Goblin Valley

This week was spring break for the kids so we decided to take the family camping to Goblin Valley. The kids and I have never been, but Brett has been for the past several years with the boy scouts. It is a fascinating place. It was cold at night and pleasant during the day. We enjoyed having our cousins with us. A big thanks to Terry and Annette (Brett's dad and mom) for everything they provided. I think we'll invite you on more camping trips :).

Here are some pictures from the week:

This picture cracks me up. This is how you try and get cell coverage. Just climb up the back of the trailer. I'm pretty sure that the higher you are the more likely you are to catch a signal....

This is Stitch. He pretty much goes everywhere we go. On the way down to Goblin Valley, I told Ryan that we should start taking pictures of stitch and make a book called "The Adventures of Stitch". So, here is our first shot at making the book. I'm pretty sure it will be a treasure, and hopefully we will have Stitch for many years to come.

I am very blessed to have such great kids. Ryan and Sydney are not just brother and sister. They are great friends. I am so thankful for that

Brett is a pretty good photographer even if I do say so myself. He's got a pretty cute kid to capture too.

It's rare that Brett is seen with the kids in a picture. I hope that one day I will change all of that...

This is ME - Close to flying

On Friday morning we took a hike up a slot canyon. It was VERY cool.

Sydney Look alike meter

MyHeritage: Family tree - Genealogy - Celebrity - Collage - Morph

Berger Look-alike Meter

MyHeritage: Look-alike Meter - Geneology - Family history

Reminiscing

I hit the jackpot the other day when trying to figure out how to look at some files on a CD through Linux, which thanks to my personal IT Dept, I found out that the CD was in fact BLANK. Anyway, I found these pictures and since it's still the month of March, I'm going to indulge myself in posting them. They are all of Ryan when we were in the hospital in LA. Maybe you've seen them, maybe not.

Ryan before transplant 2/9/08

Ryan's Room

Ryan on chemotherapy. You can tell he doesn't feel too good. Miraculously though he was extremely well behaved. I think I may have screamed a bit more.

The Big Day
Ryan is just finishing his bath, given by Paul - a favorite of ours

This is what he looked like during the infusion. Since I couldn't be there, I have no idea where they were in the process. I do know it was being infused, and I assume this is just after his blood pressure sky rocketed.

Here it is - we call it the miracle juice. Out of 36 oz of marrow that was taken from my hip, this is what was left to give to him. Kinda crazy!

This is what you look like after you donate bone marrow. If the doctors tell you that you might feel some slight discomfort, the are LYING! You feel a LOT of discomfort. Man, I'm attractive.

Favorite Daily Activities

1 - Reading books

2 - Smiling

3 - Flossing gums with IV line

And...when you are stuck in a hospital room 24/7 you have to get your laughs somehow. Even Ryan thought it was funny that he could no longer bathe in the small bath.

I'm pretty sure this Easter Bunny is on steroids. It looks just like Ryan I know he was on steroids in this picture

There you have it. Kind of fun to look back. It all seems surreal, but it was VERY real.

Getting Better with age

The other night I was perusing through some old photos and I found a picture of some friends that is several years old. I'm guessing 6 years??? Jolayne can probably let me know if I'm wrong because I'm pretty sure the baby in the picture is Misha. Anyway, it is always nice to see old pictures and I think we are all looking better the more we age.
Looking at this photo also makes me miss our good friends. Maybe one day we will venture out to Colorado to see Chris and Jolayne, and who knows maybe we'll actually call Josh when we are in Arizona this time if we are close to his area.

Counting Blessings instead of....Cows

Today I took Sydney on a Bike ride to Salem Pond. The ride is almost 7 miles one way. We usually ride out there and have a picnic lunch and Syd plays on the swings, etc at the park, then we come home. Today we saw several animals on our route. As we passed each set of livestock Sydney would yell out "Hi Cows, Hi Llamas, etc"

We got to the park and ate our lunches. I pushed Sydney on the swing and told her that we had about 10 minutes to play before we needed to head home to be here in time for Ryan to come home from school. Right about the time I said that a group of handicapped children arrived at the park. There were about 6 of them and they each had a leader with them. I think they ranged in age from 5-6 years old. One child was blind and they were teaching him to walk with a stick. They others had pretty severe handicaps and they were getting some physical therapy by trying to lift their legs to climb the stairs. I was standing near a slide that has a wooden bridge connected by chains that spans from the steps to the actual slide. Each leader helped the children across the bridge and I told them I would catch them as they came down. The kids squealed with delight as they slid down the very short slide. They all had smiles on their faces and I marveled at what could put a smile on a face of a child.

As we left the park I silently thanked God for my many blessings. I have two healthy happy children. They can walk, they can talk, they can see, they can hear. There are so many things that I take for granted every day. I tend to get discouraged over my imperfections, and then I have an experience like I had today and it all gets put back into perspective.

7 Years ago today

Seven years ago today, I realized how important the sense of touch was. Ryan was 3 weeks post transplant and Brett and I were allowed to remove our gowns, masks and gloves. I'll never forget the feeling of having skin contact with our son again. We went over a month without it. I know that many others have it much worse, but I am so grateful for the miracle of that day. Here are some pictures to commemorate the day.

The Things I like to do - The perspective of a 4-year-old named Sydney

After being chastised by Sydney about not writing things down, I promised her that I would go home and let her tell me the things she likes to do at age 4. This is what she said:

• I like to play with my brother.
• I like to play with my mom and dad
• I like to play with my friends
• I like to ride my bike
• My favorite food is Pizza
• My favorite movie is "High School Musical I and II"
• My favorite song is anything High School Musical and I love "Stupid ol Pickup Truck" by Taylor Swift
• My favorite shoes are my princess shoes (she wears her brown knee-high boots with EVERYTHING though)

So, there you have it. A couple of years from now when she wants to know what she did when she was 4, I will turn back to this handy blog entry.

Didn't you write it down?

Today Sydney and I took the Camry to get the oil changed. As we were driving, Syd was asking me questions about what Ryan did when he was 4. I was only half way paying attention and I said "I don't know," to which she promptly replied "Well, didn't you write it down?" I think I have been called to repentance by my 4-year-old.

ABC's of ME

A - Attached or single: Uhh, Attached. I don't ever want to be single again.
B - Best friend: Brett
C - Cake or pie: Pie...I guess. Don't really like either.
D - Day of choice: Any day that I finish a triathlon. It makes the training seem much more worth it.
E - Essential item: Anything that helps in the kitchen. I'm a sucker for kitchen gadgets.
F - Favorite color: Purple, However, right now I think my favorite color combination is pink and brown.
G - Gummy bears or worms: Worms.
H - Hometown: Heber, AZ - aka - the middle of NOWHERE
I - Indulgence(s): hot bath, time for myself
J - January or July: Both - I love the seasons. I love the reflection of January, but also love having warm weather once July rolls around.
K - Kids: Two - the greatest kids a mom could ask for. Thanks Ryan and Sydney
L - Life is incomplete without: My family, the gospel, and a good pair of running shoes
M - Marriage date: April 24, 1997
N - Number of siblings: 5
O - Oranges or apples: How can you choose one? I love apples fresh from the orchard, and oranges too. Too bad we don't have an 'Orange Patch' in UT.
P - Phobias or fears: Losing Brett or my kids. Having to have knee replacement surgery.
Q - Quotes: The grass is not greener on the other side - The grass is greener where it is watered!
R - Reason to smile: A clean house, funny things the kids say, a healthy body
S - Season of choice: Spring/Fall - Not too hot/Not too cold
T - Tag three (or four) friends: Hmm, I'll pass on this one. I have no idea who even reads this thing
U - Unknown fact about me: If I told you, it wouldn't be unknown now would it?
V - Very favorite store: Cafe Rio - Is that a store? It sells food...
W - Worst habit: beating myself up....I'm bad at it
X - X-ray or ultrasound: Ultrasound
Y - Your favorite food: Ooohh, that's a hard one. I love Mexican food and Chinese

Z - Zodiac sign - Libra

Hobblecreek Canyon

I had forgotten how good it felt to run Hobblecreek Canyon. On Saturday, Ron and I drove up the canyon 6 miles and ran home to Terry and Annette's house. I absolutely love that run. Ron was gracious and followed my pace. I was sore for the rest of the week. I usually worry about my knees, ok, so I did worry about my knees, but they were fine during and after the run. By Sunday the rest of my body was so sore I could hardly walk. I will just have to run more often so that doesn't happen.

Catching UP

Last week Shane and Ron visited us from Texas. We took Ron ice fishing on Thursday and I think we are the wrong group of people to go fishing together. We didn't catch a thing. Well, Ron "caught" a couple, courtesy of some other groups out on the lake. It's a running joke around our house because every time we go fishing Terry, Brett's dad goes to Sportsman's Warehouse to buy bait. EVERY trip he ends up talking to some "old boy" (Terry's words) and they tell him the 'bait' to use. EVERY trip he spends 15-20 bucks on this 'miracle bait' and we never catch a thing on it. We usually catch fish with a trusty ol' worm, which I HATE to touch, but I'm getting better.

As we were getting ready to go out on the lake Terry befriended a 'professional' fisherman. Smart guys I think. They tout their stuff and get a free ride across the lake to their 'special' spot. I keep thinking that I'd love to mock them until my throat is sore, but they caught fish, and I didn't so they must be doing something right. We spent the day watching our poles very carefully only to leave empty handed. Ron proved that he would be a great candle maker as he lowered his pole and raised it several times only to have ice build up on his line. I've never seen so much ice buildup on a line.

When we got bored, we would go out on the snowmobiles. I no longer enjoy riding the dang things. There's something about flipping one that makes a person not want to get back on. At about 1pm we started packing up to go home. Terry and Ron were out on the snowmobiles so Brett and I put everything up and just laid by the sled that Terry has made to put all of the gear in. When they returned we hooked it on to the snowmobile. Terry asked me to go to the 'professionals' tent and let them know we were leaving.

As I approached their tent I said "knock, knock". They opened up the little zippered door and I let them know we were leaving. The guy said, "Well, are you going to pull us back with your sled?" I told him he needed to get ready because we were leaving right then. I wanted to tell him - It's not a sled - it's a S-N-O-W-M-O-B-I-L-E! Oh well! We took our stuff back to the truck and Terry and Brett went back to take them closer to shore. They didn't take their tent down! I wish I would have been watching as these men were trying to hold on to their tent as they moved their way back across the lake. I was too busy taking off my snow pants, boots, etc.

All in all we had a pretty fun day, even though we didn't catch a fish.

Sydney's new room

Today while Brett is out snowmobiling, I thought I would put Sydney's room back together. I have been painting it for a while and now it is finally back to where she can sleep in it again. Here are a few pictures of the before and after

Before:

After:

Next project: The front room aka Brett's office

"Mom, I pee like a boy!"

Tonight after Family Home Evening we were getting the kids ready for bed when I heard Ryan screaming - "She did it! She did it!" I went into the hallway and I asked him what Sydney did. He said "She peed standing up." Shortly behind Ryan came Sydney - She was so proud. She said she just spread her legs a little bit more and she peed standing up. Now that's a proud mommy moment.

Happy Birthday Bone Marrow

Today we celebrated Ryan's 7th Bone Marrow Birthday. We sent him on a scavenger hunt for a Nintendo game that we had purchased several months ago. He was really excited and played for a while. He complained of a stomach ache so we gave him some breakfast and I think he felt better. I am forever in awe that we have traveled the rocky road of a bone marrow transplant and that Ryan is a healthy, happy boy. He is very special to us.

So, to Ryan - Happy Bone Marrow Birthday, Happy Birthday!

Wedding Bells

On Sunday Ginger, my brother-in-law's fiancee' called to tell me that they received their letter from the First Presidency. her previous sealing was canceled, but she has not been cleared to be sealed for a year. So, she and Brian have decided to get married. She said she knew it would be short notice, but she would love to have us there. She handed the phone to Brian and he said they are getting married on Thursday. I said - uh, as in THIS Thursday? He said, yes as in the 28th of February. Well, unfortunately, we are busy all weekend and we will not be able to make the trek to AZ for the wedding. I am very sad about that, but we just can't swing it this time. I wish all the best to Brian and Ginger for the many years to come.

Hinckley Challenge

A few weeks ago my sister Kati sent me a link to a challenge to read the Book of Mormon in 97 days in honor of President Hinckley's life. I was very close to finishing the book, so I was a few days late in starting the challenge that started on February 4th. So far I have done well in keeping up. Whomever put the site together has a cool little link that charts your progress. Hopefully I can get it to work on here...

Peanut Butter and Jelly and Plastic

For years now I have given Brett a little "surprise" from time to time in his lunch. This is not a normal occurrence, I've only surprised him three times in 11 years, although I think if I did it more often, he might get irritated and stop begging me to make him a sandwich in the mornings before he leaves for work. Well, today Brett was teasing me before he left for work and I decided it was a "surprise" day.

Wonder what the surprise is? Well, it is simple boys and girls. It is just a small piece of saran wrap that fits quite nicely in between a couple pieces of bread. It's large enough that he doesn't choke, but small enough not to be seen. I was very kind today, much more so than in the past and I put a paper towel in his bag so he could wipe off his hands. This works much better with ham or turkey, because once you take a bite, the lunch meat just slips right out.

I e-mailed Brett after lunch to see how his "swim" was and he caught right on. He told me he didn't swim, but rather he went to lunch with his boss. I told him he was lying... he tried that trick last time he was plasticized. He said I could e-mail his boss if I didn't believe him. So, I logged into his work e-mail and to get his boss' e-mail address and I saw that his boss had gone home early because he was sick. HA! Now I knew he was lying. I called his bluff and he told me that his coworkers were laughing at me. Ahh, that will teach him not to give me crap in the mornings.

Everyday Miracles

Recently I re-read the talk that President Henry B. Eyring gave at the October 2007 General Conference. He stressed the importance of writing in our journals. He recommended posing the question "Have I seen the hand of God in my life today?" I have pondered that question so much in the past couple of weeks. Sometimes stress seems to run high and I find myself wondering that very thing - Have I noticed, or even recognized God's hand in my life? Well, today as we traveled to Strawberry Reservoir to ice fish as a family, I thought to myself that I should watch a little better and recognize His hand in my life.

Around noon Ryan and I needed to use the restroom. Brett told me that if I followed lake around quite a ways to the right, I would see the boat dock and then the Marina and there should be a restroom that we could use. As I circled around the lake I saw the boat dock and a few trailers up near them. I assume that the trailers were the buildings that Brett was talking about. I drove the snowmobile near the fence and figured I would have to go around back to get to the buildings. I headed around the fence and got to a very deep part of snow.

The snowmobile I was riding did not go in reverse, so I figured I was at a point of no return and I would need to make it down the side of the mountain to get to where I needed to go. We were on a slant and we just kept getting closer and closer to a fence that had barbed wire at the top. The snow was so deep that the fence was almost completely covered, so it was mostly barbed wire that you could see. I just kept praying that we would be safe. We got about 2 feet away from the fence and I had Ryan get off the snowmobile. I kept the gas on and tried to steer the machine to a safe distance where we could get back on and make it down the hill. I got to a point where I thought it was safe to get back on and had Ryan get on, then I started to move again. Just as we started moving the snowmobile flipped on its side and Ryan and I both flew off. Ryan was scared, but acting very brave. He was worried that I was hurt, but thankfully, I wasn't. A little 11 year old girl came over to help me. Her family lives up there in the trailers and she and her brothers were sledding down the hill on the other side of the fence. She was such a sweetheart. She kept offering to call for help, but I just wanted to get the snowmobile back on its belly.

After rocking it several times and trying different positions with her pushing from one side and me pulling from the other, I suggested we have a prayer that we might get the snowmobile back in working position. We tried again and were so close, so I suggested that we try one last time. At last, we got it back up.

I tried starting the machine and it wouldn't start. By that time her cousin had come back to the house and she ran for help. While she was gone I said another prayer and asked that we could please get the snowmobile started and get safely off the mountain hill. A few pulls later, I got the machine started and sent her brother to tell her we were safe and off the mountain.

When we got home we were getting ready for bed and Ryan said "Mom, we experienced two miracles today." I said, "Yes, son we did." He said, "I could have been hurt really badly when the snowmobile flipped on its side."

He was right. We were so blessed that the snowmobile didn't roll and trap him underneath. I get teary just thinking about it. We could have easily been hurt or even killed. So, today as we traveled home, I thank my Heavenly Father for giving me strength and another every day miracle.

Valentine's Day

Each year for Valentine's Day, the tension can be cut like a knife around here. Brett has always felt like he shouldn't have to show me he loves me on that day because he shows me year round. While the latter is true, I have always been a little bit disappointed, ok a lot bit disappointed by the end of the evening. Well, this year Brett decided to surprise me. I fixed dinner and during dinner Ryan said something about not telling me what my Valentine's Day present was. I kind of looked at Brett and he scolded Ryan for saying anything. I guess he had spilled the beans to Ryan on the way to school. He figured that since it was the big day and the package was set to be delivered that he was safe. Ryan didn't tell me "what", but at that point I knew there "might" be something. Brett kept checking the computer throughout the afternoon, and I just figured he was checking e-mail etc. After 6pm, we realized that the package was not coming...whatever the package was. Brett was so frustrated. I was razzing him because nothing had come and it was just like every other year. He called me over to the computer and showed me the tracking number of the flowers that he purchased on JANUARY 22nd! He told me he loved me and that for Valentine's Day he got me a tracking number - HA - Poor Brett. I was excited on Friday when the flowers came. I think it has been over 4 years since I have received flowers from Brett. I had forgotten how good it felt. - Thanks Brett!

The card war

Last year Brett bought a great card for me for our anniversary

Then, on Mother's Day, he bought another great card

So, for Brett's birthday I found this card. If you don't find the humor in it, just ask Brett what happened when he tried to lick the beaters when he was a teenager and forgot to unplug the mixer....

Here is the card I got him for Valentine's Day. I have to have proof of what the card really says just in case he decides to blog about it himself. (I Want to FLY!!!)

While I don't think anything can beat the first card, I'm pretty impressed with myself and my card picking this year. We'll see what Brett is able to pull of in the future...

Girls Night Out

Last Friday I was invited to watch Pride and Prejudice with Emily and her mom Susan and sister Amy. It was a great night had by all. While the movie itself is a mere six hours, I think it was a must to set up all of the characters and the plot of the story. I think I need to read the book now. Sister Breinholt (Susan) bought Cafe Rio for all of us and Emily bought some pastries from Kneaders. As I ate the delicious food, I wondered how much I would have to work out so that I didn't have to lose a pound or two. Ahh, oh well. It was worth being able to get away from the kids for a night and enjoy some good company.

Thanks Brett for being such a great guy and watching the kids so I could go...

33 Years and counting

Today Brett celebrated his 33rd birthday. I did what any good wife would do and I e-mailed the guy who sits next to him at work and his manager giving them a heads up. They sang Happy Birthday to Brett and he was pretty embarrassed. I think I did my job :).

We didn't do too much for Brett's birthday. We had purchased a copy of Rayman Raving Rabbids for the Wii back in October and just saved it for the big day.


I also purchased some nutrition bars and some shampoo that takes chlorine out of your hair.
Brett is swimming three times a week and it takes about 3 showers to get the chlorine out, so I thought I'd buy some shampoo and see how that works. He informed me that he was going to buzz his head, so maybe I'll just take the shampoo and use it myself. We made a basket full of his gifts and sent him on a treasure hunt throughout the house to find it. I had him stumped a little bit and he kept asking the kids where the clues were. He must think I'm really stupid. I didn't tell the kids where the clues were. Sydney did do a great job of keeping a secret as to where the treasure actually was hidden though. I was proud of her.

We sure appreciate having Brett in our home. He is a great dad and a great husband. I appreciate his friendship and the hard work he puts in for our family. Happy Birthday Brett!!

Date Night

Saturday was our date night with the kids. It was my turn to have Ryan and he wanted to go bowling. So, we went to BYU and put our name on the list for a lane. The wait was about 25 minutes so we just watched others bowl.

Ryan felt like he knew quite a bit about bowling because he attended the Young Men's activity where they had a member of our ward talk about the basics of bowling for the bowling merit badge. He candidly talked about what the bowlers should be doing to get a strike. I was very entertained by his antics.
We were sitting behind a couple that was obviously dating. She couldn't roll the ball without shrugging her shoulders and smiling like a fool. Even Ryan noticed as he said "Wow Mom, a lot of people are dating around here." I got a good laugh out of that because after all we were on a college campus.

We finally got our chance to bowl. Ryan started out using their ramp, but soon figured he was grown up enough to do it on his own. I think he did a pretty good job.


Here are some pictures of the night:



After bowling we went to the grocery store. It always feels good to go shopping and come out with tons of stuff for not so much money. I had some rainchecks from Albertson's and got a few things from Smith's. I haven't used my coupons in a while, but I did Saturday and came out quite nicely. We even had a little bit of money left over from our date, so I let Ryan buy two packs of gum because I had a B1G1 coupon. He was thrilled that we had money left over.

I enjoy going out with the kids. On our way to BYU, Ryan talked to me about wanting to go on a mission. He made the comment that he hoped he could always make good decisions so he could serve a mission. I think that is pretty impressive for a 7 year old.

Evan's Baptism

On Saturday our family went to our little friend Evan's baptism. It is amazing how quickly time flies by. It seems that it wasn't all that long ago that we were all praying for Emily and Evan while they were in the hospital shortly after Evan's birth. I remember so clearly, Ben coming over to our house because Emily was in the ICU. It was a scary time. I also remember feeling so blessed that Emily's mom was able to come to UT from her mission in New York to be with Emily at such a critical time. At one point we were all invited to pray at a certain time of day. The spirit was so strong during that moment of prayer and thankfully 8 years later Ben and Emily have 4 beautiful children. It was great to see all of Ben and Emily's family members who attended the baptismal service. There is a lot of talent there, and a lot of love for each other between families.

After the baptism, we went to the Williams' home and watched President Hinckley's funeral. Then home to relax.

I Thank Thee O' God for a Prophet

With the passing of President Hinckley last week, I personally have spent some time pondering and even reading several articles regarding church policy on several issues. As many know, yesterday a new prophet for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints was announced at 11am MST. Sydney gets out of preschool at 11am so I picked her up a little early so I could be home for the announcement. Many people assumed the new prophet would be Thomas S Monson, and their assumptions proved correct. President Henry B. Eyring and Dieter F Uchtdorf were also announced as the new counselors to President Monson. As I stood my bedroom and watched these marvelous men, I couldn't help but be, as President Uchtdorf said, joyfully overwhelmed. My eyes welled up with tears and my heart was full of gratitude for a loving Heavenly Father, who in his infinite wisdom, has set up such an organization. The work of the Lord is moving forward, and the kingdom of God is being built here upon the earth.

One of the media outlets posed the question about the church being an international church, with more of its members being outside the US than inside. They asked if the calling of President Uchtdorf was to show that the church wanted to represent more international members. President Uchtdorf responded that the Quorum of the 12 Apostles, and the First Presidency, did not represent one particular group of people, rather they are representatives of Jesus Christ. I was very moved by that response. It touched me and solidified my testimony that we are here on the Lord's errand. I think that sometimes it is hard to realize the eternal perspective of things, but events such as what happened yesterday help us realize that God knows each individual. He knows what the people of this world need and all we need to do is turn to him and he will direct our paths.

Parable of a Princess

Tonight the Young Women had their annual Values Conference to honor the young women who finished their personal progress. I have to admit, I really didn't want to go. I could have really used a break this week with young women's, but I am so glad I went. The Stake asked a few people to come and present a program called the Parable of a Princess by Jenny Phillips. There was a story about three princesses who were asked by their father to build a castle so that he could return to them and visit. He told them that there was a line that they could not cross, for if they did the enemy would get them. He also gave them a book and told them that if they would read the book they would remember Him as he would be gone for a long time. One day the princesses took a walk in the forest and found a mirror. One of the princesses was very beautiful. She had long shiny black hair and shiny blue eyes. She had a slender body frame and was stunning. Another Princess wasn't as beautiful. Her brown hair wasn't as shiny, and her eyes were brown, not blue like her sisters. She also had a slightly larger body frame. The last sister was the least beautiful of all.

The story continues and each princess lives their lives differently. It goes on to tell about the princess who crosses the line into enemy territory. She thought she would automatically be hurt by the enemy so she only went a few steps at a time. She entered into a castle where there were people laughing and dancing and having a good time. They all dressed beautifully and she thought to herself that her father had mistaken her. There was no enemy that was taking her down. Over time she started to realize that what she was doing was poisoning her. As she tried to leave, she couldn't. She had a shackle and chain around her ankle that did not allow her to leave. She started to call out to her father and her brother was sent to rescue her. He suffered much to allow her to leave enemy territory and return to the right side to finish her castle.

The second princess that was not as beautiful as the first was obsessed with the mirror they found in the forest. She continually changed the way she dressed and filled her life with many things. As she did she was unable to finish her castle.

The third princess worked hard on her castle. Her hands were worn from the chiseling she did to the mortar and rock. While she was not the most beautiful on the outside, the townspeople loved her. She served the community and helped others build their castles.

The day finally came that a familiar voice was heard in the land. While it was not the Father who had returned to greet his princess daughters, it was His Son, their brother, heir to the throne. He greeted each of them and thanked them for what they had done on their castles. The first princess hadn't stared early, but since she was rescued from her brother, she had worked so hard to build her castle. The second princess apologized that her castle wasn't built. She had just gotten too busy. The third princess was working on the interior of her castle when she felt a familiar hand on her shoulder. She recognized her brother and he said to her "Well done thou good and faithful princess." She apologized that her castle wasn't completed and he told her not to worry that he would do the rest. She saw a beautiful light rest upon her and her castle was lifted into the heavens. As she looked up, she saw her father, tears streaming down his face. He embraced her and welcomed her back into his presence.

Many of us know this story and it is to you who read this that I ask, How is your castle? I know that mine needs a lot of work. For years I was the princess on the other side of the line in the magnificent castle that had fun and laughter. For a time I was the princess that was obsessed about my life and too busy for the things that are most important.

Since my sister passed away, I have realized more than ever how fragile life is. At any moment I could be taken from this earth to the eternity that awaits all of us. I know more now than I ever have that our lives are a gift from God. My castle is still in need of work, but the king, prince, and princess that live here will hopefully be blessed because I am trying so hard to build the walls that will keep the enemy out.

My castle will one day be the castle of the third princess.

White Strips

We had such an eventful morning this morning. A very noteworthy one anyway. We were out of milk, so I made toast for the kids and gave them some yogurt to go with it. Ryan asked me if my virus was gone that made me have a yellow spot on my tooth. I kind of looked at him funny and he said, you know, you eat yogurt so your virus can be gone. I remembered that I had told him I needed some yogurt that would help the virus on my lip. He obviously thought it helped much more than my lip. I explained that yogurt helped cold sores, not spots on teeth. I asked him if the spot on my tooth bothered him and he said, "Yeah, can't you get white strips to make it go away?" Ahhh, out of the mouth of babes. I do have a spot on my tooth. It was apparently caused by a virus that I contracted when I was an infant/toddler. I guess I will have to see about getting it whitened so my son isn't so bothered by it....

Can We take the Wii to Grandma's?

This morning as I was getting the kids ready for school I told Ryan that Grandpa Berger was going to pick him up after school so he shouldn't walk home. Both kids were curious as to why I would not be home so I explained to them that we were going to meet with a lawyer to set up our will and trust. I then went on to explain to them what all of that meant. They both seemed to be alright with the answer I gave them and they continued to eat their breakfast. As we were walking out the door to take Ryan to school, Sydney asked if she could take the Wii to Grandma's. I asked her when she would like to do that. She said, "if you die." I answered "Yes, if I die, you can take the Wii to Grandma's." Then, Ryan in his wisdom firmly told Sydney that we probably wouldn't even have the Wii when mom and dad die. Thankfully, my son can see much clearer than my daughter and he is usually around to help me come back down to her level.

DHL does not just pick up small packages

This morning at about 7:30am Sydney and I heard a very loud MEOW. We looked out on the porch and sure enough, a poor little black cat wanted to come in and shelter itself from the elements. The wind was bitterly cold and I knew I had a decision to make. I could let the cat in and try to find its owner, or I could leave it out on the porch. Sydney thought I was so inhumane for not letting the poor little kitty in the house. I however only felt 'slightly' bad. Since I didn't want to be the big meanie, I did what any good mom would do and I had her call her dad :). He did just what I thought he would do and told her 'No' to bringing in the cat. Alas, I was not the meanie after all. We were just following orders .

Well, here it is 2:30 and the DHL driver shows up to pick up an envelope that we are shipping to AZ. To my surprise - THE CAT IS STILL ON THE PORCH!!!

We now have a bigger problem than I thought. I instructed the gentleman not to let the cat in the house because it did not belong to me. So, he graciously shut the door in its face. As he was leaving he asked if I would like him to take it with him. I agreed. I'm not sure if I'm the hero or not, but I no longer have a cat on my doorstep. He assured me he would just drop it off outside the neighborhood. I guess we'll see if we end up with it another day.

A Few of My Favorite Things

Today I thought I would just post a few of my favorite things(people, etc), and things that I am most thankful for.

Ryan and I went to a birthday party of one of his friends today. Evan Williams. Evan is the son of Ben and Emily Williams, friends of ours from BYU days. The Williams' are some of my favorite people. I don't think I have smiled that much in a very long time. The kids went to Kangaroo Zoo, an indoor kids wonderland that has several blow-up things that you jump around on. They played tag and it was fun to watch Ben and Emily's sister Amy get winded while being chased. I didn't pay to get in because I left my wallet at home, so I was only able to watch. Emily's parents were also there and I have to say, they too are some of my favorite people. A tradition in their family is to put an almond in the cake. Whomever gets the almond gets a prize. Emily put several almonds in Evan's cake so that each kid would likely get one. Their traditions are some of my favorite things, and I realized that I need to do more fun things with my kids.

Another of my favorites is Cafe Rio. Last night Brett and I went to dinner together at Cafe Rio. I love their salads and fairly recently discovered that their tostada is just a miniature salad for about 2 bucks cheaper and it is plenty of food. I thank Brett for taking me there and his parents for watching the kids so we could go.

Another favorite is reading with my kids. Sydney is much less patient with reading than Ryan is and I absolutely LOVE crawling in bed with Ryan with a good book. He will sit there for hours and listen and he is at the age where he can predict what could possibly happen in the book. I love that he will take the time with me and read. That time is very special.

We recently started splitting the kids and going on dates. It works out great for us because we just have two kids. One week I have Sydney and the other week I have Ryan. We do a single date once a month with the kids, one family date, and two dates where Brett and I go out and do something. Spending our time this way has become one of my favorite things. When I am with the kids one on one, they get a limit of $10 and so far they both have spent it at the Nickle Arcade. It is very much a hole in the wall joint, but the kids love it and I'm getting pretty good at the games that give a lot of tickets so that by the end of the night we get to walk out with a small prize and a few fruity tootsie rolls (another favorite).

While none of these things are raindrops on roses or whiskers on kittens, my life is quite fulfilling with my family and the positive things that we are filling our time with - and that too is a favorite.

Belt of the future

The other day I was helping Ryan with his belt before going to school. The kid can't keep his pants up so a belt is a must, unless of course you can buy pants with an adjustable waist. Anyway, as I was cinching up his belt he told me that the belt of the future would not require that you cinch it with your hands. It would simply be made with electricity and you will just need to push a button and it will cinch for you. Now, if I could just help him invent this handy belt, I'm sure we would be millionaires. I'm positive that everyone would want one.

Amusement Parks and Ice Skating Rinks

Have I ever mentioned that I HATE skating? Last night we took the youth of our ward to the Ice Skating Rink. I detest skating. I'm not good at it. I have horrible balance and I have a huge fear of falling on my knees and making my knee problem go from somewhat getting better to being much worse. If you're wondering what all of this has to do with amusement parks, I'll tell you. It's the same feeling of being completely out of control. I don't like the sensation of a roller coaster, and I hate not feeling balanced on my feet.

Here . is a picture of Ryan. Too bad I didn't have the camera when Brett had the boys with their heads down on the ice.

Bib number 1515 and 1516

Ok, so by now you should know something about me.... I am pretty good about getting people to sign up for things that they think they might like, but in all honesty, they're not very sure about it. To illustrate my point, let me share a story. In July Brett and I participated in the Burley Spudman triathlon. It was great fun. Well, it would have been even better fun if I would have finished my run before Brett finished his. After all, he only beat my by 11 seconds....the race is on ladies and gentleman. Anyway, we came home and talked it up to some friends, and family members. Usually registration begins on December 31st at midnight. This year, a few days before that, we received an e-mail stating that registration would begin on January 7th at noon MST. So, I did what any good friend would do and started calling and e-mailing people. I had numerous dreams that I would not get in to the race and that all of my friends would. Well, the day is finally here. Just before noon I got a phone call. I politely told my friend that I needed to get off of the phone because one of the most important events of the year was about to begin and I needed to be online. I logged on to www.active.com and started the registration process. I tried an hour early and it didn't let me in, so I thought for sure it wasn't going to be turned on until 12:00 sharp. At about 12:07 give or take a few seconds, I got another phone call from a friend that had already gotten in. Her bib number was in the 700s. I not as politely got off the phone because dang it, this was important. When I got to the end of the screen asking for payment, I realized they did not take Discover. CRAP!!! That's the only card I have memorized. So, I tried calling Brett and of course he didn't answer either phone and so I had to run around trying to find my wallet. I found it where it should be...in the van and ran back in the house and entered my payment information. I clicked the submit button and it said "Please be patient, this process could take up to 3 minutes." So, I PATIENTLY sat here staring at my computer screen 1 minute, 2 minutes, 3 minutes, 4 minutes, 5 MINUTES, 6 MINUTES, 7 MINUTES, Oh please, don't let my dream come true MINUTES, 8 MINUTES, NINE MINUTES, Do I refresh the screen? MINUTES - 10 STINKIN' MINUTES!!! - Congratulations, your bib number is 1515 - WHEW! Now the training begins. Next year, I won't be answering the phone, and my credit cards will be near. I think for sure I had an angel watching over me. I don't think she wanted to see me cry today.

Temporary Vacation

For New Year's, our family went on a "temporary" vacation. This, opposed to the other permanent vacations that we normally take. Ryan thought that we needed a winter vacation. I told him that we had spent our money on Christmas and if he wanted me to take his things back, I would and we could go somewhere. He said, "well maybe we can just call Grandma and Grandpa Berger and see if we can stay the night. It will just be a temporary vacation." So, needless to say, we called Grandpa Berger and he agreed that it would be fine if we spent the night at his house in Springville, a mere 8 miles from our own home. The 'temporary' vacation was a good one indeed.