Dan's Turn

I mentioned in Wednesday's post that we had a very important reason to stay on schedule and get home from our vacation on time. That very important reason was Dan's date with the orthopedic surgeon for his total (left) knee replacement. And today was the day.

Dan managed a smile for the camera while he was waiting to be taken up to the operating room.

We checked into the hospital, as directed, at 7:30 a.m. They prepped him for surgery and then we waited in pre-op until after 9:00, when they whisked him up to the operating room. I went to the family waiting area. About 10:20 someone on his surgical team called the desk with news that his surgery had just begun and everything was going well. 

I was getting text messages or emails from friends and family all morning, which was so encouraging. Our preacher, Rodney, showed up and sat and visited with me for most of the morning. It was a wonderful distraction. Had he not been there, my eyes would have been glued to the screen that showed Dan's patient number and a green bar that was excruciatingly slowly creeping along to indicate the estimated time to completion. 

As it turned out, the doctor came down at around 11:55 to tell me that the surgery was complete, and that everything had gone well. Dan spent a little longer than expected in the recovery room, but finally, around 2:00, he was brought into his own room, where I was waiting for him. 

He made his entrance on a gurney, joking around with the nurses who were pushing it. He bravely scooted himself off of that gurney and onto his bed (hard work!). He was in good spirits. 

I stayed until about 4:20, then ran home for a quick bite to eat, and went back to the hospital around 6:00. Right after I got there Dan stood and walked his first few steps, using a walker, to the bathroom. I think he's off to a great start. I know that the doctor injects quite a concoction of pain killers into the leg at the end of the surgery, and that tomorrow those pain killers will have worn off, so his leg may not be as happy as it was today. But I'm proud of him, and expect him to do well through all of the ups and downs of the recovery. He is hoping to come home on Saturday, but that will depend on what the doctor says.

[I will post the pictures and narrative of the final leg of our vacation soon. Dan's new knee took precedent today.]