Happy Halloween!

Here are the top three reasons why I love Halloween...

 

1. Costumes. I love dressing up for Halloween. When I was 11 or 12 my mom bought me a cat mask and even though I hate cats, I liked it because it was such an easy costume. So naturally, I was a cat for Halloween that year and the next, and the next, and the next. To make up for my years of lacking creativity I've tried to stop costume repeating.

 

 

2. Trick or Treating. The only day of the year that it's socially acceptable

 to knock on someone's door and demand candy.  Maybe I'm a little to old for that now....

 

 

but I'm not to old to run around the neighborhood in a costume right? A couple years ago we ran a Harry Potter 5k and if all goes as planned we are doing one this year too!

 

Don't worry, we didn't trick or treat. Okay, maybe just at one house.

 

3. My aunt's annual family Halloween party. Every year she sends out invitations and throws the BEST Halloween party. She decorates her entire house, feeds us lunch and there are always lots of games and yummy treats. I hadn't lived close enough to go until the last few years, but it's now one of my favorite traditions.

 

Last year...

 

 

 

 

and this year...

 

 

 

Check out their awesome family costume. The cat in the hat and things 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 and 9.

If there had been a costume contest I'm sure they would have won.

 

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

 

 

 

 

 

 

A Little Bit of Me

Hello, here's a bit about me...

Me(right) and my sister Anna(left) on campus at the U

 

I'm an undergrad student at the University of Utah. When I was little I knew I wanted to grow up to be a mom and either an artist or a teacher (just to clarify, I'm none of these yet). I decided to get my degree in Elementary Education which is what I'm working towards now. I've taken a few art classes that have me thinking about becoming an art specialist in an elementary school. But for now, I'm too anxious to finish my degree and start teaching, so if I go with the whole art thing it won't be until after I've graduated and taught for a couple years.

 

  I’m the youngest of nine and I think this does a good job of explaining how I feel about it.

 

Okay- I'm kidding. Really, I'm glad my parents didn't base their decision of how many children to have on this because I'm sure they would have stopped before getting to me. I actually do love being the youngest though, and I love being in a big family with lots of people who love and take care of me. I've been an aunt since I was little kid which has been the most fun of all :) My nieces and nephews played a big role in me choosing Elementary Ed. and they continue to bless my life.

 

I also like cooking, running, and fun with family and friends so you might get to hear more about all that if you decide to read my posts!

-Rachel

 

 

Siblings

One of the best things about siblings is that from the moment you are born you have instant friends. You may not always realize you are friends, but in the end siblings really are the people that know you the best.  Who else understands the pains of growing up wearing homemade underwear, getting fined for talking back to your parents, or how much you hated getting up early every day in the summer to do yard work?  Who else remembers the excitement of Christmas mornings (even on years when most of your gifts may have come from the thrift store) and also knows the rules to your own modified versions of games like tag or hide and seek?

My older siblings (Sarah, me, David, Rebecca)

Siblings are the ones who have sat through miles of road trips with you, singing “My Dame had a Lame Tame Crane”.  They know all your deepest secrets, like the fact that just maybe you had to sleep on your parents’ floor until you were thirteen years old.  And while your siblings can tease you relentlessly about things like this, if anyone else teases you they had better watch out.  Because even though he’s only in first grade, your little brother will beat up the third grade boy that chases you at recess calling you “Red Rooster”. 



My favorite playmates (Matt, Dan, me)



If you are lucky enough to have siblings quite a bit younger than you, you get lots of good practice with kids so that you aren’t terrified of changing a diaper when you become a parent.  These siblings are the best self-esteem boost because they look up to you and think you are cool just because you can drive a car and take them to get an ice cream cone.  They also make it possible for you to prolong the fun of childhood.  When you are too old to go trick-or-treating, you still get to go collect free candy, because after all, someone has to take the little kids.

My three little buddies (Top: Jacob & Me, Bottom: Me, Rachel, & Anna) 

Despite having seen you at your best and worst moments, somehow siblings are the ones who end up loving you through it all.  While growing up, there are days you think you can’t wait to move out and be on your own.  Then when that day finally comes, you find you actually miss those crazy siblings and get excited when family get togethers approach. It is great to be with people who know almost everything about you and laugh together about the good old days growing up.  You sometimes even find yourself reverting back to your childhood roles and some of you might gang up on a sister to throw her in a lake (only now you are mature enough to at least give her a life jacket first).  It is then you realize that not only are these people your family, they are also your best friends. 

-Elizabeth

Happy Cranioversary!

What is a cranioversary you ask? Well it is like an anniversary in that it happens once a year, and the cranio part of the word is for craniosynostosis. So putting them together means that we have hit our one year mark since Kason's cranio surgery. Whoa! Where did the time go? It seems like yesterday it was October 22, 2013 when he was just 9 weeks old and we were handing him over to the anesthesiologist for brain surgery. As I think back on that day, to me, my life seemed to be shattering into pieces uncontrollably, and there wasn't anything I could do to stop it. I was angry, sad, stressed, and above all, scared.  I was scared out of my mind. I didn't feel old enough to be the responsible parent signing surgery consent forms and getting insurance squared away. I felt like I should be the kid and my mom should have been taking care of all of that.  But no, I was the adult with the new baby.  I was the new mom who didn't have a clue as to what was going on, I was the new mom that was angry that it was her baby who needed major surgery. I had no idea what to expect.  I haven't spent too much time in hospitals, I have never had surgery, it scared me to not know what was going to be happening to my sweet baby boy. So there we were shiny brand new parents sitting in a hospital waiting room while people who were complete strangers operated on our baby. Don't get me wrong, our surgeons were wonderful, and we had heard great things about them, but we really didn't know them or know their ability to operate on such a fragile human being.  And that was scary to me. I spent the entire hour and half hoping and praying that they were skilled surgeons and that they would see my baby through. And they did.

 That night I spent in recovery with Kason was probably one of the longest nights of my life. I have spent many nights before and after that night with Kason, but none have compared to that night.  Only one parent could stay the night. I knew that parent was supposed to be me, but I have a confession, I didn't want it to be me. I wanted it to be Jake.  I was scared to be left alone with our post-op baby all night without Jake's help.  I was scared to touch or hold him because he was in so much pain. I knew that since I was his mother it was expected of me to comfort him because he was hurting, but I was scared that I wouldn't be able to do that. I was scared that Kason wouldn't be comforted by me and then I would really feel like a failure.  But I sucked it up and stayed the night. I laid awake most of the night listening to the beeping of Kason's monitor that indicated that he was still alive and well. When I did manage to sleep I was either awakened by Kason crying or by the nurses that came in several times that night to give him more pain medications and check his vitals. It definitely was a long night, but it was where I needed to be.

A few hours after surgery

Just after the pain meds kicked in....finally!

This experience  has changed me in a few ways. In my post- "Kason's Cranio" I mentioned that I wasn't grateful for our trial. I wasn't ready to be. But now, I am grateful.  It has made me more grateful in many ways. I am grateful now that it was craniosynostosis. Cranio is very curable, some children and parents don't get that. I am grateful in that it made me realize that I can handle tough situations, especially when they are not ideal. It has made me grateful for a loving Heavenly Father who helps us through those trials.  He comforted me, protected Kason, saw Kason through surgery, and gave us little reminders that he hadn't left us.

Since I am writing as a celebration of one year since surgery, I should probably put in a happy paragraph about Kason now. Kason is now 14 months old and is sweet little guy.  He is still so happy and friendly. He runs around like an Olympic runner ( I can barely keep up with him!) He is doing what little boys do I guess, getting into trouble and getting lots of scrapes and bruises. He still loves playing with balls.  He loves to play basketball with his dad. He also loves anything with a motor, cars, trucks, four-wheelers, boats, and tractors. He loves to make the "Vroom" noise whenever he sees anything that makes that noise.  He is very good at giving hugs and kisses when he is in the mood and slows down long enough to want to. He also unfortunately loves to play in the toilet. Ugh....what a mess! He is so bright and smart. We love him to death, he makes our home bright (for the most part!)

He loves watching Utah football games with Dad

He loves tractors because they say "Vroom!"

He is so big now! Look at the round head!

-Brianne

Car Problems!

In my family I am known as the sibling who has many adventures with cars (some people may call them problems). From flat tires to hitting a dead deer, you name it I have most likely done it! You may ask how does someone manage to hit a non-moving object such as a dead deer, you are not alone. Many people have asked if it just came out of nowhere and died right in front of me. I don’t really have an answer other than it just happened! I have had my car break down on the freeway, run out of gas, car accidents (yes plural), parking tickets, and speeding tickets. One thing that I have noticed though with each of these adventures is that there has always been someone to help me. Whether it has been a random person who stopped to help change a tire, a friend who is willing to come pick me up when my car won’t start or my family who has come to the rescue I have never gone without help.

One incident in particular was a time I was driving back from a friend’s wedding.  I was about 20 miles away from my exit when I looked down and realized I was almost out of gas. I had the thought to pull over and get gas, but rationalized that I could make it home. The thought ( I now look back and realize it was a prompting) came again to pull off at the exit and get gas. Just as I started to pull off the freeway my car radio and lights started to flash and wigging out. As I pulled into the gas station my car slowly died. Luckily this exit was close by two of my sisters’ houses. A cop saw me and asked if I needed any help but I told him that family was on their way to help me. Soon my brother-in-law arrived to help. After he looked at it and talking with my Dad, we soon decided it was my alternator.  We began by rigging up the portable jumper to my battery in hopes that we could get the car to the nearest mechanic. 

Rigging up the battery!

This ended up failing, but we were pretty inventive! While we were thinking of what to do I decided to fill my car up with gas. In the process I ended up locking my keys in my car! Now not only was my car dead but the keys were stuck in it! Soon after, the same cop saw that I was still struggling about 2 hours later. He asked what was wrong and after filling him in on the details he just laughed and proceeded to unlock my car for me! My brother-in-law had me roll down the window as to avoid locking my keys in again. In the end I left my car in the parking lot for the night and went to stay at my sister’s house and charge up my battery so that in the morning I could take it to the mechanic. As we were driving away I was asked do you have everything you need, I confirmed that I did. Because the battery continued to drain as we were there (trying to get my car to start as well as documenting the event) we were unable to roll the windows back up so I wanted to make sure I had everything so nothing would get stolen. About two hours later I was lying in bed and it hit me that I left my wallet in the car! I went into my sister and brother-in-laws’ room and asked to borrow their car to go back and retrieve my wallet.

Parking for the night!

What amazed me the most about this experience is the number of times our Heavenly Father blessed me. On the surface it looked as though it was one big problem after another. But Heavenly Father prompted me to exit, he allowed it to happen close to my siblings homes, my siblings were able to come and help me, the cop was nearby when I locked the keys in my car, and my wallet wasn't stolen. At the time I was really bothered that this would happen but looking back now I can see how I was protected and watched out for. How many times does our loving Heavenly Father place people in our lives to help us? How often does he prompt us with thoughts to make correct decisions that help us?  I think we don’t even realize how many times a day the Lord is watching out for and protecting us. I am so grateful for the tender mercies that he shows to me and all of us each and every day! We just need to start looking for these and we will see them in each of our lives.
-Anna

“Božje Sam Dijete Ja”

“Božje Sam Dijete Ja” is the hymn "I Am a Child of God" in Croatian.  This past summer all of the grandchildren sang this while we were together for a reunion.  I love hearing this hymn sung in different languages.  It doesn't matter where you live, what your ethnicity is or what language you speak, we are all children of God.

If the video above doesn't work and you'd like to see it try clicking on this link:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B-lqHaBfNd1kYXdJZ3hJdVhwUm8/view

Here are the words in English:

I Am a Child of God

1. I am a child of God,
And he has sent me here,
Has given me an earthly home
With parents kind and dear.

[Chorus]
Lead me, guide me, walk beside me,
Help me find the way.
Teach me all that I must do
To live with him someday.

2. I am a child of God,
And so my needs are great;
Help me to understand his words
Before it grows too late.

3. I am a child of God.
Rich blessings are in store;
If I but learn to do his will
I'll live with him once more.

4. I am a child of God.
His promises are sure;
Celestial glory shall be mine 
If I can but endure.

Text: Naomi W. Randall, 1908-2001. © 1957 IRI, Music: Mildred T. Pettit, 1895-1977. © 1957 IRI

- Sarah