* Rusty was his usual charming self during our reunion trip. One evening, early in the week, Grandpa Brent said, “Hey, Dusty Rusty!” And what does Rusty do? He walked right over and kicked Grandpa Brent in the foot. (Thankfully, Grandpa thought it was funny and not terribly rude!)
* We spent the night in Pendleton, Oregon on our drive to Washington. Ricky and Billy were sharing a bed. Billy woke up in the middle of the night very upset. His problem? Ricky was snuggled right up next to him and he did NOT like it.
The next night we stayed at a hotel in Renton, Washington. The boys again shared a bed. They slept like rocks and I woke up the next morning to find this …
I guess Billy got used to Ricky’s snuggling.
* Tommy was a little off normal the entire vacation. He had excuses – the beginnings of a cold and new teeth and off his routine. He also had to spend a lot of time confined in a car seat. Tommy does not like to be confined. He’d last maybe 2 hours before he needed a bit of freedom. I feel bad that the family didn’t get to see the Tommy that giggles and plays nicely all day. Instead, they saw this Tommy …
* One of our pit stops on the drive to Washington was at a park. We got some lunch and the boys played on the toys and we picnicked. Billy had a bathroom emergency, so he and I hopped in the car to find a restroom, while Kevin stayed with the others. In the few moments Kevin’s back was turned, Ricky and Rusty ran to a different part of the playground and Tommy crawled along to follow. He crawled right onto a metal manhole. It was hot on his hands and he froze, trying to cry but had too much food in his mouth to make any noise.
At this exact same time, a school district vehicle pulled up to check on these random small children running around the playground. The man finally saw Kevin, who was saving the poor Tommy (he was fine – the manhole wasn’t that hot), and drove away. Kevin was a little flustered when Billy and I got back.
* Aunt Sheri liked asking Rusty if they were friends. His answer all week long was a very resolute, “NO!” or “No friends!” All. Week. Long.
* As we were leaving Boise on our way to Washington, a state trooper decided to move from his sunny spot in the median to a shady spot under a bridge. Unfortunately for us, he way over shot his u-turn directly in front of us. How we escaped a nasty accident as we were fishtailing and skidding to miss him is only the work of a miracle. Kevin and I were nervous wrecks for a good 20 minutes after the incident (which the trooper never even noticed and if he did, there was no acknowledgement – he just parked in his shade).
Kevin and I were breathing heavy and trying to calm our hearts while the four boys were lost in their own worlds. Completely oblivious to anything. Ricky did look up a minute after Kevin regained control of the car and asked, “What was that?” Oh, to be a kid again!
* The Sunday we were there, we had a family testimony meeting. It was a very nice gathering and such a bonding experience to hear the faith and love of the gospel our family has. Ricky was ready to share his testimony and asked Kevin if he could go up. Kevin made him wait for a few grown-ups to go first and then let Ricky go. Ricky’s testimony was short and sweet and made me cry,
“I know that Jesus got baptized. And that is good.”
Billy wasn’t to be outdone, so he dragged Kevin up with him. His testimony was no less sweet and I cried for it, too,
“I know my mom and dad got married.”