Last week was more eventful than usual. Monday I took the car in to get the oil changed and they brought it back to me with the typical list of 1,000 things that need to get fixed IMMEDIATELY! DANGER! (You can tell by the red box.) I take my car to the dealership for oil changes and this is completely normal so I sent Lewis a text that said "These morons say I need new tires right away! Idiots!" and went on my merry way. However, something about the guy saying "You need to go to wherever you got these tires and get new ones. Today. They are completely bald" made me think maybe he was telling the truth this time. Plus, I got my tires at Costco and needed to go there anyway.
At Costco they assured me at first that I shouldn't need new tires since my current ones were only a few months old. When the dude went out to check he came back shocked. He had never seen any tires ever wear out that fast. He said they were in fact completely bald and that I shouldn't leave without new tires. The front tires were that unsafe. Long story short Katie came to my rescue, the guy gave me a great deal on 4 brand new tires, and now I am safe to drive again. Hopefully these tires will last a little bit longer or I will be making a Saturday morning phone call to Click and Clack.
Later in the week (can't remember if it was Tues. or Wed.) I turned on the a/c and noticed that when the air reached the right temperature in the house the vents would turn off but not the fan on the outside unit. I thought we were doomed because last year when we had someone come do a checkup on our unit he said it was the oldest one he had ever seen functioning! However, on Thursday we had it fixed and it is running like a champ again. Hopefully it can last 2 more summers for us.... The repairman did say that those were the oldest parts he had ever seen, he said it looked like all of the parts were original. Amazing.
Also Thursday I had an appointment for an ultrasound. I typically measure small so I get to have bonus ultrasounds at the end to make sure the baby is growing well. She seems to be doing fine and so am I-- yikes I gained 7 lbs. in 3 weeks. Lewis got to come with me and just laughed when he heard how much I gained. I can't blame it on water weight when he's there keeping me honest! I am, however starting to swell up like it's my job.
It was funny because a medical student walked into my room. Because I am a paying, insured customer I'm not supposed to have to deal with those peons (really I'm not but I think medical students are terrific, they just have no clue what they are doing). I think he walked in accidentally and then when he saw Lewis there in his scrubs he was completely thrown off. The poor guy was a mess. He forgot the doppler and then proceeded to ask me a bunch of random questions he got out of a textbook somewhere. I actually felt bad for the guy. He asked "How often are the contractions?" Um, what contractions? Then wanted more detail than you want to hear about but that is when we realized that he had probably walked into the wrong room. Then when he left he said "The doctor will be here in a minute, I was just here to, to, to wet your appetite" at which point Lewis and I looked at each other and couldn't keep it in any more. At least we waited until he left the room to completely start laughing at him. It was so so so awkward.
Thursday night at 2am, (so I guess it was Friday morning) Brooks came into our room and said he was dehydrated. I gave him a drink and he walked out of the room. Then he walked right back in and said his chin hurt. He said it 3 times and then puked all over our floor. Twice. Well, the second time was also all over Lewis who had gotten up because apparently that is how he feels right before he pukes--his chin gets tight. Weird. Brooks proceeded to throw up for about 12 hours straight and spent the entire day in bed. He didn't even really want to watch tv or anything. The poor guy was
Naturally, he was better in the morning and after Aiden's soccer game we all headed over to Atlanta to visit the temple open house. They have been working on it for the past 2 years and held and open house before it is rededicated. We had a wonderful time, the temple was beautiful. The best part might have been when we all walked in and sat in a room that we thought was the start of the tour but quickly realized we were in the training room for volunteers. It was awkward getting up with 3 kids and a stroller and walking out (of course we were sitting on the front row.)
Ok, that wasn't really the best part. The best part was walking through the Celestial Room with my husband and my children and feeling so blessed to know that I can be with them forever and ever and ever. I want to be in heaven with these sweet little ones even though they drive me crazy (I mean really crazy) more than 75% of the time. What a gift. Because Lewis and I were married for time and all eternity in the temple our children will also be sealed to us. If we live righteously we are stuck together. It's incredible.
Of course we had to overdo it and visit Trader Joe's and IKEA too. Brooks was starting to fade but we made him press on. While we were eating dinner he started to feel terrible and barely made it to the bathroom to puke again. Poor guy. When he had swine flu a couple of years ago we dragged him all over too and even visited the Tennessee Aquarium. But he was fine after and has been great ever since. The thing about Brooks is that he never complains when he's sick so we just carry on and he ends up getting the short end of the stick.
Easter was really nice. I had planned on inviting friends over for dinner and an epic Easter Egg Hunt (yes in caps, I can't help it) but because Brooks had been sick we didn't want to push our luck.
I have never in my life been more grateful on Easter. Grateful for a Savior who was willing to sacrifice for me so that I can be with my family forever. As members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints we like to focus on the open tomb more than on the cross because of the hope that comes from the resurrection of our Savior. I know that because he rose up on the third day we will all be given that gift as well. I know that someday we will all die, but that we have a promise that our bodies and spirits will once again be reunited when we are resurrected. There is no doubt that I miss my mom terribly, but I know that one day her grave will be empty and I will be reunited with her forever.
Much of the city is in this sort of shape, but I took some pictures of what we saw just in Cahaba Heights. There are streets that have trees down in every single yard. On every single house. Smashed cars and houses everywhere. Downed power lines. All you can hear is chainsaws buzzing. It is like nothing I have ever seen before. It is hard to capture it with pictures taken from the window of a moving car, but I wanted to post some pictures anyway. Birmingham is such a heavily wooded area, there is just no escaping the trees when an angry storm like this blows in. (Most of these pictures were taken on the same street about a quarter of a mile long but I could have gone on and on. The entire subdivision of Cahaba Heights looks like this. Also important to note: the photos were mostly taken by Brooks whose eye level is below the window :) . ) We are feeling even more lucky this morning.
