Melinda update

Melinda stayed in our basement for 6 days after her radiation treatment. We could not be near her much and that was hard to do. I am glad she was able to stay in our basement and not be around her kids.

Melinda has been a trooper. I think she has kept up her spirits and been very positive about everything. with that said, I also do believe that it has been very hard on her. Her hormones are out of control, and she gets so very tired. she is learning patience as we all are.

We would love to see everything back to normal and it will be soon. Melinda has great friends, and neighbors. But most of all she has a great husband who takes care of her, loves her and is helping as much as he can along with holding down the full time job, church responsibilities, and taking care of the kids.

We are waiting to hear back from the full body scan that she just had to see if all the cancer cells have been destroyed. in the meantime we are hoping they will be able to get her body to regulate the medicine and feel as though she has a working thyroid.

It will happen we are all sending love to our cute little Melinda. We love you.

SURPRISE Saturday!!!

I look like a glowing Alien, actually it was the scenery that we were trying to get I just had to sneek in.

We decided that since i do not have to go into work every Saturday anymore that Dougand i would take turns do something that is a surprise on Saturdays. I want it to be a Physical activity. Today we decided to go to Mueller Park it was so much fun! we started a little before 8am!!

Our son and his dog, just got to our house on Friday early morning, I was actually able to hug him for the first time in over a year. Yes it felt good to hold him. It is a funny thing that no matter how old they get you still remember the times they needed you so much, the times you held them, kissed the hurts away and just enjoyed the moments. Ahh the memories!! To all the moms out there with sons...enjoy the moments, they slip by really fast and before you know it you are looking at a full grown man.

We decided to go down stairs wake him up at 7am which I am sure he really loved!! He woke up agreed to go and we were on our way.

Can't wait to see what next "Surprise Saturday" will be.

Happy Halloween

I really like Halloween....it is so much fun to dress up and be someone else for a little while. All the grankids came over to our house, except for Shaylee (we missed her a lot) and Jaycee brought 2 of her friends with her. It started raining almost when they got done going around to everyones houses.

I actually had to pick up a person that was flying into Utah for my work...ugh!! I was a little frustrated as i was not able to go around with the kids, by the time i got to the house they were tired and ready to go home. At least I got to hug them all.

Every Day is a new Day!!

It has been a whirl wind for this past couple of weeks. Melinda seems to be doing okay, this is going to be a journey. I only hope that I can give her encouragement and bring out the positive in this situatuion she is faced with.

The calcium in her blood seems to be having a hard time producing the amount it should. She is about 3 weeks away from getting her radiation treatment. where she will not be able to be around anyone for 5 days...with that being said, I am hoping this can turn into a spiritual experience for her. To be alone with only yourself. Finding out who you are, asking questions about where you are headed? What makes you happy? What are your goals? Are the friends you have right now helping you to get where you want to go?

We all have the p0wer to be and become whom ever it is we choose to be. The possibilities are limitless. All we can be sure of is right now. We can write out exactly what we think tomorrow will be like, what people will wear, what they will say to us, what sounds we will hear....and on and on. Just see if it plays out exactly like that.

We only have our moments NOW how we choose to use them is up to us. Melinda is a fitghter and I am so thankful that she has been allowing others to help her in this time of need. It is hard to be the one receiving but she has some really great friends who are taking time out of their busy schedules to prepare Freezer meals for her and her family, and neighbors who are taking the children during the day while travis is at work.

Jaycee our 11 yr.old grandaughter stayed at Melindas house last evening so she could be with her all day today and watch the kids. She is and has been such a blessing to Melindas life and very helpful to her. She is much older and wiser for her years than she looks. She is amazing with the kids. I am sure she has watched her mother give so much love to those she comes in contact with....it is a pay forward kind of thing!

Angelee and I work and are doing what we can to help when we can be there. I am thankful for those neighbors, and friends who are also helping in ways which we can not.

We truly have angels among us.

Alex Boye' Who is that?

Alex Boyé

Who is he? He was born and raised in London, England. We were able to go and see him do a fireside with our cute Shaylee a couple weeks ago.

It was amazing. He has such a passion for what he does. His music touches you. You can feel through his voice the passion he has for bringing out the good and positive in others. He loves the youth and shares his testimoy with everyone he meets. Go check him out!

My Girls

Thinking good thoughts!!

Well we found out that yes in fact my sweet little Melinda does have cancer of her thyroid. It sounds so scarey especially when you say it. When she called I felt a bit of shock, then fear, and then tears.

We still do not have a lot of answers as of yet. She sees a surgeon on Tuesday. There are so many questions, and Melinda is so on top of things and organized that she has a pad of paper with a list of questions that she keeps adding too.

Last evening after attending the womans conference we met up with Janae my #3 daughter and we had a girls day. We went and had dinner then of all places went to Wal-mart. I love my kids, I wish Kevin was here too.

I watched as my 3 daughters laughed and shared memories, thoughts and when they were not looking I said a silent prayer, in Thanks for being able to be their mother and to see the freindships and love that they have for each other.

That is all for today!

The Journey which lies ahead

This is my #2 daughter Melinda. Isn't she beautiful? We are all waiting to hear what the Doctors found with the biopsy they performed on her this last wednesday.

They found a lump on her thyroid and did an ultra sound and also found another one on the other side that they said had them worried. I think the unknown is harder than actually knowing what her journey will be.

Melinda has always shown such strength. When she was in high school I bet her $100. if she stayed away from sugar for 1 year. I seriously did not think she took me serious. Well she not only took me serious but actually found creative ways to accomplish this goal (sugar free candies she could suck on). I was amazed at her strength, when we had family parties she was fine not indulging in the sweet treats. I remember even saying, "You are so strong, I don't know how you are doing this" I even offered that she could have a sweet treat and we would still call it good.

There was no way-she was determined and she did it!! She won the $100.

I have seen her strength and the power of self control she has when she sets her mind to do something. This will be no different. What ever the outcome she will win and fight and beat what ever lies ahead of her, and she will be supported by everyone that loves her.

She is an important part of our family her brother and sisters look up to her. Melinda is always there for any of us, she is honest, a great friend, and listener, an amazing mom, sister and daughter.

Melinda we love you!!!

Grand kids....you gotta love em!!!!

I had so much fun going to Ausitn and Spencers soccer game. They played so well, I was screaming and yelling and not even hardly talking to Angelee (which is hard not to do as she is so fun to talk with) But the boys were on fire!!!! Making goals and blocking kicks, passing the ball, getting inbetween the opposing team and taking off with the ball. It was such fun!

They were all in their team huddle. Oh and their Dad is one of the coaches. I love that.

And I only got 10 misquito bites during the whole game. It started getting dark and Doug and I could hardly tell who was who. Rather than say, "Go Austin" or "Way to go Spencer" We decided "Go green" was good enough.

Guess what it is?

I just want to see how many of you that are reading can identify what the heck this is?



I will wait a few days and then I will tell you.

Have Fun!!!!

updates updates updates

I thought that it has been a while since I posted anything. My foot surgery was a bit more than I had expected. I will try and update you all as this is the big thing in my life right now that I am learning from. This is me the morning we were leaving the house to go to the hospital...hmmm...I look pretty happy for having not eaten anything for hours and hours....I love breakfast, yep Doug and I both get up at 4am shhhhhhhhhhh I know it is not normal. But first thing I have to eat. Yum Yum!!



This next picture we took to try and give us an idea of exactly what my bunion really did look like. If you look real close you can see they wrote on my foot with a purple magic marker the word YES so they would make sure to cut on the right foot.

Hey what is up with this I am still smiling....we had to wait a while for dr. Anderson to get to the hospital. It wouldn't be long now and I will wake up with No more bunion. Little did I realize that this was going to be a bit of a journey.

Doug took such good care of me while I have been recovering he brought me a pear all cut in pretty slices with cottage cheese in the middle. I was trying to hobble out of bed to get the camera, he did not understand what i was doing or saying, he thought the drugs had gotten the best of me. I just wanted to get a picture I thought this was so nice. I love him, he is my best friend.

This is what it looks like as of yesterday afternoon. the stitches have come out and for some odd reason I thought I would be back to my normal activity, but alas it is not so. I have exercises I am to be doing...dugh! they don't seem like much but it was painful putting pressure on my foot. I am being optimistic and I will be walking like normal real soon. I really can't wait this has been much too long for me to just sit and lye down. I guess I am to be learning something from this experience.

Surgery....yikes!!!!

I have these awful bunions on my feet. My left foot is the worst I have to go in this thursday to get surgery they are going to cut my bone in 2 spots and put screws in them. I was told if I did not do it soon then it would only get worse. I decided oh well here goes. It is a joke in the family now because i say that I will be back to doing all the physical activity that I do on a daily basis within few days. The doctor looked at me and first told me to stay off for 3 days then he told me 5 days this last Monday he took it up to 7 days. I jsut think he knows that with my personality I will try to beat the odds. I really don't like to be told that i cant do anything or be in a position where my body wont' allow me too.

Maybe I will try and get a picture before and after....
Later

Guess who this is?

This is my son before he left to go to Hawaii and then onto California to build road ways, decks and work with his hands.

We need more men to want to use their hands, being creative and learning to do good hard labor.

Kevin is our 1 and only son, so we say he is our favorite son. He says he will be home for Thanksgiving this year...maybe we will give him a hair cut? Actually he could do it himself as believe it or not he has his hair styling license. Yep he cuts hair on the side of being a mountain man. I love that he is unique, he has a way of melting my heart.

I went searching and found this picture when he was 4 yrs. old. Isn't he cute?

He always told the truth to this day he really can't tell a lie very well. You can always tell when he tries, usually he just doesn't talk much. But I can be sure if I ever asked him a question and really wanted to know the truth he would tell me.

WOW...I guess this is a day for remembering and being thankful for the blessing of being able to be his MOM!!!

Kevin if you are reading this "I love You"!!!

This world is so beautiful, when I am struggling or having negative thoughts, or experiencing challeges. You could say getting frustrated. Then I realize that the defeat we experience is a temporary setback, and failure is never final Unless we want it to be.

If we take the time to look around and really notice the wonder it will bring a smile to our faces. As we stop worrying about looking silly, or even falling backward by some of the choices we make, we realize. It is neccessary to advance a little and fall backward. Once we experience this we develop confindence, belief and conviction.

We can all begin to notice what we do that is good and the things we can be proud of, no matter how small they may seem. This is something I am learning, "when we hear our mind chattering about what we haven't done right or well. Turn down that volume and turn up the voume to hear the voice that knows the TRUTH about who you are and how you add value to the world".

What kind of vision do you have for yourself?

Embrace it, celebrate it and revel in it! You are the mater piece you create! Have fun!!!

Sick little guy

This is Max...he is one of our dogs. yeah they are like kids since we have no kids left at home. He was so sick last evening. we don't really know what was wrong, but Yorkies seem to have such sensitive stomachs. He was throwing up and all he wated to do was go outside and eat grass, then he would come in and throw it up.
Needless to say we didn't let him out, I tried lying on the floor with a blanke to make him happy. when that didn't work i jsut climbed into bed.
He acts much better today!

My Angels

These three women are amazing...I learn so much from each of them. They have so many talents, strengths and abilites.

Yes they are my three daughters. I am so proud to be their Mom there is not a day that goes by that I do not say a prayer of thanks for them. They bless my life in so many ways, a phone call, a laugh, a direction, a work out partner, a hair style, a friend to confied in, and most of all they show love to me....again what a wonderful day!!!!

A little about me....

Daiseys are my favorite flower. Why?

They usually can grow wild, you can see them in fields blowing in the breeze. They are delicate looking but at the same time a pretty strong blossom. They kind of remind me of being innocent and Free.

As googled "Daisey" this flower is one that is deemed excellant or noble. Another characteristic is "innocence"

I guess this kind of describes me a little bit. I have a story a bit on the wild side....hmmm. I guess you could say I am not the normal person, but what is normal? I love being me finding the innocence in our lives. If we look it is everywhere around us. I do have a strong belief in my Savior "Jesus Christ" this grounds me and gives me purpose.

I believe in paying attention to every detail; the wind blowing, the leaves falling, the smell in the air, the sound of the birds, the sunrising up over the mountains, looking up into the sky (early morning) and seeing the stars glitter, the freedom of being able to walk, jump, twist, turn. The look in my grankids eyes when I explain something to them or kiss them. My own kids when they call me and tell me they love me.

I feel I am a very strong person and yet there is that delicate side to me, that needs to be nurtured and cared for.

My best friend

This is my best friend, he is for better words my better half. He keeps me grounded, I love his wisdom and the strength he has, he loves me...all of my imperfections I think I could say he adores me.

Some days when life gets out of control as it always does (we seem to all have hills and valleys we are faced with) the one constant thing in my life would be my husband.

He loves making things with his hands (very creative), can fix just about anything, he is very neat (picks up after himself, and me sometimes) He has a saying, "everything has a place and everything in its place", still working on that one.

Some day he just may buy a motorcycle, we will strap on our leather and go riding off into the sunset.

He loves music, and amazes me at how one note and he can usually guess the artist and the name of the song. Most importantly he makes me laugh....He is funny, and I am blessed.

SUGAR GLIDER

I have never seen a sugar glider before. It is on Spencers shoulder, they just got them. They have two of them they sleep in the day and like to play at night. They have big eyes, and skin that can fan out a bit under their arms to help them glide when they jump from one thing to another. They eat pellet food, some fruit and the worst is they eat meal worms...yuck! I didn't want to watch them do that.

Their fur is so incredibly soft, but hey do have sharp nails , they are thin but none the less they can scratch you. One of them crawled up Spenders shirt. They try to get where it is dark, they do not like the light.

This is the cage they live in they have a little black bag that hangs down lower they both Love to be in there all curled up where it is nice and dark. When they get mad or scared they bark similar to a dog.

Garden Of Eden

Imagine you actually are able to walk outside your back door and find your way to the garden to the peach tree tree you planted 2 years ago.

Yes it is amazing the peaches have grown and some are ready to pick. I like to find those that are still a little firm (not too soft). Yum...as I take my first bite the flavor is hard to describe. It is so delicious it feels a bit like walking into the garden of eden.
This world is so beautiful how blessed we are!!!

July 24th vacation of sorts

We had fun eating corn and yes black olives...yum...yum
The boys also really enjoyed eating
Shaylee loves to pose for any picture...she is so beautiful. Shane cracked me up, i have a yoga statue he was posing and making fun of it. I think he really in his heart jsut wants to do yoga...tee hee!
This is Dad with 2 of his girls ( I think he was on his tippy toes)

We had fun over the 24th all the grandkids stayed at the house....yep all 6 of them. It is so much fun to create memories.

Sshool Shopping at Park City

Wow can you believe this is me and Pappa with our oldest daughter Angelee...isn't she beautiful? She always makes everyone laugh when ever you are around her you are having fun!
This is Me and Pappa with our two oldest grandaughers Shaylee and Jaycee
Here they are with their Mom...we acutally had a fun day trying on clothes and finding bargains. Angelee has taught them some great principles as far as saving their money and when making a purchase finding the best price.
Jaycee is one that will get you laughing too...she loves life and has a spark in her eye, almost like she has a secret and can't wait to tell you about it.
Shaylee is the oldest grandaughter and loves to talk and talk.....i love that about her, she will always be able to communicate with others and herself if she keeps that up. Shaylee also has a smile that makes you melt when she shares it with you
It is fun to watch them grow up. Life is so good!!!

Yogafit Level 5 Palm Springs July 19-21, 2008

This is Palm Springs California July 19-21, 2008 I flew here to take my level 5 200hr. RYT (registered yoga training). It was a very beautiful city.

Beth Shaw is the one in the white shirt, she started Yogafit in 1993. WOW has it evolved. I have my arm around Tracy she is a master trainer that helps Beth, and an amazing woman. I met some really great people...
This is Beth and Heather...
Connie really had a gift of being able to share her knowledge and her passion for yoga with everyone.

Sandi is on the left she has been my good friend for years...she is a true friend one that I can depend and rely on. She is very wise and tells it like it is. Denise is an amazing woman she teaches for me at 24 hour. Her ability to connet with people and make them feel better is awe inspiring. I can learn alot from these two women.

I only have to more smaller certs to do and I have competed my 200 hrs. that will be a happy day. Yoga has helped me to become more aware of my surroundings - it has also increased my faith in God and helped me to focus more on what I have and am grateful for.

I am learning to love myself my true self and see all of my imperfections and accept them which is a challenge at times as we all speak a bit negatively towards ourselves...Life is a journey one that I am truly enjoying!!!