The Babies

Hana (February), Zach (March) and Max (May) were born the same year.  We called them  the babies  and still refer to them as  the babies.  My Mom and Jodi took them as toddlers to Sears for a group shot.  I was at work and warned them that it would be crazy to take Max to the mall, let alone to try to get him to sit still for a picture.  Of course, it was  a zoo!  Max wouldn't sit on the bench or hold still.  There were three of them  and two adults.  My Mom said she was sweating by  the time they left Sears.  This was the best shot.

Today I organized  the babies  for a group shot.  I think Grandma and Jodi had an easier time at Sears.

Now, there's attitude, or should I say bigger attitude.

 They showed up and I am eternally grateful for their sacrifices.

Because...

I wrecked Max's fun, his plans and his life by asking for this ten minutes.

And poor Hana!  It costs her three. dollars. for. gas. to. come. to. the. picture!

Zach was quite pleasant.

Zach has been at WSU, he's been away from home.

Hana leaves for Minneapolis on Wednesday for a job.

Max leaves in June for farming and Walla Walla Community College.

 Zach has been homesick and knows how it feels to miss family.

Hana and Max, not so much.

Thanks for showing up!  I love you, babies!

Mother's Day and Sunshine

On Sunday we had brunch at Jeff and Kathi's place for Mother's Day.  It was delicious food, including creme brulee French toast, biscuits and gravy egg bake (pinterest), raspberry coffee cake, another egg bake, sausage, a beautiful fruit platter, raspberry coffee cake and mimosas.  

The guys served and the Moms were loved on.

 Well, except for these guys...  they were watching the game and wondering when the Moms would be through the line so they could get their food.

 I've been busy planting the patio pots, painting, cleaning, weeding etc.  The sun feels so good, it's hard to come inside to keep the laundry going and the meals made.  I just want to be outside.

 Enjoy the sunshine today!

Post Surgery

So, basically I lost a month of my life,  at least a month of life at my usual pace.  My knee has been repaired but my ROM(range of motion) is still pretty poor.  I had a follow up visit to Dr. Thorpe on Friday.  He is giving me 4 weeks to rehab myself.  

If I can't do it on my own he has said, "then I'll get you a physical terrorist!"

I am pretty motivated for several reasons.  I don't want a physical terrorist being one reason and I want my life back being number two.  When I look back I am making progress.  Still I am horribly impatient.

That said, it's not as easy as you may think to get the ROM back.  My quads and calves are screaming.

 I have one good day and then a not so good day.  I may possibly be overdoing things on the good day and then need a recovery day.  It's a vicious cycle!

Speaking of cycles... does anyone have a stationary bike I could borrow?

In the meantime,  Max's graduation is June 7th.  

Shelly has been making rhubarb punch, Hubby and I made some rhubarb punch.  

Hubby has been pressure washing.  A job that I normally do because I love it.

I'm planting containers, window boxes and weeding while bending at the waist.

I ordered his pictures.

Max has completed all of his scholarship applications.  He did a fantastic job of writing essays.

I have a ton of lists written.  Not sure who is going to carry out the lists but they are written.

You may remember that Max doesn't have a baby book or a scrap book.  No, I'm not taking that on prior to June 6, his party date.  I am doing something fun with photos though.  I have it set up in the laundry room.  When I go to flip a load of laundry I quickly work on this project for 5 minutes each load.  It's working.

Max has a good start on his Senior Presentation, which is Monday.  He's taking care of that and I am not one bit worried that he'll do well.

Danny finished his winter semester at Grand Valley State University with A's.  Lots and lots of A's!

He had a heavy class load this semester so I am particularly proud of him.

Nicely done, kiddo! GVU has Fall and Winter semesters and then short Spring and Summer sessions.  Danny has the Summer session and Fall semester with an internship and then he is graduating.  

Sam started deployment classes and getting his shots this week.  He's been told that he isn't going to Afghanistan however; all of the signs are that he will deploy.

He wants to go.  I do not want him to go.

We are praying for different outcomes.

Either way, our Father in heaven has this all planned out for Sam.

The Sunshine Changes Everything

Finally Spring came to our corner of the world.  Friday it was looking  pretty good so I sent out a text to my  family.  I invited them to a party at my folks on Saturday afternoon.  It was a work surprise party!  I promised donuts and they showed up.  Weed eaters, weasels, hedge trimmers, rakes  and clippers were flying.  It was so much fun and we got a lot of trimming. tidying and weeding done in a few hours.

 Obviously some safety rules were not taken into consideration.  Hubby on the ladder with a hedge trimmer and Max driving along the hedge.

I couldn't look!

 Break time.

 Today Hubby and I went to Van Wingerden's Garden Center on Portal Way and bought our annuals and a few perennials. Then back home to pressure wash, weed, plant and set up the patio for the season.

 This little trillium has a yellow bloom and it is one of my favorites.  It is always the last to come up so every year I think it's not going to show.  I had given up again.  Looks like it made it for 2012!

 We had dinner on the patio tonight.  Hubby grilled burgers.  He and Max toss the football while he grills, then sit and visit.  It felt so good to be warm in the sunshine while outside today.

Many of you have been asking so next post I'll update you on my knee surgery.  Today it's  much more exciting to write about sunshine!

JSB 2012

Last night was LCHS JSB.  We got to have a little photo shoot with the kids before they left for the evening.

JSB 2012

 I think Kassie was nervous that Max would drop her.  I don't think he will.

I love these kids and they do clean up so well.

 It wasn't raining, in fact it was almost sunny, but it was cold.

 Max and Kassie with a group of friends.

 The girls were gorgeous and wore their cowboy boots for a twist on the formals.

Better than teetering around on heels!

 I like the pictures I get before they're actually ready for the shot.  The girls are ready on this one but the guys, not so much.

 While the girls were being photographed the guys went and sat in the sun and took a break.

Generally speaking, a photo shoot is a guy's worst nightmare.  These guys were fairly cooperative, just had to walk away and take a break.

 It looks like the break is over.

 I just hope the night didn't end with "up against the wall, put your hands up..."  Yikes!

Perspective

This post has taken me some time to write.  My blog isn't a political blog or a soapbox or a money maker.  It's just a journal of my life with my guys; however, today's post is different.

This post was written throughout the past two weeks.

April 20
I have been humbled.  My knee is pretty messed up.  See Chapters 1-5. Surgery is set for Tuesday, the 24th.  In the meantime, Hubby has been gone for 12 days.  He's coming home today and I am so excited to see him.  Meanwhile family, friends, coworkers, church members have stepped in to make this injury a little less painful for me.  I am overwhelmed with the love and care.  I have turned down a ton of offers of help for each one I've accepted.  My cup runs over.

April 22
My knee injury is so trivial compared to Travis Mills injuries.  Staff Sgt. Mills is with the 82nd Airborne with the U.S.Army, same as our Sam.  On April 10, Mills headed out to do his job.  A IED planted by terrorists exploded.  Travis Mills lost his limbs.  His wife, baby girl and his parents lost his limbs too.
You can visit Travis' site here.   His site gives daily updates.

April 23

While I was having a fantastic day skiing on Mt. Baker there were U.S. soldiers fighting a war against terrorists in Afghanistan.  

While I was amazed at the beauty of the snowy mountains, U.S soldiers are in a land where everywhere they look it's sand.

While I was laughing, a lot, there were military personnel making decisions to head out on patrol.

While I had lunch in a gorgeous lodge, a soldier ripped open another MRE(meals ready to eat).

While I felt the sun on my face as I rode up the chair lift many soldiers felt the sting of sand from another wind storm.

While I enjoyed friends a soldier was homesick in his tent.

While I injured my knee in April, 33 soldiers(unofficial number from Unknown Soldier) lost their lives at war in Afghanistan.  April was the bloodiest month in Afghanistan to date.  I'm sorry you have to read that here but our media isn't going to tell you.

April 24

Cast all your anxiety on him, because He cares for you. I Peter 5:7

Surgery day!  Dr Thorp is happy with results and I'm pretty happy on pain meds.  Hubby is taking good care of me.

April 28

While I go about my life whether I'm baking, parenting, cleaning, skiing, blogging or spending time with family and friends, there are soldiers working to ensure that others might have the freedoms and privileges that I enjoy everyday.  They work to see to it that I get to putter around with the trivial instead ofworrying about terrorists.  Sam's roommate left for the Middle East today.  Be careful Zeke and God bless you.

April 30

I lift up my eyes to the hills where does my help come from?  My help comes from the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth.  Psalm 121:1-2

*Zeke, I stole your pic.

Sometimes it doesn't hurt to put things into perspective a little.  To look at your plate and realize that someone else has a lot more on their plate.  It's easy to wallow in self pity.  Life is tough, God shapes us and toughens us up with the hard stuff.  I'm uncomfortable right now, I want my 'normal' back.  

You probably want it back too...haha.    Projects, recipes, funny stories about Max are more entertaining to read than posts about war, casualties and wounded soldiers.

May 1

If you want to make a difference today, if you want to do something for me today please consider the Wounded Warrior Project.  Really, just click and give.  I've never asked my readers for much actually I don't believe I've ever asked you for anything but today I am putting myself out there and asking you to give.  It doesn't matter how much, just something.

More importantly I'm asking you to please pray for Travis and his family today, for other wounded soldiers and for our troops.  Ask God to bless their day.

And most importantly please pray for peace.

And I promise I'll be back soon with yummy recipes, Max's JSB and graduation, a visit to Danny and where in the world is That Sam I Am, and a project or two.  Today though, I gotta keep it real.

By the way, Wounded Warrior Project is a very well run organization, it meets my and Hubby's criteria.

God bless you!