The Fat Cat Sat on the Rat

 

Isabelle finished her 2nd grade Hooked on Phonics reading curriculum today!

I am so proud of her.  She has worked really, really hard.

I was planning on using this "curriculum" for at least another year

(we had kindergarten through 2nd grade) but she has just breezed past everything.

Now she is just on regular books for her reading education.

At this rate it won't be long before she outsmarts her mom!

 

Usually after she passes off a grade level in her reading I take her to do something fun.

This time I was tricky and asked her if she wanted me to buy Tangled for her instead. 

It just happened to be released on the same day she finished.  

She thought this was a great idea.

Please don't tell her I was planning on buying the movie anyways!

Good Job Isabelle!  Did I mention I am so proud of you?

Unplanned Event

Just when you think life is going as scheduled life throws you a curve ball.
We had such a curve ball yesterday.  First off I took Isabelle to choir in the morning and when we were leaving choir there was a wet, wet blizzard and freezing winds.  It felt like a very cold January day.  Right then and there I should have known that something was off with the universe.

The rest of the day progressed as usual: school, cleaning, lunch, dishes, taekwondo, ect.  Around 6:30 I was helping Isabelle practice piano when I hear the door separating our house from my parents house open.  I didn't think they were home so I was afraid that William had somehow opened the door on his own.

When I went to check my dad was on the couch and my mom was on the phone.  She tells me "Go and watch for the ambulance in case they come to your door!" It didn't connect with me why I would need to do that.  Then I looked at dad and he was a pasty whitish/blue color.  He was clammy all over and very dizzy. Instantly I had flashbacks of 5 years ago when I thought my dad was going to die right before my eyes.  He did this to us about 2 years ago too.  If it's an April fools joke,  it isn't funny. I asked dad "What can I do?"  and he instructed me to "Put my gun away".   Again I thought maybe he was joking, he wasn't. Do people think about gun safety when they might be dying?  Apparently so.  At any rate I put the gun and holster away and then put Isabelle in charge of watching for the ambulance.  My daughter is a girl who loves a job to do - she was very diligent.  Meanwhile mom was still on the phone with 911 while William was hanging off of her leg begging for a drink.  He didn't grasp that someone could be in more need than a thirsty toddler.

After what felt like forever a firetruck, ambulance, and about 6 paramedics showed up.  Isabelle ran out to the sidewalk saying "Come on guys, he's in here!"  She was thinking that having such an exciting job was awesome.  Maybe I can still convince her to be a doctor.

The paramedics rushed in and started asking dad questions and hooking him up to thing-a-ma-bobs and whoozy-whatits.  This was already a big improvement over 5 years ago when dad couldn't communicate and they had to shock his heart back into beating.  I was relatively calm because of that fact. I hear Isabelle at our front door speaking to someone so I go and check.  She was telling Brother Rupp, a member of the bishopric, very nonchalantly " No, nobody's sick!  My Grandpa just gets to go for a ride in the ambulance!!!"  He looked at her with slight desperation in his eyes as if he was thinking "Can I please speak to someone over three and a half feet tall?"

Bishop Chase didn't bother with stopping at the door, he just came rushing in.  After what happened last time, I think we had him scared again.  Then my friend Candice came and whisked my kids away before I knew what was happening or could even think to send them out the door with shoes on.

Nathaniel and Jenny showed up expecting to come and eat pizza and play games, they were just slightly surprised at the scene.  Nathaniel drove with mom to the hospital and Jenny, the kids, and I started the waiting game.  I think the waiting game is worse when you are at home.   I hate feeling useless, I did end up making a million phone calls so that kept me kind of busy.  Like Isabelle, I like having a job to do, even if it is an unimportant one.  Jenny and I decided to play games even though that is probably the most horrible thing you could do when your dad is in the hospital.  We just wanted something to get out minds off of that fact. Soungsik told us we were horrible but then decided to play with us anyway.  Karma came back to get me and I lost big time while Soungsik won.  So who's the horrible one really?

After a few hours we learned that dad was okay and that they were sending him home again.  They had run tests on him and his pacemaker and couldn't find anything wrong. Just like 2 years ago we don't know what caused this to happen to his heart.  Hopefully it won't ever happen again. Mom is convinced that there is something psychologically wrong with dad, but that's probably how most women feel about their husbands from time to time.  According to dad at least it was an entertaining trip.  On the way to the hospital the siren fell off of the ambulance and they ran over it on the freeway.  When they arrived at the emergency room none of the paramedics could get the hospital door to open.  They kept trying different codes and nothing was working. FYI if you want to get into the emergency room you need to push the pound key and NOT the star key when entering the code. His doctor introduced himself as Dr. Fredette, which is not his name, but he had just been talking about the BYU basketball game.

At any rate I am so grateful today for many things.  Mostly I am grateful that my dad is okay still.  I am grateful for amazing neighbors and friends who come to your aide before you even know you need it.  I am grateful for wonderful paramedics who can get here so quickly and wonderful hospitals within minutes of home.  We are so blessed to live here, and this isn't the first time I have felt this way!

The Boringness That Is: ME

So I haven't posted for quite a while.  There are a couple of reasons for this. Number One: I didn't feel like taking any pictures.  Number Two: I am a very, very boring person.  Please note that I am not a bored person, rather a boring person.  There is a big difference. I am quite content doing the same things day in and day out.  Which makes for an uninteresting blog.  Unless people want to know about my day to day dishes fiasco and/or the laundry wars in my bedroom.
I didn't think so.
My husband teases me because 70% of the songs that come on the radio are my "favorite".  I could listen to the same song 100 times over and not get sick of it.  The same goes for books and movies.  Especially chick flicks/books.  I have decided I am going to make the most wonderful old lady.  Sitting in my fluffy socks, wrapped in a warm blanket, and listening to the same music over and over while re-reading Jane Eyre for the millionth time.  When spring officially comes I am sure things will liven up a bit around here, but until then it's just going to be the status quo, which is alright by me!

BOOK REVIEW: THREE CUPS OF TEA

Title: Three Cups of Tea
Author(s): Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin
Number of Pages: 349
Number of Stars I'm Giving it: 2.5

This review will be short and sweet, or at least to the point.

I give this book 2.5 stars for content, and zero for context.
The writing was pretty bad.  I know I shouldn't judge because my writing is downright atrocious at times.  The difference is that I don't charge money for my writing.  In fact I hope that most of my "writings" will go unseen from human eyes forever!

This book was an interesting peek into another culture and I enjoyed that.  However I do think he looked at the Pakistani culture with rose colored glasses and was very judgmental towards the American culture.  I respect what it is he is trying to accomplish in an impoverished part of the world and it is a far greater contribution than I may ever achieve.  Politically I doubt I would agree with the author on much, but that is the great thing about agency. It is nice to see that one person can make a difference, and that you can accomplish a lot when you put your mind to it.   If you are just reading it to have something to read then there are endless lists of more entertaining things out there.

BOOK REVIEW: WE TWO

Title: We Two - Victoria and Albert, Rulers, Partners, Rivals
Author: Gillian Gill
Number of Pages: 480 (Closer to 380 of actual reading)
Number of Stars I'm Giving It: 3.5

Let me start off  by saying I think its mean to name your daughter Gillian Gill - or Gill Gill for short.  At least she grew up to be a very successful person.

Having finished this book I still have very mixed feelings about it.  There were parts I loved, and parts I hated.  I do feel a little cheated that I read the entire thing and I won't even be getting any college credits for it.

The first 30% or so of this book I thought was fascinating.   The way in which Victoria was raised was extremely harsh and sad.  It is amazing that someone who was never left alone could actually be so lonely.  I was impressed that although she had such a lack of independence and nurturing love as a child, she grew to be a very powerful leader.

Albert at first I thought was a very impressive person.  The more I read about him though I feel like he had a superiority complex.  He seemed to be a doormat for Victoria and his father because he wouldn't dare stand up to them, but to make up for that he tried to walk all over everybody else.  He came across as very pompous and arrogant.   The thing I like most about Albert was a very loving father, that is if his children met his high standards.

Where I have my most mixed feelings are in the general culture at the time.  I guess in my mind I always imagined life in those times more as a Jane Austin novel than actual fact.  I had an image of most people being God fearing and moral people.  It was a time I envied and wanted to see for myself - all of the true gentlemen and ladies. I was a little disgusted when I read this book.  It seems that affairs and mistresses were the norm.  Infidelity was to be expected and abandonment of a mistress and her children rampant.  I don't know about the lower classes, but it seemed to me that if you were rich, all rules of morals were thrown out the window.  At least Albert was a faithful husband to his wife.
It made me crazy to think that most or all of the European royalty was related and that they were all allotted money and services from the day they were born until the day they died, regardless of if they accomplished anything with their own lives. 
Reading about the medical beliefs at the time made me cringe.  Bloodletting and sleeping in freezing rooms for good health.  Children eating only bread and milk with very little meat. Victoria had 9 children, one almost every 2 years.  She hated being pregnant and I don't blame her at all.  Her husband was unsympathetic and thought she complained for no reason.  She only had chloroform with her last 2 children, and even then it was considered a sin, but she was the queen so who was going to say anything to her?  The hemophiliac son they had was so interesting.  They just tried to ignore medical fact thinking that if they didn't acknowledge it then it wouldn't be true.
It disturbed me how much she disliked her children.  She didn't find joy with them and was even extremely jealous of them when Albert would spend time with them.  It was striking that after her hate for her own mother's "neglect" that she would turn around and do almost the same thing to her children.  She would openly criticize them.  I lost a lot of respect for Victoria in this area.  They had multiple vacation homes, and yachts.  She had an endless supply of money, but I wouldn't trade any day in my life for hers.
I can't imagine being someone lower than the queen at those times.  It must have been unbearable.  Some of her servants never had a day off in their lives.  And most of them worked 14 to 16 hour days 5 to 7 days a week.  How important is a queen that so many people should give up their entire lives to her? I find it disturbing, and it made me proud to think of the beliefs that America was founded on.  A country with no king...I hope it can continue to be strong so that we don't ever have to be in times of oppression like these again.  Victoria was a good queen to her people and she and Albert spawned most of the European royalty even down to today.
I recommend this book if you want a taste of history, but don't expect a romance story wrapped up in it all.

Fly High

In our house daddy is so much funner than mommy.

Here's one reason why.

 

Even if my legs were strong enough to do that 100 times over, I doubt I would.

Despite the look on Williams face he never gets scared doing this.

After Soungsik raises him up like this he opens his legs really fast and 

lets him drop like a steel ball.

Luckily Soungsik is a good catch, but it never fails to scare me!

This is another reason why kids need a mom and a dad,

A dad to do the dangerous fun things, and a mom 

to make you go to sleep at night.

In Our World: Japan

On March 11, 2011 Japan was hit by the 5th largest earthquake on record followed by a massive tsunami.

My heart and prayers go out to all of the people affected by this.

 

At some places the wall of water in the tsunami was at least 

27 feet high and the water flooded up to 3 miles inland.

 

 

Searching for survivors before they can bring in 

heavy machinery to help clear the debris.

 

 

 

Red Cross workers being checked for radiation exposure.

There is a threat of a nuclear breakdown or explosion at 

one or more nuclear power plants in northern Japan.

Many heroes are working diligently at these plants to do 

all that they can to prevent more loss of life.

 

3 days after the destruction a 4 month old little baby was 

found alive and reunited with her father.

There are still miracles on Earth today. 

Heavenly Father will never leave his precious children alone!

Checked Out.

When Isabelle hurt her arm we were thrown a little, okay a lot, off schedule.  Taekwondo, piano, and gymnastics were all canceled.  It was still freezing cold weather so my emotions had decided to check out weeks ago and it didn't take my brain long to follow suite.  For the last 2 weeks we haven't really gone anywhere except for choir, church, and emergency egg runs to Walmart.  It has been so nice!  The bad thing about being thrown off of our schedule is that we also did very little school, and very very little cleaning of the house. Today is Sunday so as sad as it is at the stroke of midnight tonight the schedule will magically be back in place.  We have much to catch up on this Monday.

Here's Isabelle with a fully functioning arm.
Her dad spoiled her with Hello Kitty paraphernalia just because she flashed him her big brown eyes and said "I love you sooooo much daddy".  What a sucker!

 

When we took off her splint she was so happy she did a little happy dance saying 

"Yay Isabelle, yay Isabelle, yay Isabelle!"

Here's how far off schedule we have been . 

Today Liam woke up from his nap at 6:45.

Which is exactly 15 minutes before his regular bedtime.  Needless to say he won't be going to bed on time tonight.  I also had a nap, which was wonderful. I could have gone back to bed in 15 minutes if my minions would've allowed that.  It is now almost 8:00 and Soungsik and I are beginning to think the kids might want dinner. 

 

Liam is our super shy kid.

He sticks like super glue to me when I take him into nursery.

Hopefully sometime in the near future he will be able to go by himself.

His teachers think he is just this quiet little mild child.

At some point in time they are going to be surprised!

A few days ago there was a massive (almost 9 point) earthquake in Japan.

This was followed by a massive tsunami, and radiation leaks at 2 nuclear plants.

There are at least 10,000 people who have died so far, and that number is expected to rise due to the number of people still missing.

Soungsik's brother was in Japan at the time but fortunately he was farther south than the destruction and he is safe.  They currently have a volcano which may erupt and his brother is closer to that.  We are holding our breath that nothing will come from the volcano threat!

Apparently Earth was moved over 10 centimeters with the earthquake.  The result of this movement is that time will literally move faster.  This could impair my getting back to our old schedule!

Don't take me the wrong way, I am grateful that this is the only way I'll be effected by this act of God.

   

Yet again there was no rhyme or reason to that post.

It seems that my only consistency with blogging is randomness.

Picasso?

I left William alone for about 2 minutes today. 

Why?  Because it's not humanly possible to watch him all of the time.

He knows how to make a person tired!
He found a marker and colored all over his face and hands.

He was very impressed with his art work.

Luckily it was washable and he limited his art to his body and not furniture, so I guess I can't complain.

 p.s. It doesn't look as bad in the picture as it did in real life.