Once again this last weekend we headed up to the cabins on the Wyoming border and did about 120 miles on our ATV’s between Friday afternoon and Saturday. We had a great time and this trip was set aside for just myself and my wife to spend some alone quality time together; which we had.
It was on the way home that we had to question the fun vs. worth scale. As we entered back into civilization and our cell phones could find a signal again, my wife made the courtesy call home to check in on the boys and how their weekend was going. I say “courtesy call” because after a good weekend we don’t want any surprises and this also gives the boys a chance to clean up any last minute messes that may have gotten left laying around! I also don’t like the feeling I get upon pulling up in the driveway to see kids scurrying around the house in a panic!
Flag #1 was raised when my wife called our home number and my sister in law answered.
This was of course met with my wife asking in a slightly nervous sounding voice, “what are you doing there?”
Flag #2; “well everyone’s ok”, came the reply.
“What happened?” By now I could feel my anxiety level increase as my wife’s voice cracked slightly.
Flag #3 was in plain sight when we were hit with the news that our oldest son had to be taken to the emergency room the night before…
Let me rewind to Saturday night. About the time my wife and I were enjoying some of the best avocado topped cheese burgers i’ve ever had; my boys were home attempting to cook up some homemade chalupas. To be honest if the circumstances were different a chalupa actually sounds like a good idea. However the oil somewhere in the midst of preparing said dinner, caught fire. Not knowing what to do and i’m sure in a terrified state of mind my oldest son grabbed the flaming pan and attempted to run it outside. Where in mid route, he stumbled and the flaming malitov cocktail spilled on our living room carpet and caught his leg on fire. YES, ON FIRE. If done for a movie he’d be a very rich young man right now.
The kids ended up getting the fire out and called their aunt to come and assess the situation. Upon her arrival she of course rushed our oldest son to the emergency room to get told he has 2nd and 3rd degree burns on his leg. Our kitchen needs remodeled and you know what? It just really sucks.
To sum up our feelings my wife posted on facebook, “To quote big bird, ‘today’s episode is brought to you today by the letters, ‘W’, ‘T’, and ‘F’.” To which I replied, “seems more like a series than a single episode.”
So yes, I am whining a little and please do not comment that “things could have been worse”, because I do know that. This has been one of the most horrible and trying years of mine and my wife’s life together. Some of you know, and for those of you that don’t stick around you’ll get bits and pieces in both future and past blogs.
So what’s the moral of today’s story?
- A burning chalupa isn’t an act of God but your insurance company still won’t cover any of the medical bills because he’s “family”?
- While running with flaming pan, remember you’re passing the pantry that contains flour and a fire extinguisher; both of which have been known to be useful under said circumstance?
- Don’t get too comfortable while enjoying a weekend away; remember there’s teenagers watching your home?
- If life hands you lemons, make sure they’re not spoiled!
Of course you can pick your own moral to this story, i’m just having a down day and probably shouldn’t be posting this blog but I guess that’s how we get our feelings out.
For the record, everyone is ok with the exception of my son and yes it could have been worse. However he may have to have skin grafts which could put him out of work for up to three months. I have a friend that is a contractor that will help us with the work that needs done to our home and all in all we of course will pull through and hopefully will have a better blog to post about the event after the ash settles.
I thank you all for your prayers and your continued support of me, my family and this blog.
