From Inside the Elevator.... Grace's story

Grace here, now you know MOM'S side of the story of our little "elevator inncident," as i keep calling it anyway, but here's what happened on the INSIDE of the elevator!

Ginger (a YW leader) had just dropped us (me and Jada) off at the ward building, i saw Andie and Ellie inside the elevator, they beckoned me over and i hopped in the elevator, pulling Jada in with me. As the elevator slowly moved down to the floor below, we thought it would be fun to JUMP! so on the count of three, we all jumped really hard, we heard a clank, and the elevator stopped, at first we figured the elevator was at the next floor and waited for the doors to open, when they didnt we started to panic slightly. we yelled for Ali (who was out in the hall playing with the soccer ball) she came to the doors of the elevator and started yelling at us, telling us to press the "OPEN DOOR" button, well are we that stupid? we had already pressed all the buttons, except for the Alarm button. Ali went and got Lisa, and now Lisa was trying to tell us what to do , yelling instructions through the doors, still nothing.
none of us really knew what to do, andie was in a frenzy of tears, thinking we would not get out, and ellie and i kept pressing buttons in a panic, finally after at least ten minutes of confused panic, we calmed down and sat on the floor of the elevator. We did say a prayer hoping to get out, and then we told each other about our day, (long details, of every thing we did), we played Down by The Banks, and sat quietly, hoping we would get out soon, we heard muffled voices outside and tried to hear what they were saying, Ellie called up to Lisa wondering what was going on, Lisa said that they had a tool and were trying to get us out. on the other side of the small elevator we heard loud thumping and hitting noises, we were completly oblivious to the outside world, the lights flickered on and off every once and a while, we heard rumbling below us, and finally we heard a big "SHWONK!" and a man called out "i got the first door open!"
within a few more minutes we heard more noises and the door opened! WE WERE FREE!
about 5 or 6 frazzled men had broken the doors open. i ran out and hugged Amy (my AWESOME YW leader!) and mom. (mom here--notice the LEADER got a hug bofore ME?)
We went and played our wardball game (apparently the "game still goes on" even when half your team is stuck in an elevator) the game was nearly over and we got to play the last few minutes (except Jada who had burst into tears as soon as we got out):(
We lost 44-6.... :( oh well.
but were all well now, and safe n' sound.

stuck....and we mean it!

amid the rushing of the "48" hours post, if you read all the details, you will notice something about Grace being STUCK in an elevator.

well, she was.

stuck.

as i was casually entering the "EAST" ward building with Josh and the remaining children that belonged to me on Wedenesday night (after watching Josh finish up HIS ward ball game), i noticed a rather large cluster of people gathered around an elevator. THE elevator.

i had a few thoughts...

#1 thought was "wow! i didn't know there was an elevator here."

#2 thought "hmmm, wonder why all those mom's are THERE, instead of watching the girls play basketball."

...at WHICH POINT i was grabbed by the girls Young Womens leader, cute (j.jill model) Amy Jeffries

The conversation went something like this....please don't quote me exactly, i have memory issues.

Amy: "they are stuck in the elevator!"

me: "they who?"

Amy: "Grace, Andie, Ellie and Jada"

me: "giggle giggle" (i always seem to giggle at the most inappropriate moments.)

the rest is a sort of a blur...that went something like THIS: (retold in the world's longest run on sentence!)

i remember Hank Holt yelling down to the girls through the doors "it's OK, it will be OK ellie". A member of the Stake Presidency was on the phone getting emergency instructions on how to "unstick" the elevator, a few men were reading "how to" manuals on elevators, mom's were milling, Josh thought it was hilarious his sister was STUCK, i seemed to keep giggling (in my defense, it is a mechanism which keeps me sane in stressful situations) Amy and Jill were trying to find a way to work the experience into a teaching moment for upcoming Young Womens lessons, we could hear the girls singing and talking in the elevator, they seemed to have no food, but enough air to sustain life indefinately, we all silently worried about what would happen if there were any bathroom emergencies, and Josh kept expressing the desire that they remain STUCK overnight. (ah the love of a big brother!). the whole thing sort of reminded me of all those "how many Relief Society sisters does it take to screw in a light bulb" jokes, which i think i mentioned to someone at some point--and received a few blank stares. (why am i ONLY funny to myself??)

End of story...they all got out, after ONE HOUR, all the girls seemed to have all their body parts still attatched and we sent them off to finish their ward ball game (which, by the way, HAD NOT been delayed for this emergency situation--the game MUST go on, i suppose!)

the game ended with a dismal score of 44 to 6 (yup, we lost).

lessons learned:

#1. when playing in the elevators at the ward house--do not enter with 4 girls intent on "jumping"--it can, and in this case WILL, cause the elevator to become STUCK.

#2. keep singing in times of stress.

#3. never count on your big brother to rescue you from an elevator.

#4. forgive your mother if she giggles under stress.

48 hours...

nope, not the show. my life... this was MY past 48 hours...they are all relatively similar!

get up, get my kids up, make school lunches, make 4 breakfasts, forget to eat my own (nothing new), take a shower, RUSH off to school, one hour for a meeting, hurry to get groceries (we have no milk AGAIN), run a few errands, home in time for Bompie (olivia), rush to visiting teaching, home in time for big kids, try and figure out dinner, pick up van at repair shop, home to clean up the house, make something for dinner, clean the kitchen, send kids off to Young Mens AND Womens, start a tub for girls, clean jammies on, prayers and snuggles and time for bed, big kids home from wardhouse, mom tries to decompress, time for bed, can't fall asleep (that's nothing new) lay awake half the night, alarm off at 5:30, josh up for basketball, try and fall back to sleep, lay awake (don't get up--not sure why), up at 7 with the girls, make some more breakfast, shower eat and get ready, more school lunches (HATE doing these), kiss the kids goodbye again, hurry and clean up the breakfast mess, RUSH off to school again, "mommy helper" for Antarctica Days, 2 1/2 hours there, come home in time to leave again, pick up Kindergarten carpool, run off to lunch w/friends, home again in time for carpool, pick up Jr. High kids now, home in time for girls to get in house, time for Josh to call for ride home of Jr. High (he had to stay late for testing), hurry home to start dinner, hurry everyone eat it...we have to go to basketball, off to Josh's ward ball game, grace leaves with someone else to go to another ward to play HER game, Josh's game is done, rush off to Grace's game, she's stuck in an elevator with 4 girls not playing basketball (that is a WHOLE 'nother post), she finally gets out, watch her game, hurry home, time for jammies, prayers and bed....
GOOD NIGHT everyone! (nope not yet), bompie can't fall asleep, her tummy hurts, she wants to throw up, lay by her for HOURS, she falls asleep, i still can't.

yup, that's my life---day after day-- thank goodness for friday! maybe i can finally sleep?

happy birthday Grace Catherine Nielson

Grace Catherine was born on January 27, 1997

@ 4:30 pm. She had a head FULL of auburn hair with

blond frosted tips...would not have believed it if i had not

been there! she actually looked like a monkey.

she slept like a dream and was a very easy baby--

not very fussy or sad ever.

my top 10 favorite things about Grace are:

10. she is creative

9. she is loud

8. she loves to curl up with a good book and read

and read and read and read....

7. she is artistic

6. she tries very hard to be athletic (and i love that she tries!)

5. she has the greatest hair on earth...thick & shiney.

4. she is loud

3. she is a great friend and loves to laugh

2. she is a great daughter and sister

and the #1 thing about grace...

SHE IS LOUD!

Happy Day Gracie Caterina Mochatina Latte!

discovery...

THIS...is what i usually drive, the most boring, practical "mom"

car on the face of the earth...it has been at the repair shop for 4 days now.

however "boring" and uncool it is, it is THE most functional "family" car and i secretly

love it (a little at least...although i would REALLY love a new Honda or Toyota

minivan with "magic" doors and a TV/DVD combo built right in)

THIS...is what i have been borrowing from my father in law...
THIS...is what it FEELS LIKE i am driving everytime
i get in the truck and do down the road.


My discovery?
i am not a truck gal....it is just too big for me!


p.s. today is gracie's birthday ... #12. i have
lots of thoughts on this and as soon as someone
with more technical knowledge than me comes
home (which is everyone over 5) i will have
them help me scan some pictures into the computer
and write a long thoughtful post on my first born
fluffy red headed daughter~ :O)

BEWARE the Ides of March...or is it The Ice In Janurary?

i got "the call" today, you know the one? from the school office. "we have your daugher here and there has been a little accident, how quickly can you get here?"
yup. that call. it makes your mother heart skip a beat or two and you find yourself asking if she's missing any teeth? (dental work makes you panic, only for the fact that anything to do with your mouth will be far more expensive to repair than practically any OTHER body part)
teeth all accounted for, however swollen lips, eyes and contusions of the face are in abundance.
(as well as a small amount of blood on the knee)
i hurry QUICKLY to the school and am greeted by Lizzie's two "bestest friends EVER"...they came running out (what SWEET souls they are!) and grabbed my hand to escort me to Lizzie. She was being tended to in the nurse's office by the school secretary. (i am wondering if that is part of her job description?)
She was a sight to behold...i will let you share in my experience. Needless to say, she is alive and well. She has a big dose of Tylenol in her and has sat in a warm bubble tub (who needs anything else, really?) and is currently watching "High School Musical" in my bed.

My mother told me there would be days like this...

got GAME?

Congrats Josh...

he made the Olympus Jr. High

Basketball team!

(we figure those size 13 dogs and that 6'4" of height

had to be put to good use sometime, right?)

...GO BULLDOGS!