The first week...or so...

[Jolene2Sailors]

For some reason, the week Justin left for boot camp was destined to be miserable. We returned Sunday night from a weekend working at my mother-in-law's house. It was great because we all got to be together. It was not-so-great because we were not able to be in church together. In retrospect, I should have insisted. 

Monday night, we had dinner with my parents. Justin wanted steak...so we had steak. I made two kinds of cheesecake (also his favorite). It was a really nice evening.

Tuesday afternoon, we all went to Lubbock to take him to the recruiting office. Supper at Olive Garden was rambunctious...all of us laughing and joking...what we always do when we are nervous. It was hard saying good-bye. He did NOT want us to take pictures of him, and he wasn't too crazy about the hugs. However, my heart swelled with pride when he stood at attention at the door and requested permission to disembark...his last time doing that as a recruit.

Tuesday and Wednesday (two of the hottest days of the year), our 2-year-old air conditioner decided the work was too hard and took a break. The temperature inside our house reached 88 degrees. UGH!

Wednesday afternoon, I took our youngest daughter to the doctor. Her tailbone has been hurting for a couple of months (or more), and we wanted answers. The doctor examined her then told us he was sending her to a pediatric surgeon for evaluation. Oh...and the appointment was made for the next day at 2:30. I hate SO MUCH when doctors move quickly.

Justin called us at 8:30 pm to let us know he was safely in Chicago and about to be taken to the Recruit Training Command. *Big Sigh* It was fantastic and heart-wrenching to hear his voice that one last time for who-knows-how-long. I told him I loved him, took a deep breath, said good-bye, and decided I needed to walk to the horses by myself and attain control of my emotions.

When I walked past our back fence, our youngest son's dog jumped over the gate (which is normal) and squealed a little (which is not normal). Squeaking with each step, she came jogging up to me with her head down, and I knew something was wrong. She had ripped about a 2-inch gash in the middle of her side. *Good grief*

I called our vet who told me to bring her first thing in the morning (since it wasn't really bleeding).

SO, on our way to visit with the surgeon, Kaetlin and I dropped off the dog. As we had to leave much earlier than anticipated, we went to the mall and got our hair cut. :)

Upon arriving at the doctor's office, I was told Kaetlin was not on the schedule, and that the doctor didn't ever see new patients on Thursdays. She said she would check into it then told us the doctor was coming in specifically to see Kaetlin. *Good grief* The surgeon scheduled an anesthetized exam and MRI on Monday. *Another big sigh* With Kaetlin's heart condition, I am always scared when they want to perform medical procedures. I couldn't wrap my mind around exactly what they wanted to do...nor why they wanted a surgeon to do it...nor why everything was so rushed. I needed time to think...

After leaving the doctor's office, I called the vet's office to check on Juneau. "Everything went well. It will be $341. Would you like to pay for that with a check or credit card?" "I'm driving. May I call you back?" WHAT?!?!? Okay, I must have heard wrong. Surely she meant $141 and I'm just stressed. However, I didn't hear wrong. *Good GRIEF*

We picked up the dog...about 20 stitches, antibiotics, painkillers, and a drain tube (to be removed...by me...the next morning). Oh...and a cone of shame to be worn for two weeks until I took her stitches out.

Having Justin gone, saying good-bye, seeing a surgeon, having the dog need surgery (and paying out the wazzu for said surgery), I was NOT in the mood to talk to ANYONE! I came home to...thank the Lord...a working air conditioner that had "magically" decided it was time to do its job again.

Mike (my husband and father of ALL my children) told me to take a breath and log onto NavyForMoms.com for some relief. Unfortunately, the blogs I landed on contained stories of Ship 5...all the kids who had issues or couldn't take it and were being sent home. GRRR... The Navy is Justin's Plan A, and there is no Plan B. I was stressed beyond measure!!! I texted his recruiter and asked him to please call me. He texted back about 3 hours later at 10:30 and asked if it was too late. "NO! Please call!!!" I asked him to reassure me that Justin would be fine, telling him he knew a side of my son I have not been privvy to see. Thank you, Greg! You told me exactly what I needed to hear.

The weekend passed without much difficulty. I refused to say anything about Kaetlin's tests. I didn't have the voice to do it. Mike told me he was bogged down with work and asked if he had to go. (He hates hospitals!) I told him Shaylin (19-year-old daughter) was going with me, so he was off the hook. Shaylin is a huge source of strength for both me and Kaetlin, and I was not upset at Mike for not wanting to go. We had to leave by 5 am to be at the hospital by 6:30 for the tests to begin at 8:30. We had a lot of fun, actually...laughing and joking...but that's what we do. After the evaluation at about 10:30 am, the doctor met with us to tell us she found nothing out of the ordinary, but that the MRI should give us some answers. Long story a tad bit shorter = MRI shows nothing abnormal. There is no reason for Kaetlin to be in pain. "Then why am I still hurting?" *Big sigh*

We got Justin's "kid in a box" on Thursday, as well as the form letter with his address. I cannot tell you what a relief it was to have that address. The letters I had been stockpiling finally received stamps and addresses and were thrust into the outgoing mailbox. A letter a day...a letter a day... I connected with the N4M's Christian Chat area. What a blessing it is to know others can feel my pain and are praying for my son while I pray for their sons and daughters!!! I also purchased airline tickets to Chicago for his September 28 PIR. :)

Needing a break, I took my girls and my horses to Coleman to visit my sister. Riding is such a stress reliever and we rode about three hours every evening I was there. WONDERFUL! Each morning, I woke up at 8 and wrote Justin a letter, walking it to their mailbox and raising the flag. By noon, the flag would be down...another letter on its way.

On Wednesday, Mike called me to tell me we had received a real letter from Justin. OH MY GOODNESS!!! What a relief it is to know he is surviving and still has a sense of humor. I have read that letter enough times to have it memorized.

Now it's Friday. I am moving into a new high school today, since our old one was demolished over the summer. (It was a planned demolition.) Maybe there will be another letter...