Bumpy landing . . .

Hard to believe, but we made it. After what seemed like an eternal wait, Tom got the call and we were on our way to Florida.
We spent a week in early August looking for housing and schools and trying to get things squared away. We went back to Utah on the 12th and had the house packed and the moving truck loaded by the 19th and our cars arriving in Florida the day before we would (thanks to a myriad of angels and miracles who helped us pack, clean and get things moving).
We spent our final few days in Utah saying good-bye to friends and family, tying up loose ends and we flew out early August 21st.
Tom's new boss had some air mattress brought down (by her sweet as sugar parents) for us to sleep on and we were able to get into the home we have under contract so we could get everyone ready for school to start on the following Monday. 

Needless to say (but I'm gonna say it) we were exhausted - but the kids were so excited to start their new schools that we just kept on going.  They all seem to have great teachers, Spencer loves middle school and the kids are making friends each day.  Their enthusiasm has made it easier - having them gone all day long has been hard! I miss them and the day drags - but soon I should be able to help in the classrooms and we will get into a schedule.

The actual moving portion of this adventure has been a bit more trying.  The moving company called after we got here to inform us that our shipment came in 2000 lbs heavier than they had estimated - we nearly choked on the extra costs, but after requesting several audits and talking to everyone we could we just had to tough it out. 
While we had been waiting for our things, Tom was really starting worry about being able to fit in the house.  It just didn't seem as big although the MLS sheets had said it was a little over 2000 square feet. We had downsized quite a bit and figured we could work it out - our Salt Lake home is just over 2600 square feet. Unfortunately, as our belongings began arriving in the home it became pretty apparent that this home was much smaller than our last one and Tom pulled out his measuring tape.  Sure enough, the rough square footage Tom came up with was less than 1500! We called our realtor and he started to checking out the tax records that verified our suspicions, the house is no where near 2000 square feet.

So for now, we have gone back to the sellers with our new information and we are waiting. We have offered the same price per square foot with the new square footage, but we have no idea what will happen from here. We are confident we can get out of the contract since it was all based on the home being 25% bigger, but we aren't certain what to do or where to go . . . if they lower the price significantly, we could possibly stay here, rent a storage unit or build a shed in the back and proceed as we had originally planned. If they won't lower the price or we decide this is just too small then we have to find a new place to go - something we haven't quite figured out yet.

That was Friday, Saturday we figured we would spend the day at the beach, the phone and internet company were due to connect us that morning and afterward we would take off for a much needed break.  Nine hours after he arrived, he finally had us connected, it was 7pm, getting dark and stormy but we headed out anyway - 25 minutes to the beach was better than nothing!

In an attempt to blow off more wiggles and make up for Saturday, we decided  to head out to Emerson Point on Sunday morning before church. Emerson Point is a state park/preserve where the Gulf of Mexico meets the Manatee river. Its only about 5 miles from our house and at the end of beautiful Snead island. Home to tons of crabs, fish and other marine life you can see right up close -

It could be that our heads are full of other things or the heat is getting to us but when we got to the end of the island Tom hopped out of the car and headed up a hill to get a look at the area - you can see the bridge over to St Pete, Anna Maria, everything.  Theo followed him up and so did September. I went back to the car to check on Ben who was changing his shoes and Spencer who was reading. When Ben was ready I asked Spencer to make sure to lock the car and meet us on the trail ahead.

Pretty soon we were all chatting away with the local fishermen and discovering the zillions of crabs and creatures on the island. About 20 minutes later Tom went back to the car to make sure it was locked and suddenly realized he didn't have the keys. 

After retracing our steps and offering some prayers, we realized he had left the keys in the car and we called roadside assistance (thank goodness for that) and spent the next hour waiting  . . .

 and waiting . . .

and waiting some more.

We saw a Mexican family bring in over a dozen good sized blue crabs (we are going to have to learn how to do that!!)

And we found a few treasures.

 Finally our hero arrived and after much supervision (from our boys) and several tries - the car was opened, the keys were found and we were on our way. Nearly an hour late for church and with smiles on our faces, we are starting to realize we have got to take things very slowly here - because nothing good really comes quickly, right?

(For now, I will be posting on this blog, but I am hoping to figure out how to merge my two blogs together - when I do I will let ya'll know)
Until next time - and hopefully with better news!
s

One of Life's Sweetest Days

It is almost unreal - but the day finally came.
A little girl had her day in the sun - the first of many I hope.
Saturday, March 28th, 2009 September was baptized a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.
It was an utterly perfect day. Full of sunshine and people we love all gathered around our little girl to witness and rejoice at her decision to begin her journey as a member of the church and to allow the Comforter the opportunity to be a constant partner in her life.
The music was beautiful, it was so sweet to see her and her two other friends who were also baptized on the same day, a tender mercy reminding me how blessed we are to be in this area, surrounded by good people, and good friends for our children. The spoken word added to the spirit and the blessings bestowed upon her were so touching.
But the thing I will remember about that day for the rest of my life is how high that little girl skipped.
When I got to the church, she and her dad were already dressed in white and family members were arriving. I asked her and her dad to pose for a quick picture and September skipped like she had wings on her feet all the way to the foyer where I snapped the above photo.
Everywhere she went she skipped. It seemed as if she would fly off into the sky.
It was so appropriate for a little girl who had waited as long as she could remember to be baptized. All the burdens an 8 year-old could carry had been lifted from her shoulders and every step (skip) she took was evidence of the joy she felt.
It was a near perfect day.
Perfect would have been all of our family members from far and near in attendance and a mom who remembered to take more than one picture.
Dang
It's a good thing we have memories.
Hopefully someone else will have mercy on me and share any of their pictures from the day with us.
Oh well,
the most important part is done.
And this little angel is on her way.

Spencer the Great

With the events of the last couple of weeks (www.caringbridge.org/visit/benjaminswapp)
I have gained a new appreciation for my oldest soccer playing, swim team splashing, lego and star wars loving child. I should have known he would have more than the normal gumption because heaven pulled out all the stops to get him here. (One of these days I will write that up and post it here)

Last Tuesday night as we were preparing for his younger brother's MRI the next day, Spencer decided to fast with Tom and I that all would go well during the testing process and in meeting with the Dr. He sat up in the kitchen late that night to eat a last bowl of cereal with his little brother before the fast began and he brought up an armful of his favorite stuffed animals so Ben could take one to the hospital to keep him company. This is huge, Spencer is not known for his ability to share his toys, especially the beloved stuffed menagerie he sleeps with nightly.

I'm sure Ben recognized this great act of love because the little stuffed alligator he chose stayed glued to his side throughout the day - it even got to go into the MRI since it didn't have any metal parts!

The next morning Spencer hopped out of bed without a fuss. On fast Sundays we usually endure much grumbling and moaning of hungry tummies and all, but not this day. He even had a smile on his face and helped me get out the door. He helped in Ben's classroom that morning even though Ben wasn't there and he rushed home from school to see him. He and September's first question when they rushed in the door was "Ben, how are you?" "Are you okay?" -

The next day, life was back to normal with the usual grumbling and moaning, which, to their credit is pretty cool too. It wasn't very long ago that we would pay for a day at the hospital with Ben for days afterward, but these kids are learning to roll with the punches, rise to the occassion, then get back in the game.

It took me a few days to see all this for what it was - like a lot of people, my perspective is enhanced while looking in the rear view mirror of life (it would be nice if it were that way when I was backing up the car as well - but we'll save that for a different day) and the last few days I have fine tuned my heart with a whole lot of gratitude that a loving Father in Heaven knew exactly which one of these kiddos needed to come to our family first.

Theodorable

Lately I have found myself really grateful for this cute little kiddo.

Maybe because it was about this time of year nearly 5 years ago I found myself crying at the drop of the hat every time I paused to think about the fact that before the summer was out I would have 4 kids 5 years and under.

Maybe it had something to do with the fact that we had just picked up and moved our 3 little kids all the way across the country to live with my parents while we tried to figure out why were supposed to be back in this place we now call home and hadn't factored in another baby only 18 months after the last one.

It could have been the hormones . . .

But now, when that cherub comes blowing into the kitchen or family room or laundry room shouting "mom, mom, mom . . . I love you" and throws his arms around me like he hasn't seen me in weeks -
or he spontaneously takes a break from his pals and latest "bad guy hunt" to say "Mom, I like you" - I can't help but thank my Heavenly Father for sending that little guy our way.

Tom loves it when Theo runs through the kitchen or office and yells "hey, Dad" just to get Tom to look over long enough for Theo to give him a big smile and head on his way. The older kids all fight for his attention, because he loves them just as much.

He is a giant part of the reason that Ben can speak and socialize and function at all. Theo hasn't ever let Ben's hang ups get in the way of playing together. He can go from Legos with Spencer to rainbows and ponies with September and on to blasters and airplanes with Ben inside of an afternoon several times - often playing with all of them at once. He's like super glue for our family.

None of us can imagine our little family without him - another reason I am glad I wasn't in charge of that decision - all I could see when I stared at that positive pregnancy test was stress when, in fact, it was a giant dose of God's love - The Adore.

Today

I consider myself quite patriotic. I love this country and have great faith in the amazing document we call our Constitution. I vote, I write letters (okay, emails) and make calls to my elected officials voicing my support and my concerns on many issues. I take my citizenship in this country seriously and gratefully.
With that being said, my current full-time position - motherhood has given me an entirely different perspective on today's events. My kids teachers have been a bit excited about the inauguration of President Elect Obama today which has extended itself into the homework arena. My Fourth-grader especially, as his most recent writing assignment was to explain the significance of MLK Day and the inauguration of Obama the following day. As he and I have spent the last few days struggling to write the paper I began to realize that the true significance of these events is that to our rising generation, they aren't significant at all. It is truly no big deal to my kids that the new President is African American - and why should it be? We spend an awful amount of energy trying to teach our children that they can be anything they want to be - and so can all of their friends, no matter the color.
It seems counterintuitive to make such a big deal about it now - to point out to this wonderful rising generation that the color of someone's skin is so important. . . . don't get me wrong, it's a pretty cool deal, but aren't there more important things going on?
I can't count on one hand the number of friends who are out of work, who are fighting terrible illnesses, who worry each day how they will get through tomorrow . . . somehow the color of Mr Obama's skin just isn't as important to me as what's inside that skin is - and how it will affect the future of all the people I know and love - hopefully in a few years we can celebrate that.

Hip Hip Hooray!

Would you believe after all those calls I finally found someone who would listen?!
I got several phone calls on Monday - the state PTA and UFAAN have come out in full support of our efforts to create a safer environment in the schools for kids with food allergies. Six other parents and myself met with our principal and the director for Upland Terrace Elementary and after an hour and a half we are finally getting many of the changes we need!
The teachers are going to be trained, we will have standard school-wide "practices" (not policy) for handling food allergies in the classroom and we have formed a committee of parents to help support the school in their efforts.
AND ... this coming Tuesday the Granite Board Meeting will be hearing from the State PTA president, UFAAN and Mr. Martin Bates as they will be considering removing nut products from their menus and creating a district-wide policies on handling food allergies like having ingredients lists of all products served for lunches available in the lunchroom, putting pictures on all Emergency Action Plans - which will be made available to all teachers, bus drivers and lunch room workers who work with kids with severe allergies and creating formal written guidelines for the entire district on how severe food allergies should be handled in the classroom, lunch room and on field trips!!
I am so excited and nervous - I will be praying for all those administrators this coming week and for those that will be presenting information to them. I am cautiously hopeful that this will be the begininng to the end of this long quest! What a relief it could be to not have to reinvent the wheel with each teacher every year!!
I just want to do a happy dance! (So does Spencer - he has carried a lot of anxiety over all this and hopefully, very soon he can rest easier!)

Thoughts

As the seasons begin to take their changing more seriously, the Swapp family also seems to be taking on a few more changes. With all the kids in school, at least part time, I seem to be finding much more to do with my time than I ever imagined.
We were invited to be a part of the MDA telethon over labor day weekend where we were interviewed by a sweet woman named Barb Smith from KTVX ch 4. She and I immediately connected and our conversations that began with the the struggles of creating accessibility in an old and rather stuck in it's ways elementary school, they quickly turned to the other challenges we face with children with food allergies. To her credit, Barb saw a story there and away we have gone.
She came to the kids elementary school and did a story on our Nut-free table. It has helped to bolster our stride as we are working to get a food allergy policy in place at the district. To our great disappointment (to say the least) the district has responded to our efforts of last year by serving pb&j sandwiches EVERYDAY as a hot lunch choice.
I have spent hours and hours on the phone working my way up the granite district ladder, to no avail. They all very calmly "pass the buck." Saying things like, well, we got permission (from who?) and "if there was a policy then we would definitely follow that policy, but for right now this is really cost effective for the district and lots of kids like it."
For all intents and purposes, the district is serving a loaded gun in our lunch rooms but no body cares because it's only deadly to 12-15 kids in the school. It's enough to make me run screaming from the room and home school my kids!
But instead, I have decided to continue my uphill climb to the top of the district and beyond. This week I am speaking with the health coordinator on the Utah State Board of Education. Congressman Cannon is also on my list. With a little tact and lots of tongue biting I have added person after person, Doctors, educators and other professionals to my arsenal of support.
Something has to change and I guess that is going to start with me.
since I can't figure out how to download this in such a way that I can embed it, here's the link. Spencer was so excited and sooo nervous. You know I am passionate about something when I agree to take a stab at art - I AM NOT AN ARTIST =)
http://www.abc4.com/mostpopular/story.aspx?content_id=49D3C4D8-C09F-4615-A45F-84E2BC8B079C&gsa=true