Purple

A quick update: Surgery went fine. I came home Monday afternoon and fought a lot of pain for the next two days, but have been getting better every day. Laying in bed has not been as awful as I imagined, thanks to the amazing heroics of Robert, as well as Anna and Liz and their families. They have taken such good care of us and the kids have had such a great time with their cousins. My kids are probably going to want me to go on bed rest more often if this is what they get when it happens!

Tuesday night: Anna's family was here when Liz's family arrived. We had 11 kids and 6 adults in the house that night but it didn't even faze me thanks to the great work of everyone here.

Danielle was in the room tonight, marveling that I can move my leg around (which, due to pain, I hadn't been able to do beforehand). She was under the impression that I wouldn't be able to move it at all with the cast on. I told her it's fine now, it only really hurts when I have to put my leg vertical to the ground, which, so far, is just when I need to go "powder my nose." I told her it even makes my toes turn purple, to which she responded "Well, purple is your favorite color!"

In a second

It's amazing how much one second is going to affect our lives for the next few months. Short story first, and then if you want details, you can keep reading.

I broke my ankle yesterday morning, and it's going to require surgery on Monday. If things go smoothly, I'll be in bed for two weeks, crutches for four weeks after that, and then slowly start weight bearing. Hopefully by the time the baby comes in October I'll be back to normal with just a little tenderness and pain.

If you're interested in the rest of the story, here you go . . .

I wish I could say it happened while hiking or skiing, but it is so not a glamorous story. Yesterday morning I wanted to let Robert sleep in, so I took Tiki outside for her morning business. Luckily Danielle was up and came outside with me. She had to run back inside to go to the bathroom, which was good because she ended up not seeing the fall (and maybe hearing some choice words? I can't remember).

The grass was wet from the sprinklers earlier that morning, and our lawn slopes down, so while I was following the dog around, I lost traction and started sliding down the lawn. I'm not really clear on how it happened because it was so quick, but I think it was when my foot hit the edge of the sidewalk and decided to go in instead of out. I won't tell you the gory details because I've seen the look on a few people's faces when I have, and it's not for the squeamish (give me a call if you want to hear about it . . . I'm impressed with myself and don't mind sharing)!

I just sat on the ground afterward, praying that Danielle would not get distracted and would come back outside. After a very long minute or two, I finally heard the door open and before I even saw her told her to go get Daddy. After another very long minute, Robert and Danielle came outside, and I very plainly told him that I broke my ankle (there was no question). It's amazing how calm I was, and I chalk it up to shock. We luckily had crutches here in the house and I sent Robert in for them. After he brought them, I hobbled to the house and made a phone call to a friend. No answer, so I just left a message saying that I broke my ankle and could she take the kids. I then went back to the couch and calmly swung my leg up and put my foot on a pillow.

My ankle was already swollen and it was then that it all started to register. The pain, the "what ifs" and "how are we gonna deal with this" hit me hard. I know I was blessed to keep it together so I wouldn't freak out the kids. My friend called back a few minutes later (which was good because my mind was blank on who else to call) and told me she'd be up in a few minutes to pick up the kids and puppy. (Bless her!) Between then we got ourselves all dressed and ready to go. Poor Liesl had to be woken up and I could see she was really confused about what was going on, but she didn't cause any trouble.

The fall happened at 7:15 and the kids were out the door by 8:00. The moment I heard them pull out of the driveway I started to groan and cry. After a few minutes I decided that wasn't helping me feel better, so I stopped and Robert and I started talking logistics. ER or urgent care? Can he get work off? (He had the 12:30-9:00 shift that day, and luckily did end up getting it off.) Which car to take? After we got it all figured out, we set off for our adventures in the world of medicine. I don't think it could have gone more smoothly--four hours after entering the doors of urgent care I was finished: x-rayed and numbed (I loved the orthopedic surgeon then), my ankle was set and a splint put on.

(A side note on the numbing: It required shots, which of course freaked me out, so I buried my head in Robert's chest while the doctor did it. The doctor did such a great job that I hardly felt a thing, but poor Robert almost passed out!)

My view for the next two weeks

So now I'm in bed for a few weeks (anyone have any book suggestions?) Luckily Robert's sisters from Colorado and Oregon were already planning separate trips to visit us these next few weeks, so I'll have plenty of help (one even changed her plans to come here earlier). Then my mom will be here to help for a month since I'll be on crutches and can't drive.

I've also been blessed with people from church willing to help. I called my visiting teacher this morning and she's already been here to clean my house (super embarrassing since I had been letting it go until right before our guests got here). I've had play dates and babysitters all day for the kids, and since Robert has to work tomorrow, my good friend who saved me yesterday will take the kids and the puppy until Robert's sister gets here (she took the puppy today, too. Her four boys love it!) I'm finding it really easy to count my blessings instead of cursing the situation, and that's a blessing in itself.

One big bummer, though, is my surgery is on the first day of school, so I'm going to miss all the pomp that goes along with it. Luckily their school had sneak-a-peak today and Robert explained the situation, so hopefully the teachers will be a little more understanding.

So I guess I needed a reminder that I'm not in control (more like a knock on the head). But life does go on. Just a few minutes ago Danielle came in to show me that she lost a tooth.

A better view

Welcome Tiki!

We have a new addition to the family!
We got her on Saturday, and we're all in love with her.

I wish this was a video--Jarrett's giggling was so cute!

We've named her Tiki (we wanted a Disney-themed name and Danielle came up with this from Disneyland's Tiki Room). She's a nine-week-old goldendoodle (half golden retriever, half miniature poodle), and is very sweet, mellow and great with the kids. She lets them carry her around like a stuffed animal. Even better, she's had more potty successes than failures! Her first night home was kinda rough (we're crate training), but last night was much better (knock on wood).

Another good thing about having her around is I'm allotting myself more time to just hang out so I can keep a good eye on her. Now I've been able to catch up on my blog!

The Kitty turns 3!

Liesl has officially finished the terrible twos! Well, in age anyway . . .

The lucky girl had three birthday celebrations. For the first party, we went to a friend's house to play (since our back yard is getting a face lift) and I brought cake. As you may recall, Liesl is The Kitty, and as such, wanted a kitty cake. I proudly offered this to her:

She loved it, until we lit the candles:
This was when we first learned she does not like candles on her cake.

Since we were going to be on the road to Arizona for her actual birthday, and since Robert wasn't going to be with us, we had a little family party with cupcakes and presents before we left. I took her to Target to pick out presents for herself since I had no clue what she would like. Afterward I determined that she's an animal lover: she picked out not only a kitty toy, but a duck and hamster toys as well.

She was a happy girl. Then we lit a candle for her cupcake:

Luckily her brother was willing to be the hero:

Hopefully she's not too emotionally scarred from us laughing at the "scaredy cat".

The third party happened while we were in Arizona. We went to Organ Stop Pizza in Mesa, and Liesl thoroughly enjoyed it, except, ironically, when the kitty puppets came on stage. Grandma brought a cake, but no candles this time, and the organ played "Happy Birthday" just for her.

Happy Birthday, Liesl!

Where did our summer go?

I can't believe we start school again in a week. The time really flew, but I'm pretty sure if we had to deal with another month, I wouldn't feel the same way. I did try to keep us fairly busy so we weren't bored the whole time, but we still had plenty of time for Wii (Jarrett), computer (Danielle), and coloring (Liesl). Here's a few other things we did to fill the time:

One more trip to Disneyland
It was hot and crowded, but we got to see World of Color two days after it opened. Jarrett also went on Tower of Terror.

The Brave Boy and Robert are front left

Riding the rails
The kids and I took a day trip to Roaring Camp Railroad. We got to ride a 99-year-old steam train up the mountain into the redwood forests. It was a lovely day and nice getaway.

My first "sun flare" photo

I really thought Jarrett would love it, but the further we got up the mountain and away from the van, the more concerned he got that we wouldn't be able to get back home. He became inconsolable, no matter how many times I told him that the train would take us back down the mountain to where we started. He was so relieved when we pulled back into the station.

Swim lessons

Photo by Liesl

Jarrett and Danielle finished two sessions of swim lessons, their first ever, and did very well, passing two levels each. Liesl and I also did a Mommy and Me class for one of the sessions. The kids are much more confident in the water, which is all I really wanted since we were going to spend a week in Arizona in July.

Did you say Arizona in July?
Yep, and we had a great time. The kids and I (poor Robert had to stay home and work) went to the Phoenix area so we could visit my mom, sister and aunt and their families. Besides going to the pool three times, we went to a fun aquarium and a really cool pizza place (after we got some ear plugs for Jarrett who thought it was too loud).

Jarrett before ear plugs with Grandma and cousin Natalie

Jarrett after ear plugs with cousin Lauren

Aunt Rachie, who is a preschool teacher, also let Danielle come to cooking camp every morning, which she loved.

Danielle at the aquarium

The kids were really good for the 12-hour (each way!) drive, and the heat here in NoCal isn't as bothersome after a week of Arizona's weather (I didn't know July was monsoon season--hot and humid!)

So that's been our seven-week summer break. I think I'm actually going to miss the kids when they start school!

In which Danielle will play the part of a quail

Danielle's dance studio had their annual dance recital a few weeks ago. Danielle has loved being in ballet this past year and has learned a lot. Her posture and grace have improved, which is what I wanted, but she's also learning the proper names for all the positions and is constantly showing them to us.

For the recital her class performed a piece from Snow White. She got to play a quail, which she was very excited about because we often have quail running through our yard. Luckily we had a few weeks of swim lessons before the recital or else our fair Danielle would have blended in with the costume!
She did a great job and of course is very easy to find in the pictures because she's so tall (the class is for 5-8 year olds):Danielle had a great time watching all 30 dance numbers at the recital (2 1/2 hours long!), but still thinks ballet is the only thing for her.

Play ball!

Jarrett finished his first T-ball season a few weeks ago. He was hesitant when he first started, as he is in every new situation, but by the last game had it pretty well figured out.
His favorite part was giving high fives at the end of the game. I'm still not sure if it's because he liked the camaraderie or because the game was finished!