Happy Valenbirthahversary

I know that term is for the poor sap that forgot what special occasion his wife is mad about him forgetting, but February is really that for me.  All three are within 17 days of each other.  In fact, my daughter's birthday is in that 17 days as well.  Even Presidents Day is in that cluster, and I have no idea what to get them!

Anyway, Happy Birthday Sweetheart.  You got your picture in the paper today too!

Standard-Examiner 2/24/2011

Our friends from our last ward are the ones to the left of us.  I was in my trainer costume, so I think the photographer thought I was "Sweatin' with my Sweetheart", but I was just there to cheer.

Zero Fatalities Safe Kids Fair

It has been quite a while since I suited up as Jango Fett, but I will be at the South Towne Expo Center Saturday from noon to 3:00 with my buddies from the Empire.

Looks like Iron Man will be there too: Zero Fatalities Safe Kids Fair

It is free and lots of fun.

Birthday Party

We all had a blast at Kira's birthday party last night.  We had Kira's choice for dinner, a wonderful chicken pasta alfredo with broccoli prepared by our chef Britnee and bread sticks from Lynette's kitchen.

Then we watched a slideshow of Kira pictures.




We jammed to a playlist Kira compiled and then had cake and ice cream.  After the Birthday Song, Ben helped blow out 2 candles, much to Kira's chagrin.

A short while later, a couple of Kira's friends from Young Women in our ward came to party, give her gifts, partake of some cake, cupcakes and ice cream, and then accompany her and Brianne to a multi-stake youth dance.
Finally the little ones ran around the gym while we were cleaning things up (well, it was really during the whole party).  During the tear-down, Nathan brought Naomee to us.  She was crying pretty loudly, which is very strange for her.  Then we saw the blood.
She had gashed just under her chin open in one of the bathrooms.  The bathroom doors at the church open in, with just a push, however you have to pull on a handle about 40" up to open them.  We're still not sure how she cut her chin, but Nathan heard her crying and ran in to get her.  It must have just happened because the first drop of blood hit her sweater as he was rushing her to us.
Britnee sped her off to the hospital, as quickly as she could safely in the snow storm, and I finished cleaning up from the party.  Britnee said she got over the pain and was really enjoying messing with the TV and running around checking everything out in the ER observation room.
A couple hours and three stitches later momma brought our baby home.  She was a little tear stained from the anesthesia needle poking her in the open wound and being held tightly during the stitching in a swaddling blanket hold.  At least they didn't have to use a papoose board like they did for Brianne's forehead gash when she was little.
She's back to normal today.  Doesn't even seem to remember anything is wrong with her, thank goodness.  I thought she might be pulling at the stitches today.  Momma held it together well too.

Naomee will get her stitches out on Thursday.
Thanks to all our family that helped out with the party and send cards and gifts.  We love you all!

Kids

So, I forgot to mention that it was Kira's birthday yesterday.  I didn't forget to talk to her, just you all.  We are having a part for her Saturday.

This morning Cooper is going under the, uh, laser.  He is having polyps removed.  They currently fully line his nasal cavities, which explains his trouble breathing for the past decade.  I have wondered if they were created as a sort of scar tissue from extreme allergy issues.  Anyway, he currently gowned and ready.  The procedure is supposed to begin at 9 am.  I think Britnee is going to bring him home for post recovery comforting today.

Brianne is working a couple days a week as a nanny / professional babysitter.  This gets her up unrealistically early (for her), 4:30 am so she can take the train and bus the 40 miles to work by 6:45.

Catching Up

Wow!  Busy, busy, busy (say it again like the magician on 'Frosty the Snowman').

Britnee competed in the Aquatic Center's Mini Triathlon Saturday and took 4th place in her division (Super Attractive Women In The Age Range She Fits).
She swam 10 laps (20 lengths), biked 10 miles on a Spinning bike, then ran a 5K (3.1 miles) all in 1 hour 19 minutes.  Pretty amazing that it only took her about 4 minutes longer to run the 5K, after swimming and biking, than it did to run her last 5K in November.  She is getting to be quite an athlete.

Which reminds me, Britnee also has a new church calling.  She was released from the Activity Days and asked to be the Young Womens Sports Director.  She coached her first basketball practice with the girls Tuesday and will have her first game with them tonight.  She said its fun but very different.  She hasn't been involved in a team sport since junior high school.

I got to start a rotation this week, filling in at the info/permit counter at the city's "One Stop Shop" at the City/County Building.  The other engineering permit technician and I will take turns a week at a time covering the one stop counter or our building's permit counter.

It means we will almost never see each other any more, which is lousy because is my best buddy in engineering.  The one stop does have a nicer (and warmer) work space however, and everyone here is very friendly, so far.




We had another therapy session at our house Friday for Naomee.  She loves the extra play time and attention and we love learning new techniques of playing to get the most educational benefit from the time we have to spend with her.  I love the opportunity I had to be there thanks to my work schedule.

Internet buzzing with concern after reporter slurs her words - ksl.com

Internet buzzing with concern after reporter slurs her words - ksl.com

This reminds me of another young beautiful woman that had a stroke almost a year ago.

Therapy

Yesterday Naomee received her first visit from the physical therapist.  She said there is nothing physically holding her back and gave Britnee lots of things to work on.  She suggested some tips on teaching her sign language words one at a time, pushing her to try backing down the stairs, playing with things that she wants to play with and saying the word for the object over and over and over again as you play.

She will be visited by two other therapists in the next week.  Each of them will come to our house monthly to train us, work with her and make evaluations on her progress.

We are grateful for the instruction and excited to see her progress.  Her initial testing results said she was about 15 months behind in movement and speech.  I have already noticed a difference in her willingness to try new actions/movements, signs and speech.

Anniversary

I've already had a lapse.  I guess I was shooting for at least once a week, but I got excited in my first week and almost posted daily.  Well, you get what you get, right?
Yesterday was Britnee and my 7 year anniversary.  We didn't do anything special together, besides have Family Home Evening.  Of course, after a fantastic family dinner, seven of us all at the table no less, it degraded into a family balloon fight.
After writing an extremely touching and beautifully worded poem and sneaking an expressive card into my planner for me to find when I got to work, my sweetheart filled my car (which was at the park-n-ride lot a mile from home because I take the train to work) almost to the roof with huge pink, purple and white balloons and drew hearts and wrote sweet things on the windows.
Everyone was at the door to greet me and see my reaction to their handiwork when I arrived home.  It was a great night.  We all had fun celebrating 7 wonderful years.
Don't worry; we are still planning a night out alone this Saturday.  We usually lump our anniversary and Valentine's Day celebrations together.  Thanks to Uncle Cameron for agreeing to watch the little ones!

Just in Time

I just made today's post with 40 minutes to spare.
I'm always busier on days I don't go to work.  I am working Nine 9s, which means in a pay period I work one 5 day week at 9 hours a day, the second is a 4 day 9 hour week with that Friday off.
Anyway, Cooper moved out of the house.  He's finished with high school a semester early and wanted to move in with his uncle.
After she biked and ran this morning, Britnee and I went shopping for a race swim suit for her mini-triathlon next Saturday (2/11).  Tomorrow she's going to swim and run I think.
Well, I better go join her in bed.  I have a basketball game at 8:30 in the morning.

Chinese New Year

It is now the year of the rabbit.  Britnee was born in the year of the rabbit as well.  Let's see, they cycle every 12 years, so that means she'll be 24 this year, right?
We have our anniversary, Valentines day, Kira's and Britnee's birthdays this month.  The month of love is expensive every year for us.
Those events, plus the record freezing cold, will definitely bring us closer together in February.
I hope everyone is safe and warm this week.
Happy New Year! (read that in Chinese)

Flashback

A second day of freezing wind from Canada.  We might just hit 20 degrees in the sun.

In preparation for Kira's Sweet 16 birthday party, I was looking over old photos.  Doesn't this one just sum her up?

Everyone is invited to her party at the Wasatch chapel gym Feb. 19, 4 to 9 pm.  We're doing family stuff for the first two hours and then her friends are invited to join us at 6:00.

History

Another resolution of mine this year is to work on our Family History.  Did they have to dumb it down (from Genealogy) for the recent generation?  That was my favorite song in primary for quite a while.
Anyway, our Stake Presidency has challenged us to have 5 generations recorded, and all our temple work done for those that can be done, by our September Stake Conference.  We are to bring it to the conference so the President can put it in a binder and present it to our Area Presidency.  I don't know if we are requesting a temple or what exactly is going on.
It is a good motivator for us anyway.  I was working on the New.FamilySearch site last year and then Thanksgiving and Christmas derailed me.
So I will probably be asking my extended family, especially the elders out there, for information and help along the way.  It is good that I have a clear goal and a deadline.  I work better under pressure.
We had a nice short Family Home Evening last night.  I introduced the family blog, we watched a Mormon Message from YouTube and Benjamin provided us each with "Love One Another" posters he hand drew and we had to color them in.
Today Ben and Naomee are both sick in two differing ways (yuck), so steer clear.
Tonight the Young Men are playing basketball, which sounds like a cop-out, cliche YM activity, but we actually haven't played basketball on mutual night for about a year.  Then the Men's b-ball team is going to practice, so I will probably be supremely sore tomorrow.
Kira promised to show me how to post pictures to the blog this weekend, so watch out for them in the future!