Subterrainian cavern

The goal is to have the basement ready for little feet to inhabit by the time we bless the new addition on February 7th.

I installed the finish work on all 23 of the can lights last night and sealed the grout in the bathroom.

Tonight holds the magical promise of taping along all of the rounded corners around the duct work along the ceiling, making a "straight" line and painting the edges as well as the warmth to the soul of installing 23 wall plugs and 9 wall switches.

Read more

Update cubed

I have completed the fourth of five classes of the weekend marathon known as my CNA course. This by no means indicates that I am close to completion however.

Along with the last day of classroom instruction on Saturday (8:00am to 6:00pm) I will then be participating in two days of clinical work at a Salt Lake nursing home where I am instructed to "make sure that you shower some of the residents." This will be on the next Monday and Tuesday. That Wednesday and the next Saturday will be in-class clinical days known as skills days.

After these are complete and I have passed off all of the skills, I sign up to return for a two hour CPR class. I then begin independent study to prepare for the two state exams to receive my state CNA certificate. One is a written exam and the other is a skills exam, where I need to pass of collecting vital signs, demonstrate the memorized beginning and ending procedures and then complete 5 skills scenarios picked at random from the 28 potentials.

Yesterday's class covered the following topics:
Poop! in all of its forms and fashions. What it is, its color, the collection of it, the cleaning of it, the disposal of it........
germs, virus, syndromes, illnesses, diseases, pressure sores, range of motion and repositioning, graphic pictures of distended uterus's, pressure sores, bone breaks, genital warts and elephantitis of the scrotum (a condition connected to the lymph system oddly enough). We watched a video of a man whose scrotum was the size of a black Hefty Bag if it were full of water. His legs were almost not long enough to stand. It would drag on the ground and when he would sit down it was like he was sitting on a large bean bag chair. At one point he tried to climb into the back of a truck and someone, I would assume a GOOD friend, went behind him and, with good lifting technique - you know bending the knees, keeping the back straight, used the two hand method of shoving with all that he had to get all of the man onto that truck. The video ended before we could see if he was successful. One could only hope.

A previous class included watching a nude women's body go through the nine months of pregnancy, two births - one vaginal and one c-section with such vivid close detail that it would be like having my cheek on the woman's thigh. A detailed review of catheters, their maintenance, and specifically (on both a man and a woman) the application, insertion and removal. The bathing of people in bed with specific focus on what they delicately call "Peri care" or the daily bathing of the "bottom and groin" area.

We also learned about the importance of cleaning and drying of ALL of the folds and wrinkles of the residents body. We were told of a woman who began complaining that one of her extremely large gravity influenced breasts was hurting. After further inspection, the breast was lifted up to discover two-thirds of a long lost peanut butter sandwich which had been there for a good amount of time, was starting to grow things of its own and had to be peeled away. No pictures or videos of this specific incident. Of course I was surprised and disappointed, for this was extremely out of character for the class instructors because every subject seems to have plenty of videos and pictures for full and complete comprehension.

This was two of the four days on instruction. The other two days of instruction will most certainly cost thousands in therapy simply to recall. I think that they call this "post traumatic stress syndrome" or possibly "eeeiiiioooooooo icky icky" I will consult the text book.

Read more

mental vomiting

It is nice to have Christmas on a Friday. This allows for the day after Christmas to be one of choice and possible leisure.

I have stayed in bed longer than usual. I have spent the last hour or so wrestling, physically, mentally and emotionally with Ash over the concepts of "this is my bed, not yours. When did you climb in here anyway? Stop touching or curling your fingers in my shirt. You are pushing me off my own bed, I have been holding on to the edge for the last half hour with a constant state of tension in my back just to maintain my balance. Why don't you get back in your own bed or go sit on the new desk chair that Santa brought you. Go draw me a detailed picture with a hundred snow men or just lay still. Go play Wii with Cam, I hear him banging around by the TV. Let me read the rest of my book. Have you gone to the bathroom yet this morning. Don't you think it would be a good idea to try. Why are you ignoring me?"

Wife is back in bed for a moment having spent a good amount of the wee hours treating her body like a grocery store for the benefit of an 8 lbs grunting, squeaking, squawking bundle of pink fluff. It is really lucky for her sake that the fluff is kinda cute.

Christmas lesson confirmed again. Less is more and less is ok. The kids are content, happy with the presents received. No coments about less presents. No counting the number of gifts. No complaints.

I enjoyed giving gifts to Mom, Dad, Marleen, Joe (although I had no part in concept or compiling of that gift, I just handed it to them) Ben and Jayar. I hope that they liked them. Some thought actually went into the gifts with hopes that they might enjoy them.

I plan on having the neighbor rip a few pieces of door trim for me this morning. I will install them and begin caulking all the new trim in the basement. Then the only thing left to do is tile the bathroom floor, install baseboards throughout the basement, paint the basement, install trim around the doors in the bathroom, paint those, have the finish electrical installed, have the finish plumbing installed, carpet.

Read more

Hospital Times

7 lbs 7 oz
19 1/2 inches

Read more

We can shut the window again

It is freezing.

The sheet rock was hung today. We have walls of sorts. They should start the taping and mudding tomorrow.

The baby is scheduled to arrive on Sunday, December 6th.

I am taking two weeks off to sit around and hold the baby.... and paint and baseboards and tiling the basement bathroom and finish electrical.

Read more

Open the window and let me out!

I am still singing the wedding hit "Mermer" in my head! ARGHHHHHH! Make it stop. Make the off key voices stop. I can hear them. I hear tone deaf people. Why am I singing? Cursed Deborah and her catchy lyrics.

Basement update for anyone who cares.
(by the way, I am accepting donations to pay for this money pit by way of cash, money orders, gift certificates, food items, re-saleable personal assets)

The basement is "mostly" framed. The heating guy is adding heat runs along the ceiling that will have to be framed around.
The heating guy is working two nights a week to put in 8 heating runs and a cold air return. We are looking at a 2013 completion date for the heat.
The rough electrical is in.
The rough plumbing is in, including the tub/shower.

We are three weeks away from adding another bouncing baby expense to the strapped household. Merry Christmas!

The job front is looking bleak. But my initial application is almost ready to submit to Utah Career College. I will need to take the $400.00 CNA course either in December or January to certify as a CNA for the state of Utah. Now, how to earn a living and pay the bills my wife and seventeen children for the next two years.

I tried out as a male exotic dancer last week but caught myself in a painful zipper accident and then tripped over my hot pink Lycra short shorts and threw my back out during a overly energetic signature pelvic thrust move. I ended up on my head in the midst of a group of cat calling, blue haired retirees. Its hard to stay focused and dance anyway with them yelling "take it off Sonny" and waving their social security checks at me like I am just a piece of meat! "I am a person and I have feelings", I was telling Ida and Martha later that night when they volunteered to buy me a glass of milk at the bar.

So I am still pondering my employment options if the credit union job goes away.

It is our family's turn to clean the church building this afternoon.
I was released from my calling as Executive Secretary last week. Apparently Ida is the grandmother of one of the high councilors in the stake. Who knew... anyway, it got back to the stake about my collection of butterfly and little orphan Annie tattoos on my upper thigh that could only have come from those gossipers Ida and Martha.

Read more

As the head spins

I am the last one standing.

Wife collapsed this morning, she was put on medicine as of last night by her OBGYN. She is in bed from the flu as well as throwing up from the nausea of the medication.

Both girls are on medication and Advil. They feel well enough, during the day, as to not want to stay down but are more sick at night with deep coughs and low oxygen. I have had the opportunity to sleep on the floor under each of the girl's beds, the last two nights, with one eye on the oxygen saturation monitor. My 38 year old creaky body doesn't feel as good after sleeping on the floor as it did as a kid, my neck is fairly sore.

The oldest boy is still in bed most of the time with the flu symptoms.

The second oldest has been on the living room floor for the past five days, valiantly avoiding the whole mess. He is slowly succumbing. Yesterday and today he has developed the cough, the headache and the stuffy nose. He still stays on the floor though, no extra rooms left to store him.

I win! Wasn't it a competition? The last one standing wins? Don't I get some sort of golden virus statuette. Hey, where is the love and where is the girl in the skimpy black dress to present the award to me? Out sick! I will give my prepared speech anyway.

I want to thank a fairly strong immune system, I want to thank an exaggerated sense of laziness that has helped my avoid significant contact with the sick kids, I want to thank the members of the foreign press, without which we never would have learned of the H1N1 (swine) flu. And finally, my family, if not for their pitiful callapse and subservitude to illness, I might not be getting this award today!

I think I remembered everyone. Where is the press room?

Read more

Update

The youngest has now been diagnosed with H1N1 flu as well. She was seen on Friday morning. She is hovering between the low 90's and the mid 80's in oxygen saturations.

The older daughter is now showing all the symptomes including a 102 degree fever.

Wife is coughing but does not show a fever yet.

There are two of us left.

Read more

Interesting Week

The perfect storm of life.

May I unload and have a pity party for a moment. Someone cue the balloons.

Tuesday morning - My two bosses: the chief lending officer and the mortgage manager are both fired. The collection manager and the Hr manager are both fired that afternoon. It is believed that I might be soon following them. I am waiting for the president to show up in my office.

This news has sent my wife into preterm labor. She is experiencing sharp pain across the stomach, can't get comfortable and is doubled over.

My oldest son has just been diagnosed with full blown N1H1 flu. He is been told to be isolated for 7 days and my youngest is also to be kept from school for two weeks. My wife is also to be kept away from him so she doesn't get it. Being pregnant, she is at high risk.

Who knows, I could be an unemployed widow with two children left alive by November!!

Thanks for the pity party..... who is assigned to clean up?

Read more

Flooding

The basement flooded this afternoon. It came through the window and down the wall. The floor soon filled with water as it swept toward the stairs, the stack of new sheet rock and the boys bedroom. The water soaked the sheetrock, went under the walls to fill the bottom of the stairs, the first four feet of the boys bedroom and into the utility room surrounding the water heater and the furnace.

It was wet.

And messy.

I pulled out the carpet and pad from the bottom of the stairs, filled the wet dry vac a number of times and killed a black widow spider in the window well. A frustrating afternoon!

Splash

Read more

The weekend

The children had the day off for District Development day on Friday. I took the day off of work too. I mowed the front and back lawn in the morning.

The family then piled in the car and went up to Payson Lakes for an afternoon of fishing. The boys caught 7 rainbow trout between them and my oldest daughter contributed three more to the stringer. We cleaned the fish lakeside and threw the entrails to the ducks who devoured them.

Came home to watch a dance program put on in back of the neighbor's house by my daughter and her friends (the girls of the three families) It included tickets to attend and a tribute to the new Hanna Montana movie.

We put the kids to bed and went back over to the neighbors house where we played Hearts with six of us. We all contributed treats for the game night. I made "cake like" brownies. There was also apples and carmel, various cheeses with a sliced beef stick with crackers, cream cheese with pineapple jalapeno salsa, chunky nacho cheese dip with tortilla chips.

Today, I helped my second son and his broken foot get to his football pictures in his pads and crutches. He and I then went to watch his team play their Saturday game without him. We sat on chairs by the end zone with a third chair propping up his foot and watched his Cowboys beat the Sky Hawks 14 to 6. My son could hardly sit still, he wanted to play and be involved so badly.

We returned home after the game and my oldest son and I continued the framing project until we ran out of wood.

My wife has now left for the General RS Meeting with her sister and one of the neighbors. We are glad that she could go and enjoy the meeting and get away from us for a few minutes. She looked really cute in a pregnancy denim skirt and pink top layered with a white shade.

She had dinner in the oven for us before she left (Yummy chicken and rice casserole with green beans, apple sauce and pears). I hope that she stops for ice cream before she comes home (peanut butter cup blizzards)

Church will dominate my day tomorrow. I have to be at the church at 7:50 AM and am slated to be there until around 4:30 to 5:00 PM right now.

Read more

It has begun! (ominous organ music..da ta dahhh)

My son and I have constructed a rudimentary framework along one short wall of the basement. Those construction types might call this "framing!" I would not be so bold. Although, it does look a whole lot better then the "framing" in the boys bedroom. You learn.... you mess up... you learn....you mess up....you hire professionals.... you read a book. (The construction circle of life) I can almost see little pumba in a construction hat right now.

One short wall and window down, about 18 times the work still to go, including a bathroom.

Goal: Carpet installation before Thanksgiving.

Read more

Mooooving Days

I am moved again.

Officially back into the Springville branch of Family First. I still have 6 boxes to go through.

I am still pretending to be a mortgage lender as Family First is still not able to do business lending.

I am glad to be closer to home. I even got the chance to run over to my daughter's school and pick her up for lunch on her early day. What a treat! I took each of my daughters out this week for a few minutes of one on one time in the evening. This usually includes riding in daddy's truck and getting ice cream. I love the few minutes to watch and listen to them.

I am determined to begin buying 2x4's tomorrow so that I can begin framing the basement.

Chau

Read more

I'm slimy - Its working

The water softener seems to be a success. I am slimy!

Next on the horizon...... the dish washer, clean it out and see if the soft water helps to get things clean!

And finally, I will be buying lumber this week to start framing the basement. A living room, a extended bathroom, a large boys bedroom, a game room and a door to the cold storage.

It needs to be completed by Thanksgiving.

Read more

Water water soft and wet

Is it bad not to remember the beginning of the work day?

Oh thats right, I set off the alarm at the branch. I was the first one in today. No one told me that they changed the code yesterday. I spent the day driving to and from St George for work. Home after 9:00 pm.

Arrived home then spent the evening with the help of a friend installing a soft water system in the basement. I am still wet from the shower while cutting through the main pipe. I am crossing my fingers!

I am hungry.

Read more