Today is my father’s 66th birthday.

Today my father is hanging out in the hospital with a brand new titanium hip.

(Actually, he is the proud owner of a very special fresh-off-the-assembly-line hip, one so new that they asked him to participate in a study about it where he and the hip will be monitored for the next five years. Perhaps there will be a survey to fill out. Perhaps my dad and his hip will make it into the Medical Journal of Really Awesome Titanium Hips. You never can tell.)

The surgery was a complete success.

He will probably be staying in the hospital through the weekend. Happy New Year!

My dad will be back in his wheelchair for the next 6-8 weeks as the surgeon said NO PUTTING WEIGHT ON THAT LEG YET so the bones can grow a little bit and get secure. But he’ll be able to do some toe taps and some leg stretching. The only issue from the previous surgeries that might not ever be fully resolved is that one of my dad’s legs is shorter than the other. The surgeon said he did his best to straighten it out so we’ll see what happens. In the end, a few inches in leg length can be fixed with a lift in his shoe, not the end of the world, etc.

And yet.

It still didn’t stop me from grinding my teeth together a little at the thought that for the rest of his life, one leg will be shorter than the other. (Which would be fine, I guess, except that it’s due to the original surgeon making a dumb mistake during the initial surgery. THANKS FOR THAT!!! HOW ARE YOU STILL PRACTICING MEDICINE?)

But hey!

Dad is doing well!

We got to visit him last night but only for 20 minutes and one at a time, as the hospital has a strict “One visitor per patient” policy until he’s in a room of his own. So, I saw pops for about 2 minutes total as we left most of the 20 minute visiting window for my mom. The first thing he asked my sister when he saw her was WHAT DID YOU GUYS EAT FOR DINNA?

Dad loves the Upper East Side restaurant choices, what can I say.

(We had Thai.)

(Deb’s fried rice was a smiley face.)

When I saw him, he was still a little bit dopey from the sedative and told me that the epidural wearing off was making his feet tingly. Then he grinned like a happy drunk and proudly slurred, LAWRA. I DID IT.

Yes, dad. You did!

A brand new hip.

The promise of walking in about 6-8 weeks.

A hospital waiting room full of people who love you.

Happy Birthday Dad!

We are so lucky to have you.