The Reason

So. Hi. I've been... away. I was planning on writing a post at the beginning of January explaining my absence. I was simply going to post this picture:


and then a brief explanation of how during the first few sickly and dark months of pregnancy I am pretty much unable to tolerate being near the computer for any time longer than it takes to check my email. I have thought of many of you often and keep checking in on you. I have wanted to send emails... It just hasn't happened.

And then... last Sunday evening we called some friends to invite them skating with us. It was an absolutely beautiful evening. The skating oval was beautifully aglow with its many lights. I was the last to get on the ice. I was standing next to Miss A and we were just about to begin skating. She started to fall backwards. She had a helmet on and I'm sure she would have been fine but I instinctively reached out to try and break her fall a bit. I lost my balance and my feet slipped out from under me.

Let me stop here and explain that I have been skating all my life. I grew up in a small town where you skated in the winter and you swam in the summer. At thirteen I began teaching beginner's lessons. Shortly after we moved to the city. I didn't take any further lessons due to the cost but I still spent a lot of time on skates during the winter at community center rinks. I haven't skated nearly as much in the past few years but it is not something that you forget how to do. I CAN SKATE.

So my feet slipped out from under me. Nothing out of the ordinary. I couldn't count how many times I have fallen since I first learned to skate. I have never injured myself from a skating fall. Bruised my tailbone - sure. But that's it. I don't know if it was the mild weather, thus causing the ice to be a bit softer. If it was the extremely rough ice that caught my skate, or just no reason at all but once I was solidly on my behind I knew that something was horribly wrong with my ankle. And I calmly told Peter and my friends as much.

"Something is really wrong with my ankle."

They all looked down. And I believe I might have heard someone say "Oh no." My knee was still facing upwards but my foot was at a very strange angle and my toes were pointing more towards the ice than they should have been. My friend K is an Occupational Therapist which doesn't make her a doctor but it means that she is accustomed to seeing and dealing with injuries. We had a sled with us for Miss A so they maneuvered me onto it and pulled me to my friend's vehicle. I impressed several young athletic looking guys who skated along behind the sled in case we needed any help. They kept telling me how they couldn't believe how calm I was - that I wasn't freaking out - that they would be freaking out. I finally told them I was too pissed off to freak out. I couldn't believe that this had happened. I was pregnant. I had a two year old. I was a hairstylist. This couldn't be happening.

But it did happen. To save you the WHOLE terrible tale I will simply say that my ankle was dislocated and badly broken. They gave me some amazing drug which knocked me out for a minute while they popped it back into place and wrapped it until I could have surgery. I had surgery on Monday afternoon and got out of the hospital on Wednesday afternoon. My mother has been a saint. She has looked after Peter and Miss A when I was unable to and as I am still unable to she continues to do so. Miss A has been on 'holiday' since Thursday afternoon. My sister took her out to her place about one hour away. I miss her but I admit to sleeping really well at night and in general feeling less stressed out than I have since this happened. I know she is in the best possible hands, that she is happy and doing well and having a wonderful time. I think she'll be home on Monday.

Our church has already been amazing having meals brought over for what will seem like an indefinite amount of time. At times like this it is comforting to see how amazing people can be. Whenever I get discouraged about the goodness in people I try to remember things like this.

So anyway. This is where I have been. If I continue to be rather absent, this is why. I apologize to those of you who I should have called or emailed but who are finding out this way. My brain hasn't been at it's best. Thank you in advance for all your good wishes and concern.