My Year In Review

Well, this year has, like most years once you're an adult, flew by!!! I might be a little premature in writing this blog, but this topic has been on my mind. I was writing in my journal yesterday and thought it might be fun to do a review of my year. So many interesting things have happened both good and bad, I thought I might share.

In January I made up to 400 rolls and sold them to a lady who needed them for a banquet she was in charge of. I sold two other batches later that same month. (maybe I should open a bakery.)

Scott and I attended our first Valentines dance since being married. We really ripped up the floor.

Attended a funeral that was held for my sister-in-laws mother. My thoughts are still with you Kristen!

Made homemade chocolates for the first time. Truffles, nugget, and mints.

Celebrated Scott's birthday snowmobiling and spent the night at a bed and breakfast.

Taught myself and almost perfected Russian punch needle.

Did not win the "Harmon's biggest looser" contest.

Attended my first LDS expo.

Bought a house.

Remodeled our house.

Didn't sale my hand made jewelry on e-bay.

Met Sherrie Dew.

Attended the Endowment session and Sealing ceremony for Douglas Schwartz.

Helped my parents landscape their yard.

Had not one, but two families live with us this year.

Only ovulated 4 times this year.

Never got pregnant.

Moved 4 families.

Took a youth group to the Ludlow's cabin up in Midway, UT.

Found out our best friends are having their second child!

Went to Raging Waters for my company party.

Went to Lagoon the next day with my Aunt and her family.

My Dr. put me on a load of hormone elevating medications.

Attended the I-Max premiere of Superman Returns.

Vacationed in Oregon for a week.

Attended Michael and Megan's stake play titled, "Saul".

Started this blog.

Participated in a Polynesian dance festival.

received the means to help start our family.

Attended our first ever parade of homes.

Had my first "cap" placed on one of my back molars.

Celebrated my 7th wedding anniversary.

Did not attend my 10 yr. High school reunion.

Did not go camping for the FIRST TIME in my life!!

Got Shingles.

Attended my first BYU game in over 7 years.

My sister got engaged.

Attended my first ever marathon and was inspired.

Wasn't inspired enough to loose my goal of 20 lbs.

Brett and Mindy moved back to Utah. Yeah!

Found out Ty and Kim are having a BOY!

Had a painful procedure done without an anesthetic.

Surprised my parents with a romantic get-a-way.

Michael and Danielle had their 4th child. Congratulations!

Spencer and Rheina got engaged.

Did not start my home salon.

Kelly and Andrew visited Utah 4 times this year.

Scott and I started a membership at a local gym.

On Dec. 29th my sister is getting married.

Kept a pretty good journal this year.

I hope you all have had a good year. It's been fun going back and reading about all the things that happened this year. With 2007 coming I hope to check off the things I wasn't able to do this year. Like they always say, "there's always next year." And boy does it come fast!

Happy Thanksgiving

I Ate Too Much Turkey

I ate too much turkey,

I ate too much corn,

I ate too much pudding and pie,

I'm stuffed up with muffins

and much too much stuffin',

I'm probably going to die.

I piled up my plate and I ate and I ate,

but I wish I had known when to stop,

for I'm so crammed with yams, sauces, gravies, and jams

that my buttons are starting to pop.

I'm full of tomatoes and french fried potatoes,

my stomach is swollen and sore,

but there's still some dessert,

so I guess it won't hurt if I eat just a little bit more.

Time flys by

Today was another crazy day. Plus it's Monday, which makes it even better! Work was non- stop, and with it going, going, going, the time flys by! So much that I get to work and the next thing I know it's lunch time and then all of a sudden it's five o' clock! During this crazy day I had this feeling that today was important, today was significant, today was a day that six years ago changed my life forever! To be honest, I will NEVER forget what happened on this day six years ago. Life becomes all encompassing that these moments, when we finally have a moment to reflect, are all of a sudden upon us!

It was a Monday night. We had just been informed that Scott (my little brother) had only one month to live. He had been suffering from leukemia for over two years and his organs had fought as long as they could and were finally shutting down. It's amazing the strength we all had during that last family home evening. We had no idea this would be our last time with Scott here on earth. Just before we left that night, I remember sitting down next to Scott and whispering in his ear, "Good night pooker, I love you forever through all eternity and beyond." (we would always say "I love you forever through all eternity and beyond") It's ironic how appropriate it truly was that night. When we got home we got a call from my mom informing us that Scott had passed away. It had only been twenty minutes since we had last seen him. I never cried so hard in my life!

It's amazing how raw your emotions are after a moment like that. It stays with you for a long time. It changes you; you face new challenges in ways you never thought possible, and you sympathizes with others on a different level. Life also goes on and before you know it it's been years. This thought in itself just reminds me of how short our lives truly are on this earth. If you die when you're 13 or when you 95, life whizzes by. I'm so thankful for the plan of salvation.

Tonight we went down to the cemetery to remember and honor his life and we left with a greater understanding of this great plan our Heavenly Father has for us!

Love you Scott forever through all eternity and beyond!

The Miracle in Sunday School

On Saturday Scott and I were invited, by Scott's grandfather, to attend Legacy's Sunday school meeting which are held every Wednesday night. He is currently the Sunday school president and was having a guest speaker come for the meeting and thought we'd be interested in attending.

Let's get a little background: Scott's grandfather is 85 yrs old and has only been a member of the church for about a year and seven months. Before then he was a great support to all his grandson's when they were on their missions, but he had no interest in becoming a Mormon! None of us realized the great change that would take place in this man once he moved here to Utah after living in San Francisco for some time. He was set in his ways, and we never imagined the miracles that would result in his move.


So, there we were last night, sitting in a room full of senior citizens. We were getting ready to hear Prof. Victor Ludlow, who's a professor at BYU, give a well anticipated lesson on Prophetic repetitions. Scott and I were thrilled we had the night open so we could come and learn.

It's funny how the spirit works, and it's funny the individual lessons we take from a church meeting. I was there to hear and learn from this professor, which I did. But the real lesson came when I watched as Scott's grandfather stood up to conduct the meeting. This was the first time I had seen him conduct and it's amazing how touching it was. He stood there, very humble, and welcomed everyone, shared a thought, announced the opening hymn and then held the microphone for the sister who gave the opening prayer.
After the wonderful message that was given that night, Doug stood up again and thanked the speaker and announced that our closing hymn for the night was, "We thank thee O God for a Prophet." He then gave a quick history of this hymn and then we proceeded to sing. I couldn't even finish the song. All I could think about was how amazing it was that I was able to attend a church meeting where Douglas Schwartz was conducting and that I was singing about the prophet who I love and know to be a man of God. All this, these feelings, the spirit, miracles, they all stem from one thing; our Heavenly Father and his Son and their amazing love for us!
I am so thankful for making the time to attend this meeting. I was deeply touched by what I heard and saw and for the miracle that stood before me.

The Internet

My life revolves around the internet almost daily. I'm using the internet as soon as I get to work and clock in. I'm constantly using websites to check patient insurance eligibility, and making sure they have the coverage for certain medical items. During my lunch breaks I read up on the local and world news and usually pay a few bills in between. If Scott calls and wants to know if we can see a movie (which we haven't done in a very long time come to think of it) I pull up the internet and find the local listings and times. I communicate to people through the internet. It's a very handy tool and it's amazing how I have taken this great invention for granted.
Since Friday I have been without the luxury of this great tool here at work. For some reason, when I open my browser and punch in a website it pulls up the site but then instantly shuts down the browser with no error message. I immediately contacted our IT administrator and informed him of the problem. He came, checked it out, ran countless programs to help fix the problem but to no avail! He has no idea why this is happening to my computer. I've had to resort to calling insurance companies to get information that only days ago took me less then 30 seconds to attain. AAAGGHHH!!!
I know that there are a lot of horrible thing accessible through the internet, but there are also some very great things that can be looked up, checked out, or downloaded to help make life easier through the internet. I was able to help my sister, who lives in Oregon, find her voting precinct during the elections through the internet. I've been able to contact people from around the world through the internet. We can buy or sale the "it" we've been looking for or trying to sale through the internet. I could go on.
I think back to the time when the internet was just barely a new idea, something that could be very big someday. It is BIG, it spans the whole world and right now it has sent my little world here at work crashing down. I'm thankful for the internet, and if used wisely it is an amazing tool. I hope very soon that the IT guy here at work will figure out and fix my internet problem. In the mean time I'll just have to wait till I get home from work to check my e-mail. Whew, at least I have it at home!!

Moonlight Madness

I'm obsessed! Every 6 months at Gardner Village they have their Moonlight madness event. I never have a lot of money to spend, and most the things I love there is way too expensive, but I love it!!!!
About two years ago I started attending this grand event. I invited my mom and sister and since then it's become a tradition. Our men like it enough that they even join us. We start out with a nice dinner at Archibalds and then the rest of the night is spent wandering in the village through the different shops hoping to win door prizes and getting good deals on fun new decorations for our homes. We often make our last stop at the Village sweet shop for a nice big caramel apple and other old fashioned goodies. The ambiance of the village is spectacular as well. During their summer midnight madness they had a Hawaiian themed event and we sat out side and ate chicken pineapple sandwiches all while watching hula dancers. I'm telln' ya, it's fun. This year they are having wandering carolers, carriage rides, and free hot cider.
Since we've attended I've won some nice looking fabric, a serving dish, 75% off coupons for anything in store, candle sticks, and a free massage at their spa cottage. So, I may not have a lot of money during this event to spend, but I end up going home with a lot of nifty free things, and yes, some of them I also paid for, but at a really low price!
This year this event is happening on the 18th. For the past couple of days, knowing this event is coming, has gotten me through my days. Kinda pathetic huh? This year my sister and her soon to be husband will be joining us.
It's funny how these little events in life help bring happiness. So if you notice a bit more spunk in my step around June and November, you now know why!

www.gardnervillage.com

The Love of my Life

I was sitting at work, like most days, and I get a call from Scott:

"...Ok, I Love you too. Bye"

After I placed the phone back on the receiver I got an amazing feeling that swept through my body. You know, the kind that seems to take your breathe away for a moment and to recover you need to take another deep breath. Scott and I call that "having a moment." The one where you realize that life is wonderful because you are married to your best friend in the whole world. It's like shoving your dating days and wedding day into one fleeting moment. Scott and I have never let a day go by without saying we love each other, calling each other during the day when we're apart, or giving each other a kiss.

I was thinking about some of the great things I love about Scott.

Scott loves to surprise me, and he has always done a flawless job of it. He gets so excited when he's accomplished his feat and loves to react to my reaction. (as shown above) We were celebrating his birthday once and it turned into a "let's pamper Shawna instead" birthday.

Scott loves to be silly sometimes, and we always laugh our heads off. Sometimes I think we get a little too silly. One night we were up eating Oreos and I made a stupid remark that got me roaring into that "it's really late" laughter. We laughed so flipp'n hard that Scott actually shot milk through his nose, which got us rolling even more.

Scott loves his brothers. He loves to be with them, hang out with them, give advice, get advice, and he loves that he's the tallest. I love that he's the tallest, it has really come in handy! (that in itself is a whole other subject for another day.) He really admires and loves his family!

Scott loves to do his research (and fold his legs) He spent one afternoon trying to find the perfect rotary saw for our new counter tops. His diligence, and aptitude for the right questions got him exactly what he WANTED. This goes for every aspect of his life. He doesn't make a move until he's got all his facts straight, and all the right information. He's a very smart guy!

Scott is very open about the things that make him truly happy. Scott loves "eyegasms", as he calls them. We all know that he loves to talk about pooh, and we all know that he has a really hard time not saying something about how fantastic his gas is (not the kind he puts in his truck) And what's so weird is that Scott wouldn't be Scott without all these things.

I'm so very thankful and blessed to have Scott in my life. I know I couldn't survive without him. He knows what makes me happy, he knows what needs to be done, and yes, there are times where he says, "I can't read your mind, will you just tell me what you need me to do.' And then he does it, and continues to do it until I tell him other wise. (man is he whipped) And when we finally have children (blessed be the day) he will become an amazing father as well. Scott, I LOVE YOU!

You know you're in love when you can't fall asleep, because reality is finally better then your dreams. -Dr. Seuss

Congratulations!

So, last night we are out to dinner with some friends. We have a great table, secluded and with no one else around. Our friends let their boys run free for a while. All is well until we hear little Michael call out, "Daddy, Timmy's licking all the ketchup bottles." And sure enough, there over on the corner table stood Timmy amongst a sea of ketchup bottles (which he had collected off all the nearby tables) licking away as drool trickled down his front. It was Awesome! Moments Scott and I love to chuckle over. We watch to see how our friends react to this situation. As so many other times in the past, we observe, take notes, and hope to gain some knowledge from the mishaps, sticky situations, or just good times we see all you parents have with your boys and girls!
I bring this up because over the course of the last two weeks we have been getting calls of the good news that, "We're having a boy." or "We're having a girl.", "Can you believe, it's twins" (we haven't really heard that one yet, but it was fun to throw in anyway.)
Currently we know about 8 close couples who are expecting. Some, days apart, some due this month, and some due in the spring. It's a wonderful thing, and we're so glad that we can be apart to observe and wonder.
Our friends, who we went out to dinner with last night, just called this afternoon to announce they're having their first girl, after having their two boys!! We also received the same great news when we heard that Scott's brother and his wife are expecting their first boy, after having two girls. Our other dear friends are having another girl, after having one. Is there a trend going on this year? Maybe their next child will be a boy.
I just wanted to take a moment and just express how happy I am to all of you who are expecting. It's been fun to get your calls of excitement as you tell us of your good news. Thanks for sharing and letting us be apart of all your great and wonderful families. Scott and I feel very blessed!

OCD, quirk, or tick?

So, last night I'm laying in bed. Scott has instantly fallen asleep and I'm a little annoyed that he's done this. I'm jealous and I get the urge to poke him or kick him so he'll wake up and talk with me. But, I decide that would be rude and I let him sleep. Then it happens, I start running my hands through my hair. I start twisting and twirling and making sure every strand of hair goes in and out between every finger. I do this until my hand and arm can no longer function. It's called my little "OCD" (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder) I do this all the time, and I've done it ever since I can remember. Then I got to thinking, everyone has some little 'tick', or 'quirk', or 'little OCD' that they deal with, right? For my mom it's the phone or the light switch. After almost every phone call she gets, she has to take the phone touch it to her left ear, and then again to her right.

Mom:"Ok, goodbye, we'll talk to you later." Touch left, Touch right, hang up!

As for the light switch, whenever my mom leaves a room and flips off the light switch. She doesn't just walk away, she has to flip it down once, flip it down twice, and then flip it one last time.

mom:"Just making sure the light switch stays off."

So I got to thinking some more and I wanted to try to figure out if I could recognize some of the little 'ticks' that the people I associate with have. (I know, I know, what a subject huh!)

My sister, whenever she's concentrating, listening, or focusing in on something, she's always got her hands up next to her face with her birdy fingers scratching her eyelids. Can you say "quirky". Just thinking about it makes me laugh. Another quirky thing she does: Rubs her pinky finger along her lips (as if she's putting lipstick on) .

My brother in law (my sister's husband) has to always shake his leg. Whenever we're eating, the table starts to move, if we're watching a game, the bleachers start to move, if we're anywhere, he's shaking his leg. It drives me crazy! My sister is so used to it that she can't sleep now if he's not shaking his leg.

A co-worker of mine is so obsessed with germs that he actually buys the huge tub of hand sanitizer and goes through one once a month.

Rocky:"yeah, but Sherrie was the last one to touch the coffee pot and she was sneezing last week."

Our copy guy at work, the guy who comes in to service the machine, wears glasses and without fail he is always twitching his nose to make sure his glasses stay in place.

Copy guy: "Don't worry (twitch, twitch) your copy (twitch) machine will (twitch) be as good (twitch) as new." (twitch, twitch, twitch)

For my friend Michelle, it's adjusting her shoulders while she talks.

My friends dad, he HAS to move his eyebrows while he's talking. Just watching his eyebrows alone you might be able to interpret what he's saying.

For Scott, it's tickling his arms while it sticking straight up. I have found him doing this at night, in his sleep. He's got one arm shot up in the air, and his other hand lightly tickling his arm.

Just talking about all this reminds me of Ray Ramono's brother on "Everybody loves Raymond." Whenever he eats, he has to touch his food to his chin before he can put it in his mouth. This is what I'm talking about. Can you think of a weird 'quirk', or little bout of 'OCD' that you, a family member, or friend may have? It's interesting. I know for me, my little OCD brings comfort. For others it may be nerves, or a serious disorder. I'm not making fun, just observing.

This is what I was thinking about last night just before I finally drifted to sleep as my arm and hand hit the pillow with a THUD!!