Now That's True Empathy

Brianna has had a few unpleasant experiences with doctors and doctor's offices. The most recent being on the day when we were car shopping. Ben and Brianna were in the back seat when Brianna took a very tiny clasp from Ben's chain-type key-chain; this upset Ben who wanted it back; Brianna wanted to be sure that Ben couldn't get it back, so she shoved it up her nose -- WAY up her nose.

We headed to Daddy's office to try to remove it. It was Saturday, so we were the only people at the office. This meant that I had the next to impossible task of holding Brianna still so James could get a good look inside her nose. She was so upset, and would NOT hold still, so we had to strap her to a board, or a papoose, so that James could actually scope her nose, because, as I said before, she shoved it WAY up her nose.

Now, if you're Brianna, and moving is as vital to your existence as is breathing, being strapped to a board is more than just torture. It was truly the most pathetic thing I've witnessed with my children. She was SO upset, and yet, through her tears, and panic, she was very articulate. "Daddy, please don't hurt me any more!" "I don't like this!" "Please Doctor, please don't do this any more!" "Please don't hurt me Doctor!" It about broke James' and my heart -- especially that she dissociated James from the incident and stopped calling him Daddy, and called him Doctor instead. Thankfully, she lived through the incident, and, I think she learned a vital lesson -- the nose, while an effective hiding place, is NOT the best choice.

So, today, when I got a VERY painful splinter in the palm of my right hand, and couldn't get it out myself, I called James' office to see if anyone would be willing to dig it out for me. I knew James was stuck in surgery all day, but luckily, one of the very kind PA's was willing and available. So, I told the kids to get on their shoes so we could go. Brianna became very concerned when I told her where and why we were going. "Don't let them bruise you, Mommy!" She started crying and begging me to not go and to definitely not let them bruise me. I tried to reassure her that everything would be fine and that no one would bruise me. And then, I tried to reassure her that no one would hurt her at all either. She finally calmed a bit, but in the car, she again told me not to let them bruise me. I said, "No one is going to bruise me, I will be just fine." She said, "I better talk to the workers!"

On the way up the elevator, she gave me one last important bit of advice, "Don't lay down!" When we arrived, she marched right up to the "workers" and said, "Don't bruise my mommy!"

I had told her that she didn't even have to come in the room when they worked on my owie. I told her that she could stay in the hallway and read a book. So when they showed us to a room, she said, "May I read a book?" They took her out, and after I was all fixed up, she showed up with a huge handful of Dora stickers.

She got her stickers, I got my sliver removed (which was waaay too small to have caused such incredible pain!), and I am happy to report that so far, there are no bruises!

My sweet, precious, empathetic baby!

Mary, the Mother of Jesus

I have been asked to speak next week in the Christmas program in Sacrament meeting. The request was unusual in that I've been asked to speak in the first-person, as Mary.

Now, I have my own concerns with this approach, which I am not interested in discussing here. I do believe in doing my best to fulfill the assignments that I've been given. I must say that it has been a very interesting experience to ponder on Mary's role, and what she might have been thinking and feeling.

I wonder, how fully did she understand the Plan of Salvation? How fully did she understand what would be required of her Son? I know that all the prophet since Adam have prophesied about Jesus Christ, but how well was Mary taught in those prophecies? How much access did she have to those sacred records? Obviously she loved God the Father and Jesus Christ, and had incredible faith to do whatever was asked of her.

Were the people of Nazareth unkind to her and Joseph as it became obvious that she was "with child" from before the time that they were married?

I am interested to know if any of you have thoughts on Mary, her role, and what she may have been thinking and feeling. I would love to hear any of them.

Brianna's first words this morning ...

"Oh, the lights on our Christmas tree are so beautiful!! We better get the lights put up on our house really fast!"

So Blessed

I have just had the privilege of spending the last nine days with family -- my own, the family I grew up in, and the family I married into! It was wonderful! I can honestly say that I love and enjoy every one of them. I am very grateful for Eternal families because these are the people I want to spend eternity with.

My kids were so delightful and had SO MUCH FUN with all of their cousins! I think they may never quite recover from the sleep deprivation, but they will also treasure these memories.

Now it's time to deck the halls! I'm really tired from all the partying, but I also want to get the house all gussied up, and get the Christmas music filling the air! (James is very strict about no Christmas music until after Thanksgiving. Bah-humbug!)

Oh, the lemon car, you know the one that I tried to make into lemonade, well, let's just say that the dealership may have a lemonade stand up right now, trying to sell that to some other sucker! And we are now driving a beautiful Hyundai Veracruz which is very nice, and, incredibly, the check engine light has not come on once! For me, reliability is worth the higher price tag!

I hope that each and every one of you is having a wonderful holiday season; that the peace, the joy, and the healing that this season offers will be yours!

Lemonade

I took the car into the dealership and they cleared the code yesterday, and said that it was nothing to worry about. Today, after driving about another 10 miles, the check engine light came back on! And the car was shaking!
So, back I went to the dealership and went right up to the owner. He agreed to fix the car at his expense and he gave me a loaner car until it's done. Between the service tech and my dad (who is basically a car GENIUS -- not that his genius is limited to cars, ... but I digress) we think that they are actually maybe fixing what needs to be fixed, and we'll be good to go tomorrow! Hopefully this will take care of the problem and this car will work really well for us for a long time.
James pointed out to me that the timing of all of this is probably a huge blessing. If the check engine light had come on when we were test driving the car, we wouldn't have bought it, and would have ended up in a much more expensive vehicle. If it had happened in a week or two, we would be paying to fix this. All in all, if this is the sole problem, then we are very blessed in the timing!

There's just one more problem, I was working on using this experience as a teaching metaphor for my kids when they are old enough to date. You know, "sometimes cars and people are just plain gorgeous, and they seem to offer all that you could possibly desire, but if you can't depend on them, if they let you down when you need them most, then the cost of the relationship just isn't worth it."
Now, I have to change my teaching metaphor to something more along the lines of "none of us is perfect. We all make mistakes and unfortunately sometimes we let down even the people we love and care for the most. It's important to work through these situations and to support each other in becoming all that we can be." Or something like that.

Isn't it scary to get a peek into the workings of my strange brain??

Lemons Suck!

Last night, we spent four hours at a car dealership working to buy a used Chrysler Pacifica. In the end, we walked out with a NICE vehicle. This afternoon, as I drove to pick Ben up from school, the check engine light came on.

Seriously?! Less than 24 hours after signing the papers, and in less than 20 miles with me behind the wheel, and we've got engine trouble lurking?

Guess what else?! There are no "Lemon Laws" for our state! Nice.

I spoke with a manager on the phone, and he will speak with the owner in the morning to see if we can work something out. But, he made it clear that there were no guarantees, and the deal is done.

(Well, I did some research, and it seems that there are Lemon Laws, but just having the "check engine" light come on doesn't qualify.)

Soccer Pics

In the middle of one of Brianna's crying fits:

Ben says with a sigh, "Sometimes I wish Adam and Eve had never eaten that fruit."

Seasonal Sillies for the Younger Crowd

What is the one room in the house that ghosts avoid?
The living room!

Why don't cannibals eat missionaries?
Because you can't keep a good man down.

What does the rooster's ghost say each morning?
Cock-a-doodle-BOO!

Why don't bats live alone?
They like to hang around with their friends

What kind of music do mummies like?
"Wrap" music.

What do you get when you cross a vampire and a snowman?
Frostbite

Why do vampires need mouthwash?
They have bat breath.

A Perfect Day, ... and Gorgeous!

Today was a perfect fall day! The sun was shining; the sky was blue; and the trees were in beautiful color! We were blessed to be able to spend the whole day together!!
After soccer games, family pictures, going out to eat, watching a movie, and riding bikes, I said to Brianna, "Brianna, you have just been delightful today!" She gave a modest little laugh and then said, "Ya, and gorgeous!"

Maybe we should all adopt this response to compliments we receive.