Well, after that pathetic little post, Lily and I went to see a pediatric orthopedic doctor. He was very kind and explained a lot about the growth plate that Lily broke, and how it heals, and basically just reassured me and gave me lots of information. He gave her a cast for 4 weeks, which she happily and proudly wears now. It is not that heavy, and she can easily crawl around. The doctor gave her permission to walk on it (in special shoe for her cast) as soon as she didn't have pain, and after days of desperately wanting to walk but it still hurting too much, on Monday she started walking quite well. So all is well on the healing front. Thank heavens for 2nd opinions!
Now! On to Christmas!
Lily was so gung ho about Christmas this season. As soon as we put out our decorations, little notes started popping up around the house. By the cookie plate, there was a note that read, "Dear Santa, I hope are cooke's are as sweet as you. from: Dad, Mom, Andrew, Lily, Michal. Ather: Lily" On the fireplace there is a sign taped up that reads: "Santa is the best!" in alternating green and red letters. Under the tree is a tiny note that read: "I love Santa."
Santa didn't disappoint.
At 4:11am, Andrew burst into our room and announced that Santa had arrived. I groaned and told him that was great, but there was no way we were getting up. GO BACK TO BED. He sheepishly said, "Oh. Sorry. I thought the clock said 4:50". As if that would have made it any better!
At 4:45 am, I heard the other two get up (Michael and Lily were sharing a room). Lily is trying desperately to strap on her special shoe so that she can walk, and Michael is just leaving her behind. She thumps down on her butt instead, and after checking out the presents, they come clambering into our room. I tell them it is TOO GODDAMN EARLY (minus the curse word, of course), and that they can come in and cuddle with us at 5:30.
At 5:30:01, all three kids come in and "cuddle". I got kneed in the breasts several times, Jeff kicked in the kidneys at least twice, and we talked about which child(ren) we should sell into slavery and use the money to buy a yacht. Pleasant Christmas morning conversation.
At 6:00:02, they all clamored into Lily's room, where Memere and Pepere were "sleeping". There's no way they were actually still sleeping with as quiet as these children were.
We came downstairs and tortured the children by wandering around getting coffee and garbage bags and extra chairs while they salivated over their presents. They were especially curious about the large Santa gift that was labeled for all three together. They all tore into it together and found another wrapped gift inside. And then another inside that. And another inside that. They were all laughing, and Lily was shrieking, "This is the craziest Christmas EVER!". Finally, they got to the prize in the middle...a 2DS for the 3 kids to share.
As usual, the kids were super happy and excited about every gift...even clothes and books. One of the reasons they have so much crap is because they are so much fun to buy for! At one point, Lily opened a 3DS game (to go with the new DS), and she yelled, "OH MY GOSH! IT'S...A...IT'S...I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT THE HECK IT IS, BUT I LOVE IT!!!!" Which pretty much sums up the whole mood.
As usual, the kids were super excited to give each other gifts and give Jeff and I our gifts. They are just so magical to spend the holidays with. I feel so blessed to get to enjoy them each.
And now we will pack up and head to Ohio to share some of this Christmas magic with others!
Merry Christmas!
Wednesday, December 25, 2013
Thursday, December 19, 2013
A whole new meaning for the phrase "Christmas Break"
So we've added something to our Christmas to do list over here.
Original list:
Buy presents
Wrap presents
Plan meals
Shop for food to prepare for Christmas guests
Plan which cookies to make
Get supplies for cookies
Bake cookies
Send Christmas cards
Clutter up the house with crappy Christmas decorations
Answer lots of questions about Jesus' birth
Answer lots of questions about Santa
Get teachers' gifts
As of last Sunday, I had of course crossed off a few of these items. But by Monday morning, I had added a few things...
New, Revised List:
Buy presents
Wrap presents
Plan meals
Shop for food to prepare for Christmas guests
Plan which cookies to make
Get supplies for cookies
Bake cookies
Send Christmas cards
Clutter up the house with crappy Christmas decorations
Answer lots of questions about Jesus' birth
Answer lots of questions about Santa
Call school to let them know that Lily will be missing the entire last week before Christmas break because she has had her OWN Christmas break and cannot put any weight on her leg and cannot be trusted to maneuver crutches and there doesn't seem to be any need to get a wheelchair for just a few days of school
Call several orthopedic surgeon's offices and make appointments as soon as possible, which is difficult since many many people go on vacations this time of year and there aren't many openings
Go to 2 different doctors since the first doctor gives Lily a giant boot which is heavy and hurts her foot more than the original injury does
Take van to the shop to investigate crunching sound in the brakes
Carry Lily around everywhere.
Try to figure out how to stop the boys from wrestling so that they don't add to the break issues of this wonderful Christmas break.
Poor Lily. She was at a birthday party Sunday night at a Bounce party place. Jeff just dropped her off so he could do some last minute errands/Christmas shopping. About 20 minutes after he dropped her off, he was called. 30 minutes after that, he was sitting in an ER with the party girl's uncle (sent along to help) and answering questions he didn't know the answer to (who is her primary doctor? how much does she weigh? why is she wearing a shirt 2 sizes too small? why is the Indian man that you don't even know the name of answering questions about your daughter's initial injury? do we need to call social services?) I was stuck at home with 2 sleeping boys until 11:00pm, desperately wanting to be there, but not willing to call a neighbor to come sit with them, because I could hear Lily laughing and talking in the background, so I knew I wasn't really needed.
The ER put a really nice half cast on the back of her foot and ankle and wrapped in from knee to toe in ACE bandage. We treated it like a cast (no water!) and Lily felt great. All day Monday, she just crawled from place to place and was really careful to not put weight on it. I managed to make an appointment at a pediatric place 45 minutes away for Thursday morning. The mother of the birthday girl just happens to be a doctor and called me Monday afternoon and had gotten me another appointment for Tuesday. Since I was starting to be convinced this wasn't actually broken, I took the appointment (but kept the Thursday one just in case)
The doctor's appointment Tuesday was not all I had hoped for. It was not a pediatric office, and that was obvious. After answering questions on the new patient sheet about whether Lily was pregnant or smoked or had GIRT (and no space for a guardian signature...a good sign children are not usually signed in). The doctor was running 90 minutes late, but when we got in an exam room, he breezed in, unwrapped Lily's foot, announced that it was indeed broken by pressing on the ankle a bit, pronounced that she should have a boot because it will be easier for me to bathe her, then called for nurse to get a boot and left. I didn't see him again, couldn't ask any questions, and...well...that is not how you treat a nervous parent of a 7 year old. The nurse brought in this giant boot and strapped Lily in really tight.
Lily almost immediately began complaining of pain. She was up several times during the night, and I loosened it more and more. The next morning, she was whimpering a lot. This is the girl who was acting FINE with it. I took it off to let her take a bath, and a whole new bruise/sore spot has shown up on the top of her arch. I think it is from the boot. It is too heavy and uncomfortable for her to crawl with. She was in pain almost all of yesterday.
I am sick to my stomach. If I had just waited until Thursday. If I had just INSISTED on a cast. If I had blocked the door and made him answer my questions. If I had just thought of those questions fast enough. If. If. If.
I am grumpy from not sleeping. Even though she only wakes up a few times a night, I am listening for her all night. I hear every sigh and snore and rustle. I am moved almost to tears when people express concern for her and am irrationally enraged when people ignore the issue. My baby. My heart aches when she smiles and says, "I'm fine!" just before she winces and moans. I want to make it all better.
It could be much much worse. She is going to be just fine...she says she is just fine now. But the Mama Bear in me can't stand it.
As far as my list goes? I am too tired and distraught to plan the meals and shop...but I'll go anyway and we'll just have tacos instead of some nicer, fancier dish. I'm waiting for my mom to come and bake cookies with us...I hate baking, but it will be fun with her. And the car ended being totally rusted out underneath (it is only 6 years old???), so that's $800 more dollars to bleed out on top of all these co-pays... Oh! And our computer died, so Jeff had just bought a new computer last week. Ha ha! Funny how all of this rains down at once! And in December! Traditionally the month we splurge and go crazy anyway! Oh!!! And since we had money in our flexible spending account for health care that was going to be taken away if we didn't use it, Jeff got some fancy dan new prescription sunglasses to use up the money. He waited until December 13th, just in case something happened. And Lily did this on December 15th. Ha! Joke's on us!
Anyway, it is almost Christmas break. We have new BRAKES and one little BREAK in the ankle and we are hoping that is quite enough breaking for this family :) We will have a glorious Christmas despite it all...I know this from all the little notes that have been pasted everywhere. I'll write a happier post about those next time. This time was just for whining.
Original list:
Buy presents
Wrap presents
Plan meals
Shop for food to prepare for Christmas guests
Plan which cookies to make
Get supplies for cookies
Bake cookies
Send Christmas cards
Clutter up the house with crappy Christmas decorations
Answer lots of questions about Jesus' birth
Answer lots of questions about Santa
Get teachers' gifts
As of last Sunday, I had of course crossed off a few of these items. But by Monday morning, I had added a few things...
New, Revised List:
Wrap presents
Plan meals
Shop for food to prepare for Christmas guests
Bake cookies
Answer lots of questions about Santa
Call school to let them know that Lily will be missing the entire last week before Christmas break because she has had her OWN Christmas break and cannot put any weight on her leg and cannot be trusted to maneuver crutches and there doesn't seem to be any need to get a wheelchair for just a few days of school
Call several orthopedic surgeon's offices and make appointments as soon as possible, which is difficult since many many people go on vacations this time of year and there aren't many openings
Go to 2 different doctors since the first doctor gives Lily a giant boot which is heavy and hurts her foot more than the original injury does
Take van to the shop to investigate crunching sound in the brakes
Carry Lily around everywhere.
Try to figure out how to stop the boys from wrestling so that they don't add to the break issues of this wonderful Christmas break.
Poor Lily. She was at a birthday party Sunday night at a Bounce party place. Jeff just dropped her off so he could do some last minute errands/Christmas shopping. About 20 minutes after he dropped her off, he was called. 30 minutes after that, he was sitting in an ER with the party girl's uncle (sent along to help) and answering questions he didn't know the answer to (who is her primary doctor? how much does she weigh? why is she wearing a shirt 2 sizes too small? why is the Indian man that you don't even know the name of answering questions about your daughter's initial injury? do we need to call social services?) I was stuck at home with 2 sleeping boys until 11:00pm, desperately wanting to be there, but not willing to call a neighbor to come sit with them, because I could hear Lily laughing and talking in the background, so I knew I wasn't really needed.
The ER put a really nice half cast on the back of her foot and ankle and wrapped in from knee to toe in ACE bandage. We treated it like a cast (no water!) and Lily felt great. All day Monday, she just crawled from place to place and was really careful to not put weight on it. I managed to make an appointment at a pediatric place 45 minutes away for Thursday morning. The mother of the birthday girl just happens to be a doctor and called me Monday afternoon and had gotten me another appointment for Tuesday. Since I was starting to be convinced this wasn't actually broken, I took the appointment (but kept the Thursday one just in case)
The doctor's appointment Tuesday was not all I had hoped for. It was not a pediatric office, and that was obvious. After answering questions on the new patient sheet about whether Lily was pregnant or smoked or had GIRT (and no space for a guardian signature...a good sign children are not usually signed in). The doctor was running 90 minutes late, but when we got in an exam room, he breezed in, unwrapped Lily's foot, announced that it was indeed broken by pressing on the ankle a bit, pronounced that she should have a boot because it will be easier for me to bathe her, then called for nurse to get a boot and left. I didn't see him again, couldn't ask any questions, and...well...that is not how you treat a nervous parent of a 7 year old. The nurse brought in this giant boot and strapped Lily in really tight.
Lily almost immediately began complaining of pain. She was up several times during the night, and I loosened it more and more. The next morning, she was whimpering a lot. This is the girl who was acting FINE with it. I took it off to let her take a bath, and a whole new bruise/sore spot has shown up on the top of her arch. I think it is from the boot. It is too heavy and uncomfortable for her to crawl with. She was in pain almost all of yesterday.
I am sick to my stomach. If I had just waited until Thursday. If I had just INSISTED on a cast. If I had blocked the door and made him answer my questions. If I had just thought of those questions fast enough. If. If. If.
I am grumpy from not sleeping. Even though she only wakes up a few times a night, I am listening for her all night. I hear every sigh and snore and rustle. I am moved almost to tears when people express concern for her and am irrationally enraged when people ignore the issue. My baby. My heart aches when she smiles and says, "I'm fine!" just before she winces and moans. I want to make it all better.
It could be much much worse. She is going to be just fine...she says she is just fine now. But the Mama Bear in me can't stand it.
As far as my list goes? I am too tired and distraught to plan the meals and shop...but I'll go anyway and we'll just have tacos instead of some nicer, fancier dish. I'm waiting for my mom to come and bake cookies with us...I hate baking, but it will be fun with her. And the car ended being totally rusted out underneath (it is only 6 years old???), so that's $800 more dollars to bleed out on top of all these co-pays... Oh! And our computer died, so Jeff had just bought a new computer last week. Ha ha! Funny how all of this rains down at once! And in December! Traditionally the month we splurge and go crazy anyway! Oh!!! And since we had money in our flexible spending account for health care that was going to be taken away if we didn't use it, Jeff got some fancy dan new prescription sunglasses to use up the money. He waited until December 13th, just in case something happened. And Lily did this on December 15th. Ha! Joke's on us!
Anyway, it is almost Christmas break. We have new BRAKES and one little BREAK in the ankle and we are hoping that is quite enough breaking for this family :) We will have a glorious Christmas despite it all...I know this from all the little notes that have been pasted everywhere. I'll write a happier post about those next time. This time was just for whining.
Sunday, December 08, 2013
The most miserable parade ever
Our town had a holiday parade. Yup. A parade in December. And Lily's Daisy troop was all signed up to ride in the back of a truck through the streets of town.
I bundled her up. Long underwear. Winter coat. Winter boots. Hat. Hood. Fleece blanket to drape around herself.
I dropped her off at the starting area at 12:45 and then had to run to get Michael from a birthday party. It was cold, but there were just some light flurries that made it seem almost a festive day to have a winter parade.
Fast forward 2 hours. The parade is FINALLY passing through town...after the salt trucks have passed through. The snow is falling fast and heavy and WET. The boys have exhausted themselves playing in the snow on the side of the street. The marching band passes by...looking completely and utterly miserable.
And then come the trucks with all the Daisy's and Brownies.
Girls are huddled together like groups of refugees in the backs of these flatbed trucks. They are sitting in about an inch of snow that must have filled the trucks before they were allowed in. Some are sobbing quietly, most are just looking very very pitiful.
Lily spotted me and started crying. I got her troop leader's attention and got permission to just pull her out of the back of the truck. I wasn't the only one. Who could stand to watch their 7 year old cry her way through a stupid December parade? I carry Lily away and she is crying so hard, "My hands hurt. I am so cold. My hands hurt."
We get her in the car and she continues to cry. On the short drive home, we lose control of the car and slide off the road. We were going less than 5 miles per hour, so no damage to the car. Jeff patiently slides and skids the rest of the way home.
Lily announces that she is never going to do a parade again.
Mission accomplished?
That is the hardest earned parade badge in the history of the Girl Scouts!
I bundled her up. Long underwear. Winter coat. Winter boots. Hat. Hood. Fleece blanket to drape around herself.
I dropped her off at the starting area at 12:45 and then had to run to get Michael from a birthday party. It was cold, but there were just some light flurries that made it seem almost a festive day to have a winter parade.
Fast forward 2 hours. The parade is FINALLY passing through town...after the salt trucks have passed through. The snow is falling fast and heavy and WET. The boys have exhausted themselves playing in the snow on the side of the street. The marching band passes by...looking completely and utterly miserable.
And then come the trucks with all the Daisy's and Brownies.
Girls are huddled together like groups of refugees in the backs of these flatbed trucks. They are sitting in about an inch of snow that must have filled the trucks before they were allowed in. Some are sobbing quietly, most are just looking very very pitiful.
Lily spotted me and started crying. I got her troop leader's attention and got permission to just pull her out of the back of the truck. I wasn't the only one. Who could stand to watch their 7 year old cry her way through a stupid December parade? I carry Lily away and she is crying so hard, "My hands hurt. I am so cold. My hands hurt."
We get her in the car and she continues to cry. On the short drive home, we lose control of the car and slide off the road. We were going less than 5 miles per hour, so no damage to the car. Jeff patiently slides and skids the rest of the way home.
Lily announces that she is never going to do a parade again.
Mission accomplished?
That is the hardest earned parade badge in the history of the Girl Scouts!
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