Bad Habit!!!

So I caught Sundance having a snack.....Ooops! I guess that they are ALWAYS watching.

Garden Bounty

So although it snowed in mid-May, I was gone nearly all of June, I was sick most of July, school started in August, I went to Chicago in September and Utah a week ago....somehow the garden still grew. Not as much as we would have liked but still we got quite a haul.


The kids love the fact that we grow our own pumpkins.




No lettuce or spinach but the carrots grew! So that means carrot birthday cake this month! And although my house isn't in the cleanest condition and I have a Christmas tree up already....at least we have food to eat.
Yummy! (Now on to more canning and dehydrating.)

"Of things That Matter Most"

I had the privilege this weekend to hear this talk this past Saturday. It has taught me that I need to slow down...for me this entails a bit of a speed up before I can slow down. For instance, My house in a constant state of FLUX between almost clean and disastrous. This is annoying, exhausting and frustrating. I obviously lack some genetic propensity for organization. I can clean and sterilize BUT putting things where they belong and not losing them- not me.

So as I try to SLOW DOWN. This week/month will be a mad tare to get things organized, inventoried and clean! I can no longer function with daily chaos and the disorganization is about tho drive me MAD.

Hopefully I can learn to slow down and enjoy the most important things once my life is in some semblance of order. (It would be easier if little people would keep their rooms clean too.)

So here is to a future date with relaxation.

CHI-town

Chicago

Very rarely are moms able to get away from everything. However due to having a superior husband who loves me way more than I deserve I was afforded and took the opportunity to go to Chicago to visit an amazing friend!
I went with two other great friends and had a memorable weekend that will have to be repeated again sometime.
There was laughter and tears. Walking and blisters. Food and fun. And as much as we did there is more to go back for. What a great time we all had!
Nothing was better than coming home to an awesome husband who surely worked miracles while being with our kids full-time.
Thanks Ry for encouraging this and making me go!

(Click on the image above for a full album!)

21st Century Mom

So in one week 2 of my best friends and I are going to CHICAGO to see another super awesome friend. Now we have been planning this trip since we found out that our friend was moving to Chicago. Now that we are actually going we have gotten a bit of negative Karma about it.
It's like people think our husbands are completely inept at parenting our collective 10 children.
SERIOUSLY!
These three men are college graduates, successful in their fields, awesome husbands & fathers, and completely competent. I would go so far to say that because they are such awesome husbands they fully encouraged this trip(mine demanded that I go). And if they aren't assuming that our husbands aren't up to being full-time parents then they must feel that we are less than stellar mothers/wives for going.
To that I give a big fat RASPBERRY :P

We will be better wives and moms for going. I know for one I will appreciate that my husband recognized that he gets to go to many interesting places while on business trips while I get to shuttle kids in the car and eat leftovers and do the mundane.

Thanks babe for being conscientious enough to see that one weekend with the girls is what I need to endure weeks without you. Thanks for realizing that I am a person and not just a wife and mom. Thanks for encouraging this because lets face it, I would have never gone without you totally planning this and talking it up!

So in one week I will be in CHI-town and my kids will be safe at home with dad! CHICAGO here we come!

Ahh...Football Season

Need a laugh? I do

Picture to Share

You know it is amazing to me how important a picture can be. Seeing an image of someone you never met can make you wonder about their life. Whenever I see this picture I think about how awesome our country is in that we can have headstones in nearly every language in the world on US soil. AMAZING!

Finding Family

Sometimes finding even a distant relation makes you appreciate your family much more.

Good Things to Come

Good-Things-to-Come

It isn't always easy to recognize that what we are going through is temporary. It isn't always easy to see a silver lining n the darkest of clouds. I hope that one day I can look back and say, "I am glad I went through that. I wouldn't change a thing..." BUT that day is not today.

So until then I will hang on and enjoy the glimpses of joy that I get each day.

3mm PAIN

So last Thursday, July 15th, I took my kids to the park. When we got home and ate lunch around noon I started to have a pain in my groin area. I just thought that it was annoying and that I needed to visit the ladies.

NO RELIEF.

Then I though I must have pulled something.

NOPE.

Then my back started to hurt a bit. I began to be a bit worried. I texted my brother who had to have his appendix removed and he began to implore me to go to the hospital. I agreed.

Luckily we are surrounded by friends from church and I just had to pick. Luckily one of those friends works in the Radiology department of a hospital and luckily he was home.

I drove up and told the kids to just walk in and tell them that mom needed help and had to go to the hospital.

(In about 4.5 hours my pain went from annoying to unbearable to excruciating!)

JOHN WORLAND my medic rushed me to the nearest hospital and correctly diagnosed me as having a kidney stone(s)- eventhough we weren't sure for hours later. He helped me get checked into the hospital and soon after Ryan arrived. Good thing too.

I was begging for drugs like crazy and crying and vomiting. They couldn't move fast enough!!

I wanted to DIE! I am not kidding. It was so overwhelming and so painful that I just knew that I couldn't endure much more. I knew I wouldn't die but boy I wanted to.

So they finally gave me Zofran for my nausea and vomiting and some Fentanyl for the pain. This was no help! After three injections of Fentanyl they finally got the idea that it wasn't working. On to the Toradol- now this worked long enough for me to get a CAT scan but wore off in the middle of an uterine ultra-sound.

PAIN!!!

Finally, I was given Percecet/Oxycodone for my pain and Fenegrine for my continued nausea and vomiting. The doctors never told me what was going on and I was in and out of sleep. My pain decreased but I could manage and by 10pm the nurse came in to tell me that they were discharging me and that I had a kidney stone. No one told me how big the thing was or where it was located and I knew if I went home I wouldn't pass this on my own.

As the nurse gave me the prescriptions and discharge orders I began to cry. I knew Ryan was leaving in a few days and that if I went home to do this alone with my kids to take care of I was in for some trouble. But I was tired and I didn't fight them so I went home.

From Thursday, July15th- Sunday, July18th I went between my bed and the bathroom. I ate no solid foods because I just would vomit it up anyway. What liquids I tried to ingest I only was able to keep 1/2 down and so things were bad. I was even vomiting up the meds that I was supposed to take.

At one point the Oxycodone wore off while I was asleep and I had this dream that I had been shot. When I woke up my right kidney was killing me and no matter how I tried to sleep on a heating pad nothing made me comfortable.

By 3:30pm on the 18th I had finally convinced Ryan that the ER was better than Urgent Care even if it was $250. I just had to get back to the hospital! It was killing me to be in pain and killing me more to know we had no money for any of this!

Luckily, we had my sister come to the hospital to sit with me while Ryan took the kids to his parents' house.

Here we go again...Once I got through triage and into a room- right across the hall from my previous room- I told the nurse the deal. NO wasting time with all these narcotics that DO NOT WORK for me. Thankfully she listened DILAUDID...oh what nice juice. I finally could feel no pain. It was so glorious.

Luckily the doctor who was on Thursday night was on again Sunday. When he came in he proceeded to tell us what we should have been told by SOMEBODY on Thursday. Apparently I have two ureters off of my right kidney that then join back into a single ureter near the bladder. Not crazy abnormal but not normal either. He then told me I had a fever- code for infection- and that I would probably need another CAT scan - code more $$.

So after another CAT scan with dye indicator this time I was told that I had a 3mm stone near my bladder but that it hadn't moved...at all. STINK!

After 6 hours in the ER- again in and out of sleep- I was admitted so that they could watch the infection. WHEW! I should have done that on Thursday!

After a night of sleep and about 20 gallons of IV fluids Ouila! a kidney stone is born....

It looked like a bb or a fishing weight. Kinda crazy.

Unfortunately the passing of my little friend did not give me a get out of jail free card. NOPE! Dang infection meant another 24 hours of BOREDOM! Sitting in a hospital bed getting pumped with fluids and antibiotics.

(Hospital beds are a unique form of torture. NO way to get comfy unless all drugged up. )

So I just chilled out being weaned off of the pain meds and getting poked and prodded for 24 more hours. Until finally at 11am on Tuesday (July 20th) I was FREE. I nearly skipped to the car.

So I'm on the mend. Sore kidney, frustrated that the mail will soon contain a FANTASTIC medical bill(s) but overall I'm alive. And thankfully Ryan was in town while this was all going down and I escaped without surgery! So here is to the silver lining in this cloud.

Imagine 100 years ago or even 60 years ago I would be dead and that costs more that a hospital bill- I hope?

If it's not one thing

So I got a kidney stone....I wanted to die...And I probably would have if I wouldn't have gone to the ER twice........Passed stone....alive...sorta....hospitals are like voluntary prisons. Hopefully I can get out of the hospital and the house before July is over.....Thanks for the prayers

SEE June 15th post

To see a full post on our Hawaii trip see the June 15th post.

This week I PROMISE

OK ...I know I need to get Hawaii up SOON! Well after a week of vomiting and being so sick that I had to pull the "Fly Home NOW" card for the first time ever I think that I can get this done....I hope.

UPcoming

Because I can't just neglect my responsibilities for days on end, a full post about Hawaii is in progress. Please check back SOON!
(Plus I have about 2,000 pictures to go through.)

Hawaii: June 6th - June13th

Being able to visit Hawaii is an amazing experience. Of course you think "I could move here" and then you realize that you only think that because you aren't living "real life" while there. You aren't working to afford the average $600K home or the gasoline or the milk and so it is glorious to visit, but living in Hawaii would not be relaxing.

I would miss snow after a while and 14,000ft mountains. So I will always love visiting Hawaii but living there not so much.

This trip was a great chance to remember that I love my husband and that we get along for the most part ! ) It was an adventure that maybe one day when the kids will actually appreciate it we can share with them.

So here is our adventure- enjoy!

Our Hotel

Open Waiting Area

Room Similar to Ours

Our first day(6 June 2010) we got there with hours to kill and so we walked down to a nearby diner to eat as the "locals" do. OH MY Goodness...the plate lunch is HUGE ....Seriously I couldn't even imagine finishing all of that food. The diner was called the Rainbow Drive-In and just as we walked around the corner there was a beautiful REAL rainbow right above the diner....good omen!

We should have taken a picture of what we ate but here is a similar image....

Usually a plate lunch has 1-2 LARGE scoops of rice, 1 scoop of macaroni salad and a MEAT and if that meat has a sauce it is smothered in it...DANG! I felt bad not finishing that much food- espescially with all of the homeless that we saw- but I just couldn't do it.

As we walked through Waikiki we saw these stores everywhere...

Apparently there are 47 ABC stores in the 1 sq. mile that makes up the Waikiki section of Honolulu. That's a lot of beach mats! These are a life saver when you don't want to pay $5.00 for a glass of milk at the hotel...instead you can pay $5.00 for a 1/2 gallon. But that's the cost of paradise.

I guess that the cost is worth it though when you have a view like this from your hotel room.

Monday, 7 June 2010

We woke up and went to this breakfast/hit you up for all the money you don't have thing. It was a bit of a shock to be hit up for tour...after tour....after tour...and we learned quick that this wasn't for us but the guy had us trapped. (Lesson: NOTHING is FREE)

After we escaped we went to another tour/hit you up for money that was kinda interesting but come on people...

Finally, we were able to go to the Polynesian Cultural Center. Oh what an awesome and inspired place to visit.

The history of the people represented and of the area is so phenomenal. I could have spent three days there. Learning about the Pacific Islanders and their culture was an amazing experience.
We were able to see the canoe parade in the afternoon and then take a canoe ride of our own after visiting several of the villages.

New Zealand/Aoatera

Tahitian

Hawaiian

Samoan village

Our favorite village was SAMOA. The people that did the demonstrations were entertaining and funny. The main man was named "CAP" and he was hilarious. He made you smile and appreciate his culture- Samoan's have amazing personalities!

Cap is also the main fire and knife dancer at the show that is performed at the PCC.

On the Canoe

We then had a super yummy luau. Complete with poke (po-KAY), poi (poy), kaluah pork, tarro rolls (they are like potato rolls but PURPLE) and of course pineapple YUM!!!

And entertainment!!!

The Pig

After dinner we took a short ride through BYU-Hawaii and over to the Laie Temple. It was so beautiful and the history of the LDS church in the area was so interesting and inspirational. The temple is finishing renovations so we were unable to go inside but just to be there was spectacular.

After our visit to the temple we were able to enjoy a show called: HA: The Breath of Life. It was performed in an outdoor amphitheater and highlighted all of the Polynesian islands represented at the center. It was spectacular!!!

Tuesday, 8 June 2010

So we slept in after a long night and headed over to Leonard's for some Malasadas- Portuguese donuts. They were so yummy! About the sized of a glazed donut but filled and covered in sugar!

Oh malasadas! (Since the taxi ride was a bit pricey we just walked back to our hotel.)

Then we got ready for our submarine ride. We boarded a boat and met the sub just off the coast. Although it wasn't as spectacular as expected it was interesting and fun and plus we were able to learn about some of the fish that we would see more of as we snorkeled around the island. (If I had to do it over again I would just have snorkeled more and saved the money...Live and learn!)

After our sub ride we rented a car and went out for our first ride around the island and a first try at snorkeling. We found some secluded beaches and watched, waded and snorkeled. It was a great adventure and the scenery was AMAZING!

Renting a car is certainly expensive but it was so worth it. We could go where we wanted, when we wanted. We could go out for a long time or a short time. IT was well worth the cost!

Black Sand Beach

Wednesday, 9 June 2010

Pearl Harbor

We knew that Pearl Harbor was an all day affair, so we woke up early and were at the base by 7:30 am and got tickets for the 10:30am (earliest available) taxi to the USS Arizona.

While we waited to go to the Arizona we toured the USS Bowfin- the submarine docked at the base.
It was so interesting to see the inner workings of a submarine. To realize how many men were crammed in these boats and understand how fast they could maneuver was astounding.
There were bunks right above the torpedos! Could you imagine your son sleeping on top of a torpedo?
Thankfully it wasn't too warm but I could only imagine how it was with all those men crammed in there and the adrenaline pumping.

After touring the entire submarine we had the honor of being taxied out to the USS Arizona. I am a big WWII freak and I love learning about the history of the time period so this was something that I had always wanted to do. It was an honor to be able to pay respect to the 1177 seamen and marines who are entombed within the USS Arizona.

It was emotional to see the oil still rising to the surface as if the Arizona is still bleeding nearly 70years after the fact. It was interesting to find out that men are still choosing to be interred within the Arizona and the process that it takes to make the ship their final resting place.

After our visit to the Arizona memorial we boarded a bus and went to Ford Island to see theUSS Missouri or Mighty MO. This ship is where the surrender of Japan was signed at the close of WWII. To be on this battleship and see how massive it is gave such perspective to how large the Arizona was. (Mind Blowing!)

It was a beautiful view but it was a bit scary to realize that there were so many ships this size in this harbor and that so many lives were lost so quickly.

It is an amazing place to visit. To drive through Hickam Airfield and walk aboard the ships is to walk through history. You can nearly hear the ghosts of the memories that were made in these places.

USS Arizona in background

They still use rope to secure these massive ships!

After a long day at Pearl Harbor we went to the swap meet for some deals on Hawaiian goods- great place to shop but a lot of the same stuff.

Finally, we got back to the hotel and Ryan took me out to my first Japanese Steak House. It was so entertaining and yummy too. It is always a good sign that there are native Japanese at a Japanese restaurant, right?

Thursday, 10 June 2010
A day to be lazy....You would think that we would be on the beach all the time but until this day we hadn't really spent that much time on the water. It was certainly time to change that. Ryan decided he wanted to take a surfing lesson and so I thought that I'd just chill on the beach and watch- or at least try to watch him, it was packed! However, there was a slight issue when we got to our spot!

We had just missed the MAJOR jellyfish invasion but they were still about so this is what we encountered. Not to be deterred Ryan was off! I was so proud that he was willing to try anything!

He even got up!

He had no idea the board was that BIG!

The surf class- guess who the instructor is?

Surfing is not without it's dangers though!

It was a beautiful day to be on the beach!

At the end of our long day we had a sunset dinner cruise. It wasn't too high end but it was fun and affordable. It was nice to be able to see Waikiki Beach from the water and to experience the sunset by boat.

The show was nice but the other tourists were hilarious!

Aloha Tower

Dancer on dinner cruise!

Friday, 11 June 2010

King Kamehameha Day

Unknown to us the 10th of June is a state holiday in Hawaii. Complete with everyone off of work and a parade. Well we got up early and took a hike to one of the waterfalls used in one of my favorite tv shows LOST. It was sooo cool. You wouldn't even remember that you were in the middle of a cemetery in Honolulu with the highway just above you. It was a great easy hike and the falls were so gorgeous!

After our hike we headed to the North Shore. We stopped at a botanic garden in Wahiawa. The vegetation is amazing there!

As we continued on we drove through the DOLE Pineapple plantation! Look at that Red Dirt!

Finally we got hungry and stopped in Haleiwa at the Bluewater Shrimp Truck- oh it was so yummy! And to top it off we got a shaved ice at Matsumoto's....I love souvenir eating!

After a good lunch we were off to snorkel some more. While driving around trying a place to park- it was a holiday- we saw dolphins leaping out of the water. It was so awesome!

Then we found it TURTLE BEACH!!!! Nearly 20 turtles-maybe more- feeding right on the rocks!

Beach just North of Turtle Beach

HI ya!

It was Ryan's favorite thing of the entire trip!

Close-up!

It was so crazy to be snorkeling along and BAM there is a turtle right in front of you. They are hard to avoid too. One last beach at Waimea Bay and we snorkeled some more! It is the most relaxing thing that I have done in quite some time. So peaceful and quiet. It was so easy to lose track of time!

So after a long day we grabbed some more shrimp, a chocolate haupia (coconut) pie and headed back to the hotel.

But not to be missed was the sunset!

Saturday, 12 June 2010

So we woke up early on Saturday and headed to Hanuama Bay. This is a nature preserve and it gets packed early and it is easy to see why with all the awesome fish we saw while there.

After an hour an a half we were off to go Kayaking. Good thing to because the people were coming in hoards!

We headed up to Kaneohe Bay and Kayaked around. IT was a little frightening to be on the open water but it was also AMAZING! I will definitely do that again!We kayaked out to a bird preserve called flat island!

After kayaking we visited one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen. The Byodo-In Buddhist Temple. Near Kaneohe this temple is an exact replica of a temple in Japan that is over 900years old.

The temple is located in another cemetery called the Valley of the Temples and is towards the back right against the mountains. It is so peaceful and quiet.

After a peaceful drive back to Honolulu in the convertible that we rented we drove through the Punchbowl Cemetery.

And as we exited the cemetery we took this great drive on Tantalus Drive above Honolulu. It was amazing!

It was like being in the middle of a jungle...we had vines hanging above us and bamboo everywhere. Once at the top we stopped at Puu Ualakaa Park. The view was spectacular! We could see 25 miles of coast line...So breathtaking and nearly free- just the cost of gas!

On the way back to the hotel we stopped by Iolani Palace and the King Kamehameha Statue in downtown Honolulu.

Sunday, 13 June 2010

With a red-eye flight not until 10pm we had time for a few more activities. First, was church. The building was beautiful and it was great to be able to go to church and have it be the same as at home.

This Tabernacle is so beautiful!

Then we were off first to another botanic garden.And then to the Kualoa Ranch. Another LOST sight. It is a historic ranch where movies like Jurrasic Park have been filmed. While at the ranch we went for a nice little horseback ride. I love seeing the world from atop a horse. You just get a different perspective.

Finally we saw the Pan Pacific Parade.

Oh and I saw John Locke(Terry O'Quinn) from LOST.

We got a free meal because the kitchen messed up and we headed home. Back to reality.

But seeing as it has taken me a month to blog about Hawaii reality obviously bit me in the behind when I got home. The next weekend I flew to Utah. Came home again and then drove to Utah again and after that I spent the last week of June and first part of July sick as a dog and wanting to die! So Aloha Hawaii trip. Thanks for the great time with my sweetheart but I think I'll have to take some time to recover before I can return.

We did a lot. We snorkeled at six or seven different beaches and saw several botanic gardens. We ate at Shrimp trucks all over the island and gained a new appreciation for my cost of living. I would certainly do it again and above all I am glad I bought a guide book and used coupons. It always makes a trip better to save money and know where you are going.