Grandma's Birthday

My grandma wasn't my grandma in the ordinary sense of the word. I didn't just see her on holidays or special occasions. I spent a lot of time with her. When I was twelve, my Grandma and Grandpa moved into an apartment in our basement. I saw her every day until I moved away to college. Even after I got married, I usually saw her several times a week. There was a time in her life where she had to be in a rehabilitation center (her worst nightmare), and I once again saw her every day. When she came home from that, I was able to help care for her. The opportunity to spend so much time with her has been a great blessing for me. She has had a huge influence on my character and the person I am today.

My grandma was a pressence in my life, and a part of who I am today. When I think about Grandma, I think about her gift to magnify the joy in her life. She had many challenges in life and it would have been easy for her to become bitter and discouraged, but she lived her life joyfully. She knew how to savor the simple things in life. Grandma taught me that there is no joy too small for celebration, whether it is from my own life or someone else’s. She wanted to be there to celebrate everything with the people she loved: a good grade, a wedding, a birthday, a good game, a new boyfriend, or a new baby. At every joyful event, I think of her, and how much she would have enjoyed it. If I had to describe her in one word, it would be love. She was full of love for everyone she knew. If she knew you, she loved you and sincerely desired your happiness. I love you Grandma and I miss you.

I miss...
Sitting on your bed and visiting.
Hearing you call me your little angel (everyone was an angel in her eyes).

Holding your hands.

The way you put all of your physical expression into your hands because the rest of your body wouldn't cooperate.

Hearing you chuckle over some mistake you made (like mixing up someone's name).

The way you would fight with Grandpa over who got to give the kids a treat.

How much you enjoyed watching the kids dance.

The way you'd always say, "I'm just being lazy" when you didn't feel good.
How you always smelled like lotion and hand sanitizer.

The way you'd apologize for your messy bed (which wasn't messy).

How you always were so grateful for every little thing.

The way you expressed your love for Grandpa. You never wanted him to feel unimportant.
Your optimism. You never gave up hope that someday you'd be walking again.

Watching you try to straighten out your plastic sack.

The way your whole face lit up whenever someone came to see you.

How I always felt like a better person after spending time with you.

Like Mother Like Daughter

After last night, I realized that Avery gets her ability to be fully immersed in her own world from me. John got me a pass to the Rec. Center for Christmas. I love going. And physical fitness isn't really at the top of the list for reasons why. I need to exercise so I can sleep at night. But I really enjoy going because I know that for however long I am there, I am physically, mentally, and emotionally unavailable to everyone who isn't me! Anyway, so I went last night and I took the book I was reading (The Solace of Leaving Early). I probably had about a hundred pages left. So I got on the bike and started pedaling away. It wasn't until the bike started a cool-down automatically that I realized I had been pedaling for an hour! I'm such a nerd. I only had about 10 pages left, so I sat in my car and finished it, glancing around feeling guilty because someone might want my spot. I rather enjoyed my evening though. Kudos to John for getting the kids to bed and watching Macy (who was waiting for her dinner)!

Run-On World

I've decided that Avery lives in a world with no punctuation. Her whole day is one long run-on sentence. Her mind never pauses to contemplate or decide what to do next. There is only one button on her VCR and it is "Fast-Forward."

....I'm a kitty meow meow meow and then I turned into a princess oh hi prince do you like my dress and my shoes and then I was a doggy grrrrrrr ruff ruff and then I went to sleep and you pet me and said wake up and then I was a kitty meeeooooow meeeeeooow meeeoooow and then I was Dora and you were boots hi boots what are you doing I'm dora do you like map I like map and then I turned into Cinderella let's get married prince okay now we are married do you want to go to the castle prince and then I was a kitty meeeoooooow meeeoooow.....

You are my brother, my best friend forever!

All I have to say is this: I love American Idol.

Longest Post In The World- At Least In My Blogging World

It is hard to sum up a month long party, so here are some highlights (in my opinion, although John did make me change the word "finally" to " almost" in regards to his #7).
Carston
1. Building a snowman with him (John usually does this, but I figured I need to find ways to be in on the action even if I do have a baby).
2. Helping him write his Christmas list, taking him shopping, and helping him make his cards for people. He likes to spell things on his own.
3. Seeing his face when he went sledding down the hill by himself: Almost terror, and then a smile when he heard me cheering him on.

4. Viewing the pictures and videos on the camera after I let him play with it. Judging from frequency alone, the toilet wins for most captivating object.
5. Catching him licking his gingerbread house.
6. His explanation of the snowball fight gone wrong: "The snow that I threw at Bron, um, it was like a rock (solid ice)."

7. Hearing him sing, "Ding, Fries are Done."
8. Sitting down by himself and reading the 20 page book about my Grandma who passed away (Christmas present for my mom).
9. Going to his first preschool program. There were three awards given out that night. John thought it was cool when Carston got the first one, but then he was embarrassed when he received number three as well! They were for counting to 100 and finishing 27 books in the home reading program.

10. His nativity costume: paper crown from Disneyland, a blanket, a tiger to ride on, an old wallet for his gift, and plastic sparkly, adult sized, purple pants.

Avery

1. Watching her meticulously put the candies on the gingerbread house without even eating them.
2. Her dancing on the stage at all the Christmas parties.

3. Watching her get so excited about her presents.
4. Sledding down the hill with her cousin Emma.

5. Carrying her and Macy all the way back to the car after skiiing-gone-bad. It was seriously so far, very uphill, and in the snow.
6. Carrying her and Macy all the way back to the car after skiing-gone-bad. And no that is not a typo. It was VERY memorable.

7. Repeatedly sitting on my uncle's lap, looking up, and hurrying off because she realized that it really wasn't her "Banka" (Grandpa).

8. Watching her jump.

9. How much she loved her medicine when she was sick. It really was a little bit scary.

10. Her eardrum rupturing for the third time. Not pleasant, but again, very memorable.

Macy

1. Rolling all over across the room to get what she wanted.

2. Her groans of contentment at night after just being fed and getting her favorite blanket on.
3. How awesome she was on my all-day shopping expeditions.
4. Falling asleep while she was sitting in my lap on Christmas day.
5. Blowing bubbles until she was literally out of breath and bright red.

6. Smiling at the nurse as she was getting her ready for her shots. She'll learn soon enough to hate the doctor's office.

7. Looking like a big eskimo in her snowsuit when we took her sledding and skiing. She was amazing going down the hill all by herself on the sled.

8. How awesome she looked in her new headband bow I made (thanks for the instruction Heather).

9. Looking at people with a smile, just waiting for them to look back.

10. Grabbing my face and pulling it in for a big slobbery kiss over and over.
John
1. Having late nights playing video games with his brothers.

2. Playing basketball with his brothers.

3. Going snowboarding with his brothers.

4. Keeping 1 of the 7 shirts I bought him for Christmas (I never imagined I'd be so successful).

5. Moving into a new office.

6. Having his name and the question, "Imagine if John were an emotion, which would he be..." come up again and being upset because everyone chooses "bored."

7. Spending Christmas Eve with his family and almost having a wife who could be patient waiting for the party to end so they could go be with her family (I was so close to mastering it this year).

8. Trying to leave 1 second for the next person when we played Catch Phrase.

9. Learning that Avery has to take a leg out of her pants when she goes the bathroom or pee will be all over her clothes (and learning, perhaps more importantly, that even though he might be okay with pee all over her clothes, I tend to have a differing viewpoint).

10. Successfully making a tricky pool shot (two balls into corner pockets with one shot) as we counted down to the new year.

Me

1. Having my mom watch my kids (including Macy) overnight for my birthday so I could spend the day with John.

2. Playing cards and kicking everyone's butt again.

3. Delicious fondue for New Year's Eve. I had to go to 4 stores before I could find the strawberries, but it was worth it.

4. All of John's awesome presents for Christmas.

5. Having a very abnormal mole removed and not having it be cancerous.

6. Finally memorizing Alma 32. It only took me ten years to decide to do it (I always hated that chapter after a special young women thing where they had us read it 32 times; of course that would be one of the chapters I was counseled to memorize.)

7. Spending so much time with my sister Heather who was here for a month, and having Hallie (her little girl) actually want me to hold her.

8. Spending the night at a hotel with my mom, sister, aunt, and cousins (I've never seen you on caffeine Bobbi Ann-so glad you had a birthday to celebrate).

9. Chelsey teaching me to look in the girls section of Nordstrom for pants that were actually short enough for me to wear with flat shoes.

10. A shopping experience with my mom that has been sworn to secrecy. If you laugh when you read this, you know what I'm talking about.