When Will I Ever Learn?

So today I feel like a horrible wife. Joe came home from work Wednesday evening complaining that his foot was sore and that he may need to go to the doctor. He had slipped while getting out of the truck and all of his weight landed on one spot of his foot. His foot had a hard knot on the top of it and was very red. I figured there was no need for a doctor; it was just a small sprain so we put ice on his foot and he elevated it overnight. When he got up Thursday morning he was still complaining but I just gave him some Tylenol and sent him off to work. By Thursday evening Joe could not put any weight on his foot and it was so swollen that we almost could not remove his boot. Once we did get his boot off, his foot continued to swell and turn every color in the rainbow. He also started running a fever. Needless to say, we were at the doctor's office bright and early this morning. Turns out it was just a sprain but because he did not stay off of the foot, it developed a nasty infection. I've never even heard of that happening. The doctor gave him some pain meds, a strong antibiotic, and instructions to keep his foot elevated all weekend. Hopefully by Monday the infection will be gone, the sprain however will take a bit longer to heal.
I feel horrible that we didn't go to the doctor sooner, but I hate the thought of running to the doctor for every little bump or bruise. On the other hand, I don't want the "wait and see attitude" to make a minor problem any worse. How do you decide what is serious enough for a doctor and what isn't?
In other news, Jonah has already cut his second tooth. This one came in much easier than the first. Maybe they are all going to be easy from now on! Pappy (my dad) watched the boys while Joe and I were at the doctor's office this morning. Noah told me that he likes Pappy's house because he has good food. I think my dad will have to make a trip to the grocery store because it sounds as if Noah ate the entire time he was there. My children have no idea how lucky they are to have so many people in their lives to love and spoil them.

OUCH!

Today my muscles are feeling every bean I picked and every hill of okra I weeded yesterday. I guess maybe I wouldn't be quite so sore if I had not had an extra sixteen pounds strapped to my back in the form of a sleeping Jonah!

Country Living

I picked green beans out of the garden this morning. I got about ten gallons. As I was snapping my beans this afternoon, I couldn't help but appreciate where we live. It makes me feel so good to know that I can pick vegetables out of the garden in the morning and feed them to my family that very same night. How much fresher can you get than that? It is also good to know exactly what chemicals were and more importantly were not used on them. I am able to freeze or can my excess vegetables to sustain us all year long and I am able to make all of Jonah's baby food just as I did with Noah. Not only is it good for them, it saves tremendously on the grocery bill. As I was sitting here contemplating how country life just has to be the absolute best, I got a phone call from Joe. He and Noah were on the tractor in the backyard by the little pond. Joe told me to get the rifle and bring it to him quickly. They had spotted a large rattlesnake sunning himself in our backyard. Now I didn't mind looking at the snakes at the zoo this weekend, they were safely ensconced in glass cages, but my backyard is a different story altogether. Noah and I were just out there last week pushing Jonah around in the stroller and searching for blackberries! As you can see from the photo, after a few shots, the snake was history. Sorry for the gore, but no one was getting close enough for a picture until I was absolutely sure that thing was dead! When all the excitement was over and I finally got back to snapping my beans, it was with a little different attitude. I guess there are drawbacks to living in the country. Very creepy ones at that. Even so, I would not trade it for the world!

Busy Busy Weekend

This weekend was a whirlwind of activity. My step-brother Michael travels the NASCAR circuit working for Sprint. This weekend was the NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race in Charlotte, NC. He was able to get tickets for Joe, Mr. Jimmie, and Noah to attend with him. Saturday morning Joe, Noah, Jonah, and I headed out to the Lowe's Motor Speedway in Charlotte, about 200 miles away. We met Mom, Mr. Jimmie, and Michael at the motel about 2:30 Saturday afternoon, just in time for the guys to change into "official" NASCAR shirts and hats, grab their tickets, get a quick picture, and head to the track.From all accounts, they had a great time. Michael was even able to get them each a NASCAR Sprint FanView. This allowed them to hear in-car audio, real-time stats, and view live race video on a hand held screen. I know all of this because it is all Joe has talked about since the race. Of course Noah's favorite moments were the fireworks and watching the crash. He even bought a truck that hauls race cars. The guys came back from the race about 10:30 and we finished watching it on television. Mom, Jonah, and I hit the indoor pool and spa while the guys were at the race. This was Jonah's first time in a pool. It only took a little while for him to learn how to splash and get a big reaction from Mommy.Jonah, Noah, and I had another swim in the pool Sunday morning while Joe packed up the car. On the way home from Charlotte, we were going right though Columbia so we decided to take the boys to Riverbanks Zoo. We had a picnic lunch and then toured the zoo for about three hours. Jonah slept in his snuggli on my back for the majority of the time. Noah seemed really fascinated with the snakes and other creepy crawly things. I guess that is all a part of raising boys. The giraffes were my favorite, and I think Joe could have stood at the elephant exhibit for hours. I wish we didn't live almost two hours away from the zoo. I think I would have the kids there every week!

We got home about 5:30 Sunday evening. Everyone was exhausted from the hectic weekend, but pleased with the memories we created. Many thanks to Michael for making it possible! He will be in our prayers as he travels to the Pocono Raceway to prepare for the race this weekend.

Thank God for Music Downloads

I mentioned previously in this blog that Jonah is my music lover. This is Jonah and my Mom at her house. If you look closely at the picture you will see Jonah clutching Joe's cell phone to his ear. (Click on the picture and it will enlarge) This is the only way to get him to sleep when we are away from the piano at home. Joe has music downloaded onto his cell phone, so Jonah holds it close and drifts off to sleep. I know it seems crazy to have my child sleep with a cell phone instead of a stuffed animal, but somehow it works!

First Tooth

Finally it has arrived! It seems like Jonah has been teething since the moment we brought him home and now we can see the fruits of all his efforts. A shiny little white tooth has popped up on the bottom left side of his mouth. The first thing he did after getting his tooth was to bite his thumb hard enough to make it bleed. That tiny tooth sure is sharp. So far, he hasn't bitten me or anyone else. If he does get into the habit if biting, his nursing days are over!

Blackberry Pie

Noah has been after me to bake him a blackberry pie. I don't know where he got the idea from because as far as I know he has never had blackberry pie before. He usually eats the berries before I have a chance to bake with them. Today he kept coming inside with one handful of berries at a time until he had enough for his pie. So of course, this afternoon I had to look up a recipe and bake one. My first blackberry pie ever. It actually looked nice and Noah said it tasted Mmmmm, Yummy, Yummy, Yummy!