WHY DID IT TAKE UNTIL ALMOST 10 AM FOR ME TO ROLL OUT OF BED THIS MORNING?

'NUFF SAID!

LIVED TO TELL

Yesterday my dad had surgery to repair his thumb and shoulder. He was able to have both surgeries done on the same day by two different doctors and surgical teams. Since I myself am an avid hater of anesthesia, I can really appreciate the value of this "working together for the greater good" method of surgery.

Tonight we were able to visit him at home and he was doing well and in good spirits. He was excited to show us his helmet and armored clothes to emphasize how much worse his injuries could have been... As if distracting us from letting loose a lecture on the dangers of old men riding motorcycles. It didn't work. We lectured anyway- a little bit. He also showed us pictures taken a couple days after the accident of his bruising and road-rash. The entire right side of his body is a huge bruise. It was ugly and shocking, and I'm not JUST referring to his old man bum peeking out in some of the photos. Giggle, giggle, hee hee...just kidding Dad! Kind of...

Then I took some pictures of my own and warned him I would be blogging about it, again.

This is just a small section of the bruising


His best scabs and rash are hidden under bandages and clothing


Hwellp, now I know where I got my legs from...


Then he told us the whole story of how it all happened, and how plainly and simply grateful he is to be here. And I told him how I knew before it happened that it would happen. And I don't know how I knew. Sometimes I just know. And after enough incidences of sometimes knowing, I've learned that the only thing I can do is wait for the phone call. Some things can't be explained, and I'm okay with that.

He's here, he's healing, he's a good grandpa, and I'm okay with that too.

HOW CAN DOING SO LITTLE HURT SO MUCH?

On Monday I had a whim. I wanted to go for a run. All my friends are doing it, I want to do it too. I made Brit go with me. We went about a mile. I jogged maybe, MAYBE, a quarter of that mile. Yesterday I HURT!!! I hurt from head to toe. I hurt like I'd been skiing all day. I hobbled around, moaning and aching, feeling so sorry for myself. Today I hurt. Not quite so much, but still, so much. Tomorrow I have to get back out there and give it another go...

PRAY FOR ME! (or pray for rain)

WHEN IT RAINS

Yesterday was a little hectic. And a little stressful (see previous post). Then the rain started. And the heavens opened and flooded us with all that "wetness" that Dan Pope promised for May. And sometime around 2 am this morning, in the midst of all the rain, this happened...



Mama Lucy FINALLY had her twins.

A boy


and a girl


Lucy had a hard time bringing these babies into the world so Kays and I had to give her a hand (or two) but all three are doing well now.

My Tuesday this week started at 8 am yesterday, and ended at 4 am today. My Wednesday started much too soon at 8 am today. I think I'm gonna need a nap. Yeaawn...

IF I HAD A NICKEL...

How many times has this happened to you?... You wake up on a typical weekday morning to take care of children, pets, regular household chores... It's always a little crazy in the mornings, isn't it, trying to get everyone going and out the door? But, once the craziness is done, once the kids are out the door, the animals fed, a load of laundry started, you brew up a nice cup of herbal tea, maybe scramble an egg, and sit down for a nice, quiet, peaceful breakfast. Next thing you know the phone is ringing. It's your dad's wife calling from California to let you know your dad has been in an accident on his motorcycle.

Diane: "HE IS GOING TO BE OKAY." (Lots of emphasis on that part) "He is in the hospital..." Me: "Wait up... Hold the phone... His what now?! Motorcycle?!" Diane: "Yes. He laid his bike down riding this morning and he is in the hospital in Long Beach. But HE IS GOING TO BE OKAY." Me: "Is he? Was he even okay to begin with? Because look at the choices he's made! He's a 64 year old man who has never ridden a motorcycle his entire life, who all of a sudden decided to buy one (?) and ride cross-country!" Diane: "Would you mind calling your siblings to let them know? And make sure they understand HE IS GOING TO BE OKAY."

Children, talk to your parents! They need to know the dangers and consequences of their reckless behavior! I've seen a rise in the number of irresponsible, devil-may-care choices in Seniors recently. I dare say we may be looking at a new epidemic! No one wants to get the call that their 60-70 something parent has had an equipment malfunction while sky-diving, or blown out a knee on their rollerblades. What happened to the good ol' days of rocking chairs on the porch? Something must be done to stop this madness. Maybe we should start with celebrity endorsed public service announcements...

Based on the info I got, Dad has injured his right shoulder, arm, and hand. He's also broken his left thumb which will require surgery and pins to put it all back together. Diane was still two hours out from reaching the hospital so I will have more info later once she gets there and can talk to the docs. I've decided to hold my tongue and not give him a lecture. Looking something like this

for several weeks is punishment enough.

Seriously though, it could have been much worse and I am very grateful that HE IS GOING TO BE OKAY.

WEATHER UPDATE...

Dan Pope IS playing mind games with me. I knew it! So far the weather this week has been fabulous! Which gives me hope for Sunday's "something else" to be something good. We should all cross our fingers and toes.

BIRTHDAY BOY!

Brit turned 17 last week... 17! I know!!! It's very strange to be the mom of a grown up man-child. He is much stronger than me, he has this kind of mystery about him that is so not little kid anymore. AND, he has a girlfriend!

We kept asking Brit what he wanted to do for his birthday this year and he kept saying he didn't want to do anything. He just wanted to hang out with Sarah (girlfriend). Brit is a pretty straight-forward kind of guy so when he said low-key, we knew he meant it. Sarah, on the other hand doesn't know Brit as well as we do, and had other plans. She asked me to get involved, and while I would never go against Brit's wishes all by myself, I felt like it was safe to participate as long as I blamed Sarah for it. At noon while he was in class Sarah and some accomplices did this to his room:


and this

the crew


Later, after Sarah lured him away for a few hours, we got ready for her next surprise...

The guests began arriving for his surprise party

then the birthday boy came home

and everyone had fun playing games and eating junk food


Except the cake wasn't junk food. It was vegan. Because that was the one thing Brit did request for his birthday... A vegan cake. And bonus, it was really yummy!


Happy 17th birthday Brit! I hope it was the best yet. You're still my favorite boy. Love, Mom.

APPARENTLY, IT'S SPRING IN UTAH

THIS is the clever little snippet that accompanied my local weather forecast for this coming week...

"The storm system is moving out of Northern Utah and centering over the Four Corners area at this time. Precipitation is expected to be fairly heavy near Blanding and Monticello, while showers will prevail over much of the Central and Southern areas this afternoon. As this storm moves out, Monday will be a spectacular day...with lots of sunshine and warmer temperatures. Two more cold fronts will move through the area...one on Tuesday and another one on late Wednesday and Thursday...with possibly something else moving in on Sunday. Yes, it is spring in Utah. By the way, May is the wettest month of the year, recording on average just a little over two inches." Meteorologist Dan Pope - Live 5 Weather HD, Sunday May 2st 2010.

In case I let myself get comfortable with the "spectacular" weather tomorrow, I should not forget that May is the wettest month of the year! Bring on the rain, May, but let's leave the snow behind in April! And really, it's the "something else" moving in on Sunday that scares me... It's more snow isn't it Dan Pope? Just say it!

Hope everyone is having a great spring. Sorry I haven't been reading blogs, I think my brain has been frozen along with the rest of me. Coming out of hibernation soon...