Not much of a stampede...

We went to the Antelope Island Balloon Stampede on Friday night.  Unfortunately the weather took a turn for the worse which made it impossible for the balloons to go up.

Jer enjoying a turkey wing.

Is it too soon for me to think my daughter loves horses?  Well I think she does or maybe my love for them is rubbing off on her.

Ind even wore her hot air balloon shirt but to no avail.

Wyatt was loving his horse ride.

Indie was not loving sitting on this buffalo.

Once we realized the wind wasn't going to settle down we took off.  A little ice cream made up for the lack of action on the island.

Happy Birthday Sis...

Happy 31st to Alicia

You are the greatest older sister a girl could ask for.

Halloween 2007...

I have been meaning to flashback to last year's Halloween for a while.  Eventually I am going to print this puppy into a book and I want to have a record of that day.  Now that it is almost here again I thought I better jump on it.

We went to visit dad at work.  No, he is not dressed up for Halloween, that is what he wears everyday.  Everyone loved our chubby little pea.

When we are at mom's house we always put Indie in this pot that we have lovingly named "the pioneer bumbo" because pioneers didn't have bumbos so maybe they used pots like this to sit their kids in.  

I give you...Pea Soup.

Chlo was a sassy pirate.  She got to dress up for preschool. 

Mad was a fifties girl complete with a poodle skirt.

Here's Ind with my cousins Livy and Con Man.

 I can't believe how different she looks now, how different all the kids look.  A lot changes in one year.  It was a fun day and I can't wait to do it all again in a little over a month.  

I l.o.v.e. Halloween.

Clear as a bell...

Yesterday we spent another day at Primary Childrens.

Indie went in for an Auditory Brainstem Response in the Rapid Transition Unit.  Which basically means she had her hearing tested while she was sedated.  After the doctor put tubes in her ears in early July he wanted to see her back because the initial ABR they did at that time indicated she had moderate hearing loss.  We did a second test in a sound booth where they make noises and see how she responds, she did well but they wanted to do an additional ABR just to make sure.

Sadly, this is all getting easier for me, but I still cried when they took her back to sedate her.  They let me come in this time and wait with her until she was asleep.  That was a mistake.  They put a cute little oxygen mask on her until she fell asleep, much like a little puppy being put to sleep for a different purpose.  I couldn't stop thinking of Tuco.  

The test took over an hour, a very long hour.  

Finally the adorable Audiologist came to give us the news.  She was about a day older than me which made me contemplate what I have accomplished in my life while this young girl was becoming a doctor.  Anyways, the news was the same as last time.  Our little Indie has moderate hearing loss and will need little hearing aids.  This time I was prepared for this type of news.  I take comfort in the beautiful words her daddy blessed her with before the test.  In essence, whatever is meant to be will be.

She had a rough time coming out of the anesthesia this time.  They said she woke up too fast and that made her really cranky and totally out of it.  I tried to calm her down with her bottle or binki but I get too worked up when she is like that.  It is hard for me to see her in that condition because she is never that fussy normally.  Luckily, mom was there, she calmly bounced her back to sleep (the ample bosoms probably helped).  She slept for 20 minutes and woke up clapping and smiling...now there's my girl.

She was a little groggy throughout the day and ready for an early bedtime but no worse the wear.

I've put my trust in the Lord all my life but now more then ever I know he has a plan for me and for my little baby.  I know that hearing aids will only increase the progress she is already making in her life.  

One day, whether in this life or hereafter, she will be hearing...

clear as a bell.

Brian Regan...

For my birthday Tony surprised me with tickets to my favorite comedian Brian Regan.  The show was at the beautiful Waterfall Theater at Thanksgiving Point.  It was fantastic.

Leash and Kev came and Kim and Annelee did too.  They were in heaven holding little Cashy and Indie who slept through the whole thing.  Alicia, Kevin, Tony and I had seen him before but this was Kim and Annelee's first time, I think they really liked him.

He is so hilarious and totally clean too.  It is refreshing to hear someone be so funny without being crude.  He has been on Letterman about 20 times and he has a show on Comedy Central right now called The Epitome of Hyperbole.  Check out some of his stuff here, here or here.

Just a little side story...

Before the show they were playing Coldplay's Viva La Vida and as we were walking in a girl walking in front of me asked her date if this was the opening act.  Yeah, that's right, Coldplay is opening for Brian Regan.  She obviously isn't a fan.

7 years ago...

I had just moved into the Provo house with Geof. and Elly.  I was going to school a few days a week and looking for a job, so basically we were playing as hard as we could.  Leash and Kev were planning their wedding for the 14th.

It was about 9 a.m. and we were still sleeping when Aunt LeAnne called to tell us the news.  She was really upset.  We didn't have a t.v. so we spent the day riding our bikes around to different houses to watch the news.  

It was surreal.

The footage we saw on the news was unbelievable.  I think the most disturbing part for me was seeing people jump out of the buildings.  It was all so horrifying.  For days, even weeks, it consumed us, all of us.  We watched the news, read the paper and searched the internet for any updates.  I still have several newspaper clippings with images on them that are seared into my memory.  Elly and I hung a flag in our front window and didn't take it down until we moved out, by then it was sun-bleached.  

The temples closed for a few days and we thought we would have to reschedule the wedding but they reopened on the day they were to be married.

September 11th affected everyone in different ways and it was amazing to see how everyone pulled together.  I am so sorry for those who died or lost someone during that horrible attack.  I am also sorry for those who lost their lives in protecting our country since then.  I am grateful for their sacrifice and for this beautiful country we have to live in.

Pushing 30...

Okay not really, but getting close.

I turned 27 on August 4th.

Let me tell you, it was a rough day.  I am not sure if it was because: A. I had to work.  2. I am getting old.  Or C. I place too much emphasis on birthdays and they just turn out to be regular days.  But I ended up crying most of the day.

When I was little my mom always said, "don't cry on your birthday," but I guess because I know I am not supposed to, I always do.  So yeah, I had to work, only for a few hours but long enough to suck and to get the tears flowing.  In all of my 27 years I have never had to work on my birthday and I hope it never happens again.  My friends decorated my office so that made it a little bit better.

In order to salvage the day, we got some food and headed to Cherry Hill with family and friends.

Chlo helped me blow out my pretend candles.

In the end, it was a good day... all things considered.

A few weeks later we had cake and ice cream at mom and dads to celebrate mine and Little Kev's birthdays.  

His birthday was 8-8-08.

Here's to next year being a better day.

Prerequisites of our next home...

I had a lot of time to think today amidst my 5 hours of yard work and I came to the conclusion that our next home has to have either:

a smaller yard

a riding lawnmower

or a gardener

Oh and while we're at it, a jetted tub to relax in.

Two babies, two Kevins, two blessings...

Sunday was a popular day for baby blessings given by dads named Kevin.

First on the docket was Cash who received a beautiful blessing from Little Kev.

Look at this handsome little fella...

What's a blessing without a party afterwards.  Leash and Kev put on a great brunch.  I was in charge of bringing fruit and Allie gave me the idea to bring this dip.

Fruit Dip:

1/2 a block of cream cheese

1 small jar of marshmallow creme

1 small container of strawberry cool whip

Whip it up and viola...

Next up was little John who was also given a wonderful blessing by yet another Kevin.

He's not quite so little anymore...

I was assigned to bring a salad.  I am not much of cook at this time in my life, I am not sure if it is lack of energy or lack of time...probably a little of both.  So when I make something good, I even impress myself a little.  This salad was pretty easy, thanks again to Allie and, of course, allrecipes.com.

Spinach and fruit salad with candied walnuts and balsamic vinaigrette.

The happy family: Kevin, Chelsea and sleepy John.

We had a great time visiting with Chelsea's fabulous family.  It brought back a lot of memories of when we were younger...minus Chris putting Chels in a sissor lock.

Discovery Gateway and the Tour of Utah...

A few weeks ago we went to the Discovery Gateway with Neil and Al, Jeremy and Britnie, and all the kids.  It was our first time and we really liked it.  It is a little pricey for one visit but you can buy a pass and go as often as you want in 6 months for only 60 bones.  

Indie loved it.

She rode on a bike...

Sat on a big fake horse...

Relaxed in a perfect Indie sized chair...

Played with these giant rings...

And splashed around in the water with Foo Fi...

Luckily we caught the tail end of one of the stages of the Tour of Utah...

Check out Jer's posts about it here and here, he took some adorable pics of Ind.

That's how I roll...

Check out my rockin' new tee from Aunt Lydi.