So THIS happened

I know.  I know.  It's been a while.  After a while it seems overwhelming because I have so much I want to put on here, so I'm just gonna do a quick update with pictures.

Yup.  THIS happened!

Grand baby #8 (granddaughter #5) arrived safe and sound!  We will call her D.  She is a very alert little stinker who is starting to smile and thinking really hard about laughing.  She is as beautiful as all the others, and has her aunt's Marty Feldman eyes.

 I can't believe THIS happened...

N's dad gave Mike and I his frequent travel points and we went to Florida!!  I went there with Cali after she graduated and fell in love with the beach there and have always wanted to take Mike.  He is a beach fanatic!!  And I knew he would love this one!

I found a few creatures while trekking around the beach.  The bluish, puffy things are air-filled sacs.  When we got back to the hotel I googled them to find out what they were and discovered they are Man of War Jellyfish - one of the top 10 poisonous to man!!  As you can see, I held them in my hands.  And since I'm typing this post WITH those same 2 hands, it's fair to say they weren't poisonous anymore.  But they are still REALLY cool!!

Of course we dined at Bubba Gumps!

This was Mike out about waist deep.  Now the funny part of this story is the whole reason I wanted to take him to Florida is because there were no waves at the beach.  Just aqua-blue water and white sand as far as the eye can see.  We just happened to catch it while tropical storms were passing through.  Didn't matter, though.  We still had the best time ever!!

I couldn't resist a corny pic with THIS guy!

I cried when THIS happened!

This sweet, young lady with Al was a peer tutor in his class, and also belonged to the dance team for the school.  She noticed how amazing the boys in his class were at dancing to Wii Just Dance videos on YouTube, and suggested the boys teach the dance to the dance team, and then perform it at their end of year concert together.  AMAZING!  Yes, the boys rocked it!  And, yes, Al was the best!  (I might be a bit prejudiced...)  I didn't cry until the end of the dance when you could see how excited these boys were that they had accomplished such a feat, and the reaction of the audience blew me away.  It makes me teary just thinking of it.  They cheered so loud and did a standing ovation that lasted at least 3 minutes!

THIS sorta happened...

Prom 2015, Baby!!  A chilly, rainy pic in front of the yellow limo.

Stud muffins!

When I say this sorta happened, it's because we left early.  They held Prom this year up at the U of U football stadium's press box;  a long, skinny room.  The view was amazing, but the area was just too cramped and loud for Alex to enjoy.  He hasn't minded the loud music before at Prom, so I think it was mostly the small area.  So he hung out in the hallway, which is where I took this picture.

They had the area blocked off with this view, but I snuck in and took a great 50 yard line picture!

Both grateful and sad that THIS happened.

Alisa Johnson Linton Passed away after fighting melanoma for 8 years.  Her family lives across the street from us and even though Alisa had graduated from high school when we moved in, we still knew and loved her like the rest of the family.  Glad she's not in pain anymore, glad I have a testimony of where she is now, but sad for her family.

This was taken just a few weeks before she died.  It was at her youngest sister's wedding reception.  She wanted a picture with my dad because while she was a young woman he was the bishop of the ward.  

My neighbors whom I love like family.

Alisa's family; Ginger, husband Josh and the 3 boys.  They handled this day with honor and respect, and still amaze people with their generosity and kindness to others in need.

While driving to the cemetery - first of all, Ginger was allowed in the hearse and had her head sticking out the window, which I thought was VERY appropriate since Alisa loved her - the whole elementary school student body stood respectfully in front of the school as the procession went by. 

So sweet. So tender.  Yes, I bawled like a baby!!

While I'm being morbid and talking death, Cali and I 'celebrated' "SUCK A DUCK, MY DAUGHTER DIED" day.  It's an official holiday;  see, it's on my calendar!

3 years ago Cali suffered an amniotic fluid embolism and survived.  Her story has touched hundreds of people and she is doing fantastic!  A little memory loss, but not enough to hinder her life.

 

First we went to the store to buy goodies for us and the ducks at the lake.

(CR, Al and O)

And then we went to the lake and fed the ducks on "SUCK A DUCK" day.  The day after this is when Quincy was taken to spare Cali's life, so we celebrate his birthday on that day.  He would be 3 years old!!  Wow.  

Obviously this isn't much of a celebration, but it's more of a chance to help Cali handle a difficult time.  And a time for me to thank my Father in Heaven for all the miracles in my life.

Cali and me

And CR knew Nanny needed a hug.  Isn't this picture just too cute?!?

So happy THIS happened!!

If you don't recognize this good-looking man that Al is hugging, this is his birth dad, Ernie.  They came into town for 5 days and we had a blast!!

We went to see snakes, lizards and alligators...

... had fun at Seven Peaks...

...enjoyed the sun and water at the lake by Cali's house...

...and one day when the boys went paint balling, us ladies got a pedicure!

This is Alex's youngest sister SH.  Whenever she was at our house she grabbed Gracie's collar and walked her all over the place!!  Both of them loved it!

The reason they were in town was because

THIS happened!!

Graduated (with honors!) with the class of 2015

Al really likes this pic because he looks taller than his teacher, Heather!  

So, so proud of Alex.  He is such a good kid and even when he's not, you can tell he's trying his darndest to be good!

THIS better happen again!!

Two of my cousins and I got together and drove to Fairview to put flowers on our grandma's and aunt's graves.  Meet Wendy and Kristen.  Growing up Wendy was one of my best friends;  I had a lot of sleepovers with her and spent a lot of time at her house.  Kristen is a few years older than us, but I always looked up to her.  She was the cousin that always had fun stuff for us all to do.  They are hilarious and we had a great time.  Next year we are hoping to at least double our number in cousins!

We never knew Aunt Joan.  She died as a little girl.  Grandma had a big bucket of boiling water on the floor to use for mopping and Joan fell into it.  

We had fun walking around and trying to guess which Vance or Mower we were actually related to.  And some of the headstones were so old!  And interesting.  So many children were buried there.  Some families had 5 or 6 children all lined up side by side as they were stillborn.  

Thanks Wendy and Kristen for a great time!!  And thanks to all my family who came before me.  Your sacrifices have not been dismissed!

THIS just happened the other day.  Al's first real crash on his bike.

We even took him to the ER for this injury because he complained a lot about it and had a hard time moving it.  But it was just a deep bruise.

And obviously not much of an "emergency".

THIS happened in early summer.  I know it's a random pic (I think Al was trying to get a pic of SH walking Gracie) but I have to show off how beautiful my flower bed is in spring!!  It makes me happy!  Unfortunately the snaps die off once it gets too hot and now it looks like I'm trying to grow dried flowers.  Not pretty.

THIS happened 31 years ago this June 30!!

I got to be sealed for time AND all eternity to my best friend EVER!  He loves me.  He gets me.  He likes me.  And he even puts up with all my crap!  Even if it embarrasses him.  

31 years is a long time - but it's not long enough!

(elevator in Florida)

 (second shot in elevator)

 On our way to the Florida beach for the first time.

(hotel room)

(airplane coming home from Florida)

Thanks for being mine, George!!!

November

It's November and once again I realize how behind I am in writing on my blog; I have a new family picture I need to add.  I REALLY need to update the grandkids' birthday tickers.  But what I'm actually doing is sitting up at nights to make sure Alex wears his oxygen!  Stinker!!  I shouldn't complain, in fact I should congratulate all of us!  He's wearing it up to 85% of the day.  But for some reason at night is a fight.  He fell asleep on the couch the other day, so I laid on the other side bound and determined to keep the oxygen on him through the night.  Yeah...  Neither one of us got any sleep.  And Mike didn't either because I made him lock the cat in with him so he wouldn't bug Alex and me.  Instead he bugged Mike!

Alex caught a cold and has missed almost a whole week of school.  It's not a horrific cold, but with his low sats to begin with it just adds to the complications.  I was going to send him today since he played well yesterday afternoon, but when I woke him up his sugars were at 38...that's not good!! So he's home again, today. 

Since he's been home, he's got me hooked on Dr. Who.  It's a good, clean show!  And I must admit, I'd go with The Doctor if he showed up in my neighborhood in his TARDIS.  And I'm only a couple seasons into it!

Did I mention in my last post why Alex is on oxygen?  Or at least the guess?  For the past 6 months or so whenever we went to any doctor his oxygen levels were at 88 or below;  if levels are below 90 the doctors get worried.  Well, this became a problem that no one could seem to figure out.  After seeing the cardiologist, the pulmonologist and the pediatrician multiple times, getting x-rays and sleep studies, the decision was that for some reason he needs oxygen.  The guess is it's because he's gained so much weight lately that the lower lobes of his lungs aren't inflating enough. (Some of the meds he's on for behavior cause weight gain, plus he's at the age of maturity, which hits kiddos with DS hard in the weight gain department.)   Since wearing the oxygen, we have all seen an increase in his activity level.  He's participating much more in gym and wrestling classes.  He will go for walks with me.  He will ride his bike around the neighborhood again.  So, hopefully with more exercise we will see more movement and maybe some weight loss.  Then we will know if the weight gain is the reason.  The only problem is Alex is quite the sloth.  Even though he's moving more, he is SO slow there's no way he's burning calories!  So - that's it in a nutshell.

So that's about it.  Chillin with Al watching Dr. Who and trying to get some sleep while making sure he has oxygen on.  It's a glamorous life and I wouldn't trade it for nothin!!

Bowling and disco lights at 3 a.m.

(Let me start this post with a  clarification that I am writing this with a sarcastic tone.  I am being snarky, silly, imaginative;  however you want to say it I am really not angry with my angel boys!)

No, I wasn't bowling in the middle of the night!  The only thing I'm doing at 3 a.m. is either sleeping or wishing I was asleep.  But I have two grandsons who thought it would be a great time for a bowling game.

So picture this... beautiful evening.  Windows open, a slight breeze, crickets chirping their melodious tunes to the man in the moon.

Sleeping.  Or trying to.  I wasn't even in my own bed!  I've been fighting a sinus infection so I thought I would sleep upstairs and let my sweet honey have a break from my tossing and turning and snuffing and snorting.  But that didn't mean that I didn't keep myself awake with all that racket. 

And then it hit.  A searing white flash of light followed shortly afterwards with a huge BoOm!!  It shook the house!  It scared the animals!  And it quite frankly scared me!!

McKallister and Quincy were at it again!  They love to bowl!  Usually they are polite young men and bowl in the middle of the afternoon or early evening.  We've even enjoyed sitting out on the front porch and cheering them on for their obvious strikes or laughing at their pitiful blunders.  I guess they didn't like the pressure because they started this match at 3:00 a.m.   AND they had to go all out with the disco lights for fun, too! 

Whoever decided, "Mmmm.  Let's build an enclosed area, with wooden floors and throw / roll a large, solid object down a row into more pieces of wood / plastic to make a crashing sound and add flashing lights to it and call this fun!"  has a weird sense of humor.  Oh, yeah, and then someone else decided to add alcohol to some of the matches.  Good call!

So, back to Mac and Quincy.  Mac is the poorer bowler of the two.  I'm not sure if he's just letting Quincy win to be a nice big brother or he's just not good at the sport, but he pretty much sucks.  Whenever it's his turn you can hear the ball meander back and forth between the bumper pads and then ding a pin.  But Quincy on the other hand - WOW!  That boy has some moves!  His turn always consists of lightning zippy balls roaring down the lane and plowing through the pins!! 

Back to the other night.  I think Mac may have given up after a few rounds because the game didn't last all that long, but what they did play was with vim and vigor!  A few strikes, a few slashes of light across the sky and that was it! 

Next time, boys, if you're gonna wake me up let's at least have a little ABBA in the background to go with the lights!  OK?

I am so blessed.

Just feeling so overwhelmed with gratitude lately.  I have a job that I absolutely love and have enjoyed my whole life!  Whether it's working in Early Intervention or babysitting my grand kids I am doing what I love, and I learn something new everyday! 

Just the other day I had the opportunity to have 2 of my granddaughters come to one of the Early Intervention classes.  One of them is 2 1/2 years old and the other is only 1 1/2 years old.  This class is for children 2 1/2 - 3 years old with delays, but we love having non-delayed peers come in the class to 'teach' the other kids appropriate play and behaviors.  So the younger one of my granddaughters (C) gets to come just because she has a lot of language, and because it's a really small class!  So I watch them - as I'm manhandling another child across the room! - and am just in awe of the process of life and how C , no matter how smart she is, has such a hard time sitting down for any length of time.  A on the other hand, is sitting and participating like a champ.  Just those few months of learning added to A vs. C and her attention span is tenfold. 

I guess in my profession it makes me more aware of the little things kids seem to do automatically and we take them for granted.  Using our hands;  did you know there's a real learning process there?  We all start grasping things from the outside in, so from our pinkie to our thumb.  As our grasp gets improved we only need to use our three inner fingers - thumb, pointer and middle finger - to rake things into our palm.  As our eye-hand coordination improves, and we learn to get a better pinch, we only need the two fingers - thumb and pointer.  It just takes time!  Some people more time than others.  And some people, depending on their ability, may never be able to have a fully functioning pincer grasp.  But how many of us just watch a baby reaching for his binky and never even notice  how  that just occurred?  It's amazing!!!

And then there's the love of my life.  My honey bunny.  My sweetheart.  I love my George so much that sometimes it hurts.  That may seem odd, but it's true.  I miss him when we aren't together.  But I am so lucky to have him, and to love him and that he loves me back!  I know that's a rare thing to have in this world, and I am very gratefully to have someone who I love and respect soooo much!  Ewww!!  So mushy!!

And then there's my Al.  Oh, that boy!  He's been struggling with low oxygen saturations for about 6 months now and I'm worried they may put him on oxygen 24/7, but he has so much spunk and charisma that he can get away with just about anything!  He puts his oxygen on the other day because he had lost the chance to watch a movie after school because of bad behaviors, but his teacher said if he wore his oxygen he could watch a short one.  So, he so dutifully put the oxygen on, had me take a picture of him to send to his teacher and said, "MMMM.  This makes me feel better!"  Then when I went down 10 minutes later, he not only had the oxygen off, but he had broken the cannula and ripped apart the filter that goes on the back of the machine.  But, of course, the movie was still on!!  He's a smart kid.  As much as I vent about him - and I really am not complaining, it's just a lot of work being his mom! - I wouldn't trade my life with him for anything!  He teaches me so much love and understanding - that is, when I actually look at him and what he has to offer.  It's my fault I don't learn something from him, not his!!  I got a good laugh on his expense yesterday that I need to share.  We had a Stake combined YM/YW activity last night where they served us a dinner then we had a water balloon 'fight' (each team had a launcher and they launched balloons one at a time so we could make sure everyone was safe).  So Alex was conniving his way into getting some water balloons and then chasing some of us leaders with it and trying to get us wet.  I think he picked on us because we are slower than the young women, but it was still fun.  I tried to intervene and try to get him to throw it at someone from a distance so they had time to dodge it (it was chilly last night!) and I would yell, "Alex, look!  A dolphin!"  This is something we have done with him since he was young, and to this day, he will stop what he's doing and still look!!  No, he has never seen a dolphin, especially since we are usually in our house or yard when we say this, but he always trusts us and looks.   Others around us that heard got a good chuckle, but that boy just warms my heart!  AND yesterday after school his oxygen levels were above 90!  Yahoo!!!!  Keep taking deep breaths Al!!!

As you can see, I'm just gushing with love and blessings and am one lucky lady!!

nine eleven

Never have 2 words meant so much to so many people.  Just thinking them brings back that day...

I was doing laundry.  I always turn the TV on to have sound on while folding. 

News. News. News..... wait.  What?

New York.  Airplane.  Fire. 





I actually watched the second plane hit the building.  I remember holding my mouth over my hand, even though the scream that I felt never left my body. 

I also watched as the twins dropped.  I think I fell to the ground with them.  I didn't know what I felt.  Pain.  Fear.  Confusion.    Nothing good, that's for sure. 

New York has always had a dear place in our hearts.  That's where Mike served his  LDS mission (New York /  New Jersey). He has a love for the people there that will never diminish.  I got to fall in love for myself when we got the opportunity to go there together about 8 years after he got home.  The sights.  The smells.  The languages - even English spoken there is a different language!  And we even went to the twin towers and stood on the observation deck.  That's where I stood and listened to probably close to 100 people talking to each other as I walked around, and I don't think I heard any English spoken.  So weird to be on American soil and not hear English.  At all!  And then we went downstairs to the shops.  Of course!  We were tourists!!  We found a tie and suspender set for sale that was absolutely beautiful!  But we didn't buy it.  At least not that day!  I actually had Mike's mission mom - who worked in one of the towers - buy them and send them to me for Mike for Christmas that year.  Best present I ever got him!  That's still one of my favorite ties!  He wears it every 9/11.

As bad as those memories are, and always will be, what I remember most is the emotions over the next few weeks.  At the time I had a paper route.  Don't laugh!  I've tried everything I could to stay home with my kids, and a paper route helped.  But at 4 am there isn't much on the radio but talk and news, especially after a big event like this.  And for all the negativity that could  have been dribbled, there was so much love.  Compassion.  Sincerity.  Patriotism.  Pride.

I remember driving and running through the neighborhood in the dark, but feeling full of light and wanting to bang on every one's door shouting, "Thanks for being my neighbor!"  "Thanks for helping me feel safe."  "I'm proud to be an American!!" 

Thirteen years later.  I haven't been back since 1992.  I want to!  OH.  I so bad want to.  I want to add my tears to those that have been shed in honor of the brave men and women who risked their lives to try to valiantly save complete strangers in a dark, unforgiving mess.  To feel the spirit that I'm sure is there.  How could it not be? 

But since I'm home, I will just raise my flag in honor.  I will think about those people, their families probably all day long.  And I will thank my Heavenly Father for allowing me to live in America at this time of history. 

May we NEVER forget......

I haven't forgotten you, my dear friend BLOG!

Wow.  In March I wrote that it had been far too long, and now it's September and this is the first I've sat down to write. 

I do have a confession to make.  Part of the reason my blog has been suffering is I hurt someone's feelings with a post I wrote, and that hurt me incredibly!  I didn't mean to hurt this person, but I can see how what I said may have caused tender feelings.  But on the flip side of that, I blog as a way to vent my feelings, so it's been hard to sit down and write down my feelings worrying that I will offend someone. 

So...  fresh start!!  I will still express my feelings and I hope that everyone who has an interest in reading them will just know that I don't mean them to offend or criticize.  I just need a safe place to share my feelings.

The other reason for my lack of interest in blogging is it seemed so overwhelming!!  It's like laundry;  you get behind and it just seems impossible to catch up!  I have so many pictures I want to share, and so many cute stories or happenings in my life that I've missed writing down.  And the thought of taking a few hours to catch up just doesn't seem possible.  So, I'm not going to catch up.  At least not completely.  I will let you know some goings on in my life, but some of the other stuff will just have to wait.  And maybe another time I will put a few 'fillers' in here and there!

George - still loving working at Memorial Estates and doing a fantastic job!  I'm so glad he finally enjoys what he's  doing.  He's also the second counselor in our Stake presidency, which keeps him hopping.  But he's hopping with some fine gentlemen and I'm so glad they are the leaders in our stake.

Colby's family - well, Kierra quit her job and is a stay at home mom and also babysitting the other 2 kiddos I was watching!!  M has started kindergarten and is taking gymnastics and piano lessons and A is going to come to a pre-school type class I work in, and loves having mommy around more often.   Colby still works for the same company, but is looking to change.

Cali's family - Josh is still building big water tank thingy's, Cali is loving life staying home with her 2 little ones, O  is back in pre-school and taking gymnastics, and CR is working up the courage to try to walk by himself.  Recently Cali and Josh were able to meet the first responders who helped out when she was so sick!  An awesome day!  Check out her link for details.

Taylor's family - Brandon loves working in finance and I think has decided not to become a lawyer, but to continue schooling in finance.  Taylor works a few hours a day but gets to spend the rest of her day with her little Ch who is a sweet, precocious, smart little human being! 

All my grandkids absolutely amaze me!!!  I remember feeling this way watching my kids grow up.  And now I'm so proud of how well they are raising their own kids!

Alex - started his senior year in high school, baby!!!!  Him and I got to go to Oregon with my parents, and my brother and his family this summer and had a great time!!  It was to celebrate my parent's 50th wedding anniversary, but we were the lucky ones to enjoy the trip with them!  Beautiful country, and great family fun!! 

Alex has also struggled a bit lately with his health.  He's gained a lot of weight these past few years;  partly because of his hip surgery, partly because of some of the meds he's on, and partly because the hormones have kicked in and with people with Down Syndrome, they unfortunately most of the time gain weight.  Well, because of this his lungs aren't working like they should.  His oxygen sats are normally at 88.  Anything below 90 is not good.  We're working on it, but he really hates wearing oxygen.  And it's really hard to get that kid to move fast enough to get his heart rate going to try to lose weight.  Long process, but we're in it together!!!

Me - obviously I'm not babysitting anymore!  I've picked up a few more hours at work but get to be home with Alex, which has been nice since he's had a bad cold which has made the oxygen sats even worse!!  I also got called to be the Young Women's President in our ward.  That means I'm over the girls ages 12 - 18 that live in our area for Sunday services as well as weekly activities.  I'm so excited to work with the women I have been called with and am hoping we can keep the activity level up so we can have a good sized group!

So, lots of changes.  Lots of new things.  But not much to report. 

That's ok.  At least I'm here.

I'm happy, and I'm here!!