Fieldtrip to the Jawsmith

Hi-Ho-Hi-Ho, it's to the dentist we go. Or we went this morning. The three boys had consecutive dental appointments this morning. Why, oh why did I think this was going to be a good, convenient idea???
We had to be there at 7:30 to fill out paperwork prior to the first appointment. That went off fairly seamlessly (the getting ready and getting there part.) I wasn't too happy about sending the mini-me on the bus by herself. The kids are the first ones on the bus at bright shiny 7am, so sending her off by her little own self was nerve racking. This meant we should have left right after she got on the bus. We didn't. I couldn't find my favorite travel mug for my coffee and Joey had to have a slight meltdown and debate about going back to school after the appointments. Then... I got outside and discovered that my toasty warm Suburban had in fact been started and defrosted, but the husband's diesel pickup was parked behind it. Thanks, Oldest Child who started the suburban for not noticing that.... Well, being the diligent and well trained diesel truck driver I am, I couldn't very well start the truck and move it right away. Soooo... I fired up Herbie (Herbie is the nickname of our dark blue VW Beetle) and moved him (apparently the car's a boy.) This did not fix the fact the the truck was still behind me, so I had to do the whole drive forward a bit, crank the wheel and back up, drive forward a bit, crank the wheel and back up...you get the point. Finally, we got out and to the dentist only ten minutes late. The four of us found spots in the tiny waiting room, which was really busy for 7:40 am, and started the paperwork-basic info, dental concerns, health histories, all of that. Justin was sitting next to me and supervised as well as critiqued my form completions.  Because I could get "male" and "Caucasian" wrong? I'm not sure why I needed supervision. Once we got to the health history section, I thankfully marked "no" to all of the concerns and diagnoses. Then Justin leans over and whispers, "Hey! How about you mark me down for a...speech impediment. And herpes." Um... No. But as inappropriate as it was, it made me giggle :) Joey then told me to mark Tyler down as "female" for sex and himself as "purple" under race....
Speaking of whispering, my children do not know how to whisper or what the intended purpose of whispering. They're more of stage whisperers. And even if I can get them to quietly whisper, they seem to enunciate things. Words with 's' and 'p' sounds, among others, seem to float through the air and make lots of noise in a room where everyone else's kids are playing on their tablets and phones. And unfortunately, I have a laugh that resounds as well and they definitely had me laughing. So I guess this means we were the loud family in the office this morning. No gadgets and headphones to quietly pass the time for this family. It's exhausting when it was all over, but leaves a smile on my face regardless :)
In case you were wondering, we opened a can of worms with these appointments that will lead to many more waiting room antics. Justin has 4 cavities and needs sealants. Tyler told me he has "gum-itis" and needs two fillings along with extensive orthodontic work. Joey got lucky with two cavities. I say lucky because ashamidly, it's been a while since they've been to the dentist. Busy lives and all that...
So now that we've endured mild entertainment and received parting gifts of toothpaste, toothbrushes and floss, we're good until the end of the month when we will return once more, en masse

Baptism

Today our oldest son, Justin, became a Godfather to our great-nephew, Brock. I can still remember the day Justin was baptized, looking so tiny and dapper in his little white baptismal outfit. Now he's outgrown both Paul and I, standing at a hulking 6 foot with size 16 shoes. And obviously of fine upstanding character since he was chosen as an important figure in Brock's life. I am so proud that our children, not just Justin, are seen as kind and considerate people. Friends, family, neighbors and teachers have taken the time to compliment the virtues that my children exude in their everyday lives.  There are no finer compliments, especially when we don't always feel like our parenting skills are as good as they could be.
I bet you're wondering how a 14 year old is supposed to impact such a young one into a spiritual life... Well, he won't always be 14. This is something I had to remind myself of. If Justin continues to be the compassionate person he is, when Brock is to the age when he notices how a person should treat others, I hope he looks to his cousin Justin.
Justin also wanted to know what his being Godfather meant other than getting the little tyke gifts at Christmas and his birthday. I told him first of all, your biggest responsibility, along with the rest of the church congregation, is to make sure that Brock knows he is a child of God. Or as Justin had to clarify with Brock's dad during the sermon,  since God is our shepherd,  we are in fact, His sheep. I guess by this experience, we have not only started on Brock's spiritual cornerstone, we added a few bricks to Justin's own foundation.
Then Justin had to commercialize it all by asking if he got a long haired cat to stroke as he refutes propositions from an office chair...
Congratulations and Blessings to Kayla, Mike and Brock, along with Amy, Justin, and our families for this day!