Happy Birthday, Grandpa Ricks!

We wish we could be with THIS magnificent bunch as many of them gather in love around your grave this weekend. Hopefully it will be warmer there than it was the last time we saw it...

We miss you.

But we will remember you like this:

like this:

like this:

and look forward to the day when we can meet up with you again and we'll all feel something like this:

We are so glad you were born. We love you!

Priceless.

This is what Ethan said this morning, while looking at a picture of "Aunt Lindsay." (She is wearing a formal dress with tennis shoes on the day of state cross country, and it's snowing outside.)

"What I would do, when she gets back to living and not died ever again...I would just hug her or something."

me: "I'm going to hug her too, Ethan. :)


Since Kyle's Dad passed away, we have had lots of opportunites to talk with Ethan about the reality of the resurrection. I love the way he words things like "when we get done being died we will get our bodies back" and one time he even asked me, "how did Aunt Lindsay get her body off?" It has been so comforting to hear him talk about our loved ones like it will be just a short time until we see them again. Even ones he has never actually met. Faith like a child...


He also said this morning:
"I love Aunt Lindsay. And I wish everyone that was died could just come back alive right now."

me: "Me too, buddy. Me too."

My 75 point turn. And no, I don't think I'm exaggerating.

Well, we all have our comfort zones. I'd like to think mine is fairly large...

You want me to sing in front of a thousand people?
Sounds fun.

How about emceeing a large event?
Cool, I'm in.

Open up to people I may not know super well?
Yeah, I can handle that.

Give myself injections?
Bring it on.

Come in and teach class at the last second with no preparation?
Sure.



And yet, there are a few things, that, of course, fall OUTSIDE the line of my comfort zone.

Do any kind of maneuvering in a car that involves driving in reverse?
Um, I think I'd rather...well, I'd rather do just about ANYTHING.


I have struggled with driving backwards from day 1. I have backed into a friend's car in my cul-de-sac, I have backed into my OWN car while driving the Yukon of the family I nannied for (Yeah, THAT was the best day of my life), and I have backed into my neighbor's car just a few days after having my second baby. (At least I SORT OF have an excuse for that one.)
My husband, (who grew up driving potato trucks on the farm and could probably drive backwards on a freeway with his eyes closed) has tried to coach me. We've done obstacle courses in parking lots, we've had practice sessions backing out, and verbal explanations. I once thought I was a relatively intelligent person, but I think if my life depended on being able to parallel park I would literally DIE.

So today I went to a doctor's appointment and headed into the parking garage. "8 dollars? For the first HOUR? Are you kidding me? My info sheet said there was a place to park for 2 bucks." SO I rolled down the window and asked the lady in the booth if there was another place to park to go to the hospital. She explained where.

"Can I just do a U-turn here and exit, then?
"Yeah, sure, go ahead."

And then, I proceeded to make a complete fool out of myself and try the patience of at least10 other drivers. It was a really really tight squeeze to flip from the entrance around to the exit and I was embarassed that the lady in the car behind me would have to wait while I made my 5+ point turn. And then it turned into 10 point, and then 15, and then 20. Seriously, the lady got out of the booth and was trying to help me back up and then go forward and then back up and then go forward and pretty soon there were 5 cars behind me trying to get out and 5 cars waiting to get in, and I was blocking every single one of them. I was sandwiched between a yellow pole in the back and the curb on the other side and I could only move in one inch increments or I would have hit something. I was about ready to get out of the car and hold my keys up and just scream, "CAN ONE OF YOU WHO HATES ME RIGHT NOW PLEASE JUST COME DO THIS FOR ME???????"

Ugh.

So that's that.


But, once inside the hospital, I got hooked up to a Continuous Glucose Monitoring system that I get to wear for a week. My insulin pump gets injected right under my skin, and this sensor does the same thing, in addition to the pump. The sensor is basically a wire, painted with an enzyme that reacts with the glucose in my blood. From this reaction, it records my blood sugar every 5 minutes--and after a week, I will go back to the Diabetes center and they will download the results, match them with the record I've kept of everything I eat and when, and hopefully we will end up with some helpful information on how to get things under better control. So that's worth total embarassment in a parking garage, right?

But in a week when I go back, that valet parking is looking pretty tempting.... :)