Thursday, December 29, 2011

Deployment: November 2006

Just FYI: dh=dear husband, ds1=dear son 1, ds2=dear son 2, dd=dear daughter, PTL=praise the Lord, FIL=father-in-law, BIL=brother-in-law, SIL=sister-in-law
Also, peoples' comments I included are in italics with the person's name in parenthesis

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November 3, 2006

So I have just a minute or two and I thought I should post a quick update on what's been going on with my dh since he's been home on leave.

Some of you may remember that he injured his wrist breaking up a fight 2-3 mos ago. First they said it was a sprain and did nothing for a month, then when it didn't get better he was examined again and over the course of 24 hours went from being badly broken and needing surgery to something not so serious so they were going to try a cast for a month and see what happened.

Anyway, two days before he was supposed to come home for leave they wanted to send him to a specialist and if it was determined that he needed surgery then he wouldn't have been able to come home for leave and would have had to stay for the surgery and such over there. Thankfully, dh's commander or whoever said that would be a lousy thing to do to a guy and his family two days before he was supposed to be going home and they told him to skip the specialist, go home on leave and get a second opinion over here.

Well, that's what he did and I guess he really shouldn't have since it opened a big can of worms. Now he can't go back to Iraq until he's cleared medically (which to me is a good thing ) and according to some bigwig over there he shouldn't have even come home if he wasn't cleared medically in the first place. Too late for that now.
Anyway, the good thing is that I get a few extra days with him. He was supposed to be leaving for Kuwait tomorrow morning and now he doesn't have to leave until Tuesday. On Tuesday someone will come and pick him up to drive to Ft McCoy, WI where they'll start the process of figuring out what the heck is wrong with his wrist. most likely he'll end up being sent to Ft Knox, KY at some point for medical treatment.

The specialist we saw in town said he did have a break but it had healed and that he would recommend an MRI before moving forward with any kind of surgery. Please pray that my dh will get the medical attention he needs and that we will know as soon as possible whether or not he will be returning to Iraq. If he needs surgery it is likely the rest of his deployment will be cancelled and he will be home early. (of course I'm trying not to hope too much, but that would sure be a nice Christmas present for us)

Anyway, thanks to everyone for all the thoughts and prayers for me and my family. I'm sure I'll be back more after he's gone to WI. I try to keep up with reading for a few minutes each day, but I haven't been able to post much. Just know I'm thinking about all of you and I send up prayers for my MOPS family every day. Oh, and welcome to any newbies who have joined in the last couple of weeks.


Kate

As far as the use of his wrist goes, it still bothers him when he lifts heavy things. He said over all it feels better since he's starting to build up muscle again after having been in a cast, but he still has pain that isn't getting any better.

I am concerned that if it doesn't get fixed soon there may be permanent damage and with him being in law enforcement I don't know what that will mean for his civillian job. I am just praying that they will figure out what is actually wrong so they can find the appropriate treatment. I am still extremely irritated with the care (or lack there of) he received when he was first injured. I think it's partially his own darn fault for not insisting to see a specialist after the fiasco with needing surgery and then just needing a cast. If I had two contrasting medical opinions like that I would have insisted to see someone who actually specializes in orthopedics! Too late now.

Anyway, thanks again for all the prayers.

Kate

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November 7, 2006

Please join in prayer for KateD's hubby today and in the next however long it takes until they find out the verdict on his wrist and whether or not he will go back to Iraq. I am sure the waiting and not knowing is the hardest.

God, we just lift up Kate's husband to You, as well as Kate and the kids. We know that You are in control of the entire situation, and that the outcome will be according to Your will. I pray for wisdom for the doctors as they decide the necessary treatment, and most of all for peace and patience as he and Kate wait for the outcome. Help them to wait and to trust in You. In Jesus' name, Amen. (dawnie)

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I know he's only going to Wisconsin, but it's still hard to have him gone. Both my boys have been pretty down about it and dd was napping when he left so I don't know how she'll be when she discovers that he's gone. She's become quite a Daddy's Girl since dh has been home. I am guessing the reaction of a 16 month old will be quite different than that of a 9 month old.

Anyway, thanks so much for the prayers and support. More than anything I just want him to find out for sure what's wrong with his wrist and get the treatment for it that he needs. He said he won't know anything for a few days because they have to get him processed and all that, but I'll keep you posted as I find out more info.

On the bright side... he does get to have his cell phone so I'll be able to talk to him more than when he was overseas. That will be nice. Even if I can't talk to him in person I can leave messages on his voice mail. Also, my college roommate and I will be going through WI this weekend to go see my uncle in a play so we may be able to stop by the base he'll be at for a quick visit on our way out or on our way home. I am really hoping that will work out, but we'll have to see what happens.

Thanks again for everything!

Kate

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November 8, 2006

Do any of your kids…

try to hurt themselves in the same way one of their siblings did just to receive the same attention from you? Or does my ds2 just have some "owie envy" issues?

Ds1 was trying to crawl into bed with me this morning and slipped and hit his head on my dresser. He said he needed "something cold" to make it feel better so we went to the kitchen and got one of those plastic ice cubes I have just for boo boos and had him put it on his head. As I'm doing that I hear a couple of thumps and I look over to see ds2 banging his head on the cupboard and fake crying "I need something cold! I need something cold!" If you're going to hurt yourself on purpose at least go into the other room so I don't see you doing it.


I suppose I could somehow blame this behavior on dh leaving yesterday, but I have a feeling it's more than that.

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I talked to dh last night and he made it safely to WI. He said it sounds like today he'll be seeing doctors and he will hopefully know later today or tomorrow what's wrong with him and if he needs surgery.
Please pray that he gets an MRI and that it shows the doctors what they need to see to determine what is wrong with him.

If you could also pray for speedy results I would appreciate it. This not knowing for sure what's going to happen is driving me crazy. I know it's in God's hands and I just need to trust in Him, but knowing it and actually doing it are two different things. KWIM? I am trying, but it seems like it's been forever since he was first injured and I just want to know one way or the other if he'll have to stay in the states for treatment or if they'll determine it's nothing serious and he'll be sent back to Iraq.

Thanks everyone!

Kate


I just talked to my dh and I am more frustrated than ever. They have him in a splint again. (he was in one for 2.5 weeks before he saw the specialist here who told him he didn't need it) They say he needs to wear it for three weeks and do physical therapy and then see what happens. Supposedly these docs see a break on the X-rays that the specialists didn't see. *fighting the urge to post an eyeroll*

Even though the "civillian" specialists he saw while on leave suggested an MRI would be the next logical step to make sure there's no cartilage or ligament damage they are refusing to sign off on it and send dh for an MRI. I am thinking that if a cast for a month didn't do anything and a splint for 2.5 weeks didn't do anything then why not do the MRI and make sure there is nothing more serious wrong there.

I am going to ask dh to have the military docs call the specialist he saw and talk to him themselves. It just frustrates me that they seem to be jerking him around so much with his care. If he weren't deployed for active duty right now we would have been able to follow the advice of "civillian" docs and get the care they recommend. We would have known by now what all is wrong with him and we would be able to get him the appropriate treatment.

Not that military docs are bad or anything, it's just that seeing an actual orthopedic surgeon and having your x-rays sent to an orthopedic wrist specialist for evaluation seems to me like it should carry more weight with them than it is. (and we had to pay out-of-pocket for the darn specialist visit!
)

Okay, if you've read all this you probably can guess that I can use prayer for my attitude since I know it's not going to help dh if I'm a crabby beast. Also, please continue to pray for the medical care dh is receiving. I am really quite frustrated right now and I just don't know what else to do about. Thanks for all the prayers and support and I'll keep you posted.

Kate

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November 9, 2006

Thanks so much for all the prayers for my dh. Monday he gets an MRI. He talked to a different case worker today (who according to dh was kind of a jerk about things). Despite the jerkiness he approved dh for an MRI on Monday. Please pray that the MRI shows what's wrong with him and that they figure out the appropriate treatment.

The case worker read the specialist's report where it said to "return to duty and if it doesn't get better the next step would be to have an MRI" and was kind of rude about it and wanted to know why dh wasn't back in Iraq "on duty." Dh tried to explain that his job in Iraq requires him to do a lot of lifting and that he can't even lift dd in and out of the car without pain so he knows he won't be able to do his job in Iraq with his arm the way it is. Even after that the guy was still a little rude and just said that obviously dh is frustrated so they'll go ahead and to the MRI. Regardless of the attitude of the case worker we will hopefully have some answers soon.

Anyway, please keep praying that the MRI enables the docs to see what is wrong with dh. The specialist he saw while home thought there may be cartilage or ligament damage causing the pain and that sort of thing would only show up on a MRI.

I know there is a chance he'll be going back to Iraq and I'm okay with that as long as he is healed and can actually do the job he is supposed to be doing. I just pray they don't send him back prematurely and that he gets the treatment he needs to heal his wrist/arm.

Thanks again for the prayers and keep them coming!

kate

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So I just talked to my dh and his pass starts tomorrow morning! He had actually filled out paperwork for a Sat-Sun pass to come to Waukesha, WI with my college roommate and me to see my uncle in a play and then he found out everyone gets a 3-day pass for veteran's day.
The only problem is that the base he's at is 4+ hours from here and I really don't want to drive 8hrs in the car tomorrow and then another 8 Sat to WI and another 8 Sun home again. That's too much car time for me! DH asked his dad if he could get him from WI and the reply was "Can't Kate do it? I was going to go hunting tomorrow." This is the same man who complained that he didn't get to see dh enough when he was home for his 2 weeks of R&R.

Hopefully, they'll get the details all worked out otherwise I'll be driving down to get him tomorrow, kids in tow, which sounds less than fun to me! Let's see, retired man driving by himself vs. mom of 3 (4 and under) driving with kids... Which makes more sense to you?

Anyway, regardless of the details I get to see dh for a couple of days! Yeah!


Kate


So here's the latest... Dh has a friend with family in a town a little closer to the MN/WI border so dh is going to go with his guy in a couple of hours. His new "master plan" is for me to find someone to sit with the kids while I drive down tonight to get him! So I'm scrambling to figure something out and I don't even know if it will work. Grrr!
Oh, I just thought of something... dh's sister sometimes works in the cities M-Th and might be heading north tonight! I have to go have him call her and see if they could meet up somehow. I'll keep you posted!

So dh's sis was sick all week and isn't in the cities after all. I can't find anyone to watch the kids for me since they all work early in the morning and we wouldn't get back until really late. So after I log off here I'm loading us all up in the van to go get him ourselves. Dh's dad can't get him because he's going hunting in the morning. Instead his grandkids get to spend 6+ hours in the car tonight. But by all means, hunting is more important than anything else...
Sorry, I should be happy (and I am) I just really didn't plan on making a "family trip" at nearly 7pm tonight. talk to you all soon and please send up a few attitude prayers for me. Every ounce of my being (that was up until 2am last night and up at 7am this morning) wants to just tell dh to find someone else to take him. Someone without kids to worry about. But I love him and I need to get him if nobody else will. I just wish there were some other way to work things out that didn't involve me driving. *sigh*

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November 14, 2006

So dh is meeting with the doc (as I am typing) to see the results of his MRI. If the necessary treatment takes long enough that his deployment has less than 60 days in country left then his deployment will be cancelled and he'll stay stateside. If the treatment is shorter and his deployment has more than 60 days left in country then he will go back to Iraq.

Please pray that whatever the results show that I will be at peace with what the doctor says and what dh has to do. Selfishly I don't want him to go back, but I do know that the most important thing is that he gets the proper treatment for his injury. Pray also for my dh since I know he is hoping to get to stay stateside since that would mean being with the kids for Thanksgiving and Christmas. Even if he has to be on some military base for treatment, he should get a pass to come home for the holidays. Please pray that he will be at peace with the results as well.

I'll keep you posted when I hear from him.

Thanks!
Kate

So I just got off the phone with dh. The doc he saw wants him to make an appointment to see the hand/wrist specialist on Dec 5 so he will be home for Thanksgiving! She said that the break looks like it is healing, but she can't determine what is causing the pain along his arm. She asked if he was injected with anything for his MRI (he wasn't) and then said something about possible cartilage damage or a possible tear. That's when she recommended seeing the specialist.
Thanks for the prayers. The not knowing for sure what will happen is really hard, but at least I know for now he's staying safe and having physical therapy to work toward strengthening his arm and healing his wrist.

His group is currently scheduled to leave Iraq mid-February. Dec 5 puts us so close to the 60-day cut-off. Please pray that whatever the specialist sees/recommends will keep him here that extra week or so and that he won't have to go back to Iraq. His job over there requires a lot of heavy lifting and I would hate for him to go over there and re-injure himself trying to do his job if he's not fully ready. I also think it would be stupid to send him over there for "light duty" if he can't fully perform his job. (however in my experience decisions made by the military aren't always the most intelligent... like say, when a soldier goes in with an injury saying "it's probably just a sprain" and giving motrin rather than taking an x-ray to check for broken bones then a month later taking an x-ray and seeing that "I guess there might be a break after all" sorry for the sarcasm, but I think in this case it's warranted!)

Anyway, thanks again for the prayers and keep them coming!

Kate

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November 18, 2006

So we read about a local church having a kids shopping day where they could buy gifts for $1 and have them wrapped and stuff. We decided to check it out and it was so cool!

They had a table set up when you walked in and the kids filled out shopping lists and labels. Then we paid for the number of names on the list. Then volunteers took the kids into a separate room where parents weren't allowed and they helped the kids pick out gifts for the people on the list and then wrapped them and brought them back out to us. There was a room with coffee and cookies for the parents to wait in.

it was so cute. ds2 was out first. He had dad, FIL and BIL (his favorite uncle who he just had to get something for
). Of course the first thing dh did was ask him what he got. Ds2 looked at dh with kind of a blank look in his eyes and said "i don't know." he is so silly. Then dh asked about each individual package and after much thought on each he said "Maybe screwdrivers" for BIL, "maybe digger gloves" for FIL and "maybe gloves" for dh. Who knows if that's really what he got or not.

ds1 took longer and when he came out and I asked what he got for my mom and my dad he knew right away. He picked a snowman for my mom and "a golf thing so Grandpa can golf on the floor" for my dad. I could tell he put a lot more thought in it than his brother did. (I'm glad he had my name
) I asked him not to tell me what he picked for me so it would be a surprise, but he didn't listen and told me he got some perfume. then when we got home he wanted me to open it! I told him we had to wait until Christmas. he was a little bummed about that.

Anyway, it was just such a cool thing that I thought I should share. Do any of your area churches do anything like that?

Kate

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November 19, 2006

DH was home for the weekend and gets to come back on Wed night for Thanksgiving. The issue is that we only have one vehicle. I didn't feel like driving him there tonight and then going to get him again on Wed. There is no family housing available so we couldn't go stay with him for the next three days. Instead we decided he should take the van since it's only three days.

So of course I am now thinking that this will be the days my kids get sick and need to see a doctor or whatever other catastrophe may develop now that I have no means of transportation.

Please pray that nothing happens and that we survive without the van. Thanks!

(honestly, it's not that big of a deal since my folks are next door and will help out if needed, but I just don't want to have to deal with trying to juggle our schedules and all that if I don't need to. Really, I shouldn't even be worrying about this because I know it will all be fine. Of course I just have to worry about something. I told you this was kind of silly!
)

Kate

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November 20, 2006

So of course after posting about me not having a car and the "silly" prayer requst that went with it I started feeling like I might have an ear infection in my left ear. Sure enough, this morning it was hurting like crazy so I had to go to the doc. Turns out it's a sinus infection and it's a good thing I went in because the doc said that it could take a couple of weeks for it to completely go away. I guess the "head cold" I've had the last few weeks was a lot more than that!
Thankfully my dad was home today and took the kids so I could use his truck.

I learned my lesson, though, no prayer is too small (or silly
)!

Thanks for the prayers, I'm sure that's why dad didn't have anything going on today.

Kate

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