The Best Birthday Ever

And isn't that the way it should be? Birthdays are fun and special, days for doing things that one wouldn't normally do. And that's just what we did! Quinn had not only a birth day, but a birthday weekend.

On his birthday, I made him pancakes for breakfast. He was lucky that it was a Friday so that meant a half school day, plus it was the monthly free dress so no uniform. I picked the kids up at 12:30 PM and we headed to a birthday lunch with his best friend, Gabe and his mom and sister. It was Quinn's choice -- and he selected McDonalds' (no surprise). Liliana even brought a birthday cupcake cake (in the shape of a football...so cute) and we all had one after lunch. After lunch, we headed home to decorate Quinn's cake. The original idea for the cake was a football field (yes, he's pretty into football right now) but he changed his mind when we were shopping for the cake. He wanted a 'Gummy Bear City', complete with roads, Matchbox cars, candles as street lights (Grandma's idea) and of course gummy bears. It was his genesis as it always is, and I just execute his ideas. It came out pretty cute!After dinner, he opened a couple of presents from us (two books he has wanted) and he had already opened and built his gift from Keely (Lego Star Wars of course). Then we watched Star Wars Episode I. Yes, he's also WAY into Star Wars these days (one of the books was the Lego Star Wars Dictionary). As he was going to sleep, he declared it the best birthday ever but the fun was just about to begin.

Instead of having a birthday party, we decided to head up to Park City for an overnight extravaganza. We went to the Park City Mountain Resort and purchased day passes for their summer activities: the Alpine Coaster, Alpine Slide, rock climbing wall and bungy trampoline jumping. We had a blast and definitely got our money's worth...riding the coaster 3 times (4 for me and Quinn), the slide 3 times (4 for James and Keely), rock climbing 1-2 times each (except for James) and jumping (1 time for each Quinn and Keely). And we managed to sneak in some beer and appetizers at the restaurant right by the activities :) On the way down one time on the slide, Quinn shouted 'This is the best birthday ever!'.

We left PCMR when the activities closed (we were just about last ones down the coaster and slide) then checked into the hotel and headed to dinner. We ate at Main Street Pizza & Noodle. We've seen it but never eaten there, and it was pretty good. It was casual, laid back, and quick -- and the pizza was pretty good for Utah. After dinner, we headed back to the hotel for swimming. We finally crashed about 10:30 PM. The next morning we headed to Einstein Bagels for breakfast then let the kids play at the Main Street Park.

For the drive home, we decided to go over Guardsman's Pass. The fall leaves were spectacular. We stopped at Silver Lake on the Brighton side and walked the boardwalk to enjoy the views and

hoped to see some moose but no luck.

We arrived home about 1 PM....having had the fullest 24 hours ever! We were all exhausted but we had so much fun, and it will definitely be a birthday to be remembered forever! Well, until next year...but not sure how we will top this one :)

The Mighty Quinn

I have wanted to write up Quinn's birth story for some time. It is written in pieces in a journal I kept while pregnant with both kids but I wanted to type it up for posterity. So on his 9th birthday, I present his birth story. Here's hoping I still remember most of the details, but I'm sure I will get most of it. The births of our children are such a monumental event for us mothers and therefore forever ingrained in our memory.

Quinn was "due" on September 17, 2001. I put that in quotes because it was obviously not the day he was born although I fixated on it for 9 months. I should have just said sometime in September because then I wouldn't have been slightly depressed to see that day come and go with no baby in my arms. I had been having contractions and even gone into early labor at 35 weeks (I believe) and was already dilated to 1cm so I was sure I would have him early. No luck. I was born two weeks after my "due" date so I shouldn't have been surprised when he didn't come out "on time". I did everything I could to try and induce labor, but I'd have hours of contractions only to have them stop. I often wondered how I would know when I was really in labor because of all the false starts. I wished my water would break, because that was when I would know the baby was coming for sure. And that's what happened...eventually.

I would say my labor started on Friday. I awoke to contractions and really thought I was in labor. I went to the doctor first I think and then to the hospital. At the hospital we walked around the hallway about a million times. After a few hours, there was no progress. So they sent us home, no baby in my arms. I was slightly depressed. I really began to think he was never coming out (well, not really seriously but I just didn't want to be pregnant anymore).

After that false start, nothing happened until...Saturday, September 22nd we went to church at 5 PM then to dinner at Bogen's in Blacksburg. I wasn't really having any contractions that I can remember but I do remember tossing and turning that night. At around 6 AM, I awoke to pain and a gush of water. In my awakening state, I realized that my water had just broke! I was SO SO excited. I smacked James on the arm and told him "My water just broke!". Then I got up and changed...I called the doctor...waited for contractions to really start...took a shower and called my parents. We ended up going to the hospital about 9 AM. I was checked and was only about 2cm I believe. The contractions were getting pretty strong so I got some Stadol (sp?) to help and then rocked and walked my way through the contractions.
The drug helped a lot but then wore off and another dose (or another drug) didn't even cut the pain at all. My progress was minimal and I decided to get an epidural. I ended up getting that in place by about 3 PM - and they also gave me pitocin to progress the labor. I was much happier after that. It was heavenly, I could not feel anything and I could finally rest and relax while my body took over the work it needed to do. It did have some negatives though, I was freezing and I remember my teeth chattering with my shivers. I couldn't even eat ice chips without throwing up. By 9 PM, I was checked and declared ready to push. I remember saying we'd have him out by the 11 PM news. Well, I pushed and pushed...and pushed and pushed through each contraction. I was a good pusher, but he was just not in the right position. I had a midwife with me the whole time. She was wonderfully supportive. But after about 2-2.5 hours, she was on the phone with the doctor. She knew it wasn't working, I knew it wasn't working. The doctor came in and tried to help Quinn move into the right position. His head was up and to the right instead of tucked to his chest. The doctor tried for maybe 1/2 hour to get him positioned. It didn't work. The vacuum and forceps were discussed briefly but dismissed. And so it was decided that I was to have a C-Section. What I remember most was the doctor and midwife being afraid to tell me that this was the result. I didn't care at this point, I had been in labor for almost 18 hours and I just wanted the baby out and healthy. Once it was decided, things moved pretty quickly. They called in an anesthetic team (remember, it's now midnight in a rural Southwestern Virginia hospital) and prepped an operating room. They also pumped up my epidural and gave me some medicine to stop my contractions. I don't remember much of the C-Section itself except the tugging and pulling. Then the doctor pulled him out and declared "He is a BIG boy!". And he was indeed, weighing in at 9 lbs, 6.5 oz! So there were two reasons I couldn't push him out, he was huge and in the wrong position. James went with Quinn while I was sewed up and sent to recovery. He was born at 1 AM and I was back in the room by 2 AM. Pretty good considering I had just had major surgery. He was so awake and alert. And so that is how he came to be born...most certainly proving to be like the song in which his name is sung, The Mighty Quinn.

Quinn Patrick Donovan
Born September 24, 2001 at 1 AM
9 lbs, 6.5 oz
21.5" long

All School Mass

Being that the kids attend Catholic school, they attend weekly masses. Both of their grades attend on Tuesdays. Once a month though the whole school attends Mass on a Wednesday. Today was the first of the year. This one also coincided with Grandparent's Day, an annual event that Nana attended a couple of years ago. This year the kids did not have any grandparents in attendance (although they had many surrogate grandparents there to keep them company, more on that later). Each All School Mass is hosted by one or two grades and this one was hosted by 1st and 3rd grades. Coincidentally, the grades that Quinn and Keely are in this year. Hosting means that the readings and Prayer of the Faithful are done by students in those grades. The names are chosen randomly and picked about a week ahead of time so that they can prepare. Well, both kids got speaking parts in this Mass. Being that I am now primarily working from home, I had the privilege of attending to hear them firsthand. Quinn was first up, doing the middle part of the 1st reading. He did such a great job, didn't speak too quickly and sounded so mature up on the Altar. Keely had a part of the Prayer of the Faithful and she was literally beaming with excitement as she made her way up on the Altar with the other children. She nailed her 2 lines and proudly raised her hand to the Congregation when she said "We pray to the Lord". They both did great and I am proud of them...that church was full and it's not an easy task to get up and speak clearly and loudly in front of that many people.

While I was in the Church surrounded by people I know (including those surrogate grandparents I mentioned), I started to think about how much I love this Church and School. This is our 4th year in the school and it is such a great community. Each year, I love it more. I am almost brought to tears thinking about how proud I am that my kids get to be a part of such a wonderful caring community. It takes a village to raise a child, and that village is Blessed Sacrament Church and School. It has given us such a sense of belonging in Utah. It makes me sad to think that my kids won't go all the way to 8th grade in this school. I just wish we could pick it up and take it with us wherever we go. For now though, as long as we are in Utah our kids will go nowhere else!

Busy, Busy, Busy

A couple of years ago, I purchased a wall calendar from Pottery Barn to keep track of what then seemed like a lot of activities, school events, family visits, etc. I improved my system over these years by using different color markers. I love this tool. I am such an anal planner and without this system, I know something would slip through the cracks. If I thought that calendar was packed then, I had no idea what it would look like now.

As we embark into September, I wrote out the monthly calendar. It's already busy with soccer for both kids -- practices on different days, and two games on Saturdays. But did I mention we volunteered to coach Flag Football?!?! Yeah, they were short and Quinn was so excited to play that I didn't want his bubble burst and money returned. So James is the official coach now of Team #10, the Saints. With that addition, the weeks look something like this:

Monday: Flag Football at either 5:30 PM or 6:30 PM
Tuesday: Quinn Soccer Practice
Wednesday: Keely Soccer Practice at 4:30 PM, Flag Football at 5:30 or 6:30 PM
Saturdays: Two Soccer Games

So that leaves Thursday as the only open night of the school week. And I guess the only night I can cook dinner during the week. Not to mention what will become my non-existent gym schedule. Hopefully the saving grace there will be more working from home that will allow me to work out at non-traditional (for me) times. So now you can see why I can feel the school year already flying by...we're busy, busy, busy!

Book Reviews: Summer Catch Up

My good friend Linda reminded me that I am not up to date on my book reviews. I think there are two books I have yet to write about, 'The 19th Wife' and 'The Kids are All Right'.

So here goes:

The 19th Wife was a given to me by my mother-in-law. I think she should suggest books for me more often because I always like what she passes my way. She knew I would like this book because as you know, we live in Utah. Mormon Utah. This book is 'Under the Banner of Heaven'-ish. If you haven't read that one yet, I highly recommend it as well. This was in the same vain. It used the historic story of Brigham Young's 19th Wife, Ann Eliza Young and her effort to end polygamy in early Mormon times, and contrasted it with a modern day (albeit fictional) story of a 19th wife who was accused of killing her polygamous husband in a Southern Utah compound. That place does actually exist, and this story loosely fit in the FBI capturing of the 'Prophet' of what they call Mesadale (actually called Colorado City I believe) which is similar to the capture of Warren Jeffs a couple of years ago. It was a long book but really good. It switches back and forth between old and current times. Sometimes I wished they would stick with one story a little longer, or one a little shorter, because when it picked up on the other story again I found I had to remember what happened last. It doesn't help that I am not reading it consistently either. I did feel the length was a little much too. But when you are trying to fully develop two stories for the reader, I am not sure you can do it in much less than 600 pages. I do recommend this one, but if you are interested in learning about the LDS faith then I would start with the aforementioned 'Under the Banner of Heaven' by Jon Krakauer.

Next:
The Kids are All Right. It is funny how I happened on this book. I saw movie previews for a film with the same name. I noticed 4 people in it laughing around a dinner table. Then I was reading Self Magazine while getting a pedicure and there was a little blurb about this book about 4 kids who are orphaned. I wrongly assumed that the movie was based upon the book and decided to read it. When I finished, I discovered that the movie was not at all based upon this book and about something entirely different. Funny, huh? I am not sorry I read the book though. It was good. It is the story of 4 siblings who lose their father (in a tragic car accident) then their mother (to cancer) in the course of a few years. They are orphaned when they are between the ages of 6-17 (if I recall correctly) and then are split up to live with different people. It is told from each of their perspectives because they all remember things differently. The worst off was the youngest, Diana who got sent to live with this seemingly perfect family who treated her very poorly (mentally, not physically). I was glad to see that she turned out to be a well adjusted young adult (I think she's about 35 now). In fact they all turned out fine, thus the title of the book. It was a good quick read (compared to my other 600 pagers) and I recommend it.

Next up are The Shack and The Red Tent. Our September Book Club selection is Eat Pray Love which I read a few years back. So I'm on to other reads :)