Stef has gone to Canada and will be back tomorrow evening. Sam and his two gigantic dogs arrived and we are keeping them back in the family room so Toby doesn’t get frantic and I don’t have to figure out how to break up a ruckuts, if there is one. For the moment, this feels safer for us all.

I took Toby for a walk by myself earlier today – first time I’ve done that since knee replacement – and my knee and my stamina held up okay. Bit by tiny bit, my new bionic knee is feeling more like it actually belongs to me, that it’s not something I have only rented for a long weekend, and it’s not as achy or sore today, for which I am grateful.

I am so impatient when it comes to healing, wanting to throw down my cane and run the 440 which, come to think of it, truly would be a Christmas miracle. I am not a runner, except when chased by something big and mean. Oh well. Bit by bit, on this slow-motion healing journey, I go. JS