ouch!

I have become close friends with three of the widows in our ward.  This began before my new calling, and they worried that I might get too busy for them, but I've made time to get together with them at least weekly to play "Hand and Foot".  I adore these three women, Diane, Viola and Frankie.  Oh, we have had a wonderful time getting to know each other.  Diane is the youngest, in her later 70s and Viola and Frankie are in their mid-80s.  I so love them!  They make me laugh, they offer their wisdom, they tease and the show no mercy when we play cards.  Whenever I have a game with them, Doug calls it "Poker Night with the ladies".  These three ladies live so close to the Spirit that they would hardly know what poker is!  Have I mentioned that I love them!?

ANYWAY, we usually play at Diane's and occasionally at Viola's.  For some reason. to Wednesday night, the fourteenth, (five days before the anniversary of my fall and new shoulder)we ended up playing, last minute, at Frankie's.  I've never been inside her home.  Her front door was covered in fresh snow and her garage door was open with lights on, so I went in that way.  We played and had a fun evening together.

At the end of the evening, Viola announced that she would ride home with me, instead of Diane, who she had come with.  Another unusual happening.  Viola usually drives.  I walked Diane out to her car worried that she might fall on the icy driveway.  I also had a few things in my passenger seat and needed to move them.  So, I backed my car off the street and into the driveway althe way up to the garage so that Viola didn't have to walk on the ice.  There was also a small 3" concrete rise on the back third of her garage.  I noticed it and didn't want anyone tripping over it.

Viola had said, "Just honk" and I'll come out.  I thought to myself, "Self, you don't want her walking out here alone.  Go get her."  So, I raced back into the garage, forgetting about the three inch concrete slap!  My foot caught on it and when I woke up, I was face down in a puddle of blood!  I was only out for a second or two, I'm sure, but my first thought was, "My shoulder!  Is it still on!?"  I moved it and it was fine.  Then, I noticed that I was bleeding from the forehead with each pulse.  I'm not being overly dramatic when I say that I reached up for my head to make sure my brain was still inside it and I began calling out, "Help!"  I was in shock and my voice was weak.  I called several times before they heard me.  Finally, they opened the door and were just horrified!

By then, I'd managed to roll over and doublecheck my shoulder.  I was seeing stars and lightheaded and still bleeding.  Frankie got ice and a cloth and I think Viola called Doug?  She's only through the block, so I told them to tell him to just run over since I knew that I should not or probably could not drive.  Doug was there in seconds.  He said, "Good Hell!  That's the biggest goose-egg I've ever seen!"  We sat there for a second and I asked Doug to take a picture so I could see it.  When the bleeding stopped, Doug drove Viola home.  (Diane had no idea that this had happened and was already home.)

I called my friend in the ward, who's husband is my orthopedic doctor for my shoulder. I explained what had happened and said, "I just want him to take a look at it and tell me if I should go in for stitches or x-rays since it's my forehead." She said, "I'll send him right over."  In moments, KJ was at my door and busted out laughing when he saw it!  We held the iPhone flashlight up to it close and he examined me.  "Let's go, get in my truck." and off we went to KJ's office.  It was most humorous because doctors don't know where things are .  They walk into the exam room and the nurses have everything set and ready on the tray for them. He apologized because he had to call his nurses at home a few times to find the things he needed before he could stitch me up.  I did not feel a thing!  He sprayed that numbing stuff on my forehead and I didn't feel anything for hours.  Three stitches and one huge lump on my noggin!

KJ promised me that I would get black eyes before it was over.  I thought, "It's my forehead, not my nose!"  KJ was right!  Imagine that.  Over the next 9 days, here's a few photos of what I mean when I say Keith was right!  For the record, I have NO eyeshadow on at all.  That's bruising above and below my eyes.

During the last two weeks, I've visited and met with over twenty families in the ward, conducted Relief Society, met with the Stake Leadership, gone to eat several times and I could not count how many times people have asked, "Did you get into an accident?"  And my cute little ladies have been so worried.  They've blamed themselves and worried so much.  I keep telling them that this was not their fault!  I'm, apparently, just a klutz!  Buddy has deemed December, "Keep Mom in a padded room in a padded chair Month" and I think that he may be right!  It's looking better finally.  My eyes still are grey underneath but it just looks like I didn't wash yesterday's mascara off.  And I still have a KNOT on mu forehead that throbs.  Quayd calls it my "HUUUUUGE Zit".  He even prayed during our family prayer that "Mom's HUUUUUUGE ZIT would get better."  There were definitely hushed giggles during that prayer!

I'm just so thankful that it was not worse!  It could have been so awful!  I'm also thankful for KJ's kindness and saving us an emergency room expense!  He rocks!

In the meantime, I'm looking down while I walk and checking every step I take, I've invested in a new pair of Uggs and I am thinking of getting bifocals.  It might just be time.  ha!