I really need this for Christmas

It's just not a home without a Nose Gel Dispenser...

history will be made

While the impending Canadian federal election may not bring anything new, history is now certain to be made in the U.S.A. There is either going to be a black President or a woman Vice President. Very cool.

Was that the "S" word?

The kids were particularly funny on vacation this year and I have some real good ones to share.

Raynham started on ferry crossing to Wisconsin. While on the upper deck, she struck up a conversation with a leather-clad biker and it ended on a bad note as she explained (for no apparent reason) who she would marry when she grew up.
"I'm going to marry Galen when I am bigger" (Mom reminds her that Galen is her brother, and thus not potential mate. Why did I do that?)
"OK! I want to marry Amy. She my friend. I don't want to marry a boy. I will marry a girl. If you marry a boy you get a baby and the baby comes out here (pointing accurately). The baby comes out of your vagina and I don't want that. I marry Amy so that won't happen".
Yeah.... OK thanks for that display of both reason and biology. Raynham, please stop scaring Mr. Hell's Angel dude. And we are in America where girls marrying girls is not really allowed. You aren't in Canada anymore... Needless to say, the conversation was now over.

Galen surprised us all with his vocabulary. My niece Maia was trying to convince me that I should let them play with corn starch and water.
Maia "come on Auntie Jo, it's SCIENCE!"
Maia's mom, Anna, laughing, "Oooh! way to get Auntie Jo with the "S" word"
Galen, clearly mishearing "I know the "F" word!"
Me, being very, very stupid "Oh yeah, Galen, what is the "F" word"
Galen, very loudly "F*$^!"
Me, trying very, very hard to sound outraged and not to laugh "where did you learn that?!"
Galen, disparaging " Oh Mom. Everyone knows the F work is F*$^"
Oh God. He is getting old.

Back to work

In bright pink crocs (the only shoes that Drew could find in a size large enough for my swollen foot), I hobble down the corridor with my walker. I look funny - an apparently healthy woman disguised as a little old lady. While all the hardware removes the cast, it also removes the obvious excuse for a walker, much to the amusement of the staff and students in my department, not to mention strangers in the street.

Am I better?
Yes - the swelling is down enough to get a shoe on my foot. I can add more weight to the injured leg. I am off major narcotic pain relievers and on to over the counter drugs. Each day I stay an extra hour at work before I feel like I am going to keel over. The bruising is no longer up to my knee and my foot is starting to resemble a purple and blue.... foot.

And No - I still feel like I have run a marathon after I have hauled myself upstairs and therefore showers are very limited (and sleeping in my own bed non-existent). I can't manage more than a few hundred feet and stairs are my sworn enemy.

Even so, I can see the horizon, where I ditch the walker and get onto a cane. And that seems like a miracle.

inside and outside Joanna's foot

(the x-ray is from the web, but looks very similar to Joanna's)

Fentie farm visit

The kids have been staying with the Graham family in Tillsonburg this week while we deal with Joanna's recovery from surgery.  This included a great trip to the Fentie family farm.  Click on the link to see the photos.  Thanks to the Fentie family for having them over!

Amazement at the Fracture Clinic

Joanna went in for her first post-op appointment for her repaired ankle and it was a stunner.  Up until this point we had been told that a permanent cast was needed followed by a long recovery.  Image our surprise when the surgeon ordered the temporary cast removed and upon seeing the incision healing very nicely, has a bandage put over the incision and wraps her foot in a tensor bandage.  Forget the permanent cast, he wants her to start walking immediately with crutches and wants her to put full weight on it.  Apparently the post-op x-rays are "perfect" as is the healing to this point, so why bother with casts?  Start walking, woman.  Joanna is liking plates and screws (seven of them!) now that she has no bothersome cast and expects a quick recovery.  They expect her to be on a cane in no time with some physiotherapy.  We are very surprised by all of this and very happy.

kids aren't cheap

Fall swim classes for Galen and Raynham: $96.  Skating school for Raynham: $205.  Novice hockey registration for Galen: $325.  Cash left available for Andrew's purchase of an Xbox 360: $0.

Joanna at home and high on percocet

Joanna was released at noon today and is doing well.  She has a temporary cast until Wednesday, when the surgeons take the post-op x-rays and put on a final cast.  She'll blog about her adventures once she feels better.

Joanna expected home today

The kids and I are heading over to the hospital shortly.  We expect Joanna out of the hospital and home sometime today.

fastest summer on record

This has been a very fast summer, despite all of the damn rain.  Galen starts grade 2 is less than two weeks and Raynham goes back to preschool with one full day added (the rest of the week being the usual part days).  I don't think I'm ready to go back to work yet. 

Summer Trip 2008 Photos

Here are photos of our Summer Trip 2008.  It was certainly eventful, particularly the unexpected ending with Joanna breaking her leg.  Other than that little hiccup, the trip was fantastic.  We started out on July 25th and drove across Michigan to Ludington and then took the ferry across lake Michigan in the morning to Wisconsin.  The weather was perfect for the ferry ride and the water was flat for the entire crossing.  After a short drive, we were in Green Bay to meet up with Brad & Debbie and the Cruse clan from Oklahoma.  We had a great 10 days in Green Bay with all the family and the kids certainly enjoyed each other.  Green Bay has a remarkable amount of things to do with kids, much more than Hamilton.  We got lots of park time, fair rides, fishing, plus visits to the zoo and Heritage Hill.  We had a great time with everyone and already miss them badly.  All of the kids have grown too much.  After Green Bay, we headed north into Michigan's upper peninsula and camped at Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore.  Our camp site was on 12 mile beach, which was stunning.  The kids really enjoyed camping and Galen really took to taking long hikes with his mother.  We spent three nights and totally soaked up the lake and sun.  The kids even found swimming in Lake Superior tolerable.  Thank goodness it lacked the zebra mussels of Lake Michigan - we had some cut up feet in Green Bay.  After PRNS, we crossed the border at Sault St. Marie and drove to Chutes Provincial Park in northern Ontario.  The rain was intense on the way there and we spent a wet night.  The next day was not much better, so we drove down to Sudbury to spend the day at Science North.  After that, the weather improved and we got some swimming, fishing, and hiking in.  The hiking, however, did not work out so well.  Joanna took a fall while hiking with Galen and broke her fibula in two places.  After a rescue by the Rangers, we drove her to nearby Espanola hospital for temporary cast to get her back to Hamilton, where she had to undergo surgery.  She has had a plate and screws added to her fibula and is recovering reasonably well.  Keep an eye on the blog for updates.

Joanna is out of surgery

This is not Joanna's x-ray, but hers looks very similar - two parallel breaks in the fibula.  Joanna went into surgery around noon today and everything went well.  She is back in her room watching olympics and eating.  The major drawback is that she is allergic to codiene and has never tried any of its derivatives.  As such, many of the best pain killers are not possible for her.  So, the doctors are using good old morphine.  Like the best of opiates, it leaves her incredibly itchy when it doesn't knock her out.  And it knocks her out hard enough that she has to have supplemental oxygen and constant monitoring.  Not exactly fun.  It doesn't help that her roommate is 96, has dementia, and spontaneously sings her alphabet very loudly.  If my wife was not in so much pain, I'd find this funny.   Joanna is expected to be in the hospital another day or two, depending upon how quickly she recovers from the surgery.  The prognosis is 4-6 weeks in a full cast, probably followed by a walking cast.  She is expected to be fully mobile in 6 months and complete recovery in 1 year.  Take my advice, don't break your fibula.

The kids are bearing up well, with the help of our local Hamilton family.  They have been at John & Lois' house the last two days, with a sleepover last night at Sarah and Derek's.  The big benefit for Galen is that he got to watch Star Wars and The Empire Strikes Back for the first time this week.  He started with mom before she went to the hospital and Derek picked up the ball last night.  I'm sure Derek is approaching superstar status in Galen's mind.  

Raynham is a bit unsure about all of this, understandably, but she is doing well.  She is just sad about mom's leg and is bothered by the concept of an IV line.  The most amusing part is her demonstrating to her mother, while at the hospital, the correct method to walk with crutches.  She has also been dramatizing her own "broken" leg. 

The kids saw Joanna before her surgery this morning and that helped, but they will probably spent part of the day with Donnie & Emma tomorrow as Joanna may be still a bit frightening for them to visit due to the morphine.

Galen is going to get something very special from us to acknowledge his maturity in the last week.  Joanna fell on a trail at Chutes Provincial Park when just she and Galen were out hiking.  Raynham and I were back at the campsite.  They were alone on the trail at the time and Galen took care of his injured mother, going so far as to find a solid walking stick for her in the woods.  But she couldn't walk even with that.  Galen kept her company until another hiker arrived and went and got the park Rangers in their little off-road vehicle.  He kept his calm all this time and during the ride back and then held it together at the hospital, with only a few stress tears.  And then on the drive to Sudbury (we had to overnight near a major hospital), he was incredible in keeping his sister entertained and on even keel.  Once at home, he stepped up and helped keep the house running, taking care of Raynham, and caring for Joanna.  He has been incredible.  We spend a lot of time with Galen teaching him responsibility and the importance of being a good family member, but this past week he has shown his mettle.  Suffice it to say, we are very proud of him.

Surgery for Joanna

Joanna's broken leg turns out to need a plate and three screws to put it back together properly. She got a bed at the hospital yesterday but the OR was full. So, sometime today she'll go into surgery to get things patched up. I'll keep you posted.

I went camping and all I got was a wife with a broken leg

We are back from our camping trip a bit early. We had a great time in Green Bay, and then great camping in Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore (Lake Superior) and then after some heavy rain a great time in Chutes Provincial Park. However, on our last day at Chutes, Joanna took a bad fall while hiking with Galen and broke her ankle in two places. Fortunately the hospital was only 20 minutes away. Joanna is sure to blog about the details, but we are home for now and she sees the orthopaedic surgeon this Friday to see if any screws are needed. Pictures and tales of our trip soon!