Oh, No...Not Another Broken Arm

This morning Erin was putting away some vitamins and getting a cup down from the cabinet. All of a sudden she let out a loud scream. I guess she hit her arm on the tile countertop. Eric immediately thought she broke it and that I should take her to ER. Erin thought she just bruised it. I tried to call the dr and see if I could take her into the base and have it x-rayed. But they couldn't see her and told me they would have a nurse call me back. I sent Erin to school and I emailed her teacher to let her know what happened. I had a busy day scheduled with volunteer work all morning and then lunch with an old friend from Guam. Then I had to get ready for Eric's birthday party.

I had to drop everything when I got an email from Erin's teacher saying that Erin couldn't write and was in a lot of pain. I immediately took her to Urgent Care where they took x-rays. Unfortunately the dr couldn't be positive that her arm wasn't broken. He said there was a suspicious area in her growth plate and he needed to send them in for a radiologist to look at. So we will know for sure tomorrow. In the meantime, Erin has a sling and instructions for no PE for at least 2 weeks. Poor Erin. I think the orthopedic surgeon is going to laugh if I walk in with another patient from our family. Eric and I both see him and now possibly Erin.

Our Favorite Mutt by Zach

I am Special

Today Eric called me just before school started because he forgot a flash drive at home. He asked me if I could bring it to him at noon. I wondered why noon but then realized that was his lunch time. I figured that he was hoping that I would take him to lunch in addition to bringing him that all important flash drive with an important homework assignment on it. He is so lucky that I am a stay-at-home mom.

Anyway, at lunch, we discussed his "sorta" birthday party. His 13th birthday falls on a Sunday, so I told him that he could have friends over on Friday night and he would be allowed to play some Teen games a couple days early. He has been waiting for this day for a long time. He invited one friend from church that I don't know. So I am not sure what games his parents allow him to play. I asked Eric if I needed to call his mom and ask for permission for him to play the Teen games Friday night. Eric said, "Sure mom, but I don't think you have to. I am sure he is allowed." I commented that he (Eric) wasn't allowed until 13, and Eric's response was, "Yeah, mom but you're special."

I know he was referring to the fact that he is probably the only 12 year old on the planet that has to wait until he is 13 to play Teen games. But it was kind of nice being called "Special." I choose to take it as a compliment.

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It's August!!!

Yeah, the month I have been waiting for since last November. Mario comes homes this month!

Here's an email I got from Mario this morning:

I didn't go anywhere today. Everyone that's in my departure group was very excited when they came in to work today... WE'RE IN AUGUST! We go home this month. Jeff leaves in 9 days, one of the NCOs leaves in about 12, the rest of us in 19.

August is going to be a whole month of celebrations. We are celebrating that August is finally here. Next week we get to celebrate Eric's 13th birthday and Erin's 11 birthday. Then we will celebrate Mario leaving Kabul. The ultimate celebration will be at the end of the month, when we finally get to greet him at the airport.

What an exciting month!

Scout advancement

Eric finally advanced to Life Scout tonight. I say finally because he has been wanting a board of review for months and with a change of leadership and a number of other excuses, Eric wasn't able to pin on until tonight. His goal was to be an Eagle Scout in 2010 because it is the 100th anniversary of scouting. But now he will have to wait at least 6 months to advance to Eagle. Breaking his arm also made it hard to accomplish his goal. He wasn't able to go to Scout camp so he has a lot of camping nights to make up. Eric is an awesome kid and he works hard. I am so proud of him. I love these pics of Eric and I. Not often that Eric shows any affection in public. Helps when the Bishop tells the boys to kiss and hug their moms. Thanks Bishop!

It is funny because I was just wondering today when Eric stopped showing any affection for his family in public. I wonder because my twins hug and kiss me everyday when I drop them off and pick them up from school. I was just wondering how much longer they will do that. I will cherish the hugs and kisses everyday until they stop. Then I will be sad. At least I still have Erin to be affectionate in public.

Teacher Visits

In the Vail School District, we have the option of having the teacher make a home visit. They come and hang out with the student for about a half and hour and do anything that the student wants. Nathan chose to give Mrs. Lowden a tour of our house and then play Legos. He was so excited about her visit that he cleaned out the inside of my china hutch. Before school I saw him with the hutch's door open and I asked him what he was looking for. His response was, "I am cleaning it, my teacher is coming today!" I really don't think she would look inside a cabinet, but hey, if he wants to clean it for me, that is great. No complaints from me. Then after school I noticed that Erin's closet was off the track. After further inspection, I noticed the track was bent. I asked her what happened and she said Nathan broke it. He came in her room a few minutes prior to make sure her closet was clean (because his teacher was coming.) He took a quick look inside and said never mind and slammed the door shut which caused it to come off the track.

He and Mrs. Lowden enjoyed playing with Legos. Zach wasn't quite sure what he wanted to do with his teacher until he heard that some other kids played wii with her. So he played wii with Mrs. Rupel and the intern. Not surprising, he beat them at every Mario Kart race. I think it was fun for him to play against two people who didn't have a chance of beating him.

Boys Being Boys

Here's a few of the conversations I have been hearing around the house this week. I wonder if my boys will break the family record and make it to the principal's office before third grade.

#1

Zach: "Nate, I went to computers today and it was so boring."

Nate: "Then why didn't you just type in pbs.org"

Zach: "Because the teachers were watching"

#2

Zach: "Mom, I know how to leave the lunchroom without eating all my lunch."

Me: "Really, how?"

Zach: "I just close my lunch box before they come around and check."

#3

Zach: "We aren't allowed to run on the playground at recess."

Me: "Yeah, I know, Erin got in trouble for that last year."

Zach: "We just wait until the teacher isn't watching, then we run."

#4

Nate: "These new shoes don't fit."

Erin: "Let me try putting them on you."

Nate: "They fit now, mom just put one of them on the wrong foot."