ACL surgery - day 1

This morning I had to arrive at UNC's Memorial Hospital at 6:30am. Nathan and my mom accompanied me. They deserve a shout out for getting up that early to just sit around and wait. I checked in, which included signing some papers and getting my blue identification bracelet. And then I went to the PCS (post care stay)B where I had to take off my clothes and don a lovely Carolina blue gown, booties, and hairnet. After that, things moved pretty fast. I was bombarded by nurses, doctors, and anesthesiologists who were asking me questions about my history and poking me getting BP and other baseline measurements.Around 7:30, which seemed to come really fast, I was ushered to a curtained "room" to get my nerve block. I was given the "I don't care" medicine and remember very little of what happened after. I gleaned from Nathan and my mom and from the marks on my body that they marked up the right side of my body and stuck with me with two needles aimed at my femoral nerves. Making me not be able to feel my right leg, butt, and foot. While this sounds inconvenient it was the best thing that happened all day! Nathan and mom tell me they took some pictures (see above with me laying in the bed), I talked to the doctors, and we just hung out until it was time for my surgery. At 8:15 I was wheeled into the surgical room. I do remember a few things from this. I remember that it was really cold in the room and they strapped me onto the table like I was going to go crazy. They wrapped a belt around my waist and put my arms out wide like I was flying and strapped those down to. I evidently did not go under general anesthesia, which seems so bizarre to me! I know I was not fully under, but I have no idea exactly what that entailed. I do not remember anything, which is good.

I choose to do the patellar ligament as my new ACL graft. There are generally three options for the ACL reconstruction all of which have their drawbacks.

• Patellar Ligament
• Hamstring Tendons
• Allograft (Donor Tissue)

If I get bored I might describe all of them at some point and find a good description on the web, but I'm going to try to keep describing the day's events.

The surgery went well and I went to the recovery room where I slept. Nathan came and sat with me until I woke up when I was moved

ACL surgery - Before

Here are two pictures of my legs before surgery. The right leg is the one going under the knife! As you can tell, obviously there are no scars and the legs are the same shape and size (albeit they are quite white and ghostly looking). The top one is me laying on our bed - a place where I anticipate spending many many hours the next few weeks. The bottom one is me standing; this is something I anticipate NOT doing alot of for the next few months.



To note: I am wearing shorts - I'm not naked.

Pictures have been uploaded!

We uploaded 150 pictures from our Galapagos trip onto our photo website. Currently we posted just the "best of" and they are in chronological order. I will try to make day by day albums and also hope to post on here a day by day itinerary with some pictures.

We're Back!

We've returned from the Galapagos. Needless to say we had a wonderful time!

Above is a picture of the group that traveled with us on our boat. We will post pictures on our photo website soon!

Grilled Peaches

We went to South Carolina to hang out with Kim and Brian. South Carolina is known for it's peaches... it even has a huge peach (aka butt) on I-85 see pic below. On our way back into NC we picked up a peck of peaches (no they were not pickled :)
We had so many peaches! So we had to find a way to eat all of them. My sister suggested we grill them.
Here is the recipe we made up:

Cut peaches in half and remove pit
Sprinkle with sugar
Place halved peaches on the grill and grill until caramelized
Remove skin (it should be very easy)
Cut peaches into slices and place in a bowl
Drizzle with honey, balsamic vinegar, olive oil, and fresh mint
Crumble feta cheese
Serve warm - and enjoy!

Babies!

All the spring babies are here and boy are they cute! We have another wave coming in the fall with Sarah Birken having a girl, Stephanie White TBA, Andrea O'Hara having a girl, Adrienne Abramson TBA, and Kathy DeBree TBA.

Here are some of the latest pictures of all the little ones.

Michelle and Mark's baby, Camden Ross Leslie born May 10th. Now at 12 weeks old and laughing. More pics on our photo website.
Seth and Anne's baby, Daniel Mordecai Kotch born May 18th. Pictured below at 7 weeks. Elese is holding Daniel on the left and Anne is holding Graham (2 weeks old) on the right.
Elese and Christoph's baby, Graham William Stutts born June 21. In this picture he is 1.5 weeks old playing his first game of Settlers of Catan... with a mom like Elese this boy is going to be a gamer. More pics here.

Heather and Jeff's baby, Jackson Jeffery Petursa born June 30th. Here he is tiny (~5lbs) at 2 weeks old. More pics here.

The 11 Best Foods You Aren’t Eating

New York Times recently published an article about easy to find foods that are extremely healthy. Here's the list.

1. Beets: Think of beets as red spinach, Dr. Bowden said, because they are a rich source of folate as well as natural red pigments that may be cancer fighters.
   
2. Cabbage: Loaded with nutrients like sulforaphane, a chemical said to boost cancer-fighting enzymes.
   
3. Swiss chard: A leafy green vegetable packed with carotenoids that protect aging eyes.
   
4. Cinnamon: May help control blood sugar and cholesterol.
   
5. Pomegranate juice: Appears to lower blood pressure and loaded with antioxidants.
   
6. Dried plums: Okay, so they are really prunes, but they are packed with antioxidants.
   
7. Pumpkin seeds: The most nutritious part of the pumpkin and packed with magnesium; high levels of the mineral are associated with lower risk for early death.
   
8. Sardines: Dr. Bowden calls them “health food in a can.'’ They are high in omega-3’s, contain virtually no mercury and are loaded with calcium. They also contain iron, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, zinc, copper and manganese as well as a full complement of B vitamins.
   
9. Turmeric: The “superstar of spices,'’ it may have anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer properties..
10. Frozen blueberries: Even though freezing can degrade some of the nutrients in fruits and vegetables, frozen blueberries are available year-round and don’t spoil; associated with better memory in animal studies.
    
11. Canned pumpkin: A low-calorie vegetable that is high in fiber and immune-stimulating vitamin A; fills you up on very few calories.

I hope to go to the Farmer's market when we return from our trip and stock up on some of these items. We've been eating Swiss chard out of Michelle and Mark's garden and it's delicious! also tons of blueberries that Michelle, Camden, and I picked fresh from frog pond farm. Although I am not sure if I am down with #8 Sardines... I think I will focus on the other 10.

A new music genre

This is what I am coining "lab boy band" music. Go here to see a music video and listen.

You can even download the MP3 and listen to it on your ipod while pipetting.

What are you waiting for? go listen already :)

Things I like right now

Toast paninoteca
Sandwhich (yes there is supposed to be an extra 'H')
Locopops
Cookout's chocolate and peanut butter milk shakes
Decorating with birds
Riding my bike
Todays weather
Tomatoes from the framer's market

Master Bathroom Remodel

We took our bright seafoam green bathroom and remodeled it this weekend. The new color is Bay leaf green. Here is Keith helping us paint.


Nathan rolling the back wall

We replaced the old white shrunken linoleum with a updated tile-like linoleum. We cleared out the living room and cut it there.

And the partially finished project. We are waiting for light fixtures and new framed mirrors. We also updated all of the towel bars, face plates, and toilet paper holder. As well as painting the cabinet white. Soon we will have pictures of the completed project.

Grandpa's 80th Birthday

Grandpa Marvelle is the only grandfather Nathan and I have. So, it was such a joy to join with all of Nathan's 34 immediate relatives to celebrate Grandpa's 80th birthday. Everyone gathered at Francis Farm's for a Massachusetts clam and lobster bake.

Here are a select few pictures from the event. You can see more here and here.
Grandpa and Grandma Marvelle with their children and their children's significant others.

Grandpa and Grandma Marvelle and their grandchildren.

David showing off his lobster. Yum!

Amanda with little Madeline.Nathan and Amanda after a long day of picnicking.

World's Actual Largest Basket

Early this month I posted about a sighting of what I claimed was the world's largest basket... my claim was bogus (really?!). And I have been directed to what actually is the "World's largest basket". This basket is a 7-story basket shaped building and home of the corporate headquarters of Longaberger Basket Company in Newark, Ohio.

One website states:
"The basket is a replica - 160 times larger- of Longaberger's Medium Market Basket. It's 192 ft. long by 126 ft. wide at the bottom, spreading to 208-ft. long by 142-ft. wide at the roofline. It is a magnificent sight- especially at night.

We'd like to think that job satisfaction is higher than normal at Longaberger's. After all, no matter how menial your daily labors or how incompetent your boss, you still work in a giant basket."

I am just going to ask... Who wouldn't like to work in a giant basket?

This website also illuminates that OH is known for all their large baskets... who knew? Visitors come carrying baskets... to look at giant baskets. Very odd hobby.

"Another reason that aliens could be confused about the relative importance of designer party baskets on this planet are the hordes of basket carrying zombies that routinely make pilgrimages to [the] woven Mecca. Over a half-million fans, many members of the "Collectors Club," visit HQ and other area Longaberger landmarks each year, carrying baskets, ready to remortgage the house for more, and hoping to get an autograph.

The entire region around Newark is basket-happy, thanks to the Longabergers. The World's Largest Apple Basket -over 29 feet tall - stands at the Longaberger Homestead in Frazeysburg, OH. It was hand-woven from hardwood maple in 1999. It's become an even better photo op since it was augmented with giant fake apples.

In nearby Dresden, on Main St. and 5th, you'll find the old HQ still standing, a house-sized picnic basket- 23-ft. tall and 48-ft. long. This huge basket was the first architectural creation of the Longaberger juggernaut.

The Big Easter Basket up in Lorain, OH is not a Longaberger creation, and it is a tad amateurish when compared to the other big baskets. Still, at 9 ft. high and 10 ft. wide, it suggests that big baskets have something to do with the soul of Ohio, not just the market-savviness of the Longaberger Basket Company. [Note: Giant eggs are placed in the Lorain basket, but only between Palm Sunday and Easter Sunday.]"

How dare they have giant eggs in the basket any other time...

Weekend: Pros and Cons

I am taking a line from my friend Laurel's blog. She is way more personal and conversational with her writing and I am going to try her style for a few posts and see how I like it. I also love her weekend pro and cons posts so this may or may not be a weekly addition. It also reminds me of the High/Low from Keith and the Girl (a daily podcast). Keith and Chemda always recap their day with the what was the best and the worst event/thing of the day... let's recap the weekend:

Pro: Dain's place and Nathan's return (see post below). I hate it when Nathan is gone and was really excited to hear about his first trip to New Orleans.

Pro: Finishing The Beak of the Finch! Saturday morning I had a lovely relaxing breakfast and sat out on our back porch and read. Pro #2 Humidity was low and the temperature was perfect! I'll post a review of the book later.

Con: Shopping at Costco on Saturday. There were thousands of people! and the lines were ten deep... but I made it out with all the things I wanted.
Pro: One of the things I wanted was Mario cart! I love love love this game and it even comes with a wheel.

Con: P.F. Chang's was too busy - a 30 minute wait.
Pro: Because of this, we went to Ted's Montana grill and had a bison burger and baked sweet potato. Yummy!

Pro: Bought hiking poles for the Galapagos, BPA free water bottles, and a new bike seat for me!

Pro: My lab came over for a picnic. Karen brought baby Adam - He's too cute! And he did not even cry. We introduced more people to ladder golf. And had a good lab bonding time.
Con: It rained - It poured! We had to go inside, but we played Wii and everyone loved it!

Dain's Place

On Friday Nathan returned from an overnight trip to New Orleans. This was one of the few overnighters that he has had to do with his job. In order to "catch-up", we headed to Dain's Place, a local bar on Ninth Street. We love this place! We each had several micro-brews and also a yummy marinated chicken sandwich. We love the decor, the people, and to top it off it is one of the few bars that is smoke free (note North Carolina is a leading producer of tobacco). While we were chatting about Nathan's amazing meals and the wonderful reception his report had with the city council, we watched the UNC tarheels beat LSU in quarter finals of the college baseball tournament.

Back Porch Music - David Wilcox

The Back Porch Music Concert series is held on the lawn at the American Tobacco Campus where Nathan works. Tonight, we joined up with our friends Lloyd, Adrienne, June and some of their friends with kids. We brought our blankets but the place was packed and there was only a few inches of empty grass. We had to squeeze in tight.
Everyone came out to hear David Wilcox. He is from Asheville and evidently has a huge following here in Durham. I have not heard his music before, but tonight I was a little disappointed. The music was slow and monotonous. The lyrics weren't that cleaver and his voice wasn't all that good. Although we had a good time and the weather was amazing (I hate humidity!), I will not go out and buy any of the songs.

New Zealand here we come!

Yay! I am so excited! We just booked our flights to New Zealand for next spring. Although I tore my ACL, I am having surgery in August and should be fine by February for a trip to one of the most beautiful countries in the world. I am crossing my fingers that I heal correctly (and speedily) because we are planning on hiking our butts off and taking in all the beautiful mountain scenery.

Brett's Wedding in Beautiful Boulder

Amanda and I had a wonderful time at Brett Saum and Ashley Hafner's wedding. To commemorate the occasion, I created this slideshow on YouTube with the pictures we took.



The song playing in the background is called 'Geneva' by Rockwell Church. Jake and Alex love to play this song and whenever I hear it I have the fondest memories of my B-CC boys. Here's a video of Jake playing 'Geneva' the night before the wedding.

Durham's Bike Co-Op

Last Sunday, Amanda and I took our bikes to the Durham Bike Co-op to see if we could get some help making them a little more road worthy. My bike hasn't had much attention since I was in middle school - its super dirty and the enormous and very heavy tires reflect my long-elapsed aspirations of riding rugged mountain trails. Amanda's bike is a kind of like a pet rescue: we bought it for ~$30 at UNC's annual auction of bikes that have been abandoned on campus. So it too needed some love. While both ride reasonably well, we thought they might need a tune-up especially since we're hoping to ride them to help Amanda strengthen her knee. We were greeted generously at the Co-op and told that our bikes were in pretty good condition and just needed some cleaning. We were soon learning how to repack wheel bearings and clean chains. It was a great time and we vowed to come back for more.

In this picture, you can see our overturned bikes sitting behind the Co-op and the bike 'junkyard' that's kept there.

Chinese food and a big basket

Last Saturday we tried a Chinese restaurant that had pretty good reviews, China Palace. We tend not to do Chinese food since Nathan is such a good Chinese cook, but with a review like: "I've just discovered one of the best Chinese restaurants in the Triangle, and I'm kicking myself," we thought we would try it.

The decor was a little on the barren side, but aside from aesthetics, we ordered three dishes that were recommended in the N&O article to share (and then to take home and have for two more meals! They gave us lots of food.) 1. The ohn choy with beef, the delicate leafy green that goes by the English name of water spinach. 2. Chinese broccoli in oyster sauce and 3. Wide rice noodles (ha fun) with beef.

I really enjoyed the meal and the veggies were really fresh, tender yet crispy. Nathan had other opinions. He had a much higher bar than I did for Chinese food and thought that each dish needed more flavor. I would go back. He said he would too, but would probably order something spicy.

After our delicious dinner, we trekked over to South Point where we looked at light fixtures and mirrors at Restoration Hardware. I have been dead set on redoing our bathroom. And since we have decided that we are not moving from our current house for sometime it makes sense for me to go ahead and try my hand at home decorating. We decided on the Dillon collection (see picture). But only the lights and mirrors seemed resonablly priced, so we went to Home Goods - the TJ Maxx of all things home- to try to find the other hardware things for the bathroom. We found a towel rack and a robe holder that matched the style of the light fixtures. We also found this:

THE LARGEST BASKET IN THE WORLD!

Can anyone tell me what the heck you would use this basket for? Really, you could put several reasonably sized men inside here! I can't remember how much it cost, but you can probably guess that it was on clearance!

Heather's baby shower

So all my friends are pregnant (or already with child) and I am starting to feel a little alienated! Really, I am not kidding! Well maybe I am kidding a little, but I can count on one hand the number of women who I hang out with here in Durham that are not pregnant. As you would image, this makes for lots of baby showers and lots of opportunity to sew and buy really cute things.

On Saturday I went to my friend's Heather and Jeff's baby shower. They are having a little boy and he is due July 3rd. We had a light lunch of chicken salad, fruit, and pasta salad. And then went straight into the age ol' baby shower game of guess how big Heather's gut is using toilet paper. Most people guessed between 13 and 16 squares... Heather was only 11! (or maybe 12, I can't remember but we will give her the benefit of the doubt and go with 11). Here is a picture of Heather.

After that she opened presents. Then we moved onto my favorite part of the afternoon, painting oneses. The hosts had bought all different sized ones and had provided stencils, paint, and painting utensils. Lots of people did the frog stencil, but I went free hand and did a little whale and elephant. Heather out did herself with an orange guitar with shading. She entitled her masterpiece Guitar Hero. This was such a great idea!



I am finding that I am starting to get my baby fill with Camden, but with more babies on the way I can offer up my babysitting or just holding skills and hopefully stave off those late twenty motherly urges until after I finish school and find a job.