Sylwia & Joshua

2011-08-29T12:08:00.000-06:00

Sharana General Hospital:

A day in the life of the intrepid officers and enlisted personnel who are serving the medical needs of the army, one overblown drama at a time

All characters in this production are fictional. Any resemblance to real persons living or dead is coincidental.

Cast of Characters:

Captain Lardman Clinic medical director by virtue of being most senor physician, not particularly competent, very lazy

Captain Fearce Other physician, sassy black lady, swears like a sailor, marginally better physician than Capt. Lardman

Captain Paynes PA, overeager and hyperactive, always hungry, has a heavy southern accent and stumbles over his words

Captain Bogan Brigade nurse and OIC of anything that isn’t being done by someone else. Overworked and underappreciated

Captain Moss Dentist, extremely sensitive, takes it personally whenever something goes wrong

Captain VinDiesel Physical therapist, tall muscular lady, has a creepy laugh that can be heard while she tortures her patients

Captain Smokes Psychologist, fires finger guns at people at random times, does not listen to anything they say

Captain Gunderson Company commander, has a creepy smile. (This is not a speaking part)

Lieutenant Corn Clinic OIC. Frequently seen stumbling around with a bewildered look on her face.

Captain Caca Brigade surgeon. She is high strung and nervous, seems to always be on the verge of a nervous breakdown

Various medics Played by lobotomized mental patients. Most lines are meaningless gibberish

Act I

Setting: Sharana MTF, in the Doc Cave. The three providers and Cpt. Bogan are sitting at their desks. Cpt. Lardman has his feet on the desk and is staring at his computer screen with headphones on, apparently watching a movie. Cpt. Fearce is on the phone, swearing profusely and waving her finger back and forth in front of her face. Cpt. Paynes is reading a medical journal and polishing his bald head with head wax. Cpt. Bogan is typing furiously on her computer, muttering under her breath.

Enter Private Bolero, a medic, who stands at the door with his hands in his pockets

Private Bolero: Hey, uh, guys, there’s a person in the lobby.

Pvt. Bolero starts t to walk away

Cpt. Fearce Putting down phone @#$%&, I know you didn’t just give us that @#$%& message and then just walk away. Get your @#$%& back here. As she says this she makes a Z in front of her face and snaps her fingers at each corner

Pvt. Bolero shuffles back to the door and stands with his hands in his pockets, slouching

Cpt. Paynes Putting down a chicken bone and wiping his mouth with the back of his hand Now boy, you git back out there and ask him what it is the @#$%& he wants. Now move along, boy, ‘fore I take a switch to your hide.

Cpt. Lardman Taking off his headphones Did someone say something? When there’s no answer he shrugs and goes back to watching his movie

Enter Private Doobie, another medic, who is carrying a clipboard with an SF600 on it

Pvt. Doobie Uh, I have a patient. The providers ignore him. Cpt. Fearce continues to talk on the phone, swearing loudly and gesturing. Ahem. I have a patient. Uh, he’s a guy, and he’s been, uh, coughing. Uh, his mom has a history of some kind of plasia I think. And, uh, his eye hurts. He waits expectantly

Cpt. Paynes Puts down a Cliff bar and wipes his hands on his pants Well, boy, how old is he? Is he a soldier?

Pvt. Doobie Uh…

Cpt. Paynes What do his breathering sound like? I mean, when he’s takin’ a breather, what are the noises ya’ hear?

Pvt. Doobie Uh…

Cpt. Fearce Putting down the phone Were his pupils reactive? Don’t you bring your white cracker @#$%& in this @#$%& room without doing some kind of physical. You tell me his @#$%& eye hurts you better tell me you did a @#$%& eye exam.

Pvt. Boobie Uh…

Cpt. Lardman Taking off his headphones You know, there was a study done by, um, Dr. Barnes and, um, Dr. Noble, I think, where they studied eyes in rats with lung cancer and found that… Cpt. Lardman continues to drone on, obviously making up everything he says, while everyone else ignores him

Cpt. Paynes Now boy, ya’ gotta listen up here. When a guy’s got a problem with his breathering ya’ need to take a good listening. And if he tells ya’ that his eye hurts ya gotta take a gander. Now git back there and do some lookin’ and listenin’. And here’s a book to help. Gives him a thick physical exam book Now don’t you come back in here lessen ya’ done did everything in that there book.

Pvt. Doobie shuffles off

Cpt. Fearce Rolling her eyes @#$%& medics.

Cpt. Lardman, realizing no one is paying attention to him, goes back to watching his movie.

Cpt. Paynes opens another Cliff bar and starts to eat noisily.

Pvt. Bolero Standing in the doorway slouching with his hands in his pockets Uh, the guy is here to see Captain Bogan about the toilets in the men’s room. Um, I think they’re clogged or something. Shuffles away

Cpt. Bogan Slamming her hand down on her desk WHAT?! Why am I still the toilet OIC? I told Captain Gunderson two weeks ago that the toilet OIC slot is only supposed to be filled by an O-3 74 zulu. He needs to get a combat plumber to do that job because I am not doing this anymore. As she speaks her voice gets louder and more shrill.

Cpt. Lardman Taking off his headphones Need some help? Not waiting for an answer and putting his headphones back on All right. If you need anything let me know.

Cpt. Bogan Grabbing a plunger from the corner behind her [Sarcastically]That’s fine. I don’t mind doing it. It’s not like I have other responsibilities. I mean, don’t get me wrong, I like this job and all, but I’m a nurse, not a plumber. Looks around, realizes no one is listening, and stomps out of the room with the plunger

Pvt. Doobie Shuffling to the doorway Uh, I have a patient to present. Uh, he is a 23 year-old active duty male complaining of two days of runny nose and cough. He also has some left eye irritation and drainage. The coughing started… Gives a detailed and very professional presentation of a patient with a mild upper respiratory infection and conjunctivitis.

Cpt. Lardman puts his feet down from his desk, takes his headphones off, and pretends to be busy

Cpt. Fearce Waving her index finger in front of her face @#$%&, did you look in his @#$%& eyes this time? Did he have an afferent pupillary defect or an efferent pupillary defect? Speak up, @#$%&.

Pvt. Doobie Uh…

Cpt. Paynes If it’s all right with you all, I think ah’ll take this one.

Cpt. Lardman Trying to look busy Yeah, I guess you can take this one.

Cpt. Paynes wipes his hands on the physical exam book he’s reading and runs out of the room

Cpt. Lardman Sighing That was a close one. Puts his feet up and starts watching his movie again

Fade to black

End of Act I

Act II

Setting Front lobby of the MTF. There are fifteen or twenty soldiers lounging in chairs around the lobby. There are five soldiers lined up in front of the desk clerk waiting to be checked in. Pvt. Bolero, the desk clerk, is on his Facebook page and is ignoring the patients who need to check in. Through the door to the physical therapy room Cpt. VinDiesel is visible putting her knee in the back of a patient while she pulls back on his head. He is making gurgling, choking sounds.

Cpt. Moss enters and walks to the door of the dentist office, where he stops and stares in dismay

Cpt. Moss To no one in particular [In heavy New York accent] Why isn’t the light on? It’s nine o’clock, which is when I’m supposed to start seeing patients. How am I supposed to see patients with the light off? I don’t know how much more of this I can take. I specifically requested to Captain Flake two weeks ago that he ensure that my light is on every day by nine o’clock. So why isn’t it on? All I want to do is to see patients. I just want to serve the soldiers. And yet there is no light on. How is this possible?

Cpt. VinDiesel lets go of her patient, who collapses to the floor and moans. She walks to Cpt. Moss’s office and turns on his light, rolling her eyes and shaking her head.

Cpt. VinDiesel To Cpt. Moss Frances, you could just turn on the light yourself, you know. [Laughing] Hnyuck, hnyuck, hnyuck.

Cpt. Moss I’m sorry, where is it written that this is my job? Tell me where in army regulation does it state that dentists turn on their own light? Yes, I could do it myself. I do have the knowledge and skills to do this thing. But there is a person who is supposed to be assigned to do this. And he’s not doing it. So what is he getting paid for? What is his function?

Cpt. VinDiesel Hnyuck, hnyuck, hnyuck, are you sure you told Cpt. Flake to have your light turned on?

Cpt. Moss Yes, I’m sure, I told him three times in three different ways. I put a sticky note on his bedroom door two weeks ago. It was bright yellow. It is not possible that he didn’t see it. It said quite clearly, “Lights by 0900.” It is not possible that he did not understand my message. Is there some other light on post that needs to be turned on by 0900 every morning? Where are all these dark lights that are so confusing to Cpt. Flake that he doesn’t realize that it’s my light that needs to be turned on? Then two days ago in the chow hall I saw him across the room, and I shouted “Lights?” and he nodded.

Cpt. VinDiesel I hate to say it, but I’m not sure that was a very clear message. I might have misunderstood it too. Hnyuck, hnyuck, hnyuck.

Cpt. Moss For the sake of argument, maybe he misunderstood my first two messages. Only a schmuck would misunderstand what I was saying, but for the sake of argument, let’s just imagine he misunderstood. Yesterday I sent him an email saying, “I need lights in the dental clinic by 0900 tomorrow.”

Lt. Corn, stumbling past with a bewildered look on her face, stops and hears part of the conversation

Lt. Corn Uh, sir, Cpt. Flake stopped by this morning and checked all the lights in the clinic. He turned them all on and off a couple of times and they were all working.

Cpt. Moss He checked to see if they were working? I could do that myself. I’m a dentist; I know how to turn lights on and off. Does he think I’m incapable of turning lights on and off? Now he’s treating me like I’m stupid. Where’s the respect?

Lt. Corn stumbles away, looking bewildered and confused

Cpt. VinDiesel Walks back to her room, shaking her head and chuckling to herself Hnyuck, hnyuck, hnyuck

Cpt. Gunderson enters the MTF and begins to wander aimlessly around the lobby.

Cpt. Bogan enters the lobby from the back of the MTF. She is carrying a plunger that’s dripping brown water on the floor

Cpt. Bogan Cpt. Gunderson! I need to talk to you right now!

Cpt. Gunderson continues to walk aimlessly around the lobby.

Cpt. Bogan Standing directly in front of Cpt. Gunderson so that he has to stop Cpt. Gunderson, I told you two weeks ago that you need to get someone else to be the toilet OIC. Have you found someone yet?

A soldier crawls out of Cpt. VinDiesel’s room, moaning “I can’t feel my legs. I can’t feel my legs.”

Cpt. VinDiesel To the crawling soldier You need to follow up tomorrow for more range of motion exercises. Hnyuck, hnyuck, hnyuck. Turns and walks back into her room, and a moment later there is a scream followed by another Hnyuck, hnyuck, hnyuck.

Cpt. Gunderson stares at Cpt. Bogan, his eyes slowly getting bigger and his smile widening.

Cpt. Bogan Voice starting to rise and get more shrill Cpt. Gunderson, look right behind you. There’s a combat plumber sleeping in that chair Gestures to a soldier sleeping in a chair with his hat over his eyes and his feet up on the chair in front of him All you have to do is walk over and tell him that he’s the toilet OIC.

Cpt. Gunderson continues to stare blankly at Cpt. Bogan with wide eyes and a big smile

Cpt. Bogan Cpt. Gunderson, he was supposed to be the toilet OIC. Gestures with the plunger, flinging brown water everywhere That’s why he was deployed here. Just tell him he’s the OIC.

Cpt. Gunderson continues to stare blankly at Cpt. Bogan with wide eyes and a big smile

Cpt. Bogan Getting more frantic and shrill Cpt. Gunderson, look, you don’t even have to…

Cpt. Gunderson Ha, ha, ha. Continues to stare blankly at Cpt. Bogan with wide eyes and a big smile

Cpt. Bogan Losing her train of thought Why did you laugh? What was funny? I was trying to tell you that you don’t even have to walk over there. I’ll walk over there and tell him myself. Just nod your head “yes” and I’ll do everything. Can I go tell him he’s the toilet OIC?

Cpt. Gunderson turns to the side and starts wandering aimlessly around the lobby again.

Cpt. Bogan drops the plunger and begins to shake and hyperventilate.

Cpt. Smokes strolls into the room smiling and firing finger pistols at everyone he makes eye contact with

Cpt. Smokes Walks up to the trembling Cpt. Bogan, winks, and fires double finger pistols at her What’s up, champ? You look stressed. You need to talk?

Cpt. Bogan Gasping between each word I just *gasp* don’t know *gasp* how much *gasp* more of this *gasp* I can take *gasp*.

Cpt. Smokes Winks, fires a finger pistol, spins around, and fires a pistol behind his back and under his leg That’s rough, babe. Take it easy. Stop by anytime. I’m here to help.

Another soldier crawls out of Cpt. VinDiesel’s office, dragging a leg behind him and whimpering “please no more.”

Cpt. VinDiesel To crawling soldier You’ll be fine. Hnyuck, hnyuck, hnyuck. Make sure to come back tomorrow for more range of motion.

Cpt. Moss steps out of his room to say something but is interrupted by Lt. Corn who stumbles past looking confused and bewildered. She brushes against him and keeps walking.

Cpt. Moss [Angrily]Lt. Corn, is that how you treat superior officers? Points to the ground in front of him Stand at attention right here in front of me. No, not over there, right here. Continues to point angrily at a spot about two feet in front of him

Cpt. Moss and Lt. Corn maneuver in front of each other, Cpt. Moss getting more and more angry and Lt. Corn getting more and more confused, still not sure whether Cpt. Moss is joking.

Cpt. Moss Throwing his hands in the air Where’s the respect? I don’t know how much more of this I can take. Aye, aye, aye. @#$%& my life.

Cpt. Bogan I just *gasp* don’t know *gasp* how much *gasp* more of this *gasp* I can take *gasp*.

Cpt. VinDiesel Walks out of her room with a soldier draped unconscious over her shoulders and tosses him on the floor Hnyuck, hnyuck, hnyuck.

Fade to black

End of Act II

Act III

Setting Back in the Doc Cave, Cpt. Lardman is still watching a movie with his feet up on the desk and his headphones on. Cpt. Fearce is swearing to herself while she fixes AHLTA notes. Cpt. Paynes is rubbing his belly contentedly while he watches a video of a televangelist on his computer. Cpt. Bogan is typing furiously on her computer.

Cpt. Lardman closes his eyes, grunts, and noisily passes gas

Cpt. Paynes Now boy, Ah know it was you this time. You just cannot tell me that it weren’t your stinky rear end makin’ all the ruckus. And boy howdy do it smell in here now. It smells worse than a peck o’ dead possums in high summer.

Cpt. Lardman Looking insulted Why is it that every time there’s a sound that comes from my direction you assumes it’s me? There are a lot of things that could have made that sound. My chair might have squeaked or something

Cpt. Fearce @#$%&, why did you close your @#$%& eyes and grunt right before your “chair squeaked?” Don’t give us that @#$%& about ”My chair might have squeaked or something.” [tries to do an imitation of Cpt. Lardman, but can only manage to do an Indian accent]

Cpt Lardman rolls his eyes, sighs, and goes back to watching his movie

Cpt. Caca bursts into the room and begins to pace back and forth. Her hair is sticking out and her eyes are bloodshot

Cpt. Caca I just... I just can’t… I’m surrounded by… Do you know what they did this morning?

Cpt. Bogan Stopping her typing and looking up *Sigh* What did they do now, Cpt. Caca?

Cpt. Caca Still pacing The brigade commander this morning asked why the medics don’t carry bone saws for field amputations. Starts fanning her face with her hands I told him that had to be done in the FST by an orthopedic surgeon. Then he asked whether it would be harder to get thirty more orthopedic surgeons or to get all of our medics trained to do field amputations. She is now pacing and fanning her face at the same time.

Cpt. Paynes Lardman, I know ya done make that stink this time. Just own up to it like a man.

Cpt. Lardman Raising his voice I am not the only person in this clinic who passes gas. You cannot tell me that you have never passed gas in here, Paynes. When you can tell me that you have never passed gas, you can start accusing me of passing gas every time you smell something funky in here.

Cpt. Fearce Rolling her eyes Stinky @#$%& crackers

Cpt. Caca And then, when I went back to my office there was a leg on my desk. A LEG!!! It was covered with blood and teeth marks. When I screamed down the hall to ask who the @#$%& put it there, the brigade S1 walked by and said he found it outside the chow hall and figured I’d know what to do with it because I’m the brigade surgeon.

Cpt. Fearce Waving her finger in front of her face Sister, he did NOT say that to you.

Cpt. Caca Stops her pacing and addresses Cpt. Lardman Did you review that updated SOP I sent you about tracking ANA’s through the MTF?

Cpt. Lardman Sits up and takes off his headphones Um, yeah, the thing is, uh, I started to read it and, uh… Starts rifling through the pile of papers on his desk What I wanted to know is, uh, you know when you said “ANA”? What does the N stand for?

Cpt. Caca Speaking through gritted teeth It stands for “national”. The acronym is Afghan National Army. Did you read the SOP or not?

Cpt. Lardman Yeah. That actually makes a lot more sense. I was thinking it was short for ANAL or something. The thing is, well, uh, you know how you said “SOP”? Well, what does the P stand for?

Cpt. Caca Grabbing her hair and pulling on it, then speaking through clenched teeth It stands for Procedure. The acronym is Standard Operating Procedure. Look, Cpt. Lardman, just read through it and tell me if you need me to make any changes.

Cpt. Lardman Right. Um, did you mail that to me, or did you fax it to me? I’m not seeing it here.

Cpt. Caca grinds her teeth so hard they start to break, her eyes start to bleed. She turns and punches Pvt. Doobie, who has been standing in the doorway, in the stomach, and storms out

Cpt. Lardman shrugs, puts his headphones back on, and starts watching his movie again

Pvt. Doobie catches his breath and stands up, holding a clipboard with an SF600 on it

Pvt. Doobie Uh, I have a patient to present All of the providers ignore him [Nervously] Uh, he’s a 27 year-old DA civilian with infam…, inmatation..., inflation…, inflamatation…

Cpt. Fearce Wait, @#$%&, did you just say “inflamatation”? Ha! Ha! Ha! What the @#$%& is “inflamatation”?

Pvt. Doobie Getting more nervous I mean, uh, inflammation. He has inflammation…

Cpt. Fearce @#$%&, you just said “Inflamatation”. I never heard something so @#$%& ridiculous. Lardman, did you hear that? He said “inflamatation”.

Cpt. Lardman Taking off his headphones Huh? Did you say something?

Cpt. Fearce Laughing more loudly now Hey Paynes, did you hear this knucklehead? He said “inflamatation.”

Cpt. Paynes Laughing and slapping his knee Well now, boy, I never did hear such a word in all my life. Who learned you to talk like that?

Pvt. Doobie starts to cry and covers his face with his hands

The three providers are laughing so hard that Cpt. Paynes falls off his chair and Cpt. Lardman wets his pants. Cpt. Fearce is choking and gasping for breath. They continue to laugh until Pvt. Doobie runs away

The providers slowly stop laughing and Cpt. Lardman wipes a tear from his eye

Cpt. Lardman Ah, medics. Always good for a laugh.

Fade to Black

End of Act III

Some notes about the above production

First of all, I am very fond of all the people that the above characters are based on. This wasn’t meant to be mean, but to highlight some quirky behavior that many of my friends here exhibit.

I am not actually very lazy or incompetent. I portrayed my character like that so that people wouldn’t think I was just picking on other people. I do watch movies on my computer sometimes during sick call when things are slow. I also frequently have arguments with Cpt. Baynes (Paynes in the play) about whether I passed gas. As in the play, I always deny it. The conversation in the play is almost word-for-word what Baynes and I have said to each other.

Captain Pearce (Fearce in the play) is half black, which I didn’t know until several days after I met her. She has no habits or mannerisms that would be considered stereotypical of blacks. The joke in the play is that she’s acting like a caricature of a black person, which she actually doesn’t in real life. She does swear a lot, though. There’s an ongoing joke between us that every time she tries to do an imitation of someone it sounds like she’s doing an Indian accent.

Captain Baynes (Paynes) is very friendly and energetic. He speaks with a heavy southern accent and does sometimes get complex words a little confused. He is always trying to get the medics to do more on the physical exams.

Captain Cogan (Bogan) is the brigade nurse, and she is a very hard worker. When we first got here in theater she was put in charge of several things that weren’t really her job. The best example, and what most of her dialogue is based on, was her position as OIC (officer in charge) of the pharmacy. After being put in charge of the pharmacy she found out that the pharmacy OIC is supposed to be a doctor. She notified our company commander (Cpt. Anderson, or Gunderson in the play) that he needed to choose someone else to be the pharmacy OIC. All he had to do was send an email to one of the doctors (myself or Cpt. Pearce) stating that one of us was the new OIC. For some reason it took him almost a month to do it, during which time Cpt. Cogan became increasingly frustrated with him.

Captain Anderson (Gunderson) our company commander is a congenial, friendly guy, but tends to be kind of lackadaisical about getting things done in the company. He has an odd habit of smiling at people with his eyes really wide when he’s talking. He has another habit of randomly laughing while people are talking to him. He’s never done that while I was talking to him, but other people have reported it.

Captain Giesel (VinDiesel) is our physical therapist. She is tall for a lady (5’10”) and distinctly strong and athletic. She is pretty aggressive with the physical manipulation, and I’ve heard people groan while she’s manipulating their back or limbs. As far as I know she has never crippled anyone. She has a very distinctive laugh, which is more of a “hnee, hnee, hnee” than a “hnyuck, hnyuck, hnyuck.” It’s so distinctive and loud that once in the crowded chow hall I stood still and listened for a moment until I heard her and followed the sound to the table where our group of friends was sitting.

Captain Gross (Moss) is our dentist. He’s very smart, and a very hardworking dentist, but he has a tendency to take everything personally. The incident of the light not being on is a parody of his ongoing frustration with Cpt. Blake (Flake in the play), who wouldn’t fix a piece of dental equipment. After one piece finally completely stopped working he refused to see any more patients, stating that he had to teach everyone a lesson. He admitted that he could get the equipment working again himself, but he was so mad about it not being fixed that he refused to work until it was done. We all agreed that he probably wasn’t behaving in the most productive manner.

Captain Stokes (Smokes) is our psychologist. He talks to everyone in an overly-friendly, buoyant manner, and really does wink and fire finger pistols at people.

Lieutenant Horn (Corn) is our clinic OIC. She basically runs the day-to-day operations of the clinic. She is pretty competent, but she’s new in the position and is often confused by the shenanigans of the people who work here. The other day she did something disrespectful (unintentionally, I’m sure) to Cpt. Gross, who got very upset and made her stand at attention in front of him so he could chew her out. Witnesses (specifically Cpt. Baynes) say she was very confused, thinking at first that Cpt. Gross was joking.

Captain Baca (Caca) is our brigade surgeon. She comes down to talk to us a couple of times a week, and frequently vents her frustration with the brigade leadership, who cannot grasp simple medical concepts. The incident with the leg is only slightly exaggerated. She came to her office one morning and found her garbage can full of bloody rags. Apparently there’d been an accident involving some bleeding, and when it was cleaned up they put it in her garbage can because she’s the brigade surgeon and would know what to do with the mess. She was absolutely livid about it. So you understand, Cpt. Baca is a doctor, but her position as a brigade surgeon is purely administrative. She does not see patients, and she has nothing to do with direct patient care. Her office is certainly not a place to put spare body parts. In terms of my interactions with her, she has always been very nice to me, but I think she sometimes gets tired of how little I understand about the how the military works. She speaks in heavy acronym-ese, which is often hard for me to follow.

The medics we work with are quite proficient for the most part. When we first got here and they started doing patient screening and basic screening exams, they were abysmally incomplete, and when they came to present patients to us they were pretty much as Pvt. Doobie (based on a generalization of all of the medics, not on anyone in particular) did it in Act I. Since then their exams and presentations have improved a lot. Pvt. Bolero in the play is loosely based on Pvt. Cordero, who is our desk clerk, and still tries to give us messages like he did in the play. They are completely useless messages, and we always have to send him back to find out who the person is, what they want, which of us the person wants to talk to, etc.

The incident with the medic saying “inflamatation” is real, though a bit exaggerated. We weren’t mean to the medic, and even though we laughed a bit, it was with her, not at her. It’s still one of Cpt. Pearce’s favorite jokes.

Epilogue

Since I wrote this I forwarded it to everyone parodied in the play. It has been universally appreciated. Last night I could hear Cpt. Giesel’s loud, distinctive laugh through the concrete walls of our building for almost two hours. This morning when I came in to work the medics were standing outside of our office wondering why Cpt. Pearce was laughing so hard that she was choking. Cpt. Baynes has started using lines from the play in his conversation (he asked a medic what a patient’s “breathering” sounded like). They are now demanding a Part II, which may or may not happen.

2011-08-29T11:51:00.001-06:00

August 29, 2011

It's been a long time. A long time since I've been home, a long time
since I've seen my husband, a long time that I've been on vacation. A
couple of months ago Josh got deployed to Afghanistan, and I've been
in Utah spending time with my family. I was planning to fly back to
NY today, but all flights to NY have been canceled due to the
hurricane. So it's going to be even longer.

We've had a wonderful time with Utah, with the highlights being a 247
mile bike trip to Yellowstone that both Josh, his brothers, and Samuel
completed, while the rest of us biked a little and camped along.
We've had fun spending time with the extended family, and 'finishing'
our stay with Samuel participating in a half iron-man triathlon ( 1.2
mile swim, 56 mile bike ride, 13 mile run).

We've had a few mishaps while here. Mosiah (2 yr old) got bitten by a
black widow, Samuel (12 yr old) hit a diving board during diving class
and broke his shoulder. I threw out my back and could not move for a
week. Isaiah badly sprained his index finger, and got 4 teeth pulled
to make room for a spacer and a retainer. He is learning how to talk
with his mouth full of plastic and wires.

Josh is doctoring in Afghanistan. He calls just about everyday,
unless somebody dies and all communication is shut down. He also
writes just about everyday. Sometimes his letters are sad and
sometimes they are very funny. Below is a sad one, and attached is a
very funny one about the drama going on with the doctors in
Afghanistan. It's a soap opera that Josh wrote for our entertainment.
Sorry about the sad one, but enjoy the funny attached one.

Sylwia

From Josh August 2011:

"Wonderful family,

As I mentioned in my last email, tonight it was my job to pronounce
two soldiers dead. I had to examine the bodies and make sure that
their hearts weren't beating, and that they were, in fact, deceased.
It was very sad. One of them had a t-shirt with pictures of his kids
on it.

I just wanted to let you know how much I love you guys. I wanted you
to know how grateful I am to have the gospel of Jesus Christ, and how
grateful I am that we have been sealed together as a family. Please
remember to pray for my safety and for a quick end to this war. I
love you all."

29 Sierpien 2011

Juz dlugo nie jestem w domu. Juz dlugo nie widzialam mojego meza i
juz za dlugo jestem na wakacjach w Utah, prawie 4 miesiace. Mialam
dzisiaj wracac do Nowego Yorku, ale byl huragan wiec samoloty do
Nowego Yorku nie lataja. Bede tu jeszcze tydzien.

Bardzo fajnie bylo w Utah. Nasza ulubiona wycieczka to byla jak
rowerami pochalismy 247 mil do stanu Wyoming do parku Yellowstone.
Josh, jego bracia, i Samuel tylko jechali na rowerach. Ja i inna
rodzina jechalismy tylko troche rowerami, a reszta samochodem i przez
cale 10 dni spalismy pod namiotami, lub w chatach goralskich. Fajne
tez bylo przez 3 miesiace spedzac czas z dalsza rodzina. Nasza wizyta
miala sie zakonczyc wyscigiem w ktorym Josza bracia i moj syn Samuel
bral udzial. Plywali 1.2 mil, jechali na rowerze 56 mil, i biegali 13
mil. To wszytko pod rzad. Zajelo to okolo 9 godzin.

Przez ostatnie trzy miesiace tez mielismy kikla wypadkow. Moj syn
Mosiah co ma tylko 2 lata byl ugryziony przez niebezpiecznego pajaka i
mial infekcje nogi. Samuel podczas klasy nurkowania upadl na deske i
zlamal sobie ramie. Isaiah prawie zlamal palec od reki, i tez 4 jego
mleczne zeby byly wyrwane aby zrobic miejsce na aparat do prostowania
zebow. On uczy sie mowic z drutami w ustach.

Moj maz juz jest dwa miesiace na wojnie w Afganistanie. Prawie
codziennie dzwoni do nas, i tez prawie codziennie pisze listy. Jak
ktos umiera to nie ma komunikacji z nami bo rodzina musi byc najpierw
posfiadomiona of smierci zolnieza. Nieraz jego listy sa smutne a
nieraz wesole. Raz napisala jak musial robic egzamin na umarlym
zolniezu i jak go rozbieral to zobaczyl ze zmartwy zolniez mial
zdjecia swoich dzieci na swojej podkoszulce. Jesi czytacie dobrze
po angielsku to zajaczylam bardzo smieszna sztuke ktora Josh napisal o
lekarzach w Afganistanie.

Sylwia

Recital / Przedstawienie

2011-05-25T15:22:00.000-06:00

May 24, 2011

Recital

Samuel and Isaiah took piano lessons from my friend Stephanie for about 8 months in Georgia. When we moved here I was very lucky to find a piano teacher who lived near us and traveled to our house to teach. Nephi joined his older brothers in learning. Our teacher Suz Pope has done an excellent job teaching them and now the older boys play simplified hymns, a simplified classical piece, and Samuel even plays a Polish Christmas carol.

At the end of the year and right before she moves, sister Pope put together a recital where the boys got to play the most complicated piece they have learned so far. Nephi played the simplified version of "There is a Green Hill Far Away", Isaiah played a piece from the opera "Carmen" and Samuel played a piece from "The Barber of Seville". The event was held at our friends' the Krauss's house. It was a grand event. Their house is beautiful and their hospitality superb.

The boys got awards for their strengths. Nephi got an award for being the theory expert, Samuel for passing his songs of really quickly, and Isaiah for reading music really well. The award came in form of a Hershey Symphony bar, which Nephi bit into immediately.

Sylwia

24 Maj 2011

Przedstawienie

Jak mieszkalismy w Georgia to moja kolezanka Stephanie uczyla Samuela i Isaiah pianina przez 8 miesiecy. Potem ona sie przeprowadzila, a potem my sie przenieslisy do Nowego Yorku. Na szczescie tu znalazlam nauczycielka odrazu. Tym razem tez Nefi sie zachol uczyc. Nastepne 8 miesiace wszyscy sie uczyli. Niestety ich nauczycielka sie teraz przeprowadza. Dzieci sie bardzo duzo ostatnio nauczyly. Samuel i Isaiah ladnie graja hymny i wlasnie sie zaczeli uczyc klasycznych sztuk. Nephi gra male piosenki i zna jeden hymn.

Pod koniec tej nauki, nasza nauczycielka zorganizowala przedstawienie w naszych znajomych pieknym domu. Samuel i Isaiah grail klaszyczna muzyke, a Nefi hymn. Po przedstawieniu bylo smaczne przyjecie.

Dzieci dostaly nagrody. Nefi za to ze dobrze zna teorie muzyki, Samuel za to ze bardzo szybko sie uczy, a Isaiah za to ze bardzo dobrze czyta muzyke. Wszyscy dostali czekolade jako nagrode. Nephi odrazy zaczol jesc czekolade.

Sylwia

Stronger, Swifter, Smarter / Szybszy, Wyzszy, Madrzejszy

2011-05-23T08:38:00.000-06:00

Stronger, Swifter, Smarter

May 23, 2011

Winter is finally over in New York. But it took till MAY!!! As much as I love the people here, I really don't see how people to manage to live here all of their lives. It's just too dank and dark.

Now that we are having beautiful spring weather, Josh has been waking Samuel up at 5 am everyday to run together. They run a little over 3 miles each morning and at age 12 Samuel is quite a bit faster than Josh. Samuel is also smarter than us, since he reads about 300 pages per day. Who besides a kid has that much time to read? He is really interested in non fictions books. Really long hard to read nonfiction books. Recently he read a 500 page book called 'The Gun' which is a history of the AK-47. Now he is just finishing 'Black Hawk Down', a nonfiction book about war. If I ever need to answer a hard question that the little kids ask me, I just ask Samuel. Samuel is also a head taller than I am and he is much stronger than I. I no longer need to carry heavy loads, or get a chair to reach something up high. Samuel can get it for me. Nice.

During this long winter, Isaiah got a bad episode of asthma. To get to school he had to be on the bus at 6:40 am. Isaiah is a poor sleeper and every day he began to be too exhausted to go to school. I worried that this could make his very weak and vulnerable to all kids of colds and I found a private Catholic school that started much later, so he could sleep in about an hour and a half. This helped a little but only until he had to attend mass where they burned incense. He just about choked during the service and at home he just kept getting worse. He started wheezing terribly, had trouble breathing, and coughed so much he couldn't sleep. I decided to pull him out of school and home school him, so he could sleep and rest more. He was put on a heavy dose of oral steroids for about a month, with no improvement. Finally we saw a pediatric pulmonologist, who put him on an even heavier dose of oral steroids, and a new inhaled steroid Alvesco. Finally after 3 months Isaiah got better. It's been fun having him home. No one has a more pleasant personality than Isaiah, and he is very self motivated to do all of his work as long as he is learning something new. Mosiah, couldn't be happier to have Isaiah home too. Mosiah loves Isaiah more than anyone in the family and when Mosiah is hurt he will only be comforted by Isaiah.

In this ward Isaiah finally really got into scouts. This is all thanks to his scout leader James McCann. Brother McCann has came to our house every single Saturday for several months just to have Isaiah pass off all of his scout requirements. Isaiah adores Brother McCann, and wants to be dentist just like him when he grows up.

The other day Josh put Mosiah to bed, but Mosiah did not want to go to sleep. Somehow, he leaned out of his crib and reached a book off the bookshelf. He ripped the entire book to shreds. What's so funny about this is that the book that he ripped was entitled: NO DAVID! J

Grace recently turned five. For her birthday she got her ears pierced, and she had a Fancy Nancy tea party. Nephi said that her party was the 'funnest' day of his life because he got to chase so many girls. All the boys in our house agree that Grace is by far the nicest person in our family. Whenever I read stories about annoying or mean little sisters, I am flabbergasted. Grace is always so nice and loving to everyone in our family. She is our little gem.

Most people who know Nephi today, would never in their wildest dreams imagine that his name middle means 'destruction is imminent'. He is a model student. He loves to follow the rules and to do his work. He loves his teacher Mrs. Wagoner. The other day he told Josh that he doesn't understand why his classmates only like recess, but they don't like writing and math like he does. He was chosen as a good citizen for his school and as a bus good citizen. Nephi is a bit of a pessimist. He always fears that if something could go wrong, it will go wrong. Hence he is having a very hard time with Joshua's upcoming deployment. He prays everyday that Josh will not die. When Josh went to Germany for pre deployment training, Nephi cried just about every day. He wants to live with his grandma and grandpa during the deployment.

Nephi, like Samuel, is very motivated and had been exercising on his own every day to keep fit. He can do 26 army-standard push-ups, 50 sit-ups, and he likes to run a mile with his dad, even in the rain.

Sylwia

23 Maj 2011

Szybszy, Wyzszy, Madrzejszy

Wreszcie juz u nas wiosna. Ale byla zima az do maja! Choc mamy bardzo fajnych przyjaciol tu w Nowym Yorku, nie wiem jak ludzie tu mieszkaja cale swoje zycie. Jest po prostu za zimno, za ciemno, i za mokro tu.

Samuel ma 12 lat. On jest duzo wyzszy odemnie. Tez jest madrzejszy bo czyta 300 stron ksiazek codzinnie. Ja nie mam tyle czasu na czytanie. Tez najbardziej lubi czytac fakty. Ostatni przeczytal ksiazke nazwana "Karabin" o histori karbina AK-47. Ta ksiazka miala 500 stron. Ja nie wiem jak taka ksiazka mogla by byc interesujaca. Tez niedawno przeczytal ksiazke o wojnie w Somali. Jak male dzieci mnie sie czegos pytaja to ja im kaze Samuela sie zapytac bo on wiecej odemnie wie. Tez ostatnio Josz is Samuel zaczeli biegac razem o piatej rano. Biegaja 6 kilometrow, i Samuel jest szybszy od Josza. Samuel jest nie tylko wyzszy ale tez silniejszy odemnie. Wiec jak musze cos ciezkiego niesc, to on niesie, a jak musze cos wysokiego dostac to Samuel dostaje. To fajnie.

Isaiah w ta zime chorowal na astme. Najpierw nie dobrze spal wiec codziennie do szkoly byl nie wyspany. Szkola tu sie zaczyno okolo 7 godziny. Wiec znalazlam inna szkole, Katoliczna, ktora sie zaczynala o 9 godzinie. Myslalam ze to pomorze. Ale tam musial chodzic na msze, a podczas mszy palilo sie kadzidlo. To bardzo nie dobrze na jego pluca, wiec nie mogl oddychac. Dostal lekarstwa sterydow ale nic nie pomagalo. Caly miesiac bral bardzo duzo sterydow, i nadal nic. Poszedl do specjalisty od ploc i on my dal nawet wiecej sterydow, i tez nowe lekarstwo Alvesco. Zajelo okolo 3 miesiace aby wyzdrowial. W tym czsie nie chodzil do szkoly wiec zaczelam go uczyc w domu. Bardzo fajnie miec go w domu bo on ma bardzo przyjemna osobowosc. Tez zawsze lubi sie uczyc cos nowego. Mosiah najbardziej lubi Isaiah z naszej calej rodziny, i jak placze to tylko chce isc do Isaiah. Wiec Mosiah tez sie bardzo cieszyl tym ze Isaiah w domu byl podczas szkoly.

Nasz kosciol sponsoruje harcerstwo. Jak doteraz to Isaiah lubil chodzic tam aby sie z kolegami spotykac ale nie interesowal sie harcerstwem. Ale teraz to sie wszytko zmienilo, bo jego nowy doradca James McCann jest bardzo fajny i przez kilka miesiecy w kazda sobote obieral Isaiah aby razem chodzili na ryby, na wycieczki w lesie, pomagali sie komus przenosic, itd. James McCann, jest dentysta, i Isaiah zdecydowal sie on tez chce byc denstysta, tak jak James.

Grace niedawno miala piate urodziny. Na urodziny mila uszy przeklote i dostala kolczyki. Tez na urodziny miala przyjecie na ktorym jej kolezanki jadly kanapeczki i pily soczek w filizankach. Nephi powiedzial ze to przyjecie sie mu najbardziej podobalo bo bylo duzo malych dziewczynek do ganiania. Wszyscy w naszym domu sie zgadzaja sie Grace jest najmilsza osoba w naszym domu. Nieraz czytam ksiazeczki dla dzieci w ktorych mala siostra innym dokucza. Grace nikomu nie dukucza ale jest bardzo kochana i mila.

Niedawno Mosiah byl polozony spac w lozeczku, ale jakos reke z lozeczka wystawil i zdjol ksiazke z regalu i cala ja rozerwal na kawalki. Bylo to smieszne bo ksiazeczka byla o malym chopcu co zawsze rozrabial i wszytko w domu niszczyl. Najczesciej Mosiah lubi ksiazki i ich nie rwie. Ale w tym wypadku bylo innaczej. Moze temat mu sie nie podobal J.

Jak Nefi byl maly to bardzo rozrabial i wszytko niszczyl, ale teraz jak ma 6 lat to by go nikt nie poznal. On jest najbardziej poslusznym dzieckiem w jego klasie. Bardzo lubi nauczycielki sluchac i pracowac w szkole. On nie rozumie dlaczego inne dzieci tylko lubia sie bawic a nie robyc matematyke i pisac tak jak on. Nefi dostal dwie nagrody za jego doskonale zachowanie. Jedno za dobre zachowanie w szkole a drugie za dobre zachowanie w autobusie szkolnym.

Nefi jest troche pesymista. Zawsze mysli ze cos zlego sie moze za chwile stac. Z tego powodu on sie bardzo boji tego ze Josh wyjezdza na wojne niedlugo. Jak Josh pojechal do Niemiec na pare tygodni na trening, to Nefi codzinnie plakal i sie modlil zeby Josh nie umarl. Jak Josh bedzie na wojnie, to Nefi by chcial mieszkac ze swoimi dziadkami w Utah.

Tak jak jego starszy brat Samuel, Nephi bardzo lubi cwiczyc. Codziennie sam cwiczy: robi papki, cwiczenia na brzuch, i biega 1.6 km z Joszem, nawet jesli deszc pada.

Sylwia

Boston

2011-05-18T22:03:00.001-06:00

May 18, 2011

Boston Massacred

Quite a few months ago Josh's work sent him to a conference to Boston for a few days. The army paid for his gas to get there, they paid for a room in a very fancy hotel—The Liberty Hotel. I thought this would be a great opportunity to come along and tour the historic city of Boston. I asked the kids if they wanted to come and they said they were just too busy with school. ?????????? What kinds of kids say that? Here I'm offering to take them out of school for a vacation and this is the response I get?

I almost gave in and let them stay home, but then one of my best friends lives near Boston, and I really wanted to see her. Plus Josh showed me that we would be staying in Libery Hotel, a historical landmark right downtown. Everything we wanted to see would be within walking distance. I couldn't resist. I forced the kids to go and we all had a blast.

The first day we spent at the Boston Science Center. It was a wonderful place, there were tons of hands on exhibits, live shows, and an amazing children's area to play in. Grace got to be a part of the lightning show, Isaiah got to be a part of the solar energy show, and Mosiah got dressed as a skunk in the play area and all the ladies were just swooning over how cute he is. We saw a beautiful movie about Australia and had BBQ ribs for lunch. When the science center was closing Josh walked over to pick us up and together we walked to the famous Faneuil Hall and Quincy Market. There we feasted on Boston Chowder and fresh squeezed orange juice. We also bought historical souvenirs. The colonial hat was everyone's favorite. The boys fought over it for the next three days.

The next day, when Josh attended his conference, I took the kids on a historical walking tour with a costumed actress as our guide. She was delightful. She not only told the stories of the American Revolution, but she told us about all of the quirks of our famous founding fathers. The kids were laughing all day. Our tour ended about 1 pm at Faneuil Hall and we pigged out on Boston Chowder again. Even though Nephi, Grace, and Mosiah were very tired, Samuel and Isaiah really wanted to do a second tour of the north side of historic Boston. So we set off walking, looking, listening and laughing again. All was well until Nephi needed to use the restroom. Boston is a beautiful city; it looks very European. Unfortunately, it shares with Europe its lack of public restrooms! I had to run a mile and a half with Nephi before we found a place that would let a little kid use a restroom!

Our tour ended at a historical Puritan graveyard. It is interesting to note that none of the gravestones had crosses; instead they all had skulls with wings. This was a Puritan symbol of the soul having triumphed over the physical body. Very interesting, and it gave the graveyards and extra eerie feeling.

About a 15 minute walk from the graveyard is the USS Constitution, a war sail ship used in the war of 1812. Samuel and Isaiah wanted to continue walking to the ship! By that time we had already walked five hours! The weather was sunny and 80 degrees. It was hot and we were in desperate need of ice cream. And as luck would have it, we walked right into an ice cream shop. We all had smoothies, except Grace, who wanted ice cream with sprinkles.

Our walk to the USS Constitution was well worth it. It's a breathtaking ship that we got to walk on, climb, touch, and even listen to a tour guide. The ship has never been defeated in a battle and its nickname is Old Ironsides because even though it's made out of wood, cannon balls would rarely penetrate it because the wood is so hard. Usually the cannon balls just bounced off. Next to the ship is the USS Constitution Museum that has perhaps the best children's museum we have ever visited. The kids got to dress, cook, scrub decks, sleep, and work like sailors. It was fantastic.

At the end of the day when the ship museum closed Josh picked us up and took us to the Boston Museum of fine Arts so we could see some real Egyptian mummies. The pet mummies were our favorite.

The last day, the kids were dying to go to the science museum again, because we saw less than half of it. The kids got to do hands on experiments, testing food for sugar, starch, and protein. And we they got to participate in an engineering competition, to see who could design the fastest bobsled, out of plastic, straws, batteries, and cloth. I won and got to name the bobsled team Hardman.

Each day when we got back to the hotel after a day full of walking the kids said that their feet had been Boston Massacred. Speaking of which, the site of the Boston Massacre is in the middle of a busy street on a concrete 'island'. It is marked by a star in the cobble stones. From it you can see the building where the Declaration of Independence was first read to the public. Maybe you can make it out in the pictures.

Of all of the places I have visited in my life, I must say that Boston may be my favorite. My kids and I love American history, and Boston has an abundance of it.

And last but definitely not least, I got to visit and spent time with my dear friend Irene and her beautiful children. I'm glad we are just six hours away, but I wish we would live just down the street from each other, like in Iowa, so we could see each and our kids could play every day.

Sylwia

18 Maj 2011

Boston

Kilka miesiecy temu, mojego meza praca wyslala go do missta Boston na konferecje medyczna. To jest 6 godzin od nas samochodem. Praca zaplacila ze jego bezyne i za swietny historyczny hotel w samym srodku miasta. Ja zapytalam sie dzieci czy chialyby pojechac do Boston razem z nim na wycieczke. A Samuel i Isaiah mi odpowiedzieli ze maja za duzo pracy w szkole.??????????? Nie wiedzialam o co chodzi. Tu ja ich zapraszam na male wakacje w historycznym miescie Boston, a oni mi opowiadaja ze musza byc w szkole?

Ja prawie sie z nimi zgodzilam, ale maz mi pokazal strone internetowa hotelu w Boston. To bardzo piekny hotel w samym srodku miasta. Aby zwiedzac miasto wszedzie mozna chodzic na piechote od tego hotelu. Wiec kazalam dzieciom jechac na wakacje i bardzo fajnie sie bawilismy.

Pierwszego dnia poszlismy do Boston Muzeum Nauki. Wszytko dzieci mogly dotykac i tez bylo duzo predstawien. Tez byl wielki plac do zabawy dla malych dzieci. Tam malutki Mosiah przebral sie za skunksa i wszytkim sie bardzo podobal. Tez ogladalismy piekny film o Australi jedlismy zeberka na obiad. Pod koniec dnia jak Josh skonczyl spotkania w hotelu, przyszedl nas odebrac z Muzeum Nauki. Wtedy razem poszlismy na piechote na bardzo slawny market ktory byl w miescie Boston od 18-stego wieku. Ten market nazywa sie Quincy Market, a najbardziej slawny budynek to nazywa sie Faneuil Hall. Kupilismy troche historycznych drobiazgow. Jeden z nich to byl kapelusz z 18stego wieku. Najpierw nikt nie chcial go nosic, a po kiklu minutach kazdy chcial go nosic i az do dzisiaj chopcy kloca o ten kapelusz. Na tym market jest bardzo duzo jedzenia z roznych krajow. My jedlismy slawna zupe z miasta Boston zrobiona z milczek.

Nastepnego dnia poszlismy na wycieczke na kotrej aktorka w przebrana za starodawna pania opowiadala nam o miescie Boston. Chodzilismy na pieszo 3 godziny tak zwiedzajac miasto. Wycieczka sie skonczyla znowu przy Quincy Market, i znowu tam jedlismy zupe z milczek. Samuel i Isaiah tak bardzo lubili te pierwsza wycieczka, ze chcieli isc na druga. Wiec nastepne 3 godziny chodilismy po miescie Boston z aktorka ktora nam wiecej histori opowiadala. Wiele tych opowiesci bylo bardzo smiesznych wiec dzieci sie duzo smialy. Mosiah, Grace, i Nefi byli zmeczeni i raptem Nefi potrzebowal isc do ubikacji. Choc miasto Boston jest piekne jak Europa, tez jak Europa ma bardzo malo ubikacji publicznych. Ja musialam zostawic inne dzieci sama na wycieczke, a ja z Nefim biegalam po calym miescie szukajac ubikacji. Dopiero pol mili od wycieczki znalazlam toalete!

Nasza historzyczna wycieczka skonczyla sie na cmanetarzu Puritanow. Tam groby nie mialy krzyza, ale czaszki ze skrzydlami. To byl symbol ze dusza jest wolna od ciala.

Ta historyczna wycieczka trwala 5 godzin chodzenia na piechote! Ja bylam bardzo zmeczona, ale Samuel i Isaiah chciely dalej isc az do statku USS Constitution. To statek z wojny roku 1812, ktory nadal jest w wodzie i jest zupelnie sprawny i moglby byc uzywany. Musielismy isc nastpene 15 minut na pieszo do tego statku, i bylo dosyc goraca. Chcialo nam sie pic lub jesc cos zimnego. Fajne ze po drodze akural byl sklep z lodami i napojami. Wszyszy kupilimsy skodkie napoje z lodem, oproz Grace ktora chciala normanle lody.

Bardzo dobrze ze doszlismy do tego statku, bo byl przepiekny. Choc statek jest caly zrobiony z drewna, kule armat przez niego nie przechodzily podczas wojny, bo te drzewo jest i twarde i sprezyste. Wiec kule od statku sie odbijaly. Obok statku bylo muzeum dla dzieci w ktorym dzieci sie przebieraly jako zolnierze statku, i mieli szanse myc statek, spac w hamakach, udawac ze gotuja na statku jedzenie. Bylo to fantastyczne muzeum.

Jak to muzeum sie zamknelo, to Josh nas odebral samochodem i zawiozl do Muzeum Sztuki Boston. Dzieci moje bardzo chcialy zobaczyc mummie. Najbardziej nam sie mummie zwierzat podobaly.

Ostaniego dnia moje dzieci chcialy wrocic do muzeum nauki bo nawet polowy tego muzeum nie zwiedzilismy pierwszego dnia. Dobrze ze wrocilismy bo dzieci mialy szanse zrobic experymenty roznych substacji, aby dowiedziec sie czy byly one pelne bialka, lub cukru, lub tluszczu. Tez byl konkurs zbudownia jak najszybszych sanek z roznych materialow. Ja zbudowalam naszybszy i wygralam.

Ze wszytkich miejsc ktore odwiedzalam w moim zyciu, musze powiedziec ze chyba najbardziej mi sie podobal Boston. Ja i moje dzieci bardzo lubimy Amerykanska historie, a Boston ma tego mnostwo. Choc musze powiedziec ze nie jestesmy pszyzwycajeci chodzenia tyle na piechote!

Pod koniec tych krotkich wakacji, mialam szanse owiedzic moja ukachano kolezanke Irene i jej 3 pieknych dzieci. Tak fajnie bylo sie z nia zobaczyc. Przykro mi ze nie mieszkamy obok siebie jak kiedys dawno temu w Iowa.

Sylwia

Temporary Pet: Woodland Vole / Tymczasowe Zwierze Domowe: Nornik

2011-04-03T19:30:00.001-06:00

March 19, 2011

Temporary Pet: Woodland Vole

I think I've written before that I do not like pets. A long time ago I decided to either have kids or pets, but not both.

Kids love pets, especially Isaiah, but they do not love taking care of them. At least not long term. So, in order to satisfy their curiosity about animals, I let them catch wild animals and keep them for a few days. Then it's back into the wild. We've had a mole, a toad, a rabbit, a snake, a lizard, etc.

A couple of days ago Isaiah caught what I thought was a mouse. I was not happy about it. Mice once infested my house. I am disgusted by the vermin. I told the kids that the box would have to stay outside. We bought some wood chips and some mouse food and even a wheel. I also gave the "mouse" some grain and bread. It did not touch it. It would only eat the carrot that I dropped in there. I looked up the New York mouse species but it did not resemble any of them. Instead I found out that it's a vole.

I was very happy to know that because voles do not infest homes. They only eat roots and grass and they only live on average 3 months.

"Our" vole is a baby and it is very friendly and loves to run on the wheel. We've been having fun with it. After a few days Isaiah noticed that the vole was not so happy in the cage and he decided that when you love something it's more important for them to be happy then for you to be happy, so he let it go. Isaiah is such a wonderful boy.

--Sylwia

19 Marzec 2011

Tymczsowe Zwierze Domowe: Nornik

Ja nie lubie zwierzat domowych. Za duzo pracy jest miec dzieci i zwierzeta, wiec my tylko mamy dzieci.

Ale dzieci bardzo lubia zwierzeta, szczegolnie moj syn Isaiah, choc nie lubia sie nimi zajmowac. Wiec od czasu do czasu ja pozwalam im zlapac dzikie zwierzata i ogladac je w plastikowym pudelku przez pare dni. A potem oddajemy je do natury. Mielismy juz kreta, ropuche, zajaczka, weza, jaszczurke, itd.

Pare dni temu Isaiah zlapal "mysze". Ja nie lubie mysz. One sa brudne i rozmnazaja sie w domach. Powiedzialam dzieciom ze pudelko musi zawsze byc na dworzu bo nie chce myszy w domu. Kupilismy wiorki, jedzenie i nawet kolko dla mysz. Ja sprawdzilam rodzaje mysz Nowego Yorku na interecie. Nasze zwierze nie wygladalo jak zadna mysz, i tez nie jadlo jedzenia dla mysz. Tylo jadlo marchewke.

Dowiedzialam sie ze to nie mysz, ale nornik. One sie szybko nie rozmnazaja, zyja tylko trzy miesiace, mieszkaja tylko na dworzu, bo jedzo tylko trawe i korzenie.

Nasz nornik jest bardzo mlody. Lubi ludzi, siedzi nam na rekach, i lubi biegac na kolku. Bardzo nam sie podoba. Po kilku dniach Isaiah zauwarzyl ze nornik byl nie szczesliwy w klatce. Isaiah powiedzial ze jest wazniejsze aby nornik byl szczesliwy niz zeby on sam byl szczseliwy, wiec nornika wypuscil. Isaiah jest wspanialym chopcem.

Sylwia

How Did I Get So Lucky? / Skad Mam Tyle Szczescia?

2011-03-08T13:34:00.000-06:00

March 8, 2011

How Did I Get So Lucky?

Samuel recently turned 12 yrs old and he is half a head taller than me. For his birthday he wanted to go see New York City. So Josh took the Samuel, Isaiah, and Nephi, and picked up Sean, Isaiah's lifelong friend from Pennsylvania. They met up with my dad and his wife Shirley and our Polish friend Teper. I stayed home because I have already been to NYC and I had no intention of sightseeing in the bitter cold.

The boys had a blast at Ground Zero, the Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, the Brooklyn Bridge, etc. But their favorite place was Time Square with all the lights and people and the 'Ripley's Believe It Or Not Museum'. After seeing several things in the museum Nephi asked Josh, do you believe all this stuff? Josh said, sure. Nephi said that he doesn't believe it, because after all he had a choice. He pointed out that everywhere it said 'Belive It Or Not'.

Now that Samuel is 12 he is even more responsible than before. Last week my husband was gone for some training in San Antonio, and I was getting overwhelmed by my messy house so I escaped to my book club and left Samuel in charge. Not only did he put all the kids to bed, but he cleaned the house spotless, including mopping and there was not a spec of dirt in the kitchen. And this is not a onetime thing. He always does his chores without being asked and he does more work than he is assigned. How did I get so lucky? I thank God everyday for my children who are not only my joy but now my strength. Thank you.

P.S. New York City is on the pictures, with our favorite one of the kids falling asleep on the subway at the end of each day…and then there is the subway rat, if you can spot him…

Sylwia

8 Marzec 2011

Skad Mam Tyle Szczescia?

Niedawno Samuel mial 12 urodziny. On jest pol glowy wyzszy odmenie. Na swoje urodziny Samuel chcial pojechac zwiedzac miasto New York City. Wiec moj maz zabral Samuela, Isaiah, i Nefi. Tez on odebral w Pennysylwani kolege Isaiah, kotry sie nazywa Sean. W Nowym Yorku spotkali dziadka Wlodzimierza i Shirley i naszego Polskiego znajomego Tepera. Ja zostalam w domu, bo juz bylam w Nowym Yorku i nie chcialam zwiedzac miasta w zimnie.

Chlopakom bardzo sie podobalo miasto. Ogladali miejce gdzie terrorysci zgladzili budynki, statue wolonosci, wyspe gdzie wszyscy emigranci przybywali w dawnych czasach, most do Brooklyn, itd. Ale najbardziej im sie podobalo miejce Times Square. Tam bylo bardzo duzo ludzi, teatrow, i swiatel. Poszli tam do museum 'Ripley's Believe It Or Not'. To takie muzeum wszytkich dwinych zeczy na swiecie. Nefi powiedzial ze on nie wierzy w to wszytko co tam wydzial, bo nazwa museum jest : 'Wierz Albo Nie Wierz' wiec Nefi powiedzial ze on nie wierzy.

Teraz jak Samuel ma 12 lat to jest nawet bardziej odpowiedzialny. W ostatnim tygodniu moj maz pojechal do Teksasu na jakis kurs. Za duzo mialam do roboty i moj dom coraz mial wiecej balaganu. Kuchnia strasznie wygladala, no i reszta domu nie za lepiej. W czwartek juz mialam tego wszytkiego dosyc, poszlam na spotkanie z kolezankami dykutowac o ksiazkach ktore czytamy. Nie chcialo mi sie wrocic do domu. Ale jak wrocilam to nie tylko wszytkie male dzieci spaly, ale Samuel caly dom posprzatal. Bylo wszystko doskonale czyste. Kuchnia blyskala. Samuel ostanio sam sprzata. Juz nie musze go nawet prosic. A jak go poprosze to zawsze wiecej pracy zrobi niz ja poprosilam. Skad mam ja takie szczescie? Codziennie dziekuje Bogu za moje dzieci. Nie tylko one mi przynosza radosc ale teraz takrze zaczynaja byc moja sila. Bardzo za to jestem wdzieczna.

Sylwia

P.S. Na zdjeciach Nowy York, i jak smeczone dzieci byly pod koniec kazdego dnia w metrze… i nawet szczur w metrze, jesli mozesz go znalesc.

Martin Luther King Jr.

2011-01-17T10:15:00.000-06:00

January 17, 2011

My son six year old son Nephi woke up today and said that he wanted to write an essay. So this is what he dictated as I typed. He wanted to attach a picture, and he chose the Lego Martin Luther King Jr. figure. Enjoy.

Sylwia

Martin Luther King Jr. Day 2011

By Nephi Hardman

On January 17, 2011 we celebrate Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday. Because he made black and white people go together. It is great that black and white people are together now.

Everyone back in the old days didn't have white people and black people go together. I saw a video about Martin Luther King Jr. with all of the white firemen who were putting water on the black kids, and a black police man let his police dog rip a white person's shirt. Martin Luther King Jr. taught that it doesn't matter what color your hair is, your eyes are, or your skin is. It only matters what's inside your heart. People were being bullies in the old days. The scriptures say 'men look on the outside, but Heavenly Father looks inside your heart'.

I am proud to be an American because my uncle Daniel adopted 4 black kids and the rest of the family is white. Also, my grandpa Woody who is white is married to a black person, Shirley.

17 Styczen 2011

Moj syn Nefi ktory ma 6 lat, obudzil sie dzisiaj rano i powiedzial ze chcial napisac wypracowanie. Napisal o tym ze Martin Luther King Jr. nauczyl nas za biali i czarni ludzie moga zyc razem, i ze to nie jest wazne jakiego koloru masz wlosy, lub oczy, lub skure. Tylko jest wazne co jest w twoim sercu. Tez w pismie swietym jest napisane ze ludzie patrza na zewnatrz, a Bog patrzy na serce. Nefi napisal ze jest dumy byc Amerikaninem bo jego wujek Daniel zaadoptowal 4 czarnych dzieci choc jego rodzina jest biala. A jego dziadek Woody choc jest bialy ozenil sie sa czarna kobieta Shirley. Nephi tez chcial zalaczyc zdjecie Martin Luther King Jr i najbardziej mu sie podobala figurka Lego w jego postaci.

Sylwia

House Pictures / Zdjecia Domu

2011-01-10T08:40:00.001-06:00

January 4, 2011

House Pictures

My mom asked me for some pictures of the inside of the house. And since we spend most of our time indoors here at the North Pole (aka Ft Drum New York), I have some to share.

I did not take any pictures especially of the house. The first has everyone lined up in front of the tree with their favorite presents. Isaiah is standing on the stilts that he got. But he probably needs to be on the pogo stick that is not pictured. He jumps on that thing for hours. I think his record is 600 jumps in a row. My dear friend Lois gave me both the stilts and the pogo stick to give to my kids, and boy are they a hit!

We have some pictures of Anyia opening her presents a few days before Christmas before she moved to her mom's house. She especially enjoyed the Justin Bieber poster and the Texting shortcuts poster. She also liked the basketball and soccer ball with all of our signatures. She busted out laughing when he read the inscription from Josh: "Anyia, don't forget us when you are married to David Beckham."

Next we have some pictures of our indoor playground that is located in our formal dining room. You can even see us and our friends acting out the Nativity during our Christmas Eve celebration. Toward the end we have some shots of the kitchen and living room taken during a couple of different kid get-togethers. The one in the kitchen was the New Year's party. Mosiah managed to get up on the table after breakfast and spill all of the soda and chips, mix them together, and laugh and laugh, and laugh. If you are shocked by Mosiah's hair cut, you can thank Josh for shaving his head without my knowledge or permission. :(

4 Styczen 2011

Moja mama proprosila mnie o zdjecia mojego domu w srodku. Choc ostatnio za duzo zdjec nie robilam, mam troche, bo wszytkie zdjecia ostatnio sa robione w domu. Jest to za zimno i za ciemno aby byc na dworzu.

Na pierwszym zdjeciu sa wszycy przed choinka z ulubionymi prezentami. Isaiah stoi na patykach (?szczudlach), ale pewnie tez powinien byc na swoim pogo patyku do skakania. Umie skakac na pogo 600 razy. Moja znajoma dala mi ten pogo i te szczudly, a ja je dalam Isaiah pod choinke.

Nastepne zdjecia to z dziewczynka Anyia, ktora z nami mieszkala przez 2 miesiace. Zaraz przed swietami przeprowadzila sie do swojej mamy w innym miescie. Kilka dnie przed swietami otworzyla swoje prezenty od nas. Bardzo jej sie pilki podobaly z naszymi autografami. Bardzo sie smiala jak Josh napisal "Anyia, nie zapomnil o nas jak wyjdziesz za maz za David Beckham." Tez bardzo lubila plakat ze zdjeciem Justin Beiber, i plakat ze skrutami do pisania krotkich wiadomosci na telefonie (text). Nie wiem jak to jest po Polsku, i nawet nie wiem czy w Polsce ludzie tak pisza w skrotach. No, ale jej to sie bardzo podobalo.

Potem jest pare zdjec na naszym placu zabawy w domu. Na jednym z tych zdjec robimy szopke Bozego Narodzenia. Pod koniec to kilka zdjec z kuchni i z duzego pokoju, jak koledzy i kolezanki naszych dzieci nas odwiedzaja. A na samym koncu Mosiah wysypal wszytkie czipsy i picie na stole i sie smieje. Niestey niedawno moj maz mu obciol wszytkie wlosy. Nic mi o tym nie powiedzial az juz wlosow nie bylo. :(

Sylwia

Merry Christmas / Wesolych Swiat

2010-12-25T10:23:00.001-06:00

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year 2011!
----From the Hardmans

Wesolych Swiat Bozego Narodzenia i Szczesliwego Nowego Roku 2011!
----Zyczy Rodzina Hardman

Vaka Haka

2010-12-20T10:51:00.000-06:00

Vaka Haka

December 20, 2010

We have some very nice friends here in New York. Even though the sun rarely shines here, and it snows just about every day, we love New York because of the people in our church.

Some of our favorite friends are the Vakas: a huge quiet Tongan husband and tiny blond loud wife with their cute son Kelepi that Mosiah loves to wrestle with.

The Vakas had us over for some Tongan food and a few days later Brother Vaka taught our kids how to do the Haka. The Haka is a Maori war dance. Samuel, Isaiah, and Nephi learned and practiced it all week and performed it at our ward Christmas talent show. Sister Vaka painted our kids' faces, provided their costumes, and perfected their Haka skills. Sister Vaka also made our Halloween costumes last Halloween. She is the best. The other day Isaiah said that he was very grateful for Tongan food.

I'm attaching a picture of the Vakas as well as pictures of our warrior sons and a youtube video of their performance. If their faces scare you, they are supposed to.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Zq8rfGndoI

Sylwia

Vaka Haka

20 Grudzien 2010

Choc w tej czesci Nowego Yorku slonce bardzo malo swieci, i snieg prawie codziennie pada, bardzo lubimy ta okolice bo nasi znajomi w naszym kosciele sa bardzo fajni.

Jedna z rodzin ktora bardzo lubimy ma na nazwisko Vaka. Maz jest cichy i ogromny z wyspy Tonga. A zona jest malutka blondynka ze stanu Utah. Maja pieknego dzidziusia Kelepi, z ktorym Mosiah bardzo lubi sie bawic.

Tydzien temu rodzina Vaka zaprosila nas na tradycjonalny obiad z kraju Tonga. Jedzenie bylo pyszne i pare dni pozniej pan Vaka nauczyl moje dzieci Maori taniec wojenny ktory sie nazywa HAKA. Przed wojnami na wyspach zolnierze malowali swoje twarze i straszyli wrogow tancem, krzykiem, i strasznymi twarzami. Pani Vaka pomalowala dzieciom twarze, pryzniosla im stroje, i pomogla im tanca sie nauczyc. Ona tez uszyla nam przebrania na ostatnie Halloween. Ona jest bardzo mila i fajna.

W kosciele mielismy obiad i wystawe talentow. Nagralismy nasze dzieci jak ten taniec wojenny pokazywali. Przesylam zdjecia i link to video na youtube. Jesli dzieci twarze strasznie wygladaja, to dlatego ze tak powinny wygladac.

Tu link to video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Zq8rfGndoI

Sylwia

Birthday Wishes / Zyczenia Urodzinowe

2010-11-21T21:12:00.001-06:00

Birthday Wishes

November 8, 2010

I recently had a wonderful birthday. I woke up to find cards that the kids had made for me. For brunch I went out with some friends to eat stuffed french toast at the Tin Pan Galley. In the afternoon I shopped with some friends and picked out my dishwasher. The kids made cards for me, Josh bought me flowers and bought and installed a new dishwasher for me. Here is the text from the cards I received.

Grace:

Mommy I love you. Tomorrow is your birthday.

Nephi:

Dear Mommy. I love you, on, your. Birthday and, for ever, and for, always.

Isaiah:

I once was walking,

Drinking sprite,

Until I saw

Lit Dynamite.

And when the lit part

Hit a bend, well,

We all know,

That, that's the end.

KABOOM!!!

Mommy,

You're as powerful as dynamite, brighter than an explosion, and a lot more helpful than a can of sprite! You're the best mother I could wish for, and it's time to wish you a Happy Birthday!

Samuel:

Mommy I hope you have a wonderful birthday. You always work so hard to keep us clean and healthy. I hope you get a hard earned rest after all you have done for us. I know it doesn't seem like it, but we really do appreciate all that you do for us. Love, Samuel

Josh:

To my Beloved Sylwia,

I want you to know, in case you were wondering, how much I love you. You are the light of my life, the reason I get up in the morning, the reason I work, the reason I live. You are my best friend. You laugh at my silly jokes and make me laugh back. You like my figure, tell me I'm handsome, and don't mind my baldness. You have brought five fantastic children into the world and raised them to be clever, polite, and relatively odor free. Thank you for marrying me.

Love, Joshua.

PS I'm sending picture of my dishwasher and cards, as well as our last Halloween pictures. The boys dressed up as modern, civil war, and revolutionary war soldiers. Josh and I and the baby were the Shrek family. We actually hosted a huge Halloween party at our house. 42 people were here. The kids want to have one every year. I usually don't like hosting parties, but I do love the people from my church congregation, so it was fun to have everyone here.

Sylwia

8 Listopad 2010

Zyczenia Urodzinowe

Mialam bardzo przyjemne urodziny w tym roku. Maz mi kupil roze i nowa zmywarke do naczyn i sam ja zainstalowal. Dzieci mi napisaly piekne kartki, jeden nawet z wierszykiem od syna Isaiah. A ja z kolezankami poszlam do swietnej restauracji na pyszne sniadanie. Przesylam zdjecia zmywarki i tez zdjecia z ostatniego Halloween. Ja i maz i Mosiah przebralismy sie jako rodzina Shrek. A Samuel, Isaiah, i Nefi przebrali sie jako zolnierze z roznych wojn. Samuel byl nowoczesnym zolnierzem, Isaiah z roku 1770, a Nefi z roku 1850. Na Halloween mielsimy przyjecie w naszym domu. U nas bylo 42 ludzi. Dzieci chce miec takie przyjecie kazdego roku.

Sylwia

Pay It Forward / Pomoc: 20 lat pozniej

2010-11-08T14:37:00.000-06:00

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Josh and Sylwia Hardman <sjhardman@gmail.com>
Date: Mon, Nov 8, 2010 at 2:47 PM
Subject: Pay It Forward / Pomoc: 20 lat pozniej
To: sylwia hardman2 <sjhardman@gmail.com>

Pay It Forward

November 8, 2010

20 years ago, my father moved away and my mother lived homeless on a hill in Colorado. I was 16 and though I was not helpless as a small child, I was not old enough to be an adult, and yet I was on my own.

How does a troubled 16 year old girl take care of herself in the world? I, for one was a member of the church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints—a church full of people who have covenanted to lift one another's burdens and to take care of the poor and the needy among them. Many church members took care of me. Some bought me clothes, some had me over for dinner, some took me swimming and bowling, and some took me into their home to live.

I lived with Sandy and Steve White, the longest. I became part of their family. Their four children treated me like a sibling, and Steve and Sandy like dad and mom. In their home I saw what it meant to have a functional family, with dad: working, reading scriptures, praying and reading me books. And mom: taking care of the kids, making dinner, and always talking with me and teaching me how to make wise decisions.

I must say their efforts paid off. I now have a beautifully functional family of my own. And a couple of weeks ago my bishop called and asked if a troubled 14 year old girl could stay with us. We've really enjoyed having her here. My kids treat her like a sibling; my husband is like Steve, working, teaching the gospel, helping her with her math. And I try to be like Sandy. It's nice to 20 years later, to be able to pay it forward…

Sylwia

P.S. Anyia doesn't like pictures. But last Sunday I tricked her by asking her to position Mosiah for me in the picture. I snapped a couple of photos while she was helping…that will have to do for now. I've also included some pictures of New York in the fall.

Pomoc: 20 Lat Pozniej

8 Listopad 2010

20 lat temu, moj ojciec sie przeprowadzil, a moja mama byla bezdomna i mieszkala na gorze w stanie Colorado. Ja mialam 16 lat, i choc nie bylam malym dzieckiem, tez nie bylam dorosla.

Jak ma 16 letnia dwieczyna w tym swiecie sama funkcjonowac? Ja naszczescie bylam czlonkiem kosciola Jezusa Chrystusa Swietych w Dniach Ostatnich. W tym kosciele kadzy przyzeka ze zawsze bedzie pomagal tym ktorzy sa smutni, samotni, lub biedni. Wiele czlonkow kosciola sie mna opiekowalo. Niektorzy mi ubrania kupili, niektorzy mnie zapraszali an obidady do ich domu. Niektorzy mnie brali na rozrywki, plywac lub aby grac w kregle. A niektorzy mnie zaprosili mieszkac w ich domu.

Najdluzej mieszkalam z rodzina Steve i Sandy White. Bardzo milo bylo sie od nich nauczycz jak rodzina powinna funkcjonowac. Ich czworo dzieci traktowali mnie jak ich siostre. Steve i Sandy byli jak matka i ojciec dla mnie. Steve pracowa, uczyl nas ewageli, czytal mi ksiazki. Sandy zajmowaja sie rodzina, gotowalay nam obiady, bardzo duzo ze mna rozmawiala i uczyla mnie jak podejmowac dobre decyzje.

Ich pomoc dla mnie byla bardzo warta. Ja teraz sama mam piekna funkcjonalna rodznie. I dwa tygodnie temu moj biskup do mnie zadzwonil i zapytal czy 14 letnia dziewczyna by mogla z nami mieszkac. Anyia jest bardzo mila i grzeczna i bardzo ja lubimy. Moje dzieci sie z nia bawia jak z sisotra, moj maz pracuje, uczy ja ewangeli, pomagac jej sie matematyki uczyc. Ja probuja byc dobra matka jak Sandy. Fajnie ze ja mam szansze pomoc komus kto jest w podbnej sytuacji, jak ja bylam 20 lat temu….

Sylwia

Anyia nie lubi zdjec, ale ja poprosialam aby ona mi pomogla ustawic Mosiah dla zdjecia. Wtedy szybko jej zdjecie zrobilam, choc nie patrzyla w kamere. Tez przesylam zdjecia jesieni w Nowym Yorku.

Pay It Forward / Pomoc: 20 lat pozniej

2010-11-08T13:47:00.000-06:00

Pay It Forward

November 8, 2010

Sylwia

Pomoc: 20 Lat Pozniej

8 Listopad 2010

20 lat temu, moj ojciec sie przeprowadzil, a moja mama byla bezdomna i mieszkala na gorze w stanie Colorado. Ja mialam 16 lat, i choc nie bylam malym dzieckiem, tez nie bylam dorosla.

Sylwia

Anyia nie lubi zdjec, ale ja poprosialam aby ona mi pomogla ustawic Mosiah dla zdjecia. Wtedy szybko jej zdjecie zrobilam, choc nie patrzyla w kamere. Tez przesylam zdjecia jesieni w Nowym Yorku.

So Much Fun / Tyle Zabawy

2010-10-23T14:01:00.002-06:00

So Much Fun

I've always wanted to have a fun house for my kids but I didn't know how. I despise most media, so we don't own a TV or any gaming systems. We do have computers but they are logged off when the kids are home except on Saturdays.

When we moved to New York I wanted our kids to quickly make friends, so Josh right away started work on the tree house. When he finished it, he put in a zip line, and a second tree house, and a climbing wall. We soon had half a dozen kids visiting our yard each day. We also set up our trampoline and a couple of tree swings and rope ladders. Our backyard is adjacent to the school playground, a field, and some woods. Inside the house we set up our foosball table, an indoor swing and exercise rings.

In addition to the set up, we designated Friday night our kids' party night. Each of them can have a friend over for at least six hours, sometimes overnight. I make homemade pizza most Friday nights and the kids just play outside and play inside and have a blast. It has been delightful to have these get-togethers. Not only the kids, but I look forward to each and every Friday party. I've finally succeeded in having a fun house, my way, the old fashioned way, without media.

Sylwia

Tyle Zabawy

Ja zawsze chcialam miec dom pelen rozrywki dla dzieci, ale nie wiedzialam jak. Ja bardzo nie lubie telewizji i elektronicznych gier, wiec zadnych nie mamy. Tylko mamy komputery ale one sa wylaczone caly tydzien jak dzieci sa w domu. Tylko w sobote maja dostep do komputerow.

Jak sie przeprowadzilismy do Nowego Yorku to chcialam aby moje dzieci od razu znalezli przyjaciol. Moj maz odrazu zaczol budowac domek na drzewie a potem taki zelazny kabel na ktorym mozna zjezdzac z drzewa. Od tego czasu codziennie u nas w ogrodzie jest gromada dzieci. Potem Josh zbudowal jeszcze jeden domek na drzewie, i sciane do wdrapywania sie. Tez ustawilismy trampoline, i na drzewie zawiesilismy dwie chustawki i dwie drabiny ze sznuru. W srodku domu ustawilismy stol do grania w pikle nozna takimi malymi ludkami. Tez w srodku domu mamy hustawke i kolka do gimnastyki.

W kazdy piatek dzieci maja zabawe z kolegami. Kazdy z moich dzieci moze zaprosic kolege na 6 godzin, a nieraz nawet na noc i nastepne rano tez. Ja sama robie pizze dla wszytkich dzieci na pozny obiad. Dzieci wszytkie sie bawia na dworzu i w domu. Caly tydzien nie moga sie doczekac do piatku. Ja tez bardzo lubie te piatki. Wreszcie wynalazlam sposob aby moj dom byl pelen zabaw dla dzieci, tak jak ja wole, po starodawnemu, bez telewizora i bez gier eleckronicznych.

Sylwia

New Picture / Nowe Zdjecie

2010-09-25T13:45:00.001-06:00

September 25, 2010

I finally took a picture of Grace that's worth hanging on the wall. So I will be replacing her scripture picture with this one. I love it.

Sylwia

25 Wrzesien 2010

Zrobilam nowe zdjecie Grace, ktore mi sie bardziej podoba. Wiec zmieniam jej zdjecie ktore wisi na scianie na te nowe. Jest przepiekne.

Sylwia

Living in New York / Mieszkamy w Nowym Yorku

2010-09-22T20:28:00.001-06:00

September 22, 2010

Living in New York

When I first found out we were moving to New York, I was not happy. I've been spoiled living in the south wearing flip flops year round. In spite the many foot injuries, my kids always ran around barefoot. We could never do that in upstate New York; the frozen wasteland for six month out of the year. In addition to that there was no on post hosing and anything off post was either 200 years old, or really expensive. After three months of looking we finally found a house 500 sq feet smaller than our home in Georgia, but fairy "new".

So, we are here and we are actually really enjoying it. It's not freezing cold yet, we need a light jacket but it's fabulous to play outside. At first there were not kids outside in our neighborhood, but Josh built a tree house and a zipline in our back yard for Isaiah's birthday, and now we have half a dozen kids in our yard every day. It's great. The schools seem to be good and best of all there are farmers markets everywhere. I love eating fresh fruit and veggies. I even found a German lady that owns a bakery and sell authentic German bread. I buy some of my veggies from the Amish, who really fascinate me, and I want to be more like them.

I really love my ward (church congregation). It may be the friendliest ward I have ever attended. I like it so much that I even take my kids to scouts at the church, just so I can hang out with the church ladies. I just can't get enough of these wonderful people.

Near us, open only in the fall, is the Burrville Cider Mill. It's just a little barn that sells the best fresh tart cider, cider donuts, cider slushies, and farm fresh apples. We love going there. I'm sending some pictures of our home and the cider mill, some from the very dangerous Black River that my kids like swimming in.

Sylwia

22 Wrzesien 2010

Mieszkamy w Nowym Yorku

Kilka miesiecy temu, jak sie dowiedzialam ze przeprowadzamy sie do Nowego Yorku to bylam bardzo zla. Przyzwyczailam sie mieszkac na poludniu Ameryki, gdzie zawsze jest cieplo i caly rok mozna chodzic w sandalach. Choc czesto moje dzieci stopy rania, oni tylko lubia chodzic na bosaka. W Nowym Yorku gdzie jest snieg 6 miesiecy na rok to jest nie mozliwe. Takrze, baza wojskowa tu nie miala domu dla nas. A wszytkie domy po za baza albo mialy 200 lat, albo bardzo duzo kosztowaly aby wynajac. Po trzech miesiecach szukania domu na internecie, wreszcie znaleznismy dom choc on jest o ¼ miejszy niz nas ostatni dom.

No ale tu juz mieszkamy i jak doteraz to nam sie bardzo podoba. Pogoda nadal jest fajna. Trzeba kurtke nosic ale jest bardzo przyjemna pogoda do bawienia sie na dworzu. Na poczatku nie widzialam zadnych dzieci an dworzu, ale na Isaiah urodziny moj maz zbudowal domek na drzewie i taki metalowy kabel do zjezdzania. Od tego czasu codziennie okolo 6 dzieci przychodzi do nas sie bawic. To mi sie bardzo podoba. Szkoly dla dzieci tu sa dobre i bardzo duzo farmerow sprzedaje swierze owoce i warzywa na ulicy. To mis sie bardzo podoba. Tez jedna pani z Niemczech to ma piekarnie i sprzedaje prawdziwy Niemiecki chleb. Niektore wazywa kupuje z farmy Amishow. To taka religia i styl zycia, kotra mnie bardzo fascynuje. Oni sa farmerami, nie uzywaja elektryki, ciezko pracuje, itd. Bardzo to mi sie podoba.

Moj kosciol tu w Nowym Yorku jest wspanialy. Jest tak wiele milych ludzi i szybko sie zaprzyjazniami. Kilka razu w tygodniu chodzimy na spotkania bo takie fajne mamy towarzystwo.

Blisko nas jest taka stodola kotra sprzdaje swierze jablka, swierzy kwasny sok z jablek, paczki zrobione z soku jablkowego, i mrozony sok jablkowy. Bardzo tak lubimy chodzic. Presylam kilka zjec z tej stodoly, tez kilka naszego domu, i z bardzo niebiezpiecznej Czarnej Zeki, w kotrej moje dzieci bardzo lubia plywac.

Sylwia

An Original Myth by Isaiah Hardman

2010-09-20T10:27:00.001-06:00

The Alteration of Arbez

By Isaiah Hardman

"Bang", Poseidon, Greek god of the sea slammed his trident against the rock, cracking it in half. In between the two sides of the rock, horses sprang. The first and most beautiful horses were born to the world. They were completely white, except for their manes which were a brilliant gold.

Three years later, a Trojan named Arbez owned half of all the horses in Troy. He loved the horses. One summer night, Arbez lost one of his beloved horses. Because all the horses in the world were identical, he didn't have the heart to take someone else's horse based on a suspicion. One night he prayed to Aphrodite, goddess of love and beauty, that his horses would have different coats. Arbez made it clear in his prayer that he wanted her to make his horses uniquely beautiful, because all she did was make beauty.

The next morning Arbez found Aphrodite at his diamond encrusted door. She asked where the horses were, and he led her to his majestic stables. She went to the first stall and began to caress the horse. With a shock Arbez realized that wherever her hand touched the horse, the color changed or a pattern appeared. Soon he left her.

Poseidon had been watching this trying to hold in his anger, but it was too much. To do something so ruthless, changing something that Poseidon had made, was more than he would tolerate. Poseidon rose up on the crest of a wave, pointed his trident at Arbez, and transformed him into a horse.

Frightened, Arbez galloped to Aphrodite to tell her what happened. As soon as he reached the stables, Aphrodite stated to caress him not knowing he was human. As she did, black and white stripes spread over his body and mane. She decided to give him a name because he was the only horse with stripes. "Zebra", she announced, "after all, it is your master's name spelled backwards".

Life and Death by Isaiah Hardman

2010-09-20T10:24:00.001-06:00

Life and Death

Although life’s fruitful,

Although life’s sweet,

Life is not life’s greatest treat.

For at some time in man’s short life,

He will decide through toil and strife,

That his light is gone; his journey’s through,

To all his loved ones: “Toodle-oo”.

And then that night, he’ll go to sleep,

And in the morn his kin will weep

And though he’s in a better place,

Please do not follow him in haste.

"Not a Whit Behind" / Taki Sam Wspanialy

2010-09-20T10:17:00.001-06:00

September 16, 2010

Not A Whit Behind

In our scriptures, in the Book of Mormon, there is a story about two brothers Nephi and Lehi. They are both very righteous men, but the scriptures go on and on about how wonderful Nephi was and it goes on and on about the wonderful things that he did, but we never hear anything about Lehi his brother, except for this side note: "And behold, Lehi, his brother, was not a whit behind him as to things pertaining to righteousness." ( Heleman 11:19)

Sometimes I think I talk a lot more about Samuel's accomplishments because he is the oldest and he does everything first. Well, today I'm here to say that Isaiah is not a whit behind him. Isaiah just found out that he placed second in an international media festival for his original myth. His myth first won the county contest, then the state contest, and then placed second in an international contest. I'm attaching his myth again for those who want to read it. I'm also attaching a poem he wrote about life and death.

Mrs. Jeffers, both Samuel's and Isaiah's all time favorite teacher, submitted his work in the contests. We all miss her terribly. We love you Ms. Jeffers.

Sylwia

16 Wrzesien 2010

W naszym Pismie Swietym, w Ksiedze Mormona, jest opowiesc o dwoch bratach Nefi i Lehi. Obywoje sa bardzo dobrymi ludzimi, ale ta opowiesc prawie wyjatkowa wymienia dobre zeczy kotre Nefi zrobil. Prawie nic nie mowi o Lehim oprocze tego jednego fragmentu pod koniec opowiesci: "I Lehi, jego brat, dorownywal mu w prawosci."

Nieraz mi sie wydaje ze ja najwiecej pisze o moim najstarszym synie, bo on wszytko pierwszy robi. Wiec dzisiaj pisze o Isaiah, ze on dorownuje Samuelowi. Isaiah wlasnie sie dowiedzial ze on wygral drugie miejsce w miedzynarodowy konkursu pisania. Najpierw wygral w naszym miescie, potem w naszym stanie, a potem drugie miejsce w miedzynarodowym konkursie pisania. Isaiah tarze bardzo lubi pisac wiersze. Niestety tylko po Angielsku zalanczam jego dziela.

Nauczycielka Pani Jeffers znalazla te konkursy dla Isaiah. Ona jest najbardziej ulubiona nauczycielka Isaiah i Samuela. Bardzo ja kochamy i za nia teskinimy.

Sylwia

Project / Projekt

2010-09-06T07:28:00.000-06:00

Project

September 6, 2010

I did a very fun project recently. Since all of my kids are named after prophets or a spiritual concept (Grace), I matched their name up with a scripture. I printed the scripture as well as a picture of them, framed them and put it on the wall. The results are breathtaking. Enjoy.

Sylwia

Samuel

And the Lord came, and stood, and called as at other times, Samuel, Samuel. Then Samuel answered, speak; for thy servant heareth. And Samuel grew, and the Lord was with him, and did let none of his words fall to the ground.

Old Testament 1 Samuel 3: 10, 19

Isaiah

And now, behold, I say unto you, that ye ought to search these things. Yea, a commandment I give unto you that ye search these things diligently; for great are the words of Isaiah.

Book of Mormon 3 Nephi 23: 1

Nephi

Wherefore, I, Nephi, did strive to keep the commandments of the Lord and I did exhort my brethren to faithfulness and diligence. And I said unto them: If God had commanded me to do all things I could do them. If he should command me that I should say unto this water, be thou earth, it should be earth; and if I should say it, it would be done.

Book of Mormon 1 Nephi 17: 15, 50

Grace

For we labor diligently to write, to persuade our children, and also our brethren, to believe in Christ, and to be reconciled to God; for we know that it is by Grace that we are saved, after all we can do.

Book of Mormon 2 Nephi 25: 23

Mosiah

And they did wax strong in love towards Mosiah; yea, they did esteem him more than any other man; for he had established peace in the land, and he had granted unto his people that they should be delivered from all manner of bondage; therefore they did esteem him, yea, exceedingly, beyond measure.

Book of Mormon Mosiah 29: 40

Projekt

6 Wrzesien 2010

Ostatnia zrobilam bardzo fajny projek. Wszytkie moje dzieci maja imiona prorokow z pisma swietego. A imie Grace to znaczy “Laska Boza”. Wiec znalazlam odcinki w pismie swietym z ich imionami. Wydrukowalam te odcinki i tez dzieci zdjecia, wsadzilam je w ramki i powiesilam na scianie. Reslutat jest przepiekny.

Sylwia

Samuel

Przybył Pan i stanąwszy zawołał jak poprzednim razem: Samuelu, Samuelu! Samuel odpowiedział: Mów, bo sługa Twój słucha. Samuel dorastał, a Pan był z nim. Nie pozwolił upaść żadnemu jego słowu na ziemię.

Stary Testament 1 Samuel 3: 10, 19

Izajasz

Mowie wam ze powinniscie to rozwazyc; daje wam przykazanie, abyscie to dokladnie rozwazyli, albowiem slowa Izajasza maja doniosle znaczenie.

Ksiega Mormona 3 Nefi 23: 1

Nefi

Dlatego Ja, Nefi, usilnie staralem sie przestrzegac przykazan Pana i namawialem moich braci, aby byli wierni i pilni. I powiedzialem im: Jesli Bog nakazalby mi dokonanie czegokolwiek, bylbym w stanie to zrobic. Jesliby mi nakazal, abym powiedzial do tej wody, stan sie ziemia, mialaby sie stac ziemia, i jeslibym to powiedzial , tak by sie stalo.

Ksiega Mormona 1 Nephi 17: 15, 50

Grace (Laska Boza)

Albowiem piszac trudzimy sie, by przekonac nasze dzieci, a takze naszych braci, aby uwierzyli w Chrystusa I pojednali sie z Bogiem , bo wiemy, ze dzieki Jego Lasce zostaniemy zbawieni, gdy dokonamy wszystkiego, co jest w naszej mocy.

Ksiega Mormona 2 Nephi 25: 23

Mosjasz

Ich milosc do Mosjasza przybrala na sile, i cieszyl sie on u nich nawiekszym szacunkiem, bo zaprowadzil pokoj w kraju I sprawil, ze zostali wyzwoleni od wszelkiego rodzaju niewoli, mieli wiec dla niego wielki szacunek, ponad wszelka miare.

Ksiega Mormona Mosiah 29: 40

Owls and Hawks, and Kestrels, Oh My! / Sowy, Jastrzebie, i Pustulki!

2010-08-24T07:37:00.001-06:00

Owls and Hawks and Kestrels, Oh My!

August 24, 2010

We have safely arrived in upstate New York. The movers were not accommodating. They broke a bunch of our stuff, lost a lot of the hardware, didn't want to unpack us, didn't want to put things together, and they even got into our medicine and stole the Percocet leftover from my last c-section. Creepy.

But we are safe and sound and our home is wonderful, though still very unorganized. A few days after we got here, Joshua's company had a mandatory picnic. I wasn't ready for a mandatory function yet, but we had to go, and it was wonderful. It was held at a huge beautiful park with rolling hills, trees, stone walls, and a huge wooden playground (very similar to Discovery Park in Pleasant Grove, Utah). There was a professional magic show, balloon maker, music, dancing, professional face painting, all you can eat food, and a Schwann's truck full of all you can eat gourmet ice cream. The kids had at least five ice cream creations each.

But by far the best part of this 'company picnic' was the Birds of Prey interaction. My kids could pet and hold owls, hawks, kestrels, and even a lemur. Totally hands on. One kid at a time. With as much time as they wanted and they could do it as many times as they wanted. We spent 2 hours there. The kids just wouldn't leave. I forgot my camera, but josh had his phone so I got a few pictures with the animals. It was an amazing day.

Sylwia

Sowy, Jastrzebie, i Pustulki!

24 Sierpien 2010

Jestesmy w Nowym Yourku. Przeprowadzka byla troche nie przyjemna, bo pracownicy ktozy nasze zeczy przenosili, zepsuli wiele rzeczy, zgubili sroby, i nawet ukradli proszki ktora mialam po ostatnim cesarskim cieciu.

Ale wszyscy szczesliwie dojechalismy, nasz dom jest bardzo przyjemny choc jeszcze nie zorganizowany. Pare dni po przyjezdzie Josh mial obowiazkowa rozrywke dla rodziny. Nie chcialo mi sie tak odrazu isc na obowiazkowa rozrywke, ale musialam, wiec poszlam i bylo bardzo fajnie. Park byl piekny z wielkim placem zabaw dla dzieci, jedzenia bylo bardzo duzo, i tez byly bardzo dobre lody za darmo. Dzieci mialy przynajmiej po piec lodow. Tez bylo przedstawienie magiki, balony, malowanie dzieciom twarzy, muzyka, i tance na dworzu.

Ale najbardziem nam sie podobala wystawa ptakow drapierznych. Dzieci mogly dotykac i trzymac sowy i ptaki drapirzne na rekach. Tak im sie to podobalo ze bylismy z ptakami 2 godziny. Ja niestety zapomnialam przyniesc moj aparat fotograficzny. Ale moj maz mial maly aparat na swoim telefonie wiec mam kilka zdjec dzieci z ptakami. Byl to bardzo udany dzien.

Sylwia

Don't Be Surprised if Heaven Isn't Much Better Than This / Nie Dziw Sie Jesli W Niebie Nie Bedzie Lepiej Niz Tu

2010-08-08T23:02:00.001-06:00

August 8, 2010

Don't Be Surprised if Heaven Isn't Much Better Than This

I've been packing and moving from Georgia, vacationing in Utah, and moving to and unpacking in New York. This has left me with very little time to journal, even though I enjoy it very much.

In Utah we had 3 family reunions. The Hardman Family Reunion (my husband's immediate family), The Hyatt Family Reunion(my husband's mom's family), and the Malewska-Lipinska Family Reunion (my immediate family).

I remember when I was a teenager when I joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. The gospel was wonderful and the people and fabulous and very kind. But all of their love and caring made me sad, because I would visit their homes and see their large and happy families, and suddenly I would feel alone. I would go on long walks and cry and cry and ask God why wasn't I born into a big happy family like this? Why? The church members' love and kindness did not make up for the fact that did not have what they had. And so I cried, for many years.

Then I got married to a wonderful man that came from such a wonderful large loving family and overnight I became a part of it. I also could create my own family, and I am here to testify that all the throwing up, and nausea, and 5 c-sections, UTI's, pre-eclampsia, and kidney stones during pregnancy have all been worth creating a big happy family of my own. Because that means that my kids will never feel like I did during those lonely teenage years.

I have since tried to reconstruct the family I grew up into the big happy family like my husband's. And though we have a long way to go, we are well on the way. My grandma from Poland now lives with my sister and this year we had our first family reunion. My father even came and stayed and my mother's house and they got along. He sponsored all of our activities and even talked with my sister about God, and they didn't even get into a fight. I guess we are all getting better at this family thing…

At the Hyatt Family Reunion, my husband's uncle, Tom, spoke about hearing an apostle once say during a big happy family reunion: "Don't be surprised if Heaven isn't much better than this." I have to agree. If Heaven isn't much better than this summer that we got to spend with our family, I will be just fine with that.

Sylwia

Pictures:

1. Hardman Family

2. Part of the Wonderfully Large Hyatt Family

3. Malewska-Lipinska Family

8 Sierpien 2010

Nie Dziw Sie Jesli W Niebie Nie Bedzie Lepiej Niz Tu

Ostatnio pakowalam sie i przeprowadzalam sie ze stanu Georgia, bylam na wakacjach w stanie Utah, i przyjechalam do Nowego Yorku i teraz sie rozpakowuje. Wiec dlugo juz nie pisalam w moim dzienniku, choc bardzo mi to sprawia przyjemnosc.

W Utah mielismy 3 zjazdy rodzinne. Zjazd rodziny Hardman (mojego meza rodziny), zjazd rodziny Hyatt (mojej tesciowej rodziny), i zjazd rodziny Malewskiej-Lipinskiej (mojej rodziny).

Pamietam jak bylam nastolatka i wstapilam do Kosciola Jezusa Chrystusa Swietych Dni Ostatnich. Ewangelia byla wspaniala i ludzie w kosiele byli kochajacy i uczynni. Ale ich milosc i uczynki przyniosly mi smutek, bo czesto odwiedzalam ich domy wypelnione wielkimi szczesliwymi rodzinami. W tych domach ja sie czulam samotno. Chodzilam na dlugie spacery sama i modlilam sie do Boga pytajac go: "Dlaczego ja sie nie urodzilam w takiej wielkiej szczesliwej rodzinie? Dlaczego?" Choc czlonokowie kosciola byli kochajaci, ja sie wsrod nich czulam samotna bo nie mialam tego czego oni mieli; nie mialam wielkiej szczesliwej rodziny. Przez wiele lat plakalam.

Po jakims czasie wyszlam za maz za wspanialego meszczyzne ktory mial taka wielka wspaniala szczesliwa rodzine. Odrazu ja zostalam czlonkiem tej rodziny. Tez mialam okazje zaczac swoja wlasna rodzine. Skladam tu swiadectwo ze wymioty, 5 cesarkich ciec, infekcje pecherza, toksemia, i kamienie w nerkach podczas ciazy byly warte zalorzenia mojej wlasnej duzej szczesliwej rodziny. Bo moje dzieci nigdy nie beda sie czuly tak samotne jak ja sie czulam jako nastolatka.

Od jakiegos czasu ja tez pracuje nad moja rodzina w ktorej sie wychowalam, aby ona tez byla szczeliwa. Coraz lepiej jez z nami. Moja babcia Ludmila z Polski mieszka z Kinga, i w tym roku mielismy pierwszy zjazd naszej rodziny. Nawet moj ojciec przyjechal i mieszkal w domu mojej mamy i wcale sie nie klocili. Ojciec sponorowal nasze wszytkie rozrywki i nawet rozmawial z Kinga o Bogu i oni tez ani razu sie nie klocili. Wyglada na to ze wszycy sie polepszamy i wiecej wiemy co to znaczy byc rodzina.

Podczas zjadzu rodziny Hyatt, mojego meza wujek, Tom, opowiadal jak on raz uslyszal jak apostol powiedzial podczas zjazdu swojej szczesliwej rodziny: "Nie dziw sie jesli w Niebie nie bedzie lepiej niz tu". Ja sie z tym zgadam. Jesli w niebie nie bedzie lepiej niz podczas naszych wakacji w Utah z naszymi rodzinami, to ja bede bardzo szczesliwa. Nic nam nie brakuje do szczescia.

Sylwia

Zdjecia:

1. Rodzina Hardman

2. Czesc Wielkiej Rodziny Hyatt

3. Rodzina Malewska-Lipinska

Residency Sonnet / Koniec Praktyki

2010-06-16T10:50:00.001-06:00

June 16, 2010

Hurray! Josh graduated from residency. He had three graduation ceremonies. Samuel attended the first one, I attended the second one, and the family went swimming while Josh attended the third one. Josh of course attended all three of them. So we are off to Utah for a month, then to the cold state of New York for who knows how long. It's been a great three years here in warm Georgia. Josh always made us his priority so we haven't even noticed how hard he has worked for the last three years. Heroes are like that. They make it look easy. Here is a poem Josh wrote about his three year residency:

Ode to Three Years of Indentured Servitude

A Sonnet in the Shakespearean style by

Dr. Joshua Hardman

"Write me for Motrin so I don't have to pay,"

"I blacked out on the couch and I started to drool."

"…Can't breathe…," says some guy who smokes all day,

"Type two diabetes? Quit eating, you fool."

An hour behind after patient number two,

The nurses just sigh, roll their eyes at my plight,

I'm still here talking about some patient's poo,

Now three hours in, and still no end in sight.

Your home visits don't count, so do them again,

Remember: stay focused and be patient centered,

T-cons piling up, will this drudgery end?

Your duty hours still need to be entered.

Three years of this work and I've aged at least twenty

Lucky the army is paying us plenty.

16 Czerwiec 2010

Moj maz skonczyl prakrytke medyczna! Na miesiac jedziemy do Utah, a potem do Nowego Yourku. Josh mial trzy rozne uroczystosci na zakonczenie praktyki. Moj najstrarszy syn Samuel poszedl na pierwsza uroczystosc, ja na druga, a ja i dzieci poszlismy plywac, jak Josh poszedl na trzecia uroczystosc. Josh oczywiscie byl na wszytkich uroczystosciach. Na koniec tez on napisal wiersz o tych ostatnich trzech latach. Niestey, ja nie umie wierszow przetlumaczyc. Moj maz zawsze uwazal ze jego rodzina jest najwazniejsza, wiec my nie odczulismy jak ciezko on pracowal przez ostatnie trzy lata.

Sylwia

My Friend Linda / Moja Przyjaciolka Linda

2010-06-02T06:53:00.001-06:00

My Friend Linda

On Sunday, Mother's Day, May 9, 2010, one of my best friends in the world, Linda DePaul, collapsed in her bathroom and died. She was 54 and in relatively good health. The autopsy did not find a cause of death. She was survived by her 3 children. A few weeks ago, I traveled to Iowa for her funeral.

When I first found out, I cried for four hours straight. I don't have adequate word to express how I feel, so I probably will not be successful in describing my love for my friend Linda.

I met Linda about 7 years ago. We both moved to Iowa about that same time. She was assigned through my church to fellowship me and we became instant friends. At the time she was a single working mom with teenage kids, and I was a married homemaker with toddlers. Yet, we had everything in common.

I love Linda so much. She was one of my closest friends in Des Moines. She was so beautiful, gentle and kind. She was intelligent and soft spoken and her life was filled with charity. Every waking hour she was serving someone. I was the recipient of much of her service. When I moved away I was so sad to leave her. She has some challenges in her family and I felt so bad that I could not be there for her. I called a few times, but not enough. I prayed for her often and always put her name on the temple prayer roll.

Linda's whole demeanor was filled with love. You couldn't know her and not love her. She took care of everyone, even if they didn't deserve it. If she ever saw me look tired at church, she would bring me a meal or volunteer to watch my kids. Once, I commented that she had nice perfume on. The next time I saw her, she had bought me bottle.

Linda taught my little son at church. He so looked forward to coming to church so he could spend a couple of hours each Sunday with her. With all of her heart, she loved all the children in her class, and they could feel it, and yearned to be around her.

Linda and I went on many walks while we talked about our joys and sorrows. We went on bike rides. I ran into her on my bike and she broke her wrist. She had to have surgery. I tried to bring her meal, but she said she didn't need one, and instead found a way to serve me instead. She was always selfless.

I have no doubt in my mind, that Linda passed her test here on earth. I hope to one day be as good as Linda. I regret not calling more often. I regret not being as good a friend as she was. But I hope that by the time we meet again, I will be more like her.

Here is the last email that I sent to Linda before she died. I sent it on March 8, 2010, but I'm not sure if she got it because Linda did not like email. Maybe she can read it now:

Dearest Linda

i haven't been very good at keeping in touch. but i want to know that i think about you all the time and that i love and miss you. when my husband and i pray together we just about always pray for you. we love you. when i go to the temple i always put your name on the prayers roll.

there are few people that have made such a deep impact on me as you have. you are one of the most wonderful women i have ever met. so dearly, dearly beloved by Heavenly Father and by me. every time i think about you i smile. just knowing you brings a spark of light and joy to my life. you are the best.

love,

sylwia

Moja Przyjaciolka Linda

Nie latwo mi jest przetlumaczyc to co napisalam po angielsku. Za trudno, bo za bardzo placze. Jedna z moich najblizszych przyjaciolek, umarla trzy tygodnie temu. Miala 54 lat i byla zdrowa. Upadla w lazience i juz sie nie obudzila. Autopcja nie stwierdzila powodu smierci. Troje dzieci pozostalo bez matki. A ja bez przyjaciolki. Jak sie o tym dowiedzialam to przez pierwsze 4 godziny non stop plakalam. Pojechalam do stanu Iowa na pogrzeb.

Linda byla bardzo piekna, inteligientna i kochajaca osoba. Codziennie komus pomagala. Jak ja jej sie wydawalam zmeczona to one mi przynosila obiad do domu i tez zajmowala sie moimi dziecmi. Raz jej powiedzialam ze jej perfumy bardzo ladnie pachna. Nastepnego razu jak sie zobaczylysmy to ona dala mi butelke tych perfum. Ona po prostu byla taka kochajaca przyjaciolka.

W kosciele ona uczyla mojego syna Samuela. On zawsze nie mogl sie doczekac isc do jej klasy. Ona wszytkie dzieci bardzo kochala i dzieci czuly jej milosc i zawsze chialy z nia spedzac czas.

Ja i Linda czesto chodzilysmy na spacery i razem rozmawialysmy o naszych zyciach. Tez jezdzilysmy na rowerach razem. Raz Linda spadla z roweru i zlamala sobie reke. Nawet wtedy ona probowala mi sluzyc i pomagac. Cale swoje zycie zyla aby innym pomagac.

Ja wiem ze Linda jest w niebie. Chce kiedys byc tak dobra osoba jak ona. Smutno mi ze czesciej z nia nie rozmawialam przez telefon po przeprowdce do stanu Georgia. Kilka razy zadzwonilam ale nie tak czesto. Mam nadzieje ze jak sie znowu w Linda spotkam w niebie, ze bede do niej bardziej podobna.

Tu ostatni email ktory wylalam do niej 8 Marca 2010. Nie wiem czy ten list otrzymala bo ona nie lubila spedzac czasu na komputerze. Moze teraz z nieba go przeczyta:

Kochana Lindo,

Przepraszam ze tak czesto sie nie odzywam. Ale chce ci powiedziec ze bardzo czesto o tobie mysle i ze ciebie kocham i za toba tesknie. Ja maz i ja sie razem modlimy, to czesto sie prosimy o blogoslawienstwa dla ciebie. Jak chodze do swiatyni to zawsze dodaje twoje imie do listy ludzi o ktorych sie modlimy.

Jest bardzo malo osob kotre miatly taki mocny wplyw na moje zycie jak ty. Jestes jedna z najlepszych kobiet na swiecie. Nasz Ojciec w Niebie ciebie tak bardzo kocha i ja tez ciebie bardzo kocham. Jak o tobie mysle to sie usmiecham. Twoja przyjazn przynosi swiatlo i szczescie do mojego zycia. Jestes najlepsza.

Z miloscia,

sylwia

Horse Camp / Oboz z Koniami

2010-05-30T08:35:00.001-06:00

May 28, 2010

Horse Camp

Since we only have a month left in Georgia, I wanted to make sure that my kids got a chance to attend the week long summer Horse Camp here on base. When would we get such an opportunity again?

Samuel and Isaiah were the only ones old enough, and they had the time of their life, taking care of and riding horses. Every morning they cleaned out the stables, walked the horses, rode them, washed them, fed them, cleaned out their hooves, brushed them, saddled them, etc, etc.

Hilltop Riding Stables is an amazing facility. I have never seen horses so well taken care of, living in stables so clean. It only makes sense, since the kids "get" to do all the work.

Both Samuel and Isaiah wish we could stay here in Georgia so that they could work in the stables over the summer, when they are teenagers, running summer camps. Here is one of the camp songs they learned:

Does your girth hang low?

Does it travel to and fro?

Can you tie a safety knot?

Can you wrap a lattego?

Can you throw your stirrup over?

Is it leather, is it old?

Does your girth, hang, low?

28 Maj 2010

Oboz z Koniami

Tu na bazie w lato jest oboz dla dzieci na ktorym dzieci sie zajmuja koniami. Wiec przed wyjazdem ze stanu Georgia chcialam aby moje dzieci mialy okazje brac udzial w tym obozie.

Trzebac miec siedem lat aby uczestniczyc, wiec tylko Samuel i Isaiah mieli okazje zajmowac sie koniami przez caly tydzien. Codziennie konie czesali, myli, czyscili im kopyta, sprzatali im stajnie, karmili je, zakladali im siodla, i jezdzili nimi, itd.

Te stajnie i konie na bazie sa bardzo dobrze zorganizowane. Sa takie czyste i zadbane. Pewnie dlatego ze dzieci je sprzataja i myja wszystko dla przyjemnosci.

Samuel i Isaiah by chcieli tu w Georgia zostac aby mogli tam w stajni w lato pracowac jak beda mieli powyzej 14 lat. Ale niestety przeprowadzamy sie do Nowego Yorku.

Sylwia

Cuteness Sweetness / Sliczny i Slodki

2010-05-24T12:15:00.001-06:00

May 24, 2010

Cuteness Sweetness

Mosiah is 9 months old. He is probably the cutest baby in the world right now. He loves to smile and growl, and I mean growl all day. He even communicates by growling. If he growls and you growl back he will try to grow the way you growled. He has been crawling since he was five and a half months old. But he mostly likes to do the low sniper crawl on his elbows.

He is very little for his age, 17 pounds. He was born little and he has stayed little because he never liked to eat. Ever since I had Nephi, breastfeeding has been really easy for me. I actually breast fed Nephi into a Sumo wrestler. Grace also breastfed like a champ. But Mosiah always, and I mean always, cried when he breast fed. You would have to see it to believe it. At six months he weighed 11 pounds and the doctor suggested that maybe we should hospitalize him. Not a good idea to me.

So, I decided to feed him other things than breast milk. My friend Tina and I came up with a mixture of baby food, baby cereal, heavy whipping cream and juice. It worked so great, that not only did he gain weight but he lost all interest in breast feeding. Not that he ever had any interest. This all may have been because he has probably always had an ear infection. We know that he has had one for the past 5 months. Today he got ear tubes put in.

In spite of his ears, Mosiah is a very happy baby. At church he is legendary for smiling at people and laughing. At home we always call him 'Mis' (pronounced 'meesh') which is a Polish word for teddy bear.

24 Maj 2010

Sliczny i Slodki

Mosiah ma 9 miesiecy. On chyba jest napiekniejszym dzidziusiem na swiecie. On bardzo lubi sie usmiechac i warczec jak lew. On lubi nawet miec komunikacje warczeniem. Od pieciu miesiecy on chodzi na czworakach.

Mosiah jest bardzo malutki. On wazy tyko 7.7 kilo. Moje wszytkie inne dzieci byly bardzo duze wiec on mi sie wydaje bardzo bardzo malutki. Oczywiscie on sie tez urodzil za wczesnie i tez on nigdy nie lubil jesc. Od czasu kiedy Nefi sie urodzil to karmienie piersia bylo dla mnie bardzo latwe. Nefi nawet byl bardzo bardzo gruby od mleka z piersi. Grace tez bardzo dobrze jadla. A Mosiah zato zawsze plakal jak jadl. Jak mial 6 miesiecy to on tylko wazyl 5 kilo. To duzo za malo, i lekarz powiedzial ze moze trzeba go wyslac do szpitala. Ten pomysl mi sie nie pododbal.

Ja zdecydowalam go zaczac karmic inne jedzenie oprocz mleka z piersi. I on zaczol bardzo dobrze jesc. Ale nie stety, od tego innego jedzenia on przestal sie interesowac mlekiem z piersi. To pewnie od tego ze on chyba zawsze mial infekcje w uszach. Wiemy ze przez ostatnie 5 miesiecy mial ten problem. Wiec dzisiaj mial operacje na bebenek uszow.

Chos Mosiah zawsze byl chory na uszy to po mimo tego on jest zawsze wesoly. Cale dnie i do wszytkich on sie usmiecha. W domu my go zawszy nazywamy mis. Tak jak w Polskim wierszyku "Prosze panistwa oto mis; mis jest bardzo grzeczny dis. Moze panistwu lapke poda? Nie chce podac? A to szkoda."

Sylwia

Camp Lakeside / Odpoczynek

2010-05-04T10:46:00.000-06:00

May 2, 2010

Camp Lakeside

The local YMCA offers free camping weekends for military families. There are several weekends in the spring to choose from. Not only is the camping free in air conditioned cabins, but also, all the food is provided for free as well as activities.

So, last weekend was out time to go on a mini vacation. Just as we got everyone packed and in the car, I thought that maybe Josh could take all the kids, including the baby, and I could just stay home in peace and quiet. Alone. He agreed. I couldn't ask for a better husband.

They had a blast camping, swimming, kayaking, doing archery, paddle boating, canoeing, playing kickball, and playing lots of board games in the rec room.

I had a blast home alone. No noise, not even radio or music or computer, or phone. Just peace and quiet. It rejuvenated me like nothing else. A mother needs that every once in a while…

Sylwia

2 Maj 2010

Odpoczynek

Tutaj w okolicy organizacja YMCA kazdego roku organizuje darmowy kamping dla rodzin zolniezy. Bardzo jest to fajne bo nie trzeba przynosic ani jedzenia ani namiotu. Rodziny spia w kabinach z klimatyzacja, jedza na stolowce za darmo.

W ostatni piatek przygotowalam nasza rodzine na te krotkie wakacje. Wszycy juz byli w samochodzie, i wtedy ja mialam pomysl ze moze tylko Josh ze wszytkimi dziecmi pojedzie, a ja zostane sama w domu. Josh sie zgodzil zabral wszytkie dzieci ze soba, nawet malutkiego Mosiah. Josh jest doskonalym mezem.

Dobrze sie bawili plywajac w jeziorze, w lodkach i kajakach. Tez bardzo lubily grac w pilke, strzelac lukami, i grac z innymi dziecmi w gry.

Ja zato bylam bardzo szczesliwa w domu. Bylo to zupelnie cicho. Nie chcialam nawet miec radia, lub zadnejm muzyki, ani komputera, ani telefonu. Spokoj i cisza dal mi prawdziwy odpoczynek. Matka ktora ma 5 dzieci tego od czasu do czasu potrzebuje…

Sylwia

First Place/ Pierwsze Miejsce

2010-04-30T13:46:00.001-06:00

April 30, 2010

First Place!

This week the PX (military department store) and Baskin Robbins held a banana split eating contest. There were six adults and six kids that participated. There were three prizes for the adults and one prize for the kid contest. Josh, Isaiah and our friends Rachel and Kayla participated.

It was very exciting. They had to eat a banana with six scoops of ice cream, three scoops of syrup, whipping cream and cherries. It was painful to devour ice cream so fast! But the Hardmans prevailed. Josh got first place among the adults and Isaiah got first place among the kids! Josh won a 75 dollar gift certificate and Isaiah won 25. It was awesome!

Sylwia

P.S.

Here is Joshua's summary of the event:

"I just won $75 in an eating contest last night. So to all of you nay-sayers that thought being a gluttonous slob wouldn't get me anywhere, who's laughing all the way to the bank? I think I'll spend it on a personal trainer. And my son won the kids' eating contest. Looks like we have a whole family o' champions."

Pierwsze Miejsce!

30 Kwiecien 2010

W tym tygodniu sklep tu na bazie zrobil konkurs jedzenia lodow z bananami. 6 doroslych i 6 dzieci startowalo do konkursu. Byly trzy nagrody dla doroslych i jedna nagroda dla dzieci. Josh, Isaiah, i nasze kolerzanki Rachel i Kayla byly w konkursie.

To byla swietna zabawa. Musieli zjec banan, 6 galek lodow, 3 hochle syropu, bita smietane, i trzy wisnie. Bylo bolesne jesc lody tak szybko. Ale Hardmani wygrali! Josh zajol pierwsze miesce u doroslych, a Isiaiah pierwsze miejsce pomiedzy dziecmi. Josh wygral 75 dolarow, a Isaiah 25. Wspaniale sie bawilismy!

Sylwia

Math Fun / Matematyka to Rozrywka

2010-04-30T11:25:00.001-06:00

April 30, 2010

Math Fun!

For the last few weeks Samuel has been staying after school for the math team. Even though he and Isaiah are both good at math, neither of them particularly enjoys it, but being on the math team totally changed that for Samuel. He loved staying after school and figuring out math problems with his peers.

On Tuesday he attended the math team competition at Fort Discovery. All tests, except for one, were team tests. Samuel's team came in third for problem solving.

300 of our county's brightest children participated. On the individual test, Samuel got the highest score in the entire county for 5^th grade. Way to go Samuel!

Sylwia

Kwiecien 30, 2010

Matematyka to Rozrywka!

Przez ostatnie kilka tygodni, Samuel wracal pozniej ze szkoly bo on bral udzial w druzynie matematyki. Choc Samuel i Isaiah maja same piatki z matematyki, to i tak oni nie uwazali ze matematyka to rozrywka. Ale teraz Samuel zmienil zdanie. Bardzo lubil dluzej byc w szkole aby rowiazywac problemy z kolegami. Od tego czasu matematyka zostala rozrywka.

We wtorek Samuel poszedl na konkurs matematyki. Jego druzyna wygrala trzecie miejsce.

Okolo 300 najmadrzejszych dzieci z naszej okolicy braly udzial w konkursie. Jaden egzamin nie byl dla druzyn, ale indiwidualny. Samuel dostal najwyzsza ocene na tym egzaminie ze wszytkich dzieci w piatej klasie!

Sylwia

Mosiah

2010-04-18T10:26:00.001-06:00

April 18, 2010

I got my new camera so i I took some cute pictures of my baby Mosiah. Here is one to brighten your day!

Sylwia

18 Kwiecien 2010

Kupilam nowy aparat fotograficzny i zrobilam mojemu malutkiemy Mosiah zdjecia. Tu jedno zdjecie ktore zawsze mi poprawia humor.

Sylwia