Too Funny...

I soooooooo don't have time for this but couldn't resist...  Working over-time on a graphic project that was supposed to be done Saturday and I HAVE to finish it tonight.  But took a break to start dinner and ran down to the garden to dig up potatoes.  I was surprised the zuccini was still going strong.  So I decided to share with you, my friends, a picture of my findings:

I know, I know, nothing spectacular... Just a red potato and a zuccini that is a little on the large size but not bad.  But to put it all in perspective, let's add one more item for comparison... Say, a baseball!

Now you tell me - is that the biggest honkin' potato you have ever seen?  Mom would be so proud!  I think you could easily feed a family of 6 off of it.  And remember how we used to make cucumber boats out of mom's cucumbers when they got too big and seedy to eat?  I'm tellin' ya, if I was to clean this baby out and make a cruiser out of it, it would make the Titanic look minute!  Okay, back to work... hope you got a smile out of this post - remember, LIFE IS GOOD!

Whew...

Little overwhelmed tonight - Don't know why.  Must be PMS...  Have been working on a graphic project for 50 hours straight and still have at least another day to go.  I love doing it, but sitting at the 'puter non-stop gets old in a hurry.  Hats off to you transcriptionists!  Maybe it has to do with being a mother... I have three kids at home...

Each obviously with their own personalities.  And I love each of them for so many different reasons.  And am proud of them for their own individual accomplishments.  Maybe we are just pushing our selves over the limit.  For example: yesterday - kids wake up at 6:15 and the older two are out the door at 6:55 and the little guy at 7:20 a.m.  Older kids stay at school for athletics and little guy hops the bus and rides to the high school so he, too, can practice.  All three had rather frustrating practices (2,200 double jumps - are you kidding me? You will have to ask her to explain what a double jump is).  Then the big guy goes to watch last weeks' game film while the younger two come home - at 7:00 p.m.  Now THAT is a long day...  Kayd doesn't get home until 8:15 - and did I happen to mention it was his birthday?  So dinner didn't even get served until 8:30.  Then homework, showers, and off to bed - much too late.  Wake up today, and do it all over again... Whew.  Only difference, Tuesday is YM YW and Scouts after practice...  And the G6 got a flat on the way home last night (vehicle #1 down) so Shan had to take mine to school early to finish double jumps (vehicle #2 gone) and Ned went up to check a job in Bridgerland and threw a tire rod on the truck (vehicle #3 down and out) so that left me with the backhoe, the 4-wheeler, or the alpacas...  Good thing I was tied to the 'puter!  No wonder the emotions were flyin' high tonight - Had all three with, shall we say, their emotions on their shirt sleeves (and my shoulder)... What is a mother to do?  Just blog I guess and wait to see what the next day brings...  And last but not least, when I started this blog I glanced at the clock and it was 11:11 - my moms magic time.  Hard to cry on your own shoulder...

But, when all is said and done... I wouldn't trade motherhood for anything in the world.  Only thing I regret is not having 10 more kids!  Jess and Tier - love you, too.  Life Is Good...

Now look what followed me home!

Remember - I do turn 50 this year.  So I am due for a mid-life crisis, right?  Most people do something crazy like buy a new car, a new boat, etc... Not me - I never have been very "normal", now have I?  Apparently, to satisfy my hunger, I must surround myself with animals.  Lil Lady, my new golden retriever, is all I could have dreamed of and much more.  She is fitting in just fine.  But what was I supposed to say when a friend here in town stopped in and said that he had decided to get rid of his...

A L P A C A S !!!

Are they the cutest things or what???  They are both male, and one is about 2 and one is about 3 years old.  The previous owner never bothered to name them so here we go:  NAME TAMS' ALPACAS! The contest will be open for, lets say... One week.  Show the pics to your kids so they can join in the fun, too!

This guy will be exhibit #1

And this one will be exhibit #2.

Yes, I did mention to him that he had a little something hanging from his upper gum, but I think he was using it as a tooth pick maybe... 

I will start the fun out with saying #1 is "SALT"  and #2 is "PEPPER"  - quite original don't you think?  Don't delay in getting your names submitted - there is the possibility of quite a grand prize going to the winner!  Love ya!!!

Life and Times of the Calders...

Wow! Where did summer go? This has to have been the quickest summer of our lives... Really shows how much we need to live for the minute and appreciate each new day for what it is - because tomorrow, today will be yesterday!  Pretty profound, huh?  So I will try and wrap up the last month all in one post:

Newest member of our family:  "LADY"  Got her this last week in a wonderful little town called Hooper.  She is everything we could have dreamed for.  Her mom looks a lot like Cheyenne.  Let the puppy days begin!

Everyone was excited for school to start - which is a good thing, right?  I wondered about Kam making it a full day since he was only 6 days post-surgery, but he was a trooper.  Football practice starts on Tuesday and he can work out but just not hit (or get hit?...) for a couple of weeks.  He is PSYCHED!

Shani is just my girly-girl.  She had a really fun time working at the "Berry Bowl" this summer.  It is a new yogurt joint here in town this year.  It taught her great people skills and responsibility.  Needless to say, she was a life-saver in the raspberries.  Hers is a "dumb" job, but hey - somebody has to do it.  Her dad has a new appreciation for her since he has had to be the "patch master" the last couple of weeks.  Volleyball started this last weekend with a tourney up in Cokeville.  She is starting varsity as an opposite.  I love this girl!

And then there was Kayden...
Worked all summer at the golf course perfecting not only his game, but his tan.  Helped us when he could in the raspberries...  Worked hard at conditioning and weight lifting.  We will see if it pays off...  Played his first football game of the season last Friday at Mt. View, WY.  Got a win but had lots of injuries on the team.  He is the most "fashion-conscious" boy I have ever seen.  School shopping was a hoot with him.  Had to make sure his shoes matched his shirt which had to go good with his levis...  Kinda like him, too!

Let's hope September is as fun as August has been. 

And Then...

Talking to Lar on the phone tonite and she cussed me for not updating on Kams condition so I better get on it!!!  Mondays appointment confirmed appendix troubles so Tuesday it was surgically removed and we came home Wednesday around noon.  He was a real trooper through all of it.  Dr. Anderson (what a fun guy!) was suspicious of some other condition (Meckles Div something or other - check with the translady) besides the stone in the appendix would just continue to cause problems and part of it was enlarged so WHAM BAM THANK YOU MAME and it was out. I am totally convinced his episode in Boise last summer was the same thing so hopefully this will solve a lot of questions - and he can eat all the red licorice he wants! The first couple of days were a little rough - then he snapped right out of it and felt great.  Went to church sunday and did fine so went to school today.  Yeah right - an elementary student missing the first day of school???  Not happenin'.  And again he did great.  He sure has been through a lot for a little guy!  I was a mean mommy and took videos of him coming out of the anesthesia and they are HILARIOUS!!! But I havent figured out how to get them from my phone to the blog so stay tuned for that, too!

Messin around BEFORE surgery - listening to tunes with his buddy, Blackie.

AFTER surgery... Not quite so chipper... But Blackie is still hangin' in there.

Walkin' the halls...

Tryin' to catch a lil shut eye... Glad SOMEONE did!

Is it just me, or do you think they got a little wild with the iodine?  Hope they don't charge by the ounce!

Thanks for experiencing this experience with us... And thanks for all the phone calls, visits, texts, etc.  They all meant a lot to Kam and me, too!

Todays vocabulary word is...

I N T U S S U S C E P T I O N:  "...When one part of the bowel folds "inside-out".  One part of the bowel encompasses another part like a telescope.  Solved by applying one mega-sized barium enema to the "affected area".  Does not make an 11-year old very happy...

Before...

After !

Amazing what a little pain medicine can do for a kid!!!  Threw up a few times during the night and then started screaming randomly when pain would come.  Called doc and went to clinic and diagnosed it as appendicitis.  Went to LRH and after an ultrasound, they decided it was that lovely word intussusception. Option was to try enema and see if the pressure of it would unfold the inside-out area.  As uncomfortable as it was, it worked.  Chance it will happen again in the next few days and if so, they operate and remove the bad part of the intestine.  BUT... that is not all.  Although the appendix was only slightly enlarged, there is a round, hard thing in it.  Like a stone I guess.  So have to go see a specialist on Monday to decide what direction to go with that one... Stay tuned!!!  (Never  a dull moment, is there mothers...)

And may I please give one great big THANKS to Trish Wallentine and her kids for filling in at the raspberry stand... That's what friends are for!

the BUBBLE WRAP Lady

Okay, go grab an ice cold lemonade, pull up a chair, and let's chat... Once again, it has been a while since I have posted... I guess my life is just B O R I N G!  Oh, I could only wish... 

I have never been afraid of birthdays - they are, after all, just numbers, right?  And the opposite of having a birthday (NOT having a birthday) is not in my plans yet so forward and onward!  Until this year... This one will be my big 50.  Yup, 50 years old/young.  And things just aren't looking up... Don't get me wrong - I love life and we have had a ton of fun, but I have also had my share of "downs" - literally.  Let's see...

In January, I got hit in the head with a full-court pass at a basketball game at Rich High School.  Knocked me out cold and left me with a concussion.  Sorry, no photos.

Next, on Feb 27, I headed out the door to Jill and Brandons wedding and slipped on the ice and hit my head on the driveway, resulting in stitches:

Twice since then, I have tripped going in our front door carrying groceries.  Luckily, no photos of that, either!

On May 9, I lost my best friend and dog, Cheyenne.  She got infection all over inside of her and the vet said she was too weak to survive.  We have had her since about 2001.  I have had lots of dogs in my life but never one like her.  I will get another golden retriever, but it will take some time.

This was her on a Easter morning participating in our traditional family Easter Egg Hunt.  (The egg is in her mouth)

This is her and her only litter of puppies playing on the beach here at Bear Lake.

She had a deep love for raspberries - and Shani had a deep love for her.

This is my last photo of her, taken a day and a half before she went to live with Grandma Eck...

All summer I have looked forward to going with Shani and the RHS Volleyball team to a camp in St. George.  We don't get away much in the summer, so this was to be the "big vacation" for Kam and I.  We loaded up at 5:30 am on Monday and headed out - Me, Shan, Kam and two other volleyball players.  My good buddy, Trish followed us in her car with her troops.  We hit Provo about 8:30 am and to make a way too long story, short... 

I was coming down University Ave and right where those highlighted lines are, a guy pulling a little utility trailer decides to turn left.  Please note - not a turning lane! Anyway, there was no room to swerve right due to morning rush hour traffic and ...

This was the result... Luckily, so luckily, no injuries.  Except to the car and my ego.  And, yes... I got the ticket for following too close, to the tune of $120.00.  So Trish loaded up the girls in her car and continued to Dixie while Kam and I had the joy of finding a rental car.  We then joined them a while later in a very HOT place known as St. George.  I tried to make the best of it, but was a little on the depressed side most of the time...  On Thursday we headed home, Trish picked us up in Provo after we dropped off the rental car, and took us to SLC to hook up with Kayd and Ned.

Ned was not impressed with the garage it was at in Provo, so he had Wolfords go down and get it and fix it.  I was hoping it would be totaled but no such luck... Just $10,000+ in damages.  Thank goodness for a $250 deductable. 

So go ahead, say... What else could happen?

Went for a little bike ride this morning...

Ryan and Kirk must be SO proud of me!  Three stitches to the elbow, xrays were unconclusive for a fracture, little road rash... and a very bruised ego again!  And no, I am not confessing as to what caused this little incident...

So the Calders held a family council and decided the only thing there was to do for me is to double-wrap me in bubble wrap and not let me out of the house... Remember the show about the Kid who lived in a Bubble... could be me!  Can't hardly wait to see what I can rack up in the next 4 months before my birthday...  Should I even get out of bed in the morning?  :0(