Benny's Spring Break

Benny is spending his spring break with a cone around his head. Yesterday was the dreaded day, at least that's how Dakota made it sound. "Benny's not a man anymore". :)

Sweet 16!

Cadie's birthday was Saturday. She turned 16 and went on her first date all in the same day. She asked her friend Connor to go to Morp (which is Prom backwards, the girls ask the guys to the dance). They (a group of them) went on a scavenger hunt at Target earlier in the day and went to the park to play games. Then that evening they went to Iggy's for dinner and then to the dance. She said it was so much fun! We still can't believe she is 16 years old (already, sheesh). Anyhoo, we are very happy that she had fun and we love her tons. Happy Birthday Cadie! :)

A Poem

If Only If Only
by dakota shults

I once had a dream
That maybe just maybe
That the crowd would just scream
They’d shout, they’d yell
They’d scream my name,
For I, yes I, just won the game

I remember in September
The sky was shinning so very bright
No matter what happened I couldn’t be sad
For I have just made the one and only
That’s right, the basketball team

After tons of practice I was ready
I was ready to fulfill my dream
But sadly I had an “F”
For my teacher Mrs. Peacher
Did not like my work, not one bit

Then the coach said to me, sorry, you’re off the team
I cried boo hoo, yet no one cared
For I, yes I, was off the team
I worked so hard, day and night
Yet that didn’t matter, for my grades were bad

I could have been the best
But now I have to rest
For I have nothing to do
But dream of what could have been
If I was still on the team


I found this on the computer desk one morning a couple of weeks ago. It was a handwritten rough draft that he had typed the night before for homework. I think it is really good and he never even mentioned that that was what he was doing for homework. I told him a couple of days later that I had seen it and that I thought it was sooo good. He just shrugged his shoulders and said "I just came up with it in about 10 minutes". The next day he said his teacher asked him if she could keep it and use it next year in her classes. Evidently I'm not his only fan. :)

Another Test

Today I had an EEG because not only have I been numb for the better part of 2 months, I also smell exhaust fumes. I smell exhaust fumes at ramdom times and in random places. Nobody else smells the fumes, just me. I don't know if it's related to MS or not. It's crazy I know, however, my doctor says I'm not crazy (thank goodness). :)

P.S. I'm smelling exhaust fumes right now. UGH!

Back to Blogging, Hopefully

Here's why I haven't posted in two months. I haven't been able to type because my hands and fingers have been numb, and I'm still struggling alittle.:)

A little over two months ago I woke up and my stomach and legs were numb. Within two days I was completely numb from my chest down front and back including my feet and hands. There were days where I thought I was going to lose my mind. It's very hard to walk when your feet are asleep. Since then, I have had blood work, a nerve conduction test, a neck scan, a spinal tap and a brain scan. The diagnosis? It looks like MS (multiple sclerosis). Both my neck scan and spinal tap show MS, however, since my brain scan was normal (yay, no tumor) we have to wait to see if I have another attack or a brain scan shows something in 6 months.

Today my numbness is gone except for my hands and my left arm. Although, my right hand does feel like it's almost back to normal. :)

So this is some of what has been happening with our family.

Basketball season is over (Dakota)
Swim season has started (Dylan)
Planning for college (Devynne)
Mountain West Conference Tournament (Steve)
Almost 6 months old (Benny)
Golf has begun (Steve)
Sunday School teacher for 16/17 year olds (me, love it)
School
Seminary
Church
Scouts
Work and so on........

Here are a few pics from Steve's Utah visit last month. Dakota went too and Cody seems to be MIA and I don't remember why. :)

Sadie's

Devynne and Dylan went to Sadie's this past Saturday (not with each other) and had so much fun. Devynne's date was Ryan and Dylan's date was Ryan's sister, Ashley. See the fun! (and this was only during pictures) :)

He's So Sweet

Puppy update. Benny is 3 and half months old and he is the best little puppy. He goes potty outside, sleeps through the night in his kennel and hasn't (knock on wood) chewed anything except for chew toys, oh, and our fingers and pant legs (we're working on that). He has so much personality and is a little love muffin. We got a good one. :)

2010

2010 is off to a great start. We celebrated New Year's Eve with our friends, the Millers and had a great time as usual. New Year's weekend was very relaxing and mellow, which is exactly what I need after a very busy December. Our house is back in order and I even organized several drawers, cupboards and our desk (a folder is waiting for all the end of year tax stuff). The kids are back in school so our "normal" routine is back in play.

I've been thinking the last few weeks about what I personally would like to work on this new year. I came up with being "more present". I would like to be more present with my family, friends and neighbors. Sometimes I only half listen to people who are talking to me because my mind is somewhere else. I want to be a better listener for my husband and my children. I want to be a better friend and neighbor. I want to pay closer attention when I'm in my church meetings. Over all, I want to be "more present". That is my new year goal and I have already started. :)

A Glance Back

A random picture from each month of 2009. I don't think any of these made the blog before. :)

January


February


March


April


May


June


July


August


September


October


November


December

Merry Christmas to All and to All a Good Year!

Every year our Christmas tree downstairs is "my" tree. I decorate it myself with all gold and red decorations. I even match the wrapping paper for the gifts underneath. The tree upstairs is the "family" tree. The kids decorate it with all the homemade ornaments and the one of kind ornaments that we've collected over the years. Last year, Devynne and Dylan had no desire to decorate it (to my chagrin) so Dakota and I did it.

This year, there was no room for the "family" tree upstairs since we now have a heavy buffet (which we use for a book shelf) where the tree usually goes. So I decided to do the "family" tree downstairs with all of its wonderfully fun ornaments with lots of character. I even bought what I thought was mix matched wrapping paper for the gifts. (Melanie Cannon said I didn't quite pull it off because the paper was definitely coordinated) Anyhoo, Dakota and I decorated it together and it turned out beautifully.

I mailed out Christmas cards in plenty of time. We made homemade hot fudge, magic cookie bars, chocolate chip cookies dipped in white chocolate (yum, thanks for the idea Missy) and pretzels dipped in white chocolate. I put together our yearly scrap page and made copies just in the nick of time (Christmas Eve) and had all the gifts wrapped and under the tree weeks before Christmas day. We had visits from many friends and neighbors who came bearing all kinds of yummy treats for our family. And we even had a few carolers. :)

Christmas Eve was spent with a stop at Bryce and Keri's for a wonderful visit and some yummy pumpkin roll. We love them tons and are grateful for their friendship. We then went to Steve's mom and dad's house to spend time with family. We had lots of great food, fun games and truly wonderful conversation and love.

Christmas Day we opened gifts around 8:00 in the morning. That is the latest we've done that. Which tells me the kids are getting older although, they were excitedly waiting for us at the top of the stairs so we could all go down together. Devynne got a digital camera, Dylan got a video camera and Dakota got Rock Band 2 for the XBox, plus several other surprises each. Steve had a very, merry Pittsburgh Steelers Christmas. Lots of Steelers gifts and he was very happy. I, in case you haven't read previous posts, got a furry little bundle of joy named Benny. :)

We had a delicious breakfast of crepes and were joined by our good friend Korby Miller. She is always fun to visit with and we love when she comes by. The kids then spent the rest of the day with their dad for more good food, fun, friends, family and a few more gifts. Steve and I went to the movies to see Avatar which we absolutely loved and can't wait for it to come out on DVD.

We truly are very blessed and I'm so grateful for all that we have. I'm grateful for this time of year to remember the birth of Christ and to remember what His birth has meant for all of us here on earth. He is our Savior and has provided a way for us to return to our Heavenly Father and that I'm truly grateful for and feel the blessing of. I'm grateful for our family and friends and the love that everyone shows me and my family throughout the year. I love Steve and my children and I'm so grateful for all that they bring to my life. There have been ups and downs this past year and I feel ready to move on to a new year and look forward to all that the year will bring. I hope we all have a really, really great one. :)

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!