One week of vacation!

So...my husband and I decided that we wanted to do some fun things with the kids this week since it's summer vacation for them. Today my husband took them to the local rec. pool that has an awesome slide and a beach area that makes it fun for even infants since the water is only about 1 inch at the end. It also has toy area in the little kids section that has a small slide for the little ones. The kids had a great time and there was only one small almost drowning incident! Emma (my four year old) wanted to watch the big kids up close and personal and went straight down when she crossed the little buoys! Luckily the lifeguard did her job and got down to saving a life! She pulled her right up and yelled at her to stay in the kiddie pool! Emma did just what she was told! (Good little girl!)
Tommorrow we are going to the free movies at Regal Cinemas at 10:00 a.m. (For those of you who don't know about this program, Regal Cinemas Host free summer movies at select theaters. You can go to www.regalcinemas.com and with a little searching can find the link to search in your area. It's a first come, first serve. Have fun!)
And after that we'll take them back to the rec pool and let them swim some more! And then...we'll have family night and write some letters to their brother Wade who is in Bootcamp! We got our first letter from Wade and it made me cry to read them. I miss him so much! He is so funny! He says that he's still a hottie McHot pants even with his buzzed haircut! Supposedly, the girls there have a sign language that they talk about the boys in bootcamp with, and one of them told Wade what the signs are. We also got a call from one of the members of the church, in the Ward where Wade is stationed, and he told us that he had a message from Wade. It went something like this: "Hey Mom! I went to church today and brought Horton, my buddy from bootcamp! Love you!" The Brother then asked if I wanted to reply and he would give my son the message if he saw him next week at church. My reply, "YOU ROCK, SON! I love you!
Isn't that the most wonderful thing? These members who help those boys contact their parents and leave small messages. It totally made my day! I forgot that Brothers' name, but I will forever be grateful to him.
Well,I'll let you know how the day went tomorrow. I'm looking forward to it! Gotta remember to take my camera!

The hits keep on comin'!

First of all, I just want to thank all the people who commented on my last post. That was a difficult one to write and I truly appreciate those that wrote, because it really helped me out. Thank you soooo much. Every one of you made me feel a little better. Now, on to the rest of the story...
You ever feel like you just get kicked when your down? Well, geez louise! My whole house is sick. And listen, having 7 of your kids and you sick is not fun! Please...let me reiterate this...it is NOT fun for the whole house to be sick. Some have a respiratory infection, some have bad colds, some have earaches and those that aren't sick are sunburnt,because they got to go the rec pool with their Aunt. Thanks Aunt Becky, we love you!!!
It's a little bit after midnight and my poor husband is at Urgent Care with my 4 year old daughter who has a horrible earache. Why didn't we take her earlier you ask? Well, that would be because she didn't complain about it until about 11:45 p.m. Talk about bad timing, huh? I don't know how my husband is going to get to work in the morning. He has a reputation for falling asleep at the wheel. Funny story, one night when I was pregnant and got hungry at about 1:00a.m. and wanted something to eat, I sent Kelvin out to get me something to eat. (Places are open 24 hours here) About 10 minutes later I get a phone call from the local police who asked me if my husband had a medical problem. I started to say no, and then I remembered he has diabetes, so I told them that Yes, he has diabetes. They then told me that I needed to come pick him up because he was in no shape to drive. So...I had to wake up my sister to drive me down to McDonald's which is no more than 3 min. away, so I could drive my husband home. I was really worried until I found out he was sleeping while he was driving and only going about 3 miles an hour. That's why the polices pulled him over! He was going to slow!!! They didn't believe him when he said he was just tired.
Another funny story that happened tonight. While my husband and I were getting the medicine for my daughter who has a respiratory infection, my other daughter who we thought only had a cold, started crying and told her sister Laura to call us and tell her Mommy, "My ear is broken" Yup, she's the one with the ear infection. Oh! Did I tell you that this was the second time that my husband has been to the Urgent Care today? Poor man...I love that he'll do this for his family. He's such a good man! I love him dearly.(so cliche, but totally true!)
Well... I'll let you go for now. My tales of woe will be brief I hope. The summer months are here and we don't have time for this crud!

My Son

I've been avoiding posting for a couple of days because I feel like I don't know how to express myself about this issue. My oldest son Wade has decided to go into the Navy. He went to bootcamp this last Tuesday. You know, when he was little he was the most adorable little guy. He wanted to go to church every week and he loved the gospel. He was always sooo loving and positive. When he did something wrong, he would come and put his arms around me and tell me how sorry he was. If I cried he would hug me and tell me everything would be o.k. (A little tearful here)
How does a Mom who has raised her children in the gospel get past the fact that her son doesn't want to go on a mission. How do I get past the feeling that somewhere I must have done something wrong. I know, I know, it's their choice. Our Father in Heaven gave us free agency. But those Moms with little Sunbeams, look at your little boy....you just know that he's gonna be your little missionary. I felt that way too. For some reason, Wade decided not to go. He's had problems since he was in High School and has made some really bad decisions. Some that might follow him with consequences. But he's a good kid. And I love him sooo much. I know that I shouldn't be so affected by this, but it has broken my heart...I cry about it all the time. I try to forget about it but I can't. For some reason, I have always felt that there is something important that he's supposed to do. And then I think, is he supposed to do it on his mission and he's not going. Will some family have to wait another 20 years before they receive the gospel. Shoot, I want to go for him.
And I'm gonna be honest here, I hate that my family judges me about it. My parents, even though they don't realize it, make me feel like I'm a bad Mom. My nephew is going on a mission and I'm sure that my sister-in-law pities me a little. I pity myself, and how wrong is that? Is this a pride issue? Sometimes it might be, but for the most part, I'm just so sad for this missed opportunity. I'm so sad that he isn't following what our Prophet has asked each young man to do. It makes me want to do that much better, to read the scriptures more, to hold Family Home Evening more often, and above all to show my children how much I love them and teach them that their Father in Heaven loves them too. And how important it is to follow His Teachings. To remember Him always.
Well...I've had to accept his decision (Wade's) and since it's all done, I might as well get over it and be O.K. I am proud of him. He's a good kid, for the most part, with complications. What teenager doesn't have "complications"? The Navy will be good for him. And since he's there I sure feel a little more patriotic. I think of the military in a different light. And I love him. Unconditionally. Without reservation. I love him so much...