Rain Rain Go Away

I could use a few more days like this....where did our summer go?

Before we head out we must pay homage to Arnie. Then we head to the Angler for coffee and the first signs of daylight befor we launch.
As Daylight hits so do the fish.

Our captain a true natural. He can catch fish in a mud puddle. If he says fishing is slow you better get out there because he is wanting a nice quiet spot when he limits out.

These fellow fisher men were really far away, but with my sister in-laws camera that is really awasome I could see what they were drinking...she let me use it during this trip....but it took three months to get copies of my pictures.

Here we are getting borded waiting for fish...also this is the only good picture out of say thousands....

...Still Waitng... Still waiting....

oops waited to long...shes gotta go to wee....

Wee Wee Rock
Crabman

Crabman on the run.

Who Knows what? it was some catipllar looking thing.

This peice of yellow stuff was holdin up a HUGE bolder!!

I am not sure I have ever seen him/them so peacefull...

The boys putting the toys away....

While we sun bathed.

What a great day....can't wait till next May!!

Wanted $20,000

As I dropped off Tay at school today…. We followed two marked police cars into the parking lot. They were joining four other officers (two unmarked police cars and two marked cars) six officers total….not something I want to see…now I need $20,000 for a private catholic school. Yeah I’ll be catholic if it means I don’t have to see cops at a middle school.

The First Day of School

The first day of school went great. The JR high gets out 45 minutes earlier then the elementary school so it gave Tay and I some time to chat before the others got home. She had some locker problems but a cute boy helped her out with that, you should have seen her grin as she told me. Her school terrorist retired which is great news for me, and her new therapist has worked with her before and we love him!! Her science teacher is going to get her out of her study skills class and put her in another science program. She loves the staff and the school. She had an issue with some girls she grew up with, something about going to JR high changes girls…snobs!!!

Rose and Byrd spent the day catching up with their friends. Byrd ended up bringing home most of her class work to finish up. She said she couldn’t do it in class because everyone kept talking and annoying her. I hope this is not going to be a pattern, her teacher this year is pretty strict and I don’t want to be called in all the time. Rose was a little disappointed in her teachers this year, not because of the teacher but because she has been separated from her fiends. Her teachers (her two teachers job share, one comes in the morning the other afternoon) is the same one Tay had for the last two years and I am worried that their teaching style isn’t right for Rose, we will see how that goes. I hope they don’t expect Rose to be a Tay because she is not a brown nosing child she is more of a class clown.

I enjoyed a day of relaxation. I spent the day in bed reading the third book in the “Dark Towers” series (Stephen King)…boy am I hooked. Today I think I will go have coffee with my sister and wait for my brother to call…they were supposed to be here last night but never showed. I should be getting started on Girl Scouts but the motivation is just not there. Tomorrow we are having a planning meeting maybe that will motivate me.

We Are Home

Well….we are home….our trip was long….and slightly boring…. We arrived in Portland on the 16^th around 1pm and went directly to the Shriners Hospital. We check into the room we were to be sleeping in, there were a few rules that disappointed us, like no food or dink in the rooms, not even bottled water, and our beds were labeled with our names and we were NOT to sleep in any other bed. They gave a 10 inch television that was mounted securely to the farthest corner of the room (even the alarm clock was screwed down), we wondered who made them do this, who would be petty enough to steal these items from an organization that helped so many children.

Anyway our room looked like any other hotel room and we weren’t going to just hang out. So we talked to a few people and secured some toothpaste and some other items we were not allowed to carry on the plane and we headed out in search of some entertainment.

Shriners was built on a huge hill about half way up. If you continue going up the hill there is a medical school, dental school, and a VA hospital. When I say hill I mean mountain.. So we decided to HIKE or roll Tay up the hill to find some food seeing how if we hiked down there were no sidewalks and after a long walk I was not going to push her back up the darn hill.

So we set off on our adventure….we saw amazing architecture, buildings like we have never seen in Alaska….

Their gardens and foliage were just stunning….many of the plants are the same as in Alaska but ours aren’t anywhere as big….

I have this tree in my yard…but I thought it was supposed to be a bush/hedge.

We saw a few thing that reminded us of home….

And a few things that just blogged us…..what in the heck is a flex car?

After we reached the top of the hill we found what we wanted….”A slice of heaven”….the only restaurant on the hill….which make no sense since we were on a collage campus…we though Fast food would be a necessity. But nope there was only one “Quicky mart”, one pizzeria, and a bank. So for dinner we tried something different a Panini…boy was it yummy…we couldn’t eat it all so we camouflaged it and snuck it back into our room for a late night snack.

After the walk I needed a rest to we went back the hospital and iu splet while tay watched TV. After I woke up we went out to check the cityscape. Shriners had a playground on the roof and what a view we saw. They are building a sky tram from the bottom of the hill to the top…so next time we visit we aren’t stuck on the campus. We sat and watch for a while then decided it was time to sleep.

Next morning we got all packed up again, gathered our food garbage and checked out of our room. After breakfast we headed to the motion lab… this was great fun. Tay enjoyed herself the staff was awesome and the Physical therapist was no terrorist. We came to find out that this is the same technology used in making movies….

They hooked her up to the sensors, shot their video and then compared it to the way a person should walk. With this data they then could tell exactly what bones were out of alignment and the degree they need to move them. They also hooked up electrodes to tell them how them how much electricity her legs were firing off. This will tell them which muscles are getting to much signals from the brain

After the film we saw the doctor….he told us pretty much the same thing the doctor in LA said…. But more….

• Rotate both femurs (upper leg bone) out
• Rotate both tibia (large calf bone) in
• Lengthen both hamstrings
• Shorten the lower ligament to patella, bringing it back to its proper place. Right now it is position above her knee joint.
• And shorten both femors, there is a major nerve behind the knee (they can’t lengthen nerves) and if they stretch her out then that nerve will be damaged and she could loose feeling in her lower legs. So she will loose a little bit of height.

I am thankful we went out of state for this because the LA doc didn’t mention the last two procedures and it could have meant some major damage. The doc at Shriners is booked solid until February so we have a few months to ponder and research.

We high tailed it back to the airport so we could do some shopping and get some food. Our flight home was much more exciting then the flight down… and we are thankful to be home.

Flying Out This Week

With all of the new problems with terrorist and airplanes I am a little concerned about flying out of state next week. It is not the possibility of being blown up or purposefully crashed into the space needle, it is the flying restrictions, the searches, delays, and missing our ride to the hospital.

Our trip is an over night trip, we leave 8am on the 16^th and return 7pm on the on the 17^th. We were asked NOT to check any luggage. Reason being the gentlemen in the funny hats do not want to wait for us to collect our luggage. He will be picking several people and wants us all to get to the hospital in a timely manner and I think he doesn’t want to pay for parking. Yet the doctors are asking us to bring an arsenal of mobility devices.

This would not be a problem if it weren’t for the new restrictions. Being a little confused about the new restrictions I went on-line just to see what we can and cannot bring…. You will have to look yourself…and while looking ask yourself….do they really have to list some of that stuff? I mean seriously folks; wouldn’t you check your hatchet?

The resources I found really did not help me out at all since the last time they updated the list was December ’05 and there is no mention of the new restrictions or whether they are international or national or even local restrictions.

This is what I heard from the national news, and the local news was no help at all. These new restrictions may just be for international flights but I would like to know for sure….

1. No carry on baggage- that means no bags at all not even a purse. (Great Britain only I think)
   
2. Anything carried on will have to be sealing in a zip lock bag - ID’s, passports, money, credit cards, medication, feminine products, and baby hygiene products. If it doesn’t fit you aren’t allowed to take it. (Great Britain only I think)
3. NO LIQUIDS or GELLS – this includes make up, lipstick, shampoo, lotion, contact lens solutions, drinks, and everything else. Baby bottles will have to be taste tested (I hope they are prepared for breast milk).

Even if I can carry on our bags, I am sure the two canes and the walker will be an issue with the carry on restrictions. AND I am not sure I can carry it all, with our duffel bag and all medical equipment the Shriners asked us to bring. Checking our baggage is not an option, there is no contacting our ride to tell him we will be checking our bags and that we will be late to meet him. They get cranky if you are late. So this means, if I can bring on carry on bags, I will have to carry it all onto the plane and throughout the airports *said with great dread*. It should be an experience pushing Tay through the crowed airports carrying our overnight bag, purse, walker, canes… looking for the gift shop so I can purchase all the liquids that I would have ordinarily pack in my carry on (lotion, deodorant, acne medicine, Carmex) and most important a lighter; all while stressing over whether, my ride, the old cranky man in the funny hat, is going to yell at me for being late and then, in retribution, not give me a chance light a smoke with the new lighter I was forced to buy for 10 bucks at the airport gift shop (if they even carry them)…It has happened before…. I think I need to rent a car, check our baggage, and risk getting lost in Portland maybe we can find Batman’s Lair, again.

Air Show

What a day….we went to see the Blue Angels, at the Artic Thunder Air Show, it took some convincing to get the girls out of the house and no one was exactly excited about doing it except me. We miss the first part of the show, showing up just in time to see a few bombs being deployed. Everyone was loving it after that.

My favorite was a low rider Chevy truck, with Jet engine. Today the run way conditions were awesome and his speed was 325mph. Could you imagine? The C130 “Fat Albert” only flew at 350mph….that truck was flying!!!

The Red Bull stunt plain was exciting. He could tumble his plane tail over nose until you though he would crash, then at the last minute pull out of it. His take off was also pretty spectacular. After that show I think my little dare devil, Rose, may become a pilot for the Navy.

They saved the Angels for last; I remember seeing a little more stunt flying out of them when I was in California. But that was a long time ago, in high school. They did get us once and made me scream a little, one plane snuck in behind the crowd and just blew us away.

The crowds and traffic was worth it, next year I think we will go both days. So we don’t miss the show while we climb all over the planes on display and all the free recruiting do-dads.

Photo Log - is it a FLOG?

Oh boy it has been a while….no excuses accept that we have been a busy little family.

Road trips, both John and I made a trip to Soldotna …him on a Thursday …me on Saturday…him a funeral … and me a wedding. They held the wedding at the Senior center in Soldotna I was a little concerned about the seniors in Soldotna….first I found chains hooked to trees in the back yard and then I saw this …….
I think these seniors are having a bit to much fun…like ourselves. If you have never been to a function of my family ….well you never know what will happen… My father preformed the ceremony.

nice skunk hat huh …. No soaring eagle were seen. Then as a wedding present he gave them this…mind you to his niece… she tried it on for all to see.

I didn’t have much time to recoup from the wedding when my baby brother and his family decided to come up to LA to shop for school cloths. The first day we started with a healthy breakfast… Denny’s YUM!!!

Then we hit the Diamond center… I think JD talked to my brother about my spending before we left….

He was not pleased….

…but with Tay in adult sizes now, the bill really went up I had no choice.

The sun was out the whole time we were shopping…so after we had to get the kids cooled down and some energy spent…Hunter chose a winter sport…

While the girls chose to show off their new bikinis and force their cousin Heather into the pool…

Day two included a trip to Wal-Mart for socks and underwear…$100 buck worth (okay i also bought JD Jeans) …ACK… then off to Value Village and Salvation Army for those item that we can’t live without but are out of style and no longer carried in the stores…I found JD some Levis for $9.99 each. But the girls found NOTHING so we headed home for some more SUN.

This time Hunter chose to play with the girls… poor boy…but with a little pressure we finally got him to enjoy the water slide.

and after a water fight. Tay and Cody stayed in the pool and the younger kids too the high ground

The days of summer are almost at an end…as they played in the pool I stretched out to get some sun and it refused to cook me the way it does in June and July, it felt like early September.

Baby brother family took off the next morning and left me to deal with rain…and school registration.

Rose and Byrds registration too all of 10 minutes totally different story for Tays ….3 hours the first day….we had to go back. The JR high failed to read her IEP (Idividual Education Plan) and scheduled her for a PE class so we spent some time rearranging her schedule. She had originally signed up for Writing Enrichment (they do drama and learn about literature) and replaced her PE with Study hall…with their screw up they she did not get into the writing enrichment, replacing it with Office Aide. So she has advanced English, social studies, advanced science, and pre-algrebra. For her electives she has band, study skills and office aide. She is really bummed about losing out on the writing enrichment and scared about pre-algebra. But with the office aid job she will be cursing the halls for an hour collecting attendance, so the exercise will be good for her.

Then they placed her locker in the middle of the set of lockers, which won’t allow enough space to get her wheelchair in, especially if the halls are full of students. Just as we were going to change her locker they closed down registration of the day, so we had to go back the next day. We didn’t get a chance to meet any teachers but the security guards and the principle already seem to be wrapped around her finger.

Well I think this is long enough, I still have so much to write …. Maybe you will get another post tonight…..

Oh yeah …most of these photo’s were taken by Erica Harrington all rights reserved and if she gets pissy at me for sharing them then I will post the picture of her in her bikini for all the world to see!!!!

Just a few products we found at Freddy's ....

I wonder if they came up with this recipe because someone forgot to check the expiration date on the milk.
Doesn't she look like she needs a "Grainy Day"...

....and just in case school clothes shopping isn't stressful enough.... ...... only 145 days until Christmas....