Playing Ultimate

It has been fun to watch Brandt Frisbee. Apart from a season playing flag football, Brandt hasn’t been involved in sports. But he has discovered that he really, really likes Ultimate. We really, really like that he likes Ultimate. He’s been practicing a couple days a week and has had games on Thursdays. We went this evening and watched. He had a couple of assists (throws to a teammate in the end zone) and a catch to score. So fun to watch him run around and interact with his friends when off the field.

The following pictures are terrible, mostly because Brandt was in motion so the pictures are blurry, but then also because it's dark and the light isn't great. Oh well.

Made a catch. 

Threw it into the endzone to a teammate who scored.

A terrific assist!

Leaping off the ground to make a catch.

Caught in the endzone.

Score!

Venom: Let There Be Cabbage

Mikayla was going to go see the second Venom movie, Venom: Let There Be Carnage. She was texting, asking if Brandt could go with her, and when she texted, "carnage" autocorrected to "cabbage." So she asked if Brandt could see Venom: Let There Be Cabbage.  Sounded benign enough to me.

They went today. Brandt had a good time with everyone. I'm fairly confident it was NOT benign.

Last Swim

Today was the last swim of the season at Mom's pool. I hate this day. It means summer is really over, it's going to get cold, and we won't be able to bask in the sun for months. It was especially not a great last swim day because I didn't get to swim. I'm still recovering from my surgery, and my GI tract has not been happy all week. I wasn't able to get in the water. Instead, I hung out by the side of the pool and moaned softly to myself, trying not to be a burden to my friends. I did visit with everyone in the pool while dangling my feet in the water. Thea didn't want to swim for long, so she sat next to me and snuggled while we ate popcos. I suppose it could have been worse. 

At one point, Kal swam over and looked at my legs. He felt them and said, "Kake, what is this?!" It was dark poky hair from not having shaved in over a week. He was both puzzled and disgusted. Me too.  

Here's to swimming and sun and summer fun. May it return quickly.

Singing in Centennial Court

Blythe has a chorus class this year, Aria. It’s an all-girls chorus. She sings second soprano because “It’s not too high and it’s not too low.” I guess it’s just right. Today, on my social media feed, I saw the picture below with the caption, "The front offices got a real treat yesterday when our Women's Choir came and sang in Centennial Court. If you want to hear them in person (and you really should) the choir concerts are on October 12.  I thought, ‘I bet Blythe is there somewhere!’ The picture was small on my screen and I couldn’t tell. I asked her if she was there and she said she was, just on the left, out of frame. Oh well. But here's a picture for her to remember the moment.

Homecoming Game

Brandt went to the Timpview Homecoming football game this evening. He went with Paul Moreland, Jacob "Monkey," and then ran into Lil' Ben. "It was fun," Brandt reports. "I would go again." But then he didn't. "I had to stand the whole time because everyone else was standing the whole time, and the student section was wild. There were people with lightsabers who had lightsaber fights. Some students threw flour and chalk (Mom adds here, 'making a huge mess'), and there was lots of selfie taking." Brandt photobombed lots of pictures. Timpview won and all the students rushed the field. "There were a ton of people making out after the game. That's gross. I don't know why they did that. Get a room." Adds Mom here, you are too young to get a room, but go make out somewhere more private. Brandt needed an explanation about what "get a room" means, and then was horrified. Look how this entry has gone from football to inappropriate activities for teens. Brandt should definitely go to another football game, and should definitely not get a room.

Lil' Ben, Paul, Brandt, Jacob

Recovery

I have had a long recovery from my surgery. I have spent the whole week nauseous, unable to look at food without feeling queasy. People have been so kind to bring us meals, and I've been grateful everyone else had something to eat because I wasn't up to it. I've had pain from the air in my abdomen, and been so weak I've moved from bed to couch and back again, moaning to myself as I've lain around. It's been pathetic. I see the doctor tomorrow and I hope he'll tell me I should start improving anytime. I have had some kind visitors including Linda Pugmire who is recovering from a broken knee. Gregg wheeled her up the street in her wheelchair and we sat on the porch in the sun and talked. It's been nice to be cared about and taken care of, but I'd just as soon feel better and be up and doing. 

Mikayla brought me balloons and Tootsie Rolls.

Tom Nelson stopped by the day after my surgery to bring us a newspaper.

He took this picture to share with Suzan.

I'm looking terrific!

More Funny Texts

While sorting through texts back and forth with Mikayla, I've found some pretty choice communications.

 

 

Cuzzies

I like finding pictures like this one on my phone. Blythe in Luke's hat, with cousins in the background. They like each other and I like that.

Called to Serve

For months now, my mom has been waiting for her mission call. She felt inspired to go on a mission early last year, but then Covid happened and everything was delayed. She submitted papers in February, but then they pulled them back because of more Covid stuff, and she has waited still longer. Finally, a couple of weeks ago, her papers were submitted, and on Tuesday, she received her call.

We couldn't all be with her on Tuesday for the opening, and we all really wanted to be there with her, so she waited until this evening when we all gathered. We made guesses about where she would go, and then she opened the email and read.

She has been called to serve in the California, Los Angeles Mission, doing member and leadership support. She leaves on November 8, only 50 days from now, and is expected to serve for 18 months. 

While this is all very exciting, she is nervous. Of all the places she could potentially go, Los Angeles was the place she didn't want to go. There was an opening in Ventura, just the next mission over and where she grew up, and she was hoping to go there. She also put that she was available for 12 months, but she's been called for 18 months. We all pointed out that she could just get in her car and come home when she felt she was done, and there wouldn't be much they would do. Los Angeles feels big and busy with lots and lots of people.

We will miss Mom so much when she leaves, but California isn't super far, we can go visit, and she's setting a wonderful example for all of her grandchildren. Here's to a big mission adventure! 

Ultimate Frisbee Tournament

Brandt played in his first-ever Ultimate Frisbee tournament today. It rained all day. I had planned on attending, but having had surgery last night, I sat out any activity. Kent went in support and said it was really fun to watch Brandt play. Here is Brandt's report of play.

I had a good time. It was fun. I'm not sure how many games we played, at least six. One game we sent the girls out with Bubba (Jarom Oyler). I enjoy frisbee.

And that's all folks. Pictures by Brandt. 

 

Soaking wet, but clearly having a good time.

George and Collin in the background.

Pouring rain

Girl-line and Bubba.

We know Elizabeth Stovall (black shirt and yellow shoes) and Laney Ficker (next to Elizabeth in green)

Other girls: Margaret, Lilly, Abby, and Mimi

Appendectomy

At 4:00am, I woke with fairly significant abdominal pain. I thought I probably needed to go to the bathroom, but after doing that, I still had pain. I went downstairs and spread out long on the couch, thinking maybe if I had a good stretch, the pain would diminish. 

Nope.  

By 7:00am, the pain was localized on the right side of my abdomen, just over from my belly button, about the spot where the appendix is. I called a nurse and talked through my symptoms, and she suggested I go see my doctor. While I had some of the symptoms, I didn't have all the typical ones--no throwing up though a bit of nausea, no fever, no pain that doubled me over. But I made an appointment because you don't want to mess around with something like appendicitis. 

At noon, I went to the doctor. The PA I saw poked and prodded and felt there was enough evidence to warrant a CT scan. She scheduled that for 3:00pm and I went home to lie on the couch a moan a bit more. 

The scan was finished by 4:00, and I was told to wait around, just in case it was appendicitis. No point in sending me home to just have me return half an hour later. About 4:45 I got word that I did, indeed, have acute appendicitis. I needed to make my way over to same-day surgery where Dr. Trotter would remove my appendix. 

This was certainly not the way I intended to spend my Friday evening, but what do you do? Kent stopped by on his way home from work. I laid around the hospital room, waiting. Dr. Trotter came in to speak to me. I liked him. He was very personable, answered all my questions, was encouraging and confident. I asked the nurse about him, too, and she spoke very highly of him. "Dr. Trotter could remove an appendix blindfolded and with one hand tied behind his back. He's an excellent surgeon." I liked that endorsement.

Surgery was about 9:00pm. It was done laparoscopically and only took about half an hour and Kent was in recovery when I was wheeled in. I asked to take my appendix home but they wouldn't let me. They did show it to me though. It looked like a fat, slimy worm. I suppose I'm glad to have it gone. Before I could go home, I had to be able to breathe room air, walk, and pee. I did not want to stay overnight, so by 11:30pm, I had walked and peed. We climbed into bed about 12:30pm.

It was a long day but the doctor assures me the recovery shouldn't be too terrible. Just a couple of days. I told work I wouldn't be there Monday or Tuesday, and we'll see how I feel on Wednesday. In the meantime, I'm just going to do the hang around, read, maybe watch something on Netflix. 

Apart from having my wisdom teeth out when I was in high school, this has been my only surgery. I've escaped the knife up until now. I suppose I shouldn't be surprised; a surgery was bound to happen. I am sort of surprised that this was the one, but one's appendix goes bad without any warning. Here's to a speedy recovery.

Waiting for CT results.

Waiting to be wheeled down for surgery

I went into surgery wearing this purple gown.

I came out of surgery wearing an entirely different one.

That means, at some point, I was naked in front of people.

Football Game Date Night - BYU--Utah

This afternoon, Janie Rasmussen called and asked if Kent and I would like to go to the BYU-Utah football game with her and Ty. The Blads were going to go with them, but they had a Covid exposure and decided it would be best to stay home. While I know that Kent doesn't really like football and wouldn't be thrilled to go to the game, it was going to be a beautiful night, we would get to be with friends, and the "Holy War" would all make for a great evening. I accepted and told Kent we were going to have fun, something he has a hard time doing.

We walked over to the stadium, talking as we went. An electric, palpable excitement filled the air. We had good seats, in actual seats not on benches, and quickly got into the spirit of the game. In addition to being the rivalry game, it is also September 11, and the 20th anniversary of the terrorist attack of September 11, 2001. There was a patriotic opener with a giant flag, the national anthem, and a flyover so low it shook the stadium and my innards. 

The game itself was terrific! BYU played really well, scored first and last, and was ahead the whole game. We cheered, jumped around, sang, and shrieked in delight as they decisively beat the U. It felt good. The last time BYU beat the U was in 2009. It rained steadily for ten minutes at the end of the third quarter, but the game was so tight and fun that no one left. Kent and I huddled under the blanket I had brought to sit on, so didn't get too wet. We had told Kent he could go home anytime he wanted, but at half-time, he said, "I'm staying. This is a good game." Those are true words. It was all a spectacle, much like the Greek or Roman games, with pomp and thrill. We loved it!

When all was said and done, I sent Andrea a text and said, "Sorry you were exposed to Covid. NOT sorry we got your tickets." 

At half-time

Huddling under our blanket as the rain fell

Young Women Rock Canyon Hike

This evening, Blythe's young women class hiked in Rock Canyon. That "in" is rather deliberately placed. Turns out that the "hike" was fairly insignificant. She came home ranting about how wussy the girls were, unable to make it to even the first bridge. I will now have Blythe relate the evening's activities.

The girls are pathetic and stupid. We walked for ten minutes and then the girls were like, "Can we get ice cream now?" Emma was dragging her feet and complaining about how hard it was. It was awkward because we were hiking behind some dude that we wanted to pass, but we were all spread out, so we passed him five different times. We made it three minutes passed the big rock where we took our picture, and then Emma stopped and refused to go on. They are weaklings. 

I would probably have been a bit more charitable in my assessment of the activity, perhaps saying that the girls lacked stamina and needed to do a bit more regular hiking, but Blythe is thirteen, so what do you expect? She did like being in Rock Canyon, and she liked the ice cream they went to get after the loooooooong hike. She initially said she didn't want to go, but apparently changed her mind and happily went on her way. 

The Deaconelles

Claire LeCheminant, Blythe, Shaylee Elder, Ellie Mason, Rachel Jensen

Elizabeth Stovall, Elle Blad, Lizzie Jensen, Emma Bradford

All eating ice cream

Fugitive

After much anticipation and several date changes, tonight we got to play Fugitive. We've all been excited and making plans. Team RoCoKa has been teased all summer, being called RoCoKaught by chasers determined to catch us after our fantastic win last year. It was a lot of pressure. 

RoCoKa ran with several other teams, but sadly, we were the first caught. Drivers were speeding around the block, and we got stuck running to duck behind a fence that had another fence attached to it that I couldn't see in the dark. Collin was crushed and nearly started to cry. I told him we couldn't always win and we'd had a great time. We walked back to the house and then got in the car and went to see if we could catch anyone else. 

When we arrived at the house, Guy and Brick were already there. Guy throws Brick over fences and then leaps over them himself. I can't do either of those things, so we stay in front yards. I suggested to Collin we go looking, and Guy said, "Wait until Luke and Brandt get here." I asked if they were close, and Guy said, "Yeah. They're in the culdesac." I turned to look and only saw a woman pushing a stroller. Looking closer, I recognized Luke, in a dress, pushing Brandt, in a stroller. They had obtained a stroller from Guy's neighbor (getting rid of it), a dress from Mikayla, and a hat from Ava, and then had casually strolled from the stake center to Christopher and Tysen's house, being repeatedly passed by chasers who saw them but didn't see them. It was wonderful!

Blythe, Makenna, and Cora ran together. Makenna was seen and caught, but Blythe and Cora hid in a bush and stayed so quiet and still, they were not seen, even by Christopher who looked directly into the bush in which they were hiding. Although Makenna didn't hide anymore, she tried to help Blythe and Cora make it back because Blythe didn't know exactly where they were. When she finally recognized her surroundings, she told Cora to run, hoping they could make it back to the house, but were caught a block away. 

At the stake center, prior to the start, Blake was dressed in his gilly suit, all camo and dangling faux shrubbery. Griffin and Crew were not going to run, but I shamed Griff into participating. He was going to run with Blake. After doing a bit of searching, I pulled into the culdesac and there were Blake and Griffin. Blake was not wearing his gilly suit. I asked how they had been so sneaky and Blake confessed, "I called an Uber." He and Griffin had ridden from the stake center to the house. That was disqualifying action and we threw out their "win." So lame.

Everyone had a great time and plans are already being made for next year. Here's to another great family activity for practically one and all.

Team RoCoKa Or RoCoKaught

Brandt has Cora standing in front of him because he's got blankets under his shirt.