Catch Up!

So Much has happened that I'm not quite sure where to start. But I'm wanting to get back on schedule here. I spent most of the week after Mothers Day preparing for our annual family campout. We got a new Quad (aka Dan's new baby) A tent, with a wood burning stove in it, because I'm a wimp and can't handle the cold, =o) an outdoor kitchen, a dining tarp and a few extra cots for those crazy wonderful kidos of ours. Dan took off 2 extra days and we were going to be gone from May 22nd to the 26th.

We bought it on Monday the 12th, we called the kids before we got home and told them to meet us outside. They all wanted a ride, except tanner who wanted to drive it. (go figure) Its street legal so Dan aired up the tires a bit and I had fun taking them for rides around our block and yes, Tanner got to drive it, with his incredibly over protective mother sitting behind him. Poor kid.

Later when the trailer was unloaded and all was settled in the house, I noticed that Emma had what looked like a burn on her forehead. I asked her what happened, and she said she rubbed it with a lizard. Does this sound weird to anyone else? I've asked her several times because I just couldn't wrap my head around it. The culprit?.......

So I'm thinking fabric burn, kinda like a rug burn, only self inflicted. (insert mental image of me rolling my eyes here) That crazy girl. Whats funny is, when she was in the hospital as an infant, on the respirator from RSV, this little guy propped her vent tube. Ironic huh. So the aftermath......

So funny!

So I spent the next few days getting the house ready to be empty for awhile. Deep soaking the lawn and over watering the flowers. Briar decided to help me. The picture that's missing is, I knelt down right after this shot to get a better close up of her, and she turned and soaked me. I never saw it coming with the camera up to my face.


We pulled out Thursday the 22nd around 10am, we drove in rain all the way. When we got there, it was snowing....in May...in Arizona. Dan got the tent set up quickly and we settled into our little home away from home. Around 10 that evening a few more members of my family started arriving. FUN FUN!











Then Saturday...there was an accident. My sweetheart, myself and 2 of my nieces (Kayla & Manda) decided to go do some riding. When we entered the clearing, I got off the back of the quad so Dan could go it alone. I wanted him to have fun without worrying about me on the back. I saw him go over the first rise and down, he flew off and went head first into the ground. It was horrifying, I felt so helpless.

I screamed to my nieces who had just successfully gone over that hill, telling them to get back down to him, they were closer than I was, while running to him I heard my niece scream and Dan started yelling help me. I wasn't sure what I was going to see when I got down to him. Paralyzed, head injury, broken bones... I just wasn't sure.

When I got to him, there was a lot of blood and he was holding his head, trying to sit up, since he landed head down on a down hill slope. His head was pretty much broken open from front to back. I was standing there holding his head together while my nieces went back to camp to get my brothers. I can't explain the relief I felt when they got back to us. Danny got there first and administered to Dan. Tom, Pat, Chad, Cory and Donny pulled up a minute or two later. My brothers got him all put together and into the souped up golf cart thingy, Chad took over holding his head together and I got on our quad and rode back to camp.

My family was all gathered around the fire and had just had a prayer for him. I got the van ready and pulled out to the road so he could ride in it. Danny drove and Tom took over holding his head together. They got him to Strawberry where an ambulance was waiting for him. They took one look at his head and said he would have to be life flighted into a trauma center in Phoenix.

My van pulled back into camp a little over an hour later and my brothers got busy dividing up my kids and getting me loaded with Briar so I could join Dan in the valley. Everyone was so fantastic. I was horrified at the events that had taken place, it was all so surreal. My 2 nephews, Cory and Donny drove me home. I was given a phone number of the paramedic that took Dan to the airport. He was supposed to tell me which trauma center he went to. When I finally got a signal just before pine, I called the number and it kept going straight to voicemail.

I called our friends, Jed and Rhonda and asked if Jed (Dan's best friend) could go to the hospital to meet him, when I could find out where he was taken, and to see if Rhonda would be available to be with me in case he didn't make it, then Called Stephanie to see if she would meet me at my house. I called Becky, my wonderful sister-in-law, told her what had happened and she started making phone calls to find him. When she did, she called me and told me she was heading down there, that he had just landed and they wouldn't give her any information. My niece Jessie and her hubby got our truck from my sister and came to the house to watch Briar for me. When I got home, Stephanie, Jess, Mac, Rhonda and Desi (J&R's daughter) were at the house. I jumped in the shower while they put Briar to bed and then we loaded up and headed out to Good Sam. Steph and I in our truck and Rhonda and Desi following right behind.

When we finally got there, Beck, Jed and our Bishop were there waiting, We got in to see him about 40 minutes later. I've never been so relieved in all my life. He smiled at me and was cracking jokes. Such relief washed over me. The first thing I asked him was, Are we selling the quad or buying helmets. His answer was...buying helmets.

Needless to say, he was admitted. His C3 and C4 were fractured and he had several chip fractures. The neurosurgeon put him in a neck brace and a strict set of rules to follow for the next 3 months. No bending, twisting, no driving, no lifting anything above 10 lbs, and lastly to stay mainly stationary. All of the doctors we talked to said that it was nothing short of a miracle that he didn't have a huge skull fracture, or major brain injury. We were so lucky.


Thanks for sticking around baby.

His face was so swollen! So its an ongoing process. My Mother-in-law came to stay with us and is currently here. It has been a lot of fun spending time with her. Thanks Mom for everything!

Onto happier things. Our pool has been finished. The decking put in, then the acrylic lace








They were hilarious, and couldn't wait so they put on suits and played in it all day while it was filling up. It all full now, and the saltwater system will be put in, in about 25 days. The pebble tech has to cure in chlorine water for about a month. YAY let the party begin.

This has been the beginning of our summer here in the Crazy Wonderful, lets hope the rest of the summer is uneventful.

In the process of writing this blog, Dan went to the doctor and returned. They say he has a hematoma. I should put a picture in, maybe tomorrow...looks like elephant man. He will have to have surgery here in the next few days. Bless his heart.

And last but not least my Picture Of The Day


How do you know that your kids have been in your makeup case? There's a package of blueberry pop tarts in it. Crazy? YUP but wonderful. =o)