Easter 2016

Oh man, this Easter weekend just flew by. We got to kickoff the fun on Friday when our Aunt Kitt came a little early, so she could beat the snow. It is a good thing she did, because it did snow on Friday night. Anyway, she got here shortly after the girls woke-up from their naps and so we just played and then I made dinner. Which was very good if I do say so myself. Then after we sent the girls to bed Kitt and I headed to Hancock Fabric to get some thread, ribbon, and possibly some fabric. I had already got the fabric I needed, but they had some good stuff on sale, so I thought I would check it out with the real intent to buy. Anyway, we looked at everything and I pretty much decided I can't just buy fabric for when I might want to make something; I have to buy it when I know what I am going to do. However, Kitt was a trooper and looked at every table and rack that had sale fabric on it. Finally after about and hour we came home with just the thread and ribbon. We were going to make cookies when we got home, but Gaupo wanted to have some, so we opted to wait till Saturday and played a game instead. We played Settlers of Catan it is a very intense game. I lost by a lot, so to be honest I was one of the main ones that would be the reason why Settlers breaks up families. No really though, it was fun and we ended up talking for a while. Gaupo gave up around 11 and Kitt and I talked till after midnight.

Saturday obviously dawn bright and early; although, the girls did sleep in a little which was so nice considering when I went to bed the night before. Anyway, we got up had a quicky breakfast and hit the sledding hill. We made a good trail and were thus able to have quite a few good runs. The girls do pretty well at staying out of the path, but sometimes they forget because really it is the easiest place to walk up the hill. Oh well, it was fun. We went down multiple time in multiple different arrangements it was some good family time on the hill.

Gaupo pushing Kitt and Tia down the hill.

Kitt and Kylee going down. The crazies. 

When we came back in we talked the girls out of hot chocolate, but not out of snuggling under a blanket and watching a show. Gaupo, Kitt, and the girls watch some Curious George while I made cookies. They turned out pretty good. After the show and while the cookies were baking Kitt and I played with the girls downstairs while Guapo did some homework. After playing for a bit, we had lunch and then naps.

During naps Kitt and I 'projected.' Man am I glad Kitt was there to help me think things through, plus she picked out some mistakes and man it was good to have company. The time flew by and before we knew it we had little visitors coming and no dresses completed. Oh well, good thing they are General Conference dresses and we still have this week and weekend to get them done.

When we emerged from working on the projects, we had to figure out what to do for dinner. When you need something quick, easy, and filling is when being gluten free is rough. However, we figured it out. Gaupo pulled out the grill and we grilled up burgers in the garage and had those for dinner. Oh man, those burgers were so good moist, flavorful, something different than the winter food we have been living on, oh so good. The only downside is they kind of dried us out, so though the meat stuck around for fast Sunday the water was a little lacking. Anyway, after that tasty meal, Kitt and I got ready for the General Women's broadcast. I changed my outfit about 10 times trying to find something that I liked, and finally ended up going back to the first one I tried on. Uh, sometimes I wish I could just roll with it. Oh well, I finally settled on something and we headed out. We got there just before it started. It was so nice having Kitt right there. The meeting was excellent. The main message I got out of it was 'stop complaining about how much it takes to serve and do it.' I feel like I have so many opportunities to serve lately, but often times its not easy to do them so I don't or I kind of make a big deal out of it---BAD! So, I am resolving to serve with a willing heart and relish in the opportunity given to me to serve. After the broadcast, and visiting with a few people we came home. We played Clue. It has been a LONG time since I have played that game, but we did and it was a lot of fun. Then we talked and got ready for Sunday.

Sunday morning we woke-up to an Easter Egg Hunt. WAHOOO!!! To be honest, we had to tell Kylee it was Easter, but when we did she immediately was wondering if the Easter Bunny came. Which he did. He setup a great hunt for the girls and even had a few tricky ones that Aunt Kitt had to find. It was pretty fun. Although about halfway through Tia noticed there was a lot of candy on the table and was like 'Why the heck am I hunting if the goods are right here?' So, we kind of had to put that up so that she could focus on the hunt. It was super fun to watch the girls and Kylee is turning into a pretty good seeker.

Kylee with her load.

Tia with her load.

Tia helping Aunt Kitt get her eggs.

Kylee searching her Kitchen for eggs.

After the hunt, we fed the girls breakfast and then it was time to get ready for church. Gaupo took care of the girls while I got ready. When it was the girls turn to get ready, they were so excited to wear their new Easter dresses. While Gaupo was getting ready, Kitt and I went outside and took pictures of them.

Tia.

Kylee.

Tia and Kylee.

Tia, Me, and Kylee.

Tia and Kylee.

Then it was time to go to church. We chose to walk and it went great till we had to cut across to get to the church and most of the grass was still snowy and where it wasn't there was like huge mounds of snow piled up. However, we did find a way that would work and we got there safe and sound. Church was good and as always it was fun to have Kitt with us. After church we walked home, got lunch and then everyone took naps except me. I talked to Klaire. It was so great. It was good to hear about all the great things she is learning in the start-up company she is running for school. It was great to talk things out with her and it was good to have some quiet. Well 4:15 rolled around, and I woke everyone up. We talked for a bit which I didn't really mean to it just happened. Consequently, dinner got in a little late which pushed dinner from 5 to 5:30, but we all survived, but we were hungry we ate a lot of food. Don't worry though it was so good. We had beef roast, holiday potatoes, Nicola's sweet potatoes, green beans, and carrots. Then Easter candy and cookies for dessert. After dinner, we played for a bit. One of the girls favorite games still is hide-and-seek, so we played that. It was so funny to watch and be a part of. Finally, it was time to go to bed, and get ready to send Kitt home. It is always hard for us to send her off, because really we don't want to; consequently, we talk for awhile and she didn't end up leaving till around 8:00. Oh so good to have her. The rest of the night I talked to my mom and dad and then went to bed.

We were lucky enough this year to have Monday "off" as well. It wasn't a true off because Gaupo has to work 4 tens this week, but it was still nice to have a 3-day weekend. We started it off by trying to sleep-in. That didn't work, so we had a great breakfast of toast, eggs, and bacon and then we went to the store. We are trying to be better at saying no to stuff we don't need, but you just can't not get after Easter candy, but we only got 2 normal size bags and then we were going to get Kylee sandals, but the Wal-mart selection was pathetic. I did pick-up a couple of shirts to go with the dresses I am making, but that is all we got and then came home. Once home, the girls and I turned around and went visiting teaching. The girls had fun playing and watching TV while we visited. Then we came home and played for a bit and then had lunch. After which was of course naps. I meant to only rest, but I one-more minuted myself into a two-hour nap. I HATE when I do that, because I don't get anything done I was suppose to, so I have to do it when the girls are awake, and even though their dad was awake and trying to entertain them they feel attention deprived and want me to stop whatever it is I am doing. Then when I don't they start doing naughty things. Luckily, I was able to get most of it done and then we went to Lowes to see how much a security screen would cost. We kind of need to get something for our front door because our kids can open it and it goes right out onto a busy street with sometimes crazy people, so I really would like something between them and the wide open street. Also while we were that direction we stopped at Ross and Kylee found a pair of sandals that she liked, so that is great. She has pretty much worn them all day. Then we hit Lowes and came home and had leftovers for dinner. Then for FHE we had our Easter lesson. We also added to the fun by doing it in the basement with flashlights. The girls thought it was great and it was really good. After FHE, the girls went to bed and I made bread (one of those things I was suppose to do at nap time) and Gaupo worked on homework. By the time that was wrapping up and I got done talking to my brother, we just watched and episode of Hogans and called it a night.

It was a pretty simple Easter, but it was really fun. It is kind of crazy how things rarely go as I plan, but honestly most times it turns out good anyway, and so is the story with this holiday. It was great, but not at all what I thought would happen.

I am so grateful for Easter. This Easter I couldn't help, but be so grateful for the Atonement and Resurrection. I am because of the hope it gives me that I can live with my Heavenly Father again, and also that I can see Derek again. I am so grateful for Christ 's sacrifice because through him I can repent, I can receive talk to the Lord and receive his help, and also I am strengthened to be able to do things when I think I can't do anything else. Christ really did suffer in Gethsemane and he was resurrected after being crucified and because He lives, so can I and my family. I am so truly grateful for this wonderful joyous occasion.

Spring Snow

Colorado has taken a pretty long break from snow, but we can't avoid it completely already. So, Thursday afternoon we got some snow. Tia thought it looked like so much fun she took it upon herself to play in it. She had her scooter out there, she really wanted her baby out there, and she had a shovel and bucket.

She loved it outside in her skirt. At least I got a had and coat on her.

However, none of those toys could possible compensate for companionship. After much coming in and out and in and out she convinced both Kylee and I to come out too. It really was fun. We played 'missionary.' That is when you go up to the playhouse knock and the person inside says "Come on in." Then you all hang out inside until usually mom gets tired of being squished; although, it is not always me to be the first to leave. Then when we are all out we do something else for a minute and then go into the playhouse again in the same manner. So we played that, made tracks in the snow, practiced stepping on the stones that are by the fireplace. I don't know we just did stuff, whatever we wanted and came to mind it was great. Finally, I did have to go inside to make dinner, but it all worked out good.

The snow continued through the night and we woke up to this on Friday morning.

Well with that much snow, it being Gaupo's Friday/Saturday switcheroo, and spring break from school, it was time to go sledding. We did a little work first by shoveling half the driveway. (Our nice neighbor helped with the other half and the oh so annoying corner.) Anyway, because we only had to do half we got out on the hill and sledded and sledded. We had the whole thing to ourselves because school wasn't canceled. it was fun. The snow was kind of heavy snow, but you know what it was still fun. After sledding we came in and had to head to the doctor for Gaupo.

Guapo has vocal cord dis-function and so we needed to go to speech therapist to learn how to retrain his throat to work right. It was kind of an interesting appointment and we hope what they tell us will work, otherwise I guess we will have to go back and see what other tricks they have. After the doctor we came home had lunch and took naps.

After naps, we went over to the church and helped Guapo setup for the Elders Quorum game night. The girls had a great time. They loved using the music stands to hold their books while they led the music. Tia found a giant ball that when we were all done setting up we went into the gym and played with for a bit. Just goofy simple fun.

Friday night Gaupo and I went on a date to the Elders Quorum game night. (Don't worry it was a date thing.) Sadly (at least from an attendance view point) only 6 couples including us showed up. It was actually really fun because we were able to play games all together. I really enjoyed getting to know and interact with the couples that showed up. We ended up staying at the church until I think 10. The evening was only suppose to go until 9:00, but we were having too much fun. We played a game called Telestrations it was super fun. We also played Banana Grams and Word Street. With food and good company it was a wonderful date.

Saturday morning came a little too early, but it's like my grandparents and parents always say "He who dances has to pay the fiddler." It was totally worth it though. Anyway, Saturday morning we had our swim lesson friends Valerie, Taylor, and Riley White come over and we went sledding. It was super fun. We had a great time and Taylor and Kylee loved sledding together. Taylor taught Kylee that falling out of your sled wasn't a bad thing, and in fact it could be actually quite fun. Tia in this last snow storm decided that laying on her belly in the sled and going down by herself is like the best thing in the world, so she was more than please to have Kylee and Taylor share a sled, so she could go down almost as often as she wanted. Anyway,  it was great fun. I want to say that other than that Saturday was pretty normal stuff, just playing and hanging out.

Now this is the best part about Spring Snow in Colorado--we walked to Church Sunday morning. I wore a jacket and my sandals and it was great weather. Such a great walk. I am telling you the ability to walk to church and then having everyone awake at 4:00 really does at our house make the Sabbath day so much more delightful. It was awesome. We also had our home teachers come over. I love having home teachers. I am not really sure why, but I honestly love having them come. I am pretty sure my girls love the extra attention and treats.

It has just gotten warmer since Sunday. Today was such great weather. We went to the park in shorts. We went over to our friend Jensen's house and played outside and with water. We had lunch there too. We also ate that outside. Oh, it was just such a great weather day and I really kind of feel like we genuinely used today. Sometimes lately I feel like I haven't used ALL of my day, but today I feel like we made good use of all of it. Really we probably wouldn't have but Jensen's mom called us up and we could only go for a bit, but you know what it was great.

Tia trying to climb over the fence today at the park.

TANGENT: I think that a lot of times I think I need a lot of time to do something. Like I need to have two hours to play with a friend and if its great weather I also need to walk there. Or I think I would really like to make dresses, but I don't have any new patterns. WHATEVER! So lame. I have found that excuses are so limiting. I get so focused on what the ideal situation or whatever should be like and then when you know life doesn't fit that perfectly I just let it slide instead of finding a way to do something great with the extra time given. Not that I have to do it all the time or anything, but to not do it ever is not good either. Lesson: Don't make excuses, just DO IT! It usually works out better than you think. Like today we got to spend the perfect amount of time at Jensen's house and I got some much need adult visiting and interaction time, not to mention more outside time. Also I stopped making excuses about the dresses I wanted to make and was just going to use the same patterns I had, well I went into the store and they had some really cute fabric that is like gathered at the top, so like all you do is sew it down the back and WHALA you have a dress. It was like super cheap, so I am going to work on trying to make that into all matching dresses and I even picked up some cool tie fabric. So, I will get those projects done, but I mean when I just did something things happened. True they aren't huge, but I have determined the greatness of life isn't made of great big things. It is made up of all the little moments that seem so big at the time. END TANGENT

I am loving spring. I loved the snow and the sunshine. I love that the world is greening up and beginning to look fresh and new. I love talking about Easter in our home. It has spurred tons of questions from Kylee some of which I know the answers to and some that I really have no idea how she even thought to ask that let alone having an answer for her. However, it has caused me to focus on the Savior more and I love it. So grateful for all the wonderful thing around me. I know this post might seem like a little too chipper, but I feel great right now. These last like 5 days have been awesome. With the getting outside, getting together with people, and whatever its one of those spans of time that is just great. Pretty much perfect.

A Visit From Grandma and Grandpa

Last Monday Grandpa texted Gaupo and said he needed to talk to him when Grandma wasn't so close. Well they two talked later and Grandpa said he was going to surprise Grandma and take her to our house if that was okay. OF COURSE, it was okay. So, we kept the secret from Grandma and Grandpa finally told her on Thursday. As soon as she got home from a funeral she was helping at she packed her bag and asked to leave. Grandpa said she had to wait until the next day.

So, true to his word he brought her out her and they arrived at our house around 4:45. I had just pulled the last batch of cookies from the oven. The girls, Gaupo, and I were outside eating cookies and waiting for them to pull-up. Every time I got a call or a text Kylee would want to know how much longer it would be until they got here. Oh my, the girls were so excited. Once they arrived, Kylee immediately wanted to show them where they were sleeping. I wish I had snapped a picture of the room because she had helped me finish it up. I asked her to put the towel in front of the pillow with the washcloth on top. She did do that, but instead of leaving them nicely folded the way I would have she had laid them out flat and with the washcloth laid out on top. Then she pointed to each side and told me who was going to sleep where. It was so cute. So, Kylee went up and showed Grandma her handy work while the rest of the car got unloaded.

Grandma and Grandpa brought more of Gaupo's stuff from their house. I seriously wonder if we will ever truly have it all. Luckily Gaupo was able to consolidate it down to two boxes from the 5 they brought. They really did bring some good treasures this time: a book with Guapo's scout jamboree and Washington D.C. pictures, pogs, more Yugioh cards, hats, his country report on Germany, and a few other things. Gaupo had a great time going through them and so did the girls.

After all that was sorted out, it was time to figure out what to have for dinner. I know I knew they were coming and I still didn't have a dinner plan. I had all the other days planned except that one. Luckily  I thought of something and made it. We had a pizza type thing for dinner. It turned out really good and our company enjoyed it. After dinner, we got the girls ready for bed and then got them in bed. I think it is so cute how Grandma and Grandpa love putting their hands in with us after family prayer and saying "Together Forever." Plus, Grandma loves the hugs that immediately follow that. After putting the girls down, we visited for quite awhile. We also helped them get all of their devices hooked up to our internet. We actually went to bed pretty early that night, but mainly so we could get crack-a-lackin' on the next day.

Saturday was great. We started off the morning kind of early. Not real early, because Grandma had had found out the kids were up and ushered them into their room. I walk out of mine and hear books being read and games being played. It was so awesome. I loved how quiet my house was and that they were all spending time being together. It was so cute. We had breakfast of pancakes and eggs at around 8:00. (That is pretty early for a Saturday around here.) Then we headed to the park around 9. Kylee really wanted Grandma to take her to the park, and Grandma and I were going to go to a women's meeting at 10. So, we went to the park and played at all the different parks over by the school. Then Grandma and I took off so we could go to the Women's Conference. While there the boys took the girls shopping for a few groceries (I had really been dreading this, so I was glad they did) and then to get a new outlet. They had just got the girls down and out for their naps when we got home.

Grandpa on the swings.

Kylee and Grandma.

Making a train down the slide.

At the Women's Conference Grandma and I chose to go to a class on relationship and a class on how life is like a marathon. The one on relationships was good. I will be honest though, my favorite part was the last 5 minutes when we were suppose to talk about ourselves. So, I Grandma go first. It took her a little bit to warm up to the fact she had to talk about HERSELF, but she did it and I LOVED hearing it. It was just one of those small glimpses into how she made it to who she is today. It was great. The Life is like a Marathon class was good too. The teacher didn't have a whole lot of time, but she has all kinds of spunk and did a great job. I love how she kept such a positive out look on life, when she was kept handed trial after trail. Anyway, after the talks we had a luncheon. We had what my mom would call "lady food." It was a salad bar. It had all the trimmings to make a great salad and then they had cake for dessert. It was fun to spend some one-on-one time with Grandma. She was such a good sport to go.

When we got home the girls were sleeping. Grandpa soon fell asleep and Gaupo, Grandma and I talked until I had to start shredding the meat for dinner. I finished shredding the meat and adding some sauces and the girls woke-up. Tia of course wanted to go to the park again, so we did. This time we let the girls ride their bike there. They both thought that was great and it went over so much better than the last time I tried that. Kylee actually made it all the way their and back. Tia did pretty well, but it is a lot harder ride on a trike. Grandpa has a great video of Grandma doing hopscotch and both Grandma and Grandpa were great sports about hanging out at the park again.

When we got home it was time for dinner. Then we popped some popcorn. That is Grandpa's favorite thing. I don't make it like Grandma, so I don't think he liked it quite as much, but he was still a good sport and the rest of us took up the slack on the rest of the bowl of popcorn. We ate the popcorn while watching one episode from the new Curious George season we bought Kylee for her birthday. It was pretty fun to squish Grandma, Grandpa, Tia, Kylee, and Me all onto the couch. Sometimes its fun to be cozy. I think it makes watching a movie and eating popcorn that much more special.

After the girls went to bed, us adults played Wits and Wager's Family Edition. It was a lot of fun. I wasn't sure if Grandpa would play or not because I really have only seen him play Mexican Train and we don't even own dominoes. (we should probably fix that) Anyway, he did play and we had a great time. We actually played two games of it before Grandpa called it quits for the night. After he retired to bed Grandma, Gaupo, and I played Ticket to Ride. It was a fun game. Gaupo won, but only because I couldn't finish one route because I only needed one card of a certain color. AHHHHH, the woes of Ticket to Ride. After the game we visited a little more and then went to bed. It was around 11ish.

Sunday dawned early, mainly because Daylight Savings Time started, but still it was early. I swear every year its hard to switch times. Oh well, we will adjust probably just in time to go to Arizona, but I guess at least it will happen. The morning started off with giving the girls showers. With Tia's head wound I couldn't wash her hair with the normal shampoo it needed to be a mild one like baby shampoo so her hair always looked greasy. So, I chose to do showers in the morning so that it wouldn't look as greasy. Then I did a cute braid. I tried to do it the same way I had when she had the accident, but that didn't work out, so I fixed cute a different way. After getting cleaned up, we had a super fancy breakfast of cold cereal and smoothies. It was really good. Then it was time to get ready for church. It always seems to take longer than I think, but luckily we were still ready to go and able to walk to church. Grandma and Grandpa joined us on our walk and it was so delightful. Church was ward conference. Every meeting was really good. When we got home from church we got lunch, and then got the girls down for a nap. We visited until it was time for everyone to wake-up. Once the girls were awake they were at full strength. Grandma was a trooper and took them on a walk while I made some tortilla shells to have our meat and rice on. Gaupo had to go home teaching, so when he got back we had dinner. Then the kids wanted to play games. Grandpa played Hungry Hippo's with them. They thought that was so cool. Then we finally got them to bed. Once they were in bed we ended up helping one another with technology. Just showing what cool things they could do. It was actually really fun. We had to go to bed at a decent time because Monday morning was going to be a little crazy.

Monday the girls were in Grandma and Grandpa's room again. You really do hate to break-up moments like that, so I didn't and sure enough they did eventually come down. We had muffins for breakfast and then it was time to get on with the day aka getting Tia's staples removed. Grandma and Grandpa watched Kylee while we went to the ER down in Lafayette. We were there FOREVER. We got their at 10 and they didn't even get us back their to take them out until like 1:30. Luckily Tia did really good, for the most part. I mean she is 2 and couldn't do a whole lot, so I will say she did very good. Anyway, I really didn't feel good about her getting sedated again, and the doctor agreed to try it and see how it went. Tia did great for staples 1-20. We got them out fast there wasn't a whole lot of getting upset. She pretty much just had a death hug on Gaupo and pups. Obviously she did a get upset, so we took a break. Then we started back up again, and got out about 10 more. Then we had to have some crackers and juice. Then we had to hold her real tight for those last 10, but we got them. Oh man, Tia was a champ! She did so good. She even calmed down pretty quick. Gaupo did most of the holding this time. He did admit it took more out of him than he thought it would. To hear that made me feel like less of a wimp. Anyway, with the staples out we headed home. Grandma and Grandpa had Kylee still awake. So, we showed her Tia was okay and then put them both to bed. Then Guapo and I ate the lunch that Grandma and Grandpa had picked up for us while were out. Then we sadly had to say good-bye. Really the visit seemed way too short, but we really enjoyed what we got and it is definitely better than nothing so we will take it. After saying good-bye, it was nap time. Or so we thought. I got a little nap before the kids woke-up, but just as we were getting to lay down Gaupo got a call from the Library needing him there to fix and emergency.

Tia coming home staple free.

After the kids woke-up, we do what I call a slow wake-up which is putting in a show and relaxing for just a few extra minutes. When the show was over I had to get making dinner. I was making dinner for us and a family that had just had a baby. When it was all cooked we went to take it to them and I got to hold the little baby for a minute. Oh it was wonderful. He was so perfect and cute. I am usually not a big baby holder, but boy it was so fun to hold him. It was so fun to let Tia and Kylee just totally soak him up. It was so fun. I am so glad they let us hold him. Anyway, after we got back we had dinner, FHE, and then sent the girls to bed. Then after cleaning up a little accident Tia had we watched some episodes and went to bed ourselves. It was quite the day, quite the weekend.

I am so glad Grandma and Grandpa were able to come. Sorry I don't have very many pictures, but I was too busy having fun. It really was a special treat to have some one-on-one time with them. I learned a lot from them, and about them. They are really wonderful people. My kids are super lucky to have two sets of awesome grandparents. 

44 Staples, but VERY Blessed (careful this is a play-by-play, so not for the weak of heart or stomach)

I feel I am pretty good at handling traumatic events in the moment, but man I seem to do really bad at recovering from them. By that I mean, I have a hard time letting them go. Moments of the incident play over in my mind, the emotions come back, I worry more and I tend to be just get worn out faster. That being said I am hoping to accomplish three things from this post: recording of the event, hopefully getting it written down will get it out of my head, and counting my blessings.

On Monday evening, I ran to our local grocery store to pick-up some butter that was on sale. The girls had done really well, so they were able to ride the penny pony. This is a mechanical horse that costs a penny (most pennies are provided by store managers. Super awesome) Anyway, we were riding and everything was going great. During the last ride, Kylee was on and Tia had the reins out in front as if she were leading the horse along. Tia walked to one side and then was coming back and tripped. She either tripped on the horse or just got tripped up I don't know, but she feel. She banged her head on the bar UNDER the horse and because the horse was still moving her face got smashed by the horses front hoof. As quick as I could I grabbed her out of there and I thought everything that would be hurting would be on the front. So, I have her and am trying to see her eye and check their and a store manager comes up behind me and says "her head is bleeding." I try to turn her around to look and that is when I notice the giant trail of blood leading from the horse to wear we are standing. At this point my heart starts beating even faster. The store manager asks, "do you want me to call 911." I say "Yes." My friend Aurore Williams walked by right then and immediately not only asked what she could do, but also looked around and noticed Kylee was still riding the horse. So, she went and let Kylee finish and then brought her over to me. Where she then asked if there was something else she could do. I asked her to call Gaupo which she did and so he headed over. While all this was going on, I am trying to use paper towels to absorb the blood coming from Tia's head. She kept ripping them off and, so one time when I was looking at it I saw her skull. That is when I knew this was not good. So, Gaupo arrived slightly before the paramedics.

The paramedics were the worst part of this whole thing. They come in, and they don't even really look at it or make an evaluation. The guy just says "yeah, its bleeding. I don't really want to touch it." I was thinking really that is your JOB! Okay really I don't know exactly what they are suppose to do, but I am pretty sure it involves checking to see if a person needs to be rushed to the hospital, taken by ambulance, or just taken by car. No, they didn't give any of that advice. I got a better look at her head then any of them. Anyway, Tia of course didn't want to lay on the stretcher and we couldn't lay with her, because he couldn't secure her right. So, I carried her out to the ambulance (I told them I wanted a ride.) They put her on the stretch, but had this carseat like attachment for it. Then I sat on the seat next to her. I asked if we had to go to Longmont Hospital because I would like to go to Lafayette. They originally said okay. Well as we were leaving I ask the EMT that was with me in the back if he thought that the front of her head was okay. He looked at it, and said if you think it might be damaged then we should go to Longmont so you can get a scan fast. Well, I found out later if that bone in the front is broken it is pretty easy to tell by feel. The guy didn't even touch it! Anyway, we end up going to Longmont, which really is a blessing because then all of our friends are right here close by. Oh yeah, also no sirens on. Which is kind of weird, they apparently didn't think it was necessary to rush, believe it or not one really did. Anyway, we get there and we get Tia off the stretcher and one of the EMT says, "Oh man, blood every where. Augh, its on the straps." I wanted to say "Really, you didn't expect that to happen when you didn't bandage up her head. Did you not see the blood all over the store. Sorry to inconvenience you by getting blood where you put her." I didn't say any of that but boy I was pretty upset, because they really didn't seem to care. Dumb.

As we walk into the hospital though, those nurses all thought Tia was so cute and wanted to help us right away. So, we have like 8 people in our room to begin with. Tia gets in a little hospital gown, and they take a little peek at her head. They at first said it was like 3 inches. I personally was like no its bigger than that. Then they said Oh, its like 5. Which I thought was more accurate, but it wasn't until like they were getting ready to staple it closed did they realize it went from one side to the other. Anyway, they start getting the process rolling by putting numbing stuff on her head. That did help and she calmed down, but then she threw-up. A little bit on her and quite a bit on me. So now I am covered in blood and vomit. Luckily my jacket is what got the throw-up, so I took that off and continued to hold her. Shortly after that Gaupo got in. They left us alone while the meds kicked in. While we were waiting, I called my mom. Then Gaupo called Bro. Jeff Schroeder to see if he could come help with a blessing. Luckily he could and was able to get their before they wanted to do the procedure. Gaupo and Jeff gave Tia a blessing. Then the Schroeder's asked if they could do anything like food, or take Kylee. We asked Kylee if she wanted to go with them or stay with us. She opted to go with them. I am so glad. So, they walked out together and Gaupo and I were left with Tia.

I want to say it was round 6:30. I am not really sure they got to putting her scalp back together. They sedated her with Ketamine. Which they said puts you to sleep while keeping you awake. The good thing is it works fast, the bad part is coming out of it. Anyway, they give Tia the shot and it starts working. Oh my word, it is so hard to see your child like that. I can't even describe it. But there I was holding my sweet little Tia while they cut her hair, wash out 1/3 of the wound and staple it. Then repeat on the other side. Then I had to lay her down so they could get the rest of it all closed up. It took them longer than they thought because it was bigger than they thought, so they had to give her another dose. It was super painful to hear and watch as the drug started wearing off the first time. I mean Tia doesn't talk a whole ton, so to hear her little voice say ouch and then to have her body really mean it was so hard. I was so glad when they gave her another dose.  Finally, now that I was soaked with the sodium chloride (think that is what the bottle said) they washed the wound with, and still had blood all over my shirt. They are finally done. Honestly, I couldn't stand for the last part. I was afraid I would pass out, but I couldn't leave either. They had my Tia. Luckily sitting down helped so I could stay. When they were all done, we had to wait for her to start coming out of it again. Oh it was awful. the waiting is so awful. She was so limp. Then when her muscles did come to you could tell they were so heavy and hard for to control it was so not her.

After she came too a little, not completely they tried washing everything up. They ended up having to cut a little more hair, because there was a huge mess of hair that they couldn't get undone. They didn't have a comb, or conditioner. Seriously, I was kind of surprised at what they didn't have on hand. Finally, we were able to move to a clean room and hold Tia completely, and wait for her to completely come around. Of course by this time it is way past her bedtime, so now she is really tired, so instead of popping awake she wants to go to sleep. She awakened pretty well, but we had to use a blow by (oxygen being blown in her mouth) for a little bit, but she finally got the hang of it and all was well. However, we did chose to have a CT scan just to make sure everything was good like we thought it was. Tia did really good at holding still for all of that. Then we waited for the results to come back. We were so happy to hear that there was no bruising, swelling, liquid, or breaks. Everything looked as it ought to. I was so grateful. So, then it was time to go home.

After getting our discharge instructions, we walked out. Well, while Gaupo went to go get the car Tia threw-up. So, we had to go back. Luckily we had already had the CT scan saying everything was okay, so we just got some nausea medicine and went home. I broke the law and I held Tia on the way home. I couldn't bear the thought of strapping her upright in her carseat with that cut being on the back of her head, plus with all the trauma. Oh I just couldn't. Finally at home, I went up and got Tia down. Calmed down and talked to Kylee for a bit. Gaupo went to get the other car and pick-up some hydrogen-peroxide. After the kids were down, we cleaned the blood as best we could from the clothes, made some last phone calls, and then went to bed.

Just as we were falling asleep, Tia starts fusing. So I leap from bed, and she is saying ouch again. I take her downstairs and get her some milk, cookie, and a cracker. Then after she has had just a little something I give her some Advil. She asked to go back to bed, so we took her and nobody except Kylee woke up till 7:30. Kylee woke up earlier, but I gave her the ipad and she played games until Tia woke up.

So, this all happened and really it does feel good to write it all down, but I also want to note the blessings of this event.

1. Gaupo was already at home. Not work Home.
2. Aurore was right there. Someone I knew walked by.
3. I was able to stay calm. I honestly didn't cry until we were waiting for CT scans to come back.
4. It happened in the evening so Tia was a little more worn out which allowed her to be more calm.
5. The Schroeders coming for the blessing and to take Kylee. (Kylee had a great time eating potatoes for dinner and watching Frozen. She was pretty much in heaven, until it was time to go to bed and no one was home but her and Laralee.)
6. It was just a giant nasty cut, and a bruise. There is no brain or skull damage.
7. Tia is a trooper. She held in there, really didn't freak out much (taking into account what happened.) She has been a trooper since too. As soon as she woke-up, she wanted milk and books. She has been wanting to go to the park. She has jumped on the tramp. Not thrown too big of a fit at the cleaning of her cut. I mean really she has done great.
8. Have medical help close.

I am sure there are probably more, but those are what I can think of right now. Anyway, here are a couple of pics.

Tia with Gaupo. Before they stapled her head.

The staples.

Another view.

Tia the day after snitching Cinnamon Toast Crunch ( I know it says Cherrio's you will just have to trust me its not.) We were all busy upstairs and come down to find she pulled this off the counter and was helping herself despite the fact she had a cup of cereal already that she could eat. Silly girl.

Holy Cow! I Have a Four Year-Old

I am like Kylee four seems very old. It is hard to believe it was only four years ago that this little fountain of energy and joy entered my life, but also I am like that is so crazy I am not mature enough or old enough to have a four year-old. Oh well, I have one and she is awesome!

We celebrated Kylee's birthday twice. She really wanted to celebrate with her Aunt Kitt, but Kitt couldn't come until Saturday. So we did a little celebrating on Thursday and then even more on Saturday. Both celebrations we super fun.

Thursday morning started about 6:30. Kylee woke up raring to go. So, she got up early enough to start muffins with me and then we opened some presents. She got a new outfit, training wheels, and a tire tube. Gaupo worked really hard at trying to get her bike all put together, but alas the training wheels would not work with her bike. DANG. Anyway, Kylee was a good sport and I still helped her ride it that morning, I just held onto her.

Kylee talking to Oma and Papa on the phone.

She was kind of like "What's this?"

Opening the training wheels.

Kylee in her birthday outfit.

After all the presents were open, we had breakfast. Kylee wanted muffins, so that is what we did. Then we rushed out the door for swim lessons. Kylee did really good at swim lessons and Tia loves swimming in the pool. She is getting a little bit more rebellious as far as not wanting to practice her swimming skills, but she still had fun and so did Kylee. After lessons, we showered and rushed home so we could do speech. Kylee did so well with the whole lack of attention on her birthday thing. She was really so cute. Then we had lunch. After lunch, we gave Kylee another present--a new pillow. She really wanted one and we thought she might like it for a nap on her birthday. After naps, we got ready for the missionaries to come for dinner.

Kylee making her birthday brownies.

Kylee and Tia love the missionaries. So, they were so excited to have them. The missionaries were so sweet and even brought a present for Kylee. We had bean burritos and then we had brownies and ice cream for dessert. After dinner, we had a lesson and opened one more present.

Kylee with her crown.

Me, Kylee, Gaupo, and Tia.

Sis. Miller, Sis., Kylee, Tia, Me.

Then we sent the missionaries off and jumped in the car to go to Wal-Mart to find some new training wheels. It took forever, because they couldn't find the wheels we found in the system. So annoying, but luckily the girls were really good about everything and we were able to enjoy being a family. We got home and Gaupo put the wheels on her bike while I got the girls ready for bed. Once the wheels were on and the girls were ready for bed, Kylee took some test rides on her new bike. She loved it and really the new wheels we got are so much more Kylee then the tractor ones we had before. After a couple of laps around the loop, it was time for bed. I think Kylee really enjoyed her birthday.

Tia and Kylee with the bike.

The next time we celebrated was on Saturday. The morning started off kind of slow, but while Gaupo was doing homework us womenfolk went out to the backyard. I moved the playhouse and slide so they had the cement pad to ride their bikes and scooters on. We probably played outside for a good two hours. Then we came in and had lunch. Then the girls went down for a nap. I prepared a dinner for a family in our ward, so I wouldn't have to do it when Kitt arrived. Kitt arrived about 30 minutes after the girls woke-up from their naps. The party almost immediately began. We opened the rest of Kylee's presents which included more clothes, a ball, a new doll, doll bottles, and nail polish.

Tia with her sister present.

Kylee opening her ball from Tia.

Kylee and her doll Lucy.

Tia feeding her baby with one of Kylee's new bottles.

Kylee was so pleased. It took awhile to open presents because she wanted to try on all the new clothes she got. However, when we were all done everyone went outside to play. Gaupo gave Kylee's bike a little more TLC (tender loving care) so that the wheels would stop catching. Then I took the girls with me to take the family in our ward dinner. They are kind of an older couple and loved seeing the girls. Then we came home and made our birthday dinner of mac and cheese and hotdogs. It was very tastey. We made a glutten-free chocolate cake and I have made it before and it was really good, but the GF flour I have right now is nasty, so I didn't like the cake at all. So note to self, don't buy sorghum flour it has a flavor. Anyway, the ice cream was still good. After dinner we did baths and put the girls to bed. Then we just talked. Gaupo still had a little homework to finish, so Kitt and I chatted and chatted. We went to bed around 11ish I think. It was really fun to just visit.

Sunday Kitt went to church with us. That was super fun. I like taking my family to church because they are awesome and I like showing everyone who they are. It was fun to sit by my sister and Kylee loved having Aunt Kitt there to watch her do her scripture. It was so great. When we got home from church we had lunch and then naps. During naps we chatted more. Then we had breakfast for dinner. Which actually was really fun and nice to have on a fast Sunday. We had muffins (blueberry and chocolate), eggs, bacon, and hashbrowns. So good. Kitt left around six so she could be home for the family hangout. I love the hangouts with my family. I was kind of a me monster, and took way to long so sorry family. However, it was a great chat and I enjoyed the chat at the end with just Klaire, my mom and dad, and I. It was a such a great Sunday. I was really struggling with making the Sabbath a delight, but I have found being able to walk to church helps, and also everyone waking up at 4:00. It really makes a big difference. Anyway there are our birthday celebrations.

The Temple

This last weekend we got the wonderful opportunity to go to the temple. I am really trying to get to the temple once every two months and I was super afraid that something completely unavoidable was going to come up but it didn't. In fact, Gaupo was able to get most of his homework done BEFORE Saturday, so there wasn't a lot of pressure on that account.

It was such a glorious day. We got off early, later than intended, but I am pretty sure earlier than we have ever gotten off before. We were at the temple at 9:30AM. We were suppose to try and catch the 9:30 session, but obviously that didn't happen, so we were going to go to the 10:00 session, but that one was all full too. So, we were going to go to the 10:30 session, but then Gaupo had a great idea--do sealings. We haven't done Sealings since before Tia was born. That is way to long to go without doing it. I LOVED it. It was so fun to sit next to Gaupo in the temple. The sealing rooms have a have a special spirit in them. It is as if those saints are so excited that they fill that room with their happiness. It was so great. It was awesome to hear the sealing ordinance over and over again. To hear what covenants we make, but also the blessings that can be ours. Along with doing couple sealings, we got to help seal some sons to their parents. That was kind of a treat since our little boy is in heaven. It was great to hear the promises that are given to children that are sealed to their parents. This family unit is so amazing. In the temple, it just makes so much sense as to why we all need to be linked together. We are a family and we have to work together to receive eternal life. We finished up in the temple about 11:30 and headed out. It was such a beautiful day outside I convinced Gaupo to walk around the temple with me a couple of times. Oh what a beautiful day!

So, what did the girls do while we were in the temple? Let me me tell you. We are so lucky to have our Aunt Kitt live about 10 minutes from the temple. Kitt met us at the temple and we passed the girls off to her. Then when we found out we didn't need to rush into the temple she also helped us grab a few family photos before going in. That was way fun. Pretty sure everyone should take a jumping family photo before going into the temple. It just puts you in a great mood.

This is the result of Gaupo being silly, but we are still so cute.

Kylee, Me, Gaupo, and Tia

We are so cute.

JUMP!

After we went into the temple, I am not sure exactly what happened, but I know they had fun. It involved running on the sun, being by and most likely playing with the fountain, walking, and going to the park. Tia and Kylee just adore their Aunt Kitt. Tia has started crying every time I leave her, but not with Aunt Kitt she was more that happy to go and hang with her. The girls wanted to stay longer and Kitt was a great sport to let them have cheese sticks and oranges before they had to make the journey back home. She is such a great aunt and I know my girls had a great time.

Sitting so nicely.

Running on the sun.

Pondering the wonder of water.

In front of the temple

Aunt Kitt, Tia, and Kylee

Tia at the park

We successfully got home and put the girls down for naps. Then the rest of us took naps too. After naps we went to Wal-Mart to get some birthday surprises. Well while we were there we found out they were clearing their inventory so everything on clearance was 50% off of that price. So, we stocked up on some clothes for next year (hopefully) and got a couple of extra things too. It will be really fun, but man even on clearance clothes add up fast.

Saturday was a great day. I loved going to the temple and spending time with my family. I feel so blessed to have my family. I love the ones right here, and the ones far away. I seriously have the best family EVER. I am so glad that I can be with them FOREVER.