getting my cheese kicked

Today Dr. Laughran gave me the okay to start putting weight on my leg. I am starting by walking with two crutches and gently putting a bit of weight on my left. He said it could take me 3 - 4 weeks to walk without crutches. I think I'll throw a party here when that happens.

Walking with both feet contacting the ground is much easier on my body. I am hoping this will enable me to be more mobile for field trips with the kids. When I first got back on the recumbent bike at the gym I was so slow. Darn slow. The bike's monitor kept turning off because I wasn't fast enough. The old lady next to me must have been feeling pretty good for she was kicking my cheese. I better get used to that for awhile.

Man Ivy

Dan I laughed out loud when we saw the below video clip. Not that it truly describes Dan when he has a cold. The man can be ill and never mentions the fact to me. For example, if he mentions an ailment and I ask him how long has it been going on, he'll reply, "Two years." I am certainly the whiny person in this marriage. Yet, at the time video clip came to us Dan was inflicted with a terrible case of poison ivy and was taking over my role of the noble sufferer/complainer. I had thoughts like the gal in the clip, "Isn't it just poison ivy? Don't you just put some cream on it, do your best to ignore it and move on? How many times have I had it and received the obliged 'sorry' and advice for Chamomile lotion?" However this clip put it all into perspective. It's not just poison ivy, but a totally new beast that only men have to deal with, Man Ivy.

Click onthe link:

http://my.break.com/content/view.aspx?ContentID=316202

Dan's a winner . . . finally.

Zayne is a little smarty pants at chess. He humbly likes to rub it in. I really need to put him in a chess club so that he could improve more. The day after he taught himself to play on his Bampa's palm pilot I played him on an outdoor board with the large pieces in Park City. I thought I'd take it easy on him being his second day at the game and his first game against a person. But the game was not what I expected and was really close and I was truly struggling. The crowd around us loved watching a six year old pummle his mother in a game of intellect. My pride wouldn't let me go down this way and I barely squeaked out a win. (I know that sounds awful and I am too competitive. I do not give my children easy victories, that way they know they really succeeded when they do win).

Dan has never beaten at chess Zayne, until tonight. Yes, Dan actually got a win on Zayne! We all cheered for his victory. The next game Zayne beat Dan in seven moves.

Knee Update

I know a few of you were wondering about the knee recovery. Its going pretty well. I am doing physical therapy 2 - 3 times a day. Its pretty simple stuff right now until I can put any weight on that leg. At this point I am a wee bit tired of being on crutches and hopping around on one leg. I've tried to stop the hopping thing because its stating to effect my other leg. I go to the doctor this friday to see where we go from here.

Of all the activities I miss the most it is not my personal trail running, hiking or mountain biking. I do dearly miss those things yet, taking walks, bush wacking and biking with my family is what I want to do the most. I would love to scramble over the rocks on the James with the kids so badly. You know, I would not mind being able to carry things around the house too.

Homeschooling on the Road

Two weekends ago our family was riding in Dan's car when one of my friend's, Annelise, songs came on. It made me miss her so I said, "I really need to visit Annelise." My super-duper-wonderful-supportive husband said something like, "Sounds good. When do you want to go?" After thinking about it I discovered that this week would be the best time for me and the kids to go. Annelise happily welcomed us after I called her Sunday night. I was on the road Tuesday morning. Ah . . . spontaneity, the beauty of homeschooling and a remarkable husband.
We spent Tuesday evening and Wednesday seeing The Smokey Mountain National Park. Tuesday brought severe storms in the mountains with tornado warnings for the county. It was truly amazing to see the amount of run off that the storm caused. Waterfalls and torrents plummeted down the mountain sides. After the Storm ceased we drove up a little "holler", or canyon. The river was almost up to the road in areas as it raged beyond its boundaries. We all had a thrilling time playing aside the roaring river and its mossy banks. I wasn't surprised later to find out that this region is dangerous for flash floods.
The next day we drove to the top of the Smokies, took pictures of cascades, waterfalls, and the 6 foot Rhododendrons and of course enjoyed the view of the misty peaks. Can I call them peaks after living in the Rockies? On the way down we picked up some hitch hikers who were trekking the Appalachian trail from Georgia to Maine and needed to resupply in town. They got pelted in the storm. In the lowlands we drove along some rivers. While sitting on some rocks and gazing at the river we saw a river otter scamper across a rock on the opposite bank, then disappear into the water, never to resurface to our sight. That was the highlight of the day. Joshi and Zayne are somewhat infatuated with otters because of the characters in the Redwall book series. They had just purchased stuffed animal otters in the gift shop and were holding them at the time of the sighting. I failed to mention that Joshi, the biggest otter fiend, missed the excitement because she did not want to get out of the car. I felt bad for her. She talks like the otters in the books. She writes her own tales about otters. Maybe we'll see another in Oregeon. Our Smokies' tour ended in The Cove where the park preserved part of a mountain settlement after they kicked the settlers out. It was on to Nashville after that. Joshi and Zayne were dying to see Annelise.

Annelise is such a fun, happy person to be around. It was a joy to be with her. We mostly hung out, chatted, giggled and stayed up late like we were in high school again. There were plenty of things to do and see in Nashville, but I get so tired and achey hobbling around on these crutches, so I picked just a few things to see. Annelise took us on a driving tour of the Music City during a sleet storm. People were standing outside in it waiting to see a concert at the Wild Horse Saloon. Fun and crazy folks.
The morning after the storm I had planned to go to the Nashville Temple. I called ahead to make sure that they were open. They were but, the 8 am session was cancelled. Another sister and I did sealings with the temple workers until the 10 am session where it was just me, another guy and the temple workers. I mention this only because it truly was a unique experience. The Nashville temple is one of those small temples, 10, 000 sq ft, no laundry, everything is very simple. With the smallness of the building, me being one of two patrons, the whole experience was very intimate and personal. Also, when else can you hang out and chat with the temple president and his wife?
That's an eel betwen our heads.
Saturday night we went to the Aquarium restaurant across from the Grand Ole Oprey. I felt like a kid "oo-ing" and "ah-ing" at all the sharks, rays, eels and fish. It was even better that Annelise was beside me doing the same. Joshi and Zayne lost interest in the fish before I did. What? That surprised me. Outside the Grande Ole Oprey people were dressed up like the original hosts. Joshi wondered why one lady had a tag hanging off her hat. My children not knowing who Pearl was made me feel old. It was like the first time they saw an electric type writer and did not know what it was. The Grande Old Oprey's show was fantastic. Some golden oldies performed as well as new favorites. Joshi and Zayne's favorite performances were Lee Greenwood's "Proud To Be an American, " some fun blue grass ditties, and the energetic performance of the Charlie Daniel's Band. When they played "The Devil Went Down to Georgia" the crowd went ecstatic as did Joshi and Zayne. Rosin dust and bow strings were flying through the air as Charlie fervently attacked his fiddle. Yee-haw! Back at the house, Annelise made the night even better when she got out her guitar and sang the children to sleep. We made it home Sunday night, giving us plenty of time to prepare for homeschool on the morrow. I must admit that I prefer homeschooling on the road.
The three of us doing history at Annelise's House.