There are some memories I have of the boys that make me smile and wish we could go back a few years to their innocence. This story I am going to tell is one that gives me a chuckle everytime I think about it.
The setting is the lake house in Florida that my mom and step father stay at every winter through the early summer. The characters are: Justin, my oldest son, Jacob, my second son and willing accomplise and my nephew Clay.
Every year I try to take the kids to Florida to see my mom during Spring Break. While we were down there one year my nephew came down to stay a few days because he is the same age age Justin and they get along like brothers. Clay had brought his trolling boat down with him and it has a very quiet motor on it and you can be a stelth secret agent if you are 16 and feel so inclined. That was exactly what the boys had in mind one night after everyone else had gone to bed. I should have known something was up when they wanted to sleep out on the porch and went to bed really well.
As it turned out, the boys had devised a plan to reek havoc on the neighboring houses along the lake. Under the cover of darkness they snuck out of the house and crept silently to the lake. Pushing the boat into the water, they dissolved into the mist covered lake. Waiting until the motor had no opportunity to give away their plan, they drifted out of range stifling the giggles that welled inside. As soon as the boat was far enough away from shore the motor was started and quietly the boys stalked their first victim. Clay directed his tin fish to the first dock. Carefully, each boy took his turn climbing onto the wooden structure. Justin decided that the dock furniture should be turned upside down on the first target. One by one each lake side establishment was visited by these stelthy dock jumpers. Each dock was systematically harrassed, the boys being careful not to do damage personal property, only to cause amusement and bewilderment. One dock had sand in little piles like the wood had sprouted chicken pox, another dock had chairs piled as high as they could feasibly go. Another dock simply had everything rearranged.
As the night turned into dawn, the boys could sense their time was coming to an end and headed to shore. Tiptoeing back onto the porch they crawled into their sleeping bags with contented smiles on each face.
When late morning arrived, I woke everyone up and was surprised that Justin, Jake and Clay were quite tired. Seeing that I was curious, the boys quickly recovered and feigned innocence. However, while I was out in the paddle boat I noticed the perplexed look of all the neighbors scratching their heads while they stood dockside. Noticing my moms dock was untouched, I could only guess who the culprits might be.
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
The amazing Albrecht
It is very amazing to me how one person can completely change a person, or at the very least open them up to a larger view of the world. Last year I had that experience when I took a Comp class during my first semester of college. There were more than a few people who told me that it would be a good idea for me to change my schedule because the professor I had chosen was a tough cookie. I'm so glad that I decided to keep him. Professor Albrecht not only helped me rise to the challenge of his level of work, but also changed me and the way I view the world.
On first appearance, Professor Albrecht is a grandfatherly man with a cool sense of style. He frequentley wears jeans with a casual suit coat and loafers. He is probably in his 60's but I'm not sure because he while he has grey hair he is a very disinquished looking fellow. The way he walks into a room commands attention and a person gets an immediate sense that they are in the presence of a person who not only knows what they are talking about, but one who has lived a life full of experiences. I suppose a person could get the impression that Professor Albrecht is slightly arrogant and rude, but on closer inspection the student realizes that even if those qualities are true, Albrecht has the ability to posses those characteristics without letting them control him. Professor Albrecht has a way of speaking that draws men and women to him and listening to his voice is like hearing words for the first time. It is as if time stops and his words are the only thing that matters and all the problems and cares have gone away. Very few people have the ability to make love to a person just with words; not in a sexual sense, but in a way that brings a person to complete satisfaction and causes them to beg for more.
Professor Albrecht opened my eyes to a new way of viewing the world. Before my time with Albrecht, I had been closed off to any other way of seeing how my environment reacted to the forces of nature, politics, God and relationships. Albrecht taught me that there are two ways to see things: from inside a locked box with the blinds closed tight or from a room with doors flung open and willing to step outside and taste all the differences. Professor Albrecht challenged all who were present in his classroom to know what we believe and why we believe it. I don't think he cared what we chose to believe as long as we embraced the why and knew exactly what we were heading towards.
I am very thankful for the chance to learn from this man. My challenge is now living my life in a way that I can encourage others to live their lives from the outside instead of being to scared and staying in the box.
Albrecht would always end his class by saying "go away". Not many people could say that and have it give a person a sense of a challenge. Albrecht said those words and caused me to want to "go away" and do something. So, that is what I'm doing and I challenge us all to "go away".
On first appearance, Professor Albrecht is a grandfatherly man with a cool sense of style. He frequentley wears jeans with a casual suit coat and loafers. He is probably in his 60's but I'm not sure because he while he has grey hair he is a very disinquished looking fellow. The way he walks into a room commands attention and a person gets an immediate sense that they are in the presence of a person who not only knows what they are talking about, but one who has lived a life full of experiences. I suppose a person could get the impression that Professor Albrecht is slightly arrogant and rude, but on closer inspection the student realizes that even if those qualities are true, Albrecht has the ability to posses those characteristics without letting them control him. Professor Albrecht has a way of speaking that draws men and women to him and listening to his voice is like hearing words for the first time. It is as if time stops and his words are the only thing that matters and all the problems and cares have gone away. Very few people have the ability to make love to a person just with words; not in a sexual sense, but in a way that brings a person to complete satisfaction and causes them to beg for more.
Professor Albrecht opened my eyes to a new way of viewing the world. Before my time with Albrecht, I had been closed off to any other way of seeing how my environment reacted to the forces of nature, politics, God and relationships. Albrecht taught me that there are two ways to see things: from inside a locked box with the blinds closed tight or from a room with doors flung open and willing to step outside and taste all the differences. Professor Albrecht challenged all who were present in his classroom to know what we believe and why we believe it. I don't think he cared what we chose to believe as long as we embraced the why and knew exactly what we were heading towards.
I am very thankful for the chance to learn from this man. My challenge is now living my life in a way that I can encourage others to live their lives from the outside instead of being to scared and staying in the box.
Albrecht would always end his class by saying "go away". Not many people could say that and have it give a person a sense of a challenge. Albrecht said those words and caused me to want to "go away" and do something. So, that is what I'm doing and I challenge us all to "go away".
Monday, February 1, 2010
Danny the magnificent
First of all, let me say that this blog thing doesn't have a spell check or at least I can't find it, so if I misspell stuff just ignore it. Ok? Thanks.
On with the show........
There are many things to tell about Danny but I suppose I will tell his story right from the beginning because if you are not familiar with the story then you might not fully appreciate all that Danny has done in his short life.
Danny is my #6 child. Every delivery prior to Danny's I had not had any outsiders in the room with me at the time of birth, beside of course the doctors, nurses and my husband. However, with Danny, it just so happened that Ron's mom and my mom were there, so they both got to see him being born. It probably wasn't the delivery either had planned on watching. When Daniel was born his heart stopped and he needed to be resuscitated and even after he was brought back he looked pretty purple. I think the whole experience was one both mom's could have lived without seeing.
While in the hospital the doctor could tell something wasn't right with Danny. He definitely looked different but no one could put there finger on it. Looking back now I have no idea how we couldn't pick up on the fact that he didn't blink or close his eyes. Duh! Oh well, that says a lot about how a mothers love looks past the obvious. Two weeks after Danny was born, Ron and I noticed that Danny would seem to pass out if he was laid on his back in Ron's arms. We took Daniel in to be checked and the doctor wanted to have him assessed for sleep apnea. So we went to the hospital and did that and while we were there his heart rate when up to close to 200. The idiot nurse and respiratory therapist asked Ron and I if we thought that was a normal heart rate for an infant. We looked at each other like "what the heck?" and told them to call the doctor immediately. After the doctor was called, she preformed a procedure called a 'vagal maneuver ' on Danny by placing a bag of ice over his little baby face until he his heart rate would convert to a normal rhythm. It was one of the scariest moments of our lives. The hospital immediately tried to get an IV in him which they could not do and so they called Strong Childrens Hospital in Rochester to have an Ambulance sent down to get him. While we waited for the ambulance to get there we just rocked him and listened to the monitors hoping that they wouldn't start buzzing and signaling another episode. After Strong got there to pick him up I was able to relax a little because they obviously knew what they were doing. The team was able to get an IV in without any problems and we raced off to Rochester.
While we were in the Hospital in Rochester the team of Doctors were able to do lots of tests to see what other problems Daniel had. We saw the Cardiologist, Neurologist, Geneticist, Audiologist, Ophthalmologist and probably other "ists" that I forgot about. It was a whirlwind of doctors and tests and most days my head spun. Not only was I hormonal due to giving birth two weeks prior, but I had 5 other kids at home and I knew they must be wondering what was going on.
As it turned out, the doctors found that Daniel had a few extra nerves that hadn't disolved at birth like most kids and that is what caused his heart to race. He was on Digoxin to keep his heart regular for 3 years. The doctors also diagnosed him with Moebius Syndrome and Agenesis of the Corpus Collosum. Feel free to Google those things, as it would take a long time to explain those. Needless to say, Daniel still has many challenges. Every day is a struggle for him to achieve what other kids his age or even younger can do easily. Most days he takes on this challenge without problems but recently he has been markedly frustrated which makes me sad. When I look at what Daniel has been through and what he goes through every day, I can understand to a tiny degree of why he would get frustrated at his struggles. However, I'm not the one who walks in his shoes and has to work hard at everything I try and usually still doesn't measure up to the worlds standards. All I can do is encourage him to do his best and make sure he grows up to be the best that he can be. I know he will do fine because he has a determination that far surpasses the doctors expectations.
On with the show........
There are many things to tell about Danny but I suppose I will tell his story right from the beginning because if you are not familiar with the story then you might not fully appreciate all that Danny has done in his short life.
Danny is my #6 child. Every delivery prior to Danny's I had not had any outsiders in the room with me at the time of birth, beside of course the doctors, nurses and my husband. However, with Danny, it just so happened that Ron's mom and my mom were there, so they both got to see him being born. It probably wasn't the delivery either had planned on watching. When Daniel was born his heart stopped and he needed to be resuscitated and even after he was brought back he looked pretty purple. I think the whole experience was one both mom's could have lived without seeing.
While in the hospital the doctor could tell something wasn't right with Danny. He definitely looked different but no one could put there finger on it. Looking back now I have no idea how we couldn't pick up on the fact that he didn't blink or close his eyes. Duh! Oh well, that says a lot about how a mothers love looks past the obvious. Two weeks after Danny was born, Ron and I noticed that Danny would seem to pass out if he was laid on his back in Ron's arms. We took Daniel in to be checked and the doctor wanted to have him assessed for sleep apnea. So we went to the hospital and did that and while we were there his heart rate when up to close to 200. The idiot nurse and respiratory therapist asked Ron and I if we thought that was a normal heart rate for an infant. We looked at each other like "what the heck?" and told them to call the doctor immediately. After the doctor was called, she preformed a procedure called a 'vagal maneuver ' on Danny by placing a bag of ice over his little baby face until he his heart rate would convert to a normal rhythm. It was one of the scariest moments of our lives. The hospital immediately tried to get an IV in him which they could not do and so they called Strong Childrens Hospital in Rochester to have an Ambulance sent down to get him. While we waited for the ambulance to get there we just rocked him and listened to the monitors hoping that they wouldn't start buzzing and signaling another episode. After Strong got there to pick him up I was able to relax a little because they obviously knew what they were doing. The team was able to get an IV in without any problems and we raced off to Rochester.
While we were in the Hospital in Rochester the team of Doctors were able to do lots of tests to see what other problems Daniel had. We saw the Cardiologist, Neurologist, Geneticist, Audiologist, Ophthalmologist and probably other "ists" that I forgot about. It was a whirlwind of doctors and tests and most days my head spun. Not only was I hormonal due to giving birth two weeks prior, but I had 5 other kids at home and I knew they must be wondering what was going on.
As it turned out, the doctors found that Daniel had a few extra nerves that hadn't disolved at birth like most kids and that is what caused his heart to race. He was on Digoxin to keep his heart regular for 3 years. The doctors also diagnosed him with Moebius Syndrome and Agenesis of the Corpus Collosum. Feel free to Google those things, as it would take a long time to explain those. Needless to say, Daniel still has many challenges. Every day is a struggle for him to achieve what other kids his age or even younger can do easily. Most days he takes on this challenge without problems but recently he has been markedly frustrated which makes me sad. When I look at what Daniel has been through and what he goes through every day, I can understand to a tiny degree of why he would get frustrated at his struggles. However, I'm not the one who walks in his shoes and has to work hard at everything I try and usually still doesn't measure up to the worlds standards. All I can do is encourage him to do his best and make sure he grows up to be the best that he can be. I know he will do fine because he has a determination that far surpasses the doctors expectations.
Saturday, January 30, 2010
Clueless Allison
I know it's not nice to say someone is clueless, but if anyone spends more than five minutes with my #5 child you would know what I'm talking about. Allison is very gifted in many areas. She is a phenomenal artist. Ally also has a creative writing ability. However, when a person talks to Allison, one gets a sense that she isn't exactly following you at the same speed. It isn't that she is mentally challenged, don't get me wrong. What it is, is just a stereotypical blonde airhead. On more than one occasion a person has been talking to Ally and she is laughing and one would assume she is following, but half way through the convo Ally goes "uh, what, wait....... huh?" and you can't help but laugh because her expression goes from laughing to complete cluelessness in seconds.
Unfortunately this has gotten her hurt on a couple occasions. There was one time in particular that was memorable. Allison was probably about five and she and Jacob went out sledding. We had a tremendously long hill and it made a perfect place for sledding. Well, Jake and Ally piled in the sled and headed down the hill. About half way down Jake realized they were heading towards a tree so he told Ally to bail out and then did the same. Allison either didn't hear the 'bail out' part, or just didn't get it because she stayed on the sled. Jake started running after her screaming, "jump off Ally, bail out" to no avail. Ally simply turned around and looked at Jake, smiled and waved, completely oblivious to the tree looming in the distance. Well, you guessed it, she hit the tree. To make a long story short, we took her to the doctor and they thought she broke her leg but ended up taking the cast off after two weeks because they decided she hadn't. I'm not so sure she didn't break something though because she still runs with a distinct limp. However, she just keeps smiling and waving with that clueless expression on her face.
Unfortunately this has gotten her hurt on a couple occasions. There was one time in particular that was memorable. Allison was probably about five and she and Jacob went out sledding. We had a tremendously long hill and it made a perfect place for sledding. Well, Jake and Ally piled in the sled and headed down the hill. About half way down Jake realized they were heading towards a tree so he told Ally to bail out and then did the same. Allison either didn't hear the 'bail out' part, or just didn't get it because she stayed on the sled. Jake started running after her screaming, "jump off Ally, bail out" to no avail. Ally simply turned around and looked at Jake, smiled and waved, completely oblivious to the tree looming in the distance. Well, you guessed it, she hit the tree. To make a long story short, we took her to the doctor and they thought she broke her leg but ended up taking the cast off after two weeks because they decided she hadn't. I'm not so sure she didn't break something though because she still runs with a distinct limp. However, she just keeps smiling and waving with that clueless expression on her face.
Friday, January 29, 2010
Slayton and the bugs
I truly believe I could write a book just based on Slayton. He has provided me with enough material to write endlessly for hours, so I will tell a short story for now because I'm sure there will be many more to come.
In the fall of 1999 or somewhere in that near vacinity, we started to gut the cabin that would soon become our home. When I say we, I really mean my husband because I was to busy with kids to do much else other than that. Anyway, back to the boy. Like I said, Ron was up gutting the cabin and I had begged him to take Slayt because even at a year and a half he was so busy that it was all I could do to get through the day without wanting to run away and join the circus. At that point in my life, the circus would have been less busy and almost relaxing. Ron did take Slayt with him and they began working on things that men do when they are playing carpenter. The cabin was on top of a hill in the middle of no where. Ron was working away and all of a sudden Slayt started shrieking "make it stop, the bugs are too loud". My husband looked over at Slayton who was sitting by an open window, and saw his son with his hands cupped over his ears and his face all screwed up into a contorted expression. Nothing Ron did could convince Slayt that the bugs weren't to loud. Every two minutes Slayt would holler "AHHHHHHHH the bugs, their too loud, aaaahh". Oh my gosh, my poor husband. When they pulled in the driveway less than two hours after they had left, i knew something was wrong. Ron came in the house red faced and exasperated and said "the bugs were too loud". It was all I could do not to laugh because Slayt seemed as happy as could be right then. Obviously country bugs are much louder than town bugs.
In the fall of 1999 or somewhere in that near vacinity, we started to gut the cabin that would soon become our home. When I say we, I really mean my husband because I was to busy with kids to do much else other than that. Anyway, back to the boy. Like I said, Ron was up gutting the cabin and I had begged him to take Slayt because even at a year and a half he was so busy that it was all I could do to get through the day without wanting to run away and join the circus. At that point in my life, the circus would have been less busy and almost relaxing. Ron did take Slayt with him and they began working on things that men do when they are playing carpenter. The cabin was on top of a hill in the middle of no where. Ron was working away and all of a sudden Slayt started shrieking "make it stop, the bugs are too loud". My husband looked over at Slayton who was sitting by an open window, and saw his son with his hands cupped over his ears and his face all screwed up into a contorted expression. Nothing Ron did could convince Slayt that the bugs weren't to loud. Every two minutes Slayt would holler "AHHHHHHHH the bugs, their too loud, aaaahh". Oh my gosh, my poor husband. When they pulled in the driveway less than two hours after they had left, i knew something was wrong. Ron came in the house red faced and exasperated and said "the bugs were too loud". It was all I could do not to laugh because Slayt seemed as happy as could be right then. Obviously country bugs are much louder than town bugs.
Abby- once a mama's girl, always a mama's girl..... I hope.
My daughter Abby is sixteen. I really can't believe the time has flown by that quickly. I know everyone says time slips away and before you know it their grown, but it really is true. Many days I try to figure out how Abby suddenly went from being a chubby little toddler to a beautiful woman. It honestly feels as if time has sped up and it's a mad dash to the finish line.
When Abby was born, she was a breath of fresh air to me. After watching my two boys wrestle and jump and play with reckless abandon, it was nice to have a sweet little girl to put nice things on. That was a quick passing dream to think her clothes would stay nice and pristine, but hey, a mom can dream. Abby was such a calm and complacent child. She was easy to take care of, very rarely fussed and was just fun to have with me. When she was still nursing, I would sit in the back row and nurse her under a blanket. I thought i was being discreat. However, as soon as Abby latched on and started sucking, EVERYONE could hear her and knew exactly what she was doing. It was like a vacume on high speed with gulping as loud as a train. Gulp, slurp, gulp, gulp, sigh....... slurp. Sheesh! So much for being discreat. When Abby finally would come up for air, her little cheeks would be so rosy and she'd look around at everyone as if to say "that was awesome".
There were times however, that I needed a break and would try to leave Abby with my mom. That went over like a lead balloon on Jupiter. She would have none of it. The minute she got wind of me making plans she would start crying. I couldn't leave her with anyone because she would scream and carry on. I'm not talking about a little whimpering. I'm talking about ear piercing screams that would make the neighbors think she was getting beat. She would hold on with a death grip so that it would take two people to pry her away. Thank goodness she grew out of that. It would look pretty silly if she was still doing that now I suppose.
I really have no complaints about Abby, even as a sixteen year old teenager with a very active social life. She has turned out to be a very responsible girl for the most part. I'm not naive enough to think she tells me everything that is going on in her life, but i'd say for the most part, i know the important stuff. I love that she wants to sit and watch T.V with me at night or dance around the kitchen with me. One of the nicest things is that she never seems to be embarrassed by me in front of her friends. And believe me, I can be quite embarrassing. I'm proud of my daughter and I won't complain if she always has a little bit of a mama's girl in her.
When Abby was born, she was a breath of fresh air to me. After watching my two boys wrestle and jump and play with reckless abandon, it was nice to have a sweet little girl to put nice things on. That was a quick passing dream to think her clothes would stay nice and pristine, but hey, a mom can dream. Abby was such a calm and complacent child. She was easy to take care of, very rarely fussed and was just fun to have with me. When she was still nursing, I would sit in the back row and nurse her under a blanket. I thought i was being discreat. However, as soon as Abby latched on and started sucking, EVERYONE could hear her and knew exactly what she was doing. It was like a vacume on high speed with gulping as loud as a train. Gulp, slurp, gulp, gulp, sigh....... slurp. Sheesh! So much for being discreat. When Abby finally would come up for air, her little cheeks would be so rosy and she'd look around at everyone as if to say "that was awesome".
There were times however, that I needed a break and would try to leave Abby with my mom. That went over like a lead balloon on Jupiter. She would have none of it. The minute she got wind of me making plans she would start crying. I couldn't leave her with anyone because she would scream and carry on. I'm not talking about a little whimpering. I'm talking about ear piercing screams that would make the neighbors think she was getting beat. She would hold on with a death grip so that it would take two people to pry her away. Thank goodness she grew out of that. It would look pretty silly if she was still doing that now I suppose.
I really have no complaints about Abby, even as a sixteen year old teenager with a very active social life. She has turned out to be a very responsible girl for the most part. I'm not naive enough to think she tells me everything that is going on in her life, but i'd say for the most part, i know the important stuff. I love that she wants to sit and watch T.V with me at night or dance around the kitchen with me. One of the nicest things is that she never seems to be embarrassed by me in front of her friends. And believe me, I can be quite embarrassing. I'm proud of my daughter and I won't complain if she always has a little bit of a mama's girl in her.
Jacob, the fearless Rooster Whisperer
For those of you who don't know my second oldest son, Jacob, I will enlighten you on a few things about him. Jacob is a fearless fellow with a propensity to do dangerous things and give his mother heart failure. He was never officially diagnosed with ADHD but I am 100% positive he would have been had I taken him in. He was my child that I was certain would not live to see his teenage years. Thankfully he did live and I'd like to say he has calmed down but unfortunately he is like the engergizer bunny and just keeps going, and going, and going.....
Many years ago when Jacob was about four or five, we took a trip out to see my sister and her family in Arkansas. The kids loved to go out there as did I. My neices and nephews are about the same age as my older kids and they get along famously. This one year that we went out we all took a train ride that left from Eureka Springs and went to somewhere in the Ozarks to a animal petting zoo. It was so great. The kids were able to pet baby tigers and see animals up close. Well, this animal place had these chickens and geese roaming around. Obviously they had never had a kid like mine come there and think that a loose chicken needed to be caught. Jacob found this poor Rooster walking around. Actually the Rooster was strutting his stuff and an observent person could clearly see that Mr. Rooster wanted to be left alone to do his rooster stuff. Unfortunately, Jacob didn't realize this fact, nor did he care. Jake just kept after that Rooster and would quack at it and put his little face down by the roosters tail and cluck. After about five minutes of being stalked by this toeheaded kid, the Rooster decided he had enough and Mr. Rooster turned round and jumped up and bit Jake right on the nose. If you could have seen the look on Jacobs face! It was priceless. I'd like to say he learned his lesson, but a few years later and another farm his cute little face was the target of yet another provoked attack.
Many years ago when Jacob was about four or five, we took a trip out to see my sister and her family in Arkansas. The kids loved to go out there as did I. My neices and nephews are about the same age as my older kids and they get along famously. This one year that we went out we all took a train ride that left from Eureka Springs and went to somewhere in the Ozarks to a animal petting zoo. It was so great. The kids were able to pet baby tigers and see animals up close. Well, this animal place had these chickens and geese roaming around. Obviously they had never had a kid like mine come there and think that a loose chicken needed to be caught. Jacob found this poor Rooster walking around. Actually the Rooster was strutting his stuff and an observent person could clearly see that Mr. Rooster wanted to be left alone to do his rooster stuff. Unfortunately, Jacob didn't realize this fact, nor did he care. Jake just kept after that Rooster and would quack at it and put his little face down by the roosters tail and cluck. After about five minutes of being stalked by this toeheaded kid, the Rooster decided he had enough and Mr. Rooster turned round and jumped up and bit Jake right on the nose. If you could have seen the look on Jacobs face! It was priceless. I'd like to say he learned his lesson, but a few years later and another farm his cute little face was the target of yet another provoked attack.
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