The Finger

Lily the wee tiny one at our house broke her finger. She loves to sneak outside. She loves to wander the neighborhood looking for mud, puddles, or morsels of food on the ground. She is one. You see my problem here right? It is not alright for a 1 year old to run around the neighborhood like an urchin. She isn't Oliver Twist. She isn't even Harry Potter. She has two parents who love her, cloth her, and even, yes, feed her. So being outside free like a lark (she must have know that's what I wanted to name her)is her goal in life. About two weeks ago she was trying to get out and Phoenix was trying to get her back in and the door slammed on her left pointer finger. The rest is pure guess because all I saw was the aftermath. I think it was caught in the door and she panicked and pulled it out. By that time it was pretty well squished. The nail was taken right off. All of it. It left a gaping hole where the little bone was exposed. ewww. We went to Urgent Care and waited the mandatory 3 hours and they said that the bone was broken and that the nail was totally gone. Sianarra. Adios. Chao. They bandaged it and plinted it and said to give her the antibiotic and tylenol.

NOw, lest you think I am an awful parent... we did all that the doctor ordered and the finger is looking better. Still no nail, but she is able to use it and the splint came off. The MD's think that the nail will do one of three things: 1) not grow back at all. 2) grow back and be warped, either wavy or bumpy. or 3) It will grow back and be perfect just like new. Hopefully it grows back perfect in everyway. The last thing I need is to be blamed for some horrible accident I couldn't control! I'm sure I will be blamed for lots of things that I can. Bring on the therapy!

SAVE the FROG

Mr. Froggy (IT)


The make-shift bedpan/habitat



Yesterday Lily had a doctors appointment. They needed to take new x-rays of the smushed finger, which is healing nicely by-the-way. We also had swim lessons, and I needed to go to the Ensign Book Store to get some things for Willow's birthday which is coming upon us fast. Anyway it was a fully planned day. I decided that at swim lessons we would shower all the chlorine off there at the Diamond Valley aquatic center so that all we had to do to get ready for the day was dress. While in the shower, Poppy yelled, "There's a frog in my shower!" I go to check it out. Sure enough there's a little tree frog hopping around her drain. Phoenix catches it, and the begging begins. "Please mom, can we keep it? Puh leasssee mooommmmyyyy? It won't be any trouble. I won't let Lily eat it. I'll keep it in my room.....? Please. Please. Please. PLEASE" How can you resist? I actually have quite a soft spot in my heart for little froggies. I think they are one of natures sweetest creatures. So I say yes and we load into the car to go home, ready for the next leg of our day.

You say, but wait I know this isn't all. Yep, not 2 minutes after we get in the car the frog is lost and I am thinking ,"Melissa this has got to be the dumbest thing you've ever done." We search the car when we arrive home, but to no avail. So, already late for the next errand we leave hoping beyond all hope Mr. Froggy escaped the bullet shaped mini-van. We stop at the dry cleaners (be ready today at 4:00). We stop at the gas station to go potty again, and then we get to the mall. We go inside to get some lunch (mmmmm Miguels)and some face cream for mom. After we have shopped and eaten I am nearly sure that I will be smelling a putrid dead animal in my car in a few days. I am pondering how long it will take to go away when I look over at the passenger seat and who do I spy, but Mr. Froggy riding along. When we arrive at Kaiser, I think ,"what am I going to do? It is really hot now and he surely will die if I leave him in the car this time". So I load the children out and MacGyver a shoe box scavenged from the parking lot to carry IT in. We head into Orthopedics and the children are so excited that we found the frog that THEY are jumping all over. While we stand in line to check in, IT escapes and the four of them run off after IT screaming and bouncing. Everyone looks at me. I see the accusatory statements in their eyes. A frog at the hospital, really? Squealing in this place of healing, really? Please keep IT and THEM away from me.

One of the receptionists gets me a plastic bed pan to keep IT in. I take the motley crew outside and in the trash can on the very top is a nice big piece of aluminum foil. I'm all about going green... so I recycle it to make a lid for the bed pan/make-shift frog habitat. Then we put the whole thing back inside the shoe box and it only escaped once more during the X-rays.

When we got home I put IT in a bulk sized ice cream tub with a rock, some water, some dirt, some foliage, and some ants for dinner.

Later that evening I was looking for some info on IT and found that here in my little town of Hemet/ San Jacinto/ Idylwild we have a frog that is endangered. It's called the Mountain Yellow legged Frog and there are less than 200 living in the wild. Let me reassure you Mr. Froggy is not an endangered frog! He isa very common Pacific Tree Frog. I thought you might want to read an article about our endangered froggy (go to the link).

Lily's finger X-ray

I need one of these. Oh how I need one of these. The super cool antique schwinn Dave got for me is kind of a nightmare. Looks cool and vintage like me but a nightmare all the same. Please oh please pick me!

Lord of the Hemet Flies

Now that I have not died yet. I am going to do another post on my blog. Here's a few tidbits of life. The kids have been running amock for several weeks now while I was trying to die. They think they are orphans. Phoenix has forgotten how to wear a shirt. Poppy goes without panties, and Willow is the queen of the island. They all have sticks that they leave by the front door at night. It reminds me of Lord of the Flies. I hope very much that Lily doesn't become Piggy.

What the CRAP?

You heard it. What the CRAP...? I'm yelling or at least I would be if I could get that much sound out of my mouth right now. I have not been feeling good. I know that seems like a euphamism for her "cheese done slid off her cracker" nowadays. I thought so too. I thought I must be depressed because I haven't enjoyed being back in Hemet all that much. Then it started. I was always tired. Dog tired. Do dogs get tired that's a wierd saying. Anyway I whined to my beloved that I was tired. He came home with a coke for me. I thought well maybe I should see that Dr. who helped me be human again after Lily came. The one that seemed way too relaxed. Working shouldn't make me this tired I kept thinking. Then I got a fever and I thought oh good now I have the flu and it will be done and over in a few days. A week later I still had a fever. Then my lymph nodes all over swelled right up. So I must be infected. So my beloved sent me to Urgent Care they said, ummm Hmmm ophhh uhhhuhh and then they gave me a prescription for antibiotics. After a week on the antibiotics my tonsils swelled up too. Now I can't swallow the horse antibiotics they gave me. Back to the doctors my beloved sends me. This time they suck my blood (not in the oh baby edward way either). I urinated in a cup. And they swabbed my decks again.

I got an email saying that I was positive for mono. Yeah that 16 year old kissing disease. I have it as a 35 year old mom. Cool. I guess I'm what you'd call a late bloomer. This is a picture I got off the internet. But I swear that this is exactly what my tonsils look like. Do you know how hard it is to take a picture of your tonsils? WHat the crap!

The Fruits of my Labor

I was rushing around the other day getting all the little things in the house picked up when I realized it was quiet... too quiet. Then I went in search for the 4 most precious things I hold. I finally found them inthe front yard of all places. They decided to have a pic nic. They dragged out their folding chairs and their lunches and set up camp. I stood at the doorway letting the flies in for a long time. People slowed as they drove by to see what the pow -wow was. I wanted to scream at the top of my lungs. I DID THAT. I MADE THEM. THEY ARE MINE. That is only partly true. Dave helped.

As Mothers Day rolls around I am reminded of all the hours I spent bringing those little ones into the world and all the hours after making sure they know who they left to come here to me. I spend all day trying to teach them about the parents who they left in Heaven and the Older Brother who awaits their return. I am thankful for the time I have with each of them.

Argggg, I bin lookin' for me treasure Matey!

Willow lost a top tooth. The lazy Tooth Fairy finally came (a night late). She couldn't be more thrilled.