April showers bring smiles

So as Dylan finished out his art group I had seen an orthodontist to see if I could start eating food again without choking.  Unfortunately for me that insurance does not cover braces for adults.  So my first quote was $5500 and I just about died.

As I thought about ways to pay for that, my best friend (Crystal) found a lot of mold in her house and the landlord was taking his time dealing with it.  But her 3 year old has severe asthma and was having breathing problems in their house.  She had stored a lot of her sister’s things in her garage and that was moldy too and has to be redone.  I suggested that we load it up and take it to her sister on the way to check on her grandma since she has been wanting to do that for a while too.  So Thursday in the rain we loaded up my suburban with all her sister's things and left Tuesday morning.

Tuesday morning I woke up to this:

Yes that is laundry soap that fell from the top of the washer.  I am not sure who left it there but that was not a fun way to start the day Tuesday.  As fast as I could I cleaned it up and got ready for the day.  Gave Nikole a hug and sent her to school with her daddy.  Then made sure all my boys were ready for the day. Sent Gavin off to school with a hug and said I will see you in a few days.  I put Dylan on the bus with a hug with love told him I would see him in a few days.  Loaded up my suburban with my things and then loaded up Rhett to take him to the doctor. He had an orthopedic appointment because his knees have been hurting lots.  We got there and took x-rays, saw the doctor, and got a "He is doing good. There is nothing that we would do right now."  Nice!  I throw him in the car and off I go to take him to school and pick up Crystal and Lauren.  I give him a hug and tell him that I will see him in a few days.  As I drive away I am praying that my kids will be good and that everyone will survive this coming week.  I leave knowing Dylan has been complaining of headaches often and it has become more pronounced as the days have gone by.  I was only gone from Tuesday until Sunday since Dylan had an appointment Monday morning with the ENT (Ears, Nose, and Throat) doctor.

Tuesday we made it to Vegas and spent the night.  When we checked in to our hotel (Golden Nugget) we found out they had upgraded our room.  What a nice surprise!  We had to use our room key to even access the floor that our room was on.  We were excited.

Our room!

There is a TV screen in the mirror!

Everything was amazing!

The view from our room. J  Good thing we were not there for the room view.

We dressed up and we to eat at the "princess castle".  Remember we were with Lauren who is 3 years old and is completely into princesses and all things glamour.

All dressed up and ready for the night!

Getting a picture with the shark tank.

Crystal and Lauren in front of the "princess castle".

Waiting for food when you are starving is hard work.

She was so happy to have a cup that lit up.

Love the lights!

She thought it was great having a drink with a strap. J  Lauren ready for bed.

After that long night we were able to swim with sharks before we left for Phoenix.  We loaded up the car with everything that we would not need before the pool opened.  Then it was time to swim with sharks.

Trying to get a good shot with the sharks behind us.

As the sharks swam by you it felt like they were eyeing you.  My heart was pounding and I was so scared even though I knew it was safe and I was fine.  Still scary!!  As they circle the tank slowly and go right by their eyes sees to stay on you as they circle the tank.  Every time they came by the same thing happened. CREEPY!!!  EEK!!!

Swimming with SHARKS!!

It was a little unnerving to have sharks eye you as they swim by.

There is a slide that went right through the tank.  No way I went on that thing.

The view was awesome. Waterfall from above the tank and lounge chairs in the pool. Lauren played while she and I waited for Crystal to go on the water slide through the shark tank.

Watching Lauren while Crystal went on the slide through the shark tank.

Those are some big fish!

Last selfie in the pool! J

Yes this is how close you get to the shark tank.  My hand is on the glass of the tank!  I was scared silly. J

After we had fun with the fish and sharks we had to hit the road.  We had a long drive ahead of us.

Getting gas ready to head out.

Off to Phoenix!  It was a long drive with twists, turns, and hills.  We talked and snacked since there was NOTHING to see.  I saw a few bushes, tumbleweeds, and several cactus. Oh we did see a few “walls” if that is what you can call them.  

Yep NOTHING!!!  Thanks Crystal for the picture. J

Oh look a wall.  If that really is a wall.  Thanks Crystal for the picture. J

The bonus was we arrived at Sarah’s house in Phoenix without incident and we didn’t have to get gas again. J  I know that is amazing!  Sarah is Crystal’s sister and we had my suburban packed with all of Sarah’s things.  So we were able to unload and visit.  We had a great time visiting and hanging out before we hit the road again.  Sarah I hope you are well. It was great meeting you!

Crystal and Sarah.  They love each other and you can totally tell. Thanks for the picture Crystal. J

We were not at our final destination and still had a long ways to drive.  We said our good-byes and headed out before it was too late.  We arrived in Los Angles around 2 am, and thankfully Lauren slept most the way so we didn’t need to stop too often.

Little Miss Lauren.

I was up early the next day even though we didn't get in until 2 am.  Go figure I think I was up by 6:30 or 7 am. Go figure I only need little sleep for me to feel ready for the day. J

I love waking up to light coming in the window early in the morning.  It is much more peaceful than an alarm clock.

The first day in California was just took it easy and helped grandma (Crystal’s grandma) mount a television on a platform.  It turned out great, but I forgot to take a picture of our handy work.  After that we had a lovely dinner. J

Feeling pretty.  Ready for the day.

Having dinner with grandma after mounting her television.

The next day we went to the mall and looked around.  We got some wraps to wear at the beach.  Lauren played on the little things at the mall and got new sandals!

My kids were so excited to see that I had seen this store.  They really wanted me to get them something from there.

Lauren riding the Mickey car.

Picking out covers. J

After shopping we went and visited Crystal’s aunt Deb.  We had a great time catching up and talking about life and all the changes that happen.  She is amazing!!  Her dogs are slightly crazy but it was a lot of fun watching them react and such.  It was great to meet you Deb!!!  I hope you are well and where you want to be.  After that I dropped off Crystal at the church to help grandma.  I took Lauren back to grandma’s house and put her down she was tired.  As I was headed back to the house with Lauren I noticed that the street was lined with food trucks.  It was crazy I have never seen that before.  There were two full blocks lined on both sides of the street with food trucks.

Food trucks!!

After a long busy day I was babysitting and just hanging out.  Waiting on grandma and Crystal to return from the church they were setting up.  While I waited I got Lauren to eat before mommy came.  IT was a race that she almost won. HA!

After Crystal and grandma were finished and back.  Lauren was down!  Time to have more fun!!!  So we went and saw Crystal’s cousin Kimber.  She has got a very cute little girl and it was fun seeing her and her brother that was also visiting from Utah.  Go figure leave Utah and visit other people from the same place in California.  HAHAHA!!!  They were all delightful and it was wonderful to meet them.  Kimber I hope you and your family are well.  It was a pleasure meeting you and your brother. J

After visiting with Kimber for a while we headed back to get some rest since Saturday was the next day which means it was beach day!!  I couldn’t wait!  It had been years since I had been to the beach.  I am thinking I need to move closer to the beach.

Ready for the day!

We made it to the beach in Malibu!!!  Loved it!!!

Too windy for the hats the Crystal and Lauren got from grandma.

On the hunt for shells.

UGH!  Not the best picture but it was so windy.

There were not as many people as I thought there were going to be.

Couldn't face the water since the wind was so intense.

Building a sand castle.

Great shot before we had to leave. Thanks for the picture Crystal! J

After the beach we decided that we would go to Costco and see if they had anything we needed for our trip back the next day.  Yes, we went in the store in our swim suits and covers.  It was so much fun!!  Not a single person looked at us like we were weird.  I wonder if they get people coming from the beach often.  We didn’t find what we were looking for but it gave Lauren a chance to use the bathroom.  After being in the store we grabbed some gas while we were there for our trip back.

Right before going into Costco.  We are so silly!  Thanks for the picture Crystal! J

Grateful that we got gas when we did since we left early in the morning to head back home.  I am talking 7 am, and yes that is early when you have not been waking up to an alarm clock and everyone showered the night before since we were all covered in sand.

Yes this is my crazy hair when it is wet when I go to bed.  HAHA!  It is a little poofy. J

After taking Crystal and Lauren home I arrived at home around 9 pm.  I was so exhausted.  I forgot how hard it is traveling with a very young child. HAHAHA!!!!

Monday morning I took Dylan to the ENT (Ear, Nose, Throat doctor) to have some wax removed from his ears.  We arrived at the hospital right around 8 am.  After checking in and beginning the wait to see the doctor an interpreter showed up to help interpret for Dylan.  She was so kind and patient with Dylan and his attention span.  He was really good and held really still.  We are supposed to go get a hearing test done to see if he has gotten worse in his hearing loss.  I do not really care if he has but he told me after all the wax was out that he could hear.  HAHA!!  He did have his hearing aids in at the time.  But he was really excited to hear better than he did with all the wax in his ears.  I guess a visit to the ENT is a good thing when you are happy after visiting. J  After that appointment I took Dylan to school and went to another appointment for braces for me. Let me tell you shopping for braces is awful!  The visit went great and I was able to get a much better price than I thought.  It was $2000 less than the first place I went to and the payments are decent for someone with major medical issues in their family.  Now was the challenge to see if we could pull it off.  I mean those protein shakes are only good for so long before they make you want to vomit.  HAHA!  After my appointment I went to Crystal’s house to check in with her after a very quick trip.  She was really frustrated when I got there and I can totally understand.  She came home to this….

Who does this?  It needs to be fixed.

The floor is wet.  I am thinking it is a broken pipe, or a leaking pipe.

I honestly have no words.  The landlord said he was going to get things done while Lauren and Crystal were out of the house.  We went just so he could work on that, and coming home to see that hardly anything was done is frustrating for sure. UGH!

Tuesday Rhett had an appointment with Cardiology and he still has high blood pressure. Sigh there is nothing that I can do about that.  The doctor did make him a deal that if he took his medicine for a whole month consistently then they would give him a prize.  I cannot believe that we have to bribe a 16-17 year old to take medicine.  He hates it though and fights me on it, so the bribing does help.

Smirk!  Everything is fun when the doctor is there and as soon as you get home it isn't fine.  Go figure.

Dylan wasn’t feeling good Thursday and so I took him to the doctor on Friday for a quick check since he has been dealing with the headaches, the nurses contacting me about his behavior at school, and then a cold on top of all that.  He had a little cold and needed to stay home since he wasn’t acting himself.

Just like that April was over.