New Family Pictures and kid updates

It was a fun week to have the kids home.  We re-did our job charts and the kids are doing a little more around the house to help.  That has been very nice.  Conrad had a violin recital on Thursday and he played Bouree by Handel and The Theme from Star Wars.  He did a great job and it was fun to see him so attentive to the rest of the violin students who are more advanced then him.
Yesterday was our Family Picture Day.  It's been two years since we had pictures taken-not to bad but we thought it would be fun to get an update.  When we get them I'll put up a link so you can see how they turned out.  The weather has been very unpredictable so we were worried we might get rained out.  Luckily the rain held out until we got done!  It's always an adventure to get all six of us in our pose and then smiling.  Our photographer was great and very patient because Abi was just all over and being super silly.
In getting Conrad to smile the photographer said to him, "Say, I eat my snotty boogers" and Conrad shouts out, "Me too!"  We got a kick out of that.
After our photo session we went to Golden Corral for dinner.  That place is so great for our kids.  They just love the variety of food and that you can just get a little of this and of that.
I am just amazed at how old our kids are getting.  Traeden is getting so tall and he is being so much more responsible.  I love that he enjoys reading so much.  It is his favorite pastime.  Conrad is growing up too and having so much fun in scouts.  He has been motivated on his own to pass off his faith in God and scout requirements.  I'm sure we will be working on lots over the summer.  Samantha is just a cutie.  Our photographer kept saying--"She is just so beautiful".   We really Samantha to know that it's more important to be beautiful inside then out.  Abigail is growing up and using more and more words.  We have this computer program that Samantha has been using to learn letters and numbers and Abigail has been wanting to play so I finally set up her own account and she surprisingly can use the mouse and do the games all on her own.  She also has been begging to play the piano and asks everyday when it's her time to practice.  I wasn't sure I wanted to start her yet because of all the time it takes for me but I have relented and have done little practice sessions for her for about a month now.  It's very slow and we do the same things over and over but she loves the time with me so it's worth it.

A Pain in the Neck

Starting Easter Weekend my right back top molars started hurting so I was making sure to floss and brush really well. I thought I got some food stuck but no matter what I did to clean it didn't seem to go away.  Tuesday it really started to hurt even more and I started getting head aches in the back of my neck and up the side of my head.  I can't explain my thought process but it became so consuming I couldn't function well.  I couldn't eat anything hard because it hurt to chew.  I have been drinking lots and eating yogurt and soup all week.  My gums have been so swollen that as I bite I can feel them with my lower teeth.  I started taking some Ibuprofen just to make it through the day.   I started thinking I might have some brain tumor or I had cancer and I was going to die.  This is how crazy I was going.  I finally called my dentist and I found out he was out of town until Monday.  So his nurse called me from home and asked my questions.  Well I don't think I explained very well how much pain I was in because she told me that if it doesn't go away over the weekend I could come in on Monday.  Thursday I couldn't sleep.  I was having flu symptoms of body aches, chills, fever and Devin told me I needed to call the nurse back.  I did on Friday morning and told her I was worse and so she scheduled to come in to see me at 1:00 pm.  I kept busy cleaning the house just to keep my mind off the pain, but I was in a bad way.  I would burst out crying when anyone asked me how I was doing.  It was terrible.  When I got to the dentist office.  The nurse took some x-rays and the tooth looked fine from three different angles.  Then she tested my sensitivity to cold.  I couldn't even feel cold on that back tooth.  But I could with my other teeth.  She said it looks like there may be some nerve damage and recommend me to see Dr Steve Larsen who is an Endodontist.  She made an appointment to see him at 4:00 that day.  I picked up Traeden from school and arranged for someone to take Conrad home after orchestra and went to the appointment.  While I sat and waited in the Dentist office, I was shaking and several times I couldn't control the tears that flowed because of the extreme pain throughout my body.  Once the Doctor could see me I was doing terribly.  I couldn't talk to him without crying.  I explained all my symptoms and he took a picture of my tooth which focuses not only on the roots and surface but the inside pockets.  This show him some infection inside my tooth which would require a root canal.  He explained he would need to go right through the center of my tooth and release the build up of infection.  I was scared but at that point I just wanted the pain to go away so I told him lets do it.  He numbed me and started the procedure a few minutes after that.  During the procedure I didn't feel anything.  I actually felt the best I had all week.  I brought my Ipod to help me not think about the drilling because it makes me nervous.  He said that once that tooth opened up, lots of puss came shooting out.  He said, "No wonder you have been in so much pain."  Part of the procedure is he cuts the nerve that comes to that tooth.  He gave me some antibiotics to help me get rid of the infection.  I am still on a soft food diet.  It takes me forever to eat anything but the pain is so much better.  I really can't believe I had a root canal.  Before I was married I didn't have any cavities. It wasn't until after I started having children that I got cavities.  It was so traumatic the first cavity I got because growing up my dentist would always tell me what great teeth I had and how strong they were.   Well I'm just glad I don't have cancer and I'm not going to die, I'm just hoping to get over this and not have a root canal again.   Anyone out there as wimpy as me?  I guess I just don't deal with pain that well.
On the up side of things, my parents came up yesterday.  I was asked to speak about the importance of choosing good music to the Laurel's in our stake at their Laurel Retreat.  My mom came up with me and we had a great time visiting on our hour drive to this cabin in Oxford, ID.  The talk when really well.  I was happy I wasn't in so much pain and I could focus on the girls.  Devin and My dad stayed and did soccer games with the kids and worked on our fence.  After my mom and I got home, we had lunch and then got as much of the fence done as we could.  What a relief it is for Devin.  He was elated to get so much done yesterday.
Today Devin was sustained as the Elders Quorum President in our new ward.  This has been quite the experience for him to choose his counselors without really knowing the brethren in our ward.  He has really had to rely on the spirit to guide him.
The kids are doing well.  Abigail is just talking and talking more and more.  She says some of the cutest things.  I really need to write them down because I can't think of them right now.  Samantha is just a sweetheart.  She is so willing to learn and it's been a joy to work with her on reading and learning to play the flute.  She is so smart and quick to learn but she also has a willingness and sense of what's good and she works to make things the best she can.  Conrad is making lots of new friends and "complains" that all the girls try to catch him and chase him at recess.  Traeden had a birthday this week.  He turned 10!  He went to the jail for cub scouts on his birthday.  For his birthday meal he chose to have German Pancakes and orange juice.  He is doing so well at the piano lately and he is started to take from a new piano teacher on Wednesday.  His last teacher just had too many students and had to cut back because of her young family.  Well I have to go to choir practice so I better sign off.