Merrill and Roberta Simon and Family

WOW, when this family goes down, we really go down. It started last week, colds, respiratory issues, snot galore and then some more, fevers, on and on. I thought it would never let up. Little did I know it was the calm before the storm. Joseph came home from school with a fever last Thursday. He started needing O2. I worked with him nearly round the clock. Dr. was working with us on the phone. He seemed to get better. No fever, but still needing O2. Wham, kids started passing around the flu. What is this...so many kids sick when many never get sick. Now we are talking barf in beds, on floors, even walls....too many that do not know how to hit the toilet. Then we had the runs like we have not seen in a long time. My sleeves stayed rolled up and the carpet cleaner ready to go at all times, washing machines running non stop...thank goodness we have two of each. Back to Joseph, he was doing so well yesterday that I called his school nurse to let her know he could go to school today. At 6

This past Saturday, January 17th, Merrill's Mom, Gayle turned 80 years old. WOW!!!. It has been a joy and a privilege to have Gayle visiting with us since December 18th. We decided to try to make the day special for her. We started the day off with a trip to the beauty shop. She told Lloyd only one inch or I will have to kick you. He listened and did as she requested. After her morning at the beauty shop, we took Gayle to Reno to go to Swensen's for an Earthquake. She enjoyed the ice cream, but then again so did everyone else. LOL. Much to my dismay, Gayle wanted Liver and Onions for her Birthday Dinner. True to this Simon Family Tradition the Birthday Person gets to pick out the dinner. So that is just what some of us had....okay, lets get real, who in their right mind likes Liver and Onions??? So the kids had hot dogs and they were very happy about that. After dinner, we were all treated to a pleasant surprise. One of our PCA's, Marie, had her Mom bake the best homemade

McClain and His Didj Maybe one last picture with no top teeth :o( That is what I am going to do this evening. I am carving out some much needed Mommy and Me time with McClain. I am not sure who needs it most, me or him. But, tonight is the night. I am going to surprise him with a movie. He really wants to see, "The Tale of Despereaux" so that is what we are going to do. Since the children are out of school on Friday, I am hoping against hope that he does not have a ton of homework. Let me just say that it is unreal the amount of homework these kids have. He and LisaMarie average an hour a night Monday through Thursday. Part of it is the fact that they have their own issues and so it is harder to just whip it out. Wait, I digressed a wee bit here. Back to Mommy and Me time. Merrill's Mom has been here since about mid-December. More on that in another post. But, it has