Finally, Answers!

Today I finally got answers to the problem with my left ankle.  I met with Dr. Nelson at Goshen Orthopedic and he was able to analyze the MRI and explain why I have been in so much pain.  I would love to say that it should be an easy fix, but unfortunately, that was not the case.  I had an old fraction near the small bone on the inside of my ankle with a part of the bone missing.  This has caused a bone spur.  On the outside of my ankle there was a lesion filled with fluid under the bone.  Tendonitis had also inflamed all the tendons surrounding my left ankle as well as the achilles heal.  There was also concern that I had a nerved trapped below my achilles heal which would explain the sharp pains in the ball of my foot and traveling up my leg.

I was bummed when Dr. Nelson said that it was serious damage, but felt encouraged by his compassion and plan for action.  The office scheduled nerve testing to be done next Thursday and a followup appointment with Goshen Orthopedics' foot and ankle specialist.  Until then he asked me not to walk on it.  I explained that I could not promise that and continue to teach.  He then decided that a boot would provide support, so I could teach next week. The medication that Dr. Mohr prescribed had helped with the tendonitis, so I will continue to take that  until I see the foot specialist.  The boot was uncomfortable to walk in, but I was so happy to find out that my pain wasn't all in my head that I won't even complain.

WIT

When Meg transferred to Bethany we talked to the guidance counselor about yearbook.  Meg had taken it at Wawasee and had attended the class with Rachel on visit day last February.  I encouraged Meg to try it as I thought it would be a great way to meet students that weren't in athletics.  The class does not have a scheduled block time during the week, so they meet on Wednesdays at 7 a.m.  Meg asked me to take her as she doesn't want to drive that early yet.  Although it does mean that we have all been up earlier on that day, so far it hasn't been a problem.  Some of the other WIT (yearbook) students have siblings there early in the morning, so Cam always has someone to play ping pong with.  I don't mind it either as I get to school by 7:10 a.m. which is helpful on Smart Start day.  I have about twenty minutes to get my lesson plans on the board and unpack my papers before our meeting.  WIT will add to Meg's workload, but so far it has worked out well.  She has met more students and has been able to spend time with Rachel.

Educators Are All-Stars

Tonight was thank an educator night at the girls soccer game at Bethany Christian.  There were several teachers that Meg considered inviting from Wawasee, but in the end she decided to ask her Spanish teacher from Bethany.  Meg transferred in without a strong foundation in the Spanish language.  The class was intimidating at first as Meg wasn't used to speaking Spanish in front of students.  Meg put a lot of work into catching up and feels more confident in it now.  Nina has been very helpful and supportive of Meg throughout this process and Meg wanted to honor her tonight.  As a teacher I loved the idea.  It brought teachers to the game to cheer on their students and also let the teachers know that they were a valued member of the girls' lives.

Doug, Cam, Mom, Dad, Aaron and I were all in attendance tonight cheering Meg on.  She played absolutely fantastic in the first half and had several opportunities to score throughout the game.  The girls beat West Noble which added to the festivities of the night.  Doug, Cam and I left after the game, but Aaron stayed to watch the boys' game with Meg.  They didn't make it through all of the game as Meg needed to work on homework tonight as well.  It was a lot of fun listening to her talk when she returned home.  She has thoroughly enjoyed Bethany and has made a lot of friends.  We couldn't ask for anything more.

Monday

It was harder than normal getting back into the swing of things today even for a Monday.  Cam and Meg got to sleep in as Monday was their late start.  Thus, they were still in bed when I left.  I did get their lunch ready for them, however, before I headed out.  Although it began slow I was able to make it through the day.   I even had enough energy in the end to meet Doug at Cam's soccer game against Concord.  The game was a tough one.  Bethany led for much of the game, but in the suffered defeat 3-2.  Cam was disappointed, but we were proud of him.  Concord was four time the size of Bethany and the boys held their own and fought tough.  Even with the loss it was a nice way to end the day, cheering on my favorite fullback.

Getting Caught Up

Now that school has begun for all of us Sunday has once again become catch up on housework and homework day for the four of us. Today was no exception.   For me that meant laundry and general picking up.  Doug spent his time mowing and doing yard work.  Cam and Meg had time for mass and homework as well with Cam even squeezing in a round of golf.  I really appreciated Doug's commitment to cleaning and organizing the basement last weekend.  Not only was it wonderful to finish a large project, but it allowed Cam to have his friends over last night as well.  It also left us time to focus this Sunday on having an organized, clean house to start the week.  I know that not everyone else may agree, but for me that makes my life so much easier.

Game Night

Today Meg had a soccer game at Central Noble in the afternoon.  My parents, Cam, Doug and I all drove over to watch her play.  She did well and had several shots on goal.  Bethany got a quick lead to start and although the Cougars were able to score early in the second half, the Bruins held on to win 4-2.  It was fun being back at Central Noble.  The last time I was at the school was for Cal's tennis match senior year.  Today reminded me of that match as the soccer field was just up the hill from the tennis courts and Cam and I sat right beside it while watching Cal and Tim play doubles.  It was a memorable match as the boys had a huge lead and were about to close out when Cam decided to pack up his  chair.  At that moment Central Noble upped their play and almost won a set.  Thankfully, Cam set his chair back down and after a couple more games Cal and Tim held on to win.  Central Noble's rebound in Meg's game couldn't be blamed on Cam this time.  He left his chair set up by the fired the entire game.

After the game, we brought Samuel home with us.  Cam had invited he, JJ and Avery for game night at our house.  All of the boys had played Coo Rebellion before and Cam was glad to have those more knowledgeable to play with instead of Meg, Doug and I.  The boys played other games as well and also spent a considerable amount of time on the badminton court.  Doug ordered pizza for everyone and the night according to Cam was a complete success.  I was so glad that it worked out for him to have everyone over as they were a great group of friends for him to spend the evening with.

More Doctors & More Tests

I spent the morning at the South Bend Clinic meeting with Mom's rheumatologist.  The blood work that Dr. Clouse had ordered in early August showed that my rheumatoid factor was high.  With my Mom's history of rheumatoid arthritis the doctor wanted an experienced opinion on the treatment for the pain in my joints.  Dr. Mohr spent time asking me questions and looking at each joint that was inflamed.  From his observation and looking at my blood levels he felt that my problem might be a soft tissue issue and not necessarily RA.  He ordered x-rays of my left wrist and left knee and was interested in hearing how the MRI of my left ankle went.  He prescribed a strong anti-inflammatory that I will have to take twice a day.   I have a follow-up appointment with him in two weeks to reevaluate the pain and see if I was able to tolerate the medication.

The doctor's visit and x-rays took several hours, so it was lunchtime when I left South Bend.  I was happy to see a Chix-Fil-A on my way out of town.  It was a different experience than our local fast food restaurants.  The staff was friendly and the service was quick.  I wish we had one closer to Syracuse.  After I ate I drove to Goshen to do some shopping.  I needed several items from Target and Petco.  After getting the necessities I still had enough time to stop in at Pier 1.  I hadn't been there in quite some time and enjoyed looking around.  I was glad to find bowls to match the purple plates that Doug game me and I finally found a yellow cookie jar.  It was shaped like a beehive and had bees buzzing around it.  It definitely fit the color scheme of our kitchen.

I spent the rest of the afternoon at the hospital.  My MRI was scheduled for 3:25 and I arrived early in case they needed any paperwork from me.  Check in was easy as I had pre-registered earlier in the week.  I was taken back in the room quickly and met with one of the techs.  She had to ask a lot of questions and instantly alleviated my fear of having to be put inside the tube.  She explained that I would only have to be placed halfway through it since they only needed to take images of my left ankle.  The test took about forty minutes and they gave me headphones with quiet music to listen to.  During the test I was not allowed to move.  That wasn't a problem, except that I kept falling asleep.  Every time I did I would jerk a little.  It must not have been an issue as they did not have to redo any of the tests.  On the way out the tech told me to expect a call on Monday from my doctor and to make a follow up appointment with her.  From that conversation I was pretty sure that they saw something.  I know that the x-ray was abnormal, so I am guessing the MRI was concerning to them.  I decided not to worry about it as I will be finding out soon enough.