little bits of luallen life

On Tuesday, six kids and four adults made the 1.5 hour trip to the closest pediatric dentist. (We all went together since it was such a trip to get there.) The kids had tons of fun playing together and eating yummy Chick-Fil-A but at least my two didn't love the dentist so much. They loved getting there, playing in the waiting room, talking about the dentist brushing their teeth and even picking out their new toothbrushes at the station.
But, when it actually came to getting in the chair, it was all screams and crying! Emma cracked me up before the "torture" began. When the hygienist asked them who wanted to go first, Emma responded politely, "Joshua!" Since Jeremy was at home I left one kid at the end of the chair crying while holding the other one down to put them in the chair. Then I flip-flopped who was crying in the chair and who was crying on the floor at the end of the chair. They only brushed and flossed their teeth! No instruments! The chair was the scary part for them! The hygienists laughed at me as I was snapping pictures of my children crying in the chair while getting their teeth brushed. Joshua at least would wear the sunglasses but Emma just hit them off when they tried to put them on her. So, here are the pictures of them crying in the chair...

In this one you can actually see my hands holding Emma's hands. This was not because she wanted me too, because she didn't! This was because I was having to hold them down so she would not hit the hygienist's hands away! Another reason the ladies were laughing at me while taking pictures!
Here are all the kiddos with nice clean teeth!!
The next couple are the kids playing outside while a couple mommas are finishing checking out inside. I thought they were cute so I threw them in!
Hopefully in six months we will once again walk away with a good report but without the crying!!

Madison showed her pig, LT in the local livestock show this past Monday. This was her first year and she did a great job! Her pig was a little stubborn and wouldn't move much so Madison stayed composed in the ring and just kept nudging him. She did a great job and ended up in third place! We are very proud of her and her accomplishments this year with taking care of LT. (Last year her pig died just after Christmas so she never got to show.) She was very pleased with herself this year! Here are some pictures of the day!


She already is excited about next year! I can't wait to see the growth from year to year. This year I could tell she had grown tremendously with the thought that in the end her pig was going to the butcher's once the show was over. After the show on Monday, Terry (another houseparent who is in charge of the pig program) was going to take LT to his house until today when LT had an appointment to be sold to the butcher. Madison said that she would prefer to continue to feed and care for LT until today. Yesterday she said her goodbyes and I think she was sad and glad all at the same.

Our sweet girl, we are so proud of everything you have accomplished this year with taking care of LT. We are excited to see you grow and mature in all aspects of your life! We love you!!

One of our boys was doing the dishes the other night and decided to make pictures in the dishwater by blowing the bubbles. He was cracking me up because he was having a blast with it! Then he asked me to take pictures of his artwork for him. Here are the final results (some are more clear than others)....

We have a smiley face...a flower...and some flames...Even though there is so much that we cannot share with you on the blog due to confidentiality, this is something that shows you the boys we minister to really do desire to be 'normal'. They desire to be loved just like all of us and I am thankful that while they are in our lives, we can try our hardest to show them Christ so they will know they are loved, safe and welcome here at Westview. Sometimes that means laughing with them at bubble art in dishwater!

Lately the kids have figured out a game to play with Joe (he's 11!!). When they blow bubbles, he will jump all around the kitchen and bite the bubbles. It is hysterical and they love it!

The other night Joe danced around the kitchen floor chasing bubbles for about an hour! We finally had to put the kids to bed or they would have all played for much longer. It is lots of fun to watch!

Also, thank you for your prayers for Jeremy's Grandma. She is doing better. She had a super bad case of inner ear imbalance. They have given her medication for it and it seems to be helping. Thank you again for your prayers!

Please pray for Jeremy's Grandma. She was taken to the hospital in the middle of the night. She is dehydrated, dizzy and has a UTI. They think she might have had a stroke but not sure about that. She went to the ER last week for a hernia and the surgeon told her he would do the surgery but he wanted her to have a full heart workup first. Please keep her in your prayers as you go through your day.