Breaking in 2013

I had already had quite the morning with all the stuff that happened at school and I really thought my day would be a pretty ordinary day from there on out. Abby and I were going to tour a Bed and Breakfast to maybe have Courtney's bridal shower and the boys were going to have a friend come over after school to play. I got out of the car at Pioneer Park and started walking to get Abby when boom I slipped and I changed our next 6-8 weeks. It was really foggy out that morning and it had been 50 the day before so there was a lot of black ice and I hit some. I fell hard and the second I tried to get up I knew I had broken my leg. I was in severe pain and started yelling for help. One of the other preschool moms came up to help me. The poor woman was really shook up and she didn't speak English. She helped me get my phone out of my pocket and dialed 911 for me. I talked to the dispatcher through my sobbing and hung up to call Robb. Luckily I got a hold of Robb easily and he was on his way right then. The fire truck arrived and it seemed like it took an eternity for them to get there. By that time parents and kids were coming out of the preschool and I was still laying on the ground screaming in agony and crying. 2 of the moms stayed to help. One of them just talked to me and one put a blanket under my head and went to tell the teacher what had happened.Robb arrived and I was so glad to see him! He got me calmed down a bit and confirmed my suspicions of my ankle being broke. When the ambulance got there they got me rolled over and onto a stretcher. The ambulance ride to Bryan West seemed to take forever but it just hurt so bad every time we hit a bump. The EMT that rode with me was really nice and he seemed to believe me that my pain was a 12 out of 10. After assessing me and getting a health history, he started and IV and started to give me pain meds. I got a ridiculous amount of meds in the ambulance and I was still in agonizing pain when we got there.

At Bryan West they took xrays of my ankle (Robb later told me it looked like the bone was going to poke through the skin) and they said I broke my ankle in 2 places.
They gave me conscious sedation that only lasted 10 minutes and in that time they reduced my ankle and put it as back into place as they could without surgery. When I woke up Robb was there hugging me and my ankle was all wrapped up huge and it wasn't hanging to the side anymore. I was really confused and I couldn't remember any of it but Robb said he heard me screaming from outside the door. I think that is why I still have a hoarse voice.

After they wrapped my ankle they transferred me to Bryan East to spend the night and I was scheduled for surgery the next day. I got to see the inside of 2 ambulances that day.
Thank goodness for good friends and neighbors who picked up Abby from preschool and the boys from school that day so we didn't have to worry about them. After I was all drugged up and ready to sleep Robb headed home to get the kids from the neighbors and take care of them for the night.
That night in the hospital I was exhausted from all the pain I had been in that day. My nurses were great and I slept pretty good from all my drugs.

Day #2 Friday
Today was long. I spent all day waiting to have my surgery. I wasn't scheduled for surgery until 4:30 and from talking to the nurses it sounded like it would be more like 5 or 5:30. I had really great nurses again today but it was a crummy day for pain. Robb and Abby came up to visit me after getting the boys off to school. It was nice to have some distraction from the pain. Tasha also came up with Lennon. The girls had fun playing together and it was nice to talk to a great friend! Robb and Abby left around noon to go get the boys and then he brought them up to see me before surgery. Bryce and Caleb seemed pretty concerned about the entire situation. I got questions like: If they cut your jeans off at the park did everyone see your underwear? How do they expect you to tie your shoe since they cut through all the laces? How do you get up to go to the bathroom? Bryce was very interested in what the ambulance looked like inside and was pretty disappointed that I didn't remember it at all. Robb then took all the kids to spend the rest of the day and evening with Jenny. Again all the support has been a God send.
Robb got back in time to see me off to surgery. I was terribly nervous about surgery! After all I have never had surgery where the end result wasn't a baby. Not this time though, just a long recovery and pain. They wheeled me down and Robb went to wait in the waiting room. Anesthesia put in 2 different nerve blocks into my leg and then prepped me for a spinal but then surgery got bumped. Some little girl ate some coins and she got to go first. At first I was pretty upset it would be delayed, mostly because I hadn't got to eat anything since 7:30, but once I found out it was a kid it was a little easier to deal with. They let Robb come back and we watched a movie. Finally at 7:30 it was my turn. I don't remember much past that except for pain.
The surgery went well but when they got in there they found out it was broken in 4 places and not 2. I got screws, pins and plates. The rest of the night was a blur of pain! I have never been so glad that Robb stayed with me all night. At one point I remember begging the nurse to call the Dr and Robb was telling me that I needed to breath I was crying so uncontrollably.

 

Day #3 Saturday
Robb went home to sleep and I slept on and off all day. I was exhausted from not sleeping the night before. Bob, Robb's dad came down the night before to stay with the kids so he watched them while Robb slept. My pain was finally under control and it was a relief to have surgery and the severe pain over with but then I was so nauseous I slept with my barf bag right by my head. Tasha came to visit and got to be the first one to see my lame attempt at crutches and a walker with a physical therapist that was more like a drill sargent than anything. Bob brought the kids up to see me for a little while but I was pretty wore out. Jenny and her kids also stopped up and brought a balloon and candy. It was so nice to see friends. Robb came back to stay with me in the afternoon and the hospital decided to move me to the Orthopedic Floor. I thought that's where I had been all along but I was actually on Geriatric Medical. No wonder everyone that came in commented on how young I was. I think the mean age was probably 80. The move to the Ortho floor was one of the best things that could have happened to me. My new nurses took one look at me and decided we needed something better to control my pain and something that wouldn't make me so nauseous. An hour on that floor and I was a new person. The night went pretty well except for the fact that the nurses aide was a guy and it was really awkward to have to ask a guy to help you to the bathroom so I probably over did it a bit that night.

Day #4 Sunday
I was finally feeling somewhat human even though I was taking pain pills every 2-4 hours still. I practiced using the walker and crutches and I even practiced with the crutches on the stairs. It was SO much harder than I ever thought crutches could be. My leg felt like it weighed 50lbs. I passed the test on the steps, got my walker and crutches and I was ready to go by 5:00. Bob and Susie were here watching the kids and they had brought Grandma Hansen down. She had volunteered to help for the week and we were so grateful!
So as you see our January started out very interesting. I'm guessing after a broken ankle and being laid up for 6 weeks it can only go up from here.

 

This is my view from the couch that I will be enjoying for the next 6 weeks,

Excitement for the New Year

I had put in my last post that I hoped this year would be just as exciting as last year. I think I may have needed to be a bit more specific about what type of exciting I meant. Last Thursday ended up being full of excitement but the bad kind.
I had dropped the boys off at school and had found out that day they would be getting a permanent substitute teacher, due to their teacher being diagnosed with severe kidney issues. I was a little sad about this just because she was a wonderful teacher and we had requested her because she is one of the best. I did find out that the permanent sub they hired would be Mrs Morrisey, who has been their sub a lot this year and both of the boys are very comfortable with her. Also, that morning I witnessed something very disturbing when I walked the boys into the gym. All the boys were standing in a group around one kid and when the teacher walked in Caleb and another boy ran up to the teacher and told her something. The teacher walked back to Jasper (who is a trouble maker in the class anyway) and talked to him for a bit and then she came walking back with a big pocket knife. SCARY! I could not believe that a kindergartner had brought a knife to school. It troubled me more that it was Jasper and he seems to be a troubled child anyway. The teacher proceeded to walk the class to the room. Me, being the nervous mom that I am just about grabbed my boys and left. I didn't but I did call the moms that I knew when I left to get their opinion on the situation.
I was troubled more than anything that he got to go to class and the rest of his bag wasn't searched. I got a couple opinions from moms I trusted and had decided that the best way to ease my fears was to call the principal and make sure that the situation had been taken care of.
He was less than helpful when I talked to him and I was just mad. He assured me that my kids were 100% safe in school, which due to recent events in the world, is a pretty big promise to make and further more he wouldn't tell me what the district policy was for handling a  child that brought a knife to school. So needless to say my Thursday morning was a bit stressful. Little did I know how much more stress you could add to one day.

Happy New Year

Happy New Year! We had a pretty uneventful New Year. I had to work New Years Eve and New Years Day. When I got home on the 31 the kids were ready to start the celebration. They had made Jello and had the spray whip cream all ready to go. (This has become a must for our celebration). We drank pop and ate sweets until Bryce said his stomach hurt. The kids got to stay up late (9:30) and I ended up going to bed at the same time they did. I am So not a morning person and 5:30 am comes really really early. Poor Robb spent the evening watching movies and hanging out by himself.
2012 brought a lot of changes for our family and we hope that 2013 is just as exciting.

Year In Review 2012

2012 was a wonderful year. It brought a lot of change for everyone but we are adjusting and happy to have each other.

January

-Abby got her ears pierced

-We lost Grandpa Larry who was very special to all of us

-Our little girl turned 3

 

-We went to Monster Jam. Not something I ever thought I would go to but the kids LOVED it!

February

-Bryce and Caleb started basketball at the YMCA. Bryce loved it and Caleb hated it.

-We lost Grandpa Hansen which was really hard on everyone.

-We finally joined the church that we have been attending 7 years.

-Robb had project management training in Baltimore so we had a week without daddy.

- Caleb had allergy testing done and although he is still allergic to peanuts he go the all clear to eat eggs and to try shell fish in small amounts.

 

March

-We took our last adults only Colorado ski vacation.

 

-Bryce and Caleb started YMCA soccer with Robb as the coach

-We went to a circus

April

-We had fun celebrating Easter with all the family

May

- May was a busy month for us!

-We got 2 20 foot trees for the backyard

 

-Robb turned the big 30

-Bryce and Caleb had their last day of preschool at Pioneer Park

-We hosted Mitch and Courtney's graduation party

-All the kids started swimming lessons

June

- I also turned 30

-Bryce and Caleb celebrated their 6th birthday

 

-We were finally able to take family bike rides

-Bryce and Caleb really started to enjoy golf like their dad.

July

-Yankton vacation

 

-Gardening with Grandma Hansen

-The boys were old enough to light some of the small fireworks this year

August

-Bryce and Caleb got to go to their first ever Nebraska football game with Grandma and Grandpa Lutz

 

-A HUGE first for us this year was that the boys started Kindergarten

-This month was a stressful one! I had gotten a new job and ended up quitting before I started due to scheduling issues. Instead I started working part time hours at the St Elizabeth NICU when the hours were available.

-Abby started going to daycare with our neighbor Kristin 1 time a week

-We went to the Norfolk water park with Grandma Jody, Steph and Draven

-Susie and I went to Minneapolis to the Mall of America and my new favorite place ever IKEA

September

-We went to the Omaha Zoo as a family

-We picked apples at the apple orchard

-Abby started preschool at Pioneer Park

-We went fishing with Grandma and Grandpa Mattern

-Caleb had a bad reaction to peanuts for the first time since we found out he was allergic to them

-Steph and I crossed a 5K mud run off our bucket list

October

-We went to Roca Pumpkin Patch, Boo at the Zoo and Abby had a Halloween party for school

-For Halloween Abby was Rapunzel, Bryce was Batman and Caleb was a golfer

November

-We had pictures taken for Christmas cards

-We were able to spend Thanksgiving with our families

December

-Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

Love Robb, Erin, Bryce, Caleb and Abby Lutz

A Week Off

We came home from Norfolk on Wednesday night. This year Robb had vacation that he had to use before the end of the year or he would lose it. It was odd having everyone home but it was nice just being able to hang out has a family. Robb spent countless hours building Lego's with the boys. We also played all the games that they got for Christmas. We had a couple family movie nights where we watched Brave, Avengers and some of the Star Wars movies.
The weather has cooperated pretty well and the kids have been able to go sledding 3-4 times during vacation. Robb has been taking them to Pioneer Park to sled and snow board. You know you have dare devil kids when you put them in heavy duty snowboarding helmets to go sledding at the local park. Abby went sledding a couple times but she wants to stay about half as long as the boys so this last time I went with them and brought her home early. She was a pretty fair weather sledder if you ask me but Robb said she acted like more of a princess when I was there.
I had a great time having the kids and Robb home for a week but I will admit that I was ready for the kids to go back to school today. We needed routine again!

It looks like Toys R Us blew up in our living room!

Bryce and his Star Wars Lego ship

 

Caleb outside sledding. He is truly our outdoor kid. Even with all his new toys he wanted to go out in the cold to play.

 

Abby playing with her new baby nurse set. (I'm not sure why she got away with sitting on the kitchen table but it looks like she is having fun!)

 

Missing Our Out Of Town Family

This year we had one less Christmas. Mom went to Arkansas to spend Christmas with Mitch and Courtney. Although we missed seeing her for Christmas I am glad that she got the opportunity to go. Courtney's mom and her drove down together to see them for a week. They didn't realize that they were going to be in for quite the adventure. Little Rock Arkansas almost never gets snow so after they were there a day the town got 3 inches of ice and then another 8 inches of snow. It sounds like the town pretty much shuts down. They don't have enough equipment to clean the streets so the roads are bad for a long time. Mitch and Courtney ended up losing power for a couple of days and had both moms there to entertain. From Courtney's facebook posts we got a taste of how crazy it was there. In one of them she said she was stuck in the apartment with both moms, a rabbit, no heat and no liquor. She then proceeded to say please send help or liquor. I think if Mitch and Courtney made it through this crazy adventure they are up for any challenge marriage can throw at them. It was sad not having them at Christmas but we are looking forward to seeing them this summer and in September for their wedding.

Christmas with the Matterns

Christmas late afternoon we went to my dad and Cindy's house for Christmas. It was nice being able to spread out our Christmases so we could spend more time with each family. We had snacks and ate a delicious meal. The kids were all a bit older this year and they let us sit around and talk before we had to rush into opening presents. Bryce, Caleb and Draven stayed busy in the living room entertaining themselves while we looked at photo albums and talked about the good old days. This was also the first Christmas without my Grandpa Larry. We usually wouldn't see them for Christmas because they go to Arizona for the winter but it was nice to sit and talk about the Christmases when I was little that we would spend at their house. He will be greatly missed. His stories and sense of humor are irreplaceable.

 

 

We had to grab a quick family picture while my aunt Sheri, uncle Greg and cousin Melanie were there to take it. They didn't stay long but it is always good to see them.

We did finally let the kids open their gifts before they busted from excitement. Bryce is opening the annual pillowcase present from aunt Steph. She has made them special pillow cases every year since the boys were 2 (maybe) and Abby has always got a special pillow case so they have come to expect it every year. Thanks Aunt Steph!

 

Present chaos!

 

 

 

Grandpa Steve telling the kids crazy stories and getting them to believe them.

It was a great night with family! We completely lost track of time and didn't end up leaving until 10:00. The kids were behaving so well we didn't realize we were hours past bedtime. Thanks for the yummy food and fun night Dad and Cindy.

Christmas Morning with Grandma Hansen

We drove to Tekameh Christmas morning to see Grandma Hansen and attend the Hansen Christmas. Everyone but Robb's parents and us live in Tekameh, so no matter how early we leave we are always pretty late. The goal is to get there in time that there is still some sausage and bacon left. You think I'm kidding. It is an issue. When you have 40+ people there and a lot of them are young farm boys the meat goes pretty fast. Grandma made us waffles when we got there and the boys got their fill of sausage and bacon. It was fun to see everyone but it was also hard not having grampy there to complain about the noise and amount of people. ( I do mean that in a loving way!) You just had to know Grampy. That many people in his house at once about drove him over the edge but he knew that Grammy wouldn't have it any other way so once a year he shut his mouth (for the most part) and let us take over the house.

 

 

Grandma made all the girls a pillow with one of her cross stitches on it and the remainder of the material was from one of Grandpa's shirts. It was a very thoughtful and neat gift to receive.

She made all the kids fleece blankets and tooth fairy pillows. She put a lot of time into picking a special fabric for each kid. The kids loved them. They were exhausted when we left and ended up napping with their new blankets on the way home.

On our way out of town we stopped at the cemetery to see Grandpa's headstone. It was a hard first Christmas without him and our hearts go out to Grammy because we know how much we miss him and can't imagine the emptiness she felt today.

 

Christmas Eve with the Lutz's

Grandma and Abby posing with the beautiful dress that grandma made for her.

Grandma and Grandpa with the kids.

Family Christmas Picture 2012

Caleb, Abby and Bryce in front of Grandma and Grandpa's Huge tree.

Brook and Abby in their matching dresses.

 

This may be the best picture we have ever gotten of all the kids together.

We got to the Lutz's house Sunday night. The kids got to talk to grandma and grandpa for a few minutes and scope out the gifts before going to bed. The next morning was pretty relaxing. We hung out at the Lutz's all day and at about 2 Ginger, Aaron, Brook and AJ came over. All the kids couldn't contain their excitement any longer. They needed to open gifts!

 

Caleb was excited about his Lego's and remote control cars.

 

Bryce Loved all of the Star Wars stuff he got!

Abby got new and exciting accessories for her American Girl Doll.
They also got spoiled by Grandma and Grandpa and got Kindle Fires. They love them!

Andy is checking out his new golf simulator.

 

 

Robb is also checking out his golf simulator. Now Robb and Andy don't have any excuses for bad golf games in the summer. They have all winter to practice and can even play each other on this game.

 

 

I got a Keurig coffee machine. Yum now I can have my lattes everyday.

 

We had fun playing with all of our new toys and seeing the kids have fun with all their new toys. At 5:00 we went to church. I love Christmas Eve church! Our kids are finally old enough that we can expect good behavior from them and be able to enjoy the service. It was a bit of an unorthodox service this year which I wasn't sure I would enjoy as much as the more traditional service but it kept every ones attention and was well put together. The  high school students did a spoof on the little kids Christmas play. Our kids loved it! The candle light singing is still my favorite part which they kept the same. All the kids were old enough this year to hold their own candle. I will admit I was nervous Abby was going to start her hair on fire but it went fine.

When we got back Santa had come to Grandma and Grandpa's house. Spoiled kids! After checking out what Santa had brought we ate a delicious meal and enjoyed chatting late into the evening. I love that we have family to spend the holidays with.