A healthier family

The mood in our house this week is a bit melancholy. I actually don’t know the definition of that word, or if I used it appropriately, but it’s the word that popped into my head. We are both disheartened over the sudden loss of Issues Etc and the political circus that is following. It seems as if Synod has an agenda that only includes those who are the most liberally outspoken or have the biggest churches and the most money. With politics in every job in America today, you’d think we could manage to keep it out of the true church.

I also had high hopes of a healthy household this week, better dispositons for the family all around, and a general ‘happiness’ to encircle the house. Not so. When Al had one day left of antibiotics, he got a fever. Naturally, this is coupled with a sore throat, throbbing sinus headache and general exhaustion. My ears have finally unplugged and Lars is starting to perk up a bit. The coughing fits seem to be fading all around. I guess these are all good signs.

Monday, we went to Scottsbluff for Al to record several radio spots. After that, we made a quick trip to Walmart (as if that’s really possible) and then headed back home. It was a nice day for a drive, at least.

Tuesday, Eden went to daycare while I helped at the fire hall. We are serving meals all day, all week during the World’s Largest Farm Implement Auction. They had big hopes for thousands of people to flood the town. I’m not sure the finally tally of people, but we definitely quadrupled the size of our town once or twice! I think they over planned for people to come into the town, when mostly, people are bidding over the internet via big screen and audio/video equipment. But it still puts Bridgeport on the map.

Wednesday, the kids and I went to the chiropractor. Dr. Mike said, “hey, you guys been coughing a lot?” I had to bite my tongue and say only, “um…yeah.” He laughed. He’s really great at what he does. I respect his opinion, as well, that I need to see a massage therapist to work out the knots in my middle back. My whole left side was, (and I quote), “really messed up”.

I obliged and Al and I took turns going under the kneader on Friday. It was great until it hurt. She (the massage therapist) said that the muscle & connective tissue surrounding my bottom few ribs had adhered itself to the bone. She was trying to disconnect it. Ten hours later, as I sat in a hard back chair, I thought I’d need some Demerol for the pain. To Al, she said, “Feel this lump? Yeah, that’s a huge knot. Don’t go more than two weeks.” All the hauling around two sick kids for a month might be worth the payoff off of a bi-weekly massage!

Friday I was up at the fire hall most of the day, helping in the kitchen while the guys were on the grill. We had a good turnout that day and also had a lot of fun. Al and I spent some time in the park with the kids late in the afternoon, before going up to the hall to visit and serve food. Eden had a great time playing with the other kids….she was ‘Pigpen’ when she was done and her pink pants will never be pink again. After getting them both down that evening, we watched the 1995 movie, “How to Make an American Quilt”. It was the first movie we’ve watched in I don’t know how many months. And there were NO phone calls-cell phones ringing-scratched DVD- baby crying-Eden sneaking out of her room-pager beeping-dog barking-door knocking interruptions. It was like it was meant to be!

Saturday, Al had confirmation class, followed by an ‘over lunch’ meeting, so he was busy. After I put Lars down for a long spring’s nap, Eden and I went outside to enjoy the 65 degree weather. I got all the grass raked and kind of cleaned up my gardens. I ‘fluffed’ the mulch. Mark and Laura came over and helped me take down the dog kennel and take out a flower bucket that had rotted through. The girls had fun playing and Eden was mad to see them go. Al picked up a rented edger on his way home from work, Eden fell asleep at the supper table (see the youtube video below), and I left all the dishes in the sink so I could go back outside and play. Al pulled the cord to fire up the edger after supper and realized that it was going to need a lot of work before it was going to run. He spent the next couple hours working on that while I was in the gardens. I raked out just about every square inch of the grass that had any winter kill or snow mold and came in just as the sun was setting and a beautiful rainbow fell across the land to the east.

After taking my coin jar off the top shelf where even I couldn't reach it,
Eden found it and had it empty not 10 minutes after I hid it in my closet....

After church on Sunday, Al and I put the kids down for a nap and headed outside to the edger. We finished it and if I never have to do that again, it will be too soon. At least the weather was nice. Tonight, I look forward to starting the final book in Sue Grafton’s Alaphabet series…our library finally got in the 2007 hardback!

Until next week, enjoy a laugh. We call this video, "Eden like a Papa Kenny bobble head doll"