November 20th

And what is so important about November 20th you ask? Well, that is the date we were given on June 23rd as our earliest 'leaving for AZ' date. We, Hubby and I, were sitting in the office of the internationally renowned ophthalmologist who had performed Hubby's Lasik surgery in 1999. His team had examined  Hubby's eyes and declared cataract surgery would indeed improve his vision. The surgery would be done in August (the earliest openings) and a final follow-up appointment would be necessary 90 days after the last surgery, November 20th. My jaw dropped and I said, "But we go south for the winter!" Hubby gave me a dirty look and told the doctor that would be fine. My attitude adjustment took a couple of days, but I did accept we would be spending Thanksgiving in SD and not AZ.

We made plans with the kids. I would cook a traditional Thanksgiving meal on Thursday (of next week) and we would celebrate Christmas on Friday or Saturday of the same weekend. We would leave for AZ the following week.

Little did I know...

Hubby had been complaining about his right hip off and on during the winter in AZ and most of the spring and summer. I suggested if hip replacement was necessary, this fall would be a good time to get it done as we would be here anyway. X-rays indicated it was bone-on-bone. It was time. Hubby had a good experience when his left hip was replaced in 2004. Surgery was scheduled for October 7th. All went well and Hubby would be 'cleared to drive' by the end of November when we could finally leave for the winter.

But SHIFT HAPPENS...

All that changed on September 16th when I had the thyroid ultra sound. Little did I know when 'suspicious nodules' were found, our departure date would no longer be the end of November.

It wasn't until I had my first meeting with the endocrinologist on October 31st, I realized the seriousness of those suspicious nodules. He shared a brief overview of what to expect and the timeline. I thought maybe we could leave for AZ after Christmas. The second meeting with him the following day clarified when we would be leaving for AZ. No attitude adjustment was necessary this time.

Today, November 20th, Hubby had his cataract follow-up appointment. We were expecting a minor procedure to improve the vision in his left eye as that eye is not at the clarity level either of us was expecting. No procedure today. That will be December 4th. (I wouldn't have gotten out of here in November anyway!)

Now there will be plenty of time for the broken leg to heal. The visit to the orthopedic doc earlier this week confirmed no-weight bearing until Christmas. All is healing well. There is no damage to the new prosthetic hip when Hubby fell and broke the femur. The 37 staples have been removed. He was wearing a compression wrap on his thigh and does not have to wear it anymore. I will continue to put on and peel off the lovely white TEDS (compression socks to prevent blood clots) until at least mid-December. (I had to wear them for 3 months; so will he!)

And to top it all off, winter arrived on November 10th with the first major snow fall and temperatures dropping from the 50s and 60s to the teens and low 20s. But we are adjusting to that too. I bought more appropriate winter gloves today. The little knit gloves just were not cutting it! There will be a heat wave this weekend when temps get above freezing. I might have to put the patio furniture and Halloween decorations in storage. I could not get things put away earlier this month as I had sprained my wrist and was not to lift more than 15 pounds after the surgeries. The wrist is much better and the lifting restriction is cancelled.

As for a departure date for AZ???? The earliest date will be January 21st.

It is what it is.