What's up, doc?

I saw my spine surgeon this morning.  Well, actually, I saw his nurse practitioner, Amy, who is wonderful.  This visit was mainly to get the doctor's signature on the paperwork proposing new seating equipment for me at work and also a proposed return to work schedule.  He signed off on everything, and now the Long Term Disability Insurance Carrier will order the new equipment I need.  Once it arrives and is installed I should be good to go.  So the clock is definitely ticking, and I should be back to work very soon.  I am happy and excited and nervous all at once.  I never could have guessed that I would have been off work for over seven months with my back fusion surgery.

Tomorrow is my birthday, and it will be a low-key celebration at our house.  I did go out and buy my own cake, because I wanted a good birthday cake this year and did not want to make my own.  So I got a carrot cake (yummy!) and can't wait to cut it tomorrow evening after dinner.  Speaking of dinner, Steve is going to pick up burgers on his way home from work.  I know....but what can I say...I love a good burger every once in a while, and it has been awhile.  It just sounded good.  Tomorrow is going to be a rainy, messy day and we're just going to stay in.   He was busy in the bedroom, door closed, with the gift wrapping supplies earlier this evening, so I will have some happy surprises I'm sure.  Then, Saturday, we're going out to a birthday lunch and a little shopping with our wonderful next-door neighbor, Pam.  I am very blessed.

For the first year in I can't remember how long, we will not be traveling at Thanksgiving.  Instead, we are hosting my family members here.  I'll be cooking, and we'll have a full house, and I'm really happy about that.  I've been planning meals and looking at recipes and making shopping lists and fluffing up the guest room and doing all the things you do when you're expecting company.  I've been trying not to overdo things with my back, and mostly succeeding, but not completely.  It's hard to know where the line is of what's okay and what is not so much...  Anyway, I'm learning as I go. 

I will leave you tonight with a picture of my baby in his "punkin" kerchief. 

More later --