Tube Less

I am absolutely not advocating a disinterest in the band The Tubes nor their song She's a Beauty, both are classics and significant components of both my adolescence and perspective on shallow, sexist, fickleness in regard to feminine beauty (although I was fortunate enough to hook up with the smart hottie so I'm far from beyond reproach, I'm probably actually kind of reprehensible but I ended up with the hot chick so I can live with whatever label persons wish to assign). There is something specifically delicious and lovely about extended run on sentences, kind of raising a finger to the literary world and saying "I can say what I want and don't care what your rules are!" or maybe that's just the sub motto of...

The last week or so was a whirlwind; Beth's folks came up to visit and were right on time to check out the Lavender Festival (a week in which all the lavender farms in the area sell every conceivable lavender influenced product possible) and rode into the Boise foothills with Beth to enjoy a little altitude (Florida tops out around 200 feet). 

My Grandmother Pearl returned from a week at the Oregon Coast with my Aunt Julia and spent several days with my folks. 

It's awesome to observe my 92 year old Grandmother interacting with her two great Grandsons. I do realize how fortunate I am to have such a wonderful person in my life. After playing with the boys she and I discussed books and spoke of our recent readings and recommended varying texts to each other. Her reading list is varied, extensive and extremely vast... the best example I can think is this; last summer she attended an opening for a show I assisted as an assistant to the curator. The show featured the collection of David Leroy (former assistant Governor and attorney general and book collector and Lincoln scholar). So I assisted in researching a few books, rebuilding some cabinets and doing whatever the Curator and organizer Stephanie Bacon had in mind. The coolest part of the whole thing was Grandmother and the Chair of the BSU English Department conversing about literature on par and forgetting anyone else was in the room. That's the type of person to emulate, a self educated person who can converse in toto with a Phd on their subject of expertise. 

I watch her interact with the boys and hope Gabriel might be as smart as she is.   

 We broke away for a few hours and attended the zoo. The Sloth Bear rooted at the glass hoping to break through and share Powell's corn dog.

 I worked 5 out of the 7 days Beth's folks were here. On one of the last days we observed a pyrocumulus cloud from the Grimes Creek fire just on the other side of the foothills. My buddy and co-worker Rich advised us as to the name of the cloud, which none of the rest of us knew and were therefore suitably impressed. Walking into the grocery store a little old lady asked if we'd seen the pyrocumulus cloud and after returning to the Fire Station and turning on the news we heard the weatherman Rick Lantz refer to the large pyrocumulus cloud. Poor Rich.

 My second day at work my Dad showed up with a unique gift, a new (to us) minivan and proclaimed Beth a soccer Mom. This is what happens when Dad is a retired used car salesman (and decent human being). Powell cannot not press buttons and switches and dismantle things, Dad cannot not turn over cars and wheel and deal and buy cars and boats and campers and stuff. We've been humbled and grateful and fortunate for so much help in the past year but no one has given us a car. Beth cried (in the good way) when Dad dropped it off and gave her the keys. He can be gruff and short and abrupt and short and extremely loving but without the requisite language so he does what he does with everything else, he figures out a way to make it work and in this case that is expressing his love.

 If I made more pragmatic vehicular decisions maybe Dad wouldn't have to get involved but I think "cool" first and "running" second. This thing looks great in the driveway.... which is why Dad interacted.

Tubeless! After bragging in the last blog that we had taped him so well that he wasn't pulling the tube; the next day he pulled it twice. The day after though he took several 60 ml (2 oz.) bottles, the day after that a couple of 90ml (3 oz.) bottles, we decided on Thursday to see if he could take 120 ml (4 oz.) bottles with no tube feeds and all meds administered orally. He did! Friday morning we untaped the feeding tube on his cheek and let him pull it himself, he pulled it without fuss (if we would have done it, oh the horror). He is now on normal enfamil via bottle and loudly announcing when he wants chow. Thank you all for your prayers, thoughts and wishes in helping us get here! We are moving into a good place!