The Aftermath
21 Sep
The Aftermath or My Recovery from David’s Flare Up Part 2
I’m getting the house under control. I just dusted the whole house, in the hopes that it would make my throat feel better. My allergies are always severe in the fall, and they’ve started up early this year, probably due to all the rain we’ve been having here in Dallas. And of course, rain aggravates David’s arthritis, so he’s hurting, but the ligament does seem to be better.
I really wanted a few days where I was just at home doing nothing but cleaning. But, life goes on, and I’m not getting any days of staying at home. Still, I think I’m getting there with the house. We’re getting back into our “normal amount of arthritis pain” routine. The dishes are cleaned up every night. A load of laundry is done every day. I clean something every day. I’m hopeful that by Thursday I’ll be caught up.
The real challenge is meals. We’ve gotten off of David’s diet. We’re back to eating lots of meat, and too much junk food. Dinner tonight was a pizza. I had planned to cook a healthy, vegetarian dish, but it’s so easy to give in when David calls on his way home from work and says, “Gee, are you sure you don’t want me to pick up a pizza?”
To me, diet is one thing we can control. We have no control over the weather or David’s arthritis flares or his ligaments. But, we can make healthy food choices. Lord willing, we’ll be back to healthier choices tomorrow. That’s my goal anyway. I was especially encouraged by the podcast from the National Chronic Invisible Illness Awareness Week conference about Simplifying Your Home and Housework. You can listen to the archived radio shows here or download them on Itunes. After listening to the show, I sort of started meal planning by making a list of all the meals I cook regularly. Just that helped clear my mental fog. I started thinking, “Oh, yeah! I make a great mushroom risotto that David loves! I can get back to cooking.”
Good grief. It’s not like he was even in the hospital. He was only bedridden for a few days. How do people do it? I mean, it could be so much worse.
Things are getting back to normal. David was finally convinced to cancel our open house scheduled for Sunday. Thank goodness! Our house will be off the market on September 30. This has taken a lot of pressure off of me. That, and the hope we’ve been given with the Humira has helped me tremendously.
David is still not sleeping well. Hence, I am not sleeping well. And with that, I’d better stop. I’m really tired. This isn’t the greatest blog post I’ve ever written. I just wanted to let folks know that things are looking up for David and me this week. I hope you’re having a good week to.
Thank you so much for all your prayers. God is good.
Love,
A Young Wife
Hi guys,
Ashley, one thing I do that helps a lot over here, whether I cook or Doug cooks (he’s a terrific cook!): I have 2 calendars. We get so many in the mail I never have use for all of them! They are right next to each other on the wall in the kitchen, and one is used for appointments, reminders, etc. The second one I use for menu planning. I write on the “meal calendar” what we’re hacing every night. By having the calendars next to each other, I can check to see what’s going on before I plan a meal.
If Doug has to go back to a Council Meeting on Monday, then we have something simple for supper, or something I can make during the day (roast, whatver). Then, since there’s just the 2 of us, when I do make a roast, we save what’s left, and I make stew out of it…that’s usually another 2-3 meals. So we keep one out and freeze the other 2.
It doesn’t SEEM like a big deal, but just having that decision of “what are we going to have for supper” already made, it’s awesome. And then either Doug or I can cook, depending on how I”m feeling. Plus, you’ll know what you’ll need to get from the grocery store ahead of time. You can make your list from your menu.
Just some thoughts!
Love to you both,
Kerri
I just stumbled onto your blog this afternoon and wanted to comment. You seem to have such a pleasant and positive spirit, despite the hurdles you’ve had recently. My hat is off to you and your hubby!
Hang in there Ashley – things will get better soon.
I am also a meal planner (or try to be, most weeks)…I got one of those magnetic “to do” daily notepads from somewhere and just list my meals on it and keep it on the fridge. It helps my week go so much smoother when I have those decisions already made! Also, it helps with grocery shopping and not being wasteful with food. I almost never throw out old fruit or veggies b/c I buy what according to my plan or plan according to what I bought. So, I guess you would say I am a FAN of meal planning!
Kerri, I love the idea of two calendars! That’s right up my organizational alley. Thank you, Liz and Karen for your encouragement. Michelle, I guess I sort of meal plan. I usually grocery shop with three dinners in mind. But I think having that list of meals will help, although I’m always trying new recipes, so the list will continue to grow.