so sad

I just found out my doctor of 20 years is leaving his practice. Two years ago my OBGYN left the clinic after a 12 year complex history with me. At the same time my chiropracter of 15 years left the practice with another complex history of my neck. And now my doctor. My kids doctor. My husbands doctor.

My doctor is my kids doctor. He knows Jayden's entire case. He was there from the beginning, with the episodes of turning blue in his office, the trachiamalacia, deciding to send him to the University of Minnesota, arranging for the LifeFlight jet to come get us in the middle of a blizzard, learning with me through the surgeries and tube feeding year, the years of terrible screaming tantrums in his office, the MRSA in his ears. The list goes on and on. Jayden has a huge history with him. How in the world am I ever going to find another doctor that is as good as him?!

I remember first meeting him. It was in the Emergency Room after I stuck my head through a windshield in a car accident. I remember him quietly waking me up in the hospital when Jayden was admitted to see how the night was or to talk to me about the plans. I can remember him rubbing my back with sympathy when we seemed so hopeless about Jayden's tantrums.

I have all the trust in the world for this doctor. I am so sad he is leaving.

rants

I gave three cats a bath today in the kitchen sink. Then I gave my dog a bath in the bath tub. And none of my kids got baths today. The older ones got showers though. I guess there is tomorrow for the younger two.

I think the weather has been messing with me because today was an off and on crabby day for me. Simple things set me off, like the entire container of toothpicks that disappeared when I really needed one to see if my banana bread was done, which was then later found hiding behind 6 cans of soup, but of course I had checked there. (Whew, long sentence.) However once they were found it was too late and the bread was out. I think it's done enough to enjoy.

We're also having all kinds of TV issues. I spent a half hour, or it seems like a half hour, on the phone with Dish Network in regards to our Dish not working. They are sending a new remote because they think ours is faulty. It's supposed to be here on Monday. Right now we can't watch TV in the living room because the entire receiver doesn't work. That really leads me to believe it's the receiver, not the remote. But we'll wait and see if it fixes things. It's funny how much a person relies on TV for some entertainment. I've never considered us much of TV watchers until late evening. But even then in the evening, there's not much to do but watch TV.

Did a little grocery shopping in the lovely super center that has once again rearranged everything. I wish they would just leave things the same. We also went into another local store to see about finding my daughter some shoes today, but we couldn't get a single person to help us find a shoe. We walked out and I'm pretty sure I won't go back. And people wonder why so many people shop out of town.

boys

Boys riding 4 wheelers

or catching fish.

Either way, they're my boys. My husband. My son. And my father.

draining ear

Jayden has been sick with minor symptoms for about a month now. He started out with a bad cough, but not other symptoms, so we just waited it out. Then he started with a clear runny nose, so we waited again. But now on Sunday his ear started to drain. Daycare called yesterday and said he was running a low fever, so we made him an appointment to see the doctor today. Dr. T cultured his ear to see what it grows. In past times, he has grown MRSA, but that was several years ago already. He was also placed on Augmentin.

hot

My gosh it's hot out. Yesterday we went to a wedding in Sioux Falls that was held outside at Tuthill Park. I have to say it is a beautiful place for a wedding. It's too bad it felt like we were sitting in an oven. Looks to me like this week is going to be much of the same. Earlier on twitter, I seen the heat index was 116. Crazy!

We went to an auction this morning, but only stayed for a few minutes. We decided based on the heat, Mike's back, and the huge amount of stuff we would be there all day, and that, we did not want to do. So we've been home the rest of the day just hanging out in the A/C.

My cousin pointed out to me last night that I haven't been very good at blogging lately. I will try to get better at it and throw a few pictures on here once in awhile.

catch up

Catching up on almost 2 weeks. Geez, I guess I really slacked off.

• We watched fireworks in town. They were good, except I think they forgot the grand finale as I didn't feel the show was finished when apparently it was.


• We went to the lake, rode 4 wheelers, putzed around in the golf cart, threw bean bags, and ate a lot of food. Karaoke was set up, so lots of people sang. Not me though, I can't sing.


• The weather got really hot and really miserable. I hate the heat more than anything in the world. I even skipped the Arts Festival because of the heat. My entire family stayed inside in pajamas on Sunday.


• My niece and nephew were here on Saturday. We played on the playset out side, in the pool, with trains, and whatever else was found.


• My niece goes to sleep by just laying her down and giving her a pacifier. It was so crazy how easy it was.


• My husband has been seeing the chiropractor every day this week, is wearing a back brace, and can't work. Really hoping it gets resolved soon as he's pretty miserable.


• I mowed the lawn tonight...and remember how I mentioned I hate the heat? Well I hate the humidity too. My pants and shirt were soaked from sweat and my face was beat red by the time I was done. I sure wish we had a riding mower.


• My uncle gave us a life or death scare and ended up with a total of 7 stints placed in his heart.


• The kids have been busy with ball at night several nights a week.


• We've laughed a lot and played games and just been busy with life.


• Overall, all is good. And I can't complain. Except for the heat and humidity and nothing will change there. Unless I move to Alaska! :)

Jayden

This bright eyed little boy

who rarely looks at the camera
has been spending the entire long weekend

without any of his siblings and I think he's getting bored.

We're headed to the lake today!

Devin in t-ball

I forgot how unbelievably cute little children are when playing t-ball. They all run after the ball, even from across the field, they have no concept of batting or throwing or catching, and they think being in the outfield is the perfect time to twirl around or pick flowers or play in the sand.

Devin was picking out a bat.

Yes, she's left-handed. Yes, she's got her arms switched. But, she still managed to hit the ball!
And run safely to first base.

Which eventually brought her home. Most of the girls had to be told when to run and where to go. It was cute.

And when she wakes up in the morning on Monday, she reminds me she has a game that night.

Some things are ok to put on here and others are best left behind closed doors. I have quite a few things that are bothering me and stressing me out right now, which has led for a very emotional day today. Simple things set the tears off. My eyes are tired and burn. Yet I can't stop thinking about the things that hurt so bad.

I've always tried to think of myself as a good person who puts other people and their needs first. I do as much for my children as I can do, putting their needs first above my own. I'm trying to raise them with values. But I feel like I'm failing and don't know what more I can do. It's hard.

The last few days have been really tough on me. I'm hoping things can straighten around soon.

busy

I'm bad.

Look at how much time has passed since I updated this blog.

We've been busy, what can I say. Summer is in full swing, lots of ball practices and games, swimming lessons and volleyball, plus us parents fitting in a work schedule or two.

I have taken a few pictures at some of the games, so I will put together a post of Dalton and Devin.

Until then, I'm here, just super busy living life!

first softball game

Shaylee and Shawndra had their first softball game of the season tonight in Bruce. It's unbelievable how hot Monday and Tuesday were and how freezing cold tonight was. I didn't think it was that bad outside tonight, but did grab my Columbia on the way out. Sadly, I was still in capri's and flip flops and froze anyhow.

They played two games and won both of them. Everybody was so cold. Some of the girls in the field were squatted down trying to stay warm. The games went on and on. One inning our girls went through batting two complete cycles, walking each base, until the other team finally switched out the pitcher. It was ridiculous. A few spectators that braved the cold were begging to call the game or for the girls to strike out just to be done. All of the girls on both teams wanted to go home, but I think none of them wanted to quit. 3 hours later, numb toes and cold bodies we were done.

We drove home with the heat on....in June. I hate the heat and don't usually mind the chilly evenings, but tonight I wish I would have had a blanket. Oh well, lesson learned. I'm sure next week will be blazing hot again with my luck. :)

Omaha zoo

Man oh man, you better enjoy these pictures because it took two hours to get them to download. It's a good thing I'm a multi-tasker and can keep up with uploading, kids, and cooking supper all at the same time! Up first, is the hippo, which was one of the very last things we saw on the 3rd day at the zoo. He was inside the Lied Jungle and was neat to watch, even though he was slow and eating.

My beautiful daughter, Shaylee, stopping for a pose inside the jungle and a very narrow, rickety, rope bridge. I of course, stayed off of that bridge. I prefer to have my two feet planted firmly on ground that is safe.
We got lucky and got to see the baby, or should I say babies. I didn't realize there were two babies until I got home and started sorting through pictures and found this one with two little heads. See them both?

Sweet Devin and Jayden looking like they're up to some mischief. I have no idea what they were looking for, but every single time I tried to get them both to look at me one would and the other wouldn't. I ended up with this classic. They were inside a museum sitting inside an old jeep.

Shawndra and Shaylee inside the bird area. This was really cool too. There were baby ducks, flamingos and all sorts of birds that I didn't recognize. We walked through bridge type walkways as we looked at the birds. I also noticed tons of bird poop and was ever so thankful that none of that gooey white stuff landed on me!

It was hot and the chairs at the zoo provided some much needed rest occasionally and obviously a few funny photos as well. I love how Shaylee is posing so nice, yet Mike is making a face and then Shawndra is oblivious. Guess that's what a phone does to a pre-teen.

Jayden is so genuinely happy here. I love how it looks nothing like him, yet being in the moment, he was in pure bliss as he was riding on a train. He was so excited for the train every time it came through the zoo.

The giraffes were awesome. They had exhibits outside and inside. This one kept cleaning his nostrils, one at a time. Yuck.

Meet the driver and the organizer, otherwise known as dad, Mike, mom, or Val. You pick. Oh and it's a self portrait. Not bad considering my camera is bulky and hard to hold backwards.

Did I mention it was hot? Because it was. The kids found some running water and a small waterfall to splash around in. Mike and I sat in the shade and took the above picture. Before I knew it, we had 3 soaked kids. Dalton had been dunking his head in the water. At least he stayed cool!

Dalton and Joseph taking a pose on one of the many animal statues. Joseph wanted his picture taken on every single one. I started to, but it got old quick.

From youngest to oldest, including one who hates having his picture taken, especially in groups, meet my children.

The fish were crazy. They were like big goldfish that you would have in a tank, but they went bananas over any food pebbles that were dropped in the water. And they were huge!

Here is the train heading away from Jayden. This is the train we rode on. And like I said earlier, he loved it. Watching the train come around the bend.

Overall, the trip was amazingly fun. We spent four hours at the zoo the first day, six hours the second day and then on the third day we spent about two hours there and then headed to an IMAX Tornado Alley film.

vacation

We had a great time on vacation. I've been trying to upload pictures several times now and once again blogger isn't letting me upload them. Hopefully later or tomorrow blogger will cooperate and you can see a few pictures. I only took 300 of them! :-)

Omaha-bound

We're off to Omaha for 3 days! The kids have been wound really tight ever since finding out we are going. Hoping all goes smooth! Other than one kid having viral bronchitis, we're healthy. Let's hope that doesn't transfer to the others.

the story of the frog

I have been asked to share this story on here. It was posted on facebook very briefly and has given many people laughs. This little big frog caused quite a ruckus. You see, my husband and my youngest, Jayden, found this frog by the swing set. They thought it would be nice to come show me.

Jayden brings it inside and I can hear him talking quietly to his dad. Since I was fiddling with my phone while standing in the living room, I didn't pay much attention to what they were doing or saying. The next thing I know is something really gross hit me in the foot and Jayden busts out laughing. Here's how the conversation went.

Jayden who is holding the frog says: "Can I throw it?"

Mike hears Jayden say: "Can I show it?" and replies "yes" to him.

Jayden throws the frog at me and it lands on my foot and I let out two very freakishly loud screams. Jayden busts out laughing, which soon followed by his dad.

The bad thing is, I almost stepped on the frog in the midst of my freak out session. Eek.

Stewie was not sure what to think of the frog hopping on the deck. He acted like he was going to try to catch it with his paw one time and then his mouth another time, but never did anything to it other than try to smell it.
Jayden and daddy let the frog go back in the yard where they found it. And I am left with another very funny memory of this creature.

dead bird

I had been told ever since being a child that birds can die on power lines.

But never, have I seen a dead bird hanging from a power line until today.

If you click on the picture, it will make it larger so you can see it better. So weird!

going to the zoo

I've been procrastinating and putting off reserving a hotel. But tonight I finally did it. All 8 of us are headed to Omaha next week for 3 days! We've never been to the zoo and I can't wait to tell them tomorrow! Woot woot!!

I have literally spent hours and hours searching, reading reviews, checking other sites, and just looking for a great deal. I guess it pays to wait til the last minute and have a husband who works for the government because a great deal we indeed got!

This will be our first family vacation!!

backyard birds

This morning I heard a chirping bird that didn't sound familiar. Mike thought it was coming from my computer because we have been following the Decorah Bald Eagles for over a month now. If you haven't heard of these eagles, it's a group that has attached cameras to trees so you can watch the nest. The babies are about 6 weeks old now and are over 2 feet tall. Anyhow, when we are watching the eaglecam we can hear the chirping and that's what we thought it was.

However, my computer had shut down, so the bird was outside. This is the little fellow that was in one of our apple trees.

You can see him chirping here. It was a neat sound. I have no idea what he is, maybe a finch of some type?
Then earlier in the week, our love birds came back. I have seen them on our playset in the backyard every summer.

auctions

I love auctions. On Saturday we spent 6 1/2 hours in the wind and rain to attend the SDSU surplus auction. Originally I didn't want to go, but thought about it and decided why not. My girls have been asking for a desk for their room. They currently have a piece of plywood over totes as a make shift desk. Well, after Saturday, they have a desk! I actually got 4 wooden shelves, 2 desks, a computer chair and a child size wooden chair for $17! Yep!

Then yesterday after being completely deflated by someone I love, I went to another auction all by myself. I hung around all day for a patio table I wanted, but it went too high, so I left with nothing.

With all the auctions coming up, I hope to find some decent furniture for our basement. The stuff we have now is old and it's time for something new!

our big tree

We have an enormous tree in our backyard that I think is an ash tree, but both Mike and I can't officially call it that because we aren't for sure. But it's huge. In fact, as you come into our town, look at the tops of the trees, just find the tallest tree and that's ours! Ever since we have owned our house there has been a very large branch that was broken way up high, but didn't fall down far enough for us to take care of it. At one point, Mike climbed the tree and almost got to it, but he finally respected my wishes and came down. Earlier this week, during a very calm day, we heard a snapping sound. When we looked out at the tree we noticed the branch had come down much lower.

Mike climbed up and started sawing down the branch because it was still stuck in the tree. Plus he took care of some other branches.
Like I said, it was a huge branch!

It was quite a site to be seen. The kids were thinking it was pretty cool. They volunteered to help pick up the branches and take them to the trailer so we could get rid of them.

Then Mike decided to cut the biggest part up for wood in our fire pit. Devin was so curious that she had to keep stopping to watch. I was nervous because I thought he was sawing awfully close to his thigh!

Joseph putting smaller branches into the trailer.

And Devin with her twigs as she continues to watch Mike saw.