.

That isn't to say she wasn't scared to have the surgery, but I've got to say she didn't outwardly appear scared at all. She marched right out of the pre-op room and towards the O.R. without us and without a complaint or hesitation hardly at all. And again, the doctors commented on how well prepared she was as she was doing the gas herself to put herself out making their jobs super easy.

On a lighter note things are really cooling off here. I mowed the grass yesterday for perhaps the last time. I didn't get the lawn mower ready for next year yet just in case it needs one more mowing. It's possible but unlikely. I'd rather be able to mow it again rather than having to pull the lawn mower out of storage to use it and then prepare it for next year all over again.

I've planted some new bulbs for next spring that will hopefully come up. I bought some and planted them several years ago and they haven't done well; Only about 2 or 3 are still alive now. Lets hope these fair better than the other ones did. I planted mostly daffodils, but I planted a few specialty bulbs and then on the south side of the house I've planted some lilies. I've never really been particularly fond of lilies, but for some reason now they appeal to me and so I bought some and they've been planted. We'll see how well they do in our ground next spring and how they look in the spot I chose to put them.

Once again this was a disappointing year for our apple tree. We didn't really get any edible fruit this year either. Only two days before picking day there were 2 apples still untouched by bugs, etc. on the tree. Then the day before picking I noticed a hole in one of them and the other was on the ground and it looked like someone had taken two bites out of it. Then on picking day Grace and I checked the one with a hole in it and sure enough bees were holed up inside there just eating away; darn pests. So apparently using a small amount of the fruit tree spray wasn't effective enough so that we'd get a crop. Apparently next year I'll have to be diligent about spraying all season long. One of the main reasons I didn't spray all season long was because the instructions with the spray say that if it rains or if the fruit is wet that you shouldn't do it (can't remember exactly what it said.) So I sprayed one or two times at the beginning of the season and then stopped because as you can imagine the beginning of the season is the spring and we get a lot of rain in the spring. So I kind of let off doing it and then it had been some time since I had actually done it so I just never re-started.

So anyway I will apparently have to be diligent about my spraying next year if we want to ever see a crop out of this darn tree. I've also noticed that the tree is leaning. So I'll need to brace the tree here before the really cold weather sets in to ensure it will grow at least fairly straight.

I've cleaned out some of the perennials in the flower beds and so basically the house looks pretty neat and tidy. I still have work to do, but I'm considerably further ahead than in previous years heading into the winter season. Maybe our yard will actually look nice next year; I'm sure the neighbors would appreciate it too!

Alright that's enough for today - I've got to get to sleep.