In June, I had surgery to remove a small cyst, a complication of my last c-section. I let a few people know about it way ahead of time, including the dear woman at our church who coordinates meals. I asked for one week's worth of dinners while I recovered. We got two weeks.
Food always tastes better when someone else makes it; and these were grand. I don't think our family has ever had so many desserts in a 14-day period! We also got some good ideas for future recipes. We were so blessed by those who shared their gifts of hospitality.
Before my surgery, two of the women from church also came by to pray for me. I was the recipient of the first shawl from the newly formed prayer shawl ministry at church. That's pretty cool. Of course, I like being first at anything, which doesn't happen often since I'm not very athletic. But this was pretty special, and I feel the prayers of these women and the many others who lifted me up really helped since I wasn't very nervous before the surgery, unusual for me.
Two weeks later, it was Lauren's turn. She had to have her adenoids out; since her tonsils would probably have to come out at some point, too, we decided to do it all at once since Lauren has such a fear of all things medical.
Lauren hates needles. When she had to get her last immunization for kindergarten, it took about three of us to hold her down. This time, she was much braver. It only took one nurse to hold her arm as Lauren sat on my lap as the phlebotomist drew blood for her pre-op appointment.
Before her surgery, she asked Dan if people at church could pray for her. So, the Sunday before, her name was added to the prayer request list. And on Monday, two ladies from church brought her her very own Lauren-sized prayer shawl. The women prayed for Lauren as did Dan and I.
Lauren went into surgery with some nervousness, but not too much. She went to the surgery in her pajamas and slippers carrying her stuffed dog and prayer shawl.
We're now both fully recovered and very grateful that so many cared for us enough to lift us up to the Heavenly Father.
Saturday, July 16, 2011
Friday, July 15, 2011
Some fun thoughts
Spending time together in an unhurried setting allows more time to just observe. So here are a few observations...
1. Megan's newest cell phone is made from three lego pieces. I have no idea how good the reception is; she seems happy with it.
2. Tonight, she fell asleep with her sunglasses on. Good ol' girl of the 1980s..." I wear my sunglasses at night..."
3. I think it was yesterday when Megan approached Dan and said, "Daddy, can I play the chicken game on your iPod?" Dan wasn't sure what she was talking about, so she expounded. "The green chickens, the red chickens." Ah, Angry Birds...
4. While on vacation, Dan and I heard a lot of new jargon:
squirrel--as it relates to ice cream--it means "swirl" (Emily)
cabinet--where one stays on vacation (Emily)
balloons--those pretty Minnesota birds (Megan)
5. Lauren's voice has changed since her surgery. It's now higher-pitched and a tad more nasally--ironic, I think, since her nasal passage is supposed to be more open.
6. Megan is always ready with a song. Often she serenades us while on car rides.
7. Lauren is content to fish for hours, even when not catching anything.
8. Annika, however, is much less patient. She hates fishing when not catching keepers and hates shopping if she can't buy.
9. Megan's latest meltdown was tonight at bedtime--when Dan wouldn't let her continue chewing her gum while in bed. This after we had to cut a chunk of her hair to extract the last piece...
10. All four girls are daddy's girls, but after getting to spend more time concentrating on them and not tasks to be done while at the "cabinet," I think I've carved a bit more of a niche where they are a little more mommy's girls.
1. Megan's newest cell phone is made from three lego pieces. I have no idea how good the reception is; she seems happy with it.
2. Tonight, she fell asleep with her sunglasses on. Good ol' girl of the 1980s..." I wear my sunglasses at night..."
3. I think it was yesterday when Megan approached Dan and said, "Daddy, can I play the chicken game on your iPod?" Dan wasn't sure what she was talking about, so she expounded. "The green chickens, the red chickens." Ah, Angry Birds...
4. While on vacation, Dan and I heard a lot of new jargon:
squirrel--as it relates to ice cream--it means "swirl" (Emily)
cabinet--where one stays on vacation (Emily)
balloons--those pretty Minnesota birds (Megan)
5. Lauren's voice has changed since her surgery. It's now higher-pitched and a tad more nasally--ironic, I think, since her nasal passage is supposed to be more open.
6. Megan is always ready with a song. Often she serenades us while on car rides.
7. Lauren is content to fish for hours, even when not catching anything.
8. Annika, however, is much less patient. She hates fishing when not catching keepers and hates shopping if she can't buy.
9. Megan's latest meltdown was tonight at bedtime--when Dan wouldn't let her continue chewing her gum while in bed. This after we had to cut a chunk of her hair to extract the last piece...
10. All four girls are daddy's girls, but after getting to spend more time concentrating on them and not tasks to be done while at the "cabinet," I think I've carved a bit more of a niche where they are a little more mommy's girls.
How We Spent Our Summer Vacation 2011, part deux
We learned last year that driving up and back to Lake Beauty twice within 48 hours is a lot of driving--16 hours, to be exact. And this year we decided to take a more relaxed pace when driving Annika to the two-day camp for first and second graders. So we rented a cabin for the other five of us to R&R while Annika was busy at camp getting hives from a heretofore unknown allergy to horses.
Woodticks aside, we had a wonderful time. We put together a 100 piece puzzle, shared internet from an unknown neighbor, did some swimming, a lot of fishing...our first full day there, we were able to eat surf and turf for dinner since we had enough "keepers" of pan fish and had brought up some steak.
Dan and I even watched 1.5 movies together.
It was low-key, quiet, peaceful, restorative. I loved it. For us, it was a perfect family getaway.
The family we rented from, the Olsons, attend church at another Covenant church. We heard about them from a mutual friend. The Olsons bought the cabin which is directly next door to the wife's parents' cabin so we had a chance to get to know them, the Christiansens. Ah, good Swedish names. Good Covenant names. It was fun--it was like we had connections there before we ever got there. They even let Annika and Lauren help clean the paddleboat and ride around in it.
Since we were so close to Brainerd, we had to see Paul Bunyan and Babe. We also made a side trip to Camp Ripley, which is where the National Guardsmen down in Fairmont do their two-week training. We stopped there because those guys/gals will be deployed to Kuwait in the next few weeks for about a year.
Woodticks aside, we had a wonderful time. We put together a 100 piece puzzle, shared internet from an unknown neighbor, did some swimming, a lot of fishing...our first full day there, we were able to eat surf and turf for dinner since we had enough "keepers" of pan fish and had brought up some steak.
Dan and I even watched 1.5 movies together.
It was low-key, quiet, peaceful, restorative. I loved it. For us, it was a perfect family getaway.
The family we rented from, the Olsons, attend church at another Covenant church. We heard about them from a mutual friend. The Olsons bought the cabin which is directly next door to the wife's parents' cabin so we had a chance to get to know them, the Christiansens. Ah, good Swedish names. Good Covenant names. It was fun--it was like we had connections there before we ever got there. They even let Annika and Lauren help clean the paddleboat and ride around in it.
Since we were so close to Brainerd, we had to see Paul Bunyan and Babe. We also made a side trip to Camp Ripley, which is where the National Guardsmen down in Fairmont do their two-week training. We stopped there because those guys/gals will be deployed to Kuwait in the next few weeks for about a year.
Spotting deer tracks...
Emily catching her first fish...
This is a traditional dustpan in the northwoods...
At Camp Ripley...with her beads and smile while carrying her "slip-slops,"
Meg seems the poster child for "Make Love, Not War"
Lauren was totally Daddy's fishing buddy.
On our last morning there, I was able to catch this shot of the
mama and baby loon which had provided us with night music all week.
How We Spent Our Summer Vacation 2011, part one
After a few family surgeries in June (like Lauren, below, preparing to have her tonsils and adenoids removed),
we left on a family vacation to the great Northwest...well, north, anyway. First stop was the Twin Cities. We needed to help celebrate the 97th birthday of Dan's Grandma Margaret. The whole Wheeler family was there--Dan's parents, us, and Dan's brother's family--along with Dan's aunt and her daughter and, of course, the family matriarch, Margaret. Between Dan and Todd, there are eight grandkids--seven girls, one boy, ages 3-11. So there was a lot of whizzing by on wheeled vehicles on the circle that goes in front of the house to the sidewalk...
We then headed up to Long Prairie to drop Annika off at her two days of overnight camping at Lake Beauty. Instead of making the four-hour drive back home, we rented a cabin on nearby Lake Alexander and enjoyed some time away...ah, but that's another blog post.
we left on a family vacation to the great Northwest...well, north, anyway. First stop was the Twin Cities. We needed to help celebrate the 97th birthday of Dan's Grandma Margaret. The whole Wheeler family was there--Dan's parents, us, and Dan's brother's family--along with Dan's aunt and her daughter and, of course, the family matriarch, Margaret. Between Dan and Todd, there are eight grandkids--seven girls, one boy, ages 3-11. So there was a lot of whizzing by on wheeled vehicles on the circle that goes in front of the house to the sidewalk...
this is Lauren wearing her sensible espadrilles as she razors around the house...
Dan and his grandma
Farmer Lauren giving a ride to precious cargo...
look closely and you'll see Todd's name on the front of the tractor
Emily
Annika in her party dress
Uncle Todd reading a recent letter to Grandma from a Swedish relative
Lauren chillaxing
Little Megan in her big chair
And, then, on Independence Day, we gathered my side of the family at my sister's home on the lake. A fun time was had by all, even Lauren who was able to ride on an "ergonomically designed" tube which is slightly less violent than a regular tube. So, within one week, our kids saw all of our aunts, uncles and cousins (although they missed out on Uncle John and Aunt Cassie who will have to make it up to them somehow : ))
Annika, Cousin Raegan and Lauren
Emily--some say she looks like me at that age...
Lauren and the gang readying for the boat parade on July 4
Cousin Ethan navigating his boat...
Megan
Emily and Gabe
Gaby Baby--is this an impressive pout, or what?
Lauren and her very large rubber ducky
Annika, Raegan and Brody on the "ergonomic" tube
Captain Lauren
We then headed up to Long Prairie to drop Annika off at her two days of overnight camping at Lake Beauty. Instead of making the four-hour drive back home, we rented a cabin on nearby Lake Alexander and enjoyed some time away...ah, but that's another blog post.
School Ends, Field Trips Begin
We had a few fun field trips in June:
a trip to the Jago farm to see Mary and Maynard. We ended up helping feed their cattle. Ironically, we have a quarter-cow in our freezer from some of these calves predecessors...
we were able to pick a ton of strawberries from a patch in some friends' back yard...and had more than we could possibly eat in a few days. So we made some strawberry freezer jam. Annika helped mash the strawberries with a potato masher and Lauren accurately measured the required amounts of sugar.
we packed up our lunch bags (I packed my metal Nancy Drew lunchbox, too) and took the Martin County shuttle to the Red Rock Center where we heard some of the youth from our church play the music for Lunch with the Arts at the end of the month. This is us waiting for the bus to come.
a trip to the Jago farm to see Mary and Maynard. We ended up helping feed their cattle. Ironically, we have a quarter-cow in our freezer from some of these calves predecessors...
we were able to pick a ton of strawberries from a patch in some friends' back yard...and had more than we could possibly eat in a few days. So we made some strawberry freezer jam. Annika helped mash the strawberries with a potato masher and Lauren accurately measured the required amounts of sugar.
we packed up our lunch bags (I packed my metal Nancy Drew lunchbox, too) and took the Martin County shuttle to the Red Rock Center where we heard some of the youth from our church play the music for Lunch with the Arts at the end of the month. This is us waiting for the bus to come.
Thursday, July 7, 2011
Scary but True Stories
There's a horror niche that Hollywood, for some unexplained reason, has left untouched. Vampires don't make grown men wake up with night terrors, check their shadows or feel uneasy in their own skin. Woodticks do.
As we're on vacation (and stealing wi-fi from some unknown neighbor of our rented cottage), we've been enjoying the great weather and far-off-ness from the world. So today we went for a walk. Unbeknownst to me, I must have walked through a veritable haven for ticks, Minnesota's unofficial official pest. (What do you get when you cross the Minnesota state bird with the Minnesota state bug?--a Loon-a-tick)
I found the first one on my arm just after our walk. It didn't occur to me to look for others.
As I climbed into bed tonight, about an hour ago, Dan turned the lights off and I put my hand on my leg. I quickly closed my eyes and told Dan to turn on the light so he could get a bug off me. He turned the light on; I kept my eyes closed. It's another of my defense mechanisms--If I don't see it, maybe it hasn't really happened. The whole Doubting Thomas syndrome isn't always a bad thing, especially in relation to woodticks on my person.
After Dan took care of that one, a more thorough investigation led to the discovery of one more on the back of my knee. I'm pretty sure after removal of that one, which required matches, Dan had the heebie jeebies himself.
See? You're not even here, and I bet your skin is crawling, especially if you've been outside at all today. Be afraid; be very afraid.
As we're on vacation (and stealing wi-fi from some unknown neighbor of our rented cottage), we've been enjoying the great weather and far-off-ness from the world. So today we went for a walk. Unbeknownst to me, I must have walked through a veritable haven for ticks, Minnesota's unofficial official pest. (What do you get when you cross the Minnesota state bird with the Minnesota state bug?--a Loon-a-tick)
I found the first one on my arm just after our walk. It didn't occur to me to look for others.
As I climbed into bed tonight, about an hour ago, Dan turned the lights off and I put my hand on my leg. I quickly closed my eyes and told Dan to turn on the light so he could get a bug off me. He turned the light on; I kept my eyes closed. It's another of my defense mechanisms--If I don't see it, maybe it hasn't really happened. The whole Doubting Thomas syndrome isn't always a bad thing, especially in relation to woodticks on my person.
After Dan took care of that one, a more thorough investigation led to the discovery of one more on the back of my knee. I'm pretty sure after removal of that one, which required matches, Dan had the heebie jeebies himself.
See? You're not even here, and I bet your skin is crawling, especially if you've been outside at all today. Be afraid; be very afraid.
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