Zeke is the best. He had great enthusiasm and excitement for this big milestone birthday, of course! Eight! We had been planning our spring break which fell right on Zeke's big day. I talked up how for his big day we'd be staying in a hotel, all together with the family, swimming and sight-seeing etc. (Basically, no need for a birthday party with friends... this will be MUCH better!) He was giddy for it all.
...Until he came in my room one night, with big, wide glossy eyes, telling me how he has just always really wanted a friend birthday party with a pinata and games just like the ones he's attended his whole life for his big brothers and sister. He's never had a friend party- mainly because it always falls over spring break, and he really only has like two friends he plays with at home. I looked over at Jon and he just smiled because he knew I can't say no to this boy...
Basically, all of his dreams came true. We made a friend list, sent out his "8" invitations and I checked off all of his requests on his list in like two days.
Like I said, he told me he's always wanted a pinata at his very own party. I went to Walmart first thing in the morning and found one- hanging high up in the isle, with no employees to be seen, of course. I found the pole to pull them down hanging on a nearby beam, but even though I'm very tall, I was still several feet short of coming near a pinata. Right then a friend in the neighborhood came down the isle. We chatted for a little and I explained what I was trying to do. Next thing I know, I'm climbing into her shopping cart between her milk and bread while she holds the cart steady and I wrangle down a pinata. That boy.....
The funny thing is, when we were out in the garage ready to start the pinata, a little boy rode up on his bike. "Hi, Zeke! Are you having a party???" I think I vaguely recognized him. I felt bad and invited him to stay if he'd like. He quickly got in the front of the line and swung hard- and busted that thing open quick as can be. Pinata done.
With our trip in just a day or two, and coming right back to his baptism day, it was a tight fit but of course worth it. Zeke is a little sweetie. I tell him that all the time. Whenever he tells me something he likes or is neat I say, "Guess what I like? Guess what I think is neat?" He then says, ME! And he's always right. He's very smart- I'm a little amazed at times. He catches on to things and remembers things so well. He has the best attitude and can also have a serious pouting face. He's got the strongest, lean little body and is so fast. He sure makes our family extra special and we love that boy to pieces!
We headed out during Sunday morning session of General Conference, Wyoming bound for night number one. As we were zipping along on the freeway, Adren mentioned his tooth hurt. Uh oh. I asked why he didn't tell me earlier and he said because it just started. I think I found some ibuprofen for him and hoped it would go away. We're on Spring Break Vacation! (in a movie this where the foreshadowing of things to come is written in.)
We stopped near Alcova near Martin's Cove and LDS Visitors Center briefly to see where we will be coming back for Trek. Devils Gate is so neat to see, with the Sweet-water River weaving though. It's such pretty land. It was strange but exciting to think the next time I'd be back there would be in full Pioneer clothes on Trek! I was glad to get an idea of the drive.
Jon found a great hotel in Wyoming, a pool is really all we need. He said the hotel I'd found was too ghetto. He was right. We went out to dinner and of course the kids were just giddy to get back to that pool.
It's so great to have it all to ourselves.That night after everyone was settled in bed and finally asleep, the birthday fairy visited and Zeke woke to birthday decorations and presents!
Zeke got a brand new suit for his baptism day, fresh scout duds and other treasures which he put on immediately. (notice the much anticipated Heely's!) We had a real nice leisurely breakfast at the hotel and the kids swam some more before we headed on to Rapid City, South Dakota.
During the drive Adren was in some serious pain. He kept asking when he could take more medicine. I felt so bad and there wasn't a whole lot I could do for him! I always worry so much giving my kids pain meds. It gets so complicated with the alternating and the times. I've made plenty of calls to poison control lamenting on the doses I gave. I could see he was really miserable so I started looking up dentists in Rapid City. We were driving through the mountains so I kept losing service and would have to call an office back just to hear we couldn't get in. At one point I was on hold, watching Adren writhe in pain behind me. Then Paisley yelled all panicky she was going to throw up right as a rock hit our window and caused a huge crack.
We pulled over for Paisley just in time. (you don't want to know this, but while Paisley was throwing up at the side of the road I noticed an alarming amount of water bottles filled with pee that had been tossed aside. We truly were on the brink of Hell.) The whole situation was just awful. But it was Zeke's birthday! And I did manage to get Adren in to a dentist the next morning, 7am!
We finally made it to our awesome hotel in Rapid City. Too late. Poor Paisley had made a mess of herself and the back seat. I told Jon, for Paisley being such a sweet little thing, that smell was pure evil. We checked in, Jon took off straight to get cleaner and scrub the back seat, I got Paisley in the shower in the room, and took a load to the hotel laundry room. That load got a double wash. Once everyone got cleaned up and rested for a bit, we let Zeke choose his birthday dinner. Pizza! We found a great pizza buffet nearby. We were all settled at our table, poor Paisley didn't have much of an appetite but at least was feeling better with some color back in her cheeks, and Adren was starving but in so much pain! I had kept making him swish with hydrogen peroxide and salt water and apply orajel and he was just miserable as can be. I couldn't stand it for one more minute and left everyone to eat while I figured out some relief for the poor boy. I went to the nearby Target pharmacy and the pharmacist told me some ways to alternate and manage pain safely. He just had to make it through the night! We went back to the room and the kids swam and had a great time in the fun hotel pool.
We found a little birthday treat to light candles and sing to our new eight year old!
The next morning Jon got up early to take Adren to the dentist. The rest of us had breakfast at the hotel and got ready so we could all head out to Mount Rushmore! A place I've always wanted to see!
I was walking down the hall when Jon and Adren got back. The dentist couldn't see anything wrong with his tooth, it already had a filling which looked good, and thought it was probably gum inflammation with the spacers so he removed them. He was sure he'd now feel relief and sent him on his way. As soon as I saw Adren, I just knew that hadn't solved the problem. That dentist was a doofus.
Mount Rushmore was amazing!
How neat to wind up the mountain and see George Washington's profile in the rock! It was so beautiful and neat to stand in front of the sculpture and take it all in. I loved the visitors center and learning all about the process. Such an amazing place and such a quaint little town.
I always like to get individual shots of the kids in front of a neat place so if they ever have to bring a picture of themselves to something it is a little more interesting.
From there we drove to Crazy Horse. It's huge!
What an interesting undertaking. The visitors center is very well done and shows all the ambitions they hope will come to fruition, in hopes of continued donations. I really liked reading the history of the Indian tribes and all the amazing artwork. The memorial looked so pretty with a dusting of snow. Poor Adren didn't even want to get out of the car and slept a good two hours while we visited. I'm really glad we got to see Crazy Horse and learn about it. We couldn't believe they were charging $75 to ride a bus up to get a closer look. The tours were closed while we were there because of blasting, but do people really pay that??? At least finish it if your going to charge that. I mean, I can see it from right here and it's FREE. (That may be part of the reason it's still not finished.)
From there we drove to Custer State Park. It was such a pretty drive and we loved all the wildlife out grazing!
I loved learning about all the history in the surrounding area and who Custer was. It was interesting hearing about him from the Indians point of view at Crazy Horse, then drive to a memorial based on the other sides point of view. White man. Not cool.
We headed back to Rapid City for the night. We decided to scratch more sight-seeing plans and getting another hotel in Wyoming and just head home the next day. How could we continue on with Adren writhing in pain? He needed a real dentist ASAP.
The next morning we made our way back home through the route of Devil's Tower, pick-nicked next to it and walked around the base. That place is so neat! Beautiful views and so neat to hear about it's formation and think of the Native American history there. It is still considered Holy Land, and we could see fabric tied in trees where prayers and rituals take place today.
We had a long drive ahead of us. We had no intentions of doing that all in one day. About 10:15pm we were nearing Rock Springs when an SUV zoomed right past us in the passing lane, going the wrong way. Jon and I couldn't believe it! We were surrounded by semi's, Jon had been passing back and forth between lanes and in the dark it was hard to tell how close it was until it was upon us. That rattled me like crazy! I worried what kind of tragedy could happen in the next few moments. We saw police cars with lights zooming by to catch up, and just hoped nothing tragic was happening. I am still haunted about that! We always say a family prayer in the car before heading out on trips, and I felt so strongly right then we were being watched over.
Back at home, we were able to get Adren in bright and early (again) next morning for a root canal! He was relieved to finally be out of pain.
So, you see~ there were good times, and not so good times, but that is how life is. I'm grateful for a fun family, for Adren being a good sport, for Paisley having a good attitude despite feeling a little crummy, Eli for having no ailments and being great, and for Jon for making the best of it all and working together. ~And I am especially grateful we have a little Zeke to celebrate!
...Until he came in my room one night, with big, wide glossy eyes, telling me how he has just always really wanted a friend birthday party with a pinata and games just like the ones he's attended his whole life for his big brothers and sister. He's never had a friend party- mainly because it always falls over spring break, and he really only has like two friends he plays with at home. I looked over at Jon and he just smiled because he knew I can't say no to this boy...
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| We always end with a bang. Silly string war. |
We headed out during Sunday morning session of General Conference, Wyoming bound for night number one. As we were zipping along on the freeway, Adren mentioned his tooth hurt. Uh oh. I asked why he didn't tell me earlier and he said because it just started. I think I found some ibuprofen for him and hoped it would go away. We're on Spring Break Vacation! (in a movie this where the foreshadowing of things to come is written in.)
We stopped near Alcova near Martin's Cove and LDS Visitors Center briefly to see where we will be coming back for Trek. Devils Gate is so neat to see, with the Sweet-water River weaving though. It's such pretty land. It was strange but exciting to think the next time I'd be back there would be in full Pioneer clothes on Trek! I was glad to get an idea of the drive.
Jon found a great hotel in Wyoming, a pool is really all we need. He said the hotel I'd found was too ghetto. He was right. We went out to dinner and of course the kids were just giddy to get back to that pool.
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| His "cake" since a real one wasn't realistic. We were jumping in the car shortly. |
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| I mean, this is what it's all about, folks! |
During the drive Adren was in some serious pain. He kept asking when he could take more medicine. I felt so bad and there wasn't a whole lot I could do for him! I always worry so much giving my kids pain meds. It gets so complicated with the alternating and the times. I've made plenty of calls to poison control lamenting on the doses I gave. I could see he was really miserable so I started looking up dentists in Rapid City. We were driving through the mountains so I kept losing service and would have to call an office back just to hear we couldn't get in. At one point I was on hold, watching Adren writhe in pain behind me. Then Paisley yelled all panicky she was going to throw up right as a rock hit our window and caused a huge crack.
We pulled over for Paisley just in time. (you don't want to know this, but while Paisley was throwing up at the side of the road I noticed an alarming amount of water bottles filled with pee that had been tossed aside. We truly were on the brink of Hell.) The whole situation was just awful. But it was Zeke's birthday! And I did manage to get Adren in to a dentist the next morning, 7am!
We finally made it to our awesome hotel in Rapid City. Too late. Poor Paisley had made a mess of herself and the back seat. I told Jon, for Paisley being such a sweet little thing, that smell was pure evil. We checked in, Jon took off straight to get cleaner and scrub the back seat, I got Paisley in the shower in the room, and took a load to the hotel laundry room. That load got a double wash. Once everyone got cleaned up and rested for a bit, we let Zeke choose his birthday dinner. Pizza! We found a great pizza buffet nearby. We were all settled at our table, poor Paisley didn't have much of an appetite but at least was feeling better with some color back in her cheeks, and Adren was starving but in so much pain! I had kept making him swish with hydrogen peroxide and salt water and apply orajel and he was just miserable as can be. I couldn't stand it for one more minute and left everyone to eat while I figured out some relief for the poor boy. I went to the nearby Target pharmacy and the pharmacist told me some ways to alternate and manage pain safely. He just had to make it through the night! We went back to the room and the kids swam and had a great time in the fun hotel pool.
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| Adren making the best of it. |
Of course, Zeke insisted on lighting them himself.
I was walking down the hall when Jon and Adren got back. The dentist couldn't see anything wrong with his tooth, it already had a filling which looked good, and thought it was probably gum inflammation with the spacers so he removed them. He was sure he'd now feel relief and sent him on his way. As soon as I saw Adren, I just knew that hadn't solved the problem. That dentist was a doofus.
Mount Rushmore was amazing!
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| Mountain goats hanging out. |
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| I told Adren~ from now on when you see a picture of Mt. Rushmore, your tooth will hurt a little. |
Trying to get a family selfie.
And a couple more glorious shots:
From there we drove to Crazy Horse. It's huge!
What an interesting undertaking. The visitors center is very well done and shows all the ambitions they hope will come to fruition, in hopes of continued donations. I really liked reading the history of the Indian tribes and all the amazing artwork. The memorial looked so pretty with a dusting of snow. Poor Adren didn't even want to get out of the car and slept a good two hours while we visited. I'm really glad we got to see Crazy Horse and learn about it. We couldn't believe they were charging $75 to ride a bus up to get a closer look. The tours were closed while we were there because of blasting, but do people really pay that??? At least finish it if your going to charge that. I mean, I can see it from right here and it's FREE. (That may be part of the reason it's still not finished.)
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| It really will be spectacular... one day... |
From there we drove to Custer State Park. It was such a pretty drive and we loved all the wildlife out grazing!
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| This guy was really working that guard rail hard, scratching his face and neck. |
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| The hills were full of these little prairie dogs, they were so cute~ and brave! |
I loved learning about all the history in the surrounding area and who Custer was. It was interesting hearing about him from the Indians point of view at Crazy Horse, then drive to a memorial based on the other sides point of view. White man. Not cool.
Such pretty country!
The next morning we made our way back home through the route of Devil's Tower, pick-nicked next to it and walked around the base. That place is so neat! Beautiful views and so neat to hear about it's formation and think of the Native American history there. It is still considered Holy Land, and we could see fabric tied in trees where prayers and rituals take place today.
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| This was a neat sculpture near our pic-nick. You look through the wave of smoke to see the tower. |
We had a long drive ahead of us. We had no intentions of doing that all in one day. About 10:15pm we were nearing Rock Springs when an SUV zoomed right past us in the passing lane, going the wrong way. Jon and I couldn't believe it! We were surrounded by semi's, Jon had been passing back and forth between lanes and in the dark it was hard to tell how close it was until it was upon us. That rattled me like crazy! I worried what kind of tragedy could happen in the next few moments. We saw police cars with lights zooming by to catch up, and just hoped nothing tragic was happening. I am still haunted about that! We always say a family prayer in the car before heading out on trips, and I felt so strongly right then we were being watched over.
Back at home, we were able to get Adren in bright and early (again) next morning for a root canal! He was relieved to finally be out of pain.
So, you see~ there were good times, and not so good times, but that is how life is. I'm grateful for a fun family, for Adren being a good sport, for Paisley having a good attitude despite feeling a little crummy, Eli for having no ailments and being great, and for Jon for making the best of it all and working together. ~And I am especially grateful we have a little Zeke to celebrate!
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| Off to his first day at the Wolf den. |