Huane Society

The last couple of weeks Alma And I have started to volunteer at the Humane Society.  It has been a great experience. We are learning compassion for the cats and tolerance with humans.  We are only allowed to work with the cats because we haven't done mentoring for the dogs or rabbits yet. 

We also have been fostering puppies. Our first attempt to foster was seven week old puppies. They were so cute! There mother was hit by a car so the puppies were brought to the Humane Society. I nicknamed them the seven dwarfs. sadly after a few days of them being here I was so sick. They required a lot of care around the clock. The lack of sleep was not good for me.  The formula I was feeding them also wasn't good for me. My hands and arms started to rash. After four days, with tears in my eyes, I had to transfer the seven dwarfs to another foster family.

Now we are fostering Gwen. She is a tiny puppy chihuahua. She was a transfer from California. When she came to the Humane Society er name was Arwen. Alma and I didnt feel like that was a fitting name for such a cute puppy so we switchd it to Gwen. She is in foster because she had a condition called Cherry Eye. They did surgery and fixed it but she needs time to rest and heal.  Gwen is a total sweetheart. She loves to be right by my side.  I pray that when the time comes for her to go up for adoption she will find a home quickly. I don't want her stuck in the Humane Society long. 

GOOD-BYE GRANDPA

Today a great man passed away. My grandpa MacDonald passed away peacefully a little after noon. He played a great role in shaping my life. Travis and I would spend weekends with him often. He would take us to church with him. He arranged for the missionaries to teach me. When I was baptized he had a luncheon at his apartment. Later in life he would come visit me at work. I owe alot to him. He will be greatly missed.

THANKFUL DAY 21

I'm thankful for a son who enjoys books. He loves to read. He enjoys electronics as well but  more times he chooses books

THANKFUL DAY 19

We have missed a couple of days. We are all thankful for adoption, for birth parents that think about what is best for the baby and for baby Ben. Ben is so sweet.

THANKFUL DAY 16

ALMA:the earth
JEREMY: the time I got to  spend with my dad when he was alive.
VIVIAN: membership passes to go swimming

THANKFUL DAY 14 & 15

DAY 14
ALMA: veterans
JEREMY: math
VIVIAN: library programs for kids

DAY 15
ALMA: inventions
JEREMY: computers to do math for me
VIVIAN: money to go buy food and Christmas gifts

THANKFUL DAY 12 &13

Day 13

ALMA:  Harmons pumpkin chocolate chip cookies
JEREMY: good times with in-laws
VIVIAN:  dairy free cookies that can be bought at a store

Day 14

ALMA:  that my parents love me
JEREMY: the wonders of medical imaging
VIVIAN: that Jeremy has a heart that functions "normally" despite all its defects

THANKFUL DAY 11

Today we went to watch the girls in their primary program.  As I was sitting there I thought I better write down what Alma told me a couple of weeks ago. He said during his primary program he felt like crying during some of  the songs.  We talked about the spirit and that it was telling him what he was singing was true.

Thankful for.............
ALMA: veterans
JEREMY: long Sunday naps
VIVIAN: freedom to worship the way I feel is right

THANKFUL DAYS 9 AND 10

9th
ALMA: the snow because we need the moisture
JEREMY: tire technology and traction
VIVIAN: great conversation

10th
ALMA: warm blankets
JEREMY: the exercise shoveling snow gives you
VIVIAN: movie screenings and theaters that don't make you wait in the snow

THANKFUL DAY 8

Alma: for park day
Jeremy: for the dogs
Vivian: for good friends

GOOD-BYE 20's HELLO 30's

Today is my last day in my 20's.  I thought I would sit down and see where my life is compared to what I wanted over the last thirty years. So listed in no particullar order are things I thought I wanted as I was growing up. Some are single memories and others are just general ideas I had.

MEMORY:
When I was a preteen/early teen I was sitting on my bed holding a McDonalds toy. It was a little Barbie standing on a base. She had an Olympic medal around her neck and as all Barbies do, long blonde hair. At that time I thought I would love to be an Olympian in track. I wanted to be a sprinter. (Later in Jr. High when I tried out for Track I found out I can't sprint, I'm a long distance runner.) 

TODAY:
I despise running, I have no idea what I was thinking. I do have LONG blonde hair. 

FEELINGS ABOUT THE TURN OUT:
I'm  really happy that I have long hair. I'm fine that I never became a great runner. I still value good health and exercise. I can still wear my senior prom dress and my wedding dress so I must still be in good shape.

MEMORY:
I was in my mid teens driving down 2700W going southbound in front of Bennion Jr. High. I remember thinking that someday I would be driving a Jeep Cherokee with two kids ion the back seat, a boy and a girl.

TODAY:
I drive a Dodge Charger and have one kid in the backseat, a boy.

FEELINGS ABOUT THE TURN OUT:
I'm COMPLETELY fine with how this turned out. My Charger is way cooler than a Cherokee. I love my son. We have fun just the two of us during the day, and the three of us at night.

MEMORY:
In seminary we had to write about what we wanted ( personality and physical) in our future spouse.
I wanted a guy who was at least 6'2'' with dark thick hair. He needed to be devoted to his family. A worthy priesthood holder. Have a good sense or humor, and care about his body ( that means a six pack) I know I wrote more but they must not have mattered because I can't remember them.

TODAY:
My husband is 5'6'' and what hair he has left is blonde. He wants to exercise but finding time is tough because he loves spending time with his family and doesn't want to leave my side at night. He supports Alma and me by not eating dairy. He has nice abs:). He is always ready and willing to help with priesthood blessings. He is teaching Alma how to treat a woman. They fight over who gets to open my door or serve me in anyway. 

FEELINGS ABOUT THE TURN OUT:
I'm very happy in my decision of who to marry. I didn't get my tall guy to lean against but Jeremy does pretty good at holding me up. He is totally devoted to taking care of his family. 

MEMORY: 
When Jeremy and I got married we talked about how many kids we wanted. We said four but felt like it might be five. I also wanted to be done having by the time I was thirty.When we bought our house we chose one that would have enough room for all our kids.

TODAY:
We have one kid and no chance of having more. I have five dogs, who knew we where talking about dogs.We still live in the house we bought thinking we would have lots of kids.

FEELINGS ABOUT THE TURN OUT:
As I mentioned before I'm happy having one kid. We get to do a lot of fun things as a family. I will be 39 when he is old enough to go on his mission. I will still be quite young. I also love my dogs very much. I often complain about wanting to move but when I look at other houses I see that we have done a lot to our house to make it our home.

MEMORY:
I was going to be super involved with school. I would go on every field trip and help out at every class party.

TODAY:
I homeschool so I'm REALLY involved. We go on many field trips.

FEELINGS ABOUT THE TURN OUT:
I enjoy homeschooling Alma, most of the time. It is fun to watch him learn new things and get excited about things. It is fun going on all the different field trips. 

MEMORY:
Since I was little I wanted to be in the medical field. It ranged from a vet to an ER doctor to a oncologist.  

TODAY:
I am a "nurse", a "taxi driver", a teacher, a cook, and a maid.

FEELINGS ABOUT THE TURN OUT:
I feel very blessed to have so many jobs. I get "paid" way more than I ever would've as a doctor. There are times that I think how my life would be different  if I chose the path of a doctor instead of a stay at home mom.  I know I would have touched the life of many people but I feel that I will touch the life of many more people by raising a son who is a good citizen, who loves the lord and his fellow man. 

So taking a close look at my life it didn't turn out the way I thought it would but I'm happy with it. I can say good-bye to my 20's with a smile on my face. To my 30's I say "Bring it on." 

THANKFUL DAY 7

ALMA: for learning about the skin
JEREMY: Stable job with plenty work to do and overtime for the holidays
VIVIAN: For a husband that will make cookie dough even though he is tired.

THANKFUL DAY 6

Today was the presidential election.

Alma: for family

Jeremy:  Grateful that Alma is interested in the future of the country.

Vivian: The opportunity to sit with my family and watch the election results come in. To teach my son about pride in your country and the responsibility to voice your opinion.

THANKFUL DAYS 3,4, AND 5

Life is busy, we forgot to blog the last few days so we are catching up tonight.

ALMA:
Day 3- for inventions
Day4- for getting my printy, Rose. She is a dolphin.
Day 5- for ballet

JEREMY:
Day 3- for music
Day 4- testimony
Day 5- healthcare, little healthy girls

VIVIAN:
Day 3- Jeremy being home with us
Day 4 - A day of relaxation
Day 5- The ability to be there for Kayla and make sure she is the healthiest she can be.

THANKFUL DAY 2

Jeremy- the right to vote, early
Alma- life, that is everything food,water, shelter
Me- to sit around the fire pit with family

THANKFUL DAY 1

For the month of November I'm going to post everyday what I'm thankful for.  Today I'm thankful that we had money to buy extra food to add to our food storage.

ALMA- The  dogs
JEREMY-The strength to support my family

Just another update

Not much has happened since my last post. Life is moving forward as normal. This past weekend we went to a preview of Frankenweenie on Thursday, the drive-ins to see Hotel Transylvania and ParaNorman on Friday, Utah Natural History Museum on Saturday, and Lagoon Frightmares on Sunday. Yesterday Alma went into the orthodontist to get his first adjustment. He is soar today.

I was ready to kill Jeremy at frightmares. We went into a haunted house, The Backlot. I saw a guy with a chain saw behind plexy glass. I went to point him out to Jeremy and the guy was gone. Then we smelt the chair saw and noticed he was in the room with us. I FREAKED and started to run, but I wasn't going anywhere very fast. Jeremy was holding my waist! As soon as he let me go I was gone. So to get him back throughout the rest of the haunted house I would tell everyone "I'm not the scared one, he is." So they would follow him around and breathe down his neck. At the very end of the haunted house there was ANOTHER CHAIN SAW GUY! We where walking cross a narrow bridge/ hallway. The evil guy showed up at the end on the hallway. It scared me so bad, I had no place to run. I screamed a bloodcurdling cry and froze. I think I scared the guy because he just backed up and let me pass. If you can't tell I'm terrified of chain saws. Nothing else scares me in haunted houses.

GOOD SAMARITAN

On Saturday we were turning into the subdivision and I was looking out the window as I always do. I saw a man walking toward 4000W with a towel around his leg and blood running down his shin. I asked Jeremy if he saw the guy. We quickly turned around and went to see if the guy needed help. He was walking in the street, (I think he was hoping someone would stop to help.) so we pulled right up next to him. I rolled down my window and asked if he needed a ride to Instacare (less than a mile away).  He said yes with a look of relief in his eye. He looked and sounded like he was going to pass out soon.  Jeremy grabbed the blanket from the trunk and through it on the back seat. The guy was very cautious and concerned about getting blood on the car. ( I never saw any)  On the short drive we found out he was hanging picture frames and fell on a four inch piece of glass and that it was stuck in his knee, he couldn't pull it out. The guy also said if he had money with him he would pay us for gas. We said it was no problem, we were happy to help.

After the guy got out of the car Alma started to cry, saying "That was hard." We talked with him and said we understand it was hard but at the same time if it was Daddy he would want someone to help him. After our talk Alma was doing better. It isn't like it is the first time we have stopped to help people, we do it often. However, it was the first time we helped someone that was injured with Alma in the car. Less than a week after Jeremy and I were married we say a horrible accident on the freeway that we stopped to help, I was still a licensed EMT at that time. That is a story for another time. 

The experience on Saturday got me thinking it is hard at times to know what is right. I was thinking did I scar my son? was helping that man worth it? I say "YES! It was worth helping the man." I couldn't in good conscienceness driven past that man. I would always wonder what happened to him, I still wonder if he is ok. I think Alma is fine, no scarring.

I  won't stop ( I won't say never because there might be that special case) to help people if I'm by myself or with Alma still young. Once Alma is older I will stop. And if I'm with Jeremy we stop often.

I posted this on Facebook to see if other people would've done the same thing and here are the responses got·

1. • 

     Sonne Bailey Koeller I think it's great you stopped and helped this man, in time your son will realize what a charitable thing you did, and it won't be so scary anymore.

     Sunday at 6:59pm via mobile · Like · 5
   • 

     Alyssa Thomas Rowley ^ I agre.

     Sunday at 7:24pm · Like
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     Chris Kofoed I agree with Sonne. That was a good thing to do.

     Sunday at 8:21pm · Like
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     Tennille Peterson Rodgers I saw you across the street as I was leaving my driveway and won

     Sunday at 8:31pm via mobile · Like
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     Tennille Peterson Rodgers wondered if everything was ok- I guarantee I would have done the same thing- with all of my kids! We have had times that people have needed our help while we have lived here- whether its a car accident, or someone who has to pull over because their child us throwing up- its always better to be available and show the world, and your kids that there are good people out there that will go out of their way to help others! I'm so glad you stopped to help him. Thank you! :)

     Sunday at 8:36pm via mobile · Edited · Like · 1
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     Kimberly Lynn Cherrine-Bell I would have helped the guy and so would William...I know their were a few times we did things that scared Leira similiar to this when she was younger...She does not feel like she was "scarred" I think she is greatful we showed her not to be in fear of helping others and even not having fear in other situations..She definitely sees it in other young Mormons how terrified they are of helping "less fortunates" or even going certain places becuase they are afraid of people "not just exactly like they are"....Only time we ever "gave in to her fears completely" was if she was persist over time...Two people in particular she wanted nothing to do with and we had to quit helping with a group of challenged young people because one of the boys was "attracted to her and would not leave her alone" It was becoming "terrifying" for her

     Sunday at 8:45pm · Like
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     Jenica Moyes Helmstetler I would have done the same thing. Alma will one day appreciate the fact that you helped someone in need and he got to witness this act of kindness.

     Sunday at 9:01pm via mobile · Like · 2
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     Jack MacDonald Vivian what you did was a act of kindness and you should never second guess wheather you should have stopped to help or drive on as so many people would have done. I am very proud of what you did and I thinkAlma will one day do the same thing if needed because you showed him how to be a charitable and kind person. NEVER SECOND GUESS YOURSELF GOD WILL REWARD YOU ,AGAIN I AM VERY PROUD OF YOU AND JEREMY.

     Sunday at 9:28pm · Like · 2
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     Rose McFarlane Chapman What a wonderful example of being a Good Samaritan

     Sunday at 9:48pm · Like · 2
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     Christie Kelson Bigham You absolutely did the right thing.

     Sunday at 9:53pm · Like · 1
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     Leigh Williams Grasteit ^ What they said! ^

     Sunday at 10:01pm · Like
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     Dianne Berry Asato You did the right thing. What a wonderful way to show him how to help someone in need. As for the trauma, he'll get over it. When ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.

     Sunday at 10:20pm · Like · 1
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     Bob Fullmer You did the right thing!

     21 hours ago · Like
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     Shellie Hill Bates I think in the end the more charitable you are the more charitable Alma will be. Mckay's mom is extremely service oriented and all of her kids are the same way. Even though he was scared you taught him a valuable lesson. Good job!

     21 hours ago via mobile · Like
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     Cindy Mac Donald Moss It is scary...but you did the right thing!!!

     18 hours ago via mobile · Like
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     Patty McBride Paulsen The kindness of strangers is what makes me have hope for humanity. You did a good thing, and I am very proud to know you. Love ya.

     16 hours ago · Like
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     Maureen Wood What you did was an act of Christlike service. I believe if he had been a danger you would have not offered him a ride. Way to listen to the still small voice. Alma will be fine and remember his parents giving service to others.

     16 hours ago · Like · 1

      

      SIDE NOTE: When I got home I put gloves and wiped the whole back seat with Clorox wipes and then throw the blanket in the washer on hot water, extra long cycle, and extra soap. No germs for us. It helped Alma and me feel better.