It's been a while since I have put up a blog post. I also haven't been very active on Faith's Mom's Facebook page. That's because the month of August was dedicated to moving! About 4 years ago, Faith and I moved from the apartment she grew up in, to a different one in northeast Bismarck. The primary reason for the move was to have underground parking so that getting her loaded into the van by myself during our cold, snowy winters would be less of a challenge. We also needed to find a place in which the elevator didn't break down on a regular basis! One of our last sunsets at our old apartment That place served us well, but the drive to her day program, which is located across the river in Mandan was time consuming, not to mention, expensive. I drove about 45 miles a day and used up a tank of gas a week! Searching for a New Place Before our lease ended, I began praying about finding somewhere else to live. A condo would have been nice, but surprisingly not a...
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Faith's Fun-Filled 4th of July
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Faith and I had the best 4th of July ever! We started the day bright and early to go to the parade in Mandan. We haven't been there for many years, so I was surprised that she wanted to go. I think maybe it was because she heard everyone at her day program talking about it and making their own plans.
Faith's grandpa went along with us, as well as her auntie Dawn (my youngest sister). Thanks to Dawn's connections with people who live in Mandan, we were able to park the van at her friend's house and then he drove us down to Main Street. Then, thanks to another friend of hers, we were able to enjoy the parade underneath a canopy right in the front row. I could not be more grateful to her friends for making it such so convenient for us!
One reason I was glad not to go to the parade in the past, was all the planning, parking, and walking it takes, not to mention sitting in the sun for almost 3 hours! Someone might wonder why it takes all that just to go to a parade.
Mandan has been hosting this parade for 144 years and between 20,000 and 25,000 people come to it. Because of the crowds, parking is a major issue and gets a little trickier for accessible vehicles because you can't just put the ramp down anywhere! But thankfully, Dawn had it all planned out and everything went very smoothly. In the end, Faith had a great time, and of course she and Grandpa made friends with those sitting around us.
After waiting for over an hour, the parade finally gets to us on Main Street!
One of my favorite parts was seeing all the horses!
It was a fun time with Grandpa and Auntie Dawn!
After getting home, Faith needed a feeding and a bit of rest before going to our next event, a barbecue at Grandma and Grandpa's. There were hot dogs, burgers, chips, pasta salads, and of course plenty of desserts! My niece and her family were there as well and had fun lighting off little fireworks. Not even the rain could deter them.
Enjoying the cooler weather on the front porch at Grandma and Grandpa's.
Weatherwise, it was an unusual 4th of July because it was so cool outside. I was thankful for this, as a couple of years ago it was 107 degrees in July. However, it was actually a little too cool, especially for sitting outside on the Capital grounds to watch a concert and fireworks.
At our previous apartment, I would wheel Faith out to the sidewalk where we could watch the fireworks from a distance. However, in our new place, it wasn't really possible to do that. So, I asked if she wanted to just go to the Capital instead. Not only was there a fireworks display, but there was also a free concert put on by the Bismarck-Mandan Symphony Orchestra (BMSO). This was the main reason Faith was so excited to go, because one of our friends from church played in the symphony.
After going back home for her final feeding of the day, we got ready to go to the fireworks event. I opened the closet and debated what to bring along. I grabbed a couple of sweatshirts and fuzzy blankets. I would soon find out I wished I had grabbed our winter gear instead! Not only was it barely 60 degrees, but the wind was blowing a bit, too. Plus, the clouds were hiding the sun. But at least there were no mosquitoes!
My sister came along with us again and we were glad to find an accessible parking spot fairly quickly. After running into some old friends of ours and finding a place to park Faith's chair and our lawn chairs, we hunkered down to enjoy the concert. Everyone around us was bundled up (except for some of the kids, who the cold didn't seem to bother at all!) Faith didn't seem bothered by it either, but she did have the warmest fuzzy blanket!
Getting ready for the concert to start!
The Bismarck-Mandan Symphony Orchestra gets ready to perform.
The sun peaked out for just a little bit!
Despite being chilly, it was a really nice event. The symphony was fantastic and together with a few singers, performed some really cool music, such as Purple Rain and Let's Go Crazy by Prince, a few songs by the Eagles, and Islands in the Stream. There were also a few songs that celebrated North Dakota and many patriotic numbers as well.
The symphony also played a United States Armed Forces medley and had members of the audience stand when they heard their official service song. I thought that was really neat! When the military members stood during their song, the rest of the audience applauded them. A few of my favorite songs the symphony played were Battle Hymn of the Republic and God Bless the USA.
Finally, it got dark (which doesn't happen until about 10:15 in North Dakota during the summer) and they were able to do the fireworks display. It really was a wonderful event, and I look forward to going again next year. Hopefully it will be a bit warmer, though!
Faith was so happy to see the fireworks!
All in all, it was a wonderful day to celebrate our country's birthday and remember how blessed we are to enjoy the freedoms that we have!
It's been a while since I have put up a blog post. I also haven't been very active on Faith's Mom's Facebook page. That's because the month of August was dedicated to moving! About 4 years ago, Faith and I moved from the apartment she grew up in, to a different one in northeast Bismarck. The primary reason for the move was to have underground parking so that getting her loaded into the van by myself during our cold, snowy winters would be less of a challenge. We also needed to find a place in which the elevator didn't break down on a regular basis! One of our last sunsets at our old apartment That place served us well, but the drive to her day program, which is located across the river in Mandan was time consuming, not to mention, expensive. I drove about 45 miles a day and used up a tank of gas a week! Searching for a New Place Before our lease ended, I began praying about finding somewhere else to live. A condo would have been nice, but surprisingly not a...
Normally, Faith is the one with all of the appointments but this week it has been my turn. On Monday I had my annual echocardiogram. On Tuesday I had my pacemaker device check and appointment with the cardiologist who comes to Bismarck from the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN. The doctors who come are pediatric cardiologists who also specialize in adults with congenital heart defects (CHD). This saves anyone in the area who has a CHD from having to travel to Rochester each year. It is very convenient! (I do travel to Rochester to get my pacemaker changed, though!) The Bible verse that has kept me going all these years! When I saw the doctor, we mainly discussed two things: my Fontan and my pacemaker. But first, a little background. I was born with double outlet right ventricle (DORV). Basically, this means both my aorta and pulmonary artery stem from my right ventricle. Because of this, my left ventricle does not really do anything, which is why this CHD is referred to as a sin...
Last Wednesday I had my yearly doctor exam and when she said I should get my tetanus shot updated, I didn't think twice about it. The nurse said my arm would be sore for a couple of days, gave me a handout and stuck the needle in my arm. The next day my arm was sore and although I found it a little harder to pick up and carry Faith, I was glad the pain wasn't going to last long. Boy was I wrong! But not only was my arm sore, my whole body was. I felt achy and extremely tired. According to a medical site on the Internet, these were mild side effects of the Tetanus shot. If these were only mild side effects, I would really hate to have them at a moderate or severe level. My arm is still red and sore on day 2 after my tetanus shot. On Friday, two days after getting the shot I felt so tired that I took a four-hour nap after getting Faith off to school. Then on Saturday I took a three-hour nap up until 7 o'clock, but still felt tired and was able to go back to sleep around 10. ...
This page contains affiliate links and Faith's Mom may earn a commission if you use them. As an Amazon Associate, Faith's Mom earns from qualifying purchases. Learn more. Had it not been for the one fateful day that I had a craving for Little Caesar's pizza, I might not ever have known that Barney was coming to town. But there I was at the counter waiting for my medium pepperoni pizza when I noticed a flyer with a picture of the big purple dinosaur. He was coming live to Bismarck with his friends, BJ, Baby Bop and Riff - I couldn't wait to tell Faith. Barney and friends appear live at the Bismarck Civic Center I don't know how old Faith was when she saw Barney for the first time. A receptionist at pediatric therapy gave us a Barney VCR tape and Faith loved it. I started letting her watch Barney on PBS and then we started collecting the DVDs . All the while, I couldn't believe I was letting my daughter watch Barney - me and my friends made so much fun...
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