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Last week Tank and I flew to CA (which, with my gimpy, painful arm, was something of an ordeal) and arrived at my parents' house at 3:00 in the morning, Ohio time.  I woke up Elijah for a hug, and as soon as he realized where he was and who I was, he jumped into my arms.  That made the trip worth it, right there.  Then I collapsed on the couch.

Me, the kids, and various other family members visited our good friend Jane, who is delightful.  It's always a treat to see her.  Miciah got to pick some lemons from Jane's tree.  Some to make fresh lemonade, and some to take home to my mom.  Miciah loves to pick fruit, it turns out.  Sometimes when the fruit isn't ready for her.

I officially met my brother's fiance, K.  She is WAY too good for him, and possibly way too good for anyone.  Collin is wonderful, though.  Of course.  He'll treat her like gold, and from what I can tell, he already does.  Best moment with K was on Sunday morning.  She'd played with the kids all day Saturday, and they adore her.  On Sunday, Elijah woke up and gave K a huge hug.  Then Collin, who was sitting right next to her, opened his arms for a hug.  Elijah walked away without even noticing and Collin had to call him back.  Made me giggle.  This should tell you something about how much Elijah likes K; Collin is the favorite uncle.  I told Collin, "It starts."

Also was able to meet Chad's girlfriend.  They've been together for a while, but that's what happens when you live thousands of miles away:  you meet people decades after everyone else.  She is also very nice.

And other than that we hung out and enjoyed the quiet bliss of 8 kids under the age of 9.  Super, super quiet.  It was AMAZING.

So, another fun family gathering.

My Arm

Since my arm is news, I'll give a short report.

The swelling has gone way down.  In fact, sometimes I'll think that it's nearly normal until I look at my right arm.  ...  Where my lower arm isn't swollen, like right below my elbow, it's obvious that I've lost muscle mass.  But, it'll all be well with time.

I now am in my removable splint, which is great.  I just went to the doctor today for follow-up, and he said I'll need to wear the splint for 4 - 5 weeks.  I go back to see him at the start of Sept., and if all is well, he'll clear me to take it off.  He also took more x-rays and said the bone looks great, and then he removed my stitches.  I'll post a picture eventually.  It's pretty sweet.  He told me I'm a good healer (my OBGYNs have told me that about my c-section scars, too).  I'm going to start introducing myself with that line:  "Hi.  I'm Tamra.  I'm a good healer."

Physical therapy is great.  My first time there, last week, was kinda funny.  My arm just felt frozen in 1 position.  It loosened up quite a bit just in the hour I was there, but still, I found it impossible to do some of the things she asked me to do.  For instance, bending down the tip of my thumb.  I couldn't remember how to tell my brain to tell my body to do it.  It gets easier with time and repetition, of course.

Also, it was funny cause they kept asking if I was feeling okay.  They were so worried about me possibly fainting that they brought me a Coke and some pretzels.  I don't drink Coke, but I did that day, just for them.

And physical therapy was a good perspective dose.  One of the guys there was missing the index finger on his left hand.  He shot it off while cleaning a gun.  Wow.  My arm, eventually it will work just fine, and this will be a distant memory.  He'll never get his finger back.


And that's that.  Now we're home and together again.  Rob took today off to be with the kids, and they've been loving it. 

The End