8th Grade Christmas Dance Then....Now

Lauren got to go to her first real dance last weekend. For those of you who went to MLMS you will remember what a big deal the 8th grade dance was! I thought it would be funny to post a picture from mine so you can see the difference (sorry for anyone who is in this pic and sorry for the horrible quality!)

Okay I admit it...I am so commercial!

Usually before Christmas craziness starts, I am not looking forward to all the shopping and spending money but for some reason this year it has been kind of fun! Zak and I went down to SLC for the weekend and got it mostly done in one day. I have to admit it was fun browsing all the shops even with the crowds and debating who would like what. It is fun to think of each person and what they like and what their tastes are. Thankfully, I have a husband who doesn't mind shopping all day. Even if my method of shopping drives him crazy! We try really hard to make sure that person will really like something and ALWAYS include a receipt in case they don't. I think we got some fun gifts this year and I am excited to see them open on Christmas! Now on to Christmas cards!

Life List

I got this list from my friend Lindsay and thought it was fun to see what I have done and what I still could do with my life.... Highlight the ones you have already done.
1. Started your own blog 2. Slept under the stars 3. Played in a band 4. Visited Hawaii 5. Watched a meteor shower 6. Given more than you can afford to charity 7. Been to Disneyland
8. Climbed a mountain 9. Held a praying mantis 10. Sang a solo 11. Bungee jumped 12. Visited Paris 13. Watched a lightning storm at sea 14. Taught yourself an art from scratch 15. Adopted a child 16. Had food poisoning 17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty 18. Grown your own vegetables 19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France 20. Slept on an overnight train 21. Had a pillow fight 22. Hitch hiked 23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill 24. Built a snow fort 25. Held a lamb 26. Gone skinny dipping 27. Run a Marathon 28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice 29. Seen a total eclipse 30. Watched a sunrise or sunset 31. Hit a home run 32. Been on a cruise 33. Seen Niagara Falls in person 34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors 35. Seen an Amish community 36. Taught yourself a new language 37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied 38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person 39. Gone rock climbing 40. Seen Michelangelo’s David 41. Sung karaoke 42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt 43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant 44. Visited Africa 45. Walked on a beach by moonlight 46. Been transported in an ambulance 47. Had your portrait painted 48. Gone deep sea fishing 49. Gone without food or water for 24 hours or longer 50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris 51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling 52. Kissed in the rain 53. Played in the mud 54. Gone to a drive-in theater 55. Been in a movie 56. Visited the Great Wall of China 57. Started a business 58. Taken a martial arts class 59. Stayed up for 24 hours with NO sleep at all 60. Served at a soup kitchen 61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies 62. Gone whale watching 63. Got flowers for no reason 64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma 65. Gone sky diving 66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp 67. Bounced a check 68. Flown in a helicopter 69. Saved a favorite childhood toy 70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial 71. Eaten Caviar 72. Pieced a quilt 73. Stood in Times Square 74. Toured the Everglades 75. Been fired from a job 76. Changed a lightbulb 77. Broken a bone 78. Been on a speeding motorcycle 79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person 80. Published a book 81. Visited the Vatican 82. Bought a brand new car 83. Mowed the lawn 84. Had your picture in the newspaper 85. Read the entire Bible 86. Visited the White House 87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating 88. Had chickenpox 89. Saved someone’s life 90. Sat on a jury 91. Met someone famous 92. Joined a book club 93. Lost a loved one 94. Had a baby 95. Seen the Alamo in person 96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake 97. Been involved in a law suit 98. Owned a cell phone 99. Been stung by a bee
54 out of 99 still lots to do.......Top of my list: Kissing in the rain and serving at a soup kitchen.

Blue Lily Pictures

I thought I would post some of our pics from our session with the AMAZING Wendy Whitacre of BlueLily Photography. I was really happy how they all turned out and now I am pretty sure my kids are the cutest in all of history!

See Slideshow right here---------------------------------------------->

*TWILIGHT*

We laughed, we cried, we swooned at the midnight showing of Twilight last night. I have to admit I really liked the books, yes they are very unrealistic but what good is entertainment if it doesn't take us someplace else for a little while? Most of the fun was watching Lauren and her three friends reaction to the movie. Usually these showings brings out the major freaks...well guess what we were the major freaks last night. They painted their faces with sayings like "I'm da New Bella" and "Mrs. Edward Cullen" We all had to wear our Twilight shirts, me included! I promise I didnt buy one, Lauren actually has two! They yelled out the countdown to when the movie started then clapped, cheered, cried and gasped through the whole movie. I am sure the people around us were none too pleased but hey what do you expect at the Midnight showing? In all, it has to go down as one of the most fun nights I have had with Lauren in a long time!

Shots are scary!

I will just start off by saying I hate shots! I hate shots so much that when I was around 8 years old my mom took me to the doctor when I was sick, when they decided I needed an antibiotic shot, I took off down the highway with my mom in heels chasing me down. I literally ran about two blocks before I got too tired to run anymore. My mom had to drag me back in, where one nurse barracaded the door while two more nurses held me down. After having three kids, I have somewhat gotten over this fear but when it comes time to get my children shots that little 8 year old kid comes out.

Today I am taking Ethan to get his immunizations, which he already should have had, but that is another topic for another day. Here is our conversation in the car on the way to the doctor:

Ethan:

Is it going to hurt?

Me:

Just a tiny bit, kind of like a bug bite or a pinch but just for a second.

Ethan:

I am going to hold my breath so I dont cry, kay mom? (I know isn't your heart breaking at this very second?)

Me:

It's okay to cry if it hurts. bud.

Ethan:

It's okay to cry?

Me:

Of course and you can squeeze my hand really hard too.

Ethan;

Okay, and you will kiss my cheeks and then it will be all better right? (Seriously could this kid be any sweeter? I am almost in tears at this point and we haven't even pulled into the parking lot)

Me:

(Choking back tears) Sure bud and then I will take you to the store and buy you those plastic animal spoons you wanted. (don't ask, I dont know why he wanted them either, but I might have bought him a pony at this point)

We get to the doctor and I have to hold both of his hands and kind of hold him down (this is where the dads come in, moms should never have to hold their child down so someone else can cause them bodily injury) the nurse puts the shots in 1,2,3 and he sucks in a deep breath of air and it was over just like that! No tears or screams. I am so proud of my brave, strong son and thankful I don't have to do that again for awhile.

Special Ways to Celebrate the Season

We have been trying to decide how to make the Christmas season more meaningful around our house. We are trying to take the focus off of the presents and put it more on spending time together as a family and providing service to our community . I found a few good ideas in a magazine called "Wonder Time" Here they are:

1. Giving just three gifts to each child. One is a "gold" gift (something they really want) a "myrrh" gift (something they need, like clothes, etc.) and "frankincense" gift (something for their spiritual growth.

2. Conducting a charitable lottery with your extended family instead of giving each other gifts. Each family puts an organization on a slip of paper along with a check, then draw a winner. The winning family donates the money to their chosen charity.

3. Use an advent calendar to encourage your child to do something meaningful each day. Each day has an idea on something they can do to be more christlike. Examples were call someone in your family and sing them a christmas song or read a christmas story to their siblings, say something nice to someone at school, etc.

4. Give gifts that encourage time together, such as tickets to a show or that encourages activities and exercise such as dance lessons or swimming passes.

5. Instead of buying gifts go on a family vacation.

Let's hear some of your good ideas for how you are going to celebrate the holidays!

Prop 8

So I know some who read this post may think, "Wow those Mormons are so against gay marriages, what's their problem? They are so intolerant" Just to clarify we are not against domestic partnerships and rights for every human being. We are against changing the definition of marriage. Here is the church's official standpoint on the subject:
The focus of the Church’s involvement is specifically same-sex marriage and its consequences. The Church does not object to rights (already established in California) regarding hospitalization and medical care, fair housing and employment rights, or probate rights, so long as these do not infringe on the integrity of the family or the constitutional rights of churches and their adherents to administer and practice their religion free from government interference.
The Church has a single, undeviating standard of sexual morality: intimate relations are proper only between a husband and a wife united in the bonds of matrimony.
The Church’s opposition to same-sex marriage neither constitutes nor condones any kind of hostility towards homosexual men and women. Protecting marriage between a man and a woman does not affect Church members’ Christian obligations of love, kindness and humanity toward all people.
As Church members decide their own appropriate level of involvement in protecting marriage between a man and a woman, they should approach this issue with respect for others, understanding, honesty, and civility.
For more on this subject you can go to this link:
http://newsroom.lds.org/ldsnewsroom/eng/commentary/the-divine-institution-of-marriage

All is well in the world TODAY...

I am sitting here enjoying a delicious pomegranate and listening to Christmas music and pondering on the fate of our world. In this small moment of delight, I realized the world has always had troubles and will continue to always have troubles. It is not my job to worry about ALL of them, but it IS my job to worry about the problems of my little family. So today, enough of politics and on to a wonderful holiday season hopefully filled with Christmas cookies, gingerbread houses, ornaments, pretty packages, twinkling lights, warm fires, cozy nights curled up watching Miracle on 34th Street with my kids, snowmen, thoughts of Christ, service to our community, laughter and MOST OF ALL, LOTS and LOTS of quality time with my family and extended family. I hope you will take a moment to take a breath before the craziness of the season starts and ponder what is most importantfor you! Happy Holidays (I know a little early, but I am ready for happy thoughts!)

After five years of cheer, Lauren gets her first major injury! We are feeling pretty lucky about this because Cheer is pretty dangerous! She was doing of all things- a cartwheel and broke her little pinky toe. Which you would think this wouldn't be that BIG of a deal but she is on crutches and pain meds, poor girl! Which also means no Cheer for THREE WHOLE weeks. That seems to be the worst for Lauren and her team- they really count on her! If you miss a practice it isn't like dance where they just fill in your spot, all the stunts are dependent on each person, without one the whole stunt group can't practice. Not a great time with competitions right around the corner!

Blue Lily Photography

After being recommended several blogs this week...who knew how many bloggers were out there, I found this amazing photographer who lives in CA but does sessions in UT I quickly emailed her to see if by some off chance she would have any openings left and luckily she did! She keeps adding dates and times because she has had so many people asking for appts. I know she has a few times left so if you need your family pics done here is your chance! I thought she was pretty reasonable pricing wise but I am comparing this to WA prices so maybe Utahns won't. Speaking of WA, she is coming there as well so if you would like to get an appt. your in luck! I swear I am not making any money off of this, but I just think she is SO SO SO good!

Now for the blog links....WARNING: THESE ARE VERY ADDICTING!
http://www.bluelily.squarespace.com/
http://www.seriouslysoblessed.blogspot.com/
http://nieniedialogues.blogspot.com/
http://blog.cjanerun.com/

At least I am not as crazy as this mother!

I know I said we are cheer obsessed in my family but I think this mom took it to a new level. Follow this link to get the whole story....

http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5ipppcZU-H4xC9lQiAOQFSF-cfrdAD935H3G80


Thanks Molly for sending this to me!

LOTOJA 2008

This weekend Zak participated in the Lotoja which is a bike race from Logan to Jackson Hole. It goes through 3 states and is 206 miles long. It has some grueling terrain which I got to witness firsthand as his support vehicle driver. After dislocating his kneecap this summer in an unfortunate boating accident, he recruited our good friend's son Tanner to help him do the ride. Tanner is an impressive kid who is only 14 years old and rocked the whole last 67 miles out with his dad encouraging him the whole way. They finished in 12 hours 58 minutes. It was exciting to watch all of these amazing athletes push themselves as hard as they could go. It even inspired me to maybe try it next year! Okay probably in a relay team! Anyone want to do it with me?
The race started at 6 am, all the bikes had to have lights on them, just so they could kind of see. First hour is spent riding in the complete darkness with only small bike lights to guide your way. That's Mark Nordstrom with Zak!


The Amazing Relay Team!

Zak in Action!

The Support Team! That's Tanner's mom- Sydney


Victorious at the Finish Line!

Chloe's Political Views

Okay, so I don't want to start any controversies in the blog world, so having said that I thought it was funny to hear my 9 year old daughter and her views on who should become the next President. I will start by saying we discuss politics a lot in this home, for some reason Zak and I are obsessed with following all the latest, even when it is not an election year. I will give you a little glimpse of how crazy we are....we stayed up until 1:00 am last night to hear Sarah Palin's speech twice and then hear all the commentary about it.
So imagine my surprise when Chloe came in this morning (of course the TV was on the news) and said matter of factly, "I don't like Obama, he doesn't like this country and shouldn't you like the country that you trying to be president of." Okay, maybe we have discussed this in front of her, but I honestly cannot think of when it was. We had just had this discussion the night before as we were listening to the speeches, so maybe she is psychic. Either way, I thought she pretty much hit the nail on the head! Again, the reason why I LOVE this country is because we can all have our own opinions! If you have one let's hear it....leave a comment!

It was like a dream....

Okay, so anyone who knows me knows I HATE to cook. Why you ask, well maybe it was because I was raised by a mom who didn't have a clue in the kitchen and hired multiple people to cook for us while we were growing up. When we weren't being cooked for we ate frozen fish sticks and mac n' cheese or fast food. Can I tell you how excited we were when Dominoes Pizza invented home delivery! Sadly, I am carrying on in this legacy, but I don't really have an excuse of working a full time job to get out of this responsibility. Maybe the other reason I hate to cook is because Zak is never here and whenever I do cook, there is always some complaining which doesn't make me real eager to cook again. I will admit I am probably not that good at it and my meals are not made with love, but obligation to provide some sort of nutrition. Thankfully someone invented Dream Dinners.

It is a magical place where the meals are all ready for you to put them together, you just follow the easy recipe cards and dump all of the ingredients together and voila.... a healthy gourmet meal! Each meal only took a couple of minutes and after only one hour Zak and I had put together 12 meals. Of course there will be the cooking time but most only take about 20 minutes. Here are some of the meals we made..

Chicken Parmesan w/ Garlic Bread

Pesto Ravioli with walnuts

Pecan crusted Chicken

Asian Orange Chicken

Italian stuffed shells

Parmesan crusted Pork Chops

I would never even attempt to make any of this at home, not to mention all of their meals are less than 400 calories per serving. The total cost for all 12 dinners was about $200, I am pretty sure I couldn't buy all the ingredients at a grocery store for that. All of the dinners are 6 servings which will mean when Zak isn't home we will have leftovers which will provide another meal. I feel like one of those housewives in the 50's when they invented the microwave.....Yea for modern technology! If you want to check out the website here is the link.

http://www.dreamdinners.com/

Holy Moly Guacamole!

As Ethan would say....his new favorite saying among a few other choice ones that are not fit to put in print. I don't know where he learns these things, he certainly never hears them from me!
This week has been FULL of getting ready to get back to school activities. Here is a rundown....
1. School Shopping- all three kids need at least 4 or 5 outfits and 2 pairs of new shoes. Oh and underwear and socks.
2. Supply Shopping- I know Utah provides most of them, but they need to express themselves in their binders, folders and backpacks.
3. Dentist- All three kids get check ups and cleanings- all three have cavities. Whaaa! That means we get to go back for more appts.
4. Orthodontist- for Lauren-guess who gets braces in a couple of weeks? Zak voted to wait till she was 16 to cut back on potential suitors, but I thought that might be a little too mean. His fall back plan if she misbehaves then he will just shave her head. Yep, that ought to do it!
5. Haircuts- now that Lauren is older, we can't just go to Supercuts. We have to go to the fancy salons and the haircuts now include coloring. Oh and eyebrow waxing. She was cursed with Zak's eyebrows.
6. Doctor appts- Ethan has to have a check up for his preschool. He is not going into the army just preschool, not sure why they need to make sure he is in tip top physical health. Maybe so they can make sure he can climb the monkey bars and that he has no communicable diseases.
7. A dozen trips to each child's school- Registration, schedule changes, lunch payments, school bus payments, locker assignments, one trip to the district to fill out homeschool PE form (Lauren opted out of one semester of PE, I figure she does 6 hours of cheer a week, that should be plenty. Of course instead of taking art or some other class that forces her to use her brain she chooses Office Aid. I guess I have to pick my battles.)
You can imagine the hundreds of dollars that Getting Back to School costs. Not to mention the gallons of gas.
Will it be worth it? OH YEAH!

Cousin Craziness!!

We have had my two nieces here all week, this is actually the second week they have stayed here this summer. There have been some craziness but also some really great memories. I will try to recreate them for you without pictures because the first day they were here they were making videos and my camera was broken, which leads me to the craziness.....
Miranda brought her scooter up, Chloe has the same one and they zipped around the neigborhood at mach speeds. You can imagine how my street of elderly folks responded to that, which led to the first angry message.
(Reenactment-names have been changed to protect the innocent)
Bob-"Evelyn, you need to call me back right away I need to talk to you about your girls and their scooters"
I don't call him back because I know what he is going to say. Okay I am really non-confrontational.
Next day...Bob pulls up to my house
"You know those girls are going to get hit riding those scooters all over the place, I have talked to the police captain and he is going to send a car up here. There are lots of crazy drivers on this street and I am just concerned about your girls." There is no one under the age of 65 on this street but maybe he has a point..

Next day #2 Angry message
Ethel-"Sis. Call I wanted to talk to you about your girls, I noticed them taking some apricots from my tree and I don't mind if they have some, but I think they might be using them as weapons and I don't want them wasted."
Weapons? Huh?
This leads to a large discussion why you cannot take fruit from someone else's tree, how technically that is stealing. I felt like I am on some episode of "Leave it to Beaver." The girls felt bad and made a 12 page card about how sorry they were and dropped it off at Ethel's house. So lesson learned and maybe a funny memory made as well.
All in all, it is great to have them here, one of the main reasons I am glad to be back closer to family. Hopefully they will have great memories of visiting their aunt every summer in Mayberry, I mean Logan.

Summer Synopsis!

It has been a busy summer here at the Call household as evident by my lack of updating the blog. On top of having major computer issues, I have been a little too preoccupied to get my blogging in. I thought I would give a quick synopsis of what our summer activities have been, to catch all my readers up. Yes, I am sure there are many!!! All three of you.

My first month was CONSUMED by the Biggest Loser competition. I literally worked out three plus hours a day. No I don't look like Halle Berry but I did manage to lose about 20 lbs. of which I have now gained back five. Oh well! Here are some pics of my group.....

We spent numerous days at the Sports Academy pool.....

Our friends the Warners' have been nice enough to invite us to go boating with them several times including a weekend at Bear Lake.

Zak and I got in a trip to Florida- he worked, I read and layed out by the pool and beach. My kind of trip! Also, responsible for at least three of the five pounds. Of course, I didn't even take one picture.

Girls Night in SLC with friends from High School, where we made big plans but ended up talking at the hotel most of the night! Why else do you want to go to these things, except for all the great stories and catching up?

Two triathlons and counting with a couple of the ladies from my Biggest Loser group. The first one was a breeze at the Sports Academy and the second one not so much. It was held at Hyrum Dam, with a 1/2 mile open water swim, a man literally died in front of me when he had a heart attack in the water. Needless to say, it was a little scary but we finished. We have big plans to do a couple more before the summer is over.

That's about it... I am not sure what we are going to do with the last couple of weeks, but I am sure it will be spent getting ready for Back to School (yahoo!) and sneaking a few more fun activities in. Hopefull blogging as well, but I am not making any promises!

Biggest Loser Website

Here is the actual website link to track my progress...
http://www.sportsacademy.com/sarc/loser/?page_id=157

Week#2 results not up yet.

What a 13 year old does with her extra time!

If you are wondering what a 13 year old girl does with her extra time, here it is. They take endless amounts of pictures of themselves to post on their different internet spaces. I know what you are thinking....what a bad mom to let her daughter do that, but they do have private spaces, much like how you can make your blog private, where only her friends can see her profiles. This generation is all about the internet and texting, so I figure I might as well let her do it with lots of discussions on internet safety. (my secret: I have all her passwords so I can check up on her every once in awhile). Here are a few of her recent ones..(she will probably KILL me if she sees this!

BIggest Loser Baby!

Our gym has this awesome competition a couple times a year- which is basically just like The Biggest Loser on TV. We have weekly weigh-ins, team competions, and big fat prize for the winner. Yes, I know I don't quite look like most of the participants, but I figure this would be a good way to...1. Step up my workouts (we have run the stairs at the stadium, run trails up in the canyon, and done a 5K so far just this week) 2. Be accountable to someone to help me get these 20 lbs off I put on in the last year and a half. 3. Have someone help me improve my diet, which is quite pathetic. 4. Meet some fun new people!
Guess what? There is a website where you can track my progress
http://www.sportsacademy.com/sarc/index.php?option=com_events&task=view_detail&Itemid=8&agid=15&year=2008&month=04&day=15
I dont think the pictures and weights are up yet, but today is our first weigh in, so check back in the next few days!

Going Private!

I noticed some weird people linking into my Cheer Girls post, so I decided to go private. I need everyone's email addresses so I can send you an invitation to view. You have to love the internet, you never know who is out there!

Cheer Nationals!!!

We are a tad bit cheer obsessed in this family, I will admit it. Yes, I was the girl who didn't make the team in High School so maybe I am living my unfulfilled dreams out in my children but in my defense, the girls LOVE it and are just as obsessed as I am! There is never a day when I have to drag them to cheer and they are usually the ones first in the car honking at me to hurry up and drive them there. They are constantly recruiting their friends and even on weekends they want to go to the gym for free tumbling even after three practices a week. What I love about it- this is one of the very few things my girls do together where they cheer each other on and they are not fighting, this by itself is totally worth it!

Now if you think cheerleading is just a lame activity and the girls who do it are not athletes, you are sorely mistaken! Here are a couple of links to prove my point.

This link shows you some of the famous people who were once cheerleaders, I think it will surprise you..

http://highschool.rivals.com/photofeature.asp?SID=1185&fid=20578

Here is an insane video on YouTube that will knock your sock off!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5yX3w8MW_0Y

Lastly, here are the girls performing at their Nationals in Los Angeles, CA.

When is Global Warming gonna kick in?

I know all we hear about in the news is Global Warming, but for some reason Utah didn't get the memo because it is May 1st and it is snowing here! Monday it was 80 degrees and today we wake up to this......

I think I may just drive my car a little more and hopefully that just may shorten the winters here!

31 sounds so much older than 30!!!

How did I celebrate turning the big 3-1, you ask? I did what every woman should do when they are getting older....I had a mammogram! Yes, I got my boobs squished into pancakes, while a kind yet somewhat forward nurse technician fondled them more than my husband has in awhile. I do have to say it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be--but for all you with a B cup or smaller- Good Luck, I am not sure if mine weren't so saggy, how they would have managed to get them in there. Maybe that's why you have to wait till your older to make sure they are starting sag!

Now you are wondering why I would subject myself to that on my birthday- well the reason is why -my mom died from breast cancer at 52, so I have to get mammograms somewhat earlier than most people. My mom also died two days before my birthday, so this time of year I absolutely am thinking about her. She knew she had a lump in her breast and because of fear or indifference she didn't have it checked until it was the size of a golf ball. I really think she could have survived it had she been treated sooner. Now that I am a little older I cannot take my health for granted anymore.

On a lighter note, the other way I celebrated was with an impromptu BBQ with some of our friends (all planned by Zak) and a cookie cake (my favorite) I have seen other people put pics of their kids growing up on their birthdays-so I thought it would be funny to show some of mine!

Where have I gone????

I am so sorry for leaving the same post for sooooo long. Do you ever get in those moods ( I call it my rebellious moods) where you are sick of everything you do on a daily basis? Cooking, cleaning, carpooling, etc.etc. I took a vacation from my life for the last few weeks, so now I am back and ready to resume my life that includes updating my blog. Actually, I have been on actual vacations (yes I know computers work everywhere) We had Cheer Nationals (pictures to follow) then a family trip to Disneyland and California. When we came back we realized we weren't quite ready to be home, so I jumped in the car by myself with all three kids and drove the 12 hours to Seattle. It was great to get back to our old hometown, where we terrorized Niki's house for a few days and snuck in some Seattle fun, including a ride on the Ducks (if you havent done this yet, it was really fun) a trip to the aquarium, and a long drive up to the Tulip Festival (pictures to follow). I am happy to be home in my own bed and ready to start cooking, cleaning, carpooling, and blogging! :(

Lessons from a Staph Infection

In an effort to have this whole ordeal over, I thought I would put down the lessons I have learned from going through this for the last five weeks.
For everyone who didnt know I have had a nasty staph infection for over a month now and it is still not completely healed. I have to say I am sick, sick, sick of the whole thing. This has been by far one of the worst things I have gone through in my life so far, but these are the lessons I have learned....
1. I will never take my body or my health for granted again. I would give anything to be able to go workout or just stand for longer than a couple of minutes without being in pain.
2. Chronic pain really sucks! For anyone who has to deal with this without any solutions other than taking pain meds, I am completely sorry for you. Being in pain changes who you are, you become very irritable from the pain and from the lack of utter control you have in your life.
3. Being able to take care of my kids and home isn't the worst thing in the world...at this point I would settle for a lifetime of house cleaning if I could do it without hurting and needing to lay down every couple of minutes.
4. It is okay to let people help....this is a big one for me. I have had so many kind people bring over dinner, call and check on me, offer advice, take over some of my church responsibilites, etc., etc.
5. Doctors don't always know everything...in fact it is pretty much a guessing game for them. The verdict is still out on this one, if this finally heals then he will be my biggest hero, if it doesn't then I will kick myself for not going somewhere else from the beginning. In the end, you are your best advocate, I have probably driven my doc crazy but I need this thing done with and quick.

My mom always taught me to look for the gifts in any trial...so I am going to list those as well.
1. I have had time to read more books in the last month then probably in the last five years, I have learned about Henry VIII and his wives, Queen Katherine, and Lincoln.
2. I have not spent any money on frivoulous items, my bank account has gained much from this experience.
3. I have gotten closer to the people in our ward.
4. I think I have caught up on my sleep for the next five years.
5. I have gotten to see how much people do care for me including my husband, who has changed bandages, applied ointment, accompanied me to the doctor when it wasn't always convenient, gone for treat and Diet Coke runs, cooked dinner, taken care of the kids, taken over carpool, picked up prescriptions, and called every doctor he knows to try to find a solution. This may be the best blessing of all.

There you have it I have learned much and been blessed much so now I can be done with this....RIGHT?

View from a 4 year old

Ethan loves to steal the camera and take pictures. I thought some of these are quite interesting, maybe there is a budding photographer in there somewhere. Anyways, here is a pictorial viewpoint from a four year old's level.

Apparently, he was outside for this one, not sure where I was.

This is Zak's bike....he was spinning the wheel and then taking the picture.

I am not sure if he arranged the crayons himself, but either way they are kind of laying at interesting angles.

"Finding Nemo" literally

We call this one "Inside of a Hamper"

Here he is taking a picture of himself in our mirrored dresser, don't mind the dirty clothes on the floor. I love how intent his face is when he is holding the camera.

Extra! Extra!

My daughter Lauren has been in the newspaper not once but twice here in Logan. I barely made it into our school yearbooks when I was a kid. Not only am I a proud mom, but I stand in amazement at how much she has grown. The first picture was front page news (yes this is a small town) about a big sister to be class, she went to when I was pregnant with Chloe. The last one, she was voted by her coaches to be the athlete of the week on her cheer team. Probably, because she tells the other girls to quit being babies, suck it up, and work harder. She gets that from her dad, whose favorite saying is "Cowboy Up" He is not a cowboy so don't ask where that came from. It was funny how many people saw and recognized her in the paper, apparently people still read it here. I thought everyone got their news from the internet these days, but apparently not in Logan. Anyways, she is a great girl and now the whole valley knows it too!

It's a long gross story...

This weekend we went to yet another cheer comp down in SLC, when I woke up I wasn't feeling too well, I had the chills and was quite dizzy, but being the sweet husband Zak is, he told me to get in the car because he was sure once I ate something I would be fine. I, too hoped I would feel better and I didn't want to miss the girls competition. First I should tell you a couple of days before (NOTE: You may want to stop reading now, it gets gross from here on out) I went swimming in a public pool, not sure if this has any relevance or not, the next day I noticed a boil on my leg ( I have had these before but never like this) I hurriedly go to the doctor to have them fix it, that entails them slicing it open and draining it (SEE I WARNED YOU) Immediately, I feel slightly odd, but think I am just traumatized from what I have been through. Cut back to Saturday, I am at the Cheer Comp, my sister comes, and Zak is right I feel a little better. We are just chit chatting away when all of a sudden I feel cold again and about 1 minute later this happens.......

And about 15 minutes later I end up here.......

I completely turned white and started shaking all over. My sister rushes me to the hospital, without Zak even knowing, he's off chasing Ethan somewhere and can't hear his phone.

Luckily once I got to the hospital they got me right in and gave me some massive antibiotic shot (which hurts like a mother). I pretty much slept for two days straight and woke up today feeling closer to myself. The doctor thinks the infection started to spread and my body was trying to fight it off.

I am okay today and no worse for the wear, except I may never go in a public pool again. So, that's my long gross story!

Zak and Ev- still together!

Whenever I see these pictures, I can't believe that those punk kids are still together after 14 years. There have definitely been some hard times and times when one or both of us thought is this really the right thing. I think what has saved us is that we are both very stubborn and neither of us wanted our kids to go through what we went through with our parents divorces. When it comes right down to it I think marriage is mostly about two people who dont give up when times get hard and are always willing to say they are sorry. It also helps to have a husband who can deal with all of my craziness and a wife who can deal with all of his messiness! I love you Zachary!

Spiderman Birthday! Ethan turns 4!

Ethan had a blowout Spiderman birthday party this weekend. Spiderman even stopped by for the festivities! We had Mindy and Tricia's kids over and played lots of games (note: no need to plan lots of games for four year olds they are happy running around playing with each other)

We had a Spiderman Pinata

We had fun shooting the bad guy (Zak) with our webs (silly string)

and no party is complete without a Spiderman Birthday cake!

It was fun to see how excited he got, because he watched his sisters get parties for the last few months and it was finally his turn. His first comment when we got the table set up was "All of the children are going to sing Happy Birthday to me, right mom?"

The last four years havc been crazy, adjusting to raising a boy after two fairly easy daughters, but it certainly makes life more interesting. I know there will be a day when I will miss all of his mischief and wonder where my little baby went. There is nothing better than having his little arms around me and telling me he loves me, even if the next words out of his mouth, are him calling me "Poop"