Where the heck did spring go?

What a wonderful surprise this morning, we woke up to a few inches of snow and a very wet dog. It has been so warm and sunny the last few days, we even managed to get sunburns. Yesterday, we spent half the day doing yard-work (mowing the lawn, trimming the trees and bushes, weeding and putting lawn fertilizer down), hopefully all our early bird work won't kick us in the butt since everything froze last night. All of our flowers and fruit trees have been blossoming, we'll be keeping our fingers crossed so we can have some yummy peaches again this summer.

It's been a while since I've posted anything. I don't know if it's been the lack of excitement in my life or just no time to write up anything exciting.

About 2 weeks ago my parents and I flew to Rochester, Minnesota. My dad had set up an appointment at the Mayo Clinic for my mom. It was a busy few days, she had appointments with a few different Drs and lots tests and procedures scheduled. We met with Dr. Joseph's, who is one of the world specialists in my mom's condition and he gave us some good answers. It ended up being a really good trip leaving us with a better understanding of what we're dealing with. I had fun exploring the hospital grounds and looking at all the great art.

Last night, us girls went to our cousin Maddie's bridal shower. It was lots of fun seeing everyone and having Maddie entertain us with her hilarious personality.

Some other highlights from the last month...

Matt and Mitra announced that they are pregnant and Matt even came out to visit for a few days!

Ryan's cousin Cody stayed with us last weekend on his way home to Montana. He is leaving for Afghanistan this week. We are happy that we were able to see him again before he leaves. 

My Grandpa Clyde is doing great with his recovery from a skiing accident. He was hit by a stupid snowboarder leaving him with a sub-archnoid hemorrhage, broken facial bones and a lovely stay in the Breckenridge ICU.

Ryan started back to his job in the office a few weeks back. They have been busy with bids and the outlook for the year is looking good so far. 

The bees are back and working diligently on their hive, if only I could figure out a way to harvest their honey. 

Hope everyone is doing well and enjoying the spring weather (except for today).  I will try to be better with posting this month. 

The Simple Things

I just thought I'd write a little about my week. It actually turned out to be a really good one. I got a few things done around the house and at my mom's. I finally cleaned out her bathroom cupboards and organized all her makeup and things. I have been meaning to get to this for a while.

On Tuesday night we had a spa party with the Taylor girls! We did foot massages and pedicures, it was so nice to relax and have some good laughs with our best friends. We got out some old pictures from our trip to Ireland way back in the day, it was pretty funny. We snapped a few pics with Paula's camera, so when I get a copy I'll have to post um.

I had to work a few shifts this week, but they were actually not crazy ones for once. It's sometimes nice to have a slow day. Our ICU has been packed lately and we've had some pretty critical patients. It can be stressful sometimes and its hard to not get sucked up in the sad stories. I find it hard to leave the emotions behind when I come home. But on the other hand, it's always gratifying when I see a success or watch someone come out of something that you never thought they could survive.  I have learned from my work to never take life for granted. Life is so precious and can change so fast.

On Friday I took mom to physical therapy. I've decided that this is one of my favorite things to do with her. She has the most awesome trainer. We do lots of fun exercises together like throwing a ball back and forth or trying to bobble a balloon in the air. Mom has so much fun and finds everything to be so silly. I have never seen her laugh so hard or so much. It usually takes a lot to make her laugh, but at therapy she constantly has a smile on her face. Drew (her trainer) and I laugh too. Mom's laugh is so contagious, we all had one of those hysterical bouts of laughter when you just can't stop. Seeing my mom so happy brought tears to my eyes. I always leave the gym with a huge smile on my face and looking forward to the next week when we can have more laugh attacks.

Later Friday night, Ryan and I went out. We had dinner at Olive Garden. We decided to go out early instead of on Monday night just to avoid the crowds. Ryan and I also spent to weekend putting together our gym in the basement. We finally got a little TV in the workout room so I won't be so bored on the treadmill. I have used it a few times now and it really makes a big difference.

On Saturday, Ryan went snowboarding with Matt and some of his friends. I spent the afternoon going to lunch with Pearl and her mom Paula and Courtney, one of Matt's friend's girlfriend. We also went to the BYU Museum of Art with Carl Bloch's exhibit. I have been wanting to go to this for a while now, cause everyone that's been says it's pretty awesome. Well not that I've been, I can say that too. I found one of my favorite paintings of Christ, and I have never seen it before. I'm not a huge art person, but when I came into the room with this huge painting on the wall, I was immediately enthralled. It is a picture of Christ in Gethsemane being held in the arms of an angel. I was amazed by the emotion captured in Christ's face, I could see the agony and sorrow. But the way that he submits in the angel's arms and how she holds him also brings a feeling of comfort and relief. Very bittersweet.

Here's a picture from online, but it really brings no justice to the original. If you're around Provo and haven't seen the exhibit yet, you really should go. Unless you have a trip planned for Denmark anytime soon.

After the boys got home last night, we took Recon and went over to Pearlie's house for sushi and poker night. Courtney is becoming a chef and she gave us all quite the show making yummy sushi for us. I'm not a huge fan of the raw fish, but I must say that this was some pretty tasty sushi. Thanks Courtney.

Anyways, if you are still reading this, thanks. I guess my point is that I had a pretty good week. I am so blessed and I am trying harder to enjoy the simple things in life more. I am surrounded by some really great people. I can't tell you how amazing all of our neighbors and family members are. Without them, I don't know how we'd make it. Thank you to everyone, for all you do.

One Year, One-Hundred Pounds

Recon's birthday was yesterday! He's a year old now, I'm not sure if I really believe it, I feel like he was just a puppy the other day. He is so big now, last time we weighed him a few weeks ago he hit a 100 lbs! He started his B-day weekend off by going over to meet his new friend Rivers (Pearl and Matt's dog). They played for 5 hours straight in the backyard and he absolutely loved it! Rivers is a golden-doodle and he is around 8 months old now. He's about the same height as Recon. They had lots of fun roaming around the yard. Pearl and Matt have a huge chunk of BLM land in their backyard and Recon had a hay day climbing around and smelling all the wonderful smells. Recon slept so good that night. Sunday I had to work, so Recon got to hang out all day with his number one favorite person, his dad. They went on a really long walk and played in the park. Then they hunkered down and did manly things together while watching the Super Bowl. Of course Recon rooted for Green Bay and his Birthday wish came true when they won! When I got home from work, I put together his B-day cake that I baked the night before. We sang to him and then he ate a huge slice of it in one gulp! Obviously you can all tell that Recon is pretty much like our child. I love this dog. He has become my favorite running partner, he likes to help me do dishes and follows me around the house all day when Ryan's not home. Once Ryan comes home he is glued to his side. He is such a daddy's boy. We are so happy that we chose this pup a year ago, he really has become an important part of the family.

I forgot to get a picture of Recon and Rivers together, but I did catch James wearing my boots!

And for old times sake I had to add a picture of Recon when he was six weeks old! The day we first picked him out. 

Family Photo

We had our well needed family photos taken when everyone was in town for New Years. I'm still waiting to get my copy of the CD, but I copied these pictures off my brothers blog so I could post them. I think they turned out pretty nice. Especially cause Ryan has a Jesus halo around his head, like in the old Catholic paintings.

Troublemakers

I didn't take too many pictures over the holidays, but I did snap this pic of these two cuties. I never thought I'd meet a bigger pansy than Ember, but Ruger has her beat. No offense Brian and Shelley.