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Cabinet Doors & Dirty Socks

 From New Hearts to Halloween to Thanksgiving to Christmas...Happy Holidays! 

When Mike and I were first married I remember his Aunt Sandy asking me what I found the most irritating about living with my new husband. I told her it was his dirty socks that he would leave all over the apartment but mostly slightly shoved into the couch cushions. She then proceeded to tell me about her pet peeve with Uncle Ted. In the morning he would get ready and start to make breakfast and a coffee. He would leave every cabinet door and drawer open as he went through the kitchen. She would be so mad as she went behind him and closed every opened door and drawer. One day though, Ted went to a conference and was out of town for a bit. As Sandy got ready and went into the kitchen she noticed that the cabinet doors and drawers were all closed...Ted wasn't home and there was no sign of him. She told me to cherish the cabinet doors & dirty socks. From then on when I found the dirty socks shoved into the couch cushions I would pick them up and smile making a note that I had a husband home to leave his socks everywhere. 

Sometime around mid August I started to notice the dirty socks were missing. The darth vader coffee cups weren't on the counter with the coffee splatters, the covers were still neatly made up on his side of the bed, the trash didn't move from the garage steps that I put out, the bird feeders were empty, the laundry was lighter, and the 3 gallons of milk we would go through in one week suddenly lessoned to one. 

I missed those dirty socks with every fiber of my being. 

On September 18th Mike came home and our lives changed forever. On September 26th I took this picture and realized that I was once again finding dirty socks in the couch cushions...I guess some things don't change. This holiday season I plead with you to hug your loved ones, send a little note to reach out, and find those cabinet doors & dirty socks in your life. 

Over the past month Mike's recovery has gone so well we often have to remind ourselves that it hasn't even been three months since he received his new heart. He graduated to monthly appointments and biopsies with his next one on December 10th. He still has a grade 1 rejection and the doctors keep a close eye on his labs and mychart messages with updates from Mike. 

We have started to see some family and close friends as well. Mary and Cristie were able to visit and experience one of Mike's long walks. When Mike visits with others outside of the house he wears a mask and we always ask if someone has been sick recently, while in our home visitors would need to wear a mask. We even started going back to church and found a place to sit that is a little more secluded. We have a trip scheduled to visit Alpena for a Neubert/VanMassenhove Christmas celebration...fingers crossed everyone stays healthy. 

Thank you for the continued support, love, and patience through this process. We want to see everyone but also want to ensure Mike and his new heart stay healthy. 

Enjoy some photos from over the past month...and find joy in your cabinet doors & dirty socks. 






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