It could be worse, but I could have used a do-over starting on Friday morning...

Early Friday morning this past week I woke up with a massively tight right calf, like a nonstop Charlie Horse, which I figured was just because I started putting pressure on my foot after two weeks, which with my medical background I know better, but was ignoring my symptoms.  After getting the morning started with Ethan our dogs decided they need to make a serious effort to get the squirrel in the front, which resulted in Charlie breaking the middle, bottom pane of our very large front window and cutting his leg in the process, which really was bound to happen sooner or later, but why that day?!?  After getting the blood stopped on Charlie's leg and having my mom vacuum up all the glass shards from my carpet, cover my window with a pull-ups box (the only one I had) and moving the furniture in my front room we were finally able to have a better day.  My leg continued to have massive pain over the weekend and yesterday morning I contacted my podiatrist to see if this could be a problem or just pain from working my leg.  After 2+ weeks of being Chauffeured, I was finally able to drive and my second trip of the day was to the emergency room (with Ethan in tow, which thankfully he was a really good boy until Daddy was able to get there to take him home) for an ultrasound to rule out a DVT (deep vein thrombosis aka blood clot).  Apparently I should have knocked on wood before leaving my house for good luck because after 5 1/2 hours in the emergency room I was starving, tired and finally able to go home with a blood clot, blood thinning injections for the next week and Coumadin pills for at least the next six months along with now having to have my blood drawn every few days.  It could have been a much different result though so I will take my blood clot and hopefully have no more problems.

Back to normal...or at least we are pretending

Yesterday my mom flew back to Utah after a 2-week stay with us after my foot surgery.  We are very grateful for her offering to come help be my Chauffeur but most importantly, helping Ethan become fully potty trained, even at night...YAY for Grammie!!! Ethan is very excited for her to come back the first weekend in December and bring Papa Steve with her.

 
I had my 2-week postop and was hoping to get my sutures out this past Thursday, however, there was a little bit of drainage still so they will have to stay in another week-plus and I will go back on October 4th.  Life will still be slow for me getting around with this cast boot and either my mom's wheeled walker around the house or using crutches out of the house, but we will get there eventually.  But most excitedly I am able to drive again so this could get interesting.

Here is a nice picture of my swollen foot and incision, I had a plantar fascial release and nerve release.  On Thursday I finally was able to start putting some pressure on it while in the aircast, which is tender and I am totally limping but it is doable, however, my biggest complaint is not the incision but what feels like a constant Charlie Horse in my calf at all times....oh my golly talk about painful and wanting to cry.

Today my heart breaks for my friend, Nicole, and the entire Prazeau family.  Nicole's mom, Sandy, passed away after a long and courageous battle of four different types of cancer over the past 10 years.  She was a wonderful, full-of-life woman with a great sense of humor, and she will be greatly missed.  I pray that God's love surrounds Nicole at this time of great loss and that he will bring her comfort knowing that she will see her mom again, healthy and happy, and that while her mom was unable to meet her new baby grandchild on this earth she will get to know them in heaven and send them here with her love.  We love you Nicole, Peyton, Brandon and the entire Prazeau family.

One week postop and Big Boy Pants for Ethan

Well it has been trying at times but overall hasn't been too bad for the first week of recovery considering the circumstances.  I had my first postop appointment this past Monday and my doctor said that it was looking really good.  I go back again next Thursday and should get the stitches removed, however, will still have to use the aircast and won't be able to walk around normally for a few more weeks.  For all those who haven't tried it, crutches or a walker with a toddler suck!  My mom has had a couple of different foot procedures over the last few years and has a really nice wheeled walker with a seat that she is lending me to help me get around...Jeff is not a fan of having to carry it up and down the stairs for me but it has made my life so much easier than using the crutches, especially after pulling myself backwards up the 13 stairs to my bedroom, but at least my arms are getting a good workout during this. 

My mom has been a great help with Ethan and for putting up with my dogs, we are very glad to have her help.  While I was having surgery last week she talked Ethan into wearing Big Boy Pants and he has been doing an AWESOME job of keeping them relatively accident free for 7 days straight.  I think his favorite part is getting to put the Cherrios in the toilet to aim at.  We are all very proud of him!  In my proactiveness to get as much done as possible before my mom came I bought a new box of Costco diapers, however, I also recycled the box so I may have to figure out a creative way to get another box and return them and get my $40 back...oh well, that is what I get for being a planner.

Pain, pain go away...

Life for me is about to get tricky...Tomorrow morning I will be having surgery on my right foot due to plantar fasciitis and nerve entrapment in the porta pedis (a nerve that runs on the inside of the heel), which has been causing me pain for at least 5 years, with a major increase in pain after having Ethan.  I have been doing conservative measures for the last few years to avoid the surgery such as physical therapy, orthotics for my shoes and many many injections with limited success, so surgery is my only option to hopefully relieve the pain.  As I am typing this my foot/leg is throbbing in pain, so I am crossing my fingers and toes that this works and with success will be able to have the same done to my left foot in a couple of months.  With this being done on my right foot I will be unable to drive for at least two weeks and will have to use crutches and wear an air cast boot for 6-8 weeks while staying off of it as much as possible.  Thankfully, my mom is flying in this evening and staying for the next two weeks to help us with Ethan and to be my chauffeur, for which we are incredibly grateful, and Ethan is going to have lots of fun with Grammie all to himself.

My life consists of a constant TO DO list, or multiple lists at times, and this time is no different.  I am weird, I know, but I made a 2-week TO DO list leading up to tomorrow to make sure that I get everything done that I can before the surgery, as I have no clue when I will be able to be back functioning normally.  My main goals were to have the sod installed and my carpets cleaned, which are now both complete but as usual I am running out of time and will have a nonstop day of tasks to complete before picking my mom up at the airport tonight and finally falling into bed. 

Stanley Steamer cleaned the main floor carpets on Tuesday and so we had to have many things lifted off the floor, including Bobo the bear, for a couple of days for the carpet to dry.  Yesterday I was working in my office and turned around to see this...

It makes me laugh that the dogs always seem to find the softest place in the room before laying down and Charlie is no different from the other three.

 
I have a hard time relying on others to do things...big shocker for anyone who knows me...but my M.O. is that I want things done right then, I am not a doddler and have a hard time waiting for someone else to do certain things when I could have already had it done...however, I have no choice at this point if I want to heal as quickly as possible, so my new M.O. will be propping my foot on many pillows, cuddling up with my family and enjoying the upcoming fall season of television...wish us luck!!

Millions of Peaches, Peaches for me...

There is a totally goofy song, which I know all the words too, sang by The Presidents of the United States, called Peaches.  You can check it out on youtube as I can't figure out how to add it here.

Yesterday us girls and the little boys took a road trip to Hood River to get Peaches and Apples.  While my mom is here I asked her to make some peach jam, it is pretty yum, as Ethan would say.  We weren't able to pick our own peaches this time but had a fun time anyway.

E & P swinging, H was not interested in joining them.

H was not interested in joining his mommy to swing either.

Feeding flowers to the goats.

Delicata squash and yummy peaches!

All three boys in one picture...rarely happens but they couldn't get away this time.

The green has finally arrived...

After what feels like forever, our backyard is finally (other than a few minor things that Jeff can do by himself) finished.  We spent yesterday finishing up the cobblestone pathway and raking out the massive amount of rocks and this morning we fertilized the dirt and started laying our sod.  Five hours and 1700 sq. feet of sod later, we were covered in dirt and ready to run through the sprinklers.  My main goal this summer has been getting the yard done by this weekend so that next week, after having my right foot operated on, I can relax without leaving lots of work for Jeff to do all by himself.  We will now be relaxing on the deck, Coca-Cola in hand, for the remaining days of summer.

View from cement patio - Before

After

View from E's sandbox - Before

After

Ethan's hands in the last block of cement.

Planting the last tree in our yard - I got this Magnolia tree for $10.00, originally $50, at Lowe's...I love end of season for cheap plants/trees/flowers.

Hopefully this pumpkin will be Orange by Halloween, but we will definitely be making a trip to the Pumpkin Patch either way.

Ethan & Daddy playing in the sprinklers...Copper is keeping his distance...for now.

Ethan & Charlie