As of lately

I don't know why, but I hit a point and didn't feel like blogging anymore. Nothing personal. I think I was just in a busy and weird transition in our lives and I was feeling less inspired than normal and less like sharing publicly than I had in the past. It's nothing personal. I just didn't feel like it.

But lately I have had that desire more and more and I thought I would crack open the ol blog-i-o and see how it goes. I am not even going to try to play catch up for the last year or so. That task sounds daunting. But let me give you the cliff notes version.

The cliff notes version of the last 2 years: 
We moved into a fancy apartment in the basement of Kyle's sister's house.
Adney started Kindergarten
Kyle graduated Nursing School
We moved to Bountiful, Utah
Kyle got a job at the VA in SLC
Cammon got bigger and sassier
Overall life is good
Adney is playing T ball
So that is us in a nutshell.

So that's all for today. Expect more soon.

When I can't Speak.

I am singing at our Relief Society activity on Wednesday. I haven't sung all by lonesome in public in a long time. And I am kind of excited/nervous. I chose a cool song. It isn't one I would usually pick. It doesn't really fit my voice or my range perfectly. But after looking and looking for the perfect song I just knew I had to sing it anyways. My ward/community has gone through some tragedy lately involving some young people and suicide. And when I first listened to this song I imagined in my mind the mothers of those young people. How could a mother ever deal with something that horrifying? What words could they say or comfort could they seek? But somehow I know even those mothers will survive. The savior will heal them, comfort them. Even when they don't have words or strength to seek the comfort they need, somehow he will hear them anyways.

Go to itunes and buy/listen to "When I Can't Speak" by Julie Yardley.

Stitches again.

Hey remember how Cammon got stitches in his head? Well... he got the stitches removed and everything was healing nicely. Until today....

Adney and Cammon were playing in a huge-ish bucket that we keep toys in. And it tipped over. And his head hit a metal chair. And it bust it all wide open... and if you know anything about medical stuff... that is called a secondary wound... and thats bad.

Here's a picture from Thursday, healing nicely: (Sorry for the crappy cell phone picture)

 And here is a picture today while we were in the car on the way to the hospital:

Poor little guy! Secondary wounds scar... a lot. And they are super prone to infection or being injured again. So he got 7 more stitches today. Which is SO traumatic for a wee little guy who has to be pinned down by his Daddy to get them.

My worst nightmare is that it gets infected... or that he busts it open again in the next few weeks. I am not as worried about the scar... although I am not thrilled about it either.

14 stitches in the last week. Nightmare! OK... that was maybe a little dramatic. Tons of more awful things could happen to my baby... twice. None that I am choosing to think about.

Rough day. Thankfully tomorrow is a new one. And wounds heal.

Still Playing Catch up.

Eventually I will be all caught up... maybe.

SO hopefully you read about Adney's Christmas Knife. It is probably one of my favorite all time Christmas memories. But there was other things to document for this year. So... here we go.

Christmas was on a Sunday this year. Which brings up the important life decision of: presents before or after Church? We opted for after... which is why we are so dressed up while we open presents.

NOT the best pictures of us ever taken.

So after church we came back to Kyle's parent's home and ate some breakfast and opened tons of presents.... like tons. Kyle's Mom and Dad are gung-ho Christmas and they do not mess around with gift giving. My family always did the whole each person open their present one by one until they are all gone while everyone else watches. It would take the Lusks the entire day to open presents if they did it this way. Everyone opens at once and it is chaotic and crazy and wonderful. There are shouts of joy and thank yous and laughs and paper everywhere and pile of presents all around the room. It is quite the occasion.

Give me your camera.

 Good times. But since Kyle's mom claimed Christmas morning this year... which was totally fine, we called Santa and asked him if he would come a few days later to bring our kid's presents. He said it was no problem. We were still at Kyle's parent's house so Kyle's parents were able to be there and watch the kiddos open Santa's presents.

Cammon got a Slide.

Adney opening his stocking.

Cammon playing with toys from his stocking.

 Adney got a big truck and some super-hero stuff. And Cammon got a slide and a truck that poops balls (not as weird as it sounds). After we opened presents we had some breakfast.

Santa Pancakes.

YUM

Breakfast of Champions.

Although I didn't take pictures of it... Santa brought some presents to Utah too. So when we came home from Idaho there were yet even more presents to open. Our kids are so dang spoiled. So many people to love them. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stitches.

So Sunday was interesting.

Sunday we have church at 1:00. And somehow every Sunday we still manage to be late. It's a special talent. So this Sunday it was like 12:50 and we were rushing around trying to get out the door. And Cammon is running around like a crazy person, as he often does. And all of a sudden I hear a super loud "thunk" and then Cammon started screaming. So I rushed over to where he was thinking he would probably just need a hug and a kiss on his latest head bonk. Instead I was met with a rush of blood and a huge gash on Cammon's head. He was running in the hallway and must have tripped and went head first into the door frame, although no one saw it. The door frame is cracked in one spot where it wasn't before... so we figure that's what happened. Oh yeah... his giant head cracked solid wood. True story.

So Kyle went into emergency care mode... taking care of a patient like a pro. And I went into panic mode... walking around in circles like an idiot . I am definitely not the one in the family who deals with stressful situations. Just saying. So we forgot about church and opted for the Doctor instead. Have I mentioned that my Sister in law... whom we live with is our pediatrician? Well she is. And she is seriously the best pediatrician ever. Like for reals. So on our way to her office we called her at church and she graciously ran out of church to meet us. We got there and got checked in and Kyle and his sister took Cammon back and took care of him while I stayed with Adney in the lobby and watched Tangled. (Have I mentioned how useful I am?) SO yeah... 7 stitches later (2 inside... 5 outside) Cammon's head is all sewn back together. Thanks to the best pediatrician ever.

Check him out:

 

Nice right? We have officially reached the stitches milestone. It is one I hope not to repeat often. And it mostly just breaks my heart that my perfect little baby's perfectly ginormous head is not so.... perfect anymore. But I am glad that he is going to be fine and make a full recovery. And he looks like the toughest 1 year old I have ever seen. My baby could totally beat up your baby.

The Christmas Knife.

I have a story to tell you. Ready?

So a a few weeks before Christmas Adney and I were talking about Christmas presents and who we needed to still figure out presents for. And Adney says "Mom, can I get Daddy a Christmas present?" Even though things were kinda tight this year, how could I refuse that request? So I put a $5 budget on it and asked him where he wanted to go to find Daddy a present. He told me "The Mall". yay. We didn't have much going on that day... so off to the mall we went. I asked him what kind of store he wanted to go to and he said he didn't know, he just wanted to go to the mall. So we started at a sporting goods store. We walked around the entire (busy) store and looked at a lot of things... baseball mitts, hunting gear, and the likes. Every time I would try to lead him in a certain direction he would tell me to just follow him. "You and Cammon follow me". OK, you take the lead on this one, bud. We didn't find anything at the sporting goods store or the next few we went to. We would walk down the center of the mall and he would stop in front of a store and he would peak at the general contents and decide whether or not we were going in there. Most of the time... we were not. But Cammon and I followed him around the mall while he searched diligently for that $5 gift for Daddy. Nothing really seemed to fit the bill. I had to talk him down off of a golf cart and a surf board that was actually a store decoration and not for sale... neither of which were $5. I was starting to get worried that he wasn't going to find anything or that he was going to lose interest. But he prevailed.... contrary to what a normal 4 year old does in a mall. That kid was determined. Finally we stumbled across a kiosk. It was full of Native American... stuff. It immediately caught his eye and he went straight for the head dressed and such. Then... he noticed a glass case full of pocket knives. And his eyes lit up. He pointed to the giant dagger looking... weapon... so I recommended maybe something a little smaller that Daddy could keep in his pocket at the farm. He asked the guy to see a small, but handsome pocket knife. He inspected it and opened it up and gave the man his $5 bill out of his tiny little pocket, grinning ear to ear. It actually cost $11... more than double his budget... but I never told him that. I just slipped the man some cash. How could I say no? And also by this point Cammon was getting more than antsy in his stroller.

So we took the knife home and I helped him wrap it. We hid it and I told him not to tell Daddy about it... and he didn't (to my surprise). When Christmas morning came Adney ran over to the tree and got that present and gave it to his Dad before he even opened any of his own. Kyle opened it and thanked him and then I told Kyle the whole story. Kyle affirms that he will never actually be able to use that knife because he plans on keeping it forever.

Kyle, holding the knife just after opening it. (sorry for the goofy picture... one was blurry and one was... well... this one.)

And here is the knife. Not too bad right?

I am so proud to be Adney's mommy. He is just the sweetest little boy. He is tender, and emotional at times, and he has a big heart. I just love him.

Come to Jesus.

Ok... despite the super religious title in this post... it  isn't all about religion... directly. (I mean I suppose I can find a religious angle/aspect/reason for most things in my life). However this post is about the "come to Jesus" talk. You know... the one where you are totally honest and realistic with yourself and make yourself see just how things really are... like in reality. Wow... am I sounding insane right now? Or do you get me?

First off: Your body is a Temple. Plain and simple, I need to take better care of it. Although I am only 27, I often feel like I am 57... which may or may not be dramatic.... I'll tell you when I am 57. Exercise... eat your veggies... and don't eat dessert every day. Do it.

Secondly: Computers are not people. And no matter how lonely and how bored you are a computer is still just an inanimate object and will not bring joy to life. It is simply a tool and should be used in moderation. (aka... get your butt off of Facebook and go live your life).

Third: Be responsible. You are an adult and need to act like one. Write in your planner and then actually follow it. Stay on budget. Actions do have consequences.

Fourth: Don't let your brain go to mush. You are an intelligent woman with a college degree and mad skills. USE them. Or study something new. Either way. Don't be a vegetable (academically speaking).

Lastly: Allow yourself to be happy. Truly and honestly... happy. Laugh loudly and smile often.

Ok.... can I get an "Amen"?

Sorry... this is kind of personal. However, you may have discovered by now that I have no filter. Verbally or otherwise. And I share.... a lot. SO in all honesty... I have been struggling. Not in a serious or dangerous way. But in a general funky- my life smells like old socks kind of way. And I just feel like I am letting myself sink further into it. So I am trying to dig myself out. Starting now.

Come to Jesus.

Ho HO HO... two months late

Guess what? I finally got a new keyboard. Every time I type it makes me smile. Ahh.... the ease of a well working keyboard.... bliss. It's really the simple pleasures.

So now I feel like I can have my voice back on my blog without it being a painfully tedious task. YAY! But don't worry I still have loads of pictures to catch up on sharing. Speaking of catching up... let's talk about Christmas. Did you all have a lovely one? We did. Our Christmas tree was particularly gorgeous. My mother-in-law and sister-in-law gave it to me for me Birthday... which was also in December (I turned 27 don't ya know)... and yes I said that with a Wisconsin accent. Don't ask me why. Wait... what was I talking about... oh yeah.... Take a look at that tree... gorgeous. Am I right? (Of course I am). And I officially own my very own Artificial Christmas Tree... It's a bute. 8 feet of plastic and wire pre-lit fabulousness ready for me to beautify. Which I did... as you can see.

 Moving on.

Since we live in Utah now... we went to experience the beauty which is Temple Square at Christmas Time. Well... Kyle didn't actually go because he was in the middle of finals and Cammon stayed home and went to bed because he was sick... but Adney and I went with some of Kyle's family and we had a grand ol' time. Speaking of gorgeous trees... the one in the JS Memorial Building... WOW.

Don't you like my Hat? It is Kyle's. It was really cold. So I stole it.

 The lights were stunning. And Temple square is always a special place... but especially at Christmas.

So... speaking of my Birthday. We went to Kyle's brother's house for the weekend. It was fun. Kyle had to go to a cow sale on Saturday... which is mostly why we went. But it was so fun to spend time with his brother's family. On Friday we went to their ward party... which was fun and SANTA was there (I know him!) It was Cammon's first time on Santa's lap and he loved it. As you can tell.

 Adney was more cool about it. And asked him for a bike... which Santa fell through on because giving a kid a bike in December is like giving him snow pants in July. Santa is smart that way. (wink)

So that was fun. Then on Saturday Kyle had to go to that darn Cow sale. Which was actually pretty cool. Have any of you ever been to a live stock auction? It is nuts. We took the kids for a while and then when they got sick of it I left Kyle to buy cows and took the kids to McDonalds... their natural habitat. Then on Saturday night Kyle took me on a hot date in Twin Falls. We went to a Japanese Steak House... you know then kind with all the fire and throwing things and knives... but in a good way? Then we went to see Sherlock Holmes, which did not disappoint. Then on Sunday we headed home. Good times.

So... Here are some other pictures from December. It has been nearly impossible to get good pictures of Cammon b/c all he wants to do is hold the camera... and taste it. Which I am NOT cool with... which makes him a MAD BABY. So brace yourself.

Sweet Adney.

Cammon's favorite thing to do... Bathroom Chaos. BEST GAME EVER,

Is that a Camera?! GIVE IT TO ME NOW!

Sorry Mom... it just makes me really sad when you don't let me have your Camera. So can you give it to me please?

NO?! I hate it when you don't let me have the Camera.

Why do you torture me?

 Sorry for the Cheesy captions. Even when he is screaming I think he is adorable. I promise he is a really happy baby. But it just makes him so dang mad that he can't hold my camera. I am considering covert tactics. Hiding a camera in my handbag or something. Recommendations?

So that was December up until my Birthday. More of December is coming soon. Brace yourself for heartfelt stories and jammied babies on Christmas morning.

Too-Ta-Loo

October Fest Continued.

Moab wasn't the only thing we did in October. We also celebrated Halloween. BOO! I did a total motherly fail and didn't take and pictures of my kids in their actual costumes. Fail right? But Adney was Spider Man and Cammon was a Dog...  and they were adorable... trust me. But I did take lots of non-costume halloween related pictures. Pumpkin picking... pumpkin carving.... face painting. So maybe Halloween won't totally be forgotten.

Black Island Farms. Fun Place to pick a pumpkin.

Cammon wanted the really really big one.

Adney got his face painted at a festival... I checked on him in the shower and this startled me.

Before he showered... obviously.

Kyle's pumpkin. He carved that! Can you believe it? Roar!

Black Island Farms... seas of pumpkins.

Cammon with his punkin.

Adney with his.

My pumpkin. Kyle picked out the design.. can u tell?

Too much candy.

Adney's spider pumpkin.

Cool right?

 So that was Halloween... at least the parts I remembered to photograph. On to November.