Life keeps happening...even on your Anniversary!

"LIFE IS TEN PERCENT WHAT HAPPENS TO YOU AND NINETY PERCENT HOW YOU RESPOND TO IT "
I have heard this saying many times in my life and I believe it is true!
Today started out fine, I got a few things done around the house, then headed off to my Physical Therapist in hopes that he could give me some relief from my back pain lately. The appointment was in Bellevue. After that appointment...I was suppose to meet a friend and then on the way home I was going to stop and get a card and stuff to make a special dinner for Jeff tonight. After all , it is our 34th wedding anniversary!!!
But as I was heading to the appointment, only blocks away from the PT's office, as I was turning on the green light, someone coming the other way ran through the red light and hit me. I kept thinking as I saw him come closer ...that he is going to stop, but then when I put on my brakes, I realized that there is no way he wasn't going to hit me and he did. After we got to the side of the road and I called 911 and the insurance, I was still shaking. My neck hurt, my knee hit the dash board and my lower back was hurting. I first thought ...what are the chances that I would get hit ...on my way to the PT for back pain in the first place? Then I thought...am I going to have neck and back pain for my whole life? From then on the thoughts were getting worse and coming faster.
After all the calls and exchanging of numbers and insurance cards...I headed back to the PT office and told him what happened, he worked on my back and neck.
It was after the appointment when I was sitting in my car for awhile (because I still felt light headed and a headache was coming on)...that I thought...I am very lucky that I was able to see my PT right after something like that happened. I was blessed that it wasn't worse. I was grateful that the man did stop, admit he ran the red light; and that he had car insurance.
So even though I have a headache and a pretty bad neck and back ache, I realized that I am blessed. It could have been way worse.
Jeff and I will have to celebrate our anniversary later, but I just came home and laid down and have been keeping ice on my neck and back.
Though I am blessed to have had 34 years with Jeff by my side. Have they all been blissful and wonderful...nope, but we have continued to work at it and he still is my best friend and the love of my life! We truly have had many wonderful years!
I just need to remember this quote again today, life is still good and we have much to be thankful for.
Good Night dear friends!
P.S. I have posted this article before, but I feel like it is worth reading again!

A LOVE LIKE THAT

I was 23, and all the way to the hospital I'd been composing what I would say to Mama before they took her to cut into her heart, whose center I supposed myself to be; hadn't she told me all my life I was the most important thing in the world to her?

Threading my way through the hospital corridors, I practiced my opening line, which  had to strike just the right note. Who but I could give her strength and confidence she would need? Whose face but mine would she want to be the last one she saw before they cut her open and died probably? Whose kiss but mine...?

I turned a corner and there was my mother lying on a stretcher in the hall, waiting for them to come for her. My father was standing over her. Something about the two of them made me stop and then, as I watched, made me keep my distance, as if there were a wall between us, and around them.

It was clear to me at that moment that for them, nothing existed outside them, nothing; there was only the man, the woman. She didn't see me, nor from the looks of it care much whether she did. They weren't talking. He was holding her hand. She was smiling into his eyes; and they were, I swear, speaking a language that at 23 I hadn't begun to understand, much less speak myself. But I could see them do it, literally see them, and I moved closer to see more, stunned, fascinated, very jealous that I had fallen in love with someone, married him, divorced him and never once come close to what I was looking at in that hall.

Next time, I said, I will know better. I will love like that.   ~ Linda Ellerbee

Just a little over a week ago!

Just a little over a week ago, our son Lee and his fiance Caitlin got married.
Amy and I were the lucky ones that got to drive there with her 3 little girls.
Hard...yes! Long...yes! Exhausting...yes!
Fun...yes! Lots of bonding time...yes! Worth it...YES!!!


I have to admit Amy drove more than I did, still eating is the only thing that kept us awake!

Girls were troopers but after a whole day of driving we decided to get a Motel room and rest for the night!

You can see how excited the girls were to get to do a Sleep Over in a Motel! Actually so were we!

Arriving in Salt Lake and being with family and friends, was so fun! I have missed my great nieces and nephews! I love how the cousins all connected!

Two of them, we met for the first time. Oh how I instantly loved them!

Look at those faces...aren't they the sweetest?

We all got to be together for meals!


For a special trip to the Dinosaur Museum, where the kids got to actually dig for bones,

while their parents got to reconnect!

Hard to imagine my own kids, neices and nephews grew up but now to see the next generation...was a Priceless gift!






Stuffed animals have always been near and dear to our hearts, only fitting that Amy's girls got to go home with one each!

Then because we got to Utah a few days early, we were able to have breakfast with some old friends, ones that we hadn't seen in over 35 years...what a treat!

I love, love, loved seeing all the kids and grandkids together.

What a powerhouse of women, these 5 ladies are!

Then after Lee and Caitlin got married, right before they came out of the Temple, Jeff and I came out and acted like we were the newly weds! It was too funny, people starting clicking their cameras then they stopped and I heard someone say... " who are they?" It was too funny,  

What we were really excited about was...we just had our last child get married! Can't you just see the excitement on our faces?

Ok, here is who they were really waiting for, but Jeff and I looked just as excited ...right? :)

All the kids couldn't wait to tell Uncle Lee congratulations!

When I look at these young men, I am grateful first of all ...for Bradley and the great older brother he has always been for Lee. Then as I look at the rest, and I am so thankful that Lee has such incredible friends in his life. Good friends can make all the difference!

Here is the Bride ( our new daughter in law ) and her sweet sisters and friends!

So blessed to have all our family together for such an amazing wedding!

We are glad to see our family getting bigger.

And congrats to Lee and Caitlin, your journey has just begun! We love you!

Good Night dear friends!

The night before the wedding... we are almost ready!

Last night we had a Girls Night Out with the Bride to Be!
Here Aunt and Cousin came in from out of town, and Krystal ( sister in law ) came in last week.
Amy came too and we had a blast!
We started out at Charming Charlies  (a to die for jewelry and accessories store, in Redmond Town Center ). Bethany and Shirley presented her with a cute poem and Bride to be gift...too cute! Then we headed of the the Movies there at Redmond Town Center too! We saw the movie ...The Hundred Foot Journey...it was incredible and clean, that's rare now a days!

I had to laugh, as we were

 leaving Charming Charlies, the  Manager asked us if we were going to have any more cocktails, could we please do a online survey about how much fun we had at the store tonight first?

 I just laughed and said that we would be glad to do the survey, then I said "believe it or not, we haven't had cocktails before we came in here, we were just having a lot of fun. We don't even drink, and never had!

I think she was quite surprised that we could be having that much fun without drinking! Obviously she has never met our family! The look on her face when I said that...PRICELESS!

So here we are now... the day before. Had a wonderful luncheon with Nik's family, it was so much fun having our dear friends...now become part of our family. We are truly blessed. 

Then tonight another family dinner and wedding preparations. Clothes are pressed, altered and all the corsages and other flowers are done and ready and package, Shirley finally helped me do my dress andz we are almost all finished taking showers and getting the last of the essentials ready to go in the morning. I hope I can sleep! This is sooooooooooo exciting!

Only two weeks left!

With all the preparations for the wedding, Jeff and I are still trying to find time and moments to get away together. Trying to have mini Date Nights, so we can regroup and check and see how the other one is doing under such pressure. Not that the pressure of a wedding is bad or anything like that but...it is still pressure and so it helps when we can get away for a moment every now and then and check in.

We have 2 weeks today till the wedding, we are so excited but tired too! I think we almost have it ready, and then I remember something else we haven't done yet. So glad that Krystal and Kai will be coming a week early to help out ( and so is Lee ). Can't wait to have my house full again with our kids and grand kids! 

So yes, we have only 2 weeks to get everything done...wish us luck. But for now, I am just going to try and enjoy every MINI DATE I can get with my BEST FRIEND!

z

Speaking of best friends, so glad that Lauren is marrying hers!

Good night dear friends!

"If someone's meant to be yours, eventually they will be."

Gratitude, exhaustion, gratitude!

I am already missing this little girl, soon she will be heading back to school and won't be able to do very many sleep overs, so we are trying to enjoy every minute.
 I didn't post yesterday because I wasn't feeling very well last night, but since Angie was here for a 2 day sleep over and here is what we did...

She wanted to make some sleeping bags for some cute animals. Two of them she gave to a couple of her friends that she hasn't seen for awhile... and the cute Monkey is going to her cousin ( our little grandson Kai ); so he has a little traveling buddy to come on the airplane with him next week when he comes!

.Gotta spend the day today with Lauren ( who is still sick ) shopping for her wedding decorations. I love Fall decorations, so excited we get to do that for her wedding

 
Found this cute sign at the store, while shopping with Lauren for. I don't talk a lot about my roots, but there is a certain language that I speak...thought it might help you all!

What a beautiful view tonight on our deck for dinner! Gotta love this place and this time of the year!

I feel so loved and grateful!

I

Feeling Sew Blessed!

Well, the preparations for the wedding are coming right along.

Today my friend and I sewed for a few hours... and took a matching size XL girls dress ( that matches Angie and Jenny's dress), and cut it down and completely reconstructed it to a size 18 months!
 I couldn't have done it without my best friend by my side. She is simply amazing! I learn something new every time I sew with her. Plus, it is way more fun to do something like that with a friend. Now all we have to do is add belt loops ( which I need to crochet and attach on the sides ) to hold our ribbon and bow. I think it will be so fun to have the girl's dresses completely match.

Then the rest of the evening, I spent taking 2 normal size ( extra ties that we bought for the wedding ) and made 2 toddler size ties to match the men. It was way easier than I thought!

 I tried to even put the label and loop on the back to make it look like normal, because I had to just zigzag the edge, it came out alright. I have to remember that it is only the back!
Now all I have to do is make a new born bow tie for Nick's little nephew who will be born next week! We can hardly wait to meet him too!

After sewing one of the loops on the right side twice, I realized I had been in my sewing room almost 10 hours today...that is way too long. Need to do some of my back exercises and head to bed. But feel great that we are making progress.










"One who makes no mistakes, never makes anything!
This truly should have been my motto tonight for sure!
Good night dear friends!

Wedding stuff!

We've been doing Wedding stuff all day Saturday and today. Jeff is building some wonderful stuff for the wedding reception and Lauren and I are trying to get the invitation figured out.So grateful for so many friends who helping out too!
 ( Please email us your address, if you can... we need them.)
 Finally I am starting to get nervous about all that we have to do in just 4 short weeks!


But yet, we are getting excited too, I can't believe our family is growing again! Yeah!

Plus, her wedding is all Fall decorations....I am so excited about that!!!

She's home!

Lauren came home last week, and will be here till the wedding. Feel like we can really start getting everything finished up for the wedding now! The girls have missed Lauren soooo much, that they haven't let her out of their sight. And Miss Audrey... didn't take long to feel the same way about her.
I am just excited that the rest of our family will be here soon. I love seeing my kids all together! How blessed Jeff and I feel for our family!
Good night dear friends!

When Life gives you Lemons!

My cute niece and her husband, tagged me on this sweet you tube video about WHEN LIFE GIVES YOU LEMONS...

Watch this uplifting video HERE:


As we get ready for Lauren's wedding, I think to myself... what is some of the greatest advice I could give to her and Nik? It would be to do just this...when life gives you lemons ( and it will ) make lemonade ( find the purpose of the struggle and become better and stronger because of it ). Such a much better way to live and go through life instead of feeling cheated and bitter. 
Yes, this mindset really works...I know because I have had a few lemons given to me throughout my life! :)
Good night dear friends!