Faces

I just got back from the doctor with Aspen. We have had such a problem with having stray dogs dropped off at our house since we moved out here. The kids & I tend to adopt because it is so hard to see them lonely & hungry. Last month we gave away two of the strays we have had for more than a year. We kept one, Ellie. We had two more that came that same week, I thought I had given one away several times but it didn't work out. The other one was never really friendly to anyone but Aspen & I. He was pretty stand offish even to me, so he stayed pretty much to the perimeter of the the yard. Anyway, this morning I went outside to try to get a text to go thru because I couldn't get good enough service in the house. Aspen followed me out and there was a neighbors dog (a red heeler) at our house. Aspen LOVES dogs, if there is a dog in sight she has to pet it, and so it was with this one. When she went up to it it growled at her and the brown stray dog got in between her and the dog, and growled at the dog. I think it was trying to protect her. I warned her to stay away from the neighbors dog, that it would bite her and she backed off. Not thinking, I went into the house to double check the phone number I was texting to when I heard the snarl and Aspen scream. I ran outside hoping it was just the dogs fighting. Aspen came running with blood running down her face. It is always amazing to me when my kids get hurt, how my mind becomes immediately calm, and I can do what needs done. My heart is beating a million times per minute but I am calm. I called Shawn & he said he would meet me at the doctor and hustled her into the car. As soon as I saw Shawn I about lost it. Another thing that always amazes me. How can I be so calm, but when help arrives I lose it. It must be a mom thing. The doctor got her all stitched up, 3 along the side of her mouth & 1 in a puncture wound on her cheek bone. We stopped to get her some medication and the cashier asked what happened. I started to answer when in her little voice she said "the dog bit me". By the time we were headed home she was all tuckered out and fell asleep. I have jokingly said I am going to post a sign at the top of our road saying "all stray dogs will be SHOT". Knowing I would never shoot them, but those people that drop them off don't need to know that. I think I am more serious about that now.


In other FACE news Friday we got back from the dentist where Carter had his three front teeth fixed. A few days earlier he was showing Shawn he could ride a wheely when he crashed on the conrete and broke his 3 front teeth. Yes they are permanent. He looked like a vampire. I didn't get any pictures, but I think Shade did on his phone. If I can figure out how to down load those on the computer I can add them later. Anyway, the doctor filled them, but he will never be able to use them to bite with as they are. When he gets bigger they will have to do a more permanent fix. That on top of the fact that he is scheduled to get braces next week. When we got back we immediately started to get ready to go camping. As we were getting ready to leave for camping Carter got stung by a wasp just above his eyebrow. By Saturday morning his whole face was swollen, with one eye shut tight and the other just a crack. I had him sucking the Benadryl trying to get it to go down. I kept asking him if he felt like he could breath and swallow ok. It didn't seem to slow him down. We went on a hike on Saturday, I kept telling him to put his face in the cold water of the stream. He wouldn't do it. He decided to jump into the stream with Shawn, when they went in Shawn fell with him and it was so cold he couldn't catch his breath. Shawn said it was the coldest water he had ever been in. However, it seemed to help Carter's face, by the time we got down the mountain one of Carter's eyes was already half open and some of the puffiness in his face was gone. By Monday morning most of the swelling was gone. One eye was still puffy for picture day at school on Monday, but other than that he looked pretty good.

The cold water literally took Carter's breath away.