Feeling neglected, readers????

Wow! I can't believe how tired I am and how sttrreeetttcccchhhed I feel! Sumana hasn't said anything, but I can't help but think she might be feeling a bit neglected these days. I'm sure you, our faithful readers, feel that way, too!

Gretchen had her BIG ankle surgery Tuesday and it turned out to be BIGGER than we expected. The doctor lengthened her tendon (1 incision), did an arthroscopy procedure to scrape and suck out the scar tissue in her ankle (2 small pokes) AND broke her heel to reposition her foot and ankle (1 more incision and a poke in her heel).

When she sprained her ankle last year, it never healed. After many doctor appointments, we discovered that the problem was a congenital defect in her heel. As long as her ankle was strong, she didn't have a problem. However, once the ankle was injured, it continually rolled over and over and would not heal. Thus, the need to fix the heel to prevent the roll-overs. So, her post-op plan is crazy! She has to keep her "toes above her nose" for SEVEN DAYS!!! THEN, once she can get up and around, she still can't put any weight on her foot for 2 more weeks. I think she can start PT after that, but she still won't be able to drive for at least 8 weeks!

And, just to keep things interesting, Andrew has re-injured his knee twice in the last month. When I took him to the pediatric ortho (Sumana's docs), they saw more chipped bone floating around and lots of fluid. Just to look at his knee you can see that it's way off track. Instead of pointing forward, his left kneecap points diagonally to the left. So, he's scheduled for an MRI Friday morning and I can bet he'll be having his own surgery soon, too.

I didn't check to see if I already mentioned this, but Sumana's next VEPTR surgery is scheduled for November 15th. It feels good to have that on the books and for it to be before her birthday and the holidays. She also has her pre-op appointment and her neurological testing scheduled for October, so she should be all set.

Gretchen, Jeffrey and Jade all start their classes at FLCC August 30. I'd like to start our homeschool then, too, but I still have lots of work to do in order for that to happen. If Gretchen is up for it, we'd like to get to the state fair, too.

You know, it has been so crazy, but I know God has given us the strength that we need to get through it all. God promises us that His strength is made perfect in our weakness. I need to remember that I can't do life on my own . . . I need God's strength and presence every day. Woo-hooo!! So glad He's there and that He cares about us!