A Day in the Life...

 Somebody in our family had a birthday last week and it was me!  I love my birthday.  This year was a bit crazy, but always good! For the last 14 years of marriage, plus before, I've told Tim that what speaks to my heart are words.  I love notes, handwritten letters, kind words, and anything like that.  They speak to me more than anything else.  So I purposefully prepped him numerous times in the weeks preceding my birthday that I really just wanted him to write me a note.  Ha!  He has written me a small handful of notes over the years and I keep all of them because I like them.  I'm not terribly sentimental and can throw away pretty much anything, so keeping them means something! I wasn't disappointed!  I woke up to balloons, gifts from the girls, and a note from Tim.   The girls gave me gear to keep me warm, a tortilla press of my own, and my very most favorite pens in the whole world.  Pens are also my jam. The best pic...

 Dakota.  She is quite the incredible person.  Here are words I use to describe Dakota: FUN CHARISMATIC BEAUTIFUL PLAYFUL CARING DETERMINED FULL OF GOODNESS I just love this girl.  I wish when she was a toddler that I could have seen the girl inside, that I would have believed that all that drama would one day be one of the best things about her.  All her spirit was just waiting to explode- and she did... into this beautiful and wonderful girl who is always fun to be around. Dakota is my early morning pal and my late at night pal too.  She bounces out of bed every morning with a joyful grin, a loud "good morning!" and a really big hug- way before her sisters.  Every single night I tuck her in bed and then find her back in my room to snuggle and chat.  She's the one that can take 50 selfies on anyone's phone in a matter of seconds, and then laugh and laugh at the groan that comes later when they're found. When 5th grade started, her teacher sent an...

 I use this forum as our family journal; I write in lots of places, but this is permanent and something I print out.  Lots of my other journals aren't as organized.  So-  this is the place to write things I want to keep and remember.  This is a hard thing to write about for me but I want to remember. Two of Micah's biggest challenges are anxiety and sleep.  These have carried with her since birth.  I can't remember a time Micah hasn't been anxious.  I've said this before that her birth experience shaped this.  After Kota was born, the doctors told both Tim and I it would be about 30 minutes between births, and there would be plenty of time to help Micah turn around since she was breach.  Three minutes later she was yanked out, feet first.  Her neck was hurt, I got less than one minute to look at her, without holding her, and she was taken up to the NICU.  I think the separation from me and from Dakota (and genetics) probably se...

 All About Micah Micah is the most forgiving and thoughtful person in my life.  It may not seem like it, but she's pretty keenly aware of others' around her, what they need, how they feel, and it affects her more than just superficially.  It really is a gift.  She is the first to notice her surroundings and gauge them for how it makes her feel.  She's the first to remember birthdays and it's important to her to make sure others are given gifts that are thought out. She's the one who'll leave notes of love and encouragement.  She's sentimental and caring. She's the first to forgive anyone who steps on her, even intentionally.  She's sometimes a vulnerable target because of her sensitivity. I find it to be one of her best gifts, and I also worry and hope she doesn't let others squash her spirit or try to change her.   Micah likes things like: dinosaurs, sharks, and tigers , and lots of books.  She likes shooting her BB gun and practicing h...

 Most of the time my doctor's appointments are by phone.  It's incredibly efficient considering I can meet during work time without ever leaving my office. But today I went in person and brought two of my girls, and our new pet. This is Dakota wearing her Halloween costume.  It came yesterday afternoon and she wore it the rest of the day, through the night, and all day today.   She asked to wear it to my office and the doctor's; I don't really care where she wears it, so there's that! She's our cute Kota Cow. The doctor gave me more supplements to take.  He always explains what they're for, and it always makes sense at the time, but then I never remember.  Some I take 3 times a day, some once, and some twice.  One I take four times.  It's a lot to keep track of.  Some are for adrenal health, some for my endocrine system, and some for things I can't really remember.  Some I take long-term, some for a month.  They change about ev...

I took no pictures.  We decided the night before we were going to head home a day early, coming home Saturturday afternoon instead of Sunday.  I was tired and dreading not having some time to unpack and unwind before school and work started. So we left Zion and our vacation. Here's what we agree on: Capitol Reef is pretty cool, but we probably won't go back.  Maybe though. Bryce is always our favorite- the canyon and the city. Zion has pretty incredible hikes, but it's way too crowded and too commercialized. We drove to St. George on the way home, went to Thunder Junction park, and had lunch in Beaver.  There's no place like Beaver to have lunch, haha.   Best part of the vacation, hands down, was just getting out of the busyness of our lives and being together.  I know my family is eternal, and all the things in the world that may happen can't change that.  I am grateful to leave work, leave school, leave the chaos, and go to see the most beautifu...

 Day 7: Zion Canyon We jumped up and after breakfast we took the shuttle back to the stop for the Emerald Pools, this time doing the Lower, Middle and Upper Pool trails.  It takes a bit of time to make the full loop, but it sure is beautiful. Dakota photo-bombed Micah's karate kick pose... We went back to the trailer for lunch and the girls swam for a bit. We then trekked back to the canyon and took the shuttle to the Riverside Walk, which ends in the narrows.  We knew the water would be cold, and hard to walk through.  The twins and I walked 35ish minutes up the river through the water until it got above their knees.  We turned around but Copper and Tim kept going for another 15 minutes or so.  If we had the right shoes and walking sticks, I'd be willing to go further.  But not that day!  It is pretty neat though. Tim didn't see this deer on the way back to the shuttle.  Know why?  He walks too fast.  Sometimes the slow folks get t...