Jordan's sunbeam teacher had a pet boa constrictor and he used to tell all his sunbeams about it. One Sunday, before we moved to Vegas for dental school, he brought it over for Jordan to see. He thought it was the coolest thing ever.
Friday, June 29, 2012
Friday's Walk Down Memory Lane 6/29/2012
Jordan's sunbeam teacher had a pet boa constrictor and he used to tell all his sunbeams about it. One Sunday, before we moved to Vegas for dental school, he brought it over for Jordan to see. He thought it was the coolest thing ever.
Sunday, June 24, 2012
Sunday Reflections 6/24/2012
I have no pictures today. My camera is MIA. I just know Brad has hidden it in one of his "special places". I'm going to have to put a stop to him hiding things in "special places".
It's allergy season here and I am dying. I've never lived in an area where I have been cursed with such bad allergies before I moved here...and for some reason none of the medications are helping. As a result I find myself eagerly anticipating the first good freeze so it will kill whatever makes me suffer so. Is it too early in summer for me to be mentioning that?
I had a bad mom day this week. Of course, it didn't start out a bad mom day and I had every intention of making it an all-star mom day by taking the kids out to get treats but it all began to change with a severe allergy attack in Wal-mart which led to me needing a quick nap to clear my head only to be awakened by Ben jumping on top of me running away from a roaring Jordan and upon this rude awakening discovering that my children were STILL playing the video game I had asked them to turn off an hour prior. I ranted and raved and took away video games for the summer. Although I have no regret about the video game ban, I always feel bad after ranting and raving. It never seems to serve any purpose.
Jake started riding the little 50 motorcycle that we own this last week. As he rode round and round our circular driveway with Dad chasing behind him, holding onto his shirt and shouting instructions Jake was all smiles. I guess this means he's left the world of little boys and crossed into the realm of the big boys now. *sigh*
Brad and the boys made a potato-gun shooter this weekend. It kept them all occupied for hours and as a result I was able to read Stephanie Nielson's Heaven is Here in its entirety this weekend. I loved it.
Jordan gave me quite the scare last week. He and his friend had set up a zip line and while securing himself in the homemade harness he flipped over and hit his head. I didn't think much of it when his friend gave me the briefing but then Jordan came back in, sat down and told me he didn't feel well. He then asked me, "Mom, how did I hurt myself?" I told him, "You hit your head." And then he sat there for about a minute and repeated the question again, "Mom, how did I hurt myself." This happened about 5 times before I thought to start asking him questions...simple ones like, "Where did I go this morning?"
"I don't know." "What did we do yesterday?" "I can't remember." I then explained that we went on a hike to a lake. "Did we wade in the lake?" "No." "What day is it?" "I don't know." This continued on and on and I went all the way back 2 weeks before he could remember something. Within an hour his short term memory had returned to normal and I didn't have to take him into the ER but for a moment there I felt frightened that I may have lost my Jordan.
I can only remember feeling that frightened one other time. I don't believe I have ever written this down, so I'll share it with you now. It happened in Las Vegas, Nevada. Brad and I had just recently moved into our final home we rented while he was in dental school. I was upstairs folding laundry on our couch and my children were on the other playing. The couch that they were playing on was placed beneath a window and it was open and soon our neighbor's dog began to bark. Ben, age 2 at this time, leaned on the screen so he could yell at the dog to stop barking. As I turned to tell him to get down the screen popped out and out fell my Ben with it to the rocky ground 15 feet below. My first thought was that I was going to go down and find my son dead. I ran down my stairs and out the door to find Ben lethargic and slow but alive and breathing. After a visit to the doctor, we found that Ben, though very sore and tender had no internal bleeding and no broken bones. I, to this day, truly believe it was a miracle. God intervened at that moment. I don't know why Ben was the one to be saved, but I see no other way that he could have fallen 15 feet and not been injured. In fact, that weekend on the news I heard of another boy who had been jumping on the bed with his brother and had fallen out the window and died. You can be certain that since that day I am very aware of where my furniture is placed in relation to 2nd story windows.
Experiences like these make me realize how much I value each of my children and their individual personalities. I never want to lose even one of them. Just even writing these experiences down has upset me.
I think I will go and take each of them in my arms to tell them I love them and hug them for a moment. They will probably wonder why such sentimentality at a moment when everyone's healthy, but sentimentality is a mother's prerogative, right?
It's allergy season here and I am dying. I've never lived in an area where I have been cursed with such bad allergies before I moved here...and for some reason none of the medications are helping. As a result I find myself eagerly anticipating the first good freeze so it will kill whatever makes me suffer so. Is it too early in summer for me to be mentioning that?
I had a bad mom day this week. Of course, it didn't start out a bad mom day and I had every intention of making it an all-star mom day by taking the kids out to get treats but it all began to change with a severe allergy attack in Wal-mart which led to me needing a quick nap to clear my head only to be awakened by Ben jumping on top of me running away from a roaring Jordan and upon this rude awakening discovering that my children were STILL playing the video game I had asked them to turn off an hour prior. I ranted and raved and took away video games for the summer. Although I have no regret about the video game ban, I always feel bad after ranting and raving. It never seems to serve any purpose.
Jake started riding the little 50 motorcycle that we own this last week. As he rode round and round our circular driveway with Dad chasing behind him, holding onto his shirt and shouting instructions Jake was all smiles. I guess this means he's left the world of little boys and crossed into the realm of the big boys now. *sigh*
Brad and the boys made a potato-gun shooter this weekend. It kept them all occupied for hours and as a result I was able to read Stephanie Nielson's Heaven is Here in its entirety this weekend. I loved it.
Jordan gave me quite the scare last week. He and his friend had set up a zip line and while securing himself in the homemade harness he flipped over and hit his head. I didn't think much of it when his friend gave me the briefing but then Jordan came back in, sat down and told me he didn't feel well. He then asked me, "Mom, how did I hurt myself?" I told him, "You hit your head." And then he sat there for about a minute and repeated the question again, "Mom, how did I hurt myself." This happened about 5 times before I thought to start asking him questions...simple ones like, "Where did I go this morning?"
"I don't know." "What did we do yesterday?" "I can't remember." I then explained that we went on a hike to a lake. "Did we wade in the lake?" "No." "What day is it?" "I don't know." This continued on and on and I went all the way back 2 weeks before he could remember something. Within an hour his short term memory had returned to normal and I didn't have to take him into the ER but for a moment there I felt frightened that I may have lost my Jordan.
I can only remember feeling that frightened one other time. I don't believe I have ever written this down, so I'll share it with you now. It happened in Las Vegas, Nevada. Brad and I had just recently moved into our final home we rented while he was in dental school. I was upstairs folding laundry on our couch and my children were on the other playing. The couch that they were playing on was placed beneath a window and it was open and soon our neighbor's dog began to bark. Ben, age 2 at this time, leaned on the screen so he could yell at the dog to stop barking. As I turned to tell him to get down the screen popped out and out fell my Ben with it to the rocky ground 15 feet below. My first thought was that I was going to go down and find my son dead. I ran down my stairs and out the door to find Ben lethargic and slow but alive and breathing. After a visit to the doctor, we found that Ben, though very sore and tender had no internal bleeding and no broken bones. I, to this day, truly believe it was a miracle. God intervened at that moment. I don't know why Ben was the one to be saved, but I see no other way that he could have fallen 15 feet and not been injured. In fact, that weekend on the news I heard of another boy who had been jumping on the bed with his brother and had fallen out the window and died. You can be certain that since that day I am very aware of where my furniture is placed in relation to 2nd story windows.
Experiences like these make me realize how much I value each of my children and their individual personalities. I never want to lose even one of them. Just even writing these experiences down has upset me.
I think I will go and take each of them in my arms to tell them I love them and hug them for a moment. They will probably wonder why such sentimentality at a moment when everyone's healthy, but sentimentality is a mother's prerogative, right?
Friday, June 22, 2012
Friday's Walk Down Memory Lane 6/22/2012
This week's walk down memory lane features: Brad and the kids (all but Jake)
Location: Apex (just outside of Las Vegas, Nv.)
When we were in dental school and had no expendable money for entertainment one of our favorite places to take the kids was Apex. We would load up our 3 dirt bikes and ride. Passing it on our visit this last month, I'm not sure if people ride out there anymore.
This day Brad took the kids out alone to give me a break.
And of course, if there's sand dunes they must be jumped off of, right?
Sunday, June 17, 2012
Dads
The Dads in our lives are all different. Some take us dirt biking, some wrestle, some play swords while others take us to the ocean, read to us or teach us how to dribble a ball. Some like the great outdoors and take us camping, dirt biking, fishing and boating while others take us to Disneyworld, to see Mt. Rushmore or the the Red Wood Forest. They buy us treats. At times it may be gum or chocolate candy and at other times donuts, soda or chips but it is sure to be something you won't find Mom buying for us. They pass on their love of the ocean, their love of the forest, their love of lakes and rivers. They create fun out of nothing. Some will do this by making a ramp out of plywood for us to ride our bikes into the lakes, hooking up tire tubes to a motorcyle on a frozen pond, starting a snowball fight while others may teach us to skip rocks on water or sing along to Neil Diamond on a long road trip. They work hard and teach us to work hard with them be it in their profession, in the upkeep of their home and yard or in the upkeep of all the bikes their children have. Yes, our fathers are all different yet they all have one thing thing in common: they love us and we love them all. From Our Family to all the fathers in our lives we would like to wish you a Happy Fathers' Day.
Friday, June 15, 2012
Friday's Walk Down Memory Lane 6/15/2012
Today's walk down memory Lane features: Jordan 6, Kenzie 4, Ben 2 and Riley 1
Location: Valley of Fire
Last week's brief visit to Vegas brought back many memories of dental school and living there. One of our favorite places to visit was the Valley of Fire. We loved the red bluffs and sandstone you could see everywhere and the holes in the rocks, caves and sand always made for some fun pictures.
Sunday, June 10, 2012
Sunday Reflections 6/10/2012
This last week we took a trip up to Vegas so Brad could visit with a dentist he has been consulting with about purchasing a practice. (No, we aren't buying a practice in Vegas. Yes, we are trying to move forward with another purchase...no final news yet as to when or even IF it will go through but we've made it over the financing hurdle and that's a step in the right direction.) At first I had decided to stay home as Brad likes to camp along the way and the unpleasant memory of sleeping in the car on last year's road trip was still too fresh in my mind. However, the lure of seeing my friend Elizabeth (even if it was for only two days) after not seeing her for four years was too shiny of a prize to be ignored and so I agreed to go; camping and all. It took two days to travel up and back because we decided to make it a mini-vacation for the kids by stopping to hike in Zion National Park. This was my 2nd trip to Zion, my first being with Brad and his friend Dave back when we were newlyweds. We hiked some trails that were maintained by the park like:
Weeping Rock
and the Narrows:
I'd never been to the narrows before and on our hike up the narrows I kept seeing people coming back in swimming suits, bikinis, capris with bikini tops, water shoes, walking sticks and I thought to my sometimes judgemental little self, "I know it's hot up here and hikes can be difficult but really swimsuits hiking? walking sticks? water shoes?" and then we came to this:
and this:
and this:
and I soon wished that I too had a swimsuit, walking stick and water shoes. (FYI: I've set aside my vanity here to let you see how deep the water is. I hate the above picture of myself)
As you can see in some of the above pictures, the kids were kind of giving us a hard time on the way up to the narrows but as soon as they hit the water they were energized. They loved it. Even Jake (who rode on Brad's shoulders most of the way) had to get in on the fun.
As you can see in some of the above pictures, the kids were kind of giving us a hard time on the way up to the narrows but as soon as they hit the water they were energized. They loved it. Even Jake (who rode on Brad's shoulders most of the way) had to get in on the fun.
Now do not be mistaken and think we are superheros. The narrows is a hike that totals 8 miles if you hike it all. I think we only made it about halfway.
On the way back home, Brad had decided that he'd had enough of shuttles and people and planned a hike on a trail not maintained by the rangers up in Kolob canyon. Here we are about to embark on our adventure:
We went up:
and up:
and up:
where at this point I would have turned around (and suggested that we should do so) but when I saw this:
I knew I had no choice but to ascend with them.
When we finally reached the point where we could touch both canyon walls while standing in one place:
Brad decided that we had conquered the hike.
On our way home we tracked down some dinosaur fossils in Moab:
And went to some lame dinosaur museum that we payed WAY too much for in Fruita, Colorado. (We went to one in Green River, Utah a little over a year ago and it was a lot better than this one.)
The best part for me was arriving home on Wednesday and being able to take a nice hot shower...aaahhhhh!!!! and sleeping in my own bed.
As for the rest of the week we cleaned, cleaned and cleaned some more. Oh, and Brad did put together a slip n' slide for the kids in the back yard:
and I conquered the freezer jam that I have been putting off for two months.
Thursday, June 7, 2012
Dad
This post is in honor of my father whose birthday just happens to be coming up.
Some things one must know about my father:
1. He loves basketball.
2. He loves wood floors (this could have some association with his love for basketball and gym floors).
3. He loves to clean his wood floor on his hands and knees with water, vinegar and a microfiber rag. My father has the shiniest floor of anyone I know.
4. He also loves to vacuum. He likes to see the lines on the carpet from the vacuum. If there are no lines, the floor isn't vacuumed properly.
5. He likes to do all his cleaning late at night. Many were the times when I was younger that my father would interrupt a peaceful night's slumber with his vacuuming at midnight. I, being the utmost respectful teenager, would then inform him that if he did this again (which he always did) I would awaken him in the morning with the vacuum when I had to get up to get ready for Seminary at 5:30 AM (which I never did but must not have been that much of a threat as I'm sure I woke him just the same).
6. He sings an excellent rendition of the song, "The Lion Sleeps Tonight"
7. When stuck in construction on long road trips, he has been known to roll down windows and put in the Beach Boys Christmas CD and sing along.
8. Christmas is his favorite time of year (this may also have some association with basketball season). If he could talk my mom into it, he would keep a room dedicated to Christmas year round. As it is, I think they keep their fake tree up until February.
9. He is fit. A good walk/run to him is at least 7 miles long. Quite a feat if you consider that he has one leg shorter than the other due to polio he contracted as a small child from the sugar cube vaccination.
10. He loves the rain of the Pacific Northwest.
11. The only basketball game he ever missed as a coach was because of my birth. His team lost that day.
12. Besides basketball some of his favorite things are: going to the movies, golfing, See's candy, Cinnabons and Otis Spunkmeyer cookies fresh out of the oven.
13. His nickname for me growing up was shortcake.
14. He makes one great Dad and Grandpa.
Love ya Dad! Happy Birthday.
Friday, June 1, 2012
Kenzie, age 10
Loves to: read, watch musicals, swim, moutain bike, play basketball, jump on the tramp and sing (especially this one lately http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sv6dMFF_yts) at the top of her lungs.
Hates: cleaning up messes.
Is always: changing outfits, making up stories, organizing her things (her room is kept the cleanest because of this) and pretending to be fashion granny.
Still plays with: barbies and polly pockets (Shhh....don't tell anyone).
Wishes: she could stay in Monument and that she had a sister.
Thinks: brothers are annoying.
Wants to be: an optometrist.
Has: beautiful blue eyes, great fashion sense, lots of spunk, a kind heart and newly pierced ears.
Hates: cleaning up messes.
Is always: changing outfits, making up stories, organizing her things (her room is kept the cleanest because of this) and pretending to be fashion granny.
Still plays with: barbies and polly pockets (Shhh....don't tell anyone).
Wishes: she could stay in Monument and that she had a sister.
Thinks: brothers are annoying.
Wants to be: an optometrist.
Has: beautiful blue eyes, great fashion sense, lots of spunk, a kind heart and newly pierced ears.
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