Trip for George's Farewell

I finished the binding on Vaughn’s quilt on Monday night over at Heidi’s house so that it would be ready to take to Oregon. On Wednesday I took the boys to Tyson’s follow up Dr’s appoint to see how he was doing. I had them check Lincoln as well to which he was all cleared up and Tyson just had some lingering breathing noises probably from the virus. She said that the contagiousness of the virus lasts about a week and then coughing and such will continue for another 2-3 weeks, so we were glad to hear that our trip to Salt Lake and Oregon shouldn’t be too much trouble. Adam didn’t get home from getting his work stuff done until late and so we decided that he would go to bed while I packed the truck up and that we would leave at 2 a.m. Thursday morning so that he could make it to his roofing training class in Tooele at 8:00 that morning. It just so happened that his brother Sheldon was going to that all day class as well, so they ended up driving together while Lincoln, Tyson, and I hung out all day with Sara Ann, Marshall, and Luke. We took the boys to the Aquarium where they had a good time seeing frogs, fish, octopus, anaconda, and for me a few other disturbing critters/creatures. We stayed the night at their house and then Friday morning Adam went and put in study time for his Arizona license which had tests scheduled for Monday and Tuesday of this next week. He finished in the afternoon and we packed up to head on to Oregon for the rest of the weekend for George’s farewell. We enjoyed seeing Clara Jane and Grant as they came into town for the same occasion. Saturday we drove over to Ontario and ate breakfast at Denny’s with George, Hugh, Clara, and Grant. George had requested it and when I asked him why he wanted to do that he said, “So we can just eat breakfast and talk.” I think he has a different idea of what that is like when little kids are around J We went back home and after Adam helped Vaughn with some stuff on his 4-wheeler a bunch of them went shooting in the hills back behind my house and then played basketball until late. George did well on his farewell talk and had many friends from the town and nearby family that came to support him at the potluck that my mom and dad had for him at the school cafeteria after church. He is going to the Sierra Leone Freetown Mission in West Africa and will be greatly missed. We enjoyed spending the rest of Sunday at home and then once again I packed our bags while Adam went to sleep so he could drive when we would leave tomorrow morning at 2 a.m. The disappointing factor during this whole trip was that Lincoln started feeling sick again on Friday morning and hasn’t been himself. He just wants me to hold him, so I didn’t get to do much except sit and watch the Olympics (not too much complaining there though). It’s just too bad that his fun personality was non-existent. We are going to miss George for the next two years whenever we come home for the holidays/trips, however I’m sure we will push to play basketball in his absence.

Smashed Toe and Not Fun Being Sick

This last week my goal was to get our taxes done. My part is done as everything is now in the accountants' hands so I guess you could say that I accomplished that goal. That is a relief and boy am I glad that accountants exist.
Last Sunday Tyson's toe was smashed with a fireplace tool and he has been having a lot of attention from Adam and I during his pain. Everytime I go to put some essential oils on it he says, “Are you being careful?” or “Please be careful mom.” The toe is not a pretty site and he has been complaining about it hurting from the time it happened. With that and Lincoln still not feeling well we have spent a lot of time at home and I don’t know who it is harder on me or the boys to have to be homebound. Wednesday took a turn for the worse as in the early evening when we had gone by Susie’s, she felt him to be warm and took a 103 degree temperature. I took him home and gave him some Tylenol and about an hour later it had only dropped to 102 degrees, so with Adam being out of town to Arizona and not scheduled to be back until after midnight then I waited till Susie was done exercising and asked her to come with me and take both boys to the walk in night clinic over in St. George. We waited for about 2 hours trying to entertain the boys and make them comfortable. When we finally got in they took their temperatures and oxygen levels and found them both to be high and low in oxygen. They gave the boys breathing treatments for asthma and as Lincoln’s breathing and oxygen level improved, Tyson’s did not so they did a 2nd treatment on him and still no improvement. They said that it was more than likely some kind of virus that was triggering the asthma, but with his oxygen level being so low that they couldn’t send him home and we would have to go over to the hospital for the night. I had Susie drop Tyson and I off over at the other hospital, which is where the delivery and pediatric unit is. Susie took Lincoln home to Adam as he was now back and while Adam gave Lincoln breathing treatments through the night at home (Lincoln in the picture during one of his treatments later in the week, was very good), I was with Tyson in the hospital and he was getting the same. Luckily this hospital visit did not require an IV, and I kept using that on Tyson when ever he was being difficult in doing the treatments and taking medicine. He was good about drinking water and believe it or not going to the bathroom. The time that I would think a child would not want to deal with going in the toilet and just using a diaper, but not him. I was pushing for us going home later that morning, as I could tell that Tyson was getting stir crazy and was difficult at times to control (probably the meds), so the pediatrician said that if I felt comfortable taking oxygen tanks home then it would be fine to do so. I was trained on the oxygen equipment and around 5 p.m. we headed home after stopping to get some medicine. Tyson and Lincoln spent the rest of the week trying to recuperate. I managed with the Lord’s help to give the Relief Society lesson on Sunday that I had said I would do last week when the counselor was looking for a substitute, not knowing what I would be dealing with a majority of the week. I found it very challenging to focus preparing for it throughout the week as a cough or cry would take my thoughts to a Dr. Mom mode and try to think if I was missing anything that I should be doing for my boys. We have taken the boys to the flat a little each day as it seems to cheer them up and they look a lot healthier while trying to run around and do farm stuff. It has been a very tiresome week.

The Week of the Jean Quilt

This past week my goal was to start and finish a jean quilt for Vaughn. MaryJane had started the project as a Christmas gift for him a few years ago and after not having much access to our serger and sewing machine as it had been loaned out multiple places and then I ended up with it, she turned it over to me at Thanksgiving time last year and I knew that with my sister-in-law Heidi’s help that I could get it done. Everything worked out great as I spent Tuesday through Saturday afternoons working on it over at Heidi’s. Tyson and Lincoln had many opportunities to play with their cousins Erika and Emily and had a great time exploring around the wash. On Saturday we set up Heidi’s quilting frames in Phyllis’ basement (a.k.a Ben and Tia’s place) and tied the quilt most of the afternoon and finished pinning the binding that evening, so technically I didn’t finish it last week, but it is very close to done so that when we go to Oregon for George’s farewell then I can take it to him. One of the days when the kids were playing in the back at Heidi’s I heard this conversation take place:
Tyson: Well, only girls can’t go to the temple!
Twin 1: Yeah, only mommies and daddies can go to the temple (as she sides herself by Tyson).
Twin 2: Well, I’m Josh then! (I thought her to be very witty to quickly call herself Josh so that as a boy she could go to the temple). I’m sure they will all be excited when they grow up and learn that as they live their lives right and worthy then they all can go, not just mommies & daddies or boys. On Friday Sheldon, SaraAnn, Marshall, and Luke came into town for the weekend. Tyson and Marshall had a great time. At one point I went outside to talk to Adam and one of the twins came up to me, from being over by their horses, and said, “MaRae (LaRae), Marshall said that they is not our horses, and they is!!!” She said it with such passion and Marshall had a smirk on his face as if he knew he was harassing her. Shortly after that Erika and Emily did not like it that Marshall and Tyson would not play with them and came complaining to me about it. I took the opportunity to point out how it is not very nice to treat others that way as when the twins are with a few other girl cousins and quite often I find Tyson complaining about the same thing since usually he is the only boy trying to fit in. Friday evening we went to the St. George airport and welcomed Bryce Hastings home from his mission in California (I snapped this picture later on while he was trying to prepare his homecoming talk for next week). Afterward we all gathered at the Golden Corral for dinner. Lincoln hasn’t been feeling good the last few days and I noticed some spots on his tongue yesterday, which Phyllis thinks he has stomatitis, a viral infection that lasts about a week with high fevers and possible throwing up.

Boots, Cows, and Haircuts

This past week I set a goal that was a little less demanding, so the fridge received some cleaning care on Friday. I could see that the week was coming to a close and made myself stay home and get it done and I'm glad I did. Adam and I went to the temple Saturday morning and had Kylie stay the night Friday so she could watch the kids while we were gone. On the way home from the temple I saw a closing sale of a long time St. George western wear place and had Adam drop me off there while he had to go retrieve some materials for a job. He met me in the store later when he was done and we picked out some boots for him, the boys, and myself. While getting loaded to head out to the flat for the rest of the day/evening I had Adam take a laundry basket full of food for the pigs. He asked me if I was moving out to the flat and I told him, "Where do you think all the space in the fridge came from?" I'm glad we have pigs to throw our old rotten food to. I feel like we are being frugal somehow.

Since more time is being spent with the cows at the farm then the increase need for boots for the boys has become more and more apparent as each time we come home from there they have their tennis shoes stiff, wet, and covered in maneur. I am tired of trying to clean them and have them decent for when we go somewhere other than by the cows and other animals. Since the pricing on these boots were great then I bought 3 pairs for Tyson (for different sizes down the road), 1 for Lincoln, 1 for Adam, and 1 for myself. It looks like I'll be taking the smallest of Tyson's pairs and exchanging it for a smaller pair for Lincoln as the ones he ended up with seem a little big and he walks around like a Ronald McDonald look alike (just the shoes :) By the end of the day Adam was very happy with us stopping to get the boots earlier, especially his, since he walked around in maneur, muck, water, and whatever else the rest of the afternoon/evening working on the corrals. Tyson stayed outside with his dad the whole day and didn't come in once to complain that his feet were wet and cold and it was easy for him to take the boots off when he did. One very noteable story is that last night after all the corral work was done and Wynn, Stuart, Adam and Josh were talking about their cows before they called it a day, Tyson yelled to them and said, "Hey, go close that gate!" They looked back and sure enough they had left the gate open. Wynn told us later that Tyson had saved him and Jared a lot of work during the night as he could just see all the cows getting out and wandering around and them having to round them up. Good Job Tyson! He gets the paying attention to detail from me obviously :) After Phyllis fed us dinner (yummy homemade rolls and cinnamon rolls included), Adam had to head back over to St. George to remove our dump trailer from the driveway of a job, so I tried my hand at giving both the boys haircuts and baths so that when he came back to pick us up the boys would be ready for bed. I gave Adam a haircut after we got home, so here's the pictures I couldn't resist taking this morning.

We Finally Got Away

This week I set my goal to clean out the office since I had managed to finish filing the company and personal papers, so the office was ready for some attention. Now I must confess that even though the office is cleaned out that most everything of what was cleaned out is sitting out in the hallway still, even after a week. Getting it out there is as far as I got, but it is progress and my strategy is that with it out there it will be in my way making me to have to put it away elsewhere. Don't you just love how I manipulate myself :) Monday night we cracked/shelled pecan nuts out at the flat for Family Home Evening. On Thursday the boys and I went with Adam, his dad, and Mark to the auction in Cedar City. Adam remembers going there once as a kid. He's been feeling the need to get some cows mostly for our boys as they grow up. He spent most of the auction just learning how it all works and the procedure of bidding. Right when he felt like he was ready to bid on some they were done, however they announced that there was a trailer en route with a few more, so we stuck around and ended up with four older cows. It was a good experience and Tyson and Lincoln enjoyed seeing all the cows come through the ring. After eating lunch there at the Market Grill, we headed out to load our cows and as I came around the corner of the walkway there was a white bum showing. Tyson took gma Stout's lecture to heart on it being okay for him to pee outside and that is just what he was doing. I kicked dirt over it and continued on. I took this picture of Lincoln last week when he was obsessed with these two basketballs and wanted to take them to bed with him, so that was a picture moment when I went to check on him. I did end up moving the top one away since it was right in front of his mouth and it made me nervous about blocking his breathing in the night. Friday Adam and I went with Stuart & Heidi, Kelby & Kathy Iverson, and Brandon & Susan Iverson on a trip to Ruby's Inn at Bryce Canyon for a Farm Bureau Young Farmers and Ranchers Convention. We made arrangements with Phyllis and Susie to watch the two boys and yes this was our first time since Tyson was born, leaving them over night somewhere. Glad we were finally able to do that since Tyson will be turning 4 in June. It was strange to have a night of sleep without any interruptions since that is very rare in our home (my boys do not sleep well, especially Tyson). We started the trip off Friday having Susie drop us off at Stu's and then Susie took the kids out to the flat while she went to work out. They stayed out there all day and then Susie took them home with her that night and had Tyson sleep in bed with them and Lincoln slept in a pack n play. She said it went fine and then they went back to the flat Saturday morning until we got home that afternoon. It was a great convention we attended. We got to know a few more people and we felt like it was nice to be with a large group of people that mostly have the same values as us and want a good way of life for their kids. The speaker was Trent Loos who is a sixth generation United States farmer with a passion for the rural lifestyle. He uses his laptop computer with the internet to record, produce and send his radio programs from wherever his travels take him. His radio listening audience of 4 million and can be heard on more than 100 stations across the country http://www.loostales.com/ . We all thoroughly enjoyed listening to him speak as I gathered from the discussion about how those who support the agricultural lifestyle need to engage with those who don't on a level of educating them as to what agriculture provides for them, not conversations of who is right and who is wrong. I came away having a greater appreciation for the opportunities in my life I had while growing up and and right now to have agriculture be a part of it. I truly feel that my siblings and I had instilled in us the desire of good hard work, discipline, and a very enjoyable lifestyle. Now I find this lifestyle continuing to provide those same opportunities for me and my boys. Whenever we gather as family we have great memories to share from the farm life and it makes those gatherings so enjoyable. The experiences Adam and I have gained and my boys are and will gain are priceless.

What do you Harvest in January?

This past week I set my goal to file my personal papers, so that I could rotate those out for this new year. I did manage to get that done, so it feels good once again. Amidst all of that we spent quite a few days helping Wynn and Phyllis gather and hull pecan nuts from under their trees. It is quite the process and you feel a little more productive in food storage since around here this is about the only thing you can harvest during the January winter month. Gathering nuts was our Family Home Evening activity and then I brought out some makings for taco soup for dinner that night and then we had a good gospel centered discussion around the table afterwards with Stuart and Heidi as well. On Friday night a group of us went to Texas Roadhouse for our date. Wynn & Phyllis and Daniel and Susie had gift cards from Christmas that they wanted to use and then Caleb & Stephanie, Ben & Tia, and Aunt RomaAnn came as well. I had planned for Adam and I to go look for some mirrors for our bathrooms afterwards, however we didn't feel much like checking it out and Tyson called a few times wanting us to come home and we couldn't resist that plea so we went out to the flat to pick him up. Saturday morning we made it to an early morning session at the temple and then ran our errands that we didn't do last night. Today I taught the CTR 5 class at church and boy were they a challenge. I was really wiped out after church. We ended up staying home the rest of the evening since Adam had a Stake Priesthood Meeting at 6 p.m. and I was so exhausted. These pictures I took this last year and since I wasn't the best at blogging towards the latter part of the year then I wanted to have some pictures since I didn't take any this past week. The boys just love it when their dad reads to them and they really appreciated it this last week with Adam being home from his work trip the week before. I found Tyson sitting on one of my couches posing like this and couldn't resist snapping a pic of it.

A Week of Fun, Glad it is Done

This last week was fun as Tarek, Vaughn, and George wrapped up their visit from last weekend. Tyson and Lincoln had a great time with them. Tarek took them to get ice cream which was a big hit and then when he left he gave money to Daniel to take them for ice cream again which Tyson was sure to remind Daniel to do. Apparently when Daniel took them it was after Addie had gone to bed and I was at Webelos, however Tyson did not like it that Addie was missing out and scolded Daniel for having them get ice cream without her. We played basketball a few times while they were here, went to Ben's wedding reception, and made sure to watch the BSU/TCU bowl game on Monday night for Family Home Evening. After the game we went home and Adam slept for a couple hours before he had to get up at 12:30 and head to Kansas for a job he was doing there. He was gone all week and just got back this morning at 10 a.m. after driving all through the night. We are so very happy he is back and missed him very much. I made sure to take Tyson and Lincoln out of the house to break up the day mostly the latter part of it as the evening is when they struggle with their dad not being around. Thursday I went to Heidi's and started working on Vaughn's quilt that MaryJane needed finished for him. I didn't get a whole lot done but mostly went there for the boys to play with the twins and their bunnies. My goal this week (since my plan this year is to accomplish a project off my list each week of the year) was to get the filing done for the company so it worked out great with Adam being gone. After the boys would go to bed I would spend the time in the office until after midnight each night. I managed to get done everything I set out to do so that feels good. On Tuesday morning after Susie, Daniel, and I made a big breakfast for the boys before they headed home, Susie took some pictures of Lincoln in the same outfit that we took of Tyson around the same age and they turned out cute. I'm excited to get them printed up and hung on my walls (a project for another week :) Yesterday I took the boys to go help g-ma Stout collect pecans and watch the guy shake the trees with his tractor. We managed to get quite a few boxes from the shaking onto the tarps and then we cleaned around one tree and headed back to the flat to sort through and hull them. On the way home Tyson rode with Josh in the back of g-pa's truck and I snapped this picture of them at the stop sign while following behind them. Tyson just adores Josh. We spent the rest of the day at the flat helping g-ma which was nice to take my mind off of Adam being gone, since we usually spend Saturdays together as a family getting things done. This week was very productive, however I'm glad it is over so that Adam could be home safe with us again.