Behold, the Monstrous Watermelon Is Done!

Friday, September 26th--Yes! We gave the melon a knock to check for that "hollow" sound and sure enough, it "hollowed" at us. Nate gave Elise the knife to ceremoniously cut her melon from it's nurturing vine. We're not sure why she felt the need to put on her dirty red socks to use as gloves but it didin't matter. And, of course, because she wanted to control the entire situation we made her carry it inside too! ha HA! Nate said, "Lets put it in the fridge to chill for a while and then slice it later." I said, "Are you nuts?! Cut that bulging piece of fruit open NOW!" The rind was rather tough but he got it open. The aroma of fresh watermelon filled the air. Ooooohhh Aaaahhhhh! We let Elise take the first bite since she's the reason it even exists. She took a big 'ol bite and went, "MMMmmmmmm!" So I assumed it was a deliciously, sweet watermelon, not so! I cut a chunk next and took a bite--it tasted like the watermelon right up next to the rine, kind of sour. It seems as though it needed a little more time. It was a false "hollow"! Our original plan was to share Elise's harvest with her neighbor friends but we decided probably not. Then again, kids are crazy over sour stuff. Maybe we still will! Really, the most important thing to this whole adventure is the thrilled and excited look on Elise's face as she enjoyed the product of her efforts and love. She even planted more seeds......in a designated spot!

My Willow Tree Nativity Set

Friday, September 26th--As I mentioned before, I've been wanting to complete my Willow Tree Nativity set for 2 years. My dear friend, LaDonna, started it for me after I expressed a sincere desire to own it. I never expected her to do so, it was so very generous, but she gave me the main set for my birthday, in 2006, and I am still so touched by her sweet gesture. Since then, I've wondered if I should start buying the other coordinating sets or just ask for them for Christmas or birthday. The sets are kind of pricey so I didn't really want to buy them myself. This year, for my birthday, was the first year I couldn't think of a single thing I wanted other than completing my set so I combined all my birthday money and gift cards and went to Hallmark. I was able to buy everything but the "creche" (stable) and two of the farm animals. The original set came with Joseph, Mary/Jesus, shepherd, 2 white sheep, 1 set of stars, and the donkey. So you can see there's much to this set. I love it SO MUCH I can't bear to pack it up and only display it for Christmas so it will stay in my living room year 'round. Maybe for Christmas I will complete it once and for all. Once again, I can't think of much I would like for Christmas other than a Wii and Wii Fit. Nate's not too keen on that idea. Aw, shucks!
Thanks again, to my family, for contributing to such a wonderful birthday gift. And thanks, LaDonna, for being such a special, dear friend!

I've Been Tagged So Here Ya Go!

Friday, September 26th

Here are the rules:

NO CLEANING

NO STRAIGHTENING

NO WIPING KIDS NOSES

Take these pictures right now

Kitchen Sink

(Well, I just couldn't take the picture without a clean sink so I broke the rules. Sue me! ha ha ha)

My Fridge (Got the Halloween stuff up! Fun!)
My Bathroom (Yes, I cheated again! Had to straighten up!)

My Closet (No, I didn't cheat on this one. Maybe I should have! Anyone want to install a closet organizer for me, for cheap?)

My Favorite Room (Family Room--with folded laundry!)

My Laundry Room (How much can you CRAM into your laundry room?)

My Favorite Pretty Shoes and Favorite All-the-Time Shoes (yes, you'll usually see me in the fake Crocs--they're ugly but so dang comfy!)

Self-Pic (uh, yeah....)

Dream Vacation: The two "E's"--England and Egypt, always been my dream trips. And my desire to go to both is equal. The pic on the left is Westminster Abbey, in London. And the pic on the right should be obvious. I wanna go NOW! : (

Okay, so I tag whoever wants to do this. It was fun!

You Say It's Your Birthday? It's My Birthday Too!

Monday, September 22nd--Yes, it's my birthday today. The big 33. Yep, feelin' a little "old", I guess. However, it has been a wonderful birthday! Nate has made the weekend and today so great. Saturday, he let me relax and take it easy. Sunday, he made homemade lasagna for dinner. It was yummy. My sister, Alishia, and her family came over. She brought some cheesecake from Cheesecake Factory (frozen, from Sam's Club, actually, but quite tasty!). We visited and then Nate brought out presents for me. He got me a blender that makes smoothies, "Meet Joe Black" DVD, a DVD with 3 John Candy movies and Willow Tree "3 Wiseman" figurines to add to my Willow Tree Nativity. I got some cash and a cute candle thingy from my parents. Alishia got me a gift card. Elise and Brady helped make my birthday weekend nice by trying so hard to get along and make cards and pictures for me.
Today, Nate took the day off and did everything. He took the kids to school and then picked Brady up. He took my car in to get a new battery. He did the dishes, fed me lunch and made up a bubble bath for me. He also took care of the kids and Bohdee. After I got home from work we drove up to South Jordan to go to Applebees for dinner. Most of Nate's family came. We had a great time visiting and eating yummy food. Then off to Nate's parents house for cake and presents. Nate asked me what I wanted for my birthday cake and was pleasantly pleased to find out I just wanted a home baked yellow cake with fudge frosting---my fave! He baked it earlier and it tasted great! I received some wonderful gifts from Nate's family and lots of hugs. I especially loved the cute cards my nephews, Christopher and Xander, made me. With all the cash and gift cards I got I am able to complete the rest of my Willow Tree Nativity set. It started with the basics and now I'll have the whole thing. I've been waiting for this for two years! A great birthday, indeed!
Nate, again and again you know how to make me feel so special. It's not just on birthdays or holidays. Just last night I was talking to my mom. We were talking about whether or not she and I married our "knight in shining armor". There wasn't even a hesitation, I told her I married mine. I mean that with all my heart! Thank you for making my birthday so wonderful. The few birthdays I see as my favorites include you. I love you so much!

A Full Week With Bohdee

Monday, September 22nd--It has been an absolute crazy week with our new pup, Bohdee! I can honestly say I am exhausted. Last Tuesday I took him to the vet to get his first round of shots and have a check-up. Much to my great frustration, it was discovered Bohdee's ears were full of thick, wax-coated, fox tails (pointy weed). The vet said his ears were quite infected and by the looks of them, looked quite painful. My poor pup! The fox tails were deep enough into his ears they had to sedate him to get them all out. I left Bohdee in the great hands of the vet and his techs and rushed home to call the woman we bought him from to chew her out for such neglect. Previously, she was very kind, full of advice and willing to help in any way. Once I told her she needed to help pay the extra, almost, $200.00 in costs for Bohdee's ears, she turned into quite a witch. I was disappointed and have decided not to even bother collecting from her. Once I picked up Bohdee and got him home he just wanted to snuggle and stay close to me. I realized I saved him from any more days of pain and discomfort, since he was neglected prior to us picking him up. The next day Bohdee was a different dog. He's more responsive, curious, and willing to venture away from the family room. I spent most of last week sleeping on the couch to help him get more comfortable in our home. He sleeps in a port-a-crib and has slowly been figuring out ways to escape. He's also proven he LOVES to chew things, including my laptop power cord! Oh, the humanity! We've enjoyed having him so far and plan on getting the chewing thing taken care of ASAP. He's potty trained and eating really well. The kids adore him and love to play with him every chance they get. They've also learned to pick up after themselves so Bohdee doesn't take their things to chew on. For the most part, other than the "present" he left on my living room floor today, it's been great! I finally have the straightened up house I've always wanted!

How Can I Help?

Tuesday, September 16th--For a couple of weeks now I've been following a story that has made international headlines. I first noticed this story on KSL.com. It is the story of Stephanie and Christian Nielson. They are parents of 4 young children, living in Mesa, AZ. Stephanie's family lives in Provo, UT. Her parents are local politicians. In the middle of August, Christian took his wife along on his final flight for certification to be a pilot. I can imagine how exciting that flight began but, sadly, it ended tragically. The plane crashed, killing flight instructor Doug Kinneard. Christian was burned over 30% of his body and Stephanie over 80% of her body, both lived. Both remain in medically induced comas as the specialists at Maricopa Hospital Burn Unit try to repair the extensive damage. Internally, they are doing well so the focus is on the massive burns and surgically placing skin grafts where necessary. Their 4 young children are living with Stephanie's sisters in Provo.

I feel I've become, almost, obsessed with this story. I want to read about updates every day. I want to know they're doing better and want to know their children are doing well. I don't know this family, never met them. I've read Stephanie's blog: http://www.nieniedialogues.blogspot.com/ to get to know her, Christian and their family. Her sister, Courtney, has kept an amazingly detailed blog so the world can know how these two are doing, and their children. The blog is: http://blog.cjanerun.com/ Stephanie's siblings have been featured on the "Today Show". They've also been mentioned in "People Magazine". KSL does updates and so do many other news stations. Every time I read the updates I find myself asking, "What can I do? How can I help?" Their medical bills are already in the millions and will continue to grow. Doctors predict their care will continue for another 3 months. I believe I heard their insurance would cover up to a million in hospital costs so their stuck with a few more million to cover on their own. I could donate money but how would $100.00 help when bills are in the millions? Many people have been doing benefits. That sounds great but where to begin? I know the family has received many donations but still not even close to what's needed.

So here I am giving a "Shout out!" to everyone. What to do? Who would like to help me help them? Has anyone else been following this story?

Every day I think of the Nielson's. Often I shed tears. I think about their children and how much they must miss their mom and dad. I'm sure they long to be in the arms of their parents again, being held, cuddled and told how much they are loved. I pray for this familly and hope for the very best outcome. Check out these blogs, you will be uplifted and touched and hopefully, you'll understand my sincere desire to do something and want to do something too.

Our Adorable New Addition

Sunday, September 14th--Elise, Brady and I have been working hard on saving money for a family dog. I didn't think we'd even be close till after Christmas. I kept telling the kids they should ask Santa for a puppy and then we could use the money we saved on puppy supplies. Well, I'm so proud of the 3 of us because we saved up enough. It helped that I worked plenty of extra hours this summer and the kids were a little more willing to earn money by doing extra chores. On Saturday, the 13th, I was on KSL.com looking at the dogs listed for sale. I have been going onto this website for the last few months, getting an idea of what kind of dogs are available and prices. I found an ad for 4-month old male Shih-Tzu's for sale in nearby American Fork. I gave the owner a call and we were off to check them out. I felt prepared to know what to do with all the many pieces of advice I've received. There were cute little Shih-Tzu puppies all over the place. One in particular stood out. The owner named him "Bowie". When I held him he just gazed into my eyes. I was hooked! Elise and Brady loved the puppies and they loved them too! Nate wasn't quite sure what to think. We told the owner we wanted to think about it and go to PetSmart to get supplies. After lunch at Arby's, the kids and I convinced Nate we really needed Bowie. He gave in and I gave the owner a call to arrange for pick-up after we returned from the fair the next day. She said she would hold him.

We picked up little Bowie, who we renamed "Bohdee". All was well and he seemed quite content to be in my arms. The owner had even trimmed him and got him ready to go. Bohdee is a pure-bred Imperial Shih-Tzu and we have the paperwork to AKC register him. We were able to purchase Bohdee for a really good price.

I got Bohdee into the car and we were off, or so we thought. The car wouldn't start! It wouldn't even turn over. After an hour and a half of contacting our insurance, talking to tow companies, and arranging for a ride home the neighbors pulled up to their house and offered to jump our car to see if the problem was the battery. Sure enough, it was. PHEW! We made it home and not once did Bohdee even whimper. He spent a few minutes looking around the house and then we put him in his bed and we all went to bed.

Bohdee is such a sweet little pup! It's only been a day and he's won our hearts over, even Nates. He loves to cuddle. I hope this is the way it's going to be, for the most part. He's adjusting well and we're so happy he chose to come home with us.

Our State Fair Is A Great State Fair!

Sunday, September 14th--Well, it's kind of a great state fair. Yes, our tradition has been to go to the State Fair on it's last day, which always falls on a Sunday. We don't usually do such things on Sunday but going on the last day means less crowds. We went with my sister, Alishia, and her kids. Elise & Brady enjoyed the rides and plenty of sights. Many of the animals were gone, being that we went later in the afternoon (that also means we didn't have to deal with the grotesque, farm animal, poopy smell as much either). The kids were so happy to find the bunnies were still around, Nate too! After looking at the farm animals, Nate took the kids to go to the interactive farm. They put on aprons, "picked" fruit & veggies, rode the tractor and many other things. They enjoy this activity every year! At the end they get to pick a free snack. The snacks consist of apples, string cheese, cracker packs and plenty more. Elise chose an apple and Brady chose cheese crackers. Next they were onto a few rides. While they were doing that the rest of us got some dinner and then walked around to all the bazillion vendors. It was fun to look and see all the many things available, some outrageous and ridiculous. I was on a quest to find the deep fried PB & J sandwich advertised on TV commercials. I found it and, eh, it was okay. Nothing to write home about. Had they left out the jelly it would have been pretty good. They were also selling deep fried Snickers and Oreos. Tempting, but I resisted. We all had fun. Done for another year........I'm gonna miss those carnies.......

Remembering.......

Thursday, September 11th--It is the 7th anniversary of that horrific day. I remember it like it was yesterday. I remember, even living so far away from it all, how so very personal the tragedies felt to me. I didn't know anyone who lost their lives but cried and mourned.

Nate and I were waking up for work. Our alarm is the radio. We tend to lay in bed for a few minutes as we wake up. The radio station was set on "The Chunga and Mister show" on "107.5, The End". Usually these two are just a barrel of laughs but on this day Nate and I could tell something was wrong. We turned on the TV and the second tower had just been hit. We both wanted to just stay home. What did this mean? Were we at war? Was this only the beginning? We got ready for work and reluctantly parted ways. I brought my little 13-inch TV to work. I knew the law firm I worked for wouldn't mind. I can tell you very little work gone done that day for our bankruptcy clients. We were grateful for the few phone calls received. None of us wanted to deal with whiny people not getting their way, something we dealt with daily. I walked up to the 3rd floor of our building (a realty office) to get a soda and found that the reception on the TV's was remarkable compared to my fuzzy 13-inch. I hadn't realized I had been up there watching for over a 1/2 hour till my boss came up to get a soda. I apologized to him and he put his hand on my shoulder and said, "Stay here as long as you want."

A million thoughts went through my mind that day along with plenty of panic as to whether or not our country was safe anymore. The most important thought on my mind was the life I carried inside of me. I was pregnant with my first child, Elise. I was only 3 months along. Not knowing what to expect next, I questioned what kind of world I was bringing this little baby into. "Heavenly Father, keep my family safe."

The day seemed to last forever. I believe we all left early that day. We couldn't concentrate--that would kind of be the case for the next few days. I went home to a eerily empty house. Nate had school right after work so I wouldn't see him till 9:30 pm. I sat on the couch all night just flipping channels. Around 7:00 pm, I just couldn't take anymore news. I turned to KBYU. There was a live concert going on at the Tabernacle on Temple Square. The prophet, Gordon B. Hinckley, spoke. He wasn't on the program but his words were so comforting. The things he said were what I needed to hear that night, I'm many felt the same. When he finished speaking I broke into uncontrollable sobs. My sweet kitty, Bart, found me. She did something I will never forget. She layed down next to me and put her paw on my forearm. She didn't move it till I was able to calm down. Bart use to always find me in my moments of tears. I miss her so much, she died of cancer in February, 2006.

Nate came home a little early. His professor told everyone to leave and go be with their families. I don't remember much after Nate got home. We went to bed. I was worried I wouldn't be able to sleep that night but then I remembered the words of the prophet and was comforted.

My brother-in-law, Casey, was suppose to return from his mission, from Brazil, that week. We would not see him come home for another 1 1/2 weeks. Nate and I had tickets to Hawaii scheduled to fly out on September 18th. It was to be for my birthday weekend. We were too terrified to fly so we cancelled our trip. Little did we understand it would probably be the safest time to fly, only a week after the attacks.

In the middle of October I flew home to Washington to see my family. It was a great visit but everything was still so fresh. The flight back to Utah was awkward. An arab man was on the flight, close to front, where I was sitting. The feeling in that plane was incredibly tense. It was the most quiet flight I have ever been on. I know the arab man felt it. Large men stared him down as if to say, "Don't even make a move." I felt bad for him but couldn't help but feel the same.

The wound is still fresh for this country. I pray my children will never have to experience something like this.

Our Annual Drive to Silver Lake

Saturday, September 6th--Every year, usually on Labor Day, we drive up to Silver Lake. Silver Lake is at the top of Big Cottonwood Canyon, right next to Brighton Ski Resort. The lake is so beautiful and there's a walking trail all the way around it. The kids love all the many chipmunks and squirrels you can see and sometimes we'll catch a glimpse of a moose or beaver.

We enjoyed a yummy picnic and watched as the chipmunks cautiously approached our table to see what kind of fancy viddles we were munching on. There are strict rules on not feeding the chipmunks and squirrels but Nate threw a Sour Cream and Onion chip anyway and the chipmunk, scoping us out, munched on it happily. Even letting me get pretty close to film video and take pics. Then as we read the reasons for not feeding them, Nate was feeling a little bad about throwing that chip but hopefully, it won't effect the little guy that much, if at all.

The funniest thing about this day was, as we were walking the trail around the lake, Brady kept whining and we didn't know why. We'd ask, "What is wrong?" and he'd point at an area and we'd ask him, "is it ..............?" and he would say, "no" and so on. Finally, about halfway around the lake, we had enough of the whining and had to discover what was making him so upset. He pointed again and Nate, jokingly, said, "Is it the pinecone?" (they were strung all over the trail). Brady said, "Yes, I don't like them." Both Nate and I tried very hard to hide our laughter. We tried to explain what pinecones are but I guess they looked a little freaky to him. So for the next 1/2 hour we tried to put Brady's phobia of pinecones to rest (is there even a scientific word for a phobia of pinecones?!?!?!). Elise jumped in and saved the day by giving Brady her walking stick so he could shew them aside. Once he was able to do that he was kicking them around and touching them. Cured! But still, something we will remind him of the rest of his life! ha ha ha Maybe he should have worn his super-hero cape!

The reason we go up on Labor Day Weekend (except this year the weather was bad so we went the next weekend) is to celebrate the eventful day of September 4, 1999, the day Nate proposed to me. He took me up to Silver Lake and we walked the trail, hand-in-hand. We took pictures, had a picnic, and enjoyed each others company. As we were almost all the way around the lake we sat down on a bench to rest a little. He took the opportunity and made it his moment to propose marriage. It was so sweet, he got on his knee and held my hand in his. He made promises he's been able to keep and then I happily said, "Yes!" So to memorialize that special moment we vandalized the very bench we sat on by carving our initials, "NA + AB", into the corner of the bench with a key. For a few years after, our initials were still there. When we moved back to Utah, in 2005, and went on Labor Day, the bench had been replaced and our initials gone. We thought about carving our initials again but it didn't seem as important anymore. The memories will always be in our hearts.

Nate, I still feel the way I did 9 years ago. I would gladly say "Yes!" again in a heartbeat. I'm so glad we have our special place we can visit every year and now we can bring our children and let them enjoy such a beautiful place for all it has to offer.