Can we catch a break??

The last couple months have been riddled with medical emergencies. The benefits of going through these things are:

1. You learn how you will react while in shock
2. You learn how important the comforter is
3. You learn how very blessed you really are
4. You find out how many people love and support you in times of need
5. You are humbled

It's the first week of summer. Because of that, I kept thinking that G-man was going to bed too late and seemed listless and tired. Also he's been more vocally cranky, which just isn't like him. By Saturday night, he was really tired and I sent him to bed at 7:30 pm. All through the night, he kept waking, wanting to walk around and seemed really restless and upset. All these things are not exceptionally unusual by themselves.

Sunday morning, Ben left to go and do some service with the Young Men's group in our church. I fixed the kids breakfast and then started gathering church clothes and stuff for the diaper bag. After breakfast, G-man just kept crying that he didn't want to get dressed and said he was sick. I thought, well, let's give it a minute and see what happens. As he was sitting on the stairs, he suddenly clutched his chest and said it was HURTING and his heart was pounding out of his chest. About 10 seconds into this, he says his arms are going numb. He then gets pale and sick and tells me he needs to go to sleep. NO G!! Wake up, NO sleeping!

For those that didn't know G-man has a congenital heart defect. We've known since he was a baby. It got better and tolerable but we always knew that he may struggle as he grew because the gap could widen as his body grew. We are grateful that up to this point, he has had minor problems and it hasn't affected his life very severely.

Back to Sunday morning. I'm now running around and telling Princess to help me. I prayed and felt inspired to call our primary president in the ward. I needed to do two things. I needed to let someone know I wouldn't be able to teach my class and also hoped she could take my kids. She was over in about a minute. I'm so thankful that she was able and willing to help me. I tried calling Ben three times and couldn't get ahold of him. He finally called back and I told him what was happening. He was already by the hospital (such a blessing!) with the service he was doing. He arrived and was waiting for me when I arrived. On the drive there, I kept telling G-man to not go to sleep! Buddy stay awake! I kept the windows down to try to keep him alert.

We arrived and they took him right back. At this point, the chest pain and numbness were lingering, but not stabbing anymore. The nausea was in full force. He was extremely pail and bothered that he needed to be awake. Through the course of the ER visit they did an EKG, chest x-rays and gave him good anti-nausea drugs in the IV. Ben's dad came and helped give a blessing, which was such a comfort.

So the results of the trip? A whole lotta not sure and maybes and that's weird. The EKG showed that he wasn't damaged in any way. Good news! The chest x-rays showed probably normal, but we're not experts. OK. He has hayfever (duh! We already knew.) He has thick blood. Probably bad. Maybe it was a small clot, maybe he's dehydrated...maybe...maybe. So we are headed back to Primary's. The cardiology department was his friend back in the day. We'll keep ya posted.

My thoughts. In the back of our brains we've known that there would be a day that maybe G would need more intervention with the heart. Maybe that time is now, maybe it was a weird fluke and he had a virus and he was dehydrated and he won't have any future problems. I don't know! But I do know that whatever happens, I am SO FULL OF GRATITUDE for my life. We have support and love. G is so loved and I feel the influence of a loving Heavenly Father who can give us strength to handle anything. Are trials fun? No. I hate them. But we can do it!

Birthdays and a few new additions....

Princess's 10th Birthday party
My sweet first born is 10! A whole decade of being alive! She is so sweet and smart and full of fire. She is growing up before our eyes and I just can't believe it! She excels in school and especially loves art, spelling, creative writing, reading, and science...so pretty much everything but Math :) Every other year we allow our kids to have a big friends party. She has such good girlfriends and they are so cute and sweet. This was the year and she chose a Tangled theme. We had 14 girls total~ let me tell you, a total giggle fest!

Decorations

Opening presents

Watching Tangled and eating "Rapunzel's hair licorice"

Cake and ice cream

A few brave girls out in the snow! Bad timing. I had so many outside activities planned but it worked out fine doing it all inside.


Chicks
I am the proud new mommy to 4 new chicks! And let me tell you, a few of them really think I am their mommy! They are fun, but they poop A LOT! Benefits of chickens, fresh eggs, nice pets that are pretty low maintenance, they can be outside 24/7 when they are big enough, they eat all the bad bugs, dandelions, and the fertilizer is great :) The chicken coop should be delivered tomorrow. They've gotten so much bigger since I took these pictures.

G-man is so soft with the chicks. He definitely nurtures them. Mase on the other hand! He is so rough and will pull them on the tail and legs. But he "loves" them!


Ikey's 4th birthday
He was so excited to have a birthday. For months he's been waking up every morning asking if today is the day for his birthday. I love my Ikey. He is so spunky and full of life. He is sure to make himself heard and loves to repeat himself :) which makes me feel like I'm schizophrenic! He's mischievous, and full of fun.
For his birthday he got legos from Grandma S, binoculars from his other Grandma S, a flying airplane, nerf gun, and a new bike with training wheels. I anticipate that it won't take long for those to come off!
Unfortunately I didn't get any pictures. If I can figure out how to post video, I will.


Princess's new little sister
It's not a secret that Princess has always wanted a sister. So princess and her friend got bored one day and took baby Mase downstairs to the dress ups. They introduced me to her new little sister! Isn't she ADORABLE?? He liked it for like a minute. Funny kids!

Mother's Day: Putting it all out on the table.

Not my favorite holiday. OK, my least favorite holiday. The day just doesn't feel special to me. I feel so proud and grateful to be a mother, but in the same breath don't really feel that flowers, a card and a mushy gooshy talk about Mother's are so heavenly, smothered on real thick is really something I need. I just don't like it. I LOVE my role of being a mother. I know that I don't do a great job a lot of the time (shhhh, don't tell my kids ;) but I also know that being a Mother is a thankless job...unless it happens to be Mother's Day!!! I guess I've won the lottery! It's my lucky day and now I should feel so special. (sarcasm)

I feel bad because I have an amazing husband who is so thoughtful and praises me often for my good intentions. We've gone through lots of years of sorting out what the problem is on this day. When Mother's Day rolls around, you won't find a beautiful bouquet of flowers on the table, just because you SHOULD buy flowers that day. I hate that. He actually just pretends that it's not a holiday (which I know probably doesn't lend to him feeling like a loving husband). I'm not one of those wives that puts a husband in the dog house for not buying flowers. In fact, a random flower given on a regular Wednesday makes me feel love far more that a generically placed one on a holiday. Better yet, a sparkling kitchen is even better! :)

With all that said, I know that I am mortal and that this is a problem with myself. Guilt and inadequacy are a side affect of not being perfect. And being someone who is extremely hard on myself, the holiday and I just don't mix well. And I would never want to spoil a beautiful, wonderful day for any other woman. Because heaven knows that we deserve to feel loved and cherished. We do a lot for everyone. So take that love and hold onto it if it makes you feel that way.

As for me, I will keep working on trying to feel the love and self worth that I should be feeling EVERY DAY. Here's the ultimate truth. I don't like feeling this way. I don't think it's what Heavenly Father intends for me. So, I'm working on it. Self acceptance is something to strive for.

On the flip side, I am very grateful for beautiful women in my life. My mother, my mother in law, my sister, and many sister in laws. I hope that they know how much I appreciate them. Not because I tell them today, but through my actions every day. That is what makes the difference. Hopefully I can show that more often.

Introducing.......Wolverine!

Yes folks. If we went through the airport security, we'd beep. If his hand went through an x-ray machine, they would yell, IT'S WOLVERINE. And then he would fly from the airport rafters and claw his way through airport security and save the day!!!!! No, wait. That's Ben day dreaming while on percoset ;) ♥ ya honey. Back to reality. Ben's hand looks like wolverine. They inserted metal pins through (did I mention THROUGH? Yes folks...that's right THROUGH)his bones in the hand.

Want a lookie? Owie.

My sweet mama took the kids overnight so we could rise bright and early for surgery on Tuesday. When the surgery was over, Ben was in a lot of pain. They finally got that under control and after 2 hrs in surgery with a 2 hour recovery we got home. He started feeling better about day 2 or 3 post surgery and then, boy howdy we was in a lot of pain!Day 4 and 5 were brutal. They warned us, but there were a few nights that I felt for the poor guy. Glad to be on this side of the surgery. He's a trooper.

I know you're wondering about the kids fared this week. Let's sum it up with a direct quote while driving carpool today. "Mom, everyone I know in the whole wide world had a funner spring break than us!" :( We tried. Actually, it was nice to not be going to and fro. We had lots of fun playing with neighbor friends, snuck in a trip to trafalga and the library. Not too shabby, if I say so myself.

We also hosted an early Easter party with my family and that was really fun!! I mowed our huge back yard on Saturday in preparation of the festivities...and let me tell you. Wow. It was hard! If you haven't seen my backyard it has a huge hill that surrounds it and the mowing on the hill made me feel like a whimp! Another moment where I am grateful for my husband who does these chores with no complaint. I WILL be in better shape by the end of the season with that mowing. That's the good news. Ben kept apologizing for not being able to help. Honey, back off. My butt needs a good workout :)

James my littlest (and a newlywed!) brother was the bunny this year! Silly Bunny!! So fun

This is our kidlets, plus our nephews Z and B. They had such a fun time. We let the three youngest get a head start. After that the olders made out very well with their loot.

Everyone there, minus the picture takers. McCall (other newlywed half) and me

My sweet Ikey has been wearing this costume all week. It's Princesses costume from when she was 2. I love my Ikey. He is a big rolling, Tasmanian ball of sunshine!

And.... the close up with the freckles. Cute as a bunny :)

We're back to school and back on schedule. I'm thankful to all the people that helped us by giving us food, watched kids, and the overall good thoughts. It means a lot.

Broken

April at our house started with a bang...er a CRACK. Really April 1st started at 6 am for my sweet husband. He goes to play basketball at our stake center 3 times a week. This Friday morning, he came into the house at about 7:30 am. I was pouring the malt o meal and this is the conversation that ensues.

Ben: "Honey, I think it's broken"

Me: "What's broken. (blank stare) Broken?? (I look down.) You're hand??? Why do you think that???" (imagine my voice raising in pitch with each of these statements)

Ben: He doesn't say anything, he just lets go of his hand it is gruesomely hanging at a very odd angle. An angle that the palm of the hand should never be hanging like

Me: I about puke and start flipping my hands, EW EW EW!!! Then I start running around and rummaging though the fridge...we need ice? Broccoli? Sit down! Holy crap! You're hand is going to fall off. KIDS!!!!!! Get ready for school, FAST!

All these thoughts happen in a very short amount of time.

Ben: So calmly suggests that he just drive himself to the ER. I tell him, no way. At this point, he is getting himself a drink and then starts looking like he's going to faint. All the blood drained from his face.

Rachel: I tell him that if he faints, I can not catch him...SIT DOWN!

I proceeded to call my darling neighbor that is 39 weeks pregnant (why I thought to call her? Because she's awesome, but I'm not an awesome friend for bugging her at 7:30 in the morning while 39 weeks pregnant. I woke her up. She came and got the older kids off to school and took care of the youngers.

We drove to the Instacare (I guess I wasn't too frazzled and remembered that the Instacare is much cheaper than the ER).

We got X-rays and sure enough 3 bones in the hand are broken and off their rockers.
They splinted that puppy up (good, I don't want to look at it!) Did I mention that the palm of the hand should NEVER look like that?? We were on our way.

Next step was waiting for the swelling to go down. Today we went to a hand specialist and sure enough, he needs surgery. The bones were broken diagonally and they are all in the wrong place.

D-day is next Tuesday April 12th.

I have to give credit where credit it due. I do not have a whimpy husband, nor is he looking for sympathy. There are no bells being rung for service...no laying in bed. That same evening, he took me to dinner with all my good buddies and their husbands.

Amber and Mike, Rachel and Ben (we were playing musical chairs, that's why he's not sitting by me at the moment :), Sonia and Ben, LJ and Becky (she was taking the picture and graciously shared; catch ya next time), Kim and Koby. These are the nicest friends!


The next day after the accident was my birthday. He refused to take loratab that morning so he could drive around town, buy me flowers and presents. Since then, he has made the kids sandwiches one handed, swept the floor, worked full time (although slower :), and this morning gave Mase and Ikey a bath one handed! Seriously, he's super man.

The biggest bummer with this whole thing is we had to cancel going to San Diego for Spring Break. And I don't think I can be as fun as San Diego. Hopefully we all survive!! :)

P.S. I had a really nice birthday! The older I get, the more I appreciate all the wonderful people who surround and love me.


For your viewing pleasure. The X-rays don't give the grossness factor justice. Look at the bottom of the hand, by the wrist. 3 bones (pinky, ring and middle) in the palm of the hand are completely broken and are slipped forward.

What we've been up to

You know? I'm just not good at updating this blog. Not sure why, because I love reading everyone else's blogs *shrugs* Oh well!

February was a great month!

Ben is working hard at his job. He really loves his company and is finding a lot of satisfaction, although he says he doesn't have enough time in the day to finish everything he needs to every day. Still working with the Young men in our ward.

Me? Well, you know. The usual. Life is just busy. Sometimes I'm not as patient as I should be. There's hardly ever a day that I feel like I've done anything great, but I do do a lot of things well.

Princess loves her 4th grade class. She's getting to be so grown up! We are breeching into some tweeny behavior. I'm remembering how I acted at this age and really? All I wanted was to be understood and appreciated. So Ben and I have been focusing and accepting that she is changing.

G-man is taking the 1st grade by storm. He is infectious and has lots and lots of friends. He can't seem to keep his room clean, but overall he's a good boy! He can't wait until we can set up the trampoline for the year. The boy needs to get his energy out!

Both Princess and G-man just finished Jr. Jazz basketball. They enjoyed the experience. Ben helped with both of the teams and by the end of the season, they told him that they wanted to do it again.

Ikey is currently sick with RSV right now. Generally he's my sassy little guy that has an opinion about everything. But he's been wanting more and more loves and snuggles and that makes a Momma happy :)Also, I'm his teacher in the Sunbeam class. He loves having me in there with him.

Mase is 18 months old! He's been going to nursery for 2 weeks now and has only shed a few tears along the way. Him and Ikey are becoming great pals. Mase is finally old enough to engage with Ikey. This is good news for this mama who needs a few breaks here and there.

Overall life is good. It's true that if you don't write down what you're doing, when you're doing it...you forget. That should be the reason that I update regularly.

OUCH!

I joined a gym. I hurt. Really bad. The big muscle-y man hurt me today. He made me keep going when it was BURNING! Tomorrow I fully expect to rock the 'grandma walking with the cane' look.

Pass the Advil.