I mean it's been so long, not sure where to start....My head is spinning....So much happening. How did I ever threw 32 hours of work right in there before? LOL.
We've got the best of Mr Flu. He's gone, spirits are back...Chaos in the house, feels good....
It's D-1. tomorrow our princess (more like a little dictator sometimes) turn 3.....Sounds ( and will be) like a cliche BUT how did that happen? It's been a week now hat she's telling us (or whoever else is willing to listen) that she's getting a pink cake, 3 pink canddles, pink balloons, and BIG pink presents. Now please tell me how do I turn a Winnie the Poeh cake into pink? I could make a icing pink dress on top? Would that work?....Don't ask, let me just tell you that's what happen when you let DH be in charge of getting THE cake....
I loved her 1 year old birthday, hated #2 (she was just grown up and could not take that), and I kind of like her being 3...She's as cuddly as a year ago, way funnier, way smarter. She's our sunshine, our princess. 100% girl!!! And so lucky to have such patient brothers...She's bossing them around and sometimes I expect retaliation, but no, it never comes...Well not just yet.
So we're ready for a pink-everything birthday tomorrow.
She started a new daycare early Jan. A fanstastic place, very low scale, 9 kids from 2 to 4. That's 3 days a week from 8:30 to 13:00. The woman in charge is amazing and I am so happy I got in. On top of that she still goes one day to he creche where she used to go. She's loving both places. And as much I find find myself cool, interesting, witty and fun, Manouk seems to think that her playmates are "it" (not mum). So now I get plenty of time for school - without feeling guilty - and that's good.
This picture was taken on Jan 22....All packed up for my 6-monh review. I found it quite nervous wrecking...I had a total of 102 pictures to expose in a room, about 2/3 in mating frames, in 30 minutes. A jury of 5 people took about 45 mns to look at them. You were then given the go / no-go. It was a go for me (had to redo one thing though or rather improve). So that's ok.
Now, I'll give you the stats for the end of first year review. In Jan, out of 15 students, 5 went through to the second year. Of which, 3 were doing this second half year for the second time.....Hmmmm...Does not sound too good. So people do not cheer to early in June, the % of chance is L-O-W.
Now, if a surgeon tells you when you're discharged from the hospital after a severe ski accident that left you with a broken femur: ok, buddy, we put your leg back in place..It's not perfect but it' acceptable...And your femur looks then like that:
You go home with a horrible cast....Let's not go back to it...
Then you go back 3 weeks later, make another x-ray, and then the same surgeon says:, ok buddy, it looks really good...And the picture looks like this..
But then, they replace your cast to a one-leg one and life becomes so much sweeter at once, that your parents even forget about a crooked bone...
Fast fwd 3 days and your parents put the 2 pictures next to each other...
Well, we're not surgeon but we just didn't get it...It's gotten worse but it looks fine? From acceptable. So we call the surgeon back and we call a specialist for a second opinion..
Surgeon 1 says: angle is ok (within the norm), it will get back to normal.
Specialist says:
1) The angle is 32, the norm is for your age group <20. So it's "quite" outside the acceptable rangle. BUT there is nothing anyone can do now (3/4 weeks later, meaning, no point in breaking the leg again at this stage). The angle should not have been found acceptable then, and either a plate should have been put in, or the cast re-open gain to set the bone back again...but well it's too late.
2) It will not get back to normal 100%. It cannot be. BUT he expects that given your age (6) and the position of the break (just above the knie), a natural recovery will take place and will be sufficient. It will take a few years. The bone wil grow and fill the inside of the angle. It will subside on the outside to get the femur back in line.
3) So now, you have a leg shorter than the other. (from mummy, not surgeon...LOL..: You were already special in my heart, now even more). But the muscles will compensate that so that both legs will be equal.
4) There is no torsion, ie knie not turned in or out. Which is GOOD, because there is no natural recovery for that...
5) In one year time, we will know more re another break....
So we all know medicine is not an exact science, but conclusion, always get a second opinion with THE specialist. Only he will put some of the worries at rest (or not). He did a great examinaion, and apart (hmmmm) from the angle, Nathan does not have any othe issues. Obviously, as they cannot/will not do anything now, I guess they cannot say anything else that they did. No need to worry the parents just yet.
So we sure hope and pray that our little guy will be ok. Today 3 weeks after his cast was removed he cycled for the first time. He still limps, and has another week to do so. If he still does by next week, then he needs the physio. I guess that would explain in part my lack of posing, I was trying to digest all of this.
The guy has been banned from Snowworld for life. Such a relief for me. My kids are members of the ski club, they train every week (well not N. obviously right now) and I feel better without this lunatic on the pists. I must say that in the last 4 trainings since M. went back, I have not seen anybody skiing even a bit dangerously. Now Mr banned-for-life is sueing snowworld (and even wants to go to the press). Well that shows me that he does not have a clue about what he did wrong and that given the chance, he would go back and ski as recklessly as he did that day. So if he wants to go to the press, let it be, he'll just make a fool of himself.
Snowworld has given DH and Nathan free skipasses for whenever N. wants to try again. They have been extremely nice and considerate, even personnally to Nathan (got special mail, DVD etc) which I think is really nice (vs talking to us only).
We've sorted out the insurance stuff. Got every extra costs and more for Nathan which he can use when he's 18. That last part is good because this kid's lifestyle is way above his means, and he would burn it in no time... (buying sweets, lol). Case is still open based on final recovery.
It's been a stressful and painful event. We learnt, as with every experience, a lot. A few things were: 1) if you break your leg, please break it under your knie. It is so much simpler for recovery...2) Nathan has been nothing short of AMAZING during his ordeal. He hardly hardly ever complained, made the most of it although it was so tough a times. He's showed me what it means to be strong. Waiting for the ambulance, having his clothes cut off, waiting for the operation before entering the OR, discovering his cast, realising his life was just on hold for a while. I discovered a side of him and he really taught me a lot. Kids are so resilient, it is hard to explain but they can do things and take things in a way that we (adults) can no longer do. What amazes me the most was his lack of anger at the man. Which I think is only good. No need for rage, it's a waste of time. But let me say that I'm still pissed at this guy> Nathan is not...Kids are just some kind of wonderful in every way.
Pffff, sorry for the novel, I guess its been sitting in there and needed to get out. We can look fwd now and just be...for a while...
Well not for long, we have decided to change the boys from school . And well that's happening in 3 week!!!! Lots of different reaons but in short they are sitting in a montessori school now and I'm not sure (actually I am sure that it's not LOL) that's the best for them. Maxim is doing really well and could pull it off, but well Nathan...He's like me..I was lazy, I really could not see the point of sweating over homework while there were yummy cherrys waiting to be picked in the tree at the end of my garden...So maybe he's not thinking about cherrys, but we have enough worms in our backgarden to keep him busy every day after school. I'm one to believe in work hard | play hard. And that education is the only one thing noone can take away from you. It gives you freedom of choices later.
We are not looking forward to tell them. I now it will be a painful episode but it is for the best and it will be ok.
On the school front, I have a 2 day shoot next week. We (doing it with another student) are shooting for a end-of-study project of a stylist. She needs to combine a supermarket here in NL (Bas something something....and not that trendy) with a super trendy/hip magazine (blend...I'm obviously not cool enough - must tell Manouk - because I never had head of it). Her (student) concept is table manners (a hot subject here at home btw. OMW, I wonder whether my 2 boys will ever be trained!!!). I've seen the storyboard, discussed it. It will be cool. Totally out of my box. Should be fun.
Still decorating at home. Close to finish....All costing too much time. One thing I want is a serie of 4 squarere pictures for a wall in the family room. Must be vintagy-ish...I'm trying to use the Portugal pictures from last year. 3 landscapes and one of the kids. The hard part is getting the right touch in processing...(last picture is one I'm working on). Still have not found it.
So how's that for a post...
I'll leave you with a few pictures...
