The week that started with a bang

Monday, 11/21
My older daughter, Kim, called me Monday evening and mentioned that she was going to buy groceries. Later, about nine o'clock, I suddenly thought of something I'd forgotten to tell her, so I called her back and learned that she had been trying to call me at that same moment. She was calling from her car, in which she was trapped following a collision. An off-duty paramedic sat in her backseat, holding her head steady, as she talked alternately to me, to him, and to the investigating officers.

I hung up and called my younger daughter. She and her husband live slightly closer to the accident scene than I do, and they got there first. Kim was still in her car when Kelli and Troy arrived, but by the time I got there five minutes later, she had been placed on a stretcher board and was being moved into an ambulance. She was driven to the hospital, and we followed.

Kim had been driving through a green light at an intersection when a pickup truck coming from the opposite direction made a left turn and crashed into the left front quadrant of her compact car.

The driver of the pickup truck attempted to back it away from the scene, but the truck was stuck to Kim's car, so the driver and passenger jumped out of the truck and fled on foot. A witness described them to the police, who gave chase and caught both of them. The truck driver was determined to have a blood alcohol level much higher than the legal limit and is still in jail as I write this.

The ER doctors checked Kim over and released her with a prescription, instructions on how to keep the swelling down, and the advice to follow up with her personal physician. We left the ER and drove very carefully to Kelli's house, where Troy had taken all the groceries Kim had bought right before the accident. Then we went to Kim's apartment to pick up Lucy and Oliver and enough clothes for her to stay at my house for a few days. I don't think either of us slept a wink that night.

Tuesday, 11/22
Tuesday was consumed by errands: to the insurance company to file a claim, the wrecker yard to get Kim's personal items out of her car, and half a dozen other places to tie up loose ends.

Wednesday, 11/23
By Wednesday the insurance company had determined that Kim's car was a total loss. They had also arranged a rental car for her, so we went first to the insurance company, then to the rental car agency, and then to the wrecker yard again, this time to remove the license plate, which will have to be returned to the Department of Motor Vehicles.

Thursday, 11/24
Finally, a day of calm. With much to be thankful for, we went to Kelli and Troy's for Thanksgiving dinner. The weather was beautiful, the food was delicious, and being with all the kids and grandkids was delightful.

Here's my great-grandson, Owen (20 months),

on the porch "fwing" with his Popeé, Troy.

This beautiful girl, wrapped tightly in my arms,
is 12-week-old Olivia Grace, the newest member of our family.

When Owen asked for "ducks," some of us made the trek to the pond.

The ducks were all gone, but the beauty

of the pond was well worth the walk.

Friday, 11/25
Kelli came Friday morning to take me on an early birthday outing to LSU's Rural Life Museum. A calm, peaceful place hidden away in one of Baton Rouge's busiest areas, it features a warehouse jam-packed with antique items and a small village of furnished cabins and other buildings. The outdoor setting was beautifully picturesque, and Friday's weather was perfect for a walk back through time.

I enjoyed the day tremendously and will show you more photos in the next day or two.

Saturday, 11/26
My birthday arrived with a cloudy sky and rain that lingered throughout the day. Kim was still here with me. We had planned to celebrate together, but late Friday night I had asked if it would hurt her feelings if what I really wanted more than anything was to  spend the day at home. I'm not used to being on the go so much, and I couldn't think of a better thing to do on my birthday than to return to my usual, quiet existence. So that's what we did. She spent most of the day online reading car ads, while I alternated between visiting with her, visiting with my sister on the phone, reading, napping, and pampering our assortment of dogs. We had take-out sesame chicken for dinner and went to bed early. It was great!

Sunday, 11/27

Kim went home this morning. She has a list of things to do tomorrow and needs to figure out what to do when. She's still quite stiff and sore, has ugly purple bruises on multiple areas of her body, and still has sharp pains in her chest, especially when she coughs, sneezes, or moves in a certain way. I'm pretty sure she'll get those chest pains checked out in the next couple of days, but she hates to complain when her injuries could have been so much worse than they appear to be.

It's been a difficult week in some ways and a wonderful week in others, and I end this Thanksgiving week grateful for the subtle and not-so-subtle reminders that we in this family have been richly blessed.