Quirky Me

So, I was tagged by Missy to reveal 6 quirks (or at least the ones that I will admit to). In no particular order. . .

1. I HATE to use the phone. Truthfully it borders on a phobia. It takes me a few hours to even days to work up the courage to call about bills, etc. If I have the chance to drive somewhere to talk in person, rather than on the phone I will do it. Unfortunately, my insurance is somewhere in Texas. . .

2. I won't drink a pop out of a can or a bottle. I have to have it with ice. Which leads me to the next quirk.

3. I have a favorite type of ice. Ryan spends hours mocking me, but I really don't like the ice that comes out of my ice maker. I love the ice made by the SJ Ice Company, here in St. Johns. Ryan calls it gourmet ice.

4. I really don't like cold cuts. Occasionally, I will have a ham sandwich, but most of the time I just think it is slimy meat that may or may not be fully cooked. Go figure.

5. I don't like my food to touch each other on my dinner plate. When my salad touches my mashed potatoes. . .Ugh. . .

6. I have a big "personal space" area. I find myself having to make subtle back steps when people get too close to me.


Other than that, I'm perfectly normal. I promise!

Another Two Weeks. . .

We took Cade back to the doctor yesterday to check his progress. Cade's been checking his own progress lately, proudly showing me how he can rotate his arm this way and that. The doctor didn't seem too impressed. . . When he exerted pressure against Cade's arm, it was obvious that he isn't at 100%-at all. Actually it was pretty much what Ryan and I expected, but I think Cade may have been hoping to be playing soon. Now, he will be starting physical therapy Monday. If all goes well, the doctor has released him to begin practicing on September 30th. On the bright side, he should make a full recovery, and his arm will actually be stronger than ever.

Personally, I can't wait for that kid to actually get to HIT someone. Naturally, I don't want him to hurt-but man-he is driving us crazy! A couple days ago, I told him I sure liked him better when he was 15, because he is a snotty 16 year old. He just laughed and said, "Mom, I just need football."" Sure enough, when I thought about it, he just needs to get out a lot of testosterone.

The Twelve Gifts of Birth

There's a bit of a story behind my love of this book. About ten years ago, I bought it at a book fair. That following summer, when I visited my family in Alaska, the author was holding a book signing at the local Barnes and Noble. My sister, Cortney, and I had the chance to visit with her for quite a while. She wrote the book for her daughters in response to the fairy tale idea that "royal" children received "royal" gifts at their birth. She wanted her girls to know that they received gifts at their birth, and it was their privilege and responsibility to develop those gifts.

I don't want to break any copyright laws by reproducing the whole book, but let me share those 12 gifts with you. The story tells how wise women, or "Fairy Godmothers" began to understand that these gifts weren't just for royalty. And while initially, they couldn't proclaim the gifts to all children, they did make a prophecy:

Some day all the children of the world will learn the truth about their noble inheritance. When that happens a miracle will unfold on the kingdom of Earth.

And their secret was that "At the moment you were born, as you took your first breath, a great celebration was held in the heavens and twelve magnificent gifts were granted to you."

The first gift is STRENGTH.

May you remember to call upon it whenever you need it.

The second gifts is BEAUTY.

May your deeds reflect its depth.

The third gifts is COURAGE.

May you speak and act with confidence and use courage to follow your own path.

The fourth gift is COMPASSION.

May you be gentle with yourself and others. May you forgive those who hurt you and yourself when you make mistakes.

The fifth gift is HOPE.

Through each passage and season, may you trust the goodness of life.

The sixth gift is JOY.

May it keep your heart open and filled with light.

The seventh gift is TALENT.

May you discover your own special abilities and contribute them toward a better world.

The eighth gift is IMAGINATION.

May it nourish your visions and dreams.

The ninth gift is REVERENCE.

May you appreciate the wonder that you are and the miracle of all creation.

The tenth gift is WISDOM.

Guiding your way, wisdom will lead you through knowledge to understanding. May you hear its soft voice.

The eleventh gift is LOVE.

It will grow each time you give it away.

The twelfth gift is FAITH.

May you believe.

It goes on to say that as you use these gifts, you will discover other gifts that make you who you are. It also says that you should look for these gifts in others, and share the "secret" and be ready for the miracle to unfold.

So, that's part one of the story. It's an inspiring little book. One of those things that help you remember who you are, and who you are capable of becoming. Part two of the story is that my parents were going through some of Cortney's things and found an "additional" part of the story that I'd written during that summer. So, I'm sharing it here:

What the book fails to mention is the individual stories of each person who received these twelve gifts. The most memorable of these tales is the story of the Grover Hill Girls. For when the twelve fairies passed into the little valley of St. Johns, they realized that a 13th gift would be needed in order that these girls prosper in such harsh conditions. And that thirteenth, unique gift is this:

HUMOR.

To see the light side of all situations, even the dark ones.

And while this gift was specifically given to the girls that lived in the neighborhood down from the fairgrounds--it will go on forever--being faithfully passed down to each generation.

When the fairies had finished, they flew out of town, comforted by the sight of the Blue Hills and the dark monsoon clouds, the cedars out East and the sunset to the West.

With an extra flutter of their wings, fairy dust was blown back into town. It settled in the heart of each Grover Hill Girl, leaving behind a love of sagebrush and sandwashes; of football games and cookout fires; of boys who bail hay and go to church; of girls who you've known from first grade.

And last of all is the belief: That no matter how far you travel, no matter how long it's been; when you top Grover's Hill and look down into the valley-You know you are HOME.

So, to all of you who are from St. Johns, married someone from St. Johns, or have a bit of St. Johns in your heart: I love you and what you stand for. You are strength, courage and kindness in the face of difficulty. You stand for family, for friends and for God. You get back up when life gets you down. You help those who can't stand for themselves. And you do it with a smile and (because, well, we're from St. Johns) a little bit of sarcasm on your tongue. May you all see the wonderful gifts that are you.

Cade's first, and last football game

After surviving two-a-days, strep throat, and a mono scare, Cade was ready for the opening football game. It was in Thatcher and was billed as the "Public School State Championship". Thatcher had beat us last year, and expected a close game again. By the time kick-off arrived, I was slightly sick to my stomach. Yep, I get nervous watching my kids games. Heck, I get nervous watching college football on TV. But that's beside the point.
Cade took the opening kick off, didn't fumble (yep, I'm a pessimist too) and ran it back about 15 yards. The next play, he ran the ball up the middle and kept, running, and running and running. Sixty yards later, he had scored the first touchdown. At this point, I'm hyperventilating. Luckily, I settled down as the game progressed and was able to enjoy a wonderful first half of football.
At the beginning of the second half, we were up 21-0, and I finally got around to taking out my camera. I got this picture of the team lined up while the captains met in the middle. I didn't even get Cade in the shot. . .

The next shot, of the team huddled up before kick-off does include Cade. (#6)

Cade ran down the field in his usual Kamikaze manner looking for anyone to hit. Well, he found one. The biggest one. After the collision, Cade thought he had a stinger because he couldn't feel his arm, but still got back in the play to help with the tackle. When he got off the field, he tried to move his arm, but it wouldn't move. The next, and final football picture of Cade was after the trainer put his dislocated shoulder back in place. . .
She was great. She got the arm back in place really quickly, filled him full of drugs, wrapped him up and consulted me and Ryan. She was concerned that she may not have got it fully back in place, and he could have broken his collar bone as well. But, she didn't think he needed to go to the hospital that night, so we let him stay for the game and ride home on the bus. (Yes, that sounds like we are bad parents, but the bus has A LOT more room than our car). Plus he was so high on drugs that he had no idea that he was even hurt.

The next day, we took him in to the hospital where they checked him out and took X-rays. Luckily, nothing is broken, and his arm was in the right position. There is a big gap between the collar bone and the back of his shoulder, but I guess that is common with this injury. So, we have to get him an appointment with an orthopedic doctor this week in order to form a treatment plan. The ER doctors said he would be out for about six weeks. Coach Morgan thinks he should be back in half of that. Personally, I think I'll go with the Doctor. Cade will miss the two biggest games of the season-versus Round Valley and Show Low-for sure. But after that, we just have games against reservation schools, so there is no sense in coming back too early.

In the meantime, he is sore, achy and bored. But he is also one spoiled rotten boy. There has been a steady stream of phone calls and visitors at our house. He is going to be FAT before it is all over. He's had plates of cookies, candy bars, cinnamon rolls and even homemade tortillas. Syd was sick of all the attention at church and finally told someone not to bring anything to him, because he had enough. But if they wanted to bring it to her. . .

Truthfully, I am humbled and grateful by the outpouring of love and concern that people have shown him. From church leaders, to coaches, to his friends and their parents, people have gone out of their way to express their best wishes. Just one more reason I'm grateful for this little town of St. Johns.

Queen of the Mound

Sydney and the 8th grade softball team had their first game last week in Show Low. Syd has been working all summer long to improve her pitching. The high school pitching coach worked with her every morning for about 3 weeks, as well as every Saturday for about 2 hours. How lucky can a girl get to have all that personal coaching?! She had told me she was improving and her speed was increasing, but WOW! I had no idea. It was awesome to watch. I was really proud of her. She also has the personality to handle that kind of pressure. Personally, I would fold after about 3 batters, but she just gets more determined and more competitive as the game goes on. She pitched 3 innings and only gave up two runs. She also had a beautiful hit deep into left field. Unfortunately, she had just hit a deep foul to that area, so the Show Low coach had moved her left fielder into the perfect position to catch the ball. Oh, well. It was a great hit anyway. The game ended up being called due to lightening-with the score tied-so everyone went home happy. You gotta love those days!

Sweet Sixteen. . .

. . . and never been KISSED! Yeah right.

Cade turned 16 on August 18th. It was a pretty low-keyed day. We had celebrated over the weekend with a trip to Flagstaff. So the actual day was just filled with school and football practice. My mom did steal his car from school, clean it out, fill it up and return it before he ever knew. She also filled it full of balloons. He said that he was pretty mad at the dumb girl who did it, but when he found out it was Grandma, he thought it was pretty cool.

That evening Jake and his girlfriend brought over a slice of cake and sang to him. It made Cade feel pretty cool. Jake was a senior when Cade was a freshman, and they bonded over rides to school and baseball games. Cade often talks about how much he misses him. So Cade left to go hang out with them at the park.

Pretty soon it was nearing Lauren's bed time, and she just had to have Cade blow out his candles. So we called him and he sprinted home to let Lauren light the "sparkler" candles she had picked out for him.

Here are 16 things I LOVE about Cade:

1. His smile

2. He has the softest heart

3. He plays football like he doesn't have a soft heart

4. He loves to hang out with his sisters

5. He is a patient friend-he really thinks about what his friends need

6. He loves all types of music-from Chuck Berry to ACDC to Brad Paisley

7. He loves to stay up late and share his thoughts and ideas with me

8. He calls me "Mamma"

9. He isn't shy about telling me he loves me in front of his friends

10. He always finds Ryan and I (and his grandparents) after games and thanks us for coming

11. He can get along with any type of person-he has a wide variety of friends

12. He likes to mow the lawn

13. He sings at the top of his lungs while he mows the lawn

14. He has a thoughtful and sincere testimony

15. He has a beautiful singing voice

16. He takes out the garbage without being asked (who could ask for anything more)

AND ONE TO GROW ON: He opens the doors for women whether it is at the store, at school, or at church.

Random Thoughts

So, my life is totally kicking my butt at this point in time. I haven't had time to even sleep, let alone post anything on my blog. But, rather than completely give up, here is the shortened version of the past few weeks, in no particular order:

1. Going back to work has exhausted me! I miss summer. This year I was given all of the 7th and 8th special ed. students. Last year I was only in charge of the 7th grade kids, so 32 kids is completely overwhelming. Seven of them have pretty severe needs, so it feels like 50 kids.

2. During the first days of school we had lots of meetings. One of them was a special ed. meeting, where we were given our list of kids, then told about all of the new IEP requirements that we are in charge of implementing. I burst into tears! I felt like an idiot. I wanted to cry silently in the corner (my favorite spot for all meetings and social activities), but no, there were too many compassionate people there who felt the need to get up and console me, thus calling more attention to my totally unprofessional behavior. Luckily Spence and Kirstin invited Ryan and I out to eat that night, so I could relive the moment with humor instead of humiliation.

3. Compounding that stress, was the fact that I had been called as the new Primary President, and we were taking over the Primary that weekend.

4. Now, all complaining aside, school and Primary have been just fine. Funny how that always is. Ryan tells me that I just like to worry. I like to call it preparation for the worst. Ha.

5. School has been hard, but rewarding. A lot of it seems to be training the new 7th graders that, yes, we know you are in special ed., but no, you still have to do schoolwork and actually turn it in. I admit, I kind of get a kick out of how shocking this is to their systems. But it is incredibly rewarding when you get to the end of the year and see how much progress they have made, even if it is just in being a more responsible student. It's also nice to see how capable the 8th graders are after the same training last year.
5a. Oh, and I have 3 new aides that I am in charge of. Not my best skills, being a supervisor. But we seem to be getting the hang of it.

6. Those same 7 severe-needs kids are some of my favorite. I shouldn't listen to previous years teachers, because they always freak me out. I was expecting a lot worse. (See #4 above). Actually, one girl in particular completely makes my heart happy every day. About 15 times a day.

7. I love my counselors in Primary. They rock. I have a problem with thinking I have to handle all the problems in the world by myself. I've just been amazed that they are willing to handle them with me. Hee Hee. I really am a dork this way. I am absolutely certain that the lesson I am to learn from this calling is to rely on the Lord and others. I couldn't have picked better women to help me learn this. OK, lets be honest, I'm also certain that God picked them to help me learn this.

8. Utterly random thought: The Olympics certainly didn't help with my sleeping habits. From all the yawning at work, I think everyone had my same problem.

9. The kids seemed to have settled into school quite nicely. Nothing too exciting. Lauren loves her teacher, Syd continues to be a fabulous student, and Cade is enjoying "The Crucible" in English. OK, that one is probably fairly shocking.

10. Miracle Grow is the answer to lots of tomatoes and cucumbers. I only have a couple plants of each, but more vegetables than I can keep up with.

11. Cade turned 16 on August 18th. A little tradition at the High School is to put a sign on the chain link fence on campus to announce the big day. I told Cade that I couldn't do it because it would be a big sign announcing that I had been letting him drive illegally for 6 months. He agreed.

12. Ryan is coaching Jr. High football again this year. He's been doing it for about 10 years. He loves it.

13. Ryan and Quinn spent a weekend in the middle of August searching the Northern part of the state for buffalo. They didn't see any, but found lots of sign. They also found out that the animals are now on the Grand Canyon park, and won't come off until Spring. So, I guess I will have my husband around more often than I expected. That's a good thing, in case you wondered.

14. I'm setting a goal right here and now to keep my flowers alive past Labor Day next year. Every year, school starts and I kill off my flowers. This year, I have kept the vegetables alive, next year, I'm going to extend the love and actually water everything.

15. Fina ran out of Pepsi for a whole week. They are lucky I didn't completely boycott them. I'm lucky they have the problem fixed this week. A girl shouldn't have to teach Jr. High without a Pepsi for lunch.