Before I being the actual purpose of the post I would like to say that "there's a MAP for that" is the funniest line I have heard on a commercial all year (I also enjoy the Letterman/Leno/Oprah commercial). I would like to point out that Luke Wilson lies on the At&t commercial when he says there is service in Montana, there is no At&t service in the whole state. I would also like take a moment and mourn the end of Luke Wilson's career.
This story will probably only be interesting to like 4 people in the world but the video is cute, and only five people read my blog anyway. So for Jim, Shelly, Laurie and my mom (she wasn't actually there but the great thing about my mom is she enjoys all my lame stories) enjoy the story.
Last July we were out in Missoula for a family party. All the cousins went out in the evening to a block party. We were all dancing away (ok the girls were dancing John and Jim were sitting awkwardly along the side) when a song that John loves came on. He spent the entire song trying to figure out what it was. Afterwards he even made me go ask the D.J. what song it was. However, it was really loud and I couldn't tell what he said, so we played guessing game on Jim's Iphone to figure it out. Then one of us realized isn't there an App where you record the song while it is playing and then the Iphone tells you what song it is. Well there is, and Jim has it, but no one thought to use it when we needed it.
Because we missed the opportunity to use the App John spent months and months trying to figure out the song. He finally did and we bought it.
Flash forward to tonight. Caleb and I were dancing after dinner. Dancing always makes us happy and today was a day where we needed to be happy (something about waking up at 3 am makes me a little tired!). Well Caleb has started to learn to dance on his own, thank heavens because he is getting to heavy. John taught him all his moves, which consist of stomping his feet and twirling around. He has even learned to twirl both ways! The song is the song that drove John nuts trying to find, and it just made me miss summer and family. So since Caleb was cute I took a little video.
I am not going to tell you what song it is, I think there is an App for that.
(just kidding, I know it keeps you up at night still Laurie-it is "Kids" by MGMT)
It would be Southern Alberta. Last week we took a trip up to Canada! I have been meaning to blog about it all week but every time I sit down at the computer I find another article about "Lost" so I have to read that. Plus our camera ran out of batteries so there is only one really pathetic picture of the trip, but I feel I should still write about it, not because you really care, but because I do.
We headed out Thursday, I was actually really sick, but I really wanted to go to the Temple before my surgery and this was the only chance. So we left on faith that I would feel a little better as we traveled. I had a slight fever as I was packing so I literally forgot to pack everything of importance. The drive up was amazing! Not really scenic but so much quicker than driving to Billings. We had no problems at the border, besides I ran a stop sign and got yelled at by border patrol, I am just glad I didn't have to spend a night in international jail.
Thursday night I went to the Temple. I was so excited to go to my first international Temple, but John kept telling me that Canada really isn't that different. Well he was wrong. I have been all over this great country from New York to LA from Billing to Birmingham and in all those places I have been to the Temple. Well Canada is different than anywhere I have been. People are really friendly! I know right. People just start up conversations with you. It was a big old game of six degrees of separation. Never had that happen to me. It was great, and even though I miss the Temple being up the street like it was in Utah, I really feel that having to travel and plan and sacrifice makes it that much more special. This was the first Temple built outside of the United States-it was so pretty, here is my terrible picture of it.
John had it tough that night. Caleb's only flaw is that he doesn't sleep well in hotels. When I walked in that evening Caleb and John were asleep, sprawled all over the bed. It was a picture perfect sight. They are my favorite two people in the whole world, and looked so happy and peaceful.
The next morning I had to run to the store to get breakfast and the million of items I forgot. We got maple doughnuts, because that seemed very Canadian and they don't have calories in Canada, they have kalories-pretty sure that is different and you can eat 3 doughnuts for breakfast (with an orange-always something healthy!). The store didn't open till 8, and schools don't start until 8:30 (like high school) which is way different than down here. The lady at the checkout stand of course asked me what I was doing that weekend, so we chatted it up for a little bit. When I got to the hotel I realized I had forgotten some stuff, but I made John go back because I was too embarrassed to have to talk with the lady again. As soon as John walked up the lady asked if he was the family from Great Falls, so she still knows I am incapable of packing and shopping.
Friday after John went to the Temple we headed out to Waterton Lakes, which is Glacier Park but in Canada. It was super pretty, but a lot of the roads were closed because of snow. It just felt good to drive through real mountains, my Utah blood needs that every once in awhile. We headed back to Cardston and grabbed some lunch (I almost grabbed some Canadian Tylenol-which is much better than our Tylenol and I had forgotten my pain meds, but I was worried I would be through in jail for smuggling drugs), and headed home.
I have been trying to teach Caleb how to give kisses. The other day I thought he was going to give me a kiss and then he turned and bit me on the arm. He didn't do it out of hate, but it still hurt like crazy! I bruise like a peach, so this picture, with bad lighting, was taking 5 days after 'the incident.'
I made Caleb a 'family book' with pictures of all his family in it so he can get to know everyone. He loves looking at it, and it kept him entertained all of Sacrament meeting last week, we shall see if that continues this week.
My mother-in-law made me a super cute scarf and sent it out last week. Like any good Utopian society what once was mine quickly became Caleb's as well. He loves wearing this scarf! I think he looks so cute in it-two picture cute! (as a side note, I pray with everything I have that if I ever have a daughter she will have the exact same curls that Caleb has).
John's work schedule has been a lot lighter this year (mostly due to all the surgeries). He is still doing great as his job, and enjoys it for the most part. His next step is to start a Master's degree, which hopefully he can start this fall or winter. He is so great at helping out this past month, and doesn't even complain that he will be cleaning the bathtub till May because of all the incisions I have (by the end I should have 6-I am hoping to play connect the dots!)
We have a date for my surgery-Feb 25th! Technically that is only 7 weeks after my last one and the doctor wanted to wait 8, but since he only comes up so often he is making an exception! They are going to start laparoscopic, but are not promising it will end that way. Cross our fingers though that it will go smoothly.
Won't it be nice once all of this is over and this blog can return to being about how cute Caleb is and not the great adventures of my surgeries?
This post shows how mean of a mom I am, and I am sure once John reads it he will make me destroy all evidence but it is just so funny.
I have been taking things way too seriously lately, so I made a goal that today I would only worry about the moment. I can spend forever worrying about the surgeries and doctors and ability to bear children, but is that really going to get me anywhere? So today I have enjoyed just hanging out with Caleb and having fun.
I also decided I really want a daughter. Just this week I thought how much fun it would be to have a little girl to dress up and do her hair and paint her toenails Well today Caleb helped with both of those. Not only did he just make me laugh-but made me feel like I had a daughter for a day.
Here is his cheek afterwards, it just looks like bad veins, but it is make-up!
Caleb is becoming so smart. He really is the sweetest boy in the whole wide world. We are so grateful to have him-and all his tricks just make him more fun! He is so aware of things now.
Thursday was a not so great a day (the day climaxed with John's boss asking if he could talk with my gyno about everything-luckily I stopped that-but that gives you a feel of the day-the rest is considered top secret info, but in the end it really was all very funny). Caleb and I were playing on the ground, and I just started staring into space thinking of all the scary words doctors had been saying lately. Caleb stopped playing, came up, rubbed my arm, and then snuggled in my lap with me for a couple of minutes.
Today at Church, John was gone, so Caleb and I were sitting on the bench waiting for Sacrament Meeting to start. Caleb looked up at me with a big smile, and then slipped his arm around my back and gave me a little squeeze. He kept his arm around me for awhile.
But he is learning more than just how to comfort his crazy mother. He knows how to pick out which shoes match, how to open doors, how to say please in sign language (and pll in English), but my favorite thing is captured in this video. He gets up on the piano opens the hymnbook (we only have the hymnbook and a song by Vanessa Carlton-pretty sure that is yours Dana if you want it back) turns the pages starts to play (the hymnbook usually closes) and then turns the pages again-it is a lot cuter when the hymnbook is open, but I couldn't get it for this song.
If you went to BYU and get their Alum emails, don't delete it this month, look through it and you shall see a great picture of my sweety and I. That was not taken while we were married but we have been to the marriage retreats at A.G. and they are great!
Also I have gotten the question "why didn't they just take the ovary out with the last surgery if they knew it needed to come out." Do you remember the "Lost" episode when Jack is doing surgery and makes a mistake and it is all fatal and dramatic. Luckily Jack is so great and fixed everything. Well similar situation could have happened if my doctor had tried, but they would have cut my colon-not good. And my doctor is no Jack and wouldn't have fixed it. Thus having to wait for the specialist from Utah (Utah has everything!)
I went to the Doc's today for my follow-up appointment. Usually follow-up appointments are pretty dull-"how are you doing" "let me see the stitches" "you can resume normal activity." Mine was a little different (I think I am always different). The doctor showed me all the nice pictures and explained what was going on. My right ovary is weird looking and attached to my colon-not good! So the doctor told me I need another surgery. Yep this appointment was a follow-up/sugery consultation-I bet the insurance company will love processing that claim. To be done laproscapically the surgery needs to be done by a specialist who comes up every so often from Salt Lake, and he will be here in two weeks. We are keeping our fingers crossed that he can fit me in because if not they might have to go in the good old fashion way. We really are doing ok with all the news. We think that this will really help end a lot of the pain which is good because at some point I would like to be able to eat real food again. John's work is being awesome about the whole thing and so he will be able to stay off of alerts when it happens to help out. So that's what is going on up here! I hope all of your New Year's are off to a much more tame start!
John and I were married August 2006. We had our first son, Caleb in September 2008 (I mostly had him, but John was there supporting me). We have lived in Utah, Washington D.C., Alabama, California and currently live in Great Falls, Montana. John is a 2nd LT. in the U.S. Air Force and I am a stay at home mom.
