Three Wishes

Every year the kids make Leprechaun traps hoping to catch a Leprechaun. This year I asked them what they will wish for if they DO catch one....


Shailey:

1) I-Phone with free unlimited Internet access

2) Gerard Butler (lead in Phantom of the Opera film) would live in Tokyo and hang out with me

3) Infinite amount of currency so all my family and friends could live here with us in Tokyo

Emma:

1) A million dollars

2) 5 more Webkins

3) A dog that I never had to feed or pick up his poop and he would be my very own dog and his name would be Sakura

Jonas:

1) Chocolate coins

2) A leprechaun costume

3) Real superhero powers

We Love TRAVIS

Just after Valentine's Day, Glenn surprised me with tickets to see TRAVIS in concert in Tokyo. We have recently discovered we LOVE this Scottish band... every single song is awesome: My Eyes, Side, Sing, Closer, Ode to J.Smith, Selfish Jean...the list goes on and on.

Francis Healy was born in 1973, one year younger than us... he is our age and living his dream, lucky guy. Travis sound similar to "Cold Play"... but better (sorry Chris). Chris Martin credits his style to Travis and calls himself a "poor man's Francis Healy". Travis played with energy and personality... gotta love the Scottish accent :). What surprised me the most was how many times the band changed instruments....just goes to show how truly musical they are. Outstanding concert.
At the end of the concert, the band unplugged everything, including the microphones and just sang acoustic... it rocked. Their voices blend in perfect harmony.(my "Rock ON" face... what other face do you make at a concert? Cheesy?? :)

Alive at Five

Happy 5th birthday Jonas! Today we celebrate the day you were born on this VERY SPOT... our hard wood entry way without doctors or drugs. Five years ago, you decided you were coming out whether we were ready or not. This personality trait has only progressed since then; climb, jump, leap, or fly into the air we better be ready to catch you. At 5 we say we are thankful you are still alive! A wish or a prayer, its all the same.

5 things we LOVE about Jonas:

1) he is extremely kind

2) he is a fantastic cleaner

3) he is determined

4) he is smart

5) he is the only REAL SUPER HERO we know!

At Last

We waited 12 years for Shailey to become "babysitting material"... and we made it! This past year Shailey has really matured into a beautiful and responsible young lady. She is definitely capable of not only watching Emma and Jonas, but also cooking, cleaning, bathing, playing, and putting them to bed too. We are lucky parents! She is definitely in the "pre-teen/wannabe teenager" phase. I think I share her CRUSH on David Archuleta :).

12 Reasons we LOVE Shailey:

1) she is fun

2) she is smart

3) she is a leader

4) she is musical

5) she is creative

6) she has a great laugh and sense of humor (she was born with a terrific sense of humor... a sign of intelligence :)

7) she has a testimony and knows what she believes

8) she is a chatterbox and always wants to share stories with us

9) she is photogenic

10) she is a reader

11) she is athletic

12) she is old enough to babysit!

Happy Birthday Shaleilah!

We Get Your Point

Emma was going outside to play in the snow and I told her to put her gloves on. She fussed and fussed about how tight the fingers were, so I dug up a pair of mittens instead. Soon I hear her practically swearing at the mittens as she chucks them on the floor. I ask her what is wrong with the mittens?

In all sincerity, she shouts at me, "What if I have to POINT?"

Huh?

I told her she will just point with her mittened hand.

She replies, "look at my hand, can you even tell I am pointing????!!!"

Okay, I get your point, but really, when you are out sledding, how much "pointing" is involved?

One Man's Junk, Another Man's Treasure

Because of my injury, my Dad, Emma, Jonas, and I had been "home bound" for so long, we got antsy and decided to take a road trip to Atlanta, Georgia to visit my sister Michelle and her hubby Dallin.

We had a great time... shopped at local antique stores, ate great "southern" BBQ ribs, walked the labyrinth on her property, had an evening campfire in the secret garden, rode around in her jeep, watched old movies, took naps, and ate Michelle's delicious crepes.

But I think my highlight was when we hiked around an old farm house on her property and picked up two abandoned antiques: an F.A. Whitney baby buggy circa 1900 and a BMG Tractor Junior circa 1900.

Michelle kept the tractor and I kept the buggy... I have always wanted one. I plan to restore it and fill it with dolls.... this may be my summer project.

Oldies but goodies!

Like Grandfather, Like Grandson

Jonas was with Grandad 24/7 for 7 weeks. The longer these two were together, the more I saw Jonas pick up my Dad's mannerisms:




1) I was looking for my Dad, heard his whistle, and followed it.... my Dad is always whistling. To my surprise, the whistle did not lead me to my Dad, it lead me to Jonas. I didn't even know Jonas could whistle!




2) Jonas was wearing a green sweatshirt. Next thing I know, he is on the couch with my Dad wearing a red flannel shirt instead. I asked Jonas why he changed clothes and he said "Cause I'm with Grandad and we are watching a cowboy show."





3) At Michelle's, we rode in the back of her little Jeep on the rough terrain of her property. While Jonas rode in the back with the "boys", he poked his head into the front cab and with a huge grin, he sighed, "this is my kind of heaven".... something my Dad says all the time!




They say that "imitation is the sincerest form of flattery"... it must be true.

Good Times in Georgia

My Achilles Heel

An "Achilles’ heel" is a person's fatal weakness in spite of their overall strength that eventually causes their downfall.

Apparently my ACHILLES HEEL is Shailey's Heelys. I fell while on a run in Tokyo just before Christmas and landed on my shoulder. When we got to the states, my shoulder was still in "healing" mode. Shailey and I went to the mall to buy HEELYS for her birthday. I insisted she wear them while we shopped. She fell several times, each time taking my arm with her. That was a big mistake. By that evening I was in the worst pain of my life. Later, an MRI proved what we suspected: I tore my rotator cuff.

This is by far the most painful and horrible experience of my life. This statement is coming from a person who has caught on fire and burned her knuckles to the bone; a torn rotator cuff is WORSE. This same person also accidentally birthed her son on the entry way floor, without pain killers and doctors; and still a torn rotator cuff is WORSE. Tearing my rotator cuff caused me constant excruciating pain that radiated throughout my entire body, not just my shoulder. I could not lay down in a bed, I could not sit in a soft chair, nor could I sit in a hard chair for more than a few minutes, and standing hurt too. I quickly figured out that the only position that I could remain in for any length of time was at a 45 degree angle in a recliner chair. So Glenn and my brother-in-law, Greg, brought the recliner downstairs (the same chair I have tried to get rid of for a few years and Glenn insisted we keep... boy was I singing his praises that we kept the chair, it was my saving grace).

THE MRI

I have a gripe here. What is the dealio with modern technology and the MRI? I could not lay down because the "flat" position pulled my shoulder too much and caused me intense excruciating pain, so when the MRI technician told me I would have to lay on a hard, flat surface without flinching for 30 minutes, I cried. I had NO idea that MRIs took this long. I anticipated it would take approximately 30 seconds, NOT 30 MINUTES. I also have claustrophobia, so being in a tube where the tip of my nose almost brushes the top of the tube is pain enough mentally.

The technician told me I could listen to music to keep my mind off of the pain and off of my claustrophobia. I told him I preferred my husband read to me. He allowed Glenn in the room to read, but as soon as he started reading, we heard a very loud THUMP THUMP THUMP. What was that?! Glenn continued reading until we heard another loud THUMP THUMP, pause pause pause, THUMP THUMP THUMP THUMP THUMP THUMP, pause, THUMP THUMP, sound. I hollered. The technician came back in. He apologized for the incredibly loud noise and suggested I listen to music instead... not that it mattered... who can hear anything over a loud THUMP THUMP THUMP noise. I decided, this is what it would be like to be a mouse living on the inside of a heavy metal drum set.

I laid there feeling incredibly angry and frustrated with technology. I cannot believe that we are living in the 21st century and no one has figured out how to A) make this a MUCH SHORTER experience and B) get rid of the THUMP THUMP noise! Seriously people. From Tokyo, I can talk to my family in California for free, face to face through a live feed on the computer, and yet we have this archaic and completely barbaric MRI procedure. Something is seriously wrong with this picture. I think our tax dollars are going into the wrong bucket. (I hear the same can be said about Mammograms, but I have yet to experience that).

Anyhow, during the MRI my pain was absolutely awful, the thump noise was pounding my brain out, and in the close quarters I started to have a panic attack. I decided to pray and pleaded with my Heavenly Father to help me get though this experience. I knew I could not do it alone. All at once, a beautiful and peaceful calming sensation covered me like a warm blanket. I actually started to feel cozy in the tube. I still heard the THUMP sound, but it sounded more distant. I truly felt the power of God helping to take my mind to another place and relax me to where I could hardly feel my pain.

As soon as the MRI was over my pain came back in a rush, but I did not complain. I was so overwhelmingly grateful that Heavenly Father took my pain away enough to get me through the MRI.

The good news? I made it through the MRI.

The bad news? I had a "high tear" in my rotator cuff that would require the careful watch of a surgeon for 7 weeks to decide if surgery was necessary.

I thought I was unstoppable.... go go go Tracey; Heelys were my Achilles Heel.

I'm So Glad When Daddy Comes Home

After much deliberation, we decided that Glenn would return to Tokyo with Shailey and I would remain in Indiana with Emma and Jonas. Not knowing how I could be injured and take care of Emma and Jonas too, Glenn surprised me with "I just got off the phone with your Dad, he will be flying in tomorrow night!"

I love Glenn. I love my Dad. I love that Glenn knew my Dad would help me without any hesitation. My Dad stayed with us for 7 weeks. He took me to all of my doctor appointments. He combed my hair into a pony tail every day. He cleaned and cooked. He entertained Emma and Jonas. He helped me put on my immobilizer brace and even helped me hook my bra.

Most of my friends said A) their Dad would never come and B) if he did come, he would not be helpful.

Wow, I am a lucky daughter. There is no doubt I have the absolute best Dad in the world. He is truly special. I love spending time with him. We always have stuff to talk about from politics to solutions for restless leg syndrome (aka the tinglies). We both LOVE antiques and during our time together we got a little too hooked on Ebay, hunting for great antique finds (sorry Mom). When I started feeling better we hit a few antique shops together. He is also a project guy, so he fixes anything and everything. This trip he replaced all of my ripped screens (thank you Jonas) as well as re-caulked my bathrooms, fixed my towel racks, repaired my outside light post, patched up my ceiling leak, and snow-plowed my driveway. He is very easy to please and never is put off by another Steak and Shake or McDonalds dinner, which made it easy for me since I couldn't cook. We have the same sense of humor in TV shows... Seinfeld rules. This trip we watched THE OFFICE every night after we put the kids to bed. Over the 7 weeks we got through all 4 seasons...TV junkies, ha!

Dad, I love you. I am so glad when Daddy comes home.

Extended Stay America

So Let it be Written

I found a note that Jonas wrote during our "extended stay" in Indiana.... so cute!

10 Cent Lottery

This is one of my favorite "Calvin and Hobbes" comic strips:

Calivn: It snowed last night! Turn on the radio! Maybe they closed school! Maybe the school buses are all froze up? Maybe the principal can't get out of his driveway!

Mom: Get dressed Calvin, it only snowed an inch.

Calvin: Getting an inch of snow is like winning ten cents in the lottery.

Since Emma and Jonas were stuck in Indiana with me for 7 weeks, I home-schooled them. The worst part of home-school is that their friends were in regular school, so they were not around to play. Emma and Jonas kept hoping for a "snow day" so school would be cancelled and they could go sledding with friends.

One day, Emma and Jonas woke up screaming with JOY because they saw that it had snowed... only to go outside and find out it was less than ONE INCH. An inch of snow is like winning 10 cents in the lottery.

( this did not stop Jonas from scooping up and eating the grassy snow :) and eventually we did get a TON of snow... one night it snowed 12 inches)

Extended Stay America

Not Sleeping Beauty

Sleeping on a recliner chair for 7 weeks was not the greatest sleep in world... in fact it stinks. I was happy when my doctor "upped" my drugs so that the pain would go away enough for me to actually sleep. I only slept in 3 hour increments because the at that point the medication wore off and the pain would jolt me out of a dead sleep. I was exhausted 24 hours a day.

At night, I laid on the recliner to watch "The Office" with my Dad. When it was over, my Dad turned off the TV and as he headed upstairs, I would say "uh, could you please shut my door on your way out"..... it always made him pause and that made me laugh because I was in our living room and there was no "door". You gotta have a sense of humor :).

Before Shailey went back to Tokyo, I asked her to braid my hair. After fixing my hair, she laughed and said, "Mom, I want to take a picture of you". I knew that was not a good sign. When she stopped laughing, she offered to "re-do" them. It may be the first time she has ever done my hair, and probably not the last :).

I lived the life of an OLD LADY: I slept on a recliner with a patchwork quilt, I wore a shawl to keep me warm (since I could not put my arms into a jacket), I watched late night TV when I could not sleep, and my purse held more PILLS than lipstick. I was the little old lady from Indiana.

"Go granny, go granny, go granny go!"

Miki House Day 1

Jonas had a 2 day modeling job in Odaiba Bay for Miki House, a Japanese children's clothing line similar to "Gymboree" in the U.S.


Jonas is such a wiggle worm, I worried that his constant movement would frustrate the director, Yamamoto Sho, but he seemed to like Jonas' carefree/wild child ways. To date, this has been my absolute favorite director to work with. First of all, he was SO GOOD with the children... extremely kind and patient. And secondly, he saw that I was taking a lot of pictures, so every now and then he would stop production and tell me in Japanese he wanted to take our picture with my camera so I could have picture of Jonas and I together. "Mama San.... something, something" and then he'd pose us. WOW. He was fabulous!

This is the directer laughing on the ground... he pretended that the children knocked him down with the sailboat!

To direct 5 squirmy children, you have to be fabulous!

Jonas loves getting his hair fixed... NOT. After the shoot I realized his hair was waaaay toooo long.

At the beach we got to eat whatever we wanted from this snack shack. I really loved their CRAM CHOWDER...ha ha ha! It was a super fun day.