Lego Party

Here's some pics from a little get together Cole had with some friends (it really was more of a get together so that a newer boy in a neighboring ward could get to know some of the boys in the area).

They did a tower build to see how tall of a tower they could make.  Made paper airplanes with lego man pilots.  Did a slip n slide and sprinkler under the tramp and built "lego" rice krispy creations.  It was a success!  (Mostly because I stuck with my gut that 6 boys is easier to handle than 10).

Dallin

Seth

Andrew

Isaac

Ethan

Cole

Jane's creation

Macy's treats

He has a job!!!

Mike got hired by Windermere Elementary. 

He interviewed a few weeks ago for their fourth grade position.  After interviewing we ran into my visiting teaching companion who raved about the principal and offered to put in a good word.

Later she told us that before putting in a good word she asked her current principal (who Mike had interviewed with before) if it would even help.  Their conversation went something like this:

Principal:  "Who is this for?"
Jeri (my VT Companion):  "Michael Porter"
P:  "Oh!  We want him at our school so bad, but are waiting for our enrollment numbers to go up.  Ya... putting in a good word would have helped to get him an interview, but Mike interviews so well he won't need the extra good word."

The Principal from the school where he was hired called last Friday afternoon (we thought the call was to say that the job had gone to someone else).  Instead she offered him the fifth grade slot instead of the fourth he interviewed for (much more his style).

He starts in a about week.  Has training next Monday (of course it's right when Rob needs help moving... seriously, how are we ever go to pay Rob back for all his help with our gazillion  moves?). 

We are counting our blessings.  It is near impossible for most teachers looking for work down here to get an interview, let alone a job right now, so we know the Lord had a hand in making this happen.  We won't even miss a paycheck!  Pheew!

Ali's 11thBirthday!

That's Stu in the corner.  They were down to visit.

Ali reading a card (like Elvis?)

Pillow Pet from the Porter Family (not us :)  those visiting ones).

Her new mp3 player (and lots of cash from her grandparents behind it... thank you).

Happy Birthday, Ali!!!  We love you!!!

No infection!? Have you seen my cheek???

I took a big bite of cereal, carefully making sure to only chew on my left side.  A couple of grape nuts escaped to the other side of my mouth, sending a sharp zing through my newly crowned molar when I bit down.

Should it still be hurting this much?  I thought as I popped another 5 Advil (barely numbing the pain).

The pain didn't get better.  I felt like a nursing mother again, the pain startling me awake each night.  I rolled over to the medicine waiting on my nightstand.  More Advil, more water and once the ibuprofen kicked in, more sleep.

I knew it was time to see the dentist again when the Advil was no longer helping and I woke for my middle of the night tooth "nursing" to find the right side of cheek swollen. 

"There's no infection.  I don't see anything that says that you need a root canal."  My dentist stared at the x-ray and back at my swollen cheek.  I stared at the x-ray too, trying to will the x-ray to give my dentist some answer to make the pain go away.

She sent me off with a referral to an endodontist (root canal doc) in one hand, and a prescription of viacadin in the other.

The Endodontist said the tooth had undergone too much trauma from getting a crown put on and it caused the tooth to start dying.  There was infection, just not visible because it was leaking out the bottom of the tooth and into my gums and face (lovely.. I know).  He gave me antibiotics and set me up for a root canal 5 days later.

I have never been in such extreme pain in my life (and I have a very high tolerance for pain).  No child bearing experience of mine could ever top those 5 days, not even my c-section recovery.  It got to the point that I called back the day I came home and tried to reschedule the root canal for sooner, even that day, but the doctor had already left and wouldn't be back until Monday.

It was a long weekend, but by the time the morning of the root canal rolled around, the swelling had gone down, and the pain was back to being bearable.

The procedure was easy and painless.  So glad it's over with.  I still wish I had Mike's genes when it comes to teeth.  Not fair that he can skip out on getting cavities and I can't, even with my "by the book" hygiene.  Not cool, Mike. :)

The 4th!

What a Fourth we had!  Started the morning with a ward breakfast.  Piled into the van, turned the key to hear a nice machine gun clicking.  Car wouldn't start (not the thing you want when your minus one job).  Mike called his brother for some ideas while I piled all the kids in Pop-pops car and then we were all off the breakfast (Mike and I still a bit worried about the van). 

Here's the kids on the playground after "eating."

Ali was off with friends.

Side note:  We really like our ward.  Taken a bit to get used to being in a ward with people our own age (most younger, actually).  But man, there's lots of good people down here. 

We've had multiple couples flat out "ask" to be our friends.  We're trying to break out of ourselves and make that happen. 

One gal sitting in front of us turned around before sacrament and told us how she has been wanting to ask us to play Rook with her and her husband.  I mentioned that if she liked Rook, she'd love Hand and Foot.  She took that as a sign from Heaven that is was meant to be (she and her husband we're complaining the night before that they had no one to play Hand and Foot with).  Ha :) 

After that.  The couple behind us asked Mike, "So, do you guys go out with other couples to dinner and stuff like that?  Would you guys want to do that?"  Too funny.  So maybe the whole purpose of moving here is to get us out of our shells. :)

Back to the Fourth

Got home from the breakfast and took the battery to AutoZone to see (to hope... to pray) that the battery was just dead and that that was all that was wrong with the van.

Sure enough, it was dead and thanks to my bigger than average paycheck, buying the new battery was no problem (we have learned to not get excited when my paychecks are bigger than average or when extra money shows up.  We now ask, "So...what's going to break now?"  Ha.

Got home and I took a nap because my stupid new crown is killing me (4 advil every 3-4 hours to make it ache instead of hurt).  I haven't felt pain like this since recovering from my C-Section. 

After my nap everything seemed hunky doory with the van.  Had the hamburgers and hot dogs for dinner and tried to think of what we could do with our bored kids, since it was 100+ degrees outside and fireworks are banned in our city and all of Austin (didn't feel like driving an hour to see the nearest firework show). 

So we opted to let the kids get a new movie.  Loaded up the kids in the van, turned the key (it started... pheew) and drove off to Target.  Got the movie, some treats and got back in the van, turned the key and.... it wouldn't start.  Luckily we had bought jumper cables earlier that day and got a lady to jump our car.  I anbesoled my tooth (which did nothing) while the car got jumped.

It started up, but kept dying slightly when we turned corners and stuff.  So we said a prayer that we'd make it home without the car dying (did not like the idea of sitting in a car on the side of the road  in 100+ degrees with 4 kids, melting ice cream bars and no air conditioning when the rest of the world is off BBQing and doing fireworks.  Would not be fun). 

After a white knuckle car ride, we made the 10 minute (mostly on 50 mile an hour plus roads) drive home with only a few scares.  During all of this, Mike had the thought, Maybe one of the connections is loose on the battery.    Sure enough that's all it was. 

Mike gave me a blessing for my tooth, and we had a good time watching the Boston Pops and the fireworks, followed by a little Diary of a Wimpy Kids; Rodrick Rules.

So...the car is fine, my tooth will likely be fine in a few weeks, just very tender/swollen from the procedure (doc said no root canal needed).  And the kids enjoyed their first firework-less fourth.

Happy Independence Day!

THAT'S your Loaner?

Mike took his parents car into the shop to get some repairs done and they gave him a loaner for a few days.  I passed the line of loaner cars on the way off the lot and wondered which one Mike would get (the only slightly scratched1993 royal blue beamer or the hunter green Chrysler boat.)  He got neither.  This is what he drove off the lot in:

Convertible BMW Z4

It was Family Home Evening that night, so for "activity" Mike tooks to kids each for a ride with the top down (only seats 2).

My pictures are lame, I was hiding from the nice neighbor across the street who was building a fence and keptlooking over at the commotion in our driveway.    These were taken with me hiding in the corner of the garage.  Ha.

Jane was scared to go near the car.  Said it was "too bumpy" and refused to get in.  Still wanted to go for a ride though :)

THUMBS UP!  from Jane

S'More?

Mike an I were bored.  So we tried making S'Mores over the stove (thank goodness none of them fell off and made a gooey mess to clean up) :)