Fill in the Blanks- TQ Super Activity

August 12/13, 2011

While the Girlies were home in Small Town, the menfolk stayed in (Oldest) or traveled out to (the DR) the Wasatch Front for the Teacher's Quorum Super Activity.  They were able to participate in baptisms in the Jordan River Temple, then went to Momentum Climbing or whatever it is called to climb and hopefully earn their montaineering merit badge. They stayed in a hotel and swam, ate, and did some shopping.  The next day they returned to Momentum to finish up.

Luckily, Oldest was feeling up to all of that, pudgy face notwithstanding.

He earned his badge and had a great time.

Fill in the Blanks- 3V3 Soccer Tourny

August 12/13, 2011

The girls headed back to Small Town after the oral surgery event, and major school shopping x3.  We drove down the flag lined roundabout as a little detour- then headed to the house so that Middle could get ready for a 3V3 tournament.  I don't really want to get into that, because quite frankly it was so poorly organized, I felt bad for those in charge.  We could have stayed out and had a better time with leisurely shopping, but whatever.  There were only two girls teams in it-  so they had them play against the boys teams, most of whom are an age division up from the girls.  The girls played very well- to the surprise of some of the players and their parents.

It is funny to watch Middle-  she is so stinking competative against the boys- and totally not afraid to take it to them, but get her against her teammates on another team and she backs off.

A Series of Unfortunate Events

This past week has been a doosey for mishaps and life blips.  Today has been over the top.

It sort of has been that kind of a week, but last night began quite the chain of events- when for the first school night of the year- one thing led to another and we didn't get home and eat dinner until 9:00 pm.   Which is bedtime. Then three patients, three showers, one bathroom, to bed finally at 10:00 for them-  midnight for me.  Which led to the following.

Hyped up- but cranky patients and headnurse (well- the cranky part anyway)

I semi-burnt the bacon, the pancakes were less than stellar, and the buttermilk syrup tasted a bit like baking soda.

I totally spaced pictures- so I had to run out in my pajamas and ask my neighbor to hurry and take a couple for me.  And of course one of the male neighbors was out and about. And stopped to talk.

I was nice and let Youngest leave for the bus a few minutes early.  Good thing- because her bus came 10 minutes early and she had to run to catch it.  I did get pictures of her- however.

I poured the remaining syrup in a qrt jar (it wasn't totally horrible), which it fit into just fine.  Until I had my back turned at which time the baking soda re-activated and the syrup bubbled up over the rim of the jar and all down the front of the dishwasher and puddled on the counter.

I forgot three times to rotate the wash-  and since I need to pack for all of us to vacate the Looney Bin for the next few days-  this was not a good day to do that.

I then filled the sink with hot water to wash the pans from breakfast- I turned on the stove to warm up the bacon grease from breakfast so I could more easily dispose of it, and took a minute to email the company's insurance rep about some things, I turned to find the sink over flowing.

And while I was dealing with the water, I smelled burning grease.

It was about 10:30.  AM.

I wish I was kidding. 

The DR called at noon to see if I had time to cook him some chicken (he is on a pretty intensive diet plan right now) for lunch.  I talked him into using the leftovers from the chicken I brought home for dinner last night.  He had forgot about that- so he was happy to use it instead.

I sat down to work- only about 3 hours late :)  and wouldn't you know it-  there were tons of errors that I had to fix.  (Not mine, in this case.)  I opted to enter the data tonight instead since I still needed to pack. 

I did manage to keep the laundry going a bit better.

Then- patients started arriving home from school. Only one of them didn't.  She took off with a neighbor and Oldest came in telling me the neighbor was taking them to the waterslide.  OH NO, OH NO, OH NO.  Middle knew she was supposed to come home and pack.  Plus she needed to get all her stuff out of the car from the super back to school party we threw the day before.  Post on that to come.

Tried calling the neighbor's cell three times.  She didn't have it with her.  Nothing to do but hope she came home soon.

Then there were over a dozen sheets to sign and date and copy for the various class rules and whatnot.  Still not packed.

Everyone home and bustling around trying to get packed.  Get patients out the door to their various temporary shelters.

Waiting on wash for a particular shirt- oh- forgot to mention- for some reason a bunch of my shirts were missing from my closet today- and they were not in the wash either.  (long story- but finally found them after I decided that I was just going to have to stop at a store).

Washer is done- suitcases packed in van- pull shirts out of the washer to find the STRANGEST laundry problem I have ever seem.  Something in the wash turned all the shirts underarms PINK!-  just the underarms!  I hope they are not all ruined-  but I didn't have time to do much with them because...

We had to meet a mechanic in a tiny town an hour away to deal with Outpatient's car which broke down late last Friday night.

Got to my SIL's and you would think I have had enough fun for one day.  But no.

Fun surprise-  Outpatient and LOL have a new pet- a hedgehog named Ruffio.

Stayed up really late (early) to do my work and as I tried to push myself back up on the stool, I broke the bottom rung of the stool.

I hope all my bad karma is out of the way because I am headed to Oregon in a few hours and I am excited and want to have a great time.  I have totally earned it.

It has been a Murphy's Law sort of day/week.

It is now 3:42 am on Thursday.  I am going to bed.

ps-   I tweaked the post time for this so it would be posted on the right day.

Random Conversation Quote

When I asked what Oldest was going to wear for his first day of school, he responded:

"I am  going to get up and put on clothes and whatever I put on, that is what I will be wearing."

Out of Wisdom (pictures added)

Teeth, that is.

Last week- we added to our already crazy life by taking Oldest out to Cougar Country to get his wisdom teeth removed.  There is a surgeon that comes to Small Town, but it is only once a month and he is booked out for months.  I called on the 2nd and got an appointment for the 10th.  We took him to the same surgeon who did Outpatient.

Now-  I don't know if I have shared the story of his teeth, but here it is, non-cliff notes version.

Oldest did not get any teeth- at all- until he was nearly 17 months old.  I was a tad concerned, but the doctor had a patient not get teeth until 15 months, and my own cousin's daughter who is only 2 weeks older than Oldest, didn't get teeth either.  Finally, what I think made them come in was the fact that his little sister was starting to get teeth, and he wouldn't be outdone by her.  This is a pattern that still exists, I'm afraid.  Anyhow- his first teeth were the top and bottom right teeth-and they took something like 6 months to fully come in.  The remainder of his teeth followed this pattern, taking their own sweet time to show up and be useful.

When he was 10- we went to the dentist to learn that his 6 year molars had finally decided to join the party.  We also got a really good look at what was going on with his adult teeth.  It was not a pretty picture.  Every adult tooth wanted to take the space being used by up to three baby teeth.  So- we went to visit our friendly neighborhood ortho, and began the process of trying to make room for those giant teeth. 

The next problem, his baby teeth didn't seem to be in any bigger hurry to vacate the premises than they were to join the party in the first place.  You might recall Oldest's lovely tooth pulling adventures from Dec 30- 2009.  The dentist pulled 8 baby teeth out then- and left the 4 canines to come out on their own.  Only two were obedient, and it took over a year for most of the permanent teeth to come up into place.

Bored yet?

So- when we went to the dentist last October, we saw that the punk's wisdom teeth were already forming.  Yes- those teeth that most people don't get until they are about 18- were already coming in.  This is in the mouth of a kid who doesn't believe in getting teeth.  To make matters even funner- the wisdom teeth were holding his 12 year molars hostage.  In July, the dentist pulled the remaining baby teeth.  We decided to go ahead with braces because if we wait for his teeth, it will be years!!!! 

So- the oral surgeon removed his 4 wisdom teeth and went on a search and rescue for a wayward canine.  The possible bad news is that his 12 year molars may not ever come in- and may need to be removed just like wisdom teeth are. So not funny. By the time we are done, I think we could have bought a decent car for what we will end up investing in that kid's mouth.

He had a little trouble coming to after the surgery, which made the headnurse-momma a little nervous,  He twitched periodically which was a reminder of the seizure he suffered as a toddler.  He did reach out a couple of times to pet my face (he has the biggest hands!), and fell in love with the office's fuzzy blanket.  Finally- after 5 hours at the surgeon's office, we got to leave.  He has done well, but he did puff up and is now moving on to bruising stage.  He was able to participate fully in his Teachers Quorum Super Activity, and this coming weekend he will get to start the bow hunt.

All is well, until August 31st.  Then we will start the braces.

Someday he will be so thankful that we put him through all this, and that I made a record because he better start saving now for his own children, or become an orthodontist or oral surgeon himself.

Thursday- not too bad- only the right side was puffy

Saturday- both sides were puffy-  but hey- he is vertical and functional, much better than I did.

And- when it comes time for mission prep- he already lost his wisdom.  Teeth.

When ye are in the service of your fellow beings...

On Friday, August 6th,  We received word that a friend and former teammate of Outpatient had been killed.  He was killed in action while serving our country as a Marine, stationed in Afghanistan.  I have been putting off writing about it because it hits close to the heart and because Small Town made the news due to the Hero's Welcome his remains received. 

We were up at the DR's family reunion, and Outpatient and LOL joined us, and shared the bad news.  Then we came home to the news of the Navy Seals and other members of the Armed Forces had been shot down during a rescue mission.  Nobody on the nation scene heard about our local soldier, and probably wouldn't have.  Except that our community rallied together, lined the streets with flags and people.  Many who didn't even know him, but wanted to express their gratitude for his and his family's ultimate sacrifice.  We were out of town, so only the DR was in town to pay his respects that day, but it was an incredible sight. 

I saw a page for info on facebook, and at the time there about 300 invites out-  but within about 2 hours-, they had swelled to over 6000.  Facebook was an amazing tool in bringing together our community for a hero's welcome.  Someone mentioned that it is unfortunate that every soldier doesn't get to come home to this.

 The girls and I came home to an incredible sight.  While it isn't every home, many all over the valley have signs, yellow or red,white, and blue ribbons, flags- many of which are flying at half staff.  It is so touching.

 These pictures were taken by a local resident-  but I took some while driving through so they looked kind of lousy.  I wish you could all drive through this roundabout and the approximately 8 miles worth of solid flags.  They are also at the cemetery where he is being laid to rest as I type this.  I was going to attend, but then I thought of all the people who knew him better than I who could use the space I would take.  Outpatient, LOL, and many of the other soccer team are there.

May our Father in Heaven hold Sgt Daniel Gurr's family in his hands in the coming days, when the rest of our community goes back to life as usual.  I know that Dan is looking down and probably in such awe at the many lives he has touched, by giving his.

I would love to give credit to the photographers, and editors of the pictures in this post, but I don't know who they are. Please note that I did not take any of these but I am grateful to have them.

Buzz Reunion 2011

This year- the reunion was bigger than it has been in a long time.  We had lots of newer attendees- like LOL, and plenty of old timers.  The weather cooperated with no rain from Thursday evening on.  There were plenty of mosquito and buffalo gnat bites for those who didn't religiously apply bug spray, but for those of us who did, we were good.

Middle trying out her new bow.  She is a pretty good shot already.

Theme for this year was fairies- and it was a HUGE hit with all the little girls in particular-  but the older girls and Outpatient and LOL painted canvases and found other fun things to do-  here is Youngest's face after "makeup"  She was a Garden Talent Fairy and helped the younger fairies make garden stones.

The water was HIGH!  that boat would usually be docked at least 50 to 100 yards further away.  The patients and cousins were bummed because they didn't get to make their traditional mud pit.

But where there is a will- there is a way!  They had to go a bit further around the lake- but find some beach front property they did.

There was also the regular shooting of the breeze ( this is just some of our own branch of the family tree)

The boys- and Norine- created a flotation device.  They called it a raft, but my vote says it was too hole-y to constitute a raft.  There was also lots of fishing.

And downshifting.

A hugely successful auction.

Youngest always entertains and she did not disappoint the crowd this year with a skit from an episode from That's So Random.  She was totally in character!

And- for the second straight year, Middle and Cousin Am did a wonderful job dancing to a parody they worte about the reunion.  I unfortunately couldn't find the charger to the video camera, forgot to grab the iphone, and didn't have either Middle or Oldest's cameras so there is no video record of these acts this year.  BOO! Oh- and the word "shoebox" will never be the same and no- you really don't want to know.

When talking to my sil about some of the missing cousins who currently reside in Europe, I said without any doubt that my patients ( with quite likely the exception of Out and LOL) would far rather go to the reunion that take a trip to Europe.  And for now- that is the absolute truth.  Maybe as the girls get older it might change for them- but for Oldest- it never will.

Dear Larsen Family Aunts:

Fabulous as usual!

Thanks!

There She Is, Miss Teenager

 6 months

1 year

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3 year

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5 year

6 year

7 year

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12 year

Dear Middle,

Try as we might, your dad and I couldn't stop time.  You have reached that first Teenage Milestone- you are officially a teenager.  You are getting a reputation for being so great with little kids and have been able to babysit quite a bit lately.  You are working on many skills and are now adding bow shooting.  I can honestly say I never in any of my growing years thought I would have a daughter who played hockey and shot bows.  You are still a feminine young lady.  You are going to be starting 7th grade soon.  You will be one of the older, more experienced students, but school will get harder.  I hope you work hard to be a good friend to all, but to be very careful about who are your choicest friends.  The kinds of people you choose to be close to will shape your future self so very much.  I hope you can always hold tight to strong values and avoid situations of temptations. 

You have grown a lot in the last year, even if you don't think so.  I am glad you are loving having a big sister.  You were so much help for us in getting ready for the wedding receptions.  You are very creative and have so many talents that you are working on.  I will try to have the patience to help you become a good cook.

We are very proud of you. 

Love mom and dad!