Our Week

These girls, how they love each other!  Sweet Bella

My Becca Lynn left on Tuesday for Iowa.  She is gone for 15 days of Davenport Stake Youth Conference, time with Grandma and Grandpa, and EFY in Nauvoo!  I sent her with my camera – I hope she uses it!  We have missed her so much!  The house feels so quiet.  The table feels so empty.  What are we going to do in three years when she leaves us for college?

 

 

Playing and dancing

Playing school and the Wii:

 

Making sugar cookies and a cool physics related website that Sammi and Jason were enjoying.  (Don’t you love the “Oh Mom!” expressions?)

Root beer floats and IPV time with Daddy

This is Sammi’s hair – where did this come from?  Not from me! 

We headed to the farm on Saturday.

Jason’s fish, fishing in 100 degrees, and soft serve afterwards!

Grooving and dancing to Jericho Road’s “Follow the Prophet.”  Jason wouldn’t let me capture for all eternity his movin’ and groovin’!

We switched nursing agencies this week.  We had no nurse for several shifts, should get better as we orient new nurses.  We had one appointment down town.  We had a big scare with my Dad, but he’s going to be alright.  How grateful I am!  I attended a three hour workshop on Special Education taught by a Disability Rights attorney.  And I only cried twice this week.  Yeah!

Boring Days of Summer

It’s the end of July.  It’s hot outside – and humid.  Daddy has been recovering from his surgery.  Everyone else is trying to enjoy their summer with play dates and some swimming.  Jason and the older girls got to see the last Harry Potter movie – they loved it.  They are sad to see the series end.

Hanging out with the family in the living room:

After watching all the practicing going on around here, Joy found this small guitar and turned it into a violin.  Becca decided that this showed enough interest for a real violin lesson – very cute!

Sammi, always creatively brilliant, taught herself to make balloon flowers, dogs, and cats.  A good one dollar invested on my part.  The girls dancing.

Rain!!

Sitting is good for Daddy right now so we have been watching a lot of Monk.

Bella can totally text!   And use a stethoscope. 

Lizzy decided to make a giant popsicle – and Jessi reading to Bella.

Almond pound cake for Miss Earsel.  We have loved having her with us since almost the beginning.  We will miss you Miss Earsel!

Our culinary excitement this week was Lasagna Cupcakes – very fun!

And some water play

Thoughts

Last night sitting around the table, I was studying my girls. They started from the same genetic gene pool, but are four such unique people. I was envisioning them as adults. How different they will be from each other! How I pray that the Light of Christ will still shine in their eyes then as now. I hope they will be friends.

I read this from the Brethren. Good stuff. Been pondering happiness vs. joy vs. contentment vs. real life. No conclusions yet. I do know that while the Gospel doesn’t take away my trials, it makes it possible to get through them. To be perfectly fair and candid, I would have to admit that some of our life’s choices therefore consequences therefore trials have come through living the Gospel and following the promptings of the Holy Spirit. But I also have to admit, that without the Gospel and the Holy Ghost to guide us, we would have headed down very different roads and had much harder trials. So my personal philosophy is to just live the Gospel and allow Heavenly Father to lead. I wonder if when we were born there was a warning sign saying something like this: Please fasten seat belts. Rough ride ahead!

During my walk today, something occurred to me. I was thinking about Bella. What do I write about the most with her? Besides her health, it's love. Then I thought about all the other Moms I know of special needs kids. Their love is what stands out the most. So I pondered on love for a while and was reminded that charity,which is Christ like love, is a gift. What a blessing! A new mother who is exhausted serves her baby because she loves the baby. A special needs mom keeps going, keeps fighting because of love. Hmm... Charity is a great gift that helps me handle my trials. I am grateful.

Our Week

Jason enjoys cooking.  I enjoy letting him cook!

 

 

 

 

Monday Joy had one cap placed and four cavities filled.  Poor thing, but those drugs wore off fast and she was ready to play with her sisters and the neighbor!

Tuesday we had no nurse.  I was so grateful to walk into the kitchen and see my girls cooking all by themselves.  Sammi rocking Bella to sleep.  Sweet girls.

Therapy shots – Lizzy adds so much to the energy level of these appts

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Thursday Becca’s friend came over and they made cupcakes for an Orchestra Get together.  They had so much fun being with high schoolers again!

Thursday night I was able to attend the temple.

Friday Jason had day surgery.  We loved his purple socks!

My cute girls:

Saturday: recovery day.  Sammi made Jason a cake.  Lizzy made him a card and brought him some flowers.  We just spent a quiet day at home – playing Rummikub and dress up.

Sunday, I became nurse to three.  Jason, still recovering, Becca, maybe pneumonia, not sure yet, and of course, my Bella.