Weekend adventures

This weekend was a fun and busy weekend. Friday night Oliver came to spend the night so that Marmee could get some rest. Saturday morning Oliver got up and had breakfast and then we read some books. He loves to pick up the books and have me "read" to him (it's more like I turn a few pages and then he closes the book) but we love to cuddle together no matter how many pages it is. With a smile as cute as this one, how can anyone resist holding him on your lap to read. After we read the books he discovered an empty paper bag that was fun to carry around and put things into. What fun to look at the world through the eyes of a child.

Sunday, my first iris of the season bloomed and before the end of the day I had two full blooms and a third on the way with many more to follow. Thanks to Bob Reed, I have a wonderful bunch of iris plants at the end of my driveway and I love to watch each year as they bloom.


Gary went to church this morning and discovered that it was a lot of work to visit with so many who wanted to wish him well. He is doing amazingly well getting around the house, so Saturday we decided to go out to the park for a while for a family picnic. He is finding that the little jaunts seem a bit overwhelming and tiring. He is glad for the time to come home and rest after being out but enjoys being outside for a bit.

He's home

Gary's Home from the hospital and getting adjusted to not lying in a bed all day. He now feels he can recover in style. It's gonna be a long haul but we are praying for a full recovery.

Surgery

Today, bright and early (we had to be at the hospital at 7:30 am) Gary and I headed to Regions Hospital for his surgery to repair the break in his leg. We arrived and went into pre-op very quickly. Gary's sense of humor kept all of the pre-op staff helping him laughing and enjoying the morning. When the Dr. came in to sign Gary's leg and talk to him; we were told that the surgery would be between 3 and 4 hours long. Gary was taken into surgery at 8:55. I went to the waiting room to wait out the long procedure. After about an hour I decided to leave the surgery waiting area and venture to the gift shop and found a coffee shop that served Starbuck's coffee in the hospital -- Woo Hoo!! After returning to the surgery waiting area with my coffee, I was paged to the desk to find out that the surgery was finished after only 1 1/2 hours and that I had missed the opportunity to talk with the Dr. They paged him and he talked with me on the phone to say that Gary's surgery went quicker than expected and that he was able to fix the break with a minimally invasive procedure (Praise God!!).

Gary has a 2 or 3 day stay in the hospital and then comes home to begin the recuperation time. He will not be able to bear weight on his leg for 10 weeks (possibly 8 if he heals quick). But along with that comes the fact that he won't be able to work either. We are praying for his dealers to be understanding during this time and that God will be good to us and provide what we will need. He is a great God and I know that he cares for us even when we don't see how that is possible.

Thanks to all who have been praying for Gary and if ever you want to stop by -- he would love to sit and chat and play a little cribbage.

Yep, it's broken! AND surgery is necessary.

Gary has a plateau tibia fracture. We found out today that he will need surgery to repair the bone. It will be a 3-4 hour surgery and then 6 weeks of recuperation. We are praying that all will go well and he will heal very quickly.

What do you do on the weekend?

Okay, so Gary and I headed up to the trailer Friday evening for our weekly camping time. It was raining on the way up but we went with the hope the weatherman was correct and it would clear up and be nice the remainder of the weekend. About 9 pm, after sitting the trailer listening to the rain, it stopped, stars came out and we ventured outside to sit by the fair and cook S'mores. What a great start to the weekend.

Saturday, dawned chilly but sunny. I was to join the youth group at Alpine Slide and Gary was to putter around the trailer, checking things and maybe go to a movie with his friend, Steven. I headed out for my part of the adventure, leaving Gary building a fire and reading a book. About 1 pm, I called Gary to see if he was going to a movie only to be told that he had fallen and hurt himself but he thought he would be okay, just call in 20 minutes. I continued playing with the kids at Alpine and called after 20 minutes to be asked to "please return to the trailer".

When I returned, I found him inside the trailer with his leg elevated, campground staff putting things away for him, and the dog whimpering by his side. They helped him to the car, I finished the close-up of the trailer and we headed back home to urgent care to check out what was wrong. Urgent care ended up not to be the place for him so Gary was transported to the ER by a medical transport and I followed in the car. After 10 hours in the ER we discovered Gary had broken his tibia and would require surgery to fix it. Needless to say -- it was an incredibly long day and one that I don't soon want to repeat.