countdown til surgery

monday the girls from the ward and i met up at cascade park for a picnic. finally, the weather was warm enough to be outside at the park. porter explored the park high and low, from one end to the next. i guess i didn't get to visit as much as the others, but porter was having so much fun and that is really the point of getting together. he even was dribbling a huge ball on the cement, i was amazed. we were there for a whopping 2 1/2 hours before heading home with rosy cheeks and an overly tired little boy. i made a mental note that sunscreen now needs to be added to our daily routine.

as i pulled into the garage the ups truck was parked outside my house delivering the daily business packages. chris abney whom lives in our basement was outside chatting with his mom. as i unloaded our stuff and porter from the car, it crossed my mind that the packages on our front step might be needed for today's shipments. if so, i would need to bring them down to the office. so porter and i headed around the front of the house to the front door to see if any of the packages needed to be brought down. during this short walk, the ups man drove away in his big brown truck. chris hugged his mom and helped her into her car. his mom drove away and chris headed down to the basement. we checked the packages and none needed to go to the office. i was grateful, considering that porter was ready for nap time. the front door was locked, so i headed back to the garage. porter in my arms, i climbed down those cement steps. 1, 2, 3... i thought my last step was on to the ground. it wasn't. i stretched my right leg out preparing to make the double step. my foot landed and gave out on me, and i was heading face first to the cement. my immediate concern was that porter was in my arms and would either a) hit the cement or b) get squished by me. i turned my body away so that i would fall on my back thus bracing porter from the fall. i was mostly successful but the impact still made his head jerk, and the side on his face bumped the cement. i was immediately aware of 2 things: the welfare of my little boy, and the excruciating pain in my foot. i checked porter from head to toe and held him close to my chest with his blankie by his face ... his favorite way to be soothed. my foot was in so much pain. i wanted to keep porter as still as possible because any movement made it hurt even worse. i didn't know how i was going to get off of my butt, baby in hand in the situation i was in. i had a small freak out moment... i yelled chris' name hoping he hadn't made it to the basement yet. and then i yelled "somebody help me!" but no one could hear. i wondered how it could be that just moments ago there were three abled bodies right in my front yard and now there were none. my mind contemplated what i would need to do- crawl through my garage and into my house where i could retrieve my phone. then i remembered that one of my neighbors across the street was packing her kids into the car as i was leaving the park. surely she would be home any minute. then again, her boys were tired too, and she likes to run errands while her boys sleep so maybe she wasn't coming home? then i remembered that my other 2 neighbors were walking home with their strollers and were about 1/2 way home when i passed them driving home. they would walk (oh how sweet that sounds, walk) around the corner any time now. so i sat there, holding porter who was now calm... and maybe confused why we were sitting awkwardly outside... and waited. porter was close to falling asleep when alissa and jamie came around the corner. i felt so relieved to see their pretty faces, and for the 1st time i felt the few tears that were never far away slip down my face. i waved to them and said, "i need some help."

all i really intended was for them to call jared for me. but those two girls took matters into their own hands and made the otherwise stressful situation be ok. jamie got my purse, cell phone and crutches for me, and took porter so he could go nap. alissa came around with her car in a matter of a minute and helped me into her car and took me to the doctors where she proceeded to stay with me from check-in, to xrays, and diagnosis. i was so glad to have someone to talk to, to keep from thinking about it. the doctor looked over the xrays and sure enough i had broken my foot. again... yes this happened less than 6 months ago. he thought i might need surgery, but considering the urgent care doctors didn't even see my broken foot last time around i didn't give too much credit to his opinion. he splinted my foot and told me that i had an appointment with an orthopedic specialist at 9am the next morning.

so this morning i went to the orthopedics office. once again, it was confirmed broken and it is a pretty good break. the bones are separated quite a lot, i was surprised when i saw the xray. after me trying to encourage other solutions that were all shot down by the doctor, i finally had to come to grips that yes, in deed, i have to get surgery. one or maybe two screws will put things back together. after my morning appointment i headed to my next appointment at timpanogos hospital where i had a ct-scan of my foot that cost a fortune. so now i have a couple of days to be nervous about my surgery on friday. i will be on crutches for 2 weeks after the surgery and then they will put me in a walking cast for another 4 weeks. i consider that good news. i will be able to walk in a relatively short amount of time. granted, i am sure 2 weeks hopping after my little boy, not being able to drive, and recovering from a broken bone and a stitched up foot will last a little bit longer than my previous 2 weeks did. but i'm trying to stay positive, things always work out. right? right?

special thanks to alissa and jamie for saving my day. i was so thankful to have their help and support, both physically and mentally. and another special thanks to jared who is mr mom right now, catering to porters needs. he loves his daddy especially the added attention he is getting right now.