The News We Were Waiting For

For those who don't know, Isaac was diagnosed with life threatening food allergies around one year of age. We have video of him eating ice cream cake on his very first birthday. Shortly after that, he had his first anaphylaxsis. It was frightening and not something we had expected.

Medical issues with our children have sadly not been new territory for us. At one week old, our oldest was back in the hospital with a massive infection. It turned out to be multiple issues going on, not the least of which required open heart surgery at 20 mos old. One of our dds ended up being hospitalized with RSV at one month old. One of the kids had a congenital hiatal hernia which we did not discover until 8 mos and then followed that up with delayed myelin growth. And last, but not nearly least, all but one of our kids had an apparently hereditary issue that we had no clue even existed in our families until it appeared in our children. This required monitoring and for two, 4 surgical procedures in total. When Iz was about 8mos old, he had the second of the two surgeries required for him for this matter. So...when his first birthday arrived, we thought that we were finished with specialists.

Then there was the trip to the zoo, the dinner where he was choking on nothing and turning blue, and a number of other occurrences which would have frightened any parent. It was the zoo trip that sent us finally to the allergist. I will never forget sitting on the tram with our boy wrapped in Ski's coat knowing that something was very wrong, but not really sure what.

I will also never forget the horrible advice I was given from the doctor which led us to find a pediatric allergist. At the time, there were only two and we chose the one in Durham. Not only did I seek out a new doctor, but I found a voice and decided I needed desperately to advocate for my son. At first, I was a bit apprehensive. People thought I was over protective or a bit daft. But I was determined and kept thinking about what those same uneducated people would if they had watched their child so close to death as I had. The one thing I knew is that my son needed someone to protect him and that God had placed me in his life to do that job.

At that young age, my son was very aware of the foods that were making him sick. The first thing I worked on was educating myself on how to read labels. This all happened before the new labeling laws were passed. I had to remember hundreds of different names of his allergens. I needed to call companies endlessly. I quickly learned which companies were helpful and which were not. At the time, I was dealing with milk, egg, soy, chicken, beef, pork, peanuts, tree nuts, and wheat. It was absolutely overwhelming!! Every time his allergies came up and I mentioned the long list, people could not believe it. They would look astonished and wonder what in the world he ate. Once I gained his trust, he was eating like a king. In fact, he was very low in his percentiles when he was first diagnosed. Once we pulled his allergens, he jumped two growth curves in one month!!

Not long after we began seeing the new allergist, we were able to add in pork and soy and much later chicken and wheat. For a long time, he was no longer allergic to wheat, but he seemed to do better gluten free. He was gluten free for four more years and last year, he began eating wheat once again.

I have had all kinds of people approach me with "cures" for Iz's allergies. They think I must be uneducated. Not so. I'd say within a month of Iz's diagnosis, I was approached by someone on the internet who told me about these unproven cures. I researched and came to the conclusion that it was neither safe nor the path that we should be taking with our son. But I will tell you, ever since then this topic has come up over and over again. I was very pleased when I came across an article written on the subject by Dr. Robert Wood, a well known and well respected allergist who also has life threatening food allergies himself. I was not surprised to see that he had come to the same conclusions that I had.

So that brings me to today. The last time my son had egg was at the age of about 2 1/2 - 3yo. I was having many doubts and questions. We had never truly seen a serious reaction to egg. He had refused to eat them which was very normal for him. He refused all allergens for the most part. His test results, both skin test and RAST were extremely high. So, one morning, I gave him a pea-sized bite of egg. My son, who had so many allergies, but only understood his milk allergy, broke out in tons of hives and grabbed at his throat. He looked at me and said, "Mama!! Why you give me milk?" I burst into tears and told him I was sorry over and over again. I never once doubted his allergies again. Never!!

For the past few years, we have watched his egg tests go up and down. They have hovered closer and closer to challenge range, but they never coincided until this past August. So on Wednesday, we went back to Duke and Iz had some eggs. Two to be exact. He sneezed a time or two. He rubbed his eyes now and then. We went through the challenge without any incident other than that, but we had to stay an hour after to be safe. At the hour mark, his ears turned bright red and from temple to temple his forehead turned bright red and his left cheek looked like he had been slapped. And finally, he had two tiny hives on his neck. Ski and I got a bit on edge, but Iz was playing Nintendo and answered negatively to my battery of questions like: "Do you feel sick? Does your belly hurt? Is your mouth itching? Do you feel funny?" When the PA saw him, we had to stay and extra 20 minutes. When she returned again, he was perfectly normal again. In the end, she declared it a pass and told us to get him a flu shot (he has asthma). If it were not for the massive amount of experience and knowledge that his allergist has, I would be scared to proceed. But, I feel confident that we will do well trialing the egg at home. There is still a chance that it could be problematic, but that would not be common.

And so while presently, we still have beef, milk, peanut and tree nuts, penicillin, and finally we also added sweet potatoes at about 3yo, he is free to eat eggs!! So daily, he is begging me for eggs. Mom wants to take it slow. That facial redness has me tentative. But he is thrilled with the prospects.

Endings and Beginnings

My parents moved probably during the worst possible time. They both had health challenges, the economy has been stinking, and my life here has been pulling me in many directions. But there is one thing I have learned....

God's plans hardly ever coincide with my plans....and His are always so much better than whatever I could do.

So...I am glad to say that there is closure happening in every area regarding the move.

I was relieved to finally be able to make my last trip home from PA in mid-September. I did not like leaving mom in the midst of boxes. It broke my heart not to be able to spend more time with her helping her get settled. No one likes to live in the midst of boxes!!! My family is glad to have me here for good and we were able to hunker down into some semblance of school and I am seeing things get accomplished. My life feels so much less stressful now knowing I will only need to go back if there are medical issues going on or for my dear daddy's 80th birthday.

My mother presently has only ONE box left to unpack. That, friends, is really amazing!! I left their place so cluttered with boxes and things needing attention that I was sure the unpacking process would take at least three months. If it had, my mom would have been quite frustrated. I do not take after my mother, but perhaps that is due to the number of children I have had. When they were young, I did NOT decorate. And still to this day, I am NOT Martha Stewart. I don't like living in stark surroundings and I'd like my home less cluttered than it is, but....my mom is the quintessential decorator. Ask anyone who has ever been to her home. It is not only spotless and clean, but always decorated for the season. I was pleased to return home with quite a number of candles that mom had never burned. I do love candles and we will be burning them here. But I was quite amused when she told me that when they had their welcome visit, they were gently reminded that they cannot burn any candles. They reminded her of this when they saw the number of candles she had on display. I chuckled and told her that she should have told them how OLD all of those candles were. So yes, I am sure my mother will be very pleased to have her home in order so far before Christmas and her decorating.

And finally, their home for the last 20 or so years is set to close within the next few weeks!! I am crossing my fingers, praying and hoping that nothing crazy will happen. It is amazing!! Yes, during this economy, they have a buyer. They put their house on the market in Sept I think. Their buyer could have closed in October, so this sale was fast. They were only the second serious party. The first one could not qualify for financing. I am sure that my parents will be so relieved to have this burden off of their minds. I spoke to my mother briefly about the putting the house on the market at such a bad time because someone had mentioned their concerns. Mom simply said, "I am asking God to sell it and I know he will!!" Sure enough, He has. They did compromise a little on price, but they were firm with what they would and would not do. I am so glad they won't have to go through the winter with it on the market. I haven't told her this, but one day shortly before she told me they were under contract, I felt a strong urge to pray that their house would sell that day. It was puzzling, but indeed, I prayed urgently for the sale of their house. And then she called.... Their Realtor felt they could very likely sell in the fall, but if they went past the fall without a buyer, they would not have a sale until at least the spring. I am so grateful it sold so soon and that they won't have to worry about an empty house and heating, etc. So soon, their little house will only be one of those many places we drive by and remember fondly. I know they are a little sad to say goodbye, but she told me that already, their place feels like home.

I look forward to hearing about all of the new friends that they are making. She tells me that everyone is so friendly. They all know mom and dad are new because there isn't a huge influx of people and they get familiar with the faces that they see around all the time. She's making her little house a home for her and dad. I cannot wait to see what it looks like. She is enjoying the changing colors of the beautiful tree outside their living room window. The birds sit in the branches feasting on the things growing on it.

And even though I have spent so much time up there this year, I long to go visit for fun. I want to see what she's done and hear about all that they are doing. It is so good to know that they have good people around them. It is extremely difficult being so far away. But I know their new place so well and I know they will be well cared for for years to come. Oh....and she is going to start taking some Yoga!! I am so happy that she's going to do that. I told her that I thought it would be a wonderful thing to try to help her balance. And....they take their health considerations into effect so they teach them how to compromise if an injury prevents them. Yeah for mom!!! I know it is hard to begin a new life, but I think they are adjusting well and feeling at home.

So, you see, God does know what He's doing. I thought we'd never make it to this point. There were times when I was sure dad would need more care before they got settled and that would complicate things. There were nights I fretted and so many many nights that I cried over all of it. But, I think through the difficulty of it, I have grown. And through the difficulty of it, my mom has grown as well. It is great to see her become more confident. I know she has some goals that she wanted to achieve so that if something happens with dad, she will be in a good place and I think she is accomplishing some of those things. God is amazing to take situations that we think are difficult or even impossible and to gently show us what HIS plans are. So, in my eyes, the timing just might be awful, but God knows otherwise!!

The blur of days...

Sitting here and looking back, I cannot even recall all that I have been doing anymore.

I cleared out the rest of the house with help and without help.

On Sunday, we were all too tired to get up early and decided to catch the chapel service on campus in the afternoon. It ended up being a special program of local UM youth singing songs they had learned at summer camp...the story of Daniel and the Lion's Den. We went and had a nice lunch at Cedar Grill where my daddy had his shrimp bisque. Then we returned and Ski hooked up the stereo and the computer while I worked on the albums, kitchen, and bookshelves. We had to make some calls to get the internet working, but in the end it all worked out. One thing I particularly disliked was hooking up lamps and clocks in my parents' bedroom. I was thankful for Ski's long arms because no one, but perhaps Simon could fit under that bed and it was painful to try to squeeze even part of myself under there.

The carpet guy came to clean the carpets at the house on Monday. They looked amazing after he was done. Ski and I lugged two chairs and a console stereo up the basement stairs and put them out front with free signs. It was such a relief to see a full mattress and box spring, sewing table, chair and recliner, stereo and ironing board disappear into the backs of cars and trucks. Of course, we happened to meet a rather lonely lady who talked us to death most of the day. We got the boxes flattened and ready for Tuesday and the recycling place. We separated the last items into piles for the food pantry, my brothers, myself, and the bazaar. We had a cheeseburger sub for lunch from A&M --the BEST place around for subs!!! Then we had dinner at Dutch Way since my parents had eaten already.

Tuesday, we went to recycling one last time. Then, we lugged a HUGE metal cabinet up the stairs to take to my parents' to put into their storage bin. We took that and the rest of their things back to their place. We fit the cabinet into the storage area and took some of the extra food down there. I worked some more on their apartment. Oh, and in the process of moving, I lost a screw for their very old, but very cool and highly cherished floor lamp. I had taken it off and placed it on a box next to me, but forgot to pick it back up again. Then...later that day, I vacuumed the floor before I realized I had lost the screw. Multiple trips to the hardware store were made before we FINALLY found a machine screw that would hold the glass shades properly.

Thursday night, after dinner in the dining room, I took my dad to see his good seminary friend. Unfortunately, I didn't realize that his friend was not in the section of the Health Center that was close to us, but on the far side of the building. I nearly had dad falling over before a kind nurse lent us a wheelchair. My dad and his friend are funny. One has Alzheimer's and the other has dementia. His friend calls dad every single morning during the week. In fact, sometimes he has been known to call three times in one day!!! They make a funny pair. But the two had me in stitches as they chatted about the days in seminary. They were always up to no good and being troublemakers. And oh, they love each other dearly!! I was glad I got the chance to let them visit for a little while.

Wednesday morning, we went by the house and set out all of the garbage and I tried to discover a way to get back a table that my mother had donated in haste. I found a VERY nice lady who I think was named Ruth. She told me that she would call around and find out how mom could get the table back. Her apartment was amazing!! They had redesigned it just for her since she was in a wheelchair. Her furnishings were beautiful and she had the most incredible collection of porcelain dolls. She told me that she used to make them. I am sure my girls would have loved to have seen them.

The rest of Wednesday was spent driving home. It was a long, long day and I was glad to get home, but you wouldn't have know. I went straight to bed, barely awake.

I am so glad to have my parents finally settling in. They know people there...pastor friends, people they have met through the years, and even a friend mom made when they were missionaries down in Florida. And everyone I met was so friendly!! They all know each other and know my parents are new. They invite them to things...when they are more settled and rested. They are looking out for them...helping them get adjusted. It is nice to know that they are both independent and have help a button away. They have a cool contraption that if they need help, they just push a button and someone will come. They slip papers in their mailboxes now and then "just to be sure that they are around and doing well." They have housekeeping once a month and can pay for more often if they need or want it. They have free transportation within a certain area. They have drs that come on campus. They have programs and activities galore, and even a pool!! And if one needs more care, they won't have to move too far away from each other. I knew the head administrator until he left this year. I still know the head administrator, but not as well. Everyone I knew who worked there loved their job and loved working there. If they have to be so far from me, this is the ONLY place I would have chosen. I know it so well and I know they environment and the quality of care that we always strove for.

Moving day!! Fri. and Sat, too.

Thurs at 8am, the movers came. Three guys and two trucks. We began packing wardrobes full of closet clothes and odds and ends that didn't get packed. It was lunacy. Staying out of the movers' way at the house wasn't too difficult. They finished packing the house fairly quickly. Soon we were off to the apartment.

Moving in proved to be a little more difficult. Seven people wandering around a small apartment was a bit chaotic. When a chair came in, dad found a seat and usually stayed put. That was fine with the rest of us. We unpacked wardrobes, directed traffic and boxes and I tried to unpack the kitchen in my spare time. We ended up with a living room full of boxes in the center. After all of the boxes and furniture were unloaded from the truck, the dancing began. Mom brought a little more furniture than could comfortably fit so we had to figure out what would work and what we were willing to sacrifice. During this process, the movers were VERY patient and moved a few things several times before we were finally happy. They were sweet and told us that they had seen MUCH worse and told mom that she had done a great job and not to be upset if she had brought one too many items. In the end, the move cost less than we expected AND we discovered that the cost of the move will be reimbursed!! What a blessing to mom and dad!!

We figured out some lunch and returned to work on organizing. I mainly worked on the kitchen that looked pretty good until we brought the food over. About 12pm, I fell asleep half perched on the love seat. My mother tried to wake me because she was SURE I would fall off, but I would not be stirred. I woke to an empty room and the tv set up and the coffee table on the floor. I crashed on the sofa.

Friday was filled with TONS more work. The realator had scheduled an open house for Sat. Very inconvenient... My brother had the bright idea to clear the attic of the TONS of boxes and packing material that had been stored up there. My parents, no strangers to moving, had saved all of these boxes because they knew how expensive buying moving boxes could be. J. lugged them all down, but the carpet cleaner was due that day and he was in a panic because he needed to get them all broken down and to the recycle center. Together, we filled FOUR carloads of boxes for recycling and numerous bags for trash. In the end, the carpet cleaner wouldn't do the carpets since we had left some furniture in the house. However, mom called the auction house who came and removed what they would take. J. left that night, but I stayed up late once again trying to get the house cleaned for the open house. I got back to my parents' apartment at 2am and crashed on the couch again.

Saturday, I spent most of the day at the apartment unpacking items. I unpacked my parents' car of all the things I had packed into it the night before. While I was in the parking lot loading a dolly with items, a man, about 70-80 came by and asked if he could help. He was so sweet, but I declined his assistance. I also met a lady named Gaby who thought I was moving in. While waiting for Ski to arrive, I had a nice chat with two ladies. One was related to Jacob Albright!! She had a lovely dress that I had complimented her on earlier in the day. She told me that she had made it and that she had been making her own clothes since she was 5yo. David arrived around 7pm and we went for dinner. We stopped by the house on the way home so my folks could see how it looked. We brought a few more things over and went home to bed.

In all, I don't think I sat down very much at all on Thurs, Fri or Sat. My legs hurt so bad, I could hardly get out of the car. My back hurt terribly as well. I finally got a shower on Sat morning (I was too scared to take one Fri night in an empty house late at night...). The shower helped a great deal. I hope I NEVER have back problems because I bet it is REALLY painful!!! I feel badly for those who have problems with their back. It must be a great trial.

It's Stranger on a Train

I never thought I'd say it, but I LIKE taking the train.

Downside...leaving at 2am.
The one upside of this is stopping by Amelie's for coffee and a snack. Very nice way to send someone off. :) Last time NO ONE was on the train. This time....I think everyone in town was on it and going to NY. We got there early, but missed baggage check because they boarded really early. I don't know why. So I had to lug my baggage onboard. It wasn't terribly bad...until I got to Wilmington which has a TON of stairs and I think I had to walk a mile to the elevator.

Downside...there is always a guy chatting with someone on a cellphone at 3am in hushed tones. Yes, he was polite. But it is seriously strange that people talk about....nothing....in the wee hours of the morning.

Upside....the train lulls you to sleep. Last time, I slept quite well. This time...not as well. I think I only got 1 1/2-2 hrs of sleep. Basically, the long ride from Greensboro to just before Lynchburg. I woke up about 5:30 am and waited rather impatiently for 6am so I could have breakfast.

Upside...dining car.
I really look forward to breakfast on the train. I don't see many sunrises, but it makes it more tolorable to be watching scenery and sunrise if you have to be up at such a terrible hour. Yummy coffee...and they gave me refills.

Upside...always getting a window seat. At least I have something to lean against besides my neighbor.

Downside...sitting on the east side of the train in the morning.

Upside...meeting a cool new seat-mate on my trip. We talked quite a bit. When she discovered I had six children, she practically yelled "SHUT UP!!!" and swatted my arm. She apologized later, but I just laughed... Last time, I met a lovely lady from NY and this time, I met a lovely lady from Matthews area who moved there from NYC. VERY interesting lady.

Upside....cool scenery. You travel through the mountains of VA, quaint stations, over MD waterways, past the Jefferson Memorial and you get a great view of the Capitol, and Baltimore which can be...interesting.

I finally arrived in Wilmington at noon. I met my dear friend at about 12:30. We stopped for lunch and had a great time chatting again. It has been so fun catching up on the past 20 years or so.

And finally to my parent's house about 6pm. My brother arrived a little later and we were up until the wee hours of the morning ....packing, packing, packing.... I think I fell asleep at about 3:30 when he left to find a box for some glass lamp shades. I laid down on the floor and the next thing I knew, I woke up and the room was essentially empty. I stumbled to my room at about 5:30 am or so and caught a glimpse of my dad...just getting up. I slept until I heard my mom say..."It's 8am and the movers are HERE!!!" I dashed to the bathroom and threw on some clothes and the rest of the day...was a blur. More on that tomorrow...

Disney Daze - Part Four "A kingdom (re)visited

I've thought a lot about how to write this post about our day in the Magic Kingdom. I was, for years the big Mousehead in our family. You've read in previous posts of my love for Disney parks, music, Pixar, Mickey, the monorail etc. etc. etc. The Disney fan community (heard and seen on many podcasts I listen to) and on Internet discussion boards and fourms talk about folks who "get it" when it comes to the details, hospitality and storylines that drive everything you experience in a Disney park or resort. Up until this trip, despite my personal obsession, I was the only one in my family who "got" Disney. That is no longer the case. Becky and I had many discussions over the cool little things that make living "in the Disney bubble" so enjoyable. I asked her, "so if I had told you this is what it was like, would you have believed me?" "No way", she answered.

What follows is meandering thoughts about our single day in the Magic Kingdom. I had not been there since 1982, Becky had not been there since 1975, and our kids had seen video, but had never been there at all. This will be a long post so I won't be putting up pics. I encourage anyone to visit my trip album at http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=21152&id=100000350462143&l=318cb7cd02 to see pics of everything.

Everybody neat and pretty? Then on with the show...

Disney transportation- We have nothing but positive things to say about the buses, monorails, water taxis etc. at WDW. Why anyone would pay to park, drive with the looney tourists, and miss collecting transportation trading cards is beyond our understanding. We were blessed to be the first stop on the Saratoga Springs bus line. I could see when the park closed that our line for the Saratoga bus was a LOT smaller than the Allstar buses so maybe bringing a car would make sense then. But I doubt it. Buses ran every 25 minutes to all the parks. It was so easy.

We got there at 8am for extra magic hour rope drop as resort guests. We were done with everything around 3pm and had plenty of time to shop, eat, and ride a repeat. We could've rode more repeats but didn't collect any Fast passes as most lines were less than 20 minutes.

I admitted later to choking up a little when we walked under the train station and onto Main Street USA.

Our first ride, the refurbished Space Mountain, thrilled some of us and scared the bajeeberz out of some of us. I rode it twice that day (so did Lydia) but the first time I was in the first seat in the front car. It was VERY dark, and VERY fast (though I know we were only going 28mph--the visual trickery worked). The second time at the end of the day things seemed brighter in there. Becky felt like she was going to die and was mad that I made the ride sound calm to her. I didn't remember it being that intense.

Second was Buzz Lightyear where Becky got the high score for our group shooting Emporer Zurg and his minions at over 40,000. I pulled in a measily 5000 but enjoyed looking at the ride details.

In the first of many character encounters we ran into Stitch in Tomorrowland. We found out the main street bakery sold Divvies (allergy safe) carmel corn and had bought a bag for IZ. Stitch spent most of his time with us trying to steal it. Pretty funny.

Some rides like Space Mountain, Splash Mountain (my favorite this trip), Winnie the Pooh (I hate to admit) , and even the Carousel of Progress really impressed me with the Imagineered details. (My kids still think "Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow" is just as irritating a song as Small World--which we would've skipped even if it hadn't been closed for refurbishment).

Other rides seemed "smaller" to me this time, like when you visit a neighborhood where you grew up and the streets seem tiny. Peter Pan (which still solicited an "oh cool" on the flight over London scene from Nathaniel my ride partner--while Becky was in another ship cracking jokes with our other kids), Pirates, and the Haunted Mansion, three CLASSIC rides, had enjoyable little details and themeing but seemed more nostalgic than thrilling to me. That kind of surprised me.

Another thing that surprised me was my wife's sudden affinity for Disney parades. While I was making every effort to get out of the sun, away from crowds, and under anything providing shade, she said she was ready to get out in the street and start dancing with the characters!! (WOW!) We ended up watching two parades from a distance. And we didn't really have any issues time-wise by enjoying a passing parade. I recommend using the Unofficial Guide touring plans as a basis for what you want to see and modify your plan as you go along. That worked GREAT for us.

We planned on eating at Cinderella's Royal Table for lunch. This was THE BEST thing I think we did the whole trip. You need to reserve it 180 days before your trip and pre-pay, but MAN is it nice!! For those of you, like my wife (and I) who were disappointed as a kid by going THROUGH and not IN the castle (whaaa???), this is your chance to go inside, meet and talk with Cindy, get your picture taken with her, and enjoy FABULOUS food and the BEST service in the Magic Kingdom IMHO. (just TRY and drink all your rootbeer or water before the wait staff is right there with another and a smile--I DARE you!!) After dining on fancy pot roast with mashed potatoes on a pastry puff and chocolate mousse for dessert and interacting with four or five of Cindy's princess friends --who were all clever pros at staying in character no matter what you said to them--we were cooled off, well fed, and refreshed for and afternoon of continued exploration!

My only "FAIL" of the trip was not realizing the weight of the steel barrelled guns at the Frontier shootin' arcade. Most of the ski-bums have never shot anything beyond a Nerf gun and most of them were frustrated when their 17 shots for a buck were up. I'm not certain all of those guns were fully functional either.

One thing I DIDN'T plan on, because I thought it was torn down for the upcoming Fantasyland expansion, was arriving off the WDW Railroad into Mickey's Toontown Fair. This is THE place to meet the Mouse himself and I was really excited to do so after figuring it was a lost cause due to current construction. Classic clips from old-school Disney cartoons play on a big screen in the queue as, group by group, you get ushered in to an unusually still and quiet photo/ interaction area. I'm guessing these cast members have seen every type of reaction possible and the photographers and handlers just stand back and let the moments happen with little or no direction. I was SO glad they hadn't closed this place down yet!

As this winds down, I need to mention one of the last, but also BEST things we experienced at the Magic Kingdom, The Monsters Inc Laugh Floor. This attraction is a comedy club theater were the "script" has live cartoon monster interaction built in. The goal is to make the audience laugh and create "energy" for Monstropolis (or as Roz says, "We MIGHT not have enough power to open the exit doors"). They must pick several people out of the crowd beforehand as they'll put peoples faces up on the big screen as part of the interaction with the performing Monsters.

During the show they have Mike Wazowski's nephew come on screen and tell jokes. He said something like, "I wanna talk to that kid there, in the yellow" Suddenly, there's a spotlight on Isaac and his smiling face is on the big screen. "Hi kid, what's your name?" "Isaac." "Hi Isaac, what grade are you in?" "Second". "OOOh, second grade, the best three years of my life" (laughter). "So Isaac, what do you want to be when you grow up" (at this point I had no clue what he would say) "A fireman" (lots of "awwwws" came from the crowd). I don't even remember the punch line any more I was so proud of him. But it gets better....

We're walking out and a guest in the crowd says, "Excuse me! Is this the little boy who wanted to be a fireman when he grew up?" "Yes this is Isaac" "Well I've been a fireman for 27 years and I want Isaac to have this.." He pulls a pin of Mickey Mouse shaking hands with a fireman off his lanyard and gives it to my son. We were all shocked at his thoughtfulness. Magic. That's what our day was like. It's cliche but it's true. Isaac wore that pin for three days straight and yesterday he asked me, "Dad could I be a drawer (artist) AND a fireman?" I said, "Buddy, you could even be a fireman that DRAWS other firemen!" I love my kids.

We ate late at chef Mickeys that evening (8:55) and had a chance to interact with the fab five in their chef outfits (Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Donald and Pluto) but the real highlight was the human chef who walked Becky all through the buffet line and told her everything that was safe for Isaac. He also made chicken fingers, salmon and allergen free cupcakes for him. The boy was stuffed!

As kind of a "preview" of our next trip, we decided to take the Magic Kingdom monorail to the Epcot monorail and try and beat the crowds by taking Epcot buses back to Saratoga since that park had already closed. That was nice. The buses were still full and I ended up carrying poor tired (75 pound) IZ from the Magic Kingdom monorail to our resort.

When you check in to Saratoga Springs (which is a Disney Vacation Club "timeshare" resort) they are supposed to say "Welcome home". We certainly felt that way while staying on property and will hopefully return for more adventure. Even Becky has become a Disney park and resort fan.

Nice work Disney. Kudos.

Watching my Son Having a Blast!!!

I'd like to interrupt the Disney blogging to share with you a glimpse of something that you might have just glossed over... One of the most incredibly special things about this trip for me was watching our almost 8yo son eat REAL restaurant food for the first time in his life!!

In his 7 plus years, the most he has had from a dining establishment has been a fruit cup, baked potato, or fries from Wendy's, (both of which make me nervous every time!!) a fruit cup from Chick-fil-a, or a bag of McDonald's apple dippers (minus the dip, of course). I think it is incredibly sad that he BEGS to go to Wendy's to eat a plain baked potato, fries, fruit cup, and sprite. I call it the carb crazies and it is NOT a meal I let him eat. If we ever have an occasion to go out, which is indeed a rare event, we bring an entire meal along for Iz. Usually, this only happens when the grandparents are around. In fact, it isn't only the food that is a problem. Once, when my parents were visiting, he developed asthmatic symptoms after the wait staff passed our table with sizzling fajitas. Ski wasn't feeling well, so he sat outside with Iz while the rest of us ate.

The simple fact of the matter is that most people do NOT get food allergies. They do not get cross-contamination. We often hear "It's perfectly safe" only to find that there is a serious issue with the food. There are only a few trusted people who cook for our son. In fact, it is only THREE women outside of myself and my daughters...and of course, Ski. These women might not be perfect, but they ask LOTS of questions which shows me they understand the seriousness of the issues. So just imagine a restaurant. Even the THOUGHT of going to a restaurant for him to eat at is out of the question. When we travel, he lives on a few select Amy's or Ian's frozen meals and we find a gas station first and then food for the rest of us.

However, there is one place --- if you have life threatening food allergies --- where they care and take the business of cooking seriously. Disney Resorts KNOW food allergies!! Ask anyone. They all know. If you're going to Disney, make reservations, tell them about your allergies, speak to the chef, and they will give you safe food. And since they are so close to a Disney property, I was told that Rainforest in Downtown Disney was also rather allergy friendly.

Without a reservation, we went to Downtown Disney Rainforest Cafe and the Chef came out and man, did she know her stuff. I think it was a good thing we showed up at a "down" time for a late lunch/early dinner. She told me what she could do and we decided on a salad with chicken and a french dressing. She had a clean grill so she was able to grill it. Not only that, she found some dried cranberries and put them in a dish on the side because she had not talked to me about them. A woman who gets it!! She knew...if those cranberries were not ok, they can't "just pick it out" because the entire salad would be ruined. My sweet boy was grinning ear to ear. He had an entire meal made just for him by someone who understood!!! Not only that, but he had THREE sit down meals and an ice cream snack all safe!!

While I was tired and didn't really want to go to Chef Mickey's and would have preferred grabbing a quick dinner in the park, I had only researched snacks so I had no idea what the boy could have for dinner. I thought MAYBE the turkey legs, but I hadn't researched so we weren't going to attempt it. So, if I go back, I will definitely look into more "quick" food. I found out last minute that you can get an entire list of foods from Disney, but we weren't sure how long it would take for them to send it to us so we went without. Next time, I'll do the footwork ahead of time.

The chef at Chef Mickey's was amazing. He walked Iz and I through the buffet and told us what was safe. He made Iz his own chicken fingers and salmon and would have brought out turkey as well, but Iz didn't want it. Too many choices!!! When the Chef told me something was safe, I'd ask a question to be sure and he'd explain what they used to do certain things. It was REALLY interesting and I certainly wish that all restaurants worked the same way. He made Iz and amazing salad so I didn't have to use contaminated salad bar lettuce and veggies. And he got a frosted cupcake for dessert. We had asked for ice cream as well, but they forgot, but Iz didn't notice because he was so full. The waitress told me that our chef was the best chef at that dining area. She totally trusts him and told me what she does to take precautions as well. I think that the next table over was a bit jealous that we were having the chef come out to talk with us. Or maybe it was that I was a bit OVERLY excited about HOW MUCH there was for him to choose from. AMAZING!!!

When we got ice cream on Main Street, I was so impressed that they just ASSUMED that we had an allergy. So impressive. And they just said...."we'll have it up for you in a minute or two." They use clean scoops and a special scooping area in the back!

Over and over I just was so pleased to see Iz enjoy so much food!! It nearly brought me to tears to see so many choices and so many people who took the time to listen to our needs. It gave him the opportunity to be just like everyone else.

I know that there are all of these cliches about dreams coming true at Disney World, but I can't help but say that it was a dream come true to be able to have fun together as a family and then eat dinner without worry or concern and just watch my son have a blast eating great food. It brought tears to my eyes!!

Disney Daze - Part Three "Pumkins into carriages"

After our hectic exit from the Lake Buena Vista Best Western (see part two), it was time to hit the Starbucks (where the kids ate cereal we brought), the Whole Foods (to stock up on frozen meals for IZ), and to an outlet we had been told about.

Our girls had been told by a friend of an outlet near Downtown Disney where they had cheap makeup that they really liked and wanted us to pick some up. This is a store that Nathaniel has chosen not to set foot in because they are most famous for their intimate apparel (and Superbowl commercials...and ridiculous catalogs). I will admit Becky and I stop by this particular chain of stores once a month as a way to "spoil" her, though any married man who thinks this store chain is just for females is nuts (we DON'T get the catalog BTW). I knew a bit about their retail prices and size availability. I now know why people spend some of their valuable vacation time to come here. The prices were INCREDIBLY CHEAP! We found out after the fact that nothing in the store was over $10. And the selection of sizes was HUGE and decently organized. Many bargains.

So after a grocery and Chickfila stop, it was time to head "inside the Disney bubble" for our stay at AllStar Music. We arrived and were greated by a SUPER nice cast member from Chicago who I'm ashamed I can't remember her name. She began checking us in, addressing each kid by name, gave us "first time visit" and "happy anniversary" buttons (20 yrs in Oct. was close enough) and a Muppet button for the volunteer service we did to get our tix. And then she disappeared.....

For about 15 minutes....

My wife had seen this play out two nights before at Best Western and I'm sure thought something like "here we go again, what IS it with my husband and making hotel reservations??!!??" She sat down on a bench trying not to panic while I waited. Now I listen to a TON of Disney travel podcasts and I KNOW you can be totally at fault for something (a dropped ice cream etc.) and Disney cast members will usually bend over backwards to "create some magic" and resolve issues. But I had no idea what was going on. Our check-in person said she just needed to verify something with her manager because our connecting rooms weren't ready yet. Hmmm...

Fifteen (long) minutes later, she returned smiling. "I have some good news for you. Since you had reserved connecting rooms to keep everyone together and we currently don't have yours ready, we're upgrading you to our Saratoga Springs Resort and Spa hotel. They're waiting for you there. Here's how you get there...." I must admit at that point I was in a daze. I knew from their website that Saratoga could fit 10 in a room and it was a "horse racing/Upstate NY" theme, which was okay but WAY out of our budget! I had to ask, "so is there a price difference I need to pay or....""Nope, you're all paid up. Everything is covered with what you paid just now for AllStar. Enjoy it and have a magical day!" (my heart was now racing like a horse)

Becky's eyes got big as I tried to stammer out what just occurred. The ride over to Saratoga (back near Downtown Disney where we came from) was filled with questions like "WHERE are we going?? How did this happen? Are you sure?" and an occasional fist pump by me! I had a sneaking suspicion Becky was going to like this.

I was right. The first indicator after checking in and getting our keys was on one of my trips unloading the van, someone said, "Dad, Mom says she wants to LIVE here!" When I got up to the room I could see why. It had two bedrooms and a living room area. One with a king sized bed, three TVs, a pullout couch bed, a kitchen, TWO bathrooms, a full-length whirpool and a huge shower, a washer and dryer....it was AWESOME!!! My wife doesn't sleep well in strange beds but said the mattress there was VERY nice. I'm still stupefied. Disney, ya done good by us!! Thank you!!!

We also had a small but very nice and fun pool near us (one of five at Saratoga) where she and I took the young ones while our older kids napped, showered and watched Phineas and Ferb (most of us became fans of them by trips end).

I'm a dreamer and I love travel books. Becky is a researcher and had been pouring over my Official and Unofficial guides and asking me lots of questions. It was really fun "talking Disney parks" with her for a change! We decided we would test out the bus system and go the Magic Kingdom, hop a monorail and go see the fireworks and Electrical Water Pageant (one of Becky's POSITIVE memories from her 70s trip to WDW) from the beaches of the Polynesian resort. We had a dinner of sandwiches and fruit in the room.

Our evening was WONDERFUL. Laying on Beach chairs, toes in the sand. Warm night breeze, lights, music, fireworks. So cool! Becky still loved it thirty-odd years later and I think she was beginning to feel like this would actually be a good vacation for her after all.

The next day was our Magic Kingdom day and we planned on being there for extra magic hours to beat the crowds at park opening. So have a good night's sleep (if you're not too excited) and we'll see you in Part Four "A Kingdom (re)visited"

Disney Daze - Part Two "Downtown Dizzy"

My sweet B hates three things....crowds, most kinds of shopping (see crowds), and monkeys.

So naturally the perfect place for us visit while in Orlando was Downtown Disney--confused? Read on.... DTD's a free way for cheapskates like us to get a Disney fix as it's basically three mini-areas of themed shops, eateries and theaters.

For Mouseheads like myself, there's World of Disney, the largest store for Disney shwag outside of NYC. There's a large Lego store with giant Lego sculptures of seamonsters, basset hounds and Sheriff Woody. There's "Trend-D" for cool looking teen fashion type things, Goofy's Candy Kitchen (with $50 Rice Krispie treat Mickey and Minnie heads--I'm in the wrong profession). There's a Christmas store, a "Little Mismatched" for girls like my middle daughter who are too cool to wear socks that match.

For folks on the other side of the fence, there always seems to be families there that are just plain "Disneyed out". Someone has told these folks that there are plenty of shopping opportunities for them to separate themselves from their hard earned cash so Johnny or Suzy can get their character trinkets or something princess/pirate related. So begrudgingly they slog along with crying kids in tow who won't be satisfied with what's in the budget and want the $50 toy of their dreams. These good folks have already spent hundreds on park tickets and hotels and are wondering "when does MY vacation start???" As day turns to evening, you'll see anger, hunger, despair, heat exhaustion.

So you see why B spent most of our trips there (we went twice) asking herself and me "Why?? Why do people LIKE this place? Why do they take pics of themselves and their kids in front of a fake wooden Buzz Lightyear statue? or sitting next to a fake Winnie the Pooh?" She said she just "didn't get it". I know it's not her thing. So I was just grateful she let me geek out a little. She's a wonderful girl and I'm so blessed by having her as my bride. She even mentioned a casual interest in a Minnie Mouse apron, but I knew her heart wasn't really in it.

So what about the monkeys? We'll I had been jonesing since '98 to go back to the Rainforest Cafe since eating there during a business trip. I had my chance that afternoon during lunch. I had also heard that the chefs there would adapt their menu for food allergies--a key feature we experienced over and over again on Disney properties. Both our waitress and the chef treated IZ like royalty, preparing a HUGE grilled chicken salad for him (on a clean grill) that he said was "better than everyone else's food." The Rainforest decor is a jungle theme complete with robotic elephants, parrots, tropical fish...and monkeys....lots of primates....loud screeching, grunting primates...above and beside our table. Had I thought about this a bit more, I would've realized this wouldn't be a huge blessing for Becky. (I'm a little thick some times). The food and service was top notch. But we'll probably never go back. It was cool back in the 90s, but I think I've had my fill.

Becky's would be rewarded the next day, but first we spent an enjoyable rest of the day in the pool back at the hotel. We had one more issue though as one of our party got sick at 4am (due to heat, overeating at Rainforest, or the tv dinners we bought later that evening). I called down for a new set of sheets, which arrived right away, but with no mattress cover. I called again about thirty minutes later for one and Becky sent me back to the other room to rest while she waited for the cover. Two hours later (6am) I heard a knock and opened the door to find my now very tired and perturbed wife STILL waiting for the mattress cover. I walked down to the front desk, already buzzing with people checking in and was told they "would've brought it up sooner but didn't want to wake us". Umm. Next time why not CHECK??????

We changed the bed and I decided I would sit with/snuggle with her until she fell asleep. The boys were just rousing and were watching some tv so we fell alseep.....and didn't wake up until 10:30....and checkout was at 11!! AAAAAH!

If there was a game show where you had to rouse your family from sound sleep in two different rooms, make them pack all their things and food into a van, and check out of a hotel in less than 25 minutes, we'd be champions!! I will post some pics we took standing next to the van soon--we look very tired. We stopped at Starbucks on the way to our next destination for some breakfast.

As I mentioned before, things were about to take a change for us, especially for my beautiful, tired bride....next time, Part three, "The Magic Ensues".

Disney Daze - Part One "One room at the inn"

This is part one of our trip report to Mouseland.

Our first day basically consisted of driving nine plus hours to Florida. Before we left I found a "mystery deal" on Travelocity which promised two rooms at 4o bucks a pop at a three star hotel a half mile from Downtown Disney. When you book, they send and email revealing your room details. I had priced rooms from Daytona all the way down to Orlando and knew the price was a good one as long as the hotel was decent. I didn't really relish driving all day and then going to the parks the next so I thought an extra day somewhere outside of the AllStar Music (where we had reservations on property) would help us have a more restful time.

What I didn't expect is Travelocity didn't book our room correctly with the Best Western Lake Buena Vista and we only had one room showing when we got there around 10:30 at night.

There was much we could have found to complain about but the Lord was gracious to us and gave us clear and safe travels the whole way, though Orlando itself seems to bring out the worst drivers I've seen in a LONG time. He was also gracious in placing a woman with a "Jesus" pin on her Front Desk Manager uniform at the hotel who I think felt sorry for me and spent much effort trying to get us rooms for the night and get us on the same floor the next day. Out of 350 rooms in this place, they had about two or three left the night of our arrival and they ended up turning people away who were walking up. And this was in "value season" when the crowds were supposed to be low(??) Both our rooms (eventually) ended up having a fridge and a microwave (which I knew we would need) and were on one of the nicer floors that had just been remodeled. We crashed that night not knowing what else was in store for us this trip but glad the Lord was protecting and providing for us.

Up next, part two "Downtown Dizzy"

The Man I Measure By

I don't recall the first time we actually met, but I know it was a significant day. It was a day that changed my life...and his. I think my first memory of him had to be our dance. Ahhhhh....it isn't what you're thinking. It was much different than that. No, he took me by the hand and we sailed effortlessly across the floor. He looked down at me and laughed and I looked up at him with all the love in my heart. For the man I measure by is my dearest own daddy. He was my first love. I stood on his shoes and begged him, "Daddy dance with me!!!" And so he'd take my hands and we would be off. He'd sing a little diddy and I would giggle away as we twirled around the house.

I remember Sunday afternoons sitting at the foot of his chair "feeding" his feet that I pretended were funny critters. He took me to Burger King when the boys were in school and we shared fries and a strawberry shake. I gave him my Easter egg when he was working in his office. He was thrilled, until he discovered I had kept it in my room all this time and it was now smelly and in edible. Later, he took me to the Catholic weddings where I danced with the priests and fell in love with Polish cuisine. He took me visiting and laughed when the family gave me Moxie.

I loved to visit his office. It was in the house, but it was still fun to go in there and bother him. He had cannons and a cannonball stack on the bookshelf. And a frightening mountain lion carving. There was a wooden top with string that I never did figure out how to work. And there was the tiger puppet. I always imagined it was a character from Mister Rogers and Daddy was so good at making voices. And Daddy always had his glass of iced tea and peanut butter bread. When daddy hugged mommy, I would squeeze up through the middle to their great annoyance. He had names for me and I took advantage and acted on those names. I held his hand while he greeted people on Sundays.

Daddy has always had a great musical talent. He had a wonderful baritone voice and played both trumpet and trombone. I loved to hear him sing. Most people did. His horn sounded so sad a mournful and beautiful. He used to sing to us on summer nights on the porch swing in Ohio. I loved those evenings and listening to his lovely voice gently lilting like the motion of the swing.

As I grew older, I learned things about my dad. His own daddy died in his arms when he was only 17yo. Dad had dreams and wishes that never came to be. There were things he wanted to do that he never did because doors closed. And I learned that he was a mischievous boy. How he played tricks on his older brother. How he had been caught puffing a cigar -- and made to smoke it all. How he didn't like the geese down the road. And how important family was to him. I learned how artistic he was and how compassionate he was. His favorite part of his job, I think, was visiting people who were ill or shut-in. His heart was so kind and caring. His gift of creating and kind care for people contributed to the creative and compassionate person that I am.

There are things I am ashamed of when it comes to my dad. The foolish things children do that tear at the heart of a parent. And the words that cut deeper than we mean for them to do. But overall, I think our relationship went beyond those moments. And while we disagreed as adults on some of the things most dear to his heart like the doctrine he loved so much and the church that he was ever faithful to even through hurt and disappointments, we could agree wholeheartedly on our love for the Lord.

And so, this man, who was my first love, my teacher, and example, and the one who often acted "as bad as the kids" somehow became a ruler for what a man should be. And when the time came for me to fall in love, I fell for a man very much like my own, dear daddy.

My father, lover of his family who cried when we were dropped off at camp, college, and every time we said goodbye...Yes, my Ski loves his kids and if he watches films with father son/daughter scenes, you can bet he will get blinky-eyes. My father, who made us swoon with his tender singing voice....is like my Ski who I love listening to when he sings. My father, with a tender heart towards his wife who called her sweet names...and my Ski who writes me lovely things and tells me daily how beautiful I am. My father's deep compassion for others mirrors that dear and servant heart in my Ski. And my father's wicked sense of humor...I see more of that in myself, but Ski always makes me laugh.

And so, as I sit her on his birthday, I just have to smile when I think of my dear, dear father. I have become so much like him in some ways and in others, I see him reflected in the man who took his place as the love of my life. And while his place is different now, my love for him has not wavered all of these years.

I miss hearing the stories about his life, his hopes and his dreams. I miss hearing him play his horn. He still makes my children giggle with delight and he still has that sparkle in his eye that I love so much. But now I remember for the both of us and I cherish every moment I can have where we can laugh and where I can tell him I love him and he knows. And I'll cry every time I hear the mournful sound of a trombone or a sad muted trumpet.

Cherish your time!!

Account deposit

Sometimes, no matter how much you like your life, there are times when responsibility just hangs heavy on you. The past year or so, it seems my life as a wife and mother seems full of more pressure and responsibility than ever before. I have teens rounding the end of their schooling with me. They have relationships which need care and tending. Some of them are becoming some pretty neat people. And keeping up with Ski seems to be a full time job as well. Even though he works from home and is here almost all the time, there are days that go by where we barely speak. Things at work are constantly changing and sometimes that brings new challenges. We work hard at staying in close contact, but it is not an easy task. Add to all of that the shopping, cleaning, and work that needs to be done around here and I feel like I sometimes have three full time jobs. I do NOT know how you working moms do it. So as the days fly by, I feel as if I am the persistent plate spinner trying hard to keep everything from crashing down around my feet. And trying not to become stressed and anxious about any of it. I long for a life of solitude and tranquility. Funny thing for a mother of 6 to say, huh? But that's what I love. Peace and quiet. And I rarely have it. But sometimes, I see my longing for solitude comes from the plate-spinning life that surrounds me. I love vacation...void of responsibilities for the most part. This is when I allow my kids to just have fun and make some noise. I like to be noisy with them. And when I find my world less stressful, we make more noise and have more fun.

But here I am spinning my plates......again. Not only that, but into my already busy life enter in other responsibilities. When this happens, I have the tendency to want to shut down and run away. And let me tell you, the temptation is great!!! But....more than desiring to run away is my sense of responsibility. Ski would be the first to tell you that I would take on WAY more than is wise simply because I think I SHOULD. That is part of the reason why I gave him my schedule. He knew it was wise to say no for his wife because it would preserve my health and sanity.

However, sometimes we can't say no. Sometimes, people need us. And as I am preparing my home physically and myself mentally for a trip far from my family and their pressing needs, I have begun to ponder the investments I am making. While my children and husband stand to gain nothing immediately from my absence, there are many who WILL gain. I've begun to see it as a series of deposits. Time and effort poured out in a tactical and practical way upon the lives of my parents who are in great need. I could sit home and say "Someone SHOULD do something," but my words have no validity if I have no action to show for them. And if I say I love my parents, what does it show them if I sit here at home and say "What can I do?"

My family finds it a hardship for me to not be here. While it is true that three of my children are teens, they are not wives, mothers, or even adults. What they take on in my absence is not a job that was designed for them to do. Perhaps one day, it will be, but to leave a family of 7 in their hands is burdensome to say the least. And yet, as Ski reminded me in the car this evening, these will be precious days. While in the past my desire was to bring my aging parents into my home to live with me, God has made it ever apparent that this is not His call for my life. No matter how good my intentions may be, He has closed that door over and over again....from the practical to the wise council of a well timed conversation to reveal aspects of a choice I had not considered. Although I will miss the idyllic days of my children connecting with my parents as we all age together, I have days to cherish NOW.

There is no guarantee that I will have another year to visit. The older I get, the more I see my days slip by. So an investment in a few short days may yield sweet and irreplaceable memories for not only me, but also my parents. There is so much to do and I feel so ill equipped. I am not organizational and I lack methodology. I am sooooo lacking. And if you just read that line, please PRAY!!!!! I seriously need prayers!!! And I am sure that Ski would like some, too. There is such an urgency. Such a limited amount of time. So much work. It will be over sooner than I think.

So I go knowing that my allergies will flare, I will loose precious sleep, the inevitable conflicts will arise, and my patience will crumble all too fast, and the work will be overwhelming and at times, unbearable. What I have to offer is so small and limited. Believe me....VERY limited. But I also joyfully know that God will do something beyond my expectations. How fleeting these sufferings will be. How momentary these light afflictions. For there is something good going on that is more important here. I only hope that in the end I will not be the only one to benefit.

Looking for Light Where there is Shadow

Today was a day filled with tears and joy in a strange commingling of emotions.

My family presently finds itself walking through a trial that is difficult for all of us in many different ways.

Ten months ago, we opened our hearts and our home to a puppy. She was 6 months old when she came to us. She was a beauty to us, but not trained at all. Not only that, but when she came to us, deep seated fears came to the surface. For my youngest daughter, it was her fear of dogs. She would not even pet a docile dog that on occasion visited the library. For me, it was the fact that we had attempted dog ownership before, but it ended with the animal biting me not once, but twice. And this new dog looked eerily like the old dog to me. Slowly, both my daughter and I overcame our fears. Slowly, we learned to reach out to our dog and not be afraid.

Along with fear issues, we needed training. After much work, we got her to a point where she would willingly walk with us down the street. But I recall a number of walks where she would flop over and roll on her back in a yelp designed to sound as painful as possible. But we were consistent and told her no and even though it took us 20 minutes to get down the street and back with all of the neighbors staring, she finally learned to walk with us.

And while she never was destructive, she would find ANYTHING left on the floor and chew it. We were forever pulling things out of her mouth. I will never forget our first day of school when she swallowed a five foot therapy band and I had to learn how to induce vomiting. Or the first time she found a rolled up sock. I don't know who was more scared...her or us. I quickly learned to always have toys for her to chew. While our selection dwindled to a choice few, she grew to be content with those toys and they kept her quite busy.

We fell into a pattern and our care for her grew into love. Unfortunately, as these things grew, my health began to deteriorate. While I knew I had something a little more than exercise induced asthma, I only had asthma attacks once in awhile -- usually outside. Not long after we brought her home, I began having daily asthma attacks. I finally saw an allergist and discovered that my lungs were quite compromised. When I saw the allergist in Nov, my nasal passages had improved, but were still quite bad. And finally over the last two months, things had grown much worse. After never having a sinus infection, I had one massive one that needed two antibiotics to kick and led me to be ill for the entire month of Feb and most of March. So we made the heartbreaking decision to say goodbye to our beloved dog.

It is difficult to be in a place where you know what you decide will deeply hurt those that you love the most. This is my children's first experience with death (other than their brother who they did not know, really). While it isn't a REAL death, it is the death of a deep and close relationship that they had. It breaks my heart time and again to watch them go through this. And yet, I have assured them that we will be happy again someday. And it will be ok when we are happy. It breaks my heart to think of how difficult it must be for my dear husband to know how much pain this choice has caused us all. I do not envy his position as father and dad, but I deeply admire and love him for his gentle leadership through this time. We all love him and know that the decision was the right one, but our hearts are hurting.

So today...we spent the day, half of us still not feeling well, spending time together. We cried through lunch, had some flavored ice at Rita's, getting flowers, cried some at home, talked and hugged, and remembered our dear friend, had some dinner, listened to my amazing daughter sing her grief to us, cried some more, and watched a movie together. It is amazing to hear my children speak to me about their perspective on the whole thing. It is amazing to hear what they think God is doing through it. And how they all listen and remember in their own way. Someday, when someone they love dies, I know they will look back and remember and use what they have learned now and in the days ahead. How everyone grieves differently and how even if friends don't understand or seem to care, the people who are going through those things do. I pray this brings our family even closer as we cling to each other through our grief. What a gift our Belle would give us if she left us closer as a family than when she found us.

Thank you, Belley dog, for loving us unconditionally, teaching us to work hard, helping us to learn to love you, and for bringing us joy!! We miss you, dear Pupperdoodles!!

Ski...123

From the bottom of my heart, I'd like to thank you for...

taking the time to get to know me.

thinking I was cool

being my friend

wanting to be a leader and do things the "right" way with me because you messed up before

taking me exploring with you

telling me that you still loved me and wanted me with you because love is more than a feeling.

listening to Drew's advice

asking my dad

asking me

loving my family

dragging me down here

holding my hair.....at lease 8 times, but definitely more

working harder than ANY man I know

walking through heart surgery

holding my boys for their scans

putting my babies to bed

holding me while I cried in Blowing Rock and sitting by me in that cafe in Valle Crucis...while I cried

letting me walk through grief at my own pace

loving me and caring for me when you didn't know what to do

suffering without complaint when no one else knew

letting me sleep at the hospital with our kids....even though you missed me

telling me "things will be ok" even when you aren't sure yourself

Walking with me through so many dark days and hard times and "Considering"

holding me as I cried at the hospital...again.

being the STRONGEST man I know

washing my hair and sleeping in the den because I couldn't go upstairs

not dieing....

making me laugh

treating me better than I deserve

loving my kids

being my best friend

loving me with a sacrificial love

having fun with me

listening to me

learning to become more adventurous

still thinking I am beautiful

being my valentine

There are so many more things I could say, but these were just highlights that came to my mind...

HAPPY VALENTINES DAY!!!!

Good Intentions

This is the story of how Christmas decorations, laundry detergent, and a slow computer culminated in a late night misadventure.

This story began almost a month ago, but I had no inkling it would end up like this. Not long after Epiphany, we spent a happy Saturday putting Christmas decorations away. One of my children was feeling extra diligent and blessed us by putting the Christmas decorations away up in the attic above the garage. Ski was pleased that all was done. And all was very happy until this past week.

While Ski and I were laying in bed, drifting off to dreamland, there came a loud and sudden noise. It was not a burglar kind of noise, so we were brave and went to check it out. We opened the door to the garage to find part of the drywall attic floor hanging down. I quickly surmised that our helpful child had not set the boxed upon the rafters and had instead set them on the floor. This had caused the floor to cave in. Two boxes fell, one was precariously perched, and plastic tote hung by its rim.

Ski thought about tackling the problem this weekend, but his work load demanded some attention so the hole remains.

This afternoon, I was quite tired so I ended up taking a very long nap in my room. After the kids had gone to bed, I decided that I needed to delete cookies. Some of my children, who are compelled to cause me distress, tend to gunk up my computer with bad cookies. I don't know where they come from. And they download unnecessary things when they play their computer games so my computer ends up being slug-like. It frustrates me no end when this happens. But I cannot fix it during the school day and on the weekend, I forget. So tonight it crossed my mind to work on solving the problem once again.

Even though my eyes were blurring while looking at lists of cookies, I wasn't too sleepy. Ski went off to bed and I had planned to be finished when....I heard a LOUD crash.

Fearing the hanging tote with our Christmas ornaments had finally fallen, I opened the door to the garage. To my relief, it was only the large piece of hanging drywall that had fallen. I know that sounds really funny. Well, I thought, at least Ski would not have to saw it down. I walked closer and spied a bottle of laundry detergent on the floor. I store my detergent on a shelf next to the ladder to the attic. I didn't think much of it, but as I picked it up, I realized it was a dripping mess. There on the floor was a GIANT spill of laundry detergent. I got a box and a sponge and tried to sponge up what I could. It was at least half a bottle!!! Oh my!!! It was an enormous pile of goo! What a mess!! I finally got most of what I could into my container and headed to the kitchen. While I was washing my hands, I almost knocked the container of detergent onto the floor. I had thought about throwing the detergent away, but decided to pour it into the bottle. Silly me....I was more tired than I thought. Instead of placing the bottle in the sink, I put it on the counter and then I stuck a funnel in it. I overflowed the funnel sending detergent down onto the counter and over part of my dishwasher. I finally finished that task and then headed back to the garage.

The thing about cleaning detergent is....the more you scrub, the messier it gets. It began foaming and it was still gooey. Yuck!! I finally gave up and threw a box on top of the spot. I'll deal with it tomorrow!! I was so thankful that the detergent was unscented. I hate nothing more than the detergent aisle in the grocery store so I don't think I could have survived working with this mess for long if there was an odor to it.

Now with my luck, my child who doesn't like chores will suddenly choose to do chores tomorrow a.m. and we will have to take a trip to the er for a fall on my soapy mess.

There must be a lesson in this, but at this late hour, I can't find one.

Date Night Misadventures

Tonight was another one for the record books.

Plan #1: Our usual night out is on a Thursday. This week, however, things were different. We had a friend offer us the chance to see a preview of a movie. So, we planned to go tonight instead. But things did not work that way. Somehow, we never got the information that we needed from our friend. But since Ski is a planner and had already planned to go out tonight, he stuck with that plan.

Plan #2: Ski thought about going to a new place that he had heard of. Unfortunately, that place happens to be closed on Tuesday nights.

Plan #3: I have seriously been craving Middle Eastern food. We ate at a wonderful place in town once so Ski decided to go there. It is way out, but so worth the drive. We finally got there only to find that it was no longer there. It had vanished and there was no sign of it at all. SUCH a disappointment!!!

Plan #4: Try another place en route to home. I directed Ski to where I remembered it and I either did not remember clearly, or the place no longer existed.

Plan #5: Try a place listed on the GPS. We headed there and it was not longer there. It was now a Shomars.

Plan #5: Try another place on the GPS that sounded interesting. It was. In fact, it was a bit too interesting for Ski. It was Eithiopian cuisine which we would have tried, but it was a tad pricey and I felt the setting was slightly creepy. I'd rather have a recommendation from someone for that place.

Plan #6: A noodle place. We drove there, walked up...it had just closed.

Plan #7: A Mexican place. We weren't sure what the prices were and decided that if we were thinking about that, maybe we should just drive closer to home and try a Chinese place.

Plan #8: Chinese. Friends had mentioned this place as having large portions and good prices and good food. Finally we had success. It was pretty good food. The portions were very large and prices were good. The ambiance...Ski wasn't fond of it (her seriously would not have liked the Eithiopian place!!). The music was REALLY funny. It was really jazzy versions of 70s and 80s music. It was hysterical. It reminded me of the German movie that we saw recently that was mostly set in Japan.

Then to top it off....I have been knitting a scarf. Between plans 3 & 4, I asked Ski to stop by A C Moore so I could pick up another skein. I have been in two other A C Moores recently looking for this stupid yarn. At the last one I visited, I asked a clerk for help. She looked at me and kept walking and I had to talk fast so she would half stop and talk to me. She wasn't any help anyway. Tonight, once again, I was disappointed. Yarn in every color but the one I needed.

So we talked a lot on our date, but between the last two plans, the conversation lulled and consisted more of "watch out!! Did you see that guy" and "I hate how people drive around here." And all the way home, I lapsed into a Chinese accent which I do very well.

Last week, I learned that Harris Teeter was having super doubles this week. I was disheartened because I knew I had done most of my shopping and therefore had little money leftover. But God always surprises me.

Yesterday, we had stew for dinner. This is rare because Iz is allergic to beef. I had bought fish for Iz for this night, but had unexpectedly served it to his sister. This necessitated an errand to the store. I routinely buy fish at Harris Teeter because they have a reward program....and their fish seems a bit fresher. So off I went. I found that they still had some trout (our favorite) left that was on sale. I decided to spend more money than expected so I called home to ask Ski if he could check my balance. I was using a different account for this trip, but I wanted to know if there would be extra in my other account. Now I was in for s surprise. I had much more money than I had thought.

You see, when I shop, I overestimate each visit. I round my totals to the next ten and try to keep a running tally in my head. This way, I don't have to write everything down as I go and I have never over spent. But I last did my shopping on New Years Eve. I was in a hurry and wasn't keeping track as well. When I thought I had spent too much, I stopped. I had not checked the account since.

So my first surprise was a small surplus. Ooooh!!! Now I could do a little super doubles.

But first, back to my fish. I bought three fish. One for that night and two for us later. Mmmmmm..... This brought my total for the fish club to over $35. Now I had a $5 credit at the store. That would come in handy with super doubles!! So last night I spent a bit of time sorting and planning.

When I hunt for used books, I don't stress and worry, but have come to see that the books that I find are those that God has provided for me. I have been to a sale where I have found treasures that others have overlooked and I have overlooked treasures that others have found. Likewise, I have seen the same thing happen with me and food shopping. I have a firm belief that the Lord enables me to find bargains and deals so that I may more abundantly provide for my family. I know many would disagree. It is all coincidence. But you won't be able to convince me otherwise.

I found everything I was looking for. I had a trunk full of groceries for under $20. I made two stops to do it, but at my first stop when I had a bunch of bags worth of groceries for around $10, the lady behind me commended me for my good work. I did put a little work into it, but time and time again, I see where God has just blessed me abundantly with bargains and deals. I never share what I spend on food anymore. I have had one too many people balk at the amount. But my cabinets, fridge, and freezer are always full and we have never lacked. Even when I didn't coupon, I had more than enough. Many years ago, when it was only Ski and I, I had only $30 for two weeks of food. I will never forget how God supplied for all of our needs for those two weeks. Since then He has never let me down and has continued to overwhelm me with His goodness.

When people see all of our children, one of the things they always say is, "Your food bill must be astronomical." I just laugh with a little twinkle in my eye.....

Bread and Discontentment

For those who do not know, Iz has been eating wheat since before Thanksgiving. This is a major step for all of us. He has been doing well for the most part. That has taken me by surprise. Adding wheat to his diet has opened up a whole new world to me in cooking. But with it comes new responsibilities. First and foremost, I now must make bread for him weekly. This is because I have not been able to find any safe store bought bread for him other than the gluten free bread that he has been eating up until now.

Today, I noticed that the bread needed to be made once again. I am not good at making bread. In fact, I kind of stink at it. No, I don't stink at it....I am a LOUSY bread maker!!! I have tried about five recipes and each one disappointed me. Last time, however, I had a success. So today when I noticed I needed to make some bread, I was a little less apprehensive than usual. Everything was going well. I normally use my Kitchen Aid and this has helped me tremendously. When my bread was in the kneading stage and whirling about in my mixer, the bowl suddenly tilted sideways and flew out from under my mixer. This was NOT supposed to happen!! So, I unlocked my mixer, raised the head, fixed the bowl in place once again and made another attempt. Once again, my bowl flew out from under the machine. Realizing that the mixer was not my friend today, I took my dough and went off to the table to knead. It is amazing how easy it is to knead when you are angry.

For the rest of the evening, I found myself wallowing in unhappiness. While quickly borrowing a friends' bowl showed that all I needed was a new bowl, this still did not make me happy. I have Christmas money that would cover the cost of the bowl. But that makes me even more unhappy since I had plans for that money. I am so angry because I am so discontent with the situation I find myself in.

It is funny how one little incident just sends ripples of discontentment through my heart. I start mulling and thinking about all the things I see that are wearing out, or my children have mistreated, and that leads to personal responsibilities I have that are calling me from outside of my home and the pressure I feel from them. I find myself regretting things that I shouldn't. I find myself getting angry at people who lack care and sense of responsibility. I find myself saying things I shouldn't. I think about the teapot I bought for my birthday and used only once before a careless child broke it....and how it is still not replaced. Sigh.... And what is more shameful is that the teapot incident occurred YEARS ago.

What I would normally do is every time I look at that stupid useless bowl that needs replacing, I would once again take the dive into discontentment. But I think this will be my goal...

When I see my bowl, or paper towel holder, or the things that remind me of my discontentment, I am going to try my hardest to think on the ways in which God has blessed me. And as I make my bread by hand until I finally get that new bowl, I will try my hardest to be thankful and think on how good God is and how faithful He is to me even when I am so unfaithful to Him.

Entreaty to the Skibums

After seeing many instances of requests for votes for person X as a number one Packer fan, I feel the need to give you a warning.

If you give this person your vote, no matter how nice she is or how much you like her OR no matter how much Ski thinks she is cool because she is a Packer fan..... Well, let me just say that you will put your life as a Skibum at risk. Let me explain...

As a Skibum, you should know that there is only ONE number one Packer fan in your world. That is Ski. In case you are not aware, he only roots for the Panthers because Mr. S and Mr. M convinced him to. Yes, he has a few other reasons, but he needed convincing.

As you know, Disney World (or Land or anything associated with it) is Mecca. Remember Mecca? Well, if there was a place that Ski wanted to go that wasn't Disney, it would be to the Frozen Tundra. He is a Cheesehead if there ever was one. Have you seen those yellow shirts? I mean, you all know how to say that name on the back of the jersey. Not many other people can say that!! And have you heard how many times he has been riddled over that jersey?!?!? The man loves the Pack!!

I think that for as long as I have known him, your father has been a Packer fan. He liked the Packers before Brett Favre came along. I still remember watching the "Minister of Defense" and it was bittersweet when he retired and then came to play for the Panthers. The green and gold are so indoctrinated into the family as the Packers colors that when Iz saw the Univ. of Oregeon football team today, he got all excited about the Packers since he was only looking at the colors.

We all make sacrifices -- especially when we love someone. Someday, when you are all off on your own, Ski and I will head north and pray for snow as we watch the Pack in Lambeau Field. Do you know how cold Wisconsin is in the winter?!?!?!