Call To Fast!

Hello my blogging  friends!
I have a dear friend having some serious medical issues and her doctors cannot figure what in the world is wrong with her.
It's very scary. I know this first hand after spending time with her on Friday.
My friend - just six weeks ago - ran a triathlon, was camping, water skiing etc. She is super active, has two darling , adopted daughters from Ukraine in fact, she was in Ukraine when I was and seriously saved my sanity by staying with me while I was stuck waiting on Alex's passport. She is one of my most favorite friends. (I know that we must have been friends in the pre-existence and that she was sent into my life at a time when I needed her most.)
About a month ago she started having seizures - out of the blue. The only thing she could deduct was it might have something to do with a car accident she had a few weeks prior? She had whiplash and pain in her head and neck and had started having migraines. She's had test after test run and the docs can find nothing.
Now, in addition to the seizures, she is passing/blacking out, often times can't walk or get her limbs to do what her brain tells them to do and has even started having breathing issues. It's like her brain is telling her body what to do, but her body is not getting the message. It is very scary. I can't even imagine how sad and scary this is for her husband and daughters.
The doctors are stumped and suggesting she may have to go to the Mayo clinic - as they have yet to find anything on any of the many tests they have run and re-run.
Friday, she passed out at lunch, again while we tried to get her into the car -she's in a wheelchair - and then two more times in the car.  One time she had a little seizure during her black out. It was so scary.
But despite this, her attitude is amazing! Her girls are stepping up to the plate taking care of her and the household chores. Her husband has been so caring and protective. She has an amazing support of friends in her area. But it's her attitude that just blows me away. I don't know that I would be as stalwart. I think I just roll up in a ball and cry.
I was telling James about my concern for her tonight and he suggested that we have a fast on her behalf. He reminded me of the scripture where Jesus healed a man and... explained "Howbeit this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting." (Matt 17: 14-21) and then I came across the scripture about the sons of Mosiah, they “had given themselves to much prayer, and fasting; therefore they had the spirit of prophecy, and the spirit of revelation," (Alma 17:3)
She needs this illness to "goeth" and if not, she needs her doctors and health professionals to get some "spirit of prophecy and revelation" to help her.
I am proposing that next weekend we fast and pray on my sweet friends behalf.
I hope you will join me and my family and invite any family and friends to do the same.

Tomatoes & Airsoft BB's

"Only two things that money can't buy,

that's true love 

& 

HOME GROWN TOMATOES!"

James happens to grow amazing tomatoes. Some of our plants are 7 feet tall. And each year around this time I can tomatoes. I come from pioneer stock - you know stout women that walked across the plains with a baby slung over their shoulder and a toddler in hand - they lived in log cabins, sewed their own clothes, grew everything and canned it all - yes - those are my ancestors. Both of my grandmothers canned. My Grandma Johnson canned just about everything and it is from her I learned all that I know. Not a canning season goes by when I don't think of my grandma and wish I could ring her up and ask her a question or two.

I am not a professional canner -apparently that's not a real word - by any means. I can tomaotes. And every 5 years or so I can chili sauce. 

Guess what? 

It's been five years.

So last Thursday, after harvesting our garden, it was time.

I have to get myself all psyched up to do this. 

I like to can little pint sized bottles as when using chili sauce, you usually just need a little.

So as I'm pouring my 36th bottle - I see two little white things plop into the bottle.....??

I pour the contents back in the pot and look for it.

Nothing.

I pour again, and again I see very quickly two little white things, plop, plop.

I fish them out and what do I find?
TWO AIR SOFT BB's!!

Apparently, the were IN the tomatoes? 

Oh great.

Apparently some boy child of mine has used the tomato plants as target practice?
ALEX??

Conflicting Reports...

I checked on Alex's grades yesterday and found he's getting a D+ in Health.
Nice.
I emailed his teacher and besides one missing assignment - that's he's turning in today - I got this:

I can tell you that he talks way to much in class.  I have spoken to him about being disruptive in class twice already.  His behavior will keep him from doing his best work if not controlled.  We discussed him in Team Meeting yesterday....many teachers are concerned about his success.

Yet, in English -he is getting an A - I got this:

I'm glad to hear Alex is liking junior high!  He really is doing well in English; he struggled at first with raising his hand to ask questions, staying in his seat, not blurting out, etc., but he's really improved with those behaviors in the last couple weeks.  He's such a smart kid!

Hum....so is the TEAM really concerned about his success? Or is it something more with the Health teacher? According to Alex, she's boring. (He does a fabulous impersonation of her nasally whining voice. Which, I know isn't nice but it's so accurate that it's hard not to laugh.) My older three - who have all had the same teacher - side with Alex but he does need to stop talking in class.

However, despite the fact that talking and blurting out answers is wrong, isn't it a little great that he has enough confidence to do so? That at least he's listening enough to blurt out answers? I don't know. I have to give him a little credit there. 

As for the staying in his seat.....he is a wiggly kid. At dinner on Sunday he was kneeling on the bench with his bum in the air and I had to ask him to sit on his behind. "Why, I am not on a date?" I explained that he can't just miraculously have great manners on a date if he doesn't practice it at home. I don't think he agrees with me. I also made him take his elbows off the table. Such a mean mom, I know.
I sent the following email to all his teachers:


I got the following email from one of Alex's teachers:
"...I can tell you that he talks way to much in class.  I have spoken to him about being disruptive in class twice already.  His behavior will keep him from doing his best work if not controlled.  We discussed him in Team Meeting yesterday....many teachers are concerned about his success."
I  have found with Alex that direct and straight forward is the best way to handle every situation, that he does not learn by example, or subtleness. Needless to say we'll be discussing his behavior tonight. Could you please let me know if he is being disruptive in your class and/or if there are any behavior issues we should address at well?
He is a good boy but he takes social cues from those around him and doesn't always make the best choices with his behavior if he has the chance to be funny or the center of attention. 
Any input or feedback you can give me would be greatly appreciated.
~Wendy Richhart

So, I guess well see what the other five teachers have to say.

He started making a "video" journal as one of his days of journal-ling. It was short lived because yesterdays video was 6 minutes and 48 seconds of him trying to add up the money he's going to make mowing lawns this month and the cost of  a cell phone. He's determined at the end of the month he can buy a crappy Cricket phone and pay for service for two months. 6:48 minutes of him adding and subtracting and wiggling around without him really talking in full sentences proved that "video" journal-ling is not working.

However, here is last weeks journal video. The sound's not so good but the kid sure is cute.

She said "YES"!

Austin's homecoming date that is!

She doorbell ditched this HUGE bucket of Oreo cookies on our doorstep Sunday, late afternoon. 

Poor girl, probably had a problem making the drop off as Austin and Alex were running around the yard trying to assassinate each other with Airsoft bb guns. Yes, I know it's Sunday but my rule is playing with FAMILY only so....meh? The boys had came in to show me Alex's welts on his chest and arm - which he showed off with pride - right before the doorbell rang. 

(Yes, Alex's face is this red due to running from Austin for the past hour.)

Jeff and Troy were there and helped open all the Oreo's. 

Devree got the lucky one that said....

Oh, a little closer you say.....

Confessions in Kiev....

A friend of mine - currently in Ukraine finishing the last steps of adopting  two boys - reminded me of an incident that happened when I was in Kiev with Alex.  An incident I chose not to blog about as it does not paint me in the best light but now that he's been home and has survived his first couple of years, I think I will confess and add this to our adoption journal.

Here goes....

When you fly half way around the world to a foreign country to adopt a street wise orphan, your sense of right or wrong gets a little skewed. You feel more like the child that can't understand people and/or what's going on around you. You are there to pay and sign. Sign and pay. What you are signing and what you are paying for is often times not explained to you. You just do it and hope that whatever you are signing and paying for will get you one step closer to getting on that plane and going home with your new child in hand. You just nod and smile and hope everyone around you does not think you are the idiot you feel like.

So that's where I was, Nodding and smiling and delayed a WEEK due to passport picture issues when the unthinkable happened.

I lost Alex.

In downtown Kiev.

It was stupid and my fault. He wanted to go to the store and I let him go. We had been together everyday through the ten day wait and then another ten days solid and we were both going stir crazy! There was a little store across the parking lot that I assumed he was asking to go to and I didn't think anything of it. I gave him money. I think he was wanting a snack and to buy me chocolate? Yes, chocolate is what I needed to get through the day so, off he went. 

And then he didn't come back.

For a very long time.

In fact, after an thirty minutes, I walked to the store to see what was taking so long. No Alex. Anywhere. Our apartment was just minutes from "the square" and the heart of the city and all of a sudden it hit me. What have I done? I thought of downtown Salt Lake and how I would NEVER let my children wander around alone there. Never! And what had I just done? Let Alex do that very thing only in a much bigger city! I had no idea what to do. How could I explain this to the police. What was he wearing? Do I even have a printed out photo to show around? 

Luckily, Amy and Mary were with me - and they offered to go look for him and told me to stay put in case he came back to the apartment. I was frantic. Here I was his mother for just over a week and I lost him! Oh my gosh. 

I realized just what a terrible mother I was to this boy already. The fact that he could understand people and had to do the talking for us, gave me this warped sense of his ability to take care of himself. Not to mention that he had pretty much been taking care of himself most of his life? Unless you've been there, you don't understand what it's like to not be able to understand people. He could. He could talk to people, ask questions and he was respected and recognized by the adults we had transactions with because I was backing him with my fist full of Grivina and blank look. I had grown lax. I had assumed too much. Kiev is not a family friendly city and unlike Dnipro where he roamed the streets and knew every nook and cranny, he had never been there before.

What was I thinking?

I kept thinking about all the irresponsible parenting I had dished out so far: I  had given him money to go buy and haggle with the street vendors while I checked emails and wrote blogs at the Internet cafe. He was no where in sight as I desperately made contact with home. He could have very easily been kidnapped, hit by a car or carried off by a pack of stray dogs.

I had him navigate us to a terrible Mexican restaurant - where it was rumored we could get real Mexican food. He was the lone native speaker leading a bunch of adults through the subway AT NIGHT. Would I expect that of my home grown children at age ten? Please. 

I had  him order at all the restaurants for the both of us,  tell the waitress I wanted ice in my drink, and ask for directions and instructions. He did all this and more.  He would even check our bill and count the change and make sure we were not being taken advantage of. 

He would warn ME not to step on the man-hole covers (where there were any) pantomiming how I would fall down the hole and die and hush me up in the stores so people wouldn't hear my English and try to rob us blind. He would carry my bags and remind me to lock the doors. He really took care of me and yet HE was the one that needed a mother? Wat kind of mother did he get? One that let him wander off in a major, crowed city full of people (with questionable morals based on their dress and inebriated walk), with no address, no phone number, no way to call me. I'm not even sure he knew my full name.

I could picture the headlines: "Brrusht furcust ver gerrs htick zer surk zerer stera" Translation:  "Dumb American loses child with in days of becoming his mother!"
An hour later he walked in without a care in the world with package in hand!
I wanted to hug him and strangle him at the same time!!

Yes, he went to the store but not the little store across the parking lot. He went to some store clear across the square  that he had seen earlier that day, the line to pay was long and it took an hour but here was my chocolate. I wanted to hug him and strangle him all at the same time! 

I was minutes away from calling my translator to help me contact the police.

I-Yi-Yi!

So, there you have it. 

The truth.

9/11 May We Never Forget....

All week my youngest two children have been coming home telling me about 9/11. They act as if I don't know about this tragic event? I realize for Alex this is all new information for him* - not growing up here and all but I thought Rylee was pretty familiar with the attack.
* I did talk to Alex about 9/11 last year sometime when he wanted to make an art project about the "towers that got hit by plane" only because he found it cool, like boys do when they think of war and guns and fighting - he didn't grasp the sadness and significance of the attack. I couldn't seem to get him to understand, I finally just told him he had to find something else to focus his art project on much to his dismay.

Upon realizing this is the tenth anniversary of the attacks and that Rylee is only 11 1/2, it hit me. Of course she doesn't remember! She was here but just a baby. And as much as I feel we're a patriotic, apple pie eating, American loving family, it's not something we talk about very often. (Unless you're making a cartoon about it for art!)

It was just so sad and tragic.

I think 9/11 is one of those events that you never forget when and where you were when you were made aware of it. Just like older folks that remember when and where they were when John F Kennedy was shot. I know where I was when I heard about the attacks, I was right here, sitting in my office. I had a little TV in my office then so my littles could watch PBS while I worked. I can't remember if someone called or if I had the TV on and it came across the screen, I just remember the panic and the search for my mom and brother who were flight attendants and working at the time. I know that for most of my family when they remember their when and where, it will be "When my sister/daughter, Wendy called and told me to turn on my TV."  I wrote a post about it a while back on the day OSB was killed. 

I am so glad my children are learning in school about 9/11. And I vow to do a better job of teaching them about important historical events at home.

Alex wrote this in his journal this week:

In Utah Studies we watched a movie about Twin Towers. The sad part is the people were jumping off Twin Towers and Twin Towers getting hit by a plane. I am grateful that some people survived from the Twin Towers.

His teachers this year have managed to convey to him what I couldn't get through to him last year. The horrible sadness, the loss of innocent lives, the terror of that day.

Has it really be TEN years?

It seems like just yesterday.

I feel so badly for the families that lost friends, family and loved one's that day. Some were just going to work like any other day or taking a flight. Others were trying to save those that were attacked. They rushed in without thought for their life in order to save another. I am sure there is a place in the Kingdom of Heaven for these fire fighters, paramedics and police.

I feel badly for the families that have lost soldiers who went to war because of the attacks.
How many children have lost parents? How many wives have lost husbands? Husbands lost wives? Children lost both parents? Grandparents? Aunts, Uncles?

9/11 is just so sad. So tragic and we should never forget.

We're watching footage and a documentary on 9/11 this morning. How unfortunate that when I checked out Netflix, the first movie to pop up was on the conspiracy of 9/11 comparing it to some of the atrocities  committed by Hitler.  I have to remind myself, that this is what sets the United States apart from so many other countries. Freedom of speech.

God Bless America.

For some odd reason....

I didn't publish some of my posts over the last year. 

I was looking in my blog for a certain article for one of our families having issues with her school district and noticed a BUNCH of unpublished posts?

I cleaned them out today, publishing the one's I think I missed and deleting the duplicates.

Sorry for plugging up your reader!

Homecoming??

I came home from my SAC lunch (Thanks everyone that came, it's so nice to catch up with each other.)  to Austin announcing in a rush, "I need your help!" 
I have been bugging him about going to homecoming. This being his senior year and all but his answer? "I've already been to homecoming." 

Good grief.

Well, apparently he has decided to go (Because his friends are going? Thanks Austin's friends!) but he heard it through the grape vine (or from this girls friends) that someone else was going to ask the girl he wanted to ask today (Supposedly said girl would really rather go with him? Ahh...the drama of high school.). So, time was of the essence!

Time to put on my creative-cool-ingenious-spontaneous mom cap! And quick!!
(Insert sounds of heroin music -face paced and full of energy - right here.)
I had lots of ideas (we do have a spare toilet in our side yard. Imagine the possibilities??)  but due to my impossibly quick deadline, this is what we ended up with......

"It makes a lot of "cents" 

for you to go to 

homecoming with me. 

Will you?"

???

And we filled a jar with over 1,000 pennies with his name spelled out one letter at a time on 14 out of the thousands of pennies. (I even tied a bow on the jar much to Austin's dismay, "Mom, that's gay." Well? That's what you get with a mom helping my friend. A little fru-fru!!) 

No, we did not have over a thousand pennies just lying around. Austin ran to Smiths and bought rolls of pennies while Devree, Alex and Rylee scrounged through the house for all our spare pennies they could find. I made up the little saying and Dev wrote his name with Sharpie on the pennies. Austin arrived with the rolls of pennies, unwrapped and dumped them in the jar and we were set!

The poor girl was at soccer practice and I had a brilliant plan! I talked Devree into wearing the Yettie suit and hand delivering it to her on the soccer field! (As she knew who the girl was by sight - if not I would have done it! Yea, I'm crazy that way. In hind sight, we should have had Austin dress up as he's so much bigger and walks and runs like a guy but it worked out fine all the same.)

Here is Devree in our fabulous Yettie outfit (I knew this costume was going to be a great investment when I bought it three or four years ago! We use it all the time!)  with 5 pound jar of pennies before we left:

We all jumped in the car (because everyone wanted to watch) and we were off! 

It turned out great, just wish I had a camera that would zoom in WHILE I was videoing....

 
This is the stuff that makes being a mom so dang fun!

Can't wait to help Devree answer her date!
Maybe then I can wear the Yeti suit!

Still Needs A Mama....

The speech teacher from the junior high just called. She had just given Alex a test and told me how well he was doing and hoping he'll be wrapping up speech therapy at the end of the school year. Woot! I asked what class she'd be pulling him out of? I gave a plug to pull him out of his least favorite class "Functional Literacy" because A: he doesn't like it and B: none of Alex's friends or peers are in it with him so it will save him the embarrassment of being pulled out of a regular class. (Yes, mom points for me!) She thought that would work great.
I talked to her about his "th" sound - as his IEP addresses the "s" sound and she agreed that he had a few more sounds to work on, then I explained  that we adopted him from an orphanage for children with speech disorders.  I asked, "You did realize he was from another country right?"
"Oh yes. I figured something like that."
"Oh good, he doesn't usually like to tell anyone, he keeps it on the low down."
"Well , he didn't actually come out and tell me. I asked him to tell me about himself but he didn't mention anything about being adopted. Then I asked him to tell me more and he did but still nothing about Ukraine or being adopted. Finally I asked if he had always lived in the country and he admitted he hadn't."
Ha! Nothing about Ukraine. Nothing about being adopted. Zero. Nada. I told her that he is 100% here and just wants folks to think he's always been here. I am fine with that except I think some of his teachers need to know he's only been in the country for just over two years and still struggling with the language. She said he was doing amazing. I was tickled. That's my boy. My all American boy.

Alex decided he wanted to start blogging again. I had to help him with his post a lot and I'm not sure it's going to help his English as much as journal writing. I'm thinking maybe I'll just let him publish his post in their original form? Mistakes and all? Before I was correcting in a different color but I hate to mark up his posts for all to see. Well, see. Last time blogging died off quickly. It might again. (Stop by and say "Hi" if you feel inclined. He loves comments!)

Last night I was examining the scratch he got riding his bike. It's on his arm and it's sort of bruising around the scratch. He got it on his way to school yesterday on his bike. It looks very tender and sore and I asked if he cried? He looked at me with a look of disdain and obvious disgust. 

"No."  

Teasingly I said,

"Oh, okay. You are thirteen now. I guess you don't cry for your mama any more when you get hurt?" 

"No, I didn't cry for my mama."
He was laying against me - tucking ME into bed  - because he was so slow at getting to bed - I was already in bed, reading. I was rubbing his head and I asked,

"When do you cry for your mama?"
He answered without any hesitation or embarrassment,

"I  cry for my mama when I get HUGE hurt."
And I reminded him,

"Oh, and in a freezing, cold snow cave when you can't get warm?" 

"Yes. And in the middle of night at scout camp when bugs bite me." 

"So you still need a mama?" 

"Yes.....to give me food." 

"Oh, so you need me to feed you?" 

"Yes, and teach me English."
And he sighed and hugged me real tight.

Thirteen.
Thirteen year old's still need their mama's.
And it sure is nice to hear that they do......

Rockport Labor Day Weekend!

Saturday the Fishermen/woman set out at o'six hundred to go fishing.....

Love this picture of Alex and James in their matching "do" rags.

Here comes grandpa with the bigger boat.

The rest of us didn't meet until 8:30 ish and leisurely got to the lake around 9:30 am. 

The younger kids immediately started to build sandcastles because it was too cold to even consider getting in the water.

The big kids fell asleep waiting for it to warm up.....

and some tried to study....

One of the fishermen was still intent on catching a fish. No bites during the morning.

The sand village....

The beach girls:

The tube boy's heading off on an adventure:

On "Gwampa's" Boat

Getting pushed off the beach.....

Recruiting MORE help to push us off the beach!

Austin:

Kambree:

Devree: 

The Captain:

Troy:

The newest boat was the tubing boat and the younger kids got lots of tubing time in.

And right before we left - the smallest three found this mud pit!

Yes, that is MUD not knee-high stockings!

All and all  it was a lovely day. Beautiful weather, good company and no major injuries. A few sunburns and sore muscles but that's to be expected!
Goodbye summer. You will be missed!