Happy Halloween

This morning while I was making breakfast for Braxton, "Thriller" came on the radio. I thought what a great way to start the day. Of course, after you hear the song, you have to see the video. I am so thankful for YouTube.

Here's the Lego Version

Utah/Wyoming Game

On October 16th, we travelled up to Laramie, WY to watch the Utes play the Cowboys. We had awesome seats and were surprised by how many Utah fans were there. Our whole row and the row behind us were Utah fans. We met a fun family from Sandy who sat behind us. The weather was so perfect and the game was so fun. The kids had a ball. The Utes won 30-6. I must say that the Wyoming fans are very hospitable, they were all very nice to us.

In front of our seats.

It was free foam finger night, we used ours as seat cushions

At the tailgate park

Braxton kicking field goals

Braxton with Boo Andersen

Kenny

My mother-in-law, Shelley, celebrated her 60th birthday in August. We thought that turning 60 was a pretty big deal and tried to find her the perfect gift. We knew that she loves Kenny Rogers and that he was going to be in concert in Loveland in October. So, we bought her tickets so that her and Howard could have a nice night out and enjoy Kenny. Well, the concert was tonight and Shelley was soooo excited, she has been counting down the days. She called me this afternoon to tell me that Howard was sick and couldn't go to the concert and asked me if I would go with her. I love spending time with Shelley, so of course I said "yes". Plus, my mom listened to Kenny Rogers when I was a kid, so I knew most of his songs.

We had a wonderful time. Kenny has a great voice for an old guy. :) I was one of the youngest audience members. It was kind of nice to look around and feel young again. I am sorry that Howard isn't feeling well and hopes he feels better soon, but I am glad that I got to have a night out with my MIL.

Sesame Street: Smell Like A Monster

Grover holds a very special place in my heart. He is my favorite monster on Sesame Street and is the main character in my one of my favorite books, "The Monster At The End of This Book". I love this spoof on those fun "Old Spice" commercials.

Running Deer Trail

Fort Collins is a very "outdoorsy" city. There are many bike trails and walking trails. Yesterday, we went to the "Running Deer Trail". The weather was so nice, the perfect day to be outside. We even saw running deer while we were there too. I, of course, couldn't get to my camera in time to take their picture, but they were beautiful. I LOVE FALL!!!

Flashback

Last Friday, we went to Primary Children's Medical Center in Salt Lake City for Emma's follow-up MRI. I am not a big fan of hospitals, but Primary's is such a positive place. The doctors and nurses are wonderful and even the decor makes you feel like it is a happy and safe place to be. Of course, I still felt nervous about the whole thing. I don't like the idea of my daughter (or son for that matter) being put under anesthesia. As I sat in the recovery room waiting for Emma, my thoughts went back to almost 2 years ago when we sat in McKay Dee Hospital and talked to specialists about Emma. About her brain injury, about whether or not she would thrive and develop. For a moment all the doubt and fear of that day came rushing back and I felt that horrible feeling like I had no control over this whole situation, what if they come back and tell us that she now has a tumor, what if there are more problems, what if , what if. That feeling didn't last long. I again felt peace. I remembered that faith is the opposite of fear. I thought of my little girl and the immense amount of joy that she has brought into our family. I thought about what a fighter she is and how much she has overcome in her short life. I thought of the moment back in January of 2009 when I was in my room in the dark and I felt hopeless and afraid and then had the overwhelming feeling that there is always hope. I knew that one of the most important things to remember was that we know who she is and what she can do and more importantly there is a God in Heaven who knows what her earthly and eternal potential will be. It is my job to make sure she reaches that potential. They brought her into the recovery room and I sat there and rocked her while she slept for 2 hours. All was right with the world. Today, the neurologist called to give us the results. The size and volume of her brain has decreased, we were told that would probably happen because of the injury she experienced while still in the womb. The great news is that everything else is growing and developing at the right pace. We will continue to monitor her progress and are happy that we know what the warning signs of any problems are. Since she is doing well, we were able to cancel the appointment with the neurologist in November and just continue seeing her Pediatrician.

Pickers

Wow, I am so behind with my blogging. Here's a few fun things that we did this September.

A friend of a friend has an apple orchard and nobody wanted the apples, so we were invited to go and pick them. Emma and I went with a neighbor and her kids. It was really fun. Emma loved it. She would pick them, take a bite and then put them in the bag. She is so cute. We picked alot and then ate alot of apples at our house. I finally gave the rest of them to Shelley so she could do some baking.

A week after the apple picking, we went to Miller Farms. It is a U-Pick farm. Shelley and I paid $20 and we got to pick 18 ten pound bags of produce. We picked potatoes, tomatoes, beans, corn, peppers, watermelons, onions, carrots, celery, and other fresh goodies. I will say that it was hard work and I am not cut out to be a farmer, but it was a really fun morning.

Our 18 bags of veggies Emma with our "driver/tour guide"

Emma picking potatoes

Emma trying to take a bite out of a pumpkin

My brown-eyed girl