middle school nightmare (7/2019)

Apparently Jack is a bit squeamish.  Unannounced,  his 6th grade health teacher had the class watching a live birth. Jack said that it went on forever and the room kept getting hotter and hotter.  After about 30 minutes,  Jack asked the teacher to use these restroom.  She said that he looked 'white as a ghost' and asked him to sit in the hallway.  Jack complied and next thing he knew,  the nurse was coming down the hall for him with a wheelchair.  She insisted she wheel him across the school to the office. Jack described it as quite embarrassing but gave us a good laugh. And his peers too. When Jack returned to class,  his classmates joked about being weak in the knees. 

the official snack of boating (8/2019)

Caramel M&Ms are the official snack of boating. Despite sub par waters (made evident after lake Powell skiing this summer), we love boating together and part of that is letting the kids grab their snack of choice for the day. It's always caramel M & Ms. (At least for the girls)

Introducing the kids to Lake Powell was fabulous! They discovered what it means to swim in water so warm you can wash your hair in it, they realized sleeping under the stars can be quite enjoyable, they had calm enough waters to conquer slolem, scampered up rocks and caught lizards, enjoyed cream soda after cream soda after cream soda but were uninterested in mom and dad's love story.

my little miracle (11/2019)

On a poorly planned and particularly aggressive bike ride, my bike slipped on its edge after crossing over a wet bridge. Clipped in, I fell with the bike and immediately felt road rash up my right side. But when I stood up, my left hand wasn't working. Dave rescued me and I wrapped my hand for the night with plans to see the Dr in the morning.  There, I was shocked to find out that I was being referred to a hand surgeon. I didn't realize it but the break was significant. All the way through, an oblique fracture, and out of place - I begged the orthopedist to do his best to avoid surgery. He and his team went to great lengths to reset my thumb - hanging me by my thumb to do so but it didn't work the first time around. Advocating for myself, I asked him to reset and cast it again.I was so thankful for his willingness to do so and later found out he had a soft spot for cycling and had his own beloved Bianchi at home.  It really was a miracle to me that I ended up with him. Typically a hip guy and not the original referral my doctor made, I did seek out the opinion of two hands specialists.  Both of whom recommended surgery and who both admitted that they were unwilling to try more minimally invasive treatments - stating instead that they would utilize a plate and screws.  He watched over my case and my anxieties well and I have been extremely happy with the results.  The other blessing was the role of the stake president - a physician I didn't really know and never would've bothered.  He inquired about my hand and offered to get me in with his hand guy for a second opinion. Desperate for facts to know if the decision I was making was okay, that consult was exactly what helped me feel at peace finally to go against doctor recommendations. Could I grip a waterski rope still? Yes. Would I be able to play the piano or type? Yes. Could I return to cycling? Yes.

sidenote: thumbs are really important! my family had to really step in to assist - things like dishes, folding laundry, and opening jars was impossible. Kindin proved herself very capable of doing laundry and has maintained that post permanently in exchange for her phone bill. (That in itself has been it's own miracle - as it has freed up my working mama stress level considerably.) 

bishoping business (7/2019)

Dave was asked to be bishop...and, quite honestly, there are no words to describe the immediate and unexpected disruption it has been to our norm. His first Sunday was also mother's day and he surprised me with a hammock. Ironically, the hammock quickly became our private place to talk, cry, and sometimes argue about bishoping business. This view...

...along with crying in my closet, counseling coupled with an antidepressant, and cycling on Sundays became my coping mechanisms.  

her heartfelt prayers (1/2020)

Dalia has a talent for drama which serves her well on the stage... and also in prayers. During a rather busy vacation with the kids to Phoenix, Dave asked if it was worth it - wondering for a minute if time spent relaxing might've been better. Immediately after our trip, Dalia answered his query with a beautiful prayer of thanks.  She spoke thanks for nice places to visit, nice places to stay,  for parents who planned it,  for friends we were meeting, and for the chance to 'love eachother out of school'. We love her sensitive heart and enjoyed celebrating her baptism.

About that trip... As the kids get older, traveling together becomes treasured. The laughter we experience together away from stresses and anxiety is priceless. And it's pretty special when it's just our party of five. We reacquainted the kids with their old stomping grounds, 

reconnected with beloved friends, 

enjoyed some off-season swimming, 

and tried a pricey, new adventure together! 

We also tacked on an overnight in New Mexico to see family and Santa Fe. 

But most importantly, we just enjoyed eachother!!!  

he also dances (5/2019)

  

Dancing Classrooms is a unique program for teaching ballroom dance in elementary schools and provides a unique opportunity to compete in ballroom dance. I highly encouraged Jack to participate because Kindin had really enjoyed it and Rohwer has notoriety in the competition. He was hesitant but willing to tryout.  When he made it, he was matched with Mallory and assigned the Rumba. Their impromptu dance was the Tango and the danced their way to first place.  She did and he and Mallory danced their way to first place. Throughout the practices, we laughed at the irony of wrestling on Wednesday and dancing on Thursday.

wrestling with wrestling (3/2019)

Neck bridges and dangerous moves, sitting shoulder to shoulder with the competition's parents, hearing "learn how to mess em up" and "be aggressive and relentless", germs... all things wrestling really messes with a rehab professional whose top Clifton strength is harmony.
WrestIing has seemed inevitable for some time now - he's scrappy,  built like a wrestler,  has friends there,  and doesn't have a brother to wrestle.  I held off for as long as I could until I'd exhausted all other options. (Soccer was on Sundays,  swimming messes with his ears,  tennis bores him,  and flag football isn't cool for too much longer.) 

Until jack and Dave have created their own ultimate frisbee league... 

... I'm stuck wrestling with wrestling.

flip, twist, rip in Fargo (5/2019)

For the first year of diving,  I sat anxiously on the sidelines- hoping that my presence would somehow prevent a Greg Louganis- like accident.  She loved it and when she accomplished a dive,  it really was pretty. She was hooked and her parents were too. In fact,  her dad's a little jealous.  He's quoted as saying,  "it's weird when your kids can do things you can't. " Her best and fave dive is the the reverse and she's now able to do a double consistently.  It's a cute group of gals and shes looking forward to being part of the high school team. Her first diving competition was the USDA 2019 regionals in Fargo - she conquered her nerves and landed every dive.

Grandpa and grandma tagged along. Did we do a little sightseeing in the land north of normal? "you betcha"