Today marks 5 weeks since I sprained my ankle and 4 full weeks at home. In that time, I’ve had little to do beside eat, sleep, and go to physical therapy. Thursday marked a turning point. Thursday I became busy!

Compressing my legs at PT

My mom’s friend owns a ladies’ clothing boutique in a nearby town. She offered to let me work in the store on days that I don’t have PT. Thursday was my first day! I spent nearly 6 hours helping out and learning the ropes. I haven’t spent much time on my feet lately, so I was worn out by the end of the day! The other women working were patient with me and very entertaining. I think I will enjoy spending time in the shop!

After work (I like saying that again!), I met a friend at The Magnolia Theater to see “Room”, a film interpretation of the book by Emma Donoghue. Emma Donoghue also wrote the screenplay and helped produce the film, so much to my satisfaction, the film stayed true to the novel. It is disturbing, sad, and somehow hopeful, so my friend and I were both a little overwhelmed by the end. We briefly discussed what we had just seen before parting ways.

The next morning, I had a physical therapy session. My ankle was sore from standing so much the day before, but I was still able to tackle some new exercises. I’m doing a lot of work balancing on one leg, sometimes while completing other tasks. I can do small parallel jumps on an incline, and next week I will hopefully add more “bounding” exercises.

GYROTONIC– my favorite!

After PT, I had a brief coffee break, and then went to my first GYROTONIC session in over a year. I am a certified instructor, but I felt rusty after not having access to the equipment while I was on the ship. I was very happy to schedule a session with the woman who first introduced me to the system. We did mostly level 1 exercises that were slightly modified to accommodate my sore ankle. It felt great to move! The spinal motion series helped to bring my body back into symmetry after 5 weeks of favoring my uninjured side. My legs have been underutilized, so the stretching and strengthening exercises in the hamstring series felt great. Upper body openings were extremely effective to work out some residual tightness from over two weeks on crutches. I left the session feeling rejuvenated!

Shortly after I returned home, my parents and sister, Lindsey, arrived from the airport. I hadn’t seen Lindsey since March, so I was thrilled that she was able to come home for the weekend! We spent Friday afternoon relaxing together, and then went to a delicious dinner at a nearby Mexican restaurant. My sister says Virginia doesn’t have good Mexican food, so it was a must while she was in Texas. After dinner, we watched a movie and tucked in early.

Avoca Coffee

The next morning, my parents went to play tennis, and my sister and I drove to Fort Worth. We started our outing at Avoca Coffee. While we sipped our tasty espresso drinks, she helped me edit some resumes I’ve been working on. When my ankle is stronger, I want to start teaching dance classes, so I am tailoring a resume for teaching in the area. Her input was very helpful! It was also nice to be able to talk face to face about some of the things that have happened over the last 8 months.

Books at Spiral Diner

Shortly after 11am, we crossed the street to have an early lunch at Spiral Diner. Spiral is a vegan restaurant that I frequented when I lived in Fort Worth, and my sister and I have been there together many times. We ordered two of our favorite items; the hot hummus wrap and sweet luv’us humus wrap, and split them. We also got a cranberry oatmeal cookie to take home with us. The food was great, and the atmosphere in the diner was quirky and fun, just like we remembered.

Renzo Piano Building

After lunch, we took a scenic drive through downtown to the Cultural District. My sister wanted to see the new wing of the Kimbell Museum designed by Renzo Piano. We learned about Renzo Piano and the Pompidou Center in Art History, so we were both intrigued by his work. We walked through the original Louis Kahn building to reach the new addition. We stopped outside to admire some of the details, and proceeded inside, appreciating how well the new building complimented the original. Like the older building, it had natural light pouring in and an open, airy feeling. The main difference I noticed was a more geometric design. My ankle was getting sore, so we returned to the car instead of going through the Caillebotte exhibit. I hope to go back and see that another day!

Large windows and a courtyard at the Kimbell

Our parents were home when we returned. Dad took a nap while my mom, sister, and I drank tea, ate our cookie, and watched HGTV. I kept my feet up while mom and Lindsey started working on a delicious Mediterranean dinner of roasted vegetables and sea bass. After prepping the meal, we all took a dip in the hot tub. Even though the air was chilly, the hot water felt great! We enjoyed our dinner together, and then sat down to watch a movie. Even though the movie was loud and action-packed, 3 of the 4 of us fell asleep at some point. It had been a fun day, but I was exhausted!

Mediterranean dinner

Sunday was Lindsey’s birthday. We all sipped on coffee while she opened her gifts, and then went to meet my grandparents for brunch. Thursday was my granddad’s birthday, so we had a lot to celebrate! It was so nice to catch up and spend time all together. After brunch, it was time to drop Lindsey at the airport. I was sad to see her go, but I’m looking forward to seeing her again for Christmas!

After a busy few days, I am tired and a bit sore. Luckily, my only plans on Monday are physical therapy, so I have time to rest up for my next day at work! I’m excited to be more active, but am trying to remain cautious so as not to slow my healing process or re-injure myself. They say patience is a virtue… Maybe one day I’ll have it!