Elijah and the Widow

Its the end of the month, which at our house means a visit from the UPS guy.  He brings us 4 large boxes full of Caden's supplies every 28 days.  The boxes are a little treasure trove of set bags, tube extensions, gauze pad, Mefix tape, and the all important Elecare. Caden's doctor has ordered 25.2 cans of Elecare for him each month, which means the nice people at home health round that up to 26 cans delivered each time.  For a while we used that tiny bit extra each month to build up a little bit of a food storage for Caden.

Then Eric started needing the formula as a supplement, so we'd give him a little of Caden's shipment and buy it as needed.  Eric uses 1-2 cans per week so we used up the stockpile we had pretty quickly.  At $35-60 per can, even supplementing is a little pricey.  Then I weaned Kyle and the pediatrician recommended we give him a small amount of formula each day.  We had no clue how we were going to afford having yet another child on an elemental formula.  But we prayed about it, knew it needed to happen, and forged ahead.

There are a variety of ways to get formula.  The first, and most reliable, is the little bit extra Caden gets every month.  Then there is the not so desirable surplus if Caden gets sick or isn't able to tolerate his feeds as fast as he is supposed to.  Visits to the GI or allergist usually yield a can or two that the pharmacy reps leave as samples.  My favorite is the kindness of strangers - people in my support group who stockpile that little bit extra every month and then give away a can here or there if its about to expire.  When we get desperate we  buy it online, from the manufacturer, or from a pharmacy.

In 2012, we haven't had to purchase a single can of Elecare.  We've picked up a few cans every now and then, but for the most part we have somehow subsisted off of Caden's monthly shipment.  The math doesn't work out.  I try hard not to think about it.  But toward the end of each month when I get a new can out of the cupboard and see the dwindling supply its hard not to look at the calendar and make the quick calculation that we are going to run out 2-3 days before the shipment arrives.  So I start looking for milk online.  While I'm still checking the online classifieds daily, the UPS guy shows up and I realize I'm pulling my last can out of the cupboard.  Somehow, the milk never runs out, even though it should.

And I think of Elijah and the Widow of Zarapeth.  She does as the Lord directs, even when she doesn't see how it will work out.  Then the Lord provides.

1 Kings 17:16 And the barrel of meal wasted not, neither did the cruse of oil fail, according to the word of the Lord.

Carol Henrie Dodds

Carol Henrie Dodds is my grandma on my dad's side.  Her birthday is this week.  She would have been 80. My aunt had planned a nice party for her, to be held on Saturday, September 22.  Turns out we held her funeral on the 22nd instead.  Grandma had been failing for a few years now, so it wasn't a huge shock, but I don't think it made it much easier to see her go.

The funeral services were lovely.  Grandma will be remembered for her painting, love of music, and dedication to the gospel.  I recall as a young child attending church with Grandma on a fast Sunday.  There was a lull in the testimonies and Grandma got up.  She noted in her testimony that in her mind if there was ever a pause long enough to count to 10 that was too long and it was time for someone to get up and fill the silence.  Every time I sit in a testimony meeting I think of Grandma.  Every time I sit through a long pause I really think of Grandma.  

Grandma will be missed, but I am thankful for the knowledge we have that families are eternal, that I will see her again.  I'm thankful for the strength of my Dodds relatives and the fond memories they shared of Grandma.  I'm thankful for the Loveridge relatives who drove 3.5 hours each way to support us, bringing back the memories of when we lost Grandma Loveridge 10 years ago.  I'm thankful for my husband and children who are my eternal family.  

Here is an excerpt from the obituary:

"Carol Henrie Dodds, 79, the loving wife of D. Maloy Dodds, left this earthly life to return home to her Heavenly Father and her earthly parents on September 17, 2012. Carol passed away in Panguitch, surrounded by the people who loved her most. She was born September 27, 1932 in Panguitch to Nathaniel Orald and Ruth Heywood Henrie. She married Maloy August 25, 1951 in the St. George Temple.

Carol was a lifelong resident of Panguitch, a devout member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, a woman of true child-like faith. She was a person who never had a harsh word to say about anyone. Her life exemplified Christ-like love and service. During her life time she served in many callings in the church and community. 

Her greatest joy in life was her family, her devoted husband, her seven children, 25 grandchildren, and 27 great-grandchildren. Her home was always full of children, laughter, and love. She will be missed by all who knew her. "

A Wacky Wednesday

So glad today is over.

*On his way to work, Ryan very nearly got in not one, but two, accidents.  The first one happened all around him and totaled the cars involved.  The second was a fender bender right next to him while he was waiting for the officer to arrive to deal with the first accident.

*Eric found some trash he shouldn't have touched and had a pretty intense anaphylactic reaction.  He got way too much Benadryl and his first Epi-pen, but still looked like the Disney version of Quasimodo for 6 hours (his poor eye was the last place the full face swelling went down).  

*While in the middle of dealing with Eric's reaction, Caden's preschool teacher called to inform me he was having a mild/moderate reaction at school and I needed to pick him up.  A single dose of Benadryl fixed him, but it was still unnerving to all involved to have him so red and itchy he'd scratched himself to the point of bleeding.

*Kyle is teething.  Enough said.

Utah State Fair

We can't miss the annual extended family gathering at the Utah State Fair!  I love how there are new things every year, but also that they keep bringing back the staples.  My older boys are so familiar with how the Little Hands on the Farm display works that they run on ahead and don't wait for me to help take pictures of them.  For his part, Kyle was trying to keep up and was running through the display as well.  Its hard to see in the picture, but he was thrilled with having his own bucket to gather farm items in.

Of course we saw the animals, and the fine arts display, and briefly visited with the cousins as they prepared to show their animals in the 4H competition.  New this year we caught the tail end of a pirate show and explored a science tent.  I felt bad we missed the Ready Utah earthquake trailer, but Grandpa made up for it by springing for tickets for the big yellow slide.  I can't wait for next year!  We spent 5 hours there this year and it wasn't enough time.

Daddy Outing

Caden earned an outing with daddy, and he chose to go rock climbing at Trafalga.  He's getting better every time!  It sure is nice to have a daddy who will take the time to play with his boys.  Bonus points for taking a great picture.

Rocky Mountain Raceway, Take 2

You may recall our failed family date night to watch the motorcycle races back in June.  It took all summer, but I finally mustered the courage to try again.  We went, better prepared this time, and it was a success!  We stayed about two hours.  Kyle lasted sitting on the bench next to Ryan for about 30 minutes.  He appeared fascinated.  Eric lasted about an hour, then entertained himself (and those nearby) by dancing to the music playing over the loudspeaker.  Caden could have stayed longer and cried on his way out.  In addition to watching the races, Ryan took the boys walking through the pit area and talked with a father and his 7 year old biker son.  Caden's new dream is to save up enough money to buy himself a little motorcycle.

All Better

Eric woke up in the middle of the night about a week ago completely traumatized.  Turns out he finally realized that while Caden sleeps on a complete bed, Eric had been sleeping for about a month on a mattress on the floor.  "I want a bed thats up here, like Caden's This bed is too far down, and thats NOT RIGHT!"  He wanted daddy to build him one right then and there so he could sleep on it that night.  We eventually got him calmed down with the promise of a real bed soon, and today we finally made good on that promise.  I found a nice bed on ksl, and as a bonus the guy selling it only lived about a mile away.  He is so thrilled to have a bed that is "tall up, like Caden's.  Its all better now."

Eric's First Day of Preschool

Eric was so excited to get to go to school like Caden!  He is in a the Superheros Adventure preschool run by a lady who lives up the street from me.  She is amazing and has so many great things planned for the year.  He'll go to school from 9:15-11:45 on Tuesdays and Thursdays.  There are 8 little kids in his class, including the teacher's two sons.  He was a little apprehensive at first, and asked to take his bear with him.  Sadly, I had to take Caden to a doctor's appointment in Salt Lake, so my mom came down and took Eric to his first day of preschool (I took the picture before I left).  She said he went in just fine and came out happy as a clam when she picked him up.  He is a little sad he doesn't get to ride a bus to school, especially since the little girl next door gets to ride a bus.

A funny story from the first day of school:  Eric came home with Elmer's glue all over the side of his head, in the hair above his ear.  Eric said, "I tripped and fell into my glue paper craft."  I'd love to know A - how much glue was on that paper, B - How exactly a kid trips and falls onto the *side* of side face, and C - how the teacher kept from laughing when she saw him with craft glued to his head.

Brigham City, Utah Temple Open House

(Rendering from the lds.org website)

Since Ryan, my dad, and my sister all had the day off work, for Memorial Day we went to Brigham City to tour the new LDS temple there.  We had reserved tickets online the first day they became available and were excited to get such a desirable date and time.  Turns out a few thousand other people also thought it was a desirable date and time, and when they couldn't get tickets they just decided to show up.  We were there on the busiest day of the open house, during the busiest time.  It took us 4 hours to get through the line and tour, and we even skipped the wait from the parking lot to the temple by having my dad drop us off.

I'll admit, by the time we finally got to the temple I wasn't really feeling the spirit.  Amazingly, my boys were.  Our typically crazy Kyle was calm and quiet, taking it all in from his perch on daddy's shoulders.  The only time he made noise was when we were going through the Celestial Room, where he yelped loudly the entire time, then he went silent again as soon as he left.  Eric enjoyed taking in all the pictures.  There was one picture of Christ in particular that he didn't want to move on from.  Caden reverently walked through and asked lots of great questions.

I'm grateful my boys had the opportunity to walk through a house of the Lord.  I look forward to taking them again in a few years when the Payson and Provo temples have their open houses.  I pray that these little experiences will put the desire in their hearts to live worthy so they may return to the temple when they are old enough.