Ortho-Caramba!-Surgery: 3 Weeks and 3 Days (Day 24)

I'm so sorry folks! I must've hit "update" instead of "save draft," on this particular post. I wasn't finished typing it up, or adding the pictures. I just noticed. Here is the finished post along with pictures. I've changed the title of the post to account for the extra day it took me to post (and because I made progress with sleeping on night #3 and thought you should know about it).

3 Days Into Week 3

Some quick highlights about week 3 so far:

I can open wide enough to fit a real, adult spoon and fork into my mouth, and I've managed to use both just fine in the last 72 hours. (I've used a baby spoon and/or sipped my meals out of a dixie cup since day 1).
I ate huevos rancheros for breakfast today!! At least, I ate the jaw surgery patient version of huevos rancheros. My mom warmed a tortilla for me, then topped it with scrambled egg, refried beans, and salsa (sans chunks, she only really sprinkled the "juice" of the salsa over the beans so that I could get the flavor). The tortilla was just for decoration, we knew I couldn't eat it. HOWEVER, I was able to eat every other last bite of that meal WITH a fork, and in under 10 minutes. I simply cut the scrambled egg into smaller pieces, then dipped them through the refried beans and salsa mixture, and "popped" them into my mouth with a fork. I was able to mash most of it up against the roof of my mouth, but I was also pleasantly surprised to find that I could use my back teeth to chew even a little bit more than I could yesterday! Again I didn't try to overdo it, I mostly just wanted to "test" the feeling out. So far, it's really only difficult because my teeth are still pretty sensitive, but there is also some discomfort in pushing food back there because the back sides of my cheeks are still healing and bits of food find their way back there. Normally, the instinct is to use your tongue to get at these bits, but my cheeks are still sore, and rubbing my tongue back there hurts (and feels weird because I can actually feel some of the scar tissue!). So, I kept the "chewing" to a minimum. But this was an amazing MEAL, and I was really pleased with my progress in how far I can open my mouth, how easily I can use real utensils, and with how quickly I was able to get the food down. Success all around!
I've gotten really quick with removing and putting my bands back on to eat, brush, and exercise
Exercising my jaws HURTS. I like being able to take my bands off because it feels great, but actually trying to practice opening my jaws little by little a few times of day is quite painful. I never imagined that muscles were capable of such stiffness, but my cheeks are so stiff they feel "broken." I just can't believe how much it hurts to open wider than I can--- it borderline feels physically impossible to open any wider, but I suppose I am seeing some progress even in just the last 72 hours.
My energy levels are almost completely back. I was able to help my mom paint my kitchen, cook a delicious brunch (hence the huevos rancheros), and even enjoy a mimosa (or two), and I wasn't EXHAUSTED afterwards. It was a busy day, so I was tired at the end of it, but I was happy to not feel like I needed a nap.
Sleeping gets easier every night in week 3. During the first 2 nights, I couldn't get comfortable on my sides because I could literally feel whichever side of my face I was resting on begin to swell pretty quickly. Last night (Night 23) I took a couple Tylenol to help with the minor discomfort while sleeping, and it worked pretty well. I only woke up once because of the discomfort/pain of being in one position for too long (my right side).