I want to say that while bicycle helmets aren’t 100% effective in preventing head injuries, you have to look at the big picture and see how many lives they do save.

After my accident, I knew I had broken my ankle and thought I had merely sprained my elbow when I in fact broke it. I had no idea that I had hit my head until three weeks after the accident. We were cleaning up the entrance porch of our house and I found my helmet. I started looking at it and wondering about the accident. I realized at that point that I had not yet inspected my helmet for damage from the accident.

Sure enough, when I looked the helmet over, there was a crack going completely through the back of the helmet on the right side. I wondered what would have happened had I not worn my helmet on September 22, 2007. Would I be sitting here writing this blog post? Maybe, but probably not. Most likely, I would still be in the hospital or recovering from a serious concussion paired with a skull fracture.

I don’t know what would have happened, but I do know that to crack the helmet the way I did, I had to have hit my head with a lot of force. I’m glad my skull didn’t have to endure that force. I’m also glad that I wore my helmet and it protected my head and all my precious memories of my husband and my kids. I hate to think that Del could have lost his wife and my kids could have lost their mom because of a split-second decision.

If you bike, whether on a motorcycle or a bicycle, please wear a helmet. If not for yourself, do it for those who you love and who love you. You might not get another chance if you don’t.

We just got the Disney/Pixar movie Ratatouille and I have to admit that even though I hate the thought of rats in the kitchen, it’s a cute movie. Sami calls it Rat Patooti, directly from one of the lines in the movie.

Why is it called ‘Ratatouille’? I mean, it sounds like ‘rat’ and ‘patooti.’ I think it should sound like something delicious!

We watched the movie last night and I actually enjoyed it–except when the entire rat clan was in the restaurant’s kitchen. Ironically, we were woken up this morning at 5:30 to the sounds of a rat thrashing in a trap under the kitchen sink. It’s getting cold, so the critters are starting to come in to find warm spots to nest. Unfortunately, this includes our walls. We have a wall resident (unless we caught him last night) that bugs the hell out of us while we’re trying to get settled in. We’ve set traps in the places we’ve seen evidence of rats and/or mice. This morning, we heard one go and the rat was trying to get free by thrashing about.

Let me tell ya, if you’ve never heard a rat thrashing a big plastic trap around in a metal cabinet, you don’t want to. It was loud and constant for a few minutes. Poor Cassie was really bothered by it, as her crate is near the kitchen sink. She growled at the cabinet when she smelled the rat. Del took it outside and drowned it to put it out of its misery and Cassie had to inspect the cabinet under the sink to make sure it was gone.

We’re pretty tired today because we had to get up an hour earlier than we had planned. I missed PT today because of errands and rain. I couldn’t get Sami going this morning and then the streets were slick with rain so I had to be extra careful. Plus, Will needed his ADD meds taken to school. Yi. I did get my shopping done; over $100 in meat alone–we ran out and had to restock for a couple of weeks. That happens when you don’t have your nice large freezer (got it back Sunday!) to store two or three weeks’ worth of meat.

No more rats, please! Find somewhere else to nest for the winter. We have traps and we know how to set them!

I know I’ve been lax on posting Foodie Friday, but today I have a double dose. I have both a recipe and a story. I’ll share the story first, since it’s cuter.

Sugar

Sami, Del and I were eating breakfast Tuesday of last week when Del didn’t have to go to work. Sami and Del had oatmeal and I had Cream of Wheat. Sami usually likes Cream of Wheat, but this particular morning she wanted oatmeal (after I cooked enough Cream of Wheat for her and me) like her Daddy. While we doctoring our cereals, Del gave me a hard time for the amount of sugar I put in my cereal. Hey, I like my Cream of Wheat fairly sweet and put in about 1/8 cup of sugar. Del swore I used an entire cup. Anyway, Sami asked me for a bite of my “sugar.” It took me a minute to realize that she was asking for my cereal and then only after Del started laughing and pointed out that Sami was calling my cereal “sugar.”

Sami: “Mommy, I want a bite of your sugar.”

Me: “You mean you want a bite of my Cream of Wheat?”

Sami: “No, I want a bite of your sugar.”

Me: “Okay, you can have a bite of my Cream of Wheat.”

(I give Sami a bite)

Sami: “Mmmm, that’s good sugar!”

Of course, the whole time, Del is laughing too hard at the situation to eat his oatmeal. Then, he says, “See, I told you you put a lot of sugar in there!” Yeah, yeah; you told me so.

Chicken & Rice Dog Food

This has become Cassie’s favorite home-cooked meal and it’s veterinarian approved! What to do with the extra chicken parts? Freeze them and use them next time.

What You Need for seven large meals:

• 1/2 package chicken gizzards & hearts
• 1/2 tub chicken livers
• salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic powder for flavoring (I use about 1/4 to 1 tsp of each)
• 1/2 cup fluid from chicken livers
• 6 cups water
• 1 lb. frozen mixed vegetables
• 2 cups rice, uncooked

Method:

• Place chicken parts, seasonings, and liquids into a medium sized pot. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring occasionally.
• At the same time, cook vegetables according to package directions.
• Once meat is done, remove from stock with tongs and place directly into a blender or food processor. Chop until desired consistency and remove to a large bowl.
• Drain vegetables and add to meat.
• Add 1 cup of stock to meat and vegetables.
• Cook rice in 4 cups of remaining stock until tender. Add to bowl and mix well.
• Allow food to cool completely before serving. Store in refrigerator up to one week.

Makes 7 1-2 cup servings.

I had my first PT session for my elbow last week. We started off with the usual questions about how the injury happened and range of motion measurements. After all that, the therapist decided that ice and electric stimulation would be best for the first session. After treatment, my elbow moved quite a bit more than before.

I go in for two sessions a week starting Tuesday. I’m not sure how long I’ll be doing therapy for my elbow; it really depends on how well my elbow responds in the long term. Del helped me stretch my muscles last night using a resistance band and it really felt a lot better.

Pool therapy is being considered for my elbow and later my ankle once I get out of my AirCast. My ankle is feeling better now that I can walk on it with a little more weight than the boot provided, but I’m still not ready to take Cassie for a walk or ride my bike. I doubt I’ll be back on my bike before the spring thaw because the weather has turned cold already. That puts a lot of ache into my ankle, but I’ll live. Ibuprofen during the day helps a lot. I’ve stopped taking the Percocet unless I’m really in a lot of pain (which happened the other day when I had to take Cassie to the vet).

I have no problems with therapy to help regain full use of my body. I’ve had very positive results in the past and have very good vibes about my therapist for my elbow. I hope that I get to stay with her if I need therapy for my ankle as well.

Oh, yeah, I’m able to knit, crochet, and play piano again. My ankle gets a bit sore if I play piano too long, so I keep it to several short sessions a day instead of one long one. Still working on the flute–it’s supported by the right arm, so I can’t play for long before feeling fatigued.

Look out, world! I’m on the mend! And a VERY BIG thank you goes out to all my friends and acquaintances who have sent healing vibes, good thoughts and prayers my way in this freak accident. I know I couldn’t have healed this fast without your support! {{{hugs}}} to you all!!

Saw the orthopedist yesterday about my multiple fractures. Turns out I didn’t break my wrist, but there are three fractures involving two bones. I’m not happy right now because the doctor forced my elbow past my pain threshold and it still hurts.

So, the good news is I’m able to walk (gimp, really) around the house now thanks to the walking boot I’m now wearing instead of the splint. Because of the weakness and pain, I have to use a quad cane for two weeks or until I can walk comfortably without it. In addition to the spiral fracture in my fibula, I also managed to sprain my ankle and leave a nasty bruise on my leg. That bruise causes a great deal of discomfort when I walk, so I take my boot off when I’m resting. Cold compresses are still in use because my bone is still bleeding and the blood is pooling in my foot. Elevation is still prescribed as well.

My arm is hurting a bit because of the exercises I had to do in office yesterday for my elbow. I don’t have enough range of motion, so the doctor is sending me to physical therapy. Not that I mind. I’ve had positive PT and OT experiences in the past. I see them as a great rehab tool. The two breaks in my radius both occurred in my elbow. The first was the radial head, on the outer part of the bone toward the inside of my elbow. The second (as pointed out by the doctor yesterday) was the bridge that connects the ulna and the radius in the elbow. Not fun. I still can’t put any weight on my arm at all without pain.

I’m down to 1 Percoset per day now, only using it at night so I can sleep. I tried Advil PM, but the sleep aid irritated my Restless Leg Syndrome and that, in turn, agitated my bladder and I was up and down all night and barely slept at all. This was before I got the walking boot, so I had to scoot on the office chair to the bathroom 3-5 times per night for two nights. It took the second night for me to realize that it was the sleep aid that was keeping me awake. “Ah, irony, so we meet again.” ~~Velma Binkley

So, I’ve learned just in the last couple of weeks not to take walking for granted. After having to scoot on the office chair (the wheelchair is too wide for the bathroom door) and now walking painfully with a cane, I’m realizing that I shouldn’t take the little things in life for granted. Right now, I can’t even walk to the end of my driveway to get the mail because it hurts too much. Yesterday I was totally exhausted just from walking with a cane. Of course, this was after being off my feet for a week and a half, so the strength has been greatly diminished. I expect I’ll have to use the cane again for a week or so after I get the boot off. Just till the strength comes back for me to walk without the cane again.

Cassie and Sami are happy to have me back on my feet. Cassie was so happy that she nearly knocked me down last night. I barked at her to “Sit!” and she happily obeyed so I would scratch her ears. Poor pup gets so excited that she doesn’t know what to do with herself.