Tables, Dragons, Sunblock, and more pox

Thursday of last week, started out much like any other Thursday. Alex headed off to school being sent off by 3 admiring younger brothers. Andy settled on the couch to watch his favorite show, Curious George -- the new adventures. Sean and Ryan started the morning battle for my attention. Sean running from the kitchen to the front room, while Ryan stuck by my side sliding around and generally banging into things. All this while I started clearing the morning dishes.

Ryan decided to climb up on the couch and show me how well he does so. Except on this morning, he crashed into the wall on his way down and needed kisses for his sore head. I came over and was checking him out. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Sean run into the front room, per his game of barrelling through the house at full speed. Andy joining him.

Then I heard a crash, a cry, and Andy screaming for me to come. I was already up and moving after the first sound. Sean had pulled a table down on himself. The drawer was across his rib cage, the table corner was pressing in his shoulder and the 30 lb dragon was by his head. Torn between 911 and regular doctor, I quickly assessed him. No bruising on his ribs, no labored breathing, very swollen eye and very upset Sean. I decided to go with the doctor's office.

Calling them on our way, they were fitting him in. We were sent for an x-ray and the diagnosis couldn't have been better. No broken bones. Perfect skull and cheek and eye xrays. I will say that his skull xray, may have been the cutest xray, I've ever seen.

So the next day, Alex had a field trip to the zoo. Andy's favorite place is the zoo. I decided as Sean was back to his old self despite the swollen sore looking eye, we'd go. After dressing everyone, getting sunblock on everyone, including spraying the twix head with the clear aresol spray, I headed down stairs to get directions. Saying, "Everyone stay up here I will be right back." I went to the zoo site, printed the directions, ran back up stairs, and there I found Sean waiting by the door for me. He was scared and trying not to cry. His entire face was covered in dripping sunblock. I held his whole head under water to wash off the first few layers. Then I had to irrigate his eyes, he kept rubbing them.

I called poison control and a neighbor to come over and hold his hands down. After nearly 1/2 an hour, I felt like I'd gotten it all out. Because his eye was still swollen from the previous day, poison control felt they couldn't diagnosis his eyes as burn free.

We headed back to the doctors. No zoo for Andrew, the culprit. There they put saline back in his eyes and as a precaution he had to have antibodic eye drops to prevent infection as the eye was tramatized twice.

His eye is now almost totally back to normal.

In other news, Andy has a so far very mild case of chicken pox -- 6 pox on his whole person.

Gracie and The Twix

The babies and I have been cleaning up along the exterior stairs. Basically scooping up mud and garbage and throwing it away, and repeat. I still have quite a bit more to do. I had to stop.

Gracie was sitting at the top of the steps watching us. Then she jetted past and out to the field behind the house. Not more than 2 minutes later, she scrambled back up the stairs just out of my line of sight and was back at her perch watching us. Except this time she was doing something to entice the twix.

What? She brought them a mouse. Luckily she already killed it and was trying to teach the twix some kind of hunting and gathering lesson. This I gathered from the careful placement and then whooping around the mouse did. Cats PLAY with their food, YES. Cats are sometimes gross, YES.

So I moved them back down the stairs to me and left her at the top. Ryan was very upset as he wanted to check out the mouse while Sean was mostly concerned that Ryan leave his stick alone.

She then kept coming closer tossing the mouse around as she came. Until she was inches away. So, we came back in the house to give her time to eat and in a little while it should be vermin free outside again.

I must say, although I apperciate the thought, it was a gift, we could not accept.

Its been a while, so here are some new pictures!

Sean wanted a fun hat too.

Ryan wearing a fun hat.

Ryan in the other swing.

Sean in a park swing.

We went down to Payson to check out some of the parks around our new house. This is memorial park where the trees were planted by WWI veterans upon the end of the Great War. Its beautiful, across the street from Alex's new school, and walking distance from our house.

Ryan and Sean playing in their bedroom.

Alex showing off his chicken pox.

Sean walked around in the life vest for a couple days.

Andy playing catch with somebody, Papa Pat, I think.

Yes, Sean has 2 donuts. He had already had one.

Ryan didn't want to be left out and so, he too sports sunglasses.

Sean sporting his glasses.

Andrew couldn't get the jelly out of the jar, so he just "poured it on my bread." Ryan feasted on the remains.

Practicing with Daddy before the game.

Andy's first soccer game!

I remember feeling totally at fault about this scrap to Sean's face. Somehow, I've blocked the details, remembering only the porch being involved, and I really thought it was my fault.

House for sale!

Our house has been listed for 2 weeks while we've been cleaning like demons. The property tour has finally been done and posted. For those interested in our house, you can go to www.utahrealestate.com and put our MLS# 685517 in to see the tour.

Let me know what you think! Pass this on to anyone interested in a beautiful Saratoga Springs home. Our house features unobstructed vews of the entire Valley and Utah Lake!

It is after all in the most desirable Harvest Hills Subdivision. Harvest Elementary where Spanish and music are offered standard, 14 acre park complete with picnic/bbq grounds, 2 playgrounds, and a future water park and zip line.

Chicken Pox and Clinic Visit

I hope all the mothers had great mother's days. Mine was nice in parts.

Thursday, I called Ryan's Spina Bifida Clinic contact to ask about his tendancy to walk on the side of his feet. The bow leggedness is less of a concern so long as the kid stays on the soles of his feet. I'm fearful that he'll break something.

He was fit in the next day to see his physical therapist and orthopedic surgeon. To make a long story short, his diagnosis is that he will very likely need braces when he's a bit older (2 - 3) and surgery. A doctor at Primary Children's did invent a surgery that doesn't require the bone cut in half. So that's an improvement. His physical therapist said Ry should wear shoes all the time as he does it less with shoes on and next year with braces, it will be an easier transition for him. And assigned him (poor guy!) daily therapy at the park. Where he has to PLAY on the play structures and climb up and down the hills. How awesome is that for therapy!

Friday night, we went to Black Angus for an early Mother's Day dinner. During the dinner, Alex got pale and cold and had an enormous pimple on his forehead. We figured out Saturday, that it was not a pimple, but the first of many pox. Pox of the Chicken, that he suffered a vaccinating shot to prevent. Am I irratated about a vaccine not working? You bet. Why make them suffer the shot if it doesn't work. With any luck, the other three young ones will not suffer the same fate.

Alex is getting a week off of school. Guess which week? STATE TESTING WEEK! Doesn't that rock! Next week is his field trip to the zoo. Talk about lucky. I had them during summer vacation. Mark on his birthday.

We've stayed pretty busy getting this place ready to show. Cleaned the entire top floor, repainted all the exterior door frames, cleaned all the carriage lights outside, etc. I'm working on the kitchen and front room today. We're going to have the property tour later this week, so we've got to get it in prefect shape.

Email to Matt Lauer

Every morning at around 7:30 am, my 7 year old son, Alex and I watch the Today Show as he gets ready for school.

Last week, he was more excited then ever! The build up to "Where in the world is Matt Lauer?" didn't let him down. Monday morning, after a weekend spent guessing where Matt could be, Alex could barely contain his excitement. Not only was Matt found in the US (as Alex guessed) but he was found in an enormous airplane factory, the likes of which Alex could only dream. An avid fan of all things mechanical, there could have been no better start to a week, than watching Matt do all the things Alex can only dream of.

As the week went on Alex looked forward each morning to discovering new places. On Thursday, he said, "Mommy, I think when I grow up, I want to be Matt Lauer. But not take his job he needs his job, I just want to do the "Where in the World" part for him, so he can stay home with his family and they won't miss him."

"You know Alex, someday when we go to New York City, we can go visit them at Rockfeller Center."

"Yeah. Lets do that. But they probably won't put us on TV and talk to us unless we have a really cool sign. And also, lets not go when its really cold. One day Meredith forgot her gloves and it was so cold I thought her fingers would freeze!"

Thank you for help making our mornings so much fun. Although disappointed that Matt was back in NY, Alex did enjoy getting caught up with current events.

Recent happenings

My father-in-law, Pat came over last week to visit for a couple days. The second night (Mark was working) was mildly chaotic.

First I was going to make spaghetti -- one of Alex's favorite dinners. Andrew was in the kitchen and said he didn't want spaghetti. "OK, what do you want? I can make spaghetti or beef stroganoff." I figured he'd go for spaghetti.

"I want bif strongenough."
Break to setting the table. Alex asks, "What's for dinner?""Andrew chose beef stroganoff. Why did he get to choose? I don't like that. I want spaghetti." All this was whined out.

"He was in the kitchen when I started dinner and that's what he chose."

Break to sitting down. Andrew says, "I don't like this."

Alex says, "I don't think I'll like it, but I'll try it." "Um, its good. Can I have some milk please?"

I get up to get his milk. Andrew gets up and whines about not liking dinner. As I'm up, I hear Pat say, "What are you doing?"Alex answers, "Andrew said he doesn't like it, so I'm going to have his."

Andrew immediately starts crying and I dish him some more, which he quietly eats.

Break to bath time. During cold months we only bath them once a week Saturday or Sunday plus they days they actually get dirty. It’s just too hard on their skin.

I put Sean and Ryan in the water. I see something mildly icky floating. Then Ryan starts crying and he's pooped in the tub. I ask Pat to come up. I then clean and sanitize the tub. I put the twix back in the tub. Ryan cries some more and immediately poops again. Back out of the water they go again. I ask Pat to wash Sean off in the other tub. Ryan is standing frozen solid wrapped in a towel, fussing. I clean and sanitize the tub again. I put him back in the water again and this time. We managed to get him clean without further incident.

By the way, this whole bath time poop thing was reenacted last night during bath time without the benefit of an extra adult around.