Are you kidding me?

Some of you may recall me posting about the adventures of being Caleb's mommy. We just returned from an afternoon visiting the doctor AND dentist. Let me flash back to about 3 1/2 weeks ago...I was getting ready for the day while the boys played in the family room. As is so typical with 2 little boys, they started chasing each other around the house. Well, this particular morning, again, like most others, I hear KK start to scream. You see, Caleb has no volume control. His trademark scream is the same volume and intensity whether Trey has just touched his balloon or shut his hand in the front door. Because his hand HAS been shut in the door and I am embarrassed to say I ignored it thinking Trey had just touched his balloon again, I went to check on him just to make sure. Unfortunately Caleb had plowed face-first into the CORNER of the family room wall. I could see immediately the point of contact going from the top of his nose, all the way down to his already-swelling chin. He was  starting to bleed, but I couldn't really tell the significance of the injury because he wouldn't let me look in his mouth. I tried giving him popsicles, but he said they hurt, and even Spiderman ice packs were terrifying to him. His little face swelled up to the point he was almost unrecognizable. I called his pediatrician to see if we needed to come in, but they told me that if his nose were broken, it would be crooked (which it wasn't), and if his teeth weren't loose (which they weren't), there wasn't much they could do. The next morning I could better see the extent of his injuries. He would let me barely lift his throbbing lip to see what was going on in his mouth. He had pushed one of his front teeth completely up and in, and his gums looked like hamburger. He was even still occasionally bleeding even 2 days later. This photo was taken the next day, and if you look close, you can see the lovely red line down his sweet face.

Fast forward 3 weeks later... The tooth that has been displaced is now gray and dead. I remembered that his dentist had told me if this happened, we would need to pull the tooth to prevent infection. I call the dentist and they don't have openings for 2 more weeks. Argh...this tooth is quite ugly inside his adorable little mouth. I don't want to wait 2 weeks, but even more pressing, he's developed a cold which I'm nervous could be a secondary infection from the tooth. I decide to err on the side of caution, and I take him into the doctor. She sends me right downstairs to another pediatric dentist AGAST that my dentist wouldn't take him immediately. After spending an hour at the doctor, poor KK isn't thrilled about walking right back into another waiting room. Well, after x-rays (and another gasp as I mention my experience with previous dentist), Caleb's injury is apparently MUCH worse than even I thought. The tooth is obviously dead, but he has actually BROKEN a bone inside his mouth. The bone that holds the root in place on his front teeth has been cracked. I about started crying. My poor baby has been walking around with a broken bone in his MOUTH and I didn't even know. They told me to put him on a soft food diet for the next few weeks. After the bone is healed - about 8 weeks - they'll basically do a root canal without taking out the tooth (the only good news of the day). 

This humbling experience brings back horrible memories of spending a Sunday in the ER with Caleb nearly 2 years ago. He wouldn't walk, had a fever, and we were nervous he had another urinary tract infection. After a few days of tests, we were referred to a orthopedic surgeon who does x-rays of KK's leg and tells me he's cracked his knee cap. This is at least a week after his injury. I felt like such a horrible mommy. Most kids break arms and sprain ankles, mine breaks his mouth and knee. 

Needless to say, today was a very sobering experience as a mother. After we got home and I checked my messages, I notice my house is dead silent. Those of you who are parents know - this is NEVER a good thing. I walk into the entry hall, and here I find Caleb right where I left him when we walked in the house. Poor Caleb. Trey at least found his bed to crash in...

Grateful Sunday

I love how a particular day of the week, Sunday - in fact, can elicit a sense of gratitude and perspective in my life. God has blessed me with so much, I can't help but thank Him.

1. My job. It's not often people have as much passion as I do about what I get paid for. I honestly I believe I would still take the time and effort (I'm not making any promises) even if I didn't get paid to do what I do for a living. I love my students, the music, and how it makes me feel to make others happy (and in pain at the same time :)).

 

2. My sweet Lucas. You changed the shape of my heart in just a few short months. You'll always be my little coconut. Memories of you send a smile to my face.

3. Like many un-ashamed, fully-grown women around the country - I'm grateful for the Twilight series by Stephenie Meyer. She's proof that even us (LDS) stay-at-home moms can have wild and vivid imaginations worth putting down on paper and selling for (lots of) good money.

4. Burke Williams Day Spa. The things a good deep-tissue massage can do for the body is so powerful, it seeps into the soul. 

5. Jenna Byers. I love this girl beyond measure. She has been the one to catch my fall many times in my life. She has been present with me during the darkest, as well as happiest moments of my life. Please forgive me, dear friend, for the photo. This happens to be one of my happiest moments - a bright shining light cutting through the dark fog. The sock slide...

6. David Mark Wheeler. I'm grateful for the love. I'm grateful for the smile that always reminds me how deeply I love him. I'm grateful for the journey no matter what the cost; the reward outweighs all else. 

7. My car. I know, so profoundly materialistic in the midst of the loves of my life, but still. One doesn't understand the benefit of remote ignition, until you have it. Or a back up camera, or GPS, or so many other features I love about my precious car.

8. The 2008 Beijing Olympics. I have just relished watching history in the making. I've loved the stories of true heart and passion and dedication to a craft. I never am so vocal in my tv-watching as when the olympics are on (except maybe while watching The Office).

9. How could I remember so many bright shining lights in my life without mentioning my Treyden. How I love this face. I have a song for each of my children that reminds me of their arrival and how I felt about them at their birth. Treyden's song is so befitting, "I Knew I Loved you Before I Met You." Nothing could be more true. He's so perfect for me, he reminds me why I love being a mommy. T has the best monologues, and makes me laugh and smile every day. My favorite phrase (and probably will be for a long time), is, "mommy, you beautiful guwil". He always knows how to make me feel loved.

10. Last, but NEVER least, Caleb. You challenge my notion of reality and the way life should be. You teach me so much about love and patience. You love me with a passion I've never felt before you, and I don't know if I'll ever understand, and maybe I don't want to. You are such a great example to me of conviction and persistence. I know Heavenly Father sent you straight to my arms (with your thumb in your mouth). 

Yo Ho Yo Ho a little boy's life for me...

Can I just proclaim my love for little-boyhood. I love to live life through the eyes of my preschoolers. The passion they find for the little things in life is mesmerizing. What an existence to live for a new Star Wars toy, or a trip to Sea World. How simple life seems when the worries us adults carry are put into perspective by a child without a care. It makes me realize how truly foolish I can be as my biggest worries usually turn out to be nothing at all. And what does worrying accomplish anyway? Children place importance on the things that we cannot live without: laughter, family, love, sunshine, care-free play, friends, good food, hugs and kisses (a hi-five must always accompany every hug and kiss in my house), and saying, "I love you".

 Caleb's latest boyhood obsession is pirates.

Trey has turned into my resident fish. He loves the water and lives for any opportunity to wear his "oggle-globes" (even the bathtub). He's so smart - he is teaching himself to swim and I'm so proud of him!!