Bryan's Not-So-Excellent Adventure

Bryan broke his arm yesterday--helping John put down a plywood floor in the attic area over the garage. Bryan went up the attic stairs (one of those sets that pull down from the ceiling) and stepped out on an unsecured 2x8. The other end of the board went up, and Bryan went down.


Bryan said he landed straight--feet first, and he credits his gymnastics training for keeping him from getting more hurt. He landed on his feet, immediately bent his knees and rolled backwards. At that point, his arm got bent in a wierd way and when he got up, he told his Daddy, "My arm is broken."


John hauled his power tools and Pal, our yellow lab, back to the truck. They flew to our friends' house, where the power tools and Pal are living until we get into our new house, and rushed Bryan to the emergency room. All of this before noon.



His arm was broken just above the wrist. One bone was fractured, the other was a clean break all the way through (ouch!).

JT, Luci and I were at a Wiggles concert 75 miles away when we heard about Bryan's accident. We got to the hospital just as Bryan was waking up from his anesthesia--they knocked him out in order to re-set the bones. Here are Bryan, Luci, Daddy and JT trying to comfort Bryan.

Bryan was feeling pretty good at this point--the pain medication worked really well. He had to stay overnight for observation since he was put under with anesthesia. Because it was so late in the day when it was administered, they wanted to make sure he had no adverse reactions.

Bryan is home now, feeling fine...He's left-handed, and tells me that he can't do his school work since he broke his left arm...but somehow, he can play video games?? He also says that he needs chocolate covered donuts and a new dvd that just came out. He got the donuts and just might get the dvd.

Luci's Language

It has been so fun watching and listening to Luci as she learns to speak. We started out with some basic sign language, which helped to ease her frustration in communicating with us...she shrieked less frequently. That meant I wasn't getting scared out of my wits and jamming on the brakes nearly so often as we drove through town--hearing that shriek is scary!

Luci uses her sign language to tell us what she needs. Yesterday, she used it to call the boys to dinner. We told Luci to go "tell the boys it's time to eat." She ran down the hall and knocked on their door. When they opened the door, Luci put her fingers to her mouth in the "eat, eat" sign. They knew what she meant, and came to supper.

We quit counting her words when Luci got to 50 that she used correctly and consistently. She is far beyond 50 now. Today, she used two new words that were clear as day--"cook" and "blanket."

Yesterday she saw a picture book with Bert and Ernie on the front cover. You remember them from Sesame Street. She recognized Bert--Luci pointed at him and said, "Papa!" (Frankly, I think Dad's skin tone is not that yellow. Just kidding, Dad!)

Luci knows who owns what in this house. She will tell you whose swimsuit she is holding, whose sock that is on the living room floor (she's a great tattle-tale, boys!), whose computer this is, and who uses the pots and pans. But her favorite word, beyond comparison, is "MINE."

Tank-You!

The other day, John drew out a simple house plan and showed me where he wanted to put extra insulation.... around Bryan's room (so we wouldn't have to listen to his video games).... around JT's room (so he wouldn't hear the toilet flush or hear the TV from the living room).... around Luci's room (and here John said, and I am pretty sure he was joking!, "So we won't hear her crying).

I looked at Luci and told her, "I love you, Luci." She looked back and sweetly said, "Tank you!"

John and Bryan spent Saturday morning putting up the insulation. Bryan worked just as hard as John did. Bryan let J.T. know that, on the next house, J.T. gets to put up the insulation with Daddy.

**The kids' bathtub and our shower are (is?? it sounds wrong either way) installed. We picked out a big whirlpool tub for our bathroom, and now we are trying to figure out a surround for it. I'm not sure about tile everywhere--I want a country look. **There are stairs to the basement now, so that makes the trip downstairs much more pleasant. **I'm having fun choosing colors for the walls. John would be happy to make all of them the same color, but I am trying to dissuade him from that idea.

Mama Luci

This was such an adorable thing to witness. Luci makes a very good mama to her baby Mulan doll. She loves wrapping it up in a blanket and giving the doll a bottle. A doll with a doll.

This is the same rocking chair that Mom and Dad got for me when I was little...it is very old, but I won't say just how old. The boys used this rocker, too, but there is something special about a little girl rocking her baby doll.

J.T.'s Birthday Party

J.T.'s birthday party was Saturday. It was the easiest party I've ever given for the boys' birthdays--just cake and ice cream, goody bags made from things we had on hand already, and let the kids play in the apartment complex pool. Well, maybe Bryan's was easier than that--have his friends spend the night.

On the side of the pool, from left: Bryan, Nathan Riley, J.T., Rachel #1, Casey Brooke, Hannah, Rachel #2. In the water, from left: Bradley, Britt and Tyler.

J.T.'s birthday cake--a helmet-shaped cake, decorated with icing tinted with cocoa powder and chlorophyll. J.T. wanted to be a sergeant, hence the ranking on the helmet. I had the night-vision goggle party hats and dog tags in my party box--all ready for the big day. I got the idea and directions for making the cake on the internet, but I don't have access to the web address right now. It was easy to do, and according to one friend, it turned out "so awesome." And no, John, I did not bake this in your Kevlar helmet!! But it looks like I did, and it tastes better than that. :)

Catching Up

We really did move. We have some friends who helped us and may not want to be friends any longer. Which is ok, since we found out at the reunion in TN that they are related to us--so they are stuck with us!
Bryan and JT dressed up at Shiloh. We were there with Mom and Dad and Katie and Laura. They got to hear a lecture about war-time surgery...and some ended up feeling queasy. Luci and I missed the talk so Luci could nap in the van. Birthplace of Which Famous American? (hint to family: this is in Waynesboro)
Audrey Vivian holding Luci Vivian.Charlie and Audrey the younger holding Maggie. Laura, Katie and J.T. Sorry it is so dark.
The "kid's table" in our apartment on my birthday. From bottom left, Bryan, Katie, Suzi, J.T. and Laura. There were 15 poeple in our apartment that night! Loud and fun. the lady downstairs was gone that evening (I hope she was, anyway! I didn't see her.).

Luci's first swim, ever. No, she does not have 4 legs! Those are John's arms, holding on to her.