Gotta Love This Guy

Dr. Seuss strikes again.

Post script:  Several hours after this sleeping beauty awoke, I heard her yelling at her brother, unprovoked, "I am a child of God, Isaac!!!"  Is it the seedlings of a testimony or an anger management problem?

The Here and Now

Since the Pres. Monson's talk last conference I keep thinking about something he quoted from former apostle Richard L. Evans:

“It is difficult for those who are young to understand the loneliness that comes when life changes from a time of preparation and performance to a time of putting things away. … To be so long the center of a home, so much sought after, and then, almost suddenly to be on the sidelines watching the procession pass by—this is living into loneliness. … We have to live a long time to learn how empty a room can be that is filled only with furniture."

What is it going to feel like someday to clean a room and have it stay that way, read all day long without the house falling apart around me or not needing to respond to "Mom, look what I made,"  "Can you cut this for me?" and "Will you feed me a grapefruit?" all in one breath?  I hope by the time I'm at that point I'm at peace with it.

But I'm glad I'm not there yet.

Doggie Update

Elizabeth feeds Tuttie Frutti's friend.

I took y'all's advice and called animal control ,which happened to be closed for County Fair Day.  I then called Harris County's animal control just to see what was protocol. They told me if the bite broke the skin and bled I've got to report it to the police, since animal control was unavailable. They were required to quarantine the animal for ten days before deeming it safe and returning to the owners.

I called and reported it, but while I was waiting for them to show up to file the report, I felt awful. I thought about how our kids would feel if Tutti Frutti was gone for that long. And I worried that the family would be angry and we'd find our car windows broken in the morning or something worse. You know how passionate some people can be about their pets.  I sent Paul down to their house to warn them what was to happen and assure them we didn't want them to lose their dog, but had to follow the guidelines given.  She apologized over and over and explained how she was going to make sure her dogs didn't get out any more.

The police showed up, took the report and drove over to their house.

All weekend I avoided going down the street in that direction.

This morning the animal patrol guy shows up at the door, wondering where the people live. Weird. I thought they took care of it.  I give him the address I gave the police and he takes off (animal catcher thing in-hand).

After school I pick up the kids and we get closer to their house. I wonder if anyone is looking out the window and how they might feel about seeing me since I turned them in. Right before we get to their house, out come the two dogs chasing and barking just like the good ol' days. Huh?

So how they dealt with it, I don't know.

I'm going to PetSmart and buying some animal mace.

Kujo

So I'm going on a run, trotting down the street when our  friendly neighborhood dogs do their thing and come out to bark at me.  Usually I'm walking, pushing Elizabeth in the stroller, but I wanted to get out and run since it's been awhile.  The loud dog, who I'm not afraid of, is chasing me and barking.  Nothing out of the ordinary.  But this time he gets too close, lunges at me from behind and chomps my calf.  It doesn't hurt that bad and it's only punctured the skin in one spot followed by a little tearing.  When I go to talk with the owner she apoligizes and says she didn't know the dogs were out. Then I tell her they're ALWAYS out, I can count on them being out.  She replies she'll try to keep them in the back but they get out.  How, I ask.  Through the front door.  So they come in the back door, through the house, out the front door, bark loudly at passers-by and she doesn't know?  Hmmm.  She is apologetic, though.  I tell her I'm just glad it wasn't my kid who was bit. 
She closes the door and the neighbor, who has seen it all, asks about rabies.  Back I go to her house to confirm the dog is up-to-date.  She's no longer willing to open up. 
Now it's swollen around the bite, but cleaned up.  Now what?

Portion Control

Aren't those little treats a delight? A YW in our ward made them...see how Elizabeth is appreciating the detail? Sonora's got talent and patience.

Two-years-olds are not color-blind. Elizabeth went up to a black boy at church and asked, "Where's your black mama?"

Friday's pack meeting was the Cubanapolis where each Scout makes a car to wear in a race. Isaac wanted to cover his with $. After he finished he stood back and looked at it. "Dang, that's awesome!" was his reaction. Not suprisingly, his car was given the "most expensive" award.

Every ward has One

(My sister Paula accompanies the fam while I man the visual.)

My dad sent us CDs with thousands of pictures he scanned in from his old slides. Here a little gem that reminds me of our ward's upcoming primary program this Sunday.

Several years ago after the program was over, a new lady in the ward was in the restroom the same time as me. She was still laughing about a certain boy's performance that had everyone's attention. "Did you SEE him," she began. Before she went on too far I had to come clean. "Just so you know, that was my kid."

I don't remember what he did that time, but last Christmas the primary sang "Away in a Manger. " At the end of the song when it says "asleep on the hay" there was an echo, russian style grunt-singing/shouting, "Hey, hey, hey!" I was fuming and mortified at the time, but now it seems comical.

I'll try to remember that this Sunday as there is a high probibility that we may have a repeat performance. I know every ward has one kid that gets the attention of the audience, but does it always have to be mine? 

On-shore Drilling

I did it! I survived a root canal! After gearing myself up for weeks, it's finally over! For someone who would rather push out a near-nine-pounder than have to smell her own tooth powder wafting through the air after it's drilled into, this is BIG.  And no laughing gas, my friends, the dentist talked me out of it.  Throughout the procedure I kept reminding myself to breathe and sang songs in my head and prayed for the dentist. Then I came home, took some Tylenol and made Paul hold me. All that positive self talk was exhausting and I was ready to crash. The doorbell rang and I found these offerings from my sympathetic friends. Made me feel so great that they thought of me, that I'm virtually healed! My energy's back and my nose is running from eating those fist-size flamin' hot Cheetos washed down with slush. You made all the difference, gals.  (And Leah loves the hat.)

In the words of Ann Campbell

You are the trip I did not take;

You are the pearls I cannot buy;

You are my blue Italian lake;

 

You are my piece of foreign sky.
 
 

Now if all this love that I'm feelin' for you could translate into even a bit of cleanin', I'd be in business.

Just Like Grandma

Leah Grace and Grandma Hogan

Last week we sat on the bench at church. Three of my four kids were packed around me like ants on a sugar cube. Their warm bodies pressed against mine, either on my lap or next to me, constantly in motion. Sometimes that bugs me and I crave space or want to savor a single body at a time. But this time it felt so good. Having them close, knowing that's where they chose to be, gave me a feeling of fulfillment. Leah grabbed my upper arm and massaged it back and forth from one hand to the other. "You're arms wiggle. They're almost like Grandma's." At one time I may have taken offense at that, but I took it as a compliment. Having ample upper arms isn't something one aspires to unless you equate it to maturing and mothering. More arms to comfort you, my Leah, and a softer place to rest your head. I hope she sees other things in me that are just like Grandma.

The Need for Speed

Like his Grandpa Hogan, Issac loves fast cars. He just asked for three years of Motor Trend for his bday on the 30th. Since when did the freebies at Kroger no longer satiate him?

Elizabeth wore a hula skirt periodically throughout the day and left it on the floor. After stepping on it, it caught around Benjamin's ankle and it's been there for awhile. He's been dragging this accessory around while he walks throughout the house, sits on it playing Lego's, and it rests next to him as he organinzis his new planner. In his mind it's like wearing a shirt, ya don't notice much it's even there.

Since yesterday's trip to the library, Elizabeth is all about the small potty there. "Wal-Mart has a big potty. The library has a small potty" "Jesus made the small potty." After she flushes a BM she waves it good-bye: "See you to-later. (A combination of see you later and see you tomorrow.) Let's hope neither scenario comes to pass.

At the store tonight Benjamin noticed the well-dressed manaquin. "You shouldn't buy that dress, Mom. It would look funny on you."

Bad News, Good News

Isaac
Bad: snunk an orange popsicle and hid in the corner of the garden. Elizabeth tipped me off when she came in the back door demanding "I want a popsicle, too."
Good: bonded with Benjamin by discussing Mustangs and rolling through four corners of the house together while wrestling. And cleaned up his spilled glass of milk before I asked him to.
Leah
Bad: I'll have to think about this one. Maybe she whined or something.
Good: read me two bedtime stories. See photo for a must-read childrens book.
Benjamin
Bad: fits of screaming this morning when I wouldn't let him wear crusty (no exagerration) shirts from the reeking laundry assemblage. He learned from his dad that you never need a napkin so long as you're wearing a shirt.
Good: independently brought clothes in from the dryer and moved a load from the washer to the dryer. He will only wear certain shirts and wanted to make sure one was available (sans said crust) in the morning. Wanted to sit by Isaac during dinner.
Elizabeth
Bad: had accidents in the lunchroom at the elem. school and at home in the kitchen.
Good: found a box of maxi pads to use in her underwear so they stayed dry when she had her next accident. Made it in the potty 2X!
Me
Bad: been really cranky today for no reason.
Good: found that pitcher I needed at Salvation Army for .79 (Where is that cent symbol?)
Paul
Bad: will eat again late at night, and since I'm a social eater...
Good: massages me even when I'm cranky.

Click on the picture to see Elizabeth's face. She's running late for something, I guess.

I need to go HEB.

Paul is in the kitchen taking popsicles from the freezer, putting them in a cup and melting them in the microwave so he has something to drink.

I need a new one of these. (The pitcher not the angelic-faced child.)

I came home tonight as Paul was finishing telling the kids stories about when he was a kid. As we tucked Benjamin in he recounted one of them: When Paul had to go potty and didn't want to walk to the bathroom he conveniently relieved himself in his bedroom vent. It went unnoticed until the weather turned cold and they turned on the furnace. That smell blew through every register in the house.

Not ten minutes later Paul and I were in the kitchen. He picked up the pitcher to make some orange juice and noticed some liquid at the bottom. As he dumped it out (in my sink!) he caught a wiff, brought it to me and commanded I smell it. That same smell running through the vents years ago in Paul's house filled my nostrils.

I will be shopping for a new pitcher this week. It will be funded in part by Benjamin's b-day money.

The power of pondering.

I love funerals. I have never gone to one without feeling a great desire to be a better person. And today was no exception.

My friend Debbie Dunn's husband passed away after a fight with cancer. Before we left for Utah we visited them and Debbie confided he probably wouldn't be there when we got back. So on that last visit I took the opportunity to tell him how his kindness blessed our family.

Ever since we moved in the ward (and before!) we've had to be careful with money. I loved resale shops 'til I discovered garage sales were even cheaper. (You know you're cheap when you balk at thrift store prices.) Then I took it a step further and started being on the look-out for treasures on large trash pick-up day. I just knew one day I would get in a accident because I was too busy surveying someone's trash. Everything we brought in the house (edibles excluded) was at least once removed from new. Oh, except undies. Paul assured me we could afford new undies for the kids (I have been known to accept hand-me-downs from people we know, though.) So one Christmas the Dunns gave us a Wal-Mart gift card so each of the kids could pick out something they really wanted of their own choosing. I wondered what toy or game each would choose. But none of them picked toys. They each wanted to pick out their first pair of brand-new shoes. All of my kids thought they'd won a contest! And each Christmas, even after he got sick, they continued to remember our family.

I also remember being impressed with his patience. When Debbie and I served together in Young Womens there were times I asked her for rides to various church activities. Many times he came, too, and I always felt flustered at first. I had to buckle in car seats and then get the kids buckled in one by one. I was worried that he was annoyed with the whole process (and the un-doing of it on the way home). But he never showed anything but patience and interest in the kids. On one ride he brought a book and read it backwards (much to their confusion). He also taught them that a cow says quack and a duck says moo (more confusion). He put me at ease and had us all laughing.

He also tutored Paul back in the day when he was trying to get his math out of the way to apply for graduate school (teaching someone who hadn't taken a math class for over fifteen years couldn't have been easy). He made pack meetings fun for all the kids, not just the Scouts: games and chocolate for everyone! His incentive for recruiting a new Scout was a pocketknife, which Isaac earned and still treasures. They thought to call us as soon as they heard about President Hinckley's passing. And the companionship I saw between he and Debbie is something special and hope to nurture in my marriage: he would say something to make her giggle and when she did, it put a smile on his face.

So at the funeral today they focused on celebrating his life. As we heard about how he treated his children, his work ethic, his faith, his accomplishments etc., I could feel of his goodness. And I thought about the reality of what the speaker taught: life is the time to prepare to meet God. I felt a renewed desire to keep that perspective when I feel like it doesn't really matter.

And while I'm here I can celebrate the lives of those around me. My life is full of people doing good, being good. Why wait for someone's funeral to recognize and celebrate someone's goodness? I can home with new eyes for seeing my children and new ears to hear their sweet words (Even their tattling/blaming/whining/arguing didn't phase me today). Celebrate their childhood!

Draw near unto me and I will draw near unto you. That's what happened to me today and I sat long enough to ponder. And feel. And know.

Our family will miss you, Brother Dunn. God bless you in your continued journey.

For the Davis kids, "birthday" translates into eating all you want of your favorite treat...Benjamin picks rainbow sherbet every time.

I believe in conserving energy. My energy. Instead of putting effort into getting Elizabeth to take a nap, I usually just tell her to go find something to eat. If the timing's right, she'll be out before 1. she asks for seconds, or 2. the self serve bag/box is empty. That cute little trick doesn't miss a beat; as soon as she wakes, she picks up where she left off with another handful.

We needed just a few more weeks of summer, but we'll get it in weather only. We're all excited to try walking this year to and from school. I thought it would be a good way to unwind after seven hours of conforming to school rules.

Getting ready for school went smoothly after Benjamin gave up trying to wear his ragged camo shorts. He takes to heart Pres. Hinckley's counsel: Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without.

Leah got her wish: Isaac's previous teacher and owner/operater of Nguyen World's Classroom Store. Start saving those box tops, will you?

Although his face doesn't show it, he's been hoping to be in Ms. Buse's class all summer. If she gets Isaac to sing Enya like she has with previous students I'll know she posesses magical powers.

A few more White Sands pics. I spy 5 people.

Next stop: White Sands, NM. We stopped at the visitors' center and picked up a cherry red saucer and some wax to make it fly. As we drove to the dunes I was convinced it was snow: the roads had been plowed and the color was the same as snow. The high temperture made it impossible, though. It's steeper than it looks and on the way back to the car I couldn't find our car among all the dunes.

It's steeper than it looks and on the way back to the car I got lost among all the dunes. We didn't stay as long as we wanted because the heat. Elizabeth started breathing short breaths like she was dehydrated. Going as sunset or sundown would be better.

Elizabeth looking back at her other "friend" so she could be holding both of her friends hands.

Leah giving Elizabeth a head start on a race.