What a whirlwind week!  I wanted to share some tidbits from my life last week as well as an accompanying photo recap with selections from my Instagram feed with you.  Here’s the buzz:

If you follow me on social media, you may have noticed that I didn’t post as much as usual last week.  That’s because my week was consumed by my husband, Don’s decision to have back surgery.  This wasn’t something he had planned on or even considered before last Tuesday.  After years of suffering through on and off and again bouts of lower back pain, Don has been plagued in more recent months with pretty severe issues that were affecting his leg as well.  He went through all of the nonintrusive remedies suggested to him, including chiropractic work, physical therapy, and even a cortisol shot.  None of these stuck and the pain got so severe and debilitating in the last few weeks that he was finally able to get approval to schedule an MRI.

He went in for the MRI on Tuesday morning and I accompanied him to the follow-up appointment that afternoon.  The results revealed that his L4-5 disc was herniated, and while the therapies he had already tried might help short term, they were most likely not a long term solution.  The doctor suggested a microdiscectomy, which is a pretty routine and low risk spinal surgery on the spectrum of things.  The doctor said he could operate that Thursday and we set it up.  It all happened so fast!

The procedure took just under an hour and I was able to bring Don home after just another hour in recovery.  It’s so amazing to me that he could walk right after he woke up!  I, of course, was a nervous wreck, but did my best to hold myself together and focus on helping Don.  Thankfully, Don’s Mom, Suzanne, accompanied me to the surgery so I didn’t have to wait alone and helped me get him settled.  She’s such an angel!  I don’t know how I would have fared without her support.

Now, just five days later, Don is doing amazingly well.  He makes marked progression every day.  He’s able to get up and walk around smoothly, can take the stairs like a champ, and has even started doing more of the things he used to like cook himself breakfast and lunch.  Of course, I have been more than happy to do these things for him, but it brings him satisfaction to be able to do them himself again (he wasn’t able even for the couple of weeks before the surgery due to the pain).  He says his back and leg pain is all gone and all that remains is tenderness at the incision site, which is to be expected post-op.  We go back for his follow-up tomorrow and hope for good news so that Don can get himself back on the golf course again soon, which is where he’s itching to be.  Modern medicine is amazing!

Of course, Don’s well-being and recovery has taken priority over all else, but even when I’m super focused (and worried!) about something, I always manage to notice and appreciate the little things that bring me joy on an every day basis.  I know I post a lot of flower/nature pictures on Instagram and that’s because I want to share the joy of this beauty with others.  Watching my magnolia tree blossom and enjoying a gorgeous bouquet of lilac roses from my sweetheart brings a warm smile to my face and my heart without fail no matter what else is going on in my life.  This is extremely important to my sense of balance, as I am the type of personality that can get easily become consumed by worry.  I love that enjoying something as simple as a spring blossom is powerful enough to fuel my sense of joy.  I do my best to hold onto, cherish, and encourage this trait.

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Don and I laid low this weekend, focusing on his recovery so that he could come to the Mother’s Day brunch my father-in-law, Keith, hosted on Sunday afternoon.  I pitched in by baking up a batch of my family’s favorite cupcakes (brown sugar poundcake with Bailey’s Irish Cream frosting!) from the Martha Stewart Cupcakes cookbook.  I also tried out a gluten-free banana bread recipe, which turned out awesome and got rave reviews from my loved ones.  We enjoyed a wonderful Mother’s Day celebration together.  I am so happy that Don was able to be a part of it.

I vlogged on Mother’s Day, so you can check out this video if you’d like to see more:

 I’d love to know how you celebrated Mother’s Day if you care to share.  Happy May!

* This is not a sponsored post.  All opinions are genuinely my own. *