Dec 28 2006
Recovery and TLC
Thank you so much for your kind words. The surgery itself went well. I had not experienced being "under" anesthesia before, and it was a very strange ordeal. One minute laughing with the nurses, and then suddenly Kris was there with me post-operation and I was in a wheelchair! I was so out of it, and parts of the story are beginning to come back to me. After I woke up, I remember the nurse saying "It went well", and I kept on asking her what time it was… I am sure nurses and assistants have some funny stories about what people do when they are coming out… Supposedly, my sister came out singing at the top of her lungs! Kris reported that they had some trouble trying to get my sweater and coat on - evidently I kept trying to stick my head into the armhole. Of course, I don't remember any of that…
We got home and I felt okay for awhile, really swollen and in need of some rest. The afternoon passed, and by the evening, I was coming back to my senses. The pain set in later, and the medication they gave me made me feel quite nauseous, so I just slept it off. Sarah, my youngest sister, came over to see me - she brought flowers! So sweet. She probably just wanted to see her sister looking like a chipmunk!
The swelling is still quite noticeable, and it is still sore. I am on a steady diet of yogurt, applesauce, and mashed potatoes. And the matter of the ice packs… they are so sexy, let me tell you 
Kris keeps giving me a silly look like he is trying not to laugh. Of course, he is being a real sweetheart and taking good care of me. He actually has to have his wisdom teeth out in two weeks, so this is all reciprocal. Hopefully I will back on my feet by the weekend. Probably not on solid food for awhile longer though…
When I can keep my eyes open, I have been watching Season One of Veronica Mars, which was a Christmas gift from a friend at work. I also paged through some of my new books that I got for Christmas… I got some great books, several of them knitting related. See?
My sister-in-law picked up the lovely Christmas Stockings book at one of the local yarn shops. She is a crafter too (mostly cross-stitch and embroidery) so she knew a good book when she saw it! It is an Interweave Press publication, and includes patterns by many well-known designers, such as an Estonian style stocking by Nancy Bush. I realize that my sister-in-law may be dropping a big hint for next year's gift, but I don't mind. These look fun! Kris bought me Knit 2 Together, which has some fabulous patterns in it. I have been dropping serious hints about this book all season, so he heard me loud and clear. The book deserves a whole post in itself… so more to come… He also bought another "research" book for me, one that has topped my wishlist for the whole year, A History of Hand Knitting. This book makes my knitting librarian/historian heart go pitter-patter! Mom and Dad picked up the fun and stylish Hollywood Knits Style book, and it also has some cute patterns for sweaters and accessories. Loads of inspiration!
This was quite the crafty Christmas - my family knows me well!
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My big present was quite a surprise - a Serger from my parents! I am seeing all sorts of home crafts in my future. It is perfect for finishing napkins, tablecloths, and blankets. I hope to learn more about it. Any of you have tips on Sergers? I am sure there are some ways to incorporate finishing techniques of knitted items with a Serger as well… |
My sisters also got me some lovely crafty gifts: Mimi and Daniel went to New York City in early December for a short vacation before his deployment. They stumbled across a gallery show at the Fountain Gallery in Manhattan called "The Year of the Alpaca". Among the artwork, photography, and knitted items, Mimi found two lovely skeins of alpaca yarn. She bought them for me! I love the natural colors, and I am thinking about a colorwork design. Each skein is 220 yards, so there may be enough for a hat/mitten set. It is so soft!
Also from mom and dad, a fun scissors set! All of the scissors are special blades that cut patterns. These will be just perfect for some Project Spectrum crafts! and the colors of the scissors themselves are perfect for Project Spectrum as well!
And Sarah crafted a gift for me too! She put together a beautiful stationary kit. She bought a striped fabric box (which I love!) and filled it with some real goodies, including six handmade blank greeting cards. She used rubber stamps, special papers, and embossing techniques to make some beautiful pieces. She included a great orange daisy pen, and some other delights, like flower-shaped candles.
Other gifts included some beautiful jewelry, more fun books, silk scarves, a cashmere cardigan with pearl buttons (so classy!), and some fun kitchen appliances (a smoothie maker that has come in quite handy since the tooth surgery!) and beautiful wine glasses. A truly wonderful Christmas ~
Thanks again for your well-wishes and thoughts. I have been able to knit a little (when I can stay awake!) and I will show you that progress very soon.
With love from your chipmunk-cheeked friend…
I do bear a striking resemblance to this little guy at this moment… well, except for all of the fur…
Feel better friend!
Hope your feeling better soon!
You have great humor–I love that little squirrel. Get feeling better :).
I’m glad everything went okay. Enjoy those mashed potatoes!
thanks for the update! feel well soon & enjoy the smoothies & milkshakes in the meantime-make kris take great care of you (not that he wouldn’t) cuz we all know how husbands are when they are under the weather so you may be in for it after his surgery
just kidding!
kelly
Take care of yourself. I hope you are on the mends soon.
Amy
I’m glad to hear that your surgery went well. When I wake up from general anesthesia I’m usually bawling like a baby. Definitely not the nicest way to wake up! It sounds like you had a wonderful Christmas, too! Enjoy all of your lovely gifts and heal quickly!
Glad it all went well! Anesthesia is a funny thing for sure. When I woke up from my wisdom teeth I told the doctor he was really cute and that he looked like Eddie Munster. Yeah. That went over well. Thank god it was AFTER the surgery. Keep the ice on no matter how funny you look. And DON’T SPIT.
Glad to hear that everything is well with you - wisdom teeth are NO JOKE. And my friend was one of those people - came out of the surgery singing the Star Spangled Banner. That wasn’t me.
Enjoy your new books - great things to look through even if you can’t knit!
Glad to hear you made it… sorry to hear about the pain killers. Mine made me sick too! I hope you don’t have to stay on your soft foods diet for long.
I hope you are feeling better soon! It sounds like you had a wonderful Christmas, and received all those wonderful craft items. Those are the best presents.
I’ll tell you how I know you are on pain killers: this sweet post is categorized under Lopi V-Neck Pullover!
When I had my wisdom teeth out, the first thing I did was write my husband a note asking him, “where are my teeth?” I really wanted to see them, but they had been pulverized on the way out.
Wisdom teeth was also when I learned that I am resistant to anesthesia. This was useful information when having two c-sections, believe me!
I imagine how wonderful holidays must be with your family — everyone got you really personal gifts. How sweet!
Recover well, friend.
Feel better soon! If the painkillers make you feel nauseated, try taking them with food, and if that doesn’t help then call your dentist; don’t just keep taking them and feeling sick because they can prescribe something different or at least prescribe an anti-nausea medication (I used to be a dental assistant).
Did you keep your teeth? My husband keeps his in a small leather pouch that he now calls his “little bag of wisdom”.
It sounds like you had a great Christmas!
Glad your surgery went well!
I’ve had a serger for ages and I love it to pieces. The only advice I have is get a good cover for it and do your best not to un-thread it. Those suckers are tough to thread!
Rest lots! It’s amazing how much rest can really help the healing process.
Horray for quick surgeries!
You can use bags of frozen corn/peas/small veggies as ice packs. They wrap around your jaw really well and get the cold to all the good spots.
Mmmm, smoothies. Glad it went well.
Wow, you have had such a great christmas. I hope that helps get you through the mashed food!
I have had my wisdom teeth out and remember watching the same movie about eight times before I had seen all of it! Happy sleeping!
Rest rest rest and baby yourself while you can. You’ll be up and around and totally Lolly again before you know it. Ok, minus a few teeth….
Glad everything went well, rest up and let everything heal. I still have mine, but I try not to think too much about that. It sounds like you had a great holiday too, so good all around.
Awh, sweetie. Here’s hoping you feel better right quick!
When I was coming out of my anesthesia I kept insisting that I MUST see my teeth because I was convinced that they hadn’t done anything!
tee hee.
Glad to hear it went well!
Lots of rest, etc… take care of yourself!
Keep icing! And don’t skimp on the painkillers.
(we can be chipmunk cheek twins this week, the swelling in my face is finally going down)
Rest and heal, my friend.
What a crafty Christmas you had (gift wise)! I hope you (and your cheekies) feel better soon!
Glad to hear that you are doing well. When I had my wisdom teeth out “this week” 15 years ago the key to my recovery was the ice packs - I stuffed them in a pair of white socks that were then tied around my head (think vintage pictures of kids with mumps & the dressings) - maybe a pair of your handknits would fit the bill?
Sounds like a lovely crafty Christmas for you - look forward to the FOs in the new year.
Take care!
Glad everything went ok! My brother did that - “What time is it?” about every 20 seconds he’d ask what time it was. I also did that when doped on demerol for a kidney stone (wouldn’t recommend the kidney stone, but the drugs weren’t half bad). It is funny what we do when we’re out of it! Take care and rest!
I hope you’ll feel better soon!
You’re going to love your serger! I have two tips:
1) Find a serger book that has diagrams and maybe a troubleshooting section. I can give you the titles of the books I have, but there are probably better ones available now. I learned a lot through books when I got my serger.
2) Keep records of what you serge and the settings you use. I keep the information on cards, filed in a recipe card style box. All the settings are written down, along with the thread and fabric used and a sample of the seam. This has helped me a lot when I sew a similar fabric so I don’t have to figure out the settings again and again.
Have fun!
glad to hear everything went ok! I had my wisdom teeth removed a long time ago. Any reason to only eat ice cream is a good thing, right?
Sounds like you had a very lovely Christmas! Such lovely gifts, enjoy the serger
Oh you are going to love your serger. That was one of my most wise purchases.
too much awesome stuff to comment on . . . fingers can’t type fast enough . . .
1. I’m watching season 1 of Veronica Mars right now, too! I watched the first two disks and part of the third, I think, but I’ve been too crazy to find time in the past few weeks. I think tomorrow afternoon will be a sit, watch, and knit-fest.
2. A serger! Swoon. How awesome. I’ve used one, at the studio of the woman I took sewing lessons from, and it was a cinch, but then, she always threaded it up for us.
3. So happy to hear that you’re recovering well from the dental surgery. How funny that you and Kris are getting yours out back to back like that.
4. I just last night walked past the Year of the Alpaca thing; it’s almost at the end of its tenure, and I made a mental note to try to stop back. They have so many pictures of cute llamas in the windows, it makes your heart melt.
5. I’m jealous that all your family gets you crafty gifts. I never get crafty gifts. I think I need to start dropping better hints.
Glad everything well with the teeth. You won’t miss them!
If your serger comes with any guide classes, those are a good investment in time. In my class the basics were covered including cleaning and oiling the machine, threading, and troubleshooting. It is good to try out your stitches on scraps of the same fabric or weights that you are using and then make adjustment. It is so fast you will just love serging! zoom zoom zoom!
sounds like you had a great holiday! I hope your chipmunk face is feeling better soon!
I’m glad the surgery went well and that you’re back on the mend. May you enjoy plenty of milkshakes (my post-wisdom-teeth-removal favorite), smoothies, puddings, and soup until solid food seems more appetizing. Heal quickly!
Yay! Glad to hear surgery went well! You’ll be back to your regular unswollen self in no time. Happy New Year!
I’m glad your operation went well, love. When I had an operation last year, the anaesthetist asked ‘what would you like to drink?’. I asked for a gin and tonic and then laughed hysterically. The next I remember is waking up suddenly and asking for a pair of knickers. Very odd! I have it all to look forward to again next month, but I’ll try not to dream of knickers this time.
if you’d like i’ve got a pattern for a helmet liner. it’s cold in the sandbox during winter so they guys like them. just let me know. (and if it makes you feel any better i played a game of soccer 2 days after having my wisdom teeth out. it made me love whitey’s milk shakes)
So glad that the operation went well for you. I had my 3 taken out in the chair in 10 minutes, and I was recovered after a few days. I think it is a different story though if you need stitches. Hope you are better soon.
Glad it all went well. I had mine done a while ago and I sympathise. I ate a lot of soft food!
If you’re back to blogging, you must be feeling better! Take it easy and enjoy the downtime. It looks like you’ve got some good books to keep you occupied.
Ooohhh…a serger! It is a nice little thing to have. Biggest tip, read the manual and play with it with scrap fabric.
Also, when you change thread colors, don’t thread the whole thing over…instead, cut all your strings above the machine and tie the new color to the old ones and then just run your serger (watch for the knots at the needles and then cut & thread). Beats rethreading your serger.
Have fun. I LOVE my serger.
I think everyone has a goofy story about coming off the anasthesia - my brother started telling jokes or something when he came out. When I came out, i first noticed all of the bloody cotton in my mouth, so I started saying “I’m a zombie” and growling. It was funny to me at the time.
You totally scored ont eh gift front, especially with that serger! You can create some wonderful handsewn itmes with it, I’m sure. Of course, the books are great, too. I hope I get to page through them sometime soon.
Keep getting better, lady and don’t rush your healing!
Lots of great gifts to enjoy while you’re recovering!!!!
A serger is awesome - you can do so much with it!!! I am now hooked on Veronica Mars - I rented season 1 from Netflix and am working my way through season 2 now!!!!
all the gifts semm perfect for you, I love seeing what people got for Chritmas. thanks for sharing!
Glad it all went well. And good thing you had them all taken out at once. Who would want to go thru that again?!
What great Christmas gifts. Isn’t it great when friends/family know just what to get for you?
Enjoy a quiet weekend and a happy new year.
I hope you feel better soon! Happy New Year.
Hope you’re feeling better soon. When I was in the recovery room after having my wisdom teeth pulled, the nurse gave me a piece of paper and a pen to write questions for Mum (who was taking care of me). I kept it and it’s the funniest stream of rambles and questions ever. Funnier still, it’s half in English and half in French (my first language is French) with questions like
“Qu’est-ce que je look like?”
Get well!!
oh boy.. you poor thing! going under for all of your wisdom teeth is tough
i never did that. i got two at time extracted at the dentist office under local. wow, that was fun. anyway, i’m glad to hear that you’re on the mend! that serger you got is such a great present! i can’t wait to see what you’ll use it for 
hi, lolly! i hope you’ll be feeling better soon! yum, mashed potatoes!
I hope you have a quick recovery. It sounds as though you have plenty of new toys to play with and new books to read while you recover though.
Get well soon.
Fun time! My boyfriend’s sister got hers out fairly recently; that was a good time. ^_^ I hope you feel better soon, Lolly. And talk about some great books! Those will keep you busy while you rest up.
Get well soon. x
So glad to hear that the surgery went well and that your recovery is going smoothly!
You have some lovely gifts there!
Happy New Year, Lolly!
Glad to hear you came through ok. My son had his four out today and is resting comfortably (for the moment). Take care of yourself and good luck to Kris with his!
The Alpaca is lovely. How about the squirrel mittens from Hello Yarn? That’s what the colors made me think off.
Glad that all went well with your surgery. Make sure you rinse your mouth thoroughly but gently after you’ve eaten each time (when you’re back on solids, that is).
Alpaca yarns!!! Yummy!
Glad it went well– just dream of the glorious return of solids!! Nice gifts, too- I got some nice ones myself.
I’m glad its all over with! I remember when I came out from having my wisdom teeth out, I was SO concerned about the tooth fairy. I remember trying to tell my mom that I better get something really good for going through all that!
Get better soon!
Glad you are feeling better. I’ve had two wisdom teeth surgeries (just removing one tooth each time) and I kind of wished I’d done all 4 at once. Hope your recovery goes quickly and without incident. What gets you is the phantom aching that comes 5-6 days later when you think you’re getting better and you are, bu the aching, yikes. Take good care of yourself.
talk about funny stories the nurses have to endure, after my removal I was telling Moose over and over that I wanted a donut and called the doctor SUPER DOCTOR over and over heheheh Don’t remember a thing. Heal well!
Sorry to hear about your operation. I hope you are feeling better again! I am missing threee wisdom teeth myself. Fortunately they were only pulled out, which was ugly enough with all that crunching sounds.
You certainly have some very lovely people around you with all these lovely presents.
Best wishes
Petra
Glad to hear that your surgery went well! A couple of years ago I had to get a tooth pulled (it had had an old filling that had fallen out a few years prior to that, and since they couldn’t do anything with the tooth and it was getting abscessed, I needed it pulled). Anyway, I looked like half a chipmunk for a little while. A friend at work kept commenting that my face looked swollen on one side…gee, I wonder why…lol.
aww! I hope you are feeling better soon, lolly! I’m glad it all went well. I remember being really sick from the pain medication they gave me. The worst part of the whole ordeal for me was being sick from the pain meds, in fact. Glad you have a good hubby there to give you some nice tlc.
Hey Lolly! Hope you’re recovering well. I had my wisdom teeth removed a few years ago- good times!
At least you’ve got some fun reading material to peruse through while you’re waiting for the swelling to go down!
I’m glad to hear your surgery went well. Take it easy.
You got some really nice Christmas gifts.
Hope the pain and swelling diminsh fast! I remember when I had my wisdom surgery–yuck! I loved my percocets!
Take it easy!
Happy New Year too!
glad to hear everything went well. when i had mine out this time last year, the nurses told me they had a hard time waking me up…not really something one likes to hear ;0)
you were very lucky this christmas! i have been eyeing off the history of hand knitting, looks great.
and a cashmere cardigan, just what every *classy librarian needs ;0) x
-hope you feel better soon.
Hi Lolly , glad it’s all done and you are on your way to feeling better. How could you not with the yummy smoothies you make:) So good to see you making fun of yourself with this cute little chipmunk, made me laugh! Lucky you getting all those fun scissors and the serger! You have a lot to look forward too! Take care sweetie.
regarding the serger … yeah! if there are classes available, take the classes. a serger can do so much, and shouldn’t be limited to just cutting and overcasting the edge.
regarding the surgery, no fun! but, it sounds like you have lots of family taking good care of you
The books look great! Perfect to have around while recovering. You are too funny - the little chipmunk pic is adorable. Rest up.
feel better soon!!! then you can enjoy all your crafty gifties
looks like you had a wonderful Christmas, what a blessing to have friends and family know exactly what you’ll like 
and good luck to the DH on his surgery too!
feel better lolly! i had mine out in college and didn’t much like it.
you got quite the great haul of gifts there, missy. a serger! be still my heart!
I love you bunches. I hope to see you very soon. K-bye
Well, at least that’s done and over with! I hope you’re feeling better soon, and that you have a happy new year. (Will you toast with a smoothie?)
Yay! Glad you are back.
I was inspired by your “Year of the Alpaca” gift, I am thinking of starting an Alpaca along.
Dear Lolly! Hope you feel better by now. Wish you a wonderful 2007 with lots of crafty things and a succesful informal kal.
my son had his wisdom teeth out this past year, and when he got tired of eating mush, i picked up real mexican: refried beans and soft chicken chimis. soft, but with a lot of taste!
feel better soon!
You poor thing. I had my bottom ones out when I was 13 and I’m glad I did it then because I wouldn’t heal nearly as well now. I’m sure you’re doing better by now but definitely take it easy. Hope you have a Happy New Year!
I had my bottom (impacted) wisdom teeth extracted when I was 22 with local anesthesia, and although I haven’t had general anesthesia before, trust me when I say you do not want them removed without it! My top ones were done under local too, last year, believe it or not. I put that off until then b/c my experience was so bad on the first two. Those weren’t difficult to get out so I did local again, but it took five minutes.
On the serger, I’m so JEALOUS! I don’t have one yet or know how to use one, but I’d love to buy one and learn. I was thinking of taking a class on it somewhere.
I read all your comments, to see if anyone else suggested it, and another Amy came close with the ice-in-a-sock idea…
A friend got married around Thanksgiving, and her new father-in-law is a oral surgeon. So, anyway, he removed her wisdom teeth earlier this fall and what he does for an ice pack, get this, is a bra.
You put a zip-loc full of ice in each cup, put your chin in bewtween them and tie it on the top of your head. It holds the ice in perfect position. She had no Chipmunk cheeks whatsoever. He swears by it.
Just an idea, in case you are still swollen….