Lots Going On

Here are a couple pictures of some of what we've been up to this summer.

We had these cutie pies come visit. I loved that the kids had the time to get to know their cousins a little better, and spend some time playing with kittens, going on a picnic, riding 4 wheelers, playing in water, and other fun stuff.


Family reunion for Nate's family.

The highlight of the reunion for all the kids is always the rope swing.

Nate's Grandma Donna passed away on Father's Day. On the last day of school she had been diagnosed with cancer. It took her quickly. We feel that it was a blessing that she did not have to suffer for too long, and that she was able to enjoy many activities before the diagnosis. We miss her. It is interesting to watch how the little ones have been affected by this. We have shared many tears, and some very sad moments. Emma seems particularly interested in understanding where she is now, what happened to her body, and what will happen when she is resurrected. The day after the funeral, we had to stop by the cemetery to be sure she had been buried properly. We're still waiting for the stone. Most recently, she was disturbed by the comment I made about selling grandma's house. After about 10 minutes, she asked me..."If they sell grandma's house, then where is she going to live when she is resurrected?" Good question.

She also seems pretty sure that Jesus will be coming again soon because she really misses grandma. And since the resurrection will take place at the Second Coming, then that should happen sooner than later. When I think of Grandma Donna, I see in my mind the joy that she felt when her grandchildren were around, the laughter that seemed to bubble up inside of her when she told a story about the family she loves so much, and her kindness. Miss you....

{P.S. My kids have two grandma donnas...grandma dickerson {Nate's}, and grandma gaskell {Mine}. Next month we celebrate grandma gaskell's 95th birthday.}

For Father's Day, Nate got a tool set. Amelia decided that she needed to borrow them. She asked Nate if she could use them...

Why?

I need to take my training wheels off.

Well, you have to get the right size.

I already found the one that fits. It's right here.

OK...just make sure you put it back.

5 minutes later, Amelia comes in the house and tells me that Sam is going to help her learn how to ride her bike. {I'm going dishes}

OK...

I finished the dishes pretty quickly and thought I ought to go out and take a picture of the process...maybe see if she needed some help.

She was riding her bike sans training wheels.

That girl took the training wheels off of her bike, had Sam hold the seat to steady her, and then yelled at him to let go so that she could ride. In less than 5 minutes, she was riding her bike solo. I just about missed the whole thing. What a girl!!! Way to make her daddy proud.

There is more, but this is just a sample...it's past my bedtime.

Pony Express - 150 Years

The boys were able to participate in the pony express again this year. They left early with Grandpa to make their first leg of the race, then called me when they were on their way to Fort Bridger where they were having a little handing off ceremony...they needed a camera. So, we loaded up and followed them to the next leg of the route, taking pictures all along the way. It was great.

My new favorite picture.

Here they go. Sam had to race Nate for the 2 mile stretch. They were cruising. I think someone forgot to tell Sam he had a broken nose that was just operated on.

Ron & Kathy...they organize the run for our county. They did a wonderful job. Everything ran very smoothly and there was a tangible feeling of excitement the whole time I was there. It was great!!!

Free Kittens

They're really cute.
You know you want one.

They love to be outside. {Well, that's all they know}

Come on, aren't they darling?

They'll cuddle up in your boots and play with your shoe strings.

Call soon, or they'll be gone!!!!

Update

I'd post pictures so you could see the progression of Sam's broken nose and subsequent black eyes, but I have a baby asleep in my arms, and the camera is not within an arms length. We went in to see the Dr on Monday and we decided to try surgery to put the septum back into place. {It's pushed clear to the left side of his nose, blocking the left nostril} It should be quick and easy. We were going to do it on Wednesday, but Nate had a pretty busy morning scheduled, so he will come home from Youth Conference on Friday morning for the surgery.

Right now, Nate is at the new building pumping water out of one of the out buildings, and off the property back into the river. It is amazing how high the river is right now. I felt pretty confident that the buildup along the river would prevent any mishaps, but water is finding it's way through somehow. And I know we are not the only ones affected by flooding right now. Since this evening, we have to cross a stretch of road that is buried in water. We pass houses several times a day {for the last 2 days} where people are working frantically to divert the flow, and protect their property. The kids think it's great...it's like one great big swimming hole from 107 to home. I think what amazes me just as much as the power of nature, is the strength of community. As I was leaving our flood to take the kids home to bed, I looked back and saw almost a dozen friends and community members putting their heads together to figure out a solution. I can't describe how impressed I was, how grateful I felt, and how wonderful it is to live in a place where people watch out for one another. Nate called and told me of many others who stopped by to assess the situation. If the water was coming through because of a weakness in the bank, it could have serious ramifications for the entire north end of town. The city will be all over that tomorrow. I hate to wish for cooler weather, but maybe that would slow the beast for awhile, and give some time to recover from the water...

ok...I put Henry down. This post was begging for pictures...I just have some shots from tonight. I'll get Sam on here soon.

Bear Hunting

Where were Nate and the girls during all the excitement last night? Emma was with her cousins and Mia was with Dad...bear hunting. It was the last night, and Kaylon REALLY wanted to go, but needed someone to drive him. So Nate went, and took Amelia. She was SO excited. Emma was a little worried for her.

Emma: Mia, don't go. Bears eat people. They even chased Sam.

That little warning did not stop her. She wanted to go.

It was wet, muddy, and raining when they got there. {They sit across the canyon from a Bear Bait, and watch for the bears to come in.} Her pants were wet, and Nate had to lift her through some of the muddier parts. She didn't seem to mind, though. But Nate had a good laugh at their conversation that went something like this:

Mia: Daddy, why did we go bear hunting tonight?

Nate: Cause it's fun, hunny

Mia: You have fun sitting in the rain with your pants all wet?

Nate: Aren't you having fun?

Mia: yeah, I guess

They didn't ever see a bear.

Purple Eye and A Broken Nose

Just the other day, I looked back in the car and looked at my kiddos.

I said to Nate, "We have beautiful children, every last one of them. They're all gorgeous."

I guess I shouldn't be so vain, because this is what happened this week.

My beautiful kids faces took a beating.

Emma was playing duck duck goose with cousins when someone's head ran into her eyebrow. It was a pretty good lump she had there. On the way home, Clay told her she was going to have a black eye and she started bawling, like... hysterically. So, in an attempt to calm her down, I lied and told her she wouldn't. After a thorough "exam" it was determined that she would have a purple eye, like eyeshadow. She liked that. Now I'm wondering what she thinks a black eye is because Nate called her over yesterday, "come here and let me look at that black eye." I wish that I had my camera to capture the look that she gave him...like she was going to slug him and start crying all at the same time. I quietly reminded him that it was a purple eye, like eyeshadow. That fixed everything.

blurry picture, but it was all that I got

Tonight at about 6:40, I got a phone call from Sam, who was practicing before his game at 7. The conversation went something like this.

Mom, you on your way?

Just putting Henry in his car seat. I'm leaving right away. Do you need something?

I just hurt my nose a little bit.

Are you ok?

Yeah, I'll just talk to you when you get here. I just wondered if you were coming early.

Are you sure you're ok?

I'll just see you when you get here.

As I was walking on the field, the coach of the opposing team and a friend of ours says something like, "that was a pretty good hit Sam took with a ball. Coach says it's probably broken."

Me trying not to freak out...um, really? I haven't seen Sam yet. When I did see him I just wanted to cry because his nose was so swollen and he couldn't even breathe out of his nose. He was just dabbing the blood with a tissue. I know it's not cool for 11 year olds to have their moms doting on them, but I had to kiss his gorgeous, although swollen and bruised, face.

Sam tells me that they were catching balls that one of the dads was batting to them. His friend, who was about 10 yards behind him, caught the ball and threw it to Sam, who tipped it right off his mitt onto his nose, straight on. Sam said that his friend felt so guilty, and he didn't want him to feel any worse, so he told him that at least it was after pictures, and at least it wasn't his arm. What a good attitude. I wanted to kiss him again when he told me that. Then...get this...he is such a good kid...he says that he doesn't want his friend to feel any worse, so he wants to stay and watch the game. So, I relent and we stay for the first inning, and by then I can see that he is so annoyed and irritated by the situation that I needed to take him home, or have it seen. That was quite the dillemma because I was pretty sure there was nothing they could do for a broken nose. But, I decided that it wouldn't hurt..besides the $100 I would have to fork out... and Sam, Clay, Henry and I went to the ER.

That was when I was happy to have connections there. We had the amazing ENT who was not even on call come and take a look at Sam. Diagnosis: broken septum. Solution: nothing. Other Diagnosis: septal hematoma {after the ER Dr. had told me he had never seen that happen, although it is standard procedure to watch for that} Solution: "surgery" where the Dr. numbed up his nose {inside} and used a syringe to draw out the blood. When the blood pooled back up, he had to make an incision so that the blood would continue to drain. If the blood is allowed to stay, the pressure builds up and causes damage to the cartilage and deformation of the nose.

Glad we went to the ER.

the scratches are from a dog biting his nose

Well, whether this was a curse for my vanity and pride, I will never know.

I still think they are beautiful, no matter what their faces look like.

Moving On

I'm glad that so many of you got such a big kick out of my little tantrum, but it's time to move on. I just had to keep reminding myself that I believe in second chances. So, we're good to go there. On another note, we have officially started work on the new buildling for the dental practice. {by the way...yes, that is snow on the roof of the building, and yes, it was on May 22} For those who don't know yet, we bought the old Yamaha place across from Rips. It has switched owners several times in the last few years, but it started out as Nate's Grandpa Dickerson's lumber yard, Bear River Lumber. Chris spent a good part of her childhood and growing up years in that building, working for her dad. It has a lot of sentimental value for the family, so it was a bittersweet day to see the building that Grandpa Dickerson built and worked in for years and years come down. Aunt Deb & Uncle Scott were good to remind us that Grandpa, as a builder, would understand the impossible cost and time associated with renovating that portion of the building, and that he would be happy that we were there to take care of the property. As things were coming down, we realized exactly how much the building had deteriorated, and how unsuitable it would have been for a dental office. The foundation was not steady and boards were rotting. So, I took lots of pictures and video. It really was very fascinating to watch. We had several people stop throughout the day to watch and take pictures. Here are a couple of my favorites, and a video clip or two so you can see just how powerful and impressive Bruce's machine is.

Just had to get a shot of Henry crawling around in the old building.

This look just sums it all up. It's an excited, anticipating great things, I hope things go well, kind of look.
Part of the helpers.

I was across the street taking pictures, and when I walked by to go around to the back, I glanced over and saw this. Obviously captivated by what was happening.One of my very favorites. Look at the power of that machine. It was amazing to watch.I don't think the look on Bruce's face is one of hard work and concentration. He was like a kid in a candy shop, amused, and having fun playing in his machine all day.I loved being able to see the original log cabin underneath.
Another captivated audience.Watching progress.It's all down. There were still a couple of hours of clean-up, but it was officially down.

Something like this doesn't happen though, without the tender mercies of the Lord showing themselves. As we were nearing completion of the demolition, some of the blue siding above the door peeled off to show the original log cabin beneath, complete with the original sign for the business.

see it peeking out?Uncle Ross saw it immediately and carried it off for safe keeping. What a treasure. I think Grandpa was reminding us that it's all good.