Back to Glasses

Ethan recently decided to go back to wearing glasses. I think he looks great!!

Reverence

We visited the Nasher Sculpture Center while downtown today. We spent most of our time looking at the outdoor exhibits. Vanessa enjoyed resting for a moment on a stone bench sculpture.

Ethan made me laugh. I enjoy listening to his commentary about art. He would make a great art critic one day if he could be serious enough about it. His is interpretations are quite enjoyable though!

The thing I like about Ethan is that as soon as we stepped into the exhibit called  Melvin Edwards: Five Decades, he became quite somber. The sculptures in this exhibit are part of Edward's Lynch Fragments series.

I loved seeing Ethan show reverence where reverence is due. I think that is what is so great about art. Each piece can evoke such completely different emotions in a person.

Some Things Never Change

As a new parent, I often found myself quietly walking into the baby’s bedroom just to watch their chest rise and fall. I hadn’t heard a peep from the baby in the hours since I put them to sleep. I merely wanted to make sure the baby was still breathing. The night after Este's concussion both Aaron and I went in to check on him. It is even more interesting to check on your baby boy who is almost 18 years old. I was watching my baby who happens to be the size of a man. It doesn't matter. He will always be my baby boy. Some things never change.

Aaron and I were both anxious the night we returned from the ER. The doctors told us since the CT scans and x-rays were clear we did not need to wake him up throughout the night. That didn’t help us sleep any better though. We were still concerned about our baby.

Esteban’s early morning seminary teacher is an orthopedic surgeon and sports medicine doctor. We visited him in his office the next morning.  That is when I discovered that Este has never watched The Price is Right. I grew up on that show.

Anyway, before the appointment, Aaron and I were more worried about his back and less worried about his concussion. We were wrong. The back injury was only a muscle strain. It would heal quickly. The concussion, however, was very serious. He had suffered a stage 3 concussion. It is one of the worst. Este’s concussion was in the top 5% of bad concussions. There could be ramifications that would affect the rest of his life. If he returned to the football field before he was completely healed and had another hit of equal impact, he could die instantly. It is called second hit syndrome.

Este struggled to remember and recall information. Memorizing while recovering from this injury would be damaging to his brain. Esteban has worked to maintain straight A’s throughout his school life.  Academics come easy to him. He was in the middle of applying for academic scholarships all over the country. It all had to come to a halt until he recovered. His brain was functioning at less than 50% of normal. He was struggling to remember simple facts.  We emailed his school counselor, who in turn emailed all his teachers. He would be allowed to come and go to school as he felt up to it. He was not to take any quizzes or tests until he was better. He would be given special treatment as long as needed.

The doctor asked Este what his favorite TV show was. Este explained that he didn’t have time to watch TV. The doctor explained him that his life just changed. He was ordered to watch TV or play mindless video games. He needed to rest and he needed to let his brain rest.

That sounds easy enough. The problem is we had scheduled painters to repaint our house.  As Este tried to rest and relax and as people came over to visit him, they were greeted by a great big mess.

Coaches, friends, neighbors, and family tromped over the drop clothes and past the open cans of paint  to visit Este. The outpouring of love and concern was overwhelming. It was amazing to see all the people who were worried about him.  Jace drew a wonderful get well soon card for Este. Jace's smile was big enough for the both of them.

Ethan later asked if it was hard for me to hear about how damaging and serious the concussion could be. He asked if it was hard to hear that my son could die. I told Ethan that the hardest thing for me was when I first saw him. Ethan had been on the field that day in practice. He did not see the hit but he saw Este laying there unconscious. He saw the seizure. Ethan thought he was going to watch his brother die that day. It really shook him up. He held it together since he is a big strong teenage boy and he was with his football friends and teammates but I could see the concern and fear in his eyes and that was the hardest part of this whole ordeal.

I love watching my boys grow up. I enjoy being with them and deep down inside I even enjoy it when they give me a hard time and tease me. The thing is no matter how big they get, they are all three taller than me now, they will always be my little boys. I will always be concerned about their welfare. I don’t want to see them sick or injured. I will always recognize fear and sadness in their face. I will always be their mother. Like I said, some things never change.

HOCO 2K13

Homecoming 2013 (also known as HOCO 2K13) was quite eventful. Come to think about it, homecoming in Texas is always eventful.

Monday of Homecoming week was Twin Day. Este and his friend Chase dressed up as twins and the guys from Men in Black. The problem is, several people asked if they were Mormon missionaries. They wanted to know where their helmets and backpacks were. Este was not offended by this hopefully Chase was not either since he is not a member of our church.

Wednesday was celebrity day and Ethan dressed up as Justin Timberlake. I just have to say that JT has nothing on my boy!!

I helped some of the football team moms decorate the locker room with mums. I thought they turned out looking quite nice especially for a high school football team locker room!!

Este's car was decorated one day while he was in school. My favorite part was the crown on the windshield so when he was sitting in the driver's seat, the crown appeared to be on his head.

There were more decorations on the car by the week's end but I didn't snap a picture before he washed the car. Bummer.

Vanessa joined in the festivities as well. She has recently decided that she wanted to a baker when she grows up so she is busy preparing for that career now. She made a Homecoming cake for the boys. It was her first attempt at cake decorating. Someday she will be the next Cake Boss. We all enjoyed the finished product.

Este asked one of the student trainers to the Homecoming dance after a football game. He gave her a football that read. "Ya wanna TACKLE Homecoming with me?" She said yes.

Ethan couldn't decide who to ask to the dance so he went with a group of friends instead. More on this later.....

As is custom in Texas, the boy gives his date a mum to wear to school on the day of the football game and the girl gives the boy a garter mum. Well, Chabeli made her own mum this year and a mum for Este. He felt bad to not have a gift to give to her. Thankfully, during a late night run to the store we bought a pink monkey (her favorite color) and a box of chocolates for him to give to her at the mum exchange.

Remember when I explained Texas Homecoming mums last year (click here for the link). Well this year will not be out done. A friend of mine posted the photo of this mum. I love quirky traditions!!

Anyway, since Ethan didn't have a "date" so he didn't wear a mum. Trust me, he did not feel bad at all. In fact, remember that group of friends I mentioned. This is the group.

He told people that Este was taking one girl to the dance and he was taking six. He had so much fun!! They all went to Cane's for dinner. After that they had some extra time so the walked across one of the busiest streets in town and spent an hour and half hanging out in Target in their formal wear. Ethan said they got a lot of weird looks but they didn't care. I asked him if he danced with each of the girls at the dance and he said he couldn't because there were only a couple of slow songs. I am so happy that he had such a great time.

Chabeli came over before the date and we snapped a quick photo of the cute couple.

It was Chabeli's birthday that day. Esteban gave her a bouquet of flowers and a cupcake. They met up with a big group for dinner. After dinner, poor Chabeli got really sick. They ended up spending the rest of the date at her house hanging out with her parents. They missed the dance. Este was fine with that.

It is so fun to watch them grow up. High school is proving to be a lot of fun for my boys.

Newest Driver in the Family

We have another driver in the family!!

Ethan got his learner's permit today. Yeah!!

Now we get to start driving around the neighborhood.

I haven't called the insurance company to see what the rate increase is going to be. Yikes!!

Speaking of driving......

Last week I was taking my neighbor's grandmother to the doctor. I drove Aaron's car because it is much more comfortable than the big SUV and the little compact car that we also have.

Next thing I know we passed a motorcycle cop. He flipped on his lights and I knew I was busted. Here is the problem: I normally don't speed. Well, I technically go five over the speed limit but never more than that. Usually. I have never driven Aaron's 425-horsepower-rides-smooth car on the toll road. I was clocked at 87 m.p.h.. That was 17 miles per hour OVER the speed limit. I had NO idea I was going that fast. Charlene (my neighbor's grandma) and I were just chatting and enjoying our time together. The police officer ruined my trip with my neighbor. It wasn't his fault that I was speeding. It wasn't my fault either. I TOTALLY blame the car. Aaron later told me that just as guns don't kill people, people kill people. Cars don't speed, people speed. I don't care, I still blame the car.

Anyway, Charlene was less fazed by the speeding ticket than I was. (Probably because she doesn't have to pay the fine). She simply said, "When things like this happen, there is always a reason for it. We probably just avoided something up ahead." Sure enough, ten miles down the road was a car accident. She was right. I was wrong. I broke the law.

This is the new workout shirt I bought since the incident.

It is a terrible thing. Hopefully Ethan doesn't follow in my footsteps. Plus, he is banned from driving Aaron's car. Forever.

Hard Work Pays Off

When we knew we were moving to Dallas, we spent hours and hours researching the area. We chose this specific suburb because it has really good schools and they keep the schools small. In fact, the school board passed a referendum that no school in this district can be larger than 4A. We liked the idea of smaller schools especially where there are surrounding suburbs that have mega-schools with 5,000 students attending.

We narrowed our search down even farther when we found the smallest, newest school in town. Este and Ethan both wanted to play football and neither wanted to go to a school where everybody had been best friends since kindergarten. The smaller school meant a better opportunity for them in sports and the fact that it is on the new side of town meant that everybody had moved into the area within the last few years. We told our realtor we would only look at houses within the Lone Star High School boundaries. My boys became Lone Star Rangers overnight.

Then Este decided not to play football. He is taking several AP classes this year and wanted to concentrate on keeping his 4.0. He planned on still playing soccer but, decided against football. How can a parent argue with that?

His decision left Ethan completely alone on the high school football team to learn all the coaches, players, systems, and plays. He woke up at 6:00 am every morning this summer and walked to the school (it's only half a mile away). He would come home four hours later drenched in sweat (you could literally ring the sweat out of his shirt). He would be beat up and exhausted but he woke up every day on his own.

We told him just to work hard because coaches noticed more than he realized. He worked and worked and worked some more.The coaches would yell at him yet he didn't let it get him down. He stuck to it. In one of the earlier scrimmages of the season he struggled. The guy across the line from him was bigger than him. He was having a hard time blocking him. The coaches in Utah would pull a player off the field if he made a mistake and keep him off the field for the rest of the game. Ethan didn't play much back there. During this game the coaches said, "Yes. The kid is bigger than you but you can do this. You just have to figure out how to get him. Now go do it!" The coach left him in the game and Ethan held his man the rest of the game. Ethan learned that game that he could do hard things.

As the season went on Ethan's confidence and abilities increased significantly. He was respected by his coaches and players. He was known for his work ethic and the fact that he never gave up. EVER.

By the end of the season, he was not only starting JV, he was playing offense, defense, and special teams. He went from last year barely setting foot on the field to this year barely stepping off the field the entire game. The coaches told him if he has a good off season and continues to grow there is the possibility that he'll be on varsity next year when he is a junior.

Here are some highlights from his season. I am so proud of my #56.

As the season came to a close the coaches pointed out Ethan's hard work to the entire team on several occasions. After the last game of the season, Ethan was mentioned by name on the team's website (click here) for having a "good game anchoring the defensive line".

I am so grateful for what he learned and more important what he has taught me this season.

P.S. On a side note, I just wanted to point out the difference between JV football in Utah vs. Texas. In Utah, the JV football game is played in the early afternoon. Most parents attend and maybe a few grandparents. That's it.

Here, the JV fooball game has cheerleaders, concessions, announcer, and they often played "under the lights" in front of the crowd with students, friends, and family. There is even half time entertainment.

See previous post for further explanation.

Positive Peer Pressure

Last week we noticed that all the young men in our new ward wear suits to church except for our three boys. Which means that part of our moving expenses now include suits for the boys.

The boys noticed that all the young men in our new ward have short hair. They each requested shorter hair when they had their hair cut this week.

I am happy to say they are no longer the shaggy slackers from Utah. That is what I call positive peer pressure.

Out of This Galaxy!

Ever since the fifth grade Este has played for the CV Galaxy soccer team. We have spent countless hours on the sidelines cheering, grimacing, and loving to watch his team play. This year's President's Day Cup in Mesquite, Nevada was just weeks before high school tryouts. We all knew some of the guys would make it and some would not. They went out and played their guts out in one more tournament. Their playing was out of this world, I mean galaxy!

Even Ethan had a moment of greatness out on the field as he ran a water bottle over to Este at halftime. (I was in so much trouble for even taking this photo. Good thing he doesn't read my blog!)

 

Poor Savanah's moment of greatness was in the Instacare when she was diagnosed with strep throat. The doctor informed me that she would be contagious until she had been on antibiotics for 24 hours. I informed the doctor that our entire family had either been in a car or a hotel room for the past 48 hours. He just said to call when others started showing symptoms. This is how Savanah spent the trip...hanging out in the hotel room with a fever. 

Long time readers of my blog know that I am always happy when I can see the temple. Here the view from our room of the St. George Temple.

Worst Birthday Ever

My birthday this year was a bummer. There were lots of good things about it such as  lunch with Aaron, the beautiful cake he brought home, and all the well wishes from family and friends. The bad things about this birthday, I had my Patho final the next day and I had an infection that required two doctor's visits and three trips to the pharmacy.This year's birthday, however, was not the worst birthday I ever had. That was when I was in the eighth grade.

I remember that day because woman in our small community collapsed dead leaving her husband, small children, and our entire town mourning. The high school cheerleaders were in an terrible car accident where several were hurt severely. To top it all off, I had my eighth grade band concert. A friend and I were to play a flute solo during one of the songs. When we rehearsed our special musical number, I marked my flute so the tone would be right but somehow on the night of the performance the pitch was off. I still distinctly remember the band director coming up taking my flute from me, adjusting it, and giving it back during my solo. I obviously was horrified.

I recently told my kids this story. Ethan wrote this little song.......

"An untuned flute, it makes me sad.
It makes me feel my birthday's bad.
A broken flute, an untuned pipe,
It makes me sad. It makes me gripe.
My teacher took my flute from me,
fixed it and it's melody.
Now I can play my favorite song.
All of the day and all night long.
When I get old, I'll tell my kids
Of all the things my old flute did."

The best part of my birthday this year was being with my family and having teenaged kids who keep me humble.

Don't Die

When I dropped Ethan off at school today he said to me, "See ya later. Have fun. Don't die."

I love Ethan so MUCH! He is great fun to be around. I learned long ago that he was smarter than me and I'm okay with that. He loves to learn, question, and analyze the deep questions of life and the universe. He remembers everything he reads or hears. Now, if I could only get him to remember to take his backpack to school..........

He excels in reading, math, and science but his favorite class ever: Ceramics.

Here are a few photos of his projects:

A mug for Aaron.

A bowl for me.

Other various projects.

These ceramics may be far from perfect in the art world but, Ethan is quite proud of them. In my eyes,  they are more than perfect and I will cherish them until the day I die. Hopefully that won't be today, I don't want Ethan to think I didn't listen to his advice.

Bathtime

Ethan wanted to know if this meant he didn't have to shower. He claims that Colt, named after Colt McCoy the Texas Longhorn quarterback, left his hair soft and shiny. It left me a bit queasy and I have to wonder what kind of hairball it left for Colt.

Compromise

Ethan doesn't like my blog. Don't worry, I don't take it personal. What 12 year old boy would enjoy pictures of him splashed all over the world wide web? He celebrated a birthday this summer so, I wanted to post baby pictures of him and express my love and happiness that he belongs to me. However, he wasn't going for it. As a compromise, I get to post a few current pictures of him. Later, when he complains that I loved the other kids more because I have more pictures of them posted I'll remind him of the compromise. (For those of you with young children: Enjoy it! Before long, they will have opinions and that is not always a happy thing.)

Ethan had a few friends over for a party this year. They played air-soft guns and his favorite card game KillerBunnies. I was called in to work at the end of the party. Aaron told me it was fine to go to work, Ethan wouldn't even notice I was gone. This was true. (Again, those of you with young children, enjoy it while they still think the sun, moon, and stars revolve around you.)

In my stead, Savanah took some pictures. Here is the highlights of Ethan's party.

Ethan turned twelve years old. This means he was able to receive the Aaronic Priesthood. He has been excited to serve in these new capacities. He is elated to be out of Primary and I can say, I really miss the guy even with his off the wall questions and comments while I am teaching. All of our family were able to come for his ordination. Aaron and I both come from big families so the hardest part was finding a room big enough to accommodate the crowd. (I sound like I am bragging, therefore I probably am. In my defense, we lived far away from our families for years and we missed being with them on special occasions.)

Ethan started school just a few weeks ago. In PE one day, he was playing kickball with the class. The bases were the walls of the gym. He was running around the bases trying to score on for his team, when he ran into the wall. Yep, he broke his wrist and of course, it's the one that he writes with. His new glow-in-the-dark cast in now part of his back to school wardrobe.
Vanessa can't wait until she is his age. She wants to break her arm so she can get a pink cast with sparkles. Ethan tried to explain to her about the pain involved but, she is all about the sparkles. After it happened, he came home from school and informed me they were putting him in Special Ed. Knowing that I work with special needs kids he said to me, "I don't want to be rude, but don't you think that will be a bit slow for me?" I agreed with him and took the matter to the school counselor. He clarified they wanted Ethan to be a Special Ed Aide during his PE class while his arm healed. I was able to convince the counselor that Ethan can still participate in PE on a limited basis and Ethan was grateful that I kept him out of the Lifeskills Class. See, I'm good at compromises.