10 weekend facts

1] olive garden's chicken parmigiana makes an excellent breakfast the morning after date night.

2] to change your life:

     step 1: go to costco. buy a $16 fuzzy blanket (you'll know it when you feel it)

     step 2: put it in the dryer by itself for at least 5 minutes.

     step 3: pull it out of the dryer quickly and run to bed as fast as you can so it doesn't lose any heat

     step 4: wrap yourself up in your warm fuzzy, in your cozy bed and get comfy

     step 5: die of relaxation (because it's seriously that amazing)

3] i don't know why it's taken me the whole 4 years that i've had this blog to start telling old stories, too, and not just what's going on right now (stay tuned for hilarious and awesome stories of my past)

4] even when he's not feeling good, a little loopy, and post-op - my pup is still a sweet one. he's been so snugly (i just barely learned, just now, that this is how you spell snugly) and cute all weekend long. he's all puppy eyes all the time. 

5] my baby nephew didn't come, even though i hoped and hoped and crossed all my fingers that he might! 

6] i need to be more patient (see above fact.)

7] as of today, for the first time in his life, cooper has had a stuffed toy last longer than 5 days (today is day 7, but this one will probably be in the garbage tomorrow...)

8] pinterest is fun again

9] my new vine account will probably consist solely of videos of my dog. followers beware.

10] i think i may try lipstick...

fog

Utah seems to be having an identity crisis lately. It started with several weeks straight of below freezing temperatures... without any snowfall. Next came a morning of freezing rain. Which I have never seen in Utah in my entire lifetime. It was a rare sight! I had to pull over mid-commute and scrape my windows! And now, the weather has settled with this dense, thick fog that draped the wasatch front last night and has only gotten worse. Devin was fortunate enough to spend this afternoon at the OR show, and I was getting a little sick of laying around the house so I took Cooper on a walk to give him a little exercise.

^ there's a neighborhood back there...

The fog was intense. I got lost twice! After about an hour of walking around, we finally happened upon our own backyard and came back inside. I was still a little stir-crazy and decided our next adventure would be a drive. Living in an unfamiliar city has the perk of fun and aimless drives. I love looking at houses and thought today would be the perfect day to finally find my way to the Up House, which I had been wanting to do since I found out it was in Herriman, and could see it from the [one and only] main road in town. Once I got from our street down into town, I laughed at myself. I could barely see the car in front of me, let alone find a house I had only seen from a distance as I passed by! I made a prompt left turn, right into Mcdonald's for a diet coke and went straight back home. Now cooper and I are back in bed, chugging diet coke for me, sleeping for him (that surgery must have really wiped him out! he's sleeping as much as he did when he was a baby!), and endless episodes of my newest guilty pleasure, Gossip Girl (I know, I'm awful!). Hopefully Devin will be home soon, but in the meantime, Coop and I will just keep our stink faces on.

[adorable hat knitted (is that a word?) for me by my long lost best friend, Kylee's mother. she's got a talent!]

manhoodlessness

because that's nicer than saying we cut off his [ahem's], right?

devin took cooper to the vet Friday morning at about 7:30a.m. and just before 10:00, we got a call saying the surgery was over and everything went well. we could come pick him up any time after 2:00, so he could spend some time in recovery.

i was at work twiddling my thumbs all morning, and devin woke up sick so he decided to take the day off from route setting. i couldn't get off work until 2:30, but when I did, I drove straight home to pick up devin and we headed to the vet's office. they went over his recovery care with us and explained his medication and then we waited for them to bring him out. it seemed like it took forever! we probably only waited for about 3 minutes. when he came out, the first thing i noticed was that he was walking a little funny (go figure) and that he looked really confused. he recognized us and came up to us right away, but it seemed like he didn't really know who we were, just that it was something he was familiar with. during the drive home, it got more and more obvious how out of it he was.

he had drool dried all over one side of his face, an unknown spot of dried up green something on one paw, and a giraffe bandage on one arm from where the IV was. he seemed like he was feeling fine, just still a little groggy from the anesthesia, which i expected. he did lots and lots of staring. he kept staring at his giraffe bandage like "what is that?!" it was so funny! once we got home, he started to try to lick at his stitches, so we put the cone on. he immediately stiffened up and wouldn't move. he just stood there, perfectly still for a good 10 minutes.

we finally coaxed him onto the couch with us and he tried so hard to stay awake. he kept nodding his head and rocking a little bit and finally went to sleep, so i took the cone off. when devin left to grab some dinner, i decided to put the cone back on so i wouldn't have to battle him and watch his every move and he did the same thing: just held perfectly still. he acts like he's stuck and can't move. he absolutely hates it! he looks so angry and annoyed. i think it's partly because of the anesthesia still though. he is still pretty out of it, but the second i pulled out his elephant toy, he cheered right up! i think we'll have our cooper back sooner than we think, but i also think he'll have to be in the cone until his stitches are totally healed because they are clearly driving him crazy and i can't really blame him!

we took off the giraffe bandage on his arm where the IV was and noticed they shaved a pretty big patch on his arm and as soon as we took off the bandage he started licking it like crazy. it seems like it's bothering him more than the stitches right now. they also shaved a spot just above his paw on the back of his wrist on the other arm, probably for a heart monitor? my poor puppy haha he is so confused and annoyed and sleepy. i'm glad we were able to get the surgery done on the weekend so we can be with him for these first few days while he's dealing with it all. i'm already anxious to have my puppy back to normal!

while we were at the vet's office, cooper's dr, Dr Hammond came out and saw us and said "was that your little critter we had back there today? he's gotten big!" little critter. ha. love it! the vet tech also put a note on the bottom of the recovery sheet instructions that says "cooper is a very nice puppy!" that made my glad because devin said that on monday when he took him in for the blood work, they had to muzzle him because he's been nippy to the vet techs before. we also got him microchipped today!

here's hoping to a quick recovery for my little trooper!

Ski Day

Devin's wonderful boss and dear friend Jeff gifted us some day passes to Deer Valley a few weeks ago. As soon as Devin told me about them, we both knew exactly what it meant: a ski day with Brandon! Brandon, Devin's brother, works as a chef for a restaurant at Deer Valley called The Stagg, and as an employee, skis at Deer Valley for free, and very often. We will probably never get another chance to ski at Deer Valley because a) it's pretty much a country club, so b) it's unrealistically expensive. Neither of us had ever skied there before. 

And it wasn't until the night before that it occurred to me that we had scheduled our ski day for the same weekend as the Sundance Film Festival. Which means, that even if we didn't see anybody (everyone is clad in layers and goggles or glasses), chances are we were skiing among celebrities all day long - which is also pretty cool. I did see a man who looked an awful lot like Ben Affleck, so I'm counting it. 

Anyway... the weather in the valley and even up on the bench where we live in Herriman has been so awful. The air quality is the worst in the world right now and the inversion is probably a huge cause for how sick we've all been lately. Not to mention the average temperature hovering around 10 degrees every day for the last... month. That being said, my first concern was being warm and staying that way for an entire day outside on the slopes, especially since I am just now getting better from being so sick last weekend.

Friday night, when Devin got home from work, he came bearing gifts! He had gone to REI and scored on their clearance section and got me some much needed ski pants and an awesome hard shell / rain jacket I had been eyeing on backcountry.com for some time. He prides himself in the fact that he can shop for me by himself and know exactly what I'd like. And it's true, he's a pro. 

We woke up bright and early Saturday morning and dressed in layers upon layers! I had on an undershirt, a long sleeve shirt, a fleece jacket, an 800 fill (really warm and puffy) down jacket, and my hardshell. Plus, leggings, ski pants, really thick wool socks, and a fleece lined wool hat! Needless to say, I never once got cold all day! Devin's layers were basically the same, and we all stayed really warm, thankfully! 

We drove up to Kamas to Brandon's house and dropped Cooper off there to stay with Koda and Riley and we took off for the resort. Brandon's roommate Tom came along, too. 

When we got the resort, the skies were blue, the air was clear, and it was about 30 degrees! It was like a heat wave compared to the valley! We were so happy and it felt good to spend some time outside without the inversion. Deer Valley is massive compared to most of the resorts I've been to (which isn't too many). We skied from one end of the resort to the other and spent over 5 hours on the mountain! We did tons of runs and I ate it pretty bad twice (snow down your shirt mid-somersault, anyone? brrr!) - I guess that's what happens when you wait until the middle of January to get back on skis when you haven't been since March! But we did a pretty steep and long black diamond run and both Devin and I conquered that thing. I was happy with myself and so impressed with Devin's talent. He's such a natural! We rode in the fancy gondola just before our last run, and headed back to Kamas for some dinner before our legs fell off.

Dinner was a whole other event. Rewind: before we left, I asked Devin about 10 times if he thought I needed to bring my wallet for any reason. Or if I just needed my ID and he said no to both. That I probably wouldn't need it. So I didn't bring it. Which is ironic because we decided to have dinner in a bar that is known for their burgers. We went to The Notch in Kamas, and Brandon had told us this place is just like Cheers for him because everyone knows his name - he was right - he's a regular, ha! When we walked in, the woman asked to scan my ID. I told her I didn't have it, but I was, in fact, 21, and I didn't plan on ordering any drinks anyway. She said she couldn't have me in there. Devin said "she's married to me" and Brandon said "she's my sister, I promise she's 21" and Tom said "you can scan my ID twice if you want". She decided that she trusted Brandon enough to not lie to her, so she let me stay and I ordered my Diet Coke and she called me "sweetie" all night - which I hate. This is the first time I had ever been anywhere that requires you to be 21 or older since I turned 21, so I already felt weird anyway. I felt like she was watching me like a hawk the whole time! Shoulda just brought my ID! Gah! Oh well. The burger was good and the nachos were better, and the Diet Coke was flat, but we had a good time! 

On our drive back home, we stopped at Dairy Keen for a shake. I got the s'mores shake. It tasted just like a s'more. Like, exactly like one. I downed it! Devin got raspberry. Then we drove through Provo Canyon instead of Parley's so we could say hi to Devin's family on our way home since Amanda was down with the kids again. 

It was a pretty spectacular day. I love skiing and I'm glad Devin does, too. And even though my legs feel like jello today, it was totally worth it. Totally.

 

and i move on.

  

photo i took of the tetons in may 2012

it's these days in the dead of winter that are longer and have more daylight that i find my life coming into real perspective.

i don't have much else to focus on, since the below-freezing temperatures give limited options in every category of everything.

but i've realized that when you catch a glimpse of just how big this world really is, and just how small you really are in comparison, life gets better.

i'm just one of these 6.5 billion specs, scattered across this beautiful earth.

and for some reason, when i realize just how small, how minute, how microscopic i really am, in the scheme of things... i feel better.

there are bigger problems.

my struggles are not the end-all.

and things aren't so bad.

things are actually really amazing.

miracles, sometimes.

and i move on.

my week via iphone

 

< my two favorites

> an ode to my husband, since he started school last week / disappeared (they are the same thing)

< a bunch of old fashioned sodas found their way into our fridge. and my belly...

> cooper embarrassed face (which is a lie. because i've seen cooper legit embarrassed face and it's so sad and adorable and makes you want to cuddle him and tell him it's okay)

 

< snuggs with my pup

> when these girls come into town, it's all giggles. i love them (not pictured: their awesome little brother who got stitches on this same trip due to an unfortunate face-to-humidifier collision)

 

< girls night with amanda and chloe always ends with giant diet cokes and sweet tooth fairy. it's the way it's always been, and it's the way it better always be!

> we broke down and got cooper a real bed! only to be used under supervision (which means it is in our room, and for nighttime sleeping only.)

 

< two peas in a pod. cooper followed addi around all night and she loved every second of it!

> he followed me around all day sunday. wouldn't leave me side. must have known i didn't feel good. he's a saint.

 

< reason #847 why i love chick-fil-a: their drinks come in styrofoam cups by default. you don't have to ask for it that way.

> lately, cooper will only eat his food if i dump it on the floor. but he won't just eat it. he will play with it forever. pouncing, barking, tackling, whining - it's hilarious and adorable.

that's all, folks.

happiness is...

 

> > the perfectly sized portion that is a small pork salad from costa vida, and pebble ice in my diet coke

> > scoring the perfect black cardigan (it's a staple. and perfect ones are hard to come by.)

> > coming home to a quiet, dark house. as much as i love my boys, it's nice when they're still at the dog park when i get home so i have a few minutes to wind down.

> > devin had a really great day at work and is doing some really great things with the team building program at momentum as a facilitator

> > my cuddly, sweet puppy (as always)

> > devin reading my mind about dinner plans (belgian waffles with fresh fruit, and bacon)

sincerely, me

Dear Tuesdays and Thursdays,

     You've swallowed my husband. I never see him when you're around.

      I don't think we can be friends anymore.

Dear Weather, 

      What's a girl gotta do to get some above freezing temperatures around here?

      P.S. Will I ever remember what warm weather feels like? 

Dear New York City, 

     I'm falling in love with you.

     Let's get together. Soon.

Dear Dog Park, 

     Thank you for giving my puppy endless entertainment

     and lots of friends. But you also make him stinky.

Dear "How I Met Your Mother", 

     I have no idea why we didn't meet sooner.

     You're legendary. 

Dear cooper, 

     Never grow up.

Dear Camping,

     I miss you. I could totally use a little bit of you

     right now. Let's meet up once the weather cooperates.

Dear Diet Coke, 

     Thank you for fueling my bad days... and my good ones.

      I don't think I'll ever quit you.

Dear Laundry, 

     Do yourself.

     P.S. Tell the dishes the same.

Dear Cold from Hates, 

    Nobody invited you. Go home. 

Dear Husband, 

     Thank you for being so incredibly sweet to me last night. Thank you for 

     the bubble bath and all the other little things you've done for me while I've been sick.

     You're the greatest. 

a horrible week during which i cried several times

this week has been awful. awful from the very start. 

i haven't seen my husband outside of sleeping hours all week, thanks to 12 hour school days on tuesdays and even longer thursdays (school and then work until 10:30pm.) not to mention all the late nights at work.

when devin finished school at 8:30 on tuesday, he had to go straight to work for a staff meeting and didn't get home until 11:00. he came promptly to my bedside once he got home (at which point i burst into tears) and held me while i cried. he knew exactly what was wrong and i didn't even have to say it: i missed him. and this is really hard.

so... what better time to get the flu?! am i right? 

i'm not. because this is obviously the worst time ever. and maybe it's not the actual flu, but at the very least, it's the flu's ugly stepsister and she's come to stay for the weekend. throbbing head, fiery thorn bush throat, body aches and chills... they're all keeping me company while devin works and goes to school. if i'm not better by tomorrow night i'll be damned! amanda is coming down with the kids and my sweet and only (for 1 more month!) nephew just had a birthday and i'll probably die if i don't get to squeeze them and hear all about their lives in Vernal. skype sessions just don't do them justice. i need those babies in the flesh!

the good news is that devin is loving school already. he's taking mainly rec classes, so he's at a point where his classmates are friends now, not just strangers - and they are all in all of his classes! another pretty cool thing about this semester? devin is taking a class from my dad, who was been teaching at the university as an adjunct professor. i am so excited that he gets this chance, because that's pretty cool! plus, i'm anxious to know what my dad is like as a teacher. i always thought he would make a great one! devin even got lucky with his math class - the teacher as a TA who is hosting study sessions regularly to make sure everyone stays up to speed with the content - so it's basically like tutoring, which is so cool! 

other updates... kayla seems to be recovering perfectly! she is up and walking (even made a shopping trip! and that's saying something!) when they originally did the surgery, they stitched some of the bandaging onto her, so she got those stitches out, which she says was the most painful experience she's ever remembered (probably only because she has no memory of the burn in the first place!) but the doctor is really happy with the way the skin is reacting and she should be back to herself in no time :) 

also, did you know my brother in law sean is in a band?! he just recently became the new drummer for The Zero Summers, which is a salt lake city -based band - and they've got a good sized following! devin and i are so anxious to get to a show and see them play! sean's one of the coolest people i know and now that he's in a band he's just that much cooler ;) i am so excited for him! and for kelli! she is loving all of it except the 4 hour rehearsals in her living room part... haha! 

also... not only did kaden have a birthday this week, but so did my other brother in law sean! i think his favorite present this year will be a new baby boy! he'll be such an awesome dad. i am as excited as ever to meet this baby boy - he could come any day now - and i would be totally fine with that ;) 

so, maybe this week has be awful. awful from the very start, but it helps to look at the bright side and remember the awesome things about it too :) here's hoping i'm cured by morning! 

life, lately

tibble fork 2012 - going through all my old photos reminded me of gems like this one! so pretty!

our new year's eve was slightly uneventful. we went to the dog park in the freezing cold for awhile and then went to dinner with devin's parents and played cards (they are the reining champs). i love my in-laws. they are great company, and amazing people. the kind of people that make you feel uplifted once you leave. next we drove to midvale to celebrate with our good friends, kyle and jami. they are our rock climbing partners in crime and we love spending time with them. devin and kyle work together almost every day, and their dogs are so awesome. we had some home-jarred pickles, bacon-wrapped lil' smokies sprinkled in brown sugar, cheese and crackers and chocolate fondue. jami and kyle are getting married in april, so while devin and kyle watched old school climbing videos, jami and i talked wedding details. i love weddings! i am so excited for them and i can't wait to celebrate with them in a few months! we watched the ball drop, and by that time, all the junk food had caught up to me and we went home shortly after, feeling stuffed and sick, but happy. i think new year's is kind of a let down. it's never as exciting as you think it will be in your head. 

i had new year's day off, but devin didn't, so i headed down to my parents and ate chinese food with my mom and helped take down her christmas decorations. i sat at the piano for a good hour, re-teaching myself how to play my favorite song, "waterfall" by jon schmidt. i was so upset that i had let my talent go, but after going through the song about 10 times, i got it back. sort of like riding a bike! it was interesting to play and watch my fingers move faster than i could read the notes, because i still have that muscle memory. i went home and looked for keyboards on ksl, because it's all i want to do now - just play! 

my little sister had her skin graft on thursday. my mom said she was very brave, and hilarious once she came out of the anesthesia. she was convinced that justin beiber did her surgery! she doesn't even like JB! they took the skin for her graft from her thigh, in the exact same place they had taken skin from when she was 2 and had her first skin grafts right after the burn. the spot they did in the surgery was small, but she is still in a lot of pain. she says her leg is hurting more than her shoulder is. she's getting a lot of rest and is expected to recover just fine. we went to see her friday night and cooper ran in the door and jumped right up on her. i cried, i was so mad at him. of course, he didn't know better, but he spent the rest of the night being scared to go near her, because he knew how much trouble it got him into the first time. he didn't hurt her too much, but still! i felt awful :( i'm glad she got over it quickly. (thank you, pain meds). we brought her a big fluffy down comforter and 10 movies (literally. all the best chick flicks). i painted her toes and we watched "baby mama" and then devin and i headed back home.

we don't have a lot of other plans, until next weekend when amanda and the kids come down! we'll be having a baby shower for chloe and baby blue and spending as much of the weekend as we can with family. i've been fighting off a cold again, but have yet to get really sick this winter - hopefully i can stay that way! now, we're off to the dog park! wish me luck, because my weather app says it's only 7 degrees! 

my week via iPhone

 

< our stockings! devin and I built a cute coat rack right before chrismas that we hung them on

> some more cooper christmas love

 

< snuggle pup

> cooper's finally teething! we are so glad he's loosing these dagger baby teeth, but it's been a pretty constant challenge to make sure he's still okay. and it's also been pretty bloody...

 

< man to man

> sunday at the dog park - in december. it was freezing.

 

< when dad plays with cooper...

> this man.... i'm beyond grateful for this man lately. 

>< post-christmas exhaustion

 

>< the next several photos are virtually the exact same: of a sleepy, snuggly cooper. my favorite kind.

 

< an excess of oranges around christmas time. always. so this time, i made orange juice!

> saturday = 800 days since our first date. don't ask me how or why i know that. but it's pretty cool. it's weird to look back at pictures of us when we were starting to date and realize that at that time, i had no idea devin would be my husband, but there he was.

 

< our saturday night agenda while devin works: the second half of season 3 of gossip girl and sleeping (2 days in a row at the dog park make for a very happy, very tired cooper)

> one of those times when an outfit i thought of in my head turned out to be as good as i imagined (and also, i finally own a curling iron. and a blow drying that actually blows air, and doesn't burn my skin...)


< new years eve fondue
> envious of our friends' bouldering room in their basement


>< one of my resolutions taking place. i was devastated a few months ago when i sat down at the piano and realized i had forgotten how to play my favorite song. after running through it about 10 times, i've got it back. i can play it again comfortably, just not memorized like i used to (yet). 2013 is going to bring with it my love for piano (again.)

 
< my mom's hilarious updates about kayla's surgery while i was at work
> diet coke is bad day fuel


< painting kayla's toes, post-op