The best thing about Rex's surgery is that I have not thought at all about how I am going to be 40 tomorrow...until now...So to take my mind off of that I got a scattergories tag from my dear friend Laryl...(Thanks Laryl.)

SCATTERGORIES. . .It's harder than it looks! Use the 1st letter of your name to answer each of the following... they have to be real places, names, things...nothing made up! Try to use different answers if the person in front of you had the same 1st initial. You CAN'T use your name for the boy/girl name question.

What is your name............................Rachel


4 Letter Word...................................Rock
Vehicle............................................RV
City.................................................Rochester
Boy Name........................................Rocky
Girl Name.........................................Roxanne
Alcoholic Drink..................................Rum
Occupation......................................Race Car Driver
Something you Wear.........................Rubies
Celebrity..........................................Robert Redford
Food................................................Rice
Something found in a bathroom..........Razor
Reason for Being Late....................... Red Light
Cartoon Character.............................Roger Rabbit
Something You Shout.......................Right On!
Animal.............................................Rhino
Body part.........................................Retina
Word to describe you.........................Round :)

So now I tag: Amber, Wendy, Lisa, Miranda, Shelli, Chelsea, Kimm, and any of my other friends who have blogs that I don't know about. (And if you do have one, send me your blog address.)

How did I get to be 40???

Here I am (Above) at age 10, with my brother David and my dog Sheena, who has a real shedding problem. Pontiac, Michigan. Time Flies...

Me at 20, (Maybe 23...) with Jeff----XOXOXO

Me at age 30...with Clint and Jeff at Wheeler Farm...

Me today....

Juuuuust kidding....and a little wishful thinking....

The real me at age 40...

Me at age 40 with the "Save My Dog Pie". Thanks for taking my mind off my Birthday, Rex. I made 26 pies, with the help of Amber and Kimm, and I still have to make 5 more before next Sunday. I don't feel like I look like myself anymore... but I do have on a cute apron...Jeff says the counter makes me look shorter, "It's more like an optical illusion..." (he has learned after 15 years what to say...)

FrankenRex

So, Rex is now going to begin the recovery stage for yes, 8 weeks. He is so sweet and good natured...nothing dampens his spirits. We have to keep him off his leg, so he limps outside a couple of times a day. He spends a lot of time in his crate, because he needs to be confined. He is getting a lot of attention. Jeff is adjusting to having him in the TV Room because he can't take the stairs yet. He also had to sleep with one of those cones on around his head. He really hates that. I think he feels embarrased. At least caring for a dog is much easier than when I had to take care of Clint when he was in that body cast for 8 weeks when he broke his femer when he was 3 years old. This is much, much easier. Like I said, Rex just needs to sleep. He doesn't need me to entertain him. He has 15 ugly staples in the inside of his leg, they are pretty gross looking. I didn't take a picture. The vet said the surgery went great. Now Clint has a lot of Thank You Cards to Write. We are so grateful to everyone who has helped. And Rex is grateful too!

***Clint went to the BYU regional science fair today. He was excited to miss school, but he didn't place this time. He felt like he didn't do very good in the interview, but there were over 600 students there, and some of those projects were absolutly amazing. There were about 150 trophies. Clint was dissapointed, but he is talking about next year now. I am hoping to get some feedback from the judges to see what we can do better in the future. I think Clint may have been really tired and preoccupied. Plus this is the third science fair that he has had to do the same presentation over agian, I think some of his excitement was gone. He still said that he had a nice time. And we have learned a lot this year. Next year will be exciting too!

When I read the first few lines of your entry today I just started crying out loud (and I can do that because I'm home alone and nobody would have seen me anyway)
This story is really remarkable! What a wonderful illustration about true friendship, sacrifice, faith in the compassion and kindness of good neighbors and the selfless love of a boy for his dog. It reminds me of something you would read about in the"Trying To Be Like Jesus" section of The Friend... Hey, That's a great idea. It would be sweet to hear about it written from Clint's point of view and you can send it along with some of these great photos that you've taken of Clint and his friends so willing to help.
...and just so Corbin can know you were telling the truth about your beautiful niece.... She absolutely is! And she's an animal lover, too! Much Love, Aunt Wendy

Lemonade Sale for Rex

I dropped Rex off at the Vet's this morning at 7:00. He will have his surgery today, and I will pick him up tomorrow. Clint and his friends have worked hard to save him. Clint has found out that he has a lot of really good friends, an amazing extended family, and a wonderful neighborhood full of sweet, kind people who love him and love the opportunity to do something good if they have the chance. What this entire experience has taught Clint is priceless. We have just felt such an outpouring of love and kindness from so many people. During a time of crisis when I could have easily slipped into a full on depression, I have felt such an overwhelming amount of love towards so many people. I want to be a better person and do more to help others, and just be better in every way. Thanks Rex. We love you!

Matthew, Clint, and Bailey getting ready for the big lemonade sale. Matthew is Clint's true blue friend. They have been best friends since Clint was 21/2 years old. Matthew has stood by Clint through some of his roughest times. Bailey and Corbin have also proven to be some of the best friends anyone could ever hope for. Corbin is Bailey's big brother. He is wonderful.
Matt got the worst sunburn of the group. Corbin came in second. The air was cool, but that sun was hot.

Derek helped a little to bring in some customers as Darth Vader. He didn't last for too long. But Corbin, Bailey, Matthew, and Clint worked hard all day. They are true friends, who were, and usually are "anxiously engaged in a good cause". I love those kids!