Larsen Family Love

Is That a Shark Bite?

2011-09-07T22:29:00.005-06:00

Matt has had this nasty varicose vein ever since I met him. The vein runs from the top of his thigh, across his quad, around the back of his knee and down his calf. A few years ago it started giving him trouble. I knew it was a problem when he brought me an ad he had cut out of the paper for varicose vein removal.

Anyway, I made Matt an appointment and after the initial visit they scheduled him for an ultra-sound. At the ultra-sound they found the vein that was feeding the varicose vein. They decided that it was only going to get worse so they scheduled him for surgery.

I never knew that varicose vein surgery was a two part deal. I took him in the first day of surgery and they ran a laser through the varicose vein so that it would kill it and put a stint in the feeding vein. When they were all done they put him in a compression thigh high sock. He looked ULTRA sexy! We were sent home and told to come back the next week for the second portion of the surgery.

Little did Matt know that days 4 and 5 were going to be very painful. Matt called me on day 5 and told me that he was heading to the doctors office because he was worried about blood clots and the level of pain he was experiencing. The doctors did an ultra-sound to check for blood clots and thank goodness, nothing was found!. The doctor explained that the vein was shrinking and breaking off from other veins which it had been attached too and that is what was causing the pain. He told Matt that he should be feeling the popping when the veins break (ewww).

The night before Matt's second surgery we got to shave his legs! He technically only needed to shave one, but he thought he might look funny with only one hairy leg, so we ended up shaving both legs. Matt didn't think shaving his leg would be too bad but by the time we finished the second leg he was over it. That night when he climbed into bed he asked how I felt about sleeping next to a metro-sexual. Ha, like he would ever qualify as that!

The second day of the surgery included the doctors making about 25 small incisions in Matt's leg and pulling the dead vein out. When I picked him up his bandages had already started to soak through with blood. He was in a lot of pain and couldn't wait to get home.

Recovery was a pain. Because the varicose vein was so large and went from the front of his leg, to the side of his leg and then to the back of his leg, he could not get comfortable in bed. Poor guy didn't get much sleep.

One night before the bandages came off, Matt had some friends over to play pool. Tim, one of his friends took the picture below and sent it off to all of Matt's other friends. When people
responded back asking what happened, Tim replied that Matt had been bitten by a shark!

The sad thing about this photo is that it only shows about a third of the incision.

Arizona State Here I Come

2011-09-07T22:18:00.002-06:00

At the end of April I decided that I wanted to finish my bachelors. (I know sometimes I get a wild hair!) So I started researching online colleges and let me tell you, there are a lot of diploma mills out there. I spent a lot of time researching and talking to admissions offices. I finally decided to go with Arizona State University Online. When admissions processed by transcripts I was surprised to find out that I only had 40 credits left to complete my Bachelors of Criminal Justice. I am hoping to be done in less than two years. I'm not looking to win the race when it comes to completion time, I'm just trying to squeeze classes in as I can! Go Sundevils!

Pinky Promise

2011-09-05T22:25:00.003-06:00

Tonight Camden and I went out to dinner with Uncle Luke, Grandpa Terrell, Katt and the girls. While we were at dinner Luke was fighting on the phone with his on/off girlfriend. Katt and I ended up taking his phones (yes that's plural) away from him and turning them off. The consensus was no fighting in front of the kiddo's. Camden of course is paying attention to what's going.

Camden: "Mom, I'm NeVeR dating til I'm like 20!
Mom: "Pinky Promise"
Camden: "Yes, Pinky Promise" (pinky swear done)
Mom: "I'm putting that one down in the books!"

The End of 1st Grade

2011-09-04T18:20:00.005-06:00

Another school year is over.. I can't believe how quickly time goes by! This year the 1st grade put on an end of the year show about FaMiLy. The boys dressed up like their FaThErS and the girls dressed up like their MoThErS! We actually had to stop by Grandpa Terrell's house to get a tie because daddy didn't have one! Camden had a speaking part and did such a great job!

Snorkeling Anyone?

2011-09-04T17:51:00.005-06:00

After we got back from our cruise in January, Camden was ObSeSsEd with snorkeling equipment. Every time he got in the tub it was "where's the mask?" Bath times greatly increased and it was like pulling teeth to get him out of the tub!

Mexican Riviera January 2011

2011-09-04T17:17:00.043-06:00

We have this great group of friends that we love to cruise with. We planned another getaway for January 2011. We booked a 7 day Mexican Riviera cruise on the Carnival Splendor. Anyone remember what happened to the Carnival Splendor? Oh yeah, it caught on fire and was put out of commission for 3 months. At first we thought the Splendor would be up and running two weeks before our cruise, but in December we received a call from our travel agent that they had just canceled additional sailings through February. Because our entire group already had time off we re-booked on the Holland America Oosterdam. It sailed out one day later and hit all the same ports. All was good... right?

Wrong... Turns out Holland America is a mecca for senior citizens. An entire ship full of senior citizens made for quite the interesting and boring cruise.

As we were sailing to our first port, the Captain decided because of the violence in Mexico, to change our cruise path, delete a stop and add a different city, which changed all of our original port days! Yeah, not good. All of the plans we had made in port were all messed up and we didn't even know anything about the new city we were going to.

We stopped in Puerto Vallarta and had booked an all day canopy tour with Vallarta Adventures. (http://www.vallarta-adventures.com). It was awesome, we rode a jet boat, some kind of 4x4 utility vehicle up the mountain, rode donkeys for 30 minutes and then zip lined and repelled down this huge mountain. One of the funnest adventures ever!

These are some of the photos that we took on the Vallarta Adventure. Once we reached the top of the mountain (after the 4x4 ride but before the donkey's) they made us up our backpacks and cameras away, so the only shots we got were the ones we bought from the tour company.

Another stop was Cabo San Lucas. We had originally booked a snorkeling tour but because our ship came a different day and wasn't in port longer than 6 hours we just ended up going on a quick boat tour and had them drop us off on a beach to snorkel.

Our final stop was Mismaloya. We had absolutely no idea what to do, because the port was added after we had already sailed. So when we got off the boat we just talked to vendors and ended up taking a taxi ride to a beach. We spent the day in the sun, drinking margarita's and eating the best guacamole I have ever tasted. I could have lived on that stuff! While we were a the beach, one of our friends found this crab!

This is our friend Phil. He was being quite funny in the room one night so we shot some video. The video quotes our favorite saying from the captain "It's just the motion of the ocean" like it would be anything else rocking the boat, lol, cause it wasn't a Carnival Ship, this one was just full of seniors!

Merry Christmas 2010

2011-08-22T22:54:00.008-06:00

Christmas time... We love it.. It was a little different this year because halfway through the day, I had to go to work. Boo, no fun.

We had a regular size Christmas tree this year. I was a happy
camper! I even helped decorate.

We woke up after 8am and opened presents. Everyone was really excited with their gifts.

I bought Joe and Matt portable heaters for the shop because
they
are always freezing.

Camden got toys, toys, toys and a gun (from his dad).

Matt followed my directions exactly and I got books, pedicures and perfume!

Camden had some out of control long hair (to go along with his shark tooth necklace) and a super huge candy cane.

In With The New

2011-08-22T22:41:00.002-06:00

It was soooooo tough getting over our big screen. I mean it had been a part of our family FoReVer! So we took a few week to mourn its passing and then went TV shopping.

Personally, I was all about the 60" LED LCD but Matt didn't want to through down 4K for one... so we settled for the Sanyo.

Camden was excited to see the new TV and it was even cooler when the TV was as long as him.

Out With The Old

2011-08-22T22:16:00.004-06:00

A long time ago in the year 1992, my father purchased a TV. It was the bomb, hi-class, top of the line "Big Screen" TV. It graced my fathers house until July of 2006 when he handed it down to ME!

Matt took the TV apart and dusted the bulbs and it was like 1992 again, the screen was bright as the noon day sun and the image was sharp! Well, 1992 kick-ass quality, if I must be honest.

Around Summer of 2010 the power button started working intermittently, so if it didn't work we would have to push the button on and off really, really fast and it would eventually catch. So the policy became "DON'T SHUT OFF THE TV".

Unfortunately, my brother Barry didn't know of this policy. After the football game on Thanksgiving he turned the TV off... For the last time!

No matter how fast we pushed the power button that TV never came back to life.

So farewell my super cool "Big Screen".

Turkey Day 2010

2011-03-15T22:04:00.002-06:00

Thanksgiving this year was done at my house. I have heard rumors that the best turkey is a deep fried turkey. I figured I should try it out.

I knew that my co-worker (Julie J) would have a deep fryer. She had every kitchen gadget you could imagine (even if she only uses it once). When I asked her if she had a fryer she said yes and was awesome enough to lend it to me.

I researched a lot of recipes and finally found one I was excited about.

I read numerous articles about how the frying process should work. I printed them out, told Matt about it and was determined to follow the directions exactly!

Step 1: Thaw the turkey
Step 2: Put the turkey in the fryer, fill with water and mark so that you know how much oil you will need
Step 3: Remove turkey, pat dry (inside and out)
Step 4: Season turkey and refrigerate

(Sounds pretty easy up til this point, right?)

Well after all of my reminder to Matt and to myself I forgot Step 2. How much oil do I need? I have no idea. (Seriously mad right now and it's 2 am Thursday morning)

I consider rinsing the turkey off, even though I seasoned it to perfection but decide that instead I will run to Smiths to buy another turkey the same size so I can put it in the fryer to see how much oil I need.

So off I run to Smiths. Can I find a 12 lb turkey the morning of Thanksgiving? Well yes but it isn't just a turkey... It's a turkey, with a chicken and stuffing inside. So for my mistake I spend $26 buck on a 12 lb turkey that could be my fryer dummy.

I am sure you are all just thinking well why not buy extra oil and put it in the fryer. Well because you have to heat it up to 400* and if there is too much oil and you put the turkey in then all the oil comes out over the top of the fryer (I am sure we can remember all those great vidoes on YouTube from the genious' that go this route). Sounds much more dangerous than spending an extra $26 bucks on a turkey.
Ok so turkey is marinated. Phew!

Thanksgiving day... the big day... We pull out the turkey and come up with this ingenous way of getting it into the fryer. The boys put a broom handle through the top so that they can lower it down slowly, while standing 3 feet away from the fryer (per instructions, see I did read them). The turkey goes in and it smells amazing. No oil over the side, no flames coming out of the fryer. We got this!

Then we go to put the thermometer back into the oil and it spins. Oh PERFECT! Now we can make the temperature any degree we want it (so much easier ya know). You would think that we would have some cool gadget that would measure the temp digitally but nooooo, Matt left it at work. So I send my brother and step-dad out to find a thermometer 15 minutes before the stores are closing, luckily they were able to track one down.

The great thing about fried turkey.... 36 minute cook time!

I was a little nervous when we pulled it out of the fryer. It was burnt black (only on the very outside) but smelled divine. We carved it and tasted the first bite. To DIE for. The most tender turkey I have ever eaten. Moist and juicy with a nice flavor. Fried turkey is without a doubt the way to go every Thanksgiving from here on out!

Flag Football 2010

2011-03-15T21:39:00.002-06:00

We signed Camden up for Flag Football this year. Chad Jensen was our coach and we were the Bears. It was a really small league and this was it's second year.

I should have known there was going to be a problem when we brought home the uniforms. The shirt went below Camdens knees, his teammates didn't look any better.

We practiced every week, long and hard. They did really well in practice, Chad was a great coach and taught them a lot of plays. He put so much time into coaching effort into coaching.

Things weren't so good once we got on the field. They were bad... Oh so bad.. and poor Chad was so frustrated. The kids would not listen and wouldn't pull a flag to save their lives. We lost every single game.... except the semi finals, then we won.... and went to the finals.

The boys pulled flags like crazy and ran their little hearts out. We had parents kicked out of the game, lots and screaming and yelling on the sidelines, it was CrAzY! We were dying because we were going to WIN ... and then ... they scored again. Man we were so close!

(Eye black courtesy of Dani)

Soccer Again!

2011-03-14T22:49:00.003-06:00

So it's another year of soccer. Camden was so aggressive this year. The first few games I kept saying "what has gotten into him" but I loved watching him enjoy it. He scored numerous goals (which cost me $5 bucks each) and ran like the wind. It was a really fun season and I'm glad that he continues to succeed in a game that I enjoyed playing all of my young life!

What a great Grandma and Grandpa!

2011-03-14T22:25:00.004-06:00

This is my super hot mom and her cutie of a husband, Doyle. They are some of the best grandparents a kid could hope for. My son knows how much they love him. They are there to cheer him on at almost every soccer, t-ball and football game. They attend his school functions, take him out to lunch and let him spend the night at their home. Thanks Mom and Doyle for putting in the time to be there for my son!

Seven!!

2011-03-14T22:14:00.005-06:00

The boy turned 7... Where does the time go?

Camden wanted a motocross birthday so I spent hours making homemade birthday invites and he forgets to hand them out... two days in a row.. So now I have 30 birthday invites that I can scrapbook with!

For Camden's birthday we borrowed a friends paper rocket launcher and let the kids make and shoot off rockets. The kids had a lot of fun. We bought all sorts of different colors of duct tape. Some for girls and some for boys. We had to get the ladders out to get rockets off the roof and kids climbed the back wall to get rockets that were up in the bushes.

We sang happy birthday (after my brother ran next door to borrow candles, Thanks Barry), opened presents and ate cake. What a great 7th birthday!

Kindergarten Graduation

2011-03-07T21:55:00.004-07:00

Camden graduated from Kindergarten in May 2010. Ms MacIntosh worked so hard with the kids to put on a graduation performance.

The performance was so cute. Each child had a part to recite and they sang some great patriotic songs. At the end they threw their hats up in the air.

Each child got a graduation certificate with a graduation photo from Ms. MacIntosh. They were set up to look just like a diploma. When we got home Camden had to put his right next to mine.

It was such a neat program. Something I will never forget. I am so grateful that Camden had such a wonderful teacher.

My parents came to support Camden so we had to get the "family shot."

Camden and his friend Jax wanted their photos taken together. Aren't they just so cute!

Trippin to Arizona

2011-03-07T21:36:00.005-07:00

My family is from Arizona so we like to get down there every once in a while to visit family. Cara (my step-sister) was being as awesome as she always is and invited us to stay with them. Cara has a cute son that is a month younger than Camden and they always have a lot of fun when they are together. While we were there the kids swam in the pool, played video games and slept in a tent that Uncle Donovan put up in the living room.

Cara and I went and watched Donovans band play at a bar one night. They played in the country ghetto. It was an eye opening evening. The next morning Donovan reported to us that we left right before a stabbing. If we had only played our cards right we could have been a first hand witness.

My mom loves Mada's, so of course we had to lunch there one afternoon.

We also spent some time with my Grandma Andersen. She is quite the lady. We took her on a short jaunt through her neighborhood and talked. She is by far the best Phase 10 player I have ever met. She is 89 and can still beat you by a mile!

Quita Girl

2011-03-03T21:54:00.004-07:00

This is our girl Laquita Jenkins (Matt got her name off of a rap record) or Quita for short. She's been around longer than I have, Matt got her when he first moved to Utah and she is now 16 years old. She loves to eat and when she's a hungry girls she likes to snap and bark at you. She is slowly going senile, she struggles to get up in the morning, doesn't see or hear well and now when you ask her to get out of the kitchen she just looks at you like "make me." The other day I was pulling into the driveway and she was in the way, so I pulled up thinking she would move, she didn't, I blew the horn, she just stared, I rolled down the window and yelled and she didn't bat an eye. I told Matt that she probably doesn't think she has to mind anymore since she is older than the hills. We love her to death and are so glad that she has been healthy enough to be with us this long. Long live the Quita's!

Snails anyone?

2011-03-03T21:48:00.003-07:00

I must admit that when I purchased the Carnival Towel Book on our cruise I thought it would be fun to create little towel animals with Camden. The reality.... not so much fun! Camden always asks to make them at the most random moments (I need to hide that book) and then he wants to make the hardest one. This night he setteled for a snail. Not just one of course but a momma and a baby. I have to admit they look pretty decent and he was so excited that he wanted to take them to show and tell! Pretty impressive? Or easy to impress?

Bune Duggy Bune Duggy

2011-03-03T21:32:00.005-07:00

Oh bune duggy, bune duggy... How I have missed our weekend adventures. If I would have known it was going to take Matt two years to restore the dune buggy I would have never let him start. First it was a few hundred, then a thousand and then some more and now it's just the $600 shocks (WHAT? I know, not my idea). But there is a light at the end of the tunnel. Things are finally done and switches and starters are all in place. I am hoping by April the bug will be up and running again.

Camden has been really excited to help Matt with the project. He likes to come in the house and drag me out to the shop to see just how far they have gotten. Last night he showed me how he just has to push a button to fire it up. Then he proceeded to tell me that he was planning on driving it and of course Matt follows up with "yep we can just put blocks on the pedals." Perfect, I can see the danger now!

Moustache Man

2010-03-10T20:14:00.004-07:00

Since before Christmas Matt has been sporting a beard and mustache which I hate. Itchy, scratchy and no good for kissing. So finally he shaved off the mustache, but he must have left an impression of Camden because I walked into the kitchen the other day and this is what I found.

Camden with a red and taped on mustache. Looking hot!

Valentines Day 2010

2010-03-10T20:03:00.003-07:00

Camden and I woke up early on Valentines Day. I wanted to make him heart pancakes. So I made the batter and looked for a heart cookie cutter. I could not find one. So I did the best I could while pouring the batter. PS making a heart is super hard. I think I threw away three pancakes before I even got it somewhat right. Camden loved it.

For Matt I stood in line at See's Candie for an hour. I got him a huge heart box of his favorite chocolates which consists of nuts, carmel or nuts and carmel.

My Valentines day gift is "in the mail." I think that's pretty funny. So when I get it, I will let everyone know.

Robot Box

2010-03-10T19:09:00.003-07:00

Boys and their boxes are so funny. My brother Barry dropped off a water cooler the other day and Camden just had to play with the box. Matt and Joe cut arm and eye holes. He walked around for three days with the box on. He would beep and talk silly, just like a robot.

Niece's Day Out

2010-03-10T18:59:00.003-07:00

My mom invited all of my nieces (her granddaughters) out for a mani/pedi and a hair style. They all met at Paul Mitchell Hair Salon. The girls were so fun to watch. They all picked their own nail polish and were so still for the stylists. Once they were finished with their mani/pedi's they were taken to get their hair done. They all looked so pretty and grown up. They finished off the day with a fashion show. It's so fun to be so close to all of them.

Christmas 2009

2010-02-25T21:53:00.012-07:00

MeRrY cHrIsTmAs

Love the Christmas but how long does the music have to go on?

Matt and I always talk about having a low key Christmas but then I look under the tree and think, jeez that looks lousy so I shop more. Not only that but when you have a super ginormous tree, even 100 presents don't look like enough, so I blaming this Christmas extravaganza on the husband.

Santa left a lot of wonderful presents for Camden:
Heely's
Star Wars Figures
Skateboard
Motocross Boots
DS Games
A Giant Kite
Football
Board Games
Zhu Zhu Pets
Power Rangers
Legos, Legos and More Legos

No wonder six year olds love Christmas.

Funny story about the giant kite. Camden and I were shopping at Costco on Christmas Eve and he saw this giant kite. He said "please Mom can I have that kite" I said "no" and then I said "ok but you can't have it until Christmas morning, and if I buy it for you then you have to act totally suprised." Christmas morning came and Camden could have won a Grammy. He was "so suprised" you would never have suspected that he knew he was getting a kite.

Camden was really excited to make cookies for Santa. We shopped late into the day, went out with the family and then came home to unwrap one gift. As we were heading to bed Camden went "oh shoot" and I said "we forgot to make cookies didn't we." So Camden wrote Santa a great note and we re-gifted peanut butter chocolate squares, Santa will never know.

So as a parting Christmas wish...

I leave you with the picture I title:

most expensive dog, with cheapest bow

O' Christmas Tree

2010-02-15T21:47:00.003-07:00

I love christmas trees. You know the ones, that come in a box, strung with lights, the ones that don't drop needles or sap on the floor, yep, those are my favorite. So no suprise that when Matt brought home a behemoth of a tree, I was more than slightly pissed.

I'm going to give you a few tips to know when a Christmas tree is to big:

1. You can't get the tree out of the back of the truck without taking the camper off

2. You have to open the french doors and it still wont fit through

3. It's so heavy you need three grown men to carry it in and put it up

So like I mentioned, I was pissed about the tree. I told Matt the minute that I saw it that I wasn't stringing lights, it was all up to him. He, Camden and Joe did a great job and when it was all said and done it was big and beautiful.

Kingpin

2010-01-08T23:03:00.003-07:00

- WARNING -

Never invite Camden to bowl with your kids.

They'll go home crying!

A 108 ?

The kid's six.

The BIG move

2010-01-07T23:49:00.016-07:00

I have worked for the court for almost three years now. There were seven clerks housed in a small corner in the building, cubicle to cubicle. You could hear every word anyone ever whispered. The cramped quarters made a perfect "home" away from home and we were all great friends. This is a picture of my old space:

There were two things that we LOVED (eye roll) about the old building:
1: All of the archive boxes were down in the old jail cells. This meant as you were bending over to file a document, or you were picking up a box or putting down a box, you were inches from the inmate toilets.
2: Scorpions. Everywhere. Walking down the hall, look on the wall. Scorpion. Running across desks. Scorpion. On witness chairs while on the record in Court. Scorpion. Inside files. Scorpion. No matter how many times they sprayed they never went away. We decided if we couldn't get rid of them at least we could make them our mascot.

We were all anxious for the new building to be completed. We watched in anticipation as they quickly put up the structure. In a short fourteen months the behemoth new courthouse was done. The new courthouse is beautifully decorated and full of all the latest technology.

Because I landed an awesome job promotion in November I was "upgraded" from a cubicle to my own office. This is a picture of my new space:

Now don't get me wrong we still have some problems.
1: There is no door handle for the clerks to get into the juveniel courtroom. So if the door to the courtroom is shut we have to go through the Judge's entrance and climb over his bench to get the clerks door open.
2: The elevator overheats constantly
3: My beautiful office lacks a door, they say it's coming sometime in the future. We will see about that.

So far the new courthouse has been a huge adjustment. My clerks are spread out on the first and second floor so we have had to change some of the ways that we handle our day to day tasks. It's still a work in progress and the problems are being resolved. It will be interesting to watch how we progress as a team and how all this new space will effect our tight knit group.

I have appreciated my old boss Michelle and all of her knowledge. When I received my promotion in November I knew I was getting the best teacher to learn from. Even though she has relocated to her dream job she is always willing to answer my phone calls. I tease her when it's been longer than a few hours without a phone call from me. Michelle has been ever so patient and I am excited to, one day, be just as smart as she is.

Kick it... Soccer

2010-01-07T23:37:00.005-07:00

This year soccer was a blast. Camden played for the red rockets. He made great strides in all areas of the sport. He was aggressive, ran fast and scored goals. It was fun to watch him get out there without fear. He never wanted to wear his shin guards because he was TOUGH (and they made him itch).

Halloween 2009

2010-01-07T23:11:00.007-07:00

This year we didn't carve pumkins until the night before Halloween. Procrastinate? That's right I did. But the pumpkins turned out great even if they were last minute.

Camden found his costume all the all mighty Wal-Mart. It took him forever to pick the dang thing out. Once he finally decided what he wanted to be he had to accessorize. So off we went looking for Ninja gear.

That night before it got dark my mom and step-father stopped by to wish us all a Happy Halloween. Of course Camden posed for Grandpa when he asked if he could take a picture. Grandma and Grandpa's baby Fergie smiled pretty too.

This is the mask that Matt puts a walkie talkie under and scares all the little kids in the neighborhood with.

Later in the night Grandpa Terrell stopped by. Of course Camden was all hopped up on sugar by then.

And by the end of the day little old Camden was tuckered out!

Escape Cali

2010-01-02T01:20:00.007-07:00

I am not sure if I have ever posted about our Golden Retreiver Cali. She is almost 3 years old and has a knack of escaping out of our back yard to swim in the neighbors pools or the Las Palmas fountains.

I received a frantic call from a woman who said that Cali was bleeding from her side and had been hit by a car. She had called the dog pound (who I should know on a first name basis by now) and the police. I told her it would take me 10 minutes to get there but that I was on my way.

By the time I got to Sports Village Cali had been picked up by Joe and was at the house. So I drove down to the house to discover this:

I immediately took her to the vet to be checked out. They examined her and gave us an estimate of $381.00. When I called Matt to give him the estimate he went beserk. I was a little mortified because he was yelling so loud that the vet tech and my boss (who was joining me for moral support) could hear him.

Cali stayed the night at the vet and Joe picked her up the next morning.

I got a text from Joe with this picture:

Kinda made the $381.00 bill a little less painful seeing Cali with the cone of shame.

When I got home I couldn't believe how huge her incision was:

The vet recommended that she wear a shirt until her stitches were out and her incision scabbed over. This is Cali and Laquita our other kids:

It has been two days short of a month we get to take the cone of shame off. Hopefully this has taught Cali a little something about running away but I'm making a bet it won't be the last time.

Amnesia

2010-01-02T01:01:00.007-07:00

I received a call from my Step-Father Doyle one night saying that he was at the ER with my mom. He told me that she had started asking random questions over and over again and decided he needed to get her to the ER quickly. She was admitted to the ER. The doctors initially thought (without any testing) that she might have had a stroke. So I rushed to the hospital to see her.

By the time I arrived at the hospital the doctors had given her the diagnosis of "global amnesia" and were looking for a cause. I sat with my mom for about an hour. It turns out that she had lost about 2 weeks of her memory. I would quiz her on things and she would look at me puzzled. Most of you know that my mom is super forgetful and a little on the "ditzy blonde" side but this was super scary. About two hours after I arrived the doctors decided to admit her for overnight observation and some more tests.

The hospital staff was wonderful. They let Casey, Doyle, Nate and I stay until the wee hours of the morning. It was good to see that she was okay and that only her memory had been affected. I went home at about 3am and returned the next day. My mom was in the process of getting ready for an EEG and she let me shoot a photo.

All the testing that was done (blood, EEG, EKG, MRI, CAT scan, Echo, ultra-sound) never produced a reason for the episode. I hope we never have to go through that again.

By the end of the 2nd day my mom had regained all but about 5 hours of her memory back. It was an interesting phenomenon and I am so glad that my mother was ok. I don't know what I would do without her.

Comments

2009-11-30T22:38:00.002-07:00

I have changed my comment authorization. Figured it was lame that you had to have a gmail account to leave a comment. So comment away (if you want).

P.S. The comments don't show up until I moderate them.

Some of My Favorites

2009-11-30T22:26:00.004-07:00

OK so these are some of my favorite Internet sites. Maybe you know about them but maybe you don't. If you don't check 'em out.

http://seriouslysoblessed.blogspot.com/ (it's satire people, calm down)

http://www.outonalimbscrapbooking.com/ (best place to buy two page scrapbook kits for ultra cheap)

http://amykharris.blogspot.com/ (my cousin, she's witty)

http://failblog.org/ (This keeps me laughing all day. You must go through at least three pages before you decided to never go back. Some are lame but some will make you laugh like my brother Barry, which if you have never heard it is hilarious)

http://www.nieniedialogues.blogspot.com/ (pretty sure everyone knows about nienie but if you don't, this is for you)

Las Vegas Truck Race

2009-11-30T22:06:00.005-07:00

Matt has been taking Camden to the truck races in Vegas since he was two. This is a boy thing and I am NOT invited. The boys pack the camper and bbq grill to spend three days at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

Camden loves spending boy time with his dad and his dad's friends. He gets to be dirty, stay up late, eat nachos, drink soda pop and watch loud trucks drive in circles.

This year, like last year, the boys got down to winners circle where the pit crew guys gave Camden a hat. Which is totally nice because it saves me $20 bucks that Matt would have spent on one.

Bread

2009-11-30T21:52:00.005-07:00

The ladies in my office are cooking queens. They kept telling me about this super easy bread recipe. Just try it, it's so easy, you can do it and then they would follow up with the most wonderful treats at work, who wouldn't cave, right!

Julie J. was awesome enought to invite me over to learn the art of the 1 hour bread and there was no way I was passing it up. To make life even better, Kathy F. decided to come along for the ride and she brought a jar of her homeade peach jam (might have been apricot, can't remember, it was devine though).

One hour start to finish, Julie did not lie. I couldn't believe it but it was true. Julie made a loaf of white bread, a loaf of cinnamon bread and two italian loafs. They were so good. I ate way more than I should have.

About a week later I decided to try it on my own. Looks pretty good don't you think?

Also don't mind the personalized utensil holder in the background... I love it and never get anything with my name on it so I just had to include it in my picture. lol.

P!NK Rocks

2009-11-19T23:32:00.007-07:00

P!NK is my girl. Love her music, love her attitude, I could not pass up her first headlining concert in the USA. I got 4 tickets thinking I could round up a few girls to join me.

Brindley and I drove from St. George to Phoenix. We rocked it the entire way. I love a road trip with good music and great company.

Brindley and I stayed with my Aunt Nanette and Unlce Ben. Let me tell you they are the best hosts' EvEr. We woke up one morning to Ben's waffles (they are to die for), fresh fruit and lots of other great food.

I got to hang out with Cara and her family. We chatted and watched TV and it was reported to me that Donovan makes great sushi, so I will have something to look forward too when I come back again. Not only that but they would have let me take their Hummer back to Nanette's but I chickened out.

Sunday morning I woke up to a text from Tracy saying that she was "on her way." So I grabbed Brindley and we headed for the airport. I kept calling Tracy and texting her, letting her know that we were driving around and around the pick up area. I was actually getting myself carsick circling the airport. We kept passing this area that said "cell phone lot" I finally asked Brindley to read what it was all about and come to find out you can park their and watch the airline arrival/departure updates. So the next time we circled the lot we found the entrance and sat and waited for Tracy to arrive. As we were waiting I looked down at the card I had written her flight info on and she wasn't due to arrive for another 2.5 hours. I just looked at Brindley and busted up laughing. Within minutes Tracy called and told me that she hadn't been able to get on the flight because she was flying standby. Apparently when she said "she was on her way" she meant to the airport. That's what I get for not checking my info.

Sunday night we drove to the jobing.com arena. Let me tell you they know how to do it. There were so many bathrooms and so many different places to eat. I was impressed.

We sat down and immediately Brindley and I were drenched in beer from the uber trashed drunk ladies behind us. So instead of apologizing and ignoring us they apologized and jumped into our photos and played with my hair (yeah I know).

"The Ting Tings" opened for P!NK. I only knew about three of their songs. They are an interesting twosome not to mention the outfit the singer was sporting.

P!NK rocked. She played some oldies and some newbies. I loved that she sounded awesome. I hate it when you go to a concert and they sound aweful live. She played for almost two hours. Brindley and I sang as loud as we could and of course our ears were ringing when we left.

Random Photos

2009-11-03T21:40:00.003-07:00

Random photos. You have to love them. I leave my camera out and a certain little boy can't keep his hands off of it. Pretty sure Camden's got some hidden talent.

Six, 6, VI

2009-11-03T21:29:00.003-07:00

Six.

How do we go from a newborn to six so quickly?

Camden is full of adventure and a little too daring for my liking. He loves to ride motorcycles with his dad and asked for riding gear for his birthday. Because I love him so much I threw in a chest protector.

Baby Girl

2009-10-30T22:18:00.014-06:00

We have been so excited for our chance to get another child (a baby girl) through the adoption process. We met the birth mother through Matt's brother and had picked out a wonderful name Libby Belle Larsen (for the rest of the story the baby with be Libby). Things were going really well. The birth mother had invited me to attend her doctor appointments and had asked me to be in the labor and delivery room when Libby was born. I was head over heels in love with that baby in her belly and Camden was excited because he was getting a baby sister on his birthday September 16th.
Towards the last two months of her pregnancy the birth mom had stopped growing. So she was going to the doctor twice a week get checked, have stress tests and ultra-sounds. There were concerns about whether or not they should take Libby early, the doctors didn't know if it would be better to have her in the womb or outside the womb to grow.
On August 26 at 8:25 a.m. I got a text from the birth mom stating that Libby, our baby girl, had been born. She was 4.1 oz and 17 inches long she had been born around 7 am. Because of her size they had rushed her right into the NICU. The birth mom reported to me that the doctor called her at 5 am and wanted her to rush in to deliver Libby. He had concerns about the appointment the previous day and the lack of growth from the baby. He asked her to come in for an emergency c-section.
I talked with the birth mom and asked her how she was feeling about the adoption. She said that it was hard but that she still wanted to go through with it. She then told me that she was still in recovery and would call me when she got into a regular room.
I received another text from the birth mom about an hour later. She stated that Libby was really small but was very healthy. The nurses had brought Libby into the birth moms room and she wanted Matt and I to come over. At that point I told the birth mom that we would love to come over but that she need to be 100% positive about placing the baby with us. I told her that if she was going to change her mind it would be better if we didn't come. She assured me that everything was going to go as planned.
Matt and I went over to the hospital and met her. She was so little and so sweet. I held her and rocked her and looked at her cute legs and fingers. We took a lot of pictures (which she was not happy about). It was so wonderful to see this beautiful baby that was going to be ours. Matt and I stayed for about an hour and I enjoyed every minute of it.

The birth mom was exhausted but kept saying things like "when you take her home", "she can leave with you on Saturday if all goes well" lots of positive and encouraging things. She reiterated that she knew placing Libby was going to be hard but that she was going to do it. We left the birth mom knowing that she was tired and could use some rest. She told us that she would call as soon as she woke up.

The waiting game was aweful but at 3:50 p.m. the birth mom text me and said she couldn't do it, that she loved me and that she knew I would be a good mom and that the baby would be taken care of but that it was just too hard.

I was inconsolable. I was hysterical. I couldn't breath. I was doing the ugly cry at work. Oh my poor co-workers. I made them call my mom and my husband. It was awful. I just couldn't stop crying. Oh how bad it hurt. I don't think that I have ever been so wounded. All that we had gone through. Everything had just felt so right and here we were, ready and prepared for this little girl to go home with us and then nothing. Ugh. What was I going to do? What was I going to tell Camden?

My wonderful mom came and got me. I would go from hysteria to numb back to hysteria over and over again. How many times can a heart break? It was misery.

As I was walking in the front door Camden came around the corner. He didn't know what was going on but could see immediatly that I was not ok. He asked what was wrong. I told him that Libby had been born but that the birth mom had changed her mind and that we weren't going to be getting a baby. He hung his head and his bottom lip started to quiver. He looked at me and kept saying, "but she's my baby sister, she promised, call her and tell her that she's my baby sister, let me call her." For a broken heart those were not easy words to hear. How is a 5 year old to cope with such huge feelings.

Unfortunatly the birth mom never changed her mind. It still hurts to think about and I have to keep telling myself that I have a wonderful family just the three of us.

We took down Libbys room and shoved all of her things in corners behind doors. I still have everything, I keep wondering if I should give it away or if we are going to be strong enough to try again. I guess time will tell.

School Roundup

2009-10-30T22:03:00.004-06:00

Camden was pretty excited to go and meet his new school teacher. When we got their Ms. Macintosh wanted to take a picture of Camden in their "roundup theme" costume. Camden kind of looked at me like "are you really going to make me do this?"
Ms. Macintosh has a wonderful classroom. She had a treasure hunt for Camden to do. We went from station to station until he got to the final treasure. You would think that Kindergarten instructions would be simple and easy to follow but Matt and I had to re-read the directions on almost every stop. It was pretty scary and a little bit ridiciulous.
This is Camden with his pirate hat and pirate book. The kid with the red eyes on the book is Camden's self portrait.

Lake Boy

2009-10-30T21:52:00.003-06:00

Camden should be a fish. He loves water and has no fear. We love to spend time out a the lake. Our local favorite is Gunlock but since they drained it last year we had to resort to going to Sand Hollow.

Camden hates to wear his life jacket. He tells me he doesn't need it in the water. I don't believe I was that fearless when I was his age.

Matt decided that he would teach Camden about rock jumping. I wasn't out at the lake the first time they went but every other lake trip it was the first thing he asked to do. He will jump, climb, jump, climb etc. all day long.

Camden wanted to go over to the Sand Hollow cliffs and watch the jumpers. He looked at me and said "Mom I could do that" and started swimming over to the rocks. I was like nice try buddy, maybe when your a little older.

Boys in the boat. Catching some rays. They never put on sunscreen. They are all going to die of skin cancer! I will tell them "I told you so!"

Camden pretending he is sleeping on the rocking water. Silly Kid!

Giddy Up Cowboys

2009-10-30T21:43:00.005-06:00

The Crouch's invited the family up to Enterprise to go to the Rodeo. I haven't been to a Rodeo since I was a Junior in High School. I thought Camden would like it and figured Enterprise would put on a good show.

During the Rodeo Tyler, Matt and Joe kept talking to Camden and Malachi about doing the chicken chase. The boys were so excited to participate. Tyler took them into the arena and gave them instructions and such. Well when the buzzer went off there were a hundred kids running for those poor chickens. Camen is super fast and was feet from getting one when a kid came barreling through, knocking him down and into the mud. Oh Camden was not happy about that. Tyler tried to get him back up and running but he was having none of that. From the stands you could see Camden flailing his arms and stomping his feet, there was no way he was going to get any dirtier. I actually have a video of it but I don't know where it's at.

These are some photos of Camden and Malachi in a borrowed cowboy hat.

2009-09-15T23:05:00.003-06:00

Toys Are So Over-Rated

2009-09-15T23:01:00.003-06:00

Chore:

Take out the Garbage

Not sure it's worth it!

Aspen Grove

2009-09-15T22:36:00.005-06:00

Aspen Grove has been my Grandma's choice for family reunions since I was 15. About every three years she will take all of us (her children, grandchildren and great grandchildren) to the BYU run Aspen Grove. It is a great place to vacation with family. This year there were over 150 of us. It was amazing to see all of my Aunts, Uncles and cousins.

Everyday Aspen Grove splits the children up into age groups. They fill up their day with all sorts of activities. They teach them a cute song and a team cheer. They swam, did crafts, played cowboys, hiked to a castle, etc. Every night Camden came back to the room exhausted and happy.

I was so worried about sleeping in a queen size bed with Camden, he tosses and turns and kicks, but he would close his eyes and be asleep in nothing flat. He did not move an inch any of the nights we were there (totally out of character for him). The first night he fell asleep so quickly and so deeply that all I could do was laugh.

The week for me was all about taking naps and playing Phase 10 with my Grandma. I know it sounds pretty rough ;)

So I'm going to give a wonderful shout out to my Grandma.. Thanks for the wonderful week at Aspen Grove. We love you.

Below are some great pictures of some of the fun we had at Aspen Grove... don't skip the one of my brother posing like it was 1987!

Camden and Nate on the Cowboy train

Camden riding a horse!

Camden as a lion, or tiger or I don't know.. but dang the face paint, it was a nightmare to get off.

Camden playing shuffle board with Uncle Ben and some cousins

Camden playing Go Fish

My brother Jeremy with a flash back to 1987!

My Mom and her wonderful hubby Doyle and all of their grandkids. This was by far the best shot I could find. Keeping all of the kids happy was not an easy task.

S & M (It's not what you think)

2009-09-15T22:20:00.008-06:00

Matt told me he was going to get the windows on the boat tinted and have them put his racing logo on the back of the boat. A few days later I got home after dark and noticed the boat with the tinted windows. I came in and sat down and Matt came in, we started this conversation:

Matt: Did you see the boat?
Solinda: I looked at the tint.
Matt: You didn't see the logo?
Solinda: No, I know what it looks like.
Matt: Just come and see it.
Solinda: Really?... Ok... Fine... I'm coming.
(Walking to the garage)
Solinda: Laughing... Oh Matt, people are going to get the wrong idea...

Matt: I'll take the handcuffs off if you don't like them.

Solinda: Nope I like it, leave it on.

Bun Bun

2009-09-15T22:12:00.002-06:00

We got the cutest rabbit a few months back. We were totally original and named her Bun Bun. We kept her in the house, litter trained her and she was so good with the boys. As she got bigger we started to let her out into the backyard. She escaped a few times but we were able to find her escape routes and block them off. Well on the Fourth of July one of the boys left the gate open and she escaped. We haven't found her but have had a few bunny sightings from the neighbors. I'm trying to convince Matt to let us get another one. So we will see if it works.

Pea Pickin

2009-09-15T22:05:00.004-06:00

My mom grows a wonderful greenhouse full of peas each year.

This year Camden helped Grandma Karen plant the peas. She said his attention span lasted about two minutes and then he was off doing other things.

When the peas were ready to pick I took Malachi and Camden up to Grandma's house. They were so excited to look through all the leaves and find the perfect pea. They collected a container full and brought them into the house where we all sat at the table and ate until we were all pea'd out.

There is nothing quite like a perfectly fresh pea from Grandma's garden.

Biker Boy

2009-07-21T22:25:00.004-06:00

Camden has never been interested in riding a bike but when I came home one afternoon he was full of excitement. He said "Mom stay here I want to show you something." He came riding around the corner of the house on a bike with no training wheels. I was blown away because he has never been interested in a bike it was always scooter, scooter, scooter. Within days he was zooming around the block and looked like a pro.

Holy Fish

2009-07-21T22:15:00.002-06:00

Holy big fish. Matt caught himself a lunker. It was 23.5 inches long. The fish was so big that it took up the entire cooler from end to end. Matt was so proud of that dang fish, he was like a kid on christmas morning. That is all the boys talked about for days.

Our Libby

2009-07-21T22:00:00.003-06:00

Meet baby Libby. We are so excited to have her join our family. She is due in September. Her due date is September 22 but when we went to the doctor last month he said that he will be delivering her on September 16th. Which is Camden's birthday arrrghh. I was praying for any day but that day. I guess Dixie Regional only does scheduled c-sections on Wednesday's which unfortunately is the Camster's birthday. When I told Camden he was ecstatic. He is really excited to have a sister as a gift. I hope he still feels that way in 10 years.

Were having a baby!

2009-06-14T16:01:00.003-06:00

Ok so maybe not but we are getting a baby thanks to a wonderful birth mother. We are going to have a 3D ultra-sound on Monday so I will post pictures then.

Snakes

2009-06-14T15:51:00.003-06:00

If you have ever been to our home you will notice our huge rock walls in the yard. Well apparently snakes love to hide there. Every time I turn around the boys are bringing in a new snake that they have found. Snakes are not only gross but they freak me out.
My biggest worry now is that Camden just picks them up without question. I worry that it won't be just a garden snake the next time.
Why are boys so adventurous?

Disneyland Day 3 and 4

2009-06-14T15:34:00.005-06:00

We spent two days at Disneyland and California Adventure. Camden is still gun shy about rides. He loved the little ones and cried on the big ones. I can't believe he was tall enough to ride most of the rides. He has gotten so big. We really enjoyed the new "Small World" ride and couldn't wait to eat a churro. It was good to have some quality time with my small family.

I am so glad that my dad came with us. It is wonderful to have such a close relationship with him. He makes us laugh and is always willing to give Matt and I alone time.

SeaWorld Day 2

2009-06-14T15:17:00.006-06:00

Grandpa and Camden watching Shamu. Camden was really excited to see the show. He thought it was cool and he would not stop smiling... until he got soaked... then he was screaming and crying and begging to leave.

We stopped and fed the seals. They are so loud, and they beg worse then my dogs.

This was probably the saving grace of SeaWorld. You pay $12.00 for the cup and then can refill it for $2.00. Sucks to say it's the cheapest way to drink at SeaWorld.

How much fun is SeaWorld? Oh so much fun. It was so hot and for some reason SeaWorld had no shade, none what so ever. They should have asked from my advice on planting some trees.

Go Dodgers Day 1

2009-06-14T15:01:00.006-06:00

My brother Casey is a crazy baseball fan. Our Disneyland trip included a Dodgers game, it has been years since I have been to a game. Not my favorite but I knew Camden and Matt would enjoy it.

During this game Maddy Ramirez hit one or two home runs (I can't remember). Casey went crazy. It was fun to watch him.

Camden enjoyed the game, the cheers and especially the food. He is such a junk food pig.

I tried the garlic fries... they were to die for and I kept getting a refresher course over the next few days because of the burps. (sick but true)

Camden convinced Grandpa to buy his a souvenir. He ended up with a miniature baseball bat. Perfect toy for a 5 year old stuck in a car.

It's updated.... sorta

2009-05-15T23:45:00.001-06:00

Ok so I've updated all I am going to update tonight. I promise I'll get the rest done this weekend.

Kite Fest

2009-05-15T23:38:00.007-06:00

Good Heavens it was hot for the Kite Fest. No breeze. I roasted but Malachi and Camden had a lot of fun. They played on the blow up slides, rode the tractor pull train and climbed the rock wall. I was really proud of Camden for climbing the rock wall. He was scared at first but with the
coaxing of his cousins he decided to do it.

Easter '09

2009-05-15T23:29:00.006-06:00

That easter bunny sure know's what's up with chocolate.

Cowboy Up

2009-05-15T23:21:00.004-06:00

I went to Salt Lake with Camden and Brook in March. We stopped off and had dinner with her family (it was her brother's birthday). Because we were there for a birthday they brought out this ridiculously huge cowboy hat. Camden just had to try it on for size.

2009-05-15T23:14:00.003-06:00

Boys love Toys. Our good friend Jim loves to tempt the kids by driving his Dune Buggy over to the house. Of course when he does he gets stuck taking them on a little ride. Jim's always up for a a little crazy time with 5 chitlins, yep he's a brave man.

Maverik Man

2009-05-15T23:06:00.004-06:00

As we were traveling home from Vernal we stopped into Maverik to grab a drink and use the bathroom. Camden found a new friend. The Maverik Man.

Friday the 13th

2009-05-15T21:47:00.011-06:00

Friday, February 13, 2009... probably should have known it wasn't going to be a good day. Never should have traveled on that day, live and learn. I was driving into Daniel's Canyon going to visit Matt in Vernal, it had started to snow and we had slowed down to about 40 mph, I flipped my dad's truck into 4X4 but it didn't engaged. I looked down to make sure it was in 4X4 (which it was) and as I looked back up the truck's back end got loose, we fishtailed, spun and hit a snow bank, rolled and landed on our roof. I didn't even have time to panic, it all went so fast. As soon as we stopped Camden was screaming his head off (which is much better than a silent child). I was hanging upside down (seat belts save lives kids) but needed to get to Camden. I took off my seat belt and landed in glass (the only damage I received was the cuts from the glass). Of course because I live in St. George I was wearing flip flops and there was so much slow that had come in through all the broken windows, it was a little nerve racking trying to get the Camden with wet, snowy flip flops on. I managed to climb into the back of the truck and grab Camden. As I was getting him out of his seat belt I heard people yelling. These strangers had watched the entire wreck and had stopped and run to help us. There was a younger couple and then a young single guy. They were awesome they helped me get Camden out of the vehicle. One of the guys actually went back into the truck and turned it off. They put us in their truck with the heaters on and asked what they could get out of the truck for me.

So this next part is total deja vous from a previous wreck I had. (I know suspenseful huh;)

Within 5 minutes of the wreck a tow truck came down the hill (how lucky am I). They wanted to know if I wanted them to tow the truck and I was like, "no I need to get my son to the ER" and they happily abliged. So we start down the canyon, it took about 15 minutes until we were able to get cell service. The first person I called was, of course, Matt. So he picks up:

S: Matt, I rolled the truck
M: What
S: I rolled the truck
M: You rolled the f...ing truck
S: You know what I don't have time for this I'm trying to get our son to the ER. I'll call you back when I get there... click
Tow Truck Driver: wow, I thought you were going to cry. That went pretty well.
S: I need to call my dad

S: Dad, Dad, I rolled your truck
D: What
S: (crying) I rolled your truck, you have insurance... right?
D: What
S: (still crying) you have insurance... right?
D: Who cares about the truck, are you guys ok?

My dad rocks, I knew he would care more about us then his truck but that doesn't stop me from being guilt ridden. I am still upset that I rolled his beautiful truck and that they totalled it.

Anyway we all turned out ok. Camden had a cut on his cheek and some scrapes on his hands but the fact that we walked away was awesome and we were so blessed.

Sew Sweet Grandma

2009-02-19T00:05:00.002-07:00

My mom brought Camden and Malachi gifts for Valentines day. She sewed all of the grandkids Valentines pillowcases and had just stopped by to deliver them. Camden and Malachi both loved the pillowcases and still have them on their pillows. It was a really cute gift. Thanks Mom.

Be Mine

2009-02-19T00:00:00.003-07:00

I found this cute chocolate frog for Camden. I told him I toad-ely loved him. He thought it was funny and kept laughing. He makes my heart sing, I'm glad I have him.

V-Day

2009-02-18T23:58:00.003-07:00

Matt is super sweet. I got flowers. I love flowers, especially from Matt.

Home away from Home

2009-02-18T23:53:00.004-07:00

Matt, Mike and Ron finally got a home in Vernal. Yipee.

They are a little short on furniture but man are they creative.

Yes, that would be the third row seat out of the van.

Breaker Breaker 1, 2

2009-02-18T23:45:00.003-07:00

Matt passed his CDL.. that was the final step in his 9 weeks of training for Halliburton. Congrats baby I am so proud of you..

Rub a Dub Dub 5 Kids in a Tub

2009-02-18T23:40:00.002-07:00

Brookly and Mesa slept over together and brought their swimming suits to play in the tub. The tubby started out with two but kept sucking other children in slowly. The last time I went to check on them there were 5 happy children hanging out in the tub. Notice the bathing suits, working at DCFS makes you paranoid.

Hotel Life

2009-02-18T23:33:00.004-07:00

Matt left to work in Vernal at the beginning of November. For three months he has been living in a hotel. Nina (Mike Heck's wife) went to visit and snapped some shots of their cramped spaces. There are three of them in that room together. They are working on getting a place in Vernal but it is so expensive to rent.

So cramped but where's the Rock Band. Oh wait there it is... Only Men would remember to take Rock Band.

Party at my place.. New Years Eve

2009-02-18T23:20:00.005-07:00

Happy New Years.. Ummm I think this picture says it all! I didn't know that liquor came with a handle (always nice to be suprised). It was quite the night. Many things we would all like to forget but a fun time was had by all.

Me and my super hot friends enjoying what the kitchen has to offer... great food...

My dad stopped by to see if we were being good. I told him of course cause I've never been naughty in my life (how innocent do I look).

It was a great way to end the year. I was up until 5:30 am. I know I haven't done that in awhile. It took me a few days to recover. Good thing New Years only comes around once a year.

Fruit Striped

2009-02-18T22:47:00.005-07:00

I was shopping at Old Navy and found the cutest striped footie pajamas. I had to have them for Camden. The minute Camden saw them he had to put them on (he's super cool like that). He's freaking adorable in them.

Then he had to pose with Cali.

When Matt saw Camden in his new pj's he told Camden that he looked like a package of fruit striped gum.

Ok well he does but he's a cute fruit striped gum if I ever did see one.

Up a hill just to come down again

2009-02-18T22:24:00.005-07:00

My brother in law Nelson found the coolest sledding hill. It is great for beginners (who are chicken) and experienced sledders (who love to go fast) and we had it to ourselves. It was a beautiful day to hit the slope. You didn't even have to wear a jacket. The kids played until they were awnry and exhausted. You could climb all the way to the top and haul butt down the hill. I went two or three times and ended up ripping the butt out of my pants. Here are some fun photos and even a little video.

Christmas 2008

2009-02-18T21:50:00.008-07:00

We always spend Christmas Eve at Matt's parents home. This year Sherry decided to have the kids do the story of baby Jesus. Camden got to be a wiseman and he was so cute. Sherry used pillow cases for their head scarfs, such a cute idea.

Christmas is so much fun when their are kids around. The boys were so excited to get up and did really well taking turns unwrapping their presents. They both made out like bandits. Of course when all was said and done they wanted what the other had. I'm sure I wasn't the only parent to experience that on Christmas morning but it's pretty mind boggling (pretty sure I was never like that:0)

Matt was really excited to get Camden a motorcycle. He wanted to buy a new one but I held my foot down. I figured he was going to destroy it by the time he actually learned how to ride so why pay for new. We were able to get a used one from our friends and it is in such good condition.

Every year for Christmas breakfast my mom makes her egg on toast so after we were done opening presents we headed over to my brothers house for our yearly treat. I love my mom's egg on toast and it's nice to look forward to all year.

Hope everyone had a their own wonderful Christmas.

Lies

2008-12-29T20:17:00.002-07:00

S: You wouldn't lie to me now, would you?

C: No, I use to, but not any more.

Lovely

Snowy Weather?

2008-12-19T21:55:00.003-07:00

Snow in St. George only comes around once maybe twice a year. This week we got to see the allusive white powder. Camden and Malachi have been dying to play in it. This was a sneak attack by Camden on the unsuspecting Malachi.

Oh Christmas Tree

2008-12-19T21:47:00.003-07:00

This is not the first tree that was intended for my home. Apparently Joe and Tyler went to Enterprise, bought a permit, tracked for two hours, and cut down a huge tree. On the way home they stopped in Baker to fish and Joe's brother told them they had it in wrong and they needed to turn it around. Well that wasn't good advice because on the way home the tree (along with a lot of Joe's framing tools) flew out of the back of the truck and ended up at the bottom of the Veyo bridge.

So this is our 2nd tree. Beautiful and Big. The boys had a lot of fun decorating it although I did loose two ornaments by the time it was done.

Welcome Ira

2008-12-19T21:42:00.003-07:00

My former roomate Stina finally had her baby. I have know since the minute the test was positive that she was pregnant. In fact I think she was probably three minutes pregnant when she shouted "I'm pregnant" from the bathroom. I really thought her pregnancy was going to go on forever and so I am shocked to say Ira is here.
Ira.. I know... old school.. and it started as a joke.. but Stina came to love it and it totally fits..
Camden was super excited when Stina told him she was going to have a baby. He thought they would live with us forever and was excited that there was going to be a baby in the house.
Stina brought little Ira over a week ago. He is so stinking cute and Camden was really excited to hold him.

Rigging or Fracing Whatever

2008-12-19T20:47:00.002-07:00

Matt is training on the rigs now and sent me a picture of a smaller rig. I can't imagine how much bigger they get.

Honey's Home

2008-12-19T20:42:00.003-07:00

Matt came home for Thanksgiving and it was so good to see him. He is working in Vernal and I miss him so much. Anyways I wanted to get a good shot of us to have. This is what I got.
Freaking Brat. So I made him do it again. Ha, that's what he gets for being silly!

SUU Football i.e. DeWayne

2008-12-19T20:27:00.004-07:00

My dad and Luke took Camden up to the SUU football game a few weeks back. Camden adores DeWayne, #12 corner back and Luke's good friend, and had a great time watching him play. Camden was super excited when DeWayne gave him an SUU football after the game. Luke took this cute picture of Camden and DeWayne (with my dad in the back).
Then Camden ran the 50 meter dash. Not sure who's idea it was but the video is hilarious.

A few weeks later I went with my dad and Luke to the last game. I took some pictures of DeWaynes last college game. These were some of the shots we got.

I know I'm short but I look ridiculously short in this photo.

Tupperware Cooking Party

2008-12-10T14:02:00.001-07:00

I am having a Tupperware Cooking party December 11, 2008 at 6:30 pm. I would love for you to come and see how quick and easy it is to cook with Tupperware.

No hands

2008-11-08T14:46:00.002-07:00

Camden: Hey mom come here.

Solinda: What's up bud (as I walk into the bathroom and he is peeing).

Camden: Look mom, no hands.

And we wonder why there is always pee on the toilet seat.

Diagnoses POF

2008-11-08T14:21:00.002-07:00

I have been diagnosed with POF (primary ovarian failure). It has come as quite a shock. I've seen my endocronologist and an OBGYN. They have both confirmed the diagnoses and suggested I see a reproductive endocronologist. I have an appointment Dec 3 in SLC to find out what can be done. My chances of getting preganant are pretty slim (6-8%) even with medical help. I've been a mess, and it sucks to think that I won't ever be able to have another child. I'm trying to stay out of the pitiful me stage but it's pretty easy to go there. Remember me on Dec 3rd okay.

Hooray for Halliburton

2008-11-08T14:15:00.003-07:00

Matt started working for Halliburton on Monday. He was hired on in Vernal as a acid/frac tech. He has 5 weeks of training and then he will begin working 3 weeks on and 1 week off. Matt has really enjoyed his first week of training. He learned how to fill out log books and had to take a defensive driving course. He starts OSHA training next week and then he's off to Casper, Wyoming for SMART school after that.
Matt drove home last night to spend two days with us. I appreciate him making the long drive home to see us.

Happy Halloween

2008-11-02T21:20:00.003-07:00

I love Halloween. I was hoping that my son would be just as excited. I asked Matt to bring Camden into work so that I could show him off to my co-workers. He was not happy. He told Matt "Halloween's not until night time and I'm not going." Yikes. Matt brought him in anyways. He pouted and hid behind me the entire time. I hate that. I couldn't even bribe him with candy! Usually that will at least get a smile or hello out of him. Nothing. Camden was in a much happier mood when I got home from work. We went trick or treating with my Matt's family and came home with more candy than we ever needed.

Picture Tag

2008-10-28T22:23:00.003-06:00

This was supposed to be the 4th picture in the 4th folder but I only keep my pictures in one folder so this is the fourth picture in that folder!

Matt started racing at LVMS in the Bullring in 2006. Little did we know that he would end up taking the championship too. It was a lot of fun to watch him race and a little unnerving. There was a lot of competition and the guys from Las Vegas hated us. At one point we had a guy threatening us with a metal baseball bat (oh the memories). This was the billboard at the track, loved seeing Matt's name on it.

I tag anyone who wants to play!

I've been tagged!

2008-10-25T22:27:00.007-06:00

Tag I'm it

Favorite person (outside of family)? I have a few favorite friends who make me laugh, they are always at the top of my favorite's list.

Favorite food? I love bread, garlic bread, rolls, toast (you get the theme)

Quirks about you? I still get car sick and throw up

Any regrets in life? Yep a few, but I lived through them and they have made me stronger

Favorite Charity/Cause? Big Brother Big Sister

Favorite Blog recently? Love PerezHilton.com

Something you can’t get enough of? This wonderful new ice cream "fleur de sel"

Worst job you’ve ever had? I really haven't had a bad job

What job would you pay NOT to have? cow sperminator

If you could be a fly on the wall, where? I can't pin point one right now

Guilty Pleasure? having my house cleaned by someone else

Got any confessions? I love to watch MTV hits (288) all the time.

If you HAD to spend $1,000 on YOURSELF, how would you spend it? I'd spend my day at the spa and then do dinner and a movie with friends/family

Favorite thing about your house? the view

Least favorite thing about your house? too big

One thing you are bad at? writing, grammar, punctuation

One thing you’re good at? loyalty

If you could change something about your circumstances, what? being done with school

Who would you like to meet someday? Living or dead? my grandfather's

What makes you feel sexy? perfect hair and make-up days

Who is your real life hero? my parents

What is the hardest part of your job? listening to parents who abuse their children

When are you most relaxed? reading a book

What stresses you out? me driving while Matt is the passenger, he never shut's up about what lane I should be in, which way I should go to get there and going to fast/slow

What can you not live without? my family if you want to go deep, or being shallow my cell phone and laptop

Do you agree or disagree with the recent article that reported that blogs are authored by narcissists? I stole Shannon's response. It's witty and totally true.

I disagree. The definition of a narcissists is someone who is overly obsessed with their image. If I was obsessed with my image, well, then my thighs would be smaller, my skin would be tanner, and I'd weigh 15 pounds less. However, If you have a blog dedicated only to the continual discussion of your looks, outside appearance, or social status, then you might be a narcissitic blogger.

Why do you blog? It's a great way to keep my family in the loop.

I tag: Anyone who wants to play

My Boy Makes Me Laugh

2008-10-19T21:40:00.007-06:00

As I walked into the living room tonight this is what I see...

How funny is that?

Camden told me he was giving himself an atomic wedgie. Where do kids come up with this stuff?

Don't mind Malachi, he kept getting closer to Camden the more pictures I took.

Duck Feeding

2008-10-19T21:15:00.006-06:00

We took an adventure with my brother and his family to the Bloomington Hills Golf Course to feed the ducks. The kids loved it. We had ducks coming in from all directions. We kept telling the kids to stand still so the ducks would come closer but that never happened. We went thru a pack of hamburger buns and an entire loaf of bread. I was having a blast. I got a huge white duck to take bread from my hand (twice). It was nice to do something out of the ordinary.

Carmel Apples

2008-10-19T20:59:00.004-06:00

Who doesn't love a carmel apple? How about 4 children under the age of 5 making carmel apples? Ok. I know it sounds scary but it was a blast.

Becky and I got the kids together for a play date and making carmel apples was our first adventure. We started with delicious green apples, each child had their own station. While Becky melted the carmels I got the kids some candies to decorate their apples. Becky helped each kids roll the apples in the carmel and then they were free to decorate it as they wished.

This didn't go so well. The kids decorated the hot carmel apples and everything slowly slid to the bottom of the apples. Becky and I kept scooping up the blobs of carmel and putting them back on top of the apples. The nice thing about carmel apples is that they don't have to be pretty to be good.

Mckelle
Tyler
Camden

Nights Alone

2008-10-17T23:07:00.003-06:00

Having Matt out of town looking for work sucks. It's tough sleeping alone. I'm so use to having Matt next to me in bed. I hope Vernal is worth the time, money and effort we have put into it. I'm sure that I will get use to it but these last few nights have been aweful. I sure do miss Matt and can't wait until he gets home.

Going Away

2008-10-17T22:50:00.002-06:00

As the economy has slowed down so has Matt's job. He's a mechanic and is paid flat rate (you only get paid if you have something to work on) which sucks and is totally killing us.

Matt and I talked about Vernal and Elko. Mining and Drilling. We started asking around. We have heard great things about the oil/natural gas field and how they are desperetly looking for employees. The draw back was time away from home and being away from the family. We scouted all around, made numerous phone calls to friends and had confirmation that they could just show up and have a job within a day. We took a gamble and sent Matt and his good friend Mike to Vernal on Tuesday.

Well that's were we hit the big hole in our plan.

Today is Friday and still no job. Little did we know/realize that it's hunting season and almost every rig supervisor in Vernal is out. Damn Hunters.

There is hope though. Tomorrow morning Mike and Matt have two different job interviews. Hopefully they will be employed again, sooner rather than later. Let's cross our fingers.

Fishing

2008-10-17T21:43:00.007-06:00

We took our last trip to Panguitch. It was freezing but we were slaying fish. We would put our poles in the water and hear the lovely zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz of the line. Matt caught and released over 30 fish. We broke a pole and almost sunk Matt's Uncle's boat (more on that later).
On Sunday morning we woke up to SNOW. The kids and the dogs were thrilled, me not so much.

Our evenings were filled will good food, smores and a rockin' game of UNO.

Grandpa's Apple Tree

2008-10-17T21:24:00.004-06:00

We were having Sunday dinner at my dad's house and the kids kept bringing in apples. Not just one or two but a dozen or so. Apples were not on the menu. Finally I asked them where they were getting them and they said from Grandpa's apple tree. The tree is still so small I didn't realize it had fruit on it. I couldn't resist taking a picture, the kids were being spastic.

I have a Degree

2008-09-24T22:04:00.001-06:00

I got my associated degree today. I have it in my hand. I am so excited. Here is a picture of the long awaited degree.

Five...5...V...3+2...

2008-09-24T21:42:00.003-06:00

Camden's 5... My how quickly the time has gone.. People always say "you won't know what you did without them," amazing how right "people" are. As always his birthday was huge.. When you have so many brothers and sisters in town it makes for a large party.

Camden was really excited to have a transformer birthday party (again). He even had the same birthday cake as last year.

What do I love about Camden:
- His big brown eyes
- The way he always picks me flowers and hides them behind his back as a suprise
- His skinny tummy when he wakes up in the morning
- Kisses and hugs he lavishes on me
- His mad face
- How he always has the funniest things to say
- That he never gives up (how many times can you say no in one day?)
- He loves to read before bedtime with me
- That me is always and forever going to be MY little boy

This is Camden's gift from Matt. He and Matt are very excited to golf together. Matt has even taught him the correct golf grip.

Ice Blocking

2008-09-18T19:40:00.032-06:00

I took Camden and Malachi over to the park to spend some time on the play ground. When we got there, there was a group of kids ice blocking. Camden was extremely interested and kept getting closer and closer to the ice blocking hill. When the kids finally noticed him, he was being very inconspicuious ;) they invited him over to play. Camden asked if I had ever been ice blocking and I could honestly tell him no. This is a fun video of his trip down the slope.

Las Vegas with the Thomas'

2008-09-18T19:40:00.028-06:00

We love the Thomas'. They are fun and always up for a quick trip to Vegas.

On this trip we decided to hit up Circus Circus....
And Chuck E Cheese... P.S. if your looking for Chuck E Cheese on the Garmin do not try Chuckie or Chucky, cause it won't work, trust me Becky and I looked for a loooonnnnngggg time.. and we ended up in BFE...
Camden and Tyler with the Man (or mouse) Chuck E.. McKelle would not get within an arms length of Chuck E.. That's ok, more room for the boys..
Camden playing Star Wars at Chuck E. Cheese...

Rockets

2008-09-18T19:40:00.027-06:00

Malachi (my nephew) and Camden love to watch Tyler (my brother-in-law) shoot rockets. Tyler loves to build them so it is a win/win situation. They all head up behind the Green Valley hill to enjoy the 40 seconds of excitement. I don't get it but whatever. I made Matt take the camera last time. The rockets almost as big as the boys.

P.S. I did not dress Camden.. He's into getting ready by himself.... not a pretty picture..