Hardware Removal

I couldn't resist sharing the photo of Dr. Orth removing the screw from my ankle...It didn't hurt at all (but was very sore later in the day)! Dr. Orth is the best! If you ever need an Orthopaedic Surgeon, I would highly recommend him!

Oh yeah - I got a good laugh when Morgan was describing her "swelling" and cankles. Take a look at what my lovely leg now looks like.

Updates and Craziness

We got approval today to move in to Rio Bend but will have to start over the licensing process with another agency. It's a complicated mess but I'll spare the details for now. (If any of you know of a great child placement agency (CPA), please let me know! We may end up going directily through CPS but haven't decided yet.

I also saw my Ortho. this morning and tomorrow he will remove the screw that is visible on the open wound and hopefully we'll see some new growth in that area. If there is not enough change in a few weeks, then he will go in and remove all the hardware. He wants to leave it in there as long as possible to be sure the bones are totally healed. Typically hardware is not removed until years after the initial injury, if at all. He keeps telling me that he's never had a case like this in 22 years of practice, so I guess that makes me special! :)

Well, back to packing...we thought we were close to being done, but we have way more junk than we thought, so stay tuned for more updates!

Fostering/Moving Update

Well, we had our home study this past Friday. Part of it, anyway... Apparently, some questions need to wait until we complete some training next week. If our training goes as planned, we should be licensed by the first week of August.

Although we started the foster care licensing in April, the process has been slow for us. In part was because of my broken ankle in May, but we were back on track in June, about the same time our current landlord gave us our move out notice for the end of July because she didn't want to continue our month to month option. We were confident that our licensing would be complete by then and we'd be ready to move about that time anyway. Well, here we are, about 10 days to be out of our home and no license. Thank God for friends like ours, we have a couple of offers from friends who have plenty of room, so unless we get permission to move in to our new home early (before we are licensed), we will be staying with friends for a couple of weeks.

We had a big moving sale this past weekend and the moving pod will be delivered tomorrow, so whether we're ready or not, we're packing our stuff away! I enjoy the part of moving when you purge the things you no longer need/want and have to evaluate whether something is worth the trouble of packing. We definitely have too much stuff. I mean, we, as all of us.

I'm grateful that my ankle is healing well and I can get around with my walking cast, I was even able to serve in the church's nursery today for the first time since the injury - I was not able to easily get on/off the floor til now. I can't image getting through all this alone, but without my amazing family, friends, co-workers and most of all, an amazing God, HIS timing was perfect and I trust HIM to bring healing to my body and refreshment to my bones (Proverbs 3:5 & 8)

Wound Care

I thought I would finally post a photo because I get baffled looks when I try to explain details about my "wound" and why I need to see a wound care specialist. Here's a timeline of my injury:

• May 7, 2008 I broke my left ankle trying to slide into home base while at a staff retreat
• May 8 - had surgery to repair a tri-malleolar fracture (9 screws and a steel plate)
• May 16 - I had my staples removed
• May 23 - incision on outside of ankle not healing, had surgery to remove infected tissue and clear out incision
• June 17 - incision not healing at base of outside ankle; referred to wound care specialist
• July 9 - saw wound care specialist and started debriding treatment (took this long to get in after finding a doc who took Worker's Comp)

Another important reason for this post is because TODAY is week 10 since the initial surgery, which is the *magic number* when the doc said I could start bearing weight on my ankle. The first 6 weeks were the absolute worst! I got around primarily using a wheelchair and was still in alot of pain (the first 3 weeks were the worst for pain management). The next few weeks I started using crutches and the few days I've ditched the crutches and just use the walking cast. The doc is happy with the progress I've made with flexing my foot (It used to be frozen in a pointed position), it's just that darn wound that won't heal! I think the plan of action right now is to continue the debriding treatment for the next few weeks, and then schedule another surgery to remove the hardware since the bone should be healed by then. Here's a picture I took this morning before I changed my dressing - you can see a screw and part of the plate. The good news is, before I started the treatment is was covered by a scab and lots of dead tissue, and now there's obviously alot of new tissue growth and stimulation going on. I've also updated other photos of the process on my Flickr account for those of you who are curious. Hopefully none of you will ever have to experience this, but it certainly has been an experience. God used this to teach me patience and dependence on Him and not on myself.

ankle update

I went to the wound care specialist today after many phone calls trying to find one who accepted worker's comp... He removed my scab (which measured 25mmx14mm) and whatever dead tissue he could. Praise God I didn't have any pain and it was a quick procedure! I need to clean, flush out and add a debriding ointment on the wound daily and see him again in 2 weeks, and hopefully we'll see some healthy new tissue growth! Pretty cool - you can actually see one of the screw heads right now - if the wound doesn't heal well, they may have to remove the screw. A total God thing is that this wound care specialist is from Pakistan and in his country he used to be an orthopaedic surgeon, so he's confident that this treatment will work, which means hopefully I will avoid any additional surgery or time-consuming hyperbaric treatment.

Other great news is I've been getting around a little bit without my crutches with my walking cast on; mainly around the house, but it feels so great slowly gain some mobility back! It's been 9 weeks now since the injury. My kids are happy because I can now help with the chores again... umm, maybe I shouldn't take any chances and take it easy until the doc fully clears me. ;)

Familia!

Jeff's Mom and Sister were in town for the 4th of July and we all enjoyed lunch at Joe's Crab Shack after church. I love those crabcakes and stuffed shrimp!

On the 4th we all had lunch at our hopefully soon-to-be neighbors, where we'll be foster parents at Rio Bend. There's a few snags we've run into with the placement process, so it looks like we won't be moving until August. More on that another time; keep that in your prayers, please!

great blog and giveaway

One of my favorite blogs is 4 Reluctant Entertainers . I discovered it on crosswalk.com a while back when Sandy Coughlin had written an article on hospitality, I believe. Sandy is having a giveaway that is not only worth telling you all about, but it also gave me the inspiration to post this to challenge and expose some of you "lurkers" as well. (hey - I'm guilty of that myself). She asks her readers to share what their biggest entertaining challenge is. I love the suggestions she offers, but ESPECIALLY this one: Invite at least one couple over who needs fellowship! You don’t know how, by inviting them, you can bless and encourage them! We all know someone at our church, office, Ladies' Bible Study group, school, etc. who is desperately seeking someone's attention - why not you?

Hospitality has always come easy to my family. Maybe because of my hispanic upbringing - ever see the movie Fools Rush In, or my Big Fat Greek Wedding? That's how big some of my family gatherings were growing up. Jeff and I love having people over for dinner and love to be invited to a friend's home, but it seems like people just don't do that very often anymore. The timing of this topic is perfect as well because our church, The Sanctuary Fellowship is kicking off an event called "The Dinner Table" to provide the opportunity for our church family to get better connected with each other.

I'm also having a little giveaway of my own - I bought these adorable little placecard holders at a country store near Lake Livingston. I have a variety of cards to switch out to accomodate your menu, but standard business cards fit as well. If you would like a chance to win them, please leave a comment by Monday, June 30th, 5 pm (CST). I'd also love to have some of you over for dinner and conversation, or maybe a Wii game night! Let me know if you're interested!