The Tuesday before Thanksgiving, the kids and I went down to Grammy and Pa's house to try to help Grammy get ready to host Thanksgiving. I'm not really sure how much help we were but maybe we were at least good company. We got her dishwasher fixed, the girls helped do a few small odd jobs and we pretty much did what Grammy told us to do and tried to be more helpful than not. We had planned to go down to the office in Alto to see Becky and Andrew around 4. The girls had been playing outside and Ava came in asking if Grammy had an "outside" blanket she could use on the playset outside. I was nursing Drew and Mom went upstairs to find an old blanket, Ava was waiting for her at the foot of the stairs. The next thing I know there was a loud crash, boom bang and Ava started screaming! My heart literally left my chest! I rushed over to the stairs - Ava was now standing at the bottom of the stairs and my Mom lay in a heap. I was flipping out. Mom wasn't moving but just kept saying make sure Ava is okay. Oh, Ava was fine, screaming and scared but she somehow squeezed past the baby gate at the bottom of the stairs and Mom did not land on her. I finally got Mom to crawl down the remaining two steps, sit up and talk. She claimed she was just a little banged up but fine.
I was not so sure but when Dad called to check in (he had gone out of town and was on his way home) she did not mention her fall and I figured I better not until I knew Dad was much closer to home. With the assurance she would not go up the stairs and would rest, the kids and I went to Alto and met Dad at the office. So I was able to tell him in person about our very unexpected events of the afternoon. He immediately went home and I worked off my nervous energy at the office! We went back to Grammy and Pa's and helped do a few more things before we went home.
Turns out Mom has a bum knee. I knew her knee bothered her but I did not realize it was so bad. She had been inadvertently correcting her gait in order for her knee not to hurt as bad and in doing so overcorrected and lost her balance at the top of the stairs. We got her into see her regular doctor just to make sure she had no inner ear issues and get her checked over for any damage as a result of the fall. After calling several orthopedist she got in to see one before Christmas and was told the obvious that she needs a new knee but they would try a brace and shots first to see if they could make the current knee last a bit longer.
I can tell you my Mom falling down the stairs has to be one of the scariest things I have ever witnessed. It made her human I guess. I've always kind of seen my parents as superhuman - I never imagined them as being non other than there - always there for me. That fall scared me and shocked me into reality and I am so not ready for reality. Time should just stop and lets all just not get older. Okay? :/
Keith met the girls and I that night at Jacksonville to eat. Ava was exhausted after coming off her adrenaline high and was still a bit scare about Grammy's fall. But we got her some ice cream and made sure to send Grammy pics so she knew we were all okay too.
Ava was a little sore the next day. She had some lightning fast relaxes and in her escape from being caught under a falling Grammy she scraped her back a bit on the baby gate. Not too bad and after a couple of days she was good to go.
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