3 weeks and 4 days ago Justin had knee surgery. He twisted his knee back in April and did more damage than he originally thought. He is super healthy, is rarely sick, and hasn't had any major illness/disease/surgery in his life. It is so weird for me to be taking care of him after surgery (I've had 6 surgeries since we've been married!). His recovery is going well, but it's slower than he expected. He is definitely ready to resume his running, but it will be a while for that. It's obvious how much Justin helps around the house with dishes, bedtime, and a host of other things when he's out of commission a little.
3 weeks and 3 days ago we had a small birthday party for the boys. Mommy and Caleb rode an indoor roller coaster (Daddy was elevating his leg and didn't get to participate in the crazy fun.) This picture is blurry because we were going THAT fast. I was really hoping the thing wouldn't come loose, fly out the windows on the opposite side, and kill us. I'm not kidding. That would make for a sad birthday party.
3 weeks and 2 days ago my Dad was badly burned while setting fire to a pile of brush in their yard (a very common thing to do when you live in the country, and something Dad has done tons of times...he just did it differently that time and is suffering the consequences). This is a picture of his arm one week after being burned. It looks good. I'll spare the Internet the pictures of his legs until they look this good.
2 weeks and 6 days ago I quit eating dairy products to see if our very fussy, gassy, miserable, sleep-deprived baby would feel better. He does!
To say the last 4-ish weeks have been stressful would be an understatement.
Dad spent 9 days at the Parkland Burn Unit in Dallas, Texas, and then was released to go home. My mom is now his 24/7 nurse and caretaker, performing his wound care once a day. (Did you know that burns heal from the inside out and have to be scrubbed every.single.day to prevent infection and scabbing? I didn't before this. It's an excruciating process, to say the least.)
Dad has made amazing progress over the last couple of weeks. My sister and I were in Dallas the weekend of September 28, and we have taken turns the last two weekends taking our families to my parents house to try and alleviate some of the stress off of my mom. The change in Dad has been incredible in that time. He still has a lot of healing to do, but he is now walking without a walker! My dad is 54 years old, so seeing him with a walker was weird. His young age will help him heal more quickly, I'm sure, but it also means he's young enough to need to get back to work.
Sometime over the last few weeks, this guy started smiling:
And made the cutest face EVER:
He is such a sweetie!
This is definitely my life right now:
And this is my milk, since I'm off dairy:
The older boys are doing great. They love their baby brother so much, and they are big helpers when I need it. They are both loving school, for which I am very thankful.
Silly Levi:
Caleb and his ever-changing teeth. The child never had a hope of not needing braces, but he might be needing them sooner than later. Big teeth+small mouth=crowding. He can thank both his mom and dad for those problems.
So, this blog will only be updated sporadically as I get time to sit at a computer. I started this post over a week ago and have had to change 3 dirty diapers and feed a baby just in the last 45 minutes. If I didn't have a phone that took pictures, this post wouldn't have any.
Oh, and to top off all the crazy, Justin's car was hit in the parking garage while we were in the hospital delivering Isaac. A man had a stroke and hit 4 or 5 cars. We are still waiting on the check to pay for the damages. So, for now, we are those neighbors with the fender duct-taped to the side of the car.
I'm tired.
