Ten Months Old

Busy week, as usual. On Monday I got some rare, yet enjoyable, me time. Steven took Avery to Osan to pick up his copy of Halo 4. It was supposed to be a quick trip but the game release was delayed and it turned into almost 4 hours of just me and a quiet house. Steven brought home dinner and surprised me with Starbucks. :)

Where's Avery?

There she is!!

Tuesday was my MRI appointment. I was relieved to finally be getting it done. The only problem was that the hospital rescheduled our appointment with such short notice that we weren't able to get Avery into day care that day. My friend, Karina, was able to help and baby sat Avery for us. Karina has a daughter 5 months older than Avery so she got to have a play date. Steven and I went to Good Morning Hospital for my MRI. I changed into hospital clothes and waited for my turn. When it was my turn the tech unlocked a very thick metal door and lead me into the MRI room. I had never seen an MRI machine before, it looked like something out of Star Trek. The tech helped me onto the table and fastened my knee into some kind of holster. He gave me ear plugs and noise canceling head phones. It freaked me out when the bed started moving into the machine, it was too close for comfort. I closed my eyes so I would get claustrophobic. The machine was terribly loud and I couldn't help but worry about the intense radiation I was being exposed to. The MRI was over in about 40 minutes, I was so happy to be out of that room. I quickly changed into my own clothes and went to see the orthopedic surgeon. My MRI looked normal thankfully. He said that some types of strain can't be seen on an MRI and most knee injuries resolve themselves within 3-4 weeks. I was already in my 3rd week so the doctor suggested I meet with the physical therapist. He also told me to stop wearing the brace and start walking on the knee unassisted so strengthen it.

Snuggling the frog her Great-Nana sent her

That evening when I went to shower Steven pointed out a small, quarter size bruise on my left bicep. I didn't think much of it at the time, I took my Ibuprofen and my Norco and went to bed.

The next morning the bruise was huge! It was a gross purple color and had spread 3-4 inches. It didn't hurt at all but it freaked me out. I called my doctor and left a message but she usually takes 2 days to return a call. I read on the internet that extended Ibuprofen use can cause bruising. The site said not to take Ibuprofen for more than 10 days, I had been taking it 3x a day for 3 weeks straight. I decided not to take anymore Ibuprofen or Norco to see if that helped. It was an awful choice, I was in so much pain!!

My first day of physical therapy was on Thursday. We were fortunate enough to get Avery into day care so we didn't have to take her to my appointment. Physical therapy was at Good Morning Hospital. I'm not a big fan of Korean hospitals for one big reason: they let all the patients roam the halls freely. Everywhere I look, whether its the coffee bar or the international clinic, there are Koreans in hospital gowns hooked up to IVs just walking around. It really freaks me out! The physical therapy ward was no different. Everyone in the room looked half dead, it was not comforting.

I've been in physical therapy a few times for my chest so I expected physical therapy in Korea to be no different, I was wrong. Instead of stretching, exercising or strength training I was instead instructed to lay down. The physical therapist spoke almost no English so the entire appointment was done in hand gestures. My appointment consisted of 20 minutes of a hot water pack on my knee, 20 minutes of some kind of ultrasonic wand thing, and 40 minutes of electro-therapy (4 moist sponges that shocked my knee). The physical therapist said I would need a few more treatments. I tried to make an appointment at the international clinic but they said I need a brand new referral for any more physical therapy sessions. Awesome, that will only take several weeks.

Electro-pod things

Friday morning was wonderful. I hosted my first play date :) Pagi, Bentlee, Jess and Mic came over. Steven had originally planned to leave the house so we could have girl talk but he ended up falling asleep a few minutes before my guests arrived. Avery is so interested in tiny babies. She is the youngest in her day care class so she's used to the other kids walking and being bigger than her. Avery and I have been working on "gentle hands" (she likes to pull hair) so I was ecstatic when she rolled over to Bentlee and gently touched his hands and head...that is until she began smacking him in the face :( I guess we'll keep working on being gentle.

After the play date I woke Steven up. My bruise was not getting any better so I had planned to go to the after hours clinic on base. A visit to the after hour clinic is usually 2-5 hours so I wasn't about to drag Avery along. When I got to the AHC I was happy to see that I was the only person waiting, that is until 3 soldiers in uniform strolled in :( Even if I was dying, the soldiers would be seen before me. (Side note: when I was pregnant I passed out at the gym. The doctor didn't see me for 5 hours!! Soldiers with the sniffles > pregnant spouse). I was at the AHC first and I wasn't about to wait for 3 soldiers shamming out of work. I went to the counter and asked how long my wait time would be and was surprised when the soldier immediately called a nurse over. After a minute I realized the only reason they were so prompt in seeing me was because they saw the bruising and assumed I was being abused. Once I explained the entire knee/ibuprofen/random bruising situation they seemed much less interested in anything I had to say. I was told to go home unless I lost feeling in my hand.

Skyping MiMi

Saturday was a big day for Avery. She finally went from Army crawling to actually crawling! It was awesome for about 5 minutes until she was all over the place. She crawled all the way to the front door when Steven left.

This weekend was full of adventure. It started out with Steven hitting a BMW while trying to parallel park. It wasn't bad but our black truck + their very white, very nice BMW = bad news. Steven asked a Korean soldier to write the owner a note in Hangul. As the soldier was writing the note the owner of the BMW showed up, he wasn't mad but seemed really bummed out. Steven and the guy exchanged information before we went about our business. We got lunch, called the insurance company, went to the PX and the commissary. It was an eventful Saturday.

On Sunday Steven was up bright and early to go play air soft. The game was cancelled due to rain so instead he got breakfast with his buddies and surprised me with coffee. Widener (Steven's air soft/work buddy) is finally done in Korea. We had a going away party at Hwa Hwa (Korean BBQ) for Widener and his wife. There was a very good turn-out for dinner - 20 people showed up (if you include the 3 kids that were there). Widener and Allison ended up being an hour late to their own party. They took a day trip up to Seoul and got lost on the way back.

Avery touching Bentlee's feet

During dinner I fed little Bentlee and snuggled him for a bit. I've been having terrible baby fever lately and holding him did not help. Steven and I are waiting another 1-2 years before adding to our family but dang my friends make it hard. Two of my friends are pregnant with their 1st baby, six friends are pregnant with their 2nd, and one friend is pregnant with their 3rd. Another seven friends are trying to conceive either their 2nd or 3rd baby. Three friends I graduated with already have 3 kids and another 5 friends I graduated with have 2 kids. I know its not a race but all these babies/pregnancies are killing me.

I left dinner early so that I could get Avery to bed on time. Steven stayed at the restaurant and went to see the new James Bond movie with the group. Steven had to take a cab home because I had the truck and everyone else had been drinking. He informed me that everyone left dinner without paying and he was left with the bill... Only Pagi and her husband were responsible enough to pay for their meal. That night Avery cried for 5 hours, I think she was teething. Steven and I took turns rocking and comforting her.

Avery Quinn - 10 months