Big Steps for a Little Boy

Today Shad and his mom and dad said they wanted to come down and meet us when we got to the hospital. When we called to tell them that we were almost there, they said they were on their way, moving slowly, but surely. First we heard Shad yell "Grandma!" at the top of his lungs and then I located them in the very far distance.

It was hard to see him, but I sure could hear him.

As they got closer I was VERY surprised and VERY excited to see that Shad was WALKING!

When we left after Christmas he was walking a little bit, but only very short distances so this was a BIG difference.

On the way back to the room Shad was chasing a little white bird "fluff" and he got moving pretty fast (relatively speaking).

Every time he would try to step on it it would float a little bit further away.

It was pretty entertaining watching him - scurry, stomp, step, scurry, stomp, step, scurry, stomp.  Finally the air from his foot pushed it forward quite a ways so I decided to catch it for him - scurry, stomp, step, scurry, stomp, step, scurry.

Apparently I looked even more entertaining than he did.

Good thing the camera was in my possession.

I am so proud of this little boy!

Aunt Kevra made him this cute Mike Wazowski  hat.  I love it!

He is so willing to do hard things.  Way to go Shad!

Today I am thankful for

every step in the right direction.  Shad is making progress in so many ways.

the move to a bigger hospital room.  The nurses moved Shad as soon as one was available "due to our frequent flyer miles."

lots of together time playing games

and watching HGTV with my daughters. The oldest daughter came home with us tonight to get some sleep and to go to church in the morning.  Thanks son-in-law!

Heavy, Heavy Hangover

Don't be worried.

This isn't a blog about how I have given in to the stresses of life and decided to take up drinking. This is just a momentary step back into my more carefree childhood.

Tonight the youngest son, the hubby and I were gathered around the dinner table and for some reason (I'm sure it was something someone said, but I can't remember what ) I began to recite a familiar rhyme from the birthday parties of my youth.

Heavy, heavy hangover
thy poor head.
What do you wish this person
with a bump on the head.

The son immediately questioned my sanity and when I looked to the hubby for support or some sign of understanding, he just looked back at me with a totally blank stare.  No help there.

I know I am not the only person who has experienced this tradition in their lifetime.  In fact I'm positive since  I wasn't the only guest at the afore mentioned birthday parties, but apparently this is not the common childhood memory that I thought it to be.

I remember this activity done in two different, but similar ways. At gift opening time someone, usually the special guest's mother, would stand behind the birthday boy or girl, select a present and while holding it over the child's head would repeat the rhyme adding a gentle tap on the head with the gift as the word "bump" was spoken. The recipient would then wish the gift giver, which  up to this point was a mystery, a gift as well.  This was usually something totally out of the realm of possibility such as a million dollars, or a swimming pool or a trip to Africa and then the giver would respond with great enthusiasm, thus identifying him or herself to the birthday child.

My other memory is the same except the rhyme reciter was the gift giver himself and the bump on the head was usually a very energetic thwap!

I explained all of this to the men at the table and they continued to act like I was more than a little bit strange.

Of course, after dinner was over, I had to do a little internet research in an attempt to discover the origins of this tradition and to determine if it was really as rare of a ritual as they seemed to think.

I didn't find too much to report.

I did derive that it may come from an ancient childhood game.  That it was practiced most frequently in small town Utah, by Mormons, and is actually referred to in the book "Mama Married a Mormon", but it has been played as far away as Iran. Also, the poem sometimes differs from the one of my memory to be "heavy, heavy hangs over" or "my forehead".

But, the best insight I found, and the one I enjoyed the most, was discovered on a website from the United Kingdom called the phrase finder.  In a response by Dr. Jones to a question asked by R regarding this topic he stated:

"I believe the custom died out in affluent countries when the size and weight of gifts increased and the custom was found to cause unacceptable collateral damage to the upcoming generation of gift recipients.  It did, however, have a Darwinian purpose in prehistoric times, when clubs and similar weapons were handed out as gifts and the thin skulls of the weakest were crushed whilst the thick headed survived to perpetuate the custom: some of these survivors are with us to this very day."

Apparently the reason so few individuals have memory of playing this game as a child, is that many who participated in this activity failed to reach adulthood unscathed.

Another reason to be grateful that I grew up a thick headed Mormon.

Today I am grateful for

the sacrament. Due to Stake Conferences and staying with the grandson last Sunday it had been almost a month since I had the opportunity to participate in this sacred ordinance and I have missed it.

my ward family. I have felt the love and prayers of the "family I attend church with each Sunday" so strongly during the past couple of weeks and it was great to get to meet with them again today.

ham and cheesy potatoes.

Get a Clue!

I was understandably upset when I read in the newspaper the other day that several of my childhood friends have been sentenced to death row with their executions expected to take place by early Fall.

I guess this is to be expected when you hang out with convicted multi-murders. I knew it had to be coming sooner or later, but I was still saddened, if not surprised.

The sad thing is that the crime that has resulted in their final demise is not the murders. No. No matter how many times the jury came back with a guilty verdict these friends always seemed to get off, escape punishment, walk away, live on, go back to their old ways, and kill again.

No. The crime for which they have received the death sentence is simply that they are old fashioned and out of date. Their lives are no longer relevant to the younger generation and therefore they will be done away with immediately. Replaced by a more updated and realistic group of fashionable felons, that include a football star and a video game creator.

Let's all join in a moment of silence for my friends (and most likely yours).

Professor Victor Plum - the intelligent one who was possibly a plagiarist.
Colonel Michael Mustard - the decorated war hero.
Mrs. White - the matriarch of the group who worked as a nanny.
Mrs. Patricia Gobelin Scarlett Zaffer Peacock - the one with the most husbands.
Miss Josephine Scarlett - the unsuccessful actress and daughter of Mrs. Peacock.
Mr. John Green - the only American in the group, who sometimes referred to himself as Reverend.

May they rest in peace alongside the lead pipe, the wrench, and the revolver.

If you would like to visit and pay your respects, they will most likely be buried beneath the new spa, theater or guesthouse additions being made to the mansion.

Now before you think that I need to get a life. Let me tell you, "I tried and it was too late." The "new and improved" version of The Game of Life is already on all the store shelves and has been for a couple of years. I own it and I have played it and it is just not the same as the original that I enjoyed for hours with my brother on long summer days.

That is why I am giving you fair warning,
Get a "CLUE" now, before it is too late
or hang on to the one you've already got.

Today I am grateful for

Having enough. I went shopping today and didn't find anything I really wanted or needed.
Young Men leaders who put up with teenage boys and try to make a difference in there lives.
A son who is smart enough not to tell me distressing news while he is driving.

My birthmonth gift to myself today was a strawberry banana smoothie from Jack in the Box. I love coupons that make things totally free. No buy 1 get one, just plain free!

Dominos

My mom likes to play games. She says she doesn't know why because she never wins, but regardless - she likes to play games and so we usually play games a few times whenever we visit. Today we decided to play Dominos. I never really played Dominos when I was growing up. My mom taught us how one year when we came on vacation. I learned the game from her, but today she kept telling us we didn't play the way she plays. She taught us how to play. How can we play different? Anyway, we had a fun afternoon together trying to outsmart one another. I don't know why I like to play games either. I never win. Today I am grateful for the time I get to spend with my mom and other family members. a fridge with an ice maker and a water dispenser. lunch at the Brick Oven.