A Happy Moment
I looked up and saw Sarah helping Peter swim across the pool. She held him carefully as his arms stroked and his legs kicked, and he made wonderful progress through the water. When they both reached the side, I caught her attention and told her, "What a great big sister you are!" The smile that flashed across her face was so genuine; what a joy!
Two Punches
My parents now live in the DC area near my sister and her family. They all dealt with an earthquake on Tuesday followed by a hurricane over the weekend. Pretty incredible to experience both events in a single week!
Lesson for Mom (and the Child)
Kids do things that wouldn't even cross my mind, although they make sense if you consider their experience and perspective.
Two weeks ago, one of them rode in the car for several hours, attending medical appointments for other children. To reward her patience with the run-around, I told her she could listen to the radio in the car while the rest of us waited in the doctor's office. The neighborhood was very safe, the office was close to the building door, and the appointment was supposed to be short.
After everyone made the obligatory bathroom stop, I handed her the keys and she returned to the car for her "radio time." When we came back to the parking lot 30 minutes later, she had turned the ignition on to activate the radio, and the car had been idling the entire time!
I had neglected to explain that one rotates the key towards (not away) from the driver to get power for the radio. Won't forget that one again!
Kidspeak Defined
dude, as in "Hey, dude" when calling to someone.
cami and skort, which are clothing items, the cami being especially ubiquitous
abc order, a clearer directive than the "alphabetical order" used in my day
sloppy copy, a much more colorful term than "rough draft"!
Kidspeak
dude
cami and skort
abc order
sloppy copy
A "Night" Out
To celebrate the beginning of the school year, Jonathan and I went out on a date. As usual, it took place during the school day. We enjoyed a Dutch fruit bowl at our favorite pancake restaurant and talked about, what else?, the kids!
Happy Dance
They're all in school again!
(Six hours of off time during the school day helps me regroup for parenting in the afternoons and evenings.)
Countdown
Last Wednesday--three of them started
Today--two more
Closed Reduction
Well, I'm one of the lucky ones for whom closed reduction (with lots of ibuprofin) is not painful. What a relief! I had worried all weekend about Monday's procedure. The doctor put a lot of pressure on my elbow (in the direction of my shoulder), and on the second attempt a very audible click sounded. I had a similar appointment this morning, and the final visit is tomorrow.
Between treatments, I'm wearing a sling to keep my arm somewhat still and to avoid the pull of gravity on the joint. That will allow the ligaments, tendons, and muscles to heal, and hopefully keep the bone in the correct place.
My shoulder doesn't hurt as much, but I can't tell yet if the improvement is from the restriction of motion or the reduction itself. I should know more tomorrow.
