advice/suggestions for running our home with a broken foot.

[lorisuewho]

I'm looking for suggestions (been there done that suggestions would be great) on juggling 4 small children, a home, and a works-a-lot husband all while hopping on one foot.

 

The doctor said since I not only broke the foot but also tore tendons, I'm looking at about 2 months healing time.

 

I just want to sit and cry, but instead I'm trying to come up with practical things that might make our day go smoother.

 

My sister suggested I break out the pack and play with insert to use as a changing table instead of trying to change the baby on the floor like I usually do.

 

It was also suggested to me that I apply for a temporary tag for my car to park in handicap spots.

 

Any other practical tips?

[Carrie12345]

Order out. Let the house go. Find lots of educational TV (or non educational!). Let people (and kids) help. And heal!!!

 

Btdt, though I think my fourth was a bit older, which was both a blessing and a curse!

[AK_Mom4]

If you are on crutches, be careful lifting heavy toddlers. I found out the hard way that it's better to sit down and let them crawl up into your lap....

 

Reward your "bigs" for chasing down escaping speedy toddlers for you and holding them until you can get there.

 

Use laundry baskets to contain frequently used items in a single place where you need them rather than where they are "supposed" to be kept.

 

:grouphug::grouphug::grouphug:

[Grover]

If you can organise some kind of solid trolley you can lean on and move around with you you can set up a kind of 'command centre' on it - phone, diary, snacks, nappy stuff, etc. Don't try to lift little ones out of the bath - wait for someone else to be there to help with that. If you can swing it, organise someone to do as much of the cleaning as you can, maybe even pick up / drop off kids if need be. I kept a stool in pretty much every room in the house so I could sit once I made it to where I was going. Change baby on a table or higher surface if you don't have a change table. Definitely get kids used to coming to you / climbing in to your lap - lifting little people is not easy or fun. Get your DH or a helper to make a lunch box for each kid in the morning (or do it yourself) - also get things like dinner prep stuff moved to where you can reach it without wandering around the kitchen too much. Lots of books, bribe olders to help with youngers. I don't know if it's available where you are but our local mall had a mobility scooter I could borrow which was a huge help - little one stood in front of me between my legs and bigger kid walked beside me.

 

My two were 14 months (new walker) and 3. It's a challenge, so take all the help you can get.

[bcnlvr]

When I broke my foot, I had one of these. Saved my life!!!

 

http://www.rolleraid.com/

 

bcn

[angela in ohio]

I did that. I fell off a step at our after school Bible club and then stood on it for an hour and a half to teach. :D My foot and ankle were broken in three places, and I tore one tendon entirely and two partially. It took three months just to be allowed to walk with no cast.

 

I can't imagine doing it with the littles you have! You poor thing!!

 

I agree with Carrie on all counts. Let this be a temporary time of "slacking" :D, without any guilt whatsoever, knowing that it won't last forever.

[katilac]

that roller-aid thing looks worthwhile.

 

this is the time to spend money if you have it, and hire a mother's helper.

[bettyandbob]

I'd make the kids pick up toys regularly and see if a teen could come in to vacuum, mop and empty trash once or twice a week. See if you dh can do the bathrooms. Mine does and has for years, since I became extremely angry about oldest ds's poor aim--dh decided the solution would be for him to regularly clean the bathroom. It's stuck as his chore.

 

You must force yourself to stay off your foot. 2 months can turn into more than a year--ask my neighbor.

[happypamama]

Two months! Oh, my, I am so very sorry!

 

You've gotten some really good advice in this thread, but as I said before, please ask, if there is anything I can do that would help. I'm in your area fairly frequently and will send you messages to see if I can do any errands for you.

 

I would definitely look into a temporary handicapped tag for your vehicle, especially if you'll be out with the children.

 

:grouphug:

[thescrappyhomeschooler]

:grouphug: I can't give you any better advice than has already been given. Take it easy on yourself and concentrate on healing and doing the bare minimum to survive, then you can deal with all the other stuff later!

[amo_mea_filiis.]

Do whatever you can to rest and heal NOW or you will have a lot of problems. I twisted my foot in October and had fairly severe tendonitis. Every single time my foot felt slightly better, I'd start using it without the walking boot. It is almost 10 months later and I'm still having some problems.

 

Rest, rest, rest, and stay off of it as much as possible and a little more!

[lmrich]

Rent a wheelchair or something. You can do nothing on crutches. Have your kids carry everything for you laundry, books, etc.. Teach them to things. You will have to supervise, but they can do a lot! When someone asks how they can help - tell them! Grocery shopping is difficult as is shopping at all. Make a chore chart and a menu plan then help dh follow it. See if you can afford a house cleaner.Use paper plates. Cash in every favor ever owed! I have good neighbors and friends who did all the driving for my kids. My parents came for a week and then mil came. Accept all help. Keep you foot elevated as much as possible, get your calcium and vitamin d, get your rest.

[lorisuewho]

Order out. Let the house go. Find lots of educational TV (or non educational!). Let people (and kids) help. And heal!!!

 

Btdt, though I think my fourth was a bit older, which was both a blessing and a curse!

 

I think my children would LOVE to watch T.V. I will feel guilty about it none the less. I think you are right though.

 

If you are on crutches, be careful lifting heavy toddlers. I found out the hard way that it's better to sit down and let them crawl up into your lap....

 

Reward your "bigs" for chasing down escaping speedy toddlers for you and holding them until you can get there.

 

Use laundry baskets to contain frequently used items in a single place where you need them rather than where they are "supposed" to be kept.

 

 

 

Love the idea of the laundry basket and of the bigs chasing down the littles.

 

If you can organise some kind of solid trolley you can lean on and move around with you you can set up a kind of 'command centre' on it - phone, diary, snacks, nappy stuff, etc. Don't try to lift little ones out of the bath - wait for someone else to be there to help with that. If you can swing it, organise someone to do as much of the cleaning as you can, maybe even pick up / drop off kids if need be. I kept a stool in pretty much every room in the house so I could sit once I made it to where I was going. Change baby on a table or higher surface if you don't have a change table. Definitely get kids used to coming to you / climbing in to your lap - lifting little people is not easy or fun. Get your DH or a helper to make a lunch box for each kid in the morning (or do it yourself) - also get things like dinner prep stuff moved to where you can reach it without wandering around the kitchen too much. Lots of books, bribe olders to help with youngers. I don't know if it's available where you are but our local mall had a mobility scooter I could borrow which was a huge help - little one stood in front of me between my legs and bigger kid walked beside me.

 

My two were 14 months (new walker) and 3. It's a challenge, so take all the help you can get.

 

I keep thinking about your trolley idea because I think it is great. Not sure what could be the trolley though. My best idea was a baby carriage, but I can't really lean on that.

 

When I broke my foot, I had one of these. Saved my life!!!

 

http://www.rolleraid.com/

 

bcn

 

those look awesome. Out of our budget, but it looks fantastic.

 

I did that. I fell off a step at our after school Bible club and then stood on it for an hour and a half to teach. :D My foot and ankle were broken in three places, and I tore one tendon entirely and two partially. It took three months just to be allowed to walk with no cast.

 

I can't imagine doing it with the littles you have! You poor thing!!

 

I agree with Carrie on all counts. Let this be a temporary time of "slacking" :D, without any guilt whatsoever, knowing that it won't last forever.

 

That's how I did it too. . .right off the back step. I wished it was during the hurricane so it would have made a better story, but instead all I have is "I stepped wrong."

 

that roller-aid thing looks worthwhile.

 

this is the time to spend money if you have it, and hire a mother's helper.

 

I have taken this suggestion. I have a 12 year old who is coming one evening a week.

 

I'd make the kids pick up toys regularly and see if a teen could come in to vacuum, mop and empty trash once or twice a week. See if you dh can do the bathrooms. Mine does and has for years, since I became extremely angry about oldest ds's poor aim--dh decided the solution would be for him to regularly clean the bathroom. It's stuck as his chore.

 

You must force yourself to stay off your foot. 2 months can turn into more than a year--ask my neighbor.

 

YIKES on the 2 months turning into a year!

I don't think DH is the kind to clean, but my mom is going to hire a cleaning lady for me for one time (in lieu of flowers she said :001_smile:)

 

Two months! Oh, my, I am so very sorry!

 

You've gotten some really good advice in this thread, but as I said before, please ask, if there is anything I can do that would help. I'm in your area fairly frequently and will send you messages to see if I can do any errands for you.

 

I would definitely look into a temporary handicapped tag for your vehicle, especially if you'll be out with the children.

 

:grouphug:

 

Thanks. I got the tag today.

 

:grouphug: I can't give you any better advice than has already been given. Take it easy on yourself and concentrate on healing and doing the bare minimum to survive, then you can deal with all the other stuff later!

 

Thanks!

 

Do whatever you can to rest and heal NOW or you will have a lot of problems. I twisted my foot in October and had fairly severe tendonitis. Every single time my foot felt slightly better, I'd start using it without the walking boot. It is almost 10 months later and I'm still having some problems.

 

Rest, rest, rest, and stay off of it as much as possible and a little more!

 

Oh my goodness! Stories like this remind me to be careful!

 

Rent a wheelchair or something. You can do nothing on crutches. Have your kids carry everything for you laundry, books, etc.. Teach them to things. You will have to supervise, but they can do a lot! When someone asks how they can help - tell them! Grocery shopping is difficult as is shopping at all. Make a chore chart and a menu plan then help dh follow it. See if you can afford a house cleaner.Use paper plates. Cash in every favor ever owed! I have good neighbors and friends who did all the driving for my kids. My parents came for a week and then mil came. Accept all help. Keep you foot elevated as much as possible, get your calcium and vitamin d, get your rest.

 

I agree that grocery shopping is just out of the question. DH is going to have to do it. Paper plates is an excellent idea! I also will follow the vitamin D and calcium advice. Thank you.

[lea1]

The thing that helped me above all others was the knee scooter we rented from a local pharmacy. It was an absolute life saver. It had a little basket on the front too but I could also ride it with one hand on the handle bars. I could also have a child in front of me and have them ride with me, if I needed to. It also makes standing around very easy because you can put half of your weight on the scooter, so you can basically stand pretty much normally, which you can't do with crutches.

 

We had a two story house so I would crawl up the stairs and use the crutches upstairs if I had to. I could even load the knee scooter in the van, use my crutches to get from the back to the front of the van (or hop) and the knee scooter was great for shopping or moving around out in public, including to dr.'s offices.

 

My break was my right foot so we had to stay home for a while. Once I was moved from the cast to the removable boot, I start driving (after proving to me dr. husband that I could indeed push the brake pedal hard enough, if necessary, to stop quickly, without hurting myself too much). I would take the boot off after I got in, drive without it and then put it back on when I got to where we were going.

 

ETA: You should look into this. It was pretty inexpensive and, oh, what a life saver. You won't want to use crutches again after you use one of these. Plus, it is much safer. It is so easy to fall or accidentally step on to the injured foot with crutches. (Can you tell I loved my knee scooter?)

 

Good luck. It is not a fun thing to deal with.

Edited August 31, 2011 by Lea in OK

[prairiewindmomma]

--

Edited November 10, 2021 by prairiewindmomma

[Denisemomof4]

I had a bad sprain last year and had to hobble on crutches. I can't advise you, though, because your kids are so young!!! I'm SO SORRY!!!!!!!!!!:grouphug:

 

I would say that you have to have meals be SIMPLE (think sandwiches, ravioli with sauce, frozen pizza or ordered out, etc) and the house cleaning - can you hire a service temporarily?

 

That's REALLY tough with kids so young. Your 5 yo, even your 4 yo, will probably be happy to be helpers, getting you this and that.

 

My advice: LISTEN TO YOUR DOCTOR AND REST. Elevate as much as possible. Put everything you need around you for the baby. :grouphug:

[Denisemomof4]

This was me last summer....toddler (18 month old), 4 year old, ASD/ADD 8 year old who wasn't much help....

 

I recommend:

*an office chair on wheels--crutches are painful and impractical; if your health insurance will cover a wheelchair, that's another option

 

*grocery delivery service (ours here is $10 flat fee) or doing a huge Costco run with your dh and then having him pick up the weekly odd and end tidbits. I shopped for a month at a time at Costco

 

*simplifying meals: breakfasts were a mix of: cereal, toast, yogurt, hardboiled eggs, fruit, lunches were sandwiches or soups, suppers were either out of the crockpot or a freezer meal. My freezer meals were things I prepared in bulk and froze into either ziplocks (marinated stir fry meat, precooked taco meat, precooked greek meatballs) or 9x13 pans (various casseroles). Kneeling on an office chair worked for me for when I had to cook on the stovetop but trying to shove stuff in the oven was a PITA.

 

*going to disposable diapers and disposable plates--yeah, I killed the environment for a few months, but it makes up for the years of cloth diapers & my recycling habits, I think. In any event, they were paper, so they hopefully will break down over time.

 

*begging your friends to come clean for an hour if they can or greatly lowering your standards. My 8 year old ran the vacuum, and we went through a lot of disinfecting wipes. I didn't dust, and we didn't die, and we're asthmatic

 

*live in your living room--take everything you need there, phone, kids, books, whatever--it'll cut down on the mess and it'll be easier to keep track of everyone

 

this is excellent. I did live in my living room, too.

[lorisuewho]

The thing that helped me above all others was the knee scooter we rented from a local pharmacy. It was an absolute life saver. It had a little basket on the front too but I could also ride it with one hand on the handle bars. I could also have a child in front of me and have them ride with me, if I needed to. It also makes standing around very easy because you can put half of your weight on the scooter, so you can basically stand pretty much normally, which you can't do with crutches.

 

 

ETA: You should look into this. It was pretty inexpensive and, oh, what a life saver. You won't want to use crutches again after you use one of these. Plus, it is much safer. It is so easy to fall or accidentally step on to the injured foot with crutches. (Can you tell I loved my knee scooter?)

 

Good luck. It is not a fun thing to deal with.

 

I'll have to see about renting one. To buy one was definitely out of the question. Thank you for the rental suggestion.

 

I recommend:

*grocery delivery service (ours here is $10 flat fee) or doing a huge Costco run with your dh and then having him pick up the weekly odd and end tidbits. I shopped for a month at a time at Costco

 

*simplifying meals: breakfasts were a mix of: cereal, toast, yogurt, hardboiled eggs, fruit, lunches were sandwiches or soups, suppers were either out of the crockpot or a freezer meal. My freezer meals were things I prepared in bulk and froze into either ziplocks (marinated stir fry meat, precooked taco meat, precooked greek meatballs) or 9x13 pans (various casseroles). Kneeling on an office chair worked for me for when I had to cook on the stovetop but trying to shove stuff in the oven was a PITA.

 

*going to disposable diapers and disposable plates--yeah, I killed the environment for a few months, but it makes up for the years of cloth diapers & my recycling habits, I think. In any event, they were paper, so they hopefully will break down over time.

 

*begging your friends to come clean for an hour if they can or greatly lowering your standards. My 8 year old ran the vacuum, and we went through a lot of disinfecting wipes. I didn't dust, and we didn't die, and we're asthmatic

 

*live in your living room--take everything you need there, phone, kids, books, whatever--it'll cut down on the mess and it'll be easier to keep track of everyone

 

Thank you for all these great suggestions.

 

I will have to check to see if our grocery store delivers. I hadn't considered that.

I also have been thinking that I should switch to disposable diapers to cut down on laundry, plus I really can't be out trying to hang things on the clothes line. But I really hate to buy them when we have all these cloth diapers here.

 

Disinfecting wipes is another good one that I can easily implement.

 

I had a bad sprain last year and had to hobble on crutches. I can't advise you, though, because your kids are so young!!! I'm SO SORRY!!!!!!!!!!:grouphug:

 

I would say that you have to have meals be SIMPLE (think sandwiches, ravioli with sauce, frozen pizza or ordered out, etc) and the house cleaning - can you hire a service temporarily?

 

That's REALLY tough with kids so young. Your 5 yo, even your 4 yo, will probably be happy to be helpers, getting you this and that.

 

My advice: LISTEN TO YOUR DOCTOR AND REST. Elevate as much as possible. Put everything you need around you for the baby. :grouphug:

 

Thank you!

[Down_the_Rabbit_Hole]

:grouphug:

When I broke my leg in Feb., I got alot of great suggestions from the hive but the best was to use a computer chair to get around in (most people already have one). Great to use while cooking.

 

Believe me, the two months will be over before you know it. Just get through one day at a time. Let the mess build and do not be afraid to delegate, even the little ones can help.

[lorisuewho]

:grouphug:

When I broke my leg in Feb., I got alot of great suggestions from the hive but the best was to use a computer chair to get around in (most people already have one). Great to use while cooking.

 

Believe me, the two months will be over before you know it. Just get through one day at a time. Let the mess build and do not be afraid to delegate, even the little ones can help.

 

Thank you!