Life is all fun when you're one

Girls just want to have fun

As the saying goes, "there's a first time for everything". That is one way I can describe last weekend.

IT WAS MY FIRST TIME:

• going on a girls vacation with friends since my single college days. (I spent 2 1/2 days with Amber, Nicki, Wendy, and Kristi. We drove to St. George and spent two nights at a time share condo that Amber was able to get.)

• canyoneering. (We went to Zion's National Park and canyoneered through Pine Creek- a beautiful, narrow canyon. It consisted of six rappels, the longest one was a 100 foot free hanging rappel. The canyon was very wet due to frequent flash floods this year. We swam from one rappel to the next, and each rappel landed in a pool of water. We were so grateful for our wet suits...that water was cold! Amber and Kristi did a great job keeping us alive, as they were in charge of the technical skills. It was an awesome eight hour experience. We had a lot of fun and a lot of laughs.)



• doing the Chinese fire drill, (yes we are all in our thirties and forties.)



• I have been around friends who talked like teenagers since I was an actual teenager. (It's best not to elaborate.)



• eating two nights in a row at Outback Steakhouse.



• posing for pictures in a local's front yard that was xeriscaped with wire sculptures.



• being mooned by my sister in law while talking on the phone to Jason. (Was that too much information?)



• enjoying a magic show from a very nice grandpa at the local Wendy's in Beaver. He made salt disappear and then reappear, he had coins change while Amber was holding them tight in her hands, he asked us each to pick a number and then read our minds of what number we each picked. Why did the grandpa do magic tricks for us? I guess he saw five girls who were wrapping up a youthful weekend.

During the weekend I learned more than just how to canyoneer. Those awesome girls reminded me that no matter how "old" you are, enjoy being young once in awhile.

• Get out of your comfort zone and enjoy adventures.


• I've often said the phrase, "what's the point?". It's fun to do things...even when there IS NO POINT.


• It's ok to yell, "again, again!!!" when you think a magic trick is pretty cool.


• Sing a song at the top of your lungs, even though you've never had voice lessons. It sounds really good if you're confident and having fun. (We sang a beautiful harmonizing version of "doe a deer, a female deer" in the echoing canyon while rappelling into a nasty pool of water.)


• "Jinx, you owe me a Coke" never goes out of style.

There's nothing wrong with getting old, but you always have to stay young at heart.

watching Kristi rappel at the left

me rappelling

there was plenty of water

taking a break

We made it out alive!!!

What was I thinking?

If you are employed at Child Protective Services, do not read this. If you are not employed at CPS please do not turn me in.

Ethan cheated death two times this week despite my stupidity.

1. Friday Jen took my van and all the nieces and Chandler to an early dinner. The plan was for me to meet them at 6 p.m., three blocks away at the elementary school where football practice was. Since Jen had my van and the car seat, I plopped a 22 month old, unrestrained child in the back seat of Jen's Subaru and headed to the school. As I was stopped at a stop sign, waiting to turn on the road the school is on, Ethan opened the back door. Yah….not too smart. We all know what could have happened. Ethan could have easily chosen to open that door a few seconds before or after when the car was moving. It’s hard to think about.

2. Tuesday, after a two-hour football practice, there was a parent/coach meeting. I thought it was going to be a quick meeting telling us the etiquette rules for a football game. Like, not yelling at the refs, no profanity, no punching or stabbing… things of that nature. I told the kids to walk 100 yards to the car, get Ethan in his car seat, and buckle up. It ended up that the meeting consisted of everything we needed to know about the coaches and what to expect during the season. 40 minutes later I walked to the car and found all the kids happily playing at the playground located directly in front of my car. I was so glad they weren’t miserable waiting for me. As we were loading the car Chandler said, “Ethan almost got hit by a car. A model airplane crashed in the parking lot and Ethan ran to get it. I ran after him and luckily the guy stopped.” Did you just cringe like I did? On top of that, Ethan was basically playing for 40 minutes "supervised" by an inexperienced, barely nine year old "babysitter".

Lucky??? I think not.

There are many blessing that I am regularly thankful for. One of them is safety. I am frequently amazed at the miracle of safety. I know there are tragedies surrounding us but so far my family has been protected, including parents, siblings, nieces and nephews on both Jason's side and mine. I once again thank my Heavenly Father for safety.

How many times do you think you have “cheated” death?

What would I do without this kid?

IV fluids anyone???

Two weeks ago Morgan got very sick. She had a high fever, fatigue, nausea, and vomiting.

Suzanne spent two days doing her best to take care of her. Morgan doesn't complain much, even when she is sick. She kept a barf bucket nearby and spent two days on the couch. While at work Suzanne called me to let me know that Morgan wasn't getting any better. She hadn't eaten for 2 1/2 days and threw up any liquids given to her. Of course Morgan would eventually get better but we knew if we could hydrate her the recovery would happen much quicker.

At the hospital bags of IV fluid are prepared for use on patients, but many times they are not used before they expire and expired fluid is thrown away. I brought a bag of fluid home that was going to expire. Suzanne talked with Morgan about whether or not she wanted an IV. Suzanne told Morgan that she didn't have to have an IV but that it would help her. "Your stomach doesn't want water so Dad would put the water in your vein and I promise it will help you feel better." Morgan has always been able to trust me and Suz if we explain things to her. (Like when we told her she should go on "The Bat" ride at Lagoon. Even though it looks scary we knew she'd like it. She trusted us and now it's her favorite ride). Anyway, we told her it would hurt a little bit but not as bad as a shot. As she layed on the couch she was a little scared but wanted more than anything to not be sick, so she agreed to an IV. I used a little local anesthetic which was the only painful part and then started the IV. As I was getting the needle in the vein Chandler and Ashtyn both watched with wide eyes. "Does that hurt Morgan? You're brave, I would never let Dad do that to me." Morgan laid perfectly still in Suzanne's arms, never looking at what I was doing. After I had the IV in her hand we laid her on a blanket on the ground, hooked her up to the fluid, and hung the bag on a door with a hanger. When the fluid was all in I took out the IV and gave her a priesthood blessing that she would soon feel better. Thirty minutes later Morgan was in her room with Chandler and Ashtyn watching a movie on the laptop. The next morning Morgan woke up perfectly healthy and starving.

I'm sure the blessing was a big reason she felt better, but I can't help but feel extremely grateful that I have a job where I can help my family when they are sick. It was really a neat experience for me, and I'm glad she trusted me to do it for her.

So, the next time any of you are sick and need an IV, give me a call and I'll be happy to stick a needle into you. I promise it won't hurt me a bit. :)

There's a new man in the house

Chandler started his first season of football Monday, July 28th. Football practice is every day from 6-8 p.m. The first three days they did a lot of running. Thursday morning he woke up in pain…his legs were really sore. He cried going up and down stairs. He cried getting in and out of the car. He cried sitting down and standing up. He cried because he didn’t want his legs sore, he wanted his arms sore, “because that means my arms are getting stronger.”

Thursday they started using pads. That night as he was going to bed I asked him how he felt about starting football. Very thoughtfully he said, “ I feel like a man now.” Friday and Monday the coaches really worked on hitting hard with a lot of blocking and tackling drills. They were trying to get the kids to understand that it’s a good thing to be an “animal.” They kept yelling at them to stay low, be fast, and push hard. Towards the end of Monday practice the coaches were having a little meeting discussing team placement. Without the coaches around the kids were having some fun driving and tackling. It didn’t take long before the biggest kid in the group landed on Chandler. He began frantically crying and was in a lot of pain. When practice was over we took him to the doctor’s office. An X Ray showed Chandler had a broken wrist! Really???? Three days of wearing pads and he’s already hurt???

30 seconds before getting hurt

He's the kid on top...next picture would have been him on the bottom.

Well, now that Chandler is a “man” football must go on, injury or not. Chandler will continue to go to every practice, do any drills he can, and hopefully learn a lot from watching the other kids. He can’t do any hitting until this Friday when they will exchange his splint for a cast.

Bad news: He’ll have his cast on for four weeks, getting it off after his first football game.
Good news: He’ll have his cast on for four weeks, getting it off after the first week of school.

At the doctors office…
Dr: “Do you have a girlfriend?”
Chandler: “Yes.”
Dr: “Sweet!”
(Chandler has LOVED Caroline since 1st grade but it has never been reciprocated.)
Dr: “Wait till she sees you with a cast, she’ll really like you after seeing this battle wound.”

Not surprisingly this made any pain Chandler was feeling seem a lot less than before, and he has been excited ever since. It is funny how Jason has been telling Chandler all summer how hard football is going to be and how tough you have to be to play, and he gets hurt after only a few days of practice. I guess this is just one of the challenges you have when you have a new man in the house.