I had PT last Friday, Monday, and Thursday. I’m doing very good in therapy and have almost regained full range of motion in my knee. It’s been four weeks since my fall and I still can’t walk normally without the brace but I’m slowly strengthening my muscles around the LCL and MCL. I can’t do much about the tear in the tendon but give it time to heal. I was able to walk on the antigravity treadmill for the first time so that felt good. I’m going to start walking on our treadmill at home now. Dominic had a counseling appointment in San Antonio last Friday… he’s doing pretty good though I see him struggling with depression and trying to hide it. He went on a campout with his Boy Scout troop over the weekend and Curtis didn’t go with him. Dominic managed the weekend very well. He was the most senior boy in his patrol and ended up cooking quite a bit for his patrol. He’s growing up and it’s a bittersweet pride seeing him start to accomplish things in the world without us. Curtis and I went to a holiday party on Saturday and it was fun to get dressed up. Those kind of events exhaust me though and I needed some space to recover. Curtis left for a week-long business trip but came home early because he got sick with laryngitis and a chest cold. I love taking care of him and being in nurse mode. The kids and I got teacher gifts made and the baking portion of the holidays are about to commence.
Day 347 ~ Wrapping
Monday, December 12th, 2016
I had a busy weekend and didn’t pick up my camera. It’s all good. I’m working on letting go of “should” and guilt and not beating myself up when I don’t meet my own expectations. Dominic is learning this terribly self-destructive behavior from me so I’m making a conscious effort to let stuff go. Mom and I set up a grand wrapping station at her house and started wrapping presents. I’ve never been this on top of Christmas this early. I’m pretty much done with shopping, even stockings. Most of the gifts are wrapped as well though we can’t put them under the tree because Anna obsesses to the point of anger. I’m sticking with red and white paper this year. I love the way stripes look.
Nikon D750 | 105mm | f/3.5 | 1/200 | ISO 640
Day 348 ~ In the Spotlight
Tuesday, December 13th, 2016
Mom let me know that we had a clump of orange mushrooms growing in the rocks near a big potted plant. I also found a few solo mushrooms hanging around the yard. I had to wait a couple of days until we had some real sunshine so that I could photograph them in prettier light. Winter skies are so gray! This one was sitting right the path of the sun.
Nikon D750 | 105mm | f/8 | 1/320 | ISO 640
Day 348 ~ Mushroom Tiers
Tuesday, December 13th, 2016
This is the huge clump of mushrooms my mom had found for me. They were hidden away, tucked under the large potted plant that sits in a rocky section of the landscaping. I laid the camera on the gourd, put it in live view mode, and tilted the screen up so I could see (no bending down on rocks for me at the moment!). There is a surreal nature to this image that I find very appealing. It reminds me of those towns carved into the sides of cliffs.
Nikon D750 | 105mm | f/8 | 1/250 | ISO 640
Day 348 ~ Behind the Bramble
Tuesday, December 13th, 2016
Sometimes changing your perspective yields unexpected beauty. On the backside of this clump of mushrooms, behind the bramble of another bush and beside the potted plant, I found one mushroom exposing its underside in the shadows. Mushrooms aren’t typically pretty objects, but I find the patterns in the gills very appealing.
Nikon D750 | 105mm | f/5.6 | 1/250 | ISO 640
Day 349 ~ Playful Disrespect
Wednesday, December 14th, 2016
Wednesday night I took Dominic to his Patrol Leader Council meeting. He’s the senior Patrol Leader for the Longhorn Patrol in his troop. Since Curtis was home sick and mom was recovering from a dental procedure, I challenged Anna to be independent. She texted me during the meeting and wasn’t feeling well which was code for being a little anxious. She did end up waking Daddy for help, but I think she did very good for being somewhat solo. Dominic was in a happy and playful mood when we got to the meeting. I realized I hadn’t taken any pictures of the kids at all this week, so I pulled out my camera. He pranked me by changing his nice smile to sticking out his tongue but I love the juxtaposition of his serious Boy Scout uniform and silly irreverence.
Nikon D750 | 35mm | f/2 | 1/200 | ISO 4000
Day 350 ~ Teacher Gift Prep
Thursday, December 15th, 2016
I didn’t mean to leave the teacher gifts to last minute but somehow I always do this. I debated… high school and middle school… are teacher gifts even necessary? But my kids’ teachers are extraordinary. Dominic’s behavioral specialist is a gem, she is like his school mom. She definitely needed to be recognized. And Anna’s team… well it takes a team. They are working SO hard to help her manage high school and it’s going so badly. I don’t take them for granted and I hope they all know how much I respect and admire them. They are all special people.
Nikon D750 | 35mm | f/2 | 1/200 | ISO 800
Coming up this week is the end of school for the holidays, a cookie exchange party, an artist’s reception, some appointments, and a whole lot of nothing. Thanks for looking!
