Giving Thanks part 2

Good thing I've been reading the book "One Thousand Gifts" by Ann Voskamp!   On Thursday I drove down to Mankato to watch Sarah's fastpitch softball team lose their playoff game to Chanhassen, 6-0.  That wasn't so bad, as that team had been winning many games by scores of 17-0 or more.  On my way home, I called Philip (on Pete's phone) to see if the church slowpitch game had ended, or if I should come in to Willmar to see the rest of it.  I decided to attend, and halfway to Willmar Philip called to ask me to bring ice - "Dad hurt his leg.  He heard his knee pop - he hyper-extended it."  Rats.  Pete called before I got the ice to say that a member of the opposing team had brought some from his neighboring house.  We enjoyed cheering the team on to victory, 20-13, while Pete sat on the bench and Jason K. substituted on the pitcher's mound.

After the game, Lois Nelson declared, "Peter whatever-your-middle-name-is Stadem, you are going in!"  We hemmed and hawed as we drove to DQ, where Andrew and Philip purchased their usual post-game Blizzards, but finally decided we'd better get it checked out.  Daniel came to get the boys and I drove Pete to the emergency room at Rice Hospital.  After an hour or two, the X-ray revealed a compound fracture of the tibia and an insignificant fracture of the fibula.  The doctor insisted on speaking with an orthopedic surgeon and phoned Alexandria, where a Dr. Nelson recommended sending Pete home with a splinted legs and orders to call Willmar the next day to schedule surgery.   We crawled into bed at 1:30am - well, I crawled; Pete and I gingerly raised his leg to the bed and he slept on his back.  Ibuprofen controlled the pain fairly well, though.

On Friday, after numerous phone calls to Willmar, Alexandria and Olivia, we journeyed to Heartland Orthopedics in Alexandria because no orthopedic surgeon in Willmar could help us.  As it turned out, no orthopedic surgeon in Alex could help us either.  Surgery has to wait until this week because the swelling must go down or they wouldn't be able to close the incision.  We waited almost two hours for Pete's CT scan, because a sudden influx of emergency patients kept the scanner busy.  When we finally arrived home at supper time, I took a bath while Pete napped on the couch, and then I did go to the Gatewood's barn dance for about an hour.  Biggest crowd yet and so fun!

So - no trip to Plain View Farm this weekend; no softball for Pete the rest of the season; no graduation parties for him on Saturday; no going much of anywhere (just a funeral and church) until the surgery.  On the positive side - no ligaments or tendons torn (they think); no terrible pain; no work for several days, so time to think and pray about some long-term issues we've been procrastinating.  The kids have been very helpful, including taking care of the turkeys.  Lots of folks are praying for us.  And bone heals well.  God is good - all the time!