It's time to catch up! Lots has happened since Lila started preschool last August. It's out of order...Blogger was not cooperating with me and it has taken me this long to blog about it, so it will just have to do!
On August 12, my dad passed away. We made another quick trip to Utah/Idaho for the funeral. We got there Thursday night. The "State Fire" was burning up the mountains around Samaria and everything smelled horribly of smoke. Clint and I went on a short ride through the mountains. It was sobering to see just how much had burned. Luckily, no houses or lives were lost.
Friday morning, Clint and I took the kids to the park and the Blue Goose for candy to kill time before my dad's viewing. Haden climbed up on the teeter totter. Somehow, he managed to fall off when he was up high, and let out a blood curdling scream when he landed. My kids are tough. They don't usually cry over minor injuries. Haden had landed on a tree stump that barely protruded from the ground and snapped both bones in his arm. We loaded all the kids into the gator, thankfully we didn't walk there!! We got to Clint's parents house, left Regan with her cousins, and I held my little boy and his horribly broken arm while Clint drove like a madman to the hospital. He was just whimpering and complaining that his arm hurt. Completely heartbreaking. Grandpa picked up Lila and I got kicked out of the room while they set Haden's bone. Gratefully, we had him drugged and he doesn't remember anything after we got to the hospital. Because we were in a small, rural hospital, we were told to return to Denver to see an orthopedic surgeon. He might have needed surgery. The surgeon said no surgery, but the bones almost broke through the skin. Next time we go back to Idaho, Haden and I are going to destroy that teeter totter. (Another kid was seriously injured on it before Haden. It needs to go.)
We skipped the viewing and spent the afternoon distracting little Haden from his broken arm. His silly cat actually came in handy. Haden could just sit still and pet the thing.
Saturday, Clint, Haden, and I left for Logan. I knew it was going to be a long, emotional day and didn't want my kids to be bored and complaining. They didn't really know my dad anyway. I wasn't about to let Haden and his arm out of my sight, so he got to (had to) come with us. The service was nice and my dad was laid to rest in the Smithfield cemetery. He had spent hours walking in that cemetery. He had been very sick and in a lot of pain for years. I'm glad that he is no longer in pain.
Afterwards, we raced back to Idaho so Clint could supervise our house being knocked over. The guy only had time to half way finish the job, so after he left, the kids had fun throwing rocks and shooting BBs through any windows still left intact. Haden had been looking forward to this part for months. He had broken his right arm and it hurt to throw much of anything with his left. Clint helped him with the gun, but he was still disappointed. I guess the refrigerator in the house was still full of food. Food that had been left for months and smelled like something had died. The backhoe knocked the refrigerator open and it took days for the smell to go away. I felt so bad for the neighbors!! Even though we had originally planned on staying for a few more days, we left Sunday so we could make Haden's appointment with the orthopedic surgeon on Monday.
I know the house was unsalvageable, but it was still sad to see someone's home knocked over. You could smell the mold in the air. Gross.
Savannah brought my nieces, Anna and Leah, up to watch the destruction and to throw rocks through the windows.
I don't like trips like that one and hope I never have another one. I had to drive
back to Utah the Friday after we got home to take Dale to Utah State for school. There and back in 72 hours. I don't want to do that again either!
