Teenagers

Joshua turned 13, and Hyrum is 14, and they have both been picking on me! Stinkers! I love 'em both, but they're stinkers! Joshua needs his ears cleaned out. He likes to take whatever I say and twist the words all around because he didn't understand me. And he does it extra bad just to tease me. Sometimes he understands and does it anyway just to annoy me.

Both of them are going through voice changes. Hyrum has been experimenting with his voice, and it's loud! When I pick him up from Seminary he's always on such a high, so there I am sitting quietly in the car, and he suddenly opens the door and bellows, "Hi!" at the top of his lungs, feeling quite pleased with himself. It sure makes me jump! I had to ask him to stop it, but a little part of me feels sad that I did.

And they both like to lean on me! Tonight Joshua was leaning on me on one side, telling me he wanted to go home and also trying to annoy me, while Hyrum was just leaning on me trying to annoy me. Woe is me! Plus, every time Hyrum sees me feeling upset he comes over and says, "Mama needs a hug," and bowls me over. It proves, though, that teenagers need hugs too. (Because the truth is that whenever he says that it's usually because he needs a hug.) So I try to just regain my balance and hug him back. Ha ha!

So anyway, it gets me thinking. I never would tease my Mama like that! I tell you, I take things much too seriously! And I am not male even a little. ;) But I also think this tells me I maybe did something right. :) So, I suppose that, though they do bowl me over and tease me, I wouldn't really trade it for anything.

Also, it's funny watching them trying to get used to their newly acquired long limbs. It's kind of awkward. And Hyrum has actual whiskers in his sideburns! I'd better get him to shave before church tomorrow!

Timmy

Tonight Timmy was sitting by me at scripture time, and we tried again to have him repeat and "read" a verse. Well, this time he did it! He did a while verse! And when we call roll in the car he often says, "Here!" when his name is called. :) And a few weeks ago he said a prayer on the good with help. He hasn't done it since, but hooray for progress!

Lately, when he wants something, he'll come and say, "Can you have a ________?" Yeah, we need to work on pronouns, but hooray! And he can string two sentences together! "Can you have a apple? I'm so hungry." :) I'm not sure where he picked up that second sentence, but it's obvious that he knows what it means, and hooray that he can use it! He's been playing video games with his brothers, and one of them that he likes a lot is The Incredibles. He calls it "Nister and Credible" (Mr. Incredible). Cute!

Now, please understand, I'm not trying to complain in this next part. I'm just expressing feelings, and I'm sure I'm more alone in feeling thus way.

Lately, when I'm on Facebook and I have something to share that's religious, I often talk myself out of it because we have certain members of our families who think religion is dumb. It makes me sad, and I worry about what they might say in response. I can't handle the thought if their saying something mean and, basically, "interrupting [my] rejoicings." Such things haven't been said to me, but they have been said to Jeremy and to others by these certain people. They've said some mean, insensitive things. I don't know what I'd do if those things were said to me. (Ok, I do know. I'd cry.)

I've decided that maybe a change in attitude/perspective is in order. I can't change these people or what they think anymore than I can change the fact that Jill went with me to the store tonight even though I wanted to just hurry up and go alone, all because she wanted to go so badly. She even hurriedly brushed get hair and got her "glass slippers" (her hand-me-down brown heels) on. I couldn't change that I'd taken her, but I realized as I walked in the store feeling all sourpuss that I'd better change my attitude our it would be a miserable shopping trip when it could be a fun one. I couldn't change her desire to go, and really there was nothing wrong with her going. I was just hungry and grouchy and in a hurry. I could change my attitude, and I did.

Now, this with Facebook is different because it's something I'm actually afraid of. But I don't need out want to live in fear. In fact, I want to eliminate fear from my life wherever I can find it because it's much too prevalent. I need to trust God more than man and worry about what He thinks more.

So I'll work on that. :)

And I'm super excited about General Conference coming up on the first weekend in April! :D It's going to be great! It always is. 8 hours of listening to wonderful talks from wonderful church leaders with my family. Such a blessing!

A Farewell to Scratchy

Last night Joshua discovered that his beloved rat, Scratchy Charles Burk, had passed away.  And so I think it's appropriate that I write about Scratchy today.

Joshua got Scratchy for Christmas in 2012.  We all went down to the valley one day just before Christmas for the express purpose of going to Petco to let Joshua pick a rat.  He'd been asking for one for a long time, and praying for one as well.  Finally, Jeremy made a deal with Joshua where if Joshua would do his job faithfully every day for a set period of time he could get a rat.  Joshua did his part, and so there we were at Petco one day.  We looked at all the rats and mice they had.  Joshua ended up picking a grayish medium sized one.  And forever after he wished he knew how old that meant he was because he wanted to celebrate his birthday.  Joshua had picked out the name long before we went to find him.  He waited for a few minutes after we got him, as we were driving home, to decide that that was really his name.  The middle name came later.

 



At first, Scratchy wasn't too sure about being held.  He wet and pooped a lot at first out of fear, but within the first day he decided he liked Joshua.  Joshua was sitting on the couch with him the day after we got him, just petting him.  When he stopped, Scratchy crawled over and gently grabbed his finger in his teeth and pulled his hand back over to him.  It was so sweet and endearing.

 

We bought an exercise wheel for Scratchy, and Joshua had planned to teach him to do all sorts of tricks, but in the end, the only trick he mastered was sitting on Joshua's shoulder. ;) He was scared of how the wheel moved, but as he grew he decided it was a great place to lay down.  Aaron donated a cage, a dome-shaped piece of wood for a house, and a food bowl.  We bought rat treats and chew toys.  We all had a lot of fun giving Scratchy food.  We'd hold a rat treat in between the bars of his cage, and Scratchy would sniff around for a bit and then run right over and grab it.  And then he'd immediately scurry off to his house and hide it in the bedding or hold it in his cute little hands and eat it.

 

At first, Scratchy got out of his cage a lot!  He could squeeze right between the bars, and he did so often.  His cage sits on Joshua's dresser at the foot of his bed, so he'd squeeze out of the cage and onto the bad with ease.  One morning while Joshua was at school Scratchy was suddenly not in his cage.  We searched the whole house, including Joshua's bed, several times.  I was just about to give up in despair, but I decided to check his bed more thoroughly one more time.  I started taking the blankets off and throwing them on the floor.  It turned out that, even though I'd looked a hundred times, Scratchy was in one of the blankets!  He dropped to the floor and then ran under the bed.  I coaxed him out with a rat treat and then scooped him up and put him back in his cage.  Apparently, Joshua had forgotten to feed him before he went to school.  After that we always made sure he got fed!

 

Scratchy used to get lonely at night, so he'd squeeze between the bars and crawl up to Joshua's head and wake him up.  One night Joshua left his pants at the foot of his bed, and the next morning as we were walking down to the bus stop I suddenly realized that Scratchy had chewed a bunch of holes in the seat of those pants!  Neither Joshua nor I had noticed it before!  I had Joshua pull his shirt down or something to cover it up, and then I loaded the little ones in the car and ran to Wal-Mart to get some new pants.  I delivered them just as Joshua was finishing breakfast at school. (I found it was easier to have them eat breakfast at school, and since we had reduced-price breakfast, why not?) After that we finally started taking the cage out to the kitchen table at night.  He stayed in it then.  We did that until he was too big to squeeze through the bars anymore.

 

 

Joshua did a science fair experiment with Scratchy that year at Bejarano Elementary.  He played different kinds of music for him at night while we slept and then tracked his weight.  We didn't do a very good job of it.  If we'd wanted to do it right we'd have been more consistent.  I remember that one night I took him out to the shop so that we could have lights on above him all night too.  I set a lamp or two next to his cage.  I don't think we found anything conclusive from that project, but we did the dang science fair project! ;) 

 

Here is a picture Joshua took of Scratchy just before Christmas 2014.  Joshua loved Scratchy so much.  Scratchy went with us every place he possibly could.  He went on trips, he went camping, he went to Sunday dinner - all that kind of stuff.  Joshua held him pretty much any time he could.  He'd bring him out every morning and sit with him and rub his belly and tell him he was so cute over and over again.  I don't know if there was ever a rat that was more loved.

 

This was the day we got our newest family pictures back in November 2014.  Looking back, I'm thankful that we have Scratchy in them.  We couldn't have known that he would be gone so soon.

 

 

This was at one of the family campouts in June 2014.  Joshua loved to put Scratchy in his hood and carry him that way.  Scratchy loved hiding under the car seat in the car, in Joshua's hood, in the neck of his shirt, or in his sleeve.  He liked to sit on the window sill behind Joshua at the dinner table and eat bits of food that Joshua gave him.  He liked running back and forth across the back of our old couch, and once or twice when he was hungry he chewed holes back there.  Argh!

 

For the last month or so Scratchy was getting weaker and weaker.  He couldn't run like he used to.  His feet didn't work the same.  One day last week Joshua discovered that Scratchy couldn't even reach up to his water bottle, so he started bringing it out with him and holding it for him.   Scratchy hasn't looked well in the last few weeks.  His eyes were never all the way open anymore, and he just looked like he was suffering.  Poor fella!

 

The last thing I remember about Scratchy being alive yesterday was when he wet and pooped on Joshua (again!) in the morning or early afternoon, so Joshua took him to his cage to finish up.  I think that was the last thing Joshua knew as well.  He went to check on him at bedtime, and picked him up thinking he was just sleeping.  He wasn't.  Joshua cried and cried.  We found a shoe box and lined it with paper towels.  Jeremy dug a deep hole in the backyard, and Joshua laid the box in it.  We had a little funeral with just Jeremy, Joshua, Benji, Brom, and me.  The other children were in their beds, mostly asleep by then.  Jeremy talked about Scratchy and how he was more of a family pet than any we've had so far and how he was such a good friend.  Joshua said a prayer of thanks, and Jeremy filled up the hole.  Today we'll find a rock for a grave marker.

 

We're so thankful for Scratchy, for the good friend that he was to Joshua.  It breaks my heart to look over at Joshua and not see the little fella snuggled up to him. 

 

Rest in peace, Scratchy.  We are glad that you are not suffering anymore.  You are sorely missed.



A little update or something

The children have mandatory outdoor time today.  I locked them out, and Jill is crying at the door like her life is in peril.  Such a mean mommy!  I wouldn't have locked them out, but Jill is the one who decided today was not the day to go quietly.

Just recently Jeremy and I switched our inhaler prescription.  We had ProAir in the past, but that was suddenly a tier 3 prescription and would have been $40 out of our pockets every month.  I didn't like that idea, but luckily there's a cheaper one, Ventolin, that we could switch to.  I don't like it as much.  The reason is probably just that it's different.  I liked the shape of the other one better, and this new one must have a different propellant.  It's not that the old one tasted good, but this one tastes like spray paint. o_O Well, at least it seems to kind of do its job. 

I also think I probably should suck it up and clean the mouthpiece on the silly nebulizer and just use it.  The allergies seem to have eased off a bit.  I actually haven't used the nebulizer in a week or two.  I started being good about taking those mushrooms for a while, and it actually helped. :) I've been slacking off the last few days, and I can feel it.  I am such a bum!  I just need to do it.  So it's a cumulative effect with the mushrooms. Just taking it once doesn't cut it.

And while I'm on the pity party train (And after I just apologized for being a downer!), check out what I did to my leg this morning.  I took Hyrum to seminary, and then I was in a hurry to get to the bathroom when I got home, and I ran into a chair in the dark kitchen on my way.  I thought I just had a small bruise.  I couldn't believe how bad it looks!  Well, at least it didn't hurt very much. :) Really, though, check it out and laugh with me because it's ridiculous! :)

Hyrum got to bring home some stuff that he made in his sculpture class. :) Here are some pictures:

2 bowls

Here he is with all the stuff he brought home.  The littlest ones in this left hand were going to be marbles, but the teacher said they were too thick to fire, so he poked holes in them.  Now they're cute little rolly-polly pots. :) He was so excited to bring these home.  I think he did great. :) You can also see by his pants that he tried the pottery wheel today.  Apparently, it's harder than it looks, even though he did it at scout camp!

 

 

And while I'm sharing pictures, here's Timmy drawing Mario's hat at church last Sunday. :)

And here are kiddos in our bed a few days ago.  I seriously wonder how Jeremy and I ever sleep!  Brom sleeps in our bed by default, and then during the night one or the other or both of the others come in.  Last night Jeremy took care of Jill in the night, and when he came back to bed Timmy was in his spot.  He decided to just lay across the foot of the bed.  He was there clinging on for dear life while I couldn't stretch out.  I finally just turned sideways too, but then my pillow kept falling off (hello, sore neck, which usually = headache, but surprisingly not in this case!  Score! :D), and I couldn't pull the blankets up on me, and Brom was crying.  And just as he started to settle down my alarm went off!  Some days are like that, even in Australia.  But considering that the alternative would be no kiddos, I think we still come out huge winners in the end. :)

Miracles

We just had a lesson on miracles in Sunday School. All through the lesson I couldn't help thinking that miracles happen according top the will of God. And whenever the will of God is accomplished it is for our good. One example that comes to mind is the Gilbert Temple Dedication. It rained THE WHOLE TIME. Rain here by itself is a miracle. But the other miracle is the good that happened in the lives of our youth because of it. The rain made the experience that much more unforgettable. They soldiered on and were blessed. It has been such a strength to Hyrum as he builds his foundation.

Also, I feel like I ought to apologize for being whiny on my blog. I'm sorry! Even if this is an outlet for me, I need to focus on the good and increase it in my life rather than expounding on every tiny detail of the bad. What we focus on increases, and the more I look for the bad and be bitter about it, the more I'll find bad to be bitter about. So I've been working on focusing on the good this month and also letting go of bitterness. It is a blessing!

Hello

Man! So far this year has not been kind to me health-wise. A cold and allergies and who knows what all. I suppose I could be living with strep throat or pneumonia, though, huh?

Remember how I used to wish the flowers outside would bloom on my birthday? Well, the day after my birthday I was in the right place and happened to see that a few poppies had bloomed. What a gorgeous sight! Unfortunately,  it also means something else is blooming. And it also means that my as yet undiagnosed asthma is in full bloom as well, worse than ever! And to top it off I've got a cough fit to raise the dead. I say again with renewed vigor: we've got to get out of here! I'm taking my allergy medicine daily year-round like a good girl, and it's making a dent, but it's not enough. I have been running for my inhaler repeatedly throughout the day and having to wake in the night to use it as well. It makes me so frustrated! It's February, for crying out loud! It kind of freaks me out. What will it be like when spring officially arrives? And, of course,  I feel Jeremy's pain more than ever. The poor guy has suffered through years of this. Thank heavens those mushrooms help him! So far they haven't done anything for me as far as I can tell. Of course, I'm horrible about consistency, though. It takes me a while to get a regimen going. I'm not giving up on it yet.

Sorry for the doom and gloom speech. It's probably the lateness of the hour speaking as much as frustration. I'll try to post something more cheerful in the morning.

Jeremy is a nice boy

Here is a post that makes me glad this blog is private. It's something I want to record, but not something I need to publish widely. Jeremy will probably think I'm silly to put it here. Oh well. :)

This evening Jeremy and I went to Walmart for some odds and ends for his birthday and stuff. It was nice walking around holding hands and buying things we didn't really mean to buy in the first place. That's the nature of Walmart, after all. You go in for one thing and come out with ten. Anyway, when we went through checkout there was a girl behind us with three cans of baby formula. Jeremy paid for our stuff and then said he'd pay for hers too. He said, "I've bought a lot of that stuff." The girl looked so happy and surprised. It made me pretty happy too. :)

And then as we were headed to the car Jeremy saw one of his old students from his personal finance class at Globe High School who was working there, and he asked him if he was saving at least ten percent. I can't remember the exact conversation, but it is nothing new. He always asks his students that. It turns out this particular kid hadn't been saving anything before, but since Jeremy talked to him last he started saving.

It is neat to see Jeremy working good here in the community that needs it do much. It's nice to see how he doesn't just teach kids and forget them. He follows up and really cares and believes in them. He makes a difference, and I think that is one reason why we are still here. :)