Yodame

New Videos

2012-01-28T23:36:00.000-08:00

Dan is in some new videos for his company again. I'm sad that once his previous project got canceled in the buy-out, his video was taken down. I wanted his kids to be able to see it someday when they were bigger. I'm hoping he can still get a copy of it at work.

He does not have a big part in these videos but they are funny. I hope I can figure out a way to save these videos. Sara and Brennan will probably really get a kick out of them someday.
Video 1
Video 2

The Happs

2011-12-02T15:59:00.000-08:00

I haven't blogged on Yodame in a while. I've mostly been updating the kids blogs. Brennan has a blog now too. I'm trying to journal in their blogs so that I have a record of the things they did, so the blogs are not terribly interesting but the Grandma's and Grandpa's seem to like them.

Things have obviously been very busy here. Adjusting to two kids has been a challenge. I've had my breakdowns and more than a few restless nights but overall it's been fun. My biggest anxiety with small babies is that they will get sick. I think it comes from being so sick as a kid myself. I am resting easier now knowing that we've all had some really bad illnesses here and have coughed all over Brennan and I even had stomach flu, Sara had walking pneumonia, and he didn't get anything but the sniffles. Amazing!

We haven't traveled much so I'm hoping now that he's 4 months old we can start to do a few more things. We did all kinds of outdoor activities with Sara but when she Brennan's age it was Spring, so until he's old enough to go into the ski trailer our options might be a bit limited. We have been hiking several times locally and he seems to really like that so far.

Dan and I are doing great. I think parenting another kid has brought us closer together. I really appreciated everything he did for me in the hospital when I had Brennan, it was rough and I really relied on him. He is a great husband and a great person. He goes out of his way to make sure we're all happy. He is the best father I could have ever ended up with for my kids.

We are looking to the future and we are thinking that our current house is too small for the four of us. Dan will have it paid off either by January or March so we're thinking of putting it on the market and just letting it sit there until it sells. In the mean time we've been looking at houses and talking with a realtor about our options. We've explored buying an existing one or building. It'll be interesting to see what we end up doing. Even though we could probably get a half a million dollar loan and live in a giant mansion like a lot of Dan's co-workers do, we'd love not to be house poor. We love to travel and have freedom. It would be great if we could get little bit bigger house that we could also have paid off in just another few years and then be totally debt free.

Dan really wants a bigger kitchen and he's dreamed of a better stove. I'd love to still have a nice yard and a covered porch where we could have gatherings and I think overall we'd love to have more room so that we could have guests (we lost our guest room w/ Brennan) and family dinners. Also it would be amazing to have a kids play room.

This Saturday we are going to look at our neighbor's house two doors down. It's an awesome house and is selling for pretty cheap. I'm so excited to see what it's like inside. It might be a good option for us and if not we'll keep looking next year.

We want to stay in the Springville, Spanish, or Mapleton area. My first choice is Spanish because I really love it here. It would be hard for me to move away. I love that it's somewhat rural, the splash pad is great, the wind turbines are fun to watch, the new river trail just down the hill is awesome, and the multitude of kid centered city festivities can't be beat. Also, because it's not in a big city, you can get way more house for your money. The only thing that could be better here is our library, it sucks.

Most of all, I love our view here so if our neighbors house works out that would be great, we'd have the same view. Maybe even better because it's a 2 story and they have huge windows in the front living room which we don't have.

Changing topics, I've been able to jog every night and ride Dan's exercise bike. I think I'm going to start doing Zumba again too with friends. I hope to be in better shape by Spring to hike mountains and resume biking. I feel like I've missed so much hiking and biking while pregnant and I'm ready to go hog wild in the spring and summer next year.

Also, we're looking forward to maybe visiting Alabama in May of next year. It's been a long time since we've visited and my 90 year old Grandma would like to see Brennan. I think we might head down to Panama City beach too. Dan is grumpy about it. I guess when you've lived in Hawaii, other beaches seem sub-par but I've promised him these beaches are amazing. I hope the weather holds out. I can't wait to show Sara the beach that Momma grew up on. I love that beach and miss it dearly. Maybe someday Daddy will show the kids the beach he grew up on but at this point I'm not holding my breath. Maybe next year will be the year I get up the nerve to go without him!

Mr Moose

2011-10-24T23:10:00.000-07:00

We have a cute little kid!! He's 3 months old now and his nickname is Mr. Moose.

Some pics from recent days

2011-08-07T20:30:00.000-07:00

We actually got a photo of the four of us!

Brennan's first video

2011-08-05T22:03:00.000-07:00

Here is a vid from the hospital, minutes after Brennan was born.

I survived

2011-08-05T21:29:00.000-07:00

It's been 10 days now since Brennan was born, I'm thankful I survived it. I was really dreading having another c-section, mostly the pain part and the actual surgery. It all went down much differently than expected too, which probably helped me have less anxiety simply because I didn't have much time to think about it.

I was scheduled for a c-section on the 26th of July. My Mom was flying in on the 25th to help us watch Sara and to be there for the birth. On the 25th, Dan went to pick Mom up at the airport at 12 p.m. Since we had a baby sitter we decided to go out for one last hurrah before the surgery in the morning. We went to see the new Harry Potter movie at 4:00 p.m.

At 4:30 p.m. my phone rang in the theater because I forgot to turn it off. I was bending over to get my purse and turn off the ringer when I felt a gush. I had been having trouble with my bladder so for a split second I thought, dang incontinence. However within about 5 seconds I realized that a massive amount of liquid was coming out so I grabbed my purse and started running, yelling back to Dan that my water broke. I'm sure lots of people heard it, the theater was packed.

I was running down the hallways of the theater leaving puddles and Dan was running behind me. All I could think to tell him was, "get me some pants". I was under the impression that there wouldn't be that much fluid and that it would stop at some point and I could just change my pants and walk out of the theater with some dignity. I was wrong about that. I ran into the bathroom and I was flooding the floors. When I sat on the toilet it stopped and as soon as I stood up again, woosh! I couldn't imagine that much water being in there. I used about a whole roll of toilet paper but my pants were totally soaked and I couldn't stop the fluid. So I called the hospital from the stall and said I was on my way. Then I tried to call Dan to tell him forget the pants at this point, just get me to the hospital ASAP, but his ringer was turned off from being in the movie.

I peeked my head out of the bathroom and saw a side exit, I decided to take it instead of walking through the busy lobby, just hoping the alarm didn't go off. Luckily only a couple of people saw me. I'm sure it was clear to them what my issue was, seeing how huge my stomach was in conjunction with the soggy pants and wet trail I was leaving. I saw Dan's car in the parking lot but couldn't find him. Then I saw him running at full speed from K-mart just up the street. He had purchased a pair of pants for me to wear.

I told him I'm sorry that I just didn't know what to do but that I thought it was pointless for me to put on different pants now. So we used the k-mart bag for me to sit on in the car and off we went. We got up to the freeway and the traffic ground to a dead halt. Luckily we were able to get off at an exit and take back roads all the way up to Orem. It took longer than the freeway would have, if it had been moving, but at least we were moving towards the hospital. If we had gotten stuck on the freeway I know I would have had a panic attack.

Dan dropped me off in front of the hospital and immediately when I stood up, woosh! The nurses saw me and made some comment about how it was clear I was in labor, due to my soaked jeans. The amazing thing was that they had me prepped and ready to go into surgery by 6:30 p.m. and by 7:07 p.m. we had a baby!

The surgeons all said "WOW" when Brennan came out, they remarked on how huge he was. They said it was the biggest baby they'd delivered in a long time. He weighed 10lbs 10oz and was 20.5 inches long. I only got to see him briefly as they poked his head over the curtain. I craned my neck to look behind me over at the table he was on as the nurses were working on him. Luckily Dan got to stand with him and came over to give me updates and reports.

Because Brennan's blood sugar was low and he was having a little trouble breathing, they kept him in a special unit in the hospital for several hours before I got to see him. It was really hard for me to wait that long before I even got to see him. Dan got to go and see him a few times. After about 5 hours I got wheeled in to see him and he looked strange to me. He didn't look anything like I had imagined. His face was really swollen and I didn't recognize any of his features. He sure was cute though!

Over the next few days, we got to know our little one. He had to stay in the special nursery at the hospital and sadly he was hooked up to all kinds of monitors and had an IV coming out of his head. We hated HATED it!! I'm sure he did too. Another thing I hated was that they took out my morphine drip less than 24 hours after labor but I still had to walk a long way down the hall to see Brennan every 3 hours. It was excruciatingly painful and their pain management sucked. There was one time I couldn't get out of my bed to go feed him because of the pain and it was very upsetting. Over the course of the 5 days I learned to page the nurses thirty minutes before I had to go feed him so that I could get pain meds, so that I'd be able to get out of bed and make it down there.

We met all kinds of people in the hospital and had all ranges of quality of care. Overall though we met some fantastic people and I have huge respect for nurses, they do the grunt work and I had some that really got me through it.

Overall, I'm so thankful that I got through it and that we went home with a healthy baby. He does have a little jaundice but it's getting better. He's such a chunk and adorable. He loves to sleep all the time and he eats a ton. Dan has said that he anticipated being excited about another child but he is even happier than he expected he would be. He keeps saying what a cute little monkey we made. We are so excited to see what his personality turns out to be, right now he seems so mellow. He's already sleeping 4-6 hours through the night and would probably sleep all night if we didn't wake him up to eat.

Sara is having some adjustment issues, she's throwing a lot more tantrums and having some accidents but overall she seems to be accepting him. Dan goes back to work next week and I'm hoping I can handle it by myself. I'm feeling like I can but it's just going to take some strategy and not worrying about little things that might fall through the cracks like dishes or laundry.

I'm really looking forward to healing from my c-section. I'm mostly off my pain meds now at 10 days out. I can finally sleep on my side again too!! I can't wait until I can sleep on my stomach too. Then mountain biking, but not too soon this time. Maybe by fall.

It ain't pretty

2011-07-03T15:35:00.000-07:00

The ninth month of pregnancy is not that much fun but I'm making due. I only have 23 days left until my scheduled c-section.

After undergoing a hellish round of testing at the doctor's office for a week, they finally determined that I don't have pre-eclampsia, which is good news. I basically told them to leave me the hell alone for the next three weeks and that I'm not taking any more tests. The tests stress me out more than anything and I've never had a single one of them turn out positive for anything.

So I'm now looking forward to rest and relaxation as much as possible before the big day. We are really getting excited to see what Brennan looks like and to have him with us.

43 Days Left

2011-06-13T00:16:00.000-07:00

Dan and I can't believe how quickly we are coming up on meeting our new son. We are both totally ready, we have everything we need and we are totally prepared emotionally and physically to take on this new challenge.

I keep singing Dan's praises but truly I can't imagine getting through this with anyone else. He's been taking Sara every weekend on outrageous adventures so that I can rest. They have been hiking, riding trains, going to the circus, baking, you name it. They go until they are ready to just collapse. There isn't a better dad on the planet for my kids. Also, he is so supportive of me that I'm just about the luckiest too. It makes me proud to parent with him and to be married to him.

As far as myself, I seem to be doing better than at any other time in my pregnancy except for the fact that I'm more uncomfortable. I actually have had more energy, the nausea is somewhat better (it's about time after 8 months of it), and I feel more positive. I've really struggled this pregnancy with, well everything, as compared to the last one. I've had just about all the typical symptoms that women complain about and I really had almost none with Sara. I just haven't been myself at all. I'm looking forward to getting back to feeling normal and wearing regular pants again!!!

My belly is bigger than it was with Sara. I guess time will tell if Brennan is bigger than she was at 9lb. My pants are ridiculous. I'm pretty much in sweat pants now just to get something that stretches over the bulge. Sleeping at night is ridiculous and almost impossible. I wake up every hour all night. I'm sure the next 43 days is going to be much of the same. Also, leg cramps suck. I didn't have that with Sara, and it's not fun. I'm not sure pregnancy suits me at all. I'm amazed other women seem to get through it with such grace. I'm dragging myself kicking and complaining to the finish line and it's ugly.

Luckily I've been getting great reports at the doctor. I'm so hopeful that I'll make it to my c-section date on July 26th, especially since we already have my Mom's plane ticket set. I think the only reason I'd go early is if my BP spikes or if I somehow go into labor. So far though, the BP is doing just great an no one is finding reason to panic.

I really want to get some more pics of me pregnant with Sara so that we can look back on this time. I'm hoping to take those and post them soon. Brennan will be here before we know it.

Thankfulness and such

2011-05-17T21:51:00.000-07:00

I can't say enough how happy I am to be married to Dan. He really is the most wonderful husband. No one is perfect but we seem to be able to live with each others imperfections and most importantly laugh about it and I'm thankful for that too. I have been on the other side and I know how hard a bad marriage can be and it's flat out miserable. I'm so glad that this one is fun and enjoyable.

I'm also excited to be parenting another child with Dan soon. We really get a lot of joy out of our child now. We love spending time with her and being around her. It really brightens our lives. I'm sure it will be the same with Brennan. It does make me sad that someone like Dan that loves children and babies so much wants three kids but I just don't think I'm up for three. I do feel like we'll get a lot of happiness from the two we have and we have a lot of good years ahead of us.

I really want to travel next year, or as soon as I heal from my c-section. I'm feeling really cooped up here and I'm not good at being cooped up. I love to travel and see new things and go new places. I even love planning trips. I miss mountain biking, hiking, zumba, and running. I miss Southern Utah and climbing peaks in the summer and seeing wildflowers. Having Brennan with us is so worth it but I can't wait to hit the trails a soon as possible too. I hope we are able to travel and do as many things with Brennan as we did with Sara, that kid went everywhere. I'm also hoping we can visit Alabama, Hawaii, and Barbados to see family and to plan another vacation with our Wisconsin/ Alabama friends.

10 weeks

2011-05-14T08:20:00.000-07:00

Every day I count the number of days I have left and stare at the calendar. I think I'm watching the pot too closely. We're excited to see Brennan but mostly I'm ready to get this over with but at full term of course, I just need time to move faster. I am really thankful that I have not had any major problems so far. Another person that we know had to have an emergency c-section for her blood pressure and her baby was only 2 pounds. I can't imagine.

At my doctors appointment this week I took the gestational diabetes test and thankfully it came out negative. One less thing to worry about I guess. My blood pressure is holding steady at a normal/high range. From now on I have to see the doctor every two weeks. I'm really hoping this time not to be hospitalized for anything.

Also, the doctor said he would not be surprised if this is another big baby as my belly is measuring on the big side. Sara was 9lbs, I guess we'll see if Brennan can top that.

Yesterday I took Sara out for a short hike. She hiked a mile by herself and had a blast. She kept saying how beautiful it was and how she loved having an adventure. She noticed every little beetle and blade of grass. It makes me sad that I won't be able to spend more time with her outdoors this summer. Usually in the summer I take her hiking several times a week. I think this was the last one for me however, as I really struggled and then had leg cramps all night. Hopefully Dan will take over and they will do some daddy/daughter hikes. It's still surreal and strange to me to think that I'll have another baby to worry about soon. Everything has been about Sara forever it seems.

One big thing I need to do before all this goes down in July is plant my garden. It will be a big relief to get it done. The poor plants are all cooped up in our kitchen right now. I'm thinking the first of June will be a good time to get them in. It better not snow after that.

6 months

2011-05-05T17:06:00.001-07:00

Here I am 6 months pregnant with Sara:

At 6 months with Brennan :

Massive changes afoot

2011-05-05T15:35:00.000-07:00

May has been the month for massive changes around here. We had a huge garage sale (our first ever garage sale) to raise funds for Sara's new room. She is moving into the room that was formerly our office and Brennan gets her old room. We've bought her the cutest set of white furniture including a "big girl" twin bed and we're putting up an owl mural on her wall.

So in order to get ready for the garage sale we went through all our junk which was a gargantuan effort. Dan had stuff he'd been storing in the basement that was from the beginning of time, computer parts, miles and miles and miles of cabling, electronics, and even more stuff from random family members. I couldn't bring much from Alabama as I only packed what would fit in my car, so my contribution was much lighter.

We were shocked the day of the garage sale (especially because it was 30 degrees and snowing) at how many people showed up, dug through all the junk, and actually bought a ton of stuff we never thought salable. When all was said and done, our basement was cleaned out, all the closets, junk drawers, etc and we cleaned up on cash to boot. We raised almost $1,000 to offset the cost of Sara's new digs.

It almost feels like a new era around here, a new beginning, and that a load of old stuffy energy from dusty forgotten junk has been lifted.

Now we have about 12 weeks before we welcome Brennan. I'm doing well so far. I tend to complain a lot about various pregnancy ailments and Dan has been extra loving to listen to it, he really is a model husband. I'm no good at being pregnant and I really do not enjoy it at all. It is strange to me to hear women talk about enjoying pregnancy. I'm counting down the days until it's over and I get my body back.

Also in the news, my birthday was this week. I usually prefer to be having an adventure in Southern Utah as my present but as that is clearly out this year, we attended a family gathering for Jessie's b'day also, which was quite nice. Especially since my husband's brother cooked a wonderful meal. Dan also took me out for Sushi and we got a double order of our favorite type of roll and we caught a show afterwords.

Dan really surprised me this year by getting me something off my Amazon list that I put there thinking I'd save up for it and get it someday. I didn't even know he checked my Amazon list. It's a really awesome juicer and we're super excited to try it out on our fruit harvest this year. Fresh peach and apple juice is in our future as well as the pounds of carrots, beets, and grapes that my parents give us each year that make for excellent juice.

Currently we are enjoying a visit from my Mom who is generously helping us get Sara's room ready. We are going through mountains of baby clothes sorting the pinks from the blues and dusting off the old baby equipment. On my list of to-do's is to still purchase a breast pump and a bassinet. Other than that, it's looking like on July 26th, we'll be ready!

14 and 1/2 weeks

2011-04-14T08:32:00.000-07:00

I'm counting down the weeks until we get to see the baby we have decided to call Brennan. I'm 24 weeks this week and I just learned that I can have my c-section 1 week before I'm due, how merciful! I don't even have to go the full 40.

My 24 week doctors appointment went well. I was worried I'd get tossed in the hospital like I did several times with Sara but luckily I passed all the tests. The only thing I ended up needing was a b-12 shot.

In other news, Sara and I got the garden planted. This was weighing heavily on my mind so I'm glad that we're done. Now if everything will just sprout and not freeze we should have sugar snap peas, beets, onions, spinach, and lettuce in a few months. My indoor seedlings are looking really great too. Indoors we've got all manner of herbs, basil, peppers, and tomatoes going.
I'm thankful every year for how much produce we get out of our yard, combined with the fruit trees (peach, apple, pear, and cherry) it's quite a bounty. I just hope we have time to harvest all of it this year.

The other thing that is weighing heavily on my mind is getting Sara moved into her new room. Brennan's room is pretty much done, he will inherit all her old baby stuff. Luckily with her we went with a blue sea life theme which will work fine for a boy.

We are going to make Sara a new owl room. We are going to try to make her room look like this. We're gutting the office room and painting one wall yellow and putting up an owl wall mural. I'm glad my Mom is coming out in May to help me get all this done.

Also we are hopefully having a huge garage sale soon to really clear out the house.

In yet other news, Dan sold his Harley. I was actually really amazed that he did it. I thought when it came down to it he wouldn't be able to let it go. It was sad to see it go but I was also relieved at the same time and he seemed to feel the same way. I wish I could have taken a few more rides on it before it went but maybe someday we'll have a bike again.

Dan decided to use some of the money to upgrade our TV which was about 10 years old and he's so excited about the new set-up. We got a plasma TV that he wall mounted and it looks awesome. Also we can connect it up to the computer and it's like a giant computer monitor with a wireless keyboard. It's great for streaming movies in HD. Like he says, it feels like we have finally entered the 21 Century.

Doing The Wave

2011-03-27T00:11:00.000-07:00

I got the idea to plan a trip with my Utah family this past Christmas when I realized that we have NEVER been anywhere, all of us together, on a vacation. My side of the family meaning my brother, who I only saw about 5 times briefly growing up and my Step-Mom and Dad who I did not grow up around. I felt sad that we have never had a family vacation and now especially that my brother and I have the kids, I thought it would be a fun time for everyone to get together.

Little did I know I'd be sick for 2 months before hand. By the time it came around to go on the trip I barely felt like going but I'm glad we did anyway. I basically planned where we were going to stay in Kanab, Utah and I was glad that my Sister-in-Law Wendy and my brother Ben planned the activities for the trip.

Wendy came up with the idea of trying to get us into The Wave in Arizona but it was really a long shot. They only let in 20 people a day. Ten of those people have had permits that they applied for 6 months in advance. The other 10 have to show up at the ranger's office and actually enter a drawing and win a lottery. Ben called the weekend before and there were 75 people there to win 10 spots. Our chances looked pretty slim so I kind of put it out of my mind. I assumed we'd just go down there and do some local hikes, putter around, and just hang out at the house.

We were super surprised when Ben called us as we were driving to Kanab and said we had won the lottery. So at that point we knew that we'd be doing The Wave the next day. It's kind of like a once-in-a-lifetime thing so everyone was super excited. I had been told the hike to the wave was easy so like an idiot I did not take it upon myself to verify this. Looking back, I'm so stuck on doing things outdoors that I'm not sure I would have even done anything differently.

When we showed up to do The Wave I was already nervous. I knew it would be a 7 mile hike no matter what. Being about 5 months pregnant and walking 7 miles on a flat track might have even been challenging but we're talking hiking up and over sandstone over and over and through deep sand for seven miles, which I also was not aware of. About 1 or 2 miles into the hike I knew I was in deep crap based on the terrain. I couldn't seem to help but have a breakdown and it was embarrassing and then I got mad at myself for having it and for being stubborn enough to try this trail in my condition. It was ugly for a while.

When we got to the actual Wave where most of these pics were taken, I was done. I'd made it to this amazing place and couldn't go any further. So I collapsed at the entrance while everyone went in, it made me incredibly sad but I didn't have a choice. I knew that 7 miles was already what I had to hike and I couldn't add even another mile to that. So I gave Dan the camera and told him to take lots of pics.

We got some amazing photos and I was able to live vicariously a little through the photos. Someday I hope I get another opportunity to do this hike, if I should be so lucky again.

I feel really bad that I had a breakdown and I hope it didn't ruin anyone elses good time. In all fairness, everyone was pretty tired after the hike, not just me, so I felt like it wasn't totally freaking out for no reason. Literally by the time I got back to the car, I was shuffling my feet because I was too tired to lift them. It was sad. I am totally done hiking for the rest of my pregnancy, traveling as well. It was good to have one last blow-out however. At least I think everyone else had fun, I think it meant a lot to my parents too, to be around the kids they didn't get to see too much while we were growing up and now the grandkids. It was worth it just for that, Wave aside.

Here are some great pics proving that we were there. Several of these photos were taken by Ben or Wendy and they were kind enough to share :

The News

2011-03-15T10:54:00.001-07:00

We will be welcoming a boy by August!

Just FYI

2011-03-13T19:36:00.000-07:00

Just letting everyone who reads my blog know that if it is locked down from Public view soon it is because there is someone who apparently does not have an ounce of decency or maturity in their body and has absolutely no business reading about my life.

If I lock it down, I will try to remember to send invites to family and friends and if I forget you I'm truly sorry, please send me an e-mail and I will get you added immediately.

Thanks

Bryce

2011-03-06T13:49:00.000-08:00

Dan and I usually take a valentines trip to celebrate. We prefer doing something together over flowers and cheesy gifts. The past two years we've gone to Zion Mtn Ranch but this year we decided to try a new place. We chose Bryce National Park because we heard that there was good skiing there and because it was the place where we got engaged, so it seemed fitting and romantic.

We made our reservations for Valentines weekend and then ended up postponing our trip for three weeks due to snow storms and me being sick. Luckily the hotel let us keep shifting our reservation with out giving us any trouble. We finally made it down there last weekend, right after a big snowstorm hit the area and right when I was the sickest unfortunately.

The first day we decided to snowshoe the rim near Sunset point. I cannot believe how stupid I was to actually do this. The wind was really whipping and it was very cold. The views were beautiful but I paid a heavy price, already being very sick. That night I coughed so hard that is scared both Dan and I. I had to sit up the whole night and no one slept except for Sara. I have no idea how she slept through it.

The next day I knew I was done and it made me really sad because I was dying to ski. At least Dan got to get out and ski so that our trip wasn't totally wasted. He had lots of fun too. He met up with a guy from West Virginia and they skied into the park breaking their own trial.

Right before we left we went on a sleigh ride. It would have been great except for the fact that the guys hooking up the horses were mean to them and the fact that Dan is deathly allergic to horses. It was an interesting experience though.

I hope we can go back here again next year and that I actually get to ski, it's a really cool place!

23 more weeks

2011-02-22T22:32:00.000-08:00

This week I am 17 weeks and I can really tell that my stomach has gotten bigger. I'm very much a stomach sleeper and I remember last time that that was one of the hardest things about being pregnant with Sara was not being able to sleep on my stomach for so many months. Getting to sleep was a real problem for me. I think I'm about to get there again because I'm starting to dread going to bed.

Thankfully this week I have been able to exercise and it's a relief. I can actually breath which is a nice change from the past two weeks. Dan and I skied at a new winter park and I have dubbed it my perfect pregnancy skiing place. Sundance, where we sometimes cross country has a lot of steep hills, trees you can careen into, and if it's icy forget it. This new winter park is much closer to us, about 10 minutes away and has all flat tracks. I didn't feel once like I was going to fall or careen into something. The thought of falling right now is really abhorrent to me so I was glad to find this safe place to ski where you can still get tons of cardio! Skiing really is a great pregnancy exercise and I'll be sad when Winter is over for that reason.

We are going to Bryce National Park this weekend for some cross country skiing. I'm so excited for several reason. First, this is the place that Dan proposed to me and I don't think we've been back since, so it's nostalgic. Second, I desperately desperately need a vacation right now and I think that Dan is about a desperate as I am at this point given that he works 7 days a week now. Lastly, i need the freakin' exercise and i hope I'm able to keep up.

This was actually supposed to be our Valentines weekend trip but we've had to postpone it for the last two weekends, once because I was sick and the second time because we were afraid there was a big snow storm coming and Dan had to work. This weekend there's another dang snowstorm coming but we've decided to go anyway. Supposedly there are ski trails that start right from the hotel, Ruby's Inn, so once we get there, we'll be good. We can just head out to ski. I really hope the trails there are pregnancy friendly. Also as a side note, it SUCKS to ski in maternity pants, just for the record. I'm guessing there's not a whole lot of pregnancy ski wear out there so not much choice.

I'm counting the very hours until March 17th when we find out the sex and get the ultrasound. Dan reminded me this weekend that it's actually mostly to check on the health of the baby, so now of course I'm worried about that too. I hope everything checks out.

I'm actually really looking forward to March in general (although I'm trying to remind myself to enjoy February, every day is a gift!). In March I get my discounted phone upgrade from our provider. I'm really ready to ditch my phone so that will be nice. We will find out the sex of the baby. Novell gets sold in March, so there could be some excitement with that. We hope Dan's job actually improves over what it has been lately. Also, I'm starting my seedlings for the garden on March 15th. That is always a very exciting time. I'm sooo ready to start gardening this year. I can't wait to get the sugar snap peas in the ground and see those baby tomatoes coming up. Then I can dream endlessly about eating fresh peas and tomatoes and long summer days in the yard!

THE WEEK FROM HELL

2011-02-03T11:17:00.000-08:00

This post is mostly just a rant and rave and blowing off of emotional steam. Feel free to skip it unless you like reading about Olympic pity parties because I'm getting a gold medal for this one.

In January, Dan had to go to Boston on business for a week. It seems like every time we go out of town. or Dan has to go out of town, we get sick. We got H1N1 last year while Dan was out of town too.

This year, true to form, we got a nasty stomach bug. It started on a Thursday, Sara woke up puking in her bed. I thought it was just a one time thing so I changed her and the bed and we went back to sleep. Thirty minutes later she's crying a puking again. Changed her and the bed, thirty minutes later, same thing. Finally I quit changing her bed and I just put her on the couch wrapped in about 5 towels and it was her throw up station. She threw up every half hour for about 9 hours. It was so pitiful that by the end of it, she couldn't even hold up her head.

Dan took the next day off to help me get some sleep since I was up all night with her. Finally by Friday she could hold down apple juice and luckily we didn't have to take her to the doctor. She still wasn't able to eat anything other than crackers all through the weekend.

Sunday was the day that Dan was leaving. About four hours before he had to get on a plane I started throwing up every half hour. Sara's had move from her stomach to her intestines and she was having really bad diarrhea every half hour. Dan took care of us up until the last minute he had to leave. He got us 5 boxes of popsicles, 2 gatoraides, and lots of soda crackers.

I ended up throwing up for about 10 hours straight even with nothing in my stomach. It is so horrible to be pregnant and very hungry and yet to not even be able to take a sip of water for 10 hours. When I did get sleep I dreamed of giant meals only to wake up to realize I couldn't have anything. I really think if it had lasted 4 more hours, I would have had to check into the hospital but luckily after 10 hours I could drink water again. Sara and I spent the next 4 days eating nothing but popsicles and crackers.

On Monday, I realized that the keys were locked in my car, so even if we needed to go to the doctor we were stuck. I called the pop-a-lock people and they were finally able to come by the end of the day on Monday.

In the mean time, I had gotten a notice for Jury Duty for Wednesday of that week. I had previously sent letters and filled out an on-line excuse forum saying I was a primary care provider. So being a bit confused I called the Court Clerk and she said I would have to write and fax a letter directly to the judge describing my situation. Luckily my car was now unlocked and I was able to get to Kinko's to fax a letter off. I only had to throw up once in the car on the way there but I was just glad I didn't throw up in Kinko's.

I faxed the letter saying I was a primary care provider and there was no one to watch Sara for the possible 3 month term that my Jury call stated. However I got a call from the jury clerk that said that the Judge was requesting me to show up anyway on Wednesday and that I had to plead my case to him in person.

By law, we showed up in court on Wednesday. I have had nothing but crackers and popsicles to eat for three days at this point and I'm morning sick and still nauseous from the stomach flu and extremely weak. I have no idea how I was even able to drive to Orem, it was some kind of miracle that day that I even could get out of bed.

We had to wait an hour watching juror orientation videos and just sitting around. Sara and I met the most wonderful woman who largely entertained Sara the whole time. She was showing her pictures of her grand kids and telling her stories. Sara was telling her everything that had ever happened to her, not leaving out any details. Like the time she pooped on the floor and she even said, "Yesterday, Momma was puking everywhere!". The lady thought it was hilarious. All 40 of the other jurors got to hear the stories too.

After about an hour we finally got to go back and see the Judge in his chambers. The two lawyers were back there too. He gave me a speech about how important jury service is while I'm holding back from throwing up all over him. Then I had to plead my case and when I did, the lawyers looked amazed I was even there. The Judge then asked them, "Well, what do you think, should we excuse her?". They looked at him like you total a-hole, why did you make her come in. Anyway, we were out of there and on our way home after an hour. Also, we got paid $18 just for showing up. I would have paid $100 not to have to go that day.

Two days later, Dan finally arrived home from Boston and I was ready to totally collapse in the bed for two full days, and that's just what I did. Luckily, he does not go out of town very often!

I guess we didn't get our fill of being sick because now we've rung in February with a little strep throat and RSV for me and for Sara some RSV, double ear infection, and borderline pneumonia. At this point, I'm not sure what else we could possibly catch, thankfully we've both had a flu shot. I'm ready to totally just live in a bubble for the next 6 months and not even interact with the world. My main problem is because I'm pregnant and because I'm pre-hypertensive, I can't take any meds or breathing treatments for asthma. I'm stuck with just tylenol, which only goes so far when your cough sounds like seals barking.

Now for the bright spots, we are finally getting better a week later and feeling like humans again. I had my second prenatal appointment on Feb 10th and I got to hear the heartbeat. It was super exciting, even the second time around! I wish Dan could have been there. My next appointment is March 17th and it's the ultrasound appointment, so we get to find out what the sex is!! I'm so excited that I can hardly wait.

First prenatal appointment

2011-01-26T20:16:00.000-08:00

I went to my first prenatal appointment the other day and it went well. I was hoping we could hear the heartbeat but the doctor couldn't find it. He said he didn't expect to be able to at 11 weeks. Otherwise he said everything looked great.

One strange thing we encountered was that the doctor made Sara hide under the exam table during the exam. I told them that I wasn't that worried about it but after they kept telling her to go play "hide-n-seek" under the table I was mostly just amused by it all. Then they took her out of the room so I could get dressed and gave her some candy. When they sent her back in, she said, "Mom, the doctor was so proud of me for hiding!". I guess modesty is a big issue here in the Valley. As far as I'm concerned though, if it's an issue that is a main part of life, I'm fine with her watching from her seat behind me in the room. She liked hiding though and getting candy so no harm done I guess.

I found out that I have no choice but to have a c-section because I did with Sara. That is OK with me I suppose. At least it's scheduled and I won't have to go through 14 hours of labor first, like last time. I've also been told that the recovery is faster with the second c-section but I don't know if that's true. I'm a major pain wimp so I will probably still complain plenty.

My next appt is Feb 10th and Dan will be able to go to this one (he was out of town last time). Hopefully we'll hear the heartbeat on that one. Also I'm really hoping at that appointment they schedule me for my mid-term ultrasound and that the wait is short. I remember it taking several weeks to get in for it last time. I'll be dying to find out the sex if I have to wait very much longer, I have a definite need to know!!

I'm feeling so thankful that we get to have this experience again and that our family will grow. I also feel nervous about having a new baby again but mostly just excited and hoping the months go by quickly.

The Updates

2011-01-07T15:53:00.000-08:00

I guess a lot has happened here since November. The number one thing on my mind is that we are pregnant. According to the on-line calculators I am due sometime around the first of August. I actually go see a doctor for the first time next week and will post another update then. I am bummed that Dan will be out of town for the first appointment especially since we should be able to hear the heartbeat at 11 wks :(

It all started this summer really. Dan had decided about a year ago that maybe he didn't want anymore kids. That surprised me because I thought I'd be the first one to wimp out in that department. We both get total and complete enjoyment out of Sara, so much so that we can't even believe how lucky we are and how complete we feel with her. I was surprised he said he only wanted one because originally he said he wanted three but I was OK with it too.

Flash forward to this summer, I climbed a lot of mountain peaks and my body is kind of a pansy about it. Apparently high altitude distance hiking does all kinds of weird things to me that last for weeks. One of those thing being that I don't have any periods all summer when I hike in the mountains. Natural birth control I guess. So I didn't worry about anything like that for a long time. Then around October the monthly visitor was back with a vengeance.

In the mean time, Dan had decided that he wanted more kids but we hadn't talked about it. I still assumed that he didn't. So when I woke up the morning after Thanksgiving and had a funny feeling to take a pregnancy test, and when the second pink line appeared I was kind of floored and like oh crap! Then I told him and he was over the moon. He then confessed that he was really to have another child and was really hoping for it. I guess I was the last to know.

I'm on board with having a second child. I think it would be great. We have so enjoyed Sara that I see no reason our lives won't be twice as wonderful with two. However that's where I want to draw the line and now Dan seems to have decided he wants three again. Well, we're going to have to talk about that because I'm ready to be done Done! I don't think the whole pregnancy thing really suits me and I feel like after this I just want to concentrate on self improvement.
I would feel totally complete with two kids, we could fit them comfortably in our car, and in our house but not if we had three. Also I can't give up traveling and three would make that even more challenging. Plus if anything were to happen to Dan or to myself, I think I could raise two but would really find three stressful. But I'm not going to think about that now as I can only be pregnant with one at a time, I will concentrate on #2.

I am hoping for a girl. Dan says he'd be OK with either. I am thinking that it will be a boy however. I thought that the first time though so I could be wrong. My 1st trimester sickness has been a lot different this time. Instead of being sick only in the morning I have been sick all day long. Also I have felt an extreme amount of fatigue and some flu like symptoms. Now as I'm nearing 11 weeks however it seems to have let up some and I hope it stays that way.

I have tried to be extra active even though I'm lethargic and nauseous. I have been doing a lot of cross country skiing. I even pulled Sara in the ski trailer this week, she is really getting heavy. Also I've been doing a lot of Zumba in our basement and I love it. I need to start picking up more Zumba classes too. I plan on exercising until I just can't. It makes me feel better all the way around.

My number one worry about this pregnancy is that I'll have high blood pressure problems like I had with Sara. I am trying not to think about that though and just hoping that keeping my stress down will help.

I am feeling down that I won't make it to the family reunion in Hawaii in June. I have tried not to think about it but it does make me really sad. Sometimes I feel like I'll never get to go to Hawaii but I just keep hoping for someday and I do think it will come but the question is how many more years...

The Nature Tree

2010-12-20T12:06:00.000-08:00

I started collecting ornaments for our Christmas tree at least 15 years ago. After being subjected for years to the same ole type of tree with bows, ribbons, and balls, I really wanted to have an unusual or more natural tree. I think volunteering at Wildlife Rescue in Alabama gave me the idea. For several years, it was the duty of myself and my friend Fara to help put up the 20 foot tall tree at the wildlife center. We decorated it with pine cones, nests, birds, and basically anything nature related. It ended up looking like an homage to mother nature and I liked that.

I started collecting these animal ornaments at a place called The Discovery Store in Alabama. Each year they would put out a different collection of animals. I have an African collection (complete with a hippo, tigers, leopards, giraffes, elephants, etc). I also have a sea life collection (fish, star fish, sea horses, dolphins, turtles, whales, etc). Also there is a collection of metal ornaments, bristle animals, and glass ones. Sara particularly likes the stuffed ornaments (Garfield, Odie, and the Peanuts characters) which haven't actually made it onto the tree because she wanted to play with them. Probably the strangest animals I have on the tree are a cobra, anteater, walrus, and a peacock.

The best part is that Dan and I collect National park ornaments too and we've added many of those to the tree over the time that we've known each other. For example we have Glacier, Yellowstone, Grand Tetons, Zion, Cannon Beach Oregon, and I even have one from Smoky Mountain National park.

I'm so glad to see the ornaments every year and to relive the memories from the places that I got them. It's been really fun this year to see Sara get excited about them as well.

This is really cool!

2010-11-09T11:25:00.001-08:00

Dan worked for a week taping the audio and video for a commercial for his company Novell. We think it's really cool. Dan loved that they included his cycling stuff too.

Moab

2010-10-29T22:38:00.000-07:00

We had a great time celebrating our Anniversary this year. We went to Cannon Beach the week before and then Moab for our actual Anniversary week. We had spent other Anniversaries in Moab and it just seemed like the place to be this year. Plus there is biking and grand hiking!

On our drive down to Moab, Munkey took a much needed nap. She's so cute napping.

I got a neat pic of this train just in front of the La Sal Mountains. It is carrying Uranium Mine tailings.

Of course the first thing Dan wanted to do when we arrived in Moab was go biking! So Munkey and I took a really cool hike around the Bar M ranch at sunset.

The following day we took a hike in Arches National Park to Devils Garden and Double O arch. Munkey was really sick but was asking to go anyway. Dan carried her on the 4 mile trek.

I took the opportunity to hike around on the slickrock in my Vibrams, they gripped like gecko feet.

The next night we hiked to the Delicate Arch in Arches National Park in the moonlight. It was one of the most incredible things I've ever done. Luckily we've both done the trail several times but even still, hiking it in the dark was a whole other matter. Luckily we had a bit of a moon to help. The arch was magnificent in the moonlight, otherworldly. It should be on everyone's bucket list. I felt so lucky to be able to share that experience with Dan on our Anniversary. It does not get better than that.

I tried to take pics of the arch in the dark.

We stayed in a really cool place that we rented and we got it for a song due to a cancellation, so we stayed a few extra days. We were lucky that Dan's Sister, Marci and her husband Dwight could join us for the second half of the week. Dan and Dwight had fun mountain biking together on some of the slickrock trails. Marci and I did the Klondike Bluffs trail as well and had a blast (except for a sprained ankle :( Unfortunately no one took pics of the bike riding adventures.

Munkey also had a milestone on the trip. For the first time she slept in a "big girl bed". There was a bunk in the cabin and we figured why not let her try to sleep on it. She did great and we snapped this pic in the morning.

Happy Anniversary Dan, I love you! Thank you so much for a fantastic couple of weeks and for three great years of marriage!

Cannon Beach Days 3 & 4

2010-10-24T21:20:00.001-07:00

On Cannon Beach, if you walk out to Haystack rock early, you can catch it a low tide and check out all the cool sea life.

The view looking either direction from our cabin, just amazing!

The family that bikes together...

We decided to explore Ecola State Park one day while it was too rainy to go to the beach. Might as well be in a rain forest while it's raining.

These two are always singing like they are in a musical.

Banana Slug!

At the top of the trail was a beautiful overlook to a lighthouse.

Ecola State Park beach.

After our outing at Ecola we drove south and went to the Pelican Pub and Brewery. There is nothing better than doing a pub crawl on your vacation and trying all the cool local brews.

She is a major Daddy's girl!

On the way back to the cabin, she was begging us to stop and pick blackberries so we stopped and she picked lots, by herself!

Day 3 sunset pics

Day 4, headed home. Long drive ahead.

It was so sad to have to leave. We were even going to stay longer because Dan had the rest of the week off, but the rental was booked :( We decided to take it easy and make the drive home fun, stopping to see the sights along the way.

We stopped in Portland at

Dan had been dreaming and fantasizing about it the whole trip. All you have to do is take a look at their menu to realize this place is seriously wack. We already had in mind which donuts we wanted to get. When we walked in however they gave us the "sampler" which did not include any of the ones we wanted. So we went back.

Dan wanted this one :) If you want to confirm your worst fears, you can look it up on the menu.

Here is the treasure trove of donuts we got. We only sampled some of them and then tossed the rest. The most interesting was the bubble gum one. The best tasting and my favorite was the maple bacon!

Then we stopped off at Multnomah falls because we had just eaten too many donuts and we had a lot of damn hiking to do.

This was seriously the trip of a lifetime. I will never forget it. What a great Anniversary present. Thank you so much to my wonderful husband, Happy Anniversary! Also to my fantastic Mom for coming along with us on this adventure and tending her favorite little girl.

Cannon Beach Trip : Days 1 & 2

2010-09-18T22:30:00.000-07:00

For our three year wedding Anniversary we really pulled out all the stops. When we got married on the beach in Cannon Beach Oregon, we talked about bringing Sara back there someday. We decided this year that she was old enough to enjoy the beach and we really wanted to head back there as well for nostalgia.

Luckily Mom was able to fly out for a visit and we all set off on a very long road trip. It's about 14 hours to Cannon Beach via car from Spanish Fork where we live. Being trapped in the car with a 2 year old that long is probably not usually preferable but we have an unusually good 2 year old and a very talented Nanna who is good at entertaining.

On the way to Oregon we drove by the scenic Columbia River and marveled at the wind turbines along the way. I estimate there were more than 100 turbines all along the way. The winds of change are blowing in Oregon!

We made two stops on the drive out. One in Baker City, Or and one in Portland. Baker City is an great "old timey" little town and we'd love to go back there someday. Dan and I even joked about moving there. They had a great little pub called "Barley Brown" with home brew that Dan really loved, particularly one called "hot blonde" with jalapeno peppers in it. Sara was into the french fries there. We stopped in Portland to go to Voodoo Donuts, which I will describe later, only to discover there was a line to get in to the donut shop that went around the block. We skipped it and ate at "The Republic" after a local steered us there. It was a fantastic little Chinese place that had been open since the 1920's. Then, we headed for the beach.

Upon arrival at Cannon Beach we didn't even unpack, we immediately hit the beach. We noticed in short order that Cannon Beach comes complete with beach bunnies, much to the delight of Sara.

Even just playing on the lawn by the beach was really fun for us. What a view!

Mom and Dan enjoy the view, our little beach cabin in the background.

Sunset the first night.

Munkey and her Nanna had a really fun time on the beach! I love this pic of the two of them.

Also Mom really loved the flowers at Cannon Beach, they were incredible!

Three "Almost" peaks

2010-09-18T21:57:00.000-07:00

I had a goal this summer of climbing at least three mountain peaks. I attempted three peaks, Spanish Fork (Elev 10144 feet), Timpanogos (Elev 11749 feet), and Loafer Mtn ( Elev 10685 feet). I hiked all three and for various reasons made it within about 500 ft of every summit before turning back. It was the summer of the"Almost" three peaks :( Oh well, there's always next year and luckily I had some good company on two of the hikes.

Here are some pics: SF Peak Hike

Pics from Timp hike with Karen :

Pics from Loafer, hiking with Dad and Karen :

Munkey's Blog Invites

2010-07-13T17:53:00.000-07:00

Munkey's Blog is on lock down now. I have sent everyone that I have an e-mail address for an invite to read it, so check your spam box if you didn't get yours. Or perhaps I didn't have your e-mail address so feel free to send it to me and I'll get you added.

Mucho thankso

A post of randomness

2010-06-20T20:02:00.000-07:00

I can't really get my thoughts together about how to catch up my blog so I'll put up some random pics and say some stuff about them.

I love this columbine in our yard!

Pic of Munkey and her Lil'B cousin

Daddy and daughter sit on big bears lap couch. How much stuffing did this use? Who made it? Why can't I have one?

Munkey rides a buffalo

Run! She actually likes to wear dresses.

A cool bird we saw in our yard.

Dan taking his time planting thyme in his garden. We have separate "his" and "hers" gardens this year. we have different theories about gardening so we figured it best to do our own. It's working out great!

My favorite photo.

A snake I saw on a hike in Diamond Fork.

Splash

UFO cloud. I've been reading lots of books on UFO's lately so when I saw this cloud in the canyon it was the first thing I thought of. It's just a cloud though.

Kayaking

There, that was pretty random.

What you don't know that you didn't know could be killing you and you wouldn't even know it

2010-05-05T20:54:00.000-07:00

This was my birthday weekend and even though I was busy pigging out and enjoying the progression of my age I was thinking the whole weekend about this. We are all dying from the moment we are born, it is a steady process. You hear about this or that food or chemical that might be killing us, yes it's true, yes they are. Everything is killing us. You can not escape the dying. So to lighten up things a bit my Dad introduced me to this article and it has really intrigued me. It is perhaps the number one thing that is killing me. Here is a link to the article. Yes, your office chair may be killing you. My office chair is our sofa and I do believe now that it is the Reaper even though cleverly marketed as Lazy Boy.

After reading this article I decided it was time to have a new motto and that is "butt in the air and not in the chair". I'm totally one of those people that is a sitter, I sit in all situations when given the chance. Sitting is comforting just like certain foods are comforting. So this week after reading that article I've been ejecting myself from the couch and thinking of extra ways to walk around or stand. Like literally putting my butt in the air once an hour doing downward dog and some other Yoga, and trying to walk and ride my bike with Munkey once a day. When I sit, I'm going to try to sit on the floor more because there is no scientific evidence as yet that the floor kills you.

The other thing I observed this weekend is the way my parents eat. They eat with what I could call the "Kiss" method or Keep It Simple Stupid. I need to eat more simply. I've been trying to keep rice around, Munkey eats it a lot too and it's a simple food. Also lots of vegetables are a must. I was reminded by something that Dan did when he was losing weight, eating a cup of vegetables with every meal. It can't hurt.

Lastly, doing Camel pose in yoga is supposed to open the solar plexus, the area of the body that controls cravings, so I have been doing Camel a few times a day. It can't hurt and hopefully it won't make me retain water.

So the good news is the scale tells me I've kept off 12 lbs that I lost. The bad news is I haven't lost any more. I'm hoping that keeping my butt in the air, Kissing, and doing Camel and down dog can add up in small amounts to help me eek down some more pounds. It could be these are small things that add up.

The Cure

2010-04-28T00:04:00.000-07:00

I'm pretty sure at this point I can say I'm officially cured of Asthma. I have not used any Asthma meds since shortly after arriving in Utah and it will be four years now coming up in June. I totally attribute it to moving to Utah and away from the mold that grows everywhere in the South. I have since had 2 short exposures to mold and both sent me back into a spiral of suffocation.

As a child, and I'm sure my Mom will attest to this, I was on every Asthma med you can think of at one time or another. I did allergy tests, shots, inhalers, pills, even the pills that spike you on a caffeine like substance and make you shake all day. It was the only way I could breath and even at that, I only barely breathed with all that medicine. When I got sick with anything, even a simple cold it was a huge ordeal. I had a few hospital visits and some scary moments that I thought I was going to die, especially when I got double pneumonia when I was 19. I missed over a month of high school my senior year due to Asthma related illnesses but was still able to graduate with an advanced academic degree, which still amazes me.

It's hard to describe how it feels to be able to breath and sleep and not be on loads medication that is just barley working. It's like having a whole new life. I know that I can never live in the South again and if I ever am in a place with mold, I just have to leave.

Watching Plants Grow

2010-04-13T23:08:00.000-07:00

Is watching plants grow more interesting that watching paint dry? In my opinion, yes. Here is a photo diary of the garden plants that we are growing this year.

So you plant the seeds in these little peat pots and in a few days they sprout and in about three or four weeks they are little seedlings like the ones below :

Then in another three or four weeks they out grow their little peat pots and you replant them into bigger pots.

Munkey had fun this year helping us re-pot the tomatoes :

For some reason this year I have massive tomato and basil plants. Once they are big enough and once it is warm enough during the day, they can start going outside to get some weatherizing.

My Step-Mom just got us some cool garden products we are going to try that reflect red light up on the plants and some water greenhouse tents so that we can plant the tomatoes early.

It's looking like we are going to have an awesome garden this year so far! Next year I think I want to concentrate more on planting flowers from seed, which I have never really done before, so it should be fun.

The weight is over?

2010-04-04T01:07:00.000-07:00

I have come to the realization of something very important about myself this year. Probably the most important thing I need to deal with in my life, unfortunately. I say unfortunately because it makes me sad that so much of my life has revolved around this problem, years and years and years. I have a very bad carb/sugar addiction problem.

It is every bit as bad as someone on heroine or meth I believe. I have never done a drug or smoked a cigarette so I don't know first hand about that method of addiction but I do know enough that my symptoms and the process seems the same. If I eat fast food, any fast food, it is addictive. I know that I can not eat fast food and stop and the effects last for days, weeks. I've actually known this about myself and fast food for several years. What I did not realize was the extent to how certain foods that aren't even fast food have this super powerful affect on my brain.

I witnessed the power first hand when I decided to try a detox diet for a week after not having any results at the gym. I drank Jay Robb protein shakes (sweetened w/Stevia) 2 a day and ate fruit every 2 hours and then ate chicken and salad and veggies for dinner. After staying on it 5 days I was amazed that I had lost 10 pounds and I had willpower of steel as a side effect. That last part about the willpower is not even accurate, more like no desire for over consumption. I could walk into the yogurt shop with Dan and sit there and not order anything and have done it 6 more times since and it was easy. My brain is totally different off of refined sugar and bread/flour carbs. It is in control and not freaking out. If I even eat just a little fast food or candy or fluffy crust it's like I have a raging beast inside my head drooling for more, more, more all day.

Since the 5 days on Jay Robb, I had to add back in some carbs because I had very frighteningly low amounts of energy. Trying to add back in some carbs was tricky. I was trying to add some that weren't addictive to my body. I've added back in plain rice with olive oil and some seaweed sprinkle and some sprouted grains that don't seem to bother me. I'm also trying to go as much gluten free as I can to see if it helps. Every day is kind of like a trial, if I eat something and feel fine then I know it's OK and if I eat something and I'm craving (not hungry but craving) all day, I need to not eat that food any more.

So far, I have lost another 5 pounds on top of the 10. I still have a long long way to go but I feel like I at least have something to work with. I'm hoping it is something I can live with now that I know it about myself. I don't want this to be a "diet" or see it as dieting, it's more like being fully aware of what certain foods do to me and being fully aware of the choices I'm making and how they affect my life/body/weight. Certain foods just trigger a sickness and to stay well I have to eat the right foods. It all fascinates me, the psychology of addiction, relapse, breaking cycles, etc. I'm thankful for learning these things about myself and hope that I use the info well.

I totally feel like I'm still white knuckling it sometimes still. Holidays and family get-togethers are big big challenges for me that I have yet to figure out. I have conquered the yogurt shop though, so that's something and my diet overall is much improved. I hope that this year I can continue to clean up my diet and finally get out of this nightmarish situation that has taken so many years of my life that could have been so so much better.

I can't even imagine what my life would be like without a weight problem at this point. Even when I have been skinny I have still been "sick", maybe there is no cure only proper management of the problem. So that's also part of my therapy is imagining it several times a day. I think to myself, what would this be like and what would I feel like or look like doing this or that. Getting my mind straight and preparing it to accept change is another thing I'm working on, it's like trying to prepare the soil for something new to grow. Sometimes it can be really scary to see yourself different, see yourself with out the "illness" if you've been sick long enough and imagine what your life would be like without it. I believe this is a really really powerful mental exercise for healing, seeing yourself healed in your mind over and over until it becomes reality.

keeping the blogs rolling

2010-04-04T00:25:00.000-07:00

I have been really trying to work in the yard a lot and fix some of the major problems we have had with it. The main problem being that we have monster weeds because our sprinklers don't work that well so the grass dies and the weeds take over. Also we think grass is the worst weed of them all and wish we could just get rid of it. Mostly because we live in a desert so we wish we had more desert type landscape, we hate mowing it, and it gets in the garden. Until that day, we are turning the yard into a rock haven, piecemeal.

I decided last year to lay down weed cloth everywhere I could to suppress the weeds and grass. I laid down the cloth in all the flower beds and under the Aspen trees and then I ran out the yard budget so I waited until just a few weeks ago to get the rocks and mulch and finish it up. I still need several more bags of rocks but here is the result. I dare the weeds to get through the cloth and the rocks.

Here are some pics of all the spring Daffodils that came up. Munkey likes to point to them and she says Daffodil but then she says they look like corn.

Today I also re-did the area by our front faucet. I put in some volcanic rock and sand and some cool stony crop plants. It definitely looks better than before.

More to come I hope.

New things for 2010

2010-02-19T19:47:00.000-08:00

Here's my best attempt at a catch up blog.

We actually did not travel for Christmas this year. Instead we had a great get together with family at L&L's house. It was really great to just be with family this year. Munkey wore a cute dress that her Nanna smocked for me when I was a kid.

In January my laptop was busted and that's one of the excuses I'm using for not blogging. I finally got it back first of February. Usually I blog on my laptop while Dan is watching movies involving Zombies or High School Teen scenarios that I have no interest in. Now that I have my laptop back and since there is a zombie movie on, viola.

I've done two new things in January. One is I joined Gold's Gym again and I got a personal trainer. I had no idea that I had missed the Gym but I've had so much fun with my membership. The worst part is actually getting the membership because you feel like you're talking to car salesmen and getting ripped off. I hate that the Spanish Fork gym is not open on Sunday, we should get a rate cut for losing that day. Also the facility is smaller and older than the other Gold's facilities and it does not have a pool.

I decided to try getting a trainer this year. I wanted one when I joined 3 years ago when I moved to Utah but put it off and never did it. I really need some structure working out. I generally have the motivation and drive to push myself just not the structure or maybe the know how. I've got a great trainer that I'm really happy with and the sessions are fun and productive. Also, after you've paid for a trainer the gym the gym membership fee seems really a bargain. I guess another thing about the money is is really motivates me to get to the gym so I am actually glad that I'm paying for the whole thing out of my money.

The second thing I have done this year was try to work on having friends and joining groups. I had some great friends and was in some amazing groups in Alabama that were very important to me. I really miss having that. I still have a long way to go here but I decided to join a local environmental group here. It's called Utah Valley Earth Forum. I went to their first meeting in January and was hooked. I got to talking with the head of the club and it turns out he lives in Spanish Fork right down the street from us. He's pretty cool, this is his website. Also I've met tons of other cool people in the community. I've really enjoyed being around politically liberal people that care about the environment and have some of the same values and passions that I do. Tomorrow I'm leading my first snowshoe as the outings coordinator and I'm really excited although I'm not sure anyone is really going to show up. Dan said he'd go to support me and Munkey will be there too :)

I guess one last bit of news so far this year is that I started two new blogs. One for environmental topics I was interested in and one for spiritual. I have not done so well keeping up with the environmental one although I've got tons of stuff I'd like to blog about, just no time. I have kept up with the spiritual one somewhat. My constant passion and hobby is reading books of a spiritual/metaphysical nature so it is a way to blog about what I'm reading currently too. It's really more of a spiritual journal for me and a way to keep in mind things I've read that are the most important to me.

Someday I'll blog again

2010-01-20T10:25:00.000-08:00

No really, I swear.

Turkey Day in Moab

2009-12-12T14:37:00.000-08:00

For Thanksgiving this year we decided to take a trip down to Moab, Utah to go mountain biking. Mom was able to fly into town and go down to Moab with us to spend time with Sara. We rented a really nice townhouse so that Mom and Sara were comfortable being left behind and we took off.

The first day we were there, Dan and I rode out to Gemini Bridges. It's a 13.5 mile round trip ride. It has its challenges too, sand pits that are so deep it's ridiculous to try to ride through them and steep hills to climb. When you get to the sandstone part of the trail however it gets really fun. Mountain biking on sandstone is like nothing else. You get super traction and you feel like you could climb a nearly vertical bolder, sometimes you do. It does take a little getting used to the feel of the bike bumping off rocks however but once you do, you can really fly and just let the shocks take care of it.

Here's a pic when we reached the Bridges area and a pic of the La Sal's that I took on the trial with the moon rising.

At the end of the Gemini Bridges trail you have to climb a steep hill with a sheer cliff above and below you. It's a challenging climb and I was just on the downhill side when I hear someone screaming over my head "STOP! STOP!" I looked up and a guy had base-jumped off the cliff above and was about to land on my head, he was 15 or 20 feet above me. I have disc brakes, so I stopped on a dime and he landed just in front of my bike. It would have sucked if he had landed on me and we both went tumbling down the cliff. I don't really look up much while mountain biking so it's a good thing he was looking down.

That night we went to the Moab Brewery for Thanksgiving dinner with Mom and Sara. It wasn't anything like the fest that Dan usually prepares but it was better than McDonalds for Thanksgiving. The atmosphere is always great there too.

We all went back to the Townhouse and sat around the gas fire place and read our respective books and relaxed. That was probably our favorite part about the townhouse was how comfortable and homey it felt and how easy it was to relax there. I wish now that we had a gas fireplace at our house.

The next day I wasn't sure I could ride because of how difficult the ride was the previous day but I decide to really force myself. This is what we came down here for and I didn't want to miss it. We did the Klondike Bluffs trail and it was really an experience. Starting off on the trail with us were Jeeps and full size Blazers and Motorcycles. Everyone was making their way through the narrow wash along with all of the bikers, it was some kind of weird mish-mash. Bikes were weaving in and out around vehicles. Vehicles were spinning their tires and smoking trying to get up and over obstacles. It was kind of crazy. Luckily once we hit the huge sandstone formation the motor powered vehicles went their own way and we could ride anywhere on the sandstone we wanted.

We met a really neat couple from Colorado that we rode with on the rest of the trail. They were about our age and had a 9 month old son. They apparently co-own a camper and they travel with another couple and they take turns baby-sitting kids. We were glad to have the company, especially Dan since he never has anyone to ride with.

I highly recommend the Klondike Bluffs trail. It's a fast fun ride with some good sandstone and when you get to the top, the Bluffs are fantastic. Here's a pic of us at the top. I wish we had gotten a pic of our friends that we biked with too.

Up on this bluff I found pools with lots of little shrimp in them, OUT IN THE MIDDLE OF THE DESERT! Also I found places where ancient people had been flint knapping on top of the bluff. When we rode back down the trail, Dan wanted to ride some more but I had already done 10 miles and had hit my limit. I decided to wander through the desert on foot while he rode another trail. I was glad I did because I found huge pieces of chert and gypsum and some really cool green and purple rocks. The Natives had probably collected the chert where I was finding it and hiked it up to the bluffs where they flint knapped and fired it.

Later that night we ate at the most wonderful Mexican restaurant I've been to in Utah. Mostly because they had huge Margaritas, definitely the largest in Utah and the strongest. We will be going back there again.

Thanks a million to Mom for watching Sara for us so that we could have an adventure.

A new experience

2009-10-30T14:44:00.000-07:00

Last weekend we got invited to go to the Diamond Fork Hot Springs with some of my husband's friends. We thought it would be a great and much needed opportunity for us to get some time to ourselves and have fun with a great group of people. The group that we were joining warned us however that there might be some nudity involved, so if we were squeamish we had an opportunity to bow out. What made the trip even more interesting was that we left during a hail and lightening storm to go and hike 3 miles into the woods to get to the springs. The craziness of it made it seem all the more fun though.

Luckily when we started hiking the clouds parted and it was almost sunny. When we got to the hot springs there were already a group of people there who were from New Zealand and Denmark. They obviously held no social qualms about being nude and were very proud about it. One guy got out of his hot tub spring that he was soaking in and stood up to greet us as we made our way across a stream over to the hot ponds. The rocks we were crossing in the stream were slippery and you had to climb up and over a wall to the ponds. He was standing on this wall and as I made my way up his "parts" were practically at eye level and I remember thinking, if I slip and fall there's not much else to grab on to around me :) Luckily I did not slip and we made it over to a vacant hot pond.

This was the first time I had met my husband's friends that he bikes with and it was a little awkward socializing with nude people for the first time. I don't have problems with nudity at all, it's just hard to wrap your mind around it sometimes when it's not something you are used to every day in a social situation. It really isn't about being sexual it's just about being free and unhindered and in a natural state. I did admire the unabashed freedom in which the people partook. I did not have the courage to try it. Maybe someday. It was a very cool experience and one that was probably good for the secretly prudish parts of my head.

We all had a good soak in the hot springs, eating smoked trout and sushi, fresh sourdough, and drinking peach home brew. Also a few people got out of the hot pond and jumped into the freezing cold stream. I hesitated to do it myself but then with lots of encouragement I finally did. I am glad because it was the most amazing feeling. The hard part was totally immersing yourself into a dark (it was nighttime by then) cold creek. Then when you got back into the hot pond it felt like every single cell was tingling and then afterwords it felt like you had a massage and you just felt really relaxed. I would definitely do it again! I hope we can go back soon. This group also skis back there in the winter and sits around in the ponds like snow monkeys, I would love to get to do that.

These are pics that I have taken on several different trips, during the day.

Anniversary trip to Craters of the Moon

2009-10-04T15:10:00.000-07:00

This past September was our 2 year wedding anniversary and we decided to celebrate it all month long. A while ago we decided we would not give each other gifts but instead we would keep in the tradition of our dating history and our actual wedding and go on a road trip. We decided that Craters of the Moon in Idaho sounded like an adventure worthy of this caliber of celebratory journey. Craters is a place in Southern Idaho with lots of lava ( about 400 square miles of it), cinder cones, lava caves, and lava tubes.

We also decided it would be an adventure to try camping again with Sara. The camp site at Craters is situated right in the lava field and the lava boulders and ash make up the grounds on which you camp. It was a pretty cool looking place to stay, like being on the Moon I would suppose. From the minute we let Sara out of the car until we left, she remained covered in volcanic ash from head to toe. It was everywhere and we found it pointless to try to clean her up.

Our first adventure, after getting camp set up was hiking up a cinder cone inside the park. The sides were steep but Sara managed to hike some of it herself with a little assistance. There was a great view at the top and we felt the full gusto of the wind that we had been warned about in this park.

Hey, the trees even lean here like they do at home!

After all that walking plus the driving for nearly 4 hours that morning, everyone was ready to return to camp, grab some dinner, take turns going on bike rides, and then go to sleep. One of us stayed behind with Sara and set up the tent while the other of us rode Dan's bike around the whole park and then we switched. By the time I got my turn to ride through the park it was totally dark and I rode by the light of the full moon. The roads were well lit and the cinder cones and various features stood as giant dark shadows in the sky. There were some bats flying overhead. It was a very unique experience.

Later that night was Sara's first camping experience since she was about 6 months old, so more than a year. The camp ground actually filled up and it made me nervous that she'd wake everyone up. Especially since I expected it to be really windy all night and instead you could hear a pin drop it was so quiet. At one point Dan was snoring and it woke Sara up. She stood up in her crib and just kept saying, "Da Da" over and over inquisitively. She never screamed though and as soon as I could get him to turn over and quiet down, she went back to sleep. Also it got down in the 40's which is definitely the coldest she's slept in. I kept covering her all night and she was in warm jammies. It must have worked because she was toasty warm in the morning however I was quite tired.

The next day we got up and actually took a long hike around the park on the edge of the volcanoes. We took lots of pics on this hike. I'll let them speak to the scenery. At the end of the hike we got to hike across a lava flow too.

The last thing we did in the park was go out to the lava caves. They are in the middle of a lava field that you have to hike through that is massive, you can't even see where it ends. There are lava tubes and caves that go down 30 or 40 feet, it's even cold down there!

What a great couple of days in the park, a fun adventure, and a great way to celebrate us!

As an unexpected spur of the moment side trip we decided to stop at the worlds first Nuclear Power plant and take a tour. It was a very interesting if not a little unnerving place to visit. Dan had fun playing with all the exhibits they had set up of mechanical arms that move stuff around and we learned a lot about how they actually produced Uranium at this site. At one point we were standing right over the nuclear reactor chamber. I love the control room photo with all the buttons and old charts.

Capitol Reef : Day 1, Part 2 + Day 2

2009-06-29T20:05:00.000-07:00

After seeing Cassidy Arch, we headed back out of the park to the small town we were staying in called Torrey. We have always wanted to eat at Cafe Diablo in Torrey but for some reason or other it was always closed or we missed out. This time, we did it! It's a Zagat rated 4 star cafe out in the middle of no where and the food is supposed to be amazing. They grow their own vegetables and herbs on premises and they're know for their free range rattle snake cakes, so we tried em, they're great! Dan was a little embarrassed that I was taking pics of our food, but everyone else was too, it was just almost too cool to eat.

Rattle snake cakes, complete w/ Tapioca balls to remind you of snake eggs :

The main course! Everything they brought out looked like this, works of art.
I got pecan crusted chicken and Dan got Turkey w/ Poi "potatoes" :

Sara checking to make sure no rattle snake eggs accidentally got on to her tray :

Here are some random pics from the weekend from Day 1

Sara checking things out and running off energy :

More Cassidy Arch hiking pics:

Standing in front of the anatomically correct petroglyph :)

Playing in the wash, Sara loved the rocks and tried to eat all the dried mud :

Day 2 we hiked up to Chimney Rock before leaving. It had some amazing vistas and lots of petrified wood on the trail.

Giant petrified log :

We had so much fun even though Sara didn't sleep well and she came home pretty sick :( I hope we have lots more adventures in Capitol Reef, it has rapidly become one of my favorite places here.

Capitol Reef : Day 1, Part 1

2009-06-27T20:31:00.000-07:00

I love Capitol Reef State Park because so much of it is undeveloped, it has lots of cool geology, and is fun to explore. This visit we headed towards the Cathedral Valley area of the park. Unfortunately it rained heavily Friday before our visit, so washes that would have otherwise been dry this time of year were muddy. We still made the attempt and got halfway after several butt clenching stream and mud wash crossings. We were able to see lots of Bentonite hills, the Temple of the Sun and Moon, and Glass Mountain (made of huge, foot long gypsum crystals, way cool!). We will have to go back next time to see Cathedral Valley.

Colorful Bentonite ( a volcanic clay) hills :

Temple of the Sun and Moon (sandstone rock fins) :

Glass Mountain (from the NPS web site : Glass Mountain is a large, exposed mound of selenite crystals. Selenite is a variety of gypsum (CaSO4•2H2O) in the form of glassy crystals. Gypsum is a common mineral found in the sedimentary rocks of this area. The crystals of glass mountain are somewhat unusual in size and in the massiveness of the deposit.)

Glass Mtn & Sara and I foreground, Temple of the Sun background :

The crystals, it was so hard not to take souvenirs but we left all of it behind.

On the bumpy drive back, somehow she slept :

After a stop at the fruit orchards in the park for some cherry pie, we headed up to hike to Cassidy Arch.

The Overlook from the trail, we started the hike where that road is down there :

Cassidy Arch from afar:

Us standing on top of Cassidy Arch, it's huge!

To be continued...

Confession and Apology

2009-06-13T21:38:00.000-07:00

Facebook takes up most of my limited computer time, so I don't blog as often but I promise to keep this blog and Munkey B's alive...

Alabama Trip, May 2009 - Days 1-4

2009-05-29T11:06:00.000-07:00

Despite me stressing about it for weeks, the plane ride to Alabama was fairly tame. Sara was enthralled and entertained by her first airbus experience. Dan ran her around the Dallas airport during our lay-over and she slept from Dallas to Alabama :

Luckily our flight back was equally uneventful.

Upon arriving in Alabama we rented a bike for Dan to ride for the week, bought a play pen for Sara to sleep in, and then we went to Mom's house. Fara and Kevin also came over for a visit that night. We put the over-tired Sara into the shower where she screamed and then we put her to bed for the night in my old room.

The next morning, Dan got up to ride his bike early and then we played with the three dogs and Nanna played with Sara. Then we got ready to leave for the lake house we had rented up at Lake Guntersville (in North East Alabama) for the weekend. We met up with Fara and Kevin that afternoon and stopped to eat at a Mexican restaurant on the way to Lake Guntersville.

Let me explain about Alabama food. It's the best food anywhere. The Mexican food is good, the barbecue is good, the Greek, the Chinese, the Hamburgers, the best! I had a list of restaurants I wanted to get back to and we made it to some of them.

So we arrived at the house in Lake Guntersville and it was a huge million dollar mansion! It is actually for sale and we took a pic of the sale brochure for fun. At the house we also met up with our friends from Wisconsin, Chris and Shannon and their two kids. It was good to have everyone together again. We all had previously met up in Glacier in August 08.

So the first thing we did after exploring the residence and unloading the car was to kick back and lay on the floor.

Then we went in search of food, Barbecue. This was Sara's first taste of lemon and we gave her some baked beans. I had my first sweet tea since leaving the South :

The place was kind of "special". It had dead stuffed animals all over every wall and giant rod iron chandeliers. We had paper towels on the table, as you would imagine, for all the barbecue sauce and they had great hush puppies.

It was raining a lot, even so, when we got back to the lake house we went on a walk down to the lake to hunt for frogs (the women that is : Leslie (Chris's Cousin), Shannon, and Fara, and I. The men mostly stayed in the lake house and talked nerd and drank beer and could not be coaxed out. We saw huge gar under the dock by the lake and found several interesting insects and tree frogs.

The next morning we innocently got up to hike at the Walls of Jericho not knowing what was waiting for us, Alabama MUD! It had been raining rather heavily for a few days on and off so we should have known but still it would have been hard to imagine this.

Here we are in the parking lot, L - R, : Chris, Shannon, Leslie, Fara, Kevin

Sara would have been completely entertained by the rocks in the parking lot.

We saw lots of wildlife :

Newt

Millipede held by Jaz:

Also there was a ring-necked snake that Dan spotted. I caught it and we let everyone hold it. Leslie was particularly excited because she grew up in Alaska and had never seen on in the wild, much less held one. It was moving so fast though, no one got a picture of it.

On the trial there was beautiful Alabama greenery. Also these tree bridges we had to cross were pretty narrow actually. Dan crosses with a sleeping Sara.

Even with the people telling us we'd never make it to the end because the mud was slick as ice, Dan, Leslie, Sara, and I pressed on to the end. There were a couple of really terrifying moments but we made it.

Here is the last pic I got before the really scary trail section began. After this we were holding on to roots, rocks, and anything we could to stay on the trail.

We made it! Dan and Leslie swim at the falls. It was probably lucky the trail was almost impassible or we would not have had this beautiful place to ourselves for a moment :

Sara watches Daddy swim :

Sara gets a snack before it's her turn to check out the water :
Sara's turn! She loved this, collecting rocks in the water and handing them to us :

Then we continued on, climbing above this waterfall pool area to the next one. Here's a pic looking back at that amazing spot from above :

The next part up from that waterfall was like a giant rock amphitheater or cathedral as some people refer to it. It was pretty amazing. We climbed up here without Dan and Sara, so it was just Leslie and I taking a look.

Upon seeing this amazing sight and because we were encouraged to keep going by some guy or we would miss the most amazing waterfall, we kept climbing up the rocks. We were glad we did because there was a really cool waterfall at the end.

Then, led by Leslie, we climbed down the rocks to the bottom of it, and found a red newt on the wall too. What an amazing place :

On the way back we hoofed it up the trail and really felt the humidity kicking in. Even though it was only in the 70's with probably 70 or 80 percent humidity, which is nothing for Alabama.

Random things I forgot to mention:
We also went to Cathedral Caverns, which I highly recommend. Fara has those pics from the cave since I didn't bring my camera. It was Sara's first caving experience and she did great. Even when they turned out all the lights to show us the phosphorous glowing rocks.

Dan and I both rode the amazing bike that Bob's bikes in B'ham rented us. It was about a $5,000 bike, Specialized Allenz ( I think) and it rode like a flying carpet, we both kind of want one now. I went riding one morning in the pouring down rain, I mean pouring. I went about 10 miles along side lake Guntersville and saw several snapping turtles crossing the road, it was a great ride!

Also on the way to the Walls of Jericho we (Fara and Shannon and Kids) rescued many turtles crossing the road, you're welcome turtles.

We were really sad to say goodbye to our friends from Wisconsin, until next time! Hopefully we will have plans in the works for a North Eastern vacation next time to see them.

We said goodbye to the mansion and continued home to hang out with Mom and Fara and Kevin and Birmingham friends.

Bama bound

2009-05-13T18:31:00.000-07:00

We are headed for Alabama tomorrow for a 10 day visit with friends and family. Hopefully we can blog some from the road and post pics. I'll be excited once we get off the airplane. It's going to be a long day. Once we're in Bama though it should be lots of fun. Can't wait to see everyone!

B'day pics

2009-05-03T21:56:00.000-07:00

I got some great family pics from the party but I'm sad that I didn't get any of my cake, it was incredible. Also there are none of me, maybe someone has some they can e-mail me. Also my camera, or my ability to use it, is on the fritz so some pics didn't turn out so well.

Dan cooked hamburgers on the grill and everyone hung out in the yard and had fun.
Dan, Ben, and Little Benny and his Elvis lip, and Mommy Wendy:

M, totting Sara around :

Cuteness in a swing, cousins 6 months and 2 pounds apart :

I LOVE these pics of Benny and Wendy, we were so happy they drove down to see us :

Someone made a mud pie in Sara's wagon and she thought it was the bestest most fun thing ever! I should have gotten an after pic of her covered in mud.

Once we went inside to eat and have cake, I didn't get any pics :( However later we put on some music and danced around.

People hanging out, playing, dancing, and having fun:

Thank you everyone for coming and for all the wonderful gifts and doing the dishes and weeding the yard (you know who you are :)

Not that I'm complaining but we've been celebrating my b'day for three days now. Friday Dan and I went mountain biking, Saturday to the Cheesecake Factory and Home Depot, and Sunday the party. I'm kind of tired of celebrating for now, but maybe by the time I get to Alabama, I'll be ready to have more post-b'day celebrations.

Gardening, B4 and after...

2009-05-03T21:31:00.000-07:00

These were our seedlings a few weeks ago, small and helpless. Dan has really gotten into gardening and that's putting it mildly. At first the seedlings had a little space on top of a box in our spare room.

Now the seedlings have gotten bigger and we have moved the spare bed out of the room and given them their own table. Just this weekend Dan built them a little frame for grow-lights. They are doing great.

We are growing cantaloupe, watermelon, various basil, chillies, tomatoes, and squash. It should be a good harvest this year if they transplant well into the garden.

A long time ago in a previous life...

2009-04-21T20:42:00.000-07:00

I had a baby clothes business almost a decade ago. I made handmade batik baby clothes and I saved a few of my favorites for demo samples, never thinking my own child would actually be wearing them. Well, now she is! I love this design too and now I'm super glad I saved it. I would love to make more clothes someday and I actually have everything I need except for the motivation at this point. If anyone wants to learn, let me know and I could teach a group class...

It is a rather time consuming prospect though. For now I'll just enjoy the photos. Sara was doing laps around the living room while I was trying to get these pics so they're not the best.

Let's Get This Garden Started

2009-03-14T19:09:00.000-07:00

Today we began digging our garden in its new location, between the apple and ash tree in the back yard. Unlike our garden last year that didn't do crap, this one will get much more sunlight and is right by the irrigation faucet. Also we intend on planting way before July this time.

We only got about a 2 foot wide strip of turf dug up today, Dan dug and I rolled back the turf. Sara was trying to help herself to the dirt and worms and we did try to discourage her from eating it but we let her get dirty.

Breaking ground (no golden shovel)...

Fun and games

2009-03-07T21:48:00.000-08:00

Tonight we had a fun filled family night complete with Sara's Hawaiian cousin and Auntie visiting.
M&M showed up first and M went on a bike ride w/ Sara in the bike trailer. Somehow they squoze in there together.

Then M gave Sara a super-sonic airplane ride! Sara loves this airplane so much.

Then everyone else showed up, including her Auntie from Hawaii and her little boy cousin M. Sara and her cousin played with shoes.

Then we played Wii some and did limbo.

Then everyone posed for pics...

Zion Valentines Getaway

2009-02-19T17:34:00.000-08:00

Valentines weekend we headed down to Zion to stay at Zion Mountain Buffalo Ranch. The ranch is just on the East side of Zion and is very expansive and scenic. We left Saturday morning and drove the back way through Cedar City and around to the East of Zion. There was tons of snow just outside Cedar City up on the mountain pass. We almost wanted to get out of the car right there and ski off into the woods. The snow was 8 feet deep in places.

We kept on going however and got to the ranch with enough time to see the turkeys foraging by our cabin and to take a short ski out by the buffalo field.

Later that night we headed down to the buffalo cafe for a valentines dinner for three. We had some awesome buffalo filet steaks that were wrapped in bacon and covered with a lobster bisque and shrimp. It was the ultimate in surf'n'turf. Sara had some raisins, bread, and crackers.

Sara prefers to just people watch in restaurants, she doesn't miss a thing.
I can't believe I forgot to take pics of inside our cabin but I did. We had a gas fireplace and it was really cozy. They even brought us fresh roses in a vase. Also one of my favorite things about traveling (and I know it's silly) is getting to use those little sample soaps and shampoos. We had a particular treat this time. There was Zion soap in a mint julep flavor made by a Belgium soap maker in Zion and also we had some soap and shampoo from England. It was the best smelling and functioning soap I've ever used.

Sunday morning we got up and had breakfast at the Zion lodge in the park, which is never a disappointment by any means. We stopped by the gift shop there and got a Christmas ornament that says Zion NP on it for my ornament collection. Then we headed out into the park to see how far we could get up the Angel's Landing trail.

The top of Angel's landing is on the tip of that big rock behind me. Dan has done this trail several times to the top but I had never been on it. It is one of the most challenging trails in the park for steepness and several people have fallen right off of it to their deaths. We thought it would make a great family hike, the trail was icy in spots too, so extra fun. At one point I got nauseous because the trail got too icy and I was scared but we turned back at that point. We made it maybe half way up.

Walters Wiggles, icy! We turned around at the top.

That trail is all ice!
Beautiful view of Zion Canyon.The trail we just came up.

After this hike, and since we were only gone about 2 hours, we decided to have more adventures in the park. We went snow shoeing that afternoon on the East side of the park.

Here's the thing about Dan. He snowshoes in shorts (and says it's because he grew up in Hawaii and doesn't like pants) Sara is dressed in 2 snow suits to keep warm.

The next day was Monday morning and we got up to get ready to go home. Before we left we ate at a neat cafe called the Thuderbird Restaurant in Mt. Carmel, home of the "ho-made" pies. The menu had some interesting historical background about the lady that started the restaurant to feed the workers building the tunnel in Zion.

We ordered biscuits and gravy and the waitress warned us they were big. We had no idea. They were about a 7 inches tall and smothered in gravy and cheese. Luckily we were going skiing that morning before we left. If you're ever in Mt. Carmel Utah though I highly recommend this place. It was a nice ending to a great weekend for everyone.

I survived the New Year : a random blog about stuff and things

2009-01-12T06:22:00.000-08:00

I started out the New Year by surviving it. I got a rather troubling case of food poisoning and spent the first week of 2009 in the bathroom. It's not an ideal way to start the year but I lived and being alive is a good way to start the year.

Mom visited for a week and a half and I was able to get some things done that I've been dying to do around the house. I got the computer room cleaned out and it looks like a whole different room. It is also much more childproof so if Sara sneaks in there for a quick minute, I don't have to worried she'll become entangled in computer cords immediately. That brings me to my first thought for the New Year, organization, I need some.

I'm also thrilled that I organized all Dan's cooking stuff. He has recipes that he has collected over the years that are printed off the internet. They've been getting worn and crinkled and messy with the wear and tear of use. I made him a binder and put the recipe pages in plastic jackets so they stay funk free. Also all of our kitchen appliance manuals, and there are many, fit into the side pockets of the binder. Now if I can just figure out how to keep and protect all the Cooks magazines he gets. Sara has already ripped some pages out of them.

We also took advantage of Mom's visit to be outdoors. One of the first things we did was go skiing at Soldier Hollow on the Nordic Track where the Olympics were held. It's a neat track that we don't get to go to very often and we certainly couldn't take Sara in her trailer. The track is kind of rigorous, it's 90 percent work and about 10 percent fun. It was a nice clear day and we worked our butts off for a little downhill.

Here's a view of the track and the lodge down below and a self portrait of us:

We were really grateful to Mom for watching Sara while we went to a ton of movies (we both cried through "Marley and Me" and loved it) and outdoor adventures. Mom was happy to be spending time with the baby and we were going nuts soaking up the free time and running around like teenagers.

Another really memorable thing we did was to go on a moonlight snowshoe in Diamond Fork. I've always wanted to go on a Moonlight Snowshoe ever since my friend Mark told me how magical the snow looks in the moonlight. He says it looks kind of like fairy dust but you can't photograph it you just have to see it for yourself. It really is amazing. We only got this one pic because it was so cold that my camera battery died right after I took the pic but at least we have some representation.

Dan and I made it most of the way up a mountain and then marveled in the moonlight how amazing it is that we were both together. Four years ago it would have been really difficult for Dan and I was 2,ooo miles away.

Also while Mom was here we did some non-snow stuff. We took the opportunity to go out to eat at Cracker Barrel. We don't eat out very often at all but I love watching Sara in a restaurant. She is so curious about everything going on around her and is a people watcher. She looks so grown up also!

Here is a cute pic of Sara and her Nanna :

The day that Mom left I resumed going to school at Utah Valley University. I was taking classes there when I found out I was pregnant with Sara and I was really looking forward to getting back. I'm taking Ethics on Monday nights. It's just one class for now but it gets me back into the school mode anyway and I hope to take more classes during the summer when I have some more baby sitting options.

I'm currently considered a Junior and am working towards an Environmental Management degree. My dreams along that line would be to get a Masters in EM. Then go on to work at a highly enjoyable job that is part or full time spent outdoors and really makes a difference, even in a small local way, towards improving the Environment and educating others.

Since I'm trying to catch up here on blogging and I'm way behind, I have to talk about snow some more because snow is all there is here this time of year. The end of January was extra snowy here. We got a really big dump one night and woke up to a foot of fluffy snow. Luckily our neighbor volunteered his snow blower and we made quick work of the snow clearing job.

For some reason going out to watch Dan shovel the driveway at 5 a.m. is a fun family activity for us. We get out the folding chair and sit in the driveway to watch. I like how silent everything is in the neighborhood early in the morning and how the snow seems to muffle the noises that are there. Faint noises can be heard of other neighbors clearing away snow, there is a certain stoic solidarity to it. However I'm sure not many wives and babies sit out in the driveway to spectate.

I thought it was funny that he sprayed the house with the blower, festive.

Here is Sara on the newly cleared driveway checking the situation out in her giant poofy suit.

I loved the way the back yard looked with this snow storm, it looked like it had been filled with foam!

Next we spent a day with Dad and Karen who were kind enough to come down from Salt Lake and go on a walk/ski with us in Diamond Fork. Dan and Karen skied and Dad and I walked the road pulling Sara in the trailer. We took a few pics along the way.

Sara is taking a break from the trailer and Dad and Karen marvel at her ability to eat snow and look cute :

Also while Dad was visiting he took a black and white photo of Sara that I think turned out amazing. The thing I like about it is that you can see what she looks like when her mouth is not wide open like it is in most photos. It's her more serious side. Also I just recently I got a copy of the family photo we took. Dad is a perfectionist so he saw some imperfections in the photo but we think is a really good one of us and they look even more impressive in person. Now that Dad has a new portrait lens for his camera we look forward to being the subject of many Sears/Christensen/Perkins family photos in the future.

I think this sort of catches me up through January. Now that I'm already behind for February. Mom is visiting again for Sara's 1 year b'day and I'm sure we'll be having many more adventures.

Skiing in Red Rock.

2008-12-27T18:36:00.000-08:00

Today we skied in Diamond Fork again, down the main road. We drove as far as we could to where the road was no longer being plowed. Soon we were way back into a serene powdery environment surrounded by red rock. We skied about 3 miles while Sara slept, then turned around and skied back while she was awake, but she did not complain. She gets all Zen-like in her trailer, I think the skiing lulls her into the zone. For whatever reason she seems to like it and we love it.

Also today we saw more Eagles, two were flying over my head. It's so amazing to see them back there. The day before we skied the campground loop and skied past a golden eagle right above us in a tree twice before we saw him. It's such a cool area and worth going to just to see those eagles. I hope to get some good pics of them before too long.

Chariots of snow

2008-12-20T20:43:00.000-08:00

For Sara's Christmas present we got her a Chariot ski trailer/bike trailer. Today we tried out the ski trailer in Diamond Fork. We were unsure whether everyone would be happy with the trailer but luckily she liked it and we did too.

It's a cute little trailer with Rossignal Skis attached to the bottom and then we wear a harness that you attach around your waist. It has a really nice enclosed cabin for Sara to sit in with a harness, plenty of room for blankets and toys, and plastic wind resistant covers that you can let down or just mesh ventilation.

Here is Dan pulling her around the campground loop.

Here are some pics of Sara enjoying her Chariot ride. You can make out the smiles and the open mouth from inside the trailer.

We also skied right near the bald eagle again but I tried not to get too close to disturb him. I need to bring my better camera next time. Also I saw a golden eagle but didn't get a pic. Who knew that this place I love, 10 minutes from the house, is packed with eagles in the winter.

We skied for about a hour and a half and then called it quits.
Everything was loaded back into the truck and it all fits.

Then to top off a great day there was an amazing sunset when we got home.

Goblins for Thanksgiving

2008-12-11T17:39:00.000-08:00

I'm finally getting around to this post from Thanksgiving.
The day after our fantastic dinner. we headed down to Goblin Valley State Park with M&M for a post-turkey day hike.

When we arrived the temperature was just warming up and the goblins were all misty.

It was such a surreal place. None of us had ever been so it was our first time to explore the area. It went on forever, there were many valleys of goblins and the best part is that there are no established trails so you can climb them at will. The day we were there, it was extra muddy and that made it extra challenging and fun!

I can't wait to go back when Sara is able to climb the goblins!

A very thankful for family Thanksgiving

2008-11-27T19:02:00.001-08:00

This year was a wonderful gathering of family at our house. Dan's local family was all here and my family came down from Salt Lake. We felt so lucky to have all these great people at our house. Thanks so much for coming everyone!

Here is Dan in the preparation phase. He LOVES our new food processor more than life itself. This year he did the turkey, we brined it out on the back porch all night. Also he did the sweet potatoes and apricot sausage stuffing and the gravy!

Our first guests to arrive, LC and KC. were entertaining Sara on the floor.

Some cute cousin photo opps...

Sara likes Uncle LC and Auntie LC...

Next to arrive was my brother B and wife W their Lil' B and B's Mom L...
Auntie W has a chunky babeh, Lil'B is not so Lil', he's only 2.5 lb less than Sara but 6 months younger still.

Auntie W made all these turkey noises for Sara, gobble gobble gobble, and she thought it as the best!

The little Sears family cousins. I think Sara mostly wanted to eat their little butterball baby. He looked so tasty and pudgy. Whatever it was, Sara was mesmerized by Lil' B.

Then M&M arrived, sporting their fabulous new hair cuts, and they got to hold the Munkey too. Her Munkey is re-fashioning M's hair...

The kids and grown ups got to decorate the table...

Then it was time to get down to business, eating!
The double dipper...
Grandma Belle's glasses....

The Spread : Sweet Potatoes, apricot sausage stuffing, collard greens, green beans, turkey,
mashed potatoes!

We were thankful to Uncle LC for carving and doing an enormous pile of dishes along with B's Mom...

After a good food stuffing we stuffed the babies into their bear suits and we all went for a walk. Sara fell asleep and Lil' B did great until he realized about a mile into the walk that he was starving. Then we all headed back for baby bottles and pie.

Fun random pics...

I can haz a problem

2008-11-25T19:05:00.000-08:00

I found these websites last week and I'm entirely addicted to them :

icanhascheezburger.com
ihasahotdog.com

I think most people who are addicted, first of all, love pets. If you don't you probably don't have anything to worry about. If you love pets and bad grammar and rolling around in miz-spilled words, this is the best your life will ever get. I believe we were created to see these web sites and has a laugh.

Capitol Reef Adventure Day I

2008-11-19T18:44:00.000-08:00

When we arrived in Capitol Reef it was too early to check into a hotel so we went on a hike on the Rim Overlook trail. It had great views of the surrounding area as well as the Fruita orchards below. It was quite a steep hike and five miles long, but well worth it.

View of the Frutia orchards from about 1,000 feet up on the Rim Trail.

At the top we decided to explore a wash that we saw off to the side of the trail. It had some really interesting features.

A cool, probably old, tree.

A mini-narrows.

And lots of sand for Sara.

This pic shows why the park is called Capitol Reef, the sandstone domes resemble Capitol building rotundas.

On the way down the trail we were searching down in this wash for the Hickman Bridge which was supposed to be down there. It took us a while but we found it and we were surprised it was so hard to find because it was huge.

A Capitol Reef Geology Adventure Day II

2008-11-16T15:19:00.000-08:00

In my opinion the best thing that Utah has to offer outdoors are its geological wonders. Capitol Reef is one of those places that boggles the mind, if your mind is easily boggled by geology. The part of the park I was so anxious to explore was the Waterpocket Fold. It is located fifty miles down a dirt road from the main touristy parts of the park. The waterpocket fold is an amazing 100 mile long ancient fault zone that is really fascinating and beautiful to marvel at.

The place we were going required us to drive around the park, through private property, and then re-enter the park right where this sign was, seemingly out in the middle of nowhere. Here we all are at 10:00 a.m. in the middle of nowhere freezing our butts off for this picture.

Here are some scenes we saw along the way. We were actually driving down in the valley of the waterpocket fold most of the way. However, it was hard to appreciate the whole scale of the thing until we started climbing up the 7,000 foot rise of sandstone to the West.

A full moon over the near vertical layers up uplifted rock to the West

The cut-through we drove up that goes up and over the edge of the fold. This road was amazing, winding up through the sandstone cliffs. This picture does not do it justice.

Sara eats Cheerios's while we make our way up the road.

A view of the fold from the top, spanning as far as the eye can see. Multiple layers of rock are exposed and tilted upward. Here's a link about the geology that is more specific if you're interested.

Once we were up on top of the ridge we drove on a 4 wheel drive road through a wash to get us to the Strike Valley Overlook trail. Once we couldn't drive any further we hiked down the wash with sandstone walls on either side and explored the area. There were some arches and neat formations. I hunted for arrowheads and Sara had a blast playing in the sand.

I thought the red and white layers converging was interesting.

I called this feature above the "birth canal".

Exploring this wash and hiking up to the overlooks was definitely the highlight of my trip. I feel really lucky we got to do this.

For entertaining porpoises only

2008-10-22T18:32:00.000-07:00

This blog has been entertaining me daily.
Thank you Bastard blog people.

KRIKITLVR

2008-10-20T20:28:00.000-07:00

I have been a bugs worst nightmare in my previous life back in Alabama. Jenny and I used to go to the car wash at night, where the lights were bright, and prey on big beautiful Luna moths, Sphinx, and Imperial moths, and the occasional stag beetle ( or Wonkeetonk as we call them because they walk like they've had a little too much to drink and they "wonkeetonk" front to back like a see-saw).

We would even stand on top of my truck and use a broom or car washing squeegee to reach the most prized possessions. Then we would put the frightened bugs in bags and into the freezer for preservation. We mounted several dozen of these in bug boxes and Jenny probably still has some in her freezer, unless her hubby made her toss them.

I feel bad about killing all these beautiful bugs. I'm a born-again bug lover and hopefully I can redeem myself. I'm always trying to protect the crickets and praying mantids in the yard from unnecessary mashing. When we find spiders in the house I try to catch them and release them outside.

Tonight though, my level of commitment was put to the test. We have lots of black crickets that converge on the house in the fall for some reason. They sneak in the house and we've had one particular cricket hanging out in the laundry room that I've grown fond of. He usually is sitting there on the top of the pile wearing his little "Vote Obama or I'm gunna' tell yo Mama" T-shirt that I made him. When I open the door and he sees the light he usually starts jumping down the laundry pile looking for a place to hide.

I was actually about to put the laundry in the machine and was shouting out some stains. I lost track of where he was and I loaded the washer. I had this feeling that somehow I had put him in the machine. So I TOOK EVERYTHING OUT TO LOOK FOR A CRICKET! There he was, stealthily hiding under a bath towel.

I caught him and put him outside where I'm sure he'll never find such a lovely laundry pile again on top of which to play king of the mountain.

Things lost and found

2008-09-30T12:36:00.000-07:00

After Dan's bike was stolen we decided that he should take my bike, which was practically new and is a model upgrade from the one that had been stolen. I was having trouble riding it anyway; it didn't really fit me. So he got my old/new mountain bike and bought me the most amazing mountain bike from his friend that recently opened a bike shop called "Epic Biking" in Saratoga Springs. I got a Giant Trance X2 and I LOVE IT! It is the best mountain bike I've ever owned and I appreciate it so much. Dan borrowed it the other day and he loved it too.

I've been riding the Trance a lot more now. We went to Moab and I tested it out on the Slick Rock. Also I have ridden it on the weekends up at Diamond Fork. There is one of the best trails on the Planet called Monk's Hollow in Diamond Fork. It's about 8-10 miles up the mountain but the views are wonderful especially with the fall colors. I hope to ride it every weekend until it starts snowing. The only down side is that the trail is full of free range cattle, so I herded about 50 head of cattle off the trail and had to ride over lots of cow pies.

So far, I have lost 15lb since our Glacier trip in August (never mind that Dan has lost about 25 since August). My goal was to lose a total of 30 by the end of December. It's looking like I'm on track to do that. It's exciting. Dan and I are also about to start doing P90X workouts together too. They are insanely hard. We did the "Chest and Back" work out last night. It was kind of sad for me mostly. It required lots of push ups of all different kinds, military, diamond, and some funky one where you do the "snake". We need to work up to it I guess but we tried. Dan did much better than I did; to be expected. Hopefully P90X will have us buff by January and 2009 can be a really really great athletic year for us.

So that is about all the "Lost" news. The found news is that the Sp. Fork police found Dan's bike at a Pawn shop in Orem. It was taken by a known heroin addict who was already in jail by then for stealing other bikes. Then some girl he knew pawned it for $200. It's amazing they got $200 because the fork was really messed up bad, they even tried to super glue it back together.

At least we have it back now and Dan's replacing the broken parts to hopefully sell it in the future. In the mean time, we're looking out for the heroin addicts roaming our neighborhood and rounding up things for the pawn shop. Everything is on lock-down now.

Once a year

2008-09-23T20:03:00.000-07:00

That is about how often I get to see Dan without his facial hair. Last year I didn't get a pic and it grew back in about an hour it seems like. Today he came out of the bathroom clean shaven and Munkey started to cry, she didn't recognize him at first. Neither did I but at least I didn't cry. I kind of like it and think he looks super handsome. What do you guys think, keep it, grow the goatee back, or keep shaving the whole head, even eyebrows?

The Peach Harvest!

2008-09-18T13:24:00.001-07:00

Amazing Moab Anniversiary Blow Out Special!

2008-09-14T19:30:00.000-07:00

We had the best Anniversary two Munkey parents could have had this weekend. Mom (aka Munkey Nanna) was in town and gladly agreed to watch the little Munkey while we played in Moab, Utah. The start of the weekend was a little shaky. Munkey got car sick and threw up an amazing amount of liquid and it was scary for everyone, especially her. After a roadside clean up we pressed on and we arrived in Moab mid afternoon.

First we headed out to the Gemini Bridges trail to Mountain bike. It was a really scenic trail climbing up in the red rock cliffs that are about 8 miles outside the Arches entrance. We must have picked the best weekend ever because there were hardly any four wheelers trying to run us over and kick dust in our eyes, which made it really enjoyable. After about 4 miles and two good climbs I was done and my legs were worn out almost entirely.

Next up was a hike to Delicate Arch in Arches National Park. I haven't been there since I was 12 when I hiked with Kepi and TDD during a visit to Utah. It was good to get back and even more spectacular of a sight than I had remembered. I didn't remember the arch being so large but the scale of us in the picture gives you an idea.

Then we came back to our hotel, stashed the bikes, cleaned up, kissed the Munkey, and head out for dinner. We went to a Mexican Restaurant that we had been to once before that we really liked and it did not disappoint. I had two Margaritas which was really a huge treat and I blissfully existed in a mild buzz-like state for several hours. After dinner, we walked in the moonlight along the banks and over a bridge of the Colorado River.

The next morning we got up and I noticed I was very sore from the previous days mountain biking adventure. So after a few tears and a strong desire not to waste our chance to mountain bike while we had Nanna watching Munkey, I forced myself to bike again that day. Also Dan was great and understanding and he really made this day just outstanding and unforgettable for us both.

Munkey Nanna and Munkey headed to Downtown Moab to stroll the Munkey around while we began our journey down the Circle M trail in Moab. Luckily it was easy and I was able to do it even in the condition my legs were in. Then there was an off-shoot called the Circle O trail. This trail is totally out on slick rock or Entrada Sandstone. It's the real deal as far as slick rock but you don't have to worry about killing yourself on this trail.

It was a great trail for a beginner to learn how to ride on slick rock, which is much different than anything regular mountain biking offers. It was an unsettling feeling at first feeling the bike bouncing from rock to rock. I kept feeling like I was about to die and I kept imagining my head bouncing on the rocks instead. I came really close to turning around within the first ten feet of the trail, considering there were still three miles of rock to traverse. Dan was so great and kept encouraging me and he said he knew I could do it. I totally didn't think I could do it at first but as I got used to the feel of my new bike and the way the shocks rebounded when you plunked off the unforgiving rock, I began to give in to the chaos of it all. After getting the hang of it and actually feeling confident, we frolicked among the red and white rock with purple and white quartz veins in the mid day sun. We had the place to ourselves, save a tiny red toad living in a small quart size pool of water, with a tiny ledge of rock overhanging for climate control.

It was one of the best days of my life! Thank you babe for our wonderful amazing Anniversary Moab blow out!

Theft in the hood

2008-09-04T20:34:00.000-07:00

Sara woke up at 1:30 a.m. which she never does screaming really loudly. It woke me out of a dead sleep so I got up and stood outside her door for a while to see if she was going back to sleep and she did. I kept hearing noises so I turned on the lights in the house. I didn't see anything. I didn't think to look outside.

This morning when Dan went to load up his car he discovered that his mountain bike was missing and that the roof rack that was locked had been pried open. Also they took the front tire and bike pump from the car. They managed to bend a pretty hefty steel lock and broke the steel piece off the fork of his bike so you wouldn't even be able to put the wheel on now. We called the police and did a report so that pawn shops will have a record of the serial number of the bike. Also we are checking Craig's list to see if it goes up for sale soon.

His road bike was also on the rack and they left it untouched.

We went to warn our neighbors since they leave out their stuff all the time too. One neighbor was like yeah, our mountain bike was stolen a week ago along with all their scooters too. Then they proceeded to tell us stories they'd heard from the neighborhood about various thefts including a home break in.

I'm trying not to be paranoid now about criminals in our hood but it's hard. Seems like we lived in such a nice neighborhood where everyone left their stuff out and their garage doors open and now criminals have noticed that it's easy pickins and they roam the streets at night steeling things. I went jogging tonight and saw at least 10 bikes out in peoples yards just waiting to be rounded up. I guess our neighborhood attracts criminals like ants to sugar just because of how trusting everyone is, living in an era that has unfortunately gone by.

Glacier Trip- Day 5

2008-08-21T12:09:00.000-07:00

This was our final day in Glacier. We decided to complete the Hidden Lake hike all the way to the lake. I liked this trail because it was chock-a-block full of wildlife and it was magnificent. Even more so on the way down to the lake. The trail was rather challenging, steep down to the lake and steep back up. Once we got to the lake we decided to hike around it a little, crossing streams, stirring up wildlife, and Dan even walked into the lake to an island. The rocks on this trail were also very neat multi-colored ones, I wanted to take them all home with me.

Big horns were everywhere but they kept their distance from the crowds more than the mountain goats.

The trail as is winds down the side of the mountain. Follow that yellow shirt!

The colored rocks were falling down from the steep mountain cliffs beside the trail, it was a cool multi-colored mountain!

I promised Dan no more goat pics so in order to get more goat pics I had to stand in the picture, that way it's not just a goat pic, sneaky huh.

Ok so I lied, I was sneaking more goat pics, but these were cool standing by the lake, pondering goat things.

we crossed a stream that was full of these trout.

Sara's asleep by the time we get to the lake.
This was such a long hike that the pack actually wore a blister on her face, we felt very vary bad about it but we didn't realize it until the hike was over.

This water was super cold. Dan's feet are tough, mine are not, ouch! We were surrounded by trout, I was taking fish pictures as we were walking across.

Here are my favorite pics of the trip:

High time for a diaper change by this point:
and some Munkey treats:
Dad goes venturing into Hidden Lake:
After our hike we headed to the Lake McDonald Lodge for some lunch and really good huckleberry beer:

The lodge is also where we headed to the gifts shop to get our Glacier refrigerator magnet to add to our collection of places we've been and for me to pick up a Christmas ornament for my collection.

While were were at the gift shop there was a video playing talking about the glaciers in the park. They are almost totally melted or will be soon. Back in 1985 you could walk out on them, now it is too dangerous. Go see them before they melt! We need to go back and do the glacial trails that we did not get to do such as the Iceberg trail. Hopefully we will be back before it's Glacial Puddle Park.

We decided it was time to head home, it sure was a fun get away that we will never forget, thanks everyone and thanks babe for making this trip so enjoyable for everyone.

Glacier Trip- Day 4

2008-08-18T22:10:00.000-07:00

On our fourth day in Glacier we decided to make a few stops along the river that runs by the going to the sun road. We played around and stared at the blue water.

Then we decided to go on a hike to trout lake, although we only made it 3/4 of the way there. Along the way we ate lots of wild raspberries. We passed up lots of other berries but we didn't know what they were so we didn't eat them. Also we got to walk by Lake McDonald on the way to Trout lake and relax on the shores.

Sara seems unsure, but she willing to go.

Dan climbed up to this spot really fast with Sara.

Lake McDonald shores.

We had a really fun fourth day that made us want to stay another day. Unfortunately we had no where to sleep so we had to travel an hour outside the park to find a hotel. Then for dinner we had the worst Mexican food, smothered with yellow cheese-food (cheese-food is the food that cheese eats, for example any cheese not made of real cheese like nacho cheese, some cheese won't even eat cheese- food if it is really nasty fake cheese like Easy Cheese) but they had fish bowl margaritas. I can't believe it but I did not get the fishbowl after complaining about not being able to get one in Utah for the last three years. Dan and I both had small ones. In retrospect I should have skipped the cheese-food entirely and gone for the fishbowl.

Glacier Trip - Day 3

2008-08-15T13:40:00.000-07:00

On this day, we drove up the "Driving to the Sun" road which is a narrow winding road that creeps its way high up into the alpine mountains, revealing spectacular views around every bend. We spent lots of time on this road, we probably drove it 10 times while we were there.

Here are some views:

Arriving at the top there is a visitor center that is at the start of the trail that we hiked to Hidden Lake.

At the top:

some of the neat tour buses

The Hidden lake trail was one of the most spectacular areas that we saw. It is partially boardwalk and then the hiking trail begins as it descends down into the lake. On this day we hiked the boardwalk portion and saw a bevy of wildlife and watched Kevin and Fara hike through snow in Tevas :)

Here are Sara and Dan's thoughts as we were about to begin the hike:

OH MY GOD, WE'RE ABOUT TO GET COVERED IN NATURE! AND HOW MANY GOAT AND SHEEP BUTT PICTURES DOES MOMMY NEED!
...but then, they got over it and I took lots of sheep butt pics, but we musn't feast our eyes just yet. First we're going to look at some cute pics of Sara all bundled up and snacking on the trail. Then some Alabamians in sandals and a happy bunch of Wisconsinites.

Here are pics from the trail:

Now, lets get to the goats. There were lots and lots of goats, sometimes weaving their way through tourists. They were fun to watch and large crowds gathered. We took lots of pics, as did everyone or at least that's what I'm telling myself. They were really photogenic though.

Goat pics:
Here are the sheep butts as promised, I think those are udders :

Also we saw what is called a "Monkey Flower"

and Hoary Marmots:

After the hike, we headed down the East side of the Sun road to St. Mary where we stopped by the lake and then had some lunch at a little sandwich shop before making the long drive back to the Chalet.

Sadly, this was the last day of the trip for Chrishan and Jenny and hubby. We had so much fun and it was sad to see you guys leave. Hopefully we will see everyone again soon.

Glacier Trip- Day 2

2008-08-15T08:40:00.000-07:00

On Day 2, I got up early and ventured down to a little creek that was near the Chalet for a look around. There were multi-colored stones all in the water and on the beach. I didn't even bring them all home with me, not even one, amazingly enough. Sara rode in her backpack checking everything out.

When I got back to the Chalet, Chef Dan was cooking a wonderful breakfast of strawberry waffles and whipped cream. Then we all loaded up in the cars and began to travel towards the park entrance, from the back way, which turned into about 10 miles of washboard gravel road. We found a park entrance sign and got some pics there with everyone.

After entering the park, our first hike was to Avalanche Lake. It was a pretty easy short dirt trail up to an beautiful lake surrounded by waterfalls and mountains.

Here are pics from the Avalanche trail :

Here are pics from Avalanche Lake:

A thunderstorm popped up so we headed back to the Chalet after visiting the lake.
It was Kevin's B'day so we had some B'day celebration food, Steaks and Potatoes or chicken for some, prepared by Chef Dan. There was chocolate cake cake too. We didn't have any candles so Chef Dan lit matches on top of the cake instead, it was unique and I'm sure memorable for Kevin.

Then later that night we engaged in rousting games of Wii sports. Kevin got the highest score on the planet in bowling, like 200 and something. Chris schooled me in Mario Cart. Then Dan and Kevin played Wii boxing. That was it for day 2 and then a tired lot went to bed.