Doodlebug - Tally Mark 27

-Talking up a storm and getting better and better at saying actual words (like apple).
-Can count to 10.
-Is the cutest little dancer.
-Refuses to let you buckle him into his car seat, otherwise he screams and cries until you unbuckle him and let him do it.
-Also refuses to ride The Lime's wooden balance bike. At this age, The Lime was a pro on that thing but for some reason Doodlebug wants nothing to do with it.
-Likes to read books.
-Might be addicted to the iTouch, so we have to hide it.
-Loves having his window down in the car.
-Has figured out how to pick his nose.
-Is getting his 2 year molars.
-Has a hard time finishing his meals which has never been a problem before. It's a little frustrating.
-Doesn't like when I sing along with him to "H.O.L.Y." by Florida Georgia Line.
-Is the best little hugger and kisser.
-I was looking at videos from when Doodlebug was a baby and it made me so sad. He is far from a baby and I can't believe how fast it happened!

Count Your Blessings

I don't even know where to begin!

Yes I do.

A few months ago, prior to us going to Colorado, Doodlebug got two ear infections in a month. One of them became apparent after our doctor's office closed for the day so I had to take him to Urgent Care, which I really didn't want to do because I knew the co-pay would be more than if I took him to his regular doctor. But since that wasn't an option, and I wasn't going to make him wait all night before I could get him treated, I bit the bullet and took him in.

A month later, we got his bill in addition to my bills for a mysterious leg pain I'd been having for over six months. It was nothing but we still had to pay a pretty penny for them to tell me that. I called to set up a payment plan for the bills and had everything scheduled to be paid off in six weeks.

Fast forward to last Tuesday night. The boys and I finished dinner and The Lime asked if we could play basketball outside until LaVor came home. It was the night before school started and I was happy to let him have one last enjoyable summer night.

When we got out there, I noticed his shoe was untied and asked him if he wanted me to tie it. "No, I'm good," he said. We played for a few minutes before LaVor showed up and he came over to join us. Before we knew it, The Lime had tripped over his shoelace and, in slow motion, fell to his knees and then onto his arm. He immediately erupted into tears and said his arm hurt really bad.

This kid falls all.the.time and can usually have us take a look at it, we tell him he's not bleeding, and he's on his way. Except this time, we looked at it and it wasn't okay. The bone hadn't broken the skin but it was definitely not in its place.

So...we brought him inside, put some ice on it, gave him some Tylenol, and I drove him to Urgent Care as he howled in the backseat. Once we got to the hospital and he was around other people, the crying and whining stopped but he was still in a lot of pain.

After an exam, x-rays, another exam, and a final decision from the doctor to temporarily wrap it up until we could be seen by the Orthopedist, we were on our way home at 10:00. The doctor recommended he not go to school on the first day but we got him ready and had him meet his teacher anyway. I also dropped off his EpiPen in the office and notified them it expired in July but his doctor said we could still use it. There's a new head nurse this year who is a real stickler when it comes to rules and the office staff wasn't sure she'd let expired medicine slide. They told me to expect a call from her the next day.

I waited all day Wednesday for a call from the Orthopedist, hoping we could get in so he could go to school on Thursday. I was too impatient and ended up calling them only to find out that they would have allowed him to go to school on Wednesday (ugh!) and to go ahead and send him on Thursday. First thing Thursday morning, they called with an appointment that morning which meant he'd be missing more school. At the appointment, the doctor recommended surgery for Friday morning to reset the bone and possibly place pins.

I dropped The Lime back off at school just in time for lunch. As soon as I got home, the head nurse called and, just as expected, told me they couldn't accept his expired EpiPen. I told her I couldn't afford to throw away (literally) $135 worth of unused medication every year just to turn around and pay another $135 for another prescription. She was understanding but firm in her decision.

Shortly after that, the hospital called to go over finances for The Lime's surgery and asked for a deposit. Even though I tried to mask it, I'm pretty sure the girl on the other line could tell I was crying and we ended on an uncomfortable note. As Doodlebug napped, and the house was quiet, I sobbed trying to find the silver lining in these unexpected hiccups in the road, when we were trying to smooth out the hiccups we were already dealing with.

We woke up early Friday morning, LaVor took The Lime in for the operation while I waited at home until Doodlebug woke up. We made it to the surgery center just as they took The Lime back and a short 45 minutes later, we were ready to see him. He was moody and uncomfortable but the procedure was over and we could begin the healing process.

Even though this past week was not how I imagined our last week of summer/first week of school to be, I can see so many blessings tucked in between the trials.

-I can't even imagine how horrible summer would have been if The Lime broke his arm in June. We can deal with a broken arm at school but he would have been miserable for two months if the timing was different.
-Two of his friends from kindergarten are in his class this year and they are taking SUCH good care of him. When I picked him up on Thursday, all he could talk about was how Blake did this and Jett helped him with that. So grateful for good friends!
-The Lime didn't need pins and his bone set just as it should have. Yah!
-I re-filled his EpiPen prescription and printed a discount card from their website. I've tried using it in the past but it never worked. When we picked up the medicine on Saturday, the woman told us our total and it was over $100 less than what we expected. I almost cried right there in Target and then throughout the day each time I thought about it.
-LaVor keeps me sane when I'm freaking out about the cost of everything. "We're just going to have to make it work," he tells me. So thankful for his level head!
-I was worried about the horrible first impression we were making on The Lime's teacher, with all of the class he was missing. But she's been so understanding and kind and just wanted him healthy.
-We've had several friends make cards and bring The Lime treats to make him feel better.

"Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths." Proverbs 3:5-6

Calaveras Big Trees State Park

Our goal of going out and doing something every Saturday was overlooked last weekend when we had our Pioneer Day celebration. It went off without a hitch and the kids seemed to thoroughly enjoy themselves.

We woke up yesterday and were out the door within the hour, on our way to Calaveras Big Trees State Park. I understand there are a few places throughout the state and west coast that provide a similar experience. But LaVor was set on taking us to Arnold.

We twisted and turned our way through the central valley. There were so many cute, old towns that we would have loved to stop in had we had the extra time. But we wanted to see the trees so we pushed on through.

Once we arrived, we all jumped out of the car to stretch our legs and begin our adventure. (I have to admit, the smell of trees doesn't make me as happy as it does LaVor. He has memories of spending Christmas in Tahoe and I have memories of food poisoning.)

We couldn't believe the size of these puppies! Absolutely amazing that Heavenly Father created something so huge (and living)!

The first major attraction we saw was the Discovery Tree. After being cut down, the stump was used as a dance floor (none of my boys wanted to take a picture on it).

The trail took us around trees, through them, and also under.

Nature is an amazing thing and the only thing we could think of that could cause this hole in the top of the tree was a lightning bolt. Fascinating, huh?!

And check this one out - it appears to have scoliosis or somethin'.

Before we knew it, we were at the end of the trail. A re-fill of our water bottles and we were ready to make our way down to the river!

LaVor was the brave one to test the temperature. I think his face is a pretty good indication of how cold it was.

The Lime jumped in and then back out. He loves swimming but wasn't so sure about it this time around.

Doodlebug also went in for a second then came out. I asked him if he wanted to go back in and this is what I got...

The Lime decided to go back in for a few moments before settling in the sand with Doodlebug. LaVor didn't mind hanging out by himself and swimming as hard as he could against the current.

Everyone got their fix of the river and we decided it was time to pack up and head on home. But first, we had to stop for some ice cream.

With full bellies, we continued on home. What an eventful day it was! We are thoroughly enjoying our weekends exploring the wonderful state we're blessed to call home.

Birthday Bash

I don't know what the odds are but in a weeks time, six of my family members have a birthday. To make things easy and fun, we gathered yesterday to have one giant celebration.

We were almost an hour behind our original arrival time but that didn't have one negative affect on the kids. They jumped right into playing the second we got there until the second we left.

My parents ordered sandwiches for everybody and we gobbled up chips, fruit, and pasta salad. Unfortunately, The Lime is a stinker when it comes to his pastrami and apparently Togos has the best. So we took his sandwich home for someone else to enjoy. Everyone did enjoy the chips, though.

A little more playing took place and then it was time to open presents!

Another round of playing after presents and then it was time for cake! My niece is allergic to eggs so my sister made eggless cupcakes for her. If you can't tell by the pictures, they were yummy!

The kids flew a kite while the adults talked for the remainder of the time.

What we thought was going to be a sweltering day turned out to be gorgeous. The park had lots to offer, was a central location for everyone, and the company was pretty dang good. The boys and I left the park feeling extremely grateful for the family we were sent to. Especially these folks who are one year older.

On our way home, my dad asked if we wanted to stop by a local base and check out their museum. Our neighbor works there and The Lime has had a desire to visit for the last three years so we took my dad up on his offer.

When we pulled up to the entrance, the guard had to check each driver's identification. My dad was in the car in front of me and handed the guard his military ID. He checked it, handed the card back to my dad, and saluted him. They do that for everyone in the military but I found it extra special and moving that my dad was the recipient.

The museum wasn't air conditioned, so it was a little miserable, but the cockpits were enough of a distraction for the boys that they didn't realize how sweltering it was.

My dad tried really hard to give The Lime his first flying lesson but his six year old mind was drawn to other things; like all of these buttons. How can you remember what each one does?!

When it was time to go, we heard a trumpet sound and wondered what in the heck was going on. My dad advised us to stop where we were, take our hats off (he and The Lime), and turn towards the music. They were retiring the flag for the evening and we were so lucky to be a part of it. We placed our hands over our hearts while The Star Spangled Banner played over the loudspeaker. This country is in a mess, and I'm afraid it will only get worse. But that minute and a half or so that we stood there, honoring that sacred flag and thinking of the men and women who have died for that flag and our freedoms, was one that I will never forget. I would have taken a photo but it was too special and I wanted to be in the moment and just have the memory in my mind.

My parents treated us to some ice cream before we parted ways.

On the way to the party, we drove by a field of sunflowers and I told the boys we'd have to stop on the way home so I could take some pictures. So that's what we did.

I ended the day with nothing but gratitude for the family I have, the freedoms I'm blessed with, and the beautiful creations Heavenly Father has provided for us. It was a wonderful day.

Lake Tahoe

My sister and niece are up in Lake Tahoe this week, along with my parents, and invited us to join them. The last time we were up there was right after Doodlebug was born, and it was for a wedding so we didn't get to do much around town.

The boys and I met up with everyone around 12:00, just in time for lunch. To nobody's surprise, The Lime suggested pizza and it was just his luck there was a pizza place nearby. Everyone was starving and filled their bellies before we made our way to the top of the mountain. I've been to Heavenly Village numerous times and have always wanted to ride the gondola. Thankfully, my parents have too so they treated us to this special experience.

The Lime wasn't so sure (another big surprise...he's afraid of most things, just like me) as we made our way up.

"What if it's too windy?" "What's that noise?" "I think we're going to crash!" He couldn't get out of the car fast enough when we reached the observation deck.

Holy cow, was it beautiful up there! Lake Tahoe is absolutely gorgeous and even more so when you're thousands of feet above it.

We walked around the deck and found this tree that was 250 years old! Even older than the United States! Amazing.

When we made our way back to the gondola, we heard a sort of alarm type sound. "What's that?!" The Lime wanted to know. So, being the guy that he is, my dad found an employee and asked if there was some sort of emergency. "There's a fire at the base of the mountain," he said. We had to get back on the gondola and get off again at the very top of the mountain.

There was a line already forming when we got there and the employees were packing everything up. (Side note: we were so impressed by how organized the staff were. Everyone was calm and knew exactly what to do and where to go.) Rather than standing in the long line and hot sun, we hung out underneath the park ranger's tent. My dad struck up a conversation with an employee who recently retired from CAL Fire. I noticed a familiar city on her name tag (all the employees have where they're from noted on their name tag, sort of like Disneyland) and told my dad to take a look. She said she was originally from Southern California but retired to Nevada. "Do you by any chance know Jesse ________?" my dad asked. She responded with "I know his parents. They live down the street from me." We were amazed! Out of the thousands of people on the top of that mountain, we conversed with someone who was neighbor's with an old family friend. Small, small world!

We were probably waiting for close to an hour before they deemed it safe enough to take people back down the mountain. In my dad's true fashion (he was always the last one off a flight because he'd talk to the pilot), we were the last ones to board the gondola and even got to have three employees join us. They were from Idaho, Kentucky, and Los Angeles. All very nice, even though they looked like prisoners in their orange shirts.

We could see the helicopter gather water from the lake and then drop it on the fire below us. As we got closer, we saw the grounds crew and more on the way.

Once at the bottom, we met back up with my sister and all headed to my uncle's house. They recently purchased a home in the area and it was lovely and soooooo peaceful. Doodlebug and I sat on the back deck while he napped and the others went for a walk down to the lake. All The Lime wanted to do all day was go in the water, even though I warned him it was icy cold.

My aunt prepared a delicious meal for us before the boys and I headed back on the road for home.

It was an exciting, eventful day and made me appreciate, even more, this beautiful land our Heavenly Father created. We're so blessed to live here!