A Big Ouchie

I was trying to enjoy a hot shower on Saturday while Jeff was going to take the kids with him to run errands around town. I had gotten the kids dressed and ready to go and left the rest to DH. After a few minutes in the shower, I heard Averey screaming at me and telling me that something happened to Elsa, "and she almost died". I asked what happened, and he told me that she ran into the truck. I immediately imagined the worst, thinking that a moving vehicle had hit her. So I jumped out of the shower, threw on a towel, and as I came out of the bathroom, I could hear Elsa screaming. I asked DH what happened and he said that Elsa was walking around the back of the truck, but didn't see the open tailgate and she ran right into it. She had a pretty nasty gash on her forehead, and seeing it made me nauseous and light-headed (which is why I could never be a nurse). Thanks goodness for the few medical supplies DH has at home. He used some steri-strips to tape her head together so it should heal in about a week. I'm just sad because Elsa will probably now have a scar on her forehead for the rest of her life.

This being said, we got a phone call from my mom on Sunday morning letting us know of the news that had been given to hear earlier that morning. My sister's FIL, Jim Kleis, had a stroke during the night on Sat. night. They life-flighted him to Sioux City and performed surgery to remove and alleviate bleeding on his brain. The drs. said they were very pleased with the surgery and Jim was talking to visitors yesterday, and his mind was working great...remembering birthdays, nicknames, etc. At this point, there is no movement or feeling on his left side. I think about he and his wife, Sharon, a lot, and realize how quickly their lives have changed in such a short amount of time. I'm just faithful in asking God to be in charge of Jim's recovery (and Sharon's for that matter). Please join me in praying for their family.

Getting Acquainted in Grinnell

12 weeks already...almost through the 1st trimester and just had my first dr. appointment last Wednesday. Got to uncomfortably meet one of DH's partners at the clinic, but more excitedly, I heard the baby's heartbeat. It was 160, which the dr. indicated, that the wives tale says a fast heartbeat means it's a girl. We'll see if it stays at this rate. I do remember Averey's heartrate being in the 130's and Elsa's was in the 150's.

On a different note, we're trying to get settled in Grinnell. It's been very difficult moving to a smaller house, when we accumulated so much stuff living in Sibley. Thank goodness for a huge storage room. Anything that doesn't have a spot goes in that room, and if guests come over, that door will be shut and not willingly shown as part of the tour. There are many little things that take a lot of getting used to such as: 1)the annoying "bonk" in the floor everytime you walk in a certain area over a cold air return, 2) the tiny bathroom vanity, with drawers so small, they're almost useless, 3) no closet light, so have to turn on bedroom, bathroom and hall light to even guess what shirt I'm pulling out, 4) the cold air drafts that come in through the windows, 5) the fact that we're already outgrowing this house, 6) our neighbors are so close to the back of our house, that I can see directly into their den and saw, the other night, that they were watching a movie on Lifetime. Now that I've gotten all, I should say most, of the complaints out of the way, I need to also include some of the great things. Since moving in a week and a half ago, I've met all kinds of great people. I've been to a mom's group, Elsa went to a "lunch bunch", Ave started "tiny sharks" swimming lessons, people have brought us food, gifts, wine (which will unfortunately have to age for another 6 months or so), and all kinds of warm welcomes. We've been to the brand new, huge library twice (mostly because I was going crazy with no internet access at home, but we did check out lots of books), downtown to the Jolly Holiday Lights festival, to the high school basketball games, and even a few trips to good ol' Walmart. We've got lots on our calendar, which is good, because I've been lonely as a single parent, especially at night. The only benefit is that I can watch what I want on tv after the kids are in bed. We definitely look forward to DH finally being able to move up here permanately at the end of Dec. In the meantime, it's been so nice having my parents so close. They've been such a great help to me already.