October and Foot Surgery

Well Folks, it's October now!  And it sure feels like it too!!!

UGH!!!  Cool today, better than last week's snow, rain, and night temps below freezing -- completely took care of any green life left in my garden, but that's okay with me.  Yep, it really did snow here in Maeser, at one point there was about 1 inch outside, but it had quickly melted before we went to bed.  Rain also fell extensively, and the cold temps outside were enough to make us all seek heavy blankets, winter coats, socks and slippers, and hot cocoa!  However, this cool day has turned out to be lovely with sunshine and light fluffy clouds, so I'm grateful for small things.

In other Jackson family news, I went to my appointment last Tuesday October 1st in SLC at TOSH (the orthopedic specialty hospital) to see Dr. James Morgan.  The end result of that being that he completely agreed with Dr Kelly Gomez (hurray! People actually agreed!!) that my foot would be better off by having the heel fused back under it and supporting the foot and ankle, rather than going with Dr Stan Phillips who insisted that I would need my whole foot & ankle fused together.  Dr Morgan said there is no reason to make me lose my range of motion in my foot while I am still young, and while I would need to be caring for my young children -- yay, I so didn't want to lose the limited motion that I currently have.  I will still limp, perhaps worse than I do now, but he thinks that much of the pain I feeling on the side of my foot will be greatly reduced.  Very happy to know that much of this pain that keeps me awake at night will be going away.
So.... surgery healing timeline is:  8-10 weeks non-weight-bearing, 8-10 weeks some weight-bearing (likely in a walking cast), then 2-4 months of additional physical therapy.  That sounds a whole lot better than 4 months non-weight-bearing, 3-4 months partial weight-bearing, then 4-6 months of additional physical therapy!!

Oh don't get me wrong, I know,  I KNOW, that this is going to be difficult for me to do.  I have 5 young children, ages almost 11, 9, 5, 2, and 8 months -- and I will only be able to do least minimal care for them.  Tasks that I take for granted to be able to do now, will be come extremely difficult and even impossible for me to do while I wait for my body to heal itself, however, I believe that this is the right time to get the surgery done. 

I have faith in Heavenly Father that he will help me get through this painful trial, and i am hopeful that I can find others in my Ward and neighborhood to help me with my concerns regarding getting my boys to and from school.  I have already talked to my Ward Relief Society presidency about them arranging meals for my family for the first couple of weeks, after which time I should have my pain regulated enough that I can help my family out a tiny bit.

I have begun to make freezer meals, and casseroles, that can be easily pulled out to put to cook either by my husband or by one of older boys - with Mom's supervision - for that night's dinner.  I am going to be teaching my older boys how to wash laundry.  I am sorting through clothes, and putting baby E's next sizes close at hand so should she grow out of her current size, then her clothes can be easily changed around.  Same thing for K who will be 3 in December.  The old out-grown clothes will be sold or given away (as will any sizes 0-3T boys stuff that I still have).

I will also be setting up a diapering station in my living room as I believe that starting to toilet train K now would be a bad idea.  I plan to continue to breastfeed baby E, and have done extensive research regarding nursing and anesthesia/pain killers coming out in breast milk, and I believe that we will be okay.

But if anyone wants to come stay with us to help for awhile, I will be thrilled.  Our guest room is always ready for visitors (okay I need to clean off the out-grown clothes first, but that takes just 5 minutes).

I fully admit to being a bit scared about this coming event in my life, but I am determined to put my faith in Heavenly Father and his son Jesus Christ.  Maybe I will even be able to get some sleep between now and then too... well a girl can always hope, yes?

And now, my darling daughter K has informed me "I stinky Mama, change me," so I'm off to take care of her before we need to go pick up her brothers from school.

September is half over

Wow, I just got used to August being here and then school started, now September has blown in and is more than half over.  On this day 12 years ago, we were signing our rent agreement with Mrs. Mary Ellen Olsen - then we lived there another 7-1/2 years after that first year.

I just have to chuckle now though.  Little E has been running a fever (so Not funny at 100.4), but when I [try to]give her fever reducer, she scrunches up her face, purses her lips and turns her head away -- kind of grumbles at me too.  She grudgingly accepts it and swallows when its squirted into her cheek, but there's none of the opened-mouth eager reception her siblings had done as babies.

Speaking of little Miss E, she's 7-1/2 months old now.  She is the daily delight of our family, no one gets the chuckles from her better than her brothers and sister, oh especially her sister.

So...

Happenings with the Jackson family:  I canned 6 quarts and 1 pint of very concentrated plum juice yesterday (works much faster in little bodies than prune juice from the stores, probably makes fantastic jelly too), and I need to get the pulp out of the dehydrator now too, its all dried into fruit leather.

I did end up canning 7 quarts of tomatoes on Labor Day Monday.  The 2 more that didn't fit in canner went into fridge.

A week ago, Monday Sept. 9th, I had a molar pulled (lower right side), it was deteriorating pretty good with nothing to bite against.  I wonder how long my jaw will hurt thought because last night my jaw felt like it was on fire, so I took a Ibuprofen and a Tylenol Extra Strength -- woke up about 1 am with jaw still throbbing so I took a Lortab, that did the trick.

A few days after tooth pulling, I called SLC  to Dr James Morgan's office and got my appointment moved up 6 weeks to October 1st.  I also got on his surgery schedule for November 18th.  Really, I would like to wait until E is a year old and walking, but my foot [and ankle] is falling apart too fast and hurts so badly that waiting unnecessarily is foolish, besides we met our deductible with E's birth this year.

Last night Cole received his Wolf at the Cub Scout Pack Meeting, hurray for him 'cuz that was a lot of hard work (for us both).  Next month's Pack Meeting, Joseph is to get his Arrow of Light, big Hurray for him -- our ward likes to do these in bunches, so even though he won't be 11 yet, they are still doing it then because another boy is getting his then too.  He won't get his Webelo until November though.  I need to remember to invite my Dad and stepMom to come though I imagine they won't be able to because Tuesdays are their Temple day, but will still try.

Soon it will be time to make Halloween costumes, and while I'm sewing, I'd best make Christmas dresses for the girls.  Just had a thought of making red ties for the boys too.  But speaking of  Halloween, K is very much into "princess" so thought I'd make her a princess outfit in pink of course.  And maybe make E either a black cat or tiny witch

I'm finding myself dozing off and baby E is nearly back to sleep, her Daddy's alarm woke her at 4 am, it's now almost 5:15 am.  I guess it's time to put us both back to bed.

September

Well September is here.  No don't think that I am happy about this.  My boys are in school, yep all three go now, as just last week my little T started Kindergarten on 28 August.

Here he is with K along side of him on the first day.  Let me tell ya, she WAS NOT HAPPY to leave that school and him behind, I think that she cried for an hour.  The next day I was prepared for that (and I fed them both early too), so I drove around a bit after we left the school.  Both she & E fell asleep before I got home and I got an hour or so to do my own projects.

So September means canning and also that baby E is growing.  Even as I am typing she is rolling around on the floor at my feet.  She discovered that she can do this new thing on her brother C's birthday (he turned 9 on Aug. 17, wow my babies are growing up) and whenever she is laid on the floor, she practices her new accomplishment joyfully (and sometimes loudly too).  Then... the next new thing she did was cut her first tooth (bottom middle) on the very next day, same day as G-ma Emalie's birthday.  Well lots of fuss, crying, and whining later, and last night she cut her 2nd bottom middle tooth.  Hurray for her.  Maybe now she & I can now both get to sleep before midnight?  Well I will hope.

Here is Miss happy herself!!  E is indeed a very happy baby, a good thing as J is started into puberty so he is 10 going on 15.

Enjoy your Labor Day everyone (well those in the USA).  My hubby & boys are up in the mountains cutting firewood to use in our new wood stove, but that is a post left for another day.  As is the story on me probably needing foot surgery in the not-too-distant future.  For now, I'd best get started on canning the buckets of tomatoes I have spread around my kitchen.