FOR I AM FERNICUS

Good-bye Cruel World

2006-09-21T10:31:00.000-05:00

So I'm shutting down this blog, or at least not posting on it anymore. Try not to be too disappointed. I've given this alot of thought. I've noticed as of late the singular nature of my blog and I didn't like it. Everything I do revolves around my family--immediate and extended. I didn't like the idea of a blog JUST ABOUT ME. It has to do with having the right priorities in life and working forward. Basically, Tyler and I are starting a new blog. We're both going to post on it about what's going on and (if the world hasn't come to an end by then) someday our kids can post on there too, you get the idea.
So in that light you can check out our new family blog,
The Thompson Tribune.

Oh what a night...again

2006-09-13T10:21:00.000-05:00

Mack got up last night at 12am and 4:30am. Now, 4:30 is just too late for him to eat usually because he eats and then won't go back to sleep. Tyler and I fought with him until a little after 5 when I finally caved in and fed him (You can save all your "the baby should eat when he's hungry" crud. He's a baby. He doesn't even notice when he's pooping! Plus, trust me, this boy eats PLENTY.) After he ate I couldn't get back to sleep so I was up window shopping online for a while until 6 then decided to try my luck with Mr. Sandman. Nope, no luck. I was up until my alarm went off at 7:10. Mack was still asleep and since he'd been up so much I decided to let him keep sleeping and FINALLY fell asleep myself, and slept til 9:30! Ty says Mack didn't even notice I was gone when he woke up at 7:30. He just had daddy time til I was awake. How considerate!? What a night. Plus, I have this HORRIBLE pain in both my knees. I don't know if it's the humidity, the cement floors or the pregnancy hormones still wearing off but it kills. Does anyone have any possible insight as too the origin of my mysterious pain? Help?

Back With A Vengence

2006-09-10T12:53:00.000-05:00

I haven't been able to post any pictures for a couple of days...So now I'm going to make up for lost time! HOORRAH!

Here is Mack in his 12 month OshKosh Pj's that my mom and Karly picked out for him before he was born. They're made of fleece and He feels super cuddly in them. Especially in the middle of the night when he gets up to eat.
This is the military detail at the Nuevo Leon state border. Yes, there's another truck across the street, and they both have machine guns.
Mack and I outside the Catedral Metropolitana in down-town Monterrey. We're actually across the street from it, in the Gran Plaza. Like all Cathedrals, this one took an obscene amount of time to build, but I have to say the inside was not as impressive as I had hoped it'd be. I mean it just didn't seem very Catholic. It was somewhat plain, with bare walls and the like. However, the outside was very nice.
Here is Tyler on the phone with me before I came down. He's in our back patio. Ahh.

Mack: because he's cute.

Besides taking pictures...We went to Parque Fundidora yesterday (sorry no photos only video). It used to be a steel factory complex, but is now a very large park with several art galleries and theaters, a convention center, a Formula 1 racetrack, an indoor ice-rink and a bunch of other "cultural stuff". The art galleries are free so of course we checked those out. It had a collection of very bright modern art which at first seemed very nice. BUT after a closer look you realised that every single painting was extremely morbid. Sad, because I think the artist is very talented and could have really lifted people's spirits had he wanted to. I can't remember his name right now, but apparently he left Cuba in 1991 and is "world renowned".
Today was Stake Conference. Great because our Stake Center is right next to the Temple and it's nice to see so many members in one place. Not great because--HELLO--I don't speak Spanish, making church very exhausting and giving Tyler a headache from having to translate everything for so long. Plus I had to go out to the car for the last 20 minutes (it's 94* here) because there was no place inside for me to nurse Mack in private. Lately Mack has become very social and hates to be covered up when he eats. He'd much rather YANK the blanket off and look up every 30 seconds or so to see what everyone else is doing. Fun for me! As far as the rest of the day goes, life should be good. Tyler is in his own personal version of heaven with all the NFL games on today. GO SEAHAWKS!

If I've Said it Once...

2006-09-06T15:21:00.000-05:00

I hate money. Obviously Tyler's school here does too because they're making it as difficult as they possibly can for us to get any. I'm talking about student loans here. All the important stuff in life is going well, but the little things--like a car you can depend on NOT overheating with your baby in the back seat--that stuff could be going better. But we've still got each other (cheesy). Mack is extra fussy this afternoon for some reason. Tyler and I are just taking this whole financial crisis one step at a time. Luckily we can survive quite happily on rice, beans, cilantro and the soup base we brought with us from my mom's food storage. Still no regrets here about moving to Monterrey. We're looking forward to being able to see more of it once we can get around again. Taking it one deep breath at a time.

Tacos For Sale

2006-08-31T13:28:00.000-05:00

There are two little places in our neighborhood we love. One is a little store that sells the BEST homemade tortillas and delicious green apple soda. The shop is run by this little old lady who absolutely adores Mack (of course). The other place is a taco stand. I don't know if it counts as a stand because its actually permanent. It's basically a large outdoor stove with a counter you can eat at. The lady there is also very nice. She sells chicken, pork, and carne asada tacos (with homemade tortillas) for about 5 pesos a piece--which is less than $0.50! As Kerin would say... "DELISH!"
In fact, Tyler is out picking up some of those (now) famous tacos as I write. We're all out of bread and milk a bunch of other staple food stuffs, we'd go to the store and pick them up but we were planing on being in Texas today to deposit our loan check ect. Unfortunately we had a little car trouble yesterday. Something is wrong with one of the fans or the radiator or something because it keeps overheating. A mechanic recommended by some one in our ward is on his way over right now to check things out.
The most important thing to happen yesterday is that Mack had his first taste of rice cereal. HE LOVED IT! I made up about a tsp with water and he couldn't get enough of it! After the first bite he practically lunged at the spoon, and when it was all gone and put the bowl on the table he got angry with me! It was too cute! Later today Ty is going to give him some more and we'll probably stick with just the cereal for a couple weeks before we try veggies next. It's all very exciting!

VENTURE TO THE CITY OF THE MOUNTAINS

2006-08-29T09:54:00.000-05:00

"The capital of Nuevo Leon, Monterrey rests in a valley surrounded by the jagged Sierra Madre mountain range. The distinctive Cerro de la Silla (Saddle Mountain) provides a dramatic backdrop for a city that blends the old and new, industry and style, tradition and efficiency. The downtown area features magnificent plazas and gardens highlighted by a pedestrian mall to the west and a historical district to the east.
In December 1999, Fortune Magazine touted Monterrey as "the best place to do business in Latin America." That is why many domestic and international corporations are located here, making for excellent internship opportunities.
Located in northeastern Mexico, only 174 miles south from the Texas border, Monterrey is the third largest city in the country. Even with its large population, it is one of the safest cities in Mexico.
FACTS AT A GLANCE
Population: 3 million
Weather: Hot summers (28*-35*C/ 82* -95*F ) and cool winters"
--Study in Mexico

We ALL Made it!! (thanks Dad)

2006-08-25T20:37:00.000-05:00

First: Finish reading The Jill Carroll Story. Some people have told me they were confused at the sight. You go over the right and start at the begining. After that, check out THIS. Trust me. It will make you smile.
Now that that's out of the way... Yep! I'm in Mexico! Things here are very very different. Somethings are worse (ie: the slums on the hill) and some things are better (ie: our Wal-Mart and Soriana). Soriana is this AMAZing grocery type store. Their bakery/pastery section is unbelieveable. Plus they have all these novel (to me at least) types of produce--such as an entire section devoted to different kinds of peppers. I could go on and on about Soriana's (they sell a TON of gouda by the way). Our Wal-Mart blows any stateside Wal-Mart out of the water because of one simple fact and that is that they MAKE handmade (is that redundant) tortillas right there were you can see them do it! Flour and corn, it just depends when you're there. Personally, I love the flour ones. I still haven't found someone who will bring toritillas to our house but I haven't given up yet either. I know they're out there somewhere.
Speaking of our house... It's ridiculously ugly. So ugly that it's cute. In an ugly little man sort of way. Where to start? Our entire place is tiled--tile which is of course, ugly, and flows seamlessly out our front door to where we park our car. Inside there are oh-so-lovely peach curtains on everyone of our large, barred windows. I worried at first about what we would do if there was a fire with our windows being barred and all. But then Ty reminded me that the entire place is built of cinderblocks and each room also has a door leading outside. We have a living room complete with futon, a dining room with a table, eight chairs, and a china cabinet (oh yeah, there's china in it). The kitchen has no windows, a tiny fridge and gas stove that must be lite with matches. I admit I was nervous at first, but I've gotten the hang of it. We have a closet that is shaped as if it were under some stairs (there are no stairs). This closet is tiled and has a towel rack, a soap dish and a toilet-paper-holder-thing. Fun. Our actual bathroom has a gate on the outside of the door that slides along the hallway to either open or close (this all sounds crazy). In all, our home lacks no character, only carpet.
I like living here. Today, Tyler, Mack and I took ourselves on a walking tour of downtown Monterrey and checked out a large Mall nearby (to get out of the heat). Peanut Butter is expensive here and they don't sell plain Amonia (for cleaning). The roads are confusing at first and everywhere we go people ooh and ahh over little Mackers, who takes it all in stride. He doesn't seem to mind the heat one bit and continues to be very laid back, just like his dad. Instead of eating this morning he decided to tell me a story. He's learning new sounds and wishes he could crawl. I think he might be bored with his bouncy chair and we're considering getting him a good ol' fashioned walker (deemed too dangerous in the States, but they sell a bunch down here). I don't know if this post has made any sense, but I'm sure it will all become more clear in the coming weeks. We've been so busy lately. I'll be sure to post some more pictures soon.

To hold over anyone who happens to look at this ol' blog of mine...Here is the picture that first enticed Tyler to check this place out.

I Don't Have the Time

2006-08-17T10:33:00.000-05:00

I don't have much time (I have so much left to pack! It's that little clutter stuff left when everything big is gone that leaves me scratching my head.), but I have been following along with this story and I think people should check it out. Jill Carroll Story
Tyler is having quite the adventure in Mexico! He's had two run-ins with local "law enforcement" and has managed to find us a place to live. That's all I have time to write right now. Have a GREAT day everyone and my next post will be from Monterrey!

Hee-Bee-Jee-Bees

2006-08-07T23:54:00.000-05:00

There are good hebejebes and bad hebejebes.
Last night we were all sitting around the fire out back roasting s'mores when i noticed a big fat spider crawling across my stomach. I had a freak out and brushed it off (I thought). A few weconds later I felt a tickle inside my shirt and looked down to see the same big fat spider crawling around in my bra!! I freaked out and tore off my top shirt so that I could get to the spider easier as I jumped up and down yelling "GET IT OUT TYLER!!! GET IT OUT!!!" I think I flashed half my family trying to hold open my bra and ect. so that Tyler could brush the spider out. Bad hebejebes.

Last Friday Tyler surprised me with tickets to WICKED!! The shows in San Diego are supposed to be completely sold out, but Ty found a great deal online. It was AMAZING! If you have the chance to see it, see it. It was by far the best show I've ever seen at the Civic Theater, maybe ever. Tyler arranged the whole evening. He got Karly to babysit, found a place to eat before the show and figured out all the directions, everything. I just had to show up. What a great guy! It was probably the last date we'll have for a while. I don't know how comfortable I'll be leaving Mack in Monterrey. Anyway, Wicked was a blast. I loved the music and and the show is non-stop. Scene changes are seamless and i never thought once to check the time or see what scene was next. I loved all the little twists on The Wizard of OZ. We had a great evening--eating out, walking around downtown, taking in a show--it was a real night out. Good hebejebes.

Mission Nearing Acomplishment

2006-08-02T17:14:00.000-05:00

Tyler and I have been getting alot done lately pertaining to the move. His Visa and Apostille stuff is all finally done, the loan is almost done, and we've got two apartments lined up for Ty to look at as soon as he gets down to Monterrey. Okay, I have a confession to make...Tyler pretty much did all that stuff I just named by himself. BUT, I fully supported him during each step. That's got to count for something right?
Hold on a minute there, I've gotten a few things done myself. I made a killer carseat-bag to make transporting Mack's carseat even easier. I'm nearly done with this ultra colorful mobile and 'Car Collage' for Mack. The collage will keep him semi-occupied (hopefully) on the long drive to Mexico. There are about a million ideas in my head of things I'm hoping to make/create after we move (taking the sewing machine and knitting needles!). Oh! my mom taught me how to attach snaps to a romper I made for Mack before he was born, so that's done too. This week Tyler and I have been on Storage Unit Mode overdrive. Pack up this, take out that. To top it all off, I've been updating my blog more regularly.
Mack has been getting alot done too! What can a nearly 3 month old perfect person do you ask? Plenty. He's been practicing getting up to 7hrs a night of sleep a night, practicing rolling over when no one is looking, and when he's not busy doing that he talks with his friends-- Orange Giraffe, Blue Giraffe, Sports Mobile, and Mr. Fan. Somewhere in there he manages to find time to eat 7 times a day, get his diaper changed, grow like a weed and make everyone he meets fall head over heels in love with him. Like I said, he's a busy baby.
So in conclusion (and true 6th grade essay style), I'm feeling pretty good about this move and about everything we're getting done. Good Day.
P.S. I almost forgot! Yesterday my Mom and Dad treated me to new glasses AND contacts. Thanks guys! I can see again!

Small Things

2006-07-31T12:27:00.000-05:00

Today I like small things. I like small cameras, small feet-- you get the idea. Now I'm not always in a "Small Mood", but today I am. I especially like myself small, considering that yesterday I discovered I'd lost 3 more pounds. I'm not going to say where that puts me, but I'm happy with it for now. In fact, I think I'm REALLY happy since I technically didn't even exercise. I AM happy.
In other small news. I added a few links over on the side. My friend Jill from high school started blogging so I put her up, plus a few more sites that I frequently enjoy. You don't have to like them, I do. Isn't the internet great!
Tyler and I have taken a TON of pictures lately that I would love to post on here, but I'll try to take it easy and just stick to the highlights.
Mack recently went in the big boy pool for the first time. No crying here! He was very interested in the way his hand looked above the water vs. below the water.
Here's our boy! Buckled up and ready to go. We had an empty seat between us on our flight up to Seattle and decided to take advantage of the 'kodak moment'. In Mack's crusade to disprove negative baby sterotypes, he stayed on his best behavior the entire flight. I guess we can add flying to the list of things Mack loves to do.
Mommy and Mack in downtown Seattle to pick up Daddy's birth certificate. Some goober gave us bad directions and we ended up walking all over Chinatown and Pioneer Square. Neither of which, by the way, are anywhere near the Admin building.
Lastly, I love Big Mack's small morning nap, which gives me the chance to update my blog.
P.S. I packed up Mack's 3-6 month clothes yesterday. He's now offically in 6-9 or 6-12 month clothes!

I Just Can't Hide It!

2006-07-28T12:33:00.000-05:00

I'M SO EXCITED! DANNA ALLEN (my high school bff) AND DAVID RIDGE (my ol' neighborhood pal) ARE GETTING MARRIED!!!!! Ahh! I'm excited and so happy for them! In fact I think Tyler is getting a little sick of hearing me say "I'm so happy for them". He just looks at me with a I-Know-That-Look saying "You just said that." It's cute. I wish I had a picture of Danna and a picture of David that I could post on here together with a big heart around them. Ahh amore!

In the Middle of Our Street

2006-07-27T12:59:00.000-05:00

We made it. On Tuesday I woke up at 1:30 in the freakin morning, fed Mack, and got ready for the longest day of my life. Around 3am we left for LAX and our 6am flight. I'm tired again just thinking about it. Everything turned out alright. We were able to check our carseat with no worries thanks to the 'carseat-bag' I fashioned out of some old animal print fabric my mom had lying around (I know, very stylish). After our nonstop Alaska Airlines flight landed us safely at SeaTac we headed back to Ty's folks house. For anyone who doesn't know, Ty's parents recently sold their house in Bellevue and are moving to a new neighborhood in Renton. This is sorta our "Goodbye House" trip. After Mack's morning nap we went and visted both of Ty's sisters and Mack's cousins.
Yesterday, among other things, we did the customary trip to Ivars on Lake Washington. I love that place. Yummy.
As soon as Mack wakes up from his nap we'll be heading into down town Seattle to pick up Tyler's birth certificate (We need another copy for his student visa). After that we'll do a little sightseeing, then head on over to the Ballard Locks. Word around town in that the salmon are really running right now (do you like how I threw in a little fish lingo there). I think the Locks are really neat-O. We head back down to San Diego on Saturday and then it just two short weeks until Tyler leaves for Monterrey with Mack, my Dad and I to follow a few days later. Down to the wire my friends.
P.S. Mack rolled over FIVE times in row yesterday!

Warning: Wordy Post Ahead

2006-07-18T23:02:00.000-05:00

I never give blow-by-blows so I thought maybe I could get away with it just this once. Busy day.

1:30am: (Is this too early to count as the start of my day?) I awoke to a crying baby, nursed him and went back to bed around 2am (note 'bed' not 'sleep').
5am: (Again, too early?) Woke to Tyler giving crying baby binky. Lately Mack has been rotating between waking once or twice a night. Turned out to be a double feature evening. Funny thing, after eating this time he didn't want to go back to bed so from about 5:30 to 6:15 he just laid in his crib, cooing at his mobile and stuffed sock bunny. It was so cute. How can you be upset about not sleeping with a baby like Mack?
7:30am:Woke up and fed Mack (1/2 hr later than usual due to 2nd feeding making me very tired). I checked the latest news on Lebanon, showered, got dressed, and ate breakfast.
9:30am: Again, feed Mack. Then leave for Mexican Consulate in downtown San Diego.
11am: Arrived at Mexican Consulate. After wandering around outside for a minute a middle-aged man asked us if we were there for a visa and directed us in thru the VERY uninviting barred metal doors "up to the second floor, window one". The Mexican Consulate was different than I expected. I didn't think it would be nice but, it is a representation of their government and country. You'd think they'd like to make a good impression at least. I'd say it was about 3 steps down from our DMV. Another surprise-- Nothing was in English. Signs on the bathroom telling you to accompany your children ect, all in Spanish. Now I don't know for sure, but I assume that the American Consulate in say, China! has signs in both English and Mandarin. Hey, I guess that's where we're different. Everyone inside was absolutely in love with out little blond, blue eyed baby. As I walked by people would literally reach out to touch him. No joke.
11:40am: Left Consulate and walked around Little Italy.
12:00pm: Arrived in Balboa Park and found a place to Nurse Mack. It happened to be free Tuesday (had no idea) so we visited The Timken Museum of Art, The San Diego Museum of Art, The San Diego Institute of Art and The Mingei International Museum. Whew! At The Mingei they had an exhibit on differnt costumes from different 'carnivals' around the world'' (my fav). At The Art Institute they always display local art (Ty's fav).
3:30pm: G0t home. Fed Mack. Found killer deal online for play pen. Cleaned kitchen.
5:30pm: Yep, fed Mack again. What can I say, he needs to eat. Checked blogs. Read AAP book on infants (aka: educated myself). Gave Mack a bath.
8pm: Mack nursed, got a final diaper change, had story time and then went off to bed.
9:19pm: Wrote blog. And now I'm going to go find some lunch/dinner. Good Night.

Summer Lovin'

2006-07-08T20:10:00.000-05:00

Mack rolled over today for the first time. He went tummy to back. He spent the rest of the day sleepy and fussy. I guess rolling over is hard work. Cutie!
Lately Tyler and I have been busy preparing for our upcoming move to Monterrey, Mexico. There is alot to do, and we still haven't found a place to live yet. I am confident that everything will turn out alright in the end.
Fourth of July was good old fashioned laid back fun. Here's a photo for proof. Wishing many happy summer nights to all!

Back by Popular Demand

2006-06-12T20:20:00.000-05:00

A couple of people have asked me to send them some pics of Mack. I said I'd post more on my blog... so here they are for your viewing pleasure! Here's our little Mackerdoodle in the bath! He usually screams a little bit at the begining, but then he calms down and seems to really enjoy it by the end.

I love this pic 'cause I feel like it really shows off his blond hair and fair skin (just like Tyler!). A bunch of his hair in the front fell out a couple weeks ago, but it's starting to grow back in now.

Mack in his vibrating bouncy chair...that he loves, with his binky...that he loves. I'm sorry to say that both of these items have become a crutch in my life. I don't know how Mack (or Tyler and I) would survive with out either one.

Last one: Here is Mack and his daddy hanging out on a Sunday afternoon, discussing the NBA playoffs and what Mack plans to spit up on next.

Sunrise, Sunset

2006-06-10T13:47:00.000-05:00

So I've been working on Mack's birth announcement. When I say "working" I mean that Tyler and I took a gazillion pictures, picked the ones we liked and sent them into purplestork.com and they're making the announcement for us. We got the proof yesterday and I have to tell you that I L.O.V.E. love it. The great thing about this purplestork is that they set up the format and then we print them out-thus- Ty and I get the 'rights' so later I can post the thing on my blog woohoo! If you'd like an announcement sent your way and you don't think I have you address let me know.
Mack's blessing was last Sunday. He was 100,000,000% precious! Tyler was just a little bit nervous, but he did GRRR8! (I am beyond clever). We had a ton of relative support. My Aunt Stacie's family, my Grandpa Cope and his wife Kathy, and My Grandpa Dick and Jane were all there. Tyler's parents and his sister Monique, her husband Ryan and their kids--Kayla and Mason, flew down for about a week to CELEBRATE. We had great fun going to Legoland, the Oceanside Pier, In'n'Out, taking the boat out on the bay, checkin' out Tyler's school, Old Town San Diego and Seaport Village. Your basic San Diego festivities.

Here's the final shot for the post...The whole family! ahhh! The building behind us is at The University of San Diego. Tyler had the majority of his classes in there. It's tough, NOT. Because our view in this picture looks out over Mission bay. But hey, for the money we pay for his tuition, there had better be an ocean view.

The One, The Only

2006-05-26T12:17:00.000-05:00

HERE IT IS! photos of our beautiful baby boy Mack! He's even cuter now, as if that's even possible. The pic on the bottom was taken just after he was born so he looks a little less puffy, a little old and totally more gorgeous now than he did then. The pic on the top was taken when he was about one week old. He is modeling a sample of some of the tie-dye stuff I made for him. It's a little sad to think that Mack doesn't even fit those onesies anymore! He's growing so fast! I'll post some newer pictures later (I can't find then at this moment). AHH...He looks so much like his Daddy!

My Baby Takes the Morning Train

2006-05-16T19:43:00.000-05:00

Mack Burdette finally arrived (with a little help) on May 3rd!! Nearly two weeks later baby and mom are both doing well. He weighed in at a whopping 10 lbs, leaving me with 4th degree episiotomy/tear. 4th implying as bad as it can possible get. Very Fun. The highlight of the delivery for me had to be my dad giving me my epidural, which then was turned off just in time for me to feel the "real" pain. OUCH. Tyler was absolutely wonderful throughout the entire experience. He was a little nervous to see me in so much pain but was very brave just the same.
I feel as if I've nearly fully recovered. I don't walk funny anymore and don't have to sit with my special inflatable pillow either. Mack is quickly gaining weight and is already into 3-6 month clothes. His only complaint is the gas my antibiotics (from when I had to go into the ER last week for a fever/rash/infection--fun again) give him. I hope to be able to post pictures of our little man soon.

NO BABY YET

2006-04-20T14:30:00.000-05:00

Nothing personal but I cannot possibly field all of these "any baby yet" questions individually. SO....Until further notice I will not be responding to emails, answering my phone or in any other way communicating with the outside world. Believe me, when I have this baby everyone will know. For now, there appears to be no end in sight. My last two doctor's appointments have been exactly the same--and no, I am not going to post those type of intimate details on my blog. Sorry.
I will tell you that I recently had a wonderful facial courtesey of my mother-in-law. I've never had anything like that done before and it was absolutely amazing! The lady who did it was so nice and not at all snooty or 'better-than-you' like I thought she might be. Besides the facial, I've basically just been getting ready for little Mack. Everything is about taken care of and now there is nothing left to do but wait and try every (safe) induction tactic known to man.

1, 2, 3, 4......21, 22, 23--Find the Pattern

2006-04-01T13:43:00.000-06:00

*Birthday turned out good. Highlights include:
1) Going out for Chinese food. My doctor told me specifically earlier that day NOT to eat out in order to avoid excess sodium and help my swollen body deflate a little. For the record however-- I don't eat much salty food. In fact I never add salt to anything and have some of the best 'salt avoiding' habits of anyone I know. However again, I have had this uncontrollable craving for peanut butter & honey sandwiches for the last two months. To make up for my blatant disregard for dr's orders I have decided-as painful as it may be- to cut peanut butter from my diet. I am a good person.
2) Presents. I am very pleased to tell you that Tyler's mom gave me the only baby swing on the market that PLUGS IN! I know a lot of people won't understand what a big deal this is--but it will probably save me about a gazillion dollars in batteries. THANKS. The folks set me up with some shnazzy luggage for when we move to Mexico and Karly let me have her necklace that I'm telling her how much I love "hint, hint". Kloe made this crazy/adorable/fired/clay/sculpture/relief/portrait of Mack, Tyler and me. Words cannot describe it's beauty so you're going to have to try and use your imagination. AND of course my ever thoughtful husband presented me with "THE WORLD's MOST COMFY PJ's" for when I'm in the hospital. Tyler is the best.
3) Cake. Chocolate Costco Cake. Those three little words should be enough.

*Went to Disneyland yesterday. The new Monster's INC ride is a real disappointment. These monsters are supposed to be talking and stuff, but their mouths never move. Mr Disney practically invented animatronics--I expected more. Shame on you Walt. Hung around through the noncommittal rain to watch the fireworks. Still amazing no matter how many times you see it. I love them!

*Looking forward to...
-The obvious
-Saturday afternoon and Sunday General Conference
-Spa appointment on Monday (more to follow)

Little Man

2006-03-14T12:35:00.000-06:00

My doctor's appointment yesterday went great. I'm really lucky that Tyler is still able to come to all of them with his crazy work schedule. But his boss has been pretty cool about everything so far and has even allowed him to come "on the clock". Lucky us! Mack is head down and she predicted his current weight at about 4 lbs--right on track. I told her this story I heard about a lady in our ward who thought she was having a boy and then turned out to have a 10 lb baby GIRL. She reviewed our ultrasound pictures and told us that Tracy, the girl who did our ultrasound, is never wrong. That was nice to hear. Most the time doctors tell you "Well, I can't promise anything." The best part is that she moved up the due date from May 1st to April 27th! About five days sooner!
For all of you Monkeys on my back who keep hounding me about a pregnancy picture--forgive me for not wanting to post a picture of myself at my heaviest weight ever on the internet. No, seriously, Tyler just got a digital camera for his birthday and I've been trying to post a picture but it doesn't seem to be working. I'm going to try again later.

Feelin' Groovy

2006-02-08T14:17:00.000-06:00

First, I love that I can update my blog from any computer! How neat is that? I can sit at any computer and tell you that life is good. In fact, it's currently birthday season at the house which means that Kody is now 16, Kyle is 18 and Kerin is a whopping 20 years old!! On Friday Karly will turn 14. Everyone is at such great ages.
I spent yesterday shopping with my mom after a complete "I-have-nothing-to-wear" break down on Sunday. Technically I don't have any real maternity Sunday clothes. I've just been making do with what I have by strategically layering or the like. Before church my whole system fell apart--I've outgrown all my old clothes. I ended up in my mom's wrap-around skirt with a t-shirt and brown zip-up hoodie. Sheesh. An intervention became completely unavoidable when my Dad leaned over to my Mom in Church and told her to make me "something" to wear. Anywhoo, the shopping trip to Old Navy and Yardage Town was a huge success! THANKS MOM!
And since my ankles weren't quite swollen enough from all that shopping...I decided to tie-dye some onesies and a bassinet sheet for little Mack. Everything turned out much much much better than I anticipated. I will even go so far as to tell you that it's all EXTREMELY CUTE!! HOORAY FOR ME! My mom also tie-dyed a pillow case, Kloe did an apron and Karly did a t-shirt. Tyler thinks everything is adorable, and I'm convinced Mack will be the coolest kid on the block! MERVEILLEUX!

Waiting

2006-01-22T01:17:00.000-06:00

Tyler gets back tomorrow afternoon from Thailand!! I'm so excited. I've already 'spring-cleaned' our room twice and made him a big "WELCOME HOME" sign with lots of hearts on it. Awww. However, I had to put it all up on the bathroom mirror because that's basically the only empty space we have. Cozy right? Ty emailed me about an hour going saying that he'd arrived in Taiwan by the skin of his teeth due to the crazy lines through customs to leave Thailand. What do they care who leaves? I expect Tyler to arrive in San Diego tomorrow around 3pm but he might be able to get a earlier flight. Keep your fingers crossed.
In an unrelated topic, I had dinner tonight with my parents, my Grandpa Dick and his wife Jane. Happy 71st Birthday Grandpa! It was very fancy and delicious and a great way to pass the time waiting for my Tyler to come home safe. I can't wait!

Big Deal

2006-01-11T23:07:00.000-06:00

I have such good excuses for not posting that I literally AMAZE myself. WOW. I am good.
No really I've been putting it off because I don't know how to work the scanner, thus no pictures of the baby's ultrasound on here. oops. By the way... its a BOY. First name: Mack. Middle name: Burdette. Last name: I'm not going to write that on here because I foolishly believe I can keep people from being able to track me down on the internet. ahHA! For those of you that are thinking to yourself "hmmm, Burdette? That's a strange name...." You're right, it is. It's Tyler's middle name, his dad's middle name, and his grandpa's first name. Beat that!
Christmas and all the other Holidays (New Years, Kwanza) went really well. Tyler got me new "Sunday Shoes". He picked them out all by himself without any help from me and they're absolutely beautiful. He's the best. Plus we got a ton of stuff for little Mack. "Way to go son."
Tyler left on Sunday for Thailand for two weeks. He's doing an internship/class/consulting job with a company in Bangkok. Yes--I miss him very much. No--I don't want to talk about it. YAAWWWNNN! Would you look at the time?! I better go sit in my room and knit and watch mindless tv. Just keepin' it real.

2005-12-24T17:06:00.000-06:00

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

My What?

2005-11-21T14:39:00.000-06:00

So we're going to (cross your fingers) find out what the baby "is" on the 13th of December, but just to keep me busy till the big day--I'm going crazy. Too much to do, yet nothing to do at the same time. Tyler helped me finish sanding down the old dresser my parents gave us--that's one check--but now I need to paint it. Any ideas? I was thinking white and then making the doors 'grass green', plus I found these snail handles on sale super cheap, but now I'm not so sure. I need help!
And with the Holidays fast approaching I am once again reminded of how much I HATE money. Oh well, I have what really matters right? A wonderful husband and a baby on the way. I guess I'm just the mood to complain. SNAP OUT OF IT! I swear I'll do my best not to mention $$ again, it's just too depressing. (Unless I go on "THE PRICE IS RIGHT", then you're all gonna hear about it.)
In a subject no way related....I was looking up some old friends on myspace the other day and I decided that I don't really like myspace that much. It's just 500 quizzes right after each other and an excuse for once semi-logical people to post half naked pictures of themselves. Yuck! PLUS= They all look the same. I'm talking the pages and the people. If I had to describe it in one word it would be "Disappointing". BUT, I do love seeing what old friends are up to these days, even if they only update the darn things once every six months. In summary, I wish they all did more posting with less quizzing and drinking. The End.

I swear I can talk about other things too......

2005-10-20T17:42:00.000-05:00

On Tuesday I had my second doctor's appointment. I'm really glad that Tyler has been able to go to both my appointments so far. We got to year the baby's HEARTBEAT!!!! It was kind of a woosh woosh sound, like the baby's is jogging around in there. It was so exciting. The doctor I've been going to is really nice and she said everything sounded fine and right on track. My due date is no longer in April but is now May 1st, one day before my Mom's birthday--she has absolutely no problem with that! Tuesday was also my official 12 week mark, which means I should be starting to get over all the icky parts of early pregnancy. I haven't really noticed a change, I'm still tired all the time and very restless at night. Luckily, I haven't been experiencing much morning sickness. When I do throw-up it is always really sudden (no more raisins for me!). My only real consistent craving has been for cream cheese, although earlier today I had a NEED for Stove Top Stuffing. Tyler has been really great about everything, he has absolutely no problem running out to the store, doing the laundry or anything else he can to help at a moments notice.
Today has been pretty basic so far. I took care of Alana next door for most of it, ate some stuffing (thanks Ty!). School is going well: took a bio test on Wednesday and got an Art and a PoliSci test back (A+ thank myself very much!). Life is good.

Summer Pictures

2005-09-13T14:40:00.000-05:00

So I'm upstairs and just found a wealth of photo's from this last summer. I still want to post some more but I figure this is a good start.... (they're even in chronological order, ooOOOoo)

Two love birds (plus her entire family) at the "Honeymoon Capital of the World." I kept a bunch of those blue ponchos to shred up and knit a bag out of.

BAM! Heeeerrrrreeee's NIAGRA! Niagra falls was absolutely enormous. Honestly, I'd expected it to be abit of a let down but this waterfall does not disapoint.

Eating lunch in Niagra City, Canada. This place is like a mini Las Vegas. Crazy. Don't be fooled by those smiling faces it would end up taking over an hour for us to get our food and it wasn't even that good.

4th of July on my Dad's boat. We went out to San Diego Bay and were literally right underneath all of the fireworks. I loved it!

Again- 4th of July. That's Karly on the left trying to read by little side lights on the boat.

Awww. Our puppy Georgia. She's a little big bigger now, but still just a darn cute. eg: she still looks like a puppy dog.

Tyler, me, Karly with my hand for a head, Kloe and Kody's back marveling at the world's largest living organisim durring the "lake trip" in August.

This is most of my family sans Kerin and Kassey, with our neighbors at the Newport Beach Temple open house. Nope, we're not standing in front of the temple.

There are no words

2005-09-02T10:37:00.000-05:00

Alright I can barely hold it in any more!! You got me! I'm PREGNANT!
That's right you heard me, I'm pregnant.
Whew! does that feel good. I've been avoiding my blog like the plague. I knew I wouldn't be able to resist such a broad forum for releasing the news. So now feel free to let the congratulations just pour in. Go ahead you know you want to.
The baby's due date is April 28, 2006. I've got NO idea as to the baby's sex as of yet and no idea when I will know. There is this nifty little blood test they can do now with the mother's blood really early to find out, but it costs a hefty sum- about $300. So, if people feel like donating to a worthy cause.... j/k. Tyler and I couldn't be happier about our impending arrival! I'm so EXCITED! Thankfully I haven't had any morning sickness yet but my body just generally feels like crap and I'm tired all the time. Yesterday I took a three hour nap and still didn't have too much trouble getting to bed that night!
In other news, Kloe turned eight on Wednesday. Her baptism is tomorrow and she asked me to give a talk at it. I'm a little nervous, but considering that I spoke in Sacrament last week, (my first REAL adult/introduction-to-the-ward-talk) I'm feeling relatively confident.
Apparently Tyler has become a little local celebrity. Check out this link= http://www.sandiego.edu/business/index.php?areaid=11&newsid=121
We're all very proud....

Back in the USSR

2005-08-08T16:48:00.000-05:00

I'm back down in sunny so cal...for once. Ty and I were gone for about 3 weeks on a vaca. We drove clear up to his parent's house in Seattle from the far end of the U.S. of A. in one day! They invited us along for the somewhat annual trip out to the Washington coast along with the rest of the family. It was really neat- completely different from any coast I've ever been to before in my life. There isn't in rythm to the way the waves break, about 7 are breaking all at the same time, constantly. It was nice to relax.
After "The Ocean" we spent another week chilln' at Jim and Karen's (got our car fixed), then drove down to Angel's Camp, CA to meet up with my family for their "Lake Trip". We spent alot of time on the boat and checked out the old local mining towns. I had no problem getting up on a wakeboard and was FINALLY able to get up on a single ski!!! A little background- I've been trying to get up on a single for AGES! Good trips all around.
But as I said now we're back, roasting s'mores and eating chilli dogs. It's a good life.

Mis Zapatos Nuevos

2005-07-19T20:01:00.000-05:00

I can't believe myself! Just when things get uber interesting and I have oggles to post, I slack off. I Slacked!
Well, We got to California just fine, nothing really broken. My dad drove up in the tundra and then I rode back down with him and all of our stuff. Tyler stayed with my Grandma Judy for about two weeks to finish up his summer classes. Luckily we still fly for free on Delta until the 14th of July so I flew up to UT for a few days while we were apart. Neatness: While my dad and I were driving through San Marcos he decided to turn around and check the price of a storage unit we passed. Good thing because it turned out to be MUCH cheaper than the one I'd found. This of course is crazy because I spent aprox three days on the phone trying to fine the cheapest storage unit in the San Diego vicinity.
About three days after Tyler got to CA we decided to take what turned out to be one of the coolest trips I have ever been on in my ENTIRE LIFE! COSTA RICA! We left San Diego at about 10:30pm and flew to Atlanta, where we had a four hour layover. Atlanta is a cold airport in the middle of the night. Then from Atlanta to COSTA RICA. I slept a lot on our second flight so I was feeling totally rejuvenated by the time we landed in San Jose. Shop keepers in Tijuana can't hold a candle to the Taxi drivers in San Jose. The instant you step out the doors of the terminal they are in your face, SCREAMING that there is NO BUS to downtown. They are (like any raging lunatic) wrong. We took a bus down town, exchanged some of our dollars for colones and stopped at a nearby soda for a lunch of rice and beans. After lunch it was time to take another bus for the four hour trip to the town of Cahuita on the Caribbean coast.
Cahuita is an extremely small town, with the ocean on one side and a rainforest/national park on the other. None of the streets are paved, but I did see one that was cobbled. Our first night there we stayed at Cabinas Jenny, it was dark when we got there but the view in the morning was AMAZING!!! I don't know how else to describe it. The ocean was right outside our door. Before I forget: everywhere we stayed was cheap and had a private bathroom. I learned that in Latin America you don't flush your toilet paper, just throw it away, I felt bad for whoever has to empty the garbage. Cabinas Jenny had windows with shutters but no screens or glass, I loved it. Dinner that night was beans, rice and coconut chicken. The next morning we walked up to Playa Negra, a black sand beach, and hung out there for a while. Then down thru town and into the coastal rainforest/national park. We saw a bunch of monkeys, an enormous butterfly (15 cm wingspan and electric blue), a spider the size of my hand (when all of my fingers are spread apart), thousands of leaf cutter ants and hundreds of odd looking-clear colored crabs. But my personal favorite was the SLOTH!! I was not leaving that place until we found one and we did! It honestly didn't look like much, hairy, mossy and curled up in a ball sleeping, but I saw it and it wasn't in a zoo (honestly-the monkeys were much more fun to watch). The beach here-Playa Blanca- was white sand and just as beautiful as Playa Negra. There was this crazy mist coming out of the rainforest then add that to the mist from the waves breaking, it really made me feel like I was IN a jungle (plus I actually was).
That night we stayed in a different place called Cabinas Seaside, which I liked even more than the first place b/c: 1.We were just as close to the beach as we had been the night before 2. It was bright and beautiful with colored tiles everywhere and a bright mural of Costa Rica in our room 3. There were a bunch of hammocks outside overlooking the ocean!
The next day we woke up early and caught the bus back to San Jose, where we walked around down town a little bit and visited the market (where I picked up some fun new shoes!). The market was much smaller and subdued than I was expecting, but apparently that just the way they are in Costa Rica. Back at the airport we had didn't have much trouble catching a flight back to the states except for an OUTRAGEOUS departure tax! SHEESH! Once in Atlanta we caught a flight to Seattle, stayed the night with Tyler's parents and then few the next day down to San Diego. Yes- It was crazy.

We didn't get much time to relax...about three days after we got back from Costa Rica, Tyler and I flew to Cleveland, OH to meet up with my family a few days into their 'Church History Trip'. Given the fact that my blog is already long and this second trip involved relatively few cultural differences I will be brief in my description. In short, we saw Kirtland, the Morley farm (I'm a direct descendant aparently), the Johnson Farm, Lake Erie, Palmayra, Fayette, the Smith Farm, the Sacred Grove, Hill Cumorah and Niagra Falls (Canadian side). My folks also -dadadaaaa- picked up an adorable Blood Hound puppy named Sweet Georgia Maple (Georgia May) along the way. ADORABLE!
As usual I could say so much more! but I won't. I will however, PROMISE to update more regularly.

Late Night (almost)

2005-05-25T00:09:00.000-05:00

Tyler just left for work and I'm sitting here, searching the world wide web, hoping to be tired sometime soon. I don't have any exciting trips to report, but we have been barbecuing a lot lately. How is that for a segue! Last time we were in Seattle we brought our grill back with us. So far we've had hot dogs, bratwurst, corn, and on Monday I traded in my penny jar and got us some steaks. Its amazing how a little variety in the ol' diet can brighten up the day.
My days lately are jam packed with moving preparations. I've got us a storage unit, but we still need to research out car and health insurance. I've nearly packed up our entire apartment (did 5 more boxes today). Our living room resembles a disorganized and carpeted storage unit. Go figure.

E!

2005-05-16T10:49:00.000-05:00

After careful thought and consideration we are pleased to announce that Tyler B. Thompson has made his choice. Beginning this fall he will be one of eighteen proud International business students at San Diego University! For more information please go to Sandiego.edu.

That's that! and yes I am excited. Here's the low down/game plan: You read it right, San Diego only accepts 18 students in to their IMBA program so that they can insure each student will receive every possible consideration. In fact, at the end of August, the school rents out this resort in Roseritta and sends the students (+ spouse) down to get to know each other--and who knows what else. Fall semester is pretty same ol' same ol. Then in January, Tyler -and three of four other students -will be hired out as consultants to some international company (likely) in South America (they split the group up and then scatter them across the globe). I will tag along for a couple weeks until my classes start, then it'll be back to the books. Luckily they're only gone for a month, then they come back and take their winter semester classes. That summer -this is the best part!-Tyler and I will pack up our bags and move to Monterey, Mexico for six months! I think it works out to be half the summer and all of the fall. After that he has one more semester and then ANOTHER graduation. Tyler will come out of school with an IMBA and a Masters in Finance. Two for the price of one, literally.
Can you believe it? I have the best husband in the whole world! He's going to take me to live in MEXICO. I know many people are thinking "Mexico? What's the big deal? People are poor there." But I'm thinking "Wow! I need to really learn Spanish..." Plus anyone who knows me knows all I've ever wanted since I was a little girl was to experience life in places where they don't speak English. I like the rush and trying to fool the locals into thinking I know what I'm doing.
I'll have to go over my academic plan another time. I'm still trying to work some kinks out of it. But I will tell you this: I got my mom to agree to take at least one class with me, as long as its not English or math.
Travel update: We spent Saturday and Sunday in Seattle. It was short but still a good break from this horrible place. We're going to try to take a trip to Asheville, NC this Thursday for the day. Wish me luck! I'm hoping that if I write in down in my Blog I'll feel more pressured to make it happen.

Blog = Blah(g)

2005-05-02T12:38:00.000-05:00

I'm not even going to attempt to address my reasons for not having blogged before now. I am, of course, very busy and absolutely consumed with anything and everything in life but myself. Posting would have simply been selfish. (anybody buy that?)

TYLER WAS ACCEPTED TO THE MONTEREY INSTITUTE OF INTERNATIONAL STUDIES

In other News: I am (stuck) in Encinitas. Couldn't catch a flight out of here yesterday so I'm staying most likely until tomorrow morning. It's not so bad though because I get to be here for my mother's birthday. A spectacle I haven't witnessed since I was in high school.

Tyler's Graduation a couple weeks ago went swell! He made out with quite the hunk of change and a lap top to boot. Both sets of parents flew in for the event, Kassey came down on Thursday and Grandma Judy and Cal showed up for Friday's festivities. In lue of having yet gotten my act together enough to post pictures of the graduation, I am posting an old picture that I found on my parent's computer.

Here we are on the Boat at LegoLand. They guy wouldn't let us sit together on the same bench. Some sort of weight issue... but we still had a good time.

High on the Mount

2005-03-31T16:40:00.000-06:00

WOW! I went to the temple this morning, I didn't go meaning to run into Angela but I have to admit it did cross my mind. I have never seen so few missionaries at the Provo Temple. I felt real good and all that jolly stuff then, on the way home it happened! I was walking across the street when lo and behold! I would know that jumper anywhere! We screamed and ran towards each other! Man it felt sooooo good! I always thought that if I did see her I would fee all uncomfortable and unsure how to act. None of that. We laughed and chatted. I walked w/ her back up to the temple, and when we said good bye, it was so much easier than at the MTC! What a great day I had today!
Another great day= TUESDAY! It was my birthday. I admit I have a bit of a birthday phobia, but not because I'm afraid of getting old. Because my birthdays in the past have had a tendency to lean towards the worst days of the entire year. Nothing goes right, yada yada, you get the point. This birthday was not like that at all! We played card games with Steve, Jaque and Tyler's parents, then dropped Ty's folks off at the airport. Afterwards we returned to downtown and I picked up a new bra, tank top and croped linen pants. Then came home, had a burrito for lunch, and in lieu of a cake blew out some candles from on top of two ice cream sandwiches (Candles courtesy of Angela's package).
Tyler has strep throat again. The doctor thinks he might be a carrier for it. DARN IT! He'll probably have to get his tonsels out, at least that's covered by our insurance.
In summary this week has gone like this..

TUESDAY= GOOD DAY (birthday)

WEDNESDAY= BAD DAY (Tyler sick)

THURSDAY= GOOD DAY (temple and Angela)

Looks like "the good out number the bad" (but not in Nottingham <-from Disney's Robin Hood).

Bangin

2005-03-19T13:07:00.000-06:00

I typed up this post while I was in San Diego, then hit some crazy button and it disapeared! But hey, now that I'm back in Ute it's showed up again. Here it is, previously unpublished found deep in the archives...

I'm so proud.

Once again I'm in Sunny San Diego!
Thanks for all the comments on my last post, I was worried I'd tick some people off. But heck! It's how I was feeling. Last weekend we went to Kyle's Lacosse game up in Carson, Ca. I've decided that I'm probably not the best lucky charm for him. His team always wins when I go to the game, but he doesn't really have much to do with it... Every time I'm not there however, he plays nearly the entire game and the team pours the cooler over his head and lifts him up on their shoulders! YEah! Kyle ROCKS! Alright maybe I'm exagerating a little.
Nothing like hanging around the hosue on a Saturday morning, "Is your work done? Is your work done?"
I hope everyone had a Happy St. Patrick's Day. Leprachauns came to our house and messed up the back yard. But at least they left us a hefty amount of chocolate.

I Pity the FOOL...

2005-03-07T17:27:00.000-06:00

I pity the fool who has to sit next to me on the airplane. Talk about awkward. An airplane ride next to someone you don't know is like the worlds longest elevator. Nobody wants to look at anyone else. You both try to keep busy and look important. You try to read the newspaper and turn the page without the slightest brush of the other person's elbow.
Sure, you can sit there and tell me, "No, no, not me. I'm very casual... and nice to the stranger I'm sitting next to. Sometimes I even strike up a conversation." Well guess what, you're a liar. NO ONE likes sitting by a total stranger on the plane. And I mean STRANGE. Face it, the freakest people in America are flying these days.
On a flight to Portland this weekend the Lady behind me let her toddler KICK the back of my chair (I should say head) about six times before she did anything about it. Then she proceeded to plug her kid into a portable DVD player she'd brought along, with out any headphones. Keep in mind, we were on one of those tiny planes where all you hear is 'BRRRRRRRRR' the entire time. Of course her child had to be able to hear the music! I never. I've got a million of 'em.
Why does the person sitting on the aisle believe they are so entitled to the middle arm rest? I venture that the use by either person of the middle arm rest is a direct invasion of the other's space and privacy. They shouldn't even call it an arm rest. They should call it a middle DIVIDER, because that is what it is. Once I am on that plane, sitting next to someone I don't know, I immediately revert back to 2nd grade and a little alarm goes of in my head anytime someone crosses into 'my zone'.
Why is the most obese person (I'm pc, I said obese instead of fat) on the plane is always the rudest and least aware of personal boundaries? Do they think the guys sitting next to them doesn't notice that they're taking up half of their seat? They notice.

Wit of the Staircase

2005-02-27T13:58:00.000-06:00

I'm thinking about changing the title of my blog to THE WIT OF THE STAIRCASE. Its this French phrase that basically descibes how you always think of the perfect thing to say ect, after the moment is gone. Sort of like you were at this party and everyone is talking, there comes this awkard moment and later on your way down the stairs you think of the wittiest thing to say. Get it?
I've been pretty busy and keep putting off updating b/c I don't really feel like I've got time for it. But today is the 27th of February and I haven't blogged since January 20th. Seems like its time for a change.
Last weekend Ty and I went to Lopez Island in the San Juans with his entire family and the incomprable Steve and Jackie. I HAD A BLAST! We went kayaking out in the ocean, built ginormous bonfires, combed the beach after a storm, and boy did we ever eat! (nothing quite like shakes and malts at the pharmacy) Alas there was no crabing or shrimping (wrong time of year) but I've still got hope that it could happen someday. The cabin on Lopez is AMazing. Steve's got three huge elk heads hanging from above the fireplace, which can help you imagine just how big this fireplace is. I got to wear my galoshes the whole time we were there-- anybody who really knows me, knows I love my galoshes. I can't wait to go back!
Currently, Ty and I are on yet another adventure. This time in Encinitas, visiting my parents. Yesterday we took the boat out to try and find some California Grey Whales, but driving nearly the whold way to the dock in San Diego, ol' pops realized he'd forgotten the boat key. So...we drove all the say back to our house, got the key, and then drove to Oceanside and set out to sea. No whales, but we did see some strange bouys with lots of sea lions on them.
Last night my parents took us out to eat at this fancy fish place for Tyler's birthday (this wednesday). I got the salmon and my dad ordered Tyler the ALASKAN KING CRAB! He loved it!
Well I never know how to end these things, but I'm done. I don't feel like writing much more, I'm sneezing and coughing all over the place.

Keepin' it Vogue

2005-02-15T13:13:00.000-06:00

I forgot to mention that while we were in Seattle, Tyler's dad gave me bangs. I asked him to copy this picture that I found in a french Vogue magazine, so the whole time he was cutting my hair I kept thinking about how vogue I was going to look and all of these dumb saying I twisted to have the word vogue in them:

When Vogue Flies

Vogue to the Max

When in Vogue...

What can I say about my life? It's good. Last Friday Ty and I flew up to Idaho Falls (for free) to go to a Valentine's dance with Jo and Sam. Ty and I didn't have time to get all schmazied up before we left so I curled my hair at the Salt Lake Airport and assembled the rest of my ensemble at the Idaho Falls Airport. It was fun to walk into a public restroom looking like poop and walk out looking ultra fabulouso, as if I was an international spy flying across the nation (for free) for ultra undercover work. Jo and Sam were a tinsy bit late picking us up at the airport but it all turned out okay. We headed over to an Italian place and ate our fill, then ever so fantastically noticing the time, rushed back to the dance in Rexburg (ookalaka, I wanta shock ya... at the DANCE!). Afterwards we hit up the new hot spot in town, Jack 'n' the Box. All in all the evening turned out to be amazing.
Wow! Folks, ladies and gentlemen, I have just made an amazing discovery, apparently if I type specific letters in uppercase in the webdings font, I can make a little town for you all. Amazing!

tuABCDEFGHIJKMPQRT

Sorry for that small distraction. Back to business. Yesterday as I'm sure everyone is aware, was St. Valentine's Day. It didn't start out so nice, I woke up, went to work, and had my worst day there thus far. After work I walked home, and got to have a nice long talk with Jo for about half the way, but after that it rained the rest of the way. My walk took me right past the MTC where I (drenched in rain) mournfully stared though the gates searching for my dear beloved Angela, wondering what she could be doing at this very same moment. ahhh. Once I got home my day did a full 180. Ty had been sweet enough to leave me what we fondly now refer to as a quarter of a dozen roses(3), some chocolate, and a card. I ask you, ladies and gentlemen of the Jury, does anybody have a better husband that mine?

Last night I finished Madame Bovary. OH MY GOODNESS! This is a Great book! Gustave (may I call you Gustave?) has the most amazing way with words. In the introduction (which honestly I found a bit lengthy) it describes how he used to pour over a single page for days. revising and reconsidering every single word in a sentence. While describing Emma's death he actually vomited! Dedication I say! In Reading Lolita in Tehran some of the students wonder why Gustave didn't just end Madame Bovary after Emma's death. To me the answer is clear. By following the consequences of Emma's suicide on Charles and Berthe, I was able to really 'feel for them'. Gustave seems to argue that while death is sad, it is the way in which it effects those who are left behind that is truly tragic. I do (of course) have one complaint about the book, I would really like to know how Emma's second lover, Leon Dupuis, took the news of her death.

I'm just a Blog Machine...

2005-02-07T20:28:00.000-06:00

And I don't Blog for nobody but you! wow, that was cheesy. I can hardly believe myself posting all the live long day. Work was same old same old today, even a little slow. Tyler picked me up and I took a lunch (which I don't really do that often). Ty had hit up Arby's before he came to get me and picked me up some mozzarella sticks. That man really knows how to spoil me. I've been in a bit of a cheesy mood lately, no pun intended.
Seattle was a blast this weekend. I wish I knew how to say 'this weekend' in French. Let me try that again...Seattle was a blast ce week-end. I don't think I stopped eating from the moment we walked in the door to the moment we left. Week-end after next we're flying up there to check out the izzle for a couple days, should be great.

Awww! I miss her already! (as I join the ranks of the plagiarists of the world...Thanks Jo!)

Back by Popular Demand

2005-02-05T22:12:00.000-06:00

So, here I am in Seattle (Bellevue to be more exact)and I have recently discovered my concentrated but devoted following here in the northwest, namely Tyler's Family. So here's a shout out to all my in-laws...SHOUT OUT! Thanks for reading my mind, but hey it wouldn't hurt you to comment every once and a while. Thanks!
Last week was pretty crazy. I spent most of it "In a glass cage of emotion." We did get alot of the 'girl things' we're sure to miss while Angela is gone. ie: read cosmo together, eat too much food/chocolate, ask each other truly deep questions that don't acutally mean anything. Angela went into the MTC on Wednesday and that was probably the hardest thing I've had to deal with so far this year. Tuesday night Angela, Jo and I were sitting around when it hit us, we all teared up and immediately stopped talking. I think if any of us had sputtered one more word it would have ended up sounding like this " AGGGHHHHHH DOOOOONNNN'TT SNIFF SNIFF GOOOOOHHH! AAAAAAMMMMMMM GUUUUURRRRING TO MISSSSSSSS YOOOOOOOOOUGH!" Pretty much just alot of screaming and snot. The MTC went alot better than I expected. We sat there and watched alot of "Family...Isn't it about Time?" commercials and then a short film about some missionaries getting their calls. Then we all just sort of stood up and felt very empty inside. yadda yadda yadda. We hugged and watched Angelina leave. Jo and I are very sure that while Ang will make a great missionary, she will no doubt feel extremely lost and lonely without us. No, I'm sure she's fine, but for my own sanity I have to say that other stuff. I MISS YOU ANGELA!
Earlier, on Monday, Jo's 'GUY' Sam flew in. Picking him up at 2 in the morning was a little interesting...the conversation reminded me of the ones I used to have at slumber parties when everyone is WAY too tired to form cognitive sentances. I won't go into too many details, but tampons did come up in the conversation TWICE before we had made it back to Provo. Sam's a nice guy, but he's only been back from his mission for a month so I think he's still deprograming a little.
Sorry to work backwards like this but I'm writting this as it pops into my head.
Last weekend my family was in town. They came up to do the annual ski trip. I actually got to hit the slopes once, which was a blast, although, I did turn out to be a somewhat tired and sloppy skier. Kyle really tears it up out there and as I watch him I can't help but wonder why I'm not better than him. Is it fear? Is it my age? I don't know, but next year I at least hope to be able to keep up. Not that I can't hold my own of course.
I know this isn't the most informational post but I'll give more of a play by play of this weekend once its all over. Got to leave you wanting more, right?

No Sleep...No SLEEP!!

2005-01-20T19:24:00.000-06:00

So I was thinking this template was more me...I know just pick one and stick with it, but I've felt restless today and for some reason I seem to think changing the back drop will somehow make up for not posting in a while. Honestly I don't really feel like posting right now, but I owe it to my public, I guess.
Tuesday Kerin broke her arm really bad snowboarding. She was going though this narrow path and (pretty much) tried to grab onto a tree to slow herself down. Her X-rays look like a little sapling thats been broken in half. The bones were completely detached and you could see what looked like (on the X-ray at least) a full inch of space between them. Tyler and I drove up to the University of Utah Medical Center Teus night to keep Kerin destracted from the needles and help with getting my Dad from the airport ect. Kerin stayed the night at the hospital so they could monitor her pain and was finally able to go into surgery around 5pm or so the next day (Wed). I drove up Wed around 3pm, I was able to see Kerin a little after her operation and then waited untill she was back in recovery, then had to take my dad to the airport. I haven't seen her since then, but last I heard they over medicated her pain a little so she wasn't able to be discharged until this afternoon. I say the less pain the better. The surgeon put a titanium plate her uperarm and about 9 screws to hold everything in place, like I said it was a bad break, but she's a trooper she'll get better.
I finished Reading Lolita in Tehran a while ago and started my next book. I promise to give a better update here soon. After working all day at a computer the last thing I want to do at night is go home and sit at one.

Karl my Kaptin

2005-01-11T13:37:00.000-06:00

WOW! Reading Lolita in Tehran is really coming along. I passed the half way point last night. Here's a little tip for all you out there who wish you could find more time to indulge yourself in a good book= Take Public Transportation. It's amazing what you can get done when you sitting on a Bus and at transfer stations for over an hour. When I was a kid in Germany I used to have to ride the bus one hour each way to and from school. I know it sounds like one of those "I walked uphill through a blizzard" stories, but its true. We had a really friendly Bus Driver named Karl. He spoke about as much English as I spoke German, so we got along swell. Now my mom hangs a huge picture he gave us of him with my brothers and sisters and me in our house. I think I can trace my love affair with public transportation back to those days in the Rhineland.

FREE! FREE! FREE!

2005-01-08T12:48:00.000-06:00

Ahh! The sweetness of a Saturday morning! Lots of good things to share today boys and girls. As many of you know, Tyler recently joined the team at Skywest Airlines as their ONLY non-pilot intern. Needless to say I am very very proud of him. It's an unpaid internship, but we do get free travel with Skywest for the next four months (So do Ty's parents). Only problem/limitation with the free travel is finding a free place to stay, and visiting places with public transportation. WOO HOO for airline jobs!
Not quite as exciting, but just as important, I got a paying job (y'know so we can eat and such). It involves calling businesses and asking them 'consumer related questions'. "Boring, but it's my life" (name that film). Pretty much it's telemarketing, only hopefully the people I'm calling this time around will be a little nicer. This job actually ups my hourly wage based on my quality, and I'm a stickler for quality! Also, NO weekends (free travel), and full time but I'm done by 2:30 everyday.
Last night Ty and I went to P.F. Chang's for dinner (Thank you Nique and Ryan for the gift card!). It was grrrreat! We got the orange peel chicken, the honey seared shrimp and the garlic noodles. The noodles were garlicy and chili pepper spicy. I want to try making them as soon as we can afford some groceries. After Chang's we headed over to the ol' Barnes and Noble and I picked up some books (Thank you Ty's Mom for the gift card!). Namely, Reading Lolita in Tehran by Azar Nafisi (memoir), Courtesans by Katie Hickman (history), and Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert (fiction). This also (I know you don't care) is the order I'll be reading them, the books, in. So far Reading Lolita in Tehran has been pretty darn good. It's giving me tons of ideas for other books I want to read. I could now continue to give you an update on all the things I'd like to knit, but I won't. Why? because I am SLIGHTLY considering my audience today. Consider yourself blessed.

I Feel it in My Fingers, I Feel it in My Toes...

2005-01-05T08:24:00.000-06:00

It is somewhere after 6 o'clock and I can't sleep. No, I did not wake up early, I can't sleep. That means I spent all night tossing and turning. Arghhh! I really want to sleep, I'm really tired, but I can't. I take this as a bad thing. However, since it is forcing me to finally update my blog, you made find it a good thing. We'll just have to see about that...
Christmas, Christmas, Christmas. Ty and I arrived very safe and in record time (9 1/2 hrs) to lovely Encinitas and it was "Go-Time" ever since then. Every morning we woke up to my little sister Kloe screaming as painfully as she can "KEERRRLY!!!!" Of course there are better ways to start the day but I miss my lil' sis sooooooo much I seemed to get over it pretty quickly. Tyler spent his days either studying for his online class, throwing the football around with my lil' bros, 'letting' Kody beat him on the X-Box, wrestling, shopping, making plans with Kyle, and finding time to just be with me. Trust me the last one is a lot harder around there than it sounds.
I spent the week before Christmas being a personal assistant to my mother. WHEW! This involved inhuman amounts of shopping, especially for someone still (albeit barely) recovering from a bunion operation! We went everywhere looking for just the right thing for just the right person, and then after we find it, Mom realizes she bought too much of something for one or two of the kids. Naturally, you'd think that means we need to take something back, you'd be wrong. It means we have to go out again and get all the other kids caught up with each other. Add on to all of this my parents obsession with this annoying gift giving competition.
Every year my Mom and Dad compete to see who can give each other more. Seriously, this could be an Olympic event! Then, come Christmas morning, we all sit there as they pretend to be annoyed that they got too many presents. It goes something like this, "Kiiiiiiiiiiiiiim...what did you doooo? We agreeeeeeed we weren't going to do this again this yeeeeeeear. Ahhhhhhhhhhh, you bought me too muuuuuuch." And yes they say it all in sweet whiney voices. Then we have to sit there again after we're all done opening our presents and my parents still have about a gazillion left to watch them tear through it. So, yes, the gift giving is a tad out of hand in my family.
Back to the Basics: Christmas Eve at my house is the best Christmas Eve in the world! I won't go into all the details, but I will tell you that Tyler and I got to be Mary and Joseph this year and I haven't gotten to do that for a long time. I will also tell you about one other thing that happened that night....Every year we open one present...yada yada yada...its pajamas. This year my mom made the boys red-button-up-long-johns (Think Newsies), while Kassey, Kerin and Karly received complimentary fleece zip-up pj's--complete with feet. For Kloe, of course, my mom made this pink flowing nightgown that I'm sure is the envy of every other seven year old girl in the world, proving once again that she is the most spoiled child in all of Christendom.
Christmas morning we awake at the unbelievable hour of flippin 6:30 AM!! "SANTA CAME, SANTA CAME!!" You're thinking that quote is from Kloe aren't you? No, its my mom. After about one hour of oohing and ahhing through our stockings, presents are handed out from under the tree and we take turns opening them one at a time. I love this. It prolongs Christmas morning as long as possible. Who doesn't love that Christmas morning feeling. watching everyone open gifts, convinced that everyone loves your gift the most and listening to the tabernacle choir? I spent the rest of the day reading the manual for our new 'Handy Cam',eating, and playing with Kloe and Karly.
My Goodness! This has the potential to be the longest post the world has ever seen. Summarize, summarize. The week after Christmas was a lot like the one before. Lots of shopping and random events. Ty and I took Karly and Kloe to Sea World. A new Killer Whale was born on December 21st and we got to see her do her first show ever. By 'Show' I mean we saw her swim around the tank, but it was still really neat. We had plans another day to go to Mexico, but I had forgotten ID so that was a no go, instead we (Tyler, Me and Kerin) drove down to Old Town, spent 1hr looking for parking, walked around and met up with my parents for dinner. New Year's Eve-Day my dad took Kloe, Karly, Kody, Tyler and I to see a couple of ships docked in down town San Diego. We saw The Star of India (an old merchant ship from the 1800's), a Ferry boat from San Francisco (used 190?-1958), The H.M.S Surprise (Replica of a Frigate from the 1800's used in the making of Master and Commander), and Midway (an aircraft carried used in WWII, Vietnam and I think the Gulf War).
Skipping to the end-- we drove back late on Monday and I took down all the Christmas decorations yesterday. Ty and I were pleased to discover that for once we had managed to leave nothing in the garbage to stink up our apartment. Shout out to Jo and Angela! I miss you guys!

A Minute Wasted is a Small Country Burning in Terror

2004-12-17T12:46:00.000-06:00

I don't have much time, but here's a short lil' update. Tyler is taking his last final as we speak, most of my school stuff is pretty much wrapped up, and we'll hopefully be leaving for sunny San Diego within the next hr or two! WOO~HOO~ This morning I woke up and ran out to get Ty some "Sour Punch Bites" as an end-of-finals/good-job snack but as I'm packing, I seem to have already eaten almost half of the bag by myself. oops. Still better than yesterday (I somehow managed to sleep until ONE IN THE AFTERNOON). Besides setting a weekday sleep record, there was one other landmark event yesterday. Angela got her mission call, but if you think I'm about to tell you where she's going you're wrong. Sorry. I can't spill the beans untill she's told everyone she needs to tell. I will however, tell you this...It came yesterday in the mail and then Angela and her sister's Catherine and Lindsey came over to my apartment to open it. I felt really good to be included. Then in celibration of "The Call", Ang and I spent the day hanging out together-aka: eating. That night we topped it all of with a two person dance party. What a day! Alright, that's all I have time for, I've got to get back to packing. Have a Merry Christmas and good luck making sense out of any of this.

Blog on the Brain

2004-12-08T13:16:00.000-06:00

"Quick hurry! Write-about-last-weekend-before-this-week-is-over-and-you-have-too-much-to-write-about-and-you-explode!!!!"
--Quote from my Brain

Last Friday Ty and I had been married exactly a one year+a week and a day. We decided to celebrate this momentous occasion by viewing that time honored performance known only as The Nutcracker. You might say "we had dinner and decided to take in a show"(read with intolerably snobbish British accent). Dinner was at El Garden de Olive. This was a real treat. I had not stepped foot inside an Olive Garden since I was 7 years old, when I toured the kitchen with my Girl Scout Troop #357. Ty had not attended The Nutcracker since was 5 years old and all he could remember was someone's stomach growling, his.
Saturday I decided to stay in my PJ's until 1 O' the Clock. I was finally forced to get dressed when my Grandma Judy called and said she was driving around the apartment complex and needed directions to my abode. After "the flashiest of flashes" (which included attempting to dress myself in something matinee/grandma/hide-the-fact-you-just-got-dressed appropriate) I was out the door and on my way to the Saturday Preview of Brigham Young University's production of The Taming of the Shrew. It was a mighty good production.
After the play Tyler and I did a quick, yet thorough Saturday cleaning and then Angela came over to "hang". Angela and I have had mucho fun this week, but one of our latest and greatest activities is speaking with outrageous accents! OLE'!
This past week I finally finished reading Eleanor of Aquitaine. What an amazing life!! She was married to the King of France and England, mother to 3 Kings of England (all of who took the throne during her lifetime), had a total of 10 children live to adulthood and lived herself to be 83 years old! Eleanor was an excellent negotiator and traveled with her husband throughout the second crusade. She lived through the reign of 4 different popes. In a time when women were constantly relegated to the sidelines, she managed to stand out and make a difference. Her marriage to Henry II was one of the main instigators for the centuries long conflict between France and England. If you are at all interested in the lives of strong, intelligent, insightful women who like to push the envelope, PLEASE, read this book!

One more thing...
Have I mentioned how much I love coupons? Well I do! and I don't care who knows it! I love getting them in the mail, sitting down and sifting through them in the living room then clipping out the ones I believe I'll need in the near future. After that I love stacking them in a neat pile and thinking of all the money I'm going to save me and Tyler and how well use the money to hopefully someday go to Disneyland. You laugh but its all true. My absolute favorite thing about coupons is USING THEM! I proudly announce my purchase the cashier and then in my most robust of robust voices announce "AND I HAVE A COUPON." (I'm not yelling, I'm just very sure of myself.)

"I love my blog, I can ramble on and on about coupons and medieval history, without watching the discomfort spread across my audience's face that signals me to STOP TALKING!"
--Quote from My Brain

Positive Distortion

2004-12-01T15:53:00.000-06:00

I want to keep posting regularly, but I'm not in the mood for another "log of my day." So I dove deep into my bookshelf and came out with my notebooks in which I write all of my GENIUS ideas, and quotes that I find inspiring. Like any great mind, I am always looking for other great minds...So, I'll show you mine if you show me yours. Rule: No stupid quotes that we've all heard a gazillion times.

"We need time to dream, time to remember, and time to reach the infinite. Time to be."
-Gladys Taber

"Self-love, My liege, is not so vile a sin as self-neglecting."
-Shakespeare, Henry V

"Heroin makes young women old and old women dead."
-Clairann

"When I want to drag a helpless, impotent beast around on my back... then, I'll get a Boyfriend.
-Danna Allen

"The greatest happiness in life is the conviction that we are loved, loved for ourselves, or rather loved in spite of ourselves."
-Victor Hugo

"People demand freedom of speech to make up for the freedom of thought which they avoid."
-Soren Aaby Kierkegaard

"My dearest, has the count not just told us that all human wisdom is contained in these two words - "wait" and "hope"."
-Alexander Dumas, The Count of Monte Cristo

"If you are all wrapped up in yourself, you are overdressed."
-Kate Halverson

"A friend doesn't go on a diet because you are fat. A friend never defends a husband who gets his wife an elctric skillet for her birthday. A friend will tell you she saw your old boyfriend - and he's a priest."
-Erma Bombeck

There they are. Judge them, love them, hate them, whatever. I know they aren't the most amazing quotes in the world, but I was hoping to choose some that you've never heard before. Now, go. Have a great day and make your own "quote".

FESTIVUS!!...A Holiday for the Rest of Us!

2004-11-29T12:16:00.000-06:00

Alright, I'm just going to jump right in, hope you're ready...

Ty and I were sitting around last Saturday, NOT looking forward to 4 more day in this town, when we decided to try and break out early. So the next morning we jumped on a plane head for the beautiful northwest! ( In case you don't know this, I L-O-V-E love Seattle!) Tyler's mom (Karen) picked us up at the airport with our nephew, Riley, and took us straight to Jack in the Box. ymmmmmm. That afternoon Tyler's entire family (sans Trav, Em and the boys) came over to welcome us with palm fronds and the like.

Tyler, Jamie and I just kick'n back on a good ol' classic Bean-Bag.

We finally were introduced to the newest addition to the Thompson Family (not to mention Tyler's namesake) the great and mighty Mason Tyler. This kid is HUGE. He's a month younger than Jamie but feels is about twice her size. Alright, I exaggerated a little, but that doesn't change the fact that this little guy is a chunker!

Ty's holding Mason with Mason's mom (Monique) on the left and Tonya on the right.

Monday we went to the Ivar's on Lake Washington and a took in a movie with Ty's parents. We saw National Treasure, which I'm sure my Dad (see that I do talk about you) would be able to find a gazillion ways to make fun of (sure enough just about every supposed 'fact' in the movie was wrong). Despite all of this, I loved it. It reminded me of Indiana Jones and all those other movies that make history exciting for the masses. Now if only they'd make an exciting, thriller about Eleanor of Aquitaine I'd be set! The most exciting part of my day included Bellevue Square, where I finally purchased some SHOES!! That's correct. I currently can wear shoes and socks like any other normal person, almost. I still have to wrap my foot every other day. Tyler and I are having a brain lapse right now and we can't seem to remember what we did on Tuesday, but I bet we had a lot fun whatever it was.

Wednesday was Thanksgiving Eve. I spent all day slicing, rolling, peeling, beating and layering. I made the Yams, crusts for the Pumpkin Pies and a Lemon Merigne Pie that, if I do say so myself, was pretty darn good.

Kayla is helping me make pumpkins to go on the pumpkin pies the day before Thanksgiving.

This was my first Thanksgiving without my family and it wasn't bad. Tyler's family eats all the same foods that my family does only in smaller quantities. For example: Number of Pies prepared in Seattle=5. Number of Pies prepared in San Diego=19. You get the picture. I spent parts of the day downstairs with the kids and other parts upstairs witht he grown-ups. Overall it was a very relaxing day.

Emily, Ryan, Travis and some freakily happy man in the back.

I had a lot of things to be thankful for this Thanksgiving, but most of all I was grateful for my wonderful husband and my terrific marriage. Thanksgiving Day was our ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY!! I can't believe I've already been married an entire year! I certainly don't feel a year older. "Time flies when you're having fun". In fact, it was one year ago today that Tyler and I had our reception in Seattle. It was funny to be around so many people on a day I always thought was supposed to be more personal. All the little kids kept coming up to me and Tyler and wishing us a happy anniversary. It was cute.

Waiting for the turkey and relaxing with one of my fav hobbies, knitting.

Checking to see if our Martinelli's was a "good year."

Jim (Ty's Dad) showing the turkey "Who's the Boss".

The Family festively taking part in our Thanksgiving Day Feast.

Wait! The fun didn't stop at Thanksgiving! Friday Jim gave Tyler and me haircuts (he's a concepteur de cheveux). Then we headed out into the heart of Seattle where we strolled through Pike's Market and partook of cocoa trio and apple cider. I've never seen the Seattle that busy! I love the hustle and bustle of the big city. Saturday was, sadly, out last day and we spent it at another family gathering. Everyone went over to Nique and Ryan's to help them decorate their tree and eat salmon. Then just to make sure that we went out with a bang, Tyler got incredibly sick later that night and couldn't sleep at all. The next day we fought our way through the hoards of holiday travelers and managed to snag a place at the very front of the "A" travel group at our Southwest Airlines gate. Now, here we are, home again, anxiously awaiting Christmas and our next opportunity to "get out of town."

Fresh Squeezed Start

2004-11-18T11:56:00.000-06:00

Alright, so I decided I wanted a fresh start on this blog. fresh start = posting better and more often. Thus, the new back drop.
Since my last post a lot has happened. Let's start with the good news shall we? Dr Clark told me I could start bandaging my foot only every other day and if I can find the right kind, start wearing shoes on my BOTH my feet. You should have seen me after the appointment, I was positively floating! Plus! I can stand up in the shower on BOTH feet without a plastic bag on either one! After much trial and tribulation, the apartment is pretty much near spotless (I still need to mop). Even the laundry is all done. I've almost finished an amazing read, Eleanor of Aquitaine, by Alison Weir. (Don't worry, I don't expect anyone but history nerds like myself to appreciate that last sentence.) Alison Weir is one of my favorite authors, she also wrote all those book about the lineage of Henry VIII that I know and love so well. I got to Fly home and visit not only my immediate family, but most of my extended family was also there. Then to put icing on the cake, I Flew back too! I made a massive TO DO: list and actually accomplished most of the things on it!
Now for the bad news. I haven't been able to find any of the shoes I'm supposed to be wearing in a $$ I can afford. And the reason I was able to go home recently was because my nine year old cousin Savannah passed away two days after I got back from Destiny's funeral. Savannah (Stacy's daughter) was diagnosed with cancer when she was about two year old, after they discovered a tumor attached to her brain stem. She's had a long and hard battle with this world and I am relieved to know that she is finally at home in Heaven with so many people who love her. The funeral was hard, but not impossible since at least we were all prepared this time around.
A few days before the funeral, I helped my Aunt Stacy take her little demons shopping, and MY GOODNESS! Do I LOVE THOSE KIDS!! I love the way their active little minds and bodies are always managing to get into trouble! For example: we're all in the changing room at Kohl's and Stacy is trying to put a dress on her littlest, Etta (who is about 18 months old), when she slips under the wall and then comes back over holding her diaper in her hand and saying "my poopy butt!"
Stacy is bringing her clan to Utah for thanksgiving and I'm keeping my fingers crossed that we'll get to see them all before Ty and I leave for Seattle.

I'm not sure that his post has made any sense, but I don't believe in going back over it. Good Luck and have a Happy Thanksgiving!

I don't remember what this is called, but I like to call it "a good day".

Destiny Pearl Squires

2004-10-31T17:20:00.000-06:00

Destiny Pearl Squires, 18

This last week has been pretty rough on my family and me. I want to thank everyone who helped make it a little easier. Monday afternoon I got a call from my mother telling me that Destiny had passed away Sunday night after a terrible car accident that afternoon. Ty and I spent the rest of the day driving all over Salt Lake talking to my sisters and some other family memebers. Kerin came back to my apartment and spent the rest of the week here with me. Thursday morning we got up early and drove to Rocklin, Ca to attend the funeral Friday morning. We then returned home on Saturday. Destiny lived with my family for about a semester. She and Kerin had a very special relationship and were much more than friends. I drove Destiny to Seminary, Church activities, and just about every dance she ever went to. She was full of fun and life and made a distinct impression on everyone who ever knew her. Destiny was more than just a friend by association, she was my friend, and I (along with many other people) am really going to miss her.

If you want to read more about the WONDERFULNESS of Destiny you can go to these websites... http://www.granitebaypt.com/articles/2004/10/27/news/top_stories/02news.prt and http://www.legacy.com/SacBee/Guestbook.asp?Page=Guestbook&PersonID=2751323.

"Step it!"

2004-10-20T17:11:00.000-05:00

My husband is the absolute greatest man on EARTH! I know its cliche for a married woman to rave about her man. But hey, I don't do this alot so cut me some slack. I'm an odd person, and something odd about me is that I love slow R&B, y'know 'groovy tunes'. So Ty came home today and surprised me with the new double R. Kelly album. How often does anyone in this world actually BUY a CD now'a'days? Surprises... they're GRRRRREAT!
So was this weekend. Jo came on Friday to chill and then my mom came on saturday with Kloe and Karly. Saturday night a crowd of us went out to eat and then to a comedy club in South Salt Lake, WiseGuys. This place was sooooo much fun! I highly recomend it! Sunday, Monday and Teusday were all family days, that was nice. Monday afternoon Tyler (a great and wise man) won tickets to the Jazz preseason game against the Knicks. So Teusday we enjoyed the second home Jazz event of the season. Haven't missed a game yet! ha
Of course there were the obligatory perks that come with having a parent in town. We got a shelf to keep our food on and I wasn't hungry once the entire time my mom was here! AND...She did the DISHES!!! YES! I spent all day Monday playing with Kloe and Karly. We rode the trax as far as we could then walked all around downtown and checked out the church art and history museum. They had a two big exhibits set up for children so that was pretty helpful to keep Kloe happy. Then we got HOT hot choclate and sweets! YUM!
We got that new couch on Saturday. (I have to give a shout out to Dave and Cam for being so cool about picking that up for us.) Bad news: the couch didn't fit into the back room so now we have quite possibly the worlds ugliest couch out in our living room. It wouldn't be so bad if our other small couch wasn't so darn amazing! But on the plus side the back room is more comfortable. You win some, you loose some. I can't complain (too much).
This may seem a bit sudden, but I can't wait for Christmas! I want Christmas to be today! Don't get me wrong, I love halloween, but I am so ready to throw out that pumpkin and get a tree!

It's Autumn Time

2004-10-13T16:05:00.000-05:00

Autumn...a poem

Like the coat of paint

on an old pickup truk,

The fresh green of spring

has turned to autumn rust.

by Don Gray

Went to the Doctor yesterday and I'm getting better. He gave me a few more 'privlages'. For example, I don't have to wear my enormous boot as much--I can wear the little one sometimes. Which also means I no longer need to roll up my pants like an amputee. I love seeing my X-rays! I hope Dr. Clarke will let me keep them when this is all over. I sewed a dress last weekend. Everything went really well except that I made it one size too big. I'm too lazy to go back and sew the thing all over again to make it the right size, I'm going to wear it anyway. Last Saturday, Tyler and I went to this 'extravagaza' of sorts for the company he worked for durring the summer. We got to hang out where the Jazz practice and then sit front row for their openning scrimage. It was fun to heckle the players like I used to in High School. Angela and I met up in Salt Lake durring the day and did some window shopping down town. I love that..."Down Town." Sounds sooo....'ladies who lunch'. My mom, Karly, Kloe and Jo are all coming to visit this weekend and I am MEGA excited for that. And ( I know this sounds lame) Tyler's friends are gave us their old couch and I'm excited for that too! Its that time of year agin, time to apple pie and shop for pumpkins. Last night I made Hot Cocoa from scratch, that felt very autumny. Fall is suposed to be cold and chilly, but all the colors, foods and scents that go with it are all 'warm'. I'm even starting to enjoy a little football now and then.

A not-so-vintage-flashback

2004-10-07T13:47:00.000-05:00

Yesterday I got an email from my good friend Candice Hallam and that got me thinking. First, how in the world can I get together with the chica. Then I started to think of all the things we'd have to chatty chit chat about. WOW.
Sometimes my entire life feels like one big moving trip. There are so many people I want to keep in touch with, and we're all scattered across the globe. I hope that if those friends read my blog (and I can keep up on their lives as well), that when we do manage to get together, we can talk and carry on as if no time has passed at all. So in the spirit of friendship, here is my not-so-vintage-flashback.
What is the biggest thing to happen to me lately?...My wedding of course. When I was engaged, my life was wildly busy. So I know that there are alot of people I haven't been able to get in touch with since the wedding. Alot of my friends haven't even met Tyler! So this is for all my buddies who couldn't come, or are just plain curious about my wedding. Plus...everyone loves more pictures on a blog, Right?
We still haven't gotten the pictures from the photo guy we hired, so these are all from Jim's (Ty's Dad) camera. I swear he had that camera attached to his eye the entire week! He did a great job and I love the pictures he took. Thanks Jim.

2004-10-07T12:38:00.000-05:00

Here we are exiting the temple through the Front-Side door. Those flowers weighed about 5 pounds I swear. It was like carrying around a small child, but I loved it. I even threw the entire thing at the end of the reception.

2004-10-07T12:37:00.000-05:00

The peole who make it all possible (paid for it) our parents. Ty's on the left=Jim and Karen. and Mine on the right=Kim and Karie. Thanks one million gazillion trillion!

2004-10-07T12:35:00.000-05:00

I know it sounds cheesy, but I was SOOO happy right here. When they finally told us we could kiss at the end of the cremony, I practically jumped across the alter.

2004-10-07T12:32:00.000-05:00

This is Ty's best friend, Elan (I hope I got that right) and his brother Travis. Elan and Ty have the absolute funniest stories from growing up. Maybe I'll post one sometime.

2004-10-07T12:30:00.000-05:00

I love this picture! I think it makes my dress look amazing!! The groom ain't too bad either. And I loved how green everything was in San Diego, even in the middle of November.

2004-10-07T12:26:00.000-05:00

Here is a shot of the wedding party sans parents. What a hot group of young people! And yes I did make sure that all the other ladies wore flats so that I would look the tallest.

2004-10-07T12:24:00.000-05:00

Here we have Travis, Groom, Bride, and Danna. I loved having Danna as my 'maid of honor'. She helped me stay relaxed and completly took care of my guest list for me! THANKS DANNA!!!

2004-10-07T12:21:00.000-05:00

For the record I would like to state that did NOT wish to have the entire wedding party standing in the line at the reception. They all wanted to stand there, which in my 4 inch heels, I found very silly.

2004-10-07T12:17:00.000-05:00

Absolutely gorgeous/huge wedding cake! No, my mom did not bake this beautiful pastry. Instead, we enlisted the local donut shop to create this work of edible art.

2004-10-07T12:15:00.000-05:00

Steve and Jackie! They're friends of Ty's parents and are some of the neatest people I've ever had the pleasure to meet.

2004-10-07T12:13:00.000-05:00

My dad and his 'Ladies' gettin' down to Tom Jones! The End.

Peach Pie?...mmm

2004-10-05T12:34:00.000-05:00

Not my pie, but you can imagine what it'd be like if it was.

This weekend Tyler, Angela, and I took a last minute trip up to ol' Rexburgia. A few things have changed up there, but it's pretty much the same place. Of all the random things to add--they built a new DI. what?
Although I miss that time in my life, I discovered that I don't really miss Rexburg (although I still love it). Going back there almost made me feel as if I were digressing, like those kids who just can't seem to get over high school. I want my life to get better and more interesting each year. I do NOT want to look back at my single college years and think "weren't those the best years!" I like looking at my life now and think "things are going pretty great right now." Its sort of like this...I remember adults telling my they loved being a teenager, but they're glad they aren't one anymore. But don't get me wrong I adore my time I had in Rexburg, I guess that means I've got a lot to live up to.
I saw about 2 1/2 sessions of conference, what a great year. My favorite talk?...President Hinckley's at the end of the Sunday morning session.
On Sunday we ate dinner at Grandma Judy's house, yum. She let me bring home a bunch of peaches and I made the best darn peach pie IN THE ENTIRE UNIVERSE!!!! Pies from scratch are scrumdeliocious!
Monday was Kassey's birthday and let the record show that while I was unable to get a hold of her, I did leave a message on her phone. Happy Birthday Kass!
Here's something else exciting, Tyler was offered a position as lead tech this coming summer with Northstar (company he's working for now). We're weighing our options.
Jim and Karen sent Ty a bike and he is LOVIN' IT!!! He's like a little kid with their first two-wheeler. Can't get enough of it!
Till next time, adieu!

EXTRA! EXTRA!

2004-10-01T15:01:00.000-05:00

Hello, meet Mason Tyler.

So much new NEWS! Britney Spears got married...j/k While that is news it does not concern me which is what this blog is about ! YEAH! I had my operation and it went well. The most painful part was when they gave me the local for my foot. OUCH! I currently have (count 'em) two screws in my big toe and a long cut down the side of my foot. Now I'm just recovering and it's going well.
Talk about news! I just found out that Mt St Helens blew up (a little bit?).
Tyler and I also have an absolutely marvelous new nephew. Marvelous for two reasons: 1. His name is Mason Tyler and we plan to call him Ma$e. 2. He has his Uncle Tyler's feet! WOOHOO! In other baby news, Ty and I were able to spend a long weekend in Seattle right before my operation and attend Jamey's blessing. I love Seattle!

Bunionectomy

2004-09-08T12:49:00.000-05:00

This is what my feet look like on the inside right now, sort of

A couple of weeks ago saw this ad on TV offering free bunion correction surgery, in exchange I let this this company scirex perform a little experiment on my body concerning pain meds. So, yesterday I had my appointment with the doc and then with scirex, and I have a pretty good feeling about it.
The operation goes like this: They're going to sedate me through an IV (no intibate (spell?)), then give me an IV with a local behind my knee on my right leg that will keep my foot numb for pretty much the rest of the day. The incision will be about 3 or 4 inches long on my big toe. To fix the bunion the doc will cut my 'big toe bone' in two places and realign the bone with a screw.
The 'experiment' goes like this: I will be staying at scirex's facility from Tuesday directly following the procedure until Sunday morning. There is a 50% chance I'll be receiving the experimental drug, a 25% chance I'll receive the drug that's already FDA approved, and a 25% chance I'll be given a placebo, in which case I'm sure none of you will never hear the end of it. If I feel like the particular drug I am given isn't working I will be given 'rescue medication' (aka: something that actually works). The creepy thing about all this is that they're going to draw blood a bunch of times, (which totally freaks me out) and that I'll be monitored NON-STOP. Worst of all though, I'll be alone there. NO VISITORS! BUMMER! I'm going to be sooooooo bored!
The recovery goes like this: I have to wear a walking cast for 8 weeks and I hear it'll take about a year for my foot to heal completely. But the DR did say I'd be able to run (which I haven't been able to do very well lately). Also...I get some $$ at the end of all this for participating. So the whole thing is free plus some.
WISH ME LUCK! Here's a link with more info on the operation... enjoy? I guess.
http://www.orthospecialist.com/resources/mcpec/booklet/thr_521.htm

I Have Brought You Here...

2004-08-30T18:52:00.000-05:00

Me and my mentor (she doesn't know it yet), Angela.

Alright so I went and checked out Angela's blog, and what can I say... I was inspired! I felt her creative aura surround me and then I knew. I knew I had to make this blog.

I am still coming down from a crazy summer. It started with an intolerably cruel job and ended with some amazing sight-seeing. Lucky me! In between it all Tyler and I did find time to adopt a bunny (Name: Snacks), which I loved and Ty wonderfully tolerated. Despite the numorous responsibilities that came along with Snacks (Joke), we managed to visit Virginia Beach, Washington DC, NYC, Baltimore, Raleigh-Durham, Nauvoo, St. Louis, all of Kansas, Williamsburg, and the Mississippi, James and Missouri Rivers. OH! and Richmond.

As for the present, today was Tyler's first day of class at BYU as I continue to druge (is this a word?) on through my own classes with Western Govenor's University. In case you haven't heard, I have a new adorable little neice named Jamey. She was born a week a go today!! YEAH! Today is also my little sister KLOE'S birthday. HAPPY BIRTHDAY KLOE!

Here is new baby Jamey Elaine! Isn't she gorgeous. She doesn't even look a little weird like some other babies do sometimes.