TIME MACHINE WISH

A while back I found a disc with pictures that Krisi had taken at our 10-year high school reunion way back in June 2007.

How I went about going to my 10-year reunion was kind of fun. My dear old friend Stephanie Fitch was planning on going so while she was in town we orgainized a "Drama kids" reunion. We had such a fun time and it was like no time had passed at all. Stef's husband was no longer able to come to the actual Brighton reunion, so she offered me his ticket. I was kind of interested in going (I never saw that coming BTW). When I got home, Brent said I should go because there is only one 10-year reunion. Krisi was good enough to come and pick me up for the big night. 

The whole night was just fun. I giggled and giggled. I chatted with so many people, even people I didn't really talk to in HS. A few things surprised me. The first was that, out of our huge graduating class of about 750, there were probably only 150 or so people there. Which I suppose just shows that I'm not the only one who didn't really feel attached to high school. The next thing was how every single female was even prettier than before (even the pretty ones back then were still pretty), and how all of the males were uglier (fatter, balder, etc). The last thing was that, as I looked over at the girls that were cheerleaders and drill team members, I realized how dumb it was that I hated them so much in school. They didn't know who I was then, and they certainly didn't know who I was that night. That I spent so much energy hating them annoys me. I guess I have learned as I have gotten older to just ignore the people that bug me and live my life.

I went home that night and told Brent that I wished I could go back to high school being the person that I am now and have a re-do. Brent's response: "So what you are saying is that you wish that you could get your hands on an actual time machine and go back to high school?" "Yes," I said. Because if I could do it all over again I wouldn't have taken things so seriously, I would focus on the friends that I still have in my life sixteen years later, and I would have flirted with the geeky cool boys, which I know now are my people. But in the last six years I have not been able to find a time machine so I enjoy the next best thing...I read a lot of Young Adult books. :)

SEE YA LATER TONSILS!

A few months ago when we went to see Stella's pediatrician to get her all set for her Kindergarten shots, her doctor commented on the large size of her tonsils. He asked me how she slept, and I told him the truth--that she had been sleeping great, and so quiet that I sometimes had to get real close to make sure that she was breathing. Of course, immediately after that visit, Stella started getting louder and louder when she was sleeping. I really noticed it when we were in Phoenix, where I first thought that she might have just had a cold, or maybe she is just a kid who snores. 

Then when we were in Vegas I shared a bed with her again and I couldn't believe how loud she was. It kept me up all night and woke me up from dreams. In the middle of the night I realized that she actually would stop breathing and then her body would jump and wake up for a breath. It was really scary and made me very worried. Each breath was a struggle and I hated it. So as soon as we got home I videotaped her sleeping and then made an appointment with an ENT. As soon as he saw the video he said that she was worse than most and that her tonsils should come out. 

We made the appointment for as soon as possible because I just honestly wanted the whole ordeal to be over with. But as the day came closer I started to second guess our choice. She seemed to be breathing better--not good, but better than usual. Were we being too hasty? But I just kept feeling like this was the right choice. 

Of course, Stella and I were very nervous the (very early) morning of the surgery, though I was definitely more scared than her. She was so brave as we said goodbye and she went off in her wagon with her new hospital buddy. The surgery was short, but I felt like we were waiting forever. All the other parents in the waiting room seemed calm but I was freaking out. I couldn't sit still for a second. When it was over and I was able to go back and see her I was relieved that it had gone well. She of course was really nauseated and in lots of pain, but she continued to be brave as she took her medicine and dealt with the drama of having to throw up. 

That night when she went to bed she fell asleep quickly and was so quiet while sleeping that I couldn't believe it. I was so happy that we had made the decision to take out her tonsils. I think she will be much happier now that we have done it. Now, a few days later she is back to normal almost. She has a sore throat but it is feeling better. I'm thankful for prayers and blessings and all the things that made the whole experience easier. I've only got one, folks, and I would hate it if anything happened to her. And, as you can see from these pictures, she is a sweetie!

PIONEER PICNIC

After our trip to Vegas we had the boys with us for the rest of the week. On the 24th we decided to head up to Brighton for a picnic and nature walk. We all had a great time. That night we did the rest of my crazy fireworks. I was so nervous the whole time because of what happened on the 4th. I'm not sure I am ever going to spend a ton of money on fireworks again--it was just too stressful. 

TOTAL GIRLS' TRIP

So I needed to get away and was able to scam Heidi into coming to Vegas with me. We brought Stella along as well because it was, after all, a girls' trip. We flew in Sunday and checked into our room at Planet Hollywood. It had been years since I had stayed on the strip and it was all hustle and bustle. We headed out right away to get something to eat and settled on the Cheesecake Factory. However, with all the crowds, distance, and pretty shops we didn't sit down to eat until 9:15 pm Utah time. Dinner was delicious and gave me time to decide that I wanted the Kate Spade shoes I had just seen at the boutique after all. After dinner, as we fought the insane crowd in the rare humid Vegas night, we stopped off to see the Bellagio fountains and they played "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds." Which Stella and I sang along to really loud. It was so fun.

The next morning we woke up and headed to the Outlet Mall. It was again insanely busy, but we were able to hunker down and do some serious shopping. Stella was so over it, but she got a smoothie as a peace offering and seemed happy enough about the day. Sweet Aunt Heidi then took Stella down for a swim at the pool when we got back to the hotel. That night we found a delicious Mexican restaurant at the hotel mall. They had these huge glasses there, which Stella asked me what they were for. I told her they were for if you wanted to get really drunk. Suddenly we got the giggles and were posing with the glasses like we were wild and crazy girls.

 Stella took some pictures at the mall. She said: "Heidi, you pose like this:"

  "And Mommy, you pose like this:"

  Then she took our picture:

 We loved staying at Planet Hollywood even though it was maybe a bit wild for us, but our room was quiet and the Bellagio fountains were very close. At Stella's insistence we went to watch a few fountain shows that night before bed. It was great fun. We got lucky and got to hear Frank's "Luck Be a Lady" which of course is the best Vegas song of all.

 The best parts of our room were the huge tub and the skinny mirror. Heidi and I couldn't get enough of how we looked in the skinny mirror.

 I'm so glad my best girls were able to come with me on my trip. It cheered me up and created some fun memories. Stella told us we weren't allowed to think of boys while we were on our girls' trip, but we still missed them (sorta).

HIKER GIRL TAKES NATURE WALK

Yesterday we went up to Brighton for a nature walk around Silver Lake. We took some food up for a picnic, and Stella fed most of her Doritos to the chipmunks. Stella made John read her all of the informational plaques along the walk while Nellie ran ahead of us trying to escape. 

We found a few ducklings to feed, and the girls loved throwing them bread. Since this wasn't really a hike, Stella (our little hiking girl) would take little diversions off of the path, over rocks and small bushes, to make the walk a little more hike-like. Little Nellie was always quick to follow her cousin on her adventures off of the path. As we came to the end of the trail Nellie was finally worn out and crashed on the boardwalk. Thankfully her daddy was able to pick her up and help her finish out the trail. 

I spotted some wildflowers and made the girls pose together for some pics. I think they did pretty good at posing all together.